Pumpkin Maple Baked Oatmeal

Good morning my friends!

Would you all like to start off your day with a slice of warm, spiced pumpkin oatmeal bake topped with large scoop of butter and drizzled with maple syrup?

My family loves a good baked oatmeal. It's a frugal, hearty & nourishing way to start off our day... plus, the leftovers make great snacks, warm & cold.

Baked oatmeal is awesome for making my mornings easy, especially on busy days or when I need a little extra sleep.

I am sharing this yummy Pumpkin Maple Baked Oatmeal over at The Nourishing Gourmet. 

If Pumpkin Maple doesn't sound appealing to you... how about trying Spiced Cranberry Apple or Strawberry Pineapple. These two, along with Pumpkin Maple, are our favorites!

Have a wonderful week and enjoy your slice of Maple Pumpkin oatmeal bake!

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Strawberry Pineapple Oatmeal Bake

The other day I shared with you about porridge pancakes using leftover oatmeal. Today I am sharing one of my family's favorite breakfasts... Oatmeal Bake.

Really, you can't go wrong with oatmeal bake. So satisfying, nourishing, delicious & simple. Do I need to say more?

For those of you who are in the cold winter months right now... this will bring a little bit of sunshine and tropical warmth right into your kitchen!

My favorite way of enjoying a hot piece is surrounding it with a deep moat of fresh milk, 2 thick slices of butter and a heavy drizzle of raw honey or real maple syrup. Sometimes I throw some fresh fruit on top, if I didn't use it all for the bake!

Oh la la! Mmmm!

What I love about oatmeal bake is I can use whatever fresh & dried fruits, spices and nuts I have sitting in my kitchen. Since making my first oatmeal bake (inspired by Wardee's recipe), I've made at least 10 different varieties of oatmeal bake.

This is one of our top 3 favorites and...no... I am not sharing with you the other 2 (grin), you will have to wait another time for those  ;o)

Strawberry Pineapple Oatmeal Bake

• 6 cups regular rolled oats
• 1/2 cup whey, raw apple cider vinegar, lemon juice or sourdough starter
• 8 cups water

Combine oats, choice of acid and water in a big bowl. Cover and let it soak overnight (if using sourdough) or up to 24 hours (using whey, vinegar or lemon juice).

NOTE: I usually use sourdough starter to soak my oatmeal overnight. I learned from my friend, Wardeh, at GNOWGFLINS that sourdough starter improves the effectiveness of soaking by adding phytase to reduce phytic acid and organisms to accomplish an overnight soaking effectively. Don't worry, it won't be sour as long as you drain and lightly rinse the oats in the morning!

• 1/2 cup lightly melted butter, coconut oil or olive oil
• 2 cups coconut milk or whole milk
• 6 eggs
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup rapadura or palm sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp almond extract
• 1-2 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
• 3/4 tsp sea salt
• 2 cups chopped strawberries, fresh or frozen
• 1 cup dried pineapple
• 1 cup coconut flakes

Morning arrives: preheat the oven to 375 F. Grease a 9x13 baking dish. Drain the oats through a fine sieve. Gently rinse and allow to drain while mixing together other ingredients.

In a large mixing bowl, mix together butter, milk, eggs, sweetener, vanilla, almond, nutmeg and sea salt. Add in strawberries, pineapple, coconut flakes and oats. Mix it all together gently, yet well.

Pour oatmeal mixture into a greased 9x13 baking dish. Smooth out the top. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour. It should be golden brown when done. Insert a knife or toothpick, it should come out clean when the bake is done.

Take bake out of the oven and set it on a cooking rack. Let it cool for about 15 - 30 to set before cutting into bars.

Enjoy it simply topped with butter and raw honey... or do it my way (read above)... Store leftovers in the fridge, but you can leave it out for a day.

Excellent snacks for around the house, park, traveling via airplane or car!!

