5 Meals I've Made For Dinner Recently

Like many of you, I love searching the internet for weeknight dinner ideas. The dreaded "what's for dinner tonight" question can hit the moment we open our eyes, right? And if you have kids, they are definitely going to ask you that as soon as they get home from school. If I haven't figured out our dinner plan by then, I'm most likely going to grab a box of pancake mix and call it a day. 

Sometimes I do meal plan on Sundays and that makes a world of a difference for my week. But let's be real- I also kind of dread meal planning. Deciding what to eat in advance can feel like such a CHORE. I'm sure I'm not alone in this, so here are five meals that I've made recently that you can throw together fairly quickly on a weeknight. I've made each of these meals more than once in the last month. Hopefully one of them will be a guaranteed crowd pleaser in your home.

This baked ravioli from How Sweet Eats latest cookbook, Everyday Dinners, is SO good. It is an indulgent meal- not going to lie, but it is a meal that comes together SO fast. A bag of cheese ravioli, spinach, jarred pasta sauce, mozzarella (or burrata cheese) make up the components of this meal and I typically have all of those items on hand at all times. If you want to feel better about it, grab a bagged salad mix to serve alongside!

I love that you don't have to boil the pasta beforehand- it goes into the oven frozen. I've made this probably 3 times already and I've added ground italian sausage to it but I also like it as is, without any protein, which is how her recipe is originally written. I honestly could eat this once a week if I didn't care about the calories. 

See that one enchilada there without any cheese or sauce? That's for my son. :) Keep it plain please, mom. I've made many, many enchilada recipes and I love them all, but that's because I could eat Mexican food every day for the rest of my life and die happy.

For a weeknight, I like to reach for my Joanna Gaines cookbook, Magnolia Table, and make her Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas. I do customize her recipe to whatever I have on hand. On the night I took this photo I had a jar of salsa verde to use up, so I used that to pour over the enchiladas. I like her version better though. She mixes up a tub of sour cream, a can of cream of chicken soup, and green enchilada sauce. I also love how quick it is to throw together. Buy a rotisserie chicken and shred it up to use in the filling.      

This is another recipe from How Sweet Eats, Crispy Orange Chicken. I just love her. I've read her blog for years and she is so creative in the kitchen. It's also from her cookbook, Everyday Dinners, so I don't have a link for the recipe as it's not on her blog. This was really good- bite sized oven baked crispy chicken with a homemade orange sauce.  

Pot roast! I don't make pot roast often since I don't gravitate towards meals with red meat (unless I'm at a steakhouse, then I'm getting a steak). Sometimes the mood strikes and on this particular Sunday I had everything for it. I also love using my dutch oven and love that this recipe using ONE pot. One pot meals are amazing! I don't use my dutch oven enough and would like to use it more, so if you have any recipes for it please send them my way! 

A friend sent me a screenshot of this recipe from the book The Weekday Vegetarians. It's a white bean bake with tomatoes, cheese, oregano, and a panko topping. It's another one pot, or one pan meal, since I made it using my cast iron skillet. This was very easy and delicious!

I hope one of these meals will make it to your table this week. Tell me what you've made recently, I'd love to hear!

M&M Cookies for Valentine's Day

I love cookies. I love eating them, baking them, and sharing them. Finding new cookie recipes to try is one of my favorite things to do. I don't think I've ever met a cookie I didn't like. These M&M cookies are currently my favorite. There's just something magical that happens to M&M's when you bake them. That crunch! I can't get enough. 

I make M&M cookies all the time for holidays. I love the different colors that you can find. For Christmas, we make red and green to add to our cookie platter. For Valentine's Day, I adore the red, white, and pink M&M's. I also love the colors for Halloween, Easter...it makes me happy to have these in the cookie jar. 

My kids love them too. 

Some tips to help- stir in the M&M's by hand after you've made the dough. Then lightly press on a few before you bake them, making sure not to flatten the dough balls. Also, your butter should be soft- I take mine out of the fridge about 30 minutes before I plan to make them.

Source: Celebrating Sweets 

Ingredients 

• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
• 1 egg
• 2 tsps vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups M&M's and chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 350. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats. 

