Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Yum, cookies
I might have forgot a photo for Monday and Tuesday's dinners but I didn't forget to take one of my yummy cookies that son 2 helped me make. One of my favs. Soft pumpkin spice with icing ( creamcheese of course). Ignore my work papers in the background.
Monday Jan. 28 & Tuesday Jan. 29
Monday we had homemade Lasagna. I make a mean lasagna. Just out of my head now because I make it so often. Son 1 especially likes lasagna. Son 2 tolerates it. He likes the smell more than that actual dish.
Tuesday was a rushed kind of night. I had leftovers from Monday, Son 1 didn't have leftover because he has it already in his lunch. For them I made rigatoni pasta. Son 1 has red sauce just "slopped" on top and not mixed in and son 2 has butter with parmesan cheese. If it's not made like how Lesley used to make it then look out! BH isn't home this week so that's why I made the lasagna. His diet doesn't allow him that kind of a dish, too bad for him......
Sorry no photo, I forgot.
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Day 29 at Chateau Beck
Tonights dinner was Hamburger Soup. It was sooooo good! Just what we needed on such a cold, cold day!
Park Household 24-28
We are in the homestrech people!! I already have Friday planned as a night to eat out!! I'll have to see if the kids have some where they would like to go. I wonder if Nathan will pick Tim Hortons. =)
Day 24 I think I had something wonderful planned, but didn't feel like it so instead we made nachos. Which is always a good standby. As long as we have sour cream around.
Day 25: I worked so it was perogies for the boys (not my favorite) and leftover roast beef for me.
Day 26: Now that I think back to it I'm not really sure we had dinner on Saturday. Lucas had some at a birthday party. And when Nathan and I got to the birthday party we got a cupcake, so maybe that was our dinner.... not very healthy I know. That night we also had a bunch of girls from the eat at home challenge over for a movie night. We made popcorn in the popcorn maker and Lesley brought buffalo chicken dip (yummy) and I made the cream cheese/caramel/skor dip with apples.
Day 27: Darryl made a delicious steak dinner and we had a bunch of people over. It was Dad's belated birthday celebration. I tried to make the "pinned" roast brocolli with it, but Costco didn't have brocolli (not shocked, stupid Costco) so we had brocollini, it wasn't as good as I was hoping, but I'll have to try it with real brocolli next time.
Day 28: Mondays have started to become a gong show for us. I teach a class till 5, then get home and Lucas has karate at 6. So we need to have something made when we get home. Thank god for slow cookers!! Yesterday morning I smorgy-d a recipe that I have done before. It was 2 chicken breasts, half a container of cream cheese (leftover from movie night) corn (leftover from steak night) 3/4c salsa and some black beans. Let it cook on low all day. When we got home we shredded the meat and then put it in wraps. Nathan preferred it with nacho chips. It was delicious and fast and easy.
Jenn
Day 24 I think I had something wonderful planned, but didn't feel like it so instead we made nachos. Which is always a good standby. As long as we have sour cream around.
Day 25: I worked so it was perogies for the boys (not my favorite) and leftover roast beef for me.
Day 26: Now that I think back to it I'm not really sure we had dinner on Saturday. Lucas had some at a birthday party. And when Nathan and I got to the birthday party we got a cupcake, so maybe that was our dinner.... not very healthy I know. That night we also had a bunch of girls from the eat at home challenge over for a movie night. We made popcorn in the popcorn maker and Lesley brought buffalo chicken dip (yummy) and I made the cream cheese/caramel/skor dip with apples.
Day 27: Darryl made a delicious steak dinner and we had a bunch of people over. It was Dad's belated birthday celebration. I tried to make the "pinned" roast brocolli with it, but Costco didn't have brocolli (not shocked, stupid Costco) so we had brocollini, it wasn't as good as I was hoping, but I'll have to try it with real brocolli next time.
Jenn
Monday, January 28, 2013
Day 26, 27, 28 at Chateau Beck
Saturday was going to make me or break me and I MADE IT!
I was going shopping with Kathryn at the mall and it would have been easy to eat at the food court but we stuck to the challenge and came home for some frozen pizza and wings that Aaron had made.
Sunday night we had Aaron's mom and brother over for a roast chicken dinner which was as good as always, we bought two chickens at Walmart for $16 and they were really good. Moist, flavorful and the homemade stuffing was good the second and third helping.
Tonights dinner:
Chicken and Bacon Sacchini with Rose Sauce and caesar salad. This is a really quick meal, its the fresh Olivieri pasta that takes 3 minutes to cook once the water is boiling. Maybe not the most healthy but everyone likes it.
I was going shopping with Kathryn at the mall and it would have been easy to eat at the food court but we stuck to the challenge and came home for some frozen pizza and wings that Aaron had made.
Sunday night we had Aaron's mom and brother over for a roast chicken dinner which was as good as always, we bought two chickens at Walmart for $16 and they were really good. Moist, flavorful and the homemade stuffing was good the second and third helping.
Tonights dinner:
Chicken and Bacon Sacchini with Rose Sauce and caesar salad. This is a really quick meal, its the fresh Olivieri pasta that takes 3 minutes to cook once the water is boiling. Maybe not the most healthy but everyone likes it.
Sunday, January 27, 2013
Friday, January 25, 2013
Day 25 at Chateau Beck
Day 24 Chateau Beck
I had big plans on making Tamara's zuchinni/tomato chicken and pasta dish and then realized I forgot to buy the Rose sauce.
Plan B was shake and bake chicken breasts with Four Cheese Rice a Roni (no one liked it), corn and diced beets. I am the only person in the family that likes beets, so I usually have leftovers the next day for my lunch.
Plan B was shake and bake chicken breasts with Four Cheese Rice a Roni (no one liked it), corn and diced beets. I am the only person in the family that likes beets, so I usually have leftovers the next day for my lunch.
