No-bake Lactation Bites

Modified energy balls for lactating moms (or anyone else who likes sweets).

• 1 cup dry oats
• 2/3 cup coconut flakes
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1/2 cup flax seed meal or freshly ground flax seeds
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• 1/2 tbs brewers yeast
• 1/3 cup honey or agave 
• 1 tbs chia seeds
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 scoop of protein powder (I use vanilla Perfect Fit Protein)

Mix ingredients together and chill in fridge for 30 min.  Then roll into balls and store in the fridge, 

I'm using a Fit Bit now so trying to track calories,  I think these are approximately 100 each. 

*If the ingredients are too dry add a bit more peanut butter to make it sticky. 

Enjoy!

Cinnamon Raisin Quinoa Hot Cereal

We are really trying to get Blake to learn healthy habits and learn to like different kinds of foods.  I hate to give her instant oatmeal because of the amount of sugar in them.  They are convenient sometimes but I try to make her home cooked food as much as possible.  I like to make a batch of this on Sundays and it can just be heated up for her on weekday mornings while I'm at work.  It's also really delicious!

Ingredients 

• 1 cup uncooked quinoa (rinsed and drained)
• 1 1/2 cups of cold water
• 1/2 tbs butter
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp apple pie spice
• 3 tbs brown sugar
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 box (or a handful) of raisins

Bring the quinoa and water to a boil for 1 minute and then reduce to low and cover.  Simmer until cooked and water is absorbed, about 10 minutes.  Add the rest of the ingredients and stir.  That's it!

*Sometimes when it is re-heated it can seem a little dry.  Just add a little more milk.

I also make my own apple pie spice because I couldn't find it at the grocery store and I already had all the ingredients. Here's how to make your own.

• 1/4 cup cinnamon
• 1 tbs allspice
• 2 tsp nutmeg
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp cardamom

Enjoy!

Mexican Lime Chicken Soup

For Cinco de Mayo this year I wanted to do something different.  And easy, since it's a work night.  I made this soup the night before so we can just heat it up after work.  

I found the recipe on Pinterest here.  The only thing I changed was that I used 2 limes instead of one because I couldn't taste any lime with just one.  

If you love Mexican food flavors (like I do) than you will love this soup!  If you hate cilantro or cumin you better skip it :)

• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium yellow onion
• 2 stalks celery 
• 1 medium jalapeno 
• 4 cloves garlic 
• 2 chicken breasts
• 6 cups chicken broth
• 1 can diced tomatoes w/chiles
• 1 tsp oregano 
• ½ Tbsp cumin 
• 2 medium limes 
• ½ bunch cilantro 
• 1 medium avocado

Dice the onion, celery, and jalapeno (scrape the seeds out of the jalapeno before dicing). Mince the garlic. Cook the onion, celery, jalapeno, and garlic in olive oil over medium heat for about 5 minutes or until tender.

Add the chicken breast, chicken broth, canned tomatoes with chiles, oregano, and cumin to the pot. Bring the whole pot up to a boil over high heat then reduce the heat to low, place a lid on top, and let simmer for one hour.

After simmering for an hour with a lid on, carefully remove the chicken breast from the pot and use two forks to shred the meat. Return the meat to the pot. Squeeze the juice of one lime into the soup. Get as much juice as possible from the lime by using a spoon to scrape the inside of the lime.

Rinse the cilantro and then roughly chop the leaves. Add to the pot, give it a quick stir, and serve. Dice the avocado and add a few chunks to each bowl.

Brunch Play Date

Energy Balls

A few months ago, I posted this recipe for healthy no-bake energy snacks.  They are so good, check them out.  

I found a new recipe online and tweeked it a little bit and came up with some new ones.  They are a little bit more rich and satisfy that chocolate-peanut butter addiction I currently have. 

Just mix together all the ingredients, chill in the fridge for a little while and then roll into bite sized balls.  

• 1 cup oats
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1/2 cup ground flax seeds
• 1/3 cup agave nectar
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tbs chia seeds
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Crockpot Teriyaki Chicken

I found this pin the other day that looked too delicious not to try.  I don't normally even really like teriyaki but it just looked so good.  Luckily it turned out really great...

 because not all Pinterest recipes do.  

Here is the link to the pin.  I thought my picture looked pretty good until I went back and looked at the pin again and saw how great their picture made it look.  Oh well, all that matters is how good it tasted :)

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup chopped white onion
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 cup soy sauce (use low-sodium if desired)
• 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
• 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh ginger
• 1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup cold water
• 3 Tbsp. cornstarch
• (optional toppings: sliced scallions and toasted sesame seeds)

DIRECTIONS:

Add the chicken breasts to the bottom of your slow cooker in a single layer.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the garlic, onion, honey, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, ginger, and black pepper until combined. Pour the mixture on top of the chicken breasts. Cover slow cooker, and cook on high for 4-5 hours, or until the chicken is cooked through and shreds easily with a fork. Remove the chicken with a slotted spoon to a separate bowl and shred it using two forks. Transfer the remaining teriyaki sauce from the slow cooker to a medium saucepan.

