Monday, April 2, 2012

Meatless Monday

I am in love with tonight’s Meatless Monday recipe, and so are my kids! Tonight we are having Smokey Veggie Quesadillas! We are going to pair it with some Mexican rice, some vegetarian refried beans, my hubbys favorite sweet corn tomalito and we are all going to plop down in front of the tv to watch the college ball conclusion!
Smokey Veggie Quesadillas
Ready In: 30 minutes
Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients
juice of 1 lime (around 1/4 cup)
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2-1 teaspoon chipotle puree, chipotle powder, smoked paprika, or regular paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt (or half as much table salt)
1 clove garlic, peeled and pressed through a garlic press
1 medium zucchini, trimmed, and thinly sliced (1/4 inch) lengthwise
1 red bell pepper, ends sliced off, cored and seeded, and cut into wide strips
1 red onion, peeled and sliced 1/4-inch thick
12 corn tortillas or 8 flour tortilla
1/2 pound grated cheddar or Monterey jack cheese
a handful of cilantro leaves, washed and dried
sour cream and salsa for serving

Directions

1.     Preheat your grill on high.

2.     Whisk together the lime juice, olive oil, chipotle or paprika, salt, and garlic. Arrange the vegetables in a single layer on a large, rimmed baking sheet, and pour half the dressing over them, turning them to coat the slices evenly.

3.     Turn the grill down to medium-low and roast the veggies, turning them and adjusting the heat as necessary, until they are completely tender, 10-12 minutes. Remove them to a plate, dress with the remainder of the lime juice mixture, and set aside.

4.     Heat a large griddle (or a heavy frying pan) over medium-high heat, and lay half of the tortillas into it (if you're using a pan, you'll need to do this in batches). Divide the cheese over them, top with the remaining tortillas, and cook until the bottoms are golden and crisp. Flip them, and cook until the tortillas are crisp and the cheese is melted.

5.     Open the quesadillas and divide the cilantro and grilled veggies among them, cutting the vegetables as necessary to fit, then quarter the quesadillas and serve with sour cream and salsa.


Thursday, March 22, 2012

A Happy Green Pancake Recipe

My little guy is a FAN of Pancakes!!  If you ask him what he wants for breakfast he will most often squeal “PANCAKES”!  So…I was on the hunt for a good recipe I could make myself that was easy and delicious…Here is what we have come up with!


A Happy Green Pancake Recipe
1 cup flour
½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
Mix dry ingredients together
Optional additions: cinnamon, brown sugar, berries, chocolate chips

1 cup milk (we use nonfat)
¼ cup vanilla creamer (to thicken it up and make them delicious)
1 tsp butter
Mix liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until well mixed. 


I then put the batter into a squirt bottle – because we love to make fun shape pancakes!! 

Flip pancakes after they are golden brown on one side and then cook until golden brown on the other side.  Add your favorite topping and ENJOY!!
-  Kristin

Friday, March 16, 2012

Dig For Victory!

At the start of WWII the Government realized that they would not have enough food to feed the people if the war lasted for more than a few months. Before the war Britain imported over 55 million tons of food a year - much of it from Canada and the USA. Once the war started, the ships once used for hauling food across the ocean were either needed for transporting troops and ammunition or were targeted by the enemy. In order to feed the people the British government launched 'The Dig for Victory' campaign.  People were urged to use gardens and every spare piece of land to grow vegetables. Even the Tower of London was used to grow veggies! In the United States we had the Victory Garden Campaign.
People joined together to fight their enemies, protect one another, and help provide for everyone. Today we need to dig again for victory. We need to join together to dig for the victory of our planet. Growing your own food reduces your environmental footprint, ensures that your family will be eating toxin free, and helps to teach our children that the planet is important- it provides for us and we must help protect it.





We want not only the big man with the plough but the little man with the spade to get busy this autumn. Let 'Dig for Victory' be the motto of everyone with a garden," said Rob Hudson, Minister for Agriculture, in October 1939.


-Amanda

Thursday, March 15, 2012

New Scent Giveaway!

We LOVE our new April 'Hoppy' Green Life Scents and we want to share them with you!
We will send an April 'Hoppy Green Life sample pack to the first 5 fans who tell us what you are doing to make your family more green!


Tuesday, March 13, 2012

A Happy Green Message Board

I love finding new ways to be green.  I am a NOTE taker – my office is covered in little notes about orders, supplies, suppliers, things I need to remember for a little while – but then they end up in the garbage.  Not the greenest way to remember things for sure!  So I was thinking – there are lots of greener ways to notes – on the computer, on the phone, on a white board.  I am a pen and paper type of gal and I like the white board option – but white boards tend to be kind of expensive.  So I was on the hunt to find a cheaper way.  I found a picture of someone using an old picture frame and cute paper to make a cute dry erase message board and it sounded like the BEST idea! 
I found two frames at a garage sale for $2 and I have a stack of super cute recycled scrapbook paper – made from 70% recycled paper.  They are so easy to make.

1.       Cut the scrapbook paper to the size you need for your frame.  Use the frame inside to measure the right size – trace on the backside of the paper and then cut out. 
2.       Glue the paper to the inside of the frame cardboard.  I used a simple glue stick!
3.       Put the paper and cardboard back into the frame and close it up!
It was such a cute and easy way to make a dry erase message board.  I now have one by my desk to make notes for work and one in the kitchen to do a shopping and farmers market list or other general household notes.  If you use it to make your shopping list – simply snap a photo with your cell phone before leaving and you are set – no paper!
I hope you enjoy making your family A Happy Green Message Board!




- Kristin