Week 3 2015 Menu

Hi everyone! Hope yall got to take advantage of the long weekend!

We did a lot of house things - looked at appliances and tiles. Have to start making decisions which is very exciting. Other than that, very low key weekend. We saw Paddington with the girls on Saturday. Nicole Kidman terrified them but the movie was cute.

Here's what we have on the menu this week!

Monday: White Fish Special (recipe below! Don't think I've posted this before.)
Tuesday: Beth's Korean Beef. Mitch is in town and will have dinner with us!
Wednesday: I'm out for a work event, so probably some leftovers or chicken nuggets for the girls.
Thursday: Basil Chicken Curry an oldie but a goodie.
Friday: Chili (I usually just wing the recipe, but my trick is to add corn tortillas to dissolve in the chili. It's amazing.)
Saturday: CHEAT DAY. World is our oyster. TBD.

What do yall have going on??


White Fish Special (adapted from Kobe Restaurant in Houston)

Any white fish - I use Tilapia
4 egg whites
2 tablespoons cornstarch
*Mix egg whites and cornstarch. Marinate the fish and egg white/cornstarch mixture for some time. I've done as little as 10 minutes while I'm prepping something else or as much as a few hours.
* Add oil to a skillet. Cook fish about 4 minutes per side. You're essentially frying the fish. Once the fish is cooked, set aside and use the same skillet for the sauce.

For the sauce:
1/2 stick of butter
2 sliced or diced jalapenos
fresh grated ginger (I keep mine in the freezer and just grate as needed)
1/2 c of soy sauce
*Brown the butter in the skillet, picking up any bits of fish. It'll start to foam and become brown and smell nutty. Throw in the jalapenos. Add soy sauce and the mixture should boil rapidly and reduce some. Stir in the grated ginger (I usually grate the ginger directly into the skillet). The sauce should be really dark - almost black looking. Put the fish back in the skillet to coat well with the sauce or plate the fish and spoon the sauce on top.

Week 2 2015 Menu

Hi everyone, not a lot going on in the food category - been an emotional few weeks (to say the least) so keeping things simple. Below is what we have going on:

Monday: Shrimp and veggies
Tuesday: Spaghetti and Meatballs for the girls. I have a work event and Will is traveling. Our cousin Karla will feed the girls.
Wednesday: Beef stew
Thursday: Leftovers
Friday: Sausage and Bean Cassoulet
Saturday: Cheat day!! The world is our oyster. Or our hamburger.

What do yall have going on? xoxo

New Year New Menu Week 1!

Hi everyone! Trying to get back into the swing of things while doing the 4 hour body. We didn't read the book, but talked extensively to Cris and Mitch about. Here is our menu for the week. The girls ate up last night's salmon. At least Amelia did - Annelise is really good at being defiant.

Sunday: Chili
Monday: Lou's Dill Salmon + Roasted Broccoli
Tuesday: Chicken Burrito Bowls (minus rice and cheese)
Wednesday: Lentil Soup, an oldie but a goodie
Thursday: Leftovers
Friday: Shepherd's Pie with Cauliflower Mash instead of potatoes
Saturday: CHEAT DAY! Probably pizza and sushi and pasta and ice cream.

What do yall have going on?? xo

Cauliflower Leek Soup

Makin' a new recipe tonight - Cauliflower Leek Soup. I have allergies like crazy, so soup will be so nice in between sniffles n sneezes. Extra bacon plz. And serving w/ french bread.

I'll report back tomorrow to let y'all know if it's good or not :)

One pot chili mac is also on the menu this week :) I love that stuff.

Week 50 Menu! 50!

I can't believe it's almost the New Year, but more importantly it's almost Christmassss!! We leave for Nicragua in almost a week (who's counting!?) and will be there through New Years and I'm so excited to get out of the cold.

This weekend was supa busy - our company holiday party was on Friday. Started drinking at 11am, stopped at 8pm. I'm still hurting. Then Saturday was our friends' annual Kissmas party so more drinks. Today we had brunch with Santa - Annelise would have none of the Italian Santa. Tonight we tried to go to Zoolights but the traffic/parking was so bad we bailed. We'll go again sometime this week when it's less crowded.

Amelia asked for a dog and a pink dress. Annelise just hung on to me for dear life.

