If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you know that one of my favorite meal starters is a Mexican-type pork tenderloin, slow-cooked until tender then shredded.  So versatile for carnitas, soft tacos, quesadillas, enchiladas, casseroles, salads, chimichangas….you get the idea!  We’ve been down this path before, with the Cafe Rio Pork Salad and the Slow Cooker Pork Tacos.  Both of those were crockpot recipes, but this one cooks in the oven (though I suppose you could easily sub your crockpot!)  I see recipes like this frequently, but this one grabbed my attention because of the unique ingredient list which includes salsa verde, orange, and Mexican Beer.  We loved how flavorful this pork was!  I served with Cuban Black Beans and Rice  (recipe below!).  This was my first time making this type of black beans and rice, and I really liked how it complemented the pork.

Cuban Roast Pork

recipe from Foodie Tots

Ingredients:

• 3 to 4-pound pork shoulder (Picky Apple note: I used pork tenderloin)
• 1 yellow onion, sliced
• 1 blood orange, cut into eighths (Picky Apple note: I used regular oranges, peeled and sectioned)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• kosher salt
• pepper
• smoked paprika
• 2 bay leaves
• 8 ounces salsa verde
• 1 bottle Mexican beer (Picky Apple note: I used Negra Modelo)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Season pork generously with salt, pepper and a touch of smoked paprika and set aside. Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium high heat. Sear pork until browned, 4-5 minutes on each side. Spread onions around and under pork, and arrange orange slices around pan. Add bay leaves, salsa and the beer. Cover and cook in oven for 2 hours. Remove lid and cook 1 hour more, until pork falls apart when prodded with a fork.

Remove from oven and let rest 10 minutes. Cut out excess fat, and slice a portion for the first night. Serve with rice, black beans, fresh cilantro and additional orange slices.

Cuban Black Beans and Rice

recipe adapted from Allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

The Sickness (with a capital S) has hit our house.  The Littlest Apple was well enough to go back to preschool today, but we’ve all been doing a lot of this the last few days….

Don’t you just love a sweet sleeping child photo?  I think I only have about 2 other photos of The Littlest Apple sleeping…ever.  Very telling indeed.

It’s the end of the day.  The Littlest Apple is in bed, asleep at last.  I’ve got the dishes in the dishwasher, the counters and tables wiped down, the clutter cleared and the toys picked up and put away.  I’m finally able to check off the last of my Cleaning Calendar tasks for the day.  The house is at its best now, peaceful and tidy.

Until tomorrow morning.

Then the dishes will get dirty again.  Three more meals will be prepared and dishes will be used.  Beds will be slept in.  Toys will be played with all over the house.

Over and over again, day in day out.

But you know what I’ve learned?

It’s the daily acts of maintenance that truly matter.

Yes, the before and after images of room makeovers, decluttering projects, and organizing a closet have the big “wow” factor.  And yes, cleaning out your closet or working on a room makeover can be invigorating and energizing.  Don’t get me wrong, I love a good room makeover, and sometimes that’s just what you need.  In fact, I’m in the middle of painting and sprucing up our entire downstairs!

But don’t forget that it is the patient acts of maintaining those spaces that truly make a difference in your home.

Doing the dishes and wiping down the counters?  Boring.  Mundane.  No jaw dropping before and after photos.

Yet these small daily cleaning tasks make the biggest difference overall.  These acts of maintenance require patience and perseverance.  The reality of maintenance is that you’re probably going to have to do it over and over and over again.

It is these repetitive tasks-unloading and loading the dishwasher, picking up the toys, straightening the pillows on the couch- more than anything else that create a peaceful (and CLEAN!) home.

Just a little something to think about as you’re wiping down the kitchen counters….again.

We needed a green vegetable side dish to go with some chicken I prepared earlier this week, and The Picky Apple requested asparagus.  I almost always roast asparagus with a drizzle of olive oil, but this week I decided to switch things up.  This week, I sauteed my asparagus.  This was SO easy, and I can’t believe I haven’t done this before.  It was quick and I loved it even more than roasted asparagus!

