Lap Baby

Ah, two month shots. Ev and I are new at this whole "mom" and "baby" thing. Today we learned: Shots are no fun. This baby has not escaped my lap all day. Of course, these shots came on the day where I have never seen her awake up happier or more playful. Le sigh. We agreed today was a wash and that we will try again tomorrow.

So, since I was sandwiched between my couch and baby all day...I watched a lot of TV. Food Network, obviously.

The Pioneer Woman is my 3rd favorite chef. Now, that might not sound too flattering. But with the likes of Giada and Ina coming in first and second, respectively, 3rd ain't so bad. She is so fun and carefree. Plus she has two adorably lethargic Basset hounds that she usually talks to during her show. Love that.
Today, she made this carb buster breakfast and I happen to have most of the stuff on hand. Dan was out running errands leaving me to fend for myself, so I thought I had the perfect excuse to try it out. Here is my result:

Ree (we are on a first name basis) boasts this as a "carb buster" but I did lay this all out on a whole wheat tortilla. Hey, I coulda used bread.

I followed her recipe for the most part.

 

First, I sautéed some summer squash and zucchini in EVOO, salt and pepper. As this was happening,  I warmed my tortilla up on a separate burner.

I laid out my tortilla and sprinkled on some pepperjack cheese.

Next, I poured over the veggies.

I opted for over easy eggs rather than poached. I have never poached an egg and tonight was not the night to try it. So, on went two over easy eggs, seasoned with salt and pepper.

I dashed some hot sauce on top.

 

DE-lish. It had a great kick from the hot sauce and cheese and was also mellow and almost creamy from the runny yolks and soft veggies. I ate the entirety with a cranky baby on my lap.

 

It's funny...at the end of my pregnancy, I spilled all over my lap because I couldn't get myself up to the table due to the huge belly...and now I still can't pull up to the table!

 

Isn't there a song, "Mama said there'd be days like this..."??

 

Cabin Fever

To say that is has been busy around here is an understatement!!

Today marks 2 months since our beautiful baby girl was born. She is so awesome.  It only took her about 4 weeks to sleep through the night and she has been a CHAMP!  There have only been a handful of nights that she will wake up at an odd hour and only one night where she really challenged me to go to bed. I won. Here she is today:

Her onesie stickers are from this etsy shop.
Headbands and clip ons are also from etsy.

 

Being a teacher and a first time mom... I wasn't sure how much time I would need after baby. I opted to take the first 4 weeks of the school year off, so we are still home and cuddling everyday. Which has been amazing <3.

I am not, for one minute, trying to say that it has been easy breezy. We have one jealous puppy on our hands as well. With Lainey being just over a year and a lab, she is still in full puppy mode (I just got done saying, "You do not EAT the deck.") Juggling both baby and puppy has been tricky. I can't even imagine how moms more than one kid do it. Needless to say, it'll be awhile before we go for baby #2.

I have had a lot of time on my hands (who would have ever thought I could say that with a 2 month old?!) so I have gotten to do a lot of cleaning and organizing around my house.  I don't know HOW I am going to keep up once I go back to work in 3 short, short weeks. Here is one of the projects I completed recently:

Let me tell you.  This project started out as a MAJOR fail.  I saw these super cute painted stools on Pinterest of course and I thought, "How hard can that be?" So I bought two stools from a friend who was moving for $5 for both!  Pinterest instructed that I use acrylic paint. So, off to the craft store I went.

No.

Do not use acrylic paint.

I primed the stools first, thinking, "Ha, ha Universe! You thought I would neglect to prime! Well, not this time!" Then, on went the first coat of acrylic paint. Then the second. Then the third. Do not use acrylic paint.

The stuff just would not stick. Why, Pinterest, do you misinform your loyal followers like this?

After many, many coats it finally started covering.  I decorated each leg differently (with the same paint which, happily stuck in one doing). Then covered the tops. All I did for that was buy quarter pieces from the craft store for about a dollar each and staple-gunned them on. I bought one boa and stapled that as well. I do love my staple gun.

Et voila! Pretty little stools for my classroom. 

 

So, things are slowly starting to get into a normal routine around here. Hopefully meaning that I will be blogging on the regular again soon. With fall and football season around the corner, we have tons of super fun events coming up and my stove top is feeling neglected.

 

<3

Welcome to the World!

Just a quick update~

Our baby, Eversyn Finley was born 6/26/14.

6 pounds, 14 ounces...20 inches long <3

Still No Baby...

Since becoming pregnant oh, so many moons ago...I can remember hearing lots about this "nesting instinct" that is supposed to kick in at the end. Recently, lots of people have been asking if I have started this at all (along with about a million other questions!)  Honestly, I think I am ALWAYS nesting.  I am one of those people who will vacuum every day and wipe the dog-nose prints off of the storm door repeatedly, knowing full well the marks will just be back in a matter of minutes.

After looking back at my photo log for the week though, I am thinking that maybe I have kicked it into high gear lately.  Maybe it's just summer vay-cay...but I've been cooking and cleaning up a storm around here!

First of all, THESE.

These, right here.  Probably the easiest butter cookies I have ever made and absolutely the most delicious!!! They are so light and fluffy and just adorable.  I found the recipe here and wound up following all of this nice lady's Pinterest boards. The only tweak I made was to roll the dough balls completely in powdered sugar.  It gave them a sweet and slightly crispy crust.

Dan asked what the "secret ingredient" was here.  I told him it had to have been the cake mix.  It kept these so pillowy soft.  The blog that I link to for the recipe shows that the possibilities with these are absolutely endless. I can't wait to make them a million different ways!!

