-Recipe- Caprese Lasagna Roll Ups

Besides a monthly diy/craft project I also want to do a monthly recipe. I will take pictures along the way so you can have a step by step guide on how to make whatever food I choose.

Today we made Caprese Lasagna Roll Ups. Let me just say these were amazing! And the monster liked them too which is ALWAYS a plus!!

First things first, ingredient list!

This recipe serves 8. Please adjust according to your needs.

• 8 Lasagna noodles, uncooked for now
• 14oz Mozzarella cheese, shredded and divided in half (7oz for filling and 7oz for the top)
• 3/4cup Ricotta cheese
• 1 large egg, white part only
• 1/3cup shredded Parmesan cheese, NOT the kind in the shake container, use FRESH shredded that comes in a tub!
• 4 Roma Tomatoes THINLY sliced (trust me it's hard to roll them if the tomatoes are thick!) You need 32 slices so if you need more than 4 then get more.
• 1 package fresh Basil, chopped
• Marinara sauce (recipe is below this one! I recommend using homemade and not store bought for this recipe!)
• Ground black pepper, season to taste

Okay now that we have our list, time to get cooking! First go ahead and preheat that oven to 350 degrees. Cook your pasta according to the package instructions, you want them al dente so don't over cook!! When you drain the pasta DO NOT rinse it with water. Oh and add salt to the water while they are cooking to minimize the stickiness!

Next lay some parchment or wax paper on the counter or table, wherever you will be working. And align the noodles on the paper in rows. I would do 2 rows of 4.

Now let's make the filling! In a medium sized mixing bowl whisk together the Ricotta cheese and egg white until it is well blended.

 I had the monster complete this step. 

Stir in the Parmesan and 7oz of the Mozzarella cheese with a spoon. Season with pepper, don't use salt as there is enough in the cheeses.

Place roughly about 1 tablespoonful of filling over each noodle and spread it out evenly over the noodle. Then align 4 tomato slices over each noodle and sprinkle with fresh chopped basil. Use as much as you personally like.

Snuggly roll the lasagna noodles into a tight little roll. And place in a glass baking dish.  Before placing them in the dish add about half of the marinara sauce to the bottom of the dish. Once you have the rolls in the dish top with the remaining sauce and  7oz of Mozzarella cheese and add extra Parmesan if you wish. Bake for 35 minutes and voila!

Homemade Marinara Sauce

Ingredients:

• 2tbsp Olive oil 
• 1 Medium-sized Yellow Onion, finely chopped
• 2 Cloves Garlic, finely minced
• 1 28oz can Crushed Tomatoes
• Salt and Pepper to taste

I made the sauce while making the filling.

In a medium sauce pan heat the Olive oil and add the onion. Saute for 2 minutes or until soft and then add the garlic and continue to saute for an additional minute. Add the can of crushed tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a gentle boil. Then reduce the heat to a simmer and let it do that for about 30 minutes, in order to reduce the water from the tomatoes and to thicken and make it yummy. Add fresh basil in the last 10 minutes. 

 

And there you go! I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we have! 

-DIY- Braided headband

So, every month I will feature at least one diy/craft project that I find on Pinterest. I will do the craft, taking pictures at every step and then I will post the craft and step by step instructions followed by any comments I want to share. I am super excited about this. 

For this month I chose the braided headband made from an old t-shirt. I am currently going through my clothing and putting ones that don't fit or are no longer worn in a separate pile. Or ones that are in disarray.  Finding ways to up cycle them in to something useful again is really great! Okay, here we go!

Okay so I am sure everyone has seen the braided headbands in stores or on TV. I have seen them go anywhere from $5 to $20 each. I will show you how to make them for little to no cost. And it takes less than an hour!

 First gather your supplies, for this project you will need:

• An old t-shirt. Any color will do, in fact the more colors the more fun your headband will be!
• Scissors. Make sure they are sharp! Fabric scissors are best.
• A ruler. 
• Needle and thread. Try to get the color as close to the color of your shirt as you can. I used white because that was the only color thread I have.
• Elastic pony tail holder

 

Okay, supplies gathered? Let's get started!

 Step one:  Cut 3 strips from the bottom portion of your t-shirt. I made mine about 1 1/2 inches in thickness. You may make it thicker or thinner depending on your preference, however, the thinner you make it the more difficult it becomes. After you do that, cut the strips again making them in to one long strip of fabric.

I drew lines only so you can see how thick I made mine.

Step 2: Tie your strands together. This makes it easier to braid them.

 

Step 3: Put the knotted end under something heavy, I used my laptop. Or you can safety pin it to your pants to keep it from moving. And braid baby braid!

  

Step 4: Sew the end of the braid together. You can use a sewing machine or hand sew it. I did all of mine by hand since I do not own a machine. (MUST GET ONE!)

 Step 5: Cut your elastic pony tail holder in half. Or use one that is broken...if you have thick hair like me you probably have a few of these laying around!

 Step 6: Sew one end of the elastic pony tail holder to the end of the braid you sewed together in step 4. Make sure to sew around the elastic as well to make sure it is secure.

Step 7: Cut a small rectangular piece of the t-shirt, this will act as a cover for the sewing you just did. To make it more attractive looking. Fold the piece in half, wrap it around the elastic part where you just attached it to the braid, and secure with a pin to keep it in place. Then sew the seam. This part must be done by hand.

