Where you are always allowed to play with your food!
Hope you are having a terrific Tuesday! Here is a quick dinner I made for myself that is both healthy and indulgent. I added some of my oven roasted chicken (3/4 chopped breast), 2 boiled eggs, and 3 slices of chopped bacon on top of a generous serving of spinach. I topped with a few croutons and a tablespoon or so of dressing.
Summer has been super amazing! Lots of relaxation, pool time, beach vacation, sleeping late, and cooking whenever and whatever I want. While I am super bummed that it is coming to an end for us, I am still looking forward to a great school year. I can’t believe I am going in to my 17th year of teaching!
Soon school will start back; cheer practice, Girls on the Run practice, homework, weekend ball games at the park, etc. Meal planning always gets tricky, so hopefully I will keep coming up with some fast easy meals for those crazy school nights. Look for lots of crock pot meals, throw together one pot recipes, and super fast meals that will hopefully save us a lot of time and money!
So this week is going to be a bit crazy. The girls have cheer camp everyday, so my dinner meal plan for the week is a great big question mark. I did a little prep to have some things in the fridge to grab for quick snacks and fast meals. I made a whole pot of hard boiled eggs (which after breakfast today are almost gone!), an entire pound of bacon, and cooked up the 2 chickens that I got from the farmer’s market. I love buying those rotisserie chickens from the grocery store in a pinch, but roasting your own is much cheaper and you can do different flavor profiles.
The first one was simply olive oil, salt and pepper. The second one I used this Moroccan dry rub. First I browned all sides on the stove top in my cast iron skillets. Then I put both in a 350 oven for about an hour. Now my family has 2 chickens for our disposal for sandwiches, chicken salad, pasta, etc.
It is a beautiful Sunday morning here in Georgia. We had a lazy morning sleeping in a bit, then I woke up and made the girls one of their favorite breakfasts, homemade french toast. My goal for the new school year is to make a batch of something on the weekends to freeze for breakfast during the week. The mornings can get hectic, so I know I rely on frozen waffles and french toast sticks a lot. Not only is it cheaper to make your own, it is also much healthier. This recipe was a hit, as my girls will eat anything drenched in cinnamon sugar =)
Cinnamon Sugar French Toast
4 pieces of bread- I used the challah bread that I got from the farmer’s market yesterday. PERFECTION!
Mixture- I really don’t use particular recipe… or exact measurements. Usually it just depends on how much I am making and what kind of bread I am using. Today I whisked 4 eggs in about 1 cup heavy cream. I added about a tablespoon cinnamon and 1/2 tablespoon of nutmeg,and a bit of salt to taste. I whisked it all together, then dunked the bread on both sides and let it soak up all that yummy goodness. On medium heat, I warmed up about a tablespoon of butter in a pan and cooked on both sides until browned, about 2 minutes on each side. I topped with cinnamon sugar and warm maple syrup.
Hello my sweet followers! Anyone out there? Hope you are all having a great day!
I started mine out by going to the local farmer’s market with my girls. We have a routine…first I get an iced coffee, we look at each stand, we get a few samples (Great Harvest Bread, honey, jelly, olive oil, peaches etc.) then the girls get a King of Pop’s Popsicle. Then we go back through the vendors and I pick out a few lovely gems. Today I bought 2 chicken fryers (only 4.50 for both!), 1 pound of Georgia Coast Shrimp, a loaf of challah bread (french toast in the am!), yellow squash, beets, an heirloom tomato, and some beautiful flowers for Lizzie.
Every week or so since she has passed, I buy some flowers and put them in a vase next to her urn on the mantle. 
The heirloom tomato with a tiny bit of salt was devoured as soon as I got home. I should of taken a pic…it looked something like this 
I tried bitter melon for the first time today…not a fan. The lady told me she usually only sells that to Asian people because they like the bitter taste =)
Tonight I cooked up the shrimp in a new and delicious way. But first I had to clean them…peeling and deveining shrimp is not hard, but it can be kind of a dirty job. If this is not your thing, buy them from the grocery store already done. It is a pain, but since I got them fresh from the market, it had to be done for this recipe. Bonus- now I have all the shells and tails in the freezer for when I am ready to make seafood stock. https://funfoodiefamily.com/2014/01/19/seafood-stock-2/
Crunchy Baked Shrimp
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 tablespoons Old Bay seasoning
1 tablespoons each of onion powder and garlic powder
about 1 1/2- 2 cups panko bread crumbs (save a few for the top)
olive oil to coat
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
1/2 stick butter, cut in small pieces
Directions
So you know about homemade Shake and Bake? I have done it here before https://funfoodiefamily.com/2014/06/05/homemade-shake-and-bake/
Well, this is kind of like that. Add all your ingredients in a large zip top bag. Shake and mix together well. In a single layer, place the shrimp in a large oven safe dish, pan, or sheet tray (make sure to use non-stick spray or olive oil/butter). I used my large cast iron skillet. Add a few more breadcrumbs on top.
Cook at 350 for about 8 minutes. For the last 5 minutes or so, turn your oven on broil. When the topping starts to turn brown, take it out. 
Serve with your favorite side dishes. We had some leftover couscous and alfredo pasta, so we each chose what we wanted. I also served a side of peas and some of that squash I got this morning at the Farmer’s market. Here is how I made it…
Simple Sauteed Squash
In a med. skillet, add thinly sliced squash to about 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Salt and pepper your squash. Cook until golden brown and tender, just under 10 minutes. YUM! 
Evening guys! Happy Friday! Today the girls and I had a fun day. We went to get our nails done, which was super fun and relaxing. Then we went to lunch and the grocery store. I went to The Fresh Market to see what kind of fish they had. I ended up buying 2 kinds; Rainbow trout and cod. I served with a side of couscous and broccoli.
Tonight I prepared them so simply. For the cod, I dredged both sides in flour. I melted half a stick of butter with rosemary, sage, and thyme. Then I put in the fish and cooked the first side for about 6 minutes. The I flipped it and cooked the other side for 3 minutes. ***COOKING TIME DEPENDS ON THE THICKNESS OF THE FISH. Thinner fillets will take less time.
With the trout, I dredged both sides in equal parts corn meal and flour. I melted half a stick of butter with rosemary, sage, and thyme. I cooked the trout skin side down for about 3-4 min or until browned and crisp. Then I carefully turned the fillet over and continued cooking until just cooked through, about 3 more
minutes.
Both turned out so good! Looking forward to heading to the farmer’s market in the morning… thinking of getting some fresh shrimp from the seafood guy for dinner tomorrow night!
Fun Foodie Family 