Pretty Little Apron

Dana

Instant Pot Creamy Chicken Tacos

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This Instant Pot Creamy Chicken Tacos recipe is one for the books! Chicken is so quick to make in the Instant Pot, and this recipe combines just a few staple ingredients to make a delicious taco filling perfect for hard shells, soft shells, nachos, burritos, enchiladas and more!

Instant Pot Chicken Tacos

In my last post, I talked about how much I adore my Instant Pot Duo Plus! It does so many things so I am still trying to navigate my way through them all, but I’ve created some really awesome recipes so far. We are a taco loving family, so naturally I wanted to create a couple taco night recipes that everyone in my family could enjoy. This Instant Pot Creamy Chicken Taco recipe was a winner, and approved by my husband and the kids!


This was certainly a “let’s just throw these ingredients into the pot and see what happens” kind of experiment, but I was pretty sure it would work out great. Cream cheese is in the recipe and is basically my secret weapon of cooking so I knew it would make a really delicious addition to tacos. This is a recipe that I probably would have tried to make in my slow cooker before, however the Instant Pot is so quick it has replaced my slow cooker for a lot of recipes.

I still think the slow cooker has it’s own place in the kitchen, however it just doesn’t compare to the Instant Pot for so many reasons. The slow cooker has one function, while the Instant Pot has nine and is way easier to clean! I also like the look of the Instant Pot better so for now my slow cooker is on the shelf. I’m sure at some point I will find which recipes I like better in the Slow Cooker vs Instant Pot but the experimenting with the Instant Pot is super fun!

Instant Pot Creamy Chicken Taco Recipe Tips

  • As always, please read your Instant Pot manual in full before starting any recipe if you aren’t familiar with using it. 🙂
  • I used 6 chicken breasts which equaled 2.5 pounds of meat. I do buy organic chicken, so the breasts are a lot smaller then the ginormous ones you may sometimes find at the grocery store. I would suggest going by weight and trying to get as close to 2.5 pounds of meat as you can.
  • When you take the lid off of your Instant Pot, you will need to stir in the cream cheese as it will still be in chunks. To get a really smooth sauce, I put my Instant Pot on saute for a couple minutes and pulled apart the chicken while the cream cheese was melting down into the sauce. This step only adds an extra couple of minutes and makes the most delicious sauce ever!
  • When you open your Instant Pot you may think the sauce seems thin. Once your chicken is pulled apart it really starts to soak everything up and come together. It will thicken the longer it sits as well so making this ahead of time is never a bad idea (totally not necessary though).
  • I used Ortega brand products because that is what I prefer. You can surely use your own favorites in place of Ortega. I used to make my own taco seasoning but when I was pregnant with the baby I couldn’t get enough of Ortega seasoned tacos and it has stuck ever since then!

Creamy Chicken Tacos

 

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Instant Pot Chicken Tacos

Instant Pot Creamy Chicken Tacos

★★★★★ 5 from 1 reviews
  • Author: Dana
  • Prep Time: 5
  • Cook Time: 12
  • Total Time: 17 minutes
  • Yield: 6
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Description

A delicious, creamy taco filling that can also be used in your other favorite Tex-Mex meals!

Ingredients

6 chicken breasts (2.5 pounds of meat)

1 cup water

1 packet Ortega Taco Seasoning

1/4 cup Ortega Taco Sauce

8 ounces cream cheese

additional salt + pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Put all ingredients into the Instant Pot. I just pulled apart my block of cream cheese into chunks and it worked great.
  2. Stir taco seasoning into liquid. Secure lid onto Instant Pot and set on manual mode for 12 minutes. After your 12 minutes of cooking time, you will want to do a 10 minute natural release of pressure. See recipe tips if you are unfamiliar with what this means.
  3. After your 10 minute natural release of pressure, release your steam vent to let out any additional steam, then remove lid. Switch your Instant Pot to saute mode, and mix cream cheese particles into the sauce. The saute will also help you shred your chicken easily.
  4. Serve in hard taco shells with all of your favorite taco night toppings! We served ours with hard taco shells, cojita cheese, and fresh cilantro.

Notes

I use an Instant Pot Duo Plus and love it!

Keywords: Instant Pot Creamy Chicken Tacos

Creamy Chicken Tacos

 

 

Instant Pot Beef Teriyaki

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This Instant Pot Beef Teriyaki is the perfect take out inspired recipe, right in your Instant Pot! Your pot will open to delicious, fall apart beef coated in a balanced, classic teriyaki sauce. I know you will love this one!

Instant Pot Beef Teriyaki

You guys. My Instant Pot is amazing me over and over again. Every time I make a recipe I have to pinch myself because it was so easy! I love throwing something into the Instant Pot during the day so that dinner is ready and I can clean up, and get out of the kitchen for the evening. I can enjoy dinner with my family instead of running around like a chicken with my head cut off. It feels really good to have most of the dinner dishes done before you even have dinner too!


I’m still discovering all of the ridiculously amazing settings on my Instant Pot. I have the Duo Plus, and it has two whole rows of settings that can do things like steam, sterilize, make yogurt, pressure cook, slow cook, and more. I mean, if this thing isn’t just pure magic then I don’t even know what it is.

I’ll be honest, when I first got it, I was kind of wondering if it would live up to the hype. After tasting this recipe, I can officially say the Instant Pot lives up to the hype 100% for me. It doesn’t get any easier then this, and you don’t have to stand over a stove all evening. You can throw your ingredients in the pot and walk away! Hallelujah!

 

Instant Pot Beef Teriyaki

With school starting next Monday I am sure on the hunt for some easy weeknight recipes. This Instant Pot Beef Teriyaki is exactly the kind of recipe I love to have on hand on a busy night where everyone has homework, the kids are whining, the baby is crying, and my husband is working late. I’m pretty sure that is always how those nights go, right? It is never just one thing, it is EVERYTHING all at once. When you feel like your drowning in your Mom duties, the last thing you want to do is cook. I’m finding more and more that instead of ordering take out like we used to, I am grabbing some protein throwing it in the Instant Pot, and putting a side on and I’m done.

Instant Pot Beef Teriyaki

Instant Pot Beef Teriyaki Recipe Tips

  • I use 2 pounds of sirloin in this recipe, but other cuts of beef would work the same. Wegman’s is my go-to for meat, and they always have double packs of huge sirloins in their selection. I pick one up and the meat goes a long way! Roast meat or stew meat would work too, however I do prefer the sirloin because I can easily trim the chewy, fatty edges.
  • As always, please read your Instant Pot manual before using the Instant Pot!
  • If you aren’t familiar with Instant Pot terminology this is what you need to know: First press the manual button and on your screen you’ll see that you can set your pot to high pressure and adjust time. Set to 17 minutes. Make sure your steam valve is closed, we want to keep the pressure in the pot. If your steam valve is open, you’ll see the steam coming out of the pot. You don’t want this. Your pot won’t start cooking immediately, it does need to come to heat first. Everything happens automatically so you literally just set it and walk away. Once the pot is to temperature, the timer will start. After the timer runs out, it will beep to let you know it is done, however you still need to release the pressure. This recipe calls for a natural pressure release which literally means letting the pot sit and doing nothing. When your pot beeps to let you know your cooking time has finished, a new timer begins to let you know how long it has been releasing pressure. Once 20 minutes has elapsed, your dinner is done! All you have to do is open the steam valve to let any additional steam out, and then open the pot.
  • This sounds super hard to follow but once you have done it one time you will realize how easy it is. Your Instant Pot does everything!

Instant Pot Beef Teriyaki

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Instant Pot Beef Teriyaki

Instant Pot Beef Teriyaki

  • Author: Dana
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Description

The Instant Pot makes this Beef Teriyaki so easy! You will open your pot to tender, delicious Beef Teriyaki, and your mind will be blow at how simple it was!

Ingredients

2 pounds sirloin steak, cubed

1 cup water (to put in pot before cooking)

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon granulated garlic

1/4 cup cold water (for thickening sauce)

2 Tablespoons cornstarch (for thickening sauce)

Instructions

Cut your sirloin into cubes. Add sirloin, 1 cup water, 1/4 cup soy sauce, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger, and 1/4 teaspoon granulated garlic to your Instant Pot.

Set your Instant Pot on Manual Setting at high pressure. Make sure your steam valve is closed. Cook for 17 minutes, then allow a 20 minute natural release. Release vent to allow any extra steam to release, and open pot.

Switch Instant Pot to sauté mode, uncovered. Mix 1/4 cup cold water with 2 Tablespoons cornstarch, mixing well to make sure there are no clumps. Pour the cornstarch slurry into your Instant Pot and stir until your teriyaki sauce thickens.

Serve over a bed of jasmine rice or broccoli.

Notes

I used the Instant Pot Duo Plus for this recipe! Here is exactly the model I have. I can’t say enough about how magical this machine is!

Instant Pot Beef Teriyaki

Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup

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This Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup is a from scratch, delicious, and hearty recipe that my family loves! We love making this all year round, but it is perfect for crisp fall evenings and snow days!

Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup


Sometimes my husband comes home, starts eating what I made, and makes a couple remarks about how great it is and how “Mommy” is such a great cook. This is 30 you guys. Being called Mommy by your husband and being super proud of the from scratch soup you just made. 🙂 I really wouldn’t have it any other way!

I have to agree with my husband though, this Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup is delicious, and a great recipe to put on your fall cooking bucket list! I’ve had this soup in my head for a couple of weeks and finally I got to go to the grocery store baby free and actually came home with the ingredients I set out to get int he first place. Every other time I was there I was forgetting ingredients, then using the ingredients I did get for something else, and then forgetting things again. A vicious cycle it was, until I insisted I needed to do the grocery store baby free on a Saturday morning. 30 minutes in I get the text that baby is crying and I made a mad dash through the rest of the grocery store grabbing things. Guess I didn’t do too bad!

Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup

Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup Recipe Tips

First of all, this recipe is so easy! SO EASY. For chicken soups I generally will make the chicken ahead of time. To do this, I simply place the chicken in a baking pan with a bit of water at the bottom to keep it moist (because we all love that word), season it with kosher salt, and bake. I place a piece of tin foil over the top of the pan to make sure all that moist, watery goodness stays in. Then when I’m ready to make the soup I just chop the chicken into cubes and that is it. It just is overall an easier method!

 

 

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Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup

Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup

  • Author: Dana
  • Prep Time: 5
  • Cook Time: 30
  • Total Time: 35 minutes
  • Yield: 6 servings
  • Category: soup
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Description

This Creamy Chicken Gnocchi smooth will melt in your mouth! A from scratch recipe that is great for serving a crowd or your own family.

Ingredients

1 small onion

4 carrots, peeled

3 chicken breast, cooked and cubed (see recipe tips for exactly how I cook the chicken)

1 stick salted butter

1/2 cup flour

4 cups chicken stock

3-4 cups whole milk

1-2 tsp salt

1 pound gnocchi

1 cup spinach (optional)

Instructions

  1. Chop onion and dice carrot. In a large soup pot add butter, onion, and carrots. Over medium heat cook until onions are translucent and fragrant and carrots are beginning to soften.
  2. Add flour, stir to combine. Cook for an addition minute.
  3. Grab a whisk, and begin adding chicken stock 1 cup at a time, whisking to combine. Allow pot to thicken before adding the next cup of liquid. Repeat until you’ve added 4 cups of chicken stock and 3-4 cups of milk, depending on desired thickness. If your pot isn’t thickening you need to turn up your heat.
  4. Add gnocchi. Simmer until carrots are tender. Season with 1-2 tsp of course kosher salt and black pepper to taste.

Keywords: Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup

Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup

 

Greek Pasta Salad

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This Greek Pasta Salad Recipe is the perfect picnic or get together tag a long! With my secret ingredient, this salad brings the flavor and is easy to throw together at the last minute.

Greek Pasta Salad Recipe This Greek Pasta Salad is my favorite! My secret ingredient, the brine of the feta cheese, takes this recipe to the next level. I have tried Greek Pasta Salad with the brine and without the brine, and my WITH brine recipe is 100% my favorite of all time pasta salad. The saltiness of the feta paired with a hint of sweetness from the tomatoes and a delicious homemade dressing makes for the perfect pasta salad. If you aren’t familiar with what I am talking about, you can buy feta cheese in a brine, which will be a liquid substance that the cheese is in. I prefer Feta in brine because I feel like the crumbled feta can be a little dry and lacking flavor. In any recipe I am using Feta cheese I do prefer Feta in brine. Pasta salads are especially important because putting a little bit of the brine in with your dressing creates the perfect salty, delicious dressing to compliment the pasta, veggies, and feta cheese. If you are skeptical or just not feeling it, you can omit the brine but I’m telling you it is so good! Generally, I buy my Feta cheese at Wegman’s, because they always carry feta cheese in brine. I have struggled at other stores to find it all the time, but if I don’t see it in the regular cheese section I will always check the specialty cheese section and it is usually there. The crumbled feta just doesn’t compare so keep looking until you find it! 🙂 I have made this recipe with several different pasta varieties, but I like the orecchiette pasta the best. If you are looking for a swap, I would suggest rotini, small shells, or cavatappi. All of those pasta varieties have worked great for me in the past. The orecchiette creates a nice balance and that is why I prefer it but the others can certainly work too. Print
Greek Pasta Salad Recipe

Greek Pasta Salad

  • Author: Dana
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Description

A delicious, refreshing pasta salad that is a perfect side dish for any occasion.

