Night Love

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I don’t use a lot of seasoning salt when cooking, but when I found this recipe for homemade seasoning salt, I thought it would be a good seasoning to have on hand. 

And, of course, after I mixed some up, I had to try it out, so I used it on some of our grain-fed, all-natural beef. It tastes just like the seasoning salt from the store, minus all the preservatives. Yummy!

The recipe makes a lot, so it’s a great value too!

Homemade Seasoning Salt
From Budget Savvy Diva

1/3 cup table salt
2 tablespoons white sugar
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
Pinch of cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes (optional)

Mix altogether and store in an airtight bag or spice jar. 

Liesl is so proud of the watermelon she grew! Look how huge it is…almost half the height of Liesl!! And it tastes delicious too! Yay gardening 🙂

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1. Tony Moly – I’m Green Tea Mask Sheet, made in Korea, full size, $3.00 retail value
2. Korres – Wild Rose Advanced Brightening Sleeping Facial, made in Greece, .68 fl. oz., $24.17 retail value
3. Schmidts – Rose & Vanilla Natural Deodorant, made in the USA, .7 oz., $1.93 retail value
4. Origins – GinZing Refreshing Eye Cream, made in the USA, .17 oz., $10.54 retail value
5. Coola – Face Mineral Sunscreen, made in the USA, .17 oz., $3.60 retail value
6. bareMinerals – Complexion Rescue Tinted Hydrating Gel Cream, made in the USA, foil sample in 4 shades

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3rd – iRobot Roomba 690 Wi-Fi Connect Robotic Vacuum, V35244, $329.94 or 6 payments of $54.99, check out my review of Roomba here.

4th – KitchenAid Five Speed Ultra Power Hand Mixer, K46716, $36.12 or 2 payments of $18.06, comes in 8 colors

5th – Ultrafine Silver Polished Chain, 16″ J351576 for $29.00 or 18″ J351579 for $32.00 or 20″ J351580 for $34.00 or 24″ J351582 for $39.00 or 36″ J351583 for $59.00, available in 5 payments and choice of rope, wheat, flat bead or margherita  

6th – Dyson Supersonic Hair Dryer with Two Living Proof Products & Travel Bag, A301646, $399.00 or 6 payments of $66.50, comes in 3 colors

7th – HP 15.6″-17.3″ Touch Laptop, E231234, $429.96-$529.96, available in 6 payments and 7 colors

8th – Cook’s Essentials 5.3 Qt Digital Air Fryer with Ten Presets, K46619, $89.92 or 5 payments of $17.98, comes in 8 colors

9th – Susan Graver Solid or Printed Stretch Peachskin  bomber jacket, A301462, $59.40 or 5 payments of $11.88, 5 pattern/color choices

10th – Bethlehem Lights Estate Pre-lit Green or Flocked Collection, H212555, $39.96, choice of wreath, garland or tree & choice of multi or clear lights

11th – California Innovations Set of Six Insulated Totes with Gift Bags, K46612, $29.98 or 2 payments of $14.99, 4 pattern/color choices

12th – Dennis Basso 68″ x 60″ Oversized Sculpted Faux Fur Throw, H213626, $44.94 or 3 payments of $14.98, comes in 7 colors, check out my reviews here and here.

13th – bareMinerals Deluxe Holiday Collection, A302273 or A/D A302892 (new radiance and lip shades in March 2018, only 2 shipments), $62.94 or 3 payments of $20.98, comes in 8 shades 

14th – Skechers Go Walk Suede & Faux Fur Boots, A301464, $58.80 or 5 payments of $11.76, comes 7 colors

15th – Amazon Fire 7″ Tablets with Custom Cases, E231020, comes in a set of 2 for $89.95 or a set of 4 for $149.95, available in 6 payments and 4 colors

16th- Cuddl Duds Fleecewear Stretch Hood Cardigan, A301459, $24.98 or 2 payments of $12.49, comes in 4 colors and 3 patterns

17th – Affinity 98 Facet Diamond Band Ring, J352055, $1199.00 available in 6 payments, comes in yellow or white 14K gold

18th – Martha Stewart 4.25 lb Turkey Breast with Herb Butter & Two 2 lb Sides, M55839, $99.95 available in 5 payments, A/D available and 2 additional ship dates of 11/13 and 12/11, choice of 6 different sides combos

19th – Malden Mills Polar Fleece Sheet Set with Extra Pillow Cases, Twin H213620 for $25.00 or Twin XL H213621 for $25.00 or Full H213622 for $28.00 or Queen H213623 for $34.00 or King H213624 for $40.00 or California King H213625 for $40.00, available in 3 payments and 6 colors

20th – Peter Thomas Roth 6.7 oz Mega Size Retinol PM, A277742 or A/D, $114.00 available in 6 payments

21st – Halo Bolt ACDC Portable Charger & Car Jumper with AC Outlet, E230549, $99.96 available in 5 payments and 8 colors, check out my review

22nd – Copper Chef Ten Piece Cerami-Tech Non-Stick Cookware Set, K47078 $79.98 available in 6 payments

23rd – Isaac Mizrahi Two Ply Cashmere V-Neck Tunic Sweater, A301460, $129.80, available in 6 payments, comes in 5 colors

24th – Ring Floodlight Security Camera Wide Angle HD Two Way Talk with 3 Year Warranty, E231400, $219.95 available in 5 payments, comes in black or white. I ordered it, check out my review! In the meantime, check out my review of the Ring Video Doorbell. FYI – next month they come out with their home security system.

25th – Amazon Fire TV Stick with Music Offer & Alexa Voice Remote, E231466, $39.98 available in 2 payments

26th – Clarks Cloud Steppers Wedge Ankle Boots, A301454, $72.80 or 5 payments of $14.56, comes in 5 colors

27th – Lug RFID Convertible Crossbody Bag, F12881, $39.96, comes in 7 colors

28th – Duraflame 28″ Electric Lantern with Infrared Heat, V35256, $89.95 or 5 payments of $17.99, comes in 6 colors

30th – NuFace Trinity Microcurrent Facial Toning Device, A297401, $299.94 available in 6 payments and 3 colors

31st – Lay/N/Go Set of Two 21″ Cosmo Plus Storage & Travel Bags, V35257, $29.96 or 2 payments of $14.98, comes in 5 patterns 

November 

1st – Ecolution Set of Three 3 Qt Microwave Popcorn Poppers, K46614, $29.98 or 2 payments of $14.99, comes in 9 colors

2nd – Marc Fisher Calf Leather Tall Shaft Boots, Medium A301455 or Wide A301456, $124.80 or 5 payments of $24.96, comes in 5 colors

I will update these as soon as preorder information is released. Please show your support for this blog by checking out the following referral offers for companies I recommend:

Because girls weekend was in Columbus, I went a night early to spend some extra time with Kathy, Joe and sweet Sebastian. On Saturday morning, Joe made me a delicious smoothie after my run that totally hit the spot. It had just the right amount of sweetness and the oats really made it filling. I could only eat about half of it. 

Joe said he also tried with chocolate chips but found it to be a bit too chunky and chewy for a smoothie. I might try mini chocolate chips to see if that helps. A little cocoa powder or peanut butter would be good too.

Thanks Joe for the great breakfast recipe! Every time I have one, I’ll be thinking of you 😉

Banana Oatmeal Cookie Smoothie
Courtesy of The Joseph Wilson

2 frozen bananas
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup milk

Add everything to the blender or a glass if you’re using an immersion or hand blender. Blend until smooth. Enjoy!

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While everyone else has seemed to move onto Christmas, I’m still enjoying Fall and decided to try some autumn-themed decorations I had seen on Pinterest.

The first was a pumpkin made out of mason jar or canning jar rings. I had about a dozen left over from canning this summer, so had to buy another box. You can find them for around $3 for a dozen at Wal-Mart, a dollar store, Kroger, etc. 

Lay all the rings out on a piece of cardboard or paper and spray paint with inexpensive orange spray paint (avoid the day-glo orange though!). Flip them over after they dry and paint the other side. Let dry completely, then put them all on a string (all facing the same direction) and tie the string in a knot, arranging the rings into a circle/pumpkin shape. You’ll have to tie a pretty tight knot for it to keep its shape. You can do any number of things for the stem and leaf….I opted to use rolled up burlap and a green ribbon. I’ve also seen them done with a stick and green felt, string, etc.

Since I had the orange spray paint out already, my second project was another pumpkin, this time made from wine corks. Pull out 25 wine corks, spray paint orange (one side at a time) and glue together in a pumpkin shape using hot glue. Start with four, then five, then six, then five, then four. Again, for the stem and leaf you could do about anything, I used burlap and ribbon.

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I love chicken wings almost as much as I love pizza. I found raw chicken wings on sale at Kroger the other week and so I decided to make our own at home. 

My favorite chicken wings are the garlic Parmesan and chipolte BBQ dust from Buffalo Wild Wings and so I looked up a copycat recipes online. I could only find the garlic parm recipe, so that’s what I went with. I didn’t want to fry the wings to keep somewhat healthy and so I also found a recipe for baked chicken wings that are just as crispy at their fried counterparts. 

They turned out so good!! Almost exactly like BW3s and a little better for you since they were baked 🙂 Though it sounded really weird, the boiling the wings did make them nice and crispy in the oven. 

BW3s Parmesan Garlic Chicken Wings
Adapted from Fifteen Spatulas and Epic Porportions

1 to 2 lbs chicken wings
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Heat up a big pot of boiling water. Season the water like you would for cooking pasta.
 
Boil the chicken wings for 7-8 minutes, then remove them to a wire rack so the excess water can drain off. 

Let them drip dry a little bit, then dry them well with a paper towel.
 
Season the chicken wings lightly with salt (though if you salted the boiling water enough, it won’t need much, if any). Place the chicken wings directly on a sheet pan. Bake the chicken wings for 30 minutes on one side, then flip the wings and bake for another 10 minutes on the other side.

Combine the rest of the ingredients in a big bowl, add the cooked chicken wings and coat well. Serve immediately. 

Along with lip balm and body scrub, I also made some homemade body butter. Seriously, this was ridiculously easy. You take coconut oil, add it to your mixer, and just let it whip into a luscious, creamy mixture. Add in several drops of essential oils if you want a scent other than coconut and put into jars. Really, that’s it! 

You only have to use a little on your body to go a long way too. I used too much and it ended up feeling too greasy. 

