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Simple Coconut Blueberry Lime Smoothie

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Another great smoothie!

by Tasha Hackett

You’re surely not tired of them yet, are you? This coconut blueberry lime smoothie is going make you do a little hula dance right there in your kitchen. Or in your friend’s kitchen when you make it at her house. Or in the camp kitchen you’re working at this week.

blueberry lime smoothie

Simple Coconut Blueberry Lime SmoothieYum

I (Tasha) have been on a paleo diet since before Christmas. You could say it’s been the year of the smoothies. Even more than most years. It’s just so easy to get in the vegetables this way! Ack… this one doesn’t even have vegetables in it. I’m sorry. But you can go drink your salad another time.

While I’m at camp this week, I brought my Blentec—blender snob alert… yes, it’s me. High calorie smoothies like this one keep me from starving to death when not eating camp mac-n-cheese and chicken nuggets.

I did say simple smoothie, didn’t I?

If my daily chocolate shake has too many ingredients for you, try this one! The recipe is in the title… Ding-a-ling! Easy peasy. It’s coconut milk, frozen blueberries, and the juice of one lime. You can stop there, or you can add a touch of sweetener:

  1. 13 oz. can coconut milk (I currently use Nature’s Greatest Organic 17% Coconut Milk Fat)
  2. 2 cups frozen blueberries (Or other berries, but then it wouldn’t be a Coconut Blueberry Lime Smoothie now would it?)
  3. Juice of 1 lime (Or 2-3 tsp of lime juice if you don’t have time for the squeezing of the lime… but I recommend the real deal.)
  4. Blend until smooth****

****If your kids are, well, you know, average kids, you may need to add a touch of a sweetener of choice. I use 1/2 teaspoon of THM Super Sweet stevia blend.

Put the lime in the coconut…

If you’re looking for more great smoothie ideas, search smoothie over there on the search bar on this sight and be wowed by the variety. How about this cinnamon one? And a homemade Orange Julius. Remember your high protein chocolate shake here. And lastly, don’t be scared to throw a few goodies in the blender and see what happens! Just PLEASE and I mean, PLEASE stay away from arugula in smoothies. Spinach and maybe some kale, but arugula does not play nice in a smoothie. That is my best advice to you. And beets… unless you like eating pink dirt. Haha. Some people will fight me on this one, but that’s a topic for another day. For now, go enjoy this fresh summer treat.

blueberry smoothie

 

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Instant Pot Bacon Chicken Pasta

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This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Want to know what my husband said when eating Instant Pot Bacon Chicken Pasta for the first time?

“People pay big bucks for food like this at a restaurant!”

What went through my mind all at the same time when he said that is:

  • Aww, shucks.
  • But this didn’t cost big bucks to make.
  • Why eat out when we can make this at home in 30 minutes, start to finish? 
  • Instead of paying $15/plate, this cost less than $15 for all of us!
  • I pretty much threw this together last minute.
  • My husband likes me more than Olive Garden.

But out loud, I simply said…

Ok, I totally said almost all of that out loud in one sentence without taking a breath and with additional thoughts and twenty to forty more words.

What can I say? I’m home with a bunch of small children all day, which means that for around 10 hours every day my conversations consist of saying things like, “Come over here so I can change your diaper” and “Please don’t let Sissy put that in her mouth.” By the end of the day, I HAVE A LOT OF WORDS LEFT and I love it when they have more to do with grown-up subjects instead of choo-choo trains and wet wipes.

Ultimately though, when Matt said, “People pay big bucks for food like this at a restaurant!” I knew I’d found a winner. It’s so, so true. This meal is restaurant quality for a sweet at-home price. It’s perfect for company and completely easy to make.

If you have an Instant Pot.

Don’t have one yet? Here’s what I have and love and use all the time!

And now, it’s time to get out the simple ingredients that you likely already have on hand and make this awesome “restaurant food.”

