Our eats...

*Monday: Yesterday ended up being much busier than I anticipated, so I didn't even make dinner! Terrible, I know. So we're going to make our stuffed shells tonight instead. I'll have a huge green salad to go with mine.

*Tuesday: Pesto Pizza with Grilled Onions--we had a super yummy pesto pizza at a restaurant in MI last week. I'm going to recreate (but make it even better) by grilling some sliced onions to go on top of the pizza. I've also been meaning to make a bunch of pesto (and thanks to Laura's reminder), so I'll use this recipe (and fyi-Pignolis = Pine nuts). Add a few kinds of cheese (along with the pesto and onions) on top of the easiest crust (see recipe below) and enjoy!

*Wednesday: Tomatoes stuffed with Grilled Corn Salad (see image above) On a night like tonight, I can pretty much guarantee the kids won't be too thrilled about dinner. But I also know Burke would love this recipe, and it's really important to me that my kids try new things. However, I don't like whiny kids at dinner time. So it's common around here for me to modify a recipe to make the kids and adults happy. For instance, tonight's meal, I'll probably serve the kids their Grilled Corn Salad over brown rice (instead of in a tomato). Some kids would love the tomato too, and Elle does on certain days. But usually it's worth it to me to make the kids happy--as long as I'm not making a separate meal.

*Thursday: Leftovers

*Friday: Grilled Sweet potatoes with Scallions & Trader Joe's Wild Rice (I think Haven will especially enjoy this dinner!)

*Saturday: A few weeks ago, we attended an out door story time. Lucky for us they were giving out lots of coupons--one of which was a free kids meal at Qdoba. We ended up with about 6 coupons (I swear I don't even know how that happened). I've only eaten here once or twice and haven't been a big fan, so I guess I'll give it another shot (for the sake of the free meals ;)

*Sunday: Leftovers

FAST AND EASY PIZZA DOUGH

1 T honey

1 T oil

1 c warm water

1 T yeast

1/2 t garlic salt

2 1/2-3 c flour

Preheat oven to 475. (If using pizza stone, let heat for at least 30 minutes in the oven before baking pizza.) mix all pizza dough ingredients, except flour, together. Add flour and knead for a bit. Spread onto parchment paper sprinkled with corneal. Let rest for a few minutes to let dough rise a little if you want fluffier crust. Add sauce, toppings, and cheese. Slide onto pizza paddle (or sided cookie sheet) and then slide onto hot stone. Bake about 8 minutes (check after 5 or 6 if stone has been oven for a long time.) Makes 1 large pizza.

It's August!

Holy cow! I can hardly believe that I have a little boy starting school in about 3 weeks. That is nuts. We're headed to the pool today, and I'm planning a super easy menu for these next last weeks of summer. Hope you enjoy your week!

*here is an EXCELLENT peanut sauce recipe. Super simple and goes with anything.

*Monday: Artichoke Bruschetta & green salad (I'm LOVING) all the fresh "local" veggies & can't get enough salads! I've also FINALLY lost those extra pounds (from my little Haven girl) thanks to all the greens. ;)

*Tuesday: Stuffed Tomatoes (I'm using our favorite stuffed peppers recipe with some garden grown tomatoes to stuff)

*Wednesday: Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce & corn on the cob

*Thursday: Roasted Red Pepper/tomato soup with pretzel bread panini's (soup & pretzel bread from Trader Joe's)

*Friday: Red Pepper Dip with Pitas

*Saturday: Spring Rolls (with the leftover Peanut Sauce)

*Sunday: Leftover day!

Dinner Tonight

This is what I ate. Plain old Bruschetta. It was absolutely delightful, and so simple. To round off the meal, I had a green salad made with spinach, romaine, cucumbers and sunflower seeds (I have to have crunch on my salad). I love summer meals, because I feel like I don't need to spend time slaving away in the kitchen. And to make my meal even more special, I shared it with my 2 year old on my lap. We practically fought for the last piece. And neither of us even "like" tomatoes!

Here's the tasty recipe:

2 tomatoes, diced
1 tsp. dried basil (or fresh)
4 Tbsp grated parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
seasoning salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste
1 baguette, sliced

In a medium bowl, mix tomatoes, dried basil, parmesan cheese, olive oil, garlic, salt & pepper. Cover and chill in refrigerator 8 hours, or overnight, before serving (I rarely make mine ahead of time, but do love to keep the leftovers in the fridge to make fresh bruschetta with the next day). Toast bread slices slightly under the broiler (until the bread begins to brown around the edges). Top with tomato mixture and a sprinkle of parmesan and broil for a few more minutes (until the cheese begins to melt). Enjoy with a 2 year old on your lap. ;)