little LADIES WHO LUNCH

Humanely raised/antibiotic-free grilled chicken cubes with organic heirloom tomatoes (missing:  the butter lettuce that I forgot to take out from the fridge) and crispy humanely raised/antibiotic & nitrate-free bacon from Applegate Farms; canary melon balls; pomegranate seeds; blood orange slices and organic sweet potato

Sometimes packing lunch the night before simply does not work. Our youngest Little Lady took one look at her bento lunch and wanted to eat it for dinner instead.  After a brief tussle we worked it out, but man…. that was close.  Phew! 

I always try to pre-pack Monday’s lunch, because lets face it —Mondays can be tough enough as it is!

The colors of this bento certainly bring cheer though.

Almond butter (almond butter, sea salt — period) and organic apple slices; fresh strawberries, a white peach slice and spinach salad with red peppers, carrots and edible flowers.

Anyone who reads this blog or knows me personally has figured out by now that I am acutely bothered by the excess of junk food in the classroom (NOT by the occasional treat — I’m talking about the onslaught the occurs at classroom celebrations or even birthday parties.  My mind-set is if sending big, honking cupcakes is the only way you’ll feel joyful as a parent at these celebrations, skip the accompanying juices boxes, consider omitting the food dye — things like that).  I’ve talked about it endlessly, and have offered up many suggestions and possible solutions as it relates to the issue, from healthier treat options to non-food traditions and more.  Check out this handy guide from Spoonfed: Raising Children to Think About the Food They Eat  who did an amazing job of assembling a ton of relevant information on what can be done in one spot. 

I’ve also mentioned here and there the GOOD to come out of our school when it comes to food and health, from the fact that we have a Wellness in the Schools (WITS) cafeteria and also benefit from their Wellness Labs, to my kids sampling healthy foods at school Harvest Day and later asking me to make them at home,  to the Mighty Milers program, to how proud I am of our school garden. 

Today’s lunch is another example of the good.  Yesterday we went to the produce market as a family and had the kids pick out their fruits & veggies for the week.  The girls were choosing things like baby spinach, multi-colored peppers, carrots, broccoli, white peaches, plums and all sorts of varieties of pears and apples, when suddenly I heard the sort of joyful “mommy!” usually reserved for things like spying the latest American Girl catalog in our mailbox.

What was the outburst over?  A package of organic edible flowers (read more about edible flowers here).  Yup, that’s right.  My 7 year old was over the moon with this tiny package of beautiful, bright flowers, and explained that she hadn’t seen any edible flowers besides dandelions since Wild Man Steve came to their school to lead the kids on a foraging tour in 500 acre plus Prospect Park. 

While the excess junk is still a thorn in my side, it is getting better very s-l-o-w-l-y.  As I pieced together this post I realized just how fortunate my kids really are, and just how far we’ve come as a school on our path to Wellness and being more open minded about exploring and trying new things.  Rome wasn’t built in a day, and the little changes really do add up to something big.

Are you feeling better about your school this year, food-wise? 

For daddy:  Leftover brisket (antibiotic-free, humanely raised) covered in a tomato-based sauce with veggies; creamy mashed potatoes; organic strawberries; raw sweet yellow and red mini bell peppers

For the Little Ladies (who have no way to reheat their mashed potatoes and don’t dig them lukewarm): Whole grain mini roll with raisins; 2 types of extra sharp cheddar from our local cheese monger; a few heirloom cherry tomatoes; organic apple slices; organic strawberries; star fruit; raw sweet yellow and red mini bell peppers (or as my children call them:  dinosaur jelly beans)

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Our family isn’t Jewish, but we live in a neighborhood with a lot of Jews.  During holidays like Rosh Hasanah, the delicious smells of simmering food are impossible to ignore and are always inspiring. Have you ever smelled fresh Challah bread baking?  I don’t know about you, but one sniff and my mouth is watering like mad.  Heck, just the thought of extended families and friends coming together to feast is enough to get me feeling warm and fuzzy inside.  I love holidays, even if they’re not my own.

