MOMables Recipe Review (3)

On to the next MOMables recipe review! This one is one of the free recipes, so it's included in the post! For more information on what MOMables are, check out my info post and giveaway HERE!

The next recipe I wanted to try out was the Easy Strawberry Cheesecake Bites recipe. I have fresh strawberries on hand, and while my little one loves to eat them by themselves, I thought it would be fun to change it up. I made this as a dessert to accompany the MOMables recipe I made for dinner last night, but that review will come later.

I don't have a food processor, but that's okay... my KitchenAid mixer will do just fine for some cream cheese and powdered sugar! I didn't buy whipped cream cheese, but I just put on the whisk attachment and let it whip the cream cheese while I cleaned the berries off and patted them dry.

Another super easy recipe in terms of prep. The longest part of this recipe? Crushing graham crackers and washing/cutting ends off strawberries. I opted to do that during nap time, so when Bobble woke up he could help me finish the snack... but Bobble skipped his nap. Instead, I just did it on my own while the munchkins were playing with hubby. Speaking of the munchkins, this is a great recipe to involve your (older) toddlers with or young children with. They will enjoy dipping strawberries or rolling them in crumbs.

I made both strawberry and blackberry cheesecake bites. They were delicious!!! Again, cell phone pictures and poor lighting mean the photos are not top quality, but the taste sure was! I actually ended up having to go and make more with the rest of the cleaned berries!

 

I'd love to make this with blueberries, though it would be very hard to dip those. I think, if I did blueberries, I would probably leave the graham crackers whole, spread the cream cheese mixture on the cracker, and just stick blueberries on top. Mmm. Yummy!

This is a delicious recipe and a great way to get kids to eat more fruit (if you struggle with that). You could also add this to a lunch with a little container of dip and graham cracker crumbs next to the fresh cut fruit and let them dip their own fruit however they please. (Granted, that would work best for older children.) I think this would be great to do with giant blueberries, too. Mmm, yum!

Disclosure: These opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own.

MOMables Recipe Review (2)

Last night we needed something quick and easy for dinner. We had left over homemade chicken strips that my husband had made the night before that needed to be eaten, but we had nothing to go with it. I decided to turn to MOMables for a solution! To learn more about MOMables (and to enter the giveaway for 3 free months!), go here!

I saw the Not From the Box Macaroni recipe and decided that was the perfect dish to go along side chicken strips. Since this recipe is not one of the free recipes, the actual recipe itself will not be shared. There are other mac-n-cheese recipes available for free, but none of them are this actual recipe.

First, I'd like to share the actual MOMables picture since my pictures were taking in poor lighting via my phone.

Doesn't it look awesome!?

I grabbed the ingredients, and got started. I actually had a very fussy Squiggle, so I ended up putting her in a ring sling while I was preparing this. It was easy enough to prepare that I actually succeeded in doing this with a grabby baby in a ring sling! YAY!

I started making the sauce (which was surprisingly easy), and even got it stuck a bit to the pan due to trying to get Squiggle in the sling while she fought it, so I wasn't stirring like I needed to be. It still turned out great, I just made certain to not stir too hard as to stir up what I accidentally stuck on the bottom. (Nobody likes that burnt taste, right? -- actually, when I went to clean the pan, I realized it wasn't actually burnt, but had JUST started sticking to the pan. I would have been safe, but better safe than sorry!)

The pasta finished cooking and I dumped that in the strainer while I turned to finish the sauce. A few minutes later and I had completed cheesy macaroni! It was a fabulous consistency, too! I was very impressed.

Now that I have made this recipe once (following the directions), I think I would tweak it a wee bit to change up the flavour. I think it could have used a bit more cheese and a bit of different variety. I probably would have added a few different types of cheese just to give it some zest. I still love this recipe and will be using it again! I never knew it was so easy to make mac and cheese from scratch!

Best yet? EVERYONE ate it! Success!

