The Healthy Lunchbox

Healthy Healthy

Nutritious Meals Your Kids Won’t Trade for a Lollipop

Nutritious Meals Your Kids Won’t Trade for a Lollipop

Lunch Box

The

By Shannon Leone

Disclaimer

The responsibility for the consequences of your use of any suggestion or procedure described hereafter lies not with the authors, publisher or distributors of this book.

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All recipes by Shannon Leone and Tera Warner. Designed and formatted by Amanda Taylor-Snelson.

Copyright © 2009 by Raw Mom and Shannon LeoneAll rights reserved.

Published by:2710 Thomes Ave.

Suite 246Cheyenne, WY 82001www.rawmom.com

Table of Contents

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1Snacks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16Sandwiches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25Main Courses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29Desserts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 After School Treats . . . . . . . . . . . . 58Final Thoughts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Introduction

The Healthy Lunch Box Page 2

Introduction

We are watching our children grow up in a different time; life just isn’t the same as when we were kids. “Goodness doesn’t just ooze from the walls, anymore”, notes Author Marianne Williamson. I agree. I just don’t ever remember teachers handing out candy (or any other ‘treats’) to us just for quietly putting the chairs away, or finishing work on time; we were expected to do these things without any prize or fanfare. Gone are the days when doing things well was its own reward. Yet, this is what my boys who are now in school (we had un-schooled the first few grades) tell me they experience weekly. Yours probably face similar challenges. School lunches in particular can be challenging because there are factors like peer pressure, and perhaps a no-nuts policy, or just all the distractions that can cramp a kid’s style when it comes time to eat. We sure have our work cut out for us.

But, we as moms can be clever…and figure out a way to circumvent this dietary sabotage. For example, I made a deal with my boys that they can trade their ‘treats’ from their teacher in for privileges at home, or even cold, hard cash (a quarter for each treat). I cannot be sure this means they never indulge in the treat, but it gives them a healthy alternative, and also the responsibility to choose it or not.

The main point is that my children are learning how important it is to consciously question this behaviour, and how imperative it is to be proactive in life. Although we cannot control what others will offer us, we can always create choices for ourselves. None of us live in a bubble and we certainly don’t want to feel like the “food police.” So it is important to be educating our children early on about the importance of healthy food choices for themselves. Before the age of 5, this is mainly done just by our example of what we serve in our home and what we eat. Too much conversation about food before that is just ‘head knowledge’ and can create pressure and stress on young children. But as soon as children begin to question it, noticing perhaps how their friends are eating, it is time to enrich their understanding on a more conscious level.


Make a Game of It

Now, we don’t have to be boring; it is not necessary to lecture kids about the importance of phyto-nutritents and anti-oxidants, etc. Kids are all about FUN! They gravitate naturally to anything that engages their playfulness. What works best here are light, simple stories and games. I used to find magazines at the library when they were small and when flipping through them ask my kids to spot the ‘healthy’ foods from the ‘sometimes’ foods. Cookies and popcorn and other treats would obviously fall into the latter category, though it was funny the first time one of them decided to reverse the categories, laughing hysterically at his own joke. At least he knew it was a joke!

“None of our teachings can take root in our children unless they are fed healthy, wholesome, food.”

-Rudolf Steiner, Founder of the Waldorf Schools

I have gone into the classrooms of both my children to give presentations on Smart Foods for

Smart Kids. Instead of telling or asking them to please be quiet and listen, I would accomplish it by starting off with an engaging verse that always got their attention and created the ‘mood’ or atmosphere of something intriguing that they wouldn’t want to miss out on. After adjusting myself on my chair with a slight dramatic flair (knowing that these young sponges ‘see the world through special eye glasses’ that attune to our gestures even more than our words), sitting upright and looking into everybody’s eyes, I would smile a mischievous grin, take a deep breath, then calmly pronounce:

“A wise old owl sat in an oakThe more he saw, the less he spoke

The less he spoke, the more he heardWhy can’t we all be like that wise old bird?”

Now I have all 60 of them in the palm of my hand…Kids often get a bad rap for not “paying attention” when the truth is, kids always pay attention to things that are fun or interesting to them! We just need to be more creative and have fun ourselves finding ways to get into their listening.

Despite their young age, I would then be able to demonstrate in fun ways all kinds of practical information on nutrition they could use. This is a subject many would not think interesting to kids. I think the key is making it relevant to them and involving them so it’s interactive. For instance, I would ask them, ‘Who knows when the sun is at its highest point in the sky?” And when they answered ‘noon’ I would tell them that that means the sun is at its strongest at that time of day, and so is our tummy’s ability to digest food, letting them know that this means our lunch is actually the most important meal and supposed to be the biggest meal of our day.

Introduction


Introduction

They would come back with—“No, breakfast is!” setting me up for my question: “Who knows what the word breakfast actually means?” And after fielding some pretty interesting answers, I would tell them it means to ‘break the fast’ from having not eaten all night. “But how?” I ask. “With which foods?” They would call out their guesses. I ask them another question: “Does anybody know how much water is on this pretty blue planet earth?” and let them have some fun guessing. My boys already know all this stuff and literally have to sit on their hands not to answer before I am ready! Finally, I let them proudly tell their mates, “The earth is made up of about 80% water” so then I ask the class who knows how much of our bodies are made up of water, and again my son will finally get to answer “about 80% water” to which I finally ask everyone “And so how much water should be in the foods we eat?” This time everyone chimes in “About 80% water!” I proceed to ask them what foods contain so much water, leading me into a great discussion on fruits and veggies and why they are actually the best foods to break the fast with. I ask all the kids to name their favourite veggies, and it’s really sad and distressing to see these bright lights, these beautiful little kids answer “French fries.” Yikes!

I inform the kids that I need to make myself a healthy drink as all this talking is getting me thirsty. I proceed to dumping teaspoon after teaspoon of sugar into a little cup with water- bating the kids to count out loud all the teaspoons I use- 10! Then I would say, “Excuse me while I drink my delicious drink.” Invariably all the kids would start shouting, “That’s not healthy!” “Don’t drink that!” “C’mon! What’s wrong with this?” I ask them. And they would tell me, “It’s got sugar in it” “Sugar rots your teeth” “Sugar causes diabetes” etc. So then I would say, “But you kids drink that much sugar, too.” And they would say “No we don’t.” And I would say, “Oh, that’s good to know! And by the way, what are your favourite drinks?” And some would yell out different soda pops.

BINGO! So I would ask the group to please stand up if you like pop. Practically everyone rises, except my kids. “Well, you remember how many teaspoons of sugar I put into that cup that you wouldn’t let me drink? Well that is exactly how many teaspoons of sugar that are in every can of pop!” Oh, you should here “wows.” I tell them I am really glad they stopped me from drinking this, because they are so right- it isn’t healthy, and also it shows they care--kind of like Mom when she says no to certain things because she cares…(I gotta get a plug in for us moms whenever I can!)


Introduction

Involve Kids in Your Learning Process

Another thing I have taught my little guys and their classmates is this simple but dramatic exercise which I invite you to try with your kids. It will amaze them. It is called AK, which stands for applied kinesiology. I learned about this when I was only 16 working as a medical secretary for Dr. Carolyn Dean (The Miracle of Magnesium, Death by Modern Medicine, What

to do when you can’t reach your Doctor, etc.). I have also seen Wayne Dwyer teach this in his talks. All you do is tell your kids that the body has an intelligence about what is good for it or not, and that they can learn to ask their body whenever they have certain questions about whether something is healthy for them or not. (The body will also tell you if someone is lying to you, if a situation is safe for you, etc. You can read up on this in David Hawkins amazing book called Power Versus Force.)

You first ask your child’s permission to perform a test on them, and when they give it you ask them to hold out their arm straight by their side and not let you push it back down. You can feel how strong they are and so can they. Next, you ask them to hold a little packet of white sugar in their other hand which you tell them to place just on top of their solar plexus area between their stomach and chest. You repeat the arm strength test asking them again to hold up their arm and resist as you try to push it down. What they will instantly notice and be amazed at is how easy their hand falls this time. It’s because the sugar, even just holding it and not even ingesting it, has weakened them, causing their muscle to ‘blow out’. I ask the children’s teacher to be my volunteer for this and it is always so much fun and very revealing when even s/he finds they just cannot keep the arm up.

I repeat this exercise, but this time I have them put an angry grimace on their face and think negative thoughts. It’s the same conclusion, they go weak! Then I ask them to smile, think about something they love, and BAM! I cannot push their arm down again. I tell all the kids to smile and give each other big high 5’s, and everyone realises the power of what they have just seen- especially the teachers! Good food and good moods have a powerful effect on our body, and that is a fact!

