The breakfast meal is the most important one of the day. Scramble the eggs while your older child heats the tortilla in the microwave. Let younger children spoon the filling into the tortilla. It’s a quick, easy and tasty meal to start Mom’s day off right!

Breakfast Scramble

Ingredients

• 1 Whole Wheat Tortilla
• 1 scrambled egg
• 1/4 cup black beans, rinsed and drained, heated
• Spinach leaves
• 1 TBSP salsa, optional

Directions

Heat the tortilla in the microwave for 20 seconds on a microwave safe plate. Remove from microwave and top with scrambled egg, beans and spinach leaves. Roll and Cut in half at an angle. If desired, serve with salsa for dipping. Add a side of mom’s favorite fruit and a tall glass of juice to round it out!

Serves 1. 185 calories without salsa, fruit and juice

For lunch, serve Mom a spa quality meal with my spinach and cheese pita! This can easily be prepared by an older child with little supervision.

Spinach and Cheese Pita

Ingredients:

• 1 pita pocket
• 1 wedge laughing cow cheese (I used the sun dried tomato flavor)
• Sliced fresh tomato
• Spinach leaves

Directions:

Split the pita pocket in half. Spread half of the cheese wedge inside each pocket. Place one slice of tomato and several spinach leaves in each pocket. Place on a baking sheet and slide in the oven at 300 degrees until cheese is melted, approx 3 minutes. Finish off this meal with freshly sliced cucumbers and a tall glass of homemade lemonade.

Serves 1. 200 calories without cucumbers and lemonade

For dinner, end Mom’s day with a healthy burger and savory sweet potato fries. I’ve suggested making the burger bun-less, to keep the carbs light for the last meal of the day, but you could easily add a whole wheat bun and still keep it under 600 calories. While dad would need to cook the meat, little hands can easily tear the lettuce leaves and drizzle the dressing. Serve the meal with a glass of fresh citrus water.

Bun-less Burger

Ingredients:

• 3 large lettuce leaves
• 1 slice tomato
• 1/2 sliced avocado
• 1 TBSP light ranch dressing
• 4 oz lean ground beef, seasoned to your taste, shaped into patty

Directions:

Cook patty until desired done-ness is reached. Arrange lettuce leaves on plate, each one slightly overlapping the other. Place patty in the center of the lettuce leaves and top with tomato and avocado. Drizzle dressing over top. Serve with sweet potato fries.

Serves 1. 255 calories without whole wheat bun, with fries 399 calories

Sweet Potato Fries

Ingredients:

• 1 medium sweet potato
• 1 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
• Sea salt

Directions:

Peel sweet potato and cut into even slices. Put in large bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Toss to coat each fry with the oil. Spread on baking sheet and sprinkle with sea salt. Bake at 450 degrees for 20 minutes, turning the fries occasionally.

Serves 2. 1 serving has 144 calories, with burger 399 calories

If mom isn’t convinced that her family is a whiz in the kitchen yet, these almond crunch dessert cookies are going to convince her for sure! This dessert is easy and perfect for kids of all ages to help with! Dad or an older child can melt the chocolate, while little ones get to press in the almonds and sprinkle the cranberries and coconut.

Almond Crunch “Cookies”

Ingredients:

• 6 oz Dark Chocolate Chips
• 1/4 cup Whole Almonds
• 1 TBSP Unsweetened Coconut Flakes
• 1/4 cup Dried Cranberries

Directions:

Line a baking pan with wax paper. Melt the chocolate according to package directions. Drop 8 level spoonfuls of chocolate on paper, smoothing it slightly with the back of the spoon and top each spoonful with 3 almonds, 3 cranberries and shredded coconut. Set in refrigerator until ready to serve. Set out about 10 minutes before serving. Peel from wax paper and serve for a decadent, guilt free treat! Best stored in the refrigerator. Be sure to serve a glass of milk with these!

Makes 8. Each serving is 116 calories, without milk.

