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Maple Cream Coffee Topping
For an extra cozy fall treat make this coffee topping and store in the fridge. Scoop out a little bit on any morning where you want to feel that little extra fall ahhhh.
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream or coconut cream
1 tablespoon high quality maple syrup
Using an electric mixer, whip the cream until soft peaks
form.
Add the maple syrup and whip once more until combined
and fluffy.
Store in the fridge. Use as a topping of your favorite
coffee.
Pumpkin Cold Foam
Ingredients
1 cup heavy whipping cream
½ cup sweetened condensed milk
2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 tablespoon pumpkin puree
2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
Whisk together the whipping cream, sweetened
condensed milk, and vanilla. Whisk in the pumpkin
puree and pumpkin pie spice until smooth. Cover and
place in refrigerator until ready to use.
Pour over cold coffee when you are ready to enjoy!
Tips for traveling with kids.
Keys to kids not being stressed and acting crazy while traveling? US not being stressed out while traveling.
After 30+ flights with my little nugget I’ve learned and observed a few things (plus there is always room for a little prayer and a little luck).
Set them up for success - to me that looks like:
We don’t use the iPad for a movie until we are on the plane - not in the airport while we are waiting. It’s really not fair to ask them to sit in an airport then sit on a plane - their bodies just are not made for that kind of stillness yet. We call it “getting the wiggles out”.
In the airport go on an “adventure”, hunt for things, our favorites is escalators and we will ride them over and over.
NO SUGAR. I saw a dad and son traveling yesterday - dad was super stressed - kid was watching some high color bounce off the walls show while sucking a lolly pop BEFORE we boarded - thats a recipe for disaster friend.
Have snacks - lots of snacks.
Have “mess free” coloring books - so when the color outside the lines they don’t accidentally mark on the airport chairs or plane.
Stickers are your best friend - especially puffy ones. Even if they stick them on the folding tray they peel right off.
Chewing gum and juice for their ears is always a great idea - but be mindful that their juice cups get pressure in them and will spray out on the plane (this actually happened yesterday 🤣).
Express the dangers to them. I am not for scaring my little girl but I do tell her the truth to the level she can handle and understand it. I take the time to tell her the importance of staying close and holding hands in the airport, that there can be bad people that hang out in the airport that would want to take her away. I don’t want to throw rules at her - I want her to understand WHY.
Stick up for them and don’t apologize for the space they take up. If my daughter is walking slower than others then I let them pass her, I don’t pull her to the side, children have as much right to travel as adults do. When we apologize for them being there we are automatically saying that an adults presence is more important than theirs. I encourage her to speak to the flight attendants, to order her own drinks and to ask questions when she wants to.
What other tips would you add?
Hearty Fall Bowl
Ingredients:
Kale
Italian dressing
Pomegranate seeds
Sweet potato
Blue cheese
Red onion (optional)
Chicken
Dried cranberries
Instructions:
Cook chicken and cut into cubes
Cube sweet potato and bake in oven until soft
Mix kale with a few tablespoons of Italian dressing to
soften the kale.
Assemble the bowl: kale, top with sweet potatoes,
pomegranate seeds, sweet potato cubews, blue cheese
crumbles, red onion slices, cubed chicken, dried
cranberries.
Autumn Clean Out & Organize
If you have felt like you are scrambling with your house set up it could just be as simple as needing an Autumn clean out.
When schedules change our needs change. Grab and go sports equipment, premade meals, clothes in the drawers that fit your littles - all of that makes life so much easier.
Here is a short list if you have just a little time today or a full list with a supplies list is in the Autumn Toolkit if you are ready to overhaul your home.
Morning Routine
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Breakfast Egg Bites
Ingredients:
1/4 cup fresh spinach, roughly chopped
8 grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup shredded cheese
10 eggs
If you have any precooked sausage I like to toss it in for extra protein.
INSTRUCTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350°F Lightly spray a 12-cup capacity muffin tin with nonstick oil spray.
