Dental Helpers

Today the kids had their dental cleanings. I love our dentist and her team, so much. The hygienist is fantastic with my kids. She let them be her assistants, which they loved. 

Olivia, having a power trip moment as she wields the water pik.

No cavities! I am proud of the way they care for their teeth. I had a mouthful of fillings by their age.

For dinner I found an Isa Does It recipe I had not yet tried, the Tempeh Meatballs. I also made the accompanying sauce recipe. The sauce is wonderful, as for meatballs I think I prefer Dreena's, made from walnuts and pecans.

Learning a little coding before bed.

A sweet bedtime moment joking around with Daddy.

Vegan MoFo Day 8: Nut Balls, Hehe

Ah, please excuse my juvenile sense of humor. I've always been that way, and now that I have a six-year-old boy, potty jokes are never far from conversation.

So today's dinner was spaghetti with marinara and Pecan Walnut Balls from Let Them Eat Vegan. Despite being, well, balls made of nuts, they are freaking awesome on pasta or even eaten cold, as finger foods, all on their own.

Olivia was the only family member not down with balls. She opted for a veggie corndog instead.

A pretty chill day. Dress up, board games.

Play-doh fashion design.

(And balls.)

First Swim!

This afternoon was warm enough to fill up the kiddie pool and let the kids splash around. 

And I've been working on a few more tester recipes for Tami and Celine's finger foods cookbook. 

Glazed Sugar Snaps -- perfect, easy side dish for Asian entrees

Caramelized Bananas with Chocolate Chipotle Dipping Sauce -- I set this in front of Jackson and Olivia and it was gone in minutes!

Falafel with Spicy Dipping Sauce -- Tony said this was the best falafel I've ever made. Pretty sure I agree.

Mediterranean Meatballs -- These tofu meatballs would be great on pasta, or served as an appetizer with marinara sauce, as we had them.

Meatball Sub

Today I tried another recipe from Vegan on the Cheap, the "Wheatballs," which are meatballs made from chickpeas and wheat gluten. This recipe was super easy. You just combine everything in the food processor, form the mixture into balls and saute them for a few minutes. The taste and texture was pretty good. Just a little spicy, but not hot. Tony informed me that, while the texture was not like a real meatball, the taste was similar.

I wanted to make a hearty lunch for Tony before he left to work another 10-hour shift (just a few more weeks until this weird schedule ends and our lives go back to normal), so I decided to make meatball subs. I made a mushroom marinara and some Cheezee Sauce (also from VotC). There's really no way to make this meal look appetizing, but trust me, it was yummy!

And what to do with the leftover cheese sauce? Rotel! This is 100 times more appealing than the version made with Velveeta. What is that stuff anyway? It's unnatural. I'm so excited to snack on this dip tonight while I catch up on True Blood.