My Ten Minute Project!

So I decided to dress up my lonely kitchen window! It has needed some love for quite some time now and since I had extra fabric hanging around, I thought - why not put it to use! 

Now this would be my very first valance type window cover and I think I did a pretty good job. It may not be perfect but it works for me. 

If you haven't been in my kitchen, it's a bunch of brightness so I knew I wanted a bold pattern for the window. So I decided to use a yellow and white chevron pattern. 

I measured the window and was beyond happy that I had enough fabric!! 

And can I tell you how easy it was! Super easy! 

I then used sticky Velcro to put up. Not the most professional way but its up there!!! And I love it!! 

It literally took me about ten minutes from beginning to end. 

What spur of the moment project have you tackled lately?

Knitting and Cooking!

While you are all sweating your booty's away - I am knitting my finger tips to the bone! It is that time of year folks. Fall will be here before you know it and it takes a lot more time to knit an item than to sew it. I cant wait to add some new products to my Etsy shop within the next few weeks.

SO with that being said I HAVE to share a recipe with you guys. This is so easy you will do a little dance in your kitchen. I am always trying to find recipes that do not take long at all. Our kitchen is tiny - so I try not to spend too much time in there cooking! Sometimes that happens and sometimes it doesn't.

So my husband and I wanted steak the other night but we weren't too enthused about standing out in the heat over a hot grill - that's when I decided to take a risk. I was watching The Chew the other afternoon (its a cooking talk show on ABC at 1pm - if you aren't home then, I suggest recording it just for the recipes...they are divine!) and saw an amazing steak that they seasoned and pan-seared. Now first I must tell you that my husband was very skeptical about cooking a steak inside. He is definitely an advocate for cooking meat on the grill but I told him to trust me. If I could get it to look as good or close to the steak on The Chew, we were golden!!!

So here are the ingredients:

STEAK:
4 NY Strip Steaks
3 tablespoons Canola Oil (I used veggie)

RUB:
2 tablespoons ground Coriander
2 tablespoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon Chipotle powder
1 tablespoon Sweet Paprika
1 tablespoon Kosher salt

COMPOUND BUTTER:
1/2 pound Unsalted Butter (softened)
1/4 cup Chopped Cilantro
1 Garlic Clove
1 small Shallot
Juice and zest of 1 Lime
Salt and Pepper

Directions:
For the Rub: In a medium bowl, whisk together all of the rub ingredients and set aside. Preheat a large cast iron sauté pan (I used a skillet) over medium heat.

Instructions:
Drizzle some oil onto the steaks. Season the steaks on both sides with the rub, being pretty liberal with it. Cook for about 3 minutes per side for medium rare. I cooked mine longer - my husband and I like well done steaks. Then remove to a plate to rest for about 5 minutes.

Compound Butter:
Now before I give this to y'all, I didn't make this with my steaks. My husband isn't a sauce-on-a-steak kind of guy, so I left this part out, but it sounds amazing!!!

While the steaks are cooking mix together your softened butter, cilantro, garlic, shallot lime zest/juice, and salt and pepper in a food processor or mixer until well blended.

Add a spoonful of compound butter on top of each steak before serving!

I made some black eyed peas and green beans with ours and it was delish!!!

Happy Independence Day!

America was not built on fear. America was built on courage, imagination and unbeatable determination to do the job at hand - Harry S. Truman


I hope you all have a wonderful 4th of July! Stay safe and remember all those who sacrificed so much for us to have the freedom we have today!

GOD BLESS AMERICA~

Red Light Special!

So there is some big news in the Hart house! Oh and no we aren't pregnant!! We actually found a table that fits our entire family and MORE! I have been searching for a cheap table and chairs for forever that would accommodate all five of us and then some. Finally this week I was able to make that happen thanks to Craigslist. I love that little piece of heaven! I would have to say that half of the furniture in our house is from there.

SO back to my table! I love this thing! I found this table and bench last week for under $50 and I immediately called the lady and told her that I wanted it. The next day we went and picked it up! The only bad thing was - it didn't come with chairs. Not a problem! I searched for kitchen chairs the following day and found four chairs for under $40. So for everything, we spent less than $85!! Here is a picture of the kids enjoying the new table.

Here are the chairs I scored off of Craigslist. The second one from the left bit the dust once I examined each one. The wood was split in several areas. I am not sure why I didn't notice it when I picked them up, but oh well! It was still a good deal!

