Not even close to homemade caprese style tomato soup

I like to cook, I REALLY do.

I like to fix elaborate meals that take a lot of time and prep work, then come together to make the perfect dish.

I like to sit a plate with some new creation on it in front of Richard and hear him say "Tell about it." And then I like even more when I get to explain to him what I made, and he listens (or at least pretends to, which he's gotten really good at).

But sometimes, I just don't feel like it. Like after a day where Brooks has refused to take a nap and dumped every container of toys out three times. Or when I have to deal with a rude customer. or when I'm so behind on orders that instead of working I just lay in bed for a while and try to forget about it.

On days like that, I don't feel like making homemade tomato soup, so I get this amazing container from Target and pretend like I did.

 And I really don't feel like making my own pesto or bread, so I pick up a little container of the green stuff and a whole wheat baguette while I'm there. 

Then, when I can't even bother with preheating the oven, I put the slice bread in the toaster oven, then slather it in what I claim to be homemade pesto, and cut it into little croutons.

While my soup is heating up, I throw the carton away to hide the evidence, and mix in some chunks of fresh mozzarella. Because duh. It's fresh mozzarella. 

Then I spoon it into a bowl, and top it with several pesto croutons, not bothering to correct anyone when they refer to them as homemade.

And my husband oh's and ah's, commenting on how delicious dinner is.

And offers to clean up after dinner since I slaved away in the kitchen.

And that's how a shitty day ends a little better:)

Yo Gabba Gabba PARTY!

I was a little disappointed when I weighed myself today, and took my measurements to track my Revolt Fitness progress. It's week 5 now, and I'm up 2lbs, and didn't loose any inches in the last 2 weeks. Booo. But this week is all cardio, which I love. And hopefully it will jump start the next wave of melting off the excess!

And I'm sure the lack of pounds lost has nothing to do with Memorial Day and me drinking my weight in margaritas.

Or the nacho bar from Brooks's birthday the weekend before.

That's right, I said nacho bar. It was the best/worst decision of my life.

His party was Yo Gabba Gabba themed, and it was colorful and silly and so much fun!

For food we had the nacho bar, rainbow jello cups, cupcakes, and Dazzleberry lemonade.

I think nacho bars are going to be my go to party food from now on. It was so easy, and who doesn't love nachos??

If you want to have one (and trust me, you do) here's what we used:

1 big bag of chips from Moes

5 bowls of queso from Moes (totally worth the $25!)

4 cans of black beans

2 jars sliced jalepenos

1 bag shredded lettuce

2 cans sliced olives

1 bag shredded Mexican cheese

3 diced tomatoes

1 tub of sour cream

family size jug of salsa

A couple of bunches of green onions

We didn't use meat, but I would figure you would need a couple of pounds of shredded chicken or  ground beef.

We had about 30 people, and this was more than enough. I ended up having nachos for several days after, but honestly, has anyone ever complained about too many nachos?? I think not.

For the rainbow jello cups, I used this recipe, and while they took FOREVER, they looked cute and were a huge hit. The lemonade was just regular lemonade with grenadine mixed in until it was a pretty color. I also had maraschino cherries to go in it.

Brooks's smash cake was my favorite part! I knew I wanted to make a rainbow cake, but was so worried it was going to turn out brown when all the colors mixed, but it turned out awesome.

These pics are terrible, but I used a rectangle pan to bake the cake mix, then used a bowl to cut out 2 circles to stack. This was to avoid buying a smaller round cake pan. To make the rainbow, I just divided the prepared white cake mix into 4 bowls, and added food coloring until I got a really bright color. Then I just poured it into the pan, 1 color at a time. I tried to get it in the pan and into the oven quickly, so the colors didn't have time to mix and turn out looking like vomit!

Then I frosted it in white, so that the bright inside would be a shock when he smashed into it, and it was!! For the toppers I got the Yo Gabba Gabba bath toys of EBay, and he loved them.

For fun, we had a ball pit made from a blow up swimming pool filled with play balls.

 'Party in My Tummy' Game, made by painting Brobee on a piece of foam board, then cutting a hole in his stomach, and taping a piece of cardboard to the back to make him stand up. We used plastic food from Lincoln's play kitchen for the kids to try to throw in his tummy. It's a Gabba thing...

