The Art of Cooking

Everytime I cook, I always think of food as a form of art :)

you are creating something that is pleasing to the eye as well as taste and smell.

food has beautiful colors and unique shapes.

1/3/2012

bizarre spaghetti dogs!

i saw this tutorial on a childrens website and thought the boys would love this and they did!

they thought it was out of this world and had so much fun eating these bizarre spaghetti dogs.

this was my FAVORITE lunch ever!

mushroom, avocado,spinach grilled cheese ! :) 

so GOOD! you have got to try it! :) 

1/3/12

Christmas cookies!!

these were made prior to christmas.. 

reindeer noses! these were very simple! my husband LOVED these he would have ate them ALL up before christmas if i didnt stop him! lol

-any kind of pretzel shape

-white chocolate with brown swirl hersey's kisses (or any kind of hersey's kisses)

-peanut butter m & ms (or any other kind of mms)

put herseys kisses on pretzel and microwave it for 20 secs or until its soft

press the m&ms down on the kisses

refrigerate until cold enough to eat! :) 

so YUMMY!

oreo truffles!

these here HEAVEN, these were MY favorite :) 

-box of double stuffed oreos

-8oz cream cheese

-white chocolate for coating

crumble the oreos with dough roller, i used a tall cup as roller

put some (not a lot) on the side for garnish when done

melt the cream cheese in microwave safe bowl until soft

blend the oreo crumbs and cream cheese

form into balls

and then melt the white chocolate in microwave

and pour on top of balls

garnish with remaining oreo crumbs :) 

put in refrigerator

ENJOY 

melted snowman sugar cookies!

-royal frosting (powdered sugar and water, add little bit of water to powdered sugar until u get desired thickness)

-vanilla frosting

-food coloring

-marshmallows

sugar cookies dough was from toll house package

-cook cookies according to package

-apply frosting by dumping and spread to give it a melting look

-melt marshmallows on plate in microwave for 10-20 secs

-transfer marshmallow onto cookie

-apply decoration using vanilla frosting with food coloring in a ziplock bag 

cut the corner of ziplock bag to make frosting come out in a straight line

The kids really enjoyed making these snowmans and it was delicious! :) 

11/14/2011

farmers market chili!

i went to the winters farmers market in west allis by state fair park in the tommy thompson building

they had a farmers booth selling variety of delicious homemade cans of chili, soup, broth, jelly, perservatives, etc....

im crazy about mushrooms and when i saw this chili i had to have it!

it was expensive , 8 dollars but SO WORTH IT!

i heated it up and then put it on top of organic noodles (bowties)

and garnished it with cheese and sour cream

i also had saltine crackers with soy butter

we def want to buy more! :)

1/14/2011

tuna casserole!

I didnt know what to make for dinner that night, so i looked around my kitchen and found ingredits which ended up to be a TUNA CASSEROLE. it was SO GOOD! my husband LOVED this meal, it filled him up so good and he kept eating it, he must

have had like 3 servings!

- 2 canned tuna in water

-jasmine rice

-cream cheese

-green peas jar

-balsamic vinaigrette (newman's own)

-corn bread (jiffy)

i made the rice according to instructions and put the rice in a large bowl when it was done

i mixed the rice with balsamic vinaigrette instead of butter, i squeezed the bottle forgetting that it didnt have a hole on top so a LOT came out, i was able to drain some out but a lot was still on the rice. it still was DELICIOUS. so i would say about 1/3 - 1/2 cup of it

i made the corn bread according to instruction and let it cool down

i sautaed the tuna and green peas in the skillet and added cream cheese until the cream cheese was bubbly

i poured in the tuna/peas/creamcheese sauce into the bowl of rice and mixed it all together.

then i crumbled up corn bread for the top

it was soooo goood! :)

11/14/2011

on friday the 13th my boys and i were up late watching the food channel. the show called diners,drives,and dives was on back to back. isaiah kept saying during every single food process and display that he was HUNGRY! :) then he finally got up and made himself a sandwich. He wants to cook with me now! :) that show motivated him to cook :) :)

we will look on the internet and pick out a new recipe to make together soon :)

11/14/2011

yummy lunch for the boys

-box of triscuits

-cheese

-sauce

very simple, put sauce and cheese on each triscuits and bake until cheese is melted

Jordan made all these by himself, he really enjoyed concentrating and was proud that he completed it. he watched us eat and enjoy his cooking :)

11/14/2011

yummy lunch for the boys

very simple

-bananas

-peanut butter

-whole wheat tortillas

mash the banana in a bowl

spread banana onto the whole wheat tortilla

spread peanut butter on top of banana

put another whole wheat tortilla on top

cut with pizza cutter and eat!

we eat a lot of whole wheat tortillas i will start making them from stratch so its more natural and not with any added ingredits

11/14/2011

I could have made the plating more artistic but i was so hungry!

This recipe was something i created from ingredits that i had around the kitchen. 

-black quinoa

-cream cheese

-grilled peppers (frozen from target)

cook black quiona according to directions

cook grilled peppers according to directions

melt cream cheese in microwave safe bowl

mix cream cheese and peppers then add to quiona

this meal was very filling and delicious

and above all very SIMPLE and QUICK! :)

the quinoa jump started my day! it moved my digestive system and then gave me great ENERGY!

