BOO pumpkin

Who's ready for an easy and cute Halloween craft?  I made this last year for Halloween and was so excited to get it out again this year!

 

 

Here's how to make your own BOO pumpkin:

You need: a craft pumpkin, black buttons, and ribbon

Steps:

1.  Draw BOO in pencil on your pumpkin to make sure you get the letters right (if you are confident you don't have to do this step, the lines in the pumpkin messed me up on my first try)

2.  Hot glue your buttons over top of your pencil marks

3.  Tie a bow and hot glue it to the stem of your pumpkin

 

You're done!  Easy right?? 

 

-Megan

green chili chicken enchiladas

Yum!  These are some of my favorite enchiladas ever!  They are pretty easy and there are a few shortcuts that if you're short on time will make them even easier.  I'll post the original recipe and then talk about the shortcuts I sometimes take.  They also make an awesome freezer meal!  I'll put those directions at the end as well.

 

This is what the mixture looks like right before you start wrapping the tortillas.



All ready for the oven!

 

 

Green Chili Chicken Enchiladas:

• 4 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
• mozzarella cheese (to taste)
• tortillas
• 1 can diced green chilis
• 1 cup white sauce (recipe for this is later in the post)

 

Combine the chicken, green chilis, white sauce, and some of the cheese.  I just use enough cheese that it looks like it will melt nicely inside of the tortillas.  Grease the bottom of a 9X13 pan.  Roll up mixture in tortillas and lay inside pan (I can usually fit around 6 in one pan, sometimes one more or less depending on how chubby I make my enchiladas).  Poor the remaining white sauce over the top of the enchiladas (if I have any leftover chicken mixture I add it to the white sauce).  Cover with tinfoil and bake at 375 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes or until bubbly.  Then take off the foil, cover with rest of cheese and bake uncovered for 5 to 10 minutes more, or until cheese is nicely melted.

 

Basic White Sauce:

• 1/4 stick of butter
• 2 chicken bullion cubes
• flour, around 1/4 cup
• garlic (to taste)
• onion (to taste)
• milk, about 2 cups
• 1/2 cup sour cream

 

Crush the bullion and put in a sauce pan with the butter.  You'll want a whisk and you'll want to stir continuously so it might help to have another person to poor if you're nervous :)  When melted, add flour, a little at a time until it forms a thick paste (you might use a bit more or less, this part isn't an exact science).  Then add milk, slowly, stirring constantly until boiling (by the time it boils, it should have thickened).  Take off heat and stir in sour cream. 

 

Ok, now for the shortcuts.  If I'm running short on time there are two things I can do.  I will use canned chicken instead of cooking and shredding my own and I will use canned soup instead of the white sauce.  I don't like to use the soup very often because I don't love the taste of it and the white sauce comes together in about 5 minutes so I only use this shortcut if I'm making a ton!

 

If you want to freeze this, cover in cellophane and then tin foil.  Then when you're ready to use them, take them out and let them thaw.  Be sure to remove the cellophane before you bake.  Then just bake according to the recipe! 

 

This is kind of a longer recipe but it really does come together so easily!  I hope you try it and I'd love to hear what you think.  If you have any questions, let me know and I'll try my best to answer them :)

 

-Megan 

 

 

dinner menu

I thought I'd share what I'm making the next week for dinner.  I really love when I plan out our meals; I feel so much more organized, I know which days I have to prepare things ahead of time, and our meals are probably much more nutritional since I'm not just throwing together whatever I have right on hand. 

 

This week we're having:

Today (Wednesday): green chili chicken enchiladas

Thursday: hearty hunter's stew

Friday: This day is actually still up in the air.  It's my birthday and Jared might have to work.  If he works, I'll make myself salmon; if he's off, we'll have steak.  Our sides will be boiled potatoes and steamed broccoli

Saturday: french toast, hashbrowns, and bacon 

Sunday: homemade chicken strips with homemade french fries and steamed cauliflower

Monday: bbq chicken pizza

Tuesday: white chicken chili

 

I can assure you that one of these days will probably end up being a leftover day because with just two of us, we don't often eat everything I fix :)  But just in case, I like to plan it all out still. 

 

Now a question for you!  Out of this menu, which recipe would you like to see next on the blog?

