Lunch box Round Up #8 and a Surprise!

Welcome to Lunch box Round Up #8! And to avoid keeping you in suspense, I will give you the surprise first. Remember, 2 weeks ago when I posted the idea for the lunch box survey and some of you thought it was a cute idea, but that it might be too time-consuming with the too-short lunch breaks? Well, I've created my own, and not only is it shorter, but it's also REUSABLE! You can just attach it to, or tuck into the lunchboxes, and they can choose whether they want to fill it out each day or not. So, here is your new Lunch box Comment card to print and keep. Please bear in mind, this is the first time I've ever created a printable for the blog and it was So. Much. Harder. than I expected. Whew! So, it's VERY IMPORTANT that you follow the printing instructions to ensure the image prints correctly.

Printing Instructions: 
1. Right click the image and choose "Save Image As"
2. Save it to your computer
3. When ready to print, choose "Best Quality"
4. Choose 4X6 for your print size. (This photo has been formatted to print as a 4X6.)

Here's how to use and REUSE your lunch box comment card:


Trim all the excess from the printed page. You will now laminate your card. I picked up these self-laminating sheets at Wal-mart in the office supply section. Of course, if you have a laminator, you could just use that. I do not.

self-laminating pouches for 4X6

You will also want to pick up some fine tip dry erase markers, & some small Velcro fasteners if you want to attach it to the lunch box.

Once your card is laminated, you can choose to either tuck the card into your child's lunch box, or use small, self-sticking velcro tabs to attach it to the inside lid of the lunch box. This will allow you to remove the card in order to clean the lunch box (or the card itself!)

I hope you like it, and I would love to hear feedback about your feedback from those who decide to try it! I can't wait to try it on my tween. I'll be sure to report back how it goes and I'll also post some pics of the comment card inside of her lunch box!

Here are the lunches from last week!

PB&J sammies, blue corn chips, plain yogurt with honey, pluots

I have no idea why the yogurt looks so washed out in this pic!

Cream Cheese & Preserves sammies, graham crackers,
baby carrots, cottage cheese, pear slices 

Pita crackers, Maple Almond Butter, Garbanzo beans,
pineapple, frozen blueberries, edamame

My kids love the word Garbanzo and enjoy munching on these beans.

Salad, cheese, croutons, Confetti Quinoa with Bragg's,
Apple Streusel muffin, almonds, salad dressing

 This lunch was the favorite of the week of both kids, as well as my husband. They especially liked the Confetti Quinoa and apple streusel muffin. I saw the Confetti Quinoa idea on Laptop Lunches and just knew I had to make it. It is quite good, especially with a squirt of Bragg's Amino Acids. Yum.

Pizza muffins, olives, tomatoes, spaghetti squash,
plain yogurt with honey & frozen berries

I discovered the recipe for Pizza Muffins on Weelicious.com. I used Trader Joe's whole wheat pizza crust. I found it to be a little too wheat-y. Next time, I will make my own crust and use a 50/50 flour blend. But they tasted okay.

So that's it for this week! Stay tuned next week for Lunch box Round Up #9! In the meantime, for more lunch box ideas, just click on the tab at the top of the page! And if you'd like to order a set of these awesome containers, just click on over to the EasyLunchBoxes website to find out how!

Happy packing!

Apple Streusel Muffins

Apple Streusel Muffin

There are 2 things that I ALWAYS make during the first week of Fall: Chili and apple muffins! (or apple crisp!) This time, it was the muffins! I made these for the first time last year, and they were a big hit. They make a wonderful on-the-go breakfast, or a very nice snack on a cool, Autumn day. They taste the best the same day you make them, but they can be reheated in the microwave and still taste pretty darn yummy! So, why not whip up a batch today? Here's the recipe:

Apple Streusel Muffins

(adapted from AllRecipes.com)

Dry Ingredients:

- 1 cup unbleached white flour*

- 1 cup whole wheat flour* 

- 1/2 cup sugar

- 3 tsp. baking powder

- 1/2 tsp. baking soda

- 2 tsp. cinnamon

- 1/2 tsp. nutmeg

- 1/2 tsp. salt

*Can substitute 2 cups of 50/50 flour for 1 cup each white/wheat

Wet Ingredients: 

- 2 eggs

- 1 cup sour cream

- 1/2 cup applesauce (regular or cinnamon) 

- 1/4 cup (or half stick) butter, melted

- 2 large, crisp apples (peeled, cored, and chopped) or 1 1/2 c. chopped

Topping:

- 1/3 cup brown sugar

- 1 TBS. flour

- 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

- 2 TBS cold butter, cut up

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°. Thoroughly grease 1 standard-size, and 1 mini muffin pan, or line with cupcake liners.

