Friday Things #379
1. I hope you had a fun and safe Fourth of July weekend! We hung out at home and then watched our neighbors set off fireworks :)
2. And then the next morning, I was subsequently reminded that no matter how late my kids go to bed, they will undoubtedly wake up at the same time they do every other day of the year (although, Isabelle did sleep in!). Which is why we will hold fast to our 7pm bedtime as long as possible 😝
3. A couple of nights ago we lost power for a couple of hours between dinner and bedtime. We hung out in the basement where it was nice and cool and the boys built puzzle after puzzle together on the floor. Loved seeing them work together and get along so well!
4. I’ve been drinking more coffee lately, but I still don’t like it black. I’ve taken to adding a couple of spoonfuls of Ghiradelli ground white chocolate and a splash of milk (since the Starbucks white chocolate mocha is really what helped me turn the corner on coffee back in November/December!), but I’d love to hear how you dress up your coffee and get some new ideas. I don’t want TOO much sugar, but I need SOMETHING ;-)
5. Loved this so much >> 20 Things I Will Not Regret Doing With My Kids
Save This Recipe
Enter your email address, and we'll send it straight to your inbox!
6. The July Bake-Along recipe went live this week! In case you missed it, it’s the All-Butter Pie Crust. I can’t wait to see all of the amazing pies you bake this month!
7. I feel like quarantine and stay-at-home-ing has burnt me out on cooking ideas and menu planning. I’d love to hear what you’ve been making or your meal planning formulas that work for you!
8. Favorite creams and/or pumice stones for super tough calluses on feet? I’ve developed a couple and they are not a picnic!
9. We finished Downton Abbey a couple of nights ago and we already miss the Crawley’s! We still need to watch the movie but have begun Fearless (Amazon Prime) in the meantime. So far we like it!
10. TGIF! I can’t ever resist some good Judith snuggle time ❤️️
Putting a shake of cinnamon right into grounds is good. Also steaming up some whole milk adds sweetness
Just love your receipts and your blog. Seeing your children makes me smile.😍 They are the same age as my grandchildren, who I watch all the time. What a blessing our children are🥰❤️ Keep up the great work😍👵🏻
I am in the same rut with meals at home. I went over to Tik Tok to get some different recipes since I needed some motivation for new things to eat for summer. I have a 7 & 6 year old so we have to get creative sometimes. I made rice paper rolls with fruit inside. The kids liked making them and eating them. (I didnt really enjoy them) But I might start BBQing again to get something different. I grilled a head of romaine on the BBQ and then put Cesar dressing on it. That was pretty good.
Hello,
I’m Glenda Carter in Southaven,Ms.
My husband is very bad diabetic &
heart patient so I read recipes even
if my family can’t have hardly anything
w. sugar!! Your children & your doggy
are PRECIOUS!! I wish I had your
energy so keep on as I know I look forward
to seeing what’s next.
Take care,
Glenda Carter
What is the “ground” white chocolate? Is it shaved? Chunked?
I am from Pittsburgh originally – Crafton. Been in WI for 20 years, but still miss the Bucs, the Penguins, the Strip District, and Shadyside.
I am going to try your coffee trick! Have you tried vanilla or almond extract in your coffee? I even use the imitation ones for coffee only (not baking). They add a great flavor to coffee. Sometimes I just add nutmeg and milk. If I could find that vanilla bean flavored powder they have at coffee shops, I would be set! As for dinner; we have been doing lots of grilling: sausage, pork tenderloins, chicken thighs, hearts of romaine, etc. Also lots of BLT sandwiches and this weekend I am going to make up a couple of different pasta salads for us to eat. It’s just too hot to cook and I am also burned out from being at home for so long.
Happy Friday!
You can find a vanilla powder on King Arthur Flour’s website.
I buy the Starbucks coffee at the grocery store, always dark roast. Add one teaspoon of organic sugar, a sprinkle of cinnamon and then add organic half & half, just enough to make it a caramel color.
Using just a small splash of flavored creamer and then using regular milk for the rest of the dairy (I like my coffee super light) is a good compromise for me when I’m just bored of plain coffee. Also, at-home cold brew is so easy and so good. (I’m an iced coffee person all year.) I use a pitcher with a removable mesh core and let it steep for a day or two. It uses a lot more grounds than hot coffee, but it really couldn’t be easier.
