main dishes, recipes, seafood

Sheet Pan Shrimp Fajitas

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Thanks to the pandemic and stay-at-home orders, I am working in the basement these days. So the commute has reduced from a 30-40 minute drive home to 30-40 second walk up the stairs. I could use the extra half hour to make a more labor intensive dinner. And sometimes I do. But honestly, I don’t always have it in me. Sometimes I need an easy win that still feels like a solid meal.

Enter: sheet plan meals. Single sheet pan meals are all over Pinterest and for good reason. They are so gosh dang easy to prep. Outside of cutting veggies, you can toss all the food on a pan, swoosh it around, and pop it in the oven–all while a baby is glued to your hip.

We tested out this shrimp fajita sheet pan meal and it was a huge hit. We will definitely making this again–especially once I go back to work in the office. This entire meal can be made under a half hour, which is a game changer when you walk in the front door around 7:00 p.m. each weeknight. Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2- 2 pounds of shrimp, peeled (I just grabbed a bag from the frozen section and dumped the entire bag in)
  • 3 bell peppers, thinly sliced (mix between red, yellow, and orange)
  • 1 red onion, thinly sliced
  • 1 1/2 olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • 2 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon paprika
  • squeeze of lime
  • tortillas
  • any and all taco/fajita toppings–for us–guacamole, salsa, and sour cream are musts
yeah, those bell peppers are not finely sliced at all. Guys, do as I say, not as I do 😉

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees
  2. Grab a large bowl and toss together everything but the lime, tortillas and toppings (so the last three ingredients)
  3. Once well coated, distribute across a sprayed cookie sheet.
  4. Cook for 8 minutes. Then turn to broil and cook for another 2-3 minutes, until shrimp are done.
  5. Once out of oven, squeeze the lime juice over the cooked fajita insides.
  6. Toss insides into tortilla shells and top with all the delicious toppings you have.
  7. Enjoy!

Source: Number 2 Pencil

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main dishes, pork, recipes

Ham, Leek, and Spinach Quiche

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It’s Easter! Our first Easter with three walking, wild babies, but it was still our quietest Easter yet (thank you, pandemic). With all the restaurants shut down, there was no need to secure a reservation for Sunday brunch. So I opted for a classic, easy, but filling, breakfast for the five of us: quiche.

Ingredients

  • Pie crust, deep dish
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1/2 yellow onion, diced
  • 1 leek, sliced
  • 1 cup ham, diced
  • 5 eggs
  • 3/4 cup half and half
  • 1 cup cheddar cheese, finely shredded
  • 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, finely shredded
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 3/4 cup Spinach, chopped

Directions

  1. Preheat the over to 400 degrees. Put the pie crust in the oven and cook for 5 minutes. Take out.
  2. Over medium heat, melt butter. Add in onions and leeks and cook for 3 minutes. Add in ham and cook for another 5 minutes or until onions and leeks are soft. Remove from heat and set aside.
  3. In a large bowl, mix together half and half and eggs. Combine with cheeses, parsley, pepper, onion/leek/ham mixture, and spinach. Mix well.
  4. Pour into pie crust and place onto cookie sheet. Cook for 50 minutes, or until the egg is well-set (pierce with fork in middle of quiche and if it comes out clean, it’s good to go).
  5. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!
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main dishes, recipes, seafood

Shrimp Boil Packets

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Today Minnesota extended the Stay-at-Home order until May 3rd. It feels so weird. Being trapped at home for three weeks now. Sometimes it is fun. I get to have lunch with my babies every single day. I see a lot more of Matt, since our desks are next to each other. But other moments it feels like the world is crumbling below us. And also that nothing is happening. Because everyone in my household is healthy so we are in this bubble where Coronavirus is this urban legend and we don’t see anyone. We are continuously living in the calm before the storm. The fear of getting sick and how sick we will get forever looms over us. Will we be the person who needs to be hospitalized?

We are lucky that that Coronavirus feels mystical. Because it means we are healthy and the people we love are healthy. We are away from the hectic, overworked hospitals. Here’s hoping it stays that way.

This recipe is from simpler times. When the biggest worry was getting lemon juice squirted in our eyes–not getting contracted with a scary virus that could crystallize our lungs.

I hope this meal brings some comfort to you.

Ingredients

  • 2-3 corn on the cob, halved
  • Andouille sausage, coin sized
  • 5-6 red potatoes, quartered
  • 1 Tablespoon Garlic, minced
  • 1 pound Shrimp
  • 3 Tablespoons Old Bay Seasoning
  • 3 Tablespoon Butter
  • Half Lemon
  • Salt
  • Pepper
Also need Old Bay seasoning. Forgot to put it in the photo 🙂

Directions

I’d recommend cutting corn smaller and all in half again. Our knife is terrible so I gave up.

