Recipe: Greek Chicken Pitas

This is another recipe that I found from Dr. Oz's Superfast Slim-Down plan in Good Housekeeping Magazine. It was one that I made and really loved and have since kept on eating! I figured after the Thanksgiving pig out that just passed and the Christmas over-eating to come, it would be a good time to eat something a little less fattening!

Greek Chicken Pitas

Ingredients:
1 cup fat free plain Greek yogurt
2 Tbs each fresh mint and dill leaves, chopped
3/4 tsp ground cumin
1 clove garlic, crushed
Salt
2 Tbs fresh lemon juice
4 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1 lb chicken-breast tenders
1/2 English cucumber (seedless)
1 large ripe tomato
4 whole wheat pitas, cut in half

Combine yogurt, mint, dill, 1/4 tsp cumin, one-third of the garlic, and 1/4 tsp salt.

Mix together 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 3 tsp oil, oregano, 1/4 tsp salt, remaining 1/2 tsp cumin, and half of remaining garlic. Coat chicken tenders. Grill or pan fry chicken for 10-12 minutes or until cooked through.

Cut cucumber and tomato into chunks. Toss with 1/8 tsp salt and remaining lemon juice, oil, and garlic.

Grill pitas, if desired, until toasted. Serve all together!

It's a super delicious meal and only about 330 calories per serving! This recipe will make enough for four servings. The chicken can be served cold as well, making this a great lunch box option!

Enjoy!

This post linked to:
Southern Fairytale's Mouthwatering Monday
Beauty and Bedlam's Tasty Tuesday

In Love and Thankful

I don't know what it is lately, but I have been in this refreshed phase of being over the moon in love with my boys.

Don't get me wrong, they drive me nuts. And I am always the first one to admit that motherhood isn't all sunshine and rainbows. 

But lately, I have a new sense of overwhelming smoosh your face into mine and kiss your cheeks until they fall off kind of in love. Not that I wasn't in love with them before, mind you. It's just, like I said, refreshed.

Maybe it's because of this new perspective I've forced myself into.

Maybe it's just that this season of thanks has truly found it's way into the deepest parts of my heart.

I don't know what it is. But I'm enjoying every heart leaping moment.

I really love being Mommy to these little boys. I am in love and I am thankful.

And I just really wanted to tell someone.



Happy Thanksgiving!

Here is what I was thankful for last year. Warning: I compare myself to a turkey.

Recipe: Pesto Chicken and Red Potatoes

This is a very flavorful dish and really warm and comforting on a cold night. But for being comfort food, it's also a pretty healthy meal! We use just a small amount of mayo and sour cream to thicken up the pesto. But overall, not bad!

Pesto Chicken and Red Potatoes

Ingredients:
1/2 cup prepared pesto
1 tsp mayo
2 tsp sour cream
4 chicken breasts (boneless or bone-in shouldn't matter)
6-8 medium size red potatoes
Parmesan cheese, shredded
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Arrange chicken and potatoes in a single layer in a baking dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Combine pesto, sour cream and mayo in a small cup. Brush over chicken and potatoes. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake for about 15-20 minutes (depending on how thick your chicken is) or until chicken is cooked through and potatoes are tender.

Enjoy!

This post linked to:
Southern Fairytale's Mouthwatering Monday
Beauty and Bedlam's Tasty Tuesday

When You Only Have One Bathroom...

When you only have one bathroom and three little boys who need to use it, funny things happen.

Gross things happen.

Gross and funny things happen.

Children poop their pants.

There is one child going and another one needs to go, like NOW. What's going to happen?

I'll give you a hint: It starts with Children and it ends with pooping pants.

The jumping and squealing and butt clenching. It's all too much.

Based on the ungodly scene that happened in my hallway and kitchen the other day, we can not get into a house with more than one bathroom soon enough!

Gross.

Funny.

Mostly gross.

The end.

Recipe: Cinnamon Sugar Pumpkin Muffins

I know I just posted a pumpkin muffin recipe, but really, can I post too many?!

I have seen similar recipes posted around Pinterest and other blogs and I guess it must have been stuck in my head because all of a sudden I just started making them one afternoon!

I based my recipe off one I had cut out off a Martha Stewart Everyday magazine. (I think from last year?)

I don't know if these should be considered breakfast or dessert. I'll just label them as both. :)

Cinnamon Sugar Pumpkin Muffins

Ingredients:
1 1/4 sticks (10 tbs) unsalted butter, room temperature
3 cups flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp coarse salt
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/3 cup milk (or buttermilk)
1 1/4 cups pumpkin puree (15 oz can)
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs

Sugar Coating:
3/4 cup sugar
2 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) melted butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease muffin pan with butter and then sprinkle with flour. Don't skip this step - it helps the muffins slide out without sticking since you're not using paper muffin cups!

Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, spice.

In a separate bowl, whisk together pumpkin and milk.

In a mixing bowl, beat butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. With mixer on low, add flour mix in slowly, alternating with pumpkin mix. Beat to combine.

Spoon 1/3 cup batter into each muffin tin and bake for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let muffins cool about ten minutes in pan.

Mix together the sugar and cinnamon for the coating.  Brush each muffin with butter then immediately toss is sugar coating. Let cool completely.

Enjoy!


Linked to:

Holiday Mail For Heroes

 

There is a great opportunity to send some Holiday love to our troops! The American Red Cross is hosting it's fifth annual Holiday Mail for Heroes program. All you have to do is send a signed greeting card in to the address provided and they will do the rest!

I had my boys each write a note and sign a picture in a card and then we wrote one as a family as well. Chandler wrote in his card "I hope you get back to your family very soon." and my little guys drew a flag and wrote "Thank You for serving our country." I love seeing them be heart felt about those serving for us. It's a great teaching moment for kids!

Here is some info from their website:

Starting this fall and throughout the holiday season, the Red Cross is working with Pitney Bowes, a mail stream technology company, to collect and distribute holiday cards to American service members, veterans and their families in the United States and around the world.

The process is very simple and takes no time at all - All you need is a pen and piece of paper to share your appreciation for the sacrifices members of the U.S. Armed Forces make to protect our freedoms The Holiday Mail for Heroes mail box is open and ready to receive for your cards. Please send all mail to:

Holiday Mail For Heroes
P.O. Box 5456
Capitol Heights, MD 20791-5456

Card Guidelines:
Every card received will be screened for hazardous materials by Pitney Bowes and then reviewed by Red Cross volunteers working around the country.
Please observe the following guidelines to ensure a quick reviewing process:

All cards being sent in for 2011 Holiday Mail For Heroes program should be postmarked no later than Friday, December 9, 2011.

• Ensure that all cards are signed.
• Use generic salutations such as “Dear Service Member.” Cards addressed to specific individuals can not be delivered through this program.
• Only cards are being accepted. Do not send letters.
• Do not include email or home addresses on the cards, as the program is not meant to foster pen pal relationships.
• Do not include inserts of any kind, including photos, as these items will be removed during the reviewing process.
• We encourage participants to mail as many cards as they are comfortable sending. If you are mailing a large quantity, please bundle the cards and place them in large mailing envelopes or use a flat rate box from the post office. Each card does not need its own envelope, as cards will be removed from all envelopes before distribution.
• Please refrain from sending holiday cards with glitter. Many of these cards will be delivered to military and veterans medical facilities and the glitter could interfere with a patient's recovery.

Please take a moment to show our military that we care and to spread the joy that the Holiday season is all about!

Greek Tuna Salad Featuring Marzetti's Simply Dressed Salad Dressing

 

I'm really excited to share a new product with you guys that I am in love with! Marzetti has launched a new line of salad dressings called "Simply Dressed". I'm loving them because the ingredients are SIMPLE! I can read everything in the ingredients list and there is no high fructose corn syrup! There are no preservatives either which scores high points in my book. So many of the every day salad dressings out there are full of chemicals and hfcs and who knows what else. This salad dressing definitely helps me keep my Food Golden Rule.

I've seen these dressings on sale and I've heard other bloggers mention finding coupons for them (you can sign up for their newsletter to get coupons!). So you can definitely get them at a great price. Honestly, I'd pay full dollar for them. Salad dressings are something we use quite often in our house and I feel good using a brand that keeps the ingredient list so pure.

I used the Greek Feta Salad Dressing on a Greek Tuna Salad that I made and it was so delicious! Here is what I put in it:

Greek Tuna Salad Featuring Marzetti's Simple Dressed Salad Dressing:

Chopped romaine lettuce
Chopped baby spinach

Chick Peas, rinsed

2 oz water packed tuna

Sliced cucumber

Grape tomatoes

Crumbled feta cheese

Marzetti's Greek Feta Simply Dressed Salad Dressing

Mini whole wheat pita

This was a delicious combination! I think the Balsamic flavor would be equally delicious on this salad as well. If you are not a tuna fan, you could substitute with chicken.

I am really looking forward to trying the other flavors, especially the Ginger Sesame one! What do you guys thing that would taste good on? An Asian type salad with chicken and mandarin oranges, maybe? I'm thinking a Buffalo Chicken Wrap using the Bleu Cheese dressing should be my next venture.

