Happy Thanksgiving!

Good morning! I hope everyone's having a good start to their Thanksgiving Day. I definitely can't wait to see how this day turns out. It never fails, there always has to be someone who ruins it for everyone else, BUT I'm going to stay positive and enjoy this day.

Yesterday, my mom and I had fun prepping up everything:

-Turkey's ready to go
-Pies are done (1 no bake pumpkin pie and 2 baked pumpkin pies)
-Table is set

Hubby cooked some greens last night.....and it is delicious! The apartment smelled so good and it tastes good, too, so I'm hoping everyone likes it.

Today I have to do some last minute things:

-Make a salad
-Make the dressing

My older sister was going to come over with my nieces, but they're sick, so that's a bummer. I'm hoping they get better soon.

I'm just thankful that my mom has all that energy in her to prep the turkey and cook everything today. Hopefully I can get her to stop and let us, her kids, do the cleaning. Let's see how that turns out.

Have a great day!

Angelica

What's up my peeps?!!!

LOL...I hope everyone's doing good. I seem to be falling behind on my posts, but its been a neverending roller coaster here at la casa de Crocheted Cookies. So to give you guys a quick recap, here goes.

In late September I was working at a manufacturing company, temp job, which was good because I needed the money, but it was bad on my health. Getting up at 3AM is something I'm not use to and by the time I got home and made dinner, I wound up getting 3-4 hours of sleep. My allergies were kicking my butt, because the warehouse was so dusty, and that also contributed to the lack of sleep. I was experiencing everything from stuffy nose, running nose, sneezing, etc. It was horrible : (

In the end, the company had to let me go because of my attendance, which by the way I'm not the type to go to work late or miss out on a lot of days. But let me tell you that days after being let go I was starting to feel a lot better, health wise. It's been a little difficult starting from square one all over again. I'm always praying for doors to start opening up, because I could use it right about now.

For now I'm going to try to work on organizing the blog, that way I can post more often, so bear with me as I'm going through these ups and downs. This blog means a lot to me and I want to be able to share recipes, give you a little glance as to what's going on in my world, and also get to know people in the blog world. So here's to starting a new chapter, if I can call it that : )

Take care!
Angelica

When one door closes, another one opens up.

Hey guys! How's everything going? Sorry I've been MIA, but Monday and Tuesday were busy days for me. I spent both days visiting temp agencies, so by the time I was done I was exhausted. But the good news is that I start a temp position on Monday....at 6am! So this ought to be interesting.

Well, I can't forget about my little getting to know me from A-Z, so today I'm doing letters C, D, and E. Enjoy!!!

C

Chicago: Born and raised. It will always be home.
Coffee: I've been drinking it since I was a teenager and I love it! One cup every morning makes me a happy girl :)
Cooking: My mom taught me how to cook when, I don't know, I was 12 or 13 and I thank her sooo much for doing that. It's something I love doing and I love sharing ideas with her or my sister.
Christmas: Who doesn't love it???? Decorating the tree and the windows, the music, hot cocoa....it makes me feel like a kid all over again.
Crocheting: This is another thing my mom taught me. I always have fun making stuff, whether it's hats, scarves, or gloves...I just love it!
Cheesecake: Yum!
Chipotle: The burrito bowl is my favorite!
Cats: I just love them.

D
Dunkin Donuts
Dogs: As you can see, I love both cats and dogs, but it's only because I grew up having both as pets.

E
Can't think of anything at the moment. If I do, then I'll write something down.

I hope everyone's having a great evening. I'm going to start making dinner and then relax. So I'll talk to you later.

Angelica

Chicken Fajitas

Hope everyone had an awesome Labor Day weekend! Ours wasn't that bad, except that it would've been fun if everyone pitched in when it came to grilling/cooking/bringing the food. I'm the type who loves to plan things out, only because it makes things run smoothly. Plus I don't like waiting until the last minute, which is what happened on Monday. My brother and his girlfriend waited until Sunday to buy the food they were going to cook, even though they said they were going to buy everything on Friday. So that resulted in us having to wait until Monday to buy our half of the groceries.

The plan was to take turns grilling the food, which everyone agreed on doing, but it ended up being us (Hubby and I) cooking EVERY THING. I didn't want my mom doing anything, I just wanted her to relax, but she didn't...lol! Everyone ate, we talked, and laughed, but when it came down to cleaning up the mess my brother and his gf went to their rooms (they live with my mom), so Hubby and I got stuck cleaning up. I mean, seriously??!!! That really upset me, because I wanted to give my mom a day off from doing the cooking and the cleaning, but that didn't happen. I'm just glad that day is over.

So yesterday I ended up making something quick and easy, which happened to be a repeat from last week. I cooked some chicken fajitas, minus the rice, but it was still good : ) Hubby works late on Tuesday and Wednesdays, so I try to cook something quick, only because I don't like eating real late.

