recommendation: magical stain remover

fels naptha. huh? no, it is not a harry potter spell. and its not the Latin name for an extinct species found in an exotic part of the world. get this.... its soap. yup.

When brother in law's wife Christy told me about it, I made her repeat it 3 times. I didn't understand the words coming from her mouth. But she said that its tried and true for getting any stain out. My mother in law has used it for years so I decided to give it a try.

I wasn't sure if I'd be able to find it at a normal grocery store but they told me to look out for a bar of soap in vintage packaging. It was hiding on the bottom shelf in the cleaning supplies aisle but there it was. and oh goodness, its awesome. and cheap - under $2 for a bar! I've used it twice so far, once for a grease stain on jeans and then on a pen stain on a pair of khaki's. you wet the stain, scrub the soap on, and then stick it in the washer. It worked amazingly.

Just like the website says:

Fels-Naptha® is the golden bar that is excellent for pre-treating greasy, oily stains like perspiration stains and ring-around-the collar. Fels-Naptha® has stood the test of time for over 100 years so you know it really works.

Check it out!

recommendation: cheesecake dip

Ok, way overdue on posting this but better late than never because its worth posting. The great part is, even though I did a Thanksgiving version of this recipe, its easily adaptable! The original recipe came from my previous co-worker and fashionista friend Amy. Its one of the easiest recipes ever. Seriously.

Here are her instructions:
1 brick (8 oz) of cream cheese
1 tub of cool whip
1/4 cup of sugar
1 tspn of lemon juice

Beat on low and voila!

Notes:
- I served it as dip but Amy advises that it’s great in a graham cracker crust with strawberries on top too
- My friend Evie served as dip with shortbread cookies, strawberries, graham cracker sticks, garnished with chocolate chips
- You can use low fat cream cheese and low fat cool whip and splenda and it tastes exactly the same and weight watcher friendly!

Here is an official pumpkin pie version

I am not a fan of greek yogurt so I adapted the above version, here is my Pumpkin Pie version:
1 brick of low fat cream cheese
1 tub of low fat cool whip
1/4 cup of sugar
1 tsn of lemon juice
1/4 cup canned pumpkin
Pumpkin pie spice (not sure how much of this I put in, just kept adding and tasting) - can also use cinnamon and nutmeg if you don't have this

Served with: gingerbread graham crackers, green and red apples. The cake in the picture is leftover slices of my pumpkin chocolate chip cake!

Think of all of the possibilities.... add caramel to dip apples in. Add peppermint extract and dip chocolate graham crackers, with white chocolate shavings on top. Add raspberry preserves. The list goes on. This dip is awesome for potlucks!!!

And hubby approved! :)

recommendation: mexican stuffed shells

I was intrigued by this fusion recipe I found on Blog Chef. Pasta + Mexican. Odd but I love both so how can it not be delicious? The whole time I was preparing the recipe I was perplexed on what the outcome would be... delicious or weird? Delicious won out.

The recipe was a bit of a fiasco in the beginning as I thought I had cream cheese in the house but it had gone bad so after cooking the meat and noodles I had to run to the store which 1. delayed dinner by 20 minutes and 2. made me a frantic mess. That said, once I got back on track, it was easy to assemble. Really, the noodles are just a vessel for the yummy Mexican filling. Hubby thinks that it would taste just as good if not better with corn tortillas but I can't help to think that the noodles are just so much easier (have you ever tried to make enchiladas and keep the tortillas rolled? sometimes its tricky!!).

Anyway, this recipe is easy and divine and you must try it. Plus there is so much room for interpretation - trying different salsas, hot vs mild taco sauce, different toppings - we followed the olives, green onions and sour cream, but what about fresh tomatoes, avocado, cilantro (i don't like, but it goes). I bet you could even add onions and peppers into the meat mix!

I wanted to keep sides light since the shells are pretty heavy so I made a corn & avocado salad on the side.

Recommended, try it soon!

