Ham and Bell Pepper Stromboli

I love Stromboli.  Its easy to make and you can use pretty  much whatever you have in your fridge.  It's great to use up some leftovers.  I'm not even sure where I originally saw Stromboli that gave me the idea to make it.  It wasn't ever a meal my mom or grandmothers cooked but it's definitely one I've made a bunch of different ways and I love when it's on the menu because I know my job of cooking will be easy.


I don't do measurements because I'm really just trying to fill the crust as full as possible.  Here's a list of what I used for the ham and bell pepper Stromboli:


cooked ham (I used leftovers from the ham I baked yesterday)-diced
red, green, and yellow bell peppers- diced (use whatever peppers you have)
1/2 a large onion-diced
shredded cheddar cheese
1 pizza crust
Italian seasoning
garlic salt
pepper
salt

spread your pizza crust out into a rectangle on your baking pan.

Throw some cheese down the center.  Don't skimp on the cheese, you can't have too much I promise

Put the chopped peppers & onions down the center on top of the cheese.

sprinkle some Italian seasoning, garlic salt, pepper, and regular salt on top of all that.

overlap and pinch the long sides of your rectangle of pizza crust to cover your filling.  Don't forget to pinch the ends closed as well.

Use a knife and make 2 slits about an inch long on either side of your pizza crust seam.

Put your Stromboli in the oven at 350 degrees for about 18 minutes, or until your dough is golden brown.


Now kick yourself and mentally say a few choice words when you realize you forgot to put the ham in your filling.  Take a knife and cut open your beautifully pinched together Stromboli dough and add in some diced ham.

Now try your best to piece that dough back together to cover the filling.  I ended up having to tear off some end pieces and do a little patch work.  Place back in the oven and bake for about 18 minutes.

Here it is sliced open, cheese oozing out, YUM!

February 2014 Meal Plan

Being towards the end of my pregnancy I have no real desire to stand in the kitchen and chop, dice, slice, mix, sauté, and cook for an hour and a half.  No instead I noticed the last couple weeks I was picking out the easiest meals left on my January meal plan.  The ones I write down thinking I'll use them on a day we are pressed for time for one reason or another, or a day I don't feel good, etc.  Well these days I'm uncomfortable every day, lacking sleep, exhausted by 10am (I have been waking up at 6am every morning without the help of an alarm), and hurting from this baby I feel is running completely out of room and trying to create more by stretching and kicking constantly.

So no, I don't feel like making anything that takes more than 10 minutes prep time, requires me to stand over the stove for extended periods, or that takes extensive clean up time.  Nope fish sticks, hot dogs, throwing some frozen chicken in a dish and in the oven is more my style.

All that being said, please don't look down on me for my lack of great from scratch meals this month.  I feel like our meals have taken a time warp back to when my husband and I first got married, before I got in to cooking and trying new recipes.  So here it is in all it's glory this month's meal plan of 28 meals:





1. *Chili
2. Tomato soup w/ grilled cheese sandwiches (I don't use the sherry & I substitute  a 28oz can crushed tomato for the diced along with half and half instead of the heavy cream)
3. Breakfast- waffles
4. Breakfast-omelets with hashbrowns
5. Breakfast-eggs, toast & fruit
6. Breakfast-pancakes
7. Leftovers
8. Leftovers
9. Leftovers
10. Leftovers
11. Black bean enchilada soup *freezer
12. Spaghetti w/breadsticks (I love homemade spaghetti sauce but this month it's comin' straight from the jar, thanks Ragu!)
13. Hot dogs w/ mac & cheese & fruit
14. Veggie pot pie (I don't use the white wine and I use a regular pie crust.  For the veggies I throw in whatever I have in my fridge and freezer that sounds good when I make it)
15. Hamburgers w/ green beans
16. Hamburgers w/ mash potato & deviled eggs
17. Grilled cheese w/ potato wedges
18. *Beef & cheese burritos w/rice
19. Lasagna with garlic toast (I broke down and took the easy way out buying a frozen lasagna this month, I haven't bought one in a good 3 years but you can't beat the convenience)
20. Onion soup pork chops w/ rice pilaf & corn (rice pilaf is a new recipe I found and I'm giving it a try)
21. Orange chicken w/ rice
22. Chili dogs with potato wedges
23. Pinto beans and cornbread (I'm seasoning my beans with chunks of ham I have in my freezer from the ham I cooked last month instead of bacon.  I use the recipe on the side of the corn meal bag to make my cornbread)
24. Bbq baked pork chops w/ green beans and corn bread
25. *Meatballs w/ meat gravy mash tato & biscuits
26. *Pulled pork bbq sandwiches
27. Fried bologna sandwiches w/mac & cheese and fruit (I love fried bologna sandwiches, it takes me back to my childhood)
28.  Salisbury Steak w/ green beans and biscuits (I've been wanting to make homemade Salisbury steak for a while now but once again I took the convenience route and bought a frozen one, don't judge me lol)





