Monday Dinner….

Tonight’s dinner was Pizza with Pear-Prosciutto Salad. Now the recipe has you making your own pizza dough. I don’t know if your like me and is horrible at making dough. And I mean HORRIBLE! So, I made it easy on myself and bought made dough from Sprouts. I also went with baking the prosciutto, I like a little crisp taste. Oh, then add more than I put. It just wasn’t enough of the prosciutto taste. Other then that this meal was amazing! It is definitely on the “favorite list” and will be made again. 

Here, are some of the photos of my before the baking and finished product. 

Meals of the Week: October 3-6

This week I went for easy, simple dinners. Also this week the weather is starting to reach the cool temps, so soups are my go to for quick and easy. Three of the recipes for this week came from this months Cooking Light. The months of Oct. and Nov. are always the best issues of Cooking Light, in my opinion. I highly recommend their magazines for great, healthy recipes. 

Monday: Pizza with Pear-Prosciutto salad

This recipe does have you making your own dough. I have gone a step easier and bought pizza dough. I purchased pizza dough at a local Italian Market but any local grocery should carry a frozen pizza dough. I may on the weekend some time try making my dough but right now bought dough will work. 

Tuesday: Lemon-Parmesan Broccoli

This recipe is actually a side but I will be making a lemon linguine to go with this. Once I make it, I will post what I did and how it comes out. This is a first time recipe and I will be winging it in some parts. If you’re interested in the outcome, stay tuned for results. 

Wednesday: Loaded Potato Soup

I am a HUGE fan of soups in general but potato soup is by far my favorite. I first made this soup last fall when it was published in last Fall’s Cooking Light issue. This recipe is now a MUST every Fall/Winter season. Just a FYI, if you decide to make this make more than what recipe calls for. I say this because it is ten times better the next day, so you WILL want leftovers. 

Thursday: Lazy Day

For the past couple weeks my husband as been working the night shift. Now I don’t know if any of you are like me but when he works late I don’t feel up to cooking dinner every night. So, I like choosing one day in the week to have a “lazy day”. This basically means leftovers (possibly potato soup) or Peanut Butter and Jelly night (kids ALWAYS love that). It will all depend on my mood. 

Friday: Spinach, Pasta and Pea Soup

I saw this soup and immediately thought “yum-o”! I mean LOOK at it! How could you not think that? I shall hope it turns out as yummy as it looks. 

Dessert: Eileen’s Best Banana Bread 

If you’re a fan of banana bread I highly recommend try this recipe. It is the by far the best banana bread recipe I have used. What also makes it great is it isn’t all that unhealthy for you. It is made with whole wheat flour as well as has flaxseed meal. I have used this recipe A LOT! 

Since four of these recipes are new to me, I will be posting a review on the recipe. With my opinions as well as photos of how it comes out. I will try my best to get them posted that afternoon or night. I also going to promise I will be more update on my weekly meal posts. Life gets in the way sometimes, so bare with me. Have a fabulous week and happy eating! In healthy, yummy ways, of course. 

Friday Favorites

Friday favorites will be a post I will be doing every week. Basically, it will be a list of my favorites things I found on Pinterest throughout the week. Guess, it will also show my obsession with the site…because yes, I am addicted to pinning! Firstly, I will start off with shoes (another obsession of mine).

 

Shoe obsession includes ballet flats. I have them in every color, every style. Currently I am in love with added details of flowers. Adds a little dresser look to them. 

 

Heels, heels heels!!  Now I chose these two because they both seem like they would work best with a bridesmaid dress. I will be in my brother’s wedding so I’ve been on the hunt of the perfect shoes, that not only will go with the dress but I will be able to wear again. The simple, clean look of these seem to fit best in what I am looking for. 

This week I have found some great decor for the house. I enjoy living in a fantasy land where I have a house gorgeously decorated. Thank you Pinterest for letting me dream away. 

 

Love mirrors! Easy way to add a simple elegance to any home. 

 

These unique ideas for hanging up photos on the wall are great. Love how just not a whole wall of photos looking plain and outdated. 

So, there you have it, just a few of my favorite things for the week. Stay tuned to what I find next week, maybe they shall inspire you as they have to me. To decorate, design, shop or DIY. 

Crafty Sunday…

As I mention on my previous post Fall is Here, I attempted to make my own wreath yesterday. Now if you don’t know me, I’m not the most crafty on the block or creative. I always want to try but don’t have the courage to. Silly, right? Well, I went for it and made my own wreath for Fall. Pinterest gave me lots of ideas and inspiration. Through Pinterest I found a wonderful site with tutorial on wreath making. I recommended her site for a go to if you plan on making your own, http://www.danielleburkleo.com/2010/10/diy-yarn-wreath-with-felt-flowers.html.

Here is the before, I chose a golden brown color yarn. Thought it was great choice for Fall.

Here is the wreath after wrapping the yarn around. I used all the yarn and it did take quite some time to accomplish. Also a little warning, the yarn will get tangled often in the process. I cannot tell you how many times the yarn ended up in knots. Now maybe it was just me but it was making the process longer.

Now I will be honest, I was feeling a bit intimidated by making felt flowers. Just looking at them I thought it was going to be a tough task. And what do you know? It wasn’t that difficult and was much easier has I made more.

Add some red flowers too.

I am more than pleased with my end product. Overall the whole project took about 4 hours, which I wasn’t expecting either. It was a great use of boring time during my kids nap time. I have another wreath planned for today as well. Maybe I will start making a business out of it, make some extra money. Haha…yea, right!?!

