Light & Fresh Tuna Melt

It's funny, the entire time you are pregnant you think, "I can't wait to eat the food I want and drink all the fun drinks I want when this little guy is born!" WRONG! Just when you think you can go back to living a care-free foodie life, the realty of breastfeeding hits you. Your baby still eats and drinks what you eat and drink.

For instance, one night I ate some gorgeous and rich rosemary grilled lamb chops. They agreed with me, but did not agree with Nolan one bit. I had to pay for that one with an entire night of colicky crying and what felt like endless diarrhea diaper changes. Lessoned learned: no more lamb. Now after 2 months, Nolan and I have figured each other out...thank goodness! Nights like those are miserable for both Nolan and mom!

One of the foods I've been wary about is seafood, especially tuna. I love tuna fish casserole, it's one of my favorite all time comfort foods. And don't even get me started on ahi tuna and spicy tuna rolls! But while I was pregnant and now breastfeeding, the potential mercury levels make me nervous for little Nolan, and I haven't wanted to risk it.

Luckily for us new and expected mothers, plus any tuna lover, I discovered a new brand of canned tuna fish that gets rid of all our mercury fears. Safe Catch tuna screens every single tuna fish for purity and mercury levels, making it completely safe to eat. Plus it gives you the extra Omega-3's your body and growing baby need by packing the tuna raw in the can, sealing all the important nutrients and then cooking it. I've been told most tuna fish brand precook the tuna, which washes away and drains most of the important nutrients. How disappointing. This Safe Catch tuna on the other hand....definitely not disappointing!

So in celebration of a tuna fish that I can safely eat, I made a light and fresh tuna melt that is healthy and fulfills my tuna cravings. It has easily become one of Dusty's favorite go-to lunches and mine.

Light & Fresh Tuna Melt
{Serves 2}

-1 (5 ounce) can Safe Catch Tuna, drained
-1 tablespoon minced Shallot
-1 tablespoon Mayonnaise
-1/2 tablespoon Lemon Juice
-1 teaspoon dried Parsley
-Dash of Salt & Pepper, to taste
-Dash of Tobasco, to taste
-2 slices Whole Wheat Bread, toasted
-4 slices of Tomato
-1/4 cup Cheddar Cheese, shredded

Preheat boiler. In a bowl, stir to combine the tuna, shallot, mayonnaise, lemon juice, parsley, salt, pepper and hot sauce. Spread 1/4 of the mixture on each of the 2 toasted pieces of whole wheat bread. Top each tuna melt with 2 slices of tomato and 2 tablespoons of cheddar cheese. Place open faced tuna melts onto baking sheet and broil until the cheese is melted and bubbling, approximately 3-4 minutes.



Safe Catch Tuna provided me with sample of their canned tuna to review. All opinions and thoughts are my own.
Recipe inspired and adapted from Eating Well

{One Month}

 

Has it really been a month already?!?!

 

Hard to believe a month has already flown by!

4 weeks of sleepless nights, endless feedings, dirty diapers and the best cuddles....I'm loving every minute of it.

 

Love,
    Nolan's Mom

Duke & His New Little Buddy

One thing I did not consider when having a baby was how Duke, my fur-baby, my "first born" would react to the new arrival. All throughout my pregnancy he was uber lovable and super attached to me. I assumed that because he could somehow sense there was a baby that he would instantly be overjoyed and adjusted to the new arrival.

 

Boy was I wrong....

 

When I went into labor, Dusty's dad came and picked Duke up and took him out to the farm to stay while we were at the hospital and during the early days of transitioning with Nolan. After a few days of being home and adjusted (as much as we could) to the new baby, we had Dusty's parents bring Duke to the house for a "meet and great." Duke was not impressed. He gave Nolan a few licks on the feet and a couple sniffs, and was clearly experiencing some sibling jealousy.

 

 

Not once did Duke growl or act aggressive toward Nolan, he was more hurt and upset by me! This took me completely off guard and as a new exhausted mom with fluctuating hormones, this totally broke my heart. I'd call for Duke or go near him to cuddle and he would be completely aloof to me. He would ignore me, not make eye contact with me and walk past me as I called for him. To have my fur-baby act like this was devastating.

