S&%$ my Toddler Actually Eats: Quinoa Salad

It's hot out, I'm pregnant, I'm tired, and this little bugger in my belly has flipped itself into a breech position. I was going to title this post something cute about "Treats for Toddlers" or some crap like that but I just thought I would call it like it is: S#$% my toddler will actually eat. She has been really "picky" lately....
Made this for lunch today and it was a big hit with both Little Bean and I. It was easy to make too, and made with fairly inexpensive ingredients. Truthfully there was a recipe on the back of the bag of Quinoa, but I didn't have 80% of the ingredients that it called for. I just adapted it with what I had on hand and it was amazing. About 20 minutes from start to finish, accounting for a crying toddler :)

Cristina's Quinoa Salad

INGREDIENTS (all preferably organic)
1 cup Quinoa
1/2 cup dried cherries or dried cranberries
1/3 cup sliced almonds
4-5 Tbsp lemon juice (juice of about 1 really juicy lemon or 2 not really juicy lemons)
2 Tbsp olive oil
2-3 Tbsp of honey, depending on tartness of lemons (add more if dressing is too tarte)
Zest of one lemon
1/2 Tbsp of fresh chopped Thyme or 1/2 Tsp of dried Thyme
1/4 Tsp of salt
Crumbled soft goat cheese for garnish

Cook quinoa according to package directions. I just added a cup of quinoa to 2 cups of water, let it come to a boil, then put it on low and covered it for 15 mins. This allowed me the time to get the dressing made and deal with a crying child. After 15 minutes, fluff it with a fork and let it cool slightly before combining everything.










For the dressing I just threw the lemon juice, olive oil, honey, zest, thyme and salt in small mason jar and shook away. I tend towards the "mason jar" style of making dressings instead of a whisk and bowl because I need to be able to do things while holding a child.

After the quinoa cooled down for a couple of minutes I just combined it in a bowl with the dried cherries and almonds and the dressing. Toss together and sprinkle over some crumbled soft goat cheese before serving. This was a big, big hit. Plus, quinoa is super good for you and pretty cheap. Bonus!

How to Save on Baby Items

All the flyers came in the mail this last week, wrapped up like presents on my doorstep on Thursday and Friday. I love it when I see a new Brandsaver flyer. To me, Brandsaver = diaper coupons, and diaper coupons make this lady happy.... dear god I am getting old.... I have gone from XTina to coupon lady... I digress...

I have learned that the biggest part of saving on baby items has been to combine sales with coupons. If I can hit a sale at Save On or Sobeys on 15% off Tuesdays AND use my coupons, all the better. Also, don't be afraid to ask for rain checks when you go to a store and they are out of what you need. I have found that, unless it is posted otherwise in their flyer, most stores are more than happy to do this (However, I have to be honest and say that I have only done this at Sobeys and Save on Foods, both places were more than happy to give me rain checks when the diaper size I needed was sold out). Other than that the big thing is to stock up on items when they are on sale. If you wait until you are out of baby lotion to buy some, then you are usually in a situation where you are just desperate to buy some and get home, and usually end up paying full price. Here are the 3 that I buy most often and how I save on them:

Diapers:
My preference for little bean is Pampers Cruisers. I used to shop around for the best deal on diapers, but then I discovered that Superstore's price matching really cannot be beat. I aim to get my diapers for around 20 cents per diaper, and using coupons with Superstore's sale prices I am able to do just that. This month I got two big boxes of size 4 Pampers Cruisers (with 148 in a box) for 31$ each. The exception is that once in a while I can hit a sale at Save On or Sobey's on 15% off Tuesdays when I have coupons. Either way, I stock up whenever I can get them for around 20 cents or less per diaper.


Burt's Baby Bee Products:
I love Burt's Bees products. I especially love the Baby Bee line, something about how it smells... It is expensive however, and I have found that their price is consistent, no matter where you go (and they don't have coupons!). Be it Save On, Walmart or Superstore, their bubble bath always seems to be about $9.99. The only thing you can do is pay attention to the flyers, as stores will sometimes have a special on like 20% off Burt's Bees products. Other than that it's 15% off Tuesdays all the way...




Wipes:
By far the best deal I have found on these have been the Kirkland brand at Costco. I love the quality of them as well, and sometimes they even go on sale or Costco puts out coupons for them in their mail out flyer :) Big box of 900 wipes for about 21$, that works out to about 2 cents per wipe! If u can find them cheaper than that, let me know!