4 Things About Me

I just get back into the swing of blogging and I've already been tagged! (Smiles)  It seems that Suzi at Savvy Suzi is just dying to know four things about me.  Well, I hope I do not disappoint and bore you but here goes.

Four shows I watch

Grey's Anatomy
Bones
House
CSI Miami

Four things I’m passionate about

Jesus
My family
Friends
Baking

Four phrases I use a lot

Really?
Seriously?
Obviously!
Well....
Four things I’ve learned from the past

Not to take things in life too seriously (still learning this one)
Friends will come and go but family will always be there for you. Always!
With every mistake there is a lesson to be learned, and learned and learned again!
To laugh at myself once in a while (I should so do this more often)

Four places I’d love to go

New York (I just can't seem to get there)
Israel
Australia
Tahiti

Four things I did yesterday

Went to church
Took down Christmas tree and decorations (Yes, Finally)
Cooked a quick dinner
Clipped coupons (Favorite new hobby)

Four things I love about winter

Warm Fires
Snow
Hot Cocoa & Coffee
The anticipation of Spring

I'm not really sure who to tag at this point since I've been outta the loop so I will just tell you to go visit Suzi at her blog and leave a nice comment and maybe even a cookie recipe if you have one. (Her boys love cookies) Come back soon for some new recipes too!

It's SNOW good to see you...Happy New Year!

Well, Well, Well....How in the world are you?  Me?  I am doing just fine, thanks for asking!
How long has it been? Oh, seems like years doesn't it? Well, It has ONLY been about nine months since I last posted anything.  I seem to have lost track just a bit and left this little blog unattended. 
Can't say that much has really gone on since the last post that is blog worthy but Hey! it's a New Year so HAPPY NEW YEAR to you all! 

 We have had one heck of a snow for the south.  Although we did not get out and play much due to our lingering sickness I did manage to get a few nice snapshots. 

I personally like the goofy little snowman.  It took every bit of energy we had left in us to get him together but I think he turned out quite cute. He even shows up in the dark due to all of the reflectors and glowing golf balls my husband used on him. (Take note of the eyes, mouth and buttons) 

 GO GATORS!!!

I know this post is quite short and I do hope to have some that are more interesting along with new recipes and pictures throughout the year.  For now I bid you farewell and hope to see you around soon.

The Cookie Girl

What can you make with $5 ?

I was reading a fellow blogger's post yesterday Laura of Decor to Adore, and in it she was making these cute dish towels for her kitchen. As I read a little further I realized that it was a challenge that she was doing. A $5 challenge to be exact. It all started over at Living with Lindsay and the challenge is to make a Springtime craft using items from the dollar store and spending only $5. I thought it was a pretty neat idea and Laura came up with some awesome ideas.  So I decided to head out to the store and see what I could find. I knew that I didn't have long to make something and I actually think I may have missed the deadline for entering the challenge but I wanted to do it anyway and share it with you. Here is what I bought and also what I used from home to make my craft.

       

Can you guess what I am making?   An Apron!!! I love aprons and I always have good intentions to make them but never find the time. I love to hang them in my kitchen for seasonal color and decoration. Especially my vintage aprons.  They make the feel of the kitchen very comfortable just having them hanging around.  Aprons always have a story to tell even this one. It was really simple to do using dish towels for the apron and a flower to make a removeable pin. And Yes it all came from the Dollar Tree along with some fabric and supplies I already had at home.

Now before I do this tutorial for you I have to say that I am not the best seamstress in the world nor a great teacher so please be kind if you do not understand my directions. Sewing still confuses me. LOL

I started with four dish towels and attached them side by side with a simple straight seam. I did carefully match up the bottom of the towels to keep it even all the way across. Having it un-even at the top doesn't matter because it will be cut anyway.

Once they were all sewn together I cut about 5 inches off the top to even up the seam and get rid of some of the unwanted length.

I then ran a couple of loose stiches across the top so that I could gather the material easily.

Using my contrasting fabric that I had on hand  I cut out the waiste band and the ties.