 

Luckily....with some puppy treats, string cheese and extra emphasis on cuddling Duke, he has come around to both Nolan and I, and harmony is restored! It took a good solid week before Duke would sit next to me on the couch, go near Nolan and I if we were together and even sleep on the bed with Dusty and I. Thankfully we are all adjusted and back to normal.

 

 

If anything, Duke is now completely in love with Nolan and wants to share his dog toys with him during play time!

 

 

Lesson learned: I should have listened to the advice I had read in my pregnancy books. They say it's a good idea to distance yourself a bit from your pet towards the end of pregnancy so they are adjusted to not getting as much attention. I definitely didn't do that. If anything I cuddled him more. We did things like let him smell Nolan's blanket and clothes from the hospital to adjust him to baby, but didn't think about adjusting him to the attention he received from Dusty and myself.  Learn from my mistakes!

 

 

Now what I'm looking forward to is seeing how Duke and Nolan become the best of friends. I can already see the bond between them developing and it's adorable!







Flank Steak & Potato Hash

It's funny, my mom said to me the other day, "Wow! I can't believe you are blogging again!" I know. I know. I go through long spurts of not blogging...I blame working nights and sleeping during the days while being SUPER pregnant. Plus another thing...morning sickness. A food bloggers worst nightmare. But now that I'm home with my little man and feeling great, I have been enjoying being back in the kitchen and whipping up fun eats. During the day I put Nolan in his little plush puppy dog chair and get to cookin'!

Over the weekend I made these delicious tacos and they were a real treat. I especially loved the pico de gallo from Laurie at Simply Scratch's blog. It could possibly be my favorite pico de gallo yet!

With Spring just about to arrive on the hi-line, I am counting down the days until our little Mexican restaurant, a mere 90 miles away, Serranos, opens up again. Less than 2 months! It's a seasonal restaurant at the gates of East Glacier and the chiles rellenos alone are worth the drive.  Sadly, in the winter time when the restaurant is closed, if you want a taco, you gotta make the taco....so I did!

After Dusty and I stuffed our faces with as much flank steak tacos as we could possibly eat, we were left with about 1/2 a pound of flank steak. I don't know about you, but I hate leftover steak. It becomes chewy, tough and just doesn't reheat very well. So what do you do when you have leftover steak? Make breakfast hash! And don't forget to top it with a perfectly fried egg and a couple dashes of Tobasco sauce to really send it over the top :)  

Flank Steak & Potato Hash

{Serves 4}

-1-1/2 pounds Yukon Gold Potatoes, peeled and 1/2 inch diced

-1/2 cup chopped Yellow Onion

-2 tablespoons Salted Butter

-1 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil

-Salt & Pepper to taste

-1 Green Onion, thinly sliced

-1/2 tablespoon dried Parsley

-1/2 pound leftover cooked Flank Steak (or any leftover steak), cut into bite-size pieces

Heat the olive oil and melt the butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the potatoes, onions, salt and pepper to the pan. Cook, turning occasionally with a spatula, for 15-20 minutes until the potatoes are softened, browned and cooked through. Add the steak pieces and cook an additional 3-5 minutes until the steak is warmed through. Then turn off the heat and add the green onions and dried parsley.

California Breakfast Sandwich

Towards the end of my pregnancy something strange happened that I didn't expect....I craved healthy foods. What's up with that? I thought I was suppose to be craving ice cream, pickles, double cheeseburgers and milkshakes for the whole 9 months and gain like 100 pounds!?!?!?

Don't get me wrong. I totally had moments of ridiculous cravings for cheeseburgers at 11:00 pm, with the closest McD's being a 50 mile round trip. As you recall in an earlier post, I called that "the burger incident", which thankfully only happened a small handful of times. Overall, I'd say my biggest cravings were for these huckleberry smoothies. I probably made this smoothie about 2-3 times a week and added Shakeology vanilla protein powder to give me the extra protein and nutrients I needed to survive working overtime at the hospital in my 3rd trimester with ridiculously swollen feet. 

