More prep steps

Oy!

It's been a while...I know!

I have been cooking and taking pictures galore...but the upload isn' working.

***

Are you doing you prep?

Are you spending 5-10 minutes each night getting ready for the next day's meals?

Even if you pre cut an onion... you'll be pleasantly surprised how much time that saves you tomorrow.

***

I have been setting out the breakfast dishes and utensils the night before, to cut down on the morning rush. We have to take the freeway to school each morning... and it is becoming increasingly more jammed each day... so saving a few minutes of bowl and spoon getting really saves precious minutes the next morning.

If you can stand it... set the table for dinner in the morning either before you get ready for work, or just before you leave for the day.

I swear, you will thank me!

One more thing you won't have to worry about doing just to get dinner on the table.

Hope this helps!

Breakfast for Lunch

Todays lunch... French Toast. I always get these backwards. The men wanted pancakes this morning, and I just didn't want to spend the time, so I had a leftover, going stale, loaf of homemade bread just sitting there looking pitiful and ready for the breadcrumb heaven it was destined for, and made a lovely french toast instead. I paired it with fresh mangoes and juice, and OF COURSE! I forgot to get a picture of the finished product... and they inhaled them so fast, the plate was empty before I remembered. Tonight is chicken with my Apricot/Pineapple glaze.

Fake out Enchiladas

Made "enchiladas" last night, with some unorthodox ingredients.

Crud... I did this backwards.

After this layer, the cheese went on.

chicken and apple sausage, onion, peppers and taco seasoning whole wheat tortilla, beans on the first layer and a sour cream and green sauce mixture on top

Broccoli Salad Simple

I know, it LOOKS like just a plain ole' bowl of broccoli...

But NNNOOOOO it's not!

It is so much more, and so tasty, my kids and I fight over it!

Saundra's Broccoli Salad

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

8 quarts of water

2 tbs salt

1/2 huge bag of fresh broccoli florets

or 2 big heads cut into smaller florets.

Olive Oil

Lemon Juice

Salt

Pepper

***

Boil the water with the salt. When it is boiling, throw in the broccoli.

Cook for only 2-3 minutes.

Take them out and plunge them into a large bowl of water filled with ice cubes.

(So they stop cooking instantly)

Drain and dry well.

Dress with olive oil and lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste...

and ENJOY!

I made Homemade Veggie Stock!

Sunday Prep has just gotten even more money saving!

Last week I made my famous (to my family) 2 bean veggie soup.

It's hot, spicy, topped with cheddar cheese, crushed tortilla chips, cilantro... mmm.mmm good.!

But to make it, I needed chicken stock. Lots of it!

So, like any other wifey poo, I send Bill to the store to get some.

Those cans were so expensive!

4 Flavored cans of water for $12!

Yikes!

Just for soup?

Yeah. I had to say yes, because I had everything else ready to dump into it.

That was one expensive soup that night, with all the veggies, beans and all.

***

So today... I was making my regular prep ahead things... the salmon spread, dough, slicing onions, chopping celery, julienning roasted red peppers etc...

when I had a light bulb moment.

I'll make my own stock.

How hard can it be!

Water and bunches of herbs and veggies and that's it! Right? Right.

So I did, and here's what I got.

It maybe cost me $5 for this entire 24 cups of veggie stock!

It'll last me 2 full weeks!

Here's what I put into it...

***

6 quarts of water

3 cut up carrots

Leafy ends of celery stalk

Handful of parsley (from my garden)

Handful of Rosemary (garden)

Handful of Lemon Thyme (garden)

Oregano (garden)

onion chives (garden)

5 huge garlic cloves cut into two halves

20 whole peppercorns

4 dried tomatoes

4 bay leaves

1 cut up onion

broccoli florets

cut up green peppers (garden)

Bring to boil, then simmer for 2 hours until the veggies have given all they can.

If you want to make your own stock, and live close by, come to my herb garden and pick till your hearts content.

Otherwise, instead of buying them from the store, use dried herbs the last 10 minutes of cooking the stock.

Strain well, discard the veggies, cool the stock and refrigerate until you need some!

I have never made stock before. I love it! It tastes awesome, not salty or oily like the store bought brands, and it made a ton!