Ever want to learn to dry your own fruit? Mary shows us how! Right now, there are so many delicious fruits available and many are going on sale for super cheap! If you’re like me, you like to stock up on them when they are on sale. If you’re tired of eating them fresh or making jams and jellies, I have the perfect solution for you!

Use your oven to dry them and have them on hand for healthy snacks. When dried correctly, the fruit will keep in an air tight container for one month, or you can freeze it and it will keep for up to six months!

I started with 1 apple, 1 pineapple, 1 banana and 10 strawberries.

Ingredients:

Choose your families favorite fruits, or those that are in season. I’ve chosen strawberries, pineapple, apples and bananas.

Fresh squeezed lemon juice (to prevent browning)

Directions:

(1) Wash fruit and remove any stickers that may be on them.

(2) Set oven to 200 degrees or lowest setting.

(3) Decide whether you want the skin on or off. Peel fruits that you don’t want to eat the skin of. I will be leaving the skin on my apples, as it is high in fiber and you can’t even tell the skin is on once it’s dried!

(4) Using a mandolin slicer, or a sharp knife, cut the fruit in to thin slices. The thinner the slice, the faster it dries! For fruits like strawberries and pineapple, you may want to cut them in chunks. I set my mandolin for setting number 2.

(5)Place fruit on cookie sheet, making sure none is overlapping. If you have wire racks, you can place the racks on the cookie sheets and put fruit on top of it. This prevents you from having to turn the fruit halfway through. If you lay your fruit on the cookie sheet, be sure to turn it over frequently to allow proper drying on both sides.

(6) Squeeze lemon juice over top of fruit. It will cook off, but helps prevent fruit from getting overly brown.

(7) Drying times will vary, but here are the times for my fruit. Make sure to keep a close eye on your fruit so that you don’t over dry it!

Bananas- 1 1/2 hours

Strawberries- 1 1/2 hours

Apple Rings- 2 1/2 hours

Pineapples- 3 1/2 hours

After you’ve dried them, what can you do with them?

Serve them in place of the current “fruit” chews you purchase for your kids. Measure out a fourth of a cup in small, snack size Ziploc bags and have them in the pantry ready to go the next time you hear “Mom, I’m hungry!”

Everyone has those bags of cereal in the pantry with just a handful left. Throw all the little bits of cereal in a large Ziploc bag, add in some of your freshly dried fruit and voila, you’ve got a fairly healthy trail mix! Bonus is, you finally use up those tiny bits of cereal hanging around in the pantry.

Use the fruit in your morning cereal or on top of low fat yogurt!

Calories in 1/4 cup of each dried fruit:

Bananas-150 calories

Strawberries- 46 calories

Apple Rings- 78 calories

Pineapples- 140 calories

What fruit are you excited about trying to dry?

Who wants a screening room? I do! I’d arrange some plush theater seats and a popcorn machine!

I love this dramatic formal dining room!

The sunny, everyday dining room is spacious and could fit a much bigger table for family meals!
The hardwood floor is adorable too! I love the design. It’s classy and fun!

About the kitchen. Wow, just wow. I don’t even think I need to say much.
There is everything you could imagine here, but my favorites are the antiqued cabinets, exposed wood ceiling and granite counters!

Yep, I could have fun cooking in this kitchen!

Hope you like wine! This is one of the most elaborate wine cellars I’ve ever seen!

The master suite!

Sauna!

Magnificent office!

And then there is the equestrian facilities! How about this tack room!

Trails!

Outdoor oasis!

Perfect for entertaining with an outside bar too!

Cabana!

Amazing pool that highlights the lush landscaping!

Mature landscaping!

Resort sized pool!

I couldn’t leave out the sweet horses!

I feel like I’m on a vacation just looking at these!

Did I mention the pond?

I loved how happy the trainer was!

