Sonia and Long Dog Love

For the Canine Kitty Gift Exchange the Danes were gifted lots of fun things, see here!, including 2 "Long Dogs".

I don't know what it is about this one, but Sonia sure does love it! Baxter pulled the majority of the stuffing and squeakers out of the red one, but Sonia just snuggles this one all day long!

Italian Wedding Soup (Take 2!)

Last time I posted the recipe for Italian Wedding Soup, I had forgotten to take pictures. I made it again last night, with a few tweaks, but had my camera in hand and my husband to assist when my hands were covered in meatball mixture! You can find my tweaks and the original recipe here, in an easy-to-read form!

Carrots & Onions. Chop them SMALL so they cook faster (especially the carrots!). I made a large amount of soup so I cut up a whole large onion and 3 large carrots.

Make the meatballs! Use whatever you feel like adding - I like to mix it up a little each time for different flavors! Last night's had: 1.5lb ground beef, 1 egg, a few shakes of grated parm, a few shakes of italian breadcrumbs, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and a few scallions I had in the fridge.

Mix it all up! Have someone else take a picture because your hands will be gross!

Make a LOT of small meatballs. I've been making them the size of  a quarter, but next time I'll try about half that size. It's time consuming but I like when they're really small! Set them aside, they'll cook in the soup.

Saute the onions and carrots in a smidge of olive oil until the onions are clear. Add chicken broth (I used 4 32oz containers this time), dried basil, spinach, salt, pepper, & LOTS of garlic (I pressed 6 cloves into this version). When the broth is boiling (or nearly there if you're impatient like me!) add the pasta and meatballs. 

The meatballs will float when they're done. I simmered mine for about 30 minutes - I like to do it a little longer than that, but we were hungry!

I had about a cup of Chardonnay left in the fridge that wasn't going to be used so I threw that in for good measure!

When it's all simmered, ladle it into bowls, LET IT COOL if you want to avoid the burnt roof of your mouth later, sprinkle some grated parm on top and ENJOY! (Also, the meatballs were not that pink in real life, they were a light shade of gray, definitely cooked!)

Always Remember Altitude!

On the last day of 2010, my husband and I decided to break out our new bread maker!

Since we're impatient and didn't read the entire manual, we missed the section on altering recipes when you're cooking at high altitudes (we live at just over 4,500ft).

What we got sure isn't pretty, but it still tastes pretty darn good!

Happy Holidays & a Tasty Salsa!

It's been a little quiet on the blog front, I've been enjoying the holidays with my family, but I have a few posts scheduled for the near future! Don't think I'm abandoning anything just yet!

My husband is trying out a new diet which means there will be fewer opportunities for me to try out fun new recipes! I'm not following it as strictly, so I'll still be throwing some fun food in there occasionally! When you have someone on a diet in the family, the struggle to make food fun and tasty becomes even harder! Since this diet is mainly about calorie intake, I have to be really careful about the things I'm making! 

Last night I wanted to make a "sauce" for the steak I was making so I mixed:

1/4 jar Pace chunky mild salsa

2 chopped plum tomatoes

1/2 jar chopped Kalamata olives with a good amount of their juice

2 tsp capers

2 tbsp water

dashes of salt, pepper, and Cavender's Greek seasoning

It was DELICOUS!!! It's very low calorie but packs a TON of flavor! I'm going to use the leftovers when I make chicken breasts tomorrow night!

Italian Wedding Soup

In our house, we do theme nights twice a week - Wednesday night is take out night and Sunday is "Soup Sunday".

For the last few weeks we've been working through the turkey soup I made at Thanksgiving. Thanks to a rotisserie chicken I picked up, we were able to make some homemade chicken broth and get about 3 weeks out of the turkey soup!

My favorite soup (besides lobster bisque) is Italian Wedding. The mixture of meatballs, pasta, spinach... it just doesn't get any better that that! I've never made it from scratch, but I found an awesome recipe over on Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice. I tweaked it a little and am happy to say it was one of the best soups I've ever had! I would definitely add more broth since I had to add more the next day and lost some of the flavor, but this is a super easy soup for a cold winter night!

The original recipe can be found at the link above, the one below is with my tweaks!

