Fresh and Full of Flavour!

Here is a great meal idea that is light but filling. The only real guilty part would have to be the dipping sauces! These Vegetable Spring Rolls are bursting with crunchy vegetables and loads of flavour. 

I made these at my sisters house and since she had just thrown a birthday party for my niece (who wanted sushi of all things) she had a lot of fresh veggies and sticky rice left over. 

That made the prep time even less! 

Now first you will need to decide what you want to put in them. 

The options are really endless. If you do not use a meat it can even be vegetarian.

We chose to use a lot of veggies, rice and spicy tuna (canned tuna mixed with sriracha hot sauce).

The veggies were, cucumber slices, grated carrots, lettuce and avocado.

Then you will need your rice sheets, a large bowl of very hot water, and a tea towel. 

Place the rice sheet in the hot water for about 10-25 seconds. Remove and set on the tea towel. 

Place your ingredients in the middle.

Starting from the bottom, fold it up and over your veggies.

Next the sides over the veggies, as if you are making a pocket.

Now roll the bottom to the top and its done!

I will make a diagram to show off my impressive Microsoft Paint skills!

You see that? That is incredible if I do say so myself!

Now the Peanut Dipping Sauce!

Its the one in the middle of the picture 

Oh this stuff is good!

2 tbs crunchy peanut butter

2 tbs hoisin sauce

dash of soy sauce

dash of vegetable oil

1 clove of garlic, chopped as tiny as you can

a few shakes of hot sauce

3 tbs very hot water

Add everything together and mix. 

Keep mixing until it all comes together, it will, just keep stirring!

Dip away and enjoy it!

The other two sauces that I have included in the picture are a Red Thai Sauce by Heinz and a creamy sesame sauce called Wafu Sauce. They are both great with the rolls.

By Mommy Melissa

Corned Beef, Sauerkraut, and Cheesy Goodness Dip

This is one of my St.Patty's Day go to recipes. Nothing better than a delicious cheesy dip to please you guests- or yourself! It goes perfect with the Irish theme of the day. This dip is a family recipe, and ever since I tried that first bite I insisted on getting the recipe and making it every year! I promise you everyone who tries it will fall in love!

I posted this dip recipe last year and finally have a picture to share, I know it doesn't look like the best dip in the world, but I assure you it is. Find the recipe HERE.

POST BY MOMMY OLIVIA

Onion Soup Au Gratin

This is my all time comfort food. Especially on a cold day. Perfect paired with a light main dish or a stand alone light meal. It is filling and very flavourful. 

It may seem like this is a difficult soup to pull off, but it can be very simple. There are a few more traditional ways to make this soup but this one is super simple. 

You want your onions to look like this

Place bread on soup then cover with grated cheese

 Onion Soup Au Gratin

5 onions, sliced semi thin
3 cups of beef stock
1/4 tsp dried basil

1 bay leaf

pepper, to taste
enough crusty bread to cover the top of two bowls
about 1 cup of mozzarella cheese, more or less

1. Bring the beef stock to a boil. Add onions, basil, bay leaf and pepper.
2. Simmer until onions are soft.
3. Ladle into onion soup bowls. Add bread to the top then cover with cheese. Sprinkle with a bit extra basil.
4. Broil until cheese is bubbly and golden.
*Be careful the handles are very hot!

Hope you try this out and love it!

By Mommy Melissa

Potato Pancakes

I know this potato pancakes recipe is very unhealthy, but, my word they are good! James and I are always asking his father to make them for us but he never wants to! James begged him for the recipe and he 'gave' it to us. I think hes holding out on something because they did not taste like his. Sneaky man. Anyways, James whipped up this batch and they turned out good but as I said before, not like my father-in-laws!

Here is the recipe exactly as given to us.

4 large potatoes
1 yellow onion
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
salt and ground black pepper to taste
2 cups vegetable oil for frying

Directions
1. Finely grate potatoes with onion into a large bowl. Drain off any excess
liquid. 
2. Mix in egg, salt, and black pepper. Add enough flour to make mixture
thick, about 2 to 4 tablespoons all together. 
3. Turn oven to low, about 200 degrees F (95 degrees C). 
4. Heat 1/4 inch oil in the bottom of a heavy skillet over medium high heat.
Drop two or three 1/4 cup mounds into hot oil, and flatten to make 1/2 inch
thick pancakes. Fry, turning once, until golden brown. Transfer to paper
towel lined plates to drain, and keep warm in low oven until serving time.
Repeat until all potato mixture is used.