What I spent:
Coconut Oil — $6.97
Essential Oil — $3.99 (I only used about 1/3 so $1.33)
Jars — $7.00 

Total cost — $15.30 or $1.53 per jar

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My kiddos birthdays are less than a month apart, so this year, to make it easier on our out-of-town family and friends, I decided to hold both parties on the same day, back-to-back. By the end of the weekend, I was totally exhausted, but it ended up being a great day! In keeping with the clean eating lifestyle we’ve adapted, I decided to make both parties as clean as possible.

For Gavin’s bday party, I did a barnyard theme and served Hen House Chicken Sandwiches, Dairy Barn Mac and Cheese, Garden Patch Veggies and Animal Feed Chips and Pretzels. Clever names huh? 🙂 For dessert, we had clean cupcakes with all-natural frosting. (Check out the recipe here. They were the same cupcakes I made for the mine and the hubby’s birthdays) Minus the pretzels and slider buns, everything was all-natural, clean and delicious 🙂 Check out all the recipes below:

Chicken Sandwiches
4 large cans of chunk chicken (double check the ingredients to make sure it’s just chicken and water, with no preservatives)
Equivalent of 2 cans of cream of chicken (see recipe here)
1 sleeve of crackers (saltine, tollhouse, etc) adding more if too runny

Mix everything together in crockpot and cook on low for 1-2 hours before serving.
Mac and Cheese
Adapted from Kitchen Treaty

8 oz. (1/2 pound or about 1¾ cups) macaroni or other medium tubular pasta (like penne or conchiglie) (I found that Trader Joe’s has the best prices on organic, all-natural pasta…$1 for a pound!)
3 tablespoons butter
¼ cup flour
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon dry mustard
¼ teaspoon black pepper
2½ cups 2% milk
3 cups grated medium cheddar cheese or whatever cheese you have on hand

Boil the pasta until al dente, according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cool water to stop the cooking, and return to the pan you boiled it in. Set aside. (Mix in a little butter to keep the noodles from sticking if it’s going to be awhile before you make the sauce)
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Over medium heat, melt the butter.
Add the flour, salt, dry mustard, pepper, and ⅛ teaspoon smoked paprika. Stir constantly over medium heat for about three minutes.
Stir in the milk.
Keeping on medium heat, whisk constantly for about 10 minutes, until the sauce thickens.
Remove from heat, and stir in 2 cups of the cheese, stirring until melted.
Pour the cheese sauce over the noodles and toss gently until all noodles are covered.
Add half the noodles to a two quart casserole dish.
Sprinkle on half the cheese.
Add the rest of the noodles.
Sprinkle on the rest of the cheese, and dust lightly with the smoked paprika.
Bake for about 25-30 minutes, until it starts getting a slightly dry and a tiny bit brown on top. 

Veggie Tray
I just cut up fresh green and yellow peppers from our garden, carrots from our garden, celery and broccoli and served with hummus and all-natural ranch dressing. 

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Plated has provided me with another box worth $72 to give away. Plated will send the winner one shipment that includes three recipes and the ingredients needed to make three meals for two people for a total of six servings. Above photo shows an example of one recipe. Enter via Rafflecopter:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The winner must be over 18 years old, have never subscribed to Plated, provide me with their name and email address to give to Plated, provide Plated their credit card number in case they want to continue with the service past the first box and live in the US (not in Hawaii & Alaska). Winner will be sent an email from Plated and simply need to click on the link to redeem their free Plated box online. To cancel future shipments: visit their website and go to my account settings, scroll down to the bottom and chose “cancel subscription” or to skip future shipments select weekly menus and chose “skip week”. They ship to most of the US except Hawaii, Alaska and a few cities in TX including San Antonio, Corpus Christi, Laredo & Midland. Box is shipped via FedEx and arrives at your doorstep on your choice of Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday or Saturday. Vegetarian meals are also offered.

Learn more about Plated by visiting my Plated Pinterest Board. Click on the photos that interest you and it will take you to my matching blog post which provides a review of that recipe. Be sure to check out my reviews of Blue Apron, Green Blender, Green Chef, Hello Fresh, Home Chef, Marley Spoon, Plated, Sun Basket and Terra’s Kitchen. 

Bargain Alert: 

Gobble Meal Kits, Soup, Cookies, Bread, Cocktail Mixes – Two free meals

Hello Fresh Meal Kits – $40 Off

Home Chef Meal Kits, Smoothies & Prepared Salads – $30 Off

Sun Basket Meal Kits – $50 Off 1st Two Boxes *
Terra’s Kitchen Meal Kits, Smoothies & Prepared Salads, Soup, Drinks & Snacks – $40 Off

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Chicken & Waffles with Sautéed Spinach

Ingredients

Sesame Crusted Ahi Tuna Tataki with Kohlrabi Noodles & Ponzu Dressing

Ingredients

Thai Coconut Curry Chicken Soup

Ingredients

Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

This is a review of our 1st delivery from a weekly food subscription meal kit called Gobble. Meals cost $11.95 per serving and shipping is free. There are eight meals to chose from plus two cookie types, three soups, garlic bread and Mac and Cheese. Two soups are currently $5.95 a serving and the third one is $4.50. Cookies are $1.95 per serving, garlic bread $2.95 per serving and Mac & Cheese is $5.95 per serving. I ordered two meal kits and two servings of soup and I received two free cookies. I gave all three meals four out of five stars. The recipe cards are 5″ X 8 1/2″ on card stock paper and in color with photographs. Hubby said the instructions were concise and easy to follow. The packaging is similar to that of Blue Apron’s with the silver bubble wrap bag that everything is sealed into with a couple of ice packs. Preparation time indicated the recipe cards ranged from ten to fifteen minutes. Actual preparation time ranged from ten to forty-eight minutes. Calories ranged from 340-970. I don’t have the calorie count on the cookies.

Chicken & Waffles with Sautéed Spinach

If you haven’t had chicken & waffles yet, you must find a restaurant that serves them or make them yourself. While it might seem like a strange combination, it’s a real treat! I bet you’ll love it as much as we do. This recipe has 970 calories, like I said it’s a treat, but worth it since it’s so tasty. I gave it four out of five stars. It needed more maple syrup. Also, I wasn’t crazy about the maple butter, I prefer honey butter. The waffles were just a bit too sweet for me, I could really taste the sugar. I didn’t care for the side dish of the spinach. I normally love spinach, but it needed some garlic and spices instead of just salt & pepper. The chicken was tasty with the panko breading on it. It took forty-eight minutes to prepare while the recipe indicates only fifteen minutes. All of the ingredients were in great shape and it was a filling meal.

Sesame Crusted Ahi Tuna Tataki with Kohlrabi Noodles & Ponzu Dressing

Hubby & I fell in love with this dish, it was so scrumptious! We gave it four out of five stars. To hit five stars, I would have liked some more salad greens and I would have preferred non dyed ginger and zucchini noodles instead of Kohlrabi. It was also a bit on the light side, more of the noodles and greens would have made it more filling. All of the ingredients arrived in great shape. This recipe only has 540 calories. Preparation time indicated on the recipe card is fifteen minutes. It actually took thirty-seven minutes to prepare. If I saw this recipe offered soon I wouldn’t hesitate to purchase it again. 

Thai Coconut Curry Chicken Soup

This recipe is already prepared, all I had to do is warm it up in about ten minutes in a pot and then squeeze some fresh lime over it. It comes in a plastic bag in which they suggest you lay it in a pot of boiling water for eight to ten minutes. I prefer not to cook in plastic due to the chemicals that are released from plastic when it is heated up. So Hubby warmed it up for me in the pot without the bag or water. It was really delicious and I give it four out of five stars. To hit five stars it would have had to be more chunky. Some of the mushrooms were full size, but most of the chicken had fallen apart and wasn’t in little cubes anymore. Also, in the photo it showed fresh cilantro and green onions tossed on top. I would have liked to have been sent some separate from the soup to dress the soup myself and have the same appetizing presentation as shown on the recipe card. This one has 340 calories per serving, but since I wasn’t eating anything else and it was dinnertime I ate both servings to be full. Perhaps if I made a mini loaf of bread to go with it I would have been able to stop at one serving. It was so delicious that I decided to forgo the bread and eat all of the scrumptious soup. While it didn’t taste spicy, my lips were tingling after I was done. It would have been nice to have a bit more spice, but I know the average customer doesn’t like as much spice as I do, so it’s ok. I would definitely order this one again, yum!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

It was a nice surprise to receive two free cookies with our 1st order. The cookie dough came in the form of two balls. The recipe says to cook them for 12-15 minutes at 375 degrees. I cooked them for fifteen minutes. The were a bit on the crisp side and the second one that I ate the next day was completely crisp. I’m picky about the chocolate used in my chocolate chip cookies. Since I rarely endulge in cookies, I prefer to bake with Ghirardelli milk chocolate chips and Irish Butter. If I’m going to treat myself, I want extremely high quality ingredients and a strong flavor. I also find that cookies taste better having been cooked right after the cookie dough is prepared. If you wait to cook them, they just don’t taste as good.

While I’m always nervous trying a new meal kit, I’m happy to report that it was an enjoyable week of recipes. I would recommend this company and I plan to order another week of recipes soon. I really like how the cooking times are less than the competition and that I can order some already prepared foods for times when I don’t have the time or energy to prepare them from scratch. Has anyone tried their Mac & Cheese, garlic bread or any of their other soups? Looks yummy, I’m tempted. What’s your favorite meal kit subscription company? If you would like to give this one a try, be sure to snag my coupon  below which gives you a discount of 33%.

Bargain Alert:

Gobble – 33% off your 1st box

Green Chef – Four Free Meals
Hello Fresh – $40 off
Home Chef – $30 Off

Sun Basket – $35 Off

Be sure to check out my other meal kit subscription reviews before you go! I have reviewed eight Green Chef boxes, fourteen Hello Fresh boxes, fifty-five Home Chef and twenty-two Sun Basket boxes. I invite you to follow my blog via Pinterest, Twitter, Google +, Bloglovin’, or Networked Blogs. Please share this post via Twitter & Facebook: Tweet !function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],p=/^http:/.test(d.location)?’http’:’https’;if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=p+’://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js’;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document, ‘script’, ‘twitter-wjs’);

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This is another recipe that has been in the rotation for a long time that I was pleased to realize was clean without any modifications. This is a great dish to make for someone who just had a baby or needs a meal, because it freezes and reheats really well. I like to make mine with green beans and then add in some of the extra sliced almonds in with the green beans before I serve them. Really ties the meal together!

