Insanely Simple Snacks for Kids

Posted on April 14, 2013 by RaddestMom

So, obviously these aren’t ground breaking recipes, here. I’m just sending out a reminder to moms that you can have healthy, cheap snacks ready for your kids in minutes without opening up a single processed food package. Keep a variety of fruits and vegetables handy so you can always come up with something creative last minute. Use what you have! If you have time to make some easy-mac, you have time for these!

1. Baked Sweet Potato Fries (8 months & up)

Slice sweet potatoes into french fry pieces. Coat with olive oil & a small amount of salt (only if your child is over a year). Spread them out on a cookie sheet and bake at 425 degrees for 20-30 min, “stirring” the fries every 10 min. You can also skip the salt & sprinkle some cinnamon and honey (no honey till 1 yr) on them instead! Perfect for a teething baby to gnaw on, or an older child to snack on!

2. Hummus & Veggie Plate (18 mos & up)

Cut up 1 or 2 of your child’s favorite vegetable. Put a dollop of hummus on the plate and let them dip as much as they want!

3. Fruit & Honey (honey after 1 yr)

This is one of my favorite snacks. Adding some raw honey to a piece of fruit is a sure way to curb a sweet tooth. My favorites are strawberries, blueberries, grapefruit, and oranges.

4. Celery Sticks with Cream Cheese and Turkey (2 & up)

Fill celery with cream cheese & top with a slice of shaved turkey breast!

5. Avocado Toast (2 & up)

Slice & mash ripe avocado on top of a healthy slice of toast.

6. Baked Cinnamon Apple Chips ( 2 & up)

Slice an apple into thin slices. Slightly grease a cookie sheet with unsalted butter or coconut oil. Spread out apples & sprinkle with cinnamon. Bake in oven at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes.

7. Baked Kale Chips (18 mos & up)

You can make these in so many different flavors. Sometimes I use soy sauce or grated parmesan, but normally I just stick with my basic recipe: Peel kale from the stem and rip into bite size pieces. Spread onto pan, coat them with olive oil, a LITTLE bit of salt, and bake in a 400 degree oven for 10-12 minutes until kale is crunchy. Careful with the salt, a little bit goes a long way with these. Even the pickiest kid will love them!

8. Peanut Butter & Banana Toast (2 & up)

Spread some real, no sugar added peanut butter on a healthy slice of toast & top it with sliced banana. If you want it to be a little sweeter, drizzle some raw honey on top!

9. Frozen Grapes (18 months & up)

Skewer some grapes, and freeze them! Can also be frozen and eaten without skewer for younger kids. Great alternative to sugary popsicles. You can also make a fruit shish-kabob with grapes, kiwi, mango, pineapple, etc. Fun!

10. Parmesan Cheese Crisps (18 mos & up)

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Put a tablespoon of shredded parmesan cheese (fresh, not the one in the green can!) on the sheet and lightly pat down so it’s in a disc shape. Leave 2 inches in between each one. Bake at 400 degrees for 5 minutes. Let cool, then peel off & you have parmesan chips!

I highly encourage you to make snacks for your kids instead of opening up packages. Those foods are loaded with sodium, sugar, corn syrup, and other additives that will leave your kids feeling unsatisfied & still hungry. They will thank you one day!

Lisa O

How To Eat Healthy On A Budget

Posted on April 3, 2013 by RaddestMom

So, I’ve been getting a lot of angsty tweets from moms saying things like, “Sorry, I can’t afford organic food, I’m not rich!”, and “Not all of us can find these healthy ingredients in our local stores.” Okay, okay. Enough whining peeps. The truth is, you CAN afford to feed your family healthy, clean food on a small budget. I know several families who do. There is NO excuse to not give your kids healthy things 90% of the time. I’m going to show you how.

1. You don’t need to buy EVERYTHING organic

Some foods are dirtier than others. HERE is a list of the “dirty dozen” aka 12 foods you should buy organic. Foods with hard outer shells are less likely to be pesticide dense. This is a simple way for you to be able to pick and choose how you spend your money on organic goods.

2. Grow your own vegetable garden

This sounds difficult, but it really isn’t. I have my own vegetable garden that is no bigger than 3×12 feet. I grow cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, strawberries, and eggplant as well as herbs in planter pots. This is a GREAT way to save money. You can have an abundance of normally expensive organic produce for FREE in your own yard. It’s also a fun activity to do with your kids. I googled how to plant a garden and did it myself. It’s that easy. Bam, no excuses.

This is an actual photo of my vegetable garden at home.

3. Buy in bulk when there’s a good deal, and preserve the leftovers

When my tomato plants spit out a zillion tomatoes, I make salsa and can it, as well as strawberry jam with my abundant strawberry harvest. You can can anything: Pickles, green beans, tomatoes, onions, etc. You can dehydrate the tomatoes in the oven as well and use them for so many dishes. Freezing your berries is also great for smoothies. Once again, there is endless info on how to do this stuff on google.

