Ballpark Food

Well, once again it's been well over 90 today. Let me tell you what this does to me. It makes me cranky. It makes me tired. It makes me cranky. So. Here is how our day goes : wake up, shower, eat, play, shop, snack, shop, eat lunch, take a nap, shop, go swimming/workout, eat, shower, d's bedtime, ari sits on the computer :) 

With the weather being so disgusting, I've been craving really simple meals that don't require turning on a 400 degree oven. Today's activities just simply reminded me of hot summer days at the little league ballpark watching my dad coach and my brother play. We almost always got a FRITO PIE! MMMMM! I usually make these in the winter with my homemade chili, but today, it was popping open a can of veggie chili. 

Recipe :

Big ol' bowl of chili cheese fritos

big ol' scoop of veggie chili

big ol' handful of shredded cheese (some like velveeta)

big ol scoop of sour cream

Pile first three ingredients in a bowl, throw it in the microwave until desire hotness, slap on some sour cream, mix it all up and chow down! oooh... puppy chow sounds good.

Summa Time...!

It's officially summer, with temps hitting almost to 100! RIDICULOUS! Though we don't have a grill, I was craving something "summery" and thought "BURGERS!" yeah, well. I improvised. 

Black Bean Burgers

1 15oz can black beans

1 C bread crumbs

1 egg

1 pinch cayenne pepper

1 t garlic

1 t cumin

1/2 onion

1/2 red pepper

This is my own recipe and it's delicious! Except when you put in way to much cayenne pepper. I use a food processor to chop my onion and red pepper to avoid the teary eyed syndrome. I mush up my black beans with a fork, add the onion, red pepper and remainng ingredients and mix well. Form them into patties and bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Flip half way if desired :) In the last 5-10 minutes I throw on a slice of thick extra sharp wisconsin cheddar to make it extra delicious! Toast your buns and top with favorite hamburger dressings. 

To go along with this, I make homemade french fries. Simply because I HATE not knowing how my food is made. So .... I make little potato wedges with my handy dandy knife and coat them with an olive oil, cracked pepper and garlic mix and bake until golden brown and sizzly at 350! 

and to top it all of 

because it is SUMMER TIME! ...

Caramelized Banana Ice Cream

If you don't have an ice cream maker. Make it a priority. OMG. Best gift ever! (Thanks mom and dad!)

4-5 medium overripe bananas, sliced into 1" pieces

1 t cinnamon

1/4 c brown sugar

1 T melted butter

2 C heavy cream

1 C whole milk

1/2 C sugar 

2 t vanilla

Bananas: coat bananas with a mixture of butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes. Let cool completely. Blend until smooth. 

Ice cream: whisk together milk, cream, sugar and vanilla until sugar is dissolved. Add in cooled banana mixture. Chill. Follow your ice cream maker's directions to finish - YUMMMMM!

Back to Basics

At the end of this ridiculous week, I just didn't have much left in me. I have to give myself some serious kudos, though. Danika HATES vegetables. I know from my mom, my own experience, my own education that despite this fact, it's still important to offer them to her daily. I have to admit ... I'm not so good at that. Partially because Nate won't eat them, either, and so what's the point of taking time to cook veggies when I'm the only one eating them? 

Well. This week, so far, out of 6 days, Danika has had vegetables on her dinner plate 4 days! Yay me! Of course she didn't eat them, but this was a big step for me! 

The last few days ... dinner has consisted of ...

Friday: french bread pizza / caramelized apples and sweet potatoes

Saturday: Spaghetti / french bread / apple slices

At the moment? I'm enjoying a fresh cup of hot peppermint tea as I sit in a comfy chair at Barnes and Noble. There are just some very simple and enjoyable moments in life and this happens to be one of them...

A Big Problem!

So ... there's a problem with cooking all these new dishes. I can't stop eating! Yes, MOST of it is relatively healthy, but good heavens! I sure hope I can control myself when I'm not pregnant anymore. Although, I've only gained 1 pound in the last 3 weeks, so ... ugh ... guess it's not much of a problem. 

I have another new favorite dish. It's sitting in a bowl next to me right now. I don't have a lot of room in my tummy, so I'm trying to spread it out a bit so I can enjoy a lot more! What is this magical dish? ...

Chicken and Vegetable Peanut Noodles

1/2 bag Quorn chicken tenders

1/2 C smooth peanut butter

2 T soy sauce

2 t chile - garlic paste

2 t chopped garlic cloves

1 t ground ginger root

8 oz  noodles of choice 

12 oz chopped vegetables

Cook chicken according to package directions. Cook noodles according to package directions, less 1 minute. I used organic whole wheat soba noodles. YUM! While chicken and noodles are cooking, cook vegetables of choice (I used baby carrots and broccoli for some delicious color!)  in a method of your choice ... I chose to use my babycook to steam them. 

While noodles, chicken and veggies are cooking, whisk together peanut butter, soy sauce, chile paste, ground ginger, and garlic. It will be thick - no worries! 

When noodles have 1 minute left to cook, add in vegetables and continue to boil for one minute. Save 1 cup of cooking water, and continue to drain the noodles and veggies. Run under cold water to refresh the noodles and veggies. Remember that 1 C of cooking water? Mix it into the peanut butter sauce! I know ... it sounds odd, and I was skeptical. But the hot water dissolves and blends all the yummy flavors together and massively thins it out to a perfect consistency. Once mixed well, add the peanut sauce, noodles, chicken and veggies together and toss. Serve hot or cold. 

Thoughts: 

Him: At a bible study - has his mouth watering in anticipation! 

Her: This is DELICIOUS! One of my new favorites, for sure. It's a BIT spicy so next time I'll back off the spices or chile paste a tad, but it has such a wonderful flavor. It's a great way to sneak in some vegetables without them being in your face and having to force them down. The sauce mixture tastes delicious on it all! 

D : Nummy nummy nummy (noodles) yuck (carrots). She couldn't get enough of the noodles! It might as well have been mac and cheese for all she was concerned ... they were going in faster than I could have ever imagined. However, when she got a carrot slice, she spit it out. I know she loved carrot puree as a baby, I guess maybe she's just not a fan of the texture ... not to self- find recipes to include veggie purees. 

Overall - MORE PLEASE! 

Dessert - I had a handful of fresh raspberries and am on my way to make my first batch of ice cream for the summer ... banana! 

Always Hungry!

Seriously. I am so tired of eating every stinking hour. The food I make is delicious but good heavens, it'd be nice to stop shoving my face full. 

Tonight's adventure? Red Curry Tofu with Brown Rice and Vegetables

1 pound sweet potatoes, 1" cubed

1 pack extra firm tofu, 1" cubed

4 T canola oil

1/2 C veggie broth

2 t red curry paste

1 T brown sugar

1 14 oz can lite coconut milk

2 T lime juice

2 C instant brown rice

In a small pan, heat oil and cook tofu in 2 T oil until browned. As it's cooking, heat 2 T oil and cook sweet potato about 5 minutes. Add coconut milk, veggie broth, and curry paste. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for 5-10 minutes (at this point I added in frozen cauliflower, carrots and snap peas). Add in brown sugar and tofu and let simmer for an additional 5 minutes. Cook instant brown rice (um, or non instant if you have time and patience) and mix into delicious curry sauce! 

Thoughts: 

Him ...(from her) Um. I didn't bother asking :) I went to prenatal yoga and left him to eat on his own, as I didn't want to hear complaints about tofu! 

Her: Eh. I've had better. It was an easy recipe to follow, but maybe my taste buds were just not having it tonight. It wasn't very heavy, which I'm feeling the need for these days. It could have had added some spiceness, maybe, but the sweet potato in it was PHENOMENAL. Yum! 

D: She ate a few sweet potatoes before feeling the need to dip them in her milk, which led her to eat no more. She wrinkled her nose when she touched the tofu and I knew THAT was out. But she ate quite a few spoonfuls of the rice/curry sauce mixture, so I can call it somewhat of a success.

Verdict ... great idea, need a new recipe. this was not a winner for the Hall family. 

MMM HMMM!

I had a daycare kiddo for 13 hours today, so I was WHOOPED by dinner time ... I resorted to a very basic yet oh so delicious dinner ...

Veggie Head Fajitas

1/2 bag Quorn Chicken Tenders

1 orange bell pepper

1 yellow bell pepper

1 T chopped garlic

1 large tomato, chopped

sour cream, salsa, guacamole (optional)

flour tortillas

MMMMMMMMMMM.

And to top it all off? A mint chocolate chip ice cream sandwich. MMMMMMMMMM.

