Give Thanks - Happy Thanksgiving!

Let me first apologize for the photo. Because this lunch was for the last day of school before Thanksgiving break, Z's afternoon preschool had a "Fall Feast" pageant and potluck, so Hubby worked from home that day so he could come watch.
Which meant Mama got to sleep in an extra hour while he got her up and ready for her morning preschool. The only problem was I had totally forgotten to finish packing her lunch and taking my photos! I had literally stepped out of the shower when Hubby came to ask me what she needed to take to school. Doh! I seriously considered going outside in the freezing cold while I was dripping wet wearing just my thin towel robe, so I could get a photo with the good light, but we just didn't have time. I asked him to add her dessert and take a photo.
He forgot to add the dessert before the picture, and blocked half the light with his arm. And didn't think to take a picture from an angle that would show the words on the sandwich. But he meant well. He even placed it on our wooden kitchen chair so there would be a nicer backdrop. *sigh*

PBJ sandwich, [missing TJ's Candy Cane Joe Joes,] apples, carrots, green beans, broccoli

The empty silicone heart cup was for some Candy Cane Joe Joes cookies (like Oreos) from Trader Joe's. He remembered to add them in for me before packing the EasyLunchbox into her lunch bag (no ice pack, since I forgot to pack any dairy. Doh!)

I [Heart} Carrots: I used a mini heart cutter (mine came from a set that is discontinued, but it's roughly 1" tall) on some orange and yellow carrot coins, then a micro heart cutter to make smaller hearts in the middle, which I then swapped around.

Thankful For Sandwiches: I used a heart sandwich press (mine came from Williams-Sonoma a few years ago and doesn't appear to be available any more) to cut hearts out of two slices of bread, and a small heart cutter to cut a hole out of the top layer. Then a 3/4" heart cutter to cut a heart from that scrap to go in the middle.
Luckily I was able to spell GIVE THANKS without any duplicate letters, since I only have the one set of alphabet picks... so far... Not that you can tell from the photo. But trust me. It looked really cute. *sigh*

Tools of the Trade

         

Thanksgiving Pilgrim Girl Lunch

Since she likes little girl characters in her lunches, and she's been nagging at me to use this "witch hat" cupcake topper for a while, I decided I'd try my hand at a pilgrim! Actually, I had started out with the idea of making a cute animal with the pilgrim hat, but decided on a girl after remembering a cute witch I'd seen done with the CuteZCute cutter (also available at Amazon) over at Bento, Monsters.

Thankful Pilgrim

Ham and cheese on artisan Rosemary Bread sandwich, TJ's White Cheddar Popcorn, raspberries, green beans

I added a turkey cupcake pick to make the raspberries more festive, and the Trader Joe's White Cheddar Popcorn to help fill the empty space. Plus it's a whole grain, and not a ton of fat or salt, versus other snack foods. And green beans. You know. For veggies. Did the pilgrims and Indians have these foods? Other than the popcorn, probably not. But I was going for things she'd eat that I have on-hand, rather than authenticity!

You can check out the witch tutorial for a general idea of how I made the sandwich, although instead of a toothpick or knife, I flipped the cutter and used the ear part to cut the sides of the hair. I tried to not let it cut through the top, but I kind of failed. Doh! I used a faces cutter to make eyes and lips out of ham scraps, not that you can really tell. I should have gone with a white cheese, even though I would have had to open a string cheese to do it! I glued everything together with cream cheese, and added some black sesame seeds to make the eyes stand out better.

To get the hat to stay on, since it's just a hollow cupcake topper (found at a bake shop somewhere) and not a pick, I stuck two pieces of uncooked spaghetti noodles into the bread to hold the hat in place. Then I scootched the whole sandwich up so the hat was pressing against the top of the EasyLunchbox compartment, so it wouldn't slide off the noodles! The lid pressed flush against the brim of the hat. Phew! Perfect fit!
(The nose-thing in the middle is actually a bit of rosemary baked into the bread.)

