Mom Spy : What's in Your Fridge?

I asked Mickey, the delightful thirty-something stay-at-home mom, to let us "spy" into her refrigerator for Cooking Week. Mickey authors the blog A Helicopter Mom, which shares tender yet hilarious moments with her two girls and a boy. And with three young children, you know her kitchen is hopping! 

Find out what appliance she can't live without, what ingredient she has way too much of, and how she gets her kids to eat their veggies.

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5 things you always have in the fridge:

Fat free organic milk for the kids

Green grapes

Whole wheat bread for the kids

EAS chocolate protein drinks

Diet Coke 

We’d be surprised to find _____ in your fridge.
Pickled Beets.  *I'm* surprised to find them too.  'Cause they're gross.

Also, I was surprised to find 6 tubs of Cool Whip. 

 

What’s in your freezer?

Frozen pizzas, veggies, lean cuisines, popsicles, ice cream and as it turns out, entirely too many fake meats (veggie burgers, crumbles, veggie dogs, etc)

Favorite kitchen appliance?
My Kitchenaid stand mixer. I love it.  LOVE it.

Favorite kitchen utensil?

By "favorite," I'm assuming you mean the top four, right?  :) My pizza cutter is heavy duty and sharp, so I use it to cut everything...sandwiches, quesadillas, herbs, etc. The jar opener is used all of the time. I also love my super skinny cookie spatula. It's thin enough to slide right under warm cookies, instead of squashing one side in. The last favorite is my rubber spatula and scraper. It's great to use with my Kitchenaid mixer. I can scrape the batter/dough with the spatula and clean off the mixer paddle with the curved notch. 

Do you have a meal planning strategy?

Yes! I go to Target about 4 times each week and buy something to make that night for dinner. 

What’s your favorite easy weeknight meal?

Tacos. We have them at least one night each week.

What tricks do you use to get your kids to eat their veggies?

The girls (ages 3 and 6) each get one night per week to pick what we'll have for dinner.  Every other night they have to eat what they're given without complaining or they'll lose "their" night the next week. We don't eat meat, so the kids end up getting a lot of vegetables. Even on the nights they choose, they pick one fruit and one veggie to go with the meal.

What’s your go-to comfort food?

Grilled cheese sandwich

Recipe you’d like to share:

Hot Artichoke and Spinach Dip (Very Cheesy)

Ingredients

• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Romano cheese
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 (14 ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
• 1/2 cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
• 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a small baking dish.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together cream cheese, mayonnaise, Parmesan cheese, Romano cheese, garlic, basil, garlic salt, salt and pepper. Gently stir in artichoke hearts and spinach.
3. Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish. Top with mozzarella cheese. Bake in the preheated oven 25 minutes, until bubbly and lightly browned.