Still reeling at work! But some dinner menus to share

I'm taking a short break from work. Ugh, I hate it now. 

Not sure when I'll return to liking it. So far, it's a lot of questions I don't have answers for, doing things I'm not sure I'm doing right, and wondering how I will ever, EVER get it all done. (Answer: Never. You never finish a To-Do list. I know this, and yet I still let it cause me stress.)

But since I'm three weeks in (almost), I'm trying to start letting go of that panicked feeling and make room for my regular life to come back to the forefront. I can't continue feeling like I'm in Survival Mode forever. I can only do what I can do, and it's also important to exercise, drink water, take a minute of quiet, etc.! And to eat well. 

Last night, Shawn thanked me for making dinner after a long stressful day. So kind of him. I am grateful he sees that it's work -- but also, I like to cook. Turning my focus from my laptop to the stove and pantry is a relief, sometimes. Especially when it's a new recipe and I get to concentrate on just that. Something about creating, single-tasking, and um, I just like food. Plain and simple! So here are a few of the things we've been eating and I've enjoyed making.

White Bean Enchilada Soup -- I loved this. Had it again for my lunch today and it was equally delish. It seems like a lot of ingredients, but is actually not difficult. I also cooked and shredded some chicken breasts for the people who don't think it's a meal if it doesn't have meat. ;) My favorite part was slicing up some fresh jalepenos for the garnish. I usually don't do that since I have Cholula and diced in a jar jalepenos, always. But this time the extra effort was worth it.

When I went to Pensacola last week with my sister (! so fun to be all four of us, my nuclear family of origin, together again!), she made Shrimp Tikka Masala for us, and it was To Die For. She got her recipe from a subscription service and it's not currently on the online menu for me to link, but the one I linked is pretty close. Yum Yum I could eat it every day. I mean, anything with Jasmine Rice, am I right? I went right out and bought myself a bottle of garam masala spice, to have on-hand, and I will be making this at home toute de suite!

During one of the MANY days I was in the office over the last few weeks, I heard some coworkers talking about Egg Roll in a Bowl; they had never had it before. I've known about it for years but haven't made it in a while, so that was my contribution in Pensacola. It's yummy every time and feels virtuous! And again: Jasmine Rice. 

The rest of this week it's minimal effort for dinner, and we're going to our one out-of-town volleyball tournament this weekend (Sevierville, TN!), so I won't get to enjoy cooking again for a few days. 

Okay, back to the most pressing To Dos and Emails. 

Sugar Detox

"Sugar Detox" is written is big letters across today, tomorrow and Friday on my planner. After yesterday, I need one. Well, I have needed one much longer than that, but yesterday was just the final straw in feeling discouraged with myself about how much sugar I can consume in a day. It's Phil's fault. 

My coworker, Phil, from the UK, surprised me by being in my office yesterday when I got to work! I am still trying to only go to the office one or two days a week -- in fact, this week, my boss told employees that with the cost of gas rising so much, we are all welcome to work from home again as much as we like (he's so good about this stuff since Covid) -- and Tuesday is my day. I don't work with Phil on a daily basis anymore, so I had no idea about his travel schedule. What fun to see a friendly face from so far away when I arrived! 

Phil always brings treats from Great Britain. Yesterday they included some good shortbread, which I cannot resist. But I had already treated myself to a Pop Tart, because I needed an "on the go" breakfast! And then he held out the tin of shortbread (it's a tin because it's British), instead of quietly just placing his gift in the break room. What else could I have done but take one as he stood there? No polite way out of that, and because shortbread is SO delicious I found another small piece of it later in the day after he DID take it to the break room. I felt called after that, to learn how to make shortbread at home. Buttery and sugary and that crumbly TEXTURE?! Heaven help me. But I also kept hearing the word "diabetes" in my head, Wilford Brimley style, and therefore: Sugar Detox. 

Over the past weekend I also made some treats, myself, at home. I was thinking of Toll House original chocolate chip cookies, but those take some time and dirty so many dishes. So I went with a 3-ingredient recipe for "Super Rich Cookie Bars" instead (it's 1.33 cups of graham cracker crumbs, a can of condensed milk, and 1.5 cups of chocolate chips, bake at 350 for 30 minutes). And I've eaten at least 4 of them. You have to cut them small because they're so rich, so it seems like a reasonably tiny treat... until you eat 4. ANYWAY. I also made "protein energy balls," which have healthy old fashioned oats and coconut and peanut butter in them, but are really a no-bake cookie (also chocolate chips and honey, lol). 

And in general I like something sweet after a meal. A square of dark chocolate or some dried cranberries. 

It's just too much sugar. So the rest of this week I am going to be drinking lots of water, and will attempt to have sugar-free gum at the ready after meals. I'm not aiming to never eat sugar again, just need to put a hard stop to it for a bit. Clear my cache, so to speak. (Clear my cookies is more like it!) I sincerely wish I could "lose my taste" for sweet things in 3 days, but we all know that isn't gonna happen. Wish me luck.

The Best Coffee, Pumpkin Bread and What's for Supper

The best coffee, IMHO, is Barnie's Coffee & Tea Company's Santa's White Christmas. I have been drinking it this fall because they sell it year-round, now. Usually I resist and resist, because I love saving the flavor until Christmas -- it feels very Christmasy to me. However, in These Desperate Times, I have taken a less firm stance on it. Give me the coffee that tastes yummy and makes me feel comfort and joy! 

