Using up WIC food

[lilyka]

I have seen lots of threads that talk about getting WIC but not being able to use most of the food etc.

I thought it would be fun and helpful if we shared with each other some of the creative ways we have used up the stuff they give us.

It was easier for me because by the time I got WIC there were two adults and a preschooler and baby in the house.  I got the breastfeeding pack which was everything in the pregnancy pack plus carrots and tuna plus baby food once she turned four months.  obviously my 4 month old was not consuming massive amounts of baby food.  We could get smuckers natural peanutbutter.  Now they specifically forbid anything labeled natural (so dumb) maybe your program is a little more enlightened.  

Here were some of my go to recipes (I am not going to pretend like they are all super healthy..or even remotely healthy):

Oatmeal raisin cookies (cereal and eggs)

Bread pudding (milk and eggs)

chex mix - this was always good if I needed to "bring a snack to share" sort of thing.  (cereal)

Pudding/pudding pies/pudding pops (milk)

Peanutbutter rice crispy bars (peanutbutter, cereal)

teething biscuits (baby cereal)

Oatmeal bread (baby cereal oats)

carrot cake (jar baby food and carrots...not that I ever had trouble eating my one pound of carrots a month)

Ice cream (milk and use baby food as a flavoring)

yogurt (milk)

add plain gelatin to juice to make a more natural jello

of course popcicles.

you can make your own jelly out of juice although I have never tried but yo already have the PB might as well make some jelly to go with.

Any potluck or family dinners I had to go to I made a cassarole that involved copious amounts of eggs and cheese.  

Baby oatmeal also  makes a soothing bath for dry skin.  I know, you are supposed to use it for food but I think medicinally is fine too).  I may have also made some bean bags that my kids still play with 10 years later....

You can sneak those pureed vegetables into anything.  There is a whole cookbook dedicated to it.  Beets or prunes in a chocolate cake, any fruit can be mixed with yogurt, about any veggie  can go into a red pasta sauce.

What are some creative ways you have used up your WIC foods?

[PoetryLover]

Do you mind sharing a recipe for the teething biscuits?

Thanks!

[PoetryLover]

Also, how about rice crispy treats?

We get vouchers for fruit and vegetables and I want to start dehydrating some fruit and/or making fruit leather.

[lilyka]

Wow.  That baby is 11 now  Let me see what I can find.

Here is one:

1 cup flour
1 cup dry flavored or unflavored infant rice cereal
3 tablespoons cooking oil
ice water

Directions:
Preheat oven 425F
Mix flour and cereal.
Gradually stir in oil. Mix a little ice water at a time (start with 1/4 cup) until dough begins to form a ball and pull away from the bowl.
Roll out to the thickness of a cracker on a floured surface and cut into desired shapes.
Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet 10-12 min. or until lightly brown. Cool completely.

Here is another:

1 cup juice (such as apple)
1 cup flour
1 cup baby cereal(such as rice or oat)

Mix ingredients, roll, cut into shapes or sticks, and bake for approximately 2 minutes at 350 degrees.

And another:

1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup oil, butter or margarine
1/2 cup baby cereal (such as rice or oat)
1/2 cup water

Mix flour and cereal. Blend in oil, margarine or butter. Add water until doughy. Roll about 1/8 inch thick. Cut into squares. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Done when crisp.

[lilyka]

For rice crispy  treats I just used the recipe on the box and added a cup of peanutbutter.  Cheerios also work well.

[MariesMama]

"Puppy chow" - peanut butter and chex

Quiche.  Lots and lots of quiche.  Do they still give pregnant mamas two dozen eggs a month along with all that cheese?

[lilyka]

We always got a ton of eggs (like 8 dozen for 2 people). 

[PoetryLover]

Originally Posted by lilyka 

Wow.  That baby is 11 now  Let me see what I can find.

