Try these new cookie recipes I've posted:

Chocolate Chocolate Chip

Oatmeal Gingersnaps

I broke my foot this week, so needless to say I am not doing much cooking and I don't know when things will be returning back to normal! So, no meal plans for a while, but here are a couple new recipes I've made the past couple weeks and a couple old ones that are great for Christmas!

Homemade Chicken Nuggets

Creamy Spinach and Artichoke Dip (Vegan)

Chocolate Sunbutter Cups -- These are like peanut butter cups except using sunbutter instead. They are perfect for gift baskets for teachers, friends, and neighbors.

Sugar Cookies -- I use both a recipe and frosting recipe from The Food Allergy Mama's Baking Book. I can't reprint it here, but if you don't have access to the book there are lots of vegan sugar cookie recipes available online. I just wanted to remind you the option is available and is a great way for our kids with allergies to enjoy decorating cookies with friends.

We are pretty traditional when it comes to a Thanksgiving menu. I also prefer not to do too many complicated items. There's only so much room in the oven!

Here's an overview of what we'll be making along with some recipe links:


Turkey (I normally use a turkey breast, add a little seasoning and cook it in the crock pot)

Honeybaked Ham

Whipped Sweet Potato (Just whip with some non-dairy butter and cinnamon)

Carrots/Red Potatoes/Lima Beans/Corn Mix (Using my Beef Stew recipe and leaving out the beef)

Gravy (Store-bought)

Cranberry Sauce

Green Beans

Stuffing (we use the store bought Pepperidge Farm brand, and add some cooked carrots, celery, and onion)

Apple Pie

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

This was a light week for meals. My husband was out of town for much of the week so I didn't cook as much as normal.

This week I made two meals from The Welcoming Kitchen, a cookbook which contains 200 recipes that are free from all 8 major allergens and are also vegan. Because these recipes are not online, I cannot link to them or reprint them here. At only $12 it is a reasonable price, or you can try to check out the book from your local library. I'll be posting several items soon that I've tried so you can get an idea whether the book it is a good option for you.

Sunday
 
The grown-ups didn't eat dinner, but both the kids had sunbutter and banana (I slice up bananas and spread a little Sunbutter on top of each slice...top it off with a raisin if you want!) and they split an avocado.
 
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Monday

Lasagna from The Welcoming Kitchen. I was pretty excited to find this tofu-free recipe. It is also free from any non-dairy cheeses. It uses an acorn squash/bean mixture along with some spices for the traditional cheese layer. I used my own Hidden Veggie Spaghetti Sauce for the sauce layer. This recipe was a winner all-around in my house. Both my kids loved it, and both my husband and I thought it was excellent.
 
Steamed Asparagus

Avocado

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Tuesday

Leftovers

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Wednesday
I can't remember for the life of me what we ate for dinner! It must not have been too exciting! I didn't cook a fresh meal that night so it must have been either yogurt or I may have pulled some food like soup from the freezer.
 
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Thursday

Sloppy Joes from The Welcoming Kitchen. This recipe uses lentils in place of meat. I am new to cooking lentils and I think I cooked them a little too long. Regardless, this was a mixed success. I thought they tasted like sloppy joes, but the texture took some getting used to (though again, I think I overcooked them so this was part of the problem). My husband did not think they tasted like sloppy joes, and thought the texture was odd too, but he liked them! My son ate some and my daughter wouldn't even try a bite (she's still in a picky phase). I actually think this mixture would also be good mixed with rice, and also as a dip for tortilla chips.

Baked French Fries

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Friday

We ate out for lunch so the grown-ups had leftovers while the kids had yogurt, granola, and raisins.

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Saturday

Chicken Burgers. These are a convenience food from the freezer section at BJ's wholesale. The brand is Harvastland and they carry one type of burger that is free from our allergens.

Steamed broccoli

Raw sugar snap peas

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This week we also made a batch of ice cream in our ice cream maker, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough. The recipe is contained in Lick It so I cannot reprint it here, but we enjoyed it!

Sunday

Refried Black Beans (These are versatile, we made quesadillas but they can be made into burritos, tacos, or used on nachos. They were good but not really worth the work required. I think they would have been pretty much the same in the slow cooker, and I wouldn’t have had to stick by the stove for hours. If I make them again I’ll use the slow cooker to cook the beans, then re-fry as the recipe described.)

