it's earth day - raw eating

happy earth day!  these mighty little ballz are the perfect snack and why not make them for a protein packed snack or dessert tonight in honor of the grand ol globe we live on.  

have fun with food.  i can't take things too seriously with all this food change or i'd go bonkers.

my hot mama girlfriend kristy made these puppies on friday for her little guy's birthday party.  we inhaled them.  they taste like oatmeal cookie dough balls and helloooooooooo - party in your mouth.  i think we had the most fun thinking of creative names for them.  

she gets the prize with "schweddy balls".

saturday night live - pete schweddy

kristy pinned the recipe off pinterest.  unfortunately, the recipe's original site has been blocked for spam content or something crazy.  at least the recipe is in the comments!

update:  i have been inspired by other foodrev ambassadors with more sweet names...so i have decided to just keep adding to the list:)  depending on who you serve them too, feel free to change the name to your audience.  this list could get fun...

1. "schweddy balls" - kristy

2. bringin sexy back dark chocolate pb balls & orgasmic no-bake dark chocolate pb balls - stacy- food rev ambassador idaho.

3. little chocolate earth balls - gaia - food rev ambassador belgium

1 c rolled oats 

1/2 c flaxseed meal

1/2 c organic peanut butter (or whatever nut butter you want...hee hee)

1/2 c organic dark chocolate chips (i ran out, so i chopped up a bar)

1/3 c local honey

1 tsp vanilla

this recipe yields about 30 balls...but of course, that depends on how large you like them.

please stop me...this is getting inappropriate.  

easily palmed.

i brought these over to my in-laws house for some family birthday "special plate" celebrations last night.  major hitskies.

thank you kristy for the inspo...i will be making these balls often in the mullies:)

xoxo

pizza in a cast

cast iron skillet pizza

our new go-to pizza recipe...rocks the bomb.

and you thought you had to let go of the good things in life...nope nope nope.

i am in love with my cast iron.  this is my newest addition - a 12 inch beauty.

i learned how to season it here.  i used coconut oil:)

whatchu lookin at willis?  hee hee, your eyes are funny chris.  i made him really happy with this one.

and a little band blend rosé action from little vineyards is always a wonderful pizza-pairing.

soup for dwight k. schrute

i really went for it this time.  i found this recipe online, realized i had every s.i.n.g.l.e ingredient and just had to make it in honor of our beloved show's last season and favorite character.  

check out the 11 things dwight k. schrute has to say about food and frugality.  it made me giggle.

dwight, this soup's for you dude.  

schrute beet and fennel soup from the kitchn (i lovingly renamed it).

i followed this recipe to a T.

a very simple ingredient list:  garlic, onion, vegetable stock, oranges, beets and fennel.

what is fennel anyway?  people tend to love it or hate it.  i chopped up my fennel bulbs and large beet (dwight high fived me on the sheer size) before i realized i didn't take a bragging picture...oops.

roasted to perfection.  i could have eaten the entire tray...

simmering loveliness...

all pureed up.  it kinda looks like...yea, you're thinking it...don't say it!!!!  

chris whispered in my ear, "this reminds me of bl**d".  ohhh ohhhhhh, i'll give you some bl**d mister.  i just can't type it...i loved it and he made me so mad!!!!  he might have a small point though... 

did the kids like it?  ...well, not so much.  i guess this color was just a little harsh for this group of eye pansies.  nobody but me could put more than three spoonfuls down - i had two bowlfuls - YES!!!  the garlic bread saved the children - the kids were fine dipping it in and sopping it up.  chris couldn't even do that.  

monday fun day tip:  always always have yummy bread for those new soup ninnies in your life.

needless to say, only i will be getting an invitation to the schrute farm...HA!

for i'm an awesome human garbage disposal...much like my new friend dwight.

ps

speaking of the boob tube, you should definitely make this soup next time you watch true blood or the walking dead.  hurl.

it's go time - making gluten free homemade pasta

my mom (how cute is she in her mom's vintage apron!?) and i had grand slam plans to make our own homemade gf pasta and sweet pan sauce.

it didn't go exactly how we envisioned.
i mean, it was all edible but definitely not eligible for a leftover container.  the kids were cranky, i was tired... our long weekend was over.  i forgot to bring mac to a birthday party - major loserville on that one.

however, we learned so much from our first pasta making night.  i taught my mom how to make the gluten free flower blend we've been loving.  it's our 4th quadruple batch - we love it pete and kelli!

brenda's expression here pretty much sums up the night.  HA!

first adventures in egg + gf flour = pasta making...we figured it might be better in a bowl vs the counter:)  the kids had a blast!

makin walnut sized ballz for my mom's shiny new pasta maker attachment.  

abbie was really good at bread kneading!

we'll be making a stance and grip change for our next showdown with the homemade noodles.  

the pasta attachment worked like a dream.  here is where i think we made our mistake:  we should have kept the noodle tubes in longer strings and had them dry for a bit before we cut them.  instead, we let the kids cut them to size immediately as they squeezed out.  

