I'm always on the lookout for new recipes that I think my kids will like. I recently saw a recipe for a savory waffle and immediately thought what a great side it would make for soups or chili and maybe as a "bread" for sandwiches. I really wanted to be able to eat them too, so I made some substitutions and they turned out GREAT! I made these for the kids last week and I got the typical reaction ~ my son and I loved them, my daughter asked if I'd just make plain waffles next time (she's a purist). I packed one the next day in my son's lunch but he said it was no good ~ dry and chewy. Next time, I'll make the amount I think we will eat at dinner fully cooked, and then cook the others a little less brown so that they can be frozen and then popped in the toaster to reheat.
This recipe is exciting to me because it seems decadent and is something I definitely wouldn't allow myself to eat every day. Even though it feels "forbidden" I'm able to make it without ingredients that would make me sick. Yay for us gluten-free, dairy-free -ers! These are definitely a bit denser than your typical waffle but for me, it just made them feel more hearty and dinnerish.
**Note** I don't normally eat eggs as I do have a reaction to them. This recipe only has one egg though, and I've not found a good egg replacer for a recipe like this that needs the rise in addition to the bind the egg provides. The fact that I might get sick if I eat too many helps me to eat just one or two instead of devouring the entire batch myself!
Ingredients:
Wet:
1 large egg
1 cup "milk" (I used Dream Blends Unsweetened Rice/Quinoa Drink)
1 Tbs oil
Dry:
1 + 1/2 cups Bob's Gluten-Free All Purpose Flour
1 Tbs sugar (I used Xylitol but any granular sugar should work)
2 tsp. Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/4 tsp salt
Add-ins
1/2 cup Daiya Pepperjack Shreds (dairy and soy free!)
1/2 cup finely chopped green onions
1/2 cup crispy bacon (I use Applegate Farms Sunday Bacon ~uncured)
Directions:
Cook the bacon and then chop or crumble into bits. Preheat your waffle iron. Mix the wet ingredients and then whisk in the dry ingredients until fully incorporated. Gently fold in the add-ins. Let the batter sit for 5 minutes. Everyone's waffle irons will be a little different so you may or may not need oil on your iron. The amount of batter you need to put in will also vary as well as the cooking time. The general process should be the same for this recipe as for any other waffles you make specific to your waffle iron.
Please let me know how you like them! And if you change it up at all, please share your results :)
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I love Halloween. I love costumes and parties and trick-or-treating. I don't love the junk food (for me or for my kids). Here are a few things we do at our house to try to keep the fun of Halloween without making it a gluttonous excuse to eat a bunch of crap (and to keep Mommy from feeling like a heroin addict sweating and shaking as I obsess over the bags of candy in the pantry).
1. Pass out non-candy treats -- you might get egged by some pissed-off 12 year olds who wanted full-size Snickers bars, but the cause is worth it. Check out the dollar section in Target or Michael's, the favor section at a party supply store, or a discount store like Big Lots or Dollar Tree. Here are a few ideas:
- Halloween erasers/pencils
- Stickers
- Glow bracelets (our choice to hand out this year; my kids are actually excited about it!)
- Small packs of sugar-free gum
- Goodie bag trinkets like kazoos, whistles, toy rings
- Temporary tattoos
2. The Halloween Witch -- I read about this in a parenting magazine when Makayla was a baby and we've done it every year since she started trick-or-treating. At the end of the evening, the kids each get to eat 2 pieces of candy on-the-spot. They then pick out 5 more pieces to keep. The rest go in a bag on the porch for the Halloween Witch. *She* takes the candy away and leaves a small present in it's place. For example, last year the kids agreed on a dvd they wanted. The first couple of years I sent the Halloween Witch candy with my husband to his office but then I felt bad for his co-workers who then had to fight the temptation. I've heard about donating it to soldiers or firefighters but I kinda' want them to be fit and ready to protect or save me if it is necessary, so I'd rather not load them up with high-calorie, sugary treats. The bottom-line for me is that if I shouldn't eat it, and I don't want my kids eating it, I shouldn't be passing it off to other people. So the last couple of years (this is difficult for me) I've thrown it in the trash. And I throw it in the big trash can and dump something gross on top so I don't get tempted to pull a Costanza and take something "off the top".
