I've been throwing this idea back and forth for about a year now and I'm finally stepping out of my comfort zone and doing it. I'm incredibly nervous and full of fear but I'm pushing myself and so excited!
I'm becoming a Pampered Chef consultant!
I'm just waiting on a call from my consultant, Diane, and then I'm getting signed up, buying my consultant kit, and joining her team.
I've been wanting to do this for a while but just always found a reason not to. I still have many reservations and concerns (I have a big fear of the unknown and I'm trying to get over that) but I'm excited so why not at least try?
Here are few of my deciding factors:
-We need some extra money to have pay off "stupid newlywed debt" as I like to call it.
- I'm sick of feeling like I don't contribute to our family at all. Ryan works his butt off everyday to provide for us and I am so thankful to him for that but I also feel so guilty. I want to help bring in some money so we can feel more comfortable financially.
-I need "me" time. Ryan says this all the time. "Babe, you need time for you. You take care of me and Chase and the house and the dog but never do anything for yourself." Even though this will be a job, it's going to flexible and fun for me. I love Pampered Chef and I can't wait to get other people excited about it like I am.
-I still want to be a SAHM. This way I can be. I only have to do 2 shows a week to make some pretty decent money and I can do those shows while Ryan's home to watch Chase. I don't have to give up spending my days with him.
-My schedule is mine. If there's a day I don't want to work, I won't. Plain and simple. There aren't going to be any bosses to fight with about schedule mix ups and or anything like that.
Anyway, I'm pretty excited. So if anyone wants to book a show... :)
Friday, September 10, 2010
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Pizza, Pizza!!
Tonight I made this for dinner:
Yep, it did taste as good as it looks. I made homemade dough, homemade sauce, and the pizza was stuffed crust. I'm pretty proud of it!
I had a request for the dough and sauce recipes so here they are...
Pizza Dough
(makes 2 pizzas)
-1 Tbsp. yeast
-1/4 cup water - warm, NOT hot
Put yeast and water in bowl and let sit until foamy.
-1 cup milk
-1/4 cup sugar (I put a tiny bit more in)
-1/4 cup crisco
-1 tsp. salt
Combine above ingredients until dissolved. Add yeast mixture.
-3-4 cups flour
Add flour to liquid mixture 1 cup at a time, mixing well.
Knead until well blended. Put in large bowl and put in warm spot. Let rise until doubled.
*If you have a bread machine you can skip all of these instructions and just put all the ingredients in the bread machine and then put it on the dough setting.
Pizza Sauce
-1 can (6 oz.) tomato paste
-oregano
-white sugar
-garlic powder
-black pepper
-paprika
-water
Empty tomato paste into a small pot and fill the empty can with water twice to add to tomato paste. Then add the rest of the ingredients a little at a time, tasting often, until it tastes right to you. Mix often and bring to a boil. Let cool until warm but no longer hot and put on pizza dough or use as dipping sauce.
Sorry the sauce recipe isn't very exact but I just kinda made it up tonight.
Yep, it did taste as good as it looks. I made homemade dough, homemade sauce, and the pizza was stuffed crust. I'm pretty proud of it!
I had a request for the dough and sauce recipes so here they are...
Pizza Dough
(makes 2 pizzas)
-1 Tbsp. yeast
-1/4 cup water - warm, NOT hot
Put yeast and water in bowl and let sit until foamy.
-1 cup milk
-1/4 cup sugar (I put a tiny bit more in)
-1/4 cup crisco
-1 tsp. salt
Combine above ingredients until dissolved. Add yeast mixture.
-3-4 cups flour
Add flour to liquid mixture 1 cup at a time, mixing well.
Knead until well blended. Put in large bowl and put in warm spot. Let rise until doubled.
*If you have a bread machine you can skip all of these instructions and just put all the ingredients in the bread machine and then put it on the dough setting.
Pizza Sauce
-1 can (6 oz.) tomato paste
-oregano
-white sugar
-garlic powder
-black pepper
-paprika
-water
Empty tomato paste into a small pot and fill the empty can with water twice to add to tomato paste. Then add the rest of the ingredients a little at a time, tasting often, until it tastes right to you. Mix often and bring to a boil. Let cool until warm but no longer hot and put on pizza dough or use as dipping sauce.
Sorry the sauce recipe isn't very exact but I just kinda made it up tonight.
Monday, August 30, 2010
What a difference a year makes.
"What a difference a year makes."
I've heard that statement before but I never really personally got it until now.
This weekend coming up is Labor Day weekend. Labor Day weekend last year my mom and brother flew out to Cali to help Ryan and I drive from CA to OH because we were moving home. For real this time. No more back and forth from OH to CA because of deployments. It wasn't just me moving back waiting on Ry to get home. Ryan was moving home too. We were finally going to be a family in our home, Ohio.