Instant Pot Bacon Chicken PastaYum

Instant Pot Bacon Chicken Pasta
 
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Author:
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
  • 2 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs or breasts
  • 3 Tablespoons homemade dry Ranch Dressing mix
  • 16-ounces pasta, any shape, uncooked
  • 4 cups (32-ounces) chicken broth
  • 1 cup shredded cheese (Colby jack is our favorite)
  • 8 ounces softened cream cheese
  • 3-4 handfuls of baby fresh spinach
  • 8 slices cooked bacon, made into bacon bits
Instructions
  1. Use kitchen shears to cut chicken directly into your Instant Pot.
  2. Saute chicken in olive oil for a few minutes until chicken is no longer pink.
  3. Add ranch dressing, pasta, and chicken broth. Do not stir.
  4. Put lid on Instant pot and seal.
  5. Cook on Manual, High Pressure for four minutes.
  6. Quick release the pressure (I usually hold a towel a few inches above the valve to keep steam from spraying all over my kitchen.)
  7. Open the lid and add cream cheese, shredded cheese, spinach leaves, and bacon bits.
  8. Stir until creamy.
  9. Serve!

You are going to love how flavorful and easy this is!

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$1,500 in Prizes!!!!

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EEK! I am so happy to share with you a MEGA Lilla Rose Giveaway with prizes worth over $1500!!!

You may be asking, “Say WHAT??!! Can this true? How are they able to give that much away?”

Yep! Totally true!

My Independent Lilla Rose Stylist, Paula Ramm, shared with me that she and at 30 other Lilla Rose Stylists have teamed up so they can offer you a waaaay bigger prize package than any of them could ever give individually, to benefit and thank all of you!

So yep, this is THE BIG ONE…the giveaway to end all giveaways!

~ The Grand Prize Winner will receive a $500 (yes, you heard me right…$500!) plus a $100+ Lilla Rose hair jewelry gift set.

~ There will be one Second Place Winner of a Lilla Rose Gift Set worth over $100,

~ One Third Place Winner of a Lilla Rose Gift Set worth over $100,

and, get this…

~ 50+ Fourth Place Winners of $17 gift certificates to shop for anything you want from Lilla Rose!

With all of those prizes, you have a GREAT chance of winning!

To enter, click the link below. It will take you to a form to fill out your name and email address, which will automatically give you one entry into this Mega Giveaway.

BUT, don’t stop there…

Scroll down on the confirmation page and click the link to get 20 extra entries for just answering a fun 5-question quiz!

This will greatly increase your odds of winning, so you will NOT want to miss this!

After the short quiz, be sure to re-enter your name and email address to register all your additional entries.

The Grand Prize, Second Prize, and Third Prize winners will be announced on Thursday, July 22*, so be sure to keep an eye on your inbox!

This is such an awesome giveaway, you will definitely want to share it with all your friends…and Paula would sincerely appreciate it as well!

Simply share this blog post with anyone you think would love a chance at winning all of this! Thank you! ?

CLICK HERE TO ENTER!

Good luck! I hope YOU win!!!

* The 50+ Fourth Prize winners of $17 Lilla Rose gift certificates will be announced on Monday, July 26.

P.S. If you’d simply like to browse and shop Paula’s Lilla Rose site, click here: www.lillarose.biz/BeautifulLife?

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What I Teach My Kids about Geometry, Food, and Budgets

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I’ve always been a very practical person. I’ll even admit this to you: When my kids ask me during an advanced math lesson, “Mom, when will I actually use this Geometry or Algebra 2 stuff in real life??” I’m like, “So sorry Dude, YOU WON’T.”

But then I make them do it anyway.

Will some kids grow up and use the Geometry and beyond-basic Algebra lessons they learned in high school? Absolutely. But all of my kids (so far) are more creative types. In fact, beyond some very basic pre-algebra skills, not ever in all my 47 years of life have I used the high school level math I learned as a teen.

Oh, except for what I’ve had to relearn so I could teach it to my kids, who will also not likely ever use it. But I’m not bitter.

So like good little soldiers, we complete the courses anyway, and here’s how I explain it to my kids:

It’s a state requirement for high school, therefore we will complete these classes. And we will  keep a good attitude while doing it (except for when we don’t, because there are some lessons that only Jesus-as-Tutor could help us understand). But what you are really learning about while doing these difficult lessons? Hard work. Discipline. Perseverance.

Amen. Preach it, Mom.

