Cleaning the air in my house a little at a time…

This is one of my latest Ikea purchases.  I’m not crazy about a lot of their furniture but I love their decorative stuff.  I got this cute green planter for less than 5 bucks.  I put some English Ivy in it and not only does it look adorable, but its cleaning the air in my house at the same time!

Homemade Soup Recipe

Ah… my homemade soup.  If you’re one of those people who needs to follow a recipe exactly then this post is not for you. 

The story behind the soup:  I’m not overweight but every winter it seems I put on 5 pounds of what I like to call “my winter warmth.”  Every year I say I’m not going to gain weight this winter.  I usually start off strong and then sometime in January it magically appears.  Then by May or June I’m desperately trying to lose the “winter warmth” so that my capri pants aren’t skin tight (why do all 5 pounds always go to my butt and thighs?).  Anyway….  last week I went to breakfast with a few of my friends from college.  One of my friends was telling us how she tried the Cabbage Soup Diet and couldn’t get through day 4 (the banana & skim milk day).  To make a long story short, she said the soup was good.  A light bulb goes off in my head.  I don’t think crash diets are healthy but it couldn’t hurt to make the soup and eat it for dinner or a low calorie snack).  I did a google search for “the Cabbage Soup Diet” and a bunch of links came up – some had different variations of the soup recipe.  I read the recipes but didn’t write them down.  That night when I was at the grocery store I bought what I thought would be good soup ingredients and then I went home and started making my own vegetable soup.  To my surprise, it was very good!  I expected it to be okay but it was delicious!  I have made my own soup several times now and each time the recipe has been different but they have all been equally delicious.  I’ve been having at least one bowl a day and I’m also trying to watch what I eat.  I think I’m going to shed my winter warmth by March this year and that will make me oh so happy!!!!!!!

Recipe:
I always start the same - 
6 cups of water
6 servings of vegetable bouillon cubes
1/3 cup of crushed tomatoes 

This is where the recipe goes crazy.  Sometimes I throw in 1/3 cup uncooked brown rice.  I find this keeps me full a little longer.  Then I add whatever vegetables I have in the house.  The list includes:  chopped cabbage, chopped spinach, broccoli, carrots, onions, chopped bell pepper, corn, etc. 
How much of each vegetable?  I just keep adding until I like the consistency of my soup.  I like a hearty soup so I add lots of vegetables.  If you use rice or pasta in your soup don’t forget that these will absorb some of your broth so don’t add too much. 
I bring it all to a boil and then I cover and simmer it for about an hour.  If my vegetable pieces are too big then I get out my potato masher and I mash it up a little so that the vegetables are “soup size”.
I keep the leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days (usually I’ve eaten the whole pot in 3 days so I don’t know how long the soup actually stays good for).

Global Bazaar

 
Has anyone checked out Target’s Global Bazaar section lately?  Now that all the Christmas stuff is gone they have a huge Global Bazaar section with lots of cool stuff (that doesn’t look cheap!).  Check out these pictures I got there the other day.  I don’t think my photo of them does them justice.  They made of screen printed fabric over wood.  They look fabulous on my “sea froth” colored walls.

Pizza Dip

My aunt makes this dip every Christmas Eve and my family devours it.  I’ve seen variations of this recipe online but I think this one is by far the best.

Ingredients

• 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
• 1 1/4 cups sour cream
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 cup pizza sauce
• 1/2 cup sliced green onions
• 1/4 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 2/3 cup chopped green bell pepper
• 2/3 cup chopped peperoni
• 1 package of pita bread (or 1 bag of tortilla chips)

Directions

Preheat your oven to about 350 degrees.  Layer all of the ingredients in a medium baking pan.  It doesn’t really matter what order you layer them in.  I usually put the cream cheese and sour cream on the bottom and the mozzarella and cheddar on top.  Bake it uncovered for about 10 – 20 minutes (or until the cheese is melted and bubbling on the top).  Serve with pita bread or tortilla chips – enjoy!

Pillows I made

I bought a house about a month ago and this is one of the only projects I have done so far to decorate.  I painted my walls “sea froth” using Benjamin Moore paint.  Its sort of a grayish beige color.  My mother thinks is taupe.  Anyway, I made these pillows with Amy Butler startiles fabric.  I wish I had made them a little bigger but they will be okay for now.  I love the fabric.  I’m going to use it to make a cushion for a bench I just bought at LL Bean.  The fabric goes great with my Global Bazaar pictures!!