Entertainment Goodies

I have not posted in ages! I got so focused on having to post about DIY projects and when I was not doing them, I did not think I had anything to talk about. My dear husband reminded me of all of the other things I have been doing with my time. So here we go!

Holiday Nutter Butter Recipes!

I came across these pictures on pinterest, of course and actually tried one of them out. They were sooo yummy and were quickly snatched up while we tailgated.

How- to- make

Halloween ghosts!! I forgot to take a picture of mine, but I know they were not nearly as smooth as this picture. Nevertheless, it was obvious they were ghosts and they were an easy sweet to pick up and eat! I realize I missed Halloween by a couple of days with this post, but I have another version for Christmas!

How-to-make

This photo is linked like the other one, but there is no recipe for the Santas. I would imagine it is the same basic ingredients and process as the Ghosts but with added sprinkles and different dipping technique.

I love finding cute sweets that are easy to make and easy to eat. Hope you like these too!!

Painted Frame on Labor Day!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Labor Day weekend! We have been cooped up in the house due to rain. I enjoy bumming around the house, but J is definitely stir crazy. Luckily, I was able to use free time to be crafty while we watched football and tennis. 

I had two large dark frames that needed freshening up. 

 The border was dark black with gold trim. I covered them in spare wrapping paper.  We will see if I end up keeping them that way.

A quick and easy project for the weekend!

Oven-Baked Bar-B-Q Chicken

Last night I was in desperate need of an easy recipe for a LARGE pack of chicken thighs that were taking up room in my freezer. I came across this finger licken recipe at The Hungry Mouse. It is so easy and so delicious. J could not get enough!


Here is a more edited version of how I did her recipe. For her full version (her BBQ sauce that she used etc.) click on her link above. How delicious does this look?! I would fix it again tonight!



Through out the recipe there are picturs of her leg quarters. I used thighs but really any part of the chicken will do.

Oven Baked BBQ Chicken

4 chicken leg quarters (or thighs or whatever piece you like)
kosher salt
spray canola oil
3/4 – 1 cup barbecue sauce
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
Serves 2

Oven Baked BBQ Chicken:  Prep

Line a sheet pan with foil. Set a rack in the pan. Set aside while you sear the chicken. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.



Grab your chicken leg quarters.



Give them a rinse and pat them dry.


Set a nonstick pan on the stove over high heat and spray with a little canola oil. Let it heat up for a minute or two.



Oven Baked BBQ Chicken:  Sear the Chicken

When the pan is hot, drop in a few of the chicken leg quarters, skin-side down. You don’t want to crowd the pan (or your chicken will steam, not sear), so do this in a few batches.



With my thighs I was able to fit four into a pan. Searing them really adds flavor and makes them gorgeous to look at before you enhale them!

Cook them on high like this for a few minutes, until the skin is nice and brown, like this. You’re going to make a little smoke. That’s just fine. ( I made A LOT of smoke )



When the skin is browned, transfer the chicken to your prepared pan. Repeat with the rest of the chicken. (I only brown the skin side. I find that intense high heat on the skinless underside can dry the meat out a little.)



Oven Baked BBQ Chicken:  Brush with Sauce

When all your chicken is browned, you’re ready to coat it in barbecue sauce. Put the sauce in a medium-sized bowl so it’s easier to work with.



Using a brush, paint each piece of chicken on all sides with barbecue sauce.







Oven Baked BBQ Chicken: Bake for 15 min and brush with more sauce

When each piece of chicken is coated, pop the pan into your preheated 375 degree oven. Bake like this for 15 minutes.



After about 15 minutes, yank the pan out of the oven. Your chicken should look about like this. (The color will vary based on the sauce you use and how much sugar is in it…the more sugar, the darker it will likely be.)



Brush with the remaining barbecue sauce, covering each piece on all sides again.





When the chicken is coated again, pop the pan back into the oven. Bake at 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes more, until they’re cooked through completely. (Your chicken should be in the oven for a total of 45-50 minutes.) Even with my small thighs, I cooked them for this amount of time and they were perfectly juicy.



After 30-35 minutes, they should have a nice crust. If you’re a meat thermometer type, you want a reading of 165 degrees in the thickest part of the chicken (without touching a bone).



Transfer to a serving platter.



Sprinkle with chopped cilantro. ( I skipped the cilantro because I did not have any)



Serve and enjoy!



I know this is a very beginner/step by step process, but I am on that level of cooking and this was delicious! I served them will butter beans and potatoes. We ate like kings for a small price!!
Try this out and let me know how you like it!

Cake in a Jar

It is finally Friday and I think we need something bright and fun going into the weekend! I found a recipe for making cakes in a jar! I chose the Rainbow cake because it is so colorful and happy!

