I suppose by now you've noticed I haven't been sticking to my veggie diet very well, but how am I supposed to when those juicy burgers are calling my name? Or when those plump grilled hot dogs are just begging for me to top them with mustard and slaw and gobble them up??!
I may not be sticking to an all veggie diet, but that doesn't mean that I'm giving up on veggies all together! In fact this has actually changed my eating habits for the better. You see, instead of being a carnivorous foodie all the time, I have come up with some pretty amazing veggie dishes if I do say so myself. My family now enjoys several all veggie nights a week, and we love how delicious the scrumptious concoctions taste! I have shared our recipe for Quinoa Burritos, and I'll post more veggie delights as we create them! XOXO
We all enjoy a fun date night, but who says you have to go out to have a good time together? Why not stay home and prepare this tasty meal together? No babysitter needed ;)
One of mine and my husband's favorite ways to spend time together is by going out to our favorite restaurant and eating a tasty meal, but there are times when we don't have a sitter or don't feel like going out. That's when we make dinner for the kids and get them to bed a tad bit early, and then we go in the kitchen together, prepare our date night dinner, and have a romantic meal- get this- AT HOME! These are actually my favorite date nights. We love burgers and spicy Mexican fare, so we came up with this absolutely delicious sweet and spicy burger that I am so thrilled to share the recipe for!
Peach Jalapeno Burgers with Brie Cheese
1lb ground round
1 jalapeno diced as tiny as possible
1 sz 1 or small container of peach baby food (sounds crazy, but it works...trust me!)
1 tbsp McCormick Montreal steak seasoning
2 hamburger buns (we like the fancy ones with oats sprinkled on top)
4 slices of brie cheese
1 tbsp panko or bread crumbs, whatever you've got on hand- even crackers will work
Spinach leaves and tomato slices (these are optional)
First turn your broiler on high, and then begin by mixing together the beef, jalapeno, and peach baby food. If it feels a little wet add in just enough bread crumbs to help hold the mixture together. Next you'll want to form the burger mix into two patties. Place them on a cookie sheet or broiler pan and sprinkle even amounts of the steak seasoning on the burgers. Place them in your oven and cook for approx 4-5 minutes on the first side, flip and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes on the second side. Just before you take them out of the oven place two slices of brie cheese on each burger and allow them to melt. Once the cheese is melted, which won't take long at all, take the burgers out of the oven and let them rest for a few minutes while you get the rest of the ingredients together. We like to toast our buns with a little touch of butter in a skillet, but you can just use a toaster or scrap the toasting all together. Once the buns are nice and golden brown place your burger in the bun and top with spinach and tomato. Of course use whatever toppings you like for your burgers! Hope you try this recipe! XOXO
You'll love this delicious and healthy menu for your summer picnic!
Summertime Ham Sammies
Rainbow Pasta Salad
Sunshine Fruit Kebabs
Bubbly Sunset Punch
Summertime Ham Sammies:
Thick sliced black forrest ham (or whatever type of ham you like best)
One granny smith apple peeled, cored, and sliced thin
Mozzarella slices
Coarse grain mustard- you can omit this
Butter
Whole grain bread
We're basically making a gourmet grilled cheese sammie! Lightly coat one side of each slice of bread with butter, and the other sides of the bread with the mustard. This way the outsides will crisp up in the pan, and the insides will get all melty and creamy with the mustard. Basically you layer the ham, apple slices, and cheese slices between the bread, and saute' on low heat until the crusts are golden brown and the cheese is lovely and melty!
Rainbow Pasta Salad:
1/2 lb Rainbow noodles- cooked, you know the ones- red, green, and white noodles. You can also use whole wheat pasta!
1/4 cup finely sliced carrots
1/4 cup finely diced roasted red peppers
1/4 cup mild banana peppers
1/4 cup green onion
1/2 cup grape tomatoes chopped
1/2 cup fresh spinach leaves
For the dressing you'll need
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 tbsp coarse grain mustard
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
salt & pepper
whisk together and pour over ingredients.- this salad tastes best when you prepare it the night before!
*the great thing about a vinaigrette dressing is that you don't have to worry about keeping it cold!
Sunshine Fruit Kebabs:
1 pt. strawberries chopped to bite size
1 pt blueberries
3 or 4 peaches peeled and chopped to bite size as well
2 large bananas
1 cup of red grapes
arrange items on kebab sticks and top with my favorite fruit salad dressing: raspberry preserves(seedless), lime zest, and lime juice
Bubbly Sunset Punch:
This recipe isn't that healthy lol, but all things in moderation right?
