Hostess is shutting down! Win or Fail....

Hostess has been around since 1930 and after 82 years of business they will be shutting down and filing bankruptcy.
My heart does go out to the thousands of folks who will be losing their jobs and their families.The main reason for closing 33 manufacturing bakeries, 565 distribution centers and thousands of delivery routes and outlet stores is due to the union strikes. Hostess says they are no longer profiting and need to cut wages and benefits, however the union workers disagree and have been on strike. Last week they had to close three plants and now will be filing for bankruptcy. Hostess also said that a major contributor to loss of profit is the many Americans now concerned with eating healthy. YAY!

Hostess is the producer of some major snack and bakery items found in many households including:

Now I will admit that I have done some serious indulging in their yummy, sugary, chocolaty treats. However I have jumped on the healthy bandwagon and have done extensive research in to what is really in our food. No matter how delicious something tastes, if it is packed with artificial ingredients, preservatives and high fructose corn syrup I will no longer be purchasing it. It has been quite some time since Hostess products have made an appearance in my home.

Let's discuss Twinkies. They last for years....how can this be natural?. How can so many people like to eat these baked treats when they contain high fructose corn syrup, modified corn starch, three different soy derivatives and has filler ingredients that are more closely linked with petroleum than an actual food group?

I believe it is due to the general public not keeping themselves informed or having enough worry to do the research.

So, in my opinion, I feel no pity for Hostess closing. In fact I think it is a good thing that a company who provides so many unhealthy and artificial foods is going out of business. Less crap on our grocery store shelves and a definite WIN for those of us who are becoming more health conscience.

5 Best Uses for Lemons

When life gives you lemons......You get way more than lemonade!

I love how useful lemons are, they truly are a super fruit! Lemons are wonderful because they have strong anti-bacterial, anti-viral and immune boosting powers. This is on top of them being great for our digestive system and liver. Plus it provides humor to me when my son wants to eat lemon slices. If I'm cutting a lemon he will just grab a slice. No matter how many sour, silly faces come of it - he still continues to eat them.
So here are my five favorite uses for lemons:

1.) Flavor & Tenderize a Whole Chicken
I buy and cook whole chickens fairly often, they are easy to prepare and everyone loves a fresh cooked bird. I cut a lemon in half and stuff it inside the chicken, after taking all the guts out. (Ew!) I also slice open little pockets in the birds skin and place butter slices underneath, sprinkle the whole chicken generously with salt and pepper, a little garlic powder and throw that chicken in the oven; cooked according to weight/directions on packaging sticker. About 10 minutes before it is done I rub a stick of butter over the bird to juice it up. This makes the most tender and juicy chicken!
2.) Keep Apples Fresher Longer
My son never ends up eating all the apple slices I cut up for him. I stick the extra in a bowl and squeeze a little lemon juice on them and store in the fridge for later. The lemon keeps the apple slices from browning.
3.) Sore Throat Remedy
Add some fresh lemon juice and honey - another natural germ killer - to a cup of hot water to sooth a sore throat while killing bacteria.
4.) Lemon Cubes
Squeeze some fresh lemon juice into ice cube trays, allow them to freeze and then store in a Ziploc bag. These are awesome to have on hand if you have frequent recipes that call for lemon juice. Also great to thaw and make a quick homemade dressing. Olive oil, balsamic vinaigrette and some lemon juice. Yum!

5.) Clean and Deodorize Your Garbage Disposal
Toss a few lemon peels in the garbage disposal  to kill bacteria and get rid of the nasty disposal smell.

Chili

Recipe of the Week:

This has to be one of my favorite cold weather foods! It is a dish I make fairly often during the Fall and Winter months. I usually make a double batch and freeze it so I can easily pull it out to reheat. It is easy to prepare and not very time consuming - which is a plus while you have a toddler running around :)

Brown two pounds of ground beef, I use Ground Sirloin, less grease and much leaner.
My husband and son are very turned off to a lot of vegetables so when I get to make a heavy dish like this I load it with veggies! This time around I used carrots, celery, yellow and orange peppers, onion and fresh garlic cloves. You can grate the carrots and celery and finely dice the peppers and onion; the garlic should be minced.

Cook the ground beef, drain and return to large sauce pot. 

Toss in the following vegetables:

One peeled and grated carrot

Two stalks of washed and grated celery stalks

One finely diced white onion

Half of a yellow and orange pepper; finely diced

Two cloves of garlic; minced

Stir together and feel proud of the nutritious veggies you will be sneaking in to your family's dinner :)

Add in the following:

Two cans of light red kidney beans - or dark red if you prefer

Two cans of Italian style diced tomatoes

Two packages of chili seasoning - you can choose a spicy version if you'd like

Mix everything together well and your work is done. Allow to simmer for 30 minutes on medium low heat, stirring occasionally.

Enjoy the aroma invading your kitchen :)

After cooking, allow chili to slightly cool.

Divide between two gallon freezer bags and flatten out - to save freezer space!

The great thing about chili is it can be kept frozen for up to 6 months. Also it is great to have a dinner ready to go that your family loves!

Allow chili to thaw in the fridge or you can thaw in water, reheat on stove, allowing temperature to reach 160 degrees.

