Well that went by quickly

I set a (super sad) record yesterday at Christmas:

I took down the tree and decorations. Already.

Whomp whomp.

But really we had a fantastic Christmas weekend. It’s just that the weather outside was so frightful and the fire was so delightful and what goes with a cozy day better than cleaning?

Right.

We kicked off the festivities with Christmas Eve candlelight church then dinner with family and friends. I brought mini pies- calorie bomb for sure, but with the pre-set portion you’re more apt to keep it in check.

Mini Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pies

2 premade pie crusts, thawed for 20 minutes

2 cups pecans, toasted

3 large eggs

¾ cup dark brown sugar

2/3 cup light corn syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons melted unsalted butter

3 tablespoons bourbon

½ teaspoon salt

¾ cup semisweet chocolate chips

*Disclaimer: I adapted this from an online recipe and I did not adjust the quantity. These amounts will leave you with extra filling- I just dumped mine, but if you wanted to make extra mini pies, you could probably get another 6-8 out of the recipe- you would need additional pie crust. I had 2 12-cup mini muffin tins. 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Roll out the premade crust. Using the top of a cup, make circle imprints in the dough. Tuck each circle into the well of a mini muffin tin. You could also use a regular muffin tin if desired. I got 9 circles from each crust, so I balled it up, rolled it up, and made 3 more circles from the scraps. 

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the eggs, brown sugar, corn syrup, vanilla extra, melted butter, bourbon, and salt until well combined. Stir in the pecans and chocolate chips. Spoon into the crusts.

Bake for ~20-25 minutes or until lightly browned. Let cool completely before serving. Per single pie: 140 calories

Setting out Santa’s cookies and milk was VERY exciting for this dude. He kept obsessively checking the cookies to make sure they were just right…and at first he didn’t notice that as he turned, he tipped the cup of milk.

“OH THE HUMANITY! WHAT HAVE I DONE?!”

“No no no no NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”

I assured him that with some fresh milk, Santa would still come. WHEW.

What misshapen mutant lips left this impression on those kissable cheeks?

I woke up like this. BWAHAHAHA.

Santa got too lazy to slap bows on the gifts.

Santa brought me a new fur trimmed coat. And a fresh chin zit.

My in-laws came over for breakfast and my hubs and I whipped up some chorizo-black bean hash with eggs and vanilla brioche bread pudding with peach Champagne sauce and whipped cream. YOU KNOW, the usual breakfast for us.

Come dinner we were not exactly in the mood for feasting anymore. Salads it was!

Sweet potato & Goat Cheese Salad

1/3 cup chopped walnuts

1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced into ½” cubes

2 teaspoons olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

4 cups mixed greens lettuce

2 oz goat cheese

2 tablespoons balsamic vinaigrette

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a rimmed baking sheet, toast walnuts for 3-5 minutes. Set aside. Combine sweet potatoes, olive oil, salt, and pepper on that same baking sheet. Roast for 30-45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until browned.

To assemble salad:

Toss lettuce with walnuts, crumbled goat cheese, potatoes, and dressing.

So easy and the sweet potatoes + goat cheese is an amazing combo.

(So is pomegranate + ginger brew + lime juice + vodka)

Perfect for a busy weekend of holiday festiv-ating…and tree-taking-downing.

Christmas Eve Morning

'Twas the morning before Christmas and all through the house...

...I was up of course because I have kids.

Back in the day I'd be more motivated to come up with some rhymes.

But now I ain't got no time...s.....

Mac's into this groove now where he always wants to have a muffin en route to daycare. I tend to bake every now and then and package it up for the freezer. Last night it was finally time to make a new batch.

This past summer I did my usual wild blackberry picking and still had some leftover in the freezer. I found a recipe for blueberry muffins and tweaked it (less added fat, less added sugar, STILL ALL THE FUN). 

