So after a long weekend down the New Jersey shore doing Social Good. Letting everyone to head back to the Jersey Shore Because they are open, It is back to reality no room service of Lobster salad from Caesars AC or top chefs cooking for me. So what is on the menu this week?
Monday Fish with rice
Tuesday Sloppy Joes and tater tots
Wednesday: Baseball food
Thursday: Baked Chicken it is going to rain great day to heat up house
So when I was living in Florida I met Wendy Henderickson. She was such a fun person she was from Tenn, we met though our love of Dogs . She trained he pit bull to be a therapy dog, I had my doberman that was a therapy dog. So because were Northern ex pats and had no family south, we would spend alot of holidays together. Wendy would always make her husbands favorite pea salad, it was his moms recipe. I loved it every time she did. Now that I retreated back up north. The Hendrickerson Pea Salad is a staple in my summer party recipe repertoire.
Hendrickson Pea Salad
·1 package of frozen sweet peas
·2 cup package of shredded cheddar cheese
·1 Bottle or package of “Real Bacon” (bits)do not use imitation
·1 few leaves of romaine lettuce
·1 cup of mayo
Put the peas in a colander and rinse with cold water to take the chill of them and so they don’t stick together
This is a layer dish
Start with romaine lettuce tear into squares , and lay on bottom of bowl2-3 quart
Next the peas a layer of them
Coat with a layer of the mayo
Sprinkle some cheese
Then sprinkle bacon
Repeat again starting with the lettuce, peas, mayo, cheese, bacon (repeat once more)
Finish with garnish of cheese and bacon
Let sit over night or a good couple of hours to chill up again.
Mix an hour before serving ( I actually prefer it made ahead and it is better the second day- Left overs)
It does not look the preeties but super yummy
***** Please make sue you do not leave this salad sitting in the sun since it has mayo!
My plans this week Include I am leaving for the JerseyLove Trip on Thursday 40 blogger are heading to NJ to help spread the word that New Jersey is back after Hurricane sandy! #Jersey Love
Join us Tonight .. Monday June 3rd 9-10Pm EST / 6-7 PST we are having a twitter party where you can win great prizes and help to promote a great cause!
WIN IT! D6 Surfskimmer And Beach Bags! Tweet To Win! Follow #jerseylove #hangten and #surfskimmer hastags! You MUST fill out the Rafflecopter below to be entered! a Rafflecopter giveaway
Yummy tuna. This is my alternative to Tuna Salad blahs. Tuna Avocado and Tomato salad.. The only thing I would add is bacon to make it bad for you but this is the healthy version.
Tuna Avocado and Tomato salad
·1 can of tuna
·1 avocado peeled cut in chunks
·1 small shallot
·Cherry Tomatoes Hand full Sliced in to smallerpieces
Monday: Quick Chicken Burritos and Rice (baseball)
Tuesday: Kielbasi, Potatoes and cabbage (making Fresh Mozzarella for a girls night)
Wednesday: Moms Not cooking (My day)
Thursday: Lasagna (I made it this past weekend)
Friday Taco Night
Saturday Eggs and bacon
My Daughter making a dump cake this week. My daughter made one this weekend. I film filmed it on socail cam with a filter so it is a little weird to look at, don’t film full screen . So she is going to do another one for my birthday. So I had to share. She did one take.
Ingredients
1 can of cherry pie filling
1 can of crushed pineapple
1 box of yellow cake mix
1 stick of butter sliced in 1/8 pieces
ring pine apples
1 jar of Maraschino cherries
Dump and Cook 350 for 1 hour
Have a great Week anything special you are making.
I was asked by McCormick to create a recipe with 5 ingredients for Taco night. I was compensated to create this recipe, the spices we provided by McCormicks, and the opinions in this post are all mine. So it was a challenge to reinvent what Taco night and to make it with limited ingredients was even harder. I wanted to make an easy recipe that could be prepped ahead, quickly assembled, and heated up on taco night.
I love taco night but sometimes the prep is a ton of work. What I like to do is make dbl batches of Taco meat then freeze 1/2 for later use. Long as you freeze the meat once it is cool, in freeze bag, flat on a tray, and make sure it is loose(crumbly) then it is easy to reheat. So avoid the solid block of meat when freeze cooked taco meat. The McCormick taco season freeze great when make larger batches of meat be sure to use more then one package of McCormick seasoning.
