Quinoa Crab Cakes

My family loves to fish and crab. That was one of the many reasons we moved to North Carolina, we live on the ocean and are able to walk right out front of our house and fish. My three boys enjoy it so much. With the boys fishing so much I cook seafood a lot. Blue crabs as I am sure you all know are abundant on the East Coast and we catch them all the time. I finally tried a crab cake recipe that wasn't loaded with oil and I use quinoa instead of bread crumbs. Recipe is below. Although these are made healthier with only 149 calories per cake,  be careful because crab is loaded with cholesterol. One of these cakes has 29.6 grams of cholesterol.  Definitely something you can't eat everday!

Ingredients

1 cup lump crabmeat
1 cup quinoa
1-2 egg whites
1/4 cup Famous Daves pickles chopped
1/4 onions
1 teaspoon mustard
1/2 cup greek yogurt
Couple sprigs basil
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
Sprinkle smoked paprika on top
  * Add some more veggies if you want!

Sauteed onions in olive oil. Add rest of ingredients and mix together. Make 8 patties and set in dish thats been brush with olive oil. Bake at 400 until crispy. If you want them extra crispy add more oil but the calories will go up.

Remodel tile floors

I love tile. It is an artwork putting the peices together and there are endless ways to arrange them.If it were up to me my whole house would be tile or hardwood. I don't like carpet because it gets dirty and it is a pain to clean. If you like carpet Id recommend getting nice rugs on the tile or hardwood. It's much more easier to clean and you can change the look a lot more.
I have a picture below of the tile we did for our downstairs hallway. We used 12 inch x 12 inch mosaic slate tiles for our diamond design. Originally we were going to do one small diamond but my husband had a brillant idea and put four together making a huge diamond.  I loved it. This is one of my favorite parts of the house. It's amazing how you can do something so little and what a big difference it makes.

Don't mind the walls they still need paint ;)

Pinterest Obsessions of the Week!

I think everyone is obsessed with pinterest. Probably because there is no reading which is actually a little sad but some people can take such great pictures you feel like what your looking at is literally with you in the room! Then there are some pictures on pinterest I look at and think REALLY! I know a little mean. Ill stop now. Anyway here are my favorites this week!

The first picture is a roasted pepper, white bean quinoa burger. I LOVE quinoa so when I saw this I had to repin. I'll definitely have to try this recipe minus the bacon or give the bacon to the kiddos.
Here is link to the recipe
http://www.howsweeteats.com/2013/03/roasted-red-pepper-quinoa-white-bean-burgers/

The second are key chains of your childrens drawing. I thought this was soooo adorable.  Another I'll have to order.  Just waiting for the right picture.
Link to order key chains
http://www.formiadesign.com/how-to-order/

Lastly the quote. Life gets hard sometimes and quotes always lift me up and make me remember how good I have it. I try to appreciate what I have and what I don't. I try to not let people get to me that like to say negative words.  I think those are downer for everyone. Life is good and lots of fun when you only look at the good things.Hope it is for everyone eles too! xoxo

Herbs

Who doesn't just love fresh herbs. I use herbs in almost every meal. If you eat salads and wraps herbs are a good way of using less sauce or dressings. They are a great way to add flavor to any meal that's healthy without adding fat. I always have to have onions, garlic, basil, mint, cilantro and peppers in my kitchen at all times. I usually grow most herbs but I buy cilantro because even the organic is cheap. Below I have Italian basil, peppermint, jalapenos and Thai peppers. I ♡ spicy food.

Chicken pot pie

My husband ask for chicken pot pie last week so instead of the typical pie I did a drop biscuit on top. It turned out really good and we loved it!

Ingredients:
4 cups your favorite cooked veggies ( I used froze normandy mix and peas and carrots mix)
3 tb butter
1/2 onion
3 tb flour
2 cups chicken broth
2 bay leaves
1/2 tb thyme
2 cups cooked chicken
Biquick biscuit recipe for 8
1 cup shredded cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degress
Sautee butter and onions about 5 minutes or until tender. Add flour with whisk until thickens. Add bay leaves and thyme. Add in cooked vegetables and broth. Simmer until thickens.

While mixture is thickening make biscuits according to label. If your up to it make some homemade!  Add cheese to biscuit mixture.
Add chicken to gravy mixture and pour in oven dish. Drop biscuits on edges of dish. Bake about 25 minutes or until golden brown.

Flashback Friday- Thailand

I still have many more places around the world I'd love to visit but this is my favorite so far, Phuket, Thailand! My number choice of any vacation would be snorkling or diving. The fish would surround you as you feed them bananas. It was amazing! The young coconuts were amazing also.  Best I've ever had. I didn't get the greatest pictures and it is way more beautiful in person. This was over 10 years ago! I didn't even have a digital camera. Times sure does fly. I can't wait to travel when all my kids are older.

