Monkey’s fist

My husband and I are members of the Seattle Sailing Club, and today I was able to go on a day cruise as part of their women’s program.  It was a great opportunity to go out and learn with/from fellow women!  And.. it was a gorgeous day on an equally gorgeous boat.  

We set sail from Shilshole Marina about 10:45am and headed for a pizza place across the sound.  We didn’t actually get to do much sailing due to the wind and time constraints, but that’s just fine with me.  On our way back, we learned how to make a monkey’s fist.  It’s a knot that is named for it’s similarity in looks to a monkey’s bunched fist/paw.  It is tied at the end of a rope to serve as a weight, making it easier to throw, and also as an ornamental knot.  

They are pretty easy to make using just your hands.  We made ours just around our fingers, but in most instructions that you can find online, they suggest putting something such as a marble, ping pong ball, or something else inside to help with the shape and weight.  We used parachute rope and my color happened to be red.  We came up with a few idea’s as to what to do with this knot… I have some plans for this knot so stay tuned to see what I came up with!

Slow Cooker Lemon Chicken

So, it’s been a busy week around here!  With two kids, there is never a dull moment.  This week kept with that trend.  I didn’t have a new recipe to share because we had company over and I made the Easy Baked Ziti!  Monday the 11th was a school holiday, so we went to the zoo!  My brilliant self decided to walk, thinking that 1.6 miles wasn’t really that far.  Well, I hadn’t pushed both kids in the stroller that far in a while.  By the time I got home… I was tired.  Tired me = no home cooked meal.  Tuesday, was a preschool meeting at 6, Wednesday was a late night for the husband, Thursday too, and then me feeling sick on Friday resulted in pizza.  Don’t even ask about the weekend!  Sailing with friends and a birthday party = eating out for 3 meals!  

Definitely time to get back in the kitchen.  For both my stomach and checking accounts health.  

I’m trying a new one today. In fact… it’s still cooking!  I got this from one of my favorite sites.  Get Crocked.

Ingredients are simple and minus the lemonade concentrate, I had them all on hand.  

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in strips
• 1/2 c. flour
• 1 T. salt
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 6 oz. frozen lemonade concentrate (just use half of a 12 oz. can)
• 3 T. brown sugar
• 1 tsp. balsamic vinegar
• 3 T. ketchup
• 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 2 T. cornstarch
• 2 T. cold water

Please visit the website for complete directions.  I can tell you though, that it is very simple.  This one does require a little work before you can just turn on the crock pot and go though.  I planned this for yesterday, but didn’t have the chicken defrosted, and by the time I would have gotten that done, and the chicken browned, it would have come out too late to eat.  

I simply took 4 chicken breasts from the freezer and set them in the fridge overnight so they would be nice and defrosted for when I got around to making it today.  Dropping my oldest off at preschool at 12:45 means that I could come home and start the prep and have 4 hours be perfect timing for dinner.

Here it is so far…

 

I plan to serve it over some rice.  Maybe adding a little cilantro as a garnish.  Tune in tomorrow for the review. 

DIY Cleaners – Dishwasher

Since moving here, I have started making a lot of my own cleaners.  Partly to save money, partly to be better to the environment and partly because since I am a full time stay at home mom, I have more time (some days).  One of the recipes I use the most (everyday) is dishwasher detergent.  I used to go between those pods and powder and always hating the little packages and/or the big boxes.  I came upon a book and their website;  diynatural.com  I have used several recipes from there, but I’ll start with the dishwasher detergent. Ingredients are basic, simple and natural.  Plus, if you make any other cleaners  yourself, chances are you’ll have these on hand.  I didn’t when I first started, but now that I make this along with a few other things, I always keep a container full of these under my kitchen sink. Ingredients: 1 cup borax ($10/76oz)  Amazon 1 cup washing soda ($9/55oz)  Amazon 1/2 cup kosher salt rice 1/2 cup citric acid ($11) amazon.com I recommend mixing everything together into a fairly large bowl.  Due to the citric acid, you will need to stir it several times that first day (the rice helps with this) and depending on the size of the container and amount of use, you may need to stir it again or break it up a couple of times.  One batch fits almost perfectly into a 2 lb container. The best part?  You use 1 tablespoon per load.  I don’t really measure anymore though.  I simply fill up the holder in the door of my dishwasher.  And for the rinse agent, simply put some vinegar in the bottom of the washer before you start and everything will be spotless!  And it helps clean the dishwasher itself. The borax and washing soda are available at most grocery stores, I shop at Fred Meyer and there they are in the laundry section. I already had kosher salt, and rice.  The citric acid I ordered from Amazon.   Since I’ve been using it, I’m just now on my 2nd container.  And that is only because I also used it to blanch some apples earlier in the fall.  I haven’t done the full price breakdown to compare this and the pods, but I’m guessing that since I’ve only purchased 2 boxes of each ingredient in a year and I also use the borax and washing soda for other things… it’s pretty cheap.  I also know that you can make a liquid version, but I haven’t tried that one yet. It’s a super easy recipe that you can make in a matter of minutes.  So even if you ran out and need to make a new batch in order to start a load, it’s no problem.  For the full directions/tips please go to their website directly.  I also highly recommend following their site and/or buying their book (I have it on our iPad).  I have gotten so many great ideas from there! I don’t keep mine in such a fancy/nice container.  Mine is in the leftover canister that my previous cleaner was in, but it gets the job done.

