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Adventures in Nature Camp Food-a-Go-Go
Friday, July 11, 2008
First let me say that, yes... we're still homeschooling. 1.) I just haven't been blogging about it and 2.) we've been on a minimal schooling schedule this summer due to camps and trips. So those that visit this blog specifically for homeschooling related posts, stay tuned--- more are to come in the not-so-far-off future.
What HAS been going on this week is Adventures in Nature Camp! A full day (9am-3pm) week-long camp at a local forest preserve. Kiddo has been fishing and swimming in the man-made lake (formerly a rock quarry), canoeing (even having to be capsized so the kids could learn how to right a canoe, get to shore, etc), bicycling trails (10 miles that day!), hiking a local bog, and today is horseback riding. Each day had an activity as well as a lesson in nature... from sustainable fishing, snakes of the county, fish habitats, bog ecology & animal adaptation/survival, animal camouflage and predators, and more. Kiddo has REALLY, REALLY enjoyed the camp.
For lunches and snacks this week I had to pack stuff that could be kept cold with our little ice packs since they were kept in her backpack and activities were all outside.
Here's what i made this week:
--MONDAY--
 Lunch: Chickpea Cutlet strips w/ ketchup & mustard, cauliflower and green pepper mini-skewers,
and cucumber flowers, sticky rice w/ a soy sauce fish, red grapes, a grape gel,
vanilla yogurt w/ granola to sprinkle on (tiny yellow container), string cheese,
and a fun "toy soldier" breadstick thing from my sister in Japan.
 Snack: Apple wedges (preserved for the day in lemon juice)
w/ peanut butter to spread on (in the little red and blue elephants),
banana bread cubes, and a Japanese candy. (I put some tomato
pretzel sticks in the lid where the plasticware is, too,
but did that after I'd take this photo.)
And, just because it is cute, here's a photo of the snack box
wrapped up in a cloth ( furoshiki) from a different bento box.
I wrapped al lthe snack boxes this week.
--TUESDAY--
 Lunch: Japanese egg noodles w/ a quick stir-fry I made that
morning (carrots, zucchini, bean sprouts, & broccoli) w/a little
bottle of noodle sauce (Kikkoman Memmi sauce),
fresh broccoli and dip, deli chicken meat rolls and string cheese,
and vanilla yogurt w/ pineapple tidbits, granola and raw peanuts on top.
 Snack: kiwi, goldfish crackers and 4 gummie butterflies.
--WEDNESDAY--
 Lunch: Roast Beef, mustard and baby spinach tortilla roll-ups
(she had no idea that was spinach in there, not till I picked her up from camp.
She LOVED it and was glad I didn't tell her beforehand), pickle bites (in the saran wrap),
vanilla yogurt w/ granola to sprinkle on, a fruit gel, rice ball w/ soy sauce fish,
fresh cucumber slices, green pepper and baby carrots, Koala Cookies.
 Snack: Nectarine wedges (ice pack underneath),
homemade granola bar, raisins and raw peanuts.
--THURSDAY--
 Lunch: Pizza "tacos" (spaghetti sauce, mozz. cheese, turkey pepperoni,
and crush pineapple on a tortilla, green pepper, baby carrots, cucumber slices,
and cauliflower w/ ranch dip (pink lidded container), goldfish crackers, mandarin
oranges (frozen and used as the cold pack today, were thawed enough by
lunch time), and a White Rabbit candy.
 Snack: Tomato pretzels, raisins, raw peanuts, pineapple gel,
homemade granola bar, and nectarine slices (on a cold pack)
--FRIDAY--
 Lunch: (by request) Pizza tacos again, celery w/ peanut butter, kiwi,
green peppers and baby carrots, goldfish crackers, and fruit leather.
 Snack: Tomato pretzel stticks, raisins and raw peanuts,
homemade granola bar, 3 prunes, and 3 grape butterfly gummies.
Now, lest you think this is a lot of food... my daughter turns 11 next week and is over 5 feet tall. (5'2" I think.) The kids expend a LOT of energy at camp. She usually has saved back one thing from her snack box each day to eat on the way home (about a 10 minute trip.) It all gets eaten. Drink each day is one small (laptop lunchbox size) bottle of fruit juice w/ lunch, all other drink is plain water carried in her backpack. We freeze her water bottles each night half-full of water and top off the bottle with cold water in the morning. It's worked pretty well at supplying her with cold water all day. Her backpack gets heavy to carry (thus even more energy expended. LOL) but it's worth it to have cold water all day.
