Day 9: Lego Tray Gift Idea

How cute is this!

 

This is the cutest gift ever for any little Lego fan. You could also paint it pink or purple and give the new Lego "Friends" for girls. I am so making these for gifts next year. Here is the site where you can find this idea and much more: Somewhat Simple

Step by Step directions:

First, cut 1/2″ plywood to 15″x15″ and 1×2 boards: 2 @ 15″ and 2 @ 16.5″. Then pre-drill pocket holes on all four sides of plywood and attach the 15″ side pieces and then the 16.5″ pieces to the plywood. Just to secure the side pieces together, nail the corners with 1 1/2″ finish nails, then use a nail punch to hide the nail heads and filled them up with wood putty.

After measuring the center of the 15″ side, align and mark holes for handles on both sides. Then, pre-drill holes for the handles. Give the whole tray a quick sanding, then wipe it down with a damp cloth. Give the tray a couple of thin coats of paint. Then, print name, centered on the side of the tray and used a ballpoint pen to trace the letters, creating an indention on the wood.

After painting inside the indention, seal the entire piece with a couple of coats of satin polyurethane. Then  apply Gorilla glue to the plywood and attached the Lego base plate. Weigh it down with some paint cans and let it dry overnight.

 

 Add some felt circles to the bottom  attach the handles.

 

Finally, add a small Lego set, some ribbon, cute bow and tag. Voila, you now have a great unique gift to give at children's birthday parties, holidays or just because!!! 

Day 8: Chicken Enchiladas with Avocado Cream Sauce

 

This week I made a delicious new Chicken Enchilada with Avocado Cream Sauce recipe that I pinned a while back. In my house, we LOVE Mexican food. After living in San Antonio for 5 years, we had some great restaurants that we would frequent but sadly, once we moved away the good Mexican food came to an end.  I try finding recipes on pinterest to satisfy our hankering for Mexican whenever I can. 

This recipe was really good. I'll definitely make it again. The only thing I did differently was instead of layering the chicken and the vegetable mixture, I mixed it together. I think next time, I'd make extra sauce too.

What's For Dinner... Is the blog where the recipe I found the recipe. This is a really cute blog where the gal shows ideas for gifts, recipes and ideas for the home. Totally worth checking out. She gives recipe credit to this blog for the recipe: gimme some oven . I love it when I find two great blogs to follow from one pin! Enjoy!

Chicken enchiladas with avocado cream sauce

You will need:
Enchilada Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 medium white or yellow onion, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 poblano peppers, stemmed and thinly sliced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, finely diced
• 8-10 flour tortillas
• 4 cups shredded cooked chicken(rotisserie works best)
• 2-3 cups Monterrey Jack cheese
• optional garnish: fresh cilantro, sour cream, and/or shredded cheese

Avocado Cream Sauce Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp. butter
• 2 Tbsp. flour
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1/2 tsp. cumin
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 2 California avocados, peeled and pitted
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• juice of one lime

First make the avocado cream sauce: Melt the butter in a skillet over medium high heat. Add the flour, whisking until golden and bubbly, about 2-3 minutes. Slowly whisk the broth into the flour mixture. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in the sour cream, cumin, salt, garlic powder and pepper, whisking if necessary to remove any lumps. Remove from heat and transfer mixture to a blender or food processor. Add avocados, cilantro and lime juice, and pulse until smooth and well-blended. (Be very careful blending hot liquids — the heat will expand! So be sure to remove the lid occasionally so that the heat can escape.) Season with additional salt or pepper if needed.

In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onion, poblano and jalapeno, and saute for 5-6 minutes until the onions are cooked and translucent. Remove from heat.
To assemble the enchiladas, place a tortilla on a flat surface. Spread a tablespoon or two of the avocado sauce down the middle of the tortilla. Then layer on some of the vegetable mixture, shredded chicken and cheese. Carefully roll the tortilla and place it seam side down in the baking dish. Repeat with the remaining tortillas. Drizzle the top with about half of the remaining avocado cream sauce, then cover the dish with foil and bake for about 20 minutes, or until tortillas are heated through and begin to harden.
Remove from the oven, then serve individual enchiladas drizzled with the remainder of the avocado cream sauce. You can also garnish with additional cilantro, cheese, and/or sour cream.
Thank you to Give Me Some Oven for this awesome recipe! I doubled the recipe so I have another entire meal in the freezer! The sauce totally makes this dish! wow so good! Side note: this sauce would make a delicious dressing for salads as well.

