What Voice Do You Listen To?
There are so many voices in the world. Many of them likely tell you you aren’t fit enough, healthy enough, strong enough, good enough, mom enough, focused enough…the list could go on and on.
I know this struggle. I have the voices in my head and sadly, voices of others.
But you know what? You ARE enough. You are fearfully and wonderfully made. You might not be “there” yet, but you will be.
In the midst of all those voices saying “work harder, be better” one voice is telling you “I love you the same yesterday, today, and forever.” And that’s God’s voice.
So next time you are looking for your significance in things of this world, stop looking out and look UP to him in prayer and look IN His word, for His truths.
And remember that we are the light of the world. We need to shine these truths to others with our words and actions. We need to use our voices to build others up and pour love and encouragement into others.
My challenge to you today is to say one positive thing to yourself ALL day, OVER and OVER. Then contact 5 friends and tell them why they are beautiful or why you love them.
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Zucchini Soup
Our summer days are hot and the nights are a bit cooler. I love this zucchini soup recipe because it uses up my abundant zucchini crop. This soup is a light and scrumptious meal to serve on a summer night with a piece of crunchy sourdough bread or on a cooler fall evening with a grilled panini or quesadilla. You can actually serve this soup hot or cold. You can easily double the batch for a crowd. One summer when I was young, I was left in chafe of our family garden while my mom was traveling in Europe. I made at least 10 batches of this soup. We served it for company, gave it to friends, and froze a few batches so we could enjoy it all fall. When you freeze the leftover soup and defrost it for later use it tastes just a delicious as the day you made it.
Ingredients
1 medium yellow onion chopped fine
1 Tablespoon olive oil
6 zucchini cut into cubes
6 cups chicken broth
1 Tablespoon vinegar
4 Tablespoon arrowroot
1-2 teaspoon dill weed (fresh is best)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup plain yogurt
Saute onion in oil in a large soup pot. Add zucchini and broth. Bring to a boil and turn to medium and cook until zucchini is soft. Take a bit of the broth out of the pot and pour into a 1 cup measure. Add the vinegar and arrowroot and stir until dissolved. Add the vinegar, arrowroot, broth mixture to the soup pot and stir until blended and the soup starts to thicken. Turn down the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Blend in food processor or Vitamix adding yogurt and seasonings. You can serve this soup cold or hot.
Zucchini Bread-Healthy Style
Healthy Zucchini Bread
This summer, I planted a large garden filled with all of our favorite vegetables. The zucchini plants have gone crazy and are producing daily a crop of delicious and nutritious zucchini. I have baked, stir-fried, barbequed and added them into omelets, pizza and frittatas. The following is a conventional recipe for zucchini bread with healthy adaptations.
ENJOY!!!
Ingredients
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
3 Tablespoons coconut oil
3 eggs
3 cups grated zucchini
3 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chopped walnuts
½ cup mini chocolate chips and/or 1 cup chopped raisins
Grate the zucchini (one large one from the garden or three medium) into a colander and sprinkle salt on it and let it sit for a few minutes and then squeeze out excess moisture. In a medium bowl combine sugar and applesauce and oil and stir. Add the eggs and stir until mixed well. In a small bowl measure out the flour (you can use a combination of white and whole wheat or experiment with different varieties of gluten free, oat flour, rice flour and feel free to add wheat germ or flax seed as long as it measures a total of 3 cups). Next, add other dry ingredients and stir. Add wet and dry ingredients and stir until just moistened. Add the vanilla, the zucchini and the nuts and stir lightly until combined. For a fun little treat try adding ½-1 cup of mini chocolate chips or 1 cup raisins. Pour into a well greased bread loaf pan and bake at 350˚ for 60-70 minutes.
If you want to make smaller loaves or muffins adjust time for baking accordingly-40 minutes for small loaves
Sponge Puppets
Here is a great art project for a hot summer day when you want to have fun indoors or outside in the shade.
My daughter, Ellie, found the idea in her Highlights magazine. I bought sponges at the store and used other craft supplies from the house.
Supplies
Sponges
Craft Glue or hot glue gun
pom poms
googly eyes
foam shapes
confettie
Instructions
Heat the hot glue. If you are using hot glue have the kids plan out their puppet by drawing a picture or placing the craft pieces on their sponge. Then allow the adult to hot glue the items on. Let dry for at least 1 minute. That’s it. Now you have a fun character for puppet shows or to display in your house!
