August 31, 2012

Make-It-Fresh! Sub Sandwich - Homemade Lunchable



I had the pleasure of meeting Laura from MOMables while on the California Dairy Tour. We recently decided to get together to do a back to school series.  MOMables has all sorts of homemade, fresh ideas for your kids lunchbox - great ideas just like the one she is sharing today.  

We all know that making a sandwich is not rocket science, so don’t settle for the prepackaged ones! They may be convenient, but are severely lacking in nutrition and content.

The boxed sub sandwich lunch contains a small loaf of bread, pressed turkey lunch meat, and processed cheese slices, all individually wrapped in plastic, plus a squeeze packet of mayonnaise and a tiny marshmallow rice krispy treat. When I look at this, all I see is processed foods and lots of plastic waste! Besides that, where are the fruits and vegetables?

If my kids were left with only this, they’d be starving after lunch! If our kids aren’t getting a filling and balanced meal, how can we expect them to preform and behave at their best?

At MOMables™ we take on those boxed lunches and remake them healthier, fresh and quickly. We realize all grocery budgets are not the same, but it doesn’t take much more to use real turkey breast, real cheddar cheese and real whole wheat bread. Our lunch includes fruit too! Something the boxed lunch was missing. I suppose you can also include a homemade rice krispy treat.




By taking a few moments to pack healthy lunches for my family, I get the satisfaction of knowing they have nutritious food that is real and fresh.  This is what their bodies need instead of fillers, artificial ingredients and preservatives. I feel good when they feel good!







-- Laura Fuentes shows parents how to make fresh school lunches over at MOMables™.  A wife, mother of 3 and a lunch enthusiast who insists on healthy, wholesome food for her family.  
On her personal blog, Super Glue Mom, she writes about managing motherhood on a deadline.  She’s also a food contributor and recipe developer to numerous sites, and helps busy parents overcome the difficulties of cooking real food in a hurry. You can find Laura on Twitter and on Facebook and MOMables on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest






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August 30, 2012

My Perfect Squash Casserole



I absolutely love squash. It's my favorite vegetable by far. There are so many things you can do with it, and with the exception of straight up frying it - making into a casserole is my favorite 2nd favorite way to eat it.  

When we first started gardening years ago, I experimented with several different recipes - none of which were bad, but none of which were perfect either.  As with most of my other recipes, I dabbled around a bit in experimentations until I finally ended up with perfection.  


Perfection ended up being simpler than I thought.


Follow along with me.  It's really easy.

Here's what you need.  In two parts.  Because I forgot to add the 2 bowls of squash & onions to the first photo.  Oh, and while the cheese crackers are mandatory for the recipe, the Angry Birds are optional.  Well, unless you ask my 2 year old.  





Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  Place the squash (or how my PawPaw would say - 'squish') and the onions in a large skillet over medium-high heat, and pour in some water, just enough to cover.  Cover, & cook until the squash & onions are tender - about 5 minutes.




Drain it - and then set it aside in a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, melted butter, salt & pepper.   In another bowl, mix together the cracker crumbs & cheese. Mix half of the crumb mixture with the squash, and then stir in the egg mixture.  Pour into a 2 or 3 quart baking dish.




Sprinkle on the remaining crumb/cheese mixture.  Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes.





My Perfect Squash Casserole

Ingredients:
  • 4 cups sliced yellow squash
  • 1 cup sliced onion
  • 2 cups cheese crackers, crushed
  • 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 3/4 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup butter, melted
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • enough water to cover

Instructions:

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  Place squash and onion in a large skillet & pour in enough water to cover.  Turn the heat on medium-high, cover, & cook until tender - about 5 minutes.  Drain well, and place in a large bowl.  Set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, butter, salt, & pepper.  In another bowl, mix together the crumbled cheese crackers & the cheese.  Stir half of the crumb mixture into the squash along with the egg mixture.  Combine well.  Pour into a 2 to 3 quart casserole dish, and top with the remaining cracker/cheese mixture.  Bake for 30 minutes.



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August 29, 2012

Menu Plan Wednesday



I took the summer off from menu planning, but boy am I ready to get back to it. My grocery budget does much better when I sit down and plan what we're going to eat.

