Stovetop BBQ Chicken

April 9, 2013 By 17 Comments

Welcome to the April 2013 Carnival of Natural Parenting: Family Recipes

This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Code Name: Mama and Hobo Mama. This month our participants are sharing their recipes, their stories, their pictures, and their memories.

***


Prep time: 5 minutes — Cook time: 20 Minutes — Total Time: 25 minutes

10758_10102350243415251_1684507183_n

Stovetop BBQ Chicken (Serves 4-6)

I seriously LOVE Stovetop BBQ Chicken. It’s a relatively new addition to my cooking repertoire, but it’s fast becoming one of our family’s favorites, and a recipe I will for sure pass to my son and daughter as they grow! A new family recipe!

I originally cooked this at a friend’s house when we had a playdate/eat-over. She had been wanting BBQ chicken but it was the middle of winter and using the grill was out of the question. So, she googled and found a youtube video for how to make BBQ chicken on the stovetop. When we made it, we served it with whole grain rice, and it was delicious! So, I took the idea home with me and tweaked it a bit to my tastes, adding mushrooms and changing quantities of ingredients somewhat to fit my preferences. Our family LOVES this recipe, and I hope you will, too!

Ingredients

Olive oil for cooking
6 boneless skinless chicken thighs OR 6 thinly sliced breast pieces
1/2 onion, chopped
2 heaping tbsp chopped garlic
1/4 cup chopped bell peppers
3 roma tomatos coarsly chopped
1/4 cup sliced mushrooms
1/3 cup fresh chopped cilantro
1 tbsp tomato sauce
1 tbsp BBQ sauce (I like to use a honey flavored one)

Process

In a large skillet, on high heat, sauté the onion, garlic, and bell peppers in the olive oil. When onions have started to soften, lower heat to medium-high and add chicken, cooking 2-5 minutes on each side to brown each side.

Lower heat to medium and add tomatoes, mushrooms, and chopped cilantro. Turn chicken a few times to incorporate all the vegetables and cilantro.

When all the vegetables are soft, add 1 tbsp tomato sauce and a splash of water if needed to create a sauce (you should have about 1/3 cup liquid in your pan at this point – most of which comes from cooking the tomatoes and the olive oil you started with, but add water if needed).

Then add 1 tbsp (or more or less depending on your preference) BBQ sauce and lower heat to low, simmering covered for 10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

Salt and pepper to taste (I usually don’t add any salt) and serve with whole grain rice or potatoes, sweet potatoes, and your favorite vegetable!

The Scoop

The whole family LOVES stovetop BBQ chicken, and I’m sure your family will, too. It’s a great meal for any time of year and only takes 25 minutes to prep and to cook. The kids also like to help me cook by adding in the vegetables to the pan as needed. And Joseph loves to stir.

Have fun getting your family active in the kitchen and trying out new recipes!!!!!

What’s YOUR favorite go-to recipe?

***

Carnival of Natural Parenting -- Hobo Mama and Code Name: MamaVisit Code Name: Mama and Hobo Mama to find out how you can participate in the next Carnival of Natural Parenting!

Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants:

