I miss you, childhood. I miss the days when…

…money was just a play thing.

…the only crap you had to deal with came in having to remember to “poopy on the potty”.

…vacuuming was not a chore, but “Run from the Monster” play-time.

…relationship drama didn’t exist because your best friend was stuffed.

…a simple kiss and bandaid took all the pain away.

Then, there are parts of our childhoods that we let slip away even though we don’t have to say goodbye. We can still embrace that childhood spirit and…

…have all the confidence in the world. Believe we are a singing, dancing, cooking, drawing, running, joke-telling superstar! And love your body for the fun things it can do.

…trust our Daddy to care, love, and provide for us.

…play with vigor. And, yes, exercise should be play. You should do what you love! 

…get excited over the simple things.

…enjoy food. Even if sometimes that means pure comfort on a plate.

Rainy Day Mushroom & Parsnip Beef Stew

• 1 large yellow onion
• 4-5 parsnips
• 1 package white mushrooms
• 1 lb stew meat, cut into 1 inch chunks
• 2 cans 98% fat-free cream of mushroom soup
• 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
• 2 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
• garlic powder (to taste)
• black pepper (to taste)

Clean and peel your vegetables. Slice/chop the onion, parsnips, and mushrooms into fairly even pieces (about 1/2”-1” in size). Spread evenly over the bottom of a slow-cooker. Top the vegetables with your stew meat, cut into 1 inch chunks over the vegetables.In a large bowl, mix the soup, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, and pepper. Pour the mixture over the meat and vegetables. Cover and cook on HIGH 6-8 hours.

Serve over whole wheat pasta, with crusty bread, or just straight up with some roasted green beans if you’re like me and forget to buy the bread at the store.

Ahhh, comfort food. Ahhh, childhood. Who says it has to end?

Question of the Evening – What do you most miss about childhood?

I’ve had a few requests to share some of the recipes of meals I have shared in recent posts, like my Ode to Trader Joes. I originally didn’t think to share them because they are a) more just throwing things together or b) turned out tasty, but different than expected. I’m still happy to share, though! So, here you go…

Roasted Eggplant & Hummus Panini

Preheat oven to 425. Cut a large eggplant into 1/2” rounds and place on a baking sheet. Spray the eggplant with cooking spray and roast for 25 minutes, flipping halfway.

Layer up your favorite bread with your favorite sandwich toppings. I used pesto, TJ’s White Bean Basil hummus, tomato, sautéed mushrooms, olives, the eggplant, and spinach.

Press in a panini press or cook on the stovetop until the bread gets toasty and crunchy.

Spicy Jalapeno & Veggie Jambalaya

Prepare a package of Spicy Jalapeno (or other spicy variety) chicken sausages, according to package directions. Slice into rounds when finished.

While sausage cooks, take the “kitchen sink” method and toss your favorite vegetables or what you have on hand into a pan with a small amount of oil or coated with cooking spray. I used squash, zucchini, onion, mushrooms, and broccoli. Cook 5-10 minutes.

Add one 15 oz can no-salt-added diced tomatoes. Add Louisiana Cajun/Creole seasoning (or other spice component) to desired spice level. Let simmer an additional 5 minutes.

Serve the vegetable mixture over cooked brown rice and top with the sausage.

Enchilada Polenta “Stew to Bake”
(adapted from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker cookbook)

• 1 small onion, diced small
• 1 1/4 cups cornmeal
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 4 cups boiling water
• 2 cups salsa
• 1 can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/3 cup sliced black olives
• 1 1/2 cups frozen corn, thawed
• 1/4 red onion, diced small
• cilantro, for garnish

Combine the diced onion, cornmeal, chili powder, and salt in a crockpot. Pour the 4 cups boiling water over and stir to combine. Cook on low 6-8 hours.

30-60 minutes before ready to serve, combine the remaining ingredients (besides cilantro) in a medium bowl. Mix together.

Spread atop the polenta base in the crockpot. Allow to cook 20-30 minutes, until bean mixture heats through.

Here’s where things got crazy. The polenta mixture should have “set to firm” while cooking. It never did for me, so I ended up serving the meal in bowls as a soup that night. I garnished it with the cilantro and a sprinkle of cheese and it still tasted great.

Then, the next day when I went to have leftovers the polenta had firmed up while in the fridge overnight. It ended up more like a casserole or bake. Interesting, no? I just served it as such for my lunch and it actually turned out really well.

I preferred it in the casserole/bake form, but only got there through the minor “kitchen fail”. Now, I have to find a way to recreate the recipe to just produce the casserole. I tell ya not to trust me in the kitchen…but I promise it is still very tasty!!!

Questions of the Day -

• Have you ever had a recipe “fail” actually turn out pretty good?
• Any ideas on fixing my recipe?