Time for a main dish recipe. The key to most of our main dish meals is simplicity. In our large, busy family I want 4 things from our meals. They need to be Good for You -Naturally!™, inexpensive, simple, and taste great. We have some great “company” and “special occasion” menus too, but for everyday fare, simple is key.

Brown rice is a staple, that is served at least once a week at our house. We enjoy it in many different ways. Today I’ll share with you a simple Rice Pilaf. Since we add steamed veggies to it, all we need to round out our meal is our large foundational fresh veggie salad.

Lisa’s Easy Rice Pilaf

• 3 c. dry long grain brown rice (you can substitute 1/2 c. wild rice for 1/2 c. of the brown)
• 1 - 1 1/2 c. chopped celery, peas, and/or diced carrots (any combo you choose)
• 1/2 medium onion, chopped
• 1/4 - 1/2 c. chopped mushrooms (optional)
• 1/2 - 3/4 c. chopped raw almonds (optional)
• 1 - 2 Tbl. dried parsley
• 1 - 2 Tbl. vegetable broth powder

Pure Water (proper amount depends on the method of cooking - if your appliance recommends different amounts, use them)

• 6 c. water for cooking in Rice Cooker or on stove or in oven (9×13 pan @ 375°)
• 3.5 c. water for cooking in rice steamer
• 4.5 c. water for cooking in pressure cooker - if using pressure cooker, steam peas/carrots separately then add them after the rice has cooked.

Mix all ingredients together (except peas and/or carrots if you are steaming them separately). Follow cooking directions for your appliance.

Cooking time - approx. 1 hour in rice cooker, stove, or steamer. about 18-20 minutes in pressure cooker.

Makes - enough for our family of 8.

For Me and My House ~ At Jesus’ feet,
Lisa @ Me and My House ~ Discipleship for Life!
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This week I’m sharing with you a great, inexpensive Good for You-Naturally! salad to use your homemade mayo in. Cabbage is a cruciferous vegetable. “Say what?” you ask. Cruciferous. Those super veggies that are so good for us. They include: cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower,  radish, kohlrabi, turnips, collard greens, kale, mustard, rutabaga, bok choy, Chinese cabbage, Brussels sprouts,  Arugula, horse radish, wasabi, and watercress. Whew! And we should eat several servings of them every week, for their potent anti-cancer properties, as well as all the other great nutrients in them.

This is a yummy Coleslaw, not overly sweet or runny (like restaurant coleslaw). I’ve listed several optional ingredients. We usually include most of them, but if you don’t have them it will taste great anyhow.

Lisa’s Good for You-Naturally!™ Creamy Coleslaw

1 small head cabbage - coarsely chopped or thinly sliced
1 large carrot - grated
(Opt. 1 c.  red cabbage - coarsely chopped)
(Opt. 1/2 green pepper - chopped)
(Opt. 1/4 c. red onion - finely chopped)
(Opt. handful or so pecans or walnuts - chopped)

Use any or all of the above optionals. We nearly always put the nuts in - good nutrition. And usually add the green pepper, if we have it on hand. The other 2 are not always on hand, so more “sometimes” additions.) Mix with Coleslaw Dressing to make it Creamy.

Coleslaw Dressing

Homemade Mayo
thinned with not-milk to make pourable (pretty thin)
a bit of salt and pepper
(Opt. 1 t. liquid honey - you may need to warm it a bit to get it runny)
(Opt. 1 t. raw apple cider vinegar)
(Opt. a few sprinkles of poppy seeds)

I usually add all the dressing optionals, unless we’re really in a hurry. The amount of dressing you need will depend on how large your cabbage is. I usually start with 1 c. and adjust from there, sometimes needing more. So you may want to have more than one batch of mayo made up beforehand. If you make too much Dressing, it will save several days in the fridge for the next time you need it.

Enjoy!

For Me and My House ~ At Jesus’ feet,
Lisa @ Me and My House ~ Discipleship for Life!
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Some of you may like to see how Good for You-Naturally!™ Menu Planning looks in real life. Although I’m not going to promise to send a daily update for an extended period, I am going to post some of our menus of the day, in hopes that it may help you, especially if you are striving for a more Good for You-Naturally™ lifestyle of eating.

In our home the Fresh Raw Juice (and/or Raw Fruit) in the morning, and the large Raw Salad at Lunch and Supper are musts. Beyond that, the “other dishes” are optional. Our percentage of raw foods varies, but these are foundational to our meals. We are currently in a season when more cooked food has edged in, and our percentage of raw isn’t always as high as I’d like, so this may be helpful for those of you that are transitioning. But we still genereally eat small portions of the cooked, in comparison to the raw. (Well, until it comes to chicken and noodles - below) 

Also, ingredients make all the difference. Most everything is made from scratch, with wholefood ingredients, organic whenever possible. No refined sugars, grains or fats, or additives. No, we aren’t perfect. But what we make in the home is generally the best we can do.

