We started grilling a lot this past summer and I came across I great recipe for chicken. The marinade is really easy, and the ingredients are pretty basic. We decided to have it for Ben's birthday and despite some issues from the propane being so cold it still turned out great! Everyone asked for the recipe so I thought I would post it here. I found it originally on allrecipes.com, which is a great site! Enjoy!
Unbelievable Chicken
1/4 c. vinegar
3 tablespoons mustard
3 cloves garlic, pressed (optional)
1 lime juiced
1/2 lemon juiced
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp. salt
black pepper to taste
6 tablespoons olive oil
6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
In a large glass bowl stir together vinegar, mustard, garlic, lime and lemon juice, brown sugar, salt, pepper, and olive oil. Add chicken and marinade overnight.
Preheat and lightly oil outdoor grill. Cook until chicken is no longer pink in the center and juices run clear, turning as needed.
It is so easy, and it always turns out good! Sometimes we use chicken tenders, which is nice because they cook faster. If you are short on time, you can prepare this the morning of and allow to marinade at least 6 hours.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Johnson and Johnson Deal, 96% off!!!
Right now there is a great deal available on Johnson and Johnson products! There are $2.00 coupons available for several brands including Aveeno and Clean & Clear. Also there is a $10.00 rebate available if you buy $30.00 worth of participating items. Now lots of places around town are having sales too which can make these items free or almost free, however due to the popularity of Pinching your Pennies, everytime I go for sales like this they are out of the things I want.
So I came up with my own sweet deal! Right now there is a coupon for $10.00 off a new or transferred prescription at K Mart. I needed a refill on Zander's reflux medicine, so I was able to take advantage of that, and here is how my deal played out.
This brought my total from down to $11.49. After the $10.00 mail-in-rebate, my total out of pocket will be $1.49, for a total savings of 95.92%!!!!!
Not quite free, but close enough!
So I came up with my own sweet deal! Right now there is a coupon for $10.00 off a new or transferred prescription at K Mart. I needed a refill on Zander's reflux medicine, so I was able to take advantage of that, and here is how my deal played out.
- I bought 6 items for a total of $36.49
- Some items were on sale, saving $3.00
- I had a $2.00 off coupon for each item, taking $12.00 off
- I used my $10.00 gift card
This brought my total from down to $11.49. After the $10.00 mail-in-rebate, my total out of pocket will be $1.49, for a total savings of 95.92%!!!!!
Not quite free, but close enough!
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Birthday Cake!
Yesterday was Ben's birthday but since it was a work-day, we celebrated with our families on Sunday night. We had everyone over for dinner and cake, and had a really good time!
A few weeks ago I asked Ben what kind of cake he wanted and he told me he wanted a Reese's cake or Butterfinger cake. I'd never made anything like that, so I hit up Google for some ideas and recipes. This is what he decided on.
Reese's Cup Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake
Ingredients
For the cake:
For decorating
1 1/2 to 2 batches peanut butter icing
1/4 to 1/2 c. melted and cooled chocolate
Directions
For the cake, pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour two 9 inch cake pans, and line the bottom of the pans with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl stir together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a large stand mixer beat butter on medium until soft and creamy. Add sugar and beat for about two minutes until mixture is thoroughly blended. Add eggs and yolks one at a time, beating for one minute between each addition and scrape the sides of the bowl as needed between additions. Add vanilla. On low speed alternately add the dry ingredients and buttermilk. Add the dry ingredients in 3 additions and buttermilk in 2 additions, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Mix each addition only until blended. Scrape down the bowl and fold in cooled chocolate. Divide batter between prepared pans.
Bake for 26-30 minutes or until cakes are springy to the touch. Allow to cool on five minutes, then gently run a knife around the sides of the pan. Unmold them and remove the paper liners, then allow to cool right side up on cooling racks until they reach room temperature.
To prepare the icing, on medium speed mix confectioners sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla, and salt until creamy. Scape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Turn the mixer to high and slowly add the cream. Whip until light and smooth. Now you are ready to assemble your cake!