Enjoy!

Haircut Day!

Most kids hate haircuts - on top of many other things. My son loves them - he actually enjoys it. After my husband was finished with his haircut, Jordan climbed up in the chair and said, "My turn!"

Now I don't know if he likes getting a cut because his Nana is the one cutting his hair, or if he just really likes it. This is definitely an advantage to have my mother-in-law own a salon :)

This is his serious face!

Around the ears tickled :)

Check out these curls!

Isn't this the most adorable face!?

Lovin' it! He was watching in the mirror so intently.

I just love how awesome this boy can be! He takes the simplest things so seriously, in the greatest way.

Family Outing ....

It is very rare that we get an absolutely perfect Fall day in November, without the cold wind or a too cloudy sky, so we decided to take advantage of this one. After a busy morning of errands and some needed haircuts  we concluded that a trip to the cider mill was a must!

This is the look on the face of a boy who is experiencing pure happiness. He had to ride the pony twice. I just love this boy!

(Plus, check out the crazy hair cut on the horses' mane)

What a perfect Saturday!

Homemade Chocolate Chip Granola Bars

Recipe of the Week:

Homemade Natural Chewy Granola Bars

In light of all the GMO's, processed, preservative-filled, high fructose corn syrup loaded food, I decided to have my weekly recipe post be something that you can be happy to have you or your children eat. They are really delicious and so much better for your body than whatever Nature Valley and Quaker have packed in their granola bars.

**Here is what you will need**
-4 cups old fashioned oats (you can even get these gluten free if you prefer)
-1/3 cup coconut oil (this may not be carried at major grocers', try a health food store or a Whole Foods, etc.)
-1 cup raw honey (again you may need to get this at a specialty health store)
-1/4 tsp. sea salt
-1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups of almonds OR walnuts OR pecans (whichever nut you prefer) - chop them up
1/2 cup of natural or organic chocolate chips

Let's get these bars started!

Preheat the oven to 350.
-Place oats on an ungreased rimmed cookie sheet (about 11x17'') and toast in the heatev over for 10 minutes. Stir every few minutes.
-While those are in the oven, melt honey and coconut oil in saucepan over medium heat. Do not burn it. Remove from stove and toss in the vanilla, cinnamon and salt. Stir until dissolved.
-Add the oats to the saucepan mixture and evenly coat. Add your choice of chopped nuts, stir evenly. Lastly, stir in the chocolate chips.
-Line a rimmed baking sheet (about 10"x15") with parchment paper.  **TIP - sprinkle with a few drops of water to keep paper in place.)
-Dump oat mixture onto cookie sheet and spread out.Use your hands or spatula to press mixture into pan evenly. (You can wet your hands to prevent batter from sticking, or use place parchment paper between batter and your hands while pressing it out.)

Now, bake for approximately 8-9 minutes. Just until edges begin to brown, no longer. Cool completely before removing bars and parchment paper from pan. Place on cutting board and cut bars up. I cut mine into 24 bars, but you can make any amount/size you would like.

And.....Viola!

One of my favorite books ....

Trust me when I say that I love to read! Ever since I was a child I have been a complete bookworm. I would take a book and a blanket over television, a computer and, of course, cleaning. Since becoming a mother I am unable to indulge as much as I would like, but it makes the time I have to stuff my nose in a novel much more satisfying.
I like to read many sorts of books. I won't lie; I have read both popular series out right now, 50 Shades of Grey and The Hunger Games. Both of which I enjoyed (for different reasons) .....
My favorite books of all are classics, romance, fiction, non-fiction - Ok, ok, so I do not have a defined genre of my favorite, but I do know what one of my favorite books must be.

Under the Tuscan Sun - by, Frances Mayes:

Frances Mayes is a total inspiration to countless women. She is a creative writing Professor at San Francisco State University, a poet, an essayist and an adventurer. After suffering through a terrible divorce she tries to start over with a new man; a great man, Ed, who is also a Professor. They spend their summers' off traveling, mainly Italy. This book is an account of descriptions of past travels and their current adventure in Italy where they decide to purchase a villa. Bramasole - a beautiful, abandoned, horribly messy villa that they dedicated endless tiring hours to restoring.

This book describes in the most perfectly simplistic detail the absolute beauty of Tuscany, surrounding villages and piazzas. Describing daily accounts of restoration, travels, mishaps and cooking adventures in an Italian kitchen. This one comes fully packed with recipes of some fine Italian dishes she would make at Bramasole, using fresh ingredients they would grow in their garden.

It beautifully accounts all we could wonder about enjoying the pure beauty of the Tuscan country side. 

I think she is truly brave and wonderful. I will be forever envious of the courage she had to purchase a home in a foreign land, to enjoy long nights on a Tuscan terrace over looking olive trees and fields of sunflowers, drinking wine, eating grapes, living in totally purity.

Of course they made a Hollywood rendition of the novel in to a movie. Don't get me wrong, I really like the movie. However, no movie can compare to a book.

It stars Diane Lane, gosh she wonderful, but it changed some very good plot points to make it more "Hollywood" - I encourage you to check out the movie, but most important, read this wonderful memoir.