 

-Megan

greek yogurt fruit salad

This little recipe is extremely easy and yummy (I think I say that about almost every recipe...) but it is also really healthy!  I love finding recipes like that because they make my husband happy.  HAHA!  Who would ever think it would be the man that wants healthy food?  Not me, but alas, that's how it is in our marriage.  I could live on fries quite easily.

 

 

Greek Yogurt Fruit Salad

• fruit of your choice (apples, bananas, pineapple, mandarin oranges, kiwis, etc.)
• one 5 oz. plain greek yogurt (not the big containers, just the little one you would eat)

Chop fruit into bite size pieces.  Toss all the fruit together, taking care not to mash delicate fruits.  Mix the yogurt in bit by bit.  I often don't use the whole yogurt, especially if I am making this just for two people.  You just want to lightly coat the fruit with the yogurt, not have it dripping all over everything.  Serve immediately*.

*This doesn't keep well so I always make it very last right before I serve everything.  It will keep overnight in the fridge, but not well.  I often end up throwing mine out the next morning instead of eating it.  I just try to make the perfect amount...which doesn't happen very often :)

-Megan

a highchair makeover

I guess with this post I might as well announce that I'm pregnant.  We are expecting a little boy this fall and we're so excited!  I'm pretty sure everyone who looks at this blog already knows that though :)

 

Hubby is still in school so we are trying to be frugal (which is soooo hard!!  I want to buy all the cute baby things I see!)  I found this used highchair for cheap and decided to buy it.  The girl said it was in really good condition.  Well...when I went to pick it up I found out what condition it really was in.  First off, it was filthy.  Like didyouleavethisoutsidefor63years filthy?  And the material was a harder plasticky stuff and it had cracked and ripped in a few places.  So really, it was in pretty bad shape.  But here's a confession, I have a bad habit of not standing up for myself to strangers.  So I still bought it.  I had serious buyers remorse too.  But my mom reassured me that we would be able to get it cleaned up and looking great.  I literally took this thing outside and power washed it.  Like 4 times.  I was finally happy with the frame being clean and my mom and I went to the fabric shop.  I love how it turned out!  Let me put in a little disclaimer here.  I am NOT a seamstress.  My mom did most of the work on this thing, I pinned and gave opinions and helped where I could but without my mom, I probably would have trashed this thing and just ended up buying a different one.

 

Before.  The seat wasn't quite as ripped up when we got it but I forgot to take a picture so this is after we have started.

 

And After!  I love it!  I wanted to pick gender neutral colors so I can use it for future babies if we get a different gender one day. 

 

I don't really have a tutorial for this either.  I'm terrible I know, but since I don't really sew fancy things like this I have no idea what to tell you to do.  Luckily, someone else does though!  My mom and I loosely followed this tutorial.  We didn't do it exactly like she does but it helped to get a big picture and then adapt to our own needs.

 

Maybe next time I'll post about a receiving blanket I made Peanut all my by myself!  Then I can actually tell you how to do it :)

 

-Megan

DIY eyeshadow primer

How many of you have ever used eyeshadow primer?  Am I the only one who hadn't ever tried the stuff??  I have always wanted to but then I hear that if you want to use one you need to buy a higher-end brand and my curiosity ends at that.  My husband still has 5 years of school people!  We don't buy anything that's a higher-end brand.  If we did we'd have to eat the gum off the bottom of our shoes.  Then I found this blog.  First off, I fell in love with all of her tutorials.  I do NOT consider myself to be very good at hair and when I try something different with my makeup it almost always ends in a disaster that looks very much like what my 18 month old niece would create given paper and crayons in the colors puce, dirt, and dark dirt.  However, I decided to go out on a limb and try her makeup for every day (I believe she calls it her "mommy makeup").  It was a radical success!  Hubby loved it and I felt gorgeous all night!  I ran out of some makeup pretty soon after I started looking through her blog so when I went to buy new stuff I only bought stuff that she had used and loved.  Can I say again how much I love her blog?  I looooovvve it!  Anyway, I found this recipe to make your own eyeshadow primer and it only costs a few bucks so I figured I'd give it a try.  Boy do I love it.  First off, it was beyond easy and cheap to make.  Second off, it really works.  Now I know I don't have anything to compare with but let me just tell you why I love it.  I have pretty oily skin.  It's all good in the morning but by mid afternoon I usually want to put a light dusting of powder all over to mattify my face.  Eyeshadow is no exception.  I will have creases in my shadow way before being done for the day.  This primer has changed that!  I have worn it every day since making and I have never had creases!  Even the day that I had to get up early and didn't get in the shower until around 11:30 that night my eyeshadow still looked like I had just put it on.  It also helps with pigmentation.  I have to use less eyeshadow to get a darker or more dramatic look with the primer.  It really is just awesome.

