BBQ Tofu Parmesan

Hey lovelies been a minute since I have shared one of my dishes with you but I've been abundantly blessed with several new things that I have my hands on and I am still working out the kinks so my time is well divided amongst all that I love to do.

Today's share is my what the heck can I make before I sit down for three hours to watch the Live Musical Hairspray? Thursday's Treat...BBQ Tofu Parmesan!

Ingredients:
-2 1lb packs extra firm Tofu
-breadcrumbs
-olive oil
-Italian seasoning
-garlic powder
-salt
-parm cheese
-mozzarella cheese
-BBQ sauce

Mix 1/2 cup of breadcrumbs,  2tsps of Italian seasoning, 1/2tsp of garlic powder,  1/2tsp of salt and 1/2 cup of parm cheese in a large bowl. Take 2 packs of the firm Tofu and cut into 1/4 thick slices. I am using 2 packs so I can have left overs and also serve 4 people. Set aside and in a large skillet on medium heat add 2tbsps of olive oil. Coat your slices of Tofu and when oil is hot place them in skillet cook each side till lightly browned which is about 5 minutes each.

Cut up half a pack of Mozzarella cheese and slice to your liking and place pieces on top of Tofu cover for a few minutes till they melt and drizzle with BBQ sauce and done!

Everyone was pleasantly surprised which I was happy about because I love me some Tofu! I served with a side salad and enjoyed my show.

Always stress free xo,
Mari

Chicken and Tofu with Italian Roasted Potatoes

Hey! An abundance of activities have been keeping me from really documenting some of my meals but that's a great thing as a whole. It means that my Writing and Photography are moving steadily on the right tracks. I did manage to grab camera to share this meal with you just before I attended another Webinar.

Thursday's Treat...Chicken and Tofu with Italian Roasted Potatoes!

Ingredients:
-chicken (your preference is fine I just tenders because of the size)
-potatoes (I feel red cook faster)
-olive oil
-Italian seasoning
-oregano
-salt
-brown sugar
-Sazon accent
-sweet peppers
-firm tofu
-onions
-Sazon criollo
-parm cheese

I first prepped the chicken with pinch of salt, 2tbsps of Brown sugar, 2tbsps of Sazon Accent & Sazon Criollo and mixed in a large bowl. Set aside and cut up 1 pack of Firm Tofu into 1/2 inch cubes, 6/8 small sweet peppers into 1/2 in pieces, 1/2 inch slice of red onion chopped into 1/4's. In a large skillet add 2tbsps of Olive oil to medium heat once ready add your chicken pieces and cook for 15 minutes then add your tofu, peppers and onions cover and cook for another 20 minutes. You add your Tofu last 20 minutes because you don't want them to break down if they cook too long.

As that is cooking I took 5 large potatoes and cubed 1/4 inch pieces, 1/4 cup olive oil, 1tbsp of oregano, 3tbsps of minced garlic, 1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese, 3tbsps of Italian seasoning and mixed all up in another large bowl till fully coated. I set my Toaster Oven to 400 and used my baking tray with a sheet of aluminum foil for easy clean up and laid out my potatoes. I cooked them in two batches because they all wouldn't fit for even cooking but that was fine because not everyone was home at the same time. I let the potatoes cook for 15 minutes turned them over and cooked for another 15 minutes and done!

The mix in flavors was really pleasant and the Tofu soaked it all in delish!!!

Always stress free xo,

Mari

Tofu & Broccoli Stir-Fry

Hey loves time to eat.

Thursday's Treat...Tofu & Broccoli Stir-Fry!

Ingredients:
-Broccoli
-firm Tofu
-rice
-salt
-soy sauce
-brown sugar
-onion
-garlic
-olive oil

Cook rice amount to your needs and liking. In a large bowl mix pinch of salt, 1/4 cup soy sauce, 2tbsps of water, 3tbsps of brown sugar, 1/4 onion chopped into small pieces, 1 1/2 tbsps of garlic powder or 2 garlic cloves minced depending on your taste mix well and set aside.
Chop up your Broccoli heads into med size pieces or use 1 bag of frozen florets, use 1 pack of firm Tofu cut into 1/4 slices than 1/2 inch cubes. Add to sauce bowl your veggies and tofu and mix well.


