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My First Attempt at Making Black Bean Burgers

    A little while back, we decided to eat only vegetarian meals for a couple weeks, and one of the meals I made were Black Bean Burgers. I found the recipe over at Sally's Baking Addiction, and thought it seemed pretty straight forward so I gave it a try. Making the patties was easier than I expected, but didn't quite turn out how theirs looked. Still good though.. Something I will try again in the future!

 

 Ingredients Needed to Make Black Bean Burger Patties:

 

2 (14 ounce) cans of black beans
1 TBS Olive Oil
1/2 Bell Pepper Chopped
1/2 Large Onion Chopped
1 TBS Chopped Garlic (about 3 cloves)
1 1/2 tsp Ground Cumin
1 tsp Chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic Powder
1/4 tsp Smoked Paprika
1/2 Cup of Bread Crumbs
1/2 Cup of Feta Cheese (optional)
2 Large Eggs
1 TBS Worcestershire Sauce
2 TBS BBQ Sauce
A Pinch of Salt & Pepper

   To begin, you drain your beans, place them on a cookie sheet and bake in the oven at 325°F for about 15 minutes, to let the beans dry out. This helps give them patties some texture. While the beans are baking, saute the chopped peppers, onions, and garlic in some olive oil, until soft. Once soft, dump them into a food processor, or large bowl, and add in the rest of the ingredients, mixing well. Once combined, pour in the black beans and start mashing everything together. A nice batter should start developing, and your patties are ready to be formed! 

 

   Once patties are formed, place them on a greased cookie sheet and bake them in the oven at 375°F, 10 minutes per each side. It is said that you can grill these patties too, I'll have to try that next time! My patties came out more mushy than I wanted them to be, and seemed to take longer to cook, so next time I will do things a little differently, but overall the flavor was pretty good, they were easy to make, and I can see myself replacing meat burgers with these ones, easily! 

 

Encourage Your Kids to Clean with a DIY Cleaning Bottle

   

   A fun way to get your kids interested in helping clean, is to let them make their very own all purpose cleaning solution bottle! Take a spray bottle and cut a piece of paper to fit its size, give your kids some markets or crayons and let them create a "label" for their cleaning solution* bottle. I did this years ago with my son, and he really enjoyed it. He drew a photo of Deadpool and completed it with giving his bottle a brand, designing specific details, and even adding its own barcode. Once his art for the label was ready, we used clear packing tape across the entire thing, to keep it protected, and then some to tape the label on. It has withstood use after use, and I think it looks so cute too! 

   *For the all purpose cleaning solution, we made up a mix of vinegar, water, and essential oils. This is great for allowing your kids to clean their bathroom counters all on their own! Or anything else really. It encourages your little ones to keep things clean, and also teaches them how to do so! This is a fantastic project for any age! 

Sharing Advice for Feelings on Age

   If you're struggling with the thoughts and emotions of your age creeping up on you, this advice I came across is really helpful. I happened upon it through a forum and wanted to share because their message is so good, and really helpful to read on those days you're feeling down about getting older.

 "Feelings are one of those things… They’re not really good or bad, they just are. Reality is you’re not old. But it’s OK to sometimes feel that way. There’s stuff you can do - you’ll have more energy if you’re more fit. If you’re overly stressed look at your coping mechanisms and support networks. If you’re ignoring your spiritual health, I’d encourage you to find a good church (I find in my own faith that when I try to do everything by my own strength I fail). AND realize that feelings are affected by many things - the way you feel today is not necessarily the way you’ll feel tomorrow."

  The way you feel today is not the way you will feel tomorrow... True advice... Each day is a new day that we can start fresh and with a new mindset. So if you're feeling old, or just mentally worn down...don't. Take a nap, read a book, go for a walk, do something that makes you happy. Life is meant to be enjoyed, no matter what age your creeping up on. So go out, put on a smile, and enjoy your life!!!

Frying Tofu for Stirfry

     One of the ways we like to eat Tofu, is sliced and fried, and added into a Stirfry of veggies, to eat over noodles or rice. A quick trick to fry your tofu better, is to completely drain the water, slice the tofu into pieces, and toss it in Cornstarch for a better fry. 