2. In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients. 

3. In a smaller bowl, combine melted butter, sour cream and applesauce. Add eggs and stir well with wire whisk.

4. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients just till moistened. DO NOT over stir.

5. Fold in apples.

6. Fill each muffin cup almost to the top. (These muffins will not rise much) 

7.. For topping, combine sugar, flour and cinnamon. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. 

8. Sprinkle a rounded teaspoonful on top of each muffin.  

9. Bake for 18-20 minutes. Allow muffins to rest in pans for 5 minutes, then transfer to cooling rack. 

10. Serve warm with butter! 

**Yields about 18 standard-sized muffins, or 12 standard and 12 mini muffins.

Happy Fall Y'all!

This post is participating in the following blog parties. Click on over for more inspiration!

Lunch box Round Up #7

A BIG THANK YOU goes out to everyone who participated in the Lunchbox Linky Party last week! It is still open, so feel free to add your fabulous lunchbox creations!

Here is the 7th lunch box round up as we are approaching 700 mom fans! This is so exciting! Thank you to everyone who has shared my blog with friends! I really appreciate all of the support!

You will notice a trend in these lunches: apples and cucumbers. We've been getting a lot of both from our CSA so I've been throwing them into the lunches. They both make great, crunchy side dishes.

Salad & croutons, salad dressing, sunflower seeds,
butter crackers with cheese wedge,
homemade strawberry fruit on the bottom yogurt

*Note: The little smidget container for the dressing, placed sideways in that compartment didn't allow the lid to close all the way so I ended up switching it around with the cheese wedge after the photo.

Pesto Pasta with edamame, tomatos, apples, cucumbers

Whole Wheat Linguini with meat sauce,
apples with peanut butter, cucumbers

 I chopped up the pasta so it wouldn't be too messy to eat at school. For the apples, I cut them in half and used a melon baller to scoop out the seeds, creating a well to put the peanut butter in.

Tuna salad, carrots, applesauce, mini toasts

 I included a mini popsicle stick to spread the tuna salad onto the mini toasts.

Avocado BLT, blue corn chips, homemade granola bars,
colby jack cheese cubes, homemade triple-berry banana smoothie

This is a BLT, sliced in half, and the halves are stacked, one on top the other. My favorite homemade granola bar recipe comes from Heavenly Homemakers. These are so quick and easy to make, and there's no high fructose corn syrup! I usually have to make a double batch to make sure they last all week. They make an excellent grab-and-go snack!


I welcome your comments and questions. I love hearing from y'all!

Also, if you'd like to order your own set of these awesome containers, just click on over to the EasyLunchBoxes website to find out how!

Happy packing!



This post is participating in Lunch Box Tuesdays with Kelly the Kitchen Kop

Lunch box Survey

Starting with the very first lunch I ever packed for my children, way back in 2002 when my son started 1st grade, I've been adding love notes to their lunches. I would jot a little note on their napkin just to say "Have a great day", "Good luck on your test", "TGIF!", etc. I know they've always enjoyed getting those little notes, however, I don't typically get any feedback regarding the notes, or the lunch itself. I usually just get a simple response of "I liked/loved my lunch," or simply, "Thanks for my lunch."

But I WANT DETAILS! I want to know WHAT they liked/loved/didn't like about their lunch! I want to know MORE about their day than just that it was good or okay! Well, I just discovered a way to get the feedback that I'm looking for. I might need revise it a little (or a lot) for my teenage son, but I know my tween daughter is going to love it:

The Lunch box Survey

                    

I just discovered it on June Pfaff Daley and she is sharing it with all of you! Just right click the image above, and save it to your computer. You can then print it for your own personal use.

I'm thinking I'd like to incorporate this on a weekly/bi-weekly basis. Since my daughter is in 6th grade, I'm not sure if she will appreciate the cutsie design of this one, so I might end up creating my own version. I plan to try it out in her lunch this week, so I'll let y'all know how it goes!

Do you send messages in your kids' lunches? If so, what do you use?

Lunch box Round Up #6 and a Linky Party!

Another week of school has come and gone. It was a very busy week for me and I never made it to the grocery store, so I'll admit that the lunch round up for this week is not too exciting. I was limited to whatever I had on hand. I didn't even think I'd be able to come up with a complete lunch for each day, but it all worked out okay. 

Ham & Cheese Lady Fingers, Annie's Cheddar Bunnies,
frozen fruit puree on top of fresh fruit puree, salad, dressing

 Apple & Peanut Butter Quesadilla, crackers, Babybel cheese,
apple "fruit on the bottom" yogurt

 Pasta w/spaghetti sauce & Parmesan cheese,
edamame with Lemon Pepper, cucumbers, apple sauce

Homemade veggie fried rice, apple, peanut butter

And now for the fun part! I'm so excited to be hosting my first ever blog party! It's a chance for all you Bento Mamas to share your great lunchbox ideas! I could browse through Bento lunch photos all day long. No, seriously. I really enjoy looking at all the creative ideas that people come up with! I also like to see all the different foods they choose, then I wonder, "Why didn't I think of that?" 