I'll be making rice, soup, lots of other things with it!

Try it! It makes the house smell divine!

Our Pizza Parade Night!

Getting ready to put the toppings on...

This is the cream cheese/powdered sugar one, with Apple pie filling on it.

Ready to bake, and afterward, drizzled with powdered sugar icing.

My favorite "sauce" Olive oil and Garlic.

Johnny is very proud of the Pizza Parade!

With toppings on, waiting for their date with a 500 degree oven and a super hot stone.

The green and red one was done just like that. With Sundried Tomato Paste I made by rehydrating sundried tomatoes in water, and whizzing them in my mini food processor with a drizzle of olive oil.

Make your own Pizza night!

Boule dough rolled out for pizza

I like "white" pizza's, (no sauce) this is pesto... mmmmmm

Everyone made their own pizza last night. I just got all the dough ready.

This pizza was the dessert pizza. Same dough, spread with light cream cheese and powdered sugar mixture, and topped with apple pie filling, then baked.

Johnny did this all by himself. Looks good huh?

Now it just needs toppings.

Pictures of meals.

My version of Pasta and Alfredo

My kids LOVE this.

It's the Mockfredo recipe in my archives.

I always forget to take pictures of the food I prepare.

A LAVASH I unwrapped to show the ingredients. It wrapped up like a burrito and looks much nicer when wrapped. Ingredients include, turkey breast, roasted red peppers, spicy hot honey mustard, romaine lettuce, pepperoncini's, campari tomatoes, salt and pepper.

Cream Cheese Mix ins

Have you ever run out of cereal at your house?

Is your house is like mine... when that happens, it's like the entire world has come to a screeching halt!

I'm tired of buying cereal. I wanted to shake things up a bit and get a little creative with breakfast for my men.

No... nothing extravagant... just maybe some pre made on Sunday night pancakes one day,

or an super easy scone recipe I have.

Lately it's been my Cinnamon Raisin Bread that gets 'em out of bed in the morning.

I don't mind being creative... I just don't want to have to get out of bed to make stuff for them all the time.

So that's where prep comes in really handy.

Absolutely everything that can be done ahead...is. Then it isn't a drudgery to make.

So... this weeks homework is...

***

MAKING FLAVORED CREAM CHEESES FOR TOAST, RAISIN BREAD OR BAGELS.

Well, of course I know you can buy a tub of flavored bliss in the stores... but those containers are expensive and my kids would go through one a day! They cost almost 4 bucks a pop!

No thank you... I'll just do it myself.

***

So... might I suggest you purchase a large block of cream cheese from either Costco or Smart n Final. WWWAAAAYYY cheaper than the little 8 oz. things. It's either 2 bucks for 8 oz, or you can spend 6 bucks for 48 oz.

Let it sit out for about 20 minutes to take the chill off, and cut 4 oz blocks for each flavor.

I like to use my PC Prep Bowl Set for storing the mixed cheese.

Then just mix away.

***

Brown sugar and cinnamon

Fresh strawberry preserves

Blueberry preserves

Onion and Chives

Fresh Chopped Veggies and Dill

THE SKY IS THE LIMIT!

***

My favorite mix in? Sweet/Hot Chili Sauce from Trader Joes!

Sunday Lunch

I wrapped Hebrew National Hot Dogs with a thin layer of my Boule Dough and made my own Hot Dog Buns! Yum! This was yesterdays lunch after cleaning and winterizing the back yard.

Then I got a little bit creative. I had an apple, and some fresh Mozzarella Cheese.

I sliced the apple really thinly, and layered cheese and apple in a thin piece of rolled out Boule Dough, (enhanced with whole wheat flour and Flax Seed Meal)

Sound gross? No way, this is pretty popular in France. I had something like it when I was in Paris, many years ago.

I sliced up a little piece for each of us to try. It tasted okay. Next time, a sharper cheese, like a sharp Provolone, or a Chevre (goat) cheese or Feta will be better.

My men all still asked for more, so it wasn't THAT bad.

I guess I should have posted this on my Bread Blog.

We included celery sticks, carrot sticks and cucumber slices as a side dish.

Every plate was empty when it was all said and done.