Wordless Wednesday

Tasty Tuesday

I've had this vinaigrette on my "to try" list for several weeks. I made it over the weekend and I'm glad I did, it has a great taste.

Mustard Vinaigrette

1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 TB honey
1 TB dijon mustard
1/2 tsp pepper
2 tsp salt
2 tsp minced garlic
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup canola oil
4 drops hot sauce

Shake all ingredients together in a glass jar.

Here's another recipe that I should have tried a long time ago. I was intimidated by focaccia for some reason, but it's really easy to make. The leftovers made great roast beef sandwiches. I used fresh rosemary from my garden.

Rosemary Garlic Focaccia

Ingredients

• 1/4 ounce active dry yeast ( one envelope)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
• 4 -4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 tablespoons dried rosemary, crumbled
• 3 -5 garlic cloves, minced very fine
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt or 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

Directions

1. In a bowl, stir together yeast, sugar and 1 ¾ cups lukewarm water and proof yeast for 10-15 minutes, or until foamy.
2. Stir in 4 cup of flour, 1 tblsps of the olive oil and the salt, adding as much of the remaining flour as necessary to form a soft and slightly sticky dough.
3. Transfer to a lightly-oiled bowl, turn to coat, and let rise, covered, in a warm place for 1 hour, or until double in size.
4. Knead dough down and press with lightly-oiled hands into a well-oiled 15 ½ x 10 ½ inch jelly-roll pan and let it rise, covered loosely, for 30 minutes.
5. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
6. Set rack in center of oven.
7. Dimple dough with your fingers in places, drizzle 2 tblsps olive oil over and spread over dough; sprinkle with rosemary, garlic and sea salt.
8. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until pale golden.
9. Let cool for 10 minutes before cutting.
10. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Wordless Wednesday

Tasty Tuesday

Have you ever had grilled lettuce? No? Well I hadn't either. It was great! It gives the romaine a whole other dimension of smoky sweet. We topped ours with homemade blue cheese dressing, but it would be tasty with about anything.

Grilled Romaine Hearts

Ingredients
2 hearts of romaine
Extra virgin olive oil
salt
pepper

Directions
1. Split the romaine hearts in two.
2. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3. Grill over medium heat, 3-5 minutes.
4. Top with your favorite dressing and salad fixings.

While the grill was on, we tossed on these banana boats. They are a great dessert!

Banana Boats

Ingredients

Bananas
chocolate chips
coconut
walnuts
marshmallows

Directions

1. Slice through the middle of the banana, making sure not to cut through the bottom peel.
2. Place your favorite toppings in the middle of the sliced banana.
3. Place the stuffed banana on a sheet of foil and wrap the foil around the banana, making sure to leave the top open.
4. Grill on medium for 10 minutes, or until gooey.

Here's a great make-ahead breakfast. The peanut butter almost makes it seem like you're eating a cookie!

Peanut Butter Baked Oatmeal

Ingredients

• 1-½ cup Quick Cooking Oats
• ¼ cups Packed Brown Sugar
• ¼ cups White Sugar
• ¾ cups Milk (2%)
• ¼ cups Butter, Melted
• 1 whole Egg
• 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
• ¾ teaspoons Salt
• 2 teaspoons Cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla
• ½ cups Peanut Butter

Preparation Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and grease a 8 x 8 baking pan.

2. Mix all of your ingredients together until well blended.

3. Spread evenly in the pan.

4. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown.

Holiday World Part 2

Ryan and I went to Holiday World back in June, but it was finally time for our annual family trip. The boys have been patiently waiting! It was a beautiful day on Wednesday, the temperature was finally out of the 90s and the humidity had broken.

The first stop on the way into the park was to say hi to Holidog.

The boys are not quite tall enough to ride Voyage yet, but Ryan and I did!

They are tall enough to ride Howler!

We spent a lot of time in Splashin Safari. The boys got their first ride on Wildebeest, the world's longest water coaster. We also rode Zinga and Bakuli together. It was fun to finally be able to ride all the big slides as a family. We're all excited about the addition of Mammoth for next year!

