Spicy!

We found a salsa that is labeled hot that is actually hot! This one tastes great even though I am not usually a big fan of the habanero.  Too sweet? Or usually paired with sweet things? 

Mrs. Renfro's Habanero Salsa

While we are on the topic, check out what John Besh has in his My New Orleans Cookbook.

Basic Pepper Jelly Vinaigrette

1/2 cup pepper jelly
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon chile paste
1&1/2 cups canola oil
salt to taste

Can't wait to try this one with some of our pepper jelly!

Monday Funday

Husband is ditching us for out of town work for a few days, so Kid and I are going to have to find lots of ways to amuse ourselves.  Of course Kid passed his cold onto me and of course Kid keeps getting low fever off and on so our options are limited. 

I do let Kid frolic at the park, but once he gets all red and sweaty and I can't stop coughing we head home.  I suppose this means more trips to the Target and the Goodwill for air conditioned entertainment? I suppose I can still go running or walking. That is free of charge.  Cough cough.

I got Husband this Infrared Oil Less "Deep Fryer" thingy ma bobber for Christmas. I can't wait for him to try it. I hope it's easy to clean. 

We made The Homesick Texan's Dr Pepper Pork Ribs yesterday and they were tasty, but a little too syrupy sweet.  Might have to stick with just brown sugar next time.   Regardless, this is a pretty good method for cooking ribs in the oven for those that are doing the condo living.

Well Kid is about to wake up so time to start the Monday Funday.   Happy day to you!

My Cookbook Haul

Check out these 2 cookbooks I got for Christmas.  I want to cook ALL of the recipes.

John Besh - My New Orleans

Lisa Fain - The Homesick Texan

Seriously. I sat down with the books and some tabs and almost tabbed all of the recipes.  Undo tabs, cook whole book. :)

I just got word that Hunter and I are going to socialize tonight...without a kid...as in there is a babysitter.  Meaning...I am going to do my hair.  Probably put on some makeup.  Wear some of my clothes picked out by my personal stylist.

This is a miracle...especially since Wyatt is on day 6 of eye crusties / nose snotties.  Poor guy has a cold.  He is eating and sleeping pretty good so I willn't complain...not even a tiny bit...not even when I have to wipe yellow eye goop out of his eyes many times a day. 

I found a new fun beauty website for moms (I suppose others may care) here.  My favorite blogger that doesn't know I exist had her 3rd kiddie.  I like to watch this vloggers favorite product videos.  She has a toddler and 2 month old so covers a good range.  I like to type random sentences and provide random links.

The Best Tuna Fish Sandwich I Ever Et

I know what you are thinking.  Tuna fish from a can?  Ick, smelly, boo. Sometimes I have those same thoughts but sometimes it's just a "bad tuna fish day".... sort of like a "bad hair day". 

I made the best tuna fish sandwich I have ever had yesterday.  Maybe I was super hungry because I worked out two days in a row (ha!).  Maybe I was not going to settle for a peanut butter banana sandwich again. 

Here is the recipe.  Make it.  I dare ya.

The Best Tuna Fish Sandwich I Ever Et:
1 can of tuna in water.
1 celery stalk diced
1 or 2 dill pickles diced depending on the size
1 heaping teaspoon of Grey Poupon Harvest Coarse Ground mustard - this is the magic ingredient...do not substitute
Enough mayo to make it creamy. I know..I don't like mayo either, but you have to have something to make it creamy and I wasn't feeling the yogurt. I am thinking I put 1.53 Tbs (approximately).
Mix all the ingredients up and add salt and pepper.
Cut open a croissant (this may also be why it was the best ever), put 2 pieces of lettuce on the bottom, top with a big pile of tuna fish mixture, and sprinkle pepperoncini slices on the top.
Deee-licious!

Magic Ingredient - Grey Poupon Harvest Coarse Mustard

 Have no fear.  I have not had to break into my hurricane supply of tuna yet.  When I do, I will be sure to make this sandwich mucho dias. 

