table thyme

TUSCAN TUESDAY

Sporteemom — Tue, 07 Oct 2014 20:41:02 +0000

Frozen cheese pizza, add pepperoni to one for the kids, add pancetta, stir fried shimeiji mushrooms (use soy sauce or something salty) and maybe add a bit of Quattro formaggio cheese. Bake as directed. Make a simple salad( lettuce, tomatoes, avacado, cucumber, choice dressing). Kids will eat all those veggies but not as a salad…ugh. Bogle vineyards Phantom wine. I will have some pizza and wine when I get home around 7:30

Dinner tonight…honey!

Sporteemom — Thu, 02 Oct 2014 18:47:34 +0000

Crockpot chicken thighs: La Victoria Enchilada sauce (chile verde), corn tortillas, shredded sharp and mozzarella cheese, sour cream, guac, pick de gallo & Tapatio! Beer & lime.

What SHE HAD…Pastrami sandwich, yogurt & sparkling water

Sporteemom — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 20:17:42 +0000

…on a napkin…cuz I might have to take this one on the road.

What SHE HAD…Taco Bell Baby!

Sporteemom — Wed, 24 Sep 2014 20:42:27 +0000

On the go lunch. 7 layer burrito & H2O. It was delicious. Not so nutritious, but I could have gotten the burrito supreme…just sayin’.

Coffee Hour

Sporteemom — Wed, 17 Sep 2014 18:19:37 +0000

Temple Coffee Roasters. Sportin’ the Cassio Werneck Brazilian Ju Jitzu cap. Don’t tell my husband. Studying Chemistry.

Shopping List: $150 or less

Sporteemom — Tue, 16 Sep 2014 13:32:57 +0000

I only shopped at Trader Joes this week. I have a busy week…no time to shop more than one store. Solution, I opted to pull meat and other stuff from the freezer or cupboards. We typically spend about $200-$300 a week on groceries (with Costco included). This week we spent $103. HOWEVER…we are hitting the Sactown eat scene on Friday night and GOING DANCING (I know!!!) Saturday night. 80’s band night…our friend E.P. Is in a band…8 TRACK MASSACRE, playing Saturday night @ Power House Pub in Folsom, 9pm if you want to shake your hair out! I think we will blow that $100 savings up this weekend.

Coffee Hour

Sporteemom — Mon, 15 Sep 2014 20:46:33 +0000

Bowl of Soul @ Tupelo Coffee & Roasting. Calm, relaxed and studying away…Studying for Chemistry test. First college test in 20 years! Go moms!!An Ais required.

Meal Planning: The Mediterranean Way

Sporteemom — Sun, 14 Sep 2014 12:40:17 +0000

Here is the promised meal plan. Ok, it is Sunday morning, not Saturday. We had a crazy full Saturday…so I apologize if you were waiting for the meal plan Saturday. Sunday shopping is better anyway. Ha. All recipes unless otherwise noted are from The New Mediterranean Diet Cookbook by Nancy Harmon Jenkins

As a family we are making an eating habit switch. We are going to enjoy simple, well prepared food. Less meat, more veggies, more olive oil (good olive oil). Fruit and cheese for dessert, maybe a few Trader Joe’s dark chocolate coverd sea salt almonds. Wine & water with most evening meals. Sit down meals…savoring the art of food and delighting in family. DAMIT! I took the time to make this dish!! Sit down (young one) and enjoy it! At least try it. I know it’s an artichoke! But it is braised in olive oil, lemon juice and thyme…it is GOOD. I want my family to cherish each morsel. Scarfing food…? Or complaining about food…? Oh…he’ll no! Eat it!! And …(softening my tone)…enjoy.

In our household mom plans, shops and cooks most weekday meals. Dad cooks or re-heats two meals during the week. Dinner is 7pm. We cook together on most Saturdays and Sunday is Supper. Earlier dinner (around 5pm), either something like a roasted chicken, left overs or soup that has been cooking all afternoon…buffet style. Easy for Sunday Football or a lazy sabbath practice.

Mediterranean (meatless) Monday:Braised Artichokes & Potato p. 291, Feta Salad with tomato, cucumber and bell pepper p. 61 (the tomatoes came from our neighbors garden!), wine & water, fruit plate (plums, grapes, strawberries). kids ate mostly fruit & tomatoes for dinner…oh well, their loss.the artichoke & potato dish was amazing!

