eat your veggies

{image via 101 cookbooks}

as the weather warms up, as i get older and my kids seem to always be coming down with some sickness, i have the inspiration to eat healthier. i tend to think we are a pretty healthy family, but i admit i can slide and buy some rediculously huge bag of doritos at costco and feel like a total mom fail; because inevitably this is all they want to eat for every snack. 

on the flip side i think maybe there is too much pressure out there to feed your family perfectly healthy, organic everything, fresh from the farm, vegan, and balanced food that is not always necessarily affordable and something they want to eat. 

so i guess we can settle somewhere in the middle? keep it balanced folks. so last night we had a very healthy meal of salmon (which my kids love…win win) green beans and spanish potatoes. then there are the losing tired nights where i let them all get corn dogs from sonic. seriously? 

back to that healthy effort. right. here’s some inspiration to get on that path. sorry if ive been a little confusing in this effort. i just love a good donut, what can i say?

this breakfast salad looks like a nice way to start the day

im thinking a sriracha rainbow noodle salad could be the perfect summer lunch munch

a summer cake that is on the healthier side, i mean i just know cake is good for you

making your own bread is a goal i strive to master. i have tried it here and there but nothing i do consistently. this one looks yummy!

and this chinese chicken noodle soup looks so cozy and just right, even in warm weather, i can still dig a good soup

please share some of your favorite healthy meals or food blogs you go to for inspiration! i’d love to hear what you have to share! peace. and happy weekend! summer is here!!!!!!!

raspberry buttermilk muffins.

what to do with all those delicious berries coming out right now? besides eating them for snacks, i love putting them in little muffins for the kids, or myself with an afternoon coffee. 

here’s a happy little everyday recipe for you, just for you. 

raspberry muffins:

2 1/2 c. flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 heaping cup of sugar
5 tablespoons of soft butter
1/4 c. veg oil
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon of almond extract
1/2 c. buttermilk
1/2 c. fresh raspberries (or your berry of choice)

streusal topping (optional)

preheat oven to 350
combine and whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.

in a separate bowl or mixer beat sugar and butter until light in color; then slowly add veg oil and whisk well. add eggs one at at time, and then vanilla. add half of flour, mix a bit then add the buttermilk. add remaining flour, and mix until it comes together into a nice batter but do not over mix. fold in raspberries gently.
top with streusal if desired. 

scoop into lined muffin tins. bake for about 20 minutes or until done. 

grocery lists and dinner.

{my desk…usually graced with a cup of coffee}

do you love lists? do you set a menu for the week? i find it very helpful to do this before heading to the grocery. its keeps waste to a minimum and is less stressful knowing what you are making ahead; so on a busy week night you dont have to think, and can even sometimes get ahead of the game and prep dinner early. im not saying i do this too often but when i do, (cue. dos equis guy) the after school madness is much less stressful. 

{a sample of my list for the week and dinner schedule}

so basically the approach i take is first taking inventory of what we have, and what we need. i write down things we have i could use and try to incorporate them into meals. 

i have columns of produce, meats/breads/etc, and dairy/other things like soap and toilet paper. for some reason that works for me; not sure why. i try to pick something special with a good dessert for sundays. during the week i aim for a few simple things. i look through cookbooks and on blogs for dinner ideas and inspiration. 

how do you plan out the week? any favorite family dinners you want to share? 

here are a few of my favorite blogs for dinner ideas:

dinner a love story
smitten kitchen
101 cookbooks
not without salt

i’ll get together some of my favorite cookbooks to share with you later. promise. 

and so for this weeks line up we have, drumroll. . .

sun. grilled pork chops, twice baked potatoes, and mix green salad
mon. aunt emily’s asian chicken pasta salad with spinach and scallions
tues. veggie/quinoa soup, bread and fruit
wed. hot dogs, broccoli slaw salad, pineapples and mangoes
thurs. tomato soup + grilled cheese
fri. order pizza, im pooped. 

happy planning!

wish i knew you.

