Meal Planning: Great finds from Pinterest March'13

Each month I plan my menu, and choose a lot of new recipes. I really like trying new things, new foods, and new ways of preparing things. Sometimes I find duds, but quite a few are pretty good. So here are my top 5 new recipes for this month.

1. Crepes & Berries from Little Yellow Barn - At the beginning of the month I needed to use up some whipped cream. And then I realized I had never made crepes before. Weird! So I made some, using this recipe. And even though I totally ignored the "refrigerate for 1 hour"part, it still worked out. 
2. Potato Corn Chowder wi. Kale & Bacon from Good Life Eats - Maybe you've heard of kale and all its health benefits. But maybe you've also discovered that kale chips just taste like burnt lettuce and that a kale smoothie is like shoving grass in a good smoothie. Or maybe I just haven't figured out how to do these things well. Well, this soup, ends the problem with kale. It is absolutely delicious, rich and creamy and the kale actually gives really good texture. Again, because I cannot make a recipe correctly, I changed it to just roasting frozen corn kernels (@ 400ºF) drizzled with olive oil and salt & pepper, instead of ears of corn, and I had to leave out the "corn broth". I just added 2 cups of chicken broth. I am excited for summer corn, and trying out "corn broth" though.
3. Spicy Shrimp Nachos from Midwest Living - Nachos? Mango Salsa? Jerk Shrimp? Sold. Every part of this recipe is pure gold. I even repeated the salsa again without the shrimp for small group at our house. Just so darn good. Try it. Healthy nachos you and your husband will like. 
4. Lemon Tea Cookies from My Madison Bistro - March is lemon month. But somehow I managed to pick some very disappointing lemon treats, except this one! Dainty flavoured icebox cookie, they still really good even thought I didn't make the frosting. These will certainly be made again. 
5. Chinese Cabbage Salad from Jamie Cooks it up! - Next time you are going to a potluck and are again forced to make a salad, please make this! It has a great mix of flavours, without being too strong, and since it is mostly cabbage and ramen, it makes a ton without breaking the bank. If you want to make it and eat it over a few days, store the dressing separately and mix as needed. It is a great accompaniment to your own homemade asian food, and can be a nice change from stir-fry. 

Have you discovered any great new recipes this month?

Goal 90. & 91. Handwritten letters

When was the last time you received a letter in the mail from a real person? A handwritten address and return address, maybe even addressed to Miss or Missus. I can still remember the thrill I got as a child when we received a real letter in the mail and have several of them.

One of my goals has been to write a few letters to special people, because I want them to feel that thrill of a letter, plus it is a nice way to communicate and can become a keepsake. For me there have always been two obstacles when it comes to letter writing.

1. What to say?
2. Having something to send it on. 

For a breezy, newsy letter I generally like to write it out on my computer or scrap paper before I use my nice paper. In these types of letters it is more important for your personality and voice to come through rather than specifically what to say. It is a bit more like a journal than an essay. 

If you are writing a letter of condolence or encouragement, and perhaps having a bit of trouble getting started or want some help with wording, check out this site. 

Sensitivity is important, but sometimes we can easily get caught up in our own insecurity, wanting to do something nice, but afraid it will be unintentionally hurtful or cause pain. That's why I like to read through these sentences and have help to find my words. I add more personality with reflections on the specific situation, or including a verse or quote, but can be happy using others' words to refine my own.  Reaching out is a challenge, so start at a level that feels just outside that comfort zone, but something you are truly glad to do. Hopefully the rewards will be greater than the risks.

Source.

For the longest time I wanted stationary paper, and felt either I couldn't afford it, and also had a hard time finding actually notepaper, not just cards. I finally just decided that I wanted to write letters and found the stationary I use at Papyrus for a pretty reasonable price. It makes me happy. And that is, of course, the whole point of any style of letter or note. Just for pure happiness, so that someone will get that thrill from their own mail box. 

When was the last time your sent a real-life letter?

Meal Planning: A salad bar for guests

My mom and sister have been staying at my house all week, while we have done some legwork for her wedding. We have had busy days, lots of driving and lots of talking. Oh, and lots of money (at least in talking) is being thrown about. Weddings are big money spenders, if you let them.

So in the interest of keeping to a budget in real life we have tried to not eat at restaurants for 3 meals a day. Because that would be too much! Plus its really hard to find good vegetables at a restaurant. We have had a mix of fast-food, pizza delivery, restaurants and home cooking. 

So what meals can you serve at home, when you have just gotten home, are ravenous and want something healthy. Oh, and everyone has different food dislikes and dietary plans.

Enter the salad bar. No cooking, very little prep. lots of veggies, and everyone can choose what they want. Perfect. 

Want some ideas for what to put in your salad bar? Here's what we had:

• Greens - romaine lettuce
• Proteins - diced grilled chicken, crumbled bacon, shredded cheddar cheese, goat cheese
• Veggies - tomato, cucumber, radishs, green & orange peppers, broccoli, shredded carrots
• Mix-ins - sunflower seeds, sliced almonds

For the dressing we had this honey mustard vinaigrette and ranch dressing. This ranch dressing recipe comes from the blog Confessions of a Food Bride, but for some reason I can no longer get this website to load, so I am reprinting it for you here.

