30 meals in 30 days {DAY 13}

Stuffed Bell PeppersThis is such a yummy and easy recipe!

ingredients:

1C uncooked brown rice

6 bell peppers {I like to use yellow, red & orange}

1 lb italian sausage {I actually used chicken sausage with hatch chiles...be creative!}

1 can Ro*Tel {basically diced tomatoes & green chiles}

2C shredded cheese {I use more cheese to top the peppers with}

Preheat oven to 400.

Prepare rice according to package directions {mine said: combine 2C water & 1C rice, bring to boil, cover and simmer 45-50minutes}

Remove tops and seeds from bell peppers.

Blanch peppers in boiling water for 5 minutes; remove from water & drain.

Remove casing from sausage.

Brown sauage in a skillet until no longer pink; drain fat.

Fold in Ro*Tell & Rice; heat through.

Remove from heat and stir in cheese.

Divide mixture into peppers & place in an 8x8 baking dish.

Top peppers with shredded cheese.

Bake for 15 minutes.

30 meals in 30 days {DAY 10}

polenta pizza so here is what I did with our leftover polenta!

Topped it with marinara sauce, mozzarella cheese, yellow tomatoes & turkey pepperoni.

Baked in the oven at 400 for 10 minutes

YUM!

30 meals in 30 days {DAY 9}

polenta with toppings

{topped with marinara, grape tomatoes & grated parmesan}

this idea actually came from my sister's wedding last year

she & her husband wanted to have something different and unique for the food at their reception...the took the idea of the mashed potato bar, and changed it up to be a polenta bar

they had hundreds of different toppings for everyone to choose from...

creative, unique & yummy!

Polenta is super easy to make!

This is another recipe that comes from

Giada DeLaurentis'

everyday italian

Basic Polenta

ingredients:

6C water

2tsp salt

1 3/4C yellow cornmeal

3 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into pieces {I actually use olive oil instead}

Bring water to boil in a large, heavy saucepan

Add the salt, then gradually whisk in cornmeal.

Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring often, until mixture thickens and the cornmeal is tender; about 15 minutes.

Remove from heat and stir in butter {or olive oil}.

Makes 6 side-dish servings.

*I served up what we were eating tonight, then spread the rest into a 9x13 glass dish and put in the refrigerator for tomorrow nights meal

30 meals in 30 days {DAY 8}

orange roughy & green beans almondine this was a simple & yummy meal!

Get the orange roughy recipe here.

Get the green bean recipe here.

30 meals in 30 days {DAY 7}

Turkey Meatloaf cupcakes

with mashed potatoes & roasted carrots I used another one of my favorite cookbooks

Ina Garten's

the barefoot contessa cookbook

Since Avery asked for cupcakes for breakfast the other morning, I thought maybe she would eat dinner if it looked like a cupcake...

so I halved the meatloaf recipe and scooped it into a muffin pan.

Then I topped the "cupcakes" with parmesan mashed potato frosting.

Avery was excited that we were having cupcakes for dinner...

...but not so happy once she took a bite!

30 meals in 30 days {DAY 6}

cheese tortellini in light broth this recipe came from one of my favorite cookbooks...

everday italian

by Giada DeLaurentiis

{or you can get the recipe here

courtesy of The Food Network}

But if you are looking for a great Italian cookbook with simple, yummy meals check out everyday italian. Every recipe I have tried out of it has been delish!

30 meals in 30 days {DAY 5}

Chicken & Rice Casserole This was really just repurposed leftovers from last night.

I used the leftover rice & chicken,

added cheese, cream of chicken soup, frozen veggies & a crunchy cracker topping...

voila! a whole new meal!

30 meals in 30 days {DAY 4}

chicken, creamy rice & maple-glazed carrots not my most creative meal,

but....

Avery ate it all!!!

The maple-glazed carrots were yummy & easy.

If you want to try them, you can get the recipe here.

30 meals in 30 days {DAY 3}

Stuffed Zucchini 1 large zucchini (from the farmers market),

turkey italian sausage,

wild rice,

diced tomatoes,

cheddar cheese, &

spices.

Mmmmmmmm!

30 meals in 30 days {DAY 2}

Grilled Shrimp Tacos grilled shrimp,

whole wheat tortillas from Central Market,

sauteed yellow squash & onions {from the farmers market},

hatch chile montery jack

and

a whole lotta yum!

30 Meals in 30 Days {Day ONE}

Day ONE of my meal challenge...

Margherita Pizzawhole wheat dough {made in the bread machine}

fresh tomatoes from the farmer's market

fresh mozzarella

and

fresh basil from our backyard.

Served along with a field green salad.

30 meals in 30 days + a yummy dessert

In my quest to make over out diet {see here},

I am challenging myself to try a new dinner recipe each night for the next month...

starting tomorrow!

Tonight we have a delicious, pretty much ready-made dinner from Central Market.

Rosemary-lemon marinated chicken, potato salad & broccoli.

So, I am making one of my favorite desserts...a friut crisp!

I often get asked for this recipe, so I thought I would share it here.

This can pretty much be made with any fruit or berries, even frozen berries work well.

Tonight we are having peach-raspberry crisp.

Before I start though, let me tell you that I usually don't follow a recipe for this. I just sort-of throw the ingredients together...that is the great thing about a crisp! Plus, since it's made with fruit it's healthy...right???

Peach-Raspberry Crisp

ingredients

5-6 peaches

1/2 c + 2 tbsp sugar

1/2 c brown sugar

3/4 c + 1 tbsp whole wheat flour

1/2 c raspberries {fresh or frozen}

3/4 c quick-cook oats

6 tbsp butter

steps

• preheat oven to 350.
• butter the inside of an 8x8 glass baking dish
• peel and cut the peaches into chunks, place in a large bowl
• add 2 tbsp sugar, 1/4 c brown sugar & 1 tbsp flour; toss well
• gently stir in the raspberries and set aside {if there is too much liquid, add another tbsp of flour}
• For the topping, combine 3/4 c flour, 1/2 c sugar, 1/4 c brown sugar & oatmeal
• Melt the butter, and then gradually pour over dry mixture, mixing in between. You want to make sure that all of the dry ingredients get coated by the butter, this is what makes the top nice a crunchy.
• Pour the peaches into the glass baking dish and smooth out.
• Pour the topping on top and smooth out.
• Bake for 35 minutes, or until the top is brown and crispy and the filling is bubbling.

Serve warm, topped with vanilla ice cream. YUM!

Serves 4-6 people.

Healthy Eating...

Since moving away from San Diego {and back to TX} about 4 years ago, Mike & I have adopted some un-healthy eating habits.

It started with not having had good BBQ for 4 1/2 years and went down hill from there!

We took for granted how much easier it is to eat healthy in CA!

Now that Avery is eating table food, I have become much more aware of how poorly we eat.
So, I am really trying to get us back on track to eat healthy,
not only for ourselves but to set a good example for Avery as well.

So, if anyone has any tips to help me in my quest to makeover our diet, feel free to share!!!