Category Archives: Food & Wine

menu plan monday #1

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I never got my meal plan up yesterday, but that’s not because I didn’t write it! I actually had it all set, but never wrote up the post. So here you go. A quick & dirty list to start the year, but hey — better than nothing!

  • Monday: Leftovers
  • Tuesday: Slow Cooker BBQ ribs, twice-baked potatoes (from the freezer), roast butternut squash, salad
  • Wednesday: Slow Cooker Chicken tacos (lettuce, cojita cheese, avocado, tomatoes, cilantro, corn tortillas if you want one), spicy black bean soup
  • Thursday: Sausage Parmesan, salad
  • Friday: Turkey burgers, salad, zucchini chips
  • Saturday: Pizza night! Cauliflower crust with chicken, broccoli, onions, peppers & black olives or traditional crust with pepperoni. Salad.
  • Sunday: Chicken Parmesan meatloaf, steamed broccoli

For more menu ideas, visit Organizing Junkie’s Menu Plan Monday feature.

2011 – what a year!

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Although I am not a fan of the whole New Year’s Eve thing, I really do enjoy looking back on the year that is passing. In many ways it is bittersweet, filled with lovely memories but also tinged with a bit of sadness of time gone by.

Nevertheless, here we are: December 31, 2011! This year was a crazy one. I’m happy to say that I did pretty well with my yearly goals. I certainly improved my health and took better care of myself. I did not take my writing up a notch, and that was by design. But also, the writing assignments were not so plentiful this year. Of course, at the same time I dabbled in boutique hair bow making and I’ve also had good luck selling my crochet hats as photo props. Honestly, that all made up for the lack of writing work!

I also wanted to kick up my blog and I’m not really sure if I did that. I was contacted for several reviews and hosted a few giveaways. While it was fun, I learned that I really love reviewing products (probably because I’m opinionated, LOL!) but the giveaways are more work than they are worth. So I have to think about where I want to go with that.

There seems to be nostalgia in the bloggy world for how things used to be and I definitely share that sentiment. My blog goal for the new year is to just have fun with it. I remember when blogging was no-pressure, when it was a community, heck when there were (gasp!) no comments! I did it just because I wanted to, because I wanted to share, because I wanted to document it all for myself. And that’s where I want to be!

Here’s a little look back on my year. It’s a classic meme that has been going around for ages and I love it! You post the first sentence of your first blog post of each month. You can also add a favorite picture from each month.


January 2011
1.
I decided that we needed to start the new year with a big breakfast, so I made a fritatta with smoked ham, potatoes, tomatoes, and onions as well as pancakes (served with the cherry preserves I canned back in July) and sausage.

February 2011
afghan sampler squares - january progress
Last month I was really motivated to start this project and I completed the first two squares.

March 2011

?
… because he adds sweet little extras to my daily “to do” list when I’m not looking ♥ ♥ ♥

April 2011
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If it’s Friday, you know what that means… it’s time to party!

May 2011
balloon wreath
Friday night I had a revelation when the dress I bought about a month ago for my husband’s high school reunion didn’t fit the same way as when I purchased it.

June 2011

Ten years ago I married the macaroni to my cheese, the salsa to my nachos, the peanut butter to my jelly, the butter to my bread.

July 2011
pickled beets
There was a bunch of beets in last week’s CSA share.

August 2011
159
Hello, friends!

September 2011
061
Well here we are, heading towards the end of the year.

October 2011
baby elf hat
It has been a pretty easy adjustment to the carb-restricted diet, and even though I don’t have to eat this way, I am and I’m enjoying a lot of benefits, specifically increased energy.

November 2011
Heartstrings Kids Review
It occurred to me that I never put up my CSA post from two weeks ago (life is crazy, and blogging has obviously not been a priority – sorry!).

December 2011
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The weather in my neck of the woods: Today it’s sunny and mild ~ in the mid-50s as I type, but I believe it’s supposed to turn colder later in the week, which is OK with me.

Thank you so much for reading my blog, following my ramblings on Twitter, liking me on Facebook, and truly being a part of my life (because you are)! Many of you I have known for years through blogging and you’ve become good friends. Others I know in real life, and still others I only know via my comments. And I bet there are some people who read quietly without saying a word. That’s OK. I do that on a lot of blogs, too, but I would LOVE if you’d say hello once in a while 🙂

If you’re out celebrating tonight, please be safe! I wish each and every one of you a happy & healthy new year! Cheers!

countdown to 2012: desserts

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Countdown to 2011 with Finding Joy in My Kitchen

This week I am counting down to 2012 with SnoWhite from Finding Joy in My Kitchen. She is inviting readers to join in the fun by sharing their very best recipes of 2011. Today’s theme is desserts. This recipe for Sour Patch Grapes is a fun, light dessert when you don’t want anything too heavy.

