Monthly Archives: August 2011

Zucchini Fest – Italian stuffed zucchini

Posted on by
Reply

Welcome to Zucchini Fest! (hereafter abbreviated as ZF) Over the next couple weeks, I’ll be featuring a famously prolific summer vegetable, and I’ve enlisted some helpers for some fantastically diverse recipes, so look forward to some guests coming up.

Today, I’ve got a fun one to kick us off. I don’t know why, but stuffed food seems fancy to me – stuffed mushrooms, stuffed peppers, stuffed tomatoes – everyday ingredients when mixed up and put in a hollowed vegetable are elevated beyond the everyday fare.

Several years ago, I found a recipe for stuffed zucchini in a Family Fun magazine. My version is very close to the original with just a few time-saving tweaks. This is a great veggie-heavy main dish. It kind of tastes like pizza on a zucchini but much healthier! I also like this recipe because it features zucchini in the main dish when it’s so commonly seen as a side. So enjoy ZF!

Italian stuffed zucchini
  • 4 medium zucchini
  • 2 T. oil
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 3/4 c. chopped mushrooms
  • 1 clove garlic, chopped
  • 1 can petite diced tomatoes, drained well
  • dashes of assorted Italian dried herbs (basil, parsley, etc)
  • salt and pepper
  • 1/3 c. dry bread crumbs
  • 1/4 c. grated parmesan cheese
  • 3 T. finely chopped pepperoni or cooked bacon (optional)

1. Cook whole zucchini in boiling water for about 1 1/2 minutes to tenderize. Remove and let cool enough to handle.

2. Cut zucchini in half lengthwise and scoop out flesh with spoon. Leave at least 1/4 inch “shell.” Finely chop the scooped flesh and squeeze/drain to remove excess water.

3. Heat oil in a sauté pan on medium heat. Add onion and zucchini flesh and sauté, stirring frequently for about 5 minutes. Add mushrooms and garlic, cook for 2 more minutes.

4. Add tomatoes, dried herbs, and salt and pepper, cook for 2 more minutes. Remove from heat and let cool for a few minutes. Add bread crumbs, parmesan, and pepperoni.

5. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a baking dish. Put filling into zucchini halves and place in dish.

6. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.

Home from ’Homa

Posted on by
1

We spent a long weekend with Brett’s family in southern Oklahoma (or “Homa” as Hannah says). We “met in the middle” near the Turner Falls area for a couple days of fun family time. Hannah was very excited to see her cousin Addie again, and we all had fun seeing the sights, cooking together, and playing games in the evening.

Just a few pics to sum up the trip.

Cousin time! Playing in puddles - so happy.

Visiting Turner Falls

Aunt Mindy gives Hannah her first hair cut

Enjoying Grandpa Buck's homemade ice cream

Here, Addie, have some more!

The funniest blog I read

Posted on by
1

I’m not Catholic, but through a series of click-throughs on various blogs, I was blessed one day to discover Simcha Fisher. She started out with a personal blog but was picked up by the National Catholic Register to do a regular column. I do not actually read the Catholic Register, but I will be forever grateful to them for paying her to share her humor with us on a regular basis.

You do not have to be Catholic to enjoy Simcha’s writing. Anyone who has gone to church ever will find her commentary highly amusing. She also writes about random life. Some of her posts include:

Good Writing is Not a Luxury – so true!

Ten Tips for Actually Having Fun at the Fair – good family fun (did I mention Simcha has eight kids and one more on the way, so she knows what she’s talking about when it comes to family stuff)

Fast Girls – modesty and context

Confessions from the Confession Line – I’ve never been to confession, but this is just funny

Snappy Answers for Stupid Questions about Your Big Family – remember the nine kids thing I mentioned above?

Movie recommendations – Man-approved fluff

Posted on by
1

When it comes to watching movies, Brett is a good sport with my preferences. I am very sensitive to any kind of suspense, violence, and disturbing images. I get scary dreams and freak out about little things. Basically, I don’t enjoy watching much other than “chick flicks.” Since we only have one TV and enjoy watching things together, Brett is subjected to female-dominated fluff on a regular basis.