Chicken Fajitas
Source: Food Network

1/4 cup vegetable oil, divided
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
Dash hot sauce
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 pounds meat (I used boneless, skinless chicken breast)
2 medium onion, halved and sliced lengthwise
1 green bell pepper, sliced
*1 red bell pepper, sliced
8 (8-inch) flour tortillas
*1 lime, juiced, for topping
Sour cream, for topping
*Salsa, for topping
*Guacamole, for topping
*Cheddar cheese, shredded, for topping

* = I didn't use these ingredients

1. Using your favorite skillet or nonstick pan, add the veggie oil and lemon juice, and let it simmer for a little. Add the chicken and cook that for about 15-20 minutes. Add the garlic, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, and hot sauce. 

2. Slice the bell pepper and onions, and add that to the chicken, along with some salt and black pepper. Continue cooking until the chicken is cooked all the way through.

3. Wrap the tortillas in a paper towel and warm them in the microwave for about 1 minute. Once the tortillas are warm you are ready to eat!

4. I topped my fajitas with sour cream, which was enough for me, but you can top it with anything. 

Now, with this recipe I made a few changes, only because I wanted to cook something that was quick and easy. I didn't marinate the chicken, I just threw everything in the pot and it was still delicious. If you click on the link you'll see that steak or shrimp can be used instead of chicken. So I hope you enjoy!

Angelica

Hi everyone!

This has been a busy week. I was at my mom's earlier this week, doing laundry and taking her to a doctor's appointment, she's doing well and everything looks good. On top of that I've been making dinner really late (not good!), so by the time I sat down on the sofa to watch tv I was ready to go to bed.

My job hunt is still the same. I took last week off from looking for work because when I start looking I don't stop, and sometimes that can be stressful. So, I started the hunt yesterday. Pray that I get a phone call or an email.

I can't believe today's the last day of August!!! All I've been thinking about is Autumn, tea, hot cocoa, soup...you name it! I LOVE Fall, it's my favorite season. It also makes me think about crocheting. During the summer I'll crochet something here and there, but it's really uncomfortable, so I tend to wait until it's chilly outside. I guess you can say that Fall kind of inspires me a little, so I'm definitely looking forward to making some things (fingerless gloves, scarves, hats, etc.). Do you guys have any hobbies? What are they (crocheting, knitting, making jewelry)?

Now to the good part: dinner! Here's what we ate this week, and let me tell ya, these were some delicious dishes and I'm definitely making them again, especially the Bourbon Chicken.

-Monday: Chicken fajitas with rice (recipe coming soon)
-Tuesday: Chicken stir fry
-Wednesday: we ate out
-Thursday: Bourbon Chicken with rice (recipe coming soon)

Did you guys notice that everything I've cooked this week had one common ingredient? I actually meant to do that. I felt that chicken wasn't going to be too expensive, plus I already had a menu set up that called for a lot of chicken, so there was no backing out. Another thing is that I've been really grateful to have a mom who's been helping us out a lot. She'll either buy us groceries or she'll make dinner and save us some leftovers, so on Tuesday she actually bought us some frozen chicken stir fry. All I did was add more chicken and stir fry veggies. Today I think we're going to have some catfish. How am I going to prepare it? I'm not sure. I usually bake my fish, which is always good, but we'll see what Hubby's in the mood for.

I hope all of you guys have a safe Labor Day weekend. We're probably going to head to my mom's and bbq, that's if it doesn't rain on Monday...lol. Take care!

Angelica

Recap pt. 2

Sorry for the long blog hiatus, but this last month has been an emotional roller coaster for me. Now don't get me wrong, I want this blog to be about my love for cooking, baking, trying different things and visiting new places, but I also want it to be a place where I can share my thoughts. So here goes.

A year and a half ago I was laid off from my temp job. The place I was working at was the same place I worked at for four years as a student worker. I thought that having stability, good reviews, and the recommendations would've helped me land a full time job, but that didn't happen. Unemployment benefits ended last month and let me tell you, when I found out that I couldn't keep collecting unemployment I was devastated. I was so nervous because I didn't know how my fiance was going to take it (he has a full time job, but what I was getting helped us out a little). All I thought about was how were we going to pay the bills and if we were going to have enough money to buy groceries. Sometimes I just want to give up, because looking for a job has been difficult and it has been stressing me out!

On top of that, I found out that I had PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome). All the research I did on PCOS scares me a little. I mean, how many more obstacles am I going to face??? All I want to do is scream and cry!

BUT on the bright side we started going to bible study. We met new people and we're getting to know more every week, which is a good thing. It's not something I'm use to doing, but it's been helping me get closer to God and build a stronger, loving relationship with Him.

I know God has something good in store for me, and even though I can be impatient I have to learn how to trust Him and understand that things happen for a reason.