Not only did I make a wreath but I put up my decor all around the inside and outside of the house. Fall mode was definitely in the air…

Happy Fall!!

Fall is HERE!!!

My favorite season has finally arrived! I’m sure you could tell by my previous post of my excitement for this time of the year. I was so excited I busted out a scarf this morning! With this excitement comes planning the family fall activities. Luckily, I found a great bucket list for Fall curtsey of Pinterest. I have taken some those ideas and made my own “bucket list”. 

Fall Bucket List 2011

1. Make leaf art

2. Enjoy a bonfire with s’mores

3. Make carmel apples

4. Corn maze

5. Go to a pumpkin patch

6. Go on 2 dates (may not happen but fingers crossed that it does!)

7. Make fall cookies and/or Halloween cookies

8. Take a nature walk

9. Decorate a pumpkin (carve/paint)

10. Bake pies

11. Trick or treat

12. Picnic

Several of these activities we do every Fall but added new ideas. Number 6 should be number 1, it is a MUST at this moment but not always possible. Other then that all the activities will be lots of fun for the WHOLE family. Each activity will be documented since I ALWAYS have a camera on me.

One more thing I will be doing, hopefully this weekend, is tempting ( I say tempting because I am NOT creative at all) to make my own Fall wreath. Here are a few I want to try.

Addicted to Decorating Blog

Some are obviously more difficult then the others. The felt wreaths seem the easiest so I will be starting off with that. I will post as soon as I accomplish this creative adventure. Wish me luck!  

Wordless Wednesday: Missoni Fall styles for Target

Wordless Wednesday~ My must have for Fall

Hats!

Light sweaters and capris

Color

Peacoats

Knit Dress

Cat’s eyed sunglasses

Good pair of jeans

Simple, light weight cardigan

Layers

Scarfs

Boots

More boots!!

Warm nail polish colors

Handbags

Meals for the week

Since I received many great things about my Autumn food post, I thought why not do a weekly post of my meals. These meals are manly my dinner meals for the week. Sundays are my day when I plan and make a grocery list, I find this keeps me a bit more organized. Also less hassle for dinner time. Don’t have to deal with the dreaded “what’s for dinner?” nagging. So, what I do is go through my favorite recipes. Most come from Cooking Light Magazines or Food Network but I also love using my Ellie Krieger cookbooks. I try to balance are meals throughout the week, like one pasta dish, one vegetarian and one with meat protein. Find helps make more of a variety rather than eating the same-o-same-o every week. Since we are big healthy eaters it can be bit difficult keeping meals delicious, different and healthy but it can be done. Don’t let it discourage! Eating healthy can taste great and be easy to cook. I am in no way trying to get anyone to change their eating habits. This meant for those who are interested in what I cook.

Note this post is a work in progress, so I will see as weeks progress how it will be presented. Please bare with me….

Week of August 22- August 26

Monday~ Easy Grilled Chicken Salad

This recipe was picked for many reasons. One being that its monday and we all know how we hate the first day of the work week. So, I’ll ease into the week with easy dinner.

Tuesday~ Linguine with Quick Lemon Ricotta

Just by looking at the photo of this pasta I couldn’t resist it. Plus I am a pasta lover!

Wednesday~ Skillet Chicken Souvlaki

Greek! Enough said….

Thursday~ Lemon-Oregano Lamb Chops

Lamb is one of my husband’s favorite meals and I love Greek orzo.

Friday~ Peppered Flank Steak and Salsa

Might as well end the week with an easy dinner just like I started.

My other plan for the week is making a dessert. Now I say, “plan” because I tend to start the week with lots of great ideas. But then life gets chaotic as we all know. I really enjoy having something sweet after putting the kids to bed (I don’t like to share my sweets). The dessert choice for the week is:

Blueberry Crisp

HUGE fan of crisps! Then add the blueberries…YUM-O!

What would you do Wednesday

The yummy goodness of Autumn

I said this post was coming….the “yum” part of autumn. This time of year brings out the baker in everyone. Who could blame them? With cool crisp weather, the beautiful vibrant reds, yellows from changing trees. Also, I don’t know about you but I have a difficult time resisting those desserts. So why not share my list of bakery goods I planned to bake. 

Crock-Pot Baked Apples-This recipe claims to taste just as good as apple pie without the added fat or calories from the crust. Boy, I can’t wait to prove this right.

French Market Pull-A-Parts-Add a some pumpkin spice to this pull-a-part to give it that autumn feel and taste.

Low-Fat Apple Spice Walnut Muffins-Thank you TheCravingChronicles.com for this Fall variation of this muffin, sounds perfect for a cool autumn evening.

Nectarine and Plum Crisp-Crisp are by far the best desert, in my opinion. I cannot resist the warm goodness of the fruit mixed with the crunch from oatmeal top and cold ice cream.

This time of the year is also when the creamy warm soups and chili are the best comfort food. Some of these recipes I have made and others I’m dying to try. One thing is for sure, they will warm you up when it is cold outside. 

Broccoli Cheese Soup-Do I even have to describe this soup?? Look at that photo….HELLO yum!

Pasta e Fogioli-I’m a huge fan of Italian food. Can’t wait to try this recipe.

Loaded Potato Soup-Potato soups are my ultimate comfort food. This recipe is not only easy, fast and delish but even better when reheated the next day. Perfect rainy day meal…

White Chili-This wonderful chili is a great healthy way to have this comfort food.

Three Bean and Beef Chili-Ellie Krieger is my go to nutritionist when I want comfort and healthy food. This chili is that great alternative.

Now everyone break out those Kitchen-Aid mixers and crock pots, lets get cooking!