Stuffed Zucchini Boats

Stuffed Zucchini Boats were another foodgawker find and a risky try in our household.  I know Chris is not a fan of veggies, but it's my goal to find one new veggie (or new recipe that sneaks in a veggie) for him to enjoy.  Or at least tolerate enough to eat again.  There are several recipes online, so I took a little from column A, a little from column B and a lot from column C.

Ingredients:

- 3/4 pound of Ground Beef

- 3 Zucchini

- Tomato sauce

- Salt, Pepper, Oregano, Parsley Flakes to season

- Bread Crumbs

- Parmesan, Italian Blend and Feta Cheese

I started off with browning the beef and seasoning it with salt and pepper, set aside.  Cut the zucchini in half and spoon out the inner pulp leaving a cove in the shell.  Heat the shells in the microwave for 3 minutes then place in a non stick pan.

Place the beef back into the pan to saute with the zucchini, oregano, parsley flakes and bread crumbs.  Spoon the mixture into the zucchini shells and top with tomato sauce and cheese.  Into the oven for 18 minutes at 375 degrees.

They're really tasty, and Chris was nice enough to try one that had zucchini in it (I also made two boats with just meat and cheese mixture), but there was no chance that he would eat any of the actual zucchini shell.  Oh well, I tried.  I guess I'll just have to keep looking for a veggie or recipe that hides the veggie enough for him.

Do you know of any good recipes that include veggies but don't taste like it?

Photo Challenge Day 16 - Long Exposure

This was another camera technique that I found great tips about on That Wife.  I would love to get out and test this more, but since I was a little busy this weekend my subject was our ceiling fan.

Challenge originally found here, be sure to follow along with the rest of the bloggers and photographers who are a part of the challenge here.

Photo Challenge Day 15 - Silhouette

I found some great instructions on That Wife on how to shoot a silhouette.  I played around last night in our guest room and came out with a decent shot of Gypsy, love that she perked up her ears.  Next time I'll try to find a good location (and subject) to shoot during sunrise or sunset.

Shot with my Canon T2i on manual - aperture f-number f/4.0, shutter speed 1/80 sec, ISO 400.


Challenge originally found here, be sure to follow along with the rest of the bloggers and photographers who are a part of the challenge here.

Photo Challenge Days 10-14

Another week of the challenge, and more fun pictures!

Day 10 - Childhood Memory

One of my favorite childhood memories can be found in this picture of a picture.

This was taken right after my first dance recital as a kid, we danced to Michael Jackson's Beat It (don't you love the ridiculously baggy pants?).  It's one of the only photos that I can find of me with both of my grandmothers who have sadly both passed.  I will forever cherish this snapshot, as well as the memories I have of those two amazing women.

Day 11 - Something Blue

Chris and I try to collect items to remember the trips we have been on.  I had to hunt through a couple of shops before finding the perfect sized, blue steel drum in Trinidad & Tobago.

This shot captures some extra blue in the form of our Las Vegas sign, and those tiles from San Antonio with our wedding date on them.

Day 12 - Sunset

Setting over the houses across the highway from us.

Day 13 - Yourself with 13 things

13 of my favorite DVDs in our collection: Saved by the Bell, Clueless, Vegas Vacation, L.A. Story, Wedding Crashers, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, The O.C., The Sound of Music, Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead, The Italian Job, The Incredibles, The Hangover, Dazed & Confused.

Day 14 - Eyes

I love my husband's eyes!  One of the features that I first noticed about him.  He likes to call them brown, but I think you'll agree with me when I say they're a little more hazel.

The expression he was making while I took these pictures was pretty hilarious.

What are some of your favorite DVDs?

Challenge originally found here, be sure to follow along with the rest of the bloggers and photographers who are a part of the challenge here.

Breakfast For Dinner

With Chris' busy schedule of work and school we hardly ever get the opportunity to enjoy breakfast on the weekends.  I found two breakfast recipes (here and here) and really wanted to try them out, so breakfast for dinner it is!

Ingredients:

- 30 oz thawed Hash Browns

- 2 tsp Salt

- 1 tsp Pepper

- 2 tbs Oil

- 1/3 cup Cheddar Cheese

- 3 Eggs (would suggest 6 eggs)

- 1/3 cup Italian Blend Cheese

- 1 cup Ham

- Oregano

I started off by making the hash brown baskets which included combining the hash browns, salt, pepper, oil and cheddar cheese into a bowl. Once mixed together, scoop into a greased muffin tin creating a well.

The recipe called for 24 oz of hash browns, and the bag I purchased was 30 oz.  I had used some previously so I thought it was probably close to 24 oz.  This was still probably too much in the hash brown department, so I ended up using some bigger cupcake tins to accommodate the left overs.

Place those in the oven at 425 degrees for 15 minutes.

While those are baking, saute your ham on the stove top for 3-4 mins.  Beat together your eggs and add in some more pepper, Italian blend cheese, salt, oregano and eventually your ham.  When your hash browns are ready, pull them out and pour the egg concoction into each well.    Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes and you're good to go!

My personal take away from this recipe would probably be to add another egg or two.  I don't think there was enough of the egg mixture to go around, but these breakfast bites were still very delectable! They also reheated very well the next morning for breakfast :)

I later tried the recipe with 6 eggs for Big Apple Nosh's Nosh Girl Party and I think they turned out so much better!  We could definitely see and taste the egg, which made for a more satisfying breakfast bite.

Paired with some green monster smoothies

What are some of your favorite breakfast foods?

Noticing Wedding Details

Over the weekend I attended the wedding of a friend and after getting home I noticed that I took more pictures of details then I did of people.  It's weird how planning a wedding and working on details for so long will do that to ya.

The ceremony and reception were held at the Trinity River Audubon center a little south of Dallas.  The drive was a little crazy with the normal Friday traffic and yearly Dallas invasion of TX/OU weekend, but I made it with a couple of minutes to spare.

It was a beautiful, outdoor ceremony, incorporating Spanish customs like the presentation of 13 coins and Wedding Lasso.

On to the details!

Escort Cards

Table Settings

Centerpieces

Cake #2 

The first cake had a mishap and the baker rushed another cake (which the bride said was almost exactly what they ordered) just in time for the reception.  That's a great vendor for you! (and happened to be the same cake vendor we used)

Thumbprint tree

Candy Buffet

Cramming 7 girls into a photo booth

The wedding was so much fun, and it's so awesome to know what someone is planning and see it all come together!

After you were married, did you tend to notice wedding details more as a guest?

Home Ideas: DIY Details

To make our future house into a home, I'm hoping to add a couple of DIY touches.  Thanks to Pinterest for having a place for me to find and save some of these ideas.  You've already seen my first inspired project, here are a few more that I have pinned.

Via A Step in the Journey

Perfect to keep track of all the places we've been!  I would probably do one of the US and one of Mexico/Caribbean since we've traveled to a handful of those locations as well.

Via GadgetSin

These wooden squared painted with chalkboard paint are a great way to meal plan for the week.

Via Flickr

This would be adorable in a baby's room.  Maybe change it up and do the whole name in buttons on a canvas.

Via Full of Great Ideas

This would be really cute with our last name and "est." date.

Via Etsy

I really love the idea of painting a picture over a couple of canvases.  This could check off one of my 30 before 30 goals.

Are there any DIY touches that you have incorporated into your home?