Quick & Easy Shredded Chicken and other Pinterest Wins!

Today I am linking up with Andrea for her Show + Tell Tuesdays.
The topic today is about Pinterest Wins (or Fails!)
I have 5 to share with you.

{ONE}
Quick & Easy Shredded Chicken
First up, is my #1 Pinterest Win.
I was scrolling Pinterest a year or 2 ago when I saw an image for shredding chicken using your kitchen aid. I didn't pin it..it was just an image of cooked chicken shredded saying "Use your kitchen aid to shred" I wish I had the pin to link to, but I don't.
One day I tried this method and I couldn't believe how EASY it was!!!
It is seriously a life changing method.
I don't know about you, but cooking & touching chicken totally grosses me out.
Using this method is the best!
Here is what you do:

I get a bag of frozen chicken breasts & I boil the frozen chicken breasts for about 15-20 minutes (until they are cooked!)

After 15 minutes I take out one of the chicken breasts & cut it in half to make sure it is cooked all the way through. No one wants under cooked chicken! YUCK!

 I put them in my kitchen aid while they are still warm & using the paddle attachment, I turn it on and it SHREDS the chicken in less than a minute!!!!! 

Check it out!!!!!

I don't know about you, but cutting up chicken grosses me out, so using this method is LIFE CHANGING. 

Yes, LIFE CHANGING. Shredding chicken without touching it is Life Changing in my opinion ;)

What I usually do is boil an entire frozen bag at a time. 
I use what I need for that night's recipe & then I FREEZE the rest of the shredded chicken to use at a later time for other recipes.
(I don't add any seasonings for this...it's just the plain frozen chicken, but you could add salt/pepper or other seasonings if you want)

I date & label the ziplock bag & then freeze it!

 Here are some of my favorite recipes that you can use shredded chicken for:

Chicken Enchiladas Verde {Recipe HERE} 

Chicken Tortilla Casserole {HERE}

BBQ Chicken Pizza {Recipe HERE}

Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup {Recipe HERE}

Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili {Recipe HERE}

Here are some other pins from Pinterest that were successes:

{TWO}

 Rain Gutter Bookshelves 

We made these for Luke's Room:

They were so easy to make and so cheap!

I bought one 10 foot piece of Rain Gutter for $5.47

Kevin sawed it in half with a hack saw to make two 5 foot shelves.

I bought rain gutter end caps that were $3.19 for a 2 pack.

I bought a huge box of 1 5/8 inch dry wall screws for $3.49. 

That's it. So cheap!

It took Kevin and I about 35 minutes from start to finish to saw them & put them up.

Here is the link to the step by step directions that we used.

{THREE}

Tooth Fairy Receipt & Pillow:

I found THIS tutorial when Kate lost her first tooth.

Look what my mother in law whipped up one afternoon:

 

Pin for the Win!

 Is that not the cutest tooth fairy pillow EVER? And, I love that you can hang it, you don't have to put it under the pillow. If you don't have bed posts, just hang it on their bedroom door. 

It makes it easier to leave money & not wake up your child!

My mother in law made a pink version for Claire :)

For the first tooth, they will get a Silver Dollar (or Gold Coin) and $1 bill.

Every tooth after that, they will just get $1 (a glittery dollar bill)

 You may notice that my dollar bill is sparkly! While searching on Pinterest, I saw the idea to put glitter on the dollars that the Tooth Fairy leaves. SO EASY! 

There are a few ways you can do this. 

You can use glitter hair spray OR you can hair spray the dollar and then sprinkle glitter on it, 

You can use glitter glue OR you can spray the dollar with glitter spray paint.

 The next idea I saw on Pinterest was THIS idea. 

Making a receipt from the Tooth Fairy!!!! 

The link didn't have instructions, but here is what I did to make the receipts:

 (I like the receipt idea because I am afraid my kids would recognize my handwriting)

First, I downloaded THIS font (It's free)

Then, I just typed up my receipt in a Word Document. 

To add a bar code, I went to THIS website which is a bar code generator. 

