This tip came from my sister and has worked magic for our twins! As any parent would agree, you always want your littles to eat the healthiest food. Much was my disappointment when our girls would eat 2 bites of oatmeal (if that). Long story short, prep your oatmeal as you normally do then pour that baby in your baby bullet (I use our Nutri Bullet) and blend away. SUCCESS in our home, the girls now love oatmeal!
Happy Thanksgiving!
It has been quite some time since I posted a recipe, or anything for that matter. I’ve been enjoying my time with our twin girls which means I haven’t had much time to cook up anything really worth posting. However, I do have a few recipes pending and am hoping to get back into the swing of regular posts. In the meantime, I’d like to take this time to wish everyone a beautiful, happy, and joyful Thanksgiving surrounded by those who mean the most. Enjoy the moments, meals, memories…after all, this is what life is all about!
Happy Thanksgiving 2015 to everyone! May your plates and your hearts be full!
Buen Provecho!
Natural Scent
I can’t stress how much I love candles, wax melts, basically anything that smells good. Now that we have our twins I’m always looking for ways to do things a little more natural so we can all (they mainly) breathe in cleaner fresher air. I kept stumbling across a lot of pics of lemon or oranges in a pot with a few herbs and as simple as that you have a natural delicious smelling house. As the girls napped I gazed into our fruit basket and pulled out the two lemons we had, went into the pantry…the rest is history!
Here’s the quickest way to have your house smelling like vanilla pound cake.
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 lemons
- 2-3 sticks of cinnamon
- Vanilla
- 2-3 cups water
DIRECTIONS:
Add the water to a pot, slice the lemons and add all ingredients. Place over low heat and allow the smell to gradually infuse your house.
Tip: I was able to reuse this over the course of a week, I would add more water and sprinkle cinnamon and the smell would keep going. The best way to do this is probably a small crockpot, but I was testing it out and did it over the stove and it worked well.
Flank Steak Marinade
This is by far the easiest, tastiest marinade I make, it’s quickly becoming my “go-to” dinner. My husband loves it and it gives the meat such wonderful flavor! Go ahead and try it you will not be disappointed!
INGREDIENTS:
- Soy sauce
- Sriracha
- Steak seasoning
- Flank steak
DIRECTIONS:
Pour a generous amount of steak seasoning over the meat. Drizzle a good amount of sriracha (more or less depending on your love of heat) finish with a good covering of soy sauce. Allow to marinate for 1 hour to over night.
When you’re ready, light your grill and cook until desired doneness. Enjoy!
We love serving this with Mexican rice and refried beans, yum yum yum!
Buen Provecho!
Side Note: This steak would make a fabulous steak salad, pairs well with bakes potatoes, grilled asparagus, the list goes on!
Happy Mother’s Day!
Mother’s work hard every day of the year, but today is the one day which gives recognition of all that hard work. It’s common to say “relax, on your day” but the reality of it is, a mother is on duty 24/7. Instead of saying “relax,” I’d like you all to take a moment today to reflect on all that has unfolded until this point, look at your children, enjoy each of their quirks, smiles, the good moments and the bad ones. If being a mother has taught me anything is that everything is a phase (at least we hope so). Some days are good, some are great, and some feel never ending but we push through every day to keep our families moving and our children happy and smiling! For all the hard working, motivated, driven, beautiful, strong women out there…Happy Mother’s Day! May you be appreciated, admired, and celebrated each and every day of the year!
Coleslaw
Looking for that quick and easy addition to your pulled pork dinner? Well, here it is! This coleslaw turned out wonderfully refreshing, crisp and the perfect combo of sweet and spice.
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 bag coleslaw mix (16oz)
- 2 tbsp. diced onions
- 2/3 cups Miracle Whip
- 2 tbsp. vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1-2 tbsp. vinegar
- 1/4 – 1/2 tsp salt
- Freshly grated black pepper
DIRECTIONS:
Combine coleslaw and onion in a large bowl. In a separate bowl mix the remaining ingredients and pour over coleslaw mix toss to coat. Chill for at least 2 hours prior to serving.
Buen Provecho!
Happy Spring!
Spring is here, which means our days are longer, the flowers are blooming, birds are chirping and the weather is getting warmer (hopefully). I’ll have the lucky fortune to stay at home with our angels for a few months which means HOPEFULLY I can prep more meals during the day and therefore create more tasty recipes for all to enjoy! I’m adding a new category which is “Twinkie Foods” this is dedicated to our two angels. I’ll list the foods I prepare for them and eventually more.
Thank you all for joining me on this journey so far and for following along!
Happy Spring!
