Summer Salsa

Summer Salsa aka the best thing I've eaten this summer. I swear to you I'm addicted to this stuff and I don't even feel bad about it because it's totally healthy!! I've eaten it with pita chips, tortilla chips, on grilled fish, in lettuce cups......you name it and I've tried it and loved it.

When summer produce is at its peak it can be easy to go overboard and buy a boatload of Farmer’s Market goodies. This dip came about after having an abundance of gorgeous summer produce and wanting to use it all in a unique way. Peaches, tomatoes, avocado and cucumber are all so fresh and light and flavorful enough on their own but then I added fresh herbs like basil and an unexpected punch of fresh mint which takes this dip to the next level!
I promise you if you make this it won't last long!

Summer Salsa

½ cup diced tomato

½ cup diced peach

½ cup diced seedless cucumber

1 large avocado, diced

1 jalapeño, seeds removed and minced

2 Tablespoons minced shallot

2 Tablespoons minced fresh mint

2 Tablespoons minced fresh basil

2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice

½ teaspoon salt

In a large mixing bowl gently stir together all ingredients.  Serve with chips or baguette.

Orange Sriracha Green Beans

These green beans are a little sweet, a little spicy and super easy to throw together. Perfect to serve with literally any main dish you have, but don't be upset it they steal the show. With only a handful of ingredients and 10 minutes they'll be ready in no time!

Orange Sriracha Green Beans

1 Tablespoon salt

2 pounds fresh green beans

2/3 cup sweet orange marmalade

1 Tablespoon Sriracha sauce

1 Tablespoon soy sauce

½ teaspoon garlic salt

1 teaspoon sesame seeds

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the salt and green beans and cook until just tender (about 4-6 minutes). Pour the beans into a colander to drain and immediately run under very cold water.

Add the green beans back to the hot pot, along with the orange marmalade, sriracha, soy sauce and garlic salt and toss to coat. Pour the mixture onto a serving plate, sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve.

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Little's Lunches

Here they are! The first (short) week of school lunches for my kids! We all survived the week with minimal tears and meltdowns thankfully but were completely exhausted by the time Friday evening rolled around.

Just a reminder if you're wondering which lunchboxes I use - they are Yumbox (here) lunchboxes and I love them! They make it SO easy to put lunches together, keep everything separated and are leak proof for items such as yogurt, dips and salsa. The little Animal Food Picks (here) keep things cute,  colorful and my daughter loves to use them instead of a fork to pick things up! These Sistema dip containers are the perfect size to include vinaigrette type salad dressings. I frequently use these Silicone muffin cups to separate items that aren't exactly messy but I still want to keep from touching everything else in the box. The height of the dip containers and muffin cups are perfect in the Yumbox Panino and the Yumbox Original

Also, don't forget last week's post of "20 Nut Free No Sandwich Lunches" in case you need even more inspiration this week

Tuesday: Pepperoni, rolled up sliced meunster cheese, tortilla roll up (ham, spinach, chive cream cheese), mango, Ranch, radish slices and black olives

Wednesday: rolled up sliced meunster cheese, pepperoni, cucumber sticks, ranch, berry yogurt star crackers, mango, tortilla roll up (ham, meunster cheese, chive cream cheese)

Thursday: Ham and Cheese sandwich on Wheat, black olives, cucumber slices, cantaloupe 

Friday: Refried Bean and Cheese Tortilla Roll Up, Larabar Chocolate Brownie,  ranch, cucumber slices, cantaloupe

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Tropical Turkey Burrito Bowls

These Tropical Turkey Burrito Bowls start with Jamaican Jerk seasoned lean ground turkey served on a bed of Coconut Cauliflower Rice, topped off with fresh pineapple red onion salsa and crisp crunchy purple cabbage and carrot slaw - it is loaded with veggies, gorgeously colorful, super healthy, gluten free and insanely delish!

Don't be scared off by the Jamaican Jerk seasoning - although some Jerk style dishes can be crazy hot and loaded with habanero peppers, this spice blend is more sugar, thyme and allspice based with a hint of crushed red pepper flakes and has a very mild flavor. If your family likes heat feel free to add a chopped jalapeno to the pan when you are browning the turkey!

