I FUDGE-ING Love You, Mr. Grumpy

Many people love to travel, adventure, climb mountains, jump off rocks, etc. What do I love? (Other than my Grumpy fam, duh) – I LOVE to eat at new places and try new things. So as such, when Mr. Grumpy told me he had made DINNER RESERVATIONS (literally… he made these like two weeks in advance which is romantic in and of itself) at Lago in the Flats for our Valentine’s date, I was pumped. I immediately started thinking about what I was going to order and how much wine I was going to drink. Tomorrow I start a 21-day clean eating and fitness challenge as part of my Beach Body challenge groups. I am so excited to see the results 21 days from now – my goal is to be at 121 pounds by the end, which is the weight I was on our wedding day. BUT, as my last meal with cream and cheese, you better believe I went all out!

Fun Fact: did you know Mr. Grumpy and I met the eve of Valentine’s Day? Cupid decided to send us both to the same bar – and at about 1:30 in the morning, Mr. Grumpy and his friends had the liquid courage to approach me and my friends. Needless to say, I did not remember his name but DID remember that they were all very nice and told me they were TRAIN ENGINEERS. And yes, I believed them – in fact, I told my mom I had met the nicest boys who were train engineers, and she pointed out they were likely lying. Which, they were. Lucky for them, I stayed around and about a year and a half later, I tricked Mr. Grumpy into our first date. The rest is history. So, lucky girl that I am – Mr. Grumpy always sends me flowers on Feb. 13:

I love getting flowers the day before – and thought I was pretty set for Vday gifts, until I woke up on Saturday to get ready for our 5K and found a box of Shari’s Berries sitting on the counter with a giant Hershey kiss and my favorite – Reese cups shaped like HEARTS.

Then, after eating everything… I felt like this:

 

 

So, I went to the 5K ready to run my little heart out. And guess what – I ran my fastest 5K yet!! At 32:30!!!! I was so proud of myself and excited at how much I’d improved since my last race.

Look! I got a medal! (It’s a participatory medal… I DON’T CARE I AM A WINNER IN MY OWN HEAD!). Ok, yes – I told the nice man at the market that I got first place in the race… but I’ll never see him again. So do I feel guilty? NO!

Here’s a peek at our yummy dinner – Mr. G’s lasagna, my tortelloni, and our dessert martinis!

Anyway – for Mr. Grumpy’s gift, I wanted to bake him something sweet. He’s been so nice about all our healthy eating – and has lost a ton of weight (nearly 10 lbs!!) and he deserved a night off too. In all actuality, these cookies are really not that bad for you – why? Because I replaced the oil with almond oil and there’s no butter needed! You are going to love how easy it is to make these – and how MOIST (I hate that word) that turn out!

I Double Fudge Love You, Mr. Grumpy Cookies!  

I adapted this recipe from this one on Sally’s Baking Addiction

What You’ll Need:

• 1 box of Duncan Hines Double Fudge Cake Mix
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/3 cup almond oil
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Combine the cake mix and baking powder in a large bowl. Set aside. Then, in another bowl, mix the eggs, oil and vanilla extract. Mix in slowly to the cake mix/baking powder (do not use your electric mixer as you want to fold it in my hand). Stop once the concoction forms a soft dough.

Using an ice cream scoop, plop the dough onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 15-18 minutes at 350 degrees. You want them to be slightly dough-y when you take them out of the oven. Leave them on the pan to set. They should be soft and fudgy-licious after about 5-10 minutes out of the oven.

Yum yum! What did you all do over Valentine’s Day weekend? Share your romantic moments!! And remember, Ryan loves you no matter how bad at crafting you are:

And then … Oscar Depants @MrGrumpyHWY

I know that people who post all the time about their kids and pups on Facebook are like THE MOST ANNOYING PEOPLE EVER. I actually unfriended someone once because they were posting from the delivery room at the hospital. But CAN I JUST TELL YOU THIS ONE STORY? Oscar hilariously tried to depants Mr. Grumpy today. In fact, even though we are trying to teach him not to eat things that aren’t his chew toys (not going well), I was basically cheering him on because I wanted Mr. G to get full out Coppertoned. Unfortunately, he wasn’t successful, but I managed to get this super cute video: 

Now, let’s talk about the Groundhog and why I think he’s full of crap. I cannot remember a time when we didn’t get six more weeks of winter, compliments of the rodent. So my question is: WHY DO WE BOTHER? I don’t get the day off work, I just get a shit ton of more snow and cold. Thanks for nothing, Phil. Usually, I’d use the cold weather as … you guessed it … an excuse to not work out. Instead, this year I equipped myself with some Yak Trax and some super serious cold weather running clothes that I bought using Mr. Grumpy’s Amazon Prime account (thanks, hubby!). Here is a pic of me post-run looking just seriously super cool:

 

Yes I am at the grocery store. So the answer is YES I WENT INTO PUBLIC LOOKING LIKE THIS.

It’s so easy to use the weather in Cleveland as an excuse to not work out or run – but when you do have everything you need to take away the excuses, you start getting the running itch. So here I am … training for another half marathon – the Dicks Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon! This past week was my first training week… we have a long run ahead of us! Here was my best day:

So – what’s going to keep me going on this training? Scheduling in advance when my workouts are going to be. This is helping me stay on top of my training and still keep up with Shaun T with what is my last 30 days on the program! When you schedule your week in advance it’s a #nosurprises #noexcuses take to your week – and I bet you’ll be surprised how much you get done!

Like making this yummy taco fiesta chili – and homemade Doritos!

