Posted in Random, Randomness

Some of my eats this week (Week of March 6, 2023)

I know some of the food looks similar. It’s because I ate that meal or components of the meal several times during the week.

Highlights:

  1. Pork carnita salad – So good.
  2. Inside of egg sandwich from a local coffee shop – I’ve messed this sandwich. It was the first time in 2 years I’ve had it.
  3. Pina Colada overnight oats – YUM!
  4. Healthy fish and chips – So good. I need to work on the coleslaw though. It didn’t stay as fresh as I thought it would when I tried to eat the remainder a few days later.
  5. The Brussel sprouts salad – I’m making it for this week.
  6. Cherry cashew trail mix
Posted in menu plan monday, Menu planning

Mom, What’s For Dinner? Week of May 8, 2022

My menu this week contains food I already have in the house. I don’t want to have to go shopping after my weekend away. A big grocery shopping trip was done last week. I may have to get some produce and/or bread/ milk. Other than that, we’ll be good to go.

I have not included any lunches in my menu. I don’t know what I’m going to eat just yet.

Sunday – My birthday! Whoop, whoop!

  • Breakfast – Granola bar with cheese
  • Lunch – Out to eat
  • Dinner – On the road

Monday

  • Breakfast – Cottage cheese with jam
  • Lunch –
  • Dinner – Steak, rice, and roasted veggies (I got a bag of frozen roasted veggies during my grocery shopping.)

Tuesday

  • Breakfast – Cottage cheese with jam
  • Lunch –
  • Dinner – Bacon and cheddar hamburger patties (freezer), Garlic Parmesan fries, and mixed veggies

Wednesday

  • Breakfast – Cottage cheese with jam
  • Lunch –
  • Dinner – Out to eat – It’s both food truck and farmer’s market Wednesday in my town.

Thursday

  • Breakfast – cottage cheese with jam
  • Lunch –
  • Dinner – Hot dogs, chips, and raw veggies

Friday

  • Breakfast – either cottage cheese with jam OR granola bar with cheese
  • Lunch –
  • Dinner – either of the frozen gluten-free pasta kits or out to eat – My town is doing a Friday the 13th party.

Saturday

  • Breakfast – granola bar with cheese
  • Lunch –
  • Dinner – chili or the gluten-free pasta kit

Have a wonderful week,
Traci

Posted in menu plan monday, Menu planning

Mom, What’s For Dinner? Week of May 1, 2022

Sunday

  • Breakfast – Ham and cheese roll from the local gluten-free bakery
  • Lunch – Chicken and corn chowder (left-over from last night)
  • Dinner – Meatloaf with twice baked potatoes from Sam’s Club, corn

Monday

Tuesday

  • Breakfast – Yogurt parfait
  • Lunch – Hummus plate – I have honey cheddar cheese, gluten-free crackers or pretzels, Kalamata olives, and cucumbers to go with the hummus
  • Dinner – Tacos, chips, and queso

Wednesday

  • Breakfast – Yogurt parfait
  • Lunch – Hummus plate
  • Dinner – Spaghetti with sausage, roasted broccoli (Ronzoni is the best gluten-free spaghetti in my opinion. I can get my gluten-eating family to eat it.)

Thursday

  • Breakfast – either cottage cheese with jam OR granola bar with cheese
  • Lunch – Left-overs
  • Dinner – Soy sauce pork chops, smashed potatoes, mixed veggies (The soy sauce is gluten-free.)

Friday

  • Breakfast – either cottage cheese with jam OR granola bar with cheese
  • Lunch – Left-overs or a salami and cheese wrap
  • Dinner – Dinner on the road – I have a black bean salad, peanut butter plate, and other snacky foods. It’s hard not knowing what options will be available to me when I travel. I am gluten-free, so I have to pack food with me.

Saturday

  • Breakfast – granola bar with cheese
  • Lunch – Out to eat with a high school classmate
  • Dinner – Out to eat – I will be packing my pho as a backup meal. I also have meat sticks already in my bag to eat if I also need something else.

Have a wonderful week,
Traci

Posted in dinner, Gluten Free, ground beef, Ingredients, Mexican, Recipes, Vegetarian

Taco Bake (Gluten-Free)

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Youngest and I love eating tacos. This recipe is a combination of tacos and nachos in a casserole. YUM!

You can use up those crushed tortilla chips in your cupboard/pantry for this recipe.

