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Back to School

Haylie Duff Shares Her Secrets For a Successful Back to School Season

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A Q&A Discussion with the Actress, TV Host and Mother

It’s that time of year again–time to send the kiddos back to school! While a new school year brings promise and excitement surrounding what’s ahead, it also can be a time of uneasy transition and stress. Between getting your kids ready in the morning to running around for afterschool activities, how do you ensure they’re still eating healthy? How can they–and you–ease in to their new schedule? What’s the best way to ensure you’re still squeezing in as much quality family time as you can? Haylie Duff of Real Girl’s Kitchen sat down with Libby’s recently to share her favorite tricks and helpful tips for making the back to school transition as seamless, healthy and fun as possible!

We can’t believe it’s already time for another school year! The transition from the beach to classroom can be a bit bittersweet as we say farewell to summer break. What are your tips for lessening the stress of back-to-school and making the transition smoother?

Well, since this is my first time “getting ready for back to school,” I’m getting lots of tips from other moms! One thing I have cracked down on is nap/bedtime routine. During the summer, we love to have long, leisurely meals outdoors. Since the sunlight lingers in the summer, Ryan’s bedtime has become later and later. I really believe that a scheduled kid is a happy kid so I am trying to stick with our normal hours in prep of the extra energy needed for school!

My other tip for getting rid of school prep stress is to pack everything the night before. I make most of Ryan’s lunch the night before so we can run out the door in the morning!

Planning ahead is key to smooth mornings, especially as you’re getting back into the swing of things. What’s your go-to make-ahead lunch?

I actually just made a cold pasta salad with Rotini pasta and Libby’s® Peas & Carrots Vegetable Cups. It was very simple and delicious and it holds up perfectly in the refrigerator. It is a perfect make-ahead lunch for kids!

Having tasty, fun and nutritious recipes can help us break free from lunchbox boredom. What are some ways to get creative and spice up lunch for the next day?

I have been seeing lots of creative lunches now that Ryan has started preschool…even pizza!

I really feel inspired by the colorful lunches. A classic and fun way to spice up lunch can mean a bunch of different things: cookie cutters for sandwiches, a surprise pop of color like purple carrots, or even their favorite little cookie tucked away somewhere.

After-school snacking = key to curing crankiness. What are your go-to snack recipes that will satisfy, but also leave room for dinner?

cheesy sweet corn and hatch chili muffins

We love seaweed snacks in our family! Fruit is also always a good idea, or something a bit creative like my Hatch Chili & Cheddar Corn Muffins! Sometimes they play so hard at school that their snack needs to be amped up a bit!

When entering a new school year, weekends are often cherished with quality family time, whether it be a short getaway, or lounging around in pajamas all day. What are some of your favorite weekend activities for the new season?

Ryan has been in her little baby pool NONSTOP! I think swimming is always a great idea because it really wears them out so that they are ready for bedtime! Even if the sun is still shining bright!

Between extracurricular activities, studying and homework, it can be a bit challenging and hectic to balance the never-ending to-do list. How do you manage everything, while also fitting in nutritious meals for the family?

A well-stocked pantry is my best friend when things get hectic over here! If you keep things like Libby’s® Vegetable Cups or Libby’s® Vegetable Pouches, good broths, pasta, rice, lentils, tomatoes, etc. in stock at all times, you can usually pull just about anything together!

Veggies are key to ensuring kids have a nutritious, balanced diet – but it can be tricky to get the youngsters to eat them. What are some tricks to sneak in vegetables?

lentil shepherd's pie

I think smoothies are a great way to sneak in greens! Sadly, Ryan won’t drink a smoothie. My Lentil Shepherd’s Pie with Libby’s® Vegetable Cups is a veeeery popular dish in my house! Ryan has loved lentils ever since she was a baby and I always sneak in as many more veggies as I can! I usually get away with it…unless I add broccoli, then that’s a no-go!

Food Waste Survival Guide for Back to School

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By Dylan Bailey, MS

With the new school year comes new excitement and opportunity, as well as new challenges. Saving time and creating valuable family memories may be at the forefront of your mind especially with summer vacation in the rear-view mirror and backpacks filled with homework replacing beach bags filled with sunscreen. 

With the little available time you have this back-to-school season, Libby’s challenges you to do something easy and great for your family, with a strong educational lesson at its heart. We’re talking about minimizing food waste. 

Currently, it is estimated that 31% to 40% of food is thrown away after it has been harvested, which equates to more than 1,200 calories per person per day – those are some alarming numbers! We have some simple solutions, recipes and tips that you and your family can start to implement this new school year to reduce food waste. 

Never Waste a Dilla

southwestern chicken quesadillas

Finish the first day of school with this quick, easy, and inexpensive meal that is sure to get the whole family running to the dinner table. These Southwestern Chicken Quesadillas use full cans of Libby’s® Mixed Vegetables. Pop leftovers into an air-tight storage container and place into the fridge so you and your family can enjoy this tasty creation for lunch the next day. 

