Some Like It Hot...

Their food that is! I know I do. Last night's dinner, Chipotle Mac and Cheese, had the perfect amount of spice and really hit the spot. I just love the smoky hot flavor of the canned chipotles in adobo sauce that are used in this recipe.

Here is the recipe:

Chipotle Mac and Cheese
Serves: 12 (freezes well)
Source: Aunt Kathy--thanks for the recipe!

1 16 oz. package elbow macaroni
3 c. whole milk
1/2 c. butter
1/2 c. minced onion
4 cloves garlic, minced (I love using my garlic press--so easy!)
3 chipotle chilies in adobo sauce, finely chopped (Mexican food aisle)
6 tbsp all purpose flour
1 tsp paprika
Salt
Pepper
2 c. shredded extra sharp cheddar cheese
1 c. shredded monterey jack cheese

Directions:

Cook the pasta in lightly salted water until al dente, about 8-9 minutes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Spray a 9x12 baking dish with cooking spray and put macaroni in the bottom of the dish. Put milk in a saucepan and heat over low-medium heat until hot but not boiling.

In another pan (I used my macaroni pot to save a dish that would have to be washed) melt the butter. Cook onions, garlic, and chipotles until onions are translucent. Whisk in flour 1 tbsp at a time and let cook for about 3 minutes, whisking constantly (it is super important to cook your roux, otherwise your mac and cheese will taste like raw flour). Whisk in hot milk about 1/2 c. at a time. Stir in paprika and salt and pepper to taste.

Bring the mixture to a simmer (do not boil), whisking constantly until sauce is thickened.Whisk in the cheeses about 1/2 c. at a time and stir until sauce is smooth, thick, and creamy.

Pour the sauce over the macaroni in the baking dish and gently stir to combine. Cover with foil and bake for about 40 minutes until bubbling and macaroni has absorbed some of the sauce. Uncover and bake 10-15 more minutes until the top is brown and bubbly.

We served this mac and cheese as our main dish and had steamed veggies on the side. Although the mac and cheese was not part of our healthy eating plan, it was really delicious. Plus life is all about balance right? It's not like I eat whole milk mac and cheese every day! I decided to make this recipe because I had some leftover canned chipotle chilies in adobo sauce from this spicy bean burrito recipe and I didn't want them to go to waste. By the way the spicy bean burritos are quite healthy and delicious--definitely check them out too!

P.S. Shhhh...nobody tell my pretty little red plates that they are not so good for photographing food. Their feelings would be hurt.

Enjoy!

Classic Style

Classic Style by atshirtandpearls featuring skinny leg jeans

Moschino tailored shirt
stylebop.com

Topshop skinny leg jeans
topshop.com

Bardot pointed flat shoes
$31 - bardot.com.au

Antik batik
$66 - reddirect.co.uk

Gorjana stud earrings
piperlime.gap.com

Tuesday Randomness

Well it's been a little quiet around here lately. I go through phases where I feel like I have lots of great ideas and things to share, and then times like now, where I feel like I don't really have anything majorly awesome to share, so I sit here quietly instead.

Well friends, I am not being a wallflower anymore. This is the start of Tuesday Randomness...not to be confused with the "weekend update" posts floating around blog land. Knowing myself, it may not stay "Tuesday" randomness...we might have Thursday or Sunday randomness instead one week. Let's just see what happens!

So here are some of my recent thoughts and experiences, that don't deserve their own post, but maybe together they will be worth a read. :)

Fair warning: You will not walk away from this post with a fabulous new recipe, a super cute DIY project, fashion inspiration, or anything else worth pinning {any other Pinterest addicts here?!}. So, here goes...

Friday evening hubby and I went to Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner and it was seriously the most delicious thing I have eaten in awhile. So not healthy and so worth it. We shared wings in 3 different sauces: medium, spicy garlic, and asian zing. We also ordered fried pickles. Oh.my.yum. Even hubby liked them, which is really random and surprising, but it made me a happy girl.

Hmmm...I can't really focus right now because I started watching last night's episode of Vanderpump Rules on dvr. I really didn't mean to get sucked into this show but it just happened...

Ok, I'm back. Monday was fabulous because it was a teacher work day AND we had a 2 hour delay. Not necessarily ideal when you have the whole day to actually accomplish things in your classroom (this NEVER happens), but am I going to turn down the chance to have a few extra hours to sleep in and a relaxing morning? NO.

Then, Monday evening I had a blate (blogger date) with Samantha from Designer in Teal. We went to get some frozen yogurt at Sweet Frog. It was so fun to get to know her better and enjoy some yummy yogurt. I had the most delish flavor...toasted marshmallow! My go to toppings at Sweet Frog are the fresh fruit, shredded coconut, mini chocolate chips, and marshmallow drizzle {ok, ok my cup is the bigger one...don't judge}.

Finally, today was amazing because we had a high of 74 degrees here. The first amazing part of this was that my kids were able to get outside for recess for the first time in TWO WEEKS. Any teachers here? If so you understand how serious this recess situation was getting. Then I got to sneak out of work early {leave early coupon for getting my report cards done ahead of time...go me!} and I came home and sat on the deck and read for an hour. It was lovely. Its amazing how a little warmth and sunshine can affect you. It was like a happy breath of fresh air.

This evening I went to watch hubby's dodgeball game. I wanted to support him but I also surprisingly got into the game. I am totally not into sports, but it was so fun to see what I think of as a simple childhood game get super intense. Hubby's team won (yay!) and they played so well. Adult dodgeball is serious business!

Well that is the end of Tuesday Randomness. May the rest of your week be random and wonderful!

