Trying New Stuff

Last night I had a burst of energy and decided to whip up some yummy-goodness in the kitchen.  On most nights after work I have just enough motivation to make dinner and sometimes enough umph left in me to do the dishes.  Most of my cooking-adventures happen on the weekend when I don't have to get up early for work the next day, and actually was able to get enough sleep at night without waking to the annoying sound of an alarm clock.  All that to say, this was a sudden and unusual burst of energy.

Item #1:  Cranberry Chicken & Rice

Definitely one of my husband's favorite meals!  And the lovely thing is that if you have chicken cooked up, you just throw all the ingredients together in a pan and it's ready in 15 minutes!  Doesn't get much easier than that.

Item #2: Hummus

Each time I make a batch of hummus it turns out slightly different, probably because I never really follow a recipe.  My batch from last night however, was magnifique!  The perfect blend of ingredients and such a lovely consistency.  It was so delectable that I ended up having hummus & carrots as my dinner. :)   I love the versatility of hummus.  Aside from eating it as a dip with veggies, we often spread it on a wrap or sandwich to add more substance and protein, and eliminate dressing or mayo. 

Item #3:  Grapes

Several blogs I have read lately have sung the praises of frozen grapes.  I absolutely love grapes to begin with, so I was eager to try a method which claimed to make them taste even better.  I washed a bunch of grapes, sealed them up in a ziploc bag and popped them in the freezer overnight. 

The result?  Wow.  The first bite wasn't overly impressive, but the more I ate, the more I became addicted.  The flavor explodes in your mouth when you bite into them and the juice is sweeter than normal.  I'm definitely a fan now!  Try it and let me know what you think! 

Item #4:  VOO

Yes, that says VOO, which stands for Vegan Overnight Oats (no, I'm not Vegan -- I like chicken & cheese way too much for that!).  I have tried making these before, but without the Chia seeds, making it runny and admittedly rather gross.  This time I was armed with all the proper ingredients and a slightly modified version of the recipe so I decided to give it a try.  Angela from Oh She Glows has half a dozen variations of this breakfast and here is where I got the recipe for the one I whipped together -- Strawberry Carob Overnight Oats.  I made a few slight variations to boost the flavor and make it a bit sweeter for our first time, but overall I thought it was pretty good.  The more I ate of it the more I liked it.  The Chia seeds thicken it up nicely and adds a cool texture.  It's a great quick breakfast because you throw it together the night before and eat it straight out of the fridge in the morning.  I really liked this version of it with all the strawberries in it!

After I was done with all my creations I was too tired out to clean the kitchen -- so that's on my docket for tonight.  Why is it always so much more fun to make the messes than it is to clean them up?

Have you made anything new or exciting lately?