Enchilada Stacks

-with chicken, black beans, spinach, and pepper jack cheese

Just call me "The Globetrotting Eater"!

I'm doing pretty good this month. An Asian recipe, a Greek recipe, a cupcake recipe (you gotta throw one of those in every now and then), and now a Mexican recipe. I'm spanning the world over here! 

Variety is good, yes? I think so. I know lots of people who eat the same foods, day after day, year after year, for their entire lives. Never getting outside the box. While it's true, I could and do eat certain foods everyday (hello turkey sandwiches!), I need diversity. There's something amazing and life-changing about discovering a new food that you've never tried before. It's almost like falling in love.

Mint Chocolate Truffles

Oh boy, these are the easiest to make. And they are scrum-diddly-umpcious. What, you don't think that's a word? Too bad. It's my blog, and I can make up words if I want to :)

So, yes, while these are easy to make, I do have (of course) a story involving trial and error with these beauties. There are only 5 ingredients in these truffles, you would think it would be a fool-proof recipe. Enter Jessica. I can make even the simplest recipe (although this really goes for everything in life) crazy difficult. I did learn something new however, and I successfully problem solved in the process.

Here's what happened. These truffles are dipped in melted candy coating, which hardens soon after dipping. The local grocery store sells candy coating in white (vanilla) or brown (chocolate). You have to color the white coating if you want a different color. What I didn't know is that you can't color the coating with regular food coloring. I was nearing the end of my day, I only had to dip and decorate these. I melted the white coating, added my food color, and suddenly I was in possession of a giant bowl of frosting instead of green melted coating. I put the bowl back over heat, and tried in vain to melt it again. No such luck. Upon Googling my problem, I learned you never ever add water based food color to candy coating. You get frosting. And there's no turning back. Your only option is to start over. This was news to me. I was forced to jet back to the grocery store to look for oil-based food color. Laughable, I tell you. That's a specialty item you aren't finding at a small town Kroger on the Ohio-Kentucky border. After half an hour of wandering the grocery store, desperately trying to come up with an alternative solution, I found myself standing back in front of the food color. As I was standing there, dumb-founded, I noticed these little packets for making frosting.

These little packets add color and flavor to plain frosting. The wheels in my head started turning. I looked at the ingredients. No water. Hmmm, I thought. Next thought: What color is the green? Holy crap on a cracker, green is chocolate mint! It was like fate. I picked up some vanilla candy coating and a green packet. Next, I grabbed some chocolate coating and green icing (my backup plan). 

Well guess freakin' what? It worked. It worked beautifully. Adding the frosting packet to the candy made the vanilla candy coating taste like mint nonpareils. Yes, you know what mint nonpareils are. I think everyone does.

In conclusion, these rock! These truffles are moist, decadent, and rich. One truffle was plenty for me. I think these will be a Christmas tradition in our house for years to come. You can't beat the simplicity and deliciousness.

Ingredients:

(1 package) mint Oreos
4 ounces cream cheese
(1 package) vanilla candy coating
(1 packet) Duncan Hines Frosting Creations in Mint Chocolate
White decorating icing

Directions:

1. In a food processor, pulse Oreo's until the texture resembles a coarse crumb.
2. Add cream cheese, pulse until mixture resembles a moist ball of cookie dough.
3. Using a 1-tbsp cookie scoop, scoop balls onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
4. Melt candy coating according to package directions. Add flavor packet, whisk until combined. Using a skewer, dip balls into candy coating. Place dipped balls on parchment paper and allow to harden.
5. Drizzle white decorating icing on truffles and allow to dry. Store in an airtight container.

Recipe adapted from 52 Ways to Cook.

Linked to: Weekend Potluck

Weekend Wrap-Up: Cinco de Mayo

Cinco de Mayo is one of my most favorite holidays. Mexican food is beloved by me, I look for any excuse to make it, eat it, drink it... Margaritas= amazing! My plan to make chicken enchiladas was derailed last night (by Kroger, those rat finks), but I made Mexican-inspired rice, as well as a Mexican-inspired salad. I will be making enchiladas in the near future however, now that I've got enchiladas on the brain.

The hubby worked quite hard in the yard this weekend. He put in underground pipes to funnel water away from the house. This turned out to be quite a laborious task as he had to rent a trencher, dig trenches for the pipes, and then shovel dirt on top of the trenches. Mission accomplished on the pipes! He was also able to sprinkle grass seed on the side yard, and cover it with straw. We are on our way to having a mud-free yard!

Gizmo watched intently from his watch post, whining every so often because he could see the hubby right in front of him, he just couldn't get to him.

Reunited at last!

