White Bean Chili

Sharing a quick and easy recipe today!  You all know how I feel about my crock pot.  It's the only way I pull off an actual meal these days.  I love this White Bean Chili recipe I found a few years ago.  It's perfect for a cold December day!  (Or in my case, perfect for a slightly cool December day.)  :)

{Ingredients}

1 large onion chopped
3 cans chicken broth
3 cups chicken (I use 4-5 chicken breasts)
1 can diced green chilies (7 oz)
3 cans white beans
2 t. oregano
4 t. cumin
1 t. cayenne pepper
6-8 cloves garlic or 1 1/2 t. garlic powder
1 cup sour cream
3 cups grated monterey jack cheese

{Directions}

Cook chicken, onion, and chicken broth on high for 3-4 hours in crock-pot.  Take chicken out and shred and then put it back in the crock pot.  (You know I'm all about recipes that explain each and every step.)  Add the chilies, beans, oregano, cumin, pepper, and garlic.  Turn on high for 45 minutes to an hour.  Stir in 1 cup sour cream and 3 cups grated monterey jack cheese and serve!

{My Own Two Cents}

I have decided after making this a few times that it needs more chicken and beans and less broth so that it's more like a chili and less like a soup.  So I tweak the recipe above just a bit by adding 4-5 chicken breasts and more beans and only 2 or 2 1/2 cans of chicken broth.  I also buy the cheese already shredded and use the garlic powder instead of garlic cloves.  That has nothing to do with making it more like a chili.  That's just because I'm lazy.  :)  I feel the need to share my "tweaks," but also feel the need to caution you to not necessarily follow them.  It is me we're talking about here.

Kenny and I love this.  I can't say that the kids do, but I can't say that they love much of anything because they are such picky eaters.  But someday, when they grow up and decide that torturing their parents at the dinner table isn't cool after all, they will love this too.  I just know it.

Of course eating it out of a mug that says "GOOD HOT SOUP" only adds to the dining experience.  

Even if you've worked hard to make it less of a soup and more of a chili.  

:)

Enjoy!    

Organized Recipes

Ok.  I finally organized my recipes.  Don't expect to be blown away.  You know me when it comes to cooking! 

Which is why for the past few years I have simply thrown all of my recipes into this lovely little red folder titled:  Recipes.  I know.  My creativity with this one is unmatched.  

But lately my little red recipe folder wasn't cutting it.  I had no room to add new recipes and papers were spilling out all over my neatly organized kitchen drawer.  I can't have that now can I?  :)  Finding the recipe I needed was becoming such a pain.  But here's the thing.  The reason I have never organized my recipes is because aside from the fact that I hate to cook (which makes me also despise recipes), I have never seen a system that I thought would work for me.  I know there are hundreds of ways to organize recipes,  but I didn't want anything that would take too much time (like typing them all up in a binder) and I wanted something that I could easily add to without any work.  

Most of my recipes are torn out magazine pages,

handwritten from the kids like this recipe from Addison when she was in pre-school and just learning to write her name.  They are print outs from recipe blogs and e-mails from friends...  

OR they are typed or handwritten by me and totally trashed from having them out while cooking. 

 **Banana Bread recipe is here by the way and they are delicious!  You can tell I've made these a time or two.  I keep thinking I need to re-type this, but I kind of like it.  Looks vintage, don't you think?  ;)

I wanted something that I could use to easily slip new recipes into their categories without much time or energy on my part.  

So remember when I went nuts in Staples over Martha Stewart's office supplies?  

 And I bought this lovely little purse organizer?

And then I went back and bought a bigger accordion file...  

and I used it to organize all of my home decor inspiration pictures?  And I called it Pinterest - old school.  Remember that?  Well.  I'm sure you know where I'm going with this.  Those accordion files have worked SO well for me.  When my recipe folder started getting too full I knew one of these babies would be a great solution.

