Posts by admin:
- 6 mulato chiles
- 5 ancho chiles
- 6 pasilla chiles
- 2 large tomatoes, cut in quarters
- 2 small onions, cut in quarters
- 2 garilc cloves
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
- 2 Tablespoons slivered almonds, toasted
- 1/2 ripe plantain
- 3 cups water, veggie broth, or pepper water
- 3 Tablespoons sweetened cocoa
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 6 mulato chiles
- 5 ancho chiles
- 6 pasilla chiles
- 2 large tomatoes, cut in quarters
- 2 small onions, cut in quarters
- 2 garilc cloves
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
- 2 Tablespoons slivered almonds, toasted
- 1/2 ripe plantain
- 3 cups water, veggie broth, or pepper water
- 3 Tablespoons sweetened cocoa
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 24 corn tortillas
- 6 cups mole sauce
- 3 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 small onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- Grilled chicken (5-6 ounces)
- Romaine lettuce, chopped
- tomatoes, chopped
- cucumbers, chopped
- yellow or orange bell peppers, chopped
- steamed baby potatoes, 1/2 cup
- feta cheese, crumbled
- vinaigrette
- Safe for the entire family
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- Available for purchase in the U.S. at www.eco-me.com and retailers nation-wide. Visit http://www.eco-me.com/store-locator.htm for a list of store locations
- 24 ciabatta slices, cut 1/2 inch thick (stores will slice for you)
- 1 pound Farmland® Homestyle Sausage
- 1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped and divided
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 10 ounces part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 4 hothouse tomatoes, chopped
- balsamic glaze for topping
Nûby 3-Piece Toothbrush Set {Review}
January 30th, 2015
It has been a while since I have updated what life is like with my two young girls at home. My oldest turned 3 in November and my youngest turns 2 in February. I simply cannot believe how fast these girls have grown and even how fast time has gone by! Many of you might not know, but I am pregnant with my third child who is due in August and as of now, have no idea if we are having a girl or a boy. We find out in March whether our home will be dominated with females. How exciting!
Ten months ago I could have told you that I as sticking to two children because I saw how challenging it was with two little ones, but as soon as I saw other moms with their newborns over the summer and fall, I was convinced that I wanted to have more children. It is definitely NOT easy bringing up kiddos, but it is all a learning curve and I am happy to share those experiences with my husband.
One of the challenges with both girls has been brushing teeth and teething in general. Teething seemed simpler with my oldest. I gave her medicine, teething tabs, and had her wear an amber necklace and she was fine but then comes my youngest and everything is different. She is almost two years old and her molars are the only set to come in and it feels like an eternity.
She puts everything in her mouth, bites occasionally, and cries really loudly when it bothers her the most. While nothing really soothes her I was SUPER glad to know that the Nûby 3-piece toothbrush set was perfect for her. The three brushes in the set are to be used in the different stages of teeth development. There is one brush that allows the parent to gently brush the gums while the baby chomps on the BPA-free material. When my toddler continued to cut teeth I kept introducing the second brush but it was a no go until she turned 18 months and since then, she has worn one brush and is down to the other teether brush that soothes the molars coming through her gums.
I love catching her in the act, chomping on something she should not have in her mouth and ask her whether she would like her teether instead, which she promptly responds, “teeder pease!” The third brush was used to brush her teeth as soon as she started having a full mouth of teeth. The soft bristles were great and even caused my daughter to want to bite down and to start a brushing method.
I loved the soft pink color we received because my youngest daughter knew which brush was hers and always grabbed it. I encourage any mom to try this set of brushes because it comes in handy at every stage.
Check out the store locator to find the nearest store to find this product.
