The Giant Blog of Cooking Crafting and Other Activities

Crockpot Beef Stroganoff

2012-03-09T09:35:00.000-07:00

I'm not usually a big fan of stroganoff, but this recipe called for cream cheese so it had to be good...and it was! As my 3 year old would say, it was Delcious, Delectable, DELIGHTFUL! :o) A big hit with everyone in the family.

Crockpot Beef Stroganoff
2 lbs. stew meat
2 cans golden mushroom soup
1 large yellow onion, diced
1/2 c. water
1 container of whole mushrooms, sliced
3-4 Tbsp worchesteshire sauce (I like a lot of this stuff)
couple dashes of garlic salt
couple dashes of paprika
8 oz. cream cheese

In your crockpot add the soup, onion, mushrooms, water, worchestershire sauce, garlic salt, and paprika. Stir until well combined and then add your stew meat. Stir to coat it. Turn on low and let it cook for 6-8 hours. A half hour before serving cut your cream cheese into cubes and add it to the crockpot. Stir until all melted. Serve over your favorite noodles, or rice. Yum!

Source-The Crock Star

Sorry we were both slackers this week. The weather has been absolutley GORGEOUS here, and we've been outside cleaning up the yard, and just enjoying some good ole' vitamin d! I know it really raises my spirit to feel that warm sun on my face.

And!!!...we are finally up to 300 followers! How exciting is that?! Thank you to all of our followers.

Happy Friday!

Digi Day

2012-03-08T11:39:00.000-07:00

Wow this week flew by. I don't think we meant to take a week off, it just happened. Anyway, I have a few layouts for you this week.

I love getting old photos off of my hard drive. Full Credits Here. Linda Roos of In the Making Designs has a new template pack which is oh so helpful. It is called It's a Start templates which has the basic design done for you then you get to change it up and embellish as you want. I also used Samantha Walker's Day by Day Kit.

Find it Here.

I love this poem by Maryann Cusimano. I've always wanted to include it on a layout of Ben. It describes our relationship to a T. He is definitely my wild. I adore him for it. Full Credits Here.

Thanks for looking. Hope you are having a great week!!

Good Ole' Energy Balls

2012-03-01T09:07:00.000-07:00

Try to eat just one. TRY! I told myself before I got these out to try that I would only have one. Tuh! Yeah right! These are just yummy, and some what healthy. I didn't mind my kids having a few either. They loved them. They were gone pretty quick. I will be making them often for snacks.

Energy Balls

1 c. old fashioned oatmeal

1/2 c. peanut butter

1/3 c. honey

1 c. shredded coconut

1/2 c. ground flax seed

1/2 c. mini chocolate chips

1 tsp vanilla

Mix everything in a bowl, and then refrigerate for 20-30 minutes. Roll into little balls. Should make about 18-20. Put them in a baggy in the fridge to store up to 1 week.

You can probably make these healthier by omitting the chocolate chips, using a fat free peanut butter or a different kind of nut butter, sugar free coconut, or adding cranberries or raisins. Yum! I bet they would make great granola bars too. Use your imagination.

Source-Smashed Peas and Carrots

Have a happy Happy Thursday!

Digi Day

2012-02-29T09:55:00.001-07:00

I feel like it's been a really long time since I did a digi day. February flew by and today is Leap Day. I've always thought Leap Day would make a really fun birthday. I wanted to do something fun for the kids and my sister-in-law gave me the idea to have cake batter pancakes and icecream for dinner. The kids are going to love that!

Anyway, there are a lot of great deals on line today. JessicaSprague.com is no exception. You can purchase 4 hybrid scrapbooking classes for $1.00 each. Very cool. More info. Here!

Also, it's Wonderful Wednesday and you can get over 10 items for 50% off. Oh, I love when you can take a day and make it fun!

Today I have a few pages for you. Thanks to those that take the time to look at my pages. I put my heart into them.

I love this photo. Aaron wouldn't like it, but he doesn't read my blog. :) I just don't get very many photos of Aaron, not enough anyway. He is such a good dad and we love him to pieces. Love this template by The Queen of Quirk. Full Credits Here.

This is Erica's lil boy. He is such a doll with that hair. He loved this balloon. Full Credits Here.

I love how this one turned out. I'm just digging grey. I love it. This is my sweet Maggs at one. What a beauty. :) This is another template by The Queen of Quirk. Her templates are my fave. Full Credits Here.

Happy Leap Day and have a wonderful Wednesday!!!