Disaster Strikes! - Homemade Manicotti

Happy Memorial Day! What a beautiful day it has been, despite the fact it started at 5:45 am :) It was well worth it! The Banks family participated for the 2nd year in the Bolder Boulder, the 2nd largest 10k race in the country, with 55,000 runners/walkers. At 27 weeks pregnant, my momma and I clocked in at just under 2 hours ... we did good, especially considering that daggon hill at the end! 

A workout like that requires a superstar dinner, especially because "lunch" came from the goodie bags we earned, consisting of 2 bags of Boulder potato chips, a bag of fruit snacks and a fruit bar. I KINDA snuck in some McDonald's fries and a sweet tea on the way home (and enjoyed every single fry). So ... after playtime with D, and nap time for me ... it was onward and forward to the TRUE challenge of the day... homemade manicotti (including noodles). 

I was a little concerned about how all this would turn out, but the "noodles" actually weren't TOO terrible to make, and actually quite a bit quicker than boiling a huge pot of water and cooking boxed noodles. The noodles were actually a crepe mix, to be filled with a ricotta mixture and baked with sauce. I was cooking my last few noodles, and as they were frying I started to make the filling ... only to find my container of ricotta cheese was covered in "fur", a whole 2 weeks before the expiration date! I was devastated. It WAS going to be SO good! 

However. The upside. I got to eat the last of the leftovers of the Creamy Summer Chicken Pasta! Teeeheehee. 

The recipe below is one that I used for the noodles and would have used for the filling, with the addition of some garlic, roasted red pepper, basil and oregano for some more flavor. I can't say how it would have turned out, but because I am simply amazing!, I can guess it would have been delicious. Enjoy! 

Noodles: 

1.5 C all purpose flour

1 C milk

1/2 t salt

3 eggs

Filling: 

1.5 lbs ricotta cheese

1 C shredded cheese of choice (romano?)

1 egg

herbs as desired

1 jar pasta sauce

Directions: Whisk together all noodle ingredients in a mixing bowl. In a lightly oiled pan, drop 2 T of batter into the pan to create a 5" circle and fry until set ... do not flip. Seperate finished noodles by sheets of wax paper so as not to make them stick. 

Preheat oven to 350. Mix together filling ingredients. Spread half a jar of your favorite pasta sauce in the bottom of your pan. Drop 2-3 t of filling into the center of each noodle and wrap. Place crease side into the pasta sauce. Use remaining sauce to cover the noodles, and if desired top with more cheese! Cover and bake for 20 minutes, uncover and bake for a remaining 20 minutes ... sprinkle with even more cheese and enjoy! 

A Busy Week!

The next week ahead is going to be pretty hectic! I will be cleaning our home in preparation for a yard sale (my way of collecting funds for a daddy's day present)! The week starts off with a Memorial Day 10K ... being pregnant will make it quite interesting! I have my daycare kiddos with me on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday ... whew! Thursday is filled with my 28 week appointment and putting together Danika's new toddler bed! WOOHOO! So ... meals this week are pretty simple and filled with basics for my own sanity. They include (so watch out for!) ...

Monday - homemade manicotti (noodles included!) *

Tuesday - Fajitas

Wednesday - Red Curry Noodles with Tofu *

Thursday - Vegetarian taco salad *

Friday - French Bread Pizza with pineapple and roasted red pepper

Saturday - Baked ziti *

Sunday - Black bean burgers with tahini sauce * 

* recipe will be posted at some point! 

A Delightful Dessert!

As it seems I am making about 2-3 new recipes each week, and in general I try to be relatively healthy or modify recipes to be lower fat/cholesterol, I figure I can try my hand at this baking thing occasionally. It seems about once a week I try a new recipe that leads to my mouth watering and many sneak bites along the way. 

This week? Cherry Cobbler! I'm not so much a fan of the canned cherry pie filling as the syrup is just too "high fructose corn syrup" tasting. After eating so healthy for so long, it's easy to pick out the crap. So, I found a recipe using fresh cherries and simple steps :) 

I bought my cherries and realized I had no cherry pitter! ARGH! It took me a good 1/2 hour to halve and pit 2 C of cherries, but it brought back memories of picking cherries with my gramma willie in the beautiful Colorado summer. Apple, strawberry and cherry picking are some of the few and special memories I have with her. She always made the best pies! 

This was a delicious "cobbler" that was a perfect compliment to a thunderstormy evening snuggled up with the husband watching "The Blind Side". 

