Walking Tacos!

 Happy Labor Day Weekend!  We have had a really, really relaxed weekend so far!  Friday night was a Barnstormers night, last night was to be a campfire night but it was incredibly humid and the threat of rain loomed - the kids actually opted for a Family Movie Night, including walking tacos!  Movie of the night was Mirror Mirror!  Hmmm, interesting take on the fairy tale!

For anyone who does not know what a walking taco is - it is basically a taco inside of a bag of crushed up chips.....very portable and kid friendly!  Here are some of the toppings that we included (note:  I am the only one who ate pinto beans.....).



Because I wanted to have Fritos - I had to put mine a bowl because the Frito bags are teeny tiny and would not accomodate all of my toppings!



Maybe tonight we will get the chance for a campfire - I found this idea on Pinterest.  You stuff a marshmallow with a Rolo!  What is not to love about that?

Walking Tacos

1 lb. ground beef

1 pkt. Reduced Sodium Taco Seasoning (I used McCormick)

Single Serving Bags of Doritos or Fritos

Taco toppings of choice

*Brown your ground beef and prepare according to taco seasoning packet directions.  Open bag of chips and add a spoonful of taco meat.  Add desired toppings.  Serve with a fork and eat!

Stay tuned this week!  I jumped on the concept of prepping 5 freezer-to-crockpot meals!  Yesterday I prepped Hawaiin Chicken, Chicken Fajitas, Teriyaki Pork Chops, Beef Enchilidas and Garlic Honey Chicken and placed them all in the freezer.  Now all I have to do is pull them out of the freezer and throw them in the crockpot.  This week I will try and feature the recipes and what I served with them! 

I am hoping to do some more of this during our Fall season!

Riley and I also made Magic Pumpkin Layer Bars today!  They are still in the oven baking and they smell heavenly - so watch for that recipe this week also! 

HAPPY EATING!

Hello!

I know.  I've been absent since May.  I don't know why.  Call it summer laziness, call it busy-ness, call it what you want but I can say that my summer is flying!  Can you believe it is almost the end of July?  I mean really, where does summer go?

My profile to the right says that I am a 30-something mom.  I need to change that.  At the end of this week, I will be 40!  The big 4-0.  I am not fretting over it ~ I don't feel forty (okay, maybe my knees ache and I am not as fit as I used to be).  I love birthdays - ask my family.  They will tell you. 

I don't have any recipes today.  I know.  Boring right?  You can tell me!  I promise to have some recipes soon!  This swim team thing has kept us stepping this summer and now speed & agility camp for football has joined the mix.  Not a whole lot of cookin' going on.  There is a whole lot of sandwich making and packing our dinners in lunchboxes (maybe I should call them supperboxes).

Oooo, one big thing - I have the best friends ever!  They surprised me with a trip to see Savannah, GA.  What a fun 4 day weekend!  We had the most fun.  We watched a chick flick (The Vow....great!!).  Shopped til we dropped (great boutiques, specialty shops and restaurants), saw Express Fashions fashion show, ate great food, visited the beach, saw where Paula Deen lives.  If you are ever in Savannah, can I recommend the following:

1.  Fab'Rik
2.  Kayak Kafe'
3.  Paris Market
4.  Nourish
5.  The Salt Table
6.  Red Clover
7.  One Fish, Two Fish
8.  Cherry Picked (high end consignment store - seriously, there was a dress there for a few hundred
     dollars, that was the marked down price).
9.  Goose Feathers Bakery and Cafe
10. Rocks on the Roof at the Bohemian Hotel
11.  Jazzd Tapas Bar
12.  Visit Tybee Island

That's all for tonight!  Hope you are all having a safe and fun summer!!

HAPPY EATING!

Memorial Day and Chicken Ranch Packets!

I hope everyone is enjoying their start to summer!  This is a whirlwind week for us with school ending, baseball playoffs going on and swim team practice starting!  Here are a few shots from the Memorial Day Picnic that we hosted -
Riley created a sign to greet guests:

 Refreshing Meadow Tea!

Food table centerpiece!

This recipe is so easy!  I found it on Pinterest and have finally gotten around to making it!  I imagine you could make these packets and take them camping - you could make them on a fire....maybe, I am not much of a camper - I like the concept of a campfire and smores and cool, crisp weather.  I do not like bugs, spiders and ticks.....all that said, I don't know if this would work for camping, but if you camp, try it and tell me if it worked!

You will need this ( I think it is funny that Weis markets the chicken by labeling it "skinny" chicken - I mean, what is a skinny chicken??) -

Here is what you will do with it -

Chicken Ranch Packets:

4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts

4 Slices Bacon, cooked crisp

1 Cup Shredded Cheese

4 Cups Broccoli

1 Box Chicken Flavored Stuffing

1 1/4 Cup Water

4 Tbsp Ranch Dressing

4 Large Sheets of Foil

DIRECTIONS:  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Mix stuffing and water - set aside.  Spray sheets of foil with cooking spray and place 1/4 Cup stuffing mix in the center of each sheet of foil.  Top with a chicken breast.  Place 1 cup of broccoli on top of each chicken.  Next sprinkle each packet with 1/4 C. cheese and crumble one slice of bacon over the top.  Drizzle 1 Tbsp. of ranch dressing over each packet.  Bring sides of foil up and fold over - wrap up sides.  Make sure to not fold down tight against the chicken - you want to make sure air can circulate for even cooking.  Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 45 minutes.  Remove from oven and allow to sit for 5 minutes.  Cut small slits in the foil so steam can escape.  Remove from foil and place on plate!