One year around Christmastime my husband and I baked Chanukah doughnuts, and to this day they rank as the best doughnuts we’ve ever had.  Known as “Sufganiot,” (or the greatest jelly doughnuts ever) they appear to be more popular in Israel than the States, but if you know any Jews stateside who bake them (or any Christians like us who insist on diving into Jewish culinary traditions), get your hands on some.  You’ll be thankful you did.

Back to Rosh Hasanah.  Since I wasn’t raised in a Jewish household, my Jewish cooking adventures are strictly recipe-reliant.  For the brisket pictured above, we used a cross of 2 recipes from 2 Jewish cooks I admire (and like — they are both very good seeds), Ronnie Fein from Kitchen Vignettes (right here on Tumblr — you should follow her!) and Tori Avey from The Shiksa in the Kitchen.

Check out their recipes when you have a chance.  Yom Kippur is coming up next Wednesday, and I know I will be bowled over by the food aromas once again.  What shall we make?  Noodle Kugel?  

Just four days after the new school year began my 7 year old surprised us with a fever and a sore throat.  The search for our ever-disappearing thermometer commenced, and oops — we’re out of dye-free acetaminophen.  A few hours later we walked out of her pediatrician’s office with a diagnosis (positive rapid strep test, 103 fever) and a prescription for Amoxicillin. 

This little incident got my thinking.  With 4 kids in the house (and 3 bathrooms), medical supplies are constantly getting shifted around to one floor or the other, or they migrate between various medicine cabinets.  I immediately got organized and took stock of what we needed for the upcoming season, with the added bonus of establishing a central location for our arsenal.

I hope you find this post hopeful and don’t get caught off guard in your own house.

Life in the big city without a car begs for a creative solution to picking up an older child at school without leaving a feverish, strep-infested younger sibling at home alone.  Yes, I opted to haul her in our trusty wagon, padded with pillow and blankets.  We were quite the spectacle. I so miss having family nearby to help!

For convenience, I am reposting the “how to care for your child’s cold naturally” link featured in the above prep list photograph here.  Please do take a look!  There are great suggestions listed.

Also, our recipes for chicken soup and homemade dye-free “Pedialyte” pops is here.

Nitrate-free/humanely-raised deli slices (turkey breast, prosciutto) and extra sharp cheddar from our local cheese shop with a slice of whole grain bread; organic grapes; organic strawberries, plum slices, a petite seckel pear and white organic carrots

September 11th is always a hard day for me, as it is for many people.  The vivid memories of the sights, sounds and smells all come flooding back.  

Yesterday I made a conscious decision to stay off line most of the day and to reflect in my own way, rather than subject myself to the barrage of media images and Facebook commentary.  I also scheduled a restorative yoga class, which ended up being a Godsend.  Think snugly props, an instructor who worked by candlelight and who tucked us in with blankies while walking us through our breathing.  Just when I thought it couldn’t get any better she gave us all mini massages and released the scent of medical-grade lavender into the room for good measure.  It was heavenly, and made us all but oblivious to the world outside of that room. 

Completely reset, I left and immediately thought of dinner.  The day demanded something comforting, and so I defrosted a hearty grass-fed beef stew from the freezer stash and served it over whole wheat egg noodles. We each had a square of extra dark chocolate for dessert.

All in all, the day went as well as it possibly could, with each of the 4 kids having a good day at school, and the girls enjoying the start of their performing arts season. Best of all, they came home to a relaxed mother.

That brings us to today.  We woke up in the mood for lighter fare, at least for breakfast and lunch (for dinner we will be hosting our school gardening committee at our home).  Today’s bento fits that mood. 

Usually, the girls pack the same or very similar lunches  Today, however, they went in completely different directions:

Almond butter and a drizzle of local honey on organic oat bread; celery, carrot and cucumber slices with star fruit; slivers of fresh nectarine.  The pomegranate seeds are for snack time (along with a few cashews, packed separately).

(Leftover from dinner, from our freezer stash) - Organic brown rice, turkey & bean chili (made with antibiotic-free, humanely raised meat) and sliced plum packed in the tiffin container my husband scored while on a business trip in India. 

This is similar to what our tiffin looks like when it is stacked and locked for travel:

All said and done, 15 minutes was dedicated to lunch packing (veggies were pre-sliced).  Not bad.

