Nacho Pizza Bites

Posted on January 13, 2012 by Morgan

Lately Solomon and I have started trying lots of fun new recipes.  We had fallen into a bit of a slump and were making the same things too often, and just weren’t excited to cook.  Obviously, that had to change.

I was playing around online looking for some fun dinner ideas that all 3 of us could happily eat.  I came across this amazing recipe for pizza bites and immediately put it on the menu for the first week of the year.  Instead of using pepperoni, I used sautéed vegetables (we keep a kosher home).  These were a huge, huge hit (well, not so much with Aaron), that Solomon and I agreed there were going to make the rotation more often.  While we were eating, we were talking about other ways to make these delicious (yes, we talk about food while eating food).  We brainstormed a whole bunch of ideas, and finally settled on a nacho pizza bite.  I mean, we love pizza, the pizza bites were awesome and we love nachos.  It seemed like a no brainer.  The result was amazing!

Here’s what you need:

  • pizza dough (store bought or make your own)
  • 1 can vegetarian refried beans
  • 1 cup shredded Mexican cheese, plus more for sprinkling
  • jarred jalapenos, chopped (as many as you would like)
  • one tomato chopped

Preheat the oven to 400* and lightly grease an 8 x 8 pan, bundt pan or whatever you would like to use (this is really versatile).

Combine beans, cheese, jalapenos and tomato in a medium bowl.

Divide the dough into 16-24 pieces (depending on size of dough).  Flatten out the dough and using a small ice cream scoop, scoop a ball of the bean mixture into the middle of the dough.


Pull the edges of the dough around and pinch shut to form a dumpling.  Place dumplings seam side down in baking dish.  Depending how many you make, you can put them side by side, or layer them one on top of the other like a monkey bread.Sprinkle the top with a little oregano.


Cook for 20 minutes, then add a sprinkle of cheese to the top and cook for an additional 5 minutes.


Serve with guacamole, salsa, Greek yogurt or whatever you would like for dipping.

Though Aaron is still a little young to really help in the kitchen (though he does like to help stir and pour things in), I think this is the perfect meal for him to help make when he’s a bit older!  It willbbe so much fun to make the dumplings, and to let him and his siblings brainstorm other ideas for pizza bite flavors!

What recipe have you tried lately that became a regular on your meal planning rotation?

Filed under: Live, Love, Eat and Play | Tagged: , , , , , | 4 Comments »

WallPops! ZooWallogy

Posted on December 27, 2011 by Morgan

Hello and happy post holidays!  I hope those are you that celebrated had a very merry Christmas, and those of you who celebrate Hanukkah are enjoying these 8 days.  We’ve been busy here.  Between lots of family time, lots of eating and spoiling Aaron rotten this Hanukkah, there hasn’t been much time to sit and blog!  But Aaron is asleep, I’ve had my coffee this morning, the whites are in the washing machine, the dishwasher is empty and the dogs are playing so I have time to blog!

I’ve been part of the Featured Blogger program at Wayfair (formerly CSN), and love the chance to try out and review products.  They literally have everything you could think of, so when I was given a voucher and allowed to shop I had a really, really hard time deciding what to get.  Lately, it seems like most of my purchases are Aaron-centric, and that’s OK.  So it’s no surprise that when Solomon and I sat down to pick what we wanted, it was a little bit Aaron focused.  See, we’ve turned the attic into a playroom for him.  We still play downstairs a lot, but there’s a ton of space up in the attic so we were able to put some great hand me down toys up there that take up a lot of space. 

Picture 084 Picture 078 We also got Aaron a ball pit for Hanukkah, and have a little mini puppet theater which he received too.

Picture 083 Picture 079 Plus we have the chalkboard, and the beginnings of a little arts and crafts area, as well as some toys.

Picture 082

  Picture 087 Picture 080 Picture 081 As much fun as it is up there (even Aaron’s older cousins think so), the room was missing something.  It just looked bare.  The only bit of decoration we had were some cute curtains.  Enter WallPops!

Picture 077 We were able to choose 2 different wall decal sets to decorate the walls with.  The curtains have cute animals on them, so we definitely wanted to stick with animals.  We weren’t so into the cutesy cartoon animals, and didn’t really want any lifelike animals either.  We found the WallPops! ZooWallogy line on a different website and were so excited that Wayfair had them.  We liked that they weren’t too realistic or too cartoony, but were bright and not garish.  The fun prints made them funky, but not too childlike or too adult.  They are honestly the perfect blend of kid, fun and funk.

