at home with ann

Way back in the beginning of January, my little boy turned 2.  In the blink of an eye he's suddenly a whole grown up person.  He's hilarious, a ton of fun, and full of opinions.  I hear a lot of "What's this, Mommy?," "I can do it myself.  Colin does it!," and "Oh, dump truck, I love you so much, would you like to play trains with me?"  That last one might not be typical two year old behavior, but it's pretty funny to hear.  To celebrate his birthday, we had a brunch with family and friends.  This year's theme was trains, as the birthday boy loves "chookin chookin."  He is also of the opinion that it's not a party without balloons and cars, so both were included in the day.  I didn't do a good job taking pictures of the food or the dining room because I was a busy bee and enjoying the celebration, but here are a couple glimpses from the day. The menu had some repeats from last year, and a couple new items.   ...

Part of our CSA share last week was picking hot peppers. Colin, who has made it quite clear that he doesn't like peppers, going so far as to fish them out of a salad, or his mouth,  would not listen to my suggestion to steer clear of the jalapenos.  Instead, he took a few bites out of one raw.  He has since told me several times that it was "picy." With a whole bag of jalapenos on hand, I considered my options.  Chopping and freezing to add to chili and cornbread is always good, but I also wanted to try my hand at poppers.  It's a safe bet that any attempts by me to deep fry would likely end up in a kitchen fire, so the oven baking method seemed like a good approach. Baked Jalapeno Poppers modified from SkinnyTaste 8-12 jalapeno peppers 4 oz. cream cheese, softened 4 oz. monterey jack or cheddar cheese, shredded 2 scallions, sliced 1/8 teaspoon paprika 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder 1/8 teaspoon chili powder salt and pepper 2 eggs, beaten 1/2 cup ...

Loosely based on Healthy Tipping Point's Santa Fe Casserole, this is a basic rice and bean based combination plus a whole bunch of vegetables, and a topping of melted cheese.  I think it would also freeze well, just double wrap in foil after cooked and then reheat in a 350 oven.  Southwest Casserole 1 cup brown rice, cooked according to package directions canola oil 1 onion, chopped 1 large bell pepper, chopped 1 jalapeno, chopped 1 garlic clove, minced 1 tomato, diced 2 ears corn, kernels removed 1 15 oz. can red beans, drained and rinsed 2 eggs, beaten 3/4 cup milk 3/4-1 cup cheddar, shredded While rice cooks, heat oil over medium heat in a frying pan. Saute onion, bell pepper, and jalapeno for a few minutes until soft.  Add in the garlic for the last minute. In a large bowl, combine the cooked vegetables, rice, tomato, corn, and beans. Pour the eggs and milk over the top. Spread in a casserole dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle ...

At long last, we had Taco Night this past weekend.  As some of you know, tacos are my husband's favorite food, and he would be happy if we ate them every week.  I like tacos quite a bit myself, but we need some balance.  This makes enough to serve at least 4.  We usually eat the tacos in tortillas the first night, and taco salads for the leftovers. Ground Turkey Tacos Ingredients: 1 pound ground turkey Canola oil 1 onion, chopped 1 clove garlic, chopped 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped 1 8 oz. can tomato sauce 1 Tablespoon each cumin and chili powder 1 teaspoon coriander 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne or habanero pepper Tortillas Shredded lettuce Chopped tomato Shredded cheese Sour cream Hot Sauce Other topping ideas: pickled jalapenos, avocado, mango, salsa In a saute pan, or large frying pan, brown the meat.  Drain in a colander and wipe out the pan. Heat canola oil over medium heat, add onion, garlic and bell pepper and saute a few minutes. Re...

I know you all know how to make salad.  I won't give you step by step pictures showing you how to cook chicken or chop tomatoes.  I will, however, tell you that this is an awesome salad, with a lot of flavor and variety.  It has a good amount of protein and healthy fat and will keep you full.  Also, you get to eat bacon. In the mix: Greens Chopped tomato Avocado Chicken - sauteed in olive oil with salt and pepper Bacon Hard Boiled Egg Blue Cheese A tip for cooking hard boiled eggs.  Put the uncooked eggs in a saucepan and cover with cold water by about an inch.  Bring to a boil, covered.  When boiling, allow to cook for 1 minute and then turn off the heat.  Set the timer for 15 minutes and leave them alone.  After 15 minutes, immerse the eggs in a bowl of ice water until cool - just a few minutes.  Peel under running water. This was definitely not a five minute lunch, but it was so good it was worth it!