They thought the canoe ride was too tame. They were trying to rock their canoe!

We finished up the day with a visit to Santa.

Tasty Thursday

I've tried several fish taco recipes, but I think this is the one. It was super easy to throw together on a week night. We ate the fish on corn tortillas with the slaw and sour cream mixed with lime juice and hot sauce, and fresh avocado (of course!).

Spicy Grilled Fish Tacos

Ingredients

• 6 whole Tilapia Fillets (or Other Mild Flaky White Fish)
• 2 Tablespoons Hot Sauce
  
• Canola Oil
• Lime Juice, To Drizzle On Grilled Fish
• 12 whole Corn Tortillas
• 1 cup Southwest Slaw (see My Recipe Box)
• ¼ cups Cilantro, Chopped Medium-fine
• _____
• FOR THE MARINADE:
• ⅓ cups Canola Oil
• 2 whole Limes, Juiced
• 1 teaspoon Garlic Salt
• 2 Tablespoons Adobo Sauce (from A Can Of Chipotles In Adobo)
• _____

Preparation Instructions

Combine all of the marinade ingredients in a small mixing bowl and whisk to combine.

Put the fish in a gallon zip-top bag and add the marindade.

Slosh the fish and the marinade gently in the bag to ensure that all of the fish is coated.

Seal the bag (removing the excess air) and set aside to marinate for 30 minutes.

Start your grill and prepare for direct cooking over a hot fire (450-500º).

Remove the fish from the marinade and drain well.

Pat each filet dry with a paper towel.

Smear each side of each filet with a teaspoon of hot sauce, applying it as evenly as you can.

Oil the grill grate and both sides of the fish lightly with the canola oil. The oil on the grate will smoke, so wait for it to dissipate.

Put the fish on the grill and cook for three minutes.

Flip the fish over and cook for another minute.

Move the fish to a warm platter, drizzle the fish with lime juice, and cover the platter with plastic wrap.

Quickly warm each tortilla on the grill.

Southwest Slaw

Ingredients

• ¼ heads Green Cabbage
• ⅛ heads Red Cabbage
• ¼ whole Medium Red Onion, Sliced Very Thin (about 1/2 Cup)
• ⅛ cups Cilantro, Chopped Medium-fine
• _____
• FOR THE DRESSING:
• 3 Tablespoons Mayonnaise
• 2 whole Limes, Juiced
• 1 whole Chipotle Chile, In Adobo Sauce (canned)
• 1 Tablespoon Adobo Sauce (from The Canned Chiles)
• 1 teaspoon Garlic Salt

Preparation Instructions

Combine all of the dressing ingredients in a small mixing bowl with tall sides, or a large tumbler cup/glass.

Blend the ingredients well with a stick blender, then set aside.

Slice the green cabbage thin (just under 1/4″) and put it in a large mixing bowl. You need about three cups.

Slice the red cabbage just like the green and add it to the mixing bowl. You need about 1 1/2 cups.

Add the sliced onion, cilantro, and the dressing to the bowl.

Stir all of the ingredients well.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Serve along side/on top of your food of choice and enjoy!

Last Week

Ryan had a birthday last Thursday! I am blessed in many ways to have him as my husband. He is an amazing father to Brooks and Hudson.

We've had fun celebrating Ryan's birthday. Friday evening we had friends over and I made one of his favorite meals, homemade gyros. It was a super fun evening of food and fellowship.

Last Wednesday we had a movie night, we watched How to Train Your Dragon. What a great movie! If you haven't seen it, watch it.

We also busted out the Spirograph I got at a yard sale in Cleveland (original! only missing 1 piece! I paid 50 cents!). We've all had fun making beautiful creations with it.

Ryan took the boys bowling on a hot afternoon. We had 2 free game passes, so it was a cheap afternoon of fun for them.

The boys made another garage sale Lego find. This time they scored a huge tote of Legos for $25.

I had a good haul at the monthly half price Goodwill day. I found several work shirts for Ryan (Tommy and Chaps), along with a few things for me and the boys.

We'll be enjoying our last week of summer together this week. Ryan goes back to school next week and the boys the week after.