Monday Meal - Quick Tortellini Supper

I LOVE this meal, like could eat it every. single. day. At 650 calories per serving, I suggest not doing that, since I'm also sure I eat about three servings per sitting. It has taken about seven years for me to finally get the recipe from my mom, although that might not be a good thing for my waistline.

Ingredients:
2 packages of fresh tortellini
1/4 cup of butter
1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
1 (10 ounce) package of frozen peas, thawed
1 1/2 cups shredder cheddar cheese

Directions:
Cook tortellini according to package directions, drain. In ten inch skillet melt butter, add mushrooms. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until tender (3-5 minutes). Stir in tortellini and peas; continue cooking until heated through (3-5 minutes). Stir in 1 cup of cheese; salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Homemade Gak

After one of our recent recipes called for constarch, I remembered the days of playing with homemade gak. Consisting of cornstarch and water. Simple enough.

Ingredients:

1 cup cornstarch

2 tbsp. water

Directions:

Slowly add water to the cornstarch until the mixture has somewhat of a hard consistency. When you put it in your hand, it will become a liquid and ooze right out.

Big N and I had a great time playing with this stuff. Although, for future reference, take it outside, it's hard to convince a toddler not to splash it EVERYWHERE.

Book Review - you don't even want to know....

I don't have any new books to review this week, because I've spent the last week reading five of the eleven books in the Gossip Girl series. Hehe....now I'm embarrassed. However, I am in the process of a couple more books that you may find interesting, I'll fill you in next week, if I get them done before my urge to continue reading crap is filled.

Funny Read for the Day

I seriously cried reading this, so I thought I should share a good laugh with everyone.

Paper Bag Lady

Some days, I'm pretty sure I get more into craft time than my two year old and eight month old. For instance, we made this paper bag lady the other day, and I took the time to cut and style her newspaper hair. I carefully rolled each strand around a pencil and made her look just BEAUTIFUL! I had a bunch of paper bags to use up during craft time, so this craft started with us rolling up newspaper and shoving it into a paper bag. Big N LOVED that part. Then we inserted a cardboard roll from a box of tinfoil in her head and tied the full paper bag head to her. At this point, we had a big decision to make, what the heck are we going to do with this bag on this stick. I thought it would have made a good punching arm, but I figured I shouldn't teach my two year old things like that, so a person she became. We traced Big N's arms out on construction paper to attach to our paper bag lady, but they kept falling off with only glue, I think she needs cardboard arms. She'll sit here for a few days until I decide whether to add more to her, or carefully show her where the recycling goes on garbage day. Shhh...don't tell Big N that the big blue box isn't just a special spot for her crafts.

Toddler Puzzle

I asked Big N what she wanted to make today while Little N was sleeping and she suggested a puzzle (where she got the idea, who knows, but I ran with it). It was a pretty simple craft and provided minutes of amusement (we all know minutes of amusement is big with toddlers).

First we cut out a piece of a cardboard box.

It took some convincing but Big N finally let me draw a border around the outside of the box. Then we coloured the rest of the puzzle. I put on some shapes in different colours to actual let the puzzle be usable. Finally, we cut the puzzle diagonally into triangles making sure to cut through a few of the shapes.


Now the whole project was a whopping twenty minutes of amusement. What's next for the day?

Christmas Shopping!

Just had to brag that I started today. Whoohooo! I'm a sucker for a good deal, and when you have five nieces and nephews to buy for, its best to start early. I also have a gift drawer so all gifts immediately get put there upon arrival, so I never forget to give a gift. I do sometimes forget what I purchased, but I'm sure there's an app for my phone that can help with that problem. Off to see....

Banana Prune Muffins

So despite the misleading title, these are actually a pretty tasty muffin. Can you see we've been eating a lot of prunes lately? I think my family LOVES it. I googled prune recipes, and found a muffin recipe that seemed tasty enough, but I made enough variations, that I don't think it was even the same recipe at all. Here's what I did: Ingredients:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup canola oil
1 egg
1 cup mashed banana
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup white flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 cup chopped pitted prunes

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a large bowl, combine sugar, oil and eggs. Beat until smooth. Blend in banana and vanilla. Mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon, then stir into egg mixture until just moistened. Mix in the prunes. Spoon into muffin cups.
3. Bake for 20 minutes.