The measurements for these are as follows:

Waistband  10"W x 20" L

2-Ties, each 10" W x 24" L

I then folded each piece in half and pressed with an iron. I then folded them in half again and pressed once more. I opened the fabric pieces up and folded each side in to form what looks like bias tape.

I sewed each side seam of the ties to each end of the waistband.

Then I attached the waistband over the top of the apron and pinned it in place.

Starting at the end of one of the ties and using the zig-zag stitch I stiched all the way across the tie, through the waistband and to the end of the other tie.  I went back over the top too just for the fun of it.

To make my big flower pin, I removed the stem and the center of the flower. I attached a yo-yo that I had made and a vintage button with a needle and thread. I then glued down the edges with my hot glue gun. I attached the pin to the back with my glue gun too. Voila!!! Pretty Spring flower.

Once I put it all together it was really a pretty Spring Apron to make.  Not too bad for a quick $5 project.

So HAPPY SPRING EVERYBODY!!!!

Chicken & Broccoli Bake plus Product Review

Howdy All! I hope that each of you have been doing wonderful and are getting ready for the Spring weather. We have had a few beautiful days and now rain again. Either way, it has been a lot warmer and I am all about some warm weather.
In my last post I had told you about a family of online stores called CSN that carries everything from kids bedding to cookware and great gifts for everyone, and that they asked me to review one of the products that they carry.  Well I must say that I recieved the item and I am really enjoying it. Here is the product that they sent me.

Isn't so pretty?  A 13" baker dish in the wheat or gold color if you will. It matches my dinner plates that I already have. The piece is by Signature Housewares and is the Sorrento collection.

They carry a beautiful variety of colors such as the burgundy, sage, ruby and chocolate colors. I love mixing them too.

I have already used the baker for marinating my meats, baking a bread pudding and even baking this new dish I came up with, my Chicken and Broccoli bake.  Is it a healthy dish that works with my new healthy eating habits?  You bet it is!!! It packs a good flavor too.  The baker dish made it look so pretty too.  What a great way to serve your meal in style.

Thanks so much CSN for allowing me to review this great product. I can't wait to get more pieces to go with my collection. 

 Now how about that recipe! A very simple one that can easily be prepared for a weeknight meal. 

Chicken & Broccoli Bake

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts

4 c. broccoli florets

1 1/2 c. low fat chicken broth

3 Tbs. Whole wheat flour

1/4 c. I can't believe it's not butter SPRAY

1/4 c. fat free parmesan style grated cheese

3 slices Double Fiber Bread (dried & made into bread crumbs)

1-2 Tbs. Italian seasoning (I use Herby)

Salt & Pepper

Directions:  Boil chicken with about two tablespoons of salt until tender and no longer pink.

Steam broccoli florets sprinkled with salt if desired,until tender.

Combine bread crumbs with the Parmesan cheese and Italian Seasoning.

Spray bottom of casserole dish with cooking spray. Drain broccoli and add to the bottom of dish.

Shred chicken and add to the top of broccoli.

In a sauce pan over medium/low heat, combine the 1/4 cup butter spray and 3 Tablespoons of whole wheat flour. Whisk into what looks a bit like a thin paste. Slowly add the chicken broth whisking continuously until smooth. Season with pepper if desired. One the sauce has thickened a bit and is bubbly, pour over the chicken.

Cover the chicken with the bread crumb mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

Enjoy!!!

If you try this recipe, let me know what you think.  Until next time, Happy Healthy Eating!

Guilt Free~Cherry Berry Cheesecake Dessert

So being on this healthy kick for almost two weeks now has really given me a challenge when it comes to desserts. You all know I love my butter and sugar.  I did manage to come up with this GUILT FREE, that's right folks GUILT FREE dessert that tastes pretty darn good. A Cherry Berry Cheesecake Dessert to be exact. Very simple in it's preparation and quite satisfying when you are losing your mind over the sugar detox that is taking place in your body. :)
Try it out and let me know if you think it is worthy of being a go to dessert for the healthy days.

