I didn’t think it would be a problem this week, seeing as we decided on Vegetable and bean soup…but Ellie loved it! We did manage to have leftovers of this one, though…so I guess I know what I’ll be having for lunches for a couple days!

It is so easy to make, very tasty, and only has 210 calories and 18 grams of carbs in 1/6th of the recipe!

Enjoy! I hope you like it as much as we did!

Vegetable and Bean Soup

1-14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes

2-14.5 ounce cans chicken broth

1 cube vegetable bouillon

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1-15.5 ounce can kidney beans, drained (or other favorite bean – I used white kidney)

1 red bell pepper, finely chopped (didn’t have red…used green)

2 carrots, finely chopped

2 celery stalks, finely chopped

2 summer squashes, about 1 lb total (I used 1 zucchini and 1 yellow squash) quartered lengthwise and chopped.

1-7 ounce can sliced mushrooms (left these out!)

1 T. minced garlic (3 cloves of fresh here…but would add more next time!)

1 T. olive oil

2 T. butter

1/4 t. kosher salt

1 t. black pepper

1/2 t. Tabasco sauce (about 4 shakes – optional. I left out)

1. Combine all ingredients in slow cooker crock and mix well.

2. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours. Stir well before serving. If desired, stir in Tabasco sauce before serving.

So…breakfast.

We took a break from the standard breakfast choices last week and threw in some snowman heads.

Not the healthiest breakfast…but let me tell you…I didn’t have to push anybody to finish it!

It was our first attempt at dutch letters and Ellie decided she wanted to make dutch hearts instead.

I don’t know if anyone remembers, but a couple of years ago there was a commercial…i think for coke…where a guy comes home to his apartment to find that his roommates mom had left some empanadas for him (the roommate). Well, this guy sits down to eat them…and I don’t remember the rest of the commercial, but for some reason after that I was always hungry for an empanada, even though i had no idea what it was.

So, when I saw them in this cookbook I was pretty excited. And since this cookbook is geared for children to help, I was fairly confident in my ability to make them.

This is the same cookbook where I found stuffed french toast which Nathan and i thought was excellent! I think the kids were a little confused by the cream cheese and apples in the middle, so they didn’t really care for it, which just made more for Nathan and myself!

It’s also got recipes for blueberry muffins, smoothies, and breaded chicken fingers with mango-pineapple salsa that I can’t wait to try.

For the empanadas, you start out with refrigerated pie crusts and use a 3 inch cookie cutter to cut circles. I used this handy biscuit cutter i bought from Captain Max Chocolates years ago and don’t think i’ve ever used. Homemade biscuits don’t get made here much apparently.

After that add your filling of choice. We chose finely chopped chicken and shredded cheese. We did add finely chopped broccoli to about half of them. You fold them over and press with a fork.

One recipe made 25 empanadas. They were found in the snack section of the cookbook, but we ate them for a meal and had some left over. I’m still trying to decide what the best thing to dip them in would be. The cookbook suggests salsa, but something didn’t strike me right about that option. I guess I’m just going to have to make them again so I can try other dipping options.

The recipe…if you’re interested

The Crust:

1 15-ounce package refrigerated pie crust. Softened according to package directions (Or you can make homemade crust too.)

3/4 cup salsa for dipping (optional)

The Filling:

Cheesy ChickenFilling: In a medium bowl, combine 1 cup finely chopped cooked chicken, 1/4 cup cooked peas, and 2/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese

OR

Cheesy Broccoli Filling: 1 cup finely chopped cooked broccoli, 1/4 cup finely shredded carrots, and 2/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese

The steps:

Preheat oven to 400. Roll out crust on lightly floured surface. Cut 3 inch round circles from crust with cookie cutter or biscuit cutter. Divide 1 of the fillings among the rounds, piling filling in the center.

Lightly brush edges of rounds with water. Fold rounds over to form crescents. Crimp edges with a fork to seal.

Place on greased cookie sheet. Bake 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with salsa.

yummy – yummy – yummy

This one…going in the rotation!

Twirly Whirly Pizza

1 tube refrigerated pizza crust. (13.8 oz). You could also totally make your own crust…this was what the recipe said and I don’t usually like to deviate until I’ve tried it once. I think next time maybe I’ll try a wheat crust.

1/2 c. pizza sauce

1/2 c. italian blend shredded cheese (I used pizza blend)

fresh spinach (a handful)

Spread pizza dough out into a rectangle. Spoon pizza sauce on top. Sprinkle half the cheese over the pizza sauce and cover with a layer of spinach.

Roll up and cut into 8 slices. Put slices flat side down in a greased pie plate. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top.

Bake at 400 degrees for 22 – 25 minutes.

Again…so easy, so yummy. And pretty too! We did add bacon to ours. Because lets be honest, what isn’t better with bacon? And the doctor did tell me to try and get more protein from meat in my diet. Could i have picked a healthier meat? Absolutely. A tastier meat? Doubtful.

We took bets. We agreed on 25/75 against that the kids would eat it. We were pleasantly surprised when both of them ate their whole piece.