clean eats // chocolate energy bites

so i talk a big game about clean eating & cutting out processed foods but what does it all mean if it never goes on my blog?  i mean what is the point of living if we're not sharing everything on social media, right?  i kid, i kid.

but seriously.  make these.  i think we've gone through about three batches in the last couple weeks & we're not slowing down on them anytime soon.  my kids love clif bars & z-bars & all those snacky things but with so many good recipes out there i wanted to attempt to find a replacement.  this is our replacement.  and with sam being the mathematical guru he is, we set out to figure out how much these cost to make per ball to see just how worth replacing store-bought bars it really was.  we calculated about $0.50 a ball.  not too shabby!

here's what you need:

mix it all up, refrigerate overnight & enjoy!

chicken noodle soup from scratch & days when you feel like your head is gonna fall off.

so when i say "from scratch" i definitely don't mean i made the noodles too... let's not get crazy.  but yes, i pride myself as of late on being able to whip up a pretty killer batch of chicken noodle soup.  it's kind of a process but once you start making your own you'll never be able to go back to store bought or worse yet, canned.  blech.

today called for some comfort food in the form of warm noodle-y soup.  parker & elliot are both fighting a nasty cough/cold & no one got a whole lot of sleep last night.  it's tough seeing your kids sick but it's especially tough when one of them can't tell you what exactly hurts & instead just cries & cries & cries.  not only does the crying physically raise a mom's blood pressure {what is up with that anyway??} it really makes me want to shove handfuls of chocolate in my mouth or make muffins or eat cookie dough.  not the best coping mechanism, right?

so instead i made a big fat pot of chicken noodle soup.  who doesn't like chicken noodle soup when they're sick?  and this recipe makes it so warm & creamy & delicious.  so since i seem to be on a roll with the posts, i thought i'd share my methods.  it's pretty basic & not a whole lotta fluff.  if you know some amazing secrets that takes your soup to the next level, be sure to share 'em in the comments!

and now i'm off to go scoop up my crying eighteen month old out of his crib after a 45 minute short lived nap.  hey winter cold season, i am SO over you!!


amy's scratch chicken noodle soup:

- 1 or 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 2 large carrots, skinned & chopped
- 2 stalks of celery, cleaned & chopped
- chicken bouillon or 2-3 (or 4?) cups of chicken stock
- about 3 cups of egg noodles
- 1 can cream of chicken soup

cut up the chicken into chunks & throw it into about 2-3 cups of water.  bring the water to a boil & let the chicken cook until it's easily shredded (like 10-15 minutes ish? maybe longer?)

cook the noodles according to package's directions, take them out & drain 'em.  set them aside for now.

fill up a large saucepan with 3-4 cups of chicken broth {i use water + bouillon} and throw in your veggies.  bring the broth to a boil & cook about 10 minutes or so, until veggies are tender.

your chicken should be cooked & shredded now, dump it in with the veggies, including the water it was cooking in {it's ok if a lot of it has boiled off by now}.  add in your noodles.

last, stir in the can of cream of chicken soup & let everything simmer until you're ready to serve.

enjoy!

p.s. as good as this was, i still realllllllly want some cookie dough. geeze!

clean{ish} pick of the week | bbq chicken pizza

mmmmm, pizza.  who doesn't love pizza?  besides parker.  and my sister in law jodi {who i think brainwashed parker into not liking pizza}.  but seriously, so good.  this recipe comes from my own head & was inspired by the bbq chicken pizza at cheesecake factory.  that's where the idea for red onions & cilantro comes from. delish.  the addition of fresh pineapple comes from experience of making homemade pizza, it's a must!

ok... so yes, this one is clean-ish.  i say "clean-ish" because i cheated... a little.  sometimes you gotta just go with convenience right?  we used a pre-made whole wheat pizza dough from trader joe's & a bottled bbq sauce.  but, if you want to make your own sauce this one looks pretty tasty.