What you need for the recipe:
  • Ground beef
  • Onion
  • Salsa
  • Taco seasoning
  • Tortilla chips
  • Shredded cheese – Mexican blend or cheddar – You can certainly shred your own.
  • Your favorite toppings: jalepenos, cheese, cilantro, sour cream, salsa, lettuce, and tomato
Variations:

Vegetarian option: Instead of ground beef, you can either use meatless ground beef crumbles or black/ pinto beans.

In step 4: You can also add cilantro lime rice or black beans as a layer.

Recipe

Click on the photo to go to a printable recipe card.

Notes:

  • You use half of the taco seasoning in the 2 steps.
  • The layers for the taco bake are ground beef mixture, cheese, and then tortilla chips. In that order
  • It says you can feed 6. Youngest and I only got 4 servings out of the meal.
Posted in air fryer, bacon, Gluten Free, Meal prep, Recipes

Air Fryer Bacon (Gluten-free and easy)

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My mother-in-law got each family a Ninja Air Fryer for Christmas. Oh, my goodness is that appliance a dream. Oldest and I have put it through the paces in the last week. He has made French toast, French fries, and hamburgers in the fryer. I’ve made some sheet pan meals, bacon, and toast in it.

A goal of mine was to make perfect bacon in the air fryer. If you have an oven that has a convection setting, you can certainly use that feature.

You can certainly make a big batch of bacon as part of your meal prepping for the week.

What you need:
  • Pork Bacon – I’ve not attempted to use turkey bacon for this recipe.
  • Air Fryer
What you can use the bacon for:
  • BLTs
  • Sandwiches – Youngest and Hubby both have used the bacon for one of the meats on their sandwiches.
  • Just eat it for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snack.
  • Salads – BLT salad or Cobb salad

Recipe (Click on the photo for a printable version of the recipe card.)

Posted in menu plan monday, Menu planning

Mom, What’s For Dinner? | Week of December 6, 2021

The last few weeks have been crazy. Thanksgiving week was spent visiting Columbus and Cincinnati, so we didn’t eat many dinners at the house. We also ate at our favorite spots. Last week, we were both feeling poor. I didn’t cook dinner at home because I was just trying to survive.

This week we are back to eating at home.

Monday

Smoky Tomato Soup (Budget Bytes)

Grilled cheese sandwiches

Tuesday

Chicken stew (Budget Bytes)

Wednesday

Million Dollar Chicken (Easy Family Recipes)

Pan Roasted Green beans

Ranch Smashed Potatoes

Thursday

Left-overs or you are on your own

Friday

Salsa chicken

Sauteed Peppers and onions

Mexican Rice

Breakfasts

Smoothies

Lunch / Snacks

Roasted Cauliflower Salad

Sugar snap peas with hummus

Kalamata Olives

Yogurt with blueberries

I also have chocolate-drizzled popcorn at work that I can eat as a snack.

I hope these give you an idea of what to eat this week.

Happy eating,
Traci

Posted in Chicken, dairy free, dinner, Gluten Free, Lunch, Recipes

Chicken Wings in the Air Fryer (GF, DF, W30)

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I love chicken wings. If you were to ask me what my comfort food is currently, I would tell you chicken wings without a doubt. Getting them at a restaurant is often expensive, so it’s more economical to make them at home coated with your favorite seasoning and covered with your favorite barbecue sauce.

My favorite seasoning is from a local shop. Rosebuds is located at the 2nd Street Market, a local farmer’s market/ artisan shop. My seasoning is the Campfire Rub which reminds me of cooking over an actual campfire. Yum!

I just get a bottle of honey barbecue sauce from Aldi. Youngest and I just like a basic barbecue sauce. I also like a Carolina type of barbecue sauce.

I’m not good at explaining how to cut up the chicken wings. I know I’m not the best at it. So I did what I do best, I googled how to cut up the chicken wings properly. Click here for the directions and then return to my blog for the recipe.


What to Serve with the chicken wings

Salad (greens, veggie or fruit, topping) with a dressing

Cooked frozen or canned veggies

Chips, French fries, or Tater Tots – Our favorite is the seasoned Tater Tots from Alexa foods.