Try this at home with your whole family!


Introduction

Become “Food Explorers” Together

Have you heard about this thing called Neophobia which means fear of the ‘new’? Children today are actually being called ‘the Whites’, because they are tending to have a fear of any new foods, especially food that isn’t white or bland or familiar looking. In my children’s school as I am sure in your children’s also, many kids today are not eating any real food. It is mostly fast food, such as pizza, hot dogs, subway assorted meat sandwiches with juice boxes or cartons of chocolate milk, or packaged foods such as ‘lunchables’ and other portion packaged convenience meals made of white flour and chemicals and stimulants-- not real food. White bread is the staple for sandwiches, white noodles for spaghetti, white sugar, white salt, white lard/shortening for baking…pale lettuce like iceberg is consumed over darker leaves like romaine or spinach, kale or kolorabi greens, or dandelion or bok choy, or mustard greens or watercress, turnip greens, beet greens, arugula, swiss chard, sunflower sprouts, buckwheat sprouts, broccoli sprouts, etc... This leads me to ask you, Mom: How many different ‘greens’ does your family regularly consume? C’mon Mom, fess up! How can you expect our kids to eagerly try new things if you won’t? Homework for this week: find at least one new green that you are not familiar with, and go home and try it! Variety is the spice of life!

I’m not even going to lecture you about the virtues of going “organic.” You know it just makes sense…

So where do our food preferences come from, and can we teach our children to eat and even prefer healthy food? Even in the womb when the fetus can swallow up to a litre of amniotic fluid a day, the mother’s diet influences the baby’s preferences. If the mother is eating sweet foods, the baby can be seen to increase its intake of amniotic fluid. As well, if we are fed breast milk for the first year, the mother’s diet again is transferred to the baby. This is definitely affecting the child’s preferences in the future. So then, genetic predisposition is one factor.

Also, studies show repeated exposures to a new food- up to 10 times or more- is often required to create approachability for a new food in children. If a new food is introduced with an already familiar food and there is the example of the parents consuming it, chances are the youngster will try it, too. Stop telling yourself your child will never eat zucchini or whatever it is that they may have balked at before. Repeated opportunities to try again without pressure, is the key. If you or your husband does not like a food, chances are your children won’t either, so do not even try to have them eat something you find ingestible. But it is amazing, how if when kids are really little and a huge variety of food is offered, how much of it will be tried. One strategy a young mom I know used is to call veggies simply ‘colors’ and keeping it very unloaded for her toddlers. I used to introduce new foods when my children were hungry. I would lightly steam some zucchini cubes and they would eat it right up. When children get to be school age, it can be trickier because their preferences are becoming more set. However, change is possible, so please stay open to that possibility. I had a ‘golden rule’ around food, which was that I asked my family to try whatever I made, and if they really didn’t like it they didn’t have to eat it. My request, for the efforts of preparing food for my family, was that they took 3 bites before deciding. It was pretty incredible how many times they would refuse to eat something, but would take 3 bites and then just continue! Sometimes kids don’t even know for sure if they like something or not, but it is because of this predisposition to reject what is new (neophobia) that just on the basis of seeing it for the first time they refuse to try it. The main thing is to take a long term approach. Even if it takes a year for a new food to be accepted, and it won’t take that long usually, that food will be in for life after that point. Focus not on perfection, but progress. If you stress-out over food, that becomes a highly pressurized situation which can lead to psychological issues around food which are not healthy no matter what the diet is. Teaching by example isn’t the best way to teach, it’s the only way. Be assured they are watching you at every age. I feel it is very important to keep mealtimes peaceful and harmonious. It is a special time to be eating, and especially when we are together. But when we aren’t together, I make a special effort towards keeping the meal healthy and kid-friendly. While kids are away at school, knowing they don’t have me there to support them, I make compromises. And to lessen the stresses of their day, I try not to give them too many big surprises in their lunches. I rotate my meals during the week but still keep lunches at school as safe and reliable and socially acceptable as I can make them while trying to meet my standards.

Just today, a little girl friend of my son exclaimed as he opened his lunch box, “POMEGRANATES! You’re always so lucky, Liam!”


Introduction


Introduction

I have and continue to educate my kids about the choices we make and emphasize it isn’t our job to judge others on how they eat. Although some people make comments to them about what they eat, they tell me it is usually positive, curious comments- often from their teachers as much as their peers. They understand that food like exercise, breathing, fresh air, positive attitude, enough sleep, water, etc., are all important and we don’t put the emphasis on food more than on everything else.

The main thing is to go at your own pace. Even if you just use one of these recipes at the beginning, it is a start! Do not try to go too far too fast and throw your household upside down where no one is eating and everyone is crying! Even just by being willing and reading this material, you are planting the seeds of change and growth, and every year you will get further and further ahead, I promise!


Introduction

5 Important Things to Consider Before You Pack another School Lunch for Your Kids

Getting kids to eat properly in today’s fast-paced, fast-food world is a huge challenge for any parent or guardian. Add to that the school policies on no nuts and the fact that food has to stay un-refrigerated for about 3 hours and you’ve got some real creativity that needs to be in order to get your kids on healthy lunches.

Yet, so much hangs in the balance if we fall short. Food will affect their bio-chemistry, their energy level, their ability to focus, and even their sense of self. If blood sugar levels are unstable, or if meals aren’t being digested, children will eventually be handicapped when it comes to reaching their potential. It is our privilege and responsibility as mothers to give our children the very best chances to succeed in life, and we do that by putting care and attention in the meals we serve.

Here are some clever tips for making more healthy lunches for kids.

1. Good Food Can Be Fast Food, Too

These days the most color kids get in their lunch box is on the logo of a “Twinkie” wrapper!

The excessive packaging is an environmental nightmare! Just because some people know how to market to busy, multitasking women, doesn’t mean what they’re selling is ethical. Juice boxes, “Lunchables”, mini crackers and cheese and chocolate dips with cookies, all neatly packed and ready to send might be quick for you, but the long term consequences of these choices cannot be overlooked.

Just remember, the original fast food is the apple!

2. Insist and Be Prepared for “Withdrawal”

Understand that many of the foods kids eat these days are physiologically addictive. You can actually cringe when you think of your children as mini drug addicts, hooked on the dope of refined sugars, salty meats, cheeses, crackers and many poor quality starches. You need to get them through withdrawal! They will feel so much better when you do.


Introduction

But be warned, Mom, you’re going to need to get yourself through withdrawal, too, if their eating habits are reflective of your own unresolved patterns.

Once you’ve decided you’re going to do it, prepare for war! War against every bit of nutritional indoctrination you’ve ever been fed! When your children come to you protesting that they need those sausage links and cheese balls, when they tell you they hate melon and celery and cucumber, then smile and tell them you understand and that this, too, shall pass.

They are in withdrawal. Persist and your children will be healthier, brighter, calmer and clearer-eyed than you have ever seen. You will reap the rewards of transitioning your kids to a healthier diet soon. You’ll have the assurance of knowing that you’re giving them the very best start in life you can, and that they will be thriving in those little bodies of theirs.

3. Don’t Overdo A Good Thing: Treat Reduction = Increased Appreciation

Remember when ‘treats’ were a rare and special thing growing up? I was talking to a lady who works in the grocery store where I shop- she calls me the Green Queen because her co-workers say my cart looks like a garden. So I mentioned something to the effect of ‘kids today get way too many treats’. Her reply was “Kids today don’t get any treats”. I was confused and asked her what she meant. She responded, “Kids today get whatever they want, whenever they want, so nothing is ever saved as a treat.” Well said!

This is a double rip-off, because it means kids are missing out in more ways than one. Gone is the satisfaction that comes from longing for something special, having to wait until the right occasion, then achieving it and feeling how much more wonderful it is after having waited. Today, kids are missing out on this subtle pleasure, which is also the learned skill of waiting to delay gratification.


Introduction

4. What To Put In Their Lunches?

Many schools have strict policies that packed lunches cannot include nuts. This means no garden burgers, pates or desserts with any nuts or nut butters. PLUS, the food has to hold up for about three hours without a fridge. There go the avocados, too. Let’s face it, school lunches are tough, but here are a few helpful suggestions.

