Tricks & Treats

Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays. As a dramatic little kid with an affinity for sweets, the reasons I loved Halloween were very obvious. Now that I'm an adult, I still love getting all dressed up and taking on a new persona for the night. And I've always been one to enjoy a good scare. Since moving to College Station, our Halloweens have been a little less eventful. Without a costume party to attend or Ryan and his buddies dressing up as some 4-piece music act, we have gotten fully involved in passing out candy to trick-or-treaters. This year we decorated the pathway up to our door in an attempt to create that spooky suspense I enjoyed as kid. Here's a view of our house from the street.

A ghoul averts the kiddos' attention to the corner...

...and the witch catches them off guard.

"Raaaaawwwr. Happy Halloween! Boo!"

Even the dogs got in on the fun in costumes that lived up to their nicknames. Olive was our jack-O-lantern, and Midgey Moo was a cow.

For being good sports, they got some treats of their own.

So that was our quiet but fun Halloween. I hope you enjoyed your holiday however you celebrated it.

Quick & Easy Taco Chili

This recipe gets made a lot more often than I'd like to admit at my house. It's just so easy and so darn good that I try to have everything but the meat on hand so I can quickly whip it together on a weeknight.
 

I created this recipe as a variation on the taco salad my mom used to make. She would put the bean and meat mixture over a salad then drizzle the sauce on top and toss it. You can do that if you'd like, but I've found mixing it all up in the skillet gives you more versatility and makes for better leftovers. You can still eat it on a taco salad, or you can use this chili as taco filling or topping for tostadas and nachos. You can put it on a baked potato or top it with cheese and crushed chips to enjoy it as a Mexican-flavored chili.

Servings: 6         WW Points+: 5 with lean turkey, 6 with lean beef

1.25 lb lean ground beef or turkey (I used turkey)

1 small onion, diced (optional)

1 15 oz. can Ranch Style beans (I buy the kind with jalapenos)

1 8 oz. can tomato sauce

1 pkg. reduced-sodium taco seasoning

Coat a large skillet with non-stick cooking spray. Saute onions over medium-high heat for about 2 minutes.  Add the meat and brown, breaking it up into small pieces with a fork. Drain off the fat. Reduce heat and add beans to the skillet without draining.

 

In a separate microwaveable container, mix the tomato sauce and taco seasoning and heat in the microwave for 25 seconds. Stir making sure the seasoning is thoroughly mixed through the sauce. Pour sauce over beans and meat and stir to combine.

Let simmer for a few minutes until mixture is heated through and slightly bubbly. Serve on tostadas, taco shells, salad or whatever else you can dream up. Shown below on a baked tostada with baby spinach blend, reduced fat shredded cheese, onion, grape tomatoes and reduced fat sour cream (additional Points+).

 

Rangers going all the way, baby!

Tonight is game 2 of the World Series match up between the Texas Rangers and the St. Louis Cardinals. Game 1 went to St. Louis 3-2 with a really stupid second out in the 9th inning for the Rangers. Hopefully tonight the Rangers can even the score and then come on back to Texas and dominate.

Ryan has been a Rangers fan for life, so their games have been on in our house quite a bit over the last few years. Although I grew up in Houston an Astros fan with a huge crush on Craig Biggio, I now consider myself a Rangers fan, too. With so many exciting and talented players (my favorites are Josh Hamilton, Nelly Cruz, Elivs Andrus and Ian Kinsler), how could I not enjoy watching them? I don't see anything wrong with it because: 1. the Astros and Rangers are in different leagues, 2. the Astros no longer play in the Astrodome or have any of the players I used to love on their roster, and 3. I was born in Ft. Worth and have a baby picture in a Rangers onesie, so I'm really just returning to my roots.

Last Saturday I attended my very first game at the Rangers Ballpark in Arlington (I saw the Rangers on the road in Minneapolis when we visited friends this summer). Ryan and I have been trying to be smart with our money, but sometimes you have to remember you only live once and splurge a little. It was game 6 of the ALCS Championship Series versus the Detroit Tigers. The Rangers recovered from an early Tigers lead with 9, that's right 9, runs in the 3rd inning. The crowd was electric, and when the confetti dropped the Rangers had clenched the title with a 15-5 final score. It was a very memorable experience and some quality road trip time for the two of us. I thought I'd close with a couple of pictures from the game and by saying GO RANGERS! My hubby will not be very fun to be around if they can't close the deal in this second World Series appearance ;)

 Get the fireworks and confetti going, the Rangers are headed to the World Series!

 Ry and me after a thrilling game.