And we 'Pinned the Eye on Muno' by putting a printout of Muno on a dry erase board and using magnets painted like Muno's eye for the kids to try to stick on.

Fun stuff.

Here's a few more of my favorite pictures from the party.

For free Yo Gabba Gabba printables you can check out Nick Jr. and check out my Pinterest board for all the details I obsessed over trying to prepare for this party :)

Black Bean & Sweet Sriracha Marinated Butternut Squash Quesadillas - GOYA Foods review & GIVEAWAY!

Do you do anything special for Cinco de Mayo? We started celebrating early here with quesadillas and mango margaritas last night!

GOYA Foods sent me their Healthy, Tasty, Affordable Latin Cooking cookbook, a can of their low sodium black beans, and a bottle of their extra virgin olive oil, and told me to recreate their black bean quesadilla recipe with my own twist.

Their original recipe (which can be found here) was a quick and easy meal that called for Pico de Gallo and cilantro to be mixed with the beans, then fried between 2 tortillas with cheese.

But like a weirdo, I don't like the pico. So I had to make some changes.

So here is what I came up with:

Black Bean & Sweet Sriracha Marinated Butternut Squash Quesadillas

with pickled red onions

That's a ridiculously long title.

 What you need:

1 small butternut squash, peeled and cubed into 1/4" pieces

2-3 tablespoons Sriracha (depending on how spicy you want it)

1 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1 can GOYA  Low Sodium Black Beans, drained and rinsed and tossed with a teaspoon of Taco Seasoning

1 cup shredded Colby & Monterey Jack mix cheese

1/2 avocado

4 tortillas (I used homemade, but GOYA's 8" Flour Tortillas would be perfect)

1 tsp. GOYA Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1/2 red onion, thinly sliced

1 small GOYA Jalepeno Pepper, sliced

1/4 cup distilled white vinegar

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Full recipe and Giveaway after the jump...

Mexican Lasagna (Blog Everyday In May - Day 2)

Day 2 of the Blog Everyday In May challenge is: Educate us on something you know a lot about or are good at.

Well I 'm good at food. Specifically the making and eating part.

So here's a new recipe for you!

I would call it Mexican Lasagna, or a Tortilla Stack, but whatever you call it, it's awesome.

What you need:

• 9(ish) flour tortillas. I used homemade tortillas(so easy), and only used 7, so it depends on the size of tortilla you use.
• 2 cups organic black beans (1 can)
• 2 cups organic corn (1 can)
• 10 oz red enchilada sauce
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup
• 1 (4 oz) can organic diced green chilies
• 1 can organic refried beans
• 2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese

Optional toppings: Greek yogurt or sour cream; taco sauce; avocado; green onions; salsa

To make:

Preheat oven to 375. In a large skillet, combine black beans, corn, enchilada sauce, cream of mushroom, and green chilies and heat over medium high heat.  Heat for 10 minutes, stirring frequently, then remove from heat and set aside. At the same time, heat up your refried beans in a small saucepan with a couple of teaspoons of vegetable stock or water. (This makes them easier to spread)

Spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray or coat with olive oil. In a 9x13 glass baking dish, spray with cooking spray. Place 2-3 tortillas in the dish, overlapping or tearing them apart and piecing them together to cover the entire bottom. Use the back of a spoon to spread half the refried beans over the tortillas. Pour half of the black bean and corn mixture over the beans, trying to smooth it into an even layer. Sprinkle on half a cup of cheese, then layer another 2-3 tortillas on top. Repeat with the rest of the refried beans, black bean and corn mix, and another half cup of cheese. Place 2-3 tortillas on top and sprinkle the rest of the shredded cheese over the top of those. Bake for 25 minutes. Let rest for 5 minutes, then serve with whatever toppings you want!

Makes 12 servings.

 Perfect for Cinco de Mayo this weekend!

Cheesy Portobello Taquitos

I recently checked out the too cute Weelicious cookbook from the library. It is full of fresh and easy recipes that the whole family will enjoy. 

