No Bean Turkey Burger Chili

Posted on February 1, 2013 by Laura

IMG_2958Our family is trying to add more anti-inflammatory foods to our diet.  Beans, unless you soak them, are quite inflammatory to the digestive system.  When you think of chili, kidney beans are at the top of the list for a thick chunky chili.  So how do you make a chunky chili without beans?  My friend Rachel gave me this tip—use lots of diced chili ready tomatoes and several vegetables.  I whipped up a new bean-less chili dish for our family.  I warn you, we like things really spicy, so you may want to decrease the chili powder to suit your taste.

Ingredients:

  • 3 pounds turkey burger
  • 4 cans chili ready tomatoes
  • 32 oz. beef broth
  • 1 red onion
  • 2 C celery
  • 2 small heads of broccoli-chopped
  • 4-6 Tbs chili powder
  • 1tsp black pepper
  • 2 tsp salt

Cook turkey burger with diced red onion.  Add cans of chili and beef broth.  Start sprinkling spices into this mixture. Make it as spicy or mild as your family likes. Add broccoli in the last 10 minutes of cooking.  Bring to a high simmer and let the flavors mix for at least 20 minutes.  Enjoy!

Do you have an anti-inflammatory recipe?

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Diy Personalized Baby Burp Cloths

Posted on January 29, 2013 by Livvy

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A friend of mine recently had a baby girl. For her shower, I wanted to give her something unique and pretty, yet handy for everyday use. I found instructions on the Internet to make personalized burp clothes and I just had to try them out! This is my version.

Before I tell y’all how to make these cute little rags, I want to say something to all you expert seamstresses out there who might be reading this. I am a beginner at sewing, so the way I made these might not be the “proper” way, but it worked! And, I had fun making them.

Things you’ll need:

  • Cloth diapers (you can find them at Walmart)
  • A fat quarter of any kind of pretty cotton material
  • A fat quarter of plain white or off-white cotton material
  • Sewing machine
  • Scissors
  • Pins

Step 1

Take one cloth diaper and fold it in half, and iron flat (this will be the back of the burp rag). Cut cloth diaper into a 10” x 18” rectangle. Cut the crease where it is folded to make two pieces, but keep pieces on top of each other.  Iron and set aside. Repeat this process using the plain white cotton material.

Cloth diaper folded in half

Cloth diaper folded in half

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Cut cloth diaper into a 10×18 rectangle

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Cut the cloth diaper in half by cutting along the fold

Step 2

Cut a 10” x 18” rectangle out of the pretty cotton material. Set aside.

Step 3

Layer the three rectangles as follows.  The bottom layer is the cloth diaper. Next, place the pretty material on top of the cloth diaper with the right side facing the cloth diaper. Finally, place the white cotton material on the very top then pin.  Below is a picture of how it should look.

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Layer the material. On the bottom-cloth diaper-pretty material-white cloth

Pin

Pin

Step 4

Sew along the edge on three sides on the cloth. Leave one end open.

Sew along the edge on three sides

Sew along the edge on three sides

IMG_2926Step 5

Trim the corners and turn right side out then iron flat. Pin back the edges and sew the top.

The burp cloth turned right side out

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Pin back the edges and sew the top.

Step 6

Sew two lines on the burp cloth to divide into three even parts. This makes it easier to fold. Iron flat and trim threads. You’re finished!

Sew two lines to devide cloth into three parts

Sew two lines to divide cloth into three parts

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Crock Pot Teriyaki Pork

Posted on January 25, 2013 by Laura
Crock Pot Teriyaki Pork

Crock Pot Teriyaki Pork

When I awoke this morning it was 14 degrees!!  Freezing weather prompts me to want to cook crock pot meals.  While I am brewing my Dunkin Donuts French Vanilla coffee, I can throw a meal together in the crock pot and set my mind at ease knowing dinner is taken care of for tonight.

Crock Pot Teriyaki Pork plate

Crock Pot Teriyaki Pork plate

We have been enjoying all the cuts of pork from our piggy that we butchered a month or so ago.  I decided to slow cook pork chops in a teriyaki marinade and serve with rice and stir-fry veggies.  The whole family loved it!  There are lots of wonderful bottled marinades at your local grocers to slow cook with chicken or pork.  We have also tried Caribbean Jerk, Garlic and Herb, Mesquite and Mexican Fiesta.  You can also get creative and whip up your own concoctions to please your family’s palate.

