Mini Apple & Pear "Pizzas": A Fun & Healthy Snack! {Recipe}

Our 34-month-old is not only an impressive eater, but she also loves helping out in the kitchen! As such, I recently stayed up way too late on Pinterest gathering healthy, kid-friendly food & cooking ideas to help cultivate her interest.

One of the neatest-looking "recipes" I came across was for apple sandwiches - colourful, all-natural, low-carb and definitely something a young kiddo could help make and would surely love to chow down on! A couple days later we set out to whip up a batch, but found our direction changing somewhat. First, we had both apples and pears lying around so we used one of each, and second, we found it quicker and easier to both make and eat the li'l guys when kept open-faced - i.e. "pizzas" instead of sandwiches! Finally, we got quite creative with the sauce and toppings. The result - total yumminess! My mom said they were reminiscent of healthy candy apples, and I think she hit the nail on the head with that one!

Mini Apple & Pear "Pizzas"

Prep Time: 10 minutes (even with a preschooler's help! ;)
Yield: About 12 mini pizzas - a good snack size for two kiddos, or one kiddo + mom!

Ingredients:

• One sweet apple (e.g. Royal Gala)
• One semi-firm pear (we like Bartlett but any should work)
• Natural nut butter (peanut, almond, cashew, etc.)
• Liquid honey (optional)
• A selection of raw, unsalted nuts and seeds (we like cashews, almonds, sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds, and sometimes we sprinkle on some hemp hearts and/or chia seeds for an added healthy boost!)

Steps: 

1. Gather your ingredients. Building the pizzas is way easier (especially with a wee one) when you're not running around grabbing stuff midway through!
   
   
   
2. Ready your pizza "crusts"! Cut approximately 1/4" slices off opposing sides of the apple until you reach the core, and repeat with the pear. Eat (or save) the outermost slices as these will be too small and won't sit flat, and do the same with the remainder of the fruit after you finish slicing the opposing sides (unless you don't mind a few narrower, rectangular pizzas, in which case you can slice down the remaining sides too!) (Note - make sure your helper is a safe distance away and/or is acutely aware of knife safety for this step!)
   
   
   
3. Arrange crusts on plate(s) and spread a thin layer of nut butter on each one.
   
   
   
4. Drizzle a small amount of honey across all crusts. My daughter loves to help with this part!
5. Decorate your pizzas. Here's where your little sous chef can really shine! Have them press in, sprinkle and shake on the toppings to their heart's content - or until their hunger gets the better of them! ;)
6. Enjoy!!

What are your favourite creative snack ideas to make and enjoy with your little ones?

Wordless Wednesday: Beans!!

Our garden beans have gone off this year! This was a single day harvest from the other week. Two meals enjoyed already and two more vacuum sealed in the freezer!

Do you grow vegetables? What do you have the most success with?

What To Do With All That Zucchini: 7 Ideas

Zucchini (or summer squash) is one of our favourite veggies to grow in our garden. It's easy to grow, resilient & adaptable, isn't prone to attracting pests and the yield is phenomenal. This year we have 6 plants, and since early in July they've been producing close to one new zucchini per day. My father and stepmother have an even more abundant zucchini situation going on - probably closer to two per day! While it's awesome to have so much fresh, healthy veg, one can only enjoy so many zucchini & onion stirfries. So needless to say, we've done a fair amount of research and experimentation in our household to find other tasty ways to enjoy this prolific veggie. Here are our Top 7 ideas!

 

1. Make muffins or bread. Like the aforementioned stirfry, this one's a bit of a given. Finely-grated zucchini adds nutrition, moistness and a depth of flavour to bread products without actually contributing a zucchini-like taste. This is a great way to sneak in some greens for picky eaters! And with zillions of different recipes out there, you certainly don't have to stick with the same one every time! Try gluten free, or combine it with banana, applesauce or carrot. Nuts work well too!
2. Throw some into a casserole. Casseroles, of course, make for quick & easy meals, so naturally they're a favourite of many families. I made a variant of this dish the other day using four grated zucchinis instead of spinach, and ground turkey to bulk it up. The resulting dish was yummy, filling and super-healthy - definitely a keeper! (Stay tuned for a possible blog post on this!)
3. Make zucchini "boats". Wondering what to do with those baseball bat-sized zukes you'll find after neglecting to harvest for a few days? They're pretty tough and seedy, so need a little sumpin' extra to achieve tasty status. Perfect solution - make stuffed zucchini boats! Basic technique - chop 'em in half, scrape out the centers, incorporate your choice of other ingredients (other veggies, meat, cheese, etc.), stuff the mixture back in and bake or barbecue until delicious. Lots of recipes out there to try out, or make up your own!
4. Whip up some fritters. This is one of my favourite ways to use zucchini as fritters are ridiculously easy to make (especially if you have a food processor) and awesome as a side. I love frying 'em up in coconut oil for a little extra flavour and crispiness.
5. Slice 'em into zucchini noodles (or "zoodles"!). This is a particularly awesome idea for those on a gluten-free (or completely grain-free) diet craving some pasta or noodle soup. I have to admit, I haven't mastered the technique for these just yet myself, but I'm going to keep trying. If I do end up embarking upon an anti-candida diet, this'll definitely have a place on the menu!
6. Enjoy it raw.. I didn't even consider zucchini to be a veggie you can eat raw until I had the pleasure of trying it julienned into a salad at a cooking class last year. Crunchy, fresh and slightly sweet, this dish had me wondering why a raw preparation isn't more common.
7. Freeze it. Got a row of zukes 3 feet long lining your counter, or simply out of inspiration? Then toss some in your freezer to enjoy off-season! To store chopped zucchini, you'll want to blanch it first, however grated zucchini (for use in baked goods, etc.) can be frozen raw - just squeeze a little liquid out of it first.

