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Cooking Spray

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 21 December, 2013 No comment

Homemade Pam or cooking spray is easier than snapping your fingers. Although snapping for some people is impossible so with great hope, this is really easy and quick. :)

Honestly I haven’t bought Pam in almost two years. I actually began getting a napkin wet with canola oil, coconut oil, EVOO and so forth. But due to the inconvenience of having to take the extra minute to get the napkin wet, I decided I would purchase my own “cooking” spray bottle and label it as “cooking spray.” How unique is that?

All you do is take 1 part lemon juice to 1 part EVOO. It will separate just as oil and water separate, simply shake before using. :) Easy huh? Even though it’s so simple I still want to share with you as it has no chemicals and your fingers will not get all oily.

One more thing to check off your list that is chemical free.

Pregnancy Joys, Miscarriage Woes

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 20 December, 2013 No comment

It seems so natural to think about all the baby joys of pregnancy and laugh (maybe months later) at the thought of morning sickness. However, it seems that many people also struggle with the woes of tragedy in a pregnancy as well. I’ve known too many people in the last 6 months who have not only been pregnant and delivered healthy little ones but also those who’ve experienced tragedy. It breaks my heart as I see the hurt and pain they experience while waiting anxiously for their precious bundle. When that dream isn’t fulfilled my heart aches for them. I also have a couple friends who have even struggled to become pregnant while they see people like myself who had a “surprise” pregnancy. Watching “surprise” pregnancies do not help them with the feelings they experience within their own trials.

Trust! We have to trust that the Lord has a plan for all our precious babies out there; the ones that are born and the ones He takes home very early.

If you’ve read my pregnancy story you will understand that my pregnancy was super easy, but delivery was my nightmare come true. Here I am today, two blood transfusions later and I have a healthy little boy who is about to turn 18 months old and I myself am healthy again, so I think. I went in a couple days ago for my annual check up, refill my prescription and to get a flu shot. Unfortunately I experienced quite the surprise on Sunday before my appointment. I found out I had a miscarriage. The utter shock of emotions pulsing through my body was unexplainable. Tears of sadness flooded my eyes as my husband and I questioned what had just happened. The traumatic experience was definitely something I will never forget. Walking through the hallway at the Hospital after the news pierced my heart, I quietly look up at my husband and utter the words. We both walked stoically through the remainder of the white, cold hospital hallway to our car.

Not quite sure how to respond to the news as Sunday was very traumatic for our family and by Wednesday I was unsure what emotion to express as my assumptions had been affirmed. Since I believe life happens at conception, than the reality is I lost a precious child that would have been a brother or sister to Cooper. Knowing my baby was unable make it through a healthy pregnancy and is now in the lap of our Heavenly Father, comforted my soul.

The outcome hasn’t changed, I’m still very sad about our circumstances as my emotions are trying to paddle quickly to reality. Though I didn’t cry when the news was confirmed, is was not because I didn’t care but simply because the loaded sentence spoken to me, held life and death all in one short sentence. The power behind a miscarriage is much stronger than I had realized until now. I’ve known a few people who have gone through this tragedy but having gone through it myself, puts a huge perspective on the feelings that flooded my soul in this one short word. The questions, sadness, shock and cold feelings that are experienced became much more than words but a reality that I am no longer pregnant; I lost a child.

Being a mom and hearing the words of losing a child is unfathomable. I grasp my son in utter love and protection, wishing no harm to ever come upon him. I want to protect his soul even more than I had previously; if that is at all possible. Being a mother has placed a love inside me that I simply couldn’t obtain without having my son. You never know the depths of love you can hold for a child until you cradle them in your arms. The deep protection and fear you hold to guard their tiny heart is unimaginable. I’m blessed and thankful to experience these feelings. Having known what I am missing is more challenging but on the same hand brings complete love pouring on my son as I am blessed to have him.

Now had I been able to plan my own story for my life it would have played out a bit different: I would meet the man of my dreams, fall in love, get married, begin my beautiful family and live happily ever after. The end!

Seems so simple and proper. Although this wasn’t my reality, it was a dream of mine since I was very young. The real life story played out as this: I got pregnant with a man I barely knew, rushed dating him to get to the nitty gritty of whether we loved one another or not. We fell in love in the process of my pregnancy, got married, and had Cooper John.

HOLD IT…..this isn’t the story I had wrote for my life, this wasn’t how it was supposed to play out. It was extremely difficult being pregnant and learning who my spouse was all at the same time. Logically my story seems to be the better of the two plans. We didn’t know one another so why didn’t I miscarry back then? Why now?

