by Shelly on September 28, 2017 11 Comments

Nutella Parfait Dessert

I’ve been a real slacker in the world of baking lately. One, because I’m supposed to be on a diet. Two, because it’s just so much effort when I’d rather be doing…anything else. I wanted to think of an quick and easy recipe with very little ingredients but still looks cute and tastes good. That’s a lot of wishful thinking but I was successful! My Mom always used to make Jello and pudding parfaits with fruit in the Jello for a quick, light dessert. I used this idea for my Nutella Parfait dessert but it turned into being more chocolate based and then more Nutella based in the end.

Nutella Parfait Dessert

The ingredients are easily found at any grocery store and can be switched up to customize to your tastes. The recipe I made up includes the following:

Ingredients:

3 c. 2% milk
1 box of Chocolate Fudge Pudding (you can substitute this flavor for any other flavor)
1 bag of chopped hazelnuts
16oz whipping cream (not creamy Cool Whip like I did)
A few heaping spoon fulls of Nutella

Just so you know, I’m not a real stickler for following directions when cooking. USUALLY when baking, I like to follow to a T, but since I was making this recipe up as I went, I don’t have exact measurements for everything. As any good chef will tell you, the best part about cooking is tasting it along the way. If you can’t taste the Nutella well enough, just add more!

The first thing I recommend doing (because I wish I had) is to chop the hazelnuts smaller before laying them out on a pan to roast in the oven. I put them in our toaster oven at 325F for 12 minutes, tossed them around a bit and put them back in for a few more minutes. This time will probably vary slightly if you chop the hazelnuts smaller so check on them before 12 minutes.

While your hazelnuts are roasting, make your fudge pudding according to the directions on the package. It should only take 5 minutes to set in the fridge. At this time, if you were me, you’d realize you didn’t ever drink milk, and contemplate if pudding could be made with water. Do not attempt this. Run to the neighbor’s to borrow some milk. (Thanks neighbor!)

While the pudding is setting, you can move on to the part that I demolished, the whipped Nutella! What you’re supposed to do: ‘In the bowl of a mixer (or using a hand-held), add the cold cream and begin whipping; once thickened slightly, sprinkle in the sugar and finish whipping just until stiff peaks form; set aside for a moment.’ I thought I was doing this but mine turned out a bit more like this:**

*womp womp* I didn’t let it stop me! I mixed in my Nutella and just pretended it wasn’t supposed to be light and fluffy. It still tasted amazing! Now that all the fixins’ are ready, it’s time to layer in your dish. This recipe makes 6 servings in 6 oz glasses or 4 servings in 10 oz glasses. To make clean layers, put your fillings in two separate icing bags (or Ziplock bags like I used) and cut the corner. Layer as you wish. For mine I layered hazelnuts, Nutella, Nutella ‘whip’, fudge pudding, Nutella ‘whip’, a dab of fudge pudding and sprinkled hazelnuts on the top. Let’s just say my husband wasn’t upset about this dessert.

In the end, I will definitely be trying this dessert again, but with more attention to the whip! I think it’d also be good with Oreos rather than hazelnuts. There are a ton of different flavor combos you could do for this dessert. Don’t be afraid to try things and mess up because you’ll always learn something! Even if I would have had to throw the whole thing out, there’s always Dairy Queen. What would your favorite combo be?

**While re-reading once finished, I’d realized I used Cool Whip rather than whipping cream! Major rookie move that I should not have made and will not make again!

Mexican Salad with Honey Lime Dressing

Mexican Salad with Honey Lime Dressing- This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #ExperienceFrontera #CollectiveBias

We LOVE Mexican food. It’s one of the only types of food our picky 3 year old will definitely eat! It is so helpful to have freezer meals on the ready for nights when you just need a break. When I meal plan and order groceries on ClickList every Sunday I make sure to add in one frozen meal that will require no additional cooking (other than throwing together a salad.) This gives me more time to spend with my family and a break on dishes!

Having the chance to go to the park or play a board game is rare during a weeknight for our family. My husband gets home at 6 and bedtime is 7:30. Dinner, bath and story time takes up that entire hour and a half. I schedule a frozen meal once per week to make family fun time possible. If I’m able to throw in Frontera® Frozen Bowl to heat up while we do chalk outside waiting for Daddy, we’re able to eat as soon as he gets home and enjoy some fun before bed. Frontera Frozen meal night is our favorite week night! Our favorite is the Barbacoa Taco Bowl. It is a signature central Mexican dish where tender beef is roasted, then slow cooked with ancho, guajillo, and chipotle chiles. This kick is paired nicely with my mexican salad.

