West Philadelphia, Born and Raised

 Relax, it's just dinner.

 So what if you have both carnivores and vegetarians to feed?

So what if everyone wants something fast food tasty?

So what if you need to cut the fat and calories in the menu?

Don't make that face.

You've got this.

We'd like to present 

Rehabbed Philadelphias!

And we're going to make the best fries ever to go with them.

Grab your delicious gear:

1 loaf of Cuban bread

1 box (6 servings) Philly style cheese steaks

1 eggplant

1 large red pepper

3 medium onions

3 zucchinis

5 russet potatoes

1 pound of mushrooms

1 package processed Swiss cheese

Olive oil

Canola oil 

Sundried Tomato Vinaigrette

Powdered garlic

Preheat the oven for 350 degrees.

Slice the Cuban bread into biased rounds under 1" thick and set them on two lined cookie sheets.

Brush them with olive oil, sprinkle them with garlic powder.

 Pop them in the oven for 10 minutes or so to toast.

Break up the steaks and saute them in a little canola oil until done and set them aside.

 Peel the eggplants as shown. It's a decorative thang.

Grab that dressing...

 And pour it over your eggplant for a few minutes.

We're going for a lot of flavor here.

 Clean and slice up the pepper very thin...

 ...saving the seeds for your garden.

 Slice the mushrooms, the onions,

and the zucchini.

    I like to peel the potatoes some, but not all the way, like a ring around the middle.
    cut them into 1/4 to 1/2 inch strips and
    soak for about an hour to draw out the starch.
    Drain, pat dry and fry at 325 for about 8 to 10 minutes, then
    cool them on a rack and set them aside.

 Start sauteing.

 Pan sear the eggplant until it's just softened.

Saute the onions in olive oil on a low heat to caramelize them, the mushrooms

and peppers on medium.

I used lots of garlic and a sprinkle of Adobo.

 Grab those two cookie sheets of toasted garlic rounds.

On one sheet, layer all of the eggplant.

 Top that with onions and mushrooms.

 Try not to eat any of the sandwiches while you're standing there.

 On the other cookie sheet, layer the steak, then the rest of the onions and mushrooms.

Bring the oil temperature back up to 375 and fry the potatoes till brown, about another 10 minutes.

 Get ready with the cheese.

If you have any vegans in the crowd, or someone lactose intolerant, use veggie slices, which are surprisingly tasty

 Tear the cheese slices and top each little sandwich.

 Top the cheese with a pepper strip.

Drain the fries.
Pat them with a paper towel to remove all of the excess oil.

 Put both cookie sheets back into the oven to warm up and melt down.

Take this time to saute the zucchini as a vegetable side dish.

 Dish it up!

 This is lighter than usual, the salt is lower,

we shaved the bread content, there's a LOT of veggies included, and because the rounds are smaller portions, you'll eat just what you want, and not an enormous sandwich. 

It also cuts costs a lot.

This fed 6 people, including my husband and my two sons, with no leftovers.

Thom and Savannah gave the vegetarian sandwiches a rave review...

and they weren't the only ones eating them!

Do you already have your menu for Sunday planned out?

Stitching Heartstrings

 Psssssssst.

That's right, it's me, Little Guy.

I'm the feral one of the bunch, untamed, unruly.

You may have never seen me before.

I definitely do not wear Santa hats.

I do however enjoy a good open can, and the Redhead With Thumbs is my hero in that respect.

She has been busy lately with Valentine's Day projects,

but not so busy that my Seaside Super Supper is forgotten.

For this, I do introduction to the first

Love at Rehab post.

 Get ready to craft.

We're going to do this project in two parts.

Why?

Well, it does take some time, and I want you to be able to get started.

Oh, right, and I only have the first part done.

For this project, which makes a fabulous Valentine's Day gift for the grandparents, or for a newish mom, you will need:

Children. Preferably your own. The law frowns on "surprise adoptions"

The cast off clothes of said children, still in adorable condition.

Background fabric.

Needle and coordinating thread.

And yes, that IS Savannah, don't let the lack of chains and skulls throw you.

 Wash all little outfits and fabric. Iron these items if you really have to and are mildly masochistic.

 Cut the background fabric to suit the size of the frocks. My squares are 18".

Pin the little outfits down, and don't forget to include the accessories.

 Using needle and thread, stitch the clothes to the background.

This is easy.

I used tiny stitches all around the perimeters of each piece to make them secure.

 Vary your layouts for interest.

 See how small and nearly invisible?

 Hats and bows are great touches.

Don't be intimidated. If a whole throw is too much for you, just do one outfit as a pillow.

We'll finish this up in a couple of days.

This is still stash busting, so I'm using things I have on hand, right down to fabric that I used to make curtains for Savannah's room as a toddler.

Basically, this gift for my mother will cost me nada.

Now get busy.

Can you believe she once wore pink?

Don't Trifle with Me

It's been a long day, and this is how you feel.

Dinner is done, but you haven't so much as bothered to think about dessert.

And why should you?

You can open a sleeve of cookies, right?

Come on, let's get a little creative.

Do you have:

Milk (2%)

Chocolate cake mix

4 Boxes of Pistachio instant pudding

12 oz tub Non-dairy whipped topping

Good!

Then you have THIS!

This is easy.

Bake the cake mix according to the box and allow it to cool. Make it a sheet cake.

Why fuss?

Mix the pudding with about half of the milk it calls for.

4 boxes usually takes 8 cups; I use 5 cups.

When the pudding is all mixed, fold in half of the whipped topping until it's completely blended.

Using a clear serving dish or one of these fantastic trifle bowls, tear the cake into squares and make a layer in the bottom.

Cover that with 1/3 of the pudding mixture.

Repeat, reserving a little of the pudding for garnish.

Spread the remaining unsullied whipped topping over the whole affair and dollop on a little pudding just to make it interesting.

 

Dig in, and prepare to never have anyone settle for pecan sandies again.

If you don't have this exact flavor combination on hand, put together anything your family loves.

To save time, I bake layer cakes and freeze them for just such an emergency.

That way, dazzling my crew is a few minutes worth of commitment, and I look like 

a super hero.