Here is one:

1 cup flour
1 cup dry flavored or unflavored infant rice cereal
3 tablespoons cooking oil
ice water

Directions:
Preheat oven 425F
Mix flour and cereal.
Gradually stir in oil. Mix a little ice water at a time (start with 1/4 cup) until dough begins to form a ball and pull away from the bowl.
Roll out to the thickness of a cracker on a floured surface and cut into desired shapes.
Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet 10-12 min. or until lightly brown. Cool completely.

Here is another:

1 cup juice (such as apple)
1 cup flour
1 cup baby cereal(such as rice or oat)

Mix ingredients, roll, cut into shapes or sticks, and bake for approximately 2 minutes at 350 degrees.

And another:

1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup oil, butter or margarine
1/2 cup baby cereal (such as rice or oat)
1/2 cup water

Mix flour and cereal. Blend in oil, margarine or butter. Add water until doughy. Roll about 1/8 inch thick. Cut into squares. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Done when crisp.

Thank you so much for these! I'm very excited to make DS teething biscuits. He'll call them crackers, which is fine because he loves crackers! And I get to use up some of that cereal!
 

[kayleesmom]

some of these recipes sound delicious.

[Mom2SammyJoe]

We just started getting WIC a few weeks ago, and I am still trying to figure it out. With pregnant me, a 2 year old, and a 4 year old, we get 11.25 gallons of milk a month. We usually use 8. I did get some plain yogurt to start making my own again. Part of my milk comes as 3 quarts, so I got a quart of buttermilk I am using in baking. Our PB says we can't get organic, and it lists certain brands we can't get but doesn't say we can't get natural. I have to get an 18 oz jar. Jif has a new "natural" PB on the shelf in an 18 oz jar, but I have tried twice to get it and been rejected.

My store was having a buy 2, get one free sale on blocks of cheese, so I turned 2 lbs into 3. That was cool, and we will use it.

I have noticed that cashiers are not very careful with WIC. I have shopped 3 times. One time I was only charged for one gallon of milk when I got 2. This last time they missed a box of cereal. I already feel like we are getting a ton, and now I could get extra because it is not coming off my card.

The dry cereal will be the hardest to use up. Right now the kids like it because it is new, and I like it because I am having a hard time cooking here in early pregnancy. Usually I cook breakfast-eggs, French toast, breakfast burritos, muffins. We'll see how this goes. It makes a good snack a baggie for kids on the go. We get 108 oz a month!

For the topic at hand, I used whole wheat tortillas, pinto beans, and cheese and made a bunch of burritos. I froze them for quick meals.

Grilled cheese sandwiches

pasta with a little butter, shredded cheese, garlic powder and pepper

I have been thinking about Chex mix!

I have not made this yet, but it looks good. I think we will try it when the weather cools down. Uses eggs and milk.

http://heavenlyhomemakers.com/winter-comfort-warm-vanilla-soother

We are allowed 3 dozen eggs a month, but we have our own chickens, so I don't know if I will ever get those. I like some of the egg ideas though. Bread pudding sounds good!

[Momsteader]

Sam, you can always get the eggs from WIC and scramble and feed back to your chickens if you're okay with that. Dry the shells and crush up and give it to them as well for extra calcium for their egg shells, or you can put into compost as well.

You can make a 'milk gravy' using a bit of flour, butter, and milk and put that over bread or biscuits or add veggies and make some drop biscuits and bake and make a veggie 'dumpling' kind of casserole. Add chicken if you have it. I use an old drop biscuit recipe that takes a lot of milk! I can post if anyone is interested. It can be made sweet or savory depending on what you add and is super quick to make.

[lilacvioletiris]

Great ideas.

[lilyka]

That reminds me.  Creamed egg on toast.  Make a basic white sauce (milk, flour and butter salt and pepper) and add chopped up hard boiled eggs.  serve over dry toast.

other ways to use up eggs:

add a couple eggs to cassaroles, meat loafs or burgers.

french toast, bread pudding

egg salad

deviled eggs (this a great thing to bring to pot lucks)

egg hot dish (a cake pan size uses like 18 eggs) 

cereal - don't forget you can get oatmeal.  Then make cookies, breads, apple crisp, no bake cookies (which also uses peanut butter), home made granola (use oats and cheerios) chex mix is also a good way to use up cereal.

