Homemade Snack/Trail Mix

I decided to try making my own snack/trail mix this weekend and it couldn't have been easier! And, it's very tasty. I spent $6.59 in extra ingredients onto my regular grocery list. Which $6.59 can be considered pricey for a snack mix but this makes twice the amount of what you'd pay for a regular package of snack mix and you know exactly what is in the package. Here's the breakdown...

1 pkg. Small Lightly Salted Pretzels (a regular grocery item and store brand)
1 pkg. Cascadian Farm's Honey Oh's Cereal (a regular grocery item and $1.00 coupon)
1 container Roasted, Unsalted Peanuts
1 container Planters NUT*rition Antioxidant Mix (contains almonds, bananas, peaches, blueberries, cranberries and cashews)

The peanuts and NUT*rition were the only things that were added to my regular grocery list. The peanuts were next to nothing since I bought the store brand and had a coupon. The Planters NUT*rition was the most expensive item at $5.59 but it ended up being cheaper than trying to buy all the different dried fruits that are in this package. For instance, a small package of dried bananas would have cost me $2.00 and raisins were $2.00 and up.

I tossed the whole container of NUT*rition into a gallon zip-lock bag, then added a few cups of cereal, pretzels, and about one cup of peanuts and then mixed it all up. Super easy! And considering that I have a gallon sized bag of the mix, it's rather cheap. Not to mention, I have enough cereal, pretzels and peanuts to make this at least two more times with the only additional ingredient needed is the NUT*rition.

Enjoy!

Fresh Food!

To say I'm ubber excited right now would be a major understatement. Katy, Texas now has it's very own Farmer's Market!!! I just discovered this tidbit of news and thought I'd share it with everyone I knew. If you're in the Katy area, go check out Katy Fresh Produce Market. Now I don't have to wait for Saturdays to arrive to buy fresh-locally grown produce. Yay!

Cookies For Santa

Yes, I'm aware that Christmas is over. I'm also fully aware that it is now January. Still, I wanted to share with you what Violet made with her Grandpa on Christmas eve. Their baking together has become a little tradition in our family. Violet has come to expect that she'll get to bake something with her Grandpa whenever the two are together and Grandpa is always happy to oblige. While their baking adventures always kill my resolve to stay away from sweets, I am thankful that they have something special that is shared just between them. (It's also nice to have an excuse to sneak in a sweet treat. Or two.)

Just look at the joy on Violet's face as she decorates the cookies she and her Grandpa have made...

That's Grandpa standing behind Violet. He's supervising...


Here's a picture of the final product of all that work. Cookies and milk for Santa and some carrots for Santa's reindeer...


By the way, just to put into perspective how big the cookies were, the "Santa" cookie was as big as my hand!!! The goofy face was my contribution to all the baking that went on that day. (The adorable plate was an early Christmas gift from Violet's Mimi W. and was used a lot during the Christmas holidays.)

Pioneer Woman Meets Houston

It's been an exciting few days down here in our neck of the woods. We really don't have woods down here, just patches of trees actually, but there is an area of Houston called the Woodlands. Yes, that's the name of a city that is just outside of Houston's city limits. But I digress, back to the excitement in our area. The past two days have been awesome but for totally different reasons.

We had SNOW yesterday! Lots and lots of glorious snow!

Snow, Snow, SNOW!!! Snow. It won't be long before we'll all be there with snow. Snow. I want to wash my hands, my face and hair with snow. Snow. I long to clear a path and lift a spade of snow. Snow. Oh, to see a great big man entirely made of snow.

Do you know what movie that song came from? I'll give you a hint ~ it has Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye and Rosemary Clooney in it. It's from my favorite Christmas movie.

Today's excitement came in the form of waiting in a crowded store for 3 1/2 hours to meet someone I've never met in person. Ree Drummond, also known as The Pioneer Woman, came to Houston today and did a book signing for her cookbook. Needless to say, I left the family at home! This was time just for mommy (and at least four hundred other women and a few men). The book signing was arranged by Blue Willow Bookshop which quickly moved the location to Georgia's Farm to Market due to the overwhelming response of Ree's fans.

