Raw Milk

The days of trusting everything you are told are over. 

In this day and age you will hear EVERY side of every issue and decision you could possibly make. 

The problem is the motivation behind many of those voices and the sophistication with which they bombard you with "facts."

Many of the paths this country has taken that we don't even think to question are amazing and frightening and at the core not in the best interest of society. 

I'll choose just one to share today.

Raw milk.

Pasteurization and homogenization are touted as public safety procedures. 

But what about the other side of those procedures allowing for MUCH wider distribution and ridiculously long shelf life?

Who does this benefit?

Also think about what is going into the bottle (or carton.) If cows have an unhealthy bacteria or other problems, all these things are pasteurized out and the end product is 'safe.' This safety net can allow for much slooppier conditions and health for the cows. 

Ever visit a feed lot?

The milk we drink has to be consumed within a week or it spoils. 

If the cow gets an infection, we don't get milk that week. 

We pay more for our milk. But that is an interesting aspect too; yes, we pay more per gallon for raw milk, but we drink far less of the raw milk because it is more satisfying than the alternative. Our bodies recognize the food, satiation occurs sooner and the brain signals fullness more effectively.

 Yes, we choose raw milk. 

 

My family has been drinking raw milk for over two years. 

We LOVE it.

There is no comparison in taste.  (I'd put more here but I'm fairly certain that Jessica might chime in on the taste difference of raw milk.)

Think water vs. a milk shake.

We have visited the farm and 'met' the grass fed, grazing happy cows and their wonderful owners. 

There are endless articles to do your research all over the web.

Here is a great article.

Or here.

These are both from Natural News a web site I read often. 

Very Berry Whole Wheat Bread Pudding

We do a lot of breakfast posts, I have noticed.  I think it is because, for my part anyway, in the war of healthy eating, breakfast is a battlefield on which I have a clear advantage.  People (and by people I mean Benjamin, my six-year old warrior in the fight for all carbs, all the time) are far more open-minded to healthy foods when their tummies are empty. Breakfast is the meal in which I have the greatest chance of success with my picky eater.  It is also, as we all know, the most important meal of the day. A healthy, filling breakfast sets the day up for success in so many things.

Of course, bread pudding is traditionally a dessert, but I stand behind this healthier version as a great option for breakfast. I reduced the amount of sugar used in typical bread pudding recipes, and I think the amount could be reduced even more, depending on the level of sweet-tooth you are pandering to.  I also used whole wheat bread instead of white, yielding yet another option for using the bread heels of the loaf, which my family (including myself, I must admit) shuns.

Very Berry Whole Wheat Bread Pudding

6 pieces whole wheat bread, on the stale side if possible (as mentioned above, use the heels of the loaf and feel thrifty and resourceful about it!)

2 cups milk (I use whole, raw milk, which makes everything richer, tastier, and, in my opinion, healthier)

4 eggs, beaten

2 tbsp. butter

1/3 - 1/2 cup evaporated cane juice crystals

(As always, use organic ingredients whenever possible)

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 cup berries (Berries are expensive. Organic berries may necessitate a second mortgage. I buy frozen organic berries whenever possible, stockpiling them because they are not always available.  For this recipe I used a "Triple berry antioxidant blend" of organic frozen berries that is sometimes available at Costco. It is strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries, and also includes cherries!)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In an 8x8 baking dish, tear bread into smallish pieces.

Mix berries with bread pieces and drizzle the melted butter over the mixture.

Combine eggs, milk, and vanilla extract in a separate bowl and mix until well blended. Pour this mixture evenly over bread/berry mixture.

Press bread mixture lightly with fork or spatula until all of it is covered with egg mixture.

Bring a teapot of water to a boil. Place baking dish in a large roasting pan, and pour boiling water into roasting pan.  Place roasting pan (with baking dish and boiling water in it) in oven.

Bake about 45 minutes. Remove baking dish from roasting pan with water, place baking dish back in oven and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes, until it is golden brown and has reached "pudding" consistency (a fork in the center will not come clean, but mixture is no longer runny).

This recipe is just in time for Easter (unless you are Erin's family, in which case you have already celebrated, hehe). Enjoy!

Jessica

Quichitas

I make up words.

It nullifies me having to spell things correctly.

Quichitas: little quiche like things.

Quichitas are a staple and favorite around here. The possibilities are endless. To see another version click here.