  • German Red Cabbage: A Family Tradition — At Living Peacefully with Children, Mandy shares her favorite dish and a part of her family’s history.
  • Rotisserie Chicken Recipes for Meal Planning — Becky at Crafty Garden Mama shares a new recipe that is in her family’s meal-planning rotation. Check out how she uses a rotisserie chicken to get through the week.
  • Grandma Wicken’s Sugar Cookies — Jana Falls at Jananas talks about how special her Grandma’s sugar cookies made her feel.
  • Recipe: Seed and Bean Burgers — ANonyMous at Radical Ramblings shares one of her favourite frugal recipes that is also super-healthy and totally delicious.
  • PULLING Dinner Together For the Kids – Crockpot Pulled Pork — Lisa at The Squishable Baby PULLS dinner together for the kids.
  • The Best Banana Muffin Recipe (Gluten Free & Vegan) — Dionna of Code Name: Mama’s adventures in gluten free baking have not been 100% successful. But today she is guest posting at Fine and Fair to share a banana muffin recipe that will knock your socks off!
  • The Pierogie Mama Whips Up Strawberry Pierogies! — Bianca at The Pierogie Mama shares her family’s recipe for strawberry pierogies…a sweet, summery version of the Polish dumplings that she affectionately named her daughter after.
  • Mom’s Cookbook — Tree at Mom Grooves digs into the big book her mom created for her six daughters and shares a favorite family recipe.
  • Crispy Duck Confit — Jennifer at Hybrid Rasta Mama takes the liberty of starting a family recipe tradition with this super simple, totally delicious crispy duck confit.
  • Stovetop BBQ Chicken — Amy at Me, Mothering, and Making it All Work shares a yummy BBQ chicken recipe that you can make on the stovetop in less than 25 minutes, fridge to table!
  • Twice-Baked Sweet Potato Casserole w/Bacon — Martine at Whey Beyond the Naked Truth shares a naked food twist on an old family favorite!
  • Strawberry Panna Cotta — KerryAnn at CookingTF.com shows you her favorite dessert, a quick and easy Strawberry Panna Cotta that she enjoys so much, she had it instead of a birthday cake this year.
  • Special crepes for a special day — Mikko at Hobo Mama is learning to cook his grandma’s signature holiday meal alongside his dad.
  • Three Favorite Family Recipes: To Eat, To Wash, To Play — Kristin at Intrepid Murmurings is back with three family favorites: gluten-free vanilla orange sugar cookies, DIY powdered laundry detergent, and something fun for the kids: homemade “Flubber”!
  • Black Bean Soup Forever — Mercedes at Project Procrastinot shares a soup recipe that’s been around forever.
  • Do you want to know a secret? — SRB at Little Chicken Nuggets lets go of her mac and cheese recipe, a comfort food favourite for friends and family for years.
  • Creating Our Own Family Recipes — Emily at S.A.H.M. i AM shares how she’s trying to create meals that her girls will want to pass down to their own children some day.
  • Vranameer Chicken: A Family Recipe — Luschka at Diary of a First Child shares a recipe that reminds her of childhood and more specifically, of her mother. It’s a South African take on sweet and sour chicken and what it lacks in healthy it makes up for in tantalising to the taste buds.
  • One Recipe, Three Uses: Dishwasher Liquid Detergent, Dish Soap, and Hand Soap — If you love saving money and time, you’ll love this green recipe from Jennifer at Hybrid Rasta Mama, guest posting at Natural Parents Network.
  • Our Family’s Favorite Pies — Abbie at Farmer’s Daughter shares recipes and tutorials for the quintessential American dessert.
  • Deliciously Easy Crock Pot Chili — Lactating Girl shares her crock pot chili that is not only quick and easy, but awesome.
  • All-Purpose Crock Pot Pork — Crunchy Con Mommy‘s simple “recipe” for cooking perfect pork in the crock pot is for whatever mood her family is in!
  • Family Rules: A Recipe for Harmony — Cooped-up kids + winter weather + frazzled parents can all blend together into a recipe for disaster. Dionna at Code Name: Mama shares what brought back the peace in her house.
  • Favorite Healthy Family Recipes — Deb Chitwood at Living Montessori Now shares her family’s healthy eating experiences along with links to free printable vegetarian recipes that her family has created with love.
  • Grandma’s Banana Bread — Megan at The Boho Mama has early and fond memories of her grandma’s banana bread. It’s love in a loaf!
  • Family Comfort Food — Jorje of Momma Jorje shares a recipe handed down that moms have made for their kids, for regular meals as well as to comfort.

Filed Under: 2013, Carnival of Natural Parenting, cooking, family

Homemade Kolaches – Simple and delicious!

April 2, 2013 By 2 Comments

As a Texan transplanted into New England, I get annoyed about several cultural differences. The cult worship of Tom Brady, the awful city driving layout of Boston, and the absence of any even remotely decent mexican food (or, really, ethnic food in general).

3692855376_4ab8917148_q

But not until recently did I realize that no one up here knows what a kolache is.