 Tropical Turkey Burrito Bowls

1 cup fresh diced pineapple

¼ cup finely chopped red onion

1 jalapeno, seeds and ribs removed, diced

¼ cup chopped cilantro

1 lime, juiced

¼ teaspoon salt

½ cup shredded carrot

½ cup shredded purple cabbage

¼ cup sliced green onion

¼ teaspoon salt

1 tbsp coconut oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 cups riced raw cauliflower

1/4 tsp salt

½ cup low fat canned coconut milk

2 Tablespoons unsweetened toasted flaked coconut

2 Tablespoons canola oil

1-pound lean ground turkey

1 1/2 Tablespoons Jerk seasoning blend

¼ cup water

In a medium sized mixing bowl, stir together the pineapple, red onion, jalapeno, cilantro, lime juice and salt.

In another medium sized mixing bowl, stir together the shredded carrot, purple cabbage, green onion and salt.

Heat the coconut oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Saute' the garlic for about 2 minutes, or until fragrant. Add the cauliflower rice and salt to the garlic mixture and cook for about 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the coconut milk to the pan and continue to cook until the cauliflower is tender, and the coconut milk has been absorbed. Stir in the toasted coconut and set aside.

Heat the canola oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the turkey and cook for 10 minutes, breaking it apart with a wooden spoon into bite sized crumbles. Add the jerk seasoning and water and continue to cook until browned and cooked completely through, about 5 minutes.

To assemble the bowls, scoop the coconut cauliflower rice into 4 large shallow bowls. Top each bowl equally with the turkey, pineapple salsa and cabbage slaw. Serve immediately.

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20 Nut Free No Sandwich Lunches

We are on our second day of school and I'm loving all of the back to school pictures I'm seeing!! Who needs help with lunchboxes already? Today I'm sharing 20 ideas for nut free non sandwich lunchbox ideas that my kids really loved last year. 

To make things easier on myself I always make lunch boxes the night before. I'm not awake or together enough in the morning to be dealing with all that before school. 

I hope some of these ideas help you out and make packing lunches less of a chore!

I use Yumbox (here) lunchboxes and I love them! They make it SO easy to put lunches together, keep everything separated and are leak proof!! Also, the little Animal Food Picks (here) keep things cute and so colorful!! These Sistema dip containers are the perfect size to include wet or runny items to dip into. I frequently use these Silicone muffin cups to separate items that aren't exactly messy but I still want to keep from touching everything else in the box. The height of the dip containers and muffin cups are perfect in the Yumbox Panino and the Yumbox Original

kiwi, cheese mini cracker, fruit bar, babybel gouda cheese, edamame, BBQ sauce, grilled sliced chicken sausage

pretzel ticks, cucumber slices, oranges, BBQ sauce, edamame, red bell pepper, grilled sliced hot dog

 mini red peppers, black olives, black beans with cheese, salsa ranch, strawberries, flour tortilla, layered fruit bar

 green salad, italian dressing, sliced turkey, prunes, strawberries

 ham and cheddar cheese spinach tortilla roll ups, ranch, cucumber slices, radish slices, baby tomatoes, kiwi 

 layered fruit bar, shrimp spring rolls, colby jack cheese stick, sweet and sour sauce, 3 bean salad

 green salad, meunster cheese, pepperoni, veggie straws, prune, strawberries

 ham tortilla roll ups, raisins, coleslaw, moon cheese, kiwi

 shredded carrots, babybel gouda cheese, wheat thins, moon cheese, coleslaw, watermelon, craisins, sliced ham

 triscuits, baby tomatoes, yogurt tube, cubed ham, edamame, blackberries

 leftover pizza, ranch, turkey jerky, cubed colby jack cheese, broccoli, carrots, celery, applesauce

 cheese stick, raisins, cheddar bay biscuit, ranch, edamame, red bell pepper slices

 cucumber and carrot rings, cheddar bay biscuit, blueberries, ham salad, mini tomatoes, kiwi

 pineapple, hard boiled egg, carrot slices, edamame, mini club crackers, cheese stick

 pasta salad, starburst. crackers, blueberries

 salami, cucumber slices, cheese stick, layered fruit bar, ranch, pretzel thins, blueberries

 honey wheat pretzel sticks, pepperoni and meunster cheese, yellow bell pepper slices, ranch, raisins, strawberries, edamame

honey wheat pretzel sticks, mini clementine, boiled shrimp, ranch, blueberries, cucumber slices, baby tomatoes, lack olives

cheese stick, pretzel thins, mixed raisins, mini bell pepper slices, roast beef, strawberries

sliced ham, potato salad, baby tomato, broccoli, sugar snap peas, baby carrot, ranch, honeydew, cantaloupe, red grapes, pickle

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Back to School Breakfast Ideas!

