Beef, Broccoli and Noodles

Servings: 4

• 1 pound boneless top sirloin (we used sirloin tip) • 1 tablespoon sesame oil • 1 clove garlic, minced • 1/4 teaspoon salt • 1/8 teaspoon pepper • 1 sliced onion • 2/3 cup low fat beef broth • 1 tablespoon cornstarch • 2 tablespoon water • 1 tablespoon soy sauce • 1/4 dices ginger • 3 to 4 cups of broccoli

Heat wok or large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add oil to coat. Add garlic, onion and sirloin which has been thinly sliced. (Partially freezing makes slicing meat across grain easy.) Stir fry for 3 to 4 minutes or until just brown.
Add salt and pepper, stirring in beef broth. Mix cornstarch, water and soy sauce. Slowly stir into broth mixture and bring to a boil and cook until thickened, about one minute. Stir in ginger and broccoli. Cook over medium heat for 5 to 10 minutes until broccoli is desired tenderness.

Udon Brown Rice Noodles


Boil beef broth 
cook noodles as directed on package

drain noodles (save broth)

Lasagna Recipe

1 lb. ground turkey breast (optional)

1 1/2 tbsp. basil and parsley

1 or 2 zucchini

1 small onion

1 (32 oz.) jar spaghetti sauce (or homemade)
1 (8 oz.) pkg. lasagna noodles, uncooked
24 oz. part skim ricotta

2 cups Mozzarella cheese,shredded

Brown ground turkey in skillet with onion and zucchini; add Italian seasoning and mix well. In a bowl mix the meat and veggie mixture or veggie mixture for vegetarian lasagna with ricotta cheese.  Into 9x13 inch metal pan pour enough spaghetti sauce to cover bottom. Top with single layer of noodles. Spread with half of meat and ricotta cheese. Top with 1/3 of Mozzarella cheese.Add another layer of noodles and lightly cover with spaghetti sauce. Cover with remaining meat and ricotta cheese and 1/3 of Mozzarella. Add third layer of noodles and cover with remaining spaghetti sauce.
Cover tightly with foil and bake at 350-375 degrees for 1 hour. Top with remaining Mozzarella. Replace foil and let stand for 10-15 minutes.  For browned cheese (which we love) broil for about 3 to 5 mins.  Watch closely to make sure not to burn the cheese.

Served with homemade garlic bread and fresh green beans.  Bread recipe on separate post.

NOTE: May be made ahead and reheated or frozen. Heat some extra sauce in saucepan and ladle over top of each serving if lasagna seems too dry.

Quick and Easy Italian Dinner for 2

For this quick and easy dinner you will need the following

Main Dish

1 bag of frozen or fresh tortellini (your choice of filling)
1 Jar of marinara (again your preference)

Follow instructions on package of pasta. Drain pasta. Stir in heated marinara sauce.

Side Dish

1 to 2 Zucchini
Prosciutto (optional)
Onion
Olive oil
1/2 lb Tomatoes
Salt and pepper to taste

Trim off the ends of the Zucchini, and cut them into rounds about 1/4-inch thick. Sprinkle them with salt and put them in a colander for an hour, to give the salt time to draw moisture from the slices. If you're strapped for time you can omit this step.

Cut an abundant 6 ounces of medium-sliced prosciutto into thin strips and sauté it in some oil in a pot with a finely sliced onion. As soon as the onion is a light golden brown, add 1 pound of blanched, peeled, seeded and chopped tomatoes. Cook for a few minutes, add the zucchini, and finish cooking everything over a brisk flame, stirring every now and again. Should the pot begin to dry out add a few tablespoons of water or broth. The zucchini should be cooked but not falling apart, while the sauce should be fairly thick. When they're done check seasoning, adding some pepper if need be, as well as freshly minced parsley and basil to taste. This works equally well as a vegetarian main dish or a vegetable.

How to blanch/peel a tomato

http://www.christonium.com/culinaryreview/ItemID=11930973656349

Soft Whole Wheat Bread Recipe-Finally!

We finally found a recipe for Whole Wheat Bread that produced a loaf that was not so dense you had to have a gallon of water to wash down the bite.

