Sassy Water ***

I was pretty skeptical about this one, since I'm definitely not a fan of cucumbers.  I actually really like it, though.  The water tastes so refreshing, and the mint covers up some of the cucumber taste.  I can't say how it works as far as weight loss, but for taste and meeting your daily water requirements, it's definitely a winner.

Photo courtesy of Carolina Charm

SASSY WATER
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ via Carolina Charm)

8 ½ cups water
1 teaspoon grated ginger
1 medium cucumber, sliced thin
1 large lemon, sliced thin
12 mint leaves

Mix all ingredients together in a pitcher and refrigerate overnight.
The next morning, strain and drink all 8 ½ cups throughout the day.
Repeat for 4 days in a row...trying your best avoid any other beverages (coffee, soda, alcohol, etc.)

Roasted Squash Chips ***

These don't really come out like "chips," per se, but we enjoyed them anyway.  It would probably be best to make them in a large baking sheet with a cooling rack on top.  That would allow for a crispier texture, but I love them and their squishy goodness.  The slightly thicker rounds were actually my favorite, even though the thinner ones seemed to hold the flavor of the salt and pepper better.  I guess it depends on what you're aiming for, taste-wise.  I could have easily eaten an entire batch of these myself, but I am really crazy about my squash.  :)

ROASTED SQUASH CHIPS
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy)

4 medium yellow squash
Olive oil cooking spray
Sea Salt
Papper

Preheat oven to 375. Slice squash into thin circles, about 1/4" thick. Spray baking sheet evenly with cooking spray. Lay out the squash on the sheet, close but not touching. Spray squash with cooking spray, and sprinkle with salt and pepper as desired. Cook for 30 minutes, turning halfway through.

Taco Bake **

This was pretty good.  Nothing special or anything, but it made for a fairly quick and easy meal on a weeknight after a long day at work.  I doubled it and put it in a 9x13, so that I'd have enough for two nights.  My only complaint is that the spice is a little strong, between the taco seasoning and the salsa.  It also upped the salt content a bit too much for my tastes.  I did use low sodium and mild everything, and I also used ground turkey in place of the ground beef.  Next time, I think I will double everything and only use one packet of seasoning.  Other than that, though, we all liked it.

TACO BAKE
(twinners00 from KraftFoods.com)

1 pkg. (14 oz.) KRAFT Deluxe Macaroni and Cheese Dinner
1 lb. ground beef
1 pkg. (1-¼ oz.) TACO BELL® HOME ORIGINALS® Taco Seasoning Mix
¾ cup water
¾ cup BREAKSTONE'S or KNUDSEN Sour Cream
1-½ cups KRAFT Shredded Cheddar Cheese, divided
1 cup TACO BELL® HOME ORIGINALS® Thick 'N Chunky Salsa

PREHEAT oven to 400°F. Prepare Dinner as directed on package. While Macaroni is cooking, brown meat; drain. Add taco seasoning mix and water to meat; simmer 5 min.
STIR sour cream into prepared Dinner. Spoon half of the Dinner mixture into 8-inch square or 9-inch round baking dish; top with layers of the meat mixture, 1 cup of the cheese and remaining Dinner mixture. Cover.
BAKE 15 min. Top with salsa and remaining ½ cup cheese. Bake, uncovered, an additional 5 min. or until cheese is melted.

Diet Coke Brownies **

These were... interesting.  That's the best description I can come up with.  The top gets really crusty, and the inside is really mushy, even after an hour.  My 6-year-old said he thought it was kind of like pudding on the inside, and that's a pretty decent description.  It comes off too sweet too.  I didn't think about it, but the artificial sweeteners in there just add to the sugar that's already in the mix.  It's a cute idea, but I honestly don't see why you wouldn't just sub applesauce.  That would be a much healthier alternative. 

Photo from Eat Yourself Skinny

DIET COKE BROWNIES
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ via Eat Yourself Skinny)

1 box Betty Crocker Low-Fat Fudge Brownie mix
1 (12 oz) can Diet Coke

Pour brownie mix into a medium-sized bowl and pour in your 12 oz. can of diet coke. Using a hand held mixer or whisk, combine ingredients until you see no more lumps. Pour mixture into a 9 x 9-inch pan coated with cooking spray and bake according to the package directions, adding an additional 5 to 10 minutes to the baking time. Your brownies should bake for about 40 to 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes and enjoy!

