Breakfast

I wanted a hearty breakfast one recent Sunday morning. I thought I'd seen some breakfast sausages in the freezer and after some rummaging I was able to find them. I also cooked up some scrambled eggs and breakfast potatoes:


We has two caprese salad segments leftover so we each had one with our breakfast. The potatoes were cubed and cooked with onion, salt and pepper until tender. I browned the sausages and then threw them in the same pan as the potatoes to keep warm while I made the eggs. A delicious way to start the day.

Grilled Dinner

I was craving caprese salad, so SP picked up a few tomatoes and a ball of fresh mozzarella from the store. I used basil from my garden:


It was delicious. I could have eaten just that and been satisfied, but we also grilled up some burgers and boiled corn:


The corn has been surprisingly good for not being in season yet, at least locally. I hope all the rain we've been having won't negatively effect the crop.

Texas Chicken Quesadillas and Sour Cream Rice

We love these Texas Chicken Quesadillas and the Mexican Sour Cream Rice. It's an easy meal to make and tastes delicious.


Just look at that rice with the chiles, cilantro, corn and gooey cheese:


I always serve the quesadillas with plenty of sour cream for dipping:

Grilled Cheese and Fries

I wanted an easy dinner one night so I cooked a grilled cheese sandwich and baked some frozen fries:


I never used to like ketchup on my fries but I've been craving it during this pregnancy. I can't get enough of the stuff.

Burgers on the Grill

We grilled more burgers over Memorial Day weekend:


My plate:


We also had some more of the potato salad and grilled zucchini.

Summer Plantings

On Memorial Day we went to the store and stocked up on plants for the summer. This year I got flat leaf parsley:


... cilantro:


... cherry peppers:


... basil:


... cherry tomatoes:


... roma tomatoes:


... Rutgers tomatoes (this is a new breed for me this year):


... patio tomatoes:


... Better boy tomatoes:


... and strawberries (also new this year):


The whole gang (minus the strawberries which are on the other side of the slider) all lined up:


Since I took this picture everything has quadruplued in size. The Better Boys already need the tomato cage, they've gotten so big. I can't wait to start hareveting! And the crazy thing is we haven't had much sun lately.

Chicken Wings

Memorial Day weekend we wanted a snack so we picked up some wings to make chicken wings.


I cooked the wings at 425 degrees for about an hour, then tossed them with a mixture of Frank's hot sauce and butter. I served the wings with blue cheese dressing for dipping and celery sticks.

Memorial Day BBQ

For Memorial Day we grilled some burgers and corn and I made my potato salad:


While the corn was good in the grilled corn salad it wasn't as good just eaten off the cob. I love this recipe for potato salad. It's my go-to for picnics:



All- American Potato Salad
Cook's Country Magazine

2 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into ¾-inch cubes
1½ tsp salt, divided
3 Tbs dill pickle juice, plus ¼ cup finely chopped dill pickles, divided
1 Tbs yellow mustard
¼ tsp pepper
½ tsp celery seed
½ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup sour cream
1 tablespoon minced red onion
1 rib celery, chopped finely

Place potatoes in large saucepan with cold water to cover by 1-inch. Bring to boil over high heat, add 1 tsp. salt, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until potatoes are tender, 10- to 15 minutes.

Drain potatoes thoroughly, then spread out on rimmed baking sheet. Mix 2 Tbs. pickle juice and mustard together in small bowl, drizzle pickle juice mixture over potatoes, and toss until evenly coated. Refrigerate until cooled, about 30 minutes.

Mix remaining tablespoon pickle juice, chopped pickles, remaining ½ tsp. salt, pepper, celery seed, mayo, sour cream, red onion and celery in a large bowl. Toss in cooled potatoes, cover, and refrigerate until well chilled, about 30 minutes.

Grilled Corn Salad

Our neighbors had a Memorial Day party so I made my grilled corn salad to bring over.


I love this corn salad. I was shocked at how good it was for corn not being in season right now. When I grilled the corn the smell was intoxicating.

Grilled Corn, Avocado, and Tomato Salad

5 ears corn, shucked
2 avocados, cut into cubes
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup finely diced red onion

Dressing:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 lime, zested and squeezed
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
salt and pepper, to taste

Grill the corn until starting to brown in spots. Allow to cool slightly then remove the kernels from the cob with a knife. Combine the corn, avocado, tomatoes and onion in a large bowl. Add the dressing ingredients and gently toss to mix. Add more lime juice, salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm.

Pepperoni and Mushroom Pizza

Longtime readers know SP is a huge mushroom fan. When I last made pizza he asked for mushrooms in addition to the pepperoni:


I covered his entire half of the pizza with mushrooms, but they shrunk in the oven.