As sad as my kids are about it, school starts tomorrow and summer will officially be over for us. To prepare myself and my freezer for the upcoming early mornings I am sharing a list of recipes that I have made before and loved to stock my freezer with!

Are you as obsessed with Pinterest as I am?

I have a page that I call "Tried and True Recipes" where I pin all of the recipes that I've cooked and loved along with notes of what changes or additions I made while cooking it. It's probably my most visited page and I'd love to know if you do something similar!

Here's a list of a few of our favorites. I'll probably make at least 2 from the list today to have a few choices for the kids to argue over in the morning!

DIY Drinkable Yogurts

Morning Glory Muffins by two peas and their pod

My son LOVES carrot cake and these muffins are a great healthy version of his favorite dessert

Cheesy Sausage and Egg Bake by Betty Crocker

Crustless Cottage Cheese Quiche by atco blue flame kitchen

loaded with protein, very good and easy!

Pumpkin-Apple Bread by Heather Homemade

 I baked this in a bundt pan and it was so pretty

Zucchini Carrot Oatmeal Muffins by Yellow Bliss Road

 I love that these are loaded with oats, zucchini, carrots and raisins

Almond Poppy Seed Ricotta Muffins with Orange by eat cake for dinner

so light and fluffy- I love the ricotta in these!

Pizza Pasta Frittata

Healthier Applesauce Spice Bread by Chelsea's Messy Apron

 I used dried cranberries instead of diced apple and it was still fabulous

Blueberry Banana Bread by Julia's Album

a delicious twist on banana bread that my kids love!

Ricotta Oat Cake with Mixed Berries by Italian Food Forever

really yummy and easy to make! I leave the walnuts off the top

Spiced Orange and Carrot Whole Wheat Muffins by table for two

anything resembling carrot cake is a favorite for my son

Apple Cinnamon Banana Bread by Just a Taste

apples and cinnamon in a buttermilk banana bread- yum

Healthy Pennsylvania Dutch Apple Muffin Cake by greens eggs and hamstrings

I love how healthy this one is! I use whole wheat flour instead of spelt flour and I subbed butter for the almond butter

Southwest Sweet Potato Hash Skillet

Zucchini-Pineapple Quick Bread by Cooking Light

a delicious way to start the day with hidden veggies!

Artichoke Cheese Oven Omelet by Taste of Home

I make this almost monthly and absolutely love it!! Be sure to squeeze any excess moisture form the artichokes and use a thicker salsa so it doesn't get too watery

Pumpkin Gingerbread Muffins by Lauren Kelly Nutrition

delicious anytime but especially in the Fall

Creme Brulee Baked Oatmeal by Tidy Mom

I seriously make this all the time. It's insanely good and easy to make!

DIY Drinkable Yogurts

My kids love those bottled drinkable yogurts. They're delicious, most have a decent amount of protein in them and they're easy to grab on busy mornings. The problem I have with most of them is how expensive they are (some are almost $2 a piece) and a lot of them are loaded with sugar especially the ones that are marketed specifically for kids. 

I decided to make my own and it's almost embarrassingly easy to do. 

Still delicious, way cheaper and loads less added (and unneeded) sugar!

You can obviously do any flavor your family likes best, my kids love vanilla the most but strawberry, cherry, blueberry and peach are all winners in this house!

I usually buy the 32 ounce tubs of yogurt and either mix a batch in my Nutra Bullet or a small Tupperware pitcher and then it's ready to pour in the mornings or after school. 

Paired with fresh fruit or toast, it can be a full meal as well!

