MM - Flourishing Family.....Sneaky Sneaky!!!!

Happy Monday Mamas!!!

Today I am feeling a little sneaky....I have a friend who is trying to get her very picky eater to try new things. Now, SO FAR....I have been really lucky. There are very few things that my little guy will not eat. However, it got me thinkin, what if all the sudden he doesn't want to eat anything but mac & cheese and hot dogs, perhaps in tribute to his auntie who did this very thing when she was little! Oh the HORROR!!! But seriously, can I just let him do that and feel good about it....simple answer is no.

So I put my sneaky mom thinking cap on and did a little research.

Did you know....that it takes a child 7 times of tasting something to either incorporate or reject a single taste from their developing palate?

Did you know....that even at a young age, kids can incorporate very "grown-up" tastes into their palate?

Did you know....that we as Americans are pretty much the only culture that offers our children food options other than what the rest of the family is eating?

Now that we are armed with information, let's get down to business. What are we gonna do about these picky kiddos? I will tell you! We are gonna train their palate....slowly.

I started thinking about the many advantages that we as mama get to give our kids by feeding them THRIVE. First, most of them love that it is weird!! They love that they are eating "astronaut food"!

Second, because these foods are freeze dried, we can use them in ways that the kiddos would never even imagine!

Case in point, the lovely recipe that Tiffany has given us for Mac & Cheese.  You might be thinking to yourself, how could we possibly make this awesome recipe any better? Answer: sneak in some veggies!!! Because we are using THRIVE, we can take any vegetable that our little ones do not like and blend it (while it is in freeze dried form) to make a meal or powder. Once this is accomplished, you can add in this "powder" into anything you are eating already. Do this long enough and the kiddos will start to develop a taste for that veggie!!! Cool right!! The neat thing is, you are making whatever dish you add them to healthier for everyone! You can also use this veggie powder as an awesome on the go baby food, just add water!

SOOO SNEAKY!!!! 

 

One of my favorite things to make is cauliflower pizza. It is an awesome way to sneak in some veggies and they won't even care cuz they just love the pizza. Here is what you need:

CRUST

Coconut Oil or Non-stick spray
2 ½ cups FD cauliflower crumbles (I like to prepare them the same way I prepare graham cracker crust...although slightly more coarse)

4 Cups of hot water
1 TBL. Whole Egg Powder, prepared (Add 2 TBL. water)
1 cup mozzarella cheese

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Salt and black pepper (or Peppercorn Blend)

 

TOPPINGS
1/4 cup homemade or store bought tomato sauce

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Any of your favorite toppings!! Get Creative!!!

Basil Seasoning for garnish

DirectionsPreheat oven to 425 degrees. Line your baking sheet with parchment paper.
Crush the cauliflower until you have about 2 cups of cauliflower crumbles. Place in a large bowl and add hot water. Let sit for about 5 minutes. Remove, strain all the excess water and let cool. Mix in the egg, mozzarella, Parmesan cheese, and salt and pepper. Once combined, pat into the prepared pizza pan. Brush lightly with the coconut oil (or spray with cooking spray) and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until golden. (Watch this closely, ovens vary)
Top the pizza with the sauce, mozzarella, and your favorite toppings. Bake in the oven until melted and bubbly, about 10 minutes. Top with basil before serving. Yummy!!!

Power Pancakes

Pancake recipe number three is a great way to start your day. If you're trying to eat clean or at least a little healthier this is a yummy way to do it. We all know that oatmeal is good for you and egg whites are a great way to add protein, so let's put them together!

You Will Need:
2 1/2 cups oats
6 egg whites
1 c milk
1 Tbs flax seed
1 Tbs coconut oil
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla

Directions:
Heat a griddle or skillet and spray with cooking spray or melt some coconut oil (what I use). Put all ingredients in a blender and turn it on. Mix it up good. Pour batter onto heated griddle by the 1/4 cup. Cook until pancakes start to bubble and then flip. Cook an additional 1-2 minutes. These pancakes are really thick and hearty, but cook through easily. Serve with applesauce, peanut butter, banana, agave, honey, whatever floats your boat.

