It's the Small Things

My newly (somewhat) organized home and meal planning have been the only things getting us through this crazy time. I recently started Student Teaching and YIKES teachers have a hard job! The hours are long and you are on your feet most of the day, most of the time with no break. These last two weeks have been the most exhausting weeks of my life! It will all be worth it though, and I absolutely love going each and every day...even if it means I have to wake up around 4am every morning.

The meal planning has truly helped so much! Dinner is never stressful and my Husband can easily help out if need be. I have been continuing on my quest to get creative with vegetables!

This meal was beyond easy: Mesquite pork loin kebobs with roasted root vegetables (Rutabaga, Zucchini, Butternut squash and Purple onion) with sauteed Kale and Garlic. So easy, so delicious, so healthy! They leftover veggies were great in a soup the next day. Just puree, heat on the stove, add a little salt, pepper and brown sugar (especially if you didn't have any sweet veggies in the soup like Butternut squash) for flavor and you have a delicious soup on your hands - or in your tummy. If it's too thick you can add in some vegetable broth.

Soups made like this are my favorite. They taste so rich and creamy, yet they are super healthy and full of great nutrients! Perfect for this cold, wet weather. You can basically do this with any left over roasted veggies as well as potatoes!

Meal Planning

Okay...do not judge what you are about to see. Let me just say (in my defense), that I love lists and I love color coding. So here is February's menu partially done:

I start out by getting inspired by one or two cooking magazines I received in the mail for the current month. They are usually packed full of great seasonal recipes and most of the magazines I subscribe to are for healthy cooking.

I begin by writing one or two of these new recipes on the calendar each week so we don't get in the routine of eating the same things all of the time (gets a little boring).

Next, I fill in days I know I or we will not be home. For instance, I fill in Tuesdays with either crock pot meals, or something super easy that Mike will be okay preparing. He can cook, but if it's too much work I think he would rather eat cereal...which does not bode well with his lovely wife. I end this long but super fun process, by filling in the remaining days with items we love to eat and eat on a more regular basis (tacos, pork chops, chicken salad, etc.).

The reason I color code things is because I am incredibly visual and I want to make sure we aren't eating beef everyday, although I am sure the Hubs wouldn't mind one bit. I also use this system to make sure we eat fish at least once a week and only eat starchy items such as potatoes/rice/pasta twice a week.

For some, this might be WAY too complex, but you can put your own spin on it and do what makes it easier for you. I met with one of our family friends (she also has an awesome Blog) who plans out meals in advance for her family, and she gave me lots of great tips! The main reason I find this helpful is it makes grocery shopping much easier because I can make the list in advance and do not end up buying useless items that will go bad. I also find that it makes cooking less stressful because I always know what we are having and what to take out of the freezer!

The finished product...

50 is Nifty!

Happy Birthday Mom, you wear 50 well!

My small four person dinner party for my Mom quickly turned into ten people! One of those people was my Aunt who last minute decided to fly up from California to be with my Mom on her birthday! Lucky for me, she is great at entertaining and shared some fabulous appetizer ideas with me.

 This sounds a little odd, but I assure you it's pretty delicious. Sliced cucumber topped with  a mixture of Greek yogurt, chives, salt and pepper, then Salmon Lox and finally a thin sliver of Grapefruit. Somehow, all of the flavors complimented each other.

 Stuffed mushrooms, hummus, pita bread, veggies, pasta salad and my favorite...Baked Brie and apples.

 Yummy cupcakes!

 Sisters!

 Cheers to being 50

Happy Birthday Mom!

Unstuffed Shells

Yesterday was such a long day, by the end, I just wanted comfort food that was easy to make. I saw an idea in a magazine for these unstuffed shells and thought I would put my own spin on it.

You need:
1 lb. macaroni shells
1/2 box of cream cheese (or more)
1/3 cup parmesan
1 cup any cheese you want grated
1/4 cup chopped basil
1 lb ground beef
1 jar of marinara sauce (or any pasta sauce you think sounds good)

- cook noodles as directed on package
- meanwhile, brown the ground beef
- add pasta sauce into ground beef one it is done, let simmer for a few minutes
- drain pasta
- in a bowl mix cream cheese, parmesan and basil (doesn't have to be perfect)
- stir shells into the cream cheese mix
- spray a baking dish with a non-stick spray
-spread half of meat mixture onto bottom of dish
- pour the noodle mixture on top
- add the rest of the meat mixture
- spread the grated cheese on top.
- bake covered at 375 degrees for 40 minutes, uncover for the last 10.

So Tasty!!!

Michael and I both loved this dish and it made tons of leftovers for his lunches during the week - which is mighty convenient. This recipe is nice because there is a lot of room for variation. You can include different cheeses or use Italian sausage or ground turkey instead! I served this with a salad and Crescent Rolls we had left over from the night before.

This is definitely not a healthy meal, but it's pretty well-rounded with some healthy sides and it's the perfect comfort food some of us need on these cold winter nights! If you make it, tell me what you thought and if you did anything differently.

Do any of you have some fun comfort food type dishes you love?

