Monthly Archives: April 2013

Book Hangover ~ Fever by Maya Banks

Oh isn’t it awful when you finish a good book. You’re left wanting more.
Book Hangover, I recently heard this term from my childhood library. It’s exactly the right term to describe the feeling. You know it was good but now you’re stuck in that mode for the next little bit until something else comes along. Sometimes even when you find a new book you can’t get into it because you’re still stuck on the last book. Should also be referred to as Book Breakup, I often get that feeling that I’m cheating on the last characters by reading new characters… hahaha

Urban Dictionary describes this term a bit differently than I like to think of it but both suit it just fine. “The headache you get after staying up into the wee hours of the morning staring at teeny tiny print. Generally an ailment experienced exclusively by book nerds, but becomes a nation wide issue after the release of a new Harry Potter book.”

I just finished reading the first 2 books in Maya Banks’ “The Breathless Series”, Rush and Fever. Both were good but I feel book 1 was a bit more X rated than book 2, although don’t get me wrong, book 2 was definetly dirty as well. It will be interesting to read Ash’s story in book 3. He seemed to be the wilder one of the trio. Can’t wait till August!

PS these books are alot like Fifty Shades of Grey however the men seem much much much more cheesy the way they fall in love. Ha ha ha

Here’s the authors blurbs about each book

THE BREATHLESS SERIES
By Maya Banks

RUSH – Book #1

Gabe, Jace, and Ash: three of the wealthiest, most powerful men in the country. They’re accustomed to getting anything they want. Anything at all. For Gabe, it’s making one particular fantasy come true with a woman who was forbidden fruit. Now she’s ripe for the picking…

When Gabe Hamilton saw Mia Crestwell walk into the ballroom for his hotel’s grand opening, he knew he was going to hell for what he had planned. After all, Mia is his best friend’s little sister. Except she’s not so little anymore. And Gabe has waited a long time to act on his desires.

Gabe has starred in Mia’s fantasies more than once, ever since she was a teenager with a huge crush on her brother’s best friend. So what if Gabe’s fourteen years older? Mia knows he’s way out of her league, but her attraction has only grown stronger with time. She’s an adult now, and there’s no reason not to act on her most secret desires.

As Gabe pulls her into his provocative world, she realizes there’s a lot she doesn’t know about him or how exacting his demands can be. Their relationship is intense and obsessive, but as they cross the line from secret sexual odyssey to something deeper, their affair runs the risk of being exposed—and vulnerable to a betrayal far more intimate than either expected.

FEVER – Book #2

Jace, Ash, and Gabe: three of the wealthiest, most powerful men in the country. They’re accustomed to getting anything they want. Anything at all. For Jace, it’s a woman whose allure takes him completely by surprise…

Jace Crestwell, Ash McIntyre, and Gabe Hamilton have been best friends and successful business partners for years. They’re powerful, they’re imposing, they’re irresistibly sexy, and Jace and Ash share everything—including their women.

When they meet Bethany, Jace begins to feel things he’s never experienced before: jealousy, and a powerful obsession that threatens him, overwhelms him—and excites him beyond control.

Jace isn’t sharing Bethany—with anyone. He’s determined to be the only man in her life, and it’s jeopardizing a lifelong friendship with Ash. Bethany will be his and his alone. Even if it means turning his back on his best friend.

BURN – Book #3 – Release Date: August 6th 2013

Ash, Jace, and Gabe: three of the wealthiest, most powerful men in the country. They’re accustomed to getting anything they want. Anything at all. For Ash, it’s the woman who changes everything he’s ever known about dominance and desire…

When it comes to sex, Ash McIntyre has always explored his wilder side—extreme and uncompromising. He demands control. And he prefers women who want it like that. Even the women he’s shared with his best friend, Jace.

But Jace is involved with a woman he has no intention of sharing. And now even Gabe has settled into a relationship with a woman who gives him everything he needs, leaving Ash feeling restless and unfulfilled.

Then Ash meets Josie, who seems immune to his charms and his wealth. Intrigued, he begins a relentless pursuit, determined she won’t be the one who got away. He never imagined the one woman to tell him no would be the only woman who’d ever drive him to the edge of desire.