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Set aside. 

Using a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugars together for 2 minutes. The mixture should be light and fluffy. Then add the egg and vanilla extract, mixing again until incorporated. Grab the bowl with the flour mixture and gently pour it in on low speed. I like to do this in batches so that I don't have a flour cloud over my head. 

Once mixed, stir in the M&M's and chocolate chips by hand, with a large spoon or spatula. I like to add about a cup of the chocolate chips & M&M's so that the rest can be pressed on top of the dough balls before baking. 

Scoop the dough into balls. You can use a cookie scoop, or a regular tablespoon. Whatever you have. Depending on how big you want your cookies- I do about a tablespoon, which is why my cookies weren't so big, but you can do 2 tablespoons if you want larger cookies. Keep in mind that cookies do spread while baking so make sure you have space between them. 

Bake for about 8-11 minutes (if you made your dough balls bigger, you might need more time). The centers should be slightly underdone, but if you want a crispy cookie, bake for another minute or two. 

Once out of the oven, allow the cookies to cool so that they can firm up.

Chicken Noddle Soup

January. What a long month you are. A month that is usually very cold for much of the country and a month that is notorious for viruses. My kids finally went back to their brick and mortar school in January, which naturally meant they got sick after being back for only a week. :) 

Thankfully it was only a cold, but it sure was a nasty one. Especially for my son and my husband. I had not made chicken soup in such a long time and remembered this recipe I came across a few years ago. It's really good and the recipe is so easy to follow. I love that this soup can come together quickly and does not need a lot of time to sit and simmer to build up the flavor. I served it after just 30 minutes. Even my son, who is not a fan of soup, ate a few bites (it was mostly the chicken but I still call that a win).  

Egg noodles, veggies, and chicken pulled from a store bought rotisserie make this a breeze to whip together whenever you're starting to feel under the weather! 
 

Source: Food Network 

Ingredients 

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 2 celery ribs, chopped
• 4 fresh thyme sprigs 
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 quarts chicken stock
• 8 oz wide egg noodles
• 1 1/2 cups shredded chicken
• Salt & Pepper to taste
• 1 handful of fresh parsley 
• 1 lemon

Directions

Place a soup pot or dutch oven over medium heat and drizzle with olive oil. Add the onions, garlic, carrots, celery, thyme, and bay leaf. Cook and stir for a few minutes, until the veggies get soft but not browned. 

Pour in the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Add the noodles and simmer for about five minutes until tender. Then, fold in the shredded chicken and continue to simmer until warmed through. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add fresh parsley and a squeeze of lemon if desired. 

The Skinny on Gestational Diabetes

Say what? If you're confused, read this post.

Last week I had my nutritionist appointment to learn about what I can, and can not eat, with gestational diabetes. I also learned how to use a glucose monitor, oh what fun. The nutritionist was very informative and had lots of packets and handouts for me. The one I was most interested in was the break down of the day- how many grams of carbs I can eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, along with three snacks dispersed throughout the day. 

Anyone who is diagnosed with gestational diabetes will be given a chart like this. Your plan can differ, based on the results of your glucose test. I'm allowed 45 grams of carbs for each main meal. Veggies are always a free for all, except for corn and peas, which is also counted as a carb. Who knew? Fruit can be a bit more tricky and I have a booklet with almost everything you can imagine listed, telling me exactly how much one serving is. 

By the end of that appointment, which lasted about an hour, I was exhausted. Emotionally and mentally drained. I get wiped out after being given so much information. Does that happen to you? It was so overwhelming, even though I had already read and knew most of what the nutritionist was telling me, it was so different to hear it first hand. 

I have to check my blood sugar four times a day- in the morning when I wake up (fasting), two hours after breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I have a log book to keep track of my numbers. I've got the hang of it now and it's already become a part of my daily routine. Sure, it's annoying, and I have to keep an eye on the clock to make sure I don't miss the time. So far I've only done it at home, it freaks me out to think of doing it in a public place, even though I'm sure I'll have to eventually. 

