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“Cincinatalie” Chili

I am originally from Cincinnati (Covington actually) and my nick name was cinci-natalie. I grew up with Skyline and Gold Star chili parlors around every corner. Eating chili with mounds of cheese over spaghetti is a common meal up there. So when I saw that All You magazine had a recipe for this dish I added it to our freezer menu, and it uses a crock pot, so it could be a hit for all you slow cooker fans out there too.

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds lean ground beef
  • Salt
  • 1 6-oz. can tomato paste
  • 2 onions, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons chili powder
  • 2 teaspoons dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon (this is the secret ingredient if you ask me)
  • 1/2 teaspoon allspice
  • 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1 15-oz. can kidney beans, rinsed and drained

Preparation

1. In a large skillet, cook ground beef and 1 tsp. salt over medium-high heat, breaking up beef with a spoon, until meat loses its pink color, about 8 minutes. Drain excess fat from pan.2. Add meat to slow cooker along with 2 cups water, tomato paste, onions, garlic, chili powder, oregano, cocoa, cinnamon, allspice and cayenne pepper. Cover and cook on low for 5 to 7 hours. Add beans and cook 1 hour more, stirring in an additional 1/2 cup water if chili looks dry. Season with salt.

For the freezer version I left out the beans and added them after it was thawed, then I reheated it and served it with spaghetti and cheese. It was SJ’s first time having spaghetti.

The kids love it, there were plenty of leftovers and it cost approximately $1 per serving.

Today I am linking up with frugal food Thursdays over at frugal follies.
By |2015-05-14T23:15:48+00:00March 24, 2011|Uncategorized|4 Comments
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It’s Not Exactly the Food Network

I decided to pull out all the stops for this little freezer cooking series by creating my first ever low budget cooking show (otherwise known as home movie). Although this clip may be reminiscent of the old SNL Delicious Dish sketches there are some parts that may be worth your time, but please don’t take us too seriously.

And here is a little overview of the tips we share.

1. Label your freezer meals so that you know what they are when they are rock solid and unrecognizable.
2. Allow your food to cool completely before putting it in a plastic bag because it will melt (we learned that the hard way).
3. Avoid recipes with mayonnaise, fruit, potatoes, or mushrooms. They don’t seem to reheat so well.
4. Make sure you don’t try to cook a whole months worth of meals alone.
5. Be sure to have fun and enjoy yourself.
Everyone seems to have different ways that they do their freezer cooking, but those are some of the things that have worked for me.
Get more helpful tips and tricks over at Works For Me Wednesday by We are that Family.
By |2015-05-14T23:15:48+00:00March 23, 2011|Uncategorized|7 Comments
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Why Freezer Cook?


This week I am talking about my experience with freezer cooking. We don’t only eat meals prepared and frozen ahead of time, but we are starting to eat about 12 meals a month this way and it has been working out great. But what is the point? Well, I am glad I asked. Here is my list of top ten reasons for bulk cooking once a month.

1. It takes the guess work out of your meal planning. Instead of worrying what is for dinner tonight or this week you plan it all out once a month, and then you are free to think about other things.

2. It saves money because you can buy some things in bulk, and our family tends to eat out less when we have the meals already prepared and waiting in the fridge.

3. It saves a time because you get all of your rinsing, chopping, baking, grilling etc. done at once, instead of making trips to the pantry and measuring and stirring every night for every little recipe.

4. It is less clean up (this goes hand in hand with #3) you use the same knives, spoons, or cutting board and get it all out of the way. The night you actually heat the meal up there is very little cleaning involved afterwards.

5. It is a great backup plan to have in case of an emergency. The first month we did this we were iced in for several days. Another time we had a bit of a financial crisis, but at least we didn’t have to worry too much about groceries. It was SO nice that we had already had all of these meals stocked in the freezer.

6. The buddy system keeps you going. Because a lot of people do their freezer cooking with a friend it gives you a date that you have to have your cooking done, and this kind of accountability means you are more likely to actually follow through with making your home cooked meals.

7. It motivates you to try new things. Before the freezer meals I was in a little bit of a cooking rut, but now I am trying new recipes to have ready for the big cooking day.

8. It can be healthy. It depends on the menu you choose, but most likely if you are eating out less and cooking meals mostly from scratch you tend to eat healthier.

9. There is a rewarding feeling of satisfaction that comes when you have a freezer full of tasty meals. It leaves you with a sense of accomplishment.

10. It’s fun to cook with a partner, and also to see what others online are doing with their freezer meals. It’s like being a part of a little community.

Those are some of the reasons I have come to like it, and tomorrow I will be posting a home video I made that I even “scripted” and “directed” that shows some of how I execute a month of meals. It should be all kinds of cheesy fun.

