Monday Munchies: Tomato Risotto

Posted on April 11, 2011 by Jamie

I made this for dinner last Sunday, after we’d spent the afternoon playing outside. Pardon the girls stringy hair – they were ready for a bath!! Mike and I ate this too and I thought it was quite tasty. When I make it again, I think it would be a great side dish for meatballs.

All three of my kiddos lapped this up in no time. Definitely a keeper recipe at our house!

Tomato Risotto

2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 cup Arborio rice
28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
2 cups vegetable stock
2 Tbsp. Italian Seasoning
1/2 cup Parmesan, grated

Preheat oven to 350. In a dutch oven, melt butter over medium heat. Add the onion and rice and saute until the onion is opaque and the rice is golden. Add crushed tomatoes, stock, and Italian seasoning and bring to a simmer. Place in the oven, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Stir and return to oven for an additional 15 minutes. Remove from oven and stir in the Parmesan.

Each Monday, I’ll showcase a family and kid-friendly recipe to share with your family. Please let me know if you try one of my recipes! Enjoy!

Monday Munchies: Banana Pudding

Posted on March 28, 2011 by Jamie

Pardon the Lightning McQueen bowl and Gerber spoon – I mostly feed children! This is one of my favorite dessert recipes. It is quick, easy, and perfect for parties. I made this with the leftover heavy whipping cream from last week’s Creamy Sausage Bowties and used it’s sugary goodness in an attempt to coerce my, then sick, children to eat. All three little ones enjoy this dessert – there are no photos of Anna trying hers, as she was still pretty sick when I made it.

This is my mom’s recipe and I have no idea where it originated. This is the only type of pudding Mike will eat, however, he prefers his without bananas (aka vanilla).

Banana Pudding

3 bananas
vanilla wafers
1 pkg. Instant vanilla pudding
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 ½ cups water
2 cups heavy whipping cream

Beat whipping cream until fluffy. Mix other ingredients together in a large bowl, folding the fluffy cream in last. Line a large bowl with vanilla wafers. Slice bananas in a single layer on top. Add some of the pudding mixture. Continue to layer ingredients in bowl. Refrigerate. If you plan to eat over several days, do not put banana slices in the bowl. Slice fresh banana over the top right before serving.

Each Monday, I’ll showcase a family and kid-friendly recipe to share with your family. Please let me know if you try one of my recipes! Enjoy!

Monday Munchies: Blueberry Spelt Mini-Muffins

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Jamie

On Friday morning, I was up early, so I decided to throw together some mini-muffins for the trio’s breakfast. Bo had his with strawberry yogurt for dipping. These do have sugar, but are still significantly better (tasting and health wise) than the Hostess versions.

Blueberry Spelt Mini-Muffins

4 Tbsp. canola oil
2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 eggs
1/2 cup orange juice
2 tsp. good quality vanilla
2 cups spelt flour (can substitute 1 cup flour and 1 cup whole wheat flour)
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp lemon peel
pinch of salt
3 heaping teaspoons flax seed
3 heaping teaspoons wheat germ
2 cups fresh blueberries

Heat oven to 375. Spray two mini-muffin pans with Pam spray (I used Pam for baking). In a large bowl, cream together oil and sugar. Add applesauce, eggs, orange juice, and vanilla. Add flour, baking powder, lemon peel, salt, flax, and wheat germ. Stir until just combined. Fold in blueberries. Using a melon baller, scoop batter into prepared mini-muffin tin. Bake for approximately 12 minutes. Makes approximately 48. mini-muffins.

Monday Munchies: Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls

Posted on February 21, 2011 by Jamie

Inspired by Katie’s post for Protein Balls, I tweaked the recipe a bit and developed these. They taste a great deal like uncooked cookie dough, are a bit healthier, and the kids liked them. Success!! We had these Saturday afternoon for snack.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls

1 cup vanilla protein powder
1/4 cup skim or soy milk
1/2 cup organic, natural peanut butter
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup agave nectar (you can use 1/2 cup honey if you do not have this)
1 tsp good quality vanilla (I prefer this brand)
1 1/2 cups oatmeal
2 Tbsp flax seed
2 Tbsp wheat germ
1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

In a large bowl, combine the milk and protein powder. Mix well. Add the peanut butter, honey, agave, and vanilla. Mix until well combined. Add oatmeal, flax, wheat germ, and mini chocolate chips. Roll into balls and place on a cookie sheet covered with wax paper. Let set in the fridge for approximately 30 minutes. Serve. Store remaining balls in Ziploc bag in the fridge. Makes approximately 20 balls.

Each Monday, I’ll showcase a family and kid-friendly recipe to share with your family. Please let me know if you try one of my recipes! Enjoy!