Oh Sh*t...AKA...You Need How Many Swaps For Tomorrow??

 

So, this is what happens...when you see a Facebook post clarifying that those "Swaps" your youngest was talking about after her last Scout meeting were actually for her meeting on Monday.  And it's Sunday afternoon.  And there's zero craft supplies in your small, rural Pennsylvania town.  Walmart is a good hour away.  And I don't have time to fashion little tiny birthday cakes out of twigs and yarn. 

First I said some very un-Girl Scout-y words and then hollered for my mom.  Did I mention I was in the middle of prepping for my own Daisy meeting?  Finding 25 safety pins was my first crisis but thank God for my mom.  After we scrounged around for a few minutes she remembered that she might have pack in her sewing box.  Problem 1 solved.  Then I went to the computer and busted out Excel.  A little clip art and fancy font work and voilà, tiny Juliette "Daisy" Low Birthday Card Swaps.  Mom and A worked on cutting them out and putting them together while I finished sorting last spring's cookie sale incentives. 

I don't know what people did before the internet.  But in the end, A will be getting her Girl Scout Way badge and no one needs to know that we slapped these together at the very last minute.  Thank You, Technology!

One Pot Pasta

Ok, now, yesterday I posted a recipe for yummy Pot Roast...

Today's recipe is a super simple IP pasta.  Sort of a Baked Ziti type thing but without the boiling pasta and baking and waiting.  And all the pots and pans.  I hate washing dishes, doesn't everyone?  You never meet anyone who says, "Hey, got any dishes I can wash?  I just don't get enough of that at home."  This is a real "toss everything in the pot and forget about it" sort of a thing, no waiting for water to boil, having your pasta clump all together, having the water boil over while your kid argues with you about math homework.  Not that I would know about that...

But no, none of that drama, this one is fast and easy.  And it's soooooo yummy!  It's a real kid pleaser, too.  And with a couple short cuts you can have dinner on the table in 20 minutes or less. 

Layer 1:  Frozen Meatballs - A small bag, enough to mostly cover the bottom of your Inner Pot in one layer.  (Aprox. 12-14oz)

Layer 2:  1 Box Dry Pasta - Uncooked, Ziti, Bowties, Cavatappi, Rigatoni (I haven't tested spaghetti or elbows yet) (16oz)

Layer 3:  One jar of prepared spaghetti Sauce (24oz)  Spread sauce to the sides of the pot, covering the pasta like you're frosting a cake.  This helps to ensure the pasta cooks evenly. 

Step 4:  Fill the sauce jar 3/4 full of water, pour water down the side of the pot trying to disturb the sauce as little as possible.  

 Plug in your instant pot and set to manual, reduce the cooking time to 3/4 of the cooking time recommended on the box of pasta.  Once the timer beeps, do a quick release to depressurize the pot, open the lid, give it a gentle stir to distribute the sauce and meatballs.  Then sprinkle on about a cup of shredded mozzarella cheese.  I usually put the lid back on for a couple minutes to melt the cheese.  

Friday Fuel!!

Friday Fuel...because there are a LOT of "healthy snacks" out there, meal replacement bars, powders, shakes.  Some of them taste like things I don't feel would be fit to serve in prison.  Because of all that, I've decided to review one "fuel" item a week, on Fridays.  When I decided to try and limit my fast food intake and give up my afternoon candy habit I had to come up with something else to get me through the day when I'm running home from work and straight to wherever else I need to be.  

I looked around a lot, asked for advice from friends but let me tell you something, some people have terrible taste.  I know we all like different things but some of the protein shakes people suggested, I mean, jeeze man?  I thought we were friends.  Don't tell me to buy this super healthy "chocolate covered surprise" bar and have it taste like something I scraped off my shoe!  Serious misuse of the word chocolate right there.  

But anyway...sometimes I need a quick snack, sometimes I'm starving.  I need something to keep me from hitting the drive-thru.  I almost always have something stashed in my bag.  I'll start with some of my favorites and some new ones I'm trying.  

What's your favorite on the go snack/meal replacement?  If you have a recommendation or something you'd like me to try and review here, put it in the comments and I'll see if I can track it down!  I'm happy to be a guinea pig and I promise, if it tastes like dirt, I'm going to tell you!

Go Macro Macrobar - Protein Paradise - Cashew Caramel

This one was a quick grab at the grocery store. I

liked that it has high protein and there's some fat in there too.  It's got substance. I had it for lunch one day last week and it didn't desert in the late afternoon. It was definitely chewy, I liked the texture even though it doesn't look all that appealing. Taste, it was a little bland I was hoping for a little more cashew flavor. The caramel was lost to me completely. It wasn't horrible by far, but you could definitely detect that sort of vitamin-y, protein powder aftertaste. I'd definitely pair it with a lot of water. All in all, if I needed the protein, especially after a workout, I'd get this again.

