A Delicious Start

Every Thanksgiving, I try to make a special breakfast for my family. We don't usually have dinner until late afternoon, and so I figure a big late breakfast is necessary to tide us over.

This year, I heard of this idea from NPR - Pumpkin Bread French Toast!

You start with a spiced pumpkin bread (I use my friend Lolly's famous recipe):


Then you cook it just like you would any french toast. Top with maple syrup and wah lah! A very sweet start to a wonderful holiday!
Carter inhaled it!

Feeding Frenzy

I love to cook. Trying out new recipes is one of life's simple pleasures for me. Unfortunately, I don't have a lot of time to cook on the weeknights, so I try to keep those meals to things that take 30 minutes or less to prepare. I also do most of the prep work the night or morning before (i.e. chopping, marinating, etc.).

I also determined pretty early on (when Carter refused to eat anything other than chicken nuggets and cheese...) that I am not a short order cook! If Carter or Ace don't like what I'm making - tough :) I make sure every meal has elements they like, so they don't starve. But I also want them to expand their palates and try new foods! They are surprised sometimes what they end up liking! As a result, I have raised kids that are not overly picky. I promise to follow up this post with my ideas for overcoming a picky eater (especially for you Jenn!!).

To make meal-planning easier, I have created an excel sheet that breaks down entrees by the main ingredient (chicken, turkey, pork, beef, seafood, vegetarian), and I also list sides by veggies and starches. That makes it super easy to create a varied menu without much thought. But sometimes I get rather bored with the usual go-to's, so every week I aim to try out a new recipe! I subscribe to Cooking Light's "Dinner Tonight" email and I often pick up Martha Stewart Living and Rachel Ray's Everyday magazines for meal ideas too! If the meal is a success, I add it to my database and put the recipe into my recipe box. Oftentimes, I can take a recipe that is elaborate or too fancy-pants for my family's tastes and make it more simple by changing the cooking method or eliminating or replacing ingredients.

If you haven't noticed, I list my weekday menu over to the right each week ---> Of course, there are some nights when I have to work late or I'm just too burnt-out to cook, so we do say "screw it" sometimes and eat pizza :)

If you ever want my "recipe" or found a meal that your family really enjoys - email me!!! Also, if you want me to email you my meal database, pop me a quick email! elle134@gmail.com

Last night, several of Ace's siblings dropped by for dinner, so I decided to try out a fun new summer recipe I found from Cooking Light - Chipotle Sloppy Joes! Oh my goodness, they were SO GOOD! Everyone was raving about them and devouring them! The recipe made about 10 sandwiches too, so it was great for feeding a mob. The contrast between the sweet vidalia onions and the spicy warm chipotle pepper was awesome - you must try this perfect summer recipe! I paired it with corn on the cob, steamed broccoli and oven fries. For dessert, we had root beer floats!!!

Happy eating!

Lasagna is Like Sex

There are endless ways to make it, and its always good.

Tonight, I am hosting a viewing of The Passion at my house for our families. An Easter preview of sorts. So, I'm making that classic dish known for feeding masses without much expense - lasagna. And I happen to think that my recipe for lasagna is exceptionally tasty.

I use the Barilla No-Boil flat lasagna noodles to start. I was never so elated than I was to discover that they made this - it cuts the prep down to half the time. Tonight, I'm using a simple 4-cheese marinara sauce, but I do like to use the spicy pepper/arribiata sauce too.

On top of my first layer of lasagna noodles, I start by cutting up some fresh spinach and mixing it in with the ricotta cheese. On top of this, I layer ground sage sausage (already cooked). Then another layer of noodles, some sauce, then I layer thinly sliced zucchini and squash. I sprinkle a little sea salt for flavoring, then add another layer of noodles and sauce. Then I top liberally with shredded mozzarella. I season the top with some fresh chopped basil (missing tonight), oregano, and some garlic salt. I cover with foil, bake for 30 minutes, then remove the foil and continue to bake it until the cheese begins to get golden and melted, gooey and delicious :) Yum.....

I also picked up two loaves of rosemary garlic bread. Normally, I don't serve bread with pasta to avoid carb overload, but there really isn't much pasta in lasagna.

So, tell me - what's your favorite position....er...I mean way to make lasagna ;)