So here it is! The rules are very simple:

Link Up using a link to your actual post (not your blog's home page.) Give your lunch a name or short description. 

Grab a Button from the choices below, or use text to link back to this page. Add it somewhere on your post. *Instructions below. (Yes, I went a little button-crazy. I got excited.) 

Consider following this site via Facebook or Google Friend Connect. (It's not mandatory, but it would be nice. ;) )

Visit and Comment on fellow Bento moms' lunchbox ideas! Show them some love! Make a new friend! Get inspired! 

*To add a grab button, highlight ALL text in the box underneath your chosen image. Hit Ctrl+C to copy. Go to your blog's posting/editing page. Click on "Edit HTML." Scroll down to the end of your post and hit Ctrl+V to paste the code. Voila! The button appears! 

<a href="http://www.justabunchofmomsense.com/2011/09/lunch-box-round-up-6-and-linky-party.html" target="_blank"><img alt="Lunchbox Linky Party" src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6072/6129466812_5c075c79ac_m.jpg" width="143" height="163" alt="Just a Bunch of Momsense" /></a>

                                       

<a href="http://www.justabunchofmomsense.com/2011/09/lunch-box-round-up-6-and-linky-party.html" target="_blank"><img alt="Lunchbox Linky Party" height="168" src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6205/6128917135_32ca9ec13a_m.jpg" width="168" /> </a>

                                       

<a href="http://www.justabunchofmomsense.com/2011/09/lunch-box-round-up-6-and-linky-party.html" title="Lunchbox Linky Party"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6185/6129466840_8d72439f5f_m.jpg" width="170" height="170" alt="Just a Bunch of Momsense"/></a>

Show Me the Lunchy!

"Fruit on the Bottom" Yogurt

Think Fast! 

Is store-bought "fruit-on-the-bottom" yogurt good for you?

Well, not all store-bought yogurts are created equally, but when it comes to some of those national brands (you know the ones,) as healthy as they may sound, actually the answer is a big fat NO. Have you ever looked at the ingredients list? I mean, really looked? It's downright scary, some of the things in that yogurt -- something that we think of as a "healthy" food! They are filled with sugar, high fructose corn syrup, artificial sweeteners, and lots of other additives and preservatives. These bad ingredients far outweigh the tiny amount of good stuff you might be getting.

There are some that are actually good for you if you shop around and compare labels. Some organic companies have their own line of fruit-on-the-bottom yogurt, but they can be pretty pricey.

But what if you could make a week's worth of fruit-on-the-bottom yogurt in under 15 minutes? And you would know exactly what's in it! And you would save money by buying larger quantities of fruit and yogurt by the tub! Then would you consider making the switch? It's actually very easy to make it yourself. Here's how.

I did a batch of apple, (my favorite), strawberry and blueberry. I used 4 oz. canning jars since they are the perfect size for individual servings, but you could also use plastic containers.


For the apple yogurt, I used:

4 apples, peeled, cored and chopped ( I used Gala, but any crisp apple will work)
2 TBS butter
2 tsp cinnamon
2 TBS pure maple syrup
2 tsp lemon juice

Directions:

Melt butter over medium heat. Add apples, cinnamon, maple syrup and lemon juice. Stir to coat apples. Turn heat down to med - low, and cover. Allow to cook for 6-8 minutes. Remove from heat and cool completely. Yields about 6 jars (with yogurt.)

Meanwhile, have yourself a serving while the fruit is still warm......        So delish.  

For each of the berry batches, I used:

1/2 lb. fresh or thawed berries
2 TBS honey
pinch of salt
1 TBS cornstarch
1 TBS cold water

Directions:

Add fruit, honey and salt to small pot. Bring to a simmer. Dissolve cornstarch in cold water and add to pot. Allow fruit mixture to simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Cool completely. Each berry batch will yield about 3 jars (with yogurt.)


For the yogurt, use a plain or vanilla yogurt. Of course, the healthiest yogurt of all is one made from scratch, using fresh milk. However, if you don't happen to have any fresh, homemade yogurt on hand, there are great alternatives. Trader Joe's has a delicious organic french vanilla yogurt, sold in a big tub, and most supermarkets are starting to carry a nice variety of organic yogurt in the large tubs. Vanilla yogurt goes great with any fruit, but you can also mix honey or pure maple syrup into plain yogurt for added sweetness. You don't need a lot, so start with about a teaspoon per cup of yogurt and add more to taste.