Next, I tried something a little more savory:

These are caramelized onion bagels that I saw on Kelsey's Essentials on Food Network.  I never made bagels before!! They sound like a lot of work...but it really wasn't.  The dough could not have been more simple and the rest fell together no prob.  My tweaks here are that I used turkey bacon (not a pork eater!) and I skipped out on the recommended cream cheese chive drizzle (for the simple reason my 39 week pregnant body was ready for a break). 

The flavors here were perfection.  The smoky gouda with the sweet, slightly chewy onions was to die
for. 

Now that I know how EASY bagel dough is I can totally see myself getting real experimental!

Last was tonight's din~

I Panini (yes, Panini can be a verb) on the regular. Being preggo, you're really not supposed to eat lunch meats, unless they are heated to a temperature that causes them to be steaming.  So, Panini.  This one has just one little extra that makes it special.  Here's what's on the inside:

-cracked pepper turkey breast
-butter lettuce
-avocado
-tomato
-mayo
-gouda (that I had left over from the bagels, of course.  Let no cheese go unused. Ever.)
-fried egg

This was pretty much how the assembly went. No biggie. But it was what I did to the outside that made these over the top.

I had out my trusty griddle and 2 slices of bread (buttered on one side each) at the ready.  Then, I took a handful of grated parmesan and piled it on the hot griddle surface.  I added the slice of bread (butter side down) and let the slice fry up underneath as I stacked on the rest of the ingredients on top.  I did the same thing with the topper piece of bread.  Flipping such a massive creation was tricky but, as they say, it's all in the wrist.
I was left with this crispy, crunchy, golden crust that just really made the sam stand out.  It was kind of like an inside out grilled cheese sandwich.  It was kind of amazing.  It left me wondering... Will I ever make a Panini without this outer cheese crust again? I have to imagine the answer is no.

And now, it is back to "nesting." I am 5 days away from my due date and moving all the more slowly with each passing hour.
C'mon baby!

Banana Nut Muffins

Being an adult is hard. It's not fun. It's full of not fun stuff that you HAVE to do whether you want to or not.

I am just getting used to this (at 27!).  The past year and a half, adulthood has hit me like a ton of bricks. Ever since Dan and I got married.  We immediately bought a house (that needed some work), got a puppy (who wound up being crazy), and I got pregnant (an absolute blessing, but also a terrifying, uncertain whirlwind).  I joked with my mom just this morning that the only time during this pregnancy that I am going to get to relax is when I check in to the hospital.
Life has been full of renovations, puppy training, insurance, cars, paperwork, phone calls (with voice services who REFUSE to let you talk to actual humans), and just a bunch of "stuff" that does not include relaxation in any way/shape/form.

This afternoon, it stopped. After being in tears (I half blame "pregnancy crazy" for that) with the BMV this morning, I said no more. I sat on the couch and turned on the Food Network and let the dog bark at nothing while I watched my 2 and a half hour block of Giada (forget reality or soaps...Food Network is my guilty pleasure).
Almost in tears again, (the happy kind) I texted my husband letting him know that I felt HUMAN again! Just that little bit of "me" time really did a number on me.  I feel rejuvenated. Refreshed. It is glorious!
I sat and pinned bagel recipes, researched the best way to pot herbs and even subscribed to Better Homes and Gardens.
The difference one afternoon makes.

Now, instead of throwing something together for a weeknight dinner...I'm back on point and excited and wanting to create something fabulous.  Cooking is not a chore for me. It's a fun hobby that I really enjoy.  But somewhere in this adulthood, that got lost.
Life is wild and fast.  We all knew this going in. But that absolutely does not mean that your sanity needs to go out the window.  Sometimes you just need an authentic deep breath on your couch to be reminded of that. A deep breath, and banana nut muffins.

Uhm...can everything in life come streusel-topped? I think I'm going to make that a requirement for my life...

I got this recipe from this blog (which I, of course, pinned).  This lady seems to be something of a muffin wizard. 
The only alterations I made was using almond milk rather than any other kind.  No particular reason besides the fact that almond milk is what I had on hand. Also, I only had 2 bananas on hand that were used in the making of these muffins.  The recipe calls for more to add to the streusel.  Today, my streusel is banana-less.
Also, she suggests this magic trick of cranking your oven to 475 for 5 measly minutes before reducing to 375.  I followed this step and couldn't believe the HEIGHT my muffins had after those 5 minutes! Definitely a step worth taking.

The recipe says bake for 25+ minutes. These guys were in for 20 and were PLENTY done. The streusel actually began to caramelize and drip and burn. So keep an eye on them!
 I happen to have 2 men here installing windows and even they couldn't help but comment on the amazing cinnamon-y banana smell.  They each made out with a muffin (plus a hefty check for windows).

 

Hospital Bag(s)

I am FINALLY nearing my due date!! Today marks 38 weeks.  This entire pregnancy, my one piece of intuition is that I will delivery early.  Now, I could easily chalk that up to wishful thinking, given how incredibly uncomfortable I have been the past few weeks...but since those early days way back in October, "June 23" just didn't sound like the day.

So, according to all of the books and pins that I have been reading up on (and recent doctor's orders) I need to have a bag packed.  I have researched this extensively (thanks, Pinterest) and still, with my suitcase zipped and ready, I do not feel like I could possibly have everything I need.

