Category: Foodstuff

Family Pizza Fridays - A Tradition Born in 2020

Family Pizza Fridays – A Tradition Born in 2020

Posted on by Monica

As we all can attest to, the year of 2020 has been anything but traditional. Back in January I had grand plans for trips, events, gatherings, and activities we would do this year. I spent much of 2019 pregnant and with a newborn, so 2020 was MY YEAR!

Wellllll…I’m sure it comes as no surprise that many of those activities didn’t happen. Trips we had planned needed to be cancelled; loved one’s weddings were put on hold; holiday celebrations were different; and even our day to day with work, daycare, and family interactions completely changed.

But I’m a “the glass is half full” kinda person.

And while a lot didn’t get to happen, many things did happen. I re-connected with friends I didn’t talk to often enough through group video chats. Virtual family game nights were a regular occurrence with family that lived 9 hours away. We had time to sit outside and have drinks with our neighbors from our own respective lawns. I tried new recipes and baked a lot of cakes. Soooo many cakes. And we started a new weekly tradition. Pizza Friday.

Why I Love Homemade Pizza

how to make homemade pizza

As I often talk about, I love to cook. I find experimenting with recipes and trying new techniques and flavors really fun. I also like making my own food because then I know exactly what is in it and how it was prepared. You can read more about why I like cooking my own meals here.

So one of my favorite things to cook is homemade pizza. Pizza is truly so easy and versatile. My dad would argue that only crust + sauce + cheese + pepperoni = pizza, but I respectfully disagree. Sure all pizza needs a crust of some sort, but then the rest is up to you. The world is your oyster!

Plus it’s a fun activity we can do together as a family. My son loves making his own little pizza. I meannnn sometimes he just repeatedly rolls the dough out into a small disc, smashes it, and and then squeezes it into a snake. Whatevs! He’s in the kitchen and participating in the cooking. I would like to believe this will lead to him enjoy being in the kitchen and cooking as he gets older.

How To Do Pizza Fridays

how to make homemade pizza

Most Fridays (or Thursday nights) I start my day by quickly making my go-to pizza dough. You can check out the recipe below. This dough is super simple. You just need to plan ahead a tiny bit because it needs about 10 hours to rise.

Easy Pizza Dough:

Combine:

  • 3 1/4 cups flour
  • 1/4 (1 packet) active dry yeast
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 1/2 cups warm water

Cover with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature for 10-12 hours or overnight. Dough should have doubled in size.

Fast forward 10-12 hours and it’s time to make the pizza. You can use a sheet pan or a pizza stone. I’ve done both. A sheet pan is more convenient (and better for toddler pizzas) but a pizza stone leads to a crispier crust. If using a sheet pan I suggest lining it with parchment paper. If using a pizza stone I typically preheat my oven with the pizza stone inside, prepare my pizza on a pizza peel and toss the pizza onto the stone in the oven. I often also make my own pizza sauce in a Vitamix (because I like to sneak in spinach). You can find that recipe here.

Below are my pizza making necessities. These could make a great gift for anyone who might want to start a pizza making tradition of their own.

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My Favorite Pizza Recipes

Here are some of my favorite pizza recipes that I’ve made manyyyyyy times and can attest to their deliciousness.

Pizza Margherita: Katie Lee
Sausage Pan Pizza: Molly Yeh
Al Pastor Taco Pizza: Molly Yeh
Squash and Ricotta Pizza: Molly Yeh
Thai Chicken Pizza: Spicy Southern Kitchen

Clearly I very much enjoy Molly Yeh and all her amazing pizza recipes (I actually enjoy most of her recipes). Other flavor combos I have tried for pizza Friday include but are not limited to: zucchini + fresh mozzarella, macaroni and cheese , bacon, lettuce and tomato (BLT); and meatballs and marinara.

If you are like my father and repulsed by the thought of kale on pizza you can definitely stick with the tried and true. For a classic pizza just make the crust above, add some marinara sauce, and sprinkle on some cheese. Turn it into a fun family activity and make small individual pizzas where everyone gets to pick out their own toppings.

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Gratitude for New Traditions

As the weather starts to get colder sticking around the home is still the most popular activity. And while I am not exactly looking forward to being locked indoors with my husband and tiny tots for endless hours this winter I am appreciative of the time I am getting to try new things with my family. I always try to reframe my thinking and practice gratitude for the opportunities life presents to me. Sometimes traditions evolve, grow, and sometimes new traditions are born out of the most unexpected circumstances. For my family 2020 has brought about pizza Fridays, something we look forward to week after week. And it’s a tradition I hope to continue.

