Back To School - Week One

I am so sick of making new years resolutions and never sticking to them, so I thought about aiming a little lower this year and trying to keep it simple. I have four kids and another one due in June this year and budgeting and healthy food options is always high on the agenda, also time for me to do things I enjoy is right up there too. I thought about the things I like to do and cooking is one of them, writing is another. So my aim is to make something for the lunch boxes each week, something that's healthier and not packed with sugar and salt, and in process getting my me time by enjoying some time to myself in the kitchen and in the blog world.


The first school week for QLD for 2012 is almost upon us. Today is Wednesday and the kids go back on Monday. I don't know who's more excited, them for getting back into their social circles, or me for having the house back to myself for a few hours a day without the constant bickering that 10 and 8 year olds seem to be experts at. The kids are counting down the days and telling me at least 20 times a day how many sleeps they have left, and asking if have I labelled their books and lunch boxes, which we all know will end up being done in the late hours of the night, the last day before school goes back.


I have however stuck to my goal of making some snacks for the school week next week. I've made a slice this week, wrapped them all individually and popped them in the freezer ready to go. I've also been trawling through my magazines and all the websites I can think of to find ideas that are not only healthier options, but freezable and quick to make without hours of fiddling. 


One of our boys is off to kindy this year, it's his first time in care and will be a big learning curve for him. His kindy has really strict rules about lunch box requirements. Minimal rubbish, no 'junk' food, no peanuts, no processed foods in wrappers. Basically fresh fruit, crackers, cheeses, yoghurt (as long as it's in a washable container!) and sandwiches is all that they have on their lists. So whatever I make has to tie in with this as well and can't appear too treat like or will be frowned upon. So this should be a decent challenge! 


First recipe of the week - 
MUESLI SLICE
Ingredients
2 cups natural untoasted muesli
1 cup self raising flour
1/2 cup dried chopped apricots
1/2 cup sultanas
3/4 cup brown sugar
180gm butter
1/4 cup honey
2 eggs, lightly beaten


Method
1. Preheat oven to 180C. Grease a 3cm deep, 16cm x 26cm (base) pan.
2. Combine muesli, flour, dried fruit and sugar in a bowl.
3.Place butter and honey into a microwavable bowl and microwave for 1min or until melted. Add butter mixture and eggs to muesli mixture. Stir until well combined.
4. Spread mixture into prepared pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Allow to cool for 20mins in pan before turning out and cutting into squares.


Notes

I didn't have apricots, so I used some leftover chopped walnuts and some almond flakes. Would be nice with any dried fruit, apple or crandberries maybe.

I found the mixture to be quite wet when all combined, but it turned a rich golden colour and is fluffy and light. 

The slice itself is a little more cakey than a normal muesli bar, it's not too sweet and as long as it is cool it slices well into small squares. I managed to get 21 bite sized squares out of the pan. It is a little crumbly to eat, but overall seems to be holding together and not just falling apart completely.

I have frozen some slices and thawed them out to see how it handles it, and they are still great, no sogginess and no falling apart.

Taste wise - well no one spat it out and everyone went back for seconds, so that's a good review in my book!

I apologise in advance for my picture taking skills, I promise they will get better as time goes on!