Ingredients

1 pound orechiette pasta (rotini and shells work great too!)


1 pint cherry tomatoes

1 seedless cucumber

1/2 red onion

8 ounces feta cheese

1/4 cup feta cheese brine

1/2 lemon, squeezed

1/4 cup white vinegar

3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp dried oregano

salt + pepper to taste

Instructions

Cook pasta according to package directions. Don’t forget to salt your pasta water!

For the dressing: Add 1/4 cup feta cheese brine, 1/2 lemon squeezed, 1/4 cup white vinegar, 1 tsp dried oregano, and a dash of salt and pepper to a large bowl, blender, or food processor. Slowly drizzle in 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil. If you are using a bowl, whisk vigorously while you are drizzling in your olive oil. (I used my Vitamix.)

Chop cherry tomatoes, seedless cucumber, and 1/2 red onion and place in a large bowl with 8 ounces feta cheese, and cooked pasta. Pour dressing over ingredients and toss to coat evenly. Sprinkle with additional salt + pepper + oregano if desired.

Store in an air-tight container for up to 7 days in the refrigerator. Recipe is best if made 1 day ahead of time to allow flavors to come together.

Keywords: Greek Pasta Salad

Greek Pasta Salad Recipe  

Vitamix vs Ninja Blender Review

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Full disclosure: I am in no way affiliated with Vitamix or Ninja. The opinions expressed on this Vitamix vs Ninja Blender Review are my own. I was not paid by Vitamix or Ninja to review these products. I am an Amazon Associate and do receive a small commission for referring purchases. These commissions keep Pretty Little Apron running and enable me to review more products to help other consumers. 

You guys. I have been waiting for YEARS to do this in Vitamix vs Ninja Blender Review! Today I tested the Vitamix vs Ninja to find out which blender preformed better. The results + overall review should be able to point you in the right direction as to which blender is ideal for you.

The Vitamix



The Vitamix model used in the review is the Explorian Blender with the 64 oz low profile container. Just to disclose all details, I am the owner of this blender, which I have talked about on other posts. I purchased this blender on Amazon Prime Day as a certified reconditioned blender. When it arrived to my house I would have never known it was reconditioned because it was in perfect condition. The Vitamix Explorian has a 1200 watt motor.

One thing I love about the Vitamix line is that they are continually upping their game. They have quite a few different containers that do different things, all while using the same base. Their newest addition is the aer disc container which whips, muddles, foams, and emulsifies.  Put it on my Christmas list now! 🙂

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Vitamix vs Ninja

The Ninja


The Ninja model I used was the Ninja Professional. The Ninja Professional appears to be the Ninja model designed to compete with high end blenders, like the Vitamix. The Ninja Professional features a 72 oz. container that is capable of holding 64 oz. It features a 6 blade assembly that Ninja claims crushes ice faster and smoother then other blenders. The Ninja Professional has a 1000 watt motor.

The Ninja does not have any add ons or attachments at this time.

Vitamix vs Ninja

The Vitamix Vs Ninja Body Comparison

The body of the blenders are completely different. Here are the most notable differences in look and quality that I noted about the blenders.

  • The Vitamix’s overall construction was superior to the Ninja. Where the Vitamix had metal, the Ninja had plastic, specifically the spinning apparatus.
  • The containers are obviously different shapes. The Vitamix is circular, while the Ninja is square.
  • The Vitamix has one blade that is at the bottom of the container. The blade is attached to a metal spinner that connects to the base of the blender. This is what spins that blade and blends the contents of the container.
  • The Ninja has a longer blade that extends up into the container. The blade is connected to a spinner similar to that of the Viamix, however the parts are plastic instead of metal. The Ninja is turned and clicked onto the base.
  • The Vitamix container is self cleaning. You put water and a drop of dish detergent into the container and blend for 30-60 seconds. I do still rinse the container again and dry it with a paper towel.
  • The Ninja does not claim to be self cleaning, however I do think you could use the same water + detergent mix to get a decent amount of excess off of the container before cleaning it.
  • The Vitamix has a spout that makes it easy to pour liquids out of the container without spilling.
  • The Ninja also has a spout that opens and closes. I did note that the spout was not as long as the Vitamix, and contents did spill out of the container onto the side of my cup.
  • The Vitamix has 10 speed settings, while the Ninja has just 3.
  • The Certified Reconditioned Vitamix has a 3 year warranty, while the Ninja has a 1 year limited warranty.
  • The Vitamix comes withe a tamper, while the Ninja does not.
  • The Vitamix has a handy dandy cord hider underneath the base, while the Ninja does not.

Vitamix vs Ninja Test

For my officially official Vitamix vs Ninja Blender Review test I used the exact same recipe in each blender as follows:

  • 1 cup almond milk
  • 1 cup mixed berries
  • 1 scoop protein powder
  • 2 Tbsp oats

This is a standard recipe that I use on a daily basis. I put the ingredients in both containers in the same order and made sure to get a good mix of all berries in both of the cups. I blended both for the same amount of time.

The Results

The results of this test are so fascinating and literally SHOOK my 30 year old kitchen appliance loving self!  LOOK AT THE DIFFERENCE YOU GUYS!

Our Viamix produced a smoothie was that extremely smooth and juice like. It obviously produced a smoothie that was far darker in color with less visible chunks of ingredients.

Vitamix vs Ninja

The Ninja produced a smoothie that was almost mousse like. It was much more airy and fluffy. It  probably would have been best eaten with a spoon rather then drinking it. The smoothie was much lighter in color and had a lot of visible particles. When drinking the smoothie there was a grit to it, unlike the Vitamix which was super smooth. The longer the Ninja smoothie sat, the more visible particles I was able to see.

Blender Review

Overall Opinion on Vitamix vs Ninja Blender Review

Construction

Overall construction hands down goes to Vitamix because the Vitamix is sturdier and made of higher quality materials. I didn’t love the fact that most of the key blending components of the Ninja were made of plastics. The Ninja’s lid and base both felt a lot cheaper then the Vitamix’s. The Vitamix’s pouring spout was perfect for not having spills, whereas the Ninja did spill on me and well…. ain’t nobody got time for that mess.

The one bladed Vitamix seemed to create a better textured smoothie as well. With 6 blades in the Ninja, the finished product was more of a mousse to be eaten with a spoon then a smoothie. I also love the little things like the way the cord fits underneath the base of the Vitamix and how it comes with the tamper.

The Finished Product

The proof is clearly in the pictures that the Vitamix out preformed the Ninja in the finished product. The smoothie had little to no identifiable chunks, and was smooth as a baby’s butt. This is probably the most important aspect for me only because I do blend ingredients like kale and spinach and having chunks in those drinks is just gross.

The Price Point

Obviously, I thought the Vitamix was worth the price because I own one. My main motivating factor in making the purchase was that I needed a machine to make me something super healthy that didn’t seem super healthy. Since purchasing, I have used it almost every single day. The price point of the Vitamix blender is in the high end region for me. I stalked those blenders for almost a year before actually pulling the trigger on a purchase because of the price point. I knew that the Vitamix was what I wanted, and I wasn’t willing to settle for anything else. If you are like me, the Vitamix is the blender for you!

Obviously the Ninja is a lot more affordable. However, I just kept thinking that you get what you pay for when I was looking over the quality of the Ninja. For the price point on the professional, I feel it is over priced a bit. It just feels cheap compared to the Vitamix. One other thing I kept thinking about the Ninja Professional was that  it was almost exactly like my Ninja Master Prep.


The Master Prep is actually even cheaper then the Ninja Professional, and the results are nearly identical. I used the Ninja Master prep for 5+ years primarily to make dressings, sauces, and baby food. The Master Prep uses the same multi-blade component but is about half the price. If you aren’t going to use your blender everyday, or if you don’t really care about texture/chunks in your smoothies, then I would suggest skipping over the Ninja Professional all together and grabbing the Ninja Master Prep. After all, if you are going to get a cheaper blender why spend $100 when you could spend as little as $49? The quality is nearly the same between the two.

The Deciding Factor

When my Ninja Master Prep finally gave out and it was time to get a new blender I knew I wanted the best of the best. As a 30 year old Mom of 5, I have so many uses for this blender, specifically making healthy drinks for my family. I knew my boys would never even take a second look at a smoothie that was chunky. They would immediately be turned off to the idea and my hopes of making them green smoothies would be gone forever. I wanted a quality kitchen appliance, and that is what I got.

A couple years ago, I wasn’t in the position to spend the money on a nice blender. My Ninja Master Prep that cost $49 was a big purchase for me then. It did the job. It wasn’t perfect but it worked and  it was kind of pain in the butt to clean and well, the quality wasn’t the best but guess what? I got 5 years out of a $49 blender, and that  is pretty darn good. It got me through home made dressings, making baby food for several kids, blending smoothies to loose the baby weight, blending more smoothies to fix a pregnancy craving, and even starting a food blog. It kind of has a soft spot in my heart but guess what? Every time I used my Ninja in the back of my mind I kept thinking one day I was going to get a Vitamix! My brand new beautiful high quality blender is much more appreciated today because I know how much I wanted it for so long. 🙂

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Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats

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These Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats are my new favorite breakfast! I combine dried cherries, walnuts, and brown sugar to make the most delicious oatmeal topping ever! Perfect for breastfeeding Mommas + busy families who love make ahead breakfast options.

Instant Pot Oatmeal


Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats

I mentioned in my 50 Words of Advice for New Moms post that I got an Instant Pot at my baby shower! When you have 5 kids, making a baby registry is hard. Since we have all of the essentials, we decided to throw some most wanted kitchen items on our Amazon Baby Registry, and Hello! I’m the new owner of an Instant Pot thanks to my Mother-in-law. 🙂

I have to say, EVERY new Momma needs an Instant Pot! When we brought our sweet Felicity home, it was a lifesaver. Breastfeeding cravings are a real thing, and I’m pretty sure I ate steel cut oats more then once a day for a couple of weeks. I always used the same vanilla + cherry + walnut + brown sugar topping combo and it never got old.

Preparing the steel cut oats in the Instant Pot is a breeze! The Instant Pot makes the perfect oats, and all you have to do is throw the ingredients in and turn it on. Any new Momma can relate that extra time is nonexistent, so I found myself searching for make ahead options that I could heat up during the day when I needed a snack or a meal. These steel cut oats were perfect for just that!

Cherry Vanilla Steel Cut Oatmeal Recipe

Tips for Making Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats

  • SAFETY first! Please read through your entire Instant Pot manual if you are not familiar with using the Instant pot.
  • I would not stray from the ratios provided. I’ve tested this once or twice when I came up short on the oats and honestly it just wasn’t the same! 2 cups of steel cut oats to 5 cups of water makes the perfect oatmeal. It is not too dry, but not runny either.
  • I stuck with using 1/4 cup of brown sugar as I didn’t want my oatmeal to be super sweet. If you like your oatmeal on the sweeter side I would suggest 1/2 cup of brown sugar.
  • For the best results, you will want to allow your Instant Pot to cool for a minimum of 20 minutes. This will release the pressure from the pot naturally (as opposed to opening the pressure valve), and you should see the little round stainless steel pressure meter come up fully. Your Instant Pot will start a timer as soon as your cooking time is over so you will know when it has been the full 20 minutes. If you do open your pot sooner, your steel cut oats might stick to the bottom. To prevent sticking even more you can coat the bottom of your pot with butter or coconut oil. FYI, I do not coat mine with anything and I haven’t had sticking when I followed this 100%.
  • A pat of butter on the top of your warm bowl of steel cut oats + dried cherries + walnuts + brown sugar or maple syrup is LIFE.

Cherry Vanilla Steel Cut Oatmeal

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Steel Cut Oatmeal Recipe

Cherry Vanilla Steel Cut oatmeal

Neewer Ring Light Review

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Welcome to the most random blog post I have made to date. This Neewer Ring Light Review may seem kind of off topic, but if you know me in real life you know that I’m a photographer + Lipstick junkie, and lighting is an essential part of both of those side hustles. A couple of my friends recently started their own side hustles selling cosmetics and other products, and my first piece of advice was YOU  NEED A RING LIGHT!

Just so that we are all on the same page, I am not affiliated with Neweer. The opinions stated on this review of the Neweer Ring Light are my own. If you click my handy dandy links to the Ring Light kit that I own, I may receive a small commission as I am part of the Amazon Associates program. This small commission helps me keep PLA running smoothly.


Upon pointing them in the direction of the best ring light on the market in my opinion, I realized that there are a ton of people doing the same exact things who may be looking for an honest opinion from someone who has used a ring light on what specifically they should be looking for and why. Of course there are a ton of beauty gurus and YouTubers suggesting ring lights, but what about an everyday Mom of 5?

The Importance of Good Lighting

Let me start by saying that marketing on social media has grown by leaps and bounds in the past few years. Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube have changed the way that companies are reaching potential clients and a great image will sell a product.

No matter what your product or market is, creating good content requires good lighting. Whether you are making a video reviewing a blender, just talking to your audience, or applying makeup, great lighting will set you apart from your competition immediately.

A bright, white light is exactly what you are looking for when it comes to lighting, and a ring light is the only way to ensure you have the ideal lighting at all times. Even if you are just the average Momma and wife just like me, a ring light may be able to change your business! When taking pictures indoors, you will always be battling dull yellow lighting, exactly what you don’t want.

