dinner

Rubio’s & Celebrity Chef Richard Blais Launch Adventure-Inspired Street Tacos!

Abby H.

YOU GUYS! Ok, so you may not know this, but I am a HUGE Top Chef fan. I especially love the Masters seasons. it’s just so amazing to see professional chefs work together and compete at the same time. It’s refreshing to see a show where there is no backstabbing, scheming, or nastiness.

I digress. When I found out about this awesome collaboration between Rubio’s and Richard Blais, I jumped on the opportunity to share it.

Rubio’s Coastal Grill and Television Personality, James Beard-Nominated Cookbook Author and Restaurateur, Richard Blais, have partnered to create a new line of adventure-inspired street tacos, including the Hawaiian-inspired Hula Hula Carnitas Taco, the Blaised & Glazed Crispy Chicken Taco, delivering a zesty taco twist on Buffalo chicken, and the Ancho Po-Boy Shrimp Taco, featuring a modern take on classic New Orleans street food. The special tacos will be available beginning May 20 at Rubio’s locations in California, Arizona and Nevada.

I’ll be joining other bloggers, influencers, and media folks on May 18th to sample these new tacos, and meet Mr. Blais. Keep your eyes peeled for pictures on my socials!

While many craved comfort foods early in the pandemic, guests are now seeking new, innovative tastes that ignite a sense of adventure. The imaginative Rubio’s x Blais Street Tacos infuse Celebrity Chef Blais’ sophisticated and daring roots with Rubio’s signature Mexican flavors.

Rubio’s Rewards members will be first to try the new Rubio’s x Blais Street Taco Plate, with VIP early access. For one day, on May 19, Rubio’s Reward members can place an order online at Rubios.com, or through the app, and get one FREE Blais taco or $5 off the Rubio’s x Blais Street Taco Plate.

Guests can mix and match any three street tacos, served with a side of house black beans and warm tortilla chips. Available to-go or for socially distanced dining in Rubio’s restaurants and outdoor patios, guests may order online, or through the app, for contact-free curbside or express pickup, or get their tacos delivered to their door for just $1.99. For more information about Rubio’s Coastal Grill and to view the menu, visit Rubio’s, Facebook and Instagram.

5/10/2021 Weekly Meal Plan

Abby H.

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Last week on Tuesday night our fridge started acting up, and by Wednesday afternoon, it was no longer blowing cold air. the fan was broken. Thankfully we have the extended warranty, so they came out Thursday afternoon and repaired the fridge (replaced the fan).

As a result, we lost most of the food in the fridge, including all of the condiments. The meal plan for the rest of last week was scrapped.

I hit up the store to replace what was lost, but I wasn’t able to replace all of it, for some reason, there are some food shortages, probably because some items are made overseas and there are some countries that are seeing surges in Covid Cases as of late.

The CSA emails us in advance to give us a heads up as to what may be in our boxes each week, and that really gives me an upper hand when it comes to meal planning for the week.

Veggies and fruit are delivered each Monday by Yasukochi Family Farms CSA. For $25, it’s a great deal. I don’t have to pick anything, go to the store, or carry it upstairs. I can’t go to the store and get the same amount we get weekly for $25. Seriously. It’s a deal. I spend about an hour on Monday afternoon cleaning and prepping veggies for the rest of the week.

For those of you that are new to meal planning, I’ve got an easy 101 style post here with super easy tips and steps. After you get that down, here is info about batch or freezer cooking.

I’ve gotten a pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge done (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste. If you are looking for a kitchen inventory printable, I like the kitchen inventories here. They are great printables.

I only post our dinner plans for the week, because our other meals are usually the same each day.

Breakfast: Coffee with 1/2 and 1/2  for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids.  The kids are nuts about pancakes. The Big Kid has been on a protein shake kick in the AM.

Lunch: Kids take lunch to school. I eat leftovers. Everyone rejoices.