Now that I've become accustomed to eating all things whole wheat, quinoa, and chia, my body still craves it and my taste buds actually enjoy it! I would have never pegged myself as someone who would add chia to their oatmeal or drink coconut/almond milk. I didn't even know what chia was until I was pregnant. And whole wheat?!? I can't believe I actually prefer it to white bread now. That little Nolan did some weird things to my taste buds when he was baking inside me. Little stinker ;)

Let me tell you what...this California Breakfast Sandwich is not only good for you, but seriously flavorful. It's been snowing the past few days and I needed something that reminded me of warm weather, and this sandwich did the trick!  So grab yourself a tall glass of bright sunny orange juice with this sandwich for a great start to your day!

California Breakfast Sandwich
{Serves 1}

-1 Whole Wheat English Muffin-toasted
-1/2 tablespoon Basil Pesto
-1 Egg
-1/8 cup shredded Monterey Jack Cheese
-2 slices Tomato
-1 teaspoon Lemon Juice
-3 slices Avocado

Heat a non-stick skillet over medium-low heat, spray with non-stick cooking spray. Fry the egg on one side for 1-2 minutes until set and then flip to the other side. Top with shredded Monterey jack cheese. Continue cooking the egg for 1-2 minutes until desired doneness and the cheese has melted.

Meanwhile, spread the basil pesto on both halves of the whole wheat English Muffin and toss the avocado slices with the lemon juice. Assemble the sandwich by placing the cheesy fried egg on bottom half of the basil pesto covered English muffin, followed by the tomato and avocado slices and sandwich it with the top of the English muffin.

Mr. Nolan Heath

After 38 weeks and 6 days, my little man, Mr. Nolan Heath Ahrens has joined the world!

 

Nolan was born March 3rd, 2015 at 4:43 pm, weighing 7 pounds and 8.2 ounces and 20.25 inches in length.

After 14 hours of labor, he joined this world absolutely perfect and we couldn't be more in love.

Dusty and I are so overjoyed and can't thank everyone enough for all the love and support as we begin our journey as new parents with Nolan.

 

And if any of you are awake at 1:00 am, 4:00 am and 6:00 am....feel free to shoot me a message on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc. I guarantee I'll be awake feeding my little guy and surfing the web for recipes or looking at Pinterest!

 

Bun In The Oven

I officially win "worst food blogger of the year" award. I can't believe I haven't been on here since July! Although the reason for my disappearance isn't out of laziness, it's because I have been a very busy lady. Besides working an insane amount at the hospital, I've spent the past 9 months baking this little bun in my oven....

 Mr. Nolan Heath

Due March 11th, 2015

 

Dusty and I found out June 30th that I was pregnant! We had just spent the past week in Kalispell where I was doing my OB/delivery training (coincidence?) and didn't feel well the entire time. I was light-headed, extra car sick and really tired. Something definitely didn't feel right. After taking multiple pregnancy tests and getting negative results, I had no idea what was going on with my body. I just figured I wasn't handling the prenatal vitamins very well, since those things are awful and the size of bullets. Then, I gave the test one more go on the 30th and got the faintest of lines indicating that we were going to be expecting a baby!

 

One of the worst things to happen to a food blogger is morning sickness. Oh, how I hated morning sickness. The thought and smell of food made me so nauseated, I lost about 8 pounds the first 3 months of pregnancy. All I could stomach was yogurt and drinking milk. That was the major reason I stepped away from the blog for a while. The thought of food made me sick to my stomach. It was a very long and depressing 3 months of not being able to eat the foods I love. Thankfully that stage is over with!

Since I couldn't think about food, I had to hone my creativity in a different direction. Instead of recipe development, I began cross-stitching. I made 2 of these bibs for our baby (one pig and one cow themed) and I'm currently in the middle of working on a blanket as well.

