Fresh Meal Service FAQ’s

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Fresh Meal Service is more than just receiving a hot meal at your door, it is a whole experience that you deserve.  Here are a few commonly asked questions that I would love to answer for you.

What is Fresh Meal Service?

Fresh Meal Service is a service provided in the Regina Beach/Buena Vista area.  It is a hot, nutritious meal delivered to your door weekly.  The main feature of these meals is that every ingredient is selectively chosen with everything made from scratch resulting in a delicious tasting, but nutrient dense meal. It provides you an opportunity to try something new, to eat healthy and clean without all the prep work, to have a night off of cooking and enjoy a homemade meal in the comfort of your own home. With many of the meals being organic, gluten free, dairy free, no refined sugars,  it will open up a whole new culinary experience and appreciation of healthier eating.  These meals can be enjoyed by everyone!

Where do you source your ingredients?

This is an area I spend a lot of time on, as it is very important to me and my business.  My ideal goal would be able to use all local and organic ingredients 100%.  Unfortunately this isn’t an option but I do incorporate this as much as I can.  I share all our very own garden goodies with you and I hope to expand this in 2016.  I do purchase local ingredients such as honey, produce & beef and work along side with Body Fuel Organics and Organic Matters to help fill in with most of my other needs.  By purchasing local and organic, it can assure us that our food is at its nutrient peak and not full of harmful chemicals.  It also supports other local businesses in our surrounding area.  You can feel good about knowing where your food is coming from, because I do.

stuffed sweet potato

Where is the food prepared?

The food is prepared in a inspected, licensed facility in our home.  This is a gluten friendly facility, however I do have wheat containing products in there from time to time.  Along with this, I also have training in food handling and safety.

What if there are certain types of foods I can’t eat due to allergens or sensitivities?

Prior to receiving your meal, we will discuss any food sensitivities/allergies.  This is NOT a nut free facility. Most of the menu is gluten free/dairy free and if it is not, it can be made upon request.  I can also accommodate most other sensitivities/allergens, however, if your reactions are quite severe to some products that are in my kitchen we unfortunately have to reconsider your service.

schoolhaus winnerWhat if I won’t be home at time of delivery or away one evening?

If you will not be home at time of delivery but soon after, just tell us a safe location area that we could leave the food for you.  Leaving out a cooler in this spot is optional but a great idea.  If there is a specific week you know you will be away at time of sign up, I will take note of this and you will not be charged that week.  If something has come up last minute, as long as it is 24 hours notice, I will credit this meal. In the case where there is not 24 hours notice, I will unfortunately have to charge you for this meal.

Do I have to sign up for the whole month? year?

Preference is for you to sign up for a whole month at a time.  This gives you a good time frame to experience Fresh Meal Service.  This service does run for all 12 months but there is no need to sign up for the whole year at once. Fresh Meal Service is available either Tuesdays or Thursdays. At the end of each month an email will go out with the next months menu along with any important information, upcoming events etc.  At this time you can confirm if you will or will not be continuing on to the next month.

How much does it cost and what is all included?

The cost of each serving is $14.25.  You can sign up for as many servings as needed for the meals each month.  Example for a family of 3: you will receive 3 servings each Tuesday or Thursday, that is $42.75/week.  There are typically 4 meals a month, so your monthly total would come to  $171.

Delivery is included if your home is within our free delivery zone or we are already in your are with additional deliveries.  We do try to coordinate your delivery dates with others in your area to avoid this charge.  If this is not possible, a $10 /month delivery charge may be applied.

How do I sign up?

It is very quick and easy.  Contact me prior to the month you would like to begin .  I will provide an information sheet that will cover food sensitivities and any special instructions.  Payment can be made via etransfer or cash/cheque prior to meal service beginning.  Mark down on your calendar that your meal will be arriving between 5-6pm the day of choice and enjoy!

Contact Info:

Ph/Text: 639.571.8539

Email: [email protected]

For more information and to view an updated menu please visit www.simplespoons.ca

 

Curly Beet and Sweet Potato Salad

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Who wouldn’t want to eat this colourful and fun salad?  The bonus, it is deliciously jam packed with nutrients from eating these veggies in their raw form.

