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Vanessa McGlynn

@feedingfrankie

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🍓 Easy food my girls actually eat
🥪 Lunchboxes • snacks • easy dinners
👋🏼 Real kitchen, real mess, food that works
🍫 Lunchbox treat series now ↓

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My kids think these are Oreo balls. They’re not 🤭

🍫 SNEAKY OREO BLISS BALLS

The Oreo is literally just a sprinkle on top. Underneath it’s cottage cheese, dates and oats.

And yes, they’re dipped in chocolate, I’m not a monster 😂 The versions you see everywhere are usually just crushed biscuits and condensed milk, but the base of these is actually real food, and they make a pretty bloody good lunchbox treat.

No baking, no skill required, and they freeze perfectly.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup pitted dates
• Boiling water, for soaking
• ½ cup cottage cheese
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• ¼ cup cocoa powder
• 1–1¼ cups oat flour (just blitz rolled oats into flour)
• 200g chocolate of choice, melted
• White chocolate for drizzling, optional
• 1–2 Oreos, crushed

METHOD

1. Cover the dates with boiling water and leave them to soften for 5 minutes. Drain them really well.
2. Blend the dates, cottage cheese, maple syrup and vanilla until smooth.
3. Add the chia seeds, cocoa and oat flour. Blend until combined, then leave the mixture for 5 minutes to thicken.
4. If it’s still too sticky to roll, add more oat flour, one tablespoon at a time.
5. Refrigerate for 20 minutes, then roll into balls and freeze for another 20–30 minutes.
6. Dip each ball in melted chocolate. Add a contrasting chocolate drizzle if you like, then sprinkle with crushed Oreo.
7. Refrigerate until the chocolate has set.

Store them in the freezer and pop straight into the lunchbox for snack time.

This is number one in my new ONE BASE, FOUR TREATS series: the same base turned into four completely different lunchbox treats.

Save this one and follow along for number two in series, and send it to the mums packing the same thing every day 🤍 taken in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia by @feedingfrankie

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a month ago

Pancakes that survive a lunchbox 🙌

These pancake muffins are made with Greek yoghurt and cottage cheese, and before you scroll past them, no, you cannot taste it. I have tested this on two very suspicious children.

You said lunchbox snacks, so here we are.

One batter, split into two trays. Sprinkles for one kid, chocolate for the other. They freeze beautifully, can go straight into the lunchbox frozen and they’re thawed by recess.

Ingredients

* ½ cup cottage cheese
* ½ cup Greek yoghurt
* 2 eggs
* ⅓ cup maple syrup
* ¼ cup olive oil
* 1 tsp vanilla
* 1½ cups self-raising flour
* Pinch of salt
* ½ cup mini choc chips or sprinkles
* 1–2 tbsp milk only if batter is very thick

Method

1. Blend cottage cheese, yoghurt, eggs, maple syrup, oil and vanilla in the NutriBullet until smooth.
2. Add self-raising flour + salt and pulse briefly until just combined. Alternatively just mix it in a bowl.
3. Spoon into a greased mini muffin tin, about ¾ full.
4. Sprinkle in 100’s & 1000’s & choc chips
5. Bake at 160°C fan for 12–14 mins until lightly golden.
6. Cool for a few minutes before removing.

Save this for the weekend. Tell me what else you want in the lunchbox rotation and I’ll make it next.

#lunchboxideas #mealprep #easyrecipes #schoollunches freezer friendly high protein mum life family meal taken in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia by @feedingfrankie

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2 months ago

A box of five LCMs is $4.50, so about 90c a bar. These work out much cheaper - and I know exactly what’s in them!!

The sticky base is dates and chia instead of marshmallow, so there’s actual fibre in there.

Mix, press, chocolate, freezer. That’s it.

RICE CAKE CRUNCH BARS 🍫

4 plain rice cakes, roughly crushed
1 cup puffed rice cereal (Rice Bubbles)
1 cup pitted dates
3 tbsp peanut butter (sub seed butter)
2 tbsp maple syrup
1 tbsp chia seeds
Pinch of sea salt
1 cup dark chocolate chips
1 tsp coconut oil
Mini M&M’s, optional but obvs recommended 🤤

*Nut-free option: swap the peanut butter for seed butter if required by your school

1. Cover dates with boiling water, microwave for 1 minute, then drain well.
2. Mash to a paste, then stir through peanut butter and maple syrup.
3. Mix crushed rice cakes, puffed rice, chia seeds and salt in a separate bowl.
4. Pour the date mixture over and stir until everything is coated and sticking together.
5. Press firmly into a lined loaf tin.
6. Melt chocolate with coconut oil, pour over and spread.
7. Add M&M’s over the top then place in freezer for 30 mins, then slice into 12.

#2 in my Lunchbox Series 🍫
The pancake muffins were #1.