Day 7: Free Spelling Games & Activities

It's been a while since my last blog but that doesn't mean I haven't been trying out ideas and recipes I've pinned on pinterest. No. Just that I have a lot of blogging to do to catch up (sigh).

I found this website on pinterest called, KidsSpell.com where you can type in your kids spelling words and they can play games to help them learn and retain the spelling words.  This is really great especially in a time where most states are going to the "common core" curriculum and they aren't "testing" kids anymore. My first grader is expected to learn the words through activities they do in class. So far it hasn't been a problem for him because he learns very quickly, but that leaves me to wonder how the kids that are struggling do.  I haven't used this website yet but my plan it to load all the words that he had this year into the site so he can practice them over Christmas break.   If we like the site, I'll continue each week once school starts back in January.

Day 6: Hot Corn Dip

I know!!! Its been a while since my last post.  I've just been really busy with school starting and PTO that I haven't been able to Blog or even PIN.  This one is definitely one for your recipes fo' sure! It's quick, it's easy and it's GOOD!

I pinned this recipe a LONG time ago and have been waiting for the perfect opportunity to make.  Today I had a Matilda Jane Trunk Show so finally I had a gathering of people and reason to make this dip!  Its from a site called Gina Marie's Kitchen and it is worth making!  This is a great dip for football party.  I already know that if we have a Superbowl party or attend one, this one is getting made.  Everyone who came today for the Trunk Show LOVED it!!

 

HOT CORN DIP 

• 2 cups shredded chedder cheese
• 1 cup shredded Montery Jack
• 2 tbs chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, diced small
• 1 small can (4oz) diced green chilies, undrained
• 1/2 cup Mayo
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1 11oz can of corn, drained
• 1 small tomato
• 2 tbs cilantro, chopped
• 2 tbs green onions, sliced thin
  

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix the cheeses, chiptole and green peppers, mayo, garlic powder and corn together. Pour into an oven safe dish.
3. Bake 20 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly
4. Top with diced tomatoes, green onions, and cilantro. Serve immediately with tortilla chips.

I knew I would be in a time crunch with getting the kids off to 2 different schools this morning, so I made this last night, kept it covered in the fridge and baked it this morning. It was fine. I had my topping ready to go after it came out of the oven.  SO EASY!

 

Day 5: Mesh Pumpkin Wreath

Here in Florida its been raining since the first of July so what else to do but set up a play date and CRAFT, Right? I found this Mesh Pumpkin Wreath on Pinterest but you have to find the right picture/link to click on or you'll end up on somebody's Etsy shop.  People are selling these wreaths on Etsy for $55. Kristin and I made ours for about $20 (each) in supplies and we still have the floral wire and green ribbon left to use on other things.  We used the entire roll of mesh.  Here is a link for a blog with pretty good instructions on how to make this, Watch Me Daddy, and the website she got her instructions from,Mardi Gras Outlet . Through trial and error, we had to make a few adjustments. 

TIPS:

1. The Mardi Gras Outlet used orange fuzzy looking pipe-cleaners (see picture below). Like the lady on the blog, we just used wire. Wire works fine but orange pipe cleaners would blend in with the mesh better...we had to make sure ours was covered really well to hide the wire. 
2. It says to start with 10 pipe cleaners (or wire) on your metal wreath form.  So naturally I counted the metal bars going around my metal frame and bingo there was 10 so attached mine on those so they wouldn't slide.  Sounds like a good plan, right? WRONG!   As you are working to add your mesh, you might need to slide the wire over to fill a small gap.  Also because of having to slide my wires over I ended up adding a few more then 10 pieces of wire.  
3. Bigger is not better [in this case]. I think my metal frame was bigger than the one they were using, which is probably why I used more than 10 pieces of wire.   I almost purchased the largest frame they sold at Hobby Lobby.  I am SO glad I didn't. Your finished pumpkin will look much bigger than the metal form. We bought the size below and used the entire roll of mesh.   