this weekend has left me feeling full and grateful. we were blessed with perfect crisp springy weather; a welcome change after that peek of summer this past week. i found a new song to obsess over and play thirty times while cleaning my house. ‘mom, youre playing it again?’ yes, sorry. your hint is the title of this post…name that band folks and you get a golden star. an imaginary one, but nevertheless you are the winner.

lets see… saturday morning spent cleaning, then a bit of swimming. an impromtu open house visit that turned out to be a really legitimate house we could go for, but try not to get your hopes up bc this house hunt is exhausting on the old emotions right? 

made it home to watch mary poppins, did some dancing, bc you know, step in time. “its the master!” 

a chilly windy sunday morning, mass and wiggly kids. then an fabulous afternoon, early mother’s day celebration brunch at el charro. delish and oh so lovely. a few tears of laughter shed; always a good thing. then home for dinner prepping, and making a strawberry rhubarb crisp with my favorite kitchen helpers, chef dec, mike and fran. needless to say many strawberries were consumed in the process. 

and top that off with some fabulous sidewalk jumping! thats a wrap. and for all interested parties, here is what i can tell you about that fruit crisp. easy peasy; here’s a loose rendering of what we did:

set oven to 425 bc your are already baking potatoes in there for dinner.
chop a pint of strawberries and three large stalks of rhubarb up and place in a bowl. add a half cup of sugar, 2 T flour, hefty pinch of salt, dash of vanilla and almond extract, and juice of half a lemon.
toss well.
melt half a stick of salted butter and add to whisked mixture of 1/2 cup of sugar, 1/2 cup of flour, handful of oats and dash of cinnamon. whisk and mash into a crumble.
place strawberry mixutre in cast iron skillet, top with crumble and cook until bubbly. serve warmish with vanilla ice cream. cheers!

key lime pie.

whats that you say? key lime pie? why but of course. because it is always a good idea, and i somehow let it slip away and never made it this summer so i was feeling jipped. 
oh me oh my i do love pie and so while i pretty much have zero time on my hands lately, i always seem to find a way to sneak in baking. it is an unexplainable treasure God gave us, never ceasing to amazing me. 
sorry i don't have a recipe to share, but im sure you have one you love already. 
and now we will be moving on to pumpkin and apple shortly. but for now, im thinking this easy chocolate cake sounds like a good idea. 

{fellow whip cream lover} 

{drawing fanatic and avid colorer}

strawberry rhubarb pie.

visiting the farmers market last week, and i happened upon some gorgeous rhubarb. so of course this called for a pie. a nice sunday evening kind of treat. i resolved to write up a recipe for you all since i have been asked to in the past. i do love making a delicious pie. so here goes it. 

strawberry rhubarb pie. oatmeal streusal topping.

1 pie crust (i love barefoot contessa's recipe as it has both butter and shortening, and makes two crust per recipe)

filling: 
about 1 lb. rhubarb, cut into 1/2 in. slivers
about 1 lb. strawberries, cut into quarters
juice of 1 small lemon
3/4 c. sugar
1/2 t. almond extract
1 t. vanilla extract
zest of 1 small orange
1 t. salt
pinch of fresh grated nutmeg
1/4 c. cornstarch

Par bake pie crust at 400 for about 10 minutes until golden. 
Prepare your filling. Add all above ingredients, excluding the cornstarch to your pan. Bring to a simmer over medium to low heat. Cook slowly, stirring occasionally, until tender. Add cornstarch and stir to combine, leaving no chunks. 

streusal topping: 
1/2 stick of butter, melted
1/2 c. flour
1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. oats
1/4 t. cinnamon
handful of slivered almonds

combine all dry ingredients, and then add melted butter. smash with fork or whisk until mixture resembles balls of streusal topping. 

