Whirlwind Weekend

We've been living in mass chaos this weekend. It's been full of accomplishment at lighting speed. We shopped the Draper Family Discount store and scored some great new stuff for our house. Thanks parents! The butterflies are still flying rapidly around my house and changes are abounding. In the midst of all our pandemonium I still had my normal "mom stuff" like making dinners, play dates, cleaning, etc.  Ya know the everyday stuff every young girl dreams of doing when she marries prince charming, rides off in his golden coach to their castle and fires all his servants cause she can do it more effectively, economically and efficiently than anyone else. Lesson learned!

With chaos abounding I had very little time to think about where lunch was coming from or what was for dinner--Note: I cleaned my oven this weekend because a nice frozen pizza broke in half and cooked in the bottom of the oven. The mess was so bad it set off our fire alarm. That was a memorable dinner.

How can you learn from my experience? I thought of a few things that can easily be made for quick, relatively healthy lunches and dinner when the oven is not an option and you're embarrassed to call the pizza guy because he knows your voice when you call. Hey Steve! Time to save money and not go out to eat.

Hot dogs/ Chili dogs-- Boil the hot dogs and warm the buns. Open a can of chili. Add crushed Frito's, shredded cheese, chopped onion and peppers as desired. Make this option healthier by using turkey or chicken or tofu dogs and turkey chili.

Chicken Wrap--Microwave 3-4 nuggets, or use leftover chicken. Wrap in whole wheat tortilla (or whatever you have) add veggies and condiments as desired. I love mine with chipolte mayo, banana peppers, jalapenos, spinach and sprouts. You can also use cold cuts instead of chicken as another quick option.

Pigs in a blanket--A throw back to my youth! Wrap thawed hot dogs in a triangle of the crescent roll dough. Bake at 375 for 20-22 min. Again using turkey or tofu dogs and low fat crescent rolls will ease the fat consumption.

Ramen/ soup and grilled cheese-- Ramen noodles take about 6 min. to cook in the microwave. You can add frozen or fresh veggies, cooked chicken or tofu to increase the nutrition in these. Also I only use half the seasoning packet and then add fresh or dried herbs to compliment the flavor and cut the salt.  The grilled cheese can be made in a pinch with this cheat: toast the bread in a toaster. Melt the cheese on the bread in the microwave for 20 sec.  It doesn't taste as crisp as if you cooked it on a griddle, but hey, if you are in a hurry...

PBJ or PBB or PBM-- Peanut butter is a staple at our house. Growing up my dad taught us jelly and honey aren't the only options that go well with peanut butter. He likes PB and banana and PB and mayo. I know the last one sounds creative--OK, gross!  This can still be a healthy and quick option. Adding fresh fruit is always good--try strawberries or bananas. Using whole wheat bread is also good for you. It takes about 30 seconds to make, kids can do it without burning down the house (hopefully) and it's cheap.

Now back to organizing my house and redesigning it so no one knows the tornado landed here. BTW the new cabinets are in, painted and almost ready for their Internet debut. Stay tuned..