I've had a lot of after work holiday events (one last week involved a shopping spree at a high end cosmetics/beauty store- um yes!), and I'm supposed to have more this week though I might cancel. This is what I have going on this week for food:

Sunday: Irish Beef Stew with mashed potatoes
Monday: Roasted Chicken in walnut sauce
Tuesday: Whiteboy Tacos
Wednesday: Meatloaf meatballs
Thursday: Leftovers for Will and the girls, I'm going out with a friend.
Friday: Out for a friend's bday - hopefully not too late of a night!
Saturday: Shrimp Scampi

What do yall have going on?? xo

Hi my dears,

The weather is nasty here today and B is sick, sick, sick with her first cold & fever. She won't stop crying unless I'm holding her or watching her favorite show (Jack's Big Music Show) so... I've let her watch it on repeat all day (best parenting ever!) While she was occupied, I decided to get into the holiday spirit and make some cookies for our annual Girls Christmas dinner tomorrow night. I found this new recipe online and it's the EASIEST batch of sugar cookies I've ever made-- the ingredients are simple, there is no chilling required, they roll out easily, are not overly sticky and bake up to delicious perfection! A must for your holiday baking this season.

Best Sugar Cookie Recipe

PRINT SAVE

YIELD: 3 dozen cookies

PREP TIME: 30 minutes

COOK TIME: 6-8 minutes

TOTAL TIME: 38 minutes

Soft cut out sugar cookie recipe that keeps its shape and dough does not need to be chilled before baking- perfect edges every time!

INGREDIENTS:

1 Cup butter, softened
1 Cup granulated white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 egg
2 teaspoons baking powder
3 cups all purpose flour

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. In the bowl of your mixer cream butter and sugar until smooth.
3. Beat in extracts and egg.
4. In a separate bowl combine baking powder with flour and add a little at a time to the wet ingredients. The dough will be very stiff. If it becomes too stiff for your mixer turn out the dough onto a countertop surface. Wet your hands and finish off kneading the dough by hand.
5. DO NOT CHILL THE DOUGH. Divide into workable batches, roll out onto a floured surface and cut. You want these cookies to be on the thicker side (closer to 1/4 inch rather than 1/8).
6. Bake at 350 for 6-8 minutes. Let cool on the cookie sheet until firm enough to transfer to a cooling rack.

NOTES:

• PLEASE NOTE: This recipe has been edited to make a smaller batch than originally published to accommodate the size of stand mixer that most people own. The original recipe was this exact recipe just doubled proportions.
• If you must chill the dough just leave it on the countertop for 10 minutes before rolling or work the dough with your hands for a few minutes.
• You can omit the almond extract if you do not have it available, however the taste is really fantastic with the hint of almond.
• Keep in mind that the recipe yield will vary according to how thick you roll your cookies and how large or small your cutters are.

Original recipe and images © In Katrina's Kitchen 

I can't wait to try her icing too!

Here's a shot of my cookies. Will post some decorated too-- if I ever get around to it :)

Cheers!

-Lou

Week 48 Menu + Annelise 2nd Birthday!

Hello helloooo!

Hope yall had a great Thanksgiving! We had a lovely, relaxing time in Knoxville. Steve planned a couple of excursions for us. Tropical Bird Sanctuary, Dixie Stampede (Medieval Times meets Dolly Parton and Baby Jesus), and ice skating.

Will dropping his extensive parrot knowledge on Amelia.

Annelise didn't love it.

52 card pickup!

Annelise didn't love it.

Amelia loved it!

Here's what we have going on this cold cold week.

Monday: Chili
Tuesday: Chicken Marbella (love this!)
Wednesday: Chicken Broccoli Quinoa
Thursday: Leftovers. I have the industry holiday party that I'm way too old to attend. I'll be sneaking way as early as possible.
Friday: Annelise's Birthday!! Hopefully we'll go out
Saturday: Spaghetti Carbonara - old family recipe that is super easy.
Sunday: Annelise's birthday party- I'll be making all sorts of little sandwiches (baked ham sandwiches, turkey and cranberry, and blts) for the adults, and the usual (mac and cheese, chicken nuggets, and pigs in the blanket) for the kids.

What do you have going on? xoxo

Aji de Gallina

Aji de Gallina is a traditional Peruvian dish that we grew up eating at my cousins' house in Dallas. I always loved it, but never tackled the recipe myself- until today. It turned out to be pretty easy. And came out delicious. The hardest part was combining the 3 different recipes that I was given, and translating both the language and the foreign measurements (like kilos). The simplified version is below. Happy eating! 

Note: I ordered the aji paste from a gourmet foods site online (which is really second best to using the real aji peppers). 

Aji de Gallina

Ingredients:

-       4 chicken breasts

-       2.5 yellow onions

-       1 large box of chicken broth (32 oz)

-       4 garlic cloves

-       4 slices of white bread, with out crust

-       2 cups of chopped walnuts

-       2 cups of shredded parmesan cheese

-       1 can of evaporated milk

-       aji paste (to taste)

-       4 russet potatoes, boiled and chopped - optional 

Directions:

-       boil chicken breasts in chicken broth with salt and 1/2 quartered onion

-       Once chicken is cooked, remove from liquid and set aside to cool

-       Shred chicken thickly, and set aside

-       In a separate bowl, shred bread and allow to soak up a bit of chicken broth

-       Finely chop 2 cups of walnuts in a food processor. Set aside.