Fill pie with filling and top with streusal. Cook at 375 for about an hour until filling is bubbling and looks jammy. let cool and serve with vanilla ice cream. enjoy!

fall-ish.

with the temperatures coming down it is starting to feel like 'fall' in phoenix. declan picked up some pumpkins recently grocery shopping with me. the kids insisted on cooking them that day. so a scooping they did go. some toasty seeds and pumpkin bread later, the house was smelling pretty lovely. 
cheers to beautiful weather and all things fall. 

by the way, i discovered a new fun food site {food 52} that i love; it has a fun apple cider donut recipe i really want to try soon! check it out. 

bread baking.

these pics are pretty outdated, but I had put them up a while back and just found them. i was really getting into an attempt to make delicious bread, as one of the greatest things really must be fresh bread, butter and jam...in my opinion.

so, with a few oven glitches and the hot weather i have put it off for now. looking forward to starting back up again once things cool down. a 500 degree oven is not ideal in 106 degree weather!

that yummy summer cake.

this peach and rasberry crumble cake i have mentioned before is a great way to give some love to your summer peaches. so so yum.

pop tarts.

leftover pie dough? not up for having a whole pie? make pop tarts for fun. 
i had some dough leftover from thanksgiving pies so i recently made these for dessert one night. comfort food at its best. 

directions:

ingredients: two recipies of your favorite pie dough

roll out one to a nice rectangle shape. cut into eight equal size smaller rectangles. fill center with desired jam (we have done blueberry and homemade cranberry sauce recently; leave space around edges. brush egg around edges. 

roll out other dough to same size and cut. top the first rectagles with these and press down lightly with fingers. slightly press also with fork and poke a few holes in the tops. brush tops with egg.

bake at 350 for about 20 minutes...until lightly browned. once cooled drizzle with a little lemon frost (lemon juice and powdered sugar). enjoy!

kale and a new camera app.

recently threw this salad together because i simply love the flavor of kale in a salad and this was just stuff in my fridge. as much as i would love to say i am a pretty good menu planner, i sometimes get carried away with the day/kids/nice weather/crafts/playing/the park or who knows and before you know it its dinner time and i am scrambling. so i cooked up some chicken and threw it over noodles with parmesan, lemon and olive oil, along side this crunchy salad:

raw kale

chopped brussels

sliced red onion

sliced red bell pepper

slivered almonds

grape tomatoes

purple grapes

and poppy seed dressing

best part? leftover never get soggy, so good for a couple days. 

and on a side note; i found this camera app i love, that is a huge time waster in making pics look fancy and pretty. its called vsco cam. used on both of these photos. i think its great at making food look nice in photos; a daunting task sometimes. 

hope the fall is treating you right! can not wait to make some fun fallish treats to welcome in this lovely october. made anything fab lately?

the end of summer. i think.

being on your own for a sunday with all the kids is not so bad when everyone naps, and you know a family get together/dinner is involved later in the day. so you choose to spend naptime making a pretty cake b/c your in the mood to frost a cake. why is that so fun to me? something about it i tell you.

 ruby helped me make some simple flags to fancy it up, b/c after all, why not?

this one is for you pudge and jack. you know who you are. and yes, you can simply use the same batter for cupcakes if you please. the ones i made at the willows included orange zest in the batter, and vanilla frosting + fancy sprinkles i think. for inquiring minds to rest at ease.

vanilla cake:

2 1/2 c. flour

2 t. baking powder

1 t. salt

1 stick butter, room temp. 

1 1/2 c. sugar

3 eggs

1 t. vanilla extract

1 c. buttermilk

1/2 c. milk

preheat oven to 350

combine and sift dry ingredients. set aside. in bowl of stand mixer with paddle attachment blend butter well. add sugar and mix a couple of minutes on medium speed. add eggs one at a time. add vanilla. add a small amount of buttermilk + milk. alternate with flour mixture; ending with flour mixture last. make sure to scrape down bowl and incorporate all flour but do not overmix. 

makes two round cakes, or cupcakes. cook about 25 minutes, until its done. you know. 

on a whim chocolate frosting:

1 bittersweet chocolate bar (4 oz)

2 sticks butter (1 c.)