Dinner: Usually, I do a crockpot meal on Mondays, but now that we are home all the time, we’ve been having an odd combination of fully home-cooked, scratch meals, and frozen entrees and veggies. I have been posting our meal plans on Instagram too- As well as pics of stuff we are doing to keep busy.

  • Sunday:  Take out (It was Mother’s Day after all)
  • Monday:   Big Ol’ Salad, fruit, protein shakes
  • Tuesday:    Salsa Chicken, Rice, roasted veg
  • Wednesday:  Nugget night (nuggets, fruit, crackers, milk)
  • Thursday:  Steak, potatoes, roasted veg
  • Friday:  Pizza/Takeout Night
  • Saturday: Meal o’ Snacks and /or leftovers

Please stay safe you guys!

Talk Back: What are you cooking for dinner this week?

5/3/2021 Weekly Meal Plan

Abby H.

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The CSA emails us in advance to give us a heads up as to what may be in our boxes each week, and that really gives me an upper hand when it comes to meal planning for the week.

Veggies and fruit are delivered each Monday by Yasukochi Family Farms CSA. For $25, it’s a great deal. I don’t have to pick anything, go to the store, or carry it upstairs. I can’t go to the store and get the same amount we get weekly for $25. Seriously. It’s a deal. I spend about an hour on Monday afternoon cleaning and prepping veggies for the rest of the week.

Over the weekend, I did some meal prep: I made a batch of Copycat Zuppa Toscana, caramelized onions and peppers, Roasted veggies, made a crumble-top coffee cake, and refilled the snack/school lunch box to make morning lunch prep even easier.

The grocery trip for the week was fairly small- Milk, coffee creamer, a few snacks for the kids lunches, meat-free nuggets, and a few other misc. items. We’re still working through our Dream Dinners order, and I’ve been making bigger batches of soups and entrees and stashing them in the freezer for busy nights.

For those of you that are new to meal planning, I’ve got an easy 101 style post here with super easy tips and steps. After you get that down, here is info about batch or freezer cooking.

I’ve gotten a pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge done (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste. If you are looking for a kitchen inventory printable, I like the kitchen inventories here. They are great printables.

I only post our dinner plans for the week, because our other meals are usually the same each day.

Breakfast: Coffee with 1/2 and 1/2  for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids.  The kids are nuts about pancakes. The Big Kid has been on a protein shake kick in the AM.

Lunch: Kids take lunch to school. I eat leftovers. Everyone rejoices.

Dinner: Usually, I do a crockpot meal on Mondays, but now that we are home all the time, we’ve been having an odd combination of fully home-cooked, scratch meals, and frozen entrees and veggies. I have been posting our meal plans on Instagram too- As well as pics of stuff we are doing to keep busy.

  • Sunday: Dream Dinner (Honey Mustard Chicken), Spinach Salad, Roasted Veg
  • Monday:  Fritatta, Salad/Fruit
  • Tuesday:   Soup & Biscuits
  • Wednesday:  Nugget night (nuggets, fruit, crackers, milk)
  • Thursday: Dream Dinners and Roasted Veg
  • Friday:  Pizza/Takeout Night
  • Saturday: Meal o’ Snacks and /or leftovers

Please stay safe you guys!

Talk Back: What are you cooking for dinner this week?

Dream Dinners: Coupon Code $99 off Your First Order!

Abby H.1 Comment

Dream Dinners is hooking new clients up with an incredible offer! If you’ve never heard of Dream Dinners, check out my post here.

Right now, you can save $99 off your first month’s order when you use coupon Code “REFER99“.  When you check out, use Coupon Refer99 at check out and enter my name  (Abby Hewes) and email (akeen02037@gmail.com) in the how did you hear about us when creating your new profile.

This offer is only valid for new guests. This offer is good for a Standard order and can only be used one time per customer, per household.

A standard order is at least 12 small meals (feeds 2-3 people) or 6 large meals (feeds 4-6 people).

