Some Christmas sap

Here's what's on my mind- and plate- today:

I miss having a dog. Three times a day I get down on my hands and knees and become a human Roomba. 

The babies learned to full-out crawl just in time to yank down enjoy our tree.

Our mantel is the most festive-y slice of Christmas in our home and I'm in love. Story time- the year my husband and I were married, I hit Target the day after Christmas for some clearance action (some things will never change) and found these photo frame stocking holders. They came in packs of two, so I wasn't sure how many to buy. We had talked about aiming for three kids, so I bought a total of six frames. The subsequent Christmas, after a year of infertility workups and failed treatments, seeing those six frames packed away was painful. Fast forward to now- I can hardly believe that this year we get to fill all six frames. It's a total dream come true. 

I think the phrase is "Have new kids but keep the old- one is silver, the other's gold."

That being said- with four kids I am continually trying to come up with easy, cheap, healthy meals that everyone can eat. Today's effort turned out post-worthy. Care for some slow cooker Italian cauliflower and sausage?

Slow Cooker Italian Cauliflower and Sausage
-2 28 oz cans crushed tomatoes
-1 tablespoon dried parsley
-1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
-1/2 teaspoon salt
-1 tablespoon sugar
-1/2 teaspoon minced or powdered garlic
-Pinch of pepper
-Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
-1/4 cup red wine (optional)
-3 12-oz bags cauliflower florets (or roughly two heads, chopped)
-1 package cooked Italian chicken sausage, sliced into coins
-1 8-oz ball fresh mozzarella cheese

Note- if you're really pressed for time, you could just use the equivalent amount of premade marinara instead of the crushed tomatoes. Making homemade truly takes <5 minutes, but you do need to have the seasonings on hand.

Place tomatoes and all the seasonings + wine in the slow cooker. Stir to combine. Stir in cauliflower and sliced sausage.

Cover and cook on low 5-6 hours or high 2-3 hours. About 20 minutes before serving, slice up fresh mozzarella into thin slices and place on top.

Serious comfort food- pasta is so good of course, but this comes without guilt or a food coma. Makes five servings. Per serving: 400 calories, 37 grams carbohydrates (Low! With *10* grams fiber!), 12 grams fat, and 27 grams of protein.

Perfect to enjoy in front of a cozy fireplace lined with stockings!

What I am going to bring to the table

Well Thanksgiving is SO close to being here, and while I have my eyes set on Black Friday (eye roll, I know), I am very excited for the day itself.

My $4 Wish app shirt is...not terrible!

I have to cringe when I look back upon childhood and how I only ate corn and the rolls and as little turkey as possible and it had better not be dark meat!

Now? I EAT IT ALL. Including Brussels sprouts. And goat cheese. And butternut squash. Alllllll in one.

Brussels Sprouts and Squash Stuffing
-1 box Jiffy corn muffin mix (plus 1 egg and 1/3 cup milk)
-1 medium butternut squash, peeled and cubed (or be like me and buy the precubed kind- aboug 12-16 oz)
-1 lb Brussels sprouts, washed, with bottoms cut off and cut into quarters
-1 medium yellow onion, diced
-2 tablespoons olive oil
-1 teaspoon salt
-1/2 teaspoon pepper
-2 oz goat cheese (can be omitted if it's not your thing)
-1/4 cup chopped walnuts
-1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
-1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
-1 tablespoon honey

Make the corn muffin mix according to package directions, only bake in a 8x8 or 9x9 square pan instead of muffins. If not making stuffing the same day, cover in plastic wrap. It's definitely ok if the cornbread gets a bit dried out- it will make for even better stuffing.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Arrange Brussels sprouts, onion, and squash on a baking sheet. Drizzle olive oil, salt, and pepper. Use your hands to toss to evenly coat. Bake for 30-40 minutes, stirring halfway through for even browning. Let cool.

Spray your square baking dish with nonstick spray. Turn oven down to 350 degrees. Cut up your cornbread into smallish cubes. I actually used only 75% of my cornbread because my square baking dish is a bit on the shallow side and it didn't fit with all the roasted veggies I just made. In your baking dish combine the cornbread, goat cheese, walnuts, and veggies.

