What I learned from Rachael Ray the Other Day

Hilarious.
I found this at Prudent Baby- someone embroidered it.
{Prudent Baby, by the way, is one of my favorite sites!  Check it out!}

I was watching/listening to Rachael Ray's talk show the other morning whilst sewing and learned some interesting facts.  I thought I would share!

1. Neighborhood Fruit-If you have a fruit tree that produces way too much fruit for you to pick, eat, or use, you can list it on this website and people can come and pick it for you (and keep it!).  You can log on and find fruit trees that other people have listed and go pick theirs, too.  There are also listings of public trees that you can pick from.  Either people in the Midwest A. Don't grow fruit (and I've seen some fruit trees, so that's not it) B. Are too greedy to share it, or C. Don't know about the website because there is nothing-NOTHING- in a 300 miles radius of KC.  Let's prove all the people wrong who think Midwesterners are low-life losers with dial-up Internet and pet cows and log some trees people!  When we lived in the CZ, we used to pick Cherries and Apricots in the fields behind our house and in the neighboring 'hoods.  It. Was. Awesome.  Good memories with my Momma and Daddy!  My dad made some contraption- a 2 by 4 with a hook on the end- to grab tree limbs, pull them down, and grab cherries.  One time, some old Czech lady was yelling at us and, well, we don't know what she was saying.  She was either saying, "Hey, that's my tree" or "Don't hurt the tree".  We didn't know, so we just kept on picking.  She stomped away, probably thinking "Dumb Americans!"  Oh well!
2. BookMooch:  Register at the website and you can basically swap books for free!  You first make a list of the books you have and the books you want.  Someone says, "HEY!  I want your book!"  You send them your book, pay for the postage, and someone sends you 2 books in return.  Crazy!
3. You can totally use your dishwasher to do things other than was your dishes.  I have heard about washing baseball caps so that the bill doesn't uncurve, which was one thing they talked about.  You can also wash hair brushes, makeup brushes, light fixtures, and kids' action figures.  The gal (she was from Kenmore) also said that kids' bath toys are the most dangerous toys to have germ wise.  She said we usually think, "Oh, it was in the tub with soap, so it's clean!"  Nope!  Wash them in the dishwasher a few times a week, if not every time.  Did not know that!
4. You can get things for free using coupons.. which I obviously already knew {see below!}. You can even get druuuuugggsss for free.  Hello!  (Just kidding).  The gal on the show said to ask your pharmacy if they are giving out anything free.  She said sometimes they are samples, sometimes more.  If it is for a prescription or antibiotic, you still need written scripts from the Doc, but hey, FREE!

 Pretty cool is what I am thinking!  Rachael Ray is okay- I actually am starting to enjoy her more than I used to.  Did I get a recipe from her?  Nope- but we did have a bangin' dinner last night, thanks to some Gibson teamwork.  I prep.  Dino cooks.  Good idea.

 

Grilled chicken and vegetables.  There. is. nothing. better.

Whenever my family gets together, we always make this... like 3 times a week, maybe changing the meat.

I "bought"/ got for free {2 for $1 with $1 off 2 coupon!} these new Weber marinades.

They are amazing.  They come in this flavor, Chipotle, and Black Pepper, all of which are fantastic.  It's like some super crazy tenderizer-er. Grilled that up and serve with the following veggies:

1. Bell Peppers.  Aldi had 3 green for $.99, so that's what I bought.  I like the multi-colored better, but that was more expensive.  Oh well!
2. Red Onion, cut in half then quartered, pulled apart
3. Mushrooms (optional- I didn't have any)
4. Cherry tomatoes (also optional- didn't have those either)
5. Fresh green beans
6. Par-boiled potatoes, cut into the same size as the peppers.

Add lots of minced garlic (you really can't have too much!  I used 3 tablespoons from the jar!), Extra virgin olive oil {enough to coat everything}, salt, pepper, and some chili powder.
Really, I have to force myself not to eat this raw (but I always sneak it).  It. Is. Delicious.
Grill in a grill wok/basket like this:

I bought the exact one at Aldi for $6 and it is one of the loves of my life.  Dishwasher safe, never rusts!

Cook until your meat is done and Bam!  Dinner.  We had some corn on the cob, too.  Soooo good.

I know, this looks like a ton!  We cook for 2 meals at a time and always always eat leftovers the next night.  Saves loads of money!  That's also only 3 chicken breasts that I bought for $.79/pound (so, a package of 3 was only $1.75) and filleted to be 6 pieces.  Not as much as it looks, but what a cheap meal!

For dessert we had...

Hello!  Have you tasted these?  So delicious.. and only 110 calories per serving.
What are you having for dinner?