4. Buy frozen organic produce

Freezing something does not lessen the nutritional value. So, check the frozen foods aisle for organic frozen vegetables and fruit instead of buying something fresh if you’re going to be cooking it anyway. For example, frozen organic green beans are generally cheaper than fresh ones, and fresh ones go bad quickly.

5. Make your own butter

Organic butter can be expensive. HERE is a great recipe for making butter. All it involves is heavy cream and a pinch of salt. Cheaper and tastier.

6. Make your own bread

This is easier than you think. If sprouted grain bread is too hardcore for you, start out with a basic whole grain recipe. You can google a zillion recipes for that, but I won’t give a link because I’m not a huge fan of wheat. I make my own bread using flax seeds:

FLAX SEED BREAD <–click for video tutorial

7. Stay away from pre-packaged food

Here are some commonly used pre-packaged items that can be easily made into organic food:

“Shake N’ Bake chicken coating“- take a leftover loaf of bread or baguette and leave it out over night, uncovered. The next day the bread will be hard. The next day, cut the bread into chunks, and grind it up into crumbs in the food processor. Bam, that’s what breadcrumbs are, folks. Add some dried herbs: salt, pepper, paprika, garlic salt, oregano, basil, and onion powder & there ya go, shake n bake chicken without cancer. Every time I have an old loaf of bread, I dry it, grind it, and freeze it in a bag so I always have fresh breadcrumbs.
Organic Salad Dressing- combine olive oil, juice of a freshly squeezed lemon or lime, 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar, salt, pepper, and a teaspoon of grainy dijon mustard. Whisk together. Super cheap & delicious.
Organic Whipped Cream- Empty a chilled container of heavy whipping cream into a stand mixer, along with 2 tsp of vanilla extract. Whip till it becomes whipped cream!
Organic Baked French Fries- cut potatoes into french fry sticks (not thin). Coat with olive oil, salt & pepper. Spread on baking sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 40 minutes, turning and flipping fries every 15-20 min. Can also be done with sweet potatoes. These are insanely delicious.

8. Cut back on spending in other areas

It is worth it to give your family what they need nutritionally, I promise. If you can afford to not buy certain things you don’t need during the month, spend that money on GOOD groceries. Your health is important.

The list goes on…From now on, every time you go to cook or eat something pre-packaged, google to find out if there’s a way to mimic the recipe using real, whole food ingredients. That is a great way to start transitioning into healthier eating habits. Just to prove to my skeptics that this can be done without spending a ton of money, I will regularly be posting photos and recipes of the foods I cook and eat.

Happy Eating!

Lisa O

Incase You Haven’t Heard

Posted on March 28, 2013 by RaddestMom

Obama has signed the “Monsanto Protection Act”. It was only a matter of time before our President officially signed off on what is one of the most vile attacks on our basic human rights. The “Monsanto Protection Act” was a small provision cleverly slipped into a spending bill, HR933, and was signed on Tuesday.

To simplify this, let’s look at some basic definitions:

Monsanto- A massive biotechnology company that produces food, drugs, pesticides, and is the leader in genetically modified crops. They are a super evil company, and it would appear they are trying to take over the world. HERE is an article if you wish to read more about their doings.

Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO)- is an organism whose genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering techniques. Food, as well as animals can be genetically modified.

Why do they genetically modify crops?- They modify the DNA of certain crops to be resistant to certain pests or bacteria. They basically make the pesticide a part of the DNA, so it’s not sprayed on, it’s actually mutated into the genetic sequence. They also modify the DNA to make the crops grow faster & bigger while lowering the nutritional value.

Why are GMO’s bad for consumption?- The consequences of eating these crops are largely unknown. GMO’s have been banned in the European Union, UK, Australia, Japan and dozens of other countries. All studies done on GMO’s and rats have had horrible outcomes, with the rats growing large tumors after consuming GMO corn. HERE is an amazing, quick 8 reasons why GMO’s are bad.

What is the Monsanto Protection Act?

It gives the USDA the power to allow the planting, harvest, and sale of GMO crops, even if a court rules they were not approved.
It strips away any court’s power to argue with Monsanto or any GMO crops. They are immune to the law.
Even if the crops are found to be extremely dangerous to humans or the environment, the US government now has no power to stop them from ending up on your plate.
Their crops can now evade serious scientific review

Yes, Monsanto and other corps have successfully put themselves above the government. Our government is conspiring with corporations to take away our rights & leave us POWERLESS. The government no longer has our best interest in mind when our President, congress members, and senators are all being told what to do like little puppets.