Meet your Meatloaf

mediterranean meatloaf

As summer moves to fall, you may want to think about a hearty meal to fuel all those after school activities. This flavorful Mediterranean Meatloaf made with Libby’s® Peas and Carrots is sure to provide everyone with a boost of energy and protein to keep muscles strong (including your brain!). Plan this meal a week in advance of shopping so you buy only the ingredients needed. 

Dish Some Casserole

cornbread chicken casserole

Casserole dishes are a great way to limit food waste and use leftovers. This Cornbread Chicken Casserole uses full cans of sweet corn, black beans, and tomato sauce to provide a bold, satisfying recipe the whole family will love. To use any leftovers of this recipe, try serving with Brown Butter Green Beans With Garlic Almond Bread Crumbs the next day. 

Some other tips we have to reduce food waste include:

  1. Plan your meals for the week before you go shopping and buy only the things needed for those meals.
  2. Consider your food packaging. Cans are 100% recyclable, which can limit waste to landfills and be re-used to make new products. 
  3. Find out how to store fruits and vegetables so they stay fresh longer inside or outside your refrigerator.
  4. Prepare and cook perishable items, then freeze them for use throughout the month.
  5. Learn the difference between “sell-by,” “use-by,” “best-by,” and expiration dates.
  6. Casseroles, stir-fries, frittatas, soups, and smoothies are great ways to use leftovers too.

 

Source: Reducing Wasted Food At Home. (2017, April 17). Retrieved August 09, 2017, from https://www.epa.gov/recycle/reducing-wasted-food-home

 

 

Food Blogger Picks for Easy Back-to-School Meals

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So long, summer! Back-to-school season is officially here, and with that transition comes hectic mornings, jam-packed afternoons and busy evenings. As schedules fill up, certain priorities can start to slip, but there’s one thing that shouldn’t: healthy eating. Luckily, serving your clan a wholesome, nutritious weeknight meal can be as easy and convenient as 1-2-3. The secret ingredient? Libby’s® Vegetable Cups. These single-serving cups, available in five varieties, are easy to open and packed with vitamins and minerals, making them an ideal lunchbox component and perfect addition to time-crunched weeknight dining. We’ve rounded up two brand new food blogger recipes that showcase the best of Vegetable Cups in back-to-school-inspired dishes.


These Easy Chicken Lettuce Wraps from Lisa at Snappy Gourmet feature Libby’s® Diced Carrots Vegetable Cups alongside protein-packed chicken bits and stick-to-your-ribs sticky rice. The wraps are versatile—you can serve them as a quick lunch, dinner or appetizer—and can easily be personalized for different palates. For an extra special weekday lunch, pack the wrap ingredients in a bento box and let your kids assemble them at school. This recipe serves 4, but you can easily cut it down to a single serving or dial it up for a big crowd. Bonus: each serving costs less than $2.00, making this both a waistline-friendly AND wallet-friendly option.
 
Allison over at Some the Wiser concocted this Quick Chicken Chili using Libby’s® Whole Kernel Sweet Corn Vegetable Cups. It’s super simple to pull together—we’re talking less than 35 minutes from start to finish—and delivers a hearty dose of flavor, nutrition and sustenance. Make a double (or even triple) batch of this on the weekend and pop it in the freezer for an instant dinner on those unexpectedly nutty weeknights. Serve it with a toppings bar (think: shredded cheese, sour cream, plain yogurt, avocado chunks and tortilla chips) for a fun, customizable meal sure to please the whole family. 

Back-to-School: Q&A with Iron Chef America Donatella Arpaia

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It’s that time of year again: back to school. While this season is full of exciting transitions and new beginnings, it can also be a hectic, stressful period. As schedules fill up, certain priorities–like eating healthy and enjoying quality family meals together–can start to slip. That doesn’t need to be the case though, and here to help is Donatella Arpaia, a regular judge on The Food Network’s Iron Chef America and The Next Iron Chef, a NYC restaurant owner and mother to a 4-year-old son. Donatella sat down with us recently to share her favorite tips and tricks for making the shift from summer to school as seamless, healthy and fun as possible. She also created two special kid-friendly recipes to help Libby’s fans kick off back-to-school season in a wholesome, delicious way!

The back-to-school transition can be bittersweet as we bid adieu to summertime fun while welcoming the excitement of the new school year. Do you have any tips for creating special traditions that celebrate this change of seasons?

During this hectic period, I think it’s crucial to create family traditions and not just back-to-school “to do” lists.  You can do this by scheduling a last “lazy day of summer” and plan the perfect day with your kids—whether it’s a day at the beach, a movie or a picnic—whatever it is, make it fun and leave all phones at home.

Also, for most families, food is an important part of making traditions. Create culinary memories together by baking a snack with your kids to go in their lunchboxes the first week of school. Celebrate the first day of class with an extra special breakfast and dinner.

With packed schedules, added extra-curricular and crazed morning routines, the start of a new school year can be an especially hectic time for families. What tips do you have to ensure that healthy eating doesn’t fall by the wayside?

