Soup’s On

I went home again this past weekend being that I had 3 days off. And I’ve come to the conclusion that every time I have plans to drive a distance, it snows…

and snows…

until it’s declared a blizzard with hazardous road conditions.

 

And then of course once I finally reached my parents house (which took me more toward four hours instead of the usual two), we found out the highway I was on was rated the worst driving conditions in Minnesota..just my luck! :-/

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For the weekend entertainment with my parents we had a new toy to play with…

My dad’s new remote control helicopter—so fun, if we can ever find out how to steer it in a flyable fashion.

And the second means of entertainment was our ongoing experiment of growing shiitake mushrooms! My mom ordered it for my dad from the Fungi website. It’s basically a shiitake mushroom patch composed of a unique blend of sterilized, enriched sawdust fully colonized with a select strain of shiitake. Shiitake kits are super-boosted to give the most prolific harvests yet.

After just 10 days…

Step 1: Harvest

Step 2: Observe— “ooh and ahh” over your shrooms

Step 3: Add them to your favorite dish—in this case, a veggie omelet!

End result: Delicious and fresh mushrooms grown in your own home. :-)

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Next up on tonight’s menu? Another round of Progresso Soup news. (Member this one from last year?)

Last month I was contacted by MyBlogSpark asking if I wanted to try out some news soups from the Progresso line. Soup + MN winters=a good way to warm up…so naturally I said “yes”!

“Giving you a taste worth talking about with new varieties, Progresso continues to provide convenient options made to taste great and encourage good food choices, too. It’s important to make food choices for yourself and for your family that are both satisfying to your taste buds and nutritious.”

Currently on shelves:

Progresso® New World Recipes™ – Inspired by Mexican recipes, explore one of the fastest growing ethnic cuisines by giving the Progresso New World Recipes line a try. Made with authentic Mexican ingredients and seasonings, four new Progresso soups will be hitting grocery shelves near you - Chicken Tortilla, Meatball & Rice, Black Bean Jalapeno and Chicken & Vegetable.
Progresso Light - America’s number one Light soup just got better, as all 13 existing Progresso Light varieties are now packed with bigger pieces of white meat chicken, more tender pieces of beef or added vegetables. Need even more to talk about? Progresso Light New England Clam Chowder is the first creamy Light ready-to-serve soup that holds true to the Progresso Light name with just 1 Weight Watchers® POINTS® value per serving!
Progresso Reduced Sodium – With 49 percent of shoppers concerned about high cholesterol1, Progresso understands the importance of soluble fiber and reduced sodium diets. New Reduced Sodium Tomato Parmesan soup is one more tasty option that has a delicious blend of flavors and carries the “May Help Lower Cholesterol”2 benefit. In addition, five additional Reduced Sodium soups also carry the “May Help Lower Cholesterol”2 benefit.
Progresso High Fiber – With 9 out of 10 Americans not getting the recommended Daily Value of fiber, Progresso High Fiber line of soups are packed with 7 grams per serving. Giving you one more thing to talk about, Progresso brand’s first Chili Soup just joined the High Fiber family!

In the Progresso package I received one can of Chicken Tortilla Progresso Soup and one can of Light New England Clam Chowder Progresso soup, a spoon rest, soup can rack, and soup mug with matching spoon.

 

I don’t know about you, but when seafood is mentioned, I immediately jump at the chance to get my hands on some. This weeks seafood indulgence came in the form of soup..Progresso’s  Light New England Clam Chowder to be exact. I’ve never tried their original version, I always make this homemade version,  but for a canned version I would have to say Progresso has the flavor spot on, it’s just lacking big chunks in it. However, I realize not everyone is a fan of chunks, so it’s always better to go with less and let the customer add more of whatever if they wish. So if your a fan of New England Clam Chowder minus the chunks, make sure to add Progresso’s light version to your grocery list.

You can enter yourself in a Progresso giveaway just by entering an answer to the question below! You’ll get the same prize pack you saw above. (Let me know in a separate comment if you shared this giveaway on your blog—you’ll get an extra chance!

Contest ends this Friday!!

 

What Progresso soup flavor is your all-time favorite?

