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Archives for October 2015

Honeycrisp sangria.

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honeycrisp sangria

And just like that, it’s FRIDAY! And not just any Friday; the Friday before Halloween. A Friday filled with spooky sugary goodness. I can almost smell the Reese’s peanut butter cups being poured into the large wooden bowl that will sit happily out on our front porch while we attempt to keep up with the boys as they race through our hilly neighborhood.

Look, Halloween is fun. Until it’s not. I’m just trying to be realistic here. Halloween always starts out fun. But then the kids eat more and more sugar, to the point where you are actually terrified of them and you’re basically running through the neighborhood in 45 degree whipping wind and rain. Because in Chicago, that is the only option for Halloween. Always and forever. I find it all goes much better if I just accept that.

So let’s take the edge off things a bit, shall we? Red wine always makes everything better. And not just plain red wine, no no. Let’s take it up a notch here as it is Halloween.

How about a sangria full of fall’s favorite wine, pinot noir, mixed together with honeycrisp apple cider, pears, and cinnamon. Yep, that should do the trick. Pour yourself a big glass (M and I will be sporting these), and bundle up in your lovely parka and rain boots and hit the road, knowing that this sangria is the absolute perfect treat for mom and dad to get through the craziness that is Halloween. 

Cheers friends. You can do this!

Honeycrisp Sangria
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Ingredients
  1. 2 bottles pinot noir
  2. 4 cups honeycrisp apple cider
  3. 2 honey crisp apples, chopped up
  4. 1 pear, chopped up
  5. 4 cinnamon sticks
Instructions
  1. Mix the above together and chill - overnight, if possible. Serve over ice and enjoy!
Adapted from Evermine Blog
Adapted from Evermine Blog
A Life From Scratch. https://a-life-from-scratch.com/

Homemade chicken salad & hospitality.

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chicken salad

I feel like a lot of growing has been happening since hitting my 30’s.

Not right away, maybe it took to 31… or 32. But, I started to get a bit more confident in my decisions. I figured out my strengths and I embraced them. Things I’m not good at? I started to embrace those, too. Knowing what you can do and what you can’t do. Knowing when to say no and when to say yes.

It may all sound so simple but we, especially as moms, know it can be oh so tough.

Anyone else get a bazillion emails from multiple schools asking for help, volunteering, donations? Yes, of course you do. And it pulls at your heart strings because hello, it’s your kid’s school. Oh my goodness, what if I don’t donate and they DON’T HAVE PENCILS? Eek, what if I don’t volunteer all my time and the little ones don’t have an art parent? Their creativity will be taken from them. FOREVER! OMG, what if I’m not room mom and the poor little lost 3s don’t have a halloween party? Or a horrid thought… a Christmas party??? 

This is literally what runs through my perhaps a tad dramatic mind. See, it’s easy to get sucked in. Very easy.

And I’ve been sucked in. And you know what I found? I’m not the happiest being room mom. It’s honestly not my thing. I could take or leave being in the classroom. Sorry not sorry. I like to drop my kids at school, get out of there as fast as possible, and see them when the bell rings. At that point I welcome them with wide open arms and slobber them with hugs and kisses with a smile on my face. 

Feeling this way is not a bad thing. It does not make me a bad mom, and it does not make you a bad mom if you feel this way too. There are moms, wonderful moms, who embrace all this. They are good at it. They organize and send emails and collect money and lead with a positive energy from within. It’s wonderful to see.

But it’s not for me. 

You know what I’m good at? Being excited about my little’s parent-teacher conferences and bringing homemade chicken salad sandwiches to the hard working teachers.

Hospitality. It took me awhile to figure it all about and be ok with that being my thing. Sign me up.

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Homemade Chicken Salad - ALFS Style
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Ingredients
  1. 1 rotisserie chicken, pulled up
  2. 1 large jar of artichokes, drained and chopped up
  3. 1 large jar sun dried tomatoes, drained and chopped up
  4. freshly grated asiago cheese, roughly 3/4 cup or so
  5. salt & pepper
  6. 3/4 cup(ish) of mayo (I know! The horror!)
Instructions
  1. Mix all of the above together and season with salt & pepper. I like to serve them on mini hawaiian rolls, just like this. Enjoy!
Adapted from Heinens
Adapted from Heinens
A Life From Scratch. https://a-life-from-scratch.com/

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Slow Cooker Tuscan Chicken Stew.

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slow cooker tuscan chicken stew

Oh my, this was a heavenly recipe, my friends. It’s everything you want a slow cooker recipe to be: easy to throw together, makes your home smell insane all day, and serves up a bowl of comfort for dinner. This one really delivered.

I have to say part of me, well, misses dinner when I use the slow cooker. Come 5:30, I’m kind of sort of just wandering around my kitchen looking for something to dice – chop – simmer.