Here’s the recipe: 

What You’ll Need:

• 2 c of dry black beans
• 1 c of dry pinto beans
• 2 cans of Great Northern Beans
• 1 red pepper, cut into chunky pieces
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 1 package of taco seasoning
• 1 jar of salsa verda
• 1 cup of salsa (check to make sure sugar is NOT within the first five ingredients mentioned)
• 1/2 lb of chicken – trimmed and cut into small pieces
• 1 can of diced tomatoes – don’t drain
• 2 boxes of no-sodium added chicken stock

Add all the ingredients in a crock pot and cook on low for 8 hours, until the beans have cooked through and are softened. If you’re in a rush and don’t want to wait, then just use cans of beans for everything and cook it on the stovetop. I just happened to have dry beans from our farmer’s market buys this summer.

The handmade Doritos were gross. I’m not going to lie to you. Sometimes you just make something and are like … WTF WHY DID I THINK THAT WOULD BE GOOD?!?!

What workouts do you have coming up this week? Let’s tackle this one together!

Puppies, Husbands and Other Things That Do Not Equal Excuses

First things first: A brand new bouncing puppy has been added the to Grumpy Family – please meet Oscar. He’s like … sorta happy to meet you.

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Basically I’m going to lose friends because I’m going to post nothing but pictures of Oscar all day long on Facebook and I DON’T CARE WHAT YOU THINK. DEFRIEND ME. I WILL NOT STOP POSTING. K?

Onward, friends. Now, the big challenge with Oscar other than the fact that he’s an 8-week-old puppy and eats everything and poops everything … the BIG challenge is that I have a tendency to make excuses to not work out. Like if I worked 15 minutes later than usual, I claim I’m tired and gift myself a night off. That is a terrible excuse. As one of my motivational quotes says…

Planned Puppyhood
So … I’m not going to use things like puppies and husbands and work keep me from my fitness goals any more. No excuses. That’s what I want you to remind yourself every morning when your alarm goes off to tell you it’s time to work out: No excuses – not one. Mother Teresa didn’t make excuses and she changed the entire effing world. So get your ass out of bed and go say good morning to Shaun T, people. Get!

It also helps if you make this the background on your phone: 

Ok, so what’s going to make not skipping your workouts easier? Planning your meals ahead, and getting them as ready as you can on Sunday so you have barely any work when you get home and are trying to talk yourself out of exercise.

This is what I call Planned Puppyhood. We all have crazy lives, crazy schedules, crazy families with crazy plans and then on top of that, life always throws you a curveball. Get over it – and plan ahead. Your Sunday is getting overhauled, but I am telling you, it will make the next five days so much easier.

Here are some tips: 

• Plan your entire week’s breakfasts, snacks, lunch and dinners. Make a calendar of exactly what you’re going to eat each day so you don’t cheat yourself.
• Go grocery shopping on Sunday and get everything you need for your meal plan. Helpful Hint: If you choose recipes that use similar ingredients, your food will be easier to prep in advance. For example, if you make fajitas for Taco Tuesday and turkey chili for Thursday’s dinner, the peppers and onions will be used for both recipes. You’ll spend less money and gain more time. If your fajitas use ground turkey, well – then you’ve just seriously made your life easy.
• Cut all your veggies – this includes any snack veggies and any recipe veggies. Example: chop half the pepper for the chili and slice the other half for the fajitas.
• Grill a package of chicken – this makes salads and lunch wraps SO EASY. And fajitas! And it also makes adding shredded chicken to recipes easy – why? Because it’s already cooked and ready to be shred, that’s why.
• Cook any brown rice you’ll use for the week and store in a gallon ziplock. Brown rice is yummier after it’s been in the fridge anyway.
• Cook any meals you can in advance and put them in the freezer. Like that turkey chili! Helpful Hint: Let those recipes cool FULLY before putting them in the freezer. You do not want food poisoning and this has been known to cause it. Also, it makes your food taste like plastic when you thaw it if you put it in there hot. I don’t know why…

Ever since I started Sunday Prepping, my life has been easier. I make less excuses to eat out – which was a big one for me – and I don’t make excuses not to work out because most times all I have to do is pop the already prepped dinner in the oven and wait for the timer to pop off. This gives me like an HOUR to work out. You’ll hate the Sunday dishes, but make your husband do those. He won’t mind (WILL YOU, HUSBAND!!?!?!).

Here is an example of our meal plan for this week!

Sunday Prep: Cook turkey chili, make stuffing for peppers, bake banana bread, make casserole (minus the final step of baking it), cut broccoli and grapefruit for snacks and make stuffing for enchiladas, and finally, grill a package of chicken.

• Monday:
  • Breakfast – 1 slice whole wheat banana bread
  • Snack – Apple
  • Lunch – Chocolate Shakeology w/peanut butter and unsweetened almond milk
  • Snack – 1/2 english muffin
  • Dinner – Barley-Stuffed Peppers with Baked Chicken Tenders
• Tuesday: 
  • Breakfast – 1 slice whole wheat banana bread
  • Snack – 1/2 grapefruit w/1 tsp honey
  • Lunch – Vanilla Shakeology w/cooled cup of coffee
  • Snack – 1 cup of broccoli w/2 tbsp rosemary white bean hummus
  • Dinner – Brown Rice Casserole with Cauliflower and Broccoli
• Wednesday: 
  • Breakfast – 1 whole wheat english muffin w/peanut butter and bananas
  • Snack – 1/2 grapefruit with honey
  • Lunch – Chocolate Shakeology with strawberries and unsweetened almond milk
  • Snack – Carrots and hummus
  • Dinner – Turkey chili (made on Sunday, in the freezer!)

