New lighting! Hooray!

We are slowy replacing all the lighting in the house...so far we've done the entry way, kitchen, Margot's room and master bedroom. Last night dad came over and replaced our living room ceiling fan/light and the sconces on the front of the house. With Randy working at Lowes we keep an eye out for good deals and use our employee discount. Here are some pictures of the new lights:


Ceiling fan before: big, white, ugly, loud....didn't match anything in the room 

After! Smaller, nice, new, matches the room and makes such a difference!

Outside sconces before: Old, ugly, broken and upside down!

After: Pretty, white and updated! (we're going to paint the house trim white this summer so it'll all match)

My Kitchen

I have a love/hate relationship with my kitchen. It's the room I'm in the most during the day and I love being in there and creating things. The part I hate? The way it looks and feels!

I don't like anything about it besides the wood floors, glass pendant lighting and new fridge...all 3 put there by us. Everything else is beige, ugly and dated. I haven't liked this room since we moved in over 2 years ago. I've redone all the rooms in the house besides this one for two reasons. #1, the money. Kitchens are NOT cheap! And #2, I couldn't make up my mind about what I wanted to do with it.

Well I've been spending this last week doing MUCH research on how to spruce it up without breaking the bank. I've also finally got a vision for how I want it to look. here are some pictures of how it looks now:

Everything is black/white/red because that's what we had in our apartment when we first got married. I want to keep that...but add something more! I'm going for a cozy coffee house feel. So here's the plan:

-Buy new cabinet door and drawer fronts 
-Paint door and drawer fronts white
-Sand and paint cabinet bases white
-Install black handles on doors and drawers
-Paint counter tops black
-Paint walls a nice ochre color
-Do tile a back splash

-Spray paint hood over the stove
-Get some sort of window treatment (not sure on this yet)
-Organize all the junk on top of the cabinets
-Get white stove and dishwasher...I'll keep my eyes peeled at yard sales and craigslist
-Possibly get a new sink and faucet??


So that's the plan! I'm really excited to get the ball rolling on this project, hopefully within the next week or two. I'll keep you updated :)


-Chloe

Tangy Pork Loin Roast

Ingredients:
2 1/2 lb boneless pork loin roast
1 c hot water
1/4 c white or brown sugar
1 1/2 tbsp minced onion
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
3 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp ketchup
1 tbsp hot sauce (optional)

Directions:
Place pork loin in crock pot. Mix all the remaining ingredients and pour over the meat. Cover and cook in low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours. Shred or slice and serve hot.

Notes: This is not your traditional roast but I was really happy with it! It was super flavorful and moist. I couldn't slice it due to it being so moist so I just shredded it (leaving the "shreds" fairly large) and served it with roasted asparagus...yum! Randy and I both loved this and couldn't get enough! The next day I served it in whole wheat wraps with sour cream and and cheddar.

Recipe found and adapted from here

Samoas (aka the best Girl Scout cookie!)

Samoas are by far my favorite Girl Scout cookie so when I found this recipe I was so excited! They are $3.50 a box and I think you only get something like 12 or 16. I had everything to make these besides the caramels and coconut...which I bought on my last grocery shopping trip :)

After the 3 (yes...THREE!) hours it took the make these (only made 20) I would definitely just pay the $3.50 and save the time. Plus, buying caramels and coconut isn't all that cheap, so I didn't even save money! AND I should add that I wasn't all that impressed with the way they turned out. They didn't taste much like the real thing. The chocolate/coconut/caramel part was pretty close, but the cookie itself, not so much! So in the end I was pretty disappointed. They cookies are good...if you don't have the real thing to compare them to.

I debated whether or not to even post this recipe, but they took so much dang time and work so I had to share. And like I said, they're good. Just as long as you're not expecting them to taste just like the "real" Samoas.

Cookie Ingredients:
1/2 c. white sugar
3/4 c. butter, softened
1 egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 c. flour (plus more for rolling)
1/4 tsp. salt

Cookie Directions:
Combine the flour and salt, set aside. In in large mixing bowl combine the sugar and butter, mix until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla until well combined. Gradually add the flour mixture. Preheat oven to 350. Then work some more flour in by hand until dough ball forms. Sprinkle the counter with flour and lay the dough on top. With a floured rolling pin, roll the dough to 1/4 inch thick. Using a biscuit cutter or the top of a glass, cut the dough into circles and place onto cookie sheets. Using something small and circular (I used the tip of a funnel and it worked great) make a small hole in each cookie. Reuse the dough edges to make more circles until all the dough is used up. Bake in preheated oven for 10-12 minutes, or until they begin to get golden brown on the edges. Transfer to wire racks and cool completely.


Topping Ingredients:
 10 oz. semi sweet chocolate chips
3 cups shredded coconut
12 oz. caramels
1/4 tsp. salt
3 tbsp. milk (I used half and half)

Topping Directions:
Spread coconut evenly onto an ungreased cookie sheet or a 13x9 cake pan. Toast in the 350 degree oven for 10-15 minutes, stirring often to prevent burning. Once the coconut is fragrant and golden brown, remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
Place chocolate chips in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly until melted and thin. Turn all of the cooled cookies over and spread chocolate (using a pastry brush or knife) in a thin layer on the bottoms. There will be some chocolate leftover to drizzle on top. Allow to dry completely (I had to put mine in the fridge for a while). Once chocolate is set you may begin making the caramel topping.
In a large microwave safe bowl, add the caramels, milk and salt. Microwave for 2-3 minutes, stirring in between each minute. When fully melted and smooth, add the toasted coconut, stir well to combine. Turn cookies back over, with the chocolate layer facing down. With a butter knife, spread and generous amount of the caramel mixture on top of each cookie, being careful not to fill the hole in the center.
Once all the cookies are covered, melt the chocolate back down if it has hardened too much and drizzle over the tops. Allow to set. Store in an airtight container. Makes about 20 cookies.