So I went back for a third one!  Because everyone knows the third times a charm.  And everyone also knows that if there is an excuse to go browse through office supplies, you take it.  (Ok - maybe not everyone knows that one...)

My recipe categories are:

Salads
Soups
Dips/Appetizers
Marinades
Breakfast
Dinner
Muffins/Breads
Desserts

I know.  Super simple.  Maybe not the best system for someone who is a major chef, but for me, this is perfect.

It opens so wide - plenty of room to add more categories and recipes once I get into my new kitchen and start cooking up a storm!  And by cooking up a storm I mean using the stove at least once a week. (I've always been a firm believer in baby steps.  What About Bob - have you seen that movie?  Personal favorite.  Baby steps to the recipes... baby steps to the fridge... baby steps to the stove...)

And of course it closes so nice and compact fitting perfectly into my organized kitchen drawer.  

And just to prove I actually DO cook once in a while.  This is what we had for dinner last night - 

The crock pot and I are the best of friends.  I just tossed in some chicken breasts and diced a few potatoes and some onion.  Then I sprinkled Parsley on it all because Parsley makes it look like you really know what you're doing.  Made my house smell SO good!  My girls were like "mom!  what are you making!?  it smells so good!  is someone coming over?"  Then Kenny came home... "mmmm!  smells so good, is someone coming over?"

HA!  Made me laugh.  :)

Nobody was coming over, but we all enjoyed this simple meal (and the smell!) regardless.

Would love to hear how YOU organize your recipes! 

Fun weekend and fruit dip

FUN weekend.  Lots of play and little work.  I'll pay for it tomorrow (the laundry alone!), but it was worth it.  I got to spend Friday afternoon at the park with a friend I danced with in college and haven't seen since.  She was in town visiting and called and I'm SO glad she did!  I loved catching up with her and meeting her cute kids.  Two girls close in age and a two year old little boy.  We are living parallel lives.  :)  It was SO fun to see her again.  I didn't take a picture (I have been awful at taking pictures this summer!) but we had a great afternoon.  

The rest of the weekend included get togethers with two other families we love to hang out with.  First a little pool time!  I finally learned the secret to getting Kole to stay put in the pool instead of just running around it.  

Good old Thomas to the rescue.  This boy of mine loves his trains.  

I love his trains too.  They allow me at least five minutes of down time.  

I'll take it!

Best friends and their dads.  

Our other fun get-together was a BBQ at a friends house.  They made the most delicious meal I think I've ever had!  Seriously!  Great food.  Great company.  We didn't want to leave.  So we didn't!  We all hung out so late.  I think it was the latest my kids have ever stayed up!

My contribution to the amazing meal?  Not much.  My cute friend insisted on making everything aside from a fruit salad.  So I made my fruit salad and I also made some fruit dip.  I thought I'd share this SIMPLE fruit dip because it is seriously so good.  And so simple.  Did I mention that already?  That it's simple and good?  Because it is.  

Whip together:

8 oz cream cheese (softened)
7 oz jar of marshmallow creme
2 teaspoons of Maraschino cherry juice

You can see the dip in the purple bowl on the kids' table next to my fruit salad.  It's light pink and it's delicious!  Not the healthiest, but a summertime hit nonetheless.  

Table for the kids.    

 Table for the adults.  I loved the fresh sun flowers!  

A few more pics from the evening -- 

What kid doesn't love a slip-n-slide? 

Kole was in absolute heaven.  

I think his trains have met their match.