Family Kitchen

Cakes baked in jars can be topped with traditional metal canning lids and stored in the fridge for up to five days. They make a great treat to ship to someone, so long as you can ensure delivery to it’s final destination within 3 days. They are great for dinner parties or afternoons with kids! I love how creative you can be with the variations!

Rainbow Cake in Jar

1 box white cake mix made according to package instructions

Neon food coloring in pink, yellow, green, turquoise, and purple

3 one-pint canning jars

1 can vanilla frosting

Rainbow sprinkles

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Thoroughly wash and dry the inside of each canning jar. Spray the inside of each jar thoroughly with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.

Scoop about 1/2 cups of cake batter into five small bowls. It doesn’t have to be perfect, don’t panic if you get a little more of less of one color than another. Tint each bowl of cake batter with the food coloring until very vibrant.

Spoon about 3 tablespoons of the purple batter into the bottom of each jar. Spoon equal amounts of turquoise batter, then green, yellow, and pink. Place the jars in a shallow baking dish, add about 1/4″ in water in the baking dish. Place the baking dish in the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes.

Remove jars and allow to cool completely before scooping a small portion from the top of your cake and adding a hefty dollop of vanilla buttercream to the top. Sprinkle & serve, or cover with a lid and store in the fridge or pop into the mail & surprise someone you love!

Follow the link to Family Kitchen for more fun and creative eats!

A Do-It-Yourself Weekend!

I was going to save this for Friday, but I am too excited about it to wait! I have two projects that J and I are going to tackle this weekend, Crate Plant Hangers and Stained Jars! I doubt he is as excited as I am, but he is being a good sport.

So, I found both of these or the inspiration for these on pinterest, of course.

I found this picture as my inspiration for the Crate Plant Hangers:

This is a beautiful way to create privacy for my carport. Because this was an inspiration picture, there were no How-to instructions on creating this.

Then I came across this picture...

and thought, huh...I can work with this! Lucky for me, I saw a pile of crates on my way home from work. I hopped myself out and loaded them into my car. Not an easy task in a dress! When J saw how excited I was we went back and he helped me load up some more. My plan is to start the project of recreating the first picture with the crates that I found. I will be sure to take pics of the process!

My next project inspiration came from this picture on pinteres

How awesome are these? I have a ton of mason jars at my house that are just sitting in my cabinets. This is a great way to jazz them up (in any color) and use them around the house and outside. I will also share how-to step by step process with pics!

Are you planning any Do-it-yourself projects this weekend?

I dream in pins...

A pinterest dream would include

Walking into my home with green privacy

Falling into this chair as I gaze out...

this window.

My living room woulde be full of textures and colors

and my kitchen would be my second home.

where I snacked on these

Of course my bathroom would show my favorite colors

This is where I would dream in pins.

Oh to live in the dreams of pins where all looked and tasted as it should!

Do you dream in pins??

 

Photo Challenge/Pets

I Heart Faces is doing a photo challenge for pets, I came across this on Her Southern Charm and decided I had to enter!

This is Beau.

He is a beautiful red quarter hourse that has been my pet since I was 12. We have enjoyed many trails and rodeos in our years. Now he naps in the fields, unless I sneak up with a camera and wake him ;)

Have a pet that you think is precious? Enter their photo into the Face Challenge at

Financial Peace!



Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace

When J and I got married, I still had 3 more months of school left before I could start working. Due to some situations that popped up during our engagement, he supported both of us. The circumstances were unsual and put a financial strain on us. After we got married, we still lived off of his salary until I began working in August. We developed some credit card debt due to the pre-marriage strain in addition to all of my student loans.

Being the accountant that he is, he was determined to find a way to get us debt free. The pastor that married us let us borrow the at home Financial Peace kit and we finally broke it out a couple of weeks ago. It is amazing!! Dave Ramsey finds a way to make the discussion of debt, budgets, and saving hilariously motivating. We got to where we spent our evenings after work listening to his dvd because they were so entertaining.

We are on the road to being debt free by my 29th birthday!(currently 25)

The steps we are taking are definitely aggressive. We sat down and decided that we wanted our credit cards paid off and cancelled. This goal should be met by April 2012(turning 26). We are banking to have a couple of student loans paid off by then too. We also decided that rather than paying student loans off as they are scheduled, we are going to dedicate my  entire paycheck to them so that we can have them gone before we begin having children (estimated 29-30).

This is so exciting to think about, BUT it is going to be a tight and frustrating road. All of those home projects and pieces of furniture, and beautiful fall boots are no longer impulse buys. They are part of a budget that is saved up monthly. Every penny is budgeted.(This was a hard concept to grasp). I am now mastering coupons, and shopping deals. I am obsessed with DIY projects and want to learn to sew! SO, through this process I hope to share what I learn and hopefully learn from others!