So now you know how I really feel about upper-level math classes that all of our kids are required to take. I think you already know how I feel about identifying gerunds and diagraming sentences.

I just so much prefer to teach my kids about things that matter to our family. Jesus. Caring for others. Life skills.

So we plow our way through the harder, less-practical-for-our-lives-stuff. Then we focus our time more on what we know we’re going to need and on where our gifts and interests lie.

Food, Budgeting, Leadership…

This year’s Homeschooling Bundle piqued my interest because it includes really practical courses and books about things like:

  • Leadership for your teen
  • How to run a business
  • Personal finance (banking, budgeting, and buying)
  • Photoshop for kids
  • Creative writing
  • Prepping your high schooler for college
  • Scavenger through the grocery store
  • Building strong readers
  • So much more

Ultimate Homeschooling Bundle 2021

THIS is how we love to learn at our house. And we’re sort of not actually homeschooling anymore. Except that we are. This explains it all.

So practical skills that we all need for life – that is where it’s at.

And also: FOOD.

Because of my love of food, and because of the fact that every one of us needs to know how to shop, plan, and cook food, I made all of these for us to give to our kids:

This is a 2-in-1 package that includes:

  • Fun With Food activity book for kids ages 2-10. It’s full of fun menu planning, grocery shopping, and budgeting activities that are practical but almost game-like. Never before has learning the skills of menu planning and grocery shopping been this much fun!
  • Feed Your Friends is a book for preteens and teens. It shares inspiration and tools needed to learn basic meal planning and cooking, and it’s all centered around teens cooking with and for their friends. I would have loved having this during my teen years!
  • PLUS, both of these come with a set of recipe cards that can be printed and turned into a recipe flipbook to use in the kitchen. The recipes included are kid/teen favorites!

I’ll give all of that to you for free with a bundle purchase.

If you buy this week’s offer – the 98% off Homeschooling Bundle which includes tons of real-life learning materials – I’ll give you the Fun With Food and Feed Your Friends packages as a bonus. Just email me a copy of your bundle receipt and I’ll send the bonus files your way! This is a $30 bonus, but each of the above packages is priced at $15 each!

Let’s teach our kids real life skills.

Here are some highlights I love from the Homeschooling Bundle that teach our kids everyday life skills:

—> There’s a business course included that walks our teens through running their own business. Our 16yo, Malachi, already runs his own video production business, so this is perfect for him. It costs $497 normally, so I am beyond thrilled that it is included in the bundle for $37.

—> There’s a personal finance class that teaches our kids how to budget, bank, and buy. It’s normally $97, but also included in the $37 bundle price.

—> There’s a $30 Photoshop resource included, which is so much fun!

—> There’s a $197 course called Building Stronger Readers. (But of course, it’s included with everything else in the $37 package.) I need this for our 7yo and likely with our other little ones in the years to come.

Ultimate Homeschooling Bundle 2021

Let me say this again though: Even if you don’t homeschool, you homeschool. Because we are our kids’ first and best teachers, no matter where they attend school. So look at this with an open mind, grabbing the resources to help your kids of all ages learn so many valuable life skills!

Our Bonus For Teens:

Here are a few more details about our Feed Your Friends package.

I know how this works. Most teens love to hang out with their friends. All teens need to learn basic cooking skills before launching into the real world. So I put together this package just for teens, full of recipes, party planners, and more so that they can practice their cooking skills with and for their friends!!

It’s a book full of printables plus a file full of recipe cards that they can print and turn into a recipe flipbook to have in the kitchen!

 

Bonus for kids ages 4-10:

Here are a few more details about our Fun With Food package:

It includes a 30+page printable book full of fun activities to help them learn to grocery shop, budget, and plan simple meals. This is hands-on, fun learning – activities I’ve never seen before but created to be fun and almost game-like. But ah yes. They’ll be learning too!

Plus the book full of blank recipe cards, menu planning activities, grocery shopping/budget practice, and more.

All of this has been so much fun to put together! Here are a couple of sample pages to see some of the included activities:

They also get a file of recipe cards to print and make into a Recipe Flipbook.

I love it when practicality and fun go hand in hand. These packages are a win in every way!