Here are a few we’ve watched recently:

From Prada to Nada – Modern Jane Austen adaptations can be cheesy, but I definitely believe her plots are timeless. This is a spin-off of “Sense and Sensibility” that takes place in modern LA. Orphaned Hispanic sisters Nora and Mary are left penniless and forced to live in more humble surroundings with their extended family. I liked their adaptations of the “Sense and Sensibility” plot, and there were lots of funny situations as the girls were adjusting to their new lifestyle. Brett’s take: It’s a cute date movie and the plot works well from a cultural standpoint.

Wild Target – This is not exactly a chick flick, but I was the one who suggested we watch it. Really funny and has Emily Blunt, that guy from Harry Potter and a famous British actor who I’m not familiar with. A professional killer falls in love with his next “job.” Everything goes awry, all with straight-faced British comedy. There was a little bit of blood and suspense, but I did okay with it. Brett’s take: Hilarious! It’s like The Professional meets Get Smart, but with British humour. Great acting from Emily Blunt, Rupert Grint and Bill Nighy. As a side note, Rupert and Bill acted together in Harry Potter.

Drop Dead Diva – This is a series on Lifetime that I came across accidentally. We don’t have cable, but I watched Season 1 on streaming Netflix, Season 2 on DVDs from Netflix, and now we’re in Season 3 through mylifetime.com. Deb, a model, dies and is put in the body of Jane, a smart lawyer who does not exactly have the same body type. This falls somewhere between a drama and comedy. There are court cases in each episode as well as the ongoing storyline of Jane/Deb adjusting to her new life. Brett’s take: I like it. For those who don’t care to watch the gore in the “other” legal shows, Drop Dead Diva is a great alternative. A fun dramedy for everyone.

Arranged – On my list of all-time favorites. It’s an independent movie about girls in New York going through the process of an arranged marriage. One is from a traditional Muslim family, the other from an Orthodox Jewish family. They become friends and realize they have much in common when it comes to wanting love. It is a peek into different cultures and has a light tone with many funny moments. Brett’s take: It’s documentary-like, so it’s interesting without being overly chick flicky.

Tangled – I guess this isn’t a chick flick as much as it is a family movie, but we both thought this one was a lot of fun. It will be a couple years before we actually watch it as a family, but I think this is just as enjoyable for adults to watch as kids. The evil witch lady is flat out emotionally abusive, but she is not as scary as many other Disney villains. We laughed all the way through this one. Brett’s take: Ditto.

Twilight – I do not usually follow hype, but a few months ago I was convinced to read the “Twilight” books and watch the movies. Fluff and cheese, but quite entertaining. I’m a little too excited about the next one coming out in November. Brett’s take: Total cheese. Stephanie Meyer has an interesting take on fairy tales, but if I’m watching vampires, I want action.

Dinner tonight – Soy ginger chicken skewers

Posted on by
Reply

It is a necessity for me to plan meals for the week before grocery shopping. This makes shopping easier, and I just look at the plan each night to remind myself of what’s on the menu. I usually shop on Mondays, so the weekend is at the end of my plan. Sometimes I get a little foggy about my ideas by the time Saturday rolls around.

Today I looked at my plan which only said: “chicken skewers, quinoa.” Not very descriptive, so I had to get my creative juices flowing to fill out the meal. Mid-afternoon, I cut up the chicken to marinate. I had many seasonings on hand, so I was faced with a lot of possibilities: go Mexican with lime juice and fajita seasoning, go Italian with some bottled salad dressing, go BBQ with our favorite Stubb’s sauce, or go Asian with a soy and ginger marinade. I chose the latter as I had some ginger in the freezer to use up.