Wildberry Muffins

4 oz unsweetened applesauce

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 eggs

2/3 cup white sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 cups white whole grain flour (can sub all purpose flour)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 cup milk (I used almond but cow's milk would be fine)

2 cups berries- could use blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, or other fruit too

Combine applesauce, oil, eggs, sugar, and vanilla in a bowl. I used my Kitchen Aid but you could mix by hand. Beat until eggs are fully incorporated. In a separate small bowl, stir together 1 1/2 cups of the flour and baking powder. Add half the flour mixture into the egg mixture. Stir to barely combine- add half the milk, then repeat. Stir the remaining half cup flour into the berries- coating them in a bit of flour prevents them from sinking to the bottom of the muffin. Sir in the berries to the batter. Spoon into muffin cups, filling 2/3rds full. Bake at 375 for about 25 minutes.

Most muffin recipes call for some salt to counteract the sweetness of all the sugar. Since these are lower sugar to begin with, I omitted it. You also aren't going to miss the stick of butter that the original recipe calls for since it's so packed with flavorful berries.

Per muffin: 157 calories. Perfect for a Christmas Eve morning breakfast...or for the freezer for later. 

Blah Christmas is coming up too fast! Too bad I have pesky things like work that get in the way of all the holiday activities. This past weekend we crammed in a whole lot o’ holiday fun and count ‘em- one home cooked meal.

First things first- I am three weeks late to the Gilmore Girls party but OH it is still fun. We ate Chinese food, burgers, and Pop Tarts to keep on theme.

Saturday morning I took Mac to ride the Santa train to the North Pole. Santa wasn’t so much the draw here but he was so into the train.

“Mmm, hot chocolate is good.” 

We went to Nickelodeon Universe for the annual “Holiday for Heroes” event. He wanted to ride these whip-around-the-curve-cars again and again. I cut him off before things got barftastic. For me, I mean. 

He threw an atomic meltdown when it was time to go home. He has two modes- happy and sweet, or screaming creature from the underworld.

I had a chance to do some major meal prep while the boys were napping. I LOVE it when I have huge freezer bags full of grilled chicken. I had some lettuce in the fridge as well, so I whipped up easy Thai peanut lettuce wraps for dinner.

Thai Peanut Lettuce Wraps

-8 grilled chicken tenderloin strips, warm

-2 carrots, grated (or you could buy matchstick carrots)

-8 lettuce leaves (I used butter lettuce)

-1/3 cup peanut sauce

-1/4 cup chopped peanuts

Drizzle peanut sauce over chicken strips. Place one strip in a lettuce leaf and top with carrot and chopped peanuts. THAT’S IT. So easy. Each wrap is 200 calories, 5 g carb, 8 g fat, and 27 g protein.

Not exactly a Lorelai 'n' Rory meal, but perfect for an easy night in. 

This iiiiiiiiiis my grownup Chriiiiiiiiistmas wiiiiiiiiiish

For the past few years I’ve done a blog post highlighting some of my favorite kitchen items, and those on my wish list. ‘Cause you’re probably thinking to yourself, “Why YES, I DO need to spend more money!”

Right. 

Squish collapsible mixing bowl. This is SUCH a good idea. I have collapsible measuring cups, which I love, so to have a huge bowl that takes up very little space is right up my alley. Even with my remodeled kitchen and the addition of cabinets, I still find myself crunched for space.

Collapsible mixing bowl 

This isn’t particularly cute or fun, but with a two year old and a baby, I don’t want to worry about washing stains out of tablecloths. This is great for dining, and also tossing on the table if you’re going to be doing some crafting.

Vinyl tablecloth

Gold flatware. Gold is so retro and I totally dig it. I bought my set from eBay but here’s a similar set

Gold flatware

Ok this is SO stinkin cute. Who doesn’t use dish towels multiple times a day?

Dish towel

Copper mugs. Copper and rose gold is really trendy right now, so I’ll admit that all the bloggers I follow on Instagram might have something to do with this. I actually just bought 2 sets from Aldi for $8 apiece, so really affordable!

Copper mugs

Though we have a really nice grill (OH yeah Big Green Egg) we’re not always motivated to do winter grilling. This grill pan would be perfect for the stovetop or oven- sear your meat, then pop it in the oven to finish cooking. You could easily add some veggies or diced potatoes to make a complete meal in one pan.

Grill pan.

And last-and-most-expensive: theeeeeee Kitchen Aid stand mixer.