Hindsight is always 20/20. Had I not had Cooper when I did, I would be an entirely different person and in an entirely different place in life. As I recount what actually has played out in my life, Cooper was beyond a blessing and actually healed my own soul in many ways I would not have experienced without having him in the timeframe of which we conceived. As hard as it has been to get pregnant out of wedlock, I must say I would NEVER go back and change the scenario as God has faithfully allowed my life to take the course in which it has. Through that, I’ve come to Christ, which has changed my lifestyle one hundred percent, I’ve been blessed with my adorable son, my now husband, and a life I would not hold had things happened any differently. I needed to become pregnant 2 years ago with Cooper for me to understand I have been blessed immensely. Timing was everything. Cooper was meant to come two years ago, not today.

With that in mind, we all wish our cards would play out differently to avoid heartache and tragedy, but I believe most circumstances in life bring us back to a dependence on Christ. Just as my story played out entirely different than I saw fit, I wouldn’t be the person I am today without it. Now, I’m not saying that going through these things has been easy. Most of them have been beyond joyful, thankful, protected, and faithful circumstances even the tough ones; there’s still something to be thankful for in the midst of pain. I have peace and am thankful and confident knowing life brings immense trials but I wouldn’t change it for the world.

The bigger picture here is that there is ALWAYS a reason our story takes paths we never expected or wished we would travel. But God allows them in our life to keep us humble and to learn more about ourselves and His faithfulness. Sometimes we will gain a perspective as to why particular tragedies occur but often we don’t. I may never know why I had this miscarriage and that is okay. What I do know, is that God is faithful and will use it in my life in one aspect or another. I also know that God has blessed me with my already born child and my role as a mother is to guard and protect his heart. I’ve been given Cooper to take care of him and love him; this has to be my focus and my place of rest.

I heard it once said “cracks in the heart allow the light to shine through.” Most of life requires some heartache to see the light in the midst of the trial. Heartache brings perspective and allows the focus to be reassembled.

Thankful for my little bundle of complete joy. I love you Cooper John!!!

Moment of Truth: Rest in peace knowing you do not have to know all the answers. Trust that God loves you and is taking care of you. Rest in His peace and stop searching for answers that don’t fit the bigger picture.

Christmas Extravaganza

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 19 December, 2013 No comment

Christmas decorating, shopping, chopping down Christmas tree and Seattle bliss…

I wanted to share a few pictures with ya’ll as the Christmas Extravaganza has been in full bloom lately.

Starbucks is always in line with our walking….

Downtown Seattle

Big boy wanting to walk the streets of Seattle rather than “stroll” the seats in stroller.. :)

Stud Muffin

Christmas Tree lighting in Pikes Place

Wish list???

He did incredible at dinner…

…maybe because he could NOT stop looking at the beautiful girl a couple years old across the way…??

Pretty clean cut I must say…thanks to the hubby!

Independent little man enjoyed our festive weekend.

Loving my Poinsettias

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 18 December, 2013 No comment

I love plants more now that I can keep most of them alive. :)

Buffalo Chicken Log

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 18 December, 2013 No comment

Tonight I made this bread loaf and stuffed yummy goodness items such as chicken, blue cheese, mozzarella cheese, and buffalo sauce. Mmmm how could you possibly go wrong with these items? You can’t.

I’ve made this previously but always add whatever is on hand which helps switch it up a bit. :) I think I get bored of recipes and get to “lazy” to drive a half mile down the road and pack my son with me while we traipse through the store for a couple random ingredients. In fact I know I become to lazy for this. Taking Cooper in and out of the car seat and driving 200 feet from door to door while needing bananas is beyond frustrating. Not my thing. The contemplation process of wishing I could lock him in the car for a super quick minute has passed my mind. With my luck something would happen, so I would never attempt this. With that said, I will avoid the store as much as possible. Every two weeks I do my bulk shopping with only a couple random trips for produce items or “run-outs;” items I hadn’t known I was low on.

tonight’s meal turned out fabulously and allowed for me to play with Cooper outside for a bit and even take a walk. This recipe allows for flexibility to prepare this meal when you want.

Ingredients:

Filling:

1 cup chicken, diced (any kind any style* see notes below)
½ cup Franks Buffalo Wing Sauce
½ cup Ken’s blue cheese dressing (any dressing works)
1 cup mozzarella cheese
Chopped brussel sprouts (sub any vegetable)
Chopped onion
4 slices bacon, cooked and chopped

For the bread: (can use store bought croissants**)

½ cup warm water
2 tsp instant active dry yeast
3 tsp sugar
½ cup melted butter
1 cup milk
2 tsp salt
½ cup sugar
3 eggs
4 ½ cups flour

Directions:

If you aren’t using croissants, begin bread recipe first. In a mixer add water and yeast and let sit for 3-4 minutes. Then proceed to add remainder of ingredients mixing slowly, except the flour. Once well mixed add flour 1/2 cup at a time until thoroughly mixed.

