Week 2, Day 7

Breakfast: Cracked wheat but I ate the three remaining pumpkin pancakes with ketchup - more like potato pancakes made with pumpkin than traditional pancakes with pumpkin in them which we used to make a lot.  Cress is not a fan but Dai loves that cereal and I know it is healthy and we have a lot of wheat on hand.  I need to go to the bishop's storehouse soon.

Lunch: Dai and Phyllis took leftover spaghetti and meatballs plus a slice of bread and butter.  Dai took an orange, a carrot and some canned apricots.  Phyllis had leftover corn from last night and a carrot.   Cress had half a peanut butter and honey sandwich, an orange, the last little bit of celery with peanut butter for dipping and apricots.  She only likes the very inside of celery because the big stalks have more fibers and are hard for her to chew up.  She also wasn't pleased that her apricots got all mashed - like apricot sauce, but she did drink it anyway.  I am pretty low on produce right now but this Friday the CSA starts up again.

I ate all manner of stuff - a couple oranges, chips and salsa, cream cheese and jelly in a tortilla.

Jason took burritos.

Dinner: Bean burritos for Phyllis, Cress and Jason (at IVL) and chicken salad sandwiches for Dai and I.

Day 5, Week 2

Breakfast:  Cracked wheat cereal with the fixings, except there were only four bowls (one cup of cracked wheat can't feed all five of us) so Phyllis had rice cereal - we had rice leftover from last night. When I refer to rice it is brown.  Then Dai  had canned apricots and Phyllis ate a pint of home made applesauce.  Jason had coffee and I had Roma with non-dairy creamer.  I need Roma but payday is four days away but if I run out I can drink tea.

Lunch: The girls got bread from church.  Dai had rice and gravy and meatballs.  Jason, Phyllis, Cressida and I had salad.    I also mashed the pumpkin with butter and salt and pepper.  Jason said the flavor was ok, but he really didn't like something.  I think maybe the texture?  So I made pumpkin pancakes out of them and they seem good with ketchup.  Course, they will be cold by the time dinner rolls around.

Dinner: Corn, frozen - the last of that.  I do a lot of fresh veggies, but like to have frozen on hand for soups or for in a pinch.  So, I added that to the list to buy on Wednesday - which is really Thursday because Wednesday I have school and then babysit Gabriela Castro.  Also spaghetti.  I sauteed the rest of the mushrooms and added some sliced garlic.  To that I added a can of spaghetti sauce and some red chili flakes, basil and oregano.

Week 2, Day 4

Breakfast: breakfast burritos.  Today Jason had to coach volleyball and we had Chinese, so Cress had to go to Chinese.  Jason actually wrapped Cressida's and mine to go because we were a little behind.

Lunch: Taco Bell - totally guilty - used Jason's gas money.  Phyllis eats four items usually - but because I was walking home, she only ate three so she could leave with me.  Dai usually eats one taco - she ate two today.  Cress ate two tacos also and Jason and I ate two items.  A little more restrain than we sometimes show, he and I.  Our kids could easily wipe out the 12 pack on their own.  We had waters - so that was a little less splurgy.

Snack: Abuela brought Krispy Kreme donuts.  We each had one before the hike and one after.

Dinner: Abuela had two quesadillas.  Cress had leftover pasta but didn't finish it - so we tossed what was in her bowl and now it is all gone.  I had salad.  Cress and Phyllis had meatballs (made at Activity Days) and turkey gravy leftover from just before Christmas and freshly made rice.  They also both had salads - freshly made tonight.  Jason had a burritos right after the hike and the same food Dai and Phyllis had.  Jason said our hamburger is definitely better.  Heather had bought pounds in tubes for the Activity Days activity.  We ate in the living room watching "Croods" as a family.  I think if we had eaten dinner at the table, Cress would have finished her bowl of pasta and more of the salad would have been eaten.

Food prep:  I ground wheat for cracked wheat tomorrow.  It is soaking.  After I grind the wheat, I usually sift off the fine stuff.  It is too fine for cracked wheat cereal but not fine enough for cookies as we learned when Phyllis made cookies.  So I reground it and then we made chocolate chip cookies.   You really cannot tell the cookies are made with whole wheat flour.  I used a pretty fine grind.  We use a recipe from one of the cookbooks Abuela got for Dai a long time ago.  That is the best chocolate chip cookie recipe ever.  You start with melting the butter and it makes a huge difference, if you ask me.  Maybe I should put that recipe in this journal somewhere?

I made some new dressing using a recipe Lisa Rotter (Abuela) gave me ages and ages ago.  It was so tasty when I made it so long ago, but I added too much citrus this time.  It calls for juice from 1-2 lemons.  I used lemons from Lisa's tree and they had a lot of juice - so too much juice - note for future - use like a tablespoon only.  Maybe also do a little less mayo.  The dressing is in a jar in the fridge. Jason and I both had it today on our salad (Jason said it tasted like eggs and citrus.)  The girls didn't have dressing on their salad.  