Regardless, here's what I have:

Contents:

Bath robe, hair dryer, nursing bras (2), granny panties (pack of 6... I cringed when I bought these...but apparently you want some "throw aways"...I get it), my baby K'Tan, good contact solution, hair ties, "refreshing" body wipes, make up remover wipes, big ol' overnight pads, 2 pair of thick socks, slippers, travel sized body lotion and wash, and a pack containing shampoo, conditioner, deodorant, more lotion, a toothbrush and toothpaste.

I got ALL of these goodies (minus the K'Tan and Betsey Johnson bathrobe) at Target. I loved that they had such an awesome selection of travel sized stuff.  The pack containing the shampoo and conditioner is even my fave kind of Herbal Essences.

Things not pictured that I am waiting to pack:

Comfy clothes for me and snacks.  

My ambitious side would love to make some awesome trail mix and granola for the stay...but we will see. :-)

Now for the baby bag:

Much more adorable, if you ask me.

This one I am feeling even MORE clueless about. Sure, I scoured the internet to figure out just what I need to pack....but still, never having had to pack a bag for a brand new baby...it's a little daunting.

Contents:

Grooming kit (another Target find! I actually have 2. One for her diaper bag and one for home use...it's full of so many awesome, tiny goodies), 2 plain onesies (one NB sized and one 0-3...doc is predicting she is going to tip the scales at at LEAST 8 pounds), 2 caps, 2 pairs of socks (will she REALLY need socks in June??), little scratch mittens, 2 binkies, 2 burp cloths, 2 swaddler, her "Just Born" sticker (we will see if that photo op happens at the hospital or at home), and her Take Home outfit (ruffle butt diaper cover, Where the Wild Things Are onesie, shades and flower headband).

No where on the Lists of Things to Bring for Baby does it mention bringing diapers or things like that. Also, I am tempted to bring my breast pump and accessories (which they specifically state NOT to bring) because I feel sure that I am going to want some pointers on how to use it (even turn it on for starters!!).

I will post after D-Day and letcha know what I was totally wishing I had brought! 

Thinking Baby Thoughts...

Happy Birthday, Lainey!

On June 7, 2013, our first baby was born...but I didn't meet her until a few weeks later.

Our chocolate lab, Lainey, is turning 1 on Saturday! 

Here she is at 3 weeks, with her sister, Nestle.  We can't say for sure, but the fact that the one on the right is trying to escape and blurred...we guess that one is Lainey.

 

The hubs and I are huge dog lovers.  He has grown up with labs and I am the type to cry at the ASPCA commercials.  Once our relationship got serious, many moons ago, we knew Lainey would be a part of our future.

 

So, last summer, after getting settled in our first home...Dan and I, along with Dan's sister and her family, decided we were going to adopt sister labs.  We were thrilled when they were born.  We picked them up from a farm 7 weeks later and "oooh'd" and "ahh'd" the whole way home.  She was so small and sweet and sleepy.

 

 

 

Not. For. Long. 

 

Lainey gives Marley (yes, that Marley) a run for his money.  She started out with chronic bladder infections, which in turn, will cost us quite a bit more to get her spayed.  Then it was puppy city.  She has chewed up countless area rugs, scratched repeatedly at our (no longer) new couches and furniture, knocked over and broke plenty a' vases, and more.

Once we covered our pool last fall, she didn't get the memo.  She gave us heart attack upon heart attack when she would continuously leap over the many barricades we would create and run around on the pool cover. Thank goodness we caught her in time before she disappeared into one of the (many) holes she put in that thing.

Eventually, she found her voice... and hasn't been able to keep quiet since.  Waking me up at 5:30 on the dot every Saturday and Sunday.  Barking at every leaf or bird that flutters by our window.  She prefers toilet water over any other

I have threatened to take her "back to the farm" a thousand and one times.  She is the definition of a terror.  But yet, here I am feeling sentimental about her upcoming birthday. Sigh.

 

 

Despite her craziness, irrational behavior and sometimes downright stubbornness...we still love her. She really has come a long way and is finally starting to be a loving dog.  We knew going in...labs are tough.  They're puppies way longer than other breeds and they tend to be three times as mischievous.

 

Lainey, we are loving watching you grow and learn.  Even though sometimes it might not seem like it, we love you and you will always be our first baby.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

And now, for a pasta salad recipe.

I made this for my mother-in-law's birthday party this past weekend and it was delish!  I love pasta salads because they are so versatile.  You can use whatever you have on hand.  Also, they have a tendency to get even better the longer they sit.  Here's this one:

 

 

1 pound tortellini (I try to always use fresh!)

cherry tomatoes

1 can black olives

1 wedge of Romano cheese

1 cup ricotta

2 T basil

1/2 cup toasted pine nuts

extra virgin olive oil*

balsamic vinegar*

salt and pepper to taste

 

In a large pot of salted boiling water, add the tortellini.  Like I said, I always use fresh. It REALLY makes a difference!  Buitoni is a common and easy to find brand.  Since it's fresh, it only takes a few minutes to cook.

 

Chop up cherry tomatoes, black olives, and Romano cheese into similarly, bite sized pieces.  The amount of each really depends on what you like (see? versatility!)  Chop up basil and add.  Add ricotta.  In a small, dry pan toast pine nuts.  Add to salad when cooled.  Add salt and pepper to taste (I used about 2 teaspoons of each).  Give it a big mix.

 

The consistency at this point is pretty dry.  Now you will need to add your EVOO. I didn't measure, but I probably wound up using almost a half cup.  As for the balsamic, I didn't measure that either...but I would say I used several tablespoons (that is vague, I know...but I basically sprinkled it around the bowl 3 times.  Again, big mix.