Offered at $3,200,000

This Covenant residence is one of those incomparable properties that generally remain in a family for generations. Main residence showcases masterful architecture and natural materials throughout. The grounds feature a pond complete w/ a rowboat & dock, and a pool/spa that blend seamlessly w/ the natural surroundings of mature landscaping, specimen trees, and rolling lawns. Equestrian facilities include a barn with stables & tack room, riding arena, pasture, wash racks, and more. Seize the opportunity!

Call Peter A. Reese at (858) 832-8835 to schedule a private showing or visit pareese.com {Ca. Real Estate Lic. #01739054}

Disclaimer: I am a licensed Real Estate Agent, Ca. License #01739568

This is a delicious and simple recipe that I never get tired of; It has been called tasty, and creamy and yummy. I simply call it pea salad. This pea salad recipe has been a staple in my household for years and is always requested at family get-togethers and holidays. We always have plenty to go around and for everyone to have some leftovers to take home. It is best served cold which makes it a great lunch on warm humid summer days. it is also perfect for summer holidays like Independence day and memorial day, or even a summer family potluck or lake outing. This recipe yields a rather large amount and it is surprisingly hearty for a cold salad.

This recipe is so darn simple it is almost wrong to call it a recipe!

You will need:

• 1 bag of frozen peas
• 1 handful of cherry tomatoes
• 1 can of kidney beans
• 1 can chickpeas
• 1 can water chestnuts.
• A bottle ranch dressing
• One bag of sharp shredded cheese

Directions:

· Drain and rinse the beans, chickpeas and water chestnuts.
· Dump the ingredients in a large bowl and mix thoroughly to get evenly distributed over everything.
· This recipe is best after marinating together for at least an hour. You will want to stir it once or twice.
· Place it in the refrigerator or cooler until served.
· Stir before serving as the ranch tends to drain to the bottom of the dish.

I hope you all enjoy this as much as my family does.

Milkshakes. They are they’re own kind of amazing. There are times when nothing meets the craving of a milkshake. Not regular ice cream or cocoa. It has to be a milkshake. Milkshakes have been around since the 1880’s. At that time however, milkshakes were an alcoholic whiskey drink that has been described as a “sturdy, healthful eggnog type of drink, with eggs and whiskey”. I definitely prefer the modern day version packed with ice cream syrups and in short, more sugar than the human body can handle!

Did you know that during his youth, former President Harry S Truman worked in an ice cream and soda shop as a teen? This is a kind of treat I think he would be proud to serve.

Nowadays we have soft-serve machines an all kinds of flavors, but this is simple and old fashioned and can be done with a blender and a few simple ingredients.

For this you will need:

• ¾ cup Vanilla Ice cream
• ½ cup of strawberries
• ¼ a cup of milk
• Whipped cream
• chocolate syrup

This recipe make one serving and here are the super easy directions:

1. Slice the strawberries and put them in the food processor.
2. Place milk ice cream in food processor.
3. Mix everything together until well blended. I use the magic bullet and it only takes about a minute or two.
4. Quickly and carefully take your glass you are planning on using and line the inside of the glass with a rim of chocolate. To do this, hold the syrup bottle still and turn the glass.
5. Pour the shake into your glass and garish with cream, syrup and fruit.

Enjoy! What’s your favorite cold drink?

From Brittany… I am really looking forwarding to getting to know all of you here. I feel so blessed and honored to be able to write about such a special experience and share it with all of you. Along with recipes I will also be writing some parenting articles. I struggled with what to write first with so many ideas in my head. I figure I would start from the very beginning with the first decision I made as a mommy. My first decision also happens to be a very personal one so I guess I will just jump right in with all of you!

Giving birth in America has recently become a hotly debated topic. When my husband and I started trying to become pregnant I started watching videos and reading up on the subject. As a family we already tried to live as natural as possible. I go through great lengths to try to keep chemicals out of our house and our food so it just made sense to me that I would want the same for my birth and my baby.

