When the neighbors give you eggplant....

You make Eggplant Parmesan!

It was easy and complicated at the same time to make. I started with about 3 big sized eggplant. I washed, peeled and sliced them into 1/2 inch thick slices. I had 3 separate dishes set up for dredging. First bowl had some plain flour. The second bowl had beaten eggs with some seasoned salt, cracked pepper & some Kosher salt. Third bowl- plain fine breadcrumbs. I lightly coated each slice of eggplant with flour then into the egg and then into the breadcrumbs. I fried the slices in Canola oil for about 4-5 minutes (until nice and brown).

I prepared my sauce. I used 2 jars of Barilla tomato and basil sauce. I added my own seasoning to taste including a little sugar, garlic, some hot pepper sauce etc... I also added good handful of freshly chopped cilantro instead of the traditional basil.
I started the layering process with the sauce and cheeses. I used Mozzarella, Feta and Parmesan. I know Feta in not traditionally used either.
I baked it covered for 25 minutes at 375 and then for another 10 minutes uncovered to brown the top. It makes the entire house smell so good!

Here is the final product. It came out delicious and the Feta and cilantro were the secret ingredients to make it extra special.

I want fweep

William is a thriving 2 1/2 year old who is full of energy all day long. His new thing is deciding that he wants to take a nap-- "I want fweep" in the late afternoon each day. This is not your ordinary nap. Dude wants to sleep hard and long... 2 hours+ if you let him. I refuse to have him napping past 3. He ends up not going to sleep at night until after 10 or 11. That makes me feel like such a bad mother.


I tend to let him catch a good 20-30 minutes and I wake him up. He is pretty grumpy for about 5 minutes but then he springs back into action. I never thought I would say it but I wish my toddler would NOT take a nap during the day!

Have you ever experienced this kind of sleeping behavior with your child?

Family Taco Night (giveaway)

**Contest Closed**
Winner is #43 Shirley~ Congratulations!

I don't know about you but our family loves to have family taco night at least every 4-6 weeks. It's a fun way to get everyone to sit together, chat and share some good laughs while keeping the cost low. I received a "family taco night" prize pack that included a packet of Old El Paso Taco Seasoning, a Cactus Chip & Dip Serving dish, a set of 3 Fiesta Chili Pepper serving dishes and a $10 gift card to purchase our taco fixings.

We went with the Old El Paso Gordita dinner kit and also the Old El Paso traditional soft taco tortillas. You can go here to print a coupon for $0.60 off any two Old El Paso products.
I used some chicken tenders that I sliced thinly and cooked it according to the seasoning packet instructions. I added a handful of fresh chopped cilantro for extra flavor and it came out perfect.
My family sticks to the traditional toppings like shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, a mixture of shredded cheeses and some ranch sauce (included in the dinner kit I purchased).
Here is the finished product. They came out so tasty and was ready in about 20 minutes. We all sat at the table and joked around a good bit. I used to work at a fast food taco joint when I was younger so my husband had great fun talking about old times :)
How would you like to win your own family taco night prize pack? You will get the same prize pack I received which are pictured below and a $10 gift card (not pictured)
Here's how to enter:
Mandatory- Tell us what you would do to make your family taco night special. Maybe you can tell us what unusual toppings or main ingredients you like in your tacos.

For additional entries:
~ you can "like" Momfiles on Facebook
~ follow Momfiles through Google Friend Connect
~ Follow Momfiles on Twitter and Tweet this giveaway (once daily) :

Win a family taco night prize pack #giveaway @momfiles from #myblogspark http://blog.momfiles.com/2010/10/family-taco-night-giveaway.html

~ sport the Momfiles button on your blog

*Please leave a separate comment per entry method for each entry to count. Giveaway is open to US Residents only and will end on October 25, 2010 at 9:00 pm EST. Good luck!

Disclosure: The coupon, information, and prize package for giveaway were all provided by Old El Paso through MyBlogSpark.

He is so annoyed with me :)

Remember back when I posted this? If you have been reading Momfiles long enough then you know how proud Dwayne is of being a manly man. He was so annoyed today when I took out this raspberry shirt for him to wear to work. You should have heard all of his snarky comments haha! He was even more irritated with the name of the color. He was like " Now that's some bull%@(^!"

Unusual gift idea

Look at this cute Melamine plate (without the cookies :D) I received to review from Expressionery. They just launched these new plates today and they are available for $25 retail and are personalizable, from a single initial to a name or phrase depending on what design you choose. I think these plates are a great and unique gift idea especially for the person who "has it all". I wish these were available for my daughter when she turned 16. It would have been a neat way for her to have a sweet sixteen keepsake. These melamine plates are dishwasher safe (not microwavable) and will last for a very long time. I like the idea of giving this as a hostess gift with the recipient's initials or for bridal/baby showers, birthdays and more.

I totally have my eye on this giraffe design plate. How cute is that? There are so many others to choose from. I think my mother-in-law would love one of these from the grand kids for Christmas. Knowing her she would never want to use it, just display it.