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Protein Packed Molasses Breakfast Cookies

January 29, 2016

Soft, light weight, and packed with naturally sourced protein, these molasses protein breakfast cookies are the perfect on the go breakfast for busy mornings!

Links in this post are affiliate links. It does not cost you anything and helps maintain the free information on this site, as well as answer the questions of “what brand do you use?” Please know I never personally recommend any product or service I wouldn’t use on my own family.

Whew! Has this been a whirlwind of a first half of the school year or what?!

I feel like it was just last week that we were standing under our big magnolia tree taking the first day of school pictures in our shorts! We are now well into the school year, bundled up in sweaters and snow gear, and I feel like we really fell into a great morning routine this year.

Not only are my kids a year older (Read: less dependent on me for dressing, teeth brushed, babies not needing to be nursed, etc), but this now seasoned school momma has learned the art of a school morning breakfast schedule…and I love it.

I have never been much of a meal planner – I still don’t follow a menu for lunches and dinners, but I definitely have breakfast in a rotation for school mornings and it makes it run so much smoother.

Fridays are breakfast cookie days for a couple of reasons!

Frankly by Friday I want to sleep in a little. (Is that selfish?!)

I love it. I have a stash of breakfast cookies in the freezer and all I have to do is take them out to thaw on Thursday night before I go to bed, and in the morning I set out a plate of cookies, hard boiled eggs, and a jug of raw milk and my 6 and 4 year olds can serve themselves – my 2 year old can even handle most of it herself.

I also love breakfast cookie day for Friday because they are easy to eat.

By Friday my 2 and 4 year old’s have kind of had it for the week. They sometimes end up sleeping in because *this* momma doesn’t wake sleeping kiddos unless absolutely necessary! Breakfast cookies and hard boiled eggs can go right out the door for school drop off super easy.

I have been rotating my freezer breakfast cookie stash between my Ultimate Breakfast Cookie, Lemon Breakfast Cookies, and earlier this winter I created these molasses based breakfast cookies. I am really excited about sharing this recipe with you – it has a totally different base than the other cookies, as well as my new secret addition to all of my breakfast cookies – gut healing, protein packed grassfed collagen!

The amount of collagen took me a while to get down, but these cookies are packed with collagen without feeling heavy or “gelatinous”. They are super light and soft and taste amazing. If you love molasses like we do you can use more molasses versus the honey. This recipe is light on the molasses flavor as it can be strong for some people, but molasses is a fantastic sweetener of choice because it is loaded with minerals.

I even recommend adding some gingerbread spices like cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and ginger to make it feel like a gingerbread cookie! So good! Another option would be to make smaller cookies for on the go snacks or lunchbox additions.

Print Recipe

5 from 3 votes

Molasses Protein Breakfast Cookie

Soft, light weight, and packed with naturally sourced protein, these molasses protein breakfast cookies are the perfect on the go breakfast for busy mornings!

Prep Time5 mins

Cook Time15 mins

Total Time20 mins

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Keyword: molasses breakfast cookies, molasses breakfast protein cookie recipe, molasses protein cookies

Servings: cookies

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

1 cup finely chopped pecans I like to use crispy nuts for best digestion. I buzz them up really fine in the food processor - very quick! You could use about a cup of blanched almond flour here instead if you don't have the others around. I like to change things up for more diet variety.
1/2 cup tapioca flour
1/2 cup white rice flour
1/4 cup sorghum flour
1/4 cup grassfed collagen
2 pastured eggs
1/3 cup avocado oil melted coconut oil or butter would work
2 TB raw honey
2 TB molasses
2 tsp aluminum free baking powder
1 tsp almond extract vanilla extract would work

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Put everything into a medium mixing bowl and blend until smooth. The batter is thick but not stiff like a cookie dough.
Spoon the batter onto a Silpat or parchment paper lined baking sheet and bake at 375 for 15 minutes.

For more real food breakfast ideas you can follow my Breakfast Ideas board on Pinterest!

More real food recipes you might like:
Green Smoothies For Kids!

The Ultimate Breakfast Cookie

Lemon Breakfast Cookies

Molasses Protein Snack Bars

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Breakfast Ideas Feeding Babies Lunch Ideas Nourishing Staples Real Food 101 Real Food Tips Snack Ideas

Nutrient Dense Green Smoothies For Kids!

November 13, 2015

Your one stop tutorial for all things green smoothies for kids! Any flavor and nutrient packed for growing brains and bodies!

Links in this post are affiliate links. It does not cost you anything and helps maintain the free information on this site, as well as answer the questions of “what brand do you use?” I was compensated products for my time and Perfect Supplements is providing the giveaway prize. Please know I never personally recommend any product or service I wouldn’t use on my own family.

Simplicity.

I literally thrive off of it these days. As my kids get bigger the “busy” has changed from the survival mode of the newborn season of life to the “busy” that comes along with one set of kids in school and preschool, and still another in the (very) busy toddler season.

In an effort to streamline healthy, real food meals in my house, I have been working on making sure I’m not, in fact, in the kitchen all day.

I have one kid in school all day that needs certain things packed, another kid in preschool half time that needs snacks packed and quicker morning breakfasts (*not* a morning person that one!), and still another in toddler season that needs all of her meals at home – but gets to tag along on all of the “taxi” driving I do all day.

Especially for my younger two girls, green smoothies have become my staple on certain busier days of the week, as well as my back up when my planned cooking doesn’t happen. Smoothies used to completely intimidate me because of all the various different recipes.

Have you ever been in the presence of a hungry 2 year old?!

“Just a minute” doesn’t work with them. They want something to eat *now*.

I needed a smoothie framework to pull from when it came to smoothies.

I didn’t have time to pull up this flavor or that. I knew the nutrient dense components I always wanted to have included, so I figured out how to make *any* flavor green smoothie with all the same base and use whatever fruit or flavor I have in house or whatever is in season. Simple, right?

So what are my nutrient dense components and why?

Rapidly growing children require nutrient dense food at every meal. Period.

Empty calories or “filler” snacks to “hold them over” until the next meal don’t fly in my book. Even if this smoothie is to be a small snack, my motto of “make every bite count” still is in the back of my mind.

FRIENDLY FAT

Anything from raw milk, kefir, coconut milk, or yogurt for the liquid base of the smoothie along with an additional fatty add-in such as raw pastured egg yolk, coconut oil, or avocado oil. Coconut oil will change the flavor, though my kids like coconut and don’t mind it. Avocado oil is tasteless!

VITAMINS & MINERALS

All of the components from the “friendly fat” category provide vitamins and minerals, but children do benefit from vegetable mineral sources. Lightly steamed greens such as spinach or kale provide a gentle vegetable mineral source. (Lightly cooking the greens takes the oxalate level down. Greens should be eaten with friendly fat for better digestion and vitamin absorption which is covered in the friendly fat portion of the smoothie). You can keep a container of steamed greens in the fridge, or use blanched/frozen greens to make smoothie prep run quick.

QUALITY PROTEIN

Anything from a scoop of nut butter to a pastured egg yolk counts, though I am a huge fan of using grassfed collagen in my smoothies. It is a simple, real food protein source that I can get into my kids that doesn’t make the taste change, and it doesn’t compromise my real food standards like other protein powders would. I love and use Perfect Supplements grassfed collagen in my house. It provides a great protein source, is tasteless, and collagen is also great for gut lining integrity just like bone broth! Win win!

From there you can flavor your smoothie however you want!

We U-Pick seasonal fruit every summer from berries to peaches that I keep in the freezer, and when that runs out I rely on the organic frozen fruit at Costco. We also love to occasionally make vanilla or raw cacao smoothies like a milk shake! I also keep a bag of frozen bananas – you know the ones that start going too ripe before you can eat them off the counter? Yep! Just peel them, toss them into a freezer bag, and use them when you want!

This is the serving that I make for my 3 girls, ages 6, 4, and 2 to split. You can half if making for less servings, or double if you are making it for older kids with bigger appetites.

Print Recipe

5 from 8 votes

Nutrient Dense Green Smoothies For Kids!

Your one stop tutorial for all things green smoothies for kids! Any flavor and nutrient packed for growing brains and bodies!

Prep Time5 mins

Total Time5 mins

Course: Drinks

Cuisine: American

Keyword: green smoothie, green smoothie recipe, how to make a green smoothie

Servings: servings

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

2 cups whole raw milk kefir, yogurt, or coconut milk
2 cups frozen fruit If the kids will need it on the sweeter side, be sure part of this is a frozen banana
1/3 cup or so steamed spinach or kale
2 TB grassfed cold soluble collagen
3 pastured egg yolks OR 1 1/2 TB avocado oil or melted coconut oil
1-2 tbsp raw honey If you have a baby under age 1 that will be sipping on this, use pure maple syrup or just leave it out - trust me, their young palates won't miss it!

Instructions

Everything in your blender, puree until smooth and serve. After using a regular blender for years, I do want to mention that there is a huge difference in smoothness using a high powered blender like a BlendTec or Vitamix - they are a great investment to put on your birthday or holiday wishlist!

A couple of tips!

Try a straw with the little ones like baby and toddler, and if they aren’t quite catching on yet, you can serve it with a spoon or medicine syringe – our local pharmacy gives out nice big medicine syringes for free! I love our shorter, stainless steel straws that are perfect for smaller cups, and these re-useable straws have fun patterns.
I tend to keep any smoothies for my babies from 6-18 months mostly mango/papaya and banana. Raw berries, apples, cherries, and peaches that are typical fruit for smoothies have high pectin which can be tough on young digestive systems (which is why these fruits are recommended to be cooked for babies). Mango, papaya, and bananas don’t have the high pectin so they work well. I get organic frozen mango at Costco.
Serving cup suggestions. I have just plain not gotten into plastic cups. It might be the Montessori momma in me but you would be surprised at how a young baby/toddler can use a regular/glass open cup. I adore my small, small, 8oz jelly jars from Ball to use for all drinking – they are for canning jelly but they are the perfect size for little hands and great serving size for small smoothies. My big girls drink from pint mason jars.
To make a raw cacao milkshake smoothie, instead of the 2 cups of fruit, use 1 or 2 whole frozen banana (or more if they are small) along with a 2-3 tablespoons of raw cacao – which is loaded with antioxidants and minerals by the way!
To make a vanilla milkshake smoothie, instead of the 2 cups of fruit, use 1 or 2 whole frozen banana (or more if they are small) along with 1 1/2 tablespoons of vanilla extract.
Freeze leftovers in small popsicle molds or little paper cups with a straw or popsicle stick for a great snack or teething aide.

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Batch Up Meals Breakfast Ideas Holiday Recipes Real Food Tips School Holidays Snack Ideas

Cranberry Orange Granola

November 4, 2015

Sweet orange vanilla infused granola decorated with festive cranberries makes a fun breakfast cereal bowl, or topping for a yogurt snack!

We have the most beautiful fall so far! We were spoiled with unseasonably warm 70 degree temperatures this week, and I couldn’t help but open the windows and soak in as much sun warmth as I could, knowing that in just a few short weeks we will be shoveling snow instead of raking up leaves!

With the holidays around the corner, my husband brought home this huge bag of fresh cranberries from Costco one day thinking we could get a head start on shopping for Thanksgiving. I don’t think we could ever eat a Costco sized bag portion of cranberry sauce, so I was excited to play with some new recipes to use up those pretty cranberries.

Since we have had a fairly busy fall so far, I thought we could use some quick morning breakfasts with some granola that also doubles as a great yogurt topper for school snacktime or toddler snacks.

This granola turned out so pretty and festive I’m actually storing it away to pack into some mason jars for teacher gifts!

Print Recipe

5 from 4 votes

Cranberry Orange Granola

Sweet orange vanilla infused granola decorated with festive cranberries makes a fun breakfast cereal bowl, or topping for a yogurt snack!

