I'm into bowls lately

I am loving throwing food into a bowl and tossing it around and calling it a meal.

This is a taco salad of sorts.  I had it for lunch.  Spinach, black beans, red onion, ground turkey taco meat, avocado, cheese, jalapenos and tomatoes.  That's it!  I topped it with salsa and called it a taco salad bowl.

Here is where I'm cooking these days.

I'm using all the old stuff from all our other houses for this house.  I mean isn't that what we all do.  The rug bugs me because it should be larger, but it's a rug and this is a rental blah blah blah....  

I have a cute kitchen with plentiful storage so I'm happy.   

I get to cook and put the food into bowls.

This one is pinterest inspired.

It is a sushi bowl with brown rice, cocktail shrimp, shredded carrots, avocado, cucumber slivers and green onions.  I topped it off with soy sauce and yum yum sauce.  

Hello easy sushi bowl!!

The whole family ate a variation of this bowl and we all liked it.  In our 1950's kitchen.

Stay tuned for the 1950's bathroom. 

my new favorite chicken

I recently discovered a new slow cooker chicken dish and I have to share it.

I feel like maybe I'm the last to know about this recipe and that is OK, but I know one of the four people who read my blog will not have eaten this, so I'm sharing!!
You need:
2 cups of water One packet of taco seasoning One packet of ranch seasoning
I used 8 boneless skinless chicken tenders, but you can also use boneless skinless chicken breasts.
Place the chicken in the slow cooker.  In a separate bowl mix all the other ingredients and pour over the chicken.  Cook on low for 4 hours or until chicken is done!
I cook the chicken and shred it, but you don't have to.  You can eat whole chicken breasts cooked in this mixture.  It's just so good. The possibilities are endless!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

chicken tamale casserole pin gone right, oh so right!

We have had so many school delays due to the weather.  It's been very frigid or snowy this entire month.  When I know I'm home all day I want to make something fun and different for dinner.  Soooo, I get on pinterest and search for ideas!  Pinterest is so very fun.  I found a great recipe to help pass the 'snow day' down time.  As you know, I enjoy being in the kitchen.  Sometimes the kids play together so well I get bored.  I have a problem.  When I get bored I cook.

Also another excuse to cook:  using the oven warms this old farm house kitchen.

I found this chicken tamale casserole recipe. 

I followed it pretty much except I made a few changes.  It's snowing and cold and I didn't have a can of creamed corn.  There is no way I was leaving to get a can, so I put a can of whole kernel corn in the blender and added heavy cream to it.  Viola...creamed corn.  I added a can of chopped green chilis to it for flavor.  Also I must note because of the heavy cream I cut the milk called for in the recipe in half.  I used 4 cooked chopped chicken breasts and I'm not sure if they equaled 3 cups of chicken, but the recipe was amazing anyway.  

Otherwise I followed the recipe.  Ahhhh!  It is OUTSTANDING!

  I am a tamale lover and one of my life long goals is to make tamales from scratch.  Gary and I both want to do this.   For now, this recipe satified my tamale craving.  

My two cents for today

Do you ever get sucked into pinterest?

I love pinterest quotes.  They make me happy.  When I find myself in a stressful situation I turn to reading, even if that reading is as silly as pinterest.  It makes me feel refreshed and revived.  
I won't post a ton about my personal feelings for now, but I will say moving from a big city to a small town is very different socially, as you can imagine.  It is exactly the town in which I want to raise my kids, but it is most certainly different than Fort Worth in the drama department ... if you know what I mean.  
All the experiences we encounter make us stronger.  They also make my children stronger because we all learn how to deal with personalities different from ours.  In closing, even if we as individuals feel scared or week or bullied at school, we come home to our safe place and bond as a family.  Our family unit is all that matters in the end.  
{All that being said, we are fine, just learning and growing and that is the best and most important part of life!  My job as a parent is to give my children "Roots and Wings."  They will see how I choose to deal with social situations and they will grow and learn by example.}

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

chicken & rice in the slow cooker

I have been searching for a chicken and rice recipe for some time now.  I wanted a comforting recipe but not too bland.  In my opinion chicken and rice screams boring.  

When I saw this recipe on pinterest I knew I had to try it.  

