Healthy Schtuff

OMG.  My baby blog has taken over all of my blog time!  :-) 

Here are some yummy things I've made recently and haven't had time to post about...

Grilled Zucchini Rolls with Herbs and Cheese

Now, I will say that my zucchini rolls did not include herbed goat cheese because Jimmy couldn't find it at the store.  Where does one find goat cheese?  On a farm?  Well, we didn't go to a farm.  Maybe next time.  These were really good though!  I used my new grill pan (woot woot!) and cooked up the zucchini and then rolled them, which was not nearly as easy as it sounds. 

Jimmy thought they tasted like cheeseburgers.  Seriously.  I dunno.  You'll have to try them and see!

Crockpot General Tso's Chicken

I love love love that crockpot site.  It's very user-friendly and has about a million recipes that are easy and rated based on how much the chef's family actually liked them.  Plus, most of the recipes (if not all) are gluten-free and pretty darn healthy. 

I will say that this was nothing like the General Tso's you would order from a take-out place, but it was delicious in its own way and waaaaaaay healthier.  Worth it.

Broth Fondue!

Neal, Casee, Jimmy, and I have been having all sorts of fondue fun!  I may have purchased a fondue pot for Neal for his birthday and now we make him bring it over every time he comes to visit.  :-)

Casee trying to cut apart salmon. 
Yes, the vegetarian at the table has the job of cutting meat. 
That seems fair!

Haha, both Neal and Jimmy were watching her trying to cut up the salmon.  After fondue, we watched some Game of Thrones... there it is!  It has a prime spot on the table.  Haha. 

Barley with Spinach and Asparagus

I can't find this last recipe online... but it was pretty darn delicious.  I got it out of a weight watchers cookbook.  YUM! 

What have you been cooking lately?  :-)

Veggies

As I've been cooking lots of baby food lately, I've been learning more about different vegetables.  Squash, sweet potatoes, peas... all good things for baby!  Good for us, too. 

A new goal of mine is to try to use the veggies I've been using to make baby food in other recipes. 

Grilled Zucchini with Mint Gremolata

I know, I didn't say that I'd used zucchini to make baby food yet... that's next on the list.  I actually did make this with yellow squash today, but forgot to take a picture!  We chowed down on it before I remembered... doh.  Oh, and I used my new grill pan to cook it.  :-)  Pretty exciting. 

Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Rosemary and Garlic

So, there it is.  A sweet potato recipe to which I am totally addicted!  I've made two batches in less than a week... I think I like it.  Just chop, add seasoning, and bake!  Mmm.

I have yet to make something with peas yet... I'll keep you posted.  However, I did make this soup yesterday:

Lentil Soup with Eggplant and Zucchini

...and onion and bell pepper and carrot and tomato and garlic and... well, I think that was everything I had to chop up.  My arm was pretty exhausted after all of that!  This is a WW recipe and made a GIANT pot of soup.  It's a good thing it was a hit with the hubby.  ;-)  We'll be eating all week!!!

Happy cooking, people.  I'll come back with more recipes/updates soon...

Markets, Soups, and Spring

So what does everyone think about farmer's markets (Farmer's Markets -do you capitalize that?)? 

I like the idea of them, but haven't really utilized any in my area because it seems like a lot of work.  I'm not all about extra work.  I think if I could cook without ever shopping for food in the first place, I'd be okay.  It seems like food shopping PLUS shopping at another market just doubles the time spent out and about.  Ugh.

I enjoy the actual cooking process way more than shopping.  The chopping, mixing, and bubbling, not to mention the aromatic kitchen that comes along with it.  Oh, and eating the food isn't half bad.  ;-)

...but... there are apparently farmer's markets who have programs where you can pay a lump sum and then pick up fresh produce every week, every other week, whatever you want.  The one I visited today provides a bag of whatever produce is in season beginning in July and ended in October (if you join the program).  That might not be bad for me.  All I'd have to do is pick up the bag and then cook whatever happens to be inside.  It would be a mystery every week and hey, I might learn some new things about whatever is in there. 

I'm very tempted. 

Oh, you can also pick items up directly from the farm... where you can go and cut your own herbs and sunflowers!  Doesn't that sound fantastic?  Since I've failed twice now at growing herbs on my own, that sweetens the deal even more. 