…. and so on through next Sunday! I know this seems a bit cray-cray, but trust me… you won’t regret it when your husband asks on Thursday, “What’s for dinner?” and you say “Sweet potato enchiladas that are already made all I have to do is put them in the oven and bake them for 25 minutes!! WHAT WHAT!!!”

What ways do you prepare yourself for Mondays to make your week easier?

For more shameless pictures of Oscar, feel free to follow me on Instagram … I went a bit overboard on capturing his first weekend in the CLE (he loves everything about this city already!).

Cari Loves Crab Legs

Our dearest friends Kelsey and B-rad (who are also getting married this year) let us in on a fantastic secret of relationship-hood that Mr. Grumpy and I decided to give a try. Each week, they alternate who’s turn it is to plan a date. Then, that person gets to plan exactly what they want to do on a date (and are in charge of paying for said activities). The other person can’t say no, too, which is nice because you can’t always agree on things you like to do.

So, Mr. Grumpy and I started implementing this into our weeks, too, and we’re having so much fun. One week, Mr. Grumpy took me to the Zoo, and when it was his turn this week again to plan a date, the best words to ever come out of his mouth … came out of his mouth, “I’m taking you on your crab leg date.” I was so excited. Why? I love crab legs. For multiple reasons. First – you don’t feel guilty when you drown your crabby meat into the bucket ‘o’ butter. Why? Well, because you had to work so hard at getting the meat out of the shell that you deserve the butter. Second – you get a bib and it’s perfectly acceptable to wear it in public. Third – people are always shocked that, being the petite gal that I am, I can down a whole pound of crab legs. The truth is that I can – and do – and really if we’re being honest, I can pretty much down up to two pounds. I’ve never attempted more than two, so I’ll keep you updated on that threshold.

Let’s go back to that bib – because let’s be honest, I really rocked that:

So, this week I am in charge of the date. And boy are we going to have a GREAT time. I signed Mr. Grumpy and I up for a sunset kayak tour at Whiskey Island. Lately, the weather has been so great in Cleveland that it is really just hard to stay inside. Also, I thought … WHAT could be more romantic than struggling to keep your boat straight on the great, great Lake Erie. So, if I survive the tour, I’ll share more on that next week. If you want to just go for it and book your own tour, we booked through 41 North: https://kayak41north.com/.

What are your tricks to keeping your love flame a’burnin’?

Well, you know how they say the way to a man’s heart is through good food – so, obviously, I’m going to share with you what I made for Mr. Grumpy for dinner tonight. I am not a huge fan of pork – but Mr. G loves it, and was so excited to see it in our Fresh Fork bag this week. So, I channeled my dad and made Mr. Grumpy DS’ famous, lip-smackin’ good fried pork chops. My dad always makes this amazing mushroom gravy to go on top of the ‘chops, but we skipped that tonight because we also skipped our workout this weekend, so I didn’t really feel like we deserved gravy. But, what I was MOST excited about was the coleslaw-esque salad I made to go with the porkchops.

Quickly, here’s how you make DS’ lip-smackin’ good fried pork chops:

1. Make sure you get really thin chops. OR if you didn’t, like ours were pretty thick, just make sure to pound them down so they’re very thin. Like a half inch.
2. Season your chops – I used smoked paprika, ground pepper, salt, and smoked chipotle pepper. I wanted them kind of BBQ-y. DS’ seasoning is really skilled and he always puts lots of yummy spices on it, but we aren’t ever really sure what goes on there so I can’t really help you with that part.
3. Dip your chop in a beaten egg, and then in flour. Then, plop it into a hot pan with canola oil that’s been heated. If you don’t like eggs, you can skip that part but it helps make a nice crust!
4. Fry those babies up ’til they’re nice and brown.

Ok – I know that’s not a very helpful recipe, but if you really want good fried pork chops, you’ll just have to wait until the next Sunday dinner that DS is cooking up because his are really the best. Mine were yummy, but just not the same.

BUT – my salad was seriously good, so let’s get to cooking that now. We were really lucky this week to get a ton of yummy, unique produce in our Fresh Fork – like radishes, MORE fresh strawberries (I made strawberry banana cream bread last week that was amazing. The recipe is here, but I added a banana to the mix: http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/strawberries–n–cream-bread), and some things that I and Mr. Grumpy literally had never seen nor heard of before. That includes kohlrabi. So, it looks like a space ship dropped it off in some farmer’s crop-circled farm. It really is strange. But when I cut it open and tasted it, I thought, “Man! This would make really yummy coleslaw.” So, that’s what I did.

Cari’s Southwest Ranch Coleslaw/Kick-Butt Salad

What You’ll Need:

• 1/2 of the round part of the kohlrabi, cut into small, long pieces (“shredded,” if you will)
• 5 radishes, shredded
• 5 green onions, chopped
• 2 stalks of celery, finely chopped
• 1/2 bundle of bibb lettuce, shredded (especially the inner “heart”)
• 1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• 1/3 cup ranch dressing (we’ve been using the kind made from Greek yogurt!)
• 1/4 tsp ground smoked chipotle pepper
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black ground pepper

First, chop all your veggies and put them in the bowl. Next, in a separate bowl, mix together the remaining ingredients to make the sauce. Then, pour it over the veggies and toss. Add more pepper, if needed. Cover and refrigerate for about 30 minutes. It was seriously the best side dish to go with our pork chops. Although, the meal really got me missing my Sunday night dinners at home on the Steiner Ranch! I think a FIndlay trip will be a necessity pretty soon! 🙂

What meals remind you of home? Make it a great week, everyone!

A Quick 5-Month Recap! (And the start of training season!)

Well gosh. It sure has been a while since we last caught up. It’s been kind of crazy up here.

