Sneaky Veggies

Well, I'm taking the ole blog out, dusting her off, and letting her stretch her legs a little. My posts are few and far between lately, but it's quality over quantity, right? Right? Guys?

So I was making kale chips this afternoon because I am blessed enough to have a toddler who eats them, and I thought maybe someone could benefit from my sneakiness. I cut up kale into tiny, minuscule herb-like pieces and sneak them into all kinds of soups, sauces, chili, chicken soup, almost anything. So that my husband will eat it. Yup, sneaky veggies for the husband. Because his taste in veggies is very limited to broccoli, green beans, peas, and carrots, and sometimes summer squash, but not winter squash. Perish the thought. But because it's virtually tasteless in tiny cut-up pieces, he will eat the kale without protest. And lots of people don't get enough beta-carotene, vitamin K, vitamin C, and calcium, which kale is packed full of. And when you cut it up, it supposedly ups the anti-cancer properties. So make your husbands eat their kale!

Here I Am

I bet you thought I had forgotten all about this little blog, hadn't you? Nope, just biding my time. And somehow I have a few child-free moments, so if my thoughts seems jumbled, it's because I'm speed typing while my children scream.

Just so you know and don't accuse me of holding out on you, pretty much all stores have the baking supplies on sale, and there were coupons for sugar and such in the paper this week, so you might want to get out there and buy them if you plan on baking this season. And I do. Oh, I do.

Also, Publix has their giant turkeys on sale for 59 cents a pound, which leads me into a hot button topic for my family, musical turkeys. Every year, our respected matriarch buys several giant turkeys that she has no place to store and no intention of ever actually eating. I know. And then she calls around to see who has room to store them. One year I believe the bird in question was stored in my aunt's freezer and she ran out of space and had to cook it. Unfortunately my grandmother actually wanted the turkey back shortly thereafter and a frantic hunt for another turkey ensued. Fortunately in my family there is always another turkey lurking in the back of a freezer and a switcheroo was made. It was all very cloak and dagger.

So when I made my weekly trip to Publix and saw all the little old ladies hovering over the turkey cooler, I knew the holiday eating season had commenced, and that daughters everywhere are being called upon for their poultry storage capability. Or maybe it's just us. So what familial idiosyncrasies are you people hiding in your freezers?

The El-Cheapo Fountain of Youth

I don't typically watch Dr. Oz, but I do love the man. He's smart, he's hip, he's an MD, and his name is Mehmet. I think mostly I just like his name. But I digress.

On his show yesterday, he showed how you can make your own anti-wrinkle cream with Sudafed and lotion. I didn't watch the show, but I heard about it, and apparently when he demonstrated on his lovely assistant's own eye wrinkles, you could definitely see a difference. Well, since we all know that magic creams always work under the gilt of Hollywood lighting, I decided to give this DIY a try at home.

So I crushed up a little red Wal-phed into a cup with the butt end of a butter knife, smeared the powder around with a little plain lotion I had lying around, and rubbed it into the tiny lines under my eyes. Since I'm looking down the loaded barrel of age 30, it's about time I get my anti-wrinkle on, but you all know I'm not going to drop any more than $10 on any cosmetic at any given time, and even that is a stretch. So needless to say, I was really hoping this stuff would work.

And guess what! This stuff works! I could still see some lines, but they were much less pronounced. So then I slathered that crap all over my face. It can't hurt, right? Miracles happen every day. And according to the good doctor, you can use this stuff every day with no side affects. So yay! Put that in your Truth Tube and smoke it.

Rantings From Afar

My 18-month-old felt the need to "Amen!" everything that was said in church this morning. Needless to say, it was quite adorable, and carries the bonus of making us look like fantastic parents. I'm waiting for the day when he'll yell "I need to pee!" or something considerably worse and shame my entire family. It will happen.

In other news, I watched "Julie & Julia" last night since it's been sitting in the cabinet for months whilst I awaited a rare night sans husband. Girly movies bring out his more obnoxious qualities, so I've learned to bide my time until I can shoo him out the door and bust out with the chick flicks. But, wow, it was a really great movie! And now I can't help feeling that this blog should be more than just a random recipe or sale alert. I started out with such good intentions, but life has a way of sidetracking my best laid plans. So from here on out, I'll be getting back to my roots and diligently looking for ways to save my family (and you) money.