Sweet, Sticky and Spicy Chicken

So last week I made something with chicken (surprise!)   This is one of those recipe’s that isn’t too difficult and if you have all of the ingredients, pretty quick to make.  I found it on allrecipes.com.  I’m not sure how long ago, but definitely since we’ve lived here in WA.

The ingredients are pretty standard.

• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh ginger root
• 2 teaspoons chopped garlic
• 2 tablespoons hot sauce
• salt and pepper to taste
• 4 skinless boneless chicken breast halves – cut into 1/2 inch strips
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

One thing I’ve learned – fresh ginger and garlic are better and it’s not necessary to include the hot sauce.  But…. your husband might add his own sriracha later.

For full directions, please click on the link to allrecipies above.  I can say though, that you simply mix all of the ingredients together into a sauce, add them to the cooked chicken and let it thicken.

Now… for the fail part of this post. 😦  I usually serve this meal over rice.  I always double the amount of rice that I make, simply because it’s good for leftovers, etc.  Well, I didn’t cook it long enough.  We usually use Jasmine rice and it just ended up really watery.  😦  I also didn’t read through many of the reviews of this recipe to see where almost every review says to dredge the chicken in flour first.  You don’t really get the sticky part of this recipe if you don’t.  So, I’ll try that next time.

All in all, it’s a great recipe, but I will definitely try some things differently next time.

I know… my presentation is lacking.  Maybe I need to get some more colorful plates?

Back to routine

This week is/has been rough.  We had visitors last week.  One of the set of grandparents made the trek over here from WI for a week of play and visits to both the zoo and the toy store.  It was a great visit, but thanks to all of that, I am done with the zoo, costumes and have a new set of toys to try and organize/not step on.  

This is our typical Monday routine.  Wednesday is pretty similar, except that I get to drop off Josh in the morning instead of staying there.

Monday:  9:15 – drop off Brooke at a friends house to be watched while I work at the preschool with Josh.

11:30 – finish working at school and race back to friends house to pick up Brooke.

11:45-12:30 – lunch

12:30 – drive back to preschool to drop Brooke off for her turn.

1:00 – 3:30 – ME TIME!  Well, as me time as it can get with a 2 yr old in the house.

3:30-4:15 – changes, but usually playtime at the preschool playground.

4:30 – 6ish – try to both keep kids satisfied and cook dinner.

Now that I’ve finished (almost successfully) a minimalist challenge where you were to rid your home of a total of 496 items by the end of October, we have some more room in our garage.  I plan to do an overhaul of that space as well as the closet that is located in the kids playroom.  And as soon as I get my Amazon delivery of both ink and paper;  how did I manage to run out of both at the same time?   I will be printing and laminating more labels in an effort to make both more usable spaces.  So it’s during this time that I will be researching some new dinner ideas, playing with Josh, writing blog posts or organizing/cleaning my house.  

Yesterday was Sunday, and while I didn’t try out a new recipe, it was still one that I would like to share.  There are some improvements to be made.  So check back in tomorrow for that.  Hint: It involves chicken

 

 

Fellow WA newbie has a new adventure!

Hi! Just wanted to share a friends page on here in case anyone needs help!  A great friend, Andrea Shirey, has started her own professional organizing business over at Sigh Of Relief.

If you have ever needed any sort of organizing help, either call or send her an email.    She specializes in paper management, special organizing projects and in-home organizing.

Check out her latest entry: Store it where you use it.  Some great tips on how to make not only your house, but life simpler.

(Picture taken from Sigh of Relief)

Book bin… get it?  Brilliant!  Make sure you check it out.

Easy Baked Ziti

This is one of my latest favorites.  It’s easy, common ingredients and it tastes good.

I’m not sure how I came upon this recipe, but I found it on 10minutedinners.com.  Besides the ricotta cheese, I usually have all of the ingredients in my kitchen.  I tend to buy multiple boxes of pasta, then put them into uniform rubbermaid containers in my cupboards.  The 5 types that I always have on hand are farfalle (butterfly), elbows, rotini and penne and thin spaghetti.  This recipe calls for ziti, I have used a mixture of penne and rotini before when I have been low on one and it doesn’t make a difference in taste.  The beauty of this recipe too, is that you can use any type of pasta sauce you want.  If you pick a chunkier sauce, it will have more texture in the dish, and if you use a thinner sauce, you can add more italian seasoning, or other seasonings as you wish.     It makes plenty of servings so that there are always leftovers and the best part of all, is that you can just throw everything in and then put it in the oven.  No pre-cooking of the noodles needed! (My favorite part)

Ingredients

• 1 jar favorite tomato-based pasta sauce (26 ounces)
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 container ricotta cheese (15 ounces)
• 1/4 grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 package grated mozzarella cheese (8 ounces)
• 1 box ziti (8 ounces)
• 1 tb. Italian seasoning *
• Minced garlic*
• garlic salt, garlic powder *
• *optional

For further instructions please follow the link below or check our her site from the link above.