My numbers have been good so far, at least, I think so? I have a chart that tells me where I should be and what I should not pass. Going out to eat is tricky, seeing as I have no idea how many grams are in one meal. But we don't go out often, so that's probably not going to be much of a problem. I have another doctor's appointment this week to look over my log book and I'm hoping to hear some good news!

This wasn't a very fun post, so if you stuck with me to read, thank you. I'm writing this all down more for memory sake than anything else, and if there is anyone else out there, pregnant, confused, and sad to learn they've been diagnosed too. It's not the end of the world! Challenging at first, yes, as anything new is. Once you get the hang of it, it's not so bad. Fingers crossed I get some good news at my appointment this week, I could use it!

What We've Been Eating Lately

It's been awhile since I've shared a new recipe. That doesn't mean I'm not trying out new things in the kitchen; quite the opposite really. I get bored of our meal rotation and aim to try at least one new recipe a week. Sometimes more if I have the time. Here are a few meals we've had recently that all three of us have enjoyed.

Chicken, Black Bean & Quinoa Enchiladas

I love making Mexican food at home. These enchiladas were delicious. I don't like enchiladas that are weighed down with sauce and spice and that have a pound of cheese. Peppers, black beans, and tomatoes go into the filling, along with quinoa (I didn't have any on hand so I used brown rice) which makes these enchiladas a healthier version than the original. Definitely a keeper!

Brown Sugar Crusted Salmon

We went a while without eating salmon because I got bored of making it the same way. I saw this recipe on one of my favorite blogs and figured I'd give it a try. It's SO easy there's really no excuse not to make it. The first time we tried it we couldn't believe it. So simple, so tasty. Another meal I'll be adding to our rotation, seeing as I've already made it like six times since. 

Mustard & Herb Marinated Chicken

I apologize for the crappy iPhone picture. I've got to get back into the habit of taking pictures of our food with the real camera. Anyway. Now that it's hot out, we've been grilling a lot. Mostly chicken and sausage. This is my favorite summer marinade and I make it so often that I think it might be time for me to find a new one before we get sick of it. Any recommendations?

Baked Pork Chops with Herb & Cheese Breadcrumbs

I saw Rachael Ray make this on her show a few weeks ago and it looked so good. She made it using chicken breasts; I thought it would be just as good with bone-in pork chops. Delicious! The dijon mustard coating is something I never would have thought of and pan frying it first then putting it into the oven is a great way to prevent the meat from drying out. Loved it!

I'm always looking for more things to try, so please tell me, if there's been something new you've made recently that you enjoyed!

What We've Been Eating Lately

I don't know about you, but I love seeing what other people are eating for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. That's probably why I love Instagram so much, an endless stream of good eats and inspiration. I get stuck in food ruts all the time. We're currently in one right now with breakfast. Miss A is refusing to eat eggs, oatmeal (not like she ever did before), and yogurt. She'll only eat toast or waffles right now. And blueberries by the carton. Anyway, I thought I'd share some of our recent eats with you in case you're looking for something new to eat!

Breakfast- toast, peanut butter, and banana is still one of my go-to's. I also like to add a drizzle of honey or agave with granola.

Lunch- lettuce wraps! A few weeks ago I was on a huge lettuce wrap kick and was stuffing them with roasted turkey, dried cranberries, sliced carrots, and mozzarella cheese. On the side I'd have a chopped cucumber, tomato, and feta salad, lightly tossed in olive oil and lemon juice. 

Dinner- This is one of my favorite dinners we had recently. Sweet and sour chicken over fried brown rice, mixed with chopped carrots, frozen peas, corn, scrambled egg, and diced red pepper. I sauteed all the veggies first in some sesame seed oil, added cold day old rice, an egg, and scrambled it all up. Then I dosed it with soy sauce and topped the whole thing with diced green onions. It was delicious! 

Another favorite is Alaskan Baked Salmon with lemon risotto and sauteed zucchini. This is how I usually make salmon. It's super easy and fast to put together. The oven does all the work for you and I love the crunchy topping. 