We chose Antoinne the Monkey for one wall,

Picture 074 Picture 075 Picture 071 Picture 073and Riley the Giraffe for another wall.  Picture 088 Picture 089

I was actually surprised how easy these were to use.  Even though the stickers are big, they came off of the sheets neatly, in one piece and didn’t stick together too much.  They went on the walls really easily and cleanly, with just a few bubbles underneath that were very easily worked out.  They also come off the walls very nicely and can be repositioned as much as needed (the blue monkey was moved 7 times until he was just right).  I also loved the accessory pieces, like the grass and leaves that came with the animals.

I really, really liked these WallPops! and can’t recommend them enough.  Wall decals are such a fun way to decorate and so easy to use!  Plus, they are really, really cute.  Aaron loves chatting with his monkey and giraffe friends and looking at the bright colors, and Solomon and I feel accomplished that we finally got those walls decorated and did it so easily!

Thank you so much Wayfair for letting us try these out! 

Filed under: Live, Love, Eat and Play | Tagged: , , , | 2 Comments »

Feeding a 14 Month Old

Posted on December 19, 2011 by Morgan

Aaron is a big little dude.  At his 1 year checkup he was 93% for weight, and 98% for height.  Solomon and I don’t seem to grow them small.  The funny thing is, when I look at him, I just see my baby.  I don’t see him as big, just as my little boy.  Also, I think he is absolutely delicious.

Picture 009 It should come as no surprise when you see him that he loves to eat.  Loves it.  He gets so excited for mealtime that he jumps up and down.  He begs people for food, and then I feel like I don’t feed him enough, which I think must be impossible.  He loves to look at food, and even be part of the whole cooking process since he always manages to find his way into the kitchen when I’m cooking.  The thing is, he doesn’t just love food, he seems to already have somewhat of an appreciation for it (at least I hope he does).

From Day 1, Solomon and I have always been on the same page with feeding children.  We want our children to enjoy and appreciate food.  We want to be able to feed them real food and take them to real restaurants where they will try and enjoy a variety of food.  We want to avoid kid’s menus whenever possible and have our children enjoy what we enjoy.  We want our children to be exposed to lots of flavor, color and textures.  That’s why we let Aaron enjoy food that’s flavorful and sometimes spicy.  In fact, he tends to prefer spicy food.  He also likes foods that pack  lots of flavor.  I don’t know too many 14 month olds who love grapefruit, sundried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, polenta, and roasted red peppers, but Aaron loves things that pack a lot of taste!

Picture 022 
Sometimes I wonder if we’re being a little foolish, since we are much more careful with what Aaron eats than what we do.  That’s not to say that we don’t eat well (I’d say we eat clean 80-90% of the time), but we do eat some things that we wouldn’t be willing to give Aaron (namely some sweets), which is kind of foolish.  Why is it OK for us and not for him?  Of course, there are some things he can’t eat (like nuts), but I do think we are more aware of what we eat because of him.

People always comment that it must be so nice to have a good eater, and I can’t help but think how untrue that is.  Yes, Aaron is a big boy who loves his food, but that doesn’t mean he’s a good eater ALL THE TIME.  There are days when he will eat absolutely anything that is put in front of him-he’ll happily eat his veggies (or drink them since he usually loves green smoothies), and will chow down on everything else.  On the flip side, there are days when it seems all he wants to eat is fruit.  Fruit is always, always the fall back food for Aaron.  When in doubt, fruit. 

Sometimes Aaron will eat 1/4-1/2 an avocado in one meal, then won’t touch it at all the next day.  The thing is, we just never, ever know what to expect.  With a toddler, I think it’s all about being prepared.  Always having options on backup that you know he’ll eat, but are still healthy.  For us, that is Dr. Praeger’s veggie burgers (seriously), cheese and fruit.  I don’t like to have to go to the default food, but sometimes he just won’t eat.  You know what though?  That’s OK!  Sometimes I don’t feel like eating much, or only want to eat the same food repeatedly.  Sometimes I want to eat a million different things, and sometimes I want a few bites and then I’m done.  The bottom line is that Aaron, and all babies, are people, just like us.  Yes, their palates are slightly different, but that’s no reason they can’t have an off day or a day where they barely eat.

For the most part, we feed Aaron what we are eating.  In restaurants, we share our meals with him.  He doesn’t particularly care for typical kid’s food anyway, like mac and cheese (or any kind of pasta for that matter) or fish sticks (with the exception being chicken nuggets.  He loves those).  We just try to feed Aaron the way we would want to be fed if we didn’t have the power to make all of our own choices.  Yes, Aaron can make decisions regarding his food.  He can pick out which foods he prefers from his tray, he can reach for what he likes at a table and he can express his like and dislike for foods.  At the end of the day, we just want him to enjoy food.  Eating it, and the experience.  It’s not the easiest thing, but it’s really a lot of fun watching his tastes and palate develop!