Things to Include:• Loads of fresh fruits and berries• Freshly ground sesame seeds mixed with a bit of honey • Manna Bread (sprouted grain breads) • Rice and sushi loaded with veggie strips • Vegetable crudités • A cool pack with a smoothie• Bean salads (chick peas, sprouted lentils, etc.) • Rice cakes • Veggie pâté

Don’t feel guilty about keeping it simple. Let your kids be a beacon of color and include cute notes, loving messages, and little surprises, too. Nothing is more beautiful than big slices of melon and fresh strawberries!


Introduction

5. Slow Down, Mom! This One Counts!

I know how difficult it feels at times to keep all the plates spinning in the air with the busy lives we are living. If we don’t have time to nurture our children by feeding them wholesome food, we set them up for all kinds of unnecessary, avoidable struggles and difficulties. It could then be considered that we have lost the plot; the purpose and privilege we have to be raising children. We need to bring ourselves back to basics and get this right. Of all the things on your to do list, Mom, this one really is worth taking the time and making it happen the right way!

While you might be putting out a bit more time to put together your ecologically conscious, healthy school lunch, and while you may also have a bit of protest to get through in order to pull it off, the results will speak for themselves with a child who is calm, concentrated, has natural hunger and whose body thrives on good food and Mama’s lovin’.

“In our every deliberation we must consider the impact of our choices upon the next seven generations.”

- Iroquois Confederacy

Moms, lets face it. We have the biggest, most important job in the world! We are modern heroes! Raising our children is such a profound responsibility; I call it a Sacred Task. But if you have ever fed your kids standard fare, hot dogs, pizza, ice cream cookies, white bread, pasta, etc., and then fed them differently, more healthfully for any length of time, the results are nothing short of miraculous!

I am so excited for you, because although this may seem a little daunting, what is so thrilling is the positive effect you will notice in your children when their diet gets better. You will find certain ‘behavioural’ problems which may have been plaguing your home for a while now suddenly become non-issues. Or, certain health challenges suddenly balance themselves out. I know creating healthy lunches takes more time than just buying all the packaged stuff, but it is definitely worth it when you see your kids transforming before your eyes.

I always say, “Good kids are happy kids, and happy kids are healthy kids.” When kids are acting out, it so often is a bio-chemical response to their systems being out of balance. It isn’t what happens to them but how they are ‘experiencing their experiences’ that matters. A kid with blood-sugar imbalances and nutritional deficiencies just doesn’t feel right, so how can s/he act right?


Introduction

Some kids will balk no matter what you do…try this:

Some kids just won’t eat much, if at all, while away from home. It could be because of nerves. (Imagine being away from home for the first time with so much going on around you- surrounded by so many people- without mom or their dad to ‘buffer’ all that activity and stimulation…It can be so overwhelming for some kids. To prevent them from going into complete overload, they just don’t eat until they are ‘home’.) Peer pressure is another factor (they have concerns about eating food that looks different from what their peers are eating), or they just don’t feel hungry. Please pack them pure WATER in a hard plastic, or better yet, thermos container. Keeping properly hydrated may be more important than eating while they are at school.

In this case, packing a beautiful, balanced, well-thought out lunch may not work. However, a smaller, simpler, little snack may be perfect. As long as kids are not given a lot of sugary foods throughout their day, most will love fruit. Fruit (and water) can get most kids through the 6-hour school day. These children should really be given a substantial and nutritious breakfast in the morning and then a healthy snack as soon as they get home. For breakfast, I recommend Green Energy Smoothies. These are fruit and water based drinks you make in your blender with the addition of greens such as spinach, parsley, kale, chard, etc. You can read all about this in Green For Life by Victoria Boutenko.

My children drink a green smoothie every day before school. If your child, for some reason, doesn’t drink or finish the green smoothie before school, you can keep it waiting in the fridge for after school.


Introduction

Fresh Fruit Cocktails

To make fruit as a snack, it is simply a matter of washing and perhaps cutting up your child’s favorite fruit. To make this simple meal even more nutritious and to balance out any blood sugar issues, I recommend you add to the tray some diced-up celery, cucumber, lettuce or carrots. This way you can be sure your child is receiving a snack full of living water, vitamins, fibre, carbohydrates and minerals. Another idea is to sprinkle raw seeds over top the fruit: pumpkin, sunflower, hemp or sesame seeds are great, because they are loaded with healthy fats, proteins and trace minerals. A little shredded dried coconut and/or currants can also be added for extra fun and nutrition.

Variety is Key!

Try mixed berries that perhaps you picked on a family outing. There are so many varieties, like blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, loganberries, huckleberries, lingonberries, mulberries, cranberries, boysenberries, gooseberries, elderberries, how about Halle Berry...? Just kidding!

You can get creative and try some new snack ideas, like blueberries and raspberries, mixed berries or other fruit with celery or cucumber or lettuce leaves, orange segments with blackberries, prickly pear with kale leaves, blueberries with Bartlett pear, banana with pumpkin seeds and dried goji berries, pineapple spears with pomegranate seeds, prickly pear with Bosc pear, etc.

Fruit and Dip

Here’s something that’s a huge success with all the kids I’ve ever met...DIPPERS!

For this you simply take your child’s favorite fruit, such as apple, pear, banana, dragon fruit, permission, or mango, for example, and cut it up into attractive little pieces perfect for dipping, and have a little container filled with a favourite nut butter (almond, cashew, sesame, and hazelnut butters, to name a few), and let them have a little snack which is not ready-made but which they can participate in creating for themselves. So much better than those sad little packaged white flour bread sticks with processed cheese or chocolate spread that my children say their friends ‘have to’ eat.


Introduction

Sometimes, it is nice to add some plain organic yogurt to the fresh fruit. While yogurt isn’t technically raw, it is fermented containing B vitamins and probiotics. Long-lived cultures seem to eat this food as a staple. I notice there are times my children want and ask for plain yogurt, and at those times I give it to them. You can try making your own nut or seed ‘yogurt’ (see recipe in Snacks section).

My children enjoy yogurt with a sprinkle of hemp seeds and some berries or peaches. Sometimes they enjoy the yogurt without any fruit and only some raw almond butter and a light swirl of agave mixed in. To make this snack even more filling, try adding some oat or spelt flakes to the yogurt and fruit, or some raw granola (see recipe below). Sprinkle some cinnamon (cinnamon balances blood sugar) on top, so when they open their little container they can enjoy the delicious scent!

Helpful Tip:

What you pack your children’s lunch into is nearly as important as what you pack into their lunch…

• To keep lunches cool in temperature, use a little gel ice pack.

• Buy neat little containers that have air-tight lids and thermoses, as this will cut down enormously on packaging materials like plastic wrap and garbage. Pack real cutlery instead of plastic. I found a child’s set when my kids were babies that I kept for this purpose, which they now use.

• My children regularly win the award for bringing to school a “no-garbage lunch.” Their friends think that is “cool.” So eating healthy is great for the environment too which school is big on teaching about, so they know they are doing their part for the planet.

Snacks


Snacks

These are so good you will be making them not just for your kids!

When it is berry season, why not take your clan on a family outing and pick your fill. Kids, at first think it is going to be boring, but they actually find it incredibly fun and rewarding. It becomes a great little family tradition every year; same with apple-picking, etc.

Here are a couple recipes for your little ‘snackers’ made from a berry and apple harvest.

Blueberry Pudding

Note: The high fiber content of the seeds make this very filling!

Ingredients:• 4 C fresh blueberries• 1 C ground chia* or flax seeds• T honey (optional)

*Chia seeds are a great source of fibre, protein and EFA’s (essential fatty acids)

Directions:In a DRY container, blend the chia seeds so they are powdered. Add the blueberries and sweetener if using, and lightly blend so the berries break down but do not liquefy totally. Pour into your child’s air tight containers and sprinkle a few berries on top, perhaps with some shredded coconut for added appeal. The chia or flax ground will firm it up so they can eat it with a spoon and not a straw!


Snacks

Applesauce

Ingredients:• 12 apples peeled, cored and chopped• 1 lemon juiced• A handful of raw walnuts or 3 T of flax seeds ground• ½ C honey or raisins- optional

Directions:Process everything until as smooth or chunky as you prefer.Garnish with a sprinkle of cinnamon.

Non-Dairy Yogurt

If you are trying to wean your children off dairy here is a nice raw version of yogurt made with nuts that is very delicious and versatile.

Take 2 cups of raw nuts (almond, walnut, pecan, cashew, etc.) or raw seeds (sunflower works best I find) and soak them for 1-2 hours in pure water and then drain and rinse.

