Another Great Made-Up Recipe!

I have been a bit creative this summer.  For one thing, I don't have a million places to be, and so I think about food more, and I enjoy cooking...other than when it requires turning on the oven when it's 110 outside!  Wish I were kidding!!  I've also been trying to be a better steward of my already purchased foods, without running back to the grocery store so often.  So, much less has been wasted around here...we're even eating our leftovers!!  Shocking, because that's just not our thing.  

But, leftovers there were not, because we loved this one...kids included.  Jossie of course exclaimed, "This is the yummiest meal ever!!" and had 3 helpings.  One thing about Jossie, is when she's eating, she's eating a lot!  She might skip a few meals, but when it's something she loves...look out!  Joe had to fight her off of the last little bit so he could have seconds.

So the recipe (approximations since I made it on the fly):

Thai Lettuce Wraps with Fried Rice

1 cup dry jasmine rice (cook according to package directions)

Soy sauce (I used Kikkoman low-sodium)

Ground Turkey (93% lean)

3 cloves minced garlic (divided)

1 large carrot

1/2 onion diced

1/2 zucchini diced

1/4 c. Newman's Own sesame ginger dressing

1/2 c. chopped peanuts

Lettuce for wrapping (large leaf like Romaine, green leaf, etc.)

1 egg.

1/4 tsp ground ginger.

2 packets Truvia

Brown the meat, and break it up.  Add 2/3 of the garlic, 1/2 of the onion, all of the zucchini, and grate half of the carrot into the mixture.  Add plenty of soy sauce, the dressing, the ginger (fresh would be better, but I didn't have any), and the truvia.  Add extra dressing or soy sauce to taste.  Add chopped peanuts at the end to warm through.  To serve: put lettuce leaves on plate, and a pile of meat mixture and some fried rice.  Let everyone fill their own lettuce and enjoy!  You could top with sliced scallions and chopped cilantro for added Thai flavor.

For the fried rice:

Warm a generous amount of olive oil in the pan (After what my pan looks like, I'm thinking stainless steel is not the way to go for this dish).  Dice the remainder of the carrot, and add to warm pan with remainder of garlic and onion.  Cook until softened.  Add the rice and let it brown some, stirring often.  Add plenty of soy sauce for flavor.  Make a hole in the middle of the rice mixture.  Beat an egg and add to the pan in the middle.  Scramble and stir into the rice.  Serve!  Also would be good with sliced scallions.

Mmmm...

Homemade is always better.  Doesn't leave you with that heavy, preservative-filled, grossed-out feeling.  

Feel free to give me some comment love.  You don't have to make this recipe to comment.  

Yummy Dinner

I am so not a food-blogger.  I just love food.  But, I won't be taking any pictures of what I've eaten with steam rising and a beautiful bouquet in the background.  Regardless, I find food good for the soul.  I don't have time for many essentials in my life, but cooking well and healthy make me feel like I'm doing well for my family.  And, selfishly, I just like yummy food.

I've been trying to increase my ability to feed us more organically.  The real motivation, is that I can justify baking sinfully good brownies if I've made sure our veggies have made it in our bellies.  The girls are good at trying most things.  Some days, Jossie will look at what I've made and cry and say, "It's the worst day ever!!"  Then I always force her to take at least 3 bites with me watching before she can talk me into a back-up plan.  Most every time she exclaims, "Mmmm... This is soooo good!  It's the BEST DAY EVER!!!"  

She vacillates a lot.

Tonight I wasn't sure if it would be a winner.  We recently discovered that they all like stuffed peppers (you know, with beef, rice and tomato sauce).  So tonight, I thought I'd make some, then realized one of my peppers was bad and that left me a little short.  So, a back-up plan had to be found.  Here it is:

Title:  I don't know??  Italian beef and pepper bake (Just throwing out an idea, you can call it whatever you want).

1 lb. ground beef (lean)

1 onion diced

2 carrots diced

3 garlic cloves diced

1 large red, orange, or yellow pepper chopped

Fresh tomato chopped.