I also discovered just this morning, the Salted Caramel Barrisimo coffee pods at Aldi. Quite delicious, mild, and budget-friendly. (I've been doing a lot of grocery shopping at Aldi lately. I do think it's saving me money and I'm getting used to it; but I still don't love it. A bit of a mental obstacle for me, to shop at the "discount" store, but I am trying to frame it as being wise/responsible. I'm mostly getting fruits/vegetables and raw meats at Aldi; $2.99 for a bag of honeycrisp apples versus $5.49 at Publix. For some things, like canned black beans or boxed pasta, I am not brand-loyal, and a 55-cent can versus a $1.98 is a huge difference. Or, $7 for a box of 10 Keurig pods at Publix versus $4.50 or so at Aldi. For other items, I do still need my favorite brands (Spaghetti-Ohs, frozen breakfasts, sandwich bread, SWC coffee). Anyway, it takes a little longer going to 2 stores, but it's helping me stick to my newly-instituted (by me) grocery budget, and for that I am thankful, and feeling smart.)

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I had the time and ingredients to make a delicious pumpkin bread yesterday -- 2 loaves' worth! You should try it. One is in the freezer, but I might as well have left it out because we're halfway through the first loaf already. It uses a box of vanilla pudding mix, so you can imagine how tasty and melt-in-your-mouth it is. Goes particularly well with Salted Caramel flavored coffee, I can attest. 

I haven't posted much about the next topic here, on purpose, but I will say my pumpkin bread with cinnamon butter was a nice celebratory treat this morning, after learning I am down 13 pounds since July. I've been working on it, I didn't just lose weight surprisingly. I'm monitoring calories, drinking lots of water and exercising daily -- my main reason is to lower my cholesterol which was startlingly high in July. Darn you, Quarantine Spring, when we ate cookies and chips constantly, and drank tons of coffee with cream (or, I did). 

Of course, what "monitoring" means is "tracking every bite, every day," and yes, I agree that is a Pain. But I've gotten used to it; I use an app, and it seems to be working, so I'll take it. I won't say more, just that if you've done carb-restrictive diets like I have in the past few years, I think I have finally concluded that, for me, this way is better. No food is off-limits, just stay in your calorie-range. If you want Cheetos, eat some Cheetos, but then eat fewer of your suppertime potatoes or something. Bah. Anyway. I still have a few pounds to go until I feel like I'm finished losing, and I hope to be able to enjoy the holiday indulgences a LITTLE, but not too much. I refuse to have to start over in January. 

SO! For dinner this week: 

S (last night): White Bean Chicken Chili

M: Roasted Kielbasa/Chicken Sausage and Potatoes and Broccoli (Sheet-Pan Supper)

T: French Bread Pizzas and Caesar salad (I might eat bean soup that's in the freezer -- fiber!)

W: Whole Wheat Rotini bake, Garlic Knots to negate the goodness of the whole wheat ;)

Th: Pork Tenderloin with Green Bean Casserole (I need a new way to make green beans, but this way works once in a while!)

F: @football game! I think the team will be back to play a home game so it's hot dogs at the stadium, yay!

And you? 

Someone set the table (ha ha, it's always me)...

What's for dinner this week, peeps? Here's my plan:

Tonight (M): King Ranch Chicken Casserole and black beans on the side. Probably chips and salsa/queso on the side, too. This is a new-to-me recipe; I have a very old KRCC recipe - received from my aunt as part of one of my favorite bridal shower gifts, so many years ago. (It was a kitchen shower, and the gift was a recipe book where each guest had been sent a recipe card ahead of time, and brought them with them, to fill up the book! I cherish it.) But that recipe uses canned condensed cream-of soups, and that is so passe.

I think I did it wrong anyway by using flour tortillas, when I should have used corn all these years. It wasn't specified by my aunt. So anyway, it's Mexican fiesta tonight and I'm excited about it!

T: Leftovers on Parade, because we had a version of this sundried tomato pasta w/chicken on Friday night and there's a lot left. It was so yummy!

W: Soup and Grilled Cheese. You are starting to think, "She is really phoning it in this week, again!" And my reply to that unsaid thought is YES. I am bored with everything I make and tired of having to come up with new ideas. So soup and grilled cheese it is. Kate and I will have creamy tomato and Alex and Shawn probably will have Chicken Noodle.

Th: Baked Lasagna, salad, and garlic knots. The lasagna is currently in my freezer; I made it a few months ago and smartly kept half for sometime in the future. Thank you, past me.

F: Alex has band practice until 7:15 but the rest of us will be eating shrimp scampi pasta. However, I forgot to buy spinach, I couldn't find a small (mini) bottle of Chardonnay at the store I went to this weekend (Walmart, okay, it was Walmart*, and they had ONE Black Box Chardonnay but I couldn't reach it) ...and I just ate about 1/3 of the pint of cherry tomatoes I bought for this recipe. Whoops. So I'll have to shop again on Thursday for this one.


This turned out to be an extraordinarily pasta- and casserole-heavy week! Must have been the cold weather on Saturday when I made my grocery list! It was 50 degrees and raining allllllll day.

... reviews the list again...
... thinks about Friday, because Alex is going to have to actually eat with us, since it's a practice and not a football game...

Hmm. Yeah, I think the Friday shrimp is going to be postponed. Since it requires more shopping, and since pasta... I'm going to change that one. It will probably be hamburger patties, served with corn and mashed potatoes. Not that this is a healthier option, mind you, just an option.


*I officially hate doing my grocery shopping at Walmart, especially on a Sunday afternoon, but this weekend we needed a bunch of cosmetic-type things and some items for Kate's halloween costume idea, so Walmart it was. I hate everything about shopping there. Too crowded, nothing comes in regular sizes (food items, I mean), the cashiers use TOO MANY PLASTIC BAGS, and it generally puts me in a MOOD. I should say "Never again!" with vehemence, but Lord knows I'll have to go back there sometime. It's inevitable.

New Reliables: Healthy Foods I Love (and Can Prep Ahead)

When I do the WLC, I have to do lots of meal planning and prep. It's something I enjoy doing even off the challenge, so not a huge deal. This round (my third), I've tried a couple of new recipes that have been awesome. In rounds 1 and 2 I relied on an easy tomato soup recipe, as well as butternut squash soup, for packing my lunches (and even some dinners), but I needed to change it up this time and I'm glad I did.

