Category Archives: recipes

Barely keeping my eyes open

W-O-W

Today whooped me. After taking 5 days off of my workout (http://www.liftstrongrunfast.com/) because I was fighting my yearly winter sinus cold, I returned today and felt like it was my first day. Plus that 3:50am wakeup call never feels good. Kiddos are back to school today and hopefully our routines will resume and I can find some order somewhere at my crazy house!

I started my yearly Bible reading plan again and hope to make it through all of it this year. I did well last year, but didn’t make it through the whole thing. I’m loving the read-aloud function, especially for those long geneology passages! If you are looking for a great Bible reading app check out YouVversion. I love the NLT (new living testament) because it reads like we speak, without all the thou’s and thus’.

I leave you with a new recipe that we are trying today along with a bag of Archer Farms cilantro lime rice that I grabbed at Target today. I’m a huge fan of the vegetarian burrito at Taco Bueno due to the lime rice so I’m hoping this will be similar.

Enjoy!

http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/fish-tacos-with-creamy-lime-guacamole-and-cabbage-slaw

© Matthew Hranek

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Breakfast Time

Good thing I have worked out 4 days in a row this week (definitely patting myself on the back!) because I just made this for breakfast in the morning

Baked French Toast Casserole with Maple Syrup
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Starting off right

with breakfast! Will technically its going to be like brunch now that its already 10:30am. The girls are dancing to worship on the IPOD while they wait for this to come out of the oven. Looks fab!

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A yummy dinner and its really fast!

Chicken Burgers Milanese

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 10 minutes

1 lb. ground chicken (our store was out so I substituted lean ground turkey)
1 medium zucchini (6oz. finely shredded 1cup)

1/3 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 Tbsp chopped fresh oregano
1/2 tsp each kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
2 Tbsp. Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
olive oil cooking spray
4 potato or brioche hamburger buns
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 cups baby arugula
2 plum tomatoes, diced
1 tbsp. white balsamic vinegar

1. Mix chicken, zucchini, Parmesan, oregano, and half of the salt and pepper in a medium bowl: form into four 3 1/2  inch round burgers, about 3/4 in. thick. Sprinkle 1 Tbsp. of the breadcrumbs over tops of the burgers.
2. Coat a large nonstick skillet with olive oil spray and place over medium heat. lightly spray crumb-coated side of burgers with spray and place in skillet, crumb side down; cook 5 minutes or until first sides are golden brown. Sprinkle remaining breadcrumbs over tops of burgers, coat with olive oil spray, and flip burgers with a spatula. Cook 5 minutes longer or until second sides are golden and burgers are fully cooked.
3.While burgers are cooking, brush buns with 1Tbsp. of the oil and toast, cut sides down, in a nonstick skillet over medium heat, 1 or 2 min. Remove from skillet.
4. In a medium bowl, toss arugula, tomatoes, vinegar, and remaining oil, salt and pepper. Place burgers on bottom half of bun, top with arugula salad, then place bun on top of salad.

*we added mayonnaise and Dijon mustard to the buns as well. SO yum!

Makes 4 servings
Each serving 398 Cal. 20g fat, 22g protein, 35g carb

(found this recipe in Redbook Magazine)

Then I served with fresh asparagus and Carmel Toffee Scones for dessert 🙂

Asparagus

Rinse and cut off about 1 inch off the bottom of the bunch. Put in a glass Pyrex dish and pour light soy sauce all over the asparagus and sprinkle a handful of kosher salt on top. Broil for about 10 minutes and remove. Crisp and delish!

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Surprisingly farfalle!

