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Homemade Dog Food

both our danes have a pretty sensitive stomachs, one more than the other so we're constantly cooking chicken and rice for them.  i've wanted to add more ingredients to make it a bit more nutritious so i set out on a search for various homemade dog food recipes. yesterday i made 5 different types for them.


i tried two that i found, two i made up and our staple of chicken, rice and veggies. before you do this consult with your vet and please please please read the list of harmful foods for dog! a lot of these won't kill your furry friend right away, but it's definitely not good for them. also, take into account the size of your dog. bentley at 130lbs, has eaten half a chocolate bar he stole off the counter and been fine where as a 3lb yorkie may have to be rushed to the vet.

as i said before, we've been making chicken and rice whenever one of them got an upset stomach and it became an every day thing after kenzie was diagnosed with pneumonia. so...



 i'll start with what i bought and the prices i paid for this trip. it was sort of an experiment to see what was easy and what they liked - so i overspent a little. oops.

20 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast ($1.99/lb)
20 lbs ground beef ($25.93)
5 lbs ground turkey ($8.78) (could get away with half)
18ct eggs ($2.24)
4 boxes of instant rice ($3.64 ea) (i used 3)
2 big bags of frozen peas ($1.98 ea)
2 big bags of frozen green beans ($1.03)
1 bunch of kale ($1.18)
3 sweet potatoes ($1.28/lb)
4 apples ($0.98/lb)
5 lb carrots ($2.48/bundle) *

(just under $85 total)

* next time i will definitely buy the frozen bags of peas & carrots combo or just frozen carrots, because chopping them was dreadful! (i also had a couple bags of frozen veggies in the freezer already.)

when i mix everything i try and stay at a 40-50% protein, 25% rice, 25% veggies. and all in all between the rice needed for the loaves and to mix i made 48 cups of cooked rice.

one.
the first thing I tried was this crock pot recipe that i found here. its super easy and would work great if you have small dogs or want to do this every day or so, but for us this would last maybe one day so it's not feasible. but if it is for you..

1.2 lb      boneless skinless chicken
20 oz      ground turkey
2             apples (cored and deseeded)
1 lb         bag of carrots
1 lb         bag of frozen peas



put the chicken then ground turkey in the crock pot. 

 then dump in your apples & veggies.

 cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6. once it's done stir everything together and combine with rice.

SUPER EASY, but i would need a about 10 crockpots going at once to make it work.
















two.
Next i mixed all the stuff for the mini meatloaves found here. i doubled the recipe and used ground beef instead of turkey.

4 lbs     ground turkey
4           eggs (blended with shells - trust me)
6 C       cooked rice
16 oz.   peas
6           carrots, diced
2           apple, diced

preheat your oven to 375 degrees and combine all ingredients.

 i put a small handful in each cup and bake for 30 minutes.

i will say only 12 actually held together so for the ones that didn't i put into a bowl and combined it. these smell amazing and i'm trying to figure out a way to be able to just cook this all (maybe in a normal loaf pan?) and combine it and serve it as a rice/beef mixture, which would be better for our large dogs anyway.


three.
this next recipe i sort of made up..

3 lb     ground beef
14       eggs (blended with shells)
1         large bag frozen peas
1         large bag of green beans
3         carrots, chopped

 brown ground beef

 add in eggs

then, add in veggies until soft...

mix with rice & done!

four.

i don't have pictures of this one and it's another experiment. I browned the last 3(ish)lbs of ground beef and added in the kale and 2 sweat potatoes, chopped into small pieces. I added about a half a cup of chicken broth (from the chicken i had boiling), covered and let simmer until the potatoes were soft. then mixed with rice. 

five.

this is our staple chicken and rice recipe. 

chicken

rice, instant

frozen veggies

i boiled the remaining chicken breasts (2 breasts less than 20lbs) and shredded it. 