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Park House: 19, 20 and 21
I always find the mid point of the Eat at Home challenge the most challenging. I miss the convenience of eating out and miss my Wendy's and Edo and some of the other fast food we do. On Sunday we went to the Southland Leisure Centre and we were all starving when we left. I did bring some snacks, although the kids eating two granola bars is not the most healthy either.
Jan :19 I worked, so the boys had their favorite Mom's gone dinner. Salmon, with fettuccine Alfredo and peas. I had some of the leftover roast beef. The people at work were ordering Vietanemese, which I really enjoy, but I was good and ate my roast beef.
January 20th: Last night we had ham, scallop potatoes and peas. We make our own scallop potatoes and use a mix of mushroom soup, cheese and sour cream and milk. Auntie Karen joined us and she enjoyed it as well.
January 21st: Tonight we had another Rachael Ray recipe, which meets my goals for 3 of those recipes this week. Tonight was Italian Sub Stoup. Stoup is somewhere between soup and stew. I was FANTASTIC. Darryl and I really enjoyed it. But Lucas was not so fond of it. I think I'll try it again in a month or two and see if he changes his mind. The only change I made was instead of green peppers and arugula I used spinach.
January 22: Made the dumplings that Lori suggested.
January 23: Breakfast for dinner.
Home Stretch...
Jenn
Jan :19 I worked, so the boys had their favorite Mom's gone dinner. Salmon, with fettuccine Alfredo and peas. I had some of the leftover roast beef. The people at work were ordering Vietanemese, which I really enjoy, but I was good and ate my roast beef.
January 20th: Last night we had ham, scallop potatoes and peas. We make our own scallop potatoes and use a mix of mushroom soup, cheese and sour cream and milk. Auntie Karen joined us and she enjoyed it as well.
January 21st: Tonight we had another Rachael Ray recipe, which meets my goals for 3 of those recipes this week. Tonight was Italian Sub Stoup. Stoup is somewhere between soup and stew. I was FANTASTIC. Darryl and I really enjoyed it. But Lucas was not so fond of it. I think I'll try it again in a month or two and see if he changes his mind. The only change I made was instead of green peppers and arugula I used spinach.
January 22: Made the dumplings that Lori suggested.
January 23: Breakfast for dinner.
Home Stretch...
Jenn
Day 22, 23 at Chateau Beck
Last night was leftover night! Beef on a bun with some chicken chow mein on the side :o)
Tonight Aaron started back at his university night classes so the boys and I had an old family favourite. Lipton's Chicken Noodle Soup with eggs. So, when the soup is at a rolling boil I whisk up two eggs in a bowl and pour it in. It adds some "bulk" to the soup and takes on the soup flavour.
We'll be dining at Bolero Friday, Feb 1st! Something to look forward to, but the kids don't even seem to care much. I struggle with the lack of Tim Horton's. It's just a nice treat after skating, swimming, a lazy Sunday afternoon......
Tonight Aaron started back at his university night classes so the boys and I had an old family favourite. Lipton's Chicken Noodle Soup with eggs. So, when the soup is at a rolling boil I whisk up two eggs in a bowl and pour it in. It adds some "bulk" to the soup and takes on the soup flavour.
We'll be dining at Bolero Friday, Feb 1st! Something to look forward to, but the kids don't even seem to care much. I struggle with the lack of Tim Horton's. It's just a nice treat after skating, swimming, a lazy Sunday afternoon......
Last night
Very healthy! Tator tots, green beans, and cucumbers. Son 2 had chicken fingers too and son 1 wanted his in a wrap aka McDonald's style.
Monday, January 21, 2013
Days 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21
We haven't thrown in the towel but I've been awful at keeping up with the posting!!!
Day 21 is Chicken Chow Mein
Day 20 was Shredded Beef on a Bun with Quinoa/Cranberry/Orange/Pecan salad
Day 19 was BBQ hamburger and caesar salad
Day 18 was Breakfast for supper
Day 17 was Steak dinner with baked potatoes and salad
Day 16 was leftovers
Day 20 was Shredded Beef on a Bun with Quinoa/Cranberry/Orange/Pecan salad
Day 19 was BBQ hamburger and caesar salad
Day 18 was Breakfast for supper
Day 17 was Steak dinner with baked potatoes and salad
Day 16 was leftovers
January 17-21st/13
Ack! Just when I was in a roll, I end up falling behind again!
January 17th to 19th were all boring leftover days. Leftover RiceARoni, more leftover RiceARoni and last but not least...you can fill in the rest! Don't get me wrong, I love that meal and it's SO cheap when you realize how many portions it makes.
January 20th...we were invited to Paul's parent's house for a late lunch/early dinner. We had finger foods...homemade sushi, chicken fingers, wheat berry salad and sausage rolls. Yum!
Later in the evening, we fired up our Whirly-Pop popcorn popper (from Lee Valley Tools $28.50) and made 3 batches of popcorn with special kernels we bought at the market. One was dill, one was Parmesan & herbs and the other was marshmallow caramel corn.
Tonight (Jan 21st), as with other Mondays I had a quick dinner before going to pick Paul up from the university. Just some chicken, rice & green beans. The rice and chicken were pre-cooked and frozen in portions for quick meals.
Until next time....
Lori
January 17th to 19th were all boring leftover days. Leftover RiceARoni, more leftover RiceARoni and last but not least...you can fill in the rest! Don't get me wrong, I love that meal and it's SO cheap when you realize how many portions it makes.
January 20th...we were invited to Paul's parent's house for a late lunch/early dinner. We had finger foods...homemade sushi, chicken fingers, wheat berry salad and sausage rolls. Yum!