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I'm Not a Professional Chef, Nor Do I Play One on TV
Friday, July 4, 2008
 Okay, so it's 8:30am and I've already burned a pot of veggie noodles**! (aack!)
Well not BURNED BURNED, but let's just say that while sitting at the PC reading various PPK posts and foodie blogs, I hear a crackling a few times. I ignore it thinking it is the boy's chewing on their wooden chew toy. I hear it again and it DAWNS ON ME that OH MY! THE NOODLES!!! I run into the kitchen and there isn't a drop of water left in them! The top portion of the noodles is a bit overcooked (though Kiddo might opt to eat them for lunch, as she loves pasta and isn't too picky) while the bottom part is stuck like glue to the pot!
Now, this is a rarity here, folks, truly it is. Burning something under the broiler, perhaps, but I've never burnt milk, never left a boiling pot on too long to dry out, etc. But this morning, yes, I was having a piece of toast (from the 2 loaves I made the other day) w/garden cream cheese on it and a giant mug o' chai tea (with agave nectar and some SF non-dairy creamer, mighty tasty I must say!) and well, I just plum forgot!
So, because I have OODLES OF NOODLES (thanx to the food co-op I'm in) I put another pot on. I have every intention of making some Italian pasta salad today and by-cracky, I'm going to! LOL I just put the noodles into the water....and set the timer this time!
**Note: Yes, I actually took a picture of my bin of dry whole wheat veggie rotini! I had looked on Google Images for a picture to use but nothing quite had the brilliant, wholesome color as the veggie noodles I use. So, I grabbed the camera, opened the blinds in the kitchen and snapped the photo! I'm a dork, I know.
Edited to add: Here's the finished pasta salad. Nothing fancy, just yummy. A go-along dish for our family's barbeque this afternoon to celebrate America's Independence!
And the recipe (more/less):
2 cups (spiral noodles)
Dressing:
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
1/4 tsp. each oregano, basil, vegetable powder, sea salt and paprika
3 Tbsp. olive oil
2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar , or other vinegar
1 tsp. soy sauce
1-2 tomatoes, cored and chopped
1 cup broccoli florets, lightly steamed (I had steamed broccoli leftover from the other day, so this was already on hand)
10 black olives, sliced or finely chopped (I had some canned, sliced black olives already on hand from a previous day of pizza making.)
1/4 cup chopped sweet onion (or red onion)
Instructions:
Prepare the pasta as normal (don't leave it on the stove and forget about it like I originally did! LOL.) While pasta is cooking, prepare the dressing and combine with the chopped veggies. Drain pasta, rinse in cold water, and set aside. Pour on dressing and toss till fully coated. Cover and store in fridge till time to eat. This will keep for several days in the fridge.
Optional Ingredients:
Sliced and/or chopped fresh mushrooms
chopped red and/or green pepper
1/2 cup lightly steamed carrot slices
finely chopped celery or 1/2 tsp celery seed
freshly ground black pepper
toasted sesame seeds sprinkled on at serving time
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A Treat for DH
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
So my dear hubby will be home in a couple hours or less (I think his plane lands in about 30 minutes.) I decided to whip him up a batch of oatmeal raisin cookies, from the Veganomicon cookbook (I have it out from the library again!) I did, however, find the same recipe online, in case any of ya'll would like to try it, too!
My dough only yielded 28 cookies, as apparently my "heaping tablespoon" heaps more than most. LOL I just tried one and they're DELISH! The recipe makes a VERY stiff cookie dough, but takes shape very well.
 Here they are, in their last minutes of cooling.
Changes I made were (because that's what I had on hand today):
- skim milk instead of rice/soy milk
- I used 1/2 and 1/2 of whole wheat pastry and whole wheat white
- I was out of raisins, but had a bucket of dried chopped mixed fruits (raisins, apples, apricots, pears--I think that's what in it) and used that instead.
- I subbed 1/2 c. of sucanat (turbinado sugar) instead of the brown sugar, too.