In a large skillet add 2 tbsps of olive oil to medium heat when hot add your mix, cover and set for 20 minutes. Uncover, turn and cook for another 10 minutes done. Serve over your rice which could be Brown, Jasmin or regular White which is what I had. The sauce over the rice gives it a lite sweet taste because of the brown sugar which is delish, enjoy!

Always stress free xo,

Mari 

Broiled Eggplant with melted Pepper Jack Cheese

Hey everyone! Summer is officially over Fall is here and I am back in the kitchen. I have been researching ways to make my meal prep time even smoother than normal for me and my family. Luckily I follow some amazing women who are doing just that, some prep meals for a whole month! I will be sure to share what tricks and tips I learn with you.
In the meantime I have found another love on Netflix...Luke Cage!!! This is what I eat as I watched.

Thursday's Treat...Broiled Eggplant with melted Pepper Jack Cheese!

Ingredients:
-eggplant
-olive oil
-cheese
-balsamic vinegar
-salt
-lemon pepper
-oregano
-Sazon Tropical (or any fav herbs)

In a large boil add 1 1/2tbsps of Balsamic Vin, 3tbsps of olive oil, 1/4tsp of oregano, pinch of salt, lemon pepper to your liking, Sazon Tropical to your liking. Mix well and set aside. Take 2 large eggplants cut in half then slice again in 1/4 or 1/2 inch pieces depends on how many you are serving and with your cooking brush coat the eggplant or just dip in the mix. Make sure both sides are coated evenly. Using your baking tray spray Pam or whatever non stick method you use and lay pieces out evenly. Set broiler for 6 minutes turn and set for another 4 minutes this time adding a small slice of your favorite cheese I used Pepper Jack. When cheese begins to bubble shut off and remove. Allow lite cooling and serve with salad Delish! Great new show and happy tummy enjoy :)

Always stress free xo,

Mari 

Wheat Pasta & Sautéed Eggplants

Happy Thursday! 

Getting back into the swing of things in my kitchen and put this together the other night after a long day of errands. I realized I over did it on the sugar this past Summer so now have to get back on my clean eating train and really stick to better choices.

Quick veggies and things that add fiber to your diet is an awesome way to start "cleaning" the pallet as they say.

Thursday's Treat...Wheat Pasta & Sautéed Eggplants!

Ingredients: 

-wheat pasta

-eggplants

-sweet peppers

-scallions

-salt

-Adobo

-garlic powder

-olive oil

In a large bowl take 2 medium eggplants wash and cut into cube size, 5 small sweet peppers chopped to your preference size, 2 medium scallions chopped add pinch of salt, 2tbsps of Adobo, 1 1/2tbsps of garlic powder, 2 tbsps of olive oil coat everything very well set aside. Heat a large skillet on medium adding 1 1/2tbsps of olive oil again and add veggies when skillet is ready. Cover and cook for 10 minutes.

Ten minutes in cook your pasta as you normally would, it could be any type of wheat pasta I used the spiral shape this time. I used half a bag so I can have left overs. As that cooks turn your veggies if tender done if not cook for another 10 minutes and your down.

Serve over your pasta add some herbs or grated low fat cheese if you wish, Delish!

Now I must be transparent and say that wheat pasta is an acquired taste. It takes some time to adjust to texture it is not like regular pasta but as with anything once you find a recipe that works for you if it helps incorporate healthier choices you can totally do it. If you have a trick you can share I'd love to hear. I am still working on Brown rice...that's a tough one for me.

Enjoy!

Always stress free xo,

Mari

Eat Chocolate!

This has to be the funniest Brainsparker I've come across yet.  

When Life gets too serious think of this, enjoy.

illustration by globalinfodirect.com

you tube

illustration by pinterest.com

Always stress free xo,

Mari

Ground Turkey Sloppy Joes Italian style

Happy Thursday!
September is upon us and its my Birth month so I'll be celebrating daily lol. That will mean less days in my kitchen but over the weekend while I organized a few things at home I decided to try this recipe out with some ground turkey I had in fridge.