Some things I've discovered:

• This Creamy Crunchy Vinegar Vegetable Slaw. WHO KNEW that homemade mayo would be such a game-changer? But it is, and takes approximately 5 minutes to make. I bought a big bag of pre-shredded cabbage/carrots, added in some raw broccoli, dill relish, and the mayo and vinegar, and MAN, is it delicious! Of course, I'm someone who LOVES dill, and that's a big flavor in this slaw (I even add more fresh dill, since I have some in the fridge leftover from a salmon dinner a week ago). But it is fully satisfying to me. Really goes well with the next one:
• (I've mentioned it here before...) Paleo Pizza Soup. This is heartier than my usual tomato soup, with sausage and pepperoni. Nearly too rich/hearty, if I'm honest. Made a big batch one Sunday -- I added mushrooms, green bell peppers, and olives, which are pizza toppings I NEVER get to have since none of my family likes them -- and have had some really good lunches from it. I sincerely wish I could dunk a garlic breadstick in there, or melt some mozzarella on top! 
• We also had Easy Burrito Bowls one night, and they were my biggest success, WLC family-dinner-wise: Brown and white rice mixed, canned black beans, rotisserie chicken cut into bite size, corn, fire roasted canned tomatoes, cheese which I skipped, guac, sour cream, salsa, jalepenos, cilantro. I could eat it every day, I think. Shawn says not to mess with it by trying to do quinoa instead of rice. So I won't. Might make them again next week, in fact!
• Kate has started wanting Ceasar salads for her lunchbox. I love this idea for her, although I wish she'd let me put some chicken on it for a little protein boost (she does take 2 cheese sticks on salad days). So this weekend I cut up a big ol' gallon Tupperware's worth of romaine. Makes it super-fast in the mornings that she can grab a handful or two and be on her way. Me too! Today I made a salad for myself and had Buffalo Ranch dressing (LOVE that my Kickstart level lets me have Ranch dressing). It's just Ranch with some Frank's Red Hot Sauce mixed in. Added sesame seeds for crunch. Delicious!
• I might as well chronicle another soup we tried here: Hamburger Soup. Next time I might add more Worcestershire and maybe even mustard powder to up the flavor a little.
• Sweet potatoes for breakfast. Nearly forgot about this one, but it's perfectly portable: Peel/dice a couple of sweet potatoes, drizzle w/olive oil and roast in the oven w/salt and pepper on a Sunday. Divide them into your serving-size lunch bowls and store in the fridge. Add a chicken sausage patty on top and you're out the door in 1 minute (if you have a microwave at your office, which I do). Would also be delicious with a fried egg on top if you're eating at home! YUM.

Something for the "menus" category

Just because. I think it's a decent lineup this week.

Sunday: We had this Chicken Pot Pie. I had baked 6 chicken thighs one night last week, but as it turned out, no one was hungry. And I always have Bisquick and frozen peas and carrots on-hand. I also added a little corn and some leftover chopped broccoli. Cleaned out the fridge for the win! It was yummy with a Caesar salad.

Monday: Patty Melts and Roasted New Potatoes. My family was like, "Where's the Bread??" But guess what, family: We should all eat less of it. I can see I'm starting to rely on those roasted potatoes as a side item. Everyone will be sick of them if I don't back off a little, lol.

Tuesday: Grilled Cheese and Soup. (What was that she said about bread? Whoops.) We have a little gumbo leftover, I have chicken noodle available, and tortilla soup mix, and we have activities/meetings tonight so it's gotta be a quick one.

Wednesday: Chicken Parmesan with egg noodles. It's super easy, but doesn't seem like it. I think I'll make some sauteed zucchini to go with it. These kids need to eat more vegetables, seriously. (I'm always of the opinion that kids as skinny as Alex should just EAT and it doesn't really matter what, but sometimes I do feel vegetable guilt.)

Thursday: Welcome to Moe's! This year it's piano on Thursday nights at 6:15, and we got really hungry before the lessons ended the one time we didn't eat first. So now I know to stop somewhere on the way.

Friday: Make your own Pizza night. Tomato sauce is a vegetable. ;)

Post-Break: Feeling Relaxed, Planning Dinners

It's my first day back to work after Spring Break 2016, and it's nearly noon, so I'm just finishing my "Ease Back In" program, which consists of reading my emails, then reading my blogs and goofing around a bit while also checking various things like the company Facebook page and my calendars/to-do lists. I figure half a day is a good time limit, and allows me some hours to remember what it's like to sit here all day 5 days a week.

And to write down my FEELINGS about it. ;) Thusly:

I do really need a refresher, honestly, about work, because I took the week OFF. And I do mean, off, from ANY and ALL responsibilities. I didn't cook much, I didn't clean much, I didn't ever ONCE sit down at the computer or look at a Google calendar, and I certainly let go of my work stuff for the week. It was nice. I needed a break. I'm unsure if the kids really had fun, but they say they did. I felt a little social-media-inspired guilt, seeing everyone away at this or that beach, or London or California or a Caribbean cruise, like some of our acquaintances. WTH, everyone? Does no one value the STAYCATION? I do. I valued it a lot. Like I said, we didn't make a lot of plans. We hiked the mountain and picnicked, which has become our Spring Break Staycation Tradition (I didn't even feel sore the next day, I'll have you know), and we ordered Chinese food one night and played Table Tennis and 100-pin bowling on the Wii, which was fun. We saw a movie (Zootopia, CUTE), Kate had a long playdate, Alex went to a sleepover, and that's really about it. The kids stayed up 'til about 10 every night, as they are doing lately on the weekends, but that was fine I suppose. We used the excuse of "Daddy has to work tomorrow" to send them to bed at 10. It was too bad he didn't have the week off like the rest of us, but having that limit was a good thing.