– See more at: http://10minutedinners.com/easy-baked-ziti-recipe/#sthash.IMkx0bmy.dpuf

Very tasty and with minimal prep, very easy to make with 2 children running around.  Just be aware in your menu planning that it does take 55 minutes to cook.  It will also be very hot when it comes out so be sure to let it sit for awhile before feeding it to kids.

Sesame Noodles with Chicken

This isn’t exactly a new recipe, but I do not think we started making it until we lived in Washington, so it counts.   🙂  

Last night was my daughters preschool Halloween social.  They didn’t have their normal afternoon class in order for us to have this family pot luck in the evening.  Sign up began last week.  Since I am always running late in dropping her off for school, I got stuck with a main dish.  I didn’t mind though, because due to trying to make more actual meals, I had some in mind.  At first I was going to make a dish called Easy Baked Ziti.  Sounds easy right since it has the word Easy?  Well, it is easy, but takes 55 minutes to cook.  The grandparents are in town and we had been out sailing during the day (and timing never works out when family are involved) so we didn’t have time to make that.  Going through my recipe’s… I remembered this one.  And since I have a ton of chicken, I thought it would be perfect.

This recipe is easy for us now since we usually have all of the ingredients on hand, minus the scallions.  I know most people may not have all of the vinegars or sauces on hand, but they are pretty cheap and last a long time.  Since the main ingredients are chicken and spaghetti, it’s a kid favorite.   There is also minimal chopping involved so I can make this while I have my 2 kids running around.   We also almost always double it since chicken usually comes in bigger packages then 1/2lb.  

Source: Weight Watchers

PREP12 Min

COOK10 Min

 

Ingredients

• 1/2 lbs spaghetti uncooked whole-wheat
• 1/2 cup scallions green parts only, chopped
• 1/2 lb chicken thigh cooked, skinless, boneless, cut into thin strips  (I’ve also made it with chicken breasts and it’s great)
• 3 Tbsp rice vinegar
• 3 Tbsp soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp hoisin sauce
• 1 Tbsp dark sesame oil
• 2 tsp chili sauce with garlic
• 1.5 tsp honey
• 1 Tbsp cilantro fresh, finely chopped
• 2 tsp sesame seeds

Directions

Cook noodles according to package directions. Remove 1/4 cup of pasta cooking water; drain and rinse.

In a large bowl, combine noodles, scallions and chicken; toss gently, but well.

In a cup, combine reserved cooking water, vinegar, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, oil, chili sauce and honey; stir well.

Pour vinegar mixture over noodles; toss gently but well to coat noodles. Sprinkle with cilantro and sesame seeds; serve.

Crock Pot Beef Stroganoff

This recipe comes from one of my families favorite cook books.  The $7 A Meal Slow Cooker Cookbook.  We’ve made several recipe’s from there and generally loved them all.  I had typed this into my meal planning program Plan to Eat and decided on using it based on the type of meat that I had in the fridge that needed to leave in order to make space for a large quantity of chicken (more on that later).

It’s a pretty simple meal that didn’t take too long to prep.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 pound beef top round steak (cut into 1-inch pieces)
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, sliced
• 1 tablespoon mustard
• 1 cup Beef Stock
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch

Prep involves cutting the steak and tossing it with the flour, salt and pepper.

You put the onion, garlic and carrots into the slow cooker and put the meat on top.  Let it cook on HIGH for 8-9 hours.

When those first hours are almost up, you can prepare the sauce.

Medium bowl – combine sour cream and cornstarch with 1 cup of the liquid in the crock pot.

*this was a little trick since I didn’t have much

you mix it well, put it back into the crock pot and cook on high another 25-30 min.

We served it over rice, but for a more true stroganoff you could do noodles.

 

Crock Pot Beef Stroganoff

It was delicious and will definitely be making again!

Crock Pot Maple Salmon

My goal is to make a brand new meal every Sunday.  Today, I needed to make some room in my freezer for 40 lb. of chicken that I am going to be getting tomorrow.  So, off to google I went in search of Salmon recipes.  I found this one on http://getcrocked.com.     I immediately loved it because it seemed simple and it could be used with a crock pot.

I don’t usually cook fish.  We have had some in our freezer since early this year when we took a trip to Pike Place Market.  Today was the day.  

I found all of the pieces to the crock pot and plugged it in.  The recipe doesn’t really say how much fish to use, so I used two 1 lb filets.  I simply cut them out of their shrink wrap and put them frozen into the bottom of the pot.  Next step was to mix up the maple syrup, lime juice, soy sauce, garlic and ginger root (I cheated and use minced ginger that I keep in the fridge)  and pour it over the fish.  That’s it!  Set it on high for 2 hours and it was done.  I made up some Jasmine rice to serve under the fish.

Photo from getcrocked.com

It was awesome!  The kids even liked it and the 2 yr old had seconds.    We saved enough for my husband to take to work with him for lunch tomorrow and a small portion for myself. 

Verdict – 5 stars!  Will definitely be making this one again.