Later in the evening, we fired up our Whirly-Pop popcorn popper (from Lee Valley Tools $28.50) and made 3 batches of popcorn with special kernels we bought at the market. One was dill, one was Parmesan & herbs and the other was marshmallow caramel corn.
Tonight (Jan 21st), as with other Mondays I had a quick dinner before going to pick Paul up from the university. Just some chicken, rice & green beans. The rice and chicken were pre-cooked and frozen in portions for quick meals.
Until next time....
Lori
Saturday, January 19, 2013
Happy Birthday Brother Bear
So it was Lexxs' first birthday (whelp) not ready for my baby to be a year but what can you do? Anyways, it's not really dinner related but it is all made at home from scratch so I thought I'd post. Sister had a hand in many of the yummy treats also that I did take pictures of but they are on my camera not my phone. She made a cheese ball igloo and olive penguins, she made Rice Krispie sushi (so kewl) and I made chicken spicy cheese dip from Lesley, the best dip ever and everyone loved it! I guess it is kinda dinner related because that's what I'm eating for supper. So here is a picture of his cake and my goofy Bakers Helper!
Park Household: Days 16,17,18
Hi Everyone,
Lucas is enjoying this eat at home challenge. The other day he was the one to remind me to take a picture of dinner. Plus it means we get to do one of his favorite things: Stay home. =) Although I'm sure he will be happy for some Edo Japan when Feburary comes.
January 16: Tonight we had Lucas's favorite pizza. It's delicious, but it's a bit small, so we (Darryl and I) always have a big salad with it. But is delicious!
January 17: Thursday was homemade chicken fingers. Not homemade fries and homemade brocolli. Darryl and I were shocked as Lucas ate his broccoli, no complaining! Or no eat the smallest tiniest bites ever. The boys also loved the homemade chicken fingers. About a year ago someone introduced us to panko bread crumbs so we used those and it makes the chicken fingers extra crispy.
January 18: Last night I tried another Rachel Ray Recipe: Florentine Meatballs. She puts a cheese sauce on them, but I put ours in spagetti and meatball. It's ground chicken with spinach, bread crumbs, garlic, onion, pepper and parm cheese. They were very flavorful. Next time I might try them with ground beef.
It's been great to see what everyone else has been making for dinners. My family is going to love the variety I'm learning.
Jenn
Lucas is enjoying this eat at home challenge. The other day he was the one to remind me to take a picture of dinner. Plus it means we get to do one of his favorite things: Stay home. =) Although I'm sure he will be happy for some Edo Japan when Feburary comes.
January 16: Tonight we had Lucas's favorite pizza. It's delicious, but it's a bit small, so we (Darryl and I) always have a big salad with it. But is delicious!
Jenn
Friday, January 18, 2013
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Wednesday, January 16th/13
Mackenzie was working from home today so I charged her with the task of figuring out what we should have for dinner. She chose a family favourite (compliments of Jenn)...Spanish RiceARoni nachos.
Paul added some garlic butter sautéed carrots & spinach. Yum!!
Paul added some garlic butter sautéed carrots & spinach. Yum!!
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Day 15: Scramblewiches
Here is what I made tonight. It was a quick and easy dinner. It was good and an interesting way to use up a loaf of french bread.
1 baguette
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
4-5 pieces of ham
8 large eggs
1/8-1/4 fluid ounce milk (a splash)
1 teaspoon hot sauce ( I didn't use this)
salt
fresh ground black pepper
4 slices Cheddar cheese
chopped fresh chives or chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Directions:
1 Preheat oven to 200°; crisp the bread in the low oven, split it lengthwise and hollow it out.
2 Cut each bread in half again, across, making 4 boats; switch the broiler on.
3 Heat a large nonstick skillet over moderate heat; add the butter and let it melt.
4 Add in the meat and cook for 3 minutes or until brown at the edges, separate the pieces.
5 In a bowl, beat the eggs with a splash of milk, the hot sauce, salt, and pepper; add to the skillet w/the meat; scramble, keeping the eggs a little soft.
6 Divide the eggs among the bread and cover with the cheese; melt the cheese under the broiler; take sandwiches out as soon as the cheese softens and melts.
7 Garnish with chopped chives or parsley.
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
4-5 pieces of ham
8 large eggs
1/8-1/4 fluid ounce milk (a splash)
1 teaspoon hot sauce ( I didn't use this)
salt
fresh ground black pepper
4 slices Cheddar cheese
chopped fresh chives or chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Directions:
1 Preheat oven to 200°; crisp the bread in the low oven, split it lengthwise and hollow it out.
2 Cut each bread in half again, across, making 4 boats; switch the broiler on.
3 Heat a large nonstick skillet over moderate heat; add the butter and let it melt.
4 Add in the meat and cook for 3 minutes or until brown at the edges, separate the pieces.
5 In a bowl, beat the eggs with a splash of milk, the hot sauce, salt, and pepper; add to the skillet w/the meat; scramble, keeping the eggs a little soft.
6 Divide the eggs among the bread and cover with the cheese; melt the cheese under the broiler; take sandwiches out as soon as the cheese softens and melts.
7 Garnish with chopped chives or parsley.
Jenn
Park House: Days: 9,10,11,12,13,14
Kowabunga! Here is my post for the last weekish.
January 9th: Fish and Chips. The were good and an old standby.
January 10th: Chili. Nathan was sick today and Darryl stayed home with him so he made the chili. It wasn't quite the same as I mine, which isn't a bad thing and mine is in my head so it's not a recipe he could follow. One thing that I use now for my chili and spaghetti sauce is the fake meat aka ground round. Again we are watching our cholestrol over here so it's good when we can make our food vegetarian.
January 11th I worked, so Darryl and the boys had soup and I had leftovers....
January 12th: Darryl made us a beautiful chicken stirfry. We use hoisin sauce on our stirfry and I love it.
