Recipe Results

Hello there!  I realized this week how similar, yet different my tastes are from my husband's.  I always ask him what he thinks of whatever recipe I've made at the time and 9 times out of 10 it's not what I'm thinking.  Case in point:

1.  Stuffed shells.  4 out of 5  It was good and fairly simple to make, but I didn't enjoy it as much as my husband did.  In fact, I actually preferred the cooked shells just by themselves...without sauce.  Oh well.

Another case in point:

2.  Creamy avocado pasta.  5 out of 5  I thoroughly enjoyed this one and it was super easy as well.  My husband, however, wasn't as impressed as I was.  Nothing wrong with that, I just think it's funny.

3.  Oatmeal smoothies.  2 out of 5  I felt good about what I was putting in my body but the oatmeal left a strange grainy feeling in my mouth that I really didn't care for.  And just fyi: I didn't use yogurt, I used strawberries instead of raspberries, and I used some random juice I had in the fridge instead of coconut water.

Recipes March 25-31

It's almost April!!  And I have good news!  I've cut out lactose foods from my diet and BOY DO I FEEL GOOD!  I've discussed my stomach issues here before and thought I might have some sort of fructose issue.  I came to that conclusion after my stomach did flips from eating apples.  I continued to have the issues, however, so I tried the gluten-free thing.  Still had issues.  And then...I drank a milkshake.  My stomach immediately cramped up but it didn't occur to me what was going on until the next day when I had another milkshake with the exact same results.  That's when I decided to cut out dairy and see how I did.  For the first time in a long time I was able to go through the workday without being uncomfortable.  Nice.  I was telling my sister that I really don't know if I'm lactose intolerant or what, but honestly...I don't care.  As long as what I'm doing (or not doing as is the case) is helping, that's all I care about.  Here are this week's recipes:

1.  Stuffed Shells

Source: 101cookbooks.com via Nicole on Pinterest

2.  Creamy avocado pasta

Source: twopeasandtheirpod.com via Nicole on Pinterest

3.  Oatmeal smoothie

Source: marthastewart.com via Nicole on Pinterest

Recipe Results

Well, this go-round was a bust.  Unfortunately, the recipes were not impressive.

1.  Breakfast pockets - 4 out of 5  This is a rather time consuming recipe (dough rises for 1 hour).  So if you choose to make these, make them with the intent to freeze for later use.

2.  Shrimp and sausage pot pies - 3 out of 5  Super rich.  Only once did I eat the entire serving in one sitting.

3.  Sweet potato & black bean casserole - 2 out of 5  Bland and time consuming.

4.  Black bean sliders - 4 out of 5  Burgers didn't stay together...smooshed out all over when I went to take a bite.

5.  Fig newtons - ? out of 5  Ended up making fig muffins.  Dough sat in my fridge for more than a week because I couldn't bring myself to do the work!

6.  Flourless fudge chocolate chip cookies - 2 out of 5  I can't stand cookies that stick to parchment paper.  I lost my patience and tossed the whole thing in the trash.  Here's the link since I don't think I included it before:

Source: chocolateandcarrots.com via Nicole on Pinterest

7.  I made this spinach tofu soup last night.  3.5 out of 5  The recipe doesn't specify how much tofu so I just cut 1 block into 12 cubes.  WAAAAAAAAAAAAAY too much.  I recommend using half a block or cutting into 24 cubes.  Besides that mishap, very yummy & quick to make.

Source: soundspicy.blogspot.com via Nicole on Pinterest

The Little Engine That Could

I DID IT! 

I defended my thesis last Friday & passed.  I'll be honest, I was a nervous wreck & thought for a second that they might actually fail me (forgot to refresh my memory on the DNA analyses I did!). 

But let me tell you...last weekend was the best I've had in a while.  Such a burden off my shoulders.

I shall have to leave you now...I have more edits to do before I turn it in.  :)

Recipes March 11-17

This time change stuff gets me every time.  It's almost 1pm and I feel like it's 10am.  Better get to moving or I won't have my oral presentation complete by the end of today (my goal)!  Nevermind I'm blogging right now.

1.  Breakfast pockets with hashbrowns, cheese, sausage, & eggs - I planned on making these this morning but I don't have enough yeast.  And I went to the grocery store yesterday!  Poor planning on my part.

Source: budgetgourmetmom.com via Nicole on Pinterest

2.  Shrimp & andouille sausage pot pies - I've never worked with puff pastry before, so we'll see how it goes.  Took me forever to find it in the grocery store - and even then it was after I asked someone where it was.

Source: michelle-s.com via Nicole on Pinterest

3.  Sweet potato & black bean casserole with tomatillo cream sauce - yum!

Source: themeaningofpie.com via Nicole on Pinterest

4.  Black bean sliders with avocado mayonnaise
 

Source: motherthyme.com via Nicole on Pinterest

Should be a great week!  Until next time...

Recipe Results

1. Lemon chicken with orzo - 4 out of 5  I loved this but my husband thought it was alright.  You can't please 'em all the time can ya?

2.  Crispy tofu triangles with asian dipping sauce - 4 out of 5  Again, I loved it but my husband...well, he'd take a big steak over tofu anyday.  I do think it'd be better if it was marinated in the sauce and then crisped up, but I'm not sure it could get crispy that way.  Also, I don't fry things often so I almost burned the house down...twice.  I really think you could crisp it up without all the oil - and protect your home while doing so.

3.  Baked crab rangoons - 2 out of 5  Maybe I'm just so used to the stuff you get at Chinese restaurants, or maybe it was because they were baked, but these weren't yummy.  Granted, I still ate them.

4.  I got started on the "fig newtons" this morning.  I'll report next week.