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time8 hrs

Soak8 hrs

Total Time8 hrs 10 mins

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Keyword: cranberry orange granola, cranberry orange granola recipe, soaked and dehydrated granola

Servings: servings

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

10 cups oats
4 cups raw pumpkin seeds (raw sunflower seeds would work too)
4 cups raw pecans (raw walnuts or raw almonds
would work too. I get all of these nuts in the linked Kirkland brand at Costco)
Juice of 2 lemons
2 TB sea salt
4 cups unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 cup avocado oil melted butter or coconut oil would work too
Juice and zest of 5 oranges
1/2 cup raw honey pure maple syrup or organic pure cane sugar or coconut sugar would work too
1 TB vanilla extract
2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 cups dried cranberries I get fresh and dried cranberries at Costco - the linked dried brand is what I get at Costco

Instructions

Pulse the pumpkin seeds and pecans in a food processor to the sized bits you want in your granola (you could chop with a knife too). I keep mine on the smaller side since I have little ones eating it - you can leave bigger chunks if you prefer.
Put the oats, chopped nuts and seeds, the lemon juice, and sea salt in a large mixing bowl and fill with water until it just covers the mixture. Set the bowl in a warm spot in your kitchen to soak for 8 hours. This soaking process breaks down the phytic acid in the grain, nut, and seeds for better digestion. It also makes their nutrients more available to absorb.
After soaking, put the oat, nut, and seed mixture in a strainer to drain while you put the rest of the ingredients into a large bowl or stockpot to mix. Add the drained oat/nut/seed mixture and combine the entire granola mixture well.
Spread the granola mixture over your dehydrator trays (I use this one) and dehydrate at 135 degrees 8-12 hours until dry. You could bake this in the oven at 250 degrees for an hour or so just stir the mixture every half hour to ensure it gets completely dried out.

For more real food breakfast ideas, you can follow my Breakfast Ideas board on Pinterest!

More real food recipes you might like:

Grain Free Apple Cinnamon Granola

Strawberry Quinoa Granola

School Morning Breakfast Menu Routines

Simple Cinnamon Granola

35 Comments

Feeding Babies Lunch Ideas Real Food Tips school lunches Snack Ideas

Crispy Plantain Crackers :: Great for toddlers, kids, and adults! Gluten, Egg, Nut, & Dairy Free!

September 26, 2015

The perfect crispy bite sized crackers for little hands! Perfect for crumbling in a bowl of soup, or stacking with some cheese for snacktime!

Two year olds.

Need I say more?

Well I probably should because mentioning the world of a 2 year old can mean so many different things. Random household objects scattered in the strangest places of the home. Meltdowns over “broken” bananas. Complete and utter joy over noticing a butterfly…

But today we are going to talk about 2 year olds and eating. Age 2 can be a tough age in the meal world. Some because I think our expectations for what a meal should be at this age are unrealistic. While 2 year olds still need nutrient dense food choices, their appetites do drop off a little at this age. They just plain don’t need as much as what you probably would expect they would – at least not every day. Two year olds will eat like a teenage boy one day and the next have no more than a cup of milk and a banana and be perfectly fine.

Two year olds are also B.U.S.Y. 🙂 Expecting a 2 year old to sit for a full meal to your standards just might not be realistic until they are closer to age 3 or 4 in my experience. So my experience has been smaller, more frequent meals just work better at this busy age.

My goal is always – make every bite count.

If my two year olds are going to eat 5-6 times per day, I’m going to make sure most of those are “mini meals”. Instead of snacking toddlers on empty calories of fishy crackers and the little O’s cereal, you are going to find these little guys will do better eating some friendly fats with a little bit of carbohydrate. Their blood sugars will be more stable making less volatile little people, they will be satiated longer, and their brain and growing bodies will be nourished to grow.

One of my go-to on the go “mini meals” for my 2 year old who has to sit in the car for a loooong time during drop offs for my elementary school kiddo and my preschooler, are these plantain crackers with some sort of fat – sometimes raw cheese or butter, sometimes chunks of avocado, other times some olives. The point is, it is a quick “mini meal” that I can throw in a little cup or bowl that my 2 year old can handle herself while in the car for these taxi driving trips to drop off or pick up her sisters.

And bonus! The big kids love them too.

A quick handful into my 1st grader’s lunchbox (See my Instagram hashtagging #rgnschoollunches to see how I pack them!), or into a little container with a hard boiled egg for my 4 year old’s preschool snack, and that is as quick as it gets!

I have been working on these plantain crackers for… a while. My problem was always an end result that was soggy or chewy instead of crispy like a cracker. How did I master the cooking method? Go figure…by accident!

One day, my 2 year old was having a particularly “2 year old day” and getting her ready to leave for school pick up took longer than expected. I had some plantain crackers in the oven for a while, and before we left for school pick up I turned off the oven, and just left the crackers in there because I knew they didn’t look “done” yet. When we got home a half hour later, they were perfectly crisp and NOT over cooked! It was like that extra time in the oven with the heat turned off almost dehydrated them the rest of the way. I have been making them this way over the last month to test my theory out and they have come out perfect every time!

I am so excited to share this recipe with you! I hope your little 2 year old treasures enjoy them 😉

Product links in this section are affiliate links. It does not cost you anything and helps maintain the free information on this site, as well as answer the questions of “what brand do you use?” Please know I never personally recommend any product I wouldn’t use on my own family.

Print Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Crispy Plantain Crackers

The perfect crispy bite-sized crackers for little hands! Perfect for crumbling in a bowl of soup, or stacking with some cheese for snacktime!

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time1 hr

Total Time1 hr 10 mins

Course: Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: how to make plantain crackers, plantain cracker recipe, plantain crackers

Servings: servings

Author: Renee Kohley - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

3 large plantains If your plantains are smaller use 4. My plantains have been yellow using this recipe - I think if you use green plantains you will need more moisture somewhere in the recipe - either some water or more plantain.
1 cup potato starch
1/2 cup avocado oil
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp each of onion and garlic powders Optional
Sea salt to sprinkle the top of the crackers

Instructions

Everything into your food processor and blend until smooth. You will have to scrape down the sides once or twice.
Spread the batter onto 2 large jellyroll pans that are lined with Silpat or parchment paper (I have tested both liners and both work). Spread it as thin as you can - this is really important so that they cook even and don't come out soft/chewy. Pay attention to the middle making sure there isn't too much there - push the batter all the way to the edges. It spreads easily with a spatula. Sometimes if my bananas are on the bigger side and I have too much batter I will get a third sheet out - you just want to make the batter on the sheets thin. You can see the thickness in the crackers on my images in this post.
Bake in a 300 degree oven for 10 minutes and then use a pizza roller or a butter knife to score the sheets into cracker shapes.
Put the sheets back in the oven and bake another 30-40 minutes at 300 degrees. If you see any browning around the edges move to the next step.
Turn the oven OFF while keeping the sheets of crackers IN the oven to dehydrate the rest of the way about 20-30 minutes minimum. I have left them in there for an hour or so if I am out and about running errands without any issues or burning because the oven is off.
Let the crackers cool a few minutes before handling - they crisp up even more after they cool. Store the crackers in an airtight container and eat within 2 weeks.

For more real food snack ideas, you can check out my Snack Ideas board on Pinterest!

More real food recipes you might like:

Tuna Salad For All Ages

Energy Bars

Guacamole

Fresh Tomato Soup

Antioxidant Rich Berry Gummies

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Chocolate Banana Power Smoothie Created To Promote Focus, Attention, & Mineral Balancing in Children!

September 19, 2015

This delicious, *kid approved* smoothie nourishes attention, focus, and mineral balancing in children who need it the most!

Note from Renee :: I am so honored to introduce Lydia Shatney guest posting this week! Lyida is an NTP with a background in working with families to naturally work through adrenal fatigue, thyroid disorder, chemical and metal toxicity, and childhood diagnoses like ADD/ADHD. I was blown away when I heard how she helped her son work through ADD-like behaviors using very non-invasive, natural means. I asked her if she would be willing to share her story with you on the blog, and I hope her story resonates with you.

My heart is truly to see this post go viral with sharing because our kids are so worth it – this can be done without more chemical medications!

Welcome to RGN Lydia! We are so happy to have you!

I am a mom of four boys and also a nutritional therapist, and by using hair tissue mineral analysis (HTMA), along with my past studies through the Nutritional Therapy Association, I was able to better understand my youngest son’s hyper and volatile behaviors and create a plan to help him. Through his hair analysis I was able to see that he was in an extremely fast rate of oxidation. Meaning both his adrenals and thyroid were working on overdrive due to lacking sedative minerals (like calcium, magnesium and zinc) and extremely elevated sodium and potassium.

Kids in this pattern would be consider hyperkinetic or likely labeled with AD/HD.

To set the stage a bit, when I was pregnant with him, I went through the most difficult season of my life. The most stress EVER, and the first 2 years (while breastfeeding) of his life were just as stressful. I was already depleted when I conceived him – and my magnesium was probably quite low (I had numerous health issues that correlate with magnesium deficiency most of my life). Mineral deficiency in mom is carried to her unborn children.

In kindergarten he had a lot of behavioral issues in school – 1st grade was a nightmare. So bad that it took several adults to manage him on a daily basis we then had to get him an IEP and move him to a different school. (first of all, I think that the first grade curriculum and structure is ridiculous in it’s expectations of boys but that is another story – he was clearly volatile). We switched him to a small school with a behavioral program where he had to go through an evaluation with the school psychiatrist.

The school psychiatrist clearly told me she did not think he had AD/HD or any diagnosable issue. Yet, she still recommended I get him on meds to better ‘manage’ his behaviors.

I firmly said NO.

It wasn’t until he began his 2nd grade year that I ran an HTMA on him. When I got the results back – I was shocked. I grieved a bit and was really softened to the why behind his struggles and then I was relieved. I now knew what he needed.

His pattern was a severely hyperkinetic one – sky high tissue sodium and potassium and extremely low tissue calcium, magnesium and zinc, elevated manganese and aluminum, very low copper. His ratios were scary extreme to me at the time because I was new to it. BUT it gave me hope anyway and a plan of action -something which I really did not have up until then.

You see even though I was an already practicing NTP (nutritional therapy practitioner) and had plenty of knowledge about health – I had no idea what HIS biochemistry even looked like. I had run blood tests and allergy panels and saw some improvements with our efforts to that end -but nothing like I got from the HTMA.

Here are some of the behaviors he had:

Extreme volatility – fly off the handle rage – cursing -not able to calm down without physically assisting him out of a room into a place where he could finish his melt downs.
trouble sleeping through the night or going to bed on his own
poor social skills, he could not be trusted around peers without supervision (it was difficult for him to make friends or have play dates)
refusal to write/writing was a huge labor
challenge to read -would give up and throw fits out of embarrassment.
would come home from school and throw his back pack down and throw fits about how terrible school was.
non-stop movement (literally bounced off the walls)
EXTREME appetite/voracious was never satiated
eczema
severe bed wetting – through a pull up and a bed mat
extremely loose bowels that were whitish gray
numerous sensory issues, including extreme fear of stickers
verbal issues – fast utterances and a slight lisp and also he would say a sentence then repeat himself not out loud but with his lips

Within 2 weeks he started calming down a bit with the new supplements and the changes in his diet – I could tell.

He was just a sweet kid in a minerally depleted body.

I’m happy to report that ALL of the above is now gone. He is still active and still eats a fair bit but nothing compared to before.

Kids in this fast oxidation pattern need a lot of fat in their diet, so I use this chocolate banana mineral smoothie as way to get more fat in to him. Cocoa powder has minerals in it and we manage to avoid adding any additional sugar because the bananas are sweet. Thankfully, he loves smoothies and these go a long way to keeping him full, keeping my budget in check and also are a great way to get the bulk of his supplements into him.

Print Recipe

5 from 2 votes

Chocolate Banana Power Smoothie

This delicious, *kid approved* smoothie nourishes attention, focus, and mineral balancing in children who need it the most!