3. Healthy Halloween Party Food -- I've never actually made any of these, but they look awfully cute and they are much healthier alternatives to most of the fare you'd see at a party for kids! Let me know if you try any and love them. And if you try one and get a complete pinterest fail you definitely need to share!
- Green Meanies -- cute monster mouths made with apples, peanut butter and almond slivers
- Banana Ghost Pop -- Shredded coconut and bananas make a fun treat. Or you can dip a frozen banana half in white chocolate and add the mini chocoate chips for the eyes and mouth
- Witch's Brooms and Clementine Pumpkins -- pretzels and string cheese; clementines and celery -- easy and so cute on a platter
- Spider Deviled Eggs -- gotta' have some protein
- Ghastly Pear Ghosts -- I never would have thought of this but when you see it, the shape of the pears are just perfect! And pears are in season (unlike strawberries which I saw in a lot of posts).
- A bowl of no-sugar added red fruit juice with an ice "hand" in it. You take a latex glove, fill it with water, tie a knot in the opening and then freeze it. When it's totally solid you peel the glove off and put it in the bowl. My Mom did this at a party when I was a kid and I still remember it!
I hope these ideas help! How do you keep Halloween healthy in your house?
I splurged and bought myself a Vitamix recently and I'm soooooo happy I did. I've been experimenting with different combinations and so far, this recipe is my favorite. I made some the other morning for the kids and they not only drank it, they said it was "delicious"! Granted, I prepped them by reminding them that it wasn't going to taste like the smoothies I make them with yogurt and berries. I wanted to manage their expectations so they wouldn't immediately say they didn't like it just because it was different. I also told them (for the gazillionth time) that our bodies need a lot of different nutrients and that this smoothie provided many, many good things for them without them having to eat things like a kale salad.
I got these ingredients from Sprouts and Trader Joe's. I try to get the greens from the farmer's market, but when I can't make it, I find Sprouts has a good selection, especially in the organic section. Trader Joe's has great prices on frozen fruit.
Pineapple-Mango Green Smoothie:
1 cup of water (to start)
1/2 cup of light coconut milk (unsweetened)
3/4 cup of frozen pineapple
1 & 1/2 cup of frozen mango
1" x 3/4" thumb of fresh ginger, peeled
1 & 1/2 cup of spinach
1/2 cup of flat leaf parsley
1/2 cup of dandelion greens
1 cup of purple kale
I like my green smoothies very liquid-y so I usually end up adding some water at the end. I also like them very cold so I usually add a little ice. This recipe made enough for me to have a HUGE cup, my husband to have a normal-sized cup, and my kids each to have a small cup. That is all I had for breakfast at about 7 a.m. and it kept me satisfied through teaching a Zumba class and a Strength and Stretch class. I didn't eat again until 11:00 a.m. and I didn't feel like I was ready to pass out or commit a homicide!
I hope you enjoy the recipe. Let me know what you think and if you tweak it at all, please share the results!
This is another favorite in our house. The last time my husband made it, the kids and I ate it all before he had any. He wasn't happy. So I decided to find the recipe, tweak it a bit to reduce the calories, and see if I could create the same magic. The result is cold, crispy, and sweet with just the right vinegar bite. I make enough for an army so the amount here would be perfect to bring to a bbq or to feed a large family. If your family doesn't scarf it down like mine, you could definitely cut everything by half and have enough for a dinner and leftovers.