Yummy, soft, fluffy bread covering breakfast foods varying from veggies to eggs and bacon, to cream cheese and fruit? Yes, please! Oh, how this homesick Texas girl has been missing kolaches. . . and to find out that my friends didn’t know what a kolache was!? Oh, no. That had to be rectified.

I had been wanting to have kolaches for breakfast for some time now, and after exhausting myself searching for a bakery or coffee shop that even knew what a kolache was (much less had them for sale) . . . I decided I would make them myself. They wouldn’t be Kolache Factory good, but they’d at least be kolaches.

On Easter Sunday this year, I made them for lunch. We shared them with our friends at the park (who had never ever had a kolache before) and they were so delicious. Making them was easier than I thought it would be, and it was a great joyful moment for me to see my friends enjoy a kolache for the first time.

IMG_2055

My homemade bacon, egg, and cheese kolaches

The recipe and tutorial I used for making my own kolaches is this one from Homesick Texan. The kolaches came out so perfect – hard enough on the outside to carry in your hand for a portable breakfast on the run, and soft but well baked in the center, with just enough warmth in the filling. YUM!

I found it incredibly interesting and honestly, a great relief, that someone else shared my “you don’t know what a kolache is!?” grief as a transplant in New England. The author of Homesick Texan is from hill country Texas that lives in New York.

Apparently, ya’ll, kolaches are a Texan thing. Who knew?

Making Kolaches

- I suggest making the dough and preparing your fillings the day before, and baking them in the morning if you want your kolaches to be ready for breakfast. Working with cold fillings (bacon, eggs, cheese, cream cheese, jam, fruit, etc) is so much easier than working with warm fillings. It’s easier to fold them into the dough and they bake to a perfect warmth in the 375′ oven.

-These kolaches can be baked and then FROZEN and reheated in the oven or toaster oven for 5-10 minutes. What a great idea for getting a filling and balanced breakfast on the run, when paired with some milk or juice and a piece of fresh fruit! (and since they’re home made, you can make them preservative free, or organic, or vegetarian, or whatever your food choice is!)

The Recipe:

Kolaches (adapted from recipes found in Texas Monthly and the HoustonChronicle)

(I made my own adjustments in the method section, specifically between steps 7 & 9)

Makes 18-20 4 inch kolaches
Ingredients:
1 package of active dry yeast
1 cup of warm milk
1/4 cup sugar
3 cups of all-purpose flour
2 eggs
3/4 cup of melted butter
1 teaspoon of salt

Method:

  1. In a large bowl, combine yeast, warm milk, sugar and one cup of flour. Cover and let it rise until doubled in size.
  2. Beat together eggs, 1/2 cup of melted butter (reserve 1/4 cup for brushing on the pastry) and salt.
  3. Add egg mixture to yeast mixture and blend.
  4. Stir in about two more cups of flour, 1/2 cup at a time. The dough should be soft and moist.
  5. Knead dough for about 10 minutes on floured surface. You will be adding about a 1/2 cup of flour during the kneading process.
  6. Put dough in a greased bowl and let rise covered until doubled in size—about an hour.
  7. After dough has risen, punch it down and pull off egg-sized pieces. In your hands, roll pieces into balls and then flatten to about three inches in diameter.
  8. Flatten/stretch the three inch pieces with your fingers so that the edges are thinner than the middle, and place your chosen fillings in the center of your circle. Fold up the edges of the dough over the fillings, making sure to press slightly to stick the roll together. You can pick up the dough ball after folding in the fillings and roll it gently in your hands like a dinner roll.
  9. Place filled pieces on a greased cookie sheet, brush with melted butter, cover and let rise again for another half-hour.
  10. Bake in oven at 375 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes. Brush with melted butter when you take them out of the oven and serve warm.
IMG_2059

You may also prefer the “thumb press” method for sweet kolaches. These are cream cheese and strawberry preserves.

Filed Under: 2013, adaptability, baking, cooking, creating for the family, Maine, USCG Life

Healthy and Economical Cooking tips! (Plentiful Pantry Blog Hop – LINKY!)