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. vanilla extract

3 c. confectioners sugar

1 T. heavy cream

splash of left over cold coffee

melt chocolate on double boiler. once melted, remove and add butter (cut up into small pieces). mix very well to smooth out any clumps of butter. add salt and vanilla. add 1 c. of sugar at a time until well incorporated. add heavy cream and coffee. blend on high speed until smooth. 

vanilla frosting:

2 sticks butter, room temp

4 c. powdered sugar

1/2 t. salt

1 t. vanilla extract

2 T. or so of whole milk

whip butter until smooth. add sugar one cup at a time. add salt and vanilla and milk, until desired consistency is attained. dont forget to taste it!

hello monday.

so a pretty good week, and indeed way too fast. i can not believe its over already. i am trying to enjoy this time while i can with no kids in school before next year when everything changes forever but for some reason i have a feeling, with three little guys, the nonstop action around here is just going to sweep me away. 
so emily, the kids and i had a fun friday afternoon 'music on the malling' it down at city scape. they have a dj, basketball, corn hole, and games down there and quite a few eating options right by the water, where yes...we are still running around in swim suits as we enter october. ahhh, fall in phoenix. 
i also spent a good amount of time helping my mom set up a condo for resale that i think turned out pretty awesome. {see pics below}.open spaces are so wonderful and leave you with a wonder of possibilities. 
i even stopped by the fabric store and found some fun fabric for cold weather projects. hard to believe it will be cold. 

hope you had a good weekend...and here are some fun links to start out your week. cheers!


if only i had a waffle iron i would love to make these pretty waffle cones!

this book looks so gorgeous; she has the prettiest food pics and how cute is the title?

i think this would be so cool to participate in. too bad im such a good dancer; they'd never allow it. {read about it here}

i love these worksheets for a fun little learning/coloring activity.

totally want to throw this party; such a great idea right? who doesnt love to dress up?

and thats all folks. 

easy weekend dinner.

 so i made these pulled chicken sandwiches with slaw for dinner and thought it might be a nice easy little weekend dinner for anyone interested. i found the chicken recipe here and made my own slaw. i find her website very helpful for meal planning and general dinner inspiration. 
so here's to a nice relaxing and beautiful weekend! any fun plans? as for myself i'm just hoping to fit in some sewing/crafts while the cardinals are playing on sunday! we shall see. maybe a monday night girls get together is in order?  

pumpkin pie.

we were recently at whole foods and found these sweet

 little pumpkins. ruby was over the moon as she 

has been asking since her summer school class to buy 

one so we could cook the seeds. 

and of course i was pumped to have fresh pumpkin 

on hand. so win win. 

and by the way for some reason the smell of pumpkin 

cooking is the most wonderful smell of all coming 

out of your oven. such a tease b/c you want to just 

eat up the smell but there is nothing to eat. 

anyhow, i played around with a recipe and thought it 

was pretty delish so if your in the mood for a pre-thanks

giving pie, go nuts and make one this weekend!

yum yum pumpkin pie.

2 c. freshly cooked, cooled pumpkin

2 T. softened butter

1/2 t. salt

3 eggs

1/2 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. buttermilk

1/2 c. heavy cream

1 t. cinnamon

1/4 t. nutmeg

1 pie crust (just use your own favorite...ina garden has a lovely one)

preheat oven to 350. 

in stand mixer, mix well your pureed pumpkin with salt and softened butter. 

in separate bowl whisk together eggs and sugar well. add buttermilk and cream to eggs until combined. 

add creamy egg mixture to pumpkin along with cinnamon and nutmeg. 

pie mix should not be lumpy so if needed you may pour into your blender to fully combine, as a last measure. 

now pour pie mix into unbaked shell and cook for 50-60 minutes. 

once cooled top with whip cream and enjoy! cheers to the end of summer and beginning of a new season. 

biscuits.

everyone needs a solid biscuit recipe right? 

my grandma gave me this one she found in a magazine

a while back and i've held onto it ever 

since. i find it very easy and rewarding. 

i love the simplicity and the softness of the dough. 

i may love dough too much; this is possible. 

i admit i honestly crave just making cinnamon rolls just 

to watch the dough roll around in the mixer and 

involve myself in the general process of it all. 

so here is a handy dandy biscuit recipe for you to keep 

on hand and make just because, or for something special 

over the weekend. hope you enjoy!

buttermilk biscuits.

