My Own Sneaky "Chef" {& our weekly menu}

So I'm having {what I think is} an unusual problem: My 2-year-old is sneaking food. I used to keep my apples, bananas, et cetera on the counter. He started pulling up a chair to get some. So I moved my produce to the cabinet above the sink. He started climbing up on top of the counter to access them. Then he graduated from fresh fruit to raisins, and, when available, Hubby's chocolate-covered raisins. This weekend I caught him sneaking some chocolate chips from the top shelf in my refrigerator! I have to say, though, I was surprised by his choice this morning: coconut oil and blueberry jam (made without refined sugar, of course). This kid cracks me up. And exasperates me. To no end. But I had to reward his efforts this morning--with a small spoonful of coconut oil. At least he chose something healthy today!

We had a fairly relaxed weekend. And we were a bit flexible with our food choices. Yesterday was the baby shower for my cousin's sweet baby, and I gave the kids a little freedom. Extended family gatherings are definitely the hardest place to eat primally. They did have a veggie tray, which hubby visited frequently. I indulged in my favorite Chiniese chicken salad (from a kit purchased at Costco), and a little cake. I allowed the kids some chocolate cake (sugar overload!), but was {thankfully} able to keep them from the jelly beans. We enjoyed the time with family, and I didn't see negative side effects in the kids apart from their sugar-highs right before bed.

Once again, we had one meal pushed into the next week. I'll be making my meatloaf tonight, and will post the recipe this week. (I'm still looking for a good pork sausage recipe--any suggestions??) I also was unable to make my flank steak recipe last week, as my butcher was out of that cut. I ended up with a few NY strip steaks instead, and made this recipe from Alton Brown. It was quite tasty, and even my steak-averse hubby enjoyed it. Yesterday I made this recipe from Nom Nom Paleo for roast chicken and gravy in the crockpot (minus the tomato paste--I was out). Delicious! I was actually planning on making the chicken tonight, but it fit our schedule better for yesterday. I'm going to use the carcass to make my first batch of bone broth this afternoon. I'm excited to get on with that aspect of the gut-healing process, but I'm a little anxious about it at the same time.

Other items on our menu this week include:

• Carnitas
• Roasted Stuffed Poblanos (based on this recipe, but with the leftovers from our carnitas)
• something with the leftover chicken from yesterday :-)
• Flank Steak from last week
• Curried Chicken (again--I'm craving curry lately!)

I'm also going to make these fudgsicles for the kids. What do you have planned for the week??

Today I'm linking to Menu Plan Monday at OrgJunkie.com!

Baked Chimichangas

Since I have an abundance of chicken in my freezer, I filled up our meal plan with poultry dishes! On the menu tonight: baked chimichangas. I've adapted a recipe I found awhile back at Or so she says for a little more convenience on my part. I also adapted it to feed my larger family (we've doubled the number of children in our house in less than a week!). If you have a smaller family, just half the recipe. (I will update tomorrow with pictures.)

Baked Chimichangas

2 chicken breasts

1 1/2 c. salsa 

2 t. ground cumin

1 1/2 c. shredded cheese

12 flour tortillas

olive oil

any toppings you want (we use more cheese, lettuce, tomato, sour cream, &-if I'm lucky-guacamole)

1. Place your chicken in the crockpot and cook on low for about 8 hours.

2. About half an hour before dinnertime, preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

3. Shred your chicken or let your kids go at it with kid-safe knives.

4. Add salsa, cumin, and cheese. 

5. Place about 1/2 c. of mixture on a tortilla and roll up. Place seam-side down on a baking sheet and continue with the rest of your tortillas. Brush with olive oil.

6. Bake at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes.

7. Garnish with your favorite toppings & enjoy!

Linking up to Slow Cooking Thursday.

11. tough teachers

12. bonding with FG over hours of homework

13. 2 new sisters who joined our family last night

14. sharing a meal with friends

15. my sweet baby's voice

Holli Frijoles

One of my frugal family favorites is pinto beans. I make these almost every week, and we will eat them in bean and cheese burritos or on a tostada topped with cheese. Sometimes we add sour cream, tomatoes and lettuce, but usually we're purists. This is an easy and extremely inexpensive meal, and takes less than 5 minutes to prepare.

Our cast:

Pinto beans

Jalapeños

A red onion

First you'll want to sort and rinse your beans. Remove any rocks or debris and run them under some water. 

Now dump it all in a crockpot and cover with a few inches of water (don't skimp on your water).

Slice up your jalapeños. I use 3, but you can adjust according to your heat tolerance. No need to remove seeds or dice--big chunks will do. Discard the stems.

Now for the onion. I've made this with a whole onion and a half, and I didn't notice a difference in flavor, so we use half to be more economical. I've used white, yellow, and red onions; Hubby prefers the red. Again, no need to dice, just chop it up a bit.

Throw your veggies into the crock, and turn it to low.

Or turn it to high because you didn't get around to starting dinner until late morning. ;)

Now go play with your kids and enjoy your day. We went to the park and walked around the lake a couple times. At dinnertime, add some shredded cheese (& a tortilla if you're like Hubby), and enjoy your filling meal. 

