Pinteresting

So, I'm definitely becoming obsessed with Pinterest. I'm a serial bookmarker, but when when my hard drive crashed in February, I lost everything, foolishly thinking all my Google Chrome bookmarks would be saved under my Google account. Wrong. I was so sad. Pinterest is the perfect way to organize my bookmarks and keep them online where, hopefully, I'll never lose them.

I've been going through some of my bookmarks and transferring them over to Pinterest, and I came across this delicious recipe I made in March and forgot to blog about. I made these cupcakes for my dad's 60th birthday since he is an Elvis lover. They were so good, especially the peanut butter frosting. I would call them more like muffins than cupcakes, and they're really rich so you can't eat a lot in one sitting, but they are certainly worth the effort.

Find the recipe here!

Food Obsession: Breakfast for Dinner

Why is breakfast for dinner so good?

I could probably have breakfast for dinner at least once a week. I think I love it so much because we rarely take the time to make breakfast for breakfast, except occasionally on Saturdays or when we have out-of-town company. Today, I had chocolate pudding for breakfast followed by handful of sour cream & onion chips. That sounds even grosser when I admit it out loud. Don't worry, Bennett eats healthier- she had a Kashi fruit bar and strawberry yogurt. She tried a sour cream & onion chip, said "I like different chips," then put it back in the bag.

Anyway, one of my favorite breakfast-for-dinner combos is egg casserole and fresh fruit salad. I know there are a million egg/breakfast casserole recipes out there, but I am biased toward my parents', and I really think it's one of the best. Here's the recipe:

Egg Casserole

12-15 slices bread, torn up (I like using white bread)

8 eggs, mixed together 

2 cups milk

3 generous "squirts" of yellow mustard

1 lb. sausage, browned and drained

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Mix all the ingredients together and spread in a greased 9 x 13 pan. If the mixture seems too dry, you can always add a little more milk. Add more shredded cheese to the top (if you want), and bake at 350 for an hour or so until it starts to turn brown. I think it turns out better if you make it a day ahead and let it "soak" in the fridge overnight. 

I think this casserole tastes SO good with a fresh fruit salad- pineapple, grapes, strawberries, bananas, and oranges or apples. Yum! I try to keep a fresh fruit salad going in my fridge all summer long. 

Another breakfast-for-dinner favorite of mine is chocolate chip pancakes and scrambled eggs with ham- not like a slice of ham on the side, like thin deli ham mixed in with the eggs. So good! What do you like for breakfast-for-dinner?

Year One Wrap-Up

I suppose, since I've been 31 for nearly a month now, that it's time to look back and see how the first year of my 30s went. If I want to accomplish everything on my list, I have to mark off an average of three items per year. There were only two definites I accomplished this past year- starting a recycling program for our household and joining a church family. I suppose you could make that two-and-a-half if you count the five months I spent growing our second child during the year I was 30. I also made some progress on some ongoing list items, such as reading 120 books, trying 300 new recipes, completing 100 sewing projects, and reading through the Bible twice- but not as much progress as I wish I'd made.

List aside, the first year of my 30s was a pretty good year. I went through some difficult personal and family issues, but also had a lot of fun and really enjoyed life and watching my daughter grow. Some memorable things from this past year included:

• Getting my first e-reader- how did I ever live without it?
• Watching Bennett grow from a baby into a little girl
• Celebrating Ben's 30th birthday with a fun party and a fabulous trip to Cabo
• Praying my mother-in-law through a grueling stem cell transplant- and watching her triumph through it
• Changing everything I thought I knew about one of the closest people in my life
• A super fun cruise with my childhood best friend, Michelle
• Becoming involved in a church family that I absolutely love
• Getting in the best shape of my life (hmmm, seems like a distant memory now...)
• Celebrating my grandma's 90th birthday with a special luncheon for her and her friends
• Spending a week in Atlanta with my cousins- one of my favorite things to do
• Repainting and redecorating our kitchen
• Hosting the family for Thanksgiving
• Losing my grandpa
• Finding out we're expecting baby #2
• Surviving two months of hardcore morning sickness
• A trip to Siesta Key with some close girlfriends
• The daily realities of being a full-time mom while working while being pregnant while having a house to keep up...

