Mamma's Cooking

Fun Valentines Ideas

Getting kids (and some adults!) to eat different foods can be a challenge. One way to get kids excited about food is to make it fun for them. Play up the holidays or make a regular Thursday morning an “orange” morning and only make orange food, etc. Keep trying different things and they will eventually eat when they are hungry or we find the right food or cooking method. Then it changes again the next week 🙂 But don’t despair. You are not alone. If you are worried your child is not getting the nutrients they need, talk to your pediatrician. In the meantime, keep trying different things. You never know what may work. Here are a few suggestions for Valentines Day.

“Hearty” Breakfast

Cut a heart shaped hole with a cookie cutter in a piece of lightly toasted bread. Put it in a pan and break an egg in the center. A couple of minutes later, when the egg starts to firm up, flip it and cook until the egg is cooked as you like it. Here is a recipe I found.

If your kids don’t like eggs, try making heart shaped pancakes or use a larger heart cookie cutter to make heart shaped toast and top with peanut butter, nutella or your favorite spread.

Serve it with a strawberry banana smoothie! (Strawberry yogurt blended with a banana). This will give everyone a good start to a day filled with chocolate and sweets 🙂

Lunch Love

Use a cookie cutter to cut sliced pineapple and some ham into heart shapes. Serve with pita bread also cut into hearts (or not) to be dipped into hummus.You could also use the heart shaped pineapple and ham to top individual english muffin pizzas.

Another idea is to make whatever sandwich your kids like, peanut butter and jelly, cream cheese and jelly, grilled cheese and then cut it into a heart shape.

Delightful Dinner

Make polenta and then cut heart shapes for the kids! You can serve it with roasted beets and steak or chicken and squash or even shrimp and some peas for a version of shrimp and grits 🙂

For an easy appetizer put cream cheese on your favorite cracker and sprinkle with chives. My new favorite is Keebler’s Sea Salt and Olive Oil.

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Entertaining with Appetizers and What to do with the Leftovers

With all the upcoming events like the Superbowl and the Oscars, many plan fun nights in with friends to watch the festivities. Appetizers can be a great way to entertain. I have posted before on a dinner of appetizers, so check that post out for some ideas and keep reading for some new ones! [Having photo issues so they will be back up next week! If I find the cord for the camera :)]

One of my favorite appetizers is a cheese plate. This can take any form you want (and as little or as much work!). Whether it is a few different wedges of cheese, some fruit and crackers or just a block of cream cheese with a little salsa poured on top, cheese is always a big hit! I love this old recipe I found in Cooking Light years ago. Mix 1 part goat cheese with 1 part cream cheese in a small oven proof dish and bake it for about 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees. Serve warm with tortilla chips. If you have the energy or time make your own tortilla chips. Mix a couple of tablespoons of olive oil with 1 tsp of chili powder. Brush that mixture onto flour tortillas that have been cut into triangles (stack and cut in half and keep cutting like a pizza until the pieces are the size you would like) and place them in a single layer on a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for about 5-7 minutes. They will continue to crisp as they cool.

If there is any dip leftover add it to your scrambled eggs with some chives the next morning or use it as a spread for a roast beef sandwich with some tomatoes and lettuce.

Keeping a more substantial appetizer or meal in the slow cooker is always a good idea when everyone is grazing. I usually make chili or a pot of soup.

If there is a lot left over, since you made way too much food like I usually do, freeze it. It will make a great easy weeknight dinner the next week. If not too much is left of the chili, mix it in with some pasta and cheese for a chili mac n cheese dinner.

Having a fruit and veggie tray helps bring a light break from all the heavy (but yummy!) appetizers. Even a bowl of grapes will work. No need to be fancy unless that is your thing. For the veggie tray, buy a bag of small carrots, pint of cherry tomatoes and some celery (that you can clean and chop in 5 minutes). Arrange on your own platter. Buy chive cottage cheese or mix in some chopped chives with plain cottage cheese, for a refreshing and tasty dip. This will cost you much less than buying fruit or veggie trays in the store and won’t take much time at all.