* note - if you have a mixer, especially a kitchen aid, you can shred chicken SUPER easy by 'mixing' the chicken like this..

after the chicken breast was done i used the broth to boil the remaining frozen veggies and left over carrots and potatoes. 

mix it with some rice and you have an easy fairly bland diet for your pooch. now if only they could learn how to do the dishes! 

we'll see how these work. I have a feeling i'll keep doing the chicken, rice & veggies and the ground beef, veggie and eggs.

this made us just under two weeks worth. 

enjoy!

foodie friday.

shhhhh... can you keep a secret? no? okay.. you're not alone.
probably one of the worst kept secrets in vegas is Secret Pizza in Cosmopolitan Hotel & Casino.

you can either hunt for it yourself. good luck!
ask someone.
or hike up to the third floor and find the hallway between Milo's and Blue Ribbon Sushi.

when you walk down the hallway lined with various picture frames you instantly smell heaven in a box. once you've gotten through the line you'll instantly feel like you've been transported to NY with the tiny white subway tiled room and workers yelling orders back an forth with just enough space for a counter to order and a few standing 'bar' areas (don't worry - there's seating in the lobby of the 3rd floor with various games).

it's true NY style pizza - thin and easy to fold. you can order by slice (starting at $4.75) or a whole pie (starting at $26), but the slices are HUGE! don't forget to try out their cannoli's ($4.50) while you're at it!


you're welcome.

five ways to save on your vegas wedding.

 

so... you want to get hitched in vegas without having the cliche elopement by elvis and stick to your budget? i'm sure by now you've researched to high heavens and are realizing that vegas is expensive in general let alone throwing in an out of town wedding. don't fret! it's totally doable!

 the hubs and i just celebrated our sixth wedding anniversary at the end of january by having a vow renewal. everything was planned in about six months and being local helped. a lot. upon deciding to actually go through with this my first stop was the local board over on the knot (check it out! so much useful info) and my second was little vegas wedding. i knew i wanted to have it on the strip, but i didn't want to spend a ton nor did i want the traditional hotel chapel. i finally was able to get the vow renewal package at Aria approved for a saturday which saved me over $2,000! Don't be afraid to ask for what you want! the worst they can say is no.

anyway, these are the top five ways to save money when getting hitched in vegas from a local.

1. timing is everything. hands down, the season/month you choose will determine your budget as will the time of day and day of the week. prime time in vegas is spring and fall while august is death in a bag. choose a date in 'deep' winter months (december, january & even february), an earlier time in the day and an 'off' day (monday through thursday) to get the most bang for your buck.

2. do your research. if you're set on a hotel wedding (like me - c'mon! it was january, no one wants to sit outside) try and have everything in one place, including your hotel room (many times if you're using their wedding department you get a discount on your room). it will ease your stress level down a couple notches and will completely eliminate having to provide transportation (public transportation is a no-go in vegas!).
make sure you set up a room block for your guests and if the hotel has a rewards card/program sign up for it and play myvegas (seriously, just do it.)! we were able to get 4,000 free points at Aria because i turned in all our receipts to the promo desk.
also, consider having a restaurant reception. most of the restaurants on the strip (even off) have packages already set out for weddings, and many have gorgeous private rooms. you're likely to get better quality food for cheaper. don't rule out buffets either! we had ours at wicked spoon in cosmo and it was some of the best food we've had!
if you're not set on a hotel wedding check out places off the strip (which in general will save you quite a bit) like the springs reserve, neon boneyard, redrock, a local park (add gourmet food trucks for an unforgettable event), museums, or this awesome venue that you can completely customize called MEET.


3. obviously, diy. the cheapest way is usually to spend hours gluing, tying, printing and cutting your way through the details. but really, it can save tons of money! print your own invites. whether you buy the kit from a craft store (wish i would have done this) or pay someone on etsy to design them (what i actually did - and they were printed with the wrong date!). i know you feel that the invite is the first impression of your event, but seriously, these people are just going to throw them out. unless you're having a black tie event (in which case, why are you reading this?) there is no need to have over the top invites.  some of my diy also included designing and printing all our programs (pictured), favors, signs and hand making my veil (store bought is $100+, mine was under $10).

4. cut back the favors. especially if your guests are traveling. they're already going to buy more shit than they can stuff in a suite case and no one wants stale mints, mini frames, or bubbles. spend that money on a better bar or food or both. that's what people talk about after weddings, not your favors. if you're stubborn dead set on doing favors? great. make it something unique or deliciously edible!  i did mini hang-over kits that i diy'd. also come a day or two early to check out the HUGE gift shops we have and get the favors then. it'll save you on shipping/traveling with them and it would be a real vegas memento.