Cover with tea towel and let rest for an hour. Cook chicken now and set aside. If adding bacon, now is a good time to cook bacon and let cool.

After an hour, the dough will still be sticky and this is good. On a well floured surface begin to knead the dough for a couple turns to get rid of the sticky texture. Roll dough into a large rectangle.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Meanwhile chop chicken, Brussels sprouts, onion, and bacon.

Atop the dough spread buffalo sauce…

dressing…

and cheese….

Top with veggies and chicken
Fold the short edges in…

Roll the log up and place on a large cookie sheet and bake in a preheated oven for 20-25 minutes.

Serve with salad and a vegetable side, we had corn.

*Note: For the chicken you can use rotisserie chicken, cooked chicken breasts, or already cooked chicken strips. I use all three depending on what’s on hand and how much time I have.

**Note: You can use croissants from the store or make the bread recipe I gave. Personally I love the bread recipe better but in a pinch the croissants work well too. If using croissants, when you unroll from the package they come precut in triangles. Just leave them in one piece once you unroll and push together on the dotted lines to help make one big rectangle.

Biscuits and Gravy

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 16 December, 2013 No comment

If you have been paying attention lately, I have been on a breakfast/brunch kick the last couple weeks. I never make biscuits and gravy but this past week I have been craving them. I’ve been eating fruit and comfort food; resembles my pregnancy. ;)

Homemade gravy is super duper easy.

Ingredients:

1 lb sausage (I used spicy)
½ cup plus 2 tbsp unbleached flour
½ cup half & half
3 cups milk (I used whole)
Garlic salt
Dash of salt and Pepper
1 tbsp parsley
2 tsp chicken bouillon
Buttermilk biscuits

Directions:

In a large sauce pan cook sausage until no longer pink.

Add flour and stir well. (Adding flour prior to milk prevents lumps)

Add half and half and milk and mix thoroughly. Add seasonings and bouillon and simmer on low heat to thicken up.

Cook biscuits according to package instructions or make your own.

Serve with scrambled eggs!!

This dinner fit my fancy really well tonight. It was flavored with a swift kick from the spicy sausage and was definitely filling. I learned how to make incredible scrambled eggs from my mom as she teaches me many tips and tricks that add much flavor and desire than the standard “recipes.”

Alfredo Sauce

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 15 December, 2013 No comment

Mmmmm the delicious white sauce for fettuccine and pizzas is a fatty, comfort food that we all love. I must say store bought has no comparison after making your own sauce. My mom used to make this frequently for anything and everything that needed a white sauce. It is quite the staple that has a multi-purpose.

Enough said, let’s get it cooking!

Ingredients:

1- 8oz block of cream cheese
4 tbsp sweet butter
2 tbsp EVOO
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups heavy cream (any milk works, but the thicker the milk the thicker the sauce)
Dash of salt and pepper
Garlic salt to taste
½ cup parmesan cheese
Fettuccine noodles
Chicken or shrimp

In a large sauce pan melt butter, EVOO and cream cheese together over med-low heat. Stir in minced garlic and heat for 1-2 minutes before adding cream, salt and pepper and garlic salt. Stir well and simmer for 5 minutes whisking the whole time. Add parmesan cheese.

Cook noodles according to package directions. If adding meat, add now and serve with warm bread. :)

Spaghetti Sauce

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 14 December, 2013 No comment

Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

There is nothing quite like homemade sauce!

I grew up with homemade spaghetti sauce. I’m not sure there was ever a time we had store bought. My mom cooked a lot and this was part of it. I remember a typical spaghetti night would include homemade bread and salad. My sister and I would always make a “spaghetti sandwich” where you take bread and top it with a large pile of spaghetti and somehow grip it with all ten fingers and manage to take a big ‘ol bite out of it. We were convinced it makes the spaghetti taste even better, though that seemed impossible, we believed in the possible. :)

My girlfriend told me she has never made her own sauce and to my dismay I was really shocked. She is pretty good at holding to no additives and preservatives that this comment really shocked me. Especially because it is super easy to make and can simmer all day long to deepen the flavors and smell the house with a delightful aroma for hours.

So since she informed me that she has never made her own sauce I thought I really needed to share the easiness to this delightful meal.

