Zucchini & Yellow Squash Spaghetti

Credit: Jen Cochran
Recipe:
1 zucchini
1 yellow squash
1 red bell pepper
1 yellow bell pepper
2 Tbsp of Kosher salt (to taste)
Ground black pepper to taste
2 Tbsp of olive oil
1 29oz can of tomato sauce (Target brand only has 2g of sugar)
1 cup of water
4 Tbsp of onion chives (or to taste)
7-8 garlic cloves (or to taste)
1 tsp of Rosemary
1 handful of fresh parsley
1 Tbsp of Tarragon
1 package of Jenny-O Turkey Italian Sausage (20oz)
1 package of Jenny-O lean ground Turkey (20oz)

Zucchini & Yellow Squash Noodles
- Use a potato peeler to make long noodle like slices of the zucchini & yellow squash. Stop when you reach the seeds and discard unless you have a use for them. I put them in my compost.
- Put zucchini and yellow squash noodles in a strainer in the sink. Give a good coat of salt (1/2 to 1 Tbsp of Kosher salt) to release water & gently mix (I used my hands). Let sit. Mine sat about 10-15 mins, I guess.
- While noodles are sitting, bring a pot (pasta pot) of water to boil. And chop bell peppers.
- When water starts to boil, rinse the noodles in cold water to remove some of the salt and put noodles in boiling water for one minute.
- After one minute, remove, strain, and immediately rinse with cold water to stop the cooking.
- In the pot, heat a Tbsp of olive oil and 2-3 sliced garlic cloves. Heat just long enough to soften the garlic, you don't want to brown the oil or garlic.
- Add noodles to olive oil and garlic pan. Toss right away. Add bell peppers to noodles and stir occasionally on medium heat for 5 mins.
- You can serve as is. For this meal I also completed the following steps to make spaghetti.

Ground Turkey & Italian Sausage
- Heat 1 Tbsp of olive oil (to help the turkey from getting too dry as it cooks) in a large pan or pot.
- Remove the sausage from the skin tubing so it can be ground and mixed with the lean ground turkey.
- Once pan is hot, add sausage and ground turkey.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Continue to mix and cook until meat is thoroughly brown.

Sauce
Note: I typically chop my own tomatoes and make my sauce from scratch, but I was running low on time and decided to doctor a low sugar canned tomato sauce. Premade spaghetti sauces I found were loaded with sugar and unnecessary ingredients.
- Pour 29oz can of tomato sauce into a large food processor or blender.
- I added a cup of water by filling the tomato can 1/4 of the way twice so I could get all of the tomato sauce out of the can. Pour water into food processor.
- Chop about 4 Tbsp of onion chives (it was fresh in my garden; feel free to use what you like). Add to food processor.
- Add a handful of parsley to the food processor (again, it was fresh in my garden).
- Add 4-5 garlic cloves to the food processor.
- Toss one tsp of Rosemary in the food processor.
- Include 1 Tbsp of Tarragon in the food processor.
- Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Mix ingredients in food processor until you have your desired consistency.
- Pour ingredients from food processor to sauce pot on the stove and lightly heat and stir occasionally.

Now just build it... Noodles, then turkey, then pour sauce on top. Using the amounts above, I was able to make 8 servings, which included 5oz of turkey with each serving. Feel free to add, remove, change any of the herbs used to suit your liking. I just used what was on hand, and my family really enjoyed it! I hope you do, too!

Don't be intimidated by the meal. It came together quickly (something I did while home alone with my 2 year old) and was very easy. Enjoy!

Oatmeal Pancake Cupcakes

Recipe: Donnie Cochran (my husband), cooking instructions by Gwaltney Foods

Gwaltney Foods Link: http://www.gwaltneyfoods.com/food-fun/?fun=sausage_pancake_bites

Recipe/Cochran Review: My husband is the true morning chef in our house. He's been tweaking and perfecting his pancake mix for quite awhile now. I found a fun way to make pancakes through Pinterest. The Gwaltney Foods link said to mix pancakes as instructed and provided a unique cooking method for pancake bites... or as we like to call them, pancake cupcakes. Call anything shaped like a cupcake just that and our toddler will gobble it up! Parent trickery!

