Menu Plan Week of October 27th

It was a busy and beautiful fall weekend for our family here in Minnesota.  We spent a lovely afternoon at the apple orchard and jumped in leaves in the front yard while my 11 month old practiced her walking skills. :). I made an apple orchard inspired turkey burger for dinner that was simple and delicious.  Recipe is featured below my menu plan - give it a try this week!  These would be great leftover too.  I love to make double the burgers, grill and freeze the extras.  Defrost and warm in the oven for a quick and easy weeknight dinner!

Sunday - Apple and onion turkey burgers with grilled potato slices and spinach salad

Monday - Pumpkin and Sausage Pasta bake (with GF noodles) from the Real Kids Eat Spinach ebook (so many awesome, healthy fall-inspired recipes!  A great value!)

Tuesday - Chicken stir fry (using leftover chicken from a whole chicken that I baked a couple of weeks ago)

Wednesday - wing it

Thursday - chicken quesadillas (also using the leftover chicken) with guacamole and raw veggies

Friday - Sunday - out


Apple and Onion Turkey Burgers

1 lb ground turkey (I use turkey thigh)
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup apple, grated or finely chopped (1 small to medium apple)
1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp salt
Pepper to taste


Mix apple, onion, garlic and spices.  Add oil to frying pan.  Fry apple and onion mixture until soft.  Let cool slightly, add to ground turkey and mix together with hands.  Make into 4-5 patties.  Grill  or fry until cooked through.  Serve with Dijon mustard.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Scones

As you may know by now, I am a big fan of pumpkin.  I love to bake in the fall so pumpkin treats naturally become part of my repertoire.  I love taking tried and true recipes and making tweaks to put my own stamp on them.  This is a scone recipe that I use frequently during the summer months when fresh berries are in season.  I made some changes to it to make it a fall favorite.  Pair these will my latest obsession - pumpkin buttered coffee - and you are set for a delicious fall breakfast!


Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Scones (adapted from this recipe)

1 cup brown rice flour + 1/2 cup sorghum flour
½ cup tapioca flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon xanthan gum
½ teaspoon sea salt
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
½ cup organic palm shortening
1/4 cup maple syrup
½ cup + 2 tablespoons cold non-dairy milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup chocolate chips (I use Enjoy Life mini chips)
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Place the flours, baking powder, xanthan gum, pumpkin spice and sea salt into a medium mixing bowl and whisk together well. Cut in the shortening with your fingers or a pastry cutter until coarse crumbs are formed.

In a separate small bowl whisk together the syrup, milk, pumpkin puree and vanilla. Add this to the dry ingredients and quickly mix together with a fork or wooden spoon until the dough thickens. Fold in the chocolate chips, being very careful not to over mix.

Drop by the large spoonful onto a cookie sheet and bake for about 15 to 17 minutes, depending on the size of your scone.  Makes 6-8 scones.

Menu Plan Week of 10/20

After being very inconsistent with my posting over the past year, I am so thrilled to share that I have made a newfound commitment to be back to writing on the blog on a weekly basis.  I have received so much feedback from so many who use my blog as a resource for recipes and menu planning, it is what motivates me to be back to writing.  I am so grateful to my followers here!!  And I am so passionate about doing what I can to share my tips and tricks to feeding my family a whole foods, allergy-friendly diet.  I speak to friends and acquaintances on an ongoing basis who have struggled with so many of the same things we have when it comes to making dietary changes for their families.  I am here to ease the burden just a little and encourage you to stay the course - it is so worth the extra time and effort!  And I hope I can help you see that it can be easier than you think, with a little planning!

My plan going forward is to share menu plans as often as I can - I have so many menu plans archived now that it can get a little repetitive but I know that this is one of the most valuable tools for my readers!  I also plan to share more recipes and ideas with you to ease the burden of packing lunches, snacks and finding substitutions for processed foods that you are trying to eliminate.  I will also be highlighting my favorite blogs and resources that I use on a daily basis.

Some of the food challenges I have been tackling lately revolve around taking more grains out of my diet and my family's diet and feeding my almost 11 month old very close to grain free and organic, whole foods since we introduced solids at 6 months.  It has been an interesting journey and I am looking forward to sharing my tips with you.  As we introduce simple grains, I have some great ideas and recipes for you!

In the meantime here is our menu plan for this week!

Sunday - Crock pot chili

Monday - Black bean sweet potato quesadillas with kale chips

Tuesday - leftover chili with quinoa macaroni (Chili Mac)

Wednesday - "wing it"

Thursday - Crock pot freezer meal - Honey Apple Chicken Stew
***This recipe is from This awesome mini ecookbook that every mom should have in her arsenal!!!

Friday - Italian meatballs with organic sauce and spinach salad
***after a busy work wheat, a high quality organic marinara sauce does the trick.  I have these meatballs stocked in the freezer - just grass fed beef blended with Italian seasonings, bakes and frozen!

Saturday - out