Thrifty Thursday - Coconut Hair Treatment

Good Morning Everyone!!!

Who else is loving our ode to Mothers this month!?! We hope that you are taking advantage of our thrifty tips on how to keep the special woman in your life pampered!

We have another great one for you this morning!

Who wishes they had the amazing hair that you see in all the hair product commercials that is super shiny and perfect? Ok...you can all put your hands down....we gotcha covered!

NOBODY knows hair woes better than I do. I have naturally curly hair, and let me tell you it has a mind of it's own! I have struggled to tame my mane my whole life. Dry winter months are almost as hard to manage as humid summer days....Most of the time I just look like a lion or a homeless poodle. Either way, not exactly the hair commercial look I am going for. About a month ago, I found a recipe for an oil treatment for hair, and I decided that it couldn't get any worse, why not give it a try!

BOY am I glad that I did!! I found that for several days after I used this oil treatment, my hair was soft, shiny, and would finally succumbed to my will!!! SWEET VICTORY!!!

As if this isn't great enough, there are actually a couple bonuses that come with! It smells amazing, is also great for your skin, and naturally fights dandruff!!! Give it a try, what could you lose!!

What you are gonna need:
Coconut oil (I use tropical traditions)
Honey (THRIVE Honey crystals work amazing!)
***If you use a lot of hair product, add in some baking soda, about a Tablespoon for every cup of coconut oil***

Mix these together until you get a nice cream. I use my kitchen aid with the whip attachement. It makes it nice and fluffy. Massage into your hair and scalp. Now take a deep breath....smells amazing right? pull your hair into a bun, or if you have short hair, use a shower cap. Leave in for atleast 20 minutes. Shower and wash your hair as normal.
You can also enjoy this treatment as a hot oil treatment. just heat both the honey and the coconut oil together. Put into a squeeze bottle and put directly onto your hair. Follow the same porcedure as the regular treatment above.

Enjoy your new shiny locks!!

Strawberry Cheesecake or Pina Colada Muddy Buddies

My anniversary is coming up.   8 years of marriage...woohoo!  Annnnd we dated for 3 years preceding that so really to us it feels like an 11 year anniversary.

Even though Drew is training for a triathlon and probably doesn't actually have time to be indulging in a sweet tooth craving, I thought I'd be super considerate and make him something sweet anyway. ;)  He loves to munch (ask what he does after the kids go to bed almost every night to keep himself awake while he works late hours)  so I thought I'd help him switch it up a bit and add some zang to the late night hours.

This post can really be blamed on Dessert Now, Dinner Later who introduced the idea of Cherry Cheesecake Muddy Buddies.  Then, I was talking to Meilea about the Muddy Buddy recipes she's tried and she said her favorite is Strawberry Cheesecake.  I told her, I was thinking the same thing... man, these would taste so much better with Freeze Dried Strawberries added in for REAL Strawberry flavor.  And then my mind started wandering and I thought, self, Freeze Dried Pineapple is ALWAYS a hit... you must do the Muddy Buddies some justice and use REAL Pineapples in at least one recipe.  So I kindly listened to both trains of thought and created 2 recipes that I am SURE you are going to enjoy, like TODAY.

In fact, I'm so sure you'll enjoy them because my sister took a bag of these to her work to enjoy, and brought a baggie for her carpooling friend.  She came home with multiple requests for the recipes and $16 (and more money to come) to pay for baggies to be distributed at work.  Yes, they're awesome!

First up:
Strawberry Cheesecake Muddy Buddies

Ingredients:
10 c Chex cereal of choice
1 (12 oz) bag White Chocolate Chips
1 (10 oz) bag of Cherry Chips (or 2 white)
2 T Coconut Oil (you can use shortening)
3/4 c FD Strawberries, ground into powder
2 (4 oz) boxes Jello Brand Cheesecake Pudding Mix
1 c Powdered Sugar

Directions:
1. Grind Strawberries in your food processor or blender.
2. Get a ziplock bag and combine Strawberry Powder, Powdered Sugar and Cheesecake Pudding Mix.
3. Measure out your cereal into a large bowl.
4. Empty your White Chocolate Chips, Cherry Chips and Coconut Oil into a microwave safe bowl.  Microwave them for 30 seconds at a time stirring well in between each time increment.
5. Pour steadily over bowl of Chex mix and use a soft spatula to mix the melted chocolate around and completely cover the mix.  You will want to make sure there aren't huge chunks that need to be broken up before adding to the Powder Mixture.
6. Dump chocolate covered cereal into the Powder Mixture and shake until it is evenly coated.
7. Put into a serving container and ENJOY!