And now onto my daily dose of whining.  I have discovered this week that I am tired of cleaning up the Wyatt, the high chair, and the floor after every snack and meal. It is big business.  With 3 meals and 2 snacks, I calculate about 35 minutes of cleaning up a day and this does not include dishes and food prep.  While internally grumbling about this yesterday after dinner (clean up # 5), my mood was lifted when Wyatt picked up a washcloth (one of his favorite toys) and began to scrub his high chair too.  Lol..I will try to remember that he is learning by watching and put on my positive attytude. 

Gluten Free Update - Hafway Point

Well, I never figured out what caused excessive screaming Wednesday morning but it left us by the afternoon and life has been very pleasant these last few days and nights.  Hooray!

An update on my one month gluten free trial since I am at the half way point.  My face has not magically cleared up but I am going to stick with it for two more weeks.  The adjustment has still been very easy. For those that don't know, I do not tolerate diet drinks.  Rarely can I enjoy food that is labeled lower fat / lower calorie.  Don't get me started on fat free cheese that doesn't melt! I have not felt that it is worth my time to learn to tolerate the taste of the modified foods and drinks. I guess I have no problem with eating potato flour and rice flour instead of wheat because gluten free has been easy.

Here are a list of the foods that we have tried and enjoyed (Hunter and Wyatt included):

Target Brand (Archer Farms) Gluten Free Fusili - Made of rice and corn. I could not find online, but this is in our local store.

Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Pizza Dough - This was really good

Pamela's Baking and Pancake Mix - Hunter made chocolate chip cookies. Might try waffles this weekend with it.

Here are a few items that are not necessarily for gluten free purposes, but are gluten free and easily incorporated in meals: 

Maifun Rice Stick Noodles for stir fries and soup. 

Corn and Rice Chex Cereal - The chocolate one is great!

 We have been eating rice, potatoes, quinoa, and several varieties of asian rice noodles.  We have also been burning through our meat and vegetables.  We are eating yogurt like crazy and are on our 4th batch of homemade and already need to make a 5th batch.  

One minor disappointment.  Jacque and I went to a gluten free bakery/restaurant (such a great friend) and bought several dessert items.  Meh....they were not that great.  Maybe desserts are what suffer the most with gluten free.  I bought a loaf of jalapeno cheese bread with potato flour and that was pretty good.  

Happy Friday to everybody! Hope everyone has a fun-filled weekend. We have NO plans. 

Some New Food Ideas

Mix instant espresso (decaf or caf) into your Greek Yogurt.  I bought Cafe Bustelo.  This may only be enjoyable for people like me that don't really like coffee...they just like the idea of the flavor.

Slice your chicken breasts in half lengthwise to make them skinnier and cook faster.  Once they are cooked, use chicken broth, wine, or cream to make a pan sauce.   PW has an excellent mustard cream sauce for her chicken. 

Make a salad with arugula (I love), the sharpest cheddar cheese you can find, sliced peaches, and some roasted pecans.  I have been enjoying Brianna's Real French Vinaigrette.   I think this salad was inspired by a magazine I got in the mail, but I can't remember which one.

Cook your whole cut-up chicken the way this recipe describes. The whole recipe was good, but the chicken was great!  Must repeat.  

In other news, I have decided to try a gluten-free diet for one month in hopes that it will help to clear up my face.  Acne has been such a pest for me for the past few years.  I am 31 years old...geeeze Loise! Since a large part of my family has been diagnosed with Celiac disease or has seen a major improvement in their life since giving it up, there is a small chance it can help.  Surprisingly, I have not had to change what I eat very much YET.  I am only a week in.  Does that mean it won't help?  Maybe.  Anything is worth a try!

New Food Faves

These are my favorite food splurges right now...mostly from Costco. 

Tassos Green Olives Double Stuffed with Garlic and Jalapeno - I loved olives as a kid, hated them when I got older, fell back in love with black olives, and now these green olives stuffed with 2 of my faves are reeling me back in. 

