Our future children might be weird

So I am not gonna deny it, I have some odd quirks. I like to tap my nose when I am acknowledging myself or I am thinking. I name random objects that catch my eye and every animal I see at the park. For some reason I have to have a pillow in my lap the majority of the time I am sitting. I also randomly skip or dance when we are walking around.

A look into my future

It's one reason why I love my husband, he may not always get my quirks but he at least goes with it and encourages me. He even has his own quirks which makes me fall in love with him all over again when he does them. Even little Ollie has his own quirks (he likes to lick the inside of our noses). And as a couple we have developed a few weird quirks of our own. It's what makes us unique. My little thinks it's weird we lick each other and I don't even remember where it all started. We make mustache faces at random times and places because of something new we discovered together. But it makes us laugh and it's a little thing that defines our relationship. It's the little things that brings you closer together as a couple.

And even though we do these things and people might think we are weird or off, there are things that you do to that makes you unique. There was a episode of "Sex and the City" were Charlotte is going through a separation and the girls talk about the little odd things that they used to do when they were single ladies. Carrie liked to put jelly on her saltines and stack them on top of one another in her kitchen and stand there and eat them one by one. Why must we only be able to do our "quirks" when we are single and alone? I am still adjusting to married life and there are things that I can't bring to mind that I don't do as often, but as I adjust I do them more and we develop our own.

But I was just thinking last night as my loving husband began to attack me by licking me, "our children might be weird and think this is normal." I tell Hubby all the time when ever we have children I might be visiting the school often because little Johnny might think it is normal to "lick" a girl on the cheek that he likes. Or little "Jane" is going to think it is okay to bite boys on the arm when she is feeling playful. (I do promise to teach our children that this is not normal and if my future children do anything like this to your future children, I apologize in advance) But either way, I would not want to stop/trade/change this at all. For now I love our little family: My licking loving husband, my booger licking dog, and my random naming self. We are one happy little family! Always love and appreciate those you love! Live, Laugh, Love!

Quick Easy Green Bean Fries

So I have been on this healthy kick lately, trying to watch my portions and what not. Hubby and I already eat pretty healthy but I have been focusing on working out and eating portions. So I thought of this dish my mom makes every now and it's delicious! I call it green bean fries. It's quick and they come out crisp like a french fry. I make these for little ones I watch every now and then and for parties, and everyone eats them up!

So it is simple. Go to your store and get some fresh stem green beans. About one handful of green beans is enough for one serving for one person. After you wash them go ahead and snap the ends off. Just the tips. Why you may ask, I have no clue, I always did this with my mom and I have always done it since. After you have done this go set your oven to broil, if possible do low broil.

Next take some olive oil and drizzle and spread on a cookie sheet. Then spread out your green beans on this pan and lightly drizzle olive oil over the green beans. Also sprinkle with salt, pepper, and maybe some garlic powder if you wish (I always do!)

With your hands mix up the green beans with the oil and spices that you picked. Once it is all mixed up place it closest to the flame. NOTE: this dish will cook very quickly, so don't just put it in and walk away. This dish should not take more than 12 minutes to cook, and I have had it done in 8 minutes.

The green beans all mixed up

Your green beans should be done in 8-10 minutes. They should be kind of crisp to the bite, just be careful because you do not want it to burn. Let it cool for a couple of minutes and you have your self a great healthy side dish. If you want to do burgers but don't want to temp yourself with potatoes, this is a great option! Enjoy and Live, Laugh, Love!!

Gamberetti Pasta Luce, or a Light Shrimp Pasta

So since Hubby came back last weekend, I decided I wanted to make him a nice home cooked meal, something a little fancy but nothing to difficult. He has also had nothing but restaurant food for three weeks so I figured, something lighter would be better.

This is so light, refreshing, and pretty healthy if you discount the pasta. But again everything in moderation!