Mexican Salad with Honey Lime Dressing

Ingredients:

romane lettuce
diced tomatoes
corn
avocado
black beans
shredded cheese

Honey Lime Dressing:

1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
cilantro garnish

Sophie’s favorite is the Chicken Fajita Bowl with fire-roasted poblano peppers and chipotle chiles. It has big chunks of chicken and is served over rice. There are four flavors to choose from:

Frontera® Chicken Fajita Bowl
Frontera® Tinga Taco Bowl
Frontera® Barbacoa Taco Bowl
Frontera®Veggie Taco Bowl

Next time you’re making your weekly meal plan, plan a Frontera Frozen Bowl night. I promise, streamlining meals by using ClickList, easy pick up at Kroger and a night of no dishes, you’ll have a much happier week. Click here to save $1.00 on any ONE (1) Frontera meal. Download this awesome deal before it’s gone!

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by Shelly on September 17, 2017 9 Comments

Fall Decor Ideas

I’m staying warm inside today because it’s definitely fall according to the cold dark rainy day outside. I am staying very busy with crafts and I have my favorite pink nail polish with pink glitter on to keep me happy. I’ve seen so many roundups of fall decor this year but they’re very country/burlap/twine. I think that style is cute but it isn’t what I’m loving right now. I wanted to do a roundup of a few of my favorite modern/fun/whimsical fall decor ideas. I currently have a few sets of mums and some leaf garland on the craftsman posts on the porch but I’d love to incorporate these into the interior of my home!

These felt leaves have been circling the internet for a few years and I always think they are so darling. I love the chunky yarn used to string the leaves together. Felt always reminds me of the weather getting colder so I think it’s the perfect material for a fall garland.

I’m in love with this Fall themed chalk wall Andrea made for her family! She changes the wall according to the fun activities they want to do during that season. I think it’d be a great way to check off and remember some of the fun that you’ve had with your family! Also, if the weather is looking beautiful you can just look at the wall to figure out what to do that day!

I love how Meeha Meeha painted these sleepy pumpkins! They’re such a darling little family. It’d be fun to have each member of your family paint their own. When I was younger we’d hollow out gords, paint them and put a shellac over it so we could use them year after year.

I’d stumbled upon Alisa’s blog and fell in love with her style! I think this painted leaf garland is super crafty/bohemian and could be painted to match your decor. It’d even be fun to have your kids help you collect leaves and paint with you! Keeping this one pinned for when Sophie’s older!

Since I’m a bit obsessed with all things confetti and sprinkles, I fell head over heels for this push pin confetti pumpkin Victoria made. I love the happy dots on the white pumpkin. I’m a fan of using colors other than red, orange, yellow and brown for decorating during the fall so this pumpkin would be a happy addition. You could even do gold brads on a white pumpkin to chic it up a bit!

Adding some fresh cut flowers in a styrofoam pumpkin is one of my favorite centerpieces for the Fall season! This Fall Floral Arrangement is also one of the cheapest an easiest ways to make a themed arrangement that is good from September through November!

Are you a fall decorator or do you just wait until Halloween and go all out? What about your style? Traditional or do you like to add a bit of whimsy and DiY to your holiday decorating? What should I make first? I’d really like to make one of these while Sophie’s gone this week. Happy Fall!

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by Shelly on September 11, 2017 2 Comments

Fall Pumpkin Flower Arrangement

I’ve wanted to make a fall pumpkin flower arrangement for the past several years. A few years back I carved a real pumpkin and planted mums in it for the front porch. I’d seen them all over town and thought it would be a fun project. I was so wrong. It was difficult to find the correct size and shaped pumpkin that would fit the mums I had. Dirt got all over the deck when we planted it and it ended up being eaten by squirrels before the weekend was over. It’s been several years since that debacle and I’m back for round two!

This time around I wanted to up the scale a little bit. I wanted to be able to re-use the pumpkin vase every year and add real or silk flowers to match my fall color scheme. This year I went through ProFlowers because they have the most beautiful flower arrangements that are delivered fresh and last forever. I fell in love with their Fall Harvest bouquet and although it wasn’t exactly as the photo online, I liked it even more because of the happy red tipped roses.

Fall Pumpkin Flower Arrangement

Materials Needed:

Medium sized styrofoam pumpkin
Knife (I used a box cutter but any sharp knife will work)
Vase (I used a OXO storage container but an empty tin can or glass vase would work)
Fresh or silk flowers

The Styrofoam is thin, making it easy to cut through the pumpkin. I found using a stabbing motion worked better than a sawing motion. Place your vase inside and fill with a measuring glass. I attempted to fill the vase with water first before placing it in the pumpkin and was seriously unsuccessful. Trim down your flowers and arrange as desired.