What are you favorite ingredients for a good, nourishing Oatmeal Bake??

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NEW GNOWFGLINS eCourse: Fundamentals II

I am excited to share with you all that Wardee will be starting up her 5th class this month... the Fundamentals II eCourse!


This eCourse is a follow up of the first Fundamentals eCourse which was launched back in 2010 where she simply taught the basics of everything from soaking grains, nuts & seeds, soaking & cooking beans, sprouting, sourdough, natural fermentation (water kefir & kombucha), cultured dairy, simple cheesemaking and more.


Now with the Fundamentals II eCourse she will be covering traditional cooking skills such as equipment you need, what natural sweeteners to use, healthy desserts, traditional fats,  stocks, wild & pastured meats, organ meats, advanced grain preparation methods, vegetables, homemade salad dressings & sauces, real salt, superfoods, healthy snacks and traveling with real foods.


Wow... you really don't want to miss this!


Head over to the GNOWFGLINS eCourse site and read in more detail what you will learn and do! 





After reading in more detail and enjoying this video presentation... I have to say that I will be joining this class! I saw that there are some new things in this Fundamentals II class that I've been wanting to learn for some time... such as making ghee, increasing my knowledge of making stock, preparing & enjoying organ meats, get some more kid-friendly snack recipes and making traditional food that travels well (which I've already done, but would like to see if there's more!) Great timing, Wardee!


Now, the class begins late January 2012 and continues on into June 2012. You can join anytime, and membership includes access to ALL classes as well, including the first Fundamentals.


You really can't beat that kind of deal!


What You Will Get

• Access to every class offered (including the original Fundamentals eCourse)
• Class enrollment doesn't close. Enroll at any time.
• Total access to all available lessons from the get-go.
• Exclusive monthly thank you gift for qualifying payments.
• Bi-monthly learning bonus.
• Weekly lessons presented through multi-media tutorials.
• Exclusive members-only forums.
• Weekly email reminders (optional).

For How Much?
Become a member for as little as $8 per month! That's an awesome deal! Remember you will have access to EVERY CLASS OFFERED, plus you can do it any time. You will also get video demonstrations and print downloads to help you master the tasks listed above - no matter what learning style you have!


Plus, if you sign up anytime between now until the 29th of this month you will get a BONUS gift of the "Easy Sourdough" Booklet along with a video!

Like I said earlier... you REALLY don't want to miss out on this class or the others!


Sign up today!

NOTE: I will make a small commission for every sale through my links... no extra charge to you! Thank you for helping me and my family through your purchases.

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Celebration GIVEAWAY: Bones & Fat Cookbooks

Well, today we are celebrating my little man's birthday! I know every mom says this, but... I seriously can not believe he is already 1 year old. Time just flies faster and faster with each kid!

It is my goal to share the birth story later today in honor of Tobias' birthday. I have to tell you! It is an amazing story of faith, trust and... well, I get to that later  :o)


Before I get to the giveaway... let me share a few highlights of Tobias' first year of life.


Everybody fell in love with this little guy... my girls are especially crazy about him. How can they not be?! I am SO grateful that there has been no jealousy issues between my girls and this little guy. None at all.


He has proven to be a very strong-will little guy... my third strong-will child *sigh*. Life is sure very loud and noisy in the Beard household! All 3 of my kids have very strong spirits and lungs. People often ask me if it is hard for me to hear them... my answer is always, "Ha! No, God has blessed me with very loud children. If I think they are loud... can't imagine how loud they are to you!"

He began to crawl around 9 months old, but started walking before he was 10 months old! He loves following my girls around and doesn't let them push him around. Almost everyday I often see him do things and say, "He is SUCH a BOY!". Seriously, after having two girls... I am amazed just how different Tobi is and it sometimes feels like he is my first child.


