Cupcakes and Cravings

I must say, I had no idea how challenging pregnancy. Before I was pregnant, I used to think "oh it'll be a breeze." What was I thinking? I'm tired all the time. I'm nauseated almost all the time and when I'm not nauseated, I'm eating. I never thought I'd ever say it but I'm tired of eating. How is that possible? This doesn't mean I'm cooking though. Oh no, being in the kitchen for about 15-20 minutes is about all I can stand. It's the running joke now when my husband asks what's for dinner that I'm going to say frozen pizza. The silver-lining...at the end of this we'll have a baby. I'm told it's worth it LOL
So let's talk cravings. Any mommies out there with any craving stories? My cravings come on super strong but usually only lasts a few minutes and then I'm over it. I was at Trader Joes and desperately wanted a cupcake. No way I was making them from scratch so I picked up a box of mix but by the time I got home I was too tired to bake. The next day the cupcake craving was back and I found enough energy to make a batch. The mix is actually really good. Not as good as homemade but close. I proceeded to eat 2 and then just looking at them made me nauseated. What is up with that? How can I want something so badly and then it turns my stomach? Just posting the photos for this blog makes me a little queasy.

The one constant craving- pizza. I could eat pizza all day. In fact, I think it's time to order delivery.

I heard an old wives tale the other day that if the mother denies herself something she's craving the baby will have a birthmark that looks like that food. Hilarious!

Zucchini Bread- Sunset Magazine

My first blog post in too long. Mostly because I haven't been able to cook or tolerate being in the kitchen for extended periods of time. Morning sickness doesn't just plague me in the "morning" it's an ALL DAY EVENT, but I'm in my 11th week and it seems to be getting a little better. The mood swings are a whole other experience. I've read on other blogs that the crying, nervousness, and worry is normal but I'd really like it to go away now. I'm ready to be happy and excited to be a mom. Any pregnancy advice?

Last night I got a little kick of motivation to use some zucchini we had in the fridge and Sunset magazine had the perfect recipe. If you just got this month's issue, it's on page 90. It turned out really well- not at all dry which I was concerned about since there's only 1/2 cup of oil. I added some walnuts because for me it's not zucchini bread without walnuts. Yum!

Classic Zucchini
Sunset Magazine- August 2012

Serves 8-10

About 2 cups of flour
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. each salt, cinnamon and nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
About 1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 cups packed shredded zucchini

1. Preheat over to 350 deg. Oil and flour a 4 x 8 inch loaf pan. Whisk 2 cups flour with other dry ingredients (except sugars) in a bowl.
2.Beat sugars, eggs and 1/2 cup oil until blended. Slowly mix in zucchini. (Add 1 cup of chopped walnuts *optional) Gradually beat in flour mixture until just combined.
3. Scoop batter into pan.  Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 1 hour.  Cool 10 minutes, then invert onto a rack.  Turn over; let cool completely.

Foodie Pen Pal Reveal

I'm so far behind on my blogging and participation in Foodie Pen Pal. I had the best of intentions when I signed up but life got in the way so I'm finally posting now. Life meaning "morning sickness" that plagues me all day long....but more about that later.

Beth from It's Good to be the Cook sent be a box of yummy goodies from Trader Joes (my favorite place).

Thank you Beth!


And now it's time for some details about Foodie Penpals. In case you’re a new reader, here’s a reminder of what the program is all about:


-On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.

-You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!

-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!

-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)

-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month.

-Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents. Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We've determined things might get too slow and backed up if we're trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa.

Trail Mix Cookies

Cookies are definitely my favorite thing to bake. The possibilites are endless, the process is fairly simple and I've yet to have a recipe be inedible. I've been baking my way thru Joy the Baker's cookbook and her Trail Mix Cookies are so yummy. This is one of those recipes that you can add or subtract the ingredients based on your preferences. For example, I didn't have any M&Ms so I used chocolate chips. I also really like coconut in my trail mix so I added a cup of shredded coconut to the mix. The results were delicious.

Trail Mix Cookies


Adapted from the Joy the Baker Cookbook

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 tsp baking powder

1tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 cup (2 sticks/8oz) unsalted butter, softened

1 cup granulated cane sugar

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 large eggs, room temperature

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup (6oz) peanut butter chips

1 cup chocolate chips

1 cup peanuts

1 cup shredded coconut

1/2 cup golden raisins

Directions

1. Place a rack in the center and upper third of the oven and preheat to 350F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, and set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the oats, flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon, and set aside.

