ArcaMax

Back to School

I was talking to a woman a while back. This discussion came around to breakfast cereal and I started in about how bad cereal is for kids. This woman screeched back at me. “Ya gotta get ‘em fed and on the bus! What else are you supposed to feed em?!”

Well, I do have some ideas. There is no cereal that is going to keep a kid full and focused. Protein and fat will. Keep the carbohydrates down and the kid will be able to concentrate and won’t fidget. Try it. The teachers will appreciate the change.

And don’t get me started on the school lunch programs. What an abomination. That’s what happens when we feed our kids subsidized, cheap food.

What I am going to do here is give you ideas for breakfast, lunch and after-school snacks. If you’re a mom, a child care provider or a grandparent, you can use all the help you can get. Instead of just one recipe today I am also going to give you several links to recipes. The kids deserve tasty, healthy food.

Breakfast

First off, don’t give your kid a glass of juice. There’s enough fructose in it to cause real problems. The nation’s preeminent childhood obesity expert Dr. Robert Lustig of UC San Francisco calls fructose “poison” and he backs up his claims with science. Mother Nature gave you the antidote to the fructose when she invented whole fruit. The antidote is the fiber. Little kids will love a clementine. They are small and peel easily. It will take a kid a lot longer to peel and eat a clementine than it does to down juice. It’s plenty sweet and has plenty of vitamin C in one dose.

Eggs. Hard boiled eggs are transportable if you have to rush your kids off to the bus. If they can sit, any kind of eggs are good. Cook them any way they like. You can even make Breakfast Quiche Casseroles so you have more than one day of breakfast. They keep in the fridge easily.

Sausages and meat. Kids love to pick up a sausage link with their fingers. You can serve them any kind of meat too. There are plenty of breakfast meats if they like bacon, Canadian bacon, or ham. But don’t limit yourself to traditional breakfast meats. If your kid wants the leftover chicken from last night, give it to them. Steer clear of the sausages packed with sugar. Quality control is important here. Read the label on the box or better yet buy them from the butcher. Stay away from processed food as much as possible.

Pancakes. Yep, there are healthy pancakes. When pancakes are made with almond flour they are healthy. Some kids have a nut allergy but most don’t. You can smash berries and mix with a bit of Truvia instead of syrup or spread them with unsweetened peanut butter. You can find good peanut butter now. Steer away from peanut butter with high fructose corn syrup in it. Again, read the label.

Apples with peanut butter. Slice up an apple and give the kid access to the peanut butter jar. They can take out a big scoop and then dip their apple in it or spread it on the slices. Plenty of protein to get them through the morning. Filling too.

Smoothies. Have a teenager who wants to run out the door? Hand them a protein smoothie in one of those ‘go cups’ usually reserved for coffee. It will stay cold. The secret is to use full fat Greek yogurt. Steer clear of the huge aisle of yogurt that is all full of sugar. You can sweeten the shake with frozen fruit and Truvia. Just follow the recipe. Little kids love these too. They think they are getting an ice cream treat. Play that up!

Lunch

Any of the transportable things above can work for lunch. Even the pancakes. They travel well. Who says you can’t have breakfast for lunch? Brunch is good.

Meat rolls. You can go back to your butcher and ask for lunch meat that has been roasted in house. Steer clear of the stuff in the packages hanging on the wall. You want fresh, unprocessed lunch meat. Choose your kid’s favorite slice. Then add a slice of cheese and their favorite spread (mayo, mustard, etc) and roll it up. You can add lettuce too. They look like little meat cigars. Kids have fun eating them. They transport well in the sealable lunch bags in batches. They can have a few of them. Who says they need bread? Skip it. They can eat their meat rolls with their fingers and have fun.

Salads. Any salad packed in a Tupperware-style container and put in an insulated bag will work.

Meat salads. Things like chicken salad work well. You can do them with or without mayo. Kids like the crunch of celery. You can add nuts too. More protein and fat for the afternoon of focus.

Baby meatloaves. Kids love these. They can be eaten cold or reheated in the microwave.

Drinks. NO SODA. Not even diet. Steer clear. Find healthy options. La Croix, for example has come out with a whole line of naturally flavored sparkling waters. They have a ton of flavors. If you get your kid hooked on this stuff they won’t get a sugar buzz. They won’t get a caffeine buzz. They just get a sparkling experience that tastes amazingly like regular soda. Fun kid flavors too.

This is just a start on the options for lunch.

