12 No-Cook Recipes

How many of you are California girls like myself? Or people who live in other states that have forgotten that summer has ended? For those who are not, we have about 11 months of what most of you consider summer. Which means lots of hot or warm days. Which means lots of nights where cooking dinner can be dreadful. It's BBQ or sweat your booty off in the kitchen.

That being said, I have been in need of a good list of meals that I do not need to start up the oven for. While doing my "research", I decided to make a list for us all to try out.

Asian-Inspired Sesame Pineapple Chicken Salad from Cupcakes and Kale Chips

Caprese Stuffed Avacado from Laylita

Greek Vegetable Salad with Feta Spread from Wonky Wonderful

Pineapple Ceviche from Food Faith Fitness

Cucumber Tomato Avocado Salad from The Kitchen is My Playground

Sushi Rolls from Our Family World

Spicy Asian Slaw Summer Rolls from The View from Great Island

Southwestern Chopped Salad with Cilantro Dressing from The Garden Grazer

Antipasto Salad from Cook Eat Paleo

Tomato Basil Feta Salad from Tasting Page

Roast Beef Salad from Eat Well 101

Gazpacho Verde from Better Homes and Gardens

I am hungry just thinking about this list. Make sure to let me know which ones you try and as always, give the bloggers who created them some love!!!

Feeding Kids Farm Fresh to Table

“I received this product as part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Weave Made Media® and Farm Fresh To You, but all my opinions are my own. #weavemade  #farmfreshtotable http://my-disclosur.es/OBsstV”

Eating healthy. We all know it is what's best for us but it is not an easy task. Eating healthy often takes work and discipline. Why then do we expect our kids, who don't care about healthy, to do it without complaint? I know I get frustrated when my kids won't eat the greens I put on their plates but when I really think about it, I can't blame them for not wanting to eat something that they think is "yucky".

Instead of forcing them to eat food they don't like and in turn dealing with fights, I have decided to help them understand what is good for their bodies and get them excited about doing so. I was going to break this up into numerous posts and give different tips and tricks but the first recipe I thought about sharing pretty much covers all of my tips. So I'm just gonna lay it all out there in one post. Ha!

1. First of all, get them excited about the ingredients. There are a lot of ways to do this. Have a family garden where they can grow their own food, take them to the store with you and let them see all of the options (and maybe let them pick a few)...OR my personal favorite is to have fresh fruits and veggies delivered to your home.

We recently tried this out for the first time and it was seriously like the happiest of happy mail. This mom The kids were so excited to find the boxes on our doorstep and dig in.

We use Farm Fresh to You and L-O-V-E them. We are able to customize our box delivery to fit the size (and picky eating habits) of our family. They offer really flexible delivery...and even let us change or suspend the account to fit our always changing chaotic schedule. Plus, I love that they allow for us to eat local by partnering with farms in our area. I would highly recommend them. Click here to see if they deliver to your area. If they do, you can save $15 off your first box with the promo code WEAVE15. Say what? I love me a good deal!

2. Make the meal look fun. You can go all out with Bento boxes and food scenes on your plates or you can just use a whole lot of bright and fun colors like we did in the recipe that I am sharing today. The more colors on the plate, the more fun it looks. It makes for a more exciting meal time. Tip: if you have a kid that won't eat certain colors, avoid the color. I know, rocket science. You can usually dye the food with other natural ingredients, like beet juice for example.

3. Get them involved in the kitchen. Give the kids jobs when you are cooking a meal. When they are proud of their dish, I have noticed they are more likely to try it. In our house, the kids are usually worried about hurting the other ones feelings and will try anything they make...I wish they would have that kind of courtesy with me too. Ha ha.

With those three things, I am noticing the kids are trying a lot more healthy items that they usually wouldn't touch. They may not always clear the plate but getting them to try the food is the first step, right? 

We used all three of those suggestions the other day while making this yummy frittata. All four kids tried it. Two of the four cleared their plates.

Potato Crusted Frittata Casserole

2 TBSP Coconut oil

2 Medium sized Yellow Finn Potatoes

3 cups Kale

8 eggs

1/2 cup milk

1 cup Mixed Medley Cherry Tomatoes (cut in half)

1 Medium Pimiento Pepper (diced)

2 Leaves Fresh Basil

3/4 cups Feta Cheese

Salt and Pepper to Taste

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375.

 

Start by dicing your potatoes into small cubes. Heat the coconut oil and add the potatoes. Cook these until they are lightly browned. Add the Kale and cover. Once Kale has started to wilt you can move the mixture into a 9"x 13" casserole dish.

Side note: I like to cut my Kale down into smaller pieces so that there aren't big chunks. It helps distribute it more evenly in a dish. Instead of cutting it myself, I will have the kids tear it into strips.

