PEASANT-ly Surprized!

I like my tops to fit me loose, not tight on my body.  My midsection, I am sad to say, has grown somewhat in my upper years, so camouflaging that part is essential for me.  There is nothing worse than to wear clothing that does not fit because it's too small or too big, that is uncomfortable.  Tight pants, blouses and tops I think make you look bigger and show EVERYTHING, ya know what I'm talkin' about!  Hey, I'm a big girl and no one wants to see all of me, and I mean ALL of me, get my drift.  And, if clothing is too big, it makes you look bigger than you are.  You can look stylish and chic in clothes that fit you, take the extra minutes to try clothing on when you are shopping.  Sizes are cut differently for brands that sell clothing, you may be one size in one brand and a bigger or smaller in another.

Enter the peasant blouse, it hides a multitude of sins but has a fit to your body.  I have been a fan of the peasant blouse since the 70's (I was a lot thinner back then!), today it's called BOHO for The Bohemian Look, reminiscent of the Flower Power days of the late 1960's and 1970's. These are some of the blouses I have in my wardrobe that I paired with leggings and jeans, check them out.

Tan Suede Legging, Green, Tan and Brown Print Peasant Blouse with Gold Chain Tie

Dark Wash Skinny Jean, Blue, Red and Tan Print Peasant Blouse

 Khaki Skinny Jean, Purple, Rose and Cream Print Peasant Blouse with Sequin Trimmed Placket

Brown Suede Legging, Turquoise, Beige and Brown Snakeskin Print Peasant Blouse with Elastic Waist

 Dark Wash Skinny Jean, Persimmon Peasant Blouse with Burnished Gold Studs on Sleeves and Bodice

AND, this is my score for this weekend - Black, Faux Leather, Fur Lined Jacket with Asymmetrical Zipper and Zipper Pockets (sleeves are quilted inside for extra warmth) - Dressbarn, Originally $74.00 on sale for $37.00

Another Winner Chicken Dinner - Chicken Pesto Rollups

I got a little adventurous in the kitchen yesterday, I had chicken breasts to make for dinner and wanted to do something awesome with them.  There are so many different cuts of chicken which makes it so versatile, the hard part is figuring out what to do with it and not making the old standby favorites that I usually make.  I shopped my pantry shelves and my refrigerator and came up with Chicken Pesto Rollups.  This is how I made them, recipe below.  To print recipe, click, highlight and print.

With just a few ingredients I already had in the pantry and the fridge, I turned these chicken breasts into a star at my house!  Season and spread on the pesto.

 Add the provolone and the peppers.

Roll them up and place seam side down in prepared baking dish. 

 Cover with foil and let the magic begin.

 Pretty and bursting with flavor.  I had some leftover rolls, so I made herb garlic bread to go along with my chicken.

 I also made roasted grape tomatoes smothered in garlic, herbs and a little olive oil.

 Never mind those brownies in the back there, focus, focus.......I baked the tomatoes in the oven along side the chicken for about 20 minutes or just until they pop.  I tossed them with linguine as my side dish.

Dinner is served and it was F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S!

Chicken Pesto Rollups

Ingredients

Cooking Spray

4 large boneless, skinless, chicken breasts

1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup prepared pesto

4 slices provolone cheese

1 - 12 oz. jar roasted red peppers, sliced

2 bamboo skewers, cut in half

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a baking dish with the cooking spray.  Place the chicken breasts in a resealable plastic bag and squeeze out all the air as you are sealing the bag.  This is so it doesn't explode as you are pounding the meat.  With the smooth side of a meat tenderizer, pound the breasts until they are flat. Transfer them to the baking dish smooth side down (the inside of the breast facing up) season the inside with half of the salt and pepper. Evenly spread the pesto on chicken breasts.  Place 1 slice of provolone on top of the pesto, then a few slices of roasted pepper.  Roll the chicken at one end and seal with a skewer to hold it together while it bakes in the oven, the chicken should be seam side down in the pan.  Sprinkle with the other half of the salt and pepper.  Cover the pan with foil and bake for 30 minutes.  Uncover the pan and baste the chicken breasts with some of the oil that has accumulated in the baking dish.  Cover back up and continue to bake for another 20 minutes, in the last 10 minutes of baking uncover the pan to brown the chicken.  All ovens vary, chicken is done when it is firm.  Makes 4 servings.

My Boyfriend's Back!

OMG! I am sick of this weather. Snow, snow and more snow. Almost everyday there is some kind of snow.  I was tired of being couped up in the house, braved the cold and did a  little coupon shopping. I never leave home without them, my handbag actually has a neat and organized coupon envelope in it, so I always have them with me.  As soon as they arrive in the mail, I cut them out and they get stashed in my handbag.  I bought a pair of boyfriend jeans at Dressbarn and I love the fit, they are perfect and can be paired with anything.  Check them out.