3. In the bowl of an electric hand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or using a good amount of elbow grease and a wooden spoon), cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy (about 3 to 5 minutes). Add the eggs one at a time, beating on medium speed for 1 minute between each addition. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl as necessary. Beat in the vanilla until incorporated.

4. Stop the mixer and add the flour mixture all at once. Beat on low speed until just incorporated. Then add the peanut butter chips, chocolate chips, peanuts, coconut and raisins. Turn on mixer again and beat the additions at low speed until just incorporated. Remove the bowl from the mixer, and finish incorporating (get those loose batter pieces at the bottom of the bowl), the cookie batter with a spatula.

5. Using a cookie scoop, scoop out dough and place on prepared cookie sheet (if you don’t have a cookie scoop use a tablespoon, scoop out dough, and roll it between palms to make dough balls).

6. Bake for about 13 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool.

Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Smoothie

I recently discovered Pinterest and have since been pinning my little heart out every night before bed and one of my pins was this smoothie from Bo's Bowl. During my morning rush, you can see my lunch bag that I'm packing in the background, I threw all the ingredients in the blender and like magic-breakfast in less than a minute. It's delicious and filling. You won't be hungry until lunch, I promise.

I'm linking up for the Crazy Cooking Challenge this month.


Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Smoothie
by Bo's Bowl


2 frozen bananas

1 cup skim milk

1 cup nonfat vanilla yogurt

1/2 cup oats

4 tbs peanut butter

honey, to taste

Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.

Makes 2 smoothies.

Spaghetti with Tomatoes, Olives, Garlic and Feta

It's voting day here in California, I hope you've already gone to the polls or plan to. Are you organized and prepared with your sample ballot? Or are you like me- realized it was voting day by a Facebook post and will be spending my lunch hour reading up on ballot measures.
If you're like me today, than you probably have no idea what you're making for dinner tonight. Well, this post is an easy recipe that requires just a little time and effort to avoid the fastfood line on the way home. Although, I do happen to have an Applebees gift card burning a hole in my purse so maybe I'll convince my hubby we need to go out instead.

Spaghetti with Tomatoes, Olives, Garlic and Feta
by Food & Wine Magazine

Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds tomatoes (about 3), seeded and cut into 1/2-inch pieces


1/2 cup Kalamata or other black olives, pitted (I used green olives)

1/4 pound feta cheese, crumbled

3 tablespoons drained capers

3 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper

3/4 pound spaghetti

6 tablespoons olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

Directions
1.In a large glass or stainless-steel bowl, combine the tomatoes, olives, feta, capers, parsley, salt, and pepper.


2.In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the spaghetti until just done, about 12 minutes. Drain.

3.Meanwhile, in a medium frying pan, heat the olive oil over moderately low heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the cooked pasta and the garlic oil to the tomato mixture and toss.

Variations
Spaghetti with Tomatoes, Black Olives, Garlic, and Mozzarella Use 3/4 pound fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into 1/4-inch pieces, in place of the feta.
Spaghetti with Tomatoes, Olives, Garlic, Feta, and Fresh Herbs Use 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil or 3 tablespoons mixed chopped fresh herbs, such as tarragon and chives, in place of the parsley.

Meatless Monday- Tostadas

It's Monday already. We spent the weekend in San Diego with family and the time went by so fast. Did you do anything fun over weekend?
Today's post was a meal I actually made last Monday and in case you don't have anything planned for dinner tonight, I'm sharing it with you today. Mexican food is one of my favorites and since this dish is packed full of flavors, you won't miss the meat.

How good does this bite or several bites look? I had to force myself to stop stuffing my face before I picked up my camera.

Here's how I made them-

Preheat oven to 350 deg. Spray both sides of 4 corn tortillas (or as many as you're making) with cooking spray and bake until crispy.

Prepare and add toppings:
1 can of vegetarian refried beans, heated
2 chopped tomatoes
1 large onion carmelized in a little olive oil
1 large avocado chopped
Shredded Mexican cheese blend
Sliced black olives
Dollop of sour cream. 
Your favorite salsa
Obviously, you can use whatever toppings you like. What do you like? I've been know to dump hot sauce all over my tostadas as well. So So Spicy and Gooooood!