Put the sausage and shrimp in a big bowl.

Squeeze in lemon juice. This method is how the professionals do it 😉
Or do this.

Then add in the potatoes and corn in the bowl. Add in butter.

Time to go the grill to cook on one side for 15 minutes.
Remove from the foil carefully. If you’d like, drizzle more melted butter over everything.

Enjoy!

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chicken, main dishes, recipes

Baked Chicken Tacos

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Ok, so the last two weeks have gone entirely not as all as I expected. Thanks to the Coronavirus, life as we know it has not been the same. I started working from home full time. Court has been cancelled. I do not go to the grocery store to get those last couple ingredients to make a meal. Substitute with what we have or make something else. There are no trips to Target. Sunday church and then brunch at Red Cow is no longer our Sunday Funday. All the restaurants are closed. Church is live streaming from our living room. The boys and Ellie do not go out on their daily adventures. Museums and zoos are closed. Playgrounds are off limits. Beyond playing in the backyard, our family has hunkered down and stayed at home.

It feels like we are constantly living in the calm before the storm. So far everyone in our house is healthy. Our friends and family are healthy. I read about hospitals running out of medical supplies. That medical staff is overworked, and there are not enough beds. And it just doesn’t feel like that is what is happening in our city, our state, our country. That is something that happens somewhere else. But surely not here. It just doesn’t seem possible. But that simply is not correct. It is happening. It is happening here. And I am just lucky that I cannot wrap my mind around it because I haven’t had the misfortune to need medical help. And man, I hope it stays that way. I hope I have a hard time placing the realities that too many people are currently facing for as long as possible. Because that reality is too scary to stomach.

Those realities weigh on my mind. I have always been a worrier. When I was little, I use to have a hard time grappling with the concept of “forever.” That we would be in heaven forever. For so many people, heaven gives you a sense of peace and calming. But the idea of being somewhere forever made me panic. If I am being honest, even writing about it right now is starting to make my heart race. I have always been that person who may be a little too sensitive to cope with certain realities. This pandemic is not doing my heart any favors. I worry about my babies getting sick. I worry about Matt getting sick. I worry about me getting sick. I worry that this pandemic shut in will last a year or more. That my children will miss out on childhood moments that everyone should experience. I could go on and on and on.

Cooking calms me. Cooking something I know my family loves calms me even more. This is that recipe. Because everyone loves tacos.

Ingredients

  • Hard taco shells, flat bottomed ideally
  • Shredded, cooked chicken (if possible, I get a rotisserie chicken and shred that)
  • Refried beans
  • Cheddar cheese, shredded
  • Black olives, sliced (optional)
  • Lettuce, shredded (optional)
  • Salsa of choice (we like to mix mango, corn, and red/green)
  • Sour cream (optional)
  • Guacamole/avocado (in my book, this is never optional. what is a taco without guac or avocado?)

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Grab a hard shell and coat the inside bottom of the shell with refried beans. Layer in chicken and cheese. Place into 9×12 or 8×8 glass hot dish container. Once all taco shells are filled, place into oven and cook until cheese is melty–about 5 minutes.
  3. Add in toppings as desired.
  4. Enjoy!

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main dishes, pork, recipes

Cheesy Veggie Rice

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Eloise is to the age where she can start eating solid foods. It’s exciting and terrifying. She is just thrilled that she is one of the big kids now. Of course, I am this nervous wreck, constantly worried that she is going to choke. She may be baby number three, but it never gets easier for me.

I’ve read about child-lean eating and we have dabbled in it. But mostly, my babies eat purees because I am scared to feed them more solid food.

my girl loves to eat. and i’m probably over mashing her avocados.

Eloise definitely wants to eat what we eat. She tries to swipe food out of our hands and mostly just wants to be part of the group. So when making dinners lately, I’ve been trying to incorporate foods that Ellie can enjoy too.

One of the first non-puree foods that I feel comfortable giving my babies is rice. It’s mushy, and the babies can grab the pieces fairly easily. I am not a baby food specialist so maybe rice isn’t a great option. I have no idea. But with my babies, they’ve been able to master rice. If you don’t feel comfortable giving your baby rice, don’t. Ask your pediatrician first. But for us, it’s worked. And rice is great staple for us to mix up a variety of dinners without making the boys the same meal over and over again.