I like to premeasure everything so once the chips are melted,
we're ready to roll through all of the remainding steps.

Kid tested, Mother approved :)

Yes, even bloggers making a professional post find ways to make incredible messes.
I love how my nephew seizes the moment and thinks, sweet, I'm going to grab some while they're all over.

Second recipe for the day:

Pina Colada Muddy Buddies

Ingredients:

10 c Chex Cereal of your choice

1 (12 oz) bag of White Chocolate Chips

2 T Coconut Oil (or you can use shortening)

3/4 c FD Pineapple

1/2 c FD Vanilla Yogurt Bites (can replace with 1/4 c powdered sugar)

3/4 c Powdered Sugar

1/4 c Coconut Flakes, ground up slightly

1 (4 oz) box Jello Brand Coconut Creme Pudding Mix

Directions:

1. Grind Pineapple, Vanilla Yogurt and Coconut Flakes in your food processor or blender.
2. Get a ziplock bag and combine Pineapple, Coconut, and Yogurt Powder, Powdered Sugar and Coconut Creme Pudding Mix.
3. Measure out your cereal into a large bowl.
4. Combine White Chocolate Chips and Coconut Oil into a microwave safe bowl.  Microwave them for 30 seconds at a time stirring well in between each time increment.
5. Pour steadily over bowl of Chex mix and use a soft spatula to mix the melted chocolate around and completely cover the mix.  You will want to make sure there aren't huge chunks that need to be broken up before adding to the Powder Mixture.
6. Dump chocolate covered cereal into the Powder Mixture and shake until it is evenly coated.
7. Put into a serving container and ENJOY!

I'm a chocolate kinda girl, so of course I had to make a Reese's and Andes (different from this recipe) version.  I also found these Milky Way, and Cookies n' Cream versions to get started on.  YUM!

Thanks for stopping by!


Question of the Day:
  What is your favorite Muddy Buddy Recipe?

30 Days of THRIVE - Peach Chicken

So I decided to get kinda creative with my 30 days of THRIVE dinner this time. You are gonna love this!!! We did!!  This dinner is only only 4 or 5 ingredients! Awesome right? Right!

 

 

PEACH CHICKEN

What you are gonna need:
THRIVE Freeze Dried Chicken Dices
THRIVE Freeze Dried Peaches
THRIVE Peach Drink Mix
THRIVE Flour
THRIVE Potato Beads
               OR
THRIVE White Rice
(Adjust to fit your serving sizes!!)

1. Rehydrate your chicken. I like to toss them around in the pan before I add the other ingredients to carmalize them a bit!

2. Prepare your side....either the potatoes or the white Rice. Either taste wonderful!

3. Add to your hot pan about 2 cups of water and about 6 Tablespoons of Peach drink mix. (If you are making more just increase these until you like the flavor.) You want the consistency to be thicker than a drink, but thinner than a sauce. Add in peach pieces that you have broken up into smaller chunks. Allow them to rehydrate. Cook the chicken in this for just a couple minutes to allow the flavor to get into the chicken.

4. Once everything smells really good and is getting thicker, thicken it with a little flour, or you can also make a roux with some flour and butter. I thicken it until it is a thin sauce. Pour this mixture over a bed of potatoes or rice. YUM!

 

We also tried this on a bed of greens (baby spinach blend) as a salad!! I must say that this makes a great little salad as well!! No additional dressing needed!!

MM - Prosperous Pregnancy

Good Morning Everybody!

I hope that your mother's day weekend went great! I know mine did!! I feel like the luckiest mama around! My little one took his first SOLO steps yesterday!! SO fun to watch!

