The Year of Erin

Busy Week & Simple Spaghetti

2012-01-23T20:18:00.003-05:00

The past week has been a busy one and I have enjoyed every minute. I signed on as an independent Pampered Chef Consultant, hosted my grand opening show, we received our first birthday cake order, celebrated the upcoming birth of our friends baby girl and I actually have a clean kitchen today. Miracles will never cease. I am looking forward to my first small business endeavor. I will incorporate Pampered Chef products and recipes into my postings. I will be featuring recipes from the 29 minute dinner cookbook next week. I am so excited a friend thought of me (or Mystic Creations) for a birthday cake. We will always remember our first order and happy clients. We are looking forward to it.

I made a few batches of petite cheesecakes this past weekend. The peanut butter cup cheesecakes were a success. I also made the traditional cherry cheesecakes.

Saturday night I made my first Pampered Chef recipe. It was a garden veggie pizza. I have always used a dry pack of crust mix. This called for the refrigerated tube of pizza dough. I was pleasantly surprised. For the cost and convenience I will be using pre-made pizza dough again.

Now, onto making simple spaghetti special. We saw some friends this weekend and cooking came up in conversation. I feel just as burdened with cooking at times as other people do. I have dry spells where I have little motivation and no creativity. Tonight I made Spaghetti...and I made it special. I think the easiest thing we can do as food preparers for our family is to make dinner fun, taste great and be interesting. I used odds and ends of fresh vegetables in the sauce. You will find my simple instructions on the Kitchen Delicious page. Feeding kids is always harder than whipping something up for the adults in the household. I have been coming up with ways to incorporate vegetables in Lilly's meals. We must choose our battles. Tonight she had spaghetti noodles with shredded mozzerella cheese and chicken nuggets. Score 1 for protein and a strikeout on the veggies. It's ok, mini meatloaves with hidden carrots in on the menu for the week. :)

I played around with some glass beads over the last week too. I posted some pictures on my Creative Notions page. There are also new pictures on the Baked Creations page.

Leave me your comments, questions or suggestions. I like to know what matters to everyone and what we are all trying to accomplish in the kitchen and in our lives.

Past Creations

2012-01-17T00:32:00.001-05:00

I discovered my love of baking over the past few years as I've made my daughter's birthday cakes. Her first birthday I am glad we survived our over full house of loving family and friends. I would have attained saint hood already if I had a homemade cake creation on Lilly's 1st birthday. For her second birthday we had Minnie Mouse, then a Barbie Doll cake and last year was a practice in marshmallow fondant with My Little Pony. I have pictures of the other past birthday cakes on the Baked Creations page.

My Little Pony 2011

Flowers in the Winter

2012-01-15T23:10:00.001-05:00

Clay brought Lilly and I each a bouquet of flowers home Friday. Lilly's were hot pink and unicorn purple. Yes, there is a unicorn purple. I have green starbursts and blossoms of yellow and purple. Having flowers in the house is theraputic. Not just for a dirt junkie such as myself. Who wouldn't be a little happier with a smile sitting on the counter.

So I owed him. I haven't created something sweet in a week. I had a failed attempt at a lower calorie mini cheesecake last weekend. I tweeked my recipe tonight and have petite chocolate chip cheesecakes that are 109 calories a piece. I think individual desserts are perfect. Just enough for a taste and a batch makes 12-18 cakes. This is one recipe I will keep to myself. I have shared the standard mini cheesecake recipe on the Baked Creations page. These are always a hit with cherry pie topping.

My Sunday also produced petite carrot cakes. I experimented with a variety of frosting decorations. I like to figure out what looks and tastes best. I will share more about those another time. I also used crockpots today to prepare 2 meats. I did a smoked flavored brisket with onions and porksteaks with tomato sauce, tomato soup leftovers and onions. Now there are meat choices for dinner in the fridge and I don't have to think too much about dinners.

I almost forgot my most exciting news of the day. Lilly ate my little carrot cakes and liked them. I was shocked the idea of carrot cake appealed to her and so pleased she will eat them. I left the nuts out of this batch. I knew there would be no hope if there were nuts. My amazement continued tonight as she actually tried her cauliflower (with homemade cheese sauce) and sweet potato. Balancing our diet has been one of my pojects lately. She is beginnging to grasp proteins, grains and the importance of vegetables. I actaully have to limit the fruit consumption in this house while vegetables had been eluding us. Nice to see we are making progress. Happy Sunday everyone!