This was a really great activity to practice patience as the girls waited their turn for the hot glue gun. We practiced body parts like eyes, hair, mouth, nose, cheeks, and more. We also talked about shapes when choosing how to decorate our puppet.
If you try out this sponge puppet craft be sure to tag us on social media!
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Oatmeal Lactation Bars
Researching how to improve a mommy’s milk supply has been interesting. There are many great websites out there that have done extensive research and I found so much good information. I liked the blog called Very Well, with articles written by Donna Murray, RN, BSN and reviewed by a board certified physician. Remember to always consult your doctor and/or lactation consultant before taking any herbal supplements.
Here is another recipe that Bekah and I tried. (We adapted the recipe from a blog called Mary Makes Good.) It tastes a bit like a yummy oatmeal muffin in a bar form. Although the recipe calls for chocolate chips, we both decided it would be extra tasty if you added a cup of raisins. Check out yesterday’s post for great information on Brewer’s Yeast and other herbs that can stimulate milk production for nursing moms.
Oatmeal Lactation Bars
- 2 tablespoons ground flax seed
- 4 tablespoons water
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup light brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1/3 cup molasses
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
- 1/4 cup almond flour/meal
- 1/4 cup hemp hearts (hulled)
- 4 tablespoons brewer’s yeast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 2 cups old fashioned oats
- 1 cup dark chocolate chips
- 1 cup raisins
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Combine the flax seeds and water in a small bowl and set aside.
- Cream the butter and sugars together. Beat until fluffy.
- Add the soaked flax seeds, eggs, molasses, and vanilla and mix until well blended.
- Whisk together the whole wheat flour, almond flour, hemp hearts, brewer’s yeast, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon.
- Add the dry ingredients in two parts while mixing continuously on a slow speed. Mix until just combined.
- Add the oats, chocolate chips
Peanut Butter Oatmeal Lactation Cookies
Bekah was doing some research for improving breast milk supply and found some awesome recipes for Lactation Cookies. We decided to try a few and wanted to share two of our favorite ones with you. This first recipe has been adapted from one we found on a blog called Simplistically Living. There are many recipes out there and the common ingredient in the cookie recipes we looked at was brewer’s yeast. You cannot substitute the brewer’s yeast for anything else. (We bought ours at Sprouts.) This is a prime ingredient for this recipe and is one of the recommended ingredients that increases your milk supply so make sure to include it.
Brewer’s yeast is used to make beer, and people have taken it as a dietary supplement for many years. Brewer’s yeast is made from a fungus, and it is highly nutritious. It contains iron, protein, and B vitamins, as well as chromium, selenium and other trace minerals. Brewer’s yeast is also believed to be a galactogogue, used by nursing mothers to help make more breast milk. A galactagogue (pronounced gah-lak´tah-gog) is an action, herb, food, or medication that can jump start your production of breast milk or increase the amount of breast milk that you make. The word itself is a combination of the Greek terms “galact-” meaning milk, and “-ogogue” meaning leading to or promoting. (A galactagogue is also called a galactogogue, lactagogue or a lactogenic.) Some of the foods used as galactagogues include oatmeal, barley, green leafy vegetables, garlic, brewer’s yeast, and brown rice. When added to a healthy well-balance diet, these milk making foods are believed to promote a healthy amount of breast milk.
If you are interested in reading about other herbs that have been researched and shown to help …
Read MoreSweet & Savory “Surfer” Chili
My mom and I adapted the BEST recipe for dinner tonight from my favorite app: Mealime. YOU GUYS, put this on your meal plan IMMEDIATELY. It’s THAT good.
The idea started when I wanted to make twice baked sweet potatoes, then quickly realized there was NO WAY I was going to bake something in the oven in this heat. So I looked through the ingredients I already had and picked a recipe that we could work with and use the sweet potatoes. And so became our Sweet & Savory Surfer Chili. “Surfer,” because it will make your taste buds say “ALOHA!”
Sweet & Savory Surfer Chili
(Adapted from Mealime)
Ingredients
1 cup rice
2-4 large sweet potatoes, 4-6 small sweet potatoes
2 avocados
5 oz baby spinach
1 zucchini
4 cloves garlic
1 red onion
2 (14.5 oz) cans diced tomatoes
1 large can diced pineapple
1lb ground beef or turkey
1/2TBS paprika
1/2TBS turmeric
1 tsp black pepper
1 TBSP chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
optional sides and toppings: rice, greek yogurt, chips, cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Wash and dry produce. Cook the rice if using for a side dish.
