Weekly Yumminess.

Hello, fellow food fanatics! Here is this week's menu, which includes two meals from the new cookbook I told you about in a previous blog. 

The cookbook, entitled Parents Need to Eat Too, has some amazingly delicious recipes in it along with helpful tips for new parents. It also includes a widely acclaimed recipe for the 'best chocolate chip cookies ever.' That one, unfortunately, will have to wait seeing as I have given up cookies for Lent. What will also have to wait? The Girl Scout cookies I ordered from my niece. And the recipe for Oatmeal Raisin cookies my sister sent me, with the instructions that the only change I was to make was to DOUBLE the recipe. Must be good. Well, until April 8th, I suppose.

Also, I want to include a link to a delicious and simple recipe for Balsamic Vinaigrette I found on the Internet. It comes from a favorite food website called Epicurious.  We made this to go with our Valentine feast that I told you about in a previous WY (Weekly Yumminess) post. I've included pictures of our traditional feast. The salad you'll see was simply warmed goat cheese (om nom nom) with chopped, cooked bacon on top of fresh spinach. All on the fancy china. Fanfrickintastic.

 REALLY long day with the baby. Don't judge my tired eyes and the mentally-beaten-down-hunchover look :)

 The traditional heart-shaped pizza. Tradition dates back eight lovely years now.

The delicious salad in all its glory. SOOOOO good! Would be great with tomaters, too.

Happy cooking and have a GREAT week, everyone!!

Monday: Venison Burgers
On a mission to find a burger recipe that will make the venison burger not so dry.

Tuesday: Sweet Potato Risotto

We are a sweet potato family now that Felicia eats solid food.
Wednesday: Crispy Quinoa Cakes w/Roasted Ratatouille
I'm on a mission to learn how to flavorfully dress up quinoa (without drowning it in unhealthy accompaniments). It's such a healthy food, and I bet it makes a good base for many ingredients.

 Thursday: Angel-Hair Pasta w/Lemon-Parmesan Breadcrumbs
Friday: Spinach & Mushroom Quiche
Have some leftover hashbrowns from Mel's baby shower to use up.
Saturday: Wine-Roasted Tilapia
Sunday: Girls' Night Out!
Felicia and I may go out for a ladies' night since James is heading to Washington DC early in the morning.  (He's going for work, but is most excited because he got in for a tour of the White House! Apparently, they are very stingy on tours lately.)

Anatomy of a Tantrum.

In a very recent post, I alluded to the fact that my child is impatient, especially when it comes to meal time. Now, yes, I know that babies are impatient. I don't hold it against her, really, at least not most of the time...

BUT.
This picture you see below is the beginning of a timeline of how she acts even after she eats. Ya know, when I'm trying to eat? I gave her a favorite toy to 'distract' her...and she even is given a few Cheerios for dessert.

 Calm. For now.

 Not noticing I have a meal yet. (Or that I'm taking pictures.)

 Then, she just FREAKS.

 So I take away the tray because it's all ending up on the floor, anyway. Uh oh.

 Trying to distract herself...

 ...and it doesn't work.

 Oh, boy girl!

(Yes, I considered the fact that maybe she just hates having her picture taken.)

Weekly Yumminess.

In a household, I find often that one spouse is considered to be the chef in the house. In ours, we've got a co-chef thing going on. I tend to cook our dinners, while James is the breakfast artist.  He's brilliant when it comes to morning cooking! So brilliant, in fact, that he's made such fantastic breakfasts over his extended weekend that we skipped dinner a few times since we had such filling, tasty breakfasts and late lunches.  Therefore, you'll see a couple repeats from last week. 

And for those of you interested, breakfast this past weekend was red potatoes sauteed and tender-crisped in olive oil with fresh, julienned spinach and shredded parmesan thrown in.  He added eggs over-easy to the top of the pile w/a dash of salt and some pepper.  And on mine, more parmesan. Always, more cheese.

Monday: Pork Kebabs w/Butternut Squash and Sauteed Greens

This was really good! My only suggestion would be to let the pork marinate longer. Because this recipe doesn't have you do this at all. The cooking time was just a touch too long for the pork, and the vegetables did not need the extra ten minutes as stated in the recipe. Once you conquer the squash, it's all gravy (or greens) from there. (I conquered you, Butternut Squash. Me and my M80 knife!) Previous statment is a movie quote- who knows it?:)

Tuesday: Mardi Gras! Ever year, our church staff throws a fantastic party on this evening for the church volunteers (James works with the Facilities Council, I with the Caring Ministry).  We have a babysitter and are ready for some tasty bites and wine!

Wednesday: Pork Pot Pie

Thursday: Chicken Salad w/Avocado Dressing

Friday: Tuna Sandwiches w/Ruffles

Saturday: Sliced Chicken w/Chunky Mushroom Gravy

Sunday: We have a Groupon for a delicious Vietnamese restaurant in KCMO.

Happy cooking- have a great week!

Got an Impatient/Demanding Child?

I am finding myself surrounded by many newbie (or to-be newbie) mamas and daddies these days, so when I came across this post by a fellow blogger, I thought of all these lovely men and women.