February 21, 2013 By Leave a Comment

This is the first installment of The Plentiful Pantry Blog Hop, hosted by yours truly and Gretchen at That Mama Gretchen! We’re exploring ways to make our pantries plentiful and providing fun, savory, and healthy family meals and snacks even in a tough economy.

Won’t you join us? Link up at the bottom of the post with your recipes, tips, and ideas!

__________

Every time I go to the grocery store or bulk foods store, I stare at the beautiful, already cut, boneless skinless chicken breasts. They can go right on the grill. Or right in the pan – no cutting or messy hands required. I’m almost enticed to pick up a pack. . . until I remember the steep price I’m paying for convenience (and the extra water and chicken broth that’s been pumped into the meant to make it look so nice and plump). Not a good deal.

So, I go pick up my bone-in breast or quartered chicken, and I’m on my merry way, excited about the money I’m saving my family and the way I’ll be able to use and stretch the chicken (and her bones) to their fullest food potential, just a few minutes of sticky hands and cutting required.

The No Waste Way

IMG_1509

Close up of my cooked boney pieces and the chicken stock the boiling yields. Did you know you were missing out on THAT much chicken and stock, buying boneless, skinless?

Usually, I buy my bone-in chicken from the BJs (a bulk food store) and I get six bone in chicken breasts with rib meat for about $12.00. That’s $2 a piece, a little more than I’d pay at the grocery store, but less than I’d pay at the meat market.

I start a large pot of water to boil on the stovetop and prepare to slice my chicken off the bone.

I save one of the pre-packaged 2-piece freezer-ready pouches in the freezer for the next week, and I slice off the breast meat from the other four pieces.

This yields four large breasts of chicken – enough meat for two grilled chicken or chicken parmesan dinners for four (remembering that the serving size for meat is the size of a deck of cards, and my little ones eat less than that).

Then, I drop the four boney pieces in the boiling pot, and lower the heat so that it doesn’t boil over.

I boil the pieces for about fifteen to twenty minutes, adding some salt and seasonings. And then I turn off the heat and let them simmer in the broth that’s created.

I then allow the pot to cool to lukewarm (this takes a while. . . I usually do other things while I’m waiting on it to cool).

When the pot is cooled to lukewarm, I take out the boney pieces and set them in a pyrex bowl to cool off. I pour the chicken stock that I’ve created by boiling the bone pieces into two containers to store in the fridge. The chicken stock gets used in soups.

When the bone pieces have cooled, I rip off the chicken from the bone and have at least four cups of shredded chicken. I use shredded chicken in chicken salad, chicken gnocchi soup, chicken tacos, and buffalo chicken dip.

The Cost Breakdown

Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts can cost $2.99 per pound (1.99 per pound on sale)

Bone-in Chicken Breasts with Rib Meat usually cost around $1.79 per pound (I buy mine sometimes for $2.00 because of the freezer packs).

The chicken breasts cut off the bone are the same size as those you buy boneless skinless (because boneless skinless breasts are injected with water and broth to make them bigger).

So, I pay $10-$12 for:

  • 6 cups of shredded chicken
  • six large chicken breasts
  • and 4 quarts of chicken stock.
  • (Total $12)

In the grocery store, that same yield could be accomplished by buying:

  • a pack of 6 boneless skinless chicken breasts for around $5 or more
  • four cans of shredded chicken for approximately $1 – 2 each
  • and four large canisters of chicken stock for approx. $2 each
  • (Total = $17-20)

So, I save my family $5.00 per shopping trip (or more, when bone-in chicken is on sale!) by buying my chicken bone-in and taking the time to use my waste free approach to cut it up, boil it, shred it, and store the stock.

Notes

Fresh Chicken Stock will keep for 3-5 days in the fridge, so I usually freeze half of my stock and use the other half during the week that I cut up the chicken. My two favorite uses for it: Chicken Gnocchi Soup and Broccoli Cheese Soup. Nummy Nummy.

When I cut my chicken breasts off the bone, I usually freeze them, two breasts to a pack, in freezer paper, to ensure that I do not waste any by saving it in the fridge and then forgetting it’s there.

