I was recently introduced to a new series of cookbooks by Stephanie “Mrs. 101 Things” Ashcraft that I would love to have. As you guessed, her cookbooks contain 101 recipes. Each book is based on a single ingredient such as cake mix, chicken, potatoes, tortillas, etc. A couple of coworkers have brought in recipes from her “101 Things to do with a Cake Mix” cookbook and every single one has been so delicious (and probably really easy to make). I was so excited when I discovered she had multiple cookbooks. I added most of them to my Amazon wishlist.

To get me started, my husband bought me “101 Things to do with a Cake Mix” and “101 MORE Things to do with a Cake Mix” for my birthday. He also bought 5 different cake mixes. My mom continued with the baking theme (I don’t think they planned to do it this way) and bought me a metal cake pan, cookie scoops, parchment paper and a nice cake/pie carrier. I am ready to bake! All I need now is a reason to make a dessert (I don’t want a dessert sitting in our apartment with only Joey and me to eat it – that could be very bad for “diets”).

Dessert anyone?

I made this recipe for lunch today and it was delicious (and easy)!

Ingredients:

18 Ritz crackers (I used whole wheat Ritz crackers)
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 TBsp olive oil
¾ teaspoon dried basil
4 tilapia fillets, about 1 ½ pounds total
2 TBsp Dijon mustard
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
Lemon wedges

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Crush crackers in a plastic bag. Add cheese, oil and basil. Shake to combine.
3. Place tilapia on prepared baking sheet. Brush top side of each piece with about ½ tablespoon of the mustard and season with salt and pepper. Press the cracker mixture onto the mustard-coated side of the fillets.
4. Bake for 15 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork. Serve with lemon wedges.

Enjoy!

PS Even if you don’t like fish, you should try this recipe. Tilapia doesn’t have a very fishy taste. Joey liked this recipe and he says he’s not a “fish person”.

I’ve been tagged. The rules for the tag are:

1. Find the nearest book
2. Open to page 123
3. Record sentence 5

There are a couple of books close to my computer. The book on the top of the pile is Ask Supernanny – What Every Parent Wants to Know and page 123, sentence 5 states:

“It’s just the constant bickering and squabbling that is getting me down”

Doesn’t that just make you want to read this book? Just kidding. I know I don’t have any kids of my own (yet) but I’ve really enjoyed reading this book. It’s been a great resource for some of the common questions I get asked from the parents I work with. I also enjoy watching her show for ideas on behavior management and other parenting issues. I’m weird. I know.

I now tag: Joey (I’m interested to see what book happens to be near him when he reads this) and anybody else who wants to participate in this fun, quick meme.

Tuesday I had my sinus surgery. It was an outpatient procedure and I think we spent a total of 6 hours at the hospital. Overall, everything went well and the doctor was very pleased with the results.

The doctors and nurses were great and very on top of things. When I woke up in the recovery room, the nurse asked me my pain level and was very quick to give me pain medication when I told her it was at an eight. After a while I was taken to a different room where Joey stayed with me until I was ready to go home. Shortly after being in the new recovery room, I became nauseated and my blood pressure dropped. The nurse gave me nausea medication and hung another liter of fluids on my IV. She also brought me a Coke to drink. She said that sometimes caffeine will help raise someone’s blood pressure. All her tricks worked. I wasn’t nauseated anymore and my blood pressure was back to normal so she gave us final discharge instructions and let me go home. (Side note: I got so many fluids while in the hospital that I had to use the bathroom every 30 minutes when I got home. What a pain!)

My pain hasn’t been too bad so I haven’t had to take very many Lortab pills. Tylenol has been working just fine but I really want to blow my nose! I see the doctor Monday so he can take out the splints he put in my nose and then I can blow it. I can’t wait!

I am not quite ready to go back to work. I feel fine but when I sit up or try to do more than just rest on the couch (like take a shower) my nose starts to bleed and/or I feel light headed.

Joey’s done a great job putting up with me. He hasn’t been feeling very well so taking care of me has been extra hard for him. My parents have brought me a couple of meals/treats and Joey’s mom made us a pizza for dinner last night. My work also sent me a beautiful plant basket. I truly appreciate everyone who’s helped me, prayed for me or just offered to help!

This made me laugh so I just had to post it!

Over the past couple of days I have discovered a couple of things that have made me happy. Maybe they will make you happy too.

Find #1: Diet Nestea White Tea Berry Honey – I usually prefer to drink water or tea over sugary juices or sodas and this tea is so delicious. It has a light crisp taste with no calories and very little sodium. Yum! I didn’t actually buy this drink, it was given to me, but I can’t wait to find it in the stores.

Find #2: Cook’s Illustrated Light Recipes Magazine – When I am home on the weekends I like to watch America’s Test Kitchen on public television. It’s a very informative cooking show where the cooks test several different ways to make a recipe and then make their perfected recipe on the show. They also test different ingredients (e.g., tomato paste, salsa, cake mix, etc.) and equipment (e.g., salad spinners, knives, thermometers, etc.) to determine the best brand. It’s great. Anyway. They have a couple different magazines and I was very excited to find this particular issue. Sometimes “light” recipes don’t always turn out the best so why even bother. Right? Well, I am hoping these recipes will surprise me. Some of the recipes in this issue include: Macaroni and Cheese, Chicken Parmesan, Meatloaf, Fudgy Brownies and more. I am excited to try them all. Especially with my husband’s new health goals.

Find #3: Thin Mint Brownies – Thin Mint Girl Scout cookies are my favorite so I was excited to find a recipe for Thin Mint Brownies. Mmmm! (I wonder if there’s a lighter way to make them? Just kidding.)

Find #4: Netflix – My husband signed us up for a free trial with Netflix and I am excited to see if it will be something we like. However, I spent way too much time putting movies in my queue – it was addicting. I especially liked the Previews section where you can watch previews of movies to see if it’s something you’d like. My trips to the movie store may be over but my time spent on the internet is starting to increase! If you have any great movie suggestions, let me know.