Left: Boyfriend Jean, Leather Jacket, Lace Top, all at Dressbarn

Right: Boyfriend Jean and Tunic, all at Dressbarn

Jewelry - Kohl's and Shoes - Payless

A Bit Of Charming

Inexpensive costume jewelry is a big part of my wardrobe.  Jewelry can change a whole outfit, just adding a bold necklace, big earrings or a chunky bracelet to your outfit finishes it off like icing on a cake.  Shoes and handbags are also like jewelry.  I browsed one of my favorite costume jewelry stores over the weekend, Charming Charlie's.  They always have great things on clearance, as well as, regularly priced items.  I picked up a few things, blue is really big this summer!

Navy, multi strand, twisted bead necklace and earrings - $13.00

 Multi color stone and gold earrings - $3.99

 Shimmery cobalt blue and silver earrings - $3.99

 Red, blue and silver paisley earrings - $2.99

 This navy and iridescent bead necklace and earring set at Dressbarn - $19.00 (used coupons)

Dark grey handbag converts from cross body or clutch bag - Charming Charlie's on sale for $12.99

Old School Comfort Food - Homemade Beef Stew

Really cold and windy out yesterday, and snow was in the forecast, so a great day to make some old time comfort food to warm you from the inside out.  I have always loved beef stew, the flavor of it is just so good, and it's done in one pot, plus for me.  This version, that I have been making for almost 40 years, is so tasty.  Serve it up with a loaf of warm crusty bread and some butter, to sop up all the gravy, and it is easily a hot pick for a cold winter night dinner.

  Recipe below. To print recipe, click on it, highlight and print.

I start with beef stew meat or beef cubes as we call them, celery, carrots, potatoes and onion.  Flour and seasonings in a 1 quart resealable bag, no fuss, no muss, to coat the beef.

 Cut the beef into bite size pieces, drop into the resealable bag and........

.....shake to coat all the pieces.  All the pieces are coated, and see no mess!  Save that leftover flour you're gonna need it!

These are the ingredients for the gravy, and heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil to brown the meat.

 Toss just the flour coated meat into the pan and brown on all sides.  It will get a coating on it.

 After the meat is browned, toss in the remainder of the flour from the bag and stir it in with the meat.  This will help to thicken the gravy.

 Add 3 cups of water to the pan and stir to get all the bits and pieces that are stuck to the bottom of the pan.

Now the gravy makings, add to the pot - Ketchup, Worcestershire Sauce and Kitchen Bouquet. Then the veggies.

 Stir it all together and add some fresh or dried parsley, it gives it some color and flavor.

Ummm.... Beefy goodness! Let it simmer for about 2 hours until all the flavors combine, the sauce thickens and the meat gets even more tender.  Serve with crusty bread.

Dinner is done, grab your spoon!

Homemade Beef Stew

Ingredients

3 tablespoons of olive oil

1/2 cup flour

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon pepper

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 1/2  lbs beef stew meat (beef cubes), cut into bite size pieces

5 cups of water

5 carrots, peeled and sliced

4 stalks celery, sliced

1 large onion, chopped

5 medium - large potatoes, cut into bite size pieces

1/2 cup ketchup

1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce

2 tablespoons Kitchen Bouquet, in ketchup aisle at the grocery store

2 tablespoons of fresh parsley or 1 tablespoon of dried

1 1/2 cups frozen green peas

Directions

Add the 3 tablespoons of olive oil to a large soup pot.  To a quart size resealable bag, add the flour, salt, pepper and garlic powder, seal it and shake to combine. Add the beef to the bag all at one time, shake to coat the meat. Heat the oil over medium high heat, add the beef and stir, reserve the remaining flour in the bag.  While the beef is browning, have all the vegetables washed, cut and ready to be added to the pot. Continue to stir the meat until all is browned, reduce heat to medium, add the leftover flour from the bag to the cooked meat and stir it in.  This helps to thicken the gravy for the stew. Pour in the 5 cups of water, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan. Add the vegetables and stir them in.  Next, add the ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, Kitchen Bouquet and parsley, stir to combine. Cover and cook for 1 1/2 - 2 hours, stirring occasionally. In the last 5 minutes of cooking add the peas and stir them in.  Makes 8 servings.

Shoe-Be-Shoe-Be-Do

I love a cute shoe, and the icing on the cake, is one that is not expensive.  I found these two pair of shoeties, booties or whatever you want to call them at Payless.  I had my eye on them, but they were $49.99 a pair, wasn't paying that. So, I waited them out. I took a walk into the store the other day to browse and guess what I found, both of them, on sale for $15.00 a pair.  Then to boot, no pun intended, they were BOGO (BUY ONE GET ONE 1/2 off).  So the original price for both pair would have been $99.98, on sale both pair would have been $30.00.  I paid $15.00 for one pair and $7.50 for the other, bringing the total to (drum roll please) $22.50 for both pair.  SCORE!!!

Leopard and black shoetie and grey suede, mixed dark grey shoetie, with side zipper entry.

Always check clearance, you never know what you'll find.