Pink Dragon Fruit Frozen Yogurt

Recently, Aaron and I visited the Flea Market at the Central Florida Fairgrounds.  Aside from the typical flea market finds, there are several produce stands.  I happened upon one selling a limited variety of fresh, locally grown tropical fruit.  We purchased dragon fruit, lychee, and mamey but passed on the $60 jackfruit.  Jackfruit is a HUGE fruit...so $60 for the whole thing really isn't as bad as it sounds...but who in the heck would eat all that?!

Dragon fruit is BEAUTIFUL on the inside.  They come in either white or hot pink...ours were the hot pink variety!  So pretty!

Source: http://www.tropicalfruitgrowers.com/?page_id=546

This soft, delicately flavored fruit is almost too pretty to eat...almost.  

Since we're trying to be healthier, I decided this would be an excellent dessert!  So let's make it look like dessert and less like something 'good for you'...

Hardware:

Knife

Spoon

Small food processor or blender

Freezer-safe container

Software: 

One dragon fruit, ripe

1 cup Greek yogurt

4 packets Splenda (or your sweetener of choice...honey is another good option)

Gettin' down to business:

1.  Cut dragon fruit in half, lengthwise.  Using the spoon, scoop out the flesh into your processor.  Blend until no longer chunky (doesn't take very long!).

2.  Add yogurt and sweetener.  Blend until smooth.  

3.  Put in freezer-safe container and freeze until it reaches your desired consistency (I like mine mostly soft, Aaron likes his rock solid...so his went in over night).

Vegetable Stock

I'm not sure if I've mentioned it before, but my boyfriend is allergic to poultry.  Weird, I know, but true.  So all those recipes that call for chicken stock were off limits to our household, which was a real shame because they're so GOOD!  So a while back, I decided to just sub in some veggie stock because it's comparable.  What I didn't realize was how expensive it was.  I mean, really...it's at least $.50 more than chicken or beef stock!  What gives?!  So I said, "screw that" and decided to make my own.  Turns out...it's not hard!

First off, you have to have enough veggie trimmings and it's good to have a bit of variety or you're not going to have veggie stock, you'll just have broccoli water (I know because I did this once...learn from my mistakes!).  What I found works best for me is to trim and divide all my fresh veggies into meal-sized portions when I get home from the grocery store.  This kills two birds with one stone...I have ready to go veggies for our meals AND I make my stock.  Plus, I find my fridge looks more organized this way than just having random packages of veggies in there.  Anyway...

Wash everything thoroughly!  Unless, of course, you like the flavor of dirt...but let's just assume that we don't.  Wash 'em.  Cut everything into chunks.  They don't have to be perfect or anything...I just find they fit better into my pot in smaller chunks.  Plus, I think it gets more flavor out....you know, that whole surface area to mass thing.  I like to fill my big soup pot about half full of veggie trimmings.  I also throw in at least one whole onion chopped up and a couple tablespoons of minced garlic for extra flavor.  You can throw in whatever seasonings you like...I just like to keep mine simple and season it later when I use it in a recipe.  Then, I fill the pot up the rest of the way with water, leaving enough room so it won't boil over.  Then, I set it on the stove and have it cook at a boil for about an hour.  Let it cool, and using a mesh strainer, I separate the veggies from the stock.  Discard the veggies (if you have a compost bin, these are perfect for that!).  Make sure you let the stock cool down before refrigerating it.

If you're not going to use all this stock within the week, freeze it.  I prefer to freeze it in ice cube trays and then empty the trays into a gallon freezer bags.  My ice cubes are about 1/8 of a cup each, so I can easily take out just the amount that I need.

I really hope you enjoy this little tip!  It's certainly saved me a lot of money and made for some tasty food!

Road Trip!

Just last month, my little family and I piled into our vehicle for the long drive from Orlando to Chicago for my boyfriend's family reunion.  We anticipated the drive taking at minimum 21 hours and we planned to drive the whole way there...no stopping (except for gas and potty breaks, of course!).  How does one do this with an 8 month old, you may ask.  Glad you asked!

Preparation!

Plum blends pack with "Boon"

Preparation is the name of the game when planning  a road trip with a little one.  The three big things on my list were easy to prepare formula for in the car, easy to serve baby food for in the car, and new toys to keep him happy.  Now I know most people wouldn't be crazy about feeding their children in the car like this, but hear me out.  He is perfectly capable of holding his own bottle and if he is fed while driving, all those stops can be used for stretching his little legs and moving around...not stuck in Mom's lap eating!  My only problem was the baby food...just sounded messy as all get out in a car seat, right?  Solution...squeezy fruit!  I'm sure there are other names for them but that's what we call them in our house.  I got 20 packs for $20 at Babies R Us on sale, and my little man can suck the food right out of the pack.  If your kiddo isn't crazy about sucking it out on their own, they make spoon attachments (called a Boon) so you can squeeze the food right into the spoon.

After getting the fruit packs, I got a couple packs of ready to feed bottles and had a ziploc bag full of nipples...easy as pie.  I put those and a few sippy cups (for water) and some little snacks into a small tote and stowed it on the floor in front of the car seat for easy access.  

