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Our Fall Family Vacation

October 17, 2016 by Holly Yzquierdo 5 Comments

I’ve got a brand new fall meal plan for you with shopping lists! The problem is I just got back from a 10 day trip and forgot to get part of it ready for you! Sorry!

Instead I’ll tell you about my trip and give you one more chance to get my OLD Fall Meal Plan before the new one is released this week.

The Meal Plans are a freebie for everyone on my email list. Get my OLD Fall Meal Plan now before it is gone! You’ll also get my NEW Fall Meal Plan that comes with shopping lists as soon as it is ready!

So, where was I for 10 days?

Our Road Trip

My kids get a week off of school for fall break. When I was a stay at home mom this wasn’t a big deal. It meant play dates with friends and staying in our jammies all day. Now that I work full time, it can present a problem.

Instead of using all my vacation time to sit home last week we went on a road trip and drove over 3,000 miles. We had a great time seeing family. The boys met new cousins they never knew they had. They also got to climb trees, play catch for hours, eat, stay in hotels and with family, eat some more, get a surprise visit from their sister, play with dogs and visit the farm. It was a great week!

I almost completely unplugged while on vacation too. I did a little Facebook scrolling here and there and took care of some of my freelance commitments but it didn’t interfere with family time. I read books, sang along to the radio and ate my weight in snacks.

Family, Food and Fun

I have several favorite parts of our trip. Visit with family was the high point. Living far away from family can be hard, I don’t get back to visit as often as I’d like. Whether it was sitting at my mom’s table, my Memaw’s back porch, my dad’s recliner, or all the eating, talking and laughing, being with my family was my favorite.

Another favorite part was seeing my boys play in a whole new way. My kids play outside in our back yard in Arizona but it’s all concrete and rocks. Playing in grassy Oklahoma and Texas was a new experience. They even learned to close the gate, a very important task when there are animals that will get out.

Food was another clear favorite. We took in many of our old favorites and some new finds. I ate anything and everything my Memaw made. At one of our favorite Mexican food restaurants I asked my husband how we could ever leave this place. Who knew Mexican food would be different in Arizona.

We were gone for 10 days but are happy to be home. I really missed my bed and I know the work is piling up for me when I log in.

Now that I’m back I’ll be sharing that new meal plan, a delicious soup recipe and some of my favorite allergy-friendly Halloween treats soon!

September 26, 2016 Meal Plan

September 26, 2016 by Holly Yzquierdo Leave a Comment

When your schedule is crazy and you don’t have time to cook regularly, batch cooking is a great option. Sure, I love my Instant Pot for fast meals but it’s hard to beat assembling food that is already cooked.

When I batch cook, I cook a few foods that I can mix and match together. The most common example in our house is black beans, brown rice and potatoes. We might throw in a pasta to mix it up a bit.

Plant-Based Meal Plan

September 19, 2016 Meal Plan

September 19, 2016 by Holly Yzquierdo 5 Comments

When I don’t have a lot of time to think about my meal plan I try to focus on the basics. For me, that means potatoes, beans, rice, veggies and fruit. After a great, on-the-go weekend I want easy meals that are filling and hearty.

This meal plan will focus on dinner because I plan to eat oatmeal every day this week! Why, because oatmeal is easy, filling and hearty. I know, I keep things simple.

I’ll switch between my Instant Pot Oatmeal, my favorite Oatmeal Cups and these super easy overnight oats!

I’ll eat leftovers for lunch every chance I get and when I’m out I’ll make a Baked Potato in my Instant Pot.

Plant-Based Dinner Meal Plan

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Muffins

September 14, 2016 by Holly Yzquierdo 16 Comments

Sometimes it’s hard to tell the difference between my breakfasts and desserts! I usually like a sweet breakfast and these Pumpkin Muffins makes them perfect for the morning.

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I’ve always had a sweet tooth. When I was a kid I’d often get donuts or sugary cereal for breakfast. I clearly remember going to the donut shop and getting a long John and a can of coke. Even when I make a savory breakfast, like my Breakfast Hash, I’ll want something sweet to follow.

I created these Pumpkin Muffins because I’m yearning for the cooler temperatures of fall. I didn’t want them to be super sweet and only appropriate for dessert. I wanted these Pumpkin Muffins to be a bit heartier and suitable for breakfast, even for people without a sweet tooth like me.

With or Without Chocolate Chips

With chocolate chips the Pumpkin Muffins are a decadent dessert. Without chocolate chips they are a delicious breakfast that pairs well with fruit and a cup of coffee (for the grown ups).

My husband is not a fan of chocolate so I’ll often scoop out half of the batter then pour chocolate chips into the remaining batter so we are both happy.

Allergy-Friendly

Like most of my recipes, these muffins are allergy-friendly. They are gluten-free, dairy-free and nut-free. I use a gluten-free flour blend from Jewel’s Bakery (but you can use your favorite gluten-free blend) and dairy-free chocolate chips. I also use a peanut butter substitute. It has the look and feel of peanut butter and tastes comparable considering there are not nuts. It’s perfect for families with a peanut allergy.

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Muffins

We’ve been enjoying these muffins for breakfast, after school snacks and desserts. You can’t really go wrong with these Pumpkin Muffins!

