Dinner Last Night: Korean BBQ Burrito

Do you read Pinch of Yum?  If not, do yourself a favor right now, and take a moment to bookmark Lindsay's food blog.  It's packed with recipe success stories; many of them crockpot, easy to execute, and delicious to devour.  These Korean BBQ Burritos were no exception.  We ate them twice last week, and I'm not one for repeating meals too often.  If you need further convincing, the meat slow roasts all day to gustatory perfection, and once you pack your tortilla full of rice, cilantro, kimchi, green onions, and Sriracha mayo - wowza that's one heck of a burrito!

Try them.  You won't be disappointed.  

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Quote of the Week

"What would you do if you weren't afraid?

~ Sheryl Sandburg

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Bath Bombs: Do or Don't?

Do you use bath bombs?  The bath bomb trend kind of exploded a few years ago with brick and mortar store fronts like Lush toting their brightly colored bath bombs available in all the colors of the rainbow.  While I don't take baths often, I do enjoy a leisurely soak after a hard workout or a long, exhausting day.  But then I wondered...what's actually in a bath bomb?  

Typically, it's a mix of fizzy ingredients, colorants, salts, sometimes essential oils, or surprises like bits of rose petals or glitter.  The reason it breaks down in water is the sodium bicarbonate in the bath bomb reacts with citric acid releasing carbon dioxide gas.  Very similar to what happens when you drop an Alka-Seltzer tablet in water.  Though it does make sense to be wary of bath bombs with colors you don't see in nature, or foreign items like glitter, sprinkles, or shimmer.  Colorants and these "surprises" can serve as skin irritants, especially if your skin is sensitive.

My go-to bath products are usually Dr. Teal's foaming bath with epsom salts in lavender or Young Living bath bombs in stress away (an essential oil blend that's a pleasing scent of lime, vanilla, and copaiba).  These products are both clean, fragrance-free, and straightforward with their ingredient lists - no additives, colorants, or artificial fragrances allowed.

Happy soaking!

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Cookbook Crush: Cravings Hungry For More // Dinner Last Night: Chicken and Dumplings

Do you follow Chrissy Teigen?  Sports illustrated model turned cookbook author, her debut cookbook came out in 2016 to rave reviews, and her sophomore cookbook, Cravings Hungry for More is just as appetizing.  I've always loved reading cookbooks cover to cover, and this one is an enjoyable read.  Teigen's personality resonates throughout, each recipe is marked by wry, witty, often self deprecating, and hilarious commentary.  Her food captions and blurbs alone indicate she doesn't take herself or fame too seriously, and I appreciate the blend of down home, kick back and nosh kind of recipes.

I I made her recipe for Chicken and Dumplings last week for dinner, and while my kids were extremely skeptical of dumplings in soup, my husband and I thought it was delicious.  The cookbook is organized by sections; breakfast, soups, sandwiches, dinner, snacks, Thai mom, and my personal favorite, "potatoes and their friends," a girl after my own heart.    

Recipes that had me salivating were the crispy buffalo smashies (potatoes), grilled eggplant with crispy shallots, jerk lamb chops with sweet + salty banana rice, coconut short rib curry, and of course, the everything bagel cream cheese breakfast bake.  If any recipe is going to make me return to dairy - pretty sure it will be that one.  This cookbook should be read with a knife and fork, because you'll want to dig right in!

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Quote of the Week

"Count my blessings like stars in the sky."

~ Bic Runga

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Let's Talk Lipstick

Let's talk lipstick, shall we?  Did you know that many makeup items contain heavy metals?  Do you know what the headliner of the heavy metals category is?  Lead.  Yes, lead.  Gulp.  Now, remember, companies are not intentionally adding heavy metals to makeup, but rather these are typically contaminants that are inadvertantly brought along with both mineral and synthetic ingredients used to give products color.

The FDA conducted a study of 400 lipsticks in 2007 for the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, which found small increments of lead in the majority of lipsticks tested.  The FDA also claims these are of minimal risk to people as lipstick is rarely swallowed.  Well...did you know, the average woman swallows seven pounds of lipstick in her lifetime?  SEVEN POUNDS!  

While there are some guidelines and restrictions limiting the use of lead in color additives used in cosmetics, there is no FDA limit defined for lead in cosmetics. Ultimately, this has been left to companies to create their own heavy metal standards which is terrifying, as many do not subscribe to safety as a #1 priority.

Okay, now that I've given you some facts - some good news.  There are companies that test all color products for heavy metals.  For example, during development, Beautycounter sends its cosmetic formulas to independent labs to test for 12 heavy metals.  They work with suppliers to do their best to avoid contaminants, and keep heavy metal levels at a non-detectable level - which is significantly more screening than most companies do.  Remember, there are no FDA restrictions on what the limit should be for ppm heavy metals in cosmetics at present. 

Some food for thought for the next time you're in the market for a lipstick.  This one is currently always in my purse.  

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Friday Fun

+ I've always been a fan of old-fashioned correspondence and this lovely article was simply the icing on the cake - there truly is power in writing and receiving thank you notes!

+ this family costume idea is genius!

+ don't think my kids would agree, but I think this side dish sounds delectable

+ hoping to make these little guys with my kids this weekend

+ might have to carve out some time to bake this even more perfect apple pie

+ these two guys doing a michael jackson cover on the cello is insanely good!

+ I have ambitions to incorporate this village into our Halloween decoration someday

+ did you read this cookbook?  interested in the new show based on the book

+ ever thought to style your fall outfits after seasonal molly moon ice cream flavors, I don't know about you but vegan plum crisp sounds pretty delightful!

have a great weekend!

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