We purchased a bread maker not that long ago and have been trying to obtain that soft light loaf of whole wheat bread ever since.

Thanks to Linhart Live Blog for the recipe.

Ingredients:
1 and 1/4 cup warm water
1 tbs butter
1 tbs white vinegar (this helps the yeast make big bubbles which makes the bread chewy)
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup potato flakes (this helps make the bread soft and the dough rise)
1/4 cup dry instant milk powder (another softener)
1/4 cup honey OR 1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup vital wheat gluten
2 and 3/4 cups white whole wheat flour (white whole wheat is simply softer)
1 tbs dry active yeast

Directions:
Place the ingredients into your bread machine in the order listed above. Set it for a 2lb loaf on the whole wheat cycle with "light" crust. While the bread machine is in the kneading cycle make sure it is incorporating all the ingredients. Scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula if needed. At the beginning of the final rise cycle take the dough out and pat into a smooth ball. This will give you a smooth and pretty crust.

(We have baked this loaf in the bread maker and the oven. The oven gives you a softer less dense loaf by a mile. 350 F for 20-25 minutes. )

As soon as the bread is done baking remove it from the machine or oven and let it cool inside a ziploc bag or air tight container or wrap it in a towel for about 1 hour. This will make all the steam absorb back into the bread making it soft and chewy.

Calories 116.7
Protein 4.07 g
Total Fat 1.31 g
Dietary Fiber 3.12 g

Trying to live the sustainable life

Over the last several months we have made the switch to primarily organic foods. Tim and I feel better about what we are putting into our bodies, and feel better about the impact we a leaving on this earth.

Since the summer season brings so much tasty fresh veggies and fruits, we have been trying to supplement our groceries with food from the farmers markets, and our garden.

We raised a very small garden this year. We wanted to see what we could get to grow. To our amazement, the garden is thriving with a few exceptions. We have a completely organic garden. We have used worm poop liquid fertilizer and chemical free alternatives to deal with pests. We also have a compost bin going so we will have our own organic fertilizer for next planting season.

We have about 30+ tomatoes ripening as we speak. Zucchini, banana peppers, broccoli, cabbage, bell pepper, basil, and parsley.

We just ate our first zucchini tonight with dinner. There is an amazing amount of satisfaction in eating something that you grew yourself.

Since our garden is small and limited variety, we have supplemented the remaining produce with food from the farmers market. We have been purchasing extras to freeze for the winter.

We have also been baking our own bread. It is difficult to find bread that does not contain high fructose corn syrup and other additives that are terrible for you. We have found options that cost around $4-$5 per loaf.

We thought it would be a great idea to have bread that does not compromise our new lifestyle but will also not break the bank.

Most realize that unfortunately it tends to be more costly to eat organic and live a "green" life. Well it can be difficult, but you have to find ways to save money, while still giving your family only the best natural ingredients, chemical free cosmetics and household products and protecting the earth we all live on.

We have changed all of our cosmetics and personal care items to safe chemical free alternatives. My one vice is my deoderant and hairspray. There is not really a comparable hairspray that does what I like for my hair, and the deoderants leave much to be desired. So, for now these two will be my biggest eco sins.

Tim and I really do view our lifestyle change as two fold. We are bettering ourselves and helping to better the planet.

I am a believer in the adage that every little bit helps. So, that is what we do everyday. Something, anything to make our lives better and hopefully make the environment better as well.

I will start to post some of the best recipes we have found recently for anyone who is interested.

The picture above is of our early garden. A picture of the jungle it has become is soon to follow.

Video of "firu"

IU stuff and thoughts of 2008

Hello all!

Well this is my first official post to our family blog. First of all let me say welcome!!

I feel that last year was one of the best years of our lives. Jennifer got a promotion, I got accepted to Indiana University's music program, J.T. was officially in the hizzhauuussee, we got a new crazy dog (Sophie), Jennifer and I joined a gym and have collectively lost almost 80 pounds! I feel completely that I am in the best shape of my life and Jennifer and I have completely changed our eating habits and go to the gym as much as our schedules allow.