The Birthday Boy

I really have a hard time keeping surprises from people, especially when they are big ones. And even more so when I am keeping them from all the readers on my blog for quite sometime now. Yes, there is not one, but two surprises that will be revealed sometime within the next week…so hang in there! =)

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"Almost Any Man Can Be A Father
It Takes Someone Extremely Special
To Be A Dad"

This past weekend was my wonderful dad’s birthday! So in true daughter/hostess fashion, I invited him down to my house for the weekend! My dad comes to visit every so often, but is pretty busy due to the fact that he is an over-the-road truck driver. For him to take a few days to come stay at my place was a definite treat! I wanted to make his birthday weekend extra special. Judging by his reactions, I would say I succeeded!

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First up, we visited my city’s local Science Museum which I have never been to in the three years that I’ve lived here surprisingly. I think it’s always fun to play tourist in your town once and awhile—that way you can always discover new things.

We had fun taking pictures in the fun house mirrors.

Were amazed by some of the science and physics experiments.

I held my first snake—Bo the boa constrictor. Scary, yes.

But of course the food was the highlight of the day, like usual when you’re at my place!!  While I was waiting for my dad to arrive early Saturday afternoon, I got going in the kitchen. I usually bake my bread from scratch in the bread machine, however when I was shopping, I saw this mix and it was on sale, so I figured I’d give it a try!

Hawaiian Royal Sweet Bread Machine Mix

The box included your bread mix and yeast packet—all you do is add water and you have yourself a nice loaf!

I would classify this bread as a cross between a sweet bread and a more traditional bread. However, it served as the perfect balance with a savory meal!

Next I got started on the side dish—homemade garlic red mashed potatoes. My dad loves this recipe and he’s a mashed potatoaholic.

Garlic Red Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:

8 medium red potatoes, quartered

3 cloves garlic, peeled—equivalent of minced garlic works too

2 tablespoons butter or stick margarine—I used I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter 

1/2 cup fat-free milk, warmed

1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

• Place potatoes and garlic in a large saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 20-25 minutes or until the potatoes are very tender. Drain well.

• Add the butter, milk and salt; mash, or put on low in a stand mixer like I do.

And lastly, I made a run to our local meat market and got my 2nd favorite (flank being first) cut of meat, T-bone steak! And then I saw some juicy shrimp, and thought hey, why not steak and shrimp?

But what’s a girl to do when left with two steaks and no grill? Follow this fail-proof indoor cooking method for just-off-the-grill flavor! I love it!

 

Pan-Seared T-Bone Steak

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pounds bone-in T-bone steak

• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

• 1 tablespoon canola oil

• 2 skewers of shrimp, uncooked (optional)

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. A half-hour before cooking, remove steak from refrigerator.
• Heat a large skillet over high heat. Pat steak dry and season generously with salt and pepper. Add oil to hot skillet and when it begins to smoke add steak. Reduce heat slightly and cook steak until browned, about 4 minutes on each side.
• Add one skewer of shrimp on top of each steak.
• Transfer skillet to the oven. Roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted sideways into the steak registers 120 degrees F for medium-rare, about 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer steak to a cutting board and let it rest for 10 minutes.

 

All together now…

 

Let’s just say my dad didn’t have words to describe this meal, but the fact that either of us could barely move from being so stuffed was all the reassurance I needed!!

Oh but wait, don’t go…

I almost forgot to share the dessert I made!

Triple Chocolate Cupcakes—words can’t describe!

 

What’s the best birthday meal you’ve ever had?

Winding Down

I can’t believe I went back to school as of yesterday! This summer went by faster than any other summer I recall. Now starting my Junior year in college, I realized I’ve made it 2 years, and 2 to go!

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The last hurrah at the Healthy Living Summit. We met these two glorious ladies the first night at the cocktail party. Lisa, myself, my mom, and Lindsey!

Coming back from Chicago last Sunday, the 15th, was a long ride. I think just knowing that I had to come home and all the Chicago fun had to end made me sad. But at least my mom and I got to make one last stop at Wisconsin Dells to extend our vacation into Monday.

The trip from Chicago to the Dells is actually quite beautiful. Wisconsin has a lot of beautiful landscapes, and it was definitely worth the extra hours of driving to see it all. I spent the majority of the time digging through my swag bag from the Healthy Living Summit, and of course had to try a few snackaroos.

If you’ve been reading my blog for awhile, you’ll know that I am not a huge chip fan, but give me some Popchips and I can easily down the bag—they are by far the best chips. Light, airy, flavorful, crunchy, and best of all they are baked vs fried which means they’re healthy!

We also got a miniature N’Oatmeal Raisin Cookie made by Mary’s Gone Crackers, which is basically an oatmeal cookie made without the oats. I am still not 100% sure of how I feel about the folks at Mary’s taking the oatmeal out of the typical oatmeal cookie, but they were chewy and still had the “oatmeal cookie taste”. Would I buy em in a store? Probably not.