Almond Chicken Dijon
4 chicken breasts pounded down to about 1 inch thick (frozen or fresh)
Equal parts dijon mustard and Helman’s mayo (for 4 chicken breasts, I use about 2 tablespoons of each)
1/2 cup to 1 cup of sliced almonds

Put chicken in oven-safe dish and season with salt and pepper. Mix together mustard and mayo and spread over the chicken. Sprinkle almonds over chicken and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, until chicken is cooked through. That’s it! Super easy and super yummy!

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Have a PEACEful Day!

Before I started the whole journey to eating clean, I did a 10-day Advocare Cleanse to clear out my system, so to speak. It did wonderful things for my energy levels and helped get my mindset into eating clean. Well, nine months later, I decided I needed another push of the reset button. I’ve been doing really well overall, but summer has been hard for overeating and not choosing good foods. So, I am doing another cleanse, but this time I am doing the Flat Belly Diet 4-day Anti-Bloat Cleanse.

I am not a fan of diets at all because I think they set you up for eating unrealistically and while you may have success at the beginning, it usually fades pretty quickly. I’m more for lifestyle changes that you can adopt for the rest of your life. I came across the Flat Belly Diet and was skeptical at first, but after reading through the book, I decided to try the cleanse and then adopt some of the diet. The diet is basically a 1600-calorie Mediterranean diet that includes a MUFA (monounsaturated fat) in every meal. You can read more about it here and here.

I’ll talk more about the diet as I go along, but I wanted to tell you all about the cleanse. I definitely felt less bloated afterwards, but pretty hungry each day. I definitely did not consume enough calories for my 14k training and bonked on one of my runs. Overall, it was a great way to reset my appetite and I did lose a few pounds. I will continue to drink the Sassy Water because was very refreshing and suppressed my appetite.

Here’s what was on the menu for each day (plus my modifications). I took some creative liberties and swapped out some of the sides and changed them between days:

Day 1
Breakfast
1 c unsweetened cornflakes
1 c skim milk
1/2 c unsweetened applesauce (I did not eat this…gross)
1/2 c raw or roasted sunflower seeds
1 glass sassy water

Lunch
4 oz turkey
1 light string cheese
1 pt fresh grape tomatoes
glass of sassy water

Smoothie: 1 c skim milk,1 c frozen blueberries blended then add 1 Tbsp cold pressed organic flaxseed oil (This can be eaten as a mid-morning, mid-afternoon or after dinner snack…whenever you need the pick-me-up)

Dinner
1 c fresh/frozen cooked green beans
4 oz grilled/cooked tilapia
1/2 c roasted red potatoes drizzled with 1 tsp olive oil.

Day 2
Breakfast
1 c Rice Krisipies
1 c skim milk
1/4 c sunflower seeds
4 oz pineapple tidbits canned in juice (left this out…not a pineapple fan either)
glass of sassy water

Lunch
3 oz light tuna in water (I did turkey every day b/c I don’t like tuna)
1 c steamed baby carrots (I used raw, regular carrots…too much sugar in the baby ones)
1 light string cheese
Sassy water

Smoothie: 1 c skim milk, 4 oz canned pineapple tidbits in juice in blender, stir in 1 tbsp flax oil

Dinner
1 c fresh crimini (bella) mushrooms sauteed in 1 tsp olive oil
3 oz grilled chicken breast
1/2 c brown rice
Sassy water

Day 3
Breakfast
Same as Day 1 except for 2 Tbsp raisins instead of applesauce

Lunch
Same as Day 1

Smoothie: use 1 c frozen peaches w/ 2 tsp flax oil

Dinner
Same as day 1 except for 3oz baked turkey cutlet instead of fish. (I did chicken again)

Day 4
Breakfast
1 pkg instant cream of wheat
1 c skim milk
1/4 c sunflower seed
2 dried plums

Lunch
Same as Day 1

Smoothie use 1 c frozen strawberries/2 tsp flax oil

Dinner
1 c fresh/frozen yellow squash sauteed in 1 tsp olive oil
3 oz grilled chicken breast
1/2 c brown rice
Sassy water

During 4 days you also must avoid coffee, any soft drink, sweeteners, salt, excess carbs, bulky raw food, gassy foods, gum, fried foods, spicy foods.

The Sassy Water Recipe

2 liters water (about 8 ½ cups)1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
1 medium cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced
1 medium lemon, thinly sliced
12 small spearmint leaves.
Combine all ingredients in a large pitcher and let flavors blend overnight.
Drink the entire pitcher by the end of each day.

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KitchenAid Countertop Convection Oven

This is a review of QVC’s Today’s Special Value (TSV) that will air on the 24th of this month. You can preorder it now with item number K46355. It’s offered for $99.96 or 5 monthly payments of $19.99 plus shipping and handling of $7.50. It comes in black, cobalt blue, silver and gloss cinnamon. After North Carolina tax and shipping, my purchase price was $114.95. I ordered on the 16th of August and it said “advance order” with an estimated delivery date of September 28th. It shipped on the 19th of August instead. Since it shipped from California instead of the east coast it took longer than most of my orders, so it arrived on the 25th. It’s currently indicating that it’s in stock. I purchased the cinnamon color since the rest of my KitchenAid appliances are that color along with some other appliances. We have an open concept home and our paint color in the dining room is burgundy and in the kitchen it’s yellow, so I really like having the appliances match closely to our burgundy walls. We were disappointed to see that the only cinnamon painted surface on the oven is the front of the toaster, the rest is silver. Months ago our old toaster oven started burning since there was a hole on one of the elements. Thankfully, Hubby was able to put out the fire. I was sleeping at the time, so I didn’t witness it. But that’s just a reminder to us all that you need to supervise any appliance when it’s in use. I’ve been really missing our toaster oven since we live in the south and the majority of the months it’s hot and turning on the large oven heats up the kitchen. Then the air conditioning has to work harder which costs more money. We were in the process of relocating back to our other house, so I put off buying a replacement toaster oven since it would be just another item to pack and move. When I heard that QVC was having a toaster oven as a TSV and it was in that hard to find cinnamon color I preordered it right away. Not to mention the price of $99.96 is pretty good for a toaster oven and really good for a large toaster oven. This one will allow you to cook much larger dishes than your traditional toaster oven. I’ve really been enjoying that aspect of it. I home cook for our four dogs, so this is prefect for cooking their chicken and fish without the dread of turning on the regular oven and heating up the house. My first impression was the noise of the timer was annoying. I do not like that sound! I figured out that you don’t have to use the timer to turn the oven on and that I don’t hear it if I’m in the living room. If I’m remaining in the kitchen I use my regular oven’s timer instead. It’s the same sound those little hand crank timers make. The first thing I cooked in the oven were croissants. They baked perfectly on the included pizza pan with foil:

They baked evenly which my twelve year old oven tends to over cook the bottoms. The pie pan measures 12″ on the top edge, but the bottom is only about 11″. You may have to trim your pizza’s edge or flip the pan over and place the pizza on the bottom. Hubby had taken time off work shorty after it arrived, so he was using it more than I was at first. He found it took a bit of trial and error to get the right setting for toasting bread. I also baked a tray of frozen Stouffers Grandma’s Chicken & Vegetable on the rectangular tray that comes with the oven.  It takes eighty-five minutes to cook and it’s still hot here in the south, so I really didn’t want to use my regular oven! After about seventy-five minutes it was turning the top too dark, so I turned it down 375° to 350° and cooked it an additional seven minutes. It turned out pretty good. The oven also comes with a rack for broiling, two oven racks and a crumb tray for the bottom of the oven. The crumb tray isn’t an exact fit, so some crumbs land on the left and right sides. There are two oven racks, but if you flip them over then you have four different shelf levels. The lowest level accommodates an entire chicken! The oven also has a slow cook function I have yet to learn about. I’ll be watching the presentation on the 24th to learn more. It comes with a little instruction booklet, but I prefer video instructions. 

In conclusion, at first I was ready to ship this oven back to QVC since I found the timer’s noise annoying and it takes up more space on the counter than your standard toaster oven. Hubby also wanted to send it back for that reason and because he was having issues figuring out which setting to use when toasting bread. Then after baking and toasting over a couple of weeks, I found that I am appreciating that I can cook larger items in it so it’s more useful. The low price and the cinnamon color are two other reasons we are keeping it. If you have limited counter space and you’re not planning on using it for larger items, I’d say it’s not for you. If you want to use it for most of your baking and toasting and you don’t want to spend a lot of money, I’d say go ahead and purchase it. So what do you think, are you going to purchase this one or did you find a different toaster oven you like better?

Bargain Alert:

Mr. Rebates – cash back for online shopping.

Check out my list of QVC’s TSVs for September and my Pinterest QVC TSV Board . I invite you to follow my blog via Pinterest, Twitter, Google +, Bloglovin’, or Networked Blogs. Be a pal and share this blog post with friends by clicking on the Google red box (G+1) at the very top of this page or via Twitter and Facebook by clicking their boxes here: Tweet !function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],p=/^http:/.test(d.location)?’http’:’https’;if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=p+’://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js’;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document, ‘script’, ‘twitter-wjs’);

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My hubby loves fudge, so I always include it in my Christmas cookie baking especially since I’ve found this amazingly simple and easy recipe. Remember, I’m a lazy baker? 🙂 I love this recipe because you can add just about anything you want…marshmallows, extra chocolate chips, nuts, fruit, etc.

Easy Fudge
From Busy Cooks

1 (12-ounce) package semisweet chocolate chips
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon cream
1/2 cup milk chocolate chips, if desired

Place chips and milk in microwave safe bowl. (You can use just the one package of semisweet chocolate chips, or add the milk chocolate chips for a fudge that is slightly sweeter and creamier.)

Microwave on medium power for 2-3 minutes, stirring after 2 minutes. Microwave, stirring at 1 minutes intervals, until chips are melted and mixture is smooth and thick. Stir in butter and cream until combined.

Pour into greased 8″ square pan and cool. You can also melt the chips and milk in a heavy saucepan over low heat.

You can add just about anything to this easy recipe. Stir in a cup of chopped nuts, add a cup of marshmallows after the cooking time is done, stir in chopped dried fruit or some white chocolate chips. Have fun with the recipe!

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You know how I always talk about the 80/20 rule? Well, today is one of those days were I fit firmly in the 20 percent 🙂 I cannot say no to a Reese’s Peanut Butter cup (or several!). I hope you all enjoy your Halloween and get lots of yummy treats. Then it’s back to eating clean tomorrow!