Neweer Ring Light Review

When I was looking for a ring light a power of at least 55W and 5500K was a must. What does this mean? It means that your light is going to be powerful and bright! Probably brighter then most lights you are familiar with. The only other lights I saw that were 5500K were also being used for photography purposes. A quick Amazon search will tell you that the only other people searching for lights this bright are professional photographers.

I’ve noticed a ton of DIY ring light tutorials on YouTube and Pinterest, but the fact is you aren’t going to be able to make a light that has this type of power. Until you buy all of the materials for the DIY light, you may as well just buy the good light and save yourself the headache.The price of the ring light that I purchased last year has significantly decreased since then (by about $100!) so getting the best light is far more affordable then it used to be. The prices change on Amazon from time to time, but the going price right now seems to be around $100.

That is an absolute STEAL considering you are getting a kit with everything you need to get started, including a stand, cell phone holder, DSLR camera holder, all the cords you need, and a carrying bag. The stand that came with my kit alone is great quality.

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Assembly

I noticed some reviewers on Amazon mentioned they were confused about how to put the light together. It looks like Neweer has addressed this issue by putting directions directly on the Amazon listing. I did not find the assembly to be a challenge, but I was familiar with using a lighting stand already.

Once my ring light was assembled, I was able to start using it immediately. I remember the first image I took with the light, and it was like night and day compared to my previous images. You can see the difference for yourself!

YYYYYAAAASSSSS!

I went from looking like a tired Mom of 5, to looking like I had it all together. My customers could actually see what my lipstick looked like now!

Ring Light Review

Pros and Cons of the Neweer Ring Light Kit

Pros

  • Beautiful, bright white light that you need for all of your beauty/video/vlogging/youtube needs. Again, you will never be able to achieve this type of light by making something yourself. This light is the power of professional photography lighting.
  • 240 small LED lights are spread out so you have even lighting. If you were to use just one lightbulb, you would not get the same even lighting.
  • The Neweer Ring light is dimmable, so if you are using a mix of natural light + your ring light you can adjust the power as needed.
  • Consistent lighting for images and video.
  • Kits on Amazon that include everything you need! A cell phone holder, a stand, two different filters (orange + white), and a bag for storage and transporting.
  • Price point has dropped significantly in the last year making the light more affordable for the average person.
  • Kit comes with a hot shoe adapter that you can also use with a DSLR camera if you have one. I use my Canon EOS 6D fitted with my Sigma 18-35 mm F1.8 Art lens to take videos with the ring light. I have seen many YouTubers using the Canon EOS 70D as it has a flip out screen so you can see what your video looks like as you are filming. If you are looking for equipment strictly for taking informative videos I would suggest the Canon EOS 70D over the Canon EOS 6D. I am a photographer as well, so I prefer the 6D.
  • My DSLR cameras are sturdy and secure on my ring light setup.
  • Pictured here is my Canon EOS 5D Mark II on the Neweer Ring Light. The 5D Mark II is an old model that I am not currently using.  Neweer Ring Light Review

Cons

  • I do have a iPhone7+ and the cell phone holders aren’t specifically made for bigger phones. This just means that I do have to stretch it a bit. Occasionally it can be a pain in the butt to get in place. This is really minor. To be honest I’m digging here for small details because the light is pretty fantastic.
  • This is a personal preference, but some people do not like the fact that you can see the right light in your eyes on images. How much you can see it really depends upon how bright you have it set. This doesn’t bother me but I have heard others mention it.
  • When I first started using the light, I did find it hard to be in front of for long periods of time. It wasn’t a light that my eyes were used to. It did take me some time to adjust to the brightness. If you have any sensitivity to light this may not be a good option for you turned all the way up. The nice thing is that the light is dimmable so you can set it lower if it is hurting your eyes.

Ring Light Review

How the Neweer Ring Light Helped My Side Hustle

I can’t stress enough the importance of lighting when it comes to posting on Social Media. Whether you are a hair stylist, YouTuber, blogger, photographer, makeup artist, or you are making videos for any other business venture potential customers will take you more seriously if your images/videos look high quality.

The biggest way my ring light helped my side hustle was that it boosted my confidence. I could put content on my Facebook page with confidence that my customers could clearly see the products. My lighting helped me look my best, as we are all trying to do. I went from being scared to post content, to being proud to post the beautiful content that I created. My photos also went from being inconsistent and yellow to bright and beautiful.

Even as a Mom of 5, I love having hobbies and side hustles. Not only do I use my ring light for selfies to sell my products, I also use it for food photography. It occasionally helps me use backlighting to take the beautiful images of food you see here on PLA.

Here are some other photos I’ve taken using my light.

Ring Light Review

Ring Light Review

Ring Light Review

Ring Light Review

 

Products from Amazon.com

Ring Light Review

Crock Pot Beef Tips and Gravy

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This Crock Pot Beef Tips and Gravy Recipe combines just a few simple ingredients for a delicious, hearty dinner. Tender pieces of sirloin in a thick mushroom and gravy sauce come together for the best comfort food around! Serve over homemade mashed potatoes, egg noodles, or rice.

Crock Pot Beef Tips and Gravy Recipe

Welcome back to another episode of my life is a circus and I don’t really have time to cook! My name is Dana, I’ll be your host! Today we are making Crock Pot Beef Tips and Gravy for your whole family to enjoy. :)d


My circus has been wanting really simple food lately. Mix too many things together and there is a good chance 3 out of the 4 who eat food (baby is still doing the boob thing) won’t be interested in dinner. It might “look weird” or maybe it has “something green on it.” Whatever the case, I’ve started really simplifying not only my meals, but my shopping list as well.

I thought to myself for a hot second that there was no way I could post this Crock Pot Beef Tips and Gravy recipe. People would think it was stupid because it is only a couple of ingredients. What if… gasp… I used a Simply Organic brown gravy packet instead of making an elaborate sauce myself and spending $25 to gather the ingredients for the sauce? Then I remembered there are other Moms out there just like me who have a million things to do and just need a semi-healthy and very delicious dinner to put on the table tonight. Enter… Crock Pot Beef Tips and Gravy.

Crock Pot Beef Tips and Gravy Recipe

The Mashed Potatoes

Now that we have cleared up the fact that I indeed to have picky eaters and I am also the ring leader of a tiny circus of humans who have been refusing to eat lately, it might be time to talk mashed potatoes. Listen, let’s just be honest here. If the mashed potatoes aren’t good, the whole meal just isn’t as good. Mashed potatoes are the glue of a dinner and I’ve figured out how to make a pretty darn good potato.

I always make homemade mashed potatoes and I have a big secret. Many people have commented on my recipe wondering what I was doing different and how I delivered the best mashed potatoes ever. This will have its very own post one day soon but for now let’s just talk about why my mashed potatoes are better then 99% of the rest. I use cream cheese.

That’s right, cream cheese right in the mixer with the potatoes, butter, milk, and salt. With the whisk attachment, not the paddle. If you aren’t mashing your potatoes with a stand mixer, now is a great time to finally grab that mixer you have been stalking on Amazon. So here you go…

Products from Amazon.com

I’ve had my KitchenAid Artisan 5 qt mixer for a long time now, and it has been super helpful with everyday recipes like mashed potatoes. It is definitely a kitchen appliance staple in my house!

If you aren’t feeling the mashed potatoes, this recipe would be awesome over rice or egg noodles as well.

Beef Tips and Gravy Recipe

Beef Tips and Gravy Recipe

Blueberry Breakfast Smoothie Recipe

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*This Blueberry Breakfast Smoothie Recipe may contain affiliate links. If you click these links and make a purchase, PLA will receive a commission for referring you. This enables me to keep the blog going strong. 🙂
Breakfast smoothie recipe

Umm Hi, Hello. Brand new VITAMIX owner right here you guys! I am super excited to share this Blueberry Breakfast Smoothie Recipe post with you today because I just mixed this baby up in my brand new blender. When you get this excited about a kitchen appliance, you might be 30 something.


Can I just admit that I’ve been hardcore stalking this blender on Amazon since Christmas of 2017. Hardcore stalking like re-checking the price just to make sure it didn’t go down on a weekly basis. It may have even appeared on my Amazon Baby Registry. That’s right, I have all the baby things so when my Mom asked me to create a registry for baby number 5 I decided a blender would be totally appropriate. Spoiler alert: I didn’t get the blender at my baby shower!

On Prime Day 2018 I just so happened to do a quick search and found out OMG IT’S ON SALE.

Then 2 days later it arrived because Amazon does magical things like this. My husband directly said it was not in the budget for me to get this blender so I was thinking of ways to make it appear without being super over dramatic about it. Should I hide it in a closet or pretend my Mom bought it for me? How does one slip a blender past their husband?

Blueberry breakfast smoothie

Turns out the delivery guy had different plans because he placed my new blender right on the front porch 5 minutes before my husband got home from work. It was hiding at the front door in a huge box that said Vitamix on the outside. My husband came in and didn’t mention the blender at all. When I peered outside and saw the huge box I started laughing and he immediately said he saw my blender on the porch. Then I had to explain to him that when things are on sale, we buy the things. We don’t wait on buying the things because then Prime Day is over and we still want the things and will continue stalking them until they arrive at our door in a big Vitamix box. Moral of the story, just buy the Vitamix!

Breakfast Smoothie Recipe

Products from Amazon.com

Initial Vitamix Thoughts

I will be doing a full Vitamix review quite soon, however my initial thoughts on the Vitamix is that it does live up to the hype! This Blueberry Breakfast Smoothie Recipe was so smooth I had to add ice to my next one just to make it a little thicker. I prefer to use frozen blueberries because they are easy, and it was no problem at all for the Vitamix. Ice was also easily blended. I was previously using a Ninja Master Prep for all my blending needs and the Vitamix is definitely lightyears ahead of my old blender. My smoothies are super smooth, almost like juice if I don’t add ice. I am testing different blends, specifically a kale blend to see what the best ratios are for getting greens super smooth. Stay tuned for that! 🙂

50 Words of Advice for New Moms

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I have 5 kids. They are all alive and well, so I must be doing something right. I was a teen Mom, and at the ripe old age of 19 I brought my first baby home from the hospital. I had no clue what I was doing, but I made it, and you will too!

Something really fascinating is happening. I’m 30 years old and my friends are actually starting to have children now. All of a sudden they are interested in my life in a way they never were before. I’ve experienced things that are a mystery to them and they are coming to me for advice. I felt compelled to write this to help them out!


50 Words of Advice for New Moms

  1. Labor is not like anything you have ever experienced in your whole life. No amount of research can prepare you for what is coming.
  2. This is what having an unmedicated birth looks like…. Advice for new moms
  3. As soon as your baby is born, the pain goes out the window and you’ll start telling people it wasn’t that bad. It was.
  4. The first week is hard. Behind every perfect image of a new family are two frazzled and stressed parents who have just been hit with the wrecking ball that is parenthood. Don’t compare yourself to those perfect people because they aren’t actually real.
  5. You’ll probably be crying for a week straight about everything and nothing at the same time. Hormones will do that to you. You will look back on this and have a good laugh one day.
  6. Ask for more hospital underwear and thank me later.
  7. Your body might be a hot mess for a while, and that’s ok. The people bouncing back in a week aren’t actually real either.
  8. Getting a hot shower is now a luxury.
  9. Breastfeeding is hard and it can be painful. Take a breastfeeding class if you can and ask the veteran mommas for help!
  10. Breastfed babies eat all the time! This doesn’t mean you aren’t producing enough milk!
  11. Breastmilk is liquid gold, for real.
  12. You might start to wonder how any of your friends ever survived with a baby.
  13. Coffee is life.
  14. All of that baby gear wasn’t really necessary. Get yourself a good bassinet, this bouncer, this swing, and a couple muslin blankets and you are good for a few months.
  15. Do everyone a favor and create an Amazon Baby Registry so we can shop and drink wine at the same time.
  16. Your child might come out looking exactly like your husband. This will make you love him even more.
  17. The first time your baby smiles at you, your heart will melt into a million pieces. 🙂
  18. The first time your child tells you no, you will pick those pieces back up and construct a time out chair for them.
  19. Puke is now a fact of life. Get rid of that expensive, white bed comforter and exchange it for something that is easy to throw in the washer at 2 a.m.
  20. You might end up sleeping in pee one day. You won’t care. 🙂
  21. Poop is now a totally acceptable topic of conversation.
  22. Rice cereal isn’t necessary. You can totally skip it all together if you want to.
  23. The first 6 months feel like 2 days.
  24. Everything is easy until your child is on foot. Then the real fun starts.
  25. On that note, takeout is a really good option if you have a toddler.
  26. Potty training isn’t that hard. Just stay home for a couple of days and take the diaper off.
  27. If you have a boy, there will be pee. Everywhere. Everyday. You can try to fix that but it won’t matter. My husband is living proof. Advice for New Moms
  28. Your child might insist on certain things/colors/clothing. One day you will give up and your child will be wearing high watered pants with a non-matching shirt and sandals with socks. You are now THAT person. You will laugh and cry inside at the same time.
  29. If you don’t already have a favorite Disney movie, you will now!
  30. The music on cartoons is so catchy you might find yourself singing those tunes all by yourself. Alone in your new mini-van. On your way to Target.
  31. You need this bumper sticker.
  32. Don’t give your kids scissors at a young age unless you want to take them directly to the hair salon afterwards. As a matter of fact, just throw away the scissors, crayons, markers, paint, and every other craft item you can find until they are in middle school.
  33. If anyone gives your kid glitter just know they actually hate you.
  34. You will feel a sense of accomplishment when your child is in bed each night. Hallelujah!
  35. Your child might want to sleep with you. You might give in, that is ok. Don’t be ashamed of bed sharing if that is what works for you. Advice For New Mom
  36. One day you might wakeup with someone’s butt on your head. You’ll just be be happy you got to sleep.
  37. The Magic Years (0-5) go by really fast. What all those people told you was true!
  38. What your Mom told you was also true. You are now basically your Mom. She was so right about everything she ever said to you.
  39. Pre-school is super adorable. Let them get the cheesy light up shoes with Paw Patrol on them. This will never be acceptable again!
  40. The crafts your kids make at pre-school were actually 95% constructed by the teachers.
  41. All school teachers deserve a special kind of Saint-hood and a glass of wine at the end of each day.
  42. T-ball and Soccer Shots are kind of a hot mess so relax and just let your kid run off the field or pee on first base. Its ok, this won’t ruin their chances at a full scholarship to college.
  43. One day you will wake up and wonder who you even are anymore. It may be time for a girl’s night.
  44. Find a tribe and laugh together. Advice for New Moms
  45. The more kids you have, the more organized and on time you may become.
  46. You might cry when your child starts Kindergarten.
  47. You might also cry when you are the person responsible for entertaining your child all summer long.
  48. It is ok if you don’t sign your child up for every sport, activity, and club. They can survive playing outside with other children in the neighborhood.
  49. Make family dinners a priority.
  50. Chik-fil-a drive through is life.
  51. Show your children what it looks like to be kind to everyone. Give the server a good tip, or buy the drink for the person behind you. Little eyes will always be watching.
  52. You will never know the love of having your own child until you do. 🙂

