#52weeksofRoarke

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It took Dan and I a long time before we were able to get pregnant, but during the time we were trying we had many conversations about how we would handle having a child. Both of our work schedules had been kind of crazy since we started our careers... especially Dans... and we just never could figure out how we would juggle our work schedules with a baby. And since neither of us had close family that lived nearby we knew that our child would be in daycare during the weekdays and we would even need someone to watch him or her some evenings, weekends, and holidays with little to no notice. YIKES! Good luck finding someone able to do that. Plus, a daycare in the Indy area would have taken pretty much my entire paycheck to pay for. We knew that if we were to have a family then things would be changing drastically in our household... and they did.

So when we finally did become pregnant we quickly decided to see if we could live off one income. Every paycheck I received went directly into our savings and we totally lived off Dans income. We did this for my entire pregnancy. So, by the time I needed to make my decision on whether to continue to work or stay home with our baby we knew that we could survive off just Dans income if we changed our lifestyle a bit. Plus, we had a nice savings racked up from 10 months of not using my income at all. 

You see where this is all going right?  It wasnt a hard decision. I put in a 2 month notice at work to give my employer more than enough time to find my replacement and started planning for the hardest but most rewarding job Ill ever have. Being able to stay home (at least for a while) was the greatest gift Dan could have ever given me. Even though I have moments where I just need to get out of the house for a little while, I continue to thank my husband daily for making it possible for me to be with our son everyday and getting to watch him grow up before my eyes. It isnt a lifestyle that everyone would choose or want... and that is okay... but it is the lifestyle that we decided on and Im so glad we did. 

I am so very blessed!

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When I ran across this recipe I really didnt think it would turn out that great. It was just something that didnt look too hard and didnt take a lot of ingredients. However, it turned out so much better than I ever expected and Dan even said it was one of the best meals I have ever made! WHAT!

Chicken Broccoli Alfredo Stuffed Shells (www.sweetdashofsass.com)

Ingredients

• 1 jar (16 oz) alfredo sauce
• 2 cups canned chicken 
• 2 cups cooked broccoli, chopped
• 1 cup shredded cheddar (or mozzarella) cheese
• 1/4 cup shredding parmesan
• 21 jumbo pasta shells, cooked
• 1 1/2 - 2 cups spaghetti sauce (optional, but I love the combination of alfredo with tomato sauce)
• salt/pepper to season (if needed)

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, mix alfredo, chicken, broccoli, and cheeses.

Spoon mixture into pasta shells.

Grease 13x9 baking dish with butter or cooking spray.

Evenly spread spaghetti sauce on bottom of baking dish.

Arrange shells in baking pan.

Cover with foil and bake 35 minutes until heated thru.

Remember that the noodles need to be cooked prior to stuffing. I cooked them 1-2 minutes under what the package says... that way they will fully cook when baking in the oven!

Dan rated this meal a 4.75 out of 5 stars! He raved about it for weeks!

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These were a lovely and perfectly salty accompaniment to the sweet beef dish that was the main dish of dinner.  Everyone was as shocked as I was at how good these tomatoes were.  Even the fella dug into his, and we all know how he feels about tomatoes.  And the big meaty Chilean Cab from Cousino-Macul Antiguas Reservas that we drank while enjoying dinner was a nice contrast to the acidic and salty stuffing in the tomatoes.

 All the wonderful wines that we paired with dinner.  Full tasting notes of all the wines over at Forkful of News.

I could see making these again with more tuna and less capers to cut down the salt and make them more substantial.  For some reason Ive never been a fan of stuffed peppers but these really did it for me.  It could have had something to do with the deeply satisfying and meditative scraping out of the juicy delicate tomato centers.  Not that Im creepy and sometimes like to de-seed squishy fruits every once in a while or anything. 

I even saved all the juicy bits from the inside of my tomatoes and used them instead of diced tomatoes in a soup later on in the week, so this meal helped out in later recipes.  How can you not love a recipe that leaves you with left overs that hint at what you should cook next?