Whisk together the eggs and milk (or pass the job on to a cute helper).

Have your little ones tear up some basil and take all the stems off of your tomatoes and hand them over for you to cut...or if they are old enough, have them do that as well.

Pour egg mixture over the potatoes and kale. Sprinkle with your salt and pepper. Let the kid throw the tomatoes, peppers, basil and feta all over it. The more the better. 

Pop it in the oven for about 30 minutes and serve with some fresh fruit. This is one of those meals that is really simple but loaded with yummy flavor.

Black Friday Brunch

Oroweat® provided me with coupons for free product and a gift card for my ultimate sandwich recipe ingredients so that I could share my thoughts about the brand but all opinions are my own.

Every year after Thanksgiving we have a fridge full of leftovers. This year instead of eating plate after plate of the same thing, we decided to switch up into sandwich form. Oh. Em. Gee!

It is too good not to share. We like to call this baby "Black Friday Brunch". I am going to give instructions for year round vs. just after Thanksgiving though...because, well I want it year round.

Ingredients:

Cooked Turkey Cutlets, 2 per sandwich

Organic Spinach

1 Tbsp Mayo
1/4 cup Cranberry Sauce (recipe included below)
Feta Cheese Crumbles
Bacon
Oroweat® Organic bread


Directions:

First off, lets start with the Cranberry Sauce. Super Easy. Add 12 oz Cranberries, 1 cup Water, 
1 cup Sugar and a Splash of Orange Juice into a pot. Bring to boil. Let cook until berries start to pop open. Let simmer about 30-45 min or until it is the consistency you like.

To make our sauce really tasty and a little bit comfortesque, mix the mayo and a 1/4 cup of the cranberry sauce. Trust me here.

Toast up your bread. I chose Oroweat® Organic bread because it is a yummy way to feel better about what I am eating and what I am serving my family. It is made with organic ingredients and whole grains. Oh, and did I mention it's yummy? I love when healthier options don't taste "healthy". 

Once your ingredients are all cooked and warm (or cooled if you prefer it that way), You are going to layer. Cutlets, Spinach, Bacon, Feta. Spread your Cranberry sauce mixture on the top piece of bread. Mmmmm. You may not think that order matter but it does. Okay, it doesn't but I think my food tastes better when it looks pretty. Ha!

Seriously though, this is the ultimate sandwich. Oh, and just for fun Oroweat® is offering some goodies for me to giveaway to one lucky reader. So you can copy this sandwich or make your own Ultimate Sandwich.

Make sure to check them out and enter our giveaway!

Oroweat® Website | Oroweat® Facebook

a Rafflecopter giveaway

No Bake Chocolate Eclairs

Dessert has been on my brain lately. You may have noticed by all of the recipes I have pinned lately. I love to bake up an extravagant dessert, like our Raspberry Bliss Cupcake but sometimes, I just don't have enough time to do that. So I go with what I call a "cheater dessert". Cheater because it is totally a quick way of making something similar but not at all the same. Still totally delicious.

Today's cheat? A No Bake Chocolate Eclair. I've been making these babies for years and they are always a hit.

Ingredients:

Graham Crackers

Instant Vanilla Pudding

Milk

Whipped Cream

Chocolate frosting

Instructions:

Prepare your pudding according to box instructions. Once it is set, spray the whole can of whipped cream in and whisk together.

Now you are going to prepare your eclairs kind of like you would a lasagna. One layer graham cracker, one layer pudding mix. Back and forth until you have hit the top of your pan. End with a layer of graham crackers and then spread the frosting on top. Done. It's that simple. And so yummy.

For those who love chocolate as much as I do, on your very first layer of graham crackers, put a layer of chocolate frosting and then continue as described above.

Note: Refrigerate for about an hour before serving. This will help soften up your graham crackers.

Irish Nachos

To get into the spirit of St. Patrick's Day, I wanted to whip up something Irish. Have I mentioned here that I have four kids in my home? What does that have to do with food you ask? Well, three of them eat. When I say eat, I mean complain about what I am serving for ten minutes and then pick at it until, if I'm lucky, they realize they in fact like the meal.

Serving something Irish could be a huge meltdown risk. What is a determined mama to serve? Irish Nachos. It has Irish in the name, so it counts, right? It works for me.

I love Irish Nachos but wanted to make sure we weren't just eating a pound of preservative loaded, who knows what's really in it, nacho cheese. So I made my own. These were delish.

