Food Archives - Page 19 of 31 - mamachallenge | Real Solutions for Real Parents

Lo-Cal Summer Sippin’ Recipes #TENways

April 8, 2014 By Autumn Rose Reo Leave a Comment

This shop is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group™ and Dr. Pepper Snapple Group but all my opinions are my own. #pmedia #TENways #ad http://my-disclosur.es/OBsstV.

With summer time just around the corner, it means we only have 60 days left to attempt to zip up that cute summer mini dress or squeeze into the always-dreaded swimsuit! But eating healthy doesn’t necessarily mean we have to give our my favorite things to eat AND drink.

What a lot of people don’t think about is the amount of calories consumed with just one cocktail! However, with the Ten beverage line from Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, you can enjoy all the fun and flavor of Sunkist, A&W Rootbeer, Canada Dry Ginger Ale and 7-up for only TEN calories!

So I’ve concocted four fantastic recipes that taste even better than your old standby summer cocktails, but without the empty calories! I love being able to enjoy anytime of the week, at get-togethers and even playdates with other moms and they think I’ve added something to our drinks, but in fact, I’ve taken out most calories by using the TEN beverages I found at Walmart. And they taste delicious enough you may choose these as your go-to summer sippers! I mean nothing says summer like a rootbeer float…and with this recipe I’ve cut half the calories, 25 percent of the fat and none of the flavor!

7UP TEN PUNCH

1 ounce orange juice

1 ounce pineapple juice

2 ounces Ten 7-up

½ teaspoon grenadine

Orange wedge

Full a shaker with ice. Add all ingredients except the soda, shake well. Strain into a wine glass and top with 7UP. Garnish with orange slice.

SUNKIST TEN COSMEAUX

4 ounces Ten Sunkist

2 ounce cranberry juice (or cranberry juice cocktail)

Garnish with a twist of orange peel

Mix together all ingredients in a cocktail shaker lightly. Serve in a martini glass.

CANADA DRY FAUXJITO

6-7 Mint leaves

1 tablespoon lime juice

6 ounces of Ten Canada Dry

Garnish with a slice of lime

Muddle mint leaves and lime juice. Fill glass with ice and Ten Canada Dry, stir, and serve.

A&W ROOTBEER LO-CAL FLOATER

½ cup Greek Frozen Yogurt Vanilla

8 ounces Ten A&W Rootbeer

Scoop frozen yogurt into cold mug glass. Carefully add A&W Rootbeer to the glass until foam rises to the top.

SAVE MONEY AND CALORIES WITH THE

$0.50 off of the purchase of TWO 2 Liter bottles or TWO 4-pack cans of Ten 7UP, Ten A&W, Ten Canada Dry, TEN RC or TEN Sunkist soda. However, if you share the digital coupon via email, Facebook or Twitter, you will get brought to a coupon that will get $1.50 off that purchase rather than just .$50! Get this coupon while supplies last!

Enjoy celebrating summer by toasting with these non-alcoholic, lo-cal summer sippers featuring the Ten Calorie sodas!

#JOESGOESBLUE: Joe’s Crab Shack Kicks off Annual April Autism Speaks Fundraiser

April 7, 2014 By Autumn Rose Reo Leave a Comment

This month Joe’s Crab Shack has joined organizations across the globe in celebrating the international Light It Up Blue campaign on World Autism Awareness Day and kick off its second annual national fundraiser for Autism Speaks, the world’s leading autism science and advocacy organization.

As one of Autism Speaks’ largest corporate partners, Joe’s raised more than $1 million in 2013 through in-restaurant donations, online donations and sales of Joe’s “Light It Up Blue” tie-dye T-shirts.

Head to Joe’s Crab Shack to donate and receive coupons for free food. For every $1 donation, receive a free kids meal entrée; $5 donation for a free Crazy Good CrabDip; and $10 donation for a free Classic Steampot. While readers are at Joe’s they can purchase a “Peace of the Puzzle” signature tie-dye T-shirt and 10 percent of proceeds will go to Autism Speaks.
Take in a Rangers game at Globe Life Park in Arlington on April 16 for the autism awareness game.
Advocates can spread the word by posting photos of themselves supporting Autism Speaks with the hashtag #JoesGoesBlue. At the end of the campaign, Joe’s will award gift cards to photo winners and post guests’ photos in a puzzle mosaic on Joe’s social media.
Restaurants will also “Light it Up Blue” throughout the month to remind guests of the worthy cause.