Have you tried any of these yet? I'd love to hear some thoughts and recipes from all of you!Marzettie has some great recipes using these dressings as a Downloadable Recipe Book. These are some seriously great looking recipes!

Sorry, I know I just threw a ton of links at you, but I honestly don't want you to miss anything!

I was one of the bloggers selected by T. Marzetti Company and Clever Girls Collective to host a Marzetti Simply Dressed review. They provided me with product to test myself and compensation for my time. However, my opinions are entirely my own.

Fake Mashed Potatoes...Made With Cauliflower!

Want to play a great trick on your kids? Make these delightful "fake mashed potatoes"! We looooove mashed potatoes around here but we can't eat them as often as we would like. Not because potatoes aren't good for you. But because when I mash them with cream and cream cheese and butter and anything else that makes it fattening, it's just not an every day kind of dish. Making this fake version is a nice healthy alternative.

Personally I think they are delicious. When my kids saw them on the plate they thought it was potatoes. But when they tasted it, they were like, "Wait! Is this a new recipe?"  hehehe. Yes, it is! The boys did eat it. Not as heartily as the real kind, but that's ok.

Fake Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:
8 cups raw cauliflower florets (about 2 pounds)
1 tablespoon butter
1-2 tablespoons half and half (more or less depending on your desired creaminess)
Salt and Pepper to taste
I like to add a little garlic powder in there too

Steam cauliflower for about 15 minutes or until it is very tender and falling apart.

Place in food processor and process until smooth. I have also used a hand mixer to mash it up. It leaves the cauliflower a little chunky, but we don't mind it that way. Picky eaters may prefer it all the way smooth. Add butter, slat and pepper and mix. Stir in cream and add until you reach the consistency you prefer.

You can also just add these in to your regular mashed potatoes for a healthy kick!

This is a very healthy side dish and a great option for Thanksgiving dinner!

Enjoy!

Linked to:
Tasty Tuesday by Beauty and Bedlam

Chocolate Covered Brownies...On A Stick!

I saw this idea in a magazine a long time ago and categorized it in my brain to do for a fun treat to send to school on the boys' birthdays. I made them for Chase's birthday celebration with his class last month. The kids were SO excited. They were amazed. It's just a brownie, but put it on a stick with sprinkles and magic happens!
It's pretty easy to do:
Make a pan of brownies.
Let cool.
Cut into squares.
Stick a popsicle stick into the brownie.
Dip into melted white chocolate.
Cover with sprinkles.
Let dry on wax paper.

Easy!


I did rush the process and tried to use the brownies before they were completely cooled. Don't do that. They just crumbled and fell apart. So I ran to the store and bought some premade brownies to use. Next time I'll know to make the brownies a day ahead and maybe even slightly freeze them so they don't fall apart.

Such a fun treat!

Linked to:

Could my kids BE any different?

My two youngest boys both made a Halloween craft at school.

 When they came home and decided to eat them, one of them did this:

While the other did this:

And then decided he's save the sucker for another time.

These boys could not possibly be any more different.

Kids and Allowances - Teaching the Value of a Dollar

This post was underwritten by BMO Harris Bank, which offers a matching $25 on a new savings account opened for your child through their Helpful Steps for Parents program. Learn more at bmoharris.com/parents.

I've been wanting to write about kids and allowances for awhile now so I was super excited to be asked by the Clever Girls to write about just that!

We came up with a plan to help our kids learn the value of a dollar and to realize that Mom is not the maid. We went back and forth about allowance for awhile because I feel strongly that kids should help around the house without getting paid for it. I really want my boys to learn what it means to help around the house to show that they value our home, our things and each other. But I also want to teach them about money. About saving and spending and everything in between!

We began giving our boys an allowance for more than just getting things around the house done. We are using allowance as a way to encourage responsibility and cooperativeness in the home, not just for taking the garbage out. Basically we watch for attitudes when we ask for a job to be done. If they do the job without whining or causing a problem, we take note.

Our oldest is almost eleven so we bascially just give him a flat rate at then end of the week based on his attitude when asked to help out and if he went above and beyond the chores we expect him to do. Our youngest two (eight and six years old) had a harder time making it the whole week so we started a marble system to keep track and spark daily interest. Every time they do a job the first time they are asked, without attitude, or do something above and beyond, etc, we put a marble in their jar. Each marble earns them ten cents. At the end of the week, we add the marbles up and that is their allowance. On a good week, they will make $1. We pay our oldest $2-3 per week because he does way more to help out around the house than our younger boys.

The jobs that are expected to be done without pay are things like taking the dog out, helping with the dishes and making their beds. The jobs that we pay for are doing laundry, vacuuming and cleaning the bathroom. (For example.) We also give marbles to our youngest two for basic cooperation and responsibility in taking care of things for themselves. If they get up and get ready for school and make their lunches without a fight, I will give them a marble. If it makes Momma's life easier? Money for everyone!

We are working on the art of teaching them about saving and giving a percentage of their allowances. They make very small amounts of money and at first we just let them spend it on silly things here and there to let them figure out how it feels to buy things with their own money. There have been "Ugh, why did you let me waste my money on this?!" tears and "I wish I would have saved my money because I would have had enough for this by now!" tears. All really great lessons about letting money burn a hole in your pocket. Now we need to move towards teaching how to manage what you save, spend and give.

We are Dave Ramsey fans and try to manage our money along the lines of what he teaches so we are steering the kids in that direction as well. We talk very openly with the boys about our budget, how much every day things like water and electricity cost, as well as make them aware of wastefulness (which costs money!). We model saving and giving by example. I think that really is the best way to teach kids life lessons.

I would love some advice about what percentages you have your kids give, save and spend. How do you handle allowance in your home?


I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. To learn more about BMO Harris Bank, visit their website http://bmoharris.com/parents.

*This is a sponsored post but all opinions and thoughts came from my very own brain! (Don't be afraid.)

Recipe: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Pumpkin and chocolate are one of my favorite fall combinations. I took a pumpkin bread/muffin recipe from an old Betty Crocker cookbook and made into this delicious recipe for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins. It could also be made into bread by using a loaf pan.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 tbs baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1 cup canned pumpkin (not pie filling!)
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1/3 cup shortening
1 cup chocolate chips

In a mixing bowl, cream together the shortening, eggs, milk and pumpkin with a mixer on low. In a separate bowl, combine all dry ingredients together. Slowly mix the dry ingredients in with the creamed mixture until all combined. Beat on high for two minutes. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour into muffin tins or loaf pans. I split mine up and made a dozen muffins and four mini loaves of bread. I also like to sprinkle some sugar on top for some extra sparkle! Bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Enjoy!

Linked to:

Hotel Resentment vs Hot Husband

My husband is out of town for some military training. I feel like I say that quite often but such is the life.

I love how my husband looks in his dress blues. He doesn't get to wear them often so when he does, I always take a front seat. Because, pardon me for saying so, IT'S HOT.

So he knew he was being a total teaser by texting me this picture of himself this morning:

And was I all, "Ooohhh, aren't you a cute airman." Until I looked behind him and saw it.

It's just staring at me saying, "But look how hot I AM."

Yes, the hotel bed was talking to me. What with it's white fluffy sheets that are magically washed and put on the bed by someone other than me. I bet there are towels on the floor that someone (also other than me) will wash and fold and place ever so gently on the towel rack.

While I am trying my hardest to focus on the cute man in uniform in the picture, I can't help but feel a tiny (read LARGER than I care to admit) amount of hotel resentment.

My husband says he'd much rather be home with us eating home cooked meals and sleeping in his own bed.

He's crazy. I'd love to be in a lush hotel bed eating out at nice restaurants for every meal. But I suppose that's how it goes. He does this often. I do not. The grass is always greener, isn't it?

I'll check out the hot husband in the picture for a moment but, let's be real, that bed is really doing it for me.

Recipe: Beef Stroganoff

This is a great recipe for those nights when you need something quick! Especially if you follow the freezer friendly steps I will give at the bottom of the post!


Beef Stroganoff

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef, cooked and drained
8 oz sliced mushrooms (we actually do not put them in ours, kids are not fans, but it's great with them!)
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup (I usually make a homemade cream sauce but I do use the cans on quick nights)
1/4 cup water
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
8 oz sour cream
1 pound pasta (egg noodles or elbow noodles are our favorites)
2 tbs melted butter
dash of parsley
1-2 cups peas (optional, I suppose)

Combine ground beef, mushrooms, cream of mushroom, water and spices in a skillet and bring to a simmer. Stir in sour cream. Lightly toss in the peas. Don't squish them!

Cook pasta and drain. Toss with parsley and butter. Spoon stroganoff over pasta or just mix it all together like we do. I also like to sprinkle a teeny bit of parmesan cheese over the top.

Enjoy!

To make this meal freezer friendly: Cook and drain the ground beef. Mix with the mushrooms, cream of mushroom soup, water and spices. Place in a freezer safe container and freeze. To make: Thaw frozen ingredients. Mix in a skillet and bring to a simmer; add sour cream. Cook pasta and toss with butter and parsley and serve as mentioned above.

This post linked to:
This post linked to:
Southern Fairytale's Mouthwatering Monday
Beauty and Bedlam's Tasty Tuesday