 

My post today is part of the Prosperous Pregnancy Series, and is geared towards all those pregnant mamas who want to have a fit and healthy pregnancy, and maybe control the weight gain a little. What's that you say? All pregnant mamas want to do this? Well then you are in luck! Read on!

First off, let me just say that I am not a nutritionist, so please take everything I post with a grain of salt....or maybe not, we don't want you to swell!! :) I am just a normal mama that loves to eat healthy food and during my first pregnancy I had to do a lot of research. I found out so many things that we should and should not be doing during pregnancy. Let's try and get rid of some of those should-not notions today! Here goes:

I am eating for 2....that means double the food!
WRONG! What this actually means is that EVERYTHING that you put in your mouth, you are putting in your gorwing babies body. That means that everytime you choose that big slice of cake or large milkshake, your little one is getting a taste of all that sugar!! YUM! Now don't get me wrong, I have a sweet tooth the sixe of Texas, but you have to think about what you are putting in the both of your bodies. Allow yourself to enjoy these things every once in a while, but do it smart! Instead of that large slice of cake, try and smaller slice with lots of water! Or try substituting something a little healthier like fruit and honey. One general rule is to make sure that when you eat, you need to make sure that you have a good balance of foods. Anytime you eat you need to accompany your food with a serving of fruit/veggie and a protein. This allows your body to send good nutrients to the baby and have enough left over to take care of your body as well. Especially while you are pregnant, your pancreas is working over time trying to make sure that you are processing the foods you are eating and getting as much out of them as possible. You can help it out a little by eating the right combo of foods. Just remember lots of water, tons of fruit and veggies, and moderation!!!

Fats are not good for me or the baby.
WRONG AGAIN!!! Good natural fats are great for a developing baby! Now I am not saying that you should go out and eat a stick of butter, but don't exclude these from your diet in an effort to keep the pounds away. Fats help the baby develop their brains and they help keep your body running. The key is again to use them in moderation. Pay attention to serving size and pick good fats. Things like avocado, coconut oil, real butter, nuts, these help your body!

Meats and Eggs are the only sources of good protein.
DOUBLE WRONG! Nuts are wonderful sources of protein to pair with snacks or in salads. Cheese can also be a great pairing for snack time. My personal favorite of an awesome source of unexpected protein is Greek yogurt! I will substitute this for sour cream or in salad dressing for a little extra protein in a kinda sneaky way! Beans are another excellent way to get in lots of protein. I know what you are thinking....what about all the gas? Well, mustard seed and mint helped me alot during pregnancy. I just added the in whenever I could.

Excercise is dangerous during pregnancy.
This is a trick question. depending on your pregnancy, this can be dangerous. Please always consult with your OB/GYN. However, most pregnancies are fine with light exercise. Walking is a great way to do this as well as help get you some stress relief. Housework also counts, bonus right?! Another thing that I really loved while I was pregnant, was yoga specifically formatted for pregnancy. This was a great way to help me stretch and release some stress. It also seemed to make my little one really chill, so I would do some before bed time and that helped us both get a little more sleep.

As long as I am drinking lots of liquids, I am good.
This is my most favorite WRONG! I LOVE water. I probably love it more than I should. Something that I have noticed with several pregnant women, is that they think that as long as they are getting plenty of liquids, they are covered. I cannot stress enough the importance of getting WATER. Once you add something into water, such as a flavoring, like mio or flavor packets, your body can no longer process it as water. Your body and your growing baby needs plenty of pure water in order to maintain a healthy balance. This is what makes your babies home for 9 months, why not make it as great as possible right?

The most important thing that you can do during pregancy is to enjoy it. Don't stress too much about what to do or not to do. Just keep it simple and remember to follow the basics. Once that little one comes you will realize that pregnancy actually goes by very fast...so slow down and enjoy it!!!

Whole Wheat Banana Pancake

Ok this pancake was so good! I think this one will become a regular in our house. It's super easy, doesn't use a ton of utensils or bowls, and is healthy!