Tobi has had more bumps, bruises & cuts on his head and face then both my girls combined when they were babies! Thankfully he isn't much of a crier and gets right back in the action after a few minutes in mama's arms  ;o)


It has been an awesome year with this little man and I am so blessed! Thank you Lord! Happy Birthday Tobias!


Now, the second giveaway!

To one winner, I am giving away 2 delicious & savory cookbooks:

 

These two cookbooks are deliciously amazing... just reading through the recipes and look at the pictures make me feel nourished and well-fed! LOL!

Jennifer McLagan has done a wonderful job of explaining everything you need to know to appreciate the benefits of eating wholesome bones and fat. I love her witty sense of humor thrown in at just the right places. You can read Jennifer's bio here.

These two books are vital in my kitchen these days! I just love how there is so much you can learn and do with just bones and fat.... and still thrive in good health. Here's a simple write up on Fat cookbook (taken from Amazon.com): 

For all of history, minus the last thirty years, fat has been at the center of human diets and cultures. When scientists theorized a link between saturated fat and heart disease, industry, media, and government joined forces to label fat a greasy killer, best avoided. But according to Jennifer McLagan, not only is our fat phobia overwrought, it also hasn’t benefited us in any way. Instead it has driven us into the arms of trans fats and refined carbohydrates, and fostered punitive, dreary attitudes toward food–that wellspring of life and pleasure.


In Fat, McLagan sets out with equal parts passion, scholarship, and appetite to win us back to a healthy relationship with animal fats. She starts by defusing fat’s bad rap, both reminding us of what we already know–that fat is fundamental to the flavor of our food–and enlightening us with the many ways fat (yes, even animal fat) is indispensable to our health.


Mostly, though, Fat is about pleasures–the satisfactions of handling good ingredients skillfully, learning the cultural associations of these primal foodstuffs, recollecting and creating personal memories of beloved dishes, and gratifying the palate and the soul with fat’s irreplaceable savor. Fat lavishes the reader with more than 100 recipes from simple to intricate, classic to contemporary, including:


• Butter-Poached Scallops • Homemade Butter • Carnitas • Duck Confit • Sautéed Foie Gras with Gingered Vanilla Quince • Prosciutto-Wrapped Halibut with Sage Butter • Steak and Kidney Pie • Lamb Fat and Spinach Chapati • Bacon Spice • Cookies • Salted Butter Tart 


Observing that though we now know everything about olive oil, we may not know what to do with lard or bone marrow, McLagan offers extensive guidance on sourcing, rendering, flavoring, using, and storing animal fats, whether butter or bacon, schmaltz or suet. Stories, lore, quotations, and tips touching on fat’s place in the kitchen and in the larger culture round out this rich and unapologetic celebration of food at its very best.

The one thing I learned from her Fat cookbook is chicken fat is delicious used for frying up corn tortillas! Oh my!


Next is the Bones cookbook (again, taken from Amazon.com):

Top food stylist and food writer Jennifer McLagan has a bone to pick: too often, people opt for boneless chicken breasts, fish fillets, and cutlets, when good cooks know that anything cooked on the bone has more flavor -- from chicken or spareribs to a rib roast or a whole fish. In Bones, Jennifer offers a collection of recipes for cooking beef, veal, pork, lamb, poultry, fish, and game on their bones.


Chicken, steak, and fish all taste better when cooked on the bone, but we've sacrificed flavor for speed and convenience, forgetting how bones can enhance the taste, texture, and presentation of good food -- think of rack of lamb, T-bone steak, chicken noodle soup, and baked ham. In her simple, bare-bones style, Jennifer teaches home cooks the secrets to cooking with bones.


Each chapter of Bones includes stocks, soups, ribs, legs, and extremities (except for whole fish -- they don't have any). Many of the recipes are simple, with the inherent flavors of the bones doing most of the work. There are traditional, elegant dishes, such as Roasted Marrow Bones with Parsley Salad, Olive-Crusted Lamb Racks, and Crown Roast of Pork, as well as new takes on homestyle favorites, such as Maple Tomato Glazed Ribs, Coconut Chicken Curry, and Halibut Steaks with Orange Cream Sauce. Stunning, full-color photographs of dishes like Rabbit in Saffron Sauce with Spring Vegetables; Grilled Quail with Sage Butter; and Duck Legs with Cumin, Turnips, and Green Olives are sure to inspire. 


