I prefer....

Here's a peek into a conversation Joe recently had with our 2.5 year old Ethan regarding a blanket....

Joe: Ethan, you need to pick one blanket to put in the bag. You can't put both in the bag.

Ethan: ummmm...hmmm....*looking at both blankets individually*

Joe: Which one do you want Ethan?

Ethan: Daddy, I prefer the giraffe blanket.

Joe: You what the giraffe blanket?

Ethan: I said I prefer the giraffe blanket. Put that one in the bag.

Joe: OK.

You can imagine the look Joe and I gave each other when we heard our 2 year old say "I prefer..." - seriously, what kid says that? I guess our kid does! They really do model what they hear all day! (I always say, "which do you prefer..." when giving him options)

Too funny.

Menu Time

I feel like I forgot to post my last menu...opps.

Well, here's what I'll be cooking this week!

Soft shell beef tacos/chips/salsa/beans
Lemon-thyme chicken/sweet gnocchi (new recipe!)
Sweet peppers, chicken and beans/rice
Southwestern chicken and rice

I get to make deviled eggs for the first time for a 1920's themed shower this weekend! That should be fun:) I got my flapper dress ready to go!

Habit Made!

Remember when....I said I wanted to create in myself a new habit? well....I did!

Hooray for me! Or rather - Hooray for a clean kitchen every night! The first few days..or weeks... were hard, but now that I've completed my 21 days (and more!) it's safe to say it's a habit:) Right after dinner I go into the kitchen - do my cleaning while Joe and the boys play - start the dishwasher - and walk away! done. The next morning I wake up to a sparkling clean kitchen with clean dishes for the day. *happy sigh*

Are there any habits that you are working on? Trying to break or trying to create? Now that I have successfully created a good habit I'm trying to decide what to try and conquer next.....

Light and Garlicky Penne with Plum Tomatoes

I love meals that are easy, simple and delicious - I was given this recipe months ago and absolutely love it! I made it for Ethan's 2 year birthday last Spring because it has both noodles and tomatoes - Ethan's favorite foods at the time:) It's a great spring/summer meal because it is light and fresh!

Light and Garlicky Penne with Plum Tomatoes
The Six O'Clock Scramble; 2009

16 oz penne noodles
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 red onion, finely diced (about 1 cup)
1 Tablespoon minced garlic, about 6 cloves **I like to use my micro-plane grater to grate it right in the pan**
4 plum or Roma tomatoes, diced **I like to use cherry tomatoes cut in half**
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, for serving (optional) **I normally omit this**

Cook the penne until al dente.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add the onions and saute them for about 3 minutes until they start to soften. Add the garlic and saute for about 2 more minutes.

Add the tomatoes to the skillet and cook them until they soften but don't completely lose their shape, about 5 minutes, stirring often. Lower the heat to medium-low if they are sticking to the pan.

Drain the penne toss with the tomato mixture. Season it with salt and top it with cheese if desired.

I L.O.V.E this recipe because it is SO easy to make and SO yummy to eat! The red onion, garlic and olive oil create a simple sauce and the tomatoes add a burst of juice and color! Hmmmm I'm now drooling.....

Reading Time!

All my boys LOVE to read! Ethan and Judah always enjoy some good story time with mama or daddy - they look at the pictures, ask questions, make up little stories within the story and so on.


Do you or you kids have a favorite book to read? Ours tend to rotate here...on the top currently are: Bob the Builder (as seen in the picture); Felix the Fire Engine (thank you $1 spot at Target!); Scratch and Sniff Christmas Book (thank you Christmas gift!) I'm sure in a few days that list will change - but variety is good right? ;)

*Don't be shy...let me know what books you enjoy..I'd love to find some more for the boys!*

Menu Time!

Time for more meal planning! I'm a little late in posting this so we've already consumed some:)

Here's what will be cooking this week:

*Light and Garlicky Penne with Plum Tomatoes
*Patty Melts/Chips/Carrots
*Crunchy Onion Chicken/Rice/Green Beans
*Quasadilla Pie
*Cinnamon Bread French Toast/Sausage
*Chicken Tostadas

This should keep us full for a while! More to come when we've eaten all those up....