I did some small, indulgent couponing deals this week. I picked this up at CVS for a grand total of $3.99. Pretty good for a $30 product! It's going straight to the top of my "testing" pile :)

I got a ton of nail polish at Rite Aid for a total out-of-pocket expense of... $2.74. I really love these Covergirl nail polishes right now. The brush is easy to use, the formulas are easy to use, they have a wide variety of colors, and the polish is pretty chip-resistent. I can't wait to try the glittery taupe I bought!

These Sally Hansens' were also included in my Rite Aid haul. I'm excited to try all the shades.

So, how did Kroger ruin my Cinco de Mayo dinner? Their rotisserie chickens (I was going to shred the meat, and put it in my enchiladas) looked like crap. Total crap. I couldn't bring myself to pay for what looked like tiny, roasted hamsters. I was steamed. I picked up a fresh chicken, and decided to try my hand again at roasting a chicken.

I finally got it right. 4th time. Phew. The hubby said it was by far the best chicken I'd ever cooked. Anyways, by the time the chicken was done roasting, it was too late to go through the whole dog-and-pony show of making enchilada sauce, making the filling, stuffing tortillas, and baking the whole she-bang.

But, at least the chicken was stellar :)

It made for some delicious-smelling homemade chicken broth.

Starting Monday off on the right note. The hubby is out of town all week in Nashville, so Mama is cooking for 1. Started off the day with an egg white scramble with peppers and onions, a smidge of mozzarella cheese, and a smattering of salsa. With strawberries on the side, of course. So good!

I'm off to do some cleaning, laundry, and then make big batches of Quinoa Taco Salad (lunches this week) and Vegetable Soup with Pasta and Kale (dinners this week).

I hope everyone had a fantastic Cinco de Mayo!

The First Haul of 2013: 1/6/13

Red Gold diced tomatoes, Kashi Go Lean cereal, Finish dishwashing gel pacs, Barilla Whole Grain Pasta, All laundry detergent, Herbal Essence shampoo and conditioner, Good-N-Natural protein bars, Nivea lip balm, Nivea body lotion, Lysol toilet bowl cleaners.

This is actually my first big haul since September of last year! It's crazy to think that I was out of the game for so long. I must say though, the deals just weren't there at the end of last year, and coupons (especially good ones!) were few and far between. I cleaned out my binders after New Year's, and I feel like I shipped out 75% of what was in them! I was feeling very, very coupon deprived until the new inserts came out yesterday. There were 5 inserts in each paper, and I got 5 papers! That's 25 inserts! So many coupons came out yesterday, my head is spinning. Definitely dreading cutting those babies up. Anyways, we had a very good haul yesterday, and so much healthy food! Kashi cereal, protein bars, whole grain pasta, Greek yogurt, etc. Whoever tells you you can't buy healthy food with coupons, don't even listen to them. You absolutely can. Here's the breakdown for yesterday's haul:
CVS-
~Everything I bought at CVS was part of their "Spend $30 on Selected Products, Get $10 in ECB's Back"~
Finish Dishwashing Gelpacs, 2 for $8
-used (2) $2.15 off Finish Dishwashing Gelpacs coupons
All Laundry Detergent, 2 for $8
-used (2) $2 off 2 All products coupon
Lysol Toilet Bowl Cleaner, 2 for $6
-used a $0.50 off 2 Lysol Cleaners coupon

-used $9.50 in ECB's from last week, paid $11.70 out of pocket, and received $10 in ECB's for next week.

Rite Aid-
Nivea Lip Balm, 2 for $5 (Spend $15 on Nivea products, Receive $8 in UP rewards)
-used (2) $3 off 2 Nivea Lip Balm products coupon
Nivea Body Lotion, $5.99
-used a $2 off any Nivea Body Lotion coupon

-used $8 in UP's from last week, paid $1.99 out of pocket, and received $8 in UP rewards for next week.

Kroger-
Barilla Pasta, 4 for $5
-used (1) $1 off 3 Barilla pastas coupon
Kashi Cereal, $1.99
Yoplait Greek Yogurt, $1
-used (2) $1 off 2 Yoplait Greek yogurt coupons
Good-N-Natural Bars, $1
-used (5) free Good-N-Natural bar coupons
Red Gold diced tomatoes, $0.59
Herbal Essence Shampoo and Conditioner, $1.74
-used (3) $1 off 1 Herbal Essence product coupons

-paid $18.84 out of pocket.

Total Spent- $32.53 on $121.55 worth of product. Savings of 73%.

What a good start to the year, and a good start to my coupon savings account :) Have a happy week everyone!

Robbed The Store... And Then Some!