 

Next, let it sit in the fridge and let those flavors mix for at least an hour.  Taste it then and you can make the decision of what it might need.  I tend to like things salty..so I added more balsamic.  But you may find you want to add more ricotta to mellow the flavors.  It's important to let it sit for a bit just to really bring out it's true flavor.

 

Happy Cookout Season! 



Nursery!

Happy (almost) Friday!

Our nursery is almost complete, so I wanted to share.  You can see my inspiration here.
I am a huge Hello Kitty fan and I think everyone I have ever met in my life was sure, upon hearing the words, "It's a Girl!" that our nursery was 100% going to be Hello Kitty themed.
But it's not! I decided to go for a shabby chic look.  Of course, it is highlighted in Hello Kitty stuff...but I figure we have plenty of time for that. :-)

Here are some pictures...

I made this mobile.  I'm not super happy with it...but it's still a work in progress.

Rug and crib from Target//changing table from Babies R Us//all baskets from Home Goods

Baby Girl has been spoiled rotten with several beautiful handmade blankets!

This dresser was my hubby's.  It was dark brown with old fashioned fixtures. I used Zinsser Cover Stain Primer to prime (it smelled horrific and probably was a preggo no-no)

 

I'm still stuck on what is going on the walls and what kind of drapery to go with.  I figure that when I see the wall piece I am looking for, I will know!

To be continued!

My Chalkboard Pictures!

I'm a bloggin' machine today.

Each week, I check Pinterest for some inspiration for my chalkboards.  I try to come up with something a little bit original to my pregnancy when I can.

I just updated my PhotoBucket album...so please use it for YOUR inspiration, too :-)

Here's my link.  It's also listed in my other sites in the right hand column.

Planting and Pancakes

Finally a beautiful Sunday in Northwest Indiana!
We celebrated by visiting local farmer's markets and working in our yard.

I LOVE shopping local..and while it's still too early around here for any good veggies, I still had a few good finds.
I guess first and foremost I should mention that as of last week, this is what I am lookin' like these days:

Getting pretty close to being ready to pop with our baby girl! My due date is June 23 so I am currently and obsessively on the hunt for all things newborn.  Bringing me to my first finds of the year:

I bought these two adorable headbands and our town's plant sale on Saturday.  They're by a girl called Carley Jae and she had the most adorable headbands for babies and grown ups...along with lots of other little things (coffee sleeves, onesies, etc.)  Click this link to check out her etsy shop!
I also found some yummy (apparently) and all natural doggie treats for our fur baby and a few herbs to get my herb garden started (they weren't looking too perky yet...so I'm gonna hold off for awhile). Can't wait for more markets to start opening and the goods to get better!!

On the menu today I made some banana walnut buttermilk pancakes.  I have to tell you, being that I am 35 weeks pregnant, I am not one for counting calories and I AM big into giving in to cravings. 
Here's my recipe

3 c. all purpose flour
3 T white sugar
3 t baking powder
1 1/2 t baking soda
pinch of salt
3 cups of buttermilk
3 eggs
1/3 c melted butter
3 ripe bananas
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Combine dry ingredients, then add the wet.  Next, I mashed the bananas with a fork.  The ones I used were SUPER ripe, which I think is the best to use.  Quite spotty on the skin but soft on the inside. Next, I tossed in the walnuts and mixed.

This made 14 massive and fluffy pancakes.

 

 

These are perfect for freezing and reheating, too. I let them cool and put them in a big freezer bag.  I separate them with a small piece of parchment paper, just to make it super easy to pull out a serving size when I need to.

To reheat, I just microwave for a minute or two and add (the craving that caused these pancakes in the first place) maple syrup.

 

 

And that's that!

In other news, I have been beginning to obsess over what I need in my hospital bag.  In the next entry, I am going to include that and the results of my current dilemma: what outfit to bring baby home in.

 



When All Else Fails...Add Sprinkles.

This week has been rough stuff. There has been so much going on, I feel like I can barely keep up!!

These Rice Krispie rolls, however, are not rough stuff.   I made them for a baby shower for a girl that I work with and, while they turned out looking NOTHING like Pinterest promised, they still tasted super yummy.

I followed the directions for regular old Rice Krispie treats.  Next, I put the mixture on a big cookie sheet and rolled it out thin (about a half inch).  I spread Nutella on half and vanilla frosting on the other half.  Then just roll and slice! 

Now, the Pinterest one had a perfect spiral of Nutella inside. Mine, as you can see, lacked any patience whatsoever.  The Rice Krispie treats were still warm when I began to roll, which is where I think my problem was. I was nervous they would get too stiff and not roll at all! Learning experience.

Both types were delish.  The hubby liked the frosting one, whereas I loved the Nutella.  The ladies at work seemed to enjoy them as well!

In other news, I am REALLY trying to work on updating more often.  I have been getting very in to reading other blogs and it's something I really enjoy. So check back often. I plan on putting up different crafty things as well as sharing some products that I love.

OMG Chicken Salad

Today is my LAST day of summer break!  Can't even believe it.  It was an AWESOME summer break...but all good things must end. I suppose. Back to school tomorrow...

I made chicken salad today.  I really like taking delicious lunches to school.  I look forward to it in the morning and feel satisfied in the afternoon.  It's a more lovely break to the day.

Now, I've made chicken salad about a million times. I've ordered it from about a million restaurants. I consider myself something of a chicken salad connoisseur (kidding).  The batches I have made have always been pretty "eh"--nothing to write home about.  Today, however, was different.