How do you like to eat zucchini? Got any favourite recipes?

Beanitos the Original Bean Chip: Review & Giveaway (Closed)

In recent years, my hubby and I have made great strides learning about nutrition and choosing healthier foods for our family. Nowadays, we regularly read labels and steer clear of products with processed ingredients. Problem is, we're both big time snackers - especially in the evening. Once the kiddos are in bed, we often find ourselves making a beeline for the pantry and rooting around for something to crunch on - an act which can potentially wreak havoc on an otherwise wholesome diet! Thankfully, we've discovered a brand that has set out to achieve the best of both worlds - enable snack junkies to get their fix and (dare I say it) actually be good for you. Enter Beanitos, the Original Bean Chip!

Product Info:

From the creators (Doug & Dave Foreman):

We’re two brothers who love to snack! We think everyone deserves to crunch and dip without compromise—to enjoy a snack that tastes great and is good for you. But we just couldn’t find a snack that fit the bill… so we created Beanitos©.

Beanitos are an honestly delicious snack made from super nutritious beans that have fiber and protein grown right in them. They're real food, full of crunchy flavor, free of preservatives, and made with only natural non-GMO ingredients.

The following comparison chart shows how a single serve portion of Beanitos measures up nutritionally to several competing snack brands. As it can be seen, the fibre and protein content of Beanitos is two to four times higher in each case. Additionally, fat and calories are generally lower and Beanitos is the only low glycemic option of the bunch.

In addition, Beanitos are vegan and certified kosher, and they are free of corn, gluten, cholesterol, trans fat and msg.

Beanitos come in six varieties - Original Black Bean with sea salt, Chipotle Barbeque black bean, Simply Pinto Bean with sea salt, Better Cheddar pinto bean, Restaurant Style white bean with sea salt and Nacho Cheese white bean. Our local Sobeys carries the black and pinto bean varieties so I've tried all these  already (and they're delicious, I must say!) For this review, I got the opportunity to check out both flavours of the new white bean Beanitos. Here are the ingredient listings of each:

Restaurant Style white bean with sea salt: Whole Navy Beans, Whole Grain Rice, Pure Sunflower and/or Safflower Oil, Guar Bean Gum, Sea Salt

Nacho Cheese white bean: Whole Navy Beans, Whole Grain Rice, Pure Sunflower and/or Safflower Oil, Cheddar Cheese Blend [Cheddar Cheese (Pasteurized Milk, Cheese Cultures, Salt, Enzymes), Whey, Buttermilk, Annatto], Sea Salt, Tomato Powder, Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, Spices, Lactic Acid, Paprika, Citric Acid, Guar Bean Gum

View other nutritional information on Beanitos here.


My Review:

I was sent a case (24 1.25 oz single-serve bags) of white bean Beanitos - 12 Restaurant Style (white bean with sea salt) and 12 Nacho Cheese.

The single size portion is just about perfect - enough to curb the snack craving and inject a solid amount of fibre and protein, but not too much to, y'know, throw your digestive system into overdrive. (Admittedly, I was not entirely gas-free the other week after ingesting almost a whole full-sized bag of the pinto bean & flax variant!) That said, I'm not a fan of the extra packaging that goes into single serve snacks in general; I prefer to buy the full size and consider it an opportunity to work on my self control. ;)

Both the restaurant style and nacho cheese flavours are similar in shape and "crunch factor" to a traditional corn chip. Taste-wise, they're lighter - less fatty and salty.

The Restaurant Style have a very subtle salt and bean flavour. I think they're pretty tasty straight up, however my husband prefers kicking them up a notch with a good dip.

They're delish with salsa too - especially a nice 'n' chunky homestyle variant.

The Nacho Cheese Beanitos are super-tasty on their own. There's no skimping on the cheese here, folks.

I could eat these guys every day. Unfortunately I just started a dairy-free regimen in order to investigate a potential sensitivity in our little guy, so I'll need to wait awhile before I can indulge again - booooo!

Overall, Beanitos definitely fulfill the snack craving! My husband and I both feel they're every bit as satisfying as "traditional" chips; Hubs said something to the effect that with other healthier snacks he's tried, he's found himself wishing he was eating chips, but with Beanitos, he just wants to continue eating! Our 2 1/2 year old daughter enjoys them too, as well as all of our parents who've had the chance to sample them. And with six flavours available (possibly more to come?), there's enough variety to avoid "snack boredom". Beanitos will definitely be a regular item on our grocery list moving forward!


Buy It:

Beanitos offers a store locator tool, however my local Sobeys isn't on the list so evidently it's not comprehensive. You can try this out first, but I'd recommend checking your local stores directly to see if any of them carry Beanitos. If you can't find a store in your area, you could always put in a request to see if one would be up for ordering them in!


Win It:

One lucky Manager to Mom reader will win a box (24 bags) of Beanitos white bean chips. Open to CAN/US.

To enter, fill out the Rafflecopter form below. Please follow all instructions within each entry option to ensure your entries are valid.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure:  The prize is being provided and shipped to the winner by Beanitos.  I received no financial compensation for writing my review or offering this giveaway, although I did receive a sample item free of charge.  This is my completely honest opinion above and may be different from yours.  

Wordless Wednesday: Bacon-Wrapped Pork Tenderloin

Do you love bacon? Or more specifically, do you like to wrap stuff in bacon? :) Got a favourite recipe?

10 Ways to Protect Your Food Storage Against Pests {Guest Post}

By: Lee Flynn

There's no time like the present for starting to prepare for tomorrow. Preparing for emergencies or times of need by buying food storage is a worthy pastime. Gathering any amount of food storage is no small task and it costs money. Money that you don't want to see go to waste by having food spoil due to lack of protection. Trust me, there's nothing worse than needing to use your food storage, opening it up, and finding that it's infested with some little bug or rodent. It's happened to me, so here are the best ways to protect your food against invaders.