Yummy Cheap Meal

That title says it all for me: I love Yummy Cheap Meals! I'm a foodie and a frugalista wrapped in one; which can pose interesting challenges when creating menu plans. I absolutely love Rachael Ray's $10 spot in her magazine: it's a section where she shares recipes that feed a family of 4 for under $10! For real!

I tried one of her newest under $10 meals the other night and it was a hit at our house!

Pepperoni Pizza Puffs
Rachael Ray EveryDay Magazine, April 2010

3/4 cup flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup whole milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
4 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded (about 1 cup)
4 ounces pepperoni, cut up into small cubes (about 1 cup)
1/2 cup store-bought pizza sauce **I jazzed up plan tomato sauce with basil and oregano which is even cheaper!**
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil (I didn't have this on hand)
1 red bell pepper, sliced (I also didn't have this on hand)

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Gread a 24 cup mini-muffin pan. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and baking powder; whisk in the milk and egg. Stir in the mozzarella and pepperoni; let stand for 10 minutes.

2. Stir the batter and divide among the mini-muffin cups. Bake until puffed and golden, 20-25 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, microwave the pizza sauce until warmed through, then stir in 1 tablespoon basil. Sprinkle the puffs with the remaining basil. Serve the puffs and red pepper slices with the sauce for dipping.

**I used regular tomato sauce which is like .25/can and had green beans instead of pepper slices**

According to Rachael research if you use everything in her recipe exactly
(fresh basil, red pepper, etc) the
TOTAL is: $6.46; if you break it down that's only $1.62/Person!

That's what I call a yummy-cheap-meal:) ENJOY!

Happy pi Day!

Happy pi Day everyone! Today is March, 14th (3 month, 14th day) which means it's pi day! *3.14*

To anyone who cares here's the wonderful pi for you:

3.14159265358979323846264338327950288...

And to those who don't care so much for pi but rather care for pie this is for you:
Vanilla Mousse Cheesecake! (I know it's not 'pie' but close enough...)

I made my very first baked cheesecake in my new springform pan and oh-my-it-was-good!
Joe and I have almost consumed the entire cheesecake (and I made it a dew days ago...)

Here's the recipe for it so you can indulge as well! ENJOY!

Vanilla Mousse Cheesecake
from Rachael Ray EveryDay Magazine, April 2010

40 Nilla wafers, crushed (about 1 1/2 cups)
3 Tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
4 pkg. (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened, divided
1 cup sugar, divided
1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon vanilla, divided
3 eggs
1 tub (8 oz) Cool Whip, thawed

Heat oven to 325 degrees. Mix wafer crumbs and butter;
press onto bottom of 9 inch springform pan.

Beat 3 packages cream cheese, 3/4 cup sugar and 1 Tablespoon vanilla
with mixer until well blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing on low speed
after each just until blended. Pour over crust.

Bake 50-55 minutes, or until center is almost set. Run knife around rim
of pan to loosen cake; cool completely in pan.

Beat remaining cream cheese, sugar and vanilla with mixer in a large bowl
until well blended. Whisk in Cool Whip; spread over cheesecake.

Refrigerate 4 hours. Remove rim of pan before serving cheesecake.
Garnish with fresh berried if desired. *I like to drizzle chocolate!*

Hope you had a piece of pie (or cheesecake!) in honor of pi day today!

Hooray for 3.14!

Motorcyle Fun!

They have a 'resource center' at our ECFE school that Ethan loves to use; it's like a library where you check out something (toy or book) and bring it back the next week to get a new one. Wonderful concept for toys I think! This way the boys get new toys to play with each week and we are saving money and space in our house!

Anyways, this week Ethan picked out this sweet motorcycle to bring home! Both boys have been enjoying it:)

Zoom Zoom!
Hours of fun!
How Cute!