They say that "home is where is the heart is", well even though my heart is with my son and husband, a little piece of it was left in Ohio when we were living in CA. I got terribly homesick out there especially after Chase was born because I wanted him to experience his "firsts" in Ohio where our traditions are and where his grandparents are.
I guess now he can the be the cool kid in his class when he's in school and has to do his autobiography project, which I'm pretty sure most kids had to do at some point in school.
I can see it now... Chase: "An interesting fact about me: I lived in California for most of the first year of my life." Classmates: "OH!! WOW!!" etc. That will be fun for him. I know in elementary school whenever someone wasn't born in Ohio it was pretty much the coolest thing ever to the rest of the students who were, most likely, all born in the tri-city area.
Anyway, I'm getting off topic. I meant to write about our past year. It has been quite an eventful year to say the least.
When we first moved home we lived with my parents until Ryan could find a job and we could find a house. During that time Ryan started college at THE Ohio State University's ATI campus. He has since had to take a break thanks to his tuition never being paid on time. The new GI Bill is a great idea in theory but actually using it is a big pain in the butt! I know it's new so they're still working out the kinks but Ry got screwed over too many times when it came to him actually getting the money that he more than earned. Ok I can't get started on that right now because it makes me too mad. haha
Ryan has worked 5 different places in this past year. Not all at the same time but that's still a lot of moving from job to job. I think that he has finally found one that he likes. It helps that it isn't as far away as some of the other places and they're paying him more than other places too.
Chase had his first birthday at my parent's house. My dad had to stay in his bedroom the whole time because he was recovering from an emergency back surgery and couldn't move very well.
We found a house that we fell in love with and then about 2 months later moved into that house.
When we got married we couldn't wait to have our own house. We had our own apartments in CA but that's different. This house is OUR'S. For example, after we moved in we were really excited because Ryan was vacuuming at 11 at night. In our apartment complexes you weren't allowed to have any loud noise after 9pm so late vacuuming was really exciting for us! haha
We celebrated our first Christmas as a family. Ry wasn't there when was Chase was born and he didn't get home until January after that so he wasn't there for Chase's first Christmas.
I'm sure there are many other things that I'm forgetting right now because so much has happened. This past year went by so fast and I can't wait to see what this next year has in store for us!
I've heard that statement before but I never really personally got it until now.
This weekend coming up is Labor Day weekend. Labor Day weekend last year my mom and brother flew out to Cali to help Ryan and I drive from CA to OH because we were moving home. For real this time. No more back and forth from OH to CA because of deployments. It wasn't just me moving back waiting on Ry to get home. Ryan was moving home too. We were finally going to be a family in our home, Ohio.
They say that "home is where is the heart is", well even though my heart is with my son and husband, a little piece of it was left in Ohio when we were living in CA. I got terribly homesick out there especially after Chase was born because I wanted him to experience his "firsts" in Ohio where our traditions are and where his grandparents are.
I guess now he can the be the cool kid in his class when he's in school and has to do his autobiography project, which I'm pretty sure most kids had to do at some point in school.
I can see it now... Chase: "An interesting fact about me: I lived in California for most of the first year of my life." Classmates: "OH!! WOW!!" etc. That will be fun for him. I know in elementary school whenever someone wasn't born in Ohio it was pretty much the coolest thing ever to the rest of the students who were, most likely, all born in the tri-city area.
Anyway, I'm getting off topic. I meant to write about our past year. It has been quite an eventful year to say the least.
When we first moved home we lived with my parents until Ryan could find a job and we could find a house. During that time Ryan started college at THE Ohio State University's ATI campus. He has since had to take a break thanks to his tuition never being paid on time. The new GI Bill is a great idea in theory but actually using it is a big pain in the butt! I know it's new so they're still working out the kinks but Ry got screwed over too many times when it came to him actually getting the money that he more than earned. Ok I can't get started on that right now because it makes me too mad. haha
Ryan has worked 5 different places in this past year. Not all at the same time but that's still a lot of moving from job to job. I think that he has finally found one that he likes. It helps that it isn't as far away as some of the other places and they're paying him more than other places too.
Chase had his first birthday at my parent's house. My dad had to stay in his bedroom the whole time because he was recovering from an emergency back surgery and couldn't move very well.
We found a house that we fell in love with and then about 2 months later moved into that house.
When we got married we couldn't wait to have our own house. We had our own apartments in CA but that's different. This house is OUR'S. For example, after we moved in we were really excited because Ryan was vacuuming at 11 at night. In our apartment complexes you weren't allowed to have any loud noise after 9pm so late vacuuming was really exciting for us! haha
We celebrated our first Christmas as a family. Ry wasn't there when was Chase was born and he didn't get home until January after that so he wasn't there for Chase's first Christmas.