After all of those attempts I finally got a GREAT mix of flavor! It was SO easy and didn't even take too many wild ingredients (my problem, at times, is OVER flavoring stuff).  Here we go:

Ingredients:
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3 cups chicken broth
3 cups water
2 T salt
1 T pepper (I used lemon pepper from the fabulous Trader Joe's)
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 mayo
1/4 cup dill
1/2 a lemon
1/2 cup grapes
1/2 cup almonds

First, I poached the chicken in the water/chicken broth mixture.  Poaching the chicken in broth, opposed to just water, really enhances the flavor. The chicken comes out SO juicy.  I also added one T salt to that pot.

After the chicken is cooked through, I cut it into small bite sized pieces and dumped it into a big bowl for mixing.

Next, I added the sour cream, mayo (I used low fat for each...feel free to use full flavor!), dill, juice from half of a lemon, grapes (cut lengthwise...about the same size as the chicken pieces), remaining salt and pepper.
I roasted the almonds in a dry pan for a few minutes just to get the full effect of their flavor and mix it in with the salad.

That's it.  Sometimes, it's better to keep it simple!! I let the salad sit in the fridge for at least an hour before nomin' it.

TRY THIS! It is SO good and so fresh.  Can't wait to take it as my first back to school lunch!

MammaMia! Meatless Meatballs!

I am posting this from my current food coma:

This one is NOT for the faint of heart!! My Chicken Meatball sandwich was absolutely to die for!

As I have mentioned, I don't eat red meat, pork, seafood, etc.  Something I will bend for, however, is chicken.  Recently, I tried Trader Joe's chicken meatballs (located in their frozen section).  I had NEVER had a meatball of any kind in my life and holy cow. SO GOOD!  The first time, I just threw them in spaghetti. I am 25% Italian and never had spaghetti and meatballs.  I felt it had to be done.  I fell in love and bought them again upon my very next trip to TJ's.

The hub requested meatball sam's so here's what went down...

Ingredients:
2 T butter
2 T EVOO
10 Chicken Meatballs (here I used Trader Joe's brand)
1 clove garlic
1 medium sized yellow onion
5 big button mushrooms
1 cup jarred marinara
1 t red pepper flakes
1 t salt & pepper

For the rest of the sam you'll need
fresh mozzarella
any type of focaccia (I got a mild giardiniera focaccia)

In a medium skillet, melt 2 T of butter with 2 T of EVOO.  Add in one thinly sliced (NOT diced or minced!) onion.  Let it cook down while you slice up your mushrooms and mince your garlic.
After about 5 minutes of letting the onion cook, add in your mushrooms and garlic. Your kitchen smells amazing by now.

Next, add in your cup of marinara (I used Mushroom by Barilla) and drop in your meatballs.  Turn the heat down to medium/low and just let it do it's thing.  I let the sauce go for 15-20 minutes until it was really thick and cooked down.

I split open my focaccia and layered the fresh mozz on one side and all the meat balls on the other side.  Then, I stuck it under the broiler for a couplea minutes until the cheese was ooey/gooey.

Like I said, come hungry to this one!  So good I could almost become a meat-eater....almost. ;-)

Veggie Quinoa

Happy Tuesday!

It was a super busy day!  Complete with dog walks and TJ Maxx outings.  That's my kind of busy day.

Have you heard of quinoa?  It is said KEEN-wah. It's been pretty trendy for a little while now.  It's supposed to be good for you and packed with protein (which is good for a veggie-booty like me...I am always trying to take in as much protein as I can.  This protein usually comes from peanut butter in my case).  Anyway, this stuff has always been intriguing to me.  Whether I hear about it on some trashy E! channel show or read about it on Pinterest (hello?  Tiffany Beveridge?  Have you SEEN her "My Imaginary Well-Dressed Toddler Daughter" board?  I am seriously considering naming my daughter Chevron...)  Tonight I gave it a try.

I walked into this one TOTALLY blind.  I had no idea what kind of flavor this stuff was going to give me. I read a recipe in a recent Rachael Ray mag that gave me some guidance and this is what I came up with:

Preparing the Quinoa:
1 cup quinoa
1 cup reduced sodium chicken broth
1 cup water

First, put the quinoa in a dry fry pan.  Toast it up the way you would pine nuts, just warming them through.  I have read that this is a crucial step in making the stuff taste any good at all.

Once it is toasted, put it in a stock pot with the water and stock and get it boiling, stirring occasionally.  When it hits the boiling point, reduce it to a simmer and cover...letting the lid just a bit ajar to let some steam out.  Leave it alone for about 15 minutes and then uncover.  It does what couscous does and fluffs up nicely with a fork.

At this point the stuff was pretty plain Jane.  The broth did allow it to have some flavor...nutty-esque and wheaty.  The texture is fabulous.  Here's what was happening meanwhile:

Veggies:

1/2 zucchini
1/2 yellow summer squash
2 cups arugula
1 glove garlic, minced
1 T oregano
1 tomato
salt & pepper to season
EVOO

Chop up the zucchini and squash into bite-sized pieces.  They'll go in to a fry pan that has about 1 tablespoon EVOO nice n' hot.  Sprinkle some salt (I used about 1/2 teaspoon) and pepper (same as the salt) over the veggies. 
Next add in the arugula.  I put in about a half cup at a time.  This stuff wilts beautifully and quickly.  I could have even added more than the 2 cups I used. 
I kept this on a medium/high heat for about 15 minutes.  The leaves had wilted and the vegetables were softened.  That's when I added the garlic and oregano--let that go for another 5-10 minutes.

