Cherry pineapple smoothie

It's smoothie season, right?! Well alright, it's nearly smoothie season. More snow is heading our way, so we aren't out of the woods yet here in Minnesota. That hasn't stopped me from making a ton of smoothies for my boys and myself. This cherry-pineapple version is my favorite concoction so far. It is packed with vitamins and nutrients, and you would never know it. Even my picky-eating boys slurp it down!

Tomorrow we are heading to Children's for my son's ear surgery. We would GREATLY appreciate prayers for him! We are all very eager to be on the other side of this.

Click to read more ...

Spinach artichoke flatbread pizza

This post is part of a Foodbuzz Tastemaker program with Sabra. Have you tasted Sabra hummus? If not, you must. It is my absolute favorite brand of hummus, hands down. Sabra hummus and I have a long history. We shared an intense love during my last pregnancy. We hung out together on the couch DAILY (thank you, four months of bed rest) and enjoyed watching movies together such as Mystic Pizza and Pretty in Pink. During that time, I began serving this very brand of hummus to my then 3-year-old, and he loved it! His favorite flavor quickly became Roasted Pine Nut, and I would serve it to him sandwiched in between pieces of flatbread three to four times per week. Still to this day, when I ask him what he would like for lunch, he occasionally will say, "A hummus sandwich, Mama!"

This post has special meaning for me. When I was asked to created an original recipe using Sabra hummus, I was brought back to that time when my family was just getting to know the brand. I wanted to create something meaningful and of course delicious, so I had a few requirements. It had to involve Sabra hummus (obviously), it had to involve flatbread of some sort and it had to involve a few of my other favorite ingredients. So this flatbread pizza is what I came up with, and it was supremely delicious! My husband is enjoying the "leftovers" as I type.

To begin, preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Defrost 1 pound of frozen pizza dough, according to package directions.

Once thawed, cut the pizza dough in half and roll out two rounds, 10 inches in diameter, on a lightly floured work surface.

One at a time, place a pizza dough round onto a pizza stone. Top each round with:

1 tablespoon olive oil, spread out to 1/2 inch of edge of dough

3-4 tablespoons Sabra Spinach and Artichoke Hummus, spread out to 1/2 inch of edge of dough

1/2 cup fresh spinach, chopped

1/4 of a small red onion, sliced

1/2 of a 14-ounce can of quartered artichokes, drained and patted dry with paper towels

1/2 cup of crumbled feta cheese

Bake in the preheated oven for 18-20 minutes, or until edges are golden brown.

This would be a great finger food, complete dinner or appetizer for a cocktail party.

I hope you enjoy!

Click here for a printable recipe!

Veggie cheese stromboli

The first time I ate stromboli was a few years ago at 3:00 in the morning after a night out in Fort Myers, Florida. And oooohh my, did it taste delicious! Our friend's mother had made it for us, knowing we would likely be hungry when we got back to her house. My husband and I often reminisce about that late-night meal and immediately we are both salivating as badly as our 6-month-old drool machine, Sammy. Over the years, we have talked about attempting a stromboli recipe ourselves, but we just never did it. Until now!

I didn't want to make just any old stromboli recipe. I wanted to make one that looked and sounded really good. I kept my eyes open for a while and eventually I came across this recipe from Parenting magazine, of all places. It is incredible! We had a friend over at our house when it came out of the oven and the three of us stood at the kitchen counter and devoured almost the entire thing as if we were cows at the trough.

You have to make this! Yes, I'm giving orders. I don't want anyone to miss out.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Coat the foil generously with cooking spray.

Combine in your food processor's bowl:

1/2 cup pitted kalamata or black olives

8-10 sun-dried tomato halves, packed in oil

1 Tbsp. oil from the sun-dried tomato jar

Pulse until the mixture forms a rough paste.

Lightly flour a flat working surface and a rolling pin. Roll 1 pound of pizza dough into a 14x10-inch rectangle. Spread the olive-tomato mixture onto the dough, leaving a 1-inch border around the edges.

Top with 12-15 slices of overlapping provolone cheese.

Top this with a 10-oz. box of frozen spinach that has been thawed and squeezed (to drain water) and a 12-oz. jar of roasted red peppers that have been drained, patted dry and cut into strips. Make sure the pepper strips run parallel to the longest side of the rectangle.

Fold 1 inch of dough over the filling on the short sides of the rectangle. Then fold the long sides over and pinch the dough together at the corners.

Roll the dough, starting at one of the long ends, as tightly as possible.

Brush the border lightly with a bit of beaten egg and pinch the seam to seal it shut.

Transfer the roll to your prepared baking sheet, seam side down. Brush the entire surface with beaten egg.

Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the bread is golden and sounds hollow when it is tapped.

If a bit of the guts have spilled out, take photos of it so you can show people how delicious it looks.

Close-up of the deliciousness.

Allow it to cool for a bit and cut into 1-inch strips crosswise.

Have you started making it yet?

Click here for a printable recipe!