Sweet Onion Mac 'n' Cheese

So you think you've tried all the different varieties of good-ole-mac-n-cheese? Think again my friend! Rachael Ray (the queen of mac-n-cheese) has come up with yet another take on the classic! And it is OH.SO.GOOD:)

I found it in her newest addition of EveryDay with Rachael Ray magazine (April edition) and just have to share it with you!! It's like French Onion Soup but in mac-n-cheese form...can't go wrong with that!!!

Sweet Onion Mac 'n' Cheese
Rachael Ray, EveryDay Mag Arpil 2010

Salt and Pepper
1 pound macaroni or penne pasta
3 tablespoons butter
2 large onions - peeled, quartered and thinly sliced
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon ground thyme
2 tablespoons flour
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup beef stock
2 1/2 cups grated gruyere or swiss cheese (I used swiss)
2 tablespoons dijon mustard
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh chives

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt it, add the pasta and cook till al dente; drain.

2. While pasta is working, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the butter to melt, then add the onions, bay leaf and thyme; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are light caramel in color, 15-20 minutes.

3. Preheat the broiler. Discard the bay leaf. Stir the flour into the onion mixture. Stir in the milk and beef stock and bring to a boil. Cook, stirring, until thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in 1 1/2 cups cheese until melted, then stir in the mustard.

4. Add pasta to the sauce and toss. Spoon into a 9x13 inch dish, top with remaining 1 cup cheese and broil till brown, 2-4 minutes. Top with the chives and serve immediately.

My boys will eat anything with noodles so this was a huge hit! It is so tasty; I think this may go on the regular rotation of meals in my house.

YUMO.

meals, meals, meals

Time for yet another menu plan!

Here's what's cooking this week:

*Enchiladas Verde/Chips
*Sweet Onion Mac-n-Cheese (thank you new issue of Rachael Ray EveryDay!!)
*Pepperoni Pizza Puffs/veggies (another big thank you dearest RR magazine)
*Hoisin Baked Chicken/Rice/Peas
*Shredded BBQ Chicken Sandwiches/fried/carrots

I received my new issue of Rachael Ray's EveryDay magazine in the mail today! I got the subscription as a Christmas gift and absolutely LOVE it:) I enjoy getting new meal ideas delivered to my mailbox.

Do you have a favorite place to look for new recipes? If so, let me know! I love to try new ones:)

Party in Ethan's Tummy!

The past few dinners have created some funny conversations with Ethan; he is now aware that when he eats something it goes 'into his tummy'.

The other night I made tilapia (coconut crusted tilapia to be exact) and was encouraging Ethan the try it; he ended up loving it!

Me: Ethan put some fish in your tummy with your chocolate milk
Ethan: oh! The fish can swim in the chocolate milk!

He proceeded to eat most of his fish 'all gone'; funny huh?

Well, the next night I made shrimp fried rice and pointed out the shrimp to him (which he loved too).

Me: make sure to try some of those baby shrimp!
Ethan: oh! The baby shrimp can go swimming with the fishy's in the chocolate milk in my tummy!

He then ate quite a lot of shrimp.

Then the next night I made chicken/orzo/veggies...the veggies were carrots/peas/corn. If you are familiar with Veggie Tales (like we are in this house) you know that there are 'french peas' (aka peas with French accents) and Laura Carrot (little girl carrot)

Me: make sure to eat some of your veggies
Ethan: oh! The french peas and laura can go swimming with the fishy's and shrimp in my tummy! hmmmm. more carrots please; they want to go in my tummy with the french peas and fishy's and shrimp!
Me: is it a party in your tummy?
Ethan: YES! a party with shrimp and fishy's and french peas and laura's!!

Needless to say, my son loves to eat and apparently there is a party in his tummy!

Never a dull moment at our dinner table. Never. :)

Making A Habit

So I've heard it takes 21 days to make/break a habit. I'm putting that to the test....

Here's my habit I'm trying to break and the NEW one I'm trying to make in it's place...

