Exactly where did the summer go? I read all of the magazines that give wonderful ideas of preparing your children for school. You know the ones, get your family back into a routine, bed times and so on. Well, I would love to tell you I am that mom, the one that eases everyone into the routine, the one that has her act together with everything fine tuned down to the food and getting back into the swing of things. Nope! Each summer, it seems I loose track because I am having perhaps more fun than the kids are having!
First things first, to pack lunch or not? Whatever you decide, don't beat up on yourself! We tried this last year, we got the fancy lunch boxes, experimented with different ideas and this year, we are back to school lunches. One thing to keep in mind, we seem to be getting on a good track as far as nutrition and our school lunch menus. The challenge for our children is that due to being careful of portion sizes and the fact that schools still serve processed food (which in turn reduces the amount of the entree on your child's plate) my kids tend to feel they are not getting enough to eat. I am easing into this and will make plans to add a healthy take along, non-refrigeration needed item to add to the lunch. When looking at this option, take into account your child's level of activity and their age as well. My kids are in middle school, and one is participating in football, so it is a good guess that he will be in need of a quick pick me up at the end of the school day. So this is item number one on my list of things to plan for. I am going back into my memory to think of some healthy and easily transported things to pack for my kids. Granola is one that comes to mind. Here is a recipe that I plan to try: http://www.chow.com/recipes/30062-basic-granola This one looks simple, no extra things that are not already on my pantry list and I can be creative to fit the individual tastes my kids have! The website with this recipe showed the process step by step, that is always a plus for me if I am stepping out of my comfort zone and trying something new!
If you decide to pack lunches, there are a lot of websites out there with helpful ideas, here is one from NBC that actually had a menu:http://www.nbcnews.com/id/8913826/ns/health-childrens_health/t/home-packed-lunches-your-kids-will-eat/#.UhPRTH_hdPc
Ok, I have solved that dilemma. What about dinner? So far, we have not had dinner before 8pm, so, I better get things in gear. The first item on the agenda, go back through my huge notebook of easy items and look at things to try. I am getting used to the fact that we are now on a schedule, so I no longer will be able to be home before 6pm, I am the designated pick up person for the football player. This means, I need quick, easy and healthy meals to prepare when I get home. One skillet dishes have always been a favorite. Sunday evening, I looked at our schedule for the week. I noticed that Tuesday was going to be quite a challenge. I work a bit later on Tuesdays and then I will be picking up the foot ball player. Then, we are in route for home, we need a quick meal and then it is time for the middle school open house, back to school by 6:30pm. I found a new recipe that called for a prepared sauce, of course, I altered things a bit, I used whole grain rotini. Also, instead of the rotisserie chicken, I sauteed flash frozen chicken breasts seasoned with a bit of chile and cumin. I mixed all of this together while on my lunch break, sprayed my slow cooker with non-stick spray and put everything in the slow cooker on low. As soon as I get home, I will add the taco seasoned cheddar cheese, and wha la, dinner will be served! http://progresso.com/recipes/cheesy-southwest-chicken-skillet/dcde5d91-7ffa-4dc1-a53a-90c94407d92a Next on my to do list is that when preparing my shopping list the next time I do a major shopping trip, I will add to it things that will assist me in making quick and easy meals. Sometimes I need to be reminded that when you are going to have a day that it will be difficult at best to cook, a convenience item is acceptable.
Last on my list of things I want to include in my kitchen is to have some of my own prepared seasoning mixes such as ranch dressing mix. here is a recipe for making your own ranch dressing mix:
Ranch
Style Dressing Mix
Makes
1¼ cups of mix (Enough for 5 batches)
1 c.
non-fat dry milk 2 tsp. dry mustard
4 tsp.
dried basil, crushed 1 tsp. garlic powder
½ tsp.
salt 2 T.
dried minced onion
1. In a medium bowl,
combine all ingredients. Stir well.
2. Store at room
temperature in a dry, closed container for up to 6 months. 1/4 Cup mix is equal to one packet of dried prepared ranch mix.
Recently, I found this online and I plan to use the above mix in place of the packet of ranch dressing mix :
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 packet hidden valley ranch mix
1/2 cup 1% milk.
Making things from scratch is not only economical, but you can control the salt, fat and sugar as well as you are not adding additional preservatives. Anytime a recipe calls for sour cream, you can use low-fat plain yogurt, to prevent others from whining, this is your little secret! It is healthier and I would have to say more economical than a tub of sour cream.
By having the mix on your shelf, there are endless dishes you can use it for, here is a spinach dip recipe:
Spinach
Dip
1 (1 ounce) packet dry ranch salad dressing
mix
1 (16 ounces) container sour cream
1 (10 ounces) box frozen chopped spinach,
thawed and well-drained
1 (8 ounces) can water chestnuts, rinsed, drained
and chopped
1 round loaf French bread
Fresh
vegetable sticks
1.
Stir
together dressing mix, sour cream, spinach, and water chestnuts. Chill 30
minutes or until just before serving.
2.
Cut
top off the bread and remove center (using firm bread pieces as dippers). Fill
bread bowl with dip. Serve with cubed bread and vegetables.
And one last one for Cucumber Dip:
Ranch
Cucumber Dip
½ cucumber,
peeled, seeded and chopped
½
tsp. dried dill weed
¼ c.
Ranch Style Dressing Mix
2
c. sour cream
chips or sliced vegetables
Are you catching a theme here? I need organization and planning! First up is to be creative, find some new recipes on-line, in blogs, those that have been tucked away in my large three ring binder and taken out and dusted off. I work on finding recipes that are easy, ingredients that are those found typically in my pantry and above all, dishes that are healthy. If you try a recipe, be sure to make notes if you have altered it. If you try a recipe and you do not like it, throw it out! Give yourself permission to do this, it lessons the amount of recipes and can help you in making a good sound decision.
I hope you and your family are easing into the back-to-school routine and working your busy schedule into a habit of it including healthy meals. Remember, the basic habit of sitting at the table, conversing with one another, and working hard on including food from each one of the food groups is what is necessary. Do not expect yourself to be a gourmet chef all the time. Do the best you can with the time you have and your family will have great memories of the food on the table and the great conversation!
