Vegetarian Chili

My Vegetarian Chili is a Fall favorite at our house. It's full of hearty goodness and a little spice.

click here to see my secret ingredient.

(This is enough to fill a large crock-pot that will serve well over 12 guests.)

You will need one large crock pot

measuring spoons

and combine all ingredients at will (there is no method to the madness here). I cook this for 6 hours.
 

Ingredients:

8 cups (2 cartons) of Pacific Natural Foods-Organic Vegetable Broth

1 can of my secret ingredient...click here

2 cans of garlic and onion roasted diced tomatoes. Muir Glen diced tomatoes with garlic and onion

1 can of tomato paste. Muir Glen tomato paste

1 can of rinsed and drained black beans. HEB Organics or Eden Foods brand

1 can of rinsed and drained garbanzo beans. HEB Organics or Eden Foods brand

1 can of rinsed and drained kidney beans. HEB Organics or Eden Foods brand

1 bag of Birds Eye Steamfresh Southwestern Style Corn

2 bell peppers, 1 red, 1 yellow

1 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon cayenne

1 tablespoon ground cumin

2 tablespoons chili powder

1 teaspoon of paprika

Fresh ground pepper to taste

Toppings:

Plain Greek Yogurt

Chopped Cilantro Leaves

Sweet Onion

Avocado

Fritos

Shredded Cheese

Happy cooking! 

 

Weekend Re-Cap

Friday after work/school, Elise was surprised by her "potty present"! Yes, you heard it, a "potty present". She has been doing such a fabulous job at potty training, we bought her this princess castle.

On Saturday we saw the Veggie Tales live in concert. It was unlike anything I have ever seen! Giant dancing and singing veggies, and silly songs. Our days of rock concerts (not that we went to so many in the first place)  have been replaced with singing veggies and the like! We had a blast and enjoyed watching our sweet girl at her first concert.

Sunday, Elise and I enjoyed cupcakes in the back yard while hubby tended to some yard work.

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

Soulful Sunday

From Beth Moore's, Breaking Free Day by Day (A year of Walking in Liberty)

The time will come when they will not tolerate sound doctrine.
2 Timothy 4:3

A rebellious child prefers pleasant illustration over truth. We crave messages that make us feel good. When we are living in rebellion, the last thing we want is to confront the Holy One of Israel.

So the apostle Paul was right in his warning to young Timothy. If we strongly prefer certain teachers and preachers over others, we are wise to ask why. If our basis is anything other than balanced biblical teaching, we could be in rebellion while occupying our pews every Sunday. Let's make sure we are not looking for people to scratch out itching ears and hide us from the truth.

Pumpkin Decorating Kits

No carving, scooping or mess with this little pumpkin decorating kit! Find this one at Chasing Fireflies.

 

You can also find a slightly different version of the kits at Target. We picked one up a few weeks ago in the costume section. I can't wait for our little pumpkin to decorate her Princess Pumpkin!

Not to leave out the little men, here is the Pirate kit.

 

Happy Decorating!

3 Step Dessert

With all the Fall prep going on, I thought I would make a quick and easy cobbler for dessert tonight. I had one can of pop biscuits and a bag of frozen berries, just enough to make up a cobbler.

I pressed a few raw biscuits in the bottom on a baking dish and sprinkled with Cinnamon and Sugar. Next I filled the dish with frozen berries and drizzled with honey. Last I topped the berries with more pressed raw biscuits and Cinnamon and Sugar. Baked at 350 for about 30 min. When I checked the cobbler, the top looked great, but the bottom was still doughy. I made this whole thing on on the fly, so to try and cook it longer without burning the top, I placed the glass cover on the dish and baked for another 30 min. That did the trick and turned out fully cooked. We served it up with a little ice cream. 

Tasty treat on a wannabe Fall day! Hurry Fall, hurry!

linking here

Sweet Fall Treats

Hubby treated me to a sweet surprise of roses and the Halloween edition on Better Homes and Gardens. 

When I think of Fall treats, piping hot apple pie comes to mind. This cheddar-crusted apple pie from Martha Stewart is on my must bake list.

 and how about this pumpkin spice creme brulee from Better Homes and Gardens?!

Can't wait for the local pumpkin patch to open. Click here to locate a pumpkin patch near you.

Fall Favorites

Our fall baby is all ready to decorate for Halloween/Fall, and it did not take much persuasion for me to get into the change of scenery. This weekend hubby unloaded containers of Fall decorations from the attic. Here are a few fall favorites that have found a home in our house.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Linking here

&

here

Vintage Halloween Finds

1. Halloween Hang-ups-Martha Stewart

2. Hostess Apron-Great Goods on ETSY 

3. Table Setting-Pottery Barn Kids 

4. Placemats-PotteryBarn Kids 

5. Plates and Cups-Pottery Barn Kids 

6. Pumpkin-Vintage Green Limited

7. Decorative Blocks-Gongy and Squish

Detox Part One

Today was a good day! I took a day off from work for a "me day" and went to a doctor appointment, ran errands that have been put off, and enjoyed the good company of my mom. It was defiantly good for my soul, especially my unhurried devotion time this morning. As I read I realized that I was meant to be reading this devotional at that exact moment! For months, our little family seems to be operating at "hold on for dear life" speed. I have been incredibly run down and my immune system has suffered for it. Here is a little from the devotional that grabbed my attention.

"Our bodies are created with a pace of their own. While disease, heredity or a physiological breakdown may throw that pace out of whack, more often than not our bodies are responding to the environment we create for them. If we create a fast-talking, hard-working, overindulging, clock watching environment for ourselves, overconsuming our physical and emotional resources, we can expect to feel lousy. It will become a way of life-the logical consequence. We are effectively choosing to create our pace of death."

(We're More Than Physical Creatures by Barbara DeGrote-Sorensen and David Allen Sorensen)

This reading combined with 1 Corinthians 3:17 got my attention and I knew we had to make a change. We are detoxing our home and part one begins with our attitude. 

Have you seen the Family Rules linky party over at The Pleated Poppy? 

(image from The Pleated Poppy)

This is exactly what I have in mind for part one, establish a solid set of family rules and post them in the house as a daily reminder. When I say attitude I don't just mean keep the negativity to a minimum, I mean towards daily living. Making the right choices in priority, nutrition, actions, etc. We are a temple of the Holy Spirit, and we need to keep this front and center. Hubby and I have a date to sit down and write the rules of the roost this week. I will post the final project.

My personal goal is to take a little more "me time" and remember that if I am not good for myself, I can't be my best for others. Now, it's off to bed for some much needed sleep!