This is a big idea for me: 1 meal that EVERYONE will not only eat, but actually like. I made several recipes from the book, but our favorite was my modified version of her 

Cheesy Chicken Taquitos 

(click here for the original recipe)

The only change I made to the taquitos was to use sliced portobello mushrooms instead of the chicken breast. So to make my Cheesy Portobello Taquitos, you need:

 4 portobello mushroom caps, thinly sliced.

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 cup shredded Mexican cheese mix

12 corn tortillas

cooking spray

Preheat oven to 400 and line a baking sheet with foil.

Toss sliced mushrooms with seasonings and cheese in a large bowl.

Microwave 2 tortillas at a time between damp paper towels for about 20 seconds.

Lay a tortilla flat in front of you, and place about 2 tablespoons of the mushroom filling on the edge closest to you. 

Roll the tortilla up and place seam side down on the baking sheet.

Repeat with the remaining tortillas.

Spray taquitos lightly with cooking spray and bake for 25 minutes, or until they are crisp.

I served them with refried beans and an avocado sauce for dipping, and the whole meal was a hit with everyone!

To make the sauce I put the meat of 1 avocado, 2 tablespoons greek yogurt, 2 teaspoons lime juice, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, 1 tsp crushed red pepper, and 1 tsp taco seasoning in the food processor and pulsed until smooth.

I like to dress up a can of organic refried pinto beans by stirring in a couple of tablespoons of vegetable stock, some taco seasoning, and a little Mexican cheese as they cook. 

So good, so easy, so perfect for the whole family.

I am a sandwich artist.

I am a sandwich connoisseur. I declare my love for sandwiches on a regular basis, maybe more than I tell my family I love them. And don't even think about getting in line behind me at a sandwich shop. Order some predesigned sandwich off the menu?? Please. I WILL create my own, thankyouverymuch. And it will be EPIC.

And I don't neglect my passion for sandwiches at breakfast. Sometimes that's when I do my best work.

For example:

Left over from some zucchini strombolis we had

Just spread it ALL over

Cheese and hot sauce let's you know I'm serious

Because why not?

And that is all.

Happy Wednesday!

Sushi Salad Recipe

I came across a recipe for a "Sushi Salad" in the Superfood Kitchen cookbook, and was VERY interested in putting it in my mouth. I love sushi, and while I have never tried to roll my own, I can't imagine I would be very good at it. So sushi unrolled is right up my alley. I wasn't crazy about the "ginger dressing" they recomended in the book, and with a quick interwebs search, saw that others had made similiar dishes with a mayonaise based dressing. 

That's kinda what I'm all about.

So I tweaked. And tweaked. And twerked. Just kidding. 

And this is what I finished with.

To make 1 salad you need :

1/4 cup brown rice

1/2 cup water
1/4 cucumber
1/2 avocado
1/2 small carrot 
1/4 - 1/2 nori sheet
1/4 cup sprouts (I used alfalfa sprouts)
1/2 tablespoon sesame seeds
1/2-1 teaspoon Wasabi paste 
1/2-1 teaspoon sriracha
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar

1 tablespoon mayonaise (I used Veganaise)

I guess it's technically more of a sushi bowl than salad, since it doesn't have the greens usually required to deem something a salad. But whatevs. 

Start by combining the rice and water in a small pot. Bring to a simmer, then cover and let cook on low for 45 minutes. Meanwhile, dice cucumber into small cubes. Peel, pit, and slice the avocado. Cut the carrot into thin matchsticks. "Toast" nori sheet, if needed. The nori I use needs to be toasted, so I just used a regular lighter and ran the sheet over the flame until it changed from brown to a bright green color.

Once the rice is cooked and cooled (place in the freezer for a few minutes to sped up the process), put it in the bottom of your bowl. Next stir in the cucumber, carrot, and avocado. 


Then top with nori strips, sprouts, and sesame seeds.

Make the dressing by mixing together the mayonaise, wasabi, sriracha, soy sauce and sugar in a small bowl. Mix until the sugar is disolved and everything is combined. Taste, and add more wasabi or srircha as needed (I like it with some bite!) Drizzle over salad and dig in!.