Here is today's recipe:

6 raw tortilla

5 eggs

couple handfuls of kale chopped

 1 cup kidney beans, cooked

1/2 cup of milk

shredded mozzarella cheese

Toppings; Salsa, yogurt, avocado

Grease the muffin pan.

Cut tortillas in half. Bring ends to meet to make a funnel sort of shape and stuff into muffin cup. (It should look like a little pie crust, and it is ok if you stuff some down, you’re just lining the cup and making the crust.

If you don’t want to use tortillas skip the above step.

Divide the filling ingredients into each cup: kale, beans and cheese.

Beat eggs and milk and fill* each cup 2/3 full.

*I use a turkey baster to fill the cups with the eggs mixture.

Bake for 20-25 minutes until the centers don’t jiggle when you shake the pan.

Top with salsa, yogurt and avocado if desired.

These are great for breakfast on the go if you so need.   

The Salmon Debate!

Yes the great salmon debate! To eat salmon or not to eat salmon. =)) Farm-raised, color added....how did we get here? OK, I'm not going to debate that here but it is something to think about for sure. I still like salmon and fortunately we can get nice wild Sockeye salmon here in the Northwest, so that is what we choose to eat regularly. 

Here is one of our household favorites, fixes in a flash and goes with any side dish!

Seared Salmon Recipe

4 boneless salmon filets (works with skin or no skin)
½ teaspoon sugar
½ teaspoon garlic salt
¼  teaspoon mustard seed
½ teaspoon paprika
1 tablespoon coconut oil

Variation:
Use any of your favorite dry spice mix to dredge the salmon before cooking. 

Mix spices and spread on a shallow plate. Dredge both sides of salmon in dry spice mixture. Heat oil in a pan on high heat until hot. Sear salmon on each side for 3 minutes!

Here are some great articles on salmon:

Eating Well Salmon Article

Organic Consumers Association on Fish Sustainability

Go Fish, 
Bretta =)

bretta.vemma.com

Here Comes The Sun (Salad)

On behalf of the Northern Hemisphere, I would just like to take this time to say, Welcome back, Sun.  It has been a loooooong time since we have seen you much at all.  Oh sure, you've been around a little. For months you have shown up sometime late morning (ok a bit of an exaggeration, but it feels like late morning) and been gone by the time school is out. Each time you arrived it seemed like it was out of habit, an obligatory presence, if you will, arriving late and hovering just above the horizon until the earliest possible moment you could make a graceful exit. Like you were just there because you had to be, not to actually shine.  It's like stopping by a friend's house but not getting out of the car. You stayed so far away we couldn't even derive any vitamin D from you, even on the rare days you actually poked your head out of the clouds. 
I don't mean to sound ungrateful, Sun. I really am glad you're back. I am looking forward to the steadily longer days you will give us until Summer Solstice, when you gradually, subtly start to distance yourself again. The orchestra of Spring that you conduct, flowers blooming, trees donning their full complement of leaves, life everywhere beginning anew, is anxiously awaiting your cues to begin it's vernal masterpiece. And I will be front and center, feeling gratitude for every hour you grace us with your presence.
I know we are not the only hemisphere in the world.  I know Earth does not revolve around us Northerners (in fact, it revolves around you, Sun. You make it happen. You make the world turn. And we love you for that). I know there is an entire southern portion of the globe that is equally deserving of your time.  It's just hard to remember that at 3:30 pm in December, as I make my way to my mailbox with my flashlight.
And I know that, for now at least, your return is a token effort, an act of symbolism.  You won't actually start to shine regularly on us for several months more, preferring instead to lurk behind your comfy blanket of clouds. But we know you are there, hovering behind those clouds.  And we know you will begin to pop out more and more as Spring goes on.  I'm not trying to rush you, and I won't lose my dignity by trying to chase you, or replace you with a tanning bed or some other synthesis of your glorious rays.  I will wait patiently here for you, and when you are ready I will be ready, with my flip-flops and my sunglasses, my sundresses that have been lovingly and somberly packed away. But I will be thinking of you, waiting to truly welcome you back, not just ceremoniously, not like in November when I try to forget you ever existed.
I was thinking of you the other night, Sun, when I glanced at my Meyer lemons on the table.  I am lured into buying them because of their rich, saturated color, as if they actually have the means of storing your beautiful light in their smooth, buttery-soft skin.  I like just having a bowlful on the table, probably because they remind me so much of you.  Of course, Meyer lemons are amazing in a cooking capacity, also.  Any dish that is enhanced by lemon is made magical by Meyer lemons, an elusive fruit whose origins are not entirely known, though the accepted story is that they are a cross between Mandarin oranges and lemons. Until recently Meyer lemons were quite elusive, the supply being so small that they rarely made it far from the tree they were grown on before being whisked away by lemon-lovers in close proximity. Nowadays they are grown in large enough amounts to be shipped far and wide. But, just like you, Sun, they are not around for long.  One must enjoy them while they last and then graciously let them go until next year.
Meyer lemons are all but gone from the grocery stores around here these days, but I happened upon a small pile of them at the store the other day, I admired them for a few days, letting them get even more fragrant, more vibrant. When they began to show those first signs of an aging citrus, I made vinaigrette, and last night made a simple salad with not many ingredients so as not to detract from the glory of the Meyer lemon. 
Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette
Juice of two very ripe Meyer lemons (about 1/4 cup juice)3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil1/2 tsp sea salt1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper1/4 tsp dijon mustard