Thursday's Treat...Ground Turkey Sloppy Joes Italian style

Ingredients: 
-ground turkey
-pasta sauce
-olive oil
-sweet peppers
-oregano
-onion powder
-crushed red pepper flakes
-spinach

One of the reasons I love ground Turkey is because it cooks down quickly, that and I rarely eat red meats or pork. In a large bowl I mixed 2 lbs of ground turkey, 2tbsps onion powder (you can use handful of chopped red onions I just didn't have any in hand), 2tbsps ground oregano, 1 1/2tbps crushed red pepper flakes,handful spinach and 6 small sweet peppers cut to bite sizes.

Heat large skillet on medium add 2tbsps of olive oil add ground turkey mix and cook 8 minutes add sauce cook 10 minutes.

I was organizing I totally forgot to take pic of my prep sorry :(

Use your toaster oven on broiler setting, spoon meat on bread add cheese cook till melted about 4 minutes Done! It was another delish quick meal for me and my organizing went well too :) I used my leftovers after lil mama ate to make a wrap the next day.

Always stress free xo,

Mari

Roasted Potatoes w/ a side Salad

Good morning! August is almost wrapping up still making the most of this beautiful Summer.
Yesterday was my grandmothers 93rd Birth Day and she really had me laughing out loud which is an awesome thing since some days can be a real pain. I bought her some balloons and Carvel mini saucer Ice Cream cakes and sang her Happy Birthday and I got two things back..."who are you and why are you singing?" I answered her and she made a face and said "who told you I am that old?" I told her that her birth certificate told me and she made another face so I said "oh if it's wrong ok then let's eat cake." This was the best mug she gave me she wasn't feeling picture time.

Anyways...over the weekend wanted to catch up on some movies I watched Bad Moms hilarious! Then I watched Bastille Day with Idris Elba, need I say more...No. I wanted to again to keep things lite in the kitchen and made this for an early dinner.

Thursday's Treat...Roasted Potatoes with a side Salad!

Ingredients:
-medium size red potatoes
-olive oil
-salt
-favorite seasoning/herbs
-salt
-1 large avocado
-6 mini sweet peppers
-favorite greens

I washed and cut my red potatoes in 1inch cubes you can use your favorite type mine just happens to be red I find they cook faster. In a large bowl I added 3tbsps olive oil, 1/2tbsp of parsley, 1/2tbsp of garlic n pepper seasoning and a pinch of salt. I mixed them well and set aside. I prepared my baking tray with a spray of Pam. Turned toaster oven on to 400 degrees for 45 minutes. Layed the potatoes out evenly on the tray and off they went. I used 8 potatoes because lil mama was coming over with her friend after work and wanted to leave them some plus I wanted leftovers.

Half way through I mixed them around and 45minutes later I was done.
I grabbed a handful of baby spinach, cut up a few slices of avocado, a few slices of sweet peppers sprinkled some Balsamic V and off to my movies I went. delish! The roasted potatoes had great blend of flavors and a lite crunch on the potatoe skin.

Hope you enjoy this simple share and baby #2 pic to brighten your day. Can you imagine yourself at 93?!

Always stress free xo,

Mari

Barbecue Tofu & Spaghetti

Happy Thursday! Still enjoying the Summer days and keeping it simple in my kitchen.
Being that I love just about anything cheese or cheese related I have been researching other options because well anything in abundance is just not good for you. I've settled on Tofu because if cooked properly it takes on just about any flavor or form you want.
I wanted to kick up my pasta dish and I didn't want to use cheese so I found this recipe tweaked it to fit my home and here it is.

Thursday's Treat...Barbecue Tofu & Spaghetti!

Ingredients:
-firm tofu
-pasta
-bbq sauce
-garlic powder or cloves
-onion powder or red onions
-olive oil
-salt

-plum tomatoes

-mushrooms or other veggie

Cook your pasta, I chose Spaghetti, to your liking which for me is 12 minutes. I used 2 packs of firm tofu removed the water and cut into 1 inch squares, took handful of mushrooms and sliced 1/4 inch and set aside. In a large skillet on medium heat I added 2tbsps olive oil, 2tbsps garlic powder, 2tbsps onion powder and a pinch of salt. As it simmered I added the tofu and mushrooms and covered for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes I add BBQ sauce to my liking which was 1 cup and cooked another ten minutes.

