The Players

So I changed my Blog description - kind of inspired to launch a new My Fair Life so here goes...Blog description is, An Italiano, a boy, a girl... and me.

The Players

Meet the Italiano:

 He is cute eh? You will hear a lot about him on this blog. He is motivated by 3 things...soccer, salami and sex...and not particularly in that order. English isn't his first language and he says really funny things like..."Don't contage me" and "I need to see a Paleontologist" instead of 'periodontist' Yeah he's pretty funny.


 The Boy:

  He's even cuter than the Italiano...He's 7 1/2 - finishing up his 2nd grade year at a Catholic school. He is motivated by soccer, video games, food - Ice cream in particular and questions. He's extremely inquisitive, so much so that when you engage the questions, you realize you will eventually get backed into a corner that you will NEVER get out of! Be aware! It's a humbling experience. You will realize how much you actually know NOTHING about. You know that expression, "If you can't explain it to a 7 year old, you don't really understand it yourself" Yeah...it's like THAT.

 The Girl: 

  Yeah I know...She's the cutest. But deadly. She is motivated by anything that will DRIVE ME BANANAS. She, in her 3 short years, has figured out how to manipulate and control any and every situation. If she can't...well..then...be prepared for WW III. It's a good thing she is this cute. She's also
extremely bright and independent.


 ...and ME 

I'm the author of this here blog. You can read about me in the "ABOUT ME" section. My motivation in life is to make the above three happy and content...and then bitch about it all here. Hope you enjoy.

Turkey Taco Tuesdays

Ok so I haven't posted in a really long time. This blog has really turned into a recipe blog. I love to cook, I love to be creative in the kitchen (MY NEW KITCHEN if you haven't seen check out my facebook photo album Kitchen project) and because people are always asking me for recipes, I like to post it here. Last night in my new kitchen, I made my son's favorite meal...TACOS. Tacos are a GREAT way to get a healthy meal into your child by changing just a few small things. I use soft corn tortillas (better than the hard fried kind). I use organic ground turkey meat instead of ground beef and I NEVER EVER use those taco packets which contain dehydrated everything, and too much sodium and possibly MSG.

Ingredients:
1 lb organic(if you can) ground turkey.
1 onion chopped fine
1 red,yellow or orange pepper chopped
2-3 cloves of garlic pressed or chopped fine
Juice of at least 1 lime
1 chopped plum tomato
1/2 can of tomato paste
a little chicken stock
Lots of chilli powder to taste.

TOPPINGS:
can be anything you want but these are our typical toppings

tomatos
jalepeno
Salsa verde (trader joes makes an awesome one)
Shredded cheese (your favorite)
some kind of green (I substitute arugula or mixed greens for iceberg)
Corn or trader joes corn salsa
low fat sour cream

Brown turkey meat in a pan
add in onion, garlic and peppers until coated and soft
you can add salt and pepper, garlic powder whatever you want
toss in a lot of chilli powder,
juice of the lime
tomato paste and then add some chicken stock to get it all wet and a little sauce.
Cover and let simmer

While the meat is simmering, spray Pam in a frying pan and heat fairly hot. Brown the corn tortilla - not really brown but get them a little toasted on each side. Add Pam in between each tortilla.

I toast 2 at a time and then put on a plate and cover with another plate. While they are toasting cut up your toppings and put all your toppings in ramakins. Voila.

Place meat on tortilla and top with your favorite toppings! YUM!

My 6 year old LOVES them and he gets, protein, good carb, cheese, veg, everything!

Lasagna Soup

Ok so since I posted about the Lasagna Soup on Facebook I've had a lot of requests for the recipe so here it is:

1 lb ground Italian sausage
2 cups onions, chopped
1 cup carrots, chopped
2 cups mushrooms, sliced
2 tbsp garlic, minced
4 cups chicken broth or stock
1 can Italian style stewed tomatoes, chopped (14.5 oz)
1 can tomato sauce (10.75 oz)
1 1/4 cup pasta (penne, mafalda, small sea shells. I use whole wheat organic penne)
2 cups fresh spinach, chopped (about 1/2 of a 6 oz bag)
1 cup provolone or fresh mozzarella cheese, diced (I buy the shredded mozzarella)
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
4 tea. fresh basil, sliced

Procedure: Brown sausage in large pot over medium high heat. Add onions and carrots; saute' 3 minutes.
Stir in mushrooms and garlic, saute' another 3 minutes
Add broth, stewed tomatoes and tomato sauce; bring to boil. Drop in pasta, simmer until cooked, about 10 min. or follow package directions.
Stir in spinach and cook until wilted.
Place 1/4 cup diced cheese (I use the shredded mozzarella) into serving bowls and pour soup on top. Garnish with parmesan and basil. Serve with crusty Italian bread. Makes 4 servings. Buono Appetito!

My notes: You can add dry or fresh basil to the soup along with oregano salt and pepper and a little Tony's. I think I used 6 cloves of garlic (yum!)

Also - when I made this I didn't have spinach or mushrooms - I used Zuchinni and 1/2 of a large red pepper instead and it was delicious! So use what you have in your fridge! I also didn't have a can of tomato sauce - I used 1 large can (28 oz) or diced tomatoes instead.