These Are a Few of My Favorite Things...part 2

 Bridal Shower/Bachelorette Party

 Some of my favorite party tricks -


Candy Bar: I purchased fun vases from the Dollar Tree and filled them with pink and black candy, this can work for any type of party and it's easy to find candy of all different colors. On the table I also put packages of Ring Pops, perfect for a Bridal event.

 Photos and Flowers: An easy way to personalize a party for someone is by getting photos of them to put on display. Since this was a Bridal Shower I used pictures of the Bride and added some pink beads (which people could wear) and pink flowers to accent.

Sprinkled glass rims: This is something my Mom and I have been doing for years! It's the perfect way to add a little color to your party and it really looks like you went above and beyond with the details. You can slide a lemon across the rim of the glass or dip the top of the glass in honey (which would need to be poured on a plate so it's flat). Don't use too much of the honey will start dripping down the side. Sometimes it takes a couple tries to get it perfect.

We had lots of fun!

Cookie Decorating Party

I must  start out by saying that my cookie baking certainly did not go as I had planned. Luckily there were no tears, or no throwing of utensils (yes, I sometimes resort to those things when cooking/baking does not go my way). My mom was not home to relay our usual Sour Cream Cut-out cookie recipe, so I Googled it. Apparently, the recipe I found was not the same as the one my family uses. They tasted the same, but were not cookie cutter friendly. Thus, my cookies were simple circles, not fun pumpkins and scary bats. Luckily, we all survived.

I invited some of my favorite kiddos over to enjoy the festivities with me. Messy of course, but always entertaining.

 

We made fun Halloween Monsters out of pom-poms, pipe cleaners and googly eyes (I can't find my pictures of them).

Milk is a must when cookies and frosting are involved!

 Parker would make a Windows cookie

 Tessa has become a much better cookie froster than last year when her strategy was, "put one big glob of frosting on followed by a sampling of every sprinkle within reach. 

My mom decorated cookies with us every year as kids, and let me tell you - I now know what a HUGE mess she had to clean up each time. Yikes!

 We embarked on a walk after our cookie decorating madness. As you can imagine the kids had a lot of extra energy they needed to use up after I allowed them to "try" the frosting. To them try means GIANT spoon-full. So we explored and laughed and played...

I would say it was a success.

Simple Savory Breakfast

Yesterday I spent the morning taking a walk with my Mom, Daisy and Sampson. It was fun watching Sampson follow Daisy around, constantly pestering her. One of the many plus sides to owning a doggie is it motivates me to go on walks each morning and night. The exercise and fresh air have been wonderful for me.

After our walk we went back to my parents house for a fabulous, yet incredibly simple recipe. We have both made it several times before and it is perfect for one, and even better to make for a brunch or a big group of people.

.
For breakfast we made Herb Baked Eggs from the Barefoot Contessa cookbook.

Ingredients
¼ teaspoon minced fresh garlic
¼ teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves
¼ teaspoon minced fresh rosemary leaves
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan cheese
6 extra-large eggs
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Toasted French bread or brioche, for serving

Preheat the broiler for 5 minutes and place the oven rack 6 inches below the heat.

Combine the garlic, thyme, rosemary, parsley, and Parmesan cheese and set aside. Carefully crack 3 eggs into each of 2 small bowls or teacups (you won’t be baking them in these) without breaking the yolks. (It’s very important to have all the eggs ready to go before you start cooking.)

Place two individual gratin dishes on a baking sheet. Place 1 tablespoon of cream and ½ tablespoon of butter in each dish and place under the broiler for about 3 minutes, until hot and bubbly. Quickly, but carefully, pour 3 eggs into each gratin dish and sprinkle evenly with the herb mixture, then sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Place back under the broiler for 5 to 6 minutes, until the whites of the eggs are almost cooked. (Rotate the baking sheet once if they aren’t cooking evenly.) The eggs will continue to cook after you take them out of the oven. Allow to set for 60 seconds and serve hot with toasted bread. 

Finished Product!

Tastes great anytime of yea,r but this hot savory breakfast seems even more delicious now that fall is here. We embellished the dish with sliced tomato from the garden and some ham! My mom also used herbs from her garden.

Grilled Pizza

A few weeks ago I called my Aunt Suzie on the phone and she and her family were grilling pizza on the BBQ. I love pizza and have made it numerous times with lots of yummy ingredients you can't normally get at a pizza place. Problem is, every time I cook them they take forever and cook a bit unevenly (could just be my problem). I thought I should copy this idea and cook them on the BBQ!

My dad, Mike and I set out on this wonderful pizza adventure and it turned out deliciously! We bought our dough from Winco to save time because although making dough is easy, I think you have to let it set over night.

 
If you want to do it, it's super easy. Buy already made dough (or make your own - we used wheat). You roll it out and put it on the grill about 3 minutes on both sides. Take the crust off the grill and put any toppings you would like, put back on the grill for about 5 minutes or until it looks like you want it too!

We made three kinds:
1. Tomato sauce, canadian bacon, roasted peppers, motzerella and tomato
2. pesto with goat cheese and tomato
3. Margarita pizza