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Authentic Mole Sauce for Mexican dishes
January 27th, 2015
I have been working on my own authentic recipe for mole sauce (pronounced MO-LEH) for a long time. I’ve been jotting down different ingredient variations in order to achieve a similar sauce my grandmother makes in Mexico. What a lot of people do not know is that there are different types of sauces depending on the region of Mexico one travels to. There is a nuttier version, a sweeter more chocolate flavored version, and then there is a super spicy version. From what I remember, my grandmother in southern Mexico made a spicy, darker pepper version with hints of chocolate. It was very addicting and so memorable.
So, what happened when I asked my grandmother to share the recipe with me? She laughed and told me to buy the bottle version in the store because the process what too laborious. I was so shocked! I insisted on the recipe but she said it would be easier to go with the store bought version. WOW. So, the legacy continues. My cooking is all based on memory and how I remember these foods tasting. I was dead set to create my own recipe and version in order to have authentic Mexican mole sauce.
Authentic Mole Sauce
by
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes for sauce
Ingredients (8 cups sauce (2 dozen wings))
Instructions
Boil 4 cups of water. Remove the stems from all the dried peppers. Add the peppers to a large heat-resistant bowl and pour hot water over the peppers. Allow the peppers to rehydrate for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, heat olive oil. Add the tomatoes, onions and garlic and cook on medium heat for 10 minutes until the the onions are softened.
Toast sesame seeds and almonds in a pan over medium-high heat for 5-7 minutes and remove from heat.
Add the tomato mixture to the Vitamix or blender. Do not drain liquid from peppers, just remove the peppers from the water and add to the blender. Add the seeds and nuts, plantain, cocoa, salt, cumin and 2 cups of the pepper water and 1 cup of regular water. Blend ingredients together until completely blended.
**If you use a regular blender, pass the sauce through a sieve over a bowl and add one more cup of water to the sauce and blend pepper mixture again. Run the mixture through the sieve and the process is complete.
The sauce is ready for immediate use.
One of the essential ingredients I knew I was going to need were the dried peppers, so I was glad to find out my local Produce Junction had all the necessary ingredients to make this delicious sauce. In the past, I had seen my mother and grandmother make the sauce in a standard blender and then have to run the sauce through a sieve, but I knew my work was going to be cut out for me since I have a Vitamix. A high-powered blender WOULD be nice for the recipe but it is necessary. I will run through another option in the recipe.
After I blended my sauce, the recipe yielded 8 cups of sauce. I love having more than I need because then I can freeze the rest. This is an all-purpose sauce that can be used for a number of recipes. I roasted chicken wings in the oven and added mole sauce to make a Mexican version of the all-American spicy buffalo wings.
I also made a Beef and Mole Enchilada Casserole using the rest of the sauce which proved to be another quick and easy recipe since I had the sauce all ready to use. Another plus in this recipe is that it is VEGAN and GLUTEN-FREE. This sauce would be great for all diets alike. I hope you enjoy the sauce as much as we did.
Mexican Chicken Wings with Authentic Mole Sauce
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes for sauce (85 minut
Keywords: cook boil heat roast toast entree vegan vegan recipes on recipage vegetarian vegetarian recipes on recipage gluten-free low-carb
Ingredients (8 cups sauce (2 dozen wings))
Instructions
Boil 4 cups of water. Remove the stems from all the dried peppers. Add the peppers to a large heat-resistant bowl and pour hot water over the peppers. Allow the peppers to rehydrate for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, heat olive oil. Add the tomatoes, onions and garlic and cook on medium heat for 10 minutes until the the onions are softened.
Toast sesame seeds and almonds in a pan over medium-high heat for 5-7 minutes and remove from heat.
Add the tomato mixture to the Vitamix or blender. Do not drain liquid from peppers, just remove the peppers from the water and add to the blender. Add the seeds and nuts, plantain, cocoa, salt, cumin and 2 cups of the pepper water and 1 cup of regular water. Blend ingredients together until completely blended.
**If you use a regular blender, pass the sauce through a sieve over a bowl and add one more cup of water to the sauce and blend pepper mixture again. Run the mixture through the sieve and the process is complete.