**And, to pass on the bit of news from my pal, Kay... the Veganomicon book's price at Amazon has dropped drastically! It was nearly $30 last time we looked, right now it is less than $19! |
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Traditional made Untraditionally
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
My lunch for today (still eating it, in fact, as I type):
 Eggless Egg Salad with romaine lettuce on whole wheat toast,
cucumber wedges, edamame, & a white peach
I was totally amazed by the tasty results this morning when I made Vegan Dad's Eggless Salad. The only thing it is missing (because I am currently out) is the beloved crunch of celery. Granted, as we're not vegans I used Miracle Whip Light instead of veganaise. Wow, I was really floored when I tasted it. Why? I shouldn't have been. I KNOW tofu is a "non-taste" so this would taste like mustard/mayo combo. But, I was. Happily surprised. |
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At it again...
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Well after taking the guinea pigs to the vet for a pedicure  , picking up our dry goods from the food co-op (across town, aack!) and bopping by the grocery for a few things, I finally got around to making dinner. Hubby will be back tomorrow so tonight it was just kiddo and me.
Though I've not blogged a whole lot about it yet, I've been taking 4-5 days worth of meat out of our dinner meals. I've seen this type of eating called "flexitarian" around the internet. We're not anywhere close to being vegans and have a long way to go (though we're not even trying to head down that path) to even be vegetarians. Instead, DH and I just want to continue to eat healthier and healthier. I've been loving trying all sorts of new recipes. My poor ol' dear buddy, Kay, probably grimaces each time I message her about some new recipe I'm trying for the day. LOL
Well anyway, one of the items I got this month (they were out of it last month) was 10# of whole wheat elbow pasta. Of course, that meant that some good ol' Macaroni and Cheese was in order! And with DH away, what a perfect time to experiment with a new recipe! (Though, he's my BIGGEST fan-- he always seems to really love whatever it is I make. It's FUN to cook for happy tastebuds!)
So earlier this morning I'd come across this recipe for Easy Macaroni and Cheeze from the Fat Free Vegan blog. Now, I have to admit I've always been a MAJOR fan of Velveeta Shells and Cheese. When I became a mac and cheese snob, I've no idea... but the little blue box with the powder cheese hasn't been appealing for years. But I love me some creamy, dreamy velveety shells and cheese. So, having read all sorts of raves about this recipe, I decided to try it... and try it with an open mind. Plus, I'd gotten 3# of nutritional yeast flakes in the co-op order today, too... so I was ready to go!
WOOHOO! I'm sooooo glad I did! It was REALLY tasty! No, it doesn't really taste like Velveeta Shells and Cheese but it had a yummy flavor all its own. Granted, we're already used to eating whole wheat pasta, so that wasn't an issue for us. (Folks who've not yet made the switch to ww pasta, might find it too much to try TWO new flavors together at once. maybe.) In any case, while the pasta was boiling I whipped up the other ingredients in the blender. Tasted the results... hmmmm interesting, thought I. But boy, was it sure runny. I was NOT quite seeing how this super liquidy orange-ish concoction was going to turn into something creamy on the pasta. But, as fate would have it the recipe says, once the sauce was poured onto the drained noodles and stirred altogether over the heat, it worked! It really did! I was totally amazed and delighted.
I did make a few changes, based on ingredients on hand...
- I used wet (prepared/regular) yellow mustard instead of dry mustard. I didn't measure it, just used a couple squirts.
- I did add extra turmeric. Truth be told I was trying to get it that crazy, day-glow orange color we're so fond of.
- I used skim milk... as I said, we're not vegetarians.
- I added a touch more garlic (in the form of garlic pepper).
- I did need to use quite a bit of that "saved pasta water" merely because I was slow to get the rest of dinner made and the mac and cheeze was thickening too much. No fear though. Each and every time I added some of the pasta water, the cheeze sucked it right in and the consistency continued on its lovely creamy fashion.
Here's a picture of kidd's dinner plate tonight, sporting the scrumptious new food.
 The bowl contains cantelope.
Plate has cucumber slices, mac and cheeze,
BBQ seitan bites, and steamed broccoli.
Cup of skim milk on the side.
Here's my bowl of dinner.
 (Yes, I'd started to eat it before I remembered to take the photo!LOL)
Mac and Cheeze with albacore tuna and steamed, chopped broccoli.
(I'd already eaten my cucumber wedges while cooking dinner!)
And here's a close up of it, in case you want to try to smell it. 
So, DH will be having some of this sometime in the future, too. I'm on the phone with him right now (yes, NOW) as a matter of fact. LOL I've told him all about it already.
Well off to vacuum the living room! |
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Gadzooks, I liked it!