In addition to the recipes, Bones includes a wealth of information on a wide range of bone-related topics, including the differences among cuts of meat, as well as the history and lore of bones.


Pretty awesome, huh? Now, she recently released a new cookbook called "Odd Bits: How to Cook the Rest of the Animal". I've got my eye on that and will most likely get a copy soon!


The one think I've grown to appreciate about living in Central America is how much people here appreciate the WHOLE animal. They use everything! Tongue, stomach, heart, hoof, head, tail and so on. I love grinding heart in with my ground beef... adds such a nice flavor. Oh and tongue is simply delicious... once you get past the weird feeling that you are "french kissing" the cow. LOL!! Using calf's hoof in my homemade beef broth has made a big difference in flavor... so rich!


There are a few butchers in the town next to us that often hang a whole cow in their station and will not close down until every piece of that cow has sold. Nothing goes to waste... talk about being frugal and smart!


How to Enter

Just leave a comment below sharing your favorite Christmas memory! (1 entry)

To maximize your odds of winning, you can leave a comment every day! (one comment per day strictly enforced)

3 bonus entries:

Follow Jennifer's blog (1 entry)

Follow my blog (1 entry)

'Like' Just Making Noise on Babble (1 entry)

So, you can have a total of 4 entries today and one everyday until December 31st January 14th! This giveaway is only open to US residents and the winner will be selected via random.org at the end of this month. Winner will be contacted in January.

Also, don't forget you can purchase Just Making Ice Cream for a suggested donation of $8 through this month! That is $4 off the original suggested donation.

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Frugal & Wholesome Tips for Road Trips

Whew! Can’t believe we have been traveling by car in the states for a month now! We celebrated the girls' birthdays with family by the lake (picture above). It has been a great time of fellowship, good food and family time for us (please read our update at RO4Y.org), but I am getting a little road weary. Thankfully, we will be having some down time in between road trips and speaking at churches in AZ & Calif.

Now, most of you remember my recent post about preparing wholesome food for traveling via airplanes and how it is a total myth that you can’t bring food on the plane. Now, I want to share with you the frugal system we’ve set up for ourselves with food and water for our road trips.

Let's be honest, it isn't always easy to eat healthy on road trips! But with some planning and searching on the internet... nowadays you can find awesome little co-ops that serve great meals, restaurants serving local delights and a Trader Joe's or Whole Foods in just about every major city! But eating out can be a bit pricey for a family of 5... so what do we do?

First, we search for farmer's markets and friends with gardens. We've been enjoying tons of fresh tomatoes straight from the gardens of my families and friends. Oh my... I honestly forgot how good a fresh, ripened tomato tasted. You don't find that in Honduras. It has also been SO nice to be able to shop at REAL farmer's markets and buy fresh produces from people who raise them... not from a couple old guys who buy boxes of commercial veggies in Tegucigalpa and spread them out on old tarps or sacks on the ground throughout the week. Yeah, that is my "farmer's market" in Ojojona, Honduras. NOTHING like the farmer's market we went to every Friday in Costa Rica... that was a HARD change for me and still is sometimes. But I am motivated to get several square-foot, raise bed gardens going when we get back. Jon and I would like to see that we grow our own veggies all year round, which is possible where we live! Pray that we succeed, for it is our goal to teach the locals too!