Recipe for Eyeshadow Primer:

• 1/2 teaspoon all natural chapstick
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 1/2 teaspoons liquid foundation

Run the chapstick under some warm water so it mixes well.  Mix all three ingredients in a clean container (I used a really small tupperware container so I had a good lid).  You're done!

I ended up mixing it all together and then microwaving it for like, 5 seconds so the chapstick was really mixed in.  The wax in the chapstick is also what is good about this stuff so I made sure to get one where wax was pretty high on the ingredient list.  I even used two different kinds of foundation because I was using an old one and it ran out so I just finished it off with my new stuff.



It looks like this!  Nothing special really.  I was super skeptical when I made it but like I said, it has transformed my eyes! :)

 

You can find her original post here.  She explains lots and the comments were pretty helpful.

 

Let me know if you try it and if it works for you.  I hope it does!

 

-Megan

cookies and cream popcorn

Are you ready for the easiest treat ever?  I hope so, because it's coming your way whether you like it or not.  This popcorn is so easy and has been a hit whenever I take it somewhere.  My husband loves it and if I have to make a treat to take anywhere he always requests this.  The recipe is really small, it only makes one bag of microwave popcorn so whenever I make it I usually times it by 3 or 4, depending on how large a group I'm taking it to.

 

 

Cookies and Cream Popcorn:

• 1 bag microwave kettle popcorn
• 8 Oreos, crushed finely (it's really important to crush very finely.  If you have big chunks it won't stick and you'll end up with lots of Oreo pieces in the bottom of your bowl.)
• 6 ounces white chocolate

Pop the popcorn according to package directions and poor out onto a piece of waxed paper.  Separate out all the unpopped kernels (we don't want any cracked teeth!).  Combine the popcorn and Oreos in a large mixing bowl.  The Oreos will fall to the bottom, it's ok.  Melt the white chocolate in the microwave in 30 second increments until smooth.  Poor over the popcorn mixture.  Stir from bottom until evenly coated with chocolate and Oreos.  Poor back onto wax paper to let it set up (about 15 minutes, sometimes mine sets out for a couple of hours while I get ready or something, it's not too picky).  Put back in bowl and enjoy!

Recipe adapted from: here 

The only change I make to the original recipe is the amount of Oreos, I found 12 to be way too many.  If you like more or less feel free to add or take away :)

 

Enjoy!

 

-Megan

calzone

This is a delicious way to dress up an ordinary pizza.  I also love to make this before a road trip and then take it with me, pre-sliced.  It changes up the routine from sandwiches made in the car and hubby loves it too...therefore, I am sold!

 

As with all the recipes I post, this one is really easy!  The recipe is just for the dough but I'll explain how to make it as well.

Calzone:

• 2 1/2 to 3 cups flour
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 package (2 1/4 teaspoons) yeast
• 3 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
• 1 cup very warm water

Combine yeast, sugar, salt, and one cup of the flour in mixing bowl.  Add the warm water and oil and mix.  Stir in remaining flour slowly until dough is soft but not sticky.  Knead until smooth.  Let the dough rest for at least 30 minutes before making the calzone. *Note: you will need one batch of dough for each calzone you make.*
Roll the dough out into a rectangle shape on a pizza stone or cookie sheet.  In the middle third, put down pizza sauce and all ingredients, saving cheese for last.  I use whatever we are in the mood for and we like on our pizza.  Everyone will be a little different.  I also often split it in half, because I like more on my side than the hubby does on his.  When you get done putting the ingredients, cut the third on each side into strips (I put pictures further down to explain what I mean because I know it sounds a little weird).  Then "braid" the strips, alternating each side.  Bake on 375 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes, or until done all the way through.

Recipe Source: here




This is what it will look like after you have all the ingredients on it and the sides cut.

This is what it looks like after you "braid" it.  I just start at one end and alternate, it's really easy.  The dough sticks to itself and the last piece or two I just stick down really well.  The ingredients sometimes squish out the sides a little, I don't worry about that too much.