Information about local Autism Speaks efforts is available here. To find the closest Joe’s Crab Shack location, visit www.joescrabshack.com/locations.

Easy Easter Food Fun for Everyone

April 5, 2014 By Autumn Rose Reo Leave a Comment

Looking for an Easter craft that doesn’t take too much time or creativity for a cute and yummy treat? Here’s easy Easter food fun for everyone.

“Multitasking Mama” is my middle name. Unfortunately, “Make-and-Do-Mama” isn’t.

So if creativity isn’t one of your skill sets, you are in good company. This Easter I’ve put together a few of my favorite craft ideas that are as much fun to make as they are to eat! These activities that I either found on Pinterest or have been making for years will give you and your kids something fun to do while you spend time together and best of all, when you are done, you can gobble them up for snack time.

And did I mention they are super easy? So easy in fact my son made his own YouTube video on how to make one of them? (Kids these days…)

All of these crafts were featured on Good Day Dallas on April 5, 2014. Hope you caught the segment, but if you didn’t, here’s the highlight reel and the recipes for you to make at home!

Dallas News | myFOXdfw.com

Jackson’s Easter Day Bark
From MamaChallenge.com

Package of White Almond Bark
Package of Easter M&Ms
Sprinkles
Easter Egg Malted Eggs

Place the almond bark in a microwave safe dish and microwave for 90 seconds to melt (adding more every 10 seconds until it’s melted.)

Line a baking sheet with wax paper and spread the almond bark. Drop the M&Ms and other candy over the melted bark. Allow to cool by placing in the freezer. When it solidifies, break into pieces. Makes for a cheap, easy and cute gift to friends, neighbors and teachers!

Easter Basket Cupcakes
(I’ve been doing these since I was a kid!)

Cupcake with vanilla icing
Favorite Easter candy
Licorice rope

Jelly Beans
Peeps or Chocolate Easter Bunny candy
Shredded Coconut
Green food coloring

Place coconut in a plastic baggie or a plastic bowl with a lid. Drop 3-5 drops of food color and then cover. Shake container until completely saturated green. There’s your Easter grass!

Now just line up all your candies in a few bowls so the kids can easily get to them to make their Easter baskets.

Taking the cupcake, sprinkle or swirl cupcake until the top is covered in coconut. Now place your Peep or Chocolate bunny in cupcake. Place jelly beans around it to look like eggs. Last place both ends of your licorice stick into the cupcake to resemble a basket. Now eat it!

Carrot Snacks
This is a great for small kids that doesn’t involve sugar!

1 quart size plastic baggies or clear pastry bags
Favorite orange snacks (I prefer Amy’s Organic Bunnies, buy you can use Cheetos or Goldfish)
Green ribbon

After removing the zip closure on the bags with a diagonal cut, please snacks in one corner of the bag and twist up to resemble a carrot. To close, tie a green ribbon around the top to look like a stem and you are done!

Strawberry Carrots
White Chocolate Chips or Orange Melts
1-2 Tablespoons of shortening
Orange powdered icing coloring
Strawberries
Crushed Oreos

Melt chocolate with shortening until smooth in the microwave or over a double boiler. Now turn chocolate orange if needed with the icing coloring. Next after drying your strawberries (if you don’t the water will cause chocolate to seize and turn gritty), dip the strawberry into chocolate until covered. Place on wax paper to dry for 15-20 minutes. Serve “carrots” over a bed of crushed Oreo to resemble a garden.

Carrot Patch Cups
As seen on Kidzui.com

2 Packets of instant chocolate pudding
2 Cups of milk
1 Thawed package of Cool Whip
2 Cups Oreo cookies
Orange Icing (or white with orange food coloring)
Edible candy grass (or Coconut dyed with green food coloring)

Mix the pudding and milk together.
Gently stir in the Cool Whip.
Crush your Oreos and add half of them to the pudding.
Divide the pudding mixture into cups or dishes and top with the remaining Oreos.
Pipe the orange frosting onto the top to look like a carrot growing out of the ground.
Top with a few blades of fake grass.