Happy Halloween from Doc McStuffins and her dragon, Stuffy!

Guilt-Free Fries

1 large sweet potato and 1 large russet baking potato (1 1/2 pounds total), peeled and sliced into thin strips
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Preheat the oven to 450°F.
In a bowl, toss together the potatoes, oil, chili powder, garlic powder, and cumin. Arrange the potatoes in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake for 25 minutes. Halfway through, turn the fries over and continue baking.
Remove the fries from the oven and place them on several layers of paper towels. Sprinkle with the salt.

I love having pictures of family and friends all around the house, but I was starting to run out spots to put frames on shelves and such. Several years ago, we went to the Indianapolis Home Show and the showcase home had a beautiful photo gallery going up the staircase. I especially loved the groupings of four and five picture frames together and had seen them in stores, but knew they were pretty expensive. So, we took $1 and $2 Goodwill and garage sale picture frames, glued them together, repainted all one color and added a hook to hang. Some of the frames we kept their original color. Instant and cheap photo collages! I’ve started to intersperse other single picture frames among the large groupings to create a photo gallery down the stairway.

Last year, my hubby built a pergola over our back patio. I’ve always loved all the different mason jar lighting and chandeliers that are all over Pinterest, but again, to buy them, they are pretty expensive. Instead, we made our own from a $9 wine barrel ring, 4 mason jars we found from the Lakeside Collection (found here) that had the hooks and lights already in them and were only $5 a piece, 4 hooks and some black chain.Instant lighting charm 🙂

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Another day, another Pinterest recipe. It was really good but I don’t know if it was the World’s Best Chicken as the name suggests. (I just kept picturing Buddy the Elf bursting into my kitchen to congratulate me on making the world’s best chicken 🙂 It is really easy to make and would make a great meal to take to someone, as well as good freezer meal. It will stay in our recipe repertoire as Really Good Chicken 😉

The World’s Best Chicken
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup Dijon mustard
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
Salt & pepper
Rosemary

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a small bowl, mix together mustard, syrup, and vinegar. Place chicken breasts into 9×13 greased baking dish. Season with salt & lots of pepper. Pour mustard mixture over chicken. Make sure each breast is coated. Bake for about 30-40 minutes, or until meat thermometer reads 165 degrees. There will be extra sauce in the pan, which you can elect to toss out or use for extra flavoring. Season with chopped rosemary. To make this in the slow cooker, combine all ingredients and cook on low for 3-4 hours.

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The Land & Sea comes with filet mignon, pacific white shrimp and herb-crusted chicken. Sometimes I’ll skip the steak and order twice as much chicken since I absolutely love their curry sauce and it’s so scrumptious on the chicken. Below is the French Quarter which features cajun filet mignon, cajun pacific white shrimp, smoky andouille sausage and cajun chicken: 

Champagne with Strawberry

Everything was so very delicious and as always it was a wonderful experience. The wait staff is very attentive and friendly, they only hire the best. If you are planning on visiting soon, be sure to sign up now for their emails to receive notifications of when they are offering discounted meals. Make sure that you pick the location you prefer, since each restaurant has different specials. They also make announcements on their Facebook page. If you sign up for Club Fondue, they will send you a coupon via email for free dessert for your family birthdays and your anniversary. Unfortunately, I had forgotten to bring my birthday coupon for a free box of six chocolate covered strawberries. I’ve had them before, they are very tasty. 

I highly recommend this restaurant chain and the Durham location. What’s your favorite splurge restaurant for special occasions? Before you go, be sure to check out my review of the Raleigh location.

I invite you to follow my blog via Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, Google +, Bloglovin’, Networked Blogs and Zomato. Also, be sure to browse around my blog since I’m sure you’ll find something else that interests you. To see a full listing of my restaurant reviews, visit my Pinterest Restaurant Reviews Board. 

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As I’ve mentioned before, our garden and especially our zucchini are going crazy right now. See exhibit A, the latest zucchini I picked that’s almost three times the size of my hand! I wasn’t very inspired for dinner last night and so I just decided to use up some of the veggies I had in the fridge in a chicken teriyaki stir-fry. It was a little bit of this, little bit of that, clean out the fridge type of meal 😉 

In my wok (SIDE NOTE: if you don’t have a wok, I highly suggest buying one…they are the BEST for not only stir-frys but other types of sauteing. They aren’t too expensive either; I got mine at Ikea for $8), I sauteed sliced chicken breast with a little salt and pepper until no longer pink. Add in veggies, all cut to the same size to keep the cooking times even (I used zucchini, yellow squash, broccoli slaw, sweet peppers and onions) and cook for another 5 to 7 minutes until the veggies are desired softness. Add in about 2 tablespoons of teriyaki sauce and 1 to 2 tablespoons of soy sauce. Cook for another 2 to 3 minutes and serve piping hot over rice.

My teriyaki and soy sauces are both organic and all-natural from Whole Foods. They only cost a little more than “regular” soy and teriyaki sauce, but without any of the preservatives. The soy sauce is actually a tamari sauce, which is gluten-free as well.

While I don’t have a new recipe to share with you, I just had to brag on my garden a bit. The other night we had a meal that was nearly all from our garden. I made beef fajitas, using the grain-fed organic beef we have and onions and yellow peppers from our garden. I paired them with freshly made pico de gallo (tomatoes, onions, jalapeno from the garden with some store-bought garlic and lime juice). In the fajitas, I used my homemade taco/fajita seasoning, found here.

Not only was everything delicious, it was fun to eat something we’ve produced on our own (and I didn’t have to pay for!)

The men in our family are extremely hard to buy for when it comes to Christmas, birthday or any types of gifts. If they want something, they typically just get it for themselves. One thing I can always count on them liking is bourbon or beer, but really you can only only buy so much bourbon and beer every year (I’m sure the men are disagreeing with me now!). 

Thankfully, I came across a method for etching your own glasses and I thought it would be awesome to etch a bourbon decanter and glasses for my husband’s brother. He’s getting married this summer, so I thought these would be a great addition to their new home. I liked how they came out so much that we did some for another friend and some for ourselves. 

The process is pretty straightforward. Buy etching cream from a craft store. Decide what type of letter or design you want etched. For my T’s, I got a scrapbook letter T that was the size and font I liked. Instead of putting the T on the glass, I cut out the outline of the T (the part you would normally throw away) and applied to the glasses. Etch over the sticker, let dry and remove the sticker. Easy peasy! You could also tape off whatever letter or design you want if you’re more artistically-inclined.

You can find the full instructions on etching glasses Thistlewood Farms, who I got the idea from. I originally wanted to do the circle with the letter inside they do, but found it much too time-consuming for my purposes. I couldn’t find the right type of circle stickers and didn’t want to tape off a circle on the glass.

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As I mentioned before, we’ve become the go-to dessert bringers for small group, which is fine with me, because I keep finding amazing looking recipes on Pinterest I want to try 😉 This past weekend, I made Texas Gold aka Chess Squares aka Gooey Butter Cake. Whatever you call it, it’s delicious!! A cross between yellow cake and cheesecake, it was ooey, gooey, sweet, buttery and just yummy. Super easy to make too! Only 5 ingredients!!

Texas Gold  
From Kevin and Amanda 

1 box yellow cake mix (use organic or your own to make it clean)
3 eggs
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
4 cups (1 lb) powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 300 and spray a 9×13 dish with cooking spray. Mix cake mix, melted butter and one egg to a soft dough. Press into the bottom of the pan. Mix powdered sugar, softened cream cheese and remaining two eggs until smooth, about 1-2 mins. Pour on top of crust. Bake at 300 for 40-50 minutes until top is golden brown.

Tickets for 2014 Red Bull Grand Prix of The Americas on sale Thursday, Dec. 5 New in 2014: Free motorcycle parking for early birds, single-day tickets available, reduced parking prices, kids 12 and under receive free general admission to MotoGP

AUSTIN, Texas  – Looking for the perfect holiday gift for the motorcycle enthusiast in your life? Circuit of The Americas™ (COTA) has the answer, as tickets for the 2014 Red Bull Grand Prix of The Americas at COTA go on sale Thursday, Dec. 5, at 10 a.m. CT online at www.circuitoftheamericas.com/and at www.ticketmaster.com. COTA will host the first of only two MotoGP contests in the United States next year and welcome the best motorcycle riders in the world to Austin April 11-13.

COTA’s 2014 MotoGP event features many new fan-friendly options, including FREE motorcycle parking for fans that purchase their tickets by Dec. 31, 2013; Three-day weekend passes and single-day ticket options for fans; A new dry camping option for fans who want to stay close to the circuit all weekend; and Kids 12 and under receive FREE general admission with a ticketed adult.

GET YOUR TICKETS NOW!

Single-day general admission tickets start at $39 for Friday’s practice sessions, and single-day reserved seats start at $59. Three-day weekend passes start at $89 for general admission or $139 for reserved seats. Three-day dry camping passes are available for $150 per space.

MotoGP Ticket and Parking Prices – Circuit of The Americas – April 11-13, 2014

Seating Type, Single-day Ticket/Person, Three-day Weekend Pass/Person

General Admission, $39 to $59, $89

Reserved Seat, $59 to $109, $139 to $199

Kids 12 and under, FREE GA with ticketed adult, FREE GA with ticketed adult

Dry Camping Space (20’x20’), N/A, $150/camping space

Parking Type, Single-day Parking/Vehicle, Three-day Weekend Parking/Vehicle

Cars, $20, $45

Motorcycles*, $10, $20

*NOTE: Motorcycle parking is free for fans that purchased their MotoGP tickets by Dec. 31, 2013.

MotoGP, the pinnacle of all motorcycle World Championships, consists of 19 races in 14 countries on five continents with pan-global television coverage. The world’s most skilled riders, including current U.S. riders Colin Edwards of Texas, 2006 MotoGP World Champion Nicky Hayden from Kentucky and reigning World Champion and winner of the 2013 Red Bull Grand Prix of The Americas Marc Marquez, compete with cutting-edge, prototype motorcycle technology produced by Ducati, Yamaha and Honda, as well manufacturers supporting the new Open class. The series traditionally holds three races, including Moto2 and Moto3 competitions, during each event for various classes of motorcycles based on engine size. Fans watched MotoGP’s new phenom, Marc Marquez, sweep the three U.S. races in 2013, including COTA’s inaugural event, and will be eager to see if he returns to the winners’ podium in Texas next year.

