August 25, 2012- Grilled Zucchini Rolls with Rice

Grilled Zucchini Rolls with Rice

This was a really yummy dinner to make and something we haven't tried before. It required that we slice the zucchini pretty thin and then grill it on a pan until browned. We then stuff it with a ricotta mixture which has lemon juice, parsley, oregano, salt, and pepper. We also add some spinach leaves and roll it. We then warmed them on the slat pan again. We served them with a brown, red, and black barley frozen thing from Trader Joe's. I actually ended up liking this a lot more than I thought I would. I was really happy with how it turned out. They were almost bite sized and really tasty. 

August 24, 2012- Pasta Bake

Pasta Bake

We were originally just going to have pasta with tomato basil sauce but we decided to change it up and make a pasta bake. We layered pasta with sauce and some cheese and make a pasta bake. It was really tasty and easy to make. We used penne pasta and the tomato basil sauce from Trader Joe's. We also used a combination of mozzarella and parmesan cheeses. 

August 23, 2012- Baked Tofu with Rice- Vegan

Baked Tofu with Rice- Vegan

Tonight we wanted to make something simple so we marinated tofu with some soy sauce and baked it. This happens to be my favorite way to eat tofu. We served it with some basmati rice. Simple but still yummy. Easy and also a vegan meal!

August 22, 2012- Pizza My Heart

Pizza My Heart

Tonight Nick had back to school night so we needed something quick so we decided to go to Pizza My Heart for dinner. We both got a slice of mushroom pizza and split a garden salad with ranch.

August 21, 2012- Rice Noodle Stir Fry- Vegan

Rice Noodle Stir Fry- Vegan

We had a rice noodle stir fry for dinner and we used a frozen vegetable mix from Trader Joe's that had water chestnuts, mushrooms, peppers, baby corn, broccoli, and some other things. We also had some fresh asparagus and green beans that we added. We used teriyaki sauce for the sauce. 

August 20, 2012- White Lightening Chili

White Lightening Chili

This is a recipe from our Trader Joe's cookbook. It has quinoa, cannelini beans, it is supposed to have pinto beans but we used hominy, salsa, and corn. We topped it off with some cheese and we had some sliced bread and a handful of sweet potato chips.

August 19, 2012- Orange Marinated Tofu Skewers- Vegan

Orange Marinated Tofu Skewers- Vegan

This was what we had scheduled the day we went to Aqui's. It is a recipe from our Meat Free Monday's cookbook. The marinade is orange juice, orange zest, olive oil, and some herbs. We used zucchini, mushrooms, and peppers as the veggies and then tofu. We marinated it for a few hours and made skewers and baked them. We served this with Israeli couscous that we cooked in coconut milk which was really creamy tasting. 

August 18, 2012- Zesty Potato Salad- Two Ways

Zesty Potato Salad- Two Ways

We had planned a zesty potato salad that basically was steamed potatoes and raw green beans with olive oil and vinegar but we still had some pesto ranch left over so we decided to use some of that with some of the potato mixture so we had two different types of potato salad. We also had some peach salsa dip left over so we had some of that on corn tortillas. 

August 17, 2012- OIR Party

OIR Party

Tonight we had a party with friends from work so we made a plethora of food so I will post the pictures and describe what it is.

These were crescent rolls stuffed with asparagus and monterey jack cheese.

Blueberry dessert bruschetta- made with puff pastry, a cream cheese topping and fresh blueberries.

Chips and dips- pita chips, sweet potato chips, and salt and vinegar chips. A spicy peach salsa dip and a black bean hummus.

Chutney and cheese rolls.

Homemade flatbread.

Homemade soft pretzels with a homemade cheddar cheese dipping sauce.

Homemade chocolate truffle silk pie.

Spinach pinwheels made with puff pastry.

Totellini with ranch pesto.

Watermelon and cucumber salad.