Mexican Rice

Zucchini Quesadilla (We used the homemade refried black beans above in place of the black beans in the recipe. The zucchini pretty much goes unnoticed if you grate it small so it is a good way to sneak a veggie into a kid-friendly meal.)

Avocado

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Monday

Leftovers

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Tuesday

Beef Stew (I LOVE this recipe!)

Corn Muffins (I skipped the box mix and made corn muffins on my own using the recipe on the corn meal package making substitutions for the milk and egg. They were AWFUL! Nice texture, but lacked any flavor. I'll keep trying to find a better recipe)

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Wednesday

Leftovers

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Thursday

Salmon Filets (Cooked in BBQ sauce on the grill. These are wild Alaskan Filets, which are different than the patties I sometimes buy. They can also be bought in bulk at wholesale clubs.)

Steamed Asparagus

Avocado

French Fries (I used red potatoes, cut them up, tossed them in a ziploc bag with some olive oil and basil. I cooked them on a greased cookie sheet at 450 for about 20 minutes. It may take longer if you cut bigger fries.)

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Friday

We ordered pizza. I normally make my son his own pizza when we order in but he didn't want it and chose yogurt and grapefruit instead. If only I had the discipline to choose yogurt and grapefruit in place of pizza!

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Saturday

Spaghetti (I used veggies I had on hand, which included a small zucchini, some frozen chopped peppers and onions, a small sweet potato, 3 carrots, 4 butternut squash cubes, 5 spinach cubes, as well as one can of red kidney beans and one can of great northern beans).

Bread & Dipping Oil (I like to use a warmed pita pocket)

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I also got an itch to bake some bread this week in my breadmaker. I made whole wheat cinnamon raisin bread first. This was decent for a whole wheat recipe except next time I'm going to leave out the raisins. I really don't like raisins in baked goods!

I also made a loaf of whole wheat zucchini herb bread. This recipe did not clarify to what extent I should drain the water from the zucchini and I clearly did not drain enough! While the dough was kneading I had to add probably about another 1/2 cup of flour to get the dough ball to the right texture. This led to the bread sinking on top and also a much denser loaf than I prefer. Next time I'm going to try the recipe again someday but make much more of an effort to squeeze the water out of the zucchini.

Avocado is plentiful and cheap right now, and you'll see that often my kids are having it along with their meal. Avocado is a superfood and is packed with healthy nutrients. Also, for those of us that are always worried about our kids with restricted diets getting enough fat, avocado is a great way to get them healthy fats, around 13g per avocado! While neither my husband or I like avocado, both my kids love it raw and it is a very simple way to add to a meal. I should also mention my son did NOT like it as a young toddler. But after a break from it I tried again and he loves it now, so much that he will often eat a whole avocado at one sitting. It grosses me out, but I'm happy that he likes it!

**I normally meal plan for around 4 nights a week and generally plan only for the main course. The side dishes are dependent on what happens to be in the fridge that week. The remaining nights are covered with leftovers, or a light "non-dinner" dinner when we aren't feeling like eating a full meal.


Sunday:

Mom and Dad at leftovers from a pizza at lunch, but the kids had yogurt and avocado.


Monday:

Indian Spiced Lentils (This was delicious! Full of flavor but not spicy. I added 2 cups previously cooked chicken from my chicken roaster last week. Other than that, I stuck to the recipe. The lentils and cauliflower really are not noticed, so they are easy to "hide." It really just tastes like a rice dish. Both my kids liked it and my son even ate it at school for lunch the next day.)

Potatoes, kidney beans, chickpeas, and green beans (I didn't have a recipe for this, I just made it up. I cut up the potatoes and cooked them in about an inch of chicken broth and 1/4 cup of canned coconut milk plus pepper. When they were about 10 minutes from being finished, I added the kidney beans, chickpeas, and green beans and cooked until everything was ready)

Avocado


Tuesday:

Bean and Bacon Soup (This was my one disaster of the week! The main problem was that the water content was much too high, leaving the soup thin and lacking flavor. I would decrease the water by 3 cups at least, then add more later if you need it). Since the soup was not that great, I supplemented with leftover Indian Spiced Lentils.