I was very fortunate that the OB office I already went to had midwives on staff and a birth center inside of the hospital. Everything was just coming together and seemed to be so perfect. My midwife was amazing and truly empowered me from the very beginning.

On August 5th I woke up early in the morning with contractions. I tried to go back to sleep but I couldn’t. I took a shower and still they kept coming on stronger. I woke up my husband and let him know. We took the dogs for a nice long walk and I had to stop every few minutes. I felt pretty confident that it was time. When we arrived at the hospital I was 4 cm and instantly admitted.

I was so happy with my decision to go with the birth center once I got there! I had a birthing tub in my room, I was allowed to eat and the hospital even provided me with a doula. If you are planning on having an all natural birth, or any kind of birth really, I would highly recommend a doula!

The hours ticked by and it took quite a while before I progressed to 6 cm which allowed me to get in the tub. Once I got into the tub time seemed to speed up but the pain also increased dramatically. There are many places where you can read that a pain free birth is possible naturally. I would hardly say my birth was pain free but it was really only the last few centimeters that were difficult. The beautiful thing about birth is it’s only the contraction that is painful and after some discomfort I was able to rest before the next one came. It was truly an amazing opportunity and life changing experience to see what my body was capable of. I knew when it was time to push, no one had to tell me it was okay or when to do it. My body knew exactly when and how to push and once I was able to push through contractions it wasn’t painful anymore. Pushing felt wonderful and made the pain stop entirely. After 21 hours, from the time I woke up to the very last push, my son was born. Since I had not had any drugs my son was able to clear his own lungs and went right onto my chest where he stayed for 2 hours. The first 2 hours of my sons life he nursed and we cuddled. It was a magically time. I am so glad I made the decision I did.

Many of my friends who have become pregnant since my son was born have told me I inspired them to try to have all natural births. Honestly, there has been no better compliment. I have never had another birth so I can only speak to the one I had but I would not trade it for the world. If you are considering a drug free birth I would recommend it! It is possible and SO rewarding!!

I also know we have a lot of mama’s on this site, any other all natural births? Anyone thinking of having one one day? If anyone has any questions I would be more then happy to answer any and all questions!

These fall into a special category of desserts that are not cookies, but they are not cake either. Can’t call them brownies. Bars are slightly accurate, but still not right. These are hard to describe. Sometimes you make something and it tastes so good that there are no words to describe it. Doesn’t happen often, but when it does all you can do is keep eating. It’s nice to also share with your friends and family, but I totally understand if you keep these all for yourself. I named them “There are no words, cookie brownies” because I was too busy eating them to really think of a good name. I should have stopped and given them the respect they deserve and a proper name, but I had melted chocolate all over my hands. Sorry.

I hate calling what I make a recipe. I really feel like it’s more a throw this on this to make this kinda thing, but if I had to give out a recipe for these I’d say this:

Ingredients:

• Your favorite brownie mix. Homemade or not. {enough to cover the bottom of the pan}
• Your favorite chocolate chip cookie dough. {enough to cover 1/2 the pan, it will spread when cooked}
• 1/2 bag of dark chocolate chips.
• 1/2 bag of white chocolate chips.
• 1/2 bag of butterscotch chips.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Prepare brownie mix and pour into your pan. Bake for 10 min.
3. Quickly and carefully sprinkle all of the chips over the brownies.
4. Break apart the cookie dough and drop it all over the chips.
5. Place back in the oven for another 20-30 min. checking after 10 min. If the cookie dough starts to look too brown cover with foil and keep cooking till the brownies are done.

When you take them out of the oven the middle will look slightly uncooked. That’s just the melted chocolate layer and it is magical! Seriously the best part. It’s almost like a lava cake layer but even better. Once it has cooled it is ready to serve. I caution you to not make  the pieces too big, they are so rich I don’t want you to slip into a sugar coma.

The first trick is to use extra sharp cheddar cheese. That way you can use less cheese but still get a whole lot of flavor.

