Wordless Wednesday

Tasty Tuesday

We've been enjoying fresh sweet corn from our local corn wagon for most of the summer.  It is the best!  Since school started last week, we're back to soup for dinner on Monday.  Ryan takes the leftovers in his lunch all week.  They boys can even take some this year since they have some nifty Thermos Funtainers.

I usually make corn chowder with bacon, but had some leftover Italian sausage in the fridge from pizza.  It was a great combo with the corn. 

Italian Sausage and Corn Chowder
Ingredients

• 1 pound Italian Sausage (hot Or Sweet)
• 1 whole Medium Onion, Chopped
• 4 cloves Garlic, Minced
• ¼ cups Flour
• 2 cups Chicken Broth
• 4 cups Half-and-half
• ¾ teaspoons Dried Thyme
• 1 teaspoon Dried Basil
• ¼ teaspoons Red Pepper Flakes
• 1 whole Red Bell Pepper, Diced
• ⅓ cups Celery Finely Chopped
• ⅓ cups Carrot, Shredded
• 2 whole Medium Potatoes, Peeled And Cut Into 1 Inch Dice, About 2 Cups
• 1-½ cup Corn
• ½ teaspoons Kosher Salt
• ¼ teaspoons Pepper
• 4 whole Green Onions, Sliced, For Garnish **I used chives**

Preparation Instructions

Cook sausage in a Dutch oven over medium heat until browned. Remove sausage from Dutch oven and set aside. Drain excess grease, leaving about 1 tablespoon. Add onion and saute 3-4 minutes until tender. Add garlic and saute another minute. Add flour and cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly.

Slowly whisk in chicken broth and half-and-half. Bring to a simmer. Add thyme, basil, and red pepper flakes.

Add red pepper, celery, carrot and potatoes. Return the sausage to the Dutch oven. Continue simmering for 25 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.

Add corn and continuing simmering 5 minutes or until the corn is tender.

Season with salt and pepper.

Ladle into bowls and garnish with parsley and sliced green onion.

I was able to pickup some fresh peaches at Curtis Orchard last week.  Our local orchard had no peaches this year due to the frost destroying the crop :(  I froze most of them, but whipped this up for company on Saturday.  It's like a peach pie in bar form.  Yum!

Peach Crumb Bars

Ingredients

• 3-½ cups All-purpose Flour (separated)
• 2 cups Granulated White Sugar, Separated
• 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
• ½ teaspoons Salt, Separated
• 2 sticks Butter, Cold, Cut Into Small Pieces
• 1 whole Egg, Lightly Beaten
• 5 cups Diced Fresh Peaches (about 5-6 Peaches, Peeled)
• 2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
• 1 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
• ½ teaspoons Nutmeg

Preparation Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9×13-inch baking pan.

For the Dough: In a medium bowl whisk together 3 cups flour, 1 cup sugar, baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Use a pastry blender to cut in the butter, and then the egg. The dough will be crumbly. Pat half of the dough into the prepared pan. Place the pan and the remainder of the dough in the refrigerator while you prepare the filling.

For the Filling: Place the diced peaches in a large bowl and sprinkle with lemon juice. Mix gently. In a separate bowl whisk together 1/2 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, 1/4 teaspoon salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Pour over the peaches and mix gently.

Spread the peach mixture evenly over the crust. Crumble the remaining dough over the peach layer.

Bake in the preheated oven for 45-50 minutes, or until the top is slightly brown. Cool completely before cutting into squares.

And finally, did you know you can add oats to a smoothie?  It might sound weird, but it's good and adds some extra fiber and protein for more staying power.  This morning I made one with yogurt, peaches, banana, and strawberries for the boys.

Banana Peanut Butter Oat Smoothie

1 cup milk

1 banana, frozen

1 TB peanut butter

1/3 cup uncooked old fashioned oats

Place the oats in your blender.  Blend until it is a powder.

Add the rest of the ingredients and blend until combined.

Wordless Wednesday

  

Triathalon #2

The boys did their second triathlon at our Y a couple weeks ago.  They have been working on their swimming all summer with an awesome instructor that they love (Thanks Lydia!).  Their swimming showed a huge improvement over last summer.  Brooks was bumped up with the older kids (7-9) and was one of the smaller ones, but held his own (even with having a bad cough/virus).  Hudson was the first kid on the bike in his wave.  He ended up tying for 1st with two other kids.  He was super excited about winning his first trophy.

Almost there

Just need to grout the backsplash, get some decorative touches, and install the super cool towel rack.

Tasty Thursday

All right, here are a few more vegetarian recipes.  We've been eating mostly vegetarian during the week, due to all the fresh local veggies that we can easily obtain.  My boys love srirarcha hot sauce, or rooster sauce as we call it in our house.  This fried rice makes a great lunch.

Sriracha Fried Rice

3 TB oil, plus more to fry the eggs
4 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 cups cabbage, thinly sliced
2 TB soy sauce
3 TB sriracha sauce
4 cups cooked, cold rice (make ahead of time and put it in the fridge)
2-4 eggs

Heat 3 tablespoons oil and add the garlic. Sauté for a few seconds and add the cabbage. Sauté until it is crisp-tender.

Add the soy sauce and Sriracha and mix. Add the rice and sauté until the grains are separate and all flavors are well combined. Taste and add salt if you feel the need.

In another pan, heat a teaspoon of oil and crack the eggs carefully and sprinkle a tiny bit of salt. When it is set, flip and let it cook for a minute or so, if you don’t want a runny yolk.

Serve the rice hot with the fried egg on top.

Ryan and I enjoyed this salad for lunch.  We added some feta and had it with toasted pitas.  I'm thinking the boys will like to take this in their lunchbox, especially Hudson since chickpeas are his favorite legume.

Chickpea and Fresh Tomato Toss

Ingredients

• 1 (19 ounce) cans chickpeas
• 1 large tomatoes, chopped
• 3 whole green onions, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Rinse and drain chickpeas.
2. Place them in a bowl.
3. Add the tomatoes and onions.
4. Whisk remaining ingredients together.
5. Toss with chickpea mixture until coated.
6. Serve right away or refrigerate for up to 2 days.

And another salad dressing recipe.  I've made this one before, but forgot how great it is.  Try it!
Creamy Italian Salad Dressing

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1 clove garlic
• 3 tablespoons sour cream
• 2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Place all ingredients in blender and mix on high for about 30 seconds.

Wordless Wednesday

Happy Birthday Ryan!

I am blessed to have this amazing man as my husband and the father to our children.  I love you!

Out with the old...

Our hall/kids bath was one of the first rooms we painted when we bought our home 12 years ago.  It was overdue for an update.  Ryan has been busting his tail the last couple days, and even Brooks is pitching in.  I'm so thankful to have a husband who is so good at home projects.

In with the new...

Ryan is laying tile today.  It's hard to tell from these pictures, but it is a linen-look tile that we found at Lowes.  We still need to buy the vanity/sink, light, fixtures, mirror, etc...