I love Dream Dinners because it’s a great way to save time and still serve the fam a tasty healthy meal. We order 12 small meals each month and serve 2-3 a week. Between Dream Dinners, and our CSA box, our grocery budget is under control, and we aren’t eating out multiple times per week. Because we’ve been home 24/7 for the past year, our grocery budget has gone up, but we are not eating out often. Whenever we get the urge to eat out, I grab a Dream Dinner meal from the freezer, and in less than an hour, we are eating gooood.

There are Dream Dinners locations in 22 states, find your closest location here.

Recipe Round-up: Fruit and Veggie Extravaganza!

Abby H.

Spring is upon us, and that means that there will be all sorts of fruits and veggies coming into season.

Here are some of our family’s favorite recipes featuring fruits and veggies! These are all easy to make and will satisfy everyone in the family- even the pickiest eaters.

Fruit:

 

Veggies:

Dollar Tree Deals for Easter!

Abby H.

**Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links. I may earn a small commission if you click on links or make purchases.

Hippity Hoppity, Easter’s on it’s wayyyyyy!!! Ok, so now that I’m done singing, it’s time for me to tell you all about some of the sweet stuff that’s going on down at Dollar Tree.

I live next door to a shopping center/strip mall that has a Dollar Tree, so I’ve seen all these goodies in the flesh.

First off: Crafts! Dollar Tree has some super cool craft kits for Easter. Perfect for Easter baskets, or if you are looking for something to keep your kids occupied during Spring Break. Not all of them are egg/bunny related. Lots of fun spring crafts, including their collection of fun wooden paintable items, canvases, and stickers. Our craft cupboard is full of paintables, canvases, stickers, and misc. craft kits from Dollar Tree. I spend about $20/month there just for craft supplies. The paintables and canvases make great gifts for family (grandparents especially).

Next up, dishes. If you are hosting an Easter/Spring/Equinox dinner, Dollar Tree has you hooked up with great table settings (both durable and disposable), table decor, and even leftover containers for your guests to take home leftovers- I can’t be the only one who does that?

Ok, and Finally: Spring Cleaning. UGH. But it’s gotta be done. Dollar Tree to the rescue with buckets and household cleaners (I’m a big fan of Formula 409 myself, Goo Gone, and the drop-in tank toilet bowl cleaners). For those of you who are on the more natural path, Dollar Tree has you covered! Vinegar, scrub brushes, baking soda and more natural choices too. If part of your Spring Cleaning includes reorganizing, Dollar Tree has lots of storage solutions too!

3/14/2021 Weekly Meal Plan

Abby H.
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Our third CSA Box is being delivered tomorrow, and I know that we’ll have all sorts of tasty fruits and veggies to add to our meals this week. To learn more about Yasukochi Family Farms and our first box, click here. A lot of our meals this week are going to be veggie-heavy. We eat a lot of produce anyway, but now we’re eating more local produce! I’m going to try and get a batch of cookies made later in the week, or possibly over next weekend.

I visited the grocery store on Saturday morning when I went to get the last few ingredients for the big kids birthday cake. There are pictures of it on Instagram. We are pretty stocked up for the week, and possibly into next week, depending on how much milk and butter we demolish.

For those of you that are new to meal planning, I’ve got an easy 101 style post here with super easy tips and steps. After you get that down, here is info about batch or freezer cooking.

I’ve gotten a pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge done (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste. If you are looking for a kitchen inventory printable, I like the kitchen inventories here. They are great printables.

I only post our dinner plans for the week, because our other meals are usually the same each day.

Breakfast: Coffee with 1/2 and 1/2  for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids.  The kids are nuts about pancakes. The Big Kid has been on a protein shake kick in the AM.

Lunch: The little kiddo and I usually have something quick and filling (I’ve been prepping bean and rice bowls on Sundays for us to have during week) so we can get back to our adventures.  Big kid takes his lunch to school.

Dinner: Usually, I do a crockpot meal on Mondays, but now that we are home all the time, we’ve been having an odd combination of fully home-cooked, scratch meals, and frozen entrees and veggies. I have been posting our meal plans on Instagram too- As well as pics of stuff we are doing to keep busy.