I included meals that for whatever reason didn't get made last month and none of these are in any special order.  I have a calendar I write all the meals.  I always have 4 days of breakfast for dinner and 4 days of leftovers, usually with a breakfast for dinner on a Monday, leftovers for Fridays, and a soup on Sundays.  Then I just try to space the others out with a good balance and variety.

Chili

From what I can tell everyone has a different recipe for chili and everyone likes theirs completely different.  I use the same recipe my mom has made forever.  I don't know where she got it but it tastes like home to me so it's the only way I will make my chili.


1 1/2lb ground beef
1 large onion
2 cans condensed tomato soup
1 large can tomato juice
1T chili powder (I don't normally measure this I just dump some in but it probably comes out to about 1T, you can add more or less depending on your tastes)
salt and pepper to taste
14.5 oz can diced tomato (I throw this in if I have it in my pantry but it's not a must, it's just as good without them)
1/2t cumin (I've made it without this and it's still good I just like the flavor it adds)


brown the ground beef with the diced onion until cooked through.  Season with salt and pepper and a sprinkling of chili powder (not the 1T listed above). Drain the fat from the meat.  In a large pot pour the tomato soups, tomato juice, and diced tomato if you're using them inside.  Add the cooked ground beef to the pot along with 1T chili powder, cumin, a dash of salt and pepper.  Bring to a boil then reduce the heat and let simmer for about 30 minutes.

Meatballs w/ meat gravy

I make my meatballs like I make meatloaf.  I don't usually measure so all these measurements are approximate and feel free to improvise or adjust according to your taste buds.


1- 1 1/2lb ground beef
about 1/2c bread crumbs (use more if your mixture isn't coming together)
1/4c milk
1/2 a large onion diced (can also use dried minced onion)
1 t salt
pepper
1/4c ketchup


mix together and shape into balls (as large or as small as you want, mine are usually about 1 1/2inches each).  Fry in a pan on medium heat until cooked through.  Remove from pan and transfer to paper towel lined dish.  GRAVY: to make the gravy you will need the leftover fat in the pan from the meatballs you just cooked.  Add 1/4c flour to the fat and whisk.  Add 3t beef bouillon granules and 2c water and whisk together.  cook over low heat stirring constantly until thick.  Once gravy is thick place meatballs back into pan and spoon gravy over the top.

Pulled Pork BBQ sandwiches

4lb pork loin
1 bottle bbq sauce
1 can Dr Pepper, coke, or pepsi (I've made this without using soda and it's still good but the soda adds a lot of extra moisture and sends it over the top)
1T brown sugar
2t dried minced onion
squirt of honey (if you don't have any honey in your pantry just leave this out, it will still be scrumptious)
hamburger buns


place all ingredients in the crockpot and cook on low about 6 hours or until the roast falls apart with a fork.  Spoon onto hamburger buns and enjoy.  This freezes really well so don't waste the leftovers, freeze them for another dinner or even a quick lunch.

Beef & Cheese Burritos

1lb ground beef
1/2 large onion diced
2c shredded cheese
1 package burrito size tortilla shells
1 packet taco seasoning
1/4c water
refried beans (I will be using the leftovers from the pinto beans I'm making this month, If you don't have refried beans or don't like them like I don't, just omit them all together)


brown ground beef over medium heat with diced onion until cooked through.  Drain fat from meat.  Add taco seasoning and water to ground beef, mix.  Remove from heat and assemble your burritos with the ground beef, cheese, and beans.  Use rice as a side dish or add it to your burrito as well.

Honey Oat Cinnamon Muffins

I think I've mentioned it before but my little guy LOVES mini muffins.  he will literally sit and eat 9 of them for a snack if I let him.  He is picky about what they look like, just like his regular food.  I can't put blueberries, nuts, any kind of dried fruit, any chunky fruit for that matter, no streusel or cinnamon/sugar topping, or pretty  much anything he can see and pick out.  If he sees anything in the muffin it's an automatic, "that's yucky mama" and they are left for me to finish off.

So not just any muffin recipe will do and of course it has to have plenty of flavor so I'm always on the lookout for new recipes so he doesn't get bored and I don't get tired of making them every other day or so.

