It was my part-time nanny who discovered little Rascal’s love for rice — “RASH, Mama, RASH!” And it was my part-time nanny who fed him hot dogs for lunch today. I almost had a heart attack when she told me, especially since I’m trying REALLY HARD to adopt the DR. FUHRMAN’s eating plan for my children (sshhhh! don’t tell Josh) — which emphasizes loads of vegetables and very little animal products. I’ll leave MOST of the treats and animal products to grandma and the nanny…. The kids’ll thank me later.

Because they had hot dogs for lunch (God help me), I wanted to give them a straight vegan dinner. And it was NICE for me to be able to eat exactly what they were eating. I made this great pesto rice dish and some grilled peppers and portobello mushrooms — which EASILY take the place of steak on a vegan plate. YUM. I finished the meal off with a KALE/banana/strawberry/omega 3 oil smoothie. The ingredients of which I could never duplicate (but see sidebar tag cloud for sneaky smoothie ideas).

And now for the recipes. Check it….

PESTO RICE

INGREDIENTS (serves 4-6)
1 cup Brown Rice
2 cups Water
1/2 cup Chopped Mushroom
Basil (to taste)
2 tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1-2 Cloves Garlic (minced)
Salt (DASH; optional)
Pepper (to taste; optional)
Handful Pine Nuts (or so)

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. COOK RICE: In a medium-sized pot, pour in the rice and water and BOIL. Turn heat down to low when water starts to boil, and let sit for 15 mins. Turn OFF heat, and let sit until all water is absorbed.
2. Sprinkle the mushrooms on top as rice sits cooking (this will steam them to perfection).
3. Once rice is done, and enough water absorbed, add the oil, basil, garlic, salt, pepper, and pine nuts. Note that HEAT IS OFF. We want to keep the oil, etc., raw, for maximum health benefits!

Et voila!

ROASTED RED PEPPERS AND PORTOBELLO MUSHROOMS

INGREDIENTS
Portobello Mushrooms (thickly sliced)
Red Pepper (sliced)
Any other veggie
Canola Oil Spray (preferably high-heat resistant Spectrum, organic)
Tamari Sauce (or soy sauce)

INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 400ºF. Place reusable silicon mat on baking sheet (to make it nonstick). Place veggies on baking sheet and SPRAY until just covered. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until peppers start to darken and crisp lightly at the edges. Place veggies in a bowl and mix with tamari sauce to taste. ENJOY!

The reason it’s sexy is because it’s VEGAN (with vegetarian options), it’s YUMMY, and there’s NO TOFU INVOLVED, and, still, it offers a nourishing, satisfying amount of protein, fiber and nutrients. Black beans make a WONDROUS, whole-food alternative to ground meats.

I had the vegan version of the dish, and my kids and Josh-O enjoyed a little organic cheddar cheese grated on top. I don’t do soy cheese because I can’t find a brand that I like (and I’m not a believer in fake anything); so, I can tell you the dish was still delicious sans any cheese. If you’re really LAZY, you could sprinkle parmesan on top. But, this is Mexican we’re talking about here — which means GRATED cheddar. Besides, let’s face it, the big parmesan brands that you buy in the grocery store, are, well, pretty-much fake and laden with salt and chemicals…. Blech.

You can add any vegetable you want to this. But, if you’re dealing with picky children, sometimes a purée is best. Because I’m the Cheatiest cook in the West…, I added a spinach purée to it, which I’ll include in the recipe. Spinach is one of those super-healthy leafy greens that is a MUST in the diet, and it offers good calcium and iron for vegans (especially when combined with the vitamin-C in the tomato sauce).

Okay, so CHECK IT! Oh, and by the way, I’m putting vague amounts here, because they really vary, depending on how many people you’re serving, how much pasta you’re using, etc.. You’ll see….

INGREDIENTS

1/2 jar tomato sauce (any variety)
1/2 jar mild salsa
1 can black beans
1 cup spinach (to be purée in 1/4 cup water) (optional)
1 cup grated soy or organic cheddar cheese (optional)
Cooked pasta (or rice)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Pour all the ingredients over hot cooked pasta (or rice)!
2. Grate your cheese on top (in front of the kids, if possible, because they find it thoroughly entertaining — think making-spaghetti-with-play-dough…).
3. Stir it up!
4. ENJOY!

