New Orleans Grilled Pork and Beans and Puree Prep

I have one word for this meal.. meh... I decided to roast the tenderloin rather than grill and they did turn out very moist and tender, but the sauce left lots to be desired. My son gobbled up all his meat, but he also dipped it in BBQ sauce. With the meat not being cooked on the grill, I opted to cook the bean mixture in a pot on the stove. It was tasty, but so is a plain tin of beans in tomato sauce without all the additions. This meal MIGHT taste better cooked on the grill outside, but I doubt it. It's kind of a bummer that this did not turn out as well as I hoped because I want to find a good recipe that incorporates beans in tomato sauce.

Go to Recipe! 

 

Now onto my Puree Prep. Some of you may recall that I received a copy of Deceptively Delicious and that I was going to blog about my veggie concealing journey. You may wonder why I spending so much time on this one book; it's because you have to think about your eating habits, look at all the recipes you want to cook and prep for them before you can even think about making them otherwise you'll spend a lot of time prepping daily.

Today I decided to prep a bunch of the required purees and have them ready in my freezer for when I start to make the recipes that I want to try. In 2 short hours I was able to prep, chop, steam, roast, microwave, blend and puree 28 - 1/2 cup portions of different veggies. Very Important - DO NOT OVER COOK THE VEG! You'll lose lots of the nutrients.

I ended up with 4 peas, 5 sweet potato, 6 carrots, 5 cauliflower, 2 zucchini, and 6 broccoli: plenty to start! I purchased the Ziplock brand "100 Calorie Snack Bags" (they work PERFECT) and wrote the type of veg on the bag with a Sharpie. I measured 1/2 Cup portions into each bag and then once they were cool, I sealed them and placed them by type into larger Ziplock bags and popped them in the freezer. Now I'm good to go to the next step - Listing the recipes I can't wait to try then start the deception. :)

Ready or not - here they come!

As today is October 24th I am posting a bonus holiday note because we have 1 week until Halloween, 1 month to American Thanksgiving and 2 months to Christmas. It is a busy time of year to be sure, so if you haven't already, now is a good time to start organizing yourself/family/home. Here are some good holiday tips and fun bits...

Halloween...

Have you ever "Boo'd" or been "Boo'd" yourself? I haven't, but I love this idea and I think it is a cute way to share some neighbourly cheer and spread some Halloween style fun - so I may just start this on our street. 

"Choose a decorated bag, or decorate one with Halloween or fall decor. Every Boo bag must include a sign that the recipient can hang in the window or door to let everyone know they’ve already been Boo’d. The bags should also include a Halloween Boo poem. These notes explain to the recipients that they

- Have been Boo’d

- Are to choose a friend or two to Boo

- Need to include treats, notes and a sign in each bag

- Should be sneaky when leaving it at their friends’ doors."

Check out: A Friendly Boo or Halloween Boo

Thanksgiving... 

Need a tasty alternative to the standard Pumpkin Pie? Go no further than Sugar and Shimmer. She has two wonderful alternatives to the standard pie; Crustless Pumpkin Pie and Oats'n'Honey Granola Pie or you can always check out one of my fave recipes Double Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake. If you are on the market for something quite different, a delicious Apple Bread Pudding with Vanilla Sauce is comforting and just might be what you are looking for.

Christmas...

A great way to set things in the right direction for Christmas is to make yourself a holiday binder. Organized Christmas has all the Planner Printables and instructions that you need to get yourself started. Now is a great time to start this project - it will give you plenty of time to fill in the blanks and get ready and hey, while you are making yours, why not make Holiday Binders for your friends to give as gifts?   

Do you always find yourself scampering around last minute? Try joining the online Rudolph Club- your once a month meeting prep group for all things Christmas. You can sign up at any time and they meet every "Rudolf Day" (25th of the month) and chip away at their lists throughout the whole year. Never too early to look at 2011!

While you are on the Organized Christmas website, check out the Magic Elf Tradition.  Santa sends one of his elves to watch over your kiddies to ensure they are good. While the elf is in your home, you never know where this elf may turn up or what little pranks they may play. You can purchase Elf Stuffed Toys at Amazon.com then go to the Printables Section to print up your own Elf File. Or you can find "Elf on the Shelf" kits at Chapters/Indigo Books, Amazon.com, or in fine Toy Stores.

Well, I hope these little tidbits "uped" your Holiday Spirit and got you in the mood... It's gonna be a busy couple months full of tradition, fun, family, good food, games... so feel free to drop me a line with any ideas that you have to get you through the holidays or any family traditions that you want to share.

Meal Plan ~ Week 43 - 2010

For more meal Plans and Organizing Advise visit Organizing Junkie

Another complex Meal Plan done... Almost didn't get this one in on time for Menu Plan Monday! 

I went through my freezers and pantry and did inventories of both - in doing so I decided that I needed to make a meal plan this week where I didn't buy anything other than milk, eggs, and a few veggies to complete the whole week. 

Now you may ask, "Can you get printable forms online for freezer and pantry inventories?" and the answer is "YES!" I found some good ones at Organized Home in the Household Notebook Printable Section (Which I cannot stress enough that a Household Notebook is an amazing and necessary thing to have if you like to be organized - check it out!) 

It was tough to nail down recipes with my specific critreia for the the whole week, but I managed it! 

So here we go...

Monday ~ Cod with Lemon and Parsley served with Rice and Frozen Mixed Veggies

Tuesday ~ Slow Cooked Ribs served with Honey Carrots and Baby Potatoes

Wednesday ~ Baked Polenta with Tomato Sauce served with Tossed Salad

Thursday ~ Maple and Orange-Glazed Chicken served with Baby Potatoes and Broccoli

Friday ~ Marinated Lamb Chops (from butcher) served with Quinoa and Frozen Mixed Veggie

Saturday ~ Mom Out! Leftovers for the boys

Sunday ~ Chicken Korma served with Basmati Rice and  Indian Chapati Bread

Snack ~ Honey Peanut Butter Cookies (from last week)

Craft ~ Stuffed Pumpkins

Like what you see? Come join me on Facebook!

100 Days to Christmas!

I thought I'd share with you that September 16th marks exactly 100 days to Christmas! (Scary I know - I just started thinking about Halloween for goodness sakes!) 

Like most Moms, every year I vow to be prepared for this holiday WELL ahead of time and on the ball... not running like a mad woman 1 week before the big day, feeling like it just magically "popped up" out of nowhere and wondering how the heck it snuck up on me AGAIN! (like I do every year)

I think this day marks a good starting point to get the lists started.

Check out 100 days to christmas for inspiration to get this holiday season started off on the right foot!!

Planners and Self Promotion

I Heart Organizers and Calendars and really anything that just might make my life a touch easier, and that is when my new 2011 calendar came into my life... it is called the Mom's Home Plan-it Calendar it can hang on the wall or it also has a magnetic strip to hang on the fridge. Check out the full line here; Plan-it Calendars

I wrote to the company to see about shipping to Canada and although they don't ship internationally, they did direct me to http://www.calendars.com/ who carries their calendars and planners and does ship to Canada.

I personally got mine through Avon (did I mention that I am an Avon Rep?? - let me know if you need one)


The SUPER cool thing about my new Plan-it calendar is that it starts August 2010 and goes all the way until December 2011 so I can start using it TODAY!! WOO HOO - See ya later - I'm off to populate my new calendar...