Menu Monday

2012-02-27T11:29:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday! Life has pulled me into another whirlwind. Between trying to sell our home, taking care of a sick baby, and just living life, I feel pulled in so many directions. That's okay though. We're living and that's what matters.

I did want to say congrats to our cookbook winner. I'm jealous. I can't wait to get my hands on that new cookbook. Also, I put out a little bribery last week on this post to wish Erica a Happy Birthday. Thanks to those that did, I know I didn't need to bribe anyone but being a mom, I know a little bribery goes a long way. The random generator chose Shenell. I know you have girls, send me your address and I'll send you a couple of hair clippies.

Okay, hope you have a fabulous week! Onto March!

Moni's Menu

Monday
Leftover Lasagna

Tuesday
Chicken Rice Bowls

Wednesday
Italian Wedding Soup

Thursday
Oven Baked Stew

Friday
German Pancakes or Hootenannies

Saturday
Frito Casserole

Sunday
Chicken Broccoli Casserole

Erica's Menu

Monday
Creamy Crockpot Chicken

Tuesday
Taco Salads

Wednesday
Ham and Bean Soup

Thursday
Crockpot Beef Stroganoff

Friday
Simply Done Chicken Legs

Saturday
Homemade Corn Dogs and Fries

Sunday
Grilled Steaks and Fried Potatoes

Happy Monday!

English Muffin Bread

2012-02-23T09:30:00.000-07:00

Have you missed us? I hope so. We've both been soooo busy! I've had sick croupy kids, and our cows are having their babies. So I'm on high alert. Who knew I'd become a farmers wife. I LOVE IT! Exciting times around here!

I thought I better whip something up for the blog, so I chose this AMAZING bread. And when I say amazing, I MEAN IT! I think it has to be a new favorite of mine and my families. It toasts up so nicely and you can put whatever on it. My favorite has to be butter and jam. Or honey butter. Mmmm...It makes a huge batch of 4 loaves. I gave 2 away. I'm sure it would freeze up nicely. I will have to try it.

It really is a beautiful bread. Gorgeous!

English Muffin Bread

5 1/2 c. warm water

3 packets or 6 1/2 tsp active dry yeast

2 Tbsp salt

3 Tbsp sugar

11 c. all purpose flour

In your mixing bowl add your water and yeast. Stir gently to combine and let it sit until nice and bubbly. Add your sugar, salt and then the flour. Mix until well combined. Cover and let rise until it reaches the top of your bowl. While it's rising grease 4 larger bread pans and sprinkle some corn meal in there too. Shake it around to evenly coat the pan. Spoon dough evenly into pans. Let it rise again until it reaches the top of the pan. Bake at 350 minutes 40-45 minutes or a nice golden color. 10 minutes before the timer goes off brush on melted butter on the tops of all the loaves and continue baking. Remove and let them cool completely on a cooling rack before cutting into them.

Source-One Good Thing

Note-I used my kitchenaid for this. It almost filled the entire bowl, but still worked nicely. If you want to play it safe, use a huge bowl. This dough is extremely runny and sticky, so don't worry when you pour it into your bread pans.

I want more! So dang yummy. :o)

We still haven't heard from our winner, CINDY B.! If we don't hear from her before tomorrow morning we will be picking a new winner. So, Cindy, WRITE US! PLEASE! ;o)

Have a happy Thursday!

Just Pinned and a WINNER!

2012-02-17T08:49:00.000-07:00

Hi! Happy FRIDAY! Have you discovered Pinterest yet? I love Love LOVE this place! It makes me happy. It takes me places and it makes me think that I am very creative and a master chef. I could easily pin and pin for a couple hours. But, I don't unless I am in bed and pinning away on my phone when I can't sleep. :o) Here's what has been pinned this week by either me or Monica.

Hahahahaha!...I wish! :o)

Are you kidding me? This looks so yum!

I love all the different outfits you can pin. I wish I could have every single outift.

Mmmm...

This is called Better than Sex Chex mix. If you try it, let me know. *lol*

So many adorable teacher gift ideas.

So if you haven't discovered pinterest yet, then I think you should go check it out now. If you need an invite just leave us a comment with your email and we will send you one ourselves. If you already have an account, and aren't following us yet, then you can go here to follow Erica, and here to follow Monica.

And here is what you have all been waiting for. I had Monica pick a number this morning with the random number generator and the winner is...CINDY B.!!!!! WOOOHOOO! E-mail us immediately at enjvanbeb@yahoo.com with the address you want the new cookbook sent to. If you don't contact us in a weeks time, then we will pick a new winner.

Have a happy weekend! It's supposed to storm here this weekend. I really REALLY hope it does. Stay safe!