January 13th: Delicious roast beef dinner! There was lots too, so we have leftovers. One of the interesting things we do is mixed sweet potato and regular potatoes together to make our mashed potatoes. Also makes them healthier. I'm proud of us as we went to the science center today too, so it would have been very easy to buy a lunch there, but we prepared and brought some (although in hindsight not quite enough, thank goodness for the almonds in the car)
January 14th: Monday was a busy night. I got home at 5:40 and Lucas had karate at 6. It would have been a perfect night for drive thru. But Darryl made some macaroni and cheese and I made myself a salad when I got home. Healthier, even though it wasn't super healthy. But better then fried food from McDonalds. Lesson learned tonight, slow cooker meals on Mondays when I have to teach till 5 and Lucas has karate at 6.
This week I'm going to try some new recipes. I got a new Rachael Ray cookbook for Christmas, so my plan is to try two of those.
Jenn
January 9th: Fish and Chips. The were good and an old standby.
January 10th: Chili. Nathan was sick today and Darryl stayed home with him so he made the chili. It wasn't quite the same as I mine, which isn't a bad thing and mine is in my head so it's not a recipe he could follow. One thing that I use now for my chili and spaghetti sauce is the fake meat aka ground round. Again we are watching our cholestrol over here so it's good when we can make our food vegetarian.
January 11th I worked, so Darryl and the boys had soup and I had leftovers....
January 13th: Delicious roast beef dinner! There was lots too, so we have leftovers. One of the interesting things we do is mixed sweet potato and regular potatoes together to make our mashed potatoes. Also makes them healthier. I'm proud of us as we went to the science center today too, so it would have been very easy to buy a lunch there, but we prepared and brought some (although in hindsight not quite enough, thank goodness for the almonds in the car)
January 14th: Monday was a busy night. I got home at 5:40 and Lucas had karate at 6. It would have been a perfect night for drive thru. But Darryl made some macaroni and cheese and I made myself a salad when I got home. Healthier, even though it wasn't super healthy. But better then fried food from McDonalds. Lesson learned tonight, slow cooker meals on Mondays when I have to teach till 5 and Lucas has karate at 6.
This week I'm going to try some new recipes. I got a new Rachael Ray cookbook for Christmas, so my plan is to try two of those.
Jenn
Tuesday, January 15th
Woo hoo! Look at me...posting same day!! Mackenzie is at school late today helping with the Grade 8 student & parent open house so Paul introduced me to Chinese dumplings.
These are from the United Food Mart in town. The large dumplings are chicken & vegetable. The little ones are pork/celery and pork/napa (a type of cabbage). We dipped them in Chinkiang vinegar which sort of tasted like a cross between malt vinegar and worcestershire sauce.
The best part is that I liked them! They were delicious! It's well known that I'm not very adventurous with new foods so this was great!
Lori
These are from the United Food Mart in town. The large dumplings are chicken & vegetable. The little ones are pork/celery and pork/napa (a type of cabbage). We dipped them in Chinkiang vinegar which sort of tasted like a cross between malt vinegar and worcestershire sauce.
The best part is that I liked them! They were delicious! It's well known that I'm not very adventurous with new foods so this was great!
Lori
Catch Up Post #3, Jan 12-14th
Saturday, January 12th-
Back on track! Mackenzie was at a Party Lites party in the early evening so Paul made a lovely meal of herb-seasoned, baked pork chops, red potatoes and broccoli. It was all ready when I arrived after dropping Mackenzie off at the party. Having someone cook for me is SUCH A LUXURY! I feel like a princess. Gosh, he's a good cook! A picture really is worth a thousand words so I promise I'll get better at taking pictures in the second half of this month.
Sunday, January 13th-
The freezer scavenging continues! My freezer this time. I found a package of Oktoberfest sausage deep in the freezer with some cheddar perogies from Costco. I know it seems like we've eaten a lot of perogies this month (and maybe we have) but they're one of those foods that you sample at Costco, exclaim "Gosh, I love perogies! Why don't we eat these more often?" and then realize that you have 6 bags at home from previous Costco visits that are buried in the freezer. Am I right? I opened a can of Blue Menu French-cut green beans to have with the meal. Though I love fresh green beans, I was raised with canned green beans and I have to confess...I love them! I keep them on hand just for me because Mackenzie won't eat them. Paul's a trooper though and gave them a shot. He's such a good guy...he'll eat just about anything (just like Darryl!) Is it a boy thing?
Monday, January 14th-
On Mondays I work all day and Paul teaches in the evening so we don't cross paths until bed time. For my dinner, I dug some Creamy Noodle Tuna Helper out of the freezer (that I had previously made with canned ham instead of tuna) and had that with a big glass of milk for dinner. Mackenzie ended up staying at school working on an assignment until 9:30pm so I had dinner by myself...not alone though. Four furry faces stared me down just begging for me to drop a morsel of my dinner.
An entire second half of the month still lies ahead of us but I think I'm starting to get into the swing of things! I'll endeavour to pull out my cookbooks (or Pinterest!) a couple of times and I'll do my best to try to remember to snap pictures of our meals!!
Lori
Back on track! Mackenzie was at a Party Lites party in the early evening so Paul made a lovely meal of herb-seasoned, baked pork chops, red potatoes and broccoli. It was all ready when I arrived after dropping Mackenzie off at the party. Having someone cook for me is SUCH A LUXURY! I feel like a princess. Gosh, he's a good cook! A picture really is worth a thousand words so I promise I'll get better at taking pictures in the second half of this month.