Advice For New Moms

Best Lunch Boxes for Kids

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*The opinions expressed on the post Best Lunch Boxes for Kids are my own. I am not affiliated with any of the manufacturers of the lunch boxes. This post contains affiliate links and I may receive a small commission for referring purchases.

The Back to School shopping frenzy is upon us. That sentence makes me cringe, and also makes me happy all in a quick two seconds. I have three kids going to school this year, and two that will be going full day. Of course, being the lunch box connoisseur that I am, I have already been stalking Amazon trying to decided which lunch gear I will be using this year. I think I have found a nice list of the Best Lunch Boxes for Kids!


Side note: when I started this blog my son who is going to Kindergarten this year was a baby! I am totally unprepared for him to walk through that elementary school door and become a big kid this year.

In previous years I have used the Planetbox and the Lunchbots systems with success, but I like to switch things up for the kids so they don’t get tired of the same thing everyday. If you’d like to read all about those systems, click here. I have done some extensive searching on Amazon, looked at tons of reviews, and weighed the pros and cons of all the systems that I saw available. Here is everything that I found, in no particular order.

The Best Lunch Boxes for Kids

Lunch boxes for kids

The Planetbox Shuttle



What I LOVE about the Planetbox Shuttle is that it only has a few compartments. We used the Planetbox Rover for a couple of years, and while I love it, it has so many compartments that my son was coming home with a lot of food leftover. I felt like I had to fill everything, and that can be super time consuming and sometimes wasteful.

The design of the Shuttle is super cute! You can customize it with magnets, which my son always liked, and it is stainless steel which is a huge plus for me as we try to stay away from plastics as much as we can. You can grab the kit and have everything you need to start the school year.

Reviewers said things like “Good but small” and “Great little stainless steel lunchbox.” If your child has a big appetite, you might want to go for the Rover after all. Anything Planetbox is a win for me!

Pros:

  • It isn’t plastic, so it can’t grow mold. I saw a LOT of systems on Amazon that parents noted mold had grown under plastic parts.
  • On stop shop with a kit that includes everything.
  • Smaller and easier to transport then the Rover.
  • Super cute magnets and design.
  • A bit cheaper then the Rover.

Cons:

  • Some parents complained of leakage.
  • Not as versatile as some of the other systems.
  • Bag does not have a place for a water bottle.

Bentgo Childrens Lunch box


The Bentgo is perfect for preschoolers and younger kids! Bentgo recommends this bento box for children ages 3-7. It has five compartments, and is a plastic shell with a with an insert that is removable. The insert goes in and out of the plastic shell, making it easy to clean and durable. Bentgo claims the box is leakproof, and most reviewers said indeed it was! I love the design for use at home or on the go, because the colors are bold and enticing to a young child.

Pros:

  • Most reviewers said the box was indeed leakproof.
  • Durable shell.
  • Easy to open.
  • Bold kid friendly colors.
  • Good size to fit into a variety of different bags.

Cons:

  • Some reviewers noted the hinge broke on their box.
  • Some reviewers noted mold grew on the inside lid.
  • Too small for older kids.

Yumbox Panino Lunch Box


Let me start by saying the design on the Bijoux Purple box is absolutely adorable! I think any child would love to have it! Upon looking at all the designs that Yumbox offers, I am super impressed. They have a handful of different themed boxes that are well worth stalking on Amazon for an entire evening before deciding which one to purchase. The bright, colorful designs make this a super cool lunch option. Yumbox even has a set of Pro Bento Accessories that would make the most extra lunch in the cafeteria! This box has a large compartment for a sandwich and two small compartments for sides. It is very similar to the Bentgo box in that it has a silicon molded lid that comes down and engages with the food tray to prevent leaking. The food tray is removable, so you can take it in and out to clean. 68% of reviewers gave this lunch box 5 stars!

Pros:

  • Beautiful, bright designs.
  • Perfect if your child likes to pack sandwiches.
  • Most reviewers said the box was indeed leakproof.
  • Small circular section in the middle for a treat.
  • Most reviewers said their younger children could easily open the box.

Cons:

  • A couple reviewers noted the silicon part of the lid grew mold.
  • A couple reviewers said the tray was hard to clean, and not as dishwasher safe as Yumbox claimed it was.
  • The lunchbox is just over 1 pound, so some children said it was heavy.

Lunchbots


I have been using our Lunchbots containers for over 5 years, and all of them look exactly like they did when I first purchased them. That is quite impressive if you ask me! We have a wide variety of the Lunchbots line including the uno, duo, trio, quad, a large bento, side containers, and even an insulated thermos for hot foods. I find this to be the most customizable system because the containers are not super large. That means I can send one of the food containers along with a side or a hot thermos and have the appropriate portion of food for a child. My children love the colorful lids, and have always been able to easily open them. We have even used them for snacks to take on long car rides, to the park, etc. I have seen that Lunchbots has come out with a couple deeper containers, and they would be perfect for an older child or an adult. Overall we have gotten a ton of use out of our Lunchbots containers, and will definitely be using them again this school year!

Pros:

  • Stainless steel so no mold growth can occur.
  • Easily removable, colorful lid.
  • Fun to mix and match containers for appropriate portions.
  • Lunchbots sells their own lunch bags that are perfect for the containers.
  • Dishwasher safe, super easy to clean.
  • Plastic free.

Cons:

  • Containers are not leakproof. If I am packing something wet like fruit I use one of the round containers or thermos.
  • The smaller containers may be too small for older children (middle-high school).
  • Pricey to purchase multiple containers (although one container would work depending on what you pack).
  • Some reviewers said the lids came off.

Easylunchboxes 3 Compartment Bento


You guys…. this are so simple and easy they are almost too good to be true! Love, love, love the fun colors! I once had a speech teacher who loved to use the acronym K.I.S.S. aka keep it simple, stupid! I feel like this perfectly sums up these lunch boxes. They are no hassle, no fuss, no frills, and that can be a great thing some days.

Pros:

  • 3 compartments suited for a sandwich and two sides.
  • Dishwasher safe, easy to clean.
  • No frills makes for simple, easy packing.
  • Affordable
  • Comes with 4 boxes so you can pack ahead.

Cons:

  • Some reviewers noted the lids did not stay on.
  • Some reviewers suggested both the lids and containers cracked easily.
  • Not leakproof.

Rubbermaid Lunchblox


These Lunchblox have a 4.5 star review, and have been reviewed over 1,000 times! It is hard to beat that. The set comes with one sandwich container, two side containers, and two smaller side containers. It also comes with a blue ice pack that fits between the containers to keep your food cold. Genius design! The containers are simple and colorful. The lids press onto the top like most Rubbermaid containers, and are leakproof, waterproof, dishwasher safe, microwave safe, and you can even freeze them. TAKE MY MONEY! 🙂

Pros:

  • Simple, easy to use design.
  • Cheaper then other options.
  • Containers click together.
  • Several different sets to choose from.
  • The ice pack in between, need I say more?
  • Able to take food to heat if you have access to a microwave.
  • Dishwasher safe, easy to clean.
  • Durable, no mention of cracking lids or containers.
  • Reviewers noted they fit in several popular lunch bags.
  • There is a Lunchblox bag  specifically for this set.

Cons:

  • Some reviewers noted they containers leaked.
  • Some reviewers said that the system was too big to fit into lunch bags.

With all of these options, I’m sure I will be able to find a few new pieces to add to our lunch packing collection! I’m also on the hunt for a new lunch bag for my son this year, and he is super excited to be going to school all day and able to eat lunch there. If you have a favorite lunch box, let us know in the comments!

Lunch Box Accessories

Products from Amazon.com

 

 

7 Reasons Why Knoebels is Awesome

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Today I have something totally new and different to throw at you! My family recently visited Knoebels Amusement Resort in Elysburg, Pennsylvania. I took a million pictures. I watched my children’s faces beam with joy. I ate all the good food. And today I wanted to share some of that joy with you in what I am calling my first post in my 2018 Travel Guide, 7 Reasons Why Knoebels is Awesome!

1. Admission is FREE


FREE just so happens to be one of my favorite words. Everybody and their Mama loves free. If you have small children, you know the struggle of taking them to an amusement park as the parent. YOU don’t exactly get to ride the rides that YOU want to ride. If you don’t want to pay an expensive entrance fee to put your kids on a mini merry-go-round a couple of times, Knoebles in the place to visit.

The free admission is awesome because you are only paying for the rides you actually go on. Knoebels uses wristbands + tickets during the week and only tickets on the weekends. Again, the tickets are nice because you only pay for what you get on.

2. The Food

Knoebels Amusement Resort has a wide variety of foods that you can’t find anywhere else. From regional favorites like potato cakes and pirogies, to carnival foods like funnel cake, candy apples, and cotton candy… there is certainly something for everyone. Our family has a few Knoebels favorites including the fresh cut fries, chicken fries, the bavarian nut stand, and the ice cream mill. A trip to Knoebels is not complete without an ice cream cone or milkshake at the end!

The food choices are also super affordable! Compared to other amusement parks we have visited, the food is a lot less expensive. If you aren’t into riding rides, I would suggest going to Knoebels just to check out the food and people watch. We could totally spend an evening with the family there just hanging out and grabbing something to eat.

3. The Natural Beauty

There aren’t many amusement parks that have beautiful creeks running through them! The natural beauty around Knoebels is striking. The mountains, the mature trees mix amongst the rides, and the creeks running through the park make it a unique mix of nature and amusement park. The mature trees really come in handy on a hot day as well because they provide much needed shade from the hot sun. To experience the natural beauty for yourself, you must ride the ski lift they have going up the mountain. It is a beautiful view!

Side note: Our kids have actually played in the creek as well (it is shallow). We were with a group in a pavilion that lined the creek and they just couldn’t help themselves. 🙂

4. The Rides

The rides at Knoebels Amusement Resort provide something for everyone! Knoebels is like one huge carnival. Whether you have small children, teenagers, or Grandma and Grandpa with you, everyone can enjoy the rides. I would call the rides a mix between carnival favorites and big time amusement rides.

Our Favorite Rides

We love all of the kiddie rides! They are brightly colored and perfect for toddlers. We have spent the better part of our days at Knoebels in the kiddie ride section, and the rides never get old! In the kiddie section they also have a bouncy castle, ball pit, super duper slide, and a miniature version of their carousel.

Family favorite rides include the big carousel, the train, and the log flume. Every year we get a family train selfie. The train ride is pretty long and goes into a tunnel, under a roller coaster, and into the woods.

For older kids and teens, they have a couple large roller coasters including wooden coasters + metal coasters, thrilling tides that take you up really high and then drop you, a tidal wave if you are looking to get soaked on a hot day, and plenty of carnival type rides like the merry mixer and the salt and pepper shakers.

5. FREE Parking

You guys, the word free again! Other large parks rip you $25+ just to park your car in the parking lot. Knoebels parking is absolutely free. Nuff. Said. Merica.

Side note: Remember to take note of where you parked! A couple of times we totally didn’t do this and were wandering around the parking lot for a half hour looking for our car at the end of the day. Face palm!

6. Short Wait Times for Rides

We have been to Knoebels several times when the parking lot was almost completely full. Even on these days we have not waited extensively to ride the rides. The last time we were there, we barely waited at all. It was a slightly overcast day and that must have kept people from visiting the park because the kids just walked on to most of the rides. Our longest wait time was for the train and that was probably about 15 minutes.