whole wheat bbq chicken pizza

--> trader joe's whole wheat pizza dough {or whatever dough you prefer}
--> bbq sauce {we use sweet baby ray's but you could use the clean recipe i posted above}
-->cheese {we use quattro formaggio from trader joe's - raw milk & no hormones, a mix of parmesan, asiago, fontina & mild provolone.  yum}
--> shredded {cooked} chicken
--> red onion
--> cilantro
--> fresh pineapple
--> oregano
--> ...and more cheese!

assembly is pretty self explanatory.  cook according to dough directions until crust is golden brown & cheese is melty.  SO GOOD.

do you have yummy pizza recipes?  let's hear 'em!

enjoy!

{to see my other clean eating favorites click here}

clean eats pick of the week | fish tacos w/ lime cilantro slaw

boo-ya, week two ya'll!  i'm two for two & i didn't even think i could do it.

i'm continuing on in sharing my favorite clean recipes here on the blog because the more we delve into this whole foods & clean eating stuff, the more obsessed i'm finding myself become with it.  i can't get enough tasty fresh food!

this week's recipe is another from the emeals.com menu.  every week i open up my menu planner email from them with the week's meals & read through them like it's christmas morning.  isn't that lame?  but it's kinda fun to see what new things will be on there & i've been having a blast learning how to cook a few new things.  for example, have you ever cooked with leeks before?  last week i made a baked potato & leek soup that was basically amazing.  will definitely be making that one again, fo sho.

anywho, this week i'm sharing this fish taco recipe & the thing that makes this bad boy blog worthy?  the lime cilantro slaw.  freaking delish.  here ya go.

slaw:
- 2 tbsp sour cream
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- dash of salt
- 1/2 small head green cabbage, thinly sliced
- 2 green onions, chopped
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro

fish:
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 lb tilapia fillets, thawed
- 1/4 tsp pepper

tacos:
- whole wheat taco size tortillas
- avocado
- tomato
- black beans
- cotija cheese {<-- dudes, best cheese EVER}
- whatever else you like on your tacos

directions:
- combine sour cream, lime juice, cumin & salt in a large bowl.  add cabbage, green onions & cilantro, tossing well to coat.  refrigerate until ready to use.

- heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  sprinkle tilapia with a dash of salt & some pepper.  add tilapia to skillet & cook 2 minutes per side.  remove from heat & flake fish with a fork into large chunks.

- heat tortillas in skillet until warm & crisp. fill with fish, slaw mixture & all the other fixins.  also, try to work the word "slaw" into as much of your conversation as you can while making these... because doesn't it just sound so appetizing?

enjoy!

{to see my other clean eating favorites, click HERE}

amy's clean eats pick of the week | apple, goat cheese, walnut salad

so i set some goals a few posts back to make myself a priority & help get "myself" back.  and unlike a lot of my goal setting (what? goals are hard!) it's actually been going pretty good.  i registered to run a 10k & have been running 3x a week per a training plan.  i have cut a lot of the crap from my diet & am subscribed to a meal planning service called emeals.com & am using their "clean eating" plan.  it's going awesome.

ok, long story short, i wanna start sharing a meal a week or so from our menu here on the blog.  a clean recipe that is good & worth making.  eating healthy & fresh foods is totally doable!  so... here's week one.

apple, goat cheese, walnut salad w/ honey, orange, maple dressing

haha, enjoy the descriptive name?  i had to include everything!  here we go:

salad:
-mixed baby greens
-1 small granny smith apple, peeled & diced
-1 oz. goat cheese
-1/4 c. chopped walnuts

dressing:
-1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
-2 tsp. freshly squeezed orange juice
-1 tsp. Dijon mustard
-1 tsp. maple syrup
-1/4c olive oil

it's pretty self self-explanatory beyond that.  mix it all up accordingly & eat!  i didn't know i was such a big fan of goat cheese.  on its own, it's not the best.  but combined with the sweetness of the apple & the dressing?  so delish.

enjoy!  now go eat something healthy.

fall. in cookie form.

ok, have i talked these cookies up enough?

maybe it's not just the cookies themselves that are so amazing, but the feeling of being in your toasty warm home when it's dark & rainy out & football is on & the house is all lit up with warm lights & you have a batch of these bad boys baking in the oven... it just feels like... FALL.

but also?  it's the cookies.  they're kind of a big deal around here.

