This fourth of July,Try this.

Trust me I am a guac snob and typically make my own, but when there is lack of ripe avocados, and you gotta have it, you must give this a try. I found it by chance in our refrigerator section where the produce is kept at our local grocery store. The avocados where hard as rocks and I was making fajitas.

No preservatives, no junk, just the same stuff I put at home with a unique vacuum packaging that keeps it FRESH!

Enjoy:-)

So - if you frequent this blog you know our family has been working on living more life with less stuff.  It has been a very restful process if that makes since.  We have also been working hard with our children on eating what ever is put in front of them without whining or complaining and I will say after a few months of this, our children usually eat what ever I serve.  We still have to say 3 more bites of this or  that but we are light years from where we were a few months ago.  The other day someone saw our children’s plates and said “They eat salad?”  and I said “Yes, they do!” and almost did a happy dance.

So I have found 2 great resources that I will be checking into to help broaden our pallets so to speak.

Extending the Table: A World Community Cookbook

More-With-Less Cookbook

They are both written form the Mennonite perspective which I highly respect so I am cautiously excited. I also have been looking for cost effective ways to feed tons of people.  One thing that has been important to our church family is eating together.  Are there ways to do it without spending tons of money to do it:-) and still have it be healthy and nutritious and balanced? That has been the question.  

If any of you have these or have used this books, let me know what you think and what you have liked etc.

Peace to all~

My kids love these.  I also love to leverage my time, so I make a triple batch and freeze the leftovers.  It makes an easy morning breakfast!

Banana Chocolate Chip Pancakes 

 1 Cup Whole Wheat Flour

1 Tablespoon Brown Sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 beaten egg

1 cup skim milk

2 Tablespoons cooking oil

1 ripe banana

handful of semi sweet mini chips

dash of vanilla

Combine all of the wet ingredients first and then gradually add your dry to create a smooth batter.  For a standard size pancake use 1/4 cup measuring cup.  If your child is helping you flip it is a easily handled size.

Enjoy!

Have a little fun in the kitchen with some food coloring.  Simple science, math and even art can be accomplished all around the family kitchen with everyday materials.  Our youngest two are learning how to create colors by mixing  primary colors together. 

step 1. Begin with a bowl of oatmeal.

Step 2. Go over the color wheel with your children and have them choose a color for the oatmeal.

Step 3. Add the color to your oatmeal.

Step 4.  Allow your child to stir the oatmeal (with as little help as possible).

This makes morning breakfast an educational experience.  Enjoy!

One of the tips I picked up from the book I just finished had to deal with weekly meal planning.  I want to try and prepare something new each week for us to try as a family…to  help me out of the rut I spoke of earlier. I think this will help me out.  

Annette actually prepares, plans and shops, for an entire month at a time.  Wow that is intense, but hey she is the one with her housed paid for so who should be talking….right:-)  I am throwing this into the mix this week.  I will let you know how it is!

Cuban Shredded Pork

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 pounds boneless pork chops
1 pint water to cover
1 lime, juiced
1 sprig fresh thyme
8 black peppercorns
1 tablespoon garlic powder, or to taste
1 tablespoon onion powder
salt to taste
 
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
1 lime, juiced
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

DIRECTIONS
In a large saucepan, combine water, juice of one lime, thyme sprig, peppercorns, garlic powder, onion powder and salt. Bring mixture to a boil. Add pork chops, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until meat is very tender. Add more water as necessary to keep chops covered.

Turn off heat and let the chops rest in the broth for 30 minutes. Remove chops from broth and shred, removing excess fat; set aside.
In a large frying pan, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the shredded pork and fry until it is almost crisp, about 5 minutes. Add the onion and garlic and continue to cook until the onion is just tender yet slightly crisp, about 10 minutes more. Add the juice of one lime, mix though and toss with cilantro. Serve and enjoy.

It is an interesting word. Wikipedia defines Training as the acquisition of knowledge, skills, and competencies as a result of the teaching of vocational or practical skills and knowledge that relates to specific useful skills. It forms the core of apprenticeship. Isn’t that a wonderful way to think about working with your children, apprenticing them to be fully formed adults?  It keeps the big picture in view during the day to day grind.  It also helps me remember that I am to be the “master” trainer (being trained by the ultimate Master)and that I need to continue working on me as I am working with them.  I am choosing to view it as “team development”. 

We are currently “apprenticing” our children in the skilled art of eating whatever is put in front of them without “whining or complaining”.  Let me say for children 6, 4 and almost 3…..it is a skill to be learned.  It is also something I need to be intentional about by offering a wide variety of foods and at least something new each week.  I realized, when we go to Peru for a month in Feb. my kids are going to be miserable if I don’t tackle this picky issue now. We asked the children, “What happens when you are grown ups and someone invites you to their home as guests, and they present you a beautiful plate of food that you have never seen before, and you don’t know how to act or  are too scared to eat it?  Whose fault would it be?”  They thought for a moment and Jackson said “Yours?”  We were able to have a whole conversation about how we are helping them learn how to do things they don’t want to do now.  It is a core skill that will serve them well in life. 

They say it takes 28 days to form a new skill or habit.  We are one week into being very intentional about this and we are already seeing fruit.  Last night our daughter (the very picky one) ate everything on her plate without even a word.  It was even something she would of turned her nose up at even a week ago.  Baby steps will take us there.  Our dear friends who are missionaries in Peru (who now have a great blog) sent us a great recipe to help broaden our culinary horizons. This is going on the weekly menu plan for sure.  I will post it here for your sampling enjoyment as well.  I will post pictures next week. 

Papa Rellena (Stuffed Potato)Ingredients:
- 4 cups mashed potatoes
- 1 cup flour
- 1 egg
- 1 lb. hamburger
- 1 cup onion, finely chopped
- 1/4 cup raisins, plumped
- Garlic
- Salt and pepper
- 3 boiled eggs, cut lengthwise
- Black olives
- Oil

(Serves 4)

Preparation: 
Sauté the hamburger, onion, garlic, salt, pepper and raisins until cooked through.  Set aside to cool.  Mix together the potatoes, flour, and egg (Make sure that the ingredients are cool). 
Flour the palm of your hand and put in it a couple of heaping Tbsp. (or so) of the potato mixture.  Pat it flat and round, like a pancake.   Place a Tbsp. (or so) of meat mixture in the center, a piece of hard boiled egg, and a black olive and with well-floured hands, fold top of potato over to completely close it up. It will look like a giant egg.  Repeat with remaining ingredients.  Heat oil until very hot.  Flour hands and carefully lower a couple of the stuffed potatoes at a time into the very hot oil. Fry until golden brown.

 For more Child Training Tips visit Sallie’s Blog.

During my third pregnancy I lived on homemade salsa and guacamole.  It is still one of my favorite treats.  We had a community party a few weeks ago and a woman brought this.  The whole party was a buzz about it.  I must admit, I make my own and am pretty picky but this one topped it for sure.  Enjoy!

1 Haas avocado

3 T chopped onion

1 tsp chopped jalapeno chilies

1.5 tsp of chopped cilantro

2T chopped tomato (seeds and juice discarded)

In a bowl, or  a molcajete mash the following ingredients with the back of a spoon until it forms a paste. 1T onion, 1/2 tsp chilies, 1/2 tsp cilantro, 1/2 tsp salt. 

Add the avocado to the paste and then gentle fold in the other ingredients.

Yummy!