Taco Lasagna :
5 Soft Flour Large Tortillas (to fit your saute pan so 10″)
4 cups of cheddar cheese
McCormick Taco Beef : made with 1 lb of beef and McCormick Taco Season Packet
(1lb of beef if you missed it above–ok so I had 6 ingredients)
1- 14 oz can of black beans
1- 16oz jar Salsa (you can also make your own)
Brown your meat and Drain grease (place a colander in a large bowl and pour meat in to drain grease completely- I place a paper towel under it)
Add taco mix and 3/4 water to make Taco Mix
Open can the of black beans drain off liquid
In a blender or small food processor put beans, 2 tbl of salsa, and 2-3 tbl spoons of McCormicks season taco meat broth(yep right from the pan
Blend to a smooth paste (add McCormick Sicilian Sea Salt and McCormicks Anco Chilli Powered for more of a kick)
Preheat oven to 375
Once meat is thicken up slightly remove from heat.
Taco Lasagna Assembly:
Use clean large saute pan (oven ready) spray with non stick spay
Lay 1st in saute pan Tortilla Cover with McCormick meat and cheese
Next tortilla , cover with salsa and cheese
Next tortilla cover with black beans paste and cheese
Next tortilla cover more McCormick meat and cheese
Next tortilla cover with salsa and cheese
Place in oven for 20-30 min, till top is golden and bubbly
Allow to cool slightly before cutting
McCormick Pin Giveaway Contest:
Now here is the fun:
Want to win one of 30 McCormick Spice sets? Like the one I got, Here is how
Pin any taco recipe with the hashtag #McCormicksTacoNight and me @babypop, you just have to pin once to win:
Please note Superexhausted/babypop do not pick the winners of the contest, The Contest ends May 31, 2013. Prizes will be sent direct from McCormick. Babypop/superexhausted is not responsible for the prizes. This was a sponsored post.
Next week is Cinco De Mayo. Such a fun way to share the Mexican culture with your family. As you know every Friday is Taco night for my family. We make hard and soft taco once a week, I usually make rice, re fried beans w/ cheese, guacamole, and taco meat. So when I was asked to do this sponsored post about Coke Rewards Cinco De May, I was like sure, great ideas for the whole family to enjoy the fun Mexican Holiday.
So I was planning to show beautiful pictures of the awesome Mango Tomatillo Guacamole the recipe was created by celeb chef from Ingrid Hoffman’s new cookbook called “Latin D’Lite ” Yea the best laid plans of mice and men. I purchased the ingredients Avocado, Mango, and Tomatilla. Note to self, bring recipe with you when you go to the store. All day I thought about this amazing guac. My avocado are ripe, the mango ready to be cut.
So I went in the kitchen ready to create Ingrids yummy Guacamole, my mango .. was gone. I blame my husbands morning mad scientist kale smoothies. My Tomatilla – yea I should have asked, I bought organic brown tomatoes, tasty but not a Tomatillo. Then the finally straw in my broken Guacamole , I cut in to my avocados — yea they went to the dark side.. you know brown and sick yellow. Sadden but not defeated.
So I quickly ran to the store with my Daughter in tow, to replace the missing ingredients. I had a craving for this Guac like a pregnant women in search of ice cream at midnight. Refusing to give up on my dreams of Ingrid Hoffmans green creamy goodness.
I went to “that store” where they give samples, you know the one, with the super nice people who wear Hawaiian shirts. My daughter dragging me toward the sample counter or as I call it “Guilt Purchase area.”
“Mom can I try” the lady was providing samples of Fennel.
I said a skeptical “Try it” to my daughter. Annoyed about the diversion and watching my phone because I was on Guac Time.
So 3 minutes, later with the unplanned fennel in hand. I move towards produce section of the store, I squeezing the firm mangoes, looking for the ripe one. I found the sweet tropical fruit at the bottom of the stack, not the reddest one but good enough.
Then I looked at the avocados. The Mexican one’s in the green mesh bag were too hard (I purchased them, for next week.) I moved to the single Avocados, you know the ones that charge you $2.50 for a small little thing. I pursued darkest one, that had some give. I found him and his other avocado brother that came on the same truck from Mexico. Excited in the hope that I might have fresh mango Guacamole. The Tomatillo well, (insert sad face) was no where to be found, darn suburban market, I should have went to the Asia market, they have everything (insert smacking of head for bad choice). My brown tomatoes might have to do. After all my items were placed in my reusable bag from a different store, a bell rang (what is with the bell ringing,) I hurried home excited to make Ingrid’s Guacamole.
