An attempt to document my progress in bringing up a healthy eater! Tyler is now a 2 year old but I will try to go back and document the entire progress of his diet. I will try to include recipes, meal ideas, and how to incorporate a child's diet into a family's lifestyle.
I love shepherd’s pie. This is a dish that might take a little time to make but can be made ahead, baked right before eating, and frozen.
A favorite of mine growing up, shepherd’s pie can actually be REALLY bad for you. Load up those potatoes with butter/cream/milk, only use corn, and use a high fat beef and you are talking an extremely starchy dinner full of fat. Here are some alternatives you can use.
Meat:
Ground turkey-this can get dry so make sure you put it on the bottom
Vegetable protein “beef” style- This stuff is great IN dishes (not really by itself). Try this with traditional shepherd’s pie spices or a little catsup mixed in.
Ground chicken
Very low fat beef
Ground lamb- a little more expensive and a tad gamey lamb is lean and healthy
Corn:
Using a small layer of corn is ok, but Shepherd’s pie does not really offer much in the way of vegetables
Mix in celery
Put in a layer of peas, green beans, roasted peppers, broccoli,or just about any other vegetable.
Mix in spinach with what ever you put in for a little more green to your pie
Potatoes:
Mashed potatoes with no butter and skim milk, add garlic for a little more flavor
Brown rice
Mashed cauliflower/potatoes (see previous blog for recipe)
Sweet potatoes
Thinner layer of traditional mashed potatoes
I am taking some liberties on what shep. Pie really is in this next section :)
Mixin’ it up, different spice and food combos:
Asian: Ground chicken with a little stir fry sauce, green beans, bean sprouts, pea pods topped with thin rice noodles also with a little stir fry sauce
Tex Mex: Throw a taco seasoning packet in with your choice of meat, roasted red peppers, corn, onions, black beans, top with potatoes
Indian: Lamb with curry spices, apple, onion, string beans, summer squash, any other veggies that are mixed with alittle curry, brown rice, top with a little chutney
The vegetarian: Vegetable protein mixed with a little catsup, green beans, ketchup, peas, mashed cauliflower
Italian: Mix up your meat with a little pasta sauce, summer squash, zucchini, brown rice, parmesan cheese.
Ty’s Breakfast Rice Pudding
This is what Ty had for breakfast this morning, it was pretty good.
Ingredients:
1 egg
1/4 to 1/3c cooked brown rice (we had leftovers)
dash of cinnamon
Dash of sugar (ty’s did not have it)
Diced fruit
Scramble egg with cinnamon (and sugar) and place into hot non stick pan
Let it cook for a few seconds and add in rice
Take off stove and add in favorite fruit
(Ty’s also had peas in it)
Cool and enjoy
This can also be made with quick oats. I have done this at work. Instead of scrambling the egg and then adding the oats, you do it all in the same bowl. You then cook it like a pancake!
These are a totally whole grain (no wheat or soy) product. Although I would classify these as not super healthy, they are easier to grab and more fun than cheerios. All organic, iron enriched, and sugar is way down on the list of ingredients these are a fun and quick snack when you are on the go!
My aunt recently posted on face book that she was looking for some fresh blueberry recipes. Here are the ones I sent her, along with the ideas I gave her, in addition to a tart recipe (which I made last night!). Anyone who wants a recipe for something not listed on here, just leave a comment and I will put it in a future post!
Sweet ideas! -Put some whipped cream on them (or even better blueberry shortcake!)
-Blueberry crumble
-Blueberry pudding
-PIE (you can even use store bought crust and make it super easy)... Read More -Blueberry French toast -Fruit Salad -Make your own blueberry yogurt
Savory Ideas -Put them on a salad -Blueberry soup -Make some sauce for chicken, fish or steak -Blueberry salsa
In a small pot boil sugar, lemon, and spices with water and blueberries
Boil for 5 min stirring constantly
remove and put in blender to puree
Cool in refrigerator
Stir in wine and yogurt garnish with small spoonful of sour cream (or more yogurt)
French toast I would actually make blueberry syrup by combining blueberries, sugar to taste, squeeze of lemon, and small amount of vanilla in a sauce pan. Cook and reduce. You can also add this to cream cheese for an awesome bagel spread.
Salsa Combine
2 c whole blueberries
1 1/2 c chopped blueberries
Jalapeno pepper, minced!