Healthy Chocolate Muffins

2012-02-15T10:25:00.001-07:00

I know when I hear "healthy" in certain things I think it is gonna be dry and bland. Well...these are far from both! And each one is only 58 calories for a regular sized muffin. I whipped these up this morning, so I would have a great after workout treat. I'm so happy I did, because these were amazing. I don't know how healthy they still are when you have more than one in one sitting. Tee hee! O'well. I think these would have been a lot bigger if I hadn't run out of baking powder. I only used 1/4 of what it called for. I think they were still quite pretty. :o)

*drool*

Healthy Chocolate Muffins

1 3/4 c. oatmeal

3 egg whites

3/4 c. unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 c. unsweetened apple sauce

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 c. plain greek yogurt

1/2 tsp. cream of tartar

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1 c. hot water

1 c. sugar substitute (Like Splenda) or 1/4 c. plus 2 Tbsp Stevia

1/2 c. semi sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin pans with liners or spray muffin tin with non stick spray.

In a food processor or blender add all your ingredients except your chocolate chips. Blend until oats are ground and mixture is good and smooth.

Scoop the mixture into liners about 2/3 full. Bake 10 minutes, and then sprinkle tops with chocolate chips. Bake for an additional 3-5 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Let cool and enjoy! Yum yum YUMMY!

Source-From Flab to Fab

Seriously so happy I made these today. You are probably wondering how my diet is going. Well...I have my GREAT days, and my not so great days, but who doesn't? I think you need to cheat every once in awhile. I've lost a total of 6.8 lbs and numerous inches throughout my entire body. I feel great! I would like to lose about 10-15 more lbs, but we will see. I feel great! I'm now training for my 10k and I absolutely love running! I never thought I would ever say that.

Anyhoo...Have an awesome Wednesday! And do not forget to enter out giveaway! You only have until tomorrow night to do so! GO DO IT NOW HERE!!!

Edited to ADD:
This is Monica. :) Today is Erica's 30th birthday. Please wish her a happy birthday. She is one of the most caring, giving, and kindest people I know. She's the best sister and I love her to pieces. If you wish her a happy birthday by commenting on this post, I'll send a random person a handmade surprise. Bribery. :)

Happy Valentine's Day!!

2012-02-14T10:03:00.000-07:00

I'm sure you have been all over Pinterest looking for Valentine's ideas. I know I have. One of my friends is quite the pinner and has lots of eye candy on her boards. Her name is Emily and you can find her Pin Boards Here.

Anyway, I wanted to make this day special for my kiddos. We started the morning with breakfast. I set the table with Heart plates, heart cups, heart twisty straws, and lots of pink. It was really a mishmash of lots of ideas I've seen. Then we had pink milk, pancakes, and bacon.

I made pancakes that looked like these but using my recipe. The kids loved them.

For lunch I got most of my inspiration from Three Pixie Lane, but I added my own touches. It was fun to pack up a fun lunch for the kids. I hope they like it.

I also added this cute little ensemble. I know the kiddos will love this.

And for their Valentines I did these. Soooo cute.

I saw these somewhere on the web a few years back. I finally did them and loved how they turned out. Ben thought they were pretty cool too.

I did see this on Pinterest and thought it would be perfect for Maggs. She loved the play on words and couldn't wait to pass them out at school. She's so cute.

Hopefully I've made their day extra special. I love these two kiddos and Valentine's is the perfect day to show them. Happy Valentine's Day!!!

Menu Monday

2012-02-13T10:10:00.001-07:00

Happy Monday! We woke up to white snow everywhere. I am completely content with snow in January and February. Once March hits I get antsy for Spring.

Last week I followed my menu to a T until yesterday. We were planning on a pork roast but I was not 100% sure about my roast. It just didn't seem right. I hate buying our meat from the grocery store. I grew up on farm raised beef and pork and of course occasionally deer and elk. Anyway, I live by "if in doubt, throw it out". Ten dollars in the garbage. Boo! By inspiration (Megan), we decided to have breakfast for dinner. Waffles with this Syrup was perfect.

This week we get two nights out! Very exciting. Hope you have a wonderful week, and Happy Valentines Day!!!

Monica's Menu

Monday
Tofu Stirfry

Tuesday
Valentines Day-I have a date. :)

Wednesday
Taco Soup

Thursday
Hawaiian Haystacks

Friday
Night Out

Saturday
Chicken Sandwich

Sunday
Lasagna (Request by Ben, I love when the kiddos request dinners)

Erica's Menu

Two nights out?! Lucky! I unfortunately don't get any nights out this week, so here's my weekly menu. :o)

Monday
Hot dog Boats

Tuesday
Sweet and Sour Chicken

Wednesday
Tacos

Thursday
Lemon Butter Chicken

Friday
Bean and Cheese Quesadillas

Saturday
Steak and Fried Potatoes

Sunday
I think I'll do Lasagna too. Sounds so yum!