Prep Time5 mins

Total Time5 mins

Course: Drinks

Cuisine: American

Keyword: chocolate banana smoothie, chocolate banana smoothie recipe

Servings: serving

Author: Lydia Shatney

Ingredients

2 frozen bananas
1 TB organic cacao powder
1-2 scoops grassfed collagen
1 capsule Mega SporeBiotic or whatever probiotics you may be using Optional. Note from Renee :: The MegaSpore is only available through a practitioner like Lydia.
1 - 1 1/2 cups of whole fresh milk or coconut milk or whatever 'milk' you tolerate -even water would work or coconut water
1-2 TB fat Coconut oil or raw egg yolks. Optional but good for fast oxidizers, or kids with AD/HD patterns
1/4 cup of cooked frozen chopped kale
vanilla stevia drops to taste Optional
pinch sea salt
1/2 tsp. camu camu or other whole food c powder THIS SOURCE and THIS SOURCE are good options

Instructions

Throw all ingredients into your blender or Vitamix.
Blend for 2 minutes on high speed. This makes one large serving that Christian has right away as maybe his first breakfast or a snack and then we make 2 popsicles for him to have later as a snack, since he eats probably 6 times a day.

Approximate Mineral Content of this smoothie (makes 2 servings):

Calcium: 410 mg
Magnesium: 140 mg (+ 24 ionic magnesium)
Sodium: 112 mg
Potassium: 1590 mg
Iron: 2.5
Copper: .4 mg
Zinc: 2.1 mg
Manganese : 1.3 mg
Chromium : 100 mcg added from ionic chromium drops)
Selenium: 13.3 mcg
Phosphorous: 320 mg

(Note from Renee :: Lydia also shared with me that she adds in the rest of his supplements that are specific to his mineral needs. Since every child’s nutritional/mineral needs are different, it is very important not to just add any supplements without working with a professional like Lydia who can look at exactly what your child’s body needs! You can start working with Lydia to get your child’s specific mineral levels and needs by clicking through this link.)

Ok! Back to Lydia!

I share Christian’s story very openly because I know there are other kids out there that have similar struggles and parents don’t always know what to do or how to help them. A child with this kind of behavior can put a huge strain on the family. And often the only recommended help is therapy or medication.

It does not have to be like this.

It used to hurt my heart so much because he was ‘that kid’ in public – the kid that everyone stared at and thought ‘what is his deal?’

This is why I do what I do – I started learning HTMA to help my family and it indeed has. We all are on a game plan and I test my boys every 2-4 months. It is not EASY but it’s it worth the effort above and beyond the work it takes.

Kids respond well to mineral balancing – and it does not take as many supplements or time to help them feel better!

For more information about mineral balancing and hair tissue mineral analysis, you can start the conversation with Lydia HERE!

Note from Renee :: While thankfully my kiddos at home don’t display ADD-like behaviors, children do tend to run on the faster metabolism side, and in one of my kids especially there is a noticeable change in mood when her blood sugar is low. Kids really do need more fat in their diet to be stable, so I have been using this smoothie over the last week for the girls as an afternoon snack. 1 recipe is enough for all 3 of them (my kids are younger – this is 2 servings for older kids), and they really do love the flavor!

Lydia is a Nutritional Therapist and a single mom of four fabulous boys, on a mission to share her passion for whole, healthy, real foods with the world! She enjoys living life one day at a time, from the inside out! Lydia believes that health is a choice, a right and a gift that we cannot take for granted, and in this day and age, unfortunately, must fight for!

Lydia started Divine Health From the Inside Out to log her journey with food and evolving food philosophies, along with her own personalized recipes. Along the way shifting over to a more traditional, real foods way of eating and incorporating the most natural, organic, nature intended foods possible. Thus ultimately leading to a more nourishing way of life!

You can find Lydia on Facebook and Twitter. Lydia offers Hair Mineral Analysis to help with healing.

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Cold & Flu Season Natural Remedies Real Food Tips school lunches Snack Ideas

Vitamin C Gummies :: And The Truth About Vitamin C Supplements

September 5, 2015

Vitamin C is an amazing immune system booster to fight colds, flu, & even adrenal fatigue – but are you taking the right kind?

Disclaimer: I am not a doctor, nor am I claiming to be one. This article is not intended to diagnose or treat anyone. Links are affiliates and help to keep the information on this blog free. Please know that I never recommend a product or service that I wouldn’t use on my own family.

We are in a constant state of learning aren’t we?

I think I have learned more in my years after schooling and college than I ever did in formal education. It’s always good to be learning, reading, and growing.

Especially with regards to optimal health, it is really important to stay on top of things. I recently started working with a nutritional therapist for some adrenal issues I have had since having my last baby, and we had a really great conversation about vitamin C.

My NTP really opened my eyes to not only the importance of using the right source of vitamin C, but also that how we handle the vitamin C makes a difference.

Because, listen, I don’t mind doing the supplementing thing – I get it. I get that our soils (and therefore our food supply) is severely deficient in many vitamins. But I don’t want to supplement with something that is just as deficient as our food supply because it isn’t sourced right, or properly handled so the vitamin is destroyed.

Nobody wants to waste their money, and it isn’t doing anyone’s health any good to be taking a supplement that you think is doing you some good when it really isn’t.

So here’s the deal. Vitamin C is pretty amazing!

An immune system equipped with properly sourced and handled vitamin C can do amazing things with colds, flu, and other immune system crashers like adrenal fatigue.

Unfortunately vitamin C in many supplements on the market today are sourced with ascorbic acid instead of whole food. Using a whole food source is obviously always a better route, and in this case specifically, vitamin C is so much more complex than just ascorbic acid. There are actually dangerous downsides to taking just ascorbic acid based vitamin C (See this podcast for more details! So fascinating!).

Vitamin C is also very delicate.

Heat destroys it.

Prolonged air exposure destroys it.

Light destroys it.

So while this amazing vitamin we know we need is super powerful, it is pretty useless when it is not in it’s natural form, and has not been handled or packaged properly. My NTP said to think about it this way…our traditional ancestors would have foraged their berries and then dried them to save in dark storage. This would have kept the integrity of the nutrients – specifically the vitamin C – in the fruit.

So why not just eat an orange?

You guys know by now I am all about whole foods. My kids absolutely eat oranges, and other whole fruits and vegetables that are rich in vitamin C. But unfortunately our soils are so depleted there is no way we could eat as many oranges as it would take to get what we need. In fact my NPT told me that the whole food source of vitamin C in Camu Camu is 300 times the amount of vitamin C than American oranges.

So how about a whole food sourced vitamin C supplement that is properly prepared and packaged! Win-win! Since vitamin C is heat sensitive, it is important that the whole food source is dried out instead of heated to maintain the vitamin properties. And then packaged in a capsule and dark bottle to reduce light and air so as much of the C as possible is maintained.

We have been taking this whole food sourced vitamin C since well before school started, and it feels really good to know for sure that the C is intact, and doing some good!

My big girls swallow the capsules, and my 2 year old will take the powder from the capsule on her tongue.

…but sometimes it is just fun to have it in a different form!

We made some Vitamin C gummies to kick off the school year – and made them in a way that still protects the properties of the vitamin C! I am so excited to share this method with you!

Anytime you heat vitamin C, that C is destroyed.

So instead of cooking a vitamin C rich food like citrus oranges or lemons and destroying the vitamin C, we’re going to use whatever fruit you have around, warm up for the gelatin to work, and then we’ll add in our whole food sourced vitamin C off the heat to give it an immune boosting punch! I am keeping my vitamin C gummies in an airtight container in the fridge to further maintain the properties of the vitamin C.

This recipe allows YOU to decide how much vitamin C goes into each gummy so you can know for sure how much you are giving the kids. You can pack a full dose into one gummy, or spread out the vitamin C so they can have a 3 or 4 gummies at a time. Since kids come in different shapes and sizes, and with different nutritional needs, you can dose the vitamin C how their needs fall. I very highly recommend working with an NTP like Lydia that can see the nutritional needs of your kids from a very specific professional viewpoint.

UPDATE 2021 ::

Perfect Supplements came out with an Acerola Cherry sourced Vitamin C powder, and I am loving the super mild fruity flavor that blends so easily into anything. This is another great whole food sourced C that would work so well in a Vitamin C gummy like this! You can use my RGN reader code, GENERATION10, at check out to get 10% off!

What a fun way to build up the kid’s immune systems while they navigate the first couple months of back to school germs!

Print Recipe

5 from 3 votes

Vitamin C Gummies

Vitamin C is an amazing immune system booster to fight colds, flu, & even adrenal fatigue – but are you taking the right kind?

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time10 mins

Freeze30 mins

Total Time20 mins

Course: Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: how to make vitamin c gummies, vitamin c gummies, vitamin c gummy recipe

Servings: gummies

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

3 cups frozen fruit of choice
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup warm soluable grassfed gelatin
Whole food vitamin C THIS SOURCE is a good option as well

Instructions

Warm up the fruit and water in a small sauce pan until everything is thawed and comes to a slight bubble.
Put the warmed fruit and water into your food processor or blender along with the gelatin and blend to combine.
Pour the mixture in your gummy molds and dose out how much of the vitamin C you want in each mold. Use a small spoon to mix the C powder into the gummy mixture.
You can put the mold in the fridge for an hour or freezer for 30 minutes to set the gummies. Once you pop the gummies out, store them in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer to maintain the properties of the vitamin C.

More natural health posts you might like ::
Flu Remedies for Kids

DIY Electrolyte Drink

Antioxidant Rich Berry Gummies

Elderberry Popsicles

Immune Booster Smoothie

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Chocolate Chip Cookie Fruit & Nut Bar (Compare to Larabar!) PLUS An Amazing Deal From MightyNest!

August 6, 2015

5 minutes. No cooking. Major money saving! You can make Larabar’s classic chocolate chip cookie Larabar right at home!

This post is sponsored by MightyNest. I received the lunch gear pictured in the post as compensation for my time, however please know I only post products/services I would use on my own family.

I’ve been giving myself a little kick in the pants toward get moving toward back to school.

Sigh. I seriously love summer. But I also seriously love school routine!

So we are clinging to the last few weeks of summer, getting in as many beach days as we can…and here and there easing ourselves back into school mode.

I have a fun, *quick* little snack recipe to share with you today for your back to school lunch packing…and also a pretty amazing deal from MightyNest to pack up your snack in!

So let’s talk about this awesome MightyNest deal!

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A $22.85 value for $5! YES please!

If you’re interested in creating a healthy homelife, the MightyFix is for you. Here’s how it works:

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Here’s my take on the classic chocolate chip cookie fruit and nut bar from Larabar – feel free to use whatever nuts you have on hand! Classic Larabars use cashews – I like the taste of pecans better but use whatever you have! This batch will make at least 12 bars so you can stash them away in the freezer! They will go from freezer to lunchbox super quick.

Print Recipe

Chocolate Chip Cookie Fruit & Nut Bar (Compare to Larabar!)

5 minutes. No cooking. Major money saving! You can make Larabar’s classic chocolate chip cookie Larabar right at home!

Prep Time5 mins

Total Time5 mins

Course: Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: chocolate chip date bar recipe, chocolate chip date bars, homemade lara bars

Servings: bars

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

1 lb Medjool dates Our local grocer carries this brand
3 cups pecans I soak and dehydrate mine to reduce phytic acid
1 vanilla bean scraped (this is optional but makes it taste really good! Do NOT use vanilla extract - the end produce will be too wet/slimy - I even tried adding coconut flour to dry it up and that didn't work! Only vanilla bean if you want the vanilla added)
1/3 - 1/2 cup Enjoy Life chocolate chips

Instructions

Everything EXCEPT the chocolate chips into your food processor (I think a blender would work too) and blend to combine. (It should press together when you push on the mixture).
Add the chocolate chips and pulse to combine, or just mix them into the mixture by hand.
Press the mixture into a small baking dish lined with parchment paper. Put it into the fridge to firm up so cutting is easier. You can cut them right away if you want - they really are ready to eat right away! I freeze them cut into bars so they pop into the lunchbox super easy.

More real food recipes you might like ::
GF Energy Bars

GF Molasses Protein Snack Bars

GF Granola Bars

Antioxidant Rich Berry Gummies

13 Comments

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Blueberry Buckwheat Muffins

August 1, 2015

A delicious on the go breakfast using nourishing buckwheat and loaded up with sweet, juice blueberries!

