Crispy Baked Kale Chips - A Healthy Snack!

If you are married (or living with your significant other), there is a great chance that you have trouble finding healthy snacks for them. If you are being honest, you know they sneak into the cookies (you know, the full pack of oreos you just bought... you find there is already only one left), they eat your baking supplies (like Hersheys kisses, baking chips etc), and potato chips are their favorite snack. Talking to some of my cousins and friends, I realize that I am not alone in this. They have to hide the Oreos, hide the baking supplies and set aside the chips that are suppose to go with the burgers for this Friday night! Let's be honest with each other ladies... we all know this is common.

When we started trying to conceive, I was looking up recipes, snacks and such that I could try and sneak in so my husbands ehhhummmm "trying to conceive parts" would stay healthy. I read that the more folate the better. Ok, what has folate? I kept coming across kale. kale kale kale. So what is kale?

Let's just say, that when most people look at kale, they are thinking... what am I suppose to do with this? It is very dense, comes in green or purple leaves and does not form a head like lettuce. I had never worked with kale before, and was very nervous! I came across kale chips all over the internet. Kale. Chips. "Ok," I thought.... "this could work". So I made them for my husband, hoping that this would replace potato chips and some of the other snacks, at least a portion of the time. He LOVES them. I mean LOVES. He actually asked me if I could just have the baked kale chips around all the time. I thought, "IT'S A MIRACLE!". It took me several trials and errors to figure out how to get them perfect.

So here is what you do.

• Grab your kale at the grocery store, in the produce section. Maybe start off with one bunch this time. 
• Preheat oven to 350
• Kale has a big stem in the middle of each leaf. Tear the leaves from the stem, and discard the stem.
• Lay out on a cookie sheet, and spray with olive oil cooking spray. Don't spray too much, or your kale will end up being soggy. Just lightly coat. Its ok if you don't get every piece of every leaf. You just want to coat enough for your salt to stick.
• Sprinkle with sea salt 
• Bake for about 12 minutes. I keep a close eye on them, as sometimes it just takes longer, and sometimes, its too long. I can't explain why, it just does. When they start to get crisp, take the sheet out of the oven, and touch them to see if they are crisp. What I have found, is that more times than not, there are a few that haven't gotten crisp like the rest, so I will take off the ones that are done, and put the ones that didn't quite get there, back in for a few minutes.
• I put in a large ziplock, but don't close it. When I have closed them in the past, they get soggy again. 

Your end result will look something like this:

Try it out. Like I said, my husband absolutely loves this. I have to do my part now, and keep them in this house as a healthy snack!

Enjoy!

Wonderful Wednesdays #17!

Brrrr! Baby it IS really cold outside! We had an eventful weekend. Well I should correct that and say that mother nature... she had an eventful weekend. We ended up getting what seemed to be 50inches of snow here. It started late Friday night, and kept going, and going and going, all the way through the middle of Sunday. It was a cold one, let me tell you, but supposedly, we will be getting close to 40 degrees later in the week! My husband will hate that! He wants snow at Christmas time (which I sort of understand).

Did you see the amazing Christmas Pins we were admiring this season? What about the AMAZING Candy Cane Cocktail we have been ummmm "sipping on"? The holiday season is almost over, and we are trying to do it all!

As always, we had some great link ups last week, and I think its as good a time as any to show some off!

Northern Cottage shared their soothing hot & cold packs. I love these ones especially! 

 Pickled Okra shared their adorable Ruffled Tunic, in which she gave us the pattern!

 House with the View, shared the Christmas decorations in their new home!

Now, onto the party! 

• Please follow Wonderful at Home on at least TWO of their networking sites (you can find them on the top of the page)
• Please put the Wonderful at Home button (found on my sidebar), or a link somewhere on your blog, post or "where I party" page in order to be featured. There is no limit to how many times a blog can be featured, so just keep linking up every week! Trust me, you will be thankful later! 
• Link up as many of your WONDERFUL posts as you would like, but please make it a post and not a general link to your blog. They can be crafts, DIY projects, tips, repurposing ideas, recipes, etc! 
• Visit at least TWO other link ups. Please - we are all here to support one another right!?
• HAVE FUN! 
• ** I will make EVERY effort to email the bloggers that are being featured, so that they are aware, and get to come see their feature first thing. Submitting your email at time of posting the link would be helpful. If you have any questions about privacy, please see my Privacy Policy If you are one of the ones featured, don't forget to grab the "I've been featured" button from my sidebar! 

Here we go! 

Our Favorite Pins #3 - Christmas edition!

If you know me at all, you know that I am obsessed with vintage Christmas. I spend hours looking at it in the antique mall where we have our booth, and I spend a little of my money buying it too! Today, I will share some of the wonderful vintage Christmas pins I have found while feeding my Pinterest addiction lately. Yes, before bed, while at the doctors office, and while watching our favorite Christmas movies, I feed that addiction. But its worth it when you get to look at beauties like these! I hope you enjoy them as much as I do! 

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(Source) - This pin didnt go anywhere. If anyone knows where it came from, I would love to know so I can source, and follow their site. It is beautiful! 

