Carnitas

Day 3...Mexican Style

It was carnitas this evening. The pork cooked all day and it was awesome.
The recipe can be found at Life as a Plate.

The recipe was super easy. I think it took 10 minutes to get everything all together last night.

I threw the meat and other ingredients in the crock pot at around 6 am and we ate around 7 pm. We used the meat and made tacos. There is a cool little grocery store by Lindo Lake and it sells fresh tortillas, and salsa. I also bought some cotija cheese and crema. The tacos were amazing.

The only thing I would warn you about is that there is a lot of meat left over. This isn't a bad thing but I just didn't realize there would be so much extra meat. This would make a great recipe for a party.

Garlic Beef Stew and Cauliflower Mash

Day 1 was a success so on to Day 2...

For the meal, I used the site Everyday Paleo.

I got all the ingredients ready the night before and put them in a bowl so all I had to do was throw them in the Crock Pot and get started.

This meal called for a lot more veggies than yesterday's and it was well worth it.

The house smelled fabulous when I got home from work.

The cauliflower mash was very good and so easy. I boiled the cauliflower because I don't have a steamer that can fit two large heads of cauliflower. I boiled it until it was soft and then threw it in the Vitamix (I would recommend a food processor if you have one) with less turmeric then the recipe asked for. I had to add a little milk because it was too dry for the Vitamix to blend. Salt and pepper came last and we were ready to eat.

The cauliflower mash was much better than I was expecting. The texture was good and it tasted great.

All in all, the stew was very good and I am definitely going to use the recipe again.

Food organization: Day 1 Smokey Roast

I feel like I have been failing at my life recently. My house doesn't seem to ever be clean. Teaching has taken a back seat. It is exciting to take a shower without feeling rushed at the moment. Dinner has become a horrible event of disappointed expectation. I am so stressed out about what to have for dinner every night. I think about it during work and worry that just like everything else I am not able to keep up. Well, today I took hold of my life a little bit. I found a blog on pinterest that listed 30 paleo recipes that can be cooked in a Crock Pot. I am not completely sure about the paleo thing, but I am definitely willing to go in that direction. This little experience can provide me with new ideas for meals and the structure to start cooking again.

So today I purchased a Crock Pot (super cute one!) and I started on my new food path.

Today I made Smokey Roast with Sweet Potato Rounds and Green Beans.

The roast was super easy and tasted excellent. I cooked it for 5 1/2 hours and it was so tender. The rub was very good.

The recipe can be found at Everyday Paleo.

The sweet potato rounds are my own thing. I used two large yams. Washed and cut into thin slices. Throw them in a bowl, add olive oil pepper, kosher salt, and paprika. Mix and coat all the slices. Lay out the slices on a rack so that there is little to no overlap. Cook for 20 minutes at 425 F.

The green beans were steamed.

There was enough food to make sure that lunch tomorrow is very much taken care of.

Tomorrow: Beef, garlic, and cauliflower...oh my!

A long week but feeling refreshed...

Although this week was only four days long it felt like it is taking forever. I started out the week on a bad note. I had the first of (I am sure) many difficult mornings. Thuglet was so unhappy. I have no idea what was bothering him, but he was unhappy from the moment he woke up till I dropped him at the sitter's. It is so hard to get ready for work when your little one is crying and fussing. The more he cried the more anxious I became. Needless to say, the start of the day was very rough which pretty much carried through until the end.

Thankfully, each day of the week has gotten progressively better. And today I realized that I have so much to be thankful for. To be happy about. It is wrong to be upset by situations that are so trivial in the big scheme of things. We all have the right to complain about our lives regardless of the circumstances. But I really need to curb the complaining. Life is good!

I have a Husby who is now sleeping in Thuglet room because he wants to play an active role in his nighttime activities and give me a chance to regain a bit of my sanity.

I have Thuglet, who besides not sleeping ever, is a very happy boy. He is adorable, funny, sweet and so amazing. He is already starting to crawl/scoot around. He is laughing. He is so cuddly.

A little blurry but the perfect example of my happy little Thuglet.

I saw a picture of someone's closet on facebook and right then realized I was so lucky to have a amazing closet and beautiful home. There are so many things we want to upgrade, but it is so nice to have a house on a nice street with a big yard.

I have a good job with a lot of time off. I have the opportunity to see my family more often than most. I got to spend 9 straight weeks with my little dude this summer. I get to spend time with him in the morning and evenings. Although I feel discontented about my job I know it allows me time with those I love most.

I have a great mom who loves my beautiful Thuglet so much. She watches him two days a week and does the dishes while she is at it. She is giving me a whole month's worth of birthday presents because this month I turn 30. She is selfless and generous. I couldn't ask for a better mom.

There is so much more but it feels nice to start my list and be thankful.