P.S.: This dish keeps really well in the fridge for a good 3-5 days. Or, freeze for later!

It’s time to get back to basics, Gorgeouses. I have been a bad BAD foodie. I’ve been JUST GETTING BY in the kitchen lately, and my children’s PICKY EATING is, I think, a reflection of my lack of passion about the food they eat. And, in turn, my lack of passion about food is a direct result of my utter EXHAUSTION lately. Which is, in turn, a direct result of bland diet which is, in turn, a direct result of my lack of passion about food.

OY! It’s a chicken-egg scenario. Only, of course, I don’t eat chicken. Or eggs. Or dairy. Or anything animal. Which makes PASSIONATE FOOD a bit of a challenge — both for myself and the kids.

SO, to end this DOWNWARD SPIRAL into doom and gloom and BLAND FOOD. I’m menu planning. At least for the kids. And, I’m getting out all my ammunition, as follows:

1. Better Food for Kids

2. The Eat-Clean Diet for Families & Kids

3. Wholesome Meals for Babies and Toddlers

4. Organic Baby & Toddler Cookbook

5. Brain Foods for Kids

That’s A LOT of kids’ and kid-friendly cookbooks. I have NO excuse for not getting edible food on the table.

And, I KNOW, I’m being hard on myself. Most kids are picky eaters. There’s not a WHOLE lot I can do. But, I want to try a little harder to APPEAL to their senses….

I’m not sure how much I’m going to take from the books, but there are tons of ideas in all of them. I’ll share recipes with you throughout the week. Anyway! Here goes. Weekday Menu Plan for THIS WEEK. CHECK IT!

BREAKFAST:

Will be easy this week. I’m going to make my — now famous, apparently — nutrient-packed VEGAN MUFFINS. When I run out of those, I have our favourite waffles….

LUNCH & DINNER:

Monday:

Lunch: Macaroni and cheese (a healthier version than Kraft). Sliced tomato and cucumber, and a fruit. I’m going to sneak in some PUREED butternut squash into the macaroni and cheese. The squash adds a richness to the colour, a subtle sweetness to the taste, and, of course nutrients and fiber.

Dinner: BAKED SALMON (recipe from Better Food for Kids to come). The monkeys LOVE salmon, and I never make it. Let’s give it a try…. I’ll bake some SWEET POTATO wedges, and steam some broccoli (sprinkled with almonds?) on the side. Recipes to come.

Tuesday:

Lunch: (Aka HELL DAY because I teach yoga at 1pm, which leaves me only HALF AN HOUR, after I pick Monkey up from preschool, to feed them). Leftover Mac and Cheese, sliced tomato and cucumber, and a fruit.

Dinner: Organic (Hallelujah brand) Chicken fingers and veggies (because I’m getting tired just LOOKING at this menu plan, AND Josh-O has dinner plans).

Wednesday:

Lunch: HUMMUS and vegetable wraps. Mmmm, something I can enjoy with them. VEGAN LUNCH. You should see my little Rascal eating a wrap. So fancy!

Dinner: IT’SGRANDMA’S COOKING.

Thursday:

Lunch: Peanut butter and jam on a bagel/toast. Milk/chocolate milk (for the monkey). Fruit.

Dinner: FRITTATA TIME! (recipe to come)

Friday:

Lunch: Hummus and pita, veggies, fruit.

Dinner: IT’SGRANDMA’S COOKING.

Who am I kidding. It’s such a lot of cooking and cleaning ALL THE TIME — this motherhood thing. Nobody tells you there’s going to be SO MUCH COOKING and cleaning ALL THE TIME. So, here I am telling you.

I also noticed that my kids wouldn’t eat MOST of the recipes from the above cookbooks. So much for my ammunition…. I’ve been flipping and re-flipping through them all and thinking MY KIDS WILL NEVER EAT THAT! Sigh….

So, you tell me, Gorgeouses! What are some of your favourite kids’ meals? (And, you don’t have to be a parent to answer this!)

As you know, I’m a vegan now. And, if it were up to me, my whole family would be vegan, too. But, Josh-O is a carnivore and passionate about his kids (and his wife) eating a mainstream diet.

My kids eat mainly a vegetarian diet. Lunch is often hummus wraps with tomato slices. Both of them LOVE that. I NEVER cook red meat for them. And, they share on average about one or two organic chicken breasts a week. The rest of their diet is lacto-ovo-vegetarian. Not perfection (as far as I’m concerned, obviously), but a fair compromise for the hubby.