I slept "in" every morning until about 7:30 -- Kate until about 8:00 (Alex still woke up early as is his norm). I read two whole books, both awesome. (Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain, and then Falling Angels by Tracy Chevalier.) We had a few lunches out (Subway, McDonald's) and several of leftovers or sandwiches. We got ice cream one afternoon. I went out for Mexican food and margaritas with some mom friends. We just took it easy. I had joked with a coworker that I was going to nap every day; unfortunately, that didn't quite happen, but still, the days felt luxuriously lazy.

I'm so grateful that I had enough vacation days this year to cover the week. I'm so grateful my kids were okay with doing basically nothing. I'm so sad it's over. But, sigh. It's time to come back to the real world, and be engaged and Do Things. ;)

I'm trying to rev back up to "normal routine" standards. Getting a cold late last week didn't help for motivation but I'm feeling better today than I did Friday/Saturday. Made a big list at work this morning. LOTS of big tasks that need breaking up into smaller tasks, this afternoon. Checked the family G-cal today and remembered a couple of events, like I'm responsible for snack for the Girl Scouts this Wednesday, whoops! Shawn has to chaperone a Drama Club rehearsal, AND take the kids to their dentist appointments this afternoon! Teamwork, it's how we roll.

AND I tried to put together a decent dinner menu for the week. I said over on Lagliv.blogspot.com, that I've been wholly uninspired lately, and really, really bored with trying to come up with dinners every night. Her blog is full of suggestions, so I'm excited to think about and plan a few new things. First, my menus for this week:

S - (last night) Maple-glazed salmon, buttered broccoli and wild rice [SO YUM. Everyone ate it, no leftovers.]
M - Pizza Casserole with sausage and pepperoni (if I can get it done quickly when we get home tonight), garlic toast
T - Frozen chicken tenders w/BBQ sauce, mashed potatoes and corn, and Stouffers Harvest apples
W - Burgers and tater tots! Everyone's favorite!
Th - "Whatever" night -- with gymnastics at 6:30 and then me leaving for choir, I do Spaghetti-Ohs or corn dogs or mac and cheese for the kids usually, and Shawn heats up a bachelorhood-nostalgia favorite like SOS or Salisbury Steak when he gets home. Lame, but it's working for us for now.
F - (Shake n Bake) Crispy Baked Chicken Breasts, green beans and maybe salad, crescent rolls

Bookmarking some of the things I think look interesting that LL has mentioned (she's a working mom slash weekday dinner inspiration!):
http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/soups/cheeseburger-soup/
http://www.thegardengrazer.com/2012/03/black-bean-spinach-enchiladas.html
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/13983/mexican-vegetable-rice/

Last of the Leftovers, hooray!

We ate the last of our holiday leftovers last night, HOORAY! Threw the rest out. We're done. But oh, did we eat some good things recently:

London Broil -- First time I used the broiler drawer in this new kitchen. I didn't even burn the meat; in fact, it was pretty rare on the first go-round. Almost too rare for my liking (sorry, Shawn). But it worked as a leftover, because putting it in the the microwave made it just right. I can't remember the recipe/marinade I used. During the holidays I put the steak on King's Hawaiian slider rolls, with Dijon and mayo, and THAT was yummy.

Lasagna -- Christmas Day dinner. So festive in my HUGE Lenox Holiday casserole dish! So easy. Even fun to put together! Dry noodles! I mostly made up the recipe from others I've used, but what you need to know is three things: Lean beef + Turkey sausage, cottage cheese + ricotta, and 28 oz pasta sauce + 1/2 to 1/3 C. water. It turned out perfect.

Mom and Dad made Meatloaf** -- the first weeknight they were here, Shawn and I came home to dinner already made! Meatloaf, which everyone in my house likes, plus a salad (I think) and the potatoes below. They even made a 2nd meatloaf that's in my freezer right now, so I won't have to think so hard about next week's menu! Yippie!

Pioneer Woman's Potato Casserole** -- I'm pretty sure it's this one, and it was creamy and amazing. The kids ate a few bites but haven't wanted any since. More for me! We made it with frozen hash browns instead of thin-sliced potatoes. Muuuuuch easier.

**The best part about this meal was that Kate walked through the kitchen while they were cooking, and the house was starting to smell really good, and she said, "Y'all are doing great for a 73-year old and a 68-year old!" We'll never forget it.

Another PW recipe: Christmas Tortilla Roll-Ups. Also another thing I didn't make, Mom and Dad did! SO delicious. There's Ranch dressing mix that makes these so flavorful! We might still have one wrapped up in the fridge; I forgot to check last night. Mostly I'm the only one in my family of four who likes them. I think they'd be good with added turkey, too. We did a lot of "appetizers" dinners, particularly on New Year's Eve (sometimes I've done that on New Year's Day, too, but not this year). My favorite!

Pork Tenderloin -- Easy, I bought a portabello mushroom flavored one. This was going to be NYD dinner, but instead, we had:

Sausage and Shrimp Gumbo. Shawn's request, and thank goodness he did! It was something fun to do that day with Mom, and warm and filling. Even the kids ate some (I did make a non-spicy version for them), which is what we call progress! Can't link to the recipe because it's a family one, and not online as far as I know, but MAN, did it turn out good. Especially the 2nd day. No leftovers on that one, nothing to throw out. We served it with rice and french bread because duh, that's the only way to eat gumbo. And Mom, we're going to practice more often, aren't we? We promised each other we would. :)

Fruits, vegetables

I need to get more of them. A brilliant idea occurred to me, and was just successful (lunch), and I don't want to forget it for next time.

