Mix it up with Meatloaf Muffins


Does your meatloaf need a little wake-up call?  I recently saw a few photos for cooking meatloaf in a muffin tin and gave it a try.  If you remember from my Menu Plan Monday post this week, I mentioned being part of a recipe exchange with my playgroup peeps.  Thanks to Aimee G., I got inspired to test out my own spin of Mini Meatloaf.

Mini Meatloaf
Makes 12 muffins

Ingredients
1 lb Ground Beef (or Turkey)
3 cups (1 bag) Broccoli Slaw
7 Tbls Ketchup
1 Tbl Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 Cup Chopped Onion
1 Egg
1 Cup Whole Wheat Panko Bread Crumbs
2 Garlic Cloves minced
1 Tsp Kosher Salt

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray muffin tray with non-stick spray.
2. Chop Broccoli Slaw in food processor.
3. Combine all ingredients except 3 Tbl Ketchup in a bowl.  Distribute evenly in muffin tray.

4. Brush remaining ketchup over the tops.

5. Bake for 30 mins until firm and lightly browned.

This is a great way to sneak in a little more veggies into dinner.  Next time we are going to make it and mix half the recipe with Sriracha Sauce. We can label our spicy ones with muffin liners.  I made this batch with 85% lean ground beef, which I feel cooks better (and tastes better) than the leaner versions.  I happily found that there was no excess drippings at the bottoms of the muffins which I was worried about.  They baked evenly and the veggies kept them moist.  I am a huge meatloaf fan and this is a great way to make it quick, instead of in a loaf pan that takes an hour to cook.  I may try to make this as mini muffins next time and serve as an appetizer.

How else do you sneak veggies into dinner?

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Don’t forget to enter to win a set of Wool Dryer Balls! Contest ends 2/15.


This post is shared with the Green Resource at The Greenbacks Gal.

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Menu Plan Monday Feb 6


New recipes this week. If they are good, I’ll share in a future post. I am part of a recipe exchange with my playgroup and there have been lots of great recipes shared.

Click here for the Mini Meatloaf recipe .

For more menu ideas, check out OrgJunkie.  Need some additional Menu Planning inspiration? Check out Stephanie Langford’s e-book Plan It, Don’t Panic.

I love to hear your feedback and comments. Stop by and visit the Facebook page or Twitter for updates!  Or get posts delivered via Email or RSS Feed. Thanks!     

 
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Wool Dryer Ball Giveaway!

Get on the wool dryer ball bandwagon.  Surprise your friends.  Cut your drying time.  Who doesn’t want to spend a little less time waiting for the dryer to finish.  For my full review of my wool dryer balls from The Willow Store, check it out here.

Catherine from The Willow Store has graciously offered a 3-pack for one of my readers!
Fill out the Rafflecopter form below to get multiple chances to win.

The contest is open until midnight Pacific time on February 14th, 2012.  Contest is open to US residents only.  A winner will be notified via email and has 48 hours to claim their prize.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thank you to The Willow Store for this giveaway. I purchased my dryer ball set myself and excited for someone else to enjoy them too!  Good luck!

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Pins of the Week

I do love when my favorite bloggers publish their favorite reads of the week.  I’ve decided to share my favorite “Pins” of the week from Pinterest, since I find it fits into my lifestyle so well as a parent, foodie, crafter and blogger.  While I’m not a huge fan of Facebook’s new Timeline, (especially the ads!) I do like the quick reference to my most recent Pins.

Family

Source: realsimple.com via Emily on Pinterest

Scoops of Ice Cream~ We had a small birthday parties for the kids this weekend and we incorporated this awesome trick into the planning prep.

Food

Source: pillsbury.com via Emily on Pinterest

Football Pizza~ GO PATS!!

Source: weelicious.com via Emily on Pinterest

Red Beet Pancakes~ planning to make these into hearts for Valentine’s Day

Source: clarionwren.com via Emily on Pinterest

Homemade Cheese Crackers~ another fun idea for Valentine’s Day.

Craft

Source: sprik.blogspot.com via Emily on Pinterest

Bee Mine Valentine Printable~ just a little more special than the drugstore variety.

Blogging

Source: centsationalgirl.com via Emily on Pinterest

Picnik alternatives~ just as I figured out how to make my photos look a little better, now I need to find a new application that works as easily as Picnik.

What are your favorite pins of the week?  Leave a link in the comments for us to find some new Pinterest friends!  Not on Pinterest?  Send me an email or comment that you need an invite.

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Carrot Cake Muffins

Ok, so these may be a little bit more on the cupcake side than the muffin side.  I make them as mini muffins so they are just a quick treat any time of day.  This is also one of those recipes I find helpful when I have too many carrots leftover in the fridge.  Even when they start getting a little bendy, this will still work.  I have also shredded the carrots and then put it in the freezer for a rainy day cooking project.