For the bar code, I put Kate's initials, then a 1 (first tooth) and then the date. 

After it generated my bar code, I did a screen shot of just the bar code and saved it as a .jpeg

On my Word document, I inserted it as an image to the bottom of my receipt.

I printed it out & then cut the paper to make it smaller. 

SO EASY! It took less than 10 minutes to make.

It's also a good way to document the dates when they loose their teeth)

{FOUR}

Sidewalk Chalk Paint!

Tutorial {HERE}

My kids love to paint & watercolor, but cleaning up after regular painting & water coloring is SUCH A PAIN. 

Can I get an Amen?

Enter Sidewalk Chalk Paint.

 Easy to make & even easier to clean up.

I found out about Sidewalk Chalk Paint on Pinterest one summer.

Making Sidewalk Chalk Paint has been on our Summer List the past 4 years.

My favorite memory with Sidewalk Chalk paint is when I made it for Claire's Tangled Birthday Party 2 years ago and let the girls paint our house with the Sidewalk Chalk Paint! (It washes right off) 

{FIVE}

Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta:

In August 2012, I was 9 months pregnant with Luke and my doctor was heading out of town the weekend I was due. The hospital was booked for inductions, so I was trying *almost* everything to go into labor on my own before my Doctor left town.

He stripped my membranes a couple times, I walked over 4 miles in 100 degree heat. 

Nothing worked. 

As a last ditch effort,  I decided to make a spicy meal in hopes that the wives tale that "spicy food" would help you go into labor.

I scoured Pinterest and this recipe caught my eye.

It looked spicy & yummy, so I made it!

We had it for dinner 3 times that week. 

It never put me into labor, but the recipe was a keeper!

(My doctor was able to induce me the day before he left, you can read Luke's birth story here)

Here is my version that I feel is tweaked/modified to perfection:

 {Recipe HERE}

Whenever I make this meal it brings back memories of my final week of pregnancy with Luke.

You know that scent and taste trigger memories, right?

This recipe has become one of our favorites. In fact, I think I am going to add it to next week's meal plan!

++++++++++

So, there you have it....5 of my favorite Ideas from Pinterest!

What did we ever do before Pinterest?!?

Linking up with Andrea for Show & Tell Tuesday!

Can't wait to read your favorite Pinterest ideas!

Starbucks {Copycat} Pumpkin Scones

 Earlier this year, all the Starbucks in Northern California stopped selling Starbucks pastries, but instead had pastries from La Boulange.

This wasn't a big deal to me until this Fall when I realized La Boulange doesn't make a pumpkin scone!!!

My beloved Starbucks Pumpkin Scones were not available to me this Fall. I was NOT happy about this. I look forward to the Starbucks Pumpkin Scone every October.

My Starbucks Pastry Case. Boo.

When we went to my Granmy's house for her 102nd birthday a few weeks ago,  I went to her Starbucks & was SO excited that they still carried Starbucks pastries (Grammy lives in the Central Valley) You better believe I bought all the pumpkin scones they had at her Starbucks.

#pumpkinsconehoarder

 But, rumor has it that in the next year, Starbucks is replacing ALL their stores to have pastries from La Boulange pastries. Worst News Ever.

This prompted me to search for a pumpkin scone recipe. 

I found one on Pinterest that was for Starbucks Copycat Pumpkin Scones.

I knew I had to make them! 

I read through all the comments and adapted it slightly. 

{Original recipe here} 

Here is what you need:

 For the Scones:

2 cups flour

7 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinammon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
6 tablespoons cold butter
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
3 tablespoons 1/2 & 1/2 (I used whole milk)
1 large egg

Directions:

 Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and spices in a large bowl.

 Using a pastry knife, fork, or food processor, cut butter into the dry ingredients until mixture is crumbly and no chunks of butter are obvious. 

 Set aside.

 In a separate bowl, whisk together pumpkin, half and half, and egg. 

 Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Form the dough into a ball.

Pat out dough onto a lightly floured surface and form it into a 1-inch thick rectangle (about 9 inches long and 3 inches wide). 