I chopped up a big tomato and put it in my serving dish, then added the cooked quinoa, and lastly the veggies.

I quickly whipped up a vinaigrette that could not be any easier:  4 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar and 3 tablespoons of EVOO and drizzled it over the dish.

Here's what turned out:

Dan took a look. I took a look.  He asked why we were having rabbit food for dinner.  I have to admit, I was nervous. I had NO CLUE how this was all going to fit together...

It..was..AWESOME!  We both loved it!  It was so flavorful with the apple cider vinaigrette and the crazy different textures of the quinoa versus the vegetables.

So. All in all, quinoa is delish.  I think this recipe could be swapped around a kajillion different ways.  It was $4.99 for a box and I only used about 1/2 box. Can't wait to try it out a different way!

Stay tuned :-)
~abra

Buffalo Chicken Sandwich with Home Fries

Hello!

So after a hot summer day of gardening, I sat down to watch my favorite Cooking Channel/Food Network shows and I got the itch to make dinner!  Now, I was pretty low on my "go-to" items so I had to get a little creative.
Here we go:

2 slices of bread ( your choice)
1 slice of sharp cheddar cheese (I've been loving the Sargento thin slices lately!)
2 pieces of turkey bacon
1 green onion, chopped
1 egg
1 t light mayo
1 t crumbled Gorgonzola
4 slices Dietz and Watson Buffalo Chicken Breast

I cooked up my turkey bacon ahead of time in a dry pan.  I also fried the egg before I started assembling.  Once those make ahead items were finished, I assembled the 'sam.  I drizzled some EVOO on to my grill pan and spent about 5ish minutes grilling it on a medium high heat.  Once it was golden and crunchy, it was ready.

Like I said, I was low on my basic items.  I had some potatoes from the weekend and I knew my thyme and rosemary were due for a trim.  So I took about 8 little golden potatoes and sliced them up to look something between fries/potato wedges.  I drizzled them with some EVOO, a sprinkle of salt and pepper.  I also added a sprinkle of Trader Joe's 21 Season Solute (one of my favorite spices!).
I chopped up about 2 sprigs of thyme and one 3 inch piece of rosemary and tossed that in with the potatoes too.  I let them cook in a 400 degree oven for about 25 minutes.

It wound up being a super delish, flavorful dinner!

YUM.
Til next time :-)

Double Post!

Yikes! I haven't posted since November?! Holy cow. Well, it has been a big year: getting a new job as a first year teacher, planning a wedding, getting married, buying a new house...to name a few.  But I am ready to commit to my blog!  Hurrah!

As I mentioned, I am a new wife and homeowner.  This means that I am constantly making meals and projects for the house! We moved into a cute 3 bedroom ranch with a full, unfinished basement. We have been here a month and a half and it has been transformed!  Before I move onto home projects...let me share with you what was for dinner:


iPhone picture....blurry. Bleh.  Anywho...
I made a copy cat version of Panera's Chopped Chicken Cobb Salad with Avocado, right along with P's herbed vinaigrette.  Here the ingredients for the salad:

1 bag lettuce (choose what you like! I kept it simple with Romaine)
2 tomatoes off the vine
3 hard boiled eggs
5 grilled chicken tenders (salt and peppered before hittin' the grill)
2 strips of turkey bacon *
1/2 avocado
a generous heap of Gogonzola

All of this gets mixed and happily tossed in a bowl.
About the asterisk... I use turkey bacon because I don't eat "real" bacon. Feel free to sub!

Now for the vinaigrette.
Seriously, I have made this salad a dozen times.  I've used poppyseed dressing, creamy asiago ceasar, Italian.... NOTHING compares to the amazingness that is this vinaigrette.  AND this was my first ever vinaigrette AAAAND it was super easy! Here we go:


1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 small glove of garlic
1 1/2 teaspoons of tarragon
1 1/2 teaspoons of oregano
1 teaspoon of dried basil (or 1 1/2 of fresh)
1 pinch salt
1 pinch pepper
3/4-1 cup extra virgin olive oil.

The herbs need to be chopped real fine, as they will be eaten raw in the salad.  Big chunks of herbs will be a bit too shocking for your eaters! Then as you whisk (time to multitask!) slowly pour in your olive oil.  Keep up a rapid whisk to get things blended.

I made the dressing in advance and kept in the fridge for a few hours. The dressing should keep for a week.  And don't limit it to your salads!  I can't wait to pour some of it on a Panini this week!

I don't expect my posts to always get this lengthy...but I guess since this is a double post it gets a free pass...

I've been working on our master bathroom (yes, "master"...it's a tiny bath but it is connected to our bedroom and therefore dubbed "master bathroom"). I should have taken before pictures.  Someday, I will learn.  But it was this hideous light purple-almost-gray color with light cedar-y looking trim.  It was clash-city.  I couldn't stand even being in there!  But I revamped it over the past 48 hours and here is the result:






Striping the wall really was not the hard part.  I just used my trusty measuring tape and marked off each section at 12 inches.  The wall was already gray, so I just made sure that the tape was falling into the gray section, rather than the section that was to be yellow.  Meaning, I drew my leveled line and made sure that EACH section was 12 inches.  The tape accounts for some of those inches in the gray sections.  Got it? Good!

However, if you were to ask me if I will ever stripe a wall again...I would probably say no.  It looks great, don't get me wrong...but it was a hassle.  The hassle part was all on me, too.  If there was one piece of beginner DIY advice I could give it would be this: STIR THE PAINT! Holy cow.  You can't see it here...but I neglected to stir my gallon on paint before rolling on the yellow.  I thought, "Meh, I just got this paint this afternoon.  The guy put it in that shakey contraption...it's still fine!"  It was not fine. What I got was this super thick, cakey paint on the first roll.  Panicked, I gave up for the night.