Served with sour cream makes it even tastier!
Now just to find the missing ingredient!

By Mommy Melissa

Hummus Melts

 

This is a great lunch, full of protein and vitamins- a great vegetarian option! 

What you will need

 - 1 whole pita

- cup full of fresh spinach

- 1 clove garlic

- 2 tbsp hummus (your choice of flavour)

- shredded cheese

Preheat you oven to 350.  In a frying pan over medium heat, add in 1 tsp olive oil, you spinach, and minced garlic- let cook until soft. Spread the hummus on your pita, add the cooked spinach and top with shredded cheese. Cook in the oven for about 7 mins- or until melted and crunchy. Enjoy!

Pinterest Challenge : BBQ Cauliflower Bites

I found this pretty yummy looking recipe on Pinterest and I thought that it looked really great! Chicken wings are a family favourite here and a healthy alternative to that would be amazing! These BBQ Cauliflower Bites were said to taste just like chicken wings but made from a vegetable. That sounded too good to be true!
and it was...

Here is the recipe I followed.
1/2 Head of Cauliflower cut into 1 inch strips about 2 inches long
1 Cup of Flour
1 Cup of Non Dairy Milk (I used baby rice cereal as a substitute)
1 Teaspoon of Garlic Powder
1 Teaspoon of Onion Powder
1/2 Teaspoon of Paprika
1/2 Teaspoon of Brown Sugar
1/2 Teaspoon of Liquid Smoke (optional so I did not use it)
1 Cup of BBQ Sauce (I used spicy hot wing sauce)

1. Preheat oven to 450f.
2.  Mix all dry ingredients together then dip the cauliflower into it making sure to cover it everywhere.
3. Place on a non stick cookie sheet or one sprayed with PAM.
4. Bake for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the BBQ sauce in a pot.
5. Dunk each piece of cauliflower into the sauce then bake another 5 minutes.

Click here to go to the blog with the original post.

I don't think that I will make this again. Honestly, it was bar-b-q covered cauliflower.

Who knows, maybe I did not do it right for some reason but the directions were followed as they were written.

Give it a try if you like this kind of flavour. Maybe it would be a good side to steak? It was not horrible, but it was not too good either....

If you try to give this recipe a go, let us know how your results turned out. Hopefully better than mine!






By Mommy Melissa

Greek Salad - Perfect for Summer! by Mommy Melissa

If you need a quick salad idea that is great to go with pretty much anything! Here is one for you! 

What you will need for the salad:

1 large English cucumber, cubed with peel on

2 medium tomatoes, cubed

1 red onion, chopped

feta cheese, crumbled into bits

What you will need for the dressing:

1/4 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon Dijon-style mustard

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

Mix all the dressing ingredients together then mix together with the chopped veggies. Chill for a few minutes then serve! 

You could also use this dressing in your favourite salads as well. Its very versatile! 

Grandma's Bruschetta Recipe

There's nothing better than Grandma's recipe, and this one I will remember forever! Loved by every single person who has ever taken a bite! AND! So easy to make!

What you will need:
- 1 whole wheat pita
- 1tbsp olive oil
- 1 clove garlic (minced) (or 1 tsp of garlic powder)
- 1 tsp of basil (fresh or dried)
- 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
- 4 slices of tomato
- Parmesan cheese
- salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350. In a small bowl mix oil, garlic, basil, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Lay pita on a baking sheet, take a brush and brush on the olive oil mixture. Lay the slices tomato all over, then brush the tomatoes with the olive oil mixture. Top with a generous portion of Parmesan cheese. Bake about 7 mins or until crispy.

Hope you enjoy my grandmas recipe!

Irish Dip

While down in Florida visiting family a few years back, my aunt was having a St.Patrick's Day party. My cousin Rebecca in the spirit of the holiday, made the most amazing warm dip I've ever tasted! Now, this dip does contain sauerkraut, and I know it has an acquired taste, but I have shared this recipe with friends that did not like sauerkraut, but loved this dip! So hear is the recipe, I hope you all love it as much as I do, now I don't currently have a pic maybe Sunday but it's so delicious you have to try it, it's the perfect party recipe for St.Patty's day, and I guarantee that everyone will be asking for this recipe!