Next, add 1-2 lemons, squeezed in, so they are again covered in liquid, and also a couple of probiotic capsules opened and poured out. This will ‘culture’ the yogurt. Stir and allow everything to rest under a clean dish towel so it stays dark and covered for at least 6 hours or overnight. Then process in blender or processor until smooth- and VOILA! You have raw, dairy-free ‘yogurt’- smooth and ready to be added to smoothies or granola. Add some agave syrup or honey to sweeten and serve as is or over fruit.

Ingredients:• 2 C raw cashews• ½ C lemon juice• ½ C agave nectar or raw honey or raisins• ½ t vanilla extract• A pinch of Celtic Sea Salt

Directions:Prepare as described above. Serve with lots of fresh, wild blueberries and cinnamon. To make it really sour like yogurt, put into a cheesecloth or nut bag suspended over a bowl for a day to ferment before refrigerating.


Snacks

Shannon’s Fast G’raw’nola

If you have ever made your own granola before you know it is tastier and healthier than any bought version. This raw version is just as good and much quicker and healthier!

Take about 1-2 cups of your choice of nuts or even a combo: almonds, walnuts, pecans, cashews, Brazil, hazelnuts, macadamia, etc and 1-2 cups shelled seeds, any or all: sunflower, hemp, pumpkin, sesame, (not flax).

Then lightly chop everything into small pieces or just pulse everything in your processor a few times until everything is chopped but not ground.

Next, add some dried fruit: chopped (pitted) dates, currants, raisins, apricots, goji berries, mulberries, dried mango, apple rings- and once again loosely chop or pulse in processor until chopped but not blended.

If you have a dehydrator, soak, sprout and dehydrate some buckwheat so they are edible raw and add a cup or two of these little ‘buckwheaties’ to the mix.

You may also wish to add several cups oat and/or spelt flakes. This is your base!

You season this with a pinch of raw Celtic sea salt, some cinnamon and that’s it!

Store in an airtight container until you are ready to use. When you are ready to serve, add some fresh fruit sliced up: banana, peaches, berries, apple or pear, etc., plus some ALMOND MYLK (recipe below) or yogurt, with some agave or honey and enjoy the best granola you have ever had!

Ingredients: (but throw in whatever you have!)

• 1 C pecans and/or almonds chopped• ½ C Brazil nuts and/or macadamia chopped• ½ C pumpkin, sunflower, and/or hemp seeds• ½ C unsweetened coconut flakes• 1 C oat or spelt flakes- optional• 1 C Buckwheaties-optional• 1 C raisins, currants, goji berries/mulberries, and/or dried apple• ½ C chopped dates and/or apricots• ¾ t cinnamon, nutmeg and/or allspice• ½ t Celtic Sea Salt

Directions:Add fresh chopped apples/strawberries/blueberries, slices of banana, and hemp/sesame/almond seed “mylk” with drizzle of Agave nectar and more cinnamon. Store in an airtight container.


Snacks

Almond Mylk

You can make a fairly quick mylk to serve with your granola or to drink on its own or with cookies (recipes below). For an after school snack that is so fresh and yummy and super nutritious, a mylk can be made from just about any nut or seed. Try things like almonds, pecans, hazelnuts, hempseeds, sesame seeds, and cashews.

Take about 2 cups of nuts or seeds, add 3-4 times that amount of pure water into your high-speed blender (I like Vita-Mix and Blendtec) with a pinch of sea salt. Then blend until liquefied. Now strain through a nut mylk bag. You will have 6-8 C of beautiful mylk that if stored with a lid in a glass bottle, will keep refrigerated for 5 days. Add a few drops of vanilla and some sweetener like agave or honey if you like.

SHANNON’S TIP #1:

You can save money by purchasing your nut mylk bag from the hardware store, of all places. It won’t be called a nut mylk bag and it won’t have a handy string on the top, but it still works. Just go to the paint department and ask for the nylon paint strainer bags; they usually come in medium or large sizes, either works well. Just wash them thoroughly after each use and hang dry before putting them away.

SHANNON’S TIP #2:

Use your almond pulp! It can be incorporated into pie crusts (I don’t even dehydrate mine- just use 1 c pulp and 1 c chopped almonds with a pinch of sea salt and a drop of olive oil and another drop of agave or a couple dates and mix and then press into pie plate for a wonderful gluten-free crust. Or, use it in your next “Beauty Spa” day as a face or body scrub- it is such wonderful exfoliate. (You will find more ways to use left over fruits and veggies to pamper and nourish the outside of your beautiful self in my upcoming book with Angela Elliot!)


Snacks

Silky-Sweet Nut Mylk

Ingredients:• 1 C almonds (soaked overnight) or pecans, Brazil or hazelnuts• 3-4 C water• Pinch of Celtic Sea Salt• Dash of vanilla and agave, or 2 dates (optional)

*Brazil nuts are a great source of zinc

Directions:Blend well. Strain through cheesecloth if you wish.Add Banana, carob, honey, if desired. Drink or serve over cereal.

Goji Berry Tapioca

A fabulous way to use Almond Mylk!

Ingredients: • 4 C Almond Mylk• ½-1 C goji berries/mulberries, or any fresh berries• ½-1 C chia seeds (white or black)• Honey or agave to taste• Pinch sea salt• Drop of vanilla –optional

My husband calls this “Happiness in a bowl”

Directions:Take the mylk and add some sweetener to taste along with salt and vanilla if you like. Once it tastes good on its own, Use about 1-2 cups per person for the tapioca, and store the rest in the fridge as a beverage. Add some berries and chia seeds to the tapioca mylk, and let set until the chia seeds firm it up- then enjoy!


Snacks

Date-Nut Little Bear Porridge

Ingredients:• 2 C organic oat groats (soaked overnight and then rinsed well- or in a hurry? Use

regular organic Oat Flakes-no need to soak) • 1 T NUTS or seeds, optional • 1 C dates • 1 C Thai Coconut water, almond mylk, or pure water • 1 t cinnamon

Directions:Process in a food processor until fairly smooth. GARNISH with cinnamon and diced green apple AND sunflower sprouts OR berries.

Your little bears will LOVE this!


Snacks

Fantastic Flax CrackersThese really are fantastic, because while most crackers contain wheat flour and gluten and hydrogenated oils which all ends up creating digestive distress and constipation, these crackers are soothing and make you ‘GO’ if you get my drift… They taste great too!

Ingredients:• 2 C flax seeds (brown or golden), rinsed and soaked • 3-4 C water• 1 t Celtic Sea Salt (or any sea salt which is sun-dried and un-bleached)• 1 C pulp from making green juice- optional• 2 cloves of garlic minced- optional• 1 small onion diced- optional• ½ celery head minced- optional• 1t cumin ground and/or or caraway seeds- optional• ½ C dill weed, sage or oregano diced up- optional

Directions:Soak the flax seeds in the water until it is absorbed. Pour and spread onto your teflex dehydrator sheets and dehydrate at 110 degrees until firm. Then score into criss-cross lines the size you want your crackers to be. When they are dry enough, flip so the underside can dry properly. Dry until crispy. Store in an airtight container.

You can also find dehydrated flax crackers at the Health Food Store under the name of Glutino, which is a company that caters to people with Celiac disease who cannot tolerate gluten in their diet. I think these crackers are great in a pinch, but they are very hard and obviously haven’t been soaked properly, and I think kids would have a hard time digesting them. Plus, it’s so easy to make your own.

To make bread with this recipe:

Use the flax seeds GROUND UP INSTEAD OF WHOLE; mix in the water and salt, and perhaps some garlic and a herb or spice that you like, and mix everything until it becomes like dough. Form a ball and then tear the ball into fours and create 4 more balls which you will then flatten and form into loaves. Dehydrate overnight. When you cut the small loaf open it should be soft but not runny; the outside will be crisp. Store in an air-tight container.


Snacks

Kale Chips

These are soooo good and worth investing in a dehydrator so you can make them!

Ingredients:• 1 C raw tahini• 1 lemons squeezed• 1 t Celtic sea salt• 3 cloves crushed garlic• A bunch or two of kale

Directions:Use a food processor or just a hand whisk to mix the first 4 ingredients. Tear kale leaves into small pieces, and massage the “dressing” into the leaves. Spread the coated leaves out onto dehydrating sheets. Dehydrate on 100 degrees over night. They will be crispy by morning and you can pack them with an avocado and some cucumber into the kids’ lunch box- what a fun treat for a change!

Better ButterUsing organic raw coconut butter with a sprinkle of salt is how I initially was able to move away from dairy on the children’s toast (manna breads) as it is a great, smooth substitute. A drizzle of olive oil with a sprinkle of sea salt works, too. Eventually, I created this recipe which is so delicious for special occasions or when I want to impress a friend or family member.