Gamberetti Pasta Luce
- about 1 lb. of Shrimp ( we didn't have a pound so I got some imitation crab to subsitute, trust me the shrimp is better, and the crab did a bad job trying to be a crab let alone a shrimp.)

- capellini pasta
-Grape tomatoes
-1 lemon
- garlic
-spinach
-Fresh herbs,such as basil, rosemary or thyme
- Red Pepper flakes

Ok first step, get your pasta started. Set it on low and then as that is going prep your seafood. Layout all your shrimp or mixture that you deviate from and sprinkle the Red Pepper, zest half a lemon over it (safe the other half for later), some salt and pepper. Now rule of thumb with red pepper, always respect the great power of the red pepper flakes. Don't get me wrong, I love spicy food! I am pretty sure my tongue and stomach are going to start retaliating when I hit Thirty, but hopefully my Sicilian lineage with save me! But back to the Pepper Flakes, even though I love spicy food, in this dish, too much can ruin the simple taste. This dish is all about simplicity and everything melds so well.

 

Next step is to to satuee some garlic for about thirty seconds, or as Hubby said "smells garlic-tastic!". As soon as it smells wonderful then add the quartered tomatoes into the pan. Once the tomatoes are in, zest the other half of the lemon over the tomatoes. 

Next slice up or shred some fresh spinach and saute for a couple of minutes.

When the tomatoes and the spinach a close to done, place all your shrimp, or your mixture if you are a rebel like me. I like to lay all my stuff out flat and cook for about 1 minute and half on one side and the flip over. Shrimp does not take long to make. Then just mix all around.

He is such a "great" helper

 I forgot about the fresh basil so I just tore some up and threw it in there. Worked out great!

Once your stuff is done, add your pasta to the pan. Note: Reserve about 1/2 of cup of pasta water. Once your pasta is in the pan add a little olive oil and mix in with the mixture. If it is a little stiff, add little by little the pasta water, you should not need that much.

Yummmm....

Add a little fresh grated cheese over the top and enjoy!

I have more recipes up my sleeves and a craft project I am working on, so until then, Live, Laugh, Love!!

I love the Italian Flag and Food

So if you haven't read or noticed that I am Italian. I love being Italian and I love everything about my heritage. I especially love cooking it! So sometimes I subconciously catch myself sticking the colors of the Italian Flag in my meal, don't judge, you would do if your heritage was awesome to! :P

Viva Italia!

I am technically from a small town in Sicily!

So last night I wanted to whip up something quick, easy, and healthy and it's all in my repertoire! So let's get started.

Ingredients needed:
- Chicken Breast, 2-3 (more if you are making it for a huge crowd)
- Mushrooms
- Fresh Spinach!
- Grape Tomatos
- Seasonings
- Garlic
- Olive Oil

That's it, half the stuff you probably already have. Hubby and I just love fresh ingredients in our meals so I tend to go shopping often for our fresh stuff. Ok first step, slice your chicken into bite size pieces and season with all that you like. I like to stick to my holy trinity: Garlic, Basil, and Oregano. (Tip: It's so much cheaper to grow your own herbs and dry them yourselves. We need to dry soon so I will make sure to show you how, so simple!)

My sliced chicken with garlic, and awaiting everything else. Can you tell I love Garlic?

 So let your chicken saute a little bit. As it is cooking in the olive oil over medium heat, start slicing your mushrooms. Then just chunk them in. Again bite size is optimal but if you get smaller mushrooms your can just halve them and saute them that way. Again, make it your own! It's all about making it your own in cooking!

I love mushrooms, love,love, love

 Then take a hand full and a half, that's right hand full and a half. Figure it out, there is not exact measurements in my home. I like to just slice it here and there because they can get long and stringy in the pan.  Once the mushrooms are soft, throw in the spinach and saute.

Spinach is so healthy and good for you!

 Then half your grape tomatoes and saute together. Then you are done! Add Olive Oil as needed and I do recommend adding just half a cap full of lemon juice to help with the bite of the spinach, but it still tastes great with out it to!