Second, we've been enjoying the opportunities to shop at Trader Joe's, Whole Foods and local co-ops for our meals when possible. We don't have that luxury in Honduras! A roasted chicken can go a long ways for us... I was even able to borrow a crock pot to make chicken soup with the leftover bones and meat! We've also been super blessed by friends who have farms and raise their own meat & eggs. Has anyone ever had lamb hamburgers?! Delicious! Especially with garden grown tomatoes and homemade mayo. One of my goals when we get back is to purchase two weaned lambs, raise them on our property and butcher them for meat. Has anybody done that?

Be Healthy On the Road!
Here are several things we have done to make our trip as frugal & wholesome as possible:

Travel Berkey Stainless Steel Water Filter – This is by far the best investment we’ve made for our USA travels over the last few years. Almost daily my hubby makes a comment about how he is so glad that I suggested the idea of getting one. Through my WAPF group a gal was selling her 1.5 gallon Travel Berkey for a seriously awesome deal (Thanks C Bear!!). The timing was perfect, Thanks to the Lord! Our biggest concern when traveling in the states was getting good sources of water that is free of chlorine, fluoride, arsenic, pollutions and still have a good amount of natural minerals. Yes, we could buy water bottles – but they don’t really taste very good, aren’t always pure and add up waste with all the plastic.  Yes, we have water bottles with filters that we often use in Honduras, but they don’t filtered out fluoride. 

One gal even asked me what was the big deal with drinking a little chlorine and fluoride… it is a big deal because we end up with stomach cramps & loose stools from the chlorine and fluoride is also known to be used for rat poisoning, has been linked to osteoporosis & many other health issues. So, we bought the Berkey PF-2 post filter fluoride, arsenic reduction elements to add into our little Berkey guy. How can we survive without good, pure water? It is important to us that we do our best to be in good health during our travels. I’m sure many of you would agree!

Blender (Vitamix, Blendtec or other) – My awesome friend, Kristine from Wisconsin, generously load us her Vitamix for the whole 2 months! She even arranged to bring it to us when we arrived to Chicago. Thank you Kristine!

Now, seriously, for those who are on a budget or simply desire to eat healthier on road trips… a blender is a must. I’ve been making breakfast smoothies with yogurt, raw milk, free-ranged raw egg yolks, fresh fruits and powdered herbs almost every morning to pour over sprouted cereal or have with some sprouted bread spread with nut butter. We have been leaving our hotels feeling good and satisfied.

Some of you might be asking... why not eat at the hotel? Pretty much all hotels now provide hot breakfast nowadays. It looks good until you read the details of how it is made. Eggs are powdered mixed with hot water or cooked in the microwave, waffle batter is made out of a box, bacon have nitrates (and we don’t eat pork) & usually warmed up in a microwave, processed cereals that our bodies can’t digest, yogurt made with pasteurized dairy & processed sweeteners and fruits that are usually listed on the Dirty Dozen (bananas are the only ones not listed). See where I am going with this? Yeah, it is food, but is it food that will have us stay in good health? No.

I know it is free, but it still comes with a price: our health.

We also have a great gizmo that can be used in the carjack, plug the Vitamix into and whip up green smoothies using frozen fruits, spinach and water if I wanted to! I haven’t tried it yet, but I will! Just make sure you are parked where you can find a water spout to rinse out the container and cups.

But that's not all! You can make soups, sauces, dressings and flour with a Vitamix or Blendtec if you wanted be adventurous!

Coleman PowerChill Thermoelectric Cooler with Power Supply – Now, this is not just any ordinary cooler… this is a cooler with a cooling system in it that we can plug into the car and into the wall. It keeps our raw milk, kefir, yogurt and raw cheese cold without any need of ice! We LOVE it because we don’t have to deal with soggy food, draining out water and refilling the cooler with ice to keep the milk cold enough to stay fresh. I have milk in there right now that is over a week old and still tasting fresh!