Short wait times make for a easy-going, relaxing day!

7. Overall Affordability

A recurring theme here has been affordability. Free park admission, free parking, and reasonable food prices make Knoebels affordable no matter what your budget. A few hours at Knoebels won’t break the bank, and that is awesome! As a family of 7, affordability is huge for us. We would have spent nearly TRIPLE at other amusement parks in the area, simply because they have an admission fee, expensive parking, and expensive food prices.

Other Things to Know

  1. When you are driving there you might be feeling like you are in the middle of nowhere. You are. 🙂
  2. Your feet will be very dirty at the end of the day. When we get home from Knoebels we actually wake the kids up and give them a bath before they get into bed. I just can’t with the dirty feet!
  3. Some of the restrooms there need an update. They are far better then they used to be, but when you see them you’ll know what I’m talking about. It isn’t a deal breaker for me, but worth noting.
  4. Your kids will want to play the games. Yes, they have carnival style games and prizes there. We usually tell each kid they can pick one game to play. The games are actually win-able and we’ve come home with prizes almost every year.
  5. The way you pronounce the name is debatable. We think you pronounce it with a K, although looking at the word it could also be a N.
  6. Check out their website!

 

Summer Berry Pavlova

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Is it just me, or do you get really excited when berries start coming down in price during the summer months? FINALLY I don’t have to pay $8.99 for a big thing of strawberries!

This Summer Berry Pavlova is an awesome summer dessert. Perfect for just after grilling sessions on the back patio. I love it because it isn’t a super heavy dessert so it is perfect for hot summer nights. The fresh berries are refreshing and pack a little bit of nutrition into your dessert. I actually don’t feel too guilty about eating this dessert because it is far lighter then your standard cake.  It is finished with a dreamy dollop of fresh whipped cream. Summer eating doesn’t get any better then this! And seriously how beautiful are these to look at? If you are looking for a “WOW” factor dessert to take to a party this summer, this Summer Berry Pavlova is just that.

Typically, Pavlova is made with a larger meringue circle, however I love a mini dessert. If you’d like to make one large meringue disk, simply pipe in one big circle. You can use an icing spatula to create peaks or patterns if you want it to look super fancy. With all the beautiful, bright berries it is so easy to make this dessert look beautiful without spending too much time on decorating! If you make one large meringue disk, just pile up your berries and whipped cream on top, and slice it like a cake.

 

Meringue Making Tips

Meringue is easy to make, so don’t be intimidated! Above are the 3 stages of whipping the meringue:

  1. Soft peaks
  2. 1/2 the sugar added
  3. Finished

Your meringue will be nice and glossy when it is finished. If you rub a little between your fingers you shouldn’t feel any grit of sugar. I took a spatula and very gently put it into my piping bag fitted with a Ateco 850 tip. Sometimes people take a cup or bowl and make circles on their parchment paper with a sharpie (flip the parchment paper over then so that the marker won’t get on your meringue) as a guide. I didn’t feel this was necessary because I didn’t care if they weren’t all exactly the same as they were just for my family. My kids have no idea what meringue even is, so they would never look at them and wonder why they aren’t the same. The perks of your audience being babies and toddlers! 🙂

 

Italian Avocado Salad

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This Italian Avocado Salad is everything avocado dreams are made of! Delicious, fresh ingredients, with a creamy homemade Italian dressing…. you really can’t go wrong here! Pair it with your favorite protein and you have a delicious meal! 🙂


I was at the grocery store today and had in my mind that I’d like to make an avocado salad with my Creamy Italian Dressing recipe. I have been trying to find new ways to eat avocados because of all the health benefits. This recipe is an avocado home run!

Not only was the recipe delicious, I found the PERFECT bag of avocados. Not too mushy, but not un-ripe. Small seeded so that one side doesn’t have to be completely uprooted to remove the seed. The skins peeled right off. I mean, in the avocado world I basically hit the jackpot! I was peeling those babies like YESSS this is avocado life.

*Side note: You should start peeling your avocados! A lot of the good nutrients are right under the skin and when we scoop them out instead of peeling we loose important stuff. Peeling also allows you to cut some pretty impressive chunks for this salad. I simply slice the avocado in half, then slice it into chunks when it is still in the peel. If your avocado is perfectly ripe you should be able to start peeling it from one of the edges. If you are finding it hard, slice the little nugget on the end off and you should be able to start peeling.

Italian Avocado Salad

Keto Diet Update

This is the part where I talk about my diet, so if you aren’t interested just scroll. 🙂

I mentioned in my Keto Approved Burger post that I started the Keto diet. I’ll be 100% honest here, it hasn’t been unicorns and rainbows. I’ve had some ups and downs due to breastfeeding and being concerned about the safety during this time. I’ve gotten off track quite a few times but somehow I always seem to reset and start again. I’m on a roll this time, and hoping to continue!

Italian Avocado Salad

Storing Your Italian Avocado Salad

We all know that avocados can brown very quickly! The dressing in this salad prevents this to a certain degree. I would suggest making the salad at the time you are going to eat it, and finishing it within a day or two. I’ve stored mine overnight and had no browning/turning to mush but the second day I finished it.

If you are making the salad for a gathering or picnic I would suggest putting it together 1-2 hours before you go. A bit of time in the refrigerator is great because it allows the flavors to come together, but isn’t enough time for the avocado to start looking funky.

One More Thing

My Creamy Italian Dressing recipe yields about 2 cups of dressing, which is a lot more then you will need for this salad. I cut the original recipe in half for this salad and it was plenty. If you’d like to have some extra dressing (it is super delicious), then you can double the dressing ingredients. In my original recipe I was using a food processor to make the dressing, however I no longer have that (long story), so I just used a bowl and a whisk. The food processor makes a thicker dressing, but you certainly can get away with just whisking super vigorously and making sure you pour your oil in slowly. I also omitted the red pepper flakes because I just didn’t think they would mesh well with the avocado.

The Honest Company Diaper Review

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*If you’d like to shop The Honest Company Diapers after reading my Honest Company Diaper Review…. here you go! 

Hi Friends! Today we are mixing it up a bit and we are going to talk diapers. You know, the really expensive toilet alternative for babies that I may or may not go to Target and drop $50+ a pop on? Yeah. That’s what happens when you have 5 children. You walk out of Target thinking of all the other things you could spend $50 on other then sh%*. 🙂


I have two children currently in diapers full time, and an additional 2 that wear pull-ups at night. FOUR. You guys FOUR butts to diaper/pull-up everyday. Don’t even get me started on what happens after the diapers with boys. Pee. Lots of pee. Everywhere. That is all.

Diapers are expensive, and can be an issue if I don’t stay on top of it. Nobody wants to do a Target run at 8:00 at night when you realize that you just used the last diaper you had and your husband will be working a 12 hour day tomorrow. I try to stay as far away as possible from any store with my children by myself because we’re a hot mess of a circus that need not walk into any store that sells toys/candy.  IT NEVER ENDS WELL.

Enter… The Honest Company Diaper Bundles. You guys. LIFESAVER. Not only are the diapers totally adorable, they also save me time and money.

Time = not having to run to Target after a massive fail in realizing the diapers are gone.

Money = not having to run to Target and have an additional $50 worth of goods accidentally drop into my cart.

The Honest Company also has a ton of amazing deals, so the adorable diapers are no more expensive then other options at Target. Win-Win all around. Here are all the details!

So What’s the Deal with the Bundle?

Ok, so this is something I have never done in the past, but after the baby was born I realized my sanity was at stake any time I walked through the doors of a store. Have you ever tried shopping with a toddler + a baby? Add 3 additional kids to that and you have my walking circus. Yes, I’m the lady at Target whose kids can’t even fit in a cart. The struggle is real.

With that being said The Honest Company Diaper Bundles are basically my new best friend. When you realize that you do not need to enter a store anymore to get essentials like diapers, baby items, cleaning supplies, and personal care items a weight will be lifted off your shoulders. UPS will roll right up to your door with the goods and YOU DON’T EVEN HAVE TO PUT ON YOUR GOOD YOGA PANTS OR DO YOUR HAIR IN THE CAR WINDOW WHEN YOU ARRIVE!

The Bundles make it super easy to NOT run out of diapers. You get 6 pack of diapers + 4 packs of wipes. You get to customize your diapers according to size and pattern. Yep, you do NOT have to get all of the same size. I can get diapers for my baby + toddler in the same bundle. Training pants and nighttime diapers are also available so you can get a mix of everything you need in one bundle.

After you order your first bundle, you get to choose when your next bundle will ship. Nothing is set in stone, so if you find that you still have a lot of diapers left and your bundle is set to ship soon, you can delay your shipment in one click. It is a super simple drop down calendar. You just click on a date and that is it. You can also cancel your bundle at any time, so when you potty train you are not obligated to keep buying anything. I was hesitant at first because I thought maybe there would be something hidden, but there really isn’t.

The Honest Company Diaper Review || www.prettylittlepapron.com

Add-On Items and Save

The add-on items are another awesome feature that I love! When you order your Diaper bundle, you get the opportunity to add-on 3 items to get 25% off each item. That means I can order my Diapers + baby wash, sunscreen, bibs, or anything else I might be grabbing at Target. You don’t have to add anything to your bundle, but who doesn’t love to save money on things they will already be purchasing? The best part is, your add-on items can always be different things.  You basically get to try new products at a discount, which is nice. I absolutely LOVE the baby wash/bubble bath scents and slathered myself in their lavender sent the whole time I was pregnant. I couldn’t get enough of it! The smell is light, and is great for nighttime baths. There are so many good things, go check them out!

But Do the Diapers Work?

Let me start by saying that the diapers are JUST as adorable as they look. I’ve gotten so many comments on how cute the diapers are. I mean, if you have to deal with poop… at least this is the upside, right? So yes, the prints are ah-mazing. They also have seasonal prints which is fun because your diapers will always be different. In my bundle shipping next week I’ll be getting a seashell print + whales/beachy stuff in addition to some of my other favorites. They have quite a few unisex prints too so if you are buying for a Momma to be who is team green you will have plenty of options.

As far as leaking/feel of diapers I’m super pleased. I’ve tried just about every diaper brand on earth, and I would say these are most comparable to Seventh Generation brand in how they feel. They do not have any fragrance, and the inside does not have lining (like Pampers brand). Due to the prints, there is not a wetness indicator on the front, but I would say it is pretty obvious when a diaper is wet so that wasn’t a make it or break it for me. The prints trumped that for sure!

We’ve had one or two massive blowouts in these diapers but I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t have mattered what diaper she was wearing when it happened. Yes, it was that bad!

The wipes are absolutely the best wipes I have ever used. They are medical grade, super thick, and textured. They feel a lot stronger then your average wipe. They are also fragrance free, so no weird fruity smells here.

Overall  I would recommend the Diaper + Wipes bundle! The Honest Company is always running specials on first bundles so make sure to look for a coupon code before you make your purchase. My first bundle was purchased for almost half price with a code, and who doesn’t love a good deal? If you try a diaper bundle, make sure to let me (and the readers) know what you thought! You can shop The Honest Company here.

 

 

Keto Approved Burger Recipes

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I am SOOO excited to share these Keto Approved Burger Recipes today! But first, since this is my first Ketogenic Diet related post, here is a bit of backstory and information.

Baby weight. It has been a constant thing in my life for the past 11 years. I have 5 kids, things are umm… deflated. Let’s be real… dieting is NO FUN. The food struggle has been real. With each pregnancy I have held on to a little bit of weight, and at this point I’m just really ready to drop it! After my last son I tried the 21 day fix and let me tell you…. torture is the only word that really comes to mind regarding that diet. HELL. By the end of each day I would be standing in front of the cabinet wondering what I could eat. I’m really not here to bash any diet in particular but this one was a low point for me. If that was what dieting the right way looks like then let me just be wrong forever because it was not something I could have done for more then a couple of weeks. Even that was pushing it. On a scale of 1 to I’m going to punch someone if I don’t eat something soon, the 21 day fix is about a 20. So there’s that.


WELCOME…. the Ketogenic diet, or Keto for short. Contrary to popular belief, it is not just about eating steak and bacon. Yes, that is absolutely part of the diet if you like those foods. In short, it is a high fat, moderate protein, low carb diet. Yes, you will see the people posting photos of #allthefat, but the diet does also contain a lot of other foods, with an emphasis on leafy greens and vegetables, high quality fats, and meats like beef, chicken, and fish. What I have found great about the diet is it is totally relatable to real life. I can actually go to functions and eat the food there without feeling like I’m dieting. I’m not carrying around measuring containers, worrying about putting too much dressing on my salad, or micro-managing calories. THERE ARE NO LITTLE STUPID TABLESPOON CUPS FOR DRESSING. Thank You God!

Don’t get me wrong, it still isn’t easy breaking addictions to sugar and low quality carbohydrates. Any time you are restricting food in any way there will be temptations and feelings of want. There are hard days when I want to just eat a thing of ice cream (I’ve done it). There are also awesome days when I step on the scale and see quick progress. It has kept me going thus far and in my first week I’ve gotten rid of 6 lbs! PROGRESS!! 🙂 🙂

I’m going to be putting together a little Keto Q & A section of the blog since I’ll be posting Keto friendly recipes for the foreseeable future. This will help anyone who comes here wondering what all the hype is about and answer some other questions regarding the ins and outs of the diet. First and foremost though, I’m a beginner here too and what I say is not coming from a doctor, nor is it gospel. So keep that in mind! I am also breastfeeding so my needs are a little bit different then your average person.