 

Step 8: Measure where your headband will fit best with the elastic. I did this by wrapping it around my head like I would if I were wearing it and then cutting off the excess. 

Step 9: Repeat steps 4-7 (skipping step 5 obviously) to complete your headband. And there you have it!

 

I hope these instructions were easy for you to follow and that the photos helped. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to leave a comment and I will do my best to answer them! Happy crafting!!

 

#challengetowrite

Not too far behind this time!!

6/6-   Do you have a favorite vehicle? Tell us about it.
I really like old cars. But I don't necessarily have a favorite.

6/7-   Did you have a favorite movie when you were a child? What was it?
Labyrinth! And Never Ending Story. <3

Last day of school, crafting and squats!

So Wednesday I chaperoned the last field trip of the year and of my Monsters time in Ohio. We went to the library and park. It was a nice time, I helped some of the kids pick out books and even played on the playground with them! I was the only adult playing. Though I have a bruise from banging my knee on the ladder to the slide. Guess that's what I get for trying to keep up with 8 years old when I am almost 30 (1 month and 13 days!). Then Thursday was the last day of school. I cried after one of the girls came up to me and gave me a hug thanking me for everything since Kindergarten. Yeah, water works ensued. I will miss them kids when we move. Also my second grade teacher is retiring this year! So tears were had there as well. 

Monster (middle) and 2 of her BFFs

My 2nd grade teacher and myself

Monsters class at the library

So, I haven't updated about the green onion situation in some time! It worked out wonderfully and I have used them already. I am currently waiting to go to the store to get more green onions because the bulbs on the others went bad. I definitely reccomend anyone who likes saving money to try this! Also you can do it with celery as well, but we don't eat nearly enough celery to do it though.

I have been a crafting machine lately. I have made bracelets, earrings, necklaces and bookmarks. I am taking a small break due to an impending migraine though. However, the next craft project I am trying is braided headbands made from old t-shirts as seen here.  I am excited to see if I can make them. That would save me money on hair accessories and would give me something to do with all these old t-shirts I no longer wear! I love up-cycling projects!! I did a few back in December that were adorable!

Choker I made

Necklace I made

 

Earrings I made

So today is day 7 of the 30 day squat challenge. Todays number was 80. I also had to babysit all day which made it a little difficult to get much of anything done let alone 80 squats. However, I got them done! The last 20 were a doozy! My dog, Dusty, decided it would be a good idea to hump me mid squat.....yeah, it was horrible, haha. The kids thought it funny though. He is a german shepherd/border collie mix. 

#challengetowrite

I missed a few of these prompts :( This entry is just a catch up one. I will blog later about other things!

6/3-   Who is one of your favorite Authors and why?
Robin Hobb. She has created a world I can really get lost in and characters I can believe in. I have read 5 (on #6) of her books that all follow the life of a royal bastard named FitzChivalry and his Beloved Fool. I have laughed, cried and been afraid for these characters, sometimes all in one chapter! I will be extremely heart broken when I finish this series, but also I will be richer for having known these characters!
6/4-   What is one of your favorite grill recipes?
I am Pascaterian, meaning I only eat sea food, so I don't really grill often. And honestly I haven't tried any good fish recipes for the grill yet so I cannot really answer this question.
6/5-   What is one of your favorite flowers?
I have 2 favorites. Daisies are one. When I was a little girl my Dad would bring them to me from his work, they used to grow wild behind the building and in the sidewalks. I won't allow anyone else to give me daisies because of this. The other favorite are Orchids. I just love how different they are.

Okay, that's it for now. I will be back later for other updates including: squats, yesterdays activities, green onion update and what we are working on this weekend! 

Leave me some comments! I will respond.

#challengetowrite, squat challenge, and pics...oh my!

First we will start with the rudemom.com #challengetowrite blog prompt.

 How do you start your day?

I start my day by hitting the snooze button a couple times. Then once I realize I hit it one too many times I roll out of bed and do the bathroom thing. Then I wake up the monster and tell her to get ready for the day. After that I go downstairs and make a cup of coffee and make breakfast. During school months we are out the door by 8:20am.

#challengetowrite June 1

I am participating in another 30 day challenge, this one however has to do with writing. If you want to participate head over to Rudemom.com grab the icon to display on your blog and get to writing! 

What is your favorite thing about Summer?

My favorite thing about Summer is having my little monster home with me. We get to go to the beach and relax and have fun together. It's warm out and I can spend so much time outside either reading or just taking walks.

Under construction....

Please bare with me as I try and figure out the look I want for this blog since I FINALLY figured out a good title for my blog. I promise no more title changes, heh.

30 Day Squat Challenge

First, I want to apologize for my last post, was just a tough day!

I follow a very awesome Mom Blog called Single Mom on a Budget and she posted about this group on Facebook, 30 day challenges via Single Mom on a Budget.com where they will be doing this 30 day squat challenge. So I took a look at it, and decided why not join and try it. Now, I know I don't need to lose weight. However, I do need to get in shape and maybe build some muscle. I figured this would be a good place to start. If you want to join us just join the Facebook group and follow the image below to see how many squats to do each day! We are starting June 1. I am even debating posting before and after photos (tastefully of course!). But that will depend on if there is anything to note. Also I posted a photo on how to do a proper squat! Happy squatting to the squatters :D

Small break.

I am taking a small break to do some real life stuff, I promise more updates when I come back from this hiatus. Also the monster is still planning her entry! Check back for more updates soon.