Homemade Frozen Pizza and the 80/20 Rule

#becausesoccer #becauseparkour #becauseholisticnutrition

Ok, wait a minute? Because Holistic Nutrition??!  I made a frozen pizza, with ooey gooey cheese and a homemade pizza crust, processed meat, packed with gluten and all of the ingredients that we’re so often told to avoid?  Yes. Why? I have kids and kids love pizza.  Who doesn’t?  I love pizza.  Also, I love balance, an 80/20 Balance.  This recipe can be filed under my 20%  and served up with a great big, delicious salad (good choices like that make up the 80%). 

The last time I made pizza, I made way too much dough!!!  I could have made up an extra pizza and served it up for kids lunches all week but that doesn’t pair well with the 80/20 rule.  That’s when I decided it was time to make my own homemade convenience food.  I’ve been experimenting with this idea in my kitchen lately; I’ll write up my homemade chicken fingers and my frozen cookie dough at a later date.  

I’m busy lately, studying like a big, awesome nerd at my kitchen table.  As a result, my kids have had to step up their household contributions.  I honestly don’t remember the last load of laundry I did, thanks to my amazing teenage daughter and my son has become quite brilliant with a vacuum and mop. These are all life skills that my kids have helped out with from time to time but now that I’m back in school, these chores have been assigned as expectations.  My list of chores still includes supplying delicious and well balanced meals for the family, regardless of how busy I feel. I do feel that kids belong in the kitchen; so I often ask for their help around dinner time, especially, if I have something easy prepped with which that they can help. I have always done a fair amount of food prep on the weekends; that habit has taken on a life of its own. Throughout the course of the weekend, I aim to make an extra meal for later in the week, I cook up a meat that can be used for sandwiches (usually a roasted chicken or a beef roast served with all of the fixings, on Sunday), a bone broth, if I’m really ambitious, a soup with the bone broth, a salad dressing and if I have time, a bread or a muffin. Two weeks ago I made pizza for dinner with my favourite pizza dough recipe:

http://carlsbadcravings.com/perfect-homemade-pizza-crust/

We enjoyed two pizzas for a dinner on a Friday night and I prepped the third, with my homemade pizza sauce, a lactose free mozzarella and some parmesan cheese, pepperoni and peppers. Once prepped, I popped it into the oven, while we ate.  I didn’t want to fully cook the final pizza, just pre-bake it long enough to melt the cheese for easier freezing.  I set the oven to 350 F and baked for 10 minutes. When I pulled my half baked pizza out of the oven, it looked like this:

I allowed it to cool, for about 20 minutes, before I placed it in the freezer on a cookie sheet.  Once it was completely frozen, I wrapped it with plastic wrap.

When my pizza was completely wrapped, I returned it to its place in my deep freeze.  This crowd pleaser is currently awaiting a busy night, when I have to study, my daughter has soccer and my son has parkour.  The kids can pop it into the oven at 350 F for 20-25 minutes and serve it with a delicious side salad or cut veggies and possibly a glass of red wine for this mama!  It’s convenience food but convenience food that is going to properly feed my family with no extra additives.  That fits within my realm of 80/20.

Thanks for taking the time to read this post!  Please feel free to comment below if you have any comments, questions, concerns, or if you just liked this blog.

Quick and Healthy Eats. A Local Treat. Soffritto Bison Lasagna

 

I realize I often write about convenience food.  Its because quick meals are a reality for many families. These modern times have different rules and expectations than many other generations. In so many homes, both parents work, children are busy with extracurricular activities; we're hyper focused on nutrition and require a healthy meal to be laid out on the table before rushing off to evening activities. There are ample reasons for busyness. The reality of the situation is that we fill our time, regardless of what it is filled with, it is filled. 

Lately my time has been filled with renovations. Painting, gluing, wallpapering and all in my kitchen. A fridge in my dining room; a week end without a stove; the perfect recipe for lots of eating out.  Or preparing quick meals like this...

Romantic pic hey? Even a filter cannot make this turkey wrap look appealing. We were installing a new ceiling, we needed some quick energy. The Laughing Cow Cheese was a supremely good alternative to Mayo, my kids loved it. Unfortunately, I had limited space to cook and eat and lots to do. Going out for a burger was exactly what we needed to do! 

We opted for a local restaurant, Boardwalk Burgers. We had a coupon, their new location was close to our house and we had never tried it before. Why not try something new? The burgers were pretty good, I've had better but they were decent, the fries were yummy and the malts looked good...though I didn't try them. Seemed like a few too many calories for one meal. Our coupon was for a free burger. We ordered two large fries, two regular drinks, and four burgers. The total was around $40, with a free burger. The large fries were obscene, one would have been sufficient for the whole family. Regardless, the kids liked it, but I had to listen while they whined about no malts. I left, frustrated with my kids, ready to get back to work in the kitchen and with a stomach ache. That kind of food doesn't sit well. Its not great fuel and though the thought of a diner style restaurant is fun, it is never what your body needs. 

This evening I was looking for some actual food. I'm still working hard with the reno...ceiling paint is on the list for things to do tonight. I didn't want to spend a ton of time on food prep or messing up my kitchen but I wanted real food. I stopped by one of my favourite local stores...Soffritto. I checked in with Gord, the owner, to see what he would recommend. Lasagna was his suggestion. Bison Lasanga. I decided to spend the same amount on dinner as our burger excursion on the week end. $40. That bought me two lasagnas. I had a Caesar Salad Kit in the fridge, on which I had spent a whopping $3.99; so this meal was essentially the same cost. Not the same nutrients. 