I had several half-used bags of frozen vegetables in the freezer. Mixed (carrots, peas, corn) and the Seasoning Mix (onions, green peppers, red peppers), mostly. I love casserole-type dishes for lunch, instead of boring sandwiches. So I put about a cup of the veggies into a Tupperware, added 1/2 c. of black beans, and brought one of those Ready-to-Serve Minute Rice Brown Rice cups in my bag. At lunchtime I heated both the rice and vegetables, topped it with S&P and a little green chile pepper Tabasco (my fave).

So yummy and so virtuous. Whole grain! Vegetables! I want this type of thing to be my go-to lunch instead of Lean Pockets.  I could do chicken, low-sodium soy, and broccoli/cauliflower. Smoked turkey sausage, vegetables, and a little BBQ sauce, perhaps. Time to eat more real food and less processed stuff (even though I love a Lean Pocket now and again)! And less deli meat. I am really tired of deli meat sandwiches, plus, I always want chips to go with them.


P.S. I do love PB&J. One day 2 weeks ago when I was making Alex a PB&J for lunch, I made myself one, too. Delish. Funny how you forget. One of my long-ago co-workers used to bring PB&J every day for his lunch, when he was in a financially difficult time. I almost decided then and there to do the same thing, not for financial reasons but for bored-with-my-usual reasons. Almost.

P.S.S. Tomorrow's lunch will be a leftover fajita that I froze last week -- so, green peppers and onions in a whole wheat tortilla, w/chicken. Wholesome again! Win!

Flavorful!

I made jambalaya for dinner last night. It turned out pretty darn tasty. Wasn't as amazing as the jambalaya recipe that my parents and Uncle are currently using, but still had that delicious, unmistakable Cajun flavor, and what seemed like a lot of healthy vegetables so it was virtuous. It calls for a 1-lb. can of whole tomatoes, among other things. Lycopene for the win!

I made mine with shrimp, ham and brown rice. You can also do oysters, but why would you? The parents'/Uncle's recipe has chicken and andouille sausage, I think, but this easy recipe (from Great Aunt Lou) doesn't.

Only thing I didn't have was a nice loaf of French bread. Darn. Probably saved myself 600 calories, though.

I can't wait to have the leftovers for lunch tomorrow. (Didn't bring them today because of eating the same thing 2 days in a row. It's just not right.)

The kids tried it and both said, with eyebrows raised as if surprised, "That's pretty good!" As I tell them every time I make something Cajun, "Good, you'll be seeing it again."

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Although, it's funny about "family" recipes. I think a lot of people who have nothing at all to do with Louisiana make Cajun dishes like jambalaya. They might even call them "family favorites." The millions of cooking websites and recipe Pins and cooking shows these days -- not to mention the availability of ingredients -- makes it possible to have anything you want as a "family" recipe. You like Pad Thai? It's easy. Want some Indian curry and Naan? Got that. Authentic Polish kielbasa something-or-other? I bet there's a crock-pot version.

It makes the special recipes a little less unique, I think, which is kind-of sad. It also dilutes the family "norm," because in any given week, we could have pasta, sitr-fry, pulled pork, and chorizo quesadillas. We're diluted on heritage -- we're not Italian in any way, nor Chinese, nor Mexican. (I guess pulled pork BBQ's the only thing we can legitimately claim, as Georgians.) But we're always big on flavor. :)

Ice Cream Maker!

To celebrate National Ice Cream Month (who knew?) in July, I had a Cuisinart Ice Cream maker shipped to my doorstep direct from the Amazon. Or, amazon.com, however you'd prefer to say it. I think it's THE Amazon, anymore -- I doubt the next generation will realize that there exists a rainforest of the same name! It's not like they can go to their parents' bookshelf and look it up in the Encyclopedia now, is it?? (What's an encyclopedia?, I bet they'd ask.)

ANYWAY... I got an ice cream maker the other day. This is something I've been thinking I wanted for several months now. I like ice cream. My kids like ice cream. My husband likes it, too, and we all especially like making ice cream cones in the summertime. (I don't mean making the cones -- those come straight out of the box.) I could say that ice cream from the grocery store is getting expensive, because it is. But mostly, my desire to make my own is nostalgia at play.

For one of my birthdays (or was it Dad's birthday?), I remember Mom making homemade pink peppermint ice cream. When I can duplicate THAT recipe, this purchase will have paid for itself, but to start with, last night I made a dark chocolate for my very first try.

These days, you buy an automatic ice cream maker, countertop version. It's nothing like the wooden bucket that we plugged in on the back porch outside when I was little. There's no rock salt involved. (I made enough of a mess with the cocoa powder; I don't think I need the extra hassle of ice cubes and rock salt.) I used the recipe in the booklet that came with the machine.

After the recommended 35 minutes, it was more like a cool, unfinished pudding and I was worried. But I stuck it in the freezer as advised. This morning I had a little taste. It reminded me of the flavor of a Starbucks Mocha, actually, so I'm pretty excited to have a big bowl later this evening.

That's all. I made some ice cream. :) It made me happy.

7 Quick Takes: A little less ranty, a little more yummy

Sorry about below. Got a little fired up.

But Lent is nearly over and it's time to start celebrating! Yes, the joy of the risen Lord, but also, the fact that meatless Fridays are almost over! I'm a wimp, what can I say? Actually, that's not true -- I love meatless meals, but my family gets grumbly about them. So I'll be glad when I can just spring the meatless meals on them, on my OWN schedule.

Here are seven meatless meals we've had this Lent:

1. Breakfast for dinner. Our old standby. It's always fun to have Belgian waffles, even if you can't have bacon to go with them. And scrambled-egg burritos? Mine and DH's favorite. Mmmm.

2. IHOP. More of the same! My parents came up to visit during the first weekend of Lent, and we always like to go out to eat when they're here (although I will say that more often than we used to, we've cooked for them at home with great success). So we hit up IHOP on a Friday night and guess what... there was NO WAIT. We might have been the only customers. Again, too bad about the bacon, but we were counting Weight Watchers points, anyway. ;) Spinach omelet, anyone?