Ayden playing with one of his new toys.

The last thing on my prep list was new toys.  Why new toys?  What's wrong with the toys he already has?  Well...they're boring.  He's already seen them and played with them.  So I got a few new things to keep his attention on the drive.  One important thing to note...while all the bells and whistles are cool on toys, it's key to get at least one silent toy.  Trust me, your sanity will thank me later.

How did it go?

Well the 21 hour trip ended up being 2 full days due to a blown transmission somewhere in GA.  If not for the help of family, friends, and the grace of God, we would still be there!  Ayden was a trooper through the whole thing...only fussed one time on the entire trip.  His car seat was mess free and had a blast with his new toys.  One thing I will say this experience has taught me is to pack extra...because you never know!

Please note...here I'm just talking about food and fun for baby on road trips.  There are certainly MANY more things you need...diapers, wipes, sunscreen, etc.  This isn't meant to be comprehensive!

Update

The purpose of this post is to simply let you know why I haven't posted in a while.  A couple of weeks ago, my family suffered a tragic loss.  My dad passed away suddenly at 46.  We are still in shock and coping as best we can.  The funeral was last week at his church and the show of love and support from his congregation was overwhelming.  Monday, we flew to our home state of Illinois to hold a small visitation for our family and burial.  We just arrived home today in Orlando.

Dad and I sometime in the early 90's

While this is a horrible time for our family, I can assure you that life will go on and we will get through this.  I simply ask for prayers and love for us during this time.  I promise you I will go back to my goofy self, posting all kinds of fun stuff when the time is right.  But for now...we grieve, we remember, we heal.

Cookie Time!

Not sure if I mentioned this already, but we live in a cookie house.  Some homes have cakes, brownies, or Little Debbies, but ours...we have cookies.  So I was having a cookie craving and went to the cupboard to gather my ingredients and then...*gasp!*...we have no...chocolate chips?!  WHAT?!  When did this travesty occur?  How could I have been so unprepared?!

Ok, so maybe I'm being a little dramatic.  But hey, when you want a cookie, it can feel like a matter of life or death!  What to do...well I have about a thousand cake mixes up there that I will probably never use, so I seriously considered making a cake.  Ugh, but then there's the whole thing where you have to let it cool and frost it and even then...it's just not a cookie!

Did you know you can make cookies from a cake mix?  So yeah...say good bye to my cake mixes and hello to tasty cookie goodness!  It's surprisingly easy and requires only two extra ingredients.  Like with cookies, you can mix in additional things like chocolate chips, raisins, etc.


Cake Mix Cookies
1 pkg cake mix (average size...not family size)
2 large eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil

1.  Preheat oven to 350.  Mix all ingredients well.

2.  Spoon onto baking sheet.  Bake for 8-10 minutes.

3.  Allow to cool.  Frost if you like.

Organization I

Have you ever spent an entire day cleaning your house only to sit down at the end of the day and feel like you haven't accomplished anything?  I had one of those days.  I think I figured out what the problem is.  We have entirely too much crap.  Seriously.  It's just out of control.  See, my darling boyfriend is a pack rat.  He has kept some of the strangest things over the years...and he's attached to every single one of them.  Only in the last year or so since we found out we were expecting did he start to release his death-grip on his old crap.  

Before

My goal, to eliminate this problem (and hopefully make our next move a little easier) is to go through each problem area in our house and purge it of all the junk.  We agreed to start moving all said junk to the garage and have a garage sale to hopefully make a little change.  

Anyway...so that's the master plan.  Since I came upon this idea late in the day (but me being me, couldn't just wait until tomorrow to start), I chose to start small.  I have a cabinet on my side of the bedroom where I keep a few books and things.  It was a royal mess.  Just...ugh.  Thinking back to how it was, I'm so ashamed...but I will post pics anyway.  Yeah, I know...it's nasty...don't judge me.  

After emptying it out completely, I divided everything into categories:  reading material, stored decorations, gifts, stockpiled toiletries, keepsakes, stuff that goes somewhere else, and trash.  I ended up throwing a lot away and filling a laundry basket with stuff that didn't belong.  I put my toiletry items in those totes I bought at a garage sale for $1 and organized everything else.  I think it turned out beautifully and didn't cost me but the $1 I spent on those totes!  I also found that arranging books from tallest to shortest and keeping the bindings flush that it looks much cleaner.

After

Sunday at the Farmer's Market

Every Sunday, Lake Eola in downtown Orlando, fills its sidewalks with tents full of yummy goodies and handmade items.  The sunshine and the fountain make the day a perfect day for a stroll through the market.  If you ever find yourself in the area, I recommend you check it out.  They have fresh, organic produce, kettle corn, orchids, handmade cutting boards, aprons, baby outfits...they also have a bar set up where you can get beer and wine (or all you can drink mimosas for $10!).  There are also a handful of food vendors with everything from your traditional foods (funnel cakes, hot dogs) to empanadas!  And that is just the beginning...there is much more!  They are dog and baby friendly, so the whole family can come!