Recipe: Spinach and Artichoke Quiche

Picture and recipe courtesy of Food Coma Blog

Also, for Kimmy's shower, I agreed to make a quiche.  I was going to make the crustless one that I previously had made, but I wanted to try a new one.  Not only is Kim vegetarian, but her soon to be mother and sister-in-law are vegetarian as well.  And of course, who needs meat in a quiche.  Or in anything really?  Don't correct me on that.  You do need meat in certain things.  Like a meat and potato burrito.  Or something of the sort.

Anywho.  I decided on a spinach and artichoke quiche.  Perfect for a brunch, but festive for a party.  I wish I had made two of them cause everyone could only have just a sliver of it.  A sliver was not enough, folks.  It was not enough.  This sliver of quiche was so heavenly, I almost ran around the room, knocked everyone's plates out of their hands just so I could scrape it off the floor to have for myself.

Now, I was a fool to think I could create another artichoke dish without some sort of panic in Sarah's oven.  Remember Artichoke Bread Disaster of 2011?  We didn't get any aid for that disaster.  So, thanks a lot.  The panic was more of a it took longer to cook than the directions said and everyone was standing around chatting and waiting for it so they could begin eating so I didn't get a picture of it panic. 

Everyone really enjoyed it though, and it was a good salty contrast to the 1000's of sweet things on the table. I got a big thumb's up from the mother-in-law, who gave me her card so I could send her the recipe.  Yay, success! Will definitely be making this again!

Cake: Kim's Bridal Shower

I had been very much anticipating Kim's bridal shower as I was going to get to use my fine cake bakery skills again and put them to the test.  I didn't do a practice cake for fear Scott and I would eat the entire thing ourselves in a matter of a few days.  Not like we did that with the first cake but...oh wait, yes we did. 

My plan for this cake was to do a lovely branch scene with a light green fondant cover, brown branches flowing throughout, and delicate white flowers.  I didn't want to make the recipe for chocolate fondant (which would have easily created the brown color needed for the branches) cause it would have created a huge unnecessary amount of it.  I was determined to dye the brown on my own with a mixture of red, yellow, and green with the little fondant needed to do so.  Which, according to the Internets, said should have worked.  Yes, Internets.

Well folks, I'm here to tell you to just stay away from brown.  Just stay away.  Don't think about it.  Push it off of a cliff.  I tried for about 45 min to get this brown color that never happened.  The color looked absolutely horrendous.  I had a picture of it, but then I deleted it cause it looked like a bloody chicken leg as the fondant happened to be in the shape of a chicken leg.  At least I know I can do a chicken leg cake if there is ever such an emergency.  But not with brown, of course.

So, my dreams of flowing branches were shattered and I had to improvise.  I wasted a ton of the fondant trying to create the tree so I wasn't left with a whole lot.  I decided to still use the little flowers that I had already made and dyed the already green fondant with a tad more blue to make circles.

I baked the cakes earlier in the day and let them sit in the fridge for a bit so it would be easier to crumb coat them.  Since it is a "Super Moist" cake, this was probably unnecessary because they were not any easier.  I cut off the rounded tops of each of them and put frosting on the first one.  When I removed the second one, it kind of split in half.  Urg. Next time, I will remove both of them before I start on one as I would have used the broken one for the bottom.

You can sort of "mend" it with frosting, but I was left with a few dents that I tried to cover up with fondant.  I could have done a better job covering up, but what can you do.  Again, you live and you learn.  Ready to see the cake?

See, dents:

The cake itself was a success.  It tasted great and I got a lot of compliments.  My cousin generously commented that it looked like Martha Stewart did it.  I doubt Martha would allow dents in her cake, so I know she was being facetious, but very sweet nonetheless.  Martha also would have been able to pull off the brown color perfectly just by looking at it.

See, better angle with barely any dent noticeablity (not a word, but it works):

What do you think about my second try?  Less lumpy for sure, but definitely not perfect. There are better cakes that you can use to make the fondant lay more flat, such as pound cake, but I am way more about the taste.  It needs to taste perfect, not look perfect for a cake to be a success.  Ultimately, it gets eaten anyway.

Recipe: Skinny Chicken & Broccoli Alfredo

I have been looking for some healthier options for foods, hence getting lots of recipes with either "skinny" in the website title or "skinny" in the actual name of the food.  Skinny automatically means healthy, right?  I could say Skinny Greasy Cheeseburger and it would mean the same I think.  But actually, I do think these are healthier options than what I normally would have picked if my eyes and tastebuds had anything to say about it.

Here is one pasta dish that I thought I would give a shot and I would let plain yogurt redeem himself as part of the cheese topping.  If you remember one of my first posts was a garlic pasta something or other with a yogurt base that was just awful.  I wouldn't call this dish a yogurt base as it only requires 1/4 cup of plain yogurt.  Hardly anything that could overpower the dish.  Scott really wanted to get outside and grill too and this requires grilled chicken so we picked this for our Sunday evening meal.

