15 MINUTE FAMILY FRIENDLY MEALS

EASY FAMILY FRIENDLY “TWEAKS”:

it’s not about RESTRICTING; it’s about REPLACING

1. SPAGHETTI (GLUTEN FREE!): Buy an organic Spaghetti sauce from Trader Joes or Ragu LIGHT (the one that contains no sugar). GLUTEN FREE OPTION: switch to spelt or brown rice noodles. Rice noodles take a tad longer to cook but are very good and taste just like normal pasta.
   1. PALEO MEATBALL RECIPE:  CLICK HERE for recipe
2. HOMEMADE PIZZA NIGHT: This is a favorite b/c its quick, easy and delicious.
   1. GLUTEN FREE CRUST OPTIONS:
      1. Pamela’s Gluten Free Pizza Crust Mix: this is so awesome and so easy. You can buy at HyVee or Natures Pantry/Whole Foods. You just add oil/water. Consistency is more like cake batter. WET HANDS OR SPATULA WHEN SPREADING ONTO PAN FOR EASIER SPREADING. It takes a bit to get this down since it doesn’t feel like regular dough…but so easy and my family LOVE LOVE it.
      2. PORTABELLA MUSHROOM “CRUST”: buy the large portabellas and turn upside down (gill side up, brush w/ olive oil and top w/ whatever you would your pizza. Sauce, cheese, veggies, etc. Bake at 350 until cheese is melted. Delicious!
      3. SPELT OR BROWN RICE TORTILLA PERSONAL PIZZA: Take a tortilla, top w/ normal pizza toppings, stick in oven and bake about 10 minutes. Super quick and easy.
   2. PIZZA SAUCE OPTIONS:
      1. SPAGHETTI SAUCE: We usually just use whatever spaghetti sauce we have on hand. Our favorite sauce? Trader Joes Organic Marinara Sauce.
      2. PIZZA SAUCE: you can buy pizza sauce. Our favorite is Trader Joes. It’s $1.99 and makes 2 large pizza’s.
      3. HOMEMADE: you can easily make your own w/ tomato paste. (we buy our organic tomato paste from Costco) Add about 1 tsp of EVOO and toss in Italian seasonings like basil, oregano, parsley. I add a TINY amount of honey and a little salt/pepper.
3. ROTISSERIE CHICKEN:
   1. CROCK POT VERSION: toss in organic red potatoes, big chunks of yellow onion and carrots in bottom. Add some water to cover veggies. Sprinkle on some sea salt (NOT table salt which strips salt of everything wonderful) and Pepper. Take your whole chicken, pull out gizzards if any, and pat dry w/ paper towel. Stuff cavity w/ anything you think would be good flavor: half onion, apple, carrot, celery, herbs like rosemary and/or oregano/sage, etc. In a small bowl mix about ¼ cup of EVOO and any spices you want. I love to mix it up…sometimes I use just salt/pepper with some lemon juice and sage. Sometimes I use Italian type seasons. No right or wrong. Using clean hands, rub the oils/spices all over chicken. Turn on low and cook 6-8 hours. SO easy and good.
   2. OVEN VERSION: Preheat oven to 350. Using a large casserole dish, grease it first then toss in some veggies like organic red potatoes, onion chunks and carrots. Sprinkle on some sea salt (NOT table salt which strips salt of everything wonderful) and Pepper. Take your whole chicken, pull out gizzards if any, and pat dry w/ paper towel. Stuff cavity w/ anything you think would be good flavor: half onion, apple, carrot, celery, herbs like rosemary and/or oregano/sage, etc. In a small bowl mix about ¼ cup of EVOO and any spices you want. I love to mix it up…sometimes I use just salt/pepper with some lemon juice and sage. Sometimes I use Italian type seasons. No right or wrong. Using clean hands, rub the oils/spices all over chicken. COVER CHICKEN W/ FOIL AND BAKE 1 HOUR 15 MINUTES. Remove foil and turn on broil and cook for an additional 10 minutes until skin looks brown and crispy.
4. FAGE ENCHILADA’S (FREEZER FRIENDLY!)
   ***FREEZER FRIENDLY*** (freeze BEFORE baking)
   
   • 12  wheat tortilla's (highly recommend Costco's raw wheat flour tortilla's)
   • 1 can (20 Ounce) Enchilada Sauce:  CHECK INGREDIENTS.  I love an easy homemade recipe off of weelicious.com.  It only takes a few extra minutes to whip up my own.  For her recipe, click HERE.
   • 2 cups FAGE (strained greek yogurt...can find anywhere but now selling at WalMart and Costco!)
   • 3 cups Sharp Cheddar Cheese, Grated (DO NOT BUY ALREADY SHREDDED CHEESE)
   • 1 cup Sliced/chopped Green Onions
   • ½ teaspoons Ground Cumin
   • ¼ teaspoons Cayenne Pepper
   • Fresh Cilantro (optional...but YES)

5.  ALMOND BUTTER SHRIMP PAD THAI

FOR FULL RECIPE AND INSTRUCTIONS, CLICK HERE.