Recipe, from blog chef:
Ingredients:
1lb ground beef
1 package taco seasoning
1 4 once package cream cheese
12 large pasta shells
1 cup salsa
1 cup taco sauce
1 cup cheddar cheese (shredded)
1 cup Monterey jack cheese (shredded)
1 ½ cups tortilla chips (crushed)
3 green onions (chopped)
1 cup sour cream

Step 1: In a fry pan cook ground beef and add taco seasoning and prepare according to package directions. Add cream cheese cover and simmer until cheese is melted. Blend well. Set aside and allow to fully cool. While burger is cooking cook the pasta shells, drain and toss well with butter.
Step 2: Pour salsa in the bottom of a 9 x 13 inch baking dish.
Step 3: Stuff each shell with the meat mixture. Place the stuffed shells in the baking dish and cover the tops of the shells with taco sauce.
Step 4: Cover and bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
Step 5: After 30 minutes, uncover, and sprinkle crushed chips and shredded cheddar and Monterey jack cheeses on top. Cook for about 15 more minutes. Serve with sour cream, additional salsa, black olives or whatever you think goes good with tacos!

recommendation: pan lining paper

Some days I run my dishwasher TWICE a day. Isn't that crazy? I mean, there are only two of us in this house. Its probably cheaper to keep the dishwasher running vs. stocking up on this lifesaver, but on days where I'm just not in the mood, or if you have a million dishes piling up, check this out... Reynolds Wrap Pan Liner. Its kind of awesome.

Its parchment paper on one side and foil on the other. The foil side goes down on the pan so that it can form to the pan and the parchment side stays up to put the food on.

I've noticed a lot of new recipes I'm trying lately, especially baking, call for parchment paper. Don't you just hate trying to get parchment paper to stay down on a pan? They should sell it in sheets instead of rolls! This new pan liner works out awesome for forming to the pan, coming out easy, and keeping the pan completely clean during the cooking process! I was able to put the pan away after cooking stuffed Mexican Shells (recipe coming soon, they were so different and delicious!). Yup, that's the paper on the left and the clean pan on the right. No dishes. Sweet!

I would recommend picking up a box for those days where the dishwasher is full and the thought of standing over a sink hand washing a pan and scrubbing at it just isn't how you want to spend your evening!

p.s. there have been lots of coupons in the paper lately for this but in case you've missed them, get a $1.00 off coupon HERE!

recommendation: delicious lasagna soup

I've been watching a lot of cooking shows lately and Paula Deen and her southern drawl have me drooling over chocolate layered cakes, cheesy potatoes, fried pickles and more. Her shows often include guests and her sons Jamie and Bobby make frequent appearances. I found a recipe from them online (ok. fine. pinterest), and knew I could trust it because anyone who cooks with Paula knows what they are doing. The Deen brothers took Paula's original recipe and lightened it up. The picture on the left is mine before the cheese, the one on the right is Paula's :)

Here are his instructions:
Bobby’s Lighter Tastes Like Lasagna Soup

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 pound Italian turkey sausage, casings removed
*note 1 - I used 4 of the 5 sausages. Truth be told, I probably would have been fine with 3, and then I would have had 2 left over that I could have used for another dinner...
NOTE #2, updated 1/9/12 - we used Jennie O's Hot Italian Turkey Sausage and it adds good heat! *
1 onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced (i use preminced garlic from a jar)
1 (32-ounce) container chicken broth
1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can petite diced tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
4 ounces broken whole-wheat lasagna noodles (about 4 noodles)
*note - I couldn't find ww lasagna noodles that were decently priced. So i got regular noodles that gave me double the amount for half the price so I could make another meal out of the extra noodles.*
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
3 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup reduced-fat shredded mozzarella cheese (i used a 4 cheese reduced fat italian blend)
8 Whole-wheat breadsticks or grissini (optional, i skipped)

Instructions:
Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large nonstick saucepot or Dutch oven. Add the sausage, onion, bell pepper, and garlic. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the sausage is crumbled and browned, 8 – 10 minutes.