Sauteed Asparagus

Ingredients:

• 1 bunch of asparagus, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• salt and pepper

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add garlic and asparagus.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Sautee, stirring frequently, until asparagus is bright green and tender.  (Note: I cooked mine a little too long, as you can tell from the photo!)

What’s your favorite way to prepare asparagus?  What’s your favorite green vegetable?

It’s been a while since I shared a sensory bin, and I’ve got quite a few sensory bin ideas swirling around in my head that I plan to put to use in the next few months.  However, I’ve been drawing a blank for Valentine’s Day!  So I took last year’s bin….

and added a few new items.

This year’s Valentine’s sensory bin contains:

• lima beans
• crystal pink and red hearts (vase filler type things)
• plastic heart containers
• rose petals (new)
• felt roses (new)
• varying sizes of red glitter hearts (new)
• small wooden pink and red hearts (new)

I could probably just set out a bin full of beans and The Littlest Apple would be content, but I can tell he was excited by all the “pretty” stuff too.

I’m going to make this quick so I can go to bed early tonight!

This is a cute little squirrel craft that The Littlest Apple and I did together yesterday as part of the Titmouse Club with the Houston Audobon Society.  (A HUGE thanks to Tanya for recommending this weekly nature program to me after my Arboretum post!)

So, the idea was obviously not mine, but I thought this was such a cute craft!  We covered the squirrel cutout in glue (painted on with a sponge brush), then sprinkled coffee grounds on the squirrel body.  The tail is made of shredded wheat (which The Littlest Apple was too impatient to crumble up).  Then we added a googly eye and a pom pom nose, and that’s it!  The Littlest Apple really enjoyed the sensory experience of the coffee grounds and the crumbly shredded wheat.

The Littlest Apple (and I) learned so much about squirrels with the nice docents from the Houston Audobon Society.  We learned that squirrels are rodents, just like mice and beavers, and that they have to chew on stuff to keep their teeth from growing too long.  We also learned about several different varieties of squirrels (including the flying squirrel) and that squirrels go down trees head first using their sharp claws to grip the trees.  We sang several squirrel songs, saw a squirrel skull, used a magnifying glass to look at various nuts that squirrels eat.  And then after we completed the craft, we went on a nature hike to look for squirrels and their nests.  It was such a neat class, and I’m looking forward to returning again next week.

We have a new favorite chili chez Apple!  While I still love the All-American Beef Chili recipe, The Picky Apple and I both love this one even more.  It’s a little easier to make (shorter ingredient list, shorter cooking time), which is a great bonus!  I’m still on the hunt for a true Texas chili recipe-one that doesn’t have beans in it, but for now, this is our new go-to chili recipe.  This chili tastes great plain, but I love mine with cheese (lots of it, as you can see from the photo!), sour cream, and a side of corn bread.

Foggy Day Chili

from Food to Live By

Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, cut into 1/4 inch dice
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 can (15 ounces) black beans, undrained
• 1 can (15 ounces) pinto beans, undrained
• 1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes, with their juices
• 1 teaspoon salt or more to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Dried red pepper flakes (optional, but I included about 1/2 teaspoon)

Heat the oil in a large, heavy pot over medium-low heat.  Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes.  Add the garlic and cook until the onion and garlic are soft but not browned, about 1 minute longer. Add the beef, and break up the meat with a wooden spoon.

Increase the heat to medium-high and add the cumin, chili powder, and oregano.  Cook, stirring frequently, until the meat is browned and cooked through, about 7 minutes.

Add the black beans, pinto beans, and tomatoes, with their liquids, and bringing the chili to a boil.  Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and let the chili simmer, gently stirring occasionally until thickened and the flavors are concentrated, about 45 minutes.

Add the salt, then taste for seasoning, adding more salt as needed and black pepper and red pepper flakes, if using, to taste.  Serve the chili hot with bowls of grated cheese and sour cream on the side, for garnish, if desired, and corn bread.

If you are not planning on serving the chili at this time, let it cool to room temperature.  It can be refrigerated, covered, for up the 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months.

