Eggnog Scones

Remember way back when I told you I had a recipe that would use up your extra topping from the pumpkin snickerdoodles AND the extra glaze from the eggnog cookies?  Well, it's finally here.  My obvious solution to having extra stuff lying around was to make scones.  They turned out to be pretty stinking wonderful.  Especially wonderful warm out of the oven!  I kind of combined ideas from several recipes I found on Pinterest to create my own, but this one, from Tea Time Magazine, is really what I mostly went off of.  I picked it because it used the least amount of butter which, in my head, makes it healthier...yeah, right.  

 
Eggnog Scones

Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar (I used the sugar mixture left from the pumpkin snickerdoodles, about 1/4 cup, then added white sugar to get 1/2 cup)
2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg (I used a heaping 1/2 tsp)
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon (I added this even though there was already cinnamon in the sugar mixture)
4 TBSP unsalted butter
2 TBSP shortening
1/2 cup eggnog (the original calls for 1/4 cup plus 3 TBSP, but I needed more than that to moisten up the dough. Start with 1/4 cup and then slowly add more to get the right texture.)
1 large egg, lightly beaten

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter and shortening into dry mixture until the mixture resembles a dry meal or coarse crumbles.  

In a small bowl, whisk together eggnog and egg. Pour this wet mixture over the dry mixture and stir until moistened. (Add extra eggnog, if needed.) Dough should be moist and sticky.

Place dough on lined baking sheet and form into a circle, about 3/4" thick.  Bake, oh I don't know, for like 20-25 minutes.  Maybe.  I don't remember.  It should be golden on top, and a toothpick should come out of the center clean.  Then, you can take it out of the oven and drizzle some eggnog glaze on top.  Enjoy! 

Eggnog Cookies

My favorite cookie this year would have to be the eggnog one.  I love eggnog.  It's REALLY good that it's only around once a year...because it's terrible for you...but so tasty.  I was a little concerned about how the eggnog cookies would turn out.  I think sometimes things like this turn out tasting really processed or just end up with a weird flavor.  These cookies, however, turned out wonderfully.  Very soft.  Perfect eggnog taste.  Definitely a hit.  Definitely a keeper.  

Eggnog Cookies
Original Recipe from Your Cup of Cake

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups white sugar
3/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup eggnog
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 egg yolks
1 tsp nutmeg
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg. (I probably used a little more cinnamon and nutmeg than called for.)

Cream sugar and butter until light.

Add eggnog, vanilla and egg yolks; beat at medium speed with mixer until smooth.

Add flour mixture and beat on low speed until just combined.  Do not over-beat.  

Roll rounded teaspoonfuls of the dough into balls and place on ungreased cookie sheet.  Sprinkle lightly with nutmeg.

Bake 15-18 minutes or until the edges barely start to brown.

While the cookies are baking, you can whip together some eggnog glaze.  Just combine eggnog with powdered sugar until you get the quantity and consistency you want.  Make a little extra to drizzle on some eggnog scones! (The recipe for those should be coming tomorrow.)

White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies

Merry Christmas!  Well, I got somewhat side-tracked in my holiday blogging.  I thought I'd have lots of time on Saturday to get totally caught up, but obviously that didn't happen.  I really wanted to make some kind of cookie with candy cane and white chocolate in it.  I don't really know what I wanted to do this because I'm not generally a fan of white chocolate and I basically totally despise mint (like I still use bubblegum toothpaste because I hate mint).  Anyway, I could NOT find a recipe for exactly what I wanted.  I looked on Pinterest and Google, which both sent me to various websites and blogs, but none of it was what I wanted.  I decided to just hunt down a recipe for a good, chewy sugar cookie and go from there.  It was a good plan.  I found a great sugar cookie recipe from The Food Network and tweaked it to my fancy.  The cookies turned out fabulously.  Huge hit.  My favorite comment (from one of the brother's friends) was, "Why does this have candy canes in it?  Because it is fantastic." 















White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies

Ingredients:
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 tsp peppermint extract
3-4 TBSP buttermilk
4 candy canes, crushed (I used a food processor...make sure it doesn't turn to powder!)
6 oz (give or take) white chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a small bowl, stir together flour, baking soda and baking powder.  Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth.  Beat in the egg and peppermint.  Gradually blend in the dry ingredients.  Add enough of the buttermilk to moisten the dough and make it soft, NOT wet.  Stir in candy canes and white chocolate chips.

Roll rounded teaspoonfuls of dough into balls and place on cookie sheet.  You might want to cover the cookie sheet with waxed or parchment paper and something like Pam.  (The melt-y candy cane likes to stick.)

Bake for 8-10 minutes or until slightly golden.  

