Bike Rides and Din-Din

We finally got a seat for Jd's beach cruiser that Asher can sit in! Yay time for family bike rides. This was our second time trying it out and of course Asher was obsessed. This kid really does have a need for speed. But don't worry...he always wears his helmet. While we cruise through our neighborhood just relaxing, Asher likes to put his arms out like he is flying and lets the wind just blow over his body. I think these will need to become a nightly occurrence in the Corlis household!

Getting ready for the bike ride

My cute boys

Helmet's on and ready to go!

I am so excited to find a new recipe that Jd, Asher, and I all LOVE! It was an huge hit. It tasted so fresh and was super easy to make. In my last post I showed you the list of my meals I am making this week and tonight I made Smoked Mozzarella, spinach, and penne pasta. I found the recipe here but decided to tweak it a little bit.....I mean I always like to make things my own. So here im MY version of the recipe and I hope you all try it out yourselves because it is seriously delish!

Smoked Mozzarella, Spinach, and Penne Pasta

*Serves 6-8

INGREDIENTS:
Parmesan Dressing:
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup chopped fresh Basil
1/2 cup low-fat Greek plain yogurt
1/4 cup white wine {I used Pinot Grigio}
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
3 Shacks of red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper to taste

Salad:
12 ounces whole wheat penne pasta {I had to use a little spiral pasta because I ran out of penne}
3 cups packed baby spinach
4-6 ounces smoked mozzarella cheese, diced

DIRECTIONS:
For the dressing, combine the Parmesan cheese, basil, yogurt, wine, garlic, red pepper flakes and salt and pepper in a blender and process until the dressing is smooth. Store in the refrigerator until ready to serve. The dressing can be made up to two days ahead of time.

To prepare the salad, cook the pasta in a large pot of salted water until just tender, al dente. Drain the pasta into a colander and run cold water over it and drain well. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cooked pasta, spinach, and smoked mozzarella. At this point, the salad and dressing can be refrigerated for a couple of hours separately before serving.

Toss the salad with the dressing right before serving.

Love eating green

Seriously one of the yummiest pastas ever

Even Asher was loving it!

I can not stress enough that I am a huge fan of using FRESH herbs in your food when cooking. It makes a huge difference in the taste of your food and I will never go back to using dried or canned ones. The aroma of basil as I chop them in the kitchen spreads through the entire house and quickly heightens my husbands hunger every time I cook. I swear that's the reason this dressing was to die for! I am also going to be starting my own herb garden in my kitchen so that I will always have these fresh babies at my fingertips.