Disclosure: These opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own

MOMables Recipe Review (1)

This morning I made our kids the Banana & Almond Butter "Quesadillas". It was one of the lunch ideas I got as part of my trial subscription to MOMables (see my info post on MOMables and enter the giveaway here!). I thought it would work well for breakfast, so I opted to serve it for breakfast since Bobble isn't going to preschool today.

Since this recipe isn't one of the free recipes, it will not be included in the post.

I grabbed our tortillas out of the fridge, grabbed some banana and sliced that up, and heated up a pan. It was super easy to prep for this!



Honestly, the longest part of the process was heating the tortillas because I decided to try this with some thicker brand of tortilla. If I were to remake this, I would definitely either get some thinner tortillas, or fry these up instead of just warming them.

 When it was done, I just slid it onto a (non-plastic) plate, sprinkled with topping, and sliced using a pizza slicer. I have a feeling I should have used smaller tortilla since it suggested cutting into 4ths, but at least the whole family had enough!

And that was it! Super easy, delicious, and ready for my toddler to devour!

Disclosure: These opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own.

Lunch Rut? MOMables to the rescue!

We're nearing the end of the school year, and those of you who pack lunches for your kids might be stuck. Stuck in the same old lunch rut. PB&J? Lunchmeat? Does your kid wish for something else? Do you wish you had time for something else? Or maybe just some more ideas? MOMables can help! You may have seen my previous review on MOMables, or maybe you've never heard of them... but it will change the way you do lunch!

The About MOMables page will give you all you need to know, but I've taken a snippet for you to get the general idea:

What is MOMables™?

MOMables shows busy parents how to make fresh school lunches in 10 minutes or less.

MOMables = ˈmɑm·á·[bles]. Mom made, simple and nutritious. We’ve worked with dozens of moms, a chef and a nutritionist to create healthy lunches kids will actually eat.

Every parent I know, wants to pack a wholesome school lunch for their kids, but packing them daily, and oftentimes year-round, can be time consuming and boring. As a mom of 3 kids myself, I know this process very well.  I personally pack over 540 lunches in one school calendar year. Without a plan, I run out of ideas fast.

Okay, so they save you time, are healthy for your kids, and aren't boring! Where can you sign up!? No really, you can sign up! You can get 3 months for $18, or sign up for a year for $60.

You may be wondering why it's worth signing up. I mean, why pay someone for lunch ideas, right? Well, you get a new meal for 5 days a week. You get alternatives and tips for picky eaters or people with allergies. You even get suggestions on how to use leftovers for lunches. Not only that, but you get a shopping list with each email so you just print it out, have recipes, meal plans, and a shopping list! Everything you could possibly need! Check out their Sample Menu page!

Wait, your kid doesn't go to school in the summer... why pay for summer time? During the summer, you get meal ideas. Dinner ideas (and some that lead into lunch ideas via left overs) are always helpful! Just because your kid might be home doesn't mean they won't enjoy some of these delicious lunches... and you will too!

MOMables has some free ideas on their page as well, so go check them out and get an idea of what they are all about!

There will be a handful of recipe posts in the next week highlighting various MOMables recipes (some listed for free, some under the paid subscription. Actual recipes will not be provided for the paid subscription only recipes.), so keep your eyes on the blog to see what we cook up!

You can also enter to win a free 3 month subscription! The best part about the timing is not only will you have some awesome lunch recipes to finish up the school year, but you'll get an idea of what you can get during the summer! Enter below for your chance to win!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I receive sample(s) of the product for the purpose of testing and review. These opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own. Thoughts Of Fluff is not responsible for shipment of the prize(s). 

What's the word?

My little Squiggle is now 9 months old, and cruising like mad. She's cruised for a bit over a month, but she's a pro at it now. If she has a walker toy, she grabs it and is across the room. I have a feeling she will be walking much sooner than Bobble did (at 12mo).

As always, things have been crazy. While I've been reviewing a few products for you guys, most of my time was spent searching for a job and juggling ailments with my children. Squiggle ended up getting tubes placed in both ears last week for a very *VERY* bad ear infection that wouldn't go away, but they are hoping that will help a bit with her hearing (she's never passed a hearing test in her right ear).