Ok So arrive home the goal almost in sight … Ingrid Hoffman’s recipe so close I can taste it. I take out the cutting board to slice my green pebbley avocado friend. Yea.. well let say he and his brother is in a brown bag on my counter wait for his premier this weekend. My daughter asking me to cut in to the mango, argh. My dreams of cream goodness with have to wait for another day.
This is what Mango Tomatillo Guacamole look see.. the reason I went through so much trouble.
mango-tomatillo guacamole
Created by Ingrid Hoffman’s in Latin D’Lite cookbook
Makes 2 cups
2 ripe Hass avocados, halved, seeded, and peeled
2 tomatillos, husked and finely chopped
1 ripe mango, peeled, seeded, and cubed
½ small red onion, finely chopped
1 serrano chile, finely chopped (remove seeds before chopping for less heat)
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh mint leaves, chopped
1½ tablespoons fresh lemon juice
kosher salt
baked tortilla or pita chips, for serving
1.Mash the avocados in a medium bowl with a fork, leaving them still a bit chunky. Fold in the tomatillos, mango, onion, chile, cilantro, and mint. Add the lemon juice, and gently mix to evenly distribute the ingredients. Season with salt.
2.Lay a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the guacamole to discourage discoloring, and refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour. Serve with the chips for dipping.
Buy avocados 3 days before (if not ripe place in brown paperbag 1 day before)
Get fun Plates and glasses to make it a Festive Mood- I visited the dollar store for mine My lead picture are the great plates I planed to show you food on.
Look for fun fabric and placemats- I found this fun Mexican inspired fabric in my Fabric stash
What to get the kids involved. My Coke rewards has some great ideas. I love this great recycled Coke box Taco holder. You can find it at coke rewards
Hang some fun Mexican inspired signs, Coke Rewards has some great ones.
Have fun cooking Cinco De Mayo is a day to celebrate.
Mango Berry Spring rolls Great Low calorie dessert great for diabetic and reduced calorie. I love the season of Spring because strawberries become a local season fruit. There is noting like a strawberry raw, cooked or any way to get me in a spring mood. Then you add possible my favorite fruit Mangoes.. let just say mangoes are great on almost anything from fish, salsa , chocolate .. the list goes on on. Then I discovered at the grocery store a cactus fruit, hum never tried them. They are a fruit with lets say a spikey attitude.
Cactus Fruit Or Prickly Pear have the consistence of a watermelon seeds and all. The flavor is mild, but there are seed you eat. The skin on the other hand .. it is a cactus .. so the spikes do get in your fingers, and they are fine so you can see, but feel them ouch!. They look pretty when cut the pear open. You handle them covering your fingers with a paper towel and you and peel them like you would a Kiwi. (you can also omit the Cactus Pear if you don’t want to deal with them)
So Last week with the nice weather meal planning was not followed. The reason I love meal planning is because it allows for flexibility. So I was able to shift things and come up with different options. Which meant I had new options this week.
Quick Meal Planing
Monday- Baseball night Grill cheese- Kids standard white bread. The Hubby and I Apples/brie/turkey/honey on rustic bread
Tuesday My Split peas soup that I wrote for 5mins for mom (bought ham cubes) left over rustic bread
Friday : Swim Banquet So I am making a Salad I think I might try Daphne Oz’s King of Greens Salad (from The Chew) Since it is for many people I don’t have to expect the kids to eat and I will not have to throw out a bunch of kale after being dressed.
Saturday I will be at Type A Advanced here is my own home town of Philly- I love Blogging conferences.
Onion soup bites or onions soup pockets pillows, the first time I had them was at the Continental restaurant in Philly. Onion Soup bites one best appetizers that has all the lovely flavors of a bowl of onion soup. I seriously have dream about there yummy bites. Think onion soup with all its salty savoir covered in bubble slightly brown cheese on top. Now imagine it in one bite…drooling yet. The Continental serves these yummy onion soup bites in an escargot pan, with bubbly cheese on the pan.
I had a hard time finding a escargot pan, so I used a cake pop pan. Wow who knew I would find another use for my cake pop pan.