Quick Spanish Rice ***

Man, we love this stuff!  Dh and I agree that we really like it much better than the Rice-a-Roni and Lipton kind of stuff.  The best part, though, is that it's so low in sodium and doesn't hardly have a kick to it at all.  The kids can eat it with no problems.  It's not their favorite side dish, but they'll eat it.  I again subbed the fire-roasted diced tomatoes, and I just used regular chicken broth this time. 

QUICK SPANISH RICE
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ Recipezaar)

1 (15 ounce) can stewed tomatoes
1 ½ cups chicken stock
1 ¼ cups rice
1 tablespoon butter or margarine
2 teaspoons chili powder
¾ teaspoon oregano
½ teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon cumin

In medium saucepan, combine all ingredients (I usually mash tomatoes with potato masher or give them a quick spin in food processor).
Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low.
Cover and simmer 25 minutes or until rice is done. (Unless you like sticky, gooey rice, don't take off the lid and stir at all until it is done).
Garnish with green onions and/or cheddar cheese.
* Amy's notes: I subbed brown rice, fire-roasted tomatoes, and garlic powder with salt.

PREVIOUS REVIEWS:
6/28/10
Normally, when I make Spanish Rice, I use the Lipton packages. I decided I wanted to try a healthier homemade version, so that I could sub brown rice and cut down on some of the sodium. This was so easy and so good! I actually preferred it over the Lipton ones, because those are normally too spicy for the kids. This one only had the chili powder and cumin, so it there was no heat to it. Factor in what a cumin fan I am, and I was one happy chica. The boys loved it too. I did end up smashing the tomatoes a little, but not a whole lot. I subbed fire-roasted diced tomatoes, because that's our preference. I didn't have any garlic salt (no clue where it's hiding in my spice cabinet), so I just used about ¼ tsp salt and ¼ tsp garlic powder. It was still good. I just noticed that it says you can garnish with cheese. I'm sure that would be great, but it really doesn't need it, in my opinion. I served it with White Chicken Enchiladas with Green Chile Sour Cream Sauce.

Chili Dog Crockpot Casserole ***

Yet another Pinterest hit at our house.  Totally took me by surprise, since I don't even like hot dogs, lol.  I really enjoyed it, though.  My 8-year-old said the tortillas were too "doughy" for him, but that was actually my favorite part.  I used white flour tortillas this time, but I think I'll try some kind of multigran next time, to make them hold up a little better.  We all definitely enjoyed it, though.  The only changes I made was to use turkey hot dogs and three cans of Hormel chili with turkey and beans.  The turkey chili was on accident, but it was still good.  I will definitely do the three cans again next time, but I'll use just the chili with beans.

CHILI DOG CROCKPOT CASSEROLE
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ via Moms with Crockpots)

2 (15 ounce) cans chili with beans
1 (16 ounce) package beef hot dogs
10 (8 inch) flour tortillas
1 (8 ounce) package Cheddar cheese, shredded

Spread 1 can of chili and beans in the bottom of a large crockpot
Roll up hot dogs inside tortillas and place in crockpot, seam side down, on top of chili and beans.
Top with remaining can of chili and beans, and sprinkle with cheese.
Cover and cook on low for 6 hours or high for 3 hours.
**Gluten Free** Can be made gluten free by substituting gluten free corn tortillas. Please check the labels on the other ingredients to make sure they are also gluten free!

Bacon Cinnamon Rolls ***

I know I've been slacking on posting again, and I'm sorry.  With 4-5 nights of baseball and Cub Scouts every week, it doesn't leave much time for internet fun.  I have been cooking, I just haven't had time to catch up on my reviews.  I'll see what I can do about that in the next few days.  :)This recipe is so very simple, but it's really good.  All of us loved it.  The boys love the canned cinnamon rolls anyway, and this way, at least they get a little protein in there to soak up some of the sugar.  It's a good theory anyway, lol.  I'm normally against adding bacon to all that sweet stuff, like the current rage is.  I understand that it may be good, but I just can't bring myself to add bacon to something like chocolate chip cookies.  I only made an exception with this one because they were both breakfast foods. Hehehe.  I made these Easter morning, but I didn't have time to take a picture of my own.  I'm using the one from the original website, but both the picture and the recipe have links to that post.  I'll definitely be making this one often.

Picture courtesy of RainyDayGal.com

BACON CINNAMON ROLLS

(The-Skipper-Bunch ~ via RainyDayGal.com)

1 package "Grands" cinnamon rolls
10 strips bacon

Fry bacon for a few minutes on each side, until slightly crisp but still flexible.  Drain on paper towels. 
Unroll cinnamon rolls, and place two strips of bacon on each.  Roll back up.  Place in a greased pan, and bake according to package directions.