Recipes

Romanticizing the Fall Season

A few years ago I started hearing this word romanticize. Everyone was telling us to romanticize our lives. I take this to mean doing a little extra to celebrate the season/holiday/event/etc. The intentionality of the celebration is what makes it special, and while that can look like extra work, the payoff is always worth it to me. Remember The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo? She said to hold onto the things that spark joy and get rid of the rest. Romanticizing things sparks joy for me, so I’m going to hold onto that as long as I can.

I’ve recently had the epiphany that I am an autumn. I’m a cold weather girly, and I love the change of seasons, especially with the crisp mornings and the need for a sweater or some boots. I am having the most fun with my pumpkins, fall flavors, fall decor, fall fashion, the slightly cooler temps, the leaves that are finally starting to change around here. We’ll have about a week before they fall off the trees, so open your eyes and really take in the beauty of this season. It’s nature at its best out there, y’all.

Romanticizing this fall season has been a true joy. I know we’re nearing the end of October, but fall isn’t over yet. It’s just beginning here in terms of temperature, so let’s stretch it out a little bit longer. Here are a few ways to easily romanticize your life before the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season is upon us.

Summer Recap Part 2

Welcome back to the summer recap. Now that we’ve gotten the entertainment portion out of the way, let’s get into the eats. I always say summer Elizabeth is the best Elizabeth because of all the cooking and experimenting in the kitchen that I do. Oftentimes, Paul will find a new recipe and send it to me, and it will just sit in my inbox for…oh…ever. I get pretty burnt out as the school year goes on and don’t feel much creativity especially in the kitchen, but my summer self loves to try new things. Today I’m sharing some of my favorite recipes we made this summer and some accounts to follow on Instagram for more yummy recipes.

Low Carb “Spaghetti” and Meatballs

Who doesn’t love a good meal of spaghetti and meatballs? Now I should say up front that this recipe is nothing special. You will not be blown away by something insanely decadent or groundbreaking. I’m about to hit you with a super quick, super delicious, low carb meal that you’ll truly enjoy. I’m not just saying this- but I actually like this better than regular spaghetti noodles. (I’m fully aware that’s because I’ve only ever had bad boxed pasta noodles that do not always sit well on my tummy.) Anywho, here we go! A low carb and delicious “pasta” dinner perfect for any night of the week.

A few things you should know:

I usually just judge the size of the zucchini to know how many to get. I say get more zucchini than you think you’ll need. You can always roast what you don’t need another night.
The zucchini puts out a good bit of water once it starts cooking. That’s okay. You can drain them just like you would regular noodles.
You don’t have to season the zucchini, but you can add salt and pepper to it while the zoodles are cooking.
This is the Spiral Vegetable Cutter that I have. It’s hand-held and inexpensive and easy to use.
You do not have to use the extra seasonings in the sauce, I just really love oregano, so I always find an excuse to use it.
I’m sure this would work with homemade meatballs. Just make those according to their recipe and top with warmed up Rao’s sauce and put over the zoodles. Maybe I’ll try that one weekend. I’ve never made meatballs before.
I use the Italian style frozen meatballs when I make this, but regular ones would be fine too.

As I said before, I know this isn’t groundbreaking stuff, but it’s delicious. I like to serve it with a salad. And listen, you’ve saved on a lot of carbs here, so go right ahead and serve with some garlic bread. 😉

Let me know if you try it!

Low Carb Dinner- Chicken Fajita Casserole

Paul and I have been on a low carb eating plan since August. Now, over the holidays that train derailed a bit, but we’re getting back into the swing of things. We’ve found a few recipes that we cook on the regular, and I thought maybe you’d like to see some low carb options, too. Today’s recipe was introduced to me by my mom. She handed me a container of it one random morning I had to take the dogs to her house, and I ate it for lunch. Goodness, it was good! I immediately asked for the recipe, and I cooked it myself for the first time last week. It is delicious and filling and low carb. Let’s talk about how to make it.

Let’s Talk Food

Have you ventured back out into actual restaurants? We haven’t done too much of that here in the Norman house…a few times here and there but for the most part we’ve been sticking to cooking. Pinterest and Half Baked Harvest have been giving me all the ideas lately. I wanted to share some of the better ones we’ve tried and made multiple times.

Amy’s Salad Recipe

I have a wonderful recipe for you today. It is a crowd pleaser and would be perfect for your Thanksgiving menu. I always go back for seconds and thirds when I have it. Back in 2008 my Mama gave me a cookbook called The Blue Willow Inn Bible of Southern Cooking. This recipe comes from there.

Crock Pot Greek Chicken with Homemade Tzatziki Sauce Recipe

When Paul and I lived in Louisiana, we were introduced to some Greek and Lebanese restaurants. Then we tried out the Taziki’s chain in Montgomery and then we tried the Pita chain. Both were good and mostly satisfied our craving, but we wanted to be able to recreate something with those flavors at home. We were finally able to with the recipe I’m sharing today! I ended up using two different recipes, both from screenshots of Instagram stories I saw. To top it off, I didn’t take the screenshot correctly where I could see the person who posted it. So, there’s no link for me to give you. I’ll try to be as thorough as possible as I relay it to you. But please know that I do not take credit for creating this recipe.

Chicken Salad Recipe

I found a random bottle of flavored mustard a while back at Walmart and bought it on a whim. I used it on turkey sandwiches and then saw someone on Instagram making chicken salad. She made hers with jalapenos. That got me thinking that I also had an interesting ingredient that I could use to make my own chicken salad.

Fall Fruit Pizza

I made this dessert recently and tried it out on some of our friends because they don’t mind being the guinea pigs when it comes to cooking. The last dessert I took to their house was the Butterfinger cake I shared back in December. Our friend’s response was that he might even like the fruit pizza better than the Butterfinger cake. That’s saying something since he really likes that cake. I promised this recipe back in the summer when I posted about my original fruit pizza, so here you go.

Taco Pizza Recipe

School is in full swing around here, well, it has been for a while, and that means I’m reaching for quick dinner recipes. Though this one may not be the healthiest of options, it sure is tasty and will surely please the whole family.