To assemble, place one layer of the cake flat side down on a cake plate and frost the top. Place the second layer flat side up on top. Frost the top first and then the sides. To decorate place halved peanut butter cups around the top and bottom of the cake. Put the melted chocolate in a sandwich bag, cut off a tiny bit of one corner, and you can write on top of the cake, or use the chocolate to drizzle over the top and sides.
This cake was a lot of work! It turned out really great though, so it was definitely worth it. The trick with this one is to be sure to allow the mixture to beat the appropriate amount of time between each step! Also, you need to scrape down the sides of your bowl regularly. Be sure to allow the melted chocolate you are using to decorate with, to cool properly or it will be really runny like mine was. I made two batches of icing, and had a lot more than I needed for this cake. If you have left over frosting you can either eat it immediately, or put it in the fridge or freezer. It tastes great on just about everything!
A few weeks ago I asked Ben what kind of cake he wanted and he told me he wanted a Reese's cake or Butterfinger cake. I'd never made anything like that, so I hit up Google for some ideas and recipes. This is what he decided on.
Reese's Cup Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 2 c. flour
- 1/2 c. cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 2 sticks unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 1/2 c. sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 4 oz. melted and cooled chocolate (I used semi-sweet chocolate chips)
For decorating
1 1/2 to 2 batches peanut butter icing
- 1 c. powdered sugar
- 1 c. peanut butter
- 5 tablespoons butter at room temperature
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1/3 c. heavy cream
1/4 to 1/2 c. melted and cooled chocolate
Directions
For the cake, pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour two 9 inch cake pans, and line the bottom of the pans with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl stir together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a large stand mixer beat butter on medium until soft and creamy. Add sugar and beat for about two minutes until mixture is thoroughly blended. Add eggs and yolks one at a time, beating for one minute between each addition and scrape the sides of the bowl as needed between additions. Add vanilla. On low speed alternately add the dry ingredients and buttermilk. Add the dry ingredients in 3 additions and buttermilk in 2 additions, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Mix each addition only until blended. Scrape down the bowl and fold in cooled chocolate. Divide batter between prepared pans.
Bake for 26-30 minutes or until cakes are springy to the touch. Allow to cool on five minutes, then gently run a knife around the sides of the pan. Unmold them and remove the paper liners, then allow to cool right side up on cooling racks until they reach room temperature.
To prepare the icing, on medium speed mix confectioners sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla, and salt until creamy. Scape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Turn the mixer to high and slowly add the cream. Whip until light and smooth. Now you are ready to assemble your cake!
To assemble, place one layer of the cake flat side down on a cake plate and frost the top. Place the second layer flat side up on top. Frost the top first and then the sides. To decorate place halved peanut butter cups around the top and bottom of the cake. Put the melted chocolate in a sandwich bag, cut off a tiny bit of one corner, and you can write on top of the cake, or use the chocolate to drizzle over the top and sides.
This cake was a lot of work! It turned out really great though, so it was definitely worth it. The trick with this one is to be sure to allow the mixture to beat the appropriate amount of time between each step! Also, you need to scrape down the sides of your bowl regularly. Be sure to allow the melted chocolate you are using to decorate with, to cool properly or it will be really runny like mine was. I made two batches of icing, and had a lot more than I needed for this cake. If you have left over frosting you can either eat it immediately, or put it in the fridge or freezer. It tastes great on just about everything!
Sunday, January 3, 2010
2010 Savings Tracker
After several attempts to create a functional spreadsheet to track our savings, I came across this free downloadable one! I've already entered a few receipts and I love it. I am so excited to have an easy way to track my spending, and see how much I am able to save this year!! Check it out!
Caramel Rolls
This summer Ben's grandparents came to visit from North Dakota, and I had the opportunity to learn how to make Florence's famous Caramel Rolls. It took me a few tries to really get the recipe down, but I think I've finally got it. (I keep getting requests for them all the time, so that is a pretty good sign!) I use my bread machine to make the dough, but I'm sure you could do it by hand or with a stand mixer.
