St Patrick's Day Fun

Love this fun Green Day!

It started this morning with the kids running around to see what our naughty little Leprechaun did to the house.  For some reason he likes to snag a shoe from each child in the house and fill it with some treats or gifts. This year they got golden rolos and skittles, plus a fun new pair of glasses. Sammie & Anthony got the cool aviators while Jared's has an orange mustache attached to his green glasses and Morgan got the 80s Shamrock shades.

A few little tricks that silly little guy worked on while we were all soundly sleeping...

• He colored the toilet water green and unrolled the toilet paper a bit. 
• He arranged the kid's alphabet magnets into the word lucky and then sprinkled some rolos around there too.
• The kitchen chairs were left in complete disarray...turned over and on top of each other.
• Some of the family pictures had funny faces and mustache's drawn onto the photo.
• Finally the milk was turned green. 

Silly little mischievous leprechaun. 

After the tricks were found it was time to eat some breakfast. We went simple this year.... LUCKY CHARMS... cuz "They're magically delicious!" Served along with the leprechaun tinted green milk.

Plus to add some fruits and veggies into their breakfast we had some Turtle Juice Smoothies. 

{{Turtle Juice Smoothie}}

(Printer Friendly Version... click here)

2 frozen bananas

1 big handful of fresh spinach

1 yogurt (flavor of your choice)

2 cups fresh or frozen fruit (strawberries, blueberries, one apple, can of pineapple, one orange, raspberries, etc.)

2 cups juice, any kind

1 cup water

1 tsp vanilla

Blend all ingredients in a blender.

Will be different every time depending on the fruit chosen.

Pina Colada = pineapple juice, pineapple, banana, spinach and pina colada yogurt.

Blueberry Monster = blueberries, banana, spinach, vanilla yogurt, any juice.
This recipe was originally created by my friend Gina Smith and we use it all the time. We vary the fruit and juice to alter the flavor a little, but there is always a BIG ole handful of spinach added to the blender. When I first started making this the kids had no idea they were eating so much spinach, then they saw me doing it and at first they wanted to be abhorred... until I mentioned to them that they'd been eating it for quite some time. They paused... and realized it was true and they don't even complain anymore... they even pull out the spinach leaves when we go to make our green smoothies.

While the kids were happily munching on their cereal and smoothies... I was getting their green lunches ready. I made them a PB&J Shamrock sandwich, a green squeezie applesauce, a green Sprite, a green Fruit by the Foot, a green apple, green Sour Cream & Onion chips (the bag was green at least), and for dessert some Thin Mint cookies. They were super excited about the lunch since they got things that they don't normally get to have. FUN! That's what the holidays are all about. I also went here and printed out a lunch box tag to put in their lunch too.

After lunches were packed, and teeth were brushed... we stopped to take some pictures of their green-ness before they left. Sammie had a green strip of hair that we clipped into her hair and a green scarf. Jared brushed his hair up into a faux-hauk and then I sprayed it with temporary green hair color that we picked up on clearance after Halloween.

Then they were off to school!

When school was over and they busted through the door... they were welcomed by this lovely little rainbow snack. I've seen a bunch of variations and basically just pulled together what I thought my kids would enjoy the most.

Red= Strawberries (or could use raspberries, watermelon, cherries)
Orange= Mandarin Orange slices (or fresh clementines/orange slices, cantaloupe, )
Yellow= Pineapple Chunks (almost did bananas but the pineapple was more yellow)
Green= Green Apples (or kiwi, green grapes, honeydew,)
Blue= Blueberries
Purple= Purple Grapes

I gathered up the rolos that had been scattered everywhere by the leprechaun and used those to create my gold at the end of the rainbow. The puffy white cloud at the other end of the rainbow is a creamy fruit dip that growing up we affectionately called Angel Dip. It is a very popular dip and SUPER easy to make. Only 2 ingredients needed. ***If you've never made this before... you really need to. You don't know it, but something has been missing from your life... and it is this dip. You can mix things into the dip to turn it into different fun flavors, etc, but in its original form, it's a CLASSIC!

{{Angel Dip}}

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1 8-oz pkg. cream cheese, softened (nonfat works great)

1 7-oz jar marshmallow crème

Using an electric mixer or food processor, blend ingredients until mixed thoroughly. Refrigerate. Serve with fresh fruit, such as strawberries, cantaloupe, grapes, watermelon, etc.

For dinner we always have a corned beef roast & vegetables. I pick up the corned beef at the grocery store or Cost-co and the directions for cooking them are right on the package. It has a yummy flavor that is different than a typical steak. This year I threw everything into my crock pot.