You only have a few more days to enter our giveaway for the new Pioneer Woman cookbook! Make sure you go and enter HERE!!

Happy Monday!

Red Velvet Valentines Cupcakes

2012-02-10T07:29:00.000-07:00

I was in a cupcake mood. For those new followers, this blog started out as a cupcake blog. It has evolved and changed into Erica and my everything blog, but cupcakes are near and dear to my heart. For fear of becoming a broken record, I won't tell you why I love cupcakes. Most likely it's the same reason you do. There is nothing like a perfectly portioned beautiful tasty little cake. See, there I go.

This is a Martha Stewart recipe. I have a love/hate relationship with her cupcake recipes. Sometimes they are amazing and well, sometimes they are blah-se. The reviews on this cupcake are not that great, but my cupcake club did this recipe in December and they all enjoyed them. I trust my fellow cupcake loving friends so I gave it a go.

Overall, I'm glad I did. I do think this recipe could use some tweaking. It is an oil and sugar based recipe so the bottom of the cupcake liners were a bit oily although the cupcakes didn't taste oily themselves. They were moist, had a nice crumb, and very good. I'd be interested in playing with this recipe to cut down on the oil and still keep them moist.

You can find the recipe HERE. I frosted them in my favorite Cream Cheese Frosting. This is also a Martha Stewart recipe and by far my favorite Cream Cheese Frosting recipe. It's so basic and just plain delicious.

For the tags I used Samantha Walker's A to Z Linen Solids Paper Pack and the Pea Sarah Font.

Hope you've had a wonderful week. Thank goodness for Friday, right? :)

Don't forget to enter our Giveaway for The Pioneer Woman's new cookbook. Enter Here.

Hello My Pretties...

2012-02-09T08:45:00.000-07:00

Monica posted these babies way back when. And can I just say these have to be my absolute favorite cupcake! They are simple to throw together and oh so yummy!! I have some bananas getting a little to ripe and I might just have to whip up a batch. I think if I eat just one it might help me with my cravings. Or maybe twp...or three?! Ha ha! Happy Thursday!

If you want an absolutely delicious easy cupcake recipe, I have found the one for you. Oh, these are so beautiful and yummy. These are not in the Martha Stewart Cupcakes Cookbook. I found these on marthastewart.com. There are a bunch of fun cupcake recipes on there. I'm excited to try more. These are called Banana Cupcakes with Honey Cinnamon Frosting. The frosting and the cake together is delectable. They are moist and fluffy and really just fabulous. These are definitely a keeper as far as recipes go. AND when I say easy, I'm not kidding, very doable. They only took me an hour and a half start to finish.

I hope you like my retro 70's counter tops. We are renting a cute little home built way before my time. I do love the nostalgic feeling of the old counter tops, and cabinets.

I actually didn't try the cake this time b/f. The reviews on the website say the cake is wonderful even without the frosting. I guess for the non-frosting lovers.

I on the other hand loved this frosting. It was light and I loved the touch of honey and cinnamon. Very different (and gourmet) from the average ole' buttercream that I'm used to.

Pretty.

And oh so tasty. There really is nothing like a cupcake. :)

Digi Day and a Valentines Freebie

2012-02-07T00:02:00.000-07:00

Hi all! Happy Tuesday! I'm excited about today because I have my first Freebie for you! This has been something I've been meaning to do and well I finally did it. I've been loving all the fun Subway Art all over the net and recently I took a class at JessicaSprague.com on how to make Subway Art. You can find the class HERE.

Cute, right? This is an 8x10 jpg image but could be resized if needed. You can download this image HERE. Please leave me feedback if you use this image. Also, this image is copyrighted. You are welcome to use this image for your own personal use but it can't be sold or claimed as your own. Thanks!

Also, I did a layout this week featuring Samanth Walker's Cotton Tail Papers. It's fun to see some Spring products coming out. It's right around the corner people!

That's my lil' cutie last year. You can find Samantha's papers HERE and full credits for this layout HERE.

Don't forget to enter our Giveaway. We are feeling mighty generous this week. :) We are giving away the new Pioneer Woman Cookbook. You can enter HERE!