Ingredients:• 1 C pine nuts, cashews or walnuts, soaked• 1 large lemon squeezed• ¾ C coconut butter• 1 t Celtic Sea Salt• 1 clove garlic

Directions:

Process in your blender with a few drops of water until smooth and creamy. You may add your own herbs of choice for a special herb butter: dill, sage, rosemary. Keep in fridge or freezer in an air tight container. Pour your butter into the ice cube trays and pop one out as you need.

Sandwiches


Sandwiches

P.B. & J.Peanut butter and jam sandwiches used to be the basis of school lunches for kids. There has been so much talk about peanuts being so allergenic that many schools do not allow kids to bring anything with nuts to school. If this is your child’s school policy, you will not be able to serve this for their school lunch or snack. However, you can serve it as an after-school snack or on the weekend as a great travel food.

You can make your own nut butters or seed butters which will, therefore, be RAW (roasted nut/seed oils are rancid and should never be consumed) by adding a couple cups of nuts/seeds in your high speed blender (such as a BLENDTEC) with a couple drops of olive oil and blend on high until smooth. Then store in an air-tight glass jar. Peanuts contain aflatoxins which are known carcinogenics (cancer causing agents) so I prefer to use other nuts.

You may use ALMONDS, PECANS, WALNUTS, HAZELNUTS, CASHEWS, PUMPKIN SEEDS, and/or SUNFLOWER SEEDS; they are all delicious!

Homeade Jam

Ingredients:• 2 cups fresh berries• 3 tablespoons of agave nectar or honey • 1 T of psyllium or chia seeds

Directions:Blend ingredients together, store in a jar in the refrigerator. The seeds will firm the jam after it sits a little while.


Sandwiches

Easiest SandwichUse your manna or Ezekiel or homemade dehydrated bread and simply slice up a beautiful ripe Avocado, a tomato and some cucumber and lettuce. Kids LOVE sandwiches, so although I could easily skip the bread and just wrap my avocado, cucumber, and tomato in a lettuce leaf, when they are at school, both my boys enjoy a ‘real sandwich’, as they say.

Toona

Ingredients:• 1 C sunflower seeds• ½ C celery chopped• ¼ C parsley chopped- optional• 2 t minced onion• ½ squeezed lemon• ½ t Celtic Sea Salt

Directions:Process in your food processor until still chunky but well combined. Serve with slices of Manna bread with tomato and lettuce and cucumber, OR serve as a Toona salad on top lettuce bed or stuffed in baby tomatoes or red peppers.


Sandwiches

Mock Salmon

Ingredients:• 2 C walnuts• 4 celery stalks• 1 red bell pepper• 1 small onion• 1 t Celtic Sea Salt or some dulse*

*Dulse is seaweed high in minerals that is a great salt substitute.

Directions:Process until well combined. Serve on romaine or stuffed tomato.

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Now let’s get to the bulk of the recipes which you will use to create your healthy lunch boxes for your child, husband or anyone who is away from home for a part of the day and wishes to eat healthy.

I am going to start you off with the easiest, simplest lunches first and work our way to more elaborate lunches. But don’t worry, as all my recipes are really easy, so when I say elaborate, I just mean a few more steps.

‘Fresh’ FriesThis is more of a snack or side-dish, but sometimes it does work on its own. My kids will sometimes eat a lot of these and find they don’t want anything else with that meal.

Ingredients:• 1 jicama (pronounced Hick-i-mah)• Squirt of lemon

Directions:Peel and slice like you would a large potato that you were making fries out of. Add olive oil, salt and chili powder and/or onion powder all to taste so that the fries are covered with everything. They look exactly like French fries and taste really yummy.


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Salads All these salads are filling and keep for several hours un-refrigerated. Some contain cooked legumes or grains which are good sources of fibre and complex carbohydrates and proteins. I use these as ‘comfort foods’ for my kids who enjoy them and find a salad not always filling enough. I tend to only sprinkle them in the salad about ¼ of the dish, but you can find the ratio that suits you best.

Legume Salad

Ingredients:• 1 field cucumber, washed (peeled if not organic)• 2 stalks of celery washed• 2 T fresh chopped parsley or chopped romaine lettuce• 1 C cooked chick peas (garbanzo beans) or lentils (both less gassy than most other

beans) or corn• 1 lemon squeezed• 3 T olive oil• ¼ t Celtic Sea Salt

Directions:Toss. Serve with baby tomatoes.

Shannon’s Ceasar

Ingredients:• 1 C oil (flax, olive or hemp)• 1-2 lemon juiced• ¼ -1/2 C raw tahini• 1-2 clove garlic• Celtic sea salt to taste

Directions:Blend until creamy and garnish salad with cracked pepper. Yummy! Don’t be afraid to substitute spinach and/or arugula instead of romaine lettuce. Use in a Roll-Up, too.


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Dandelion, Arugula, Radiccio Salad With rice option

Ingredients:• 1 bunch each of Dandelion and Arugula PLUS a head of Radicchio (washed and

chopped)• 1 small red onion sliced thin- optional• 2 avocado cubed• Handful of pitted black olives- optional• Olive oil to taste• Juice of 1-2 lemons• Celtic sea salt to taste

Directions:Tear all the washed and dried leaves into bite-sized pieces. Dress with oil and lemon and salt to taste. Add avocado and olives. Can sprinkle on some dulse if you like, which is tasty, salty seaweed very high in minerals. This salad is a little intense if your kids aren’t used to it, so you can mix in some brown rice or millet or millet/quinoa or lots of chickpeas and cucumber and or celery for them. Or put it in a roll-up with their favourite tortilla bread; I recommend Ezekiel.

Radicchio, Corn, Chick Pea SaladThis salad is very colourful and less intense than the last one and most kids will want to at least try it because of the familiar corn and chick peas and celery in it.

Ingredients:• 1 head of radicchio • 2 C corn off the cob or frozen organic that has been thawed • 3 stalks of celery chopped• 1-2 C of cooked or sprouted chickpeas • Olive oil, lemon juice, Celtic sea salt to taste.

Directions:Mix everything and this salad is hearty and will hold up nicely.


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Pretty Daikon Salad One of my boys LOVES this and the other won’t touch it; see what you and your family thinks!

Ingredients:

• Daikon radish • Avocado- peeled and pitted and sliced • Green onions- sliced • Olive oil, lemon juice, sea salt and black pepper

Directions:Peel and shred or grate the Daikon into a serving bowl. Add the dressing and lightly toss. Add the rest of the ingredients on top so everyone can see how pretty it looks the contrast of the green onion and avocado and white daikon.

Un-Potato SaladPotato salad used to be a favourite of mine growing up. I have learned to make an even better one now that tastes so good but is all raw.

Ingredients:• 1 large jicama, peeled and cubed• 3 stalks of celery, diced• 1 small onion, diced• 1 small red pepper, diced• 1 c corn-optional• 1 clove garlic, minced- optional

Dressing:• 1 avocado• ½ C olive oil• Juice of 1 lemon• 2 T fresh dill weed, minced• 1 t Celtic Sea Salt

Directions:Mash and whip the dressing together with a fork then mix into the salad.


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Waldorf SaladAnother childhood favourite that I did not grow up with but wish I had!

Ingredients:• 1 small jicama peeled and cubed• 1 c walnuts• 4 apples peeled, cored and cubed• 3 stalks of celery, sliced• ½ c raisins or currants• A handful of grapes cut in half

Dressing:• Juice of ½ lemon• Juice of 1 orange• 1 T olive oil• 1 t agave nectar• ¼ C raw cashews or pine nuts

Directions:Blend all dressing ingredients, pour over salad and toss.

The Roll-UpThe roll-up is a great way to get salads into your kids if they don’t think they like salads. At the beginning, you may want to use their favourite tortilla bread and later down the line switch to something more whole grain like Ezekiel. But keep a long term approach in mind and do not make it a point of stress. I know some moms will be tucking cheese at the beginning into these, too, just to get the salad into their kids. Do what works for your family with where you are at, and PROGRESS is what counts. Any of these salads can be made into a Roll-Up.


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Simple SlawThis is a favourite in our house. I didn’t think anyone would like it, including me, as I was never a cabbage kind of girl, but it’s so tasty in this recipe.

Ingredients:• 1 small or ½ head of green cabbage, thinly sliced• 4-6 med carrots, shredded • Olive oil, lemon juice, sea salt to taste

*Optional- A couple tablespoons of Engivita or Good Tasting

Yeast works nicely here, too, and increases the nutrition with all

the B vitamins these yeasts have.