So, here it is. Donnie's recipe combined with Gwaltney Foods cooking method. Enjoy!

Oatmeal Pancake Cupcakes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease mini or full size muffin pans, your choice.

- 1 & 1/4 cup of oatmeal (ground in food processor or blender finely)

- 1/2 cup whole wheat flour

- 3 Tbsp of Greek yogurt or 1/4 cup of oil (we prefer yogurt)

- 1 tsp of baking soda

- 1 tsp of baking powder

- 1/4 cup sugar

- 1 tsp vanilla

- 1 & 1/4 cup of milk

- 1 tsp of apple cider

- 1 egg

- Extras desired: Turkey sausage crumbles, fruit, nuts, syrup, etc

In a small bowl, mix 1 & 1/4 cup of milk with 1 tsp of apple cider. Let this mixture stand for a minimum of 5 minutes.

In a large bowl, blend ground oatmeal, flour, Greek yogurt, baking soda, baking powder, sugar, vanilla, and egg. After milk & apple cider mixture has sat at least 5 minutes, combine in large bowl with other ingredients. If the mixture appears too runny, adjust by mixing in small amounts of additional flour.

Pour mixture into greased muffin pans. Add extras. For example, we like turkey sausage crumbles, strawberry & banana, strawberry & chocolate chip, toasted almond & syrup, etc. We even made one with apples, cinnamon, & nutmeg, like an apple pie! Yum! This is where you can get creative and personalize the pancakes.

Bake at 350 degrees for 13 minutes.

This baking method is great for several reasons:

- the cook can socialize with a cup of coffee instead of slaving over the stove

- little hands love to gobble the cupcakes up

- fun dipping into syrup or fruit compote, if you choose

- they freeze well; so, make a large batch during the weekend, and breakfast is quick with a reheat

- these travel well for breakfast on the go

- for those who struggle eating oatmeal, you'll never know you did

- And last, but not least... Toddler approved!



Hope you enjoy!

~ The Cochrans

Chicken and Avocado Soup


Recipe Inspiration from: Skinny Taste
Original Recipe: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2010/02/chicken-and-avocado-soup.html

Cochran Review: I say inspired and original above because I had to alter the original recipe cooking instructions in several ways to appeal to my boys. I'm sure I'd love the original recipe as is. We're having this for dinner tonight. Stay tuned for what we thought and pictures.

Rather than state my changes in a paragraph format, I thought it may be easier to just rewrite the recipe as I made it. So, here is how I prepared our dinner..

Chicken
- 5 cups of chicken broth
- 10 whole peppercorns
- 1 lime (sliced thinly)
- 2 bay leaves
- 4 raw boneless skinless chicken breasts
- pinch of cumin powder
- pinch of cayenne pepper powder

Place the chicken in the slow cooker. Sprinkle with peppercorns, cumin, cayenne pepper, and bay leaves. Toss lime slices on top. Pour chicken broth over top of everything. Cook on high 4-5 hours (5 if frozen) and low 6-8 hours (8 if frozen). Making the chicken is definitely a step you can do in advance.

Soup
- 1 tomato, diced
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1&1/2 cup of green onions, finely chopped
- 2 ripe avocados, mashed
- 1 cup of cilantro, finely chopped
- 1 lime sliced
- 2 tsp of grape seed oil
- ground sea salt & fresh pepper to taste
- 18 oz of whole wheat three cheese tortellini

In a large pot or dutch oven, heat grape seed oil. Saute tomato, garlic and green onions in pot about 3-5 minutes. Let cool enough to be safe to transfer to food processor. Blend saute mixture well in food processor.