We'll call it a 6/10!

Sunday Dinner on a Tuesday Night!

I like to eat.  I mean really, you don't look like this if you hate food.  But not just food, I like good food.  Pot Roast is one of my all time favorites.  I've spent years perfecting time and technique.  Hours of cooking a hunk of beef in the oven, on the stove, in the crock pot.  And then in comes the Instant Pot.  Because sometimes you don't have all day.  Sometimes you want weekend comfort food on a week night.  For those of you who don't know, an Instant Pot is a multi-function cooker that can steam, make rice, make yogurt, slow cook and it's an electric pressure cooker.  You can cook food from frozen with very little added time.  You can make a bunch of perfect, fluffy baked potatoes in less than half an hour without heating up your kitchen.  Because it's also self contained, people take them camping, to hotels, anywhere with an outlet to plug in to.  There are lots of brands of electric pressure cookers out there, the main reason for going with the IP instead of other brands was that the IP has a stainless steel inner pot.  No icky non stick chemicals, I scrub mine out with a stainless steel scrubber, super easy to clean.  

Pressure cookers have always intimidated me but the IP has all kinds of safety features.  You can't open this guy when the pressure is up, the pressure is pre-set, it won't explode.  And it makes a mean Pot Roast! 

Cast of Characters!

Pressure Cooked Pot Roast
1 Beef Roast (2-5lbs aprox.)
Salt
Pepper
1T Vegetable Oil
3/4 C Water
1 Packet Instant Onion Soup mix or 1 Can Campbell's Beef Consume  or today I'm trying this Slow Cooker Pot Roast Sauce
1/4 C Butter
1/4 C Flour

I started out by seasoning the meat with salt & pepper.  Push the "Saute" button on the IP and pressing the Adjust button to set it on High heat I added the oil to the pot and and when the oil was hot I browned the roast on one side and then the other.  Then I poured in the sauce and water.  If I was using the dried soup I'd have mixed that in the water before pouring it in the pot.  You could totally add halved or quartered potatoes and carrots here, right on top of the roast, for a one pot meal.  Easy peasy.  Lock the lid onto the IP and hit cancel to end the saute.  Then hit Manual and adjust the time to 55 minutes.  The pot will display "On" and then when pressure achieved it will start counting down.  

There will be a beep when the time has elapsed, I let this roast naturally come down from pressure for 15 minutes before opening the vent.  In the mean time I made my roux in a sauce pan on the stove, just melt the butter, mix in the oil, cook for 1-2 minutes and set aside.  

Once the pressure has released you can open the pot, remove the roast and set it aside to rest while you make the gravy.  What is life without gravy?  Normally you'd have to use another pan for gravy making but with the IP you just turn it back on to Saute, adjust to High and when the juices from the roast come to a boil you whisk in your prepared roux.  I usually add about 2/3 of the roux to start and then use the last 1/3 as needed to thicken to the consistency I like.  Allow to simmer for 5 minutes, stirring as needed to prevent sticking.  Taste gravy and adjust for salt as needed.  

Try this super tender roast and tell me it doesn't taste like it's been cooking all day!

And So It Begins....

“You have to walk before you can run.”  Well, that's what they say.  And they’re not wrong about that.  I’ve decided that this time around I’m going to work my way up to running by first building up my walking endurance.  I went out for a short walk during my morning break at work and it was great.  The weather was beautiful, it was quiet and peaceful, and I lost track of time.  I had to turn around and hurry back to work during my second half.  I’m using the Map My Run app which is great.  It measures time, distance and speed, my speed on the way back was just over 15 minutes per mile.  That puts my mind at ease a bit.  If I can keep that pace, improve it, the one hour I have to finish will be no problem.  Speed is something I stress about a lot, I'm terrified I'm going to be tripping across the finish line half an hour after everyone else.   I have to find some way to block out those memories of running the mile in school.  Knowing that the fastest person in my gym class lapped me twice.  Knowing that everyone else is watching and waiting for me to finish.  Even when I was young, even before I was fat.  I’ve just never been able run like everyone else. But now, I just really want to.  Even if I’m slow.  I'm also challenging myself to do squats, one for every day this month, today is the 10th so I did 10.  I'll probably start hating myself around the 18th but I need to build up my leg muscles.

My mom said to me the other day, "So, since when are you a runner."  I’ve always been that person, the one with 52 hobbies.  I want to try everything.  People think it’s because I can’t stick to anything but really it’s because I’m interested, or curious, or it’s just something I want to achieve.  Sometimes, like in the case of my 5K there’s a sense of doing what the old me would have thought impossible.  

It took me several years and failed attempts to teach myself to knit.  Now I love to make scarves.  I sewed my sleeve to the machine the first time I used a sewing machine.  It still doesn’t always cooperate or look pretty but I can sew now.  It may take me 100 pictures to get one good one but I have a pile of photography award ribbons.  It just takes me a while to get there sometimes.  But I usually do.

