what's for lunch this today: cucumber tea sandwiches.

when my five year old decided she wanted a little tea party for her birthday, i went into plan mode.  i'm the total nerd mom that loves to plan a birthday party.  i totally admit it.  sweet treats and cupcakes were on the list, but i knew i wanted elegant little tea sandwiches.  and i knew exactly where to look.

i love the show "southern at heart" on the food network; my daughters and i watch it online all the time.  damaris, the show's chef, is just the cutest thing.  she's southern, wears the best accessories and has the coolest kitchen goods like aqua mason jars for measuring cups and wooden twig like things for measuring spoons.  yeah, i kind of love her.

she featured a recipe for "benedictine" on a recent episode i had watched, and i knew i had to make it.  tangy cream cheese and fresh cucumber with a bite of red onion?  um, yes.

not only were these sandwiches cute, they were delicious.  i could not stop munching on them, and i kind of want to make them again just for myself.

any adults want to come over for a tea party?

here's the recipe.

cucumber tea sandwiches

* 1 large cucumber, peeled and seeded
* 8 oz. cream cheese, softened (please use the real deal... sometimes it's just not worth skimping, and this is one of those times)
* 1 1/2 T. mayo
* 1 1/2 T. finely chopped red onion
* salt and pepper
* 8 slices of whole wheat sandwich bread
* sprouts (I used pea sprouts; they are super cute and the leaves look like little hearts)

- in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine cream cheese and mayo until smooth, about 1 minute.

- add cucumber and red onion and mix until combined, about 30 seconds.  season with salt and pepper, cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

- spread onto a slice of bread, top with sprouts and another slice of bread.  cut into triangles and serve.  they taste best on a pretty plate ;)

enjoy!

what's for lunch today {whole wheat sandwich bread}.

okay so, we eat a lot of sandwiches in this house.

nick eats a turkey sandwich every day for lunch.  pretty much always has since the day i met him.  my girls also eat pb&j's or grilled cheeses almost every day for either lunch or sometimes for a quick dinner.  i started making homemade bread about a year and a half ago and have found some fantastic recipes.  my go to for great tasting bread i posted several months ago, courtesy of a friend of mine; i absolutely love this bread!  it's perfect for toast or a side to go with dinner, it's seriously sooo delish.  because of the oatmeal in this recipe, it's a bit tricky to slice it super thin for sandwiches, so i added this recipe to my "bread file", and it's been a great one of all of our sandwich eating :)  it's super soft and tender and you can slice it perfectly; to the same width as store bought bread, which works great.

i make bread at least twice a week; i know it probably sounds like a pain, but i really love it.  using the dough setting on my bread maker, it's super duper easy and pretty foolproof!  and i know exactly what my family is eating.  both of my girls have eczema and we have noticed it flares when they are eating processed bread and crackers... my best guess is something in the preservatives of those products causes issues for them.  my poor babies!  they love cheezits as much as their mama (they are my junk food of choice), and we hardly ever buy them... which i guess isn't such a bad thing after all!  so we've pretty much cut out crackers (other than triscuits) and i try to make all of our bread products from scratch.  pizza crust, tortillas, hamburger buns, focaccia, naan and french bread are some of my staples.

if you're not a bread maker, don't be intimidated!  it's so easy!  but do yourself a favor and buy either a breadmaker (i got mine for twenty five bucks at a yard sale!) or invest in a kitchenaid with a dough hook.  either of those will change your bread-making-life.

here is the perfect sandwich bread recipe:

whole wheat sandwich bread
(adapted from here)

* 3 1/2 c. whole wheat flour (i use king arthur's whole wheat white)
* 1 1/2 c. warm water
* 1 T. vital wheat gluten
* 2 T. ground flaxseed
* 3 T. olive oil
* 2-3 T. honey (depending on how sweet you want)
* 1 1/2 t. salt
* 2 t. yeast

- dump all ingredients in your breadmaker and put on dough setting (this will mix your ingredients, knead them and do the first rise right in your machine).
- punch down dough.  form into a loaf and place in a greased pan.  cover with a towel and place in a warm spot to rise until doubled (approx 30 min to an hour).
- brush top with milk and sprinkle with oats (if desired.  i just think it feels fancy).
- bake at 350 for approximately 40 minutes, covering with foil halfway through so it doesn't burn.  if you tap your bread and it sounds hollow, it's done.
- allow to cool for a bit before slicing so it will maintain it's shape.  then you can dig in... and trust me; you'll want to.

