Friday Favourites

 

Whew, what a week!  It was a short week but I'm glad Friday is here.

The kids went back to school on Tuesday, you can see all of the first day fun here.

Q had a playoff t-ball game on Thursday.  I had brought a blanket, thinking the air would be cool as we got into the evening, but instead we had the nice hot sun. 

It was a tough game, the team played well but had one inning that got away from them and that was the difference. 

E being silly after the game.

E is trying out for 2025 Select Baseball teams in the west end of Toronto.  The first tryout was last night.  If you can make him out, he's on the right in a green shirt and red hat.   

Q started piano lessons this week for the first time. 

When I did my grocery order, they didn't have the dill pickle salad I like, so they substituted with this buffalo ranch one. It was really good! I was skeptical that it was an appropriate substitution, but it was!

Have a great weekend!

Linking up with Andrea and Erika.

Recipe - Greek Lentil Salad

Over the past couple of months, I have been pretty good at bringing my lunch to work.  Not only do I save money and time during my work day by already having something to eat with me, I'm also able to bring healthier meals. Last December I shared two recipes for an easy lunch - a Mexican bean salad and a spin on Mujadara - and this recipe is in the same vein as those two.  It basically involves opening a can, very minimal food prep, and something that is easy to transport and lasts for a couple of days in your fridge. This one I'm calling Greek Lentil Salad.

1 (540 ml) can lentils, rinsed and drained

3/4 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half

3/4 cup cucumber, diced

1/2 cup crumbled feta

6-8 black olives, pitted and quartered

1 tbsp Za'atar spice (or just oregano)

Juice from 1/2 lemon (or equivalent from a bottle)

2 tbsp olive oil

salt & pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl.  You may wish to adjust the flavour by adding more lemon juice or olive oil.  If you like more or less of the vegetables, feta, or olives, just do whatever works for you.  To tell you the truth, I don't even really measure anything, I just throw a bunch of things in, but the measurements provided above will get you started.  The fibre and protein in this meal keep you full so this should last for 3-4 meals.

It's even better on the second day. 

Recipe - Two Easy Lunches

I have been meaning to share these two recipes for awhile and I've never gotten around to it. They aren't really festive for this time of year, but you know what? In a time that is hectic and full of indulgences, this is something easy and fairly healthy you can prepare for your lunch or a quick dinner.  

These two meals were born out of necessity from living in the basement and not wanting to make anything complicated, while at the same time needing something decent to eat! 

I'll call this one Mexican bean salad

1 (540 ml) can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 (540 ml) can chick peas, drained and rinsed

1 (284 ml) can Rotel tomatoes (mild or spicy, whatever your preference)

1 (341 ml) can corn, drained

2 cups cooked rice (I use the microwave instant rice, specifically the lime and cilantro flavour)

salt and pepper

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and season with salt and pepper.  To me the flavour comes from the rice and Rotel tomatoes, but if you wanted to add some chili powder or hot sauce, that would work too. You could also cut up a green pepper, but then we're making this too complicated ;)

For the second one, I don't have any fancy photos as I forgot to take them last time I made this recipe, but you'll get the idea.  

I'm going to call this Easy Mujadara, which is probably just an insult to the original dish, but it was the inspiration.  Mujadara is a Lebanese dish and I've had it on my Pinterest page for awhile but have never made the actual dish.  

1 (540 ml) can of cooked lentils, drained and rinsed

1 (540 ml) can of chick peas, drained and rinsed

2 cups of cooked rice (I use the same microwave rice as above, but the brown basmati)

1 cup fried onions (the ones you can add to salads)

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp garlic powder

salt, pepper, olive oil

Combine the ingredients, season with salt and pepper, and drizzle with a bit of olive oil.  The first serving with the fresh rice is slightly warm, and then when I eat the leftovers I like to warm it up a bit. 

Long Weekend Recap

The last weekend of the summer!  Dave and I packed up the car on Thursday and headed west to the Pinery Provincial Park.  We decided not to take Thursday off work and just arrive late.  It worked out just fine and although we were setting up in the dark, it was okay.  Our friends arrived on Thursday too so we had a campfire with them with the kids planning to arrive the next morning.

On Friday morning Dave and I went for a run, and then came back for a healthy breakfast.

Dave's parents brought the kids to us after keeping them for a week.  They brought their bikes too so we all went on a bike ride.

Then it was beach time. 

We had some cupcakes for Dave's mom's birthday.

Inspired by CBC's Race Against the Tide, Q wanted to build a bunch of sand sculptures, with some help.

This is his dolphin.

Seagull

Whale

Turtle

And E made a hole.

I love Lake Huron

Working on the turtle

We dragged ourselves away from the beach to make supper.   Q helped with the garlic bread.

Meanwhile E worked on his Rubik Cube.

Yummy supper.

We went down to the beach after supper to catch the sunset and the boys went swimming.

On Saturday morning Q grabbed his hot chocolate just like Dave had his coffee.

We went on a morning hike.  This is our group.

Then family photos.

Off we go.  It was a short hike but so pretty.

This tree was so tall and straight.

After the hike, it was beach time again.  Dave and E went for a bike ride with our friends and Q passed out in the hammock.

We actually decided to pack up that night and go home. The forecast called for rain on Sunday and even though we never like to cancel plans for weather, we really didn't feel like dealing with wet camping stuff just before we were ready to pack it all away for the season.  We did stay for supper and left around 7:30.  But not before getting an ice cream cone on the way out of the park.

It didn't really rain the next day but it was chilly so I guess it was a good idea to come home early. The boys were tired though so it was nice for them to have a good night's sleep at home. 

We did go to a movie on Sunday afternoon - Thor: Love and Thunder - and that was fun.

When we got home the boys went over to the neighbours' to play with the nerf guns.

On Monday morning Dave went golfing so the rest of us went for a bike ride.

We did about 8 km and even found a woodsy trail that was a bit more fun that just the pavement.

I made a coconut cream pie (requested by E), apple cookies (for school lunch boxes!), finished a book, folded laundry, and then we had this yummy kale salad for supper with chicken. 

There was also a moment when a plane from the air show flew over our house and it was so loud I was convinced it was going to crash.  I've never been to an air show so I can't speak to how good they are,  and maybe they are, but mostly they just scare the bejeezus out of me! 

We watched the Amazing Race Canada after supper and enjoyed the pie and then tried to get the kids to bed at a decent time. School doesn't start until Wednesday but good to get them into some sort of routine!