When chicken is done, remove from slow cooker and shred or cut into bite sizes pieces. Strain broth (to remove fatty chicken pieces, peppercorns, bay leaves, and lime slices) into large pot or dutch oven used to saute vegetables. Bring to a boil. This is the base for your soup. Whisk saute mixture into soup base. Whisk mashed avocado into soup. Put tortellini and chicken into soup broth. Simmer, covered on low for 15-20 minutes.

To serve, place cilantro, lime slice(s), additional scallions (if desired) into a bowl, and ladle soup over top.

Mini Turkey & Veggie Meatloaves

Credit: One of my best friends, Marianne, found this through Perdue
Recipe: http://m.perdue.com/recipes/details.asp?id=143&titile=Mini

Cochran Review: This is my 100th post! Crazy to me that I've posted so many recipes! Thank you to all of you for having interest in what I'm cooking! My blog gets over 1,000 hits per month, which I find very humbling.

We are having these cute little mini turkey meatloaves for dinner tonight. I decided to throw a broccoli bunch and a carrot in the food processor to mix into the loaves. I like to sneak extra veggies in for our family in dishes like these where they go undetected.

These were good. My son (almost 2) helped with dinner. So, we served it with mac n' cheese. I don't know if it is because Thanksgiving is around the corner of what, but I'd like to try something fun and different with this. I'd like to put green beans in the food processor and mix with the turkey, seasonings, cheese and add stuffing instead of bread crumbs. Then I'd serve it on a bed of mashed potatoes and drizzle with gravy. I may have to try this soon! LOL! Enjoy!

Here's a pic from our dinner:

Banana Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip No Dairy Ice Cream

Credit: Disney Jr
Recipe: I didn't look up the recipe exactly. I just saw a commercial for it and made it up as I went along. I cut up 4 bananas in 1/2 inch slices and freeze. Once frozen, place bananas in food processor or blender and mix till smooth. Add 2 tablespoons of peanut butter. I used natural peanut butter. Then add a handful of chocolate chips. Mix until ice cream consistency.

Cochran Review: This is so yummy, and totally satisfies an ice cream fix without added sugar or dairy. Enjoy!

Fall Party Food & Decorating

A month or so ago I was watching The Chew, and Clinton Kelly had such a cute idea for a cheese selection display. I looked and can't find the idea online, so I don't have a link to share. However, I hosted two parties last month and made my own version. It was a huge hit with my guests, and I want to share with all of you. So easy, too!

First, I went shopping for fresh fruit, dry fruit, various cheeses, and crackers. Then I asked for paper bags from my local grocery. I cut the large rectangular sides out and taped them together with the grocer's name on bottom. Then I cut small pieces of wax/parchment paper to place on top of the bag, but under my cheeses. From there I cut the cheeses and fresh fruit. Then I arranged my snacks on the paper bags, labeling all of them with a sharpie marker right on the taped bags. Ta dah! I very approachable and casual cheese and fruit spread!

 

 

I decorated the tables with gourds drilled with candle size holes in them. I then placed candles in the holes and lite them. So cheap, easy, festive, and pretty! Careful to only to this a day in advance... they molded very fast. 

 

 

Slow Cooker Beer Chicken w/ Beer & Bacon Quinoa

This one is a combination of a recipe found on Pinterest and a creative moment on my part.

Slow Cooker Beer Chicken

 



Credit: LaaLoosh
Recipe: http://www.laaloosh.com/2012/07/09/crock-pot-beer-chicken-recipe/

Cochran Review: Easy to make and decent flavor. The flavor is good and can be eaten as is, but isn't so overwhelming that you can't make the leftovers into a new meal. I shredded the chicken and made quesadillas the next day.

The chicken made a very yummy au jus. I strained the au jus and served it to the side to be poured over our chicken and quinoa. I think next time I might by hoagies to have chicken french dip sandwiches with leftovers!