Use a large knife or a pizza cutter to slice the dough twice through the width, making three equal portions. 

*****Next time I make these, I am going to make the scones smaller. I am going to do  4 or 5 lines instead of 3. ****** 

Cut those three slices diagonally so that you have 6 triangular slices of dough. 

Place on a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat:

 Bake for 14 to 16 minutes. Scones should begin to turn light brown. Place on wire rack to cool.

Now it's time to make the glazes:

There are 2 glazes for these scones. 

The first glaze is the powdered sugar glaze: 

1 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon powdered sugar
2 tablespoons whole milk

Mix the powdered sugar and 2 tbsp milk together until smooth.

When scones are cool, use a brush to paint plain glaze over the top of each scone.

When that glaze is hard (about an hour later) then, it is time to make the Spiced Glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons powdered sugar
2 tablespoons whole milk
1/2 teaspoon cinammon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 pinch ginger
1 pinch ground cloves 

Combine the ingredients for the spiced icing together. 

Drizzle this thicker icing over each scone and allow the icing to dry before serving (at least 1 hour). 

A squirt bottle works great for this, or you can drizzle with a whisk.

The Result?

Pretty good!

 Did they like look like the Starbucks Pumpkin Scones?

Kind of.

Did they taste like the Starbukcs Pumpkin Scones?

Kind of.

The Starbucks ones are better, but this recipe is a great one to have.

Will I make this recipe again?

Yes! Especially since Starbucks pastries are going bye-bye nationwide by the end of 2014.

Linking up with Jess:

Hope you all have a great 3 day weekend! If you want more pumpkin recipes, check out my Pumpkin Snickerdoodles {Here}  And, there is also a chance to win a $100 Visa Gift Card!

Sidewalk Chalk Paint

This may be the easiest craft ever. 

And I mean, EVER.

My kids love to paint & watercolor, but cleaning up after regular painting & water coloring is SUCH A PAIN. 

Can I get an Amen?

Enter Sidewalk Chalk Paint.

 Easy to make & even easier to clean up.

I found out about Sidewalk Chalk Paint on Pinterest last summer.

Making Sidewalk Chalk Paint has been on our Summer List the past 2 years.

The girls LOVE it.

Here is what you need:

 Cornstarch

 Water

 Food Coloring

(As well as a mixing bowl, cups & paintbrushes)

 You are going to use equal parts water & corn starch. 

For this batch I did 1 cup of each.

Whisk the cornstarch & water.

Divide into plastic cups. I wanted to make 6 colors, so I used 6 cups.

 Drop food coloring into the cups. I think I did about 8-10 drops per cup.

 Red food coloring makes pink paint. 

{I used red & yellow to make orange. I used red & blue to make purple}

 The colors are so fun and the texture is really easy to paint with,

 Paint Brushes work great to paint with, but I prefer sponge paint brushes (not pictured) they are much easier to paint with on the sidewalk.

 The neighborhood kids love when I make chalk paint!

 (The adults love it also, because it keeps the kids entertained while we all sit in the court & have adult conversation)

 Plus, it makes the streets & sidewalks of our court look pretty & colorful.

Sidewalk Chalk Paint washes RIGHT off with water. Does not stain at all. 

 Which is good because our next door neighbor told the girls they could paint her stone mailbox.

 So, if you make this, have no fear. It washes right off cement and stone mailboxes.

 Our neighbors had quite a colorful mailbox for awhile.

  It washes right off skin and clothing also. Win-win.

 So, if you need a quick & easy activity with your kids, I totally suggest making Sidewalk Chalk Paint..

It looks messy, but it's really not. Nothing a hose can't take care of.

Beacuase it's made with corn starch, it basically turns into a powder when it dries.

And, I use disposable drinking cups and just throw them away after the girls are done painting (Sorry, Earth)

And, if you have a little 1 year old baby boy who tries to drink some of the paint, no worries...it's just water, corn starch and food dye. Totally safe.

Linking up with my sweet friend Jess (and praying her baby girl #3 arrives soon..she is a few days over due!

 Thanks, Pinterest for another great idea!