H2Oh My!

29 Sunday Jul 2012

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H2Oh My!!
I think we can all agree that we should drink more water. If you’re at all like me, you can only drink so much plain ol’ water before you’re totally over it. OVER. IT. So what’s a healthy foodie supposed to do? It’s all about the additives!! By adding fresh fruit to a carafe of water, you can add a light flavor {no sugar needed} and take your water drinking to new levels of tastiness. Not only are your options as wild as your imagination, but it’s healthy and fun and your kids will like it, too.
Helpful Hint: using a hand masher, mash the fruit into pulp. Be sure to invest in a small strainer! Unless you don’t mind pulp and seeds in your drinks.
Flavor Ideas
Black raspberry lemon
Strawberry, red raspberry and black raspberry
Raspberry
Cucumber
Lemon lime
Raspberry lime

Spectacular Salmon

27 Friday Jul 2012

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Spectacular Salmon
This salmon is SO SPECTACULAR, your family will be screaming, “get in my face!” Seriously. I wouldn’t make that up!

You’ll need: fresh or frozen salmon, Patak’s sweet mango chutney, Patak’s Korma curry and long grain and wild rice
Prep time + cook time: 25 min
~ Lay your salmon out in a baking dish. Using a spoon, coat the top of the salmon with the curry and then top with the chutney.
~ Bake at 400 for 30 minutes. If your salmon is frozen at the time you put it into the oven, CHECK THE CENTER before you serve. You might need to put it back in the oven for a few more minutes.
To plate: serve the salmon atop the rice. TASTY!

“Guns Don’t Kill People, I Kill People.”

20 Friday Jul 2012

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“Guns don’t kill people, I kill people.”
Do you remember that? It was in Happy Gilmore on the guy’s shirt with the nail in his head…SPOILER ALERT: I agree with that statement.

I woke up this morning to my clock radio reporting news of the movie theater shooting in Colorado. In my half-asleep brain, once I’d woken up a little more, I was sure that I’d dreamed it all. How ridiculous?! Some guy dressing up like a SWAT member with bullet vest and gas mask, appearing in the middle of a packed theater, tossing tear gas and spraying the trapped crowd with bullets…who does that? What a weird dream; must have been the wine.

And then, as I was getting dressed, the news story came on again. I was shocked it wasn’t a dream. How awful?! The most disturbing part to me was that children were hurt. Shot with bullets hurt. There are witness reports circulating about an 8 or 9 year old girl being carried from the theater, unresponsive, by a police officer. She had visible bullet holes in her back. When I hear that, I see my oldest daughter. She’s 7. She weighs about 50 pounds and is around 3 feet tall. In another year she’ll grow an inch or two and gain a few more pounds. The compact little body of a child is no match for one bullet, let alone two or three.

Skip ahead a few hours when people wake up and start posting their thoughts about the shooting on Facebook. A college friend of mine posted something and I initially responded with agreement to her comment and voiced plans to look into a conceal and carry permit. {Ohio allows concealed firearms with a permit, except in government buildings.} Someone that I didn’t know responded with a passive, “I find it INTERESTING that we respond to events like this by buying more guns.” I would be interested to see how you’d protect yourself against a gunman with your bare hands, lady. Maybe a hand bag? This was my response:
“As a single mother of three, if someone came at us with a gun, I would have no way to protect them OTHER than a gun.
My parents are card-carrying members of the NRA. When I divorced my husband almost two years ago, they BEGGED me to get a gun for protection. Living alone, they were worried about someone breaking into my home. I have resisted because I didn’t want my children hurting themselves or someone else playing with it or showing it to friends. More friends encouraged me to get a handgun and gave me all sorts of resources to safely store it so that my children can’t get at it (the best option being a finger-print scanning gun safe.)
The problem is not the amount of guns “on the street;” my father has been a collector of vintage firearms his whole adult life. He’s not a hunter. He doesn’t kill things. He likes old Western movies and goes to the shooting range. The problem is people who want to hurt other people for no other reason than they can. The weapon is unimportant…bomb, knife, gun, fists, baseball bat…as a citizen of a free country and a mother, I will protect my babies any way I can.”

Guns aren’t the problem. If there was some magical way to take away all the guns in the world, people would find other means to accomplish the same goal. Before there were guns, countries waged wars rather effectively with bows and arrows, swords, rocks, hot oil, burning fire balls on catapults, etc. In today’s world, without guns, you’d still have bombs, which it seems can be easily made in your parent’s basement. You’d still have chemicals. You’d have technological attacks.