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

All my cookies for this year's Holiday Bake-A-Thon are new.  And considering this fact, it's impressive that this year's production took much less time then year's past.  I think I finally figured out multitasking.  Ha.  I wanted to incorporate the season's flavors: pumpkin, peppermint, and eggnog.  (I probably could have added something gingerbread-y too...but I didn't want to be too ambitious!)  I chose this Pumpkin Snickerdoodle recipe from the Six Sister's Stuff blog (there's lots of great stuff here).  These cookies, of course, turned out tasting delicious!  They're so soft and pumpkin-y.  I love it.  

   
Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
Ingredients:
1 stick margarine (I used real butter...Paula Deen would be proud)
1/2 cup shortening (I used the butter flavored kind because that's what we already had)
1 cup white granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
3/4 cup unsweetened pumpkin puree (do NOT use pumpkin pie filling!)
1 large egg
3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon

*Topping:
1/2 cup white granulated sugar
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger (or more to taste...I went with a whole tsp) 

*Note: You probably will not use all of this, but it's okay!  I used the extra up in a recipe for scones, which I'll be posting soon.      

Directions: 
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Mix together the margarine/butter, shortening, sugars, pumpkin, and egg, beat well. Add in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon and mix until well-blended.
Chill dough until it's a better consistency for rolling into balls.  (I cheated and put it in the freezer so it would go faster.)
Roll into balls the size of small walnuts.
In a separate bowl, mix the sugar, cinnamon, and ginger. Roll dough balls in sugar mixture until completely covered.
Place dough balls about 2" apart on ungreased cookie sheet.
Bake 7ish minutes until lightly browned, but still soft.
Makes a ton of cookies (at least 4-5 dozen).

Oreo Balls

Oreo Balls.  A classic.  I have made these every year that I've been doing a holiday bake-a-thon.  They are so simple, yet so delicious.  They are always a hit!  Plus, if you make them small enough, they're really like Oreo vitamins so the calories don't count. 

Oreo Balls
Ingredients:

• 1 package of Oreos, crushed (I recommend using a Ninja food processor...turns the cookies into dust in seconds)

• 1 package (8 oz) of cream cheese, room temperature

• 12-16 oz of chocolate, melted (I recommend Velata...yum!)  

Directions:
Mix together the crushed Oreos and cream cheese until well blended.  Put them in the fridge for a little bit, so it's easier to roll the dough into balls.  To make the balls, I use a teaspoon to scoop the dough out of the bowl with.  Then, I just roll it up.  After that's all done, I recommend putting the balls of dough back in the fridge for a little while to harden up again.  Melt your chocolate (be careful not to burn).  I recommend putting your melted chocolate into your Velata warmer to keep it melted and perfect for dipping (or else you get stuck having to re-heat your chocolate as it cools).  Drop the balls of dough into the chocolate and coat.  Use a couple of forks to pick them up and remove the excess chocolate.  Place on a baking sheet covered in waxed paper and let cool.  Enjoy!   
 

{Flourless} Peanut Butter Cookies

The first cookies I made since being on break were peanut butter.  The brother requested them for his winter band concert.  I was pretty short on time, so I needed something really quick and easy.  I picked out a 5-ingredient recipe from Claire Robinson (Food Network...I love Food Network...).  It was SO easy, and the cookies turned out really well.  The were very peanut butter-y and had a nice flaky texture.  Would've been perfect with a glass of milk.  Click here to get the recipe!

Warning: Be prepared for an onslaught of recipes for cookies and baked goodness.  It's the holiday season.  And apparently I'm on the "Elf" diet...not really, but you may think so after you see what all I've been up to!

In other news, I managed to pull off a 4.0 for the semester.  Pretty miraculous considering I had been fairly confident I would end up with solid B's...only to discover the week before finals that I had 90's...which made me feel like I needed to try to do well on finals.  Apparently, it worked out okay.  My hamstring is getting better.  Definitely not 100%, but I can touch my toes! (Which is really good because they need painted.)  Well, I'm off to try to get everything done that needs to be done...it's a REALLY long list...that continues to get longer.

Christmas is Coming!

This is one of my most favorite times of the year!  (Not just because I only have one week of school left, plus finals...) I like getting to wear big comfy sweaters and boots.  I like curling up in a big, fluffy blanket with a warm drink and a book or good movie (preferably with a fire going in the fireplace).  I enjoy all the decorations...especially the lights.  I love baking like a crazy person (and giving it all away).  The giving and receiving of presents, of course, is fun too.  I actually really like just wrapping presents...which might be weird.  However, my favorite Christmastime memories are those spent with family and friends.  

Getting pictures taken with Santa at Lighting of the Commons.    

