Cowboy Caviar

I had Cowboy Caviar for the first time at a wedding a number of years ago. One of my mom's good friends is "famous" for this recipe, actually. When I loved it at the wedding, my mom proudly informed me that she already had her friend's recipe. I've made it for a few things since. It's nice because it makes A LOT. It's perfect for a crowd at a shower, potluck, picnic, whatever. Today I'm taking it to our neighborhood block party and serving it with tortilla chips. You can also serve it as a salad. Actually, I like it wrapped up in a tortilla for a quick lunch too.

Here is the recipe,

Two cans of white shoepeg corn, drained
Two cans of black eyed peas, drained
Two cans of tomatoes with green chiles (I drained, but you probably don't have to.)

Very finely chop and stir in,

1 green bell pepper
1 jalapeno (or more or less for heat)
1/2 yellow onion
2 cloves of garlic
4 green onions (I omitted.)

Then, stir in 1 cup of fat free Italian dresses and 1/4 cup of dried parsley flakes.

Enjoy!

Sherwin Williams Dragonfruit and Friendly Yellow

We're still having all kinds of fun painting around here! (When I say "we," I mean "my husband," of course!) We just finished up the girl's room last night. The yellow is Sherwin Williams Friendly Yellow and the pink is Sherwin Williams Dragonfruit. Here the lighting is all natural light (because the girl's light in their room broke!)We all really love the hot pink! The pictures just don't do it justice. It is very bright and rich but without being obnoxious. It's just SO pretty, and it makes us so happy!

Preschool Popsicles

Anyone who has read this blog for awhile knows that I despise sugary school snacks. (Oh, the dental bills!) I feel like my kids have sugar coming at them in all directions, so I try really hard to deviate from that. As I've gone about the last few years, I've tried to document what I send for my kids preschool snacks, birthday and otherwise, as an alternative to the store bought cupcakes piled high with frosting.

My middle daughter has a summer birthday. I conveniently scheduled her birthday snacks the day before our sweet baby Iris was due. I was pretty miserable, so I had to come up with something VERY easy...something that someone else could pick up at the store even. It ended up that I had a coupon for Outshine popsicles, and they were on sale at the beginning of May too. Now, I know these aren't sugar free, but they are such a great alternative to the usual birthday snacks! I also ended up being able to provide special snacks for easily under $5 for her class of 16.

We were hoping for a beautiful sunny day where the kids could celebrate Aurelia's birthday outside, which is where she loves to be the most! It didn't happen, but she let me know that the kids all still had a great time and enjoyed their treats!

Happy Early Birthday, Aurelia!

Lemon Poppyseed Noodles

This is a really easy, no brainer of a side dish! My mom used to make poppyseed noodles all the time when I was a kid. Tonight, we had mango barbecue chicken, fresh summer veggies and these noodles, and I discovered that I still love them as much as I always have!

Here is the recipe!

Ingredients -

1 lb of noodles, prepared as directed
3-4 tablespoons of butter
1 tablespoon of poppyseeds (or more or less)
1 teaspoon of lemon zest

Directions -

Prepare noodles as directed. Drain and stir in butter until it is completely melted. Then, stir in poppyseed and lemon zest. Serve warm or room temperature.