Attempt at Healthy

Summer is so crazy busy and sometimes it just ends up that you have to do a meal that was pulled from a box. Yes, I'll admit it. We had taquitos! LOL

I was feeling a little guilty about serving my kids something out of a box, so I went and got some spinach leaves out of the fridge and wrapped one of my taquitos in it before I dipped it in salsa and sour cream. It actually was pretty tasty!

Once the kids saw me wrapping my dinner with a leaf, they ALL wanted leaves. I had to go back to the sink several times and prepare even more spinach leaves. The leaves became a real hot commodity! So, without even trying, my kids enjoyed a whole bunch of spinach for dinner. :)

More More Casserole

I'll admit, this meal is much better than it looks! THIS is More More Casserole. It's one I used to have when I was little and now I feed it to my kids. It has a bunch of stuff in it that they will eat and they really like it. :) I served it without a side because I was totally out of "side" ingredients. That's ok though. It has everything in it we need to be healthy, right? So I can still chalk it up to a full meal.

More More Casserole

1 c. spaghetti noodles, broken into 1/2" pieces

1 lb. ground beef

1 (12 oz) can whole kernel corn

1/4 c. green peppers, chopped

1 onion, chopped

3 (8 oz) cans tomato sauce

3/4 t. chili powder

1 c. mild chedder cheese, grated

Cook noodles in boiling, salted water until tender (10 min). Brown ground beef with onion and green pepper. Drain fat. Drain noodles and corn. Add all ingredients together except cheese. Stir well. Pour into casserole dish and top with cheese. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

What I did differently:

I substituted the ground beef with 3 cups of cooked red beans. I just sauteed the onions and green peppers together in a pan until they were soft and added them to the mixture.

Here is what the finished product looked like - just out of the oven. TASTY!

Cream of Chicken Rice

This is one of our favorite fall-back meals. I make it when I haven't gone shopping for awhile and need something quick. When I took it out of the oven this time, Samantha came in and started jumping up and down saying, "I love this dinner!" That's always a good sign.

Cream of Chicken Rice

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1 large chicken breast, cooked and shredded

1/2 onion, chopped

2 c. milk

1 c. uncooked rice

Boil chicken for 1 hour on stove (or however you like to cook it). Shred the chicken. Mix all the ingredients together. Pour into casserole dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. Stir occasionally so the rice will cook evenly.

I sometimes add broccoli into this mix, or you can top it with buttered cracker crumbs. This is how it looks when it's done.

Our favorite way to serve this is to spoon it onto your plate while it's really hot. Then add a little butter on top and let it melt. Top with salt and pepper.

This time I also served salad with it. The salad was simply red leaf lettuce, chopped spinach leaves, chopped carrots, cucumbers, and green peppers. YUM!

Salad and Breadsticks

This was our dinner last night. Just salad and breadsticks. (click link for recipe) I didn't go all out with a main dish, but we all ended up nourished and full. Isn't that what counts? The kids ate every last drop of their dinner and then some.

I had some pizza sauce left over that I really didn't want to throw out, so hence, the breadsticks. I made the recipe I posted on here before, but this time I added rosemary into the dough mixture. WOW! They were so good! I've never used rosemary before and couldn't believe the flavor difference in the breadsticks.

This time for the salad I used red leaf lettuce and chopped spinach leaves. Then I added sliced green peppers, carrots, and cucumbers. I also boiled some eggs, cut them up, and we sprinkled those on top.

No one seemed to really miss the main dish. :)

Red Beans over Rice

This meal is one I was introduced to on our trip to Dominican Republic. I never was one to just make a big pot of beans, but it was so delicious I had to try it at home! This was my 2nd time making it and it brought back wonderful memories. It's very filling too. I like it best with fresh fruit to offset the beans and rice.

Red Beans over Rice

3 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium chopped onion
3 garlic cloves
1 t. dried oregano
2 bay leaves
1 8 oz can tomato sauce
1/2 t. Accent seasoning
1/2 sm. bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
2 c. (1 lb.) dried red beans, soaked & cooked
2 t. seasoned salt
salt & pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in pot large enough for all ingredients. Saute onion and garlic for 5 minutes. Add oregano, bay leaves, tomato sauce, and seasonings.

Bring to simmer and add cilantro and beans. Add enough water to cover (3-4 cups). Bring to boil, then reduce to low. Simmer and cook for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until beans are tender.

Serve over rice.

Porcupines

Sunday dinner -porcupine meatballs! Here is everyone at the table. I realized on Saturday that I had all this hamburger in the fridge that I needed to use so it wouldn't go bad. I also had my head of broccoflower left over from my bountiful basket. I put them together and made a meal. :) Very tasty.

Porcupines

1/2 lb ground beef

1/4 c. uncooked rice

1/4 c. milk or water

2 T. chopped onion

1/2 t. salt

1/4 t. celery salt

1/8 t. garlic salt

Dash of pepper

2 cans (8 oz) tomato sauce

1 c. water

1 T. Worcestershire sauce

Mix beef, rice, milk, onion, and seasonings. Form into medium sized balls (1 1/2 to 2 inches). Fry in skillet, turning frequently, until light brown (but not crusty) on all sides. In large saucepan, mix together tomato sauce, water, and Worcestershire sauce. Mix well. Add browned meatballs to sauce. Cover; simmer 45 minutes over low heat. Add a small amount of additional water if liquid cooks down too much. Makes 2 servings.

This is how it turned out. I really didn't deviate from the recipe much, but I did triple the amounts so it was enough to feed my family.

This was also my first time using broccoflower. I cooked it up the same way I do broccoli or cauliflower. I just steamed it. Too bad it was such a small head because the kids loved it and were asking for more. I didn't have any more, so I'll have to remember for next time to cook up more of it.

Oatmeal and Toast

Today we had oatmeal. Believe it or not, this is a breakfast we love. :)  I first introduced it to the kids about 1 1/2 years ago. I hadn't really made it for them before that. They whined and whined and whined about how GROSS it was! After about 3 or 4 times of making it, they finally developed a taste for it. Now they look forward to me making it. I dress it up with sugar, milk. Athena and Samantha like a bit of cinnamon in their oatmeal and I put nutmeg in mine, Nathan's and Alex's. Then I make toast and have a glass of milk. YUM!

To make it, I use 2 parts water to 1 part oatmeal and add some salt. Today Dad wasn't home for breakfast, so I boiled 4 cups of water with 1/2 tsp of salt. Then I added 2 cups of quick oats to the boiling water and let it cook for 1 minute. Perfect!