yummy

Cookie Recipe Round-up!

Abby H.

I usually make a batch of cookies per week. It’s generally cheaper to make cookies than it is to buy a couple boxes, and this way, I can control what goes into them (less sugar, Substitute Kodiak Flapjack mix in for AP flour, etc.).

I thought I’d share some of our favorite cookie recipes today. There are two no bake cookie recipes as well, just in case you need something sweet, but it’s too hot to turn on the oven!

I am all about using the right tool for the right job, as a result, I have a collection of awesome kitchen tools to help me cook. You can see my list of must-haves in my Amazon Storefront here.  

 

First Peek at New RubiosxBlais Tacos at Rubio’s Coastal Grill and Giveaway!

Abby H.8 Comments

Yesterday I had an amazing experience. I was invited to the media launch of the RubiosxBlais adventure-inspired street tacos.

I posted about this last week, and these tacos BLEW ME AWAY. This collaboration was 2 years in the making, and when you bite into these, you know this was a labor of love.

The three tacos are:

  • Hula Hula Carnitas: Inspired by Chef Blais’ time in Hawaii, the Hula Hula Carnitas taco features pork marinated in a rich blend of gochujang, achiote, and garlic, wrapped in a banana leaf and slow-cooked, creating tender, juicy meat with an authentic Hawaiian Kalua flavor. It is served on a stone ground corn tortilla with mango salsa and garnished with black sesame seeds, cotija cheese and a slice of lime. The taste is a subtly sweet mash-up of authentic Hawaiian and Mexican flavors.
  • Blaised & Glazed Crispy Chicken: Delivering a tangy, zesty taco twist on Buffalo chicken, the Blaised & Glazed taco starts with Rubio’s crispy chicken tossed in Frank’s RedHot sauce, the secret ingredient used in the original Buffalo wings created in Buffalo, NY in 1964. It is served on a warm flour tortilla with crisp shredded cabbage, homemade ranch sauce, and house-pickled celery and jalapeño, garnished with cotija cheese and celery seed.
  • Ancho Po-Boy Shrimp: Named after New Orleans’ most famous sandwich, the Ancho Po-Boy Shrimp taco is a modern take on classic New Orleans street food. The taco features flash-fried ancho-lime shrimp with Cajun aioli, and is served on a warm flour tortilla with crisp shredded cabbage, salsa fresca and a slice of lime.

My favorite was the chicken taco, and here’s why. Details. It’s a taco, but at the same time, it’s all of the ingredients, the details that make it so tasty. The homemade ranch sauce (which has the texture of crema- it’s amazing), and the pickled celery. PICKLED CELERY you guys! Imagine the hot carrots and peppers from your local taco shop, with crunchy celery added. It gives the taco a bright, spicy crunch. And the celery seed on the top-it’s the icing on the cake!

Are you excited to try these tasty new tacos? You’ve got until October, but you aren’t going to wait.

I’m giving two of my readers a chance to experience the RubiosxBlais tasty taco collab (or anything on the Rubio’s Coastal Grill Menu, but you’ll want these tacos). Entering is quick and easy. To enter, click here. I will choose two winners on 5/26/2021. This giveaway is not sponsored or fulfilled by Rubio’s, Facebook, or Instagram.

5/17/2021 Weekly Meal Plan

Abby H.

0a5e9dab796cea8a07eabe4eb4795b9e.jpgYOU GUYS! Our Fridge DIED again last night. Less than 10 hours after I went to the grocery store and bought food for the week, including the ice cream, popsicles, ice cream sammiches. UGH.

As a result, we lost most of the food in the fridge, AGAIN. The fridge is ROOM TEMP inside (blergh). So the meal plan for the week is up in the air at this point.

Thankfully the extended warranty comes with a clause where we can file a claim to be reimbursed for the groceries.. So fingers crossed? I filed a claim for the last time this happened. And after the repair person comes today, I’ll file a claim for all the food we lost this time.