One thing that led me to creating this post was seeing others on the diet being hung up on eating the same thing over and over and over and over again. Like ME TOO ya’ll. I’ve been doing the same thing. So I decided to reach outside of my routine and create some different burger recipes to eat each week and mix things up a bit. Add a different seasoning and toppings and viola! A whole new meal.

*All macros have been calculated through the Keto Diet App.

  1. Cajun Bacon Bleu Cheese Burger

    Keto Diet

Season burger with cajun seasoning (or old bay), pink himalayan salt, and pepper. Top with bleu cheese crumbles and bacon.

MACROS:
  • 4 oz. burger, 1 oz. bleu cheese, 1 slice bacon, 1 slice tomato, 14 baby carrots

Fat: 38 grams

Protein: 31 grams

Carbs: 8 grams

2. Queso Fresco Fiesta Burger

Ketogenic Diet Burgers

Season burger with cumin, chili powder, adobo seasoning,  pink himalayan salt, and pepper. Top with queso fresco, avocado, sour cream, and fresh cilantro.

MACROS:
  • 4 oz. burger, 1 oz. queso fresco, 1/2 avocado, 2 Tbsp. sour cream, 1 tomato slice, 1 cup strawberries, 1 cup organic spring mix

Fat: 48 grams

Protein: 29 grams

Carbs: 13 grams

3. Cheddar Bacon Avocado Ranch Burger

Keto Diet Burgers Season burger with garlic powder, onion salt, pink himalayan salt, and pepper. Top with cheddar, bacon, avocado, and ranch dressing.

MACROS:
  • 4 oz. burger, 1 oz. cheddar cheese, 1 slice bacon, 1/2 avocado, 1 slice tomato, 2 Tbsp. ranch dressing, 1 cup strawberries, 1 cup organic spring mix

Fat: 65 grams

Protein: 34 grams

Carbs: 15 grams

4. Bacon Provolone Mushroom Burger

Keto Diet Burger Recipes

Season burger with garlic powder, onion salt, pink himalayan salt, and pepper. Top with melted provolone cheese, mushrooms, and bacon.

MACROS:
  • 4 oz. burger, 1 slice provolone cheese, 1/2 cup mushrooms, 1 slice bacon, 1 slice tomato, 14 baby carrots, 1 cup organic spring mix

Fat: 32 grams

Protein: 32 grams

Carbs: 10 grams

5. Pepperoni and Parmesan Burger

Keto Burger Recipes

Season burger with garlic powder, onion salt, Italian seasoning, pink himalayan salt, and pepper. Top with pepperoni and shaved parmesan/romano cheese blend.

MACROS:
  • 4 oz. burger, 1 oz. pepperoni, 2 Tbsp shredded parmesan cheese, 1 tomato slice, 14 baby carrots, 1 cup organic spring mix

Fat: 32 grams

Protein: 29 grams

Carbs: 9 grams

Ketogenic Burger Recipes

 

 

Honey Cilantro Lime Shrimp

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Honey Cilantro Lime Shrimp

Have you ever been eating shrimp and thought… wow…. I just ate half of what I cooked?!?! This Honey Cilantro Lime Shrimp will quickly vanish into thin air just like shrimp always does! This is a super simple recipe with a nice balance of sweet, acidic, and salty flavors. It is great for parties, game days, or a nice dinner with the hubby and kids. The sauce is customizable so if you aren’t feeling the balance, add some additional acid/sweetness to make it your own. You really just can’t go wrong with a beautiful pile of shrimp and a few fresh ingredients for the sauce!


Honey Cilantro Lime Shrimp

Welcome to the paragraph on this post about my life in the current moment. I don’t have a ton to write today, other then the fact that I’ve been pondering how Mom’s ever stop looking at all the pretty little things for baby girls!?!

WHEN. DOES. IT. END.

You guys, if you haven’t been following I have 4 boys. For 11 years I’ve walked by the baby girl section longing to buy it all. Like every single cute headband and bow and delicious little onsie with the cupcake and sprinkles all over it. For a really long time I completely shut out that side of the clothing store because I had come to the realization that I was a boy Mom and that meant green and brown striped onesies covered in dump trucks. I didn’t even want to peek at what may be on the other side of the store because I had nobody to purchase the cuteness for.

Until I did! 🙂

Don’t get me wrong, boys clothing has come a long way since my first was born. PRAISE JESUS. However, for me it still just doesn’t even compare to the bows and leopard print and leggings and dresses. It is, in the end, just clothing that will be shat upon and peed in and thrown up on. But the baby girl waiting game has been getting the best of my lately and my internet browsers are filled with all the cuteness that is out there and able to be purchased. Lord help my bank account and self control! Who has a favorite place to shop for little girl’s clothing?

Honey Cilantro Lime Shrimp

Honey Cilantro Lime Shrimp Recipe Tips

  1. As mentioned above, if you need to balance out your sauce, go ahead and add more lime/honey to your liking.
  2. I LIGHTLY sprinkled the shrimp with adobo seasoning, and went even lighter with the cumin. These flavors really bring the dish together though, so don’t skip out on them! If you aren’t familiar with adobo seasoning, I use Goya brand and it has never failed me.
  3. If you don’t want to stand and peel two pounds a shrimp like I did, look for the pre-peeled shrimp! Generally I always buy frozen shrimp because… Hello… Mom of 4, soon to be 5 over here doesn’t have a million dollars to spend on seafood each week, so frozen it is! I was not able to find wild caught shrimp that was pre-peeled.
  4. The fresh cilantro kicks this recipe up about a million notches so don’t skip out on it unless you are the 10% who thinks that cilantro tastes like soap. 🙂
  5. I served this shrimp over rice with avocado slices on the side. It made for a fantastic dinner!

Honey Cilantro Lime Shrimp

honey cilantro lime shrimp #shrimprecipes, #honeylimeshrimp, #cilantrolimeshrimp, #shrimpdinners, #seafoodrecipes

 

Honey Barbecue Bacon Meatballs

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Honey Barbecue Bacon Meatballs

The Super Bowl is right around the corner, and these Honey Barbecue Bacon Meatballs are a crowd-pleasing appetizer worthy of bringing to the big game!


Truth: I don’t care about the Super Bowl. I don’t follow football, my husband doesn’t follow football, and well… we just aren’t a sporty family. I GUESS I’m rooting for the Eagles because my Mom is a super fan and I’m close to Philadelphia. 🙂 We usually go to a family friendly party, and I’m strictly there for the food so don’t ask me about the game or even the commercials because I could care less!

My ALL TIME favorite Super Bowl appetizer is Buffalo Chicken Dip. It is addicting, delicious, and expected to be at every party. Wings are also right up there on the list of must haves, but you will always need a few other items to fill in for the folks who aren’t into spicy foods. Shrimp, meatballs, guacamole, pizza… you know all the good stuff!

Honey Barbecue Bacon Meatballs

For these Honey Barbecue Bacon Meatballs, I did make my meatballs from scratch because it is super simple to do! HOWEVER…. if you happen to pick up frozen meatballs to make this recipe, no judgement here! That is what I love about this recipe, it is customizable and can be made in even less time if you are in a hurry. Getting all of my family ready and out the door for a Super Bowl party is stressful enough, so I totally get it. If you are running low on time or just don’t care…. GET THE FROZEN MEATBALLS. 🙂

Homemade Honey Barbecue Sauce over meatballs. Smoky sweet meatballs.

Honey Barbecue Bacon Meatballs Recipe Tips

  1. Again, this recipe is totally customizable. Don’t have time to make meatballs from scratch? Buy frozen! Want your sauce a bit sweeter? Add more honey! Really love ranch dressing? Drizzle some on there like I did!
  2. If you are making meatballs from scratch, the meatball recipe is a basic tried and true recipe. There isn’t anything particularly different about it, because the sauce and the bacon are really making these meatballs.
  3. The sauce is WAY better the next day. I would suggest maybe making it the day before, and letting all of the flavors come together overnight in the refrigerator. Here is the thing about homemade sauces like this…. they need time. Just like the sauce you buy in the grocery store has been sitting for a period of time, it is also good to let your homemade sauce sit and mingle together.
  4. If you’d like to make these as a meal, they are great with a simple side like buttered egg noodles or jasmine rice. We have eaten them as a meal with rice and they were fantastic.
  5. If your party is large, I would suggest making a double batch. If you’d like to stick with a single batch, you can always make them mini-meatballs to stretch them farther.
  6. For the meat… I prefer to use a meatball/meatloaf mix of meats. It includes beef, pork, and veal. I know, I know. But listen, the meat matters! My local grocery stores do sell this already pre-mixed specifically for meatballs and meatloaf. If you can’t find a meatball mix at your grocery store, I would ask the butcher there to make you a mix, or just purchase 1 pound of each and make a large batch and freeze the extras.

Honey Barbecue Bacon Meatballs #meatballs, #meatballsrecipes, #barbecue, #honeybarbecue, #gamedayrecipes, #superbowlrecipes

 

Sticky Sesame Apricot Chicken

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Apricot Chicken Recipe


This may not seem very interesting to most people, but something really epic happened to me today. I FINALLY found maternity jeans that I don’t hate. AND… I got new shoes. 3 pairs! AND… a new bra. AND… a few other nice shirts to get me through the rest of my pregnancy. Life is good. I look like a normal human being again. It feels good!

If anyone ever tells you a new pair of jeans that fit right isn’t life changing, please have them reference this. IT IS. This baby bump and Mama are so happy!

When I arrived home from my epic shopping adventure, food was necessary. Walking around the mall is exhausting when it feels like there is a bowling ball, that may or may not pop out at any time, between your legs. So I put together this Sticky Sesame Apricot Chicken and sat down!

Apricot Chicken Recipe

What I really love about this Sticky Sesame Apricot Chicken recipe is it combines so many flavors. The apricot preserves I used are a bit tart. Mix that with the sweetness of brown sugar, and the saltiness of soy sauce….and you have the perfect combination! I’ve mentioned my Jasmine Rice cravings, and this recipe did not  disappoint! It goes great over a giant heap of perfectly cooked Jasmine Rice, and some additional soy sauce on top. 🙂

Sticky Sesame Apricot Chicken

Recipe Tips

  1. I mentioned this in my Honey Mustard Garlic Chicken recipe as well, but when coating chicken it really helps to get everything in place before you start so you don’t have to continually wash your hands and then reach for the forgotten items. I’ve only done this a million times before I started telling myself over and over again to get everything in place before starting!
  2. Use one hand to dip in the egg, and then the other to coat in cornstarch. If you try to use the same hand you will have a hot mess! After working in restaurants and coating about a million pieces of chicken, sometimes this still isn’t second nature to me. The temptation to dip with the same hand is still there! haha
  3. This is a base recipe. If you like more salty, add more soy sauce! If you like more sweet, add more brown sugar!

Sesame Apricot Chicken

 

 

 

 

Sundried Tomato Feta Baked Salmon

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Sundried Tomato Feta Baked Sallmon

Friends… this one is no joke. This Sundried Tomato Feta Baked Salmon is the best salmon I have ever made! Not only does it taste absolutely amazing, it is SO EASY to make. I repeat SO EASY.


I have mentioned, I am about to pop. About to pop as in numerous strangers have asked me if I am having twins. The conversation usually goes something like this:

Stranger: “Oh my, when are you due?”

Me: “March.”

Stranger: “Wow, I thought you were going to say next week! Are you sure there is only one in there?”

Me: “Yes, I’ve carried all of my kids like this.”

Stranger: “Your belly is really low! Thank goodness you are all belly! This must be your first child!”

Me: “No, I actually have 4 boys already.”

Stranger: *Now completely stunned. “My word you have your hands full.”

Me: “No shit.”

Ok so maybe I just smile and walk away, but seriously folks if one more person tells me I have my hands full. It is just a statement that has no answer. It is awkward. It is annoying. Find a more encouraging statement!

**Pregnant rant over. Just leave the preggo ladies alone from now on.

Moving on to this Sundried Tomato Feta Baked Salmon. It is really all of my pregnant dreams come true. PLUS it is healthy and provides little unnamed babe with lots of healthy fats and proteins. I can’t say my diet has been entirely healthy throughout my entire pregnancy, but this is a meal that I can feel good about. It doesn’t even hurt my back or the rest of my body to make because it literally takes minutes to throw all the ingredients on the salmon, wrap it up in the foil, and bake! Instant pregnancy cravings gratification!

Sundried Tomato Feta Baked Salmon

Recipe Tips

  1. There isn’t much to say about this recipe because it is super simple. The main tip I would suggest is making sure you generously season your salmon before baking. I used coarse kosher salt.
  2. I always look for sundried tomatoes that don’t contain sulfur dioxide. Mine came in a jar in oil and seasonings and were perfect because they weren’t super dry after being baked. I found the jarred ones in the healthy-ish section of the grocery store. The sulfur dioxide commonly added to the bagged ones is only there for color retention.
  3. If you are feeling adventurous, a squirt of lemon over this salmon would probably be a delicious addition!

