Pasta for me - Meat for them

This week another family 'hit' was made... with dinner that is....

I made a new recipe called - Italian Sausage Rigatoni. There are quite a few great things to love about this recipe. 

Here are just a few:

- It is very versatile. You can adjust one or more ingredients and have a completely different meal.
- The meat is chunky enough where a non-meat lover as myself doesn't have to eat it - but there is enough pasta, sauce and vegetables that I can still enjoy it!
- A budget friendly dinner
- Last but not least - It is easy and a great one dish dinner.


This recipe will definitely be made again!

Italian Sausage Rigatoni

Ingredients

-       - 1 19.76 ounce package Italian Mild Sausage links

-       - 2 6 ounces of tomato basil pasta sauce

-       - 1 16 ounce package rigatoni pasta

-       - 1 large red pepper

-       - 2 tablespoons chopped parsley

-       - 3 table spoons olive oil

-       - 2 cloves garlic

       Directions

       - Mince garlic and set aside

       - Chop red pepper and set aside

       - Coin-slice sausage and cook according to package directions, keep warm.

       - Cook rigatoni according to directions, keep warm.

       - In large pan, place olive oil and garlic, sauté lightly for 30 seconds.

       - Add peppers and cook until crisp and tender.

       - Combine cooked sausage and pasta sauce with peppers and heat until warm.

       - Mix pasta with sauce or serve separately.

       - Top with fresh parsley and serve warm.

No Chemical Mosquito Repellent

Homemade Mosquito Repellent

Here is what you will need:

4 tablespoons Vanilla Extract

10 drops Lemon Eucalyptus Oil

15 drops Lavender Oil

1/4 cup Lemon Juice

1 - 160z spray bottle

Directions:

Add all liquids above into bottle & shake. 

Repellent is ready to use, just spray on yourself!

These would also be great to give away as presents for house warming, family/friend get together, party, or a friendly neighbor gift!

It's raining..... MEATBALLS!!!

Well its not technically raining them. But it is what we had with dinner one night this week.

Meatballs are my way of 'cheating' with having meat with our spaghetti. Personally I would eat spaghetti with just noodles and sauce. But since my family demands meat it unfortunately means I cannot get away with a meatless spaghetti. This also usually means when I am done eating spaghetti there is a pile of meat on the bottom of the plate. I don't pick it out of my food really, but I don't work to hard to eat it either. 

Meatballs are a nice fix for this issue. I don't have to put them on my plate unless i just one or two and my family can eat them to their hearts desire. 

This recipe is a nice and easy one yet still hearty and tasty. If you are a busy mom or dad and don't have time to cook every night, these are great if you make them ahead of time, let them cool and then freeze them. 




Quick & Easy Meatballs

Serving Size: 3 - 5
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 25 - 30 minutes

Ingredients

- 1lb ground beef
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoon water
- 1/2 cup bread crumbs
- 1/4 cup minced onions (you may want less if you do not like onions)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper

Kitchenware

- Measuring cups and spoons
- Broiler pan
- Large mixing bowl

Directions

- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- In your large bowl combine all ingredients and mush with your hands to combine.
- Form meatballs into 1" balls and place onto broiler pan.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until meatballs are no longer pink.
- Add to your favorite sauce, recipe or cool and freeze.

One of the finished trays.. the other had about triple the amount.

Dear Diary ... Let's Talk About HFCS

Here is a fun post for you - High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS). Do I still have your attention? I am sure I will lose a few readers here. But I am writing this not only for the reader, but for myself. 

My family and I recently jumped on this HFCS train. I am not even really sure where I heard about it. Maybe something on the news, family or Facebook? The more I do learn and read about it, the more I am surprised how unaware I was of it and it's dangers. Seems as though our government is killing us slowly and quietly. 

I recently googled HFCS. Funny enough Wikipedia did not really speak too much of it's dangers or why it is bad. I wonder if Wikipedia is secretly ran by the government? :) Anyways - here is what HFCS is:

High-fructose corn syrup is a manmade sweetener.