The salad I made was arugula with some grated Romano cheese, sunflower seeds, and dried cranberries. The nuttiness of the arugula was shown off nicely against the fruity sweetness of the vinaigrette, but this dressing would be great with anything.  

Turkey Burgers

I forgot how much I (and the whole family) enjoy homemade Turkey Burgers until I made them again to get these wonderful pictures! Yum!! Our three year old cleaned his plate, I huge win for protein. 

Personally I like to double or triple the recipe and freeze the add ins for later use. I'm all about saving time and energy. =))  Pull the mixture out of the freezer, thaw and add to your ground turkey. Yeah, dinner is ready in a flash!

This is also the only recipe that I regularly use my Lean Mean Grilling Machine, since these DO NOT do well on a regular grill. Way too soft! This recipe gives instructions for stove top cooking. 

Turkey Burgers Recipe (Adapted from Whole Food Bible):

1/4 cup minced onion
3/4 cups coarsely ground oatmeal (put oatmeal in a blender and pulse until the oatmeal is the consistency of bread crumbs)
1 egg
1/4 cup minced celery
1/4 cup milk or soy mild or stock 
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 clove of minced garlic
3 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 pounds ground organic free-range turkey

Mix all the ingredients except ground turkey well in blender. Add mixture to ground turkey and stir throughly. Form into 1 inch thick patties and place in a lightly oiled skillet. Cook the burgers over medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until browned and crispy. Flip the burgers carefully (they are quite soft) and cook for 5 minutes longer, or until golden brown. Serve the burgers hot. 

To Your Health, 
Bretta

Hummus and Cucumber Appetizers

I love appetizers. 

My favorite meals are spent snacking on varieties of small items of food. 

My parents, who are consummate entertainers, always have an appetizer waiting.  I always appreciated the gesture. 

Until I had kids.

For a few years we dreaded having to squawk "You'll spoil your dinner!" "You can have one and that is all!" and then listen to the complaining and requests that followed. 

We have made two progressions in this conundrum. 

One: serve items that you don't mind if the kids fill up on.

Especially when serving more expensive dinner items. 

Oh no, you're too full for more sushi?? 

Bummer.

The second is the fact that my kids are growing up. 

I no longer have to watch them like a hawk over the tray of crackers limiting their intake to a normal humans'. "You can each have two." Translates to them each enjoying two and that being the end of the conversation.

I have loved every stage, so far, but I do appreciate the payoffs from the years of following through with 2 means 2 and whining will get you a quick ticket to your room with none. 

Cucumbers with Hummus and Flax seeds

OK, when you name something like that it makes writing out the recipe a little redundant.

Cucumbers

Hummus

Flax seeds

For a quick hummus I throw a can of garbanzo beans, 4 cloves of garlic (or more),  a couple tablespoons of fresh lemon juice,  a couple tablespoons of olive oil and salt into the food processor and blend until smooth with chunks.  

Asian Pork Tacos

I am posting a taco recipe for the second week in a row, but I have good reason for it!

I enjoy Taco Night immensely in my house, partly because they are delicious and easy, but for another reason also. I serve them the way I learned how to serve them: I set out all the taco components and garnishments on a nicely set table.  I serve the shells directly onto the plates, but everything else is a la carte and served from the table.  This is the way dinner was always eaten in my house growing up. Whether at my parents' table, or either of their parents' tables, the ritual was the same: The table was set, drinks poured, and then all the food was set out in serving dishes or on platters, from which all of the diners in attendance filled their plates. It never even occurred to me that it was done a different way.

Until, of course, I started dining with my husband.