If you don’t already, use fresh ginger. It’s very inexpensive, and the flavor is no comparison to the dry, ground stuff you find in the spice aisle. Buy more than you need, then put the rest in the freezer and it is ready to peel and grate on a microplane whenever you want it.

So I made a quick marinade with about 1 1/2 tablespoons of grated ginger (we really like ginger), 1/4 teaspoon minced garlic, 2 ounces of canola oil, 2 ounces of soy sauce, and a tablespoon of water. I let that sit with the chicken for a little over an hour, and it was perfect. Put it on some skewers and the grill awaits.

For a side dish, I cooked the quinoa in chicken stock for a flavor boost. Then I found a bag of stir-fry vegetables in the freezer and sauteed them with some more fresh ginger and soy sauce.

Brett did the grilling, as usual, and here we have tasty chicken skewers with Asian veggies on a bed of quinoa. Yum! I was racing through photos so we could get to the eating part. Hannah decided not to wait for photos to finish, and while I was trying to get a shot of her cute little plate, she went for it.

She loved this! She ate it all and asked for more chicken and carrots. The quinoa was a little hard for her to eat because the grains are so small, but she still liked it and was licking it off her fingers.

This meal was so tasty we almost forgot how healthy it is! Good lean protein, ginger (which has all kinds of health benefits), mixed veggies, and whole grain. (forget all the sodium in the soy sauce)

Should I mention we “rewarded” Hannah’s excellent eating with a few chocolate chips for dessert? :)

Snack confusion

Posted on by
1

Just like normal, I got Hannah in her high chair after nap and asked her what she wanted for snack. “Sassoo,” was her quick response. I am pretty familiar with her language, but this word was not registering. She repeated it several times insistently.

I ran through the list of normal snack items, “Fishies? Crackers? Cereal?” all met with a, “No, sassoo!” She was starting to get frustrated.

Finally, I had an idea. I unbuckled her from the chair and put her down. “Where is the sassoo?” I said. “Can you find it for me?” She walked into the kitchen and started tugging on the freezer door. She must be confused, there are no snacks in the freezer, so I opened the fridge door. Nope.

She continued to pull on the freezer door, so I opened it as she was excitedly chanting, “Sassoo, sassoo!” And there on the bottom shelf were the popsicles! Sassoo accomplished! Happy snack.

August already

Posted on by
Reply

It’s August already. I get so excited looking down the back-to-school aisles at the store. Boxes of crayons with perfect points, notebooks with hundreds of blank pages, cute pencil cases waiting to be filled. Every row, bag, and box contains possibilities. I love back-to-school shopping.

For the past three or four years, we have taken part in a backpack drive for foster children sponsored by a local radio station. We got to pick out a backpack then fill it with the items on The List to donate. This allowed me to have all the fun of back-to-school shopping even though I did not have a school-aged child. I’d pray for whoever would get “my” backpack, that they’d have a good school year even though they were probably at a new school, surrounded by strangers, and adjusting to some major life changes. Unfortunately, that radio station got bought out by another that is not so community-minded, and the backpack drive did not happen this year.

But this year I still got to do some shopping. We don’t have a back-to-schooler, we have a “new-to-schooler.” Hannah will be starting a two-day preschool at a Baptist church five minutes from our house. The program came highly recommended, and we are so excited for her to start. She is so social and loves to be around other kids, so this will be a great opportunity for her to have lots of fun playtime and maybe learn some things along the way. :)

We do not have an extensive supply list to check off, just some basics like baby wipes, Kleenex, and snacks, but there have been some fun purchases as well. We got Hannah a little backpack, a lunch bag, and a small sleeping bag for “rest time.” My label-maker has been busy as I am slapping name labels on any item she could possibly take.

When we enrolled last March, the first day of school seemed so far away. Now it is only weeks down the calendar. And even though this is not “real school,” I’m feeling those twinges of realization that my baby is growing up. She gets to be part of a class, have two sweet teachers, make new friends, and have some adventures on her own.

And me? I get to figure out what to do with two free mornings a week!