back to school bentos! (#s 81-87)

For the life of me I could not get this picture to upload in the right direction so turn your heads to the left. This is in the laptop lunchbox. It is seven-layer dip, tortilla chips, cantaloupe chunks, and some cinnamon goldfish.

In the sassy baby mealtime box: whole wheat bread with local honey, baby carrots, cinnamon goldfish, and cantaloupe. This bento was for the 4 year old at home.

In the sassy box again: grapes, chocolate goldfish, deli turkey rolls, vegie straws. (I get a box at Costco that are in snack size bags). This bento was also for the 4 year old.

In the dino dips container: green grapes, cinnammon goldfish, cheddar cheese chunks, turkey, and edamame.

These two twin ones turned out so pretty I think: They are both identical just different color boxes: frozen blueberries, cherry tomatoes from our garden, chicken sausage with apple and gouda cheese, vegie chips.

Ditto.

cantaloupe, yogurt, cherry tomatoes from the garden, and 2 small slices of thin crust cheese pizza.

mpm: week of August 23rd

to see more menus and share your own, see here!

MONDAY
seven layer dip :: tortilla chips :: watermelon

TUESDAY
hawaiian meatloaf (found at orgjunkie's menu this week) :: rice :: tomatoes

WEDNESDAY
zucchini pizza bites :: salad with garden cherry tomatoes

THURSDAY
hootenanny pancake :: chicken sausage with apple and gouda cheese :: berries

FRIDAY
pizza night :: take-out

SATURDAY
leftovers day

SUNDAY
chicken fajitas

mpm: week of August 16th

see more menus and/or add your own at orgjunkie.com

MONDAY

tamales (in steamer) :: watermelon

TUESDAY

homemade waffles (recipe to come) :: fruit compote 

WEDNESDAY

spinach and pasta salad with grilled chicken :: honeydew melon ::

THURSDAY

potluck picnic at a park

FRIDAY

pizza night on whole wheat pizza dough

SATURDAY

leftovers day

SUNDAY

sauteed mushroom cream soup

bentos 79 & 80

organic fuji apple slices, 2 wedges of light laughing cow swiss cheese, 2 Rosemary La Panzanella crackers, and leftover Mike & Ikes from our movie date.

This is an ugly face sandwich. It's pb and grape jelly with cheese face shapes, pretzels, apple slices, and carrot sticks with a little container of caramel underneath for the apples

our little garden

This is our second year doing a little community garden. Community as in two other families. One of the families has a big space at their home that wasn't in use for anything so we all pitched in and built this garden. I took these after spending a good couple of hours weeding.  

Above: strawberry patch (with lots of weeds in it still) and tomatoes next to that. We are growing heirloom and cherry. As you can see we've already picked everything.

On the other side of the tomatoes are red and green bell peppers and jalapenos. In the plot next to it, there is currently nothing but weeds. Earlier it had romaine lettuce, broccoli, and peas. Against the gate are various herbs and some swiss chard.

This is our biggest box running along the fence next to where the herbs and swiss chard were in the previous picture. We have zucchini, yellow summer squash, cucumbers (where the wooden lattice is), green beans (where the tall green poles are), and at the very end cantaloupe and baby watermelons.

This is our first take home bounty. I did pick the cantaloupe too soon. I was a little eager. Gardening is a great workout! My body has been sore for days from all that weeding and picking. . .

mpm: week of August 9th

add your menu or see more at orgjunkie

MONDAY

Apricot Chicken :: broccoli :: rice

TUESDAY
spinach and pesto lasagna :: crusty garlic bread

WEDNESDAY
brinner: Fly off the Plate Pancakes :: sausage :: fruit

THURSDAY
tamales (except not in the crockpot this time) :: cold vegies and melon from our garden

FRIDAY
pizza night :: Papa Murphy's

SATURDAY
leftovers day

SUNDAY
slow cooked pork roast :: salad with garden vegetables :: mashed potatoes

Jam Thumbprint Cookies, or "I Love Butter" Cookies

I remember eating these a few times as a little girl. I know there are recipes for these cookies in vintage cookbooks, because whenever I look through my mom's old cookbooks, or in a used bookstore, I always stop on these recipes and want to make them. I finally did it. I don't remember where the recipe I have came from. It might be Martha Stewart. I like that there are minimal ingredients. This is also a fun recipe for kids to help with because they love making the dents in the middle of the cookies and filling them up with hot jam. I use raw organic sugar. As far as I can tell, there isn't a difference in taste, but I swear you can still see the grain of the sugar and taste the crunch in the finished product. But maybe that's just me. 

JAM THUMBPRINT COOKIES

3 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

1 large egg

3 1/4 cups unbleached flour

3/4 cup jam (any type) we used strawberry

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar until smooth. Add egg, and beat until completely combined. With mixer on low, add flour, and mix just until incorporated.

Shape dough into 1-inch balls (about 2 Tablespoons each). Place on baking sheets, at least 3 inches apart.

Moisten thumb with water, and gently press the center of each ball, making an indentation about 1/2 inch wide and 1/4 inch deep. In microwave or on stove, heat jam until liquefied; spoon about 1/2 teaspoon into each indentation. Bake until cookies are golden brown around edges, 18-20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack, and let cool completely. If storing, place in an airtight container at room temperature, up to 2 days.

mpm: week of August 2nd

see more menus here

MONDAY
7-Layer Bean dip :: tortilla chips :: watermelon

TUESDAY
Kung Pao Chicken :: rice

WEDNESDAY
Caprese Salad :: bread and pesto for dipping

THURSDAY
Chipotle Grilled Chicken with Avocado Sandwiches :: local sweet corn

FRIDAY
Lemon-Thyme Zucchini on Flatbread (from the Weight Watchers New Complete Cookbook p. 315)

SATURDAY
leftovers

SUNDAY
grilled apple and cheese sandwiches :: salad with garden veggies