 

Our Finished Product!

After making these we are excited about our next craft project. 

Day 4: New Dog Collar - MADE IN THE USA!!!

 

I pinned these dog collars a while back but TODAY I actually ordered one for my Bichon Frise, Lilly.  These collars are both engraved and made in the USA!  American made things are so hard to find these days and once I saw they were made in the USA, I said SOLD!  She needed a new ID tag anyway so this is perfect!!  I'll post a picture of her wearing it after I get it.  Here is the link if you want to order:

ShopMimiGreen.com 

Day 3: Roasted Garlic & Chicken Lasagna

I didn't get to try any of my Pinterest finds last week because the kids were in VBS and I was volunteering. We had a great time but man was I pooped by the end of the week! This church has an AMAZING VBS!!   They had almost 600 kids and over 100 volunteers. I volunteered in "snacks" and we pumped out over 700 snacks a DAY from that kitchen.  I was so tired every day after working there that I didn't cook a thing for dinner the entire week. 

Many years ago, we used to watch "The Soprano's" on HBO every Sunday night.  On those nights I would make an Italian dinner to eat while we watched our show. I love pasta but we are trying to eat healthier now days so we've cut down on amount of carbs in our diet.  We still have it occasionally and when we do eat carbs, we eat whole grain. I picked this recipe,  Roasted Garlic & Chicken Lasagna, because I was wanting pasta and it was different and slightly healthier from your traditional lasagna. Healthier because it has chicken and not ground beef or sausage but it still had quite a bit of cheese. We really liked it and I would make it again.  It comes from a really great food blog called "For the Love of Cooking" which I will definitely be visiting again! 

Cooking/prep time was 2 hours...wouldn't have been as long but I had to roast the garlic.  You could easily do that step ahead of time and even throw the lasagna together earlier so it would be ready to bake when you want it. The only thing I did not do was make the homemade marinara sauce.  I used a extra large jar of sauce from the store.  Here's the recipe (roasted garlic recipe follows):

Chicken and Roasted Garlic Lasagna:

Recipe and photos by For the Love of Cooking.net

Chicken Mixture:

• 2 cups roasted chicken, shredded
• 2 bulbs of roasted garlic
• 1/4 sweet yellow onion, diced finely
• 5-6 baby bell peppers, diced finely (I used red & yellow)
• 6-7 fresh basil leaves, chopped
• Dried oregano, to taste
• Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste

Other Ingredients:

• 1 (32 ounce) container ricotta cheese (I used part skim fat)
• 1 egg
• 5-6 fresh basil leaves, chopped
• Dried Oregano, to taste
• Fresh nutmeg, grated, to taste
• 1/2 cup + 3 tbsp of Parmesan cheese (divided)
• 9 whole wheat lasagna noodles, cooked per instructions
• Mozzarella cheese, shredded
• Roasted Garlic and Basil Marinara

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Coat a large 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray.In a large bowl, add ricotta, egg, 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese, fresh chopped basil, nutmeg, oregano, sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste. Combine until mixed thoroughly. Meanwhile, cook the lasagna noodles per instructions then drain.
Layer a 9 x 13 inch baking pan with just enough sauce to cover the bottom of the pan. Lay three lasagna noodles in the pan. Spread some of the ricotta mixture on the noodles, then spoon some of the chicken mixture on top and sprinkle with a bit of mozzarella; spoon some sauce over the cheese; repeat layering. Finish with a layer of noodles and remaining sauce. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese, remaining 3 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese and a sprinkle of basil or oregano.
Bake covered in a preheated oven at 375 degrees for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake for 15 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before slicing. Enjoy.

 

Roasted Garlic

• 1-2 heads of garlic
• 1/2 tsp olive oil
• Dash of sea salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Slice the top of the head off so every clove of garlic is exposed. Place on a small square of tinfoil (easy clean up). Drizzle with olive oil and sea salt to taste. Fold edges of tinfoil together and twist to make a completely sealed bundle. Place in oven and bake for 30-40 minutes depending on the size of the garlic. Let cool before serving. Squeeze to remove the roasted cloves. Delicious!