You Will Need:
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup milk
1 egg
1 Tbs brown sugar
1 Tbs melted coconut oil
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 ripe banana

Directions:
Dump everything in the blender and turn it on. Run until smooth. My blender is old and pretty burnt out so I had to stop and scrape the sides every once in a while. After the batter is blended let it sit for 5 minutes. In the mean time heat a skillet with cooking spray or if your like me more coconut oil (I highly recommend the coconut oil). Pour about 1/4 cup batter onto greased skillet and cook until the pancake bubbles around edges, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook an additional 1-2 minutes. Serve with more sliced bananas, natural peanut butter and agave (what I ate it with) or traditional syrup. Yumm-O! You can find the original recipe here.

Sugar Hand Scrub

Are you ready for a super easy and cheap Mother's Day gift? Make it for yourself (please do!) and the other mama's in your life. I don't know about you but my hands get so dry and scaly. I am constantly washing my hands and no amount of moisturizing hand soap or hand lotion keeps my knuckles from cracking (ouch!). I love this sugar scrub though, because it sloughs off dead skin cells while leaving your hands nice and silky.

You Will Need:
Sugar
Dawn Dish Soap WITH Olay
A container

It's important that you get the Dawn with Olay. The most common is the pink version which smells like pomegranates. I did see a few others though, a white, and a blue or purple I believe. The dish soap costs right around 3 bucks. I did also see a Great Value version, but I stuck with the original. For my container I used a half pint mason jar, which cost about 50 cents each. And if you have a bunch of empties laying around then all the better!

Directions:

Fill your jar/container 3/4 of the way with sugar. Add the dish soap to the bottom of the rim. Mix together. Keep adding sugar and mixing until you've reached your desired consistency. You don't want it to be super runny, you only need enough soap to wash with. The main ingredient is the sugar. Some people like a lot of sugar so it's really just up to you. It should resemble a thick paste. Feel free to test it out to make sure you've reached the right consistency.

To use:
Just scoop out a small amount and scrub into hands and rinse with warm water. It feels so good (and smells good too!)

Wasn't that a cheap and easy gift? Less than $5 and 5 minutes to make. Now just make a cute label to slap on the jar and add a bow and your good to go.

How to Use Powdered Milk

Printable Recipes and Instructions

Once you start storing powdered milk at home, you wonder how you ever went without it before.  It is so wonderful never having to run to the store last minute because you are out of milk or canned milk products like sweetened condensed milk.

The great thing about powdered milk is that it provides a large variety of things we have in our regular diets which we would have a difficult time doing with out including buttermilk, sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, cheese, yogurt, cream cheese, cottage cheese, ricotta cheese, whipped cream… you get the picture.  So, if you like one or more of the proceeding items, you might want to consider getting some milk in your “Home Store”.

Powdered milk will become more than just a comfort food if we ever had to solely rely on food storage for dietary needs.  As you think about all of the calcium it provides for strong healthy bones in growing children and adults as well as a much more flavorful option than water in recipes it becomes a no brainer to add it to your home store.

Go here to learn more about the differences in powdered milks that are on the market as well as to learn why it is an important thing to stock up on for your Home Store. Click here to learn how to make Homemade Cream of Chicken or Cream of Mushroom soups.

Basic powdered milk conversions:

To Make:   You need	Water	THRIVE Instant Milk	Non-Instant
¼ cup	¼ cup	1-½ T	1 t
½ cup	½ cup	3 T-1/4 c	1 ½ T
1 cup	1 cup	1/3 c-1/2 c	3T
1 quart	1 quart	3/4c -1 c	1/3 c
1 pint	1 pint	1 1/2 -2 c	1-1/3 c
1 gallon	1 gallon	3-4 c	2-2/3 c

In most cases (like for baking bread) double the amount of powder for instant milk. I left variance in it because I know that some people like it stronger, but it is great with the lower amount.

When I taught a powdered milk class, hands down the THRIVE won 1st place.  I get people who drink it at my house all of the time who didn't realize it was "fake milk" or whatever nonbelievers like to call it ;)  We also sell a milk alternative we call non-fat powdered milk as well as a chocolate drink mix!

Now for the recipes!