Homemade Pizza Night

2012-01-13T21:14:00.003-05:00

We have a habit or tradition of ordering pizza on Friday nights as I’m sure many other families do. In a continued effort to not eat out, I made our pizzas tonight at home. We have done this many times before. Baked on a pizza stone the crust always has a nice crunch to it. As usual this dinner was made from my pantry inventory. I try to have pizza crust mixes in the basement. Cheese is a staple in our house as is tomato sauce. I used black olives, fresh mushrooms, red onion, green pepper and some of my cooked chicken breast from earlier in the week.

I diced my vegetables smaller than normal today and thought they worked well. Clay requested a more substantial crust today than I normally would use. So I used two dough mixes for our crust. If you have made pizza on your own before you know it tastes great and the kids like to help with the toppings. If for some reason you have shied away from homemade pizza, I encourage you to take the plunge. I use store brand dough mix that only has to sit for 5-10 minutes and it always turns out well. Reuse the meats and vegetables in your fridge from the week. Create a meal together as a family and save your money this week

If you would like to see the simple instructions or pictures visit the Kitchen Delicious Page.

Making food that goes the extra mile

2012-01-12T23:50:00.001-05:00

Using pantry basics is important to me. Having sufficient appetizers available during football games is important to my husband. Here is a quick, easy and low fat appetizer that utilizes some items I usually have on hand. You can enjoy it with tortilla chips or a variety of vegetables; carrots, celery, jicama. This warm dip has a little kick and I didn’t even use the entire 1/3 C hot sauce. The recipe can be found on the Kitchen Delicious page.

I discovered the best part of this dip the next night when I used it as the filling in a warm tortilla for dinner. I made my husband a burrito with taco meat, cheese and black beans and warmed it on my electric skillet. To keep the calorie count down on mine I didn't add taco meat or cheese. The chicken dip has such a great flavor and plenty of cheese already; I only added some black beans for my simple and thrifty dinner.

Now for me the burrito makes a nice dinner. The fact that is requires little preparation and is lower in calories is a plus for me. My husband isn’t as concerned with calories or preparation time...especially when he isn’t ‘preparing’. I appreciate a balanced life and will be sure to post some guilty treat recipes soon.

One challenge I am given myself this year is to waste as little food as possible. I often re purpose food and create new ways to use the same foods. I will have to stay creative to keep the family happy. This should get interesting.

Cottage Foods

2012-01-11T22:35:00.006-05:00

I read an amazing document today. Michigan’s Cottage Food Law. I can sell my ‘cottage food’ or food that is labeled, packaged and prepared in my kitchen. This law has a very extraordinary purpose. I only wish all legislation had such a positive impact on my life. I am able to ‘test the waters’ according to Michigan Food Law. It offers an opportunity to ‘see if operating a food business is the right fit.’ What a great idea. I love it!

So I can officially test the waters and prepare my products to share with others. I can personally sell my baked goods to another person. I am not able to sell my goods to a grocery store or market for resale, but I can sell my baked goods. Not only do I get to live my dream part-time right now, I am able to do this with my best friend, Trish. We look forward to sharing our delicious treats with everyone.

I am definitely headed in the right direction this year and it’s only January 11, 2012. I will take it. I look forward to hard work, personal satisfaction and continuing along my path this year.

Be sure to check on our progress. We will post a list of Mystic Creations Baked Goods soon. We bake allergy friendly goodies too. :) I look forward to seeing friends and family soon as we share our samples.

Dreaming of Spring

2012-01-09T22:58:00.001-05:00

Ever since we decided against moving this year I have been dreaming of spring. I can't wait to get outside and see the new sprouts of perennials. My annuals vary from year to year in terms of cost. I spent less last year as a challenge to myself. I bought 3 colors and 3 different textures and 2 green accents I could split and place in multiple flower pots. It worked well. I even grew some tomato plants on the patio in larger empty planters I had left over. There is one rescue plant I and very anxious to watch grow this year. I have always loved butterfly bushes and bought one at the end of the season for $3. It has had two years to grow and get healthy. I can't wait to see it this year. Check out my Ferns, Fairies and Fennel page for other garden plans I have for 2012.

Chicken Pie Cups

2012-01-08T22:26:00.006-05:00

I cooked 2 lbs of chicken breast today. Now I am a few steps ahead preparing dinners this week. Tonight I made little chicken pot pies with no tops...hence chicken pie cups. Any variety of vegetables would be great in these individual cups. I would like to have frozen peas to add next time. Only 150 calories for each chicken cup. These would make a nice appetizer too. Everything I used is a part of my basic pantry inventory and stocked freezer. The recipe and pictures are listed on my Kitchen Delicious page. I will post my pantry inventory suggestions and freezer basics later this week.

S'more Bites

2012-01-08T21:06:00.003-05:00

Here is a sweet treat that is easy to make. At under 100 calories for three s'more bites, these are a great way to satisfy both sweet andsalty cravings. The directions are listed on the Baked Creations page.

