To be honest, this past week has been pretty insane. Juggling 2 jobs, dealing with the massive learning curve that comes along with becoming a new Agent…. learning everything I need to know to get started & become successful has been crazy to say the least. Not to mention keeping the house clean, working out (my wedding is coming up quick people!!) getting laundry done & keeping the fiance happy with preparing breakfast, lunch and dinner for him every single day UGHH I swear he thinks I am wonder woman! We’re talking about a guy that needs me to text him directions on how to microwave a quesadilla ! Haha well not that bad, but seriously.. it’s pretty bad
So this week has been all about re-vamping my schedule and being more efficient with my time. This will definitely help me to be less stressed AND get everything done that I have to get done – YAY!
The re-vamped schedule:
7-10am – Admin/marketing job (I do this from my home office; major plus)
10:30-12:30pm – workout time
1-2:20pm – work on Real Estate stuff; blog, marketing, etc
2:30pm-6:30/7pm – Nanny job
7pm – 10pm – make dinner, eat, cleanup, figure out what my next blog post will be (not as easy as you might think) , researching market conditions & whatever else.
10pm- till whenever – TV time!! This is when we like to watch The Bachelor, Real Housewives, American Idol, Grey’s Anatomy.. you know, all the good stuff. And yes the Fianc (my nickname for my Fiance) likes The Bachelor, Oprah & Real Housewives! I got lucky with him haha
My biggest downfall with keeping the schedule in was planning out the weekly dinners…… OH MY GOD I literally can only think of about 5 meals MAX! So we pretty much eat the same stuff every week! Tacos, burgers, speghetti made 100 different ways.. those are a few of our go-to meals. So, a couple of weeks ago I decided I would make all the meals on Sunday and then freeze/fridge them so that all we had to do was pop them in the microwave/oven each night & voila.
So.. that worked for about 1 week. Now I’m thinking about incorporating maybe just a couple “made ahead of time meals” into the meal plan, instead of making all 5.
So, tonight I’m making his all-time-fav meal. You must try this recipe. Every single time I make this everyone raves about it! Another good thing about this meal is that it lasts for about a week and is really healthy too.
Stuffed Pasta Shell Amazing-ness:
- Heaven on earth
- Yummm
Source: http://www.traceysculinaryadventures.blogspot.com
Ingredients
- 1 (12-ounce) box jumbo pasta shells (recommended: Barilla)
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 large yellow onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 pound ground turkey
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus 1/2 teaspoon
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus 1/4 teaspoon
- 1 (8 to 10-ounce) package frozen artichokes, thawed and coarsely chopped
- 1 (15-ounce) container ricotta cheese
- 3/4 cup grated Parmesan
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Directions
5 cups Arrabbiata Sauce, recipe follows
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and partially cook until tender but still very firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 4 to 5 minutes. Drain pasta.
Meanwhile, in a large heavy skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and the garlic and cook until the onions are soft and starting to brown, about 3 minutes. Add the ground turkey, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the meat is slightly golden and cooked through. Add the artichoke hearts and stir to combine. Remove from heat and let cool.
In a large bowl combine the cooled turkey mixture with the ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, eggs, basil, parsley, and the remaining salt and pepper. Stir to combine.
To stuff the shells, cover the bottom of a 9 by 13 by 2-inch baking dish with 1 cup of Arrabbiata sauce. Take a shell in the palm of your hand and stuff it with a large spoonful of turkey mixture, about 2 tablespoons. Place the stuffed shell in the baking dish. Continue filling the shells until the baking dish is full, about 24 shells. Drizzle the remaining Arrabbiata Sauce over the shells, top with the grated mozzarella. If freezing, cover tightly with plastic wrap and place in the freezer for 1 day and up to 1 month.
To bake, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Bake until the shells are warmed through and the cheese is beginning to brown, about 60 minutes (20 minutes if shells are unfrozen.)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
6 ounces sliced pancetta, coarsely chopped
2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
2 garlic cloves, minced
5 cups jarred or fresh marinara sauce
Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the pancetta and saute until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute until tender, about 1 minute. Add the marinara sauce and red pepper flakes and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and let cool until ready to use.
Yield: approximately 6 cups
Recipe Giada de Laurentiis – FoodNetwork.com
ENJOY!! Let me know what you think 😀
The truth is I haven’t had a whole lot of extra time + the wedding is so intensely on my mind that I don’t feel inspired to write about anything else. SO I have decided to just embrace it. From now until July 15th you will be hearing a lot more about the wedding. There are still so many decisions to be made.. and I figure, why not share my thoughts and get your opinions. Plus my BFF/Maid of Honer is probably getting a little sick of me asking her opinion on every little detail!
House To Home Blog 