Serves 12 

Crust:

1/2 C Butter

! C flour

1 C sugar

1 t baking powder

1 C milk

2 t nutmeg

2 t cinnamon

2 T brown sugar

Filling

2 C pitted cherries

1 T flour

3/4 C sugar

1 T brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350. Melt butter in a 9x13 pan. While butter is melting, in a small bowl mix remaining crust ingredients together. Pour over melted butter.  Mix cherries and remaining filling ingredients together, evenly coating the cherries. Pour into the crust and butter mixture, do not stir. Bake at 350 for 50-60 minutes. Crust should be golden brown. 

Critique :

Him: AMAZING! No complaints here! 

Her: Absolutely delicious! The original recipe did not call for cinnamon, nutmeg or brown sugar at all - that was my contribution, so add as much as little as you enjoy, or leave out all together. There was WAY too much butter ... yes, I LOVE butter, but it was settling on top of the cobbler and kinda ruined it for me. I will halve the butter next time. I halved this entire recipe and made it in an 8x8 pan, so I wouldn't eat as much :) I'm glad I added in brown sugar, as it seemed to crystallize the crust and was outstanding! 

Creamy Summer Chicken Pasta

I am just so excited that summer has arrived! Some of my very favorite things about this season include ... 

ICE CREAM! Blueberry pies. Peaches. Nectarines. Strawberry Shortcakes. Dog parks. ICE CREAM. In fact, I think I'll go have an ice cream sandwich now! Margaritas (virgin this year .... ). looking forward to Danika running through the sprinklers. American flags waving in the wind. Thunderstorms. Iced sweet, refresshing tea. Lemonade. Ice cream. :) Just a few! Always more ... 

One of my favorite things is the availability of inexpensive, but healthy and fresh fruits and veggies. When I was pregnant with Danika through the summer, I ate 5-6 peaches DAILY! Delicious! Here is a recipe that I made 2 days ago and will make many times more ...

Creamy Summer Chicken Pasta

2 C Heavy Whipping Cream (you know when THAT is the first ingredient, it will be good!)

1 T Butter

2 C Shredded Cheese

2 Zucchini, peeled and sliced

2 Squash, peeled and sliced

1 C grape tomatoes, halved

3 T olive oil

2 T Garlic

1 T Rosemary

8 oz spiral pasta

chicken (I used 1/2 bag Quorn chicken tender substitute)

Cook spiral pasta according to directions on label. While the pasta is cooking, warm heavy whipping cream and butter until butter melts. Add cheese and stir until melted ... take off heat but keep warm. 

In the meantime, heat oil and 1 T garlic ... sautee squash and zucchini until tender. 

Heat 1 T oil and 1 T garlic ... cook chicken as normal (Not sure what that means!) ... sprinkle rosemary over chicken as it cooks. 

Once pasta has been drained, add cheese sauce, vegetables, tomatoes, and chicken to the pasta, stir well. Allow to cook and sauce to thicken, about 10 minutes. Enjoy! 

Critique: 

Him: I wish I had real chicken! It was a delicious meal, but as I am not a fan of zucchini (or veggetables in general) I would have prefered them to be left out. 

Her: OMG! Most favorite meal I've had in a long time! It was absolutely delightful, and a little bit sinful knowing how much fat there was in this :) I think next time I might substitute fat free evaporated milk for a lower fat meal. The combination of squash and zucchini added a nice flavor and the tomatoes added an occasional surprise bite! Danika loved the noodles (noodoos) and even didn't seem to mind the veggies! This is definitely a keeper!

Falafel PItas

SO ... a couple years ago I was in a pretty serious relationship ... that is, we were pretty serious about food! This gentleman was a wonderful person, just clearly not for me. I learned a LOT from him, as he is a cancer survivor, originally diagnosed with Stage 4 Lymphoma. Chances were slim that he would survive, and after many traditional chemo treatments failed, he turned to a very rigorous diet and exercise program, including a nearly 100% organic and raw diet. Upon achieving remission, he continued to carry those lifestyle habits with him. 

After several months of dating, we found ourselves cooking dinner together almost every night. Let me tell you ... by honoring his comittment to an organic and ridiculously healthy diet, my grocery bill skyrocketed ... a big change from easy mac bowls and soy dogs! It was well worth it, though ... I discovered my love for running and eating a healthy and well balanced vegetarian diet, which I carried with me for much longer than I carried our relationship. 