The night before your picnic prepare one package each of strawberry and blue raspberry koolaid (use less sugar so it's a little tangy), and place in ice cube trays to harden overnight. The next day combine:
1 2ltr sprite or lemon lime soda
1 bottle of white cranberry & strawberry juice
1/2 the strawberry ice cubes
1/2 the blue raspberry ice cubes
basically you'll need two 2ltrs of sprite or lemon lime soda of choice and two bottles of the white cranberry & strawberry juice for all your ice cubes. As the ice cubes melt it mixes together so wonderfully to create the most deliciously refreshing punch! You'll love it!
I hope you try this menu or choose one or a few items from it to taste! Trust me you'll love it! XOXO
You may already be dreading the long hot summer, and if you are shame on you. We complain all winter about the cold and the layering of our clothes, and the moment the temperatures cause you to perspire you begin wishing for cooler months. I too lamented the steamy sultriness of summer, but I've decided to turn over a new leaf. I'm enjoying the weather no matter rain, snow, or scorch!
If you're a parent I'm sure you know that somewhere in the midst of summer vacation kids get bored. It may be hard to find fun activities to keep the kiddies entertained, but here are a few fool proof and cheap- oh and did I mention cheap? fun things to keep the little ones having a blast all summer long! As a parent we can sometimes forget how boring our summers used to get when it seemed as if there was nothing to do... I honestly can't remember being that bored, but I know that my kids tell me from time to time "there's nothing to do" or "ok this is boring now, can we play a different game?" lol. How quickly they learn the ways of the ever elusive teenager eh? haha. Any who on to the activities!
1. Check your local paper, there are always fun things going on in your area. For example: there's a free petting zoo in the summer in our area.
2. Picnics! This may seem trifling, however kids LOVE picnics! Make a big deal of it! Plan out a fun menu, pack some weather friendly snacks- popsicles will not work here, and pack it all up in a lovely basket (or whatever you've got) and take it to the park! Spend the evening getting your tummy's full of yummies and then work off those pb&j's by chasing the kids around the playground in the lovely weather!
3. Get a water hose. This may seem self explanatory, but I'll elaborate. My husband sets the nozzle to a light mist and holds it up in the air so our kids can run though the water and get nice and cool in the hot afternoons and evenings. Heck, we even take a lap or two through the sprinkles! It's so much fun, and it feels so good when it's so hot outside- especially if you don't have a pool.
4. Family movie night! Netflix is a great option here! Lots of movies to pick from that are categorized so you know the ratings. Pick a silly movie and add lots of popcorn! The kids are sure to enjoy themselves!
5. Campfires! Who doesn't love a campfire? And who said you have to camp to build one?! Make sure to be safe when doing this, and to put out the flames completely before heading in for the night. Don't forget the marshmallows, chocolates, and graham crackers!!
These are just a few ways we like to have fun in the summer time. I hope this little list has inspired you to make some hot humid summertime memories with your family as well! XOXO!
It crossed my mind the other day that I only seem to get all dolled up when I'm going out somewhere, even if it's just a short trip to the store. For the most part I just wear comfy clothes at home, no make up, and hair a mess. Why though? Shouldn't I be dressing to impress my husband instead of the mass crowds of strangers at the store?