Meatballs:
.75 lb ground beef
1 egg
2 handfuls Italian breadcrumbs
generous sprinklings of dried oregano, parsley, basil, salt, pepper

Mix all into small balls (the size of a quarter) and set aside - they will cook in the soup

Soup:
64 ounces chicken broth
1/2 lb ditalini pasta, uncooked
1 large onion, minced
2 carrots, mined
3 large cloves garlic, mashed with a garlic press (this is important to get the correct flavor)
2/3 c frozen spinach, thawed and slightly dried
dried basil
Olive oil

In the soup pot, saute the onions and carrots in a small amount of oil until soft and brown. At this point, you can put in the mashed garlic and saute a bit - I added mine directly to the soup and it was quite strong.

Add all broth to the pot and bring to a boil. Add pasta, meatballs, and spinach. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes.

To serve, I added a small amount of shredded mozzarella cheese to each bowl, but grated Parmesan would work well too!

*I didn't get any pictures this time, but next time I'll be sure to document it!

Sugar the Timneh African Grey

I apologize for the lack of posts but it's been for a good reason! We've added a new member to our family!

Sugar is an 8 year old Timneh African Grey parrot! We had been thinking about a bird for a while but since I'm not exactly a "bird person" I said it had to be the perfect bird for me. We wanted to go through a rescue - both of our dogs are rescues and the thought of giving an unwanted animal a good home just warms my heart.

We went up to Tucson, AZ on Saturday to see an African Grey named Captain but he was not the right bird for us. My husband grew up with birds but I am, most definitely, a first time bird owner. Captain needed someone a little more experienced. They brought another Grey, a Timneh - slightly smaller with a maroon backside - and she was very sweet. Sugar's owners could no longer care for her and wanted her to go to a good home. They raised her from 8 weeks old so their home was all she knew.

The first night was great, she loved us and all was calm. The next morning, she decided I was not the person for her and she let me know it! She was originally a man's bird - her old mom wasn't so sweet with her so apparently she doesn't like women very much. We're working on it though - we whistle at each other, dance with each other, she takes treats from me - I suppose slowly and surely we'll forge a relationship.

She is a beautiful bird and I have to say I'm pretty happy to have another subject to photograph!

Real Simple's "Five Things You Can Learn From Your Pet"

If you have a pet, whether it's a dog, cat, bird, or lizard, you know that they are capable of showing affection and love in a way humans can't. I am a firm believer that there is nothing "puppy kisses" can't cure and snuggling up with my dogs always makes my day a little brighter. In fact, we tried to kick the Danes off of our bed and couches a few weeks ago and after a few days we gave in. It didn't feel the same, them sleeping on the floor and not laying in our laps while we watched television.

On page 59 of this month's Real Simple (if you aren't reading this magazine,  you should be - it's great!) is Five Things You Can Learn From Your Pet. All five entries are written by different pet lovers and they are spot on!

• Celebrate Everything!
• Just being present is enough.
• (Brain) size doesn't matter.
• Don't try so hard.
• You can get along with anybody.

The explanations are quite lengthy, so check out the page if you want them, but I think the rules are pretty self-explanatory. I know that my dogs go crazy when I come home, whether I was gone all day or just taking out the trash. There is nothing like the way they act when I'm having a bad day or when my husband isn't home - Baxter is a completely different dog when he's away, it's as though he's my personal body guard!

Check out realsimple.com for more information!

Christmas Dark Chocolate Pretzels

When you're instructed to bake something for a silent auction luncheon filled with Army spouses young and old, it can be a daunting task!

My original thought was to make a ricotta orange pound cake, but I figured everyone would be making some sort of cake or cookie. Due to my cramped schedule this week, I took the easy way out and made chocolate covered pretzels! Cover them in chocolate, decorate, and place them in a nice Christmas-y tin and viola - the highest selling (at $20) homemade good at the auction!

I used dark chocolate wafers, red vanilla wafers, and a small amount of white chocolate chips (Nestle) to achieve the swirls. I also included 3 red, green, and white non-pareil covered ones and 3 crushed almond ones. Easy as pie! (Easier than pie actually!)

Using the large pretzel sticks, I dipped them in dark chocolate, let them cool about 15 seconds and then dipped them in again. I then drizzled a very small amount of red and white chocolate, haphazardly, on the tops of the pretzels, swirled it around to mix the colors a bit, then used a toothpick to make a line down the center.