One of the worst things about living in a small town is the lack of fast food when you are pregnant. I can not tell you how many times I have cried to Dusty that I need and must have a cheeseburger or I can't live without a Taco Bell Quesadilla! We are 25 miles to the closest McD's and 80 miles the nearest quesadilla. Talk about torture! There was one night I wanted a burger so bad that I started sobbing hysterically in the kitchen....we call that "The burger incident." It was the only time I became a stereotypically crazy pregnant lady. Lucky for Dusty, it hasn't happened more than that one time. Also, thank goodness for "copy-cat recipes" online, those have been a lifesaver for both Dusty and I!

Funny thing is, now I can't stomach the idea of fast food. All my body wants is healthy, nutritious foods and more specifically....milk! I have been going through a gallon of milk a week by myself. It's insane! Our little guy, Nolan, is going to have some strong bones due to all the milk I've been consuming lately. Since I've been working 40-50 hours a week at the hospital these past few months, I haven't had the energy to develop new recipes for the blog, but my go-to gal for all things delicious and healthy is Gina from SkinnyTaste.com. I'm in love with her cookbook and blog. All the healthy meals have been keeping me healthy throughout my pregnancy, despite flu season, and keeping me energized to make it through the last stretch of night shifts before maternity leave (only 10 more 12 hour shifts left!).

Just in case you were wondering, Duke is very excited about baby Nolan too! The entire time I've been pregnant he has been attached to my hip and super affectionate. He is constantly following me around and laying next to me (or on me!). I can't even go to the bathroom alone without him peaking his head in the door to make sure I'm alright. I catch him in the nursery all the time just sniffing things out, it's absolutely adorable. He is going to be the best big puppy brother for Nolan and I can't wait for the big day to arrive!

Only 3 weeks away until Mr. Nolan Heath joins our family and we can't wait!

Chimichurri Shrimp Salad

This past weekend was a fun one. Friday kicked off with the 4th of July which was laid back with just Dusty and myself. We grilled steaks, corn and had baked potatos accompanied by some of Julie's Famous Daiquiris. Yum! Dusty and I then watched the town's firework show from our backyard while sitting by the fire we built in our backyard. It was super romantic ;)

 

Duke on the otherhand, didn't find it so enjoyable and spent the evening of the 4th inside the house panicking with each "BOOM" of the fireworks. Poor dogs of America, tortured and terrified for one night a year. It's a ruff life!

 

For the rest of the weekend my family came to visit for my birthday, which was Sunday the 6th and it was so much fun! Since Shelby was cleared out for the holiday weekend, I went all out and cooked 3 delicious meals a day from my Pioneer Woman Holiday Cookbook.

For my birthday I made the Pioneer Woman's Cinco de Mayo platter which included Watermelon Pico de Gallo (yum!), Fiesta Black Beans (double yum!), steak fajitas with all the fixin's (super yum!), chimichurri shrimp (oh yes!) and Tres Leches Cake for my birthday cake (goodness gracious!). It was a Mexican smorgasbord of delicousness to say at least.

 

Surprisingly, I had leftovers! But that was probably because I made sooooo much food for 10 people! One of the things that was leftover was the chimichurri shrimp (shocking!), which I was excited about because I love shrimp. The day after my birthday I decided to use the leftover marinade and shrimp to make this out-of-this world salad. I love taco salads and this one was spectacular.

Chimichurri Shrimp Salad
{Serves 4}

For the Chimichurri Shrimp:
-1/2 bunch Cilantro, stems removed
-1/4 cup Parsley, stems removed
-1-1/2 tsp minced Garlic cloves
-Juice of 2 Limes
-1/2 teaspoon Ground Cumin
-1/8 tsp Cayenne Pepper
-1/2 tsp Salt
-1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
-1 pound 16/20 count Shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails off
-1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

In a blender combine the cilantro, parsley, garlic, limes, ground cumin, cayenne pepper, and salt. Briefly pulse the blender to combine the ingredients. With the blender on low speed, remove the middle cap of the blender and slowly drizzle the 1/4 cup olive oil. Blend until smooth.

