The Cleanse Factor--January Menu Plan

So every January (and by every January I mean once two years ago in December and maybe last year in January, but I can't remember for sure) my DH and I do a week-long cleanse.  Sort of.  Because I am an avid rule follower--if I like the rules, or if I made the rules up myself.  Anyhow, strict cleanse or not, it just seems like a good idea to get a handle on food choices after all of the holiday junk treats.

To be honest with you, we don't do a cleanse in the strictest sense of the word (depending on whose variation you choose.)  Our personal experience was that focusing on eating primarily vegetables and on reducing and being selective about grains and proteins was a better option than eliminating them all together.  (We also allowed ourselves one cup of coffee each morning because we are total wimps. I think we may have used a little honey from time-to-time as well.)  However, we did eliminate dairy and refined sugar, which is how I came to drink my coffee like a real grown up--black.

Our "cleanse" looked something like this:

(Oh yes, I am not a doctor, and all that jazz. This is not medical advice, consult your doctor, etc, etc.)

Wake: water with lemon

Breakfast Options: fruit-only smoothie (no dairy or soy milk), steel cut oats with apples, fruit salad with almonds/pumpkin seeds and a little plain yogurt, cooked millet

Snack Options: veggies with hummus or almond butter, yogurt (plain) with fruit, raw pumpkin or sunflower seeds, almonds, vegetable broth

Lunch Options: vegetable soup, salad, beans, veggie sandwich (can use portabello mushrooms instead of bread)

Dinner Options: Lentils, beans, brown rice (in moderation), chicken or fish (every other night), lots of vegetables, quinoa, salad (every night)

Beverages: Green tea (limited), water, herbal teas, vegetable broth

***Note: I prefer to make my own broths, as commercial broths can have unexpected ingredients or additives, and homemade just tastes better.  Beans are also even more economical when purchased dry, and can be left alone to cook in the crock pot.***

Since we only have the discipline to last about a week, below is my Winter Menu Plan which will get us through the rest of the month and possibly into January.  This being our coldest month, you'll see quite a few soups on the menu.  I love soup because not only are they warming, but they are also economical and extremely forgiving, easily modified to fit whatever fresh ingredients you have on hand.  I've starred recipes that could be eaten on the cleanse or slightly modified to fit.

Week One

Saturday: Pot Roast with Veggies/Steak with potatoes (or potato soup) & veggies

Sunday: Sweet Potato stuffed with Roasted Veggies*

Monday: Quinoa Chili* (I don't use TVP.) / Vegetarian Chili*

Tuesday: Spaghetti (with noodles or spaghetti squash)

Wednesday: Swiss chard and chickpeas*/ Hummus (with less lemon juice) & Veggies*

Thursday: Bean burrito

Friday: Chicken & Dumplings/ Chicken Soup*

Week Two

Saturday: Lasagna/ Lasagna Soup

Sunday: Lentil Rice Casserole*

Monday: Winter Vegetable Soup*(without Parmesan) / Holiday Soup For the Soul* (leave out vegetable bouillon and replace all or part of water with vegetable broth)

Tuesday: Parmesan Chicken/ Roasted Chicken*

Wednesday: Rustic Cabbage Soup*(without Parmesan)/ Nutmeg and Honey Carrot Soup

Thursday: Crock Pot Roasted Winter Veggies with or without Salmon*

Friday: White Bean Chili*/New England Clam Chowder

Hope your New Year is off to a great start!

The Kid Factor

At the beginning of this month my husband and I took the kids to Sweet Tomato.  While we were eating our salads, another family sat down a few tables away from us.  I glanced over and noticed the little boy who looked to be about four had cracker-type food and raisins on his plate. Then they brought the girl a plate stacked full of bread sticks.  I'm not going to lie to you; I totally judged.  And I really have no room to do so as this morning I consumed a large piece of cake brought to me by one of my students, and just now I finished a slice of apple pie which was purchased from Kroger and contains who knows what. I didn't read the label.  

Judgement aside, I think too easily we as parents (myself included) can fall into the I'm-afraid-my-kid-will-starve-if-he-doesn't-eat-something-so-let's-just-give-him-whatever-he-will-swallow trap.  The truth is that not all foods are created equal and eating "something" is not better than missing a meal because the child doesn't want the healthy options.  I promise you, your child will not die if they occasionally miss a meal, and their bodies are programmed not to let them starve.  


Let me say this as gently as possible: children eat what we give them and teach them to eat.  Children in every country of the world eat the food that is typical of their culture.  I know as a parent it can be difficult and emotional to deal with children's eating habits.  I've outlined some ideas that have worked with my children and maybe can help you in your journey with your children to healthier eating habits.  (As always, if your child has a medical condition, follow the advice of your pediatrician before making changes to their diet.)


Get them involved
Kids love to imitate adults, and are more likely to eat foods that they have helped to make.  Give your little "chef" jobs like tearing up the lettuce for the salad and measuring ingredients.  As they get older, teach them cooking skills so they can take responsibility for themselves and won't be helpless when they leave home.  If you have a garden, get them involved in planting seeds and watering plants.  Eating snap peas straight of the vine is a special treat.


