five-ten-fifteen-frugal :: baked potatoes

five-ten-fifteen-frugal tip:

~baked potatoes for dinner~

baked potatoes make a hot & tasty base

for almost anything

{think: leftovers}

our favorites include

chili, mac & cheese, chopped broccoli,

and always,

sour cream & freshly ground pepper on top.

sometimes i make a potato/salad bar,

serving everyone a potato and a bed of lettuce,

with all the toppings in the center of the table.

i always bake a few extra potatoes

for quick & easy meals later in the week.

{homefries with eggs & toast}

{potato & cheese quesadillas}

my "recipe" for baked potatoes:

1. preheat oven to 400°

2. line a rimmed baking sheet with kosher salt*

3. wash & dry potatoes

4. pierce potatoes with a knife

5. slather potatoes with softened butter

6. bake on top of salt for 1 hour

*baking on salt prevents soggy-bottomed potatoes.

just brush the salt off before serving.

:: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

if you move to idaho,

you could celebrate the frugal goodness of baked potatoes

every single day of the year with one of these:

extra credit:  tell me...

what do YOU put on your baked potatoes?

♥

m.i.n.e.

♥

have you seen this?

we loved it.

♥

show & tell {fancy salted mixed nuts}

ned asks,

"care for some nuts?"

one...

two...

three!!!

♥

treasure hunt

vintage treasures i found today

:: sugar shaker :: gold mirror :: graph paper :: starburst champagne flutes :: aluminum tray ::

♥

cincinnati chili :: vegetarian style

if you have ever been to cincinnati, ohio,

then you have most likely tried

- cincinnati chili -

a little-known regional specialty.

a chili like no other.

back in the early 80's,

my family moved from orange county
to cincinnati.
we were immediate chili fans,

frequenting skyline & gold star.

now that i'm all grown up and far from cincinnati,

i order the chili spice mix by the case.

{you can order it here}

my kids, who have never even been to ohio,

love cincinnati chili.

to make it,

i combine the spice mix with

water, tomato paste,

and veggie crumbles {in lieu of meat}.

the chili simmers for a couple hours.

i heat the beans {"pinquintos"},

cook the spaghetti,

grate the cheese,

slice the bread,

mince the onions.

here's how i serve it:

1. spaghetti

2. chili

3. beans

4. cheddar cheese {grated "skinny"}

5. onions & bread 

it is a family favorite,
and i make it my personal mission to
share the love and convert my friends.
{perhaps YOU are one such friend.}

want the wiki-lowdown on cincinnati chili?
look here.

♥

little gold bird

have you seen this photo from anthropologie?
{it was sent out in an anthro email last week}

these are their ogee apertures towels.
-but-

do you see that little gold bird up in the corner?

i recognized it immediately.

it is almost exactly like this one

{click the link then use the roll-over zoom to see it up close}

from this angle,

it looks like they were made from the same mold.

the one in the anthro photo seems to have an inlay of lapis on the back.

this belonged to my grandma.

it is {of all things} a vintage saccharin server.
she had a collection of these in all shapes & sizes.

you can see the teeny tiny tongs

held inside by a magnet.

{it is marked florenza}

{mom, didn't she collect these on trips to italy?}

i love this little bird,

and i loved finding it's twin

in an unexpected place.

♥

☼ zip-a-dee-doo-dah ☼

do you remember when i won this giveaway?

well, that was the beginning of this

i had this made for my best friend,
♥ missy ♥
it was custom-made by amber from timeless treasures.
for more about her work and etsy shop, see my p.p.s. below.

zip-a-dee-doo-dah is missy's theme song.

even in the most trying times,

there's a fat little bluebird on her shoulder.

{thank you, sandi, for sharing your bluebird} 

missy is on her way to chicago tomorrow
to focus on healing & restoring her body.
~please~
beam her with love and prayers
and all the zip-a-dee-doo-dah you can muster.