WHY, you ask? Well most of you already know, but … Mr. Grumpy popped the question and… I SAID YES! Actually – let’s be honest. I think the exact words out of my mouth were, “Are you really asking me?!?! Is this real life?!?! OMG YES, YES, YES!!!” Long story short – we’re engaged and knee-deep in wedding planning. Here’s some pics of our engagement session by Mindy Sue Photography (who is seriously the BEST – if you’re looking for a wedding or life-event photog. look no further. Mindy is basically my new BFF and her pictures make me not look like a deranged squirrel, so I’m especially in friend love with her).

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Of course, you’re probably wondering how Mr. Grumpy asked. It was pretty perfect – we were getting ready to head out to his parent’s house for our holiday (yes, I’m talking Christmas it was THAT long ago) celebration. In true Cari fashion, I had NO idea that he was trying to ask me to be his wife. So here I am running around the apartment, turning off all the lights. Then, after turning off the hallway light (the last one that was on), I hear Mr. Grumpy in his I-cannot-believe-you voice say, “Cari!!!!” – so I turn the light back on and there he is, in the hallway, getting on his knee. Then I realized what he was doing and immediately started crying, shaking my head up and down and hugging/smooching him. Then, we tried to call all our friends and family and NOT ONE OF THEM answered the phone… Which would only happen to me! But, eventually they did and we’ve been celebrating ever since!

Now, this winter was especially rough. Hello – did you guys hear about the Polar Vortex? I mean that was no joke. I literally did not leave our apartment until last week – and the 10 days I spent in Colorado with my fantastic fam celebrating the wedding (pictured below!In most of these, I was laughing pretty hard. Not sorry.)

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So after the long, long winter, man – am I ready to thaw out! So ready, in fact, that I already have my first real bad sunburn, compliments of The Ohio State University (we went for Mr. Grumpy’s little brother David’s college graduation last weekend and apparently I thought I was exempt from sun lotion). But, it was worth it David!! (I was basically the only person tweeting live from the graduation ceremony…)

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Because the weather is beautiful and I need to be in shape come October 25 when we say, “I do!,” Mr. Grumpy and I signed up for yet ANOTHER half marathon. Yes, the answer is YES – I am crazy. This means that we start training THIS WEEK. Part of me is excited and the other part is just asking myself, “Why. Why do you do this to yourself, Cari?” Well – sitting in the apartment for five months straight taught me something – I become a true blue Mrs. Grumpy when I can’t go outside. I also do not have the same metabolism as I did at age 23. I also developed a pretty bad addiction to Candy Crush, which ended in me having to completely delete the app from my tired, old iPhone 4. Therefore, it’s time to get my butt in motion. So, starting this week – I’ll be sharing updates on my training, wedding planning and healthy eating as we get closer and closer to the Big Day. Bare with me, folks.

Mr. Grumpy stumbled upon this handy tool on the ASICS website – you just put in what day your half marathon (or whatever your goal is) is, add your previous time (if applicable) and set a goal for this race. Then, it creates a complete training schedule for you at the click of a button. What’s great is that you can adjust your running days (for example, I refuse to run on Fridays, so I just switched my rest days) and you can change your pace at any time between easy, average and hard. What’s even better about it is that you can log all your runs and sync your schedule not only to your Google calendar (or Outlook) but also to your Runkeeper app. And if you miss a run (which happens), then you can easily reschedule.

So – if you’re looking for a handy training tool for whatever your next running adventure may be – you should definitely check this out – myasics.us. You won’t regret it! Or you might depending on how much you want to run…

What was for dinner tonight you ask? Homemade Chipotle bowls!

Here’s a quick recipe:

• 1 cup brown rice, cooked in chicken broth
• 1/2 cup cilantro chopped
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1 lb ground turkey (we use Jenni-O brand!), cooked and seasoned with paprika, smoked chipotle pepper and season salt
• 1 cup of frozen red peppers, onions and green peppers, sautéed and thawed
• 1 can of black beans and 1 can of pinto beans, drained and heated over medium heat on the stove
• 1/4 cup of low-fat cheddar cheese (optional)
• 1 can of no-sodium corn with green and red peppers, drained (we kept ours cold like salsa!)
• 1/2 red tomato, diced
• 1 cup of chopped romaine lettuce

Combine as you like it! I usually put the rice first, then beans, then turkey and cheese, the corn, lettuce, tomato and top it with the hot peppers and corn. But – it’s your bowl, so go through the line just like you would at Chipotle! Boy, this is a LOT cheaper and you’ll be a lot less tempted to put the “bad” ingredients Chipotle offers like the barbacoa or the sour cream. Enjoy!

 

Christmas is in the House: No-Bake Pumpkin Marshmallow Pie (yes… another pie recipe)

Mr. Grumpy finally caved in and let me decorate the apartment for Christmas. I had wanted to decorate before Thanksgiving, but despite my pleas, Mr. Grumpy asked me to “press pause on my Christmas cheer.” Yes, that’s a direct quote. Mr. Grumpy thinks I have too many Christmas decorations and he gets very grumptastic when I ask him to help me unload the three Tupperware containers I have full of red and green everything.

Last Sunday, he promised we could decorate the tree. But as I started unpacking my box of ornaments, I began discovering way more decorations than I had remembered we had. So, needless to say things got a little out of hand. I was hanging up decorations on the mantle, in our entry way, the bathrooms and our bedrooms, and all the while Mr. Grumpy was standing at the tree wondering when the madness would be over. Needless to say, we had to take a 24-hour break from Christmas-ing until Mr. Grumpy could muster up the rest of the strength he needed to get through trimming the tree. So, by Tuesday, it was finally done. Here are some pics!