Do you have a tip or trick to make YOUR pantry Plentiful?

Share in our blog hop below! Link up your post, or comment below with your tips as well!

Please take some time to read some of the great Plentiful Pantry posts from our friends linking up on how to stretch a budget and cook savory meals!

Filed Under: 2013, budget, cooking, Plentiful Pantry Blog Hop

Saving $$ by Buying Bone-In Chicken (Plentiful Pantry Blog Hop – LINKY!)

February 15, 2013 By Leave a Comment
This is the first installment of The Plentiful Pantry Blog Hop, hosted by yours truly and Gretchen at That Mama Gretchen! We’re exploring ways to make our pantries plentiful and providing fun, savory, and healthy family meals and snacks even in a tough economy.

Won’t you join us? Link up at the bottom of the post with your recipes, tips, and ideas, and grab a button to promote your participation! 1





Every time I go to the grocery store or bulk foods store, I stare at the beautiful, already cut, boneless skinless chicken breasts. They can go right on the grill. Or right in the pan – no cutting or messy hands required. I’m almost enticed to pick up a pack. . . until I remember the steep price I’m paying for convenience (and the extra water and chicken broth that’s been pumped into the meant to make it look so nice and plump). Not a good deal.

So, I go pick up my bone-in breast or quartered chicken, and I’m on my merry way, excited about the money I’m saving my family and the way I’ll be able to use and stretch the chicken (and her bones) to their fullest food potential, just a few minutes of sticky hands and cutting required.

The No Waste Way

IMG_1509

Close up of my cooked boney pieces and the chicken stock the boiling yields. Did you know you were missing out on THAT much chicken and stock, buying boneless, skinless?

Usually, I buy my bone-in chicken from the BJs (a bulk food store) and I get six bone in chicken breasts with rib meat for about $12.00. That’s $2 a piece, a little more than I’d pay at the grocery store, but less than I’d pay at the meat market.

I start a large pot of water to boil on the stovetop and prepare to slice my chicken off the bone.

I save one of the pre-packaged 2-piece freezer-ready pouches in the freezer for the next week, and I slice off the breast meat from the other four pieces.

This yields four large breasts of chicken – enough meat for two grilled chicken or chicken parmesan dinners for four (remembering that the serving size for meat is the size of a deck of cards, and my little ones eat less than that).

Then, I drop the four boney pieces in the boiling pot, and lower the heat so that it doesn’t boil over.

I boil the pieces for about fifteen to twenty minutes, adding some salt and seasonings. And then I turn off the heat and let them simmer in the broth that’s created.

I then allow the pot to cool to lukewarm (this takes a while. . . I usually do other things while I’m waiting on it to cool).

When the pot is cooled to lukewarm, I take out the boney pieces and set them in a pyrex bowl to cool off. I pour the chicken stock that I’ve created by boiling the bone pieces into two containers to store in the fridge. The chicken stock gets used in soups.

When the bone pieces have cooled, I rip off the chicken from the bone and have at least four cups of shredded chicken. I use shredded chicken in chicken salad, chicken gnocchi soup, chicken tacos, and buffalo chicken dip.

The Cost Breakdown

Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts can cost $2.99 per pound (1.99 per pound on sale)

Bone-in Chicken Breasts with Rib Meat usually cost around $1.79 per pound (I buy mine sometimes for $2.00 because of the freezer packs).

The chicken breasts cut off the bone are the same size as those you buy boneless skinless (because boneless skinless breasts are injected with water and broth to make them bigger).

So, I pay $10-$12 for:

  • 6 cups of shredded chicken
  • six large chicken breasts
  • and 4 quarts of chicken stock.
  • (Total $12)

In the grocery store, that same yield could be accomplished by buying:

  • a pack of 6 boneless skinless chicken breasts for around $5 or more
  • four cans of shredded chicken for approximately $1 – 2 each
  • and four large canisters of chicken stock for approx. $2 each
  • (Total = $17-20)

So, I save my family $5.00 per shopping trip (or more, when bone-in chicken is on sale!) by buying my chicken bone-in and taking the time to use my waste free approach to cut it up, boil it, shred it, and store the stock.