“The on-track action at this year’s MotoGP Championship race at COTA was incredible, and our mission for 2014 is to elevate the fan experience at the track and in downtown Austin,” COTA Chief Marketing and Revenue Officer Geoff Moore said. “Our team will be throwing an even bigger party at the track next year, with a larger entertainment portfolio of live music, interactive displays, games and fan activities. We’re also planning a downtown Fan Zone that will give visitors and residents lots to see and do throughout the weekend.”

“Making our MotoGP race one of the must-attend sports and entertainment events of the season is a priority, and we’ve enhanced our customer offerings to ensure that happens,” COTA President and Chief Executive Officer Jason Dial noted. “We’ve added single-day tickets to the mix for 2014, giving fans greater flexibility, and we’ve reduced on-site parking prices to enhance the value and make it easier for fans to access the circuit. In addition, we’re offering free general admission to kids ages 12 and under to make it more affordable for families to attend the races.

“With the holidays just around the corner, tickets to the Red Bull Grand Prix of The Americas make a great gift for the motorsports fans in your household, and next year’s event will be the perfect opportunity for an entire family to spend a weekend at Circuit of The Americas.”

For individuals, groups and companies looking to experience the MotoGP race weekend in a special way, Circuit of The Americas™ Official program, Circuit of The Americas Experiences , is offering racing enthusiasts a turn-key elevated race weekend experience to the Circuit’s 2014 MotoGP event.

________________________________________________
Source: RoadRacingWorld (AP,11/26)

I’ve found so many awesome looking recipes that I’ve not tried because they call for cream of whatever soup, which is pretty much cream of preservative soup. Thankfully, I’ve found an awesome clean, all-natural and even gluten-free solution. It’s so easy to put together, store in the pantry and throw together whenever you need a can of cream of chicken, mushroom or celery. 

Soup or Sauce (SOS) Mix
From One Good Thing By Jillee

2 cups powdered non-fat dry milk
3/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup instant chicken bouillon (regular or low sodium)
2 Tbsp dried onion flakes
2 tsp Italian seasoning (optional)

Combine all ingredients in a re-closeable plastic bag, mixing well. Equal to 9 (10.5 oz) cans of cream soup. Store in closed plastic bag or air-tight container until ready to use. It does not have to be refrigerated.
 
To substitute for 1 can of cream soup:
Combine 1/3 cup of dry mix with 1 1/4 cups of cold water. Whisk until well blended. Cook and stir on stove top or in microwave until thickened. Add thickened mixture to casseroles as you would a can of soup.

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1. Naked Cosmetics – Holographic Highlighter Collection, made in the USA, $39.99 retail value
2. Seraphine Botanicals – Sugar + Lemon Moisturizing Lip Buffer, formulated in the UK & packaging made in China, .51 fl. oz., $24.00 retail value
3. Cover FX – Shimmer Veil, made in Intaly, .14 fl. oz., $28.00 retail value
4. Vintage Cosmetics – Smokey Eye Pencil in jet black, made in China, .04 oz., $21.00 retail value
5. Crown Pro – Trio Brush Set, made in China, $29.99 retail value

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My in-laws celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary earlier this month and this past weekend, all their kiddos and significant others threw them a party. It was a wine tasting party where everyone brought an appetizer and wine to pair with it. I made pesto tarts, an incredibly easy, yet super elegant appetizer. I paired the pesto tarts with Paper Moon Harvest Blend sweet red wine. 

Shout out to a fellow Bobcat! Paper Moon is the winery we visited on our getaway earlier this summer. We went to Ohio University with the owner, Adam. You should check them out at papermoonvineyards.com and buy some of their yummy wine 😉

Pesto Cheese Tarts Recipe
2/3 cup chopped tomatoes
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
3 tablespoons shredded Parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons prepared pesto
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 package (1.9 ounces) frozen miniature phyllo tart shells
Directions
In a small bowl, combine the tomatoes, mayonnaise, cheeses, pesto and pepper. Spoon heaping teaspoonfuls into tart shells. Place on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 350° for 8-12 minutes or until lightly browned. Yield: 15 appetizers.

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I have a confession to make.
I love Hamburger Helper.
I know. Shocking. Mrs. Clean Eating loves preservative-filled fake dinner. I’ve loved it for a long time though, ever since college when I would make it all.the.time. Ask my college roommate, Rachael 🙂 I am particularly drawn to the Beef Stroganoff. I don’t know what is it about that ground beef, noodly, creamy goodness that gets me every time.
Anyway, since going clean, HH has not made an appearance in our household. Luckily, I had an old recipe for Easy Beef Stroganoff tucked away and decided to give it the old college try. While it didn’t measure up to HH to me, it was still good and easy, just like the name says. Plus, it was all-natural and clean. My kiddos gobbled it up. 
I used all-natural, homemade egg noodles I found at a local meat market. My grandma has a recipe for homemade egg noodles as well, so maybe I’ll get brave and try those too. We used the grain-fed beef for the meat, which was also really good and super tender. With this recipe, be sure not to overcook the meat, just cook until barely pink. Otherwise, it gets too tough.

Easy Beef Stroganoff
Adapted from Real Simple

12 ounces egg noodles
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound flank steak, thinly sliced
kosher salt and black pepper
1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced (optional)
2 cups fresh mushrooms
1 8-ounce container all-natural sour cream
2 1/2 tablespoons steak sauce or Worcestershire sauce

Cook the noodles according to the package directions. Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the steak with ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper. In 2 batches, cook the steak until browned, about 1 minute per side. Transfer to a plate.
Return the skillet to medium heat and add the remaining tablespoon of oil. Add the onion and bell pepper (if desired); cook until softened, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the mushrooms and beef and cook until warmed through, about 2 minutes. In a small bowl, combine the sour cream and steak sauce and stir the mixture into the beef and mushrooms. Serve over the noodles.

I usually adapt most of the recipes I use based on what ingredients I have on hand or my prep time. This one I followed to a tee, except I marinated mine overnight, giving it even more flavor! Be careful not to overcook the pork and dry it out.

Served with mashed potatoes and green beans, this was a delicious winter meal.

Pork Tenderloins
From Foodie Sisters
 
1 package of pork tenderloins (2 tenderloins total about 2-2.5lbs)
4 garlic cloves, quartered/sliced/slivered
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoon country dijon mustard
4 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoon fresh orange juice
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary or Herbs de Provence
freshly ground pepper, to taste
3 tablespoon olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Take tenderloins out of package. Rinse and pat dry. Spray a 9×13 baking dish and place tenderloins inside. Use a paring knife and poke holes on the top side of the tenderloins, about an inch deep. Place a garlic piece into each hole. Make the marinade next. In a measuring cup or bowl, whisk together everything except for olive oil. Then slowly drizzle in the oil while whisking. Pour marinade over tenderloins. Bake, uncovered, for 45 minutes, basting once halfway through cooking process. Once removed from the oven, let pork rest on a cutting board for 10 minutes before cutting in.

I was a freshman in college, my first full week of classes at Ohio University. I had just moved into the dorms a week earlier, leaving my family and friends behind, almost five hours from home. I got back from my Poli Sci class to my roommate watching it all unfold on TV. Honestly, beyond that, the only other things I remember is my mom calling me crying, wanting me to come home and my dad being suspiciously quiet on the phone that night. I remember prayer vigils that night and throughout the rest of the week and then everything went back to normal.

It wasn’t until many years later, after I had kids of my own that the full impact of 9/11 hit me. I remember two years ago, on the 10 year anniversary, pregnant with Gavin, teeter-tottering between agonizing over how I could bring another life into a horrible, broken world and touched by the humanness that shown through that awful day, the day after and in different moments since then. Every year, I grieve with those who lost loved ones, think about the survivors and pray for the true heroes…firefighters, police offices, soldiers. The ones who deserve our thanks every day of the year, not just on Patriots Day. 

I decided to start a new tradition this year. Liesl colored several pictures, very carefully wrote her name and asked me how to spell “thank you”. Seeing her childish scribbles spell out such a powerful message broke me. I wish we could all speak compliments, kind words and gratefulness from our heart so easily and without pretense. 

We took the pictures to our local fire station and told the firefighters thank you for their service today and always. They gave us a mini tour of the huge ladder truck and even let Liesl give the driver’s seat a go 🙂 I know a few colored pictures is not adequate enough thanks for all that firefighters, police officers and soldiers do for us, but I thought it was a great start to teach my children. I want to teach them that a horrific day in September changed our country and so many lives forever, but that despite the awfulness of it all, we came out stronger as a country, as a people. I want to teach them to love, to empathize, to be proud of our country and to stand up for what they believe. I want to teach them to give thanks freely, especially to those who truly deserve it. I want to teach them to keep their faith in our sovereign God. 

I want to teach them to never forget.

Back in 1977 Harley Davidson unveiled their American cafe racer, the XLCR Sportster. On paper and in the flesh the bike was certainly appealing. It was draped in black, had a unique siamese exhaust system, was powered by a torquey 997cc v-twin and wore bodywork unlike any other Harley. Unfortunately the press slammed the bikes performance and poor sales resulted in it becoming a rather famous flop for the Milwaukee manufacturer. Despite all of these factors the XLCR has become an iconic model in HD history and today they fetch high prices at auction. Not having ever ventured in to cafe racer territory before James Roper-Caldbeck of ‘Jamesville Motorcycles’ in Copenhagen used the XLCR as his inspiration, but paid careful attention to not repeat Harleys mistakes.




“Last year I received a rather sheepish email asking if there was any way I would ever build a café racer” recalls James. James’ portfolio is almost entirely made up of Harley Davidson builds with Chopper and Bobber styling being his usual forte. For an outsider it might seem that he is set in his ways, but when the opportunity presented itself, he was more than willing to take it on.

“It can sometimes become a little monotonous always building bobbers and choppers so I gladly said yes. I have always loved the XLCR 1000 and that bike became my inspiration, right down to how we photographed it.”



Rather than heading down the same route as the XLCR and using a Sportster as the starting point James opted to use a 1974 Harley Davidson FX Shovelhead. “I found a fairly stock FX that had an S&S 80 cubic inch motor and a 5 speed transmission, which is very nice.”

With a powerful donor selected James started penning down some ideas. “To be honest I had no idea what I was doing when it came to building a Café Racer, but I knew I wanted it black with a fairing and for it to look F#CKING mean!”