Use leftover veggies to make an omelet or quiche the next morning. Especially good if you also have some leftover potato skins to add in as well 🙂 I made very simple quiche the other day in my muffin tins using won ton wrappers for the crust. Place 2 wonton wrappers overlapping in muffin tin and push down to form the shape of the tin. In a large bowl mix eggs, leftover cottage cheese dip, chopped up leftover veggies, chopped up leftover potato, salt and pepper. Pour into wonton lined muffin tins and bake at 375 for about 15-25 minutes, depending on your oven. Freeze what you don’t eat and you already have breakfast for another morning!

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Soups, Stromboli and Shredded beef

In an effort to continue moving forward, I am trying to continue my menu planning each week. Earlier this week I went to a lecture at the local library on menu planning. It was very informative. The librarian giving the talk is a home organizer and amateur cook on the side. Her home organizing company is called, tidylogic. She gave me some great ideas. The first, I had not thought of before. Start with organizing your recipes into one or 2 locations by type (and time, ingredients, etc as detailed as you have time for). This way when you sit down to plan your meals for the week, you can just write in recipes you want and then you have the recipes easily at your fingertips to find the ingredients to add to your shopping list. This way you also do not get stuck in the rut of make the same meals every week like I do sometimes!

There are many different programs out there either online, Iphone/Ipad apps, or through software you can purchase. Having tried a couple of them, I have realized that you just need to find one that works for you and can be customized. If it doesn’t work for you, then you are not going to use it for the long haul.

Doing this recipe organization (or starting to) has reminded me of recipes that I have had for a long time and have never made. My basic menu plan for each week is:

Monday
Breakfast – cereal and yogurt
Lunch – sandwiches and fruit
Dinner: leftovers
Snacks: chocolate zucchini bread, apple sauce, crackers with peanut butter, cheese stick

Tuesday
B: eggs and fruit
L: quesadillas and fruit
D: Pasta/Rice (this is where you would insert your favorite pasta recipe)
S: yogurt, fruit, whole wheat gold fish with craisins

Wednesday
B: toast and fruit
L: sandwiches and fruit
D: Tex-Mex night (this is where you would insert your favorite enchiladas, chili, quesadilla recipes)
S: wholewheat banana muffins, apple sauce, crackers with peanut butter, cheese stick

Thursday
B: oatmeal with fruit
L: sandwiches and fruit or leftovers
D: Baked potatoes/sweet potatoes with soup (slow cooker day)
S: yogurt, fruit, whole wheat gold fish with craisins

Friday
B: cereal and yogurt
L: chicken nuggets/fish sticks with sweet potato fries or peas
D: Pizza
S: apple sauce, crackers with peanut butter, cheese stick

Saturday
B: Eggs and fruit
L: leftovers/soup
D: Pasta/Rice
S: yogurt, fruit, whole wheat gold fish with craisins

Sunday
B: wholewheat pancakes with fruit
L: leftovers
D: Roast (slow cooker day)
S: apple sauce, crackers with peanut butter, cheese stick

Using this plan, I plug in recipes based on what I have already on hand and what is on sale at the grocery store. For example, shrimp is on sale one week so I will make my pasta or rice dish on Tuesday with shrimp.

Last week I made a corn chowder for soup night, Stromboli for pizza night and a shredded beef with sweet potatoes, onions and brown rice for Roast/Slow cooker night.

The corn chowder was the same recipe as I made lobster chowder before, just minus the lobster pieces 🙂

The Stromboli was inspired by an episode of the Chew last week when Michael Symon made a pizza roll. I used Trader Joe’s garlic and herb dough with jarred tomato sauce, shredded mozzarella and turkey pepperoni. Tim, Paul and I liked it, but Neil did not (he’s not eating much of anything these days!) and Karina told me that next week we have to make a flat pizza because she doesn’t like the roll 🙂 This picture is not of the finished product. After I cut into it I saw the dough was still raw inside so I had to put it back in the oven. It definitely takes longer to cook this way.

