Spinach!

Spinach has been a key ingredient lately. Sometimes the co op carries a large bag of spinach...it's just so packed full of spinach that I don't pick it up because I'm afraid I won't use it all...and I'll feel wasteful.

However, I found the following recipes!

Green Monster Hummus from Namely Marly

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Ingredients:

1 can chick peas

1/4 cup tahini

1 t garlic powder

1-2 T lemon juice

1 T Bragg (an alternative to soy sauce)

1/2 c water

1/4 c olive oil

1 t salt

1 t dried oregano

1 t dried basil

2 c raw spinach

Directions:

1. Pour all hummus ingredients into a food processor and pulse until well-combined.

2. Scrape down the sides of the food processor bowl and then process until you achieve a fine consistency.

3. Pour the hummus into a serving bowl and garnish with olive oil, pine nuts, and sliced black olives. Serve with pita bread or your favorite crackers.

Another great spinach recipe is this green smoothie. The blogger says it is a great smoothie for during pregnancy, but this healthy smoothie would be great for anyone - pregnant or not. :-) (And no, I am not pregnant!)

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Ingredients:
*Blender
*Crushed ice
*Water/{Orange} juice
*Spinach
*{Mixed} frozen fruit
*Banana

Pop these in the blender and voila! I usually add 1/2 a cup of Greek yogurt for the protein as well as some milk or soy milk. I know it may sound weird to add spinach to a smoothie, but you can seriously hardly taste it! 


In light of the new year and the popular resolution of getting healthier, we have been using these recipes quite often and enjoying them quite a bit.

Wait - Where am I?

Wait - where am I?

I've asked myself that a few times lately. For example, I'm in Wal-mart and try to find pretzels. I push my squeaky cart to where I think they'll be...and they're not there. Ohh, that's right. The pretzels are in this area at the other Wal-mart.

Or I'm in Barnes and Noble, turn and walk towards the cafe and expect the bathrooms to be to the right. Nope. Not at this Barnes and Noble - I was confused with a different Barnes and Noble...one in a different state.

Or ponder the idea of visiting the local animal shelter to browse at kitties, I'll just pop on over there after going to Target, because the shelter is just down the road from Target. No, that's in a different city than Fort Wayne. Not here.

Driving down a main road in town I look to my left and recognize a friend. I get excited...but then realize that she is from Chicagoland. She doesn't live here. It's not her. It just looks like her.

When we got home from Christmas vacation I forgot how to operate our bathtub faucet.

Moving every year for the past several years gets confusing.

Maybe someday...someday I'll remember what is where and who lives where.

Slow Cooker Recipes

It's the new year! And you know what that means...healthy living, healthy recipes and getting more active seem to be the top resolutions for this time of year. I (Sarah) am not a resolution type of person, however I do try to make healthy choices. Perusing Weight Watchers recipes I discovered the following: 

Slow Cooker Lentil Soup

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Ingredients:
2 medium uncooked carrot(s), peeled, cut into large chunks   
2 rib(s) (medium) uncooked celery, cut into large chunks  
1 medium uncooked onion(s), cut into large chunks 
2 clove(s) (medium) garlic clove(s), minced 
2 cup(s) dry lentils, picked over   
3 leaf/leaves bay leaf
1/2 tsp dried thyme, crushed  
1/2 tsp table salt, or to taste  
1/4 tsp black pepper, or to taste 
8 cup(s) canned chicken broth   
4 oz uncooked Canadian-style bacon, diced (4 or 5 slices)   

Instructions:
Place ingredients in a 4- to 5-quart slow cooker in the following order: carrots, celery, onion, garlic, lentils, bay leaves, thyme, salt, pepper and broth. Cover slow cooker; cook on low setting for 6 hours. Uncover, stir in bacon and heat for 30 minutes more; remove bay leaves. Yields about 1 1/2 cups per serving.

Notes:
To thicken soup, remove 1 cup of cooked lentils and puree in food processor; stir back into soup. 
For a lighter flavor, replace 4 cups of chicken broth with 4 cups of water.


This soup was quite delish! The fact that it is inexpensive is definitely a plus. (Beans are a daily staple around here.) Another great thing about this recipe, other than it being inexpensive and easy, is that almost all of these ingredients can be found at the seminary food co op! 