5. flowers. flowers are expensive, even when their 'in season'. i dreamed of a renewal with flowers EVERYWHERE. along the aisle, at the tables, in my hair, as an archway. ev.er.y.where! that didn't happen because they are damn expensive. and you know what? i'm glad i didn't spend the money. they die and not days later; they start looking god awful by the end of the night. line your aisle with candles (what i did), feathers, faux flowers, book pages, scattered petals, etc. have your maids carry a single flower, fans, clutches (what i did), a feather poof, or nothing at all.


all in all we went a couple grand slightly over budget. expect it, embrace it and plan for it. i also understand diy might not be possible for everyone. i'm lucky to be pretty damn crafty so this was fun for me. if you're the type to end a project with a couple bald spots, 3rd degree burns and a possible murder charge i would steer clear from attempting any diy, but then save in the other areas!


some things i would absolutely NOT skimp on?

• photography - (i fully personally endorse gardenia lane, again!)

• hair and makeup - make sure you feel like a bride. 

• food and drinks - again, this is what people remember. we still have people raving about wicked spoon!

there you have it. my top 5 ways to save money on a vegas wedding. if you have any questions don't hesitate to comment! 

**All people, places or websites mentioned above are from my personal experience. No reward, gift or money was given for my referral.**

photos.

i finally received all my photos from the always fantastic Mary whose the owner of Gardenia Lane Photography from our vow renewal/6th anniversary.

i. love. them!

i'm telling anyone and everyone i can about her and her work. she does everything from weddings to newborns to senior photos. her talent clearly shows through her work, but she is also a beautiful person, inside and out. if you're in the Vegas area contact BOOK her!

click here to see all the photos.

here are some of my most favorites.

celebrate.

Six years.

Six bloody years. (not literally, of course)

Six years. That's how long the husband and I have been married.
Some days it really does seem like last month and most days it seems like 16 years. People ask my age and I still want to say 19! Time has FLOWN by! Between meeting each other when I was 18(!!) and getting married 30 days later (eeeek!), to him leaving for Basic Training for the Air Force 17 days after that, moving to be with him in Texas for 6 months while he was in technical training to being stationed in Florida for almost 4 years, 2 deployments, a handful of TDYs and more addresses than I can remember to then moving back to our home town of Vegas and now almost two years in civilian life, we survived - together.

WE SURVIVED!

No one ever thought we'd make it past a year, let alone six - especially without children (woohoo!!). We both lost the majority of our friends when we got married and of course made new ones throughout the years, but we always stuck together. We made it work and we worked together.

I went into marriage as a fresh faced, 18 year old, naive child. I went from having everything paid for and done for me to figuring out how to budget a checkbook, pay the rent, car and electricity on time to praying whats left in our account would last the next 5 days. (Let's just say we ate a lot of Taco Bell and Spaghetti because it was CHEAP!) Getting married so young made me grow up, made me be responsible and made me become very independent. For our first three years of marriage we spent more time apart than together, but you know what? I wouldn't change a thing. It made us stronger. We were 3,000 miles from family and [a few] friends and all we had was each other.
You're mad? Deal with it.
You want to leave? There's the couch.
Arguing in a 600 sq ft. apartment makes you work through it. There was no place to run when things got hard and for that I'm thankful.

Marriage isn't sacred anymore - People fall in love with the idea of marriage. There's always the safety-net of being able to get a divorce. The number of wives or husbands you've had isn't even something people bat an eye at anymore. It's sad if you think about it - How many people give up too easily because divorce is such a common thing. I know six years isn't 25 or 50, but it's longer than most in today's generation. ::Happy Dance!::

After almost 6 years, I was lucky enough to be able to plan a vow renewal on our actual 6th anniversary that included some traditional things (my dad walking me down the aisle, a big dress, etc.) as well as some non-traditional things like a top open double decker bus tour.

I'm SO thankful for everyone that made the effort to come out and especially those who stayed to celebrate all night with us. 

It didn't go nearly as planned (it was so much more stressful than I thought - hey, it's not a party until the hubs loses his wallet and I cry, right?! ;)), but overall I hope people had a good time.

Here are some sneak peak pictures from the fabulous Gardenia Lane Photography (seriously, BOOK HER!), a non pro one of me and the girls, one of the photo booth, the favors and programs I made (yes I designed, printed and assembled), and one of the mimosa & bagel bar because I loved it!

One Pan Enchilada Pasta - Recipe

So if you haven't noticed, I'm on this one pan/pot dinner kick. It just makes it SO easy! This one is by far my favorite!

 

This recipe originally came from #2 Pencil found here.