 I used Krylon Dual spray paint for the chairs. I decided not to sand them down and I just sprayed right over the finish. My kids seem to ruin almost every kitchen table and chairs set, so I wasn't going to put too much time into these chairs. So I bought the dual paint with primer and it worked perfectly!

Here are the three finished chairs! I love love them!!!

So there they are! I love love love them! And it just so happens that the chair we had is red. Coincidence? I think not!

I kinda like the mix match feel! I am eventually gonna paint the table legs. I am not feeling the natural wood look. Not sure where I will go with those but I will keep y'all updated!!

Time To Get Real!!

So I have put some thought into this whole Insanity thing and I have decided to document it on the blog! I know not everyone is going to want to hear about this workout journey, but it will be nice to be able to look back at where I started. I did take a before pic of me but I am still debating putting up here. It may take some convincing for me to do that!

But today was my day 2 of the workout and I seriously wanted to give up. I was crying about half way through and ended up screaming because my entire body was on fire!! I have never and I mean never, had a workout that pushed me that much. No elliptical or treadmill has or will ever make me workout that hard. Not only is it a cardio workout but it is strength training as well, just with using your own body. Other accessories are not required!

Here is a beautiful picture of me after the workout! My headband was drenched and the sweat was still coming through onto my face. It was intense!!!

That is my mean face, haha! Aren't you scared? I wouldn't be!

I am mentally prepared for this journey - maybe not physically, but I will get there.

I was hanging out with one of the best today, Katy, and she told me a way she got pumped up before a workout. If she didn't have the motivation or drive she would head over to YouTube and search "Insanity results." She would sit there and watch people transform from this workout. So I am going to show you guys one of my favorites that I have seen so far. It makes you want to turn on the TV and pop the DVD in!





I am telling you! This thing works and I cant wait to see how my body changes. I am going to take measurements tonight so that I know where I was and where I will be in 65 days.

I am so excited!

Confetti Fun!

So as I was browsing Pinterest last night I came across some clean eating confetti cupcakes that looked delish! Of course, as everyone would do - I clicked it!  I had to see what these cupcakes were made of and to see if I could create them for my family.

Once I clicked it I was taken to the website known as Dashing Dish. Can I tell you that I fell in love with this website! You have to sign up for a membership to view the recipes and everything else on the website so I decided to do some searching on the web to get a few reviews and it seems that I am not the only one who loves it. The membership is based on whatever you want to give. So you get to decide how much this website is worth to you!

Here are the cupcakes!

Picture from Dashingdish.com

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup - old fashioned oats or 1 1/4 cup oat flour
1/2 cup - plain or vanilla protein powder or an additional 1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup - baking Stevia or 1 cup of sweetener of your choice
2 tsp - baking powder
1/2 tsp - baking soda
1/2 - salt
1 tsp - almond extract
1 tsp - butter extract or vanilla extract
1/2 cup - applesauce
1/2 cup - plain non-fat Greek yogurt
3 -  large white eggs
1/4 cup - unsweetened almond milk
2 tbs - rainbow sprinkles (optional)
1 (8oz) container light whipped topping (optional)

Directions:

- Preheat oven to 375 and line muffin pan with liners and spray
- Blend everything (except sprinkles and whipped topping) in a blender or food processor until batter is smooth. Stir in sprinkles if desired.
- Pour into liners and bake for 18-20 minutes. Let them cool completely and then top with whipped topping and remaining sprinkles. Store leftovers in the refrigerator.

Recipe from Dashingdish.com

My goal is to make these for this coming weekend!!! I will let you know how they turn out. But honestly if you are looking for a website that has some amazing recipes as well as "clean" recipes, this is the place to go! Donating some $$ once a month is worth getting some amazing ideas! I hope that you check it out. Go to www.dashingdish.com

A Side Of Honey Please

So last nights dinner was wicked awesome! I mean I hate to toot my own horn, TOOT TOOT!

Doesn't that look amazing??? Here is the recipe for you guys.

Honey Bourbon Chicken:

Ingredients:

• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs
  
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 1 cup honey
• 1/2 cup gluten free soy sauce
• 1/4 cup gluten free ketchup
• 1 tablespoons oil
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/4 tablespoon red pepper flakes

Directions:

Put all ingredients into slow cooker and mix. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Remove chicken from slow cooker and cut into strips. In a bowl, combine 2 tablespoons cornstarch with 1 tablespoon water and add to crock pot with the chicken.  Stir. Cook on high for 10 to 20 minutes. 

Recipe courtesy of onceamonthmom.com

I added some green beans to a wok and sautéed them with some honey, soy sauce and sesame seed oil. They turned out awesome!