Warm Chicken Salad with Goodies - Quick & Easy

My husband and I have gotten into a rut lately. We do this from time to time with our food. We get in the habit of having a protein {chicken, pork, turkey, beef, fish - all lean/extra-lean}, a vegetable {usually roasted or a salad} and a complex carb {usually a grain of some sort}. We know how to do it. It tastes good. And we know it nourishes our body.

While there's nothing wrong with the foods we eat, I get bored with it. And lately, I've been REALLY bored. So I turned to my new oracle... Pinterest. {Follow me: "Molly Trapp"}

Last week I found a simple chicken salad recipe from an awesome blog called "farm + house + table" that made it to my Top 3 Favorite Salads list. Here's a link to the recipe: Warm Chicken Salad with Peppers, Pears, and Toasted Pinenuts.

Super simple dressing with {optional: store-bought} roasted chicken:

Fresh fruit and vegetables. Crisp, tasty arugula. And we paired it with leftover roasted yams, sweet potatoes, and onions. I wanted to lick the bowl. 

Took no time to make, and absolutely great. Try it.

.enjoy!

molly

The Sailboats are Sailing Away

I began making the Sailboat mobiles for all of you that have boy babes and didn't think a bird mobile would work for your little dude's room. {Birds work for everyone, you just gotta pick the right fabric... in my humble opinion.}

They've been so fun to make for you, especially the custom ones.

But alas, my time is hardly my own anymore {I'm hoping little Bridget will soon start sleeping more hours in a row!} and these sweet mobiles take a LOT of time to make. Since no one would buy them if I priced them to cover my time, I'm sadly having to pull them from my offerings.

The Sea Life mobiles are still up for grabs though, and talk about fun with the custom orders!

 Jump on in!

.enjoy

molly

Balsamic Cremini Mushroom Side Dish

We had some extra cremini mushrooms in the fridge tonight so I turned to my new favorite oracle - Pinterest - for recipes and asked what I should make. What came up was simply delicious!

The original recipe was from "Dinners & Dreams" {"A Moroccan Recipe Journal"; a blog I hadn't seen before but I am definitely intrigued by it now} and suggested portobella mushrooms marinated in harissa, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and dried oregano, then skewered and barbequed. 

My version was cremini mushrooms marinated at room temperature for about 30 minutes in olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and dried oregano {no harissa in the house} and then sauteed in more olive oil on medium for the first bit, then lowered to low to allow the juices to cook out a bit. The result... yum!

Paired it with flank steak and roasted broccoli with whole wheat pasta. The mushrooms added a fantastic sweetness such that I found myself rationing them out so that I could have some with each bit.

I can definitely see these in sandwiches, mixed in with some carb side {quinoa, cracked wheat}, and on top of cottage cheese with a bunch of other veggies. Next time, I'll make extra, and try not to eat it all that night!

What's your favorite mushroom side dish?

enjoy.

.molly