Makes me so excited to have a yard!  This boy and his mom are more than ready for one.  

p.s.  Is anyone else a nervous wreak watching the Olympics!?  I get so stressed during the events (especially girls gymnastics).  My hands start to sweat just watching them!  I can only imagine what their parents must feel like!

p.p.s.  Happy Monday.  :)

Creamy Pasta

Sharing a quick kid-friendly recipe today!  This recipe is far from gourmet (just like the rest of my recipes) and the picture is far from stellar (just like the rest of my recipe pictures) but it's easy to make and it's a big hit with my kids!  Plus it's a great way to sneak in some vegetables.  Kenny really likes it too which makes it a go-to meal for us.  I'm sharing the real recipe along with the way I tweak it.  I pretty much just add more of everything.  If I'm cooking you better believe it's going to last us at least two nights!   :)

{CREAMY PASTA}

Ingredients:

Chicken tenders - about 1 lb.  (I cook 5 chicken breasts.)
Campbells "Cream of Mushroom" - 1 can (I use 2 cans.)
Frozen Vegetable - 1 to 1 1/2 cups (Kenny likes this with peas the best, but I've also tried mixed vegetables and broccoli and it all works!  I just toss in a full bag.)
Pasta (Rotini) - about 2 1/2 to 3 cups (I use one box.)
Kraft grated Parmesan Cheese - 1/2 cup (I use 1 cup.)

1.  Boil water and cook Rotini pasta.  About 5 minutes before it's done, add the frozen vegetable.

2.  Cut chicken to bite sized pieces and season with salt.  Or don't.  But what's life without a little salt?

3.  Saute chicken in a large pan and when the chicken is cooked, add cream of mushroom.  Cook it until it's boiling. If it is too thick, add some starchy pasta water (the water that cooked the pasta).

4.  Add cooked pasta and frozen vegetable directly to the pan and mix well with the chicken and soup mixture.  (Add more pasta water if it's too dry.)

5.  Right before you dish it up, add some grated Parmesan cheese and mix well.

See!  So quick and easy!  You can't mess this one up.  Which is why it's a favorite of mine.  :)

Enjoy and have a great weekend everyone!

p.s.  My new mini craft space for the girls is organized and working like a charm.  Pics to come next week!

Recipe Round-Up

I knew this week was going to be a busy one so I did something I normally never do.  I sat down Sunday night to make a meal plan.  I may be organized when it comes to my home and time management, but you all know I have never had it together when it comes to cooking.  I wanted to just make a couple of my easy stand-by recipes so I went to my blog to look a few up.  It took me too long to find what I was looking for so I decided I'd make a post with links to all of my recipes.  Hopefully this will help me the next time I'm in the mood to whip up something in the kitchen.  I'll put this post on my sidebar and update it every time I share a recipe.  These recipes are far from gourmet, but if it's a favorite of mine you can count on it being kid friendly and easy to make.  So maybe this post will help one or two of you as well!  Just click on the link to see the full recipe.  

BTW - tomorrow we are meeting with our builder and cabinet guy to start planning the kitchen layout!  I'm so excited about it.  I feel like a kid on Christmas Eve!  Our cabinet guy sent over a sketch of my kitchen with what he thinks would work in the space.  He has included three ovens and a warmer.  

Clearly we need to get to know each other a bit better.  :)  

{WHITE BEAN CHILI}

{EASY FRUIT DIP}

 {CREAMY PASTA}

{BANANA BREAD MUFFINS}

{SALAD IN A TORTILLA}

{APPLESAUCE COOKIES}

{TACO SALAD}

{MEXICAN CHALUPAS}

{PEPPERONI PASTA}

{CASHEW CHICKEN}

{CHICKEN FAJITAS}

{CHRISTMAS PRETZEL HUGS}

{HALLOWEEN TREAT}

{SUMMER SALAD}

{TRI-COLOR PASTA} 

BON - APPETIT!

Banana bread muffins

I'm sharing a recipe today!  Woot woot!!  I know.  Try to contain your excitement.  ;)  I may not be much of a chef and you may already have a great banana bread recipe, but I'm sharing this recipe anyway because, well I am just SO proud of myself.  I have finally mastered these babies  and let me tell you - for me to have mastered anything in the kitchen is reason to celebrate!  :) 

This is my mom's recipe and it is simple (for most people, me not included) and they are delicious.  My mom always makes loaves of bread.  I tried making loaves of bread multiple times and couldn't ever get the inside cooked right without burning the outside.  So I finally said - forget that, I'm making muffins.  I love the  muffins because aside from the fact that they are easier for me to cook, they are also easier to eat.  Just grab and go!  Perfect with OJ for a quick breakfast or to pack in school lunches.

