11.11.14

{Cranberry Almond Granola Bars}

I wouldn't say that I love to cook.  I don't like feeling rushed to have dinner done by a certain time or pressured to have a elaborate meal cooked.  Those two things just aren't manageable (for me at least!) with a one year old.  Thankfully, I have a husband who understands!  Most weeks I cook about two to three times and we enjoy leftovers the other nights.  Most of the time I keep it simple, like tonight I just popped some sweet potatoes in the oven and I am sauteing squash on the stove.  We have leftover brisket that my husband will have with the other things I'm cooking and I'll probably have some avocado with mine.. and no, we don't eat this healthy all the time but we really try to be smart about our choices during the week.

Okay, so back to the "I don't love to cook"!  I will say that I enjoy trying out new recipes.  Recipes that look yummy, don't have an intimidating ingredient list, and are somewhat "clean".  Every once in a while I will try a recipe that has that intimidating ingredient list, clean or not clean just because I will get an itch to cook or bake but like I said before MOST of the time I like to keep things simple!  As I'm sure most Mom's do!  

I wanted to find a breakfast that I could cook and have for the rest of the week, that was easy to make, could be eaten on the go and that both Norah and I could enjoy.  I searched Google and Pinterest for ideas as I always do and eventually came up with these super easy Cranberry Almond Granola Bars.  I think they are very tasty and by leaving out the nuts in a separate batch Norah can enjoy them too and she really seems to like them! 

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp honey

• 1 tsp vanilla

• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce

• 3 cups old fashioned oats

• a few dashes of cinnamon (i always use a heavy with cinnamon because I LOVE it!)

• 1/4 cup sliced almonds

• 1/2 cup dried cranberries 

• 1/2 cup milk or almond milk (not pictured)

Mix all dry ingredients together and then add in wet ingredients and mix mix mix!  Here I left out almonds and once everything else was mixed I split the mixture in half and added almonds to one batch and left them out of the other. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a baking pan (or two if you are doing one without almonds) with parchment paper.  Pour mixture in pan and spread.  Mine was thick so I kind of spread and pressed into the pan as evenly as I could get it. 

Bake for about 20 minutes or until it's golden brown like you see in the photo. 

Let cool and then cut into squares.  I cut Norah's into smaller squares than I did mine.   I stored these in a tight container, in the refrigerator and they kept all week.

 

With only eight ingredients and one (maybe two) bowls I can see myself making these over and over again!  I bet they would be wonderful with dark chocolate chips added to them.  If you make them, let me know what you think!

xo,

-Katie

11.7.14

{my favorite every day face}

I have to admit one of my guilty pleasures in life is watching fashion, beauty & lifestyle videos on YouTube.  I just love hearing what other people's favorite products are, the tips they use, or deals they find!  I'm not going to lie.. I've secretly wanted to start a channel but for now I'll just stick to blogging. :)

Today I thought I'd share my favorite products I use for an "every day face".  Now, if I'm only going to the gym or to get a couple things from Target then I usually just wear concealer but this "every day face" is if I'm going to the mall, to lunch, or anywhere I want to look more put together.  I've never timed myself but it takes me less than ten minutes, maybe closer to five from start to finish.  A one year old doesn't allow for any more time than that! 

I love Maybelline's FIT Me Concealer. It has a gel consistency so it doesn't crease on me and I love the coverage it gives. I use it under my eyes, around my nose, on my chin, and on any blemishes or discoloration I may have. It's also very comparable to my MAC prolongwear that I use for a more full coverage face.

Next, I use MAC Mineralize Skin Finish to set everything I just concealed and to provide a little more coverage. This powder gives a very subtle "healthy glow" finish to the skin. I never go without this! 

No matter what time of year it is I usually always bronze! This LORAC bronzer is perfect because it adds a tad bit of color and sheen but is very buildable for the summer months.  I never buy the full size of this product which is very bulky and $32.  I always buy the travel size because it lasts me a very long time and it's only $7. I know if I bought the full size I would break it or it would expire before I used it all.

The MAC blush in Melba gives a very natural flush that can be worn year round and would work with so many skin tones.  

I discovered Benefit Gimme Brow a few months ago and I will probably never use another brow product.  It gives the right amount of color and definition to my brows and sets them at the same time. I love this product because it does so much but my brows still look very natural!  

If I could only have two makeup products the rest of my life it would be concealer and mascara.  I love trying out new mascaras but Loreal Carbon Black is an all time favorite!  I always use two mascaras together for my top lashes. There is something about how the formulas combine and work together it gives my lashes way more oomph than when I just use one. Rimmel Lash Accelerator is another favorite I usually layer on top and I also love this one for my bottom lashes since the brush is on the slimmer side. 

The Smith's Rosebud Salve is so moisturizing, adds shine and a hint of color to my lips. I also love the ease of the tube application. 

I hope you enjoyed hearing my "every day face" favorites.  I'd love to know what some of your holy grail products are! Tell me in the comments below or find this post on my Instagram @mrskatieree and let me know there! 

Xo,

-Katie

11.3.14

{Halloween 2014}

First off, is it really November already?!  I swear I think time flies even faster when you are watching little ones grow before your eyes.  And if you didn't know already, Christmas is only 51 days away! You're welcome! ;)

This Halloween was our second one with Norah but our first to actually get out of the house since she was only a month old at this time last year.  A local church held a Spirit Fest at our city park with games, trunk or treat, live music, food, etc so that is where we spent a bit of our Halloween evening and then ended it with dinner at good ole Chick Fil A. 