August 16, 2012- Blueberry Pancakes

Blueberry Pancakes

We had something else planned but decided to make pancakes instead and had a lot of fresh blueberries so we decided to make blueberry pancakes. They tasted really yummy and now we know how to make blueberry pancakes so we will definitely be doing this again!

August 15, 2012- Artichoke Stuffed Portabellos

Artichoke Stuffed Portabellos

This is another recipe from our Trader Joe's cookbook. It used their fresh bruschetta sauce and artichokes in a can, also bread crumbs and parmesan. You combine all the ingredients and stuff the portabellos and bake them. They tasted really delicious and were super simple to make.

August 14, 2012- Aqui's

Aqui's

We didn't feel like cooking dinner tonight and I think I also forgot to buy tofu for tonight's planned dinner so we decided to go to Aqui's. We both got bean and cheese burritos which we huge so we brought home the leftovers and we shared a swirled margarita! Yum!

August 13, 2012- Grilled Lentil Wraps

Grilled Lentil Wraps

Another night of lentils! This is another recipe from our Trader Joe's cookbook and was really quite a delicious recipe. These had onions, brown rice, lentils, yogurt (we used plain greek yogurt), mozzarella cheese, and spinach. You mix everything together and stuff it into a tortilla and fold it together and dry grill it meaning you don't use any oil and you dress it down and it makes a flat grilled wrap. It was really quite tasty! We had it with some sauteed swiss chard.

August 12, 2012- Lentil Haystacks- Vegan

Lentil Haystacks- Vegan

This is another recipe from our Trader Joe's cookbook. It has brown rice on the bottom and lentils cooked with tomato basil sauce. We then topped it off with fresh cucumber. It was a really simple recipe but also very tasty with different flavors in each layer. For dessert we made zucchini brownies which we really good. We made a small mistake with the frosting so it was slightly runny but they still tasted really good. Nick and I only kept a small amount and he took the rest to work and everyone loved them!

August 11, 2012- Quinoa, Red Bean and Walnut Burgers

Quinoa, Red Bean and Walnut Burgers

We hadn't made any homemade veggie burgers in a while so we decided to make one and we picked this recipe. It had a potato, quinoa, kidney beans, and walnuts. It was a yummy burger and very hearty. We sauteed mushrooms and had a slice of cheddar. We served it with a salad on the side. 

August 10, 2012- Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup

Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup

Since Nick had his CSET we wanted to have a simple dinner so we had grilled cheese and tomato soup for dinner. It is a classic and simple dinner to make. Not really much to say to describe this...

August 9, 2012- Tofu Parimigiana

Tofu Parimigiana

Nick had his CSET the next morning so he wanted a filling and protein full meal the night before. So we had tofu parmigiana. We added kidney beans into the sauce we used and used corkscrew pasta. It was really quite yummy. I always like having this for dinner. 

August 8, 2012- Grilled Veggie Wraps- Vegan

Grilled Veggie Wraps- Vegan

This was a really delicious dinner. It had grilled asparagus and zucchini and we made a paste from cannelini beans with some garlic salt and pepper and olive oil. You also add some arrugula into the wrap and we used flax and oat tortillas. You roll them up like wraps and we had them with veggie chips. They were so flavorful and delicious!

August 7, 2012- Lentil and Mixed Veggie Casserole

Lentil and Mixed Veggie Casserole

This is a meal made in the crock pot. You combine lentils and vegetable stock in the crock pot with salt and pepper. Later you add a can of cream and mushroom and mixed vegetables like cauliflower, broccoli, and carrots. It didn't turn out the greatest because the veggies didn't cook fully. It wasn't my favorite dinner...

August 6, 2012- Red Beans with Quinoa- Vegan

Red Beans with Quinoa- Vegan

This is a dinner we make quite often. You use onion and saute them in olive oil until cooked and then add kidney beans and barbecue sauce. You serve them over quinoa. It is really easy to make and is also vegan.