The aforementioned post is a cookbook review that introduces you to a book entitled Parents Need to Eat Too.  I'm not going to blog on too much about it since all the info I want to share is there. I will say, though, if you're a parent that worries about the food you give your baby and not the food you give yourself, you should check this out. It sounds pretty great! I'm thinking of pre-ordering the Kindle Fire version. Pre-order before the 21st and you get a free digital starter kit...but more deets on that in the post :)

"I don't like to let my mommy eat or cook! She has to entertain me! Dance, Mommy!!!"

(Hoping the book will help me on this. *SIGH* The impatience of a child...)

Weekly Yumminess.

I hosted a baby shower last Saturday and received some good reviews on a few recipes. I'd like to share them with you. They make great brunch recipes and can be tweaked super-easily for gluten and/or dairy allergies.

• The quiche I have raved about in previous posts. Hash brown crust is tasty, and if you need it to be dairy-free (in our case, free of the casein protein), use Daiya cheese substitute-my friend swears by it! Drool over the picture first?

• Lemon and Cucumber Couscous Salad: I subbed in quinoa to make it gluten-free. I skipped garlic by accident, and omitted red onion on purpose. Ugh. A fresh fruit salad of blueberry, cantaloupe, strawberry, and green grapes complemented this well.

• Vanilla Bean Cake: This is best baked as a cake as opposed to cupcakes. Still very tasty, but more airy and light as a whole cake. Ok, so one thing wasn't gluten-free...

As for my weekly meal plans, it's a Martha Stewart-fest this week!! The recipes for Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday are from the domestic goddess herself...

Tuesday: Valentine Pizza :)
When we first started dating in January 2004, Valentine's Day came up quick with the pressure to do something fancy and/or romantic. We sensed each other's apprehension on the subject, so James did the perfect thing- bought us heart-shaped pizza from Papa Murphy's! It was a super-cute idea, but casual. This is a V-Day tradition now. AND if you text Papa Murphy's the code PapaM1 to 74499*, you get a FREE Cheesy Bread! Carb-fest tonight, my friends. Om nom nom.

Wednesday: Pork Kebabs w/Roasted Squash & Sauteed Greens

Found this recipe in Everyday Food (from the fabulous, former jailbird herself, Martha) and it is low-cal, healthy, and looks stunning!
Thursday: Spaghetti Squash w/Turkey Bolognese Sauce

Got some ground gobbler in the freezer to use up.

Friday: Chicken Salad Sandwiches w/Avocado Dressing
I am mainly interested in the dressing part.
Saturday: Pork Pot Pie
Awesome comfort food alert! Using up leftover pork tenderloin from Wednesday instead of the traditional chicken in this recipe. I love this recipe because it's not just dumping some 'cream of insert-food-here' in with milk or whatever. You build your sauce from a roux. I also skip celery and ad baby-bella mushrooms. I do cut corners, though, by using the suggested pre-made pie crust. Hey, a girl's gotta save time somewhere.

Sunday: Tuna Sandwiches and Ruffles
Because I crave Ruffles in my mouth and Ruffles on my sandwiches like there is no tomorrow. It's pretty ridiculous, really.

Have an awesome week!!

"They're baaaaack." Weekly Yumminess.

Hello, fellow food fanatics! Back for another week of yumminess...but before we get to the new week's recipes, take a look at a yummy recipe and a drool-worthy food photo seen at our Sixth Annual Super Bowl party:

Slow-Cooker Taco Meat
We had a taco bar for our guests. This recipe was so ridiculously easy, and slow-cooking makes almost any meat recipe better! It really can't get any easier, people :)

A friend made the cheesecake in this picture. Homemade deliciousness. Apparently, this is his Super Bowl tradition. Om nom nom. Get this recipe, I must.

Now that I have your mouth a-watering, here is what we are looking at this week.I warn you, I'm on a bit of a meat-free kick this week (three meals). But still, ridiculously good recipes.

Monday: Eggplant Stacks
Just look at the picture. Mmmm. I'm adding white bean puree and basil pesto in between my stacks. I am trying to imitate a dish I had at an Italian restaurant on the CC Plaza.
Tuesday: Cheesy Ravioli Bake
Lots of fresh spinach, baby bella mushrooms, and mozzarella goodness. Thank the Lord for cheese ravioli. Such a great canvas.
Wednesday: Amy's Basil Risotto w/Sauteed Mushrooms
Thursday: 'Okie Joe's' Bean Tacos 
I was looking to making leftover tacos today from our SB party meat, but lo and behold, the meat was all gone! Instead, I took leftover beans (with burnt ends in them) and put them in soft corn tortillas with julienned fresh spinach, sliced sweet mini-peppers, and sour cream. Holy cow, is it possible I could go to Okie Joe's and walk out only getting their beans for these tacos???
Friday: Veggie Stir-fry
Mmmmm. Rice, ginger, soy sauce, and tons of veggies! I'm on a bit of a kick with sweet mini-peppers and baby bella mushrooms. Om nom nom.
Saturday: Hoping the hubby will take the girls out. I'll be doing lots of prep during the end of week on recipes for a baby shower I'm hosting on this day.
Sunday: Sliced Chicken w/Chunky Mushroom Gravy
Don't skip the lemon! :)