For the batches I made, here are the combos:

Blueberries - with french vanilla
Strawberries - with plain
Apples - with plain + maple syrup

Once the fruit has cooled, add about 1/4 cup to each jar, then top with 1/2 cup yogurt of choice. These will keep in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. When ready to eat, top with granola for a nice crunch!

For on-the-go snacks, or to throw into a lunchbox, you can also use these plastic Ball jars. I did mine 'parfait style' since the cup is more narrow, making it harder to scoop the fruit up from the bottom. Sprinkle some granola on top and you have a complete breakfast to-go!

So in under 15 minutes, you can have your very own batch of delicious, healthy fruit-on-the-bottom yogurt; and once you make it, you'll never want to buy the store-bought kind again!

What will your favorite flavor be?



I'm linking up to the following blog parties. Click on over for more homemade inspiration!

I discovered the apple recipe at Weelicious.com.

Subway Art Gift Wrap {A Momsense Tutorial}

I am anything but typical when it comes to gift-giving. From the gifts themselves to the way they're presented, I like to be different. I like to be creative. I like the presentation to be just as much fun as the gift itself. So when I came across the idea for Subway Art gift wrap, I knew I had to do this. Jana over at Scatter Sunshine did a much better job, actually cutting out adorable little boxes, and using colored paper, but I just used it as gift wrap. Easy and fun.

I decided to get one of my favorite gal pals some earrings for her birthday last week, and I knew this would make the perfect gift wrap for the little jewelry box. I used words that describe her and typed them in different fonts, and rotated them. You could do this in any typing program, and keep all of your words going the same way. Just be sure to vary the sizes and fonts. I happened to use my American Greetings Creatacard program because it is "Fisher-Price" easy to do all kinds of fun stuff, which made it easy for me to rotate the words.  

I love the idea of printing the sheets on colored paper, but I only had white. But black and white is classic, so it still comes out looking nice. Just trim all sides equally to fit your gift box, then wrap as usual.

So here's the box all wrapped up and she totally loved it!

Pin It

Hint: If you don't want to (or can't print for some reason,) why not create it by hand? And the kids can do it too! For larger gifts, just use white or brown (paper bag type) wrapping paper and markers! You can personalize it for each recipient! 

Happy wrapping!

I'm linking up to the following blog parties. Click on over for more fun ideas!

Lunch box Round Up #5

Baked Mozzarella Cheese Sticks, marinara sauce, pistachios,
Banana-berry  puree, peas 

This is a much healthier version of the famous Mozzarella Cheese Sticks. These are battered with Panko bread crumbs, and baked, NOT fried. Thanks to Catherine at Weelicious for this great recipe! I pre-baked them the night before, and my kids just ate them cold. I, for one, warmed mine up in the microwave until the cheese started to melt......ahhhhh, all that yummy goodness but without the greasy guilt. ; )

To make the frozen fruit puree, I used 1 banana, a handful each of blueberries (fresh or thawed,) and raspberries. I used the Magic Bullet to blend them, but you could also use a regular blender. I then poured the blended puree into a silicone mini muffin pan, (an ice tray would also work,) then froze them overnight. You can then put the frozen chunks into a freezer bag for later use. They thaw into a nice, smoothie-like consistency by lunch time! So refreshing!

Baby Burritos, avocado, sour cream, orange, mini oreos

To make smaller tortillas, I used a small glass bowl as my template, and using a sharp knife, I cut a small circle out of a regular tortilla. For the filling, I used "refried" beans (mashed Pinto beans with a little chili powder and a pinch of salt), Jasmine rice with a squirt of lime juice, and grated Cheddar cheese. The sour cream is kept on the side for the kids to add themselves.

Homemade pb&j "uncrustables", fruit-on-the-bottom strawberry yogurt,
granola, mini oreos

My Cut n' Seal tool used to make the uncrustables is missing a screw so that's why you don't see a nice seal around the edges. I need to get a new one. The granola turns the fruit-on-the-bottom yogurt into yogurt parfait. Yum.

Mini egg salad sandwiches on whole wheat rolls, apple chunks,
cucumber slices, Chocolate Zucchini muffin 

Pita chips, hummus, edamame,
cottage cheese, dried fruit and veggie strip

I hope you've enjoyed this week's edition of Lunch box Round Up! Please leave a comment with your thoughts. I'd love to get your feedback!

For more healthy lunch box ideas, just click on the "Lunchbox Ideas" tab at the top of this page. These wonderful containers are made by EasyLunchboxes. <--- Go there to get YOURS!

Happy packing!



I'm linking to the following blog parties. Click on over for more awesome ideas!

Lunch Box Tuesdays with Kelly the Kitchen Kop