Buttermilk aka Sour Milk

View this post for full details as well as a print out.  In recipes that call for buttermilk you simply need to put a teaspoon of either lemon juice or vinegar in the bowl, then add water and powdered milk.  Let it stand for 5 minutes as the acid creates the chemical reaction, then use as needed.

Evaporated Milk

1-1/2  C Water
1/2  C + 1 T non fat dry powdered milk

Blend very well in a blender. 

Evaporated Milk was created back in the 1920′s and 30's as a way to replace expensive cream and whole milk in recipes. It is whole milk with more than half the water removed before it is homogenized. DO NOT USE IT AS A SUBSTITUTE FOR SWEETENED CONDENSED MILK. However, you can use it to substitute for half and half. Isn’t that great?! I know I don’t keep half and half stocked in my fridge. Use Evaporated Milk, made from your food storage, in any recipe by doubling the amount of the dry powdered milk and leaving the water the same. As a good rule of thumb to go by, for normal milk made from your powdered milk it is 3 T. dry powdered milk per 1 C. water and don’t forget there are 16 T. in a cup.

Sweetened Condensed Milk

½ c hot water              2T melted margarine or butter

1 c sugar                       1 c non fat dry powdered milk
1 t vanilla

Mix all ingredients in a blender or food processor. If lacking electricity you can boil the water beforehand and mix quickly with a whisk but it will not be as smooth.  Mix on high for one full minute. The mixture will be kind of thin, but will thicken up after standing for about an hour. This recipe makes about 1 ½ cups, or the equivalent of one can of condensed milk. This mixture stores in the fridge for a week, or for longer storage, freeze it for a few months, and then just thaw before using. The cans of Sweetened Condensed Milk cost about $1.50 in the store so this is a great deal with very little effort involved in the process!

Shop now!  

My New Favorite Shortcut for Beans

Welcome back to our 30 Days of THRIVE Tuesday!

Today we have another side recipe that can easily be turned into an economical main meal with the addition of homemade tortillas to our recipes.

Double Decker Mexican Pizza made with Shortcut Refired Bean Recipe.

I was excited to see that the THRIVE Black Beans were on sale this month because there is a new trick I've been dying to share with everyone this month.

I know in the past we've already discussed how I like to substitute beans for butter in my desserts.  I bring them to events and get asked for recipes and no one is the wiser until I let them in on the little secret.  (In fact, I have another fantastic one coming again soon :) People either think its genius or disgusting.  Make sure to tell me what you think by commenting below.

Well, I think this next trick I am going to share with you will be considered genius across the board.  I love beans and really love the simplicity and ease of bean burritos.  I do often think about how nice it would be if less electricity and time were used to make them.  It would bring me so much joy to cook up some tasty burritos in the blink of an eye without having to have soaked them the night before and cooked them all day in my crockpot.

Enter bean flour...
Some of you may be saying what the heck is that.

This is bean flour... white bean flour.  It amazes me how similar it looks to well, flour.

It has totally changed things for me and I am excited to share a bean recipe that will now only take you a few minutes so you really can have that "instant" bean fix at any time.

I love my Blendtec Kitchen Mill Grinder since I can use it on SO many things (post coming about that on Saturday), so I would highly recommend getting one because they truly pay for themselves  once you take the time to mill your own products.  However, if you don't have the money to buy one right now, you can even do this in a blender.  Make sure that you only blend small amounts of beans at a time so it can grind everything to an even powder.

The first time I ground my beans into powder, lets just say breathing was not easy and I wasn't sure what I had done wrong.  Thankfully, I found out that this is a common thing for people so here are some tips for success.

When using the Kitchen Mill Grinder, here are some tips for success:
- Set Kitchen Mill in a DRY, empty kitchen sink, fill hopper with beans, cover with a towel before turning on, then start the machine.  This will trap a lot of dust that may have seeped out.
- Be sure to clean your "F" shaped filter out with each hopper load of beans.  You can just scrape the edges of this into the hopper before loading your next batch of beans so the flour isn't wasted.  (It holds alot!)
- Clean your "F" filter with soap and water and allow to completely air dry before next batch so it will be ready for the nest use.