DIY Drinkable Yogurts

1 cup low fat Greek yogurt (any flavor works)

½ cup low fat milk

Whisk together the yogurt and milk until smooth

Pour into cups with a straw and serve

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Watermelon Mai Tai

Remember that gorgeous yellow watermelon I made the Watermelon Wedge Salads with Mint Pesto with? I had some cubed watermelon leftover and decided to make a cocktail perfect for the weekend!
My Watermelon Mai Tais are absolute perfection and really make me wish I was still on vacation in Mexico and not gearing up for another school year! I can't believe my kids start on Tuesday and we will find out which teachers we get this afternoon.
What's your favorite tropical drink?

Watermelon Mai Tai

5 ounces spiced rum
3 ounces coconut-flavored rum
4 ounces pineapple juice
4 ounces orange juice
4 ounces watermelon juice
3 cups ice cubes
Mint sprigs, cherries and orange slices for garnish

Place the 4 ounces of the spiced rum, the coconut rum and juices in a pitcher and stir. Fill 2 cocktail glasses with ice and fill with the cocktail. Top each glass off with the remaining spiced rum, garnish the glasses and serve!
Makes 2 cocktails.

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Watermelon Wedge Salads with Mint Pesto

 Look how pretty these are! I was trying to think of a way to use up a ton of watermelon and mint that I had and came up with these gorgeous summer wedges!
The mint pesto is so simple to throw together and can absolutely be made in advance and any leftovers are fabulous on grilled fish or chicken.
The salty feta, fresh mint pesto and juicy sweet watermelon is a match made in summer heaven

Watermelon Wedge Salads with Mint Pesto

1 clove garlic

1 cup mint leaves

½ cup parsley leaves

2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ cup olive oil

5 pounds seedless watermelon wedges

1 cup feta cheese crumbles

¼ cup diced red onion

Place the garlic in a small food processor and pulse until well chopped. Add the mint leaves, parsley, red wine vinegar, salt and olive oil and process until smooth. 

Place the watermelon wedges on a large serving platter and sprinkle with the feta cheese and red onion. Drizzle with mint pesto and serve immediately.

Pizza Pasta Frittata

I love breakfast items that I can make in large batches and reheat in the morning. Anything to make the rush before school easier is a winner in my book and this easy Pizza Pasta Frittata is perfect for slicing and quickly reheating especially during those first few weeks of school when the alarm is going off way too early and we’re still not quite in our routine yet.

I don’t know about you but spaghetti and hot dogs are the two things in my house that never equal out. I’ve always got 2 extra buns or only a cup of spaghetti after the sauce or dogs are gone and I’m never one to throw away food so this dish is something that came out of necessity and turned into something that is requested pretty frequently.
If you're not familiar with frittatas, all it is is a baked omelette loaded with yummy ingredients. This time it's spaghetti and alllllll the supreme pizza toppings! Pepperoni, olives, mushroom, onion, bell pepper and 2 cheeses!

My kids, lucky for me, are not picky at all and will generally eat almost anything put in front of them. I know many out there deal with picky eaters and this recipe is totally customizable for that! If your kiddos don’t like olives, leave them off- no problem! Is your typical pizza order meat lovers instead of supreme? Cool, swap the veggies for some Canadian bacon and Italian sausage. Need a vegetarian option? Gotcha - swap the pepperoni for some steamed chopped broccoli or asparagus. The possibilities are endless!!

Pizza Pasta Frittata

1 1/2 cups cooked spaghetti noodles

1/2 cup sliced mushrooms

20 pepperoni

2 Tablespoons chopped red onion

2 Tablespoons chopped green bell pepper

1/4 cup sliced black olives

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1/4 cup shredded Parmesan

8 eggs

1/2 cup half and half

1 1/2 teaspoons garlic salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Pre heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a rimmed quarter sheet pan with parchment paper and spray generously with olive oil cooking spray.

Evenly spread the spaghetti on top of the parchment. Top with the mushrooms, pepperoni, red onion, green bell pepper, black olives, mozzarella cheese and Parmesan.

In a large mixing bowl whisk together the eggs, half and half, garlic salt

and black pepper. Pour the mixture evenly over the pan and place in the oven for 20 minutes, turning the pan halfway through for even baking.

Remove the pan from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before slicing.

Makes 8 servings

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