Sunday Quick Breakfast

Sunday morning, the morning my children seem to wait around staring at me wondering when would be the right time to ask the one and only question that completely occupies all their brains at the same time........"Mom, are you going to make something for breakfast?"

Ugh, Sunday morning, the one morning I like to have my hot coffee and look at the Sunday paper......okay, well, I can make something fast enough to satisfy them when I don't feel like making a huge Sunday breakfast.

When they are on sale I will buy the biscuits you cook in the oven, since I don't buy them often my kids really enjoy them when they have them!

Place them in the oven and I know I have just about 10 minutes before they are done. I look in the fridge to see what I have.....

fresh spinach
turkey breast lunch meat
a fresh tomato grown in our very own backyard
eggs (no, we bought them, they weren't hatched in our backyard)
cheese slices

I put a little olive oil in a pan, chopped up the spinach and dropped it in the pan, chopped up the turkey breast and tomato and dropped them in with the spinach. Sprinkled some pepper and seasoned salt (just a little). Meanwhile I cracked about 6 eggs (I took out 2 yolks) beat it and poured it over the mixture in the pan.
I mixed it all up together and let it cook over medium heat. My biscuits are now done, took them out, grabbed out some sliced cheese (about 3 slices). I cut open each biscuit, took the wrapper off one slice a cheese cut it 4 ways, put a piece on one half of each biscuit. Oh, don't forget to stir your egg mixture!! I continued to open the cheese and do the same to each half of biscuit.
Once the egg mixture is completely cooked I got a spoon and scooped an amount enough to cover one part of the biscuit and then covered it with the other half of biscuit with the cheese (which is nicely sticking to the top part of the biscuit now).
I made 10 of them, had a little left over egg mixture which I put on a plate and drizzled some of my homemade chili sauce on it along with one of the breakfast biscuits (that was Daddy's plate).

The kids all grabbed a napkin, got a breakfast biscuit, and were happy!!! Yahoo! I got them to eat spinach, turkey, and tomato for breakfast and they loved it! They each got two and then finished it off with my homemade oatmeal cookies (that I also put in a banana for potassium)

Side Note**

Of course my children do have their dis-likes of certain fruits and vegetables, for this reason I like to cook without them watching so they won't already have a certain feeling of what I'm making before they even try it. Now Mom Jr. doesn't like tomatoes and yes, she of course was right there watching...Question"Mom, will the tomato taste like nothing when it's cooked in all that?" Answer " ", yes, that's right she didn't get one. She didn't ask again, she just waited, and when she ate it she loved it!!
So if it makes it easier try to make sure the kids stay away as you cook and once they have eaten it and liked it then is when I like to tell them "see, I put this and that in there and you didn't even know it". They start to realize to give everything a try with an open mind, it's not always what you think it's going to be like...

Moms Food Children Approved!!!!

My version of Togos taco salad

When I was pregnant with Mom Jr. there was nothing better to eat than Togo's Taco Salad! I had to have at least 2 of their taco sauce packs as well. Sometimes I'd even ask for an extra cup of the chili beans they put in the salad.
After I had her it was still one of my favorite meals to have but I didn't have to have it as much as I did before.

Now, 4 kids later I needed to come up with ways of making some of our "favorites" at home since it costs so much to take a family of 6 out to dinner or even lunch.

My version of Togos Taco Salad

Items to buy or have on hand:

1 pkg. of kidney beans (I always cook any type of beans I use but you can buy the canned ones to make it faster)

2 small cans of tomato paste

1 pkg. of ground turkey breast (you can use beef, chicken, whatever you like)

1 red onion

2 pieces of garlic (or you can just use garlic powder)

1-2 tomatoes (for the chili beans)

1 head of lettuce (any type of lettuce, we use a mixture of iceberg and the red leaf or dark green lettuce)

shredded cheese (any kind you like)

1 small can of sliced olives (this is optional, if I have it I'll put it out because my kids like them)

tortilla chips (I usually buy the big bag of tortilla chips from Costco since we use them for a variety of recipes)

1-2 tomatoes-diced

sour cream

taco sauce (or you can use salsa, whatever you like)

Thousand Island (this is optional, my husband likes his salad with dressing drizzled with the taco sauce)

avocado (of course! If I have it I obviously will use it, one of the kids favorites)

chicken or beef bouillon (just a little)

I use my crockpot to cook the beans, so I will start them in the morning. I check the beans, wash them, and place them in the crockpot (which I have turned on first with water in it).