Last weekend we enjoyed harvest season for Michigan blueberries! There is just something about the climate here (or ridiculous winters?!) that makes for some of the best blueberry growing in the nation right here along Lake Michigan.

Every year we go picking the second to last weekend in July at a sweet family’s farm just a 7 minute drive from our home. My oldest is getting even more helpful as the years go by – and it was fun to have a brand new toddler on hand this year to show where the berries grow.

Last year I showed you how we used our blueberries for jam, and while I still made some jam this year, I didn’t make quite as much as usual. I have more of a need this year to just keep them around to eat fresh for the next 2 weeks, and freeze the rest for smoothies, oatmeal add-ins, and yogurt for school lunches.

I did want to make some blueberry muffins to store away for quick pull out breakfasts, and I decided that instead of triple batching my usual GF blueberry muffins for the freezer, that this year I wanted to have more variety in ingredients. So I made one batch of my regular ones, and this is a brand new recipe!

Blueberries and buckwheat are a match made in heaven, so these muffins really turned out well! We make blueberry buckwheat pancakes the weekend after picking so I thought muffins wouldn’t be too difficult to figure out!

Buckwheat is actually a seed and has a bit of a “nutty” flavor – it worked really well with these muffins – they were so soft too!

Print Recipe

5 from 9 votes

Blueberry Buckwheat Muffins

A delicious on the go breakfast using nourishing buckwheat and loaded up with sweet, juicy blueberries!

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time30 mins

Soak8 hrs

Total Time40 mins

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Keyword: blueberry buckwheat muffin recipe, blueberry buckwheat muffins, buckwheat muffins

Servings: muffins

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

2 cups buckwheat flour
2 cups water
Juice of 2 lemons Or a couple TB of real whey, 1/4 cup or so of whole yogurt, or a couple TB of apple cider vinegar - these are soaking mediums
1/2 cup white rice flour (If grain free use almond flour or cassava flour
1/2 cup tapioca flour
1/2 cup soft butter or coconut oil
4 pastured eggs
1/2 cup maple syrup Or more - taste the batter to sweeten to your family's preference - Keep in mind this batch makes 2 dozen muffins - so while 1/2 cup seems like a lot it is really spread out!
2 tsp aluminum free baking powder
2 tsp almond extract vanilla extract would be fine too - the almond extract is so amazing though!
3 cups fresh blueberries

Instructions

The night before you want to make the muffins, put the buckwheat flour, water, and lemon juice in a large mixing bowl, combine, and let it sit in a warm spot in your kitchen overnight 8-12 hours. This soaking process breaks down the phytic acid in the flour so it is easier on the gut, and also makes the nutrients in the buckwheat more available to absorb into the body.
The next morning, add the rest of the ingredients EXCEPT the blueberries into the bowl, and blend with hand beaters to combine.
Fold in the blueberries.
Scoop the batter into silicone muffin cups or a buttered muffin tin and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Let the muffins cool before handling them.

For more real food breakfast ideas, follow my Breakfast Ideas Board on Pinterest!

More real food recipes you might like ::
The Ultimate Breakfast Cookie

Blueberry Breakfast Bars

Simple Cinnamon Granola

Lemon Breakfast Cookies

Apple Harvest Breakfast Bars

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Real Food All Fruit Grapesicles!

July 11, 2015

That favorite summertime popsicle flavor with a real food (all fruit!) makeover! No corn syrup or dyes here! And the flavor is amazing!

I distinctly remember it. The box of popsicles would come out and I would somehow manage to talk my little sister into any other color besides the purple ones.

The grapesicles were my all time favorite…and like any kid in a family of 5, I had to make sure there was enough me! I definitely had the art of manipulation mastered at a young age.

Sigh.

Fast forward to a couple weeks ago. We had just spent the last week or so munching on a load of strawberries from our summer picking, and as I was cleaning out the fridge there it sat. That lonely little bag of grapes was totally forgotten about that week because we had so many in season strawberries to eat!

These grapes were getting just soft enough that they wouldn’t be great to eat on their own, but I hate waste – especially these grapes that I just love!

My first thought was smoothie, but I had a flashback to when I was a kid…could it really be as simple as blending up a bunch of grapes and I could have my favorite popsicle again?!

Turns out it really was that easy! And these were SO good! And this is as easy as it gets friends. No crazy corn syrups or dyes – this is the real deal. And look at the color!

My top popsicle mold picks! If you have tiny hands around the house, I highly recommend these smaller popsicle molds with easy grip handles. My toddler loves them, they are the perfect sized portions, and the handles are easy to hold for little hands. I also love my 10-pop popsicle mold. No plastic sticks to keep track of and wash, and I can stash away a load of them at a time so I don’t have to make popsicles every week.

Print Recipe

5 from 5 votes

Real Food All Fruit Grapesicles!

That favorite summertime popsicle flavor with a real food (all fruit!) makeover! No corn syrup or dyes here! And the flavor is amazing!

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time10 mins

Freeze4 hrs

Total Time20 mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: grape popsicle recipe, grapesicles, homemade grape popsicles

Servings: popsicles

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

4 cups grapes or more - 4 cups made 6 popsicles for my popsicle mold
Optional water to thin I didn't use water but wish I had - they were almost too sweet for me being so concentrated. Taste the grape puree and see what you think - if your kids are used to popsicles from a store you might just leave them be!

Instructions

Puree the grapes in your blender. My high powered blender took care of the skins, but if you are using something other than a high powered blender you can either leave the bits of skin or strain them out.
Freeze in your popsicle molds. I love my 10-pop popsicle mold for making a load at a time. I take them out after they freeze, wrap them up, and tuck them away in the freezer so the girls can self serve.

For more real food treat ideas, check out my Treat Ideas board on Pintrest!

More real food recipes you might like:
Fudgsicles

Electrolyte Popsicles

Strawberry Rhubarb Creamsicles

Antioxidant Rich Berry Gummies

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Strawberry Quinoa Granola

July 4, 2015

Crispy, crunchy and swirled with sweet strawberries! This is one granola that I dare to put up against any boxed cereal in taste!

Last weekend we celebrated strawberry season in Michigan!

I don’t know that Michigan is the first place that people think of when they think of berry season, but in all actuality, it is a great climate for many berry growers – especially strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries. We grow raspberries in our backyard with the greatest of ease – there is something about the lakeshore climate that is just perfect for growing summer berries is what I have been told!

And after the winters we have to endure, I would say being rewarded with some of the sweetest strawberries you have ever tasted is definitely due!

This year I kept things pretty simple and very useful with our 30 pound load. No fancy desserts for me this year – I need functional to keep my sanity right now!

I froze the majority of it for smoothies, yogurt, and oatmeal during the school year. I kept a few pounds in the fridge for us to eat this week. And I poured some pureed strawberries into my popsicle molds to stash away for this summer.

Strawberry granola was on my functional uses for my strawberries as well. Granola is nice for cool summer breakfasts – and don’t even think I’m not already thinking about those first weeks of school coming up at the end of August! Granola makes a great breakfast for busy mornings too!

Last year I created this grain free strawberry granola for my friend Jessica over at Delicious Obsessions – and it went FAST! The girls loved it – as did my husband and I. This year I decided to try some different ingredients to switch things up. It isn’t grain free this time, but the grains and flours I chose had specific purpose – nutrient dense and filling!

The girls have been sneaking handfuls here and there over the last week and it really turned out so good!
If you can’t or don’t have access to raw milk for pouring or whole yogurt, you can use coconut milk or coconut yogurt!

Granola also packs up great for school lunches – the kids can sprinkle it into a cup of yogurt or just eat it by the handful. I frequently pack a handful of granola for a snack for my preschoolers school snacktime.

A quick note on dehydrators! I have a simple, middle of the road dehydrator and I really love it – it gets the job done very well! I have quite a few extra trays that I stack up and I can do pretty large batches. If you don’t have a dehydrator, you can oven dry or oven bake – there are instructions for this in the recipe below!

Print Recipe

4.5 from 2 votes

Strawberry Quinoa Granola

Crispy, crunchy and swirled with sweet strawberries! This is one granola that I dare to put up against any boxed cereal in taste!

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time10 mins

Dehydrate12 hrs

Total Time20 mins

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Keyword: homemade granola, strawberry quinoa granola, strawberry quinoa granola recipe

Servings: servings

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

6 cups oats not quick oats! If you are gluten free be sure your oats say gluten free on them likeTHESE
2 cups quinoa I get the linked brand at Costco - the regular color or the red quinoawork fine - I used the red this time!
Juice of 2 lemons
1 cup coconut flour
1 cup blanched almond flour
1/2 cup melted friendly fat butter, coconut oil, avocado oil
1/3 cup raw honey If your kids are used to a much sweeter cereal go ahead and double this. I get mine from a local farmer. If you don't have access THIS is a good brand.
1 TB vanilla extract
4-5 cups strawberries chopped. (I didn't take the time to slice them nicely - I just pulsed them in my food processor!)

Instructions

Put the oats, quinoa, and lemon juice in a large mixing bowl. Add water to cover the grains, combine, and let the mixture soak 8-12 hours. This soaking process breaks down phytic acid in the grain, makes it easier to digest, and makes the nutrients more available to absorb!
After the grains have soaked, drain the liquid and return to the mixing bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients and combine.
Spread onto your dehydrator trays and dehydrate at 135 degrees overnight (Or over the course of a day. I tend to soak during the day and dehydrate overnight). If you are using an oven you can set your oven at the lowest heat and stir throughout the day - or you can go at a higher temp and bake it off, again stirring often until it dries out.
Once the granola is dried out you can crumble it into containers for storage.

For more real food breakfast ideas you can follow my Breakfast Ideas board on Pintrest!

More real food ideas you might like ::
Simple Cinnamon Granola

Grain Free Apple Granola

Honey Rhubarb Granola

Molasses Breakfast Bars

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Rehydrating Eletrolyte Popsicles

June 27, 2015

It’s summer, and those kids play hard! Restock their electrolytes naturally with refreshing bursts of cool lemon in every bite!

I am really excited to share with you guys my summertime answer to long, hot summer afternoons!

Long gone are the days of the afternoon nap for 2 of my girls, and while we do a version of “quiet time” for a short while – it is just that at ages 6 and 4…a short while 😉 These 2 play hard and busy most of the afternoon.

I’m not a huge fan of afternoon snacks since they seem to ruin dinner appetites for my kids, so these lemon electrolyte popsicles are enough to give them a quick energy boost, but light enough not to ruin their next meal!

A quick energy and mineral shot from some local, raw honey, and electrolyte balancing boost from real sea salt is all you need for refreshing the system in the heat of the summer. And in a much more natural way compared to store bought electrolyte drinks or snacks. Lemon not only tastes amazing, but it nourishes the body with real vitamin C and cleansing properties.

These are also perfect for the kids when they get sick. You can even keep a stash of them away in the freezer for those illnesses that pop up out of nowhere so you are prepared. Similar to my quick, shake up homemade electrolyte drink, these popsicles can help keep kids hydrated and balanced while ill and not eating much.

I love my 10-pop popsicle mold! I seriously love it! I can make a big batch all at once, wrap them up and store them away in the freezer for when I need them! The girls can help themselves that way too!

Print Recipe

4.34 from 3 votes

Rehydrating Eletrolyte Popsicles

It’s summer, and those kids play hard! Restock their electrolytes naturally with refreshing bursts of cool lemon in every bite!

Prep Time5 mins

Cook Time5 mins

Freeze4 hrs

Total Time10 mins

Course: Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: electrolyte popsicles, lemon ice popsicles

Servings: popsicles

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

2 cups water
Juice & zest of 2 lemons
3 TB raw honey (I get mine from a local farmer. Ask around at farmer's markets to find some - if you don't have access THIS is a good brand.
1/4 - 1/2 tsp real sea salt per your taste

Instructions

Blend everything up and pour into your popsicle molds. This amount fills up my 10-pop popsicle mold.
Freeze the popsicles and serve!

