February is a short month, but it always seems like a long time to get through it. The weather is unpredictable, but the crafts are fun.
Here’s what we did last month at SuzerSpace!
Open face egg sandwich
This is a quick, light breakfast we like to make on weekends, especially when eggs are on sale.
For two servings:
Split a whole wheat muffin in half and toast. I’d say “English Muffin” but our favorite is the Whole Wheat British Muffin at Trader Joe’s.
While that’s toasting, I scramble two eggs in a microwave-safe glass measuring cup. To stretch the eggs without adding calories/carbs, I add in water. You already know from reading my previous recipes that I’m an eye-ball cook. I’d guess it’s somewhere in the ¼ to 1/3 cup range. Mix this water in really, really, really well with a fork so that it won’t separate when cooked.
Microwave in 20 second intervals, stirring between each one until the eggs are scrambled to the consistency you like. I do not like runny eggs, so I cook mine fairly dry. Don’t be tempted to just turn the microwave on for 2 minutes straight, as this will cause the eggs to explode across the top of the microwave oven.
Ask me how I know 🙂
The toaster usually pops before the eggs are done – I sprinkle shredded cheese onto each muffin immediately so it gets a little melty from the muffin heat.
When the eggs are done I distribute them somewhat evenly between the two muffins. Their heat will further melt the cheese. Top with a spoonful of really good salsa.
We eat these with forks and knives, usually with some fruit on the side. And coffee. Definitely coffee.
Teeny Tiny Tip: Lunch
Quick, tasty lunches for work used to be a challenge.
I’d look for the best prices on frozen entrees, but they tended to either be good but expensive or cheap and disapppointing. And almost all of them seemed high in carbs and sodium.
Those cups of instant mac ‘n cheese seem tempting, but they also fall into the expensive and high sodium camp.
My solution is to do a batch cook on Sunday afternoon of one type of meal. Once it cools, part it out into 5 or 6 lunch-serving sized zip bags into the freezer. If you do this every other Sunday, and vary the meals you make, you end up with a variety of freezer entrees to choose from on days when dinner doesn’t yield nice leftovers. It’s also good in a pinch on a weeknight when you are starving and just don’t feel like cooking.
I don’t have a big deep-freeze. I just pack the bags flat to take up less room. And it isn’t really very time consuming – I have a couple of easy meals I make that don’t require much hands-on time, so I can craft while they cook.
And the math ends up as amazing – this box of maccaroni and cheese was 29 cents. To make it a more interesting meal I added lentils to the water as it was boiling before adding the noodles and then added a bit of a low-sodium taco season packet when I made the cheese sauce. With the addition of the lentils, this made six lunches.
Show and Tell: Paper Lanterns
Houseful of Handmade had a great looking feature a few weeks ago where the blog owner (Kati) created paper lanterns that look like they are heavy metal versions. (Ha – Heavy Metal – I didn’t mean it like that).
I’ve been making tea light boxes since the first weekend I owned my Silhouette Cameo so I knew these were going to be fun.
And HOH has a digital download library that’s free if you’ll sign up for her newsletter (which you should, because it’s also good).
Whooooo Lives Here?
Mid February through late March are an interesting craft time for me. There aren’t many holidays (we don’t celebrate St. Patrick’s Day), so it’s kind of a weird let down after the rush of Christmas, Super Bowl and Valentine’s themes.
We’ve always loved birds, and owls in particular are a treat when we hear them at night calling at each other. And they make a great craft profile with their easily exaggerated features.
So down with the paper chain hearts and up with my owls!
Click the red arrow to see how I made this. And the cut file is available as a free download at the end of this post.
