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Showing posts from March, 2013

COUPONS, SHOPPING w/ COUPONS, and USING COUPONS

Happy Easter Everyone, I hope your having a great one. I'm in Vancouver, WA hanging out with family and enjoying my time away from Seattle, WA. Today I was watching EXTREME COUPON. It's amazing what these women have going on. We have women "buying" $800receipt   totals (of items they DONT need for the day/week/ever) and spending 0 - 25 bucks. I love that they have a budget and going in the store and sometimes spend nothing. I dont know what my TRUE feelings are about this show, but I will say Im addicted to coupons, saving, and making a "GOOD DEAL" happen. I love to brag about how much I spend on flights and how I look to find the deal. I have a few websites I would like to share with you. RETAILMENOT  is a great website for looking for deals, know when stores are having a sale,  and a great site to save on! It's good to know when sales start and end for the week.  It's always good to know which stores carry what. Safeway SAFEWAY JU

Side Salad Dressing Recipes

You can store these up to 5 days Makes ½ cup (Serves 8) Lemon and Shallot Vinaigrette ¼ cup olive oil ¼ cup fresh lemon juice 2 teaspoon honey 1 shallot, finely chopped Kosher salt and black Pepper In small bowl or jar, whisk or shake together the oil, lemon juice, honey, shallot, ½ teaspoon Salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Balsamic-Dijon Vinaigrette 1/3 cup olive oil 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 2 teaspoon Dijon mustard Kosher salt and black pepper In a small bowl or jar whisk or shake together the oil, vinegar, salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Creamy Parmesan Dressing ½ cup olive oil ½ cup grated Parmesan ¼ cup sour cream 2 tablespoon white wine vinegar Kosher salt and pepper In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, parmesan, sour cream, vinegar, 2 tablespoons water, and dash of salt and pepper.

Bruschetta

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1 loaf sliced sour dough bread 1 tomatoe or 12 ounce canned diced tomatoes; drained 1 package of mozzarella or Parmesan 1/4 cup of chopped parsley Placed slices of bread on a cookie sheet. Bake for about 3 to 5 mins or until lightly crunchy. Add 1 tablespoon of tomato. Add sprinkles of mozzarella and a pinch of fresh parsley. Continue until all the bread pieces are covered. Hope you enjoy this tasty little appetizer. Great for kids and adults. 

Chile-Lime Chicken Burger

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Trader joes amazing chile lime chicken burgers are amazing. I honestly got hooked when my friend Chelsea Mae made it for us one night. I decided to spice it up and make some tasty guacomole topping. I hope you enjoy as much as I did. Give'em a Star Dinner 1 frozen chile-lime chicken burger 1 avocado 1 bunch of cilantro 1 half of lime salt and pepper Defrosted the pattie for 2 to 3 hours and then placed on a medium hot grill for about 7 minutes on each side or until done. Squeeze additional lime juice on one side. Meanwhile I added one whole avocado, cilantro, lime, salt and pepper. Whisked up all the ingredients and set aside. My favorite dipping sauce was a great addition on this sandwhich; ketcup and mayo. Fod additonal veggies try adding slice tomatoes and sliced thinly white onions. Homemade French Fries with a dash of salt 1 large russell potatoe 1 cup of canola oil dash of salt and pepper Cut the potatoe legthwise in 1\4

Kale Caesar Salad

1/4 cup mayo (some recipes call for 1/2 cup) 1 half lemon 2 tsp worcestershire sauce 1 clover garlic; finely minced 1 bunch of kale, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces pinch of salt and pepper (to your taste) Mix all ingredients until smooth. Add kale to mayo mixture. Add a pinch of salt and pepper. Let the Kale sit in the fridge for 30 mins to 2 hours. The longer it sits the better it taste. I had this at a friends house with my spaghetti I made and it was a perfect combination. "this is a very lite and refreshing salad" another friend commented "umm....mayo in your salad?" Little does she know that its better to make your own dressing because there is literally a million dressings that have items you cant even pronounce. Take a look at the back of your labels next time you purchase the item.

Traditional Baby Shower?

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Today I went to a baby shower that was such a GREAT idea !!! LOW KEY. GREAT TIMES. LAUGH. LOVE. My friend is having a little girl. She told me "DONT GET A GIFT, JUST A CARD.....Ummmm. Ok I followed directions for the first time in life, but inside was a little present :) he he. Anyways I was starving, the food and snacks were delicious. Let me share. I walked in and there was a BUNCH of food. The momma to be is a vegetarian.  Fruit Platter: blackberries, cantaloupe, and strawberries Veggie Platter: pea pods, pickled asparagus,  and tomatoes Cheese Platter: hard, creamy, semi hard, and another hard: ALL white cheeses served on a cheese platter Crackers: Gluten Free, multi-grain, rice crackers, and many more Baked Mac and Cheese with bread crust topping: this was delicious Four dips: spicy black bean, red roasted pepper dip, creamy white; boy were these tasty with all the crackers I was given a tasty ALCOHOL beverage...WAIT. USUALLY we don't serve it because

Lite Pasta Dish

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Orecchiette, Sausage and  Pea 3 to 4 handfuls of Orecchiette noodles 5 Italian sausages 1 can of peas 8 once greek yogurt 1 tsp cayenne pepper 1 tsp salt 1 tsp pepper Cook Orecchiette for 12 mins in boiling water with salt, when noodles are al la denta remove from water, reserving 1 cup boiling water; set aside. Meanwhile mix greek yogurt, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper. Julienne mint and set aside in the fridge to keep cold. Cook Italian sausage until golden brown; removing from casings before cooking. Add noodles, peas, and 1 cup reserved water, add dash of salt and pepper. Cook until water is almost gone. Serve in a bowl with yogurt and mint topping. This was my first time using Orecchiette, this was a great lite dinner. I would serve bread and salad with this. Its a great crowd pleaser. More Recipes with Orecchiette; http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/orecchiette-broccoli-italian-sausage.aspx FOOD AND WINE http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/orecchiette-w

Crock Pot Pork Chop

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Ingredients Dice up onion, green peppers, and mushrooms to equal 1/2 cup veggies 1 can of cream of mushroom soup 1/4 cup white chardonnay wine 3 tenderloin boneless pork chops: dash of salt and pepper 1 tablespoon of olive oil Directions Heat crock pot on high. Add olive oil and veggies. Cut tenderloins into two pieces. Brown the sides of the tenderloin and then flip. Once you had the outside turn white about 2 minutes add wine. Cook for a few mins and then add one whole cup of cream of mushroom soup add 1/4 in the can and get the leftover soup. Lower the crock pot to low and cook for another 4 hours until the loins are very tender. I cooked rice and asparagus. This was a very good dinner and it made three servings. LEFTOVERS are great for lunch the next day. I made one of my perfect pies in the dessert section. I didn't add pear though. Hope you enjoy. 

Blackstone "Delectable Red"

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Yesterday I went to Trader Joe's and got a few wines. Of coarse anything under 5.00 bucks. I found this amazing "delectable red" wine by Blackstone. It's smooth, fruit forward. It's VERY similar to a cab. sav. If you happen to need a bottle for a gift, because you are NOT sure what type of wine someone likes this is a great wine to give. Its on a special for 3.99, but I know this wine has to be a 10 buck a bottle wine. I have to warn you, I had one glass of wine and I was very tipsy. Here's the photo of this wine....