(I'm convinced it's that line that impresses everyone and makes them look more professional - the easiest part of the whole thing!)

OPI Suede Polish

If there is one thing I hate, it's chipping nail polish! For years I had pink/white gel nails and they were perfect - never had to be painted, always looked great. Then the real world set in and $60 every 2 weeks just wasn't doable anymore. Since I've had them off, I've experimented with lots of colors and brands, but my favorites are by Essie. Their contoured brushes are awesome!

OPI makes a color I have always been a huge fan of - Lincoln Park After Dark. It's a very deep purple and looks great on any skin tone! The last time I was at Ulta, I decided to take advantage of their buy 1 get 1 deal on OPI polishes and wound up with a bottle of Lincoln Park and a bottle of their new "suede" polish in You Don't Know Jacques.

The color of the suede polish is great - it's a multidimensional taupe and, even though you don't use a top coat, seems to sparkle. I would wear it all the time if I didn't have to redo it everyday!

The major downfall of this polish is its wear time. There is a warning on the bottle that states it will not last as long as regular polish, but they're not kidding in the slightest. If you have somewhere to go, put it on immediately before leaving the house (it dries VERY quickly) or you'll get there with a mess of chipped tips. Don't think about showering with it on because you'll get side tracked by picking it off.

It is a beautiful color and I would love to try their green shade, but if you aren't willing to do daily touch ups or completely repaint them each day, this isn't the polish for you!

Kitty & Canine Gift Exchange

One perk of being a blogger is getting to "meet" other bloggers through exchanges and meet-ups.

When Hannah asked if I would like to participate in their Kitty & Canine Gift Exchange, I jumped at the chance!

The Danes and I were paired with Stephanie and her two beautiful Huskies, Dallas and Loucie!

I received the Danes package today and Stephanie definitely went above and beyond!!

2 Christmas long-dogs, 4 snowflake tennis balls, and 2 PERSONALIZED dog treats!!

The Danes are definitely going to enjoy playing and snacking tonight!!!

Fancy(ish) Chocolate Covered Oreos

I set out to create a smorgasbord of chocolate covered goodies! Unfortunately (or fortunately for our waistlines) I nix-ed the pretzels and stuck to the Oreos. Pictures are scarce for this instructional since my hands were covered in melted chocolate during 99% of the process, but I'll be sure to include all the steps!

Ingredients!
Oreos - Assorted Holiday Sprinkles - White Chocolate Chips - Dark Chocolate Mint Chips - Toothpicks - Candy/Cookie Mold - Wax Paper

*For the Dark Chocolate/White Chocolate Swirl Oreos

1. Melt dark chocolate in microwave using a bowl that allows room for dipping the cookies.

2. Melt  a small amount of white chocolate in the microwave. You only need a drop or two per cookie. 

3. Dip 4 cookies in the dark chocolate and place on wax paper. 

4. Drizzle a small amount of white chocolate on the dipped cookies.

5. Using a toothpick, swirl chocolates together to create fun patterns!

6. Repeat!

7. Cool in the refrigerator for approximately 15 minutes!

*Dark Chocolate Mint Sprinkle Oreos

1. Dip Oreos in melted chocolate. 

2. Place on wax paper.

3. Immediately top with desired amount of sprinkles!

4. Cool in the refrigerator for approximately 15 minutes!

*White Chocolate Holiday Oreos

1. Melt 1 bag white chocolate chips in the microwave.

2. Pour a small amount of chocolate into 2 small containers. 

3. Color one container with green food coloring and the other with red.

4. Using a candy/cookie mold, fill in the decoration sections with the desired colors. 

5. Pour white chocolate into mold, just coating the plastic area. 

6. Place 1 cookie in each slot. 

7. Top with remaining chocolate so cookies are completely covered, spinning cookie to coat sides. 

8. Place mold in refrigerator and cool until mold is frosty. 

9. Pop covered cookies out of mold and trim extra chocolate. 

10. Enjoy!

Bounce Dryer Bar

If there's one thing I can't stand, it's static. Living in Arizona, it's impossible not to have static in every part of your daily life! I carry a Bounce sheet and anti-static hair gel in my bag and love seeing the actual sparks when we separate the blankets on the bed! I've used Bounce Dryer Sheets practically my whole life so I thought I'd give the Bounce Dryer Bar a whirl - less waste and cheaper than a box of sheets!

