Friday, February 19, 2010

Helping with the Laundry

Rex is big on helping and cleaning these days. He'll go to his room and get a wash rag and start wiping down everything in sight. He also likes to pull all of his clothes out of his draws and "put them on." He thinks if it goes over his head he is wearing it, so he walks around with clothes around the back of his neck all the time. This day he decided to help with the laundry by pulling all the clean clothes onto the floor and taking his pants off. He thought this was very funny.This is his "cheese" face. When everyone is laughing or he thinks something is funny he squats down and makes this face... it cracks us up every time, which in turn makes him do it more.

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Recipe Wednesday- Cheesy Baked Tortellini

I have been trying a lot of new recipes lately. I saw this one the other day when watching Everyday Italian with Giada De Laurentiis. I was very yummy and one we will for sure be making again. Enjoy & Happy Cooking!

Cheesy Baked Tortellini

Ingredients

  • Olive oil
  • 2 cups marinara sauce
  • 1/3 cup mascarpone cheese
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
  • 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
  • 1 pound purchased cheese tortellini (I used Whole Wheat)
  • 2 ounces thinly sliced smoked mozzarella
  • 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly oil an 8 by 8 by 2-inch baking dish.

Whisk the sauce, mascarpone cheese, parsley and thyme in a large bowl to blend. Cook the tortellini in a large pot of boiling salted water until just tender, about 2 minutes. Drain. Add the tortellini to the sauce and toss to coat. Transfer the tortellini mixture to the prepared baking dish. Top the mixture with the smoked mozzarella and Parmesan. Cover and bake until the sauce bubbles and the cheeses on top melt, about 30 minutes.

Monday, February 15, 2010

Bubble Bath

Bath time has always been one of Rex's favorite part of the day... during his 2 week sickness we gave him vapor bubble baths to help him feel better. His favorite part of that: EATING THE BUBBLES!

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Snow Days

We have had a couple of snow days recently. Rex actually wasn't a huge fan of the snow, but here are some pictures:Our HouseHe wasn't sure about the snow or the sledChloe didn't care much for the snow eitherReady to go inside
This weeks snow:

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Recipe Wednesday- Snowy Southwest Dinner Party

Last month we had some wonderful friends over to discuss a great organization helping youth here in Clarksville called Mission Clarskville. I took the opportunity to go all out and have a dinner party. Our menu included shrimp and corn chowder, a simple salad with white bean salsa, Mexican lasagna, and cinnamon chip scones. Since I haven't posted any recipes for Recipe Wednesday in a very long time I decided to give you all the recipes along with some pictures of my table-scape...Enjoy & Happy Cooking!


Shrimp and Corn Chowder
1lb bacon
1 large onion
1 green pepper
3 medium potatoes
3 cans creamed corn
2 can niblet corn
2 lbs pealed shrimp
1 pint half & half
1/2 pint heavy whipping cream
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp each of oregano, garlic, & basil
milk (see below)
salt, pepper, & chopped parsley to taste

In a large heavy pot, fry bacon until crispy. Remove bacon to drain. Saute onion and green pepper with garlic and herbs in remaining bacon grease until soft. Add cubed potatoes and cover with water about an inch above the potatoes. Cover with lid and simmer over medium heat until potatoes are fork tender. Remove from heat and mash potatoes thoroughly. Add corn, half & half, and cream. Stir until well blended. Add milk to desired consistency if needed (I like thick chowder so I did not add milk. Add cayenne pepper, salt and pepper to taste. Stirring constantly, bring to a simmer, but do not boil. Reduce heat and simmer 15-20 minutes (you know its time to reduce heat when you see small bubbles rising to the top). Add shrimp and parsley and simmer until shrimp is done (6-10 minutes max).

White Bean Salsa
Saute tricolor bell peppers, 1 can white beans, 1 large onion, & fresh corn in olive oil & small amount of butter (optional) until tender. Serve over simple salad greens.
I got this recipe from a good friend who puts store bought crab cakes down in salsa while it is cooking, then serves over salad greens... great low fat recipe, not dressing needed.

Mexican Lasagna (from The Pioneer Woman blog)

Cinnamon Chip Scones
1 Tbsp Cinnamon
2 cups flour
4 Tbsp baking powder
3/4 Tbsp salt
1/3 cup sugar
4 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp shortening
3/4 cup cream
1 egg
handful of fruit or chocolate chips (I used chocolate chips)

Preheat oven to 350. In large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Mix well. Cut in butter and shortening. In a separate bowl, combine cream with beaten egg and add to dry ingredients. Stir in fruit or chocolate chips. Roll dough out and cut into biscuit size rounds. Bake 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Simple Living Media


A while back I discovered a blog called Simple Mom and fell in love the the advise and articles she posted. Her blog is about living a simple, frugal, green life where faith and family are the main focus...something I can for sure get behind. She offers practical tips and ideas on how to carry our such a life making it a great read for any mom.

Yesterday she launched a new venture called Simple Living Media and along with it 4 new blogs: Simple Bites, Simple Home School, Simple Kids, and Simple Organic. In honor of the launch all 4 blogs are offering great giveaways today. Each has three ways to win so visit, read, and enter for your chance to win these great prizes.

Yes, this post means I have re-entered the blog world...thanks for the encouragement to keep writing... I've got several new posts in the works.
 
Made by Lena