The sauce is ready for immediate use.
Beef and Mole Enchilada Casserole
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Keywords: bake entree Mexican
Ingredients (8 servings)
Instructions
Grease a 9×13 glass dish. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a large non-stick pan, cook one pound of beef, with diced onions and minced garlic for 12-15 minutes on medium high.
Have prepared mole sauce ready for assembly.
Add 1 cup of mole sauce at the bottom of the glass dish. Add 8 corn tortillas, layering across the dish, two tortillas across from each other. Add 1/3 of the meat on top of the tortillas and add another cup of mole sauce over the meat.
Sprinkle 1 cup of mozzarella dish over the sauce. Add another layer of 8 tortillas over the cheese. Add another cup of mole sauce, 1/3 cup of meat, and then 1 cup of cheese.
Repeat with one last layer ending with cheese. Cook for 30 minutes and serve with a dollop of sour cream and thinly sliced white onions.
Serve with a cold cucumber salad with lime juice and cilantro and salt.
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Healthy Grilled Chicken Dinner Salad with HARVESTLAND® + Giveaway
January 23rd, 2015
During the week, I try to create one dinner salad for our family including a few salads for both my husband and I to have for the week. One of the newer things I am trying to do is to have all my veggies cut and washed so they can all be ready for quick preparation during our busy mornings and evenings. Salads are just a hit!
I recently was given the opportunity to sample products through Moms Meet for HARVESTLANDmeat products. TheHARVESTLAND product line includes fresh chicken, turkey, and pork products, as well as a variety of fully-cooked refrigerated, frozen, and deli meats. While it was kind of hard to find their full product line in my area, I look forward trying their frozen and fresh turkey products when I can find them.
As I found them, we were able to taste test the chicken breasts and tenders and I was happy to report that my raw meat aversion was not as high while handling the meat. A few tidbits I learned about the chicken is that all chickens are raised on family farms with very strict USDA Process Verified programs, which ensures that the chickens are fed all-vegetarian diets with no animal by-products, raised cage-free, and are never given any antibiotics, ever. The same process is also the same with their pork and turkey products.
On one of our busy evenings, I grilled the thin sliced chicken breasts for the whole family with salt and pepper and boiled baby potatoes and made a SUPER simple grilled chicken salad for us. The chicken cooked very quickly and was still juicy and had really great flavor. Tonight we look forward making chicken fajitas with sliced poblano peppers over corn tortillas. I can only assume that they will be awesome!
How do I make my salad? Super easy:
A healthy salad is so satisfying with no guilt attached to it. Are you interested in trying this product? Enter the giveaway below.
Disclosure: I received this product for free from the sponsor of the Moms Meet program, May Media Group LLC, who received it directly from the manufacturer. As a Moms Meet blogger, I agree to use this product and post my opinion on my blog. My opinions do not necessarily reflect the opinions of May Media Group LLC or the manufacturer of this product.
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Eco-Friendly Product Feature: Little Twig and Eco-Me
January 22nd, 2015
Our little family was able to sample some amazing eco-friendly products over the holidays that we have very much enjoyed. The awesome fact about the products is that they are paraben-free and toxic-free and completely safe for babies bodies or products.
Little Twig has a lovely line of baby bath products that use organic and botanical ingredients that are perfect even for the any baby’s sensitive skin. I received the Calming Lavender Baby Wash along with a sample of the Calming Lavender Baby Lotion. It is an all-natural blend of soothing lavender, restorative chamomile and gentle bubbles that turned our tub into a sanctuary of tranquil bath time bliss. Provides aromatherapy benefits that are calming and relaxing, encouraging a better night’s sleep for baby. It also leaves my babies smelling so nice!!
Since I know my oldest daughter suffers from a bit of eczema, I know it is important that her skin receives the best products that will not irritate or exacerbate her sensitive skin. I am glad that we have been doing well testing this product in our bath because it has been lovely.
