A few days ago, the kids really wanted some corn on the cob. It is not corn season, but who am I to say “no” to kids wanting to eat healthy food?! So corn it is! Since I’m not a griller, I needed to find a quick, weeknight friendly recipe to whip up this corn on the cob. Simple Genius had the perfect recipe. Typically we grill corn on the cob, but roasting it in the oven provided to be even tastier and juicier than usual. Ingredients: Aluminum foil rimmed baking sheet 4 ears of corn, husks and silks removed butter sea salt Directions: Preheat your oven to 450* Prepare…
Organic Black Bean Spaghetti with Heirloom Tomatoes
I’ve had some serious writers block lately, but I felt the need to share this meal with you since it was super flavorful and easy. It’s perfect for weeknight cooking and a healthy alternative to some of the carb filled pasta we normally eat. Black bean pasta is relatively new and trendy. This brand cooks up like a typical pasta would in boiling water for about 6 minutes. Be careful how you boil/simmer. It’s actually more of a simmer now that I think about it. The pasta boils and gets very frothy, easy to spill out of your pan (which happened to me twice while I was making this). Ingredients…
Creamy Chicken-Tomato Skillet
Costco had a ton of those cute little cherry tomatoes on sale today – so we have to use them up. This recipe is from the May 2018 Cooking Light Magazine and is 20 minutes to make + super comforting. If you’re looking to spice up your weeknight meal plan, this is it! Ingredients 1 tbsp olive oil 1# skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite size pieces 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp pepper (about 30 grinds on your pepper mill) 1 cup grape tomatoes 1/2 cup sliced white onion 1 grated garlic clove 1 tsp rosemary 1 1/2 cups chicken stock 2 tbsp flour 1 package brown rice 3…
Pizza Night!
Some nights you just need some pizza and have a relaxing evening without dishes or a messy kitchen. Jets Pizza is conveniently located in Middleton, on our way home from Tennis Lessons and this week, we decided to stop inside and talk about food allergies with them. Jets is wonderful when it comes to food sensitivities. They have Gluten Free (GF) menu offerings. In addition, they do not have any nuts in their restaurants and make all of their own dough. We felt super confident that we could eat Jets pizza without cross contact issues, unlike some other pizza places that have nuts on some of their pizzas. When…
Zoodles & Marinara Sauce
Healthy pasta is my kind of pasta. Zoodles. Zucchini Noodles. Have you heard about these vegetarian noodles made from green herbs and vegetables? Well Ronzoni noodles are not exactly fresh Zoodles because that would require me to use an attachment on my Kitchen Aid mixer that I do not have (or have time to do tonight); however, these noodles are very similar and have zucchini in them. Actually, it’s a great combo of spinach, zucchini, broccoli, parsley and kale. This product is 100% nut free. And not made in a facility with other nuts. At first, we were not sure about green pasta. I mean, green is my favorite color, but…
Meal Inspo 4/16/18
Looking for some quick meal inspiration? We’ve had a ton of extra activities at school, and outside of school, that has required us to think super ninja fast for meal times. Actually, now that I think of it, making meals at home is REALLY hard. It requires some serious dedication to plan, purchase, cook, serve, and clean up! Our grocery bill this week was only $98 since we’re trying really hard to eat leftovers, only buy what we eat, and make the most out of what we have. Week after week, I throw away so much away because we just do not eat them or have the time to make…
Menu Planner
If you’re trying to minimize your trips to the grocery store, perhaps a menu planning list is for you. Most families do not have a chalkboard refrigerator like we do. And even if you do, you’re not always around the fridge to write down what you’re thinking about for dinner / snacks. Most of the time, families are on the go. I’ve been asked several times by friends if there is a paper method for planning meals that I prefer. Actually, Cara Clark Nutrition has a wonderful meal planner included in her food challenges if you want one from a real nutritionist. However, when I was shopping around at World…