Take a look at all the fun Easter crafts I’ve found on my Pinterest page!

Follow Autumn Reo {mamachallenge.com}’s board HOLIDAY: Easter on Pinterest.

Don’t miss these #mamachallenge moments!

You’re My Lobster! Our Family Feast at Red Lobster’s Lobsterfest (Now until April 14)

April 3, 2014 By Autumn Rose Reo Leave a Comment

Disclaimer: I received complimentary food for purposes of this review. #BestLobsterfest

When it comes to a family dinner outing, pizza, spaghetti, chicken nuggets or corndogs are somewhere on the menu.

However, this time the husband and I had a craving. And not just for a little extra bacon on our burger or spice in our pasta. We wanted LOBSTER.

But with two kids to feed, that option would normally be out the window with them in tow or reserved for a special occasion when we also would have to pay for a sitter, get into something more pressed and shiny, and make a reservation.

For our family, those types of moments don’t happen often and for the price of the evening, we are already in the hole before we even eat the meal. But we had a craving and we had two kids to feed, so…

Bring on the Red Lobster.

Yep, the friendly seafood chain known for the best garlicky, buttery cheddar biscuits and stiff drinks in my college days (for good measure we’ll say at least a decade ago), once again was my desired destination. And not only was it Red Lobster, but it was during Lobsterfest.

Lobster for everyone!

On a Friday night we did have a little wait, but that’s to be expected for most restaurants. Once we had our seats, we quickly had a server who understood that kids that were happy meant parents were happy, so he was super about getting orders made and delivered quickly even on a busy Friday night.

Going through the menu, there were so many options for dinner, especially during Lobsterfest since there’s more lobster dishes available than any other time of the year!

Some of the Lobsterfest menu highlights include:

Lobster in Paradise®
Ultimate Surf and Turf
Dueling Lobster Tails
Lobster Lover’s Dream®
Seaport Lobster & Shrimp
Lobster & Shrimp Linguini Alfredo
Rock Island Stuffed Tilapia
Ultimate Feast®
Bar Harbor Lobster Bake

While reading any of them just made my mouth water, it was the Rock Island Stuffed Tilapia that won my tastebuds. And although the kiddos ended up with broccoli, chicken and macaroni ‘n cheese, the family snacked on a sampler platter with cheese sticks for the kids and calamari for the adults.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t how it happened since the kids just ate the whole plate of cheese and “circle chicken.” I felt no need to correct him if it meant they were enjoying something different than chicken nuggets. So I just ate the cheddar biscuits… Like the whole basket. And they were good.

In just around an hour, we had all enjoyed a lovely lobster laden meal at a reasonable price and I had planned for the next time I came into Red Lobster what I would be trying. Perhaps with or without the kids.

REMEMBER: Lobsterfest only last until April 14, so make sure you get into your nearest LobsterFest at your Red Lobster. And if you are looking for an even better deal, you can get $10 off your meal when you buy two Lobsterfest entrees with this special coupon.

Last-Minute, Kid Friendly St. Patrick’s Day Treats {As seen on TV}

March 16, 2014 By Autumn Rose Reo Leave a Comment

Don’t we all wish we had enough time to make the perfect themed desserts for every holiday?

These recipes are all part of WFAA ABC 8 Good Morning Texas on the Monday, March 17 St. Patricks Day show. But just in case you aren’t able to tune in or need to get the recipes, here you go!

Rainbow Pots of Gold
(Inspired by Women’s Day)

What are all leprechauns after? Gold at the end of the rainbow! So we’ve combined both the pots of gold and rainbow for a fun treat that is as much fun to make as they are to eat.