Ingredients:

• flour tortillas
• tomato
• kidney beans
• garlic, I use the frozen pureed cubes but you can use any form.
• lettuce
• extra sharp cheddar cheese

There are only a couple steps. Making the beans, the tortilla “pizza” shells and assembling them.

1. The beans are really easy to make. Spray a frying pan with non stick spray and empty a can of kidney beans liquid and all {do not drain them} into the pan and add the garlic. Bring it to a boil. Let it cook for about 5 min watching it carefully so that it doesn’t boil over. Stir often. As soon as the beans start to split their shell start mashing them. Add a drizzle of olive oil. Turn down the heat and let it cook for 15 or so minutes, until the liquid is all gone.
2. The tortillas. This is a great substitute for the fried tortilla in the original recipe. Spray the tortillas on each side and place on a baking sheet. Place in the oven at 375 till each side is slightly browned. Flip once.
3. Now take some of the beans and spread them on one of the shells. Add the top shell and then add some of the cheese. Put that back in the oven to melt. After you have the yummy cheese top add some shredded lettuce and tomatoes and enjoy!

What are your favorite beans?

These enchiladas are spilling over with cheese. Like dripping out of them. Add some beans and rice and this is the ultimate Mexican food feast! Brittany is inviting us into her kitchen to show us how to make her famous enchiladas… There is something really fantastic about enchiladas to me. They are such a fun, tasty, simple dish. There are lots of different ways you can really make enchiladas your own special concoction. This just happens to be mine, which I affectionately call Oozy Enchiladas. This is my favorite ways of making enchiladas because they are extra creamy and tasty. The white Velveeta cheese is really what makes them so yummy. Kids of all ages will love this dish.

Ingredients:

• 3 tortillas
• ½ of package of white queso Velveeta
• 8 chicken tenderloins, thawed
• Ranch dressing
• Salsa or Pico de Gallo
• Sharp cheddar cheese
• ½ cup corn
• 1 can of condensed cream of chicken soap.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Place chicken oven safe dish and smother in ranch dressing. Bake until chicken is fully cooked. Remove the chicken and shred it, it should shred easily.
3. Cut the ½ of the Velveeta and place in small bowl, microwave and stir in 45 second increments until melted. Stir in the corn and shredded ranch chicken.
4. Spoon the corn cheese and chicken mixture onto your tortilla and roll them up carefully and quickly.
5. Place the filled tortillas in an over safe dish. I like to use disposable aluminum pans to make cleanup much easier.
6. Cook the chicken soup and remaining white queso in a bowl and stir very well.
7. Pour cheese and soup mixture over the top of rolled tortillas.
8. Top with salsa and shredded cheese
9. Bake for 45 minutes

What’s your favorite Mexican food?

Do you remember a little while back when grilled cheese was all I could think about? Melty cheese on fresh french bread. It sounded so good, but it felt like something was missing. It only took me a second to realize it was caramelized onions. Yes, caramelized onions would make it perfect… and it did!

Another one of my non-recipe recipes. Got that? It’s so easy you don’t really need a recipe to make it. Just throw this on this and add this and you are done, kinda recipe.

Ingredient list:

• butter
• 1 large onion
• french bread
• sharp cheddar cheese

I started with my homemade 30 minute french bread. Slice it into sandwich sized loafs and set it aside.

Slice a large onion into big rings. Add butter to a frying pan and melt it. Add onions to the butter and caramelize them over medium heat. Cook them till they are translucent and golden brown on the edges. They will be buttery sweet.

In the same pan you caramelized the onions, add more butter and let it melt over low heat.

Time to construct the sandwiches. Take the bread and layer the rest of the ingredients onto it. Start with a thick slice of sharp cheddar cheese and a huge pile of the caramelized onions. Squish it all between both slices of bread.

Here is the fun part. Add them each one by one into the pan and grill them each on both sides till the cheese is all melted and there is a good char on each side.

That’s it! They taste best when they are eaten right away. Enjoy!