Broccoli Brosia

Ingredients:• 1 small purple cabbage• 1 head of broccoli, chopped • 6 med carrots, shredded • 2-3 ripe avocadoes, mashed• Lemon juice and Celtic sea salt to taste

Directions:Combine everything. Add some whole brown rice, if you like, on the side.


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Cauiliflower Couscous with Avocado

Ingredients:• 1 head cauliflower, cleaned and cut into small florets• 1 ripe avocado• 2 bunches parsley, de-stemmed and chopped loosely • 2 bunches mint leaves, de-stemmed and chopped• ½ c lemon Juice• ½ c olive oil- organic, extra virgin, cold-processed• Celtic Sea Salt and black pepper to taste

Directions:Process cauliflower in food processor until not too finely ground. Mix everything together. Garnish with some black olives (watch those pits!) and sliced avocado.

Stuffed Peppers (or Tomatoes, or Cucumbers)Use your imagination in the kitchen and do not be afraid to experiment. You will find your family’s favourites and this is very satisfying. Use cleaned-out red peppers (never use green peppers as they are unripe and toxic) or tomatoes that have been de-seeded or cucumbers with their seeds removed, and once these fruits (yes, they all have seeds and are therefore fruits and not vegetables) have been hollowed out, fill them with any of these tasty fillings for a different presentation. Or serve on cucumber wheels that can be made into little cucumber sandwiches.


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Holy Guacamole!

Ingredients:• 4 avocado• ½ bunch cilantro• Juice of 1 lime• Celtic sea salt to taste• 1 tomato, chopped – optional

Directions:Process everything in food processor until smooth or chunky- the texture is up to you. When we first went raw, I gave my boys baked nacho chips which are gluten-free. It was a way to introduce all sorts of dips and pates to them. Now we have evolved to triangle shaped cabbage pieces and crudite.

Shannon’s Quick ‘Rice’

Ingredients:• 1 C parsnips, scrubbed, peeled and chopped• ½ C pine nuts• 1 clove garlic• 2 T lemon juice• 1 T Nama Shoyu, Bragg’s or Celtic sea salt• 1-2 T olive oil• 1 T agave or ¼ C raisins optional

Directions:Process in food processor until rice-like in texture. Season with salt and pepper.


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Mashed Cauliflower

Ingredients:• 4 avocados• ½-1 head cauliflower, chopped• 1-2 cloves garlic optional• 1 T olive oil• 1 C lemon juice• ½ C onion powder-optional• 1-2 t Celtic Sea Salt or to taste

Directions:Process in food processor until smooth. I add some chopped habenero pepper to my servings, but never to the kids’ of course. This recipe kept me raw the first year! It is very filling and satisfying and young kids enjoy it, too.

Pumpkin Seed ‘Cheese’ Pate

Ingredients:• 2 C raw pumpkin seeds (soaked 2 hours, rinsed and drained)• 1 bunch parsley, loosely chopped• 1-2 cloves garlic• 1 T minced ginger• 4 T Nama Shoyu or Bragg’s Aminos or Celtic sea salt• 2 T hemp/flax/olive oil• Juice of ½ lemon

Directions:Process in food processor until combined. Tasty and filling!


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Sunflower Dilly Dip

Ingredients:• 2 C sunflower seeds, soaked 1 hour then rinsed• 1-2 large cucumbers, peeled and chopped• 1 large lemon, squeezed• ½ t Celtic sea salt• 2 T dill weed, chopped

Directions:Blend everything except the fresh dill until smooth and creamy. With a spatula, pour out into a bowl and add the dill weed and stir in.

Veggie BoatsKale makes a wonderful substitute for bread because it is quite hearty, and although it tastes strong on its own, in a roll-up with tasty fillings,

it becomes blander and therefore less noticeable to kids. Eventually they may even like it; mine now do. Cabbage and Collard leaves are healthy choices that work, because they are firm and the roll-up can be less messy than flimsy lettuce leaves.

Add Garden Burgers (recipe to follow) in small oval patties, parsnip rice, pumpkin seed pate, mashed cauliflower or sliced avocado with lots of veggie strips like red pepper, celery, carrot, cucumber, apple, etc., and enjoy your creation.


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Garden Burgers

Ingredients:• 2 C raw nuts/seeds such as almonds/walnuts/pecans/pumpkin/sunflower • 1 C carrots chopped in processor• 1 small onion, peeled and chopped• 2 stalks of celery, chopped• 1 small red pepper• 1 T honey or agave, optional• 1 T olive oil• 1 clove garlic, minced• 1-2 T poultry seasoning • 1 t cumin or curry powder• 2-3 T nutritional yeast• Celtic sea salt to taste

Nutritional yeast is another name for ‘good tasting’ or ‘Engivita yeast’

Directions:Process all until firm (add onion powder or ground flaxseeds to thicken/dry if necessary). Form into balls and then flatten into patties. Sprinkle with paprika and parsley flakes. Serve on a bed of collards for the “bun.”

Top with tomato, sliced onions, lettuce, cucumber, pickles, OR turn into ‘meetballs’ by taking spoonfuls and rolling into balls.


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Spring RollsCollards are a large flat leaf that taste amazing raw with the right pate or filling.

Ingredients:• 1 C of coleslaw (recipe above)• 1 green apple or pear, washed and thinly sliced • 2 sundried tomatoes, thinly sliced into strips• ¼ small red pepper, washed and sliced thinly

Directions:Mix everything. Wash and dry the collard leaves and cut off the stem. As well, where the stem is thickest at the base, it needs to be thinned-out so the leaf will roll nicely. When the leaf is prepared, add a few spoonfuls of the filling and roll up from the bottom, tucking in the sides as you go. I sometimes use a long parsley stem to tie the spring roll; alternatively, tooth picks work to hold it together. These rolls can be made very small for little hands by taking scissors and making round circles about the size of a woman’s hand to make smaller rolls.

Nori Rolls In a rush? You can substitute avocado for the pate in the following recipe.

Ingredients:• 1 C Pumpkin Seed Pate or Shannon’s “Rice” (recipes above)• 1 carrot, julienne or grated• 1 zucchini or cucumber, julienne• 1 green onion, chopped• ½ green apple or pineapple/mango, sliced thinly then julienne

Directions:Roll the ingredients up inside sheets of nori, seal with a wet finger, let stand, slice with a serrated knife.


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Shannon’s Gourmet Zucchini Angel-hair ‘Pasta’

Ingredients:• 1-2 green or yellow zucchini • 12 black olives, pitted• 1 C tiny broccoli florets • 4 sun dried tomatoes, cut thinly with scissors• 1-2 tomatoes, finely diced • 1 T lemon juice • 1 clove garlic, minced • 3 oyster mushrooms, sliced-optional• Celtic sea salt and cracked pepper to taste• A sprinkle of oregano

Directions:To make this amazing dish, a SPIRALIZER or SPIROOLI is recommended, but if you don’t have one yet, just grate the zucchini, or even peel it with a peeler for a flat ‘fettuccine’ type ‘noodle’. Add other ingredients, drizzle olive oil on top. Mix. Bon Appetito!

Easy, Cheezy Noodles

Ingredients:• 2 organic zucchini• A pinch of Celtic sea salt• A drizzle of olive oil• 2-3 tablespoons nutritional yeast• 3-4 raw olives

Directions:With a vegetable peeler, peel the zucchini into thin strips. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt, drizzle with oil, and leave them just long enough to get slippery and for the moisture to start coming out of the zucchinis because of the salt (about 10 minutes). Now, sprinkle nutritional yeast, stir throughout and sprinkle some chopped, olives on the top.

Variations: Add fresh herbs, sun dried tomatoes, etc.


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GrainsNearly all grain can be sprouted instead of cooked. However, I have found certain grain such as brown or black rice doesn’t sprout but may ‘open’. Millet, quinoa, and buckwheat work well. Just rinse a cup or two of your chosen grain and soak it for 24 hours (buckwheat only needs about 2 hours) in twice as much water. Then rinse and allow to drain for 1-2 days, rinsing occasionally. When you see little tails sprouting, the grain is ready to eat and has germinated becoming digestible and more nutritious. However, if you live in a cold climate for half the year like I do and your family enjoys occasional warm foods and soups, you may choose to cook your grains at times. Use whole grains like short or long grain brown rice, brown basmati rice, millet, quinoa, or amaranth as these are very kid-friendly and very tasty. I have never been successful sprouting barley I find it does soften quite a bit, and will cook it too for in a soup or salad.