Fin!

So when I first made this I made some risotto to go with it, yummmm. But Today I just had this and some green peas. Yummy, delicious, and healthy for you! Don't be afraid to shred some Romano or Parmesan over it. One pan, one cutting board, and one knife. Simple and quick clean up!

I am working on some baking recipes so keep an eye out soon! Until then, Live, Laugh, Love!

My Girl Next Door and her Oatmeal Cookies

So I love to make care packages for my close friends, especially when they are starting a new stage in life or they just need a little extra loving! One of my best friends, Lauren, just started Law School (YAY!) and I am so proud of her and have been her little cheerleader through this process.

Let me tell you a little about Lauren, besides that she is just fabulous! I met Lauren move in day when I went to St. Mary's University. I was out of the room when she ran into mine and asked my mother to see if she could use our internet jack to see if her computer was working. Then I walked in and met her. Even though she was not my suite mate she was on the other side of me. There she became my "Girl Next Door", hehe.

Us at one of my birthdays

Us freshman year and our First Christmas dinner

Lauren and I have gotten so close over  the years and she is one of my closest friends. Even though we are hundreds of miles apart, this girl always knows how to cheer me up and we can talk about anything. We just have to look at one another and start laughing about a memory we have shared.

All grown up but not really grown up

Through thick and thin, we are there till the end!

So with Lauren starting a new stage in her life I thought why not send her a little "care package". She loves cookies, just like me and for her birthday I had made an oatmeal cookie. She is big into running so I figured an oatmeal cookie would be good for going the distance. But you see, I have never liked oatmeal cookies. They are usually hard, thick, and just to much. It is trying to hard in the cookie world. I LOVE soft and gooey cookies. So I played around and found the perfect recipe. Here is all that you are going to need.

Supplies:
 - 1 cup of butter, softened
- 1 cup of brown sugar
- 1/2 cup of white sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 tsp of vanilla
- 3 cups of quick oats
- 1 1/2 cups of flour
- 1 teaspoon of baking soda
-1/2 teaspoon of salt
-1 cup of semi sweet chocolate (2 if your not using nuts)
-1 cup of choice of chopped nuts *optional

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. First make sure your butter is soft. How soft? If you can easily push your finger to make a dent your your sticks of butter then your perfect. Cream together the butter, brown sugar, and sugar. Once all creamed together, add the flour, baking soda, and salt. Once that is all mixed together, add the oats and chocolate and mix all together. Add the nuts now too if you so desire them in your cookies.

Now get a spoon and place messy-ball-like-shaped forms of the dough on your cookie sheets. Bake in the middle of the oven and bake for about 12 minutes. After they are done, pull them out and let them cool for 5 minutes.

Then pull of the sheet and try not to eat the entire batch. There is quality control and then there is just plain not sharing. Hubby and I tend to be culprits of the later from time to time.

Yummy

I hope you enjoy the cookies. Live, Laugh, Love!

I love me some Sausage and Peppers

So with Hubby still in California, I needed a little pick me up and I also wanted to make something that I could eat left overs for a little while. I knew it! Sausage and Bell Peppers, it is my favorite Italian Comfort meal from my childhood. I kid you not, every weekend I came home from college (which was about once a month) I begged my mom to make it for me at least once.

The great thing about this dish is it is quick and easy to make and has loads of vegetables in it, so it's pretty healthy depending on your meat to veggie ratio. Also the great thing about this dish is you can make it what you want.

Let's get started. Here is what you need to get

-2-3 Bell Peppers, colored ones are great, but the green ones do just fine
-1 medium yellow onion
-garlic, lots of garlic
- Italian Sausage, I like the raw or cased stuff(just take the meat and crumple out of the casing, but you can also used smoked. It cooks a little faster but both are great.
- A base for your mixture to go over, Rice is a great choice, we also use orzo. Some kind of small grain is great and Rice is cheap so it works great.
- Mushrooms are optional, Hubby loves mushrooms in his.
- Olive Oil

My supplies

So first step is to get your base started cooking. So start to prep your rice, I decided to use tortellini for this meal. Helpful tip, when you are boiling Tortellini or Ravioli when it floats to the top, it is almost or already ready.