It also makes a great snack and it’s a wonderful addition to any kind of potluck. I brought these to my son’s Pinewood Derby and they were a hit. I had to laugh every time someone asked me for the recipe because they are so simple and you could even put your kids to work making these.

Sour Patch Grapes (a.k.a. Glitter Grapes)

glitter grapes

countdown to 2012: best main dishes

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Countdown to 2011 with Finding Joy in My Kitchen

This week I am counting down to 2012 with SnoWhite from Finding Joy in My Kitchen. She is inviting readers to join in the fun by sharing their very best recipes of 2011. Today’s theme is main dishes. I’m cheating here a little bit because I really wanted to include this recipe, but couldn’t figure out where to put it, so… it’s going here 🙂

My roasted garlic and sunflower pesto was such a fun recipe to create from our bountiful CSA basil share last summer. You can use pesto in a variety of ways with your main dishes. Naturally, you can use it as a pasta sauce, but it’s also wonderful on pizza, with chicken, or thrown into a batch of roasted tomato soup. I hope you enjoy this one!

Roasted Garlic and Sunflower Pesto

roasted garlic and sunflower pesto 

countdown to 2012: soups & stews

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Countdown to 2011 with Finding Joy in My Kitchen

This week I am counting down to 2012 with SnoWhite from Finding Joy in My Kitchen. She is inviting readers to join in the fun by sharing their very best recipes of 2011. Today’s theme is soups and stews. This was an easy one for me. My black bean soup became one of my most-prepared quick dishes of the year. It’s fast, healthy, and spicy. All of my favorite things! So click on the recipe title to get all the delicious details!

Spicy Black Bean Soup

spicy black bean soup

countdown to 2012: breakfast dishes

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Countdown to 2011 with Finding Joy in My Kitchen

One of my favorite blog finds this year was Finding Joy in My Kitchen. If you haven’t visited, make sure you do because SnoWhite is a great source for healthy recipes! This week she is counting down to 2012 and inviting readers to join in the fun by sharing their very best recipes of 2011. Today’s theme is breakfast dishes.

You’re going to have to take my word on this one. The photo isn’t the greatest, and yes I know that the recipe sounds a little… well, strange. I mean spiced ground pork? With milk? For breakfast? Trust me, it took years before I would even try this recipe. But once I had, I was a convert. Yum!

Cretons
cretons

christmas menu – breaking the rules

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Just like I did at Thanksgiving, I’m trying to lighten up our dietary restrictions for these days around Christmas. Drew’s blood sugar has been excellent lately as we’ve re-introduced a little bit of grain back in so I feel comfortable “letting go” a little bit.

My biggest concession so far has been my decision to keep the tradition of cinnamon rolls for breakfast on Christmas morning. That’s right: super-processed, in-the-can, pop-em-in-the-oven cinnamon rolls. I’m going to try to balance out all those carbs with a big pan of scrambled eggs, though. The rolls will be fun, and the protein from the eggs will hopefully keep everyone from getting too hungry before everyone gets here. (Of course trying to keep my boys from snacking constantly is what I imagine it’s like looking for cheap furniture stores in los angeles — impossible!)

As for the big meal, I plan on serving roast turkey breast (cooked in the Crock Pot), gravy (I’m cheating and buying it — again, cutting myself slack to save my sanity), sliced smoked ham, hassleback potatoes, roasted asparagus, cranberry sauce,  roast mushrooms with rosemary and parmesan, and maybe cole slaw.

My mom is bring her amazing dill dip and veggies so I am not sure whether or not we need the slaw. I’m also thinking of making devilled eggs because really, I could eat eggs all day I don’t care if I had them for breakfast. I’ll also have a plate with  goat cheese, cream cheese with my homemade tomato jam, crackers, dried apricots, and pecans. My brother-in-law’s girlfriend is bringing cookies and I have pie crust, so I’ll probably make mini apple pies.

I just want to serve food that is mostly healthy, that won’t make me crazy to prepare, that everyone will eat, and that won’t create a ton of leftovers. We’ll see what happens!

{product review} caveman cookies – rainforest flavor

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It’s been killing me to see all these delicious-looking cookie recipes posted on blogs this month. After all, December is the month of cookie swaps, homemade gifts, and treating yourself. Still, I am trying hard to resist the temptation and avoid as much flour and sugar as possible. So when I read an e-mail about Caveman Cookies, I was intrigued. Paleo cookies? That I don’t have to make myself? Why yes, I would be very interested in trying those!