3. Frozen fried seafood. Sorry, food purists, but we like our fish sticks and our popcorn shrimp (new this year! KT lurrrvhs it) and our Kraft mac-n-cheese on the side.

4. Tuna Casserole. Egg noodles. Cream of Chicken. Can of tuna. Cheddar. Ritz. BOOM.

5. While not a Lenten dinner-menu item, I made these last week and WOW, were they good! Even the DH liked them! Black-bean and sweet potato burritos. I had never heard of such a combination but they are creamy, without being messy at all, and don't even need any additional salsa! WHAT? I know. Try them.

6. Good old Cheese Pizza from Papa John's. That might be what we're having tonight, in fact.

7. Our expensive pasta dinner. (Although you could, of course, do a muuuuuuch less expensive version at home. My version would be shrimp, noodles, garlic, parmsean. Even better with some sun-dried tomatoes.)

Only one more meatless Friday after today! Hooray!Visit conversiondiary.com for all the quick takes posts... as you already know.

Desk-Breakfast

There's no question that having breakfast at my desk every weekday sucks. I would much rather sit with hot coffee, in front of my kitchen window, and enjoy a quiet moment as the world wakens. I would have cereal with milk, or a toasted bagel, or cheese grits. Mmmm, cheese grits.

Maybe when I retire.

Here's what I have learned about desk-breakfasts.

I still don't ever CRAVE yogurt, but I can now officially say that I like it: Fruit on the Bottom ONLY, with extra fruit added in (blueberries, usually), and with Honey Bunches of Oats cereal, or a crushed-up granola bar, mixed in as well. I like it for desk-breakfast about once a week, although I wouldn't choose it -- and never choose it, when it's in my fridge -- for a weekend breakfast. While I eat it, I usually hear my mind saying, "MMM, this is so GOOD!"

Never thought I'd hear my mind saying THAT.

Also, I used to buy the 4-oz. cups of cottage cheese and loved having them (instead of yogurt), for a delicious protein/dairy breakfast. They just don't sound appealing to me lately and I haven't bought them in ages. Weird.

Sometimes I have the Jimmy Dean Turkey Sausage and Egg White "McMuffins" from the frozen aisle. I like them with a LOT of salt and pepper. And they're best with orange juice, but I never have it.

If I'm desperate for a breakfast item, I'll take a packet of oatmeal. Even though I really like some of the Quaker Bakery flavors -- especially Banana Nut Bread -- they're kind-of a last resort. It's just so unsatisfying to walk all the way over to the coffee area to only get hot water for oatmeal, and then the  packet-sized portion is gone in about 5 minutes. Plus, I have to walk BACK in order to wipe out my coffee mug of any bits of oats, with a paper towel, before washing it in our non-disposal sink. Gross. The whole process is Un-Fun.

Last week I successfully made a scrambled egg in the microwave before I left for work, and put it inside a small tortilla with 3 Little Smokies beef sausages and some cheddar cheese. (I had bought the Smokies for our Super Bowl party pigs-in-blankets.) I wrapped it in foil and by the time I got to work, the cheese was perfectly melted. YUM. I loved that and wanted to make a whole batch of them to keep frozen, but after I added up the calories, I decided maybe I needed to buy some turkey sausage instead. Heh.

Our Christmas cookies

I'm kinda bummed because I'm realizing that we -- my little nuclear family -- are sorely lacking in the "favorite Christmas cookies" department.

Over the weekend, we did make my favorite cookie -- Swistle's Mint-Chocolate. These definitely rule, and I am thrilled to report that both of my kiddos, like their mama, love the mint-chocolate combo in all of its forms. (Still a no-go for their Daddy, unfortch.... FOR HIM.) What could be more Christmas-y than pepperminty, chocolatey goodness? They're perfect. This year was the best batch I've ever made, due to DUH, making them smaller, and also DUH, letting them cool for 5 minutes before removing them from the cookie sheets. No crumbling! It was a thing of beauty! I foresee at least 2 additional batches being baked between now and December 25.

It has become my modus operandi to make few plain chocolate cookies before putting in the mint-chocolate chips, for DH. (They can't be any good, but I'm a giver.)

My childhood cookie traditions have gone by the wayside a little bit. Sniff! Number one for me was Sand Tarts, a version of Italian Wedding Cookies, and I have tried to make them each year but gotten nothing but flack from the current audience: They don't like nuts, they don't like powdered sugar, they don't like them Sam-I-Am. Babies. These cookies are an awful lot of trouble, so I have about decided they're not worth making if I, who shouldn't be forced to eat a whole batch, is going to have to enjoy all of them (or, okay, give them away).

Running a close second was Cathedral Cookies, (minus the coconut in that link) but those require colored mini-marshmallows, which I'll be darned if I can ever find anymore. So, sadly, that cookie might also be a thing of the past. I mean, they would still taste the same with white marshmallows, but they won't look like "cathedral windows." I guess we could call them "snowflake cookies" instead. They'd be dirty snowflakes, however, because of the chocolate, and my Grandmother definitely wouldn't like that.

We also had bourbon balls around when I was a kid. But DH doesn't do bourbon, and even I, who do do bourbon, don't particularly love alcoholic cookies. Meh.

Now back to the present-day issues:

• I like thumbprint cookies with raspberry or strawberry jam, and not just for the way they look on a Christmas plate! Yummy! (My kids/DH don't love fruity desserts, though.)
• We made these reindeer cookies one year and they were super cute (we even "frosted" them with Nutella) but they didn't really get eaten.
• I'm not so much into the "rolling dough" and the "cookie cutting" and the "icing." Bah humbug.