I found this recipe for Honey Oat Cinnamon Muffins while I was searching for something a little healthier.  I figure if he's eating them that quickly I need to start sneaking in some good stuff.  I was a little hesitant about what they would look like having oats in them, because I knew they would look a little different and that could mean Grant wouldn't even try them.  To my surprise he didn't take a second look and was just excited I was making him more muffins.  They turned out really moist and pretty tasty.  I think I will add a shake or 2 of cloves and maybe even 1/2t more cinnamon the next time I make them though, they needed just a little extra umph if you ask me, but that's just my opinion.

I changed a couple things about the recipe.  First I halved it because I don't like to make more than 1 pan of 24 mini muffins (I'm impatient and at times lazy so I want all my muffins to go in once to the oven so I can clean and be done), I actually got 23 mini muffins out of a half batch.  I also added a couple shakes of nutmeg and still used the full 1t vanilla that was in the original recipe.  I bake mine at 350 degrees instead of 375 degrees but this is only because my oven is really weird and once I start trying to put it above 350 it tends to just keep going up and before I know it my oven is at nearly 500 degrees and whatever I'm cooking/baking is burnt to a crisp.  Needless to say after this happening a couple times I quit baking anything above 350 and just adjust the time for the recipes.
For the mini muffins I made I baked them at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes and they were perfect.

Honey Oat Muffins 

(full recipe with my changes added in)

1 3/4c oats

1c flour

2 1/2t baking powder

1/2t baking soda

1/4t salt

1/2 c brown sugar lightly packed

2 eggs at room temp

3/4c buttermilk

1/4c veggie oil

2t vanilla

1t cinnamon

3T honey

4 shakes of nutmeg

In a large bowl whisk eggs and brown sugar until combined.  Add buttermilk, oil, vanilla, and honey.  Whisk until combined and lump free.  Stir in oats.

 In a separate bowl sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.  Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients.  Stir just until combined.

Fill muffin pan (make sure you spray it with non stick spray if you aren't using paper muffin cups), each about 2/3 full of batter.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes (this is for mini muffins, timing will be different if you are making regular size muffins).

Applesauce Bread and Mini Muffins

When my son had is tonsillectomy a couple weeks ago, my husband went out and bought a bunch of "soft" foods.  All of which Grant refused to eat.  I'm talking pudding, luigi's Italian ice, applesauce, jello, popsicles, he wouldn't eat any of it.  Of course Derrick thought he was being good buying the biggest boxes of jello and pudding, the largest jar of applesauce, and the big bag of popsicles.  The only item out of all of it I was afraid was going to go bad was the applesauce.  I knew Derrick wouldn't eat it, of course Grant wouldn't touch it, and I can only eat it as a side dish for so long.  Now the homemade applesauce I made back in the fall I could eat every day... and I did....til it was gone.

I started searching online for how to use it as a substitute for oil and butter in my baking recipes and came across this applesauce bread recipe.  I love quick breads and have quite a few recipes in my recipe arsenal.  Grant will eat the bread sometimes but he investigates it before eating it and once that happens a lot of times he decides it's "yucky" before taking the first bite. 

Now mini muffins he will devour by the bowl full.  I make 24 at a time and they are gone in 2-3 days.  He loves them so I try to find various recipes and sneak healthy ingredients in them when I can.  I thought I could probably take the applesauce bread recipe and make it into mini muffins without an issue, but I didn't want 40 some mini muffins so I went ahead and made a medium sized loaf of the bread and used the leftover batter to make 21 mini muffins.

Applesauce Bread

1/3c butter-softened
1c sugar
1 1/4c applesauce
1 1/2c flour
3/4t baking soda
3/4t cinnamon
1/2t baking powder
1/2t salt
1/2t nutmeg
1/8t cloves
1t vanilla
optional * 1/2c raisins 1/2c chopped walnuts

Cream butter and sugar.  Add the egg, applesauce, and vanilla, mix well.  Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, and cloves in another bowl.  Stir into creamed mixture just until moist.  Fold in nuts and raisins if you're using them.  Pour into greased loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees for 60-65 minutes.
*I used a medium sized loaf pan and it took about 30-40 minutes to bake through.  The mini muffins I made took 11-12  minutes at 350 degrees.

They turned out super moist and Grant started gobbling them up immediately.  I thought there was a little too much spices in the ingredients, not so much so that I won't be eating some of the bread but the next time I make it I think I'll use 1/2t cinnamon, 1/4t nutmeg, and a dash of cloves, instead of the amounts the recipe calls for.  I also added about 1tsp vanilla.  The recipe didn't call for it but there isn't really anything I bake that doesn't have vanilla in the recipe so it just didn't feel right leaving it out.  I also didn't add the raisins or walnuts.  I knew if I added either of them I was risking Grant not even trying them but declaring them "yucky" because there was "stuff in it".