                                                                             Source: southernplate.com via Angie on Pinterest

I didn't follow the recipe exactly as posted because I wanted to use ingredients I had on hand.  So THIS is my version.

Ingredients

3 frozen boneless skinless chicken breasts thawed

1 medium onion roughly chopped

1 can of cream of chicken soup

1 box of rice a roni (any flavor you like) prepared

1 can of corn ( I used white and golden corn)

1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese

I also added a 1/2 can of chopped green chilies because I had them in the fridge.

I sprayed my slow cooker with Pam cooking spray and threw in the chicken breasts, topped them with the raw chopped onion and then added the can of cream of chicken soup.

I cooked this mixture in the slow cooker for about 4 hours on low depending on your slow cooker.  My cooker cooks really fast!

After the chicken is no longer pink then it's time to add the cheese, rice, corn and chilies.  That is what I did.  I added each additional ingredient and stirred after each addition.  The constant stirring actually shredded the chicken, so there were some small chunks and some larger pieces.

I am so happy with the way this recipe turned out.  I would say this was a great pin!

I served the chicken and rice with Ranch Style beans and cucumber salad.

My quick version of cucumber salad turned out pretty tasty.

1 cucumber peeled & chopped

1/2 cup chopped red onion

1 tablespoon finely chopped dill

lots a salt

2 tablespoons Ken's ranch dressing

I mixed it all up and let it get nice and chilly in the fridge.

  I am obsessed with dill right now.  I put it in my salads and it gives them great flavor.  I love this cucumber salad especially because I put dill in it!  I ate the entire cucumber salad in 2 days soooooo I am planning to make up another batch soon!

I am linking this post to my amazing friend Sarah's blog.  

Have you tried anything you've pinned lately?  If so, snap a few pics and link up with us too!

you do what you do and they do what they do

As the mom of two beautiful kids I have learned to not compare kids.  It was not easy and sometimes I slip up, but for my sanity it had to stop.  I try not to compare my kids to each other and I try not to compare my kids to other kids.  

My kids are completely different.  

For example: Layla was a great baby.  She was easy to sleep train, she was an early talker but physically she was lazy.  Hayden was a cry baby.  He cried for the first 6 months of his life.  When he wasn't sleeping, which he actually loved to do, he was crying.  He hardly ever said a word but lifted his head up 2 days after we brought him home from the hospital.  

He was completely different than his sister.  

Another example:  Layla drank formula until she was 12 months old.  Hayden hated formula and was drinking regular milk and eating solids at 6 months old.  He stopped crying all the time when he got 'real' food.

Why am I telling you this?  

As a mom of 2 kids, ages 6 and 3, I have learned you can't compare the two children.  I think it is human nature to compare kids.  

I also think it is human nature to compare moms to each other and to other moms....

Why don't I look like her?  Why is her house so clean?  Why does she drive that car?  Why do her kids sleep and mine don't? 

Why are we wasting the effort comparing ourselves to one another?  

We are who we are and God has us in this stage of life for a reason.  There will be lows and highs.  We all need to realize that.  I have let go of so much stress simply by NOT comparing myself to another mother or person.

It is hard for some of us to see the neighbor down the street that has a 4000 square foot home.  If we aren't in the same financial status as them, do we want the mortgage they pay?  Just because their house looks nice and big doesn't mean their life is any better.  Just because they have a Lexus parked in the driveway doesn't mean they are rich.  They may be struggling to pay for that gorgeous car and their marriage may be suffering because the husband is always at work to pay for that car.

Source: stumbleupon.com via Angie on Pinterest

We shouldn't compare our lives to the lives of someone else.  We just don't know what is going on inside their lives.  Let's focus on ourselves!

I think being confident in who we are and what we are doing comes with age.  

As a brand new mom I spent time when Layla was really little comparing her to another baby boy her age.  I didn't know any better.  I thought she should be doing the same things HE was doing.  Today both kids are great.  They are excelling in school and I feel silly thinking back to the wasted time I spent worrying about her development.  I totally stressed myself out worrying about why she wasn't walking when he was.  Those days of worry could have been days no stress, but I was wearing myself out with worry.

All this said for a reason... 