Served with additional plum tomatoes as another topping, Delish! Great flavor lite no heavy sauce or oils very tasty and easy clean up. Enjoy!

Always stress free xo,

Mari

Squash Pizza

Good Morning! Enjoying the warm weather so keeping out of the kitchen as much as possible. Had a rainy day recently so stayed in did some web browsing and caught up on some movies. Decided to try this recipe I came across using some new veggies I picked up called Delicata Squash. They fit right in your hand a nice size for this tasty treat.

Thursday's Treat...Squash Pizza!

Ingredients:
-squash (small size)
-olive oil
-pasta sauce
-parm cheese
-mozzarella cheese
-plum tomatoes
-oregano
-garlic salt or powder

As I said I just came across these small Delicata squashes in my grandma's neighborhood and thought sizes were great for some healthy pizza treat. I used 4 small ones cut half length size placed them in a large bowl sprinkled 1tbsp of garlic salt or powder whichever you have handy and 1 1/2 tbsp of olive oil. I coated the squash thoroughly and set aside. I turned my toaster oven on to 350 degrees for 25 minutes. I used a cotton ball to coat the baking tray with remaining olive oil from the bowl. I laid squash pieces skin side down add sauce, cheeses and tomatoes to your preference. I used 1tbsp for sauce and cheeses and placed tray in toaster oven.

Twenty five minutes later look at my tasty treat. I ate them with some mini pretzels and lemon water as I had fun on my Ipad and left the rest for lil mama. Delish, filling and easy peasie. Clean up was just as fast. Enjoy!

Always stress free xo,

Mari

Baked Chicken w/ Grilled Sweet Potatoes & Cilantro Vinaigrette

Happy Thursday everyone hope all is good. Came across this recipe while at the office on Tuesday. I wanted to make something tasty for me and lil mama to have before our Summer Pretty Little Liars season premier. I tweaked to my liking and what was available here goes...

Thursday's Treat...Baked Chicken w/ Grilled Sweet Potatoes & Cilantro Vinaigrette

Ingredients:
-chicken breasts
-sweet potatoes
-olive oil
-cilantro
-lemon juice
-honey
-garlic powder
-sazon accent
-sea salt
-oregano
-adobo

I was so excited to try this I didn't take a full picture of tray with all of what I used but list def provides the info I started by prepping the meat as usual. In a large bowl with my 4 pieces of chicken breasts I added 2tbsps honey, 2tbsps adobo, packet of Sazon accent, 2tbsps oregano, 1tbsp of olive oil and a pinch of sea salt and I mixed it very well making sure every inch of the chicken pieces were coated. I set it aside.

I boiled some water in a medium pot added another pinch of salt and 4 pieces of medium size sweet potatoes and boiled for 25 minutes. At the same time I turned on my toaster oven and set to 350 degrees for an hour. I used a baking tray, aluminum foil and sprayed some Pam on sheet layed out the pieces and got those going. Once the sweet potatoes were soft I removed them from the water and let cool for a few minutes before I cut them into 1/4 inch circular slices.

In a medium boil I mixed 2 tbsps of olive oil and a pinch of sea salt mixed well and used a cooking brush to coat all the slices of sweet potatoes so they would not stick on the grill. I turned my George Foreman grill on, spray some Pam and set to 325 for 8 minutes or when grill marks are visible.

By this time my chicken was done, I had checked with my meat thermometer and had it set on warm.
In a medium plastic cup I mixed 2 tbsp chopped cilantro, 2tbsps honey, 1tbsp lime juice, 1tbsp olive oil, 1/2 tbsp garlic salt. This was my vinaigrette. Removed my sweet potatoes, served and done!

The blended flavors were music to my mouth, the cilantro and honey mix was delish! The sweet potatoes were tender and also very flavorful was happy I had leftovers for a salad to take to work the next day. A hit with lil mama and just in time for another exciting episode of PLL. Enjoy.

