Tortilla Soup.

With the cold days here (finally!) all Jack and I have been talking about are soups, soups soups. There's something so comforting about them. They make you feel cozy and good and fuzzy inside.

I've made a couple of different ones in the crockpot before it got cold but this tortilla soup that I've made a few times now is so so good and so easy!

Here it goes!

What you'll need-

Chicken broth
Onion- half diced
Water
2 chicken breasts
1 can of black beans
1 can of corn
1 can of Rotel tomatoes with chilies or whichever brand you like

Put the  chicken breasts in the crockpot, add the diced onion and about 2 cups of the broth and one cup of water. Let that cook on low for about 6 hours or high for about 4 hours. Pull apart the chicken using two forks and add the black beans, corn, tomatoes and chilies. Let that simmer for 30 minutes.

I make tortilla chips by cutting them into strips, I coat them by tossing them in olive oil, spread them on a baking sheet and sprinkle a little cayenne pepper and put in the broiler for about 7-10 minutes or until crispy.

I add this to a bowl of the soup along with some avocado and cilantro. It's a super friendly recipe and the best part is that you let the crockpot do all the work for you! I got home yesterday to a house smelling so good and dinner was ready! What more can you want! If you're a SAHM, you can start cooking this in the morning and by the time your hubby is home dinner is ready. No hassle, no million pots to clean and no twenty ingredients to chop up. Those are things that I look for during the week!

Enjoy! :)

Weekend Recap.

Hope everyone had a great weekend! Jack is on Thanksgiving vacation (if there's such thing) and is off the entire week. I think that took pressure off of us and we had a great weekend. Thinking about the prepping and getting everything done early on Sunday night for the next week ahead is a little bit stressful and we had none of that!

We kicked off Friday with some Christmas decorating. Yes, Christmas, as in Christmas tree. We loved it! I had been buying ornaments and decorations for a while now and I can say that everything turned out pretty amazing. We are not done yet but I'm happy with where we are at so far. That gives me plenty of time to finish on time without rushing. Doing anything with a baby takes about twenty and a half days longer and I wasn't up for that. So early decorating it is. I still have the mantel and table along with other areas of the house left but those can wait until after Thanksgiving. At least I'm keeping a bit of the tradition going right?

I can say that Button was excited to be in the room with us helping and of course trying to get into everything he could. 

Yeah give mama a heart attack why don't you.

I had been eyeing these lit branches from Target for a while and finally got them on Saturday. I put them in a basket (they're battery operated- win!) with this owl and a cozy throw. It really makes the room look cozier. I'm thinking about getting some more to put around the house.

Jack even put these up on our bedroom door and I love them!



Saturday we made a yummy hot breakfast consisting of cheesy eggs and fries and Egg yolk, baked potato & cheese for this little one.



We also did our weekly grocery shopping and I squealed at the idea of putting Elliot in his coat and hat! Finally some winter gear worthy weather. Can you spot the bag of Doritos? ;)



It was time to take Elliot's ten month pictures and he was not having it. He hated the lights for some reason, I wanted him to hold them but he cried and cried when they were touching his feet or legs until I just put them around him, Jack made him laugh and I snapped away. This one was a fail.

If you follow me on Instagram (@shadiabrown) you saw that there was a win! 

Saturday night was spent drinking some beers with my brother and sister then came home to watch Home Alone 2. Fell asleep as soon as the Wet Bandits caught a glimpse of Kevin. Boo.

Sunday we stayed in all day long and the cold weather called for some chocolate muffins with coffee, movies and a yummy soup.

 I cannot wait for Thanksgiving and all the food I'm going to eat! And for more decorations!

Have a great week!

Perfect Winter Veggie & Meatball Soup.

With the colder days ahead of us and finally getting highs in the 70's (yes, that's cooler weather for us) I can't help but start thinking about some Winter recipes for soups. They're so comforting and delicious and what's better than throwing everything into a pot and letting it cook? This means more time with my little and hubby!

This recipe is my mom's and came out just like hers! I always tell her how no matter how much I try to copy all her steps, my cooking is never the same as hers, but this one was a success! It's light, easy to make, filling, healthy and so so good!

You'll need:

Ground turkey (1 pack feeds two and a half with leftovers for lunch-triple win)
Unseasoned bread crumbs
Broccoli
Carrot
Celery
Red potatoes (or regular if you want)
Cilantro
Tomato bouillon
Salt
Pepper
Garlic (minced)

To make the meatballs, put the ground turkey, salt, pepper, garlic and a little bit (about two tablespoons) of the bread crumbs in a bowl. Mix everything by hand and roll the meatballs. Start a pot with water and bring to a boil then add the meatballs. The meatballs give the soup a delicious flavor. When meatballs are about done, throw in potatoes (don't peel them, the skin is one of the best parts), carrot and celery. I wait until everything is almost done then throw in the broccoli, otherwise it overcooks and gets way too soft for my taste. Besides it looses its color! The red potatoes also cook rather quickly so be careful, you don't want mush in your soup. Add a little bit of the tomato bouillon and a little more salt if needed. Let it simmer until broccoli is a little bit cooked but still bright green. I added the cilantro last for flavor and also used some as garnish. It honestly doesn't need a lot of seasoning because all the veggies and the meatballs add a ton of flavor. Serve and enjoy!

It took me about half an hour of prep-time (Jack made the meatballs) and about 30-40 minutes of cooking time.

This is also a win because I cooked a meatball and veggies in a separate pot for Elliot since I didn't add any salt or spices to his, but the meatball already makes the soup taste so good! I took the veggies and meatball out when they were done, cut them super small, threw them back in the soup and he loved it! This saved me a ton of time (and ideas) to make him his own little meal. He's now eating what we eat and it's a great time saver.

Happy Hump Day!