take a peek into my kitchen- Simple Home Gatherings

Those who know me, know that I love taking peeks into other peoples homes/lives. Nothing makes me happier than home tour blog posts, real estate listings, open houses, model homes…you get the idea! 🙂 I also enjoy seeing what other people have going on in their kitchens…whether that be things they are cooking or renovating or organizing…it’s all fun! Here’s what going on in my kitchen! First up in my kitchen…a bit of organizing. I H.A.T.E my fridge!! It’s a side-by-side and while that may work for some people, it does NOT work for our family of six. I feel like I’m constantly cramming things in while at the same time forgetting to use important things like produce or left overs. A quick trip to Target (who am I kidding…there is no such thing as a QUICK trip to Target! LOL!) for a few clear, plastic bins and some squishy shelf liner (perhaps it has a more formal name, but we’ll just go with squishy 😉 ) and I was ready to go.

Ok, I SUCK and remembering to grab before photos so you’ll just have to imagine how bad it was before I emptied it and gave it a thorough cleaning. Trust me it was gross and cluttered. As a side note…I threw out countless bottles of sauces…seriously how many hot sauces does one family need!? (especially when only one family member uses hot sauce on a regular basis!) Anyway here’s the after!…

and a close up…

The two biggest changes…the cheese and lunch meat came out of the drawer (that now holds yogurts and such) and went into a bin where they can be seen. Plus most of the veggies went from the bottom two drawers and into a clear bin…chopped up and ready to be eaten! I have seen a huge increase in veggie consumption now that my kids (and my hubby too!) can just grab a baggie of veggies, open the “yogurt” drawer and grab a “dip” (we always have hummus, ranch and cream cheese available). Not only is my family eating more vegetables, I’m also remembering to USE them in our meals…as opposed to buying them, sticking them in a lower bin drawer and forgetting about them until it’s Thursday night (trash day is Friday) and throwing them out because they’ve gone bad! We have so much less waste these days which is great! The squishy shelf liner is simply to make it pretty! I’ve found that when I take the time to make something pretty, I tend to take more care and keep it that way. I figured the fridge would be no different!

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Have I ever shown you our “lunch” cabinet? For the longest time the cabinet over my microwave was just a catch-all for random things that didn’t seem to have another logical home. At the start of this school year the cabinet got an over haul. I make the kids school lunches atleast 4 days a week and, more often than not, 5 days a week. I needed a way to make putting their lunches together easily and quickly. I decided on this magic school lunch formula…

a main thing (like a sandwich or a bagel with cream cheese)
a small healthy thing (like a cheese stick or carrots with ranch)
a salty thing (like a baggies of fish crackers or a bag of chips)
a sweet thing (like a couple of cookies or fruit snacks)
a drink (vanilla milk boxes and kool aid “juice” pouches are the faves around here)

With the exception of the perishable items, everything else is kept in the kitchen lunch cabinet. I can easily grab each item in my formula and have the kids lunches put together in a snap! In fact that is the first thing I do when they come home from school…grab their lunch boxes and make the next days lunch right away so that I don’t have to give it another thought. The lunch cabinet has changed my life for the better! In years past I start off the school year strong…super creative and mostly healthy lunches. By the end of the school year I was so sick of trying to come up with creative ideas that my kids would end up with a carrot (like a whole carrot..unpeeled!), slices of lunch meat (still in the original packing!) and some random left over Halloween candy…probably not the most nutritious! haha! But as we wind this school year down, I’m happy to report that keeping to my simple formula has maintained consistent lunches that the kids tell me they enjoy.

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On another note…in case you are wondering…here are a few things I’ve dished up lately in my kitchen…

Super Easy Chili with Cornbread- I detailed this recipehere.

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Here’s the original blogger source….Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies

(mine aren’t nearly as pretty as the original, but they sure were tasty!)