There are certainly many days in this past year that I would never want to relive, but I am well aware of the grace that got me through them and I have no complaints about how the Lord has treated me and my family. We are very blessed. 

As I look forward to the next year, I am excited and apprehensive. I know that adding another baby to our family will create many adjustments and sleepless nights, but at the same time, I can't wait to meet him or her and for our family to be "complete." I am working hard to create some maternity leave for myself and to enjoy a few months off with my children. We have been at a crossroads in our family for a long time now, wondering what the next step is for our careers, housing, future schooling for our kids, etc., and I am hopeful that the Lord will show us some clear answers in this next year or so. Can't wait!

More books and food...

I just wanted to update with a couple new recipes and a new book review before I "reset" myself for a new year of blogging and list-attacking. This past month has been busy with travel and having company, but before all that started, we made a couple of really good new meals. The first was a crock-pot meal I found in Taste of Home for Slow-Cooked Carnitas:

• 1 boneless pork shoulder butt roast (3 to 4 pounds)- I actually wound up using a package of boneless ribs because I couldn't find a roast in the right size- the meat guy at the store told me it was the same cut of meat in different packaging
• 
  
• 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced- I minced it with my new favorite kitchen tool, my Pampered Chef garlic press
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 bunch green onions, chopped
• 1-1/2 cups minced fresh cilantro
• 1 cup salsa
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1/2 cup tequila or additional chicken broth
• 2 cans (4 ounces each) chopped green chilies
• 12 flour tortillas (8 inches), warmed
• Fresh cilantro leaves, chopped avocado and chopped tomatoes, optional
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• Cut roast in half; place in a 5-qt. slow cooker. Sprinkle with garlic, oil, salt and pepper. Add the onions, cilantro, salsa, broth, tequila and chilies. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or until meat is tender.
• Remove meat; cool slightly. Shred with two forks and return to the slow cooker; heat through. Spoon about 2/3 cup meat mixture onto each tortilla; serve with toppings of your choice. Yield: 12 servings.

Here's a picture of my plate:

The recipe is really good but what makes the meal is definitely your toppings. We had sour cream, avocado, fresh tomatoes, fresh limes, cheese, lettuce, tortilla chips, etc. I will definitely be making this again!

Another delicious and EASY dinner we had recently was another Taste of Home idea. I don't know that it's really a recipe but the combination of flavors was so good.

California Chicken Wraps

• 1/3 cup prepared hummus
• 4 whole wheat tortillas (8 inches)
• 2 cups cubed cooked chicken breast- I marinated chicken breast in Greek vinaigrette and then Ben grilled it and we sliced it up
• 1/4 cup chopped roasted sweet red peppers- Instead of buying peppers, I bought a red pepper & cheese coulis spread- it was DELICIOUS!
• 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh basil leaves
• 
  
• Spread hummus on tortillas; top with chicken, peppers, cheese and basil. Roll up. Yield: 4 servings. This made a really good meal with a side of olives and Sunchips. :)

My weekend trip to Florida with a couple of my best girl friends was the first time I'd really had a chance to travel with my Kindle. A great experience! The only downside is having to turn it off for take-off and landing- at least the flight attendants can't make you put down a regular book. :) For the trip, I had a great read- 31 Bond Street by Ellen Horan:

This novel is based on a true story of murder that occurred in New York City in the 1850s. As is so often the case with a really good historical novel, the setting itself is a central, fascinating character. I absolutely love New York City, so I really enjoy books that are set there, and I also like glimpses into what life was like there during different times in the past. I won't get into the whole murder mystery, but I like it when a book takes you almost all the way through and you still have doubts as to who the culprit really is. This particular work is also a very interesting look into how the legal system worked at this time in our country. A good read I definitely recommend!