Add the broth, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, salt, and crushed red pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the flavors are blended, about 20 minutes. Add the noodles; bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the soup thickens slightly and the noodles are tender, 10 – 12 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in mozzarella, basil, and the Parmesan. Serve with the breadsticks, if using. (whole-wheat lasagna noodles take a little longer to cook.)

Original Recipe by Paula Deen: Tastes Like Lasagna Soup
Take It Lighter recipe courtesy of Bobby and Jamie Deen, and the Paula Deen Test Kitchen

I served this with bread rolls (take a french loaf, slice up, put butter, paprika, a sprinkle of parm cheese, cook in oven at 350 for 15 minutes). It made a large pot of soup but after 1 large bowl each, my hubby and I were full. Leftovers may need a little extra broth if any leftover added because it thickens in the fridge. This recipe is awesome for a cold day and definitely worth trying!

recommendation: actually DO the things you PIN, part 3 of 3

Hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving weekend. Here is the last of the 3 part Pinterest posts!

3. Kitchen Wall Art - inspiration:

reason:
thought it would be fun to have a little eye candy in the kitchen since I spend a lot of time in there

steps:
started poking around on etsy and found some amazing food inspired posters but then realized they came in 8 x 10 or bigger and that's unframed... I just don't have the wall space for that. not to be deterred, i decided to search for greeting cards instead which oddly enough were not difficult to find! 5 i got in San Fran, the others I ordered on etsy. all but 1 are actual greeting cards, the pancake pic is just a 5 x 7 print. frames came from ikea, i thought the metal would be more utilitarian for the kitchen work space

final product:
love this project and had so much fun putting it together. collecting anything is fun. its like a game, every time I saw a card rack, I had to go peek to see if I could find anything that would fit the wall. the best part is, since they are greeting cards and most were relatively inexpensive ($2.50 - $15.00), I can replace some of them if we ever get bored of them and need a change. so happy with the way this turned out and definitely recommend this pin!

side note:
etsy was the perfect way to make this collection happen. creative artists and great prices. here are the resources that were used to collect artwork for this collage:
- Pancake Art
- Kiss the Cook
- Your My All Thyme Favorite
- Be Grounded (this one didn't make it up on the wall but its on my fridge. always stay grounded!
- Peas and Carrots
- 1950's Kitchen

recommendation: actually DO the things you PIN, part 2 of 3

2. Antique Inspired Mason Jars - inspiration:

reason:
I had been looking for the blue tinted mason jars, which are antiques, so harder to find and more expensive per jar. Instead of buying the antique version, why not just make our own?

steps:
bought mason jars, followed directions as listed on Momtastics blog. I tried the project twice. Because the first time it didn't seem tinted enough so the second time I put more food coloring in. The second time I did it with my mother-in-law and brother-in-law's wife, so we all picked different colors.

final product:
sadly did not work either time. first time the jar looked the same color when it dried, even though I tinted it teal. the second time, i put more modge podge and food coloring, and it left a big ring at the bottom and was all splotchy. directions said to cook for 30 minutes or longer if there are streaks, i cooked it for like 2 hours and still, no change. deleted this pin from my 'to make' board. so yeah... this is actually an UN-recommendation

side note:
i did also try this with an empty martinelli's apple juice jar b/c the leave detail at the top is so pretty. since the project didn't turn out and I didn't want to waste the jar, I spray painted it gold (of course) and will put some branches of red bittersweet berries coming out of it for display at Christmas time. will probably spray paint the other mason jars for something so that i don't waste them!

recommendation: actually DO the things you PIN, part 1 of 3

ok here is the deal with pinterest. its an obsession and pretty much a dream world. you spend hours, floating around from pretty picture to pretty picture and there are ideas that seem so realistic and do-able, but you pin pin pin away and spend all this time in this dream world and waste time pining instead of DOING.