Ingredients:

16 thin sliced pork chops

2 bottles of teriyaki marinade

3 C of water

(You may half this recipe if you are cooking for a smaller crowd.)

This is so easy.   Combine marinades and water in the crock pot.  Place chops in pot and rotate them around so that all the chops get covered with some of the marinade.  If need be add a little more water.  Cook on low for 8-9 hours.  A wonderfully warm meal on a cold winter night!

What is a dinner dish that your family enjoys in the winter?

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Top 10 Games – Part 5

Posted on January 22, 2013 by Larry Braley
Life on the Farm

Life on the Farm No. 4

Laura’s sister gave us this game, Life on the Farm, for Christmas in 2005. I think she found it at Tractor Supply. Our whole family loves this game. Our kids really enjoy role playing the ups and downs of farm life. We especially like the story of its creation by the Gohl and Johnson families and are always glad to support the efforts of our ingenious American farmers. Check out their story and the game here.

This game is easy to learn and set up. The full version of the game does take a little long and our younger kids’ loose interest after several rounds. We typically play the shorter version or cut it short whenever we want. They also have a preschool version.

Here are some of the specifics about the game.

Skills they learn: real farm life, life’s struggles, money skills

Object of game: The games object is to be the first to retire by building up a herd of milk cows. Player gain and lose money as they move throughout the game.

Players: 2 – 6 players

Ages: 6 and up

Creators and Designers: Keith and Lori Gohl, Ev and Erik Johnson

Publisher: We R. Fun, Inc.

Noteworthy comments: Several awards including Tillywig Toy Awards—Best Family Fun.

That’s it for this 5 part series of our favorite family games.  Have you ever had an idea for a game and did you make it?

 

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Top 10 Games – Part 4

Posted on January 18, 2013 by Larry Braley
Ticket To Ride

Ticket To Ride – No. 3

We also found Ticket To Ride while looking on the web for the best family games. My girls like this one the best. It’s our No. 3 game. I really like this one too. We have the 2004, Alan R. Moon version.

This game is fairly simple to understand and set up. There are also many versions of this games to choose from that are really cool. We play this game about once a week.

Here are some of the specifics about the game.

Skills they learn: strategic thinking, decision making, planning

Object of game: Select and claim train routes with longer routes scoring more points than shorter ones. Be the first to use up all your trains completing the most routes gaining the highest score. Incomplete routes are scored against you.

Players: 2 – 5 players

Ages: 8 and up

Designer: Alan R. Moon

Publisher: Days of Wonder, Inc.

Noteworthy comments: 2004 winner of the Spiel des Jahres prestigious game award with many other international game of the year awards.

Part 5 of this post series will give specifics on Life on the Farm, our current No. 4 game.

Have you ever played Ticket to Ride? Did your family like it?

 

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Top 10 Games – Part 3

Posted on January 15, 2013 by Larry Braley

 

Zooloretto

Zooloretto No. 2

We found Zooloretto while looking on the web for the best family games. My boys really love animals and this game is right up their alley. It’s another game that we play regularly and is our No. 2 game. This is the boy’s favorite game. We have the 2007 version.

The drawback to this game is it is more complicated and takes a little time to figure out at first. Also, it takes a little bit of time to setup for each play because of turning over the many little animal tiles.

Here are some of the specifics about the game.

Skills they learn: strategic thinking, decision making (sometimes it takes the little guys more time to figure out what truck to take or if they should add more animals to the truck before selecting one.)

Object of game: As a zoo owner, each player score points by putting matching sets of animals in three main animal enclosures. There are more than three animal sets and if you get more than three sets of animals you have to put these animals in your barn. You deduct points for animals in your barn. There are also other ways to score points. You take turns placing animals in a “truck” and then deciding which truck to take to fill your zoo. The player with the most points wins.

Players: 2 – 5 players

Ages: 8 and up (although Theodore was able to start playing when he was 6)

Designer: Michael Schacht

Publisher: ABACUSSPIELE Verlags GmbH & Co.

US Distributor: Rio Grande Games

Noteworthy comments: Many awards won. We have the 2007 version which was the 2007 winner of the Spiel des Jahres prestigious game award.

Part 4 of this post series will give specifics on Ticket To Ride, our current No. 3 game.

Have you had a chance to play Zooloretto yet? What do you think?

 

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