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Caveman Cookies are made with Paleo-friendly ingredients including nuts, honey and berries. They are certified Kosher, gluten-free, and dairy-free. I was sent a package of the new Rainforest flavor for my review. The flavor is described like this in the marketing material:

The cookies feature an exotic combination of Brazil nuts and chewy dried cherries, with a kick of cayenne pepper. The other ingredients are honey, almond meal, chopped almonds and nutmeg.

Drew and I both tried them before we read the ingredients and thought there had to be ginger in the cookies – we were very surprised there wasn’t! There’s a definite kick from the cayenne and I guess when combined with the nutmeg, you get that taste of ginger.

We also had very different opinions on the flavor. Drew didn’t like them at all, I am sorry to say. I thought they were interesting and I kind of like them. They are very different from your standard chocolate-chip cookie, or even one made with coconut flour, but I found the slightly sweet taste and sticky texture enjoyable. The cookies are also available in original (similar to oatmeal-raisin), Alpine (carob and hazelnuts), and tropical (coconut and macadamia nut).

Here’s a peek at the nutrition facts:

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A bag of 12 cookies costs $9.95. While that seems pricey, the ingredients are expensive and they’re not loaded with the junk found in most other mass-produced cookies. They’re not that big, but I found one was plenty to satisfy my sweet tooth, and technically the serving size is two cookies, so if one doesn’t do it — go for the second one!

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You can purchase different sized bags (including sampler bags) on the Caveman Cookies website. Each cookie is individually wrapped in a cello bag to preserve freshness (which also means you don’t have to eat the entire bag as soon as you open it). As I read through the reviews on Amazon, I noticed that there is some argument as to whether or not these cookies are really Paleo. There seems to be a lot of bickering lately about what, in general, a Paleo diet means, but as far as I am concerned the ingredients meet the definition. (Of course, I am not a strict Paleo person by any means, as evidenced by the milk in my tea in that photo at the top of this post.) At the very least, these are certainly a great choice for those following a GF diet.

To sum it all up: I love the idea of a healthy cookie that I don’t have to bake myself. And although the Rainforest flavor is a little spicy for my taste, I’d give another variety a try without hesitation.

 

Disclosure: I received one free bag of Caveman Cookies in the Rainforest flavor to review on my blog. I did not receive any financial compensation for this post. The opinions expressed are my own.  This disclosure is in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

{closed} nescafé peppermint mocha review & giveaway

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I love fancy coffee drinks, but I do not love the coffee shop prices or the calories. Peppermint mochas are popular (and so yummy) at this time of year, but the desire for a tasty treat doesn’t have to derail your diet or empty your wallet.

Over a month ago I heard about Nescafé’s new instant Peppermint Mocha. We always have a jar of their decaf Taster’s Choice in the cupboard (it’s D.’s preferred coffee), so I was eager to try it. And when a Nescafé rep kindly asked me to review the product on my blog, I was happy to agree.

Each box contains 20 pre-measured peppermint mocha packets, so all you have to do is empty a packet into your cup and add 6 oz. water (be sure to measure, because the first time I just filled up my mug which resulted in a very weak brew). Personally, I prefer to add 5 oz. of water and 2 oz. of steamed milk (I use my handy dandy Aerolatte to froth it all up). Then I top it with whipped cream and sugar-free chocolate syrup.

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Nescafe’s Peppermint Mocha is sweetened with sucralose, so there are only 5 calories per cup. This was great news for us since we try very hard to avoid sugary drinks. If you don’t add milk or cream, there is that typical artificial sweetener aftertaste, but I find that with the addition of a little dairy it’s not even noticeable. I have been enjoying these mochas as a little afternoon treat, or sometimes later in the evening when I get a craving for something sweet.

Win A Box Of Nescafé
Peppermint Mocha Instant Coffee!

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The folks at Nescafé would like to send a box of their Peppermint Mocha instant coffee to one of my readers (and I really think you’ll enjoy it!). I know the samples on their Facebook page have been going like hotcakes, so here’s a chance to get an entire box all to yourself! Just  leave a comment on this entry for a chance.

The Rules:

Prize: One (1) box of Nescafé Peppermint Mocha Instant Coffee

Fine Print: ONE ENTRY PER PERSON PER HOUSEHOLD and IP address. Open to continental U.S. addresses only. Must be 18 years of age and over. Winner will be chosen randomly and contacted by email. If the winner does not respond within 48 hours, a new winner will be chosen. Comments not meeting requirements will be deleted. Giveaway ends at 12:01 a.m. on 12/16/2011.

Disclosure: I received a free box of Nescafé Peppermint Mocha Instant Coffee beverage to review on my blog. I did not receive any financial compensation for this post. The opinions expressed are my own.  This disclosure is in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.