For the shredded beef with sweet potatoes, onions and brown rice I put a London Broil steak frozen in the slow cooker with a can of healthy choice cream of chicken soup, couple of cups of water, Worcestershire sauce, a little vinegar and Trader Joe’s Everyday Seasoning. I diced the sweet potatoes and onions and sauteed until mostly cooked then added a little water and closed the lid to let the steam finish cooking the sweet potatoes on low. I seasoned them with salt, pepper and Trader Joe’s Everyday Seasoning. I made the brown rice in the rice cooker with chicken stock. When the steak was read, I took it out to rest and then poured the liquid through a strainer and reduced it. To make a good gravy, I added a little brown sugar and a bay leaf along with the water and cornstarch for thickening.

I use the leftover sweet potatoes to add to grilled cheese sandwiches and quesadillas. Here is a good quesadilla recipe I found for black bean and sweet potato quesadillas. I used the leftover gravy to flavor the stock for lentil soup along with turkey bacon, onion and carrot. My husband also brought leftovers for lunch for a couple of days.

Today, Thursday is soup night, so I am making my old standby, Butternut Squash Soup. The only difference is I added a little ginger to it and when it came time to put the stock in I moved everything to a slow cooker to cook all afternoon and stay safe and warm while I go pick up Karina at school.

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More leftover ideas and some comfort food for those cold snowy nights

I feel like I’m finally getting a hang of using up all my leftovers and not just as the same dish it was, but transformed so my family doesn’t get bored. There are a couple of dishes that are great for transforming meats, veggies, like quesadillas or chili or a baked pasta dish. Here are a couple of things I have made recently.

Eggplant Rolotini with Orzo

Olive oil

1 small onion diced

1 small/medium eggplant sliced thin to make rolls, and extra pieces chopped

1 28oz can of tomatoes (diced or crushed. Substitute 3-4 medium tomatoes in the summer)

Oregano

Thyme

Salt

Pepper

Garlic powder (can use fresh garlic, 1-2 cloves minced depending on how garlicky you like it)

1-1/2 cups Fresh ricotta

1 egg

12 ounces orzo

4 cups of stock (veggie or chicken) or water

Sauté onion and garlic in olive oil until translucent. Add chopped pieces of eggplant and more olive oil if needed. Sprinkle salt, pepper, oregano and thyme onto eggplant and onion mixture. Cook for a couple of minutes, then add in tomatoes. While that is cooking, take ricotta cheese and egg and mix together with a little pepper, garlic powder and salt. Take mixture and spread across top of long, thin piece of eggplant and roll up. Take the sauce off of the heat and place roll up in the sauce. Repeat. Drizzle eggplant roll ups with a little olive oil, salt and pepper. Cover and place in 350 degree oven for about 40 minutes.

Make orzo according to package. Serve with eggplant and sauce.

I made this recently for a cooking club and we had to bring something that started with the same letter as your last name. Very fun!

Leftovers: Added the orzo and some of the diced cooked eggplant in with a white pork chili (see below)

Barley risotto, Roasted Butternut Squash and Balsamic Garlic Pork Tenderloin
(a recipe for when you have lots of time to cook. If you don’t, make some baked potatoes or even sweet potatoes instead of the risotto)

2-3 lb pork tenderloin (you could also use beef or boneless chicken or turkey breast)
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup apple juice
1/8 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/8 cup soy sauce
3-4 sprigs of thyme
1 medium sized onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced salt
lemon pepper
1 medium butternut squash, peeled and cubed
olive oil
2 cups pearl barley
8-10 cups broth (veggie, chicken or beef or even water or a mixture), heated
parmesan

Turn crockpot onto low. Pour in balsamic, apple juice, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, thyme, 1/2 of the onion and 2 of the garlic cloves. Mix the sauce and taste. If too acidic for your taste, add more apple juice. If you want it to have a little more of a savory bite add more Worcestershire sauce. Dry the pork and rub it with salt and lemon pepper and then place it in the sauce in the crockpot. It should cover it about 3/4 or so the way up the pork. Close and let cook 6-8 hours on low. When it reads 170-180 degrees on a meat thermometer, the pork is done. Take it out to rest. If you want gravy, add the cooking liquid to a large saucepan and bring to a boil to reduce by about 1/2. Then strain. I use a spoon that is a large strainer since its easier than pouring it out and then back in the pan. Taste. I usually add a little more apple juice, a Tbsp of brown sugar and some black pepper. Lastly add a cornstarch mixture (2 Tbsp cornstarch to 1/2 cup water) and whisk until thick.