It's been in my dryer for just over a week and just about 11 loads of laundry. I'm not very impressed. While it works great with sheets and thinner items, such as kitchen rags, it doesn't do the job with clothes. Separating the items in my load of dark clothes this morning, it was as though I had taken no precautions against static at all!

It's a great concept and maybe I'll do another review of it when we get to a less staticy part of the US, but for now, it's just not worth the money!
Bounce 3 Month Outdoor Fresh Dryer Bar, 1.92-Ounce

The Danes Go Hiking!

We decided to take the Danes on our hike yesterday, since they need a little more exercise! Thankfully, there weren't too many people on the trails so we could let them off-leash to explore!

They ended up having a great time and were thoroughly worn out by the time it was over!

Hiking Arizona

My husband and I recently instituted "Hiking Sundays"! This week, we tackled Brown Canyon - an easier trail with a slight elevation change - it was perfect for taking the Danes along! I brought my 50-200mm lens with me to get some practice and I'm so glad I did!

There were lots of bugs!

And some great scenery!

It was a great hike that resulted in 2 VERY tired Danes!

Caprese Skewers and Bruschetta!

I am attending a small get together tonight were everyone was asked to bring an appetizer. Naturally, this threw me into a tizzy - I have a million go-to desserts but ZERO ideas for appetizers! After polling a few people and not loving any of the suggestions (read: too much work!) I asked Hannah of GatorHannah.com (also my husband's cousin!) who suggested I try the super easy Caprese Skewers!

I found the recipe on ShinyCooking and they could not have been easier make! Some mozzarella, basil, and grape tomatoes - tasty and quite pretty as well!

As I was putting them together, I remember the two heirloom tomatoes sitting in my refrigerator and decided to make a batch of bruschetta to bring as well. I used to make this ALL the time when I was living at home, but it's been a few years since I've made a batch. Thankfully, it was like riding a bike and it came out AMAZING!

I chopped up the two heirlooms along with half a container of grape tomatoes leftover from the skewers.

Next, I finely chopped 1/4 onion and 4 cloves of garlic. (Garlic not pictured, I simply forgot to shoot it!).

After mixing those three ingredients and tossing in a smidge of olive oil and a pinch of salt, I cut some slices off a loaf of thin Italian bread, brushed them with oil and put them in a 350degree oven for 10 minutes, turning once. 

I chopped up a generous amount of basil - you can use more or less, I just happen to like my bruschetta to have a strong basil flavor.

I added a few small blocks of leftover mozzarella, two splashes of red wine vinegar, and viola! Bruschetta!

I like to let mine sit for a few hours before serving it - ideally, you could make the base without the cheese, let it sit overnight and add the cheese a few hours before the event!

Meyer's Clean Day Counter top Spray

I'm one of those people who is forever searching for the perfect cleaner. When I clean a room, I want it to smell clean; I want it to sparkle! I could never seem to find a cleaner with a scent strong enough to linger awhile after I was done without being so chock full of chemicals that my eyes were burning! (Hello bleach, I'm looking at you!)

While looking at the selection at our new Super Walmart, I came cross the Meyer's Clean Day brand of products. Although I have only tried the counter top spray, I cannot say enough good things about this product! The first bottle I bought was the Lemon Verbena fragrance.

It was heavenly! It smelled clean without smelling like chemicals, it made my counters shine, and using it genuinely brought a smile to my face! It's not just for the kitchen, it's safe to use on non-porous surfaces like walls, porcelain, bathroom fixtures, etc. When I used up my first bottle, I returned to get another and the Lemon Verbena scent was sold out! I chose the Basil kind (there is also a Lavender but I'm not a huge fan of Lavender scented things) and, although I'm rather used to the scent now, it was a little overpowering and reminiscent of "old man" cologne in the beginning.

Verdict: I highly recommend the Lemon Verbena scent and I can't wait to try the other products in the line!!
Bonus! All Meyer's products are cruelty-free, biodegradable, and they don't test on animals!