More real food recipes you might like ::
DIY Electrolyte Drink

5 Nourishing Summertime Popsicles

Tropical Blender Sorbet

Elderberry Popsicles

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Molasses Protein Snack Bars :: Gluten, Dairy, Nut, & Egg Free

June 20, 2015

Warm, sweet, and rich all in a little bar that packs a big nourishment punch with minerals and protein – this molasses snack bar is perfect for busy days and on the go snacks!

So we’ve got the first couple weeks of summer break under our belt, and I *think* we are finally ready for some action!

We definitely were in need of a routine break – so the first couple weeks off school we literally did nothing 🙂 And I loved every minute! We have hung out in the sun, had a couple of mornings at the park, and just enjoyed being home with nothing to do! Ha!

I am definitely all about summer being more laid back in routine and schedule, but we do balance that with some staple summer things like weekly trips to the beach down the road, our zoo pass, the splash pad in town, park days, library days, and of course all the summer fruit picking we have available in the area we live in!

And with all the go go go of some of those summer days, comes hungrier kids!

Last week I could tell my girls were getting a little bored with the same on the go type snacks I had been packing for zoo outtings or the beach and decided to try making something new.

My goal in these molasses protein bars was:

Quick and simple (not a load of ingredients and can be mixed up quick)
Pack up easily for travel
Use different ingredients than the other bars I have in the freezer to give the gut variety
Loaded with nourishment from minerals and some protein/fat to hold busy girls over until lunchtime or the next meal.

My usual energy bars and granola bars are a staple in my freezer that all 3 girls really love. It is a good thing to rotate ingredients/food around in the diet though. And this is not only to be kind to our guts with variety, but also to create broad taste palates in our kids – meaning they don’t get used to just one food all the time.

Quinoa is actually not a huge favorite in our home (I usually end up making a quinoa bake instead of eating it just plain!) – so don’t let that ingredient scare you if the kids aren’t big fans! It does provide a nice, difference source of protein and carbohydrate so it is great way to change things up.

The buckwheat gives a nutty flavor without the nuts. We handle nuts fine in the house but I don’t think they need to be eaten everyday if we want to keep our tummies happy.

The molasses has a great mineral content, and the rich warm flavor is so yummy! You can definitely swap this for all raw honey but I would give it a try to change things up!

Just a quick note on the batch size! This makes a whole sheet pan (large jellyroll pan) worth of bars – I think I cut up about 20. So the measurements seem big because it is a big batch! I like it that way so I don’t have to make them all the time! If you don’t want to store that many in the freezer, you can half the recipe and bake it in at 9×13 dish, which I also tried and it worked out great.

Print Recipe

5 from 5 votes

Molasses Protein Snack Bars

Warm, sweet, and rich all in a little bar that packs a big nourishment punch with minerals and protein – this molasses snack bar is perfect for busy days and on the go snacks!

Prep Time5 mins

Cook Time20 mins

Soak8 hrs

Total Time25 mins

Course: Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: homemade protein bars, molasses protein bar recipe, molasses protein bars

Servings: bars

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

2 cups quinoa I get the linked brand at Costco
4 cups buckwheat flour I get mine in bulk at our health food store
Juice of 2 lemons
4 cups water
1 cup unsweetened coconut shreds I get mine in bulk at our health food store
1 cup avocado oil I get mine at Costco
3/4 cup organic molasses Sometimes our Costco has this brand otherwise I get it on Amazon
1/4 cup raw honey If you want it sweeter you can double this. I get mine from a local farmer. If you do not have local access THIS is a good brand.
2 TB vanilla extract
2 tsp sea salt

Instructions

Put the quinoa, buckwheat flour, lemon juice, and water in a large mixing bowl, combine, and soak overnight or 8-12 hours. This soaking process breaks down the phytic acid and helps the grain and seed digest better on the gut - it also makes their nutrients more available to absorb!
After the mixture soaks, add the rest of the ingredients, stir to combine, and spread out on a silpat or parchment paper lined large jellyroll pan.
Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes, cool, and cut into bar size you want.

For more snack ideas, check out my Snack Ideas board on Pintrest!

More real food recipes you might like ::
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Granola Bars

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Honey Rhubarb Granola :: Gluten, Egg, & Refined Sugar Free

June 13, 2015

One last fun recipe to use up that rhubarb, ok!?

My rhubarb just seems never ending this year – which I love! Usually rhubarb is thought of to use in desserts and other treats. We have a lot of fun enjoying our strawberry rhubarb creamsicles every May! But since I like to keep treats at a minimum with growing kids in the house, I usually try to come up with something different, but useful to use it up.

Last week the baby had me by the hand toddling around the yard and I noticed my rhubarb definitely wasn’t done producing like I thought it was! We picked the last handful together and I decided to make it a part of breakfast that week.

Granola seemed logical for the time of year, as we are headed into warm, muggy mornings here in the next few weeks. I love using granola cereals on those mornings so I’m not turning the stovetop on!

I keep simple cinnamon granola stashed in the fridge for those mornings I don’t want to cook, and also this grain free granola to change things up a bit.

I know that rhubarb is often thought of paired with strawberries, but one of my favorite flavor profiles is actually honey and rhubarb. We get the most beautiful raw honey packed with amazing vitamins, minerals, enzymes, & antioxidants from a local farmer and the flavor is so amazing. And this mineral rich, sweet raw honey mixed up with tart rhubarb is a delicious start to your morning meal! Oh! And you can sub sour apples if you don’t have access to rhubarb!

I would recommend using honey that you wouldn’t mind taking right off the spoon as you will taste it in the cereal. There are some local honeys around here with much stronger floral undertones that I don’t care for so just be sure you pick something you love!

We like to splash on raw milk or coconut milk and I usually have hard boiled pastured eggs on hand to serve alongside. It is a great summertime breakfast! It also works well to top yogurt or coconut yogurt!

A quick note on the cook method! I love my simple dehydrator! You can use your dehydrator if you have one, and if you don’t, just bake it in the oven stirring every so often so it doesn’t burn on the bottom. See the recipe below for details.

Print Recipe

5 from 3 votes

Honey Rhubarb Granola

I love granola best on hot summer mornings so I don't have to use the stove.

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time8 hrs

Soak8 hrs

Total Time8 hrs 10 mins

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Keyword: honey rhubarb granola, honey rhubarb granola recipe, soaked granola

Servings: servings

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

3 cups oats Not quick oats. If you are gluten free be sure they say gluten free oats like THESE
3 cups water
Juice of 1 lemon
3 cups rhubarb chopped (I just buzzed mine up quick in the food processor. If you don't have access to rhubarb try a similar flavor like green apples!
1 cup white rice flour
1/2 cup blanched almond flour
1/2 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup raw honey I get mine from a local farmer. Check your farmer's markets and ask for deals for buying in bulk - I buy it by the 5 pounds. THIS is a good brand if you don't have any near you
1 TB vanilla extract
2 tsp sea salt

Instructions

Put the oats, water, and lemon juice in a large mixing bowl, combine, and set in a warm area over night or 8-12 hours. Strain off the water.
While the oats are straining put the rest of the ingredients in your large mixing bowl, add in the strained oats, and stir to combine.
Spread out on your dehydrator and dry out at 110 degrees 8-10 hours . When it is done break it apart into storage containers or freezer bags. I like to keep grains cool so they keep better so I store mine in the fridge or freezer especially if it is the summer. If you don't have a dehydrator, you can bake it in your oven around 300 degrees for an hour, just stir it around every so often so the bottom doesn't burn.

More real food recipes you might like ::
Simple Cinnamon Granola

Grain Free Granola

Coconut Yogurt

Morning Glory Muffins

Strawberry Rhubarb Creamsicles

35 Comments

Dinner Ideas Lunch Ideas Nourishing Staples Real Food 101 Real Food Tips school lunches Snack Ideas

Simple Tips For Light & Crispy Kale Chips Every Time!

June 6, 2015

Confession.

Kale is not my favorite.

There. I said it. Send in the real food police and the trendy health gurus.

I’m just not a fan.

But sometimes it is worth finding a way to eat those super nutrient packed foods you don’t care for in a way that you can enjoy it!

Kale chips are SO addicting! If you (or your kids!) are not fans of raw kale or kale wilted into soups, this is the way to go for you! If you heart kale and eat it straight out of the garden…this recipe is for you too because sometimes you just need a salty crispy chip in your life 🙂

So here’s the deal. I have screwed up SO many batches of kale chips. Too much oil, and you’ll have soggy and chewy leaves to eat. Cook them too long they will flake away into powder, too short and they’ll be chewy. You get the idea.

I am *not* one to measure out recipes or even time stuff very often when I cook (when I write up recipes for you guys I have to break out the measuring cups and spoons on recipes I have made for years just so I can write it up for you!), but this is one recipe that I do. This is my fail proof way to the perfect, light and crisp kale chip!

My first recommendation is to make sure the kale is dry. Water left on the kale leaves will make it chewy instead of crisp. I like to wash it right when I get it home from the market and leave it out in the fridge for a day or so to dry out – or you can use a salad spinner to dry. I have blotted dry with a tea towel before too.

The oil you use to cook makes a difference in my opinion as well. Avocado oil gives chips a crispy finish – so good! I realize that avocado oil isn’t available everywhere however, so the next best bet in my opinion would be grassfed tallow or lard. Olive oil works too. As much of a butter fan as I am, I feel like butter softens them too much and they feel soggier. If you are unsure of where to get avocado oil you can check your local health food store, or for cost effective shopping I use Costco’s avo oil. Amazon has avocado oil for very reasonable pricing as well.

I salt to taste in my recipes but with these you are going to want to follow the measurement listed – kale chips are too easy to over salt since they shrink down so you don’t want that.

And then there’s the cook time 🙂 It is so precise and I would really suggest sticking to it since they can overcook too easily. I am cooking for a family of 5 so I use a whole bunch of kale and spread it out between 2 sheet pans -you can do less if you don’t need so much.

Print Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Simple Tips For Light & Crispy Kale Chips Every Time!

Kale isn't my favorite, but when I make it into chips I can "suffer" through a plate of them.

Prep Time5 mins

Cook Time15 mins

Total Time20 mins

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: how to make kale chips, kale chip recipe

Servings: servings

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

1 bunch of kale
2 TB avocado oil
1 tsp sea salt

Instructions

Let the kale dry out well (you can use a salad spinner if you just washed it, or dab dry with a towel if only a little wet.). Tear the leaves of kale from the stem and divide up between 2 sheet pans.
Pour 1 TB avocado oil and 1/2 tsp sea salt onto one sheet pan, toss the kale well, and spread the coated kale out on the sheet pan - be sure the leaves are not folded over. Repeat this with the second sheet pan with the other 1 TB avocado oil and 1/2 tsp sea salt.
Bake in a 350 degree oven for 7 minutes, and then switch the pans (rotate them or switch the shelves they are on - I can only fit one sheet pan on each shelf so I put one on the middle shelf, and the other right underneath and then switch them at the 7 minute mark). After you switch the pans cook another 5 minutes until crisp to touch - do NOT overcook! If you wait until they look browned it will be too long. After that 5 minutes you will be able to feel how crisp they are. Let them cool a few minutes before eating.

So keep me posted if you give it a try!

For more nourishing food ideas in my home, check out my Nourishing Staples board on Pintrest!