My spinach Tortellini

Now put a little olive oil in your pan and let it heat up. Then dice or slice your onion. You can make it as chunky or diced as you want. My mother prefers larger chunks, Hubby likes to dice it, Me I like it right down the middle of the two extremes. Then also dice your garlic cloves and saute them together. Saute is not an art form, it is just a fancy word for grill in a sauce pan and let it brown and just keep stirring. Don't be afraid of big or fancy terms. It's going to be delicious and you won't die.

 Now here is the trick. Once your onion starts to soften then add your chopped bell pepper and mushrooms. I recommend chopping the pepper the same size of the onion. But this is your dish, make it how you want!

 Now saute this all together. You are going to start looking for the onion to caramelize(lightly browned and will sweeten up). Also a small note, it is ok to add a little bit more olive oil here and there if you noticed it is sticking to the pan. Once you notice the bell pepper softening and the onion caramelize, then you add the sausage. Now I am going to tell you a secret of mine. I love me some sausage, I might even have a secret love affair with it. It's delicious and amazing, I just feel bad for all my friends who keep kosher. I love me some pig! hehe

This is the kind of sausage you want to buy, especially on a budget. Now you can get the raw stuff in casing but then you have to take it out of the casing and its more expensive. I still use it, but only when I am looking for a certain kind. Smoked kind is also great. My mom prefers that. Take your sausage and either slice for the smoked or crumble it into chunks if you get the Italian stuff. Italian's, what can I say know their sausage ;)

Now when you sausage is done and cooked through then everything else should be done also. Don't forget to season you dish with a little rosemary, garlic powder, basil, more garlic powder, or what ever you prefer! Drain your pasta or butter up your rice and just serve the sausage and peppers over your base.

I love mine with a little Parm on top!

And there you go, it's quick, simple, and delicious and if you count your bowl, you really only dirtied three dishes. I hope you enjoy and don't forget to comment and let me know if you have questions! Live, Laugh, Love!

<3 Stephanie

Sweater Weather

So Hubby has been in California for a week and that was longer than we expected, and will still be there for another week. It stinks but that is the great part about marriage is whether you are together or apart, you are there for one another. It isn't easy, we both haven't been sleeping well and for him his stress level isn't going down since I can't be right there to help him relax. This is one reason why I have  been so remiss about posting, which I do apologize, I have had to hold down the fort and on top of that Ollie would never get out of my lap because he either missed Hubby or missed his little girlfriend at my Aunt's house. That's for another day.

The one bright side to all this is that I got to fly out for a quick trip visit to California!!! And even though it's for just a day and half, I am loving and so blessed and grateful his company was able to get me out here! I just love this cool weather. My phone informs me that is 57 degrees outside, 57!!!!! I went to 110 to 57 over night, how wonderful!!

Now I am going to admit to you, I have a small problem. I have an addiction to sweaters, coats, jackets and the like. I really need a Sweaters Anonymous group. I HAVE to limit myself to one sweater each season and that is not including gifts, or I go nuts. My girlfriends always know to ask to borrow a sweater from me because I can probably keep my whole sorority in sweaters and have one or two left over. Yup I got it bad. Hubby laughed at me when I packed 6 sweaters for my 2 day trip. I told him " I just didn't know how cold it was going to be and what sweater might be best for what sight seeing we will do" He laughed at me, I am so glad he gets me so well.

So alas I am in California and ironically listening to Cali-fornication in a coffee shop. I promise to post pictures later and next week I plan on posting a recipe of one of my all time favorite dishes! Remember to enjoy the simple things!