People are the problem. Unfortunately, there isn’t a way to look inside people’s brains and see who would shoot 71 innocent people, including children, at a superhero movie and who is horrified at the thought. All you can do is protect yourself. If you know someone who seems to be having a hard time with life and is angry, get them some help. Because senseless violence is so prevalent in our society, if you have a real concern and you report it to the police, school officials, etc people will take you seriously. Perhaps headlines like this can be avoided if we start to look out for each other and DO SOMETHING about our concerns.

What am I gonna do? I’m gonna hug my babies more. Life is an uncertain gift; cherish every second of it!

XxOo

Parmesan Shrimp and Quinoa

19 Thursday Jul 2012

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Parmesan Shrimp and Quinoa
Sweet chubby cherubs! This is a magical dinner…magically simple, quick and easy! And tasty 🙂
The shrimp recipe has been modified from the one on McCormick’s website.
You’ll need: 1lb jumbo shrimp, cherry tomatoes, EVOO, parsley flakes, Riesling, grated Parmesan cheese, McCormick’s Tuscan seasoning and Near East quinoa
Prep time + cook time: 20 minutes
~ Start the quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wah) first because it takes 15-20 minutes to cook {the shrimp takes 5.} Follow the instructions on the package.
~ After the quinoa has cooked {it will need to sit for 5-8 minutes} heat a large skillet and gingerly coat with EVOO.
~ Once the skillet is hot, put your shrimp and cherry tomatoes on to cook. You’ll want to cook until the shrimpies turn pink.
~ Add:
2 tablespoons Riesling
1 tablespoon McCormick’s Tuscan seasoning
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon parsley flakes
~ Stir the ingredients until the shrimpies are fully coated.
Plate, serve and hang onto your socks!

Why quinoa you ask?
Read about how amazing it is for you here 🙂

Chicken Parm with My Sauce

16 Monday Jul 2012

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Chicken Parm
If you’re from Middle America, you might refer to this dish as NY-style chicken parm {I do.} Chicken parm in mid-Ohio is generally breaded and fried. NY-style chicken parm, a’la my Dad’s kitchen on Long Island, has no breading. It’s baked in a tomato sauce of some kind {here I used my homemade sauce} and served atop some sort of pasta.

If you’re making sauce from scratch, you’ll need: tomatoes!! And lots of ’em. I use a mix of vine-ripened and Roma tomatoes. You’ll also need garlic, a white onion, Italian spices, EVOO, salt, black pepper, sugar, a carrot, and a red pepper if you’d like to spice it up a bit.
Prep time is about an hour and simmer time is at least 2 hours; the longer it simmers together the better it will be!
~ Liberally coat the bottom of a large pot with EVOO. While on the lowest possible heat setting add diced onions, Italian seasonings and freshly chopped garlic.
~ Put a small to medium pot of water on and bring to a boil. Fill with tomatoes; as they heat their skin will crack. Once this happens, remove from the boiling water with a slatted spoon and drop into a bowl of cold running water. The skin will pull back farther from the tomato meat and will make peeling SO MUCH EASIER! Just don’t burn your fingers 😦 For a chunky sauce, put the tomatoes into your large pot to boil. For a thinner, smoother sauce, run your tomatoes through the blender before putting into your pot. Repeat as many times as needed to get through your tomatoes.
~ Once you start adding your tomatoes, toss in a pinch of black pepper and salt, a tablespoon of sugar, and a few grated carrot pieces. If you want a kick, add a few small pieces of red bell pepper.
~ Simmer 2+ hours and serve.

To make the chicken parm you’ll need: chicken, sauce, V8, garlic, Italian spices
~ Liberally coat the bottom of a baking pan with V8.
~ Cut chicken into small pieces and spread in the pan; pieces can touch but do not overlap.
~ Cover the chicken in sauce {here I used my homemade sauce}, garlic and spices.
~ Bake at 300 for 30 minutes.
~ After the chicken has been placed in the oven, bring a pot of water to boil and make a pasta of your choosing. Here, I used bow tie. The pasta will be done around the same time as the chicken parm.
TO PLATE: ladle sauce on top of your pasta noodles. Put a few chicken pieces on top, cover with more sauce and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Serve!

Reusable Shopping Bags

15 Sunday Jul 2012

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Reuseable Shopping Bags
You would not BEEEELIEVE how many times total strangers have stopped me and commented on my reusable shopping bags. Granted, I’m a bit of a hippy with them, meaning I have enough for $300 in groceries with one or two to spare 😉 but I don’t consider myself to be anything special. {If I was special I’d have a compost pile and a rain barrel!} Earlier in the week I was at a PTO meeting when one of the other mothers said that she, too, has these shopping bags in her trunk and she just forgets to use them. What, WHAT?! Here is my list of the top 5 reasons why you should be using reusable shopping bags:

People automatically think you’re awesome. Now maybe you are and maybe you’ll just let them think that…the point is you’ll have instant adoration and respect from strangers you’ll never see again.

They keep you organized. Yes, they really do! That’s the joy of right angles, actually. They stack easily in your cart and your trunk. If you have insulated bags like I do, you’ll know which bags to unpack first. I love my bags!

You can express your personal style. While most of my bags are admittedly the $1 Meijer bags, I do have a few $3 bags that have some nifty graphics on them.

Your kids get a fancy job to do. My kids are still at that stage where they love helping me. They LOVE carrying our bags. From the car…to the car…in the store…you name it. Kids with a job to do are frequently better behaved that kids running amuck. Trust me.

They are good for the planet. Instead of recycling plastic bags or worse, throwing them the trash, you just fold these babies back up and use them again! If they get dirty, you can wash them. This is a really really REALLY easy way to minimize your household waste. Buy a few at a time and be awesome, ladies!

Tasty Tacos

12 Thursday Jul 2012

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Tasty Tacos
Why bring home quickie tacos when you can make your own?! This meal qualifies under the “eat clean” food plan, is quick and tasty. PLUS you might even have left overs for lunch the next day 😉
You’ll need: around a pound of ground beef, 6″ soft tortillas, taco seasoning, Del Monte no salt added corn, La Preferida refried black beans, La Preferida Spanish rice, salsa, your own taco toppings
Prep time + cook time: 20ish minutes
~ Brown the ground beef in a skillet. {It is helpful if the meat is already defrosted.}
~ Put the water on to boil for the rice.
~ Once the ground beef is completely cooked, add the taco seasoning and follow the directions on the packet. Around this time the water should boil for the rice; add the rice to the water and follow the directions on the box.
~ While the rice and meat and cooking, warm up the refried beans and the corn.
~ When the meat is done cooking, immediately remove from heat so it doesn’t burn.
~ Once the rice is done, add a little salsa for an extra kick. I also add freshly chopped onion, grape tomatoes…whatever I’m in the mood for. It’s the fresh additives that make it feel less like a boxed rice and more like a masterpiece!
To Plate: I hold the tortilla in one hand and spoon 1-2 big spoonfuls of meat into the center. I then cover with cheese, onions, salsa…refried beans if I’m feeling funky. Fold the bottom of the tortilla up, then fold the sides in. It looks more like a burrito than anything, but this is a helpful way for small hands to have tacos in their tummies instead of on the floor. Add a spoonful of rice, corn and beans {covered with a little cheese} and you’ve got a winner! This dinner is SOOOO much better for you than drive-thru tacos, less expensive AAAAAND tastier.

Quickie Shrimp and Rotini

10 Tuesday Jul 2012

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Quickie Shrimp and Rotini
You’ll need: rotini, shrimp, V8, cherry tomatoes, FRESH GARLIC, pasta sauce and shredded cheese
Prep time: 5ish minutes; total cook time 20ish minutes
~ Put water in a large pot; bring it to a boil.
~ Once the water comes to a rolling boil, add the rotini. Set your timer for 10 minutes.
~ While the rotini is cooking, coat the bottom of a sauté pan with V8.* Add garlic, cherry tomatoes and Italian herbs. Slowly heat {do NOT boil or you’ll burn the garlic.}
~ While the sauté pan is slowly heating, I strongly suggest removing the tails from the shrimp. It’s much easier to do BEFORE they get hot. If you’re cooking for small people who need help with their food…trust me…you’ll want to take the tails off before you burn your fingers!**
~ With 5 minutes left on the pasta timer, add the shrimp to the V8 and garlic mix.
To plate: I put a spoonful of pasta sauce on top of the rotini. Add another spoonful of the shrimp and sauce mix. Sprinkle Italian cheese on top. Voila! 😉
Add a lovely salad for a nice side and some color.

*OMG…V8 is kitchen wonder juice! It’s seriously the best cooking/baking juice ever invented. I use it all the time! It’s kinda my secret kitchen ingredient 😉 It’s packed with all kinds of vegetable juices {I think we can agree that we all need more vegetables} and it does an excellent job of keeping meats moist while they cook. It also adds the ~zing~ of tomato which, personally, I love.


**If you love shrimp as much as I do, you HAAATE having to leave that last little succulent morsel in the tail. GET IN MA FACE, little shrimpie! Here is the trick you’ve been looking for. Once the shrimp is thawed, all you have to do is pinch and pull. Hold the body of the shrimp, pinch down on the part of the tail that covers that last little piece of shrimp meat and pull. So easy! If I’m using shrimp in a recipe where it will be hot, I take the tails off before I cook them. If you don’t, you’re going to burn your fingers :/

Speaking of shrimpies! Something fun while dinner is cooking itself!
Sweedish Chef makes Shrimpies