Green Chili Chicken Pasta

Everyone at my house was getting bored with my dinners and I wanted some inspiration.  So I started perusing my pins for something new to try. This one caught my eye and was different.  I always think pasta has to be Italian but why not Mexican? The genius behind this one is Joyful Momma.  I made some changes to her recipe to better suit my family's taste and what I had on hand. So feel free to make it her way or try some idea you have!

This recipe is basic and easy to adjust without risking a flop meal.  First, here is the original recipe.  My family likes a little kick, so I added some cumin and chili powder.  Also I changed the sauce to use my Cream of Chicken soup mix instead of the roux.  This recipe would be great for using up grilled chicken, it would add great flavor.  Also, I even skipped the baking step to save time and it turned out great, just heat it through.  So here's my twist:

Green Chili Chicken Pasta

1 box penne pasta, cooked according to package directions

2 cooked chicken breasts, diced

2 cans cream of chicken soup or equivalent mix

1 cup plain greek yogurt

1 tsp. cumin, adjust to taste if desired

1 tsp. chili powder, adjust to taste if desired

4 oz. can diced green chilies

2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese.

Grease a 9 x 13 pan. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.  Layer cooked pasta and chicken.  Combine the cream of chicken soup, greek yogurt, cumin, chili powder and green chilies in medium bowl. Pour over the pasta and chicken.  Top with cheese.  Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until the top is bubbly.

Fruit Salsa and Baked Cinnamon Chips

Memorial day weekend involved lots of food and fun with family. I didn't want to totally derail my healthier eating, so I made this yummy fruit salsa.  The first time I went to make it, I didn't have kiwi or raspberries.  I thought that crushed pineapple might be a good substitute and I really loved it.  Summer is here and fresh fruit hits the spot!

Fruit Salsa (adapted from Allrecipes.com)

1 can crushed pineapple, drained

2 apples, diced

1 pound strawberries, coarsely chopped

3 tablespoons sugar-free jam, I used blackberry

Combine all the ingredients in a medium sized bowl.  Chill in the refrigerator while you make the cinnamon chips.

Baked Cinnamon Chips

10 whole wheat tortillas

Cooking spray

Cinnamon sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray the front and back of each tortilla.  Cut them in 6 equal pieces. Arrange on greased cookie sheet.  Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, as much as you like.  Bake for 8-10 minutes, until golden on the edges and crunchy.  Re-coat with cinnamon sugar if desired.  Repeat with another batch.  Let cool, then serve with the fruit salsa.  Enjoy!

Notes:  It is best served the first day.  The salsa will get very juicy but still good the second day.  The original recipe called for kiwis and raspberries.  Don't be afraid to try other favorite fruits, the possibilities are endless! 

Cleaning your Pack'n'Play

We were so excited to have family coming to visit us, especially my little nephew!  I was busy getting the house ready for company and remembered that I wanted to try cleaning my pack'n'play.  I didn't recall it looking dirty but when I pulled it out I realized it really needed to be done.  The wee one deserved a clean bed too.

I went to my pin for instructions.  The Thrifty Mom posted a youtube video and had great results.  Her playpen was really gross and had tried other methods unsuccessfully.  Soaking finally worked and I'm happy with my results too.  I didn't use the detergent she suggested, but I just used 1 tablespoon of my homemade laundry soap.  After soaking as instructed, I tried to get all the water off that I possibly could.  I set it outside standing on the side to dry in the sun.  After a little while I squeezed more water out and then more time in the sun.  My boards in the mattress to did warp a little, but I'm still glad it did it.

Family Tree

Now that Mother's day has passed I can post my gift to my mother and mother-in-law.  I saw this family tree on Pinterest.  Smallgood Hearth had a great idea to make a personalized family tree. It was not very expensive, the frame was the most expensive part.  

I bought a canvas and stopped by the paint department for the paint chips. I had the rest of the supplies at home.  I started by painting a tree trunk and making sure to have a branch to hang the swing on.  Next was cutting out all the leaves.  I just free handed them and made sure I had extra.  To make the swing, cut a rectangle to scale for your tree. I used an embroidery needle to get the string through and then tied a knot at the top and bottom.  I glued the swing on and drew the heart with initials.  Next I set the leaves on to get an idea where they would fit, since I was trying to keep the family groups together.  Then I just used Tacky Glue to attach the leaves.  I even left a couple blank leaves for the two babies coming this fall.  I also left room for the growing families to add more leaves, extra leaves were taped to the back of the frame. 

Both moms were thrilled with the results.  I'm really pleased with it too and it wasn't hard to do.

Ratty doll hair fix

I have 5 daughters which means we have copious amounts of all things girl!  I got tired of fighting the barbie explosion  and I put the barbies away in the shed.  The original plan was to just take a break for a while.  The girls kept asking periodically to get them back and my response every time, "Keep your room clean, then we can talk."  Well, they finally did and I wanted to pare down before returning them. 

I also wanted to try out a pin a saw. Tammy at Housing a Forest had a simple fix for frizzy doll hair.  Before "retiring" the ratty haired barbies, I wanted to see if I could spruce them up.

The fix was simple.  Brush out the hair the best you can.  Soak the hair in really hot water. Brush again and let the hair dry.  It worked like a charm!  I have to admit that I used a little detangler on the tough ones.  

The girls were excited to enjoy their barbies again and to be able to actually brush hair too.  Next time I'll involve the girls and not wait until there is such a mess.

Layered Oreo Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownies

I saw these brownies floating around Pinterest with lots of different names, some are not very kid-friendly.  I was excited to try them because it had lots of my favorite things:  chocolate chip cookie, oreos and brownies.  I was disappointed, don't think I'll make them again.  They were just not what I envisioned.  I have other decadent dessert I enjoy a lot more, count this one as a fail.

Baby bow tie

My sister searched everywhere for a bow tie for her baby to wear in an upcoming wedding.  So she asked me if I would make one.  I only had one boy and he's about to turn 16, I was excited do a project for a little boy!  I checked out several tutorials and most closely followed this one.  I wasn't happy with the attachment methods I saw and got creative.  

I wanted something comfortable for the baby and easy to put on or off for the adult wrestling the little one.  My answer was to use the 1 inch wide elastic used for headbands.  It has just enough stretch and soft.  Next I found a swimsuit clasps for the closures, again hoping it would be easy to dress wiggly baby.  To attach the tie, I just carefully hot glued it on.  

I can't wait to see this on my sweet nephew!