Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Deal Alert: Primal Pit Paste

What's Green?

[Note:  This sale only lasts until Jan 29, 2014 11:59 PM EST]

[Another Note:  I am in no way affiliated with this company.  I am simply sharing this info about a product that I have tried have enjoyed.]

Primal Pit Paste uses only safe ingredients in its deodorants and other products.  I got their Body Whip when they had a sale around Christmas and I absolutely love it!  I actually like it better than my plain virgin coconut oil that I've been using for years for my face cream.  The children have used it on their dry winter skin and really like it.  I got the sample tiny jar of deodorant and it didn't work as well as my homemade version so I'll hold off on getting that until the "strong" is in a stick (since I already have my own for home, I only need a stick for travel).

Anyway...

In their newsletter that I just got yesterday they announced the following:

Buy 2 Pucker Paste and get 1 free
Buy 1 Body Whip and get 2nd one 50% off
Buy 1 Primal Pit Paste STICK and get 2nd one 50% off

The sales didn't show up on the homepage but it took it off when I put some in my cart to verify it before posting.  Double check your totals before confirming your order just to make sure.

http://www.primalpitpaste.com/

[One last note:  I am, however, an Amazon affiliate so if you miss the sale you can find it at these links below as well - or at this page - and I'll get a few cents.]

Saturday, January 25, 2014

Chicken Spaghetti

What's Cookin'?

Well, not much, actually, since I'm not in my own kitchen!  However, I made this the other night and the children loved it.  I didn't actually measure while I made it so I'm guessing approximate quantities :).

What makes this so easy is having the chicken cooked ahead of time.   The chicken can be boiled or baked - a great use for leftovers!


Ingredients:

- 1 pre-cooked chicken breast, shredded in big chunks or diced however you like it.  Mine was huge.  Use 2 if they are regular-sized (Sprouts had boneless/skinless on sale for $1.69/pound). Approximately 2 cups of diced chicken.  You could use 2 cans of chicken if you wanted, but I recommend fresh.

- 2 "cans" of cream of something soup.  I avoid MSG so I suggest either making your own or getting a clean brand.  Again, not at home, so I use Pacific Organic Cream Of Mushroom Soup and Pacific Organic Cream of Chicken Soup .  I used one of each but will only use 2 of the cream of mushroom next time.

- 2 ribs of organic celery, diced.

- 1/2 onion, diced.

- 1 package of preferred spaghetti noodles (12-16 oz)(these could be regular, gluten-free, etc).

- 8 oz shredded cheese.  I've been using Tillamook because it's hormone-free.  You can get the 2 pound block at Wal-Mart for less than $9.  One block lasts me about 2 weeks (depending on what we're eating that week).  I usually get 2 blocks per month.

- Approximately 1/2 cup water to thin the soups.

Directions:

Cook the noodles al dente and drain.  Don't overcook because they will be going into the oven later.

While the noodles are cooking, sauté the onions and celery in a small saucepan with plenty of real butter.  [When they were done I added the drippings from the chicken pan.  If you do that, omit the water in the recipe.]

Mix the 2 soups, the diced onion/celery, and the water/drippings in a bowl and mix well.

Pour the mixture into the cooked, drained noodles and mix well.  Add the diced chicken and mix again.  Add the shredded cheese last and mix again.  Pour immediately into a 9x12 baking dish.

Topping:  You could reserve a bit of the cheese for a topping.  I toasted 2 pieces of bread to make some quick bread crumbs and sprinkled it on top before baking.  Oldest daughter especially liked that touch.

Bake at 350F for approximately 20 minutes, covered (until bubbly).  Remove cover and bake another 10 to firm it up a bit.

To freeze:  You could freeze before baking or after.  I would freeze before for a ready freezer meal, but I froze 1/2 the casserole after baking as leftovers.

Serve with a fresh salad and a smile :)

Servings:  This recipe made 2 full meals for 5 people (and my kiddos had seconds!).







This recipe is a part of Real Food Wednesday

This post has some affiliate links that may possibly generate a few cents income.

Friday, January 24, 2014

Back online!

Wow... It's been quite some time since I've even been able to check my own blog!  I've been out of touch since November 8th (to be exact!).  That's the day our house closed and we moved in with my mom.  My husband got a router and hooked it up this weekend so now I'm back in the saddle :).  Right now I'm letting my olders sleep in to hopefully keep them well for the SAT this Saturday.  Since we've moved out of our house they are constantly fighting off something or
catching something (sigh!!).

Here are some goodies:

100% Pure has free shipping on all orders right now.  I recently got some nail polish and some creamstick (lipstick) from them when they had a great sale.  I haven't tried the nail polish yet, but the creamsticks are good:
http://www.100percentpure.com/

Chronological History Reading List.  This is so, so awesome:
http://4real.thenetsmith.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=45096

I can't wait to have a minute to delve into this.  This blog has Western Civilization/World History/World Literature/British Literature/British History/Classics/I've run out of tag words but it has a lot.  I wish I had seen it before doing Dante - I skimmed that section and there are some online resources [Of course that was the middle of our move so I'm thrilled to have gotten through it at all!]
http://abandonhopefully.blogspot.com/

Sourdough Bierocks and Empanadas [I will try without the sourdough starter since I'm not at home and it should work great with fresh milk]
http://axiomathome.blogspot.com/2014/01/sourdough-bierocks-and-empanadas.html

Homemade hand sanitizer:
http://www.wholesimplelife.com/homemade-hand-sanitizer/
[I'd like to know more about whether the dosage of 30-40 drops for the amt of ingredients is strong enough to work...]
Here's another:
http://www.homemademommy.net/2013/05/homemade-disinfectant-spray.html

I cannot wait to try this chocolate cheesecake recipe - mmmm!
http://heavenlyhomemakers.com/chocolate-cheesecake-pie-real-food-ingredients-make-real-good-treats

I know I just posted this link but when I re-opened up my blog page this jumped out at me and it was the same day I got online to search for how to get a bunch of coconut oil out of my daughter's clothes.  Ha, didn't remember that I had linked it myself!  I went to the link and have the jeans running in the wash right now.  First I just dusted it with baking soda.  The jeans had already sat for several days and I didn't have access to my mom's laundry machines at the time.  So, I dusted them and they had to sit for 2 more days.  Today I finally have access so they are in the washer after having been rubbed with dish soap.
http://wegotreal.com/remove-grease-stains/

Caramel Coloring may have cancer causing 4-methylimidazole, or 4-MEI.  Consumer Reports found it in sodas.  I wonder if they will check other foods with caramel coloring.
http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2014/01/23/shock-study-some-soft-drinks-contain-cancer-causing-chemical/

I'm considering selling Young Living Essential Oils.  Anyone sell it and have feedback for better or worse regarding selling them?  Please answer me offline (or if it's just a positive you could comment below).  Actually, since all comments are moderated you could post a comment either way and it will just go private.  Thanks!

Also, a big thank you to any that have gone through my Amazon affiliate links while I've been in no-man's land.  I earn a few cents through those purchases and really appreciate it.

It's so good to be back!