I'm sure there are many other things that I'm forgetting right now because so much has happened. This past year went by so fast and I can't wait to see what this next year has in store for us!
Friday, August 27, 2010
There's a first for everything, right?
Today was the very first time in my life that I have ever had to call poison control.
Thank you, Chase, for helping Momma experience new things. (The previous sentence is smothered with sarcasm for those who couldn't tell.)
I walked into the dining room to see my son with his mouth on, and licking, an open bottle of hand sanitizer. Yes, like Purell.
First, let me clear a few things up:
-No, I don't leave open bottles of hand sanitizer laying around for the heck of it.
-Yes, I thought the bottle was out of his reach.
-No, I was not in the room with him when he got the bottle.
-Yes, I did freak out when I saw him.
-No, I still don't know how he reached it.
-Yes, I felt like the worst mom in the history of moms.
The bottle is one of those little bottles that you carry in your purse or in the car, etc.
I somehow lost the cap. I have no idea what happened to it or even how it came unscrewed, but it did and the cap is now nowhere to be found.
Anyway, I had it on the dining room table in the middle of the table out of Chase's reach, or so I thought. He must have climbed up onto one of the chairs and crawled on the table to get it. That's the only way I can see possible that he reached it.
I heard something in the dining room so I went in to see what the noise was and it was Chase licking the bottle. It was still right side up and he wasn't tipping it. It still looked as full as the last time I looked at it so I don't think he drank any. He was just licking the top of the bottle. I took it away and started scrubbing his tongue. I frantically called Ryan but there was no answer so then I called who most women look at as their personal expert on raising children, their mom. I talked to Mom and then Ry called back so I talked to him. They both told me to call poison control.
I felt really insecure about calling Poison Control because I didn't want to seem like a bad mom. I then told myself, "If you were a bad mom you wouldn't have called at all because you wouldn't care if your son drank Purell." I just kept repeating that in my head because it was better than what I was repeating before that, "YOU ARE THE WORST MOM EVER!!!!!!!"
I called and spoke to a very nice lady named Crystal who told me that if he didn't drink any and just got a taste of it that he should be perfectly fine and to give him some juice. She also said that the alcohol in hand sanitizer is a lot like drinking alcohol so I should call her back if Chase starts acting like he's drunk or falls asleep suddenly. He fell asleep before I called but it was his nap time so I told her that and she said not to worry because it wouldn't have affected him that soon anyway so it is just him taking nap, not passing out.
So, if anyone else has a similar situation in the future where their toddler licks hand sanitizer bottles, I hope this blog is helpful to you. <---That was a sentence I honestly never imagined seeing or hearing before.
Sheesh!
Thank you, Chase, for helping Momma experience new things. (The previous sentence is smothered with sarcasm for those who couldn't tell.)
I walked into the dining room to see my son with his mouth on, and licking, an open bottle of hand sanitizer. Yes, like Purell.
First, let me clear a few things up:
-No, I don't leave open bottles of hand sanitizer laying around for the heck of it.
-Yes, I thought the bottle was out of his reach.
-No, I was not in the room with him when he got the bottle.
-Yes, I did freak out when I saw him.
-No, I still don't know how he reached it.
-Yes, I felt like the worst mom in the history of moms.
The bottle is one of those little bottles that you carry in your purse or in the car, etc.
I somehow lost the cap. I have no idea what happened to it or even how it came unscrewed, but it did and the cap is now nowhere to be found.
Anyway, I had it on the dining room table in the middle of the table out of Chase's reach, or so I thought. He must have climbed up onto one of the chairs and crawled on the table to get it. That's the only way I can see possible that he reached it.
I heard something in the dining room so I went in to see what the noise was and it was Chase licking the bottle. It was still right side up and he wasn't tipping it. It still looked as full as the last time I looked at it so I don't think he drank any. He was just licking the top of the bottle. I took it away and started scrubbing his tongue. I frantically called Ryan but there was no answer so then I called who most women look at as their personal expert on raising children, their mom. I talked to Mom and then Ry called back so I talked to him. They both told me to call poison control.
I felt really insecure about calling Poison Control because I didn't want to seem like a bad mom. I then told myself, "If you were a bad mom you wouldn't have called at all because you wouldn't care if your son drank Purell." I just kept repeating that in my head because it was better than what I was repeating before that, "YOU ARE THE WORST MOM EVER!!!!!!!"