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We made it to the Dells around 5-ish and wanted to find somewhere to eat—I always jump at the chance to try new buffets, so we made are way to the Chula Vista resort and ate at their Market Fresh Buffet, which prides themselves on having 90 feet of buffet to choose from!

Beautiful salad bar

Flank steak, buffalo shrimp, mahi mahi, salmon with wasabi, mashed potatoes, and peas.

Then I got to work cracking crab legs—yum!

We stayed at the Black Hawk Motel downtown Dells, which I highly recommend by the way, and it was conveniently located by all the little shops—and this place that caught my eye right away!

Good thing I went inside—my head started spinning when I saw this sign!!

Take a guess what flavor I chose!

Cheesecake!

Wow, I wish our town had 24 flavors of soft-serve somewhere..actually I take that back—if we did, I’d be broke!

After get a good nights rest, we headed out bright and early Monday morning, but first relied on Denny’s to fuel our day.

I started with this lovely fruit parfait…

Then I got a glorious all veggie omelet with no cheese, and a side of red-skinned potatoes!

So picture more driving—6 hours to be exact—a few stops to shop and stretch, and finally making it back into Minnesota by five o’clock, which was perfect timing to stop at The Outback Steakhouse. This was my first time eating here, and definitely won’t be my last!

The brown bread was really good and hearty!

I ordered the Outback Special which is a 9 oz sirloin steak seasoned with bold spices, and seared just right. I also got a baked potato on the side to round of a great meal—sometimes I just want a big, juicy steak to call it a day!

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So overall, I loved Chicago—the city, the lights, the sights, and the smells. The Healthy Living Summit was definitely worth the drive and I will be attending next year for sure! Spending all that time with my mom and being able to go on a vacation before summer was over will be a memory that lasts far beyond the lazy days of 2010 summer!

However, I am so glad to be home to the slow-paced northern Minnesota lifestyle, family, friends, school, and a HOME COOKED MEAL!!

What was your best memory of summer this year??

I Should Have Been Born a City Girl

My mom and I finally made it home to Minnesota safe and sound! We both agreed this was the best trip we’ve taken together, just the two of us—it was some much needed girl time!

Saturday Re-cap

Saturday morning rolled around fast and it was finally time for the highly anticipated Healthy Living Summit 2010! Everyone filed down early to the banquet rooms in the Congress Plaza Hotel and picked up the swag bags (watch for all the goodies in upcoming posts) , checked out the booths from the companies, and found seats to listen to the speakers. There was so many different topics to choose from..we chose the Ethical Eating presented by Evan from Food Makes Fun Fuel. Here’s the notes I took:

• Look for eggs that are from veg-fed chickens.
• Store bought dairy is comparable to brand name. Just look for hormone-free.
• For poultry, buy it free of hormones and antibiotics.
• Swap tuna with salmon occasionally.
• Avoid the “choice” cuts.
• Ethical eating is happy eating!

Then Quaker put on a morning snack break.

Mom liked their new Chocolate Swirl bars.

Check out these swag bags—filled with everything from assorted healthy bars to laundry detergent!

The second conference we attended was Healthy Entertaining put on by RhodeyGirl Tests…you can get the full recap here.

Lunch was sponsored by Arnold and Orowheat—it was amazingly good..check out the menu!

My plate…so fresh & delicious!

The Sandwich Thins are delish—I can’t wait to buy some with my coupons I got!

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We didn’t stick around for all of the afternoon sessions because it was my mom’s birthday and we figured Chicago was the perfect place to celebrate! Shopping and more food anyone?

 

We ate at the popular pizza place called Pizano’s Pizza and Pasta in downtown Chicago. I was a little skeptical of the half hour seating time and the 45 minute wait for the pizza..I had my fingers crossed that it’d be worth the wait…and boy, was it!

                                              

I loved the Italian decor—right up my alley :-)

 

We ordered the vegetarian pizza with the addition of pineapple, spinach, and fresh tomatoes. The sauce was outrageously good, the veggies were fresh, and there was a perfect amount of blended cheeses to top it off.

And more walking just added to my appetite..

Thank God for Park Cafe in Millennium park having the only place around open past six that has frozen yogurt!

 

Stay tuned for the last of my Healthy Living Summit trip recap!

What is the best pizza you’ve ever eaten?