Caramel Rolls
Dough
1/3 c. water
1/3 c. milk
3 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 c. sugar
1/3 c. dry milk
4 c. flour
1 tsp. salt
2 1/2 tsp. yeast
1 stick butter, softened
Caramel
1 c. heavy whipping cream
1 c. brown sugar
You will also need enough butter to spread over rolled out dough, and cinnamon and brown sugar to sprinkle on top.
Directions
First put water, milk, and eggs in bread machine. Mix together dry ingredients (sugar, dry milk, flour, salt) and add to bread machine. Next put add the yeast, and put the butter on top. Start machine. While dough is mixing, begin the caramel sauce by heating the cream and brown sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly. Heat just until the mixture begins to bubble. Remove pan from heat and allow to cool. When the caramel has cooled, pour it into a greased 13 by 9 pan.
When the dough is ready, roll it out into a large rectangle. Spread with butter, and sprinkle with cinnamon and brown sugar. Roll up and slice into 12 rolls. Place the rolls in the pan on top of the caramel.
At this point you can either allow the rolls to double in size and then bake them for 20-25 min. in a 350 degree oven, or you can cover them and let them rise in the fridge overnight. (I usually like to prepare these the day before.) When you are ready to bake your rolls simply take them out of the fridge and let them sit at room temperature while the oven heats, then bake them for 20-25 min. at 350 degree oven.
The rolls are done when they are golden brown on top, and have a hollow sound when you tap them. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before flipping the pan over onto a clean cookie sheet.
I was going to take pictures of the different steps along the way, but I forgot. Here is a picture of the rolls fresh out of the oven and after being flipped over. I hope you give these a try, and enjoy these as much as we do!
Caramel Rolls
Dough
1/3 c. water
1/3 c. milk
3 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 c. sugar
1/3 c. dry milk
4 c. flour
1 tsp. salt
2 1/2 tsp. yeast
1 stick butter, softened
Caramel
1 c. heavy whipping cream
1 c. brown sugar
You will also need enough butter to spread over rolled out dough, and cinnamon and brown sugar to sprinkle on top.
Directions
First put water, milk, and eggs in bread machine. Mix together dry ingredients (sugar, dry milk, flour, salt) and add to bread machine. Next put add the yeast, and put the butter on top. Start machine. While dough is mixing, begin the caramel sauce by heating the cream and brown sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly. Heat just until the mixture begins to bubble. Remove pan from heat and allow to cool. When the caramel has cooled, pour it into a greased 13 by 9 pan.
When the dough is ready, roll it out into a large rectangle. Spread with butter, and sprinkle with cinnamon and brown sugar. Roll up and slice into 12 rolls. Place the rolls in the pan on top of the caramel.
At this point you can either allow the rolls to double in size and then bake them for 20-25 min. in a 350 degree oven, or you can cover them and let them rise in the fridge overnight. (I usually like to prepare these the day before.) When you are ready to bake your rolls simply take them out of the fridge and let them sit at room temperature while the oven heats, then bake them for 20-25 min. at 350 degree oven.
The rolls are done when they are golden brown on top, and have a hollow sound when you tap them. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before flipping the pan over onto a clean cookie sheet.
I was going to take pictures of the different steps along the way, but I forgot. Here is a picture of the rolls fresh out of the oven and after being flipped over. I hope you give these a try, and enjoy these as much as we do!
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Smith's Savings 12/30/09
It is always fun to look at my receipt when I get home from the grocery store to see how much I saved, so for 2010 Ben gave me the idea to track my savings on a spreadsheet and see the savings add up! Also this year we are setting a strict budget to help us keep our finances in order so we can buy a house. I got an idea from moneysavingmom.com to take actual cash to the store. The idea is that when you have actual cash you feel more responsible with your spending than when using a credit/debit card. So each month I will take out money from the bank and set it aside, and that will be our grocery budget for the month. That is all the money we will have, and any leftover will go into a 'date night' fund! We are starting with a budget of $200.00 each month which will include groceries, toiletries, diapers, etc. Another way to help us stay on budget is by going to the store as few times as possible. That way we don't pick up as many impulse items!