Also included in this meal:

Sundried Tomato Tapenade

Orange, Olive and Argan Oil Salad

Crockpot Beef Tagine

Red Quinoa with Roasted Vegetables

Rice Crepes and Amlou

Salty Stuffed Tomatoes

6 large tomatoes
4 red peppers

salt, to taste
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 7-ounce can tuna
2 tablespoons capers
4 tablespoons chopped black olives
1 lemon, zested
2 tablespoons, chopped parsley

Cut a small circle around the stalk of each tomato and cut out a cap in the top of each.  Using a grapefruit spoon, scoop out the seeds and flesh inside the tomato.  (Save the insides for later when you have a recipe that calls for a can of diced tomatoes.)

Roast the pepper yourself under the broiler or buy good quality pre-roasted red peppers in a jar.  If roasting them yourself, peel, de-seed and chop into strips.

Put the strips of red pepper in a large mixing bowl along with all the remaining ingredients.  Gently fold everything together.  Fill the cavities of the tomatoes with this filling.

Arrange the tomatoes on a shallow baking dish and bake in a 350 degree oven for about 20 to 30 minutes.  Check on them fairly often so that the tomatoes never get to the point where that explode or fall apart in the pan.  They are done when the filling is warmed through. 

From Claudia Rodens Arabesque. 

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Day 5 - E is for... Ellie (isnt she so sweet)

Day 6 - F is for... Fajita Rollups

Day 7 - G is for... Groomsmen

Day 8 - H is for... Hot

Day 9 - I is for... Ice Cream

Day 10 - J is for... Jump

Day 11 - K is for... Kisses

 

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So even though I have been super busy with work, I have religiously stuck with cooking at least three times a week. I even went as far to create a binder with meal plans laid out for each month, ingredients needed, and cost of each meal. I hope to revert back to it in the future to make life a little easier as a Mom.

A lot of these upcoming meals were made a while ago... but I got so far behind posting them because of all that has been going on. Im thinking for upcoming posts that I will only submit my favorite meals for you since why would you want to see that ones that didnt impress me :)

Taco Stuffed Shells (www.budgetbytes.com) $14.65

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 medium yellow onion
• 1½ lb. ground beef
• 2 cups black beans
• 2 cups pinto beans
• 1 taco seasoning packet
• 1 tsp salt
• 12 ounces jumbo shells
• 1 can enchilada sauce
• 2 cups shredded cheese
• 3-4 whole green onions

Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Cook both in a large skillet over medium heat with the olive oil until soft and transparent (about 5 minutes). 

Add the ground beef and continue to cook until browned. Mix together the taco seasoning ingredients while the beef is browning. Once the beef is fully cooked through, add the taco seasoning and stir to combine. Drain the beans and add to the skillet. Stir until combined. Taste and season with salt as needed (I used about 1 teaspoon).

Allow the beef and bean filling to sit while you cook the pasta shells. Bring a large pot to a boil, add the shells and cook just until tender. Be sure not to over cook the shells or they will be soft and difficult to fill.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Drain the shells in a colander and rinse with cold water until they are cool enough to handle. Spray the inside of a 9×13 inch casserole dish with non-stick spray. Fill the shells with the beef and bean filling and place in the casserole dish. It’s okay if they’re not aligned neatly or if they topple over and spill some filling, it will still be good.

 

 

Once all of the shells are filled and in the casserole dish, pour the prepared enchilada sauce over top and then add the shredded cheese. Cook in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes or until the cheese is melted and everything is heated through (all ingredients are already cooked, so there is no real danger of undercooking here. You just want to get it all HOT).

Slice the green onions and sprinkle over top after it comes out of the oven. Serve hot!

Dan rated this a 4.5 out of 5 stars. I liked it because there were a lot of leftovers which meant I was off the hook cooking for a few days :)

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