2014 Elf on the Shelf: Adventures with Jingle!

Jingle is back and as always, I am keeping her adventures updated here for those that like to follow along or anyone looking for some relatively easy and fun ideas!!

Crock Pot Black Bean Soup

It's getting chilly and I have been looking to add to my crock pot soup collection!! This weekend I thought I would try out a black bean soup (with just enough kick to taste it, but not so much that the kids can't take it!).

This recipe made me excited for a few reasons:
1) My kids liked it (that is always a reason to be excited about a new recipe)
2) I finally found a reason to use the immersion blender I got as a wedding gift 15 years ago!!

So without further ado...here is the latest Cup of Judy crock pot recipe!!

 

 

 

 

Crock Pot Black Bean Soup 

(serves a family of 5 with left overs - you can cut this in 1/2 if you want a smaller portion)

Ingredients:
1 Medium Onion Diced
1/2 Large Red Pepper Diced
4 Celery Stalks Thinly Sliced
2 Tsp Minced Garlic (or 4 cloves if you are using fresh)
4 15.5oz Cans of Black Beans (I used 2 low sodium and 2 regular)
4 Chicken Bouillon Cubes
3 Cups Hot Water
1 Tsp Cumin
1 Tsp Crushed Red Pepper (or more to taste)
2 Tbsp Lemon Juice (or use the juice of 1 fresh lemon)
3 Tbsp Cornstarch

Directions: 

• Cut up the onion, celery, red pepper and put in crock pot.

• Add the garlic, black beans, cumin, crushed red pepper chicken bouillon and water. 

• Cook on low for 4-6 hours.

• Stir in corn starch and lemon juice. 

• With an immersion blender, puree the soup (I like to leave it with some whole black beans or you can make it completely smooth).

Serve with sour cream, shredded cheese, fresh cilantro, tortilla strips or a fresh baguette.

Turkey Meatball and Kale Calzones

These easy calzones made for a quick and yummy alternative to Saturday night pizza (and they have kale - don't tell the kids!).

Ingredients: 

13 frozen fully cooked turkey meatballs 

1 package of chopped frozen Kale 

1/2 package of frozen peppers and onions

2 refrigerated pizza crust dough 

1 jar marinara sauce

1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese 

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 425
• Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray.
• Microwave the turkey meatballs  (times vary - follow guidelines on the bag)
• Combine frozen kale with peppers and onions and microwave for 3 minutes
• Cut up the meatballs into smaller pieces.
• Add meatballs, marinara sauce and cheese to the kale, peppers and onions. 
• Mix together and set aside. 
• Unroll the refrigerated dough onto a cookie sheet and divide it into quarters. 
• Add the filling to eat quarter and fold over. 
• Press edges with a fork to seal. 
• Cook in the oven for 15 minutes or until the dough is golden brown.

When I cooked these the first time, I only made 4 calzones so I had extra filling. I added my extra filling to cheese tortellini for a quick meal later in the week! It was also delicious!!

The BEST Goulash Recipe - EVER!

"Dad, you're the BEST cooker, ever!!!!"

This is what my kids say when they have my husband's goulash. Any recipe that kids willingly devour every time it is served is worth sharing!! This is also a great make ahead recipe (it is what we make for the Grandparents when they are watching the kids for the weekend!!)

Doug's Best Ever Goulash: 

Ingredients:
1lb Ground Turkey
1 can corn (drained)
1 can chili beans (**this is the secret ingredient!!)
1 can kidney beans (drained)
1 can diced tomatoes with chilies or salsa if you want some spice
Pasta - we use elbows but you can pick your favorite kind of pasta
Parmesan or Cheddar Cheese

Directions:
Brown the ground turkey in a large skillet.
Add remaining ingredients to skillet and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes or until the pasta is tender.
Top with your choice of cheese

Easy One Skillet Chicken Stir Fry

This dinner is one of my kids FAVORITE meals and it is sooooo easy!! You can add more veggies, try out different stir fry sauces....lots of opportunities to change this up!!