August 5, 2012- Taco Casserole

Taco Casserole

This was an easy dinner to make in the crock pot. It used tomato sauce, beans, taco seasoning, tomatoes, and corn tortillas. You leave it in the crock pot for a while and then it is like a casserole but a little soupier. It was actually pretty tasty. We topped ours off with some cheese and sour cream.

August 4, 2012- Pizza Cupcakes with Mia and Riley

Pizza Cupcakes with Mia and Riley

We babysat out nephew and niece, Riley and Mia and they spent the night! After all that traveling we wanted to make something that was fun and kid friendly but also easy to make. We have made these pizzas on biscuits before which I grew up eating and I saw an idea to make pizza cupcakes which I thought would be fun for the kids. You use the biscuit dough and use a cupcake pan. You take a portion of each biscuit and put it into the bottom of each cupcake and put some sauce and cheese then top it with the remainder of the biscuit. You end up with 8 little pizza cupcakes. The kids (well Riley) really liked them. Mia doesn't like sauce on her pizza!

August 3, 2012- Drive Home- Taco Bell

Drive Home- Taco Bell

Well we were driving home around dinner time and what sounded good was...Taco Bell. We don't really eat here well...ever really so we decided we wanted a bean and cheese burrito and a quesadilla. So we got a couple bean and cheese burritos, a quesadilla and I got my gordita with beans (no meat) and we hit the road.

August 2, 2012- Leftovers

Leftovers

We had been accumulating some leftovers and my mom and I went out to lunch earlier in the day so we had a feast of lots of leftover food to make sure we didn't waste anything before we left the next day. My mom took me to a delicious Mediterranean restaurant for lunch and I got an appetizer platter with hummus, grape leaves, pita bread, baba ganoush, and some other things so I brought my leftovers for Nick to try which we ended up sharing for dinner along with some leftover gnocchi and other things. It was nice to just sit around the table.

August 1, 2012- Baked Gnocchi

 Baked Gnocchi

This is a recipe from our Trader Joe's cookbook which was really simple to make. It called for gnocchi, vodka sauce, peas, bread crumbs, and parmesan cheese. You basically make a casserole of the sauce, peas, and gnocchi (which you have to cook beforehand) and top it with the bread crumb and parmesan mixture. We drizzled it with a bit of olive oil and baked it and it was really quite yummy. We will definitely make this again.

July 31, 2012- Stir Fry veggies and Tofu with Homemade Teriyaki Sauce

Stir Fry veggies and Tofu with Homemade Teriyaki Sauce- Vegan

We wanted some good old fashion stir fry and I had a recipe for homemade teriyaki sauce from Nick's mom so we decided to make it for my mom because she loves teriyaki sauce. And she really loved this. We had lots of veggies like broccoli, carrots, zucchini, and snap peas. Nick and I had tofu and my mom and Maile had chicken with theirs. It was a yummy healthy and vegan dinner! For dessert we made salted caramel and chocolate shortbread. It was good but in my opinion was heavy on the orange zest.

July 30, 2012- Z Pizza

Z Pizza- Yum!

One of our favorite pizza places down south is called Z Pizza. I know more pizza but this pizza was so delicious. It had fresh ricotta, artichokes, garlic, parmesan, and mozzarella. It was such a delicious pizza! Yum! And very different from our easy to make TJ's pizza.

July 29, 2012- Drive to OC- Leftover Cheese Pizza

Drive to OC- Leftover Cheese Pizza

We were driving to OC for most of the day and so we just had leftover cheese pizza from the day before for dinner.

July 28, 2012- Homemade Cheese Pizza

Homemade Cheese Pizza

This is something we have made quite often. It is simple and easy to make and doesn't require a lot of ingredients. You only need Trader Joe's pizza dough, a jar of pizza sauce, and some cheese. It's as simple as that! We knew we were going on the road and this pizza is delicious cold or at room temp and gives plenty of leftovers so we made it for leftovers on the road.