 Enjoy!  Let me know if you have any questions on this one :)

 

- Megan

a little gem

I found this little gem today while perusing the internet.  It's such a good message I had to share.  And while I don't drink rum I do believe in the message in the video at the end :)  After all, that's what galumphing is all about right?

http://forwardwalking.com/2013/05/16/true-loves-kiss/

-Megan

smoked sausage and vegetable stir fry

Hey all!  Sorry I haven't posted anything for awhile, it's the end of the semester over here and I have been so busy doing homework, going to concerts/recitals, and just being a student in general.  Happily though, it's my last semester!  All I have to do after this is give my senior recital and then I am DONE!

 

Anyway...back to food.  It's what we all come here for anyway right? :)

 

This meal is so delicious and probably one of the easiest and fastest meals I make.  You make it all in one pan (except for the rice so I can't really call it a one-skillet meal).  If also has pretty much everything you need in a meal: veggies, protein, carbs.  It's like a triple threat, which is nice because when you make this you don't have to figure out a side or two to go with it.  Plus they say your meal should have lots of colors and look how many colors there are?  It is also very cheap to make, yay college student budget! 

 

I got this recipe from my mother-in-law.  It's one my hubby grew up with and loves so I feel like a winner every time I make it.  Do you have any recipes like that?

 

Here is the recipe:

Smoked Sausage and Vegetable Stir Fry

• 1 package smoked sausage sliced into bite size pieces (you can use pretty much any sausage, I buy the ones that are in the shape of a horse shoe...)
• Cooking oil (not very much, I end up using maybe around 1 or 2 tablespoons, but I just eyeball it)
• 3 1/2 cups fresh or frozen chopped veggies (broccoli, carrots, onions, etc.  I just buy one bag of the frozen Normandy Style Vegetable Blend, fresh is probably better but this tastes great too.  Then I usually dice up a tiny bit of onion and add that as well.)
• 3/4 cup parmesan cheese, more or less to taste
• 1 1/2 cup rice
• season with salt, pepper, garlic

Cook rice and keep warm.  Saute veggies in oil until crisp and tender.  Add sausage and season to taste.  Heat thoroughly.  Mix 1/2 cup parmesan cheese in and serve immediately over warm rice sprinkling with remaining parmesan cheese if desired.  I also put just a little bit of soy sauce with mine, the husband doesn't like that though so I just do it to my plate :)

Total prep. and cook time: 15-20 minutes.  Serves 6.

I make the whole recipe because my hubby can eat huge portions!  It also keeps really well to use for lunches the next day.  If you're worried about how much it makes, it can very easily be halved.  I hope you like it!  Let me know if you try any yummy veggie combinations.

-Megan

barbeque chicken pizza

This is a copy-cat recipe for California Pizza Kitchen's BBQ Chicken Pizza.  Now, a confession.  I've never tried that particular pizza there.  BUT.....this recipe is to die for!  It is seriously so good!  And again, it's easy.  Don't be afraid of the homemade crust.  I am not a bread maker (yet) and I made it without any meltdowns or catastrophes.

Again, the picture isn't great.  I don't consider myself a photographer and the only camera I have right now is in my phone so the pictures might not be that great for awhile.  Please bear with me on this one.  :)

BBQ Chicken Pizza:
1 pizza crust (recipe included, the recipe also makes two crusts)
2 whole boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup bbq sauce*
olive oil
salt
16 oz. fresh or bagged mozzarella (if using fresh, slice thinly)
1/2 whole red onion, sliced thinly
chopped cilantro

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Salt chicken and place in oven proof dish.  Pour bbq sauce over the breasts and turn to coat.  Bake for 20-25 minutes or until chicken is done.  Remove from oven and dice, set aside.  Increase oven temp. to 500 degrees.  Drizzle some olive oil on a cookie sheet or pizza stone and roll/stretch out the pizza crust as thin as you can (if it has a hole here or there that doesn't really matter, you just want it thin so it can be crispy).  Drizzle a little olive oil and sprinkle a bit of salt onto the crust (sometimes I skip the olive oil on top).  Spoon some extra bbq sauce on the crust and spread it evenly.  Top sauce with half of cheese, chicken, onion, and a little salt (the other half goes on your second crust, or you can save it for later).  Bake for 15 to 17 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the toppings are bubbly.  Remove from the oven and sprinkle on plenty of chopped cilantro.  Cut and serve.