Maybe it's just the pregnancy talking but a warm slice of this bread topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream is calling my name.  YUM!

Chicken and Cheese Quesadillas

Quesadillas are a cinch to make.  There's really nothing to them but it wasn't until I worked in a restaurant when I was 20 that I learned how to make them.  Since then they have been a staple in my house because they don't take much as far as ingredients, they're quick, and simple.

I figured since way back when I didn't have a clue how to make these that maybe someone else out there was in the same boat, therefore I put together a little recipe and picture tutorial.

Maybe I'm channeling Pioneer Woman, except she has a better camera than I do.

First the ingredients.  Pretty simple, cooked and cubed chicken breast (usually one chicken breast, depending on the size, will make 2-4 quesadillas this size), shredded cheese, burrito size tortilla shells, margarine, and salsa for topping (this is optional but highly suggested).


First take one side of your tortilla shell and spread a thin layer of butter or margarine on it.

Now slap that puppy buttered side down on your already heated pan.

Sprinkle some shredded cheese on half the tortilla shell, then add some chicken chunks, and a little more shredded cheese.

Let this cook a minute or so until you see the cheese starting to melt.

When the cheese is just starting to melt, use a spatula and turn the empty end of the quesadilla over on top of the chicken/cheese.  Press down.  Then flip your half moon quesadilla so the cheese will melt and adhere to the other side of the tortilla shell.

Let this cook about a minute, then remove it from the pan and plate it up.
Use a pizza cutter, because you're all about keeping life simple, and cut the quesadilla into 3 triangles.  This just makes it easier to eat.

Get your homemade salsa, because your a cool diy-er like me, and put a big scoop right next to or on top of your quesadilla.

Now make one for your husband because you're feeling nice tonight.

Have a fleeting moment of panic when you cut up your son's chicken breast and think it's not completely cooked through.  Throw it in the hot  pan just to be on the safe side.

When your panic moment ends and your sons chicken is for sure cooked through, sit down, eat your homemade quesadilla and enjoy, the dishes can wait.

DIY Handmade Receiving Blankets

When I found out I was pregnant I immediately had a mental list of things I wanted to make.  Most of those items were things I found store bought versions to be useless when Grant was a baby.  Grant was a big baby, over 9lbs, and I found infant towels and receiving blankets to be too small to wrap my little guy up.  I remember using 2 and 3 towels to completely wrap my squirmy little one up after a bath, and I couldn't swaddle him in most receiving blankets because they didn't fit properly either.

I vowed I would not buy either of these items from the stores because it would probably be a waste of our money.  So when Black Friday rolled around this past year I bought 4 yards of gender neutral flannel that was on sale for $1.74/yd. 

I made these two blankets like I made cloth napkins from this site.  If I had a serger it would have taken a whole lot less time.  Unfortunately I don't own one yet so my way takes a little bit longer but for anyone else who doesn't have a serger this way of hemming the blankets makes it so they don't fray.


I didn't take the time to even up all my edges and square them off, mainly because I'm lazy.  I didn't want these blankets to take any more time than necessary since it took me so long to get the fabric out and get started anyways.  I'm not looking for perfection in a blanket like this but if I were giving it as a baby shower gift I would square it all off making it even .  The only thing I noticed about not squaring the edges was the corners don't square perfectly like you see below:

 and when you fold them up all the edges don't match up perfectly. 

Again this doesn't bother me but if it does you, you may want to take the few extra minutes to even your edges out.

Getting this project underway makes me want to start on my other baby projects and I can't wait to wrap my new little one up in one of these.

Stay At Home Mama..."Why are you tired?"

I have to take a moment to vent a little. 

As I'm nearing the end of my pregnancy I'm starting to take it a little easier.  Occasionally I take a nap with my 3 year old (if you know me this is extremely rare and pre-pregnancy, unheard of), I let the dishes pile up at night and vow to do them in the morning instead of before bed, I rest more during the day and try not to feel guilty about it.  As my due date gets closer I have had the slap in the face realization that I won't be getting any rest or sleep for awhile after this baby's born.  It's easy to tell a first time mom to sleep when her baby sleeps, but when you have a 3 year old and an infant, I'm guessing the chances of both of them sleeping at the same time and me being able to lay down with them is slim to none. 
And that's if this baby actually sleeps like a normal baby.  My little Grant did not.  He was too afraid of missing something I guess, cuz he fought sleep like nobody's business and has sleep issues to this day.  Some things never change.  People tell me every baby's different and while I believe that, I also know some of them don't sleep and I'm not gonna count on this one sleeping a lot.