(insert our voices here) "GO, STOP, NOT YET, NOW, NO, GO, AHHHHHH"...whoo weeeee, let me tell you, directions were fun with kids when they feel like they are at the playdough machine.  this resulted in major clumpage in the bowl = super baaaaruuutal to pull apart and cook.   

however, the dough consistency & taste was fantastic!  i'd like to try this again with a different size pasta tube or even ditch the electric attachment and tackle lasagna noodles or homemade stuffed ravioli's....oh, now that sounds good!   i have an imperia hand crank italian made pasta machine and i'm bustin that out next time, foh shoh.  here is the recipe and boy does it look good handcut!!!  

needless to say, we had a lot left uncooked in the bowl, all cemented together, looking quite sorry looking.  garbagio.  

arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.  jumpin in.

did i say brutal?

nice whisking kiddos - tonight was the first time at the stove for them!!!  poor mom is still busy trying to pull apart those noodles...oof.

the mullies in denver alert: check out what my sister and bro-in-law have in their kitchen for their almost 2 year old, super cutie pie Claire.  

the original to the market is called the learning tower and they got the kitchen helper which is less expensive.  Claire cooks & preps with them all the time...how cool is that!?  

final tasting notes!?  well....mac had two helpings of noodles with earth's balance/s&p/vegan parm and gobbled it up.  i had to add red sauce for tommy and abbie cuz they were not having the sauce we made together.  

the adults finished our plates but will be finding another sauce recipe.  here is the one i tried.  yea, no, it didn't turn out like the picture:(   ahhhhhh shucks.

i did the same thing when i realized i forgot to cook my veggies i had planned.  0 for 2 so far.

dementia happens.

game saver:

we finished the night with oranges and homemade honey popcorn.  this recipe was super easy & delish and a definite mullies keeper.  the kids loved it and so did i.  thanks shanna for passing melissa's recipe along! 

notes:

i subbed earth's balance soy free buttery spread for the butter.

1 for 3!  

gotta get back to practice.

ps

here is a great article on portion control and real food.

day 131 & our evolving grocery list

here we are day 131.

i looked back at the previous grocery list i posted and marveled at the changes i have made to it.

here are the highlights:

very little processed food
lots more vegetables and plant based meals

the one bite rule is working.  they might not eat more than that, but they don't complain about it anymore or whine as much (wait, tommy is still king whiner, but he's 3 and better than he used to be).  they try it and either dive in or move on.  that's great news.  it took awhile - a good two months to get to where we are today and hopefully, those taste buds will keep evolving for me:)

so here's what we've been noshing on lately...

trader joe's
udi's whole grain sandwich bread & bagels
jams
nuts
frozen wild caught fish
organic frozen strawberries
lollypops (no artificial colors!)
kind bars (i buy an entire box or two)
organic marinara sauce
organic coconut oil (if i run out of the omega nutrition organic oil)
canned light coconut milk
organic ketchup
organic pickles
spices
organic/free range poultry when available
organic eggs
organic vegetable stock
organic beans (black, garbanzo, great northern - kids aren't bonkers, not giving up)
salsa
agave/maple syrup (try to buy the bulk organic at cosco)
peach mango juice
kale chips
dark chocolate
instant coffee

target
applegate farms oven roasted turkey by the pound for sandwiches
wholly guacamole
go go squeeze applesauce pouches
organicville non-dairy organic gluten free ranch dressing (seriously amazing)
organic peanut butter (or jason's)
winona pure extra virgin olive oil spray (nothing else in it!)
tinkyada pasta joy brown rice pasta (elbow and spirals are the best!)
thai brand canned whole coconut milk
kettle potato chips
el milagro tortilla chips
simply orange juice calcium enriched
silk brand unsweetened almond milk
organic eggs

costco
packaged dried fruit (for lunches & snacks)
bunny bars (organic gf granola bars...sometimes they are not there and i cry)
organic sugar
organic olive oil
nuts
maple syrup
marathana all natural almond butter
that pickle guy classic olive muffalata
organic quinoa
spices
skinny popcorn
angie's delightfully different kettle popcorn
kettle brand chips
veggie chips
organic diced tomatoes
organic hemp seed
organic frozen berries mix
organic rice milk

