Great Gift Ideas for HER

Here are some great Amazon finds of great gifts for HER. All of these are either under or just above $10. Hopefully these can help you get some great ideas for your gifts to loved ones! Gifts for HIM coming soon!(Links are affiliated)

One of the things I use everyday is the invisibobble. This is a type of hair tie that does not leave a pony-tail mark in your hair or tugs on your hair! I used to hate wearing my hair up because it would give me a headache, but these hair ties are so gentle! These would be a perfect gift for a sister or friend! They are $9.95 for three, check them out HERE.

The next gift is a nail polish holder! You have to check this out! I don't know why I have never gotten one of these as it would make life so much easier when painting my nails! You can find them HERE. This would make such a fun gift!

The next gift is something every woman would want right now, and that's a bath bomb! These are all the rave and I can understand why as they smell amazing, are so cute bringing bubbles to your tub! I love this one sold by Two Sister Spa as there are many colors and smells to choose from in adorable packaging! They are $7.99 on Amazon, get them HERE.

The next find is a blanket scarf for only $12.99. I have a blanket scarf and it is a staple in my winter closet! They are so warm and so cute! Check them out HERE.

The next gift I wanted to share is a CC Bennie which is about $11 dollars but so soft and cute! This would be a perfect Christmas and winter gift. They have so many colors and great reviews! Find them HERE.

If you are willing to spend a few buck over $10, I have to tell you about this amazing yet practical gift for the shower! It's called a Tub Shroom and what it does is catches all the hair that goes down the drain during a shower. I have had this nifty tool for about 3 months and I love it! Its so easy to clean up hair after a shower and it keeps your hair out of sight while you do! It's only $13 and it will change your life! Check it out HERE.

The Best Banana Muffins

I love bananas, but they always seem to turn brown so quickly! I search for a banana recipe and these muffins are my absolute favorite! I find myself just buying ripe bananas so I can bake with them! Here's the recipe!

3 ripe bananas, mashed
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 cups all purpose flour (I've substituted 1 cup for wheat)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup of dark or milk chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and line 12 standard muffin cups with paper liners. Mash the bananas in a a bowl or kitchen aid and add sugar and oil, mix. In a another bowl stir together the four, salt and baking soda and then add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix well.

Divide the batter into the 12 prepared cups and place into the preheated oven and bake 10-15 minutes.Test with a toothpick inserted in the middle of a muffin and if it comes out clean the muffins area ready. Remove the pan to a cooling rack and let sit for 5 minutes. Serve immediately as these muffins are really delicious when they are warm! Enjoy!

Frozen to Shredded Crock Pot Chicken

Every time I buy a bag of frozen chicken I cook at least half of it in the crock pot. I shred the chicken and then save it in the freezer for an easy and quick meal. Here is a simple recipe that I use and makes your chicken delicious!

4-6 Frozen Chicken Breasts
1/2 T of Onion Powder or Flakes
1 tsp of Pepper (or to taste)

All you do is place the chicken in first, then the seasonings and cook on low for 6 hours or high for 4 hours.
Now here is a trick that I learned to keep your chicken fresh and flavorful: shred the chicken in the crock pot with all the chicken juice and let cool. Once cool enough for freezer plastic bags scoop the chicken into the bags without draining any excess chicken juice/broth. Adding in the chicken broth to store your chicken will add flavor and prevent it from going dry when reheated. That's all! Delicious and painless chicken meals on the menu!

Oreo Truffles

Desserts are my absolute favorite thing to make, because they are so delicious and are wonderful gifts! This truffle recipe I am about to share is SO simple, easy, and cheap yet delicious! There are only 3 simple ingredients and they are great for parties, goody-bags, mid-night snacks and really any occasion!

Ingredients:
1 block of cream cheese (I used 1/3 fat one)
1 bag of mini oreos (or equivalent in regular oreos)
1/2 bag of milk chocolate chips (or cooking chocolate equivalent)
Optional: White chocolate, candy canes, sprinkles, etc.

Use a food processor and grind up the whole package of mini oreos until powdery fine. You can also use a ziplock bag and rolling pin if you don't have a food processor to smash them to crumbles. Next add the block of cream cheese to the food processor and blend, or add the oreos and cream cheese in a bowl and mash with a fork until all is moist and blended. Next melt your chocolate chips, with a tab of coconut oil optional, until melted and smooth. Then using your hands make about 1 in balls and dip to cover in chocolate. Place the balls on a cookie sheet lined with a baking mat or parchment paper, and sprinkle toppings like crumbled candy canes or white chocolate on immediately while chocolate is still wet. This makes about 15-20 balls depending on how big or small you make them. Let them stand and cool in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes or until chocolate hardens.

Italian Vegetable Crock Pot Chicken

This week has been cold, rainy and busy which means I go straight to a crock pot meal! This recipe is pretty cheap but delicious to eat and is a great way to get some vegetables in for dinner.