Ingredients
1 box of white cake mix
Food coloring (basic variety pack works great or whatever color you want to make)
1 tub of chocolate frosting
Several Tootsie Roll minis at room temperature
1 package of Sour Patch straws in red or Twizzler Rope licorice
Yellow/gold candy (I used Sixlets or you can use M&Ms or jelly beans)

Instructions
Make the cake batter as instructed for cupcakes. Divide the batter evenly between four small bowls. Then using the food coloring, change each of the batters to your desired color. Next in a greased and floured muffin pan, take one spoonful of batter and begin alternating even amounts of each color until it’s about 3/4 full. Complete the process until you finish your batter. Bake muffin as instructed on box.

In the meantime, unwrap the Tootsie Roll and begin rolling until its flat. The strip should be about 1.75 – 2 inches long.

Once muffins are complete and cooled, flip them over to begin icing. Using the chocolate icing, frost the cupcake except the bottom (which is normally the top of the cupcake.)

Take your Tootsie Roll and form it to look like the top of a bag (almost in a circle.) Lay on top of the cupcake.

Next take your straw/licorice and loop it under the Tootsie Roll so it looks like a string. Criss-cross the ends to resemble a tied bag.

Last, lay your candies in the Tootsie Roll portion to look like gold pieces.

Now your cupcake should look like a pot of gold, but when you bite into it, you’ll find the rainbow surprise!

It’s My Lucky Day Treat Bars

I’ve never been a big fan of colored marshmallows in my cereal. Or any cereal that turned my milk a bright unnatural color for that matter. But when you pair the cereal with a little marshmallows and butter, something magical happens – like these bars. So easy my five-year-old made them, these treats are exactly the perfectly quick treat to make everyone’s day a little more lucky (or at least tastier.)

Ingredients
5 cups of Lucky Charms cereal
4 cups of marshmallows (I prefer the small ones so they melt easier)
3 tablespoons of butter

Instructions
Sift through your cereal and pull out some of the Lucky Charm marshmallows so you can put on top of the treat bars for decoration!

Melt the butter on medium heat (or in the microwave if you really wanted to stay off the oven) and then add marshmallows. Stiring often to keep from burning, add cereal until combined. Pour combination into a greased pan (I like 8×10 so they are thicker) and then pack down with a greased hand (thank you, Pam spray.) Allow to sit for an hour at least to harden.

Optional, you could die the treats green while mixing, but I just can’t stomach green food unless it’s an avocado or a margarita.)

Oreo Truffles

I’ve never met an Oreo I didn’t like. And when it’s mint then dipped in chocolate, well then we are meant to be friends for life. This is a no-cook recipes, so it’s all hands on deck to make these babies. Just make sure not to eat all the Oreos before you start making them. (If you prefer you could use Thin Mint Girl Scout Cookies, but who still has any of those left by St. Patrick’s Day?)

Ingredients
1 package of Mint Oreo Cookies (don’t open them until you’re ready to make these or you’ll eat them all)
1 package of cream cheese Dipping chocolate or white/green candy melts (You can find these at Walmart now!)

Instructions
Crush the cookies in a food processor or blender until fine. Combine crumbs with cream cheese well. Roll into balls and place on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper. Place in freezer for an hour. Meanwhile melt your chocolate either in the microwave as instructed (or on the stovetop if it’s easier) and then dip truffles in chocolate coating completing.

Then decorate however you wish!

For other great St. Patrick’s Day Ideas and more fun, check out my Pinterest page!

Follow Autumn Reo {mamachallenge.com}’s board HOLIDAYS: St. Pat’s Day on Pinterest.

Last-Minute Must Pack Items for SXSW

March 13, 2014 By Autumn Rose Reo Leave a Comment

Disclaimer: I was selected to represent Pfister at SXSW. I was provided a Powerrocks charger as a promo item. Hormel sent over several packs of their new Rev Meat Snack Mix for me to try complimentary, and I’m obsessed.

I’m a planner-kind-of-gal. I like to know what to pack, what to bring and what to have just in case. So when going to a conference, especially a biggie like SXSW for my first time, I wanted to make sure I had everything I could possibly need as I journeyed down to the capital of Texas with Shannon of milkandcuddles.com for three days of all things technology, digital, interactive everything.

While I’ve been to Austin many times, I’ll admit a forecast for rain threw my whole plan a little out of whack since normally Austin is prime for sandal weather, but I was so glad I made some specific choices to make sure I was ready to go at it like a pro (minus forgetting my galoshes.)