The build began with the bikes new bodywork. Influenced by the design of Super GP bikes James fabricated an entirely new seat pan and tail from scratch, integrating a Triumph tail light at the rear and mounting it as high as possible on the frame. Surprisingly his front fairing was an aftermarket unit sourced on Ebay. James purchased the unit unsure if it was going to fit his headlight, but much to his surprise it was the perfect fit. For the fuel tank he decided the stock unit looked right for the build and so he stuck with it. “Everyone always asks what it’s from and are shocked when I tell them!” jokes James.



To get the bike sitting right James designed a Progressive shock and spring package that lowers the front end and raises the rear, creating a more aggressive riding position. Taking cues from his favourite Ducati exhaust set up he handbuilt a 2-into-1 system that runs high before exiting beside the tail. Two well placed heat shields sufficiently protect the rider from burns (tried and tested by the man himself) and the hotdog muffler lets everyone know to make plenty of room as the Shovelhead approaches.



With loads of power on tap and a great suspension set up James knew he’d need to upgrade the bikes woeful stock brakes for it to be worthy of its cafe racer status. Using a configuration similar to the XLCR that inspired the build he mounted a set of twin drilled discs up front and a drilled disc with custom mounted, daisy chained twin calipers at the rear. Due to the Harley’s dimensions it still runs mid controls, but they are custom made units that keep the rider’s feet up high for improved cornering clearance.



Taking a measly 5 weeks to complete James finished the bike using a paint scheme inspired by 80s and 90s GP Super Bikes. Touches of XLCR can also be seen on the engine where black has been liberally applied to those distinct Shovel shaped heads, the lower barrels, oil bag and various covers. Then to liven up the monotone theme touches of red were added to the seat and front fairing.

Knowing full well that Harley’s aren’t often the first choice for cafe racer conversions,  James has done his best to create a bike with the right look and performance to be worthy of the title. “I’m not sure how the Café racer guys will like this” says James. “But I can tell you it’s awesome to RIDE!” 

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Remember my earlier post about how hard it is to find gifts for the men in our families? This is another solution to that dilemma 🙂 My father-in-law LOVES bourbon but has pretty much everything bourbon related already (at least everything we can afford ;). 

I saw on Etsy a bourbon bottle soap dispenser that I thought he would love and actually use. However, I didn’t want to spend $40 on it, so I made my own. It was super easy…I took an empty bourbon bottle (I used one of his Maker’s Mark ones he actually filled and sealed), washed it out good and filled with soap. For the dispenser part, go to the dollar store and find a $1 soap dispenser that’s as tall or as nearly as tall as the bottle so that the straw reaches to the bottom of the bourbon bottle. Screw the dispenser and straw part onto the bourbon bottle and voila! Instant kitschy, fun and unique soap dispenser! I’m also going green and saving green by recycling and old bottle and only spending $1 on the dispenser.

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April

1st – Susan Graver Printed Liquid Knit 8 Gore Pull On Skort, $39.92 available in 4 payments & choice of 6 prints

2nd – Wen by Chaz Dean Cleanse & Replenish Kit, $58.00 available in 4 payments & 6 colors

3rd – Martha Stewart Skylands Set of Four Landscape Solar Lights, $49.98 available in 3 payments & 3 colors

4th – Affinity Diamond Jewelry Diamond Cluster Stud Earrings, 1/2 carat $399.96 or 1 carat $799.96 available in 6 payments, white or yellow 14K Gold

5th – Harry Slatkin Ceramic Fruit Basket with Two 9 oz. Candles, $36.96 with free s/h available in 4 payments & 4 scents, A/D in October is a Pumpkin Basket, Refills 9 oz. 2 for $25.40 available in 4 payments

6th – G.I.L.I Jetsetter Short Sleeve Side Slit Dress, $49.92 available in 3 payments & 5 patterns plus black & petite

7th – Perricone MD Power of Neuropeptides Face & Neck Duo, $179.00 available in 5 payments & A/D, plus free s/h handling day for anything, check your wish list now!

8th – Serta Perfect Sleeper Hotel Excursion Pillowtop Mattress Set, $799.00-$1129.00 Twin-King size available in 6 payments

9th – Microderm MD Microdermabrasion System, $129.95 available in 5 payments 

10th – My Pillow Set of Two Standard/Queen Premium Pillows or King, $67.98 or $77.98, available in 4 payments & 3 choices of firmness 

11th – Nutrisystem Fast Five Marie’s Summer Shake Up Four Week Plan, $219.98, A/D & Vegetarian option available

12th – Wagner Flexio Paint Sprayer with Detail Finish Nozzle & Spray Shield, $99.96 available in 4 payments

13th – Dennis Basso Caviar Crepe Tunic with Lace Trimmed Sleeves, $49.90 available in 3 payments and 6 colors

14th – Skechers Suede Pee Toe Sling Back Wedges named Stylin, $42.40 available in 4 payments & 6 colors

15th – Traeger Heartland Grill & Smoker, $599.94 available in 6 payments and 4 colors

16th – Isaac Mizrahi Elbow Sleeve Peplum Flounce Knit Top, $27.92 available in 4 payments & 7 colors

17th – Laura Geller Glow Your Own Way, $44.00 available in 2 payments & 7 shades

18th – Valerie Bertinelli wines from Vintage Wine Estates, $41.00 for 3 bottles or $125.00 for 12 bottles, available in 4 payments, A/D, 2 ship dates & 4 flavors

19th – Honora Ming Cultured Pearl Strand Necklace with a rose 18K plated sterling silver snap closure, 16″-30″, $399.98-$779.98 available in 6 payments

20th – Denim & Co Beach Pull On Wide Leg Knit Pants, $27.32, available in regular & tall, petite is not available for preorder yet, choice of 2 colors and 3 prints

21st – Philosophy

22nd – Arlo by Netgear Pro Two Pack Indoor/Outdoor HD Surveillance Cameras, $299.94 available in 6 payments

23rd – Alegria Footwear

24th – Patio & Garden

25th – Lock & Lock Storage

26th – Carole Hochman Heavenly Soft Sleepwear

27th – Cosmoprof North America Beauty Fair Finds

28th – Amazon Echo

29th – Dyson

30th – Women with Control Attitudes by Renee

May

1st – Peter Thomas Roth
2nd – Chair Gym Total Body Workout
3rd – Imperial Gold
4th – LOGO by Lori Goldstein
5th – Earth Brands Footwear
6th – HP Computer
7th – Denim & Co
8th – Organized Options
9th – Copper Chef
10th – Quacker Factory
11th – bareMinerals
12th – Simply Lines
13th – Clarks

 

Blue Skies for Me Please

Have a PEACEful Day!

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Found another huge window that I wasn’t sure what I would use it for since it was so big, but it was only $5 so I couldn’t resist. After bringing it home and having it sit in my garage for several weeks, I decided I would use to dress up my fireplace mantel. Previously, I just had the star hanging up on the wall, but I think adding the star behind it gives the mantel more dimension and interest. Plus, I think it looks rustic and Americana and super cute 🙂 When hanging old windows, especially large ones, be sure to use drywall anchors and heavy duty picture frame hooks.

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1st – Sterling Silver, Italian Silver Adjustable Bracelet 5.3 g, J354268, $29.96 available in 4 payments, choice of silver, rose or yellow and choice of byzantine, oval link, rope or diamond cut beads

2nd – Isaac Mizrahi, Stretch Print or Solid Ankle Pants, A302699, $39.96 available in 4 payments, choice of 3 solid colors & 3 prints

3rd – Vionic Orthotic Footwear, Adjustable Triple Strap Slide with 1 inch heel called Misa, A303026, $59.88 available in 4 payments & 6 colors

4th – iRobot Roomba, 891 WiFi Connect Robotic Vacuum, V35400, $399.96 available in 6 payments. FYI- other stores sell them for less, shop around, plus this one doesn’t come with 2 virtual walls. You need at least 2, if open concept home, you’ll need 3. Read my review.

5th – Josie Maran Cosmetics, Super Sized Argan Tanning Oil & Extender with Mit, A304532, $49.95 available in 5 payments, A/D & 3 scents

6th – Mr. Beams Set of Two 600 Lumen Dual Head Motion Sensor Security Lights, V35336, $49.95 available in 5 payments & 5 colors. I recommend going ahead and spending a bit more for much more security with the addition of video, alarm & voice, read my Ring Floodlight Cam review.

7th – Martha Stewart Food, 28 Piece Pastry Assortment, M57879, $59.94 available in 3 payments and A/D & 2 ship dates of 3/19 & 3/26. Shop with caution, her past food TSVs had bad reviews. I recommend Authentic Gourmet Croissants from France, read my review.

8th – 8 Greens, 40 Effervescent Drink Tables, A308586, $37.84 available in 5 payments and A/D 

9th – Joan Rivers Classics Collection, Lightweight Denim Boyfriend Shirt with Fringe Hem, A302801, $44.96 available in 4 payments & choice of 5 denim washes

10th – It Cosmetics, It’s All About You Customers’ Favorites Collection, A302393, $59.96 available in 4 payments & 7 shades 

11th – Bliss Hammocks Premium Gravity Free Reclining Chair with Canopy, M55740, $79.98 available in 6 payments and 8 colors

12th – Spanx Cropped Look at Me Now Seamless Leggings, A288466, $44.98 available in 2 payments & 6 colors

13th – Calista StyleDryer Airbrush with Attachments & Towel, A304430, $59.96 available in 4 payments & 3 colors

14th – Keurig K-Select Coffee Maker with My K-Cup & 48 K-Cup Pods, K46762, $79.98 available in 4 payments & 4 colors

15th – Vince Camuto Perforated Leather Peep Toe Sandals named Dastana, A304453, $79.98 available in 4 payments and 6 colors

16th – Waterford & Connemara Marble 10″ Bowl with Marble Base, H213854, $199.90 available in 5 payments

17th – Peter Thomas Roth Super Size Retinol & FirmX Face & Eye Kit, A305575, $139.00 available in 5 payments & A/D

18th – Le Creuset 2.75 Quart Cast Iron Dutch Oven, K47064, $129.95 available in 5 payments & 10 colors

19th – Denim & Co, Classic Denim Distressed Ankle Jeans, $39.98 available in 3 colors & regular, petite & tall

20th – Bernini Pro Series 50′ Metal No Kink Hose with Aluminum Nozzle, $34.98 available in 3 payments & 4 colors

21st – Easy Solutions CPR Call Blocker with 6500 Number Blocking & Two Year Warranty, $49.96 available in 3 payments

