Bean and Cheese Burritos with Cilantro Lime Rice and Avocado Cream

I don't think I'll ever get sick of a two year old's way of finding even the most mundane thing super exciting.  They are experiencing so many things for the first time and what is old-hat for us is like an amusement park for them.  Like driving under an overpass.  Super exciting for at least my little two year old.  And every bus, ambulance, fire truck, tractor, dump truck, etc. must be exclaimed over

I love having a two year old.  While I don't love the crying, tantrums, and growing need for discipline, I love two year olds. 

Maybe it's the fact that their excitement makes me see the world through younger, less jaded eyes.  I find myself getting excited when I hear the hiss of the bus's air brakes as it stops just outside my house every afternoon.  Both me and the kid run to the window yelling "bus, bus, bus!"

Veggie Patties with Kicked-Up Ketchup

 So, I've made the switch to dried beans.  

I know what you're thinking... 

Is she crazy?...

Had she lost all her money in the stock market?...

Does she just have way to much time on her hands?...

The answer to all these questions is no.  Although I am constantly reevaluating the first one.

The truth is that I've chosen to do it both to keep our grocery bill in check and to avoid as much BPA from canned foods as possible.  I'll admit though that it has been quite the learning curve.  

Spinach Pesto Ravioli and Zucchini

The kid got his first bloody nose today.  We had met the husband for lunch.  I got a delicious panini and the husband got a massive Rueben sandwich.  He has never gotten anything else at that particular restaurant--he loves a good Rueben.  It started out so nicely.  We decided to eat outside as the weather hasn't been excruciatingly hot lately, just very hot.  I had brought a butternut squash and cheese sandwich and some steamed carrots for the kid.  But, mostly when we are out he gets too distracted to eat.  

Well, he took a nice little tumble face first onto the concrete while trying to get off his chair.  He cried for a good 10-15 minutes and wouldn't eat much after that.  His beautiful nose is red and bruised and it looks like he got in a massive fist fight.  On top of that his canines are still trying to push their way through, so he's been a pretty miserable baby lately. 

Avocado Chickpea Sandwiches

Teething bites!

The kid is getting both his top and bottom canines in at the moment.  What that means is, in addition to being awake for 3 hour blocks of time in the middle of the night, he is even pickier than normal.  

He eats fruit, gathered spinach scramble, and...nope...that's about it.  Luckily it's summer and that means lots of fresh seasonal fruit.  

Luckily for me the husband will eat almost anything I put in front of him.  He sometimes grumbles a bit and says, "I bet this is healthy, isn't it?"  Gee, is this the thanks I get for trying to extend his healthy years?  

But seriously, he's actually a good sport. 

Black Beans and Rice with Cantalopy Guacamole

I'm not a vegetarian.  I did dabble in flexitarianism in college, before I got married.  Much to the husband's chagrin, however, we eat meatless 2-4 days a week in our home.  His most commonly used phrase when I ask him how he likes a certain dish is, "It would be better with meat."  Poor man.  But, it is how it is and he bears it well.

There are a number of reasons I tend to stay away from meat: personal taste, budgetary restraints, environmental concerns, health, and food safety to name a few.  But I'd be lying if I didn't admit that part of the reason I eat less meat than the average American is that I think it is cool.  There, I said it, I think vegetarians are cool.

Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes with Kale (aka: Super Potatoes)

Ah Kale!  That leafy green we know we need to eat more of but can't figure out how.  I'm not talking about you people who eat a massaged kale salad for lunch daily.  (psst..you people are weird/I wish I was more like you).  I will make a confession, that I have enjoyed the odd kale salad, but I must say my jaw ached for days afterward.  Way. To. Much. Chewing. Involved.  

I like kale.  My body likes kale.  My waistline likes kale.  My jaw?  Not so much.  

 

Kale is a tough vegetable when raw.  I prefer my kale sauteed and steam cooked.  But you know how I really like my kale?  In sweet potatoes!

 

These stuffed sweet potatoes make a fabulous meal.  The kale is sauteed with some garlic--leaving just the perfect amount of chewy deliciousness.  Not only do the chickpeas add a nice dose of protein, they are iron rich.

Superfood Salad

I like to think I don't follow trends.  In 4th grade I thought those flared pants coming back in style were just horrid and that they'd never last.  The first time I tried Greek yogurt I didn't really "get it."  And when blogging first became the "in" thing, I thought it was dumb.  

Truth be told, and I'm a little ashamed to admit it, I do follow trends, albeit on a bit of a delayed schedule, but there it is.  I only buy flared jeans ("skinny jeans are horrid and will never last").  Greek yogurt is THE BOMB.  And here I am, starting a food blog. 

But quinoa...I tell you, I liked quinoa from the first time I tried it.  I remember when I initially heard about the strange sounding grain/seed from a good college friend.  She said it was amazing and that she and her husband really enjoyed it.  That it was a superfood and the only grain considered a complete protein.  I was intrigued, although a tad skeptical.