Thanks for visiting and Happy Reading 🙂

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Movie Date! OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN

Hubby and I went to a movie last night, we chose Olympus Has Fallen with Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart, and Morgan Freeman.  Gerard was fabulous as always.  It was an action packed movie right from the start.  We were surprised we enjoyed it so much, or maybe it was the popcorn that I enjoyed so much….

It’s a movie about a terrorist attack on the most protected house on the planet…. The Whitehouse.

If you like action movies, if you like Gerard Butler, Eckhart or Freeman, this is a good movie!

 

 

 

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Guacamole Chicken Tostada Bites

Saturday night was The Ultimate Fighter Finale and we love to watch our UFC and MMA so I made up a heavy duty lasagna complete with a broccoli meat sauce and a layer of fresh spinach. I’ll be posting the recipe soon. So if you’re interested stay tuned. For later on into the evening I had a yummy little snack planned for GalPal, Hubby and I. We were drinking us some rum so a snack was needed near the end of the evening. The crock pot had been busy for the last few hours with the chicken included in this little appy. I put this together based on a few things I saw on Pinterest

GUACAMOLE CHICKEN TOASTADA BITES

CHICKEN:
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3 cups of your favorite salsa, I prefer a chunky type
3 Tbsp. of your favorite taco seasoning
Put all ingredients in a crock pot, give a little mix, and cook on high for 4-5 hrs, or low for 7-8 hrs until, chicken is falling apart and easily shredded.

GUACAMOLE:
2 avocados
2 Tbsp. of your favorite Salsa
Juice of 2 limes
3 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
Peel and remove the pit from the avocados . Put all ingredients in a food processor and pulse till creamy.

Soft flour tortillas
Biscuit cutter
1 cup fat free sour cream
Fresh cilantro leaves
2 small Ziploc bags
Scissors

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350F
Use the biscuit cutter to cut out small round from the tortilla’s and place on a baking sheet
Bake till just crispy, DO NOT BURN
Scoop guacamole into a Ziploc bag
Scoop sour cream into a Ziploc bag
Trim one corner of the Ziploc bags to make a small ‘decorating tip’
When the tortilla rounds are toasted place on a serving tray
Squeeze guacamole in a circle around the tortilla’s and fill it in
Top with a small heap of the shredded chicken
Squeeze a tiny dollop of sour cream on top of the chicken
Garnish with a cilantro leave
Enjoy

You can also have these as tacos!! But this is a cute idea for a party of for when friends come by for the UFC fights 😉

Juicy and delicious!  I hope you enjoy them as much as we did!

Thanks for visiting!

 

Love Haley

 

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Banging new shoes for a friday night date

Check out these little babies! My new neon pink heels! Wore them on my date with Hubby Friday night!
We feasted on a Crab Bisque, Mushroom Neptune, Sirlion Steak, Garlic Mashed Potatoes and crab and prawns in a boursin and brie cheese sauce… OH YUM

Bellini's and Martini's!

GREEK! A meal without Avocado…. Finally! Too much of a good thing as my mom said.

While chatting with my wonderful mother again last night about the Creamy Potato & Cauliflower Soup and Roasted Garlic as well that I had just made, I thought I should ask her about avocado’s. We eat so many avocado’s because they are just sooo tasty and we really enjoy the meals that include this wonderful stuff. Well she said if you were to eat 1 a day you may start to gain weight…. Yikes, we eat more than 1 a day each… sometimes 3! YIKES again! I told her I really like them tho and she responded with… “too much of a good thing”

True!

It’s time to slow down on the avocado’s and so I decided to go Greek for the night!
Here are some new recipies I’ve managed to find and everything tasted really good.

Just some of the things needed for tonights dinner!
GREEK TONIGHT

LOW FAT GREEK SALAD DRESSING

Ingredients:
4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 garlic clove
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup fat-free chicken broth

Directions:
Blend all the ingredients and let it sit a couple of hours .

I doubled this recipe to ensure I had enough for everyone for 2 nights.