22nd – Judith Ripka Verona Tripla Sterling Silver or 14K Clad Bracelet, $149.95 available in 5 payments

23rd – Clarisonic Mia 2 Sonic Cleansing System with LOGO prints & One Year of Brush Heads, $99.96 available in 6 payments & choice of 3 LOGO designs & 4 solids

24th – Dooney & Bourke Saffiano Leather Shoulder Bag, $229.92 available in 6 payments and 7 colors

25th – Ring Video Doorbell, HD Surveillance, Two Way Talk & Three Year Warranty, read my review, $159.95 available in 5 payments 

26th – Crepe Erase Home & Away Intensive Body Treatment, $89.00 available in 4 payments and 4 scents

27th – Philips Sonicare FlexCare Toothbrush, $89.97 available in 3 payments

28th – Scott Living Twelve Piece 100% HygroCotton Bath Towel Set, $49.96 available in 2 payments & 8 colors

29th – Clarks Cloudsteppers Wedge Sandals called Caddell Bright, $54.98 available in 4 payments & 5 colors

30th – Lisa Rinna Collection V-Neck Top with Chiffon Back Detail, $34.98 available in 3 payments & 5 colors

31st – Dyson V8 Absolute Cordless Vacuum, $399.96 available in 6 payments & 3 colors

Bargain Alert: 

Bulu Box – vitamins, supplements & healthy snacks only $5.99 per box for life, code “DISCOVERY” or “BOX799”. *
California Wine Club – six bottles $59.99, only $9.99 a bottle including shipping. *
Hello Fresh – $40 off healthy meal kit, only $3.32 a serving, check out my 14 reviews. 
Home Chef – $30 off healthy meal kit, only $4.95 a serving, check out my 55 reviews. 
Julep – 12 full sized nail polishes for FREE, $168 value! Amazing deal! Check out my reviews. *
Love with Food – 25% off snack box with 10+ gluten free snacks only $1.87 each. *
Mr. Rebates – $5 Sign Up Bonus & cash back for online shopping including QVC.
Nature Box – healthy, delicious snacks, extra 30% off first 3 shipments. Code “THIRTY3”. *
Sun Basket – $50 Off 1st Two Orders, check out my 26 reviews. *
Terra’s Kitchen – $40 Off, check out my 3 reviews.
Top Secret Recipes – secret restaurant recipes, cookbooks and spices, use code “Steps15” for 15% off. *
UrthBox – healthy, delicious snacks, Buy One Get One Free or $10 off use code “PROMO10”. *
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Sorry for the short post today…been a busy week and we have an even busier weekend ahead. Just a quick shot of our latest harvest from the garden. Stay tuned for some recipes made with our bountiful harvest!

Happy Labor Day!

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Twenty-three minutes after we ordered our main entrees came out. It seemed like a long wait especially since they had so few customers. During that wait we had a view of the table next to us that hadn’t been cleared, shown below. The  customers had left prior to our arrival and yet the staff waited half an hour to finally clean it up. 

Hubby ordered The Elvis Presley Memorial Combo. It comes with one beef Tex-Mex enchilada, one cheese ranchero enchilada, one chicken tomatillo enchilada, one ground sirloin crispy taco and homemade tostada chips dipped in chile  con queso. Hubby wasn’t crazy about it and wouldn’t recommend ordering it. The chicken was dried out and the flavors were not enjoyable. The two chips dipped in Chile con queso were soggy by the time they arrived at the table. It would be so much better if they served the dip on the side so that you could dip it yourself. Also, it would be more appetizing and that would solve the soggy issue.

I agree with other reviewers that this restaurant deserves only three out of five stars. If only everything tasted as delicious as the chips, dip and salsa, we would visit several times a month. One expects lots of spicy flavors from a Mexican restaurant and for some reason they are missing in many dishes even though the menu indicates that they use lots of spices. It’s really disappointing because it’s a lovely festive atmosphere with so much potential. If only Chi-Chi’s would return, oh how I miss that Mexican franchise! Franchises are so disappointing these days, so many of them were so fantastic prior to the mid 90’s. Why have they declined for so long!

What’s your favorite Mexican restaurant in the Triangle? Be sure to check out my other restaurant reviews before you go. There is a list of them on my Pinterest Restaurant Reviews Board. I invite you to follow my blog via Pinterest, Twitter, Google +, Bloglovin’, or Networked Blogs.

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Have a PEACEful Day!

Fall is in the air! YAY!! Time to break out the stick to your ribs, comfort food recipes 🙂 Chicken noodle soup is a favorite comfort food of mine, so I was excited to find an easy recipe that looked really good. It turned out great!!! It was a super easy recipe and so good! It makes a ton, so you’ll have the extras to freeze for lunches or another dinner. 

Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup
Adapted from adorkablerecipes.blogspot.com

5 cups chicken broth (or bouillon) (use homemade to keep it clean)
2 cups carrots, sliced thin
1 cup celery, sliced thin
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp parsley flakes
1/2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp pepper
2-3 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast (rotisserie chicken would be awesome in this!)
1 cup dry egg noodles (look for an all-natural egg noodles to keep it clean)

Mix all ingredients except the noodles into the crock pot. Keep chicken breast whole (or use pre-cooked, cut up or shredded chicken) and cut up or shred before adding in noodles during the last 30 minutes of cooking. Cook on high 4 hours, then turn to low until ready to serve.

I’ve had many successful attempts at recipes since going clean eight months ago, so it’s inevitable that I would eventually try a recipe that flopped. I debated whether or not to even blog about it, but I figured maybe someone might like this recipe, even if we didn’t.  Plus, it good to see the bad along with the good 🙂

This recipe sounded great, but it ended up very bland and the chicken dried out. Perhaps a shorter cooking time at a lower heat and different spices could salvage the dish, but this one will not be going into the menu rotation.



Crock Pot Beer Chicken
From LaaLoosh
 
2lbs skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 bottle or can of your favorite beer 
1 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp black pepper
Place all ingredients in the crock pot, and cook on high for 4-5 hrs, or low for 6-8 hrs.

This recipe was a little labor intensive, but was really good. I especially loved the avocado ranch sauce! I’m going to try the sauce as a dressing on a taco salad.

You could make it lower carb by leaving out the chips and just using the cheese, mayo and spices on the chicken. Next time I think I’ll double the recipe and freeze the extras…two meals for one prep time! 🙂 

Tortilla Chip Crusted Chicken with Avocado Ranch
Adapted from Bacon, Butter, Cheese and Garlic

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
One 12-ounce bag tortilla chips
4 ounces Pepper Jack cheese, shredded
1 C mayonnaise
1/2 T garlic powder
1/2 T cumin
1/2 T chili powder
2 teaspoons lime juice

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When we finished our basement, my one requirement was a really nice laundry room. If my washer and dryer have to be in the basement, I want them to be in a nice room. I also wanted my laundry room to serve as a craft/wrapping room too, so I was on the lookout for storage to go in it. Everything I found that was new was pretty expensive, so, of course, I turned to Pinterest and found tons of refinished pieces. 
The dressing table was free from a friend of a friend (thanks Sarah and Amy!). After a good sanding, several coats of gray paint, new knobs and inexpensive scrapbook paper inside the windows on the drawers, it went from plain to pizzazz!. 

I also wanted some cute wall decor that wouldn’t cost a lot, and found that someone on Pinterest had taken plain canvases and wrapped them in fabric. Instead of canvases, I found the canvas frames at Michael’s for cheap (around $2-3 per frame) and covered in fabric (found in the discount bin for $1.99 a yard). Voila! Instant wall art for just a few dollars. 

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For the second project, I had been wanting an armchair for our bedroom. My mom found me a cheap, old and ugly chair that had great bones, and we repainted and reupholstered it in a much better color and pattern 🙂 We ended up doing the chair for about $50…$35 for the chair, $10 for the fabric and $5 for the paint.

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This is another recipe from the Flat Belly Diet that was delish! The kids even chowed down! It would also make a great dinner party dish. It looks pretty plated up, yet is so easy! One serving equals under 400 calories, so it not only looks good and tastes good, it’s good for you!

Chicken Roulade
Adapted from Prevention.com
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
2 teaspoons olive oil, divided
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/3 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
1 tablespoon water
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons chopped tomatoes
1 package frozen spinach
4 chicken breasts (about 4 ounces each), trimmed 

In a medium nonstick skillet, combine the tomato, onion, 1 teaspoon oil, garlic, red-pepper flakes, and 1 tablespoon water. Turn the heat to medium. Cook for about 2 minutes, or until the onion sizzles. Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook, stirring once, for about 3 minutes, or until softened. Add in spinach and parm cheese and let simmer on low.
While you prepare the spinach mixture, grill the chicken until done. Serve the grilled chicken breasts with the spinach mixture on top, sprinkled with more parm cheese if you like.
 

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1. Sephora – Rouge Matte Lipstick in Rebel Chic, made in Italy, .035 oz., $2.45 sale price, $4.37 retail value
2. Lancôme – Monsieur Big Mascara, made in France, .06 fl. oz., $4.54 retail value
3. Sephora – Cream Lip Stain in Always Red, made in Italy, .04 fl. oz., $3.31 retail value
4. First Aid Beauty – Ginger & Tumeric Vitamin C Jelly Mask, made in the USA, .75 oz., $6.00 retail value
5. Belif – Moisturizing Eye Bomb, made in Korea, .17 fl. oz., $9.71 retail value
6. Viktor & Rolf – Flowerbomb, made in France, .04 fl. oz., $1.20 retail value

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I ordered my new gold iPhone 8 Plus on the 15th at 3 am and it arrived on the 22nd of September via UPS. Happy Birthday and Merry Christmas to me! This is my 2nd smartphone and 2nd iPhone. I upgraded from the iPhone 5s in gold. I really enjoyed it for three years. It’s a great phone, but I wanted a better camera, more memory and a larger screen. My 1st impression of this phone:  “It’s pink!”. If you put it next to my gold 5s or any gold jewelry, it’s clearly rose gold on the trim and the apple logo and it’s pink on the back side. The back side looks like it’s either white with pink glass on top or pink with clear glass on top. The front is white with clear glass on top. I really wanted a rose gold one so much so that I was debating whether to order the iPhone 7 instead. So I’m really happy that it’s rose gold, but I feel bad for those that really wanted gold instead. The impression I got from the photos and Apple’s keynote was that it was yellow gold and that the back side was a metallic mirror finish. In person, only the Apple logo has a mirror metallic finish. I’ll be using it to check on my lipstick. It’s a bit heavier than I thought it would be, but it’s nice and thin and I love the rounded corners. I will be purchasing a case for it since the backside is so slippery. It slips off almost any surface, if you’re not really careful. So far I’ve noticed that it surfs the internet much faster than my 5s. The photos look more crisp and defined. Come back and check out my future blog posts, many of them will feature photos taken with my new phone. I felt the screen on my 5s was too small. I’m really enjoying the larger screen:

I’m at the age now that reading glasses are required often, but I don’t need them with this phone. I didn’t want the X model because it’s more expensive and there are only two colors to chose from. I also prefer having a home button with finger recognition rather than face recognition. There are so many similarities between the X and 8 that for me it’s just not worth the extra $200 or more. There are a lot of upgrades though between the 5s and the 8. I’m going from a 8 MP camera to a 12 MP camera. I was constantly running out of space with my 5s, so it’s nice to have plenty of space for lots of photos. I’m anxious to try out Apple pay, I’ve yet to find a store that offers it. I enjoy paying at Starbucks with their app, so this will be great for me. No more fishing in my handbag for my credit card. I also use my phone for store cards. I also look forward to wireless charging. I’ll be purchasing one from Apple as soon as it’s available next year since it’s large enough to charge three apple at once.