3-4 Frozen Chicken Breasts
1/2 cup of baby or shredded carrots
2 stalks of diced celery
1/2 medium onion chopped
8 oz of frozen or fresh broccoli
1/2 block of cream cheese
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1/2 package Italian seasoning mix

Set the onions on the bottom of the crock pot followed with the chicken breasts, then place the rest of vegetables on top. Poor in the Italian seasoning followed by the cream of chicken soup and the cream cheese. Let cook on high for 4 hours or high for 6 hours. Shred chicken with a fork when done and mix in melted cream cheese and soup more thoroughly. Enjoy on top of brown or white rice, and side with a green salad or stuffing! My husband and I also added some crushed Ritz Crackers and crushed red pepper on top for extra flavor.

No Fail Taco Soup

Taco soup is one of my absolute favorite recipes to make! It is a dump, crock pot and prep meal that is hard to mess up. Here's a basic recipe that you can follow with some of my substitutions and suggestions, you can really add in more of one kind of beans or tomato soup depending on your preference.
1 can of drained black beans
1 can of drained kidney beans (I used red kidney beans)
1 can of drained corn
1 can of green chilies
1 can of crushed tomatoes
1-2 pounds of cooked ground beef (I use turkey)
1 can of tomato soup and 1 can of water OR 1-2 cups of chicken broth
I package of taco seasoning
1/2-1 package of ranch seasoning

Dump this all into a crock pot on low for 6 hours or high for 4 hours. Enjoy with cheese, sour cream and either crushed tortilla chips or Fritos. To expand the recipe simply add one more can of beans or cup of water or crushed tomatoes. I froze a batch I made and it reheats wonderfully on low either in the crock pot or pot over on the stove.

Cutting Board Cleanup Hack

See that plastic grocery bag on the edge of the counter? I slid one of the grocery bag handles under the cutting board and it made a diy garbage bag! This is absolutely perfect for those ends and yucky slices of veggies and fruit! You can just slide them off the cutting board and keep your work space free and fresh. This hack also helps keep down odor from your kitchen garbage as you just tie the ends of the grocery bag and throw it away after a cutting board session. Saw this idea on Pinterest and decided to try it today-Pinterest win!

DIY Delicious Potato Fries

I absolutely love fries and here is my go to recipe when I need a delicious and easy side for fish, burgers, or sandwiches. Let's dive straight into the recipe!

6-8 Russet Potatoes
1 teaspoon Seasoning Salt
1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1/2 tablespoon Olive Oil

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Cut about 6-8 washed potatoes into wedges. I like to first cut the potato in half long ways, place the cut edge facing down on the cutting board and then slice it long ways down the middle and then on each side. Place cut wedges into a bowl to store and ready for seasoning. After all the potatoes are cut into wedges and placed in the bowl spray or poor in olive oil. Sprinkle garlic powder and seasoning salt in the bowl and mix with your hands making sure all fries are coated in oil and seasonings. Place fries on a cookie sheet and cook for about 30-35 minutes or until edges are browning or fries "bubble". Take out and let cool for about 5-10 minutes before serving.

Simple Way to Style a Scarf

It's getting colder outside and that means fall clothes! I absolutely love wearing boots, leggings, sweaters and especially scarves and there are so many cute ways to style them! Here is one simple yet effective way to keep warm and be cute as the temperature keeps dropping.
First start with a simple long scarf and grab the two corners that are closest to each other. Tie a small double knot with those two corners (see images below).

Next put on the scarf with the knot on the back of your neck. Then grab the middle of the scarf and twist it to make a circle in front of you and then loop over your head. Adjust the scarf so that they knot is hidden on the back of your neck. You can also adjust the length of the scarf by pulling the smaller loop wider. Its such an easy and great way to create a big full scarf for these chilly autumn days! Such a great way to amp up your cardigan! If you have any questions feel free to ask!

Baked Corn Dog Bites with Jiffy

My husband and I were reminiscing about our childhood and both talked about how much we loved eating corn dogs! We however are trying to eat a bit more healthy and decided to look up how to make our own corn dogs at home. I found on Pinterest how to make these little corn dog bites using only a Jiffy corn bread mix, and thought score! I tweaked the recipe a bit, but they ended up pretty good (if you like corn bread)

So here's the recipe:
1 box of Jiffy Cornbread mix (make as instructed)
-1 egg
-1/3 cup of milk
1 tsp of honey

First pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees and make the Jiffy mix in a bowl stirring in the egg and milk. Take about 3-4 hot dogs and cut into about 5-6 pieces. This part you really can change depending if you want just one slice of hot dog, or several small or big slices of hot dog in your cornbread muffin (I put 2 or three slices of hot dog, but I wish I put more!). Then take a cookie scoop and scoop and plop the mix into a *very* greased muffin tin filling each tin no more than half way. Then push in one or a few pieces of hot dog and bake for 10 min. That's it! They are great for bringing to parties or just serving as a snack, enjoy!