Place the peeled and deveined shrimp in a large gallon bag and pour half of the marinade into the bag and reserve the other half of the marinade for the salad dressing. Marinate the shrimp for at least 30 minutes. Once ready to cook, heat a large pan over medium heat with 1 tbsp olive oil. Cook the shrimp until pink for 1-2 minutes per side. Set shrimp aside for salad.

For the Salad:
-1 recipe of Chimichurri Shrimp + Reserved Marinade
-1 head of Green Leaf Lettuce, rinsed, dried
-12 Cherry Tomatoes, quartered
-1 (15 ounce) can Black Beans, drained and rinsed
-2 Green Onions, finely chopped
-1/2 cup shredded Cheddar Cheese
-1/4 cup Plain Greek Yogurt
-1/4 cup Mayonnaise

In a small bowl, combine the greek yogurt, mayonnaise and reserved marinade. Stir to combine to create the salad dressing.

To assemble the salad start with the lettuce; then top the lettuce with the cherry tomatoes, black bean, green onions, shredded cheddar cheese and finally the chimichurri shrimp. Drizzle on the salad dressing and enjoy!

Recipe Inspired and Adapted By: The Pioneer Woman

Huckleberry Smoothie

Last week Dusty and I headed over to the land of huckleberries, aka Kalispell, for Labor & Delivery training at the hospital. Dusty got to spend 5 days golfing, shopping, relaxing and driving me around. Me on the other hand, I got to deliver 5 babies over 3 days and then relax for 2 days.....so much fun!

There is nothing more wonderful than delivering a baby. Getting the privilege to be apart of such a beautiful moment is truly special and being able to swaddle a freshly born baby and hand the mom her baby for the first time....priceless.

While we were over in the Flathead Lake area, it seemed like everywhere there was huckleberry stands with fresh huckleberries for sale. Each time we would pass one I would say, "Ooooh, ooooh! HUCKLEBERRIES!" And Dusty would reply, "Don't you have a bag full of huckleberries from last fall you still need to use?" Maybe?

 

I have a confession...I'm a huckleberry hoarder. See this bag in the picture up above? I've had it since September. I use like 1/4 cup a month and it has to be for a very very special recipe. Now that it's huckleberry season, I'm becoming less hoardy and using my berries more. Like for instance, I made this huckleberry smoothie and I plan on making many more in the near future. 

 

 

Like most recipes I make, this one is super easy! Just add 1/2 large banana, milk, vanilla greek yogurt, frozen huckleberries, and ice to a blender....

 

And then just blend until smooth...hence, smoothie!

 

 

 Healthy, filling, gorgeous and fantastically delicious!

 

 

Huckleberry Smoothie

{1-24 ounce serving}

 

-2/3 cup Blueberry-flavored Greek Yogurt

-3/4 cup Milk

-1/2 large Banana

-1/2 cup frozen Huckleberries

-1/2 cup Ice Cubes

Optional: Vanilla Protein Powder

 

Combine all ingredients in blender. Blend until smooth. Pour into large glass and enjoy!

Crab Mac Salad

On the very first night of starting night shift about a month ago, I was welcomed to the night crew with a potluck consisting of buffalo chicken dip, treats and this glorious pasta salad.....

One of my co-workers, Sonya, made this crab salad and we spent all night gobbling it up in between providing patient care, passing medications and operating the ER. After spending an evening snacking on all these tasty potluck foods and spending some quality time with my new night crew, I knew I absolutely loved my job.

Monday night I was working with Sonya when I looked at her and said, "You know what sounds good? Crab salad. Every time I look at you, all I can think about is the crab salad you made that one night." She just looked at me like I was crazy and said, "Do you just want the recipe?"

Oh heck yes!

 

And the recipe couldn't be easier. In the recipe, it calls for imitation crab, and that was all I could find in my tiny grocery store that never has anything I need. But if you have access to real crab (lucky you!) go for it and use that instead!