Pic of our au jus:

Beer & Bacon Quinoa

 

 

Credit: Jen Cochran, me!  :)

Recipe: Make quinoa as directed on side of box. Instead of water or broth, I used a bottle of beer, plus a little water to make up the 2 cups. Cook bacon on side to a crispy consistency... I used 4 thick cut pieces. Let bacon rest and cool. When quinoa is done, crumble bacon and mix with quinoa.

 

Comments: I wanted something to go along with the chicken recipe above. Beer chicken sounds very manly to me and so I thought, hmmm... what else do men love? Bacon! I think the quinoa was the star of this meal! We had chicken leftovers, but gobbled all of the quinoa up. Enjoy!

 



Chinese take out with a healthy focus

Guess who didn't make dinner last night? Me! We ordered Chinese take out per my husband's pleading to satisfy a recent craving. Is your jaw off the floor yet? :)

Why am I blogging about take out on my food blog, you may ask. Well, since our son was born we have done our best to keep eating healthy, but sometimes sleep deprivation and time have made eating out and sweets appealing more often than my waistline can handle. I'm really trying to stay focused on a healthy lifestyle again. Usually, I think all indulge and no smart choices when we decide on take out. What's the point, right? However, this time I agreed to take out, but did some research about making healthier choices before my husband got home.

Having a healthy lifestyle is about cooking at home, exercise, and making intelligent choices when you indulge while eating out. I found my research very eye opening and thought you may, too.

References:

• http://www.mensfitness.com/nutrition/what-to-eat/healthy-chinese-food
• http://www.fitsugar.com/How-Order-Healthy-Chinese-Takeout-24048436

Worst:

• Crispy
• Egg Rolls
• Spare Ribs
• Sweet & Sour
• Fried Rice

Best:

• Soup
• Chinese Vegetables
• Dim Sum/Dumplings
• Steamed, or other safe words Jum, Chu, Kow, & Shu
• Stir Fry - ask for light on oil

Top Soups

1. Wonton
2. Egg Drop
3. Hot & Sour

Top Meals

1. Moo Goo Gai Pan
2. Kung Pao Chicken
3. Beef & Broccolli

Tips:

• Ask for your food to be cooked Stock Velveted (in vegetable stock as opposed to oil). This can save 150-300 calories and 15-30 grams of fat.
• Always ask for half sauce. The ideal sauces are hot mustard, hoisin, and oyster. Sauces like sweet and sour, BBQ, General Tso's, etc have a lot of corn starch, which pack on the pounds.
• Have some fun, and use chopsticks! This will result in less sauce consumption and eating slower... all great things for eating healthier.

Hope this helps you next time you decide to enjoy take out! Enjoy!

2/14/12

Happy Valentine's Day!

I hope you're enjoying your day with the one's you love! We are enjoying a casual day/evening together. Tonight we will be having Cheesy Chicken Chilaquiles (recipe posted) with a salad. For dessert, Mickey Mouse Sugar Cookies and Natural Vanilla ice cream sandwiches... if you're a one year old, this is a special treat!  :)

Winter illnesses have made my posts a bit more sporadic, but I am doing my best to get back in the groove again.

If you've tried a recipe and have some feedback or tweaked it a bit different, feel free to post on the recipe comments and help us all make our dinner better!

Thanks for joining us for dinner!
~ Jen

2/6/12

Shhhh... we ate out tonight... well, in, but out. :) Crazy morning start resulted in no time for meal planning and me without a car to go to the grocery. Soooo, my husband picked up Crazy Bowls and Wraps for dinner and Dairy Queen for dessert on his way home from work. I'm not gonna lie, it was kinda nice not to cook on a hectic day!

I'm thinking I'll try a slow cooker applesauce chicken recipe tomorrow. Still trying to decide what to make with it. Suggestions? Requests for us to try something out for you? Also this week we will be having one of our favorite meals, a Creamy Spinach Ravioli. Yum! Not decided on the other meals yet. I seem to be having a difficult time getting excited about anything I've seen.

I received a new issue of Taste of Home today! I was so excited, because my first issue was AMAZING! Ehh... not so much this time. My husband flipped through it and agrees. It made me kinda sad.