Recipe found here

Button Tree

Yesterday evening I was home with just Margot, she had been fed and finally went down for the night and I was in the mood to create something! I'm too loud in the kitchen and didn't want to wake her up so baking something was out of the question. Then I remembered our dogs recently demolished a tree in our backyard and the branches were sitting outside next to the trash can because they wouldn't fit into it. So I went out, broke a small branch off and brought it inside!

As you know, I love buttons and I love trees....so after staring at the branch for a while, I decided to make a button tree! I got a glass planter (India, if you're reading this you'll recognize it! Sorry I killed your plant!) which was still filled with soil and I stuck the tree branch down in it so it stood up straight. Then I dug though my button collection and picked out some old vintage ones. I tied the buttons to a piece of black thread, then tied each thread to the branch tips. And there you have it! A button tree! Simple, but I really like it.

Oatmeal Banana Cookies

Ingredients:
1 1/2 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
3/4 c. shortening
1 c. white sugar
1 egg
2 ripe bananas, mashed
1 3/4 c. quick cooking oats
1/2 c. chopped nuts (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 and grease a couple cookie sheets and set aside. Sift together flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon and set aside. Cream together shortening and sugar. Add egg, banana, oats and nuts. Mix well. Add dry ingredients until well combined. Drop by heaping spoonfuls onto prepared cookie sheets. Bake for about 15 minutes in preheated oven. Cool on a wire rack. Makes 2 1/2 dozen cookies.

Adapted from allrecipes.com

Notes: These cookies have a great flavor and came out really moist with sort of a cake like texture. I added a glaze made from powdered sugar and milk for something extra...but they would be great by themselves, too!

Reeses Fudge Cookies

Ingredients:
2 c. flour
2/3 c. cocoa powder
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 c. sugar
2 tsp. vanilla 
1 c. butter or margarine, softened
2 eggs
1 c. chocolate chips or peanut butter chips
2 c. Reeses Pieces candy 

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 and grease a couple cookie sheets and set aside. Combine the first 4 ingredients in a small bowl and set aside. Mix the next 4 ingredients on medium speed until creamy and smooth. Add the dry ingredients half a cup at a time and mix thoroughly after each addition. Once all the dry ingredients are incorporated mix in chips and 1 cup Reeses Pieces. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto prepared cookie sheets. Place 5 Reeses Pieces in the center of each dough ball (they will spread out and go where they're supposed to during baking). Bake in preheated oven for 8-10 minutes and then transfer onto cooling racks. Makes about 3 dozen cookies (depending on how much dough gets eaten in the process!).

New blog url and title

So I couldn't be "Chloe's Citchen Creations" anymore....I'm now "Chloe's {Valuable, but Small} Life". I switched to this title because of one of my favorite movie quotes that has really been sticking out to me lately. It's from You've Got Mail where Kathleen Kelly is talking to Joe Fox and she says:


"Sometimes I wonder about my life. I lead a small life - well, valuable, but small - and sometimes I wonder, do I do it because I like it, or because I haven't been brave?"
Ever since I heard that line I kind of took it as my own :) So there you have it! My new blog title!


-Chloe'

BBQ Chicken and Bacon Pizza

Ingredients:
1 chicken breast, boiled and shredded
6-8 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 onion, thinly sliced and sauteed
1 pizza crust (homemade or store bought)
3/4 cup bbq sauce
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
2 c. cheddar or colby jack cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 and grease a pizza pan or cookie sheet. Spread dough onto pan and spread evenly with bbq sauce. Sprinkle on garlic powder followed by chicken, bacon, onions and then cheese. Bake for 10-15 minutes in preheated oven.



Notes: Since boiling and shredding chicken can take a while I start with that first. While its boiling I fry the bacon followed by the onions. Just leave a little bacon grease in the pan and throw the onions it. I like to sprinkle a little sugar on them while they're sauteeing...makes them a little sweet and carmelized :)

Puppy Chow/Muddy Buddies

Ingredients:
1 14 oz. box rice or corn Chex
1 12 oz. bag semi sweet chocolate chips
1 c. peanut butter
1/2 c. (1 stick) butter
1 tsp. vanilla
3 1/2 c. powdered sugar

Directions:
Pour Chex into a large bowl and set aside. In a microwave safe bowl, microwave chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter 1 minute at a time until melted and smooth, stirring in between minutes. Stir in vanilla. Pour chocolate mixture over the Chex and stir until well coated. Pour into a clean plastic bag, add powdered sugar, close the bag tightly and shake until all the Chex are coated in powdered sugar. Spread out on waxed or parchment paper to cool about 20-30 minutes.


Notes: This is my own version of this recipe. I make it several times during the holiday season and it gets eaten up super fast. This stuff is delicious!