Have a wonderful day! :)

Menu Monday

2012-02-06T10:46:00.000-07:00

Yay for pre-planned menus. I love that I don't have to ask my husband every night, "What do you want for dinner?" I hate asking because I always get the same response, "I don't know or and I don't care". :o) If I ask the kids they always want to eat out or have cereal. So, it's nice to have it hanging on the fridge so everyone knows what is for dinner.

Erica's Menu

Monday
Cheddar Broccoli Soup in Bread Bowls

Tuesday
Haystacks

Wednesday
Biscuits and Gravy

Thursday
Homemade Corn dogs and Fries

Friday
Sweet and Sour Chicken

Saturday
I'm headed out of town with my good friend...no kids...I AM SO EXCITED!

Sunday
Homemade Pizza

Monica's Menu

Monday
Tuna Noodle Casserole

Tuesday
Parmesan Chicken

Wednesday
Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup

Thursday
Taco Casserole

Friday
English Muffin Mini Pizzas

Saturday
Chicken Strips and Oven Fries

Sunday
Cranberry Dijon Pork Roast

Don't forget to enter our Giveaway for The Pioneer Woman's New Cookbook. You can Enter HERE. Yay for Free Stuff! :) Have an awesome week!

Sugar Cookie Bars and a Giveaway!

2012-02-03T08:58:00.001-07:00

I think I found a new favorite treat. Seriously. These were awesome. I didn't eat as much as I wanted, because of this silly diet I'm on, but I got enough of a taste that every time I walked by them, my mind was screaming, "EAT THEM! GET YOU A BAR AND ENJOY THAT SUCKER! YOU DESERVE IT! YOU CAN RUN IT OFF LATER!" I ended up taking half over to my in laws to share with the grandkids. I needed them out of my site!

These would make a cute Valentine's neighbor gift but with cute Valentine's Day sprinkles. I think I will be doing that for mine.

Sugar Cookie Bars
1 c. unsalted butter, softened
2 c. sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
5 c. flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda

Cream your butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add your eggs one at a time mixing well after each one. Add vanilla. Add your dry ingredients and mix until well combined. Press into a greased 13x18 in sheet pan. A big cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 10-15 minutes. Mine was perfect at 15. Let it cool completely before frosting.

Frosting Ingredients
1/2 c. unsalted butter, softened
1/2 c. shortening
1 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
4 c. powdered sugar
5 Tbsp milk or until you get your desired thickness

Beat your butter and shortening until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and then powdered sugar. Mix until well combined. Add in milk 1 Tbsp at a time until your reach the thickness that you want. Spread over your cooled sugar cookie bars and then sprinkle with your favorite sprinkles right after so they stick to the icing. Cut and serve.

Source-Crunchy Rock

We are so excited about how well our little blog has been doing the last couple months that we thought we would do a giveaway! It's our way of saying thank you to all of our followers. We appreciate you coming back to read our blog and leaving us comments here and there. It really makes our day hearing from all of you!

So, as you all know, I love Ree Drummond! She is coming out with another cookbook in March, so I thought since I'm ordering me one, I would order a cookbook for one of our followers too! Yay! I can't wait!

You can enter up to 3 times! You can enter for each thing you do.

Leave a comment if you are a follower of our blog, and let us know how we are doing or what you'd like to see different on the blog.

Leave another comment if you are 'liking' us on Facebook.

Leave another comment if you shared with your friends and family on facebook, or any other social network that we are doing a fun giveaway on our blog, and leave us with a link to see.

We will choose a winner on Friday, the 17th! So you have until Thursday, the 16th to enter. :o)

And there you have it! GOOD LUCK!! I can't wait to see who wins! Have a happy Friday, and again thank you for coming back to read our blog. We love and appreciate every single one of you!

Cinnamon Roll Muffins

2012-02-01T09:24:00.000-07:00

*drool* These were so tasty. I made them on a Saturday morning so I could share them with the whole family. We gobbled them right up. They were actually really simple to throw together. That's why I decided on making them. A great weekend breakfast or treat.

Isn't it pretty?

Cinnamon Roll Muffins

1 c. buttermilk

1/2 c. brown sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 egg

3-3 1/2 c. flour (I used 3 1/2 c.)

Filling-

5 Tbsp butter, softened

1 c. brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Icing-

1 c. powdered sugar

2-3 Tbsp milk

1/4 tsp vanilla

In your mixing bowl combine brown sugar, baking soda, salt, vanilla and egg. Mix well. Pour in buttermilk and then the flour. Mix until thoroughly combine. You don't want this super sticky, so it's easy to handle. Use your hook and knead it for a few minutes. If you don't have the hook then knead on a lightly floured surface and knead for a minute or two until nice and smooth.