In a Pyrex measuring cup, whisk together broth with poultry seasoning and honey. Pour evenly over stuffing mixture. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 45 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes, or until top is getting golden brown in some spots. Remove from oven.

I like this take on stuffing because 1. I prefer cornbread (my younger self cannot relate), and 2. it adds autumn veggies to the mix (again, my inner 12 year old is grossed out), and 3. goat cheese (seriously, in 1996 I would've gagged). From a nutrition standpoint, adding veggies and using broth cuts down on calories while keeping flavors right-on.

Enjoy your friends and family and shopping deals!

When the sun's coming up I got cakes on the griddle

Now that it's less than a week until I set up my Christmas stuff, I finally have my fall decor all set.

Uhhh this last pic is to prove that my house is full of children.

In other things, in a million years you would never guess what singer my four year old is obsessed with.

Er, I guess the title of this post is a pretty massive clue.

YUP. John Denver! We sing "Thank God I'm a country boy" no fewer than 23 times a day.

My boys are pretty lucky that I am willing to make them pancakes every morning. I recently started buying Kodiak Cakes (late to the party!) and we love them. Not only are they super easy to make- just add milk or water- but nutritionally they're a great choice.

Ya see that ingredient list? Love that it's truly whole grain with no added sugar. The carb to protein ratio is great for a breakfast too. Too bad I forgot to actually take a picture of the cooked pancakes. They're light and fluffy and filling. I don't recommend topping with syrup- even 100% maple syrup is nothing but sugar and minimal nutrients. A smear of almond or peanut butter with some sliced apple or banana is awesome. I've also sprinkled frozen blueberries or dark chocolate chips in them too. You could get all seasonal and stir in some canned pumpkin and cinnamon too.

So yes- we have cakes on the griddle but we're lacking in fiddles and farmhand tools. Life IS nothing but a funny, funny riddle.

We're having some weather up here

Ooooh guess what happened this week?

It snowed, baby!

"Now Annika, get used to this icy cold winter business."

A HUGE perk of now being a stay at home mom is dodging every awful commute that results from the slightest bit of winter weather.

Another perk of being a stay at home mom is of course having (in theory) infinity hours to prep and make dinner. Buuuut somehow I don't have infinity hours. Especially for making lasagna, which is by far one of my favorite foods.

Another problem I have with lasagna, apart from the prep time and bake time, is that I. can't. eat. a. normal. sized. piece. It's SO GOOD that I end up going for seconds. And then I finish one kid's plate. And then the other kid's plate. And I could go on.

I happened to have some leftover egg roll wrappers and decided to try out lasagna cups this week, or at least that's what I'm calling these- lasagna cups! Individual sized "lasagnas" that help you keep the portions in check. They also cook WAY faster than traditional lasagna, and storing leftovers is so easy. Let's check it out, hmm?

Lasagna Cups
-1 lb mild Italian ground sausage
-1 24 oz jar marinara sauce
-1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
-15 oz part skim ricotta cheese
-1 egg
-1 bag frozen spinach, microwaved according to package directions, with excess water squeezed out
-1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
-18 egg roll wrappers
-1 1/2 cups shredded Italian or mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. While oven heats, saute the sausage in a skillet. When cooked, remove from heat and soak up any liquid fat with a paper towel. Stir in half the marinara and the Italian seasoning. Combine ricotta, drained spinach, egg, and garlic powder in a separate bowl.

Spritz a 12-cup muffin pan with canola or olive oil cooking spray. Line each muffin cup with one egg roll wrapper, letting the top edges hang over the top of the pan. Spoon about a heaping tablespoon of meat sauce into each egg roll wrapper. Top with a heaping tablespoon of spinach mixture. Top with shredded cheese, then fold over egg roll wrappers. No need to seal them- they stayed put pretty nicely for me.

Bake for about 15-20 minutes, or until they're nice and golden brown and crisp on top. Serve with reserved marinara sauce for dipping.

These are cute and filling and totally satisfy my taste for lasagna. Each lasagna cup is about 250 calories, so two did the trick for me. Stick any leftovers in a freezer bag for later- just microwave to reheat.

Perfect comfort food for all the snowy days to come!