Now for the recipe.  Although when I make refried beans, typically I just season them the way I like depending on the mood I am in, I got this one off of allrecipes.com because it specifically calls for BEAN FLOUR to make the recipe super speedy.  Now I know that is calls for Salsa and if you are using this as a THRIVE only (plus spices) recipe then you may not have salsa on hand, but you can simply add a little more seasoning, Tomato Powder FD Green Chile and you're in business.... or if you'd prefer, you can decrease the water to 2 c and and add in my Homemade El Pato Recipe.


Printable Recipe
Shortcut Refried Beans 30 Days of THRIVE Recipe:
3/4 c THRIVE Black Beans (Equals about 1 c bean flour)*
1 1/2  t THRIVE Salt
2 T THRIVE FD Onions
1/4 t garlic powder (optional)
1/2 t ground cumin
1/4 t chili powder
3 c warm water
2 T THRIVE FD Green Chile
2 t THRIVE Tomato Powder

1. Grind beans in a blender or grinder.  Set aside.
2. Combine water, FD Green Chile, Tomato Powder and seasonings in a medium sized pot.
3. Whisk in Black Bean Powder.  Bring to a boil and let simmer for about 15 minutes or until thickened. Serve warm.

*To make mixture thicker for bean burritos, increase to 1 c dried beans.  You can also use Pinto Beans instead of Black Beans if you'd prefer and it will work great.\

Original Recipe:
3/4 c dried bean
1/2 t salt
1/2 t ground cumin
1/2 t chili powder
2 1/2 c warm water
1/2 c salsa

1. Grind beans until fine using blender or food grinder.  Place in a saucepan and whisk in salt, cumin, chili powder and water.  Boil for 15 minutes.

2. When the mixture has thickened stir and cook another 4 minutes.  Remove from heat and stir in salsa.  Use as dip or for burrito filling.

MM - Baby Days! Snackage.....

Happy Monday everyone!!!

I don't know about all of you, but snacks make the world go 'round in our household. Once Noah could eat solids, snacks were gold, in fact, this is still the case! My little guy is a super eater and loves meal time. Most of the time we are super busy and snacks fill the gaps for us. So today I thought that I would give you some "food for thought"!

Has anyone tried those yogurt bites that they have in the baby isle? Either the gerber brand or the store brand, to me they taste so weird. Now, have you tried the THRIVE yogurt bites? AMAZING!!!! In my humble opinion, the THRIVE yogurt bites melt easier in the little ones mouth, taste WAY better, and kiddos love them!! Not to mention that they are a ton cheaper! Noah's fav is Strawberry!

The thing I love most about THRIVE foods is that they make the perfect snack right out of the can! The fruits and veggies are awesome for when your little one starts to feed themselves! Try the peas, corn, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, mangos, and pears! They are great starter foods and they love the crunch! Noah absolutlely loves the fruits and veggies especially while he is teethin!! The applesauce is also amazing!



What about when they get a little older and goldfish are the bomb.com? Well, I was perusing the THRIVE cookbook the other day and I found this little gem! AMAZING!!! We made a batch this weekend and they were devoured!!!

***I have to add a disclaimer. I don't have an actual picture of the ones that we made this weekend. They were gobbled up rather quickly and I forgot to take a picture in the craziness that happened this weekend. Me and Noah got some burns on saturday as i was cooking. Some hot oil splashed on the both of us. Things have been just a little out of whack ever since then. ***


Photo courtesy of THRIVE Cookbook

Here is what you will need:
1 1/4 Cups TRIVE Flour (Whole wheat or white)
1/2 Cup THRIVE Cheese Blend
1/8 teaspoon THRIVE Baking Soda
1/4 teaspoon THRIVE Salt
3 Tablespoons Oil (I use coconut oil)
1/2 Cup Water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all your dry ingredients. Slowly add oil until the mixture is crumbly. SLOWLY add water until you form a tight dough.
Roll out you dough very thin (they will puff up when they bake) about 1/8 of an inch. Cut into squares or your favorite shape. Poke a hole in the top of them and transfer onto a greased cookie sheet. Sprinkle with salt.
Bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden. Cool completely before removing them from the pan.
Happy Snackin!

