beans and rice and everything nice, that's what girls are made of

Buenos dias.  Lunch today was.....LEFTOVERS! I know, don't all gasp at once. Hoisin tofu, brown rice, broccoli and mmmm sauce topped them with chopped roasted almonds, which added a nice healthy crunch factor.

What's small, brown and hairy?

KIWIS of course!! More like  little green powerhouse.  Kiwis are an excellent source of vitamin C--just one has 95% of the daily value.   They are also a very good source of fiber as well as a good source of copper, magnesium, potassium, Vitamin E and manganese.

Price tag?

46 calories.

What?  I didn't hear you correctly.

46 calories!!

***

Last week I was sitting with the kiddies brainstorming names for the blog.  They both had excellent suggestions. My personal favorite was from LiaBanana...

1.  www.howtobeabetttercookerofananny.com

In English, that's How to Be a Better Cooker of a Nanny.  Because"most nannies just make mac and cheese."  It has a nice ring to it. But WAIT! There's more:

2. www.howtobeabettercookerofananny.org !!!!

 Her other ideas included:

3. www.chocoavohummus.com

4. www.outeravocado.edu.

The kid is a genius.

Saun-Baun gets full credit for hummusapien.  As soon as the word came out of her mouth, I died of laughter (it's amazing that I'm still alive with all this laughing and eating). I thought it was hysterical.  Incidentally, so did my mom and dad and BestieRoomie, so it stuck.  Saun explained that she was learning about the word homosapien in Latin, so that's where the idea came from.  Who would have thought Latin could be so useful??

Anywho, if you know me at all, you know that I think it's extremely important for kids to grow up eating well.  It will shape them for the rest of their lives.  Pass on the boxed crapola.  Throw it back in the freezer if it has a bunch of ingredients you can't pronounce.  Have you ever heard a child ask for sodium aluminate for lunch? Or, "Nanny dearest, I'm craving some BHT."  I didn't think so.  But hey, at least they're eating at home!

"The crappy food that kids are served at school is not an accident. The crappy food that's advertised to them (and everyone) on television and any other waking moment by people with psychology and marketing PhDs, that's not an accident, either. The proliferation of cheap burgers and nachos, the banishment of carrots and leafy greens to the upscale neighborhoods, this is not an accident either.

I'm not one to insist that people swear off meat and cheese, but the stuff they serve at most schools ... whatever people can eat, they need fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, food that very obviously came from a recently living plant. For kids, doubly so."

https://news.change.org/stories/school-lunch-bad-on-purpose

  Amen.

 Babysitter's Easy Beans and Rice

-serves one hummusapien and two kiddies

• 1 can of [organic] black/pinto beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 can of [organic] diced tomatoes, partially drained
• 1 cup of brown rice
• ½ cup chopped onion
•  1 tsp. minced garlic
• 1 tsp cumin
• ¼ tsp cinnamon
• ½-1 tsp salt
• ¼ cup chopped cilantro
• jarred salsa
• garnish: avocado slices, organic cheddar/monterey cheese
• Nanny of the year award: Chipotle dressing

Warning: Once again, these measurements are estimates since I didn't measure, so taste along the way and season accordingly!

Spray a medium saucepan with cooking spray and heat over medium heat.  Add onion, garlic and spices.  Saute until onions have softened.  If they start to stick, add a tablespoon or two of water or vegetable broth to the pot.

Meanwhile, chop your cilantro and heat up your rice.  If you're lucky, you'll peek into the freezer and find frozen Whole Foods long grain brown rice, ready to use after heating.  If you're not so lucky, heat the rice according to package directions.  This will take about fifty minutes, so plan accordingly!

Drain and wash your beans and partially drain the tomatoes.  Add both to the pot along with the cilantro.  Season with salt and pepper and taste test.  Add a few tablespoons of jarred salsa and stir.  Cook until heated through.  To serve, mix in ¼ cup of cheese to the kiddies' bowls. Top with Chipotle dressing for extra points. Pass on the cheese when you make your own bowl, and add avocado slices and baked tortilla chips for dipping. Garnish with a cilantro spring (that the kids will immediately pick off.)

Well hello there, complimentary protein!!