Follow Jeannette Tomanka on your social media network of choice via the links below.
Mom, housewife & life hacker! Corporate drudge escapee writing recipes, tips & discount alerts. Still bring home the bacon & cook it up in 101 healthy way. You’re also going to find out that I’m a total Disney geek. I don’t know if it started with the Read-Along records (“When Tinker Bell waves her wand – bbblllliiiinnnggg – turn the page!”) or the Disneyland book my grandfather gave me around age 3, but however the innoculation happened, it was very effective. I’m happy that my kids share my passion, and I’m even happier that Portland has one of the fancy-shmancy new Imagination Park Disney Stores!
I recently ran across this “Fettuccine with Pumpkin Sauce” recipe which sounded simple, healthy and delicious, and I tried it out. It was very quick and easy to make, and my husband loved it. I modified the original Cooking Light recipe by adding caramelized shallots and nutmeg, and I think that helped pump up the savory aspect of the pumpkin pasta sauce nicely.
The dish is definitely a seasonal one, perfect for the Autumn months. Here’s my version of the recipe: Read More→
Well, it’s that time of year. Time to get the lunch boxes out, pack the new school supplies, shop for new clothes. Time to go back to school.
Crayons and back-to-school supplies – an annual mecca to the stores!
Sigh.
Most of my mommy friends are excited and glad that time is here. I’m not. I love having my kids at home with me. Well, we haven’t exactly been home all summer! We’ve gone on scavenger hunts, hikes, adventures of all kinds. Read More→
Yes, we know it’s become the last celebration of summer, the signal to put away the white shoes and pants, and for some, time to go back to school. But how did it begin? What is it really celebrating? Read More→
The Bacon-Weave Taco
So you’ve probably figured out by now that I’m a foodie. I love food. I find simple delights in tastes, textures, combinations – everything to do with food. And one of my favorites is bacon. Yes, I am a bacon lover. I have eaten peanut butter and bacon milkshakes and only complained that the bacon wasn’t chopped finely enough to get through the straw. I have eaten maple and bacon doughnuts (thank you, Voodoo Doughnuts!). I have bacon-flavored mints (surprisingly good), bacon-flavored popcorn in my pantry, and a bacon-less refrigerator is not tolerated in my house. 😉
Bacon is probably one of the top reasons I’ll never turn completely vegetarian, although I definitely enjoy eating vegan/vegetarian meals frequently.
I’m not going to get into the science of bacon, or its nutritional pros and cons, but it’s like anything else – fine in moderation. Anything is bad for you if you consume too much, even water. This post is dedicated to bacon lovers everywhere and the people who love bacon lovers. Read More→
Well, here we are in the Dog Days of Summer. I’ve heard that expression my whole life, but never really thought about its origin – until my kids heard it and asked what it meant. I almost gave them the explanation my grandfather gave me: “It’s so hot everyone’s walking around panting like a dog!”
While it does make sense, that’s not the real origin of the saying. According to Wikipedia, it goes back centuries, to the ancient Greeks and Romans, and the days when Sirius, the Dog Star (so called because it was the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major) rose with the sun. Read More→
“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.”
~ Psalm 51:10
On June 9, 1934, the world met a cantankerous, half-dressed duck named Donald in a cartoon called The Wise Little Hen. Originally thought to be a friend to Mickey Mouse, this crabby fowl has actually been more of a rival, constantly trying to steal Mickey’s limelight. Some would argue that he has: he has starred in more cartoons than any other Disney character (178 to Mickey’s 176), including many wartime and children’s educational films (one of my favorite childhood memories is herding into the elementary school auditorium to Read More→
The most recent Disney film, Maleficent, brought in $90 million its opening weekend. My husband and I contributed to that when we went to “preview” it before taking the kids. While my kids don’t spook easily, the trailers make the movie look very dark and intense, and when we read the story about how Brad and Angelina’s daughter had to play Aurora as a young child because no other child would come near “Maleficent,” we just wanted to take a look for ourselves. We took the kids the next day.
This is another clever film by Disney. I’m not going to include spoilers, but I will say it’s not Read More→
Some of my ancestors were Swedish, so I sometimes look around for some Swedish or Scandinavian dishes to serve up to my family. Periodically I’ll do up some Swedish Meatballs or a simple salmon with dill and creamed kale. Recently, though, I ran across this odd-sounding Swedish recipe that came out of the seventies — remember when casseroles were so much in vogue? This one is a casserole, too, and it’s apparently been a sort of guilty secret among the Swedes. Widely liked, but somewhat looked-down-upon by folks as though it’s food for kids.
It sounds weird, too — this dish, called “Flygande Jakob” or “Flying Jacob”, contains the unlikely ingredients of chicken, bananas, bacon and peanuts! While I rarely incorporate something like bananas in a savory dish, the combination of fruit with meat sounded like something that just might work — sort of like how pineapple compliments Canadian bacon on a Hawaiian pizza, or orange beef in Chinese restaurants is often fantastic. So, I just had to try this! Read More→
I’m really looking forward to us taking our kids to the Portland Rose Festival CityFair this weekend! My daughter will be excited to ride the Ferris Wheel, and I’m looking forward to the traditional corn dogs. I also want to try out the deep-fried rose petals — I can’t imagine what those must be like!
Beyond that, my family and I will enjoy a low-key holiday weekend with family and friends, and we’ll be hosting a barbeque on Monday.
There are a few other events happening, however, if you live in the Portland area:
Housewife and DIY mommy blogger! Corporate drudge escapee writing recipes, tips & discount alerts. Still bring home the bacon & cook it up in 101 healthy ways. 🙂