I called and spoke to a very nice lady named Crystal who told me that if he didn't drink any and just got a taste of it that he should be perfectly fine and to give him some juice. She also said that the alcohol in hand sanitizer is a lot like drinking alcohol so I should call her back if Chase starts acting like he's drunk or falls asleep suddenly. He fell asleep before I called but it was his nap time so I told her that and she said not to worry because it wouldn't have affected him that soon anyway so it is just him taking nap, not passing out.
So, if anyone else has a similar situation in the future where their toddler licks hand sanitizer bottles, I hope this blog is helpful to you. <---That was a sentence I honestly never imagined seeing or hearing before.
Sheesh!
My Dad's (most recent) Hospital Visit
Dad, Dad, Dad.
As much as the man hates being in the hospital and being restricted in the doing what he wants, you'd think he'd stop having so much wrong with him! haha
First, his back surgery, then the severe allergic reaction from the back surgery meds and now this, all within 10 months of each other.
Here's what happened:
Yesterday my dad was at work and started having chest pains that went down his arm, through his neck, and into his head. Of course the first thing you think is, heart.
It was especially looking like that because heart problems run in our family.
He got to the hospital and they gave him meds and did all sorts of tests. Luckily, they all came back as non-heart related. YAY!!
They think that he had a severe case of acid reflux. They may have to do another test on him to check that out but for now he's allowed to go home and just stay on the reflux medicine he's already on.
Thank you so much to everyone who prayed for him. Some people really under-estimate the power of prayer. Thank you GOD for not making his condition more serious.
As much as the man hates being in the hospital and being restricted in the doing what he wants, you'd think he'd stop having so much wrong with him! haha
First, his back surgery, then the severe allergic reaction from the back surgery meds and now this, all within 10 months of each other.
Here's what happened:
Yesterday my dad was at work and started having chest pains that went down his arm, through his neck, and into his head. Of course the first thing you think is, heart.
It was especially looking like that because heart problems run in our family.
He got to the hospital and they gave him meds and did all sorts of tests. Luckily, they all came back as non-heart related. YAY!!
They think that he had a severe case of acid reflux. They may have to do another test on him to check that out but for now he's allowed to go home and just stay on the reflux medicine he's already on.
Thank you so much to everyone who prayed for him. Some people really under-estimate the power of prayer. Thank you GOD for not making his condition more serious.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
God was busy...
My dad just sent this to me in an email. I've seen it before but I love it so much that I had to share :)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A United States Marine was taking some college courses
between assignments. He had completed 20 missions in Iraq
and Afghanistan . One of the courses had a professor who
was an avowed atheist, and a member of the ACLU.
One day the professor shocked the class when he came in.
He looked to the ceiling and flatly stated, "GOD, if you are real, then
I want you to knock me off this platform... I'll give you exactly 15 min."
The lecture room fell silent. You could hear a pin drop. Ten minutes
went by and the professor proclaimed, "Here I am GOD, I'm still waiting."
It got down to the last couple of minutes when the Marine got
out of his chair, went up to the professor, and cold-cocked him;
knocking him off the platform. The professor was out cold.
The Marine went back to his seat and sat there, silently.
The other students were shocked and stunned, and sat there
looking on in silence. The professor eventually came to,
noticeably shaken, looked at the Marine and asked,
"What in the world is the matter with you? Why did you do that?"
The Marine calmly replied,
"GOD was too busy today protecting America 's
soldiers who are protecting your right to say stupid
stuff and act like an idiot. So He sent me."
The classroom erupted in cheers!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A United States Marine was taking some college courses
between assignments. He had completed 20 missions in Iraq
and Afghanistan . One of the courses had a professor who
was an avowed atheist, and a member of the ACLU.
One day the professor shocked the class when he came in.
He looked to the ceiling and flatly stated, "GOD, if you are real, then
I want you to knock me off this platform... I'll give you exactly 15 min."
The lecture room fell silent. You could hear a pin drop. Ten minutes
went by and the professor proclaimed, "Here I am GOD, I'm still waiting."
It got down to the last couple of minutes when the Marine got
out of his chair, went up to the professor, and cold-cocked him;
knocking him off the platform. The professor was out cold.
The Marine went back to his seat and sat there, silently.
The other students were shocked and stunned, and sat there
looking on in silence. The professor eventually came to,
noticeably shaken, looked at the Marine and asked,
"What in the world is the matter with you? Why did you do that?"
The Marine calmly replied,
"GOD was too busy today protecting America 's
soldiers who are protecting your right to say stupid
stuff and act like an idiot. So He sent me."
The classroom erupted in cheers!
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Don't you mean your "boyfriend"?