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GREEK PRAWN & PASTA SALAD

Ingredients:
1 lb of raw prawns (without the shell or tails)
1 tbsp. butter
2 cloves of minced garlic
Salt & pepper
3-4 cups of cooked and cooled pasta (I used rotini noodles)
½ purple onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
½ red pepper, chopped
¼ yellow pepper, chopped
1 cucumber, sliced then quartered
1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes
I small tub of low fat feta cheese
*feel free to add olives… hubby doesn’t like em….
Low Fat Greek Salad Dressing

Directions:
1. Saute prawns in butter and garlic, season with salt and pepper. Chill in the fridge
2. In a salad bowl add the pasta, feta cheese, onion, peppers, cucumber, tomatoes, prawns and feta cheese. *olives if you choose
3. Gently toss with Low Fat Greek Salad Dressing
4. Garnish with a lemon wedge

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GREEK OVEN BAKED CHICKEN

Ingredients:
4 bone in split chicken breasts (I used chicken legs because I had some in the freezer)
1/2 cup olive oil
juice of 2 lemons
3 -4 cloves of garlic, crushed or minced (I used 5 cloves because we love garlic)
3 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

Directions:
1. Mix the olive oil and next 5 ingredients in a 9 X 11 baking dish.
2. Place chicken in the dish, turning them in the marinade a few times. I like to lift the skin and use my hands to spread some of the marinade underneath it. Leave them skin side down in the dish. Cover them and refrigerate overnight.
3. The next day, bake them at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Flip and bake an additional 30-40 minutes.
4. turn the broiler on high during the last 5 minutes to brown up the skins.

  

 

In the end I was very pleased!  A very refreshing juicy meal that made the husband quite pleased.  Success!

I would add a little more lemon to the chicken next time and they didn’t make for nearly as long because I used legs instead of breast piecese smaller than they should have been but hey they were what I had leftover in the freezer.

The best part is I have enough left over so I don’t have to make dinner tomorrow!

Thanks for reading!

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Creamy Potato & Cauliflower Soup with Roasted Garlic

There was a very good reason for roasting that garlic this afternoon, see previous post.
I was talking with my mom last night and she had made a yummy sounding creamy potato soup. It sounded like a great idea.
She sent me her recipe and with other recipes I found online and my own thoughts, I twisted it!
I made a recipe to suit my tastebuds and to use up more items in my fridge. Those items being chicken stock and… cauliflower!

Here’s the recipe and if you make it, please let me know what you think!

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Creamy Potato & Cauliflower Soup with Roasted Garlic

1 ½ fists of roasted garlic
2 cups cooked cauliflower, chopped in (approx) ½ inch chunks (half a head of cauliflower)
1 cup onion, finely diced
2 tbsp. butter
4 cups raw russet potatoes, chopped in even ½ inch cubes (2 large russets)
2 cups water
2 cups low sodium chicken stock
2 cups skim milk
½ cup fat free greek yogurt
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. pepper
green onions
cheddar cheese
cooked crumbled bacon

Add butter to soup pot, sauté onions till clear, do not overcook
Add garlic, potatoes, water, and stock and simmer for 10-15 minutes until the potatoes are tender
To the pot, add the cooked cauliflower, milk and greek yogurt, salt & pepper.
Give it all a good mix.
In small batches, puree till smooth and creamy
Pour back into the pot and reheat
You may need to add more milk depending on the consistency, you don’t want it too thick, or maybe you do 🙂

Garnish with more fat free greek yogurt, green onions, cheddar cheese and if you feel sinful, bacon!

I have to say, it tastes soooooo good, I filled a shot glass of it and downed it! Can’t wait for lunch tomorrow!

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Roasted Garlic ~ Everything happens for a reason :)

Can’t believe I’ve NEVER roasted garlic before!
What is wrong with me? It’s sooo easy and oh so good!
Have you roasted garlic? Now, I don’t have a fancy little clay pot to roast mine in so this is what I did…

You will need:
1 fist of garlic
drizzle of olive oil
salt & pepper
tinfoil

Preheat oven to 320F
Take the fist of garlic and slough off the outer skin leaving the fist intact and still with the inner skins.
Cut off the top part to expose the cloves.
Cut tinfoil to about 7inches square and place the garlic cut side up in the centre
Drizzle with the olive oil
Lightly sprinkle with salt and pepper
Now twist it up like a big Hershey’s kiss chocolate
Place in middle rack of oven and bake at 320F for about an hour.
Take it out and let it cool a little
It should be golden and succulent looking
The fragrance alone will make you drool so have a napkin nearby.
From the bottom of the fist you should be able to gently squeeze out the roasted yummy cloves!

Everything happens for a reason! 🙂 Stay tuned for my next post!

roasted garlic

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