This is a fun DIY paper banner I got at Target. The package was supposed to include a ribbon, but when Ashley and I opened up the package, there was no ribbon, so we improvised and used yarn. That did not work that well – so about an hour later this was finally done. Phew! 

(This was a great DIY wreath project! Check out the how-to here.)(That reindeer art is also DIY. TGFP: Thank God for Pinterest! Here’s the how-to!)

(This was also a super fun DIY project – and way easier than the ornament wreaths that you have to glue. All you do is take a wire hanger, pull it into a circle, unscrew the hook so you have two open ends, string the ornaments on the wire, twist the hanger closed and tie a ribbon at the top! I made this for a friend as her Xmas present… so shhhh!)

Have you made any holiday decor from things you’ve seen on Pinterest? Share in the comments below!

Now, I wanted to make sure I had something sweet to feed Mr. Grumpy for his service. So, I made him this pie recipe that I found on Kitchen Meets Girl and sent to Suzie Q to try out. She loved it … a lot. So I decided I’d give it a try. The thing was that I was feeling a bit lazy and didn’t want to go through all the steps in the recipe I found. So, I simplified it completely – making it a truly no-bake pumpkin marshmallow pie. Let’s just say that pie was gone by Wednesday. So, if you’re looking for a pie to make for the holidays, trust me – this may be the one.

What You’ll Need:

• 1 pre-made graham cracker crust (I get the Keebler brand)
• 1 egg
• 1 can pumpkin purée
• 1 cup low-fat Cool Whip
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 bag of mini marshmallows
• Chocolate sauce (like you’d put on top of an ice cream sundae)
• Other topping ideas: candied pecans, more Cool Whip (obvi), mini chocolate chips…

First, whisk the egg and brush it on the pre-made crust. Pop that in a 350 degree oven for about 5-7 minutes, until the crust is slightly browned. You can completely skip this process, but I do this because it seals the crumbs in nicely so your crust doesn’t crumble apart. Make sure your crust cools completely before you put your pie filling in.

While that’s cookin’ in the oven, in a large saucepan over medium-low heat, combine pumpkin purée, cinnamon and marshmallows. Stir constantly until it’s all mixed together and smooth. Let that cool in the fridge for about 30 minutes to an hour. Remove from the fridge and using a handheld mixer, whip for about 1-2 minutes until it’s smooth. Fold in the Cool Whip.

Pour the pumpkin mixture into your crust and smooth the top so it’s even. Put the lid on it (most pre-made crusts come with a nice, plastic lid). Let that cool in the fridge for 2 hours or overnight before you eat it. Drizzle your favorite toppings – we used chocolate sauce – on top, and enjoy!

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• It’s the hap-happiest season of all (especially when there is pie) (homewithyoublog.wordpress.com)

 

It’s the hap-happiest season of all (especially when there is pie)

Well friends, the holidays are officially upon us – with Thanksgiving in our past and Christmas creeping up steadfastly. Naturally, I have been avoiding carbs for at least a month to prepare for the madness we’re about to partake in, but really – I can’t avoid it for forever. Also, we all know how much I love carbs.

This Thanksgiving, Mr. Grumpy and I spent several days at his parent’s house, which he fondly calls the Sweat Shop. Why, you ask? No, not because we’re forced into labor when we get there (ok, sometimes we are), but because his mom is an amazing quilter. And she’s always quilting up a storm over there (while I try to sneak away with all her latest creations).

Mrs. O.G. had just gotten back from a trip to Shanghai for work – and as such was a bit jet lagged. She was welcomed home with a house full of guests, including Mr. Grumpy and myself, and the wonderful Grandma Sue (a snow bird). Mrs. O.G. had emailed me while in China letting me know she’d need help with the turkey. This was a frightening email as I’m not typically allowed to even go near the bird. In fact, I’m usually assigned to all the side dishes. My concern was that I would RUIN the turkey and we’d have to get Kentucky Fried Chicken and I would officially go down in history as “that old girlfriend of yours who ruined our turkey.” Old girlfriend because I’m pretty sure ruining the turkey on Thanksgiving is a federal relationship offense. Especially for a meat eater like Mr. Grumpy.

Needless to say, it went pretty smoothly. I was in charge of the salt and pepper, while Mr. O.G. was in charge of other miscellaneous spices, Mrs. O.G. handled the stuffing and the cracking of the bones, which we all know makes me very nervous. Mr. Grumpy didn’t really do much except help empty the crate of Christmas Ale (helpful).

Now, I know you’re wondering, “Cari, salt and pepper? That’s it?? Really not that helpful, whatsoever.” Geeze, you guys are needy. Ok, ok, I KNOW. And don’t worry. Because I’m a good old fashioned Midwestern gal, you know that I didn’t show up empty-handed to the Grumpy Family Holiday. In fact, I decided I would wow the masses with my pie making. That was a disaster…

I tried to find the apple pie recipe I always make with my mom. And I thought I found it. But I realized I had no time to go to the grocery store to get the ingredients. So I sent Mr. Grumpy (who did surprisingly well). Except Mr. Grumpy had to go to TWO grocery stores to find the Pillsbury pie crust (which made him pretty grumpy). Then, we peeled the apples and got ready to make the pie when I realized I had no pie pan. Why, you ask? WELL, I always make pies at my mom’s house. So, this need has never come up. So, at 9:45 p.m. the night before we were leaving for the Grumpy’s, we ran to Target and got a seriously awesome pie pan to cook the pie. Then, we came home and I went to work – and two hours later (yes, at midnight), I texted all my favorite peeps pictures of the perfect creation that came out of my oven (pictured below). But, this was DEFINITELY NOT the recipe I make with my mom – sorry, Suzie Q… I think it may have been better (cringe).