While the weather wasn’t going to be on my side as I headed to Austin for SXSW 2014, I at least make sure I packed a few things to make my experience a little more convenient, connected and tastier.

1. Hormel Rev Meat Snack Mix:

Ever wish you could eat pizza and type on your keyboard with making a mess? Or drive without dropping your BBQ sandwich all over you at the same time? Well, Hormel is making my dreams come true with their new high-protein, on-the-go snack, Rev Meat Snack Mix. Exclusive to Dallas-Fort Worth for now, I was sent a few of these babies to try out and they were the perfect SXSW treat. Packed in a small-cup size, they are perfect for snacking when you are driving down the road (it sits perfect in my cup holder), hiking/camping or gaming and don’t want to stop. Best of all, the mix varieties including Spicy BBQ & Bacon, Turkey Ranch and my family favorite, Pepperoni Pizza, are loaded with tasty flavors that will satisfy the perfect craving for meat, spice and crunch. And you can’t go wrong when your snack is full of protein with 9-10 g protein per serving. For me, it’s so much better than just snacking on jerky. Just don’t leave them in the cabinet while you go out of town, or your family will devour all of them. You can find these at Kroger for a limited time!

2. Powerrocks Charger:

Everyone at SXSW will run put of power at least once if not twice a day. When you’re talking technology and the future of interactive nonstop for a week, running out of power is the point. But with my handy (affiliate link) Powerocks Magicstick, I just plug it into my phone, put it in my pocket and keep going. Love it! And it’s pink too so that doesn’t hurt my feelings either! While I would pick up a few of these while I was at the conference, I can’t tell you how many times I needed more than one recharge in a day for the iPhone and the iPad. Thankfully Powerrocks charges them all!

3. Go Go squeeZ:

As the ambassador for Go Go squeeZ, I always have my green packs of fruity fun around. And when you’re hiking around Austin, waiting in line, or dying of hunger, go go is an awesome + easy way to get some fruit into system and eat it while I’m tweeting. I wish I had brought more for the hackers and power computer users who never left their laptop. Go Go makes it easy to eat over your computer without mess or from stopping what you’re doing. Believe me, you can subsist on Go Go squeeZ when you are on a deadline for many hours and have a sweet craving.

4. Cords, Cords, and More Cords:

Not only do you need to bring a small charger to keepy our devices running at SXSW, but you’ll also need to make sure to bring an extension cord. If you are taking notes and on your computer the whole time and have already gone through that recharge pack (or saving it for an emergency), make sure to utilize an opportunity to charge up your computer. And considering outlets may not be handy, having that cord can save you every time. I’ve learned this from other conferences and even if you don’t have to use it often, there’s always going to be that time you should have and didn’t.

5. Boots.

Yes, it seems so cliche, but it’s the truth. Any trip to Texas you should bring your boots. I actually had read a post about What to Wear to SXSW and the author mentioned boots. Considering I’m from Dallas/Fort Worth (well, Arlington), I thought that was only fitting for foreigners (people from outside of Texas), so I decided not to comply. Dumb girl. It rained so much on Saturday, even the most comfortable flats I own that are made for walking couldn’t handled the rain along 6th Street as I walked at least four miles that day. And it was cold too. So heed the advice: Bring your boots. Cowboy, rain or just cute riding ones – just leave the ones with the 4 inch heel at home. They just ain’t fittin’ as Mammie would say.

I’ll definitely be sharing more about my experience at SXSW in coming posts, so make sure you stay tuned for the good stuff.

Make Healthy Eating Easy with Facts Up Front

March 10, 2014 By Autumn Rose Reo Leave a Comment

“This is a sponsored post written by me on the behalf of the Facts Up Front program.”

While the chance to go to the grocery store to enjoy a hot cup of designer coffee, taste the new cheeses at the deli department while listening to the perfectly customized soundtrack (with no set time limit) is right up my alley for a fun way to spend my Saturday, it’s not normally the case or the most important part of my trip.