  • Sunday: Chicken Chili, Salad, Roasted Veg
  • Monday: Salad, Nuggets, chips
  • Tuesday:  Ravioli/pasta (I’m not sure which yet) with sauce, Garlic Flatbread, Salad/Fruit
  • Wednesday: Breakfast for dinner: Pancakes, yogurt, fruit
  • Thursday: Chicken Tetrazzini, roasted broccoli, rolls
  • Friday:  Pizza Night!
  • Saturday: Leftover Fiesta

Talk Back: What are you cooking for dinner this week?

Fresh Fruit and Veg Delivered to Your Door with Yasukochi Family Farms CSA!

Abby H.3 Comments

A bunch of you saw my unboxing pics on Instagram yesterday of my  Yasukochi Family Farms CSA box, and the incredible large bouquet of flowers.

The box was bursting! I’m so excited. Here is what we received in our box:

  • Sugar Snap Peas
  • Sweet Potatoes/Yams
  • Fuji Apples
  • Navel oranges
  • Cabbage
  • Cauliflower
  • Brussel Sprouts
  • Slicing Cucumbers
  • Bell Pepper
  • Red Onion
  • Salad Mix
  • Heirloom Tomatoes
  • Baby Bok Choy
  • Celery
  • Mountain Meadow Mushrooms
  • Tangerines
  • Pears
  • Russet Potatoes

 

 

And the incredible Large Bouquet of Flowers! I divided the bouquet into two vases, and they are in Little Bit’s Room and on the mantle. There are a variety of add-ons berries, honey, eggs, jams, etc available each week.

Each Monday in March, we’ll be receiving a CSA box from Yasukochi Family Farms full of locally grown and sourced produce. I love Yasukochi Farms because everything in the box is all grown using organic farming methods while possible and using local, responsible and sustainable farming. The other thing that is incredible is the convenience of having these farm-fresh items delivered straight to your doorstep (with no additional delivery fee). It saves me a trip to the store where all the produce has been transported, touched, and picked over. My CSA Box is packed just for me!

No matter if you have a small or large household, Yasukochi Family Farms has you hooked up! There are two box sizes: Regular (feeds 1-3 people), or Jumbo (feeds 4-6 people).

If you don’t live in the delivery area, you can check out Yasukochi Family Farms at many of the local Farmers Markets in Southern California. A complete list can be seen here.

What am I making with all of these tasty veggies:

  • Last night we had roasted asparagus.
  • I made up a big salad for the week with the spring mix, tomatoes, carrots, celery, and bell pepper.
  • I also chopped up the bok choy, celery, carrots, snap peas, and onion and made a stir fry kit to have later in the week for lunch (with rice and Thai stir fry sauce)
  • I made a Marinated Salad
  • Tomorrow I’ll make a big fruit salad for a few upcoming meals
  • I’m planning on making a big baking sheet of roasted veggies for lunch- I’ll be posting pics on Instagram!

The strawberries got gobbled up last night at dinner.

I’ll be posting more pictures on Instagram and Facebook throughout the month will kinds of recipes and ideas. I hope you enjoy them as much as we have!

For more information on Yasukochi Family FarmYasukochi Family Farms, check out their website, Instagram, or Facebook.

Ready to Eat Meals from Meal Prep Sunday San Diego!

Abby H.

Friends- This review is for those of you who have told me that you like the IDEA of meal planning/meal prep, but you lack the time, kitchen space, or energy to do it.

I’ve reviewed other Meal Prep companies before, but they aren’t local, so the food is frozen and delivered, and it’s… meh. Full of salt/sodium, bland, squishy textures, or just not satisfying. Hold onto your pants, because…

Meal Prep Sunday San Diego is 1000% different. They are located here in San Diego. The food is prepared here in town, delivered fresh in a custom insulated bag with an ice pack with reheating directions. And if you aren’t in San Diego? No Problem!
Delivery is available in all San Diego, Orange, LA, Riverside, and Imperial counties.