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
So my best online buddy has a juicer. I've never felt the urge to buy a juicer but did find the idea of "getting lots of veggies" into your day appealing. But again, no urge to go out and buy one, besides- I just don't have the storage space for one! LOL
However, with our recent restart of bi-weekly organics delivery I needed to find SOMETHING to do with the chard we keep getting. I'd tried a couple recipes in the past, but in all honesty, I have been looking too hard recently for something new to cook it up into.
This morning, while perusing the Post Punk Kitchen (PPK) forums, I somehow meandered over to a blog with a green smoothie recipe. Now, I'm not anywhere close to being a fan of mangoes, at least not consciously. But, I knew I could substitute I *do* like into this recipe and figured I would try it. I was able to use up a bit of the organic fruit & greens from last Friday's delivery so that was an added bonus! One certainly doesn't NEED a recipe to make a smoothie, and I've made a gazillion smoothies over the years. But this is the first one that ever came out green! LOL
 Note: little pineapple and bananas were also part
of our recent organic produce delivery
My recipe for this smoothie:
5 ice-cubes (more/less, depending on how thick & icy you want it)
1/2 banana, cut into 2-3 chunks
skim milk (a couple glugs worth, I didn't measure)
5 or so strawberries (fresh, with tops cut off)
big handful of fresh baby spinach
2 leaves of swiss chard (as that's the kind I grabbed from the fridge this morning)
I just threw it all into my blender, set it on the smoothie cycle and hit "on". Within seconds it was done. I tentatively stuck a spoon in and tasted it.  WOW! I LOVED IT! Here I thought it might taste all freakily-green and such. Nope. No such thing.
Kiddo just came down right now and saw the last bit of smoothie in my glass. No, she's not brave enough to try it at this time, but did ask about it. I told her it didn't even taste like greens, just the strawberry and banana. I really like it, and am surprised myself. Obviously, it isn't anything fancy, no rock-solid recipe, or uber-chic ingredients, but I'm just happy to 1) find a YUMMY use for the chard and 2) get some added greens in my diet. |
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This week's menus
Monday, June 16, 2008
 Click image above to read more menus and to add your own!
I've finally decided I like to cook. I'm probably the last to know this, as friends and family are always saying, ".... since you like to cook..." or "...well, you like to cook at least!" and such. But it dawned on me just the other day (and became a reality when I AIM'd the words to my online buddy) that my "love language" is food. Now, I've never read the book about love languages, so I don't even know if there is such a language. But regardless, it's mine. I like to provide yummy, nutritious meals to my family, and especially like to "wow" my husband with a new taste. He's the BEST food critic one could have ever visit their kitchen, I tell ya, since he just about always likes what I make. LOL
Anyway, DH and I were talking just over a week or so ago about cutting back "in the meats department." Granted, NOT going vegetarian or anything, as we DO love us some meat... but for me to get back to serving up at least 1-2 meatless meals a week. (I'd gotten away from this for some reason. Well, not away necessarily, but hadn't had it on my mind to do it.)
So lately I've been doing just that. Here's our omnivore-family's dinner menu for the week...
Sunday-- BFL Stir-fry & spring rolls (seitan in place of beef) and such 
Monday-- Marinaded Pork Loin, Potato and Leeks, and green beans and such
Tuesday-- BBQ Seitan Ribz (click for video), Veganomicon's (brown) Dill-Basmati Rice with Chard and Chickpeas (p. 116), and salad CHANGED TO... Spicy Slaw with Lime and Cilantroand corn on the cob (need to use up the corn and the cabbage)
Wednesday-- Garlic Dump Chicken, baked potatoes, and salad (and homemade strawberry ice cream for dessert!)
Thursday-- Veganomicon's Tomato Rice Soup with Roasted Garlic and Navy Beans (p. 137), homemade French Bread, and salad **Note: the Tomato soup was EXCELLENT! Even our daughter, who HATES Campbell's tomato soup and often picks out big hunks of tomato from chili, ate TWO BOWLS of it! Yes really! So I found the exact same recipe online for you all to try!!!
Friday-- homemade pizzas with garlic crust (will use Seitan Recipe O' Greatness in place of pepperoni, though we usually use turkey pepperoni anyway) ( I just LOVE, LOVE the Garlic Pizza Crust recipe I use. This time, I got 3 medium hand-tossed crusts and 3 personal hand-tossed pizza crusts from the dough! The personals I froze for DH's use later on, for his lunches.)
Saturday-- probably leftovers as I'll be at a Girl Scout function from 9am-3pm, and our fridge needs purging/eaten up!
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