     
Rocking awesome Christmas sweaters at Gamma Rho's progressive dinner party.

Sledding and playing games in Minnesota.  

These are a few of my favorite things.

Cherry-Chipotle Turkey Street Tacos

Thanksgiving always brings massive quantities of leftover turkey.  I only roasted a 5.5 pound breast this year, and we still have plenty left.  Of course, the traditional thing would be to make a sandwich out of a dinner roll, mash potatoes, stuffing, gravy and turkey...however, our Thanksgiving meal didn't exactly qualify as traditional, so the mom got creative.  She decided that street tacos would be a great idea, and she was totally right!  She was kind enough to make homemade flour tortillas (you could definitely do homemade whole wheat to be even healthier), shred some of the cherry-chipotle turkey and an apple.  It was SO good!  The apple gives it a nice sweet crunch to offset some of the fire from the chipotle.  I also recommend some plain Greek-style yogurt.  Yum.  Just some Alexia sweet potato fries on the side.  Easy.  Simple.  Delicious. 

 

Turkey Day

This year's Turkey Day was somewhat (or a lot) more laid back and simple than last year's.  The brother skipped town to go to a football game, so it was just the mom and me.  Also, the mom had to work all day, so it really was Thanksgiving dinner versus lunch.  I'm still having stomach troubles, so I kept things pretty light.  And, there was no dessert.  It was all very delicious!  Here is my little plate (yes, that's a salad plate, and I was stuffed):

The Menu:
Cherry-Chipotle Turkey Breast (Rachael Ray)
Rustic Rosemary Bread Sticks (Eat 80/20)
Gingered Sweet Potato & Carrot Soup (Women's Health)
Sauteed Mushrooms with Green Beans & Garlic (you really shouldn't need a recipe for this)

Of course, the day wouldn't have been complete without me burning a chunk of my right ring finger off... I just grabbed the handle of my make-shift roasting pan.  Oops.  It's looking really lovely at this point.  

Usually, I would also spend Thanksgiving Day planning for Black Friday.  I'll admit it's ridiculous to spend a day being thankful and then go crazy shopping the next.  I just like the rush, the excitement.  However, since Black Friday is now apparently Black Thursday, I didn't really go shopping.  I take issue with having that on Thursday evening.  I think it should be for the committed, willing to stay up all night or wake up really early, people.  Not to mention, people really should be spending time with their families on Thanksgiving Day.  Just my opinion.  Kohl's literally had ALL their BF specials online with free shipping, so I hit that up.  Victoria's Secret also had their sale online with free shipping on Thanksgiving too.  Then, I'll confess, I'm an Amazon addict...so I had alarms set for "Lightening Deals" all day.  Those kind of give you a rush...for like 5 seconds.  Not quite the same, however it was super nice not waiting in lines.

Since we opted to skip Thursday evening shopping, the mom and I took a couple of movie passes to AMC and saw "Skyfall."  I actually really liked it.  Also, the Adele song is great.  We were pretty crazy and went to the 2110 showing, so it was really late (or early) by the time we got home and to bed (for a equivalent of a long nap).  I did get up a little early to hit up Express, Famous Footwear and Pet's Mart.  That's what happens when you need new jeans, cross training shoes, and have four dogs.  Ah well.  It was successful.

I hope everyone else was able to enjoy Thanksgiving and the related festivities! 

Artwork for Mom

In addition to the extremely delicious cake I made for my mother's birthday, I made some art.  She had seen something similar on Pinterest that she really liked.  However, it wasn't exactly the right colors and, as much as I love my mom, I didn't want to pay an arm and a leg to buy it off the Etsy shop it was linked to.  So I got my craft on.  I wasn't entirely sure how I was going to put the thing together.  I new I needed a canvas, paint, some kind of twig thing and paper flowers.  Obviously, I hit up Hobby Lobby to get the canvas (I literally got the cheapest one in the size I wanted...I think it's actually for water colors...but whatever), scrapbook paper for the flowers, craft glue, and (fortunately) there was a small branch thing that fit perfectly on the canvas.  Score.  In my head, the paint I needed for the base color was on the paint shelf in the garage.  To my surprise, it was not there.  I panicked a little...or a lot (I was literally doing this the day before her birthday).  Then, I got the idea to mix the paint from her bedroom walls ("Barefoot Beach") with the paint from the laundry room walls ("Polished Turquoise").  It couldn't have turned out better.  Seriously.  I managed to impress myself.  The color I mixed matches my mom's bed stuff perfectly.  After I painted the whole canvas with that, and let it dry, I started working on adding a couple other colors.  I wanted to just paint them on with like a brush, but it wasn't blending well.  I broke down and used my hands, which is a REALLY BIG DEAL.  I don't get my hands dirty.  Not as a kid.  Not now.  Never.  It really freaks me out.  But, desperate times call for desperate measures or something, right?  Once it was all dry, I glued on the branch and flowers I made with a hot glue gun.  Here it is: 

Mom, of course, loves it.  I would be happy to never make another paper flower ever again...but I think it's going to happen anyway!