Ingredients:
Cheese Sauce:

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1 cup milk

1 heaping cup fresh shredded sharp cheddar cheese

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

a few dashes red pepper flakes, optional

Everything else:

5 Large Potatoes

1Tbsp Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper

2 cloves garlic

1 tsp dried Thyme

1 tsp Seasoned Salt

Sm. Package Sour Cream

Green Onions

Bacon

Instructions:

We are going to start with our potatoes since they take the longest. Preheat oven to 425. Cut potatoes to desired size. I use a handy dandy gadget for this. {Tip: to make cutting potatoes easier, first microwave them for about 45 sec per potato. Let them cool and BAM!} Once cut, rinse some starch away. Pat dry. Coat in oil. Cover in seasonings and pop them in the oven for 30-45 min depending on your thickness and how you like your fries. Make sure to flip them at the halfway point of baking.

Now the sauce. Melt your butter over medium heat. Add milk. Whisk in the flour. When all mixed in, whisk in the cheeses. Continue whisking until it is all melted and well blended. If you are adding in your pepper flakes, do so now. Let simmer until you are ready to drizzle it. Make sure to stir often so it doesn't stick or burn. 

While you wait for your potatoes to finish up, fry up your bacon and chop the green onions.

Okay, now that our potatoes are ready, let's turn them into nachos. Put them on your plate and go to town layering on your ingredients. Cheese, then sour cream, bacon and a little green onion. I use a ziplock to put the sour cream on and make it pretty. Enjoy with the whole family.

Protein Smoothie

Lately I have found myself in a weight loss rut. With only 10-15lbs left to lose, it has been a little discouraging to see the scale sit still. Instead of pouting over pounds, I have changed my mindset to toning. In other words, add muscle. Not bulk up, just go from flab to toned muscles.

After a good work out, I seem more and more drained. I decided to add a tasty protein smoothie. With chocolate. Because, it's chocolate. Of course I am using dark chocolate, as to not defeat the purpose of working out. Oh and oats, to keep myself feeling full.

This smoothie has quickly become my favorite after workout evening snack.

Ingredients:

1/2 - 1 Full Banana

2 Tbsp Peanut butter

3/4 cup Unsweetened Almond Milk

Handful of spinach

1/8 cup cracked oats

1/4 cup Dark Chocolate Chips

Ice

Simply put all of the ingredients into your Nurti-Bullet, Ninja, Blender or whatever you use. Then, enjoy!

Camarones a la Ajillo

When we first got the call that there was a baby who needed a home, ethnicity meant nothing to us. When Little man was placed with us, the color of his skin was irrelevant...although the perfection of the tone made me a little envious.

It wasn't until a few months later, while talking to a mama with an older child that I realized that to him, it may be a struggle later.

What I am referring to is the confusion as to who he is. Where he came from. And do not tell me that he lives here, so he is American period. Do. Not. Go There. Little man is half Dominican. One of his birth parents was born and raised. His culture is important. It is a part of who he is.

How can I as a white mom ever show him that part of himself? I can try. I mean I will never be able to roll my R's and speak Spanish to him. Even when I try, I sound ridiculous. I can however, read him books. I can cook him food. I can figure out how on earth to style that wild hair, that turns to the most beautiful ringlet when you use the right product.

There are many things I am not looking forward to when it comes to explaining things about his ethnicity. Let me tell you one thing though, showing him his culture has been a blast! Dominicans know how to eat.

You didn't know this post was going there, did you? I mean unless you read the title. This is one of my favorite recipes that we have tried so far. I mean, of the ones I can actually eat while dieting. Queso Frito is the best food ever. You know why? Because it's Fried Cheese. I mean do you need more of an explanation?

 So indulge in Little Man's Culture with me, will you?  

Camarones a la Ajillo (Garlic Shrimp)
1 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 cup butter
1 Green Bell Pepper, sliced
1 Large Onion, sliced
10 Cloves of Garlic, minced <---- yes, you read that right.
1lb. Large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 Cup tomato sauce
1 Tbsp Dried Parsley
1/2 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions
Heat both Olive Oil and Butter over Medium heat. Add the onion and bell pepper and cook for about 5 minutes, or until your onions are soft and translucent.

Add garlic and cook until it becomes fragrant. Usually about 1 min. Next, add in the shrimp and cook for minutes on each side. The shrimp will turn opaque.

Stir in your tomato sauce, parsley and red pepper flakes. Cook until the sauce is warm.



Sprinkle with salt and pepper and serve over rice (I use brown rice), with black beans...always black beans.

Your New Favorite Cupcake.

**It's Valentine's Week here at Vessel Handmade. 5 Days of holiday themed posts. We'll have tutorials, recipes, decor and DIY. So follow along and fall in love. All projects and recipes will be linked at the bottom of each blog as they are posted.**

Today is my favorite day of Valentines Week. Dessert. Confession:I have not met a dessert I could pass up. I think meals should start and end with it. Eating healthy doesn't always allow for it but Valentine's Day is such a good excuse to indulge.

When it comes to sweets and Valentine's day, I instantly think chocolate and fruit. Something romantic about the combo of the two. I, however, love to bake. So I wanted to do something by meshing the two. Thus, the Raspberry Bliss cupcake was born. Thank me now.