Salad:

2 large sweet potatoes

1 bunch red beets (3-4)

4 green onions (sliced)

1/2 cup pumpkin or sunflower seeds

 

Garlic-Lime Vinaigrette:

1/3 cup olive oil

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

1 clove garlic minced

2 tbsp. maple syrup

sea salt and pepper

  • Mix all ingredients for vinaigrette in a jar and shake up until well mixed.  Store in fridge until ready to use.
  • Peel the sweet potatoes and beets.  Using your veggie spiralizer, process into separate bowls  (NOTE:  if you do not have a veggie spiralizer you could use a julienne peeler or a regular veggie peeler and slice into strips)
  • Pour 1/2 the dressing in the bowl with the sweet potato and the other 1/2 in the bowl with the beets.  Allow this to marinade for and 1-2 hours, or even overnight.
  • Right before serving, add the beet ribbons and the sweet potato ribbons together.  Do not over stir, the beet juice will turn everything pink!
  • Slice green onions diagonally and add this to the salad along with seeds.

 

Chocolate Covered Cherry Smoothie

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1 cup coconut or almond Milk

1/2 cup ice cubes

1 handful fresh spinach leaves

1 cup frozen cherries

1/2 banana or avocado

1 medjool date (optional depending on how sweet you would like it)

1 tbsp. raw cacao powder

1/2 tsp maca powder (optional)

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp. hemp seeds

  • Blend and enjoy!

 

5 Tips to Getting Children to Eat Healthy

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I just love when I see children eating healthy.  Not only are their small bodies getting the nourishment they need, but it is setting them up for a great food and health relationship later into their lives.  Getting children to make healthy choices isn’t always easy and sometimes it takes a little (or a lot) of creativity in the kitchen to make this happen.

5 Tips To Get That Munchkin Excited For Their Healthy Choices

1.  Be a good role model!  This one is simple but the most important, your children are not going to eat healthy if they don’t see you eating healthy.  I also love to make subliminal comments while I’m eating…..”Oh this apple is sooo sweet and delicious, I can’t wait eat another one”, remember whatever works.

2.  Invite your children into the kitchen.  Have them help you prepare the food, givePhoto 2014-11-26, 9 08 58 AM (1) them some choices of what to make or to add in. Always offer a variety, as you never know what they will choose and enjoy, sometimes it is very surprising.  My pickiest eater who will not go near a strawberry loves anything with nori wraps and sprouts.

3.  Use meal time as a huge learning opportunity.  We are all familiar with those power struggles we often bring on ourselves by always telling our children what we want them to do, and they never do it.  Instead of telling them they need to eat this healthy food, educate them.  Children love hearing information and facts.  Broccoli might sound much more exciting to eat if they knew that it is full of vitamin C to help build their immune system and it is so high in calcium it will give them strong bones for all that growing that is happening.

4.  Serve it in a fun way.  Lets face it, veggies and dip can get boring.  Try new recipes, eat it out of a fun dish (muffin tin), play a game with it, eat it with a funny utensil, get a fun straw for smoothies, eat with a friend, go on a picnic (both indoors and outdoors are fun),the ideas are endless.

5.  Give it a fun name!  This one has been a lifesaver for me.  Who doesn’t want to eat a Spiderman Web Salad??? How does Mint Chip Smoothie sound?  You get where I’m going.

One extra tip.  Don’t stress!!  Meal time is supposed to be a fun time to spend together.  Eating habits and tastes will develop and change over a lifetime.

Mint Chip Smoothie

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1 cup almond milk or coconut milk

1/2 avocado or banana,  frozen

2 handfuls spinach leaves

2 medjool dates, pitted

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp hemp seeds

1 – 2 drops peppermint essential oil, food grade

1 tbsp cacao nibs

1 tbsp cacao powder (optional)

  • Add all ingredients into blender except for the cacao nibs, add those in the last 10 seconds of processing
  • Enjoy!