I rarely show before and after pictures, since her eating habits fluctuate based on what I packed, when she last ate, etc. But since starting this new morning preschool, she's been doing a bang-up job eating her lunches, especially the veggies. I've also been packing less food (hence all the silicone cups in the smaller compartments - to fill space and add color, so they don't look as empty!) to make just a meal's worth, since we're no longer nibbling throughout the day.
I send her lunch to school, instead of a "safe" snack, like with her afternoon preschool, because if she filled up on snacks right before lunch (they have snack then goodbye circle and songs, then home) she wouldn't have enough room for healthy lunch choices. Plus she's primed to crave healthier options, since they've just had recess before snack (see below.) Although some days, like this day, they don't have time for snack, but they come home soon after, where she then eats her lunch. But the days they do have time to eat snack, she comes home with less than half of her food (one time she had eaten every last morsel, and needed seconds at home!) and eats most or all of the rest in the hour we have before we leave for her afternoon preschool.

(No, she did not eat the hat. She was off playing with it!)

The Secret to her Eating Success:

Her new preschool has the kids go to recess before snack time. I read somewhere a while ago that kids who eat after exercising not only eat more, they make healthier choices (scroll down on the link to check out the comparison charts.) Their bodies crave the nutrients that they've burned with all their physical activity, so their bodies want the fruits, veggies, proteins and grains, and less of the fats. On the flip side, kids who eat before recess tend to be sluggish and full, and less active! (Plus they eat less and tend to choose junkier options.)
So if your child's school does recess after lunch, be proactive! Tell your school and PTA the benefits of recess before lunch and try and make a positive change for the health of every child! Google "should kids eat before or after recess" for a ton more articles and resources.

Tools of the Trade

       

A Savorfull November - Gluten-Free Pizza Pinwheels

November's Savorfull box included:

• Enjoy Life Sunbutter Crunch chewy bar (Top 8 Allergen-Free - GF, WF, EF, DF, PN, TF, SF, SFF)
• Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free Pizza Crust Mix (GF, WF, EF, DF, PN, SF)
• Skinny Pop 100 calorie popcorn (GF, WF, EF, DF, PN, TF, SFF)
• Lucy's Gluten-Free cookies Chocolate Merry Mint (special seasonal flavor!) (GF, WF, EF, DF, PN, TF)

All four items are gluten-free, and made in peanut-free facilities (the Pizza Crust Mix is made in a facility with tree nuts and soy, though.)

Savorfull is a monthly subscription service that sends you a carefully selected assortment of trial-sized and full-sized allergy-friendly food items (usually peanut-free and/or dairy-free and also gluten/wheat-free.)
While we don't have any food allergies to worry about, the nut-free items would be safe to take to her nut-free preschool for her personal snack. Or the boxes often include "ingredients" (flour, baking mixes, etc) I could use to whip up a safe class snack. [And by "whip up" I mean "flub in some way."] 
Everything they choose is artificial-free too, which is what sold me on trying them out!
The Savorfull box is only $15 per month, with no added shipping charge! That's a fantastic deal, since most sampler boxes I've tried are either smaller, more expensive, or tack on a monthly shipping charge as well!
Are you interested in trying them out too?
Use code BITINGMYHAND for $1 off 1 month, $9 off 6 months, or $20 off a 1-year subscription!

Due to a fortuitous error in my planning, I got TWO of these Savorfull all-natural allergy-friendly boxes this month! Mmmm.

I can't tell you how the popcorn was. After opening the boxes and taking pictures, I went to feed the baby. Apparently the schools are teaching my older child how to use scissors! Doh!

The first Enjoy Life Sunbutter Crunch bar was snarfed up right out of the box (just before the Pilfering of the Popcorn.) The second was saved for another day and cut into little heart-shaped bites using a mini cookie cutter, and divided between a friendship-themed lunch and preschool snack.

Snack: orange and yellow carrot hearts, apples,
Enjoy Life Sunbutter Crunch bar bites

I'm wavering between saving both boxes of Lucy's cookies for her morning preschool's Winter Holiday party, since she has gluten-free and peanut-allergic classmates, and I hate bringing anything that excludes someone; or eating one box now and only bringing one to the party... Omnomnom. I think one of these cookies crumbled over vanilla ice cream or yogurt would be soooo goooood!

Since Keeley had already posted about using the Bob's Red Mill mix to make Cinnamon Roll Bites, I wanted to try something else with my pizza dough mix!

I followed the directions on the package for the pizza crust, but wasn't sure how to cook it. The pizza directions said to bake the crust for a bit first, then add the sauce and toppings. But that wouldn't work for pinwheels. So I ignored that part and went to work.