I may be old fashioned but it really annoys me when people who aren't married refer to their boyfriend or girlfriend as "hubby" or "husband" or "wifey" or "wife". In my opinion, you have to earn the right to call them that by making the vows and putting in the work. Marriage is great if you work at it and are willing to continue to work at it until "death do you part". I think these pet names and titles are used too casually. I take pride in my marriage and the fact that Ryan and I stood in front of our families, friends, the priest, and GOD and vowed to love, honor and respect each other for the rest of our lives. I feel like until you do that and take your vows and take on the responsibility of marriage, you don't rate to use those names for each other.
Another thing that bothers me and kind of goes along with this topic of the casual use of the titles "husband" and "wife" is the overall casual use of marriage itself. I know I'm young and most people weren't expecting Ryan and I to last long because we dated in high school and then got married so young. Here's the difference between us and most of the other people in this country these days... we take marriage seriously. We don't believe in divorce as a convenience. We believe that divorce should only be used in cases where someone is in danger, such as abuse and other instances like that. But we also believe that marriage is a big deal. It annoys me that to some people spouses are like flavors of the week. You need to be positive that person you're putting that ring on is the person you want to share the rest of your life with. I never once had a doubt about marrying my husband. I love him more now than I did on our wedding day and I'm so excited to celebrate more anniversaries, more births of our children, more birthdays, more holidays, grandchildren, everything. To me marriage is so much more than "just a piece of paper" and it sickens me how casual marriages and divorces have become. People these days don't put in the time and effort that should be put into a marriage and that really bothers me. If you aren't willing to work at it and earn your titles, then don't use them at all because it's insulting to the rest of us who have earned the titles husband and wife.
Another thing that bothers me and kind of goes along with this topic of the casual use of the titles "husband" and "wife" is the overall casual use of marriage itself. I know I'm young and most people weren't expecting Ryan and I to last long because we dated in high school and then got married so young. Here's the difference between us and most of the other people in this country these days... we take marriage seriously. We don't believe in divorce as a convenience. We believe that divorce should only be used in cases where someone is in danger, such as abuse and other instances like that. But we also believe that marriage is a big deal. It annoys me that to some people spouses are like flavors of the week. You need to be positive that person you're putting that ring on is the person you want to share the rest of your life with. I never once had a doubt about marrying my husband. I love him more now than I did on our wedding day and I'm so excited to celebrate more anniversaries, more births of our children, more birthdays, more holidays, grandchildren, everything. To me marriage is so much more than "just a piece of paper" and it sickens me how casual marriages and divorces have become. People these days don't put in the time and effort that should be put into a marriage and that really bothers me. If you aren't willing to work at it and earn your titles, then don't use them at all because it's insulting to the rest of us who have earned the titles husband and wife.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Pampered Chef Party
My Pampered Chef party was yesterday and, even though a lot of people couldn't make it, it was really fun! Both of the recipes that the consultant made were microvave recipes. She made a chocolate lava cake in the microwave. When she told me the day before what her demonstration for the show would be, I thought it was going to be gross. I was wrong. It was delicious!! It was probably the most moist cake I have ever tasted and it all together (prep and cooking) only took her about 15 minutes. I was so impressed that I got the pan she used as one of my free products.
If you like Pampered Chef or just like cooking, I highly suggest hosting a party. Even if you don't like cooking, they have so many products, cook-books, and ideas that make cooking so much easier. I highly suggest hosting a party because you get so many products for free or at a discount. I also get 10% off any order I make until July 31st 2011. Just for hosting the party and getting orders yesterday I'm getting almost $200 worth of product for only about $25! I know I sound like I'm trying to sell it to you but that's another thing altogether.
I am seriously considering becoming a Pampered Chef consultant. I really liked my consultant from yesterday and she is a team leader. So Ryan and I talked about it and within the next year I'm going to become a Pampered Chef consultant. My consultant even told me that the set up and presentation of the food I had there yesterday was so neat and pretty that I would make a great consultant just based on my food alone. I think that and when she showed me her paycheck from her very first month of being a consultant, were the two things that really shoved me towards it.
Anyway, my cupcakes turned out so well and so pretty that I decided to share the recipe and a few pictures. These cupcakes weren't overly sweet and they seemed like the perfect summer dessert to me. They're also really pretty and easy. These are actually a Pampered Chef recipe and are featured on the cover of one of their cook-books. I couldn't find a 9 oz box of cake mix anywhere so I just got a regular size box and doubled the recipe. Also, I ran out of paper liners so half of my cupcakes were done with liners and the others I just sprayed the muffin pan with cooking spray. The cooking spray actually worked better.