Chocolate Raspberry Ganache Cake

My mother's birthday was last Saturday, so I made this cake I found on Pinterest.  I knew it would be a good one because it calls for weird things like sour cream and distilled white vinegar.  Also, who doesn't enjoy chocolate ganache?  The cake turned out well.  Super moist.  Super delicious.  Totally unhealthy.  Unless, you want to count the raspberry jam and juice as fruit and the chocolate as an antioxidant.  But seriously, the thing weighed 12 pounds.  Seriously.  I did 1 1/2 times the ganache recipe, however this baker knows her stuff, and, really, not making extra ganache would've worked well.  (There may or may not be a bowl of what was left currently hanging out in the kitchen.)  The cake was definitely a hit though.  I'm actually kind of surprised that the brother enjoyed it as much as he did.  Get the recipe by clicking here!

It probably would be prettier with fresh raspberries on top, but I forgot to get those!

It's so moist it doesn't stay together well and chocolate gets everywhere.  It reminds me of the chocolate cake on "Matilda" except probably tastier.

I promise I don't only eat cake.  I have mostly just been snacking lately though, since my stomach hates me.  I'll get to have like one bite of everything on Thanksgiving, but hopefully I'll be good to go for Christmas.  In other news, I was doing the splits last night when there was a loud ripping/popping sound.  Weirdest feeling ever.  And now my right hamstring is super messed up, which complicates working out even more.  I'm sure I should chill out and relax, but I don't really do either of those!  Hopefully, it will heal itself up extremely soon.  Like, in the next 5 minutes would be great...

Pumpkin Sheet Cake

One of my favorite fall things is baked treats that involve pumpkin.  I love pumpkin.  Except for pumpkin pie.  I made this pumpkin sheet cake for my Gamma family night, and then took the leftovers to class the next day.  I thought it was really pretty good.  Very moist.  I think the only things I did differently than the original recipe were adding a little extra cinnamon and basically doubling the cream cheese frosting recipe.  (I generally double frosting recipes just on principle.  I would rather have too much than be skimpy. I like frosting.)  Also, I elected to not put nuts on top.  Get the recipe by clicking here!

Not much else going on, except obviously nursing school is taking over my life.  However, I am done with clinical for the semester!  And I've got Thanksgiving break from last Wednesday afternoon through the 27th...then just a week and a half before finals!

Chicken & Black Bean Casserole

I found this delightful dish on Pinterest a while back.  I decided to make it for the family on the first night of fall break.  Huge success.  I was impressed the brother didn't have any complaints, although I did add extra chicken just for him.  Teenage boys REALLY like meat apparently.  I think it makes great comfort food for the cooler weather months.  And it's decently healthy.  You can get the original recipe from Six Sisters' Stuff.  Here's mine:

Ingredients:
1 cup minute brown rice
1 tbsp EVOO
1/2 small onion, diced
2 medium zucchini, sliced thin
4 small chicken breasts, thawed
8 oz package mushrooms, sliced
1 tsp cumin
salt to taste
ground cayenne pepper to taste
15 oz can of black beans, rinsed and drained
7 oz can of diced green chile peppers
Shredded cheese to taste (pick your variety)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350.  Boil the chicken until done.  Shred it or cube it.  Meanwhile, heat a large skillet with the EVOO.  Add onion, mushrooms, and zucchini.  Cook until done; set aside.  In a large microwave safe bowl, cook rice using broth from boiled chicken.  Add seasoning, black beans, green chile peppers, chicken and some cheese; stir.  Mix in vegetables from skillet.  Place in a greased 9x13 baking dish.  Cover with foil.  Bake for about 20 minutes.  Remove foil and bake for about another 10 minutes.  Enjoy!      

Fabio's Pasta & Bean Soup

My mother actually found and made this recipe.  It was so good that I had to share it with you!  It's perfect for cooler weather days.  The original recipe is by Fabio Viviani.  Apparently he is famous.  I had never heard of him.  Oops.  My mother chose to add a link of sweet Italian chicken sausage, so that it would have meat and make the brother happy.  However, I think we'll be adding 2 links next time around.  One just isn't enough.  Of course, if you're vegetarian, you can easily revert to the original recipe and totally leave out the sausage.  Here it is:

Okay, so this is actually leftovers that I brought back to school...and reheated.  Not as pretty as the first time around, but definitely just as delicious!