NOTE: You could use this roasted garlic for other dishes as well and I bet it would be FABULOUS in mashed potatoes!!!

In case you are wondering why I never post my own pictures its because their food always comes out SOOO much prettier than mine.

Day 2: Southwest Stuffed Peppers

 

I'm not much of a stuff pepper fan.  I chose this recipe because we planted a garden and the only things that we seem to be growing an abundance of are jalapeno peppers and bell peppers.  Our basil is doing really well and our tomato plants are still producing but not like they were in the beginning.  So what to do with all those bell peppers....make stuffed peppers!

This pinterest find was linked to a blog called,  Simply Love Food . I really haven't had the chance to explore this blog but it appears to have some good lookin' food on there.  Since posting this recipe she has become a vegetarian so I bet a vegetarian could find some tasteful yummies here.  

Now, we liked the recipe okay. I think Clint really liked it but like I said, I am not much of a stuffed pepper girl.  I changed the following things only because that is what I had on hand.  I used ground beef, not turkey.  I used green bell peppers not yellow and red.  Which by the way we bought pepper plants that were labeled yellow bell peppers but they are producing green so beware when you buy plants for your garden, they may be labeled wrong.  I used a small can of shoepeg corn instead of frozen. Finally I used my homemade salsa but, I bet a mango peach salsa would have brought a nice flavor to the dish. I had a ton of filling left over so make sure to buy really large peppers if making this dish and get a few extras too.  My peppers were small and medium in size.  Total cook time was probably about an hour. 

Southwest Stuffed Peppers

• Olive Oil ( I used Tahitian lime olive oil)
• 1/2 lb lean ground turkey breast
• 1 cup chopped onions
• 1 heaping tbsp of homemade taco seasoning (or you can use the packaged type if you like)
• 2 cups of cooked rice (any type you like – I like brown)
• 3-4 organic bell peppers, halved and seeds removed
• 1 can of black beans, drained & rinsed
• ½ cup of organic frozen corn
• 1 (15 -16 ounce) jar of salsa (my favorite is mango peach)
• Shredded Cheddar Cheese

• Toppings:
• fresh cilantro
• sour cream
• sliced avocado

Pre heat the oven to 400 degrees. Lightly coat the peppers with olive oil and roast in a baking dish about 20-25 minutes just until cooked thru. Remove the peppers from the oven and allow to cool until you can handle them.
*****Note – make sure you cook your turkey ahead of time that way you do not have to worry about it later. Also, I sauteed the onions until cooked thru, I then added in my cooked rice, black beans and corn.
In a bowl add the taco seasoning, cooked ground turkey, chopped onions, black beans, corn and rice. Add in the jar of salsa and mix well.
Carefully spoon the turkey mixture into each half of the bell peppers and place back into the baking dish. Cook the peppers for another 15-20 minutes or until the peppers are cooked all the way thru. Before removing from the oven sprinkle the tops of each pepper with shredded cheddar cheese. Place back into the oven just until the cheese has melted.
Remove from the oven and top with fresh cilantro, avocado slices and/or sour cream just before serving.

Day 1: Chipolte Chicken Skewers with Creamy Cilantro Sauce, Cilantro Lime Rice & Creamy Tomatillo Dressing

Last night I made such a delicious Dinner. All the flavors complimented each other very well.  All in all it took 2 hours to complete this dinner but that is mainly because I needed to merinate the chicken and make homemade dressing and dipping sauce and let those sit in the fridge for a while so the flavors could meld (note recipes will be posted on the bottom). These recipes are keepers for sure!!! ♥

I found this recipe, Chipolte Chicken Skewers with Creamy Cilantro Dipping Sauce, on Pinterest but the link did not work.  I hate when that happens! So I Googled it and found several versions that were basically about the same and finally settled on this version:

Chipolte Chicken Skewers with Creamy Cilantro Dipping Sauce

 

Now I did not make mine into skewers because I forgot to buy skewers at the store but I did cut my chicken breasts in half to make them smaller. Plus, I did not need 30 skewers for just myself and Clint so I only used two chicken breasts.  For the dipping sauce, I reduced the measurements down and made just what I thought we would use. The chicken flavor was just the right amount of heat and sweet. The sauce was a nice compliment to the chicken and toned down the heat of the chipolte peppers.