Angelica

Recap!

It's been a while since I last posted something, so let me update you guys on what's been going on here at Crocheted Cookies. Last week was a good and not so good 4th of July week:

- Our car wasn't working all week, so my fiance was taking the bus to work, which isn't bad because his job isn't far from where we live.

- I was sick on the 4th, so we stayed in and made it a movie day. We watched Transformers 3, Kung Fu Panda 2, Man on Fire and Drive. The last movie was a little weird, especially with how it ended. On top of that my fiance's cousins were in town visiting, so we had to tweak our plans a little bit.

- The weather was bad, it was in the 100's for almost 3 days, but we got to spend some time with the cousins on Thursday. Even though we didn't have a car we still hopped on the bus/train to go see them.

- On Friday we finally were able to get a hold of a tow truck to take the car to a shop. What we thought was a problem with the starter turned out to be the battery! So a new battery was bought and everything was good after that. We took the cousins out for drinks, so our night wasn't bad.

- On Saturday my fiance and I got ready to head out to see the cousins, so we spent the whole day hanging out, eating, taking pictures, talking, laughing....it was a good day. The best thing is that it wasn't in the 100's that day, it actually cooled down! I was bummed out because we had several things planned out for them, but I'm hoping they come back so that they can go see Chicago and do some shopping and eat at some of the cool places we like to go to.

So, that was my good and not so good 4th of July week, but we got to relax all day Sunday and we did a some grocery shopping, which was good. I got to see my mom this week, which was also good.

I hope everyone had an awesome 4th of July! I hope that next year's 4th will be a good one for me, so we'll see. Enjoy your weekend!!!

Angelica

Melting Moments Cookies

Hi everyone!

Last week I mentioned that I baked some cookies and let me tell ya these cookies are yummy! My mom always made them because they were so easy to make. The recipe doesn't call for a lot of ingredients, so if you're looking for something quick and easy to bake definitely give these cookies a try.

My mom got the recipe off the back of an Argo cornstarch box and I got the recipe from her. The only difference is that I add peanut butter (about 1/2 a cup) to mine.

Melting Moments

Yield:  3 dozen cookies


1 cup flour
1/2 cup Argo Cornstarch
1/2 cup powdered sugar
3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter OR margarine, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Combine flour, corn starch and powdered sugar in medium bowl; set aside.

2. Beat butter in large bowl with mixer at medium speed until smooth. Add flour mixture and vanilla; beat until well blended. (If necessary, refrigerate dough 30 minutes to 1 hour or until easy to handle.)

3. Preheat oven to 350°F. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets; flatten slightly with floured fork.

4. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Remove; cool completely on wire racks. Store in a tightly covered container.

I hope you enjoy these cookies and let me know how they turn out.

Angelica

Feeling hot, hot, hot

I could really go for one of these right about now.

Today was a HOT day. I mean really hot. It actually went up to the 100's, but luckily hubby and I bought an A/C yesterday. So that baby's been on all day and doing a good job, so far. I prefer to eat fruit salads, popsicles, ice cream...you name it, just so that I don't have to cook tonight.

I hope everyone's doing fine and staying cool.

Angelica

Brainstorming

Today was a laid back kind of day. My morning started with a cup of coffee, which always helps, no matter how hot the day is. The weather today was beautiful, because it was in the 70's and breezy, which I love!

I spent most of the day visiting my favorite blogs and trying to catch up, so it's good to see that everyone's doing good. I also caught up with some of my favorite Food Network/Cooking Channel shows....love Giada De Laurentiis! What are some of your favorite cooking shows?

I decided to take advantage of the weather and bake some cookies this afternoon. I can never bake when it's 80+ degrees outside, especially when we don't have an A/C (we'll be buying one soon, hopefully). I'm trying to use what we have in our pantry/fridge without spending money on stuff that we don't really need, and that's where the cookies came to mind. I've also been working on menus for the week and the past two weeks worked out, but I'm stumped on what to cook this week. So I'm hoping I can come up with something : ) What are your favorite cookies, store bought or homemade, and what kind?

Dinner tonight will be arroz con gandules y pollo (rice with green pigeon peas and chicken) along with a salad. Those are some items I had in the pantry and freezer. So, one day down, four more to go.

I hope everyone's having a great evening and I'll talk to you soon! Take care!!!

Angelica

Gotta love allergy season!

Yesterday started off on the right foot. I made breakfast, I made my cup of coffee, I was so excited to work on my blog, and then the landscaping crew shows up....duhn duhn duhn. They start trimming the bushes, cutting the grass, and that's when the sneezing began. I spent the whole day sneezing my head off, it was horrible! Every time the landscaping crew shows up my allergies go crazy : ( So I decided to take a break from blogging and I gave Pinterest a little visit. Well, not little, more like the whole day...lol. I'm telling you, it can be very addicting. I actually had more fun looking at the crafting/DIY boards and I found some stuff that I would like to make, so I'll keep you guys posted on how that goes.

