Nutrition...feeding a family +5

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Originally Posted by bright sparks

That sounds great thanks...I will pm the recipe for the curry. It is so easy to make you will laugh. It takes less than 20 minutes and keeps for up to a week in the fridge. I know there are so many major health benefits to being meat free, but as a meat eater myself, I personally love that it keeps in the fridge for so darn long lol Makes cooking for my veggie son so much easier with a quick reheat on the stove or in the oven :)

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Could we start a recipe thread? :) Would love to try some new dishes!

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Originally Posted by nschildcare

Could we start a recipe thread? :) Would love to try some new dishes!

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That's a great idea!!

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Originally Posted by bright sparks

Thank you so much....I do buy the tomatoes from costco and they save a lot of money. I grew an insane amount of tomatoes last year, to many really, and I have everything to jar them but chickened out after reading up on how easy it is to cock it up and have them contaminated with bacteria. My friends mum has already said that this year she will teach us both how to do it so I look forward to that.

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I boil the jars after sealing them as well, just to be sure. If I can do it without giving everyone food poisoning, you can too! Trust me lol!

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Originally Posted by AmandaKDT

But I try to eat real food as much as possible, I really like the ideas on this website - http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/

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I've used this website too, it's great!

You may already do this but when I see something that I use often on sale, I buy it even though I may not use it for weeks. I do this with almost everything. Just doing this alone saves me $10-$20 dollars a week. Make a list. One trip to the supermarket per week. That's about all I have.

One thing I do to save money is to buy A LOT of something when it goes on super deep discount. The one that gets me the most excited is toilet paper (yeah, I'm THAT cool!). Every now and then, No Frills will have it on for $9 for about 30 double rolls. I'll buy about 4 of them as that's enough toilet paper to get my family and daycare through about a year. Peanut butter....I bought 6 big jars of kraft @ $2 each about 8 months ago. Laundry soap, same thing. When we were having a particularly bad time financially a number of years ago, Suave shampoos and conditioners went on for $1. I bought about 20 of each and didn't have to get that again for well over a year...it was awesome! I'll spend and extra chunk when these go super cheap then I don't have to ever buy them at regular price and that little chunk is never on my bill. I've found this very helpful. It has gotten us through some lean times. And, I take great comfort in the fact that in the event of a zombie apocalypse, we'll always have toilet paper :)

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Originally Posted by homeschoolmom

I'm gluten sensitive, but can eat red fife wheat with no problems at all. It's the only flour we now use in all of our baking, and the whole family loves it. It's also much cheaper than gluten-free flours and can be substituted cup-for-cup in traditional recipes shich makes life much easier :) I get ours at Bulk Barn with the $3 off coupons I get each week.

http://www.daybreakmill.com/health-benefit/red-fife

My two youngest are the only ones left at home, and they both have huge appetites! I've found that they need protein with their snacks as well as meals or they don't feel 'full'. We always keep hard-boiled eggs on hand, they'll grab a handful of almonds, chickpeas, or edamamme to eat with a piece of fruit, etc. One favourite snack is corn muffins (made from a GF mix from Bulk Barn) with cream cheese and homemade freezer jam. Also, baked oatmeal is filling and portable- we make ours with peanut butter, but if your school is peanut free there are loads of recipes online that are made without. Breakfast cookies made with a variey of nuts, seeds, and dried fruit are also loved here ;)

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I'm for sure going to try the red fife...thanks for sharing. My daughter is okay with kamut too. The ancient grains are typically easier to digest for some people with sensitivities and this seems to be the case for her. My kids are on a balanced day at school which doesn't help with their appetite to be honest. They arrive home from school at 3:50 and their last nutritional break is at 1:15 so they are ready to raid the cupboards and the fridge. Fortunately they ask for snacks, not that they necessarily need permission but it does help me monitor when and what they eat. While some days it seems like the kids eat everything, other days when I break it down they do have restrictions. Either with dietary choices or just due to dislikes and preferences. They are good at trying new things though which I am thankful for.

well, I'm like the others, when things go really cheap then we stock up alot and add that with coupons its an extra bonus.

I don't buy organic, because-this is me, I don't believe that they are truley organic unless I grow them out of my garden (which needs to extended even bigger-darn kids lol) or we go and pick it ourselves.

I live in the country so we have fruit stands everywhere. But in the fall we pick alot of apples, we go strawberry picking-but now have pots with my own.

also, alot of veggies can be frozen, so when you can get them cheap then stock up and freeze. Also, frozen veggies and fruit at the store have the same nutrients as fresh as long as they are not in butter sauce or any sauces, its just that the frozen fruit is sometimes mushy.

see if your grocery store has a dietician, I brought my girl guide group 2 weeks ago to a grocery store and she went thru so many things, its was crazy how much stuff and info is out there.

also, if its cheaper to buy it than make it then buy it. I wont' make granola bars which has the because they don't last long and to make them would cost way to much. Also, our school has to many allergies so lots of stuff cant be sent in.

cookies would be great to send in but in my house your lucky if they last an hour. Also muffins are great or breads are great too.

also, I go thru the flyers and only cook for the week what i can buy from the flyers, this has cut down on alot.

I will say that you can't try to save money and buy high quality food, it just doesn't work that way, like going to a butcher kwim.