 

First you take a packet of Hidden Valley Ranch Mix and stir it to combine with 1 cup Milk and 1 cup Mayonnaise.

 

Then thaw out a 1 pound bag of peas and carrots.

"Jenny and me was like peas and carrots" (Name that movie!)

 Sorry I couldn't help myself. It's what I think of every time I see peas and carrots. Lol.

Then boil 1 pound of elbow macaroni and cook until al dente.

 

In a very large bowl, add in the dressing, cooked elbow macaroni, thawed peas and carrots and roughly chopped crab meat.

 

Fold to combine....

 

And cover with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

 

You can serve this salad with practically anything and it's perfect for picnics, potlucks, etc. I made some slow-cooker ribs from picky-palate that were to die for and just as simple as this pasta salad.

Thanks for the recipe Sonya!

This is going to be a staple at my picnics and family gatherings!

 

Crab Mac Salad

{Serves 8}

 

-1 pound Elbow Macaroni

-1 pound frozen Peas & Carrots, thawed

-1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch Seasoning Mix

-1 cup Milk

-1 cup Mayonnaise

-8 ounces Imitation (or real) Crab Meat-roughly chopped

 

Boil and cook the elbow macaroni according to packaged directions until al dente. Drain and set aside. In a large bowl, stir until smooth the ranch seasoning mix, milk and mayonnaise. To the bowl with dressing, add the cooked elbow macaroni, thawed peas and carrots, and crab meat. Fold to combine. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour. 

Recipe By: Sonya M.

Whiffle & Hamlet

If you haven't seen on Facebook or Instagram lately.....Dusty and I got pigs!

Two big fat, adorable pigs.

Growing up, Dusty use to show pigs for 4-H and absolutely loved it. All the stories and pictures of Dusty's pig showin' days makes my heart melt. How cute is this little guy with his pigs????

So now that Dusty is farming and we are loving our life on the farm, we thought it would be fun to have some pigs back on the farm again. According to Dusty, he hasn't raised pigs since he was 9 or 10 from in the late 90's, and boy is he happy to have them again.

I know it's not smart to name your future bacon and pork butt, but how can you not!?!?!? The pink pig is named Whiffle due to the holes in his ears, like a whiffle ball from elementary school PE. On the hutterite colony were we got the pigs, that was how they tagged them, so we thought the name would fit. The brown pig (my favorite, and the most friendly), is named Hamlet! Get it, Ham-let. Hehehe!

One of Hamlet's favorite things in the entire world is to get his belly scratched. You start scratching him and he will roll over and let you scratch him anywhere and everywhere. He is super friendly and Dusty says he has never met a friendlier piggy. I love that pig. Maybe I can convince Dusty to keep him :)

Now that we have pigs, I'm trying to convince Dusty we need some cows, goats, chickens, etc.

The more farm animals, the merrier!

 

Sweet & Smokey BBQ Roasted Chicken

Well, I've gone over to the dark side....of nursing that is. Last week I left my day shift orientation and started working nights, which is what I was actually hired to do in the first place. All I can say is that it has been quite the adjustment....but I absolutely love it!

The nurses I work with on nights are an absolute blast. In order stay awake all  night it is essential that you snack on food (preferably healthy) throughout the night. I knew I was working with the right sort of people on my first night when we had a potluck of buffalo chicken dip, crab salad and root beer floats. These ladies know how to work in style!

Sleeping through the day hasn't been hard to do either, even though my neighbor plays the guitar ridiculously loud (and awful) all throughout the day. When I get home from work at 6:30am, I drink a bunch of water, take some Advil so I don't feel hung over when I wake up, put on my face mask and fall right asleep.

One thing I like about working nights is that I get to have dinner with Dusty just before heading off to work. It's a good way to start the work day ;) I usually wake up around 3:00 in the afternoon, take a shower and then make something quick for us. I roasted this Sweet & Smokey BBQ chicken on my day off and then used it multiple nights to make this Summer BBQ Chicken Pizza and Southern Chicken & Black Eyed Peas Salad....both recipes are delicious and ridiculously quick. By the way, the Summer BBQ Chicken Pizza is one of the best pizza's I've ever had. Soooo soooo good!

