When life gets busy and you are rushing out the door to get the kids to school or practice, who has time to painstakingly move all the contents from your purse into another so that it will coordinate with your outfit? Not me.
However, with the help of a small pouch that holds all my essentials [like hair ties, lip gloss, Advil, hand sanitizer] and a trinket box for small miscellaneous items I can make the switch in less than 30 seconds. I don’t use any of the pockets in my hand bags for storage. Except for my cell phone, everything goes into the zip pouch for safe keeping and easy transfer.
Hand Bag #1
A zippered pouch in a fun print + macron shaped trinket box
Hand bag #2
A quick switch in 30 seconds and nothing is lost or left behind! Where are you going today?
A Seattle spring day. We can have rain, hail, gloom, and glorious sunbreaks all within the matter of a few hours. Dressing for this unpredictable weather is a bear. Layers remain the key, but the fleece and down give way to lighter pieces.
I am totally crushing on the idea of a bright [and not too expensive] raincoat. The hood is key for school runs, errands and baseball games. It is a total bummer to get caught in a downpour with no coverage. Around here, I could wear this outfit everyday.
I may be late to the party, but we are loving the new Gold Nugget mandarin oranges in this house. They are larger than your typical mandarin orange and look a bit odd with an extremely bumpy rind. However, they are easy to peel and extremely sweet and juicy [plus no seeds]. Big W ate 3 in one sitting.
I will be serving up a Golden Nugget mandarin with cheese and cashews for a quick “fill-me-up” before a baseball game today at 5pm.
Look for Golden Mandarins the next time you are in the supermarket. What are you serving for an after school snack?
This week included leftovers and a kid chosen meal. Not everything is gourmet in this house. I hope you have a great week ahead and can find at least one meal to make for dinner. I made two recipes from America’s Test Kitchen magazines. Unfortunately, they don’t allow you to access recipes online unless you have a paid subscription. I had to type the recipes, thus the long post today:
Meal 1:: Weeknight Turkey Bolognese (recipe after the jump) This was a great recipe but very much a Sunday meal. Took over 40 minutes, which I consider too long for a weeknight. There were tons of leftovers, so this will give you one additional meal during the week.
Meal 2:: Italian Cobb Salad I posted about this salad earlier this week. Great for a night when you are making dinner at 8pm.
Meal 3:: Mom’s Famous Sliders Not really famous, except with my family. I add low sodium soy sauce and Lawry’s seasoning to the ground beef. This recipe’s high note is to serve the sliders on King’s Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls. Who can resist?
Meal 4:: Chicken with Butter Beans and Chorizo (recipe after the jump) This one skillet meal is easy and tasty. I used chicken chorizo from Whole Foods, but any link sausage would probably work.
Weeknight Turkey Bolognese 2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces 1 onion, but into 1 inch pieces 2 oz of pancetta, cut into 1 inch pieces 1/2 cup diced cremini mushrooms 1 anchovy fillet, rinsed 1 (28oz) can whole tomatoes 1 teaspoon sugar 1 garlic clove, minced 1 pound lean ground turkey 1 1/2 cups 2% low-fat milk 2 tablespoons tomato paste 1/2 cup dry white wine
1. Pulse carrots and onion in food processor until finely chopped. Transfer to bowl. Process pancetta, mushrooms, and anchovy until finely chopped. Transfer to bowl. Pulse tomatoes with their juice until smooth.
2. In Dutch oven melt butter or heat oil. Add pancetta mixture and cook until brown. Stir in carrot mixture and 1 teaspoon of salt, cover and cook until softened.
3. Stir in garlic and turkey. Brown for 1 minute. Stir in milk and simmer until nearly evaporated (18-20 minutes)
4. Stir in tomato paste and wine. Simmer until nearly evaporated. Stir in tomatoes and simmer.
Serve over cooked pasta. Our absolute favorite gluten-free pasta is Schar. I used the spaghetti for this Bolognese.
Chicken with Butter Beans and Chorizo 1 1/2 pounds of chicken tenderloins 1 teaspoon smoked paprika 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 onion, halved and sliced thin 8 oz chorizo sausage, cut into 1/4 inch rounds 2 garlic cloves, minced 1 (14.5oz) can diced tomatoes 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth 1 (16oz) cans butter beans, drained and rinsed 2 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1. Season chicken with salt, pepper, and paprika. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken and cook until lightly browned. Transfer to plate.
2. Add remaining oil, onion and chorizo to skillet and cook until onion is soft. Add garlic and cook until fragrant. Add tomatoes, broth and butter beans and cook until slightly thickened.