Sunday, January 13th-
The freezer scavenging continues! My freezer this time. I found a package of Oktoberfest sausage deep in the freezer with some cheddar perogies from Costco. I know it seems like we've eaten a lot of perogies this month (and maybe we have) but they're one of those foods that you sample at Costco, exclaim "Gosh, I love perogies! Why don't we eat these more often?" and then realize that you have 6 bags at home from previous Costco visits that are buried in the freezer. Am I right? I opened a can of Blue Menu French-cut green beans to have with the meal. Though I love fresh green beans, I was raised with canned green beans and I have to confess...I love them! I keep them on hand just for me because Mackenzie won't eat them. Paul's a trooper though and gave them a shot. He's such a good guy...he'll eat just about anything (just like Darryl!) Is it a boy thing?
Monday, January 14th-
On Mondays I work all day and Paul teaches in the evening so we don't cross paths until bed time. For my dinner, I dug some Creamy Noodle Tuna Helper out of the freezer (that I had previously made with canned ham instead of tuna) and had that with a big glass of milk for dinner. Mackenzie ended up staying at school working on an assignment until 9:30pm so I had dinner by myself...not alone though. Four furry faces stared me down just begging for me to drop a morsel of my dinner.
An entire second half of the month still lies ahead of us but I think I'm starting to get into the swing of things! I'll endeavour to pull out my cookbooks (or Pinterest!) a couple of times and I'll do my best to try to remember to snap pictures of our meals!!
Lori
Catch Up Post #2, Jan 9-11th
Wednesday, January 9th-
This turned out to be an unusual but delightful night for us! Mackenzie's friends have been raving about a party game called Cards Against Humanity. It's much like Apples-To-Apples but definitely the "grown up" version (for those that don't know, my daughter Mackenzie is 18 years old). Since it's sold out virtually everywhere, we took advantage of the free downloadable .pdf version on their website. Mackenzie and her friend David sat on the floor in the living room cutting out all of the cards while Paul and I made nachos and mini pizzas. We pigged out, had a blast playing the game and made a plan to play again sometime when no one has to drive anywhere so we could have a few drinks while we play. What a fun night!!
Thursday, January 10th-
Fail. Mackenzie ordered Pizza Hut after an 8-11pm shift at McDonald's. It's reallllly hard to get teenagers on board with the Eat at Home Challenge. They always want instant food. Paul and I caved and had some, too. I hang my head in shame.
Friday, January 11th-
Friday's are tough. We meet Ian's family at McDonald's for coffee every Friday. For over a decade we used to meet at the Old Tyme Diner but in 2010 the owners decided they deserved to retire (can you imagine the nerve?!) and there aren't any other good diners in the area that are open late enough for us. Unfortunately, when you're at McDonald's for coffee, it's hard to resist a hot fudge sundae while you're at it. MORE SHAME!
Until the next catch up post...
Lori
This turned out to be an unusual but delightful night for us! Mackenzie's friends have been raving about a party game called Cards Against Humanity. It's much like Apples-To-Apples but definitely the "grown up" version (for those that don't know, my daughter Mackenzie is 18 years old). Since it's sold out virtually everywhere, we took advantage of the free downloadable .pdf version on their website. Mackenzie and her friend David sat on the floor in the living room cutting out all of the cards while Paul and I made nachos and mini pizzas. We pigged out, had a blast playing the game and made a plan to play again sometime when no one has to drive anywhere so we could have a few drinks while we play. What a fun night!!
Thursday, January 10th-
Fail. Mackenzie ordered Pizza Hut after an 8-11pm shift at McDonald's. It's reallllly hard to get teenagers on board with the Eat at Home Challenge. They always want instant food. Paul and I caved and had some, too. I hang my head in shame.
Friday, January 11th-
Friday's are tough. We meet Ian's family at McDonald's for coffee every Friday. For over a decade we used to meet at the Old Tyme Diner but in 2010 the owners decided they deserved to retire (can you imagine the nerve?!) and there aren't any other good diners in the area that are open late enough for us. Unfortunately, when you're at McDonald's for coffee, it's hard to resist a hot fudge sundae while you're at it. MORE SHAME!
Until the next catch up post...
Lori
Catch Up Post #1, Jan 6-8th
This month feels more like than the Amazing Race than the typical "back to work/school routine" kind of month that I normally have in January. Don't get me wrong...it's been a great month with a lot of variety but there's simply no routine. Day by day, week by week, month by month, I'm learning how to fly by the seat of my pants. It's an acquired skill...one which I'm starting to see value in but haven't yet mastered. For any of you who know me, you'll know how disconcerting it is for me to be doing anything that I haven't got a handle on...but you can teach an old dog new tricks!
Sunday, January 6th-The post-holiday let down lends itself to lean finances for us as it does for many families. We've been digging deeper in the freezer to see what sort of leftovers can be brought out and used up. Paul's Mom made a delicious split pea and ham soup over the holidays so we heated up the leftovers and had some cheddar & jalapeño perogies with it. Yum!
Monday, January 7th-I started my new position as a veterinary receptionist full-time today so I didn't get home until late. I pulled out some of my favourite home made chili (a Wendy's copycat recipe) and made some garlic toast to go with it.
Sunday, January 6th-The post-holiday let down lends itself to lean finances for us as it does for many families. We've been digging deeper in the freezer to see what sort of leftovers can be brought out and used up. Paul's Mom made a delicious split pea and ham soup over the holidays so we heated up the leftovers and had some cheddar & jalapeño perogies with it. Yum!
Monday, January 7th-I started my new position as a veterinary receptionist full-time today so I didn't get home until late. I pulled out some of my favourite home made chili (a Wendy's copycat recipe) and made some garlic toast to go with it.
Tuesday, January 8th-Paul made some wickedly good omelettes with the leftover ham & turkey in the freezer from Boxing Day dinner at his parents. He paired with with some broccoli and fried potatoes. You've got to love a man that cooks! Yeah!!
That's it for now...
Lori
Monday, January 14, 2013
Day 11, 12, 13, 14
I'm not even sure I remember what we had for supper Friday night, lol.