As a mom, I’m on the move and most occasions you’ll see my whip into the store with five minutes to complete a 30-minute trip. And that’s really hard when you are a label reader like me; picking up each product and flipping it over to check out the calories, the fat and how best I can squeeze in the most nutrition into what my family eats and drinks. Unfortunately, if you multiply the number of goods in my cart to the amount of time it takes to find the item, pick it up, turn it over and read the stats…well this mom doesn’t have time for that and probably neither do you.

The grocery store experience has come a long way, but the Facts Up Front initiative is one of the best upgrades yet. A voluntary initiative led by the in 2011, Facts Up Front brings important information from the Nutrition Facts panel (normally found on the side or back of the label) and displays it in a simple and easy-to-use format on the front of food and beverage products.

Specifically, the Facts Up Front label displays four basic icons: calories, saturated fat, sodium and sugars, representing the key nutrients for which dietary guidance recommend limiting consumption in the diet as determined by the Food and Drug Administration.

FACTS UP FRONT LABEL EXAMPLE

Basically, the label makes locating some of the most nutritional facts easier to find without picking up the product, finding the stats and trying to discern quickly if this is a product that fits your family’s nutritional needs – making it a huge time AND money saver!

Just check out this helpful video on how to save time and money with Facts Up Front.

The Facts Up Front website http://www.factsupfront.org also contains interactive tools like a nutrition calculator, an interactive label, a nutritional interactive quiz, shopping tips, and delicious recipes.

With the Nutrition Calculator, in five simple questions the calculator provides caloric intake, along with the suggested amounts of daily nutrients needed for each day, including fiber, protein and Vitamin C. This way you can determine your estimated daily nutrient needs for themselves and their family members in order to maintain a wholesome diet and weight. Then with that knowledge head to the grocery store to find the Facts Up Front labels that match the recommended nutritional values.

The Facts Up Front program is growing with more than 50 manufacturers, retailers and wholesalers voluntarily implementing this special labeling on their branded and private label products including Nestle, Post Foods, Ocean Spray, PepsiCo, Campbell’s, General Mills, Coca-Cola, Kellogg’s, Kraft, and Heinz as well as retailers like Kroger. For a full list of Facts Up Front partners, visit http://factsupfront.org/Partners.

While there’s no technology developed to keep your refrigerator and pantry stocked with all the healthy and delicious products all time without going to the grocery store, the Facts Up Front initiative does make it easier and quicker to be informed and choose the right items for your family when you do go.

Then you might still have time and money for that latte when you’re done.

What’s your family’s healthiest go-to meal?

“This is a sponsored post written by me on the behalf of the Facts Up Front program.”

Get Rolling Now for National Meatball Day, March 9 with the Best. Meatballs. Ever. {Recipe + Giveaway}

March 4, 2014 By Autumn Rose Reo Leave a Comment

I was invited to a special event to learn first-hand how to make Chef Kenny Bowers’ legendary Midnight Meatballs. I was also provided a gift card for the purposes of this giveaway. But my sincere love for Kenny and his meatballs is the real deal. I’ve spent much of my own money to get my fix along with the most amazing polenta croutons. So needless to say, this is some truthful content and you should try this recipe. It’s that good. #meatballmadness

“On top of spaghetti…all covered with cheese…”

Meatballs are such an important part of the spaghetti experience, they earned their own song.

Actually, meatballs aren’t just an Italian thing, but actually play a part of several cultures although it looks like the Romans do claim fame to them first (according to the Colorful History of the Meatball.)

Whoever wants to claim them is fine by me, but for my family, they are the purpose for the pasta. And we’ve spent many hours attempting to perfect the right meat mixture, texture and cooking method to create the ideal meatball. While I can remember some really good meatballs, I can’t say I have found THE recipe that I’m willing to cut throats for. However, I have found one that stands pretty close.

Unfortunately, the recipe is not mine. But Dallas Chef Kenny Bowers (Kenny’s Wood Fired Grill, Kenny’s Burger Joint, Kenny’s Smoke House and Kenny’s Italian Kitchen) was willing to share it with me and a few of my friends over cocktails one afternoon and a big raw mess of pork and hamburger meat.

Yes, this is how we roll.

