Most of us are home for the holidays, and that means that we are at home cooking.
If you are looking for some new recipes to tempt your taste buds, here are a few of our family’s favorite holiday recipes:
winter
Cents of Style: Holiday Graphic Sweatshirts & Tees on Sale!
**This post contains affiliate links and I may be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.
Cents of Style is back at it! They have my favorite graphic tee’s and sweatshirts, I have several. These holiday tee’s and sweatshirts are sweet and sassy. My favorite is the Gangster Wrapper.
Today only, you can take $13.00 off the lowest marked price making tees only $16.95, sweatshirts only $21.95, and hoodies only $26.95!
These designs are so cute and so fun and bring a little extra festive style into any wardrobe this holiday season! They are so cute to be snuggled up in around a fire while watching your favorite Christmas movies or even better as you are trying to stay warm running around town finishing up all of your holiday errands.
Sizes range from S-3XL making these the perfect item for any and everyone! The coupon code is HOLIDAYSTEALS and it takes $13.00 off the lowest marked price! Don’t forget the FREE Shipping!
5 Tips for Moisturized Skin this Winter!
It’s finally starting to chill out here in Southern California at night. I love taking a hot shower when it’s cold, but combine that with the dry winds and low humidity and that means dry, itchy skin. Here are five tips to help keep your skin smooth and supple this winter!
- Don’t take a hot shower. I know, the temptation is there, but take a warm shower. The hot water strips the moisture from your skin. If you love a steamy bathroom, put a bucket in the shower, and turn the water on very hot, allowing the water to be caught in the bucket. Save the water to water your plants or grass with (after it’s cooled). Then when it’s time to hop into the shower, turn the temp down, pull out the bucket and enjoy the steam and a warm shower!
- Dry brush! Dry brushing is a great way to sweep away dead skin, and increase blood flow. It also helps move lymph through your body, which some people say is one of the keys to a good detox. I use this dry brush set– I love it. Here is a great video about dry brushing.
Exfoliate! Using a moisturizing exfoliant will sweep away the dead skin cells, which is what gives your skin that ashy dry appearance. I like the 100% Natural Arabica Coffee Body Scrub from New York Biology. It’s moisturizes with Organic Arabica Seed Oil, Cacao Extract, Organic Sweet Almond Oil, Organic Olive Oil, and Organic Grape Seed Oil. It uses Coffee and salt to scrub away the dead skin cells. Oh, and it smells GREAT!- Moisturize! Lock in the moisture from the shower with a high quality body lotion or body butter. Avoid products that contain Mineral Oil, Petroleum, and Petrolatum. These ingredients are not absorbed by your body, but leave an occlusive film on your skin. Some people like using straight Coconut oil. I prefer using the lotion bars from Little Red Howse.
- Drink Water! I know, you’ve heard that you need 8 glasses a day, but really, it’s important to keep your body hydrated from the inside by making sure you get plenty of liquid! Water is best, but juice, milk, and yes, even coffee count too. Just make sure that you are drinking more non-caffeinated and non-alcoholic beverages, as excessive amounts of both can lead to dehydration or other ill effects. I use these powdered stick beverages in at least 2 of my 20 ounce water glass (which is really just a shaker bottle) each day. You can also infuse water with fruit. I have this pitcher in the fridge with lemons and cucumbers in it right now!
I’d love to hear your tips for keeping your skin moisturized this winter!
Cooking Tutorial: Spaghetti Squash!
We eat a lot of veggies. That was one of the huge lifestyle changes we made a few years ago that has helped us maintain healthier weights.
One healthy swap we made was to spaghetti squash instead of pasta. A lot of healthy/food swap websites like Hungry Girl tout Spaghetti Squash as a good substitute for carb-y noodles.
Here is a quick tutorial on making spaghetti squash.
- Select a squash that is firm and unblemished. Not sure what they look like? Here is the wikipedia article all about the vegetable with a few pictures.
- Chop the end with the stem off. You’ll need a good sharp knife. I love our Henckels Meat Cleaver.
- Chop the squash in half. I do it length-wise, so it takes less time to cook in the oven.
- Take a spoon and scoop out the stringy guts and seeds. Discard them.
- In a large glass baking dish, place the squash halves cut side down. Pour a 1/2 cup of water into the bottom of the baking dish.
- Bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes or until the squash are fork tender (about the same feeling as a baked potato).
- Remove baking dish from oven and set the squash halves on a cutting board. Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes, or until you can comfortable handle the vegetable.
- With a fork, “rake” the interior of the veggie. The “meat” of the interior should flake off in long strings that resemble broken spaghetti.
- Once complete, discard the exterior of the squash.
- Toss the “spaghetti” with the sauce of your choice.
1 medium sized spaghetti squash serves 2-3 people, with a serving size of about 1 1/2 cups. It’s yummy with sauce (Spaghetti/red sauce, pesto, or even a cheesy sauce), or just a little butter and herbs. It’s a great way to get extra veggies into your diet, or if you’re Gluten Intolerant, it’s cheaper (and tastier) than GF pasta.
Later today, I’ll be posting a recipe that uses spaghetti squash as a main ingredient! With winter veggies starting to make an appearance in grocery stores and farmers markets, you’ll start seeing more and more squash!
Hewes Family Fun 