It helps to plan meals ahead of time as much as possible. I like to create a menu for the week so I can see if it’s balanced. (For example, you don’t want to serve red meat everyday!). Advance preparation leads to better choices for your family, and I like to prepare recipes the night before that actually taste better the next day like my Quinoa Salad with Corn and Peas. 

Quinoa Salad with Corn and Peas

Healthy after-school snacking is an essential antidote to pre-dinner crankiness. Any favorite snack recipes?

Fruit and cheese is a perfect and easy afternoon snack because it doesn’t fill kids up too much before dinner, but sustains and satisfies. I like to combine Libby’s Pear Slices with a few cubes of cheese.

If we’re being honest, packed school lunches often times feel “blah.” What do you do to keep things healthy, yet creative?

Step 1: Get out of the boring sandwich rut! Buy fun, bento-style containers and create yummy recipes incorporating veggies that your kids will love, like my Sesame Soba Noodle Salad with Green Beans. It’s flavorful and healthy, and you can top it with grilled chicken for extra protein.

Sesame Soba Noodle and Green Bean Salad

Incorporating kids into the kitchen routine can be a great way to spark culinary curiosity and encourage healthy eating from a young age. What tips do you have for bringing young ones on board? 

Make your kids feel important by giving them their own work station! Set up a small cutting board and bowl and give them their own tools to cook, mix and bake with. Be sure to do this when you’re not rushing and don’t criticize them or micromanage. It’s important to let them have fun while you do the actual cooking and teach them along the way. I bought my son his own apron and we made a paper chef hat – he felt very proud!

What advice do you have for parents of picky eaters who worry about their kids eating enough fruits and veggies? 

I have a picky eater! If it was up to my son, his diet would consist of chocolate, pancakes and ice cream. When it comes to picky eaters, it’s important to be consistent and don’t let them wear you down. Every day, encourage them to eat something new. Find fruits and veggies that they like and build on that. Incorporate new fruits and veggies into their favorite foods. Also, I know some say not to “reward with food,” but it works for me. I tell my son that if he eats his fruits and veggies or tries something new, he can have a small sweet reward! Find what works and don’t feel guilty about it.

Sending youngsters off to school with a nutritious breakfast is crucial, but this is often easier said than done. Any tips for making sure a healthy meal first thing actually happens?

Although I pack my son a healthy lunch, I can’t ensure that he’s actually eating it, but I DO have control over breakfast and dinner. Parents often think that veggies can’t be incorporated into breakfast so they miss this “veggie” opportunity. It is so important to make sure kids get a protein in the morning. I like to sneak peas into scrambled eggs and then add some cheesy goodness so that my son doesn’t even realize he is eating veggies for breakfast! Try this with your kids using my recipe for Scrambled Eggs with Peppers & Peas. It features Libby’s Vegetable Cups,which I’m a huge fan of because they’re a fast, convenient and easy way to provide a healthy portion of veggies any time of day, but especially in the morning.


Scrambled Eggs with Peppers & Peas

I recommend starting the transition to a healthier breakfast before the school year begins. Have your little ones help you prepare breakfast and make them part of the process. This way, they’ll be more likely to try your food, and by the time school starts, they’ll be used to seeing green in their eggs!

Get Back to School, Get Back to the Table

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The start of a new school year is often synonymous with stressful schedules. Between hectic mornings and jam-packed afternoons, it can be tricky to find time for a wholesome sit-down meal, let alone a healthy snack. But proper nutrition is a key ingredient to success both in and out of the classroom. The good news? Well-balanced, kid-friendly meals can be as easy as A-B-C. The following three recipes—created especially for Libby’s fans by Iron Chef America judge, restauranteur and mom Donatella Arpaia—will teach you how it’s done.

Breakfast of Mini Champs

 

Lesson #1: veggies aren’t just for lunch and dinner. Try these Scrambled Eggs with Peppers & Peas (made with a Libby’s® Sweet Peas Vegetable Cup), and sneak in two whole servings of vegetables before the first school bell even rings. They’re also packed with protein, which will help sustain stamina until lunchtime.

Give Greens the Green Light

 

Lesson #2: kids can learn to like salads! All you need is one ingredient they already love (e.g. grilled chicken) and a generous sprinkling of cheese (opt for a low-fat version like parmesan or part-skim mozzarella). Start their lesson plan with this Mexican Chicken and Corn Salad, featuring a Libby’s® Sweet Corn Vegetable Cup and Organic Black Beans.

Variety is the Spice of Dinner

 

Lesson #3: if they’re picky, let them pick. When it comes to food, empowering your kids with choices—even small ones—can increase their likelihood of eating (and actually enjoying) the meal. This flavorful and hearty Turkey Bolognese with Peas and Carrots (made with a Libby’s® Peas & Carrots Vegetable Cup) can be served in three fun ways: sloppy joe style, over “little ears” pasta or as mini sliders. Let your eater decide, and rest easy knowing they’ll consume a full serving of veggies no matter what.