Roll your dough out into a 12x24 inch rectangle. Spread with softend butter for filling and spring with brown sugar and cinnamon.

Roll your dough starting at the wide side and roll towards you. Make sure it's good and tight. Cut in half, and then cut the halves in half again Giving you 4 pieces. Then you want to cut those into 3 rolls. Giving you 12 muffins total. Spray a muffin tin with cooking spray or use paper liners. Place your muffins in the cups and bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes or until they start to turn golden brown. Let them cool on a cooling rack. When they are completely cool, make your icing and and drizzle the tops. I just dunked mine in the icing and it was perfect.

Enjoy!

Source-Sprinkled with Flour

Cause Sometimes You Feel Like a Little Chocolate

2012-01-31T13:40:00.000-07:00

I'm on a diet and I love to bake.

What am I supposed to do there. *Sigh* So, the no candy deal hasn't been a problem. Maybe that's why it was so easy for me to give it up. I'm not gonna lie. Today at the grocery store that Twix bar looked mighty tasty. Especially after a 3 mile run this morning. I didn't give in to that craving for chocolate BUT what to do?

In search for something to satisfy this sweet tooth and not throw off my diet I came across a chocolate cake. I see the words Chocolate and Cake and I can't help but get interested. I've made lots of cake in my day and this one seemed simple enough. So, I got my two little helpers and we made a cake.

Quick, simple and tasty! If you are craving some chocolate, whip up this cake and enjoy. Just for your info., if you cut this baby up in 12 pieces each one is 6 Weight Watchers Points Plus. Now that's something I can feel good about. :)

This is not a measly little piece. It's nice chunk of chocolatey goodness.

Chocolate Cake for the Health Conscience
1 spray cooking spray

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups packed light brown sugar
3/4 cups unsweetened cocoa, powder
1/2 cups sugar, granulated
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp table salt
1 1/4 cups fat-free skim milk
3 large egg whites
2 Tbsp regular butter, melted
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cups water, boiling
1 Tbsp powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Coat a 9- X 13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, combine flour, brown sugar, cocoa powder, granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt; mix well with a fork to combine.

In another large mixing bowl, combine milk, egg whites, melted butter and vanilla. Using an electric mixer, mix on low speed until blended; gradually beat in boiling water.

Gradually add flour mixture to milk mixture and mix on low speed until blended. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake until a wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 25 to 30 minutes. Cool cake in pan, on a wire rack.

Sift powdered sugar over cooled cake before cutting into 12 pieces. We topped ours with fat free whipped topping and banana slices. Yum!

Source: Weight Watchers

And please don't mind the dust, our blog will be under construction in the coming weeks. Thanks!

Menu Monday

2012-01-30T09:36:00.000-07:00

Another week gone, and we are almost into February! Can you believe it?! I can't. Time seems to be flying lately. We had such a busy week last week. My baby boy turned 1, and I have been trying to get him to sleep in his crib for naps. I'm also weaning him, so let's just say it's been a very challenging week. He is starting to get the hang of things, but I think it's gonna take some more time. I can't wait to get my bed back and not sleep in one position all night long.

Anyhoo...Here's my menu for the week.

Monday
Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

Tuesday
Crockpot Chili

Wednesday
Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup

Thursday
Crockpot Beef Stroganoff

Friday
Sweet and Sour Chicken

Saturday
Pizza!

Sunday
Pot Roast and Mashed Taters and Gravy

Happy Monday!!

Moni's Menu

Monday
Mexican Casserole

Tuesday
Ham Fried Rice

Wednesday
French Dips (A request from Ben.)

Thursday
Spinach Bacon Mushroom Quesadillas

Friday
Spaghetti

Saturday
Tuna Noodle Casserole

Sunday
Meatloaf

Have a great week!!!

Passing on the Good Stuff...

2012-01-27T09:31:00.000-07:00

Is it Friday already?! Wow, this week flew by for some reason. I just wanted to link up some recipes I tried this week. Both were delicious and easy. I love delicious and I'm very fond of easy. :) I guess with the Chinese New Year being this past week I was feeling like some Asian food. Anyway, just in case you are doing your grocery shopping this week, here are a couple of recipes to try.

Crockpot Teriyaki Chicken

We tried these last night. Both kids loved them as did the Hubs and I. These are from Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen. You can find her blog and recipe HERE.