I've faced a lot of difficult situations lately, though all hypothetical. It's difficult trying to find work knowing that it will literally change everything about how we live. There is nothing for me (professionally) where we live now, so I haven't had much of a choice but to look elsewhere and/or consider graduate school. That "elsewhere" has been pretty much everywhere. A lot of places are taking longer to get back because of the healthcare change. Places are waiting to see how it will affect them before taking on new employees. I understand that. What concerns me is moving far, far away. From the little things like "will there be a cloth diaper store near us?" to the big things "will family ever be able to visit us?", everything is dependent upon what I do (or don't) do. That's a lot of weight on one's shoulders!


Just a little update for everyone wondering what happened to us. Reviews will be coming soon, so keep an eye open!

Rockabums #RockItUp Prints Release and Giveaway

Last October I posted a review of the Rockabums 1.0 diaper, and showed just how much I loved the fit on both my toddler and my youngest. They were a great fit, and were simple in colour (black, red, or white).

Well, all that is about to change! Rockabums 2.0 diaper has a different snap set up, a different fabric lining the inside of the cover (quick to wick away moisture and is hospital grade hypo allergenic), it has TWO openings for the pocket (front and back of the diaper), an extra layer of PUL (great news for tummy sleepers), and ..... wait for it....

PRINTS!!!!!!

Check out those beauties!!! 

The prints are available in snaps and aplix closure. I've posted the closeup of only the aplix, though you can see the snap closure prints in the picture below.

Rockabums is hosting a MASSIVE giveaway on their blog, giving away a birth-to-potty learning set of 9 covers, 18 inserts, and 60 hybrid inserts. Want to win? GO HERE TO ENTER and don't forget to put down Thoughts Of Fluff was the blog that sent you!

Just when you thought things couldn't get any better, they do! You have an additional chance to try out a rockabums 2.0 diaper cover in your choice of style and closure, and 2 inserts right here on my blog! Enter below!!


a Rafflecopter giveaway
Disclaimer: Thoughts of Fluff is not responsible for prize shipment.

Lasagna Roll Ups (Recipe)

I'm always looking for new dishes to try out for dinner, and one website I follow for recipes is Two Peas & Their Pod. I've found plenty of dishes there that I would just pin to pinterest and dream about making one day when my kids are not causing havoc, climbing on me, refusing to be put down, etc. I actually had the opportunity to have one of the recipes I recently found, as my husband recently traded a service (massage) for a service (a dinner) with a friend. She asked me what I'd like in exchange (what meal), and I selected Lasagna Roll Ups.

Photo above from Two Peas & Their Pod

I am an extremely picky person when it comes to food, so I collaborated with our friend on how to tweak the recipe. Yes, I know... tweaking a recipe before you even TRY it?! *gasp* It's pretty much a given with me, however, as I cannot stand ricotta cheese. If I was going to have a shot at liking this meal, that ricotta had to go! We looked over the recipe ingredients and after a few tweaks, we had a plan!

The recipe calls for:

12 lasagna noodles
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups ricotta cheese
1 large egg
2 cloves garlic, minced
10-ounces frozen spinach, thawed, drained, and squeeze to remove water
1 cup chopped canned or jarred artichoke hearts
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Pinch of nutmeg
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
4 cups Easy Marinara Sauce or your favorite sauce

The only changes we made were omitting ricotta and adding provolone instead, and I decided that we should add zucchini (shredded).

Cold, heading towards microwave (so you can actually see the layers in there instead of just the melted cheese after they are heated!)

The meal (according to my friend) was easy to make. They baked well, and tasted delicious! The only thing we would change would be using fresh basil leaves (finely chopped) instead of dried. My husband and I find basil very easy to over-do, as it is a very overpowering herb. We have also learned that you can't over-do fresh basil (we've tested this!), so we would use fresh basil instead.

It was a fantastic dinner, and we will definitely be having this again! For this recipe and many more, check out Two Peas & Their Pod!

Heated up and ready to eat!

Disclaimer: Thoughts of Fluff was not compensated for this review. My opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own.