1. Freeze What You Can. Freezing foods like flour, rice, and other grains can prevent a bug infestation. It also helps prevent any larvae from hatching which may already be in the food. The problem we run into is that freezer space is limited, and storing everything in a freezer is not practical. So pick out the most coveted grains and freeze them. You don't necessarily need to leave them in the freezer forever; freeze them for a week and then take them out. All the bad bugs should be dead.
   
   
2. High Density Buckets. Professional-grade thick plastic buckets are rodent-proof. That means there's no way those little rats and mice can chew through a bucket containing your food storage. I recommend the 5 gallon premium food storage containers that meet FDA standards.
   
   
3. Mylar Bags. Mylar bags are made of a thin metal material that have been created for lining food storage bins. The great thing about mylar bags is that they can be sealed with heat creating an oxygen barrier to the outside. You need to place low moisture foods, like beans, with oxygen absorbers in your mylar bags. Then put your mylar pouches in rodent-proof containers.
   
   
4. Carbon Dioxide. For those packing their own food storage, making sure your product is free of pests before you seal it up is important. The big companies fumigate food using a series of chemicals which works very well and kills lots of the insect larvae. For the home food storage packer, dry ice is a great way to do the same thing. Dry ice will fumigate products with carbon dioxide gas. It's heavier than air so it stays low in the container. Simply place a sheet of dry ice at the bottom of your food storage container and let the gas cover the food and all the bugs should die.
   
   
5. O2 Absorbers. Oxygen is not your friend when it comes to keeping your food pest-free. Oxygen absorbers or silica packets work great when preparing your food storage. Simply place them at the top of the food before they are sealed and it will soak up all the oxygen. Insects need oxygen to thrive, so by removing oxygen they can't thrive and they will die.
   
   
6. Bay Leaves. Spreading bay leaves throughout the food storage container is a popular way of deterring pests. Bugs don't like the smell of bay leaves. You don't need very many leaves to do the trick. Just add 5 to 10 leaves for a 5 gallon bucket. You can also spread the leaves throughout cupboards containing the food storage. Bay leaves will not affect the taste of your food.
   
   
7. Temperature. Proper temperature is crucial to food storage. The most ideal temperature to keep your food safe for a long time is 75°F or 24°C. This comes into play when people decide to store their food storage in the garage or shed. Sure there's more room out there, but the temperature fluctuates way too drastically for the food to remain safe for a long time. Keeping temperature consistent will not only protect your food against spoilage, it will also protect it against those nasty pests...bacteria.
   
   
8. Diatomaceous Earth. Mixing Diatomaceous Earth into your food storage, like beans or grains, can control insects. When purchasing your Diatomaceous Earth, make sure it's approved by the FDA for human consumption. There are companies which make it for swimming pools and this type can contain lots of harmful chemicals. Using this method is really easy: for every 40 pounds of grains, add 1 cup of Diatomaceous Earth. This should kill the bugs and you can still eat the food mixed with this product.
   
   
9. Use Glass. Glass containers work really well to create an airtight oxygen-free environment when combined with oxygen absorbers. The nice thing about using glass containers is that you can store things in "every day size", as some people hesitate to open a 5 gallon bucket of sealed grains unless it's absolutely necessary.
   
   
10. Vacuum Sealing. Vacuum packaging your food storage is another great way to get the oxygen out. Remember without oxygen all the little critters will die. I put vacuums sealing at the bottom of the list because honestly it's hard to vacuum seal food really well. The food needs to contain less than 1% oxygen, and that's not easily done with vacuum sealing. That said, it is still a good idea to vacuum seal your food but you will want to supplement this approach by using oxygen absorbers.

Lee Flynn is a freelance writer and expert in outdoor survival food storage and freeze-dried meals.

Vegetarian Burritos with All the Fixins {Recipe}

If you're one of the skeptics out there convinced that vegetarian food cannot be hearty nor flavourful, this one's for you.  (Assuming you like Mexican food as well, that is. :)

My hubby has made a variant of this recipe probably 8-10 times now, perfecting it along the way. The flavour combinations in this dish are explosive, the colours are certainly pleasing to the eye and it is such a fun meal to eat with all the different components. Depending on your preference, you can kick up the heat factor or not. Either way, it's exquisito! Health-wise, you're doing pretty well too with all the veggies, brown rice and beans.

It does take some time to put everything together, but it's not hard nor precise work. You can prep the filling the night before if it's more convenient.

Prep Time: 30-40 minutes
Cook Time: 60-70 minutes
Serving Size: 6

Ingredients:

• 1 large onion, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, diced
• 1 green pepper, diced
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp coriander
• 1/4 tsp cayenne (optional)
• 1/2 large jalapeno, diced (optional)
• 1/2 large jalapeno, sliced (optional)
• 1 19 fl oz / 540 ml can of black beans, rough mashed
• 2 cups old cheddar cheese, grated
• Handful of cilantro, rough chopped
• 1 cup frozen corn, thawed
• 3/4 cup brown rice, cooked
• 6 large whole wheat torillas

To Serve on the Side:

• Salsa
• Sour cream
• Avocado slices
• Refried beans (heated)
• Cilantro

Steps:

1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees

2) Saute onion, garlic, green pepper, diced jalapeno, cumin, coriander and cayenne on medium heat until vegetables are tender.

3) In a big bowl, mix together sauted veggies, black beans, rice, corn, half the cheese, half the cilantro.

4) Spoon a good-sized "long dollop" of burrito mixture onto a torilla, placing it closer to one side than the other and leaving some room at each end. This should give you a pretty good idea of size and placement:

5) Starting at the side closer to the mixture, firmly roll up the burrito.

