Grits & Grillades

Just in time for Mardi Gras, I happened upon a really tasty Cajun dish in Southern Living that is super easy! I love anything in the slow cooker & this recipe has easily won me over. Cary said it was delicious & wants me to fix it again soon.

Grillades

1.5 lbs. top round steak, trimmed
3 T. all-purpose flour
2 t. Creole seasoning
2 T. olive oil
1-14.5 oz. can fire roasted diced tomatoes
1-10 oz. pkg. frozen diced onion, red & green bell pepper & celery, thawed
3 garlic cloves, minced

Flatten meat to ¼” thickness using the flat end of a meat mallet. Cut into 2” squares. Combine flour & Creole seasoning in a large zip lock bag. Add meat, seal bag & shake to coat. Heat 1 T. oil in a large skillet over med-high heat. Add half of meat & cook 2 to 3 minutes on each side or until browned. Transfer meat to a lightly greased slow cooker. Repeat procedure with remaining oil & meat. Add tomatoes & next 2 ingredients to slow cooker & stir. Cover & cook on high for 3 hours or until steak is tender.

I could not find a frozen mix that included celery, so I just chopped a few fresh stalks and added it to the onion/bell pepper mix. The recipe in the magazine called for Asiago Cheese Grits that sounded wonderful, but I already had frozen cheese grits in the freezer, so I just used them and it was great. This grits recipe is as easy as it gets and is a favorite in the family that I often bring to get togethers.

Granny’s Cheese Grits

1 c. Quaker Quick Grits
4 c. water
1 stick butter, melted
4 oz. velveeta, cubed
2 eggs, slightly beaten
Salt and/or garlic powder to taste
Paprika for color

Boil water & add grits, cooking for 5 to 7 minutes until thickened; stir as needed. Remove from heat. Add butter, cheese & eggs; combine until blended and cheese is melted. Season to taste with salt & garlic powder. Transfer to a buttered casserole dish & sprinkle with paprika. Bake at 350º for 45 to 60 minutes until browned.

Bon appetit!

Pomodoro e Peperoncino Sauce

I love to cook and now that Margo is a bit older, I have been trying to accomplish one or two healthy meals a week.

Since I love to cook so much, I decided... why not share?? So... this Sunday I made an oldie, but goodie. I had forgotten just how good it was and Cary and I enjoyed every last bite. This recipe was given to me many years ago by my sister, Laura, and what I like about it is that includes an array of vegetables in all of the color groups with the healthy fat of EVOO. Once it's all blended together, the veggies are disguised and are really what gives this such amazing flavor! It's worth trying even though it requires lots and lots of stirring. Enjoy!

Pomodoro e Peperoncino Sauce
¾ c. olive oil
2 c. roughly chopped red onion
½ c. roughly chopped celery
½ c. roughly chopped carrot
3 cloves garlic, peeled
½ t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
1-14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes
1 t. red pepper flakes (if you have kids I would reduce to 1/4 t. or none, as it can be pretty spicy)
10 fresh basil leaves

Heat oil in a medium saucepan. Add next 6 ingredients & cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, for 15 minutes. Add tomatoes & red pepper. Reduce heat to medium-low & cook for 30 minutes, stirring frequently. Add basil leaves to sauce & process in a blender or food processor until smooth. Serve over cooked pasta of your choice.

I Adore Month Four

New this month, Margo has started waking in the night occasionally. Some of the time she is rolling onto her back and if I turn her over and pat her back, she immediately goes back to sleep. I am also reading Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child and trying to better establish her naps. Currently, Margo likes to cat nap and take little 30 to 45 minutes naps in between each feed. According to the book, it is much better to have two long naps in the AM and PM, so I am working on this by trying to give her time to fall back asleep when she wakes. Fortunately, Margo is a very easy baby and I have not yet had to try crying it out (knock on wood). Usually, if I put Margo into bed drowsy and not asleep, she will soothe herself to sleep. I am also working on this and she is back to almost consistently sleeping through the night and is getting better at taking long naps.

She is eating about 30 oz. a day and taking five bottles of about 6 ounces each. I add brown rice cereal to her morning and bedtime bottle, which she loves. I am a huge lover of the Happy Bellies brand of rice cereal and think the added probiotics make it easier for her to digest. She is starting to last a little longer than three hours in between feedings, so I may have to start adjusting her schedule a bit, so that we can maintain the same bedtime.

Every night before bedtime, we have a fun ritual that I always look forward to. She likes to be undressed before I put on her jammies and I blow raspberries on her tummy and tickle her belly, feet and neck. She laughs and laughs and laughs—it is hilarious. (I've included a funny video where she couldn't decide if she wanted to laugh or cry.) After her last feed, we always read a bedtime story and she is getting increasingly interested in books, which I love. My favorite right now is It’s Time to Sleep, My Love, which has neat illustrations and is very soft and soothing. It is by one of my favorite children’s authors who also wrote On the Night You Were Born, which is beautiful and brings me to tears. I read her fun stories too during the day when she has to sit upright after her feeds. It is a great way to kill time during those 20 minutes.



This month we introduced Margo to the doorway jumper which is a hoot! She picked up on it on her first try and loves to bounce away… I swear I could probably leave her in it for an hour and she’d be content, but I don’t want to damage her legs or hips.



We also had a funny moment this month when Margo decided to poop in the bath that I was taking with her—what luck! It was so gross, but fortunately it went right down the drain without spreading all over the place. I saw her making the poop face and screamed for Cary to come get her, but it was too late—ha ha! Ahhh, the adventures of parenthood! What joy it brings to our lives… unlike anything I could ever imagine. We are incredibly blessed!