Propel Fitness water, Hunt's diced tomatoes and tomato paste, Finesse hairspray, Kleenex, Nature's Bounty vitamins, Finish dish soap, Tide Stain Release Boosters, Pledge multi-surface spray, Goldfish, Combos, Revlon nail files, Blistex, I Can't Believe It's Not Butter, and Mentos gum.

Today's haul was so good, I just couldn't resist devoting a blog entry to it! I had an amazing day of couponing! Here's the breakdown:
CVS- Great week for CVS! They had some great BOGO's that I couldn't resist. Both the Combos and the vitamins were Buy 1, Get 1. I also had a $1 off of 2 coupon for the Combos and I had 2 $1 off coupons for the vitamins. The Pledge was an amazing deal. They were on sale 2 for $6. I had a CVS store coupon for $2 off 2 and a manufacturer coupon for $2 off 2, making each bottle of Pledge $1. That stuff retails for $6.49 a can! Additional purchases at CVS included Kleenex, the Revlon nail files, and the Blistex.    Thanks to $13 in ECB's from last week, I paid $12.68 out of pocket and earned $10 in ECB's.
Rite Aid: Gum was on sale again this week and this time it was a moneymaker! It was on sale 3 for $3, plus they were offering a $1 UP reward. I used 3 $1 off coupons for the gum, making them free and I made that $1. The Finish dish soap was BOGO, plus I had a $2.15 off coupon (Rite Aid doesn't let you use a coupon on the free item item in a BOGO transaction, which is too bad because I could have gotten another $2.15 off with another coupon). I also picked up the Finesse hairspray on sale 2 for $6. I had 2 $1 off coupons as well. I ended up paying $7.27 out of pocket (I had $2 in UP's from last week) and making $4 in UP rewards.
Kroger: Kroger was amazing this week! They had Hunt's tomatoes on sale for $0.49 plus I had a $0.45 off 3 coupon, which doubled to $0.90. Which means I ended up getting those cans for $0.19 a piece. The Propel flavored water was also on sale for $0.49. The Tide boosters were on sale for $5.99 and with an e-coupon for $2 off, I got that for $3.99. The Goldfish were on sale for $0.99 (I love Goldfish!). Lastly, the butter was on sale for $1.79 and I had a 2 $1 off coupons. You can't beat paying $0.79 for pricey butter spread. I ended up spending $12.01 at Kroger.

There you have it! I paid $31.96 for $119.45 worth of product, for savings of 73%. This was my biggest haul to date and some of my best savings! I will be on cloud 9 for the rest of the day if you need me :)

A New Hobby? Yes, Please!

Over the past couple weeks, I have been researching the topic of couponing. I have become fascinated with the TLC show "Extreme Couponing" as I am sure countless others are. Now, I do NOT watch the show and think "Wow, I want to be like them." No, I will not be spending 60 hours a week scouring the Internet for deals, dumpster diving for coupons, or building a nuclear fallout shelter in my basement. Upon googling "extreme couponing" one of the very first websites I came across was all about "realistic couponing". Realistic couponing is more about using coupons on sale items to save 40-70% on your grocery bill. This sounded a lot more like me so I set out to go forth and save.

I wish I could say that I saved 70% my first trip. HA! I didn't do bad my first trip, saving about 27% at Kroger on groceries. My first trip was more about the learning experience and I have a lot to learn! Kroger has a savings card where you can go online and load digital coupons to your savings card to use in the store. The nice part is that all you have to do is swipe your card to use your coupons which eliminates/significantly decreases the need to carry a packet of coupons around. The downside is that you can't use digital coupons and manufacturer coupons together. Also, Kroger does not double their digital coupons but they will double the paper ones you bring into the store (under $0.50). 

One of the biggest couponing lessons I have learned (at least for me!) is to stick to my list! I have been making a list of what I am going buy and for what price and now have approximate totals on my lists. This week I was so close to my estimated total but still off $5. I know, I know, it's $5 but I have to admit I was disappointed when my total didn't add up. This lesson also came into play at CVS this week. CVS also has a savings card but with theirs you can scan your card as soon as you walk in the door and get free coupons! After getting my free coupons this week I saw I received one for $3 off a $10 makeup purchase. Of course I used this coupon and consequently added more money to my purchase since my makeup totaled slightly more than $10. Sigh. But, I'm learning!

As with all new hobbies, I am having fun figuring this out. I have since signed up for the Sunday paper, as well as a subscription to All You which is a popular magazine chock full of coupons. I have signed up for several email services for tips and popular deals for the week. I think Jerame is happy I have taken up a productive hobby as well as one that will help the house! As for me, it is time to head down to the post office to see if I got any new coupons in the mail... JOKING friends!