Always stress free xo,

Mari

Not really a Cobb Salad Salad

Happy Thursday!

As the weather gets warmer I spend less and less time in my kitchen and when I am there I try to get out fast. I really look forward to my walks in the park after a full day of sitting in front of a screen and talking on the phone with clients. It feels nice to just stroll and people watch and listen to some music. The other night I came in and decided to go with a salad. No meat, no poultry, no fish no hassle.

Thursday's Treat...Not really a Cobb Salad Salad

Ingredients: 

-sweet corn

-spinach leaves

-plum tomatoes

-cucumbers

-eggs

served 4

In a large bowl I added 1 can of sweet corn, handful and a half of spinach leaves already washed, 1 1/2 cup of plum tomatoes cut in halves, 1 large cucumber sliced 1/4 inch pieces, 6 eggs hard boiled cooked for 12 minutes.

Mixed all together and done! I didn't add any herbs or seasonings or dressing to the actual bowl I let everyone serve themselves and add what they wanted. I had some left over chicken thighs that one of my guests decided to use as well. I used pinch of sea salt and 1 tbsp of Balsamic Vinaigrette on mine. Enjoy!

Delish, quick & easy and most important...

Always stress free xo, 

Mari

Penne w/ Eggplant & Tomatoes

Good Morning everyone! I found this recipe online and tweaked it to fit what I had available last night so here's my share.

Thursday's Treat...Penne w/ Eggplant & Tomatoes!

Ingredients:
-penne pasta
-eggplant
-plum tomatoes
-olive oil
-garlic
-Parmesan cheese

6 servings

Cook pasta as normally would I did 1 whole box of small Penne on med heat for 10 minutes. As that cooked I cut 1 large Eggplant into slices than into 1/4 pieces, 2 handfuls of small plum tomatoes cut in halves and set aside. When my pasta was done I removed from heat reserved 1 cup of the pasta water and drained rest and transferred to a large bowl. I wiped down the skillet added 1/4 cup olive oil to medium heat when hot added the chopped Eggplant and cooked for 8 minutes, sprinkled 2 tbsps of garlic powder added the tomatoes mixed and covered cooked for 7 minutes or until tomatoes softened. Add your pasta back to skillet mix add some of reserved water mix again and done. I reserved cup just in case but you don't need to use the whole cup. Use enough to avoid dryness.
I served and added some Parm cheese on top, done delish, enough for 5 people and some leftovers Enjoy!

Always stress free xo,

Mari

Baked Corn on the Cob

Happy Thursday!

I got home on Monday to find the building had shut the water off! What! Why?! The notice said it was to repair the water flow. SMH I didn't care I just wanted to make dinner and eat, I was hungry. So because I had no access to water I made the simplest thing I could put my hands on.

Thursday's Treat...Baked Corn on the Cob!

Ingredients:

-corn on the cob

-olive oil

-lemon pepper

-basil

-sage

-parsley

I had three large pieces so I cut each in half. In a bowl I added 2 tbsps olive oil, 2 tbsps lemon pepper, 2 tbsps basil, 2 tbsps sage and 2 tbsps of parsley. The fun part was using my hands to rub the cobs down thoroughly. I used these great precut pieces of aluminum foil I found at my local Dollar store and wrapped each piece placed on baking tray. Turned my toaster oven to 425 degrees for 25 minutes.

That was it. I served them with Avocado, plum tomatoes and cucumber slices. Delish! The corn was so juicy and Lil Mama doesn't like biting into the cob so she sliced the kernels of and it was super quick. Clean up was easy and the water returned just in time too. Enjoy!!!

Always stress free xo

Mari

Shrimps & Roasted Cauliflower

Happy Thursday! Is everyone ready for Mother's Day weekend? I just want a nice quiet day with no responsibilities. I made sure I took care of my grandma's needs last night and this is what I came up with before I headed out.