I saw on another blogger's site tables that separated posts. I'm thinking this might be a good idea for my blog... chicken, beef, etc. What do you think? Much easier to go back and find a recipe, I think. So, I'll have to look into how to do this. Another project! :)

Well, it is late, I'm tired, and I'm making a gazillion typos. So, off to bed I go. Thanks for joining us for dinner tonight. See you tomorrow!
~ Jen

2/5/12

Happy Super Bowl Day!

Hope your day is full of friends, family, good food, funny commercials, and, oh yeah... a good football game! :) We also look forward to Puppy Bowl on Animal Planet in our house! So cute!

Sorry for the one week hiatus from blogging last week! Best explanation is life happened! LOL!

I started blogging on January 16, 2012, and as of the end of January had 1,006 page views! I find this so exciting!!! Thanks so much to all of you for checking in to see what we're having for dinner! The Blog Spot has offered an earning opportunity since we have been so successful. We are in the process of looking into this. I don't want ads to misrepresent my opinions or make viewing the blog cumbersome. That being said, it sure wouldn't hurt to make a little side cash for doing what I'm already doing. I'll keep you posted. Anyone already doing this with a blog? Or decide not to? I'd love to hear from you!

I posted the recipes we made last week, and our reviews are on the individual postings. Enjoy!

Today we are taking Pretzel Bites to our Super Bowl party. We will be making the garlic pamesan like in the past, but will also be trying the sweet version. I'll keep you posted. I haven't made a meal plan for the week quite yet. I hope to have that done soon.

Thanks for joining us for dinner! See you tomorrow... or soon if life happens.  :)
~ Jen

1/29/12

Hi everyone!
Hope you had a great weekend! We had a busy and fun weekend! So, Friday my son and I had a play date with Sara and her son! We had a great time and enjoyed the Chicken Salad with Avocado Dressing for lunch! My review is on the original post... don't miss this one!!! Yummy!!!!

Friday night, our son stayed with Grandma and Grandpa while my husband and I had a few friends over. We served pretzel bites, crescent pepperoni roll-ups, cucumber boats, summer guacamole with chili garlic sauce, and homemade salsa. I posted all of the recipes with our reviews. These are some great treats for upcoming Superbowl parties! Oh, I also made my well known turkey meatballs... I'll post that recipe tomorrow. To drink, the boys enjoyed beer while Thai and I tried a new yummy drink! We had chardonnay, ginger ale, sliced strawberries, and sliced peaches mixed together. It was refreshing and great! I'll post that recipe tomorrow, too. Running out of steam for the night!

Last night we got together with our good friends Greg and Mar and their kids. Mar served slow cooker lasagna and garlic cheese bread. If you haven't tried this, you should. We love it! Again, I can post this recipe tomorrow... there are a few variations. I'll try to post a couple so you have a choice. They're all good and easy, really.

Tonight we just threw together some turkey burgers. Nothing too special, but I can give you our recipe tomorrow with the others. I put leftover provolone cheese, lettuce, and avocado dressing on my and our son's burgers! YUM!!!! My husband put lettuce and leftover Hoisin Dressing on his. He said it was really great, too!

I'll be making this week's menu tomorrow. I didn't get a chance this weekend. I posted quite a few recipes today, but looks like I owe you a few more tomorrow.

Thanks for joining us for dinner. See you tomorrow.
~ Jen

1/25/12

Hi everyone!
Well, we had a bust tonight! My husband tried to make the Best Burger recipe and we think the hamburger meat was bad. I walked through the kitchen, smelled something, and checked our son's diaper. It is never a good start if your meat smells like a dirty diaper! My husband continued to cook it, and it continued to smell. He tried a small bite, and said it was awful. So, we had leftovers tonight.

I think I saved the night by making the 2 Minute Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake, tho! Yummy!!!!! Served it with vanilla ice cream... it is really the only way to have it!