Rainbow Vegetarian Quinoa Cooked

Ingredients:• 2 C quinoa grain, rinsed well • 4 C water • 2 C carrots, peas, and corn• Pinch of salt

Quinoa is an ancient grain high in protein and non-glutinous

Directions:Place quinoa in pot with 2 times as much water, bring to a boil, then turn heat down and put lid on and simmer until fluffy. Put all veggies in pot and turn off heat and let stand for 5 minutes until veggies are warm.

Lightly garnish with olive oil and Braggs or Nama Shoyu, miso or salt.

Shannon’s Tip:The next day, to switch it up a little, you can take the leftover grain and throw in some vegetarian soup stock and greens like swiss chard, broccoli, bok choy, or rapini, for a simple, delicious soup!

Add ½ as much millet to the pot if you like, as quinoa is rather expensive and these 2 grains mix nicely. I also like to add Hijiki or Arame seaweed to my and my husband’s bowl, but haven’t been able to convince the kids to try those yet!


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Quinoa Tabouli

With your cooked or sprouted quinoa, just add a few ingredients to create a lovely salad.

Ingredients:• 1 C quinoa, cooked or sprouted• ½ C cherry tomatoes, cut in half• ½ C cucumber, chopped• 1 C fresh parsley• 1 C lemon juice• ½ C mint chopped• ½ C olive oil• 1 clove garlic, minced

Directions:Mix everything together and let stand in a serving bowl a few minutes


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Barley Baby

Barley doesn’t seem to sprout as much as it softens, so you decide if you want to ‘sprout’ it or cook it. For my kids, I usually do both- sprout for 2 days the entire portion and then quickly blanch for a moment or two in boiling water theirs to make extra soft for them. If it’s too chewy, they won’t digest it. To sprout, just soak 2C organic barley overnight, then rinse and drain for 2 days rinsing periodically. Or cook as you would rice.

Ingredients:• 1 C zucchini, chopped small• 1 C corn• 1 C cucumber, chopped• 1 C chopped celery• 1 C chopped tomato• 2 green onions, sliced thin• 1 C mushrooms, diced –optional

Dressing:• ¼ C cashew or almond butter• 1 clove garlic, minced• ½ C olive oil• 1 lemon, squeezed • 1 T agave nectar optional• 1 t Celtic sea salt

Directions:Combine everything together. So yummy!


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LegumesLegumes or pulses such as beans (garbanzo beans/chick peas, black beans, mung beans, adzuki beans, etc) peas (green, yellow split peas), and lentils (orange, brown, green, red) are difficult to digest and often cause gas in our system which is very uncomfortable. I have found only a couple digest okay in my family and only in very small amounts and not mixed with any other cooked food- only veggies. The ones we use very occasionally are: chick peas, lentils and mung beans- sprouted or cooked. I add them to raw salads or cooked soup broths, raw chili, or hummus.

HummusHummus is a tasty dip made form chick peas that is a staple in Middle Eastern cuisine and is always cooked. However, some innovative raw foodists have been experimenting with raw versions including myself. I have not been satisfied with any. However, when I tasted one at a raw restaurant made with zucchini and black olives and no legumes, I was hooked. I have tried to make it to be as good as theirs and have come pretty close with this recipe.

Ingredients:• 2 zucchini, peeled and chopped• 1 C raw tahini• 1 C black olives, pitted• 1 T olive oil• ½ lemon, squeezed• 1 t Celtic sea salt or to taste

Directions:Blend everything in your blender until smooth and creamy. Put about ½ c into a small air-tight container with some crudités: chopped up-

Carrots, celery, cucumber, broccoli, cauliflower, red peppers, jicima, apple, pear, cabbage triangles, asparagus, radishes, whatever your child or husband likes!


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Chili

Ingredients:• 2 C sprouted lentils or mung beans• 2 C chopped tomatoes• ½ C chopped sun-dried tomatoes• 1 C chopped celery• ½ C carrots, chopped• ½ C chopped onion• 1 C chopped dehydrated mushrooms or fresh- optional• 1 red pepper, chopped• 2 t chili powder• 1 t paprika• ½ C chopped parsley• ½ lemon, squeezed • ½ C olive oil• 2 cloves garlic, chopped• Celtic sea salt or Nama Shoyu or Bragg’s Aminos to taste

Directions:Everything except the lentils/mung beans can be lightly blended and then mix into a large bowl with other ingredients.


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PizzaNo kid’s recipe book would be complete without the renowned pizza. This food wasn’t considered a children’s food when I was growing up- it was actually reserved for adults. How times have changed! Pizza can be easy or complicated. I do whichever I have time for, so it varies.

Simple Mini Pizzas

Ingredients:• 1 cucumber, sliced into discs• 1 small batch of hummus or pate (recipes above)

Directions:Spread some dip on the cucumber wheels. Decorate with tiny broccoli florets, diced red pepper, cherry tomato halves, olive slices, whatever your little ones fancy.

You may also wish to use flax crackers for a simple crust.

Pizza Crust

Ingredients:• 1 C of soaked and sprouted buckwheat• 1 C sunflower seeds• 1 zucchini or celery stalk- optional• 1 t Celtic sea salt• 1 clove garlic

Directions:Blend with just enough water to turn over. When it is quite smooth, dehydrate until crispy in medium sized circles about 7 to a tray.


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Pizza Cheese

Ingredients:• 1 C nuts- pine, cashew, walnut or sunflower seeds• 1 lemon, squeezed• 1 t Celtic sea salt

Directions:Process until smooth.

Pizza Sauce

Ingredients:• 2 tomatoes• 2 sun-dried tomatoes• 2 T olive oil• 2 cloves garlic• 2 dates, pitted• ½ t Celtic sea salt

Directions:Process until smooth.

Topping Ideas:Mushrooms, tiny broccoli florets, cauliflower florets, sliced olives, diced red pepper, cherry tomatoes sliced, avocado slices, sliced green onion, diced celery, sliced mushrooms, pine nuts, oregano, peas, corn


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Fruit Pizza

Ingredients:• Nut butter or avocado for the “cheese”

• Fruit for toppings, such as raspberries, pomegranate seeds, kiwi slices, banana slices, pineapple, peach slices, grapes cut in half and deseeded

Directions:Buckwheat crust, or apple slices, or jicama slices or pear slices. Top with nut butter and fruit. Sprinkle with coconut flakes, cinnamon, and a little agave nectar if you wish.

Desserts


Desserts

Turtles To make these tasty little treats, simply make a date paste from pitted dates and water in your processor, then with one pecan, scoop some paste and use another pecan to smoosh the paste evenly between the two pecans. Then make a syrup from raw carob powder or cacao, with some raw honey or agave nectar, and drizzle on top.

Apple Crumble

Ingredients:• Basic apple sauce recipe (above) made chunky• 1 C each of pecans, walnuts, and almonds- chopped in processor• 1 C rolled oats, optional• ½ t Celtic sea salt• 1 t olive oil• Cinnamon to taste• Extra agave nectar to drizzle on top

Directions:Coarsely chop nuts in food processor until in small pieces. Add the salt and olive oil and lightly pulse to incorporate. With a spatula, spoon out into a mixing bowl, pour as much apple sauce as you like on top and lightly stir.

Scoop out into individual serving bowls or containers and sprinkle some cinnamon and drizzle some Agave on top if you like.


Desserts

Healthy CookiesIf your child’s school has a strict no nuts policy, you won’t be able to pack these little nutritional powerhouses into the snack, but you can serve them at home after school. What a lovely treat to look forward to!

Butterscotch Bliss Balls Men love these! So will you because they don’t require a dehydrator.

Ingredients:• 1 C dates pitted• ½ C cashews• 2 T orange zest• ½ C orange juice (zest the orange skin before you juice)• 2 T raw coconut butter/oil• 1 t organic vanilla extract• Pinch of Celtic sea salt

Directions:Ground the cashews down to a fine powder in the food processor. Then add all the ingredients and blend until very smooth and creamy. Roll in orange zest and coconut.


Desserts

Vanilla-Fudge Crispy SquaresThey don’t require any dehydrating. Yahoo! Just mix, then chill, and then you can also chill, Mom!

These are super fast!

Ingredients:• 2 C of raw cashew butter• 1 C of raw coconut butter• ½ C of raw honey• 1 t vanilla extract • 1 C sprouted and dehydrated buckwheat• ½ C goji or mulberries or raisins-optional

Directions:Process both butters and honey until creamy in food processor. Pulse in the last two ingredients lightly just until mixed in. Scoop out the mixture into an ice cube tray and put into freezer to harden, and pop out individually as desired. To make chocolate ones, just add ¼ c of raw carob or raw cacao powder to the processor.