6) Repeat the above two steps with the remaining 5 burritos. If there is some mixture left over, don't fret - it's delicious on its own. :)

7) Place burritos in a shallow, lightly greased 10" x 14" casserole dish with the edges down. Place a clean damp wash cloth over the burritos to prevent the tortillas from drying out. Cover the dish with foil.

8) Bake for 45 minutes

9) Remove the foil and cloth. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and sliced jalapenos.

10)  Bake for another 10 minutes. Mmm, melty! (As you can see, we only added the jalapenos to half of them this time around so that S could enjoy them too!)

11) Let stand for 10-15 minutes, serve with side items and Enjoy!

Sausage, Bean, Tomato and "Whatever Else You Want" Soup {Recipe}

Alright, this is one of my favourite soups to make these days. It's delicious, flavourful, hearty, at least somewhat nutritious (assuming you pack it full of g00dness like I do) and ridiculously versatile. Then again, I'm of the opinion that most recipes are versatile. Food isn't black & white, y'know? :)

I do have to apologize for the crappy-ish pic above. I neglected to take one as we were enjoying our first meal from the latest batch, so I snapped one later as I was heating up some leftovers. The broth looks a little thinner and greasier here and I forgot the parm on top. But ehh, it'll have to do.

This soup is loosely based on one I found at allrecipes.com. I believe I made it (mostly) faithfully the first time and then began to adjust things based on personal taste, ingredients I had on hand, etc.

To me, the soup only has a handful of "mandatory" ingredients to get the right flavah. Just pick and choose out of the remaining optional ingredients (or add others as you see fit) and everything should come out hunky dory! Heck, you can even feel free to "live dangerously" and adjust the mandatory ingredients. That's the beauty of soup - it should all come out tasty in the end!

I recommend leaning toward organic and fresh or dried (vs. canned) whenever possible, though admittedly I use canned beans and tomatoes a lot as it's just easier. As canned goods go, Eden Organic is a great choice as all of their cans are BPA-free.

The suggested quantities below will feed at least 6-8 people (or 2-3 people with a truckload left for freezing purposes. :)

"Mandatory" Ingredients:

• 1 large onion, diced
• Several cloves of garlic, minced
• About 6 fresh sausage links, skins removed and cut into small pieces. (I like garlic, spicy and/or paprika myself.)
• 3-4 cups of tomatoes, diced (fresh or use a 28 fl oz can)
• 7-8 cups of broth (I do half chicken, half beef)
• 3-4 cups of white kidney (cannellini) beans and/or romano beans (dried or use two 19 fl oz cans)

Optional Ingredients (I suggest including at least 2-3 of these including a starch and at least one "green" for a rich, hearty soup!)

• 2 potatoes, chopped into small cubes
• 8 oz fresh pasta (e.g. tortellini)
• 1 cup of quinoa
• 6-8 carrots, diced 
• 4-6 celery stalks, diced
• 2 zucchinis, sliced in half and chopped
• 6-7 oz of fresh, organic baby spinach
• 6-7 oz of button mushrooms, chopped

Flavourings (to taste):

• Fresh, chopped parsley 
• Dried basil, oregano and/or thyme
• Salt & pepper
• Parmesan reggiano cheese, finely grated

Steps (Note - if you're not using a particular ingredient just skip this step):

1) In a large saucepan, saute the sausage on medium high until cooked through. Set aside.
2) Cook quinoa in a separate pot according to package directions. Set aside.
3) Saute the onion in the sausage grease (yum!) for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently
4) Add the garlic and saute for a few more minutes, continuing to stir
5) Add the broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low.
6) Add potatoes and simmer for 10-15 minutes.
7) Add carrots and celery and simmer for another 10-15 minutes.
8) Add tomatoes, mushrooms and herbs. You know the drill - simmer for another 10-15 minutes.
9) Add zucchini, pasta, beans and cooked sausage. Simmer for about 5 minutes.
10) Add spinach. Simmer for about a minute, until spinach is wilted
11) Serve with parmesan reggiano, quinoa and salt/pepper to taste!

Time to Feed the Freezer!

During my 3rd trimester, we took the advice of many and stocked our deep freezer with MANY containers of home-made meals: soups, stews, cabbage rolls, casseroles and other goodies. We were so glad we did, as we basically ate out of the freezer for 3-4 weeks straight following S's birth. And ate well! Although we did bust out the occasional conventionally frozen dinner, these were few & far between.

Now that I'll be returning to work in about 3 weeks (insert stereotypical but oh-so-true statement lamenting the surprisingly expeditious passage of time here), we figured it makes sense to feed Mr. Freeze again. With S going to daycare 8 hours per day, M-F, something's telling me we're not going to want to spend the precious few hours we have with her each day slaving over frequent "from scratch" meals in the kitchen.

We've already begun the process. Here's what Mr. F has graciously accepted so far:

• One small-ish container of turkey noodle soup (1 meal)
• Two containers of cabbage rolls (8-10 rolls each)
• Two containers of sausage, bean & potato soup (3-4 meals worth)

In addition to this, we're looking to make large batches of the following to add to the stockpile:

• Chris' "famous" chili
• Split pea & ham soup
• Beef barley soup
• Jerk chicken & Jamaican "rice and peas"
• Pav Bhaji

We'd love to hear other ideas as well!

So tell me - what are your favourite dishes to make for the purpose of feeding your freezer?

Menu Plan Monday: Hubby's Request!

Yesterday I ate a whole jar of "store home made" minestrone soup for lunch myself (about 3 bowls worth). It was quite delicious so I mentioned to Chris that we should do homemade minestrone as it's gotta be quite easy to make. His response? Minestrone is boring - it's like the fast food of soups. :) Well then! But his follow-up suggestion was kind of awesome. He said, why don't we do a chicken curry soup? Hello yummy - I'm in!!