I let them cook for 2-3 hours and then will add the cans of tomato paste, some chopped red onion (about 2 slices out of the onion), chopped garlic (or garlic powder), and a little bouillon. Stir it up so that the tomato paste kinda separates. Let that cook for another 2 hours or so (if your doing it in the crockpot I guess it really doesn't matter if you put it in all at once, I just like doing little by little). When I check on my beans and they look almost done I will cook my ground turkey breast on the stove. I usually will season it with some black pepper and seasoned salt. When it's fully cooked I add it in with the beans and stir it. I am now done messing with the chili beans so I just let the flavors mingle and continue to cook slowly all together until it's time to put it all together.

Now, if you are using canned beans I would think you'd probably have to do it all at once with adding a little water.

Chop up your lettuce and put in the fridge so that it gets nice and cold.

When it's time to put it together this is how I do it......

A handful of chips in a bowl, I press them down with my hand to break them up, put chili beans on top of the chips (for my family I put a good amount), drop some shredded cheese over them, lettuce, sprinkle diced tomato (if you like), olives (if you like), get your taco sauce and drizzle it around the lettuce (as well as the dressing if you are going to use it), place a dollop of sour cream in the middle and if you have avocado you can add some slices on top (or smash it up and add a spoonful next to the sour cream).

**extra** If you like the peppers they use, put them on, I usually will just use jalapeno slices on mine.

**left over ideas**

great to just send a container of the chili with chips on the side (and some shredded cheese to place on top, maybe even a little container with taco sauce on the bottom and sour cream on top).

Scramble eggs and add chili for breakfast burritos....

Chicken Enchiladas

This is a favorite in my house. I do both sauces-green or red.

This is my Green Enchiladas recipe.

Now before I start I must say I use some unusual ingredients that you might not think would be in enchiladas but I have found my children don't know the difference and actually prefer this way compared to the traditional way....

The items you will need is: whatever type of meat you prefer, corn tortillas, 1 small can of fire roasted dice green chile's, monterey & cheddar cheese blocks (or just buy the shredded cheese in a bag), a medium size of cottage cheese, a small sour cream, olives (optional), green tomatoes, yellow or white onion, garlic, jalapenos (optional)

First things first....for the green sauce (if you want to make it from scratch) you will need to buy anywhere between 15-20 green tomatillos (the green tomatoes that are covered with a thin leafy shell), you are looking for the hard ones not soft. You will need a yellow or white onion (I prefer the yellow), a piece of garlic, and if you like any type of spiciness you might want to get a jalapeno or 2 (I use at least two in mine).

Now, you need to first remove the leafy cover from your green tomatoes, wash them well and stick them in a pot. Add just enough water to barely cover your tomatoes, slice and chop a piece of the onion, drop in some garlic, and if you bought jalapenos, slice and drop them in also. Let the water simmer and soften all that is in the pot. Meanwhile, if you need to shred your cheese this would be a good time to do so unless you bought shredded cheese in a bag you don't have to worry about that step. I usually will get out a small bowl and mix together the 16 ounce cottage cheese and maybe 4 tablespoons of the sour cream together. I will also add some pepper to that mix and set aside.

As for the chicken, you actually can use whatever you prefer ground beef, shredded meat, ground turkey, or even just cheese. If you want to skip cooking the meat yourself you can always buy a rotisserie chicken and shred it.

I have done both, I will either use boneless, skinless, chicken tenders, boneless,skinless, chicken breasts, or a rotesserie chicken.

If my chicken is raw I cook it in a little olive oil along with a little onion and garlic, once it's cooked I will put in a small can of green fire roasted chilis (if I'm using a rotisserie chicken, I'll shred it, put in a pan and immediately add the can of chili and simmer it together) and let it simmer together.

I will check periodically on the green sauce mixture. I want to make sure everything is soft. Once I know that for sure, I put all the contents from the pot in a blender. I blend it until it's smooth, pour it in a bowl and set aside.

Once my chicken is cooked and has nicely mingled with the green chiles I take it off the burner and move it over to the area where I will be putting it all together.

I now get out my tortillas and start to warm them up on the stove, one by one, I place them in a pile on a plate.

I get out a large casserole dish and spray it with a nonstick spray.

To put it all together:

I get one tortilla, dip it in the green sauce once, twice, maybe three times, move it into the casserole dish, put a little chicken mixture in the middle, a little cottage cheese mixture, a sprinkle of shredded cheese, and if you like olives this is when you will also stick one in, roll it together, lean it to one edge of the casserole dish and continue with the next one. I usually try to get as many as I can in the one casserole dish, although usually I will end up pulling out an 8x8 dish and finish up in there. Once done with either the tortillas or meat you can place any leftover mixture on top of the enchiladas. The cottage cheese mixture, shredded cheese, and green sauce (even the olives). Place them in a 350 degree preheated oven for 30 minutes.