Source: fashionetal.blogspot.com via tasha on Pinterest

I have learned to focus on my family.  The four people in my house need my attention.  I need to be stress free and worry free so I can focus on our family.  I don't need to be worrying about things beyond my control.  I try not to worry about things that aren't my business.  When I am weak I say a prayer.  I pray that God reminds me to live in the moment and understand this is all happening for a reason and soon my "now" will be tomorrow. Life goes my so fast.  Be happy!


Andddd I am stepping down from my soap box now.

Source: etsy.com via Angie on Pinterest

Have a great Monday!

Fun ways to play with food

I love pinterest and I had to share some fun ideas I saw tonight while watching
Nascar, college football and the Rangers!

Source: skiptomylou.org via Angie on Pinterest

Source: family.go.com via Angie on Pinterest

Source: tablespoon.com via Angie on Pinterest

Source: 7thhouseontheleft.com via Angie on Pinterest

Source: bhg.com via Angie on Pinterest

Source: heatherannmelzer.typepad.com via Angie on Pinterest

I love fall and I really love all the fun treats I can make for the kids this time of year!

If I don't follow you on pinterest leave your information in the comments, I'd love to follow you :)

I hope you are having a great weekend.

Go Rangers & Go Jimmie Johnson...whooohooo!

The best fall cookie

Oatmeal ... Pumpkin ...White Chocolate Chips

 ... enough said!

Pumpkin.Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients

2 cups flour

1 ½ cups  oatmeal {I use the quick oats}

1 tsp baking soda

1 ½ tsp cinnamon

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

½ teaspoon salt

2 sticks butter ... softened

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup sugar

1 cup pumpkin puree

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla 

1 cup white chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 350. Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray. Combine flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and salt in a bowl. Mix butter, brown sugar and sugar in large until fluffy.

Add pumpkin, egg and vanilla. Mix well. Combine until all ingredients are incorporated. Stir in white chocolate chips.  Drop by rounded tablespoons onto baking sheets.

Bake for 12-14 minutes or until cookies are lightly browned. Let cool on a wire rack.

Please go visit MyBakingAddiction.  

I am so glad I did.  I found this recipe and several others I can't wait to try. 

Seriously, these are the best cookies and they are perfect for this time of year!  Everyone goes pumpkin crazy right now and these were a perfect fit for my pumpkin craving.  And the white chocolate chips are the icing on the cake eerrr  I mean cookie :)

Enjoy!

Salsa chicken

Guess what?

One of my favorite things to do is browse recipe websites. 

Have you visited FoodGawker.com?  

Oh me, oh my!  Sometimes I browse recipes until my eyes glaze over.  I know that is unhealthy. heehee!

  I love getting ideas of new things to cook for my little family.  

You know this about me, I have said it a million times.

I found this recipe while browsing...you guessed it...Pinterest.  

I feel like a broken record...haha!  I am a little addicted to Pinterest.  I could be addicted to much worse things right?! heehee!  

I know this recipe has been posted on twitter and several blogs, but I also know many of my readers don't read other blogs or have the twit.  So, I am sharing it with y'all! 

I made it and we all loved it.  I have to say, I usually ALWAYS change recipes I see online.  Sometimes I don't have the ingredients so I wing it using what I have.  Or in this case...I am not a fan of cream of chicken soup.  I will use it, but not often.  The thought of bits of chicken floating around with cream in a can just doesn't sound good to me.  I know the same is true for mushroom soup...there are mushrooms in cream, but it just doesn't seem weird to me.  ha ha!  If other people cook with it I'm good with it.  I do use it, but anyway, on to the recipe:

Ingredients ~

4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 can of cream of mushroom soup

1 cup of salsa (I used Texas Longhorn salsa)

1 package taco seasoning

1 cup sour cream

Directions ~

Place the chicken breasts in the slow cooker.  In a bowl mix soup, salsa and taco seasoning.  Pour over the chicken breasts.  Cook on low for 4-6 hours.  The chicken usually shreds on its own.  It is just so tender, but if necessary shred the chicken and return it back to the slow cooker.  Stir in sour cream and heat for another 10 minutes.  {the chicken pictured above is not shredded.  I cooked the breasts less time than recommended.}

I served it with Spanish rice and slow cooker "charra" beans.  The chicken wasn't too spicy, but the sauce has a kick to it.  The kids thought it was to spicy.  The 'spice' can be toned down with a milder salsa. The rice I made is called Mahatma Spanish Rice.   It was the first time I made this brand of Spanish Rice and it was good!