Caramel Apple Pie
The trick to this pie is using your mandolin on the second setting so your apple slices aren’t too thick and not too thin. This is really important because they’ll get nice and soft without turning into mush. And it will make for the best layer of filling on the inside. I found this recipe on the Pillsbury website, and it won a blue ribbon at their pie contest. But, I changed it a bit because some of the portions were just not really adding up to me and I didn’t want to go overboard on the filling. As Suzie Q always reminded me, “Less is more.” And in this case, it really was. So, let’s get cooking, shall we?

What You’ll Need:

• 8-10 small, green apples (about 5-6 cups when you slice them)
• 1 box of Pillsbury refrigerated pie crusts (there are two crusts per box, and you’ll need both)
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour, plus 1/2 cup
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 tbsp caramel apple dip, plus 1/4 cup
• 2 tbsp low-fat milk
• 1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup butter, unsoftened

First, make sure you follow the instructions on your Pillsbury box about thawing the pie crusts. About 10-15 minutes before you’re ready to put together your pie, make sure you take them out of the fridge, then take them out of the box (but keep them in their plastic bags) and let them sit for about 10 minutes. This will make them really nice and easy to work with and will avoid tearing.

Now, preheat your oven to 375. Now, peel your apples. Slice them on level 2 on your mandolin slicer (they should be about as thick as a dime but thicker than your finger nail). In a large mixing bowl, combine 1/4 cup flour, 1 cup sugar and cinnamon. Mix in the apple slices until they’re evenly coated and the flour/sugar/cinnamon combination starts to turn nice and goopy.

Spray your pie pan with non-stick cooking spray. Take one of the pie crusts and put it onto the bottom of your pan, making a nice, straight crust. Line the pie crust with the apple slices and make sure they’re packed evenly throughout.

Then, in a small mixing bowl, combine 2 tbsp caramel apple dip and milk by whisking together lightly. Pour slowly over the apples until they’ve all gotten an even taste. Now, you can reuse your large bowl that had the apples in it – but combine flour and brown sugar. Add in the butter and cut it in using a pastry blender (mine is handheld). Keep cutting it in until you have nice, thick crumbs. Sprinkle this evenly over the apples and caramel apple dip/milk mixture.

Now, using a pastry cutter or a thin, sharp knife, cut 1/2 inch slices of your final pie crust. Place half of the slices going vertically over the pie. Don’t pinch in the edges yet. Then, starting from the middle going horizontally, start weaving in the remaining slices, leaving about 1/2 inch spaces between each slice. You want it to look like a Longaberger basket, like so:

And the finished product looks like this!

Bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes, until the crust is a slight golden brown. Remove it from the oven, and using a small spoon, drizzle the remaining caramel apple dip over the top. Let it cool over night – but do not do what I did … I asked my mother (who thought I made a pumpkin pie even though I told her EIGHT TIMES I was making caramel apple pie) and she told me to put it in the fridge. Nothing will happen if you make this mistake, you’ll just have a very Mr. Grumpy tell you he was right, and you’ll have to let it get back to room temp because that’s really when it will be the most delicious.

Well let me tell you that this pie was a hit among the Grumpy Family – I got approval from a Grandma and an Aunt and the parents and it felt really good! So, if you need to impress anyone this holiday, whip this recipe out. You won’t regret it.

What is your favorite holiday pie recipe?? What were you thankful for this year?

Review: OrganicGirl Baby Kale (a recipe for Minestrone Soup!)

Disclaimer: I was provided product from OrganicGirl to review for this post. All opinions are my own. 

Hello, readers! Long time, no post, eh? Ok – I’m sorry. Life has been crazy – and I have been living off of peanut butter sandwiches, turkey sandwiches, ham sandwiches … and yogurt. And oatmeal. So, I didn’t really think you’d be too excited about that menu, right?

Over the past month, I have checked a BUNCH of things off my bucket list of things to do before I turn 26. The first – maybe most important item – was running my first half marathon. That is a whopping 13.1 miles, unless you take the wide turns – which Mr. Grumpy made me take. So, it was more like … 14.1 miles. With Mr. Grumpy as my SAG man (aka, safety and gear), the 13.1 miles went actually relatively fast, until the 10th mile when the marathon planners thought it would be hilarious and awesome to hit us with the largest hill I think exists in all of Ohio. Which was ridiculous. And we were basically the ONLY people in our running corral that ACTUALLY ran the hill. Which was not easy on the mind games – but alas, I survived. And I did it all without walking. Check that baby off. 

Ok, I know I said that I checked a bunch of stuff off my bucket list, but I really didn’t check that much more off. Really the half marathon counted for like eight items on my bucket list, so I’m sure you’ll understand. I did paint a chevron pumpkin. And went to a clam bake. And ate 3 dozen clams at that clam bake. And then I turned 26 (yes, it hurts, in case you were wondering). It especially hurts when you celebrate it at Ohio University. So, now I’m making a new bucket list of things to do before I turn 30. Here’s a recap of all those activities completed:

Readers, I have missed you so terribly. So what better way to bless you back with my presence than a review about OrganicGirl’s latest, most fabulous product yet! (If you maybe recall the last time I told you all about OrganicGirl when I made super yummy brie sammies with their Vive la France mix). 

I am one of OrganicGirl’s biggest fans. Why? Well – there are a few reasons. First, they make absolutely sure that, when you buy their greens in the produce aisle, that they are ready for you to eat. This means that it is washed THREE times before it gets to you. Which makes me feel really good and safe about what I’m eating. Plus, it comes in these really nice packages that keep your produce fresh for a super long time. We experimented with the last bunch, and it lasted at least a week longer than the other greens in a plastic container you can buy at the grocery.

