Crazy & calm...

Monday Recap:

8:00am:  Coffee with cinnamon & creamer

9:30am:  Breakfast- Banana Chocolate Chip Vitatop

12:30pm:  Lunch- Coconut Blended Yogurt 

I have no idea what is "blended" about this yogurt except that it's a little thinner & a little sweeter, but HOT DAMN, I don't care!  These things are gooooooooooooooooooooood!  150 calories, 1 gram of fat and 100% delicious.  This doesn't even need any 'blend ins' since it's dotted with little bits of coconut to give it just enough texture.  Going to the store to CLEAN THESE UP since they're on sale this week!

Katie, ummmmmm, subtly enjoyed her own yogurt for lunch yesterday as well... 

Along with a bath shortly thereafterJ

4:00pm:  Snack- Cherries 

5:30pm:  Dinner- Fried Ricotta with Roasted Tomatoes

As soon as I saw this recipe on Pinterest last week, I KNEW it was going on the menu ASAP.  It just seemed so classic Italian with it's simple, fuss-free ingredients.  And umm...it also helped that I *ahem* didn't make it to the grocery store yesterday and I just happened to have everything I would need to make these on handJ

First, about a half hour before you're about to cook, toss some grape tomatoes (and a few diced cloves of garlic) onto a foil lined baking sheet & drizzle with a little olive oil, salt & pepper.  Toss in a 350 degree oven for about 30-40 minutes or until the tomatoes begin to shrivel & burst.

Once the tomatoes are just about ready, you can start your ricotta mix: 

• 2 cups part-skim ricotta
• 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 tablespoons flour 
• Salt & pepper
• Any other seasoning you'd like....I used garlic powder & thyme since I had them on hand.

Give it a quick mix to combine all of the ingredients and toss in the fridge until you're ready to cook.

Once you're ready, spray a skillet with nonstick spray (I use an olive oil based one from Trader Joe's) and drop ricotta mix in rounds over medium heat.... 

Let them cook until you see the edges turned slightly brown (about 3-4 minutes) and QUICKLY flip to cook of the reverse side.

Some flipped well...and others?  Well....maybe not so well.

But it's OK cause once they hit the plate, you can just patch em up to make them look presentableJ  See??

ANYWAYS...once they are off the skillet, sprinkle em with salt & little nutmeg and set aside.

While the ricotta is cooking, I quickly diced up 1/2 an onion and drizzled it with some white balsamic and a sprinkle of salt to cut the strong onion taste just a bit.   

A few minutes before serving, toss the whole pan of roasted tomatoes in with the onions and give it all a quick mix...

Then it's time to plate the ricotta...

And top with those glorious tomatoes... 

The ricotta 'fritters' were awesome because they had so few 'extra' ingredients that it really had a clean & crisp (NOT HEAVY) taste...but those tomatoes, folks, just put it over the top!  Not sure if it was the summer season or the roasting, but they were SUPER SWEET punctuated with a little tang from the balsamic onions and sweet roasted garlic.  DO NOT SKIP THEM!  They REALLY made the dish.  And what also made the dish was that aside from the extra few minutes it took to roast the tomatoes...this meal came together in about 20 minutes.  AKA-try this tonight!

6:30-9:15pm:  Beginners Power & Gentle Yoga

Yep, another 2 for 1 yoga night for meJ (it also gives Scott extra motivation to squeeze in his own work out since I'm not home...so it's a triple bonusJ) The power class was REALLY active & tough last night while the gentle flew by in a blink.  Perfect combo of crazy & calmJ

Well, the ole mercury is on the rise in Jersey today.  Farewell chili on the sun porch nights...even if HOPEFULLY you'll be back fairly sooooooooooooooonJ  Until then, I guess I should whip up another popsicle recipe to 'embrace the summer' while it lasts (that's an excuse.  I mean, right??)

Have a great Tuesday!!