Oh, yeah, and check out Oh Amanda too for many more top ten lists!
By |2015-05-14T23:15:48+00:00March 22, 2011|Uncategorized|6 Comments
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Freezer Cooking Round 3 (recipe included)

My mom is back in town for our THIRD Round of freezer cooking. I feel like we’ve accomplished enough at this point that I can confidently give tips from our experience. Later I’ll be sharing some of why and how I do homemade freezer meals, but for now I will just start with a favorite recipe that I got from my sister in law.
Rachel Ray’s Curry Turkey burgers

This healthy dish has received rave reviews from family and company at my house. It works great as a freezer meal because you do all the work ahead of time and just grill and eat whenever you are ready. I slightly modified the recipe. For example the recipe is enough for 5 large burgers, but I went ahead and stretched it to six. I used 3 patties the first time for my small family and I kept the other half in the freezer for a second meal. I also put the freezer tips in this recipe, but if you don’t want to do a freezer meal you can just skip right to the grilling.
Ingredients
1 1/3 pounds ground turkey breast, the average weight of 1 package
2 scallions, thinly sliced
A handful cilantro chopped very fine, about 2 tablespoons
1 inch piece fresh ginger grated or minced
2 cloves garlic minced
1/2 red bell pepper, finely chopped
Coarse salt
2 tablespoons mild curry paste or a handful of curry powder (which is what I use)
Drizzle extra-virgin olive oil
buns
Toppings:
Bib or leaf lettuce
Sliced vine-ripe tomatoes
Mango chutney (This really makes the dish and is a must! Trader Joe’s Ginger Mango Chutney is great if you have that option)
Directions
Combine first 8 ingredients and form into 5 or 6 patties.
Separate patties with wax paper so that they don’t stick together

Freeze until ready to grill (best if used within 4 months)
Thaw patties in fridge over night
Grill patties 6 minutes on each side on indoor electric grill or pan fry for same amount of time in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat.
Pile patties on buns with lettuce, tomato, and chutney spread liberally on tops as a condiment.

By |2015-05-14T23:15:48+00:00March 21, 2011|Uncategorized|3 Comments
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Ignore This Post

I have got to get back on the couponing bandwagon. Over the past couple years I will have a short spurt where I do okay and then I run out of steam again, but now I think I am finally ready.

Disclaimer: I am not a frugal blog, and so these posts will probably not make sense and will seem pretty random to my regular readers, if that’s you, you can just ignore these weekly updates. But, when I did this 3 years ago I saved hundreds of dollars. So if, documenting my deals and posting pictures of pads and oatmeal is going to be the motivation I need to get a truckload of free stuff then count me in. Week 1

I spent less than $10 on all this and here is how:
CVS2 Bottles of Herbal Essence on sale $2.99 – B1G1 Q = $1.99 1 Theraflu $1 $3.15 oop earned 3 ECB’s
Irish Springs body wash on sale $2.99 -$.50 -$2 ECB’s $.53 oop Earned 3 ECB’s
Tena Ultra Thin 42c On sale $9.99 -$1.50 -$3 ECB’s $5.49 oop Earned $9.99 ECB’s Total CVS spent= $9.17 ECB’s Earned= $11.00
Walmart Quaker oatmeal- $1 -$1 Q= Free Kraft BBQ Sauce $1.22 -$.75= $0.47 McCormick Grill Master $1 -$1 Q= Free
Cost of items= $30.38 Amount Spent= $9.64 Amount saved this week $20.74
This post is linked up with THE THRIFTY MAMA and Frugal Follies

By |2015-05-14T23:15:48+00:00March 20, 2011|Uncategorized|2 Comments
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Because That Makes Me So Happy

All week I’ve been blogging about Z. I started by sharing his unconventional sleep patterns, his own preschooler language, his first library book, and his creative imagination.
He really is becoming such a little boy, not a baby, not even a toddler anymore (insert pouty face here). But I am also loving the new stage that he is entering into. A little more independent, helpful, and a little more self control (a LITTLE).
He cracks me up with some of his grown up statements. Like yesterday when I asked him if he wanted to go outside with me and SJ he stopped me in my tracks by responding with “Actually, I’ll just stay here. You guys go ahead.” This just didn’t seem like a sentence that went along with his squeaky little 3 year old voice! And he loves to say “because”, for example “I can’t get in the car and that’s because it’s too difficult” or “Can I give you a kiss? Because that will make you so happy!”
Then last week he amazed me again when he drew this picture that kind of reassembled a cross. I asked him what it was and he said “God”. He has never really talked about anything like this before. I couldn’t save it since it was on the magna doodle so I took a picture.

