New Shopping Day

Grocery shopping on Sunday evenings just haven't been happening the past two months...it worked fine over the summer but with darker evenings, we just aren't getting John off to the store. So we're trying something new...Monday and Thursday nights.

I'm still using my same planning but I admit, I need some new recipes! Or maybe just high carb, high fat, high calorie meals would be more tasty!

Cranberry Chicken Bake

This turned out delicious! We used my mom's fresh cranberry/cherry sauce from Thanksgiving over chicken breasts and baked it. Superb! The kids LOVE the crescent rolls, so I've been doing those every now and then. Super tasty meal!

Who IS This Person?!

I am notorious for bringing pre-packaged foods to potlucks and social eating events (nothing home-cooked EVER)...mini-muffins, packs of cookies, bags of caesar salad, grocery store deli veggie trays...you name it. But in this new cooking life as a cooking diva (ha!), I found myself searching online for "halloween party food ideas" the other day. That was definately strange but even stranger...I DID IT. I collected ideas and selected a few and produced a robust result of FRESH, HANDMADE FOOD for this costume party with friends.

I'm in SHOCK.

Here's the photos to prove it! It is astonishing exactly how much I've changed...not to mention the satisfaction I had taking my creations to bless my friends. The apple smilies, mummies (lil' smokies in crescent rolls-yum!) and candy corn veggie tray (a small pumpkin held the dip but isn't in the photo). Since I've been allowing TIME to plan and prepare as a habit, it wasn't really difficult to put this together...what fun!

And that's me as a Lego brick and my husband as the real Buzz Lightyear! What a fun costume party!

Herb Roasted Salmon

Oh.my.word. Second dinner in a row that was SO tasty...and I quote Daniel, "The salmon is wonderful".

WHAT?

Huh, were YOU talking to ME?

I am still in shock. The boy doesn't like much and usually asks, "how many bites do I have to take"? HE ATE IT ALL! SALMON!!!!!!!!

The TSG Citrus Dill seasoning is awesome PLUS I added a smidge of my new favorite food "Newman's Own Low-Fat Sesame Ginger Salad Dressing". Insane, it is so good I could drink it!

So I made some notes on the recipe for next time so we can duplicate this one!

Beef Burgundy-No Crockpot!

Well shiver me timbers, I can still taste this DELICIOUS meal just looking at the pictures! The turkey bacon is insanely delicious and flavored the pan right away. I added a little olive oil and garlic and tossed in the meat, then the can of tomatoes and let it simmer then tossed fresh carrots and frozen peas on top...WOW, this turned out SO GOOD without the crockpot! I didn't have mushrooms but who cares because the flavor was outstanding! The TSG seasoning that goes in here is incredible! We all enjoyed the tender meat!

This TSG recipe was prepared in June (read about it here) and it wasn't anything like this because I cooked it in the crockpot (aka-boiled meat). I used BEEF bouillon instead of chicken tonight...wonder if that made a difference, too?

Lean & GREEN!

Since I started a diet, I've been food focused and inspired to post. This has become of our favorite recipes. This is "Dijon Chicken & Broccoli" from Stacey Hawkin's Time Savor Gourmet cookbook. I LOVE how GREEN it is! Cook up the broccoli in her garlic oil with her special seasoning. Put aside. Then cook the chicken with garlic and sauce of soy sauce and dijon mustard. Let all simmer together, yummy! Sometimes I thicken the juice with a little cornstarch for a "gravy" feel. Super yum!

UPDATE: We didn't like the spinach in it...it is best with just the broccoli and chicken...next time!

Clean Kitchen!

Wow. What a delight to cook tonight! It's so funny, every time I put Chicken Puttenesca on the meal plan, somehow that night gets hijacked and we never actually eat it! I've never even made it before and it's been scheduled at least five times! So even though I didn't marinate overnight and slice the chicken breasts and bake it, we DID eat Chicken Puttenesca tonight, sorta.

I've been blogging about becoming free from being messy at my other blog http://tidy-house.blogspot.com/ and the kitchen "after" pictures are here. Viva Italiano!

Today's Lunch, Snack and Dinner Phood Photos!

I wanted to take photos of my food today. Phood Photos. We usually have pb&j for lunch but today I was in the mood for something different. We don't have a snack everyday, but today was carbs, carbs, carbs and I thought it was lovely since it looked like a cupcake! Just to report in, dinner tonight I call "Sun Dried Tomato Chicken". I thought it looked pretty in the pan.

