Mothers Day Brunch Meal Plan

by Jenny Irvine // March 31, 2016 // No Comments

Sharing my Mothers Day Brunch Meal Plan

As a mom to four kids I know first hand how crazy the days can be. Motherhood although a beautiful gift is certainly no walk in the park. It can be hard and draining – lets keep it real. We work tirelessly to meet the needs of our children in hopes of one day seeing the fruit of our labor. We try to remain faithful to our calling even on those day’s we wish we could resign from our position.

Then, there are those day’s we are smothered in hugs, kisses, and cuddles – making all the hard days more than worth it.

Now, since we are being honest – Mothers Day although great ‘in theory’ is truly just another day. Not to crush all those who delight in Hallmark holidays {I said I was keeping it real} – its just another day! Another day waiting to be explored – everyday is a gift in my book. I don’t need a ‘special’ day to recognize my efforts – everyday is filled with little gifts; but, it is up to us to find them.

So, all that said – Moms I think you are great! Moms, we are raising the future leaders and world changers of tomorrow – you have one of the hardest job on the planet and you are so loved by all who come into your path.

And, to the tired mom, I hope you find rest in your day of ‘crazy’ and are showered with hugs, kisses, and love – may you be filled with the kind of ‘peace’ that fills your heart to the brim and doesn’t require special recognition because you know your special each and everyday!!

And, because I know I am special…I will likely be cooking up this meal plan myself and, that is o.k.{I’ll just make them clean up the mess…hahaha}

Happy Mothers Day to all those Rock-Star- Momma’s out there…enjoy your day and eat good food!

Mothers Day Brunch Meal Plan

Easy Cheesy Egg Casserole by Gimme Some Oven is very similar to a recipe that I make for Christmas morning at the homestead. The only difference is I use the shredded hash browns and layer it like a lasagna. It’s basically eggs, cheese, sausage, pepper, onions, and hash browns all mixed together and then baked. It is a great make ahead meal everyone will enjoy.

This Ham and Herb Quiche by Chocolate Moosey jumped out at me while I was looking for the perfect Mothers Day brunch meal plan fixins- I will be using one of our homestead pre-made gluten free pie crusts but, if you’re short on time store bought works just the same!

Mix Eggs, ham, herbs {rosemary, thyme, and parsley}, onions, milk, heavy cream, salt and pepper poured in a pie shell – I think we can do this, right moms? {Chocolate Moosey’s recipe only calls for 2 eggs for a serving size of 8-10 that doesn’t quite seem right? 2 eggs will likely not be enough to feed my family of 6 so I will likely be adding 4-6 eggs to ours.}

I love orange poppy seed dressing ! So, this Orange Poppy Seed Fruit Salad by Natashas Kitchen totally sold me!

Photo Credit; Nathasha’s Kitchen

No brunch is complete without some kind of quick bread, donut, or muffin – right?

And, because we don’t normally drink juice or anything other than water around here – I think our kids will get a total kick out of having a ‘fun drink’ with their Mothers Day Brunch {after all it is because of them I am a mom- so why not make it special for them too}.

This Cranberry Brunch Punch by Gather for Bread will surely win my little crew over.

Cranberry-Brunch-Punch - Mothers Day Brunch Meal Plan Idea

Photo Credit; Gather for Bread

Cheers – to a Happy Mothers Day and Having a Meal Plan!

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St. Patricks Day Meal Plan

by Jenny Irvine // March 5, 2016 // 2 Comments

This post just has me hungry looking at it…

Since, my oneword365 this year is “home” as in all things “home”; HOMEcooking, HOMEmaking, HOMEsteading, & HOMEschooling…I will be sharing some of My Happy Homestead Meal Plans with you all. Now, I only shop once a month {and, an occasional and I do mean occasional stop at the local grocer only if I seem to have forgotten something}. So, planning ahead is key to my sanity. Last year, I did not do such a great job planning and while I didn’t need to go to the store more often…the dinner ‘witching hour’ has been a bit stressful to say the least.

So, new year – new season and feeling a bit more adjusted in our new{ish} home – can you believe we have been here a year?

Back at the Meal Planning Grind – lets work together; work smarter and not harder.

Check out what I have up my sleeve for our St. Patricks Day Meal Plan {confession; I may not make all of this but, certainly hope to make at least some…need a reminder that “life happen s” and sometimes are best of intentions just don’t come to fruition.}

What’s for breakfast?

I think my kids are going to love these potato cakes from Tomato Tart . With some some raw cheddar cheese from Trader Joe’s and a dollop of sour cream …can you say, yum?

Every kid loves fruit! Well, ok maybe not every kid – but, most! However, there is certainly something about making food into fun designs and shapes that does makes it that much more enticing, right? {FYI yes, my kids are like yours and will likely eat the chocolate and marshmallows first – it’s ok mom’s they will be fine, I promise.} I am really liking Neighbor Julia’s rainbow of colors and design she has here.