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce OR BETTER:  coconut aninos
1 Tbsp water
1 Tbsp almond butter (or organic creamy peanut butter)
1 Tbsp sucanat (original recipe called for brown sugar)
1 Tbsp of apple cider vinegar (I use raw/unfiltered but I'm sure whatever would work)
2 tbsp of olive oil
1 tsp of minced garlic
1 tsp of minced ginger root (Yes, buy the real root and stick what you don't use in your freezer.  they freeze GREAT)
1/4 cup chopped green onion
1/4 cup finely sliced red pepper
1/4 cup finely sliced yellow pepper
12 medium sized shrimp, cooked (i cooked mine before hand in a little EVOO and set aside on a plate)
1/4 lb of whole wheat pasta...thin, spaghetti, rotini, pick your fav
crushed red pepper to taste
a little cilantro (OPTIONAL) to garnish
sea salt IF NEEDED

6.  CHICKEN SALAD W/ GRAPES, APPLES AND CURRY

2 chicken breasts, boiled and cut into cubes

1/2 cup-3/4 cup of grapes cut in half.

1-1 1/2 stalk of celery, sliced

1 granny smith apple cut into chunks (or whatever apple you have on hand, but I like Granny's)

2 tbsp or so of green onion *optional

juice of 1/2 lemon (or 1 tsp of lemon juice)

a handful of chopped walnuts (or slivered almonds would work) *optional

a handful of raisins or dried cherry or dried cranberries *optional

2 heaping tbsp of PLAIN GREEK YOGURT OR FAGE...add more if too dry but always start w/ less than you'd think, stir and then decide if you need more or not.

A generous squirt of dijon mustard

Sea salt/Pepper to taste

1/2 tsp-1 tsp of curry...I'm always conservative but end up adding more at the end.

**If you love the mayo taste but wanna skip the fat, just add a heaping teaspoon for the best of both worlds. DO NOT use Miracle Whip.

Toss everything into a big bowl and stir. LET SIT FOR AT LEAST 3 HOURS, OVERNIGHT IS EVEN BETTER.

These measurements are APPROXIMATE since I just toss it all in and call it a day. I love serving this w/ A brown rice or spelt tortilla. Delicious!

7. SAM’S BREADED CHICKEN FINGERS

Ingredients:

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or more if you want leftovers), cut into nuggets or strips

1 1/2 cups almond meal, cashew meal, or GF flour blend

Paprika 

garlic powder

sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

ground cayenne pepper

paprika

dry oregano

milk

a little vinegar

Ok. This is super easy but it's done in STEPS. So stay w/ me.

1. Make some buttermilk. About 2 cups of milk and 2 tsp of vinegar in a large bowl. stir and let sit while we fix everything else.

2. In a medium bowl, combine almond meal (or flour) w/ whatever spices you want. I used APPROXIMATELY 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp paprika, 1 tsp oregano, 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, 1 tsp salt and a little pepper. I didn't measure anything...just tossed it all in, so this is a guess. :)

OK...let's make an assembly line and bake these babies!

ORDER OF BOWLS: 1. Chicken Fingers 2. Buttermilk 3. Almond meal/Flour/spices 4. Cookie sheet WITH WIRE RACK SETTING INSIDE.

Dredge chicken in buttermilk, roll in Almond meal/flour, place on wire rack/cookie sheet.

Bake 20-25 minutes at 400 degrees.

**We didn't have any left over chicken fingers, but if you did, I would suggest freezing them and you could reheat.

**make some honey mustard...take out your spicy brown mustard from frig and add a little honey until desired sweetness.

**check your bbq sauce for High Fructose Corn Syrup

8. CREAMY CHICKEN BURRITO’S

(Serves 4)

INGREDIENTS:

1 tbsp EVOO

1 garlic clove

2-3 oz neufchatel cheese or goat cheese

1/3 cup FAGE

3/4 cup (or more) salsa (for my favorite recipe, click here)

1 tsp of freshly squeezed lemon

1/2 can black beans (or you could use a whole can if you want)

1/3 cup organic Yellow corn (could be scraped off fresh cob or frozen) *optional

Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Fresh Cilantro (*optional)

2 Chicken Breasts, shreeded

Some shredded cheese (please, buy blocked and shred yourself!)

SPELT OR BROWN RICE Tortilla's

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat EVOO in large skillet over med heat. Add garlic and cook just a minute. Turn down heat to simmer and add salsa, Fage, Neufchatel cheese, lemon, beans, corn, and chicken, salt and pepper and simmer just until heated through. If it's too thin (runny) just turn up the heat a tad and let it simmer a little longer to evaporate some of the juices. If it's too thick, just splash in a little chicken broth or water.

2. Fill flour tortillas w/ chicken mixture and sprinkle on some cheese and cilantro. Wrap it up, and TWAH-LAH! A really REALLY tasty burrito.