Even though it was raining, I was bound and determined to grill these kebabs today, and I’m so glad we did!  These flavorful kebabs remind of one of my favorite dishes from Pappasitos Cantina.  The marinade is simple enough, but the lime-cayenne butter (also simple to make!) takes these kebabs to the next level.  The next time I make these, I might put all of the chicken together and all of the veggies together to grill (as recommended by Alton Brown).  I’d also recommend making another little batch of that delicious Lime Cayenne Butter for serving.

Caribbean Chicken Kebabs with Lime-Cayenne Butter

from Coastal Living

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup orange juice
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 sweet onion, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
• 2 orange or red bell peppers, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 pineapple, cubed
• 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes
• Lime-Cayenne Butter (recipe below)

Combine first 4 ingredients in a shallow dish or large plastic zip-top bag.  Add chicken and onion, stirring to cover.  Refrigerate 3 to 6 hours.

Drain chicken and onion; discard marinade.  Thread chicken, onion, and next 3 ingredients on 10 to 12 (10-inch) skewer.  Brush with Lime-Cayenne Butter.

Grill over medium heat (325-350 degrees F) for 8 to 10 minutes or until chicken is cooked through, turning and basting several times with Lime-Cayenne Butter.  Makes 4 servings.

Lime-Cayenne Butter

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt

Melt butter and stir in remaining ingredients.

“There’s no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes.”

That’s my new motto.  The quote above has inspired me to stop making excuses and just get outside with The Littlest Apple, no matter what the weather!  The Littlest Apple LOVES being outdoors and I’ve come to realize that daily outdoor time is CRUCIAL for him.  And even though I am allergic to the great outdoors (most of it anyway) and perfectly content to putter around the house all day, I’m trying to foster The Littlest Apple’s love for nature.

If there was a Nature Based Preschool in our area, I would enroll The Littlest Apple in a heartbeat.  Since there isn’t, The Littlest Apple is enrolled in a Gardening elective at his preschool (which I love!) once a week.  On our days together when The Littlest Apple is not in school, we are going to start exploring nature in our area in new ways!  No, we don’t live near the mountains, and Houston isn’t exactly known as a hotspot for nature lovers and outdoorsy activities, like say, Colorado is.  But there are some great parks in our area that I’ve never even visited.

This week we went to the Houston Arboretum for the first time.  I’ve been wanting to check it out, and even though it was 36 degrees outside, we did it!  Remember, there’s no such thing as bad weather!  We were dressed for the cold, and had a lovely trek through the woods in the middle of the city.

The Arboretum really gives you the feeling that you are deep in the woods, even though it is in the middle of Houston.  The Arboretum is a 155 acre nature sanctuary with over 5 miles of nature trails.  There is also a hands on Discovery Room just for kids.  (I do find it ironic that even though we live in the suburbs, not far from the “country”, we have to drive IN to the city to find anything like this!)

Because we were the only crazies exploring in the 36 degree weather, we had the trail entirely to ourselves.

It was peaceful and invigorating all at the same time.  I’m already looking forward to going back next week!

And here’s The Littlest Apple pouting for the camera (all photos taken with my new-to-me iPhone).  All of a sudden he does NOT like to pose for pictures, so that’s why most of the shots are of his back!

How do YOU foster a love of nature in your kids?  Do you have any cool trails or parks near you?  Do any of you Houston-area locals know of any other places we should check out?

It’s already 13 days in to the New Year, can you believe it?!  I’m making baby steps in my CLEAN journey, and I plan to share some of what I’m doing to CLEAN in weekly or biweekly posts. Today I wanted to focus on what I’m doing to create a CLEAN Home.  I’m very much a routine and “system” oriented person, but I’ve had trouble finding a cleaning routine that has worked for me.  So I decided to create my own, consisting of Daily, Weekly, and less frequent Zone routines.