I let the yeast activate in the warm water. I mixed all the wet ingredients before adding the mix. I let the whole thing rise for 20 minutes. I rolled it out as rectangularly as I could, spread on my home-made ketchup (which tastes horrid as ketchup, but GREAT as tomato sauce!) and sprinkled on cheese. I rolled the whole thing up and ripped several holes in it and generally messed it up as much as I could, then cut it into pinwheels. Note for the future: Plastic pie crust mat is NOT a cutting board. Doh! 

I put the pinwheels in a greased casserole dish, and put them in the oven at whatever crazy high temperature was called for. A few minutes in, it occurred to me that, hey, there's a cinnamon roll recipe on the package too... That might be a better guide for cooking temp and time! 

I lowered the temperature and reset the timer for longer... And then fretted about the rising. See, the cinnamon rolls are supposed to rise after you cut them into wheels. Fret fret fret. Should I take them out and try to let them rise again? Is it too late? I left them in, and went about my business.

The Verdict : FAIL!

Meh. They were edible. They weren't terrible. But I would definitely not make them again the same way. I think I should have had them rise after cutting, rather than before (hindsight is 20/20, right?) Maybe roll the dough thinner? And maybe more sauce. Or a runnier sauce. Mine was super thick, as it was designed to be ketchup. And definitely more cheese! I put out some extra ketchup for dipping, and it really helped.

They were somewhat dry, and I don't know if that's because I overcooked them (I was expecting more of a golden brown. I've never baked gluten-free before,) or if there wasn't enough moisture in the sauce. When I went back for seconds, I sprinkled more cheese on top and reheated them in the microwave. Much better. 

Baby loved them, and kept trying to snatch one off my plate while I took photos, but it was too hot. They took too long (in her mind) to cool down enough to eat, so there were some major baby tantrums as I was eating my still-hot ones.

Z kept making barf noises, but managed to choke one down with the aid of some "reg-a-lur ketchup. Not Mommy's ketchup!" Hubby was working late and hasn't had one yet.

I completely think this was user error, rather than a bad product. I tend to ruin anything involving baking of any kind (unless I can cajole my husband into doing most of it for me! I'm fine at cracking eggs and measuring liquids. It's those pesky dry ingredients that thwart me every time!) I think I'll have my husband make be making cinnamon rolls or bites with my second package of mix!

*Update: I was advised in the future to add spices or seasonings to gluten-free dough/batter mixes, as they have a unique taste. Extra toppings can also help, as I learned with my extra dipping sauce and melted cheese on my re-heats. Some garlic powder (or even minced garlic) and Italian seasoning, plus a little salt would probably have made these taste amazing! And I should have sprinkled garlic and salt, plus a little cheese onto the tops, for that little something extra!

Disclaimer: I received one Savorfull box this month free for the purposes of a review. Making pizza pucks was just an unfortunate side effect.

We Luv Thanksgiving!

Wanted to make sure to squeak in at least one turkey-related lunch before Thanksgiving this year! So I packed this fun one in an EasyLunchbox and used my FunBites Luv It! cutter to make it a little easier!

[This post contains affiliate links.]

We Luv Thanksgiving!

"Turkey" (ham) and cheese sandwich w/sweet pepper details, apples, orange and yellow carrots, milk box

Gibblets: The turkey ring cupcake topper in the apple compartment was found at a bake shop. The carrots were cut with the heart part of the Luv It cutter and put into a silicone muffin cup to add a splash of color.

Talking Turkey: For the sandwich I used a round cutter on two slices of bread (I saved the scraps for my breakfast snack,) and slices of ham (I didn't have any turkey! o.O) and cheese. I used a mini circle out of a scrap. If you cut the bread first you get a cleaner edge, and also the bread scraps are "clean," so they can be saved in the freezer for croutons, bread crumbs, meatloaf, French Toast Casserole, etc.
I used my Fun Bites Luv It! cutter on some red and orange mini sweet peppers to make tail feathers, and ended up with some scraps perfect for a beak and snood. I "glued" everything on with cream cheese, including the dried currant cut in half to make the eyes.

At first she wasn't sure what the feathers were made of. "Are they sweet peppers? Oh. Carrots?" Then she tried one. "Ew. Sweet peppers. Blech." She "gobbled" down everything but the sweet peppers.

Tools of the Trade