The next day, I managed to sand down most of the--what I am calling--"texture."  I STIRRED THE PAINT and rolled on a second coat.  It's not perfect...but I'm learning!

So there we are!  I am about to go weed and water my new garden.  This is also a new venture for me.  Pictures to come!

Broccoli Cheese Soup

So, I think I've mentioned that I watch ALOT of FoodNetwork. A. lot. I'm pretty dedicated, too.  I follow Giada like a lost puppy with Ina Garten coming in a close second.  My perfect Saturday morning is waking up early to watch their new episodes.

Recently, I found a NEW FN Chef to follow: Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond.  Not only is she a great cook, but she is also quirky and creative.  Love it!  Plus, she started off as a blogger!  It's a match made in heaven.

This evening I made her Broccoli Cheese Soup.  Now, when ever I look up a recipe online, I ALWAYS read the reviews.  They are often incredibly helpful.  The reviews for Ree's soup were, sadly, not overwhelmingly good.  Also, she used quite a bit of fatty ingredients (NOT judging here--but I'll cut the calories where I can). So I added 4 of my own twists to what she has done.

Here's the line up:
3 C. reduced sodium chicken broth
3 C. 2% Milk
2 C. Half & Half (I used the reduced fat kind. Judge me.)
1/3 C. flour
1 stick of butter
1/2 of one big onion
3 broccoli crowns
2 potatoes
1/2 bag of matchstick carrots
1 clove of garlic
1 T chopped thyme
1 t Kosher salt
1 T pepper
pinch of nutmeg
2 bags of reduced fat cheddar cheese


I just tried to upload my pictures of the process onto Scrom...guess what?  They were accidentally deleted.  Sigh. Technology.  Another instance of having to use your imagination.

First thing's first: I melted the stick of butter and added the diced onion, garlic and thyme.  I love chopping veggies.  I could make someone a very dedicated sous chef.

Once those were soft/translucent, I added in the flour, whisking the whole time. Next, came the 3 cups of milk, 3 cups of broth, and 2 cups of half and half.  Ree uses 4 cups of whole milk...but I read it made it very, well, milky.  Which is not what I think when I think broccoli cheddar soup.  Chicken broth has sommore flavor...so I opted to half the milk.

Next I added in the 3 crowns of broccoli, which I chopped into bite sized pieces, along with the potatoes (also bite-sized) and half the bag of carrots.  Ree doesn't use potatoes or carrots..but I can't imagine broccoli cheddar soup without those little pieces of carrots! The pot is getting full by now...so add in that pinch of nutmeg, salt and pepper.

Next, just let it do it's thing, covered on low heat, for about 30 minutes.  Add in ALL of the cheese next.  I had a softball sized round of gouda on hand, so I tossed half of that in, too.

Stir, stir, stir.  It looks a little separated and chunky...just keep stirring! At this point, I mashed it a little with my potato masher (my husband and I like big chunks of broccoli).
I kept it on low heat for another 10 minutes just to let it thicken.

And here is the finished product! (Technology won't hold me down!)  As my mom always says, it will be even better the next day, due to all of the meshing of lingering flavors.

Soon, I will be sharing my Brie mashed potatoes that I am bringing to our Thanksgiving dinner table.  It is absolutely to die for!

~abra

Yellow Zucchini Soup

As promised!

I do have some bad news though...I don't have any pictures of this one so you'll have to use your imagination.  The soup being as fabulous as it was, was a TOTAL accident.

 

I was at my local farmer's market carrying around a HUGE (it was honestly like, a foot and a half long!) Yellow Zucchini.  (It only cost me 50 cents and I didn't even use the whole thing!)  A man spotted me carrying it and said, "That'll make an excellent soup." Challenge: accepted.

 

So I got to work.  Here's what you need:

 

-One yellow zucchini

-4 big potatoes

-1 yellow onion

-2 T basil

-1 T Italian seasoning

-1/4 c. marscarpone cheese (sour cream, if your grocery store STILL isn't carrying this great stuff!)

-3 c. chicken broth

-2 c. water

-salt & pepper

-Asiago cheese wedge

 

Roux:

-3 T flour

-3 T butter

-roughly 1/2 - 3/4 c. milk

 

And here's what you'll do:

In a BIG pot, start heating up all of the chicken broth and water.

 

Give your zucchini a rough dice.  Cut it into a-little-bit-bigger-than-bite-sized pieces.  I used about 2/3 of my zucchini.  You can use the whole thing if you'd like!

Also, peel and quarter your onions and potatoes.

All the veggies into the pot.

 

Next, chop the basil and add it and the Italian seasoning in.  A good tablespoon of salt and half tablespoon of pepper should be added for flavor.

 

Now, cover your pot and let it sit on a low heat for 3 hours.

 

After 3 hours, you'll add in your marscarpone.  At this point, I also blended my soup.  I have one of these fancy guys:

This is called an Immersion Hand Blender.  I call it a juuusher because that's what it seems to do. :-)

Blend your soup so that there are no big chunks.

 

Next step is the roux.

 

In a medium saucepan, add your butter and flour.  Stir/mix continuously until it looks paste-like.  Now, slowly pour in milk.  Like I said in the ingredients, it will probably be 1/2 cup to 1 cup.  The consistency you are looking for is that of a cream sauce: thick but smooth.