Desserts

Shannon’s Ginger SnapsI just taught myself how to make these while playing in the kitchen one day when I had a hankering for my childhood gingerbread men that my mom sometimes bought us. These taste so great that I could never go back to the other ones, and of course, they are GLUTEN, DAIRY, WHEAT, and TRANS-FAT FREE!

Ingredients:• 3 C ground flax seeds from 2 C whole flax seeds• 4 C water• 1 C almonds (soaked if possible for 1 hour) optional• 4 ripe bananas• 1 C raw honey• 4” piece of fresh peeled ginger root• 4 t ginger powder• ½ t cinnamon• ½ t nutmeg

Directions:Add to the ground flax seeds and almonds the water and the other ingredients until thoroughly mixed. (The almonds are optional. I have made this recipe with and without them to great results, but I like to add them if I have them on hand.) Then with a spatula spread the mixture onto your teflex dehydrator sheets- a thinner batter will result in a quicker drying time and crispier cookies.

After about 2 hours at 110 degrees, use a spatula edge or butter knife to score the cookies into the sizes you desire by running the edge of your knife into columns and then crossing them. When they dry after 12 hours you can break them apart into separate square biscuits. Dehydrate another 12 hours until chewy and flip them over and dehydrate another couple hours to desired texture, crispy or chewy.


Desserts

Fig Newtons

Ingredients:• 2 C dried figs (I like the black ones) soaked about 2 hours• 1 C buckwheat, almonds, or flax, ground• ½ C shredded coconut

Directions:Mix the coconut and buckwheat powder together. Process your soaked figs into a thick paste. With a spoon, take a small amount and plop it into the buckwheat and coconut mix and roll it around so it becomes covered, and roll it into a nice ball and flatten into the shape of the square Fig Newton.

Baby Buckwheat Nookies

Ingredients:• 4 cups of buckwheat soaked about 1-2 hours in 6 C water.• 4 ripe bananas• 1½ C pitted dates

Directions:Then let it sprout a bit by draining the water and rinsing it once or twice a day. I just left it in a big colander on the counter for 1-2 days rinsing occasionally.

Dump half of it in the food processor with about 3 bananas and a bunch of dates. Process half the buckwheat with the bananas and dates until it is a yummy, doughy paste. The kids love the doughy stuff and would just eat it like that. Mix it with the remainder of the buckwheat sprouts and make a cookie dough batter. Then make little tablespoon-sized blobs on the dehydrator tray and turn it on for the night.


Desserts

Lara BallsThe kids and I called these Lara Balls, because they were born out of an affinity for Lara’s Larabars. There are no precise measurements or restrictions. Just throw the ingredients in there and play! These are great for kids and athletes as post race snacks, but not something I recommend on a daily menu as nut and fruit combinations aren’t the best for everyday consumption.

Ingredients:• 2 C almonds and 1 C of “raw” cashew pieces ground into a pretty fine powder with your processor• 2 C raisins• 1 C dates

Directions:Just add enough so that when processed with the nuts it makes thick, sticky dough. It should be kneadable, like a good batch of play dough! You might want to add a bit of liquid, but juuuust a wee little bit. You can also roll them in coconut to make them look more attractive when serving, and to keep them from sticking together when storing.

Check out the two flavors below to see which one will be your BIG hit!

Coconut Lime Balls

Ingredients:• Basic LARA BALLS recipe• a few handfuls of shredded, unsweetened coconut• Juice of at least 1 lime• A bit of lemon rind (not too much)• A few drops of organic lime essential oil (don’t skip this secret ingredient!)

Chocolate Peppermint Balls

Ingredients:• Basic LARA BALLS recipe• Add ¼ C organic, fair-trade cacao powder• A few handfuls of shredded, unsweetened coconut• 3 drops of organic, peppermint essential oil

After School Treats


After School Treats

Some foods you may not be able to pack in their school lunches because they are prohibited (nuts) or wouldn’t be good for their teeth (dried fruit), so you may choose instead to serve these foods after school.

Snowballs

Ingredients:• 2 C dried dates• 1 C shredded coconut, or more• A splash of fresh orange juice

Directions:Process dates and coconut in food processor with vanilla. Add coconut to processor until mixture is thick enough to form balls. Roll in coconut for a dusting.

Fruit Juice Popsicles

Almond Mylk is a wonderful base for these frozen treats. Just add bananas, berries or stone fruit (peaches, nectarines, apricots) and blend and freeze. A wonderful after school treat in summer.


After School Treats

Fruit Leathers

When we first went raw, and I eventually got my dehydrator, I was so excited to make these fruit leathers which are so easy and fun and delicious. The best part is how much money you can save when you see organic bananas or pears or apples or pineapples or berries or kiwi in the store reduced to half price because of becoming over-ripe, and you buy a lot and make a big batch of dried fruit or leathers.

To make dried fruit, simply wash and peel your fruit and slice up and place neatly on your dehydrator tray. Bananas and plantain, when really ripe, are almost addictive! We have even done watermelon! It is amazing. To make the leathers not so sweet, add ½ cup of ground flax to the blender for every 2- 3 cups of fruit.

To make fruit leathers, simply blend your fruit with a little lemon or lime juice and pour onto your teflex sheets and dehydrate until firm. Cut with scissors and store in air tight containers or plastic bags. Combine different fruits or blend one fruit at a time.

I do not pack these dried fruit snacks in my children’s lunchbox because I know they won’t be brushing their teeth afterwards and these are very sticky and sweet. So I save these treats for after school. However, if you would like to send your family off with healthy fruit leathers that you made yourself, I recommend you get your child in the habit of eating the fruit leather with some crunchy celery or lettuce which will help clean the teeth as your child chews these greens.

Final Thoughts


Final Thoughts

In Conclusion

This will prove to be a very powerful tool for you, moms. You now have recipes at your fingertips that are fast, easy, delicious and nutritious. All of the baked goods, even in the health food stores with organic ingredients, still cannot compare to these recipes which are not degraded by heating. The heating process of starches/carbohydrates can create Acrylimides which have been found to causes cancers. Also, seeds and nuts contain oils which contain essential fatty acids, and when heated, these delicate yet important oils become rancid which creates free-radical damage to our cells. Fortunately, it isn’t necessary to heat our foods at these high temperatures; if we have a dehydrator we can make healthy pie crusts, cookies, and crackers. How great is that?

I know sometimes it will seem like an uphill battle getting kids to eat healthier. And in our ‘convenient’ society this may seem like extra work. But consider this, wouldn’t you much rather hear your kids occasionally complain now about why you won’t let them eat certain things as opposed to the other option of hearing them complain later in life about ‘Why didn’t you care enough when we were young to encourage us to eat more healthy foods?’ When their friends are less fast in races at school, are taking meds for ADHD, have to get glasses, or miss school because they are sick, it seems pretty clear who really has the unfair disadvantage. When my kids talk about a certain kid who eats chocolate bars at snack time every single day, I ask them what they think about it. Of course they say at first that they wish they could, too, but then they quickly point out that they sure wouldn’t want to be him when it is time to go to the dentist. They also say that kid seems really hyper and gets in trouble at school a lot.

As we know, our food affects our moods, our bio-chemistry. How we ‘experience our experiences’ is actually more important than the experiences ourselves. If we can be resilient, resourceful and feel good about ourselves, every situation we encounter feels possible to us. Feeding our children wholesome food is the foundation. I have friends who are trying to teach their children about having a positive/grateful attitude. This is like putting the cart before the horse. A kid who can’t concentrate, is overweight, has headaches or stomach aches a lot, can’t keep up with other kids in physical activities, etc. may find having a positive outlook difficult. Let’s give our children the tools for real success in life. The ABC’s and the 3 R’s, reading, writing and arithmetic, are only part of the picture. Let’s do what school cannot do and let’s instil in our children skills that will not only help them ‘get a job’ or ‘be ahead of the competition’, but skills for life. Eating is a big one. If they have that down, the rest will be enjoyable for them.


Final Thoughts

Enjoy the process. Include your kids whenever possible. Learning to eat healthy and make healthy choices is a skill for life they can really use. They may not always thank you now, but they will later. In the meantime, you can walk a little taller just knowing you are doing all you can for your healthy family, and it’s a good feeling, Mom! I am very proud of you.

Shannon

The Healthy Lunchbox

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