3. Return chicken to pan and any accumulated juice and simmer until chicken is cooked through. Stir in parsley and serve.
photo challenge: 3.0/fridge art. I really do love that Little Man brings art home for me to display. Fridge art is the best. This one might make it into a frame. next week:: happiness
Remember when we were all artists? Find a way to be creative this weekend. How about in the garden, the kitchen, with a camera, or maybe with sidewalk chalk? xoxo-denise
A few links to share:
WATCH:: Wringing out a washcloth in space. too cool! A parody of the Dove beauty sketches. genius [and hilarious to boot.]
In the next few hours every mom will be asking herself the very same question, “What is for dinner?”. If your schedule is as hectic as ours this week, sometimes a quick and easy salad is the answer. How about an Italian Cobb Salad?
a quick list of ingredients:
Romaine lettuce
Basil
Grape tomatoes
Rotiseerie chicken from the deli
Gorgonzola cheese
Pancetta
Eggs [hard boiled]
Olive Oil
Red Wine Vinegar
Easy dressing: 1/4 cup olive oil, 2 T red wine vinegar. Whisk in some of the cheese to add an extra flavor boost.
Crisp the pancetta on the stove for about 5 minutes. Also saute the grape tomatoes until the skins are wilted. Build your salad in a large bowl. Pour dressing on top.
Dinner is served. Happy Wednesday! [It feels like it should be Friday.]
You can also check out my weekly plan for more meal ideas.
To say packing my children’s lunches each morning is difficult is an understatement of grand proportions. Near impossible is more like it.
Big W has always found it difficult to eat in the lunch room. There is way too much going on for him to concentrate on food. Since Kindergarten he has eaten most of the contents of his lunchbox at snack time. Little Man can count the foods he eats on one hand. He has recently decided that he no longer likes Nutella, which basically sustained him for 3+ years. So it goes without saying- I have to be creative.
A recent lunch box staple is cold pizza. I bake a pizza early in the week and put once slice in their lunch each day. If I was a real go getter, the pizza would be homemade with organic ingredients. Since I am NOT, I buy California Pizza Kitchen frozen pizza and call it good. So far, they are digging the pizza and actually eating it. But I know it is only a matter of time until I will need to think of something new.
What are your solutions for packing your kids’ lunches?
{PS. I have you seen the blog Lunch Box Blues? It is crazy what this dad packs everyday.}
I recently made a batch of cookies for my father-in-law as a thank you. Wanting to transport them in a disposable container, I scrounged around in the closet. [I do not have a craft room. All my crafty supplies get shoved onto various shelves in the hall closet.]
This is what I came up with: *a left over ice cream cup from Little Man’s birthday party *washi tape *fun colored sharpies *a stray goodie bag *some ribbon
Tear off a length of tape and stick it to a hard surface. This will make it easier to write a message.
Simply place the tape on the cup, fill it with cookies, and slip the cup into the goodie bag.
Finish with a ribbon and there you have it!
Teacher Appreciation Day [or week] is just around the corner. This is an easy, simple [and cost effective] way to say thank you.
Our week was crazy busy! Although I had my plan for dinners, obtaining the groceries to make the planned meals is essential. I will have to do a better job next week because I was a mad woman on 3 of the nights trying to hustle to the store between drop offs and pick ups. In the spirit of full disclosure and keeping it real, one night I resorted to chicken salad sandwiches. So here it is. Hope you find at least one meal for next week!
Meal 1:: Posole I had never used pork tenderloin in stew or soup before. It was a great change of pace.
Meal 2:: Spicy Turkey Meatloaf I sauteed the onions, mushrooms and garlic and mixed the meatloaf in the afternoon. After dropping off Little Man at baseball, I ran home and put it in the oven. This was a super tasty meatloaf and the seasoned ketchup topping was a great addition.
Meal 3:: Shrimp Tacos My dear husband loves these tacos. {I have made them before.} He voted this is as his favorite meal this week. You can easily make the slaw ahead of time. This meal comes together in a matter of minutes.
Meal 4:: Yep. Quick and easy. Don’t judge.
Chicken Salad Diced chicken breast [I used a rotisserie chicken from the deli.] Red seedless grapes -sliced in half 2-3 Celery stalks-diced into bite size pieces Pecan pieces- [If you are an overachiever you could toast them in the oven for 3-5 minutes] 1/4 cup of Poppy seed salad dressing [I used Newman’s Own.]
Combine all ingredients and chill. Serve on bread or rolls of your choice.
Meal 5:: Beef with Snow Peas I do want to try this recipe because it sounds delicious. [If you make it, let me know how it is!] However, I totally cheated. If you want to “fake” it like me…..I cut flank steak super thin, used a bottle of marinade, sauteed snow peas and green onions with the steak, and served it over quinoa.
My sleeveless tops are ready for some action! I dream longingly for a custom walk-in closet. For now, I work with what I’ve got. It’s a small space, with bad shelving, and every square inch of floor space filled with shoes and boots.
next week: artwork
TGIF!! Get out there and find some fun this weekend. Can’t find any? Make your own!