1 red pepper diced
1 small red onion diced
cilantro to taste (I hate cilantro so I leave it out)
salt to taste
1 large lemon, juiced (you could also use 1 lime instead)
Fish Sauce
Combine in a pot
1/3 c chicken stalk
¼ cup OJ
¼ c balsamic vinegar
2. Bring to a boil
3.Add rue (1T cornstarch in water) cook until thicker
4. Stir in 1c fresh blueberries
5. Pour on fish or chicken
Lemonade (yum, yum)
2 variations
1) puree in blender-3 c blueberries, 2/3c sugar, 2c fresh lemon juice. Stir into 3c cold water and ice!
2) This one is the kind the kids I watch LOVE- mix together 3c water, 3/4c lemon juice, 2T cream of coconut, 1c frozen blueberries, 1 sliced star fruit, 1/3 c sugar (or more to taste), ice!
Vinaigrette Puree 1/2c blueberries, 1 clove garlic, 1/4c red onion, 2T champaign vinegar (you can use white or white balsamic but make sure it is high quality), 1/2t sugar, and olive oil until you get the consistency you like!
I also like to add in parsley, chives, and a dash of cinnamon
Blueberry Tarts
These can be simple or complicated, depending on how much time you want to put into them.
Tart shell
Heat oven to 350 (if using store bought cookie dough follow pkg directions)
Grease a muffin pan VERY well
Cut COLD sugar cookie dough into rounds that are larger than the bottom of the muffin pan
Place rounds in pan and push down so the dough has a lip
Cook until golden brown
Cool
Remove from pan
Pudding
Make your favorite vanilla pudding (homemade is not that hard to make!)
Put in a dash of ginger
Cool in fridge
Blue Berries
Take berries and mix with a few tablespoons of apricot jam
Refrigerate
Putting it all together
RIGHT BEFORE SERVING (these will get soggy)
Place a spoonful of pudding into tart shell
Top with blueberries
You can also top with a little candied ginger if you want!
Freezing Cooked Chicken-from baby food to toddler chunks
By far the healthiest way to cook meat is to steam or poach it. I prefer to poach because I don’t have to worry about it drying out or being undercooked (you can leave it in forever). Although some meats are harder to poach, poaching chicken is quick and easy.
To poach chicken cut off any fat on the chicken breast and dump it in a pot of boiling water. Let it cook until no pink remains in the middle of the chicken and you are done! Add your favorite seasonings and you have your firs meal of poached chicken.
When you prepare chicken this way it does not get a slimy texture. Instead it becomes little granules. You can then take the chicken put it on a cookie sheet and freeze it, making chicken “sand.” I like to prepare it this way because you can then just scoop out as much of this sand as you want, add broth or what ever else you want to, and there you go! You have easy baby food. This way you also don’t have to use a set amount (such as if you froze it in an ice cube tray).
Toddler chunks- Instead of cutting the chicken, poaching it, and then freezing it, I like to poach entire breasts and then shred it. This makes the texture of the chicken more natural and a bit stringy. It is very easy to freeze this way and breaks apart well when you want to thaw.
Ty’s favorite ways to eat quick thawed chicken
When he was a baby Ty liked his chicken
-Mixed with plain whole milk (organic) yogurt
-Mixed in with a little cheddar cheese
-Rolled in with cream cheese
-With a little pepper, paprika, and garlic
Now Ty likes his chicken
-With taco seasoning
-Spicy!
-With stir fry sauce
-Mixed in with squash
My own struggle with weight loss:
If you know me you know I am not a thin woman. Recently Ty and my husband have inspired me to lose weight. I don’t want him to have an out of shape mom who eats a lot of junk food but forces the good stuff into him!
While I was breast feeding I was unable to lose a lot of weight. Each time the pounds started to come off my supply was reduced and Ty would not get enough food. So I kept myself at a constant weight.
Now that I am done breast feeding I plan on becoming a healthy weight with the help of my husband (who has recently become a healthy weight). Each week (on Fridays) I plan to weight myself and see if I dropped weight, met my goal, and evaluate my progress.
You should be happy to know that this week I dropped more weight than my goal! Yeah for me!
I am awife, mother, and Daycare Director who lives in Delaware, Ohio. I love all kinds of animals (dogs, chickens, turtles, fish, goats...pretty much everything), music, crafting and reading.