Notes

Fresh Chicken Stock will keep for 3-5 days in the fridge, so I usually freeze half of my stock and use the other half during the week that I cut up the chicken. My two favorite uses for it: Chicken Gnocchi Soup and Broccoli Cheese Soup. Nummy Nummy.

When I cut my chicken breasts off the bone, I usually freeze them, two breasts to a pack, in freezer paper, to ensure that I do not waste any by saving it in the fridge and then forgetting it’s there.

Do you have a tip or trick to make YOUR pantry Plentiful? Share in our blog hop below! Link up your post, or comment below with your tips as well!

Please take some time to read some of the great Plentiful Pantry posts from our friends linking up on how to stretch a budget and cook savory meals!



  1. Just copy and paste the text in the box to the right in a text or html widget on your blog. ↩
Filed Under: 2013, budget, cooking, Plentiful Pantry Blog Hop

Mamatography Week 4

February 2, 2013 By 4 Comments

Our week began with Joseph being totally uninterested in posing for pictures.

IMG_1273

Apparently, he is wishing on Spring by wearing his golashes EVERYWHERE.

IMG_1281

Jo Jo was VERY interested in poking holes in a plastic bag full of too-small-for Abbey clothing

IMG_1344

And the next day, he was very interested in the drum cushions that I made for the kids’ reading area.

IMG_1340

IMG_1339

This week, we welcomed some of our friends back from their winter vacation. We had a playdate at our house, and then the next day, playdate and dinner at theirs!

Mmmmmmm popcicles for dessert!

IMG_1442

I have had no lack of cooking helpers in my kitchen this week! Joseph enjoyed helping me make home made mac and cheese. . .

IMG_1358

And Abbey and Joe also made cookies with me. . .

IMG_1444

And helped make chicken gnocchi soup, too.

Three days, three different awesome experiences of kids in the kitchen! I love the opportunities for natural learning that are so plentiful in the kitchen!

IMG_1454

I mean, really, who can resist being in the kitchen when cooking is so cool!?

Speaking of cooking, Gretchen from That Mama Gretchen and I have developed a blog hop called The Plentiful Pantry, and we want YOU to join in! Won’t you join us? I posted yesterday with a call for participation. Check it out, and link up on the 15th!

IMG_1465

IMG_1478

IMG_1480

Oh, and we got a few more inches of snow this week before it all started to melt off.

Will it be spring soon? Who knows up here in New England!

That was OUR week. How was YOURS?

mtbadge2This post is part of the Mamatography 2013 Project with Diary of a First Child and Momma Jorje.

We are taking (at least) a photo a day to keep a record of our year. Join us at any point during the year and start sharing your own daily photos!

Filed Under: 2013, children, cooking, family, Learning, mamatography, natural learning, photography, Plentiful Pantry Blog Hop

Plentiful Pantry Blog Hop – Call for Participation!

February 1, 2013 By 1 Comment

February 15- 22, Gretchen of That Mama Gretchen and I invite you to share a post about how YOU make your pantry plentiful!

Plentiful Pantry ButtonIn a tough economy, frugality is important to daily life, but our health and happiness is important, too! Sharing meals is important to the human experience and to family life, and good nutrition keeps our bodies and minds strong and healthy.

We want to know how you balance budgeting AND savory cooking in your home. What are your tips and tricks to stretching your food budget AND enjoying healthy meals with your family?

Possible topics include:

  • Tips to reduce waste when cooking
  • Making your own broths, rouxs, or other meal starters
  • Budget friendly meals
  • Healthy and family friendly recipes
  • Tips on couponing, canning, freezer meals, or buying in bulk
  • Experiences participating in Organic food co-ops
  • Experiences growing and storing your own food
  • Questions or concerns about cooking (maybe you don’t know how to cook something and would like to ask! i.e. How do I cook rice perfectly? Or What should I do with all these BEANS I get from WIC?)
  • Using foods provided by supplemental food programs like WIC Eligible Foods or Food Pantries

The blog hop will start on Friday February 15, and will be open for submissions until it closes on February 23. Feel free to link up more than one post – past posts on the topic are accepted.This blog hop will repeat quarterly to encompass all the seasons of recipes and tips! You can grab a button below to promote your participation, and we look forward to seeing your posts! We can’t wait to see the great tips, recipes, and ideas that all of you have for establishing and maintaining a Plentiful Pantry!