Ingredients:
3 TBSP EVOO
2 carrots, diced
1 onion, diced
2 celery stalks with leaves, diced
1 fennel bulb
3 bay leaves, dried
6 sprigs thyme
3/4 lb Borlotti beans
pinch sea salt
4 cloves garlic, grated
2-3 quarts chicken or vegetable stalk (reduced fat and sodium preferable) 
28 oz canned diced tomatoes
pinch sea salt
pinch fresh group black pepper
EVOO for drizzling
2 cups small shaped pasta
2 links sweet Italian chicken sausage (optional)
20 fresh basil leaves

Directions:
Heat a large cast-iron pot over medium heat. Add EVOO. Add carrots, onion, and celery and stir. Meanwhile, dice fennel; add to pot and stir. Strip the thyme sprigs over the pot and discard sticks. Add bay leaf.  Saute about 10 minutes, or until the vegetables caramelize and start to soften. Add Borlotti beans and grated garlic; stir. Add stock, canned tomatoes, a pinch of sea salt and black pepper, and a drizzle of EVOO. Stir, cover, and boil for an hour, or until beans are soft.  Meanwhile, cook pasta (I like it al dente),brown sausage, and chop the basil.  Add sausage and basil to pot.  You may also add the pasta. (Keep in mind that if you're not serving the pasta all at once, the pasta may be soggy in leftovers.) Remove from heat.  Remove bay leaves.  Serve.  Enjoy!

My favorite clinical

I can say, without a doubt, my peds clinical rotation has by far been my favorite.  More specifically, the NICU has been my favorite.  Which, is really good.  That's where I've thought I wanted to be since I picked nursing as my major.  So, I'm thankful that I do actually really like it there.  It would have been rather disappointing to get to this point only to find out that I didn't like what I thought I would.  Plus, it's simply refreshing to be reminded of why you wanted to do something in the first place.  Why I'm a nursing major.  Why I wake up at obscene times in the morning.  Why I did all those clinical rotations I didn't like.  It's all so one day, I can be a nurse in the NICU.  So I can care for the very tiny humans.  

All I have to do is make it to April 26th.  Graduate.  And pass boards.         

Cream of Potato & Broccoli Soup

My fantastic roommate whipped this tasty soup up one night.  My part was to perfectly steam the broccoli before putting it in the soup, which I did a great job at.  The soup was wonderful, and the recipe made enough for us to have leftovers for a while...which is very important.  It's originally a Weight Watchers recipe, but we changed a couple things...like using 1% instead of skim milk and using a hole head of broccoli instead of 20 oz.  Nothing too epic.  Here it is:

I know, right? Great place mat.

Ingredients:
1 tsp unsalted butter
1 medium sized onion, chopped
1 head of broccoli, chopped and steamed
1 32 1/2 oz can condensed cream of potato soup
4 cups 1% milk
3/4 cup low-fat extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded 
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Melt the butter in a large non-stick saucepan over low heat.  Add the onion and increase the heat to medium-low.  Cover and cook until tender, about 7 minutes.  Stir occasionally.  Add the condensed cream of potato soup.  Gradually add the milk, stirring until blended.  Increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil.  Add the steamed broccoli.  Reduce the heat to a low and simmer for about 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and stir in the cheese.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Enjoy!

Glitter Jar

Well, the school year is in full-swing...hence the lack of posts.  Between class, clinical, club, and my enjoyment of sleeping and working out, I haven't had a whole lot of time to blog.  However, I did make time to do crafts one day.  My roommate and I have this little problem with getting worked up about things...one class in particular... You know, it's one of those classes where you learn 1+1=2, the homework tells you 2+2=4, the test goes like "Johnny has 4 apples, now calculate the volume of the sun" or something to that effect.  My point being, craft day was necessary.  Craft day was necessary because we saw these jars on Pinterest...GLITTER jars.  They're actually for kids, as some kind of alternative to time out.  The idea being, you shake the jar and, by the time the glitter settles, you've calmed down.  Totally brilliant.  Plus, who doesn't like glitter?  We decided that the big jars were so great that we made baby ones too.  It's amazing how fascinating it is to watch the glitter.  Maybe it's just because we have ADD, and sparkly things grab our attention.  But, we like them! Here is mine:

I added this verse from Exodus 14:14 to my jar.  It might be my favorite Bible verse ever.  You just use a dry-erase marker to write what you want on the jar (to make sure you get it where you want it...it erases easily).  Then, grab your paint pen and go over it.