***Send this to the parent spending way too much on lunchbox snacks.*** taken in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia by @feedingfrankie

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2 months ago

My kids think this is chocolate mousse… basically is 🤣🍫

Rich, creamy, packed with protein and ridiculously easy to make!

3-Ingredient Chocolate Mousse 🤎
Serves 2

🥣 1 cup thick Greek yoghurt
🍫 1 tbsp cocoa powder
🍁 1-2 tbsp maple syrup (adjust to taste)

Method:
Mix everything until smooth and creamy. Refrigerate for 20–30 minutes to chill and thicken slightly.

You can even freeze it for a homemade frozen treat, I love doing this!

📌 Save this for the next time the kids ask for dessert!

#greekyoghurt #healthydessert #chocolate taken in Melbourne, Australia by @feedingfrankie

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3 days ago

Cottage cheese in blueberry muffins?
Stay with me 🫐

If you’ve bought a tub with good intentions and it’s now just staring at you from the fridge, this is its moment 🤣

Soft, fluffy and no, they don’t taste like cheese. The girls demolished them before I could get the lunchboxes out.

Make a batch. Freeze a few before anyone notices.

Recipe below 👇

Ingredients
• 1¾ cups self-raising flour
• ¼ tsp salt
• ⅓ cup maple syrup
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup cottage cheese
• ½ cup milk
• ⅓ cup mild olive oil (sub melted butter)
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen
• 1 tsp extra flour to coat the blueberries

Method

1. Preheat oven to 160°C fan-forced. Grease or line a muffin tin.
2. Add cottage cheese, olive oil, maple syrup, eggs, milk and vanilla to your NutriBullet.
Quick blitz until smooth.
3. Pour into a mixing bowl. Fold in the self-raising flour and salt until just combined.
Don’t over-mix!!
4. Toss blueberries in the extra teaspoon of flour, then gently fold through the batter. Use frozen blueberries straight from the freezer.
5. Fill muffin holes about ¾ full. Bake for 18–22 minutes, until lightly golden and a skewer comes out clean.
6. Cool briefly in the tin, then transfer to a wire rack.

Save this for your next lunchbox bake 💙

#lunchbox #muffins #protein taken in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia by @feedingfrankie

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7 days ago

My kids think this is a Malteser slice….

The cottage cheese has requested to remain anonymous 🤫

🍫 MALTESER SLICE 🍫

Part three of ‘One Base, Four Treats’. I’ve retired from rolling balls—we’re doing a slice now 😂

Same base, chocolate swirl, real Maltesers.
No bake and super easy to portion ahead for the lunchbox.

Save this one 🤎 Treat four is coming…

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup pitted dates
• Boiling water, for soaking
• ½ cup cottage cheese
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• ¼ cup cocoa powder
• 1–1¼ cups almond flour or oat flour (blitz rolled oats into flour)
• 1¼ cups dark chocolate, melted
• White chocolate for swirling, optional
• 1 tsp coconut oil to melt with chocolate
• 1 cup Maltesers, halved, for topping

METHOD

1. Cover the dates with boiling water and leave to soften for 5 minutes. Drain really well.
2. Blend the dates, cottage cheese, maple syrup and vanilla until smooth.
3. Add the chia seeds, cocoa and oat flour. Blend until combined, then leave the mixture for 5 minutes to thicken.
4. If the mixture is still too wet to hold its shape, add more oat flour, one tablespoon at a time.
5. Press the base firmly into a tin lined with baking paper, smoothing it into an even layer. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.
6. Melt the dark chocolate, then melt the white chocolate in a separate bowl. Microwave in short bursts, stirring between each until smooth.
7. Pour the dark chocolate over the base and spread evenly. Add a few dollops of white chocolate while the dark chocolate is still melted, then use a toothpick to swirl them together.
8. Cut the Maltesers into halves or smaller pieces and scatter over the top, pressing them gently into the chocolate.
9. Freeze until the chocolate has set and the base is firm. Lift out using the baking paper. Leave at room temperature for 15mins before cutting so the chocolate is less likely to crack.

Store portions in the fridge or freezer.
Pack with an ice brick for the lunchbox.

Save this one and follow along for the fourth and final treat 🤎

#lunchbox #nobake #freezer taken in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia by @feedingfrankie

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9 days ago

Took my usual detour on the way to make coffee ☕️🤦🏻‍♀️🤣

Did 3 loads of washing, worked an 8-hour day, started food prep, squeezed in a workout… then remembered it was probably the right time to rip up the living-room carpet.

Anyway. Forgot the coffee.

#mumlife #busymum #adhd #sendhelp taken in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia by @feedingfrankie

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15 days ago

Cheesy Vegemite & Broccoli Scrolls 🥦🧀

Perfect for lunchboxes, they freeze beautifully and they’re honestly really bloody tasty!!