P.F. Chang's Mongolian Beef

A friend linked me up to this recipe. It's a knock off of P.F. Chang's Mongolian Beef. I haven't been to a P.F. Chang's in years and I'm not sure I've ever had their Mongolian Beef. This was pretty easy and tasted good. The kids love these dishes over rice. This recipe come from Food.com. You can find the recipe HERE.

Just so you know the recipe says to deep fry the meat, I just stir fried it and it was fine. No need for the excess oil. I also used a commenters suggestion and marinated the meat in soy sauce and Hoisin sauce for an hour or two.

Anyway, I hope you have a wonderful weekend. We have date night tonight and lots to do tomorrow! See ya!

Digi Day

2012-01-24T10:16:00.001-07:00

Happy Tuesday! I have a few layouts for your this week. There is a lot going on over at JessicaSprague.com. I know I say that a lot, but it's a hopping place! There are some amazing classes going on right now. Mainly the Digital Art Journaling Class. I honestly didn't know what digital art journaling was but I've seen some beautiful work come out of this class and I'm hoping to get my "hands" dirty this week and get into it.

Hopefully I have some samples for you next week. :)
Here are my recent layouts.

I love this profile photo of Abi staring at dad. She's really trying to figure out what dad is putting in her mouth. She didn't enjoy her first experience of food. She likes it more now. Full Credits Here.

Here are my three kiddos. This is a collaborative kit called 12 Days of Christmas done by Jessica Sprague and Heidi Swapp. I love the vintage Christmas feel to this kit. Full credits HERE.

Nancie Rowe Janitz has decided to sell her products at JessicaSprague.com. She was the owner of ScrapArtists.com and just recently closed shop. She wanted to focus more on designing and less on running a store. We're excited because we get to benefit from her beautiful work. Check out her store here. Full Credits.

Alrighty, that's it for today. Hope you have an awesome Tuesday! Any crafty plans today? We would love to know! :)

Menu Monday

2012-01-23T10:26:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday! It's pretty cold and dreary here in Missouri. It's been such a weird winter so far. I keep waiting for a bunch of snow, but not much yet. Last week I stuck to my menu pretty well. I guess that's what a diet will do to you. Blah. The good thing is we try to eat "normally" but watch our portions and our snacking.

The "no candy" deal is going well. I've only craved it once and caught my self habitually reaching for a candy bowl another time. Weird, how we do that. Other than that it's been pretty easy and I like to think about all the calories I've saved by giving up candy. I've been running about 9 miles a week for the last couple of weeks. My official half training starts next Monday. I'm nervous but plan on continuing on. That is my goal update.

Anyway, on to the Menu.

Moni's Menu

Monday
Chickpea Curry (A Pinterest Find)

Tuesday
Ranch Chicken

Wednesday
Mongolian Beef over Rice

Thursday
Crockpot Teriyaki Chicken (Pinterest)

Friday
Date Night. Woohoo!

Saturday
Homemade Pizza

Sunday
Roast Beef and Mashed Potatoes

Have a Great Week!!

Just Pinned

2012-01-20T09:50:00.000-07:00

So if you haven't heard of the Pinterest craze, then I'd say you might be a little bit out of the loop. That's okay though! If I said you weren't missing out, then I'd be lying. Pinterest is like a giant virtual pin board where you can pin any photo of anything you want. I have planned some dinners using Pinterest, planned a birthday party using ideas from Pinterest, and even organized my home. I have found heartfelt thoughts and humbling stories. I can't talk enough good about it. If you need inspiration in any shape or form, go to Pinterest. With that said, it can be addicting. Moderation in all things is the key to Pinterest. ;)

Anyway, this week I saw a pin for a Green Smoothie. I've made these before but I thought I'd check out this new recipe. I'm soooo glad I did. It is super super healthy and tastes very very good. It's a treat and a meal in one. I just can't go wrong there. So, I thought occasionally we could share some of the things that caught our eyes on Pinterest and then if anything catches your fancy you can link up to it from here.

You can also find my Pin board HERE and Erica's HERE. Feel free to follow us. :)

Just Pinned:

I'm serious about this smoothie, it's serious Yum. :) Find it HERE.

This is a darling garland. There is no specific tutorial for this, but I'm sure it could be easily figured out or googled. :)

This is from Howdoesshe.com. I love this blog. She has tons of great ideas. There's a tutorial for this easy blanket.

This is gorgeous! It's made from tissue paper. Credit to Tatertots and Jello.

This is from kopycat.com. It's supposed to be like Kozy Shack rice pudding. I've said it once but I'll say it again, I love love love rice pudding. Yum!

Erica pinned this and I love it! I need this in my house. Credit to theinspiredroom.net.