I’ll give them all to you for free as a thank you for purchasing this week’s Homeschool Bundle from our links.

But wait. I don’t homeschool!

It’s doesn’t matter. WE ALL HOMESCHOOL. Read my thoughts about this here.

Just don’t let the word “homeschool” in the bundle title scare you. These resources are for everyone. I’m using them even though we mostly don’t homeschool currently. Because we learn from home all the time!

Get your bundle here. 

Then email me and I’ll send you all the freebies!!

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Is Our Family Still Homeschooling?

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Today seems like a good day to update you on whether or not our family is still homeschooling…

I’m not great at keeping you updated on life, and for good reason. Here’s a small scrapbook to show you what takes up our time and energy these days:

And oh yeah. Asa’s getting married next month!

When people ask me, “How many kids do you have?” I absurdly stutter around for several awkward seconds like a weird-y weirdo because I honestly don’t know how to answer.

The breakdown:

One of our foster babes went back to live with bio family, but he’s still with us three days a week and we still claim him as our own. We’re adding a daughter-in-law to the mix, and she totally counts as ours. Justus also has a serious girlfriend; she is our girl too. We currently have four foster daughters. We have four bio sons and two adopted sons. And there are at least 2o young adults/college students that come and go from our house regularly for food, laundry, and hugs.

So Laura. How many kids do you have?

I don’t know. 27?? 32?? Eighty-twelve??

Currently, though, I’ll go ahead and land on the number ten. That’s the official number as of today, which includes our bios, adopted, and fosters. Today, we have ten kids.

I guess I still haven’t answered the original question though:

Is our family still homeschooling?

The short answer is yes, we are. But also no, we aren’t. Eh?

I’ll explain.

About a year ago, I shared how God led us to put Brayden (our now 7 year old) in public school to help meet his many academic and emotional needs. Head here to read more about that.

How’s it going?

So, so well. Our public school in York is fantastic and is offering Brayden so much of what he needs right now. We are so thankful!

He will start 2nd grade there in August, and his 5yo sister (our foster daughter) will join him as a kindergartener.

Meanwhile, our 16yo Malachi will be doing a hybrid-type of schooling for his junior year. He’ll take two classes at our public school, which will allow him to participate in extra-curricular activities (soccer, tennis, show choir, one-act, and whatever else our extraverted child decides to become a part of). He’ll also take three college classes per semester this year to knock out as many dual credits as possible. And he’ll finish up any regular homeschool credits he needs to meet high school graduation requirements.

So technically, we’re still homeschooling Malachi. But really, we’re just guiding him through college courses and equipping him for adulthood.

But here’s the big truth about homeschooling:

We. Are. All. Doing. It.

Or at least we’d better all be doing it. Officially or unofficially.

No matter who is the main academic educator of your children, as parents, we are all and should be still teaching our kids. We teach them about loving and following Jesus first. We teach them about loving and serving people. We teach them to work hard and share and care and take turns. We teach them to put others before themselves. We teach them to be responsible and for goodness sake please take your dishes to the sink and your trash to the trash can.

And what else? We turn everything into a teaching opportunity. (Ok, not everything. Sometimes by the end of the day, I cop out with “good question I don’t know go brush your teeth” because my mouth is so very tired of talking to so many people all day long. I admit it.)

But (in the morning after I’ve had coffee) when my kids ask a question about the bug they find on the leaf outside, we have fun finding the answer (because there’s an app for that). When we scoop flour into the mixer, we count out loud. When we realize that every kid got to crack three eggs to help with breakfast, we add them all up to see how many that makes altogether.

I read books to them. They read books to me. They read books to themselves. We talk. We explore. We memorize scripture. We talk about budgets, money management, running a business, running a home, running for office, running a race, running for cover (tornado drill, anyone?).

You don’t have to be a homeschooler to homeschool.

Does this make sense? Call it whatever you want, but know the truth: You are your child’s teacher. You are their best teacher. Their first teacher. Their most important teacher – no matter who teaches them to sound out words or explains the finer points of Algebra (and shall we all now take a moment of silence to appreciate these professionals who pour into our kids so that we can avoid having to hurt our brains trying to understand exponential equations?).

Will our family ever homeschool again?