I took a look at my freezer inventory, and realized that I had a good bit of meats in there that I've racked up in the reduced section of my local butcher shop.  So much in fact that I didn't have to buy a single meat this week, and barely any groceries either when I paired everything up with what I already had in my pantry & fridge.  I love grocery trips like that.  My bank account is awful partial to them too.

Here is what our menu is looking like for this week.


3-Ingredient Shrimp Scampi-ish
Roasted Potatoes
Cheddar Garlic Buttermilk Biscuits





Mexican Style Meat in the Crockpot for the 2 Meals below (recipe coming soon):

Beef Enchiladas

Beef Tacos


Bacon Cheddar Pork Chops (recipe coming soon)
Cheesy Ranch Potatoes
Fried Okra



Fried Flounder
Hush Puppies
Salad

Chicken Fingers
Squash Casserole (recipe coming soon)
Wacky Mac - Macaroni & Cheese

Bacon & Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
Salad




Do you menu plan?  Read about why I menu plan on Wednesdays here - and feel free to link up your menu plans below if you're a fellow blogger!




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August 26, 2012

Makin' You Crave Monday


Welcome to another edition of Makin' You Crave Monday!

Big changes are coming next week to the linky party - good changes!!  So, make sure you check back then to see what they are :)

This week, I'm sharing my Tomato Caprese Salad - All Fanned Out.





Here are my favorites from last week.


Raw Blueberry Pie from Good Girl Gone Green





Deep Fried Twinkies from SteakNPotatoesKindaGurl




Caramel & Fruit Meringue from With A Blast




Thanks to everyone who shared last week - and be sure to join me next week when I unveil the exciting changes to the weekly linky party!!





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August 23, 2012

Homemade Chicken Nuggets



I had the pleasure of meeting Laura from MOMables while on the California Dairy Tour. We recently decided to get together to do a back to school series.  MOMables has all sorts of homemade, fresh ideas for your kids lunchbox - great ideas just like the one she is sharing today.  


Chicken nuggets are a favorite of most kids. I know mine would eat nuggets every day, if I’d let them! They are found on the menu in most restaurants and even in school cafeteria hot lunches. At the store you can find them taking up entire freezer sections, with different shapes and varieties for kid appeal. They also come in the refrigerated boxed lunches. The ingredients alone will scare any semi-health conscious person.  Yet, parents buy them because kids eat them.

The prepackaged, store bought chicken nugget lunch is quite a disappointment. The first thing we noticed was how little food it contained: Four processed nuggets, ketchup for dipping, and two sandwich cookies.

Where’s the nutrition? My child surely won’t be full on a meal like this. Most importantly, the mix of chemicals that make up what they call a nugget can hardly be called food.  Because of this, we are happy to share with you our version of homemade nuggets.  They are silly-easy to make and you can freeze them and have them ready for when you need them! Talk about convenience.




The MOMables lunch version contains four fresh homemade chicken nuggets (recipe below), dipping sauce, and two sandwich cookies. In addition, ours has the fruit & vegetable servings missing from the boxed lunch; crunchy carrot sticks and juicy grapes.

The only reason to pay for the boxed lunch is for a colorful box; but since you can get some pretty cool lunch boxes now-a-days, it’s a mute point.

MOMables menu plans provide you with healthy, fresh meals you can make in 10 minutes or less, but unlike store bought lunches, they allow flexibility in portioning and choice of sides so you can customize each lunch to suit your family’s tastes and appetites. We even tell you what to make and prep ahead so you can save time and money on wasted food.


MOMables Homemade Chicken Nuggets

Ingredients:

·         1 lb ground chicken
·         1/4 cup old-fashioned oatmeal
·         1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
·         1 tsp Zatarain's Creole Seasoning,divided (or paprika)
·         1/2 tsp garlic powder
·         1/4 tsp black pepper
·         3/4 cup breadcrumbs

Instructions:

1. In large bowl, combine chicken, oatmeal, half the grated parmesan (1/8 cup), half the Zatarain's seasoning (or paprika) (1/2 tsp), garlic powder and pepper. Knead dry ingredients into ground chicken.

 2. Moisten hands to prevent sticking and form 1 tbsp of chicken mixture into a ball. Press into a cookie cutter for shaped nuggets or flatten with fingers for a basic nugget shape.