A few more facts about these products:
The next product was tested in my kitchen called Eco-Me Dish Soap. While I had a choice to try the Lemon Fresh scent or Herbal Mint, I should have gone with the Herbal Mint. Even though I knew this dish soap was supposed to gentle of hands with no dyes, sulfates, or harsh preservatives, I still was not impressed by the soap. It was naturally sudsy but my hands did not feel as great after washing with the soap compared to the one I already use. I also did not care for the scent. I decided to use the rest of the soap to make natural bubbles for my daughters, which in fact works well.
Here are a few more facts about the product:
I definitely look forward testing a few more products in the Little Twig line because I know my girls bodies would love it especially this mommy who loves toxic-free products.
Disclosure: These products were sent to me at no cost and strictly for review. All opinions are my own.
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Sausage Bruschetta Nachos
January 21st, 2015This is a compensated campaign in collaboration with Farmland® and Latina Bloggers Connect.
There is a lot of tension between fans all over the US anticipating the turnout and results of the two last teams to play the final big game? Do you have a prediction? I am quietly listening to my husband tell me all about the current teams playing and can only imagine what the environment will be like attending such a final game. Nothing more can accompany watching football than a nice spread of delicious warm and cold appetizers for guests invited to the party. One of the dishes we would normally enjoy as a family would be nachos, because they are quick and easy and sometimes do not even require the meat.
When I was concocting a plan for a new recipe, I realized that I wanted to use the Italian influences from my Chilean grandmother in a recipe, so I decided to fuse Tex-Mex nachos and create nachos made with ciabatta bread, mozzarella, sausage, fresh basil, and tomatoes. As I imagined, with the help of my hubby, to bring this dish together, it was a huge success.
As I started bringing all my ingredients together, I started using a new-to-me sausage by Farmland® that is 25% lower in fat, gluten-free and contains no MSG. As I cooked the sausage, I realized that the fat content was indeed much less than other brands I normally use. I was intrigued by the flavor as I cooked the sausage.
My grandmother loved cooking from scratch and used basil in some of her recipes but what I remember most of all is her use of FRESH tomatoes in a whole of her recipes. We would eat tomato salads like it was going out of business. I even made one the other night to accompany a chicken stew she normally made for us. As I assembled the nachos, I could only think of the fresh tomatoes sprinkled over the toasted ciabatta.
Tortillas are not used here but bruschetta nachos were sure to better for eating for larger parties gathering together. There is no worry of mushy tortillas but a toasty ciabatta bread with melted mozzarella and cooked sausage, mixed with fresh basil and garlic, would prove to be a crowd winner. My husband definitely liked them!
These nachos stack really easily and are hearty one to two bites for our guests, but make sure to have the balsamic glaze ready for drizzling because they bring the whole dish together. I am sad that my grandmother cannot be here today to see me develop dishes like this that have been inspired by her, but I thank God for the gift of cooking and the memories.
Sausage Bruschetta Nachos
by
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Ingredients (24 nacho slices)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Using a baking sheet, place ciabatta slices next to each other. When oven is preheated, place baking sheet in oven and bake for 5 minutes. Remove from oven and repeat process with the remaining bread.
Meanwhile, cook the sausage in a large non-stick skillet for 15 minutes. Make sure to break sausage apart to ensure smaller portions, preferable to a teaspoon size. Add 2 minced garlic cloves,1/4 of the fresh basil, salt and cayenne pepper as the sausage cooks.
Sprinkle 1/2 of the mozzarella cheese on the ciabatta slices and add cooked sausage over the cheese and bread until evenly spread on all 24 slices. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella cheese over the sausage and cook for 5-7 minutes on 400 degrees.
Remove from oven. Serve on a large platter and layer ciabatta nachos over each other. Add the chopped tomatoes over the nachos, then the remaining basil ( add more if you want it), and drizzle with balsamic glaze.