And it may be difficult but I’m going to run a 5K, I’m going to get that finishers metal.  This is the time I’m going to make it.  And I have 354 more days to work up to it.

A Little Love for Monkey Love

Yummy afternoon snack alert!

These little guys satisfy my chocolate craving with a little sweetness and real banana flavor.  I hate it when you get hit over the head with fake banana in sweet stuff.  This one is nice and subtle.  It’s got a nice chewiness from the oats and there’s several little nuggets in the packet so it feels like there was a lot in there.  It’s satisfying.  Maybe not as healthy as say, a kale salad.  But not as bad as a candy bar, either, and no sugar crash. 

Vitamix...Why You Need One Too!

The best money I’ve ever spent on a kitchen gadget was on my Vitamix.  I love it.  Like way more than is normal probably.  I put everything in it.  I used to strain my roasted pumpkin for pies but no more, just pack the pumpkin, eggs, sugar, ect. into the Vitamix, make sure the lid is on tight, and let it do it’s thing.  Smoothest, creamiest pies ever.  Want hot soup on a weeknight when you really don’t feel like cooking?  No cans here.  The Broccoli Cheddar is my favorite.  I buy the steam in bag frozen broccoli and shredded cheese and keep them on hand all winter.  Broccoli goes in the microwave to defrost while I get everything else out.  In less than 10 minutes you have hot soup.  The blade spins so fast it heats the soup.  And the container is all one piece.  You fill it part way with water, a drop of dish soap, and buzz it for a few seconds on high.  It’s like a mini self-contained dishwasher in there.  It breaks down almonds for homemade almond milk that doesn’t require straining.  It grinds homemade peanut or almond butter with ease.  

What I love most is whole juicing and making smoothies.  You can put an actual, whole apple in there and it’ll give you juice.  Pulpy juice, but juice none the less.  No waste.  All the skin, fruit, all the nutrition goes right into your food.  All the fiber and nutrients are broken down to a point that allows your body to utilize them the most effectively.  It handles the addition of flax and hemp seeds without a hitch, crushes ice like it’s nothing.  Breaks down spinach.  Everything turns into this smooth, sweet, yummy concoction that I can grab as I’m running out the door.  It’s faster than almost any other breakfast I could make.  And it helps me get some fruit and veggies in.  I’m terrible about sitting down to a real meal during the day; it’s something I’ve always struggled with.  But no matter where I am on the healthy eating wagon, on the wagon, off the wagon, laying on the ground beside the wagon, it doesn’t matter.  Because these drinks are so simple and delicious, they’re always on my menu.  It good fuel for my body but it doesn’t leave me feeling deprived.  I buy a lot of clean and ready spinach, frozen fruit and bananas.  You can seriously throw anything in there.   

This morning it was a combination of my own:  

1 banana

1 handful of red grapes

2 large handfuls of baby spinach

a handful of pineapple (fresh or frozen)

1 whole apple quartered

1/2 cup of water

1 cup of ice cubes

 

Thanks to the banana you don’t even taste the spinach.  The apple adds sweetness and fiber but also gives it a thick, silky texture.  You don’t need a Vitamix to try this recipe, just make sure the fruit is cut up enough for your blender.  Try it!  I’ll be posting more recipes soon!

Adventures in Scouting: A New Year!

 One of my favorite things about being a Daisy Girl Scout leader is the crafts.  My group loves to do crafts and I try to come up with something every week.  It's difficult sometimes, they have to be kind of simple.  We've got little kids with little hands and they're still gaining coordination skills.  They also get very excited and they ain't got time for long instructions.  I generally like to go with inexpensive, too.  These "Get to Know You" necklaces are just a cheap tub of pony beads (we sorted ahead) and any cord/string you can scare up.  The kids had lots of fun stringing beads and sharing their life facts with their friends.  Each color stands for something: 

Pink=Sisters
Blue=Brothers
Green=Years in Scouts
Orange=Pets
Yellow=Kindergarten 
Purple=First Grade  

Another thing I like, especially at the beginning of the year, is having a craft that can easily be adjusted for the number of kids you have attending.  These ghosts are made with the super cheap paper plates.  I think there was 50 in the pack for $2.  A sheet of black construction paper, I traced the eyes and mouth on and cut into strips for each girl.  For the hands I made a template and let the girls trace them on to drawing paper and cut them out.  The streamers are just white crepe paper.  The extra crepe paper will be used to decorate for our Halloween Party in a few weeks and the plates will come in handy for snack. In a world of so many Pintrest fails these projects are foolproof, not messy and super easy for the kids and for you!  Over the next weeks and months I'll be posting lots more ideas, try them with your kids and let me know how they turn out!