Soffritto boasts that their meals are made from high quality and local ingredients. They have every right to boast. Farmers Market bison, locally sourced tomatoes, fresh chewy and stringy cheese, homemade noodles and a housemade, herbaceous, rich sauce that features one of my favourite flavours...red wine. 

It cooked up easily and quickly and according to the package instructions. I preheated the oven to 375 F; I opted to cover loosely with tinfoil at 30 minutes and baked for a total of 50 minutes. 

 

They baked up beautifully. Smelled divine and tasted delicious! Real food. No kitchen mess. What a delightful and quick meal. I served lasagna with my favourite side salad, Caesar with some chopped kale, for added goodness. The kids were thrilled with dinner and so was I. After a week of garbage eating, I was happy to present a home cooked meal that didn't leave me feeling exhausted, in a messy kitchen. The ceiling wasn't going to wait. 

 

Best part of this experiment...it came in waaaay under budget...

 

It was so filling, we only ate one. $20 to feed my whole family? That's great value!  Cheaper than take out. Luckily the lasagnas come in these nifty containers, we packaged up the second one to be consumed for lunches or another meal later this week. Tonight, to celebrate our delicious, under budget meal, we opened a lovely Tempranillo. It perfectly complimented dinner and to motivated this girl to get some construction done! 

 

I understand that we don't all have a Soffritto around the corner, but look around, you might be surprised by what you find at your local Farmers Markets, Grocery Stores and Restaurants. It's ok to demand more from the food you're eating. Your body needs fuel. Delicious fuel. Thanks for reading!!!  If you have any questions or concerns or you just liked this Big Idea, please feel free to comment below!

 

Oh! For Convenience Sake!!

 

It is day four of driving kids to activities, cleaning the house, dropping kids at school. I'm heading into day three of volunteering this week and I'm getting ready to host two play dates tomorrow afternoon at an indoor playground, where I too will need to run, jump and climb like a ninja. I'm tapped out My Friends! This mama needs an easy dinner! 

Buying convenience food is a necessity. Everyone needs a break from time to time. Convenience foods, however, are not all created equal. I have a few tips and tricks up my sleeve that will help you find healthier options for you family. 

My first recommendation is find a grocery store that makes food on site, from healthy and wholesome ingredients. Living in a city, I'm very fortunate. Some of my favourite stops for healthy and convenient food are places like Soffrito's, a local oil distributor that sells fantastic homemade pizzas, pastas, casseroles and salads. It'll cost you more than a trip to McDonald's, but your kids need fuel to get through their evening activities after a full day at school. These "homecooked meals" are no different than something you would prepare in your own kitchen, full of fibre, nutrients, proteins and healthy fats. The mess, however, is in someone else's kitchen.  You get all of the glory and the credit for something that someone else prepared! 

 

Another favourite stop is my local Italian Market. Spinelli Italian Centre is a grocery store, a bakery, a deli and a Cafe. Which means I can fuel my body on the best and most affordable cappuccino in town, while picking up healthy ingredients and meals for my family. Better yet, I can book a coffee date with a friend and then bumble through the store. 

I grabbed so many awesome and convenient foods at the market today. When I'm shopping for convenience, I'm looking for minimal ingredients. A short list. Ingredients I know by name. 

 

I picked up these potatoes on a recommendation from my Bestie. She's says they're super delicious, can't wait to munch on my potatoes cooked in duck fat, which by the way crisps up a potato like no other potato.  They'll be lovely alongside some chicken, served with broccoli or a bagged salad. 

 

This sweet kale salad is so good I forgot to photograph the bag. All I'm saying is convenient doesn't need to be unhealthy, it just needs to be quick!

I keep Coco Brooks frozen pizzas in my freezer. I love to pick up the kid's cheese flavoured one. This is a locally made pizza, from a company that offers tons of fundraising opportunities for charities, schools and organized sports. 

 

A cheese pizza is a perfect jumping off point for kids. A great lesson in simple cooking. Sure you could have it plain or you could add your favourite toppings before you cook it up. Your favourite pepperoni, salami or even mushrooms. 

Today we're having Meatball Subs, garlic buttered with marinara sauce, spinach, a sprinkle of parsley and Parmesan Cheese. This recipe is simple especially when you don't need to prep the meatballs!  I purchased these meatballs at the Italian Market, they cost me about $13.00 and they're fantastic. 

 

How about if you don't even need to cook your marinara sauce? Even more simple, right? As you can see the sauce was $6.25, I only needed half of it, I'll freeze the rest for a later date!! I'll use it on a pizza, as a pretzel dip or over pasta. 

 

I picked up torpedo buns for our sandwiches. Mmmm. They were made in the bakery at the market. I buttered the buns with my favourite garlic butter, which I always keep on hand. 

 

I had a few extra minutes, as you can see in this pic, its only 5:09. My first sport drop off was at 6pm. Lots of time! I sautéed some zucchini in my favourite olive oil...Soffritto's Garlic Infused Olive Oil. I buy as much of it as I can, as often as I can! I also added some sea salt, some pepper and some oregano. 

 

These zucchini rounds were a nice touch! I served my kids meatball sandwiches on toasted torpedo buns, with sautéed zucchini, spinach and fresh parsley. They may or may not have removed the zucchini...but I definitely enjoyed it! They did partake in the side Caesar Salad and the heirloom carrots. They even left their spinach on their subs. 

 

There you have it!! Quick, convenient and relatively low cost. I'm calling this one...#winning. 

If you have any questions, comments or you just liked this Big Idea, feel free to comment below! Thanks for reading!!