•  wet stuff:  1/2 cup butter, 1.5 cup sugar, 1 egg, 1 tsp vanilla

•  dry stuff:  2.5 cups flour, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp baking powder, 1.5 tsp cinnamon, 1.5 tsp nutmeg, 1 tsp salt.

•  1 cup pureed pumpkin, 1 cup chocolate chips

*sidenote:  i never said these cookies were a health food.  but if you do feel like cutting out some calories/fat/cholesterol, substitute the 1/2 cup butter for 1/4 cup applesauce + 1/4 cup butter, & sub the egg for 2 egg whites.  you won't really tell a difference... but it is kinda annoying to do the extra steps.  just sayin.

i always use my mixer for these.  i throw the wet stuff in the mixer & mix well, then put all the dry stuff in a bowl & sift well.  easy peasy.  

this is an important step.  you have to add the dry ingredients to your wet ones alternately with your pumpkin.  so add a cup of your dry ingredients, mix, then half a cup of your pumpkin, mix, then repeat with the rest.  it just works better that way.

mix in some chocolate chips & now we're talkin.  {with our mouths full of cookie dough, of course.}

i usually use an ice cream scoop & drop dough balls on the sheet in about 1" chunks.  they look like they're gonna be teeny but they puff up quite a bit.  plus, smaller cookies have less calories so you can eat more.  duh.

throw them in your oven at 350* & bake until the bottoms just start to get golden.  in my oven it never takes a second over 10 minutes, but it runs hot.  so just watch them.  

now, you can go ahead & eat a few fresh from the oven if you want.  but take it from me, these cookies are better the next day.  it's weird but true.  something about the way the chocolate hardens up & the flavors of the cinnamon & nutmeg come out after cooling down.  so save some for the next day if you can!

i promise you won't be disappointed.

votes never disappoint.

there better be pizza in heaven.

because if not?  i might have to reconsider being as good as i've been being.  cause i've been being pretty good.

i could probably eat pizza everyday.  i may have to mix up the varieties, but i could probably eat a pizza in some form on any given day & be a happy camper.  but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that pizza is generally not the calorie-counter-health-nut-wannabe's best friend.  at least, not most pizzas.  but it CAN be.  and it could be.  and in my mind, it is.

we've made personal pizzas many times using pita bread & it's always delicious.  but i needed more.  i needed a real crust & real bread to bite my teeth into & maybe even just the feeling of accomplishment from saying i've made a pizza from scratch.  so i did.

behold, my first homemade pizza.  it started with a blob of dough.

ok, i cheated.  sue me.  i bought pre-made dough from trader joe's for $1.29.  really though?  why would i want to make my own when i can see that their's consists of like three ingredients that i recognize & it is {pretty much} all ready to go straight out of the package?  i'd be wasting everybody's time if i didn't.

now this is where i get mad.  i took all sorts of pizza-making-pictures that were gonna look really cool all side by side.  a picture with each layer of food that i layered.  but somehow, my computer decided to delete them.  we've been having computer issues & i don't wanna talk about it.

but you can probably imagine what happened between these two pictures right?  lots of food layering, some bite sneaking taste testing, & some baking,

this pizza's ingredients:  trader joe's whole wheat pizza dough, trader joe's pizza sauce, mushrooms, sweet italian chicken sausage, greenish/yellowish peppers {i have no idea what that pepper is... sidestory: sam brought home a HUGE box of peppers that a co-worker gave him.  and he got them from some farm stand in yakima.  i know, it's random}, & cheese.  pretty basic.  but i do love me a sausage & mushroom pizza... so, so much.

