I recently submitted a recipe for the third annual Macaroni & Cheese Blog to celebrate National Cheese Lover’s Day sponsored by the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board.  I didn’t need to be asked twice!  We love cheese over here and probably have mac & cheese 3 times per week.  Okay, that’s partly because my 2 year old loves it so much.  He either wants mac & cheese or a nutella/peanut sandwich and really can you blame him…he’s got great taste!  He loved being my helper for day.

Besides Mexican food, I cannot seem to get enough Greek and Mediterranean food. I love it, so I thought I would incorporate into a decadent and rich mac & cheese. I was actually inspired by a feta cheese and macaroni gratin that we recently had on vacation that used feta as the main cheese in the dish. It was so rich, creamy, and delicious that we actually had to go back to the restaurant and order it again.

This is my version all jazzed up with those wonderful Mediterranean flavors that I love. I wanted to make it a little heartier so that we could enjoy it as a meal with a green salad, but could also pair it with a nice New York Strip steak too. Honestly, I think the kids liked this too much! Even my regular mac & cheese loving 2 year old had seconds. I won’t tell you that my husband went around and ate bites off of everyone’s plate (even after having seconds as well).

Disclaimer: I was compensated for submitting a recipe.

My family is sad since soup seasoning is quickly coming to an end.  It’s been in the 70′s and I’m not big on soup when it’s hot.  I will still make it for them, but not as much.  However, I realize that for many of you it’s still really cold and wintery…..maybe you should move to AZ.  Anyway, I thought I would do a recap of some of my favorite soups today.

So, I thought it would be fun to do a secret giveaway.  Leave a comment on one or more of these soup recipes for a chance to win a prize package.  Only new comments will count and cannot mention the giveaway.  You can earn an entry for every soup you comment on and an extra entry on this post too.  Of course I would love you to follow me, but it’s not required for this giveaway.  Feel free to pin and share on facebook your favorite soup!  The giveaway will end in one week.  Want to know what you’re winning: Robin Takes 5 cookbook (see my post about the book), apron, reusable bag…and whatever else I can fit in a large flat rate box.   Sound fun?!?!?

Chicken and Corn Soup

Turkey Noodle Soup

Posole

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Slow Cooker Potato Chowder

Tortilla Soup and Taco Twists

8 Can Soup

Broccoli Cheese Soup

Clam Chowder

Split Pea Soup

Spinach & Tortellini Soup

Black Eyed Pea Soup

For the last seven and a half years, I participated in a produce co-op…most of the time I run the site that I participate in. It is so much fun and I’ve met some wonderful people.  In fact, some of my closest friends are people that I’ve met through the co-op.  The only bad thing is getting up at 4am to meet the truck.  It’s worth it in the end since we get a ton of fresh produce for a fraction of the grocery store prices.  I love it!  I love saving money!

Another plus is that my family has tried all sorts of new fruits and veggies over the years that I would never in a million years buy at that the store.  Ya know…the green stuff or the weird shaped thing over there or the ones that are too expensive.  We don’t always get fun new things to try, but when we do I search for recipes and give one or two a try with the new ingredient.

Bok Choy was a veggie that I was not willing to try.  EVER!  It looked weird, had a weird name, used in Asian cuisine (which I don’t care for), and it was green.  However, one fine Saturday morning, bok choy ended up in our produce basket and I was forced into learning what to do with it (besides the dreaded stir fry…really, I hate Asian food…even Americanized Asian food.)  I ended up making this awesome salad.  It is a little sweet, a little tangy, crunchy, and delicious!  I hope you will give it a try.

Yes, I was on a cookie kick last weekend.  I ended up splitting my dough and doing something more creative than Chocolate Chip Cookies with the second half of the dough.  So, I dug through the cabinets and found some leftover dried cranberries and about 4 bags of white chocolate chips.  Apparently, I buy them and forget to use them.

Do you have a box that looks like this?  I think I have a little of everything I would ever need for making cookies or dessert.  No wonder I can’t lose any weight!  I love to bake!!!

My daughter was not thrilled with this idea, but I promised they would be good.  She liked them, but not as much as the chocolate chip ones.  My husband loved them and even texted me the next day from work after he had one in his lunch.  He was really enjoying the cookies.  My dad asked for more cranberries.  So, if you are a super cranberry fan….add more!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I’ve been reading, yeah I read too much, about the benefits of almonds.  They are really good for you, but I’m not a huge fan of just eating plain almonds.  I also learned that half the flour in baked goods can be swapped for ground almonds or almond meal and the integrity of the baked good stays in tack.  So, I set out to do some experimenting in the kitchen last weekend.

I took my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe and swapped out half the flour for almond meal to see what happened.  It was scrumptious!  In fact, I didn’t tell anyone that I had done it and no one could tell.  Everyone loved the cookies and said they were awesome.  I had one person say they were better than my other chocolate chip cookies.  I just secretly giggled to myself.