 

Filed Under: 2013, budget, cooking, family, health, Plentiful Pantry Blog Hop

Baking Bread & Nurturing Wonder

November 30, 2012 By 11 Comments

Welcome to the November 2012 Authentic Parenting Blog Carnival: Gratitude and Traditions

This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Authentic Parenting Blog Carnival hosted by Authentic Parenting and Living Peacefully with Children. This month our participants have written about gratitude and traditions by sharing what they are grateful for, how they share gratitude with their children, or about traditions they have with their families. The Authentic Parenting Blog Carnival will be taking a break in December, but we hope you will join us for the great line up of themes we have for 2013!

***

Since I have married, had children, and moved away from my family and the place where I grew up, family traditions have gone from happily predictable, love-rich festivities to . . . barely existent.

I wrote last year about feeling conflicted about being away from my traditions during the holiday season. In New England, there is TONS to do during the summer, but in the winter months, with small children, it gets a little stir crazy, and I start wishing that Grandma and Grandpa were closer. We had such rich family traditions growing up that it’s hard for me to begin new ones with our little clan – though I know that I will, in my own way, as I can.

There is one family tradition that never gets old or fades away is that of family recipes and a love for the origin of foods that are put on our table. I don’t shy away as much as possible from prepared foods and eating out just because of the nutritional detriment of those consumerist habits. . . I also want to teach my children where food comes from and how it gets from field to kitchen to table.

My grandmother passed down an awesome dinner roll recipe to my mom and she taught me the recipe from a very early age – by modeling and including me in the preparations when I was old enough. When I moved away from Texas to Maine as a result of my husband’s military service, I swore I would try to make “overnight buns” every Thanksgiving, just the way that my mom and I had for all the years that I was growing up.

And I have.

There’s something vital about knowing how things are made. There’s something even more  special about being a part of making them.

I’m glad that my children don’t think that chicken comes from the supermarket (or the fast food chain!), de-boned and breaded and ready to eat. I’m thankful that I have been able to show them that meals come from food that is grown and pastured in nature, harvested by farmers, transported to our local market, and has to be prepared using a recipe and the work of human hands in our kitchen before it hits their table and their tummies. Bread doesn’t just come from a plastic bag in our house. We know that bread is made with work, patience, and heart and soul, and I’m thrilled to share that with my children as my mother shared with me, and her mother, with her.

***

APBC - Authentic ParentingVisit Living Peacefully with Children and Authentic Parenting to find out how you can participate in next year’s Authentic Parenting Blog Carnival!

 

Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants:

(This list will be live and updated by afternoon November 30 with all the carnival links.)

Filed Under: 2012, baking, children, cooking, Holidays, Learning, natural learning, Parenting, preschooler

Healthy Faves – “Veggieful” Pasta Sauce

August 9, 2012 By Leave a Comment

 

Pasta sauce is popular in our household. The kids (and the adults, too, not gonna lie) live for spaghetti night (and pizza night, and lasagna night. . . )

So, thinking that we eat so much of the stuff, why not attempt to make it more healthful? I did just that, by adding in fresh veggies, and it turned out SO good!

HOT TIP: This is excellent for using up fresh veggies that would otherwise go unused and end up spoiling. Veggies left over from last night’s dinner? Excess from a cook-out the other evening? Throw ‘em in the sauce! The flavor varieties are endless. Pretty much any veggie works.

Veggieful Pasta Sauce:

What you’ll Need:

Food Processor (Manual or electric)

Skillet

Wooden Spoon (or your favorite browning utensil)

Olive or Coconut Oil

1 1/2 cups fresh veggies, sliced thinly (any veggies you like, but water-full veggies like zucchini and squash, onions and tomatoes cook quicker)

Approx. 20 oz. pasta sauce (jarred – or homemade, if you’re really awesome and can do that!)