Relinquish control
Yes, you read that right.  This is one of the most successful strategies I have used with my kids.  As an adult I don't want someone just plopping food on my plate and saying, "Eat this."  Children want choices, too.  One of the favorite meals in our house is "make your own salad night."  Everyone starts with lettuce, and the kids get to pick what they want to add.  Here are some other examples of how this works:


For snack: "Would you like an apple or grapes?"
When serving food: "Do you want a little salad or a lot of salad?" "Do you want your chicken on your rice or on the side?"


Be an example
If it's not a food you want your kids to eat, don't keep it in the house.  If it's a "sometimes" food, only eat it sometimes.  Rest assured that if you aren't eating to the same standards that you want your kids to have, they will call the "that's not fair" card. (And they will likely want to scarf down those forbidden foods as adults in righteous vindication.)


Dealing with picky eaters
Allow your kids to have dislikes in foods.  One of ours doesn't like yogurt and another doesn't like beans.  We don't make them a separate dish, but there are other foods served with the meal that they can eat.  However, in our house the rule is you can have seconds when you've had firsts of everything.  If we know it's a food they're not particularly fond of those "firsts" are a small portion.  This is normally met with complaints at first, but now our kids know the way it works.  And over time, we have seen them grow to like foods that they objected to at first.


Making changes is difficult at first.  Changes also take time.  What we've seen as a result, though, is that our kids love real food. They ask if our food is homemade or if it came from our garden.  They want to know if the meat and dairy came from the farm.  And they get excited about it. We've also noticed that eating real food improves their health and their mood.


One important note is that we don't force our kids to eat or eat a particular food.  As parents we can no more force our children to eat something than we can grow wings and fly.  What we can control is what food is available for them to choose from. 


What has worked for you with your kids?

The Halloween Dilema

I have issues with Halloween. Not even because of the association with death and horror, although we do leave those aspects out of our activity choices.  It's all the candy.  Yes, I realize it's just one day.  But that candy hangs around much longer than just one day.  And it's not like our children aren't inundated with candy and sweets on a regular basis--birthdays, Valentine's Day, Christmas, prizes, etc, etc. Why do we feel that a celebration has to be tied to large consumption of unhealthy, processed food?

I know some people have their kids donate a portion of their candy to their dentist who donates it to a charity or trade it in for a book or other toy.  And in my house the candy has simply "disappeared" as soon as Halloween becomes a distant memory.  With these options the candy is being thrown away (wasteful) or given away to "less fortunate children," because we don't want our own children to eat it. Really???

I have found another reason this year to not be a fan of Halloween. Child slave labor. I realize this is a sticky issue and that people have different opinions on child labor in other countries.  I realize that standards of living and standards of pay can be different in other countries than they are here.  And I am sure I am unwittingly supporting companies whose practices I would disagree with on a regular basis.

However, for the whole I believe that we have created a country that is so concerned with having it all and having it now, that we either do not care or do not know where our food, clothing, and general goods come from or what it has taken to get there.  I believe we have allowed the wool to be pulled over our eyes because we have decided that it is more important to have excess than to have value.  Rather than choosing moderation and self control, we have created a world in which bananas, coffee, sugar, chocolate and the people who produce them can be easily exploited for profit.  I believe this isn't the fault of large corporations, but more so we as individuals who have voted with our dollars and with our lifestyles.

Please don't misunderstand, I know this is a very complicated issue in which it is difficult to determine which side started it, and what then to do to change it.  Sometimes we are stuck with two less than optimal choices.  In no way am I trying to say that I am "holier-than-thou" because of my choices.  What I am saying, is that when an issue pricks my conscious, I believe that I have a responsibility to then make changes in the way I live to line up with my values.  These values have already lead us to make changes such as buying our meat and dairy from local farmers as much as possible, to minimize the amount of processed food that we allow into our diets, and make most of our own food.

Back to Halloween...

This year we decided to have a little Halloween party for the kids, because we still want to do something fun.  The kids, except for one, picked out costumes to make.  We'll make Monster Face Sandwiches with veggies, hummus, meat and cheese, salad, Spider Snacks out of crackers, peanut butter, pretzels, and organic chocolate chips.  For desert we'll have homemade sugar cookies shaped like pumpkins.  We're also brainstorming some game ideas with a pumpkin/Halloween theme and going to download fun music.  For the trick-or-treaters we have sticky eyeballs and the like to give away. (Which may not be the best option either, but we're taking it one step at a time as we learn.)

My challenge to you is not to make the same exact choices I do, but rather to think about what bothers your conscious or doesn't sit well with you.  Then, decide what you can do differently to better reflect your values. 

Variety is the Spice of Life

About a month ago we realized that we had fallen into a pattern of eating out or stopping by the store to pick up something "quick." 
It wasn't that we hadn't planned a menu or that there wasn't food in the house to eat.
Tiredness may have been a factor in the dinner-time blues, but after reflecting, we came to the conclusion that boredom was the culprit.
I plan a two-week flexible meal plan that I modify seasonally, and we were overdue for a change.  Following a rotating meal plan helps me to plan for grocery shopping and simplifies my life.  For all it's benefits, sometimes it just gets a little old and it's time to change the disk.
So without further ado, this is our current "fall" (we live in Texas) meal plan.