well i had three projects that I set out to actually DO. here's how they went:

1. Pantry Project - inspiration on right, original pantry on left

reason:
who doesn't want a pretty pantry? if you have to look at it on a daily basis, mind as well make it gorgeous. the previous owners took two half shelves to make 1 full shelf which resulted in it being uneven, two different shades of white, and pretty scratched up

steps:
we took out all shelves in the cabinet. we probably could of reused some of the wood but decided to start from scratch. at home depot, we found raw wood and had them slice it to our closet measurements. we got 3 full size shelves and 1 cut in half to make 2 half shelves. I don't remember the exact price but I want to say each sheet of raw wood was $8 and we went through 4, they cut it for free.

we had a painter over who was painting a bunch of small projects and touching up other spots in the house (including the damage the movers did! hmph!) so he primed and painted the boards an off white. after a few days of drying, my mom laid down contact paper that we got from Ace (buy a lot just in case and return leftovers... i didn't buy enough and had to call around to 3 different stores to find more of the same print). We got it in the funnest posh print - this is what makes the pantry. you can get contact paper in so many different patterns these days. i love how neutral it is. and ta-da! brand new closet!

final product:
love it! cute but functional. pin worth doing - yes, that means not all of them are. stay tuned for part 2 of 3, coming soon.

recommendation: chocolate chip pumpkin cake

November 2004 - I had just met my now-hubby a few months earlier and his younger sister's birthday was approaching. I wanted to do something special for my amazing now-sis-in-law, so i went on the hunt for a lactose sensitive birthday cake recipe. I was trying to find something that was still yummy but that wouldn't upset her tummy. and I stumbled across this goldmine of a recipe. i have dairy issues too, i'm not a complete 'lactard' as my friend evie calls it, but this recipe works well for those who are at either end of the spectrum for IBS or lactose issues. since its so delicious, you don't miss the dairy and it pleases everyone!

i have found a reason to make this cake every year since - her birthday, thanksgiving, or just because its fall. the recipe is that good. i've made it in a bundt cake pan, a rectangular cake pan, and a loaf pan. Any and all works but bundt is best as its what the original recipe intended for.

(Hannah's) Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cake
1 small can pumpkin
3 cups white flour
2 cups white sugar
4 eggs (or egg white equivalent - I use eggbeaters)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 cup canola or veggie oil (I use 3/4 cup)
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional, I've never put in before)
12 oz semi sweet chocolate chips

Mix all ingredients except chips and nuts in a large bowl. Then add chips and nuts. Spray/grease pan. Spoon into a large bundt pan (or rectangular cake pan). Bake from 30-60 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool, invert onto serving plate (if using bundt pan. if regular pan, no need to invert). Sprinkle with powder sugar if desired.

*I know the cooking range is huge but totally depends on oven and pan. It really has taken me different bake times before!

Easy enough, right? Happy Pumpkin season!

recommendation: sparkling coconut water

i love finding new products but i hate when i find out they are only new to me and the rest of the world has already known about its awesomeness for months. It came out in June, but may i present... La Croix Coconut Sparkling Water. Its yum. I bought a single can at the grocery store - I only saw them in skinny cans, not normal size but I do believe they exist - rumor has it Target carries them. I was waiting for a special meal to try it but then my friend Evie sent me a pic that she found it too and I got jealous so decided to try mine right away. Mixed reviews at first (similar to my reaction with flavored coconut water) but by the end of the can, I was happy and thinking of all of its possibilities. Low-calorie Pina Colada's? Add to fruit punch for party punch? I think this drink is better suited for summer but as I love pretty much anything coconut (still on the hunt for the coconut twix but am starting to think maybe it was a seasonal promotion?), I couldn't resist recommending you to try it!