Tuscan Tuesday:Mita’s Tuscan Sugo (ground meat tomato sauce over capallini) p. 201 (due to prepping constraints, we opted for Classico bottled spaghetti sauce combined with sautéed onion, diced summer squash and ground beef). lemon & garlic dressed tossed greens p. 262, wine & water…Costco crusty bread with the pasta for scooping up sauce. Note: make sauce in the afternoon, re-heat-if kids have extra curriculars…we have baseball practice til 6:30 and I have class until 7pm). This is a Dadda is the chef night. And he is quite the culinary genius. This was our kid’s favorite meal of the week. Sauce would be good on any size noodle: spaghetti, bows, spirals…

Wet & Wild Wednesday:the plan was Grilled Haki Loin p. 355, but I needed to use defrosted pork tenderloin chops. We threw some rosemary, olive oil and salt and pepper on them bad boys and grilled them up. Also had sizzling cabbage with garlic p. 301, green beans with olive oil and tomatoes p. 322, wine & water and crusty bread. (I actually believed our kids would enjoy this meal…sorta…not really. L liked the cabbage as expected. The bread was good, all kids love bread, it seems. )

Thrill of the Grill Thursday:Lebanese garlic-marinated Grilled chicken on the grill (pre-cooked, because of baseball practice and momma has class til 10:30pm), simple salad, steamed broccoli rabe with garlic and chili pepper, water (wine if hubby wants to drink alone). Daddy took the kids to Carls Junior for dinner instead of cooking. It was a long day.

Farm Fresh Friday: We used the chicken we were supposed to have Thursday. K made grilled chicken sandwiched on Bella Bru Baking Company Italian Soft rolls. The bread was toasted under the broiler smeared with aioli, topped with chopped/marinaded/grilled chicken, and cheese to taste. I had fresh mozzarella, K & D had medium cheddar. I made a simple salad (the adults both ended up putting part of the salad on the sandwich!) L had just the toast and chicken on the side, with fruit. He does’t do sandwiches yet, but is good to eat all the ingredients separately…weird kid.

Saturday oh Saturday!:We had two couples over for an adult sit down dinner! Started with Wine & olives. (A good way to keep entertaining costs down is to ask guests to bring a bottle of wine, suggest a varietal that pairs with what you are making. ). First course: soup. Keith’s tomato bisque, followed by Main course: Shrimp & Sausage and Chicken thigh Paella. Salad course: simple salad dressed with olive oil, lemon, herbs, salt & pepper. Topped with yellow pear tomatoes and a sprinkle of feta. Pepper to taste. Cheese course: Blue cheese drizzled with honey surrounded by fresh fruit and rice crackers. Dessert: Bite offerings all from Trader Joe’s- dark chocolate covered sea salt almonds, butterscotch balls, chocolate covered dried fruit, chocolate wafers, chocolate hazelnut cookies. Offer espresso & water. This was a very simple, easy night of entertaining. This was a lovely night, enjoyed the company, the wine & food. Mostly the company.

Sunday Supper:Leftover soup and crusty bread. Simple salad. Beer & Water

Coming up next week: lunch & breakfast planning! Shopping lists coming soon.

Coffee Hour

Sporteemom — Thu, 11 Sep 2014 18:22:52 +0000

Post workout coffee hour/power study hour at Estelle’s Patisserie. This place is dreamy! From the matted slate blue walls the the farm house center piece table and the gentle jazz the ambiance is just my style. The pastry and fresh baked bread selection is amazing. They serve Temple Coffee and the macarons boast seasonal flavors…I should start liking those little cookies. I chose to go with an almond croissant and a small cup of coffee. Flakey goodness, balanced almond flavor, the almond paste didn’t over power the simplicity of the pastry. Great for dunking in the flavorful temple roast.

What’s for Lunch…busy lady?

Sporteemom — Wed, 10 Sep 2014 22:25:05 +0000

This is: An apple, olive oil tortilla wrap with mixed greens, sliced tomato from neighbors garden, a few slices of fresh mozzarella and a swish of EVOO . LA CROIX sparkling grapefruit water.