Basic Bean & Ham Soup
Last week we had a lovely ham at my Mom’s house in Milwaukee for Easter Sunday. We came home with lots of leftovers. We decided to make a simple weeknight ham and bean soup. It was ready in 20 minutes. Very easy and most of the stuff you’ll probably already have in your fridge. If you don’t have ham, add extra beans. But the ham flavor actually really makes this soup. You don’t need to add any extra salt because the ham does it all. Ham & Bean Soup Ingredients: 2 cups cubed, fully cooked ham 2 celery stalks, chopped 2 carrots, peeled and chopped 1 yellow onion, chopped 4…
Slow Cooker Carnitas Tacos
Busy families, this one is for you! I highly suggest making it on a Sunday night so it’s ready for your busy week ahead. This is easy 2 or 3 meals for a family of 4. It was too sunny in our kitchen when I took this quick photo, but you get the idea of how YUMMY it was!!! We also sliced up some watermelon to eat with it, too. For a short cut, I picked up pre-made pico de gallo from Metcalfes produce section, but canned salsa works, too! I like quick toppings with little to no prep time. I griped a little on IG live about this recipe…
Spring Carbonara
If you saw me on IG live cooking, you certainly got a nice preview of this dish, Spring Carbonara, inspired by Cooking Light Magazine! Also, that was Neuskes Bacon in my mouth while I was talking, sorry about that. Sometimes you need to sample as you cook! Actually, I encourage it! This recipe sets up really quick, perfect for weeknight cooking. There are no short-cuts on this one, just super fast and easy. It’s almost asparagus season, and that makes me so happy because it’s a flavorful vegetable! Asparagus season reminds of when I was in Stuttgart, Germany, for work a few years ago. EVERYTHING had asparagus in it, and…
Chicken Breast & Pancetta Cream & Peas
On Sunday mornings, after reading a bit of the New York Times, I start to think about the week ahead, how busy it might be, and what we will have for dinner. Lately we’ve been so busy that I haven’t had much time to think about food, nor do I want to. I don’t day-dream about food, I just like eating it. Coming up with recipes is challenging sometimes, I get in ruts, and making sure we’re eating a diverse menu is important. Eating the same old stuff is boring, and we like to try new things all the time. For meal inspiration this week, I found some old Cooking…
Chicken Taco Soup
Tacos are so hot right now. If you’re a taco, you’re hash-tagged every Tuesday, you’re the go-to for weeknight cooking, you are a pantry staple, and you’re devoured within seconds of being served. If you’re a taco, you’re trending + extremely popular + accessorize well with others. You may even be on a cool t-shirt. Basically, Tacos are the new black. So what’s taco soup? Tonight, Carter decided to re-name this soup to Chicken Taco rather than Chicken Tortilla because, “Mamma, this is just like a taco in my soup bowl.” And he’s right! We poured a little soup in the bowl, topped with crushed tortilla chips, cheese and avocado.…
New York Times Risotto
Wisconsin was almost 50* on Saturday creating some amazing outside play time with gorgeous shining sun! We took advantage and played in the yard to shake off the winter grumps. It was wonderful. When we came inside, we were pooped and watched a movie and meal planned for the upcoming week. I don’t recommend the My Little Pony movie. As I was reading the New York Times today, I found a tasty risotto recipe. I love risotto and so do the kids. It’s like fancy mac n cheese. It takes a long time to make, but it’s a labor of love and you can literally see the creamy goodness set…
Roasted Vegetables & Quinoa
There’s that word again. Quinoa. Keen-wah. What is this stuff? Well, quinoa is considered to be a whole grain but it is a seed that can be prepared like rice or barley. Quinoa is cool because it’s flexible and can be used in many different recipes and the flavor is neutral so it goes with lots of cool things. Just like the color black. I love black. When in doubt wear black. With more black. Kids love quinoa, I call it pasta balls because it’s basically the same thing. If you make quinoa with a flavored liquid, like vegetable stock or chicken stock opposed to just water, you’ll enjoy it…
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