S&%$ my Toddler Actually Eats: Quinoa Salad

It's hot out, I'm pregnant, I'm tired, and this little bugger in my belly has flipped itself into a breech position. I was going to title this post something cute about "Treats for Toddlers" or some crap like that but I just thought I would call it like it is: S#$% my toddler will actually eat. She has been really "picky" lately....
Made this for lunch today and it was a big hit with both Little Bean and I. It was easy to make too, and made with fairly inexpensive ingredients. Truthfully there was a recipe on the back of the bag of Quinoa, but I didn't have 80% of the ingredients that it called for. I just adapted it with what I had on hand and it was amazing. About 20 minutes from start to finish, accounting for a crying toddler :)

Cristina's Quinoa Salad

INGREDIENTS (all preferably organic)
1 cup Quinoa
1/2 cup dried cherries or dried cranberries
1/3 cup sliced almonds
4-5 Tbsp lemon juice (juice of about 1 really juicy lemon or 2 not really juicy lemons)
2 Tbsp olive oil
2-3 Tbsp of honey, depending on tartness of lemons (add more if dressing is too tarte)
Zest of one lemon
1/2 Tbsp of fresh chopped Thyme or 1/2 Tsp of dried Thyme
1/4 Tsp of salt
Crumbled soft goat cheese for garnish

Cook quinoa according to package directions. I just added a cup of quinoa to 2 cups of water, let it come to a boil, then put it on low and covered it for 15 mins. This allowed me the time to get the dressing made and deal with a crying child. After 15 minutes, fluff it with a fork and let it cool slightly before combining everything.










For the dressing I just threw the lemon juice, olive oil, honey, zest, thyme and salt in small mason jar and shook away. I tend towards the "mason jar" style of making dressings instead of a whisk and bowl because I need to be able to do things while holding a child.

After the quinoa cooled down for a couple of minutes I just combined it in a bowl with the dried cherries and almonds and the dressing. Toss together and sprinkle over some crumbled soft goat cheese before serving. This was a big, big hit. Plus, quinoa is super good for you and pretty cheap. Bonus!

Budget Savers - French Toast Casserole

So I have been trying diligently to stay on budget this month..... lol....

I have to confess I am having a hard time because I must be nesting or something. I just want to stockpile diapers, wipes, toilet paper, etc.... I have about 6 weeks to go if I go the full 40, and all I can think about is how hectic everything was when Little Bean first came home... now I get to do it all over again with a toddler!

One thing that has been helpful is trying to find good recipes that are not only delicious, but easy to make, use up leftovers, and don't break the bank... not too much to ask right!? But, I have managed to find one that fits the bill! French Toast Casserole! My favorite one is from Ree Drummond of course, and I absolutely love it! (click here for the recipe). If I was a good blogger, I would have made sure to take a photo for you to see this delectable treat, but instead.... I ate it all.....

Now there are a few reasons why I love this recipe, the first being that I can easily tweak it. The original recipe calls for a loaf of sourdough bread, but of course I don't have that hanging around. What I do find is that no one in my house eats the ends of the bread, and, no one finishes off the bread when it starts to go stale. If I can catch it before the green fuzzies start to grow, I have the perfect base for this recipe. I just save up all my bread odds and ends in the freezer and then take them all out a few hours before I want to assemble this thing. 

Did I mention that you can also assemble it at night and then just pop it in the fridge overnight? Then you can just wake up and throw it in the oven, looking incredibly capable like the domestic goddess you are :)

The recipe calls for 8 eggs and 2 cups of milk, which some of you may find crazy. However, if you are like me, every so often you have a bunch of eggs in the fridge that you forgot about and your milk is about to turn. Instead of making your husband chug a huge glass of milk after downing an 8-egg omelet, you can just make this :) So much better than letting stuff go to waste!

The other thing I like is that I substituted all of the sugar in the recipe for Coconut Palm Sugar and it tasted perfect. Not too sweet. Able to double as Breakfast/Brunch or even a dessert. Hubby and Little Bean gladly ate it all up!

So that's my one big find for a budget saving recipe. Something to do with all those odds and ends of bread instead of throwing them away, and a way to use up any milk or eggs before they turn. Hopefully I can find some more and pass them along! Happy Tuesday everyone :)

Budget Tweaking

So my Hubby left at the end of last month for an annual week-long fishing trip with my brothers and my cousin. He seems to wait until I am about halfway through the third-trimester of a pregnancy and then takes off for a week... coincidence?
Needless to say, Little Bean and I missed him and were very glad to see him come home. While he was gone I went a little crazy with reading about budgeting, saving money, etc.... His first day back I made him a coffee and we went over our financial plans for the next few years..................... :)

Much like our financial plans, my grocery budget seems to be ever-evolving, which I suppose is a good thing. The more I learn, the more things get tweaked, and it always seems to be a work in progress. My July grocery budget was no different. Though I didn't do as well as I'd hoped, things were better and I came in under the $600 mark (though just barely!). In June I spent about 630$ out of pocket... waaaaayyyy off my $500 goal. July saw me spend $595 out of pocket, a long way off my goal but $35 better than I was. Here's the details of how it shaped up:

Projected Budget                                                              Actual Budget
Cleaning Products: $10                                                       Cleaning Products: $11.78
Paper/Household Products: $10                                    Paper/Household Products: $14.33
Toiletries: $10                                                                         Toiletries: $14.69
Freezer Items: $10                                                                 Freezer Items: $0
Bulk/Dry Goods: $25                                                           Bulk/Dry Goods: $47.35
Produce: $85                                                                            Produce: $111.74
Center Isles: $50                                                                    Center Isles: $114.88
Baby/Kids: $50                                                                       Baby/Kids: $99.73
Dairy: $100                                                                               Dairy: $117.06
Meat: $75                                                                                   Meat: $20.08
Pets: $100                                                                                  Pets: $69.27

Total: $525                                                                       Total: $620.91
(less 25$ GC = $500)                                                        (less 25$ GC = $595.91)

As you can see I did a little better this last month, not a lot better but a little. As long as I am moving in the direction that I want to be going I am trying not to be too hard on myself. The great thing about seeing where all my money is going is that I am able to tweak and evolve my grocery budget. In preparation for the newest little Stewart's arrival in September I have now added another $50 to the budget, obviously under the Baby/Kids category. I was going to start doing this in the fall but I decided to start now so I could start buying some diapers with my August P&G coupons. I also fiddled around with some allotments and changed how I view the items that get categorized in the Center Isles budget. I realized that anything I cannot make myself should really be categorized under Bulk/Dry goods, even if I find them in the center isles of the store. This would include things like honey and rice cereal. Things like granola or lemon juice I could easily make, so items like that would stay categorized as they were. All in all, here is my new, revised, shiny, wonderful budget:

Cleaning Products: $10
Paper/Household Products: $15
Toiletries: $10
Freezer Items: $10
Bulk/Dry Goods: $50
Produce: $85
Center Isles: $30
Baby/Kids: $100
Dairy: $115
Meat: $50
Pets: $100

Total: 575$
(less 25$ GC = $550 out of pocket)

So there it is folks, my budget for August. Wish me luck!