Sundried tomato baked salmon

Sundried Tomato Baked Salmon

Chocolate Ganache Brownies

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Chocolate Ganache Brownies

Hands up if you like a big old chocolate explosion of a brownie? These Chocolate Ganache Brownies are just that… Rich, decadent brownies topped with a delightfully creamy ganache. Basically Little Debbie on steroids. 🙂


Truth: In high school I worked at a buffet. We used to make boxed brownies and slather them with canned frosting. We didn’t even cover them up at night and I would still eat them, all dried out 3 days later, especially if the soft served ice cream they also had was involved. Brownies + Frosting = Heart Eyed Emoji.

Fast forward to when I went to Pastry Arts school. I realized there was a much, much better way to achieve this type of frosted brownie. GANACHE. The epitome of chocolate awesomeness. So versatile, so deliciously smooth and pretty. You can put it on cakes, pour it over desserts, and yes… you can also frost brownies with ganache.

Chocolate Ganache Brownies

With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, you may want to show someone some love by whipping up a batch of these brownies as dessert. If your Valentine is into a super fudgy, semi-sweet chocolate brownie, then this recipe is perfect!

Valentine’s Day to me this year means my baby is almost full term. When I saw the Valentine’s Day stuff popping up at all the store’s my mind just kept telling me… you are one day closer. Keep going. It is almost over! 🙂 Being a mom of 4 boys already and being pregnant has been… well… hard. Everything hurts, I’m out of breath, my body is just tired of being pregnant. But alas, one day closer… one day closer.

Chocolate Ganche Brownies

Recipe Tips

This recipe is super easy, yet super easy to totally bomb. Take it from me, I’ve done it before!

  1. Please, for the love of all things… line your 8×8 inch brownie pan with parchment paper. It will change your brownie life forever. More importantly, it will give you a nice little slab of perfect brownies that you can easily pull right out of the pan and top with your ganache.
  2. If you are wondering who on earth bakes brownies in such a small pan, you are not alone my friend! Generally I scoff at all of the recipes that suggest a dinky little 8×8 pan. I have 4 and a half kids and a husband. I’m not here to waste my time making 9 brownies. HOWEVER…. these brownies are extremely decadent and one brownie will suffice. This is the ONLY brownies you will see coming out of my kitchen in an 8×8 pan. If you happen to be feeding your own little army and feel you might need more, go ahead and double the recipe and use a larger pan.
  3. Ganache is super easy to make, but does require some cooling time. When you first mix your ganache, the consistency will not be right to put on the brownies immediately. You will need to put your ganache in the refrigerator until the consistency becomes thick and spreadable.
  4. When cutting your beautiful Chocolate Ganache Brownies, there is a method to the madness. First, using a large chef knife is the best way to get a perfectly cut brownie. Second, running the knife under hot water and wiping it off before each cut will ensure you don’t mess up your ganache. I know, I know… tedious… however… aren’t they beautiful?!?! What I’m really saying is don’t take a butter knife and run it through your ganache topped brownies and expect it to look the way mine do. THEY WILL BE A HOT MESS.

Chocolate Ganche Brownies

*Brownie recipe borrowed from this here wee little website. 🙂 I have attempted several times to make this recipe “my own” by switching things out. What I learned is if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. The original recipe is perfect.

Chocolate Ganache Brownies

 

Sticky Honey Mustard Garlic Chicken

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Hello! Welcome to my first post in 2018, and my first post under a brand spankin’ new name! This Sticky Honey Mustard Garlic Chicken is the perfect way to start off the new year, but first….


What gives on the name change!?!?!

I’m ready to drop a few truth bombs right now, and it may not be pretty but it is genuine and it is me. I was struggling with the name 3boysunprocessed. Struggling for a very long time. In 2018 one of my goals was to make this blog a more comprehensive look at my life. To do that I desperately needed to change the name and break out of the box of unprocessed eating.

Four years ago, my life was completely different! When I started this blog, I was so passionate about cooking with the least processed ingredients. What you saw was what I was feeding my family. It was fun to me then, it was my own little project that I loved and babied. It grew my love for photography, it gave me a reason to talk about my children and document my life, and it was great. I was stunned when people actually cared. But then….

Life happened. My husband started a new career that took him on the road and away from home 5 days a week, we had another baby (and have another on the way now), I started a photography business, and my wee little babes who would eat anything suddenly didn’t want my whole wheat macaroni and honey sweetened delicious treats anymore. Things were different, my family was growing and changing, and my blog needed to reflect that.

Life can be extremely busy at times. Every time I thought to myself that I’d like to post a new recipe, I realized that it may not fit into the unprocessed box I had put myself into. I want to share my love for food here, and ultimately I have to be true and honest that this is not how I cook anymore. Of course, I am still cooking fresh, homemade meals for my family. However I’ve stopped stressing over certain ingredients such as white pasta and cane sugar. My sanity needed a break from hyper obsessing over my kids going to a birthday party and eating a hotdog bun. So I let go a little, and it feels great!

Looking into 2018, I’m really ready to share more stories about life, my family, my cooking, my Lipsense business, my love for photography, and so much more! I absolutely love looking back at all of my posts from when my boys were all super tiny, and I want to keep sharing the special little details without the stress of being in any kind of box. Cheers to 2018!

Sticky Honey Mustard Garlic Chicken

Now that the cat is out of the bag, shall we move on to this Sticky Honey Mustard Garlic Chicken? It is oozing with delicious Asian inspired flavors, simple ingredients, and my latest pregnancy craving… Jasmine Rice and soy sauce! It combines a few simple ingredients to check off every box on the BEST CHICKEN EVER list… sweet, salty, perfectly crunchy, and smothered in a delicious and easy to make sauce.

THIS IS CHICKEN HEAVEN.

Sticky Honey Mustard Garlic Chicken

The Recipe

One of my favorite way to make takeout inspired chicken is to dip it in egg, coat it with cornstarch, and then cook it on the stovetop. It gives a deep fried texture without actually deep frying or ordering takeout from a place that may or may not be using trans fats to fry their food. I love me some Panda Express, but I hate the way I feel after eating mystery ingredients. This is the perfect way to make it at home and know exactly what you are eating.

The most important step when cooking this Sticky Honey Mustard Garlic Chicken is to make sure your meat is properly seasoned. Don’t forget to season your chicken before you bread it. I always use coarse Kosher salt to season meats, it has never let me down! A sprinkle over all of your chicken chunks will work wonders.

Coating the chicken is easy, but can be messy! One thing I learned while working in restaurants and coating millions of pieces of chicken is to get everything where you need it before you start, and use one hand to dip and the other to coat. No matter how bad you want to just go right from the egg to the cornstarch with the same hand… DON’T DO IT or your hands will be a hot mess.

The sauce is super easy to put together! Cook the garlic, then add the rest of the ingredients and viola! It is super versatile, so if you like it a little more sweet, add more honey. If you like it a little more salty, add more soy sauce! If you don’t have whole grain mustard, use dijon! The sky is the limit here, this is really just a base recipe.

Also, apparently is is really easy to burn Jasmine rice. That is all I’m going to say about that. HAHA

Grilled Cilantro Lime Chicken & Guac

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Grab your tortilla chips and get prepared for some fresh guacamole and perfectly grilled chicken! This Grilled Cilantro Lime Chicken & Guac does not disappoint in the flavor department and takes only a few minutes to prepare. Weeknight grilling for the win!

Truth: I’m trying to fit more fruits, veggies, healthy fats, and lean protein into my diet. All winter I wasn’t taking into consideration what I was eating, and I found myself mostly snacking on carbs all day. In my Balsamic Glazed Grilled Chicken recipe, I discussed prepping meals ahead of time to try to balance my diet a bit more. So far it is working great, except when my husband comes home and eats all of the portions I made in advance. Meal prep fail! His job is super labor intensive, so I guess he gets a pass to go on this one. 🙂

Grilled Cilantro Lime Chicken

Cilantro is super popular, but I feel it is so underrated! Every time I purchase a bunch of cilantro at the grocery store I:

  1. Immediately smell it 1,000 times
  2. Make a gorgeous salad with a cilantro lime dressing
  3. Make fresh guac, of course
  4. Start putting it on everything until it goes bad

But for real, this Grilled Cilantro Lime Chicken & Guac is one of my favorite uses for it. You just can’t beat a perfectly grilled piece of chicken, seasoned to perfection, bursting with bold flavors, and perfect for leftovers! I mentioned meal prepping earlier and this chicken made awesome salads the rest of the week for me. I tossed it with some dark leafy greens, a few tortilla chips as croutons, fresh avocado, cherry tomatoes, cheddar cheese, and my favorite ranch dressing. Yum!

Grilling Tips

I have a few grilling tips I’ve repeated here about 1,000 times but here goes again! I suggest generously seasoning your meat with coarse kosher salt and black pepper beforehand. This is an important part of this recipe because bland chicken is no good! Next, I would suggest using thin cut chicken breasts, or filleting and pounding your chicken breasts flat with a meat tenderizer. This also makes a huge difference in how your chicken grills, and eliminates that super fat part that contributes to uneven grilling and a bland end product.

Grilled Cilantro Lime Chicken & Guac

 

Classic Beef Macaroni Soup

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Snow day food alert! This Classic Beef Macaroni Soup was the perfect pot of delicious last week when we had a snow storm in the middle of March. I was not ready for snow in March, but a big pot of soup can fix any problem, right?


This is such a standard, simple recipe. Sometimes I wonder, do people even want to see recipes THIS EASY. I always find myself saying, yes! Of course they do! Not every recipe has to be elaborate, or out of the box. Simple, classic comfort food is a thing because it is one of the best ways to eat. I’ve been making this soup for my kids for a number of years now, and I thought it was time to share it!

Not only does this Classic Beef Macaroni soup taste delicious, it is so quick to make. From start to finish I want to call it a 30 minute meal, but with the boiling time it may be a few more minutes. With the short cook time, I can make this any day of the week, then have the perfect leftovers for the rest of the week.

Classic Beef Macaroni Soup Recipe Tips

  • The most important thing to remember with this recipe is to stir the pot while your noodles are boiling. The macaroni noodles have a tendency to stick to the bottom of the pot, so I would not suggest just pouring in the macaroni and walking away.
  • After my soup was boiling I realized I had some excess grease pooling on the top of the pot. I just took my large metal spoon and removed it.
  • I topped my soup with a little bit of extra sharp cheddar cheese. This is optional but highly recommended by someone who thinks cheese is basically life.
  • This soup gets better and better in the refrigerator! After all of the flavors come together over night, you may notice you love it even more!
  • The tomato product I use are just plain strained tomatoes. I’ve been using this product for years, and it is one of my most loved pantry staples! You can use it in just about anything. This is a no salt added product so you don’t have to worry about your soup being super salty in the end. The product size is 24 ounces, so you will be using the whole jar.


Beef Macaroni Soup

Beef Macaroni Soup

 

 

Meal Prep: Balsamic Glazed Grilled Chicken

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Happy first day of Spring! My heart is happy!


What better way to welcome the first day of spring then to do some healthy meal prep with this Balsamic Glazed Grilled Chicken! This is an easy, simple, and delicious way to not complicate eating healthy. With just a few ingredients you can have meals for the week, which means plenty of time to get outside and enjoy the Spring weather!

 

Meal Prep Balsamic Chicken

Truth: Everyone can meal prep. EVERYONE. You don’t need to be a super healthy, fitness guru to meal prep. You can be a Mommy like me who is tired of eating your children’s leftovers for lunch. You could also be a working 20-something who is sick and tired of spending so much money on eating out. Or a middle aged man who takes lunch to the office. There are a million scenarios here, and the bottom line is everyone can meal prep to make their lives easier.

For me personally, I need structure to my eating habits to maintain my healthy eating goals. If I have an open-ended day with no plan, sure enough I find myself snacking on everything in sight. I’m not “dieting,” rather I’m just trying to find a nice balance between foods I really love, and foods I should be eating more of.

Should be eating more of = greens, lean protein, fruits

Foods I love = Mac n cheese, cheese fries, cheeseburgers, anything with sugar

See how this could turn into a serious problem!?! Creating a balance for me is just making plans, like this Balsamic Glazed Grilled Chicken. It took me less than 45 minutes from start to finish. 45 minutes! Now I have lunch for the rest of the week. That means no reaching snacks to fill me up. I am armed and ready with a plan of filling half of my plate with these beautiful greens and fruit, and the other with a protein.

Meal Prep Chicken

LunchBots for Storing Meals

I mentioned on my Planetbox vs. LunchBots review that I love these little boxes! What I love the most is that they are not plastic. Secondly, they are super easy to load your food in, and stack up in the refrigerator to store without taking up a ton of space. For this meal I would suggest using the uno or duo. I used both and they worked like a charm! Amazon has a nice variety of their products, so here is the link to the uno that I used. For a larger portion, they also have their Bento line, which is fabulous too! If you don’t have any reservations about plastics, there are also a ton of meal prep containers on Amazon that work just like the LunchBots.

Products from Amazon.com

The Recipe

The best part of this recipe by far is the balsamic glaze! It is simply just balsamic vinegar and a bit of sugar reduced to a thick glaze. This takes about 15 minutes and will make your entire house smell like vinegar (warning). It is so good though, I didn’t even care!

When the chicken was just about done grilling, I brushed each piece with the glaze, then removed from the heat. The glaze will run off of the chicken when it is piping hot, but after it cooled a bit, I re-brushed with glaze to make sure it was nice and glaze-y.