Slow Cooker Pulled Barbeque Chicken Sandwiches

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This recipe was easy, too (do you see a theme? ;-)). It filled our home with a mouth watering aroma of barbeque! This Texan loves that smell. Recipegirl.com is a fun website to click through and easy to navigate. Her delicious recipe is as follows:

Ingredients:
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup barbecue sauce (a flavor you like)
1/3 cup Italian dressing (reduced-fat or fat-free okay)
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons chicken broth
additional barbecue sauce, if desired
rolls, for serving as sandwiches
bread and butter pickles, optional

Directions:

1. Place chicken in the slow cooker. In a medium bowl, whisk together the barbecue sauce, Italian dressing, sugar and Worcestershire sauce. Pour the sauce over the chicken. Cover and cook on low for 4 1/2 to 5 hours.

2. Remove the chicken to a cutting board. In a small bowl, mix cornstarch and chicken broth. Stir it into the sauce in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on high until the sauce is thickened and heated through (10 to 15 minutes). Meanwhile, use two forks to shred the chicken. Return the shredded chicken to the slow cooker and stir. Add additional barbecue sauce if more sauce is needed or desired. Cover and continue cooking on low for 45 minutes. Serve chicken piled onto rolls. Add pickles, if desired.

Tips:

*The brand of barbecue sauce that you use can make a big difference in the flavor of the chicken. I like Sweet Baby Ray's!

The sides I chose to serve with this main course were yummy, too. I made acorn squash like this. Then some sweet potatoes like this. I also had a cold pasta salad left over from the day before, which is similar to this recipe. 

Back to Normal

Adam's Christmas break was eventful. We traveled a few hours west to visit family for a couple weeks. We enjoyed seeing our dear family again and were sure to fit in some time for chillaxing. Isaac was sure to fit some of that into his busy schedule, too.

A couple days before Christmas a seminary family's infant son passed away. Baby Christian spent Christmas with Jesus - the best place to be for Christmas. Their journey was inspirational and their family is so strong. You can read about their journey and offer support here. We've been following their story from the very beginning. Baby Christian's mommy wrote beautiful updates in the CaringBridge journal throughout the entire journey. When you stop by their site, be sure to bring some tissues with you.


My (Sarah's) kitty, Inkin, began to not feel so well a couple months ago. Her health began to rapidly decline during break. I've had her since I was 9 years old and she was 10 weeks old. However, her time with us came to an end. She now rests peacefully. I'm sad about her passing, but the timing couldn't have been better. Her passing away while we visited my parents' home was best, because she is now resting there instead of us wondering what to do if she passed away while here in Fort Wayne. We wouldn't have wanted to bury her here at our rental home. It was an odd feeling coming back home to Fort Wayne after the Christmas travels and seeing her food and water bowls waiting for her.


On a brighter note, Isaac's Auntie Laura took some fabulous photos of him. She is quite the talented photographer and captured some really lovely moments:

Bath time!

Isaac is very good at unwrapping gifts. He loves loves paper!

Auntie Laura is finally in front of the camera! What a sweet photo.

Isaac seems to like doing a certain thing (blowing bubbles, a fake cough, etc) for a week or two

and then moves on to something else. For one of the weeks during Christmas break he discovered this

expression. This was particularly funny because his uncle did the same thing when he was this age! 

While visiting GG and Grandpa, Isaac was sure to enjoy some puppy time...

...including Sooner! Isaac is drawn to animals, which is so sweet! 

We are glad heenjoys animals, because we do too! 

Isaac likes to hold the puppy's face and then give it a kiss on its nose. So sweet. :-)

During the last week of break we've been trying to get back to normal and get back into a routine. I've been busy making freezer meals (may as well get ahead if I can!), catching up on laundry and putting away Christmas stuff little by little. Adam has also been taking advantage of this last bit of free time; he's been working very hard on his studies and getting ahead in some classes. As this break came to a close, we couldn't help but realize how close Call Day is becoming...

...after all, Call Day is only 114 days away. 

Which is also 9,849,600 seconds. 

Or 164,160 minutes. 

Or 2,736 hours. 

Or 16 weeks.