I’m not sure if any of you have noticed, but the price of food has gone up lately. It’s due to several factors:

Gas shortages and the price of gas has increased. That means the price of food has gone up to cover the increase. WHY? Food is shipped on trucks across the country.

Some countries have seen an uptick in Covid-19 cases, and as a result food from those countries is in short supply. The law of supply and demand is real!

The one thing that makes my day today is that the CSA box comes this afternoon. I’m looking forward to strawberries and CORN! 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.

Because I have no freaking clue WTF is going on with the fridge and the food sitch, the menu for this week is mostly up in the air. Thankfully we have a pantry full of canned goods and shelf stable food that I can use to feed the fam while we wait.

  • Sunday:  Southwestern Chicken Stew (recipe coming this week)
  • Monday:   
  • Tuesday:   
  • Wednesday:
  • Thursday:
  • Friday:  Pizza/Takeout Night
  • Saturday:  

Please stay safe you guys!

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

Mid-Month Coupon Round Up May 2021!

Abby H.

I was cruising my favorite coupon sites this morning and I found some great stuff.

The two sites I use the most for printable coupons are:

Here are a few coupons that have me kinda stoked:


Save $1.00 on any ONE (1) Cafe Bustelo® Coffee product (excluding instant)
Save $1.00 on any ONE (1) Folgers® Coffee product (excluding instant)
Save $2.00 on any (1) BENGAY® product (excludes trial & travel sizes) (Getting Back the gym has been a little painful)
Save $1.00 on any ONE (1) package of Green Giant® New Frozen Product, Any Variety
Save $1.00 on any ONE (1) package of Green Giant Veggie Spirals™
Save $1.00 off Two (2) C&H® Sugar Products 2lbs. Or Larger  For all of the baking I’ve been doing lately. 

And if you are looking for more ways to save, check out my Smart Phone App Page. It’s got all kinds of great apps to help you save and earn cash back on all of your grocery and home essential shopping!

5/3/2021 Weekly Meal Plan

Abby H.

0a5e9dab796cea8a07eabe4eb4795b9e.jpg

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?

May 2021-New Month, New Coupons!

Abby H.

file000786402730Here is your monthly reminder!  A new month means new printable and electronic coupons!

Check out the following sites:

One of my favorite websites is the Sunday Coupon Review.  It helps me plot out scenarios in advance and I can email friends to ask for coupons in advance. Remember if clipping coupons isn’t your thing, but saving money is, check out my list of Smartphone apps that can save you the big bucks! New offers are added on the Smartphone Savings Apps all the time!

May is here! It’s National bike month, so there will be deals on bikes, scooters, helmets, and other safety gear. It’s also the beginning of BBQ season, so no doubt there will be deals on BBQ’s and other outdoor furniture and pool toys. For a complete list of types of foods and items that will be on sale, check out this post on the cycle of sales.

Here are a few of my favorite new coupons:

Save $1.25 on any ONE (1) NEW Talenti® Gelato & Sorbetto jar
Save $3.00 ONE Venus® Razor (excludes Venus® Disposable Razors and trial/travel size)
Save $0.75 on ONE (1) 3.15 lb or larger bag of Cat Chow® Dry Cat Food
Save $1.00 on any ONE (1) package of Green Giant® New Frozen Product, Any Variety
Save $1.00 on any ONE (1) package of Green Giant Veggie Spirals™

Recipe: Oatmeal Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Abby H.

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The kids have been begging for homemade cookies lately, and I’ve been busy with other stuff, so I haven’t had tons of time to make cookies.

I dug through the cupboard last week and realized that I had all of the ingredients except baking soda. I used the last half box I had to deodorize the kids bathroom.

So I turned to an old favorite, Kodiak Cakes Power Cakes Flapjack & Waffle Mix. and because of the other ingredients, I used a smidge of baking powder (please remember that soda and powder are not interchangeable in recipes- it has a lot to do with the other ingredients and their pH/chemical makeup) and the cookies turned out perfect!