I like to serve my enchiladas with spanish rice and beans (I'll have to put out the recipe for both).

When I serve them to my family I usually will put some beans on one side 2 enchiladas in the middle and on the other side, the rice. Some enjoy a spoon of sour cream on top of the enchiladas and others just like them as is.

Believe me, I know what your probably thinking about the cottage cheese mixture, they do not even realize it is in there. The plus with using that is you use less cheese and you can use the fat free version of both.

Give it a try...my family loves it.........

Where have I been?

Not here, I know that much!! Sorry, I have been busy setting up our family website. I am now ready to get back to my food blog.....

Just to put it out there, our website is www.thefamilyview.net . Check it out, there's more than just food, it has a little of everything.....

Recipes are coming............................

Mexican Chicken Tortilla Soup

When one of my kids are a little under the weather that is enough to change our day plans. J woke up with an upset stomach which of course led to him getting sick. Obviously it had to be something he ate or stuck in his mouth.
For dinner, I had to think of something I could make with the things I had here at home. Since J was starting to want everything that his Sister and Brothers were eating I had to think of something he could eat with us.
I got it, my Mexican Chicken Tortilla Soup! Out comes the old crock pot! Usually I'd use boneless, skinless chicken but since I'm out I'll just use the chicken thighs I bought in bulk that we normally use to barbecue. I put 2 packages in with 4 cups of water. I seasoned the chicken and water with garlic powder and seasoned salt. I let that cook for a couple of hours then I chopped up some potatoes (we like the red ones), peeled and chopped up some carrots, chopped up 2 tomatoes, chopped up a jalapeno (just for spice), chopped a piece of red onion, and I dropped in some frozen corn. I'll let that cook for another couple of hours, basically until it's just about time to eat. By then the chicken falls right off the bone and I'm able to shred it easily with a fork. I take out the bones and the skin and mix the soup up and cover it. Meanwhile I shred some cheese and get out bowls. I put it all together by spooning some soup into a bowl, dropping some shredded cheese on top, grabbing a handful of tortilla chips, crushing them in my hands as I drop them on top of the cheese. Now some of my kids will also ask for some hot sauce to put on top of it also and if I happen to have avocado I'll slice that into chunks and put a little on top also. Oh, before I give anyone soup because I used the chicken with skin on it I also skim the top of soup to get out any fat from the skin out.
My kids will eat 2 bowls of this soup, I usually make this when the weather is cold, it warms us right up!

Just a Mom making a meal we can all eat even if one of us is a little sick!!

Chili

After a weekend of basically not cooking it was time to get back in the kitchen. The kids wanted to have chili cheese dogs and since we ended up not barbecuing all weekend we are going to have them today!

We usually eat beans once or twice a week. I cook them in all different ways to go with different meals. I buy the big bags of them at Costco. I'd say just within the last year I started using a crock pot. Now I wish I would've started using one long ago! I love it!!!

For the amount of beans I cook I start it in the morning. For these chili beans I'm just going to use pinto beans, I will usually fill up one of those Glad rectangle 64 oz./ 8 cup plastic containers 3/4's the way. I pour them out on the counter (this part the kids like to help me with), spread them out and look for any little rocks or bad beans (I learned this process from watching my Grandma do it when I was little). Once we're done with that we put them back in the plastic container and run water over them, we swish them around with our hands to clean them, then drain the water and repeat once more. Meanwhile I turn on the crock pot to high, put maybe 4 cups of water in. I put some garlic powder, salt, pepper, and a little of chicken bouillon. Once the beans are cleaned the kids dump them in. If I have fresh tomatoes I'll chop up 2-3 of them along with 2-3 jalapenos, some red onion, fresh garlic and stick that in there. If I don't have the fresh items I always make sure to have cans of diced tomatoes with chiles. When they're on sale I make sure to buy them, I can always find something to put them in. If I have to use those I'll put 2 of the 15-16 oz. cans in. I'll just leave that alone for most of the day. Now maybe when they have about an hour or two left if I have linquica, ground turkey, or any other type of sausage or meat I'll cook it on the stove, drain any oil and put that in there too.
The nice thing about using the crock pot, the house doesn't get hot (especially on these hot summer days), I don't have to keep checking on them, and because they cook so slow they always seem so tender when they're done, besides the fact they never burn and they are hot whenever you're ready to eat them.
I like cooking a lot of them because whatever is left over my Husband will take some to work just send some shredded cheese, and, tortilla chips, the kids will eat them with breakfast or lunch. And then if there's still some left over (which is very rare) I can scramble some eggs, mix them together, and make breakfast burritos for both the kids and Hubby. Depending on what type of sausage or meat you use there is usually no fat, you get a lot of protein, antioxidants from the tomatoes, and fiber besides any other benefits from the jalapenos, garlic, and onion you put in there.
Now, our hot dogs and polish sausages are on, I just need to shred some cheese and my family is ready to eat!!