Also, I made the Mixed Greens & Fruit Salad with Hoisin Dressing today for lunch. It was great! Check out our review on the original recipe post.

Tomorrow is Chicken with Rosemary Butter Sauce and Grilled Asparagus & Squash.

Thanks for joining us for dinner! See you tomorrow!
~ Jen

1/24/10

Hi everyone. My son and I are a little under the weather today. So, I'm going to keep this short. We had Pepperoni Penne Carbonara and Zesty Broccoli last night. It was a great meal! We really enjoyed it! Our reviews are on the original recipe posts. Enjoy!

Tonight we had slow cooker French Dip. It tasted as great as it smelled all day! I committed one of my own sins... I didn't make a vegetable. I planned to make Mixed Greens & Fruit Salad w/ Hoisin Dressing, but I ran out of steam this afternoon from being sick all day. Another change due to my illness is our Wednesday play date is moved to Friday. Maybe I'll try the salad I planned to have tonight with the Avocado Chicken Salad for Friday's lunch. We'll let you know how it is.

Thanks for joining us for dinner! See you tomorrow.
~ Jen

1/23/12 This week's meal plan

Well, it is a new week and time for a new meal plan! Here's what we are having:

Chicken with Rosemary Butter Sauce and Snow Pea Medley

Pepperoni Penne Carbonara and Zesty Broccoli (tonight)

Best Burger Ever and Grilled Asparagus & Squash with Lee Kum Kee Premium Soy Sauce

Slow Cooker French Dip and Mixed Greens and Fruit Salad with Hoisin Dressing

We are possibly going out Friday night. So, I have only planned four meals at this point. However, Wednesday my friend Sara and I have a play date with our little guys and we are trying Avocado Chicken Salad that we found on Pinterest! Yum! I'm so excited, because my grocery list consisted of a need for 5 avocados this week!!! I seriously <3 all things avocado!!!

Hope you had a great weekend, and you're enjoying the posted recipes! I'll post a review about tonight's dinner soon!

~ Jen

1/20/12

Well, today is my sixth day blogging! What are your thoughts so far? I'm really enjoying it! Plus, it is like an easy online meal planner for me! It seems several of you have interest in last night's meal, Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken & Cheddar Quesadillas. It got 16 views so far, and rightfully so! We really enjoyed it! I posted our detail review on the original recipe post last night. Hope you enjoy!

I didn't have leftover Chicken Milano yesterday. So, I haven't posted a pic. I found leftover Cranberry Sweet-and-Sour Pork in the fridge that I needed to eat. It was from a pre-blogging meal and oh so yummy! I posted the recipe if you're interested.

Taste of Home Simple & Delicious... So, I'm sure you've noticed several recipes on my blog are from this magazine. There's a reason for that. About mid-December I received an issue in the mail and a note that my Aunt Sherry signed me up for a subscription! So, many yummy looking recipes in one issue! I just had to start trying them! We haven't been disappointed! I love the 30 minute meals that are truly 30 mins! Love that! Before blogging I tried a few recipes we really enjoyed. So, I posted them today for you. Enjoy!

Herbs - So, I've always wanted to try herbs in a tube. I've seen them on TV shows and at the grocery. I've been a little hesitant, because they seemed a little pricey if I didn't like them and I love fresh produce. Well, lately, herbs have been less than desireable at the grocery and my produce stand isn't carrying much more than fire wood due to the winter months. I decided to give them a go, and they are AH-mazing! Love them! So easy, time efficient, claim to be as close to fresh without being fresh, taste fresh, and keep so much longer! Now maybe when Cinco de Mayo comes around I might crave the smell of fresh cut cilantro again, but for now I'm loving my herbs in a tube!!!

Tonight, I'm kinda taking the night off. We have leftover premade pizza crusts, basil pesto sauce, chicken from last night, mozzarella cheese, garlic, and bell peppers. So, we'll be having leftover pizza while we watch the Mizzou and Blues games! Go Tigers and Blues!