Monday Meal - Simple Chicken Parmesan

We haven't actually used this recipe for awhile, since we've reduced our pasta intake. But, with young children, it's simple to make, and since they will usually eat pasta, something everyone enjoys.

We've done a variation based on this recipe from Kraft.

Ingredients:

1 jar of pasta sauce
Parmesan cheese
2 small boneless skinless chicken breasts
spaghetti
shredded cheese

Throw the chicken breasts in a baking dish, cover in pasta sauce and two types of cheeses, bake for about an hour at 375 degrees. Serve with cooked spaghetti noodles (or whatever pasta you have on hand). Simple, easy, and pretty delicious. Now, if you want to get a few more vegetables in there, I've been known to throw some cauliflower, squash, and/or spinach puree into the veggie packed pasta sauce, just watch the taste as you are adding if you have veggie averse eaters, if you get too much they may be unlikely to try the meal.

Happy Fathers Day!!!

To all the fathers out there, I hope you have spectacular days!

To my dad, I hope your day is awesome, and you put down your Kobo for at least a few minutes to chat on the phone. You are one great dad and do so much to make all of us happy. We truly appreciate everything and love you so very much!

To my hubby, although Big and Little N aren't quite old enough to understand the day, I'm sure they would want to tell you how great you are. Although, they said something like, lay off the wigs, they scare us.

Happy Father's Day!!!

Homemade Ice Cream (in a bag)

It felt like summer today, and what better way to spend a summer day than eating ice cream in the backyard. Downfall, we didn't have any ice cream. But, I thought back to one fine volunteer day that I had at work where we were helping at a summer camp, and there were kids making ice cream in a bag, and it seemed easy enough. So, off I went to visit my good friend google. Sure, enough, ice cream in a bag is simple and takes very few ingredients.
Ingredients:
1 tbsp. sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/4 tsp. vanilla
6 tbsp. salt
1 sandwich size bag
1 bigger bag
Ice cubes

Directions:
1. Fill the large bag half full of ice, and add the salt. Seal the bag.
2. Put milk, vanilla, and sugar into the small bag and seal it.
3. Place the small bag inside the large one and seal it again carefully.
4. Shake until the mixture is ice cream, about 5 minutes.
5. Wipe off the top of the small bag, the open carefully.
Now, if you do attempt this project make sure you are prepared for how freaking cold your hands will become after shaking a bag of ice for five minutes. WEAR GLOVES! We played all sorts of games with our bag, like who could throw it higher, whether or not we could throw it on the ground the farthest, just make sure you have your bags sealed super tight.

Oh, and don't forget that step about wiping off the small bag, I got a big mouthful of salt in on spoonful, that wasn't so tasty. We'll definitely make this again, it's perfect ice cream for a sundae, a little fruit and maple syrup would be delicious.

Rants from Mommyland

Sometimes, I stumble across hilarious blogs like this one. I just had to share, because of this post and that got me hooked on the whole thing.

Book Review - Gossip Girl

An embarrassing read? Perhaps, but the entire series was available at my library online so I could read on my phone. A big plus, since that means I can easily read while doing many important tasks, i.e. breastfeeding. If you think you're still in high school, definitely worth a read though. I'm taking it as a sign that I'm getting older, and am pretending high school wasn't all that long ago (ummm...8 years isn't a long time right?!?). Anyways, I'll spare the details about the book, it's about kids in high school, and I'm pretty sure it was made into a TV show. BUT, if you're looking for something easy to read on your phone, go for it! Just, maybe don't tell your friends.

Pepper Cookies

Two year olds have some strange requests, think back to the Popcorn Cookies, well today Big N wanted to bake cookies, and when asked what flavour she wanted, the response was Pepper. What the heck are pepper cookies I thought, but I went over to Google and found out, there was such a thing as pepper cookies. We came across this recipe and made a few variations, based on availability, but this is what we came up with.

Ingredients:
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 3/4 cups flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup milk

Directions:
Cream the butter, sugar, and vanilla until light and creamy.
Combine the flour, baking powder, and spices. Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture alternately with the milk. It may be a bit stiff.
Shape into small balls, or drop from a teaspoon, onto ungreased cookie sheets.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 12-15 minutes. Cool on rack.