For Starters

**It's Valentine's Week here at Vessel Handmade. 5 Days of holiday themed posts. We'll have tutorials, recipes, decor and DIY. So follow along and fall in love. All projects and recipes will be linked at the bottom of each blog as they are posted.**

Earlier this week I asked you on Facebook what kind of food reminded you of Valentine's Day. Italian food was almost unanimous. Lucky for me the dessert I had planned for hubby and I fit the bill. All I needed to figure out was an appetizer and a main course.

I was recently gifted The Sprouted Kitchen cookbook and love love love it. I decided to use this recipe from there, for a Roasted Cauliflower Capellini as our main course. As soon as I told hubby the theme we were going with for Valentine's Day, he instantly put in his opinion, which is... of course always bruschetta.

Three Cheese Seafood Lasagna

“This post is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group™ and Barilla, but all my opinions are my own. #pmedia #JoytotheTable  http://cmp.ly/3/8vNxcO.”

Growing up most of us have our own set of holiday traditions. Some people travel and have huge family celebrations. Others stay home with just their immediate families. Whatever they are, we know we can expect them every year. We know the joy the season and tradition will bring.

I don't know about all of you but getting married makes this a challenge. Not a bad challenge, just a challenge. We have to find a way to balance. To make sure to honor each others traditions.

Then come kids. They are the game changers, am I right? For our family, having our own kids meant that it was time to stop hopping from home to home on Christmas morning. It was just too much work and everyone ends up cranky.

Last year, after about 4 years of Christmas' we found a schedule that worked. Earlier in the week with my in-laws, Christmas Eve with my side of the family and we get Christmas. Now that we have a schedule it is time to start our own traditions. We've done birthday parties for Jesus every morning and that of course will remain. Dinner however, is all new.

How many of you get tired of the traditional holiday meals? Don't get me wrong, I love hams and prime ribs as much as the next person but after having it at numerous parties, I'm ready for something simple. Like pasta!

So starting this year, pasta it is. Pasta dressed up for Christmas though. This year, I'm serving up a Seafood lasagna as our main course.Since hubby isn't always a seafood fan and I was stuck on serving this, I knew a trial run was in order.

So I ran to my local Vons where I knew I could find everything I needed in one go...I have four kids, no store hopping for me. And they currently have a promotion of $1 off the purchase of one box of Barilla® Lasagne and one Barilla® Sauce. If you don't have a Vons near you, the promotion is available at all Safeway stores.

Monday night, I crossed my fingers and cooked it for hubby. Of course he was sold, like I knew he would be.

Here is the recipe to our Christmas meal. A Three Cheese Seafood Lasagna for you to enjoy.

Ingredients:

Barilla Lasagne Noodles - Prepared with instructions on the box
8 oz Ricotta Cheese
Bag of Mozzarella Cheese
Bag of grated Parmesan Cheese
1 egg
2 jars Barilla Roasted Garlic All Natural Pasta Sauce
8 oz Lump Crab Meat
1 lb Raw Jumbo Shrimp - Peeled and De-veined  
1 Small Onion - diced
3-4 handfuls of Spinach
3 tablespoons Olive Oil
1/2 tsp Italian Seasonings
1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
1/2 tsp Basil
1/2 tsp Oregano
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a small bowl combine your ricotta, egg and half of your seasonings (1/4 tsp of each).

Heat 1.5 Tbsp of oil over Med/High heat. Add your shrimp, season lightly with salt and pepper and cook until pink, about 2 minutes on each side. Remove from heat and set aside.

Add the remaining oil to pan and begin sauteing your diced onions. When they begin to soften, add in your spinach.

Meanwhile, coarsely chop your shrimp and mix it into the lump crab meat. Add the remaining seasoning and 3/4 jar of your Barilla Roasted Garlic All Natural Sauce.

Once your spinach is fully wilted, add to the ricotta.

Grab a casserole dish. Spray the bottom with cooking spray and then pour about 1/2 jar of Barilla sauce. Make sure to distribute it evenly.

Place a layer of your prepared Lasagne Noodles to dish. Then a layer of the ricotta and a layer of your seafood mixture. Top with a handful of mozzarella and a handful of Parmesan. Repeat until the ricotta and seafood is gone.

Top with one more layer of  Lasagne Noddles and pour about 1/3 of a jar of sauce over the top. Top that layer with another handful of both cheeses.

Bake for 30 minutes in your preheated oven.

Let sit for 5 minutes and then serve and enjoy.

 I often save time on my own pasta dishes by skipping homemade sauces and using Barilla. Barilla's Facebook page is also loaded full of some great recipes. Go follow along so you don't miss out on any of the yumminess.

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