Spread the squash out on a sheet pan and toss with olive oil, salt and lemon pepper. Roast in oven at 375 degrees for about 30-45 minutes.

In a medium sized sauce pan on medium high heat, put enough olive oil to cover the bottom. Add remainder of onion and garlic. Cook until onions are translucent. Add barley and cook while stirring for 2-3 minutes. Add about 1 cup of the broth and stir until absorbed. Keep adding a ladle or 2 of broth at a time until absorbed and the barley is the consistency that you like to eat it. This can take about 45 minutes. Finish with a handful of parmesan.

Leftovers: I used the pork and barley, along with the eggplant and some orzo from another meal to add to 1 can of cream of mushroom soup, 1 diced zucchini, 1/2 jalepeno (seeded and taken out before eating), cumin and chili powder to make chili. I put everything in the crockpot and cooked on low for 2-3 hours. I used the butternut squash in a quesadilla with cheddar. The kids loved it! Well, 2 out of 3 did at least 🙂

Another good idea for leftovers is to make an Asian noodle dish. For some reason, my 4 year old has decided she LOVES Asian food, so I’m trying to make it more. The other day for a quick week night meal, I took some shredded turkey out of the freezer (from the holidays) and made a turkey, broccoli and edamame noodle dish with whole wheat spaghetti noodles.

Cook the noodles as directed on package. Put a little bit of vegetable oil in a large sauce pan or a wok if you have one, on medium high heat. Add 1/2 onion sliced thinly and 1 clove of garlic, minced. Cook until onions are translucent. Add turkey and cook until heated through. Throw in a handful of frozen broccoli and a handful of frozen edamame (shelled). Then add sauce. I made a sauce with leftover pineapple juice I had in the fridge, with terriyaki sauce, soy sauce, a little brown sugar and a drop of sesame oil. It was so good! Let cook for 5-10 minutes on medium. Add a little cornstarch if you want the sauce thicker. Add noddles to pan, mix and serve!

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Not too late for new years resolutions

To make resolutions or not? 2011 was a year of transition for me and my family. Instead of making specific resolutions this year, I am just pledging to make 2012 a year of moving forward. This pledge will include resolution type things like work out more, go to the dentist when I’m supposed to, cook healthier food, cut our grocery costs and more, but as those smaller things may change, the overall pledge will stay the same. I believe this time next year I will feel better about keeping my pledge and not worry about all the smaller individual resolutions I did or did not do.

Now on to food…My first step toward moving forward in 2012 is to use leftovers more efficiently and effectively.

I started my last week of the year cooking large meals, so that I could spend this weekend not cooking but rather spending more time with my family 🙂

Balsamic Mustard Chicken thighs with roasted butternut squash and risotto-like-rice
1 medium butternut squash, peeled and cubed
olive oil
salt
pepper
Trader Joe’s Everyday spice blend (or coriander and a pinch of red pepper flake)3-5 lbs skinless chicken thighs (I often buy them with the skin on because its cheaper and then take it off myself)
Leftover mustard balsamic dipping sauce from my pigs in a blanket Christmas eve (Thanks Lauren for the idea!) (Made with spicy brown mustard, balsamic vinegar and honey mixed together)
1 Tbsp butter
1/2 of a medium onion diced
1/2 cup aborrio rice
3-4 cups chicken broth or veggie broth

Toss the squash with olive oil and spices and put on a baking sheet in the oven at 375 degrees. Coat the chicken with the balsamic mustard sauce and place in a baking dish in the oven at 375. Cook both about 45 minutes. Ovens vary so check to make sure its cooking evenly and not burning at about 30 minutes. Check the chicken with a meat thermometer to 165-175.

To make the risotto-like-rice, add butter and onion to your rice cooker and stir until onions are translucent. Add rice and cook while stirring for a couple of minutes. Add 3 cups of broth and start the machine. Once it is done, add more broth and mix it in if you want it creamier.You can also add in some Parmesan at the end if you like.