Next, I found a lovely blog with tons of yummy recipes called Chef in Training. This too was found through Pinterest of course.  This is where I found my side dish Cafe Rio Cilantro Lime Rice and Cafe Rios Creamy Tomatillo Dressing, which is similar to my beloved Chuy's Creamy Jalapeno Dressing. I sure do miss Chuy's (in San Antonio, TX) and their creamy jalapeno. Both recipes were wonderful as well.

 

Chef In Training - Cafe Rio Copy Cat Recipes

Recipes:

Chipotle Chicken Skewers With Creamy Cilantro Dipping Sauce

chicken skewer ingredients 

2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 5 medium breasts) 

1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed 

2 tablespoons fresh cilantro leaves, minced 

1 chipotle chile in adobo, minced 

2 teaspoons adobo sauce 

1 1/2 teaspoons salt 

1/2 teaspoon chili powder 

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder 

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 

nonstick cooking spray 

dipping sauce ingredients 

3/4 cup low-fat sour cream 

1/4 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise 

1/4 cup lime juice, from 2 to 3 limes 

1/8 teaspoon garlic powder 

2 tablespoons cilantro leaves, minced 

2 scallions, minced 

1/2 teaspoon salt 

1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper 

 Directions: 

1 FOR THE CHICKEN: Slice the chicken breasts across the grain into 1/2-inch-thick strips (you should have about 30 strips). In a large bowl, toss the chicken with the brown sugar, cilantro, chipotle, adobo sauce, salt, chili powder, garlic powder, and pepper. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until the flavors meld, about 30 minutes. (The chicken, covered, can be refrigerated for up to 1 day before cooking.). 2 FOR THE DIPPING SAUCE: In a bowl, stir all the ingredients together. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature until the flavors meld, about 30 minutes. (The dipping sauce can be covered and refrigerated for up to 2 days. Season with additional lime juice, salt, and pepper to taste before serving.). 3 Meanwhile, adjust an oven rack to the top position and heat the broiler. Line a broiler pan bottom with foil and top with a slotted broiler pan top; spray the broiler pan top with nonstick cooking spray. Weave each piece of chicken onto individual bamboo skewers; lay half of the skewers on the broiler pan top and cover the skewer ends with foil, making sure not to cover the chicken. Broil until the meat is lightly browned and cooked through, 5 to 8 minutes, flipping the skewers over halfway through. Transfer the skewers to a serving platter and serve immediately with half the dipping sauce. Repeat, broiling the remaining skewers and serving with the remaining dipping sauce.

CAFE RIO’S LIME CILANTRO RICErecipe from: The Girl Who Ate Everything
2 Tb. Butter pepper to taste
1 ¼ cup rice (she used long grain...I used brown minute rice)
juice and zest from 1 large or 2 small limes
2 ¼ cups chicken broth
2 Tbsp. chopped cilantro
¾ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. cumin

In a skillet melt butter with rice.Add liquid, and other ingredients.Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and cook for 20 minutes or until rice is done.

CAFE RIO’S CREAMY TOMATILLO DRESSING
recipe from: A Mommy’s Life with a Touch of Yellow
1 packet of buttermilk ranch dressing
1 Cup mayo
1 Cup buttermilk (the smallest carton is perfect)
1 bunch of cilantro
2 tomatillos husked
1 jalapeno (take the rib and seeds out)
Garlic powder (just a few shakes) (Note: I used fresh garlic)
juice from 1 lime

Blend mayo, dressing mix, buttermilk, and garlic in a blender until blended and smooth. Dice up tomatillos, jalapeno, cilantro and place in the blender. Juice up the lime and add that to the blender. Blend up all ingredients until smooth and creamy. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.Enjoy!