SO! What to do?! I need your help! I am on the hunt for delicious Christmas cookie recipes that my whole family will love and embrace. I am going to try, tonight, these Oreo Truffles. Perhaps they will suit DH's fancy a little bit and perhaps the kids won't notice the [whole brick of] cream cheese. You KNOW I'll eat 'em.

If I remember correctly, we had Some Fun several years ago re: cookies. This, then, is that "homemade" post we talked about way back then. What's your fave? What're your traditions? Go! :)

Grateful!@3

^ Current password to get into my work computer, in case you ever find yourself in my cube.

Yes, I'm making a concentrated effort to count my blessings for the next few days. Yes, I'm feeling better. But gratefulness is gooooood medicine, and you can never have too much.

• I made a roast in the crock pot (2-3 lb frozen roast, 1 onion cut up, 3/4c water + 1 envelope Onion Soup Mix. High for 6 hrs or Low for 8). It tasted just like my Grandmother used to make, and I made onion gravy and lima beans with rice to go with it. The only thing I forgot was spiced peaches. No one loved it but me (DH ate it willingly and said it was better than his Mom's), but I DON'T CARE. I am very grateful for Comfort Food.
• It's almost fall. I love the cooler weather, football, sweaters, the rain. It's coming soon and I'm going to revel in it.
• I'm grateful for my Integrated Management System. Ha! No, really, I've been reading a productivity book at work, and it, along with MS Outlook, is helping me organize my days a little more thoughtfully, which is obviously something I need. (Avoid Stress! Plan! You can Do It!)
• I'm grateful for a job. Like the Desiderata says, "It is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time." (No matter how grumpy it sometimes makes me.)
• I'm grateful for a husband who loves and accepts me, warts and all.
• I'm grateful for fun and cuddles last night with KT (Alice in Wonderland, playing mermaids in the bathtub, and Alexander & the Terrible...Day), even while she's being a 3.5-year-old pill these days. It will pass; I'm holding on to that and trying not to wish time away.

Good things happening

1. Last night, for dinner, AJ suggested and I made tuna noodle casserole... and both kids cleaned their plates!! Red letter day! I think all the playing outside (thank you, 60-degree weather) had a lot to do with their (KT's) appetites, but can I get a HALLELUJAH on that?!

This week, as promised, DH and AJ created our menu:

S - aforementioned tuna casserole, fruit salad
M - pork chops (Hot-n-Spicy Shake-n-Bake!), field pieas, white rice
T - KT's choice (it's her birthday): burgers and hot dogs, fries, and ice-cream cake
W - dirty rice w/ground beef, salad for me, V8 fusion for the kids
Th - might go out if my parents arrive
F - spaghetti and turkey meatballs, green beans, garlic toast

We haven't had a couple of those meals in a while (pork chops, dirty rice), so that's good. That was my main complaint - being tired of the Same Old Same Old. I'm like a lot of you in that I serve what I want, no matter if the kids like it or not. I do like to serve things they'll eat a few times a week. But I was sick of the 8 or 10 things that fit the bill. I feel good that AJ suggested all of these -- his palette is expanding this year and he's eating a lot more of our family favorites. (Gumbo, and maybe other casseroles, here we come!)

2. We stopped in a sports store on Saturday morning to exchange something, and took a few minutes to check out the bikes. AJ hopped right up onto one with training wheels and rode around the store a few times. He did really well, and more importantly, got EXCITED about it. We've asked him a few times if he wants a bike, and we always get a very lukewarm response. But this orange bike, I think, has him hooked -- now if we can just reel him in. It was $129 so we didn't buy it right away, but I'm thinking birthday. Until then, I'm ready to borrow a friend's - he offered, and I think we should jump on it. I learned to ride a bike when I was six, too. :) Very exciting!

3. I asked for (via Twitter!) and received, a delicous Dark Chocolate Assortment of Godiva chocolates for Valentine's Day. SO simple, and even cliche! But so happy-making. :) Thank, you, honey!

Help me save dinner

I wish there were some sort of “carnival” feature on my computer screen that would only begin to play music, throw confetti and laugh uncontrollably when I logged into WORK-related websites or programs. Maybe that would make it less of a slog? I don’t know, I thought that up in 2 seconds after I opened the text window to type this.

Other things I’m bored with: Our Meal Rotation. Typical Mommy-blog topic, ahoy!! Let me tell you my meals this week, and then you can tell me yours. I’m sure we’ve done this before, but here it is, 2011, and I need some new recipes, dudes.

Monday – Picante chicken (baked with Pace Picante, brown sugar, Dijon mustard), Spanish rice w/tomatoes, guacamole/chips or, for the kids, corn on the cob. Ice cream for Dessert Night. (Do you know my kids don’t really consider it dessert unless it’s ice cream?)

Tuesday – Sausage/turkey bacon/cheese quiche (made with $5/dozen farm-fresh eggs, I might add—and aren’t I organic and impressive?), fruit salad, and all kinds of toast (some with Nutella).

Wednesday – I have frozen ravioli and sauce. Will likely cut up some bell peppers with it, and serve steamed broccoli on the side. And garlic toast sticks because pasta without garlic bread is a crime.

Thursday – no idea. Maybe we can go out or order pizza?

Friday – Maybe burgers on the grill?

I try to plan menus and usually do a better job than I did this week. But I’m sick of serving turkey hot dogs (this week is the first in a long time that I’m not PLANNING to fix them). Here are the things my kids refuse to try:

Casseroles of any kind – which rules out a HELLUVA lot of good, easy dinner meals (my DH isn’t a huge fan, either, so it’s a lost cause for me, a casserole LOVER)

Related, anything creamy. Beef stroganoff. Fettucine with cream sauce/alfredo. chicken with any kind of sour cream (delicious) sauce. OUT.

Soups/stews that aren’t “Chicken and Stars.” Heck, they pick out the teeny-tiny stars in Chicken and Stars. They say they like it but the evidence does not support this.

