Simple and Easy Egg Bites

 Hello Friends! My obsession with my bento box continues apace.  I am sure that like me, the endless days of sheltering in place have meant that meals have become a blur and not only that, a boring, burdensome chore.  Put your hand up if delivery of meals and takeout became a way of relieving the tedium instead of an occasional treat.  Pulling out my bento box again (which I wrote about here) forced me to get creative.  I decided to make a batch of delicious egg bites, sometimes called egg muffins, to stow into the box.  They are incredibly easy to whip up and are great for breakfast or a quick snack. I used extra large silicone muffin cups but a muffin tray would work as well.

Grease the interior of the cups.  I needed 8 large eggs for 6 cups.  Crack the eggs into a large mixing bowl.

I do love cheese so I mixed in 2 large handfuls of grated cheddar cheese to the eggs.  I also layered in diced mushrooms, cherry tomatoes and peas.  A couple twists of the pepper grinder were added as well. Bake in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit or until the tops are crisp. I filled the cups halfway as the egg mixture puffed up to the edge of the cups but when I took them out of the oven they deflated.  Place them on a rack until they have cooled down.

Truly, you need almost no skill level whatsoever to make these yummy snacks and it is a good way to sneak some veggies into your diet.

Egg bites are the perfect size to tuck into a bento box or your child's lunchbox.

 

I added a pesto pasta to my bento box that day as well.  I am on the lookout for smaller sized silicone cups as the extra large ones are a tad too tall to fit into my bento box.  The silicone cups are a handy way of partitioning off food in a bento or lunch box if it doesn't come with compartments or dividers.  If you try this recipe, let me know!

Blogmas Day 19 Sunset Mimosa Recipe

 Welcome to Blogmas Day 19!  I picked up a bottle of rose sparkling wine from my favourite winery.  I don't usually buy rose as rose drinkers tend to be viewed as slightly naif.  But I am far from being a wine snob and for some reason, the deep blush hue just spoke to me.  It made me think of tropical sunsets, sunny days and happier times.  Plus, I couldn't find the usual sparkling wine from Jacob's Creek on the shelf.

I think that it would be perfect with orange juice on Christmas Day.  What could be more festive than a mimosa with brunch on Christmas Day?

Sunset Mimosa

Ingredients:

Champagne or Sparkling Wine

Orange Juice

Grenadine

Optional Garnishes:  Strawberries 

Combine 1 part Champagne or Sparkling Wine with 1 part orange juice with enough Grenadine to produce a sunset hue.  If you are using rose sparkling wine, you may choose to omit the Grenadine.

Enjoy!

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Homemade Chicken Stock

Hello Friends!  You know what?  Living in the city is noisy.  Sirens are blaring at all times of the day and night.  The roar of traffic is incessant.  It can be hard to find those little pockets of silence that keeps you sane and your brain from exploding.  When I first started thinking about living a more intentional life, I felt stymied and frustrated.  But what I have discovered is that it is possible by making the space for those seemingly small inconsequential actions.  You don't have to have a big garden or live on an acreage in the country to live a simple, intentional life.   Take chicken stock for example.  It can be made in any sized kitchen.  I am so embarrassed just thinking of the many, many chicken carcasses that I threw away as a carefree, single girl.  The great thing about homemade chicken stock or broth is that you don't have to worry about presentation or making it look pretty.  It is stock, after all.  I don't have a set recipe, I just use whatever I have on hand.  The main thing is that you are extending the use of the chicken as much as you possibly can and helping the household budget.  The mainstays for me are a small handful of whole peppercorns, a roughly chopped up carrot, a couple of celery stalks (I use the celery leaves as well) and whatever herbs I have on hand like parsley, thyme and oregano. Everything gets thrown into a stock pot and allowed to simmer away for at least an hour.

I used a whole chicken here because we were making a Thai dish but, after stripping the meat off the bones, I am going to save the carcass and make more stock.

A good tip that I have heard is to save the vegetable peelings in a freezer bag.  When you have accumulated enough, use them to make vegetable broth.  How genius is that?  Full disclosure, when I don't have any homemade stock on hand, I do buy it.  I don't beat myself up about it as I think it is important to be kind to myself and just do the best I can.  Here I have decanted the stock into a vintage mason jar.  Another good tip that I have come across is to pour the stock into an ice cube tray.  Then you will have frozen bouillon cubes ready for flavouring sauces and gravies.
  

The most important thing is the sense of accomplishment you feel when you look at the finished product.   It is these little wins that give you the confidence to try something else.  Do you have any other easy cooking tips to share?

I am linking up with Have A Daily Cup of Mrs Olson, A Stroll Thru Life.

Makeup Remover Recipe With Baby Wash

Hello Friends!  Post-Christmas, I think we are all staring into our wallets and taking a deep breath.

One of the ways I found to stretch the household budget was not just to make things from scratch but look for things that could serve a variety of purposes.  I have sensitive skin so sometimes I use baby wash instead of adult body wash.  Baby wash is supposed to be very gentle, hypoallergenic and moisturizing to the skin. I even use it to cleanse my face.  With the onset of a typical harsh Canadian winter, my skin still feels supple and moisturized after using it.  One day, I ran out of eye makeup remover and decided to try my hand at homemade makeup remover.  There are lots of recipes on the Web but this one works well for me as it only requires ingredients which I already had on hand.

You will need olive oil (preferably organic), tearless baby wash (this is important as you don't want the makeup remover to sting your eyes) and water that is either distilled or that has been boiled and allowed to cool down.  I also sterilize the bottle that I store the makeup remover in and any tools that I use.

Recipe:
1 part organic olive oil (I used 1 ounce)
1 part tearless baby wash
2 parts distilled or water that has been boiled (2 ounces)

Decant the ingredients into the bottle, give it a shake and that is it!

You will see that left on its own, the makeup remover will separate out.

Just give it a shake before you use it.

I have found that it works well on my smudgeproof eyeliner and waterproof mascara.

Do you have any tips or suggestions for multipurpose household items?
(This is not a sponsored post.  All products featured are products that are my own and that I use).
I am linking up with Have A Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson.