Mommy Tip Monday: Snack Time!

Happy Monday everyone! I think this post applies to everyone, because who doesn't like snacking right? Well if you like to snack, I know you will get just as lost as I always do on this site. Check it out.

Fix Me A Snack

Don't leave without checking out Yogurt 101!

Thai Inspired Soup

I am working once again on very little sleep. I called in this morning to see if I could take a personal day and the girl who answered the phone clearly didn't know what she was talking about.

"Hello"

"Hi, Mommy"

"Hi, I was just calling in because my kids kept me up all night, and seeing as I've worked nonstop for the past four years I was wondering if it was ok if I took the day off to get some rest"

"Mommy do you know what sound a bagpipe makes? It goes...beeeeeeeeeeaaawwaaaarrrrraaaaaaaaaaaahhh. It's pretty much my favorite sound"

this is where I started suspecting that she may have no authority to give me the day off

"Do you have a manager I could speak too"

"Bagpipe starts with B...buh buh Beee"

*crickets*
At this point I noticed the girl in question was talking into a plastic banana instead of a phone, clearly this conversation was going nowhere.

We reached a compromise though. I get to wear my pj's all day, and we are going to have canned soup and sandwiches for dinner because they require minimal effort. Also there will be much time cuddling on the couch with a story book. This job has it's perks.

What does that have to do with this soup....nothing. Thanks for putting up with it. I guess what I'm saying is if you notice extra typos, grammatical errors and confusing steps, it's only because my editor** has taken a leave of absence due to lack of sleep. :)

Here's that recipe you have all been waiting for.....right? It's a mild flavored soup that is full of summery ingredients like corn, yellow pepper, lemon and cilantro. It has almost no heat, you can surely up the amount of curry paste if you want a spicy soup. This recipe makes a lot, but I think it tastes even better the next day. It's excellent over cilantro rice. There are a lot of ingredients in here, don't be alarmed, you may be surprised just how many you have on hand.

served over cilantro rice. Yum!

1tbs oil
6 cloves of pressed garlic
2 tsp minced ginger
2 tbs vegetarian oyster sauce*
1 1/2 tbs brown sugar
3 tsp soy sauce
1 tbs Thai green curry paste
1 yellow bell pepper sliced into strips
1 potato scrubbed and diced
8oz extra firm organic pre-diced tofu...It will be packed in water, drain it thoroughly
1 cup frozen corn
4 cups of veggie stock
1 can of coconut milk
1 handful of baby spinach
1 handful of cilantro chopped
2 Meyer lemons
salt to taste

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the next six ingredients (from garlic to curry paste) and stir.

Add the pepper, tofu, and potato. Cook for five minutes. Then flip and cook for five more minutes. The potatoes should be tender.

Add the corn and veggie stock. Bring it to a boil.

Boil until the potatoes are done.

Lower the heat and add the coconut milk, spinach, cilantro and the juice of the two lemons. Heat through and add salt to taste.

Serve over cilantro rice if desired. I made this recipe and switched the white rice for brown, so the cooking times and proportions were different, but the flavors were still the same. It was fantastic, use whatever type of stock you desire. I think I may have also doubled the garlic....I do that.

*This is vegetarian oyster sauce, I believe I have also seen it called mushroom stirfry sauce. I'm not thrilled with all of the ingredients. Definitely a sometimes food. It adds a depth of flavor to Thai dishes that I have not been able to duplicate without using it. Find it Asian grocery stores.



** Editor, being my brain....she isn't really that great of an editor to begin with, but she's better than nothing.

Sorry about the funky font sizes, I was having trouble editing this. All the computer's fault I'm sure. In no way has to do with my lack of sleep. :)

Marinated Bean and Potato Tacos and a Choose Your Own Adventure

Remember the "choose your own adventure" series? I loved those things as a kid, a book you can read again and again! What more would any eight year old girl want (I don't know friends maybe).


Anyhoo, this is a super simple recipe so I thought I'd turn it into a behind the scenes peek at what goes on in my kitchen when I am cooking and running on very little sleep. I fully intend to get seven hours tonight. With luck there will be no broken night lights, 2 am "frow ups", or 5am "I just decided I really like the sun and I want to sing about it.....loudly". It does make the recipe a little more confusing, however it is like I said a super simple recipe and I totally have faith in you.


What you need

2 cloves of garlic finely minced
12 oz jar of Mango Peach Salsa
2 baked potatoes cooled and diced
1 can of beans drained and rinsed. I suggest pinto beans, I did not have them and used butter beans. I think pinto would have worked better.
hot sauce and salt to taste.

tortilla shells

Add the salsa to a large mixing bowl one tablespoon at a time (no not really) until you realize you want to use the whole dang jar and dump that in.

Take a moment to look at how pretty the salsa jar is. Isn't it lovely? It vaguely reminds you of the cover of a book you once read.....you liked that book.
At this point you can either

1.) add the garlic, diced potatoes and beans to the bowl.
or
2.)contemplate the jar some more.....yes you could recycle it, but you could also get crafty with it...it's the perfect size for a candle isn't it?

If you chose 1 continue on with the recipe. If you chose 2 scroll to the bottom.

Carefully stir in the potatoes and beans and add hot sauce and salt to taste. Cover and put the bowl in the fridge.

Leave it there for about a half hour, while it is marinating you can fry or bake up some tortilla shells.

While your tortilla shells are frying (let's just say you fried them ok) your phone will beep.
You....

3.) Dutifully remain in the kitchen and dice taco fixings next to the stove where you can keep a watchful eye on your tortillas.
4.) Go check , and update, and otherwise get lost on facebook.

Those who chose 3 may proceed.....4....scroll to the bottom.

When your tortillas are done salt them and let them cool. Pull the taco filling out of the fridge and fill your tortillas with the marinated potato mixture, lettuce, bell pepper, cilantro, cheese, rice cheese or whatever else you like to put on tacos. As is this recipe is vegan (double check your ingredients). However I don't know enough about protein combinations to tell you whether or not it is a complete meal....perhaps someone out there can enlighten me?

After all of the tortillas are done, and your tacos are filled, take a picture for your blog. Because there is nooooo way you could have possibly done that while you were facebooking or waiting for the tortillas to cook.

Eat, enjoy, and be thankful that even in your current scatterbrained state there are still recipes that are pretty darn fool proof.




2.) Grab everything out of your craft closet (you have been wanting to organize it anyway). You are looking for candle wax or other things that might help you re purpose this jar. The end result being that your tacos will not be ready until eight o' clock at night.



4.) While on facyspace you lose track of time. Your taco shells are burnt and they won't open properly so you won't be able to get a lot of filling into them. You will say a quick prayer of thanks that your husband actually likes burnt food, and when no one is looking you will eat extra taco filling out of the bowl with a spoon........don't be ashamed, we've all done it.




Well I hope that all made sense, I'm about to go to bed as we speak. These tacos were tasty, and super easy to make. They will definitely be a go to meal in our house. I recommend the mango peach salsa, because a regular tomato salsa won't have as much flavor to it. Also I really like the sweet and spicy combo....could you tell?

Indian Spiced Potatoes and Peas

This is a lovely side dish, not really spicy hot, but very tasty. You may add cayenne or hot pepper if you desire a spicy dish. And yes I totally pan fried these potatoes....in oil...then I wrapped the whole lovely mess in rice paper...and I fried it some more. So clearly this is not an every day food. Really tasty, and full of healthy veg, but I am willing to wager it's not low calorie. I am ok with that. I would have loved to add some more protein to this and have made it into a full meal. Chickpeas would be nice, or perhaps some diced firm tofu? Let me know if you try it out.

What you need

2 tbs oil
2 sweet potatoes (washed, peeled, diced)
1 regular potato (washed, peeled, diced)
1/4 tsp of salt

1/4 tsp turmeric
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt

4 cloves of pressed garlic
1 tsp minced ginger
1 cup frozen peas

Heat the oil over medium heat and add the diced potatoes and 1/4 tsp of salt. Cook for five minutes on medium.

Add the rest of the spices and salt (from turmeric to salt) stir them in, and cook for another five minutes. At this point my potatoes were fully cooked, if yours are not then cook them a bit longer.

Add the garlic, ginger, and frozen peas. Cook for five minutes more, stirring and lowering heat if necessary to avoid burning the garlic.



I've divided the ingredients up into groups by when you add them. Let me know if this makes it easier or more confusing. I love the feedback, and I am also in total shock that people are actually following my recipes. :) It makes me super happy, but also makes me want to make it a little easier on you, the reader.....because I love you the reader. :)

Here are the potatoes and peas being used as an appetizer of sorts, rolled in rice paper, fried, and served with a dipping sauce. The sauce is a mixture of yogurt, vinegar, sugar, salt, and cilantro leaves. Not very pretty, but very tasty.

Mommy Tip Monday:Holidays with food allergies and dietary restrictions

October is coming up, and I was kind of in a dilly of a pickle. What to do about Halloween? There is going to be candy EVERYWHERE. It doesn't matter if we trick or treat or not, they give out candy in stores, at harvest festivals, even some library functions. Should we hide from now until January second? Do I let my children participate, and then snatch their candy away after the festivities?

If you have been reading my blog for some time (or if you know me), then you will know the reason for this conundrum is due to our collective allergies. When you take away soy, nuts, eggs and food dye, you end up with very few options at most holiday parties. Throw in the fact that one child can have nuts and soy while the other can not and you see where my problem lies. I am sure this is a problem for other parents out there so I thought I would share what I am going to do with you.

There are a few things I am passionate about, giving my kids food home cooked meals, eating together, and despite the differences in the way we may eat and live I want them to be kids! So we are not hiding out, nor am I devising a stick like weapon to bat away the onslaught of sugary allergen infested treats! I got this wonderful idea from a mother at story time, who does not to my knowledge have a blog, but deserves the credit for this. After trick or treating her children leave their candy out overnight and in the morning it has been replaced by a toy! Excellent idea right? The kids are happy, they get to participate in fun, and they don't feel deprived of their sweets. Problem solved!

Lentils In a Creamy Spicy Tomato Sauce

I am a lean (kind of) mean (not on purpose of course) meal freezing machine!


Little man had a stomach bug that totally caught me off guard. All he wanted was to be held and cuddled 24-7, and while I in no way mind doing so it made me aware of the fact that we are getting low on freezer meals. Anyhoo, you may see a little less of me in the next few weeks as I build up my reserves. In the mean time, we are also still working on squirrelling away money to put into savings. And what is cheaper than lentils?? Right? Well I served this dish over rice, and you could use any type of beans you like in place of lentils.

This meal is the perfect example of why I like to have lots of spices on hand. This is really a quite ordinary dish...garlic, tomato sauce, beans, not very exciting at all. By using some spices that I always have readily available, garam masala, cumin, paprika, it turns into a scrumptious dish that the whole family enjoys.

What you need:

2 tbs butter (or olive oil)
3 tsp garam masala
1 tsp paprika
2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp dried ginger
1 tsp chili powder
dash or two of cayenne
5 cloves of pressed garlic
1 can tomato paste
1 can tomato sauce
1 can coconut milk
Salt to taste
2-4 cups of cooked beans (I used lentils, kidney beans might work well in this too)
If you want to go with canned beans, be sure to drain and rinse them well.I used a lot of beans, I was going for a high protein high fiber meal. Add the beans to your liking and tastes.


Melt the butter (or heat the oil) over medium heat and add the spices (garam masala, paprika, cumin, ginger, chili powder, and cayenne). Cook about a minute and a half until fragrant.

Add the garlic and cook one minute more.

Add the tomato paste and stir. Lower the heat if necessary, tomato products are quick to burn (if memory serves me this is because of their high sugar content, anyone know for sure?)

Slowly stir in the tomato sauce and the coconut milk.

Add salt to taste and heat through.

Add the beans and cook until heated through once more.

Adjust to suit tastes (more cayenne, salt etc) and serve over rice. Garnish with cilantro.

Although this lovely dish looks kind of like dog food it was quite tasty, and we all enjoyed it very much. I hope you do as well.

Acorn Squash Stuffed with Curried Rice and Chickpeas

When I saw Astra put squash into a slow cooker my world was changed. Just because squash and pumpkins start showing up in the produce section in no way means that the weather has started to cool down here. In fact this next week we are looking at a lot of 90 degree plus days. This is one of the many reasons I love my crock pot, it gives me the ability to enjoy the foods I love without turning my house into an oven. Thank you Astra.

This recipe was pretty tasty, I think next time I will replace the 1/4 cup of yogurt with coconut milk and add a can of diced tomatoes....I don't know why it just sounds good. I will let you know how those modifications turn out. I served this along side some curried potato patties. I will hopefully get around to posting that recipe soon. What you see in the middle bowl is simply a mixture of plain yogurt thinned out with vinegar, and a smidgen of sugar.



This recipe makes four servings

2 acorn squash washed, halved and degooped (pull out all of the seeds and etc)
2 cups cooked brown rice
1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas
5 tsp hot curry paste (like Pataks) divided
1/4 cup plain yogurt
4 cloves pressed garlic
1 small box of raisins (1.5 oz)
1tsp minced ginger
1/4 tsp salt...or more to taste

Using 1tsp of the curry paste rub the insides of the acorns and sprinkle with salt.

Mix together the rest of the ingredients and distribute this filling evenly between the four halved squashes.

Cook on low, until squash is fully cooked. It took me about six hours, but will vary depending on the size of your squash and the crock pot you use. I had to stack my squash, they seemed to cook well regardless.

My daughter even pitched in on this meal by making dessert. Chocolate covered strawberries and pretzels. She was so proud to present them at the end of the meal.