Carrot Cake Muffins 

Ingredients
1/2 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
1/2 Cup All-Purpose Flour (also works with all whole wheat flour, it’s just slightly more dense)
1/2 Tsp Cinnamon
1/2 Tsp Nutmeg
1 Tsp Baking Soda
1/8 Tsp (or Pinch) of Salt
2 Eggs
3/4 Cup Sugar
1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 Cup Coconut Oil (or Vegetable or Canola oil)
1/2 Pound Carrots, shredded (box grater or food processor shredder)
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place liners in muffin tin or just grease with coconut oil to make 12 cupcakes, or 24 mini muffins.
2. Measure all dry ingredients into a bowl and mix with a whisk.
3. In a separate bowl, combine the eggs, sugars and melted coconut oil. I find it helpful to work with room temperature eggs when dealing with coconut oil so it maintains a liquid form.
4. Combine wet and dry ingredients in the largest bowl. Fold in shredded carrots.
5. Fill muffin liners until full and even across the tray.
6. Bake 15-20 minutes for muffins, and 13-18 minutes for mini muffins. My mini muffins took about 15 minutes, just watch depending on your oven temperature.
7. Let cool in the tray for 5 minutes, then transfer to cooling racks.
Instructions
Enjoy!

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This recipe is being shared at Frugally Sustainable, Permanent Posies, Real Food Forager and Melt in your Mouth Mondays.

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Cuisinart Electric Pressure Cooker Review

Cuisinart Electric Pressure Cooker
I got little giddy when I saw the Williams Sonoma bag under the tree with my pressure cooker resting inside. I’m a total kitchen geek and love new kitchen tools and appliances, both big and small.  I love my new pressure cooker as much as I love my new apple corer.   For a little over a month, I’ve been enjoying my new Cuisinart Electric Pressure Cooker.  I’m trying to learn some new recipes so I can maximize using it.  I’m not one to encourage having extra stuff in your kitchen, but if you make a commitment to use it, I say bring it on!
Most of my friends are not familiar with pressure cookers since they were really from my grandmother’s era.  Oh, how things change.  Just like cloth diapers, this is not your grandmother’s pressure cooker.  The Cuisinart Electric Pressure Cooker feels like a slow cooker, it just works in reverse.  Very hot, very fast instead of low and slow. The best features of this pressure cooker is the ability to brown, saute or simmer all in the same pot, instead of doing one thing on the stove, and then transferring to a slow cooker or another pot.  Clearly, I’m looking for the same features the next time I get the opportunity to upgrade my current slow-cooker.
Saute risotto right in the pressure cooker.
In my challenge to continue to cook more food from scratch, this is helping me achieve that goal.  Plus it is a cost saver too.  Here is a couple of great ways I am using my pressure cooker.
  1. I can cook a whole chicken in about 25 minutes, plus I got some amazing broth from it. At $1.99/lb at Whole Foods on sale, this is a great cost saver.
  2. Beans.  They are cheap, healthy, frugal and cook super fast in the pressure cooker.  No soaking necessary.  Not a bean fan, this works fast for rice too. 10 minutes for brown rice.
  3. I can make Risotto during the week with kids hanging off my leg.  Amazing.
  4. Baby Food and Transitional Toddler food.  Sweet Potatoes cook in 6 minutes. They are the perfect consistency for either mashing into baby food or keep them cubed for the little guy learning to feed himself.
  5. Beef Stew under an hour.  Now who doesn’t like quick comfort food? This will be even better when we have a winter with snow 😉

The Cuisinart Electric Pressure Cooker is well designed since it allows for easy clean-up, a keep-warm function for when you let something finish cooking with the Natural Pressure Release option (this can take up to 15 minutes so factor that into your timing), and the digital format is super easy to use.  There is no need to wonder if you have the right pressure as you do with the stove top options available.  I like the ability to set a timer and walk away.  If you have little kids, you totally understand the dinner challenge. While I LOVE to cook, I don’t love to do it when I feel like I’m not giving the kids the attention they are craving at the end of the day.

Parmesan Shrimp Risotto
I hope this enlightens you on the latest kitchen technology available that can help save you time (and money) in the kitchen. In the coming month, I’ll be sharing some of the recipes I test out using the pressure cooker.
  I would love to hear if any of you have experience with using pressure cookers.

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Disclosure: I received the pressure cooke
r from my Mom so I was in no way influenced by her generosity. 
This post is shared with The Greenbacks Gal, I Thought I Knew Mama.

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Have I mentioned how much I love Menu Planning?