How is Meal Prep Sunday different (aka why is it so cool??):

1. Personalized Meal Prep: By Inputting your physical information, and fitness goal, we portion, and select the right source of ingredients.
2. They Shop for You: Never Frozen, fully organic produce, free-range chicken, and grass-fed beef all provided by our local suppliers
3. They Cook for You: Their team of culinary professionals develops fresh seasonal recipes for you to enjoy
4. Advanced Packing Technology: Their modified atmosphere packaging system naturally keeps your meals fresh for up to 7 days
5. Free Delivery Every Sunday: Every Sunday 3-6 pm you will receive your meals in their custom insulated bag with an ice pack
6. Weekly Rotating Menu: They change your menu every week so you can have a variety of new meals week by week
7. 90 Days Workout Plan: They provide weight and cardiovascular training plans synced with your menu and fitness goals, included with your package
8. Save Time, Money: Save up to 10 hours, and $60+ per week, by removing shopping, cooking, cleaning, thus increasing your productivity

Meal Prep Sunday delivered 6 meals to me last week. You’ve probably seen pictures on Instagram.

Steak, Salmon, and Chicken. Yum. Not shown, but gobbled up quickly: An amazing omelet with andouille sausage, veggies, cheese, turkey bolognese with pasta, and a southwestern chicken dish with pulled chicken and southwestern veggies and black beans.

Everything was flavorful, tasty, and easy to re-heat.

One of the things I like about Meal Prep San Diego is that when you sign up, they ask for your age, weight, height, gender, fitness level (how much you are active per week), and what plan you want (build lean muscle, burn fat, balanced, or senior). Meal Prep Sunday San Diego uses these answers to generate a plan that is as unique as you.

They have three plans available.

For restaurant-quality, organic food that is ready to eat in 5 minutes or less and delivered straight to your door, that’s a great price.

The meals change weekly. For those of you who live alone, or if you are finding that you are eating out/getting delivery frequently, a meal delivery service once a week is a great way to save money and eat better.

A steak, mashed yukon potatoes, and green beans is a lot healthier than a burger and fries! not to mention more filling, and cheaper than a trip through the drive-thru.

Meal Prep Sunday San Diego delivered 6 meals to me to facilitate my review. I received no financial compensation. For more information, please see my disclosure page.

Frugal Recipe: Beef Machacas (Slowcooker recipe)

Abby H.1 Comment

Look at the delicious marbling!

This is an easy recipe, and it is divine! You may already have most of the ingredients in your kitchen too!

It’s pretty flexible when it comes to the meat- You want a good roast with some marbling. Chuck Roast, Tri-tip, Round Roast, Rump Roast are all good options. This recipe cooks low and slow all day. Break out your slow cooker my friends!

Let’s dive into this beefy, delicious recipe!

Machacas

Imgredients

Directions

  1. In a heavy-bottomed cast-iron skillet or dutch oven, heat canola oil, add beef, and sear each side for 5-8 minutes. You want a nice brown crust on each side. If the piece is large, cut it in pieces to fit into your slow cooker.
  2. As the meat is searing, in your slow cooker pour frozen vegetables.
  3. In a mixing bowl, mix tomato sauce, salsa, and spices.
  4. Place the meat in the slow cooker, and pour water into the pan that browned meat. Stir and scrape off any browned/burned bits off the bottom of the pan. Pour that water into the sauce bowl and mix thoroughly.
  5. Pour sauce over meat and cook on low in the slow cooker for 10+hours.
  6. Pull meat out, and shred with two forks. Return to the slow cooker, and keep simmering on low until the sides are ready to eat.

I serve this meat with beans, rice, tortillas, Corn and Avocado Salsa, and a green salad. It keeps well in the fridge for a few days, and you can freeze it as well. It’s also excellent in the morning with eggs in a breakfast burrito.