Sunday Funday Split pea soup

Today was one of my days where I had to do something with a bag of green split peas.  The only items that I didn't have was onion and celery.  Of corse I had about 1/4 cup left of chopped carrots left in the fridge so I decide to use the rest.  

The most less exiting thing about these little peas is that when you rinse and go through them,  they will fall out of the strainer and into the sink.  A couple of missed peas will not me missed, I promise you.  

What I did a little different this time is I used 4 cups of veggie stock and one cup of water after adding the peas and carrots.  

Of corse the water and stock will give it some flavorto the soup.  After the broth and water was added,  I just added a little of sea salt in. 

Let the soup cook for 6-8 hours until the peas have become more soft when you stir.  When it's all done you can add some black pepper and eat it with your favorite bread and butter on the side.  Lunch or dinner will be waiting the same day or left over for the week.

Let me know what other favorite things you put in your soup.  Love to share other ideas. Does not hurt to try different things, right?

~Nicole. 😊

Cinnamon and sugar tortillas

Today was one of those chilly days where I needed to work-up something good, not just for me but for my kids.

Every time they come home, the questions are asked each and every day, "What can I have for a snack?"  As a good parent that I am, I would give them a few choices but their heads would shake in dis believe.  So I came up with a way to make sure they may like it and dip them in their favorite fruit salsa or just plain.

Preheat the oven to 375

What you need to get is just a plain tortilla shell.  It could be whole wheat too if you have it in the pantry.  Put a tablespoon of olive oil and spread it around the shell until it is covered with the oil.  You may also use melted butter or coconut oil. The sky is the limit.  

Since I mixed 1/2 cup of white sugar with a teaspoon of cinnamon and a dash of pumpkin pie spice, I sprinkled it all over the shell.  Pop it in the oven for about 3 to 5 minutes until crispy

When i took it out of the oven, it looked like a baked so papilla but with out the frying.  The possibilities are endless.  For dipping sauce, you can use honey, chocolate sauce or eat it the way that it is.  But make sure there is enough for everyone.  Because you never know when the kids or spouse wants more.

Enjoy and happy baking..

~Nicole

You will need

1 package of tortilla shells (small or large)

tablespoon of your choice of oil/butter

cinnamon and sugar 

*preheat oven to 375.

mix together cinnamon and sugar

oil or butter the shell

sprinkle the sugar mixture on top

bake for 3 to 5 minutes or until the shell is puffy.

Eat and Enjoy.

Home made carmel sauce. #love the fall

Last week I posted a recipe on chocolate sauce, but today it's all about the carmel sauce.  Even though you like to see step by steps on how to make anything from scratch.  But accidentally my photos were deleted from my phone.  

But before I made the recipe, I googled to see how and how much ingredients I should use since I was limited on sugar and other things that I may need.  But low and behold, I stumbled upon a blog by frombrighteyedbaker.  So I asked my blogger friend Alexandra if I could use her recipe on my blog.  And the only things that you really need is white sugar and milk and a dash of sea salt.  If you have rice milk or other milk such as unsweetened almond milk, let me know and give me your thoughts.  

What you would need is:  

1 cup of granulated sugar

1 1/4 cup of milk  (of your choice)

1/2 to 1.4 teaspoon of sea salt.


Once you put the sugar in a medium sauce pan on medium heat you want to make sure that the sugar is level with the pan.  Once everything is heating up, the sugar will turn a light brown carmel color.  (about 5-8 minutes) What I did was once the sugar melted a little, I tilted the pan to get the liquid with the white sugar.  Or use a rubber spatula to mix the sugar well.

Once all the sugar is caramelized make sure the heat is off and  add your milk.  Since I added skim milk, it bubbled up to the brim of the pan, but pour slowly.  Once I added the milk,  stirred over the sink  until the bubbles subsided in case if it went all over the stove. After adding your 1 1/4 cup of milk sprinkle and mix in the sea salt. Just an F.Y.I, the skim milk became lumpy after a minute adding to the melted sugar.  If you do any other milk it should be okay.


In the past when making carmel sauce, I just added 1/2 stick of butter instead of the milk.  Yes it was a little different taste wise, but the milk is a better add in.  In the future, I am going to try almond milk unsweetened and I will comare the difference between the skim and almond milk.  

This recipe is excellent for coffee, ice cream topping or a dip for your fruit.

I would like to thank Alexandra for letting me share her recipe with all of you. 

~Nicole~

#DIY Chocolate Syrup

Today was one of the days where I have to experiment with chocolate powder, white sugar and water. I know what some of you are thinking,"That does not seem like a good combo".  Well if you are a chocolate fanatic like I am once in a great while, you will love this recipe.  

You will nee to have 1/3 cup  of unsweetened cocoa, 3/4 cup of white sugar and 3/4 cup of water.

Mix all 3 ingredients in a medium sauce pan and boil for 5 minutes or until the mixture is at the right consistency.  When working with sugar you want to make sure that you stir and keep an eye on your chocolate syrup so the sugar does not burn on the bottom of the pan.

After 3 to 4 minutes it will bubble up and become a little more thick than runny.  Once you feel that the thickness is to your liking, let the syrup cool before putting it in an air tight container.  If you are using a small glass container, let it cool completely before pouring in the glass.  Chances are if you transfer the hot ingredients to the glass, it will shatter due to the heat of the ingredients.  After it's in the container of your choice, put it in the refrigerator till future use.

