Recipe - Easy, Cheesy Pizza "Muffins"

With 3 kids to feed each night, I have to find easy, creative and delicious meals to serve them to avoid the late evening meltdowns. 

Well one afternoon, with the kids finishing their homework, I looked up to realize that dinner time was way too close with nothing on the stove or even in the works!! YIKES!!  What to do??  

Now I could just resort to making pasta, but they eat pasta like every other day! So I wanted to feed them something different.  I opened the fridge to scan my shelves and see what I could make....and then a Pinterest picture came to mind:  pizzas made in a muffin tin.  I don't recall ever seeing the recipe but I figured that I could come up with it on my own.  So I fished out the canned biscuits, pizza sauce, and shredded cheese.  Yep, that's it!

  

Preheat the oven to 350F (or whatever temp is listed on the biscuit package).  I sprayed the muffin tin with some Pam.  Placed and spread each biscuit in the muffin tin making sure to spread the biscuit all the way up the sides creating a cup.  I added a tablespoon of sauce and shredded cheese to top it off.  If you want to add veggies or meat, finely chop them up and place them on top of the sauce and then add the cheese on top of that.  I placed them in the oven and baked for about 12 minutes (or according to the timing on the biscuit package).  I used an offset spatula to remove each Pizza Muffin and serve warm.  

My kids loved them!  Even my husband loved it!  What a great idea and so quick and easy.  The variations are limitless...just plain cheese, all veggies, meats, supreme...whatever your kids fancy.  And what a great snack or meal idea for kids parties!  I'll definitely try this during my next play date.  Oh and you can make a healthy version by using half of a light biscuit, part skim mozzarella and fresh veggies...perfect for those watching their waistline.  Try this recipe out with your kids (and friends) and let me know how they liked it...ENJOY!!

May 2013 Ipsy Glam Bag

The theme for this month is "Spring Fling".  Given the theme, I thought that this month's bag would be floral but instead it is a blue/teal/orange chevron pattern...still super cute!  I am very pleased with this month's beauty products...including a full size Zoya polish which retails for $9.00.

So here are the products inside this month's Ipsy bag:

1.  Zoya Nail Polish in Jacqueline (full size)- this polish is new from the Spring 2013 Lovely Collection.

2.  NuMe Finishing Serum (10mL) - this finishing serum protects, seals, and treats your hair.

3.  Pacifica Island Vanilla Perfume Roll-On (10mL) - this perfume is 100% vegan, cruelty free, free of parabens, phthalates and propylene glycol.  The scent of this perfume: Tahitian vanilla, loved for its fruity and slightly floral aroma, is anchored with rich Bourbon vanilla notes.

4.  Juice Beauty Reflecting Gloss in Champagne (.14 fl oz)

5.  Yaby Concealer in Buff.  This will work great in the GlamRx palette that we received in March.

Recipe - Vegetarian Tostadas

Tacos and tostadas are one of my family's favorite dishes. We create a "bar" and let the kids top their shells any way they wish.  Since my hubby is vegetarian, I like to use the Morning Star Crumbles in the place of ground beef for our filling.  I make the filling by heating a large skillet with some olive oil, adding some garlic and onion and sauté for a couple of minutes.  I then add the bag of crumbles and heat until fully cooked (until there are no more frozen chunks visible).  I also add some black beans, salsa, and taco seasoning to add flavor.  Then set up your stations as you wish - shredded lettuce, shredded cheese, salsa, sour cream, chopped onions, chopped tomatoes, chopped avocados or guacamole.  Try out this vegetarian variation for your next meatless meal.  ENJOY....

April 2013 Ipsy Glam Bag

The theme for this month's Ipsy Glam bag is "Pretty in Pink".  The cosmetic bag that housed all of the products is white with a hot pink zipper; the inside is striped white and hot pink as well.  Inside was:

1.  Be A Bombshell Cosmetics Blush in Beach Please (full size) 

2.  Mica Beauty Cosmetics Shimmer Powder in Earth (full size)

3.  Sexy Hair Soy Renewal - Nourishing Styling Treatment (travel size, 0.85 fl oz)

4.  Miss Professional Sation Nail Lacquer in Of Corset I'll Call You (full size, 0.50 fl oz)

From what I have read, the full size blush retails for $16 so that has paid for this month's bag by itself.  The color is a bit bright for me but I'm sure if I apply it with a light hand and a big, fluffy brush so I don't look like a clown.  The Shimmer Powder will look really nice as all-over lid color, especially in Spring and Summer time.  I really excited to use this one!  The nail polish is a pretty creamy pink color - my 6 year old daughter has called "dibs" on this polish.  

Overall, I'm really happy with this bag.  And now I can't wait to get my May bag.  

