Category Archives: Food + Drink

5 ways to save money at Sprouts Farmers Market

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The other day when I was at Sprouts, I heard a middle-aged woman say something like, “It goes as low as $2.99 so I’ll wait until the price drops.” I thought that was so interesting and it made me wonder how she keeps track of prices. I’m not sure what item she was referring to, but I have to assume it’s something she has bought often enough to remember the sale price of. That’s smart shopping!

Today, I’m sharing some of my tips and tricks for saving as much as possible at Sprouts Farmers Market.

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What my toddler eats in a day

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What my baby eats in a day5
Now that Maggie is a toddler, she’s starting to eat like a regular person, or as we tend to say, like a big kid. She has three servings of milk a day, three meals, a day, and usually one snack a day but sometimes two. She also drinks water and sometimes diluted juice.

I am still figuring out how to keep up with her appetite but I thought it might be helpful to share what she typically eats, along with some questions that have come up with friends.

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10 favorite winter dinners

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Do you have recipes or dishes that you come back to again and again when cold weather hits? Do you think there is a difference between warm weather food and cold weather food?

I was watching a Giant Bomb video podcast a while ago with Paul, and the guys were talking about whether there is a difference between summer food and winter food. They seemed to agree that they eat more salad in summer and more soup in winter. I would definitely say that’s true for me.

I love the opportunity to make soups and stews in the fall and winter months. In the California heat of summer, I try not to turn on the oven or use the crockpot much, as that quickly raises temperature of our already hot home. Even using the stove can be tough when it’s already sweltering. Once it gets cold, I am so happy to use my oven and crockpot. They can make for more hands-off cooking.

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Stovetop macaroni and cheese

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stovetop-macaroni-and-cheese

One of my favorite comfort meals is macaroni and cheese, especially when it’s cold. It’s one of my favorite winter meals, right up there with chili and broccoli soup. Although it’s not winter yet, it’s starting to feel like it. Today it rained fairly hard and it was windy too. That doesn’t happen too much around Southern California, so when it does it’s a big deal. We’re wimps, I know.

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Meal plan vs. reality

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snack plate dinner

Sleep hasn’t gotten any better. I have been thinking of doing sleep training with Maggie but I’m not sure how. I don’t know if certain methods would work for us. I hate to hear her cry. But I also want to teach her to fall asleep on her own eventually and not have to hold her until she falls back to sleep 4 times a night.

We had simple meals this week because of the poor sleeping habits. My favorite meal was the barbacoa meat made in the crockpot using the Gimme Some Lovin’ recipe. The meat turned out perfectly seasoned and tender

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Sweet potato oat muffins (Toddler-friendly)

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sweet potato oat muffins

My baby is quickly turning into a toddler. She’s a toddler who loves to eat and I’m thankful she’s not picky yet. To try to keep up with her appetite and nutritional needs, I’m trying to give her more healthy “big kid” food and not rely on purees as much. She’s become a lot better at picking food up, putting it in her mouth and chewing it. Adults don’t really think about how eating involves all those skills that babies have to learn.

If you don’t have a toddler to feed, you can certainly still make these muffins. The recipe is very easily adjustable and they make a great healthy snack. You can easily make them more sweet by adding sugar or chocolate chips. If you don’t have mashed sweet potato readily available, canned pumpkin totally works.

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Cranberry pecan spinach salad

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This salad is made with a baby spinach and greens mix, pecans, cranberries, and a triple berry balsamic dressing. I was inspired to make the dressing when I came across my cousin Laura’s recipe for Triple Berry Spinach Salad in our family cookbook.

I think this salad would be a great addition to a Thanksgiving table. It feels like a fall or winter dish because of the cranberries and pecans. You could also eat this the day after a holiday get together with the addition of leftover turkey or chicken.

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Meal plan vs. reality

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This week mostly went according to the plan. I planned very simple things so that’s probably why. We ate dinner out Friday, Saturday and Sunday with Sunday being homemade food at my mom’s house. I feel lucky that I didn’t have to wash as much dishes.

I ordered groceries from InstaCart on Friday. I didn’t order any fresh meat this time for a few reasons. Last week I accidentally let some ground beef go bad because I didn’t get to cooking it in time. I didn’t want that to happen again.

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