Meatball Stroganoff

This is super easy and YUMMY! Most of these dishes are the full fat version but you can always substitute lower fat ingredients - I pointed out below!

Ingredients:
1-1/2lb of ground beef or ground turkey (I always use turkey - mom always uses beef)
1 small to medium onion chopped fine (use a food processor if you can)
1 egg beaten
1/4 cup of Italian breadcrumbs
1 can cream of mushroom soup (you can subsitute 98% fat free cream of mushroom soup but it's not as good)
1/4 cup of sour cream (you can substitute low fat or fat free but same as above)
1/4 cup of water
Bag of egg noodles (You can use whole wheat egg noodles too)

Directions:
Mix meat with onion, egg and bread crumbs in a bowl and make meatballs - 1lb makes about 8-10 meatballs. Brown in a skillet in a little vegetable or olive oil.

In a separate bowl, combine sour cream, soup and water and pour over the meatballs. Let cook a little while covered and mix well. Serve over egg noodles.

Butternut Squash Soup

This makes a nice pot of soup - probably enough for 6 ish - or 2 and left overs for days or you can freeze it for a cold winters day!

Ingredients:
1/2 stick to a stick of butter
2 medium to large onions
3 butternut squash
5-6 cups of chicken stock
1/4 pint heavy cream ( the smallest one they make - not sure of exact size)
nutmeg, garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste
5 slices of bacon - more if you like
scallions chopped
sour cream

Directions: Slice Butternut Squash long ways, brush with melted butter and cook face down on cookie sheets covered in foil - I would say 325-350 for probably an hour to hour 1/2 or until completely soft inside.

About an hour in - fry bacon in a pan and set aside on a plate with paper towel.
Chop onions really fine in a food processor, melt butter in a big soup pan and sautee onions until translucent....probably about 10 minutes. When squash are done, scoop out squash and put in soup pan with onions and you can add the chicken stock at this point too. Make sure that the peel of the squash gets thrown away. Simmer for a little while - until hot - and then you can do the next step in one of 2-3 ways....you can pour contents in a separate bowl and spoon into a food processor or blender and blend until smooth and put back in original pan OR you can get a hand/soup blender (about $30 at BBB) and blend right in the pot - either way your goal is to have a smooth soup - at this point I blend in a small 1/4 pint of heavy cream - the smallest it comes in for color and texture. I add nutmeg probably 1-2 tsp, salt, pepper, and a little garlic powder and I let simmer.

When it tastes good to you - plate and garnish with the bacon, scallions and a tsp of sour cream....if you are really fancy you can drop some white truffle oil in a circle to finish

DELISH!

Baked Potato Soup

Instead of green onions I sauteed a yellow onion and 2 cloves of garlic in the pan I fried the bacon in and I substitued 3.5 cups of chicken stock for 3.5 cups of milk (calls for 7 cups of milk - I split in half with chicken stock) also I didn't have cheddar so I used asiago

PREP TIME 15 Min COOK TIME 25 Min READY IN 40 Min SERVINGS (Help) Servings US METRIC

INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)
12 slices bacon (I used bacon AND Pancetta)
2/3 cup margarine (I used butter)
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
7 cups milk (3.5 cups of milk and 3.5 cups of chicken stock i used)
4 large baked potatoes, peeled and cubed (i used red potatoes, probably about 8, peeled 6 of them and boiled them while I was frying the bacon and sauteeing the onions)
4 green onions, chopped (I used a yellow onion chooped in a food processor and sauteed in the bacon with 2 cloves of garlic) - But I used scallions to garnish
1 1/4 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (I used grated Asiago - you can use whatever cheese you fancy)
1 cup sour cream 1 teaspoon salt (to taste)
1 teaspoon ground black pepper (I added some red pepper flakes for a kick)
DIRECTIONSPlace bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium heat until browned. Drain, crumble, and set aside. In a stock pot or Dutch oven, melt the margarine over medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth. Gradually stir in milk, whisking constantly until thickened. Stir in potatoes and onions. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Mix in bacon, cheese, sour cream, salt, and pepper. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until cheese is melted.

Garnish with bacon, scallions, grated cheese and sour cream - and it's even better the next day!

Recipe Posts

Ok - so because I've been waiting to give birth I have been cooking...a...lot...and I've been posting what I've been cooking in my facebook status and everyone keeps asking me for receipes...so I thought the best way to share with everyone is to just post them on my blog so that you guys can pick and choose what you want to try. So what will follow are receipes that I've tried and LOVED and those that people have epressed an interest it.

I'll do each separately and title them what they are and label them as recipes so if it gets to be sooo much you guys can find it easily - also expect to see pics of the new baby...if she ever decides to JOIN us AAGH

Jessica

My Rockstar

So Nico and Danny I have taken to watching American Idol together. Nico LOVES it. Here's his version of Pink's Rockstar:

Ski Nico

So this weekend we went skiing in the Berkshires with our good friends Lisa and Renaud and thier 4 year old Juliette. Well - I should say Danny, Renaud, Nico and Juju went skiing. It was Nico's first time on skis and we lied and said he was 4. They didn't believe us but took him anyway and I'm soo glad they did. He did SOOOO well. I was a proud mama. I've posted a bunch of short videos of him coming down the skiwee slope. Enjoy!