9. TACO NIGHT
   1. TWEAK: use grass fed ground beef if possible. Add puree’d black beans and Quinoa for nutritional boost.
   2. Skip the Sour Cream and opt for FAGE instead.
   3. Make your own salsa or buy a freshly made one in the produce section.
   4. We will use Organic Tortilla Chips from Costco or Spelt/brown rice tortillas.
10. CHICKEN SAUSAGE AND VEGGIES
    1. Amylu's CHICKEN W/ APPLES AND GOUDA CHEESE SAUSAGES: We buy a huge pack of these at Costco. This is the PERFECT “I have no clue what to cook for dinner” meal! Just pull what you need out of freezer and broil…or even microwave! I serve w/ steamed veggies. (we buy organic frozen veggies during winter) I love to serve yogurt w/ dinner too. You can find these at HyVee and most organic/whole foods stores.
11. ORGANIC/EASY HOMEMADE FRIES:
    1. Cut/slice Organic Red Potatoes however shape you want. Toss in a large bowl. Drizzle some EVOO, salt/pepper and another other herbs or spices. (I’m partial to parsley and a little Cajun)
    2. Spread evenly on cookie sheet. I cover my sheet w/ foil and grease well.
    3. Bake at 425-450 for about 20 minutes or until crispy.
12. SOUP and “Sandwich”
    1. TRADER JOES/WHOLE FOODS/NATURES PANTRY/COSTCO/HYVEE all have PRE-MADE ORANIC BOXED SOUPS that are delicious. Pick from a variety of choices and simple pour into pan and heat up.
    2. “SANDWICH”: take a brown rice or spelt tortilla, fill it w/ sliced meat and freshly grated cheese, (and even a little spinach or kale!) fold over like on omelet and heat on stove top until cheese is melted. A perfect side to your soup!

13. EASIEST LASAGNA EVER! Simply replace your traditional noodles w/ sliced zucchini or Brown rice lasagna noodles! The recipe below uses ricotta or cottage cheese and step by step instructions. Freezer friendly, too!

         FULL RECIPE HERE:

SWEETS/DESSERTS

1. Homesteads Favorite chocolate Chip Cookies:  
   For full recipe and instructions, click HERE.

1/2 cup of almond meal or oat flour...or a mix of both!

2 cups of flour of your choice (please, avoid white!) Homestead pick: NAMASTE Gluten Free Perfect Flour blend (purchased at our local Costco or health food store) Your choice of flours will vary the consistency of your cookies so if you are trying some "new" flour blends like spelt, amaranth, buckwheat, etc it takes some trial and error. I recommend looking up flour blends with a higher protein content.

1 1/2 tsp of baking soda

1 tsp of sea salt

1/4 tsp of cinnamon *Optional. I LOVE cinnamon w/ chocolate, but if you aren't a fan leave out.

2 Tbsp of milled flax seed

1/2 cup of real organic butter, softened to room temp (1 stick)

1/2 cup of coconut oil TIP: use all butter if you wanna.

3/4 cup of sucanat (this is organic unprocessed brown sugar which you can buy at health food stores)

3/4 cup of organic sugar or turbinado sugar, such as Sugar in the Raw

1 1/2 tsp of pure vanilla extract

1/2 tsp of organic lemon juice

2 farm fresh eggs

3 handfuls or so of choc chips (or use dried cherries or raisins) We use Soy Free Enjoy Life brand.

2. CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES (w/ Avocado or Sweet Potato Puree)

For FULL recipe and instructions, click HERE.

1 Cup of Sweet potato Puree OR avocado puree

1 Cup of Sucanat (found in sugar section of health foods store...or use Sugar in the Raw for a less clean version)

1 tbsp or so of honey...I don't measure, I just squeeze a "generous squirt" :)

1Cup of Milk (whatever you have in your frig) I'll be using a mix of coconut/almond

1/2 tsp of balsamic vinegar (I like to use flavored BV...today I used pomegranate balsamic vinegar)

2 large egg whites

2 cups of GF flour or Spelt, or mixture of both

1/4 cup of milled flax (you COULD leave this out...but why??)

1/2 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder or carob powder

1 tsp of alum free baking soda

1/2 tsp of sea/kosher salt

3. RAW COOKIE DOUGH BITES

2 1/2 cups almond meal (feel free to use Gluten Free Oat Flour mixed w/ Almond Meal, too)

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 cup EVOO or Coconut Oil (I use a mix of both)

1 tbsp vanilla extract

1/4-1/2 cup of agave nectar, maple syrup, (or raw honey) (start w/ 1/4 cup, taste dough and add more until you reach preferred sweetness. I usually end up using about 1/4 cup plus 1-2 tbsp)

1 cup dark chocolate chips OR dried cherries

1/4 cup of raw chia or ground flax

*Optional: unsweetened coconut flakes

Combine dry ingredients. Stir wet ingredients together in separate bowl and then add to dry. Form balls and chill...or just put in an air tight container and form balls when ready to serve.

These are delicious and my kids can't get enough! Love all the raw goodness they are getting when they snack on these!

4. ALMOND BUTTER HONEY WRAPS
   1. Easiest “sweet fix” of mine: take a spelt or brown rice tortilla. Warm up just a little in microwave or on stove top. Smear almond butter all over it and drizzle on Honey, Maple or Organic Agave Nectar. If desired, sprinkle on some cinnamon. Roll up and wow! A GREAT GO-TO FOR SWEET CRAVINGS.