My issue is people, who shall remain nameless, having the idea that being a stay at home mom is sitting on the couch all day watching tv with your little one.  Being very pregnant, dealing with an energetic and very opinionated 3 year old, watching another 2 year old 2 days a week, keeping up with regular house stuff, and stating that you're tired only to hear the words "why are you tired?" (you know, said in that.. you don't work and haven't left the house all day what do you have to be tired from, way), coming back to you is like a slap in the face.
You might as well look me straight in the face and tell me I do nothing but sit on my rear all day eating and watching tv, and that is so not my day.  Am I running around like a chicken with my head cut off all day every day, no.  Does that mean I'm not busy, no.

Some days are more trying than others, some days I have my "it would be nice to go to work and get out of this house" moments.  Those days are usually filled with a toddler back-talking and throwing tantrums the better part of a solid day, a 30 minute nap from said toddler who wakes up crying for unknown reasons and continues to throw this fit for another 30 solid minutes.  It's cleaning up a pee soaked bed in the morning and a puddle of pee surrounding the toilet in the afternoon because he waited til the last minute to decide he really needed to go to the bathroom and didn't make it.  It's cleaning food chunks out of the carpet 3 times a day because some idiot put carpet in the dining area of our apartment.  Then add in a couple loads of laundry, 3 cooked meals, 2 or more snacks, multiple sippy cups of juice, vacuuming the carpets, unloading and reloading the dishwasher, and cleaning the kitchen. 
But no, I have no reason to be tired in some people's eyes because I don't get up for "work" every day, leave the house, punch in on a time clock, and get a check for my work at the end of the week.  I do all my work for free. 
My little guy had his tonsils/adenoids taken out and every night for a week and a half he woke up multiple times a night crying.  He always said he wasn't hurting yet wouldn't take a drink of his water and wouldn't stop crying for a good 5 minutes or so, long enough for it to take me 45 minutes to fall back asleep after he's calmed down.  Then during the day he was in a sour attitude throwing tantrums constantly because of his lack of sleep.  After more than a week of this I had hit my sleep deprived limit and got a little agitated throughout the day.  When someone asked why I was agitated my response was, "because I haven't been getting any sleep at night, I'm dealing with a tired toddler during the day, and I'm tired".  The response I got was, "well, you wanted this, you wanted to be at home so you shouldn't be aggravated".
Yes I want to be a stay at home mom.  I don't want Grant basically raised by someone other than me, or someone else to see him more hours a day than I do.  Does that mean I want to get no sleep? no.

Does that mean after a night of no more than 3 consecutive hours of sleep I wake up refreshed and ready to go and in a great mood? Probably not.

Does not getting hardly any sleep for a week straight and being tired and agitated mean I don't want to be a stay at home mom? absolutely not.  It simply means, I'd like to get some sleep.

Let's face it, stay at home mom or not, if you have a sick child you get no sleep.  Either way you are either getting up to leave the house for work the next morning or you are getting up to work at home the next morning.  Meals still have to be cooked, dishes still have to be done, laundry still needs washed, and your little one still needs taken care of throughout the day.  It's work either way just in different places, and you're still tired.  You're not less tired because you didn't go outside the house to work.

I take care of most things in our house because I know I'm the one at home and that's what I signed up for.  I don't expect anyone else to clean the toilet/tub, do the laundry or dishes, balance the checkbook, work out the budget, pay the bills, mop the floors, vacuum the carpets, pick up the living room before bed, change the sheets/pillowcases, keep track of doctor's appointments/medications, bath time, meal plan, grocery shop, or cook the meals.  That's all me, and I'm okay with that. 

What I'm not ok with is anyone out there thinking none of that counts for anything and that none of it is tiring.  I've been a working woman before my son was born, I know that exhaustion.  I've also been a working mom, and know that exhaustion as well, and there are days I'm more tired from a solid day spent at home with my 3 year old than if I went out and worked an 8 hour shift somewhere else.

We stay at home mom's work just as hard as a mom who works outside the house, just in different ways.  I wouldn't trade staying home with my son for anything, even on the worst day.  I'll never get these years back and I've never wanted to miss anything.  It won't be long before Grant and this next little one is in school and then I'll be a working mama.  Until then I'm a work at home mama, and yes I do work:)