Meanwhile in a separate bowl, whisk together the cold water and cornstarch until the cornstarch is dissolved and no longer lumpy. Pour the cornstarch slurry into the teriyaki sauce mixture, and whisk to combine. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, and let it boil for about 1-2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat, and pour the sauce on top of the shredded chicken. Toss to combine.

Serve topped with scallions (green onions) and toasted sesame seeds if desired.

Cinnamon Sugar Pumpkin Seeds

• 1 tbs butter
• 1 tbs sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon

Toss pumpkin seeds in mixture and spread out on baking sheet.  Bake in 300 degree oven for about 50 minutes.

Healthy No Bake Snacks

I came across an old friend and co-worker's blog the other day and tried out one of her recipes.  They are delicious little no bake snacks packed with healthy ingredients.  You can see her original post here.  I might start experimenting with different ingredients because these are so easy and are perfect for guilt free snacking.

I doubled her recipe because the first time I made them, I liked them so much I felt we needed a bigger batch :)

All you have to do is throw...

• 2 cup of pitted dates (I'm obsessed with these right now)
• 1 apple (whatever kind you like)
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 2/3 cup flax seeds
• 1 tsp vanilla 
• 1 cup almonds
• 2 tbs melted coconut oil

into the food processor, roll the mixture into bite size balls, and put into the fridge.

Pineapple

I think it's so funny how food can be trendy.  I understand how healthy "superfoods" come and go in trends but fruit, really?  Pineapple is having it's moment right now.  It's all over fashion and parties.  Pineapple themed this and that.  A little while ago it was lemons. Anyway just to jump on board, I bought an Old Navy tank with gold pineapples on it and we are having a Hawaiian luau themed 1st birthday for Blake (Kyle's idea BTW).

I love this presentation for pineapple.  My step mom has been doing it for years and I tried it today and it was surprisingly really easy.  I might even try doing a bunch for Blake's birthday party.  Then again maybe not.  We'll see...

Cilantro Lime Dressing

Lately, I've been obsessed with the chicken salad from El Pollo Loco with the cilantro dressing.  I found a recipe online for cilantro lime ranch dressing and created my own version of the salad. 

The salad:

lettuce

purple cabbage

cilantro

tomatoes

black beans

corn

cheese

grilled chicken

The dressing:

1 cup ranch dressing

2 cloves garlic

1/8 cup lime juice

1 jalepeno (remove seeds)

1 tomatillo

1/2 cup of cilantro 

Put all ingredients in blender and blend on high until well mixed.

Enjoy!!

Vegan Avocado Chocolate Mousse

I'm no vegan, but I do try to be as healthy as possible and this is a healthier version of a classic chocolate treat.  This mousse is made with avocado instead of dairy so it's also great for someone who can't handle dairy products.  You can taste the avocado, slightly, but not in a bad way.  It has a really rich chocolate flavor that over powers the avocado flavor.

I got the recipe from Giada's Feel Good Food book, which is her healthier recipe book.

• 1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
• 4 very ripe avocados, chopped
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup agave nectar
• 1 tbs. plus 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp. fine sea salt
• 1/3 cup unsweetened almond milk
• Fresh raspberries and mint leaf for garnish.  I also used chocolate sticks that I stole from work :)

Melt chocolate chips in a double boiler until smooth and set aside to cool slightly.  Combine all ingredients in food processor or blender and blend until smooth and creamy.  Refrigerate for at least 3 hours or up to 1 day.  

Skipping the Rice Cereal

On her 6 month birthday, we started Blakey on solid food.  It's more of an experiment really.  Just an exploration of different flavors and textures.  Her very first food was sweet potatoes.  I was so excited to bust out my Beaba Baby Cook baby food maker.  It steams and blends all in one.  I made her sweet potatoes and blended them smooth and then I made them really thin by adding breast milk.  Well, I would hardly call this first feeding a success.  She was so confused and pretty much just turned her head away from the spoon.  I didn't force her.  The next day, I tried again but with a little thicker texture.  I tossed the spoon and used my finger and she would actually take some into her mouth, yay success!!  But...every time I got any in her mouth, she gagged.  I hate to say but she had me cracking up with all the gagging.

After sweet potatoes came avocados, then bananas.  She actually swallowed some of the bananas.  I know this because I saw it come out the other end :)

Then I hit a little breastfeeding hiccup.  I'm not sure if it was the solids or something else but she stopped nursing well and my supply dropped a ton.  I quit the food and focused on breastfeeding for a week straight.  I am 100% committed to breastfeeding for the first year and maybe beyond so I was not about to let this be the end.  Solids are for fun at this point but her milk is 100% of her nutrition.  One week later, we are all good again but it was pretty stressful (which of course only makes things worse).