I realize this post may not appear to quiet fit in with my typical health and wellness content but I think practicing gratitude is very important for our mental and holistic health. As we enter into November, the month of gratitude, I wanted to share a new tradition that has brought health and happiness to my family. Plus who doesn’t love a good pizza recipe?

Leave a comment with any new traditions you started this year, or maybe you have a great pizza recipe. I’m always open to trying something new!

Happy November and Happy Pizza Friday!

-Monica

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Better 4 U Banana Nut Bars

Better 4 U Banana Nut Bars

Posted on by Monica

There just ain’t enough time in the day. Amiright? So being able to whip up a healthy snack you can munch on all week long is fab. And these dairy free, gluten free banana nut bars really fit the bill. 

So, I don’t know about y’all but every morning I wake up with 57 things in my head that I want to try and get done that day. I’m lucky if I get to a handful of them.

And those beautiful little babies of mine are giant time suckers. I joke that two-thirds of my day is spent making them food, feeding them food, or cleaning up their food. Honestly, that might not be a joke but in fact pretty accurate. 

Thank goddddd for nap time. For the mamas that have littles that refuse a nap my heart goes out to you. I like to play a little game of “how much can I get done during nap time”. It’s fun. Depending on the day it’s usually a little exercise, maybe a little cleaning, and a lot of meal prep. 

And I work 10 hour shifts Tuesday through Thursday so on Sundays and Mondays I really try and get most of my cooking done for the week. I chop up veggies for dinner, wash all my fruit, prep smoothie bags, make 3 of the same exact salads for my lunches, and often make some sort of snack to eat all week long.

So as I have mentioned in an earlier post I like to make a lot of my own food. A perfect example of this is granola bars. Store bought granola bars can have a lot of extra crap; sugar, preservatives, etc. And when you make your own you can customize them to be what you want. Maybe you are gluten free, dairy free, vegan, nut free, whatever free, these Banana Nut Bars can be customized to fit your diet. These banana nut bars are delicious, healthy, easy, and best of all can be eaten with one hand. 

Because that’s how most your meals are eaten when you’re a busy Mom.

 

Better 4 U Banana Nut Bars:

Ingredients: 

  • 2 ripe bananas mashed
  • 1 cup rolled oats (gluten free for GF)
  • ½ cup pre rinsed quinoa 
  • ⅓ cup raisins (or any dried fruit)
  • 2 tbsp chia seeds
  • ¼ cup almonds
  • ¼ cup chopped pecans
  • 1 tsp cinnamon 
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • ¼ cup nut butter 
  • 2 tbsp honey or maple syrup
  • ½ tsp vanilla extract 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 deg. Line an 8 x 8 pan with parchment paper and cooking spray. 

Mix together mashed bananas, oats, quinoa, raisins, chia seeds, almonds, pecans, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl. 

In a microwave safe dish add nut butter (I use peanut butter) and microwave 20-30 seconds until runny. Stir in maple syrup and vanilla. Add peanut butter mixture to dry mixture and stir until combined. 

Press mixture into the baking dish. I like to press a couple raisins, almonds, and pecans onto the top (because it looks pretty).

Bake for 25 minutes until edges begin to turn golden brown. Remove and let cool in the pan. Remove and cut into 9 squares. These can keep covered on the counter for a few days but I like to wrap tightly and store in the fridge. Enjoy throughout the week!

Substitutions:

  • GF: Use gluten free oats
  • DF: There’s no dairy in recipe! 
  • Nut Free: Sub peanut butter for sunflower seed butter; omit nuts 
  • Vegan: Use maple syrup instead of honey

Hope you enjoy!

-Monica

How I Eat Healthy (& My Go-To Green Smoothie)

How I Eat Healthy (& My Go-To Green Smoothie)

Posted on by Monica

My food thoughts from kale to cake and everything in between

I am no nutrition expert but I like talking about food. And what we put into our bodies plays such a huge role on how our bodies feel and function that I feel I would be remiss if I didn’t talk about food. Plus I’ll jump at any opportunity to share recipes (like my Go-To Green Smoothie) or think about what I’m going to eat next. 