It is a little pricey, but so worth it! We bought ours (my parents pinched in because they will be using it for their travels too!) at Walmart along with a year warranty that if the cooler broke down… we can simply return it and get a new one. No questions asked. Well, it is a good thing we did that because as we were getting ready to head out of Kansas and found that the cooler wasn’t working anymore. We think the plug was bad. Thankfully, we found a Super-Walmart within 10 minutes that had the same cooler! We got a new cooler with no hassles and got back on the road in good time. God is good!

Sourdough Starter – I asked Kristine, the same friend who lend us her Vitamix, if she could give us some of her sourdough starter to take with us. It is great to use for making sourdough waffles at the hotels that serve hot breakfast! It is so easy to whip up using the Vitamix and simply pour onto the waffle iron. Yes, some planning ahead it required… but so worth it! Make sure you have some REAL maple syrup with you!

Milk and Water Kefir Grains – Again, my amazing friend went above & beyond! She gave us some of her milk kefir grains and water kefir grains thinking we might use it. Healthy bacteria, also known has probiotics, is essential for good health! The milk grains are great to use when the milk starts to turn a little. Great for our smoothies! The water kefir grains… I have not used them YET. I plan to while we are driving through the West Coast.

I know it would be easier to just buy some already made at Whole Foods or a Co-op and we've done that a few times by buying Kombucha, but it is more frugal to just make your own from milk or water kefir grains! It really isn't that hard, just need to give it a place to happily do its job while we coast on the road :o)

Raw Milk - This is a huge one for us! We recognize the need for a superfood like milk to sustain us during our travels. The girls have been having milk every night before going to bed to insure that they have a good night's sleep. I noticed that Naomi's skin, which is normally very dry & rough, has become softer and smoother since I started getting her to drink more milk. Praise the Lord!

The easiest way for us to find a source of fresh milk is through friends and word of mouth. You can also look on WAPF's site for locations... that's how I found a delicious milk source near Chicago.

Lacto-Fermented Veggies - A must have for good digestion! It is easy to feel bloated and yucky after sitting in the car for several hours with no physical activity, but we have found eating kraut has helped lessen that feeling. Lacto-ferments are also a rich source of vitamins and minerals along with abilities to protect our bodies from the daily pollution of everything.

If you decide to bring along some... make sure you put the jar in a ziplock bag to prevent the smells from getting into your butter and cheese! I learned that the hard way  :o)

Snacks and More - We also make sure that we have a good supply of nuts (soaked and dehydrated), fresh veggies & fruit, sprouted bread, nut butter, raw honey, butter, raw cheese, dried fruit, coconut oil and a bag of chips with fresh salsa. I also like to have oatmeal (soaked for 24 hours) on hand for when we have opportunities to use a stove.

We've also been enjoying fresh, organic peaches & strawberries (YUM YUM!)... not something we can enjoy in Honduras due to the fact that they are on the Dirty Dozen list. I am looking forward to farmer's market in California next week! I hope to enjoy some fresh veggies that we don't normally have in Honduras... like artichokes!

What about you guys! What tips can you share with us to make a road trip wholesome and healthy??

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Now Available: Just Making Ice Cream eBook

Just Making Ice Cream Book

Love ice cream? Wish you could make ice cream at home, but don't have an ice cream maker? Can't decide what ice cream maker to buy? Have food allergies? Trying to watch your sugar-intake? Want to make something more than just vanilla, chocolate or strawberry? This is the book for you!

113 pages and over 70 recipes to choose through all 4 seasons of the year... who says ice cream is only for the summer?! The book starts off with 25 pages about everything you need to know to make delicious, nourishing frozen desserts...

• 10 reasons why you should make your own ice cream


• Ice cream 101: ingredients, tips and equipment


• How to choose an ice cream maker


• 5 ways to make ice cream without a maker


• Know your frozen desserts


• and MORE!

You will also enjoy over 30 ice cream & gelato recipes, 9 cultured milk recipes, 10 sherbet recipes and 10 sorbet recipes!

Your purchase of this book will go to support our work at Rancho Oasis for Youth! Thank you!