we love making the girls pocket sandwiches with the press and seal gadget from pampered chef... it's only ten bucks and totally worth every penny; they think it's super cool and definitely adds a little pizzazz to the everyday lunch (and sometimes dinner!) sandwich.

enjoy!

what's for dinner tonight {homemade clean eating tortillas}.

in this house, we love our mexican food.  definitely one of the food-related-things we miss most about not living in dallas anymore.  because of our obsession with some good tex-mex, i decided i needed to try my hand at making homemade tortillas that would go along with our clean eating ways.

i found this recipe, and decided to re-make it a bit to fit our needs.  i switched out the flour to use all whole wheat, and i also cut the recipe in half.  the original recipe made 18, so i halved it to make only 8-9 so they wouldn't dry out in my fridge if we didn't eat all of them.  i used most of the tortillas to make a mexican lasagna (will post recipe soon!  it's one of our favs) but next time i make these, i'll keep them in our fridge for easy tortilla pizzas for bella, or for rollup sandwiches.

these babies were suuuuper duper easy and so delicious.

clean eating tortillas

* 2 c. whole wheat flour
* 3/4 t. salt
* 3/4 t. baking powder
* 1 T. canola oil
* 1/2 c. + a bit more if needed, warm water

- mix dry ingredients, and then add oil and water and combine until dough forms a ball (add additional water if needed).  knead 5 times; cover with a towel and allow to rest for five minutes.
- divide dough up into 8 or 9 pieces.  wet hands, shake off access water and roll each piece into a ball.  you may need to wet your hands a few times during this process; don't let dough become dry.
- place each ball on a cookie sheet so they are not touching one another.  cover with a towel, allow dough to rest for five minutes.
- on a floured surface, roll each ball.  you'll flip, roll, flip and roll until you have a thin, circular tortilla.  keep each ball covered with a towel until it's time to roll.  cook tortillas in a dry skillet over medium-medium high heat for 30 seconds on each side, or until you see bubbles form.
- use tortillas immediately, or allow them to cool fully (i kept mine covered with a towel) and then store in a ziploc bag in the fridge for up to a week.

*note: to reheat, wet and wring out a paper towel and wrap around tortilla.  heat in the microwave until warm.

see?  easy peasy.  and totally worth the effort.
they're delish.

what's for dinner tonight {bean&corn salad}.

this is the *perfect* summer salad. it makes a huuuuge batch and is a healthy source of veggies and fiber. nick&i love it with fish, sandwiches, barbeque chicken... and honestly, on a day i've made it, we usually get in bed at night to watch "friends", each with bowls of this yummy salad :)

some of our best friends' mom makes this amaaaazing bean salad that i decided one day i needed to try to recreate. with a couple of attempts, i was able to make something that suited my fancy. this really is super delish.

i'll stop talking about it and just give you the recipe:

bean&corn salad

* 1 can dark red kidney beans

* 1 can light red kidney beans

* 2 cans cannellini beans (you could add a can of garbanzo beans instead of a second can of cannellini, but i prefer the cannellini; they are super creamy and just really yummy!)

* 1 can black beans

* 1 can corn

* 1 green pepper, diced

* 1/2 large red onion, diced

* 1/3 c. fresh cilantro, chopped finely

dressing:

* 1/2 c. white vinegar

* 1/2 c. canola oil

* 1/2 c. white sugar

* 1/2 T. garlic salt

* 1/2 T. salt

* 1/2 T. black pepper

* 1/2 T. ground cumin

- rinse and drain beans and corn. place in a large bowl (we use a huge tupperware bowl with a cover to keep right in the fridge!)

- prepare veggies and cilantro, add to bean&corn mixture. set aside.

- mix dressing ingredients, whisk well (i know it sounds like a lot of salt and other seasonings, but trust me... you're flavoring a whole lotta beans, and i like things well seasoned!). pour dressing over beans, cover and refrigerate for at least an hour to allow flavors to marinate.

serve, enjoy, and bring to your next bbq :)

what's for dinner tonight {sausage&pepper sandwiches}.

my husband pretty much loves everything i cook. i mean, seriously. i could put a piece of cardboard infront of him on a plate and he would say he liked it. he's just not picky and so easy to please.

this is wonderful... and also tricky at the same time. because how do i know what he really wants for dinner? or which dishes are his favorites? such a quandary.

until these sandwiches. this is one of his frequently-requested-recipes. and not just because he's easy to please. but because they're really, really good.

we adapted this recipe from the neely's on the food network (how cute are they!?). when i was pregnant with bella this was one of my frequent cravings... which works out well because nick learned to make them on the nights that i was too tired and swollen to cook dinner after work. which makes them especially delish.

sausage&pepper sandwiches

* 1-2 T. olive oil

* 1-2 lbs of smoked turkey sausage or kielbasa (when we want lots of meat, aaaand lots of leftovers we go with 2... but you be the judge of what you want!)