And this just occurred to me because I just bought diapers this weekend. So if you don't have a kid, scroll down now. Like tons of other moms, I bought Pampers Baby Dry overnight diapers because I figured they were the best. However, after much deliberation and hemming and hawing, the Big Guy convinced me to try the Wal-Mart brand diapers. They don't say overnight on them, but they say to compare to Baby Dry. Well, I was pretty flipping skeptical, but after several months of use, I would have to say they are as good if not better. I think we actually have fewer leaks now. And the kicker, a box of these suckers is about $6 cheaper. You should try them.

Okay, babyless people, pick back up here.

I came across a fantastic dessert that is the easiest thing in the world. The ingredients are as follows:

1 can pie filling (your choice, I've used cherry)

1 box angel food cake mix

That's it. I know! It's crazy. Just mix them together in a bowl and pour into a casserole dish. Sometimes I skip the whole bowl thing (who has time?) and mix straight in the dish. Stick it in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes. Et voila! It is oh-so-tasty and cheap. I believe I will call that frugalicious.

The Best. Thing. Ever.

And I'm serious.

I'm a stay-at-home mom, so I'm afforded the luxury of making my guys a hot breakfast almost every morning. You know you hate me. And yesterday I found an amazing recipe that was easy and relatively quick and fantastically taste bud popping. I really wish I had thought of it, but I have to credit Jenna from Kid Appeal with a link: http://foodwithkidappeal.blogspot.com/2009/07/key-lime-french-toast.html

I'm sure there's a more attractive way to do that, but I'm not that savvy.

I try not to post too many recipes because I don't want to come across as pretentious, but this is more like a public service. People everywhere should be eating this.

Here's my abridged version of Jenna's recipe with the few tweaks that I made:

Key Lime French Toast

Make french toast batter like you normally would. I used 2 parts Egg Beaters to one part egg whites to one part milk. The secret is to add the zest of one key lime. I used a regular lime because America's Test Kitchen says it makes no difference in taste.

Now, on to my favorite part...

Again, I used regular limes. I made this while the first batch of toast was cooking. It was so good. Good enough to eat by the spoonful and I had to stop myself.

Key Lime Butter

3 tbl softened butter

1 tbl powdered sugar

zest of one key lime

juice of one key lime

Go make this and then tell all your friends.

Get to Publix NOW!

Hello, All.

I wanted to take a few moments to apologize for letting holiday craziness momentarily control my blog. I'd like to say it won't happen again, but you know it will. I also wanted to thank Lauren for reading (Hi, Lauren!).

So basically if you have a Publix in your neck of the woods, you should get there pronto, especially if you're a fruit eater. They have cherries and apricots for $2.99/lb, which are usually so darn expensive. Strawberries and blueberries are on sale for $2.99 a container, and the blueberries are in the big pint containers, not the little ones. I bought two to eat and one to freeze. There are a few veggie deals going on as well. Pre-bagged veggie mixes are 3 for $5, brocolli and cauliflower are 2 for $4, and butternut and acorn squash are $.99/lb.

Here's a quick little recipe that I've been throwing on pancakes and french toast. So easy and streets ahead of syrup. Plus it looks really impressive.

1 tbl sugar

1 tbl water

1/2 berries

Stir together in a sauce pan on high while you're making whatever you're making. Let it boil together for a few minutes, but don't set off the smoke alarm like I did. Turn the heat off and it will thicken up a little. Add more sugar if needed. Pour it over anything you'd put syrup on. You can thank me later.

Why, Christmas, Why?

How many times have you been to the grocery store this week? I think I've been four times, and will likely go rushing out on Christmas Eve for some essential ingredient that I always forget. Why do I rush around like a crazy person, as if the entire holiday depends upon me keeping it together? I would love to be able to sit back and enjoy, but let's face it. Once you're no longer under the protection of your own Crazy Christmas Mom, it's all up to you. Unless you're a man.