-       In a skillet, heat oil

-       To skillet add 2 onions chopped and 4 pressed garlic gloves

-       Once onions are translucent, add aji paste to taste (start with 1 spoonful; I used 6)

-       Once onion and aji mixer has cooled, blend in food processer

-       Add soggy bread to processor and blend as well 

-       In a skillet over low heat, add shredded chicken, can of evaporated milk, parmesan cheese, chopped walnuts, and onion & bread mixture (add optional potatoes here too)

-       Once all ingredients are blended together, taste and add more aji paste if necessary

-       Season to taste (for more heat, I decided to add a bit of cayenne pepper)

-       Traditionally, this dish is served over rice, with chopped hard boiled eggs and olives sprinkled on top (I never liked those toppings, so feel free to skip)

Week 45 Menu + Back to the routine

Hi everyone, I'm so exhausted I want to give up right now and crawl into a hole. Annelise was sick the entire car ride home from Minneapolis. Minneapolis was great and always so comforting to see Eli and Alex. The car ride home was terrifying. I had to pull over to the side of the road twice because of Annelise getting sick and it was already dark out so I had images going through my head of getting hit by an out of control 18-wheeler. Terrifying. We abandoned a sweatshirt on the side of the road because it was so covered in sick and there was no way in hell I was letting that in the car. Poor dear was sick when we got home too so she slept in my bed (after she got sick all over her crib) and I was so scared she'd choke on something I was up all night just staring at her. We struggled.

I took a whole wardrobe full of maternity clothes for Eli (whoop!) and we had pizza and cocktails (for Alex and me) and went to brunch with Brad. The girls had a blast and hearing Annelise say "Donde esta mi padrino?" is the most adorable thing I've ever heard.

Here's what we have going on this week - hope to stick to it as much as possible!

Monday: Order in
Tuesday: Baked Chicken Mushroom Skillet (didn't do this last week)
Wednesday: Zuppa Toscana. I know. AGAIN. It's so good and it's cold out.
Thursday: Chili
Friday: Lasagna (the frozen kind. yep.)

What are yall up to? xo

Week 9 (of pregnancy, not the year hahah)

Welp, the first trimester exhaustion everyone talks about is starting to hit me. I get so tired much earlier than I used to! I'm also starting to feel "thicker" in the midsection, even though I don't have a bump yet by any means, and not thrilled in general about upcoming body changes. But all I can do is be healthy and exercise, so that's what I'm gonna try to do! Honestly, all I wanna eat are PB&Js but I will do my best to resist.

I've been blogging a lot lately for that site I write for because the money is so, so easy, but it also means having to go to restaurants when I really just wanna stay at home.

Here's what's on tap menu-wise this week:

Sunday: Chipotle lime salmon with roasted broccoli and a rosemary dinner roll.
Monday: Going to Taco Flats with another couple cause I need to blog about it by Thursday. Tortilla soup and a taco sound pretty good.
Tuesday: Going to Juiceland with a girl friend cause I need to blog about it by Friday. They have tons of ultra healthy food and smoothie/juice options so this will be good. Pilates class after.
Wednesday: Mushroom poblano tacos with tomato avocado salad. Candlelight yoga after.
Thursday: Turkey meatloaf, asparagus, rice
Friday: Fish sticks, roasted potatoes, salad. Afternoon barre class (wanted to barf the entire time I went to this last week but was so sore after- always a good sign).

Might need to sub out Thurs for Michi's One Pot Chili Mac recipe- sounds so good.

Eli, how are you feeling?

Everybody else, whatcha cookin?

xo bef

Week 43 Menu!

Hi everyone, I'm taking it easy this week since I'm recovering from the Dallas wedding and Will is traveling. The wedding was beautiful and we had a great time. Always too short of a visit though. It was great to see all the cousins and so funny to see all of our kids playing together.

Amelia slept until 7am, which is when I woke up too so this morning was crazy rushed to get Amelia ready for school and out the door.

This is what we have going on this week. Lazy and uninspiring, but, for consistency sake, still posting :)

Sunday: Ordered in Mediterranean food
Monday: Homemade Tuna Mac and Cheese with veggies (girls loved it!)
Tuesday: Chicken Broccoli Casserole (don't judge)
Wednesday: Frito Pie
Thursday: Leftovers
Friday: Halloween! No plans yet.
Saturday: Date Night. Much needed.

What do yall have going on?

A semi-lazy week

I think the week ahead might be semi-lazy for me. Not feeling up to cooking anything extravagant, so will be keepin' things simple!