No kids so my situation is pretty different, but even though my husband and I get a few meals out of any dish I make and even though I do love cooking, I’ve also had moments where I’ve felt like this cooking/cleaning/dishwasher/repeat cycle is really getting old. What’s really been fun for us is designating Wednesday as a buy lunch day (Uber Eats or pickup) and Friday as takeout night. It’s fun to plan those two meals together and it’s nice for me to be able just kick back once work ends on Friday–and it really feels like an “occasion” to get takeout, with so little else going on right now! Plus, we’ve almost exclusively been buying from independent local restaurants, so feels good to know we’re supporting a part of our community that we particularly love.
I enjoy reading your blog so much. Thank you for sharing all the adorable pictures of your children.
I didn’t enjoy the taste of coffee until a few years ago. I started drinking blended mocha drinks. Then I would ask for half the sweetener, no chocolate drizzle or whip cream to help lower the calories. Now, at home I make my own coffee drink. I add a cup or so of ice cubes to my blender, 12 oz of room temp coffee, a little maple syrup, teaspoon of cocoa powder (or you could add your Ghiradelli white chocolate powder) and a splash of half and half. Blend and hopefully you will enjoy.
Have a wonderful weekend!
I love the new Chobani creamers. They are all natural with few ingredients and soooo yummy!
I especially love the Sweet Cream flavor. It tastes like melted vanilla ice cream. They are great in coffee or with tea. I love it with Early Grey tea in the evenings.
I have two recommendations for the foot creams. Kerasal Intensive Foot Repair is amazing. I used it for a week at bedtime then use it once in awhile afterwards. I use the La Roche-Posay Lipikar Balm AP+ Intensive Repair Moisturizing Cream. Got this as a sample from my own dermatologist. He said all his staff loves it. I can see why. Love it for an every day cream. Keeps the legs feeling sooo smooth and soft all day. I use this cream on my feet too. The Kerasal I saw on Dr Dray’s video (YouTube). She has great skincare and hair advice. She was spot on with the Kerasal.
My meal planning is cooking as much as I can on the grill so hubby has to help. 😉 Grilled fish tacos have been a hit. Love them with Sir Kensington’s Chile Lime Crema and amazing wild fish I order from Northwest Wild Foods. It used to be you could make whatever you wanted but during this pandemic certain ingredients just weren’t available. So now I go with the idea of let’s just see what there is to work with in the grocery store. Makes it interesting. But after cooking for over 32 years I’m ready to retire but my new grandchildren probably won’t allow me to. Lol. Thank you for sharing all that you do with all of us. Love your recipes. Love watching your family grow. Laughed and cried right along with you all these years. Praying God continues to bless you and your family.
Hi Michelle!
Try Vital Proteins Collagen Creamer. I prefer coconut flavor. It’s super good for you and only 1 gram of sugar.
Micro plane + aquaphor + socks! Your feet will thank you!
https://www.amazon.com/Microplane-Colossal-Pedicure-Rasp-Foot/dp/B00756HQNQ
equal makes a really yummy salted caramel sweetener, i get a box of the packets online at walmart. i love them! sugar free too
I can completely relate to the fact that you are burnt out from the quarantine cooking, etc. I am a big baker and have even stopped a lot of that because I just don’t want to be in the kitchen much anymore than needed and the don’t even get me started on the dishes! I have 3 kids (2 are teenagers) and a husband that is a big eater so…
As for foot creams, I love love love Earth Therapeutics Soft & Smooth Gentle Foot Peeling Foot Mask. I use one every couple of months and my feet feel like butter! You put the “sock” thingies on and let them stay on for 90 minutes and then in a couple weeks-your feet begin peeling and that lasts about a week. It is kind of gross-all the peeling-but I just keep socks on because it is so worth it! I also put Eucerin Advanced Repair foot cream on my feet every day and put socks on and that helps too! Both are inexpensive and can be purchased at Walmart or Target. Hope this helps!
I second Earth Naturals Foot Peeling Mask. I am picking up 3 in my Walmart order today. My feet have never been better, but a week or so after using it your feet peel like something out of a horror movie. In my opinion it is totally worth it, but you should be adequately warned ahead. Several days of socks are required to keep DNA shedding to a minimum. 😉
I spent a half day going through blogs, magazine and other recipe sources that I’ve flagged over the past few years and putting them all in a Word document, organized by type, with an index. Now, I look in my freezer, decide what meat we are using, look at index and pick a recipe. It’s been a game changer, and I’m trying so many new recipes, which has been fun too!