These turned out somewhat similar to a crinkle cookie, and were quite tasty. You could taste a hint of pepper if you knew that's what was in them, otherwise, you really couldn't tell at all, except for that one cookie that had a whole peppercorn in it, now that wasn't so tasty.

Monday Meal - Meatloaf

Now, I LOVE meatloaf. It's a huge comfort food with a good side of Cheese Potatoes (stayed tuned for the recipe next week). We probably only make meatloaf once every few months as we do try to limit our ground beef intake, but, if we have ground beef in the house, meatloaf is a go to item.

Ingredients:
1 lb. of ground beef
1 pkg onion soup mix
1 egg
1/3 cup ketchup
1/4 bread crumbs

Mix everything together. Throw it in a loaf pan and bake for about an hour at 350 degrees.

This is also a great recipe to freeze (and give to that friend that just had a baby?) Just mix it, cover the inside of a loaf pan with tin foil, then saran wrap, place the meat on top, cover with the saran and tin foil. Place it in the freezer, once frozen, remove the pan, and attach cooking instructions. A perfect gift to give away without having to buy some form of recyclable container.

A week with Granny and Grandpa

Since I had so much studying to do this past week, the kids and I went down to spend some time with Granny and Grandpa, so they could get a little more attention than I could give. We all had a great time.

There was lots of fun playing ball with Bailey.


And baking a cake with Granny.

I don't think Little N remembers ever getting so much attention.

And who can resist getting some quality play time in with two of the cousins:

Little N loved Bailey too.

Big N got some piano lessons from Grandpa,

And had a few dance parties.

All in all, it was a great week. Thanks again Mama and Papa Bear for putting up with us this week. You were a great help! Did I mention I didn't have to put Big N to bed for FOUR nights in a row. If you saw the show that gets put on at bed times around here, you'd understand how big of a break that truly was.

Book Review - End Procrastination Now!

After a week filled with studying I thought it was best to show the book I read to prepare me. End Procrastination Now! outlines the reasons why we procrastinate and how to avoid it. All in all, I thought it was a good book. It made me more aware of the reasons I procrastinate, i.e. in the work setting I procrastinate when I'm not sure of how to finish a project and as opposed to failing at the task and getting a poor performance report, I procrastinate hoping either 1. someone else will help in the end or 2. blame it on some other problem. Surprisingly, I'd never actually thought about why I procrastinate before, so this book really did open my eyes. I also procrastinate on projects which I originally undertook because they were fun, I currently have about three crafts waiting to be complete. Now, unfortunately, I didn't read right until the end of this book, because I had to stop procrastinating and actually study for my exam, but I believe they are sitting idle because 1. It's my belief I won't have anything to do once they are completed, 2. I won't have them to complain about once they are completed, i.e. no I can't do the dishes right now, I just have to finish this painting or perhaps 3. they were fun when they started, but after that, the fun is gone i.e. painting the kitchen.

So, all in all, if you're a big procrastinator like I am, you might learn a few things about yourself if you decide to read this book.

Exam Day

Wish me luck! And hopefully I don't fall asleep. Who the heck writes exams until 10:30 at night, I'm usually in bed by then, or at least wishing I was in bed if I'm not there.

Dinner Time - Salty Potatoes

So, maybe not the healthiest of potatoes, and not really their name probably but so so good. I'm a HUGE potato fan so these ones don our plates at least once a week (usually with the Salsa Chicken).

Ingredients:
Potatoes
Season Salt
Olive Oil

Cut up potatoes into chunks. Coat in olive oil and season salt. Put in baking pan and throw them in the oven for an hour (or tin foil on the BBQ). You can use as much or as little season salt as you like, but FYI when you use LOTS you get a beautifully crispy not so healthy potato. LOVE.

Slender Blondie Brownies (with Prunes!)