A few weeks before Halloween I was searching for a costume idea for Norah.  A few days later Willow Crowns happened to post a pair of cat ears she had recently added to her shop, and I knew I wanted Norah to dress up as a black cat so I ordered the ears.  I kept it simple by putting her in a black leotard, black skirt, black shoes and a few whiskers.  I love how her costume turned out and I know I'm biased but I think she made a pretty cute cat!

 

 

 

I hope you all had a wonderful Halloween with your precious families!

xo
-Katie

11.4.14

{Pumpkin Chocolate Muffins}

It seems like as soon as Fall comes around everyone goes pumpkin crazy!  I have to be honest though and say that I'm only one foot on the pumpkin bandwagon... I just am not crazy about pumpkin.  Come on, I can't be the only one! :)

So why am I sharing a recipe with pumpkin in it?!  Because my husband has been begging me to make them!  Also, it's a super easy, healthier, four ingredient, yummy dessert.  So I thought I'd share!


[Ingredients]

chocolate cake mix
chocolate chips
1 can 100% pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
1 serving of apple sauce

Combine all of the ingredients except chocolate chips into a large bowl and mix together.  Be sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl so you get all of the dry cake mix.  Add in chocolate chips and mix.  You can use a fourth of the bag, half of the bag, I usually use the entire bag.  

*note: the mixture will be thicker than your normal batter

 

Once everything is mixed together, spoon into foil cupcake liners.

Cook at 325 degrees for about 20 minutes.  I cook them until a knife or toothpick comes out clean.

Enjoy! 

 

xo,

-Katie

{find me on instagram: @mrskatieree}

10.30.14

{Macadamia Deep Repair Masque}

I wanted to quickly share a shopping deal I've recently come across.  I started using this hair treatment a couple months ago and I have been so happy with the results and would really like to continue to use it!  The only thing is that it retails for about $30 and if you know me you know that I am a bargain shopper.

When I first decided to try this product out I was searching online for coupons and had no luck but noticed that Target had it listed for almost half the price on their website.  So off to Target I went, knowing they do price matching, I found the product and marched my booty up to the customer service where they adjusted the price for me to $15.99 versus $29.99.  I went home, used it, loved it, then started thinking about what I'm going to do when it runs out because there was no way I was going to spend thirty bucks on a hair product. 

A few days ago I realized I was almost out so I checked Target's website again and found that it was listed for almost half of the price so I immediately went and purchased another one.  Since I've had luck with this deal twice now, I just had to share because I know so many that use this amazing product.  Spending $15 on a conditioner is kind of pricey to me still but it lasted me almost two months since I try to only wash my hair two to three times a week so I don't damage my hair, thank you dry shampoo!! :)

Let me know if you use this deal and if you try out the product!

xo
-Katie

10.29.14

{recipe} "Cleaned Up" Jambalaya

For some reason, the other day I was craving soup but I just couldn't make myself cook some because it still feels like summer here! (Hopefully that is changing in a few days.) Anyways, after thinking about yummy warm soups, Jambalaya popped in my head and since we have way too much deer sausage from last hunting season I thought it would be perfect.

After doing whole30 we pay much more attention to what we eat, especially during the week.  The weekends and holidays are when I indulge and am more lenient on what I eat, in moderation. I kind of winged the recipe but I think it turned out SO GOOD! & my husband did too! 

 *I cooked 1 1/2 cups of quinoa (instead of rice)

*sauteed two bell peppers and one onion in avocado oil

*cubed, seasoned with garlic powder, salt & pepper and roasted three yellow potatoes in the oven

*cooked a link of the deer sausage in the oven

Once everything was cooked, I just piled all the ingredients and chopped sausage in a bowl and topped with some cheese and pickled jalapenos for extra spice.  Next time I think I'll add in steamed or roasted carrots.  Thanks for visiting and I hope you have a wonderful Halloween!

xo
-Katie

10.8.14

Broccoli & Quinoa Bites {recipe}

Quinoa is one of my favorite foods to eat because it is a "super food" packed full of great things and it's very versatile, you can make it taste like anything! I wanted to find a recipe to make with it for us but also that Norah could safely eat as well.  After searching online and finding several recipes on Pinterest I sort of combined them all and ended up with something very yummy! At least we think so!

Ingredients
1 cup cooked quinoa
1 cup of cheese (I normally use cheddar)
2 eggs
1 cup of finely chopped broccoli
seasonings to taste (I use pepper, pink salt, garlic powder & ground mustard)

First, cook your quinoa according to instructions on the box.  It's usually one cup of uncooked quinoa to two cups water, bring to boil, cover and simmer until water is absorbed.  While it's cooking, wash and finely chop the broccoli leaving out stems.

Next, combine cooked quinoa, chopped broccoli, cheese, eggs & seasonings.  Stir very well to make sure the egg and seasonings are mixed with all the other ingredients. 

Coat a mini muffin tin with cooking spray, I like to use a coconut oil spray.  Fill the cups up with the mixture and cook on 350 for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. 

 

..and Voila! :) Norah scarfs these down and they are so easy to throw in a container for on the go.  This recipe makes two dozen mini muffins.  Let me know what you think if you make them! Even if you don't like them! :)

<3 Katie