Hope your Monday dinner is yummy!!

Just a Moms way to make a popular summer meal a little healthier!!!

Saturday-lazy day

On weekends, especially Saturday's I try to make it pretty easy going. By the time we hit the end of the week I'm ready for a break from the kitchen. Friday nights we usually to take n' bake pizza. First, it's way cheaper than the places that do it all for you. Second, I don't know why but it seems less greasy than others. I like the fact that it comes with it's own tray to cook it on so the crust comes out crisp and nothing's better than having straight out of the oven pizza!!!
For the weekends I plan a menu to go along with the weather, to go along whatever we have planned, and in case we end up doing something completely different I always have something "just in case".
This weekend is a special weekend because it's my birthday weekend so I was thinking of simple things to have through out the day for them. Anything that makes them feel like a party they really enjoy (let's face it, with 6 of us that's enough to start the party with anyway). And at the same time it gives me a chance to take a breather from the cooking duties.
Mom Jr. and I headed out early this morning to Costco, we bought a veggie plate that consists of cut up broccoli, grape tomatoes, baby carrots, and snap peas with a lowfat pepper ranch dip, we also got Veggie straws-they're made of potato, spinach, and tomato-no trans-fat and no preservatives, and a package of hummus - the new dip Mom Jr. and I are very much into. For fruit we had out fresh peaches from Grandmas trees, grapes, blueberries, black berries, watermelon and apples. I knew with all that they would be happy to be able to choose any of them at anytime and I would be fine with them snacking on that throughout the day. As for dinner Daddy is going to barbecue hot dogs (which are turkey or chicken dogs) and polish sausages. The good thing about Saturday, we are definitely not in a rush to follow a schedule. I think the kids actually like going off their normal schedule too.
Here's to your weekend, make it feel like a party, watch your kids swim or run in the sprinklers as they giggle loudly (there's nothing that will make us parents smile bigger than seeing our children have fun!!) all the time feeling great about what they consuming throughout the day!!

Just a Moms great snack day!!!

My salmon meal

My kids like a variety of fish. Ever since they were old enough to start trying different types of food I made sure their first experiences were of items they wouldn't ask for first after they've tried kid-friendly food (that's what I call food that is popular with kids).
I've heard it takes at least 10 times of trying something to really know if you like it. Every time one of my kids would say they didn't like something I'd throw out that statement to them. We've rarely made it to the 10th try of something and still had one of them say they didn't like it.
Tonight we are having Cajun salmon, brown rice, zucchini, and garlic bread (you know the kind from Costco that has pieces of garlic baked in it so we don't even have to put anything on it).
This use to be our "Thursday" meal until we started having soccer practice and dance on that night. Now that it is summer we have been able to go back to having it.
I usually start by putting the rice on first since it takes 50 minutes to cook. While the rice is cooking I start to prepare the salmon. I know salmon does not take that long to cook so I cook it on medium/low on the stove top. I have a long skillet that fits on two burners. For the six of us I like buying the salmon from Costco. It's a long piece and fits perfect on my skillet. I drizzle a little bit of olive oil on the skillet along with a little bit of butter. I also put some Cajun sauce on the skillet. At this time I turn the burners on low just enough to warm the skillet. I rinse off the salmon then I sprinkle (California style) garlic powder, black pepper, just a pinch of salt, and if I have it I will put creole seasoning on it too. Before I put it on the skillet I squeeze juice from a piece of lemon on it. By this time the rice has about 30-40 minutes left before it's done. I put the salmon on the skillet, seasoned side down. I repeat seasonings and lemon juice to the top part of the salmon and I drizzle some of the Cajun sauce on it too. I cover it with a long piece of foil and put the temp up to medium/low. I cook it for as long as the rice has left flipping it half way through. For the vegetable I usually switch between asparagus and corn or zucchini and corn. Today I'm doing zucchini which I'll steam with a little butter and pepper. Some of the kids like to put thin slices of mozzarella cheese on their zucchini. For J if I have it I'll give him a little bit of avocado (his favorite).
For me, I enjoy a nice glass of red wine such as a Cabernet or even a Zinfandel with this meal. A great way to end the day. I always look forward to this meal!