Quesedillas/burritos. AJ will MAYBE eat a tortilla with cheese inside. Maybe. If the planets are aligned. But anything else in there touching the cheese? Forget it.

You see, I have considered Ways to Make Dinnertime Healthy and Interesting, but I’m thwarted at every turn. Bah. I don't know. Maybe I'M the only one who's sick of our rotation (don't respond to that, DH). At least I have my freezer aisle. Fish sticks, meatballs, the dreaded chicken nuggets: I'll see you three next week, I guess. SIGH.

New (somewhat ranty, somewhat linky) Things

I've/we've been doing some new things. Starting with the most important and ending with the least:

1. Going to Confession. Well, I did it once. Last week. I had been kinda hoping to get to go to our parish's Reconciliation Service, but it was on a Monday night at 7:00 pm and I didn't see how I could get the whole family there, or even just myself and AJ, and get him home by bedtime. I know I need to start going again because AJ's first confession LOOMS in 2nd grade! Luckily (or not), the Music Director called and, whoops! He needed a cantor at the last minute, and couldn't I come step in for him? I think God might have wanted me there, no? Or, heard me thinking, "I wish I could go..." and found a way to Make It Happen. Thanks, God! So anyway, it was a long wait in line even though they had 15 priests there to help, and the confession itself was your run-of-the-mill "Impatient with spouse and children, Don't always get to church every Sunday, Say a Rosary for penance" kind of confession. I went back and forth being nervous and not caring, although I can't go anywhere NEAR a penance service without crying just a little. It's all so holy! And emotional! I love it, in a way. I enjoyed imagining all the sad, guilt-ridden little prayers and wishes of all the different people whispering to various priests, prayers rising up into the air and then being gently blown away into the clean, clean air. It's nice imagery. (And then there's the annoying "Rules" about going once a year, and the "Why don't all the other Christians have to?" thoughts. Heh. It's a constant conflict, Catholicism.)

2. Going to Urgent Care. And seeing my baby boy have to deal with something that he didn't expect. Something that embarassed him (an ugly rash and accompanying set of big ol' blisters on his little cherubic face, poor thing). Something that he had to learn to explain to his friends without breaking down because they're thinking, if not saying outright, "OMG, what IS that?" It's been a learning experience for us both. Mommy learning to accept that he's going to get hurt in this life, and him learning (hopefully) to be brave, to not listen to what others say/think about him, and to accept people even when they have weird growths on their faces. Man. Heavy stuff.

3. Watching a whole lot of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution. Well, I mean it's only been broadcacst twice, but I'm smitten with the show. And I'm posting about it because all of you guys should watch. For one thing, who doesn't love Jamie's accent?! He is a cutie pie. It's been eye-opening and mirror-pointing, in that I've realized just how much CRAP I actually feed my own kids on a daily basis. I know I'm much less of a food a**hole (hat tip, Kristen) than most of the mom-bloggers I read. I sent AJ to school with ABCs and 123s (the orange ones) for lunch today, along with a Little Debbie Oatmeal Creme Pie, okay? And I do that regularly. He eats Oscar Meyer bologna. (Baked) Cheetos. Trix yogurt. (He also eats fruit every day, just so you're not calling DFCS on me, righteous food a-holes!) HOWEVER. I want to try to be better about all this. I'm really, really trying to serve the kids more fruits and vegetables, and my mission over the next few months is going to be to start trying them out on some new meal options. This, for instance. For another thing, I'm trying to substitute, in my mind -- on nights when I want to just take the easy route and order a pizza, I'm trying to do a fruit/crackers/cheese dinner instead. As long as you're reading about it, a great ranty link about this subject (and others) is at supercool Rita Arens' blog today. AMEN!! But still. This topic has been in the forefront of my brain for the last 3 weeks.

4. One final New Thing. I cleaned out my sock drawer. Remember? From the to-do list How many weeks ago?? It's done. That's new.

Butternut Squash Soup could cure a lot of ill in this world

Anyone out there have a fantastic recipe for butternut squash soup? Please send it my way. I just finished a lovely bowl of it at Atlanta Bread Company, which admittedly included a hunk of sourdough bread (not a loaf bowl -- I still have SOME dieting scruples), and probably also a lot of cream and salt. But it was sweet and thick and delicious, and I need to know how to make it myself during these cold winter days.

Winter seems different this year, yes? Sooooo cold! I know a lot of the country has had it worse than us. We've had it great, actually -- all of the "pretty" and none of the "power outage/no school for days on end" nonsense. Our snow was sticky and wet, perfect for the Georgia kids to actually get to build a snowman. For two days, us parents motivated ourselves to take them outside because we knew we had to -- kids need the chance to do this, at least once in their lives. So we did it, with all the subsequent shedding of wet clothing in laundry rooms. And just like that, it's gone again. Still cold today, but the sidewalks and trees look like nothing ever happened.

I love watching the Olympics, especially when it feels outside the same way it looks on the TV. Brrrr! Bring me my blanket and a cup of cocoa (who says "cup of cocoa?") -- and turn on the Men's Half-Pipe. Oh, okay, Figure Skating (who am I kidding). I do laugh, however, at the Visa commercial -- they're giving away tickets to the Winter Games "For The Rest of Your LIFE." Ummmm.... a chance to go stand in a crowd, 30 rows back, on a snowy hillside every year? In various Arctic locales? Doesn't sound like something I'm that keen on winning. You keep those tickets, Morgan Freeman. I will take my 40-inch HD view and Bob Costas' goofy fireside interludes any day.

Cookies!

Sugar cookies (pre-made dough), "frosted" with peanut butter or Nutella, and decorated with white choc chips, mini choc chips, pretzels and M&Ms. Kid friendly (if a mess), Mother devoured three approved.