Today’s Menu

Breakfast:

• Fresh Raw Apple Carrot Juice
•     (later in the morning)
• Bananas
• Whole Wheat Pancakes with real butter and real maple syrup

Lunch:

• Large Lettuce and Raw Veggie Salad
• Whole Wheat Crackers
• Almond Cheese slices

Snack:

• Grapes
• “Raw” Granola - dried on very low on the deydrator rather than baked (only I had this, kids were eating a few grapes)

Supper:

• Homemade Chicken and Noodles over Mashed Potatoes (organic chicken, homemade whole wheat noodles, celery, onions, carrots)
• Raw Veggie Tray - (large heap of veggies, instead of salad)

Evening Snack:

• Fruit Leathers (organic, dried pureed fruit only)

I (and I’m sure my other readers) would love to see YOUR Good for You-Naturally!™ Menu Plan too. If you eat Good for You-Naturally!™ (whole foods diet) please share - Today’s Menu, or a favorite Menu, or even just a favorite meal or a new meal your family has enjoyed. I will be doing a Today’s Menu post occasionally, (perhaps regularly,) and would love your ongoing input. I will send on the Good for You-Naturally!™ submissions in the comments below. If you’d like to see what we consider Good for You-Naturally!™ click here.
For Me and My House ~ At Jesus’ feet,
Lisa @ Me and My House ~ Discipleship for Life!
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The Redeeming the Time Journal - Menu Planning forms have been re-released today!

If 5 p.m. brings stress to your life as you try to figure our what’s for dinner, Freedom & Simplicity™ in the Kitchen is for you! This easy to use resource will help you put together menu plans from the foods you enjoy, easily, saving you time, money and stress.

See more or order at either the Redeeming the Time page or the Good for You-Naturally!™ exclusives page on our website.

Or recieve a Complimentary Sampler by subscribing to our free monthly newsletter.

For Me and My House ~ At Jesus’ feet,
Lisa @ Me and My House ~ Discipleship for Life!
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Fireproof came out in the theaters this week. But no theaters around here so we haven’t seen it yet. But we loved its producer’s other movies, Facing the Giants and Flywheel. We have great expectations for Fireproof, a movie about a failing marriage and a 40 day dare for a husband to "rescue his "wedded bliss" by loving his wife the way God loves us."

Although the movie is not yet available on DVD, there are other Fireproof resources available now. Take a peek. I’m not endorsing any of them yet, as I haven’t seen them either. But you may find something worthwhile there.

See our Family Fun page for Recommendations of some of our favorite movies, including Facing the Giants and Flywheel.

For Me and My House ~ At Jesus’ feet,
Lisa @ Me and My House ~ Discipleship for Life!
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Yesterday was a light lessons day, so a friend came over to "watch" me in the kitchen. It’s always more fun to work in the kitchen with someone else. On my list for the day was not-milk and granola. (My dd and I had made cinnamon rolls the night before. Mm-mmm. Great breakfast!)

I tried a bit different sweetener for the not-milk, using just a bit of raw honey and maple syrup. (I’m running low on dates.) Tastes great - judging by the children drinking glasses of it.

On an email list I’m on, a lady recommended making Cashew milk. I haven’t tried that one before, but I didn’t have any cashews to do it. So next time I buy cashews I plan to. I’ll let you know how it rates with our others we’ve taste tested.

The granola turned out great too. The kids were snitching it off the dehydrator as I put in on to dry, and throughout the drying, and again as I was taking it off the dehydrator. I’ll be sure to schedule its recipe for a future Friday Food post.

My friend also brought me a bowl of fresh tomatoes to add to the few from my garden, along with our jalapenos, to make some salsa. I got a large batch made yesterday, to go in the freezer. Well, whatever we don’t eat by this afternoon will go to the freezer in pints. Dh was pleased - although, "you could add more jalapenos." But he’d say that no matter how many I put in. But the flavor was good, and it’s hot enough, but not too hot for the children. I’ll be sure to throw an extra jalapeno in one of the jars for him.

I love it when food prep efforts are enjoyed and appreciated. It was a good day.

For Me and My House ~ At Jesus’ feet,
Lisa @ Me and My House ~ Discipleship for Life!
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Time to resurrect Friday Food. Now that fall is here I’m back in the mood for thinking of food prep. Summer is tough for me. Many times I don’t feel like eating, so I don’t feel like going near the kitchen or even thinking about food. But in the fall, my mind turns to crock pots, and soups, and homemade breads, and all the yummies we love to bake.