Strawberry Cream Cupcake Desserts
Crust and Cake
-1 1/2 cups mini pretzel twists (about 3/4 cup crushed)
-1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick), melted **I substituted margarine
-2 tbsp. sugar
-1 small package (90z) white cake mix **I used yellow cake mix
-1/2 cup sour cream
-1 egg
-1 tbsp. water
-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
Filling, Strawberries, & Garnish
-2 1/2 cups thawed frozen whipped topping, divided
-2/3 cup strawberry ice cream topping
-1 cup sliced strawberries
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place paper liners into muffin pan. For crust, place pretzels into large resealable plastic bag and finely crush. Combine pretzel crumbs, butter and sugar in a small bowl; mix well. Drop even scoops of pretzel crumbs into liners. Press crust into liner with Mini-Tart Shaper. (Mini tart shaper in a Pamperd chef product, if you don't have one you can use the back side of a spoon.)
Combine cake mix, sour cream, egg, water and vanilla in large mixing bowl; whisk 1 minute or until smooth. Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Bake 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center of cupcake comes out clean. Remove pan from oven to a cooling rack; cool 10 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pan and cool completely.
Meanwhile, combine 1 cup of the whipped topping and 3 tbsp of the strawberry ice cream topping; mix well. Gently toss strawberries with 1 1/2 tbsp of strawberry ice cream topping.
When ready to serve, fill an accent decorator (I don't have one so I used a ziploc bag and just cut the tip off) with reaming whipped topping. Remove paper liners from cupcakes. Slice off tops of cupcakes using a serrated knife. For each serving, place bottom of cupcake on a serving plate; scoop filling over center of cupcake. Spoon a rounded tablespoon of strawberries and juice over filling; top with cupcake top. Pipe whipped topping over dessert and drizzle with about 1 tsp slightly warmed remaining ice cream topping. Serve immediately.
If you like Pampered Chef or just like cooking, I highly suggest hosting a party. Even if you don't like cooking, they have so many products, cook-books, and ideas that make cooking so much easier. I highly suggest hosting a party because you get so many products for free or at a discount. I also get 10% off any order I make until July 31st 2011. Just for hosting the party and getting orders yesterday I'm getting almost $200 worth of product for only about $25! I know I sound like I'm trying to sell it to you but that's another thing altogether.
I am seriously considering becoming a Pampered Chef consultant. I really liked my consultant from yesterday and she is a team leader. So Ryan and I talked about it and within the next year I'm going to become a Pampered Chef consultant. My consultant even told me that the set up and presentation of the food I had there yesterday was so neat and pretty that I would make a great consultant just based on my food alone. I think that and when she showed me her paycheck from her very first month of being a consultant, were the two things that really shoved me towards it.
Anyway, my cupcakes turned out so well and so pretty that I decided to share the recipe and a few pictures. These cupcakes weren't overly sweet and they seemed like the perfect summer dessert to me. They're also really pretty and easy. These are actually a Pampered Chef recipe and are featured on the cover of one of their cook-books. I couldn't find a 9 oz box of cake mix anywhere so I just got a regular size box and doubled the recipe. Also, I ran out of paper liners so half of my cupcakes were done with liners and the others I just sprayed the muffin pan with cooking spray. The cooking spray actually worked better.
Strawberry Cream Cupcake Desserts
Crust and Cake
-1 1/2 cups mini pretzel twists (about 3/4 cup crushed)
-1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick), melted **I substituted margarine
-2 tbsp. sugar
-1 small package (90z) white cake mix **I used yellow cake mix
-1/2 cup sour cream
-1 egg
-1 tbsp. water
-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
Filling, Strawberries, & Garnish
-2 1/2 cups thawed frozen whipped topping, divided
-2/3 cup strawberry ice cream topping
-1 cup sliced strawberries
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place paper liners into muffin pan. For crust, place pretzels into large resealable plastic bag and finely crush. Combine pretzel crumbs, butter and sugar in a small bowl; mix well. Drop even scoops of pretzel crumbs into liners. Press crust into liner with Mini-Tart Shaper. (Mini tart shaper in a Pamperd chef product, if you don't have one you can use the back side of a spoon.)
Combine cake mix, sour cream, egg, water and vanilla in large mixing bowl; whisk 1 minute or until smooth. Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Bake 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center of cupcake comes out clean. Remove pan from oven to a cooling rack; cool 10 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pan and cool completely.
Meanwhile, combine 1 cup of the whipped topping and 3 tbsp of the strawberry ice cream topping; mix well. Gently toss strawberries with 1 1/2 tbsp of strawberry ice cream topping.