I peeled and steamed our last pumpkin but we didn't eat it today - so tomorrow for that.  Those pumpkins were free so I am very pleased to be eating them.

We had a bunch of lemons from Dad and Susan's lemon tree.  Abuela was bringing us more today.  So, we juiced the old ones.  I made lemonade and we put the other juice in the fridge - oh how I wish I had a gallon pitcher!  My recipe makes 5 cups worth - but I put it in my two quart pitcher.  I can't double it in the two quart pitcher but it isn't really quite enough otherwise.

Also, I bought $2 in turkey lunch meat from Heather today.  She got it in a triple pack with two hams and one turkey - but she doesn't love turkey.

I did this journal because I know that we go through phases in our home about what we eat and i think it will be fascinating to review.  But, I also think it would be a fascinating bit of lore to have from 200 or even 100 years ago, too.  I am unsure if anyone will ever marvel over this, but I do find I don't like writing down everything I eat - lunch is what gets me because I can't just write what the family ate - as it were because we all eat separately.   Like, I had popcorn between breakfast and lunch.  It could have been my lunch if my family didn't also need feeding a bit later.

It makes me want to generalize, but then I think about the integrity of the document.  To be honest if I was reading my ancestors' info, I doubt I would care - just be interested in food types and food prep styles, I guess.  Technically, we have access to old recipe and cookbooks, but I have loads of recipe books I rarely use and those that I do use regularly - I only use a select few recipes from them.  In 100 years will they be stunned that we ate so much meat or allowed so much processed food into our diet (in which case the joke is on them because I think we eat way less than the average American)?  Or that we ate cows now that they are Buddhist?  Who knows, right?

Week 2, Day 3

Breakfast: Egg burritos for all but Cress who had oatmeal.  Jason made egg burritos and oatmeal for all but Dai who was in the shower.  But she competently made her own when she got out.

Lunches: Girls had peanut butter and cracker, plus leftover Oopsie bread and veggies - oranges, carrots, celery, applesauce, etc.

I had oranges and two cream cheese and jelly wraps plus a bag of popcorn.  By 2 PM, I am so hungry I have no self control.  I had the oranges on the bus and shared a slice with an old man next to me.  We just don't interact much with people anymore.  He chatted amiably after, but his voice was soft and hard to hear.

Jason had leftover nut pasta.

After school snack: remaining Oopsie bread

Dinner:  Bean and rice burritos with all the trimmings - except Cress who had some nut pasta leftovers. Peppermint chip cookies for dessert.  I had to make them myself - no girl was interested.  I did grind my own flour and they turned out fine.

Week 2, Day 2

Breakfast: Cressida had leftover rice as cereal.  Jason and I had breakfast burritos.  He didn't make me a drink this morning.  Usually he makes me Roma.  We are out of cream so he had to do non-dairy creamer yesterday.  Could that be why?

Dai had half leftover rice and half leftover oatmeal - each with the correct fixings - but in one bowl. Then she had a bowl of applesauce.  It is the no sugar added commercial stuff Tess gave us when she moved, so I sprinkled cinnamon and sugar on it.  Dai said it was sweeter than homemade but not as good.  Oh, sweet girl.

Phyllis had oatmeal that I microwaved for her.  I definitely prefer stove top cooked, but the girls don't seem to mind microwaved.  Of course she had brown sugar and raisins.  We go through a lot of raisins in this house!

Lunch: Cress had peanut butter on saltines.  My girls love saltines - often choosing them over Ritz, etc. Though I rarely get crackers anymore, and when I do it is most likely saltines for in a pinch mornings when there is no bread.  She has mangoes, applesauce with cinnamon and sugar and an orange.

Dai and Phyllis have peanut butter on pancakes (I found the ones that had gone missing in the freezer) - Dai's with honey and Phyllis's plain.  Phyllis has celery sticks with balsamic, a carrot and applesauce like I did Dai's for breakfast.  Dai has a carrot, orange and applesauce.

Jason took leftover nuts sauce and macaroni and the remaining balsamic Brussels sprouts.

I need to remember to grab oranges and cheese for me for the bus ride home.

Snack: I made Oopsie bread - basically eggs and cream cheese.  The girls liked them pretty well - I thought they were ok.  Probably will not make again.

Dinner: Leftover nut pasta.  Dai complained because there wasn't a produce with it.  That's what she called it.  She asked if she could have an orange.  I said no.

Oh, yeah, also bought $6 worth of dishwasher soap - but it lasts a good long time.  

