Ten Tidbits Thursdays

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1 – Sorry to start on a somber note, but I feel like I must touch on this.  I haven’t posted anything online about the tragedy that occurred Monday at the Boston marathon.  My thoughts and prayers have been with those impacted by this all week, but I find at times when people do horrible thing I am at a loss for words.  Even just saying thoughts and prayers doesn’t seem to do justice to how I feel or what I really would want to convey.  I grew up and Massachusetts and feel lucky to have so many wonderful friend/family who reached out to ensure my loved ones were okay.  Like I said I have no words …. I mean really what is wrong with people?

2 – A friend of mine shared this article with me … 22 Things Happy People Do Differently.  Although I can see the value in a lot of the items there’s just no way I can get up at the same time every day.  I like to sleep in on the weekends =)

3 – Sometimes cooking an “old” recipes that I haven’t had in a long time makes me rediscover my love for it all over again.  This week I made spicy meatballs for the hubby.  We both were laughing about how much we enjoyed them and why we hadn’t thought to make them in a while.  Welcome back to the rotation spicy meatballs!

4 – I played Bocce for the first time ever this week!  Our team is a lot of fun and even though I thought I might be terrible at it … it turns out I was able to score the winning point for my team.  Not bad if I do say so myself!! Have you ever played Bocce do you like it?

5 –  Have any of your been watching The Americans on FX?  The hubby and I are loving the first season and let’s be honest it is always a HUGE win when we can agree on a TV show.  We are also hooked on Scandal!  Any good shows you and your man agree upon that you would recommend?

6 – I know it’s a really old and over played song at this point, but I still get excited when “Call me Maybe” comes on the radio or on my ipod.  Can’t really pin point what about this song I like so much … it must be the beat … yeah let’s go with that.  =)

7 –  Planning a bachelorette party?  Check out these two super cute (and affordable) ideas from The McBaileys … party boxes and party tanks.  I love both ideas!

8 – Sophi, our dog, met my friend’s 7+ week old baby yesterday!  Sophi was very curious and wanted to sniff/see the baby, however once we started pay attention to only the baby she was less than thrilled.  The poor dog was JEALOUS, but luckily by the end of the visit I had my friend’s baby in my lap and Sophi laying next to us.

9 – After killing my herb garden after one of the early snows last year, I have begun my quest to conquer the black thumb … again.  I am hopeful I will have better luck this time.  So far we have basil, chives, mint and thyme.

10 – I’ve been toying with the idea of becoming a brunette.  I have always been a blonde and I’m not really sure where this idea is coming from.  Random right?

What tidbit do you have to add this week?

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Recipe: Spicy Meatballs

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So remember when I made the tortilla soup?  I mentioned how I loved that recipe as well as the meatball recipe from the 4 Hour Body diet.  I’ve never been a big sausage person, however for some reason I LOVE it in this meatball recipe. If you wanted to make this slightly more healthy you could substitute in ground turkey and turkey sausage.

I’ve made this recipe a number of time with a couple different variations.  The latest version include a whole bag of spinach. I think it makes the meatballs look more appetizing as well as putting your vegetable serving right into the meatball!  I wish I could take credit for this idea, but it was my friend’s idea.

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef
1 lb spicy (or sweet) Italian sausage
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tbsp Italian seasoning
½ small yellow onion, roughly chopped
½ cup almond meal (or bread crumbs or wheat germ)
2 eggs, whisked
1 tsp red pepper flakes
Black pepper and salt to taste
1 package chopped spinach (cooked)

Cook the frozen chopped spinach per the directions on the bag.  Meanwhile combine all the other ingredients in a glass bowl and mix together.  Don’t forget to remove the Italian sausage from its casing.

Once the spinach is done cooking allow it to cook and then squeeze as much of the water as possible out of the spinach.  You don’t want soggy meatballs!  Mix in the spinach.  It’s best to do it with your hands (gross I know!).

Create ~24 medium size meatballs.

Recipe Spicy Meatballs, 4 Hour Body / Slow Carb Diet | Life's Tidbits

Pre-heat your grill pan (these can also be cooked in the oven if you prefer).  Once hot, add the meatballs. Fry 5–7 minutes, until bottom is browned.

Recipe Spicy Meatballs, 4 Hour Body / Slow Carb Diet | Life's Tidbits

Turn meatballs to opposite side and cook for another 5–7 minutes. It will take several batches to cook all 24 meatballs.

If on the 4 hour body diet serve it with lentils or black beans.  If not, then your pantry is your oyster.  These will taste great with almost any side!

Recipe Spicy Meatballs, 4 Hour Body / Slow Carb Diet | Life's Tidbits

About three meatballs is a serving. And boy does this meal make a fabulous lunch.

Happy cooking!

Don’t forget to leave your tidbit by commenting below :)

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Recipe: Turkey Chili

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Brrrrr it’s cold out there and today was the first snow fall of the year!!!

Cold weather = chili night at our house and to be specific turkey chili!  My husband swears he’s going to be made of turkey, because of how many turkey based meals I make. LOL. He cracks me up.

Now I’m not saying by any means that I don’t like beef, but in things like chili using turkey or beef doesn’t make a difference to me.  Turkey is lower in fat so I often use it instead of beef.  You can totally use beef if that’s your preference with this recipe.  Either way it will taste great … in my humble opinion. :)

**This recipe was updated on November 4, 2014**

Ingredients:

1.25 pounds ground turkey
1 can chili beans in medium spicy sauce (not drained)
1 can dark red kidney beans (drained)
1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes (with juice)
1 can tomato paste
1 large onion (chopped)
1 red bell peppers (seeded  &  chopped)
⅓ jalapeno pepper (seeded & minced – use less if you don’t like things spicy)
4-6 cloves or 1 tablespoon garlic (minced)
½ cup beer (or substitute in water)
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
½ tablespoon dried oregano
1 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoons hot sauce
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper (or less to taste)
½ teaspoon paprika

Chop the red pepper and drop it into a big enough pot to hold all of chili.   I like to add a little vegetable oil to make the veges soften quicker.  Then chop your jalapeno, garlic and onion and drop those in as well.  Saute until they are tender.

In a pan over medium-high heat ground turkey.  Break into small pieces and cook until browned. Drain off any excess fat.

Once the vegetables are cooked add the turkey (or beef) to the big pot.  Next, add in Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, and beer (I usually use water and to me it tastes the same).  Then add chili beans (with the sauce), kidney beans, fire roasted tomatoes and tomato paste.

Season with chili powder, oregano, cumin, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, and paprika. Mix well. Cover and simmer for 1/2 hour stirring occasionally.

Makes 6 servings.  If you have left overs it makes for a fabulous lunch the next day or later in the week!

I served it with homemade corn bread and it was YUMMY!

Happy Eating!

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