Note: don't confuse this with coconut water. its not sparkling coconut water, its coconut flavored sparkling water.

recommendation: top 10 sandwiches

here are my top 10 sandwiches. I know that's a big statement, so here's the small print:
not in order! not of all time ever (duh, I have lots more sandwich eating days ahead of me! not of my life! just the ones that I've tried, remember and crave on a regular basis:

1. Izzy’s Hogie Shop, Ann Arbor
Order: Grilled Cheese with Tomato on Rye with pickle on side OR the veggie no mushrooms OR cheesesteak hoagie (all of which are dipped in ranch!). They catered my high school graduation party and still remember my order - love this place!

2. Zingerman’s Deli, Ann Arbor
Order: Honestly anything there is amazing, but when I want to enjoy but not overindulge - Sheila's Viva Las Vegan - hummus, artichokes, roasted red peppers and baby spinach on grilled farm bread

3. Amer’s, Ann Arbor
Order: #44 Chix, Cuke, Ranch, White Vermont Cheddar. Messy but worth it.

4. Cosi, nationwide
Order: TBM Lite (that's tomato, basil, mozz, light balsamic vinaigrette), nice and simple, salty bread, easy craving to fill. Plus they have the most funnest soda machine ever - digital where you pick your flavor.

5. L’Appitito, Chicago
Order: Italian sub, hot giardinara. If you go to the Hancock Building location in nice weather, sit out on the steps while you eat, good people watching

6. Eataly, NYC
Order: Soprasetta Sandwich. Quite possibly one of the best sandwiches I've ever had. Ever.

7. Cemitas Puebla, Chicago
Order: Carne Asada (sesame bread, avocado, adobo chipotle peppers, fresh Oaxacan cheese and papalo). Featured on diners drive-ins and dives!

8. Panozzo, Chicago
Order: American Sub, no mayo plus vinaigrette, American cheese, house banana peppers. This place was walking distance from our Chicago home so we went there like once a week. Worth it! But check hours, closed on Mondays. Daily specials!

9. Chick’Inn, Ypsilanti
Order: Cheese Steak Hoagie, plus peanut butter chocolate milkshake. Walking distance from in-laws, this place is greasy goodness.

10. Seva, Ann Arbor
Order: Grilled Pesto Pizza Sandwich and an Orange soda

Happy Eating!

recommendation: bake with leftover candy

well Halloween was a great success! 105 kids, 2 raves from little girls on my kitty ears, hubby called Pumpkin Man b/c of pumpkin face t-shirt ($0.85 at Value World), 2 mommy compliments on my polka dot pumpkin and lots of kid comments on my ghost milk jugs. yay! i have a bowl of whoppers left from Halloween and I am just too happy about that... because I hate whoppers. can you imagine if it was all reeses? that would be serious trouble. i hate to waste them, so I've been scouring the internet for ideas, and here are the top contenders:

whopper brownies from Blue Eyed Bakers

whopper pie from Mommys Kitchen

whopper cookies from Cast Sugar

whopper milkshake from Cafe Coco Creations

please vote and i will make the most popular item this week! :)

recommendation: more halloween decorations!

boo! its halloween and now that I have a little time on my hands, I decided to get into it this year. you already saw my front door display, I also got some cheap leaf bags at big lots (3 for $1.99) that are decorated as a pumpkin, Frankenstein and a ghost. they are supposed to glow in the dark but as they were cheap, they won't work. but trick-or-treating in ann arbor is while its still fairly light out from 5pm - 7pm, so I think kids will get the point.

speaking of not working, i also tried two new recipes. obviously both are from pinterest, no surprise there. the thing i'm finding with pinterest is that it LOOKS pretty, but it doesn't always taste pretty. pinterest is eye candy - not tried and true recipes, not must try or tastes great, but if it looks pretty, it gets repinned. sometimes its ok, you can get away with that, but today I tried making cheesecake brownies - my first attempt at making anything cheesecake (I'm not a cream cheese fan. if you are thinking what do i put on my bagel, its butter). It was a total flop. Perhaps it was because I was following two recipes 1) the girl who ate everything's scream cheese brownies 2. Betty Crocker Scream Cheese Swirl Brownies instead of just one. But I followed instructions. I think I over baked it - edges were hard as a rock, middle was flaking apart as I cut it. I tried but in the end, it went to the trash bin. I think these recipes were user error though, not the recipe itself.