Again, we are still homeschooling. We’re just currently sending our younger kids to public school, and we are so grateful for this wonderful option for our family right now. ;)

But will we ever homeschool again in the traditional sense?

We’re waiting for God to tell us that answer.

Right now, we feel 100% confident that public school is necessary for our kids and also for me with all I am juggling (four kids ages two and under, court, caseworkers, baby’s medical needs and physical therapy, etc).

However, I also sometimes look at our shelf of books with longing. I look back at our years of homeschooling memories and I miss it.

But I also remember how much work it is. It was good, meaningful, worthwhile work, but it was hard work. And I don’t miss that right now. I don’t have the bandwidth to do it well right now. Our kids need more academically than I am able to give.

We are confident that God will make our kids’ educational needs clear in the coming months and years. So while we’re gratefully turning their academics over to the public school teachers, we’re still teaching them at home as God leads us to.

We hope you are too. No matter what educational route you’ve chosen for your family.

How to Homeschool Whether You Homeschool or Not

Here’s something I’m using right now and want to recommend to all of us. It’s for kids of all ages from little to big. And this week, it’s 98% off the regular price.

My favorite of all the resources cover these topics:

  • Leadership for your teen
  • How to run a business
  • Personal finance
  • Photoshop for kids
  • Creative writing
  • Prepping your high schooler for college
  • Scavenger through the grocery store
  • Preschool learning activities
  • Super fun printable pages to keep kids busy
  • and so much more

I wanted to be sure you knew about this because of all that it offers for the price. I’m using it for all my kids who are ages 2-16. Because homeschooling is for everyone. ;)

Ultimate Homeschooling Bundle 2021

You can read more about each resource here —>

AND. I created a bunch of super fun bonuses (worth $30) that I’ll give you if you purchase. It looks something like this, and it’s all about food (of course).

You can read all the details about this bonus package here. It has something for every age kid in your family so they can learn about cooking, planning, shopping, and serving others!

Read about my special bonuses here!

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Confessions of a Chocolate Shake Addict

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Hey, it’s Tasha. Remember me? I’m Laura’s friend. The one who fell off the cliff and didn’t die. I homeschool a few kids and eat chocolate, AND I DRINK IT. Eating paleo took a turn for the better once I discovered some amazing chocolate tricks, but today is the day for the confessions of a paleo chocolate shake addict.

chocolate shake

Chocolate Shake Confessions:

  1. I drink a chocolate shake every day. Sometimes more than one.
  2. Secretly, not so secretly anymore, I am happy a few of my kids don’t like my chocolate shakes—more for me.
  3. 16 oz of cacao powder barely lasts me one month = that means I eat approximately 3 Tablespoons a day.
  4. Once, mid-shake preparation, I was ravenous. Hungry, grumpy, starving. The cacao powder was not where it was supposed to be. I searched frantically through the cupboards to no avail. Mean Tasha came out. I yelled across the house to my husband and kids, “WHO MOVED THE CHOCOLATE STUFF??” No one answered Crazy Mama. Climbed up on the counter and searched the top shelf while yelling at my family that there was a crisis upon us. Turns out, the almost empty bag was found behind the Blentec. Right where I’d left it I’m sure.
  5. No, I’m not misspelling Cocoa. Cacao is a real thing.

Cacao vs. Cocoa?

Cacao is the name of the tree that grows pods with beans that are harvested and roasted like coffee to make cocoa powder and chocolate. But—woah—if you don’t roast the beans, it’s called cacao instead of cocoa. Unroasted beans are raw and contain significantly higher levels of minerals, fiber, and even some protein. So that’s what I chose to eat. Please check out the Subscribe & Save options available for Organic Cacao Powder.

Paleo Chocolate Shake RecipeYum

Clearly, Laura’s salad-drinking habits are commendable. But, another confession: I’m not a grown-up enough human to submit myself to such torture. What I meant to say is that Laura is a super human blessed by the Almighty with taste buds of steel. Hmm. Okay, how about this: I’m so deeply in love with chocolate shakes and I see no reason to give them up.

Sorry. The recipe(s).

I mostly make it the same every day, but has been evolving over the year. Therefore, I will give you two recipes. The first is when you only have 30 seconds to spare. The second is when you have 2 minutes.