WARNING: Controversial topic ahead.
I skipped the rice cereal.  In fact I will never be giving my daughter rice cereal and that's ok.  It's good in fact.
Modern thinking (although plenty of people and pediatricians still believe rice cereal is the only option for baby's first food) is that rice cereal is just not necessary.  It has been the standard in recent generations but it has literally no nutritional value and is just a bunch of carbs that taste like cardboard.  Your doctor might tell you it's the iron.  Breastfed babies need iron, especially after the first 6 months.  Although this fact is debatable, iron can be found naturally in many fresh foods.  They might also tell you that allergies or baby's immature digestive system are factors.  Well, if you wait to start solids until baby is 6 months, their systems are ready.  There is less incidence of allergies and the digestive system has matured enough to handle lots of types of food.  Plus, rice cereal can just cause constipation, which I'm sure we can all agree is no fun.
We are choosing to go with fresh, healthy, homemade baby food for Blake.  It's easy, cheap, and good for her.  If you're still not convinced, remember, it wasn't very long ago that we didn't have boxed, processed, baby cereal and all of those babies thrived just fine.  :)

Here are some links with info about the topic.  There are tons of articles about this but here are a few that popped up when I was searching.

http://www.analyticalarmadillo.co.uk/2011/12/nine-good-reasons-not-to-use-baby-rice.html

http://kellymom.com/nutrition/starting-solids/first-foods/

http://aapnews.aappublications.org/content/early/2012/09/19/aapnews.20120919-2.full

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/w_ParentingResource/baby-diet-white-rice-cereal-pediatrician-dr-alan-greene-focuses/story?id=12801589

Mexican Quinoa

I was browsing Pinterest the other day looking for quinoa recipes and I came across this one.  We love a good taco night around here and I'm so sick of boring rice and beans as a side.  And to be honest I don't even really like rice.  I was so excited when I found this.  It turned out to be easy and delicious. Win-win!

Here's what you need:

• 1 tbs olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/4 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 1 cup uncooked quinoa
• 1 can diced tomatoes and green chilis (14.5 oz)
• 1 can black beans (15.5 oz)
• 1 can whole corn kernels (15.5 oz)
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro
• grated cheddar cheese and sour cream (for topping)

WARNING: This makes a lot.  It doesn't look like it when you start but the quinoa gets huge. Could easily serve 6 people.

Here's what you do:

1. In a large sauce pan heat the olive oil over medium/high heat and add garlic.  Just saute until fragrant.  Less than a minute.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients (minus the cilantro and the toppings) and bring to a boil.
3. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 20-25 minutes.
4. Stir in cilantro just before serving and add toppings.

Lactation Shake

Peanut Butter Banana Lactation Smoothie: healthier than eating lactation cookies :)

• Protein Powder (I use vanilla)
• 1 banana
• splash of milk
• Chia Seeds (because they are a superfood and I put them in everything these days)
• Scoop of Peanut Butter
• 1/2 tbs flax seed meal (soak in water for a few minutes before to soften)
• 1/2 tbs. brewers yeast
• ice

You don't have to do peanut butter banana but this flavor is sweet and can cover up the bitterness of the brewers yeast.  I might try a fruity or green shake next.  Protein, flax seed meal, and brewers yeast are the important ingredients for lactation.  

Today I also heard that coconut oil and grass feed butter (whatever that is) are also good and some people put them in coffee (decaf).  There are so many home remedies for low milk supply out there and who knows if they really work but I have pretty much tried them all and now have a really great supply so I will keep doing what I'm doing. 

It's A Boy: A Shower For Shann

It’s A Boy!

We got in just under the wire here.  Little Patrick decided to make an early debut about 3 days later :)

Target diapers make the best diaper cakes.  Those polka dots are just too cute!

I wanted to do two large balloons with tassels but those tassels, although cute, can be really time consuming.  I can't help it though, I just love a giant balloon with a tassel string.  Blame Pinterest I guess. 

All the decorations were made by me.  I purchased the design from the Etsy shop called Haute Chocolate Favors.  The designer had a pink and blue girl whale theme and I had her do a custom package for me.  She sent the files over and I printed and put it all together.  

I made sparkling lemonade punch.  Just lemonade, club soda, lemon slices, blueberries, and ice.  Easy and refreshing.

The "salad party" has become the go-to with my girl friends.  Any time we have a party each girl makes a different salad and brings it.  It makes the food really easy and when it's all women (who eat like birds) it works perfectly.  WARNING: I would never serve this to a bunch of guys :)

My favors were small bags of candies.  I found Hershey kisses with "It's A Boy" strings which I thought were really cute.

A fun little diaper activity.  The guests write funny or inspirational messages on diapers to be reserved for late night diaper changes.  It's supposed to be a little something to get you through those incredibly tough/exhausting times in the beginning.

Blake's Grammie and Patrick's Grandma-to-be.

Making new friends :)

Niki, getting Blake down for a nap.  Thanks again for that one!!

The glowing momma-to-be opening her gifts :)

My daughter is 5 months and I still haven't gotten my hair done.  This is officially disgusting.  It has been over a year now.  This is first on my list if I ever get any "me" time and/or some money :)  But aren't her glasses adorable?

The whole crew