So after making these only around 300 times I finally went from this...

{Exhibit A - proof that I have not always had these muffins mastered}

To this.  :)

3 crushed bananas

1 cup sugar

2 cups flour

1/2 cup shortening

2 beaten eggs

1 tbsp sour cream

1 tsp baking soda

1 tbsp vanilla

dash of salt

Bake for 25 minutes @ 350

Couple things to remember:  Use bananas that are just starting to go bad.  Mushy bananas always taste the best.  I like to crush the bananas first before I add the rest of the ingredients.  I also like to double this recipe because my family loves them (they're gone before I know it) and it's always fun to take a plate to a friend (a double batch makes around 33 muffins).  Don't forget the dash of salt like I did once (really does make a difference).   Don't use 1 tsp sour cream instead of 1 tbsp sour cream like I did once (also makes a difference).  Don't forget the flour like I did once (makes a big difference).  Don't under cook them.  Don't over cook them.  (Been there, done that, makes a difference.)  I think I've made every mistake possible with these muffins.  

But not anymore!  

That's right.  You're feeling my excitement now.  :)

Enjoy!

Salad in a Tortilla

Mondays are always busy, aren't they?  Each year when I'm figuring out extra curricular activities for my girls I make sure to NOT schedule anything on Mondays.  I usually spend the entire day catching up from the weekend - cleaning, laundry, grocery shopping, and food prep.  Now you all know I'm not much of a chef, but I do like to have healthy snacks washed and cut and ready to go in my fridge (and not so healthy snacks organized and ready to go in my pantry - ha!).  ;)  Most Mondays after a trip to the grocery store I wash all of the produce, cut everything up and place it in clear containers.  Most Mondays I also put together this:

I wash the lettuce and put it in my lettuce crisper so it's ready to go for salads and sandwiches throughout the week.  Then I cut up vegetables.  Usually carrots, celery, cucumbers and whatever else I have on hand.  I put the veggies in a plastic container so they are ready to go for the week. The salad dressing I make is a recipe from my ultra healthy friend Koni. (I've shared this recipe before.)  Supposedly it's the "good kind of fat."  Bonus.  All I know is that it makes the vegetables taste really good.  

Salad Dressing:

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1 cup extra virgin olive oil (I hear this combo and start thinking of Macaroni Grill and their bread and my mouth starts watering!)

1/4 tsp basil

1/2 tsp oregano

2 minced garlic bulbs

Shake well and keep in cupboard (don't refrigerate!)

Because of a little prep work on Monday, it's easy to whip up a quick, healthy lunch or snack.  Now I have veggies washed and ready to go to give to my kids after school (usually with something like crackers and cheese) and for me, I pile everything on a whole wheat tortilla.   I always add my oven roasted almond slices (love them) and then the dressing.  It's seriously so good.  And if I eat a healthy breakfast and this for lunch, I feel like I don't have to be as strict with dinner.  Although sometimes I try to pass this salad tortilla off as dinner when I'm not in the mood to cook.  Which is most nights.  It never flies.  Kenny calls it "rabbit food" and just makes himself a bowl of cereal.  So I go back to just eating it for lunch.  But it sure makes a good lunch!  Or snack.  So that is why I'm sharing it with all of you.