Sweet Potatoes (Baby Food)
After feeding our twins organic bottled baby food I decided I’d simply make my own. I buy organic veggies, bake or steam and smash. Place in container, label and store. It’s easy, quick, and oh so healthy for those little tummies! The first attempt was sweet potatoes, here goes nothing!
INGREDIENTS:
- 1-2 organic sweet potatoes
- Foil
- Food processor
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wash your potato, with a fork poke a few holes then wrap in foil. Place potatoes on a baking sheet and into the oven.
Let the potatoes bake for 30-60 minutes (time varies based on size and quantity). Once done, allow to cool. Remove skin from potatoes and place into food processor, blend to desired consistency.
Store in airtight containers, I’m using the OXO tot containers, which I love! They were $9.99 for 6, 2.5oz containers. This food will keep for 3 days in the fridge or you can freeze for a longer time.
Side Note: I purchased the food processor as an impulse buy at the Del Mar Fair a couple years ago, I used it once before now. It so far has been the BEST $10 I’ve ever spent. There is not one fancy thing about it, but it gets the job done and best of all it’s manual therefore…NO NOISE! I can prep the food as the babes sleep. The OXO Tot blocks are so far my favorite, I also have the Sage Spoonfuls but the container feels flimsy compared to this one. I recently purchased labels in order to name/date the foods I prep.
Pulled Pork (Crockpot)
Our friend is visiting for the next week and I wanted to have a hearty dinner ready for when he and my hubby get home. As I’ve mentioned in the past (starting to sound like a broken record) life with twins can be hectic and quick and easy dinners are all the rage with me at the moment. I recently bought a new crockpot which I’ve been wanting to use. Pulled pork seems to be pretty much the only way my husband will eat pork. With that said, tonight we dine on pulled pork sandwiches.
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 – 4lb pork butt
- 1 cup BBQ sauce (I use Sweet Baby Ray)
- 2-3 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 1/2 onion, cut in quarters
- 1 Tbsp all purpose seasoning, (I used Adam’s Reserve House Seasoning)
- 1 Tbsp mustard
- 1/2 Cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 Cup chicken broth
- 1/4 – 1/2 Cup light brown sugar
- 1/4 Cup honey
- 1 Tbsp Worchestershire
- 1 Tsp chili powder (I used a chipotle chili powder)
- 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
- Hamburger buns
- Butter
DIRECTIONS:
Prep all your ingredients the night before, in the morning you simply toss it all in the crockpot before you leave to work or to run your errands.
Mix the BBQ sauce, vinegar, chicken broth, mustard, worchestershire, light brown sugar, chili powder, all-purpose seasoning and crushed garlic. You can mix this over night or the morning of. Clean your pork and remove any excess fat (leave some, because a little fat is always good).
Pour the vegetable oil in the crockpot and add about 1/4 of the onions. Place the pork on top of the onions, add the remaining onions to the mixture and pour over the pork.
Set your crockpot on high for 5-6 hours or on low for 7-8hrs, basically until the pork is fork tender. Once the pork is fork tender (using 2 forks) start shredding it. At this point you have two options; you can place the shredded pork back into the juice or (what I did) heat a enameled cast-iron (or dutch oven) and pour about 2 cups of the liquid from the crockpot and add the shredded pork to this juice. This worked better for me because the slow cooker produces so much juice and I didn’t want the pork sitting in a liquid bath. I also added a healthy drizzle of honey and a pinch of salt.
When you’re ready to eat, butter the inside of your buns and place on a skillet, butter side down until golden brown. I used onion burger buns to add another depth of flavor. Spoon the pulled pork over the toasted buns.
Enjoy with a side of coleslaw; according to many coleslaw belongs on top of the pulled pork not on the side. In my opinion, you’re eating you decide where it goes 😉 and I prefer mine on the side. Potato salad also goes great with pulled pork!
Tasty Tip: Make pulled pork sliders for a party, pulled pork quesadillas, or pulled pork grilled cheese, etc…be creative!
Buen Provecho!
It’s 2015!!!
It’s February already and it’s been quite a while since I posted a recipe, tip/tid-bit or anything else for that matter. Life with my hubby, our twins, cat, dog and a full-time job is definitely busy…but we’re loving every minute of it!
I’ve made several meals recently that have turned out quite delicious but in my haste to get dinner on the table to end up not taking any pictures, and honestly who wants a recipe without a picture?
My goal for 2015 is to keep the camera in the kitchen! Hopefully I have a spare minute or two each week to download the pictures and write/post the recipes.
A few recipes to stay tuned for; chipotle cream shrimp tacos, bruschetta chicken pasta, fried yucca, , guava and cream cheese empanada, 5-cheese tortellini chicken pasta and a few others!
Happy 2015 everyone!
Time to eat...buen provecho! 