More real food recipes you might like:
Real Food Potato Chips

Real Food Sloppy Joes

5 Popular Salad Dressings to DIY

9 Comments

Feeding Babies Lunch Ideas Real Food 101 Real Food Tips School Holidays school lunches Snack Ideas Summer Picnic Series

Antioxidant Rich Berry Gummies

May 9, 2015

I cannot even wait for warmer weather to *finally* be (consistently) here! My goodness do we have a long winter – but, you guys…we have the best summer. I’m talking warm but not too warm, and on the hot days the amazing waters of Lake Michigan are right down the road to you cool you off with the world’s best kept secret in beautiful beach sand to relax in. As much as I like to keep summer popsicles in the freezer for lazy summer days at home, we are actually on the go to the beach or park quite a bit during the summer. These berry gummies come in handy for a quick pick me up for the girls and an extra protein boost. They make for a pretty special treat in their eyes as well! One of my feeding mottos for kids is to make every bite count. I’m not a huge fan of empty calories, or just giving kids something to “hold them over” until lunch. They are on the grow all the time even through the teenage years, so I want every bite they take to count toward that. And especially in the little ones like toddlers, who don’t take in a whole lot of food volume in the first place – I am not about to snack them on a bag of fruit snacks with zero nutrient value. These gummies are not only packed with protein rich grassfed gelatin, but my choice of fruit has a purpose too. Berries are loaded with antioxidants to protect and repair in the body. And since they have amazing flavor they is really no need for extra sweetening. Many days grabbing a hand full of berries and a slice of raw cheese or crispy nuts to bring to the park for a snack is my choice, but as my kids get older and see their peers with fun snacks in colorful bags, its been nice to have something like this to bring a smile to their face. They also make for great classroom birthday treats. We definitely do up fun birthday ice cream and special birthday cakes at home to celebrate, but I don’t think cupcakes need to be consumed both at their party and in the classroom (that usually happen within the same week!). These have been popular with my little girls’ classes so far (yes I realize they are young yet – we will take one year at a time to see if it goes over as well as they get older!) Product links in this section are affiliate links. It does not cost you anything and helps maintain the free information on this site, as well as answer the questions of “what brand do you use?” Please know I never personally recommend any product I wouldn’t use on my own family.

A couple notes on the molds for the gummies! I really like the silicone molds that are firm to give a good hold, but also flexible enough that I can push out the gummies easily without them sticking, by popping the mold “inside out”. I have been using mine for years now and they have held up very well! I obviously have a house full of girls so I have a couple sheets of these flower molds and these bunny molds (which are great for celebrating Easter too!). But I am actually thinking about getting some of these plain circle molds, and these square molds since I’m thinking my nephews might prefer those to eat when they come visit! I thought these lego molds were pretty cool too! And I’m pretty sure even my girls would love these dinosaur molds and robot molds! The molds are a fun investment that you can use for everything from these gummies, to ice cube trays!

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5 from 10 votes

Antioxidant Rich Berry Gummies

I love these gummies as a protein-filled snack for growing kids.

Prep Time5 mins

Cook Time10 mins

Freeze15 mins

Total Time15 mins

Course: Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: antioxidant gummies, berry fruit snacks, homemade berry gummies

Servings: gummies

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

3 cups frozen organic mixed berries I get the big bags of frozen organic at Costco. Since berries are a heavily pesticided crop I would opt for organic.
¼ cup water
Optional ¼ cup raw honey My kids are used to just the fruit, but if I am making these for other kids that might be used to sweeter food then I add it. If you have little ones I would leave it out and keep their palates used to just the fruit
¼ cup grassfed gelatin

Instructions

Put the berries and mwater in a small sauce pan and bring to a simmer. Stir for a few minutes while everything melts and warms.
Turn off the heat and add the raw honey. Stir to combine/melt.
Put the warmed berry mixture in a food processor or blender, add the gelatin, and blend completely.
Pour into your silicone molds (this amount fills about 48 slots in my molds) and refrigerate. I like to stick them in the freezer to make this part go faster – only takes about 15 minutes or so! The firmer, almost frozen gummies pop out of the molds nicer/easier too!
After the mixture gels up, you can pop out the gummies – I just push the silicone mold “inside-out” – works great!
Store your gummies in the fridge. They keep fine in the lunchbox without an ice pack though!

For more nourishing snack ideas check out my Snacks board on Pintrest!

More real food you might like:

5 Nourishing Summertime Popsicles

Granola Bars

Tropical Blender Sorbet

Energy Bars

65 Comments

Batch Up Meals Lunch Ideas Nourishing Staples Real Food 101 Real Food Tips school lunches Snack Ideas

6 School Lunch Ideas Besides Peanut Butter & Jelly!

April 26, 2015

Standard review and affiliate disclosure: The PlanetBox shown in this post was given to me for the purpose of this review. Links are also affiliate links. All opinions on the product reviewed are my own. Please also know that I would never affiliate link products that I don’t stand behind or would never use with my own family.

Ok so I’m going to start out with admitting…I totally love peanut butter and jelly sandwiches 🙂

I grew up on them and to this day I thing they are *so* darn good!

My girls really love PBJ’s and I don’t mind having them in the lunch rotation here and there. It’s just really important to rotate our kid’s foods.

Having the same foods over and over again can wear on the gut – and if you already have a compromised gut lining (think food allergies or sensitivities, seasonal allergies, digestive issues whether constipation or loose stool, and even behavioral issues a lot of times point to gut distress), it just adds fuel to the fire to have the same thing over and over again.

I also like to keep different foods rotating in children’s diets because it creates kids with broad taste palates. Meaning, they will pretty much accept anything new you give them to eat. It takes some training while they are young, but it is so worth it!

But…PBJ is so easy!

Isn’t it though?! It totally is. I agree it is so easy to just pack up a quick sandwich and go.

But I have learned that lunch packing really doesn’t have to be that complicated. My kindergartener is eating the same things she had while she was at home as a toddler/preschooler, just packed up. Of course I still pack the occasional PBJ, but for the most part I’m packing up other nourishing favorites – that pack up just as fast.

If you let your kids be involved in the packing, I think it can run smoother and quicker. It takes some training at first. But at this point in the year, my now seasoned kindergartener picks her own fruit and veggie and fills her water bottle for her lunch the night before. I just fill in the odds and ends and it’s done – takes 5 minutes – tops.

Having great lunch gear really helps the process along and we have loved the functional simplicity of the “Launch” PlantBox. It really fits the types of nourishing lunches we pack for school, and my 5 year old loves it. The sturdy design lasts for years, so it is really an investment you make once…no more lunch gear replacing year after year when things get too worn. It washes up so nice (well my 5 year old will tell you that since she does it every day 😉 ).

SO! Whether your kids are tired of the same PBJ everyday, or you are looking to get more variety in their diets, here are 6 lunch ideas to try to finish our your school year!

1. One of my favorite features of the Launch PlanetBox is the large side container for holding things like salad. I think most kids will be agreeable to salads at lunch so long as they have super yummy dressings to pour over them! You can make your own store bought dressings like Ranch, French, and Thousand Island right at home – takes 5 minutes to shake up in a jar!

Another lunch packing tip is how to make hard boiled eggs convenient. Hard boiled eggs last around 5 days in their shell! So I hard boil around a dozen eggs once a week and I use them for quick lunchbox additions or breakfasts. The crispy nuts in the photo are part of my freezer stash – I make a big load of them at a time and pull handfuls when I need them.

2. The Launch PlanetBox comes with a leak proof container to fit in that large side slot as well. I have been using it for yogurt. I scatter frozen fruit on the bottom and scoop about half cup or so of whole plain yogurt over top. If you have kids that are used to sweeter commercial yogurts you can drizzle some raw honey over top too. My 5 year old can manipulate the lid on the container and we haven’t had a problem with leaking at all!

The tuna salad in this lunch is my quick 5 minute blender tuna salad – it is great on a sandwich or kids love to dip or make their own “sandwiches!” with crackers and veggies.

3. About once a month I take an hour or 2 and make large batches of energy bars, apple bars, granola bars, or blueberry bars and freeze them flat in freezer bags. They pull from freezer to lunchbox faster than making a PBJ!

Keep things colorful! I use purple cabbage instead of green for coleslaw a lot! If you think you need to sweeten the deal with eating coleslaw with the kids, add a drizzle of raw honey or sprinkle in a few raisins.

4. Kids missing pizza day at school? Try pizza muffins! My daughter has pizza day *every* Thursday. These muffins freeze up so nice – so they pack up really easy right out of the freezer! We have homemade pizza every once and a while that she takes leftovers of…but I just don’t think pizza night needs to be scheduled every week.

My sliced apple trick is using cinnamon or running a lemon over the tops! It will keep them from browning really well! The lemon works for avocado halves too.

5. Don’t forget dinner leftovers! This was parmesan baked quinoa. A lot of evenings I pack up dinner leftovers right as I’m cleaning up from dinner. It takes no time at all!

The Launch PlanetBox comes with a great condiment container that is leakproof. It holds everything from veggie dip, to salad dressing, or nut butters for apple dipping.

6. If you really have “sandwich eaters” that are hesitant to give up their PBJ, try wraps instead. Or at least something different on the bread you use. I crockpot 3 whole chickens once a month and shred the meat for the freezer in handful portions. This wrap was shredded chicken from the freezer, my own 5 minute mayo, lettuce, and tomato. I like these rice wraps or the Sami’s millet wraps (I get both at our health food store in the freezer section) for my family since we are gluten free. Just be mindful of the ingredient list!

Ok! So talk to me! Hit me with your best PlanetBox or lunch packing questions and let me know how the new lunch routine is going!

For more lunch ideas you can follow my Lunch Ideas board on Pintrest!

15 Comments

Occasional Treats Real Food Tips Snack Ideas

Tropical Blender Sorbet :: Refined Sugar Free & Dairy Free

April 19, 2015

Man is this a fun time of year or what!

We really do go through just about the craziest winter of snow to live on one of the most beautiful places on the planet during spring and summer. We play outside daily – and kids play hard!

It can be really easy to get caught up in quick frozen summer treats – especially if that ice cream truck frequents your neighborhood. The kids are playing hard, sweating, hot, and you figure since they burn so much energy what can some ice cream hurt, right?

I’m all for an occasional treat, but not every day – or every week for that matter. The problem with processed sugar when these kids have been sweating and playing so hard, is that it really does nothing for them. In fact sugar weakens the immune system.

We make homemade popsicles in the summer, and I love having those on hand, but last summer I found that those go FAST in my house! With 3 kids eating them now, I just don’t always keep up. I decided I was only going to make popsicles once a week, and once they are gone for the week, they are gone!

I keep bags of chopped up frozen fruit in the freezer from our summer fruit picking, along with the big cost saving frozen fruit bags from Costco, and these blender sorbets can be made up fast.

My girls are young enough that they don’t really know any different and call this ice cream – it is so sweet from the fruit you really don’t need any other sweetener! This amount makes enough for about 5-6 small servings for my little ones – if you have big kids you can always double up!

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5 from 2 votes

Tropical Blender Sorbet

Just fruit! All you need for this delicious treat.

Prep Time1 hr

Cook Time5 mins

Total Time1 hr 5 mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: banana ice cream, blender sorbet, fruit sorbet in the blender

Servings: servings

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

2 ½ cups pineapple cubed (about ½ a pineapple)
2 bananas sliced
Optional unsweetened coconut shreds to sprinkle on top

Instructions

Freeze the cut up fruit on a plate for an hour. (To save this step, make a few freezer bags of this portion of cut up fruit so you can just grab a bag and drop them in the blender when the kids want a frozen treat!)
Process the fruit in your <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000645TW/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0000645TW&linkCode=as2&tag=simmomrev-20&linkId=I355QQULZLBKUBVC">food processor</a><img src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=simmomrev-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B0000645TW" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" /> or <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000GIGZXM/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000GIGZXM&linkCode=as2&tag=simmomrev-20&linkId=BAEJM4Y5X4PAMGHI">blender</a><img src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=simmomrev-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B000GIGZXM" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" /> until smooth. Scrape the edges down if you have to. The sorbet will be soft serve in texture right out of the blender, or you can firm it up in the freezer for an hour if you want!

Let me know what the kids think!

You can find more occasional treat ideas on my Treat Ideas board on Pintrest!

11 Comments

Batch Up Meals Breakfast Ideas Real Food Tips school lunches Snack Ideas

Blueberry Breakfast Bars :: Gluten, Nut, & Refined Sugar Free

April 4, 2015

You might not be able to tell by the 5 months of the year we spend buried in snow…but we are big time fans of summer time!