Egg Pizza

2012-01-07T20:34:00.004-05:00

Frittatas are a great way to use miscellaneous ingredients. I have leftover brunch bake. It was made of hash brown potatoes, mushrooms, green pepper and scrambled eggs. My husband feels the name of Egg Pizza is more fitting, so we will go with that.

The simple recipe is on my Kitchen Delicious page.

Saturday Brunch

2012-01-07T01:47:00.005-05:00

I am making mini angel food cakes for a brunch party. Mimosas, a breakfast bake, appetizers and ‘Tiny Delights’. My dessert delights also include personal cheesecakes. I will top my little creations with various fruits or nuts and caramel sauce.

Both savory and sweet finger foods will greet my friends. We will get together and share a mimosa. Our afternoon will end on a sweet note with little desserts. Not so many calories to worry about and enough sweet to satisfy just about anyone.

The angel food cake recipe is on my Baked Creations page. Under 200 calories and easy to make a variety of flavors and toppings. Help add color and interest to you dessert table with these little treats.

2012-01-05T22:55:00.005-05:00

I am going back to basic money principles.

Follow spending plan/budget

Pay cash for groceries etc.

Save as much as we can.

We will pay ourselves first out of each paycheck. This will be done via direct deposit and automatic transfers between checking and savings, or Bill Pay and Contingency.

Only cash can be used for the purchase of groceries. This is the golden rule. No running to the store for odds and ends unless it is planned and budgeted for...and paid for with CASH. Seeing that I run on auto pilot with my check card, this will be an interesting new habit for me to concentrate on. This will be my first immediate money task. I will update in a few weeks.

Stay updated on my Monetary Moments page.

Mississippi Mud Cake

2012-01-05T19:06:00.001-05:00

Visit my Baked Creations page to get the recipe for this piece of chocolate heaven.

Personal Pizza on 'Everything' Bread

2012-01-05T19:03:00.001-05:00

My husband loves french bread with all the seasonings. We usually pick up a loaf on the 'oops we baked too much rack' at the grocery store. The loaf we have now was $1.04. Along with a few basics from the fridge and leftovers I made our dinner tonight. I like to make foods in different ways to keep mealtime interesting. Another part of my goal for the year is to be frugal. I like the creativity needed to use what you have and use the same pantry basic ingredients in different ways. Pantry Basics will be covered in a follow-up entry. But with key items always stocked in your pantry, basement or cabinets, you will always be able to creatively feed your family and entertain friends.

Taco meat from last night, ham pieces from Christmas ham, onion, tomato, olives, pineapple & cheese, tomato sauce & ranch dressing & french bread.

Pizzas were cooked at 350* for 20 min.

Taco Pizza - Taco meat, red onions, tomato, cheese.

Veggie Pizza - Ranch, olives, onion, mushroom, tomato. If I had cooked chicken ready I would have added it to this pizza.

Hawaiian - Ham & pineapple.

My Path

2012-01-05T12:54:00.007-05:00

My path for the year is made up of four basic ideals listed below. I will share my year via blogs. I will share my, foods, crafts, hopefully sewing. I will help show what can be done in your life with a limited income and a great passion to follow your path. Most of us have a sense or 'calling' that we are here to accomplish. I have a great and simple calling. I want to sustain myself and family by using the skills I have to earn an income...or supplemental income. I truly enjoy making baked goods, dinner creations, crafts and DIY projects. Most of all my goal this year is to SAVE MONEY. I will share my journey to self fulfillment and eventually self employment.

1. Be my own boss. This will be accomplished by having an income from my own skills and passions. IE. baking, organizing, cooking, creating misc. household crafts etc. I will market myself and my talents in order to gain the experience to one day open a bakery. (yet to be named)

2. Build our savings (contingency fund) -This one isn’t rocket science. We need $ put away for any emergency, home, auto, medical. I will have a variety of easy ways to control spending, be efficient with food and supplies.

3. Make Cost effective improvements/repairs to our home - Part of our major dream is to own property with a nice moderate home and live off the land as much as possible. I will control money and we will complete the needed home repairs as well as a few improvement projects throughout the year.

4. Improve Health - For myself, my daughter and husband. Long story short. I have the knowledge and know-how to eat properly, exercise and take care of myself. However, over the past year I have allowed myself to become controlled by my circumstances instead of the other way around.

Follow my blog this year and be Creatively Thrifty with me. Dazzle in the kitchen with simple yet elegant ideas, time savers and healthy choices . Redecorate, re purpose and reuse what you have to create new and useful items. Every month I will have 4 food postings, 1 financial entry, 2 craft ideas and 1 monthly health overview. Take a journey with me. Become the best you possible and take control of your destiny.