Recipe - Wild Mushroom Lasagna

As you know, my husband is a vegetarian so meal planning for guests can be tricky.  But luckily there are so many delicious meatless recipes out there to choose from.  Since we were having some neighbors over for dinner, and I really wanted to showcase wild mushrooms in our meal, but I couldn't find the perfect recipe for what I wanted to do so I decided to combine a couple of recipes to create and tasty yet easy lasagna recipe.  Here is what I came up with (PS - sorry I don't have any pictures but when the lasagna came out of the oven, I was busy talking with my guests and well....we ate it and I missed my photo opp - sorry! But trust me, this is delish!!) -

Wild Mushroom Lasagna

For the mushroom mixture:

.    2 tablespoons unsalted butter

.    2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

.    3 medium shallots, minced (I used 1/2 large sweet white onion, finely chopped)

.    4 pounds wild mushrooms, such as baby bella, chanterelle, stemmed shiitake and oyster, caps thickly sliced

.    Salt & Freshly ground white pepper

.    1/2 cup dry white wine (I used 3/4 cup apple cider vinegar with 1/4 cup water)

.    2 cups plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream (I used Light heavy cream)

.    1/4 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

For the Ricotta mixture:

.    15 oz package part skim Ricotta cheese

.    2 eggs, beaten

.    2 oz Parmesan cheese

.    16 oz shredded Mozzarella cheese

.    2 jars store bought marinara sauce

.    1 package no-boil lasagna sheets

Directions:

1.         Preheat the oven to 350° and lightly butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. In a large, deep skillet, melt the 2 tablespoons of butter in the oil. Add the shallots and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper and cook over high heat, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are browned, about 18 minutes. Add the wine and boil until evaporated, about 1 minute. Add 2 cups of the cream and bring to a boil. Simmer over moderate heat until slightly reduced, about 5 minutes. Stir in the parsley and season with salt and pepper.

2.         In a medium sized bowl, combine beaten eggs, ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese and about 1   cup of the shredded mozzarella cheese.

3.         Pour half of a jar of marinara sauce on the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Then arrange four of the lasagna sheets in the prepared baking dish. Top with one-third of the ricotta mixture, then one-third of the mushroom mixture, one cup of the mozzarella cheese, finishing with the remaining half of the jar of marinara sauce. Repeat this layering twice more, ending with a layer of pasta. Pour the remaining half of the jarred marinara sauce and finish with a cup of shredded mozzarella cheese.

4.         Cover the lasagna very loosely with aluminum foil and bake on a sheet pan (to catch any over-spillage) for 55-60 minutes.  Then remove foil and bake another 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.  Remove from oven and let rest for 15 minutes before serving.  Serve with a fresh garden salad and garlic bread and Enjoy!!!

March 2013 Ipsy Glam Bag

Ahhh....March - this can only mean one thing (well, two if you are a sports fan):  SPRING BREAK!  This month's theme is "The Great Escape" as evident on the cutesy nautical themed bag.  All of the products included this month is travel friendly and perfect to stash away on those carry on bags (read: TSA approved).  This month's bag contains:

-LA Fresh Travel Lite Makeup Remover Wipes (8ct) - La Fresh Travel Lite portable towelette wipes are perfect for jetsetters, go-getters, outdoor enthusiasts and multi-taskers everywhere.  Towelette packets are small in size, designed for practicality and are easy to apply discreetly.
-Yaby Eye Shadow Singles in Azalea Petal (es133) and Seashell (es192) - Whether you want to make a dramatic statement or just add a veil of color to your eyes, the Yaby eyeshadow refills are extremely easy to work with.  Can be used wet or dry and the smooth texture allows blending with ease.
-GlamRX Mini Freestyle Palette - The GlamRX Mini Freestyle Palette is a unique, practical, pocket sized palette featuring a magnetic base that holds your own eyeshadow, bronzer, blush or whatever you need for the perfect touch-ups on the go.
-Juice Beauty Hydrating Mist (1 oz) - Juice Beauty Hydrating Mist tones, hydrates, and refreshes your face and hair while on the go, anytime of the day.  Hydrate with the refreshing blends of organic juices for a fresh, radiant complexion.

February 2013 Burchbox vs. Ipsy

This month's beauty subscriptions are in and now it's time to compare these 2 subscriptions for the month of February - Birchbox vs. Ipsy!!

Both beauty subscriptions had the same theme of "Red Carpet Ready" but which box was better?

Now I like that Ipsy's bag was much more "cohesive" in the sense that all the products could be used to create a sultry, smokey eye which is definitely red carpet appropriate.  Whereas Birchbox really didn't have that "cohesive" quality other than the fact that their products can be used to help create a "HD-ready" look.  I also like that Ipsy has a cute cosmetic/makeup bag each month - even though I won't need them all, it adds to the value of your monthly subscription.

The value of each box is a guesstimate but the approximate value of Feb 2013 Birchbox is ~$18.34 while the Feb 2013 Ipsy bag is ~$63.36.

The winner is:
 -For value: Ipsy
 -For content: Ipsy

Overall winner:  IPSY

Feb '13 Birchbox on top
Ipsy on bottom

Comparing nail polish "sample" sizes from Birchbox (left) and Ipsy (right)
Birchbox is half the size of the Ipsy sample (from Jan '13 bag)

Another example of size comparison
Face Primer samples:  Ipsy sample (L), Birchbox sample (R)

But check out the amount you get?
Ipsy sample (L) is double the size of the Birchbox sample (R)

I have to be honest with you, this will be the first and only time that I will be comparing the two subscriptions as I will be canceling my Birchbox subscription.  I have been less and less impressed with my samples in the past 6 months or so even though I like the companies that BB has partnered with.  But the samples/sizes have been less than impressive considering that you can get many of these samples from cosmetic counters or from retailers like Sephora/Ulta/Macy's, etc.  It's quite annoying to me to receive foil packets and tiny perfume samples that I can easily get for free at a department store or Sephora.  These are supposed to be deluxe beauty subscriptions and therefore I expect deluxe size samples or at least 2-3 perfume viles (of each sample) in each box instead of just one.  Maybe I just have too high of expectations for these subscriptions but for the time being, I've decided to cancel my Birchbox subscription and we'll give Ipsy a try for a while.  What are you thoughts on these beauty subscriptions?