Mon- Meeting a girlfriend for dinner. Leaving Ryan with marinated chicken, couscous, and broccoli to make for himself (and extra for me for lunch tomorrow)
Tue- Chipotle lime salmon, asparagus, rice
Wed- Going to a new place called Taco Flats cause I need to blog about it on Thursday
Thur- Turkey chili with cornbread (prob need to throw in a veggie here...)
Fri- Going to friends house for dinner

I'll be tryyyyyying to hit the gym 3x this week. I walk Fonzie for like 3/4 mile every morning, but it always feels good to get my blood moving after sitting all day at work (when I can manage to motivate myself to get outta the house). If I don't go to the gym, I try to do the Kayla Itsines (have y'all heard of her yet?) circuit workout, which is actually way, way harder than going to the gym, but shorter and more convenient. If anyone's interested seeing those workouts, lemme know and I'll send ya the PDFs. They're 30 min workouts but will kick your ass. The trainer's Instagram is good motivation and the before/after photos are always kinda amazing to me.

Other than that, probably just lots of Netflixing. I started watching Parenthood from the beginning and I really like it so far! I have tons of episodes left, so that makes me happy.

Week 42 Menu - A short week!

Hi everyone! Hope yall had a good weekend!

We totally laid low on Friday night - had another movie night. Annelise has decided The Nightmare Before Christmas is too scary, so we watched Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. It was ok. Can't wait for Christmas when we can really dive into all the classics!

Saturday, Will took the car in after Bubbles and Ballet so the girls and I had a day of fun. We walked to the zoo, even though it was too far and too cold to walk. We had a great time, though.

Yesterday we went to brunch with Lydia and Karla, then went to look at some puppies. We were SO CLOSE to getting a dog, but Will talked as away from the point of no return. I think we'll revisit after New Years when all the holiday traveling is done.

It's a short week because of Ali's wedding this weekend! The girls are in the wedding and they're so excited to wear the pretty dresses. Here's what's on the menu for the short week.

Sunday: White Fish Special for me and Will, Fish Nuggets for the girls

Monday: Spaghetti with Bolognese sauce. Made this on Sunday so we can eat as leftovers all week

Tuesday: Chicken with Sherry and Mustard Sauce

Wednesday: Leftovers

Thursday: Out/Leftovers

Friday- Sunday: DALLAS!

What are yall up to this week?? xoxo

Week 41 Menu

Hello hello! Hope yall had a great weekend!

We had an awesome, jam packed weekend. Will and I went to dinner and saw Gone Girl on Friday. Really good. Then Saturday, we met with the contractor, went to a Bubbles class for Annelise and Amelia was the teacher's helper (by helper, I mean riled up Annelise and all the little kids to not pay attention and run around like chickens instead of participating in the class). Afterwards we went to a pumpkin patch with another family - Amelia and Nola are super friends even though they only see each other a couple of times a year. They love each other and it's so fun to see her form relationships. Saturday night I made white boy tacos and we watched The Walking Dead until 1am. Sunday was the marathon, we saw our friend running in it, then we met them up for margaritas and tacos at Big Star.

Lunches for Amelia have been going smoothly. I have a good rotation of pasta with peas (tortellini or elbow or something like that), sandwiches (peanut butter, turkey) or wraps (turkey, hot dog). Every once in a while, I'll do leftovers, but she had to have really liked it. My focus with her is protein - she doesn't naturally gravitate towards it so I have to make sure she's getting enough. I'll add in a fruit, cheese, carrot sticks, and a cookie- usually a few nilla wafers or a milano. She devours her lunch which I love to see. On Fridays, I've ordered her the hot lunch at her school to give me the day off. I keep an eye out for good/easy lunches though because I don't want to wear out the lunches I'm currently using! Any ideas are super welcome :)

Here's what I have on the menu for the week:

Monday: Shepherd's Pie
Tuesday: Slow cooker Tikka Masala - I have a Junior League event so this will be ready for Will and the girls.
Wednesday: Lou's Chicken Marbella 
Thursday: Honey Garlic Chicken
Friday: Out or leftovers

What have yall got going on? xoxo

Week 40 Menu

Hi everyone! Hope yall had a good weekend. We had a really great time. Friday night we did a movie + pizza night. We watched The Nightmare Before Christmas and the girls loved it. We ate pizza on the floor while watching the movie. They were riveted. Scared at times, but nothing too bad.

Saturday we had Bubbles and ballet class, then went to a deli to get sandwiches and matzo ball soup. The girls also got haircuts.

Sunday we went to Ikea to look at kitchen layouts and then to Fall Fest at Amelia's school. Bouncy Houses, huge slides, face painting and ice cream. It was a great time - below was the post-fun bathtime.

Here's what we have going on this week:

Sunday: Brisket, veggies, and beans. Dad sent these beans- they were sooo good.
Monday: Shrimp Scampi
Tuesday: Korean Beef with rice and broccoli
Wednesday: Leftovers
Thursday: Braised French Onion Chicken
Friday: Out

What do you have going on? xo