Ok., so my kids eat literally all day – I’m pretty sure I did that too. A day would not be ‘a day’ if we didn’t have 100 snacks – so, for St. Patricks Day I think a batch of minty puppy chow should do the trick. Gal on a Mission adds essential oils to hers – while, I know some do – we will not be doing so. Yes, we use oils. Yes, we love oils. We do not consume ours at this time {another day/ another post}. We will also be using natural decorating colors like these. (afflink) Also, here are the mint chips we will be using in our St. Patricks Day Puppy Chow.

Lunch Time!! Did we not just eat all morning?

I seriously can’t wait to make these Irish Nachos from Baking Beauty – mouth watering crispy potatoes, melted cheese, Baking Beauty adds bacon {I may do that too} but, I was thinking some thinly sliced/diced corned beef would be super delicious for a twist {by the way this may end up being served at dinner with the soup as I’m pretty sure daddy-bee is going to want to be home for this number}.

Ok., while this stew from Three Beans on a String does sound super delicious. I will likely end up changing a lot of it because, that is just what I do and, confession there are veggies in here like; rutabaga and turnips that I; 1) have never cooked with and 2) will likely not have on hand when the time comes. I will most likely add more carrots, add potatoes, and probably some kale to add a bit more “green” flare.

Mom always said don’t play with your food – well, holidays don’t count in my book. Thanks Eye’s Like Food for sharing her beautiful big and cut cucumber display. I will need to make 3 of these because the kids will devour it in 5 seconds flat.

And, what St. Patricks Day Meal Plan would be complete without an after dinner Shamrock Shake Treat, right? This recipe from Dessert Now- Dinner Later sounds like the perfect wrap up to our day. Again we will be using natural food dyes and sprinkles.

I hope you found our St. Patricks Day meal plan helpful and I would love to hear from you if you do in fact make any of these recipes. You can share your pics on our Facebook page... also, if you’re wondering why we will using natural dyes – here are 5 Reasons Your Family Should Avoid Artificial Dyes too.

Lastly, before you go – Don’t forget to “pin” this meal plan to Pinterest so you have it when you need it!

5 Tips, 70 Meals, 10 Weeks, 1 Year of Meal Plans

by Jenny Irvine // May 16, 2014 // 1 Comment

Menu Planning, Food, allergies, gluten-free, No gluten, Healthy Living

Mealplanning is one of those things where there is no right or wrong way – as long as you have a system that works for you. There are those who plan daily, weekly and monthly—and then there are those like myself that prefer to do it twice a year and never think about it again. Don’t get me wrong I love to cook and create in the kitchen but in this age of Pinterest and millions of cookbook publishers, all that information just makes my brain hurt.

5 Steps to Meal Planning Twice a Year
(This post may contain affiliate links under no circumstances are you obligated to purchase from these links-I only recommend brands and company’s we personally use and love- but, if you should decide to make a purchase we do “thank you” as the profits do help support this blog)

Keep it simple – we tend to make everything these days too complicated, from the plethora of after school activities we have our kids in – to the fancy Pinterest like meals we try to mirror. I recently heard someone say (and if I could remember who…I’d give them credit); “Things were simpler back in the day – we knew who the “Joneses” were but it wasn’t thrown in our face 24/7″. We have all become the “Joneses” in a sense – we share what we eat, what we wear, where we have gone or where we are going. We are a share it all society. Well, I’m here to tell you – be you, be awesome – and the kitchen is one of those places it doesn’t need to be complicated, so don’t make it be. Keep it simple and ignore the noise that circles around you.

Color Matters – did you know that you are more likely to eat less of something if the contrast between your food and the plate it is served on is greater. For example; you will eat less pasta with red sauce if it is served on a white plate than if it were served on a red plate. Serve your food on a white plate and make it look like a rainbow. Your brain and waistline will thank you.

Choose a variety of foods – for a well-balanced diet. Not all foods are equally nutritious – ask yourself how many humans have interfered with the processing of “____” food before you are eating it? If it is heavily processed you should move on. There is a time and place for unhealthy foods in moderation (birthdays, holidays and special occasions) and there will always be exceptions to every rule, but overall your basic meal plan should contain mostly label free foods.

Lists just make sense to me – I am a list maker at heart and seriously make lists for everything. You will notice in the meal plan below there is no fancy calendar with foods all filled in – there is a reason for that – it doesn’t work for me and I venture to say it doesn’t work for you either. We all have busy lives and printing someone else’s food calendar just doesn’t even make sense to me. That fancy meal they have chosen to eat on Wednesday which very well might be my busiest day of the week simply will not work. I needed a different system and this is what I came up with….