Thanks for joining us for dinner! See you tomorrow!

1/19/12

Good morning... almost afternoon!
I'm guessing I won't be posting Tuesday/Thursday nights since I'm now doing cardio those nights at the gym. Sorry if this delay is inconvenient for you, but it is all in the name of being healthy and heart strong!

Big day yesterday! I submitted a picture to Wholly Guacamole's Facebook contest of the inside of my fridge and won a prize pack! Talk about big winnings!!! Check it out!!

I'm so excited about this! The products are actually Asian inspired by Lee Kum Kee. So, I will be making lettuce wraps again next week or finding a new recipe! So fun!! Stay tuned to see what I decide on! I know, I know... you can't sleep due to the anticipation!  :)

For those of you who don't know about Wholly Guacamole, get on board, people! It is, in my opinion, the best pre-packaged guacamole around! Natural ingredients and healthy! Love it! I also enjoy the individual 100 calorie packs they make! We all know how fast guac turns brown, and this really helps me get some life out of it! I find it in the produce section at my grocer... yes, so fresh it is with the produce!

Last night's dinner, Chicken Milano & Garlic Brussels Sprouts, was easy, tasty, and light! We all really enjoyed it! Lots of garlic! Yum! We won't have an issue with vampires any time soon! :) See our detail review on the original recipe posts.

Tonight's dinner is Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Quesadillas. I chose the high temp for 4 hours to cook the chicken, but this recipe says low for 8 hours is good, too. That's nice for those of you working the 9-5 shifts! It smells so good already! I skipped a few steps. I'll update you on how it goes after we try it.

Thanks for joining us for dinner! See you tonight!

1/18/12

Good evening!
Tonight we enjoyed Pasta & Broccoli Sausage Simmer from Taste of Home. It was very good and can feed an army! Hope you're hungry! See our review on the original recipe post.

One thing I'm loving about Taste of Home recipes is when it says 30 mins it legitimately takes me 30 mins! I don't find that to be true when I'm following a Rachael Ray 30 min meal. Maybe I'm a slow chopper, but often preparing the food for "30 min meals" takes me 30 mins, much less cooking it. Tonight I started at 5:03pm, had my one year old between my legs most of the time because my husband got caught at work and in traffic, prepped the food, cooked it, cleaned up, switched laundry, and our meal was ready at 5:33pm! I kid you not! Impressive!

We also had the Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Crescents tonight! Talk about yummy and easy! Two of my favorite things! See our review on the original recipe post.

Tomorrow is Chicken Strips Milano and Garlic Brussels Sprouts. I forgot the brisket last night included a garnish salad. So, I decided to switch my original plan and make the sprouts tomorrow night.

Thanks for joining us for dinner tonight. See you tomorrow!
Jen

1/17/12

Good morning!

I started back at the gym... can't use the excuse I just had a baby anymore.  :)  Tuesdays and Thursdays I do cardio at the gym with my mom after she gets off work. It is so fun to do together! Dad comes over to hang with my husband and son and then we eat dinner all together. It is really a great night! That being said, after working out, eating, cleaning up, showering, visiting, and doing our son's night time routine, I was just too worn out to blog. Don't let that be an indication of last night's dinner, however! Slow Cooker BLT Brisket was Dee-lish!!! Check out my review on the original recipe post! You won't be sorry!

Tonight we will be having the Pasta & Broccoli Sausage Simmer. Stay tuned for our review!

Thanks for joining us for dinner! See you tonight!
Jen

Food Substitutions

This morning I was throwing my ingredients in my slow cooker for the BLT Brisket. It calls for 2 Tbsps of honey, but my son is not supposed to have honey until he turns 2. So, I went to a site I use often to search for a honey substitution: http://www.joyofbaking.com/IngredientSubstitution.html

Substituting ingredients is an easy way to make a meal healthier or meet your family's dietary needs. For example, I always swap regular flour for whole wheat flour, or I often swap butter out for olive oil.

I hope you find this site useful, too.
Jen