This week I’m prepping for a convention for Lindentree Boutique! I’m setting up a booth and I’m really excited and a litle anxious. I’ve been going through boxes, looking for displays that I’ve stashed, inventory is still scattered  between the new house and old house and just overall mayhem has set in. I’ve found so many things today that I’ve stashed thinking I’d come right back to and never did. The counters are littered with things the girls will bring me randomly and I will set here or there, and before I know it, things are piled high on every surface. Its getting completely out of hand and I have high hopes of a massive cleanup soon! I’m so ready to be organized again!
Last week I took all of the things that had been piled up or stored away that the girls have outgrown….exersaucers (times two), bedding sets, 12 boxes of clothes and shoes and toys. I may have mentioned the JBF sale before. This thing is amazing. I don’t go to shop, because clearly my kiddos have been super blessed with hand-me-downs and gifts of clothing for their birthdays’/Christmas. But I go to clear out. This year we took two carloads of stuff over. 129 items total. I went to pick up my remaining items at the end of the sale, dreading having to go through them and disperse to goodwill or store them again, and to my surprise, I only had 20 items left. Mostly all small clothes and shoes. I was so happy and thrilled to have all of that storage space completely cleared out!!! And the girls are even more excited because the money is all going toward a new swingset for them. It’s been a long time coming and one of the huge benefits of our move, since our backyard was so tiny at the old house there was no room for a swingset.

For lunch today I wanted something different than a sandwhich or salad or whatever we usually eat for lunch. I looked through the refrigerator and found this Boutini Pesto Sauce that I had been wanting to use. I cooked up some micro farfalle (bowtie pasta) and mixed it with the pesto sauce, chopped up some fresh roma tomatos and sprinkled some pine nuts on top. YUM! Quick, easy and really delicious. Plus you can use it hot or cold, so the leftovers will be great tomorrow as a cold salad. I really recommend it if you are looking for something a little different for lunch. The girls all loved it and so did BJ. SUCCESS!!!

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What’s Cookin’

I’ve been owing several of you many recipes and no time to blog them.

So! Here they are. Try them. Hope you love them like we did!
(the one pictured didn’t have any peaches)
Bacon Cheddar Mashed Potatos

2 1/2 lbs. cubed peeled baking potato
1 cup (4oz) shredded extrasharp Cheddar cheese
1 cup 2% reduced fat milk
1/2 cup chopped green onions
2 tablespoons reduced fat sour cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 bacon slices, cooked and crumbled

Place potato in a saucepan, and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 15 minutes or until tender. Drain and return potato to pan. add cheese and milk; mash to desired consistency. Cook 2 min. or until thoroughly heated, stirring constantly. Stir in onions and remaining ingredients. (makes 8 servings) (Cooking Light Cookbook)

Grilled Sirloin Skewers with Peaches & Peppers
Kebabs:
1 1/2 tablespoons ground cumin
1 1/2 tablespoons cracked black pepper
2 3/4 teaspoons kosher salt
2 lbs. boneless sirloin steak, cut into 48 (1 in.) pieces
4 peaches, each cut into 8 wedges
2 small red onions, each cut into 8 wedges
2 large red bell peppers, each cut into 8 (1 in.) pieces
cooking spray

Sauce:
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper
3 garlic cloves, minced

Parsley Spings (optional)

Prepare grill. To prepare kebabs, combine first 7 ingredients, and toss well. Thread 3 steak pieces, 2 peach wedges, 1 onion wedge, and 1 bell pepper piece alternately onto each of 16 (12 in.) skewers. Place on grill rack coated with cooking spray, and grill 6 minutes or until tender, turning occassionally. Place on a platter, and cover loosely with foil. Let stand 5 minutes. To prepare sauce, combine chopped parsley and next 5 ingredients, stirring with a whisk. Spoon over kebabs. Garnish with parsley sprigs, if desired. (Cooking Light Cookbook)

New Saturday Morning Fave!!

Leek, potato & Gruyere frittata

3 Tbs. unsalted butter

6 oz. small red potatoes, sliced 1/8″ thick

salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 leeks, white and lightly green portions, rinsed well and thinly sliced

5 eggs

3 Tbs. heavy cream
2 oz. Gruyere cheese, shredded

1 Tbs. finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

In deep half of small frittata pan over med-high heat (i just used a small skillet), melt 1 Tbs. butter. Add potatoes, salt & pepper. Cover with shallow pan; cook flipping potatos occassionally about 8 min. Transfer to bowl.