But since it’s still pretty warm out, AND since our meals have a nice, large fresh salad, at their foundation, I figure I’ll re-kick off this category with a favorite homemade Good for You-Naturally! dressing.

Lisa’s Ranch Valley Dressing

1 c. homemade mayo (recipe below - use full recipe)
1/4 c. almond-rice not-milk (or other milk/ buttermilk substitute)
1 t. fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 - 2 t. dried parsley
1/4 t. black pepper
1/4 t. sea salt
1/8 t. garlic powder
1/8 t. onion powder
1/2 t. dried thyme
1/4 t. dried basil
(adjust spices to taste)

Blend, shake or mix well. Refrigerate. Makes approx. 1 1/4 cups.

If you have a recipe that calls for the Ranch Dressing mix (the dry ingredients in a packet) eliminate the mayo, not-milk, and lemon juice, and add 3-4 T. of soy or rice milk powder - we use Better than Milk brand. If you want to make the dry mix ahead and later make the dressing, add the lemon juice, mayo and 1/4 c. pure water to this mix.

Lisa’s Homemade Mayo

1 egg
1 t. fresh lemon juice
1/8 t. sea salt
1/2 t. dry mustard powder
(opt. dash white pepper)
1 c. expeller pressed safflower oil (or extra virgin olive oil)

Put all ingredients except the oil in blender or food processor with 1/4 c. of the oil. Begin blending and slowly pour in the remaining oil in a steady stream. The mayonnaise will thicken quickly. Turn machine off.

If it curdles or doesn’t thicken, return 1/4 c. of the mayo to the blender with another egg and add the remaining mayo just as you did the oil, the first time. Refrigerate.

Makes approx. 1 cup
Keeps approx. 10 days refrigerated

Enjoy!

For Me and My House ~ At Jesus’ feet,
Lisa @ Me and My House ~ Discipleship for Life!
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Many of you would LOVE to get a Bosch and Nutri-Mill. You’d love to make fresh Good for You-Naturally! bread for your family with the time saving convenience of these Modern Maidservants™. But you just don’t know how to start. You’re afraid you’d get the machines and then, not knowing for sure what to do with them, they’d sit unused, and you’d feel guilty for spending the money, knowing it was a good investment, but that you aren’t utilizing it faithfully.

I’d love to help you out and I can! Many of you don’t live near here and can’t come to a Freedom & Simplicity™ Daily Bread workshop, but I’ve put it on audio for you. AND for those of you that purchase our 2008 Holiday Special Combo (Bosch Plus with blender & Nutri-Mill) I will GIVE you Freedom & Simplicity™ Daily Bread as a FREE Bonus!

In this workshop I lead you through why you should make Daily Bread, the ingredients we use and why, and step by step through making Quick and Easy Daily Bread. I want you to succeed and I want your family to be blessed with Good for You-Naturally! foods, and these awesome Modern Maidservants™. I think this workshop will bring you Freedom & Simplicity™ as you prepare Daily Bread for your family.

Do you already have a Bread Mixer and Grain Mill? Are they sitting in the cupboard unused, and you have the guilts? You aren’t left alone in your guilt anymore. You can purchase the Freedom & Simplicity™ Daily Bread workshop for ONLY $5 (currently), and get over your guilts too.

For Me and My House ~ At Jesus’ feet,
Lisa @ Me and My House ~ Discipleship for Life!
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The Holidays are coming and I know what you’d like (well, many of you anyhow And now is the time to get it, as the 2008 Holiday Special prices have just been announced. Treat yourself to an early gift and give your family the gift of great homemade Good for You - Naturally! foods. Or forward this to your dear husband as a hint for your Christmas list, or bookmark this page to return to after you’ve saved up for it. These prices are good through Dec. 31st (though supplies are limited, so may end before that).

Combo Special - NutriMill and Universal Plus WITH blender: $599.99 “You wouldn’t buy a washer without a dryer….just as you wouldn’t want to buy a mixer without a mill! They go hand in hand”

Nutri Mill: $249.99

Universal Plus AND blender: $379.99

Vital Mill: $179.99

Get more info on our Modern Maidservants™ pages by clicking the names of the products above. Email me to order.

Love to have it, but afraid you’d not know what to do with it, and never use it? See my next post for a BONUS FREE OFFER, just for YOU!

For Me and My House ~ At Jesus’ feet,
Lisa @ Me and My House ~ Discipleship for Life!
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Cal Thomas took a bold, but right, stand in declaring the Emporer (wanna-be) has no clothes.

Obama can call himself anything he likes, but there is a clear requirement for one to qualify as a Christian and Obama doesn’t meet that requirement.

Read the entire article here.