This cheesy rice dish is a super quick meal you can make on the weekday. It’s easy to change out the veggies to whatever you have in the fridge. Sub the sausage for chicken breast. Whatever you’d prefer. But Ellie was so happy to be at the table, eating her cheesy rice (no veggies), just like the boys.

forgot to get a photo of Ellie eating tonight, but here’s the most adorable one. Toast is another earlier solid food we give the babies. Eloise is a huge fan.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup white/brown rice
  • 2 cups water
  • 2 heads broccoli, chopped
  • 1/2 cauliflower, chopped
  • 1/2 cup peas
  • 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
  • 2 links of chicken sausage (I used these from Trader Joe’s)
  • 1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

Directions

  1. Get someone else to make rice for you. But if you are sucker and can’t, put the water in a pot and bring it to a boil. Once boiling, add in rice and stir. Move to a low simmer and cover. Stir periodically.
  2. Get a skillet and place broccoli and cauliflower in with about a tablespoon of water over medium heat. Cover. Once a little soft, toss in garlic, sausage, and peas.
  3. Cook until veggies are soft, about 10 minutes.
  4. Add in rice and cheese and stir until well-mixed.
  5. Enjoy!
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main dishes, pork, recipes

Sausage and Broccoli Rice

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You know those posts where it says these recipes use only 5 ingredients. But then you find out that they didn’t count the olive oil. And salt and pepper. And the photo they posted for the recipe (which looks simply gosh darn delicious) includes all these “optional” ingredients. And the meal just doesn’t seem as hearty without them. Yeah, I hate that. As a working mom, sometimes I want a simple, only two steps, just a couple ingredient meal for those nights where I get home late, work was stressful, and I do not want to order pizza.

This is that recipe. There are only four ingredients. And I mean that.

There are three steps. Two of them are chopping. This recipe is incredibly easy and tastes great. Every time I share this recipe on my Instagram stories, I get flooded with reactions on how delicious it looks. It is.

Now is this healthy? Well, the chimichurri rice is prepackaged so I am sure there are more healthy choices than this. But I am going to out out on a limb and say this is healthier than ordering Chinese takeout. At least our family’s Chinese takeover order 😉

Ingredients

  • Broccoli, chopped
  • Andouille sausage, sliced in coin-sized pieces
  • Trader Joe’s Peruvian Style Chimichurri Rice
  • Water

Directions

  1. Chop broccoli into bite-sized pieces
  2. Cut sausage into coin-sized pieces
  3. Put broccoli, sausage, and rice into a large skillet over medium heat. Add in 2 tablespoons of water. Turn to combine. Place lid over skillet to allow the broccoli to steam cook. The entire meal should be ready to eat within 15 minutes.
  4. I toss about a cup per serving.
  5. Enjoy!
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chicken, main dishes, recipes, turkey, vegetarian

Pot Pies

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I remember when my mom use to make pot pies. I would have a fit. I hated them. My brother and sister would happily eat their dinner, and I would sit at the table, nose up, like a snot, refusing to eat my pot pie. I decided they were the worst and I would not even try them. Nothing would change my mind. They had peas, they had gravy, they were not for me. Now that I am a mom myself, I realize my mom is a saint for not slapping me!

Since my teenager-anxy days, I have never had a pot pie (I am nothing but true to my word). But around Thanksgiving, I kept seeing posts about people making pot pie recipes with their leftover turkey. The cutest ramekins filled with bright orange carrots, firm peas, and shredded turkey. Guys, it looked good. And I couldn’t believe it. I hate pot pies.

But I had a bunch of leftover turkey and I didn’t feel like making soup. I decided that it was time to finally try pot pies.

Ok, now I feel like an adult. I like them. They were good. It was filling, warm, and the perfect level of salty savory. I would make this again. And I can’t believe it. Guys, you should try this. They are good. You’ll feel like an adult. It’s great.

It doesn’t have to look pretty. It just has to taste good.

Ingredients

  • Yellow onion, diced
  • 5 carrots, diced
  • 1 bag frozen Trader Joe’s Mushroom Medley (OR a bunch of diced mushrooms)
  • 1-2 cups turkey or chicken (or opt if desire veggie)
  • 2 tbsp Trader Joe’s Garlic Herb Butter (OR just butter)
  • 1 tbsp flour
  • 2 cups vegetable stock
  • Lemon, squeeze
  • Maple syrup, drizzle or two
  • 1/4 tsp Trader Joe’s Multipurpose Umami Seasoning Blend
  • 2 cups peas
  • 1 package frozen pie crusts, thawed
  • Salt and pepper

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400F.
  2. Over medium heat on the stove, sauté onions, carrots, and mushrooms in butter, salt and pepper for 5 minutes, or until vegetables are tender. Add in cooked turkey/chicken.
  3. Remove from heat and sprinkle with flour.
  4. Then, put back on heat. Add vegetable stock, lemon,maple syrup, and umami seasoning.
  5. Simmer to until a bit thick. Toss in peas.
  • Scoop into ramekins, and top with the pie crusts.
  • Bake for 30 minutes or until crust is golden brown.
  • Enjoy!