Big N and I were looking for a recipe to make the other day the involved prunes, since we had a whole package of them. We came across this recipe for Slender Blondie Brownies and decided to give it a whirl. We made a few variations, and this is what we did:

Ingredients:
Nonstick cooking spray
3⁄4 cup white whole wheat flour
1⁄2 teaspoon baking powder
1⁄4 teaspoon baking soda
1⁄4 cup canola oil
2⁄3 cup packed light or dark brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1⁄2 cup chopped prunes
1⁄4 cup milk chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Coat a 9-inch square pan with cooking spray. Sift together the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Set aside. In a large bowl, beat the oil and sugar until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. Mix in the eggs and vanilla. With a wooden spoon, stir in the flour mixture until just combined. Fold in the prunes and chocolate chips. Spread the batter in the pan. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean or with moist-looking crumbs. Cool 5 minutes in the pan, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Cut into 12 pieces and store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

Overall, these blondies were surprisingly delicious, and I'd definitely make them again. The prunes came out tasting more like raisins than I had anticipated, which was actually probably a good thing. Although R said he didn't like the raisins in the blondies, and when I told them it was prunes, he was happier with it. I guess some people are just okay with eating prunes.

Cornflake Squares

It has been a little warm here for the past week, which means, I really don't want to turn on the oven, because I really don't want to turn on the air conditioner. I think I have a phobia of air conditioners, because my reasoning for not turning it on is that once it is on it is ALWAYS too cold. It probably stems from working in an office building for the past five years where you end up wearing winter clothes in the middle of summer because it's so freakin' cold.

I still wanted a tasty treat one day, and something to do with the kids to take our minds off of how we were sweating while sitting still. So, we produced a batch of cornflake squares which are a regular family treat in my family growing up.

Ingredients:

3 cups of Corn Flakes (or whatever cereal is handy)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup corn syrup

Mix the brown sugar, peanut butter and corn syrup in heat proof bowl and microwave for about two minutes, just about to a boil. Stir in the Corn Flakes while still hot. Spread into 8x8 greased baking dish or something of a similar size and let set prior to eating. Depending on how hard you press the squares down will be how hard they are upon setting. If you double the recipe it fits nicely into a 9x12 pan as well.

For the past five years while making these, I've never once waited for them to set, and a few times haven't even bothered to put it into a baking dish, I have a problem with patience, but these are delicious while still warm.

As you may be able to guess from the picture, we only had cheerios on hand the day we decided to make these squares, and they were still delicious. I've tried the recipe with bran flakes as well, and although it's a little bit chewier, it's also a little bit healthier, so it's another viable option.

Book Review - Wedding Season

This book by Darcy Cosper was cute. It is a comedy that relates to a women and her boyfriend who are both against marriage being required to attend 17 weddings in six months. To save you some time, the book ends exactly how you would expect it to, but there were a lot of funny and cute moments in it. All in all, a very cute, easy read, so if you're into that sort of thing, give it a shot. But, for being her first novel, it was cute. It looks like she wrote a second novel in 2008, so if I happen to see it in the library, I may pick it up.

Wall of Fame - May

After a few incidents of artwork falling, here's how our wall ended for May.
There were a few tears shed when the barn came down today, but we quickly got started on June's wall. I'm excited for how great it is going to turn out.

Dinner Time - Black Eyed Pea, Chick Pea and Avocado Salad

She did it again, Jenn over at Jenn, Interrupted inspired me to make the salad she had posted yesterday. So, tonight, after putting a few spins on her original recipe, this was the delicious salad I created.

Black Eyed Pea, Chick Pea & Avocado Salad

Ingredients:

1 can black eyed peas, drained and rinsed
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 red onions, thinly sliced
1 red pepper, diced

1 carrot, peeled and grated
1 avocado, peeled, pitted and diced

Dressing:
1 tsp grated lime rind
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 tsp EACH salt & pepper

In large bowl, toss together black eyed peas, chickpeas, onions, red pepper, carrot and avocado .
Whisk together lime rind and juice, oil, salt and pepper. Pour over bean mixture; toss to coat.

Now it did vary quite a bit from the original recipe based on the ingredients I had in my cupboard and fridge. But all in all, it was a delicious summer recipe that I can't wait to eat for leftovers tomorrow for lunch which are pictured, since I forgot to take a picture of the finished product before digging in.

I served this with some lemon and herb chicken breasts which took all of 20 minutes to cook. Slice up some chicken, cook in olive oil and then cover in lemon and herb spice, and it made for delicious light summer meal that I think will make into the regular summer rotation.