And yes, I understand there aren't any veggies in our meal. Eat 'em at lunchtime. ;)

Linking up to the 4 Moms' Tip for Feeding a Large Family on a Budget and to Slow-Cooking Thursday

WFMW: Chicken by the {BOX}

When you have a large family- or just feed a lot of people- you're always looking for a good deal. Last year, around the time we ordered the cow, I discovered Zaycon Foods. Zaycon Foods cuts out the middle man and brings you farm-fresh (never frozen!) chicken, bacon, and fruit for less than you'd pay at the store. Their service is not for everyone. You need to have space to store your {frozen} chicken, and you have to do some prep and portioning, so it's a bit of work. The chicken comes by the {40 lb.} box, and is "100% natural with no added hormones, additives, or artificial ingredients." I know this still is not the healthiest chicken out there, but at this point, and with our growing family, I can't afford to purchase free-range birds. For us this is the next best thing.

Right now Zaycon is having a giant boneless, skinless chicken savings event in all 48 continental states! I'm not sure how much the prices and dates vary from state-to-state, but I am ordering my chicken breasts for only $1.49/pound! I wish I had a picture to show you. I promise I'll document it this time!

If you're at all interested, hop over to the Zaycon Foods site, register, and see when they will be in your neighborhood. Buying quality chicken at a great price works for me!

Disclaimer: While this was not a sponsored post, I do earn $1 (toward future chicken!) for every event you purchase from if you register from my link or with the referral name "Klein Haus Chaos".

Our Apple Orchard {& PIE!}

Okay, so maybe it's not our apple orchard, but it's where we pick our own organic apples! This was the second year that we've gone, and we plan on making this a yearly tradition. I shared yesterday about Date Creek Ranch and their yummy beef. Today it's about the apples! We loved visiting the apple orchards while we were stationed in Nebraska, and when we moved home, I thought that was one thing we would be missing out on. Needless to say, we were very excited to see this:

I'm all for seeing where our food comes from, and it doesn't get much better than organic apples for $1/pound!

All of these pictures are from last year. 

Because of course we forgot the camera this time.

 Last year we went toward the end of the season. Our fifty pounds of apples made some yummy pie, applesauce and syrup, but were a little tart to eat fresh. This year we made it up there the first weekend, and that made ALL THE DIFFERENCE!

 Thirty-seven pounds of delicious apples! I made a small crockpot full of applesauce (peel and quarter the apples and turn on low for six hours or so) for the kids, the rest of the apples that we didn't eat were turned into Dutch Apple Pie! 

Not quite the same as what we bought in Julian, but excellent nonetheless.

Dutch Apple Pie

Crust: 

1 1/2 c. flour

1 T. sugar

1/2 t. salt

1/2 c. oil (I prefer coconut, but whatever floats your boat)

2 T. milk

Mix together and press into pie pan.

Filling:

6 medium apples, peeled, cored, and sliced

1/2 c. sugar

1 T. flour

Dump sugar and flour over the apple slices and mix gently. Pour into pie pan.

Topping:

1 c. flour

1 c. sugar

1/2 c. butter

Mix flour and sugar, then cut in butter until it's crumbly. Bake at 375 for about an hour or until a knife slides in easily. Best served with a generous helping of vanilla ice cream, preferably homemade.

Picking our own organic apples works for me!

Our {Grass-fed} Cow

Disclaimer: All opinions here are my own, and while they are my convictions, please do not assume that I judge those who have different convictions. I have come to this place over time, and have made many contrary choices in my life. 

Two years ago, Hubby and I made a conscious decision to strive to do things as God originally intended. This had included how many children we (will) have, how and where we birth our children, how we raise our children (such as breastfeeding, co-sleeping and homeschooling), and what we put into our bodies. Many of these changes were in the works even longer. We are asking ourselves, "How has it been done in the past?" and "How has modern society changed how we do things?" This is not to say that all modern conveniences are bad, but we want to question the wisdom behind more recent practices.

One example of this is our food. We try to eat food that has not been genetically modified or contaminated with pesticides, artificial coloring, or other chemicals. This is a process, and we definitely aren't perfect when it comes to this. Still, my goal is to take baby steps every month to get my family eating healthier. Last fall I began examining the protein we were consuming, namely chicken (and eggs) and beef. Most of the poultry and beef that one purchases in stores are fed corn and soy. Not only are these genetically modified, but these animals would not typically choose this diet if they were left on their own. I now purchase hormone-free chicken (not free-range, though I hope to get there!), free-range eggs, and last year we went in with my parents to purchase a quarter of a grass-fed cow.

Last September, our family visited Date Creek Ranch Orchard for the first time. We came to pick our own organic apples (more on that later!), but we fell in love with the beef! I love that we were able to see the cows in the pasture. But the kicker was the roast they had for us to sample! It had been cooking on low for 24 hours with no water, no seasonings, nothing, and it was the. best. beef. EVER.

I love knowing where my food came from, that it's made without hormones, herbicides, pesticides and other chemicals, and that he lived a happy life. It may not be the cheapest way to feed my family, but it is very healthy and delicious.

For more pictures, visit Date Creek Ranch's photo gallery, and while you're there, check out how you can score some of this great beef for yourself! (I am in no way being compensated for this post, I just love our beef that much! However, if you do decide to place an order, let them know that I referred you, and I'll get a few pounds for free next time!)