In my husband's world, the only way dinner is served is by the chef, and perhaps the chef's helper. Servings are put onto the plates before the plates go out to the table. In this way, attention can be paid to the aesthetic of the presentation, I guess....but I still think it's weird.

Before we had kids, when he made me dinner he always served it that way, and I thought it was just a romantic flourish. When I served dinner, he was confused and confounded by my need to create more dishes by putting the food in a serving dish before serving it. I agreed with the less dishes part.  Then, after kids, I assumed we always served dinner that way because it was just easier, being that we made up our kids' plates anyway, and also, what kind of self-sabotaging idiot puts a bowlful/plateful of food within reach of a toddler, when toddler hands are not wanted in said bowl or plate?

But as our kids have grown, our method of plate-serving has persisted, and in the last couple of years I have realized why.  I noticed that whenever we dine at his family's tables, whether it's his brothers' or father's or mother's table, the meal is served by the chef, onto the plate. A cultural difference? Perhaps. His family is from New Orleans as far back as both sets of great-grandparents. My family's roots are deep in the heart of the West. Could that explain the difference?  Another marked difference in the way our families eat dinner is the time.  My side of the family eats at 5 pm, maybe 5:30. If it is 6:00 and dinner is not on the table, people are perturbed.  At my husband's family's houses, dinner preparations do not begin until after 8:00 usually, and it is not uncommon at all to eat in the 10 pm range.  Are these cultural differences, or is it merely happenstance how a family learns to have dinner? Are early meals, served buffet style, the mark of a household with pioneer roots, borne from those who worked sun-up to sundown, and came home HUNGRY? Conversely, are suppers that are served restaurant-style, after hours of wine drinking, appetizer nibbling, and sparkling conversation the mark of a family whose roots are in a somewhat cosmopolitan Southern city?

While I think that Lex's family's way of eating is novel when we go and visit, I miss the buffet-style dinners of my youth.  For one thing, there is more time together at the table. The conversation starts not when people are putting their forks to their mouths, but when they sit down, observe the options, and begin to pass and serve. I think my kids do better with dinner served this way also.  It gives them a sense of control over what goes on their plates, and how much. I could swear they are more cooperative and I am more relaxed when we serve ourselves.

Taco Night is one of the few meals in our house that has retained the rituals of my family's way of eating. Maybe because it's really the only way to serve tacos, although Lex is still mystified as to why we don't just stuff our tacos in the kitchen.

So for that reason, and because these tacos are DELICIOUS, I give you Asian Pork Tacos, adapted from a recipe I got from my friend Margaret. Another spin on the meal I most enjoy. Who knows, maybe next week I will post Italian Tacos? Polish Tacos? Hebrew Tacos? The possibilities are endless, but this recipe is a keeper.

Asian Pork Tacos

1 tbsp. natural style peanut butter

1 tbsp. liquid aminos or soy sauce

1 tbsp. hoisin sauce

1 tbsp. oyster sauce 

3/4 cup chicken stock

1 3/4 lb. lean ground pork (Margaret's recipe calls for turkey which is also great. I think ground chicken would work well also.

Mix first 4 ingredients in a small bowl.  Brown pork in a large cast-iron skillet, drain off fat and, if you like (I do), rinse the meat with water in a colander to remove even more fat and then return to skillet. Add the sauce to the skillet and heat to simmering, about medium-low heat on my gas range. Add the chicken stock and stir, cook until stock is aborbed into meat.

Garnish tacos with (this is the fun part):

Shredded cabbage

Julienned cucumbers

Grated pepperjack cheese

Sliced bell peppers

Chopped green onions

Chopped cilantro

Chopped peanuts or cashews

Shredded Carrots

I put an array of sauces on the table, even though Lex puts only Sriracha on his and I put only sweet pepper jelly on mine, and the kids do not partake in sauces. It's the statement it makes:  so many options.

Enjoy!

Jessica

Doing it All = Doing it All Wong?

My Wonderful Family: 

I recently watched a great documentary Happy (www.thehappymovie.com). And one of the things that really struck me was a group of folks that all live in a shared community. (OK, sounds a whole lot better than commune!) They helped each other out with watching the kids, group activities and cooking meals. A single mother pointed out that she was able to spend a lot more time with her family because she ONLY HAD TO COOK TWICE A MONTH (granted it was for about 50 people)!!!! Doesn't that sound a whole lot easier then cooking three meals a day, by yourself1?! 