Sorry I don't have any "after" pictures!  The whole family loved it!  Jimmy even said it was really, really good - like "that hit the spot" good!  Guess I will keep it on the radar for meals in the future!!

HAPPY EATING!



3rd Grade Book Reports and a little PTO Appreciation!

I cannot believe this school year has gone by.....I feel like each year goes by a little quicker so I am trying to embrace the time that my kids still want me to participate in their school activities!  JD has had 4 book reports this year - I was thankful for them because he is not my reader and would rather be doing a multitude of different things before actually sitting still and reading.  These books have made him take the time to read!  The most recent one was a mystery and a "penguin pendant" went missing!  Sooooo, because we had to make a puppet (no, I don't sew - he made a finger puppet out of construction paper) - I figured it would be fun to provide a little treat to go along with his book report for the class!  All I did was bake the cupcakes - JD did the rest!  Here is how we did it:

Start by making sure you have clean hands!!

Set up your work area with your supplies:

Start working on your cupcakes: 

I used a basic vanilla cake mix (boxed) and a buttercream icing.  The head and wings were made out of the Keebler Mint Cookies (you know, the ones the copied off the Girls Scouts...), Mini Chocolate Chips and dried mango slices for the feet and beak! 

With the school year wrapping up - so is PTO!  The other officers and I took the opportunity last Thursday to thank some of the chair people and reliable volunteers that we have had the honor to work with!!  Here is a little of what we served:

A little "thank you" for them to take home~

So YUMMY!  A create your own fruit pizza!

 

Caprese Bites! (with a Sweet Balsamic Dipping Sauce)

Chicken Cesar Salad Sliders!

Hope everyone has a great end to their school year!!

HAPPY EATING! 

Seis de Mayo!

We celebrated Cinco de Mayo a day late!  Not because we are procrastinators or because we were running behind schedule - but because we had a sick girl!  Sick kids = postponing plans.  That's how it goes sometimes!  We still had an enjoyable evening on the porch with great friends and great food!

Jimmy grilled the best chicken that we used for our grilled chicken tacos!  Mmmmm, my mouth waters just thinking about it!

Grilled Chicken Tacos

1/2 C. Mayo (I used Hellman's Light)

3 Tbsp. Fresh Lime Juice

1 pkt. Taco Seasoning (I used Taco Bell)

6 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts - pounded flat

DIRECTIONS:  Combine mayo, lime juice and taco seasoning.  Heat grill to medium heat and place chicken on grill.  Cook approx. 6 minutes and turn - baste chicken once turned.  Cook another 6 minutes and flip again.  Baste other side of chicken.  Continue cooking and basting until chicken juices run clear and chicken is cooked.  Remove from heat, thinly slice and serve with taco sides.

HAPPY EATING!

Bubble Gum Cupcakes!

I found these here...cookiesandcups.com/blow-pop-cupcakes. (If this link doesn't work, you can access Cookie and Cups by clicking the link on the right side of my screen).  I made them for the Bingo/Bake Sale night at our school!  The icing tastes just like Bubble Gum!  Like the blogger at Cookies and Cups, I made my own Buttercream frosting!!  Here is the recipe I used:

Bubble Gum Buttercream
1/2 C. Crisco Vegetable Shortening
1/2 C. Butter, softened
3-4 C. Confectioners Sugar
1 Tbsp. Vanilla
3 Tbsp. Milk
1 Packet of Duncan Hines Bubble Gum Mix In Flavoring (for icing)
Combine Crisco and Butter until combined.  Add sugar - starting on low speed until combined and then to medium speed.  Add vanilla and milk and mix on high speed for several minutes, until light and fluffy.  Add flavor packet and mix on high speed for another minute or so; until well incorporated.

HAPPY EATING!

Chicken "Fried Rice"...

I have been overwhelmingly busy lately!  As we all are I am sure.  Tonight and tomorrow we have NOTHING on our schedules - it makes me feel like I am forgetting something.  So, if I am to be doing something with you ~ well, I will just apologize now, because I forgot. 

Who would have thought that chopped up cauliflower would taste like fried rice?  Really, I am not kidding, you have to believe me! I didn't believe it when I saw it, but I believe it now.    I found this recipe on Pinterest and made a few adaptions to use what I had on hand!


Process cauliflower until it resembles the size of rice...
















Who would have guessed...fried rice!

Go ahead, give it a try - it is easy!

CHICKEN FRIED RICE
1 lb. Ground Chicken
1 Large Head of Broccoli, cut into bite size pieces
1/2 Bag of Frozen Peas and Carrots
1/4 Cup Chopped Onion
3 Eggs
Lite Asian Sesame Dressing (Ken's is my favorite choice)
DIRECTIONS:  Place chicken in a bowl and drizzle approx. 1/4 C. dressing.  Sit at room temp. for 30 minutes.  Place 1/2 of cauliflower in a food processor.  Pulse about 15 times; until cauliflower resembles size of rice (see picture above).  Process the other 1/2 of the cauliflower.  Heat large skillet over medium heat for 2 minutes.  Coat with cooking spray and brown ground chicken.  Cook until no longer pink.  Remove from pan.  Add cauliflower and 1/2 C. dressing.  Toss in pan until coated with dressing and hot.  Make a well in center of cauliflower and add eggs-scramble and then toss with cauliflower.  Add peas, carrots and onion.  Cook until veggies are tender.  Add chicken and toss until dish is heated through.  Enjoy!!

HAPPY EATING!