1. First there is a layer of cut up celery, carrots, onions (and you can add potatoes, but I didn't this year).
2. Then I put wedges of cabbage on top of the veggies. (Best to keep the cabbage out and add it in half way through cooking though so it doesn't get too soft.)
3. Next comes the roast and I sprinkled a few of the celery, onions, & carrots on top of the roast.
4. The corned beef comes with a little package of pickling spices that you will want to save and then sprinkle over the top of the roast and veggies.
5. I made 2 cups of beef broth and poured that into the bottom of the crock pot.
6. Cooked everything on high for 4 hours and then when we pulled everything out it was perfect. We sliced up the meat against the grain, added some of the veggies to the plate with a pile of rice (you can spoon the broth over the rice if you want, or thicken it up for a gravy).

You can't go wrong with a slow cooker meal, especially one that is easy and turns out great. Click here for the full recipe.

Along with dinner we had some green leprechaun juice. My 11 year old daughter Sammie adorned our glasses with a cute little dry erase marker mustache. She loves to set the table for holidays... she pulls out tablecloths and place mats and tries to make things match and look cute. (So proud of my little Sammie!)

For this juice, I just kinda improvised with what I had.

{{Leprechaun Juice}}

1 frozen can of limeade concentrate

1 frozen can of lemonade concentrate 

2 liter of Sprite

Green food coloring

Mix it all together and serve. 

Finally it was time for dessert... It's so hard to pick just one... So I picked two. (Even that was difficult... there are so many fun things to make for each holiday.) Here's what I made... one thing new and the other was tried and true... an oldie but goodie!

The first treat I tried today was the Lucky Charm treats. Basically a rice crispie treat but instead of using rice crispies, I used the lucky charms cereal. I thought they might taste extra sweet since the cereal has a coating of sugar on it, but it tasted like cheerios covered in marshmallows. Fun! My baby couldn't wait to get his little hands on them!

Finally... the oldie but goodie. Mint Brownies. And since there is a certain someone in my house that doesn't like mint in, there was a third of the brownies that didn't include the mint frosting... just the chocolate... And those kind are good too! If you want the recipe for these brownies... click here.

Oh yeah... one more thing. I thought I had mint extract in my pantry and while I was making the frosting I couldn't find any minty extracts anywhere. They were all gone! I was committed to these brownies... the kids were depending on them... I'd already told them that they'd be having them. So in order to prevent a coup I did something I have never done before. I had a small vial of doTERRA Peppermint Essential Oil and I added in 3 drops of the oil to the frosting so they would be mint and it worked! I had heard that people cooked with the oils and so I tried it. I didn't want to run to the store for the extract. I should have started with 2 cause it seemed a little bit strong to me, but the kids didn't complain or even notice a difference. They were asking for more.

Another St. Patrick's day... done and over with. It was a busy but a fun day.  Now we get to start planning Easter! 

Chicken and Rice Soup

Mmmm... Fall is here! I am so excited! While the weather has cooled off a bit, it is still pretty hot outside during the day. However the evenings do cool off... not to a point that soup is fully warranted, but it was still fun to make one of my favorite soup recipes.

Typically I make this soup on the stove top, but since it is still pretty hot during the day, I decided to try making it in the crock pot. And it turned out wonderfully!
Here's the recipe...

{{Chicken & Rice Soup}}
(printer friendly version)

1 Rotisserie Chicken, already cooked (from Cost-co or other grocery store)
Water
1 cup celery, chopped
1/2 large onion, diced (can substitute ~2 Tablespoons dried minced onion)
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 Tablespoon crushed garlic
2 teaspoons oregano
1 bay leaf
1 cup minute rice
1 bag (16 oz.) frozen mixed veggies (any variety, I typically use corn, peas, beans & carrots)
Maggi Seasoning, for flavor and seasoning after

Place cooked rotisserie chicken in a pot. Add water until chicken is just barely covered. Add chopped celery, diced onion, sea salt, black pepper, crushed garlic, oregano, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil and then cover and allow to cook on medium heat for about an hour or two. This is the step that is making the yummy broth that is going to be the base for the soup. Remove chicken from the pot and let it sit out on a cutting board. Let the chicken cool so that you can remove the chicken from the bones. Add chicken back to the pot, plus 1 cup minute rice, and the bag of frozen mixed veggies. Cook on high for another 10-15 minutes until the rice and veggies are soft and tender. Serve with Maggi seasoning (described below) and some yummy rolls with butter!

**Crock Pot Method: Place cooked chicken into the crock pot. Cover chicken with water and add chopped celery, diced onion, sea salt, black pepper, crushed garlic, oregano, and bay leaf. Cover crock pot and cook high for about 4-6 hours. Remove chicken from the crock pot and let sit out on a cutting board. Let the chicken cool so that you can remove the chicken from the bones. Add chicken back to the crock pot, plus 1 cup minute rice, and the bag of frozen mixed veggies. Cook on high for another 30-45 minutes until the rice and veggies are soft and tender. Serve with Maggi seasoning and some yummy rolls and butter!

***I like using the Cost-co Rotisserie chickens because they tend to be a lot bigger than most grocery store chickens and they have more meat on them. Sometimes we will eat some of the rotisserie chicken for sandwiches and then use the rest of the meat, the chicken bones and an extra chicken breast to make the soup. The flavor of the rotisserie chicken is amazing and adds some great dimension to this soup. So even if you eat ALL the chicken off of the bones, you can still use the chicken bones to add flavor to the soup, and then cook some chicken breasts for the soup.