1/2 c. butter
2 1/2 c. flour
1 T. baking powder
1 t. salt
1 c. + 2 T. cold buttermilk
1 T. melted butter

Preheat to 475.
Add all dry ingredients into bowl of food processor or stand mixer. Blend well. Add very cold butter in small pieces to dry and mix until butter is pea size, yet not overmixed so as to soften the butter too much.
Add buttermilk slowly until a mass of dough forms and then stop mixing. It can come out very wet but do not fear. Douse the counter with a heavy amount of flour and plop the dough onto counter. Knead 3 to 4 turns and roll out into 1/2 in thickness. Cut out biscuits using a 3in circle cutter or glass jar will do.
Place on sheet pan and brush with melted butter. Bake 16-18 minutes, until puffed up and lightly golden on top.

Variation: you may add about 1/2 c. shredded cheddar or desired cheese. I have done this and it works out splendidly. Cheers!

hello monday.

hey all. i thought i would share some fun inspirations

 of late with you all. hope you had a wonderful weekend. 

i had some good times doing a cupcake photo shoot 

involving icing made with crisco...never again my friends. 

greasy slimyness is not my friend. 

next time we're sticking to the real deal.

so here are some fun links to enjoy. happy monday to you!

this grown up birthday party looked pretty awesome...esp those spoons!

i recently made this icebox cake and had rave reviews...i would 

love to try a lemon cream version on my own, soon. 

i found some really sweet kids room inspiration here.

and i also love this woven gift wrap tutorial and thought it

would be fun to try with metallics and fluorescents

for the holidays. 

thumbprints.

per my kids request we made jelly thumbprints yesterday.  

darn. i keep snacking on them. 

time to visit the neighbors or something.

fun to make with your kids, as it involves them pushing their
cute little thumbs into the cookies before baking.
here goes kids:

thumbprint cookies.

1 c. butter

1/2 c. powdered sugar

1 t. salt

1/2 c. slivered almonds, chopped

1/2 t. vanilla extract

1/2 t. almond extract

2 c. flour

about 1/2 c. or less of blackberry jam (or whatever you desire)

Preheat oven to 350.

In mixer cream butter, powdered sugar and chopped almonds. Add salt. Add extracts, mix to combine. Add flour, mix to combine. Scoop out 1 T. size cookies into round balls and push down in middle with your thumb. Chill in freezer for 5 minutes if you live in phoenix, and its blazing hot. Cook in oven until firm to touch but not too colored, just lightly browned. Let chill, dust with powdered sugar and fill with desired jam. Enjoy with an afternoon iced coffee and a game of checkers.

kale salad.

i made this kale salad recently and thought it delicious. 

i loved the avocado in the dressing to make it creamy. 

i did not use green garlic, but rather scallions, 

and still delicious (or spicy...according to declan...

but he thinks everything is spicy).

i also had no farro or grains on hand, so skipped that part. 

hope your having a super 4th of july holiday!!

crumbles.

i do love a good crumble. 

here are two i've tried lately. 

this strawberry one from this book

since i had a load of recently

 concocted strawberry jam the kids

helped me with.

and this one was new and interesting to me.  

using rye flour which i never had before and
your choice of jam...blackberry in this case;
you can find the recipe on orangette.

.strawberry jam bars.

adapted from loveless cafe dessert book

1 1/4 c. a.p. flour

1 c. rolled oats

3/4 c. light brown sugar

1/2 t. ground cinnamon

1/4 t. baking soda

1 1/2 sticks butter, cut into small cubes

1/2 c. slivered almonds

1 1/2 c. strawberry preserves

.method.

...preheat oven to 350. grease 9 x 13 baking pan.

...in mixer, combine all ingredients, excluding preserves.

...mix on low speed until butter is pea size and mixture resembles a crumble.

...remove a heaping cut of crumble, and reserve to the side.

...press remaining crumble into pan evenly and bake for 20 minutes.

...spread jam on crumble crust after taking out of oven and sprinkle with remaining crumble topping. 

...bake for about 20-25 minutes. let cool completely before cutting. 

Maybe serve with some vanilla ice cream or whip cream to make it special! enjoy!