"Melt in Your Mouth Chicken" Healthified

So this recipe is one that has been floating around Pinterest for a few months now. I've made it before the "unhealthy" way (using mayo instead of Greek yogurt) and it was amazing! (but definitely not healthy). So when I saw this recipe for it "healthified", I had to give it a shot! Here it is...

Ingredients:

-2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

-1 cup Greek yogurt (I used FAGE 0%)

-1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated (what you sprinkle on pizza)

-1 tsp. garlic powder

-1 1/2 tsp. seasoning salt

-1/2 tsp. pepper

Directions:

-Put your boneless skinless chicken breasts in a greased glass baking dish.

-Cover the breasts in the Greek yogurt mix.

-Bake at 375 for 45 minutes.

This recipe is so super simple! Easy to make the mix and pop them right in the oven. I made these with a side of sweet potatoes.

Sweet Potatoes

-1 large sweet potato, sliced into thin rounds

-Baking spray (such as Pam)

Directions:

-Spray and foil lined baking sheet with your baking spray.

-Spread your sweet potatoes along the entire sheet.

-Spray the top of the sweet potatoes with your baking spray.

-Bake at 400 for about 15-20 minutes (depending on how crispy you want them), flipping half way through.

Enjoy!

Honey Lime Shrimp

Now this recipe was something I couldn't help but try. I love shrimp, I love honey & I love lime. What could be better? (Serves 2 people but could easily be doubled!)

Ingredients:
-1/2 pound raw shrimp (peeled and deveined)
-1/4 cup olive oil
-2 T honey
-juice of one small lime
-zest of one small lime
-2 cloves garlic, smashed
-1/2 tsp. kosher salt
-1/4 tsp. black pepper
-1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

Directions:
1) In a large ziploc bag, combine all marinade ingredients. When everything is well combined, add the shrimp, squeeze as much air out of the bag, and close it up. Place in the fridge.
2) Let the shrimp marinade 30-60 minutes, flipping the bag around once or twice during that time, so that all the shrimp stay evenly covered in the marinade.
3) When you're ready to cook, take the shrimp out of the fridge and let them sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat; there is no need to grease the skillet before hand, as the marinade has enough oil in it to keep the shrimp from sticking to the pan.
4) Add your shrimp to the pan in a single layer, making sure they are not too crowded; you can always cook them in one or more batch. Let them cook on one side for about a minute, until they curl up and turn pink. Flip them over, letting them cook for another 30 seconds, until the shrimp are opaque. Remove from the pan and serve immediately.

This is wonderful served over white rice! Such a quick and easy meal!



Some tips: When it says large shrimp, they mean large. I had no clue how much they shrunk! I also think it would be nice to double this recipe. They were so addicting! Next time I will be trying the marinade on chicken!

DIY Mason Jar Travel Cup

This project is super simple! Here's what you'll need:

-1 small or large mason jar (16oz shown in picture. I got mine at Michael's crafts but you can find these anywhere! A good place to get them in bulk is Kmart.
-Rubber grommet size 3/8 of an inch (Home Depot)
-Thick plastic straw (I got mine at Michael's crafts. I've seen them in multiple colors as well!)


Instructions:

1. Using a drill, drill out a hole 1/2 of an inch thick into the top of your mason jar.
2. Insert your rubber grommet (If it seems like it is not going to fit, don't worry. This part takes a little bit of maneuvering.)
3. Insert your straw and you are all set!



I have not tried to wash the cup in the dishwasher because I am scared of what it will do to the grommet. Hand washing is your best bet to clean this cup!



Total cost per jar: $4!        

Mummies On A Stick

With Halloween quickly approaching, I needed a cute and easy treat to give to all of my coworkers. I headed over to a local baking supply store and they had these adorable "mummies on a stick" right in the window and I knew instantly that was what I was going to make.

Here's what you're going to need to make this treat:

-1 pound bag of white melting chocolate
-Lollipop sticks (the longer ones)
-Plastic squeeze bottle
-Twinkies
-Edible eyes (I got these at the local baking supply store but you might be able to find these at Michael's Crafts. If you can't find these exact eyes you can always improvise with chocolate chips!)
-Large plastic goodie bags
-String



1. First off, you're going to put your lollipop sticks all the way up into your Twinkies but make sure not to push it through the top. Put your twinkies in the freezer for about 15 minutes with the sticks already in them to make sure that they're nice and firm for easy assembling (I learned this the hard way and didn't freeze them for my first attempt at this treat. This is an important step so don't forget it!)

2. After letting your twinkies harden, bring them out of the freezer and begin melting your chocolate (reserve about a quarter of your chips to the side for drizzling). When your chocolate is all melted, bring your twinkies above your bowl of melted chocolate and begin to cover the entire twinkie using a spoon (I've found this way to be a lot easier then dunking the twinkie into the actual bowl of chocolate.. But you can do it which ever way you'd like!)

3. Once done dipping all of your twinkies and setting them on a wax piece of paper to dry, begin to melt your reserved chocolate and put it in your squeeze bottle. You're then going to drizzle chocolate in a horizantal motion over your previously dipped twinkies, making sure to place your eyes on before your chocolate dries.

4. Place your mummies in the fridge for about 30 minutes to harden and you're all set.

I wrapped my mummies in large clear goodie bags and tied them up with a piece of twine. This was an easy Halloween gift and everyone loved them!



One large pound bag of chocolate makes about 7-8 mummies.

Manicure Gift Sets

Pinterest has quickly become one of my favorite websites (even over facebook, and that's saying something for a 20 year old college student) and every time I'm on the website, I find a craft that I know I can make myself at home.. Today's craft is these adorable manicure gift sets originally made by Sara Douglass of soshelli.com

Now when I went on the blog, there wasn't direct instructions of how to create this adorable present, but I figured it couldn't be too hard. I set out to find all of the items to make a jar of my own.

Here's what you're going to need...

-1 pint size mason jar 16oz. You can find these at a lot of different places. I personally got mine at Michael's crafts but I've seen them at Walmart, Target, Kmart etc.
-About 5 or 6 cotton balls
-Toe seperators. I got mine at a beauty supply store.
-Mini nail polish remover. Can be found in the "travel section" at most stores. I got mine at Target.
-Clippers & file. Now this one was tough to find, especially because it's rare to find a mini file like the one shown above and I'm picky and wanted mine to be cute and pink. I found these as a set at a local grocery store, very random I know. I'm sure you'd be able to find them at your local drug store too!
-A nail polish of your choice. I went for Wet 'N' Wild brand in pink glitter.

Now to assembling.

Its very easy to put this gift set together. First start off with putting your cotton balls on the bottom of your mason jar and leaving a little room in the back for your polish remover. The remover I got was not as "mini" as I wanted, but it worked. Put your polish remover in followed by the toe seperators.

Next it's time to put in your polish, file, and clippers in the front of the jar as best as you can fit them. There's no set way to put these in, just whatever you think looks cutest!

I used pink and white polka dot ribbon to line the rim of the jar as well as printed out name tags for each of my friends. (font name: Cutie Pop downloadable here)

Total price per jar came to $10! An awesome an inexpensive gift that any girl will love.