Lets read it again....

High-fructose corn syrup is a manmade sweetener.

See the problem here? MANMADE SWEETENER. Well... if we are being honest here those two words should be the first thing that stops us. BUT since we want to try and trust 'man'... we don't.

So lets read more on how this manmade sweetener is created...

Corn kernels are soaked in warm water containing sulfur dioxide. This warm solution hydrates the kernels and makes it easier to separate its starch, hull, protein and oil components. After soaking, the kernels are wet milled to remove the oil containing germ. Next, the remaining corn starch is washed. Three types of enzymes are added to the resulting starch and water mixture to break down the starch into glucose and fructose and create the desired balance of the two. Courtesy of eHow.

Now of course this is taken from an article online and you can't go by everything you read online as I am sure there are many parts that are hidden from us consumers. This does however give us basic knowledge of what it is and how it is made.

Reading just this short excerpt should be enough for us to not put this in our bodies. Right? But unfortunately it is not. I mean honestly it just sounds like bunch of mumbo jumbo and doesn't make a whole lot of sense to the average person.

So lets move on to the 2 main health concerns HFCS is linked to:

Obesity

Diabetes

Now, lets take this into consideration:

In the 1960's Japan started producing HFCS and then in the 1970's HFCS entered America's supply system. Since then statistics show our obesity & diabetes rates have sky rocketed. 

Why?

HFCS is found in our soda, bread, BBQ sauce, salad dressings, jams, ice cream, peanut butter, and so many other countless every day foods.

Sad, right?

Through my various research there are of course the websites that say HFCS really isn't that bad. They try to compare it to regular table sugar and tell you how it is similar and almost the same. There are professors and leaders that are helping with this advertisement. I mean you can't blame companies that are as big as Archer Daniels Midland, Cargill, Ingredion Incorporated, Tate & Lyle and Pendford to pay for advertising that says their product is okay. These companies also happen to belong to the Corn Refiners Association who creates the advertising campaigns through print and television that try and bust the "myths" on the harm of HFCS.

To be fair to both sides. I did read websites like Sweet Surprise that gives their side and options on why they believe HFCS is not harmful to us. I will admit they are convincing. But in the end I am not convinced.

In reading through all the information I have come to these two main conclusions.

- Sugar is sugar. When HFCS is compared to sugar - they both are bad. They both need to be eaten in moderation and they both can cause the same health problems. One of our big problems in our generations is we have forgotten what the word MODERATION means when it comes to food.

- I believe that HFCS and sugar are not processed in the body the same way as some articles for HFCS have stated. Nor do I believe that HFCS is 'natural'.

I have listed below just a very few of the websites that I have come across with HFCS information. Some are Pro and some are Cons. Take some time yourself to read through these and form your own opinion. I am just a mom and wife trying to make healthier decisions for my family. You should too!

5 Reasons High Fructose Corn Syrup Will Kill You - drhyman.com - This is by far my favorite article. 

How Is High Fructose Corn Syrup Made? - eHow.com

Is High Fructose Corn Syrup bad for you? - Eatingwell.com

The Facts about High Fructose Corn Syrup - SweetSurprise.com

The Truth about High Fructose Corn Syrup - sparkpeople.com

The Secrets of Manufacturing High Fructose Corn Syrup - blog.fooducate.com

A Sweetener With a Bad Rap - nytimes.com

Quick, Tasty & Easy Roast

Whew! It has surely been another busy couple of weeks! We have been living and breathing volleyball every day but the weekend. I can't believe it, but the season is almost over! There are only few more games.

During this busy time I haven't been able to experiment too much with cooking. That also means we haven't been eating the healthiest either. There is surely a reason why Americans all buy processed and frozen foods now a days. It is quick, easy and unfortunately unhealthy!

There is one recipe though that I cannot recommend enough. This was by far one of the best recipes I have made in a long time. Not to mention the fact that it was easy, quick and able to make in the crock pot!! Oh, and another amazing thing about this dish, is it can be used for more than one dinner!!