If you stop and think about how much time, energy and thought goes into cooking for your family, is the American icon of independence really that way to go when it comes to feeding your family?  Personally, I have been trying to figure out how to make this work for me, because frankly it sounds wonderful!!  Sign me up for cooking only 2 meals a month or even twice a week would be better. =)) Now don't get me wrong I love to cook, obviously or why would I be writing this blog, but is there a better way?

Do you have any ideas on how to make meal preparation easier? Is there an easy way to share? Can we bring back more of the community spirit in this country when it comes to meal time?

Let's be a true community, 
Bretta

www.bretta.vemma.com

Ground Nut Soup and Salad

Occasionally I feel the need to realign my diet. 

I know the foods that work best for me. 

More so I know the foods that don't work well for me. 

Namely white flour, white sugar, alcohol.

You know, all the good stuff :(

A few years ago, a year after my second child was born I started an eating regime with my mom called the Perricone Promise. 

Dr. Perricone is a dermatologist who came up with an eating plan for a younger appearance which had the side effect (on us at least) weight loss. It is a 28 day program and we committed to doing it together. He also wrote The Perricone Weight-Loss Diet book which I don't like as well but I enjoy some of the recipes.

It has become my go to eating re-align-er.  

Yes, I should eat by it's guidelines all the time. I feel better, I look better, and I keep my weight in check.

The reality is that I like having a beer with my husband and a pizza night now and again.

And slowly the now and again becomes all the time and my jeans get tight. 

The wonderful thing about having this is that I always know I can go back to it and that it works for me. I believe in balance but when you swing too far one way the pendulum must swing the other way for a while so you can get back to a happy center. 

Strawberry Salad

3 cups Baby Spinach
5 Strawberries, chopped
3 mini Cucumbers
1 Tablespoons Sesame Seeds 
2 Tablespoons Nutritional Yeast
3 Tablespoons Balsamic Vinaigrette (Make your own, it's olive oil and vinegar, add salt, garlic, and mustard if you want to get fancy but for goodness sake don't spend money on products that give you a bunch of stuff you don't want.)

 

 African Groundnut Soup
adapted from The Perricone Weight-Loss Diet which adapted the recipe from Stop the Clock cooking.

Olive Oil
1 red onion, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
1/2 cup celery, chopped
6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 Tablespoon curry powder
2 Tablespoons fresh ginger, pealed and minced
1 jar of tomato sauce (preferably one you canned after the harvest last year ;)
1 bay leaf (my family is still arguing the effect of the bay leaf but I throw in anyway, sorry Uncle Ted.)
4 cups chicken broth (you know, from last night's whole crock pot chicken dinner)
3 tablespoons almond butter 
1 1/2 cooked soy beans (edamame works as well)
1 lb. cooked chicken
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/2 pound spinach (or kale, chard, or other dark leafy green)
Salt and Pepper and hot sauce to taste

• Saute onion, pepper, celery in olive oil for about 5 minutes.
• Stir in garlic, ginger, curry powder.
• Add tomato sauce and bay leaf and cook about 3 minutes.
• Add broth, bring to boil, reduce to low, whisk in almond butter until blended.
• Add beans and chicken and cook until heated through.
• Stir in cilantro and spinach.
• Season with salt, pepper and hot sauce if desired. 

Tacos, Only Healthier

First of all, I must apologize for the photo I am posting with this recipe, as it is not a picture of the completed dish, but one I took before I cooked it. The reason I do not have a photo of the finished product is simply this:  I wolfed it down too fast.

The last few weeks have been going by at a feverish pace at my house. It seems like we are all running in different directions, my family and I, and rarely meeting up. This pace is not normal for us, as we are generally laid back people who like to keep things simple. But throw in the fact that Hayden's school play is this Saturday, meaning rehearsals every night and a mad dash to get costumes/sets finished, a few extra meetings for my husband, and what seems to be the crescendo phase of his rec-league hockey season (lots of games, tournaments, and general hockey hullabaloo), and suddenly we are the typical too-busy family. 

I have been reminding myself often of late that there is no shame in making the same dinner dish again and again. If it is healthy and we all love it, why not? Just because I didn't reinvent the wheel does not make dinner a failure.  I am not a planner by any stretch--in fact, I am the very antithesis of a planner, but with my family's busy schedule lately I am finding it impossible to pull off dinner without some premeditation. Enter Taco Tuesday, a perfectly logical idea that is probably not new to anyone, and I can't really believe it's new to me (I call it a "well, duh" moment). 