Dailies

Remember my list of Dailies?  Those are the things I need to clean each and every day.  Well, I’ve revisited that list and simplified it a bit.  Here are my current dailies:

• Dishes
• Spot Sweep
• Make beds
• Clutter Control
• Laundry
• Wipe surfaces

I’m more or less staying on top of these.  I’m particularly proud of how clean I’ve been keeping the kitchen on a daily basis.  I know most or many people already do this, but it was something I struggled with!

Weekly

My Weekly routines include the things that are done once or twice a week:

• Menu Planning
• Grocery shopping
• Change sheet and towels
• Vacuum (2x a week)
• Sweep
• Mop
• Dust (2x a week)
• Clean bathrooms
• Clean kitchen
• Throw out old stuff

Instead of trying to do all of these on one day, I’ve spread this list out over my week in a way that works best for my schedule.

You’ll note that I’m vacuuming and dusting twice a week now, due to my severe dust mite allergy. (I probably should be doing this daily or every other day, but that just isn’t going to happen…not yet anyway!)  I just ordered a new vacuum (highly ranked by Consumer Reports), and I’m looking forward to using it!

The Picky Apple asked why I included Menu Planning and Grocery Shopping on my list of cleaning tasks.  Well, I feel like those are a vital part of household maintenance (and yes, I realize this argument could be made for other things as well, like bill paying and budgeting), and they take up a big chunk of time on the days I do them.

Zones, Deep Cleaning and Decluttering

Lastly are the Zones for deep cleaning.  A concept used by FlyLady and others, but I’ve adapted this to suit my needs and my home.  My zones are:

1. Entry/Hall Closet/Dining Room/Living Room (I realize that’s quite a bit for one Zone, but the Entry is small, the Dining Room mainly sits unused and empty.  It’s the Hall Closet and Living Room that will be the focus here!)
2. Kitchen
3. Loft/Playroom/Office (all upstairs)
4. Bathroom Zone: Powder Room/Master Bath/Finn’s Bath
5. Bedroom Zone: Master Bedroom/Finn’s Bedroom (I realize some of you may have more bedrooms than us.  We’ve got 4 but currently using 1 for the playroom and 1 for the office!)

I’ve seen the deep cleaning done in several different ways.  Some jump from room to room in the same day (for instance, clean the toaster, declutter the bathroom sinks, clean the top of the washer).  But once I get in a room, I want to focus on THAT room for a while, so each week my deep cleaning will be focused on a particular zone.  Many systems also tend to declutter a room first then clean.  And while I wholeheartedly agree that you can’t clean clutter, I’ve mixed in a little of both based on the things that are bothering me most about each room at the moment.

Right now I’m keeping  Zone work to 30 minutes or less, 3-4 times a week.  As much as I need to do some serious deep cleaning and decluttering in certain rooms like the office and hall closet, I’m easing my way in to this.  I’ll add more as I get a better grip on the routines themselves and have a better feel for long each task on my Master Cleaning List actually takes (I’ll share that another time).  For now, I’ll be completing one or 2 Zone tasks on days when The Littlest Apple is in school or with the grandparents.

Cleaning Calendar for January

I thought I’d go ahead and share my cleaning calendar for the rest of January.  I LOVE To Do Lists and love the feeling of crossing things off as I complete them.  Several things to keep in mind….I’ve got a decent handle on my Dailies at this point.  I get most of the Weeklies done, but up until recently it’s been as needed, not on specific days (for example, “Ew!  This towel is STINKY!  Probably time to wash towels again!”).  Zone work is going to take some getting used to.  Right now it is all about forming good habits!

So that’s just a little sneak peek into how I keep a CLEAN Home!  But don’t be fooled for a second into thinking that my home is spotless.  Far from it!  Right now the counters are cluttered, there is apple juice on the floor, and toys all over the living room floor and clothes in the dryer that need to be put away.  (It’s been one of those days!)  BUT those things will all be taken care of at some point this evening so I can start tomorrow morning off right!

Now I’m interested in some feedback from you….I’ve got plans to share more details about how I clean, products I use for cleaning, and cleaning resources.  This is NOT going to become a cleaning blog, but it will be the focus of a few posts this year as I CLEAN in 2011.  What would you like to hear about from me?  Any questions?