French themed Day Outing

I love to go on adventures with my daughter who is 8. Recently she has been harboring a Paris obsession, so I decided to plan a France themed outing for us.

For extra fun, dress French by pairing breton stripes with slacks or a skirt, sport oversized sunglasses, ballet pumps, and hey - red lipstick! But really anything classic will do!

Then get in the mood by listening to some French Pop music in the car! 

https://open.spotify.com/album/6rA8yW2rgUTNLgA16Jay01?si=ZC6yAV9-S9mLL2G2i1UqtQ

Here are some ideas to find a little Paris in your city:

1. Check out Impressionism or other French art at your local art museum by French artists such as Claude Monet, Paul Cézanne, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Edgar Degas, Camille Pissarro.

2. Lunch at a French cafe or Creperie. My daughter loves Nutella Crepes!

3. Find a bakery that sells Macrons. (This was a true adventure!  Two Macaron bakeries were out of business when we arrived and the French Cafe didn't have them. But finally, we prevailed at the Sweet Hut Atlanta).

4. Check out French architecture. (Provincial or Normandy)
Check this out.

5. Go see a Puppet Show ( Puppetry is big in France).
Here is one in Atlanta.

6. Go to a Cirque de Soleil show.

7. Use Duolingo to learn French.

Dairy Free Bourbon Pecan Pie

Use a 9x12 casserole dish.
Pre-heat Oven to 375°

Ingredients

Blend 6 eggs

1 cup sugar

½ cup maple syrup

½ tsp salt

6 tbs Smartbalance non-dairy butter

½ cup brown sugar

1 mini-bottle bourbon

½ cup brown sugar

½ tsp almond extract

Double Pie Crust

In a bowl, whisk eggs and white sugar until smooth. Add maple syrup, almond extract, salt. Melt the Smartbalance butter and stir in 1/2 cup brown sugar, then add to rest of mixture. Mix together in a dish 1/2 cup brown sugar and 1 bourbon mini-bottle then add to mixture. Add in pecans. 

Line casserole dish with pastry using finger tips to smooth seams (or use to pie shells). Pour pie mixture into pastry shell.

Bake at 375° for 45-50 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack for 1 hour. Store in the refrigerator.Yield: 8 servings.

Pour in pie crust

Bake 45 mins

375 degree

Quick Asian Dinner #dairy free #gluten free

Bake chicken breasts at 350 for approximately 30 minutes.
(To meat temperature of 165).

Marinade:
1/2 juiced orange
grated orange rind (about 1 tsp)
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 tsp sesame oil
2 cloves of garlic minced
1 tbs brown sugar
1 tbs honey
1 tsp cornstarch

Put chicken in marinade in plastic bag until ready to cook. Pour marinade over chicken then bake. After 15 minutes, baste chicken using brush. Then baste every ten minutes until chicken is done. Then broil for 2 minutes. I recommend using a meat thermometer.

Stir Fried Pork Rice
Chopped leftover pork (we had some we had just smoked - made it so goooood).
Leftover rice.
1.5 cups frozen mixed vegetables (rinse under warm water before throwing in pan)
2 tbs seasame oil
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 clove garlic
powdered ginger

Put oil in pan. Add veggies and pork. Add seasonings/soy. Stir for about 5 minutes. Add rice. Cook for 5 more minutes.



I cook without recipes, so when something turns out delish - I blog it - mainly for myself!

Capsule Closet for Kids!

The Capsule Closet craze runs rampant across blogs and Pinterest, but many people don't think about using it with their kids. I don't know about you, but at one point my daughter's closet seemed to overflow with an excess of "great deals" and well-intentioned "hand-me-downs."

How it saves you time:
1. LESS LAUNDRY!!
2. LESS OPTIONS = LESS BATTLES
3. Streamlines the morning rush!!
4. Capsule closets work best for seasons and the constant outgrowing of clothes!

You NEED 10-14 outfits, so that you don't lose your mind if you can't do laundry one weekend!

Girls:
1. 1 Casual Dress (Red is great as it works for lots of holidays)
2. 1 Sweater Dress
3. 1 black skirt
4. 1 patterned or tuille skirt
5. 1 Denim button down shirt or jean jacket
6. 1 solid color hoodie (Fall/Winter/Early Spring)
7. 2 Pairs of Jean Jegging, Black Pants (Preferably athletic style), Navy or Khaki Pants (4 Pants)
8. Black and/or Navy Leggings, Patterned Leggings (3 Leggings)
9. 5 - 7 Tunic length or long shirts (tunic length will last all year even if they grow taller)
10. 1 Puffy Vest in a solid color for cool days.

Note: Don't send your kids to school in shorts until 4th grade. Protect those knees! Capri leggings are great!

Note: Use layers! A short sleeve shirt with a hoodie and a puffy vest on a cold day!

Creamy #Budget Mushroom Soup #DairyFree #Gluten Free

Ingredients

16 oz mushrooms. Sliced
1/2 Sweet Onion
1 cup chopped carrots
Optional: Diced raw chicken or sausage

1/2 can Coconut Milk (add after cooking)
1/2 TSP salt (add after cooking)
1 Egg Yolk

4 cups water
1 Bay leaf
1/2 TSP black pepper
1 TSP Coleman's powder mustard
2 TBS balsamic vinegar
1 TBS light soy sauce
1/4 cup cooking sherry, white wine,
(or 1/2 cup beer or 1 cup chicken broth)

Optional if you have it
1 TBS Mrs Dash
1/4 TSP celery salt (or 1 stalk Diced celery)
1/4 TSP paprika
1/2 TSP nutmeg