Okay okay, enough about that.  Here's some yummy soup I just made:

Asparagus Leek Chowder

It started out as a giant pile of veggies in a pan... and turned into an awesome pot of soup!  Jimmy and I both liked it a lot.  It didn't even need a lot of seasoning! 

Now that it's springtime, I think it's time for some light and delicious soups.  What kind of soup do you like to make this time of year?

Happy Leap Day!

Oh man.  I have a couple of recipes I need to post because they were so delicious!  I figured I should probably try to post them while it's still February, too.  I did cook them in February! 

Happy Leap Day!  :-)

Chicken Alfredo Stuffed Shells

YUM.  We ate this for like a week afterward.  I did substitute half-and-half for the heavy cream and didn't put in quite so much butter.  I also had to wing it when making the sauce because I didn't have nearly the correct amount of cheese.  Despite all of that, it turned out mighty tasty.  I definitely recommend it!

Jelly Meatloaf!

Well, this is really called "Sweet & Sour Meatloaf" and I originally found it in an email from the Hungry Girl site.  However, I couldn't find it when I searched!  Wait!  I lied... here it is.  Ta da!  I particularly thought the edges of the meatloaf were yummy.  It tasted a lot like the jelly meatballs I've made before. 

Mushroom Quesadillas

Sauteed mushrooms... melty cheese... need I say more?

Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries

Yum!  I found this great site called Emily Bites!  Emily does indeed bite... into all sorts of yummy things.  It may be my new favorite recipe blog.  She basically takes recipes and makes them healthier.  That's exactly what I'm looking for in a recipe blog!  Check it out.

On that note, I am off to bed.  It was a long day and I'm not nearly ready enough for March to begin.  Are you?!

Valentine Nachos

Happy Valentine's Day! 

How about some nachos?

Hehe, hubby's fave!  I just threw a bunch of yummy things in a casserole dish to make a Mexican mess of yum.  Refried beans, black beans, corn, salsa, seasoned ground beef, and melty cheese.  Usually I season the taco meat with one of those McCormick seasoning packets, but I didn't have any.  So, I made my own seasoning:

Taco Seasoning
Chili Powder
Garlic Powder
Cayenne Pepper
Cumin
Onion Powder
Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
Oregano
Paprika
Salt & Pepper
...I didn't measure them, just threw a little of each on the meat.  It worked out pretty well!

Then I made some guacamole... but I didn't have any seasoning for that, either. 

Guacamole Seasoning
Cumin
Chopped Cilantro
Garlic
Lime Juice
Chopped Tomatoes
Chili Powder
Sour Cream

...again, just threw a little bit of everything in there.  Mmm... I hope you had a nice Valentine's Day, too!  :-)

Crab Melt Loaf

My lovely hubby went to the food store today while I worked on school stuff.  Yep, back to the grind.  I went back to work last Wednesday and have been thoroughly overwhelmed since then.  I'm hoping eventually I'll catch up with things and feel like I'm back on track.  ::crosses fingers::

I have all kinds of yummy plans for dinner this week.  :-) 

Here's what I made tonight:

Yep!  It's more fake crab.

Crab Melt Loaf

This was sooooo yummy.  You mix all the ingredients in a bowl to create kind of an imitation crab salad, spread it on the French bread, and then when it bakes in the oven the cheese congeals everything together in a hot, delicious mess.  The only problem with it was that it was kind of difficult to eat.  I ended up opening the sandwich and creating two open-faced melts.  If I make this again, I think I'll probably bake it that way so that the goodness bakes right into both sides of the bread. 

Here's my baby helping me in the kitchen!  Okay, so she might look a little terrified... but really, dinner was delicious.  Someday she won't look so skeptical. 

Helping me cook!  :-)

Bacon, Egg, and Cheese Muffins

We had a lack of food in our fridge this morning, so I used what I found to make breakfast...

Bacon, Egg, and Cheese Muffins

I tweaked the original recipe to make them, though.  Mine had more egg and different spices (including some good 'ole Old Bay).  You can't go wrong with Old Bay.  At least, I haven't found out how to go wrong with it yet... yum. 

These muffins were pretty good, but I think even with my tweaks, it needed something more.  They were a little too biscuit-y for my liking.  If I make them again, I'll put much less flour in and more egg.  Maybe even some sausage instead of the bacon.  I ended up making some eggs to go on the side.

Alissa's Bacon Eggs

They may have been the best eggs ever. 

I also dipped the muffin into some red raspberry syrup.  It was a good breakfast.  :-)