Speaking of pans, I have this weird love for a Farberware non-stick pan I bought in 1999. The coating is now scratched so I was in search of a replacement. Everytime I looked at Target, nothing struck my fancy. So I ordered the (almost) exact same pan online! It was on uber sale so I bought THREE! Two will go into storage for the envitable day when I'll need a replacement. You know by now that I'm no cooking aficionado but I do like the shape of this pan!

I can't remember what life was like before I started planning and preparing meals for my family. It has become so much a part of who I am and a big part of my daily routine. I even noticed last week that I was preferring to come home and cook dinner instead of grabbing something out. Who is this person living my life?!??!

Mom Will You Cut Off My Crusts?

I was in the mood to document Sarah's lunch today. I've been cutting her crusts off her sandwiches for about 8 years! If each sandwich has four cuts and she eats 5 sandwiches per week, that's 20 cuts per week. If did this for 5 years that would be 5, 200 cuts! No wonder I'm weary of trimming bread crusts! I decided that since she doesn't eat the whole sandwich anyways (even without the crusts), why not use the "circle method". WOW, I LOVE this and wanted to share.

I know I must REALLY be a geek, but this makes me so happy! I use one of our drinking glasses to do the deed and she LOVES eating a UFO saucer for lunch!

Using the same divided plate for lunch everyday (yes, it gets washed each night!) helps me remember to include a veggie and a fruit everyday. "You Get What You Get, So Don't Make A Fit"!

Moving On

I've spent since January 2011 in self-education about my lack of cooking habits here on this blog. I'm at a point where I feel "educated" in this area! Huge changes were made in my family...we began eating dinners every night together with a meal prepared by me! I've become proficient at meal planning and preparation! My kids eat a homemade lunch every day and I now have a system for meal planning and preparation and feel that I can build on that firm foundation in the future. I find that I'm just taking pictures of dinners over and over...there's no real growth now because I'm working the system that is now in place. Now that taking and posting food pics has recently become a "burden" this blog is no longer useful for its purpose so I'm moving on.

So I'm going to continue to post on this blog, but maybe only a few times a year as something excites me. My focus of self-education is now our home. Our house is so cluttered, it is hard to walk in any room without the fear of stepping on something (since we can't see the carpet in many rooms). I'd also like to be able to have someone over to my house. I'm going to need a place for those thoughts so please visit me at http://tidy-house.blogspot.com/ Thank you so much for following me!

Hiking Lunches

Recently, we started getting more outdoorsy. What to do about food while away from home?

Focusing on one thing at a time, I set out to solve the question of lunches.  I call them Snak Paks (which my son pointed out I was infringing upon ConAgra Foods' Snack Pack® pudding trademark! I've taught him well!) If we eat breakfast together in the morning before we leave and we eat dinner together when we get home, that leaves the entire daytime on the trail so "lunch" isn't going to do it. We need more. (I try to set up a crockpot meal to be ready when we arrive home, which has been very late some trips)!

So here's what we do now...each person gets a gallon ziploc and I fill it up with:
-dried fruit, nuts, chocolate chips (gorp)
-peanut butter and jelly sandwich
-chips of choice (pringles/doritos) which taste REALLY good on the trail
-medifast diet bars (equal protein/carb, fills you up)
-fruit leather
-baby carrots
-cookies (sometimes)
-gummy bears
-granola bars
-I "collect" things for the snak pak drawer so when it's time to pack lunches, I have lots of variety

The idea is I pack a "snak pak" and each person can eat whenever they get munchy. We stop for an "official" lunch but sometimes the kids are into their food on the trip there or if they didn't each much during the day, they snack on the way home. Everyone seems satisfied and we come home with extra (which then go back in the box where I store snacks for the snak paks). I don't hear "I'm hungry" on these days and it gives me peace of mind knowing everyone is provided for. Fresh fruit is heavy so I don't do too much of that and I don't get crazy about having to be super healthy...it is fun to have some sweets on the trail and I've decided that's ok.

We drink water from water bottles for fluids.

So what do you all do for hiking meals?

Chicken Puttenesca & Go Green Medley

TSG's Chicken Puttenesca is delicious! I can't believe how many vegetables we're eating! I had a few frozen green beans, some frozen peas and frozen soybeans so I tossed them in the microwave and called it "Go Green Medley". I served brown rice with the non-dieter's plates and John is doing so well on his diet that his pants are starting to fall off!