Not the best picture, but these potato nachos were a lot of fun to make and a new thing for us to try. I sliced up idaho potatoes very thin, tossed them in some olive oil, salt and pepper and placed them on a wire rack on to of a baking sheet. Then I added cheddar cheese, black beans, tomatoes, and green onions. 

Hope you find something new to try!

Easter Basket Fun

I'm so, so excited for Easter this year. Last year we didn't really do anything- no basket, no egg hunt, and I'm pretty sure my husband had to work. Miss A was ten months old and I decided we'd wait until next year to celebrate.

I mean, really...where does the time go!? The pictures I took for her Easter "session" are some of my favorite baby pictures. That purple dress, headband, Easter bib...she was perfect, in every single way. You bet I'm taking Easter pictures again this year, I don't care if they'll be a blur as she runs around and dives off the couch!

So I'm participating in the Easter basket blog hop and thought it would be fun to share with you what I got Miss A for her basket, or in this case, bucket!

I thought about getting Miss A a white basket. I saw plenty that I loved but in the end I thought getting her a bucket would be much easier for her to carry as she collects eggs and it will be something she can reuse later. Plus, Minnie is on the front; I knew she'd love nothing more.  

I didn't want to go crazy with her bucket. For one thing, it's not all that big, and I wanted everything to fit. Everything fit perfectly, until I found a book that I couldn't pass up. She has a new outfit, a skirt and shirt combo (that has a popsicle on the front, win win), a colorful Slinky, a pink sunhat, a glittery bracelet, a Minnie Mouse straw cup, and her very first chocolate bunny!

I know she's going to love the bracelet as she can't get enough of my own. I'm curious to see what she does with the Slinky. I found it in Target's dollar spot and I loved the pastel color. And don't worry- I'm not going to give her that entire bunny in one sitting. She'll have a couple of pieces every now and then until one of us eats the rest for her. :) I'm also excited about the straw cup as she needs practice using a straw. I'd love to give her some smoothies to drink in the upcoming months! I wasn't planning on getting her clothes, but I saw the popsicle T-shirt and couldn't pass it up. Crazy 8 is a dangerous store for my wallet.

I can't wait to see her face Easter morning!

Weekend Shenanigans

This weekend actually felt like a real weekend. It has been a while, a loooong while, since my husband has had two consecutive days off, let alone an entire weekend. I actually don't look forward to weekends; due to the fact that everyone else gets to have their husbands home and Miss A and I are left to figure out what to do on our own. Shopping on the weekends with her stresses me out with the crowds and busy parking lots, so we usually stick to home and stay pretty low-key when my husband has to work on a Saturday or Sunday.

We spent the early part of Saturday finishing up Miss A's very own swing set! Her grandparents (my parents) bought her this swing set as a very early birthday present and it arrived at our house a few weeks ago. I've been dying, waiting for the hubby to have enough time to put it all together. He had the majority done earlier last week and only needed to attach the swings and anchor the whole thing down. I knew she was going to love it.

After Miss A woke up from her nap we all went on the swings. The three of us, with our adult bums being squished from the tiny seats, but any time either of us got up, she'd say, "Dada swing" and "Mama swing." We happily obeyed. :)

Later that evening we decided to head for dinner. We walked around the outdoor portion of the mall (which was packed with girls in colorful, vibrant prom dresses!) and found a place to eat dinner. That's where all the fun ended- Miss A was NOT having it in the high chair and I had to hold her in my lap, somehow managing to eat a burger and fries with her on top of me. By the end of the night we were exhausted and crashed on the couch to catch up on our DVR.

The next day we invited our friends over to grill and check out the swing set! It was a beautiful day, with highs in the 80s. Perfect day to spend outside on our deck. I marinated some chicken, chopped up some veggies, roasted potato wedges, and served slices of bread with tomatoes and fresh mozzarella cheese. 

I absolutely LOVE this new outfit I got for Miss A at Old Navy, along with these clear jelly (!!!) shoes. THAT ARE SCENTED. Oh my God I've never loved a pair of shoes more, and neither has she, because she refuses to take them off!

We had lots of fun letting the girls take turns on the swings and play with the balls and cars we had on the deck. Then, I managed to snap this picture.