I used the leftover chicken and risotto to make white chicken chili. To a crock pot added a can of cream of chicken soup, half of a jalapeno (seeded), cumin, coriander, 1 small onion diced, 1 can of white beans, leftover chicken cubed and about 1 cup of the risotto. Cook on low for 2- 3 hours. Delicious! My 9 year old nephew couldn’t get enough of it!

Roasted turkey with sweet potato mashed potatoes and stuffing

I cooked the turkey whole, stuffing it with lime and tangelo wedges, onions and garlic. I melted butter with some thyme, lime juice, lime zest, tangelo juice, tangelo zest and rubbed that all over the turkey. While that was cooking I peeled and diced 3 sweet potatoes and boiled them in water with thyme and garlic until soft. Once they were fork tender, I drained them and mashed them with a little butter, milk and cream cheese. I added some garlic powder, salt and pepper. For stuffing I used Stove top savory herb 🙂 and I used the cranberry sauce in the can.

I used the leftovers to make turkey stock, pesto pasta with turkey and butternut squash, turkey sandwiches and more.

My next step is to cut our grocery costs, starting with more couponing. I bought the Sunday paper the other day to get the 4 coupon inserts. I was shocked at the register when they said it was $3.50! Last time I bought a Sunday paper it was $1.50. Next time I am going to buy the local Lowell paper, I think it also has the inserts and is still only $1.50. I went to a lecture at the local library by Jamie Chase, the Lazy Couponer. It was great! Using her tips, I saved almost 30% on my next grocery trip. I only bought what I needed, no stockpiling or hours upon hours of clipping coupons.

(Belated) Happy New Year to all of you!

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Happy New Year!

Are the holidays over yet? Just kidding. I love Christmas and New Years, but with two sick 18 month olds (who gave me their cold!) it has not been the relaxing Norman Rockwell like week I was hoping for 🙂 But really, when is it?

Due to my cold, the boys colds and general holiday stresses, no new blog this week. Here is a link to my recipes from last year’s New Year’s Eve dinner. I made the potato leek soup on Christmas eve for our family night of appetizers. Today I am roasting a turkey (they were only 49 cents a pound at the grocery store!) for tonight along with some sweet potatoes, stuffing and cranberry sauce, which will give us some great leftovers, so that we can just relax this weekend! Yesterday I made roasted chicken with the leftover dipping sauce from the pigs in a blanket I made on Christmas eve (brown mustard, honey, balsamic vinegar). More later when I come out of my cold haze and reappear all healthy in the new year 🙂

Happy 2012 everyone! May it be a great year for us all!

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Last minute holiday prep!

I am keeping myself occupied with laundry, preparing presents for pre school teachers and others, laundry, last minute shopping, laundry, seeing old friends, laundry and doctors appointments. I’m being way more domesticated this year than usual. Karina and I have made Christmas cookies, fudge and pretzel chocolate bites, I actually got holiday cards out this year and I hosted a Christmas party for my brother, niece and nephew full of South African food my mom used to make!

We started the Christmas party off with something simple (this part is not traditional). I put out cream cheese shaped like a christmas tree with a little Trader Joe’s sweet chili sauce poured on top and served with crackers. So good and so easy!! It was based on this idea from Betty Crocker.

Then I put out a bowl of grapes. Easy, easy appetizers!

Next I made bobotie, a traditional South African meat dish. I make it with coriander, curry, chutney, ground beef and an egg and milk mixture. I’m still figuring out amounts for my recipe, so I will let you know. But here is a close enough version (and some interesting info!). I served it with some chutney and brown rice. Alongside we had a salad of shredded carrots with pineapple chunks. To make the salad, I just shredded about 1/2 a bag of small carrots in my food processor and poured in a can of pineapple chunks, juice and all. Mix and serve!