When ready to serve, fill an accent decorator (I don't have one so I used a ziploc bag and just cut the tip off) with reaming whipped topping. Remove paper liners from cupcakes. Slice off tops of cupcakes using a serrated knife. For each serving, place bottom of cupcake on a serving plate; scoop filling over center of cupcake. Spoon a rounded tablespoon of strawberries and juice over filling; top with cupcake top. Pipe whipped topping over dessert and drizzle with about 1 tsp slightly warmed remaining ice cream topping. Serve immediately.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Hamburger Noodle Bake
I found this recipe in a Taste of Home magazine and I was a little leery because it sounded a lot like Hamburger Helper to me and I think Hamburger Helper is gross. The picture looked really good so I decided to try it anyway. I'm glad I did because I ended up really liking it. I have a few little notes though...
First, I substituted extra wide whole wheat noodles for the egg noodles and ground turkey for the ground beef. Also, I'm really picky about textures so I used onion powder in place of all the onion in the recipe and I skipped the green pepper. So if you're picky like me, that's the way to go.
Hamburger Noodle Bake
-2 cups uncooked egg noodles
-1/2 lb. lean ground beef
-2 Tbsp. finely chopped onion
-1 can (8oz) tomato sauce
-1/4 tsp. sugar
-1/8 tsp. salt
-1/8 tsp. garlic salt
-dash pepper
-1/4 cup cottage cheese
-2 oz. cream cheese, softened
-1 Tbsp. thinly sliced green onion
-1 Tbsp. chopped green pepper
-1 Tbsp. sour cream
-2 Tbsp. grated parmesan cheese
Cook the noodles according to the package directions.
Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook meat and onion until meat is no longer pink; drain. Remove from heat; stir in tomato sauce, sugar, salt, garlic salt, and pepper.
In a small bowl combine the cottage cheese, cream cheese, green onion, green pepper, and sour cream.
Drain noodles; place half of the noodles in a greased 1-qt baking dish. Spoon half of the meat mixture over the top. Layer with cheese mixture and remaining noodles. Top with remaining meat mixture; sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
Cover and bake at 350 degrees F for 20-25 minutes.
Enjoy!
First, I substituted extra wide whole wheat noodles for the egg noodles and ground turkey for the ground beef. Also, I'm really picky about textures so I used onion powder in place of all the onion in the recipe and I skipped the green pepper. So if you're picky like me, that's the way to go.
Hamburger Noodle Bake
-2 cups uncooked egg noodles
-1/2 lb. lean ground beef
-2 Tbsp. finely chopped onion
-1 can (8oz) tomato sauce
-1/4 tsp. sugar
-1/8 tsp. salt
-1/8 tsp. garlic salt
-dash pepper
-1/4 cup cottage cheese
-2 oz. cream cheese, softened
-1 Tbsp. thinly sliced green onion
-1 Tbsp. chopped green pepper
-1 Tbsp. sour cream
-2 Tbsp. grated parmesan cheese
Cook the noodles according to the package directions.
Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook meat and onion until meat is no longer pink; drain. Remove from heat; stir in tomato sauce, sugar, salt, garlic salt, and pepper.
In a small bowl combine the cottage cheese, cream cheese, green onion, green pepper, and sour cream.
Drain noodles; place half of the noodles in a greased 1-qt baking dish. Spoon half of the meat mixture over the top. Layer with cheese mixture and remaining noodles. Top with remaining meat mixture; sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
Cover and bake at 350 degrees F for 20-25 minutes.
Enjoy!
Curry Chicken Salad
I had a request for this recipe to be in my blog so here it is, Susana! :) I didn't think to post it so sorry there aren't any pictures. I'll be sure to take pics for the next recipe I post.
My cousin, Katie, made this chicken salad for me once when I was at her house visiting and I've been hooked ever since. It's the best chicken salad I have ever had. It's really easy and so yummy! The recipe says to serve the chicken salad on croissants but we chose to get whole wheat tortillas and make wraps instead. Both ways are delicious but the whole wheat tortillas are a healthier alternative.
Curry Chicken Salad
-One boneless, skinless chicken breast per person, cooked and shredded
(example: cooking for 2 people, 2 chicken breasts)
-curry powder
-celery salt
-pepper
-mayonnaise
(you can use reduced fat but non-fat is not recommended)
-sliced almonds
-seedless red grapes, cut in half
Put cooked, shredded chicken in a bowl. Add 1/4 cup mayo to start and then depending on how much chicken/how much mayo you like in your chicken salad, add more. Mix well. Add 1/2 tsp curry powder per person. Add celery salt, pepper, almonds, and grapes to taste. (Go easy on the celery salt until you do a taste test because too much can be overpowering.) This recipe can be made ahead of time but the grapes and almonds should not be added until right before serving. It can be served on a croissant, on lettuce as a salad, or in a whole wheat tortilla as a wrap.
Enjoy!
