Grilled Cheese Sandwiches with a Healthy Twist!

My kids love eating grilled cheese sandwiches (or "toasted cheese sandwiches" as my husband calls it)!  In fact, these are really the only type of sandwiches they do like.  We use organic cheese, organic margarine--however, my husband is not a fan of organic bread, so we've been buying conventional bread that is free of high fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated oils.  I am hoping to try to start making homemade bread to see how that turns out.  If anyone has any tips on doing so or some foolproof recipes, please share!  =o)
Anyway, back to the sandwiches!  I try to make everything as healthy as I can--even if it means sneaking in some "hidden" ingredients!
Here are some of the things that I use to make my grilled cheese sandwiches (all of which can be found at Earth Fare) :

The twist here is that I like to sprinkle flaxseed over the cheese before I put the sandwiches together and grill them!  The kids NEVER know it is there, and flax is a great way to add some extra nutrients and fiber! 

I always serve lunch and dinner with a side of veggies, and my daughter seems to think that carrots taste better when they've been cut into sticks, so that's the route I went!

Enjoy!
=o)
Jen

Flax Chocolate Chip Cookies (gluten-free)!

I wanted to bake some cookies today--I have been so enjoying cooking lately! I thought making chocolate chip cookies sounded yummy and have heard of baking with flax seed. Today I found this great recipe for Flax Chocolate Chip Cookies on a web site called Ellie's Whole Grains. I didn't have the 2 cups of chocolate chips it asked for, but instead used about 1 1/2 cups, and they still came out great! Also, instead of using flour, I used Arrowhead Mills Gluten-Free All Purpose Baking Mix.
I took pictures of some of the organic ingredients that I used. I really like using the Fair Trade-Organic Wholesome Sweeteners brand of Sugar (and Agave as was in a previous post). Click on this link to learn more about what Fair Trade Certified means. I also have some Organic Brown Sugar that I purchased at Trader Joe's, and some Spectrum Organic Ground Flaxseed which I purchased at Earth Fare. I try to use flaxseed whenever I can, including sprinkling it on salads! I've even sprinkled some on grilled cheese sandwiches before the cheese melts, and the kids never even knew it was there! So needless to say, I was thrilled to be adding 1/2 cup of it to this recipe! Another tip--they say it is best to store flaxseed in an opaque container/bag and to store it in the refrigerator.

Anyway, here is the recipe I used! It says it makes 5 dozen. I used a 1 Tablespoon scoop (like the recipe calls for) and ended up with 45 cookies.

Classic Chocolate Chip Flaxseed Cookies Recipe

Preheat oven to 325°F.

Cream together:
1/2 c butter (1 stick)
3/4 c brown sugar
1/4 c granulated sugar

Add to the creamed mixture:
2 eggs
1 ½ t vanilla

Mix in another bowl:
1 and 1/4 c flour (I substitued gluten-free baking mix)
1/2 c flaxseed
1 t baking powder
1/2 t soda
1 t salt

Blend together the dry and wet ingredients and add 2 c of your favorite kind of Chocolate Chips.

Optional: add grated coconut and/or nuts.

Beat together butter, sugar and brown sugar. Mix in eggs and vanilla until creamed.
In a separate bowl mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt -be sure that there are no lumps of baking powder or soda! Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture and chocolate chips. Mix until well blended.
Using a tablespoon, scoop batter separated ~2 inches apart on a cookie sheet.

Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown around edges depending on your oven! Cool on the pan for about 3 mins and then scoop off onto plate to finish cooling. Store in a airtight container. Makes about 5 dozen cookies (depending on the size you make them! :)

Enjoy! We did!

=o)
Jen