Nitrate-free / humanely raised ham from Applegate Farms on a fresh whole wheat croissant (from our local bakery); baby organic spinach with organic carrots and a baby red pepper (dressing on the side); a fruit salad of organic strawberries, grapes, apples, nectarines, watermelon and blueberries

I have been advised that this is the last time they’ll ever wear matching outfits.

And they’re off!  My husband and I just delivered the Little Ladies to their first day of the 2012-2013 school year, 2nd and 4th grades.

Our sons start back tomorrow, so I’m not experiencing empty nest syndrome just yet.  Next week it’ll hit me…hard.  Especially with our oldest child’s 5am wake-up call.  He is a senior in high school and is taking a college-level course during “zero period” (basically, before first period when the rest of school starts).  He also has an hour and a half commute.

Fun times ahead!

Protein-packed French toast with a cinnamon nut crunch, served with fresh fruit.

Make enough to freeze for an easy back-to-school breakfast.

Fire safety is something we’ve discussed several times over the years at the family dinner table.  In fact, we make it a point to review our emergency plan on average of 2-3 times per year.

Last night at around 2am, my husband and I were roused from our sleep by the panicked voices of a crowd that had gathered on the sidewalk, as well as swirling red and blue lights bouncing off our bedroom walls.  We looked outside the window and saw that the crowd was motioning for US to get out (my first thought is that it had to be another home), so my husband and I immediately went to grab all 4 kids, our dog and our 2 cats.  It wasn’t a drill.  It was the real thing.

In about 90 seconds we had the kids, the dog and 1 of the cats outside — but securing the 2nd cat proved to be a bit more challenging and cost my husband another couple of minutes.  Fortunately, the fire was restricted to the roof of the home, and despite the fact that the flames were rampant and estimated to be 8 - 9 feet tall, FDNY was able to extinguish the fire before it spread.  We were able to return home within a couple of hours with only water to wade through, a bad stench and soot/debris in our backyard.  It was a small price to pay for what could have been.

The rest of the night was a blur of investigators, clean-up crews and other foreign noises.  Daylight came way too soon, and when it did our family was ravenous.  Enter:  comfort food.  Not just comfort food, mind you, but comfort food that still offers nutritional value. 

Protein-Packed French Toast with Cinnamon Nut Crunch

This recipe is as simple as it gets:

• Slice bread (we used whole wheat Challah from our local bakery)
• Dip both sides of the bread in an egg wash made from scrambled, pastured eggs, allowing the egg wash to seep in (feel free to add a little real vanilla).
• Next coat one side (or both) in the crunchy mixture made with ground pecans, ground almonds and cinnamon (note:  we ground the nuts finely using a mortar and pestle)
• cook both sides of French toast in a stove-top pan with a little pastured butter
• serve with real maple syrup and fresh fruit

To freeze for future use:

Arrange slices of French toast in a glass container, separating each slice with parchment paper.

Readers, please take the time to review your own fire safety plan with your family.  Be sure to check your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors on a regular schedule and order any additional fire extinguishes needed.  Also, keep pet carriers in an easily accessible area and make sure your pets always wear their id tags, even indoors.

Incorporating fish into your diet is a great way to help boost health, protect your brain and heart and even help stave off certain kinds of cancers. To say the least, fish is a powerful ally to have on your dinner plate — but only if you’re eating the best, safest fish possible. Here are a few ways to hunt down seafood that will support your health as well as the ocean’s:

To continue reading Dr. Frank Lipman’s School Yourself:  The Smart Way to Eat Fish, click HERE.

As much as we love Gabby Douglas (and our love runs deep!), her beautiful face on a cereal box does not make us want to eat Corn Flakes.

They say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  How do you typically start off your morning?

Our favorite go-to quick and easy breakfast is typically plain organic yogurt, fresh fruit and locally made granola (organic rolled oats, toasted organic coconut, organic pepitas, organic sunflower seeds, fancy pecans, real maple syrup, extra-virgin olive oil, salt). 

Pure whole foods are the gold medal winners when it comes to a healthy diet.

Shout out to Brooklyn’s Early Bird Granola.