Each container contains:

  • 1 grilled chicken breast
  • 2 cups dark leafy greens
  • 1/2-1 cup strawberries/grapes
  • 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
  • additional balsamic glaze for drizzling

If I were packing this to-go, I would use a LunchBots dips container for dressing or additional glaze.

Balsamic Chicken Meal Prep

 

Pepperoni Pizza Panko Chicken

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Pepperoni Pizza Panko Chicken

Pepperoni Pizza Panko Chicken. Say that a few times really fast! This is an easy, kid friendly recipe that screams weeknight meal to me! It combines panko and parmesan crusted chicken, pizza sauce,  Applegate Pepperoni, and melty mozzarella cheese to make a delicious main dish.


Truth…I am not a huge pepperoni person, and never have been. Growing up I was just an extra cheese kind of girl. I have ventured out a bit since those days, but my ideal slice of pizza is still extra cheese. Cheese = Life.

My children, on the other hand, love pepperoni. They have been known to completely abandon a slice of pizza after eating just the pepperoni off of the top.

WHO. DOES. THAT.

Despite not being a super duper pepperoni lover, I saw this Applegate Naturals pepperoni at the grocery store and thought it looked brilliant. It was huge. It was massive. It deserved to sit atop a chicken breast with melty mozzerella cheese and fresh basil on top. I needed this pepperoni in my life to show my children that I, in fact, can be a pepperoni person too.

Here is my husband pretending to be tall, dark, handsome, and mysterious while showing off this wonderful Applegate Naturals Pepperoni! He attempted to give me several pointers on how to get this shot. I didn’t listen to any of them! 

Pepperoni Pizza Panko Chicken

Ingredients and Tips

I have been mentioning this a lot here lately, and here I go again. Target is really killing it with their organic, non-GMO, and better ingredient oriented grocery selection lately! I am so impressed with their organic selection, sometimes I forget I’m even at Target. As I browsed the isles, or ran through them with a screaming baby, I picked up a jar of their Simply Balanced organic pizza sauce for $1.29!

$1.29!!!! I thought it was a steal. 🙂

I also used  Kikkoman panko bread crumbs, grated parmesan cheese, shredded mozzarella cheese, and thin cut chicken breasts. If your chicken breasts are thicker, I highly suggest filleting them first (cutting them in half length-wise), and pounding them thin with a meat tenderizer.

When I sauté chicken, temperature and enough olive oil is key to getting those perfectly crisp panko crumbs on the outside. I had my burner on a steady medium-low the whole time. I knew I did not want to crank it up too high, as to not burn the olive oil or the panko bread crumbs. I think the crucial part to getting perfectly crisp and browned breadcrumbs is 100% the amount of oil in your pan. So before you put each piece of chicken in your skillet, make sure there is a generous dash of oil waiting for those breadcrumbs!

Pepperoni Pizza Panko Chicken

Pepperoni Pizza Chicken

 

Pennsylvania Dutch Chicken Pot Pie

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This Pennsylvania Dutch Chicken Pot Pie post has been a long time coming! I haven’t mentioned too many times on the blog that I am from a small town in Central Pennsylvania. I grew up about 45 minutes north of Harrisburg. I’m no world traveler, however I do know a lot of people think of chicken pot pie as a literal pie with chicken and vegetables in it. I always thought of Chicken Pot Pie as the Pennsylvania Dutch version. I like to call it the “soup kind.” 🙂

Truth be told, growing up we really didn’t have any family recipes. My parents weren’t the kind to make dinner and have the family sit around the table. I have no idea why, but I do cherish these moments with my own family now. I wish I could say this was a generational type of recipe, passed down from my Grandmother, but it really isn’t! My grandmother is Polish. What I remember her making were traditional Polish dishes. Very few times have a seen her cook anything else, mostly because we see her at large family gatherings where family members expect the good Polish stuff!

So the cat is out of the bag. This was not passed down to me by anyone. This is my own recipe that I created as an adult who wanted to eat traditional PA Dutch pot pie. I grew up eating it in the elementary school cafeteria, and it was awesome! This is a quicker version of some traditional recipes because I am not making my own noodles and stock.


Around here most grocery stores carry these noodles, however I have no idea if grocery stores elsewhere carry them. You can purchase them on Amazon here.

Recipe Tips

If you have ever made a homemade soup, you will be very well prepared to make this because the recipe is pretty much identical to a soup recipe. I do cook the noodles in the broth, which helps all of the flavors come together, and thickens up the broth a bit.

For the chicken, I just roasted my chicken in the oven prior to making the pot pie. I have in the past, boiled my chicken and made a homemade stock, then prepared the pot pie from the stock. I’ll just be honest and say I like this version better. It is easier and tastes the same, if not better to me. Slow cooking broth all day is a great thing to do if you have the time, but lately I haven’t. I wanted to share a chicken pot pie recipe that tastes great, but doesn’t take hours upon hours to make! To make this even quicker, you could pick up a rotisserie chicken at the grocery store and cut out the roasting step. Your family will never know!

Homestyle London Broil

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I used to get all kinds of annoyed when my husband would bring home a piece of meat from the grocery store labeled “London Broil.”

What. Do. I. Do. With. This. Thing. I went to pastry arts school, remember?


So I took a few different approaches as any aspiring chef wife would. I think it went something like marinating, grilling, ovening.  Marinating it to death for 24 hours just praying this thing doesn’t die on me. Praying a second time that my husband stops buying these things because.. why!?!?! Just get a cut of meat I know what to do with already! Are there not a dozen other choices there?

Then, after the first epic fail, the unthinkable happens. My husband comes home with not one, but two London Broils. In my head I’m thinking, didn’t we realize we don’t like these things the first time? This time I thought maybe I would just put it in a crock pot and see what happens. What could really go wrong in a crock pot? Could it die again in there? Could I burn the house down? Will he stop this nonsense already and just bring home a chicken breast next time?

The moment of truth came at a friends house, because I had a photo shoot in the morning and was running so low on time that I threw the two London Broils in a crock pot with roast seasoning and carrots and hoped for the best. We showed up and I warned everyone I had no idea what was going to happen when I took the lid off of this thing. Everyone assured me that it would be fine, they would love me even if this was harder then a brick. My husband sliced a piece and to my surprise it was good!

Most recently, I got really brave and actually purchased one BY MYSELF at the grocery store. Literally I went to Giant and went directly to the meat section without passing go and picked myself up a brand new and shiny London Broil that I was going to go home and turn into a delicious dinner.

Seriously, who am I anymore!?!?!

When I Figured Out This Whole London Broil Thing

What I realized was that a London Broil was very similar to the cuts of meat they label as roasts or rump roasts. I noticed them to be a bit leaner, with a lot less marbling throughout and less fat on the outside as well. What I also noticed was that they are priced HALF THE PRICE of the roast cuts. Maybe my husband was on to something here?!?! They are almost always on sale. The London Broil I purchased was $7.00 and it was almost 3 lbs of meat. So winning when you have 4 kids!

I used my dutch oven that regularly collects dust inside my cabinet to make my Homestyle London Broil because I have a wonderful double burner on my gigantic stove so I figured, why not? It turned out to be the perfect way to cook my Homestyle London Broil because I was able to start it on the stove, browning both sides as well as my onions. Then slow cook it in the oven for a few hours, and to finish pop it right back on my double burner to make a delicious gravy out of the broth. I need to use this method more often because it was super easy!

Recipe Tips

I always say this when preparing meats but if you don’t have any course kosher salt in your life you need to get you some! It can take a just fine meal and make it so much better! I generously seasoned my London Broil with a mix of course kosher salt, cracked black pepper, onion salt, and granulated garlic. It is THAT EASY. Generously is the key word, do not be afraid to semi-coat your meat in the spices, just make sure you don’t over-do the onion salt due to the fact that you are using course kosher salt and beef stock as well.

All of those little bits and pieces and lovely brown color you get when cooking your onions is what I call flavor building. You can’t flavor build like this in a crock pot, that is why I didn’t just throw my ingredients in one. I would say you could totally use this recipe in a crock pot but the best way to do it would be exactly how the recipe says.

I just used a fork to pull apart my meat and it fell apart so easily. When making the gravy, I did not remove the meat. The stirring around helped pull apart the meat as well.

I did season to taste after everything was finished with just a pinch more salt and pepper. As with any recipe, if you feel it may be a tad bland, season to your own taste!

Products from Amazon.com

Grilled Greek Chicken

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Confession: It took me approximately 22 years to try feta cheese. As a matter of fact, I don’t remember my parents ever purchasing feta cheese, and I never even heard of it until the first time I tried it. Living under a big ol’ food rock, no?


The first time I tried it, I actually just tried a hunk of it plain. Like why?!?! Why didn’t I understand it needed to be paired with other delicious foods of either the salty or sweet caliber to live up to it’s full feta potential? Not a great first impression but thankfully it wasn’t my last.

Fast forward a bit, I started working at a Greek restaurant and quickly realized I needed to give feta cheese another chance. I have not looked back since! This Grilled Greek Chicken is a fabulous recipe that pairs feta with other savory, salty food to bring out how awesome it is! You take the salty feta, the perfectly seasoned chicken, and the crisp tomato to tone it down a bit and you have the perfect bite!

Speaking of crisp tomatoes, this Grilled Greek Chicken is such a versatile recipe in terms of how you can mix it up and make it your own! The first day I made the chicken I ate it with a ton of tomatoes drizzled with olive oil, salt, and feta cheese. The weather here has been super warm here, so getting out and grilling and eating a light and refreshing side made me dream of the summer nights that are just around the corner. The next day I used the same chicken in a Greek salad. It was the perfect protein to throw onto a bed of greens, add a few croutons, tomatoes, and dressing and have a quick and easy lunch.

Meal preppers.. This is a great one for you!

Grilling The Chicken

I know this sounds so much like a cooking 101 class but the first step to this recipe is preparing the chicken the right way. I’ve given everyone this run down over and over again, however I know I get new traffic from Pinterest every single day. So hello new readers and listen up… preparing your chicken correctly is the key to every chicken recipe! 🙂

I’ve talked extensively about this on my Fiesta Grilled Chicken recipe but here I go again because I’m super passionate about helping people understand how to cook delicious food at home! If your chicken breasts are super thick, you will want to filet them (cut them lengthwise in half). Your knife skills do not have to be perfect to do this and rest assured, some of my chicken breasts look very butchered up when I do it too! Just keep practicing!

After you filet your breasts you will want to pound flat any super thick parts with a meat tenderizer. This ensures that every bite will be seasoned correctly and your chicken will grill evenly! There is nothing I hate more then biting into thick chicken that tastes bland. This will solve that problem! Simply place a piece of plastic over your chicken breast and pound. I like to this it is stress therapy and cooking all in one! haha

The next step. Course. Kosher. Salt. I’ve also talked about this ingredient extensively, but again, it is important so I’m saying it again. When seasoning meat I always use course kosher salt. You certainly don’t have to go overboard because it is strong and totally possible to over season but it can take a piece of chicken from zero to hero in just a pinch!

I have a $100 grill from Amazon.So by all means it is nothing fancy but it gets the job done. I put one side on medium, and one size on low. I start each piece on the hotter side, get nice grill marks by moving each piece after a few minutes, then I flip the chicken breast to the lower side to finish it.

Grilled Surf & Turf Tacos

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Tacos are a family favorite here, and these Grilled Surf & Turf Tacos did not disappoint! They are so quick to put together, and a perfect meal for any night of the week.


One quick thing to point out about life in general. Target now has organic flour tortillas and that means my life is basically complete. For years (I’m not kidding) I’ve been looking for a store bought flour tortilla that did not contain hydrogenated oils, also known as trans fats. I was able to find ONE product at Giant that did not. ONE. They are good, but I like options!

Now there are two! So I can now go to Target, get a latte from Starbucks, buy diapers, groceries, and  tortillas all in one place. Yeeessss. 🙂

Not only did I find flour tortillas that checked out in the ingredient department, I also found a huge bin of Avocados From Mexico right next to the tortilla section. In the bin I found the perfectly ripened avocado. Not too mushy, not too firm, but right in between. It sliced so perfectly for these Grilled Surf & Turf Tacos. The best part… I wasn’t even there for tortillas or avocados!! haha In fact, I don’t even know what I was there for!

Only. At. Target.

In my Fiesta Grilled Chicken recipe I shared a spice mix that I use for grilled meats for tacos, burritos, quesadillas, etc. This recipe is exactly like that one, in that I just use a few spices and I’m done! No packets for seasoning, or out of the ordinary ingredients. I love these simple recipes and my family does too!

Speaking of packets… a friend was just over at my house the other day and mentioned that she has always wanted to make her own taco seasoning mix but she just didn’t know what to use. I got mine off of the back of a can of beans one day. I have honestly not picked up a packet since then. It is so simple! You can totally play around with ratios of course,and add in other ingredients as you taste test and figure out what you like the best. Per pound of ground beef I use:

  • 2 Tablespoons chili powder
  • 2 Tablespoons cumin
  • 2 teaspoons adobo seasoning
  • salt and pepper to taste

The adobo seasoning does contain sodium, so I do go light on the salt. This recipe is similar, I’m just using steak instead of ground beef. Those 3 spices are the best together and are a great foundation for making your own taco seasoning. I’m sure I’ll be posting a ton of other recipes using them since my kids love this stuff and so do I!