 

 

 

Curry Powder

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3 tbsp coriander seeds

2 tbsp cumin seeds

2 tbsp turmeric

1 tbsp mustard seeds

2 1/2 tsp fennel seeds

8 whole cloves

1 1/2 tsp ground ginger

1 1/2 tsp black peppercorns

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp cayenne

  • Preheat oven to 250F
  • In a bowl, combine all ingredients
  • Spread out on a pan and toast for 20 minutes on middle rack.  Check often, you don’t want spices to burn
  • Let cool to room temperature
  • Grind spice mixture in batches with a spice grinder or coffee grinder and strain through a sieve into a bowl
  • The curry powder will keep six months in a tightly sealed jar in a cool, dark place

Not All Recipes Are Keepers

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As you are aware, not all recipes are keepers in the beginning.  It takes a pretty incredible recipe to take a spot up in my recipe box.  They may not all be keepers but to me they all have potential with a few adjustments, a zillion tastes and sometimes a lot of groceries.

 

I’m going to share with you what it took for the evolution of what I can now call my own recipe for a Pumpkin Pie Smoothie.

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It had started off with me saving a link for a Pumpkin Pie Smoothie from a website I frequent often.  I recently decided to give it a try since I have a ton of frozen pumpkin puree.  The ingredients looked good to me, so I gave it a whirl and was excited to sip on this treat.  Well, lets just say I was slightly disappointed.  The flavours did not go nicely together, the spices were too powerful and the colour wasn’t pretty.  Not a recipe worth repeating, unless…. I fix it up!

I had high hopes for this delicious sounding smoothie, so I wasn’t about to give up.  Over the week I sipped on this smoothie about six times, making adjustments to each attempt.  I wanted it to be perfect so I could add to my recipe box.  It went from too sweet, to too runny, not enough spice, wrong spice, not enough nutrients and finally to a perfect blend.

And this my friend, is the procedure to developing a recipe.  You know its perfect when you have tested it so many times that you can’t even think of having another taste.  This recipe is now a keeper.

Enjoy!

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

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Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

1 cup almond milk

1/2 banana (frozen)

1/4-1/2 small zucchini (about 1/2 cup)

1/2 cup pumpkin puree – homemade or canned organic

1-2 medjool dates (depending on how sweet you like)

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp. sesame seeds

1/2 tbsp. maca powder (optional)

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice or 1 tsp blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger

  • Blend and enjoy!

Second Chance Croutons

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Second Chance Croutons

3-4 pieces of stale bread, cut into 1/2 inch squares

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp dry oregano

2-3 tbsp olive oil

  • In a bowl toss together bread, olive oil, garlic and oregano
  • Transfer to a pan and on medium heat and stir occasionally to avoid burning
  • Once evenly toasted, remove from heat

Will It Be Bread or Bread Crumbs?

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Will it be bread or bread crumbs?  This is the question I ask myself before every attempt at trying to make a fresh loaf of edible, light and fluffy bread.  I have rarely been successful at the traditional white bread and now my attempts of a gluten free bread  seem to be heading in the same direction.  I believe making bread is a skill and like all skills, it needs to be practiced.

Lets face it, a gluten free bread will very seldom be comparable to the light, fluffy gluten filled stuff we grew up on and are in love with, but your body will thank you for trading it in. Working with gluten free flours can be a little tricky, here are a few tips. Photo 2014-10-28, 3 33 06 PM

1. Gluten free flours are very stong in flavour, so a blend of at least 3 work well to balance each other out.

2.  Get a kitchen scale.  All flours have a different weight.  You will get a more accurate measurement using grams as opposed to cups.

3.  Know what to look for.  Once you have mixed all of the ingredients, it will usually be wetter and look more like cake batter then like traditional bread dough.

4.  Gluten free breads have a tendency to be more crumbly because they are missing the gluten strands that hold bread together and are best stored in the fridge.

5.  If all else fails and your attempt was a flop, get out your food processor and at least you will have some gluten free bread crumbs.

Well…my latest experiment wasn’t too bad, but could use a few tweaks.  Since I already happen to have a LARGE amount of bread crumbs from previous attempts (I don’t give up to easily), this loaf of bread was reincarnated into some tasty croutons.

Second Chance Croutons Recipe