Thursday's Treat...Shrimps & Roasted Cauliflower
Ingredients:
-shrimps
-cauliflower
-fav herbs or seasoning
-sweet peppers
-cucumbers
-olive oil
-salt

Cut your Cauliflower to nice bite sizes in a bowl add 1/4 cup of olive oil, 3 tbsps of your fav herbs or seasoning and a pinch of salt add your add your sweet peppers cubed at this time as well. The amount depends on your preference, mix well coat all your pieces, place them on baking sheet and set aside. I use my toaster oven and turn to bake @425 for 25 minutes.

I always make sure I have a bag of large or medium shrimps already cooked and deveined in my freezer at all times. It comes in handy for any type of meal you want to make in a jam. I pick them up at BJ's when on sale.
This time around I had the medium ones and used 3 handfuls and seasoned with Adobo and Lemon Pepper boiled them for about 10 minutes till nice and pink. I start this when my Cauliflower has 10 minutes left as well so both done at same time.

When done I served with some cucumbers on the side and some Balsamic Vinaigrette. Tasty, quick & easy healthy delish! Was off to grandma duties in no time. Enjoy.

Always stress free xo

Mari

Eggplant Pizza

Hey! Hope everyone is doing well. I wanted to share a quick recipe I came across a short time ago and wanted to try. I just grabbed what was in the fridge and went to work.

Thursday's Treat...Eggplant Pizza!

Ingredients: 

-eggplant

-pasta sauce

-mozzarella cheese

-plum tomatoes

-parsley

Cut 2 small Eggplants circular side about 1/2 inch thick each piece. Spray PAM or drizzle some olive oil in a baking sheet and lay out the pieces. Bake for 20 minutes at 400 degrees. Remove and add 1 tbsp of pasta sauce to each slice followed by 1 tbsp mozzarella cheese shredded or small cube and a slice or 2 of a plum tomato. I sprinkled some parsley for added flavor. Returned to my toaster oven set to broil for 12 minutes done. Super easy super fast and delish!!! All the greatness of a Pizza without the heavy bread. Enjoy!

Always stress free xo

Mari 

Roasted Eggplant

Happy Thursday!

So have any of you taken the 6 hr defensive driving course? OMG!!! I must confess that when I first began to drive I paid $60.00 for the certificate. It was a three year discount I was in heaven. Then when it came time to renew I had no choice but to actually take the online class. I don't remember it being this painful and long. I was falling asleep on my dinner table for the first part the other night. Yes you can stop and go back but there is soooooo much information covered that if you aren't good at retaining info you are in bad shape.

I got 80% on the first part , 100% on the second and this dish came with my third part...I sat for 3 1/2 hours on this part geez. I was not in the mood for cooking so I just whipped this quick treat for myself.

Thursday's Treat...Roasted Eggplant!

Ingredients:

-eggplant

-olive oil

-salt

-pepper

-adobo

-lemon juice

Take 1 large Eggplant slice 1/2 inch pieces circular then 1/4. In a large bowl add 3 tbsps of Olive oil, 1tbsp lemon juice, pinch of salt, 1tsp pepper, 1/2tbsp adobo or your fav seasoning mix together make sure all your pieces are coated thoroughly. I sprayed Pam on my bake tray and laid the pieces out turned toaster oven to 400 for 30 minutes.

Tasty quick and healthy super fast clean up. I started this section at 6pm finished at 9:30pm with a mini break in between. I took over 113 pics as notes and test was just 5 questions!!! I got 100%. I hope to finish tonight and get my discount and put this behind me for another 3 years.

Enjoy, Always stress free xo

Mari

Baked String Potatoes & Carrots with Steamed Brussel Sprouts

Happy Thursday!

I wanted to share this meal with you guys but was so busy prior to making it I didn't take as many pictures as I usually do. I was on grandma duty and just headed straight to the kitchen when I walked in.

Thursday's Treat..,Baked String Potatoes & Carrots with Steamed Brussels Sprouts!

Ingredients:

-medium size potatoes

-carrots

-brussels sprouts

-honey

-lemon pepper

-salt

-herbs & spices

-Pam / olive oil

I washed 6 medium potatoes and used my handy slicer to cut them into strings I took 5 medium carrots and did the same. In a large bowl I added pinch of salt, 3 tbsps of honey, 2 tbsps of my fav Adobo spice you can use what you like, 1/2 tbsp of lemon pepper mixed it up added my potatoes and carrots till coated very well sprayed some Pam on my baking tray and placed my veggies on the tray.I made sure to spread them out evenly. I baked them in regular oven for 30 minutes at 350.

