Chicken Tortilla Soup

Today's soup swap was a rousing success, and all 5 soups were delicious! I want to share them so others can enjoy the yumminess, starting with my friend L's tasty tortilla soup. She started with a recipe but made so many modifications it officially became her own creation. Whatever she did - it worked! Just beware - it makes like 18 cups of soup. Great for a big family, a big get-together, or for those with plenty of freezer space.

Note - the recipe uses shallots instead of onions because one of our friends is allergice to white, yellow, and red onions. But you could use regular onions instead.

Tortilla Soup

Ingredients
1 rotiserie chicken
6 cups of chicken broth
2 cups of water
1/4 cup flour
2 tsp apple cidar vinegar
1 (15 ounce) can chopped tomatoes
1 (10 ounce) can enchilada sauce
3 shallots, chopped
1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chile peppers
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoon cumin
2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 bay leaf
1 (10 ounce) package frozen corn
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1 can of black beans rinced

7 corn tortillas
vegetable oil

Directions

Soup
1. Remove Chicken from bones.
2. Boil Bones, skin, broth and water and vinegar for several hours
3. Drain stock from bones and put back in stock pot
4. Wisk 1/2 cup of water with the flour and add to the stock pot
4. Add Everything but the chicken
5. Simmer for 2-3 hours - then remove the bay leaf
6. Chop the chicken and add after you take the soup off the heat.

Tortilla Strips
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. Lightly brush both sides of tortillas with oil. Cut tortillas into strips, then spread on a baking sheet.
3. Bake in preheated oven until crisp, about 8 - 10 minutes.

To serve, sprinkle tortilla strips over soup. We also topped our soup with a little bit of shredded cheese, fresh cilantro, and sour cream.

Creamy Sweet Potato Soup

I made my soup for this Saturday's "soup swap" and I'm delighted with how it all came out. The recipe is very easy, so I thought I'd share.

Creamy Sweet Potato Soup

This would make a quick, healthy dinner for 4 on a cold, busy weeknight if you paired it with a big salad and half a sandwich.

Party Idea: Soup Swap

I recently learned (from Real Simple magazine) that January is National Soup Month. To celebrate, I decided to host a small gathering at my place and call it a "soup swap." What is a "soup swap"? It's like a cookie swap, but with soup. (Note that I've never been to a cookie swap so I'm pretty much making this up as I go along).

The idea is that everyone brings a big batch of their favorite soup. We all sample the soups for lunch, along with some yummy crusty bread, saltines, and oyster crackers and a big salad. Then everyone takes a sample of their favorites home in disposable plastic ware. We all have soup for lunch for the next week, with a nice variety, without having to cook 5 different types of soups. And people are also supplying their recipes so others can recreate the soup again in their own kitchen.

At this point there will be 5 people, including myself. I think it's a nice number - who can eat more than 5 soups in one sitting, really?

So if you're looking for something to do inside on a cold Saturday or Sunday this winter, consider hosting a "soup swap" of your own. Here's my list of must-have party supplies and host-supplied menu items to get you started:

• Paper bowls for soup sampling
• One package of plastic ware bowls with lids per attendee (~ 4 per pack)
• Soup spoons
• Ladles (or ask guest to bring their own)
• Crusty whole grain baguette, cut into chunks for dipping into soup
• Saltines
• Oyster crackers
• Beverages and cups
• Napkins

Also consider how you are going to keep the soups warm during the party. I can fit 4 on my stove top on simmer, and several others if they are in a Crockpot that can be plugged into outlets on the counter.

That's about it. I'm hoping it's a pretty low key way to get some friends together for a warm, comforting, tasty afternoon!

Shortcut for cutting baby carrots

I often buy baby carrots to put on salad, but struggle to cut them into smaller chunks with a knife because they are small and they roll. The other day as I was chopping I looked at my knife block and said "hey, I wonder if my kitchen shears would be easier..." I tried them and sure enough, using the scissors to snip the carrots into small pieces is infinitely easier!

Of course you should only do this if your shears are kept clean enough to touch food directly, but mine are. I now only use the shears to cut baby carrots and it takes seconds instead of minutes, with much less risk to my fingers. That's my kind of shortcut - easy and safer!

Dining room debut

Since early 2009 I have been itching to redecorate my apartment. It took me a while to convince myself that it wasn't a frivolous endeavor, and to find my style. But it's finally starting to come together. One of the easiest rooms has been the dining room because it's so small I have to keep it pretty simple. This room was also the place where I first started experimenting with mixing textures and colors based on what I've learned from all the design blogs I read. It's not 100% done - I still want to get a new table* - but I'm very happy with the way it turned out.