 Click here for the printable recipe

Keeping Brooks fat: Making bulk {organic} baby food

In trying to keep Brooks on our family's clean eating path, I have made all his baby food. At around 6 months he started eating solids, usually simple, watery purees of one fruit or vegetable. He loved broccoli, and sweet potato anything remains his favorite flavor. He is now 9.5 months, so we have moved to more complex flavor combinations with more texture. To make his food, I'll use an afternoon to peel, dice, steam and mix everything. Then I can freeze it for about a months worth of meals. 

My grocery list for this batch included the following:

3/4 cup quinoa

1 cup kale

1 cup spinach

8 carrots

12 oz bag of frozen blueberries

10 oz bag of frozen peas

1/2 lb broccoli

3 medium zucchini

2 medium yellow squash

1 mango

2 pears

3 apples

2 sweet potatoes

3 bananas

Total cost: $24.67

Notes: 

*I purchased all organic produce, and local grown whenever possible.

*If you have no other use for kale, and can only buy it by larger amounts, just use spinach in its place. Or vice versa.

*Babies will seriously eat anything. Can't find a mango? Use a peach. Hate peas? Use asparagus. Brown rice can be substituted for quinoa.

*But DO pay attention to not use any hi-risk foods, such as honey, peanut butter, citrus, corn, raspberries.

 To make and store the baby food, I use the Baby Bullet system. Or just use your regular blender. I like the storage that comes with the Baby Bullet, which has a freezer tray to freeze 6 servings, as well as 6 serving containers. There are lots of other storage options available, and ice cube trays work well too. All the extra purees get stored in BPA free Ziploc bags until I'm ready to use them.

Start by prepping all your ingredients. Here is how each needs to be prepared:

Quinoa: Add quinoa and 1 cup water to small saucepan. Bring to a boil. Turn heat to low, cover, and let cook for about 15 minutes, or until all the water is absorbed. Remove from heat and fluff with a fork.

Kale and/or spinach: toss in a large skillet over medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until wilted

Carrots, broccoli, zucchini, squash, pears, apples, sweet potatoes: Peel the sweet potatoes, & peel and core the apples and pears. Chop everything into 1-2" pieces. These all need to be steamed or boiled. I don't have a steamer, so I just throw it in a pan with enough water to cover it and let it cook until soft. I did the apples and pears together, and the carrots, zucchini, and squash together. 

Peas: defrost according to package directions.

Mango and bananas: Peel and dice.

Once everything is ready to go, it's time to start creating some interesting mixes. You can adjust flavors to your babies preferences. If he favors sweeter taste, always include a fruit with your veggie mixes. Apple works well to sweeten up any green mixes.

Here are the flavor combinations I did:

Quinoa+Banana+Pear

1/2 cup cooked quinoa, 1/2 banana, 1/2 pear

Sweet Potato+Zucchini+Squash+Quinoa

1/3 sweet potato, 1/3 zucchini, 1/2 squash, 1/2 cup quinoa

Broccoli+Apple+Kale

all broccoli, 1/3 apple, all kale

Blueberry+Quinoa

1/2 blueberries, 1/2 cup quinoa

Carrot+Blueberry

1/2 carrot, 1/2 blueberry

Zucchini+Banana

1/3 zucchini, 1/2 banana

Zucchini+Squash+Pear

1/3 zucchini, 1/2 squash, 1/3 pear

Apple+Carrot

1/3 apple, 1/2 carrot

Spinach+Pea+Mango

all spinach, 1/2 pea, all mango

Sweet Potato+Apple

1/2 sweet potato, 1/3 apple

Quinoa+Pea+Pear+Sweet Potato

1/2 cup quinoa, 1/2 pea, 1/3 pear, 1/3 sweet potato

Measurements are by cooked and diced ingredient, so 1/2 pear equals half of my cooked chopped pears, not half of a pear. I hope that makes sense...

I blend everything as is first, then add small amounts of water as necessary until it gets to a good consistency. Depending on your child's age and how good they have gotten at mashing food with their gums, you can have a smooth yogurty consistency, or a mix with a little chunkiness.

Put your mixes in your storage containers, or in Ziploc bags. Lay the bags flat until frozen for easier storage. When I'm ready to use them, I just let them defrost in the fridge, cut off a corner, and squeeze the contents into my baby bullet containers.

And that's how I make a months worth of organic baby food in about an hour, for less than $25

Baby approved.