(Also C&P below)

Prep it:

2 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 of a small onion, diced

1.25 pounds of taco seasoned ground turkey meat or 1.25 pounds of lean ground beef and packet of low-sodium taco seasoning

2 cups of low-sodium chicken broth

1 19oz can of red enchilada sauce

8oz (about 2 1/2 cups) of dried rotini pasta

2 cups of freshly shredded Colby Jack cheese

green onions

black olives

 

 

Make it:

In a large skillet or sauté pan, sauté garlic and onions in olive oil over medium low heat until softened. 
Add ground turkey meat and cook, breaking meat up with a wooden spoon until browned.
Once turkey meat is cooked through, add pasta, chicken broth and enchilada sauce to pan.
Bring to a boil, then reduced heat to low and cover.
Cook on low, with pan covered for about 15 minutes. 
Then remove lid and let simmer for additional 5 minutes until pasta is tender and sauce has reduced. 
Remove from heat and stir in 1 cup of cheese.
Top pasta with additional cup of cheese and melt under broiler for a minute or tow, or place lid back on pan and let heat from the pasta melt the cheese.
Garnish with black olives and green onions.

  

I didn't have taco seasoned ground meat so I browned some ground beef and threw half a packet of taco season in it. It took about 35 minutes and the pasta was definitely al dente - so if you want softer pasta just add a tiny but more water and cook a couple minutes longer! 

Chicken Burrito Bowls

I found this recipe over at Budget Bytes (she calls them taco bowls) and just like she describes it's "slow cooker 101". I threw this together when I came home from work one morning last week and it was ready by the time I woke up for my next shift!

 

Prep it:

 

1½ lbs. chicken breasts (I used three of the frozen ones from the bag)

1 (16 oz.) jar salsa

1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained

½ lb. (8 oz.) frozen corn

1 Tbsp chili powder (I left this out)

½ Tbsp cumin (And I left this out)

½ Tbsp minced garlic (I used double this)

½ tsp dried oregano

¼ tsp cayenne pepper (Again, just shook some in there)

Salt and pepper to taste

2 cups dry rice

8 oz. shredded cheddar (I just used a Mexican blend)

½ bunch cilantro (optional - but I definitely recommend it)

[You can tell I follow recipes super well] 

 

Make it:

(Directly from Budget Bytes)

1. Add everything except the rice, cheese, and cilantro to the slow cooker along with ¼ cup of water (for good measure). Give everything a good stir and make sure the chicken is covered in the mixture.
2. Secure the lid on your slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hrs.
3. Near the end of the cooking time, cook the two cups of rice according to the package directions (I definitely used instant)
4. After 8 hours of cooking, carefully remove the lid of the slow cooker. Stir with a fork to shred the chicken (it should be super tender and will shred easily). Build the taco bowls by placing rice on the bottom, then the taco chicken mix, shredded cheese and fresh cilantro.

Cheese Ravioli Bake - Recipe

 

One of the meals I posted last week was a picture tutorial of a ravioli bake. Well I made it, and it was really good! Definitely enough for a family of 4 or 5. Prep is super easy, cook time is a little longer than I prefer.

  

Prep it:

• Bag of frozen cheese ravioli
• Shredded mozzarella cheese
• Marinara sauce (1 jar) 



 

Make it:

 

Heat oven to 400 degrees.

 

Spread a layer of sauce on the bottom of square pan.

 

Layer raviolios' on top of sauce.

 

 

Add another layer of sauce then a layer of cheese.

Repeat one more time then cover and back for 30 minutes. Remove cover and continue baking for 15 minutes. After pulling out of the oven, sprinkle parmesan cheese and serve.

  

 

Weekly Meal Plan

Meal planning in this house is really hit or miss. I either do pretty good and write it down, grocery shop and stick to it or half-ass it, make a simple one in my head and spend $100 on random items at the grocery store (which means we eat out the majority of the week).  

 

Like I said in the last post, I'm always on the hunt for good, quick and easy recipes. Some of these on the menu I've tried, some I haven't.

 

Thursday: One Pot Pasta (Recipe here)

 

 

Friday: Burrito Bake (Recipe here)

 

 

Saturday: Crockpot No Boil Manicotti (Recipe here)

 

 

Sunday: Slow Cooker Balsamic Beef & Potatoes (Recipe here)

 

 

Monday: Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Bowls (Recipe here)

 

 

Tuesday: 'Best' Chicken Tenders (Recipe here)

 

 

Wednesday: Honey Pineapple Chicken (Recipe here)

 

 

Thursday: Baked Ravioli (Photo tutorial here)

 

 

 

Total shopping trip was $92.93. Amount actually spent on groceries for the meal plan is just under $65.