At the last 12 minutes I took my medium pot filled with 2 cups of water added pinch of salt and 1/2 tbsp of seasoning again bought to a boil and added a handful of my sprouts for about 10 minutes till they were tender when poked with fork. I didn't have my regular steaming tool handy but dropping them in the boiled water worked pretty good too. 

I had some left over chicken breasts I chopped up and heated in Microwave cut up half of an Avocado and done....delish, healthy quick and fun. Lil mama also enjoyed it when she walked in from   school. I was happy that even though I had a very long day I didn't cave into eating take out. Enjoy

Always stress free xo

Mari

Seafood Pasta

Happy Thursday! 

Working on some fun DIY projects can't wait to share in the meantime lets enjoy a nice meal.

Thursday's Treat...Seafood Pasta!

Ingredients:

-bag of Shrimps

-bag of Seafood Medley

-box of spaghetti

-plum tomatoes

-sweet peppers

-butter

-salt

-parsley

-garlic powder 

I always try to make things simple and quick so when I do use bags of Seafood I grab the ones that are already cooked and ready to go. I washed half bag of shrimps and half of medley in cold water then in a large pot I added seafood and pinch of salt and placed on medium heat. Cook for 10/12 minutes or until shrimps and seafood start to turn pinkish in color, add 3tbsps of butter, 11/2 tbsp of garlic powder mix and cook another 5 minutes adding handful of plum tomatoes cut in halves and handful of sweet peppers cut in slices mix well till tender.

As this is cooking prep your pasta (I used Spaghetti #8 this time but you can use what you like or what you have already in your pantry) as you normally would 10/12 minutes, drain water and add to seafood pot, mix well and done. Depending on how many servings of course is amount you use from your box I used whole box I had several people over.

Quick & easy tasty treat plates were bare when everyone was done. Semi healthy I'd say if you turn blind eye to the butter part lol, enjoy! 

Always stress free xo

Mari 

Stuffed Eggplants

Love stuffed shells? My lil mama loves them they are one of her favorite dishes. Today I am sharing another variety I came across on a great dish.

Thursday's Treat...Stuffed Eggplants

Ingredients:
-medium size Eggplants
-ricotta cheese
-olive oil
-parm cheese
-mozzarella cheese
-sauce
-parsley
-pepper

I used 2 medium sized Eggplants to serve 3 people. I cut the ends then sliced a little less than 1/2 inch
set aside and in a large skillet added 3tbsps of olive oil the placed my slices of eggplants for about 5 minutes on each side enough for them to be soft enough to roll. Half way through I had to add a little bit more oil to cook because I always find that eggplants soak up the oil pretty quickly.

As that was cooking I took a large bowl added 1 24oz tub of ricotta cheese,  1/2 cup parm cheese,

1/2 cup mozzarella cheese(cut into small slices) and a pinch of pepper. I mixed it all together and set aside. I turned my toaster oven to 350 degrees and set timer for 30 minutes. Took baking tray and poured 1/2 jar of my fav Ragu sauce you can of course use your own fav. Set aside, took my slices of Eggplant out of skillet and placed on plate to prep for rolling.

I scooped 1 tbsp of ricotta mix in the center and folded 1 end and rolled over to the other end. I did this with about 12 slices then topped with mozzarella cheese and a little more ricotta (we just like cheese lol). Placed each roll on tray and 30 minutes later...Viola!                  

This was so delish I wish I had made more but it was totally filling and it wasn't totally a just healthy dish but once in a while a cheese party isn't so bad not to mention you can always substitute some things to work for you and your fam. That's the joy of cooking right plus moderation is key no need to deprive yourself of what you love. I find that if you have a tough customer with Eggplant taste this is good starter because the texture is soft. I'm glad I found this recipe and gave it a try, enjoy!

Always stress free xo

Mari