* 1 red bell pepper, sliced

* 1 yellow bell pepper, sliced

* 1 orange bell pepper, sliced

* 1 yellow onion, sliced

* 3 garlic cloves, minced

* 2 T. tomato paste

* 1 c. beer

* 1/2 c. your fav bbq sauce

* 4 whole wheat hoagie rolls

- preheat oven to 350 degrees.

- over medium heat, warm olive oil in a large pot. add sausages and brown on all sides and remove from the pot.

- add peppers&onions and saute until soft. add garlic. stir in tomato paste, beer and bbq sauce and cook for a few minutes. return sausage back to the pot. reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes until thickened.

- slice rolls and bake in oven until toasted. fill with sausage mixture and enjoy!

deeeeelish.

what's for lunch today {chicken salad wraps}.

one of the things i have *loved* about the blogging world is connecting with other women: crafters, cooks, wives, mamas, all of the above. connecting with strangers across the country, and re-connecting with old friends from high school, college or seminary days.

i have this friend, amy, who i love. we traveled together in a singing group in college (cedarville university... yes, it's in ohio... and yes, it's in a cornfield) and spent every other weekend together during the school year touring and doing concerts. we spent a week over spring break traveling to tennessee, georgia and florida to perform aaaand we spent eight weeks together in an 11 passenger van, worked two weeks of summer camps, put on concerts every night and stayed in strangers homes together. seriously one of my most treasured experiences of my life!

what i loved about staying with amy was that she and i were obsessed with collecting recipes and decorating ideas from our host homes. aaaaaand fast forward almost ten years, now we both have blogs where she share... you guessed it; recipes and decorating ideas :) (among other things...)

you must check out her blog! it is so great and she is super creative with ideas for your home along with being an amazing photographer, so her photos are fantastic! i'm always so impressed! she posted this recipe a few weeks ago, and i asked her if i could feature it on my blog. it looks delish and i love recipes that use things i already have on hand. check out this link to find the recipe, and while you're there... look around!

thanks, amy!!!!

what's for lunch today {egg white sandwiches}.

this is a lunch or breakfast meal... but i love eating it for lunch. i'm obsessed. last week i had one of these lil guys every afternoon before heading off to work. so good and so good for you.

my friend, holly, posts yummy pictures all the time of the healthy, good food she eats and last week she posted a snapshot of an egg white sandwich she made for breakfast. that's all it took. i came up with my own creation and paired with a grapefruit, it's the *perfect* lil lunch (or breakfast) for me.

here. you. go.

egg white sandwich

* 1 egg

* 1/4 of an avocado, sliced thinly

* 1/4 of a tomato, sliced thinly

* 1 slice of sharp cheddar cheese

* 1 whole wheat bagel thin (these are my newest obsession. only 110 calories and 5 g. of fiber per bagel. you can find them in the bread aisle at the grocery with the other bagels)

- spray a small skillet with pam and over medium heat, cook egg white until done. pull off heat, top with cheese and set aside.

- toast bagel thin. cut avocado and tomato into thin slices. when bagel is toasted, top with egg white&cheese, avocado and tomato. season with salt&pepper. top with other bagel slice. serve with fruit or a side salad (my favorite side? a pink grapefruit, of course).

i made these for nick&i for breakfast the other day and added some turkey bacon. super yum. save the rest of the avocado and tomato for another sandwich the next day because i know you will want another one of these (or... if you have a baby who is eating solids, avocado is a great food to cut into chunks and let your munchkin learn to pick up. bella loves it, so we share our avocado... mine for a sandwich, hers for her high chair tray... and hair, and nose, and ears, and the floor...wherever it may end up these days! you can also save the yolk from your egg to scramble up for your baby. my favorite baby food site: www.wholesomebabyfood.com suggests this as a good form of protein before your baby is able to eat whole eggs)

enjoy :)