Quinoa (pronounced keen-wah) is not a grain; it is actually a seed and related to the spinach family. When cooked, quinoa is light, fluffy, slightly crunchy and subtly flavored. It actually cooks and tastes like a grain, making it an excellent replacement for grains that are difficult to digest or feed candida (a systemic fungal infection).
But its flavor is only part of why quinoa is such an amazing "supergrain."
Some of the nutrients in quinoa include:

• Complete protein. Quinoa contains all 9 essential amino acids that are required by the body as building blocks for muscles.
• Magnesium helps relax your muscles and blood vessels and effects blood pressure. Quinoa contains high levels of this vital nutrient.
• Fiber. Quinoa is a wonderful way to ensure that you consume valuable fiber that eases elimination and tones your colon.
• Manganese and copper. Quinoa is a good source of these minerals that act as antioxidants in your body to get rid of dangerous cancer and disease-causing substances.

Compared to other grains, quinoa is higher in calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, potassium, iron, copper, manganese, and zinc than wheat, barley, or corn.²
Studies have shown that quinoa has documented health benefits too!
Quinoa, in its whole grain form, may be effective in preventing and treating these conditions:³

• Artherosclerosis
• Breast cancer
• Diabetes
• Insulin resistance

Researchers attribute the health benefits of quinoa to its complete nutritional makeup.

I want to strive to get into the habit of eating quiona EVERYDAY!

you can cook it and store it in your refridgerator for a week. it can be eaten cold or hot :)

11/3/2011

chocolate dipped icecream cone!

u know icecream spots have icecream cone with hard chocolate covered on top??

well i found a EASY recipe which i can create the same thing at HOME :)

-icecream, any flavor (i used vanilla)

-chocolate chopped into bits

-coconut oil

-icecream cone (any kind)

put chocolate in bowl and add some coconut oil

microwave it 20 sec intervals

stir before next 20 sec until melted

dip icecream cone into bowl

let it become cold and hard before eating

ENJOY!

9/16/2011

Squash cookies!!

These cookies were so DELICIOUS! They are really soft and moist! The cranberries and peacans made it even more delicious! :)

1/2 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup white sugar

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups mashed, cooked butternut squash

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1 cup raisins

1 1/2 cups chopped pecans

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars until fluffy. Beat in the eggs and squash. Sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and spices; add to mixture, stirring until well blended. Stir in raisins and nuts. Spoon onto cookie sheets spacing cookies 2 inches apart.
3. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, until edges are golden.

8/23/2011

desert!! we eat this for desert often.

banilla yogurt

bananas

nilla waffers

bear naked banana granola

mix the yogurt with banans

then layer nilla waffers on top

then another THICK layer of banana granola

put in refridge until its nice and COLD :)

ENJOY!!!

cucumber and guacamole salad! I decided to add the tofu and tomatos.

2 guacamoles cut in cubes

2 cucumbers cut in cubes

grape tomatos cut in half

lemon juice

lime juice

extra firm sprouted tofu.

if the tofu is too soft for you, boil it with few tablepoons of water to remove the excess water in the tofu

cut the tofu into cubes

marinate it in teryaki sauce for 5 minutes

fry the tofu with few tablespoons of oil

after you cut the vegetables, put everything in a huge bowl

mix it, squeeze a slice of lemon and a slice of lime, and for the final touch, top it with whole flax seeds (i forgot the seeds for the pic above)

 

jordan was hesitating to try it at first. i remind him by saying "remember jordan every time i tell you that its good and that you will like it when u try it, you always LOVE it". so he is always bold and he trys new food all the time. he LOVES this meal! :)

 jordan LOVED this recipe minus the tomatos. we ate this for lunch AND dinner. Isaiah refused to try it no matter how much we encouraged him :(

SUSHI

½ cup rice vinegar
2 tablespoons sesame oil
4 nori seaweed sheets
2 cups cooked short-grain rice
1 cup cucumber strips
1 cup cooked sweet potatoes
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds

Jason wanted some salmon, so we made one cooked salmon peice, and one raw salmon peice (Pick n save has them for a dollar a peice right now on sale)

In a large mixing bowl, combine the rice vinegar with the sesame oil. Add the cucumber strips, stirring gently, and allow to marinate for about 4 hours. Remove from the marinade and drain.

With a blender, whip the sweet potatoes until they are smooth and creamy.

Put a sheet of Nori on the bamboo roller

spread rice all over the nori but leave about 1/4 of the nori without rice thats toward you.

paste the sweet potatoes on the rice

Add marinated cucumbers

Add salmon as desired

Roll the bamboo forward then flip it back as u roll on (the picture below doesn't show as it was my first attempt, when i finally realized how to do it, I was so EXCITED! it takes pratice, also look up you tube if needed)

My first attempt!

The cucumbers were applied really thick, for the next ones I put one line of cucmber and not all over.

Jason and I had so much FUN making this! Some was without any salmon, some added with raw salmon, some added with cooked salmon.

Final product!!! IT was so Yummy!!! I couldn't eat so much at once. It is VERY FILLING. There are countless recipes online, ENJOY!

i was reading a parent magazine at the YMCA during a workout, and saw this mouth watering recipe!

Perfect for kids lunch: Turkey lunch meat, Sliced Apple, Poppy seed dressing, and Toasted whole wheat bread!

It was DELICIOUS!