April 2017 Recap

April becomes such a blur with work being so busy. I’m counting down and will post again once I resurface for air. I have so many things I want to make & blog! Here are a few of my favs I made in April:

This cast iron skillet pizza was so amazing. I cooked it in garlic oil. Garlic. Oil. Plus, hefting that huuuuge cast iron skillet into and out of the oven is like a workout, so that equals out the pizza. No?
The Three Bite Rule - Cast Iron Skillet Pizza
I also would eat this Sausage, Egg, Cheese & Everything Bagel bake on the regular. It was delightfully not too chewy.
The Three Bite Rule - Sausage, Egg, Cheese Bagel Bake
If I’m loading up on pizza and bagels, maybe I should offset with an Orange Julius Smoothie since it tastes a bit like a treat, but it is full of orange, mango, and a little bit of yogurt.
The Three Bite Rule - Orange Julius Smoothie
I don’t think I made anything this month with more than 7 ingredients. It is just one of those times. Work is bananas, my car is officially totaled, Mr. J was away for a few days, and the little pup was sick (back to normal, but she was waking up a million times per night). This is when I appreciate having some easy dinners up my sleeve, not assuming I can do it all, and we’re all cutting ourselves some slack over here.

frequent fast dinners: 
pasta, frozen meatballs, my fav kitchen ready tomatoes as sauce
bfast – Mr. J just threw together a fritatta/torta that was ahhh-mazing the other night
salad bar to ensure we eat enough veggies
quesadillas
grocery store roasted chicken + some roasted veg

The little one: 
He’s pretending more and more. “I’m a bunny” with some hops is just so cute. He wants to live outside right now. He’s loving “butter jelly” for pb&j sandwiches on the weekends since he can’t take them to daycare. Another favorite food is honey mustard. We got some fantastic books at the library. A few were dino books, one was about Bees, and a cool one was photos of all felt things (this book). I don’t really like peas, but this story was just too cute that he’ll miss dearly when it needs to go back to the library: 51rS1-8Z1+L._SY497_BO1,204,203,200_

This month’s goals: 
Year of the seasonal decor: none this month.
do more dinner prep more in advance: ehh. not really, but ohh well.
read more (and always carry my book on me): I’m hoping to finish Be Frank with Me before bookclub next week.
watch more movies: we watched Patriot’s Day which was well done & Masterminds which I loved
cook more fish: nahh. Maybe in spring this will actually happen?
focus on clothes that I really like: I’m still waiting on a few dresses- hopefully one will work for my event. Why can’t all women’s dresses have pockets? Or at least blazers? All blazers should have pockets. End of story.

See ya on the flip side!

Sausage, Egg & Cheese Bagel Bake

Sausage, egg, and cheddar bagels for everyone! I made this savory bread pudding with my favorite bfast sandwich fillings for an Easter brunch. It was SO good and perfect for a group since I prepped it the night before and just popped it into the oven. It puffed up and was nicely soft. The leftovers were delicious too!

The Three Bite Rule - Sausage, Egg, Cheese Bagel Bake
Smitten Kitchen made this with cream cheese, onion, capers, and smoked salmon. I went with my preferred sausage/egg/cheddar combo.

Sausage, Egg & Cheese Bagel Bake

Ingredients (serves 6):

3 everything bagels
6 links breakfast sausage
4 oz sharp white cheddar cheese
5 egg whites
3 eggs
1/4 cup cream cheese (at room temperature)
1/4 cup milk

Directions:

Chop the bagels into bite size pieces. Chop the cheese into 1/4 inch cubes.
Pan fry the sausage until cooked through. Then chop into bite sized pieces.
Spray a baking pan with non-stick spray. Add in half the bagel pieces, then top with half the sausage and cheddar pieces.
The Three Bite Rule - Sausage, Egg, Cheese Bagel Bake
Place the remaining bagel pieces and the remaining sausage and cheese pieces on top. Turn the very top bagel pieces over so the outside of the bagel is facing out. Sprinkle with salt & pepper.

The Three Bite Rule - Sausage, Egg, Cheese Bagel Bake
Whisk together the egg whites, eggs, milk, and cream cheese.
Pour over the bagel, sausage, and cheese pieces.
The Three Bite Rule - Sausage, Egg, Cheese Bagel Bake
Cover and refrigerate over night, or until ready to bake.
Bake at 400-degrees for about 45 minutes.
The Three Bite Rule - Sausage, Egg, Cheese Bagel Bake
Poke a knife in to see that the egg is fully cooked. It shouldn’t be runny in the middle.
Serve and enjoy!

It puffs up and is so great! The chewy bagels are soft but such a great texture. I loved the everything bagel-ness with the sharp cheddar, the sausage, and the eggs. The mostly egg whites made it a touch lighter!