In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, spinach, cherry tomatoes, cheese and sausage. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Divide egg mixture into muffins sections.
Bake for 15-20 minutes, until set.
Let cool slightly, then serve OR store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days and reheat when ready to serve.
Overnight Oats
1/4 c dry rolled oats
1/2c unsweetened coconut milk
2 tsp chia seeds
1 tsp pure maple syrup
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 c blueberries
2 Tbsp sliced almonds
1 Tbsp + 1 tsp pumpkin seeds
Add oats, coconut milk, chia seeds, maple syrup, extract, and cinnamon to a 16-oz. mason jar
(or sealable container); stir to combine.
Top with blueberries, banana, almonds, and pumpkin seeds; seal jar. Refrigerate overnight.
Pretty Parfait
You can make 3 days or so of these ahead of time for super fast grab and go breakfast. Bonus - they are really easy to eat while driving.
Ingredients:
high protein yogurt
blueberries
strawberries
raspberries
honey
granola
Layer ingredients in a mason jar except the granola - top with granola the morning you are going to eat it for maximum crunchiness.
Peach Salad
3 cups cooked chicken, chopped or shredded
2-3 Peaches sliced
red onion - sliced
goat cheese
almonds (raw or toasted)
brown rice (if desired)
Make a bed of lettuce on each plate.
Top with cooked brown rice if desired then layer the peaches, red onion, almonds, chicken and a little bit of goat cheese.
Drizzle with favorite Italian dressing.
Artisan Bread
Ingredients
* 3 cups BREAD flour
* 2 tsp rapid rise yeast (at my store they sell them in the little packets and its the whole packet)
* 3 tsp cooking / kosher salt , NOT table salt
* 1 1/2 cups to 2c very warm tap water , NOT boiling or super hot - you want a wet dough - not a dough you could knead.
* 1 1/2 tbsp flour , for dusting
Instructions:
* Mix Dough: Mix flour, yeast and salt in a large bowl. Add water, then use the handle of a wooden spoon to mix until all the flour is incorporated. Dough will be wet and sloppy – not kneadable, but not runny like cake batter. Adjust with more water if needed for right consistency.
* Rise: Cover with cling wrap, leave on counter for 2 – 3 hours until it doubles in volume, it’s wobbly like jelly and the top is bubbly. If after 1 hour it doesn’t seem to be rising, move it somewhere warmer.
* Optional – refrigerate for flavor development : At this stage, you can either bake immediately or refrigerate for up to 3 days.
* Take chill out of refrigerated dough – if you refrigerated dough, leave the bowl on the counter for 45 – 60 minutes while the oven is preheating.
* Preheat oven – Put dutch oven in oven with lid on 10” or larger). Preheat to 450°F 30 minutes prior to baking.
* Shape dough: Sprinkle work surface with 1 tbsp flour, scrape dough out of bowl. Sprinkle top with 1/2 tbsp flour.
* Using a dough scraper or anything of similar shape (fold the sides inwards (about 6 folds) to roughly form a roundish shape. Don’t be too meticulous here – I let my 3 year old do this part by herself.
* Transfer to paper: Slide a large piece of parchment/baking paper (not wax paper) next to the dough, then flip the dough upside down onto the paper (ie seam side down, smooth side up). Don’t get too hung up about shape. In fact, lopsided = more ridges = more crunchy bits!
* Dough in pot: Remove piping hot dutch oven from oven. Use paper to place dough into pot, place lid on.
* Bake 35 minutes covered, then 15 minutes uncovered or until deep golden and crispy.
* Cool on rack for 10 minutes before slicing.
Harry Potter Inspired Floats
Chop 2 cups of strawberries into quarters
Add to a saucepan
Add 3/4c sugar
Add 1 cup water
Bring until its bubbling and let it bubbly slightly for about 5 min (not a rolling boil)
Let it simmer until strawberries are soft (about 5 minutes)
Put in a blender (this is where you see me go wrong)
In a glass add about 1” of the bottom of your glass with the strawberry puree
Add 1 scoop vanilla ice cream
Fill up the rest of the glass (slowly) with lime sparkling water
Cheers!
