Chicken Sausage Veggie Hash

I'd like to say that Rachael Ray stole my idea for 30 minute meals, but it's probably the other way around.  I cook basically every night, with a few exceptions for leftovers.

People look at me crazy when I tell them this.  But, come on.  It's not that hard.

Especially with quick and delicious meals like this hash.  

It's a 30 minute meal miracle ;)

It can be modified to fit any tastes, like if I wasn't also feeding my husband I would have added mushrooms and onions.  Oooh, and fresh corn.  That would have been a lovely addition.  

This version is simple, rustic and honest (anyone a Gordon Ramsey fan?) and totally does the trick for a speedy, weeknight meal.

Here's the main cast of characters:

I usually buy turkey sausage links, like the one from Butterball, but I had a dollar off coupon for this Johnsonville sausage.  It was sooo good & had a great flavor.  You should try it.

Hey, Johnsonville, that was a free plug.  You should send me some free chicken sausage for my troubles.

Chicken Sausage Veggie Hash

serves 3-4

1 package 12 oz chicken sausage

1 large russet potato

1 large zucchini

1 large squash

1 green onion

2 tbsp olive oil

Cut your sausages into half circles by slicing lengthwise down the middle, then cutting down the length in small slices (does that make sense??).  Heat some olive oil in a large skillet and then toss the sausage slices in.  Cook for about 5-7 minutes.

Dice up a green pepper and toss that in the pan with the sausage.  Cook for another 4-5 minutes.

Dice up a potato while you are waiting on that.

Pour the sausage/pepper mixture in a bowl and set aside and dump the potatoes in the pan.  Cook for about 3 minutes or until golden on one side.  Then cover and cook for about 8 minutes or until fork tender (this really depends on how big your dices are).

Cut your zucchini & squash into quarters.  When I ask my husband to do this, he makes circles...because they look like quarters.

Yeah...to make quarters, cut lengthwise down the middle, then lengthwise again and cut into pieces.

When the potatoes are done, pour them in the bowl with the sausage and pepper and throw the squash (or is it squashes?) into the skillet to cook for about 6-8 minutes.

Is anyone doing the math?  Are we at 30 minutes yet?

Toss it all around in the bowl and serve it up.

I actually like to eat mine on a salad, but this week I threw a scoop of it in a wheat tortilla with spinach and cheese~best. lunch. ever.

Thrifty Earring Makeover

Please forgive my bloggy absence.  I have been having trouble getting it all together this week.  Just having one of those I don't have enough time/motivation kind of weeks.  

Well, I have a fun little jewelry makeover for you today :)

My dad is a yard sale junkie and is constantly picking up things like giant Ziploc bags full of random jewelry for like a buck.  So, if you happen to come across a giant Ziploc of cheesy baubles, it might be worth taking them home.

There are lots of cool ways to make over this sort of jewelry, but I'm mainly going to focus on two: acrylic paint and Sharpies.  I also tried Mod Podge and glitter and it was kind of a fail.  The glitter kept getting everywhere and it required multiple coats.  So I discarded those~no harm, no foul.

Check out these super 90's plastic earrings.  These can be made more funky and modern with just a black and silver Sharpie marker.  

Here's the after:

Super funky, no?  I actually did them double sided, one side with swirlies and one side with zig zags.

Next is my personal fave, inspired by Alisa Burke.  

 Chevron earrings!  Chevron is all the rage right now, so grab some acrylic paint and free hand (or meticulously measure) some chevron stripes.

Oh, by the way, my cousin Chelsea took the blue polka dot earrings seen in the center of the 2nd photo and turned them into cool giraffe earrings.  Rock on, Chels :)

 Sooo, everyone should head out to the yard sales and thrift stores and make some statement jewelry.

Have a great day!

Gettin' My Pin On

Yeah, I love me some Pinterest.  For those of you who aren't familiar with the site, here's a little description of Pinterest I got from Wikipedia:

"Pinterest is a pinboard-style social photo sharing website that allows users to create and manage theme-based image collections such as events, interests, hobbies and more. Users can browse other pinboards for inspiration, 're-pin' images to their own collections and or 'like' photos."

I have been known to pin daily, but I try to only pin stuff I think is awesome.

And for lack of a better post, I thought I'd show you what I have been pinning lately:

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Oh, I just love birds!  And this do-it-yourself bird feeder looks easy enough to make.  I will put this on my ever growing list of DIY projects.

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I've never been much of a carrot cake fan, but these carrot cake protein pancakes have got me droolin'.

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I'm actually planning on doing this Easter-y craft this weekend, using embroidery floss, liquid starch and balloons!  Hope they turn out as cute as this.

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I love Lucy, and I especially love this quote.

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Breaded eggplant with goat cheese and sauce~holy yum!  I'll be honest.  I pin alot of food on Pinterest.  The Internet makes me hungry.

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How cool is this coffee ring art?!  It totally blows my mind that this artist makes portraits with coffee rings.

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This treadmill workout looks like it would be intense, but doable.  Definitely a great workout to have in your back pocket when you can't walk or jog outside.

Alrighty, hope you enjoyed my pins.  For more stuff like this, you could follow me on Pinterest.  I'll most likely follow you back ;) 

Did anyone notice that I totally dropped the ball on the March Photo Challenge?  I guess a month long challenge was too ambitious for me ;)  The April Photo-A-Day Challenge is posted though, for anyone interested.

Oats Rock

Oats are awesome.  I used to think they were boring or mushy, but I'm a grown up now and I realize that I never gave oats much of a chance.

Instant oats have come along way and they have some pretty delectable flavors.

But I really like to make my oats with whatever flavor comes to mind, so I keep giant containers of quick oats and old fashioned oats on hand to do just that.