 3. In a small bowl, combine breadcrumbs with remaining Zatarain's seasoning and grated parmesan.

 4. Press nuggets into bread crumb mixture and turn over, patting crumbs into surface to coat evenly.

--At this point you can freeze-- or

5. To bake: Preheat oven to 375° F. Arrange nuggets on cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray or lined with parchment paper. Lightly spray nuggets themselves with cooking spray or olive oil for a crispier coating (optional).

6. Bake 15-20 minutes, turning once, and checking - don't overcook! These baked nuggets will not really brown (unless you pan fry in oil) - if browning is desired, place under broiler for a couple of minutes at the end of cooking.

These nuggets don’t have to be baked right away; you can freeze the breaded nuggets on a cookie sheet, then transfer them to an airtight bag or container and store them in the freezer until you’re ready to bake as few or as many as you like for up to 3 months. Add about 3-5 minutes to your usual cooking time if baking from frozen.



-- Laura Fuentes shows parents how to make fresh school lunches over at MOMables™.  A wife, mother of 3 and a lunch enthusiast who insists on healthy, wholesome food for her family.  
On her personal blog, Super Glue Mom, she writes about managing motherhood on a deadline.  She’s also a food contributor and recipe developer to numerous sites, and helps busy parents overcome the difficulties of cooking real food in a hurry. You can find Laura on Twitter and on Facebook and MOMables on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest



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August 22, 2012

Tomato Caprese Salad {All Fanned Out}




Plump vine ripe tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, a little basil leaves along with a little splash of olive oil & balsamic vinegar.... Perfect ingredients for a perfect salad!  This tomato caprese salad is classic as far as flavors go - but jazzed up in the presentation.  Try serving this up at your next cookout or get together, and see how many 'wows' you get!




Tomato Caprese Salad {All Fanned Out}

Ingredients:
  • 1 large vine ripe tomato
  • 4-5 thin slices fresh mozzarella
  • 4-5 fresh basil leaves
  • splash of olive oil
  • splash of balsamic vinegar
  • salt & pepper to taste

Instructions:

Take your tomato & cut the top off, where the stem would be at.  Then, cut 4-5 slices into it - about 1/4" apart from each other.  Insert a slice of fresh mozzarella & a basil leaf into each slot.  Splash on a little olive oil & balsamic vinegar.  Season with salt & pepper to taste.



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August 19, 2012

Makin' You Crave Monday


Welcome to another edition of Makin' You Crave Monday.

This week, I'm sharing my Chicken Fried Steak with White Gravy.




I'm posting this pretty late tonight, so lets just head on in to the party.






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Chicken Fried Steak with White Gravy




Here in the South, we definitely love our fried food.  Fried chicken, fried squash, fried okra - I mean, can you blame us? At the top of that list of favorite fried foods sits Chicken Fried Steak smothered in white country gravy.  Add you a side of mashed taters - also smothered in gravy, along with a buttermilk biscuit to sop up whatever gravy is left on your plate - and you've got a plate straight outta foodie heaven.

Wow, I sure said gravy a lot there.  I like gravy.  A lot.  It's hereditary, so blame my mama.  (Sorry Mama)





This chicken fried steak of mine has the perfect amount of crispy breading, and the steak itself is super tender.  Then the gravy - oh the gravy.  You'll be licking the bowl the gravy is served in, trust me.  

Now, make sure you serve this classic southern dish with another classic piece of the South - my Mama's buttermilk biscuits.  If you ain't tried them yet, well you best do so because you have never tried a better biscuit than hers.  Even if you've never been able to make a good biscuit, you can make my Mama's.  

And, don't forget Great Granny Brown's mashed taters.




Chicken Fried Steak with White Gravy

Ingredients:
  • 4 1/2 pound cube steaks
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1.5 cups buttermilk
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tablespoons hot sauce
  • 2 tablespoons garlic powder
  • 3 cups vegetable shortening, for frying

  • 1/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 4 cups milk
  • salt & pepper to taste

Instructions:

Place 2 cups of flour into a shallow bowl, or pie plate.  Stir stir together the baking powder, baking soda, pepper, and salt in a separate shallow bowl; stir in the buttermilk, egg, hot sauce, & garlic powder.  Dredge each steak first in the flour, and then in the batter, and again in the flour.  Pat the flour onto the surface of each steak so they are completely coated with dry flour.