What you will need:
1 medium sized jar of sauerkraut
1/2lb of corned beef or Pastrami
1 cup thousand island dressing
1 cup of grated Swiss cheese
1 block of cream cheese

I usually make this dip in a crock pot, but a large pot will do as well. combine all ingredients in crock pot, and let it sit for about 20 minutes, stirring frequently (may take longer, it all depends how long it take for the cheese to melt and all the flavours combine)

server warm. you can server it with Melba toast, crackers, pita bread, corn chips...whatever you like!

enjoy!

Kale Chips

My sister Jennifer has been raving about kale and how great tasting it is for a few weeks now. Crispy and salty, and its a decent substitute to chip cravings. I had my doubts but curiosity got the best of me and decided to give it a try (how good could baked leaves be right?!). I told myself that the next time at the store if I saw it and it was a decent price, then I would try it. I found it and it was quite affordable at $2.49 a bunch. Olivia came over and we gave it a try! Of course we had a camera on hand to document the experience!

sea salt, olive oil, kale

        We made four different flavours to try. Cajun, sea salt and pepper, seasoned salt and plain sea salt.

Four tasty ways!

at 375 for around 8 minutes or until crispy

While we were both not sure of the out come of this recipes taste we could not stop eating them! They were in fact very crunchy and very crispy but we both decided that they are no substitute for chips! 

Here is the recipe for you to try!

Ingredients :

a bunch of kale 

extra virgin olive oil

sea salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees ferinheight.

2. Wash the kale, being sure to get in all the nooks and crannies of the leaves. 

3. Dry completely (important so it does not go soggy in the oven).

4. Rip the kale leaves into chip sized pieces leaving out the stems.

5. Drizzle oil and season with sea salt. Rub it onto the leaves. 

6. Place on a baking sheet in a single layer and bake for around 8 minutes or until crispy. 

7. Remove and enjoy.

So there you have it! Give it a try and tell us how you liked it and your variations of spices and seasoning mixes! 

Fresh Salsa!

This is a simple easy way to make amazing salsa- I make it every summer when I can get all of the veggies fresh and in season. Just chop all your veggies into small cubes, finely chop the fresh cilantro I usually add 3-4 tbsp. Add the juice of 1 1/2 lime- taste after 1 lime (it's really preference, the past salsa I made I added 2 for that extra lime flavor. Add a few dashes of Tabasco sauce or your favourite hot sauce for extra spice, or add none at all for a more mild salsa. Finish with Salt and Pepper to taste. Not only is it delicious, but it's low fat!

Variations:

I have used in the past fresh jalapeno instead of jarred, make sure you take the seeds out or it gets wicked hot! I also added some of the pickled juice from the jar of jalapenos for that extra tang and spice sensation.

If you try out this recipe let me know what you think! Or if you made your own variations feel free to share!

6 Layer Dip & Guacamole

So this past weekend I decided to host my first (small) dinner party- the theme, MEXICAN! um delish? yes. So I went all out and made 3 different dips, Mexican Lime Salsa, Guacamole, and 6 layer dip. I think they all turned out pretty well, considering I made 2 of them for the first time, and the salsa recipe can be found here. We had yummy margaritas, and an unlimited supply of tacos adding onto my delicious dips. Of course I will show you the recipes, below. :)

Soften cream cheese and spread evenly on a pizza pan. Add the salsa, spread evenly amongst the cream cheese. Add all veggies- evenly! so every bite get a mix of everything! chill for a half hour- server with corn chips- enjoy!

Take a chip and DIP!!!

Cut avocados in half and scoop out contents. Add all ingredients together, add as much salt and pepper as dsired. After everything is well mixed together refrigerate for half hour so ingredients combine then serve!! (I served with corn chips)

All and all I think the night went well, Noah behaved, the food was great, and the company even better!! Have you had any gatherings recently? I would love to here you ideas or any new exciting recipes to share!

My table setting

I love dinner party themes... next time you decide to have people over why not add a fun theme? 

Toddler

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