In deep half of small frittata pan over med.-high heat, metl 1 Tbs. butter. Add leeks, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occassionally, 6-8 min. Transfer to separate bowl.

In another bowl, whisk eggs and cream. Stir in cheese, parsley, potatoes, salt, pepper and all but 2 Tbs. leeks. Set deep half of small frittata pan over medium heat; melt 1/2 Tbs. butter. Add egg mixture; cook until just beginning to set, about 4 min.; using rubber spatula to lift cooked edges and allow uncooked eggs to flow underneath.

In shallow half of small frittata pan over medium heat, melt 1/2 Tbs. butter. Place shallow pan upside down on top of deep pan; flip frittata into shallow pan. Cook, covered, 4 minutes. Remove deep pan; cook until eggs are set, 2-3 minutes. Skake pan to loosen frittata; slide onto plate. Garnish with reserved leeks.  Serves 4-6. (william sonoma kitchen)

Preslyn’s 1st sink bath. She had salad dressing coated in her hair.
Hummus Sammy
3Tbs. low fat mayonnaise
2 tsp. chopped kalamata olives
2 tsp. finely chopped scallions (green onions)
5 Tbs. hummus
4 slices pita bread
6 cucumber slices
2 tomato slices
2 Tbs. Shredded carrots
2 pieces romaine lettuce

Pitted olives, cherry tomatoes, cucumber for garnish

Mix together the mayonnaise, olives, scallions, and a pinch of black pepper in a small bowl and set aside. Spread hummus on two slices of pita bread and the mayonnaise mixture on the other two. Layer the cucumber, tomatoes, carrots, and lettuce on top of the hummus. Top each hummus slice with a mayonnaise one. Cut in half. Skewer together the olives, tomatoes and cucumber with a toothpick and serve on the side. makes 2 sandwhiches ( I doubled the recipe to make enough for all of us.) Perfect Sunday lunch!

I served it with
5 Cup Salad
1 11oz. can mandarine oranges, drained
1 8 1/2 oz. can pineapple chunks, drained

1 cup coconut

1 cup tiny marshmellows
1 cup sour cream
Combine, cover and chill several hours or overnight. Add marashino cherries and/or pecans if desired.
Going to get our free chick fil a meals. Team logo was required. Aren’t they the cutest little fans you’ve ever seen!?! Hayden, Preslyn & Ella
Are you guys able to see the differences between the twins yet???
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Baked Honey Mustard Chicken Salad

Just made this for dinner and it is delicious. Perfect and light but filling and yummy!

INGREDIENTS

  • 6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 1/2 cup prepared mustard
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley

DIRECTIONS

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
  2. Sprinkle chicken breasts with salt and pepper to taste, and place in a lightly greased 9×13 inch baking dish. In a small bowl, combine the honey, mustard, basil, paprika, and parsley. Mix well. Pour 1/2 of this mixture over the chicken, and brush to cover.
  3. Cover with foil (this helps the chicken stay moist and not dry out) Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Remove foil and turn chicken pieces over and brush with the remaining 1/2 of the honey mustard mixture. Bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.

I made a salad out of the chicken. Served it on top of mixed italian baby greens, mandarin oranges, dried cranberries, toasted pecans & walnuts (Salad Toppers), crumbed basil & tomato feta, and honey mustard viniagrette (ken’s brand light–the spray kind).

Served it with a back of uncle ben’s butter and garlic rice and some pumpernickle bread. SO good and the whole family enjoyed it.