Here's a rundown of the various elements in the room, where they came from, and the cost:

Wall Paint - Valspar "Woodrow Wilson Putty" from Lowe's ($21.75/gallon)

Silver Frames - IKEA RIBBA frames 8 3/4" x 11" (only $4.99 each!)
Canvas Rose Prints - Home Goods ($39.99 each)

Table runner - Home Goods ($13.80)

Updated pictures for frames - various photogs ($39.08)

Total cost of the makeover: $192.03

I already had the chairs (JCPenney), centerpience (Bed, Bath & Beyond), mirrored hutch (mom), and extra chair (JCPenney, cover from Target) so those were repurposed in the makeover. And I sold an old side table I didn't need for $10 on Craigslist, so that money offset some of the costs. Even so, this is a pretty cheap project for such a dramatic difference in the way the room looks. I love it!

And just for comparison, here is the closest I have to "before" pictures, taken right before a holiday party I had in 2008:

*My current table is a very traditional Ducan Fife style table that belonged to my great-grandmother. It's increadibly well-made in solid mahogony, but wasn't taken care of for many, many years so it's in rough shape. It's a bit too traditional for my taste otherwise I'd just have it refinished. But instead I'm going to sell it to an antiques person who can really restore it and use the proceeds to get a more contemporary table in a dark espresso finish.

Use a small roller to make painting easier

I've painted ALOT of rooms over the years, and used to get very frustrated when the roller would bump the ceiling or wall unintentionally. I felt like it was very hard to control the roller, and my painting quality suffered. The last time that happened I had an idea - what if I used a smaller roller? Would it be easier to maneuver? So when I painted my bathroom recently I switched from a 9" roller to a 6" roller. Jackpot!!!

The 6" roller was so much easier for my small hands to work. It's easier to use in small spaces and in corners. And, counter intuitive though it may be, the small roller actually makes the job go much faster. With greater control I am not fighting against my tools and can move the roller over the wall more easily and quickly. So even though it takes a few more strokes to cover the same space the painting goes much faster. I recently painted my entire guest room this way and it only took me 3 hours. That's for 2 coats, including all edging, done entirely by myself.

So for the ladies out there, if you have trouble handling a standard 9" paint roller consider the smaller 6" size. I think you'll like it.

Eco-friendly (and cheap!) toilet bowl cleaner

I'm looking for ways to cut back on the chemicals in my home, and it turns out you can replace most of those fancy, expensive cleaners with some basic household products that your great grandma would have had on hand. The one product that had me stumped, though, was toilet bowl cleaner. What could replace that bleaching gel?

Vinegar + Baking Soda

The ladies on one of my cleaning forums suggested pouring about a cup of vinegar in the bowl, then sprinkling baking soda around the sides and a little in the water. Scrub as usual with a toilet brush, and voila - clean bowl! I tried it and it works like a dream. No fancy bleach or smelly chemicals needed.

I like that it's super inexpensive, natural (and therefore not harmful to the sewer system or water supply), and uses things that I can now keep in bulk and use for multiple purposes.

Getting out grease stains

In an odd role reversal, my mother called me with a domestic question the other night. How to get a grease stain out of her favorite khakis. I had no idea, but a quick Google found that the most common remedy was plain old dish soap. Put it on the stain, rub it in, let set, then wash immediately. Lather, rinse, repeat until the stain is gone. Only put it in the dryer once the stain is totally gone or it will set.

Mom called last night to report that it worked. She let it sit for about 2 hours (because she fell asleep on the couch) and when she washed the pants the stain was gone.

So if you're s truggling to get a grease stain out - food grease or black grease (this was black) - head to the kitchen for some good, old-fashioned grease fighter.

More scarf storage ideas

In one of the online decorating forums I belong to, someone asked for ideas to organize her scarves on the inside of a closet door. Since I had just posted my scarf orgazining solution the other day, I was interested to see what other ideas people shared. Here were a few that I thought were neat using products I'd never seen before:

A scarf hanger:
http://www.foryouforhome.com/ScarfOrganizer.html

An over the door purse/hat rack:
http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?order_num=-1&SKU=14181504

An over the door towel rack:
http://www.amazon.com/Aquatico-Orel-Triple-Towel-Chrome/dp/B002BWOOLQ
(you'd have to tie them to keep them from slipping, but that's not hard)

So there you go. A few more ideas for organizing scarves on the back of your closet door.

A simple way to give back at the grocery store

One of my goals for 2010 is to do more to give back for all of the blessings I've been given. But with my crazy schedule it can be hard to find the time. So I've been thinking of ways to give back without too much extra effort.