Anyways, last night I went to Smith's to get the majority of our groceries for January. We do most of our grocery shopping there, because they have great prices and are really close to where we live. Also they have a rewards program where you can earn points for every dollar that you spend. The points accumulate quarterly, and they send you a check. You earn $5.00 for the first 500 pts. and $1.00 for each additional 100 pts. They are having some great sales right now, including a really sweet Proctor & Gamble promotion! For this promotion you earn 500 bonus points for every $25.00 you spend on participating products. Since we use Pampers diapers, and I use Herbal Essences hair products, which are both P&G brands I was stoked about this promotion!
My total 'out of pocket' spending last night was $139.39. My total coupon savings was $41.78 and my total FreshValues savings was $34.12. I also earned 1360 bonus points, so that is like getting an additional $13.60 off! So that makes my total savings $89.50!!!
$139.39 may seem like a lot of money, but I was able to get enough food to last us almost a month, and about a months worth of diapers and wipes, plus over a months worth of shampoo and conditioner! We should only need to buy milk, bread, and some fresh produce when we run out. I'm really excited because it looks like we will be coming in under budget for January! We have a pretty good stock-pile of non-perishable items so my cupboards and pantry were pretty much already bursting before this shopping trip!
Here are a few pictures of what I was able to get. Keep in mind this doesn't include my milk and eggs, plus all of my frozen food (two bags of chicken, veggies, pizza, and potatoes).
I just want to point out that a lot of people think that when you live on a budget, you have to buy crap. That is so not true! As you can see we are able to buy mostly 'name-brand' items. When you watch for sales and combine them with coupons, you can almost always get things cheaper than buying store brands!
Anyways, last night I went to Smith's to get the majority of our groceries for January. We do most of our grocery shopping there, because they have great prices and are really close to where we live. Also they have a rewards program where you can earn points for every dollar that you spend. The points accumulate quarterly, and they send you a check. You earn $5.00 for the first 500 pts. and $1.00 for each additional 100 pts. They are having some great sales right now, including a really sweet Proctor & Gamble promotion! For this promotion you earn 500 bonus points for every $25.00 you spend on participating products. Since we use Pampers diapers, and I use Herbal Essences hair products, which are both P&G brands I was stoked about this promotion!
My total 'out of pocket' spending last night was $139.39. My total coupon savings was $41.78 and my total FreshValues savings was $34.12. I also earned 1360 bonus points, so that is like getting an additional $13.60 off! So that makes my total savings $89.50!!!
$139.39 may seem like a lot of money, but I was able to get enough food to last us almost a month, and about a months worth of diapers and wipes, plus over a months worth of shampoo and conditioner! We should only need to buy milk, bread, and some fresh produce when we run out. I'm really excited because it looks like we will be coming in under budget for January! We have a pretty good stock-pile of non-perishable items so my cupboards and pantry were pretty much already bursting before this shopping trip!
Here are a few pictures of what I was able to get. Keep in mind this doesn't include my milk and eggs, plus all of my frozen food (two bags of chicken, veggies, pizza, and potatoes).
I just want to point out that a lot of people think that when you live on a budget, you have to buy crap. That is so not true! As you can see we are able to buy mostly 'name-brand' items. When you watch for sales and combine them with coupons, you can almost always get things cheaper than buying store brands!
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
All Things Domestic
Being a stay-at-home mom certainly brings it's share of adventures, so I am starting this blog as a journal of my triumphs and failures at all things domestic. For the most part I think I will focus on cooking, crafting, and couponing, but I'm sure I'll have some other good stories to share along the way.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