Old Habit: Make dinner; sit down and enjoy eating with the family; move all the dishes to the kitchen counter....and LEAVE THEM. I say I'll do them later; I want to relax and let my food 'settle in'; etc....in real life this equates to the dishes, with all the leftover food on them still, sitting on the counter all evening and sometimes they are still there in the morning! Not a fun way to start your day; staring at all those dirty dishes. Plus, it normally stinks too - literally. Old food sitting over night...not a good smell:)

New Habit: I am training myself to do the dishes and put away leftovers RIGHT AWAY after dinner and then run the dishwasher. The first few days were tough but I am beginning to realize how nice it is to have a clean kitchen for the rest of the evening and then to wake up to sparkling counters and a dishwasher full of clean dishes! And it only takes like 5-10 minutes to do! Pros definitely outweigh the cons in this one.

I have stuck to this plan for almost a week now...I'm banking on once those 21 days go by it won't be a pain anymore! Just a good habit that I do:) Some habits can be good and I think this one (if I make it a habit) will be beneficial for everyone!

Do you have any habits you are trying to break or trying to create? Has the 21 day rule proven true with you? I'm planning on posting an update in a few weeks....bloggers hold me accountable!

My Little Monkey's

My two little monkeys:

Always being silly....

Never a dull moment here...

Oh how I love them!

Thai It, You'll Like It Chicken!

Oh my dear friend Rachael Ray; we have spent many evenings together cooking in my kitchen! (Now, if I actually knew her that would be way cooler..I know her only from her books and shows)

I found this cookbook (the original 30 minute meals) at a used bookstore in Washburn, WI last summer...little did I know then what that little purchase would do to our meals! Since then, I have gotten many other of her cookbooks; have become much more brave in the kitchen; and LOVE to cook! Who would've guessed? Thanks Rach:)



I thought I would share one of my favorites from her original cookbooks - "Thai It, You'll Like It Chicken" *gotta love the crazy names:)*

Thai It, You'll Like It Chicken
Rachael Ray; 30 minute meals

2 Tablespoons sesame, peanut or vegetable oil
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/4 inch strips
3 to 4 cloves garlic, minced
1 serrano hot pepper, seeded and minced (looks like a mini jalapenos; sometimes I use jalapenos instead and sometimes I just skip it)
4 Tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 Tablespoons Thai Fish sauce (can substitute a few shakes of soy sauce...that's what I do)
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 cup water
1 cup loosely packed basil leaves
Jasmine Rice, cooked

In a wok or nonstick skillet, heat oil over high heat till hot. Stir-fry chicken for 4 minutes. Add red bell pepper, garlic, and Serrano. Cook for 2 or 3 minutes. Add hoisin, fish sauce, sugar and water. Throw in basil and toss till it wilts. Dump out onto a bed of jasmine rice. Garnish with any extra basil leaves.

*the recipe says it feeds 4 well; Joe and I (and a serving for the kiddos) can finish off the whole pan in one sitting...either that means we eat A LOT or it's really good....or both!

I always forget to take pictures of my food (probably because I am so excited to eat it!) sorry I don't have a visual for you on this! It turns out really pretty though with the white rice and bright red peppers and sauce...hmmm I think I want some now....

ENJOY!

p.s. people that I have talked to about my dear friend Rach either lover her recipes or really dislike them....so hopefully this one will be on your good list!

5 more meals

We ate our way through last week's meals..on to more cooking fun!

Here's what I have planned for this week (in no particular order):
*Burrito Bowls (chicken/rice/black beans/corn/onions/peppers)
*Shrimp/veggie fried rice
*Coconut Tilapia/rice/veggies
*Baked Tacos/chips/corn
*Parmesan Crusted Chicken/green beans

I plan a handful of meals (normally 4-5) and get groceries for those specific meals; decide what I am going to make in the morning so I can get the meat out of the freezer (and into the fridge); prepare and enjoy it that night; normally eat leftovers for lunch with the boys the next day; and then repeat. How do you plan your week of food? Play it day by day? Have specific meals set for specific days? I'm always interested in how others manage their food needs! Don't be shy to comment; I'm not that scary!