Fresh From the Garden

We are already halfway into August and finally able to enjoy some of the vegetables John we grew ourselves. The garden sucked didn't do very well this year. A combination of no rain right when we needed it and our decision to grow heirloom varieties (which grow VERY slowly by the way) made for a late harvest. Granted, we do have several huge, yummy Mr. Stripey tomatoes on the vine, but we will probably be pulling off many before the first frost. I'm thinking fried green tomatoes. Anyone have a recipe they would like to share?

Monday Mac-N-Cheese

It has long been said that humans are creatures of habit. I definitely fall into this stereotype. I like routines, I like lists, I like to know what to expect. My kids are the same way. I swear their nightime routine is the reason they both sleep so well. Every evening we do the same thing--dinner, bath, pjs, story and bed. Every. Single. Night. When we slip up just a little, even if it is to have dinner over at a friend's house and we stay up just a little past the kiddos' bedtime, we pay for it for two to three days.

Part of my routine includes a weekly meal plan and every Monday we have macaroni and cheese for lunch. This weekend, I read a letter sent in by a subscriber of Parenting magazine about how she modifies her instant mac to make it a little bit healthier for her kids. I was intrigued and decided to give it a try. Besides, I still have a hefty supply of organic sweet potato baby food I need to use. The outcome was a really creamy, pretty tastey alternative to regular mac. And, it doesn't make me feel so guilty for feeding the kids something so processed. But hey, we can't all be diva's in the kitchen for every meal...there are other blogs for that.

All you need is:
one box of mac-n-cheese. I used Kraft whole grain.
1 jar organic sweet potato puree/baby food
4 TBS plain greek yogurt

Cook the noodles per the box instructions.

Once you have strained the noodles, stir in the puree, yogurt and cheese powder.

Enjoy!

Note: After this meal, 14 month old Carleigh reached her bowl out and asked for more (the first time she has ever said "more")

My friend in the kitchen

The crockpot is my friend. Right now perhaps even my best friend. How wonderful it is to throw together a few things in the morning and by 5:30-ish, voila! Dinner! And not to mention leftovers. Leftovers are my friends too. Leftovers mean minimal mess in the kitchen and with Two under Two I have plenty of mess to clean up without even going into the kitchen. We've been eating at least two crock pot meals a week since Carleigh was born. I have found several recipes here. In fact, tonight we will enjoy Asian Chicken in a Crock. So if you have a faveorite Crock recipe to share, please do, and you too will be my friend in the kitchen.

**Note: If you make the Asian Chicken, I would either use fresh veggies or add the frozen veggies about 1/2 or 3/4 of the way through.