Picture 128 
See, he even likes to dig through my cookbooks and pick his favorite recipes!

Filed under: Live, Love, Eat and Play | Tagged: , , | 1 Comment »

Peppermint Bark

Posted on December 15, 2011 by Morgan

All right, I’m in the holiday spirit.  No biggie.  Except for the fact that people on the roads drive like crazy people, I kind of love this time of year.  I get into the music (not before Thanksgiving though.  I mean, really), I love the food (duh) and all of the pretty lights.  So it should come as no surprise that I enjoy spending time in the kitchen doing holiday baking and listening to the Glee Holiday Pandora station.

I know it’s so simple, and everyone in blog world seems to be making peppermint bark, but I want to share too!  I didn’t follow a recipe, I just kind of figured it out.  It worked.  Really well.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:

  • 10 oz. semi sweet chocolate chips
  • 10 oz. white chocolate chips
  • 1 tsp. canola oil, divided (optional)
  • 1/2 tsp. peppermint extract, divided
  • 25 peppermint candies.

First, melt the semi sweet chocolate chips, in whatever manner you like to use (double boiler, microwave).  Stir in 1/2 tsp. canola oil and 1/4 tsp. peppermint extract.

Picture 049 Spread on a parchment or Silpat lined baking sheet.  Freeze until hardened.

Picture 052While in the freezer, use this time to get out your holiday aggression and beat the peppermint candies into pieces.  I use a meat tenderizer and a plastic bag, but any way that breaks the candies works.  Set these aside.

Picture 054 Picture 057 Once the chocolate has hardened, repeat the above melting process with the white chocolate chips.  Spread on top of the semi sweet chocolate, and sprinkle the peppermint pieces on top, lightly pressing them into the chocolate.  Freeze until hardened.

Picture 061 Once the bark has hardened, you can break it into any size pieces you like.  This is so simple, so yummy and everyone seems to love it (even Solomon who isn’t really a mint person)!

Picture 066 Picture 067Are you in the holiday spirit? 

Are you a peppermint bark fan?  What’s your favorite holiday treat to make?

Filed under: Live, Love, Eat and Play | Tagged: , , , , , | 2 Comments »

What I Need for a 1 Year Old

Posted on December 7, 2011 by Morgan

As a “seasoned” mom of a 1 year old (I kid, I  kid, I’m no pro), I often get asked for advice from friends with newborns or babies on the way.  I’ve shared before some of the stuff I loved when Aaron was just a little baby.  Now things have changed a bit.  Our days of the bucket and swaddles are in the past.  Now it’s toys, toys and more toys and finding new and creative ways to entertain him.  That’s not to say there aren’t things I don’t need. 

We couldn’t survive without a lightweight stroller.  Unless I’m carrying him, Aaron is in the stroller a whole lot.  We needed something that was light, folded easily, had space underneath, rolled easily, locked easily and above all was safe.  We chose the Combi Cosmo (in red) and have been really happy with it.

We recently switched to Aveeno products and use the Daily Wash and Shampoo and Daily Moisture lotion, as well as the Calming Comfort lotion.  Aaron has eczema on his legs and arms, and this is soothing and gentle on his skin, plus is smells great.  I also have noticed his hair is a bit softer too!

Saline spray is perfect for when Aaron wakes up a little bit stuffy.  I’m not big on medicine, so this is a simple, natural way to clean out the gunk and help him breathe a little better.

 

A warm mist humidifier helps keep the air in Aaron’s room from getting too dry.  I think this helps him sleep better, plus the white noise doesn’t hurt either!  This also helps with the aforementioned problems of a stuffy nose and eczema!

Now that Aaron is way too big for the bucket seat, we had to switch him to a convertible car seat.  We chose one for each of our cars and have the Britax Marathon and Britax Roundabout.  Britax is one of the top rated companies, and we loved all of the safety features.  I will recommend that when you are in the market for a convertible car seat, bring your baby with you to the store and let him or her sit in the seats and try them out.  There was one car seat I absolutely wanted, but Aaron was really uncomfortable in it (it had side impact head guard thingies which he HATED).  Even if you buy online (you can find much better deals at places like Wayfair), try in the store!

As for all of the other stuff I “need”?  Well, it’s toys.  Lots and lots of toys.  Maybe I’ll do a post on Aaron’s favorite toys one day but for now, this is more than enough!

What are some of your must have items for your 1 year old?

Filed under: Live, Love, Eat and Play | 1 Comment »

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  • Hello blog world! I'm Morgan, a 30 year old mom to a beautiful baby boy trying to figure out who I am, and what I am meant to do with my life!


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