It was really good!!  Scott really liked it as well.  The parmesan cheese and chicken gave it a nice salty bite up against the broccoli, pasta, and yogurt flavor.  I would definitely make this again.  Little man even had some the next day for his lunch and ate every bite!  Everyone wins!

Recipe can be found here at Celebrations.com

Recipe: Crock Pot 3 Bean Turkey Chili

When you move into a new house, one of the first things you want to do is unpack all of the boxes.  When it comes to the kitchen, you have your idea of where you want your plates and glasses and such, but everything else just kinda gets stuffed somewhere somewhat logical.  After almost three years of living here, I finally gutted everything and reorganized our cupboards.  I only put a couple things into our "garage sale bin", but somehow we had some space leftover to actually put more things if we ever needed to.  The magic of organization! One other thing about this reorganization were the thoughts, "We have THIS?" or "We probably would have used this if it wouldn't have taken an army of men to get to it under the clutter."

This next recipe falls under that second category.  We have a slow cooker that we got for our wedding that has never been opened as it hid WAY back in the cupboards.  I know, I know...slow cooker, duh.  One of the easiest ways to make a meal.  Well, the beast has been opened and used and I LIKED it!  Pretty simple and I got to smell chili all day.  MmmmMmmm Good.

This chili was quite tasty.  Had all the basics of your typical chili but with the healthier option of turkey and black beans.  It probably doesn't sound as good since it has been nice out, but it is March still, so why not?  The initial eating of the dish was good, but the leftovers were a bit....off.  It tasted fine, but something was up.  Something was a brewing and it wasn't the food.  Scott and I both felt sick after we ate the leftovers, so we just tossed the rest.  I would only make this again if I was feeding more people so it didn't go to waste cause it does make quite a bit.  Don't let the leftover talk deter you from making it though!

Try it out, I think you won't be disappointed!  Unless of course, you eat it the next day.

Recipe can be found here at Skinny Taste.

Calming the Baby Beast

Someone shared this video on Facebook this morning that I had to pass on.  I could picture this being Nolan in a year as much as he likes to bounce to music!  Enjoy!

Weight Update

So, it's been awhile since I've updated about our weight situation. I know you have all been sitting on the edge of your seats and you are probably thinking, with all those Reese's cups, has she gained all her weight back?? Have her fat rolls become one with the couch? Well, I am here to tell you that I have officially and FINALLY surpassed the 20 lb. mark!! I have been so close for about a month, like .4 away for a month. I was about ready to throw out our scale cause I didn't think it went below a certain number. So, that is 20 lbs since we started this weight loss journey, 40 lbs lost since the last time I weighed myself while I was pregnant, and I am 6 lbs under my pre-pregnancy weight. I still have 3 lbs to go to get to my goal and I think if I start working out again (I haven't worked out in probably 2 months) I could probably get there and I won't be lying on my license anymore.

I can only attribute this success to Slim Fast. I have had one of these almost every night for supper for the past couple of months. I haven't been able to really cook, so this was the best solution for me. But, who knows, Oreos might be the trick too! I think I will be taking a sugar break for the next week cause I am on overload. Scott was at a point where he had lost 30 lbs but has since gained back about 10 because of tax season. He is still doing very well though!

I will update when I lose my remaining 3 lbs. Wish me luck!

The Accountant's Wife's Lament

Ok, lament might be a bit on the dramatic side, but just go with me here. It is tax season. Don't get me wrong, we feel blessed that Scott has a job that he loves and his job has allowed me to do what I love- stay at home with Nolan. That said, tax season is about as awesome as checking to see if your child has a poopy diaper, having them jerk, and finding your fingers covered in it. It's crap.

Scott gets up around 4:00 AM some days and doesn't get home until 10:00 PM at night. 7 days a week. Weekends don't exist in this house, it just keeps on going. Last week, he would have gone 4 full days in a row of not seeing Nolan awake if it not had been that the first of those four days we ventured down to the Old Market to have lunch with him. He has gone plenty of days since January without seeing him, just not that many in a row. Thankfully we have FaceTime that we do on those days before Nolan goes to bed. Yes, it is extremely exhausting and tolling on Scott especially when all he wants to do is be home with us.