all ways healthy natural food store
large mixed (fruit & veggies) organic produce box
probiotics and vitamins
goji berries, chia seeds & powder for smoothies
gluten free & vegan baking items
aluminum free baking powder
dandy blend instant herbal beverage
herbal teas
daiya cheeses
vegan parmesan
earth balance buttery soy free buttery spread & sticks
organic chocolate sauce (i put the tiniest amount in the kids' almond milk sometimes)
gf flours if i run out in a pinch

vitacost/amazon/omega nutrition
sucanat
bulk (4 box sets) gluten free flours.  (i mix up quadruple batches of a gluten free flour mix from the artisanal gluten-free cooking cookbook and store it in the fridge.)
omega nutrition organic coconut oil (aroma free!)



ps

my dad jumped on our bandwagon and get these crazy stats:

10 weeks = 14lbs obliterated
cholesterol Sept 2011 = 221
cholesterol at the end of the 7th week = 178
he's a clean eating real food chomping hot papa that man!  so proud of you dad:) xoxo

no pressure no problem

it was the phrase that greeted chris and i when we arrived at our honeymoon resort in st. lucia.  

we were given these yummy, fruity drinks that were called, "no pressure no problem." say it with a jamaican/st. lucian accent please.  and our week of bliss had begun.

that was 12 years ago.

it's what came to mind when i found this blog:  noglutennoproblem.blogspot.com.  kelli and peter bronski are the bloggers and authors of this sweet arse cookbook that i am officially going love ballz crazy over.  talk about bringing me to my knees to testify.

i made their gf flour blend and will never go back.  e.v.e.r.  hello my new preciousness.

i'm not locked out of heaven anymore...

i have made the waffles on the cover 5 times already and nothing, not no how has come close to my grandma's waffles...until now.  i posted my recipe a while back with spelt flour (yea, abbie can't do spelt unfortunately...she went haywire and that's how we figured out gluten was bad bad bad.) 

so, after i cried myself to sleep over needing to be gluten free, i tried it with bob's red mill all purpose gf flour... i also tried the babycakes recipe & ehhhhhhhh....they were "fine."  but not the ONE. 

i am happy to report...these peeps have done it.  it's the same gosh darn spiritual list of ingredients!!!

this is the real deal...no joke, nobody in my fam could tell the difference (even snotty boy chris) and you better believe i'm going to do a taste test with my parents:)  mom even has an identical waffle maker...oh boy, when they get back from visiting my sister in denver,  it's ON.  

kelli and peter's gf belgian waffles

notes:

i subbed my rice milk/coconut milk blend to make it diary free.

(we have added eggs back into the scheme of things but only cooked in recipes...mac was allergic waaay back and has done really well with them, so far...so good.)

i whipped up their quadruple batch of flour and it's hanging out in my fridge at the ready.  for anything, anyone, anytime.  i am pondering cooking my way through this tasty book.  meal planning at its finest.

i wonder how long it will take me?  or if i will even be able to do it?

no pressure no problem!

oooooooooohhhhh

now go get yourself back into heaven and make some flour.

ps

this one's dedicated to my thursday night peeps in the swagger wagon - you know who you are:)

can't read directions...gluten & dairy free homemade nuggets & au gratin potatoes

seriously?

i cannot read directions....very well.

what is my problem?

i always seem to skip over an important part or get distracted or something goes awry.  luckily this goof up didn't cost me the entire dinner.

are you ready for literally the BEST chicken nuggets EVER (and i screwed up the recipe even!!)?  

i had written these suckers off until i found this post last night.  

if you have a food processor, it's a must try.

the best gluten & dairy free chicken nuggets ever

notes:

healthier oil tip: use GMO canola oil or organic coconut oil to fry em up.

be careful not to let the oil get too hot!  i kept the burner on medium.

so what did i do to screw up?  i processed EVERYTHING together...didn't take out the potato chips and set them aside.  dumb dumb dumb dumb.  so, i improvised: used some gluten free bread crumbs to crust them with some s&p and they were still ahhhhhhhhhhhmazing.

crisis averted!!!  and i can't wait to see what they taste like when i actually make them correctly!

i also made 

gluten and dairy free mixed 2-potato gratin 

find the original recipe inspo here

1 onion sliced (i ran out so i just sprinkled dried onions on the layers and put about 1/4 c in the sauce)

saute in evoo or coconut oil until soft...

