Tag Archives: bean

Family, Food, Fun

Whipped Cream, Nuts & A Cherry

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Last weekend we were supposed to bring the Cuisinart out of hibernation and make ice cream for Father’s Day.

Didn’t quite happen…sorry, Babe!

Tonight we made Pioneer Woman’s Vanilla Bean Ice Cream and boy, was it worth the wait!

Banana Splitinis it was…

Sliced bananas, freshly churned soft vanilla bean ice cream, a drizzle of Hershey’s syrup, a swirl of whipped cream, some rainbow sprinkles, coconut {for me}, peanuts {for Jay} and the proverbial maraschino cherry on top.

These would also be fun served in small mason jars!

*****

The slip n slide also came out this afternoon after a brief hiatus…

Last week was filled with necessary errands in the beginning of the week and a couple pool play dates at the end.

Tomorrow this guy starts summer camp thanks to his grandparents and sweet friends…for his birthday in February, we decided in lieu of {more} toys a nice gift would be a 3-day a week summer camp at his preschool. Three of his best buds chipped in and gave him a week as well! It’s a win/win situation ~ a fun 3 hours for him and 3 hours for me! We’re so grateful….thanks again.

This girl is going to gymnastics camp mañana. Same thing…for her b-day, the grandparents generously gave her the same 3 days a week to tumble and jump this summer. Again, it gives me a little time to myself and his preschool and the gym are right near each other so it’s perfect.

It’s a GREAT way to break up the summer.

I’ll say it again ~ thank you Lolo & Lola, Gramma, Popsi, Emma, Landon & Dylan.

This gift is truly the cherry on top of this mama’s banana split!

Have a great week everyone!

Food

Chickpeas? Yes, Please!

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I figured out why I’m in a recipe rut.

I’m trying to be healthy and nothing healthy looks good!

Until I get my Cooking Light, I remembered I got a Taste of Home featuring healthy recipe options…so I checked it out and found some garbanzo bean burgers!

Now you may not get excited about this, but I LOVE me some garbanzos ~ have been known to eat a whole can plain {rinsed first, of course!} Also found a new recipe for hummus which I’ll be trying soon, too.

1 can [15 oz.] garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained

3 Tbsp. water

1 tsp. lemon juice

1 cup dry bread crumbs

1 egg

1 tsp. Italian seasoning

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. onion powder

Dash crushed red pepper flakes

2 tsp. canola oil

6 whole wheat hamburger buns, split and toasted

1. Place the beans, water and lemon juice in a food processor; cover and process until blended. Transfer to a large bowl. Add the bread crumbs, egg and seasonings and mix well. Shape into six patties.

2. In a large skillet, cook patties in oil in batches for 3-4 minutes on each side or until lightly browned. Serve on buns with cheese. Top with pickle slices, mayonnaise {or lemon garlic aioli} and ketchup, if desired.

{I used my grill pan with just a little evoo}

I served them with a slice of lowfat cheddar on a multi-grain sandwich thin and a small chopped salad.

{Jay got some mac n queso on the side to make up for the absence of meat in the meal! ;-)}

They were delish and suuuuper flavorful ~ very falafel[esque]. I will definitely be making them again.

So tell me, are there anymore closet chickpea lovers out there?

Family, Fitness, Food, Friends, Fun

Weekend Rewind

Saturday was full of impromptu events…

The Albertson’s down the hill was having an Easter egg hunt ~ the “golden egg” being a pass to Disneyland along with some other goodies for the little ones hidden inside certain eggs. Mr. Easter Bunny made a brief appearance which I was thrilled with because that saved me a trip to the mall and $25 for a photo!

The “hunt” took place in the produce section and it was hardly a hunt at all….just piles of candy filled plastic eggs under the apples, lettuce and potatoes! Super duper obvious and lasting a grand total of 3.5 minutes! My little chickens only walked away with mini Twix bars, Reese’s and mini Hershey’s bars…thank goodness the candy was good because I would’ve been real disappointed. But they had a great time and Albertson’s was nice enough to serve FREE hotdogs and sodas so this Mama didn’t even have to fix lunch ~ gotta love that. Here are some photos from the eggstravaganza…

Elliott gathering eggs:

The find:

Holden post hunt searching for the rabbit:

Emilie & Elliott with Mr. Easter Bunny:

Holdy with his new BFF:

Enjoying lunch:

Then, we organized a last minute redneck block party where a few neighbors parked their lawn chairs in the guest parking across the street, prepared some appetizers and enjoyed wine and chit chat while the kids ran amok, chalked the you know what out of the street and rode various modes of transportation including scooters, tricycles, bikes and the ever popular Disney Princess ride.

Here is the spread (yes, complete with boxed wine!):

I made a dip that I found on the back of the Mission Tortilla Strip bag…Black Bean & Roasted Red Pepper Dip:

It calls for cilantro so I was immediately sold:

This is my new fave $3.99 TJ’s wine find (and it’s organic!):

Holden decided to don a plastic bowl helmet:

Checking out the stars:

This morning we were up bright and early to head to a Scooter’s Jungle (bounce house place) birthday party for a little friend in E’s dance class, ran some errands to finish up shopping for Easter outfits, pick up some hand weights for my boot camp which starts tomorrow and then enjoyed an al fresco dinner of homemade crispy chicken tenders and mac n cheese (NOT homemade!).

I discovered this recipe in Parents magazine years ago and it is so easy and delish. I feel like I feed my kids dino chickens from Costco on a daily basis, so it’s nice to make them from scratch once in awhile. The recipe calls for corn flakes, but I used my leftover rice crispies from the treats earlier this week and those worked just fine.

Here is what you need:

12 oz. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (I use frozen chicken tenderloins)

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 Tbsp. honey

1 tsp. prepared yellow mustard

1 cup packaged cornflake crumbs or 2 cups cornflakes, finely crused (or crushed rice crispies!)

1/4 tsp. salt

Dash ground black pepper

Dipping sauces: BBQ, Ranch or ketchup

1. Heat oven to 450F. Cut chicken into 3/4-inch strips. In a shallow dish, combine the egg, honey and mustard. In another shallow dish stir together cornflake crumbs, salt and pepper. Dip chicken strips into the egg mixture and then roll them in crumb mixture to coat evenly.

2. Arrange the strips on a baking sheet. Lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray. Bake 12-15 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition per serving: 179 calories, 22g protein, 2g fat, 16g carb, 18mg calcium, 0 fiber

I sliced mine and put them into a salad…still desperately trying to recreate the CPK bbq chicken salad!

Finally, I will leave you with this cute image:

Future blogger?

Here’s to another busy week ahead…2 boot camps, mammogram, bro-in-law coming on Wednesday and then the in-laws coming on Good Friday to celebrate Easter with us. Egg coloring and frosted Easter sugar cookies to be made in between. Oh, and sloppy joes (not from a can!) on the menu for tomorrow.

Hope you have all sorts of good stuff on the agenda this week, too!

Food

Soupy Tuesday

This is the easiest soup on the planet. Another recipe by way of my sister!

Black Bean & Salsa Soup

4 ingredients + 2 toppings = Quick & easy meal

I use chicken broth in place of the veggie broth. Instead of the green onions, I substitute just a bit of shredded cheese and/or a lowfat sour cream.

Sometimes I serve with pepper jack grilled cheese sandwiches or quesadilla triangles.

Enjoy!

soup