This time, they sent me their latest and greatest – 100% baby kale.

I’ve been really excited about kale lately. Mr. Grumpy insisted we try it the other day, and so we jumped on the bandwagon. Then, he shared with me all these facts about kale that came out of NOWHERE (this is the same guy that while I was cooking dinner tonight was eating slices of cheese and Laffy Taffy…). I’m not sure he was sharing ACTUAL facts. For example, he claims that broccoli is human-made from baby kale. I’ve seen the Hidden Valley commercials, so I’m not convinced that his source – Uber Facts on Twitter – was being completely accurate. But if it IS true, it is probably why I love kale so much.

OrganicGirl’s baby kale is so crunchy and fresh – I was eating it like potato chips while I cooked. It has such great flavor – the perfect ingredient for my wintertime twist on one of my mom’s chilly evening staples – minestrone soup. As a kid, I used to get so excited to come home and smell Suzie Q’s minestrone soup. It warmed you up from head to toe. Plus DS and Erin always complained when she cooked it – so I would get to eat like 10 times more servings than everyone else (I was a really active kid, so that was ok). 

Kale is extremely important for people like Mr. Grumpy (who’s already training for another half marathon … …) and me (I’m working on mustering up the strength to run a 10K) because they absolutely need nutrients in their system after long runs or endurance work outs. Kale has the highest nutrition rating out of ALL the greens and vegetables. It has one of the highest level of nutrients out there (right up there with collard greens) and acts as an antioxident (you can read all about it on Whole Foods’ website). I mean – kale is just jam-packed with goodness. But what’s even better is you can do way more with it than just make a salad. Plus, literally everyone can cook with kale (I promise you) because it’s a great substitute for other greeny ingredients – including spinach (sorry, Popeye). 

And that’s exactly what we did… So, here it is – adapted from a Cooking Light recipe from a 2005 issue of the magazine (Suzie Q has never shared her minestrone soup recipe with me … thanks, Mom).

Baby Kale Minestrone Soup

What You’ll Need:

• 1/2 cup low-sodium, organic chicken stock
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 links of sweet italian sausage (this can be optional, but it’s really tasty)
• 1 zucchini, quartered and cut into small slices
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 2 cans low-sodium, organic great northern beans, drained 
• 1 can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 tsp ground Himalayan pink salt (or just normal salt if you’re not cool like me)
• 4 cups OrganicGirl 100% baby kale, de-stemmed 
• 1 cup cooked ditalini noodles (minestrone noodles basically)
• 2 tbsp Parmesan flakes 
• 1/2 white onion, chopped

First,  chop up your zucchini and onion. Slice the uncooked sausage into little 1/2 pieces. Then, in a medium soup pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and sausage and cook about 8 minutes until the sausage is cooked all the way through. Then, add the garlic and the zucchini, and let that cook for another 5 minutes. Add the beans, salt, pepper, 3 cups of kale, tomatoes and chicken stock. Let that come to a boil. Turn the heat down to medium-low and let that simmer, covered, for 10 minutes. Add in the noodles and the final cup of kale, and serve immediately! 

This is just a ridiculously delicious, wholesome soup. If you’d like, you can sprinkle the Parmesan cheese on top like you would with a traditional minestrone soup. It is so good. In my mothers words, “Your tongue will literally slap your brains out.”

OrganicGirl offers so many versatile greens – you can use their handy store tracker online to find where you can buy them. I’m a fan! (Or follow them on Pinterest). 

And now – on to some fun pictures of my past month or so in the CLE!! Enjoy, readers! It’s good to be back. 🙂 

  

Erin and I were carb-loading before my half marathon. Naturally, we did so at Great Lakes Brewing Company. And yes, that is my shirt she’s wearing. So I’m the cool sister.

This is Mr. Grumpy and I pre-race. Look how unsweaty – er … I mean, cute we are!

This is Mr. Grumpy and I crossing the finish line. He thinks it is SUPER embarrassing when I wave for pictures.

My first half marathon! Check! 

So what about apartment dwelling?

Mr. Grumpy declared the other day that he feels I need to live up more to my header up there, where I claim to talk about apartment dwelling. I thought talking about the hardships good times of living with Mr. Grumpy was enough to let you in on what apartment dwelling was like, but alas. He’s right. I haven’t given you an apartment DIY project in quite some time. 

His exact words were, “All people are going to think we do is eat.” Which is really all we do, but to throw you off a bit, I’m sharing this fun yet equally frustrating DIY project my BFF Ashley and I attempted after finding it on Pinterest. Of course, when we found it on Pinterest, it had no instructions with it. So, naturally, we improvised (we’re not this talented). 

I’m not going to lie – this took us a good five hours. One footlong sub and an entire jug of Mod Podge later, we were pretty convinced that A) we should not be allowed to craft and B) the Mod Podge may never come off our bodies … ever. We were COVERED in Mod Podge, but when we finally finished this, boy were we proud. So, if you’re feeling brave, go ahead and give this a try. It’s a fun little piece for your gallery wall or for a fun housewarming present. 

What You’ll Need:

• 1 small blank canvas (we got ours at Wal-Mart. They were about 8.5×11)
• Scrapbooking paper of different patterns
• Scissors
• A bottle of Mod Podge
• Foam paint brushes 
• Your dignity (you’ll loose this later, after four hours of cutting and gluing and realizing you have to start over because you laid out all your paper slices and realized you forgot to put the Mod Podge on the canvas… I digress)

First, you should start by cutting out your strips of paper. It is really important that they are all the same size. Ours were about a half-inch wide and 4 inches long. It depends on how wide you want your chevron. Or how well you’re planning ahead. You’ll need about 30 strips. 