So, if you aren’t too adventurous then just put back in the flour and take out the almond meal, but I promise you will love these cookies!  Can’t find almond meal, buy raw almonds and process in the food processor until finely ground.  However, don’t go to far or you will end up with almond butter. Still good, but not good for this recipe.

Since this recipe is a bit different I thought I would share some pictures of the process.  Let me know if you like this new feature.

I’ve talked about my struggles to get healthier a lot recently.  However, I’ve only been focusing on eating better.  I’ve been lazy, I’ll admit it!  But when I look in the mirror and see what having two kids and poor eating habits has done to my body, I know I need to add in some exercise in to my routine.

I also have bad asthma, so I’ve been using that as an excuse not to do any physical activity.  I need to start small!  I usually get elaborate ideas and then almost kill myself trying to achieve the new goals I set for myself.    Small, realistic goals will hopefully lead to success.

I’ve heard that it takes 30 days of doing something to create a new habit.  I don’t know if it’s true or not, but I think it’s worth a shot.  The MapMyFITNESS Quaker Challenge is a simple challenge and the first step to making lasting healthy choices.  Quaker is asking us to add just 15 fitness activities into our routine over the next 30 days.  That’s only 15 workouts in 30 days!!!  SUPER EASY!

There will be no hard core workouts here, I can’t do that.  What I can do is add in a nightly walk after supper with my kids and husband!  Not only will this get me up and moving, it will get the kids active too and burn off that last little bit of energy before bed!  My husband will also be able to hold me accountable…trust me, he is going to love that!

The MapMyFITNESS Quaker Challenge is such an easy challenge.  I think it will be a great first start to adding an exercise routine back into my life.   Whatever I end up doing, I know that I am making better choices for my body.

Joining the Quaker Challenge is my first step towards becoming a healthier me. Now I’m curious to know, what motivates you to stay healthy?

For your chance to win $750 complete these two steps:

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Quaker Oats Company. The opinions and text are all mine. Official Sweepstakes Rules.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: The VIP coupon, prize pack, information, and giveaway have been provided by Pillsbury through MyBlogSpark.

 So I married a soup lover!  He loves soup!  And wouldn’t ya know it…he passed his love for soup down to our kids.  My daughter is a soup connoisseur…she can tell a good soup from a bad one and is very picky about what kinds she will eat.  I find it amusing when my 7 year old orders soup for supper at a restaurant or instead of french fries.  We always get that one eyebrow up look from the waitress.

In fact, she also does this with some veggies.  If there is broccoli on the menu in any way then it better be on her plate.  She has one little friend, the 8yo son of Janice over at Celebrating Family, that they will fight for each other’s broccoli. They will both order it and then eat their own as fast as possible so that the winner can eat the rest from the other plate.  It never ends well.  Someone is upset because the other got more.  Seriously?!?!  You’d think they were fighting over the world’s finest chocolate or something.  Strange Kids!!!  Kaylynn even asked Santa for steamed broccoli with butter.  Santa forgot, so we never heard the end of it until I made some.

Do you see where this post is going?  To my broccoli cheese soup, that’s where!

Are you ready for a new look this New Year? Progresso® is excited to announce the return of their Souper You® Contest giving you the chance to win an incredible makeover! By telling Progresso why you deserve a makeover and what you love about their soup, you could have the chance to win an ultimate makeover experience in Hollywood this Spring!

With 40 delicious soups with 100 calories or less per serving, Progresso Soup has a variety of offerings that help you beat diet boredom and satisfy your taste cravings, while helping you stick to your weight management calorie goals. Progresso soups are packed with hearty ingredients like pasta, beans, rice, meat and vegetables that suit your taste buds and make you feel good about including it in your meal choices.

This year, the Souper You® Contest will provide three lucky winners with an ultimate makeover experience in Hollywood; this includes a trip for 2 to Los Angeles, California where the winner will receive a head-to-toe makeover including hair and makeup, guided shopping spree with a $1,000 fashion retailer gift card, $1,000 spending money and 2 tickets to this season´s live finale of NBC´s The Biggest Loser.  Progresso is asking fans to visit www.SouperYou.com and submit their photo with a brief essay about why they love Progresso soups and why they deserve a makeover, by no later than February 22nd.

Fans can check back on March 12th for the announcement of the top ten finalists, and to vote for their favorite finalist until March 25th.
In addition, you can download a printable coupon for $1.25 off the purchase of four (4) cans of Progresso Soup today, and feel free to share with your blog readers so they can take advantage of the savings as well.  Also, tune into The Biggest Loser on NBC Tuesdays at 8/7c.

Click here to watch this amazing video of the 2011 winner experience.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: The Progresso® Souper You® prize pack, information, coupon, and giveaway have been provided by Progresso through MyBlogSpark.