So I have been slacking lately in blog posts…we have been busy…it’s been summer…and to be honest I didn’t have many compelling Clues/Links/Thought to give. I see all the cool creative things you can do with your kids over the summer and I think “I’m happy just letting my kid play in her sandbox/water table/baby pool and enjoy the summer.” Don’t get me wrong, there are some awesome ideas out there…Have you seen the giant water blobs????  … But M is happy without me having to be creative yet. Next year I’m sure I will need some of these things to save my sanity!

I do have a pretty good tip this week though!

“C”lue- So on Facebook I saw a friend post about her Paderno Plastic Spiral Vegetable Slicer , and so I was intrigued (Thanks Greta!). One of my goals this year was for Dan and I to eat healthier. M already eats more vegetables and healthy foods in a day than Dan & I eat in a week. So we decided to try it out! Dan wanted to play with our new gadget so he offered to spiralize the zucchini while I started a “sauce”. I took a box of Dei Fratelli Truly Finely Chopped Tomatoes that we had, put in a bit of garlic, onion powder, and a few other spices I use when I make my spaghetti sauce. I have to say, the sauce was pretty awesome, tasted fresh and didn’t have any preservatives or other crap in there. After Dan took the kitchen shears to the zucchini (it came out in one giant spiral so he trimmed it down to noodle size), I lightly sautéed them in a tiny bit of olive oil and minced garlic for 3 or 4 minutes and then poured my sauce over them

“L”ink- Before using it the first time I watched these two videos: Make the Best Zucchini Spaghetti Quick and Simple  & How to Spiralize: Zucchini   Both super quick and just gave me a better idea of how it was going to work. Didn’t want to waste the beautiful zucchini that I got in the Strip District that morning!

“T”hought- It was a super quick and healthy dinner. I think it took us maybe 15 minutes max and that included cleanup. I would do it again for sure and it was worth the $25 for the Paderno. Dan would like the “zoodles” a little more cooked next time. I was happy with the texture so maybe just take them out sooner for me than him.