Do you have children? Do they attend some form of formal education? Is this institution of formal education an allergy safe environment? Do your children require lunch? Do your children bring their lunch from home? If you answered “YES” to these questions, then you understand my dilemma.
Gone are the days of the brown paper sack filled with a PB&J, a brown banana, some chips, and a couple of cookies. Nowadays, lunches must be hermetically sealed and fully insulated to the point where the internal temperature won’t drop more than two degrees. On top of that, all lunch foods need to be nut-free, dairy-free, soy-free, gluten-free, sugar-free, fat-free, dust-free, and petroleum-free with a low carbon foot print and farm-to-table certification.
Yes, packing a lunch with the above requirements every day is a daunting task. Therefore, I came up with my soon-to-be regionally famous SNACK MIX. It covers most of the bases regarding food allergies, plus it has tons of fiber, protein, and a hint of sweetness guaranteed to please even the pickiest eaters. Don’t worry if you don’t have kids as this mix is great to take to work or just to nibble on during the day. And while I can’t verify the carbon foot print of this delicious vegan dish, my kids will attest to it’s amazing flavor. Enjoy…
Ingredients
- 2 Tbs Ground Flax Seed
- 6 Tbs Warm Water
- ¼ Cup Maple Syrup
- ¼ Cup Unsweetened Applesauce
- ¼ Tsp Vanilla
- 1 Tsp Ground Cinnamon
- ¼ Tsp Ground Allspice
- ¼ Cup Chia Seeds
- 2 Cups Corn Flakes
- 2 Cups Rolled Oats
- 2 Cups Puffed Rice
- 2 Cups Puffed Barley
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 250 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flax seed and warm water. Let this stand for 5 minutes. Now whisk in the applesauce, syrup, vanilla, and spices. Add in the other ingredients and mix well to combine and ensure all of the dry ingredients are well coated. Spread out the mix on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper or lightly coated with cooking spray. Bake for 50 minutes, stirring the mix every 10 minutes, or until the ingredients are dry and crunchy. Remove from the oven and cool for 20 minutes. This mix will keep in a plastic bag or airtight container for about a week (if it lasts that long).
https://www.grassfedcarnivore.com/snack-mix/That is all there is to it. If you have a gluten-allergy, you can substitute more oats and puffed rice for the barley. You can also add more sweetener to the mix if you want, but my kids think it works just fine as is. Otherwise, as it stands, this mix is fat-free, nut-free, dairy-free, soy-free, and wheat-free. So, whip up a batch this weekend and send your kids to school next week an awesome snack. I’ll get to work on that “farm-to-table” certification should you school require it. Longer Letter Later.
Love, Bob aka The Grassfed Carnivore
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