It was....hmm...
chicken nuggets and fries. I had an appt at 6:15 so it was something quick with minimal cleanup.
Saturday night's dinner was at Kathryn's house and we had roasted veggies, baby potatoes and souvlaki pork from Costco. No one was especially crazy about the pork - it was overly spiced in my opinion. Veggies were AWESOME. I love all veggies.
Sunday we had soup and grilled cheese sandwiches and tonight is taco night. Ole!
Halfway thru the month and going strong! I just keep thinking of all the money we're saving...and I bought Starbucks flavoured syrups to fake my own lattes.
As a reward I think I'll have to plan a dinner out somewhere. Maybe Bolero. We keep telling the boys we'll take them there one time.
It was....hmm...
chicken nuggets and fries. I had an appt at 6:15 so it was something quick with minimal cleanup.
Saturday night's dinner was at Kathryn's house and we had roasted veggies, baby potatoes and souvlaki pork from Costco. No one was especially crazy about the pork - it was overly spiced in my opinion. Veggies were AWESOME. I love all veggies.
Sunday we had soup and grilled cheese sandwiches and tonight is taco night. Ole!
Halfway thru the month and going strong! I just keep thinking of all the money we're saving...and I bought Starbucks flavoured syrups to fake my own lattes.
As a reward I think I'll have to plan a dinner out somewhere. Maybe Bolero. We keep telling the boys we'll take them there one time.
Update
I am failing, BUT not at Eat at Home Challenge......just at posting. I have a camera full of what we ate, just not downloaded. Stay tuned.
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Day 9 & 10 at Chateau Beck
Day 9 was baked chicken and couscous. Aaron was cooking and he's a plain cook, now when he's bbqing he goes all out and tries new things.
Tonight's dinner is spaghetti squash and bolognese sauce.
You couldn't really see the squash in the first picture...but I looooooooove bolognese sauce. Yum yum!
We're off to Pincher Creek this weekend so that will be the real test for us...can we skip the usual Tim Horton's pitstop???
Days 4-8 at the Park Household
Day 4 we did do our own homepizza which was fantastic. My favorite is to put pesto as the sauce and then veggies on top, tomatoes, mushrooms and spinach.
Day 5. Darryl made me a delicious steak dinner. Steak, baked potato, asparagus and corn. After a great day of skiing. We are running into a big of a condundrum in his house. Darryl has cholesterol issues so I've been trying not to each a lot of red meat. I've switch over from ground beef to fake meat for most of my spagetti/chili dishes and not eating steak or roast all that much. Eating more white meat and fish or meatless. But this has now become more of an issue for me and my iron levels. So I was happy to indugle in this steak.
Day 6: Working for a living. The boys had perogies, one of their favorite "mom's gone" meals. And I had some leftovers at work.
Day 7: We had pulled pork. This has been a newer recipe for this and so we are still experimenting with it. In the fall we had swimming lessons from 5-5:30 so I would always put a meal in the slow cooker so when we got home around 6 dinner would be basically ready. I buy a fairly cheap piece of pork and put bbq sauce on it and let it cook all day. Then shred it with two forks before eating on a bun. Yesterday Darryl added apple juice, hickory smoke and garlic to the slow cooker. It was delicious.
It was a bit more challenging this week as I went back to work so there is lots of access to food, but once I got back into bringing lots of variety and food I was good again.
Jenn
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Day 7 and 8 at Chateau Beck
I got hit by a cold so we've strayed from the menu because honestly I was just too tired.
Monday night we had eggs and toast and Tuesday night was fish sticks/fries for the boys and I had chicken pot pie.
Today I'm feeling considerably better so we're back on track for the menu.
Monday night we had eggs and toast and Tuesday night was fish sticks/fries for the boys and I had chicken pot pie.
Today I'm feeling considerably better so we're back on track for the menu.
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Day # 7 Carriere Household
Chicken noodle soup and grilled cheese sandwiches
Day #8 - Carriere Household
Parma Rose Chicken (I love this recipe)
Ingredients
Chicken noodle soup and grilled cheese sandwiches
Day #8 - Carriere Household
Parma Rose Chicken (I love this recipe)
Ingredients
1/2 box uncooked penne pasta (I was out today and used egg noddles instead)
1 1/2 zucchini
3 tomatoes cut in bite sized pieces (again I only had one fresh so I used canned diced for the rest)
1 package dry Rose sauce
low fat milk and butter for the sauce
2 chicken breasts
2 cloves garlic
salt and pepper
mozzarella cheese (I used low fat)
Pre-heat your oven to 325. Cook your pasta according to the directions and drain once it's done. While that is cooking slice up your tomatoes and zucchini (julienne style for the zucchini and in bite sized for the tomatoes). Also, chop up your garlic into tiny, fine pieces.
Put some olive oil in the pan, throw in cubed up chicken, season with salt and pepper. Set aside when cooked.
Cook Rose sauce according to package directions - you can also make it from scratch, but I am ok with the dry packet kind.
Grab a big baking dish, and toss in the cooked pasta, veggies, garlic and chicken.
Add in the sauce and toss until it's all covered, then top with a handful of mozzarella cheese and bake for 25 minutes.
(I suggest a side of salad or garlic bread to go along with it)
Enjoy!
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Day #5 and Day#6 Carriere Household
Day 5
Shane is NOT a cook, so when he whipped up last nights dinner and it was AWESOME I'll be the first to admit I was suprised....pleasantly suprised ;)
He fried up some potatoes, and cooked to perfection some t-bone steaks on the BBQ, I did have to remind him to make some veggies, and he did, however I'm not sure I saw any on his plate...
As we were eating he shouted out "Hey! how come you didn't take any pictures??" ... I forgot ... I think I'm still in shock he cooked. It was a nice treat!