Terra Crinkles Sweet Potato Sea Salt Chips - I am of the mind set that sweet potato fries / chips are not the real thing (although they are tasty).  These kinda change my mind.

ZICO Chocoloate - I really wanted to like coconut water because I love coconut and I love fun drinks, but all the flavors I tried were a flop.  Enter Chocolate coconut.  Winner, winner.  These are expensive so I will not buy frequently.

In an effort to help fatten up Wyatt and do something fun in the kitchen, I am going to try making Annie's Eats DIY yogurt with whole milk.  Wish me luck! It looks so easy. 

Peanut, Peanut Butter

I really do love peanut butter.  Nom nom.  I am not a huge dessert person aside from ice cream and desserts that are heavy on fruit or peanut butter.  On one of my strolls through the grocery store, I spotted Peanut Butter & Co Dark Chocolate Dreams. 

The description from their website reads, "Our all natural peanut butter blended with rich dark chocolate. It's like a peanut butter cup in a jar! Great on a sandwich, but just as wonderful spooned over ice cream, spread on fruits, or simply eaten out of the jar. It's equally delicious as an ingredient in your all-time favorite baked goodies like chocolate cake and bread pudding."

I have been having a glass of almond milk and a spoonful of this spread on whatever I can find (bread, crackers, apple, pear, my finger) after my runs.   Strange combo? Probably so, but it IS what I do.

A Plethora of Sun Dried Tomatoes

I bought the Costco sized bag of dehydrated sun dried tomatoes when I only needed a very tiny amount for one recipe.  Here is some information about how to prepare and some recipes to try with them in case you bought the same size bag. 

Sun dried tomatoes are great to substitute when tomatoes are out of season or you need a more intense flavor.   They store very well and have a pretty long shelf life.  You can make your own sun dried or oven dried tomatoes if you have an excess from tomato season and don't want to deal with canning them. 

You will need to soften the tomatoes before you can use them.  You can soak them in water, broth, oil, or wine to rehydrate for about 30 minutes.  Once they are rehydrated you will need to use them within a few days. 

Here are some of the recipes I can't wait to try from my favorite food bloggers:

Pesto Tuna Salad with Sun Dried Tomatoes by the Curvy Carrot
Sun Dried Tomato Pasta Salad by Pioneer Woman
Meyer Lemon Spaghetti with Asparagus by Eat, Live, Run
Arugula Salad with Penne, Garbanzo Beans, and Sun Dried Tomatoes by SkinnyTaste

Healthy "Cherry Limeade" Recipe

I am obsessed with Perrier, TopoChico, and various other over priced sparkling mineral waters.  This started when I was pregnant and for some reason did not leave.  It was a good way to force more water in me.  Once we find a way to get our CO2 canister from Texas to Florida or break down and buy a new one, I will make my own.  Until then, I will continue to hydrate in a most expensive way.

Here is a fabulous new recipe that you might like if you can handle the sparkling mineral water.

Ingredients:
Crushed Ice
Limes
Maraschino Cherries
Your favorite overpriced carbonated mineral water

Directions:
Fill your cup halfway up with crushed ice.  If you have a Sonic ice maker, that would be AWEsome.  Fill your glass with sparkling mineral water.   Squeeze about half a lime into your glass.  Dump in 2 maraschino cherries and a teaspoon or two of the juice.  Stir. 

Variation:
Use a lime flavored carbonated mineral water.  My fave is Topo Chico. 

Requirement:
Drink with a straw.  Enjoy the bubbles. 

The Best Tomatillo Salsa From a Jar

Homemade salsa is a ka-zillion times better than any salsa from a jar I have ever found, but when you have to have salsa, hot sauce, or some form of pepper in almost all of your meals, you need a backup or three in the pantry at home.

Hunter found this tomatillo salsa from Wal Mart of all places.  If you are not above shopping at Wal Mart, pick some up today. Oh, and to clarify its like Wal Mart's "fancy" store brand. 

World Table Roasted Salsa Verde