After-School Snacks

Everyone wants to give a kid a snack when they get home from school. One thing I’ll start off saying is if the kids eat more protein at lunch they are not likely to be so ravenous when they get home, like they are when they eat carbohydrate-laden meals. Carbs don’t really fill you up or do much to nourish you so they wear off and leave you feeling hungry and unsatisfied.

Nuts. Nuts are a great snack idea to replace chips of any kind. Here’s a pecan mix that’s actually sweet! Leave out the spicy bit if you want a straight sweet snack.

Nut mix. If you feel the need to give them nuts and a sweet bit you can use some dried fruit bits. Just don’t load it with fruit. The ratio can be more like 10:1 (10 nuts to one raisin or apricot bit).

Fruit. When you get your kids off of all the sugar you’d be amazed at how sweet fruit tastes. We are back to the clementine idea. Also plums, peaches and nectarines can be a sweet treat. Just feed them a whole piece of fruit and steer clear of the canned stuff with all the sugar. Berries are a sweet treat that is easy to eat. Steer clear of high glycemic index fruits like grapes, watermelon, pineapple and bananas. If you give them grapes give them one or two. They will taste like gumdrops but they don’t need a whole bunch.

Candy. Yes you can come up with healthy candy. Just serve in moderation. I’m giving you two recipes. If you’re a ‘gourmet cook’ or adventurous in the kitchen you’ll love these. Chocolate truffles, aka chocolate balls. Just leave the liqueur out and replace with water if they kids will be eating them.

My friend Chef Josh offers up this gelee recipe. That’s French for gummie. These are all natural candy with no sugar. They taste sweet nonetheless. Just get a candy mold at the craft or kitchen supply store and you’re set.

Cheese. Kids can snack on cheese cubes. It won’t take a lot of them to fill them up.

Investigate low carb baking. The regular white flour we are accustomed to is full of carbohydrates. There are other options. It just takes a little education on how to replace the gluten that holds baked goods together. My favorites so far are coconut flour and almond flour but there are even more options. Just get on the internet and start to learn. It’s just like going back to home economics class. Fun.

I’m offering up a recipe for strawberry rhubarb bars today. You can switch to other fruits as the seasons go along too. Pie cherries are great in this dish too.

If your kids want something cold you are in luck. You can make these options. They all can be made ahead and stored in the fridge for days. These are way better for you than commercial ice cream and have the same kind of decadent feeling in your mouth. Save these recipes for your next dinner party too! Adults love this stuff! French Chocolate Silk and Peanut Butter Dream.

One last one: If you have a food processor you can always whip up a batch of what I call "Smoosh". It’s just like a frozen snow cone without the paper cone. Kids and adults both love this stuff. Some tell me they are never going back to ice cream after eating this stuff. They get the same satisfaction and no sugar.

I hope this sets you up for the school year. My goal is to see the lives of children changed by changing their eating habits and it starts with those of us who pay for the food.

Peanut Butter Dream

Think peanut butter chiffon pie without the crust. For a low carb diet this is perfect. I have made it for guests a few times. The servings I gave out were generous and I figured no one would finish. Ha. Everyone snarfed up every bit. Served in a pretty glass (I use antique champagne saucers) or a fun, tiny bowl, this is perfect for a party. People love the fact that it’s so light and yet decadent. This can be kept in a covered bowl and doled out after school in small portions. Just put the plastic wrap right on top of the mixture so it doesn’t get a thickened ‘skin’ on it.

Serves 4 to 6 depending on size of serving you decide on.

Ingredients:

8 oz of cream cheese (softened)
3-4 packets of Truvia
1 cup of smooth peanut butter. I use organic peanut butter that is emulsified and unsweetened.
3 cups of whipped topping. TruWhip is one brand you can use. Or you can whip your own cream and use that.
Unsweeetened cocoa powder for dusting (optional)

Instructions:

Load a medium bowl with the cream cheese, Truvia and peanut butter. Whiz until blended. Then add your whipped cream or the TruWhip. Whip again until it’s all mixed. Put into your pretty serving dishes and put in the refrigerator covered (I just use little pieces of plastic wrap to cover them). Remove covers when you want to serve and dust with the cocoa powder. You’re all set for a fancy party. It’s also great to eat all by yourself while watching TV. If you have them, you can even serve this with demitasse spoons to make the experience take longer. Small spoonfuls. Listen for the moaning at the table. You’ll hear it. I promise.

I recommend you make this the afternoon you serve it. Leftovers do well in the refrigerator for a few days. They never last long in my house.

Enjoy!
Cheers,
Zola