I think you need to sit down and really look at what you are buying for the week and what you are making and say, is it cheaper to make it or buy it. I know you want to do everything homemade, but your going to end up burning yourself out. I always have quick meals in my house like hotdogs (when on sale) or nuggets (again on sale) when I'm running out the door for an activity.

I make breakfast every morning, and they have a good supper. Lunch is a bit harder because the school has way too many allergies, and warm yogurt and droopy cheese isn't something my kids are too crazy.

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Originally Posted by homeschoolmom

My daughter just reminded me that one of her favourite snacks before supper is soup. I make homemade chicken or turkey broth and freeze it, and once a week or so I make a huge pot of soup for supper, and the leftovers go into the fridge and they snack from it the rest of the week. I make sure there's lots of protein and veggies in it, and usually some brown rice. I make a huge variety so that they don't get bored of it- gypsy, chicken and rice, kale and sausage, white bean and spinach, etc.

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I make loads of soups for my daycare and my daughter loves them too. sweet potato, leek and potato, chorizo, veggie and mulligatawny. I'm hungry now :)

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Originally Posted by momofnerds

well, I'm like the others, when things go really cheap then we stock up alot and add that with coupons its an extra bonus.

I don't buy organic, because-this is me, I don't believe that they are truley organic unless I grow them out of my garden (which needs to extended even bigger-darn kids lol) or we go and pick it ourselves.

I live in the country so we have fruit stands everywhere. But in the fall we pick alot of apples, we go strawberry picking-but now have pots with my own.

also, alot of veggies can be frozen, so when you can get them cheap then stock up and freeze. Also, frozen veggies and fruit at the store have the same nutrients as fresh as long as they are not in butter sauce or any sauces, its just that the frozen fruit is sometimes mushy.

see if your grocery store has a dietician, I brought my girl guide group 2 weeks ago to a grocery store and she went thru so many things, its was crazy how much stuff and info is out there.

also, if its cheaper to buy it than make it then buy it. I wont' make granola bars which has the because they don't last long and to make them would cost way to much. Also, our school has to many allergies so lots of stuff cant be sent in.

cookies would be great to send in but in my house your lucky if they last an hour. Also muffins are great or breads are great too.

also, I go thru the flyers and only cook for the week what i can buy from the flyers, this has cut down on alot.

I will say that you can't try to save money and buy high quality food, it just doesn't work that way, like going to a butcher kwim.

I think you need to sit down and really look at what you are buying for the week and what you are making and say, is it cheaper to make it or buy it. I know you want to do everything homemade, but your going to end up burning yourself out. I always have quick meals in my house like hotdogs (when on sale) or nuggets (again on sale) when I'm running out the door for an activity.

I make breakfast every morning, and they have a good supper. Lunch is a bit harder because the school has way too many allergies, and warm yogurt and droopy cheese isn't something my kids are too crazy.

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I live in Niagara Region with lots of fruit stands but they are heavily sprayed so I am picky as to what and where I buy from. I buy some frozen veg, specifically corn as I buy non gmo, fresh corn is so bad for you unless you can find non gmo which is really rare. I appreciate peoples difference in opinion when it comes to Organic and you are right, it isn't 100% unless it actually says 100% organic which even certified organic isn't, but its still a hell of a lot better than conventional produce. Organic product can not contain GMO so theirs a huge health benefit right there if nothing else, and that is important to me and my childrens wellbeing.

I make extra portions and freeze them for convenience and quick evening meals when we have lots of activities, but over my dead body will I feed my guys nuggets and hotdogs etc. I know what they are made out of and they just are not even remotely good for you. Beggers can't be choosers but I have to draw the line somewhere. I make burgers from scratch and freeze them. I also make pancakes of varying varieties and freeze them inbetween parchment and then the kids can just pop them in the toaster.

I buy frozen berries for my daughters smoothies, I can barely stand to buy them fresh to be honest as within 24 hours they already spoil and its just a huge waste of money in my opinion.

I have studied nutrition from home and also know a lot of nutritionists. Dieticians have a different approach and are legally obliged to stick to the Canada Food Guide which is not something I follow as it just isn't healthy so really wouldn't be of any help to me.

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also, if its cheaper to buy it than make it then buy it. I wont' make granola bars which has the because they don't last long and to make them would cost way to much. Also, our school has to many allergies so lots of stuff cant be sent in.

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SERIOUSLY!?! I understand that I have a budget to work within, and I have to make some major changes in order to meet it and that will take time and trial and error, but I'm not going to just feed my kids stuff that is cheap if it means feeding them unhealthy foods. My granola bars are made every 2 weeks and last the whole time, I could probably freeze them too. They are nut free, dairy free and gluten free so no worries with allergies there beyond any other food which isn't a common allergen. They are loaded with healthy superfoods too, so not only do I eliminate the garbage going into my kids bodies, but I replace it with healthy nutritious food.

I want to get my cost down as much as possible but there is a difference between cheap....which often means low quality although I understand not always as no names are frequently the same product as brand names, and inexpensive. I am hoping to go to school without the need for any student loans so hopefully I can figure out what works for me and my family within the confines of my budget. I need to figure out what I am willing to compromise, and what I am not.

I have recently started with pcplus points and price match with the other flyers. I don't save heaps but it feels good to save and the pcplus points add up really quickly. There are a suprising amount of coupons out there but unfortunately not to many that are for foods we eat. I buy things that are on sale and in the flyers, but I don't buy an item just because it is on sale unless I would eat it normally. I use a lot of coupons for toiletries and cleaning products though.