Day 6
We aren't passing judgement here on what we are eating ........................... right?!? ...... right???
Yes what you see here on this plate is Chocolate chip pancakes, bananas, and cool whip....and yes we ate it for dinner ................ eeek! As you can see Kaysi thought it was a GREAT idea...
Day 5
Shane is NOT a cook, so when he whipped up last nights dinner and it was AWESOME I'll be the first to admit I was suprised....pleasantly suprised ;)
He fried up some potatoes, and cooked to perfection some t-bone steaks on the BBQ, I did have to remind him to make some veggies, and he did, however I'm not sure I saw any on his plate...
As we were eating he shouted out "Hey! how come you didn't take any pictures??" ... I forgot ... I think I'm still in shock he cooked. It was a nice treat!
Day 6
We aren't passing judgement here on what we are eating ........................... right?!? ...... right???
Yes what you see here on this plate is Chocolate chip pancakes, bananas, and cool whip....and yes we ate it for dinner ................ eeek! As you can see Kaysi thought it was a GREAT idea...
Day 6 at Chateau Beck
After figuring out the cost of last nights dinner I had a craving for a roast beef dinner. So here it is, roast beef with yorkshire pudding, potatoes, green beans, gravy and cheese. We eat a lot of cheese....
Jan. 3 & 4
Chicken curry
and spaghetti ( homemade sauce that I love)
P. S. major complaining from the other Kinghorn's at my house about eat at home challenge, ugh!
and spaghetti ( homemade sauce that I love)
P. S. major complaining from the other Kinghorn's at my house about eat at home challenge, ugh!
I Have A Confession To Make...
I love the Eat At Home Challenge. I've always been a lover of grocery stores, grocery shopping, meal planning, pouring over the weekly flyers to see how little I can spend on great meals and I love to cook but I have to confess...this is tough this time around.
Ever since my childhood sweetheart, Paul came back into my life...it's been a whirlwind ride of splitting our time between each of our households, juggling his work schedule with mine, fitting Mackenzie's scheduling needs into the picture and many, many outings spending time with his family and friends. It has been SO...MUCH...FUN!!! The only teeny, tiny downside is that the routine lifestyle that I was so used to simply doesn't exist any more and that makes grocery shopping/meal planning really tough now.
January 1st went well. We were invited to Paul's parents for pork wellington, roasted potatoes, mashed cauliflower, broccoli and "Eton Mess" for dessert. It was DELICIOUS!! His mom is a great cook. Just like Jenn, she loves to have a house full of people which makes me admire her so much as I'm only starting to learn how to be a comfortable hostess. I'll have more info about Eton Mess later in the month.
January 2nd...we blew it, though I think it was for a good reason! Paul's buddy from high school and his girlfriend and 2 wee ones (20 months & 2 months old!) were in town from Australia for 4 weeks over the holidays. We got a chance to meet them at their high school hangout, The Runt Club pub for a few pints and the best thin crust pizza I've EVER had. I had pesto for the sauce, baby mozzarella, grilled chicken, smoked tomatoes and broccoli on mine. YUM!!! So it wasn't home made but it was hand made with my favourite healthy ingredients. Does that absolve me of some of my guilt?
January 3rd, we ate leftovers from the 2nd and 3rd. January 4th we did chores around my house (installing some curtain rods, laundry and we got the Christmas tree & decorations put away...YAY!). We stopped just long enough to eat some leftover homemade enchiladas cooked up with sautéed potatoes and broccoli.
In the evening on January 5th we were in the mood to watch a movie so we queued one up on the computer and made some home made nachos for dinner. I love anything "tex mex" so this is always a favourite option for me. Plus, to make it quick and easy when I want a tex mex fix, I keep cooked, seasoned taco meat (ground beef or shredded turkey or chicken) in the freezer so I can pull it out on a whim.
I haven't yet figured out what we're making for dinner today but once I do, I'll try to remember to take a picture this time so I can add it to the next post.
Happy 2013 everyone!!
Lori
Ever since my childhood sweetheart, Paul came back into my life...it's been a whirlwind ride of splitting our time between each of our households, juggling his work schedule with mine, fitting Mackenzie's scheduling needs into the picture and many, many outings spending time with his family and friends. It has been SO...MUCH...FUN!!! The only teeny, tiny downside is that the routine lifestyle that I was so used to simply doesn't exist any more and that makes grocery shopping/meal planning really tough now.
January 1st went well. We were invited to Paul's parents for pork wellington, roasted potatoes, mashed cauliflower, broccoli and "Eton Mess" for dessert. It was DELICIOUS!! His mom is a great cook. Just like Jenn, she loves to have a house full of people which makes me admire her so much as I'm only starting to learn how to be a comfortable hostess. I'll have more info about Eton Mess later in the month.
January 2nd...we blew it, though I think it was for a good reason! Paul's buddy from high school and his girlfriend and 2 wee ones (20 months & 2 months old!) were in town from Australia for 4 weeks over the holidays. We got a chance to meet them at their high school hangout, The Runt Club pub for a few pints and the best thin crust pizza I've EVER had. I had pesto for the sauce, baby mozzarella, grilled chicken, smoked tomatoes and broccoli on mine. YUM!!! So it wasn't home made but it was hand made with my favourite healthy ingredients. Does that absolve me of some of my guilt?
January 3rd, we ate leftovers from the 2nd and 3rd. January 4th we did chores around my house (installing some curtain rods, laundry and we got the Christmas tree & decorations put away...YAY!). We stopped just long enough to eat some leftover homemade enchiladas cooked up with sautéed potatoes and broccoli.
In the evening on January 5th we were in the mood to watch a movie so we queued one up on the computer and made some home made nachos for dinner. I love anything "tex mex" so this is always a favourite option for me. Plus, to make it quick and easy when I want a tex mex fix, I keep cooked, seasoned taco meat (ground beef or shredded turkey or chicken) in the freezer so I can pull it out on a whim.