Balsalmic Roast Beef 

Serving Size: 3 to 6 - Varies*
Prep Time: 5 - 10 minutes
Cook Time: 4 to 8 hours

Ingredients

- 1 3-4 pound boneless roast (I used round)
- 1 cup of beef broth
- 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (I used crushed, it was too spicy for me, Id use 1/4 next time)
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped

Kitchenware

- Crockpot
- Cutting knives
- Measuring cups & spoons
- Medium or Large mixing bowl
- Tongs
- 9x13 Serving dish

Directions

- Put roast in your slow cooker.
- In mixing bowl - mix together all ingredients
- Pour mixed liquid over roast
- Cook roast for 4 hours on high or 6 to 8 hours on low
- When roast is finished, remove from cooker and into a serving dish. Break apart roast and ladle 1/4 to 1/2 of gravy over roast beef.
- Serve and enjoy!



We stored our remaining gravy in an air tight container for future use.

We used our roast the first night to make French Dip sandwiches.
toasted sub bread - roast - provolone cheese
We had used the gravy as a dip and had honey mustard to dip in as well

The second dish was mexican!
Tortillas - roast - sautéed onions and peppers

The third and final dish was in the salad.
Roast - Spring lettuce mix - Italian dressing - cheese

This roast has the perfect taste to be used in many different dishes. What is your favorite?

*We are a family of three. We were able to use it for 3 separate meals. However the rule is a 3-4lb roast will feed 4-6 people in one sitting. Please note that this also depends on how you are choosing to serve it. Hope this helps!

Unfortunately this picture is not mine - I cannot find for the life of me the pictures I took! However, this looks exactly like it should once it is shredded!

I think I hear crickets....

It's been rather quiet on here lately! I havent had much time to blog OR make many tasty recipes due to our new volleyball schedule. Fortunately and unfortunately it will only go until the end of this month. Then we will be freed up in the evenings (sort of) until summer hits!

Puppy Update....
Max and Sophia are doing GREAT on potty training. We are down to just having accidents every now and then. Usually it is because one of us didnt let them out soon enough or they got bored and just decided to squat. Overall I am very happy that stage is (almost) over.

With the good comes the bad. They are growing like weeks. It has to be like a couple inches a week. They are now about the size of our other dog Gunner. It simply amazes me!! With the new size also means being able to jump on the furniture or 'fly' onto your lap while you are on the couch. Or stand up and see what is on top of tables, counters...etc. I also have the issue of them wondering off when I let them out. Thankfully we have 50+ acres so they are in our 'yard'.... but that also means wild animals too! Seems as though when one bad habit dies a new one begins!

A new year....
The last time I wrote.. I was 33. This time... I am 34. I guess that officially makes me in my 'mid-thirties'. I know that doesn't mean I am old by any means. But I am getting older. I think I am becoming wiser in a lot of things that I already thought I knew everything about, my opinion on worldly matters and my outlook on life in certain areas are even seem to be changing. I think I am seeing things overall a bit differently as well. Obviously this all did not happen the moment I hit 34. But for awhile now there has been a lot of things that have been changing about me and within me. Even though some of the change has been hard, I am glad it is happening. Life wouldn't be fun if it was always the same.

I would also like to take a moment and thank all my family and friends that took time out of their busy life to help me celebrate my birthday. Rather it was a phone call, FaceTime, gift, and/or card - it meant the world to me that you took that extra moment to let me know you care.

My husband and daughter went out of their way and celebrated with me for the whole weekend. Friday night was dinner out, cake and some pretty awesome presents. Saturday was spent completely with my husband with an amazing lunch, shopping, movie, dinner, laughs and love. Sunday was spent pretty much the same with my daughter. She put her teenage 'my mom annoys' me to the side for the day and made the day so much fun! I honestly don't know what I would do without those two in my life. They are my rocks!!

Well potty break for the puppies call.... I'll leave ya with a little funny.. but also something that rings very true in some ways!