If it does not say no natural i think you are entitled to the jiff.  take your business elsewhere (they get full reimbursment for wic foods and should be thrilled to have your business).  Also speaking to a manger can also be helpful.  I am surprised they let cashiers do it.  Only manager can ring up wic where i work.  It is especially shocking since it sounds like they are so bad at it!!

[Mom2SammyJoe]

That reminds me. Creamed egg on toast. Make a basic white sauce (milk, flour and butter salt and pepper) and add chopped up hard boiled eggs. serve over dry toast.

My dad and aunts talk about my grandma making this. She would add only the chopped egg whites to the sauce and serve it over toast. Then she would crumble the yolks on top of each serving. They called it "eggs a la goldenrod." It is always talked about as a joke, so I think it is something they had to eat alot.

[lilyka]

Its pretty good.  If you know how to make a good white sauce.....browning the butter and flour for a while before adding the milk helps. My kids ask for it ALL THE TIME.  They love it.  I should make it for them tonight.

[SierraBella]

I get WIC, but we don't really use the milk or eggs.

My mostly WIC dinner is Tacos:

Corn Tortillas (could use wheat but I can't eat wheat so we get corn)

1 can black beans

green pepper

onion

tomato

avocado

taco seasoning (not WIC, but costs .50, and I use 1/2 package each time)

Cheese

So everything there is WIC foods, besides the seasoning and oil for sauteeing, and salsa if you want that- although you could make your own fresh salsa with the veggie vouchers too.

[lilyka]

You get a great wic package!!

[MrsHin2002]

A great recipe that I love that uses 6 eggs and is just so good is German Apple Pancakes. It's a baked pancake/ custardy dish and the apples are just a topping (you could add whatever you like). Great as a leftover warmed up.

I don't know how to add a link from my phone but it's on the cooks.com site, search under German Apple Pancakes and it's the 8th entry.

Here it is (pancake part only):
2 tbsp butter
6 eggs
1c flour
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1c milk

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Combine all ingredients except butter in mixing bowl. Beat 2 or 3 minutes with an electric beater until smooth. Melt butter in a 12" heavy skillet (glass pie pan also works). As soon as butter is melted and while pan is hot, pour in batter. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 mins.

Reduce heat to 325 degrees and bake 40-45 mins longer or until golden brown and crisp. If pancake puffs up in center while baking, quickly puncture it with a fork. When done, remove from oven and place on a platter. Spread with apple filling and powdered sugar, if you wish. Cut in wedges and serve.

Karen

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[mylilmonkeys]

These are great ideas.  Our family has grown to the point that we no longer struggle to use all our WIC.  Also, our plan has changed to have less milk/juice, and I'm so happy we get produce now! But I remember back when we had a cupboard full of PB jars!   I'm currently getting 1.5 times the breastfeeding amount for twins.  I go back next week and we'll see what I get now that I'm pregnant again!  We may need to revisit this thread then.

[minkajane]

I don't know what to do with my WIC stuff half the time! I'm breastfeeding, so I get 4 gallons of milk, 2 dozen eggs, and EIGHT pounds of tofu every month (I'm vegetarian). Not to mention the 128 ounces of beans, cereal, etc. The beans and cereal are no big deal since I can toss them in a cabinet and use them when I get around to it. The eggs are a bit difficult because I kinda got burnt out on them and don't want omelettes or fried eggs. I've been hardboiling them for snacks for DS, egg salad, and egg drop soup (which also uses tofu). With the tofu, I eat a lot of stir fry, Chinese veggie soup, and tofu nuggets. That is a LOT of tofu though. Sometimes I just don't bother to pick it up because I have a ton in the fridge, though I hate to do that since free food is free food and we need it.