No one really needs a recipe for tacos, but here are a few pointers for making Taco Tuesday a healthy dinner night:

• Use organic taco shells or, at the very least, use shells with the fewest ingredients possible. I thought my tacos were fairly healthy until I realized, you can stuff them as healthfully as you want, but if you use the wrong shells you're wrapping all that effort in trans-fats and high fructose corn syrup. In the picture is a raw flour tortilla, which we have been getting packs of from Costco. The ingredient list is the shortest I've been able to find. Of course, from Costco you have to buy them in bulk, but they freeze well. Divide the tortillas into amounts that you and your family can eat in, say, a week or so, because when they are frozen it is difficult to separate them to only thaw a few.

• Use organic meat, or beans, or both. We make ground beef tacos, and organic beef makes a world of  difference flavor-wise, in addition to avoiding hormones, steroids, antibiotics, pink slime, and other terrifying possibilities. 

• Use plain Greek yogurt instead of sour cream.

• Used chopped spinach instead of iceberg lettuce. Not to knock iceberg, but everyone knows spinach packs a mightier nutritional punch.

• Chop fresh avocados instead of using guacamole, if you are short on the time to make the guac. Fresh, organic guacamole can be purchased, I know, but where I live you have to pay an arm and a leg for it, if it can even be found!

• Lastly, another "well, duh" moment for me:  make your own taco seasoning. It's easy, and you don't have to worry about preservatives or MSG sneaking into your taco under the guise of "natural flavors". The recipe I use can be found at http://m.allrecipes.com/recipe/46653/recipetaco-seasoning-i  It's delicious on ground beef and chicken.

Enjoy! Jessica

Chili with Beans and Ground Meat

Chili is a winter time household favorite that can be reheated easily. Every time I make this it turns out a little different as:

• I like to mix up bean varieties - someone I know has a real problem with kidney beans because they are KIDNEY beans! I will not mention names to protect the innocent (or just flat out strange!)
• I may not always have peppers on hand and just leave them out!
• I like to mix up chili spices by substituting Chipotle or Ancho. 

Chili with Beans and Ground Meat Recipe:

2 tablespoon olive oil or grapeseed oil

4 garlic cloves

2 large sweet onions (or regular if you can’t find sweet onions, but really try harder next time!!)

2 pound turkey or lean ground beef

1 tablespoon cumin

2 tablespoons chili powder

2 ¼ cups cooked chili or black or kidney beans (15 oz can, organic is better! Read the label on the other stuff, yuck!)

2 ¼ cups cooked white beans

4 ½ cups diced tomatoes (28 oz can)

1 tablespoon balsamic Vinegar

2 tablespoon black strap molasses

½ cup frozen finely chopped spinach

Heat oil in a large pot (5-6 quarts) and sauté onions and minced garlic for about 10 minutes over medium heat. Add ground meat and cook for another 5 minutes. Toss in the cumin and chili powder, stir well and cook for another 5 minutes.  Add beans, tomatoes, balsamic vinegar and molasses. Cook, covered for 15 minutes. 

Add chopped spinach, stir and it’s ready to serve! 

Embellish with cheese, sour cream, yogurt, scallions or a little cayenne to spice up your pallet!!

Warm Chili Wishes, 

Bretta =))

Kids - Treats and Lunch

I have been labeled as many thing in my mommying style. A hippie, uber healthy, overly particular. 

I am clearing the slate right now: it's not true. 

None of it. 

Do you know what the kids are eating in this picture? 

Root Beer Floats.

With Ice Cream.

And Root Beer.

I am not the food Nazi that some people believe me to be. 

That being said; I have my limits and my lines. 

The kids chose, of their own free will I might add, to trade the candy they received for Valentine's day in for a treat that mommy approved of. 

It's organic ice cream and all natural root beer. The alternative was corn syrup solids, every color dye and number you can think of and other ingredients that I can't write right now because I have no idea what they were. 

I'm not anti occasional treat, but chemicals and non food items I'd prefer not enter these growing bodies. 

And here is a lunch idea that is a big hit around here.

Turkey Rolls and Salad 

Slices of roasted turkey

Please be careful when buying lunch meat; it, for the most part it is gross. Really gross. And full of BAD things. Costco sells roasted sliced turkey breast that is just that no preservatives or additives. Yes, organic would be better, slicing your own would be amazing, but it's all a balance, yes?

Cheese Sticks

Spinach

Strawberries

Banana Chips

Pine Nuts

Balsamic Vinaigrette 

Wrap the turkey around the stick of cheese. 

Assemble the salad.