Archives for October 2010

Getting organized

My refrigerator was a mess!  So I decided to reorganize it!  I hauled everything out, cleaned it, then put everything back in in a more organized fashion.

First of all, I think I might just have one of the smallest refrigerators ever invented.  Seriously.  And the freezer is about the size of a shoe box, but that’s a whole ‘nother story all together!  But refrigerators are expensive and when I have one that works just fine it doesn’t make much sense to buy a new one.  So I just cram as much into it as I can.  I didn’t even take a before picture- it was that bad.  But here are some after pics.

 

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I like to label things.  I’m a labeling fool- no joke.  I also really like those clear shoe boxes you can get in the storage area at Target.  Otherwise I just end up cramming things in wherever I can find room, which means utter chaos.  I also end up having a lot of things go bad when the fridge isn’t organized because things get buried and I end up forgetting about them.

DSCF3159 On the top shelf I’ve got some fruits, cheese/hummus/the husbands lunch meat (eww!  I’m trying to wean him off of that nasty stuff, but it’s slow going), and my already washed and prepped veggies for salads (great tip: get your veggies chopped and ready to go for the week- it saves time giving you some healthy grab-and-go options!)

On the middle shelf I’ve got my soy yogurts/tofutti sour cream and cream cheese, my salad mixes/spinach, and my veggies for meals during the week.

 

DSCF3160 And on the bottom shelf I’ve got my bread, whole wheat pita pockets(hiding under the bread), some leftover pumpkin, cauliflower, my flax and chia seeds, coconut milk coffee creamer, and almond milk(yum!)  I think there’s a beer peeking out at the back there too!

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Condiments and whatnot.

 

I feel so much better now that my fridge is all organized!  Now doesn’t that make you want to go clean out your fridge?!

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P.S.  GO RANGERS!!!!!

Crazy Jack

This is Crazy Jack!  He’s my husband’s creation.  I think he’s supposed to be a Cyclops.  He’s a little silly and a little crazy and a little scary all at the same time.  Anyway, we think he’s pretty cool, so he’s going to be hanging out on our patio for a while.

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Then we roasted his guts!  🙂

Here’s what I did!

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
(Print this recipe!)

Ingredients:
the guts from your pumpkin
Tony’s Creole Seasoning
a few spritzes of EVOO from an oil spritzer

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Directions:
Wash your pumpkin seeds really well and get all of the goop off.

Lay them out on a roasting pan and dry them with your hair dryer (I’m TOTALLY serious!  On LOW so that they don’t go flying everywhere!)  It’s essential to get them completely dry or they won’t be very crisp!

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Spritz them with a few sprays of EVOO, then sprinkle with Tony’s seasoning.

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Roast them in a 275 F oven, stirring them about every 10 mins till they’re as crisp as you want them to be (somewhere around 30 mins).

It’s important to babysit them!!  It can be a pain, but what a waste of time to do all the work of getting them out of the pumpkin and cleaned off only to burn them!  Take the time to watch them carefully!  Your patience will be rewarded- I promise!!

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ENJOY!  Store them in an airtight container or a ziplock bag.

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World Series here we come!

First, before I say anything else I want to say…

THE RANGERS ARE GOING TO THE WORLD SERIES!!!!!!

This is something I didn’t think I’d ever say and It makes me the happiest girl in the world to be able to yell that!  I’m obsessed with baseball.  And the Rangers.  Have been ever since I was old enough to know what baseball was.  Baseball was king in our house- we didn’t really watch any other sports.  And we were playing as soon as we could fit a glove on our hands.  Little league, you betcha!  We did it and have millions of those little trophies!

I’ve been to a lot of Rangers games since I was a kid, and if I remember correctly one of the games we were at was a Nolan Ryan no hitter (my brothers will have to correct me on that if I’m wrong).  My brothers got to go to the game where Nolan got in a fight with that little punk that charged the mound.  I wasn’t invited to that game- I think it was a boys night out thing with dad.  Boy was I pissed that I missed that!  I still am by the way if you’re reading this dad!  🙂

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Nolan Ryan is a TOTAL badass by the way!  And he was 46 when he pummeled this kicked this dudes butt.  You really need to watch this!  I think he’s still my all time favorite player, though Young and Hamilton are giving him a run for his money right now!

 

So anyway, I’m pretty psyched about the world series.  Unfortunately I’m a poor college student and I’m not even going to pretend I can afford to even dream about going.  But we have an awesome TV with a pretty good size screen, so I’ll be watching it in HD in the comfort of my own home.  It’ll still be awesome and we’ll still be watching a piece of history!

Way to go Rangers- you’re my boys!!!!!

Banana Bread

Best banana bread recipe eva!!  Try it- you won’t be disappointed!

Banana Bread

(Print this recipe!)

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups flour (I use half regular flour and half quinoa flour)
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup mashed bananas (2-3 bananas)
1/2 cup canola oil or applesauce
equivalent of two eggs (use ener-g egg replacer or two “flax eggs”)
1/3 cup almond or soy milk
1/2 ish cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 F.

Mix flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.

Mix bananas, oil or applesauce, and milk in another mixing bowl.

Combine the banana mixture with the large bowl containing dry ingredients.  Add the egg replacer or “flax eggs” and stir until combined.

Pour into a greased loaf pan and bake in 325 F oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until a toothpick in the middle comes out clean.

Enjoy!!

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New stuff in my shop!

The Vita-Mix…the mac daddy of all blenders!  Everyone should own one of these babies!  It’s so much more than just a blender- I’m predicting world domination soon.  😉

vitamix

Get it here!

 

Nutritional yeast- full of b-vitamins and tastes wonderfully nutty and cheesy!  I sprinkle it on my popcorn, stir it into my mac and cheese as well as into my grits and polenta.  Nom nom nom!!

nutritional yeaast

Get it here!

 

Love my pyrex!  Enough said- everyone knows what pyrex is!

pyrex

Get it here!

 

Juicer!  You NEED a juicer- and this is one of the top of the line brands!  Makes a glass of juice in 5 seconds flat.  The fresh stuff tastes SO much better than the stuff you buy from the store, and it’s BETTER for you too!!!

breville

Get it here!

 

Cast Iron Skillet!  EVERYONE should have one of these bad boys in their kitchen!  They make THE. BEST. grilled cheeses!  Enough said.  Buy one now.

skillet

Get it here!

 

Okie doke!  That’s it for now- I’ll be adding lots more stuff soon- stay tuned!