Ingredients:
1 small head of green cabbage, shredded (12 cups)
1 small head of red cabbage, shredded (12 cups)
1 fennel bulb (3.5cups)
3 granny smith apples, cut into matchsticks (6 cups)
3 pink lady apples, cut into matchsticks (6 cups) -- you can use any sweet, crisp apple
3/4 cup canola oil (I found a non-GMO one at Sprouts)
3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup + 1 Tbs no sugar-added apple juice
1/3 cup honey
Cut all the veggies and combine. I used a trick that I learned from my Aunt Kathy who loves to entertain and cook for crowds. I put the veggies in a clean trash bag and shook it all around. Then, I whisked all of the wet ingredients together, poured it over the veggies and shook it again. This can be done in a bowl instead, but then you don't get to dance around the kitchen shaking a trash bag full of cole slaw :)
This is fantastic for anyone with an egg allergy or who is vegan. It is also a safer salad to take on a picnic as the dressing is not mayo based. Plus, it's yummy and healthy!
Serving Size: 1.5 cups
Weight Watchers Points Plus Value: 3
Nutrition Info:
Calories: 114
Carbs: 14
Fat: 6
Protein: 1
Sodium: 24
Sugar: 10
Next time I will probably reduce the oil a bit which will bring the fat and PPV down. I think the nutrition values/PPV are also a little high because if you let the slaw sit in the fridge for a bit, a lot of the dressing settles at the bottom of the container so you're not actually eating it. But, if you're trying to manage your weight, it's usually better to OVERestimate your calorie consumption.
I hope you enjoy it! Please let me know what you think. If you tweak it, please let me know how it comes out :)
With Easter coming up this Sunday, I thought I'd give some ideas for egg and basket fillers for your children and grandchildren that don't come laden with empty calories and artificial colors. Let's face it, our kids really don't need the junk and most likely, we're going to end up eating some (or most) of the candy they get. So let's set everyone up for a healthy Spring with the following:
Egg Fillers:
1. Legos -- A few years ago I bought a lego starter kit and filled a bunch of the plastic eggs with a few pieces each.
2. Plastic crystals -- My kids still get so excited about finding "treasure"
3. Coins -- Who doesn't like cash? And when you shake the eggs they sound like maracas :)
4. Stickers -- Kids love stickers!
5. Vouchers -- Come up with something that would be important to your kids that you could write on a slip of paper and then roll up and put in the egg. A few options might be picking what's for dinner, a special outing, a small item they've been wanting that wouldn't fit in an egg.
6. Clues for a scavenger hunt: Write a clue on a slip of paper that you'll roll up and put in the egg. Number the clues so that when the kids have found all of the eggs, they can work together to find a prize. One year I did this and it led the kids to a soccer net I had hidden in the bathtub.
7. Balloons: Last year, I put balloons in some of the plastic eggs and a balloon pump in each of the kids' baskets. They had a lot of fun pumping up the balloons and then playing games in the backyard with them.
8. Actual, decorated, hard-boiled eggs. Great source of protein and a lot of fun to prepare :)
Easter Basket ideas:
1. Jump ropes and hula hoops -- you can challenge them to a contest to see who can jump or hula hoop the longest.
2. Any water toy that will get them moving. Last year my mom made water bombs out of cut up strips of sponge that she then tied together. The kids soaked them in a bucket and then had a sponge fight. Of course, we live in Southern California, so anyone living in a colder climate probably thinks I'm crazy!
3. Dumbbells or resistance tubes. Believe it or not, last year the Easter Bunny brought the kids 3 and 5 lb. dumbbells because they always want to lift weights with mommy. They were the biggest hit in the basket!
4. Sidewalk Chalk -- when I had the daycare I used to use sidewalk chalk for all sorts of running and learning games. My favorite was drawing letters and numbers all over the driveway and then having them run to whichever one I called out. It's not just for hopscotch!
5. Balls, balls and more balls!
6. Bubbles: my kids are 8 and 5 and they still love chasing bubbles. Especially the mega ones you can make with some of the cool bubble toys available in stores.
If you have any other ideas, please share below!!!