*Here is my secret change to the recipe:  I use half bbq sauce and half hot wing sauce.  If you like spicy food then this little change will elevate this pizza from delicious to divine!  My favorite hot sauce to use is Frank's. 

Pizza Crust: (I use this recipe for almost all my pizzas now):
1 teaspoon instant or active dry yeast
1-1/2 cup warm water
4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 cup olive oil

Sprinkle yeast over warm water (not lukewarm) and let stand for a few minutes.  In a mixer with a paddle attachment, combine salt and flour.  On low speed, drizzle in olive oil until combined.  Next, add the yeast/water mixture and mix until just combined.  The dough will be fairly sticky.  In a new bowl, drizzle more olive oil and add the dough, working it into a ball that is coated with oil.  Put plastic wrap on the bowl and set aside for 1 to 2 hours, or store it in the fridge until you need it.*  When ready to use, grab half the dough (recipe makes two crusts) and spread out nice and thin.  You can use a rolling pin or your hands for this.

*You can make this recipe a day or two in advance if you want, just store the dough in the fridge and get it out a couple of hours before you need to use to to let it warm.

Recipes are adapted from Pioneer Woman and can be found here here

I really hope you enjoy!

 

-Megan

a quick craft

St. Patrick's Day is just around the corner!  Are you planning anything fun?  Festive meals or crafts?  My sister-in-law and I do a monthly craft.  Each month we make a craft for the next holiday coming up.  So this last month we made a craft for St. Patrick's Day.  It was so easy and we were done within a couple of hours (and that included paint drying time and figuring out the cricut).  My in-laws are adding on to their house right now so we have an abundance of scrap wood at our disposal.  We made these cute "Lucky" blocks.

 

 

It really was sooooo easy!  Here are the steps we took:

1. Cut and sand your wood into different sizes

2. Paint the blocks (we did two coats), let dry, and sand if desired

3. Cut out your letters (we borrowed my mom's cricut and used vinyl, but you could use paper and the cricut isn't needed, it's just useful)

4.. Adhere your letters to the blocks

 

Voila!  You have some very festive, fun, and cute decor for your home.

 

You could do so much with this idea but we were going for easy and quick this time around.  You could modge podge paper over the paint to create a border look or you could even print the letters onto fun paper and then modge podge that and you wouldn't even have to worry about cutting letters out.  Take the idea and run with it!  :)

 

We found this idea somewhere on Pinterest and I don't have the direct source.  However, there are about a billion of these blocks out there so really I can't source just one. 

 

-Megan

pesto ravioli with chicken

This is such a yummy meal!  And it's perfect because it's all you need.  You have veggies, pasta, and chicken so it truly is a one pot meal.  I mess around with the recipe almost every time I make it.  I put different veggies in and sometimes add more of something or use less of something else.  It's really hard to mess this one up!

 

 

Here is the recipe (with a few of my changes):

 

 

Pesto Ravioli with Chicken

 

2 teaspoons olive or vegetable oil

1 package (15 oz.) chicken tenders

3/4 cup chicken broth

1 package (9 oz.) refrigerated cheese-filled ravioli

1 or 2 small zucchini, sliced

1 small bunch asparagus, cut into small chunks

1 bell pepper (I like yellow or red), sliced

1/4 cup refrigerated pesto

any other veggies you might like

 

Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat.  Cook chicken in oil about 4 minutes, turning occasionally, until brown and cooked through.  Remove chicken from skillet.  Add broth and ravioli to same skillet.  Heat to boiling; reduce heat.  Cover and simmer about 4 minutes or until ravioli is tender.  Stir in veggies (sometimes I do this before so the veggies will cook a bit more, it just depends on how done you like your veggies).  Add chicken back in.  Cook over medium-high heat about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until veggies are crisp-tender.  Toss with pesto until coated.

 

 

Recipe is adapted from Betty Crocker's Sunday Dinner Cookbook

 

I really hope you enjoy!!

 

-Megan

the beginning of this adventure

 

Well, there is not much to say.  I can't believe this is finally happening and I'm so excited!  I hope you enjoy.  Please let me know what you'd like to hear about!

 

-Megan