 

 

   The pieces come out golden and beautiful. I then seasoned the pieces with Garlic Powder and Black Pepper, tossed them in Orange Sauce, and added them to sauteed veggies. We ate the mix stop of white rice. Makes for a delicious, easy, and healthy dinner! 

 

3 Ingredient DIY Body Powder

   If you rather know exactly what is in your baby powder/body powder, why not make your own? I tried my hand at this and found it to be extremely easy to do! 

 

   To make, you only need three ingredients: Baking Soda, Cornstarch, and Essential Oils of your choice for it to be scented. I chose Lavender Essential Oil for mine, because I wanted a relaxing scent. All you do is mix the powders together and add in drops of essential oil to your liking. Mix it all together and keep in a shaker bottle, ready for use. It's super easy and can be made in seconds! Follow the recipe below to make Easy DIY Body Powder:

1 Cup of Cornstarch

1/2 Cup of Baking Soda

15 Drops of Essential Oils

   Upon using, I found that the powder gets clumpy really fast, so after some research, I found that you can add uncooked rice to your shaker bottle, to help prevent the mix from clumping. I will try this next time and see if it helps! But this is a great way to make body powder in a pinch, and this way you know exactly what's going into it!

 

Quick Growing with Rapid Rooter Hydroponic Pods

Disclaimer: I received the following product(s) in exchange for my review. All opinions my own. 

 

   If you're trying to grow plants from their seed, I highly recommend purchasing Rapid Rooter Hydroponic Pods to aid your experience! These pods are fresh and ready to go, straight out of of the bag, all you need are the seeds and water to grow them with! 

 

 

 

     I planted pepper seeds in a handful of my pods, and had them sitting in a plate of water, waiting for them to take root and start growing.    

 

   I was amazed at how quickly the seeds started sprouting! They really do speed up the process, and also absorb water nicely so your plants stay hydrated longer. I did notice that if you over water, or they are in a certain environment, the pods may start to grow mold, but just keep watch and only water from the bottom as needed.

   

    Once they started taking root, I transferred each pod into the ground. It was so easy to do, and since they've been in the ground, the pepper plants have grown quite a bit more! These pods really give your plant a boost. The only problem I've noticed, is that there's a neighborhood bunny that appears to be attracted to these pods. I'm not sure why, but it keeps trying to dig them up. So if you can keep the bunnies away, you will have some nice healthy plants!

 

   This was my first time using Hydroponic Pods and I highly recommend. You can find them available for purchase on Amazon or in a store near you.

I received a complimentary product in exchange for an honest review. All opinions my own.  

 

 

Bodycology's Dark Cherry Orchid Perfume With A Little Nostalgia

   Did you ever use the perfume, Love Spell, by Victoria Secret? That was one of the top perfumes me and my friends used, back in middle school/high school!! It's been years since I've had that perfume, I don't even know if they still make it??? The other day, I came across Bodycology's Dark Cherry Orchid, and when I smelled it, I was so surprised! It smells almost exactly like Love Spell! And for a fraction of the price! I couldn't believe it. So I bought me a bottle, for old times sake, and I've been enjoying the scent. Probably one of my new favorites! 

   I found it in my local Fred Meyer for $4.59 a bottle, but Amazon currently has it for purchase, but it cost a bit more.

 

Simple Air Fryer Donuts from a Can of Biscuits

   Perfect for a quick summer treat, these easy to make Air Fryer Donuts take less time, without heating up your house in the process.

 

   Made from a can of biscuits, all you do is take each biscuit, sightly pat it to flatten a little, use a cutter to make a center hole, and place them into your greased air fryer.

 

   Set your Air Fryer to 360° and cook the donuts on each side for approximately 6 minutes, making sure they're cooking to a golden tint. Once done, allow them to cool on a cookie sheet and top them with your desired toppings; glaze, cinnamon sugar, powdered sugar, chocolate and sprinkles, ect.

   Enjoy! 

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