But I did say this was the wife's lament right? This is the first tax season I am home all day and taking care of a baby. Even though I am with another human, I still don't have any adult conversations the entire day. I think my friends/family sometimes regret calling me halfway through the conversation because of how much I talk and don't want to get off the phone. I can and will talk for hours. It's lonely and I feel like a single parent the majority of the time. Props to all single parents- seriously do not know how you do it. If it weren't for Skype, FaceTime, family coming up on weekends, and a few occasional trips to Lincoln I have made, I probably would have drowned in a pool of melted chocolate and peanut butter (Reese's naturally). And Oreos. And Dr. Pepper. I haven't exactly been healthy during this time. That's about all I have been eating for the past week and my heart hurts a little bit. I wish I had self control. Scott hasn't been home, so I can't make dinner for us so I have just been snacking. Or having a Slim Fast at night. Hence, the lack of food posts. I could show you the trash can of empty candy wrappers and pop cans if you like though.

I'm going to need to start working out again as we have a VERY, like ridiculously exciting summer ahead of us. I think besides our wedding year and baby year, this has to be the 3rd most exciting summer of our lives. Weddings, babies, trip with a baby, and a trip with a wedding. There is a light at the end of the tunnel of course, and it will be soon. I can see it if I look very closely.

Project: Crib Rail Protector

Recently, we bought some baby cutlery from a company in Denmark called Toddler.  It was on Woot.com and we couldn't pass it up as it was just too cute not to, and you know it will be a great deal because it came from that website.  Also, they are designed to help your baby learn to feed himself as they are easier to hold than regular utensils. You can tell that the company is European when the instructions on the back of the box give DK, UK, and DE as the different languages to read the directions from.  Thankfully, I can read British (I'm hilarious) and was able to figure just what these fancy dopplegangers are for.  Another reason I knew this was a European product was because of the little note on the back of the box that stated, "Please let your child use this box for its treasures."  How proper and quaint.  Why can't we all speak that way?  I just finished the four seasons of The Tudors, so actually I have been speaking that way and so has Nolan.  Yes, he has developed a British accent.  All I ever wanted and needed out of a child has been successfully completed.

I still have this box because I do feel now that Nolan might want it for his treasures. You never know.  Is there a point to this nonsense?  Yes, ok, so next to this little note was a recycle sign.  We aren't what you would call a recycling family.  Hoarding things, yes, but recycling, no.  Burn us at the stake!  Again, Tudors mindset.  I have been looking for a crib rail protector for Nolan's crib as soon he will be standing about and chewing on it like a rabid beaver and my, I mean his, beautiful crib that was supposed to last him through adulthood (after being converted to a full size bed of course) would have been tainted.

The cheapest one that I liked on Amazon was about $25.  Not horrible, but still $25.  I decided to browse around on Pinterest to see if there was anything I could make.  I am now a master seamstress because I made some pillows and curtains.  There was a tutorial on there about using a fleece blanket and and cutting it to tie to one another.  Again, one of those "why didn't I think of that" moments.  Thankfully, we have a boatload of fleece tie blankets I had made in high school (I believe I mentioned the hoarding).  They counted as extra credit for my Home Ec class and I would make one a class period.  Since we have so many of these blankets we never use, I thought why don't I take one apart and use it for his crib?!  So, I picked the color that best suited his room.  Every single blanket I made had some sort of solid blue fleece attached to it.  Obsess over a color much?  But, perfect for his room, nonetheless.  It took me about 20 min to do the whole front.  So, I guess we are a bit of recyclers in ways that help save us money- new $0 crib rail protector-by recreating something we don't use into something we need.

Let's look at some rail protector action at this time:

Instructions on how to make one of your own can be found at Navigating the Mothership.

The Tudors, by the way, is an amazing AMAZING series to watch if you enjoy that era or history in general.  I'm thinking of watching it over again...

Recipe: Chicken and Broccoli Noodle Casserole

Those of you who know me well, know that I would rather clean twenty toilets before I wash one dish. I'm not sure where this hatred of dish washing comes from, but it's there and it's alive.  This hatred had to be put aside as soon as we had Nolan who used what seemed like 20 bottles a day at the beginning.  I got used to washing these bottles twice a day and now once a day since he doesn't use that many.  So, if we were to make a meal, a few extra dishes weren't that big of a deal at the end of the day.

Yes, the hatred had subsided, until this dish. I started making it and I was like I'm pretty sure I'm using every dish and kitchen tool we own. Our sink was filling up to the point we needed to wash dishes in the middle of making the food.  Stressful.

Was the dish worth it?  Eh. It was a pretty good, pretty average casserole.  It's at least on the healthier side so we had that going for us.  It makes a lot so it would be good for a family dinner or lots of leftovers.  Would I make it again?  Probably not.  Not that it wasn't good, it's that I don't want to deal with all the dishes. I pinned this recipe on Pinterest so I could store it and within half an hour of pinning it, almost 30 people had repinned it, so it definitely looked good to a lot of people! If you guys decide to try it, let me know how you like it and if you found a way to not clear your cupboards!

Recipe can be found here at Skinny Taste.