Something that came up over and over, whether through Pinterest or Google or even ADDitude Mag .com was diet. I quickly cut out all food dye and moved on to cutting out processed food as much as possible. The most processed thing he gets at home are Hebrew National hot dogs and organic macaroni and cheese with no artificial coloring.
Don't get me wrong, I am not super crazy about it. If we go to a party and they have cupcakes or cake with icing that is bright red - he eats it. I cringe the whole time but I am not going to deny him having fun for one slice of cake or a Capri Sun.
Some tricks I have found are keeping approved lollipops or treats in my purse. When we are somewhere (pharmacy, for example) and those dreaded Dum Dum's are in a jar, I can swoop in with a treat and avoid a meltdown and not compromise the mission.
Lately, I have made more changes in our home that are not only for Logan but for the whole family.
The list includes (and is growing):
Flour: NO WHITE FLOUR! I have brought in White Whole Wheat - less grainy than whole wheat and adds little to no flavor to the recipe. I haven't notice a difference in losing "all purpose" flour at all.
Butter: NO MARGARINE. Margarine is just oil and I don't want to know what makes it "taste like butter." We use real, organic butter in recipes. You don't have to use a lot and the taste is beyond compare.
Milk: Lactose free milk, organic of course.
Pasta: Chickpea pasta (This Brand) or whole wheat/protein enriched.
Sugar: NO WHITE SUGAR. I have a tiny amount in the pantry for recipes that just have to have it (haven't seen many yet). I instead use coconut sugar. It's basically very fluffy brown sugar and again - other than a little nuttiness, the flavor in baked goods isn't noticeable. I made chocolate chip cookies with the wheat flour and coconut sugar and I actually thought they were BETTER. more depth of flavor.
I do my best to make my own salad dressings or at least buy organic and with as little sugar as possible.
Today, Logan is out of school for Easter and we made some cookies from Kristin Cavalerri's book Balancing in Heels. This book also delvs into food issues in today's society and healthy changes. I am looking to make more after reading through this.
To die for. (recipe below)
I do not have any guilt eating them or letting Logan have a few because the ingredients are so healthy.
Otherwise I try to make sure Logan is eating something with protein and healthy fats at every meal. Plum organics has a wonderful line of meatballs in the freezer section that have hidden veggies and quinoa in them and he loves them. Add those to the chickpea pasta and some homemade sauce and I feel like he is eating the best I have to offer! (other than when I make my own meatballs for a family meal).
I like to keep quick stuff like that on hand for when Lee is traveling. This way he is getting a good healthy meal and I don't have to "cook."
Have you made any changes in your pantry/kitchen recently?
Recipe: Almond Butter Sugar Cookies (From Balancing in Heels - Kristin Cavalarri)
Ingredients:
1 stick butter, softened
1 Cup coconut sugar
1/2 almond butter
1 egg
1 1/2 cups oat flour (i did buy some for this.)
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt (I only use kosher. she calls for pink himalayan)
1. Preheat oven to 350. Line 2 pans with parchment.
2. In a stand mixer, beat butter, sugar, and almond butter until fluffy. Add egg and mix to combine.
3. In separate bowl, mix all dry ingreients. Add a little at a time to the mixer on low until combined. Place a tablespoon size scoop onto the pans, leaving room for the cookies to spread.
Bake 10 minutes.
**I did 10 minutes but with 2 pans this left them a little chewy,which I like. If you want crispy you may want to try one pan at a time.
Enjoy!
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