2-3 sweet potatoes

3 regular potatoes

slice em as thin as you can...

1 1/4 c coconut milk (i use trader joe's light coconut milk)

2 t arrowroot or potato starch

1 T earth's balance vegan buttery sticks (or from the tub)

pinch of nutmeg to taste

s&p

put in a small saucepan & melt it all together until bubbly...

grease your baking dish with evoo or coconut oil.  alternate layering potatoes and onions...have fun with the two potato colors!  finish with a layer of onions.  pour liquid over top, cover and bake for 30 min at 375 degree convection (or 400 degrees regular).  uncover,  sprinkle with your choice of diary free cheese and bake for an additional 20-25 min until browned and bubbly.

 i just bought that vegan, GMO free parm and it was really good!  

before and after

the hubby scarfing some nuggets down before basketball practice:)  

he was thoroughly impressed...score!!!

i had none left.

ps

here is the coconut oil that the babycakes author recommends...and i just got it!!  

it truly doesn't smell like coconut...which i never really minded... 

it will be nice to cook without the aroma:)

find it here

meal planning - bring on the theme nights!

i am super excited about this one.  thanks to my hot mama sister katie for getting my wheels turning!

the most common issue with this clean eating & more cooking thang is that there is only so much time in the day especially if you are a working parent.  you're not getting home until after 5pm...your time is restricted, your freakin tired but you have to get dinner on the table!  whether you stay at home or work, planning, cooking and juggling the schedule is an issue for all of us, so i am on a mission to try and figure out a way we can all start eating real food without making ourselves even more stressed out!!!

starting themed dinner nights will be easier to plan, to shop for & hopefully crazy fun for the kids to look forward to!  in my pipe dreams, i'd really like to get the kids more involved with cooking too...maybe this will get them excited about being a part of it all!!

here are some of the ideas we came up with:

taco tuesdays
meatless mondays
make your own pizza night
german night
slow cooker night
soup night
breakfast for dinner night
italian/pasta night
hong kong night
make your own salad night
hawaiian luau night

i mean, you could really have fun with this one.  depending on your family's food tastes...the sky is the limit, right!?

here are some great links to some pretty sweet blogs...get your creative juicies flowing!!

family theme night dinner ideas

weekly menu theme ideas

theme nights and monthly food planning

my plan is to sit down with the family tonight and pick out the top 5 to 7 theme nights we'd like to try out for a while.  gotta leave room for a few leftover nights and i think if we spread the theme nights out between two weeks that will be a good starting point for us.

to the mullies we go...

got turkey leftovers?

 oh baby baby baby...this one is for the books.  

i have nailed the substitutions for the famous casserole to be gluten free & diary free!!!!

total family approved:)

turkey noodle casserole inspo here

the mullies gluten & diary free casserole
adapted from thekitchn.com
(feel free to substitute any meat or veggie to make it vegan or whatever floats your boat!!!!)

8 oz brown rice noodles (i like tinkayada brand)
cook the noodles and drain 'em...

3 T evoo or coconut oil
1 organic onion, chopped
2 organic carrots, chopped (i had a orange and a purple one!!! approx 1/2 c)
2 organic celery stalked, chopped (approx 1/2 c)
3 organic garlic cloves, minced
saute the veggies in the oil until soft, add garlic last for a minute...

2 T gluten free all purpose flour (or whatever flour you want)
add the flour & mix until rawness cooks off, 2-3 min...

1.5 c organic rice milk + 3 T trader joe's light coconut milk (total together to make 1.5 c)
slowly add the milk, stirring constantly until blended and thicker...

3/4 c vegenaise
1/2 log herbed goat cheese
stir in vegenaise and goat cheese until blended...

pinches or cayenne pepper & nutmeg to taste
add the spices in to your liking...

2 c cooked leftover turkey (or whatever meat/veggie substitution you'd like)
mix in the turkey...

sea salt & pepper to taste

put the noodles in your baking dish (i used a 9x13 in clear pyrex dish) and pour the creamy goodness over the top, mix it up a little and bake @ 350 degree for 25-10 minutes or until bubbly.

the key substitutes were the vegenaise for the sour cream and the herbed goat cheese for the cream cheese.  holy mackerel...it's good, so good, for the first time i'm not bitter about not being able to cook with the stuff i have loved & used for years.


ps
goat cheese still has casein in it, so if you're needing to really to ditch that and can do soy, go for the tofutti brand cream cheese...a darn good one...or just delete the "cream cheese" completely, i'm sure you'll still dig your clean dish.