Buzz Lightyear

So my neighbor came over on Sunday with a Buzz Lightyear costume for Nico. He was so excited I could barely get the thing off him to potty and take a bath. This video is what ensued last night on my couch

More Pictures from Christmas

Nico getting ready to ride the train, a stop in the city and the tree!

Christmas 2008

So This Christmas we spent in New Jersey. My parents live in Atlanta and most Christmases we spend there but this year I decided to host Christmas. We spend every Thanksgiving at the farm in Kentucky and to help cut costs we had it here. I was sooo excited to have my parents and brother here. Unfortunately the day they were to arrive, I woke up with the stomach virus Nico had had two days before. I proceeded to have a very intimate relationship with the toilet bowl. Luckily for me, my parents were super delayed getting here and by the time they had arrived around 5:30, I was over the horrific part and was just weak from dehydration and fever. The next day proved MUCH better and I was able to eat and go to church and a Christmas Eve party. I was left with a bad head cold but THAT didn't stop Christmas! Christmas day I made Osso Buco and Butternut Squash Risotto for my family and my neighbors, Lesley and Ken and their two boys. It was YUMMY. I cooked all day but it was worth it. My mom made cornish game hens with her home made stuffing for my brother who won't eat anything. It was a great Christmas and we had a fabulous time. We even got to take a trip into the city to see the tree. I sincerely hope that all my friends and family had a blessed Christmas and that 2009 is healthy and happy for everyone.

Enjoy the pictures

Women in the work place

I know I haven't posted in a while - and I have a ton to post about Thanksgiving and pictures and such but this video caught my attention. It's interesting and some might say - Oh here the media goes again making a moutain out of a molehill. I work in coorporate America and it has been very good to me....but I'd be lying if I said it wasn't male dominated and IN that can lean a certain way. It's certianly milder than it used to be I'm sure - but it still exists. It's comments like the govenor's that perpetuate stereotypes and I applaud Campbell Brown for saying so.

Inspiration

So yesterday I had the honor of going to visit my friend Christine while she was getting her Chemo. Christine and I met in 2001 shortly before Daniele and I got married. Chris and I became good friends pretty quickly. We both were working for an internet company and I left and shortly after she left. I was working in a restaurant and Christine got a job as facilities coordinator for Liberty International. Christine was working downtown during 9/11. After 9/11 I lost my job in the restaurant and had been out of work for several weeks when she called and offered me a temp job at Liberty. She then encouraged me to apply for the assistant job in Environmental and that's how I got in at Liberty where I've managed to move up to underwriting. So thank you Chris for pushing me to interview. My job has been a true blessing!

Christine hasn't had an easy time of it at least in the 7 years I have known her. She lost two people extremely close to her, she had a very scary child birth experience and in May 2008, she was diagnosed with HERS2 breast cancer. It's one of the most aggressive forms of breast cancer from what I've been told. So far she's endured 5 months of Chemo. She's down to two more treatments before they start prepping her for major surgery. I didn't find out all of this until August or September. I hadn't seen her in a long time but promised I'd come visit her one day while she was getting her Chemo. I got to do that yesterday. I have to say her attitude is simply amazing. She has a great outlook, a constant smile on her face and seems at peace with what she is going through. She manages to still take care of her 3 year old while go through what appears to me to be torture, but to her is just what she has to do.

She gave me her Christmas card yesterday. I made a comment about how early she had them done and she said - "Well I had to get my picture taken before I lost all my eyelashes" I giggled because that's just Christine. She is THAT prepared. I think I would have been too caught up in it all. But not her. Looking at her Christmas card with Tom and her son George...you would never know she is in the fight of her life. She's an inspiration. So Chris, I am keeping your Christmas card above my computer in my cube at work....to look at when I think I'm having a bad day. To inspire me to know...I'm so blessed and whatever I might be going through really isn't that bad and also how blessed I am to have you as a friend.

I know she's going to be OK....Christine is a fighter - the kind that only knows how to fight because she's done it her whole life. In spite of that, what I know to be true about her character, I'm asking all who read this to please just say a prayer for her and her recovery, that God not give her anymore than she can handle in a day and that with HIS help, she beats this and heals quickly so she can go do what she does best....and that's be a mom her her 3 year old.

My Blessing

When I saw this picture it simply made my day and my not so great news didn't seem so bad anymore. Because I have the greatest gift I could ever have in this little fireman here.

My Son

So today was a little bit of a rough day as I had anticipated it to be....but my husband took these photos and texted them to me this morning and they simply made my day. Nico got this fireman rain coat from his best friend Darius (see below) for his 3rd birthday. It rained today and as you can see this get up was put together in order to brave the rain and go to school. Pretty stinkin cute.

Diego and Spiderman BEST FRIENDS

This is Darius, our neighbor and Nico's best friend....I LOVE this picture because it really captures the fondness these two have for each other. It's such a sweet picture! We had a great time trick or treating. Halloween brings out the kid in all of us!!