Kodiak Cakes Power Cakes Flapjack & Waffle Mix contains leavening, so the added baking powder was just a little *bump* to make sure the cookies didn’t come out flat.

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

  • One stick (1/2 cup) butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup peanut butter, smooth preferred
  • 2 tablespoons milk
  • 1 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup white/granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 1/2 cups Kodiak Cakes Power Cakes Flapjack & Waffle Mix
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 3 cups quick oats, uncooked
  • 2 cups of chocolate chips

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
  2. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and peanut butter.
  3. Add sugars one at a time and mix until fluffy.
  4. Add eggs and vanilla and mix until incorporated fully.
  5. Mix in baking powder, salt, flour, and oats. Once all are blended into the dough, add chocolate chips.
  6. Drop tablespoon-sized dough balls on cookie sheets that have been greased or are lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking pad.  I prefer silicone baking pads.
  7. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.  Let cookies rest 1-2 minutes before transferring to the cooling rack.

This recipe makes approx. 3 dozen cookies. If you are allergic to peanuts, you can substitute sunbutter or your favorite nut butter. Do Not use Nutella- It contains a lot of sugar and other ingredients that will throw off the chemistry of the recipe and you won’t get yummy cookies.

Mid-Month Coupon Round Up April 2021!

Abby H.

I was cruising my favorite coupon sites this morning and I found some great stuff.

The two sites I use the most for printable coupons are:

Here are a few coupons that have me kinda stoked:
Save $1.00 on ANY ONE (1) Garnier® Fructis® shampoo, conditioner, treatment or styling products (exclusions apply)
Save $1.00 on ANY ONE (1) Garnier® Whole Blends® shampoo, conditioner or treatment product (exclusions apply)
Save $1.00 on ANY ONE (1) L’Oreal Paris Elvive or Ever conditioner (excludes any 1oz. & 3oz. product, twin packs, value packs and kits)
Save $2.00 on any ONE (1) Degree Maximum Recovery Body Wash & Soak, Massage Bar Soap, Epsom Salt Muscle Soak, Deep Clean Bar Soap, or Body

And if you are looking for more ways to save, check out my Smart Phone App Page. It’s got all kinds of great apps to help you save and earn cash back on all of your grocery and home essential shopping!

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.

Today is National Beer Day!

Abby H.

Today is National Beer Day! What better way to celebrate an awesome day than with my favorite beer-related recipes, crafts, and DIY fun?

  1. Beer Bread. Seriously- It’ll change your life. It’s quick, easy, versatile.
  2. Ever buy a six-pack and realize after a beer or two that it isn’t your cup of tea? Beer makes great snail and slug bait. Pour one out into a shallow pan (like a disposable pie tin) and set it in your garden. Turbo and his buddies will be drawn to the smell and fall in. No poison, no gross traps to deal with, and if the neighborhood squirrels or gophers find it, they will just get a little drunk.
  3. If you don’t have a garden but have an unwanted beer, take it into the shower with you! Because most beer has an average pH of 4 (acidic), it makes a great clarifier for hair that gets a lot of styling products in it daily. Wash with your regular shampoo, rinse with water, apply beer and allow to sit in your hair for a few minutes, rinse out and follow up with your conditioner. If that’s not your bag, Amazon sells a lot of beer-based shampoo and conditioner. 
  4. More than ever, beer bottles are being painted or printed on instead of a glued-on label. Some bottles have cool art. Instead of saving the bottles to gather dust on a shelf, why not use a glass cutting kit like this one, and make cool glasses or a vase?  I have a friend who does this, and she has a collection of incredible beer glasses.
  5. All this talk of beer got you thirsty? My favorite beer cocktail is a shandy. Depending on where you are from a shandy is either beer and lemonade or beer and lemon-lime soda or ginger ale. It’s delicious.  A lager or pilsner are the best choices for beer. Something light (in color). Its 1/2 beer and half lemonade/lemon-lime soda/ginger ale.