I love the look of the white pumpkin because it lends to being able to use any color palate of flowers. I plan on using this pumpkin vase at Thanksgiving as well and adding a few smaller squash and candles down the center of the table. I like the simplicity of my current fall pumpkin flower arrangement because I have so many other decorations up for Halloween.

What do you use as your centerpiece during fall? Do you only decorate for bigger holidays like Thanksgiving or Christmas or do you go all out through fall? Jeffrey thinks we need less decorations but there’s no way I can let go of them! Now I’ve got Sophie on my side as well because she digs the decorations.

Halloween Ghost Toddler Shirt

This DIY Halloween Ghost Toddler Shirt was so fun to make but I highly suggest having more than one adult help with the process so you do not have little black painted foot prints around your house!

If You Can’t Find What You Want, Make It.

I searched through several stores in town (Kohl’s, Walmart and Target) to find a Halloween shirt for Sophie and found zero in her size. I’d found one pair of PJs but knew in my heart that it would look like she was wearing PJs to school if I sent her in that shirt. It’s possible that there was a huge baby boom around Sophie’s birth date because I’ve always had a hard time finding her size in stores.

A friend suggested I make a shirt. After last year’s failed attempt, I knew I wanted a second shot at the ole ‘footprint character’ project. You know the one…where you turn a foot or hand into pretty much any object.

Halloween Ghost Toddler Shirt

Materials Needed (affiliate links included):

Tshirt (any color works but be sure to use a contrasting color for the paint)
Paint brush (any type of paint brush works, just use what you have on hand)
Matte fabric paint
Puffy Paint
Scrub brush
Dish with water (or nearby sink)
Tshirt Transfer Paper
Parchment paper
Iron
Cutting machine (I used a Cricut Explore but you could also print out the text on your printer or use a stencil to cut your text out of transfer paper)

Game Plan

With a water dish for clean up nearby, paint a thick, even coat of paint on the child’s hand or foot. We had Fiona (5) do it first so the little girls could watch the process. Once the foot is covered, have them hold on to a chair while you press their foot down evenly onto the shirt.

Pay attention to the direction of their foot. The heel should be at the neck of the tshirt. Make sure to leave room for your text. You could also put the foot lower and have them write a ‘BOO’ speech bubble from the ghost.

You Need a Helper

If you are doing this project with children under 5, I suggest having two people help the child. One person paints while the other holds their foot and places it on the tshirt. Once the footprint is on the shirt, the painter gets the dish and scrub brush ready to quickly transfer the child’s foot to the water. The fabric paint dries quickly and is difficult to clean if not addressed after a minute.

If your child, like mine, does not want to have paint on their feet, suggest their hand. It won’t look as much like a ghost but it’s still darling and will be a fun memory for you to share. We let the tshirts dry over night before adding the text and faces.

Cricut Cutting Machine

I created the BOO (YAH) text on my cutting machine and had it cut on leftover chalk board transfer paper from last year’s project. Use your transfer paper’s instructions on cutting (whether it should be a mirror image) and applying. The chalk board transfer paper isn’t recommended for this project only because it’s more expensive and won’t be used as a chalk board.

I urge you to read the instructions twice or even have a second pair of eyes read it over. My husband and I both read the instructions and I still did it wrong the first time.

Try Try Again

Once the text is applied and cooled you can add your ghost’s face using puffy paint. We wanted each of the girl’s shirts a bit different so I made the text and faces different on each shirt. I also put my hand in Fiona’s shirt when I was moving it to a better drying location. I simply touched it up with more puffy paint and it worked out fine!

It’s literally impossible for me to make a DIY project without messing up at least one thing. It never deters me from trying again.

I also found a white tea towel at the grocery to make a festive Halloween Kitchen Towel. I often make things for other people because it brings me the most joy, but I was happy to have a reminder of our craft day together that I’ll be able to pull out each year with my Halloween decorations.

Have you attempted the ‘foot character’ craft with your kids yet? Any epic fails like my smooshed spider shirt? I think this craft would be even more fun with older kids (5-10) at a Halloween party because they could do their own ghost faces and word bubbles. Will you attempt a Halloween ghost toddler shirt this year or will your child be wearing Halloween PJs to school (or maybe you’ve found the jackpot of Halloween shirts)!

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Nutella Parfait Dessert

Nutella Parfait Dessert

Ingredients:

Mexican Salad with Honey Lime Dressing

Mexican Salad with Honey Lime Dressing

Ingredients:

Honey Lime Dressing:

Fall Decor Ideas

Fall Pumpkin Flower Arrangement

Fall Pumpkin Flower Arrangement

Halloween Ghost Toddler Shirt

If You Can’t Find What You Want, Make It.

Halloween Ghost Toddler Shirt

Game Plan

You Need a Helper

Cricut Cutting Machine

Try Try Again

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Preschool Montessori Bedroom

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