Add the roux to the soup and give it a good stir.

 

Let the soup sit for another 2 hours (this can go longer or shorter...but my mom has ALWAYS told me that the longer a soup sits, the better it is).

 

Next is the best part.  Cube up the asiago and dump in as much or as little as you want.  It slowly melts in the soup and causes some great chewy, cheesey bites (my sister and I like to call these 'cheese surprises' :-) )

 

That's it!  The soup should be extremely velvety and delish.

This soup made so much, I sent some over to my parents/sister and Dan's parents and we still had lots left over!!

 

You gotta try this one... it is such a delicious yet light comfort food!

 

Chicken Cobb Salad

 

Hello!! It has been a minute since my last post...but I have been SUPER busy starting a new school year (my FIRST "real" year, by the way, as a third grade teacher :-) ) and finishing up planning our wedding (October 13..woop woop!!) but it doesn't mean I haven't been cooking.  I just need to catch up with my blog.  Only so many hours in the day. Le sigh.

 

Aaanyway.  Since we are SO close to our wedding, we've been trying to eat light.  Also, I have just discovered some awesome local farmer's markets and have been trying to take advantage of them while I can!! Honestly, I don't know what I ever did without Farmer Markets!!

 

So. Salad. I love Panera Bread's Chopped Chicken Cobb salad so this is kind of a copy cat of that one.  Here's whatcha need:

 

 

-2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded thin (about 1 inch thick)

-1 ripe avocado

-1 tomato

-1 bag of lettuce

-Gorgonzola (pre-packaged are cheaper than the big wedge!)

-3 hard boiled eggs

-Kraft Light Ceasar/Italian Dressing

 

The first thing I did was hard boil the eggs.  Holy cow. It took FOREVER! But I think this step is worth it.  They really add to the salad.

 

I cooked the chicken next.  I drizzled my grill pan with some (garlic-infused) EVOO.  Regular EVOO will work just fine!  I salt and peppered my chicken liberally on both sides and got them grilling.  When I saw that they were cooked through (no pink) I removed them and let them "rest" on my cutting board, under foil, for about 5 minutes before slicing them into bite sized chunks.  I put it in the fridge to bring the temp down for about 10-15 minutes.

 

Letting meat rest is something I learned for all of my extensive Food Network watching.  Let me just say, it really keeps your meat JUICY!! It seems like a step worth skipping but I will tell you, it's not.

 

The rest is all assembly.  I dumped out the bag of lettuce, chopped up the tomato and avocado and sprinkled some Gorgonzola on top.  When the chicken and egg were ready to go, I topped the salad with that.

 

I drizzled some of the Kraft Light Ceasar/Italian dressing and tossed it all together.  I added some freshly ground black pepper to taste and that's it!

 

It was SO good!! ANNNND filling.  I turn my nose up at salads often...but this really got me full.  The creamy avocado mixed with the bite of the Gorgonzola was to die!

 

Some things I MIGHT do next time:

-Add some crumbled turkey bacon (My fiance, Dan opted against this one.  He was sure the chicken and egg would be enough.  We didn't miss it...but coulda been a nice touch)

-Add some toasted walnuts.  I love walnuts on just about everything...but they were just too expensive for my budget today.

-Next time, I might add some craisins for chewy sweetness.

 

Of course, feel free to use whatever dressing you want!  I thought the Light Ceasar/Italian was a perfect fit.  You definitely want something lighter since the salad is so hearty.

 

That's it!! Try it out and tell me whatcha think.

 

 

Soon, I will be posting an AWESOME recipe for yellow zucchini soup.  Seriously, you will dream about the stuff.

 

Til next time

~Abra

Under 200 Calorie Breakfast!

Ok, so I am totally NOT the girl to ever skip breakfast (or any meal for that matter).  I usually buy the English muffin breakfast sandwiches by SmartOnes.  They are delish and keep me full til lunchtime.  They are about 260 calories and can get pretty expensive.  So, I thought to myself, 'There is NO reason why I can't make these myself...healthier AND cheaper.' I did--and they were super easy!

Aunt Millie's 100% Whole Wheat English Muffins are what I used.  They are 100 calories a pop and come in boxes of 6!

 I always use these cheese squares.  They are only 45 measley calories per slice and they actually have flavor!  I have used Kraft before...but they just don't seem to taste like, well, anything. Weight Watchers are the way to go. 

So here's what I did:
I happen to have a silicon muffin top 'pan' (seen below).  I thought it would be the perfect place to make little baked eggs.
I whipped up four (yes, only four for 6 rounds! Can you feel your wallet getting thicker?!) eggs in a bowl.  I added about a tablespoon of 1% milk, salt, pepper, and some parsley.
I used that mixture and poured it into the lightly greased little silicon cups (four eggs for six rounds is PLENTY).
I baked them in the oven at 400 degrees until the eggs were no longer wiggly--about 12 minutes.

 NOTE!  BEFORE you fill your silicon cups, PUT THE PAN ON SOMETHING STURDY! Otherwise, the egg mixture runs all over the place (found this out the hard way). I would recommend using a cookie sheet under your silicon pan.

Ta Da! SO easy!! I wrapped them up in some plastic wrap and froze them for the week. I calculated everything and it comes out to...wait for it...192 calories per sandwich! Take that, SmartOnes.

The best part about these is their versitility.  Next time I will use different spices (I love basil and/or oregano in my eggs) and maybe use some veggies.

I am also BIG into the Laughing Cow cheese wedges--so I might use those instead next time, too.

Happy Cooking!