The Process:

Super simple.

  1. Process your veggies in a food processor or blender until they’re tiny. I use my Pampered Chef manual food processor. That thing is super slick. Love it!
  2. Cook your veggies, about 5-10 minutes, in the oil until tender. Add in 1/3 cup of pasta sauce and stir. 
  3. Take the sauce pan off the heat and allow the mixture to cook and cool. About 5 minutes.
  4. Spoon mixture back into food processor (you want it to be a sticky, mushy texture, which is why you only use a 1/3 cup of sauce in step 2). Process the mixture.
  5. Add mixture back into sauce pan, heat on med-high, and add in the rest of the pasta sauce. Cook for an additional 5-10 Minutes.

The “Veggieful” Pasta Sauce was a hit in our house. Make sure you let me know how your family likes it in the comments :)

Tell me. . . What are your simple healthful cooking recipes?

Filed Under: cooking, health

Make your Own Velveeta with no icky additives!

December 9, 2011 By Leave a Comment

I caught this on Pinterest (thank you, Brianne!) and am totally obsessed.

I LOVE Velveeta and American cheese – in mac and cheese, grilled cheese sandwiches, broccoli and cheese soup, cheeseburgers. . . are ya hungry yet? ;)
Photo Credit: Esimpraim on Flickr

But I hate cooking with it knowing that there are all sorts of icky additives and preservatives in it.
Yvonne shows us a way to make homemade American cheese, in a loaf, without a preservative in sight. 
I’m dying to try this out! 
Filed Under: cooking, health

How To Live Naturally on a Budget

November 7, 2011 By Leave a Comment

While financial perks of natural parenting like cloth diapering, at home learning, and creating for the home can even it out a bit, living naturally can seem very expensive! I often pass up organic produce for the regular stuff so that I can get more for my money (even though I know I shouldn’t!). Same with the cookie and cracker isle, and the health food section.

I’m starting to go greener (and more and more fresh and natural) . . . but it’s hard, balancing a tight budget with a desire to parent, live, and eat naturally. Here’s what I am finding is helpful to maintaining a healthy budget while providing the healthiest life for my family.

Cooking Smart with Whole Foods
I very rarely buy ready made lasagnas and other entrees unless I have a really really good coupon. Also pretty much done are the days of the skillet meal. Mostly, I cook whole foods. Produce from the farms nearby, fresh chicken and ground beef and steaks.

When I cook, I use everything that I can from what I cook. Example: I boil a fresh roaster chicken to make chicken and dumplings. I pour off some of the stock before adding in the other ingredients to make the gravy, and I use that fresh chicken stock within the next week in other recipes. I also boil the bones of the chicken after cutting out the meat for the chicken and dumplings, stripping the chicken of all the meat around the bone for use in chicken salad or chicken tacos. This way, one roaster chicken (I spent approx. $5 on one this week) goes toward 3-5 recipes instead of just one, and there is limited to no waste.

Couponing and Good Deals
I’ll talk about couponing as a separate discussion another time. But finding coupons and deals go a long way to being able to afford a natural lifestyle.

Kate has a great list of deals and coupon sites for organic and natural snacks and grocery items in her post Natural and Thrifty at Natural Mom, Healthy Child.

Having a discount on the organic/natural thing stat you’re buying makes a difference! Thanks, Kate for all these links!

Keeping Perspective
Paying a premium for natural and organic things can make you feel a bit crazy. (i.e. why I am doing this when I can get regular stuff for so much cheaper?) But maintaining a healthy perspective on your goals for your family and the benefit of using organic and natural items in your life definitely will help you as you journey with me toward a natural living lifestyle! Take it one step at a time, and we’ll get there eventually!

-
Do you strive to live a natural lifestyle?

How do you balance budgeting with living naturally and buying organic?

Let me know which of Kate’s Natural and Thrifty tips you found to be the most helpful!




Filed Under: budget, cloth diapers, cooking, coupons, creating for the family, natural parenting
«Older Posts