it was freaking delicious.  and the amount of flour that i got all over myself while rolling out the dough made me feel super domestic & i looked totally legit.  so i will probably never attempt to make my own dough as long as i live.  you had me at $1.29, trader joe's.

so this is now becoming a regular thing.  and i need suggestions for topping combos to keep the fellas on their toes.  i really wanna try a chicken sausage/ricotta cheese pizza.  and i might just lick the ricotta off the top of the pizza... that's allowed when you made it, right?

send me your pizza expertise people!

this pizza was parker approved.  you can tell because if you look really close, you can see the sauce he's saving for later above his lip.  and maybe all over his shirt too.

votes are also parker approved.  always.

cookies, cameras, & steppin' out saturday {on sunday}

it's been a great weekend.  it started off with a bang on friday night with a late night dq blizzard run in our jammies {go crazy!}, followed by a lazy saturday morning, then a two year old's birthday party {happy birthday kaylee!}, and then some good family time the rest of saturday {read: naps, grocery shopping, & dexter marathon}.  good times.

i also made a batch of my favorite this-time-of-year cookie, pumpkin chocolate chip.  seriously theeee best fall-ish treat.  maybe this is the third batch i've made in two weeks.  maybe.

i think everyone should make these cookies, because they are to. die. for.   they're actually yummier the day after you make them, because the chocolate chips get all hard & the cookie is still super soft & moisty.  yum. 

pumpkin chocolate-chip cookies

ingredients:
1/2 cup butter                                 2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cup sugar                               1 tsp. baking powder
1 egg                                               1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp vanilla                                    1 tsp. salt
1 cup pureed pumpkin                    1 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 cup chocolate chips                     1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

directions:
1.  combine butter, sugar, egg, vanilla & mix well {i use a mixer, but i'm sure it could be done by hand}
2.  in a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, & cinnamon.  sift.
3.  add half the dry ingredients to butters & sugar.  mix.  now add half the pumpkin. mix.  repeat with the remainders.
4.  mix in chocolate chips.
5.  eat globs of cookie dough.
6.  drop onto cookie sheets in 1" balls.
7.  bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes. {mine never take a second over 10 minutes to bake, but i have a hot oven}

seriously, make these today.  you'll thank me tomorrow {because they're even better on the second day.  it's weird.}

camera update

so i've blogged once or twice {or three hundred times} about how we are saving for a new dslr & how i've been shopping around to see what one to buy.  i thought i had it pinned down to the new nikon d7000 with a kit lens & a 50 mm, but i don't know anymore.  and i'm starting to get overwhelmed by all the options. i think i've changed my mind to a canon, too.  but now i don't know what body/lens combo to go for.

so i need some advice!  what camera do you have?  what lenses do you have/want?  i want a moderate to serious camera with a starting budget of around $1,500.  puh-lease make your recommendations in the comments.  thanks, ya'll.

steppin' out saturday {on sunday}

we didn't do anything this weekend that required dressing up, so this week's steppin' out comes at ya post-church today.  isn't this picture lovely?  parker has taken to shoving my hair in his mouth every chance he gets.  it's gross.

parker

collared button-up shirt - kenneth cole {hand-me down}

navy dress pants - baby gap

shoes - old navy

amy

shirt, tank, skirt, & necklace - american eagle

sweater - target

boots - macy's

to see other what other mamas wore this weekend, hop on over to harper's happenings & check out some other blogs & their hawt mamas.  or better yet, link up your own!  it's fun.  

and with that, it's time for me to go join my little family out in the living room.  we've taken to watching the seasons of arrested development from beginning to end for the ten millionth time.  that show is like, milk-out-your-nose funny every single time.  i never get sick of it & it never fails.  suriously.

your votes never fail to make me happy! just forty more & we're in the top ten. woah.