My cousin, Katie, made this chicken salad for me once when I was at her house visiting and I've been hooked ever since. It's the best chicken salad I have ever had. It's really easy and so yummy! The recipe says to serve the chicken salad on croissants but we chose to get whole wheat tortillas and make wraps instead. Both ways are delicious but the whole wheat tortillas are a healthier alternative.
Curry Chicken Salad
-One boneless, skinless chicken breast per person, cooked and shredded
(example: cooking for 2 people, 2 chicken breasts)
-curry powder
-celery salt
-pepper
-mayonnaise
(you can use reduced fat but non-fat is not recommended)
-sliced almonds
-seedless red grapes, cut in half
Put cooked, shredded chicken in a bowl. Add 1/4 cup mayo to start and then depending on how much chicken/how much mayo you like in your chicken salad, add more. Mix well. Add 1/2 tsp curry powder per person. Add celery salt, pepper, almonds, and grapes to taste. (Go easy on the celery salt until you do a taste test because too much can be overpowering.) This recipe can be made ahead of time but the grapes and almonds should not be added until right before serving. It can be served on a croissant, on lettuce as a salad, or in a whole wheat tortilla as a wrap.
Enjoy!
Monday, July 12, 2010
Everlong
If some of you are wondering about the title of my blog, it's pretty simple...
Everlong is one of my favorite songs by my favorite band, Foo Fighters.
They became my favorite band not too long ago. My husband introduced me to their music (as he did with many, MANY other bands) when we first started dating and I did NOT like it at all (I didn't like most of the music he introduced to me). Then the more I listened to it, the more I liked it until I was asking for their newest CD for Christmas. Ryan felt pretty triumphant by that point. His attitude was pretty much "I told you so" without ever saying the actual words.
Everlong doesn't really have any specific meaning to me. It's just Foo Fighters music in general. All of Foo Fighters' music reminds me of my husband and our relationship from the beginning to now.
-It reminds me of us when we first started dating when he made me listen to them and I was too polite to make him turn it off. haha
-It reminds me of when Ryan surprised me by coming home for 4th of July while he was training in SOI. He brought his new Foo Fighters CD home with him and that was all that was on in the car while he was home.
-It reminds me of Ry's first deployment because I considered the song My Hero my deployment anthem. To this day, My Hero is the ringtone on my phone for when Ryan calls.
-It reminds me of the drive from CA to OH for Christmas leave after Ry got back from his first deployment. I listened to Echos, Silence, Patience, & Grace (and learned pretty much the whole album) on that road trip.
-It reminds me of when I was pregnant and if I wanted to feel Chase move, all I had to do was turn on a Foo Fighters song and he would start "dancing" in my belly.
As I'm typing this I'm thinking that I chose the perfect title for my blog. It means quite a bit more than I ever realized before.
I guess blogging is turning out to be a good idea for me :)
Everlong is one of my favorite songs by my favorite band, Foo Fighters.
They became my favorite band not too long ago. My husband introduced me to their music (as he did with many, MANY other bands) when we first started dating and I did NOT like it at all (I didn't like most of the music he introduced to me). Then the more I listened to it, the more I liked it until I was asking for their newest CD for Christmas. Ryan felt pretty triumphant by that point. His attitude was pretty much "I told you so" without ever saying the actual words.
Everlong doesn't really have any specific meaning to me. It's just Foo Fighters music in general. All of Foo Fighters' music reminds me of my husband and our relationship from the beginning to now.
-It reminds me of us when we first started dating when he made me listen to them and I was too polite to make him turn it off. haha
-It reminds me of when Ryan surprised me by coming home for 4th of July while he was training in SOI. He brought his new Foo Fighters CD home with him and that was all that was on in the car while he was home.
-It reminds me of Ry's first deployment because I considered the song My Hero my deployment anthem. To this day, My Hero is the ringtone on my phone for when Ryan calls.
-It reminds me of the drive from CA to OH for Christmas leave after Ry got back from his first deployment. I listened to Echos, Silence, Patience, & Grace (and learned pretty much the whole album) on that road trip.
-It reminds me of when I was pregnant and if I wanted to feel Chase move, all I had to do was turn on a Foo Fighters song and he would start "dancing" in my belly.
As I'm typing this I'm thinking that I chose the perfect title for my blog. It means quite a bit more than I ever realized before.
I guess blogging is turning out to be a good idea for me :)
Getting Started
It seems like everyone is starting their own blog so I figured, why not? I'm hoping to pretty much keep a journal. Not necessarily daily but just post whenever I have something on my mind or want to share something. If you are one of my "followers" thanks for taking the time to read what I have to say (well, I guess type would be more like it) and thanks in advance for being patient while I figure it out. I hope you enjoy reading my thoughts, rants, stories, and tales of my life in general. I also hope I don't bore you! haha Happy Blogging! :)
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