Dinner Time Fun at the Dinkelberries

So tonight I tried a new recipe.  It's always an iffy situation because Isaiah already has it in his mind that he doesn't like anything new.  The dinner had green peppers and black olives so I was prepared for a little battle.  I was pleasantly surprised, though!

We started the meal off by both Isaiah and Samara praying.  Malachi ate a green pepper by itself and said he didn't like it.  I told him to try eating it with some cheese and meat because he wouldn't be able to really taste it.  He tried it and it was a success!  Isaiah was brave and ate both a green pepper and black olive alone.  He said that he loved them.  Yay!

While I was getting seconds for one of the boys, James drank from my glass (which is not unusual).  Samara started lecturing him to "not eat Mommy's drink, undastand (understand)!"  A little while later, I was back in the kitchen getting some animal crackers for Samara when I hear again, "don't eat Mommy's drink".  James was cracking up because right before she said that, she told him to drink my drink.  But when he did, she immediately told on him.  I thought we girls had each other's back!

While we were still laughing about James getting in trouble for drinking out of my glass, Samara started coughing and each time she coughed, a toot came out.  We were rolling!!!

The meal ended by Isaiah saying that when he wears his suit jacket (his ringbearer suit) he is going to marry me so I can be "Isaiah's princess".  Sounds like a perfect plan to me =)

Beef Nacho Casserole 
Ingredients

• 2  tablespoons  olive oil
• 1/2  pound  pre-sliced sweet peppers (about 1/2-inch-wide strips)  (I used green peppers)
• 1  pound  lean ground beef  (I used turkey instead)
• 1/2  teaspoon  garlic salt
• 2  tubes (10 ounces each)  refrigerated pizza dough
• 1  jar (16 ounces)  medium-hot salsa
• 3  cups  shredded taco-cheese blend
• 1  can (2.2 ounces)  sliced black olives, drained (about 1/4 cup)
• 3  large  scallions, trimmed and sliced

Directions

1. Heat oven to 375°. Coat 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.

2. In large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add peppers, ground beef and garlic salt; cook, stirring to break up clumps of beef, until the peppers are soft and beef is no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Drain off any excess fat from skillet.

3. Remove pizza dough from tubes. Cut the dough crosswise into 1/2-inch-wide slices, then cut each slice into quarters.

4. In large bowl, toss together dough pieces and salsa. Add cooked meat mixture, 2 cups of the taco-cheese blend and olives. Scrape mixture into baking dish. Sprinkle the remaining 1 cup taco-cheese blend over the top.

5. Bake at 375° for 30 minutes. Sprinkle scallions evenly over the top. Bake an additional 5 minutes.