French toast with turkey bacon (yesterday's breakfast)...yummy!

I've been working on a menu for next week and so far it looks pretty good. I came up with a menu for this week and let me tell ya I was surprised with how much money we spent at the grocery store. I usually make a grocery list, but we end up spending a lot of money and not cooking everything we buy, so I decided to give this menu thing a try. If it works out, then I'm going to make this a permanent thing. So, dinner tonight will be another salad, but this time it'll have chicken strips in it.

Last, but definitely not least, I can't forget about the lovely samples I got from Birchbox the other day. I promised you guys pictures, so here they are:

I don't think I'm going to be using the self-tanning towelettes at all, I don't need a tan...LOL! As for the Juicy Couture perfume, I was never a big fan of their perfume, but this one smells really nice. I'm definitely going to give the other stuff a try.

Well, my fiance should be home from work soon and it's time to make dinner. I hope everyone's having a great evening and I'll be talking to you soon!

Angelica

Birchbox!

I am liking this whole Birchbox thing, all thanks to Kate from The Small Things Blog. I just got my box this afternoon and I really like it! At first I was a little hesitant to sign up for Birchbox, but after seeing pictures of the things she would get every month I couldn't resist myself.....I signed up! This is my second month and I hope to continue getting more stuff. *pictures of what I got will be posted soon*

Today is day 2 of working on my blog, but no big changes were made. Doing a blog was something I tried to do a couple of years ago (when I was in college), but that didn't work. I was going to school and working, I just didn't have enough time to post stuff. Now don't get me wrong, I bet there are a lot of women out there, in the blog world, who are going to school, working, are moms and they find some time to post something on their blog and I am proud of you guys. I don't think I had it in me to do it, maybe it was lack of motivation or something, who knows. Now I have all the time in the world to create a blog and dedicate time to it, especially since I've been laid off from work for a while (that'll be for another post).

So for the rest of the evening I'm going to cook dinner, we're having salad with shrimp, head over to Pinterest (I LOVE that website!!!) and see what's new, and then watch some tv.

What are you guys having for dinner?

Angelica

Busy, busy, busy

Today was a very productive day and I feel very proud of myself! I wasn't going to let the heat get to me today, I was determined to work on my blog and get things crackalackin'...lol! I spent the day going over my blog and making some changes. I visited a couple of blogs that had some good tips about blogging, but I'm still not done. I'm still working on my blog and just trying to make things flow. So I'm looking forward to tomorrow : )

On another note, my fiance came home from work and I was working on dinner. We had macaroni and cheese with chicken, it was pretty good. That's another thing I'm going to add to my list: take pictures of what I cook and post them on here.

Well, I hope everyone's having a great evening. I'm going to relax, enjoy the rest of the night and see what's on the DVR. Later!

Angelica

What a day...

Hi everyone!


I can't believe it's Friday! I spent the day running errands with my mom. First, we went to this place that fixes sewing machines, my mom looked like a little kid in a toy store, lol. We looked at different parts and asked questions, but what was suppose to be a conversation about my mom's sewing machine turned into a conversation about me taking sewing classes (my mom really wants me to learn how to sew), lol. Then we headed to Lowe's....I love walking through their garden department. I think if I worked there I'd come home with a new plant. I already have 15 plants (sounds like a lot, but it doesn't look like it) and my fiance calls it "the jungle", but at least it makes the living room look really nice : )


I'm not looking forward to the weekend, it's suppose to be really hot...yuck! I don't mind warm weather, but when it gets hot and you're not able to sleep at night because your apartment's hot it's not fun. We had an A/C my mom gave us last year, but when we tried to use it a couple of weeks ago it wouldn't start, so we need to buy a new one.


Well my peeps this girl has to get up early tomorrow morning *yawn*. Have a great weekend!

Angelica

About Me

Hi! My name’s Angelica and I live in Chicago with my fiance. Before I start posting I want to talk a little bit about myself : )

I love cooking and baking. I also love to crochet, I've tried to get into knitting, but I can't seem to get the hang of it. I didn't go to culinary school, but I did take hospitality classes in high school (junior + senior year). I learned about French and Italian cuisine, the latter being my favorite, along with learning about the hotel/restaurant industry.

My mom has been my biggest influence when it comes to cooking, so I'll probably be talking about different Puerto Rican dishes (my parents are from Puerto Rico) every now and then. But everything I've learned so far has been through trial and error. (My fiance is also my taste tester, even though he always tells me my food tastes good...LOL)


After reading different blogs I was inspired to create my own blog. I'm looking forward to sharing with you guys the things that I'm passionate about and at the same time get to meet new people.

Angelica