Plan it once and repeat – there are 365 days in the year, right? This my friends, is the way that meal planning makes the most sense to me. Plan 300 days’ worth of meals leaving 65* “floater” days so to speak for left over days, birthdays, holidays and eating out (don’t feel overwhelmed – trust me!) divide 300 by 4 (see your number is getting smaller–you are now looking at 75 Spring/Summer meals and 75 Fall/Winter meals). Since 75 does not go into 7 days a week equally, I personally like to do a 70 Day/10 week plan. You will now proceed to “plan” 70 days’ worth of meals (or 10 Weeks) Or just let me do it for you... (*so yes, you now have 85 “floater” days but between vacations, holidays, birthdays, family gatherings, and special circumstances a majority of your meals will still be accounted for-that really only leaves approximately 1 meal a week unaccounted for)

Here is a free Spring/Summer 14 day meal plan to get you started–still hungry for more?

Let’s take the guess work out of “what are we eating” and put the entire meal planning menu system to work for you. (Coming Soon) You can use my prepared 10 weeks of meal plans and simply fill in your own week at a glance sheet, make allergy adjustments to fit your families’ needs, and fill in the grocery shopping list with the items your missing in the pantry. There is no more staring at grocery isles wasting time, no more pre-scheduled calendars that need to be completely altered, the entire meal planning system is based on you and your families’ specific, unique life situation.

Then… Sign up for our email list for more meal plans, recipes, tips, and tricks

Breakfast; Week 1

· Muffins and smoothie

· Yogurt and mixed fruit

· Pancakes

· French Toast

· Oatmeal

· Scrambles Eggs and Toast

· Waffles with Mixed Berry Sauce

Lunch; Week 1

· Chicken nuggets, fruit and nuts

· PB, honey, and banana sandwiches, apple and pretzels

· Chicken salad, crackers and melon

· Salmon salad on a cucumber, apples or pear sauce and popcorn

· Guacamole, carrots, cucumbers, mixed fruit and a muffin

· Egg salad, sweet potato chips and veggies

· Taco lettuce roll-ups, mango salsa and corn chips

Dinner; Week 1

· Crockpot chicken, veggie and salad

· Grilled Salmon, broccoli salad, sweet potatoes

· Turkeyor Beef Tacos, rice and beans

· Grilled pork tenderloin, zucchini, yellow, cherry tomato kabobs, quinoa

· Stuffed zucchini pizzas, mixed green salad

· Chicken/beef kabobs (peppers, tomato, zucchini/yellow squash), served over rice

· Spaghetti with meat balls (tomatoless sauce optional), mixed green salad

Snacks; Week 1

· Popcorn

· Apples and sunbutter/almond butter

· Baby carrots and dip

· Peanut butter brownie puppy chow

· Strawberry/mangosmoothie

· Mixed nuts and fruit

· Granola and (milk or Greek yogurt)

Breakfast; Week 2

· Eggs muffins and sausage

· Granola/cereal (with milk or Greek yogurt), and mixed fruit

· Mixed berry crepes and powder sugar

· French toast sticks and bacon

· Blueberrywhite chocolate chip muffins

· Overnight oatmeal

· Breakfast burrito and an apple

Lunch; Week 2

· Hummus, veggie sticks (peppers, carrots, celery, and radishes),melon and muffin

· Cucumber/tomato kabobs, apple or pear w/sun-butter dip, mixed nuts and craisins

· Hard-boiled egg, tomato/olive kabob, nut-thins and orange

· Almonds/Cashews, blueberries/strawberries, oven roasted turkey on a cucumber “bun”

· PBJ rice cakes, banana, carrot/celery sticks

· Chickpea lettuce roll up, grapes and pretzels (if you have never tried a gluten-free prezel you don’t know what your missing-they are awesome!)

· Zucchini bread, oven chicken and mixed berries

Dinner; Week 2

· Turkeymeatloaf, sweet potato casserole and oven baked broccoli

· Grilled chicken tender salad w/orange poppy seed dressing (kids; chicken, cut veggies and dressing for “dip”

· Beef fajitas, rice and beans (use the grain free tortillas or we love these too)

· Quinoa stuffed peppers

· Rosemary/lemon oven baked shrimp, summer squash fries, rice, and mixed green salad

· Pesto chicken pasta salad, cherry tomatoes, and lemon/garlic asparagus

Snacks; Week 2

· Grape kabobs and raw cheddar slice

· applesauceand granola (try the homestead applesauce in one of these fun reusable pouches-your kids will love it)

· Ice cube snack buffet (carrots, strawberry, raisins, blueberries, almonds, and sunflower seeds)

· Frozen yogurt squeezes

· No bake energy snack balls

· Hard boiled egg and kale chips

· Banana, marshmallows, and chocolate chips (great on the grill)