Honey Lime Sweet Potato + Black Bean Tacos

Y'all, this is going to be the newest staple in our house. Holy moly it's good. I won't waste any of your time chatting because y'all have got to makes these...now.

Honey-Lime Sweet Potato, Black Bean and Corn Tacos

Recipe Source: Cooking Classy

Yield: About 5 - 6 servings

Ingredients 

1 1/2 lbs sweet potatoes, peeled if desired and diced into 1/2-inch cubes

4 Tbsp olive oil, divided

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp ground coriander

1/8 - 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Salt and freshly ground black pepper (I omitted the salt!)

1 small yellow onion, diced (1 cup) (Left this out because I didn't have an onion & didn't want to run to the store.)

1 clove garlic, minced

1 (14.5) oz can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 cup frozen yellow corn, thawed and drained (I'm not a big corn girl, so I substituted with 1 can of chick peas!)

3 Tbsp honey

3 Tbsp fresh lime juice

2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro (Didn't have any of this on hand either but will make sure I do for next time! YUM!)

Corn or flour tortillas

Desired toppings (See below for the his/hers options I created for Mark and me!)

 

Directions

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil then place sweet potatoes on foil. Drizzle with 3 Tbsp olive oil and toss to evenly coat. Sprinkle evenly with cumin, paprika, coriander, cayenne pepper and season lightly with salt and pepper to taste then toss to evenly coat. Bake in preheated oven 15 - 20 minutes until tender, removing from oven and tossing once halfway through baking.
• Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat remaining 1 Tbsp olive oil over medium-high heat. Once hot add onion and saute until caramelized (golden brown on edges and tender), about 5 - 6 minutes, adding in garlic during last 30 seconds of sauteing. Reduce heat to medium-low, add in drained black beans, corn, honey and lime juice. Heat until warmed through. Toss in roasted sweet potatoes and cilantro. Serve over warm tortillas with desired toppings.

His

Honey-lime sweet potatoes + black beans on flour tortillas

Cheese

Avocado

Sour Cream

HersHoney-lime sweet potato and black beans on mixed greensAvocadoChipotle Salsa1 tbsp chia seedsGoddess Dressing (from Trader Joe's)

There ya have it! I loved the sweet potatoes so much that anytime I make sweet potatoes, I want to follow this procedure in seasoning them! Can't wait to turn back to this recipe for years to come.

Cheers to healthy food!

 

Pop on over and visit Nina -- because what girl doesn't love flowers in her hair? :) 

In Fall We...A DIY with Your Family Traditions

 

I got a little crafty this past weekend. After drooling over this fall post from Charming in Charlotte, one of my fave blogs to read, I knew I wanted to create little something special in our home. I especially loved the personalized chalkboard with her family traditions that hangs in her foyer. It [clearly] inspired me to take on the same project. Cheers for the inspiration, Mallory!

Since the chalkboard in our kitchen is my meal-planning menu (and I am actually using it this week!), I dug up this old frame from the garage. No really...I found it by a trash can at Wrightsville Beach Park one day, so naturally I snagged it, stuffed it in my trunk, and waited for the perfect inspiration to get crafty with it.

Materials

Old frame (find one at a thrift store...or splurge on a new one at Michaels using a 40% off--or actually it's 50% this week!-- coupon!)

White posterboard/thick, white paper(if needed)
Scissors

Gold paint pen

Method

Cut poster board/paper to appropriate frame size.

Draft your doodles and ideas on scrap paper...start brainstorming!

In your best lettering, freehand your family traditions away. The more personal, the better!

Hang and enjoy. :)

 

I hung it in our teensy foyer. This space still needs lots of sprucing and attention (and is screaming for some flowers), but adding the frame helped merry up the empty wall effortlessly! I love walking by it multiple times a day everyday!

Now...what family traditions do y'all have in fall!? Do tell!

Pop on over and visit Nina -- because what girl doesn't love flowers in her hair? :) 

Happy Fall Bark

What is it about fall that makes my sweet tooth come out like whoa?! I saw the inspiration behind this recipe on Pinterest...and then found myself buying the necessary ingredients at Harris Teeter the next day.

Ingredients
1 package white chocolate bark/candy melts
Oreos
Candy Corn
Sprinkles (I used rainbow since I didn't have Halloween/fall colored ones!)
Anything else you want in your bark...pretzels, Reese's pieces, M&Ms...you decide!

Directions
1. Break apart Oreo cookies and spread across a baking tray.
2. Add candy corns. (I saved a few to put on top so not all of them would be covered in white chocolate!)
3. Melt bark according to instructions.
4. Using a spatula, spread melted bark on to the baking tray to desired thickness.
(Optional: add sprinkles/candy corn on top for more color!)
5. Cool in refrigerator until hardened. Use a knife to break apart into pieces.

It's that simple. It didn't take me more than 10 minutes to make. And I honestly didn't even look at a recipe since the method is pretty self-explanatory.

I kinda think it looks cute too. Such a fun treat.
But don't get me wrong. This stuff is dangerous.
So dangerous that I had to do this...

Yep. Owning it. I liked loved it so much that I had to give it away in fear of consuming the whole container to myself. Plus, Mark and his sales team deserved the Saturday work day sugar high pick me up, right? :)

P.S. In that note I was (obviously?) kidding about the healthy part. It's a fall treat. Mark texted me from work asking how it was healthy. I thought I was being funny...sigh. Oh well. #storyofmylife I tried!

Happy Fall [Bark], Y'all!

Pop on over and visit Nina -- because what girl doesn't love flowers in her hair? :) 

On Saying "No"

Via

Saying no. It's not as tough for me as it once was. I have to admit, I've become better at saying no without feeling guilty -- guarding time for my family. And this weekend was one of those weekends. Unfortunately, we missed out on some events that I know I would have absolutely adored attending. But sometimes you just have to listen to that little voice inside your head and and say no. 

We traveled to Charlotte last weekend and had the best time visiting our friends and family. And we have two more jam packed (full of fun, nonetheless!) weekends coming up. So instead of filling this past one too...we said "no." Even though I still hated missing out and wished I could be with friends of mine as I saw their gorgeous pictures pop up on Instagram (owning it!)...I know that "no" was still the right choice for us.

Via

This little quote has been floating its way around social media, and I love it. These words epitomize my day yesterday. Yesterday affirmed our choice to stay in town this weekend. It was a day full of peaceful productivity and quality family time.

To me, Sunday, October 4, 2014, was perfect.

We slept in (till 9:30!).

I made Mark a quick breakfast, and he headed to his soccer game.

I put dinner in the crock pot.

And went to Pure Barre.

Came home and meal planned.

And we watched the Panthers (which was a fabulous game to watch!) as a family.

Went on a quick, 2 mile family walk at halftime. 

Did laundry during the 2nd half of the game.

Took a bath.

Went to church. 

Signed up to attend Dave Ramsey class together on finances. 

Came home and ate dinner (that had been cooking all day!). And dessert.

And now here I am typing.

Next I'll probably make some tea, we'll watch a few episodes of The Office, and call it a day.

(Does anyone else watch the series of The Office and then start it all over again when it's over? We do.)

Obviously, yesterday was nothing novel or super eventful. And that was just what I needed. Though I will love and adore these next couple of weekends of joyous festivities and celebrations, this weekend, I just needed to say "no" and press "recharge" -- as a family. Because I want to be intentional about spending quality time together.

What about you? How do you set boundaries for your family? Do you struggle with saying "no?"

Pop on over and visit Nina -- because what girl doesn't love flowers in her hair? :)