He still gets in lots of trouble of course, I don’t want to be misleading. He is headstrong to say the least, but we have a discipline chart now that shows actions and consequences and it has helped because Sid the Science kid uses charts and so he gets it.
Sorry to bombard you with Z stories all week, but I want to make sure his latest achievements don’t slip through the cracks now that he is no longer the baby. I know that these things will just be far away memories someday and I want to be able to soak up as much as I can while I am still in the moment, “because that makes me so happy.”
By |2015-05-14T23:15:48+00:00March 19, 2011|Uncategorized|4 Comments
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Imagine

A bed becomes a pirate ship, a paper towel tube is used as trumpet, a living room is a performance hall, and my heart is just a pile of mush as it bubbles over with delight to see my son engaging in the use of his imagination. It wasn’t that long ago that he went from exploring how the world works and piecing things together to knowing how something works and deciding to go a completely different direction with it. It’s been a fun watching him come into this stage.
The other day we had friends over and Z paraded out with his two little buddies to do a mini concert for the adults.
He is always accessorizing in one way or another. Last week he wore a life vest everywhere, this week it was a tiger tail.
Then he got a hold of the cupcake mold that we used for SJ’s birthday and he thought it would make a great hat. He put the other half on his sister’s head. She got a kick out of it and they both just burst out laughing and played with the molds for a long time.
These kind of moments are one my favorite parts of motherhood. The imagination is a beautiful gift and so is getting to watch one develop.
Linking this post of with Finer Things Friday, over at Amy’s Finer Things.
By |2015-05-14T23:15:48+00:00March 18, 2011|Uncategorized|7 Comments
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Library Love

The library in our town may be a little old fashioned, but I absolutely love it! The floors creek, the books smell, and the librarians wear bifocals. Sims is everything I could ask for in a library and it’s only 1.4 miles from my house.

One of my new year’s goals for 2011 was to have biweekly family fun time and another one was to read to the kid’s more. Yesterday’s outing accomplished both when we packed up the kids and went to the library as a family.

This was SJ’s first time to go to the library and it was Z’s first time to check out a book.

He got Hero of the Rails (a Thomas book). I checked out Hamlet’s Blackberry and I am really looking forward to this “Practical Philosophy for Building a Good Life in the Digital Age”. J got a book called The Family Kitchen Garden about “How to Plant, Grow, and Cook Together”. I admit it melts my heart that he would choose a book like this!
We spent a good bit of time at Sims yesterday and everyone had fun. Although, don’t let the cute photos fool you, Z got into trouble for running! I was trying to catch up with him and correct him without yelling when one of the librarian’s graciously, but firmly, got to him before I did. I was actually relieved. I knew if he heard about the library rules from one of the employees he would be more likely to adhere to them than if he heard it from me. It’s sad, but true. Sometimes I wonder if I sound like the teacher from Charlie Brown “Wha wa, wa woo wha wa“.
It was still a positive experience though and I am sure we will be back again soon, and it better be before April 4 or we’ll have some overdue fines to deal with.
{This post is linked up with Things I Love Thursday over at The Diaper Diaries.}
By |2015-05-14T23:15:48+00:00March 16, 2011|Uncategorized|5 Comments
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Z’s Language

My sister in law remembers when her baby girl started to properly pronounce spaghetti. It was a day of mourning for her because it was all she had left to cling to in the world of baby talk. I understand her sentiment. I remember when Z called his elbows elmos and his bear was a beer, but now he says these words clearly and he even calls his sister by her name (Sedona) instead of calling her donut like he had for so long. That’s not to say that the fun is completely over. At the tender age of 3 there are still a few words left that he mispronounces and I smile every time I hear them.
Let’s see how well you can interpret the language of Z. I will even give you a hint for each one.

1. Nuffin= A breakfast pastry

2. Bajambas= You wear to bed
3. Yes Man= The polite way to answer a female
4. Gwirl= Not a boy
5. Prooter= What I am typing on right now
6. Tickle= An evolved cucumber
7. Mugick= What listen to on your ipod
8. Moat= Goes with the TV
9. Taybo= What you set for dinner
10. Chickmunks, Lightning Da Queen, and Shrak= Popular Animated Characters
I am sure you probably guessed all of those, but I will go ahead and leave the answers in the comments section just in case.
By |2015-05-14T23:15:48+00:00March 15, 2011|Uncategorized|7 Comments
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SLEEP!

Today we observed the notorious daylight savings time. SPRING AHEAD they say. I don’t know if spring is the right verb to describe what my family does after loosing an hour, but whatever. It’s not that we have some kind of schedule to mess up, because we mostly just go with the flow around here.
Our sleeping arrangements are so dysfunctional I won’t even go into it, but I am sure it is probably the opposite of what you will find recommended in any parenting books. We find sleep when and wherever we can. My mom calls it musical beds. All I know is that by morning usually everyone ends up in my bed.

Except the other night when I accidently fell asleep with Z in his bed, I woke up early in the morning and he was gone. I guess he likes snuggling with his daddy more because he left to go to our room. In fact the whole family was in my bed except for me! Something is just not right about that.
So, back to daylight savings time. Z was not in anyway interested in going to bed an hour early even though we had to get up early for church the next day. We are almost always the last ones to leave the building on Sundays and it is always a long day for us. I could tell the kids were exhausted. While J was getting the last of his music equipment packed up Z found a “soft spot” on the ground and just passed out right there.

That boy will never admit to being tired and he never slows down, but he does crash, on occasion.
When it comes to our wacky musical beds here is a little clip I pulled off youtube that I think some of us can relate to all too well.
How did you handle daylight savings time this week?
By |2015-05-14T23:15:48+00:00March 14, 2011|Uncategorized|4 Comments
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