 

For some reason, I'm always surprised to find how easy it is to roast a chicken. I rarely do it, but when I do I ask myself why I don't do it more often because it's so easy and absolutely delicious. Plus it makes the house smell wonderful and the leftovers (if there are any!) can be used for days.

 

When you make this chicken, serve it with a big green salad or roasted veggies with some creamy chive mashed potatoes. Mmmm mmm good!

 

Sweet & Smokey BBQ Roasted Chicken

{Serves 6}

 

1 (3-4 pound) Whole Chicken

4 tablespoons softened salted Butter

1 tablespoon Tastefully Simple Sweet & Smokey BBQ Seasoning

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (F) and grease a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.

 

Rinse the chicken off and pat it dry with paper towels. Rub both sides of the chicken with the softened butter and then season the entire chicken with the Sweet & Smokey BBQ Seasoning. Place the chicken in the 9x13 baking dish. Bake for 70-80 minutes until the internal temperature is 160 degrees (F) and the chicken is cooked through. Take the chicken in the baking dish out of the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes before carving. Enjoy!

 

Interested in getting the Sweet & Smokey BBQ Seasoning or anything else Tastefully Simple????

Ask me how!

Visit my Independent Consultant page by clicking on the Tastefully Simple Consultant icon on the top-right hand side of this webpage or click here!

 

This post was not sponsored by Tastefully Simple. I am an Independent Consultant for Tastefully Simple and purchased the products myself. All opinions and thoughts are my own. I just really love there products!

Tomato & Garlic Pesto Egg Cups

When I hosted my first Tastefully Simple party two weeks ago, it was such a blast! One of the many product rewards I earned as being the host was the "Fix It Fast" collection. I was so excited, I got the $57.99 set for only $7.99 as a result of the party! Woo!

One of the fun products that is apart of the collection is the Dried Tomato & Garlic Pesto Mix. I went onto Tastefully Simple's website I looked up fun recipes using the pesto mix. One of them being the Chicken & Pesto Alfredo.....delish! I had it finished in less than 30 minutes and it tasted even better the next day. That's the sort of thing I need after a 12 hour shift at the hospital!

These breakfast egg cups couldn't be easier, faster and more simple if they wanted to be. There is so much flavor packed into these little breakfast cups...it's deliciously insane!

Just prepare the pesto mix and spoon 1 tablespoon of prepared pesto into each greased ramekin.

 

Crack an egg into each ramekin.

 

Sprinkle the egg with some Seasoned Salt.

 

Top the egg with grated parmesan cheese.....and bake!

 

Tomato & Garlic Pesto Egg Cups
{Serves 4}

2 tablespoons Dried Tomato & Garlic Pesto Mix
1-1/2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 tablespoons Water
4 Eggs
1/2 teaspoon Seasoned Salt
4 teaspoons Grated Parmesan Cheese
Cooking spray

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees (F).
Combine the pesto mix, EVOO and water in a small bowl. Microwave on high for 1 minute and let the pesto mixture stand for 5 minutes.

Lightly grease 4 ramekins with cooking spray. Place 1 tablespoon of pesto into the bottom of each ramekin. Crack an egg into each ramekin and sprinkle each with 1/8 teaspoon of Seasoned Salt. Top each egg with 1 teaspoon of grated Parmesan Cheese. Place the 4 ramekins on a baking sheet; bake egg cups for 12-15 minutes until desired doneness. Enjoy with a side of fresh fruit and buttered toast!

Interested in getting the Dried Tomato & Garlic Pesto Mix or anything else Tastefully Simple????

Ask me how!

Visit my Independent Consultant page by clicking on the Tastefully Simple Consultant icon on the top-right hand side of this webpage or click here!

 

This post was not sponsored by Tastefully Simple. I am an Independent Consultant for Tastefully Simple and purchased the products myself. All opinions and thoughts are my own. I just really love there products!