I came up with an idea that I used tonight. When I make a big grocery run (typically once a month) I include one paper bag in the cart along with my reusable bags. As I'm shopping I fill that paper bag with staple, non-perishable foods like peanut butter, jelly, soup, cereal, and canned veggies. It gets scanned into my regular order (I use the handy self-scanner as I shop) and on my way out the door I drop the paper bag into the box for our local food pantry.

The whole thing adds no more than 5 minutes to my shopping trip, but will help many people over the course of the year. It adds more to my grocery bill, but I figure that I'm trading off time for money. There are so many people struggling in this difficult economy. It's the least I can do.

So the next time you're at the store consider purchasing just a few items for those without enough to eat in this country. Maybe take those coupons for stuff you might not normally use and apply them to food for a pantry. It's an easy way to turn a sometimes tedious errand into an act of kindness.

Organizing (and re-matching) orphaned socks

A few years ago I came up with a system for re-matching orphaned socks while doing laundry. It's really very simple and low tech, so I thought I'd share with all of you.

When I'm folding laundry, I take a gallon-sized Ziploc baggie and put all the mismatched socks into it. I then stuff the bag into the side of the drawer until the next time I do laundry. At that time I dump out the bag's contents and match up any of the socks in there with mates from the current load of wash. Whatever can't be matched up then goes back in the bag until next time. Lather, rinse, repeat!

If there is a sock that's been unmatched for more than a month or two, it goes in the trash.

I also try to sweep behind the washer and dryer once a month for both safety purposes, and because socks sometimes fall into the spaces on either side of the machines. If I find any stragglers I wash them with the next load and they go into the regular matching pool.

That's it. Total cost about 10 cents.

New bedding from Crate & Barrel

I am abnormally picky about bedding, but the new Madison pattern from Crate & Barrel is fantastic. I bought it in two colors - taupe and green - with the idea that I'd use it in either my master or my guest room. After trying both, I may keep them both! What do you think - is it weird to have the same duvet cover in two rooms as long as it's two different colors?


I plan to do white pillow shams and accent pillows in a complimentary but different pattern. Once I have it all put together I will post pictures, but for now here are the pics from the C&B Website:















In real life the green is much more green than it seems here - this looks more yellowy. I love it! Very modern and fresh - just what I've been looking for.

Classifying Clutter

Organizing is a passion of mine, especially helping people get rid of all that "stuff" we tend to accumulate over the years. For me clutter sucks the energy out of a space, so decluttering is like lifting a weight off my shoulders.

Helping someone get rid of their clutter requires a variety of strategies tailored to both the type of clutter and the reasons why that person is holding on to it. One of my favorite reference books on the topic is the organizing bible, Julie Morganstern's book Organizing From The Inside Out.

But I recently came across a blog post on Real Simple's "Simply Stated" blog that offers another great way to think about categorizing the clutter in your home. The list is from a book that's on my "must read" list (and currently sitting on my night stand) - The Happiness Project, by Gretchen Rubin.

1. nostalgic clutter
2. self-righteous conservation clutter (useful to others, but not me)
3. bargain clutter
4. freebie clutter
5. crutch clutter (stuff I use but shouldn't)
6. aspirational clutter
7. outgrown clutter
8. buyer's remorse clutter

I love these categories, and can already think about how I'd approach identifying and getting rid of each type of clutter. I wasn't really expecting organizing tips from Gretchen's book, but now I'm more anxious than ever to start reading it!

Crockpot Pulled Pork/Chicken

I love my Crockpot, but surprisingly hadn't used mine yet this winter. That was corrected on New Year's Day, when I made pulled pork using a recipe that a friend sent me after a pot luck party. Here's the recipe link:

http://www.recipezaar.com/Crock-Pot-Pulled-Chicken-202703

I used a 1.5 lb pork tenderloin instead of chicken, and Campbell's Healthy Request tomato soup and Splenda Brown Sugar blend to cut back the calories. It was delicious!

My friend's original suggestion was also to use a rub on the meat. I forgot it, but have no doubt it would taste yummy. I'll definitely try it next time. Here was her custom-made rub.

Spice Rub:
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1-2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon dried oregano
4 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons table salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon ground white pepper

Keep your phone number safe when using Craigslist

Ever have one of those moments where you read or hear something and go “hey – that JUST happened to me!” I did, last week. I had two different meetings on the same day to hand off items I was selling on Craigslist as part of my decluttering effort. I was trying to do everything via email for safety reasons, but it would have been a lot easier if I could use the cell phone to find people at the meeting point. I thought to myself “I wish there was a way to get a temporary alias phone number to give out, the way ShopSafe** let’s me create a temporary credit card number for online purchases.”

Low and behold, I cracked open my January issue of Real Simple magazine and see the following:

INUMBR.com If you would rather not hand over your phone number to a potentially creepy Criagslist seller…but you do want that crazy-cheap armoire, log on to this site which creates a free, automatically expiring number that will forward calls to your phone.