Costco Frozen Marinated Salmon & Roasted Asparagus & Christi's FRESH Homemade Bread & Pasta Wheels With Parmesan

Costco offers a fantastic marinated frozen wild salmon that is super easy to fix. A bit of olive oil in the fry pan and the flavor is out of this world! We are probably nearing the end of the asparagus, but while it's here, we'll keep eating! Love the roasted asparagus with olive oil, kosher salt and balsamic vinegar! This salad is just salad greens with spinach from Costco and ready made fat-free italian dressing. John's dinner (photo 2) is lean & green. He's lost FORTY pounds! Way to go honey! The rest of us enjoyed a slice of Christi's Fresh Homemade Bread-SUPER YUMMY, awesome flavor and texture! Also made some pasta wheels with parmesan cheese for the kids (and me)!

Turkey Cabbage Comfort

Another TSG recipe. More later. Served John the main dish and salad. We had brown rice with ours. The flavor wasn't what I was expecting. I would slice the cabbage in strips for smaller pieces next time since John doesn't care for cabbage all that much.

Salmon & Roasted Asparagus With Salad

This is another TSG recipe-can't remember so I need to look and write more. Kids and mom had baked potato and John ate pico de gallo that he bought for himself and it went well with the meal.

Asian Pot Roast

This TSG Asian Pot Roast is outstanding! Sarah loved it and ate it all, asking for seconds. She rated it a 7. John rated it much higher. I used the TSG Lemon Flavored Oil to fry the frozen stir-fry vegetables and tossed in some tomatoes and orange bell pepper I had in the frig. This would have been great with asparagus, too. John ate the roast, stir fry veggies and a salad with Drew's Sesame Orange dressing that was surprisingly tasty for being so healthy. I want to use it as a marinade for chicken someday soon.

I made Uncle Ben's rice (which I hate but it was fast) and molded it in a little bowl. It really helped me eat less rice! Later while putting the dishes in the dishwasher-(I run a load of dishes every night before I go to bed no matter how full or empty-this has helped me as I've been learning to cook)-I noticed a new bag of brown rice tucked under some other stuff by the toaster! Oh well!

12 Days of Snacks - Day #2

I think this snack is sad looking, but somewhat nutritious...Daniel doesn't eat much fresh fruit, so I'm always searching for PROTEIN. My kids love cheese and I have to make sure we don't each too much.

I am LOVING these plates! I bought 4, though I wash the 2 we use each day in the nightly dishes so we always have them clean. Now when I think "snack", I get out my plates. It is just another little family method/system I have in place. Yippee! Day #2 of "12 Days of Snacks".

Yesterday was Father's Day and John wanted to go to Red Robin. He had chicken & salad (good job honey!) And Saturday night we went to Gramma's to celebrate Sarah's birthday and she fixed the most delicious, velvety moist chicken and a gorgeous salad. I wish I had taken my camera!

New Napkins

You might think this is weird. I think it's a little strange myself. After having dinner at a friend's, I fell in love with her using thick, absorbant hand towels for napkins. So, we've ditched the paper napkins. Instead of going with fabric napkins, I bought three sets of really cheap (4 for $4!) WASHCLOTHS for the table. I love the color. And I am LOVING the convenience.

We put out 3 in the morning for me and the kids to use throughout the day. Then when we set the table for all 4 of us, we bring out John's. After dinner we clean off the table with the washcloth and toss them in the washing machine.

Cookbooks I'm Using Right Now

Who IS this person who can say she "uses cookbooks"!?!?

Oh, it's ME!

I have been so completely transformed in only 6 months! I'm actually (gasp) ENJOYING cooking now! Oh my word, just reading that is INCREDIBLE!

So, I wanted to post what cookbooks have helped me in a practical way as I've started my cooking journey.

Healthy recipes I remember from a previous diet: PRISM Cookbook
The cooking kit I purchased to make "lean and green" meals: Time Savor Gourmet by Stacey Hawkins
The book that jumped off the shelf at the library: Real Food for Healthy Kids by Tanya Wenman Steel & Tracey Seaman

Turkey Taco Salad

This is a TSG recipe and I was supposed to serve it over lettuce but we didn't have any. Not sure how that happened. So it is ground turkey and spices and John LOVED it! I simply served it over a huge portion of the Costco frozen green beans. I think I made macaroni and cheese that night for the kids. John asked for me to make this again he liked it so much. Super easy and healthy!

UPDATE: 10/07/11-We now call this "Turkey Fry Up" and have it quite often!

12 Days of Snacks

So snacks come and go around here. If we get up earlier than normal, we are needing snacks. Usually around 10:30am and 3pmish we're all ready to gnaw on something. I bought these plates on clearance for $1.78 for a set of two! So welcome the snack plates. Yogurt, cheerios and ham. I love the sections, it helps me mix things up. Follow the next 12 weekdays of snacks!