Since January 2009, Monsanto and other Political Action Groups who support GMO crops have donated over 7.5 MILLION dollars to the campaigns of current congress members, and $372,000 to members of senate.

Here’s a video of Obama promising to label GMO foods in his 2007 campaigning speech:

Now I’m not going to get into Obama bashing, but there is a lot of evidence that points to him being in bed with Monsanto & the other food giants. After all, he did appoint Monsanto’s Vice President as the Senior Advisor to the Commissioner at the FDA. What’s even more ludicrous is Michelle Obama’s campaign for gardens & clean, organic food! This makes NO sense. They’re creating all of these diversions to cover up the real train wreck that is going on.

Do you think it’s coincidence that the provision was slipped into the bill & signed during the week of the highly news-covered equal rights supreme court battle? I guess they thought it would go relatively unnoticed by the press since there was something important going on. I don’t know about you, but I smell shit. The point is, you should wake up and realize that this is a HUGE issue. The health of your future children depends on whether or not we do something about this.

So, what can we do? Remember when all of the sudden “trans fats” became the devil & companies started taking them out of foods & proudly labeling they were TRANSFAT FREE? We can do the same thing with GMO’s. By requiring companies to label their GMO products, we can call them out and avoid them, thus making a path for GMO free products to be put in the spotlight. You can also go HERE and sign a petition and get all learned up on GMO’s.

Open your eyes before you open your mouth.

Lisa O

Good links and articles related to this post:

http://www.ibtimes.com/monsanto-protection-act-5-terrifying-things-know-about-hr-933-provision-1156079

http://stream.aljazeera.com/story/201303282113-0022643

http://foodbeast.com/content/2013/03/27/obama-signs-monsanto-protection-act-get-ready-for-a-riot/

http://www.infowars.com/top-10-excuses-for-obama-signing-the-monsanto-protection-act/

http://www.infowars.com/obama-betrays-america-yet-again-by-signing-the-monsanto-protection-act-into-law/

http://www.examiner.com/article/the-amazing-power-grab-of-gmo-seed-companies-section-735

http://www.wealthdaily.com/articles/obama-sells-government-to-monsanto-nyse-mon/4082

Food Porn

Posted on February 5, 2013 by RaddestMom

It’s late at night, the kids are asleep, and your husband is snoring. Time to indulge in a little “you” time. Go ahead, gaze away. Enjoy

Here’s a little something for you real sicko’s out there. Yeah, I’m talking to you, my fellow twisted brethren who will also salivate at the sight of a delicious salad or vegetable platter. #differentstrokesfordifferentfolks

MMMMMMMmmmmm

Lisa O

My Easy Tips for Losing Weight

Posted on January 6, 2013 by RaddestMom

Here are some things that have kept me from gaining too much weight over the years. Also, I like to kick start this routine after holidays and periods where I get lazy and don’t work out/ eat whatever I want! They are simple principles, but if you stick to them, you should be able to drop about 10 lbs in a month or so, depending on your starting weight.

1. Cut Out Dairy

I’ve heard from a couple of trainers over the years that if you ingest dairy, it takes 4 times longer to digest than most other foods. In my experience, when I didn’t cut out dairy, I still had a layer of stomach fat over the muscle, regardless of how skinny I got. Cut it out and be amazed. Dairy includes YOGURT, guys. Yogurt is packed with sugar and it is a dairy product as well. If you want the pro-biotic benefits, then take a probiotic capsule or drink. I recommend Bio-K from Fermented Rice

2. Cut Out Carbohydrates (or greatly limit them)

I have had numerous stents where I stopped eating carbs, and dropped weight and bloat in virtually no time. This means NO bread, pasta, potatoes, french fries, rice (doesn’t matter if it’s brown, its still rice!), etc. I’m even not a fan of quinoa, as it is still high in carbohydrates. There are actually a lot of carbohydrates in certain fruits and vegetables that you need to avoid. I will list those later in another section.

3. Cut Out Sugar

This includes the obvious: pastries, candy, soda, JUICE (yes, even fruit juice is high in sugar and should not be ingested if you’re trying to lose weight.) Before you eat something, look at the ingredients. You shouldn’t eat anything that is over 5-10 (10 is pushing it) grams of sugar per serving. Fruit is loaded with sugar AND carbohydrates. Yes, it is natural sugar, but so what. Sugar is sugar. Fruit is not bad, guys….that’s not what I’m trying to say. My point is that if you want to lose weight, don’t go eating a bunch of fruit thinking you’re doing the right thing. If you want fruit, have ONE portion in the MORNING. Keep your carbs & sugar low, and only ingest them before 2 p.m. to assure you will properly burn them off before night time!