1/2 of large zucchini chopped

1 jar marinara sauce (my favorite is Archer Farms)

Fresh herbs from garden (basil and flat-leaf parsley)

3/4 cup dry brown rice

Goat cheese (optional)

Can chopped black olives (optional)

1/2 bag of shredded mozzarella

Directions: 

Cook brown rice as directed.  Brown beef, and break up into small bits.  If beef is lean and pan is not dripping in grease then add onion, carrots, garlic, tomato, and pepper and saute until soft.  (If greasy, drain first).  The last few minutes, add sauce, zucchini, herbs, goat cheese, olives and heat through.  I don't like mushy zucchini, so that's why.  Add your cooked rice.  Pour into large cooking-sprayed corning ware dish.  Top with shredded cheese, and heat through til melted and bubbly in 350 oven for 10 minutes. 

It really turned out delicious.  Like, I'm really looking forward to lunch tomorrow.  And nobody claimed it was the worst day ever.  In fact, it went down with many comments about its yumminess.

Enjoy!  

Let me know if you try it, and what you think!

One of Those Days

You know...where all 4 kids have something funky going on.

Well, to be fair, Jude is perfectly healthy, but he got in a weird sleep cycle Saturday night and Joe and I took turns walking with him until he fell asleep for me at about 3 am in the living room.  But, not before he had woken everyone in the house with his crying.  His very tiring crying cycle occurred right after Juice. A. Moose came in and screamed loudly, "My ears really hurt!!"  

Sophie's been battling high blood sugars since the last day of camp.  I'm sort of at a loss at this point.  They discovered a crack in her pump, so I was told to call Medtronic.  Medtronic promptly sent us a new one...and it was purple!!  These sorts of things excite us.  If it's got to be worn...why not a new color?  And the purple is so pretty!

Anyway, I've upped her rate, changed her site twice, given her shot corrections, upped her rates, upped her rates, corrected...I don't know what to think to be honest.  Still no ketones, so I'm thankful.  It wears on me night and day though.  I'm constantly trying to figure out what I'm doing wrong.  Is she sick?  Is she growing?  Is the new pump not working?  Ugh!!  

Then, Sunday morning Norah woke up with a tummy ache and saying, "I need to go to da doctor!"  Drama is not in short supply around here, so I have to weigh out all statements with what I can see.  So, I gave her infant gas medicine, encouraged her to poop, gave her kale, gave her chocolate coconut milk...somehow convinced that it must have to do with poop.  It's a time-tested theory: child with tummy ache...must have to poop!  She seemed to feel well enough to go to church, so off we went!  Pulled into the parking lot and she barfed all over the floor of the car.  So, home we went!  

A little rest and some mac-n-cheese, and she seemed to be back to normal.  Played with her sisters in the pool for a while.  Then came in doubled over in pain, starting to have a fever, fell asleep on the couch.  Now I'm starting to worry.  I go google it, and keep coming up with possible appendicitis.  I'm thinking I'm overreacting, and also thinking I have mommy instincts for a reason...and this one just doesn't feel right.  Called a friend who's a doctor.  He was so helpful to listen to my concerns.  Called our nurse-on-call through our doc office..she said, "she's been in pain for too many hours, struggling to walk, crying out in pain in her sleep...we want to have her seen."  So, off to the E.R. at midnight we go.  Thankfully, they were not crowded, and well-run.  

But, poor sweet Noni-bear...oh, I felt for her.  She has a serious poker face.  If you know her, you know what I mean.  If she doesn't know you really well, she will not speak to you, will not smile, will not acknowledge you are saying anything.  So, the doctor is pushing all over her very sore tummy, and she just lays there not saying a word, blinking back the tears.  He said he could tell she was in pain by the way her body was resisting.  She peed in a cup and it came back urinary tract infection.  Yay!  Simple problem, no surgery.  I was a happy momma.  She was so funny all night though...well, as long as you weren't a stranger poking on her belly.  She chatted and talked about EVERYTHING.  Such a girl.  We were amazed at how much she has to say when she's not competing for attention from sisters.  

Then, this morning Jossie's ear was still really hurting.  "Mommy, it hurts to smile."  Well, we can't have Miss Joyful hurting when she smiles.  So, since my sis-in-law had driven down to stay with kids while we went to the E.R. last night, and was still there with us, I used the great opportunity to run her to the doctor sans siblings.  Swimmer's ear.  Glad I went.  So sore.  

Poor babies.

I'm pooped.  I hope they all feel better tomorrow.