***This is also a great soup to make using left over turkey after THANKSGIVING! (It's only a two months away!) Turkey changes the flavor of the soup a bit, so it's like a whole new recipe!



Chop your celery right off the bunch and then rinse the pieces in a colander, then dump the celery into the pot.

Click here to see a great way to dice your onion.

Here is a picture of the frozen mixed veggies that I normally use. I didn't have this mixture so I used some frozen corn & frozen peas instead. This part is completely adjustable. Pick veggies that you like and add those to your soup.

Mmmmm... It is a wonderful soup just like this... And only one more thing can make it better.

And that one more thing is this... Maggi! We enjoy this seasoning on hard boiled eggs, celery and radishes among other things, including this chicken & rice soup. It is a liquid seasoning and you can sprinkle a few dashes into your bowl of soup to add even more fun flavor. Most people probably don't have this, but you can find it at the grocery store... sometimes by soy sauces and sometimes by Asian foods.... just ask where it might be stored at your local grocery store.... and try it. It has a strong flavor so a little goes a long way.

These are just the frozen Rhodes rolls... defrosted and then baked! LOVE these things! They are so easy and so yummy when you don't have time to make rolls from scratch!
Mmmm... love cold winter just for all of the wonderful soup recipes I get to make again!

Crock Pot Bajio Green Chile Chicken Salad

This is a favorite salad of mine... The Green Chile Chicken Salad from Bajio. My mouth starts drooling just as I think of it. The sweet and salty and spicy collection of flavors in this crispy salad. It is sooo yummy! I made a very extensive version of this salad about two years ago and now I have a quicker and simpler way to make this salad, with almost the same results.

The salad begins with a bed of lettuce leaves, some shredded cheese, the chicken (the most important part of the salad), some chopped tomatoes (instead of fresh pico de gallo), some corn tortilla crunchies, and then finally the cilantro lime dressing (the second most important part of the salad) with a warmed flour tortilla on the side.

In order to make this salad... you must make the chicken and the dressing. The rest is superfluous. You can add black beans or rice or any other things that you might like in tacos or salads. But like I said before... you MUST make the chicken and the dressing. So let's get on with the chicken....

Here it is in the crock pot.... ready to serve up...

Here's the recipe...

{{Bajio Crock Pot Green Chile Chicken}}

(printer friendly recipe click here)

5 frozen chicken breasts

1/2 cup salsa, medium (I used Herdez salsa)

1 Tablespoon cumin

1/2 cup brown sugar (or more to taste)

1 4-ounce can of diced green chiles (HOT)

1 medium yellow onion, sliced thinly

6-10 ounces of Sprite (almost a full can)

2 Tablespoons cornstarch

2 Tablespoons cold water (never use warm or hot water)

Combine all ingredients in a crock pot except for the cornstarch and cold water. Cook chicken on low for 5-6 hours. Remove chicken and shred. Mix together cornstarch with the cold water and whisk into the juices left in the crock pot. Add shredded chicken back into the crock pot and cook for one more hour for the juice to thicken.

**If you want a more spicy chicken, rather than sweeter, add a hotter salsa and more green chiles.

To make the corn tortillas crunchies.... Pour some oil into a frying pan and heat up over medium heat. While the oil is heating up, cut the corn tortillas in half. Then cut each half into strips that are about 1/4 inch wide.

Test the oils readiness by putting one small strip into the oil. If it starts popping and frying the tortilla... then you know the oil is ready. Place a small amount of strips into the oil and cook them until they are crisp... it only takes a few minutes. They will quickly go from crisp to golden brown to overdone... so keep an eye on them. Using a slotted spoon, remove the strips from the oil and drain them on a paper towel. Sprinkle a small amount of fine sea salt over the warm strips and toss. Set aside to use on the salad.

Here's a helpful cooking tip: When grating cheese... spray the cheese grater with cooking spray to help the cheese come off easily. Nice!

Finally... the cilantro lime dressing... Mmmmmm... yummy-ness!{{Cilantro Lime Salad Dressing}}

(printer friendly version click here)

1 package Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing (dry mix)
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 bunch of cilantro, chopped
1 small jalapeno, remove seeds
1 cup mayo
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
1-2 tomatillos, remove outer papery skin
1 garlic clove, peeled and cut up

Blend all ingredients together in a blender. Chill for a few hours to allow the flavors to blend together. Serve on your favorite salad.


{{Crock Pot Bajio Green Chile Chicken Salad}}

(printer friendly version click here for the recipes for the whole salad)

Chopped Lettuce
Crock Pot Green Chile Chicken
Shredded Cheese
Chopped Tomatoes
Corn Tortilla Crunchies
Black beans or Rice (optional)
Cilantro Lime Dressing
Warmed Flour Tortillas, on the side

Enjoy your salad.... cause I know that I do!