The cocktail is actually part of the recipe too – as Kenny shared his own story of how the meatball recipe came to fruition. Basically, only after several evenings until past midnight with a few drinks down (read: several) did the recipe finally come together just the right way. Hence, the name “Midnight Meatballs.”

My cocktail choice for this meatball-making Monday: The Frenchie made with prosecco. And best of all it looks like it’s only $5 on Mondays…(but be careful, it can sneak up on you!)

Completely different than any recipe I’ve ever made, Kenny showed us how to create a panade (a paste made with white bread and milk) to bind together the meat for just the right texture. And then with a few other ingredients we had Kenny’s legendary meatballs ready for the oven and then “atop of spaghetti.” But they were so good, they really didn’t need a starch, just some red sauce and a glass of red wine!

KENNY’S MIDNIGHT MEATBALLS

Ingredients:

12 oz (3/4 of a loaf) white bread
3 cups milk (whole)
To taste salt (iodized)
To taste black pepper (table grind)
1 cups parmesan cheese
1 oz wt. basil (fresh, chopped 3/8” no stem)
4 lbs ground beef or pork or sausage

Instructions:

Tear bread in to small pieces approx 1”. In a large bowl combine milk and bread. Mix together by hand making sure bread is completely dissolved in milk to form a soupy paste-like consistency. Add salt, pepper, cheese, basil and mix. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before next step.
Gently mix in meat making sure everything is evenly mixed with slightly wet hands form 4 oz wt. balls.
Place on baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake at 400 degrees for approx 20 minutes until medium brown and an internal temp of 160.
Note: meatballs freeze very well if you don’t use them all this time.

I suggest you make the whole recipe and then freeze a portion of them so you have them ready to go whenever you need an appetizer or a quick meatball sub or spaghetti and meatballs!

OR you can always head over to Kenny’s on any Sunday, and National Meatball Day, for Meatball Madness! For only $1 you’ll get one of Kenny’s 1/4 pound meatballs. Or you can always beat the meatball eating record (currently it’s 18) and you can get your meatballs free.

Or win this gift card and consider you’ve got $15 worth of meatballs on MamaChallenge!

Just enter this contest now and you could win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Kenny’s Italian Kitchen
5100 Belt Line, Suite 764
Dallas, Texas 75254 (technically it’s in Addison)
972.661.9380
www.kennysitalian.com

Save Calories and Money with Houlihan’s Low-Calorie Cali-Cali Menu

February 27, 2014 By Autumn Rose Reo Leave a Comment

Disclaimer: Compensation was provided by Houlihan’s via MomTrends. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions of Houlihan’s or MomTrends.

When comes to dining out, I’m the kinda girl that wants to try everything. For me food is an experience so anytime I find a place that allows me to try a few different things without blowing my calorie count for a month or costing me my paycheck, I’m a fan. And if you have scallops on your menu, well then you already just made my short list!

A recent trip to Houlihan’s not only hit all my requirements for good food and good experience, but when I stumbled upon “I <3 Mondays” special, it was a little like the lottery. After a bad case of the Mondays, I began to smile with the idea of a choice of soup AND a dessert for only $3 with the purchase of my entree. However, the smile wasn’t stopping there.

While I was treating myself to a Monday night dining out experience, I still wanted to try to eat healthy, especially if I was going to have dessert, too! Sliding into the rich wood seats and dark interiors, the weight of the day continued to lift, especially when my waitress greeted me. With Houlihan’s new lighter “Going Back to Cali-Cali” menu options (with items less than 590 calories), I had several delicious options including a very apropos X-Rated Moscato Martini with Skyy Infusions Moscato Grape Vodka, premium X-Rated Fusion Liqueur infused with organic blood orange juice, house sour and fresh cranberry juice and at 140 calories I was doing a little dance.

Now on to the rest of the meal. Considering I wasn’t the only one dining, I opted for something that we couldn’t resist with the Chicken and Avocado Eggrolls (a Houlihan’s staff favorite!) Served with sour cream and salsa, they were the perfect bite we needed to keep us steady for our next courses: salads, entrees and a dessert.

Round 2:

Sampling from the salad menu, I couldn’t resist the idea of goat cheese, so I selected the White Tuscan Bean Salad.