Onion Soup Bites
Makes 36 bites
3 onions
2 teaspoons of butter
1 teaspoons of minced garlic
2 tablespoon spoons of soy sauce
2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce
Salt, pepper, parsley, rosemary
½ red wine
1 cup of beef broth
1 package Spring roll wonton wrappers
8oz Gruyere cheese
Dice 3 onions
Add Onions, Sprinkle with Salt, pepper, parsley, rosemary, 1 teaspoon of minced garlic, with 2 teaspoons of butter in sauce pan
Sauté onions sauce pan till translucent
Sprinkle with Salt, pepper, parsley, rosemary
Add garlic, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and red wine to onions
Cover onions cook low for 30 minutes
Remove onions from heat and allow to cool slightly
Take a wonton wrappers and divide a sheet into 4 squares
I received Jennifer Perillos book Homemade with Love free for this review, the opinions stated are my own. I just finish reading Homemade with Love.. What can I say I love this cookbook. It is like having a best friend in the kitchen. So easy to use and written with love. It is watering read.
So far I have tried her soup “kale with white bean and ravioli” verdict Yummy. I love the conversation that Jennifer has with the reader. This week I am try the apricot butter and make my own ricotta. The book is inspiring, it point out the benefits for health and pocketbook on making it yourself.
When I received the book I read it cover to cover while waiting for a 2 hour swim team practice. The quality of the book is top notch. I can’t wait to try more recipes. She labels the recipes if they are vegetarian, vegan, gluten free, she also has recipes for those of us who are meat eaters.
Healthy and all homemade.. great book for a beginner cook or more advanced on how to make your kitchen more natural and food more homemade.
Meal Planing this week: we have a busy week baseball and swim team .
Easy Fish Recipe One of my family’s favorite meals lately, this is my easy Fish recipe in one pot. The white fish is steamed cooked on top of a Pearl Couscous, mushrooms, onions and veggies. They fish is tender, healthy, and tastes amazing. I use my Ninja MC701 Multi Cooker 3 in 1 Cooking System
I used Basa fish which is a Asia version of cod. My brother works for food distributor and is teaching me how the classification of fish is not as you would think. White Fish= a fisheries term referring to the flesh of many types of fish Any white colored fish can be called White Fish, so ask what is the white fish. (from cod, white fish, monk fish, basa, catfish, pollack, sea bass, and more)
The other trick making it amazing is the Israel Pearl Couscous it is bigger then normal sandish couscous, (my husband hates the sandlike couscous). The pearls absorb the flavor and is like a toasted pasta. I used this one, I found it at Target in the ethnic food isle.
I found the Basa at the local Asian Markets Fish counter. It was reasonable priced at $4.99 lb, the fish was thick and mild. I highly recommend going to an Asia market for fish. I have found it to be fresh, better priced then typical grocery stores. I try to go to an Asia Market every 2 weeks. My kids like to go, see the fish, and it exposes them to new food.
Easy Recipe for Perfect Fish
1 1/2 lb of white fish
1 teaspoon of butter or oil
1 teaspoon of garlic
10 mushrooms sliced
1 small onion diced
Israel Pearl style couscous (I found mine at Target in the ethnic food isle)
1 can 14oz of chicken broth
1 bunch of broccoli or asparagus
salt & pepper for fish
Tools a Ninja cooking system or a pot with steamer basket (I prefer my ninja for simple clean up and cooking method) It is a layered method.
Saute with butter, onions, garlic, and mushrooms in bottom till onions are translucent
Add couscous with 1 can of broth
Then layer the vegetable (broccoli or asparagus)
Season fish and place in mesh steamer basket and place on top of veg/couscous
Cover and cook for 15-20 mins till the fish is done-white
Monday: Spring rolls, bean thread noodles, and my Asia meatballs
Tues: Kale Bean Ravioli Soup from Jennifer Perillos book Homemade with Love and homemade bread from Make and Take
Wed: Curry Chicken over Rice (another trip the Asia market .. the lady talked me into a box.. we loved it)
Thursday: My Easy Fish Recipe over couscous with Asparagus
Friday :Taco night with refried beans and left over Rice
New things I am trying to do this week. Cooking with raw beets (roasting them) My husband did it Sunday night, yummy. He is using them in our smoothies, and we ate them straight. (Beet Red smoothies)
I am reviewing Jennifer Perillo Homemade with Love cookbook which I already read cover to cover the 1st day I got it at swim team 2hr Practice. Watch out for the full review next week, But it is excellent like have a friend in the kitchen. I might try to make my own Ricotta cheese, per Jennifer’s book. (next week I might make yogurt)