What you need:

• Jar or bottle with a lid

• 1 TBSP of clear glue or glitter glue to each 1 cup of hot water to fill jar 

• Glitter 

• Food coloring (if you use colored glitter glue, you don't need this)

• Dry-erase marker and paint pen (optional)

Note: The glitter falls and settles REALLY FAST at first.  However, the water/glue mixture gets thicker with time...thus, it takes longer for the glitter to settle.

Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken

I do have to apologize for not having a picture of quite possibly the best BBQ chicken I have ever had.  But, I can tell you what I did so you can enjoy it!  Besides, it's way better to eat it than look at a picture of it.  

1. Place frozen chicken breasts on the bottom of your slow cooker.  (I used 5 big ones)
2. Pour a bottle of BBQ sauce over the chicken.  (I used Sweet Baby Ray's Hickory & Brown Sugar, 18 oz)
3. Put in about half a medium onion (chopped or sliced)
4. Put in heaping teaspoon of chopped garlic
5. Pour in some lemon juice
6. Pour in some cooking sherry 
7. Cook until done (low = slower, high = faster)
8. Remove chicken breasts and shred
9. Place shredded chicken back in the slow cooker with all the sauce and keep it warm until you're ready to serve it.

Yes, it's really that easy!  And it is SO good.  The chicken turned out incredibly tender and juicy.  Try it out for an easy and delicious weeknight dinner!  Enjoy!

Zucchini Muffins

We had a few extra zucchini hanging around that needed used up.  I thought it'd be nice to used them in muffins.  I was right.  We had lovely muffins for breakfast, and then I froze the extras for me to bring to school.  Perfect.  I found the recipe for these by Google-ing "healthy zucchini muffins."  The original recipe is from Cooking Light.  I tweaked a couple things.  It only calls for 1/2 cup of sugar, but I'd like to only sweeten with, say, honey in the future.  Maybe even replace the egg with chia.  I'll let you know how that goes, if I ever get around to it...

Zucchini Muffins

Based on "Kathie's Zucchini Muffins" from Cooking Light

Ingredients:

1  c whole wheat flour

2/3  c white flour

1/2  c sugar

1  tsp ground cinnamon

1/4  tsp nutmeg

1 1/4  tsp baking powder

1/2  tsp baking soda

1/4  tsp salt

1 1/3  c shredded zucchini

1/2  c milk of choice (skim, 1%, soy, etc.)

2  Tbsp natural unsweetened appplesauce

2  Tbsp natural (local) honey

1  egg

Cinnamon & Splenda to sprinkle on top (optional) 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Combine whole wheat flour and next seven ingredients (through salt) in a large bowl.  Stir with a whisk.  Combine zucchini, milk, applesauce, honey and egg in a small bowl.  Stir until blended.  Make a little well in the middle of the dry mixture.  Add wet mixture.  Stir just until moist.  Spoon batter into 12 muffin cups coated with cooking spray.  Sprinkle cinnamon & Splenda mixture over top of muffins.  Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes or until done.  Remove from pans immediately and cool on wire rack.  Enjoy! 

Poppy Seed Chicken Makeover

One of my brother's favorite meals is poppy seed chicken.  I have to agree that it's pretty delicious.  Healthy it is NOT.  I mixed it up a little and used a homemade "cream sauce" and Greek yogurt.  A little less butter.  And corn flakes instead of crackers.  I don't really know what the nutritional difference is, but I think it's got to be a least a little better for you.  Right?  I'd really like to do something even healthier for the topping, but we'll see...it won't be any time soon.  I have to admit that I was surprised at how amazing it tasted!  The Greek yogurt really brings a whole new level of flavor to the dish.  Totally scrumptious.  

Poppy Seed Chicken

Ingredients:

2/3  c "S.O.S." mix, reconstituted (click here for recipe)

5  c chicken breasts, cooked and cubed (or shredded, if you're like me)

1  c plain Greek yogurt

1  tsp celery salt

1  tsp minced garlic

1  Tbsp lemon juice

2  c corn flakes, somewhat crushed

1/3  c butter or butter substitute, melted

1  Tbsp poppy seeds

Directions: 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Boil raw chicken breasts with salt and pepper until done.  Let chicken cool and cut into cubes or shred.  Place into 9x13 casserole dish.  Meanwhile, make up your cream soup (for directions, click here).  Add Greek yogurt, celery salt, garlic, and lemon juice to cream soup.  Stir.  Pour over chicken in casserole dish.  

In a separate bowl, stir together crushed corn flakes, butter, and poppy seeds.  Sprinkle over chicken and sauce.   

Bake for about 30 minutes until the top is browned and the sauce is bubbly.

Enjoy! (It's especially tasty over rice...)

