Everything but the Kitchen Sink Soup

When I have a bunch of leftovers and remnants of produce I make soup.  Or should I say I "wing" soup?  I think I've followed a recipe for soup maybe five times in my life.  Soup is such an easy and versatile dish that you can make it with any combination of ingredients.  That is what I love about soup.  Pair it with a salad and some crusty bread and you're suddenly a domestic goddess, serving up homemade comfort food to your family while not letting things go to waste in the refrigerator.

Healthy School Lunches - Spring Edition

Well, the school year is winding down.  In my area, the last day of school is in the third week of May.  So with about a month left, I'm looking forward to a break in packing school lunches.  I do have to say that this year has been fairly easier than other years to pack lunches.  I think the biggest difference for me are the great compartment-ed containers I found.  They are super cheap (less than $1 each) and I don't mind if he forgets them at school.  Lately, I haven't had too much time to spend on bento techniques, but I've still managed to make some healthy, fun lunches.  Here are some examples. 

Oh My! Curry!

I love a good curry.  It's really only something I only get when we go out because not only have I never made it before, but my Handsome Hubby isn't too keen on it.  So, I took an opportunity to make some delicious curry when he had other dinner plans away from home.  Oh, how wonderfully this turned out and how wonderful my house smells.  This bowl of coconutty-curry goodness is definitely going to make an encore appearance on my dinner table next time Handsome eats elsewhere.  Maybe I'll even try serving it to him, just to see if it changes his mind towards curry...

Is This Really My Pantry?

Let me start off saying that I recently did some spring cleaning and my pantry actually got organized, so did my pantry look this neat and clean a few weeks ago, nope.  But, as I was looking for something to make with dinner the other day, I couldn't help but be amused by the transformation my pantry has undergone.

My Favorite (and most flavorful) Fats

I love to cook; and what adds richness and flavor to food, well fat of course!  Just over a year ago, my favorite fat to cook and season with was olive oil.  That was about it.  But since discovering the wonderful world of whole foods and educating myself on the role that fat plays in nutrition and what are good and bad fats, I use a wide variety of fats.  Boy oh boy, does my food taste immensely delicious!

Lord Help me Find Balance

I am a woman who seeks balance.  Some say it’s because I’m a Libra, most say that’s the way God made me.  Either way, I’m am hard-wired to strive for peace and harmony in all areas of my life.  An area I’ve really been focusing on lately is the food that I prepare and feed to myself and to my family.  This should  be easy, but I tell you, it is not.  I would love for each meal I prepare to be well-balanced, whole, fresh, local, organic, and free of any artificial flavors and dyes.  But then there’s this thing called a budget and another thing called time.   

More Bento Adventures

So I've been having fun creating more bento lunches for my Not-So-Little-Man. Lately, it' s been difficult making the time with my Handsome Hubby out of town intermittently, but I've managed to make a few more lunches a little exciting.

Guess who turned 1 !?!

I can't believe that it's already been a year since we welcomed little Eli.  We celebrated his first birthday this weekend and I couldn't help but be grateful for all of Gods blessings. 

Spicy Lentil Tostadas

My husband doesn't like it when I make lentils.  When I make lentils, it means that the meal will not include meat, something that he craves.  However, when I prepare lentils like this, he actually enjoys them (even if he does pretend in his head that its beef he's eating).

Purge

I'm taking a slight deviation from my usually up-beat and light posts to write about something that's really been weighing on my heart.  I'm feeling a need to purge.  No, not physically lose my stomach contents, but to purge some things from my life.

Holy Gastro-Intestinal Sickness Batman!!

For the past week, my house has been one of total discomfort and nausea.  There has truly been a war waged in my house, leaving a trail of laundry that is truly scary.  Not-So-Little-Man, Handsome Hubby, and Baby Boy were all sick with a crazy bug that created havoc on their poor digestive systems.  Needless to say, I've had to change more diapers, clean up more vomit, and try to force more pedialyte than I'd like to remember.  I think Baby Boy had it the worst out of all, poor little guy. 

Leftover Roundup: Pasta Frittata

I hate to throw away leftovers.  Maybe it was all those years of my mom reminding me of the starving children in Ethiopia that would love to have the portion of my dinner I didn't want to eat.  Maybe it's the dollars I see spent on the food being put into the trash.  Whatever the reason, it drives me to find new ways to repurpose my leftovers. 

Adventures in Bento

Ok, so I've always thought those cute little bento boxes from Japan were adorable. So, I decided to try my hand at it to see what I could do. The result, I've found a creative outlet and I don't have to pull out my sewing machine or paints.

Ladies Bunco Night Guacamole

I played Bunco for the first time on Friday.  It was super-fun.  However, I had to whip up something fast after work to bring to the 6:30pm game. 

Wild Caught Shrimp... Oh what to do?

Wild Caught shrimp was on sale this week and it's been staring at me from the refrigerator for a couple of days.  I have to be honest, I don't really like shrimp.  My husband LOVES shrimp.  So I buy it occasionally for him.  Tonight, was one of those nights where I didn't know what I was going to do to make the shrimp something we would both enjoy.  My first thought was to marinate and grill or maybe a gumbo.  But the recipe I ended up settling with involved sauteing it and serving with pasta.  My deciding factor for which recipe to choose: my pantry ingredients.