Ingredients

½ cup Peanut Butter alternative (or peanut butter if you don’t have an allergy)
1 15 oz can of pumpkin
½ cup plant-based milk
½ cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp ground cloves
½ tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1½ cups gluten-free flour blend
½ cup chocolate chips (optional)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Measure out ½ cup peanut butter alternative into a microwave safe bowl and microwave it for 20 seconds.
Pour in the 15 oz can of pumpkin and plant-based milk, stir very well.
Dump in the sugar and vanilla then stir again.
Sprinkle all of the spices, salt, and baking soda into the batter.
Pour in the gluten-free flour blend and mix everything together. After everything is mixed together you may add chocolate chips if desired.
Spray cooking oil into muffin pan and scoop batter into muffin cups.
Bake for 30 minutes (you can test at 25) but allow to cool for 10 minutes at least.

Yield: 12 Servings

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Muffins

With chocolate chips the Pumpkin Muffins are a decadent dessert. Without chocolate chips they are a delicious breakfast that pairs well with fruit and a cup of coffee (for the grown ups).

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Ingredients

½ cup Peanut Butter alternative (or peanut butter if you don't have an allergy)
1 15 oz can of pumpkin
½ cup plant-based milk
½ cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp ground cloves
½ tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1½ cups gluten-free flour blend
½ cup chocolate chips (optional)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Measure out ½ cup peanut butter alternative into a microwave safe bowl and microwave it for 20 seconds.
Pour in the 15 oz can of pumpkin and plant-based milk, stir very well.
Dump in the sugar and vanilla then stir again.
Sprinkle all of the spices, salt, and baking soda into the batter.
Pour in the gluten-free flour blend and mix everything together. After everything is mixed together you may add chocolate chips if desired.
Spray cooking oil into muffin pan and scoop batter into muffin cups.
Bake for 30 minutes (you can test at 25) but allow to cool for 10 minutes at least.

September 12, 2016 Meal Plan

September 12, 2016 by Holly Yzquierdo 2 Comments

It may be September but it doesn’t quite feel like fall in Arizona. Thankfully, I work inside with the air conditioner. These 100 degree days always seem to last a little too long. I’m ready for a meal plan of soups and casseroles but the thermometer says salads and fruit.

I know, it is a great problem to have. I’m still living up what I call “Back to School” season with great giveaways and fun products. Soon I’ll be baking it up with some new muffin and granola bar recipes.

Plant-Based Meal Plan

Monday

Oatmeal Cups

leftovers

Gluten-Free Pasta with Marinara Sauce and a side salad

Tuesday

Dairy-Free Yogurt and Granola (Don’t forget to enter the giveaway!)

Baked Potatoes

Instant Pot Brown Rice and Black Beans

Wednesday

Toast with SoyNut Butter and Banana Slices

Rice with steamed broccoli and Creamy Brown Gravy

Enchilada Soup

Thursday

Instant Pot Oatmeal

leftovers

Pizza Pasta with veggies and salad

Friday

Banana Bread (or the gluten-free cinnamon version) with Fruit Salad

Taco Salad

Crock Pot Mexican Casserole

I’ll go ahead and admit that we may get off track on Thursday and Friday. I’ll be headed to the Blended Conference those days and my family will be fending for themselves part of the time. I love attending blog conferences because at least some of the people there “get me” and get excited about the same kind of stuff I do like SEO and mailing lists.

If you are interested in blogging and social media I’ll be sure to share photos of the conference on Instagram.

In November, I’ll be headed to the Food Allergy Bloggers Conference in Denver! If you’ve ever wanted to attend a conference it’s a great one to attend.

Also off topic, I’ve started a new blog with a few of my friends. It’s a called Mom the Brave! I hope you’ll check it out! We are on Facebook and Instagram too!

Yogurt and Granola

September 7, 2016 by Holly Yzquierdo 10 Comments

My youngest son does not like cereal. Every morning I have to figure out something he will eat. He prefers a mound of fruit. While a bowl full of fruit isn’t bad I want him to have something that will stick with him a little longer Yogurt and Granola are two of his favorites!

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My son loves fruit. Before he lost one of his front teeth, he would easily eat 5+ apples per day. His missing tooth has slowed him down some, but not much. I end up cutting up a lot of fruit for him now which means he can eat it faster than ever.

As much as he loves a big bowl of fruit for breakfast, I feel like he needs something a little more complex. Thankfully he loves the granola. I love it too.

Yogurt and Granola

This isn’t an actual recipe, it’s more of a “put all of this together” type of thing.

I use dairy-free yogurt, fresh fruit and granola for an easy breakfast, snack or dessert.

I like to start with granola in the bottom of the bowl, then add yogurt, then fruit. I repeat layers until I’m satisfied.

You can mix and match granola flavors, yogurt flavors and different types of fruit so you always have something interesting to try.

If you have food allergies, carefully inspect all the labels. Gerb’s has a great allergy-safe product (unfortunately it has honey). Bob’s Red Mill has great vegan granola (but it’s not gluten-free).

I have to put the granola away in the pantry every time or I’ll make little pit stops all day long munching on it. I’ll often dip a piece of fruit in SunButter then roll it in the granola.

I also put granola on dairy-free ice cream! What can I say, I’m a sucker for this stuff.

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« Previous Page

Our Fall Family Vacation

Our Road Trip

Family, Food and Fun

September 26, 2016 Meal Plan

Plant-Based Meal Plan

September 19, 2016 Meal Plan

Plant-Based Dinner Meal Plan