Suggested donation of $12.00

Shopping Cart by E-junkie

Here's a sneak preview of the book:

Your purchase of this book will go to support our work at Rancho Oasis for Youth! Thank you!

Suggested donation of $12.00

Shopping Cart by E-junkie

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Wholesome Ideas for Airplane Meals & Snacks

Oh mi goodness! We will be in Chicago tomorrow! It has been over a year since we've been back in the states. We will be traveling through the states for the next 2 months... if you haven't yet, check out the RO4Y Tour dates! If we are coming into your area, please let me know! We love meeting and connecting with new people  :o)

So... I thought it was about time I wrote up a post about preparing wholesome meals and snacks take on the airplane. We've been traveling back and forth enough times that I have a whole list of healthy stuff to choose from!

I typically carry on a small suitcase full of snacks & individual meals for us... we always end up with leftovers, but better that then have nothing!


Nowadays, it is hard to fly and feel great by the end of your trip. Flying really does take a lot out of you and on top of that... healthy food choices in the airports are pretty slim. That's why it is so important to plan ahead & bring your own healthy food and good water to strengthen your body to stand against the stress of traveling.

The bottled water in airports are expensive and will leave you dried out. We like to travel with our filtered water bottles and simply fill up with free tap water. We love that it filters out the junk and lets us thoroughly quench our thirst. I always end up feeling more thirsting after drinking bottle water because it is purely dead, tasteless water and a total rip off.


Now, I won't get started on the food because I think you all know the direction I'm going here, but one thing I've learned when traveling with my girls and hubby... is to load up on the good fats. Low-fat food makes cranky & tired kids! Which means don't overload on crackers, cookies and fruit. High carbs and sugar calls for hungry, emotional kids that will leave you exhausted & short-tempered by the time you arrive to your destination.

It really makes a difference to plan ahead and prepare your own meals & snacks to take on the airplane. Loading up on nourishing foods rich in good fats will have you & your family feeling good and satisfied wherever you go! When I say good fats, I'm talking about real butter, coconut oil, whole milk, real eggs, nuts and raw cheeses.


Before reading on... let me tell you from personal experience that you CAN bring your own food onto the plane! A friend once told me that it was against the rules, but I have not been told that directly from an airport staff.

Traveling In Style With Wholesome Food
Here's what I've packed for our plane trips over the last few years:


Savories

• Raw cheese
• Coconut rice & beans
• Cortido & fresh sour cream
• Hard-boiled eggs (girls love it with sea salt and fresh sour cream!)
• Fritatas in a sandwich or tortillas
• Soaked & dehydrated nuts - almonds, pecans, pistachios & cashews
• Salads w/ homemade dressing (yeah, my girls dig in them!)
• Fresh veggies - carrot sticks, sliced tomatoes, sliced cucumbers & sliced avocado
• Raw, whole milk (I've had no problems carry on a small bottle of milk for each of my kids!)
• Popcorn - popped in coconut oil and topped with lots of butter (a little raw honey too!)
• Crackers - sourdough or soaked
• Raw honey, coconut oil & nut butter sandwiches (using sourdough english muffins)
• Beef jerky
• Plantain chips (can get at Trader Joe's)

Sweets

• Flourless Chocolate Almond Cookies
• Nut butter cookies
• Coconut Custard Cake
• Banana Bread
• Homemade granola (using soaked & ready oats)
• Strawberry Coconut Muffins
• Banana Coconut Muffins
• Carrot Molasses mini-muffins
• Fresh fruits - bananas, oranges, apples & mangoes
• Dried fruits - pineapple, mango, apples & raisins
• Larabars (favorites: cherry pie & apple pie)
• Coconut cookies
• Oatmeal Raisin Sourdough Cookies

I like to use my reusable sandwich bags for packing our snacks and individual plastic containers for our meals. For cleaning our hands I often just have us wash with water and then use natural hand sanitizer, which smells so much better then the commercial kinds you see everywhere. I like to pump some into a small ziplock bag because of the restrictions on liquids.