Kitchen Aid stand mixer

My new mantra when it comes to shopping has been “Cost per use.” I had gotten into the habit (mostly with clothes, shoes) of buying tonnnnns of stuff that was fairly inexpensive, but still- if you’re not using it often, what’s the point? It’s not saving money. 

My Kitchen Aid sits on my counter because I use it multiple times a week. You can buy a huge variety of attachments, but honestly I use mine for basic mixing- anything from meat for meatballs to bread dough to whipped cream. This version is a step up from mine in that the bowl has a lip to it to make for easy pouring. You cannot go wrong with this!

So there you have it- a list of my faves and wish list items. Now I have to get my husband to read this post!

Things I bought that I like

I’ll admit that I follow way too many fashion bloggers on Instagram, and every one of them is always posting cute festive outfits. Why am I so addicted to sparkle and shine? I’m like two steps away from buying an adult onesie, diving into some Mod Podge, and rolling around in glitter.

Along those lines, here are some of my fave frivolous things that I’ve been digging lately.

Shoe clips! 

So retro. I remember having a pair in the 5^th grade. They jogged my memory recently because J. Crew has gorgeous shoes that are all rhinestony and pretty, but are way out of my budget. I found mine on Etsy for less than $5 a pair. Such an easy way to dress up your shoes.

Plaid everything.

Could I *be* more of a basic girl? I’m digging the whole plaid scarf movement because it’s pretty much like wrapping a blanket around your neck and calling it fashion. My office runs hot and cold, so plaid scarves are perfect for fluctuating temperatures. I went to the fabric store and bought three different plaid flannels and just ran my sewing machine around the edge, then pulled a few threads to fray them. So much cheaper than spending $20 per scarf!

Batiste Dry Shampoo

 

How much air are they compressing in this can?? It’s kind of like blasting your head with a jet engine, but holy smokes, I love that it’s potent. A quick psssst here and there and any greasy spots are covered. Love that a little goes a long way, and it’s a super affordable price point.

Rose gold everything

Again, cliché here, as rose gold seems to be everywhere. Essie "Penny Talk" is my fave new polish, and I got a new rose gold micro pave ring as well. On my wishlist is an iPhone 7 in…rose gold. I’d love to get this phone case to go with it. 

Pom pom hat

Bought this at Old Navy on sale for $5! They're sold out online so I linked to a similar one. I get crazy-bad staticky hat hair, but I don’t let that stop me. Also, I just realized that this pic makes it look like I'm spewing an atomic steamy fart. 

So yeah, feel free to stage an Instagram-ervention on me and cut me off from buying cute stuff. 

Oh hey holidays.

How was your GOBBLE GOBBLE day? 

How obnoxious is that question? 

Started off our morning with a walk in the park. 

For the record, he did a terrible job carving the turkey.

Might be Fred’s first Thanksgiving, but as the stains indicate, it’s sure not the bib’s first Thanksgiving.

Just a boy with his baby brother and his beloved wood. 

In other news, I came up with a new chili recipe! Sort of! It’s taking a bag of chili mix and adding stuff! It’s easy! WHY AM I SO EXCITED!

‘Cause it turned out pretty good. 

Steak Chili

-1 lb lean steak (I used strip steak)

-1/2 tablespoon butter

-1 packet chili-in-a-bag (find in the soup aisle- they’re the just-add-water variety)

-2 cans fire roasted tomatoes (or other canned tomatoes)

-1 can tomato paste

-1 yellow onion, diced

-4 cups low sodium vegetable broth (or water)

-1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

-1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

-1/4 teaspoon onion powder

-1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

-1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (can omit or increase depending on your preference)

Heat a skillet over high heat. Add butter. Add steak- sear for 60 seconds, then flip to sear other side. Remove and place in the bottom of a slow cooker. Add chili-in-a-bag, tomatoes, paste, and onion. Whisk together broth, mustard, and seasonings. Pour over chili mixture. Heat on low for 7+ hours. Before serving, shred steak with two forks and stir to evenly distribute.

Using lean steak works well for this because the long, slow cooking method allows the otherwise tough meat fibers to tenderize.

Makes 6 heaping servings. Per serving: 376 calories, 42 g carbs, 6 g fat, 25 g protein