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef or turkey
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1-16oz can olives, chopped
2-6oz can tomato paste
1 can diced tomatoes
2 cups water
1 tbsp parsley
2 tsp oregano
Dash of garlic salt
Salt and pepper to taste
¾ tsp sugar (to taste, but add a little at a time as you can’t undo the sweetness)

In a pot cook onion, garlic and ground beef until no longer pink. Add olives, tomato paste, water and diced tomatoes.

Add seasoning at this point; if you are using fresh herbs add now. If you are using dried seasoning the trick is to place the dried seasoning into the palm of your hands and rub together. This reactivates the flavor in dried seasoning leaving the meal with more vibrant flavors. Stir well and let simmer on low for 2-4 hours.

When you are ready to eat, serve in a bowl or plate over pasta and with garlic bread and salad! Enjoy!

Vertigo????

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 12 December, 2013 No comment

My life was spinning out of control, literaly. Waking up at 6:30 in the morning only to fall out of bed realizing the strong force thrashing my body quickly to the floor was vertigo. Vertigo? This small word holds such large weight. I’ve experienced this force only but a couple times in the last few weeks and just once more preceding these episodes.

Falling to the floor, knees giving out as if I am paralyzed, leaving my lifeless body utterly helpless. I manage to pull myself back into bed, room spinning frantically while I’m trying understand why I’m waking up with some neurological damage. Other than something being completely wrong, why else would I wake up with vertigo?

I laid in bed for two hours trying to shake the spinning only to feel sick to my stomach with a raging headache. Finally I dragged myself to couch to call my husband and let him know I was spinning recklessly unsure how to get my son from bed as I didn’t want to drop him. The unknown cause and waking up with such frustration was driving me crazy. It’s the WORST feeling to constantly be spinning and not being able to catch your balance. A few tears slipped by as I forced myself up to make coffee, get my son and have a “normal” morning. This didn’t happen as much as I wanted it to.

Story time at our library was this morning and I wanted to take Cooper so bad, but I knew it wasn’t safe for me to drive. The moment I turn, sit, stand or lay triggers immense amount of dizziness. If I am subtle to make any movement I can manage my way around. I contacted my girlfriend about story time and threw in that I was experiencing mass vertigo. SHE SAVED THE DAY!!!!

To my rescue she comes. She brought her little girl while the kids stood above me and she rolled me from side to side. It was incredible, I was a little unsure that she could fix my vertigo but I was desperate. She literally cured me. Sounds crazy, but I was thrilled. She explained her vertigo lasted 6 weeks before the doctor could get her in. They proceeded to tell her that when you wake up with it, crystals in your ear have been jostled out of place and need to be placed back in. By rolling in a particular manner on the couch with your head hung low, it works. To hear that I didn’t have neurological damage allowed my soul to spin with complete excitement. Viola!!! Three rolls later and I was basically cured! I was so happy, I could change Cooper’s diaper, bathe him, make breakfast, lay him down for nap, and shower myself. It was incredible. I probably looked hideous and it must have been quite the scene to see my spinning body and the two kids standing above me looking down as if I was a clown and thoroughly entertaining them.

If you have ever experienced vertigo you understand this craziness. The utter frustration of feeling incapable to care for yourself and your child is a terrible feeling. Ugg, I never wish vertigo on anyone!!!! But…I hold the key to curing this if I ever wake up with it again. :)

Iced Pumpkin Delights

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 12 December, 2013 No comment

Icing really does make or break a cookie. These cookies were good but the icing transformed them from a simple cookie to a magnificent dessert. Okay maybe that’s a big statement but they really did make the difference. unfortunately I think Cooper and I ate over 5 cookies together in one afternoon. I convinced myself that due to the holidays rapidly approaching, it was healthy for us to binge throughout the day on anything and everything that was considered “unhealthy” and that’s just what we did. :)

I have been wanting to make these cookies for awhile and now that Fall is behind us I still took the opportunity to make them as Christmas desserts can continue to be made through the new year. (And, I have a lot of pumpkin puree in the freezer)

Ingredients:

Cookie:

2 cups unbleached flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
1 ½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp nutmeg
½ tsp allspice
2 eggs
1 cup brown sugar
½ cup canola oil
1 cup pumpkin puree

Icing:

1 cup powdered sugar
3 tbsp milk

Mix together the first seven ingredients and set aside. In a kitchen aid mixer add eggs, brown sugar, canola oil, and pumpkin puree. Blend well until smooth and creamy.

Add dry ingredients a 1/2 cup at a time and thoroughly mix through.

Drop by spoonful’s onto a cookie sheet and bake in preheated oven of 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

Let cool on a wire rack. Once thoroughly cooled to room temperature, mix the icing together. If icing is too runny simply add more powdered sugar to thicken it up. This will allow it to keep from running off your cookies and stay right where you want it. :)