Lastly for dessert I made something my mom used to always make. I don’t know if its technically South African, but my mom is South African and she made it all the time 🙂

Andes Mint Caramel Delight

Ingredients:
1 can of sweetened condensed milk, caramelized (I poured it into a pie plate, covered with foil and put in a roasting pan with water about 3/4 way up the pan and cooked at 425 for 2 hours)

1 container Cool Whip
1 package of any type of plain cookie you like. (Traditionally my mom would make it with Marie Tea biscuits or tennis cookies but you can use British digestives or even lady fingers. Just don’t make it with a cookie that is too sweet since the rest of the dessert is already sweet)
1 package of Andes Mint Candies, chopped

Directions:

Frost a cookie with the caramelized condensed milk and place it in a casserole dish. Keep doing that with the cookies until the bottom is covered. Then top with 1/2 of the cool whip, spreading it out to cover the cookies with caramel. Sprinkle half of the chopped Andes candies over the cool whip. Repeat. Put in the fridge to chill until ready to serve.

This was one of the most stress free dinners I’ve made in a long time and it was comforting, nostalgic and shared with family on top of that! We enjoyed our Christmas crackers too! Only the adults really liked the hats for some reason 🙂 The kids just wanted the toys inside.

Now I am planning for our Christmas Eve dinner of appetizers and some scalloped potatoes that I’m bringing for Christmas dinner!

Here are some ideas of what to do with your holiday leftovers.

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Getting ready for the holidays

How it already got to be December 14th, I have no idea!!! This month is passing by way too fast! Holiday parties are in full swing, presents are being bought (and made!) and planning for special holiday dinners is well underway.

Cooking dinner during all of our busy lives is challenging as it is but add in all the holiday pressures (and good times!) and it becomes next to impossible! I have been relying on my crock pot to help have a warm and delicious dinner ready after all the running around all day. Thanks to winning a giveaway on one of my favorite blogs, A Year of Slow Cooking, I now have a new fancy slow cooker! I love my 10 year old crock pot and will continue to use it from time to time, but I love this new one! It is a 6 quart oval shaped one from Hamilton Beach. You can set the temperature, it has a warming function and the lid clasps shut. Now I don’t have to tape the lid shut, like I did on my old one when taking it somewhere 🙂

Last week I made a pork roast with butternut squash and parsnips.I put a 3lb pork roast in the crock pot with 2 parsnips (large chunks) and 1 medium butternut squash (large chunks). The pork roast was rubbed with flour, coriander, chili powder, salt and pepper and placed on top of the veggies. I topped the pork with a sliced apple and one medium onion sliced. For the liquid I used about 2 cups beef broth with a little balsamic vinegar. Cooked on low for about 8 hours. It was melt in your mouth delicious!

I also made a vegetarian chili and french onion soup. My crock pot has been busy. For the chili I just added a can of tomato soup, can of tomato paste, 1 medium onion (diced), garlic, chili powder, cumin, can of corn and a can of black beans. Cook on low until heated through. Sometimes I add a little apple cider vinegar too and leftover chicken, beef or pork once its heated. This only takes 2-3 hours, so its perfect to put in during the kids afternoon nap or while they are occupied with an afternoon snack, and then its ready in time for dinner!

Monday I made my Coconut Curry Sweet Potato soup. I made it for a recipe exchange party, which ended up being dinner for me and Andrea. Andrea if you’re reading this, thank you! I had fun! The chicken and quinoa was delicious!

Today I made apricot bbq chicken. This was roughly based on this from a Year of Slow Cooking, but crossed with the sauce I make for meatball appetizers. I added in about a 1/4 of a jar of apricot jam, some bbq sauce, couple splashes of Worcestershire sauce and white balsamic vinegar. Add 1 medium diced onion, clove of garlic and 1/4 cup of brown sugar.

The chili and the chicken I’ve made in the last week have really helped to clear out my pantry and fridge a little. Always nice to do before the holidays to make room for the the holiday food!

Outside of my crockpot, I made a baked cheeseburger ziti. I have been craving baked ziti. Maybe it is because we have been watching the first season of the Sopranos. This recipe is amazing! Try it!

I am making some gifts for our maintenance men, neighbors and others. I have found some great ideas on Pinterest. I’m only making one this year (that I also made at Thanksgiving), but have “pinned” others for the future.