For dessert I made a no-bake Oreo pudding pie. It was the perfect addition to a grilled meal. Layers of chocolate, cream cheese, and Oreo crumbs! Very easy to make and very thoroughly enjoyed by everyone. I only wish I remembered to take a better picture before we cut into it!

She's definitely my girl, what a sweet tooth! 

Good Days

Sometimes I still have those days where I can't believe she's mine. I can't believe she's my daughter, I can't believe I have a daughter. I still have those moments where I hold her a little closer, breathe in her skin, kiss her cheeks and nose a thousand times, and look deep into her eyes. This tiny human- she's all mine, we created her. It will forever blow my mind.

She started off the day on the wrong foot, waking up earlier than usual, and was crying and whiny most of the morning. It could be the two teeth I see about ready to come in, who knows. After lunch she took an early nap and slept for a long time, much longer than she usually does. She was up and ready to play after that and we went to meet a friend at the park. By the time we got back home she was in a great mood. I was able to prep dinner peacefully as she roamed from the kitchen to the family room (we have an overpass in the kitchen so I can see her). As I was chopping veggies she reached for my hand so we could dance. It was the cutest and sweetest thing and we twirled around the kitchen together. Each time she pressed a button on her Minnie car and it played a new song, she reached up for my hand.

After dinner it was time for her bath and she asked me to draw "babies" for her in the tub. She has these bath crayons, which are great and wash off easy. She loves to "color" and "draw" during bath time. I drew lots of smiley faces aka babies, dogs, stars, and hearts. She wiped each one off with a towel and asked me to draw them over and over again. Once we were out of the bath it was time to read books. She grabbed her stack of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse books (all six of them) and plopped down next to me to read. It's one of the sweetest times of our day.

The best moment yesterday was right before I laid her down to sleep. As I was singing her bedtime song, "You Are My Sunshine", she snuggled in close to me and hummed along. I melted, hugging her tighter, wishing with all my heart that I could keep her this way forever. I hope I can remember it for the rest of my life.

So yeah, yesterday was a good day. A day to remember for the not-so-good days, when we're tired, cranky, or nothing is going our way. A day I'll keep close to my heart.

Spring Days & Preparing for Easter

It's no secret that I'm loving the weather lately. We're hanging out outside multiple times a day, having lunch, blowing bubbles, and walking up and down our driveway. She LOVES our driveway. It's slightly sloped so I think she thinks of it as a slide she can walk up and down. I used to try and hold her hand as she went down, afraid of her skinning her knees, but now she's mastered it, and I always make sure to put her in pants. ;)

We're also preparing for Easter! Last week I put together our Spring mantle and realized I didn't have a garland to go with it. What is it about a garland that makes a mantle feel complete? I haven't seen any that I love in the store so I decided we'd make our own.

In our guest room, which is also our craft room/my office space, I keep all my old scrapbook supplies. You may remember that picture of her making a huge mess in this room. There are many, many messes here, not only made by Miss A, but by me. Although I'm sad to say I haven't been scrapbooking as much as I would like. Failure on my new years resolution (how are you doing with those?)

I found lots of pastel colored cardstock and some patterned ones too. I printed out an egg template to trace onto the cardstock and cut each one out. Then I let Miss A add her artistic touch to each one. 

Of course she was all about the yarn, wanting to take the whole spool herself and drape it over like a thousand necklaces. She was also really curious about the hole-puncher. 

I love this white rabbit and pink ceramic egg that I found at Big Lots. $7 for two new Spring decor items. That's a pretty good deal!

Of course no holiday around here is complete without candy. I filled an empty square glass with these colorful chocolate eggs and now reach in for one every time I pass it. Bad idea? Maybe. But they sure are pretty.

I've also been wondering what kind of basket to get Miss A. I saw this Minnie bucket on that same shopping trip and couldn't resist. She loves it, can easily carry it, and it's big enough for me to fill it with her Easter gifts and big enough to stuff it full of eggs that she'll collect. Sure, it might not be that white pastel lined basket I had in my head, but it'll do the trick for now. 

How are you enjoying Spring? I hope the weather has started to warm up!