Cherry Berry Cheesecake Dessert

1 box sugar free cherry jell-o

1 box sugar free cheesecake pudding mix (instant)

1 3/4 cups skim milk

1 1/2 cups boiling water

3 cups sliced strawberries

In a medium bowl add the water and bring to a boil in the microwave. Add the jell-o packet and stir until dissolved. Place this in the freezer until it has cooled down but still liquified.
In a separate bowl, pour in the milk and whisk in the cheesecake pudding mix.
Once the mixture has thickened pour it into a medium casserole dish or small trifle bowl.
Top the pudding with the sliced berries.
Slowly pour the cooled jell-o mixture over the top. Cover and refrigerate until set.

Here is my finished product. Super Duper Easy!

Disaster Zone & Loco Chicken & Rice

Wow! What a weekend. Do you remember me telling you that I was making my Father in Law's birthday cake. Well, I did make it. I spent two days on it and it WAS great. Was being the key word here. Before I get into that part of the story though, I will tell you what I did to this great cake. I made it in three tiers, and two flavors (because it had to feed about 75 people) and I decorated it like a mountain side complete with the waterfall, rocks, cattails, 3D trees,a rustic wood plank sign annnnnddd 2 bucks and a fawn. Whew! A lot of stuff on the cake. Why am I describing this to you? Because I was not able to get a picture of it before this happened......

GASP!!!! Okay...are you back in your seat yet? What had happened was.....my dear, sweet, loving, precious husband was driving the SUV and a light turns yellow. The hesitation of him wanting to go or stop resulted in a heavy pressing of the brake pedal to actually stop the vehicle and PLOP! The cake went flying. Our little princess began to cry and tell me the cake was broken. We pull over and get out of the car to assess the true damage and well.....let's just say the rest is history. The only thing that managed to survive was the sign and trees. This being because I was holding them on our long hour trip to the party.

Through my tears and frustration we made it to the party (I did not want to be there at this point) and my dear, sweet, precious, loving husband wisked the cake immediately to the kitchen where I performed the miraculous cake surgery.( I cut it into serving size pieces and gave the people what they wanted) DELICIOUS CAKE!!!!

Mocha Chocolate cake, and traditional birthday cake flavor with a bavarian filling and buttercream frosting.

The party was really nice. My father-in-law was celebrating his 70th birthday and it was his first ever birthday party. My mother-in-law did a great job with the food. She served spaghetti with salad and garlic bread, chicken salad sandwiches (because my father-in-law wanted them ) and the disaster that I brought in the door.

Oh well....at least nothing went to waste and he enjoyed all the attention too.

I did manage to make a pretty yummy and healthy dish for dinner last night too. My mexican creation of Loco Chicken and Rice.

The recipe follows for those who would like to try it.

Loco Chicken and Rice

6  boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 pkt. McCormicks Chicken Taco Seasoning

1/2 C. MCT Oil

1 large red bell pepper

1 large yellow bell pepper

1 large yellow onion

1 1/2 C. Whole Graing Rice

4 C. Chicken Broth

1 jar Pace Picante Sauce

Veggie Cheese

Light Sour Cream

Scallions

Directions:

Cut up chicken breasts into strips and place in a large bowl. Drizzle 1/4 cup of MCT Oil over it and add the chicken taco seasoning. Toss to coat and marinate for 30 minutes or overnight.

Cut up the onion and bellpeppers into thin strips. Heat a large skillet on medium heat and add 1/4 cup of MCT oil. Sautee the onions and peppers until semi tender. Transfer to a plate and set aside.

Increase heat to medium/high heat and add chicken strips. Cook until browned on both sides and no longer pink inside.

Add the peppers and onions back to the chicken and lower heat to  simmer.

Cover and simmer for 5-10 minutes to deglaze the pan.

In a large saucepan pour in the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Add rice, stir and cover. Reduce heat to low and cook aobut 30 minutes or until rice is tender and broth has evaported.

Add the jar of picante sauce and stir.

Plate up the dinner by scooping out the rice onto the plate and topping with the loco chicken and peppers.

Add a dollop of sour cream, cheese and scallions if desired.

ENJOY!!!