Jackpot!! I know from my days in the telecom industry that this type of thing is technologically possible, but didn’t know anyone had made it available to the public. Frankly, it’s something I would pay for. And something I’m surprised the major wireless carriers don’t offer.

I still have a bunch of stuff to post on Craigslist, and you can bet your bottom dollar that I’m going to give this service a try.

** ShopSafe is a feature of some Bank Of America credit cards.

Organizing Tip: Storing Fashion Scarves

Fashion scarves are hot right now. It took me a while, but I finally figured out a good way to store them so they were safe, but also visible when I am deciding what to wear in the morning. The solution: a 4-tiered swing-armed pants hanger that I picked up at Target for around $6.

I hang one scarf per arm, and alternate which side they hang down on so the bulk is even. Right now I have 4 scarves so one hanger is perfect for me, but you could easily do more if you have more (with the bottom arm it actually holds up to 5).

I like this solution because it keeps the scarves out where I can see them, and the arms of the hanger are coated in plastic to keep the fabric from snagging.

My favorite things - January 2010

I love "my favorite things" post, and right now I have several. I'll try to do a list of 5 each month. Here are my 5 favorite things for this first month of the new decade:

1. Chi Flat Iron

I have curly/wavy hair, and like to wear it straight occasionally because it's just easier. Blowdrying works OK, but it never gets truly straight unless I have it done at a salon. And on a humid day - forget it! My mom got me a shiny red CHI flat iron for the holidays and it is AMAZING! My hair gets pin-straight in less than 5 minutes, and stays that way through any kind of weather. I've gotten so many compliments on my hair when it's straight, too. I know it's damaging so I only do it once a week, or for special occasions. But it's a great option to have when a good hair day is a must!

2. Bracketron GPS Friction Mount

I got a GPS last Christmas, but the suction cup thingy meant to attach it to the dashboard didn't work. A friend suggested a friction mount, and I finally got around to ordering this Bracketron Friction Mount from Amazon.com 2 weeks ago. It came last week and quickly rocketed to the top of my favorites list. It really does stay put, even around corners. And it puts the GPS at perfect eye level. I can glance at the map without taking my eyes off the road, and because the GPS is no longer sitting on my lap the speakers are exposed and easier to hear.

3. LG's env3 Phone in Maroon

I just got this awesome new phone for free with my "New Every 2" discount. I was very happy with my old flip phone except that it took 10 minutes to type a text message using the typical phone keypad. I'm not a huge texter, but my friends are so I had to bite the bullet and get a qwerty keyboard to keep up. I also love the color - red's my favorite color and this is just a sexy looking phone! Plus, it is powerful enough to work from the back aisle of the grocery store where all the metal coolers are. My old one didn't, which was less than convenient!

4. The "Young House Love" Blog

If you are in to decorating, this blog is a must read. I just found it last week and have already learned so much from the great advice they give. Plus, the blog's authors are just fun people! Definitely give it a read.

5. SIGG 0.6 L water bottle in "Wheels of Karma"

I was hesitant to get a metal water bottle because I was afraid the water would taste like metal, but it doesn't. I love the design of this one (even the name is great!), and the loop top is super easy to carry. Plus I'm doing something good for the environment by not using paper cups or plastic water bottles over and over.

Cheap, stylish storage boxes

I have stacks of photo boxes bought over the years to house various miscellany. They were $2 - $5 each, but because they were bought over time none of them really match. I wanted to use 4 or 5 of them in the closet in my home office for storing supplies, but I wanted them all to match.

My initial thought was to go buy new ones, but that would have cost me about $20. But then I got inspired walking through Target - why not cover them with matching wrapping paper?! I already had a can of spray adhesive, so for a $2.99 roll of paper I was able to reuse my existing boxes and achieve the goal of coordinated and fun looking storage. Here are some pictures:

Before:
After:

Let the fun begin!

With this post, I am fulfilling one of my goals for 2010. And it's only January 2nd! The goal was to start a blog about all of the things I love, but never seem to have enough time for. That includes cooking, entertaining friends, decorating, scrapbooking, DIY projects, and other domestic pursuits. I'm hoping the blog will encourage me to spend more time on these things so I have something to post. It's worked in another area of my life, so why shouldn't it work here?

I've already got several things lined up to post about this month, including updates on my attempts to redecorate my office/guest room and dining room, a DIY storage box project for the office, and a list of favorite things I've gotten over the last few weeks. My goal is to post at least 2 times a month, hopefully more.

I look forward to sharing my hobbies and other pursuits with you, and hearing all about yours as well. My life has been greatly enriched by many of the wonderful blogs I've discovered over the past year, and I hope I can do the same for others.