These are the treats I’m making:

Pretzel Hugs

Easy Fudge

Sugar Cookies (I buy the premade dough and frosting. Its enough work to get a 4 year old to press the cookie cutters in and stay focused!)

Homemade Salsa: 1 large can of whole or diced tomatoes, 1 jalapeno (take out seeds and chopped), about 1/2 a red onion roughly chopped, cilantro (to your taste – I usually grab a handful), salt, pepper, about a clove of garlic, minced. Put ingredients into a blender or food processor. Mix until it is the consistency you want. Less if you like it chunky and more if you want it smooth.

Good luck staying sane during the holidays and if you have a question while you are getting ready, feel free to ask Mamma!

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Lessons learned from Thanksgiving and cooking in the aftermath

Thanksgiving was wonderful! So much food and good times with family! I gave my brother a tray full of food but still had lots of turkey, lobster, mashed potatoes, stuffing, squash and cranberry sauce leftover. Everything turned out mostly like I wanted it to, except the gravy! I put too much vinegar in my brining liquid (I also noticed that I typed the wrong amount on my blog about Thanksgiving! It is now corrected.) The turkey tasted great, but the gravy did not, especially when I added the liquid and veggies from the oven bag I roasted the turkey breasts in. The lemons made it in and really added a bitter taste. So lesson learned is DO NOT put already roasted lemons in the gravy to reduce. To fix this I added some brown sugar and apple cider vinegar and extra stock to take away the bitterness. It was a long day prepping, which it always seems to be no matter how simple I try to make it, but it was fun. The kitchen is my happy place!

Prepping for mashed potatoes and roasting squash and sweet potatoes.

Turkey breasts ready to go in the oven!


Appetizers: meats, cheese ball with crackers, grapes, veggies and homemade white bean hummus. The hummus didn’t quite come out how I wanted, so I’ll post a recipe when I try it again. I tried to substitute sesame oil and peanut butter for tahini (because I forgot to buy it) and the flavor wasn’t quite right.

The table ready for food!

The lobster is ready too!

Plate of many of my favorite things!!

Rolls turned out to be the pita bread I attempted to make the day before. The came out more like rolls than like pita. I used the Grands Biscuits I bought then for a yummy appetizer recipe below. Win win!

Dessert 🙂 Store bought pumpkin pie (delicious!), my favorite Carvel ice cream cake with a turkey on it and pretzel – Hershey’s hugs bites (find here).

Leftover sandwich, yum!

I used the left over roasted squash and sweet potatoes and spinach from the salad to make these little quesadillas. Mix veggies with a cream cheese, shredded cheese, cumin and chili powder. Roll up in a tortilla and cook at 375 for about 5-10 minutes until cheese is gooey! So good and my kids loved it!

Lobster corn chowder was a fun way to use the rest of the lobsters and mashed potatoes. Sauteed 1 medium diced onion in a little olive oil until translucent. Then added mashed potatoes. Once I stirred that around a couple of times, I stirred in chicken stock until it was the consistency I wanted for the soup. Then I added a can of corn. After that, I broke down the rest of the lobsters (saved the shells to make stock) cut the meat into bite size pieces and threw it in the pot. Stirred, tasted for seasoning and added some thyme. Served with grilled cheese. Everyone except my 4 year old loved it! She is going through a non soup phase.

Last meal I made with the leftovers was from one of the Food Network specials I saw just before Thanksgiving. We had an old friend over for dinner and I made these. They were a hit. The only changes I made was to use shredded carrots instead of cucumbers, since I didn’t have any cucumbers and I added some fresh ginger to the cranberry hoisin sauce.

Now that Thanksgiving is over and the leftovers are gone, I am struggling with the energy to cook and be creative. We’ve been eating homemade pizza, pasta and quesadillas. Last night I finally got some energy from somewhere to cook and made pork chops, polenta and peas. Tonight may be another pasta night.

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Pre and Post Thanksgiving ideas (with a potluck recipe thrown in)

Clearing out your fridge and freezer to make room for all the Thanksgiving goodies while saving your cooking energy for the big day can be challenging, but is doable. You will be happy that you have room in your freezer for some of the Thanksgiving foods that you don’t feel like eating or cooking with any more.