But this recipe is totally worth giving up that 5:30 prep, should you love it as much as I do. And it gives you the gift of time for the other million things you’ve got going on… football carpool, homework, conference calls, laundry, your three year old’s endless obsession with baseball in the yard, the dry cleaning your husband texted you to pick up and you tooootally forgot so you’re racing to the dry cleaners before they close.

Whoops. 

Hey, I made it in time. And he came home to this dinner without knowing otherwise. 😉

Slow Cooker Tuscan Chicken Stew
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Ingredients
  1. 6-8 boneless chicken thighs, I left mine whole
  2. 2 carrots, peeled and sliced
  3. 2 stalks of celery, sliced
  4. 1 small-medium onion, diced
  5. 2 cloves garlic, minced
  6. 2 medium tomatoes, diced
  7. 12 baby potatoes, left whole
  8. 1¾ cup chicken stock
  9. 1 tbsp tomato paste
  10. 2 tbsp red wine
  11. ½ tsp fennel seeds, crushed up (use the side of your knife)
Just before serving, to help thicken the sauce
  1. ¼ cup water
  2. 2½ tbsp cornstarch
  3. 3 tsp balsamic vinegar
  4. tso of freshly chopped rosemary
  5. ½ tsp salt {to taste}
Instructions
  1. Just to develop the flavor more, I browned the chicken in a bit of olive oil before putting in the crock pot. This is totally optional though.
  2. Toss chicken (either raw, or browned), carrots, celery, onion, garlic, tomatoes, potatoes, chicken stock, tomato paste, wine, and crushed up fennel seeds into the slow cooker and cook on the low for 4-6 hours.
  3. Just before serving, combine the corn starch with the water and mix until no lumps remain.
  4. Add the water/cornstarch, balsamic vinegar, rosemary and salt to the crock pot. Taste and add additional salt and/or pepper if necessary.
  5. Serve with freshly chopped parsley and hunks of bread for dipping.
Notes
  1. Chopped up parsley to garnish, optional. Crusty bread - not optional
Adapted from Sweet Peas and Saffron
Adapted from Sweet Peas and Saffron
A Life From Scratch. https://a-life-from-scratch.com/

C’s picks – week of October 25th

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weekly menu plan week of 10-25

Spoooooooky – it’s Halloween week! Let’s have some festive fun with our menu plan, shall we?

On Sunday we are off to a Halloween party that our club is hosting with some great friends. Pumpkin patch, hay ride, DJ… I’m guessing the kids are going to have a blast at this one.

This chicken sausage skillet is so comforting and so good. It’s a great way to take the edge off of Monday.

I can’t resist. Mummy hot dogs. Perfect for a pre- or post-football snack on Tuesday.

Let’s get a soup going during naptime on Wednesday. Tortellini with spinach and tomatoes sounds heavenly.

Cooking club meets on Thursday, yippee! So excited! I’m in charge of a festive drink and this autumn sangria with pinot noir and apple cider sounds like perfection.

Friday is all about Halloween prep! This soup will be bubbling away all day long.

Are you serving anything festive this week to celebrate Halloween? I’d love to hear about it in a comment below!

Happy Friday!

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Oh my goodness, it’s Friday. And I’m about as happy as a 9 and 3 year old jumping into a pile of leaves. Anyone else feel like it’s been a crazy (busy) long week? Yet the weekend is upon us, heck yeah! Here’s what is on my mind and going on around our home lately. I’d so love to hear what you’ve been up to!

The boys have been slurping up these smoothies lately – even the green machine ones, yippee!

Risk is an essential component of a balanced childhood. Exposure to healthy risk, particularly physical, enables children to experience fear, and learn the strengths and limitations of their own body. Yes, yes, and yes. It’s not a surprise I’d agree with the article, even though I’m often living on the edge of an ER visit between the two boys.

Double date night tonight with my fantastic sister-in-law and her husband, woohoo! Thinking of wearing these. Meow.

Met a darling new mom at the park the other day and she looked oh so chic and relaxed in these awesome booties. I had to ask where they were from and of course, now I can think about nothing else. Just what I need – another pair of boots.

Pot sticker soup. Get it going this weekend, if you can.

Halloween is almost here! Did you see my round up of fun ideas? The bat socks have been a serious hit with the kids.

Oh my gosh, I know, I know… I’m totally that insane person already thinking about the holidays, but I just love them so much! Been scoping out my Christmas card, here. Think I’ve found THE ONE, something that I may or may not obsess over for months.

Speaking of the holidays, these tags cracked me up.

Our favorite red lately. We served it at L’s 9th birthday and haven’t stopped buying it. Major bonus that it’s under $11!

Lots of fall fun to come this weekend, including a big game for the 6-2 Barrington Broncos. Come on boys! Next week the prep begins for cooking club, Halloween, and then… the photography shoot with Apartment Therapy for our home. Seriously excited. Seriously nervous.

What are you and your family up to this weekend? I’d love to hear all about it in a comment below!

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