Ranch Dressing

• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 3/4 cup mayonnaise (not miracle whip)
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 tbsp. lemon juice
• 1/4-1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1-2 tbsp. chives, snipped (I use freeze-dried)
• 1/2 tbsp. dried parsley flakes
• 1 clove garlic (or 1 tsp. garlic powder)
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. pepper

Measure all the ingredients into a blender and process to mix thoroughly. Add more buttermilk until you reach a desired consistency. Store the dressing in the fridge, as it chills it will thicken into a dip. I have never seen it go bad because we always finish it within a few days! 

What meals do you like for serving guests?

Goal 41. Organize iphoto

Right now Edmonton is experiencing a spring snow storm. I am so tired of all the snow and freezing temperatures and longing for spring. So needless to say, there aren't a lot of outdoor activities going on.

Over the past few months I have been slowly organizing my iPhoto. About 2 years ago my old laptop suffered a hard drive corruption and everything had to be saved by hand. It was a long tedious process, so eventually I just said it was good enough and never really organized it, or checked that this was true. Well fast forward to today, and there is a mess in my iphoto, with pictures of my childhood dated to 2010 and pictures from last year broken and doubled.

But this week, with the terrible weather, I have had time to simply hunker down and clean it up.

I use iPhoto on my Mac, and organize my photos by date. Then I put them into event folders like this: "Jan-Mar '07." For events that have a large number of photos associated with it, such as a wedding or trip, I will use another event folder such as "Wedding '07." Photos from projects gets their own events folder too, such as "Blog" or "Sunflowers."

 To adjust a photo that is in the wrong date I simply use "Photos -> Adjust date and time." By organizing my events by date, this change will automatically move the photos closer to the event folder they belong in. Also remember to deleted the 14 test shots you took before getting the right angle, and anything too dark, blurry or simply ugly. Not every photo needs to be saved!

This is a task that is easy to do while watching a movie or TV show, but it can be a bit tedious. So start now! Especially if you take a lot of photos, things can get ugly quickly so get a handle on it as soon as you can. From then on, photo organizing will be much simpler.

If you have ever thought about scanning in your print photos from before there was digital photography having your digitals organized before you start will make that process so much easier. Use the same organizational structure for photos you scan; choosing the (approximate) date the photo was taken rather than the date it was scanned.

Once you photos are organized think about how you will backup and/or display the photos in your house. A few ways to backup your photos include:

• back-up services like drop box or evernote
• external hard drives (we use a Time Capsule with Time Machine)
• discs (try burning a dvd of photos each year - make sure to label them!)

Once you have organized your photos it is so much easier to display them, from printing photo books, making wall art or saving as a screensaver. Now it is also faster to use photos for projects like this desk top, table runner or these canvases. Have fun!

How do you keep your photos orderly?

Spice up your meal plan: Barbecue Chicken Pizza

It is no secret that I kind of love meal planning. I love selecting new recipes to try, searching for the perfect version of classics like shepherd's pie and lasagna, and celebrating special events with food.

I also have a crazy schedule and a husband who doesn't cook. And a generous but non-negotiable food budget. I will have to write about my food budget at some point, but that is not for now.

I have a pretty interesting meal plan, and we rarely eat the same meal twice. As in twice ever. I have the opposite problem that some people do, where my meal plan is TOO varied, instead of too boring.

So here is a recipe that can easily be added to any meal plan, doesn't break the bank, doesn't take a gourmet chef, but might be a completely different flavour than you usually have on your meal plans.

When making this you can either follow the links for making homemade, or use store-bought ingredients. The choice is yours based on budget, time and desire. For the record, when I made this, I used store-bought dough and homemade sauce.

Barbecue Chicken Pizza with Pineapple and Cilantro 

• 1 ball pizza dough  (this dough can be made in advance and frozen. Thaw to use!)
• 1/4 cup - 1/2 cup barbecue sauce 
• 1-2 chicken breasts, cooked & finely diced
• 4 sliced bacon, cooked & crumbled
• pizza vegetables - peppers, onion, garlic, mushrooms, spinach
• 1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded 
• 1/4 cup pineapple tidbits, drained
• few sprigs cilantro, minced

Roll out your dough onto a baking pan. I generally find that rolling mine into a rectangle is easier, and fits my narrow pans better. If you have a pizza stone or pan use that! Follow the instructions for using your pizza stone.

Cover the dough with barbecue sauce, leaving a ridge bare as the "crust". Sprinkle on chicken and bacon. Add your favourite pizza vegetables.

Cover the whole works with a generous amount of cheese. Sprinkle pineapple on top. If your husband doesn't like pineapple (or any other topping), then leave it off his half. Sprinkle cilantro over top of this.

Bake in 400ºF oven for 25-30 minutes. It is done when the edges of the crust are dark brown and the cheese is all melted. Let it sit on the counter for 2-4 minutes, then cut it into pieces.

Try serving with cut vegetables and homemade ranch dip. Enjoy!

What are your favourite "different" meals?