[photo courtesy of Pioneer Woman.com]

I've been looking forward to this day for a few months now. Once Ree's cookbook was ready for publication I told Gregg that he needed to be prepared to buy me one. There were no subtle hints because Gregg doesn't always get subtle, which is okay. He's a man and sometimes I have to spell things out for him, kinda like how he has to repeat directions to me more than once (I can get lost just trying to get home!). Fortunately for Gregg he didn't have to buy me a copy because I won one. Yippie for me!!!

After reading about the crowds/lines at Ree's other book signings I decided to call Blue Willow Bookshop and ask how they were organizing theirs. I'm SO glad I made that call. Blue Willow was handing out Signing Line Tickets, which are basically just different colored post cards that were done in blocks of 50. Their store is just a few blocks from Gregg's office and so he went by on Tuesday and picked up a card for me on his way home from work. Gracious, I love that man! My card/ticket was orange. The cards/tickets ahead of me today were blue, yellow, red, and green.

The lady knows how to make an entrance!

I love her boots (not that I could ever wear them!). Ree was just as charming in person as she is on her blog. Her brief Q & A was rather entertaining as we learned that Marlboro Man (Ree's hubby) prefers boxers over briefs (a very funny moment). Also, we learned that Cowboy Josh is still single and is on board for The Ranchelor (think The Bachelor on a ranch, only it's rated PG) and how he cooks chili for Charlie, the family's trusty basset hound. Of course, there were questions related to cooking (it IS a cookbook signing after all) and grocery shopping. And then the lines were formed! Everyone played nicely and got in line when their card/ticket colors were announced and didn't try to cut in line. There were no brawls on the floor as people tried to climb over one another. It was a very civilized event. Texans can be civilized when we need to be. ;) Overall, I think it was an excellent book signing event considering it's the only one I've been to so far. I had a lot of fun.

I'm the dorky one with the pretty red-headed Ree.

Thank you Ree for coming to Houston. I had a great time today and look forward to your next book, Black Heels To Tractor Wheels, to come out. I'll be there if you come back to Houston.

I'm NOT A Food Blogger!

Just a little disclaimer for this post... I am SO not a food blogger! I just thought I'd share with you all what I was cooking on the night I had my little "incident" in the kitchen last month (aka a small kitchen fire). Honestly, I can manage my way in a kitchen, I just don't like to!

With that said, I gave this recipe to a friend to post on her church's online bulletin (hi Jenni!). When I find something that is tasty and economical I like to share it with people. She asked for photos to go along with the recipe and so here's a sampling of what I managed to get. Again, I'm not a food blogger!!!

The ingredients are simple enough...



Everything is simmering along...



Almost done...




Super Easy Cheesy Hamburger & Mac

Description:
An easy alternative to a boxed meal.

Ingredients:
1 lb Ground Hamburger
1/2 pkg. Lg. Elbow Macaroni Noodles (12 oz pkg)
1 can Diced Tomatoes with Garlic & Bell Pepper
1/2 Cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
1/2 Diced Onion ~ optional

Directions:
Boil noodles for 1/2 the cooking time ~ they'll finish cooking once added to the meat mixture.

Brown meat w/ onion or seasonings ( I left out the onion and just used onion powder). Drain fat. Add can of diced tomatoes and 1/2 can of water. Bring to a boil. Add the noodles and cover. Simmer for 10 minutes or until noodles are cooked through. Add cheese and melt.

Enjoy!

Butt-Stuffer?

Violet went with her Mimi to a friend of the family's house to "help" prepare our Thanksgiving meal. (I was graciously given the day off. My contribution to the day is two homemade pecan pies that I just finished baking.) I just called to check on my precious little turkey to see how she was doing and to find out if she was behaving. Violet was given the phone and she excitedly told me how much fun she was having. She then proclaimed, "Mommy, I'm the best butt-stuffer ever!" Yes folks, my daughter has a future of stuffing turkey butts during the holiday seasons from now on and I couldn't be happier!