Curry Quinoa

One of my favorite ways to cook quinoa and another super easy recipe!
Ingredients:
1 cup quinoa
2 tb curry powder
2 cups spinach
1 tsp hemp seeds
Soy sauce to your taste
Your favorite hot sauce to your taste

Directions:
Cooked quinoa according to directions with the curry powder mixed in.

Boil spinach til wilted. Not too long or it won't keep its color. Drain.

Mix quinoa and spinach together and top with hemp seeds. Add soy sauce and hot sauce to your taste.

This is really good with tofu or tempeh.

Homemade Baby Wipes

I started making homemade baby wipes. For the longest time I kept saying it was too much work but then I thought so is working for money and health! I have tried a few different ingredients and this is my favorite. Three ingredients, water, coconut oil and lotion. I make a container about every two days. I love these so much better then store bought because not only do I use them for changing diapers but they are safe to use on your kids faces and hands. Coconut oil does wonders for your skin. It's a great moisturizer for your skin and mask for your hair.

Below are the directions

IF YOU HAVE AN INFANT UNDER 1 YEARS OLD I DO NOT RECOMMEND USING COCONUT OIL AS DOCTORS DO NOT RECOMMEND ANY NUTS BEFORE THE AGE OF ONE. OLIVE OIL MAY BE A GOOD SUBSTITUTE BUT ALWAYS CONSULT WITH YOUR DOCTOR FIRST.

Ingredients:
1 cup water
2 tb coconut oil
2 tb lotion

1/2 Paper roll, most times I use a quarter.

Directions:
1.Cut a paper towel roll in half
2. Place half the roll in a container with the side you cut on the top.
3.Mix all ingredients together. I use a mason jar so I can shake it.
4. Seperate between the sheets so the water mixture can get through.
5  Pour half ingredients over paper towel as evenly as you can. Let sit a few minutes
6. Turn paper towels over and repeat step 4 and 5. 7. Take the middle of the cardboard roll out and pull the first peice of paper towel out from the middle. Place lid on with a little push and now you have homemade wipes. I used an old wipe container but you can buy a cheap one at the dollar store. You can always add more or less of each ingredient depending on how wet or oily you would like them.

Mother's Day Weekend

I hope everyone had a great Mother's Day weekend. We just relaxed around the house made cookies, kids played in the water and the boys fished of course. The boys are goofballs as you can see!

Brock's Mill Pond

Isn't this gorgeous. Definitely one of Nature's Best. I bet everyone thinks of The Notebook when the two lovebirds are in a row boat in the beautiful lake with white swans. Looks exactly like it but that was actually filmed in South Carolina at Cypress Gardens. That place is so gorgeous! The pictures below are Brock's Mill Pond located in Trenton North Carolina. I love it here and can't wait to go canoeing in all the waterways. It's amazing how all the trees are submerged in the water. Absolutely beautiful.  There is also an old mill that was built in 1735 hence the name Brock's Mill Pond.

Mason Jars

I love these for so many reasons. My husband and I decided to stop using plastic containers and start using mason jars for everything. Not only do I like them for storing food but I use them for my cups, flower arrangements and candle holders. The list can go on and on. It is also a plus because instead of heating up plastic in the microwave you are heating up glass which is way better for you. They tend to get hot in the microwave so now Ill put the jar in a pot of water and heat it up. It takes longer but less use of the microwave is also better for you. Only certain mason jars can be frozen so I make sure to freeze sauces, etc in those. I love the way these organize in the refrigerator and freezer WAY more then plastic containers. Ill never go back to plastic containers. There dirt cheap too!

Below is homemade tomato sauce and mac n cheese my mother in law made going right in the freezer. A simple hydrangea and fresh juice.

High Waisted Maxi

My obsession of the week! Some pinterest pins Im loving. Summer is coming and I desperately need a few of these.

Tricia's Birthday

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TRICIA!!!
We had such a great time visiting while she was here. We missed her birthday by a few days so we suprised her and got her a birthday cake. She is crying in the last picture because she thought it was so thoughtful we got her a cake. Tricia always appreciates the little things in life, I think most people love her for that. We miss her already. ♡♡♡

Curry Stuffed Tofu with kale, quinoa and yellow squash

2-4 tablespoons coconut oil
1/2 yellow squash diced
1-2 sprigs kale torn in sm pieces
2-3 garlic cloves minced
1/4 onion chopped
1 cup quinoa
1 egg, I used whites only
Curry powder 3-5 tablespoons
1-2 jalapeños
1/4 coconut milk
1/4 water, you can use more coconut milk instead
Fish sauce to taste or salt
Mint and cilantro for garnish

1. Sautee first 5 ingredients together. Transfer to bowl. Add quinoa. After it cools down and is warm add egg.
2. Add coconut milk,water, curry powder, jalapeños and fish sauce in pan on low.
3. While sauce is simmering cut tofu into 5 peices. Cut the middles and stuff with sauté mix. Set them in curry sauce and cover. Simmer for about 20 minutes scooping curry sauce over tofu.

Very great dish. You can also fry the tofu first if your not worried about fat content.