Make and Freeze

Over the past few days, I've gathered a bunch of recipes to make and freeze. This is a necessary strategy for busy moms and dads. Planning ahead makes all the difference. I know because I often don't! When it comes to meal planning anyway. If you want to feed the kids and yourself healthy food consistently, having snacks, sauces and other prepared real food items in the freezer will achieve this goal.

I have done the "make and freeze" in the past but have been a bit of a slacker as of late. Big red flag for me the other day was pouring the last of the mini peanut butter cracker sandwiches from Trader Joe's into a snack cup for my two year old after just buying the box three days prior. Um, that's way too fast for us to blow through a box of convenience snacks. I didn't have any other snacks prepared to give him hence the peanut butter cracker binge. I'm all about my "medium food" philosophy, that's why the crackers we're on hand but not having any homemade options available isn't the balance I strive for.

So yesterday I kicked my plan in motion and started with a new banana bread recipe, utilizing my new jar of coconut oil as well. This recipe came from a blogger that has gained a lot of press over the last year or so, Lisa at 100 Days of Real Food. I've followed her journey since the beginning (originally following her Food Illusion blog) and was split on how I felt about the reality of what she was writing about. Not the "real food" part of it but the reality of busy families and more importantly busy families on a budget achieving the real, organic, grass fed, $5 a loaf bread, etc. lifestyle. It was evident that Lisa had a large budget. Which was the discouraging part. Eventually though, she did a budget series (likely inspired by other readers that shared my feelings) which helped by making what she was writing about seem more feasible.

No matter what, 100 Days of Real Food's strategy is in-line with mine even though I make a few adjustments in approach (weaving in some medium food items) and often times opt for some less expensive versions of certain items. Organic ingredients or not, the best of the best ingredients or not, the recipes Lisa has published are smart and healthy. The few I've tried are fantastic. They are simple and contain no or very few processed ingredients. This Whole Wheat Banana Bread is a perfect example. I made it, the family has tried it and it gets five stars. Don't expect a super sweet piece of banana bread because this is not. You will taste the wheat, the banana and a touch of sweetness from the honey and that is it. Brilliant.

I'll be back soon with more successful recipes to help you fill your freezer. Meanwhile, I encourage you to give this recipe a try. If you do, let me know how it goes.

Whole Wheat Banana Bread
Adapted from here.
Makes one standard loaf

2 1/4 cups White whole wheat flour (or whole wheat flour or whole wheat pastry flour)
3/4 tsp. Baking soda
1/4 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Cinnamon
3 Bananas, very ripe, mashed
1/4 cup Plain yogurt (I used organic fat free)
1/4 cup Honey
2 Eggs
1/3 cup Virgin coconut oil, melted and slightly cooled (swap 1:1 with other oil if desired)
2 tsp. Vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat loaf pan with nonstick spray.

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Set aside. In medium bowl, combine mashed bananas, yogurt, honey, eggs, coconut oil and vanilla.

Gently fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Be gentle, don't over mix. Pour batter (or scoop - batter is on the thick side) into prepared loaf pan. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Mine was done at 43 minutes. Let cool then slice and enjoy.

If freezing, I suggest cooling completely and slicing prior to putting in freezer.

Homemade Uncrustables

Everybody, at least people with young children or people that love PB&J sandwiches, knows what an Uncrustable is. I discovered them when my first niece hit the PB&J age. At first glance (eight or so years ago), I thought "how clever." And being a recovering calorie counter (calories over nutrition that is), I started buying them for myself. Super convenient 210 calorie snack. I never thought twice about what was in them until Gav started to dig PB&J sandwiches. Here's what's in the Smucker's Uncrustables (Strawberry):

BREAD: Unbleached whole wheat flour, water, wheat gluten, high fructose corn syrup, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, contains 2% or less of: salt, yeast, dough conditioners (distilled monoglycerides, sodium stearoyl lactylate, datem, enzymes [with amylase, lipase, ascorbic acid, calcium peroxide, azodicarbonamide, wheat starch]). PEANUT BUTTER: Peanuts, dextrose, sugar, contains 2% or less of: partially and fully hydrogenated vegetable oils (soybean and/or cottonseed and/or rapeseed), salt, molasses, mono and giglycerides (palm and/or soybean oils). STRAWBERRY JAM: Strawberries, high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, sugar, contains 2% or less of: pectin, citric acid, potassium sorbate (preservative).

Highly processed junk. As convenient as they are, I'd rather Gavin (and eventually Logan) not eat them. That's not to say I don't think the little circles of PB&J aren't adorable, because I do, so I decided to make my own.


(the stage. yes, that's a wine glass)


(the filling)


(cutting out the shape)


(the cute little PB&J)

I was pretty impressed but did run into a few issues. First, I realized a tablespoon of peanut butter and a tablespoon of jam was too much. The perfect amount ended up being a 1/2 tablespoon of each. Next, getting it out of my makeshift cutter (aka wine glass) was a little less than easy. Finally, upon flipping it over, the bread was torn in a few spots. So I decided to break out the rolling pin and flatten the bread slices first.


(what a big difference)


(the final product)

Even though my "uncrustables" don't have the cute little crimp pattern on the edge, they deliver in taste and nutrition. LaLa's Portable PB&J ingredients:

BREAD: Stone ground whole wheat flour, filtered water, honey, cracked wheat, sea salt, fresh yeast, whey (milk protein). PEANUT BUTTER: Dry roasted peanuts, salt. ORGANIC REDUCED SUGAR APRICOT PRESERVES: Organic apricots, organic sugar, water, fruit pectin, citric acid, calcium chloride.

I put each one in a small freezer bag and stacked them in the freezer. Give them 30 minutes on the counter (in the bag) and they're ready to eat.

Overall, these are a cinch to make and fun too. I'll definitely be making more. I'll also pick up a large cookie cutter to make that part a little easier. :)

Convenience foods

Part of the medium food life is some convenience foods. Although my goal is to reduce as many of the "boxes" as possible, I do need to have some in the cabinet. My approach is to buy items with an acceptable ingredient list, good nutritional value, responsible packaging and reasonable price. I also research the companies. I feel better knowing more than just their name. As with most healthier options, they're typically more expensive so I make a point to buy when they're on sale.

Items like cereal bars, brown rice treats and crackers I buy at Trader Joe's. The ingredients are decent and the price is almost always less than anywhere else. If you're familiar with Trader Joe's they don't have sales as most grocery stores do but they do take coupons on the few products they sell that aren't private label such as Kashi or Earth's Path. I've also recently started to buy tortillas, another item I want to make from scratch eventually, at TJ's. Can't beat $1.69 for 10 tortillas.

I'm also known to have a few frozen meals on hand as well as a back up jar of pasta sauce. Although I enjoy my husband's homemade marinara so much more than what comes in a jar, some nights it comes down to lack of time, energy and planning. Just part of the medium food life, I suppose! Here are some convenience items you may spot in my freezer or cabinet:

Amy's Frozen Whole Meals
Ice cream
Whole grain cheese pizza or flatbread
Frozen Organic Brown Rice
Boxed Mac and Cheese
Pasta Sauce
Canned beans
Quick cooking rice
Snack items like Annie's crackers, grahams and bunny fruit snacks

It's super nice to have these kind of items on hand but the more I put in my shopping cart, the higher my bill is. I plan to do cost comparisons on convenience versions vs. from scratch versions and post my findings. Should be fun and educational.