Week 2, Day 1

Breakfast: Jason and I had breakfast burritos and the girls had oatmeal. This isn't as cruel as it sounds. Cress gets up first to be out the door by 7:10-7:15.  The other two get to sleep until at least 7, sometimes later.  Cressida doesn't like breakfast burritos and we eat while she does - thus the other two never see us eating a food they really like.

Lunch:  Cress had a peabnut butter and honey sandwich.  Cress and Dai like honey rather than jelly right now and Phyllis wants no jelly or honey.  Dai had leftover spaghetti and squash and Phyllis had leftover spaghetti.  So glad I bought those hot lunch containers.  They each had three produce.  Phyllis doesn't like oranges so she had mostly veggies. Carrots, celery, oranges, dried mangoes were the primary options.

I used to buy mangoes that were dried with sugar.  They are so good.  But, I recently started buying unsweetened dried mangoes.  The first day I gave it to Cress she brought it home to me and said, "I think these have gone bad, Mom."  That was Tuesday, maybe? Yesterday she ate them, though. Knowledge is power and having your expectations met also works.  I did mention it to her the first morning I packed them, but I think she didn't really understand.

Jason took burritos for lunch.  I forgot to pack anything and was ravenous by the time I got home after 2 PM.  I ate a burrito and the rest of the mushroom soup.  Really, more than I needed.  But I did finish the beans for tomorrow.  I added corn and two fresh cut up tomatoes.  I used to always do that to my gringa beans, but then I stopped somewhere along the way.

Snack: Toast with butter and a string cheese.  I needed to use up the last bit of bread and heels are bet

Dinner: Nila had left stuff for gluten free macaroni and cheese - technically it is also vegan so not actual cheese.  I doubled it so I added my own non-gluten free noodles. So, not really gluten free either.  The sauce was made with boiled carrots, potatoes, onion and nuts.  We thought it could use more zip but it was really interesting to boil nuts and then blend them.  Had never done that before.  We also had Brussels sprouts two ways - as Elise did them, roasted with balsamic vinaigrette, and steamed with butter added after.  If I had let him, Jason and I might picked them to death before the casserole was done.  Yummy!  We also had the vanilla jello dessert I made the day before.  Dai liked it initially but didn't finish. Phyllis didn't like it and was most dismayed to find she couldn't have one of her candies for dessert.  When I make it, you eat it or nothing.  Days I don't make dessert, then you can use your candy stash.  That will be dessert again because a lot is left.  

Week 1, Day 7

The end of a first complete week - so far so good.  As a side, I have very little grocery money but I have plenty of food.   I am having to use some of it for parking money at school - which going to school also uses a lot of gas - but hopefully I will start doing public transit soon.

Breakfast: Oatmeal which dad made for the kids.  I will have leftover onions.  Of course, I also have Roma and cream.

Lunch: Kids have PBJ's and fruits or veggies.  Phyllis doesn't love mandarins, so she has carrots and celery.  All have pickles (Phyllis didn't eat hers yesterday) and the two have mandarins.  Cress also has dried mango but it isn't the Philippine variety so not sweetened.  We shall see what she thinks.

Dinner: Spaghetti and butternut squash.  The squash was from several weeks ago - we got two from the CSA.  Jason picked up another apparently at work today - so that was nice.  I made only one pound of noodles and we had leftovers - the girls really liked squash.  I dressed up the remnant of the Ragu sauce I got from Tess when she moved.  I rationed that big old jar she gave me out over three meals.  Tonight I added mushrooms, garlic, herbs and a can of stewed tomatoes that I pureed.

I also made a mushroom soup today which I had as a snack and Jason had a bowl with after his spaghetti and squash.  Elise had pinned the recipe.  I re-pinned and made it - it was a bit thin but could be thickened easily enough and would be much healthier than cream of mushroom condensed soup in a can.

I also made a gelatin dessert that is dissolved in milk - likely dessert tomorrow as it has to set up.
Phyllis made cookies today pretty much by herself.  First time for that.  I used fresh ground flour which we have done before but this was different.  I think maybe I didn't have the grind fine enough.

Heather and I went to Costco.  I am essentially out of grocery money - especially if I have to keep buying a parking pass the rest of this week.  But, Heather owed me $8.  So she bought me a gallon of milk (we split a Costco two pack basically) and we split a Costco salsa two-pack.

I also realized that when Nila was here, she had bought the stuff to make a gluten free macaroni and cheese type meal.  She never made it so I have the ingredients.  I got the recipe today and shall try it tomorrow.  I hate to see food go to waste (and nuts can go bad, especially I would guess raw nuts) and even more so when I didn't have to pay for it.  Not sure Jason will love it, but, that's life, I guess.  Most of my food he does.  I made him more beans, but he won't need new beans for a couple days.