My second pinterest recipe was lemon sugar cookies in the shape of candy corn from Kathie Cooks. I hate candy corn but think it looks awfully cute. They were a little dry so I cooked the second and third sheets a little less and they are pretty decent. I mean, I secretly ate 3 in a row, so obviously they are edible and maybe even yummy. They turned out so much tinier than I thought, but it ended up being perfect because I stuck them in a mason jar and they look adorable! These are for my hubby to take to work - they are having a bake off. This recipe is no winner but the cuteness factor is there so I'm ok with not getting a prize. (now seems like a good time to mention that I won the cake contest in elementary school 1st - 5th grade. i'm not really bragging, i'm just stating cold hard facts here. this is also the reason why I'm ok not winning future bake offs, because I've already proved my awesomeness. here is also where i thank my mom because she pretty much did all the work, i just decorated the cakes.)

My victory of the night was my pumpkin carving session. We picked up a pumpkin at a pumpkin farm up north, as seen in my pumpkin display picture, its big and orange but what you may not be able to see is the detail around the handle of it, there are little curly cue wispy branches and they are cute and magical and I didn't want to cut the top open so I even thought about not carving it. But I really wanted to try out the Martha Stewart polka dot pumpkin, so I went to the tutorial and... she carves the bottom out - how perfect!!! It was actually quite easy, no different from taking the top off. So my top stayed intact, I used a power drill... because any excuse to get a tool in my hand makes me feel like a good homeowner. Same with the hubby, he practically walks around with a screw driver and hammer in his pocket. He's becoming quite handy! OK but anyway, I used a power drill, the 1/4 and 3/16 bits, drilled holes down the "seams" of the pumpkin, and ta-da! A beautiful polka dot pumpkin that I just l.o.v.e.

the other thing that turned out great, was my milk jug project inspired by blogger eighteen25. My mom and mother-in-law donated most of my jugs as we don't consume very much milk (apple cider jugs work too!). They were easy to make, I finished in less than an hour, and I think they are going to look adorable lined up against our garage door! the trick is using christmas lights instead of candles to light them up.

Can't wait to get trick-or-treaters tonight. Hope it stops raining. Happy Halloween!!!

recommendation: cooking for others

I came across this great blog post, Cooking for Others, A Guide to Giving Sympathy Meals, and loved it. whenever someone is under the weather or just out of the hospital with a new tiny family member, I think its really helpful to bring a meal or some kind of food gift to them during your first visit. When you are sick or recovering or have your hands full, cooking can be quite the task (as we all know it can be a lot of work even when you are feeling great and don't have your hands full!!!).

We just received the most delicious coffee cake from our neighbors to welcome us to the neighborhood. It was such a nice treat and I think really thoughtful of them. Baked goods work great for someone you don't know as well but want to give something to. It shows that you thought of them and baked goods are enjoyed by most people so its a good choice, just watch out for nuts in case of any allergies if you don't know the person as well.

When it comes to cooking a full meal, this works better if you know the person and their tastes and likes/dislikes. My go-to dishes for friends with babies are my mom's baked rigatoni recipe (non-veg) or Kraft's stuffed shells (veg) because they are both quick and inexpensive for me to make, easy to make a double batch so you get a meal out of it too, both freeze well, and everyone loves pasta!

stuffed shell recipe:
find it here

rigatoni recipe:
1 lb Ground Italian Sausage (sweet or spicy)
6 cups of spaghetti sauce (although I like to put more in, have 2 jars on hand just in case)
12 oz Rigatoni
3/4 c Parmesan Cheese
4 oz package (2 c) shredded mozzarella cheese