Comfy Cozy

It's another snowy evening here and hubby and I went out to an early dinner and then came home to snuggle in. The first thing I did after getting home {of course} was change into "my comfies". Putting on my comfies is usually my first order of business when I get home...even if it is the middle of the afternoon. I just can't help it. I absolutely love being comfy and cozy. Seriously, when I was putting on my flannel pants and hooded sweatshirt tonight I was ridiculously happy. Ridiculously. 

A lot of my comfies consist of pj type clothes, including hand me downs from my hubby. I know this does not sound very attractive and cute, but they feel glorious. Anyway, I am trying to expand my comfy wardrobe with more lounge wear, which would definitely be a more appropriate option for the middle of the day or the afternoon.

To try and get some lounge wear ideas I decided to visit Polyvore. This was my first time on the site and I can tell it's going to be addicting and lots of fun! I named my first creation "stylish snuggles" since that is what I had on my mind. I am loving flowy tops with leggings right now, not only because they work well with the baby bump, but because it is a super cute and comfy look with out being sloppy. The red bow slippers add a fun girly kick to the outfit. So what do you all think? Are you in to lounge wear? You can find me on Polyvore @atshirtandpearls if you want to follow along with my other creations. Happy weekend!

Baked Apple Oatmeal "Muffins"

One kind of unfortunate symptom I am having from pregnancy is not sleeping well. I am pretty restless during most nights, and every morning on this amazing long weekend I have woken up early. Don't get me wrong I am not complaining. Overall I feel amazing and am having such a positive experience. If a little tossing and turning is included, oh well. But anyway, the point is I took advantage of being up at 7am (gasp) this morning to make some delicious baked apple oatmeal muffins. 

They were very dense yet super moist, which made them more like the consistency of baked oatmeal than a regular muffin. Many of the traditional ingredients were substituted for healthier alternatives, creating a reduced fat and calorie muffin. Now I wouldn't say that this muffin is necessarily health food, but it is definitely a healthier option. 

Baked Apple Oatmeal Muffins

makes approximately 12-15 muffins, recipe adapted from Fearless Homemaker

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats

1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour, sifted

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

OOPS here is where I see I was supposed to add 3/4 teaspoon of baking soda. That didn't happen. I guess another symptom I am having is pregnancy brain, seriously I am a scattered hot mess most of the time these days...Hmm well omit the baking soda if you want baked oatmeal cups like I made, add the baking soda and I bet you will get a fluffy yummy muffin. Oh my...

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups unsweetened applesauce

3 tablespoons canola oil

1 egg white

1 tablespoon 100% pure maple syrup (not the pancake syrup you have in your pantry)

1 apple (variety of your choice--I used Fuji) diced

Topping:

1/4 cup old fashioned oats

1 tablespoon light brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon butter, melted

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and prepare your muffin tin by filling with cupcake liners.

In a large bowl combine the first 7 (dry) ingredients and use a fork to combine. In a second smaller bowl combine the next 4 (wet) ingredients. Stir wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until combined. Add diced apple and mix in. Fill muffin cups 3/4 full (or all the way if you want to try my crazy method of no baking powder because they won't rise).

In a separate bowl combine the topping ingredients and sprinkle on top of the muffins. Bake for 16-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. 

Here is what I ended up with:

I was so sad to realize when I was in the middle of this post that I left out one of the most important ingredients. Although, I have to say they still turned out pretty well. More like oatmeal less like muffin. Next time I will add the baking soda though because I bet they will be even more delish as a fluffy muffin. 

If you give this recipe a try let me know how it turns out! 

Butter Me Up

Happy Saturday friends! This morning as I was getting ready, and slathering on one of my favorite beauty products, I realized I better share it with you all so you are not missing out. This fabulous little product is Shea Cashmere Body Cream from the True Blue Spa line at Bath and Body Works.

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I am kind of a beauty product junkie and tend to collect tons of beauty products that admittedly don't always get used up. But, this is one product that I use all the way up and then buy more of. It is that amazing. It is very thick and creamy like a body butter but it does not leave any greasy residue behind. It leaves my skin so soft and it smells delish! On the BBW website they describe the scent as "an addictive blend of sweet Tahitian vanilla, whipped shea and golden amber." 

It is a little pricey at $17.50, but if you have ever been into Bath and Body Works you know that they are always having some kind of special deal. Right now this product is listed on their website as buy 2 get 1 one free. If you get a deal like this make sure you test it out before telling friends and family that you have more body cream than you know what to do with and letting them call dibs. After you try it I think you may just want to save all of the containers for yourself, especially if you are like me and are starting to get flaky dry winter skin!  

Happy pampering! 

*this post is all my own opinion and was not solicited by Bath and Body Works

Blog Bling

If you are a regular here you may have noticed a few new accessories on the sidebar of my blog. I like to call them my blog bling.

The first is the 20 Something Bloggers button. This is a great blogger resource for getting new ideas, meeting other bloggers, and learning some tips and tricks. If you are a blogger I definitely encourage you to check it out and join!

My second new bling is the Shabby Apple button. Shabby Apple was something I had seen on a few blogs but had never really checked out. A few weeks ago I got an email from Shabby Apple asking me if I would like to be an affiliate for them, which basically means share their awesome online store with my readers and get a few perks along the way. After checking out their stuff {and seeing that they have super cute maternity and baby stuff} I decided to go for it. Although I felt pretty excited to be personally contacted by them, any blogger can join (ie. I'm not really that special...) so check out their affiliate program here.

Shabby Apple is known for their retro feel and they have super cute dresses, skirts, tops, swim wear, accessories, and even home decor stuff! They have some fun vintagey type items like slips, brooches, and aprons. Some styles that I am loving right now are:

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