I just want to share some of my general thoughts and principles about cooking and eating. 

healthy eating

Food thought #1: 

I live loosely by the 80/20 rule. 80% of the time I try to make good choices and eat things that I know are good for me and will nourish my body and the other 20% I shove cake, chips, donuts or mac N cheese down my pie hole. Again this is a loose rule. I have good days and bad days. So much of health (and life for that matter) is about balance. I find that the extremes don’t work.  I’m all about doing what makes you happy, helps you feel good, and is sustainable. So if some days you don’t eat a darn thing that isn’t the color beige. So be it. 

Enter food thought #2:

I try to eat a lot of colors. And nooooo, I’m not talking about my 2 year old’s fruit snacks. I’m talkin red apples, orange sweet potatoes, yellow peppers, green kale, green spinach, green celery.  Honestly, when I’m feeling kinda just blah a green smoothie can really perk me up. Heck, it could just be a placebo effect but I swear when I suck down a handful of kale in liquid form I honestly feel better. 

Tips for healthy eating

Food thought #3:

I try to make small substitutions or additions to my recipes to pack a good nutritional punch. This looks like lentil noodles instead of wheat noodles, greek yogurt instead of sour cream, blending up spinach into my pasta sauce, or when a soup recipe calls for 2 carrots…I throw in 6. Because I’m crazy like that. Also, I feel that if you put anything on a bed of something green and leafy your meal instantly rises in the nutrition ranks. Hot dog salad anyone?

Food thought #4:

I’m a huge fan of making my own food. Honestly my husband and I almost never pick up food or buy anything premade. When you cook your own stuff you know exactly what’s in it and how it was prepared. Homemade pizza dough, marinara sauce, granola bars, salad dressing, are a few things I make on the reg. I know life is crazy busy and it may feel way too time consuming to always be whipping up your own food but I promise it can be super fast and easy.

healthy apple muffins

Food thought #5:

Ok, I  debated sharing this one because I don’t want to seem like a giant hypocrite when I’m chowing down pizza on a friday night but I figured I might as well. I generally  cook gluten free and somewhat dairy free. By no means do I have allergies to either but I just find I feel better if I lay off the gluten and don’t overdo it on the dairy. These days it’s sooooo easy to find alternatives to gluten and dairy that again it’s just a matter of performing a little swap-a-roo to help make something a little healthier. Now, dairy free cheese sucks. There is no replacement for Wisconsin cheese. Sorry. 

Final thoughts:

While I’d love to say that my toddler also eats what we eat including a variety of vegetables and chickpea pasta, that just aint the case despite my best efforts. Most of my recipes and food principles are aimed at adults unless you are blessed with an amazing child that eats anything. But if you want the recipe for my son’s dinner 3-4 nights out of the week here it is:

Ingredients:

  • 1 tortilla
  • 2 tablespoons peanut butter

Spread peanut butter on tortilla. Roll tortilla up. Serve.

Boom. Peanut Butter Roll-Up. 

There are so many other things I want to talk about related to eating and nutrition. Like how to avoid the Eating-Your-Toddlers-Left-Overs diet, nutrition during nursing, and proper nutrition for running but I’ll save those for some later posts. Again, to me it’s all about balance. Drink your smoothie in the morning so you can have your cake in the evening. 

Below is my recipe for my Go-To-Green smoothie. My husband and I have a smoothie most mornings and I meal prep by making around 4 smoothie bags at the start of the week. That way I just have to pull one bag out of the freezer and pop it in the blender and presto. Smoothie. 

Go-To-Green Smoothie:

(makes 2 smoothies…and sometimes enough for another mini toddler sized smoothie)

  • 1.5 ripe banana
  • 1 apple
  • 2 celery stalks
  • 1 big handful of spinach or kale 
  • 1.5 tablespoons of peanut butter
  • Squeeze of lemon

Optional add-ins depending on what’s in my pantry:

  • Chia seeds
  • Flax seeds
  • Medjol dates
  • Maca powder 

Put all ingredients in a blender (or in a quart size freezer bag if making for later). Add 2 cups of water and a few ice cubes (omit ice cubes if pulling from the freezer). Blend until smooth. Drink. Feel like a million bucks.

– Monica

More of My Favorite Healthy Recipes:

Healthy (ish) Sausage Kale Pizza

Sausage Kale PIzza
Sausage Kale Pizza with Spinach Sauce

Healthy Stuffed Acorn Squash

stuffed acorn squash

Zucchini, Corn, and Chicken Chowder

Zucchini, Corn and Chicken Chowder
Tips for eating healthy