My friend Matt and I have started our own MMA (mixed martial arts) training. We are trying to convert his garage into our gym. We have bags, gloves, headgear, mouthpieces, etc. all the protective stuff we need except we REALLY need some mats to cover the floor. We will have them by this spring for sure. But I am really glad I have someone to train with me. Matt and I would love to fight in competition, but my school schedule really doesn't allow it and his work schedule is crazy too. But it is really the best exercise you can do! I lost 40lbs last year and feel really good and can't wait until the spring so we can start the real training again.

I can't express enough how proud I am to be married to Jennifer. She is completely the hardest working person on the planet. She has completely turned around her department at work and loves her job! She really keeps us going here at home and keeps me in line with school stuff too. Since we started going to the gym last Feb., she has lost 40lbs. to (I think) sorry Jenn if I got that wrong!

Some of you may know that she has been having some health problems that have hindered her a little but she is a trooper and is going to get through it!

Well... I just had my second performance at IU last week and it was amazing! When I found out that I was going to IU, I found that one of my saxophone friends from UofL was going there too. So I wanted to write him a piece. It is a big piece for solo saxophone called "firu" which is Japanese for "to fill." I will post the video in a separate blog.

I hope you enjoy it! IU has been great. It is absolutely the best place for me right now. The performers that I am able to work with are the greatest musicians I have worked with. I can compose really anything that I want and can get a great performance! I do hate driving up there, but we have to good of a situation to transport again. Jennifer and I love Clarksville, and have the greatest friends here and (another) family here now. Thanks McHughs!!! Anyways...

It seems that Jennifer has most of our summer planned out. I think we are going to be in Arkansas for alot of it. Then catching up with some of Jennifer's high school friends, probably a trip to lake with our other family, all kinds of stuff. Oh, we can't forget the weekly BBQ's! I really can't wait!

Well, I suppose I should stop and save stuff for later post. Check back soon!!

Saturday February 5th, ahhhhh the weekend!

I made it to Saturday. Whoo Hoo I started out the week with a 102 degree fever and coughed my way through a tough week. Between Tim being gone to school for 3 days, feeling like crap, and being so busy at work I could not see straight, I was ready to snap.

FYI three dogs and one human are bad odds for the human!

It was weird I know that I started to feel physically better with each day, but literally as soon as I got home and Tim was home on Thursday, my soul started to feel better. This in turn gave me Friday. The best day I have had all week.

In hind sight the week was not all so bad it was just with feeling bad and having so much on my plate, my tolerance level was at zero.

Anyway I am putting the week behind me, and moving on. I think I need a relaxing weekend.

So I am going to go try to start relaxing!

Winter Storm 2009 *dum da dum dum*

I am sitting here as my "snow day" winds to a close. I have been calling patients to cancel appointments for today and tomorrow because the office is without power. This is round two after the Windstorm 2008 *dum da dum dum* Okay I just feel the need to dramatize the name of these storms ala how the local news stations tend to do.

I decided to join this century and start a blog. It is a good way to keep family and friends up to date on our life in Kentuckiana. For those who don't know this is the loving term for us that live in the along Ohio River on the Kentucky Indiana border.

We have had roughly 5 to 6 inches of snow since Monday night. Not to mention a ton of ice. We have a big and I mean big branch down in our back yard that is laying perfectly on our power line. A hope and a prayer is keeping our power on.

For those who don't know I have recently been promoted at work. I am the Business Office manger. We merged the front office and billing department and I am the manager of this newly merged department.

It is quite a bit more responsiblity, but I love it. The practice just won an award for Outstanding Financial Performance in 2008 for Accounts Receivable and Collections. This is the first time the practice has won this award since 2002. Considering 2008 was my first full year as the AR manager, I am very proud to say the least.

Tim is well into his second semester of his doctorate program. He loves IU and is doing so well. He is entering some composition competitions soon. We are hoping that he fares well in these competitions, as we know he should ;)

Our newest edition to our family Sophie is starting to improve on her housebreaking and general obedience. She is still hyper at times but improvement can definintely be seen. Ellie just celebrated her 5th birthday. Brady was just told he is a senior at his last visit. 6 almost 7 years old hardly seems senior to me. :(

I am going to go eat dinner with my friends we are huddling together and going to try to stay warm.