One of the "discoveries" I uncovered is how much disgusting and unpronouncable CRAP is in a lot of boxed food items, though there are some not as bad things out there. One of my favorite "boxed" food items is falafel ... yep! Just add water and DEEP FRY! Healthy, right? Hmm. 

So, the last few months I've been testing out a few different homemade falafel recipes ... and this time even baked them for a healthier alternative! Here is the recipe I followed ...

1 15 oz can garbanzo beans

1 onion

1 egg

2 cloves chopped garlic

2 tsp cumin

1 tsp coriander

pinch cayenne

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp lemon juice

1 C dry bread crumbs

pinch salt/pepper

Using a fork (apparently a food processor will not create the right texture), mash up garbanzo beans until kinda creamy ... I found it helped to microwave the beans for 30-45 seconds to soften them before mashing. In a food processor, blend garlic and onion until smooth. Add into garbanzo mush, mixing in the egg and all spices, lemon juice and baking soda. Gradually add in dry bread crumbs until desired texture is attained. 

Roll into 2 inch balls and flatten into patties. Bake at 450 for 20 minutes on the first side, flip patties and bake for 10 minutes on alternate side. Let cool. 

Yogurt Dill Sauce 

1 6 oz container plain yogurt

1/2 cucumber, seeded, peeled and finely chopped

1 T dill

The original recipe also called for 1 T mayonnaise, but it was great without it. Mix all ingredients together ... I HATE chopping, so I dumped all ingredients into my food processor along with a clove of chopped garlic ... and WALLAH! Delish! 

Pile on falafel patties (1 used 3-4), yogurt dill sauce, lettuce, tomatoes, sliced cucumbers onto a whole wheat flatbread and chow down! 

Delicious side dish : Tabouleh with grape tomato and avacado :) 

Critique: 

Him: It had a good flavor, but I'd rather have it fried

Her: Delicious! It was much tastier knowing it wasn't ladden with oil, but it lacks in protein so it didn't satisfy for very long. But then again I'm pregnant and need to eat hourly anyway...

Goat Cheese Pasta with Chicken and Tomatoes

Disclaimer : At any given time, when I refer to chicken, it is usually meant to refer to Quorn Chicken Substitute. 

Ingredients: 

Chicken, as much as you want, cubed

2 oz goat cheese

8 oz mezze penne pasta

3/4 C Olive Oil

1 C grape tomatoes, halved

2 T chopped garlic

1 T Thyme

1. Boil enough water to cook pasta ... follow general pasta cooking directions or read the box :)

2. While pasta is in the process of cooking, oil, add in garlic, thyme and tomatoes. Simmer until tomatoes are tender and oil is aromatic and flavorful!

3. Cook chicken according to general chicken cooking directions. 

4. Once pasta has been drained, stir in 2oz of crumbled goat cheese and stir until thoroughly melted and coating the pasta. Add in chicken and herb/tomato infused oil and mix thoroughly. 

5. EnjoY! 

Wifey's Critique: Definitely needs more cheese, but it was simply delicious :) The grape tomatoes were delicious with the goat cheese, but I have to make a substitution next time. QUorn makes a "chicken" breast that has goat cheese and cranberries in the middle which is just to die for. I wonder how it would taste to add in dried cranberries in place of the tomatoes (not cooked, of course, just added in the end)... mmmmmm 

A Few of My Favorite Things

I decided to start blogging about my cooking adventures, simply because I've gotten such joy out of them. I never, ever imagined I'd be a wife that makes a delicious dinner each night ... grilled cheese and tomato soup, french bread pizza, and pasta with salad used to be my gourmets! Somewhere in this pregnancy I started to get an inkling for more flavorful dishes and thus began my adventures in cooking. I started menu planning, which actually reduced my grocery bill dramatically. I had a challenge ahead of me, as my husband LOVES meat, and I refuse to cook it in fear of food poisoning him or Danika. So ... began the journey of finding dishes everyone in my family would love that would satisfy this little baby growing in my belly. 

A few of my favorite things I've discovered over the last few months ...

* Quorn hydrolyzed vegetable protein meat substitutes (particularly chicken)

* a wide range of sizes in cooking pots, pans and baking dishes ... 

* silicone baking pans in a variety of sizes

* ricotta cheese. feta cheese. goat cheese. CHEESE. 

* Herbs

* storage containers for leftovers :)