Heat the shortening in a deep cast-iron skillet.  Fry the steaks until evenly golden brown - about 3-5 minutes per side.  Place the fried steaks on a plate with paper towels to drain.  Drain the fat from the skillet reserving 1/4 cup of the oil and as much of the solid remnants as possible.

Return the skillet to medium-low heat with the reserved oil.  Whisk the remaining flour into the oil.  Scrape the bottom of the pan with a spatula to release the solids into the gravy.  Stir in the milk, raise the heat to medium, and bring the gravy to a simmer; cook until thick, about 7 minutes or so.  Season to taste with salt & pepper.  Spoon the gravy over the steaks to serve.



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August 16, 2012

MOMables Make-it-Fresh! Taco Tray (Homemade Lunchable!)



I had the pleasure of meeting Laura from MOMables while on the California Dairy Tour. We recently decided to get together to do a back to school series.  MOMables has all sorts of homemade, fresh ideas for your kids lunchbox - great ideas just like the one she is sharing today.  So make sure you check out her site, and be back here every Thursday for 4 weeks to see what else she brings - and her site as well for a few back to school guest posts from me!  


Kids love chips and they love dips.

What parents like are fresh and real ingredients - the MOMables™ way. 

Those boxed lunches dangling on the shelves at the grocer right at the kids’ eye level sure are tempting, aren’t they? Convenient – sure. Nutritionally – empty. Sure it has colorful, fun packaging, but that’s where anything good about those prepackaged lunches ends. At MOMables™, we love showing parents how you can turn simple and fun lunches into healthy and fresh meals.

If you want nicer and more colorful packaging, get rid of the zip bag and invest in some fun and reusable lunch containers.
 
The prepackaged lunch comes with tortilla chips, salsa, and cheese dip. “Cheese” - if you can really call it that, since cheese is not even one of the first 3 ingredients listed. The box lunch includes a sugary fruit-flavored drink and candy. You might be thinking, well… if kids eat it, why not buy it? Because the boxed lunch has so many ingredients that aren’t real food that you might as well not call it lunch.

Taco night is very popular in most households, right? Often times you have one left over serving of taco meat and wonder: what the am I going to do with this?  I’ll tell you.  You can make taco tray the MOMables way.




Our taco tray contains high quality beef, shredded real cheese, shredded lettuce, a serving of fruit and whole grain tortilla chips. The only things not pictured are a small container of salsa I usually include, a reusable napkin and utensils.  

This lunch took two or three minutes to prepare and I didn’t need any special tools to make it.  Healthy lunches can include left overs; you just have to re-purpose them!  If you need more lunch ideas you can always visit our blog, Facebook or Pinterest.  Helping busy parents make fresh lunches is what we do!




-- Laura Fuentes shows parents how to make fresh school lunches over at MOMables™.  A wife, mother of 3 and a lunch enthusiast who insists on healthy, wholesome food for her family.  
On her personal blog, Super Glue Mom, she writes about managing motherhood on a deadline.  She’s also a food contributor and recipe developer to numerous sites, and helps busy parents overcome the difficulties of cooking real food in a hurry. You can find Laura on Twitter and on Facebook and MOMables on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest

MrsHappyHomemaker


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August 15, 2012

Bananaberry-Kiwi Kabobs



Here's a fun little recipe that I created for Life Around Home that involves absolutely no cooking whatsoever - just a little bit of assembly, and you're all done.  If you haven't checked them out yet - Life Around Home is the first ever social media driven television show, and I happen to be the cooking neighbor for it.  I share new recipes every Monday there, so make sure you go give them a 'like' so you don't miss out on anything.  There is something for everyone too - everything around home, that's what their about.

Now - back to your regularly scheduled recipe...  :)

These fruit kabobs would be a fantastic treat to jazz up the kid's lunchbox, appetizers for a party, or just a snack to serve up when you're hungry.  Kids & adults alike will love the fun colors, pretty presentation, & of course - the flavor!





Bananaberry-Kiwi Kabobs
scroll down for the recipe card designed by Life Around Home


Ingredients:
  • whole fresh strawberries, hulled
  • fresh blueberries
  • bananas, sliced into 1 inch thick pieces
  • kiwi fruit, peeled & quartered
  • wooden skewers

Instructions:

Place all the ingredients on a wooden skewer in the following order per kabob.  1 strawberry, 1 banana slice, 1 kiwi quarter, & lastly 4-5 blueberries. Serve immediately. 


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