Seven Scrumptious Ways to Enjoy Strawberries

It's berry season here in Michigan, and I couldn't be more excited! One of my favorite things to do with the boys in the summer is pick fresh berries - strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries - we pick 'em all!

Last year we picked at a farm right by our house, which was convenient, but the berries weren't the sweetest. This year we drove north a bit and found a fun farm with the juiciest strawberries, ice cream, and a small petting zoo.

The boys were each given a small basket to put their picked strawberries in, then they added theirs into my big basket. Matt, of course, was a big helper! He's 4, but for the majority of his life, he has turned play time into work time. I blame his dad. ;) It's a great quality to have though, especially in this situation. He emptied his basket into mine 4 or 5 times! Ty had fun too, although he didn't pick as many as the worker bee.  In the end, we picked 11 pounds of fresh strawberries. Afterwards we ate ice cream for lunch (don't judge!) and loved on the baby pigs, sheep, goats, cow and bunny a little, before heading home.

 

That afternoon I got to work hulling and slicing strawberries in preparation for recipes that I had in my head. I've compiled a few recipes for you all to enjoy!

Recipe

Freezing Strawberries

 

 

 

Strawberry Pie

I imagine you just dip in yogurt and freeze.

Strawberry Shortcake Bars

Easy Freezer Jam

Strawberry Mojitos

I personally can't wait to make a mojito and drink is with a slice of fresh strawberry pie!

Happy hump day!

Freezer Meal Swap with Friends

In March, four of my friends and I decided to start a freezer meal swap, initiated by my friend Kristin. Out of the five of us, three are pregnant. Nope, I'm not one of the three -- no news here on that front! However this will make life easier for all of us.

We swapped our first round of meals in the beginning of March. It was a fun & relaxing couple of hours of girl time. I stopped at Starbucks on my way, and sipped on my Caramel Machiatto while we chatted about life and a little about our meals. I made Healthy Mama BBQ Chicken, and kept one for our family. That day I came home with:

Shepherds Pie

Tomato Basil Bique

Black Bean Taco Soup

& Black Bean and Sweet Potato Chili

They were all delicious meals! I actually made the Shepherds Pie that night, because I had nothing else planned. The other meals I spread out, one for each week of March. It was so nice not to think beyond moving the bag from the freezer to the fridge the night before. Besides the Shepherds Pie, they were all crock pot meals, so I was able to dump the bag into the crock pot and go on with my day.  Every meal also provided leftovers for lunches - another thing off my mind for the day. 

For April, we had our swap at Kristin's daughter's 3rd birthday party this past Saturday. This month, I made Paleo Crockpot Meatballs, but I assured all of the girls that once they put them over noodles, and ate the Rosemary Olive Oil Bread from Costco that I also froze, these wouldn't be so Paleo-friendly. Not that there's anything wrong with that! Again, I froze another dozen meatballs and bread for our family, and I came home that night with:

Beef Stew

White Chicken Chili

Stuffed Peppers

& Burritos (the size of my head)

I plan to make the White Chicken Chili for dinner tonight. We'll have plenty of leftovers for when my husband comes back from his business trip. :)

Have you ever done a freezer meal swap with friends or family?

Linking Up To:

I Heart Nap Time - Link Party Palooza #35

Lolly Jane - Sunday Soiree Link Party

DIY Show Off - That DIY Party

Our Favorite Meatloaf

Whenever we have company coming over for dinner I try to make something that everyone will enjoy. This recipe has been a hit particularly with my in-laws. Maybe because this family's full of men! 6 grandsons so far...

I think the first time I had meatloaf was when I first made this recipe. It kind of grossed me out to be honest. But then I thought about it, and meatloaf is pretty much a slice of hamburger without the bun, and full of lots of flavor!

My husband is an avid deer hunter, so our freezer is always stocked with venison, a naturally lean meat. So lean that we have to have pork fat added to the ground venison so that it will stay together. Last year 10% was added, but this year we cut it down to 5%... much better! I suppose venison is something I've gotten used to over time, but really the flavor isn't that different from beef, especially when seasoned and prepared well.

I've adapted this recipe from Cooking Light. The recipes they offer fit right in with my real-solution for 2014. I like to serve steamed broccoli or green beans and a baked potato with this meatloaf.

Italian Meatloaf with Fresh Basil & Provolone
Adapted from Cooking Light

1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, packed without oil 
1/2 cup ketchup
1 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
3/4 cup finely chopped onion
3/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded sharp provolone chese
2 large egg whites
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound ground venison (or ground beef)
Cooking Spray
1/3 cup ketchup

 1. Combine the boiling water and tomatoes in a bowl; let stand for 30 minutes or until soft. Drain and finely chop tomatoes.
2. Preheat over to 350*.
3.Combine chopped tomatoes, 1/2 cup ketchup, and next 7 ingredients in a large bowl. Shape meat mixture into a cookie sheet coated with cooking spray. Spread 1/3 cup ketchup over meatloaf. Insert a meat thermometer into the loaf. Bake at 350* for 1 hour or until thermometer registers 160*. Let stand 10 minuted before slicing. Cut into 12 slices.

This recipe is easily doubled. I made two loaves, baked both, and froze one. Just thaw the frozen loaf in the refrigerator overnight and heat at 350* for about 30-45 minutes, and enjoy!

My "REAL-solution" for 2014

**knock, knock, knock**

Anyone still out there?

I apologize for the major lack of posts. It's been months, and we've been busy! And to be quite honest, blogging is difficult when you have a young family. I'm not sure how people do it all. They must not sleep much. And I for one am not willing to give up a whole lot of my sleep. My family would suffer greatly.

So anyway, it's a new year, and you know what that means... resolution time! It's funny, I'm actually not a huge fan of resolutions, but I seem to make one every year. Last year I really wanted to work on taking my boys out somewhere new and/or fun once a week. I think I did pretty well. We visited our local Children's Museum a few times (I didn't say we couldn't do something twice!), went to some sporting events in our town, and in the summer and fall we visited a lot of farms to pick berries, apples, and pumpkins. You can't beat a few hours of fresh air and sunshine to ensure a long nap for the little ones!

So building on our farm tours, my 2014 resolution is to eat more REAL foods (hence the REAL-solution). I always try hard to make sure my family eats healthy, but we still consume more processed foods than I'd like. I feel like I'm already half-way there, so this isn't a total lifestyle change for us. But I know there are certain foods we eat often (salad dressings, cereals, fruit snacks!) that I'd like to replace with a simple, homemade version.

Thankfully there are some wonderful blogs out there that make this step in the right direction easier for the rest of us! I'll be starting out the year by using their recipes and meal plans, and I hope to convert some of my favorites and share them with you. Below is a list of Real Food blogs I'll be referencing:

100 Days of Real Food
I think this is my favorite, and the most helpful Real Food blog out there. She explains her reasoning and gives samples meal plans, as well as a ton more recipes to use.

Real Food Real Deals
She breaks down the price per serving in her recipe posts. I made the homemade sloppy joes the other night for my family and my sister's family, and everyone seemed to like them! Simple recipe, but popular with most kids!

Green Plate Rule
I'm excited that she just posted a new recipe for the first time in about 8 months (see - I'm not the only one!). There is a great recipe bank on this blog, as well as prepping tips and "clean" grocery store finds.

I hope not to go too long between posts again! I actually already have my next one done, you'll just have to wait for it to be delivered to your inbox. ;) Oh, and maybe I'll actually show the completed photos of our living room redo, ha!

Happy New Year! (half-way through January...)