I’ve been getting into my Not Your Mother’s Make Ahead and Freeze cookbook this past week – my husband came across a really good sale on chicken so I had to find ways to make it and save it, haha. I was also passed down a 7-lb roaster chicken from my grandmother, who got it on sale and then realized she didn’t need a 7-lb chicken, so I prepped it the Ina Garten Perfect Roast Chicken way but stuffed it with a big quartered lemon and a whole pile of garlic scapes. It. Was. Delicious. The drippings were so garlicky and lemony in the best way – I skimmed the fat off after refrigerating overnight, then pureed some roasted carrots and sweet potato chunks (I’d put carrots, onions, sweet potatoes, and baby red potatoes in the roasting pan under the chicken) into it to thicken it without flour. Served the chicken over rice with the gravy and oh my heck, it was amazing.
I have to say, I’ve been feeling the cooking burnout – we’re getting our weekly CSA box now that we signed up for back in February, full of local organic produce, and while I LOVE fresh veggies I’m definitely struggling to find creative ways to use all of it right now. Not to mention the unlimited recipe/prep idea options (thank you, internet) regularly induce decision paralysis…
CoffeeMate Sugar-Free Creamers are amazing! I love the hazelnut.
There is nothing like a big fur buddy to snuggle with… the definition of unconditional love. Judith is a lucky gorl to have been adopted into such a loving home.
I am with you on the cooking. Sometimes I just stare at the contents of my refrigerator and my brain goes blank even though there are plenty of options for making a meal.
I guess we al just have to be patient…these unusual days will pass and some kind of normal will return. It has to happen. In the meanwhile…it is nice to look forward to you Friday posts and pictures of your kids when I open my computer.
I like a couple of spoonsful of Penzey’s Hot Chocolate With a Hint of Mint in my coffee.
Yum, this sounds amazing. Something I might need to try this winter. Love the thought of coffee, chocolate and mint together. Bet its yummy. What do you add for the mint part?
I have really learned to like coffee black but sometimes I add some almond milk. I also think espresso is smoother than coffee. some coffee can be extremely bitter. I love to cook at home but I’ve been feeling burnt out as well. I think seeking out summer fruit and vegetables has helped revamp my salads. And if you don’t want to go out to eat, take out for a night or two may really help.
I’d love some inspiration for menu planning. I’m in such a rut lately!
Heros Chiropody Sponges are the absolute best for dry feet. I get mine from Caswell Massey.
I’m with you on not drinking my coffee black. I have been enjoying my coffee with a pump or 2 of various Skinny Mix coffee syrups. They are sugar-free and have a large variety of flavors. I am also having difficulty planning dinners because we have been eating at home so often. I look forward to suggestions others might have.
I like Aveeno foot mask for softening calluses.
I just started drinking coffee a few months ago, and I generally put a little cinnamon on top, but you just opened up a new world for me with chocolate…
I don’t take sugar in my coffee, but my niece uses the Torini French vanilla syrup – there are a variety of flavors.
Julia from Lemonstripes published a daily foot care post a couple of months ago that might be helpful: https://lemonstripes.com/beauty/daily-foot-care-routine/
For dinner, I’ll make anything from Smitten Kitchen. Tonight we are making the instapot pork carnitas from The Kitchn website.
Hi Michelle, Love your blog. Re: coffee. I like agave OR Pure VT Maple & 1/2&1/2, heated together a minute, then add your freshly brewed coffee.
Hi Michelle! Love your blog. RE: Coffee: I like Agave, available at Costco, or Pure VT Maple syrup, & 1/2&1/2, heated together for a minute, before adding freshly brewed coffee. Lili
For hotel coffee, to mask the taste, I stir in a packet of hot chocolate mix. Makes it kind of like a mocha and since I normally drink coffee with cream and sugar anyways, it’s not too much of a stretch. Maybe a couple spoonfuls and splash of cream if need it creamier?
I generally prefer my coffee black, both hot and iced. But occasionally i enjoy either with a couple of tablespoons of Eagle Brand added to each cup/glass.
I’m making this for dinner tonight. https://smittenkitchen.com/2015/06/oven-ribs-even-better/
I made this a few days ago and it is yummy.
https://sweetlittlebluebird.com/slow-cooker-queso-chicken-tacos/