Chicken with Peanut Sauce Grain Bowl

I can’t stopppp! I love these bowls with a few elements tied together with a quick drizzle of sauce for a balanced, speedy, and fun dinner. I appreciate these qualities most during my busy time of year at work and with meals the toddler can eat before/after us. Next time this one could use more texture, but it was tasty and added some good variety to the week.
The Three Bite Rule - Chicken with Peanut Sauce Grain Bowls

Chicken & Sweet Potato Grain Bowl with Peanut Sauce

Ingredients (for 3-4 bowls):

1 cup cracked wheat (or any grain of your choosing: rice/lentils/farro/couscous/quinoa/etc)
1 1/2 cups water
3 chicken thighs, boneless & skinless
1 -2 sweet potatoes
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon minced ginger
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon lime juice
touch of Sriracha sauce
1 avocado (or 1 cup edamame)

Directions:

Marinate the chicken overnight, or for 3+ hours in Italian dressing & some soy or teriyaki sauce. Then heat up the grill.
Cook the grain: I used cracked wheat + 1 1/2 cups water to a boil, then covers and cooks over low for 20-ish minutes.
Micro the sweet potato(es) for about 5 minutes. Flip them once and poke holes with a fork.
Grill the chicken until cooked through.
Add the peanut butter, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, sugar, lime juice, and hot sauce to a bowl.
The Three Bite Rule - Chicken with Peanut Sauce Grain Bowls
Whisk together, and add in a splash of water. Whisk again, and add more water if needed. (I started with about a tablespoon and added another teaspoon). It should be drippy enough to drizzle over the top of your bowls.
The Three Bite Rule - Chicken with Peanut Sauce Grain Bowls
Once the chicken has sat for a few minutes, slice into strips. Once the sweet potatoes are cool enough to handle, slice in half, then scoop from the skin with a spoon and slice into bite-sized pieces.
Assemble the bowls with 1/4 of the grain in the base of each bowl, then add chicken, sweet potato, and avocado. Drizzle the peanut sauce on top.
Enjoy!
The Three Bite Rule - Chicken with Peanut Sauce Grain Bowls
I loved the peanut sauce being creamy from the pb and salty from the soy sauce and a little wake up from the ginger and sriracha sauce. I cooked the sweet potato the night before so these were even speedier than they seemed! I thought I had edamame int he freezer – that would be a better texture to each bite than the soft avocado with soft sweet potato.

What’s my next bowl? I need a new theme!

Orange Julius Smoothie

The secret ingredient that makes this taste wayyy better than just slushy orange juice is…….Frozen mango!
The Three Bite Rule - Orange Julius Smoothie
This was so fresh, light, and perfect for the morning.

Orange Julius Copycat Smoothie

Ingredients: (for 1 large, or 2 small)

1 cup ice
1 cup almond milk
1 cup frozen mango
2 clementines (or 1 orange)
1 cup orange yogurt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Blend the milk, ice, and frozen mango. (The mango being frozen is really important to the consistency.)
Then add in the yogurt and clementines/orange.
The Three Bite Rule - Orange Julius Smoothie
Blend and enjoy! Add another splash of milk if needed.
The Three Bite Rule - Orange Julius Smoothie
I looooved this! It wasn’t as tart as it would have been with strictly oranges. The mango and vanilla are both the touches this smoothie needs to go from being acidic to a gentle orange flavor. I gave the little one some but he wasn’t into it – I think it was too cold.

Croissant Croque Monsieur

This is THE sandwich which will make you believe in sandwiches for dinner. This is not your lunch box sandwich. The French know what they’re doing with this one. The Croque monsieur is grilled ham and cheese with a béchamel and some cheese melted on top. This knife-and-fork sandwich is lovely for dinner and I twisted it up with a croissant for the bread. If you add an egg it becomes a croque madame…though, adding an egg didn’t seem like it’d be stable on the croissant.

The Three Bite Rule - Croque Monsieur

Croque Monsieur (for 2)

Ingredients:

1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup cream cheese
2 croissants
1 cup gruyere cheese, grated
4 slices ham, rolled & sliced

Directions:

In a small pot, bring the milk and cream cheese to a simmer to melt. Add salt and pepper and cook for 5-8 minutes then reduce to low heat to thicken.
Slice the croissants and toast on a baking sheet for 5 minutes to gently toast.
Then top the bottom croissant half with most of the cheese, the ham, and a sprinkle of pepper.
The Three Bite Rule - Croque Monsieur
Spoon some of the cream sauce on top.
The Three Bite Rule - Croque Monsieur
Add another sprinkle of cheese and put the top croissant on and pop back into the oven just to melt the cheese.
Spoon a drizzle of sauce over the top.
The Three Bite Rule - Croque Monsieur
Serve (with a fork & knife) and enjoy!
The Three Bite Rule - Croque Monsieur
Ohh Monsieur Croque, you’re delightful on a croissant. Using good cheese is important for this guy. I shredded the cheese for prime melting capability and chopped the ham for ease of distributing onto an arch-shaped croissant. The sauce is so much faster and easier than a roux. I liked the cheesy-hint from the cream cheese.