Homeschool Lunches

Have I told you that we started homeschooling this year? My son is 11 and daughter is 8 next week. So when we started homeschooling, I realized we would need LUNCHES at home, too. Another meal to plan! I've tried planning lunches, but it seems to just work better to have several "staples" on hand and make whatever I feel like each afternoon. My thing is "soup and sandwiches" for lunch for the kids. That can take on many faces! I try to have a fruit and veggie and sandwich and soup. It rarely works that way! I often eat leftovers from dinner for my lunch.

I LOVE my dinnerware pattern from 1990. It is Dansk "Fransk" (nice that it rhymes!) in Blanc. I would choose it all over again 20+ years later. Of course, my pattern was discontinued years ago. A new cereal bowl at replacements.com is $59.99. Sigh. We've broken several dishes in the past few months so I was looking at prices online to replace those that have passed on. (I practically have a funeral when they break!! Sick.) It is getting to the point that by the time we're eating dinner, there aren't enough dishes because I've used them all up during a busy day at home.

In an effort to reduce the use on my dishes, I found these at Target yesterday. My new LUNCH DISHES! I love them-plastic and indestructable! I bought 2 floral and 2 stripe (they actually came with a lid). This will save on several plates used during the day. :)

So today's lunch was a SOUR nectarine (so disappointing!), sandwich (Sarah gets a CHOCOLATE Nutella sandwich on Fridays, but the other days she chooses between PB&J and meat-n-cheese). Daniel only eats PB&J. He likes noodle soup and she doesn't. We don't have chips very often but this week they get a serving with lunch.

I just want you to know that I sound organized only out of necessity!! The things I do everyday need some kind of systemization...for sanity. And every little thing that gets systemized isn't a problem anymore and then I systematize something else and now I have a home of systems! I love that!

SO-I have a question for you-what do YOU do with your broken dishes? I keep thinking someone out there might want the gorgeous materials for mosaics or something. I could toss it all in a flat rate box and mail it to someone. How do you recycle broken dishes? Please leave comments below, thanks!

Dijon Chicken & Broccoli

Presenting dinner: TSG's Dijon Chicken & Broccoli. Top pic is what me and the kids ate and the second photo is what John ate (no pasta). This was ok...about a 6 on a scale of 1 to 10.

Broiled Ginger Salmon with Lime Butter

I like this recipe but I didn't like it broiled. It was kinda dry. I think a pan fry or poaching would give better flavor. Besides, this is frozen salmon which isn't the same as fresh! Of course, we have fresh Copper River Salmon at Costco for $10/lb. I plan one fish and one turkey meal per week so maybe we'll indulge since it is in season.

John ate a green salad, green beans and salmon. I added pasta w/ parmesan and butter for the rest of us. I think it super weird that my plate is hanging off the edge of the table in the top photo...was I in a hurry or what!? I like the flavor from this recipe though I really need to get a zester.

Beef Burgundy and Green Salad

TSG's Beef Burgundy recipe was great (I added carrots)! John liked it enough to have it again but the kids didn't care for the flavors. I reserved the sauce from yesterday's asparagus for salad dressing plus cold roasted asparagus for the salad. I made baked potatoes for the rest of the family.

One of the challenges of making new meals is deciding how to actually serve them...what plates to put them on...we've gone through a lot dishes because of this issue!

Free Grocery Shopping Planner-Sheet 2

Since I'm now "starting over" with meal planning, I've made a new grocery shopping list for us. John shops now on Wednesday nights and Sundays. I work on getting my list done on Tuesdays. I plan for Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday (he shops for these things on Wednesday). I write in the meals in the boxes and under the boxes write what ingredients I need. Then on the lower half of the sheet I neatly write out his grocery list. Click here for PDF Grocery Planner Sheet.

This is a help because he'll often say, "purple, watermelon flavored diced tomatoes"?? What are those for? Now with the meals at the top written in the boxes, I can say, "oh, that's for Thursday night, the watermelon lasagna" (for a silly example).

Chicken Green Salad & Roasted Asparagus

Costco has ready to go salad greens-half baby spinach & half green lettuces. Tossed chicken in hot olive oil seasoned with Mrs. Dash, Montreal Steak Grill Spice with salt and pepper. Roasted asparagus as usual-click here for recipe. Used store bought salad dressings, mixed italian and caesar low-fat. Kids ate leftover macaroni & cheese. I can't believe we're eating food that is GREEN!