4. Beware of Fattening Food Disguised as Healthy Food

Some examples of this are but not limited to:

Bananas (carbohydrate sticks)
Yogurt (carb and sugar loaded)
Fruit (carb and sugar loaded)
Corn (carb and sugar loaded)
Peas (carb and sugar loaded)
Beans (carb loaded)
“Wheat” anything- companies put “WHOLE WHEAT” on things to make you think it’s healthy. It’s not.
Juice (fruit juices- fresh or store bought)
Brown Rice (sorry guys, it’s still rice!)
Honey (sugar)
Diet Microwave TV Dinners (most contain a redic amount of carbs and sodium!)
Rice Cakes (empty calories and high in carbs)
Veggie Burgers (don’t even get me started)
Slim Fast Shakes (Possibly the worst thing ever. Full of sugar and carbs and don’t make you full)
Some vegetables like all winter squash, beets, and carrots are high in sugar per serving
Canned Vegetables are high in sodium and low in nutrients
Things labeled as “Natural!”…yeah, sugar is a natural substance, doesn’t mean it’s good for you!

5. Don’t Starve Yourself

Think of the body like a fire, and food as the wood/fuel. The more you put in your body (in quantities small enough to be metabolized quickly), the faster your metabolism will be. Starving yourself does not work. Eat small portions of protein and vegetable dense food every few hours throughout the day. Eating 6 small meals and snacks a day is the way to go. Also, if you eat when you aren’t hungry, you greatly decrease your likelihood of making poor food choices when you’re actually hungry and desperate to eat something quickly!

6. What You Should Be Eating

You should be eating lean meats such as chicken, bison, turkey, and fish. Also, stick to dark green vegetables such as kale, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, etc. Eggs can also be your best friend during this time. Eat them boiled with a little bit of hot sauce for breakfast! Avocado is great with it, too. Salads are always a great choice, so long as your dressing is along the lines of oil and vinegar (beware of store bought and restaurant dressings as they usually put sugar in them.) Salmon is a great source of protein, and it really fills you up.

Additional Tips:

*Cut down salt. Substitute with yummy spices!

*Add lemon to almost everything for flavor boosting

*Stop eating as soon as you have to take a big breath during your meal. It’s always my signal that my tummy is actually full

*Do a GREENS juice cleanse for a couple days before starting a new diet to jumpstart it!

Be Healthy!

Lisa O

Coconut Water Popsicles for Baby!

Posted on November 3, 2012 by RaddestMom

Here is a really easy, healthy way to relieve teething pain. Coconut water (raw), as we know, is extremely beneficial to one’s health. Did you know that raw coconut water has the same mineral nutrient balance as human plasma?! Yes, that means, in a bind, one would be able to intraveneously inject coconut water!

Now, not all coconut waters are alike. It’s always best to get coconut water fresh, from a young coconut. I’ve found the cheapest, best deal on them is at your local Thai or asian market. They usually have boxes of them for pretty cheap (much cheaper than whole foods).

If you are going to use bottled coconut water, I highly recommend HARMLESS HARVEST brand. They use 100% raw coconut water that is never heated. It also tastes incredible! I really dislike the taste of Zico and Vita-CoCo….they taste like doodey.

So, a coconut is technically a fruit, but not really. Part of it is also considered a nut/seed, but also not really since it doesn’t fall into the high allergen category. In fact, almost nobody is allergic to raw coconut. This makes it a great first tasting experience for baby. Coconuts are lightly sweet, and the oil is a good source of fat, perfect for their little tummies. You can give it to the baby as young as 4 months, even before they start solids. As always, put a dab of it on baby’s tongue first and wait an hour or so just to make sure there is no reaction. I make these all the time, and Pearl LOVES them! She will gnaw on it till it’s gone. Here’s an easy way to make them. First, you gotta buy these:

Yes, that’s right, they make baby popsicle molds. They sell them at Babies-r-Us, and I’m sure anywhere else that has baby stuff. You can also order them online at amazon.com

Next, you wanna get some good coconut water. Like I said, I like to use Harmless Harvest (available at whole foods and lassens. Go to their website to order some or find out where they sell locally to you)

Next, I like to water the coconut water down, since it isn’t necessary to have it full strength if your baby is under 6 months (their taste buds will pick up the flavor even if it’s watered down since they’re so sensitive).

You can pour half water, half coconut water in each mold. Then you just freeze them. Voila! Coconut water popsicles. Also, try freezing breastmilk in the same mold! Boob-sicles!

Lisa O

Pearl enjoying her coconut water popsicle!

Nummy Num!

A Motherhood, Fashion, and Health Perspective from a 25 Year old Mama Living in Los Angeles

Tag Archives: food

Insanely Simple Snacks for Kids

How To Eat Healthy On A Budget

Incase You Haven’t Heard

Food Porn

My Easy Tips for Losing Weight

Coconut Water Popsicles for Baby!