This weekend I think I finally hit my stride in making a plan to menu plan.  It does take some time to sit down and review what you have on hand to make a menu, review recipes to see what needs to be added to the grocery list, and then finish up the grocery list.  I did my planning session during Saturday’s naptime so I could get a couple of little things on Sunday and be ready to start the week with the majority of the ingredients needed for the week.  I’m using my binder of favorite recipes or Pinterest most often.

So far the menu planning is helping me feel less stressed about dinner time, especially since I am adding in at least one or two crock-pot meals for the week.  It’s also started to trim my grocery bill for the week by about $25.  Next up is to start clearing through some back-up in the pantry and freezer so hopefully I can increase our savings even more.

Up on this week’s plan…
Monday~ new Mexican Chicken in the Crock-Pot…I’m winging it so if it’s good, a recipe will follow 😉
Tuesday~ Lentil Soup and Salad.  Daddy is away so I get to test out some meatless meals to see if they are hearty enough for his return.
Wednesday~ Chicken Sausage and Pasta
Thursday~ Easy Chicken Curry.  I’ve made this two times before and some very picky eaters LOVED it.
Friday~ Fried Haddock Sandwiches.  My little man turns ONE on Friday, so he may get something special.

For more recipe inspiration, you can follow my Favorite Recipe or Slow Cooker Board.

What are you cooking this week?

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This post will be shared at OrgJunkie Menu Plan Monday.

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Three Years Ago I Became a Mom

My world changed when my beautiful daughter arrived in this world.
I became a Mom three years ago today.  
I left a world where my actions affected only me.
Now I look twice, think twice, stress twice and so on in hopes that I make the best decision for her.
Do I always make the right one?  Probably not.  But I know that I try ever day to look her in the eyes and tell her I love her.

Happy Birthday to my Madison. I love you to the moon and back.
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Ever Tried Dryer Balls?

I am a dryer ball convert.  I know that makes me a little weird since the majority of my friends probably have never even heard of dryer balls.  It was probably a year ago that I first read about them.  They replace dryer sheets, and last a VERY long time.  Like, years.  No more buying dryer sheets…or more like, no more running out of dryer sheets.  Plus, it’s just one less laundry time-sucking chore since the balls just stay in the dryer for the next round.

During the Black Friday/Cyber Monday haze of ordering Christmas presents, I saw The Willow Store had a discount code and I jumped on it.  I thought it would be a good present for my husband to wrap up for me.  I was so efficient in getting it and putting it in his closet, he never opened it up and I didn’t get it under the tree!
Regardless, I started using them a week after Christmas and here are my thoughts after one month.

1. Why didn’t I buy these sooner.

2. Use three balls, any less and I get some static.

3. There is still a little static with synthetic clothes…think dry-fit gym clothes.  Usually the static is only when I first pull them out of the dryer.  By the time I get them into the drawer an hour (or ahem, day) later, the static is gone.  I talked with Catherine from the Willow Store and she said to cut the drying time by a few minutes and the static should disappear.  Less drying time?  Even better.

4. I choose the natural color set, but Catherine said the colored balls are safe to use in white washes since the the colors are fiber reactive dyed.  It’s actually easier to find the colored balls in the white washes and vice versa.  Smart.

5. The kids love them.  Laundry is now a little game time for everyone 🙂

I have also used the balls for drying my cloth diapers.  No static to report and it has cut my drying time down by about 5 minutes. I know there are some DIY wool dryer ball posts you can search for, but for me, I am happy with my order and look forward to giving you an update in a year to see if they are still working as well as they are today.

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~I bought this product on my own and in no way affiliated with The Willow Store.  My opinions shared here are strictly my own.  I’ll be sharing this post with Frugally Sustainable , I Thought I Knew Mama,and SortaCrunchy.

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Meal Plan Monday Jan 23

All is well in our house since the Patriots won!  We had a fun Taco dinner with friends to start the week off on the right foot.

Here is this week’s menu details.

Monday~ Tomato Soup and maybe some Grilled Cheese too.

Tuesday~ First time trying the Coconut Ginger Slow Cooker recipe from Simple Bites. Planning to serve it over Brown Rice.
Wednesday~  Beef Stew in Pressure Cooker. I love my Cuisinart Pressure Cooker
Thursday~ Baked Haddock, Mac n Cheese and Broccoli. 
Friday~ Burgers and Sweet Potato fries.  Hopefully the weather is decent so we can grill and I’m going to test out my new mandoline to make our own french fries.

Saturday~ My little girl turns THREE!!  Birthday dinner out to celebrate.

What are you making this week?  Feel free to leave a link to your menu plan in the comments.

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I love to hear your feedback and comments. Stop by and visit the Facebook page or Twitter for updates!  Or get posts delivered via Email or RSS Feed. Thanks!     


For more menu plan ideas, stop by OrgJunkie for lots of recipes and more.

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