I haven't yet figured out what we're making for dinner today but once I do, I'll try to remember to take a picture this time so I can add it to the next post.
Happy 2013 everyone!!
Lori
Saturday, January 5, 2013
Day 5 at Chateau Beck
Tonight was a last minute kind of dinner. Buffalo Chicken Bites, Vegetable Spring Rolls, Sweet Potato Fries, Pickles, Pickled Beets and an assortment of cheese.
Not the healthiest meal I admit but no one was especially hungry or had any brilliant dinner ideas so I just looked for whatever pub style food I could find in the freezer.
Jenn's comment about her expensive dinner really stuck in my head and I'm going to try and make an effort to plan meals better so maybe we can cut down on the grocery bills a bit. Tonights dinner was probably about $30 and wasn't really healthy at all, for the same money I could have bought a nice roast and all the fixings for 10 people...if I shopped at Costco that is, lol.
Friday, January 4, 2013
Day 4 at Chateau Beck
Dinner totally didn't look like this but it wasn't visually appealing in my opinion so I saved you the image.
Baked salmon with chicken rice-a-roni.
I don't experiment much with fish/seafood as I don't eat them but I try.
Day #3 Carriere House
fail..........
After a genourous gift certificate and an offer to babysit, Shane and I went to Famoso Restaurant for dinner ... and let me tell you, if I HAD to choose a place to fail this challenge it would be this place. Pizza was awesome....and I may have had some gelato for desert ;)
Day # 4 Carriere House
Yummy chicken ceasar salad, I've been doing alot of BBQ'ing lately with this warm weather so I grilled up 5 chicken breasts at once, possibly have some chicken wraps for lunch tommorow. If I am already preparing something I don't mind cooking a little extra to use the next day, makes it that much easier :)
**for some reason it will not let me upload pictures tonight.....however I'm sure we've all seen pizza and ceasar salad**
fail..........
After a genourous gift certificate and an offer to babysit, Shane and I went to Famoso Restaurant for dinner ... and let me tell you, if I HAD to choose a place to fail this challenge it would be this place. Pizza was awesome....and I may have had some gelato for desert ;)
Day # 4 Carriere House
Yummy chicken ceasar salad, I've been doing alot of BBQ'ing lately with this warm weather so I grilled up 5 chicken breasts at once, possibly have some chicken wraps for lunch tommorow. If I am already preparing something I don't mind cooking a little extra to use the next day, makes it that much easier :)
**for some reason it will not let me upload pictures tonight.....however I'm sure we've all seen pizza and ceasar salad**
Days, 1,2 and 3 at the Park Household
Glad to hear that everyone is so excited about the Eat at Home Challenge. I see we didn't do it in 2012 so I'm glad it's back for 2013. One person who was not excited was Nathan. When I told him we couldn't go to Tim Hortons he started to cry big alligator tears. "I love Tim Horton's" he said through his tears. Which honestly made me laugh even harder. I admit it I'm not a very good mom. But sometimes it's so hard not to laugh.
Anyway onto what we ate this week so far!
Jan 1 was peanut butter chicken. I know been there done that. But on a side note the Fetzer wine we had with it was really good. Sweet and then dinner was sweet, worked well.
Jan 2 was a recipe I had pinned. But honestly it wasn't that great. It was good, but one of my criteria for dinner is the amount of mess it makes and this one made 4 pans dirty. Too many in my dislike of doing the dishes opinion.
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Jan 3 we ate one of my favorite easy, delicious, albeit expensive meals at 15$ Not quite as much as going out and it does usually give us a lunch after too, but now it just sounds like I'm validating my reasons for spending more then 8 dollars on a dinner, which I would say is about average. Okay now that I've built it up... it's Vodka Scallop Pasta. So the scallops, 7$ a bag and then the sauce is the PC black menus sauce 6$ (which is a lot for a can of sauce). I usually add some mushrooms and parm cheese on top. So a more expensive meal, but it's a crowd pleaser. And both kids like scallop, which we also refer as marshmallows of the sea, which may be another reason we like them... =)
Anyway onto what we ate this week so far!
Jan 1 was peanut butter chicken. I know been there done that. But on a side note the Fetzer wine we had with it was really good. Sweet and then dinner was sweet, worked well.
Jan 2 was a recipe I had pinned. But honestly it wasn't that great. It was good, but one of my criteria for dinner is the amount of mess it makes and this one made 4 pans dirty. Too many in my dislike of doing the dishes opinion.
.JPG)
Jan 3 we ate one of my favorite easy, delicious, albeit expensive meals at 15$ Not quite as much as going out and it does usually give us a lunch after too, but now it just sounds like I'm validating my reasons for spending more then 8 dollars on a dinner, which I would say is about average. Okay now that I've built it up... it's Vodka Scallop Pasta. So the scallops, 7$ a bag and then the sauce is the PC black menus sauce 6$ (which is a lot for a can of sauce). I usually add some mushrooms and parm cheese on top. So a more expensive meal, but it's a crowd pleaser. And both kids like scallop, which we also refer as marshmallows of the sea, which may be another reason we like them... =)
Jan 4: Tonight is pizza. I'm hoping to do homemade, but it might be from a box. If we make our own I'll add a picture.
Jenn
Thursday, January 3, 2013
Day 3 at Chateau Beck
Tonight I made eggplant for dinner. Kind of like Eggplant Parmigan but without the breadcrumbs stuck to the egg coating and with havarti cheese. So really it's just eggplant, havarti and store bought spaghetti sauce with italian spice sprinkled over. It is tasty, quick and relatively cheap.
The grownups like it -the boys have 3 bites than fill up on veggies.
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