Cook and drain the rigatoni. Brown the sausage, crumble, drain. In a 2 quart baking dish, combine sausage, sauce, noodles and parmesan cheese. Mix well. Top with mozzarella cheese. Freeze or bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes. Yields 4-6 servings
Notes:
* I've been doing half a pound of sausage lately because I don't like as much meat in the pasta and its cheaper but if you love sausage, follow the original recipe!
* Paul Newman Marinara works well for this recipe
* if freezing, leave mozz cheese out of dish, top with foil. add mozz when you are ready to cook!
* this is a great recipe, the shortcut version of it, is buy Mids Italian Sausage meat sauce, and mix that with cooked pasta, and top with mozz (so skip the parm, skip the browning of sausage) - pretty close in taste and super quick - baking it for 20 min to brown the cheese makes it seem like you put a lot more into the dish than you did!

Here are some more great tips from the article:

Ideally, sympathy meals are:
- easy to transport
- easy to eat
- hold well
- freeze well

Ideas that meet this criteria are:
- Soups & Stews: chili of all types, hot nourishing soups, hearty stews, chowders
- Crockpot/Slowcooker meals: Spaghetti sauce, Pulled pork/chicken (accompanied with slaw, and buns), chicken cacciatore, chicken curry
- Casseroles: Lasagna, Macaroni & Cheese, Chicken Devon
- Sauced Meals: Chicken Parmesan, Meatballs & Sauce, Ribs, Meatloaf

Don't Forget:
- Always include heating instructions
- Try to use disposable containers that are oven friendly so that the receiver doesn't have to worry about getting the dish back to you
- Make it something easy for them to make so that they don't have to spend a lot of time prepping the meal, that defeats the whole purpose of giving it
- Make it a complete meal - I normally send a bag of salad along with my pastas. Side dishes are great and don't have to be anything fancy - a tub of pasta from the deli section at your grocery store, a can of baked beans, a bag of salad, frozen garlic bread, a steamer bag of veggies, etc.

Happy Meal Giving!

recommendation: art class in chicago

i have to tell you about one of the funnest things I did in Chicago - or really, ever. my sister asked me twice to go to this class and I'm lazy especially after 6pm in the evenings, so I declined. And then she told me we MUST go before I leave chicago and she had a groupon so I decided ok, fine, I'll do it. And now I don't know why she had to twist my arm so much and I'm glad she did because it was so completely awesome. p.s. we went to dinner before the class at nearby Harvest Moon Cafe in Wicker Park, a vegan restaurant my sis wanted to try...not a fan, we do not recommend! read why HERE.

So this place is called Arts N Spirits and basically its a BYOB class that you can sign up for with your friends, there are limited seats per class, and each class has a picture theme so look at the calendar to pick out which one you want to do, you can do your own but its best to follow along with the teacher as she walks you through each step of the layered painting. The class takes about 2.5 - 3 hours (they say 2 but it took longer) and they blast fun music and you drink wine and paint your heart out. The class costs $25-$40 depending on which one you do, and when you sign up, make sure to let them know if you are with other people b/c they semi-assign seats. You get to pick out a cute apron and they give you a canvas, easel, paint and paintbrushes (and bins of ice to keep your vino chilled). We met our friend Lindsey there and there was ample time in between painting and breaks to chit chat. It was a fun girls activity! (there was one boy in the class and I was under the impression his girlfriend made him go but he was a good sport about being there in a room of giggling girls).

Our class did peacocks and in the end I may have done the picture a little different (I think my bird needs feet and definitive wings so he doesn't look like a bowling pin sitting in the middle of beautiful feathers), but it was so cool to walk out of the class with a canvas painting that I made! that looks decent! my sister decided to revise hers a little at the very end into a vase with hydrangeas (after we took the picture). the cool part is, the teacher tells you what to do step by step, but all paint colors are out so you can do your own colors to match a space, some drunk girls at the end decided to put bow ties on their peacocks.

it was an awesome night, and awesome painting, and definitely on my must do in chicago list. check it out!