I am having issues transferring photos from my 2016 MacBook Pro to and from my new phone and many other issues with my Mac, so I had to take it Apple for service. Anyone ever taken any apple product in for service before? If so, what was your experience like? It took an hour and half just to get them to set it up for service. Even though I had an appointment, they made me wait forever and then I had to show them the issues. It was an unpleasant experience. I’m anxiously waiting to hear from them, it’s suppose to take three to five days. Apparently, that model has many issues, I definitely do not recommend it. Even the keyboard has issues. It’s the first Apple product that we’ve had issues with. I’m currently working on my old MacBook Air and I’m hoping it works long enough for my new computer to return. The screen sometimes doesn’t work and it has to be kept open at just the right angle to work. I think it’s the connection between the screen and the keyboard. Anyone else have that issue with the MacBook Air? Since it’s a 2011 model, I figured it would cost too much to make it worth repairing. They would have charged me a whopping $475.00 to repair my MacBook Pro, if it was no longer under warranty. 

Well that’s my first impression of my new iPhone 8 Plus. Did you buy one of the new models? I’d love to hear your review, comment below. I plan on keeping it for three years, if it works well for me. How often do you upgrade?

I invite you to follow my blog via Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, Google +, Bloglovin’, Networked Blogs and Zomato. Also, be sure to browse around my blog since I’m sure you’ll find something else that interests you. 

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3 eggs
1/4 cup flour
Salt and pepper
2 pounds baking potatoes
1 pound boneless pork loin, sliced into 4 cutlets pounded 1/4-inch thick
1/2 cup vegetable oil

In a shallow bowl, beat the eggs with a fork. In a second bowl, mix the flour with 1/4 tsp. each salt and pepper. Using a box grater or a food processor with a shredding disk, shred the potatoes. working in four batches, wrap the potatoes in a clean kitchen towel and squeeze out as much moisture as possible; transfer to a large bowl. Season with 1 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper.
 
Working with one cutlet at a time, dredge in the flour, shake off excess, dip in the egg, then press the shredded potato onto both sides of the cutlet to coat. Repeat with remaining cutlets.
 
In a large, heavy skillet, heat the oil over medium-high. Fry 2 cutlets, turning once, until the potatoes are crispy and brown, about 8 minutes. Drain the cutlets on paper towels and tent with foil to keep warm. Repeat with the remaining 2 cutlets.
 

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I ordered the Sweet & Sour Chicken and a Diet Coke. I noticed on the table a list of Wine & Beer they offer which I had not seen on the menu. Hubby ordered the Lamb Cumin hoping that it would be low carb. He also ordered hot tea, but I didn’t see that beverage on the menu either. It landed up being Jasmine tea and he enjoyed it. The tea and soda were $1.50 each. Since we were visiting in the evening, the dinner prices were in effect. My Sweet & Sour Chicken was $9.95, but at lunch it’s only $6.50 and it includes soup and an egg roll, bargain! Our food arrived very quickly which was about eight minutes. I was happy to see my dish wasn’t swimming in sauce. It had just the right amount of sauce on the bottom of the plate with the chicken, red onion and green peppers, red peppers and pineapple on top. The sauce was perfect, best ever. It wasn’t syrupy, it was thin, light and scrumptious. It also came with a very large bowl of white rice. I was also happy to see that there were sizable pieces of chicken inside the breading. Too many Chinese restaurants have too much breading and very little chicken. The breading was nice and crisp without being greasy. I wish there had been a bit more more onion and green pepper, but all in all it was the best Sweet & Sour Chicken I’ve had. I’m craving it as I write this post! The white rice was also perfectly cooked. I can’t wait to return and have it again though I’ll try to push myself to try something else, perhaps the Cashew Chicken or the Lamb & Carrot Dumplings. If you have been, do you have any suggestions on what to try next? Hubby’s Stir Fried Lamb had a ton of red chili peppers on it! He always complains that when he orders “hot” dishes that they aren’t hot enough, so this was fun to watch him eat. This may be the hottest dish he’s had in a long time. He loved it and plans to order it again soon. I had a few bites and it was very tasty lamb. First you taste the lamb and then the spice hits your taste buds. 

We really enjoyed our first dining experience at this new restaurant and we can’t wait to return. The Asian waitress was really friendly, kind and attentive. They had one person just tending to taking the orders to the kitchen and brining out all the dishes to the customers. He was very efficient. Also, one lady was making dumplings which you could watch, if you sat at the bar. If we lived closer, we would definitely be weekly carry out customers. I highly recommend you give this restaurant a try soon and we plan to visit often.

Be sure to check out my other restaurant reviews before you go. There is a list of them on my Pinterest Restaurant Reviews Board. Follow this blog via Twitter, Google +, Bloglovin’, Facebook or Networked Blogs. Please share this restaurant review blog post with your friends via Twitter & Facebook: Tweet !function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],p=/^http:/.test(d.location)?’http’:’https’;if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=p+’://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js’;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document, ‘script’, ‘twitter-wjs’);

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1. Bobby Brown – Illuminating Moisture Bomb, made in Belgium, .17 fl. oz., $11.56 retail value
2. Amika – Nourishing Hair Mask, made in Israel, .7 fl. oz., $2.30 retail value
3. Stila – Stay All Day Eyeliner in black, made in Japan, .008 fl. oz., $11.00 retail value
4. IGK – Mistress Hydrating Hair Balm, made in the USA, .5 fl. oz., $2.90 retail value
5. SuperGoop – Defense Refresh Setting Mist, made in the USA, .5 fl. oz., $4.11 retail value
6. Korres – Greek Yoghurt Foaming Cream Cleanser, made in Greece, .68 fl. oz., $3.48 retail value

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The Japanese custom motorcycle scene is arguably one of the most influential and progressive in the world. Japanese workshops like Cherry’s Company, Brat Style, Custom Works Zon and Ritmo Sereno have inspired builders around the world and have even been commissioned by motorcycle manufacturers to modify their newest models. Unfortunately in the past it has been difficult to get in touch with Japan’s home builders and enthusiasts, but all that’s slowly changing thanks to social media.
I recently stumbled across the Instagram profile of Cyu-G and his Yamaha SR400 cafe racer. Despite a language barrier we managed to communicate enough to put together the following interview to share the story of how his cafe racer came to be…



ROTCR: Let’s start by you telling us a bit about yourself and your history with bikes.

CYU-G: I live in Nagoya, Japan, I am 49 years old and have been riding for 33 years. Some of the bikes I have owned in the past are Kawasaki Z400FX, Suzuki RG250, Honda CT110 etc. When I customise them I usually get secondhand parts from auctions or shops and I build my bikes in my home garage when I have days off work.

I’m also into British vintage leather jackets and I repair and customise leather wear. In fact the blue Lewis Leathers I wear in these photos were originally a one piece race suit that I split to make a separate jacket. My skills are self taught with both leather and motorcycles.



What was the idea behind the build of this bike and how long did it take to complete?

As I collect and customise vintage leather wear I thought that a cafe racer styled motorcycle would suit these leathers. So I built this cafe racer using a 1994 Yamaha SR400. It took me about 2 years to custom like this and I did all myself apart from the silencers, which were modified by Motor Rock in Nagoya.



What custom work did you perform to transform the bike into a cafe racer?

I replaced almost everything, apart from the frame, engine and wheels. The fairing is a secondhand MINANI item, which I restored and mounted to the frame, using modified brackets from a different fairing. I also fabricated the mounting system for the instruments.

The long alloy petrol tank was hand formed from Aluminium and I made the petrol tank retaining strap using the buckle from a vintage British leather jacket as a fastener. The alloy seat was originally from an unfinished Harley Davidson project which I bought a while ago and customised by myself. The original subframe was shortened, and a new one constructed that also holds the tail light, indicators and fender.



The battery and electrical system are hidden under the alloy seat. The seat base was moulded from FPR and then upholstered by myself in real leather. I spent a lot of time designing my ideal cafe racer, and also in making the many brackets that hold it all together. A portion of the exhaust pipe was cut off and extended using a 20cm section of pipe, which is angled at 15 degrees to kick up the muffler.

I designed the bike more for style than outright performance. However, the engine was still mildly tuned thanks to a racing carburettor and the modified exhaust. The front drum brake was also changed to a disc brake setup, and the front and rear suspension were updated.



What do you like most about the finished bike?

The way the lines of the classic fairing and its rectangular headlight flow into the streamlined alloy petrol tank. I’m also really fond of the matching aluminium alloy petrol tank and seat, with my hand made leather seat upholstery. The Silver finish on everything looks great with leatherwear of any colour.

It’s the perfect bike to combine my two passions.



Build sheet:

• Faring:  MINAMI
• Petrol Tank: Stinky
• Alloy Seat: One off custom
• Handlebars: TOMMASELLI
• Front Brake:  320mm Disc, with Brembo 4 Piston Calliper & Nissin (Active) Master Cylinder
• Rear Suspension:  OHLINS
• Silencer:  Peyton Place (Customised by MOTOR ROCK)
• Carburettor: Yoshimura FCR39 MJN
• Fenders:  Peyton Place
• Speedo and Tachometer:  DAYTONA

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