Enjoy my fellow rabbits!  And have a nice day.  :)  

Applesauce Cookies

Thank you so much for the sweet comments about my pantry!  You are all incredibly kind.  That was a fun project and I was so excited to share it with my blog friends.  Also a big thanks to Jen from I Heart Organizing for featuring me on her amazing blog!  When I first discovered Jen's blog I felt like I had struck gold!  Isn't it fun meeting people who have the same interests and passions as you do?  It's one of my favorite things about blogging.  :)  

These last few days have been crazy.  Life is so busy right now (I'm sure you can all relate!) and December is flying by way too quickly.  Kids are out of school after this week and I'm hoping everything slows down so that we can just enjoy the holiday together.  I finally got my Christmas cards mailed out and finished up my friend/neighbor/teacher gifts today.    

I didn't make my cards and I just kept things really simple for gifts and made cookies.  Nothing too creative this year.  I have to save my creativity for entertaining Kole.  That boy is sucking the life right out of me these days!  But I did manage to bake!  Which is a feat for me with or without my 20 month old sidekick.  

Because I've made our Christmas Pretzel Hugs for the past few years, I decided to mix it up and make Applesauce cookies.  And I have to share my applesauce cookie recipe with all of you because they are SO good.  Really.  They are.  My mom always made these cookies when I was growing up (the recipe is from my grandma) and the smell of them brings back happy childhood memories.  Maybe making them will bring back happy childhood memories for you too.  Probably not, but it's worth a try, right?

{Applesauce Cookies}

Ingredients:

I cup shortening

2 cups sugar

2 cups applesauce

4 eggs

4 cups flour

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cloves

1 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1 pkg chocolate chips

Directions:

First mix together the sugar and shortening.  Add eggs, then add the applesauce and soda combined.  (I just put the 2 tsp of soda right into the applesauce can and stir away.  The applesauce kind of rises and sizzles.  That's my favorite part. :)

Add the rest of the dry ingredients (I love that most of them are 1 tsp. - makes it harder to mess things up.  Although one time I messed up big time.  I made these and forgot the flour.  How do you forget the flour?  I don't know but I did and wouldn't recommend it.)  

Bake @ 350 for 15-20 minutes

Five reasons you should make these: 1 - They're delicious.  2 - They're easy - if I can make them correctly (most of the time), anyone can.  3 - The cinnamon and spices will make your house smell so Christmassy!  It's the best!  4 - They have applesauce in them so you can pretend they are good for you.  They're not.  But it's always fun to pretend.  5 - You'll want to see the applesauce sizzle part.  It's just cool.

I doubled this recipe and made 95 cookies so it probably makes around 46-48 per batch.

Then I just used some cute Rudolph plates, clear wrap, and red ribbon to make them look pretty.  

All wrapped up and ready to deliver!

The only problem is that I need at least 10 more plates of cookies.  Plus Kenny came home tonight and was so bummed there weren't any left for him.  Looks like another batch of cookies is in my future!  I tend to eat my fair share of things that I bake so it's a good thing they have applesauce in them and are so good for me.  

I painted that little cake stand to use for decor...

but so far is has been perfect to hold some of the little candles I bought to deliver with the cookies.  Remember the Fresh Balsam candle from Bath and Body Works that I mentioned in my favorite things post?  

I'm kind of obsessed with it.  In fact I bought four of the large candles for teacher gifts...

but this one seemed to be calling "light me!".  So I did.  

Smells so good.  Almost as good as my healthy applesauce cookies. 

 

Ellie made some beautiful artwork that just so happens to match the aqua/silver decor we are going with around here.  I was impressed.  It's not every second grader who takes her house color palette into consideration before creating.  ;)   

And while we're on the subject of art, I have to share a close up of another picture Ellie recently drew. That has to be the cutest reindeer and Santa "Claws" I've ever seen.   :)

And here's Addison's awesome hundreds chart which has nothing to do with Christmas, our decor, cookies or anything else for that matter.  But I can't brag about one daughter and not the other.  What kind of mom would I be?  

(Dec. 2010)

So proud of both of my girls.  So proud of my applesauce cookies.  

Enjoy!  And if you bake these cookies let me know how they turn out!  Don't forget the flour and they'll become a family favorite for sure.  

:)