2 sheets puff pastry
¼ cup ricotta
¼ cup cream cheese
1 heaped tbsp Vegemite
1½ cups finely chopped broccoli
2 cups grated cheese
1 egg, whisked

Mix together the ricotta, cream cheese + Vegemite until smooth.

Spread evenly over both pastry sheet then sprinkle over the broccoli followed by the cheese.

Roll each sheet up relatively tightly, slice into scrolls and place cut-side up on a lined baking tray.

Brush with egg wash and bake at 180°C fan-forced for 15–20 mins, or until puffed and golden. Start checking from 15 mins.

Save this & send it to a mum whose kids are suspicious of anything green 👀🥦

#lunchbox #lunchboxideasforkids by @feedingfrankie

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14 days ago

Week 2 of school holidays and the weather’s about to turn… so here’s your plan for tomorrow 🛝

We found Cheltenham Rec Reserve and the girls didn’t want to leave. There’s a restored old steamroller they can climb into, and the old Cheltenham station building makes a shady spot to sit and watch.

The useful bits for mums:
📍 178 Weatherall Road, Cheltenham
🚻 Toilets (very clean!)
🚗 Off-street parking
💦 Water play
🍉 Picnic tables and BBQs

Pack a snack box & get outside while you can.

Save this for the next “I’m bored” and send it to a mum who needs a school holiday plan x

#lunchboxideas #playground by @feedingfrankie

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20 days ago

One batch, two ways: hidden-veggie chicken nuggets + mini sausage rolls 🥦🥕🧀🍅

One hidden-veggie chicken base, two family favourites: crispy parmesan nuggets and golden mini sausage rolls. Easy, freezer-friendly and perfect for dinner or lunchboxes. You’ll want to save this one! 🤍

For the chicken base
• 500g chicken mince
• 1 small zucchini, grated and squeezed dry
• 1 small carrot, finely grated
• ½ cup finely chopped broccoli
• ½ cup grated cheese
• ½ cup breadcrumbs
• 1 egg
• @mingleseasoning Everything seasoning, to taste

To finish
• ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
• ¼ cup grated parmesan
• @mingleseasoning Everything seasoning
• 1 sheet @pampaspastry puff pastry
• 1 egg, beaten for brushing
• Sesame seeds (optional)
• No Nasties tomato sauce, to serve

Method
Mix the chicken base ingredients together and divide in half.

Shape one half into nuggets. Mix the panko, parmesan and seasoning, then coat the nuggets. Spray with oil and bake at 190°C fan for 15–18 minutes, turning once.

Divide the other half between two strips of pastry. Roll seam-side down and cut into mini sausage rolls. Brush with the beaten egg, sprinkle with sesame seeds and bake at 190°C fan for 20–25 minutes, until golden and crispy. Serve with @mingleseasoning No Nasties tomato sauce.

#lunchboxideas #mealprep #easyrecipes taken in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia by @feedingfrankie

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24 days ago

First one to breathe loses.

Please tell me it’s not just us? 🤣

#mumlife #longweekend #parentinghumor #familyroadtrip taken in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia by @feedingfrankie

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25 days ago

My kids think these are Biscoff balls.
I’m still lying to them. They’re still thriving.

🍫BISCOFF BALLS

Welcome to part two of ‘One Base, Four Treats’ - the series where I help you deceive your children and hopefully preserve a few of our remaining brain cells in the process 🤣

It’s the same date, cottage cheese and oat base as last time, this time dipped in white chocolate and Biscoff 🤤

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup pitted dates
• Boiling water, for soaking
• ½ cup cottage cheese
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 1 to 1¼ cups oat flour (just blitz rolled oats into flour)
• 200g white chocolate
• 2 tbsp Biscoff spread, plus extra for drizzling
• 1 tsp coconut oil
• 1 Biscoff biscuit, crushed, optional

METHOD

1. Cover the dates with boiling water and leave them to soften for five minutes. Drain really well.
2. Blend the dates, cottage cheese, maple syrup and vanilla until smooth.
3. Add the chia seeds and oat flour. Blend until combined, then leave the mixture for 5 minutes to thicken.
4. If it’s still too sticky to roll, add some more oat flour one tablespoon at a time.
5. Refrigerate for 20 minutes, then roll into balls and freeze for another 20 to 30 minutes.
6. Melt the white chocolate, Biscoff spread and coconut oil together until smooth (I do it in 30 second increments in microwave but saucepan works too)
7. Dip each ball into the coating, drizzle with extra warmed Biscoff spread and sprinkle with crushed Biscoff biscuit if you wish.
8. Freeze until the coating has set.

Store them in the freezer and pop straight into the lunchbox for snack time.

Save this one, follow along for number 3 and send it to the mums packing the same thing every day 🤍

#lunchboxideas #kidsnacks #nobakerecipe taken in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia by @feedingfrankie

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a month ago