Goodbye "Cream of Chemical" Soup

I'm glad to report that I found (on Pinterest) a better alternative to cream of anything soup (aka "cream of chemical" soup).  It works great.  Oh, and tastes great.  It's very simple.  I made up two bags of the stuff the other day.  One for my mom and one for me to take to school.  Each bag makes the equivalent of 9 cans of cream soup.  I've used it to replace cream of chicken soup in poppy seed chicken casserole and as kind of a gravy mixed with ground turkey over toast...don't ask why...it was good.

S.O.S. Mix (Soup or Sauce Mix)

Ingredients:

2  c powdered nonfat dry milk

3/4  c cornstartch

1/4  c instant chicken bouillon (reduced sodium)

2  Tbsp dried onion flakes

2  tsp Italian seasoning (optional)

Directions:

Combine 1/3 c of dry mix with 1 1/4 c cold water.  Whisk until blended.  Cook & stir on stove top over medium high heat until thickened.  (This makes the equivalent of 1 can cream soup)  

Strong Is The New Skinny {P90X-2}

Some of you might remember that I completed the whole classic P90X program during my summer break of 2011.  Well, this summer I completed P90X-2.  Yes, number two.  Obviously, P90X wasn't crazy enough.  I have to say that I REALLY liked it.  The three phases are totally different from each other, so you are constantly challenging yourself.  Also, there's a lot of emphasis on working your core while working other parts of your body.  Brilliant.  I can honestly say that P90X-2 has changed my body to be better and stronger.  I can actually do like 3 chin-ups in a row without any assistance.  I remember having to use a chair in P90X.  That doesn't do it for me now.  To get my reps up, I've been using a make-shift pull-up assist band out of a regular resistance band.  Oh, "girly" push-ups are pretty much a thing of the past.  I do push-ups balanced on med balls now.  Although, I still can't do plyo push-ups.  I'm way too uncoordinated.  I can lift more.  I'm faster.  I have better range of motion.  It's wonderful.  (Also, it's really great because I get to eat a lot.  And food is tasty.)  I finished up last week, so this week has been weird.  I've just been doing random workouts.  I did one of my favorite P90X workouts, Kenpo X.  However, I now have to add 5 lb ankle weights and 3 lb dumbbells to get the job done.  Which, is crazy... I remember barely making it through that when I first got it...  I did my favorite Chalean Extreme workouts, Burn Intervals and Burn It Off.  They were okay.  I did some Jillian Michaels' workouts.  My point being, you can't go backwards after finishing something like P90X-2.  Nothing else you've done will give you your workout fix.  I got some great advice to "repeat" it.  I think I will.  Try to dig deeper.  Do more reps.  All that jazz.  However, if someone wants to send me Insanity or even Turbofire, I'd be willing to try them out! 

My Favorite X2 Workouts:

Plyocide

Yoga

PAP Lower

Balance + Power 

Sausage Stuffed Zucchini Boats

This scrumptious meal graced our table at the end of last week.  SO GOOD.  I am really glad my aunt shared it with me!  The whole family loved it.  My mom said they were her favorite sausage stuffed zucchini boats, even though it was turkey sausage.  (That's pretty impressive...she's not a turkey fan.)  I followed the recipe for the most part.  However, I did use sweet Italian turkey sausages instead of chicken, and I used a whole red bell pepper.  Also, I only had room in my 9x13 pan for 6 boats... I guess my zucchini's were a little bigger than "medium."  The original recipe is from skinnytaste.com, which you can get by clicking here.  It's definitely a keeper!

   

Headband Holder

I got a little crafty the other day.  I'm pretty sure I saw this on Pinterest a while back, but we didn't have an empty oatmeal canister until recently.  Now that I had an oatmeal can, I dug around and found some scrapbook paper and ribbon that would work.  I had my modge podge and hot glue gun ready to go in no time. 

1. Clean out your oatmeal canister.  I even cut the bottom out to make sure I got all the oats and powder out.  However, if you have other hair accessories to store, you might leave the bottom on so it can hold them too.  
2. I chose to spray paint the inside. Let that dry.
3. I used 2 different black and white patterns, so I cut my pieces down before modge podging them on.  Let that dry.
4. I added some ribbon over the edges where the 2 different patterns met.  I just used a hot glue gun for this.
5. Now you have a cute way to store your headbands and such.

If only I could track down the rest of my headbands....

Homemade Whole Wheat Bread

Homemade bread is really the best.  I'm reminded of this every time I go to Minnesota and have some of my grandpa's bread.  After being there this summer, I have resolved to exclusively make my own bread (or at least give it a go).  Not only does it taste great, it's free of all those preservatives you can't pronounce, sugar, and even dairy, if you so desire.  I made a couple loaves for the family last week, and I made a couple loaves for me to take off to college yesterday.  (I have sliced and frozen these loaves because I do not go through bread by myself that fast.  This way, when I need some bread, I can just get a slice or two out of the freezer and pop it in the toaster on the setting you use on frozen waffles and things.  I think it's brilliant.  We'll see how well it really works.)