I've also been wanting to make a batch of "sarma" (Croatian cabbage rolls) for awhile. Sarma's a whole afternoon affair so I'll need someone to watch li'l daughts during the process. I'm thinking Saturday for this one. And if I'm feeling ambitious, we might get a recipe post out of this one! :)

Back to linking up with orgjunkie this week!

Monday:
BBQ chicken (from Sobey's)
Caprese salad

Tuesday:
Coconut-Curry Chicken Soup (using the broth from the BBQ chicken)

Wednesday:
Spinach and Mushroom Pasta Bake

Thursday:
Broiled salmon (need to decide on flavour combo)
Veg (broccoli or asparagus?)
Pasta salad (I'll grab some from Erb's, the discount foot outlet down the road)

Friday:
Curling - off dinner duty! :)

Saturday:
Sarma - recipe to follow!!

Easy Peasy Spinach, Mushroom and Bacon Quiche {Recipe}

In my 1 year "blog-iversary" giveaway, a couple of you mentioned you would like to see more quick & easy recipe posts. I love writing these; just a matter of finding the time among the other blog commitments I have going on (and, of course, that thing called "real life" as well. ;)

Barring an allergy or strong distaste for eggs, quiche is a dish that every home cook should have in their repertoire. Why?

• It's ridicu-easy and quick to make (and almost impossible to screw up, in my opinion). Especially if you opt for pre-made shells like I do, given my complete lack of appreciable pastry-making skills. Total preparation time? About 15-30 minutes. (15-20 if you're most people and 25-30 if you're me, because I'm inexplicably slow in the kitchen. I'm working on this.) Of course, making your own crust adds to the time as well.
• It can be reasonably healthy. Good protein from the eggs, and adding in some greens really boosts the nutritional profile. 
• It's flexible. The base can be readily changed up according to the ingredients you have on hand, what you have a taste for, etc.
• It's tasty!! (Well, I think most people would agree with this, anyhow.)

So as part of this week's menu plan, yesterday I made a spinach, mushroom and bacon quiche. I was planning to use ham but ended up subbing in the bacon as I ran out of said ham earlier in the week. The result: just as yummy! I referenced a couple recipes but changed things up a bit, so I thought I'd record the actual ingredients & steps I used for future reference.

Like I already mentioned, you can totally change things up in this recipe. For example, you could replace the spinach with finely chopped broccoli, or use different spices (I've seen nutmeg and coriander powder included in other recipes.) You could adjust the proportion of milk to cream, or milk and cream to egg as well. A quiche purist might tsk tsk these suggestions (and of course, they'd undoubtedly make their own crust as well), but I personally think as long as you don't stray too far away from the basics, it all comes out tasty in the end. :)

Easy-Peasy Spinach, Mushroom and Bacon Quiche

Ingredients:

• 2 pre-made pie crusts (285g total)
• 1 small onion, diced
• 5-6 oz of fresh, organic baby spinach
• 5-6 oz of button or portabella mushrooms, chopped
• 6 strips of bacon
• 1 1/2 cups of cheddar cheese, grated
• 5 eggs
• 1/2 cup 18% table cream
• 1/2 cup rice milk (or cow's milk)
• 1/2 tsp cayenne
• 1/2 tsp paprika 
• Salt & pepper to taste    

Steps:

1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

2) Cook bacon until it's just starting to crisp. Reserve about 1 tbsp of the bacon grease.

3) Saute onion & mushrooms in the bacon grease until soft.

4) Reduce heat and add spinach. Stir for 1-2 minutes until wilted.

5) Chop bacon into 1/2-1 inch pieces and add back in. Stir for another minute.

 

6) Spread mixture evenly into two shells. Top with grated cheese.

 

7) Whip together eggs, cream, milk, cayenne, paprika, salt and pepper to make a custard. Pour evenly on top of the base ingredients in each shell.

 

8) Bake for 40-45 minutes.

9) Let stand for 10-15 minutes, serve and enjoy!

Do you like to make quiche? Do you have any favourite recipes / ingredient combinations you would like to share?

Menu Plan Monday: Our Plentiful Patch

First of all, excuse the late posting here. I actually "slept when baby slept" during S' nap today as I was feeling pooched after a couple late nights out this weekend.

This weeks' menu attempts to use up more of the vegetables that continue to come out of our garden! It's incredible how late of a harvest we're getting this year. And there's that one remaining block of paneer cheese in the fridge begging to be enjoyed as well.

Oh, and I'm sneaking yesterday into the menu as well. *nods* Is that cheating?

Sunday:
Pasta with Sausage, Tomatoes and Mushrooms + a simple cucumber tomato feta salad. This took care of a cucumber and some of the remaining grape tomatoes from the garden, plus the plum tomatoes from our latest Pfenning’s basket.

Monday:
Broiled Scallops + Green Beans with New Potatoes. We've had a bag of scallops in the freezer for awhile now so it's time to bust those out, plus I was surprised to see all kinds of beans left in the garden when I checked the other day! I'd totally thought those bad boys were finito.

Tuesday: 
Paneer Biryani with Cucumber Raita. (Yup, another cucumber from the garden!)

Wednesday:
Chris is out at curling, so leftovers. Wednesdays will probably be leftover/eating out nights more often than not this Winter!

Thursday:
Spinach, Mushroom and Ham quiche. I've made this one before and it turned out awesome, despite using a pre-made crust. I'll be doing this again because we *still* don't have a quiche pan (my stepmother apparently has one with our name on it but haven't grabbed it from her yet). But here's the thing - even if/when we do own a pan, I might just continue using the pre-made crusts, at least while we have young kiddos. As much as I'm all about making things from scratch whenever possible, well, time is of the essence these days and something's gotta give. :) And without the homemade shell-ement, this is a 15-minute meal. FTW.