Wednesday's meal with secret veggies

I must start off and say I really do try to make my meals as healthy as possible and sometimes I have to give a little to add a lot more.
When Mom Jr. and Jr. were little they had no problem eating spaghetti. I would slice the noodles up small, stick them in their high chairs and let them have add it. Yes, they'd look like they took a bath in it by the time they were done, but they ate it and were happy they fed themselves (by the way I actually got to eat while it was still warm back then too!).
Fast forward to the present, Mom Jr., Jr., and even once in a while D will say they don't like something that they use to not have a problem eating. One of these items for Mom Jr. and Jr. was spaghetti, they said "it's too saucy" or "I don't like the meat".
So I started changing to different types of pasta and eventually I had to add more pasta as my growing children would eat more even if they complained off and on. I would give them some pasta, salad, and a piece of bread. The more pasta I added I still only stuck to one jar of chunky veggie sauce. I started adding chopped red onion, chopped garlic, maybe some chopped mushrooms, and sometimes corn to the sauce as it was mixing with the meat. If they saw it they would either try to pick it out or use the vegetable as an excuse to say that's why they didn't like it. Okay, so here's my give a little- I stopped using ground turkey breast all the time and would switch off and use sausage instead. Although while I am cooking up the sausage (and here's my add a lot more) I would add some fresh diced tomato, chopped red onion, chopped garlic, shredded and chopped carrots, and chopped mushrooms. Then I would add the sauce and let that simmer as I cooked the pasta. When I put it all together with a little shredded Parmesan on top they would end up eating it all up and I wouldn't hear not one complaint from them. Now I do switch back to ground turkey breast when I can get it on sale and I think one of the reasons they didn't like it was because it's texture just wasn't juicy like any other meat but as I've noticed if I cook it with tomatos it tends to soften up. Of course when I also switch from the same type of pasta noodle as well as switch off with the meat they always seem to think it's something new and great!! Works for me!! I not only got them to continue to eat spaghetti just with different noodles each time but I added more vegetables to their meal besides the veggies they're already eating with their salad!!
Yup, that's dinner tonight!!

Just a Mom trying to keep it healthy!!

Scheduling

Being a Mom of 4 I had got into a routine when it came to eating. Once they were eating regular food their schedule became breakfast, lunch, snack, dinner. It's worked really well and still does for the most part although now that they are getting bigger I have come to notice they are asking for a little more or if something is left out such as grapes, veggies, or other sliced fruit they will make their way passed it and eat some until there's nothing left. Honestly I really shouldn't care so much about them eating fruits and veggies but if I allow them to eat it all they would and well, the cost comes into play especially when there's 4 of them!
I have always tried to make sure they ate healthy items versus boxed, canned, or frozen meals. The positive side to that is they like a lot of different things and they really aren't that picky (don't get me wrong I do make each child's plate a little different from the other one). The down side is I just can't run into the store grab a can of spaghettios or a frozen meal and have them eat it.
I make a weekly menu depending on what my schedule is like for each day that week. For lunch I make sure they have a variety of sandwich options (specifically during school as they always take their lunch).
With the way things are with economy I really have to watch what I buy especially because we live on one income.
Hopefully some of these recipes will help you out too.

Mom of 4

Introduction

So this is my introduction to another blog I am starting. I started thinking about something else I could share with other parents besides my daily life blog. I thought about some of the parents I know who have picky eaters and some discussions we've had of different ways to incorporate veggies in our childrens meals without them actually know they are eating them. Or meals that are quick, healthy, and easy when us parents are rushing between activities.
I, myself, think my children eat pretty healthy eaters. My children aren't allowed to have soda on a daily basis, the juice they have has to be actual juice and not this 5% or 10% juice drinks. Their snacks consist of fruit, veggies, fruit juice popsicles, yogurt, and cheese sticks. I must admit I have become less strict on my little one J's diet compared to the rest. I don't know if it's just because he's the last which makes him a little bit more spoiled than the rest. I must say it's not just by me either it's by all us!
Anyway, please feel free to dip in and try some of my recipes as well as some of my Mom friends recipes. One thing to note, I am not someone who uses exact measurements of this or that. Hey, I'm a Mom on the go usually therefore who has time to measure anything.....everything is done by what I think is a good amount for my family's appetite and sometimes that's not even right, I'll be left with no leftovers!!!

Good luck with your amounts and I hope you enjoy it all!!

Mommy meals with her childrens approval