What are YOU doing to create a Peace of Mind?

I get asked pretty frequently so what do YOU buy?  What do YOU do to prepare?  I try to write mini posts from time to time on my favorite products, but I thought it might be more helpful to have a post each month where you can see my goals for the month and keep me accountable.  I in turn would also love to hear what you are doing to bring your home more peace of mind.

I am a very goal oriented, list making person.  It’s pretty silly but I’m even the type that if I’ve accomplished something that wasn’t on the list, I write in on the list and mark it off.  It helps me recognize all of my accomplishments and stay focused on long term goals.  I figure the beginning of the month when I am already planning my financial budget, monthly Q and purchases, and posting sales for the month would also be a good reminder for me to make a list of priorities on the blog.

Things I accomplished during April

-  I bought my Kindle Cook Kit and extra Flameless Pouches!

THRIVE Life just released the Kindle at Convention this year and I am particularly excited about this product because I think it will be perfect to add to my 72 hour kits.  Because it is a flameless heating source, it is something that I can even teach my 5 year old to use so if (Heaven forbid) we were to be separated for some reason, he'd be able to heat an instant entree.  (Just realized, I need to add the goal of teaching my son to use this and use his 72 hour kit to the list)

-         I bought my GP Tent.  Woohoo!

If there were a huge catastrophe, I want to be able to have a portable home for my family to live in should we be misplaced from our home.  This was something I've been waiting to get for 2 years.  I did a little happy dance 2 weekends ago when I was FINALLY able to check that off of my list of things to do.

-   Bought my Stove in a Can and Replacement Fuel

Although I hope for my Sun Oven to be my main form of cooking on a daily basis in an emergency situation and Volcano Stove to be my back up, I recognize that living in Denver means that the weather is crazy and unpredictable.  I need to start planning alternative options in case there are situations that prevent us from using our first two options. These are some of the benefits of the Stove in a Can:

     * Works well in extreme weather conditions
     * Can boil water in less than 5 minutes
     * Compact and portable (excellent for 72 hour kits)
     * Easy to set up and take down
     * Fuel source is safe and non-explosive
     * The replacement fuel is nice because each disk provides an hour of fuel.
      
-         Got more cooking oils in storage.

-         Got my Sawyer Water Filter

I love that this product is guaranteed for 1 MILLION gallons of water.  This means clean water for life.  Before this product was released, I had been most excited about my Katadyn Pocket Filter (which I still like and think will be good for on the go situations) but if we are going to be needing a filtered water source long term, I love that I won't be having to ask, gee, I wonder how many more gallons of water this filter is good for.  AMAZING!

Preparation Goals for May

***Main Goal*** I want to have a typed out Year Long Meal Plan for Food Storage.

-         Links to recipes (print outs of each)

-         Figure out amount of food I need to have to make them
-    Figure out cooking plan for these meals.  (How much charcoal would I need for my Volcano Stove if cooking on it once a week, which meals will work in the Wonder Oven, Sun Oven... etc)
          o  Get 3 bags of charcoal in storage for use with my VolcanoStove since it is cheaper during the summer.

-         Convert 2 recipes from this list to THRIVE for the blog

          o   Make at least one meal in my SunOvens (since I have 2 at my home -only one is mine-, I would like to make a main meal in one and side dishes in the other.  Check out tips here)

-         Have at least one meal that includes each of the May Q items in it.


-     Buy Food Saver so I can start dry packing meals to have on hand for easy meals or grab n go situation.

          o  Use Food Saver to pack a meal to have 1 day every other week for a year. (26 jars) 

          o  Use Food Saver to pack a cookie recipe to have 1 day a month for a year. (12 jars) 

-         Try one bread in a jar recipe from www.thatsmyhome.com

          o  Use Food Saver to pack a bread in a jar recipe for each day for 2 weeks. (14 jars)

-     Buy my cylinder stove for my tent.

-     Print out Emergency Grab n Go Binder from Misty’s Site

-     Teach son and nephew how to use the Kindle Cook.  

-     Update clothing in 72 hour kits since baby will be coming soon.