Friday:
Dinner out with the girls!! We’re heading to Sole (an upscale casual Mediterranean restaurant) in downtown Waterloo. Surprisingly, I’ve never been there before. It’ll be nice to get out with the ladies and the Dinner Menu looks incredible!

Aside from actual meals, our garden is positively TEEMING with jalapenos and other peppers, so I'm going to try whipping up a homemade hot sauce! I'm not sure why I hadn't thought of this before as we looove our hot sauce and the garden's been producing these babies all season! And apparently the sauce can last up to 6 months in the fridge in an airtight container. We'll totally use it in half that time!

Tropical Traditions Canadian Raw Honey - Review & Giveaway!

Ladies and gentlemen, you are in for a treat! For my second review/giveaway with Tropical Traditions, I selected their Certified Organic Canadian Raw Honey. Why? Well, we eat a lot of honey in our household. We enjoy it in oatmeal, fruit & yogurt parfaits, stirfry sauces, tea and simply drizzled on some toast. We love the taste and appreciate that it is a healthier alternative to table sugar. (In fact, did you know that it is included in the list of World's Healthiest Foods at whfoods.org? Read more here, including nutritional details, possible health benefits, how to select & store, how to enjoy, individual concerns and other information!)

Admittedly, up until this point, we've usually just grabbed the convenient, processed type of honey from our local grocery store which may not offer the full range of nutritional and health benefits. However that's about to change now that our taste buds have savoured the raw, certified organic variant offered by Tropical Traditions!

Tropical Traditions honey is produced right here in Canada, sourced from hives in wild, vegetation-rich areas of the country. In accordance with US and Canadian standards for organic certification, these hives are sufficiently isolated from industrial areas, farmer's fields and landfills (based on a bee's natural flying range), and all aspects of the honey production are taken into account in the certification process. The honey has not been subjected to pasteurization or filtering, which means it retains beneficial nutrients and enzymes as well as a smooth, creamy texture. View more details, as well as customer comments, on the Tropical Traditions website.

As a side note, I do have to say I found it rather amusing and ironic that my Canadian honey sample was shipped back up to me here in Ontario from their warehouse in Nevada, but I digress. ;)

Alright, so let's see (and taste) this honey in action!

Here is a comparison of your standard store-bought honey (left) with Tropical Traditions Canadian Raw Honey (right). Notice that the Tropical Traditions honey is much lighter coloured than the store-bought honey.

 

Now, take a look at the difference in consistency. The store-bought honey runs right off the toast whereas the Tropical Traditions honey is nice & spreadable!

Admittedly, one minor drawback of this "spreadability" is that the honey doesn't readily drizzle, which you might sometimes want it to do. I did a little research, however, and it appears you can safely soften the honey by heating it at a low temperature on the stove. It is inadvisable to microwave it, however, as this may damage its valuable enzymes.

Now, the big question - how does it taste? Mouth feel-wise, it is decidedly smooth and velvety. Hubby said it's like getting the extra-creamy version of his favourite peanut butter. :) By contract, the store-bought brand feels almost sticky and kind of coats the tongue.

Another big difference is in the flavour. It has an aromatic and subtle floral quality, and is less "sugary" sweet than the store brand.

All in all, this honey definitely invokes a pleasant sensation in the ol' taste buds!

I made myself a parfait consisting of unsweetened yogurt, strawberries, banana and my favourite granola cereal. I added a dollop of Tropical Traditions Canadian Raw Honey and wowee - was it ever amazing! This is going to become a regular breakfast staple, oh yes!!

My favourite way to eat honey is in its natural, uncooked form, however I'm also eager to try out some of the tasty-sounding honey recipes kicking around out there! Tropical Traditions has some on its Coconut Recipes website;  just type "honey" in the search box at the top to filter the list appropriately. A large collection of honey recipes can also be found on the National Honey Board's website.

One final point that's important to mention: raw honey should not be given to infants under 1 year of age. This is due to the risk of infant botulism, a rare but serious disease in which the bacteria Clostridium botulinum grows within the baby's gastrointestinal tract. This bacteria is common in nature and can be found in soil and certain foods like honey. The risk is likely lower in a certified organic brand like Tropical Traditions, however it's still better to be safe than sorry!

All in all, Tropical Traditions Canadian Raw Honey is a wonderful product that I wholeheartedly recommend, whether you'd consider yourself a honey connoisseur or are just looking for a more natural and health-conscious sweetening option.

Buy It:

You can purchase Tropical Traditions Canadian Raw Honey (and other great products) directly from the Tropical Traditions website, so buzz on over and grab some! ;) They often have terrific promos & discounts going which you can keep track of by signing up for the Tropical Traditions newsletter.

Win It:

Tropical Traditions has generously offered to give away a 17.6oz. jar of Canadian Raw Honey to one lucky Manager to Mom reader!

To enter, please fill out the Rafflecopter form below. Comments do not count as entries, however feel free to add a comment to remind yourself that you entered!

Menu Plan Monday: All Over the Map!

Indeed - this week's menu is somewhat of a cornucopia of different influences and flavours. I'm back to linking up with orgjunkie.com as well. Check out other MPMs here:

Monday:
Paneer Matter. Yes, the same dish from Indian Inspiration Week! :) I still have two more blocks of paneer to use up (it was on special two weeks ago) and this is one of Chris' favourite Indian dishes!

Tuesday: 
Crockpot beef barley soup. We like to add garlic and tomato to this, and I might try bacon and/or white kidney beans as well. The heartier, the better for this one! S and I will be sticking around at home the whole day, so we can enjoy sniffing the yummy beef soup-y flavours filling the air. I heart soup-making days!

