Paleo Lunchboxes

     I've been so bad about blogging, but the truth is we messed up so many times this summer, I was too ashamed. I came to realize something. I made excuses saying to myself that it was summertime, the rules weren't as strict. So what if we have rice, potatoes, corn and gluten-free pizza! Sure, make that two scoops of ice cream. I kept thinking that we need to get back to paleo, and after the summer it would be easier. But then I realized I have to make lunches every day, and I have to provide alternatives when they have class parties, and it's going to be a lot of work.  It's always going to be easy to make excuses to cheat a little.

     Staying true to a healthy eating plan isn't easy in this time of wrapped-to-go, preservative-laden convenience meals and snacks. But to be completely honest, my stomach is all confused and irregular, and adding some of that junk back in has made me feel very sluggish and yucky. And there were a couple of times that I consumed gluten (I do have an allergy to it) and was down right sick. For like, days.

     School starts back this week. Teachers are known for bribing rewarding their kids for good behavior with candy. So am I "that" mom that doesn't let her kids have anything good? Do I make my poor kids sit and watch everyone else eat candy? Or do I give in and let them have candy? Honestly, I don't think a little treat here and there is going to really do any damage. But on the other hand, I'm trying to detox, and stay detoxed from all the junk. So how do I remedy this? I find better alternatives. Annie's organic fruit snacks, for instance, is free of high-fructose corn syrup, synthetic colors and flavors and preservatives. Much better than Skittles ingredients. Now I just have to bribe convince their teachers to go through all that trouble to give them separate treats.

     Now, I need to confess how much I hate packing lunches. I would rather scrub my shower with a toothbrush than pack lunches. And now Ryland is starting kindergarten, so I have to pack double the lunches. And they can't eat from the cafeteria, so I have to pack it everyday. And I can't make a sandwich. So this year is going to be like 6 times the fun of last year's lunch packing extravaganzas. What in the world am I going to pack these kids? We rarely have leftovers. We used to waste them, so I got in the habit of making just enough, and now I can't seem to break that habit. I have done some research and made a list of lunches. And this year, when things go on sale, I'm going to stock up and do some bulk cooking in freezer, lunch-sized meals. Today, I made 1561 meatballs.

Three different kinds of meatballs pictured here. 

And one more because Chase wanted me to show off his artistic photography skills.

I chose to make a huge batch of meatballs because there are endless possibilities. Any combination of meats, veggies, spices, and sometimes cheese, and you have a new flavor! So here are the three recipes I used. 

Asian Meatballs from Nom Nom Paleo. Looking at her recipes, they sound a little strange sometimes, but they have been amazing! And just FYI, do not spend an entire afternoon making up meatballs, and then not have time to shower before you go to your kids open house at school, only to smell like fish sauce, which kind of smells like B.O., by the way. And everyone was all like "Oh Anna! It's been an entire 3 months since I last saw you. How have I survived? Here, let me hug all over you!" But the meatballs were really good, probably our favorite recipe that we tried. Just stinky. Really stinky. 

Sun-Dried Tomato and Feta Meatballs These were actually pretty disappointing. They have potential, but not nearly enough spice. Add more salt and maybe a little something else, and they could have been much better.

And then I winged the last recipe. They tasted like chicken sausages.
Turkey Veggie and Herb Meatballs

1 LB ground turkey              1/2 cup shredded squash                 handful of kale

2 cloves garlic                      1 shallot                                         fresh basil

fresh sage                            fresh rosemary                               1 egg

1/4 cup coconut flour            salt and pepper

I put the shallot, squash, garlic, kale and fresh herbs into a processor until finely diced, shredded, or whatever you want to call it. If you don't have a processor, you can dice it up. Then I added everything together, mixed well, and rolled into balls, and baked on 375 for about 20 minutes, rotating pan half way through cooking time.

I froze the meatballs on a pan after cooking them so they wouldn't stick together. Once frozen, I tossed them all into a freezer bag so I could take out 3 or 4 at a time for lunches. I just plan to pack them and refrigerate them overnight, and have the teachers warm them up for them. Boom, main course for several days worth of lunches.