By the time April rolls around we have been cooped up long enough, and we are definitely on the go a lot! I have been stocking my freezer with quick, on the go meals and snacks likes energy bars and apple bars so we can enjoy our gorgeous weather and still keep the food real.

Since we live in blueberry country, our freezer is stocked to the brim with handpicked Michigan blueberries all year round. We pick about 70 pounds of sweet blueberries every July – this was my oldest (now 5 – she was just 3 here!) on her first trip to pick her own berries.

These little breakfast bars pack a huge nutrition punch with energy fueling oats and nutrient dense buckwheat. A quick note to my gluten free friends! Despite its name, buckwheat does not have wheat – or any gluten for that matter! It is actually a seed so it is actually a grain free flour.

This is one of my favorite recipes because the hands on time is so minimal. The bars are soft enough for toddlers, but hold together so well they are great for car rides, trips to the beach, and snack breaks at the park.

Print Recipe

5 from 3 votes

Blueberry Breakfast Bars

I love making these for my girls. They feel like it's a treat and I know it's still nourishing their bodies for the day ahead.

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time30 mins

Soak8 hrs

Total Time40 mins

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Keyword: blueberry breakfast bar recipe, blueberry breakfast bars

Servings: bars

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

4 cups oats Not quick oats. If you are gluten free be sure your oats say “gluten free” like these Bob's Red Mill ones.
2 cups buckwheat flour
3 cups water
2 TB whole yogurt If you are dairy free use the juice of a lemon
3 pastured eggs Flax eggs will work if you are egg free
2 tsp aluminum free baking powder
½ tsp sea salt
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 TB honey
2 TB organic molasses
2 cups organic blueberries If you are using frozen, keep them frozen until you fold them in or you will have a purple mess!

Instructions

The night before you want to make the bars, put the oats, buckwheat flour, water, and yogurt in a large mixing bowl and combine. Cover the bowl with a towel and set it in a warm area in your kitchen overnight 8-12 hours. This soaking process makes the oats and buckwheat easier on your gut to digest and makes their nutrients more available to absorb. Takes just 5 minutes to get in the bowl before you head to bed!
The next morning, add the rest of your ingredients EXCEPT the blueberries to the bowl, and combine.
Fold the blueberries into the batter.
Pour the batter into a Silpat or parchment paper lined large jelly roll pan and bake at 375 for 30 minutes.
After the pan cools a good 10-15 minutes you can cut the bars into the shape you want. Store leftovers in the freezer to pull out quick for breakfast on busy mornings!

So keep me posted on how the kids like the bars!

For more breakfast ideas you can follow my Breakfast Ideas board on Pinterest!

48 Comments

Dinner Ideas Feeding Babies Lunch Ideas Real Food Tips Snack Ideas

Parmesan Baked Zucchini Spears

March 29, 2015

A couple weeks ago, one of the #toddlerlunches on my Instagram showed some baked zucchini spears that the girls were having with lunch…and I think just about everyone commented or inboxed me how to make them…ask and you shall receive 🙂

I never thought to post them before because they seem so simple – but isn’t that what this is all about? I really want to show you that you really *can* feed real food to kids in the “real world”. As in…simple. As in…busy schedules and not a lot of time to prep lunch.

I’m not a fancy chef. I have zero culinary background! But I have figured out some ways to not only make real food just as fun as the processed stuff some kids are used to…but also make it taste amazing!

These literally take about 5 minutes to prep and a little over 15 minutes in the oven – just as fast as making a box of mac n cheese for lunch! It’s a great way to get some extra veg in the kids for lunchtime, and it makes a great side to grassfed burgers for dinner!

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5 from 1 vote

Parmesan Baked Zucchini Spears

I’m not a fancy chef. I have zero culinary background! But I have figured out some ways to not only make real food just as fun as the processed stuff some kids are used to…but also make it taste amazing!

Prep Time5 mins

Cook Time20 mins

Total Time25 mins

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: baked zucchini spears, parmesan baked zucchini, zucchini fries

Servings: servings

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

5 small zucchini sliced long into spears (smaller ones work better for this way of cooking than the big fat ones)
2 TB avocado oil or melted butter or coconut oil
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
½ tsp pepper
¼ cup or so grated parmesan cheese for the top you can leave this out if you are dairy free!

Instructions

Put the zucchini on a baking sheet and toss them with everything but the cheese to coat them well.
Line up the zucchini so the flesh is facing up, and sprinkle with the parmesan cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes, and then under the broiler on high for another 3-5 minutes. Just watch them under the broiler after a few minutes so they don’t get too brown.

See! I told you! Simple!

Don’t forget the babes too! My 9 month old was grabbing away at these last summer and inhales them at almost 19 months now!

You can follow my Lunches board on Pintrest for more Lunch inspiration!

Keep me posted how the kiddos like them!

33 Comments

Lunch Ideas Real Food Tips school lunches Snack Ideas Soup

Simple & Quick Homemade Crackers :: Gluten Free with Grain Free Option

March 22, 2015

Simple & Quick Homemade Crackers :: Gluten Free w/ Grain Free Option

Crackers have been one of those love/hate relationships for me. Kids sure do love them don’t they? But who has time to make batches of crackers every week?

But because kids really get a kick out of crackers (and because, let’s face it…sometimes you just need a little crackers and cheese with your soup!), I have tried what seems like 100 different cracker recipes since having kids. Most of the ones you find in the store are just plain not ingredient lists I want my kids ingesting regularly. And the ones that do have decent ingredients cost more than I would like to spend.

This year was a little different because I have a kindergartener. That means snack time. Snack time at her school is served to them – a fruit or vegetable and crackers. Every. Day. Don’t get me started on my thoughts on whether children need crackers (or pretzels or rice cakes) everyday, but I had to do something. I may have my beliefs, but I do want my kids to feel somewhat “normal” and be able to sit down and socialize with their friends at snack time.

At the beginning of the year I just sent along some (pricey) gluten free crackers, but hit my kitchen a few times to try to come up with a cracker that had some nourishment to it – and didn’t take all day to make. I don’t make these for her to take every week, but it is a nice rotation to her Mary’s GF crackers that I send along to school.

Best part?! These will take you less than 10 minutes to get onto the baking sheet and just over 10 minutes in the oven – they really are simple and quick!

My husband thinks they taste like Wheat Thins, and I think that is pretty accurate. I promise you will not taste the coconut flour – believe me, my husband can taste if there is even a teaspoon of coconut in anything you give him 🙂 Normally, I loathe working with coconut flour in just about any recipe, but because it is so drying, it works really well to create a crisp, crunchy cracker – and provide some fiber and nourishment.

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4.75 from 4 votes

Homemade Crackers :: Gluten Free with Grain Free Option

Homemade crackers don't have to take all day.

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time12 mins

Total Time22 mins

Course: Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: gluten-free cracker recipe, homemade crackers, homemade gluten-free crackers

Servings: servings

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

½ cup coconut flour
½ cup white rice flour if you are grain free swap this for almond flour
6 TB avocado oil I get mine at Costcol. Or you could use melted butter or coconut oil
1 tsp honey
1 tsp sea salt
½ - ¾ cup water
Sea salt to sprinkle the top of the crackers

Instructions

Everything into a medium mixing bowl and combine. I start out with a spatula and finish it off with my hands – you want to press it into a ball of dough. The dough should not be too wet, but you also don’t want it crumbling everywhere. I usually use the entire ¾ cup water, but with the dry air here that may be different depending where you live.
Put the ball of dough on a piece of Silpat or parchment paper and press it down into a disk that you can roll. Put a piece of parchment paper over the top of the dough and roll the dough out – the thinner you make it, the crisper the crackers will be. I do leave mine a little bit thicker right now since I have a younger one chewing them – they turn out a little bit softer the thicker you make them.
Use a butter knife to square off your crackers in the shape you want, and then sprinkle the top with sea salt.
Bake at 400 degrees for 12 -13 minutes. Check them around the 10 minute mark in case our ovens run different. Let them cool about 15 minutes before handling.

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Homemade DIY Coconut Yogurt :: 3 Ingredients, No Cooking, & A Great Probiotic Rich Dairy Free Alternative!

February 22, 2015

Coconut yogurt?!

Why, when I have access to beautiful raw milk weekly, do I still make coconut yogurt??

We love (love!) our raw milk share, but from the months of January until May our milk supply is lower so there just isn’t enough to go around. It is a great time to give our guts a little bit of a dairy break (although we still enjoy the gallon that we do get every week!), and rotate some food around.

I have made many (many!) coconut yogurt attempts. I say attempts because many of them were fails that landed themselves in the next morning’s smoothie mix up. There is just no way I can afford to buy the coconut milk yogurt on store shelves, so if we wanted to have that tangy, creamy goodness with our breakfast granola, or lunch smoothie, I was going to have to figure out how to make it myself.

Not only are the store bought coconut yogurts super pricey, but they all have added sugar – a LOT of added sugar. They also have some questionable gums/fillers that I don’t want to be giving my family over and over again on a weekly basis.

This coconut yogurt has a nice, tang and a great creamy consistency. You can play around with the amount of time the yogurt cultures for more or less “tang”, and you can play around with the gelatin amount to make it the consistency you like! It is pretty forgiving, and super fast to put together.

While the yogurt does end up tasting like coconut (which doesn’t bother my girls, but I don’t really care for), you can dress up your yogurt to taste how you want! Get some raw honey or pure maple syrup in there especially if your children are used to sweetened yogurts. Get some fruit puree down at the bottom of their cup of yogurt for them to stir in like fruit on the bottom yogurt. Use some granola to give it some crunch!

Also! Don’t forget the babes! This is a great first food yogurt for baby to try if you don’t have access to raw dairy and/or your baby doesn’t tolerate dairy. Even though my girls tolerate raw dairy just fine, I do introduce the coconut milk and coconut yogurt as babies so they get used to the taste. And as the kids get older they will love having it packed in their lunchboxes with fruit on the bottom or granola to add in!

One quick note before we get to the recipe! If you choose to use canned coconut milk, you probably won’t need/won’t want to use the same amount of gelatin as the thickener since canned coconut milk has added gum to thicken it already. Also – I have only done the coconut yogurt with the probiotic powder that I will link in the recipe – I’m sure other powders would work, but be mindful I’m not sure how the amounts will compare. The one I choose to use is a quality, pharmaceutical grade powder that my chiropractor recommends.

Print Recipe

5 from 9 votes

Homemade DIY Coconut Yogurt

Coconut yogurt at the store is crazy expensive and often filled with sugar. 3 ingredients and you can make it at home.

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time8 hrs

Total Time8 hrs 10 mins

Course: Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: coconut milk yogurt, homemade coconut milk yogurt

Servings: servings

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

1 ½ cups full fat <a href="https://www.raisinggenerationnourished.com/2015/02/diy-coconut-milk/" target="_blank" title="DIY Coconut Milk :: No Gums Fillers, Or Sweeteners">coconut milk
1/2 tsp quality probiotic powder
1 tsp grassfed gelatin If you want it more like a “kefir” consistency (thinner, than you can use half the amount. You could also make the consistency a thicker/pudding/custard like consistency with more gelatin. Do NOT use the cold soluble gelatin – it will not work for this project!)

Instructions

Stir the probiotic powder and gelatin into the coconut milk and put a lid on the container (I use a pint mason jar which fits this amount perfectly.
Place the jar under the light in your oven (withOUT the stove on) overnight or 8-12 hours. You can taste for "tang" and if you want more you can go up to 24 hours under the light.
Shake up the jar and place it in the fridge for 2 hours to finish the culturing and thicken the yogurt.

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Simple Cinnamon Granola :: Gluten & Refined Sugar Free

February 15, 2015

Product links in this post are affiliate links. It does not cost you anything and helps maintain the free information on this site, as well as answer the questions of “what brand do you use?” Please know I never personally recommend any product I wouldn’t use on my own family.

I know you have probably gathered by now that I *love* breakfast. We have a hot breakfast most days of the week including school mornings. When you make large batches of oatmeal or freezer pancakes and breakfast cookies, it is pretty easy to have a hot breakfast on the table in a matter of minutes even on the busiest of mornings.