Quick Fix Chocolate Shake

  • 8 oz. coconut milk
  • 2 Tablespoons cacao or cocoa powder
  • 2 pinches salt
  • 1/2—1 teaspoon Super Sweet from THM or stevia/blend sweetener of choice
  • Large handful of spinach
  • 3 cubes ice
  • Blend until smooth
  • Drink

The above smoothie has approximately 4 grams of protein and 92 calories. It is enough to satisfy a chocolate craving and sweet tooth. If you want to trick your mouth into thinking you’re having a treat, and you’re in a hurry, give it a try. Don’t get me wrong, there are plenty of nutrients in the spinach, cacao, and coconut milk, but I wouldn’t recommend replacing a meal with this shake. Unless you’re planning to starve yourself to death, which I highly discourage.

Paleo Chocolate Shake with more stuff…

  • 8 oz. coconut milk
  • 2 Tablespoons cacao or cocoa powder
  • 2 pinches salt
  • 1/2—1 teaspoon Super Sweet from THM or stevia/blend sweetener of choice
  • 2 Tablespoons integral collagen (paleo friendly dairy/soy-free protein)
  • half of a banana (sliced and frozen is nice)
  • 1/2 cup frozen fruit (blueberries or sweet cherries are good options)
  • 1 Tablespoon almond butter
  • Large handful spinach
  • 3 cubes of ice
  • Blend until smooth
  • Drink in secret or make double to share with all the toddlers

This is the shake I drink daily. If we’re heading out and I’m not sure if there’s going to be paleo food for me, then I make a shake. Sometimes I drink with breakfast, or later in the day if I’m hungry and there’s no food in front of me. The full recipe is approximately 320 calories and 17 grams of protein.

What do you eat everyday?! Does it make you ask happy as this shake makes me? If not… maybe you should make this shake instead.

Paleo Chocolate Shake
 
Save Print
Author:
Recipe type: snack
Ingredients
  • 8 oz. coconut milk
  • 2 Tablespoons cacao or cocoa powder
  • 2 pinches salt
  • ½—1 teaspoon Super Sweet from THM or stevia/blend sweetener of choice
  • 2 Tablespoons integral collagen (paleo friendly dairy/soy-free protein)
  • half of a banana (sliced and frozen is nice)
  • ½ cup frozen fruit (blueberries or sweet cherries are good options)
  • 1 Tablespoon almond butter
  • Large handful spinach
  • 3 cubes of ice
Instructions
  1. Blend until smooth
  2. Drink in secret or make double to share with all the toddlers

book cover of bluebird on the prairieTasha Hackett is a friend of Laura and author of the Christian Romance, Bluebird on the Prairie; available wherever books are sold and from her website, www.TashaHackett.com. She spends most of her time (drinking chocolate shakes) with four chatty children and an incredibly supportive husband. They give her the kind of love people write books about.

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

How to Make Biscuits With One Hand

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This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Why do we need to know how to make biscuits with one hand?

Maybe we don’t. Maybe we actually have two hands to work with in the kitchen. Either way, don’t we all love learning ways to make our kitchen work easier? So whether you have one hand or two to work with in the kitchen, you’ll love how this easy biscuit-making-method cuts out a few steps and makes for a less messy biscuit-making process!

Me? I’m almost always working one-handed in the kitchen these days:

Yum

Who actually even cares about biscuits? I’ll just nibble on her neck all day long. Those pudgy hands!! HER CHEEKS.

But back to the biscuits.

I find that I can do quite a bit with just one hand, but using a rolling pin isn’t one of them. So one morning, I decided to attempt biscuits while holding the baby, and would you believe, it worked? From start to finish!

How did I make biscuits with one hand?

  1. I scooped some Quick Mix into a bowl. I poured in some milk. I didn’t measure. I stirred, kind of. I made dough. The baby used her gummy grin to affirm my abilities.

2. I put the dough directly onto my baking stone. I pressed it down with my one free hand. It looked like this:

Good grief. Are we rolling our eyes together about the fact that while I made biscuits with one hand, I also continued to wash said hand so I could take pictures with my phone of the biscuit-making process? I guess I just really wanted you to see how easy this is.