There's a time old tale about how the man will "woo" the lady he is courting; he will buy her gifts, take her out to fancy restaurants, and even go to the chick flick of her choice. However after marriage he stops doing all these things that once won his true Love's heart. Well what about us girls? When we're dating a guy we will go to great "beauty" lengths to look absolutely gorgeous for them. We will curl our hair and shave our legs just for a night of our favorite shows, buy the sexiest of negligee on the chance that they might get a peek, and we pull out the most fashionable clothes we own to catch their eye. Once we're married it seems we get so comfortable with each other that we rarely do anything to impress our significant others. Slowly but surely we figure our sweat pants are much more comfy for our cuddle on the couch and watch a movie nights, it seems too tedious to curl our hair or shave our legs every day, and we eventually push those naughty undies to the back of the drawer. Shouldn't we as women continue, to a certain extent, trying to impress our husbands? Just because we're married doesn't mean we shouldn't be working to keep that flame a blaze. Just as we want our men to pamper and love us we should be doing the same for them. Ever since I had my youngest baby I haven't been dressing up as much, and when I do go out I rarely put on makeup simply because I am so busy getting my three little darlings around that I don't have much time to get all fancy myself. A few weeks ago though, I was hoping for us to all go to dinner once my husband got home, so I took the time to get all fixed up for my him, and unfortunately he had to work late, but when he got home I was at the door to welcome him home, and he stopped and stared at me. He smiled, checked me out, and looked at me and said "wow". It made my heart skip a beat. I loved seeing on his face at that moment how beautiful he thought I looked. I also love doing nice little things for him, weather it be a small little gift from time to time, or a little note in the morning telling him how much I love him. We all like feeling loved and appreciated, and I know in the hustle and bustle of everything we can tend to let these things go, but it doesn't take too much effort to do a little something special for the ones we love. Xoxo
My infant has been teething for quite some time now, and finally the first adorable little tooth has made it's appearance. Since then my baby has been reaching for and eyeballing all sorts of tasty foods. I read that 6 months is the recommended age to introduce solids, but as a mother of three I think you need to follow your baby's clues, and introduce solids when they seem ready.
That being said you should be wise in this decision, because you should still be close to the 6 month mark. With my first two children I was advised to introduce solids at around 4 months, and while we started them almost to the day my oldest child turned 4 months, my second baby was a bit older before we started them. With my youngest I have been reading it's now customary now to wait until your baby is at least 6 months old before allowing them to begin sampling a plethora of delicious tastes and textures, but some places I've read on the Internet that "food before one is just for fun", and while the little jingle is endearing I don't think it can be the universal idea for every baby. I say this because every child is different. Not just their personality, but also in their "firsts". Some babies talk sooner than others, some infants walk before they crawl, and so on. You can't treat each child the exact same when in fact they're just as diverse as we are as adults. This is why I just follow clues my babies give me, and when I feel they're ready to start tasting foods then that's what we do. The first few times they do eat some super mushed up yummies it's gonna be quite messy and you may think that since they're spitting out most of the food that they don't like it or that the faces they make indicate that they're not enjoying the food, when what you need to realize is that these flavors are all new to them. Also they have only been sucking on a bottle or a nipple since birth so the movement of eating "food" is also new to them. We personally start with a food like sweet potatoes. It is nutritious, but also kind of sweet to taste yummy for their first culinary experience. I typically feed them the solids once a day, at dinner time. Since my youngest baby started eating solids just a bit before the 6 month mark we weren't as punctual to eat solids every single day, only when baby gave me clues that they were interested in eating them. Also pay attention to their diapers. When you introduce food make sure you only try one food at a time to give them time to let you know if it irritates their bowels or if they possibly develop a rash. You need to limit the variety at first so you can clue into what caused the poopy mess or what was behind the tummy ache and irritability that night for instance. If baby seems to have handled the first food for about a week ish, then move onto the next food. Also you don't always have to buy prepackaged baby food you know. We mash up veggies from our own dinner, or for example I mashed up a very ripe banana the other evening for baby to mush on. Unsweetened applesauce is another choice. I wouldn't recommend yogurt at this age though. Be smart in your decisions and do your research on which foods you really should wait to introduce to baby such as peanut butter, eggs, and honey. Happy nomming!
Walmart sells this delicious Spicy Southwest Mustard, and it's so yummy. I'm sure Guy Fieri would say "this stuff would taste good on a flip flop", and I think he'd be correct. It tastes scrumptious on a fresh salad in stead of dressing, and just so ya know this delectable treat is low in calories. It's good on a grilled cheese, it's tasty on a ham sandwich, it's divine on hamburgers- which is how we ate it last night, and it's absolutely fantastic as a dip when you mix it together with cream cheese and sour cream to give some tang and to thin the texture out a bit. The recipe is simple really it's just 8oz. of cream cheese, 3 tbsp of sour cream, and then you add the mustard to taste. This dip is mouthwatering with fresh veggies of all sorts, spread on crackers, slathered on a sandwich, and to be honest the possibilities are endless. As I sit here thinking of other foods this tantalizing mustard would taste good on I have to admit that pizza comes to mind. It would be good on roast chicken, and heck it may even work well as a marinade, and even an emulsifier in a vinaigrette instead of your typical mustard or Dijon. Basically try this stuff out it's less than 2 bucks I believe, and it's so versatile.
