{Clean Eating} Recipes

Sweet Potato and Brown Rice Soup from The Pretty Bee.

{Clean Eating} Recipe Links ~ Plumfield DreamsWe try to plan our menu two weeks at a time, because that’s how we do our major grocery shopping. Typically I don’t plan weekend meals ahead, and we don’t eat every meal I plan. We often get (or make) a pizza one night a week, and on the weekends our schedules are often up in the air, so planning is pointless. One of these days I’ll write a post specific to convenience foods for those times. We typically eat leftovers for lunch, and snacks are fruits and nuts. These are the recipes we’re trying the next couple weeks. (Click the images to find the individual recipes on Pinterest.)

Wok-Style Garlic Chicken and Carrots from The Gracious Pantry. We’ll add seasoning and more veggies to beef up the flavor and nutrition. Serve with rice.

Slow Cooker Carnitas-Style Chicken from Jeanette’s Healthy Living. We’ll omit the juniper berries, ’cause, uh, I have no clue where to find those. May serve with sweet potatoes. Could also be served on salad or gluten-free tortillas.

Cabbage Salad with Goat Cheese from Kitchen Stewardship. We will substitute feta cheese, and definitely add sunflower seeds and carrots (which are optional in the recipe).

Grilled Ginger-Sesame Chicken Salad from Menu Musings. We’ll substitute coconut aminos for the soy sauce, and sub out the canola oil for…something. Got a recommendation for me?

Ground Beef Stroganoff from The Paleo Mama. We’ve had this one before, and it’s scrumptious. Plain ol’ whole wheat spaghetti once a week or less is one of the ways we cut corners on our clean diet.

Cranberry Almond Chicken Salad from Louisiana Bride.

We’ll also use our Well Fed and Well Fed 2 cookbooks for such scrumptious meals as Cincinnati Chili and Buffalo Chicken Salad.

What I’m Into {January 2014 Edition}

What I'm Into ~ Plumfield DreamsThis is my first time participating in Leigh Kramer’s monthly “What I’m Into” linkup. I’m excited! I love this sort of thing. Hopefully some of you gentle readers do, as well. (Speaking of what I’m into…when I typed “gentle readers” my mind went to a specific Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode. Can you go there, too? Oh, I hope so, because that means you lead a happy life.)

What I’m Reading

I’ve been sick so much, and subsequently so busy when I’m well, that I haven’t gotten much reading done. I even missed book club. A Million Little Ways has been my primary read this month, and it is fantastic. It’s been a while since I’ve done much underlining in a book, but this one is getting heavily marked up. It has inspired a lot of thoughts, all milling around waiting for me to have the time to focus properly on each. It’s a book to savor, for sure.

The books most heavily in rotation with the kids this month are Katie Loves the Kittens, a couple I Spy books Aria got for her birthday, Madeline’s Rescue, one of Andy’s Garfield comic strip books Aria found on the bookshelf, and Charlie the Ranch Dog.

What I’m Watching

Downton Abbey AND Sherlock came back this month, so I’m basically in television heaven. I’ve also been rewatching NCIS. I’m up to season nine, which is the last one I own (no, I did not watch nine seasons this month). There are many things to appreciate about this show, but one of my favorite aspects is the subtlety. They don’t spell things out, and they don’t show a lot of the relational situations. Instead, they drop hints – verbal, contextual, and physical – and trust the viewer to follow. It’s refreshing.

Geeking Out

I just learned about this awesome curated box of bookish things you can receive quarterly. I AM SO EXCITED. I only wish I had learned about it before the first box went out, because I want everything in it. Oh, and I also wish I could afford to do this one, too. And that I could gift one to everyone I know.

Around the Web

Emily Freeman is one of my favorite bloggers (she also wrote A Million Little Ways). This post about Choosing the One You Least Expect is moving and inspiring.

I can very much relate to the whole waffling thing Anna discusses in Moms Need More Swagger (also to the idea my mom knew everything with confidence, and to the waiting for that to kick in).

The Kids Are Learning 

Aria (two) has started saying “I love you” and “I like you”. The latter is a song from her favorite TV show, “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood”. She has also started singing – more than just mimicking me – beginning with the “I like you” song. She has become extremely polite. It’s cute. She says “thanks” for pretty much everything, is getting quite good at remembering her “pleases”, and (my favorite) says “excuse me” if she needs to pass you. I hear “‘Scuse me, Mommy” a couple dozen times a day. She has also learned to apologize to her brother if she does something mean, or something thoughtless that results in him getting hurt. She’s pretty good about it, but sometimes I feel badly because I’ve heard her saying “Sowwy, Noey” when he cries about something totally unrelated to her. It’s cute, and a little sad, but I think she just doesn’t quite understand it yet. She seems to be basically trying to get him to be quiet. 🙂

Noah (6 months) is starting to play independently on the floor for short periods of time. Yesterday I left him in the Bumbo seat on the living room floor, and when I came back ten minutes later he was hanging out on his belly on the floor. We may be about done with the Bumbo seat. He isn’t crawling yet, but he does push himself up almost onto his knees regularly, and he pulls himself around the room. He got three more teeth in a period of about four days, so he now has a total of five. We started him on solids a couple weeks ago. Thus far he’s eaten avocado, banana, sweet potato fries, roasted carrots, green beans, and homemade chicken fingers. He seems to have enjoyed all of it.

What I’m Pinning

Super Bowl food! We started our clean eating endeavor this month, and I’ve been pinning food like crazy.

Here’s what we think we’re going to try for the Super Bowl:

Buffalo Wings with Dairy-Free Ranch Dressing

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

Spinach Brownies

Texas-Style Cilantro Jalapeno Hummus

 

What I'm Into

Healthy Holiday Recipes

Healthy Holiday Recipes ~ Plumfield DreamsBecause of the kids’ food sensitivities, we eat mostly corn-free, soy-free, and dairy-free in our house. Andy does eat some products that contain those ingredients (sour cream, yogurt, store-bought bread, etc.). Primarily, though, our recipes exclude any major sources of those ingredients. This is the first year we’ve been avoiding corn and soy for the holidays. It requires a little additional thought, but for the most part it is not difficult to eat cleanly and festively. You just have to be willing to do the cooking!

Where we come across ingredients that are necessary but don’t work for us, we just substitute. For example, almond or coconut milk in place of cow milk (I’ve come to prefer these milks for cooking, baking, and smoothies), and dairy- and soy-free buttery spread in place of butter (no, that is NOT the same, but it IS healthier, and in our case, necessary).

Here are some healthy holiday recipes we plan to try out this Thanksgiving.

Turkey:

Smoky Paprika Bacon-Wrapped Turkey

Smoky Paprika Bacon-Wrapped Turkey

Sides:

Rosemary Roasted Carrots

Rosemary Roasted Carrots

Roasted Green Beans

Roasted Green Beans

Citrus Coconut Roasted Beets

Citrus Coconut Roasted Beets

Dessert:

Paleo Pumpkin Pie

Paleo Pumpkin Pie

You can find more healthy and tasty recipes, including some clean stuffing recipes, on my allergy-friendly Pinterest board.