3. I dug my biscuit cutter out of the back of my catch-all drawer. I used it to make the ugliest-shaped biscuits you’ve ever seen. The baby was still impressed.

4. I grabbed up the excess dough and rolled it into two balls, then pushed them down onto the baking stone.

5. I baked the biscuits. They turned out incredible and delicious.

6. We ate them with butter and honey and jelly and gravy. We were all so happy because it had been over a year since I’d last made biscuits.

This gravy recipe is coming soon!

No matter if you have one hand or two while working in the kitchen:

Skip rolling your dough onto the counter before cutting your biscuits!

Simply press your dough onto your baking pan. Then cut your biscuits on your baking pan.

It saves a step. It saves a mess. Why have I not thought of this before?

Recipes you need so you can make biscuits with one hand:

  1. Quick Mix
  2. Quick Mix Biscuits
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How to Make Fruit Teas Like McAlister’s

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Do you like McAlister’s fruit teas? Sweet or unsweet? Yum! So delicious and fun! Want to save a lot of money and make them at home?

It’s hard for me to spend money on a special drink from a restaurant or coffee shop. If I’m going to justify it, I have to be traveling or working (borrowing the internet at a coffee shop).

Yeah, I should probably loosen up a little. Maybe stop overthinking how much tea or coffee I could make at home for the cost of one purchased restaurant drink. Maybe.

Conversation in my head: This cup of coffee just cost me $4.50?? I could make many, many, many pots of coffee for that price at home. POTS. Not just cups. I can’t believe I just paid that much for one cup. Mmmm, that’s good. Well, it better be good for $4.50…

Don’t ask me about buying ice cream for the family while on vacation. For the cost of one Blizzard, we can buy a nice-sized container of ice cream at the store to feed our entire family a treat. Oy. I am such a barrel of fun, am I not?

Well anyway. Hooray for splurging on fun treats while out and about. But when you’re at home, what if you could make your own fun and fruity teas?

A few years ago, someone introduced us to McAlister’s tea and we all fell in love. Also: we all got about 20 free refills while we sat there eating because we wanted to be sure we got our money’s worth. Like parents, like kids, I guess. Therefore we all had to stop and pee 20 times during the remainder of our trip. Worth. It. Good memories.

Now you can have fun at home with these teas. Make them sweet. Make them unsweet. Either way, they are a great treat and perfectly refreshing in the summertime!

How to Make Fruit Teas Like McAlister’sYum

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Grilled Pizza Tortillas – a 10 Minute Meal!

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I shared a similar idea a few years ago, and it’s good enough that I’m bringing it back! Not sure what to make for dinner? Have everyone build Pizza Tortillas. Then throw them on the grill!

Yum

This isn’t even a recipe. This is all too easy. You can look at the picture and know exactly what to do because it is self-explanatory.

Laura answers the hard questions about making Grilled Pizza Tortillas below:

  • What is the base of this Grilled Pizza Tortilla you speak of? That would be a…tortilla.
  • How many tortillas should we use? However many your family can eat.
  • What should I put on top of my Grilled Pizza Tortilla? Whatever you want. I suggest pizza toppings. Those make the best kind of pizzas.
  • How much of the toppings should I use? As much or as little as you like.
  • What kind of cheese should I use? What kind of cheese do you like? {Laura answers a question with a question}
  • Where do I cook Grilled Pizza Tortillas? On the grill.
  • How long do I cook Grilled Pizza Tortillas? Until they are done.
  • Sauce or no sauce? Now that’s a good question. I mean, they were all good questions. 

But about the sauce…

I skip the sauce on these Grilled Pizza Tortillas. I think they cook better and taste better when they are sauce-less, with the cheese directly on the tortilla, then toppings on top of the cheese. But THEN. After you cook them, you can dip them in pizza sauce as you’re eating. Perfection!

So now you know all about making Grilled Pizza Tortillas. Your family will love this!

Want more super fast food ideas for this summer?

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Stovetop Popcorn is Really This Easy?

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Stovetop popcorn has been my snack of choice lately. So quick to make, so delicious, and everybody is happy.