Oh, and I must mention that oats are really good for you and have lots of health benefits.  Here's more on that if you are into it.

Here are 2 of my favorite oat-y recipes lately:

Cocoa, Peanut Butter Oats

1/2 cup quick oats

1/2 cup almond milk

1 spoonful of cocoa

1 sweetener packet

Combine and cook in the microwave for 2 minutes.  Add more almond milk if needed.

Top with 1/2 of a sliced banana and a spoonful of peanut butter (I used crunchy) & stir it up.

Ewww-not a pretty picture.  But you get the idea.

Overnight Oats in a Jar 

I was like abnormally excited when my almond butter got low enough to make oats in the jar.  It's the little things, I guess.

This is so awesome to make, because when you get up in the morning, your breakfast is already made!

Here's how you make it.

When you have a jar of peanut butter, almond butter or Nutella that is down to less than a tablespoon, it is the optimal time to make this (you could also make it in a bowl, but it's less awesome that way).

Into the jar goes:

2/3 cup quick or old fashioned oats

2/3 cup almond milk

1 sweetener packet or a squirt of honey

Mix it in the jar with a spoon or put on the top and shake it shake it shake it.

Then, in the morning, stir it up and if you need a little more milk, add a little more milk.

I like to finish it off with fruit and/or nuts.  In this particular jar, I added slivered almonds and half of a banana (are you sensing a trend here?).

And, come on~no dishes to wash!  Sounds like a winner to me!

Here's some oat recipes I've bookmarked to try:

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookie Balls from Bake Your Day

Banana Bread Baked Oatmeal for One from Healthy Food for Living

Banana Pecan Coconut Baked Oatmeal from Peanut Butter Fingers

Yes, it is clear that I like peanut butter and bananas in my oats!
Have an oat filled day, ya'll.

Speckled Spring Fingernails

Spring is definitely my favorite season!  I love all the pretty flowers, despite my insane sinus/allergy situation. I was inspired to do some robins' egg fingernails when I saw these awesome nail sheets on The Dainty Squid's blog.  They are so pretty!

 

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Well, mine aren't that precise, but they are still fun for spring time! 

Here's what I used:

Toothpicks

Brown nail polish from Avon

Light blue nail polish that I mixed myself

It's as simple as it looks: Paint your nails with the light blue & dry.  Then dip the toothpick in the brown polish and speckle away!

Have a nice day :)

Chai Latte Chocolate Chip Mug Cake

I think I may have said a time or two how much I love single serving desserts.

Especially the ones that cook in a minute or less.

I don't really buy snack cakes or other such tempting yumminess, because then I would eat them.  So I always say that I don't keep "good stuff" in the house.

But, I have the ingredients to make good stuff, and with a little effort comes cake (a sort of healthy cake, at that).

So this mug cake is actually pretty scrumptious, despite it's gross appearance.

I used a latte mix for the chai flavor and it made some foam around the cake, much like a latte ;)

Here's where I got my chai flavor:

Found these at Walmart in a pack of 8 (I think) for about 3 1/2 dollars, which is cheaper than what I would pay at Starbucks for one soy chia latte.

See what I mean about the foamy, gross appearance.  Ewww in looks, but Yummmm in flavor and texture!

Make it!

Chai Latte, Chocolate Chip Mug Cake for 1

1 tbsp powdered chai tea latte mix

3 tbsp flour

3 packets of turbinado sugar (sugar in the raw)*

3 tbsp almond milk

1 tbsp applesauce

1/4 tsp baking powder

pinch salt

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

Mix all the ingredients in a small bowl and pour into a greased (microwave safe) mug or ramekin.  Bake for 55-60 seconds in the microwave & let it cool for 5 minutes.

Invert on a plate or eat it out of the mug & enjoy!

*If you don't have sugar in the raw, use 3 tsp of regular sugar or 2-3 Splenda packets, to taste.

Here's some other single serving desserts to check out:

1 Minute Baileys Chocolate Cake

Mini Layered Pumpkin Pies

Apple Crumble Pie for One

Single Serving Fudge Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting

Single Serve Birthday Cake

Four Cookies

Photo Challenge Round Up #3

Day 17: Green

Eeek!  I am totally afraid of bugs (irrationally so), but this one was really cool looking.  Love how it looks like leaves, and the color is so vibrant.  This was taken on the back door of our office building.  My dad said it is called a luna moth.  It was huge, by the way-about the size of my hand!

Day 18: A Corner of Your Home

You may recognize my skinny paloma cocktail in this picture.  I enjoyed sipping it while watching Project Runway Allstars.  My computer monitor sits in the corner of our home office.

Day 19: Funny

I love seeing animals dressed up, like Doctor Octopus (cat from The Dainty Squid).  Um, yeah.  My cats were not gong for this at all.  They both (Baby, right/Boscoe, left) acted crazy when I tried to put sunglasses on them.  These are the best shots of that disaster!

Day 20: Before & After

Does anything taste better than fresh pineapple?  I'm thinking not.  This is my fruit prep for the week, but it probably won't last that long!

Day 21: Delicious

This week I made my first attempt at making pan seared scallops and they turned out great.  Melted some Smart Balance butter in the pan with some fresh garlic and seared those babies up.  Served with salad, broccoli and risotto~YUM!

Day 22: Kitchen Sink

Dip dying a shirt in the sink here.  It turned out awesome & you will definitely see the results on the blog this coming week ;)

Day 23: Moon

Ummm, okay.  I did not remember to go outside at night and take a picture of the moon, nor did I go to the store to buy a Moon Pie this week.  So, I'm giving myself a pass on this picture!  It's been a long week ;)

Well, hope everyone has a great weekend.  Got a delicious cake recipe coming at ya' tomorrow!