Easy One Skillet Chicken Stir Fry 

Ingredients:

1 lb boneless chicken breasts 

2 bags frozen stir fry vegetables (or one stir fry veggies and one broccoli)

1 can water chestnuts (my kids love these, so I put in extra!)

1/2 cup stir fry sauce (my favorite is the Wegman's brand)

Optional - garlic powder 

2 cups brown rice 

1 1/2 cups water

Directions: 

• Cut the chicken breasts into bite sized pieces and cook in the skillet until no longer pink.
• Add frozen vegetables, water chestnuts, stir fry sauce and water and bring to a boil. 
• Stir in rice, reduce heat to medium and cook for 5 minutes.
• Stir and remove from heat for another 5 minutes

Family Schedule Command Center

My twin boys starting Kindergarten inspired me to plan out a MUCH needed command center for our hectic family life. I've been using for about 2 weeks now and it has kept me on track, kept my counters clear of clutter and made me feel like I was able to bring some control to our chaos!!

Here are the areas that were needing some organization and how those were incorporated in this design:

Misplacing Paperwork (because they were in piles on my counter)

I found these great wall file holders at Staples - Martha Stewart has a line of organizational products!! There is now one for each of the kids and then one for mail. The labels are chalk board labels which were also from the Martha Stewart line (I love her!!).

 

 

 

 

 

 

Constantly losing the "To-Do" and Shopping lists

Generic white board (also from Staples) serves two purposes:

1) To keep track of my reminders - when papers are due, things that we need to complete, etc. (In other words, those tasks that wake you up in the middle of the night or that you think of in the car and forget as soon as you are able to write them down!).

2) My ongoing grocery list!! Plus, I got this smaller holder (from Martha's line at Staples) that I use for coupons. The idea is that when I write down an new item on the grocery list, I pull any relevant coupons and keep them in this holder. I actually use the coupons that I've cut instead of not using them because I finally have an hour to run out to the store and I don't have time to sort through my coupon pile!!

 

No Dinner Plans

 


I found this white board weekly planner at Staples in the white board section and I am using it to write out my weekly meal plan each Sunday. I love that it has a cork board and magnets so if I find a recipe, I pin it up there.

This also coincides nicely with the grocery list so that I make sure I have the right ingredients on hand for the week.

 

 

Appointments, sports schedules, school events...Oh My!

We have always used our calendar, but only for bigger events and I was feeling like the little events were being missed or remembered at the last second, causing undue stress. This calendar holder from Target also includes a cork board so I pin birthday invitations, appointment reminders, etc which keeps them off my fridge!

Never a Note Pad or Pen When You Need One!

This is one of my favorite parts - I was always leaving my note pads in different places (never where I needed it when I was writing notes for school!) and pens were just as bad. We installed this shelf from Target and mounted this note pad (Marshall's) on the wall never to be lost again! My pens are now located near my note pad and we also add a change jar and our phone charger station.

Crockpot Chicken Philly Stuffed Peppers

Fall is in the air and Football season is starting up...who doesn't love a Chicken Philly Sandwich?!

I decided to try a recipe that satisfied the craving without sacrificing too many calories (and it's in a slow cooker so it saved me on time!!)

Crock Pot Chicken Philly Stuffed Peppers

Ingredients: 

4 large peppers
1 lb boneless chicken breast
1 Onion (Chopped)
2 tbsp chopped garlic
1 can sliced mushrooms
4 Tbsp Steak Sauce 
Provolone or Mozzarella Cheese

**You could also add rice or quinoa to this recipe if you wanted 









Directions: 

• Cut the tops of the peppers off - chop up the pepper tops for the filling.
• In a skillet, cook the chicken with onions and garlic with margarine until no longer pink
• Combine chicken and onions with chopped peppers, mushrooms and steak sauce.
• Put peppers in the crockpot and add the chicken filling
• Cook on low 8 hours
• Before you are ready to serve, add cheese into the peppers so it is melted.