♥

p.s.
for the history of zip-a-dee-doo-dah, look here.

p.p.s.
missy's necklace is the work of amber

from timeless treasures.

here are a few of the things that amber makes...

stamped mother's necklace

pearl leather wrap bracelet

stamped father's necklace

amber was so easy to work with.

she did an incredible job

and made missy's necklace just the way i wanted.

note:

for etsy custom orders,

the seller's contact button takes you to conversations,

where you can quickly & easily send messages {convos} back & forth

to come up with a design & a price you are both happy with.

with all of amber's fonts & finishes & metals,

the possibilities are limitless.

what would you stamp into sterling silver?

a special phrase to carry with you always?

the names of your children?

your wedding date?

a lucky number?

for my readers only,

she is offering 10% off when you mention my blog.

{thank you, amber!}

etsy favorite :: lucile's kitchen

lucile is an illustrator. 

she lives in paris, france.

her kitchen artwork is so lovely & inspiring.

{celine!  you will L♥Ve her paintings!}

stroll through her etsy shop here.

these are my favorites...

a french cake recipe no. 7 - les madeleines

limited edition print

olives and olive oil

limited edition print

winter vegetables

original painting

recipe for a love cake

limited edition print

eight pink pastries

original watercolor

cupcakes collection no.1

limited edition print

la soupe au pistou

limited edition print

green tea with mint

original watercolor

~ : ~ : ~ : ~ : ~ : ~ : ~ : ~

i want to sip tea and soup in luclie's kitchen.

♥

post edit:

adding this one for dawn.

i love it, too.

spicy chinese soup recipe

limited edition print

♥

emily's birthday :: show & tell :: 100th day

♥ happy birthday, emily! ♥

{we'll celebrate tomorrow when she is home}

~ : ~ : ~ : ~ : ~ : ~ : ~ : ~ : ~ : ~

this is pinecone

a lucky little show & tell hedgehog

~ : ~ : ~ : ~ : ~ : ~ : ~ : ~ : ~ : ~

today was the

100th day of school

i hope you are wearing your 100 glasses

and your necklace made of 100 froot loops

in honor of this amazing day.

ned was worried that the 100th day would be the last day.

relieved, he said,

"i'm so glad there's more school."

♥

: : : my wish : : :

it came true...

a few more wishes for my friends:

~a very happy birthday wish~

♥ for emily ♥

{and then my emily's birthday is tomorrow}

~a wish for good health~

♥ for dianne ♥

~a wish for good things~

♥ for rebecca ♥

~a wish for zip-a-dee-doo-dah~

♥ for missy ♥

♥

: : : snow : : :

there just has not been enough snow here.

i am envious of the giant snowstorms

in the midwest & on the east coast.

i haven't had enough winter.

as if to mock my unmet personal snow quota,

it was 60° here yesterday.

ugh.

today, though, the weather changed.

the kids left for school in sweatshirts {no coats},

but by mid morning,

the wind kicked up,

the temperature plummeted,

: : : and, thankfully, it snowed : : :

later this afternoon,

we even had some crazy-violent thunder blizzard.

{marian got caught outside in it & scared us both}

i am doing my level best to conjure more snow.

i read this book tonight

the boy in the story is a snow fan, like me.

the grownups attempt to dash his hopes

by saying things like, "it'll melt."

but he gets his snow.

i love the illustrations, and this is my favorite

that sky...  those rooftops...

c'mon, snow.

♥

WARNING: boring post about purse organization

i just thought you should know that
ahead of time.

in case you are looking for something more,
i don't know, jazzy... or funky,
look here and here.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

and now, my purse...

i have a little system, see?
my system is 3 zippered pouches.
different sizes,
different colors,
different stuff inside.
with them, i can find what i'm looking for.
they keep my purse orderly.
which, in turn,
keeps my brain orderly.
{less chaos ~ more peace}
they also make it easy to switch purses.

purple purse {side view}

purple purse {bird's-eye view}

{exhibit A}

the other stuff
planner, shopping bag, sunglasses, gloves, wet wipes

{exhibit B}

my system

the real reason for this post...
three zippered pouches: green, pink, blue

contents of zippered pouches

blue pouch: my phone

pink pouch: make up

lip gloss, perfume, hair things, nail clippers

green pouch: money

wallet, coupons, lists & pen, quarters

works for me.

what works for you?

♥