Source: Cup of Jo

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main dishes, pork, recipes

Split Pea Soup

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Traditions.  If I could sum up November and December in one word, it would be traditions.  We have traditions for how we celebrate Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Christmas Eve, Christmas, New Years Eve.  All of it. Each day has been specifically calculated to include rituals we have done for years and years.  Molding my family’s traditions, with Matt’s family’s traditions, with our own hybrid traditions.  I love it. It feels like it is part of what defines what it means to be part of our family.  To know, celebrate, understand these traditions means you are a Cremona/Watson.

And after Thanksgiving, we use the leftover ham to make split pea soup (yes, we always have turkey and ham at Thanksgiving).  That is this soup.  After spending an entire day stuffing our faces with turkey, sweet potatoes, and pumpkin pie, we stock up on Black Friday deals and make this soup.  There is something so comforting about dipping a chunk of crusty bread into this soup as we flip through the big box ads with my sister, dad, and sister-in-law.  It’s part of the Cremona/Watson family Thanksgiving weekend.  Just doesn’t feel like the holiday without it.

You need to add this to your recipe repertoire.

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recipes, side dishes, vegetarian

Pesto White Beans with Grilled Zucchini

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We spent Sunday afternoon decluttering our basement. We’ve lived in our house for over 8 years now and have accumulated   s o   m u c h   s t u f f.   My closet is full of buckets and buckets of clothes I’ve been keeping just in case they fit again, in case I need it for a costume, in case it comes into style.  I am certain Matt has every spare screw that ever came with any kit.  After a couple hours of tossing items in either the donate or garage piles, we called it quits and headed back upstairs to where the clutter is a bit more manageable.

The fall cleaning inspired me to clean out the pantry.  In the back as a lone can of white beans tucked away–likely bought for chili that I never ended up making.  There were two zucchinis on their last legs and a jar of unopened pesto from who knows when.  And that is how this pesto white beans with grilled zucchini came to life.

We ate it as a meal, but it would be a great appetizer or side dish.  It’s a fun interplay between heavy foods (beans and cheese) with lighter foods (pesto and zucchini).  Toast some crusty bread and layer the bean/zucch/cheese mixture on top.  It would be the perfect dish to bring to a late fall cookout or to eat in front of a fire.  It’s got just the right level of flare without feeling pretentious. Which is what I am always looking for in a meal 🙂

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recipes, side dishes, vegetarian

Citrus Beet Salad with Goat Cheese

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Today was one of those days where I saw my reflection in the mirror, and I thought, “ugh, I am that chubby girl.”  And that’s because I am.  No, I am not fishing for compliments.  It’s true.  I am chubby.  Yes, I did recently have a baby, but this chubbiness cannot be blamed on Eloise.  It’s because I’ve been eating subpar and not working out as much I’d like.  See, before we went to Texas, I was kicking ass.  I was eating healthy. Working out.  Drinking all the water.  And then vacation happen.  And then I got back and I was busy. Work. Babies. House. Errands.  Yeah, I know.  You can make all the excuses you want.  Clearly I wasn’t making my health a priority.

But her rolls are just so delicious.

Ok, well that is the great thing about priorities.  They can change.  So healthy eating is back on the docket.  I spent the weekend digging into new recipes to try.  To revitalize my motivation to eat healthy, work out, get my spirit back into the better myself vibe. It was time to get out of my funk.

Because I have three little eyes watching me.  Taking notes.  Learning from my habits and internalizing them and possibly even making these habits their own.  So if not for myself, then for them.

sure, it’s hard to work out when you have these two adorable boys who always jump on you. guys, this is the life.

And that is how this beet salad came to life.  I am not about to just eat rabbit food.  That is not going to get me excited about eating healthy.  But of course, healthy eating doesn’t have to be bland.  I just had to remind myself of that. So I went outside the typical “green” salad and landed on beets. There is something about beets that make me feel like I am being healthy and trendy at the same time.  This recipe is unbelievably easy, with no dressing because the ingredients themselves have more than enough flavors.

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