On Sunday I made a potato and kale soup to use up some onions and potatoes that I didn’t think would make it to Thursday and a 1/4 of a bag of frozen kale that I had left in the freezer.

Potato and Kale soup

3 Tbsp olive oil
2 small onions, diced (use whatever kind you have on hand or you could use leeks or shallots)
6-8 Russet potatoes, peeled and diced (use whatever kind you have on hand)

1- 2 teaspoons salt (add more to your taste)
1 Tbsp lemon pepper
2 Tbsp coriander
1 teaspoon garlic powder (you can use fresh, just add it a couple minutes after the onions)
6-8 cups of chicken stock (use veggie stock if you want to make this vegetarian)
2 handfuls of frozen kale (use a little more if using fresh kale)

Heat soup pot on medium high. Pour in olive oil. Add onions and cook until translucent. Add potatoes and more olive oil if it looks like things are sticking. Add salt, lemon pepper, coriander and garlic powder. Stir until potatoes and coated. Cook for about 10 minutes stirring occasionally. Add enough stock to cover the potatoes and reserve extra for later. Cook for about 15 -20 minutes or until you can easily smash a potato with a fork against the side. Stir in kale and cook for a couple of more minutes. Then puree using your favorite method. I use a handheld immersion blender and blend until potatoes are smooth. There will be pieces of kale throughout. If you use a blender or food processor, let the soup cool before pureeing.

TIP: This can also be done in a slow cooker by dumping everything but the kale in and cooking on low for 6-8 hours. Then add the kale and let it cook for about 20 minutes and then puree.

Keep it simple this week, make some pasta with jarred sauce or use baby food for extra veggies, do a make your own pizza night like we did last night or make some quesadillas.

Easy Flatbread pizzas

Flatbreads (store bought pizza dough or tortillas will work just a well)
jar of pasta or pizza sauce
shredded mozzarella (or whatever cheese you like)
Whatever toppings you have. Be creative! I used some leftover spaghetti squash (mix in with the cheese), leftover pesto and some sun dried tomatoes on mine. Husband had pineapple on his. Kids just had spaghetti squash.

Follow instructions on package as to how long to cook.

This is also the time of the year for potlucks at your kids school or at friends houses. Here is an easy pasta salad recipe (that does not have to be heated!!) that I recently brought to a family luncheon at my daughter’s pre school.

Caprese and Roasted Squash Pasta Salad

2 boxes of tri colored rotini
1 pint of cherry tomatoes chopped in half
about 6 oz of fresh mozzarella diced
about 10 leaves of fresh basic cut in a chiffonade (fancy word for rolling them up together and slicing)
1 Acorn squash, peeled and cubed (you can use whatever fall/winter squash you like)
Salt
Lemon Pepper
White Balsamic vinegar
Olive oil
Grated parmesan (I used the stuff that comes in the green can and it was great! but use fresh if you have it)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook pasta according to the directions on the box. Drain and put in a large bowl that you would use to transport the pasta salad. While the water is boiling for the pasta, prepare the squash and place it on a sheet pan tossed with olive oil, salt and lemon pepper. Roast in oven for about 20- 25 minutes or until edges start to brown. Take out and let cool. Put tomatoes, mozzarella and basil in a small mixing bowl. In another bowl add 1 part olive oil to about 1/2 part vinegar (depending on how much vinegar flavor you like add more or less). Mix in salt, lemon pepper and grated parmesan to your taste. Add some of the vinaigrette to your tomato and mozzarella mixture and let sit. Add about 3/4 of vinaigrette to the hot pasta and mix. Cover both bowls and keep in fridge over night. Also cover vinaigrette and put in fridge. In the morning mix the tomatoes, mozzarella and basil with the pasta and taste. If needs more vinaigrette add more of the remaining until it tastes like you want it to.

Lastly today, here are some links for leftover ideas!

Scallion pancakes and crispy turkey from Sandra Lee. Here is the video. I’m definitely trying this one!
Turkey enchiladas
Other ideas

Pick up some of the groceries for these easy leftover meals when you do your thanksgiving shopping. That way you do not have to go back to the store!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

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