Seared Salmon with Summer Veggies
Ingredients:
1 lb.raw salmon, boneless, skin-on
1 Tbsp. + 1 tsp. olive oil
1⁄4 tsp. sea salt
1⁄4 tsp. ground black pepper
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 cup grape tomatoes
1 1/2 c rough chopped spinach
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1/2c sliced red onion
3 cloves garlic thinly sliced
Instructions:
1. Rub salmon all over with 1 tsp. oil; sprinkle on both sides with 1 dash salt and 1 dash pepper.
2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; lightly coat with spray. Add salmon (skin-side down); cook for 5 minutes. Flip; cook for an additional 2 to 3 minutes, or until just firm to the touch.
3. Remove salmon from skillet; remove skin. Set aside to rest.
4. Return skillet to medium-high heat; add remaining 1 Tbsp. oil.
Add mushrooms and tomatoes; cook, stirring
occasionally, for 2 to 3 minutes, or until mushrooms and tomatoes start to brown.
Add spinach, corn, onion, garlic,
remaining 1 dash salt, and remaining 1 dash pepper.
5. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes, or until spinach is wilted and onion has softened; divide mixture evenly among
four serving plates.
6. Top each bed of vegetables with an equal portion of salmon; serve.
Chicken Campfire Foil Packets
Ingredients:
4 raw chicken thighs, bone-in, skinless
2 cups broccoli florets
2 cups radishes, halved
2 medium carrots, sliced into 1-inch coins
t Tbsp unsalted butter
1 medium lemon, juiced
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp ground cumin
dash sea salt
dash ground black pepper
instructions:
Preheat a grill to medium-high (or preheat oven to 350° F .
Spread 2 large rectangles 1 x 1-foot of aluminum foil.
Divide chicken, broccoli, radishes, carrots, butter, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, salt, and pepper evenly between foil. Fold up each into a packet, pinching each together to seal. Wrap each packet a second time in foil.
Grill (or bake) for 30 to 35 minutes, turning once halfway through, or until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the chicken reads 165° F.
Carefully open packets (there will be a lot of steam). Spoon sauce from bottom of packets over chicken and vegetables. Enjoy!
Turkey, Apple & Cheddar Roll Up
Forgot to pack a lunch the night before? You can whip this up in 3 minutes flat.
Organic Turkey Slices wrapped around a slice of Cheddar Cheese and AppleSides:
• Root Vegetable Chips• Cucumber Spears• Dried Bananasand Cherries
Mini Meatball Skewers
Make the meatballs ahead of time and store in air tight container.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup Panko
1/2 cup almond milk
2 tsp olive oil
3/4 cup onion
3 cloves garlic
1 lb 93% ground turkey
2 large eggs ; beaten
1/4 cup Fresh parsley
2 TBSP Parmesan cheese
1 tsp Dried oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1. Preheat oven to 425° F.
2. Line large baking sheet with parchment paper, lightly coat with spray. Set
aside.
3. Place bread crumbs and almond milk in a small bowl. Set aside; soak for 10 minutes.
4. Heat oil in medium skillet over medium-high heat.
5. Add onion; cook, stirring frequently, for 5 to 6 minutes, or until onion is translucent.
6. Add garlic; cook, stirring frequently, for 1 minute.
7. Combine onion mixture, turkey, eggs, parsley, cheese, oregano, salt, pepper, and bread crumb mixture in a large bowl; mix well with clean hands or wooden spoon.
8. With clean wet hands, form turkey mixture into twenty-five, approx. 1-inch. meatballs; arrange onto prepared baking sheet.
9. Bake for 13 to 18 minutes, or until browned and cooked through.
*inspired from Bodi healthy kids
Snack Idea for hot summer days
Healthy summer snack idea!
Chop raw zucchini, cucumber and squash.
Serve with hummus, taziki sauce and ranch.