Since Rascal’s only one year old, his doctor’s advising that he drink plenty of milk. Though I’m opposed to taking anything from animals who are not treated with the utmost respect and compassion, I still have to give Rascal his milk (because this choice is not mine alone to make). So, I’ve found a compromise that I can live with.

In yesterday’s post at Cheaty Monkey, I got lots of comments asking me “WHAT ARE YOU FEEDING HIM?” — apparently, my little guy is looking HUGE (which is a good thing because Doc said he’s only in the 25th percentile for height, which, IN TURN, is really no surprise because I’m a shorty). In answer to that question, THIS is what I’m feeding him:

“This milk comes to you from cows treated with love and respect.”

You see, FACTORY FARMERS FROM TUESDAY’S OPRAH SHOW? It CAN be done. But, I’m also going to remind everyone that the organic farms on the Oprah show are FAR from the average organic farm — which can be just as brutal as some non-organic farms. There’s MUCH more to be done than Proposition 2. And, remember, EVERYTHING you buy is a vote….

By the way, for those of you who would like to stop drinking milk, I’ll keep you posted on the best nondairy replacements. At this very moment, for example, I’m enjoying YU rice milk in my Chai Tea….

The vanilla one is quite YUMMM…. I choose to drink fortified rice milk instead of soy because I LOVE tofu. So, I like to use up my soy quota on tofu…. I do love a good soy milk, though. It’s thicker than rice milk….

Isn’t this conversation FASCINATING?

Stop YAWNING!

I will say, though, that I feel GREAT since giving up dairy. I don’t miss it one bit. My body is saying THANK YOU in so many ways. But, I don’t do it for my body. I do it for the animals.

Love….

xo Haley-O

Even the title of this post is boring — if not cliche. I know. It’s just what I need to do to get back on the bandwagon of posting here. Seriously, though? It’s DANG difficult to write a food blog when you’ve hit a WALL in your food, cooking and kitchen creativity.

I’ve just been trying to get myself together after the big “I’m-Quitting-the-Blog” fiasco. I was THIS close to quitting this blog, too, but then I cooked this and that, and kept thinking “OH, the GORGEOUSES WOULD LOOOOVE THIS!” One of these days I’ll get to posting those recipes. Hopefully next week.

I’ve just been taking a bit of a break from my manic blogging lately — and from my manic EVERYTHING, including cooking, and even grocery shopping. It’s just ENOUGH with the PRESSURE, you know?

So, I haven’t forgotten about this blog, and I do plan on posting here more regularly when I start COOKING more regularly and (dare I hope) passionately again!

THAT SAID, I’ve been focusing A LOT on feeding my kids interesting meals lately — mainly lunches. I want to be one of those moms who makes great, fun meals for her kids. I want the kids at school to be envious of MY kids’ lunches! But, I’m lazy! And, there’s only so much cooking (AND cleaning!) one can do in a day!

Anyway, lately, I’ve been making an effort, and it’s paid off. Both my kids have been eating really well. Hallelujah! And, really? The effort isn’t that major. Lately, it’s called WRAPS — hummus wraps! egg wraps!…

…and it’s called muffins from a box (organic of course — and reasonably priced), with a sneaky little mashed up banana and maybe even a half-cup of cauliflower added….

…and it’s called FINE ART….

It’s AMAZING the difference a FLOWER DESIGN or HAPPY FACE can make to a plate. It’s the difference between the monkey REFUSING to eat and the monkey EATING EVERYTHING on her plate, I tell you. AND, there’s an added benefit: my monkey’s the only one in her preschool class who can draw a face. And, it’s ALL because of MY culinary artistry — I can make a happy face out of ANYTHING (ketchup is my fave medium, though).

I’m planning a big chicken dinner (that I don’t eat, unfortunately) for tomorrow. If it’s good, I’ll post it fashizzle.

ALSO! You haven’t seen Lori the nutritionist here in a while. THAT’S because she had a baby! CONGRATULATIONS, LORI! She’ll be back soon with brillers informative posts and to answer your questions!

LOVE!
xo Haley-O

PS! I HAVE to start remembering to turn comments on! I think a setting’s on or something. SORRY! And, thanks for your emails! Comments are on now….