Not only is this list good for traveling via airplanes and car, but it is great to always have these on hand and ready to go! I often try to have some of these made every week to take with us whenever we head into town or the city. If I don't, I end up buying plantain chips that only make my girls even more hungry and cranky!


A Penny For Your Thoughts
What do you like to bring for plane travels? Have any wholesome tips for us? Share your tips & ideas below in the comments section! I'm always looking for new ideas. Thanks!

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Simple Lives Thursday #56

Thank you for coming by and linking up your post for Simple Lives Thursday blog hop!

Simple Lives Thursday Blog Hop

So, today is Simple Lives Thursday... A fun blog hop dedicated to anything and everything about simple living. Please share with us how are you living your life simply... we all want to know!

There is so much to learn about living simply these days... making lacto-ferments, raising animals, living off-grid, cooking with real food, gardening, raising family, homeschooling, homemade body products, natural cleaners, frugal ways, creating art with recycled materials, homesteading, homeopathy, growing herbs for health and much more!

Simply hosted by:

• Wardeh @ GNOWFGLINS


• Diana @ A Little Bit of Spain in Iowa


• Annette @ Sustainable Eats


• Alicia @ Culinary Bliss


• And me... the Noisy Mama  :o)

Top Five Featured Posts From Last Week's Submissions!

We really enjoy reading your posts each week! Featured post bloggers, please grab the badge above and display it on your site! Link it to one of the host blogs' posts for the specific week that you were featured.

Here are our picks from last week's submissions. Thanks to all who participated -- it is always hard to choose!

1. Goldfinch Nest in a Purple Loosestrife Plant by Tea Time With Annie Kate.

This blogger and her family set out to uproot this year's growth of the purple loofestrife plant only to find a surprise among a 6 foot clump.

2. Chicory - Coffee substitute, forage plant, bitter green by Common Sense Homesteading.

Another "weed" gone good. Chicory can be used medicinally and as a coffee substitute.

3. Winter Garden: Care and Harvesting by Lizzard's Hollow

Lizard’s Hollow continues with part 6 of her Winter Gardening series.

4. Do I Really Need to Soak My Grains? by The Table of Promise.

One author lets us know her opinion on the controversial topic of soaking grains.

5. Vinegar Facial Toner by The Purposed Heart.

"It has evened out my skin tone, minimized the size of my pores, smoothed out my skin’s texture, and regulated my skin’s oil production." Sounds good to us!!

Be Simple and Share Your Post!

Make your "Simple Lives Thursday" post on your blog and come back here. Below you will find the Linky box where you can post your simple ideas, tips & recipes. Please add a link to this post at the end of your blog post entry and share with your readers that it is part of this week's Simple Lives Thursday. Feel free to download the badge above and upload it to your post!

For those who don't have blogs... Please share your ideas, tips and recipes about simple living below in my noisy comments area. Don't get left out!

Everybody, take the time to visit the linked blogs. Sharing your favorites on Facebook or Tweet would be awesome! Spread the wealth of simple living!

Please Read & Follow the Rules

Since Simple Lives Thursday is growing, as a group, the five hosts have decided to set some ground rules in order to keep the integrity of the blog hop.

1. If linking real, traditional and simple recipes, please make sure all ingredients used are whole. Such as whole grains, vegetables, legumes, meats, even sugar. In order to keep the integrity of "nourishing" food, we will delete any recipes that utilize processed, boxed foods. We are definitely not going to be ingredient policeman, however, please note that this is a hop hosted by advocates of the real, local and sustainable food movements.

2. Please link your posts back to one of the hosting blogs. This is a common blog hop courtesy. This link helps build the Simple Lives Thursday community by sending your readers to all of the other participants posts. We all end up sharing and learning from each other.

Hugs!

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