Raw Zucchini and Avocado


Wedensday:

Pork Chops w/ BBQ Sauce (Nothing special here...pork chops on the grill)

Peas and Carrots (frozen)

Avocado

Leftover Potato mix from Monday


Thursday:

Leftovers from lunch take-out for Mom and Dad

The kids ate leftover pork and potato mix


Friday:

Quinoa and veggies (Followed package instructions for quinoa, but added about a cup of cooked vegetables, poultry seasoning, and 2 t. chicken bouillon)

Salmon Patties (Frozen from WorldCatch)

Veggie Smoothies (2 cubes spinach, 2 cubes sweet potatoes, 1/3 of a raw zucchini, V8 Fusion)


Saturday:

I made half a dinner (a black bean concoction) before everyone told me they weren't really hungry! So, I made a taco with it for me and saved the rest for Sunday and the kids ate Yogurt and Trail Mix.


I still haven't made the popcorn balls yet! I was missing an ingredient and finally have it now. I'll have to try again this week.

I imitated Betty Crocker this week and I actually did a meal plan as well as a lot of fresh cooking. While I love the idea of meal planning, it is not something I do every week. Even when I do make a plan, I normally just focus on main dishes and then decide on side dishes based on what veggies I was able to get at the store or what needs to get used up in my fridge.

For a seven-day week, I normally plan for four dinner meals, two night of leftovers, and one night of “free-for-all.” Generally we have at least one night where we ate a late lunch or for whatever reason, don’t feel like a full dinner. On these nights we’ll have a non-dinner dinner like yogurt, more leftovers, or soup from the freezer. I also try to make at least one meal without any meat.

Hopefully this will give you some ideas for your week! Links are included and I've listed any changes made to the recipe.


Sunday:

Get Yo’ Man Chicken from the Neely’s (this chicken is always so moist and delicious!)

Steamed Broccoli

Quick Black Beans and Rice (I did not have any stewed tomatoes so I used 1 can Rotel which is only 11 oz, so I also added ¼ cup pizza sauce, as well as doubled the garlic powder)


Monday:

Winter Chili (I added 1 cup of pureed butternut squash to the broth, 1 lb of cooked ground meat, and did not use a cinnamon stick. Also, you may want to portion out the kids serving before adding jalapenos)

Corn Muffins (From the Jiffy box, with 1/4 cup applesauce substituted for the egg and 1/3 cup coconut milk for the dairy milk)


Tuesday:

Hearty Vegetable Pot Pie (I halved this recipe to make just one pie. I halved all ingredients except the spices, which I kept as listed. Also, Nutritional Yeast is an excellent supplement and can be found in most natural food sections in the store or in vitamin stores).

Corn (I forgot to put this in the Pot Pie, so we had it on the side!)

Leftover Rice from Sunday


Wednesday:

Leftovers


Thursday:

Roasted Chicken (Full chicken cooked in the crock pot)

Artichoke Fritters (I used canned, quartered artichokes. I only needed one cup of cornmeal, but I kept the other spice measurements the same. I couldn't really taste them, so I think the spices could be doubled. Also, they are not good re-heated, so make just enough for one meal. If you don't have garlic pepper, mix 4 teaspoons garlic powder, 2 1/4 teaspoons pepper, and 1/2 tablespoon parsley.)

Potato Soup (I made this way too thin. I should have drained some water before pureeing. To thicken it, I added one can of white beans, one bag of frozen carrot/onion/celery mix, and two carrots. It helped and didn't change the flavor significantly. It was thicker when reheated)

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies (I didn't LOVE these the first time I had one, but they really grew on me and now I'm addicted! The recipe called for 2 cups of chocolate chips which was WAY too many. I used mini chocolate chips and 1 cup would be enough. Also, the batter is very thick and my hand blender couldn't handle it. Break out the stand mixer if you have one!)


Friday:

Leftovers


Saturday:

Yogurt (So Delicious Coconut for my son), Granola, and Raisens

Vegetable Smoothies (Thawed Squash and Spinach Cubes, Frozen Strawberries, and V8 Fusion Juice)


I had one recipe I didn’t get to this week which was Indian Spiced Lentils. I'm also hoping to make popcorn balls for the first time. They are on my list for next week!