Next, Ashley and I laid out our strips of paper. Actually, we laid them out so perfectly that we realized we forgot to Mod Podge the back of them. Don’t make this mistake. Slowly, place the first strip on the upper left corner of your canvas so it dips in toward the middle. Press that down lightly so the Mod Podge sticks to the canvas.

Next, take another strip (different pattern) and, in the opposite direction, place its edge up against the first strip’s end, leaving a bit of a gap. It will look like a V block letter from college shirts. Each edge will meet each other and create a new row, moving downward. Repeat this until you’ve covered the entire canvas. It’s almost like braiding your hair – so, one strip’s end will be the next’s starting place. 

Then, once all your strips are placed, cover the entire canvas with a thin layer of Mod Podge. Make sure that there are no bubbles on your strips – if there are, gently press them down. Next, your edges will still be sticking out. Begin on one end, and gently fold them down and around to the back of your canvas. Mod Podge the edges down and place the entire piece of art on a canvas to dry. It won’t take long to dry. We used the glossy Mod Podge to add to the finish of the … dare I say… art. 

Proud??? You should be. This baby was tough. (Thanks, Pinterest)

Weeknight Dinner: Zucchini Taco Boats

Well, let’s just make it a theme here, people. Why NOT have tacos again? I can feel you judging me, but for some reason – lately, Mexican food has just sounded really good (even though the heartburn after has not felt necessarily great).

But before we dig in, I must tell you about Mr. Grumpy’s and my new favorite thing: Downton Abbey. Suzie Q and DS decided to buy the entire series on DVD and the last time we were in Findlay, we decided to borrow them. Also, Mr. Grumpy was feeling … grumpy … because Suzie Q had borrowed a book from his side of the bookshelf at our apartment and he was not convinced that he would ever see that book again. So, I think he wanted to get even. Even though Suzie Q promptly returned the book the following weekend… I digress.

Downton Abbey is pretty good. But what makes it slightly bittersweet is that I’m so in love with the entire family at the abbey, that I fear I’m mistaking my own life for theirs. For example, instead of getting my OWN glass of water, I’ve taken to saying, “Mr. Grumpy, be a dear and fetch me a glass of water.” I also asked Mr. Grumpy to buy me a bell so when I woke up in the morning, I could ring my bell and he would know to come frolicking in the room with a tray of coffee and biscuits. He was not really keen on that idea, but I think he’ll come around.

So, Mr. Grumpy and I decided that, instead of being around people this weekend, we would hide in our apartment (which our dear friends Kelsey and B-Rad have started calling the Cave) and watch half the series. Then, after not emerging for two days, we decided it was time to get outside and see if the sun was actually shining. It was…

After making Mr. Grumpy wait on me like a butler all weekend, I decided it was time to treat him to a night off the dishes. In fact, I even made two dinners tonight (one for my crock pot which I’ll tell you about later this week) and tonight’s dinner. AND THEN I DID ALL THE DISHES. And boy, am I a messy girl. But I can’t help it. These hands weren’t meant for this type of hardship. Right, Downton gals? Right.

But, it was all worth it for these Zucchini Taco Boats. These babies were so delicious that Mr. Grumpy even emerged from behind his laptop screen (it was Fantasy Football night) and asked me if he could have seconds. Awes. Ome.

I adapted this recipe from SkinnyTaste – one of my go-to places for healthy-like recipes. Her recipe made only four boats, but mine made six. I’m not sure why… but I was not complaining.

What You’ll Need:

• 3 medium-sized zucchini
• 1 lb 85-15 ground beef (or 90-10 is cool too)
• 1 package of low-sodium taco seasoning
• 1/2 white onion, chopped
• 1/2 green pepper, chopped
• 1/2 red pepper, chopped
• 1/2 cup taco sauce
• 2/3 cup water
• 1/2 cup fresh salsa (your favorite kind!)
• 6 tbsp plain, non-fat greek yogurt
• 4 green onions, chopped
• 1 cup organic, Mexican shredded cheese blend

First, preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Put a large pot of salted water on the stove, and bring it to a boil. Slice your zucchini in half, long-ways. Then, take a melon baller and gently remove the middle from the zucchini. Save 1/2 cup of the middle part and save the rest for the recipe I’m making later this week (Super Bowl in August Meatballs!). It should look like this when you’re done!

In a medium pan, brown your meat. Drain the fat. Add the water and taco seasoning, plus the onion and red and green peppers. Stir, and then add in the taco sauce. Cover and let that simmer on low for 10 minutes. Remove the cover and let it simmer for another 10 minutes.

Now, your water should be boiling by now. Place your zuccini boats gently in the water for 1 minute. Remove immediately and set aside.

In a large baking dish, pour the salsa on the bottom and make sure it’s spread evenly. Then, once your meat mixture is done simmering, spoon it into each boat and press down lightly to make sure it’s really packed. Each boat will get about 1/3 to 1/2 cup of the meat mixture. Place each boat on top of the salsa in your baking dish. Not going to lie – you will likely burn your fingers a bit here (because I did!). Sprinkle the Mexican blend cheese on top, and cover with aluminum foil. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven, and let it set for 5-10 minutes, depending on how long you can wait to eat it because it will smell SO GOOD. 

Once you’re ready to eat, sprinkle green onions on top and a dollup of Greek yogurt. You can sprinkle shredded lettuce on the top too! But, you also really don’t need these toppings because this is really, really tasty. I promise.

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