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Dinner a la Hayden

Shrimp Scampi

Yield : Makes 4 servings
Ingredients :

1 pound peeled, large raw shrimp (31/35 count) (we bought a little 6 oz. pack of baby shrimp)
1 (12-oz.) package angel hair pasta
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 teaspoon salt-free Italian-herb seasoning
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup freshly grated Romano or Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
OPTIONAL: we added 1 14 oz. can of italian diced tomatos w/seasonings

Preparation
1. Devein shrimp, if desired.
2. Prepare angel hair pasta according to package directions.
3. Meanwhile, melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add onion and garlic, and sauté 3 to 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in Italian-herb seasoning and Worcestershire sauce.
4. Reduce heat to medium. Add shrimp, and cook, stirring occasionally, 3 to 5 minutes or just until shrimp turn pink. Stir in lemon juice. OPTIONAL: add diced tomatos. Toss shrimp mixture with pasta, and sprinkle with cheese and parsley. Serve immediately.

It’s delicious. We served it with a salad and garden medley v-8 soup on the side. SO YUMMY!

Way to go Hayden!

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Southern Thank You Food

This weekend my dad came over to help me out with a toilet problem. We had a leaky, running toilet and ended up that several things were wrong with it. Dad to the rescue 🙂 I figured the least I could do would be to make him and my mom some dinner for all his hardwork. I had some pork chops that I picked up, with hopes of finding a killer recipe on how to make them. That recipe I did find and I had to pass it on. It’s a little different than most pork chop meals I have tried and it was delicious.

3-4 pork chops (I used thin sliced ones)
garlic
saltpepper
1/2 c onion diced
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes
1/2 c sour cream
3-4 c cooked rice

Season pork chops with garlic salt and black pepper. Brown both sides in a little olive oil or other cooking oil, along with the diced onions. Add canned tomatoes and simmer until pork chops are tender. Remove pork chops from pan. Add sour cream to tomatoes and stir over low heat until well combined.Put pork chop over rice and top with tomato and sour cream sauce.Took about 20 mins.

I served it with Texas Rice, asparagus and Peach Cobbler….delicious!

Peach Cobbler

First get one large can of peaches in thick syrup at the store.(I used peach pie filling) You will also need self rising flour, one stick of butter, milk, and powdered sugar.Place your stick of butter in a backing pan (I use the clear ones). Heat your oven to 375 degrees. Put pan with the butter in the oven, but the time you get the other ingredients ready it should be melted.In a big bowl combine one cup of self rising flower, one cup of powdered sugar, and one cup of milk. Stir until combined.Take your baking pan out of the oven and pour this mixture in the pan over the butter. Do not stir. Then spoon in your peaches. Again do not stir.Bake the cobbler for approximately 45 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Serve with a scoop of your favorite ice cream

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Workout update and recipe

We are 4 weeks into our workout program and are seeing results. When we first started we were dying when we would do the workouts, and some of them we couldn’t even finish. Now we can finish every workout and are starting to add harder moves or more weight! Whoohoo! I have lost 6 lbs. and an inch around my stomach, hips and shoulders!! BJ is down 15lbs and I’m not sure on his inches, but he’s doing great! We are learning some healthy meals to make that actually taste good. And things to add to our diet that we never thought of.

Anyway, here is one of our favorite recipes that I wanted to pass on to you 🙂 Hope you like it as much as we did. And! It is healthy so go ahead and try it out!

Pasta Pomodoro
1Tbls. EVOO
1Tbls. chopped garlic
2 Tbls. fat-free chicken broth, low sod.
1/2 cup tomato, peeled and diced
2 oz. whole wheat pasta
6 oz. med. shrimp (we don’t like shrimp, so we sub. chicken)
2 Tbls. basil leaves, chopped

This is my recommended size portion, so I doubled everything and it made enough for all three of us.
All you do is cook your pasta according to the package, while that is cooking, place EVOO and garlic in large saute panfor several minutes until lightly browned. Add chicken broth and tomatoes to pan; simmer for 5-10 min. or until tender. By now your pasta is probably ready, so drain it. Add shrimp to the sauce mixture, or chicken or omit all together. Cook until meat is opaque. Add basil and toss sauce with cooked pasta.

This tastes so good, very similar to capellini pomodoro at Olive Garden! YUM!

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