Check out our pinboards for any links. I hope you have an awesome Friday and an even more awesome weekend!

Crepe Paper Heart Garland

2012-01-18T08:22:00.003-07:00

I was strolling through pinterest and saw a whole bunch of cute Valentine's Day garland ideas. I saw this one, and thought I could do this. She didn't have instructions, just said what it was and took a picture. But, my elementary memory came to me and I remembered all those time wrapping little squares of crepe paper around the eraser of the pencil, dipping it in glue, and then sticking it on the construction paper. Well, this is just as easy. Just add a little ribbon and there you have it!

Here's what you need:
Cardboard
Ribbon to whatever length you want it
Crepe Paper
Glue
Pencil
Scissors

I obviously used cardboard. I thought it would hold the weight a lot better. And I had tons of it laying around from Christmas packages.

First of all I made a heart that I liked on regular paper. I cut it out and I traced it on some cardboard. I then cut out my hearts and poked 2 holes in each each heart and laced my ribbon through them.

Then it was time to cut squares out of the long strips of crepe paper. Fast and easy if you triple or quadruple the layers of paper.

If you don't remember how to do this I will show you. :o) Just put your pencil right in the middle of your square.

And then fold up the square so it wraps around your pencil. Then you'll dip it in glue.

And then press it onto your cut out shape. Bring up the pencil and the paper stays there all cute and stuff. Keep doing this until it looks just the way you want it. I didn't glue over the ribbon, so if I wanted to move the hearts I could. The crepe paper hid it pretty good.

How cute is this?!

Here's the finished product. I think it turned out so cute.

Sorry for the horrible lighting on this one. We don't have much sun today. But you get the idea. It's cute, and Valetinesy. Is that a word?

If you are really into the crafting mood then you can make The Heart Felt Wreath I made last year. I have made a few more since then just to go around the house, and I LOVE them! I just love Valentine's Day. Always have. And it's not cause of the treats and presents, it's because my birthday always follows the day after. :o)

Have a happy day! And let's pray we get clobbered with snow today.

Snowflake Sugar Cookies

2012-01-17T08:45:00.000-07:00

I love sugar cookies! I love everything about them. I love to mix of the dough, taste it, roll them out, cut them, bake them, and most of all decorate them. It's just fun. I can be basic or creative with these. I like mine really thick and soft. Oh baby. :)

This time I took the long approach. First I outlined each cookie with a thicker frosting in blue. Then I thinned my blue frosting and flooded my cookie to get the smooth blue finish. When that had set up, I piped on the white with a Wilton tip #4. I added some silver candy balls and there you have it, a beautiful sugar cookie. There is just something fun about eating a decorated sugar cookie!

You can see some waiting for the white in the upper left corner.

Lot's of yummy goodness!

You can find my favorite sugar cookie recipe HERE. We've shared this recipe before.
Here is a Wilton tutorial for the technique I used.

And here is a fun blog called Bake at 350. She mainly uses this technique with her cookies. I've shared this blog before. So fun.

Thanks for dropping by! Happy Tuesday!

Menu Monday

2012-01-16T09:08:00.000-07:00

Another week gone. Are you kidding me? Time needs to seriously slow down. Pretty soon i'll be 30, and i'm not liking the sounds of that. My baby boy will be 1 in a matter of weeks, and it's just so so sad that he is not a tiny infant any more, but a BUSY toddler.

So, I hear we might finally get some snow in these parts this week. I hope we do. I have been wanting some so bad. It's January. It's supposed to be cold and white. That's all there is to it. So, I put a couple comfort warm foods on my menu this week. Pray for snow! I have to have it.

Erica's Menu

Monday
Ranch Pork Chops and Mashed Taters

Tuesday
Baked Potato Soup

Wednesday
Mac and Cheese and Hotdogs

Thursday
Crockpot Beef Stroganoff

Friday
Chicken Enchiladas

Saturday
PIZZA!

Sunday
Cheddar and Broccoli Soup in bread bowls

Moni's Menu
So last week I had a couple of new recipes on my menu. We tried the Fiesta Chicken Enchiladas and they were pretty good. They were quick and easy. Definitely my type of recipe. I've linked to it if you want to give it a try. I have a few more new recipes this week. Ha! Wish me luck or better yet, wish the fam luck.

Monday
Lil Cheddar Meat Loaves

Tuesday
Stuffed Peppers

Wednesday
Crockpot BBQ Chicken

Thursday
Turkey Chili

Friday
Navajo Tacos

Saturday
Hearty Cheese Tortellini

Sunday
Ranch Chicken

Have a wonderful week! :)