Another photogenic pizza. I do love natural light.

Chicken Parm

SP is a big chicken parm fan so one night I decided to experiment.


I started by making some sauce for the pasta and the chicken. For the chicken I breaded and shallow-fried some pounded breasts and then drained off the oil once they were cooked. The chicken went back into the pan over low heat and were topped with some sauce and sliced mozzarella cheese. Then I put a lid on to melt the cheese.

SP said this was one of the best meals I've made in a very long time. I have to admit, not only was it easy but the end result was positively delicious.

Calzone

I do love a good, cheesy calzone:


I put pepperoni, black olives and mushrooms in this one, along with ricotta and mozzarella cheeses.

Cat in a Blanket

You'd think with the weather being so warm these days that our cat would be done sleeping in, or even on, heavy blankets. Apparently not. I found him snuggled up in a comforter a few weeks ago:


He's such a cutie.

BIG news!

I'm very happy to report that despite the fact that a whopping 63% of those who entered a guess in my baby poll guessed that our baby was a boy, there is no mistaking that she's a GIRL!


We had our anatomy ultrasound yesterday and everything looks fantastic. The baby is actually measuring four days ahead and all the various body parts look perfect. When the tech asked if we wanted to find out I think we both held our breath until she said "It's a girl!" Obviously we wanted a healthy baby first and foremost, but we weren't shy about telling anyone who asked that we had a very strong preference for a girl. I still can't believe we're going to have a daughter!

Unfortunately it seems BB's favorite position is laying on her back with her legs over her head. SP is a little concerned. Ha!

Ladies Lunch

Back in May we had another ladies lunch. Unfortunately Jenn was unable to make it, but Brooke, Lauren, Colleen and I all got together at Brooke's since she's on bed rest.

Colleen brought a delicious orzo salad:


... with arugula, goat cheese, dried cranberries, basil and pine nuts. I can't wait to make this salad for SP. He loves all things orzo. I made my grilled corn salad (thanks again to Brooke's husband Joe for showing me how to use their gas grill):


Since Brooke couldn't do any cooking she ordered sandwiches from a local Italian restuarant for us to share. I loved the eggplant sandwich:


... and also the chicken with roasted peppers:


Here's my plate with two sandwich quarters and the salads:


I'm not ashamed to admit I had two helpings of everything. It was all so incredibly delicious. I was so full I didn't eat dinner that night. Lauren was in charge of dessert and she made ice cream brownie cupcakes:


... that were sinfully delicious. As always, we missed Jenn tremendously. This might be our last ladies lunch for quite awhile. Lauren is due with baby #2 in July and then Brooke, Colleen and I will follow shortly thereafter. The next time we get together might be with a few extra little ones.

Mac & Cheese for a Friend

My friend Brooke is pregnant with triplets. Recently she's had some complications so she has been on bed rest for a few weeks. Since we were all going to her house for a ladies lunch (post to come) I decided to make a mac & cheese for her and her husband to enjoy.


Apparently my timing was very good because right after I gave them the mac & cheese they got some bad news (don't worry, everything is fine with her and the babies) and needed something comforting for dinner. I heard the mac & cheese really hit the spot.

Pepperoni Pizza

I love when my pizzas come out looking so photogenic. This was a pepperoni pizza from a few weeks ago. I loved the perfect crust and toppings. It was absolutely delicious.


What's funny is that I really layered on the pepperoni but since everything shrinks in the oven they ended up being spaced pretty far apart.


Mmm...pizza. I've been on a pizza kick lately but haven't been eating it that much. Might need to change that soon.

BBQ Chicken Dinner

I wanted to do something different for dinner one night so I baked some chicken with BBQ sauce. I cooked some frozen corn and whipped up some mashed potatoes. SP picked up cornbread at the supermarket on his way home.


I don't know why the chicken looks so weird in the photo, but it was tasty. I loved the cornbread, although homemade is always better.

Shells and Cheese with Broccoli

We loved the boxed shells and cheese so much that I made another batch for dinner, this time with just broccoli:


A creamy, satisfying meal.

Cuban Sandwiches

I'm so behind in my blog posting...I apologize! This time it isn't the baby's fault since I'm finally feeling better. Now work is the culprit. Longtime readers know I have a work conference at this time every year and things get a little crazy around the office. I should be back to a regular posting schedule at the end of June.

For now, here's a Cuban sandwich we had sometime at the end of May:


I love these sandwiches because they require almost no work. I buy the meat and cheese from the deli so all I really have to do is assemble and cook them. We had the sandwiches with Terra chips.