It's The Simple Things

It's the simple things in life that makes me happy. Today that happens to be Chinese food delivered by the best restaurant in our area, Chang's Chinese.


Ohhh, come to me Kung Pao Chicken! You look so yummy that you must pay a visit to my tummy! Yes, I just wrote that. I'm almost embarrassed enough to remove it and write something else in its place. Almost. Not quite enough. :)

Their Kung Pao Chicken is marvelous! And I DO mean MARVELOUS!!! It has just enough heat to send your taste buds looking for the nearest glass of water but not so much where it'll fry them either. You want that last bite of deliciousness to be as good as the first. Chang's doesn't overload the dish with peanuts or celery, which amazingly enough is pretty easy to do. The only thing you have to be careful of is not getting one of those fiery red peppers in a bite. I always pick those suckers out but every now and then one escapes my thorough inspection (which I guess isn't thorough enough) and I'll pay for it. Thankfully, tonight wasn't one of those times.

Also, you just gotta love a place that gives you enough food that it'll provide you with at least one leftover lunch (sometimes two). Mmmm, I love you Chang's!

BSM: Family Photo

Very rarely do we ever get a photo with all three of us in it. Or, on the rare occasions that we do, someone will have their eyes closed or a strange expression on their face. I love it when shots like this happen!

This photo was taken on July 4th, our first night in Creede. All the restaurants were overflowing with people and so we were very fortunate to find seating at this particular one. (Sorry, I've since forgotten the name of this place.) We waited for a spot to sit for nearly an hour and then we waited over an hour for our food. They were busy but the food was so worth the wait. And, our meal ended just in time for us to get to the top of a very big hill to watch the yearly fireworks show that is done off the side of a mountain. It was a wonderful way to spend our first day/night of vacation. I'm soooo ready to go back!

Planning Ahead

Violet's birthday isn't until August but I'm already thinking of what we're going to do this year. I can't help myself, I'm a planner. I'm not good with coming up with ideas at the last minute and so I like to plan ahead. Way ahead! Violet will turn five this year and so I was thinking a small party would be nice. While browsing my favorite blogs I came across these fabulous cakes at Parenting.com that just made me smile. What's even better is that they give you step-by-step instructions on how to recreate these fabulous cakes at home!

I've confessed on this blog several times that I'm not a baker. I really don't enjoy baking and I invariably screw something up. But these cakes just might provide the inspiration I need to actually try something at home this year!

For a garden or bug themed party you can have either lady bugs or a butterfly...


Violet has a grouping of pretty butterflies that I hung above her bed and she absolutely loves them! Maybe I'll make this cake for her...


Here's an adorable castle cake, perfect for a princess themed party...


For a boy who loves rocket ships there is always this...


Look at the detail of this fire-breathing dragon...


King of the jungle...


And I can't help but smile at this little fella...
[all photos courtesy of Kenneth Chen and Parenting.com]

Mmmm

[photo courtesy of PlateOfTheDay.com]

My lovely husband and beautiful daughter worked hard on a Red Velvet Cake for me while I was out of the house yesterday. I would take a photo for you but my camera is on the fritz so you'll have to look at someone else's handiwork for a visual image. Let me just tell you though, this cake is the lightest, fluffiest, and moistest cake I have ever had! I'm not exaggerating this either. From now on, my hubby will do cake duty in our house. I bet he'll enjoy hearing that bit of news but, seriously, he can bake and I can't. In the meantime, if you'll excuse me, I've got a slice of cake that is calling my name.

Popcorn

I know you were just dying to know how we make popcorn in our house, right? So, here I am, pleased to answer your curiosity. First, we use these items...


I open the plain brown lunch bag and pour in a fourth cup of popcorn. Fold the edges of the bag a couple of times. "Pop" it in the microwave (get it? "Pop"! I kill myself sometimes!) and set the timer for 3 minutes. The time varies and we usually take the bag out right before the timer beeps. Next, I put about a 1/2 TBSP of butter in a coffee mug and melt it in the microwave. While the butter is melting, I sprinkle about a 1/2 tsp of Kosher salt (give or take, I eye it with my hand) over the popped popcorn and give the bag a good shake. By this time the butter should have melted. Drizzle the butter over the popped, and salted, popcorn and give the bag another good shake. Pour the popcorn in a bowl and dig in!

(Sorry, not the best photo but it was all I took. My family was ready to dig in and were quite impatient as I tried to document this process for you guys!) This is really good popcorn even if I do say so myself. Not to mention, you can control the portion, salt and butter. Also, you know you aren't getting fake, chemically processed butter flavored popcorn.

Kosher Salt

[photo courtesy of Morton Salt]


Oh, where have I been in the world of salt? I've been stuck with the thought that regular ole' table salt is the same as everything else. Boy, was I wrong. I've used sea salt on occasion and enjoyed it but I never understood all the hype that surrounds it. I've wanted to try Kosher salt for a while now but was waiting till we ran out of our other salt. Why, oh why, did I wait? My taste buds had no idea what they were missing out on, that's why!

Kosher salt made it's way into my shopping cart and all I can say is "Wow!". Now, just so you don't think I've done alot of cooking with this, let me tell you all I've used it on so far was the popcorn I made today. Popcorn, you say? Yes, popcorn and it was so very tasty! I've learned that Kosher salt is bigger in size than regular table salt. In terms of using salt on popcorn, you need less Kosher salt for the same effect of the amount you would normally use with regular table salt. Did I mention, it's supper yummy too?

If you want to know how we make popcorn then let me share the simple, simple process. We use a plain paper sack, the kind you use for taking your lunch in. I add a 1/4 cup of popcorn to the bag and then fold the top of the bag over a couple of times. Pop the bag in the microwave and cook for two minutes and ten seconds (our microwave's automatic setting for a regular sized bag of popcorn). While the popcorn is cooking I shave a little butter off it's stick and put it in a coffee cup. Melt the butter (I pop mine into the microwave for a few seconds after the popcorn is done). Drizzle the butter on the popcorn (while still in the bag), sprinkle with some Kosher salt and then give the bag a good shake. Easy-peasy and healthier than the pre-packaged stuff.

Breakfast This Morning

[photo courtesy of The Pioneer Woman]

While contemplating what I would have for breakfast this morning I remembered reading this post on The Pioneer Woman blog. I decided to give it a try and I must say that I am SO glad I did! I made mine with a bit firmer egg but you get the idea of what my breakfast was like. I'm already looking forward to breakfast tomorrow. Wanna guess what I'm going to have?

Chili!

Okay folks, my desire for cooler weather is starting to go into overdrive. We love a good bowl of chili here in our house, especially during the cooler months. Well, while dreaming of Fall to arrive my taste buds took over and I just HAD to make chili! I know, chili isn't the healthiest meal I can make. That's not the point. The point is that it's comfort food and I was needing a healthy dose of that. So, chili is what we had and it was tasty!

BEEF...
(See that pretty pan? That was part of a set that my parents gave me for Christmas last year. I am SO loving my new stainless steel cookware set. Thanks Mom and Dad!)

The Ingredients...
(Don't let the "False Alarm" label fool you. This chili can get a little spicy, especially if you let it simmer longer than the recommended time.)

Frito Pie Fixins...


Some people like this with their chili...


I like THIS...
(Don't knock it until you've tried it. It really is good.)

Frito Pie Assembly ~ the chips...

Add the chili...

My not-so-secret topping...

And Cheese...


Then EAT UP...
(Please ignore the TV on in the background. I was distracted while fixing dinner and taking photos and forgot that it was on.)