Celery or carrots with ranch or bleu cheese – Classic choice

Applesauce

Macaroni and cheese


Similiar Recipes

BBQ ribs

Apricot BBQ wings

Ranch chicken legs


Chicken Wings

Stars of the recipe

  • 1 – 1 lb. chicken wings split
  • 1 Tbsp. olive oil
  • 1 tsp. garlic powder
  • 1 tsp. your favorite spice

Directions

  1. Preheat your Air Fryer to 425 degrees.
  2. Combine the split chicken wings, olive oil, and spices. In a sealed container or gallon sized bag.
  3. Shake to distribute the spices and olive oil onto the chicken wings.
  4. Put into the Air Fryer in a single layer.
  5. Cook for 15 minutes or until the internal temperature is 165 degrees.
  6. Enjoy with your favorite barbecue sauce.

Notes:

Here is the link to how to split your chicken wings.

Posted in Gluten Free, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian

Roasted Sweet Potatoes Tacos (V, GF)

I’ve began to get Misfit Market veggies and fruits during the Quarantine. It was easier to make sure I had fresh veggies and fruit. This past week I received about 6 sweet potatoes, so I decided to make a roasted sweet potato taco for lunch.

If you want to make this Gluten-Free, you can use corn tortillas instead of flour tortillas. It’s your choice which type of tortilla you want to use for your taco. This recipe is easily vegan if you don’t use any cheese or sour cream on the taco. Instead use avocado for the creaminess of cheese or make cashew sour cream to put on the taco.

This recipe is easily adaptable for what you like.

What you need to make the recipe:

  • sweet potatoes
  • avocado or extra virgin olive oil
  • taco seasoning – Homemade or storebought
  • tortillas – corn or flour
  • refried beans – The one from Trader Joes is vegan.
  • Optional toppings: lime, sour cream, avocado, cheese (Cotija or Feta), cilantro, salsa

When I made mine, I topped it with lime, Feta cheese, salsa, and cilantro.

Stars of the recipe:

  • 2 pounds of sweet potato, cubed into 1 to 1.5-inch sized pieces (peeled or unpeeled)
  • 2 tsp. taco seasoning – Homemade or storebought
  • 1 Tbsp. avocado oil or extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 c. refried beans warmed
  • tortillas
  • toppings

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
  2. Cube the sweet potato. Place the sweet potato into a large bowl and drizzle the oil on the sweet potato cubes.
  3. Sprinkle the taco seasoning over the sweet potatoes. Stir until all the pieces are coated with the seasoning.
  4. Place on a lined cookie sheet in a single layer.
  5. Roast for 25 to 35 minutes.
  6. Warm up the beans in the microwave or on the stove. Spread on the tortilla.
  7. Top with sweet potato and your favorite toppings.
  8. Enjoy!

Other taco recipes:

Printable Recipe

Stay kind!

Have a magical day,
Traci

Posted in breakfast, Gluten Free, Recipes, Vegetarian

Italian Veggie Frittata (GF, V)

This could also be called “Clean Out My Fridge Frittata.”  We had a potluck breakfast at church on Easter morning.  I woke up that morning trying to decide what I wanted to bring to church.  Nothing like waiting until the last moment.

I thought about how I had spinach in the fridge.  It was at that moment I decided to make a frittata.  The rest of the ingredients were in my fridge or pantry so it was easy to put together.

You ca certainly add more ingredients to the fritatta instead of just spinach, mushroom, and onion.  It would be delicious with cubed zucchini (add with the rest of the veggies), cubed bell peppers (add with the rest of the  veggies), and olives (add with the Feta cheese).

Italian Veggie Frittata 3

Italian Veggie Frittata

  • Servings: 8
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

Ingredients

  • 1 Tbsp. Extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/4 to 1/2 c. cubed mushrooms
  • 1/2 large onion or 1 small onion, cubed
  • 2 c. spinach
  • 8 large eggs
  • 1/4 c. milk (dairy or nondairy)
  • 1 Tbsp. Italian seasoning
  • 1/4 c. Feta cheese
  • 1/4 c. Parmesan cheese
  • fresh parsley, to top

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Heat oil in a skillet on medium heat.
  3. Add the veggies.  Cook for 5 minutes or until the veggies are softened and the spinach is cooked down.
  4. While the veggies are cooking, combine the eggs, Italian seasoning, and milk in a medium bowl.
  5. Pour the milk mixture over the cooked veggies.  Sprinkle with Feta cheese.
  6. Allow to cook for 5 minutes or until the edges are cooked.  Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and parsley.
  7. Place in preheated oven.  Cook for 10 minutes or until the center is cooked.
  8. Allow to cool.

Happy eating,
Traci

Italian Veggie Frittata 2
My Easter potluck breakfast plate