Merry Christmas all! 

Wonderful Wednesdays #16

Its beginning to almost BE Christmas! I cannot believe its two weeks away. This shortened Christmas season is for the birds! Two weeks before Christmas, I am usually done Christmas shopping, we have had our Christmas lights out for weeks, and have sent our Christmas cards! Not this year. I still have a ton of shopping to do, we just finished our outdoor Christmas lights and I am now considering not doing Christmas cards! Time is just flying too fast.

We have done a little baking though. A few pumpkin rolls, and some buckeyes. I am doing another round of the awesome Santa Hat Party mix this year, as that was a huge hit, and I hope to replace last years pics of it with some new better ones. We also made a killer Candy Cane cocktail, which got everyone in the festive mood!

We had a smaller turnout than normal for the linky party last week. May have something to do with the party going up late due to my husband needing the computer constantly lately, so I am putting up two features this week instead of the normal three.


Lost & Found shared their AWESOME farmhouse dresser.

Iris Abbey shared their great Chair redo. Love how this turned out!

Now, onto the party! 

• Please follow Wonderful at Home on at least TWO of their networking sites (you can find them on the top of the page)
• Please put the Wonderful at Home button (found on my sidebar), or a link somewhere on your blog, post or "where I party" page in order to be featured. There is no limit to how many times a blog can be featured, so just keep linking up every week! Trust me, you will be thankful later! 
• Link up as many of your WONDERFUL posts as you would like, but please make it a post and not a general link to your blog. They can be crafts, DIY projects, tips, repurposing ideas, recipes, etc! 
• Visit at least TWO other link ups. Please - we are all here to support one another right!?
• HAVE FUN! 
• ** I will make EVERY effort to email the bloggers that are being featured, so that they are aware, and get to come see their feature first thing. Submitting your email at time of posting the link would be helpful. If you have any questions about privacy, please see my Privacy Policy If you are one of the ones featured, don't forget to grab the "I've been featured" button from my sidebar! 

Here we go! 

The Ultimate Candy Cane Cocktail

This is not for the faint at heart.... This is a drink that can knock your socks off, and really get you in the festive mood! You will have to excuse my pictures.... making this drink was an off the cuff decision the night before Thanksgiving, so I pulled out my camera phone and shot us in action! 

Here is what you need:

• Half & Half
• Whipped Cream Vodka
• Peppermint Schnapps
• Mini candy canes (or big candy canes broken up)

This is simple - grab a pretty glass pitcher (because your guests will definitely want some!), and some pretty festive martini glasses. 

You will want to do equal parts of Half & Half, Whipped Cream Vodka and Peppermint Schnapps depending on how many people are joining in (again, you have to know that even if they say they don't want some, they will once they see you sipping on it!). If this makes you nervous, send me a message and I will guide you through it, but start with a cup of each and stir. Then you can decide if you want to make more!

WARNING: this drink is STRONG. I mean STRONG. I am not a big drinker, I enjoy a drink every once in a while, but if I have ONE of these, I am giggling. If I have two of these, it's possible I will spray mashed potatoes all over the kitchen when I am getting them ready for dinner :)

Adorn them with a candy cane and you are ready to go! Always drink responsibly. Make sure to have your designated driver, and enjoy ONE, or maybe two of these yummy cocktails! 

                                             

“It's a fine line between Saturday night and Sunday morning.” 
― Jimmy Buffett

Linked up at:

• The Scoop
• Savy Southern Style

Wonderful Wednesdays #15

How was everyone's Thanksgiving? Mine was FULL. Full of Family, full of food, full of it! I have been absent since that day, as my husband needed full control of the laptop through late last night, so I missed out on sending out some posts, and this one is late! I hope to get caught up soon!

Thanks to everyone who participated during the holiday week. We have some great features today!


New Mama Diaries shared her Hot Spiced Apple Cider. I think this will be the drink we make while hanging our Christmas lights!

Made in a Day shared their Easy Square Wreath - love it!

That's My Home shared their Hot Cocoa Chocolate Cupcakes. All I can say, is YUM!

Now, onto the party! 

• Please follow Wonderful at Home on at least TWO of their networking sites (you can find them on the top of the page)
• Please put the Wonderful at Home button (found on my sidebar), or a link somewhere on your blog, post or "where I party" page in order to be featured. There is no limit to how many times a blog can be featured, so just keep linking up every week! Trust me, you will be thankful later! 
• Link up as many of your WONDERFUL posts as you would like, but please make it a post and not a general link to your blog. They can be crafts, DIY projects, tips, repurposing ideas, recipes, etc! 
• Visit at least TWO other link ups. Please - we are all here to support one another right!?
• HAVE FUN! 
• ** I will make EVERY effort to email the bloggers that are being featured, so that they are aware, and get to come see their feature first thing. Submitting your email at time of posting the link would be helpful. If you have any questions about privacy, please see my Privacy Policy If you are one of the ones featured, don't forget to grab the "I've been featured" button from my sidebar! 

Here we go!