Wednesday:
Seafood feast! We're thinking cedar plank Pacific salmon and giant shrimp on the barbie, plus broiled scallops and asparagus. The weather's supposed to be beautiful (23 degrees and sunny) so we might be able to enjoy an outdoor meal!

Thursday:
Sweet potato coconut quinoa soup. Just reading this title makes me salivate. How can you go wrong with that list of awesome ingredients??!

Friday:
Leftovers or eat out. I'm thinking we'll have a bunch of that beef barley soup left to devour, and that stuff is even better after 2-3 days of chillaxin' in the fridge!


So what are you all eating this week?

Menu Plan Monday: A Taste for Thai!!

Yup I know it's Tuesday. Let's just be OK with that and move on. :)

Chris mentioned to me the other day that it was soooooo awesome-sauce when I made three Indian recipes this past Spring during what I called Indian Inspiration Week.

So, I've decided to do another theme this week and I'm calling it A Taste for Thai! 'cause, y'know, I've got a taste for Thai and all. :)

Ironically, the week actually started with some more Indian. I made Palak Paneer yesterday and will be using the rest of the paneer tonight. So the Thai yumminess begins tomorrow!

Without further ado...

Monday:
Palak Paneer w/ Toasted Naan

Tuesday:
Zucchini Pasta w/ grape tomatoes, basil and paneer. I found this when Googling "What to do with leftover paneer" as last night's recipe only called for half of the package. It's actually perfect as we have a surplus of zucchini, grape tomatoes AND basil from our garden. I've never made zucchini pasta before but sounds super-easy and yummy!

Wednesday:
A Taste for Thai Recipe #1: Thai Green Chicken Curry. Lots of beans to harvest from our garden right now, plus we're getting a sample of organic chicken today from Onterra Farms which we can try out as well! (Edit - the chicken sample never ended up arriving (that's another story) so we had vegetarian curry.) Oh, and I'm totally using some of my Tropical Traditions Virgin Coconut Oil to pump up the coconut-y flavour even more! This dish is going to rule. :)

Thursday:
A Taste for Thai Recipe #2: Fish Fillets with Chili Lime sauce. This is a recipe from our Thai cookbook. I'm in KW that day so I'll stop in at T&J Seafoods for some really nice, fresh white fish!

Friday: (or the weekend, as Chris and I might go on a date that night!)
A Taste for Thai Recipe #3: Sukothai Phad Thai. I'm going to follow some of the adjustment suggestions in the first review as the person who wrote it appears to know their shtuff about Thai cooking, and I really want to nail down that perfect Phad Thai recipe! Perhaps I'll do a dedicated post on this one if it turns out r0xx0r.

Menu Plan Monday: Organic Moroccan Seafood Barbeque

Haven't done one of these in forever. I've been under the weather, on antibiotics for a UTI (TMI? lots of TLAs!) and we've been out & about a lot in the evenings. Excited to be back in the saddle though with a menu showcasing goods from our garden, this week's organic blender basket from Pfenning's, large & in-charge sea creatures and aromatic spices. Yum!

As usual, linking up at orgjunkie.com. Check out other MPMs here:

Monday:
Pre-made stuffed pasta & sauce. Nice 'n' simple to start off the week.

Tuesday:
Greek salad with chopped chicken breast. I'll use green-leaf lettuce from the organic box and cherry tomatoes and cucumber from the garden.

Wednesday:
Seafood barbie! Jumbo shrimp & scallops are on deck, and I might also pick up some T&J salmon to cedar plank-ize. :DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD~~~~
Broccoli and lemon risotto (using organic broccoli from the box!) - thought this would pair well

Thursday:
Vegetarian Moroccan Stew. This came up when I googled kale recipes. I love how the non-standard items in the organic box inspire us to try new, tasty-sounding dishes!

Friday:
Leftovers (apparently the VM stew is even better the next day) OR treat ourselves and eat out!

My Sinfully Delicious Summer Vice(s)

OK I'll admit it. Despite many recent strides toward leading a healthier lifestyle, I've become totally hooked this Summer on something not so nourishing: McDonalds iced coffees.

I can't help it. The'yre delicious and they're "only a dollar, all Summer!"

To be fair, I do make some customizations to my version so it's less unhealthy. Milk instead of cream (woot, extra calcium) and half the syrup. So I don't feel too bad about having a large one about every other day. :O

My teeth, however, aren't too happy about this. If I'm not super diligent with coffee and tea, the front ones get stained. And needless to say, I haven't been too careful, so I now have a mid-August appointment booked with my dentist to polish 'em back to their normal pearly white state.

There's also this Mom & Pop ice cream shop down the road called Swirls which makes soft-serve treats (similar to DQ) but using REAL ice cream - not ice milk. So they're fattier, but much richer, creamier and tastier! And everything at Mom & Pop Shop prices. FTW! I love their "Razzle" - the Swirls equivalent of a Blizzard. Let me just say they do NOT skimp on the toppings!

So what's your sinfully delicious Summer vice?

Tabbouleh Salad with Chickpeas {Recipe}

Well, I didn't Menu Plan last week because I was pooped from vacation, the almost record-setting heat and a kidney infection, and I won't really be doing it this week either as Chris is in Toronto for the majority of the week. But I did, at the very least, manage to whip out this dish to take to a pool party / BBQ at my Aunt & Uncle's place today.

If you're into healthy, vegetarian, garlic-y dishes and you haven't made Tabbouleh Salad before, what are you waiting for? This dish is tasty, super-easy to make, and although not traditional, the addition of chickpeas adds some solid protein and substance to the dish. And it's nice & light - perfect for those hot, Summer days!

I know there are a million of these recipes already floating around the interwebs, however here's my version, complete with pics (but of course!)