Stovetop popcorn is really this easy?

by Tasha Hackett

Sometimes I make burgers from scratch with homemade sweet potato fries and avocado dip and caramelized onions with balsamic vinegar. Homemaker over-achiever award, amen? And other nights I toss around apples, cheese, and popcorn and beg the children to eat and be happy while I put myself in timeout. Popcorn is versatile like that. I’ll agree that even though stovetop popcorn is not unhealthy, it doesn’t have much in the way of nutrition. But if you’re going to stuff your mouth with something salty and crunchy, stovetop popcorn is a great way to go about it.

Stovetop PopcornYum

We received an air popper for a wedding present. We used it frequently and poured melted butter over the top. Easy. Yummy. Last year, I don’t know why, I started using my large pot and the old-fashioned method and I’ve fallen in love with popcorn all over again.

Step 1: Pot for the Popcorn

Please use the biggest stock pot you have. I’ve used a smaller one, thinking I was going to make a smaller amount of popcorn. Clearly, it was a foolish choice. Just use the big one.

Step 2: Chose Your Oil

I have successfully used coconut oil (flavored, or flavorless), olive oil, bacon grease, and butter. My go-to is olive oil. Coconut oil is nice, but it’s more expensive. Butter is more likely to burn and I don’t always have bacon grease on hand—it makes a unique crisp type of corn. You should definitely try it.

Step 3: Chose Your Kernel

Truly, I have purchased all different varieties, thinking that I’m going to be scientific and compare the results. Alas, I’m too interested in eating the popcorn and therefore have yet to track any noticeable difference in the popcorn brands. If you have a preference, by all means, let us know. I will say, ten years ago I bought Mushroom Popcorn from a co-op in Kansas and there was a difference. Almost all the kernels popped with a mushroom shape. That was fun. So if you’re looking to make popcorn for gifts or something where you want each kernel to be beautifully uniform… splurge for the Mushroom Popcorn. Otherwise, meh.

And Now the How-To for Stovetop Popcorn

  • Pour (or scoop) a 1/4 cup of oil of choice into the pan. Oil makes things yummy. Don’t be afraid of it. Melt on medium heat.
  • Add 1/2 cup of popcorn kernels.
  • Add a teaspoon of fine salt. (Blend a cup of salt in your snazzy Blendtec for fabulous and cheap popcorn salt!)
  • Put the lid on your pot and wait for the magic. I used to frantically shake the pan back and forth to make sure nothing scorched or burned, but then one time I didn’t do that… and nothing scorched or burned. From then on I was flying free. I haven’t been frantically shaking the pan in months now. Just stand near and LISTEN.
  • Keep the heat on medium. Too high and your popcorn will burn. Too low and the kernels will swell and crack, but not pop.
  • Let it pop while you put away the oil and break the cheese into chunks and yell at the kids for someone to get the toddler out of the bathroom. Do the popcorn dance and when it starts to slow down, that’s your cue. Pop, Pop, Pop, Pop… and Pop, Pop… wait for it Pop… Pop… NOW remove the pan from the heat. Take the lid off.

popcorn

Eat. Smile. Stuff your face with crunchy salty popcorn goodness.

Of course, if you want to be really fancy, check out Laura’s recipes for a large selection of homemade popcorn flavors. BBQ, to Chocolate, to Ranch, and more. “But Tasha,” you say, “I thought you were on a Paleo diet that didn’t include any grains? Isn’t popcorn a grain?” OHMYGOODNESSYES. Stop judging me. Popcorn is a grain. Sadly, it is not included in a strict paleo diet. But it’s been six months and I’ve been trying new things. (Side note, I’ve been MOSTLY headache free for six months!) I’ve learned that I can do small amounts of popcorn. So there.

How do you pop the corn? Ever tried it on the stovetop? Share all your tips!

book cover of bluebird on the prairieTasha Hackett is a friend of Laura and author of Bluebird on the Prairie, a Christian romance set in 1879. She spends most of her time with four chatty children and an incredibly supportive husband. They give her the kind of love people write books about. To connect with Tasha, check out her website at www.TashaHackett.com. Follow her on IG @hackettacademy and find Laura @heavenlyhomemaker.

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!