But anyway, back to the sauce...

This sauce is so good.  I am planning to make it and pour it over chicken enchiladas.  

Can you imagine?  

Yum!  I actually think I can cook this just the same in the slow cooker.  Then shred the chicken and roll it into tortillas and then pour the sauce on the tortillas and add some shredded cheese. I dunno I'm thinking out loud, but I just love all the different ways I can make different recipes.  

I love to experiment with food and I am so thankful for a husband that eats what I cook. 

BUT ... He has some really great food ideas too.  Gary is the 'left over' idea king.  I always joke with him about being a bachelor at heart. {In my opinion bachelors don't eat pretty food, they just eat whatever they have on hand.}  He has been known to get up in the morning, fry an egg and pour the Salsa chicken sauce over it on a bed of tortilla chips.  

We never have wasted left overs in this house.  We once had leftover hamburger helper and eggs for breakfast.  If you ever need leftover ideas Gary is your man :)

So thanks for listening/reading my food rants! 

I hope you have a great Monday....Don't forget to add this recipe to your meal plan for the week or next week :)

ham & swiss poppy seed sliders

What is a slider you ask?

Slider:  small, greasy sandwich that slides down easily into your belly.

We have made mini sandwiches a million times.  They never get old.  And they are perfect because they are small and you get just the amount of deliciousness you want.  I typically never over indulge on sliders.

I found this slider recipe on Pinterest.  

Once I saw it I new Gary would love it.

He did. We both did.

Here is the recipe I pinned...

BubbleCrumb.com

Look at that crispy bread.  Oh, these little sammies were so rich and delicious.

Here is what I used:

12 honey wheat Hawaiian dinner rolls

12 pieces ham

12 small slices Swiss cheese

mayonnaise for slathering the rolls

Poppy seed sauce
1 tablespoon poppyseeds
1  tablespoons yellow mustard

1/2 sticks butter, melted
1 tablespoon onion powder

1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

Cut the rolls in half.  Smear them with mayo and top with generous amounts of ham and Swiss cheese. Close them up and place them all squeezed into a Pyrex baking dish.  Mix the sauce and then pour the sauce over the sliders.  Bake in a 350 degree oven covered in foil for 35 minutes.

  

You will love them, and with football season coming up, they are the perfect football food.

*****

For my family and other people who don't understand Pinterest...

Pinterest is an online bulletin board. You can save ideas and recipes from all over the internet in one easy location. You can read about it here.

You can find all my pin boards here.  And just my recipe board is here.

I haven't made all the recipes I have pinned but I hope to :)

bacon egg and cheese biscuit muffins

I have been loving Pinterest.  

I pin all kinds of recipes that look delicious.  It is dangerous for me...haha!

I pinned this recipe.  

I was so excited when I made it because it was so easy and super yummy.  I just had to share it.  It is the perfect recipe for new parents.  I remember being so hungry in the morning after a long sleepless night.  One meal that we received after Hayden was born was fresh hot muffins, sausage balls and a container of orange juice.  These muffins would be awesome too.

Bacon egg and cheese biscuit nuffins.

I made the recipe exactly as it reads.  Typically I change something, but this time I didn't.

You will need :

3 eggs (beaten)

3 TBS milk

1/3 cup of shredded cheddar cheese

4 slices of bacon

and 

salt and pepper.

You will also need 1 package of biscuit dough...10 biscuits.

I flattened out the biscuits and put them into the bottom of a muffin tin.

Then, I topped the raw biscuits with cheese.

And then poured the egg and milk mixture over the cheese and biscuits.  

Don't over fill the muffin tins or it will be very messy.

Then I topped the mixture with bacon pieces.

Bake on 400 for 10-12 minutes.

I made these and banana nut muffins for breakfast and we were all happy!

Go visit the website Cooking with my Kid.  I printed the recipe from the website.  

And there are many other fun recipes there too.

I am a sucker for breakfast.  I just love breakfast foods.  

I am loving that the kids are out of school because they are here to eat all the recipes I am trying this summer.  I feel like I have more time to cook the summer.  I love it!

What have you been cooking this summer?