When making this syrup, my kitchen and living room had a chocolate aroma. This syrup can be used as a dipping sauce for your favorite fruit, drizzled over oatmeal or in your coffee. Or it can be a gift for a co-worker or a teacher.

Why buy store bought syrup when you can use the most basic ingredients right there in your kitchen.

Feel free to use this recipe and share with family and friends.

Take care,

~Nicole

Fall days are offically here.

As we once again say goodbye to summer, Autumn comes sweeping on by and gracefully puts cool colors in the trees.  Whether it may be a red, brown,yellow or a mixture of all fall colors on the leaves, I come to realize just how mother nature likes to keep things colorful.  

When I think of the long fall days, there is soo many activities to do with the kids each weekend until Halloween.  It may be the pumpkin patch, haunted houses, apple orchards or digging out the fall and Halloween decorations.  Matt is like a little kid when it comes to decorating for Halloween.  He has done a couple of haunted houses in our garage in the past and the kids in the neighborhood loves it.  

I on the other hand love to decorate the house with scarecrows, pumpkins and other small items that we have had in Tupperware bins.  But what I really love watching is the leaves fall to the ground and the scent of apple and pumpkin spice lingering through out the house.  

What I really love the most is just watching Samantha, Zack and Emma decorate their own pumpkins while getting their face painted at their reactions after seeing all the Halloween decor that we may use in the upcoming year.  Since this is Abby's first year for our festivities, I am anxious to see what she may do while looking at all of the decorations, especially the scary ones.

Another way that we like to stay out of the house for a couple hours on a Saturday morning is watching Zack play tackle football while Samantha plays her first year of fall ball and 2nd year of volleyball.  It has been a little hectic at the house because Matt will take Zack to his game while I take Samantha to her softball or volleyball game.  Emma and Abby is always on the side lines watching either one if their siblings games, but I know Emma is looking forward to trying out her own sport come next spring.

In the next couple of postings I am going to share with you some of the recipes that I have found and used myself to some Pintrest cleaning ideas that you may want to try in the near future for yourself.  Trust me, it will be a fun fall for everyone


~Nicole~

#Fall days #sports #enjoying life

Fall is one of my favorite seasons to make memories with my family.  It's not just bon fires out in the back yard or teaching my 5 year old how to read, it is how we like to spend our weekends.  Samantha and Zack are involved in a couple of sports that they enjoy.  Zack is my little football star and recently he finished up his first year of baseball, his 3rd year of tackle football.   I asked him on the way to school last week on what sport he likes to play the most, Zack told me he was undecided.

For Samantha, this is her first year at playing fall ball and her 2nd year at Volley Ball.  Fast pitch is something that Samanta likes to do, besides having one or two practices with Volley ball.  Knowing different rules and sportsmanship is important to teach at any age.  

As my 3 school agers become a little more independent, I cherish the moments that Matt and I have with Samantha,Zack and Emma.  But with Abby, I see she wants to make sure she does not miss out on anything.  Being 7 months and figuring out how to crawl and take all the excitement in, she gets a little tired of crawling with her stomach on the floor.  

 

As the weather cools off Matt gets into having bon fires in the back yard with marshmallows and the older kids helping him collecting the wood on the other side of our fence.  Sitting with a sweatshirt on and relaxing by the open fire is something that I like to do.  It's not because of the orange glow of the fire, it's the company of my family that makes it all complete.

As for the long nights and short days, I will think of different possibilities of crafting and baking.  Without making different things for the house or cooking different types of courses for the family, my mind goes on an over load.  What I like to do is make a little mental note to see what I can come up with and gather my supplies and let everything fall into place.  Getting ideas from friends or co workers does help out, depending if I am brain storming.  

For the next month and a half I am going to make different things that are "fall like". ( From decorations to baking)  If any of you that read my blog, feel free to add any comments that you may want to share so I can post it.  A fall give away will be at the end of November, so start being creative.

Have a great night,

Nicole

Pre-school friends= growing up together

This past week Emma said "see you later"  to her two best friends that she met 2 years ago in preschool.  Of course Emma's friends: Sadie and Amira are attending different schools than Emma, it can be a little challenging when meeting different friends.  But these 3 girls have a strong connection and friendship I see lasting throughout the years.  

Getting to know Sadie and Amira have been a true blessing on my end because I watched both of them  become strong independent individuals. Especially at the age of 5.   Since being their preschool teacher for this long, I feel humble that Emma has grown up with them.  

Play dates are the best becase the girls can play at the park and run their energy off while I get to hang out with Erica and Melissa.  I would just catch up with the ladies and tell them about myself a little more or just the school Emma is going to.  Some times we just take everything in and just watch our girls squeal and giggle because they are having the best time.  

Before school started for the girls, mini golf was on the agenda.  Since it was a nice day just to be away from the heat and humity, it was actually nice to get the energy out.  Where we were at, the playground was just walking distance to where we were going to play golf.  

18 holes and lots of squeals later, the game was over.  To top the day off we all went on the carousel so the girls can ride the horses.  Towards the end of the early afternoon they said had a little group hug, just the 3 of them.  The next play date we are having is at the park.  In about 2 weeks the "purple park"  as the kids call it is holding a inflatable event and all is welcome.  So Emma is looking forward to that.