Tabbouleh Salad with Chickpeas

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup bulgur wheat
• 2 large tomatoes with seeds removed, diced
• 1/2 cucumber, peeled and finely chopped
• 3 spring onions, diced
• 2-4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
• 1 cup fresh parsley, minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh mint leaved, minced
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 can (19 oz) chickpeas, drained & rinsed
• Salt & pepper, to taste

(Note - I used parsley from our garden when I made it today. Unfortunately, it's not growing too well so I only got about 1/2 to 2/3s of a cup. As a result, ours didn't taste quite as "fresh" as it usually does. You really do want to shoot for the whole cup. Oh, and how win is that backwards-c-shaped cucumber? Also harvested from our garden, TYVM! It looks like some sort of green cucumber pacman on the cusp of ravaging its regular-shaped counterpart to its left. Veggie cannibalism?! But, I digress.)

Steps:

1. Pour the bulgur wheat into a large bowl and cover with 1 cup of boiling water. Stir. Let sit until all water is absorbed (about 20-30 minutes) then fluff with a fork.
2. Stir in tomatoes, cucumber, spring onions, garlic, parsley, mint, lemon juice, olive oil, chickpeas, salt and pepper.
3. Cover and chill for 1+ hours (ideally overnight). Let sit at room temperature for 20-30 minutes before serving. Enjoy!!

Menu Plan Monday: Cottage Edition!

Day 3 at the cottage and it's a rainy one! Since we're stuck indoors anyway, it's a good time to do a l'il blogging!

Last year at the cottage I wrote up a menu plan for the week and it really helped organize our shopping trip and daily meals. So we made another one for this trip. With 7 adults and 2 kids (well 3 including S, but she still has her own meals so doesn't "count" :), it's all about convenience, simplicity (no recipes!) and having plenty to go around!!

The first thing we did was take stock of the meal-appropriate food everyone brought along (meat, pasta, veggies, etc.). We then arranged these into individual dinners, breakfasts, etc. based on factors such as BBQ vs. non-BBQ, mixing things up day-to-day and how perishable each item was. Finally, we filled in the gaps to add in salads, sides, etc. for each meal.These "gap" items, along with breads & cheeses for simple lunch sandwiches (to round out the numerous cold cuts brought along), healthy and non-so-healthy snacks and other items comprised the master shopping list. We ended up spending less than $200 total, and the food should last us the majority of the week - not too bad!

The cottage menu plan actually started on Saturday with Taco Night, which Chris' sister brought the fixings for - a nice, easy and tasty way to start off the week! We me end up reordering the meals from that point onward based on the weather, what people feel like, etc. but we'll use the ordering below as a blueprint.

Oh, and I'm linking up again this week! Check out other MPMs here:

Saturday
- Hard and soft tacos

Sunday
- BBQ - hot dogs, sausages and side salads (coleslaw and pasta)

Monday
- Ribs, potatoes, carrots and garden salad

Tuesday
- Pasta, garlic bread, leftover garden salad

Wednesday
- Marinated chicken & veggie kebobs

Thursday
- Steak, stuffed mushrooms, broccoli & cauliflower

Friday
- Eat out!!

So what are you eating this week? Who else is BBQing? Anyone else at the cottage?

Menu Plan Monday: Leftovers Edition

Over the Canada Day long weekend, we BBQ'd. A LOT! We also prepared a dish for the annual picnic with Chris' extended family. Since stores were closed on Friday, I ended up doing a mondo shopping trip on Thursday. Although we did make a list, we went with the whole "it's better to have it and not need than to need it and not have it" philosophy, so we inevitably ended up with a lot of leftovers and unused food. So my goal this week is to incorporate as many of these as possible into our meals! We'll also be heading to the cottage this weekend which is even more motivation to clear out the perishables. I'm pretty proud of this menu plan! It includes a few new dishes which sound very tasty, and if all goes well, we should end up with very little or no waste.

I'm also going to be linking up with I'm An Organizing Junkie starting this week, so I can proudly display one of her (many) MPM banners from this point forward! Here we go!

Monday: I'm preparing a few dishes today 'cause some things need to get eaten/cooked stat. Some of this will end up as leftover-leftovers. :)

Lunch:
Sausage and egg casserole, amended to include sauteed onion and mushroom as well. A plethora of leftovers are going into this one! Two cooked sausages and 3 flat, multigrain hamburger buns (in place of the white bread) from Saturday's BBQ, the last spicy smoked sausage from the meat keeper for some kick and a handful of the mushrooms from the remaining 680g package we didn't even end up touching over the weekend.

Dinner:
Hearts of Romaine Salad w/ apple, red onion and cider vinaigrette. We don't have cider vinaigrette so will probably just use balsamic - hope it gets the job done! This will take care of at least one of the two unused romaine hearts left in the bag. (People just don't put lettuce on their burgers like they used to!) I'm also swapping the pecans for raw almonds as we still have some of these kicking around.
Broccoli Rice Casserole. In you go, head of borderline-wilting broccoli! I'm also dicing up and tossing in the shaved ham and turkey we didn't end up using in yesterday's picnic wraps.

Tuesday:
Hungarian mushroom soup. Get in there, residual mushrooms! This'll allow us to harvest some of that dill in our garden as well!
Casserole leftovers

Wednesday:
Black Bean and Rice Enchiladas. I love enchiladas and haven't made them in awhile. Perfect time, as we have several flour tortillas left from the picnic. I also like that this recipe attempts to be a little healthier, incorporating brown rice and black beans!

Thursday:
Leftover-leftovers! Perhaps toss in a couple of the pre-seasoned Pacific salmon fillets we have in the freezer to bulk up the meal. 

Friday:
Polish off any remaining leftovers OR take out / order in; keep it simple before the holidays!