Whole Wheat Bread

Ingredients:

2  cakes yeast (or 4 1/2 tsp)

1 1/2  cups lukewarm water

3/4  cup milk (I know that soy milk works too!)

1/2  cup pure honey (I like to use "local" honey)

1  TBSP salt

1/3  cup shortening

3 3/4  cup whole wheat flour

3 1/4  cup white flour (I like unbleached)  

Directions: 

Dissolve yeast in water in your mixing bowl.  Scald milk in small saucepan.  Stir in honey, salt and shortening; let cool and add to yeast mixture.  Add whole wheat flour to the mixing bowl; beat until well mixed.  Gradually add white flour to mixing bowl.  (About 2 cups in, I switch to the dough hook on the KitchenAid stand mixer.  Then I slowly add in a third cup.  I haven't needed the entire 3 1/4 cups yet.)  The dough should become more smooth, but not too dry.  Knead (or let your mixer knead) until the dough is elastic.  Place dough in greased bowl.  (I just spray my mixing bowl with the Crisco spray stuff when I flip the top up to remove the dough hook.)  Spray the top of the dough with what you used to grease the bowl.  Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled.  Punch down and let it rest for 10 minutes.  Preheat the oven to 375.  Shape into 2 loaves and place in greased pans.  Let rise again until almost doubled.  Bake for about 30 to 45 minutes.  Remove from pans and cool on wire rack.  Each loaf will get you about 16 good slices.  Enjoy!  

Kitchen Renovation

The week before this past week, I was contracted by my father to redo the kitchen of my childhood.  The kitchen that has not been updated since 1987 and still has original light fixtures.  Got an image in your head?  Here, I'll help:

Granted, I took this picture with my phone so it's not that great anyway.  You're looking at white wall paper with some light blue and pink floral-ish design, yellowy/creamy cabinets, stove, hood and oven, white laminate counters and back splash, and burnt orange "brick" linoleum floors.  Oh, and OLD lights.

My father gets lots of home magazines.  He tells me the trend is to do black counters, if you have white cabinets.  So, it was my job to make the counters black.  Well, how am I suppose to do that and leave the back splash and cabinets alone?  Yeah...so, to his surprise, I did all that.  Under $550.  The most expensive stuff being the back splash panels and cabinet hardware (the old oiled brass stuff HAD to go).  Here's a rough breakdown of what happened:

Counters- by far the easiest part of this whole deal!

1. Clean 'em good, sand them, make sure there's no dust left.
2. Do a coat of oil-based primer.  Have the guy at the paint counter tint it towards your desired color.  Let that set for 24 hours.
3. I chose to just use Rustoleum's "Hammered Metal" paint in black.  So I did 2 coats of this, allowing ample drying time in between.  Then, let it set for 24 hours. 
4. Next, it was time for 4 coats of clear, glossy polyurethane (I used the hardcore stuff for high-traffic floors...counters get a lot of action).  You have to let that stuff dry several hours in between coats.  And you have to lightly sand with some steel wool in between too.
5. I let it set for about 2 1/2 days before putting stuff back on it.

Cabinets- by far the most time consuming and challenging!

1. Take all the knobs and pulls off (25 doors and 10 drawers).
2. Take all the doors and hinges off; pull out the drawers.
3. CLEAN all the dirt and grime that's been building up for who knows how long.
4. I used a nice can of Behr self-priming paint in "Nano" white.  I wanted the white to be really crisp and clean against the black.  I did 2 coats on the cabinets, drawers, and both front and back of the doors.  That took FOREVER.
5. Once everything was dried up.  Pretty new satin nickel hardware (knobs, pulls and hinges) went on.  The doors were hung.  The drawers slid back into place.

 Back splash- lots of cutting!

1. I got these wonderful panel things from Home Depot.  They have several colors and styles.  I went with some kind of brushed nickel.  Basically, it looks like lots of tin tiles...but so much easier to install.  
2. The trickiest part is getting them cut to fit the space and cutting for the electrical outlets and other oddities.  
3. From there, I just got some adhesive (fits in a caulk gun) and just went for it.
4. After it was good and dry, I used a clear caulk around the base. 

That's it in a nutshell.  Here's the after: 
 

Keep in mind, this was, again, taken with my phone.  Hopefully, I can get the lighting, walls, floor and appliances up to date soon.  It's a start though!