But about once a week I crave cereal. I don’t think a day went by in my childhood that a box of cereal wasn’t breakfast, so for me it is just comforting, and familiar. I gave up boxed cereals years ago when I learned that the extrusion process that the grains go through literally make the grains toxic and void of any nutrient value (yes even organic boxed cereals).

I went years without cereal until I tried making granola. I wasn’t sure I was going to like it, but as it turns out not only was it really easy to make, but it was so delicious!

As children have multiplied in the house, I have had to modify how I approach granola making. What used to feed my husband and I for a few weeks, only lasts a week or two now, and I don’t care to make granola every month. I get my big stock pot out and to have enough room to mix this large batch now! We have granola about once a week and this lasts us a few months.

If you have a dehydrator, great! If you don’t, no problem! I made granola in the oven for years! I have only had a dehydrator for a couple years now, and I really do love it. I have a “middle of the road” dehydrator and feel like it works fantastic – I use it all the time! And there is *nothing* quite like the “set it and forget it” of letting the dehydrator dry out your granola overnight and waking up the the warm smell of cinnamon in the morning!

I store the granola in gallon freezer bags laying flat in the freezer. I keep one bag in the fridge for use to pull from for breakfast or just to grab a handful for a snack on the go.

The simplest of ingredients and sweetened with a little fruit and raw honey. The kids will love the little bits of apple and raisin – it is perfect drenched in raw milk or coconut milk, or used as a topper or mix-in to whole yogurt.

Print Recipe

Simple Cinnamon Granola

Every so often I crave cold cereal. This hits all the fun flavors I remember from my childhood, without the extra sugar.

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time8 hrs

Soak8 hrs

Total Time8 hrs 10 mins

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Keyword: cinnamon granola recipe, homemade cinnamon granola

Servings: servings

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

8 cups oats Not quick oats. If you are gluten free be sure your oats actually say gluten free like THESE
Juice of 2 lemons
2 cups sorghum flour
2 cups blanched almond flour if you are nut free replace this with another gluten free flour like rice flour, or you can add 2 more cups of oats to the oats above
7 cups unsweetened coconut shreds
1 cup natural peanut butter Watch the ingredients! Just peanuts and salt would be great - no need for added oils or sugar. I get mine at Costco. If you are nut free you can use sunflower seed butter, or just leave it out
1 cup avocado oil I get mine at Costco - THIS is a good one too. Or you can use melted butter or coconut oil
1 cup raw honey Local if possible! Or THIS is a good brand. This sounds like a lot of honey, but remember how big of a batch this is! If you are used to a much sweeter cereal you can use more – just remember you can always add a drizzle of honey to your bowl but you can’t take the honey out! You can taste the mixture for sweetness before you dehydrate
3 TB cinnamon
1 ½ TB almond extract vanilla extract works too
1 ½ cups organic raisins I get mine at Costco
5-6 small apples chopped (I buzz mine up quick in the food processor!)

Instructions

The day or night before you want to get the granola in the dehydrator, put the oats and lemon juice along with enough water to cover the oats by an inch in a large mixing bowl. Set the bowl under the light in your oven for 8-12 hours – this soaking process breaks down the phytic acid in the oats and makes them easier to digest. I like to soak them all day and that way I can dehydrate over night. It also works to soak overnight and get the granola in the dehydrator the next day.
After the soak, drain the oats in a strainer while you get the rest of the ingredients into a large mixing bowl – I use my stock pot because there is a lot! It makes the mixing easier!
Add the strained oats to the mixture and combine well.
Spread out the granola onto your dehydrator trays and dehydrate between 110 degrees overnight about 8-10 hours. When it is done drying out you can break up the granola into the sized pieces you want. (Alternatively you can bake in the oven on baking sheets. About 300 degrees for an hour or so stirring occasionally until it is dried out.)

Did you grow up on cereal? Do you miss it?! Let me know if you give the granola a try – keep me posted how the kids like it!

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Tahini Molasses Cookies :: Grain, Nut, & Refined Sugar Free

January 24, 2015

(Affilate links included at no extra cost to you – thank you for your support!)

One of my biggest goals as of late when people ask me how to get their family transitioned over to real food is…enjoy it. Make it fun. Get the kids involved. Make it a positive experience.

I think we underestimate how much kids can do in the kitchen. I know I have and still do at times. I am constantly reminding myself to slow down and let them help. This weekend my big girls and I got a chance to try out a new recipe from the book “And Here We Are At The Table“, and my 5 year old pretty much did it all on her own (including reading the recipe!).

Ariana is one of my favorite people. An American living expat, she has a huge appreciation for all cultures – and the cuisine that goes along with them. We share a similar view toward exposing children to a wide variety of food to build healthy taste palates, and I just love following her expat adventures with her sweet family.

Her new book “And Here We Are At The Table” is more than just a cookbook. Part memoir, part travelog, along with 80 recipes from all over the world, this book really pulled me in. The recipes are warm and inviting, and her stories charming and fascinating.

There almost 200 pages full of gorgeous photos of food and scenery from Ariana’s travels. The instructions are very easy to follow and the recipes are nourishing and all grain free! There are also 3 cooking tutorial videos, and exclusive sections on food adventures like foraging and visiting various global markets around the world included in the digital version of this book.

I am more than honored that Ariana was gracious enough to let me share one of the recipes from her new book here with you today! These tahini molasses cookies were a big hit here! They are warm and slightly sweet, and I will be honest it was not what I was expecting from tahini!

One of the things I loved about this book was learning more about ingredients that I maybe don’t use enough of in my kitchen. I have only used tahini to make hummus, but they made a great cookie – and will be perfect to pack up for children in schools that are nut free zones!

I can’t wait for you guys to enjoy your copy of And Here We Are At The Table – it is 30% off right now through February 11! Use the code ATTHETABLE at checkout!

The book is also available through Amazon if you prefer to shop through there!

Print Recipe

Tahini Molasses Cookies

Tahini and molasses might not be ingredients you use every day, but I guarantee you'll want to pick them up to make these grain-free cookies.

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time10 mins

Total Time20 mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: grain-free cookie recipe, tahini molasses cookie recipe, tahini molasses cookies

Servings: cookies

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

1 cup tahini paste
¾ cup molasses or Dark Muscovado Sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 large egg
A pinch of sea salt
Sesame seeds
for sprinkling the tops of the cookies

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Combine everything but the sesame seeds in a mixing bowl.
Spoon tablespoonfuls onto your cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart. We rolled the dough into balls and then flattened with our hands a little. They will spread a little bit once cooked.
Sprinkle the tops of the cookies with sesame seeds.
Bake for 10-15 minutes until the edges a little crispy.

Be sure to hop over and grab your copy of And Here We Are At The Table – it is 30% off right now through February 11! Use the code ATTHETABLE at checkout!

The book is also available through Amazon if you prefer to shop through there!

This post was shared at Real Food Wednesday

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Potato Chips :: Simple, Real Ingredients, Quick, & No Fryer Required!

January 11, 2015

Oh there’s just something about them, isn’t there?!

Salty, crispy, delicious…

Potato chips are one of those foods that I really missed when I learned about how certain oils react with heat to make a pretty toxic combination to our bodies. Rancid oils and heavily pesticided potato crops make for a crummy food considering all you need to make them is potatoes, oil, and salt!

So into the kitchen I went, and over the years I’ve learned the secrets to the best crispy, salty potato chips that we can enjoy with dinners like grassfed burgers and sloppy joes!

Secret one is make the chips nice and thin. I would love a mandolin someday, and if you have one definitely put it to use! I have learned how to make paper thin potato slices – it just takes practice and a super sharp knife. Sharpen it before you cut and you should be good.

Secret two is fry them in a great, high heat friendly fat. My favorites are pastured lard or tallow. Bacon grease that we save over a few weeks of morning breakfasts is super delicious too! Duck fat or other animal fat would be lovely if you have that on hand. If you don’t have access to any of these fats, coconut oil works as long as you don’t mind a slight coconut flavor to your chips. Palm oil and avocado oil have about the same smoke point as lard and tallow, along with a neutral flavor, so if you have access to that you could do that. Butter works but I feel like the butter gets browned too easily just fyi. THIS is a great article on why these friendly fats are nothing to be afraid of! They are actually good for you!

The final secret is to let them cool off without laying all over each other. When they sit in a bowl all together right out of the pan they steam each other instead of crisping as they cool. It doesn’t take long for them to cool off, and once they do you can get them into a bowl or container.

Product links in this section are affiliate links. It does not cost you anything and helps maintain the free information on this site, as well as answer the questions of “what brand do you use!” Please know I would never personally recommend any product I wouldn’t use on my own family.

Print Recipe

4.34 from 3 votes

Potato Chips

You don't need a fryer to make delicious homemade chips. You can change the flavor by changing your fat and salt.

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time10 mins

Total Time20 mins

Course: Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: homemade potato chips, how to make potato chips, potato chips without a fryer

Servings: servings

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

¼ - ½ cup friendly fat to fry in pastured lard, tallow, bacon grease, coconut oil, avocado oil, palm oil, butter
Organic potatoes enough to feed your crew While I don't afford to buy all of my produce organic, potatoes are one that I do since they are a root veg in the ground, are heavily pesticided and almost always on the "Dirty Dozen" list
Sea salt to taste
You can season your chips how you like! Onion powder pepper, etc – plain sea salt is my favorite though!

Instructions

Slice your potatoes very thin using a mandolin or very sharp knife.
Melt your friendly fat of choice in a very hot skillet or fry pan and place a layer of the sliced potatoes in – the potatoes shouldn’t be on top of each other.
Flip the potatoes over after a couple minute of frying and cook the other side to your desired texture, remove the potatoes to drain on a paper towel or cloth. Don’t overlap them or they will steam each other and not get crisp as they dry and cool off.
Season the cooked potatoes and put the next round of potatoes in the pan and cook the same way.
If you have leftover chips you can store them in the fridge and serve from there.

Have you made your own potato chips before? Let me know if you end up trying this out!

This post was shared at Fat Tuesday & Real Food Wednesday!

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Fridays are breakfast cookie days for a couple of reasons!

I also love breakfast cookie day for Friday because they are easy to eat.

Molasses Protein Breakfast Cookie

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In an effort to streamline healthy, real food meals in my house, I have been working on making sure I’m not, in fact, in the kitchen all day.

Have you ever been in the presence of a hungry 2 year old?!

I needed a smoothie framework to pull from when it came to smoothies.

So what are my nutrient dense components and why?

FRIENDLY FAT

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QUALITY PROTEIN

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Two year olds.

My goal is always – make every bite count.

And bonus! The big kids love them too.

I am so excited to share this recipe with you! I hope your little 2 year old treasures enjoy them 😉

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My heart is truly to see this post go viral with sharing because our kids are so worth it – this can be done without more chemical medications!

Kids in this pattern would be consider hyperkinetic or likely labeled with AD/HD.

The school psychiatrist clearly told me she did not think he had AD/HD or any diagnosable issue. Yet, she still recommended I get him on meds to better ‘manage’ his behaviors.

I firmly said NO.

Within 2 weeks he started calming down a bit with the new supplements and the changes in his diet – I could tell.

He was just a sweet kid in a minerally depleted body.

Chocolate Banana Power Smoothie

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It does not have to be like this.

Kids respond well to mineral balancing – and it does not take as many supplements or time to help them feel better!

We are in a constant state of learning aren’t we?

My NTP really opened my eyes to not only the importance of using the right source of vitamin C, but also that how we handle the vitamin C makes a difference.

An immune system equipped with properly sourced and handled vitamin C can do amazing things with colds, flu, and other immune system crashers like adrenal fatigue.

So why not just eat an orange?

…but sometimes it is just fun to have it in a different form!

Anytime you heat vitamin C, that C is destroyed.

UPDATE 2021 ::

What a fun way to build up the kid’s immune systems while they navigate the first couple months of back to school germs!

Vitamin C Gummies

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