I'm Not Judging

I recently came across this blog, Rants from Mommyland, and I cannot get enough! It's so funny and real-life and true and you just have to read it. Trust me, if you're a mom, you'll love it. Even if you're not a mom, you'll still find a lot of the posts hilarious. 

Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed the post Everyone is Losing Weight at Me. Not because I'm necessarily trying to lose weight, but because it made some great points about mom-petition, basically how moms try to outdo one another all.the.time. I still fall prey to the competitive line of thinking, but have gotten much better as my kids have gotten older. 

I hope this blog does not come off as judging or condescending. I don't want to eat clean AT you, I just want to share my experiences. I don't hate people who eat preservatives and I don't believe this lifestyle is necessarily for everyone. I blog to keep myself accountable to my eating goals and because I love to write. If someone benefits from my musings, yay!

Happy Anniversary!

My hubby and I celebrated 8 years of marriage this week! It's so funny to look back because it was only eight years ago, but we looked like babies back then :) 

We celebrated by seeing Mumford and Sons in concert on Monday night....AHHMAZING!!! Made my list of top three concerts of all time.

On our anniversary, we made a yummy steak dinner at home complete with creamed spinach, cheesy mushrooms and Paper Moon wine.

 

Here's to many more blessed years!

I Saw, I Pinned, I Conquered, Part Two

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

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

Our Latest Bounty

Sorry for the short post today...been a busy week and we have an even busier weekend ahead. Just a quick shot of our latest harvest from the garden. Stay tuned for some recipes made with our bountiful harvest!

Happy Labor Day!

Dang you Rachael Ray!

Excuse my language (earmuffs children) but damn you Rachel Ray and your EVOO (that's Extra Virgin Olive Oil for those of you living under a rock). Your perky cooking banter and cleverly named dishes made with, cooked in and saturated with EVOO had us fooled. Yes, EVOO is a super food and really good for you, but only depending on how you use it.

An recent article on Fox News debunked several myths about olive oil, including that you should use EVOO for all types of cooking. Not true...EVOO is great for dressings, marinades and in baking, but using it for sauteing, frying, grilling or roasting can be dangerous. Between a temperature of 375 and 405 degrees, EVOO starts emitting dangerous toxins and loses its antioxidant properties. Who knew, right?? Instead of EVOO, consider using regular olive oil for any high heat cooking and save the EVOO for dressings and marinades. (You can read the rest of myths at the Fox News article here)

Instead of olive oil, you could also try coconut oil. Coconut oil raises good cholesterol, boosts the immune system and stimulates metabolism. It's great in stir-frys  and other high heat cooking because it has a high smoke point. Use it in baked goods and frosting as a substitute for veggie or canola oil. Unless you really like the taste of coconut, be sure to buy the refined coconut oil. I made the mistake of buying regular and boy could I taste the coconut in everything I cooked it in! It does make a nice oil to cook with though. Be aware that it's not actually an oil, but a semisolid that will melt when heated.

Want some more options? Check out this Fitness Magazine article on Healthy Cooking Oils.

Dinner Plan to Eat Clean for a Week

 

Haven't jumped into clean eating yet because you're not sure where to start or you feel like you don't have enough time to prepare clean meals? Check out Eating Well's dinner plan for a week of clean eating meals. Along with meal plans and recipes, Eating Well offers clean eating tips, included convenience foods to help make meal prep easier. 

You can find the whole meal plan here.

Sour Cream and Bacon Chicken

Now that I've blogged about a not-so-good recipe, I feel like I've had a string of them! Last night we tried Sour Cream and Bacon Chicken in the crockpot and it was just okay. The flavor was a little bland and I didn't like how the chicken turned out in the crockpot...dry and bland. This might be another one to try, but in the oven. 

Sour Cream and Bacon Chicken
From Key Ingredient
 
8 bacon slices
8 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 (10 oz) cans roasted garlic cream of mushroom soup
1 cup sour cream
½ cup flour (all purpose or gluten free blend)
Salt and pepper to taste

Place the bacon in a large skillet and cook over medium-low heat until some of the fat is rendered. Be sure that the bacon is still pliable and not crisp. Drain on paper towels. If you use this method, reduce the flour to 1/4 cup. Or don’t cook the bacon and proceed with the recipe. Then wrap one slice of bacon around each boneless chicken breast and place in a 4-5 quart crockpot. In medium bowl, combine condensed soups, sour cream, and flour and mix with wire whisk to blend. Pour over chicken. Cover crockpot and cook on low for 6-8 hours until chicken and bacon are thoroughly cooked. You may want to remove the chicken and beat the sauce with a wire whisk so it is very well blended. Pour sauce over chicken. Serve over rice, couscous, or wide egg noodles.