What's For Dinner? March Week 1

Wow! Can you believe it's March?

The kids and I got out for our first walk of the year yesterday evening while our soup was warming up to a simmer on the stove top (Craig was home). It was so nice out with the sun shining and 45 degree temps. A perfect chance to get some fresh air before bedtime. Will and Brutus rode in the wagon while Sophie rode in the carrier. It was reminiscent of our daily walks while I was on maternity leave and needing to get out of the house just to clear my head and have quiet children for 45 minutes or so. :) On those summer, morning walks I used to daydream about taking a vacation with just my husband and getting away from my sleep-deprived, colick/tantrum-filled life. Wow - look how far we've come! Now, instead of sleeping, Sophie smiles up at me from the carrier and looks all around with curiosity. And instead of sitting quietly or rambling about things that don't make sense, Will now carries on fairly intelligent conversations with me about what we see and actually speaks in complete thoughts. :) I'm looking forward to more of our walks and bike rides as spring nears.

Onto food...

March is National Nutrition Month! In honor of that, I'd like to incorporate some new/unusual veggies and fruits that we don't eat often (or ever) and expand our taste buds! I'm thinking of finding a new asparagus recipe, trying star fruit, making something with spinach, and even asking Craig and Will to give me a hand in menu planning by coming up with a dinner one night that's healthy and that they can prepare together. Ha! We'll see if that ever happens. I also have a great quinoa salad recipe to share that's loaded with whole grains, protein and veggies.

First, here's a pic of my black bean and tomato soup with the cilantro-lime cream before it was swirled in. I loved it. Craig and Will... not so much. What's new? With the cumin and cilantro, it had a very nice Mexican kick. I'll definitely make it again to pack for my lunches.
Oh, and another side note: my mom suggested a yummy topping for that broccoli soup I made a couple weeks ago (I gave her a portion to try). Wonton ginger/garlic strips! They come in bags as "salad toppers" kind of like those sliced almonds and such. She said it was a wonderful accompaniment. I've got to try that!

I already wrote a whole post on Sophie's new finger foods for the week. She's having a little difficulty with some of them, not because she doesn't like them, but because she's still figuring out how to use her tongue to maneuver them in her mouth without gagging. Poor Amanda and Taylor had to listen to her gagging noises (she wasn't choking at all) when a piece of steamed pear got too far back on her tongue before she was ready for it. And although she can have fruits and veggies with the peel on (as long as it's soft/cooked), she's managed a few times to mash and swallow the zucchini and summer squash pulp and then spit out the peel. Haha! That seems pretty talented to me! Her favorites are still diced avocado, banana, sweet potato and cheerios.

Here's a pic of Will trying to sneak down from his chair before I had the chance to wipe up his hands and face. Stinker.

On the menu this week:

1) We had Italian stuffed shells, salad, bread and another cookies 'n cream pie for our dinner guests on Sunday evening. I've made the stuffed shells probably 30-50 times in my life now (it's easily the most requested recipe I have - all my family and friends now make it too) and I've gotten it down to a super fast preparation. I had it made in no time.

2) Week #7 of soupapalooza (and week #2 of my Tomato Soup Challenge - haha): Panera Bread's Tomato, Cheese and Bread Soup: http://www.panerabread.com/recipes/recipe.php?category=4&id=48 We had this last night after our walk with some salad. The bread cubes really soak up the soup so it's more like a stew. I liked it and so did Craig, but we both like the week 1 tomato soup better. I have one more tomato soup recipe in mind, but I have to space them out a little or we'll get tomato'ed out. As it is, we're already having a lot of tomato stuff this week. On a side note, Will's dinner last night (what he actually ate) consisted of fruit salad, peas, yogurt and then a banana by his request. I swear my kid is going to turn into a fruit or vegetable.

Here is my beloved Le Creuset stock pot (probably my favorite piece of cookware) where all the soupapalooza magic happens - LOL:

And here's this week's tomato soup before the bread cubes were added. It made a lot so I have some to freeze.

3) And finally, we're having another "breakfast for dinner" night this week. You just gotta' have those every now and again. This time I think we'll do eggs with ham, green pepper, mushrooms and onions; waffles with strawberries and blueberries on top and maybe some bacon.

Till next week...