Ingredients

1 and 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract optional
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup Andes chocolate mint chips

Instructions

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, cocoa, baking soda, cornstarch and salt. Set aside.
In a microwave safe bowl, melt butter in 10 second intervals until almost all melted, some pieces of butter should be visible. Place in a large mixing bowl and whisk until melted. If the butter is too warm, let cool.
Add granulated sugar and brown sugar to melted butter and whisk until smooth, about 1 minute.
Add egg and extracts and whisk until smooth. Make sure no egg white remains unmixed.
Add dry ingredients and stir in with a wooden spatula. Add Andes chips and chocolate chips and stir in, just until incorporated. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill in fridge for at least 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.
Using a medium size cookie scoop ( 1,5 tablespoon size ), scoop cookie dough and place on prepared sheet, leaving about 2″ space between them.
Bake cookies for 8 to 10 minutes, but no longer.
If desired, place few Andes chips and chocolate chips on top of each cookies. Let cool for 10 minutes, then transfer onto a cooling rack.

Recipe Notes

To make ahead: scoop ready cookie dough onto a parchment paper lined sheet, placing them close together. Freeze. Place frozen cookie balls in a ziploc bag, make sure to squeeze out as much air as possible. Store in freezer for up to 1 month.

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Sheet-Pan Nachos

I didn’t use an official recipe for this one. But here’s what I threw together…

2 lbs ground beef (browned and drained)
1/4-1/2 cup taco seasoning
tortilla chips (I used a whole bag)
shredded cheddar
velvetta cheese (melted down)
green onions (diced)
cherry tomatoes (halved)
salsa (I used a mild southwestern style)
queso cheese dip

Putting this together is a no-brainer…toss the chips with the cooked taco meat, sprinkle with the cheddar, bake for 10 minutes or so, then top off with the tomatoes, onions and drizzle the velvetta on top. Those that wanted salsa or queso added that themselves. Surprisingly these were a HUGE hit with my family and will be a regular on my menu rotation.

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Original blog source: Best Ever Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

8 tablespoons of salted butter
1/2 cup white sugar (I like to use raw cane sugar with a coarser texture)
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt (but I always add a little extra)
3/4 cup chocolate chips (I use a combination of chocolate chips and chocolate chunks)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Microwave the butter for about 40 seconds to just barely melt it. It shouldn’t be hot – but it should be almost entirely in liquid form.
Using a stand mixer or electric beaters, beat the butter with the sugars until creamy. Add the vanilla and the egg; beat on low speed until just incorporated – 10-15 seconds or so (if you beat the egg for too long, the cookies will be stiff).
Add the flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix until crumbles form. Use your hands to press the crumbles together into a dough. It should form one large ball that is easy to handle (right at the stage between “wet” dough and “dry” dough). Add the chocolate chips and incorporate with your hands.
Roll the dough into 12 large balls (or 9 for HUGELY awesome cookies) and place on a cookie sheet. Bake for 9-11 minutes until the cookies look puffy and dry and just barely golden.Warning, friends: DO NOT OVERBAKE. This advice is probably written on every cookie recipe everywhere, but this is essential for keeping the cookies soft. Take them out even if they look like they’re not done yet (see picture in the post). They’ll be pale and puffy.
Let them cool on the pan for a good 30 minutes or so (I mean, okay, eat four or five but then let the rest of them cool). They will sink down and turn into these dense, buttery, soft cookies that are the best in all the land. These should stay soft for many days if kept in an airtight container. I also like to freeze them.

Notes

The 3 most important things about this recipe are 1) melting the butter, 2) adding enough flour, and 3) not baking for too long.

If you find that the dough is wet and it REALLY sticks to your hands, you probably need a little more flour. This is important otherwise you’ll have flat cookies. I’ll usually add a few tablespoons at a time to get it to the right consistency. See video in post for reference. You should be able to roll the balls of dough between your hands without any issues.

Hope you enjoyed a peek into my kitchen! 🙂