Yearly Archives: 2013

Recipe: tuscan white bean pasta

June 13, 2013

Now that summer is in full swing, and the little ones are pretty much out of school, we want to spend most of our days at the pool or outside having fun!  This simple pasta recipe is a perfect dinner to throw together last minute, and it takes about as long as it takes to cook the noodles to throw together!  The mix of white beans, pasta, pine nuts gives it a nice tuscan flavor with not a lot of hassle.
Pasta with kale, spinach, mushroom, and pine nuts
Olive oil
One package Spaghetti noodles, cooked according to package instructions
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 large red onion sliced thin
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
2 cups chopped spinach
2 cups chopped kale
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup pine nuts
1   14 oz can great northern beans, drained and rinsed
Top with:
fresh basil
olive oil
balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper
Red pepper flakes
Pecorino roman cheese or parmesan, shredded
Cook noodles according to package directions.
While noodles are cooking, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add onions, mushrooms, and sauté for 5 minutes, next add spinach, kale, garlic, and pine nuts, and sauté for an additional 3-5 minutes.  Add drained white beans to the skillet.
Place noodles onto your plate, and top with bean, mushroom, pine nut, and kale mixture.  Top with fresh basil, a drizzle of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper, or red pepper flakes, and pecorino romano or parmesan cheese on top!
Enjoy!

DIY: father’s day key chains …

June 10, 2013

Father’s day is this Sunday, and if you are scrambling for a quick and easy DIY Father’s day gift idea, I have a fun one to share with you!

The children and I made these fun Father’s Day keychains for their daddy!  We spelled out things like, “I Love Dad” and “Best Dad!”

They were simple to make and the children loved to be involved in the project!

For the full tutorial on how to make these Father’s Day key chains, head on over to my step by step post for Hellobee blog!

{All photos by me}

passport to imagination

June 9, 2013

I am excited to announce my partnership with Michaels craft store and their Passport to Imagination 7-week crafting camp for children ages 5 and up!

Michaels  thinks it is important to take the un-plugged summer pact, and cut back on at least 2 hours a day from any sort of time spent interacting with a technological screen.

This summer fun craft camp couldn’t come soon enough!  Today is the first day of our summer break, and already my kids are complaining about being bored!  It could be a long summer.

I am excited for my children to attend and make some very fun crafts that explore the 7 continents of the world!  This will definitely help with summer boredom and keep them from being infront of the TV!

The classes start June 17th, are held every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday 10am to noon at most Michaels stores, and are only $2 per session! (a steal!)   Hope to see you there!

To sign up and for more information, and stores near you, check out the Passport to Imagination page over on the Michaels Craft website.

[Disclosure: Michaels will be sponsoring my children to attend the passport to imagination camps in exchange for a sponsored post.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.]