Week One


Saturday- Kale Risotto
Sunday- Chef's Choice
Monday- Lentil Soup (The picture looks nothing like the actual soup, and I add Spike Veggie Seasoning.), Brown Rice, Salad
Tuesday- Crock pot Meatloaf, Potatoes, Veggies
Wednesday- Sweet Potato Quesadillas
Thursday- Chicken Tortilla Soup (We have homemade chicken broth and cooked chicken on hand in the freezer, which makes this recipe easy to throw together!)
Friday- Homemade Pizza


Week Two


Saturday- Black Bean Salad/Chili
Sunday- Chef's Choice
Monday- Veggie Stir Fry, Brown Rice
Tuesday- Crock pot Chicken (However we feel like making it.)
Wednesday- Curried Quinoa
Thursday- Spanish Tortilla
Friday- Leftover night


This is just a springboard for our menu for a two-week period. As I mentioned with my previous menu post, since we get our produce through a coop, I alter the menus to fit what we actually have on hand. I.e: Butternut Squash Soup instead of Veggie Stir Fry, Black Bean Soup instead of Black Bean Salad, etc.  I like planning in an open night (Chef's Choice) as well to eat out, go to a friend's house, or have company over and plan whatever fits our fancy.  And I will admit that one Wednesday or Thursday night a week often ends up being picking up take out, especially if Ben's out of town and I work late (read every single week). Pad Thai, anyone?

The First Step (Part I)

There are a number of first steps you can take that can be taken on the road to eating real food. I'm going to share with you what I feel to be the easiest and where I got started. 

Add in fruits and vegetables.
These are the easiest real foods to start adding into your diet.  I'm not talking about those disgusting overcooked, over-salted or over-sweetened wannabes that come in a can. I'm talking about fresh, ripe, sweet, flavorful fruits and veggies that come straight from the plant and don't even have to be cooked (read quick and easy).  They're loaded with the good stuff your body needs. And they even come in their own God-made package.  How convenient is that?

I'm not even going to tell you to give up soda or stop eating candy bars or potato chips.  To be honest with you, that type of white-knuckle mentality may work for a little while, but it's short-lived.  Focus on the positive aspect of eating more of something good.  Here are some ideas of how to incorporate this into your diet:

Note: This post is divided into two parts because of length.  Next post will cover buying fruits and vegetables economically.

1. Eat a piece of fruit or cut up veggies as a snack. 
This one is so easy to do, yet I will confess to recently searching the Internet for unprocessed snacks for my family and coming across a blog that listed different fruits and vegetables as snacks.  Duh! 
I know, some of you are saying that isn't enough to fill me up.  Eat the fruit or veggies first, dip them in peanut butter or almond butter if you want or eat some nuts with it.  If you still want to eat chips, etc afterwards, go for it.  You've at least given your body what it really needs first and you're less likely to pig out on chips and still feel hungry later.

2. Make a salad to eat with dinner.
Start with romaine, green leaf, spring mix, spinach--you want to go for the dark greens, not iceberg.  Add cut up veggies, fruit, some almonds or sunflower seeds.  We commonly eat a variation of the following salad, changing it to fit what we have on hand:

Romaine
Cucumbers
Apples
Almonds
A little Gouda or feta (sometimes)

Homemade Vinaigrette:
Two parts olive oil
One part vinegar (we like balsamic or red wine)
Italian seasoning (basil, oregano)
Minced garlic cloves (or garlic powder in a pinch)
Salt
Pepper
Squirt of honey
A dash of Chipotle Tabasco Sauce

3. Cook a fresh vegetable to eat with dinner.
This honestly isn't rocket science, but you don't want to overcook your vegetables.  (They lose their flavor as well as their nutritional value.) Green veggies should still look bright green, not pale like the broccoli in school cafeterias.  They should still have a little firmness, not turn to a mushy, flavorless mess. (Again see aforementioned broccoli.)
An easy way to prepare vegetables like squash, zucchini, asparagus, broccoli, green beans, etc, is to wash them, cut them up however you choose, heat a little olive oil or butter in the pan, sprinkle them with a little basil, oregano, pepper and salt if you wish, and lightly saute them over medium heat. 
Another option is steaming them in a steamer basket over boiling water.  When I steam broccoli, I test one and turn off the heat just before they're done as they continue to cook a little from the steam after you turn off the stove. Toss with seasonings after cooking, if desired.
If you need recipes, google the Internet, but go for recipes that call for light cooking and minimal ingredients to keep it simple and "real." 

Alright, it's rubber meets the road time.  Pick one of the babysteps above to put into practice this week or make up one of your own.  Everyone's journey is different so your step may range from "Eat a piece of fruit for a snack this week," to "Every night before bed, cut up veggies to take for snack to work the next day."  This isn't a competition.  Any step in the right direction makes a difference!