- Peel and dice the sweet potatoes. Place in a bowl of water and bring to a boil. Boil until soft enough to easily poke with a fork. (About 10 minutes)
- Peel and dice onion. Add to a small bowl.
- Mince garlic. Add to the onion bowl.
- Heat saucepan to medium-high heat.
- Add the onion, garlic, and ground beef to the sauce pan. Cook until meat is browned and the onion is tender, 3-5 minutes.
- Add the spices, stir to mix.
- Drain and add pineapple.
- Add the diced tomatoes and stir to combine.
- Increase the heat to bring the chili to a bowl. Once boiling, reduce heat to
PB Banana Cookies
In honor of my friend who just had a baby who loves these cookies…
Best Homemade Homegrown Marinara Sauce and Easy Chicken Parmigiana (Parmesan)
Tomatoes, Tomatoes….what a blessing to have so many tomatoes. I planted a variety of heirloom seeds and I have the BEST crop of tomatoes I have every experienced. Yesterday I tried making a batch of Marinara sauce with my Italian style Marinara heirloom tomatoes. The result was the BEST tasting sauce ever! Thanks to my Italian cooking classes in Florence during my college years…I think I was able to recreate a sauce like the one I learned to make in the kitchen of the Villa Salviatino.
Marinara Sauce Ingredients
4 pounds ripe tomatoes
1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
5 cloves of garlic mashed
1 medium bunch basil
1-2 sprigs thyme
1 Tablespoon fresh oregano
2 Tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon sea salt
1-2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
½ teaspoon balsamic vinegar
Cut up all the tomatoes into small pieces. Set aside. Heat the oil in a heavy pot that has a well insulated bottom so as to prevent the sauce from sticking and burning as it simmers and thickens. Add the garlic to the pot and sauté on medium low until cooked, stirring constantly so it does not brown. 
Add the tomatoes and all the juice to the pot. Place the bunches of herbs into the pot. Do not worry about the stems. You can pull the stems out after the sauce has simmered and thickened. I pulled half of the basil leaves off the stems because I like blending them into the sauce. Raise heat and bring to a simmer. Turn to low and cover for 30 minutes. Uncover and add the salt, pepper, sugar, red pepper flakes and balsamic vinegar. Stir and return to a low simmer and cook for another 30-60 minutes, stirring often. 
Remove herb stems from sauce. Let sauce …
Shredded Barbecue Chicken in a Crockpot
Ever had one of those busy weeks….a busy month…..tons of fun things planned and a big gang of family and friends coming for dinner during a “hot spell”? This BBQ shredded chicken recipe is made in the crockpot…so no hot kitchen, no messing with the BBQ outside (although I absolutely love bbq chicken-this is a close second). You can serve it up on toasted ciabatta rolls with melted cheese, a side of succotash and a side salad or mound a big pile of this delicious shredded chicken on top of a bed of lettuce, add some chopped cucumbers, fresh tomatoes and a spoonful of succotash for a delicious summer salad.
Ingredients
8 large chicken breasts (skinless and boneless)
2 cups catsup (check labels so you have a no high fructose corn syrup brand)
¼ cup olive oil
½ cup red wine vinegar
½ cup light soy sauce (I used Bragg’s liquid aminos)
4 large garlic cloves crushed
2 teaspoon worchestershire sauce
2-3 Tablespoons fresh ginger root grated
3 Tablespoons brown sugar
8 ciabatta rolls
sliced cheese
lettuce
cucumbers
tomatoes
Succotash
Place the chicken breasts in a 5 or 6 quart Crockpot. Mix all remaining ingredients in a medium bowl and stir until well blended. Pour sauce over chicken. Cover crockpot and turn onto LOW for 8 hours. At hour 6 or 7 when the chicken is thoroughly cooked take chicken breasts out of crockpot and place in a large bowl and shred with two forks until meat is in small bite sized shreds. Place chicken back into crockpot so it absorbs more sauce and let it cook for the remaining few hours. Cook up a batch of succotash or make a big bowl of coleslaw. When ready for dinner slice open your ciabatta rolls and toast with cheese on one …
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