And who can go wrong with tortilla soup? Houlihan’s definitely doesn’t with a homemade tortilla recipe full of flavor and fixins.

Next course:

Still looking to be reasonable for a Monday meal, we ordered the Lemon & Herb Grilled Chicken (550 calories) with Tuscan white beans, organic kale-spinach-chard blend, roasted artichokes, tomatoes, herbed broth. It was perfectly tender, flavorful, colorful and packed with all kinds of good stuff. The combination of spinach with the artichokes was just the right pairing for the grilled chicken.

And for our other entree? It was hard to pass up the Georges Bank Scallops, but a long-time hankering for Ahi Tuna was in order with napa cabbage, iceburg and spinach with cashews, banana chips, carrots, scallions, cilantro, crispy wontons, banana-ginger vinaigrette. This was a whole new twist on ahi tuna salad with the unique contrast of tender fish, the sweetness of bananas and the crunch of crispy wontons, carrots and dried banana chips.

And finally:

There was dessert.

As part of the lighter fare menu, the Key Lime Mousse layered with crystallized graham cracker crust and whipped cream made that smile of mine even bigger! The key lime flavor was sweet, but not too much to enjoy until the last drop.

And we may have enjoyed a fried donuts with apple cobbler dip, too! (It was only $3, right?) And with the nutritional facts online you can always check on what you’re eating!

WIN
Make sure you come in for the limited time lower calorie fare menu. While you’re there, you’ll see there’s several more reasons you’ll be coming back to Houlihan’s. And this $50 gift card will give you your first experience on me!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About Houlihans
Established in 1972, Houlihan’s is a progressive concept that bridges the gap between fine dining and what people have come to expect from casual dining, priding itself on style and quality. Houlihan’s offers guests a design-forward atmosphere featuring a curated indie music soundtrack, an eclectic menu designed for modern lifestyles, and an energetic scene. Houlihan’s crafts dishes made from scratch with assertive flavors and offers creative, diverse cocktails and wine selections, with many of its locations garnering ‘best happy hour’ awards from local media outlets. Currently, 83 Houlihan’s restaurants operate throughout the country, 52 of which are franchised. Houlihan’s is owned by Houlihan’s Restaurants, Inc. of Leawood, Kansas, which developed and owns several restaurant concepts comprising of approximately 100 locations coast-to-coast, including Devon Seafood Grill and J. Gilbert’s Wood-Fired Steaks. For more information, please visit www.houlihans.com or find Houlihan’s on Facebook at www.facebook.com/houlihans.

Celebrate World Nutella Day with Easy Nutella Banana Nut Bread {Recipe}

February 5, 2014 By Autumn Rose Reo Leave a Comment

Several years ago I received my first container of Nutella.

For a while, I was able to resist the thought of a container of the hazelnut gooiness in the pantry. But then I finally dipped in my index finger and went in for a small taste. And then another. And another.

I found both a friend and a foe that day. I just can’t quit you, Nutella.

And apparently I’m not the only one, especially since now we have a National “holiday” committed to our love of the product.

Happy World Nutella Day, folks.

And while you can put Nutella in everything (just take a look at Pinterest), I’m sharing a quick recipe you can make even late at night when you hear Nutella calling your name and you just want a little fix.

And of course, banana and Nutella taste really, really good together.

Nutella Banana Nut Bread

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

3 bananas, mashed ripe bananas

1/3 cup milk

1 cup Nutella

1 teaspoon vanilla

½ teaspoon salt

1/2 cup chopped nuts

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray 8×4-inch loaf pan with nonstick spray.

In a bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, and salt. In a large bowl, beat sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add banana, milk, and vanilla until combined. Gradually add flour mixture, beating constantly until just blended. Spoon Nutella into a bowl and soften in the microwave for about 15 seconds. Add 1 cup of the banana bread batter to the Nutella and stir until blended. Add half the banana bread batter to the prepared pan. Top with half the Nutella batter. Pour the remaining banana batter into the pan and top with the remaining Nutella. Swirl batters together with a knife. Bake for 50-55 minutes (the bread will seem undercooked). Cool for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

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