Stuffed Sweet Potatoes + Grace and Frankie Season 6

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I LOVE the Netflix original series, “Grace and Frankie.” Last year I started the tradition of hosting an annual season premier party and girls night. My mom and some of the ladies in our family come for dinner, snacks and quality time on the couch. Hopefully it’s a tradition we keep up for years to come.

At the time I am writing this, I have already finished watching season 6 and if I’m being honest, I was a little disappointed in this season! I didn’t care for the continual tension between Grace and Frankie. Did anyone else feel like the writers toned down the funny factor and bumped up the drama? Why can’t a funny show just stay funny? My favorite scene of the season was probably the piece about Mallory’s daughter’s school art project; too funny!

Anywho, today I wanted to share the dinner that I have been making for this get-together. For the last few months I have really been enjoying making all different types of stuffed sweet potatoes. I have also found a great use for slow cooker shredded chicken. If you have read some of my prior posts, or follow me on Instagram, you may already know that I have a love-hate {mostly hate} relationship with the slow cooker. But, for the past couple of months, I have been finding so many uses for slow cooker shredded chicken, and this recipe is one of them. Enjoy!

Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken
-Place about 1 1/2 lbs of boneless skinless chicken breast in the slow cooker, season with salt, pepper and garlic powder, then add no more than 1/2 cup of chicken broth.
-Cook for 4 hours on high then shred with two forks.

Stuffed Sweet Potato Ingredients

1 1/5 lbs. Shredded Chicken Breast
1 Medium Sweet Onion
4 Cloves of Fresh Garlic
8oz Frozen Artichoke Hearts (thawed)
1-2 Cups of Mushrooms
1/2 Cup Crumbled Feta
1/2 Cup Dried Cranberries
6 Medium Sweet Potatoes
2 Tsp Salt
1 Tsp Pepper
3 TBSP EVOO

Stuffed Sweet Potatoes Directions
 -Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.
-Pierce each sweet potato a few times then wrap in tin foil. Bake all sweet potatoes for 1 hour – 1 hour 30 minutes. You’ll know they’re done when they’re tender to the touch.
-Sautee onion in 2 TBSP EVOO then add mushrooms and garlic. Add another tablespoon of EVOO if needed.
-Add in artichoke hearts, salt and pepper then add feta and cranberries.
-Add the flesh of 1 sweet potato and shredded chicken to the veggies
-Slice each of the sweet potatoes length wise, but not all the way through.
-Using kitchen tongs, stuff each potatoes with the veggie mixture then brown under broiler for no more than 5 minutes.

Maui Travel Guide: Part 1

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While on our honeymoon to Hawaii we visited Oahu and Maui {more on Oahu here and here}.  Our first stop in Maui was Paia on  the quiet north shore. This area is totally different than Waikiki. It is quiet, eclectic and filled with its own personality. Tons of small shops, restaurants and live music. We learned that Paia is the place of choice for Maui locals to visit partly because it is not as popular with tourists.

In Paia we stayed at the Paia Inn which is right in the heart of the town. Every inch of the Inn was full of character. The Inn has a spa, restaurant and private beach, which may have been my favorite beach of the entire trip. It was so quiet and peaceful. Most of the time we where there we had the beach to ourselves. We did not take advantage of the spa {although we should have on one of the rainy days}, but I can fully attest to the breakfast menu at the restaurant. Plenty of gluten-free options and creamy avocado toast! 

PaiaMaui
Maui Paia
Paia Inn

Things to Do

Although we only made only made it to the first stop of the Road to Hana, I think Paia would be a good area to stay in if traveling the Hana Highway is something you are considering. On the Road to Hana we visited the Twin River Falls. It was a really rainy afternoon when we ventured out {in our comfy Ford Edge} which made the it feel like even more of an adventure. Once we got to the park, I felt like I stepped into Jurassic Park. 

One of our favorite memories from Maui was the O’O Farm Coffee and Breakfast Tour. The coffee and vegetable farm is location in “Up Country,” about 30 minutes from Paia. I would suggest wearing sneakers, a hat, SPF and bringing water and a light sweatshirt. The weather in this area was a little different than the weather on the coast. The tour also starts pretty early, so I was happy to have my sweatshirt {I was wearing shorts} at the start of the tour. I would also recommend eating a small breakfast or snack before the tour. You will be on the tour for hours before breakfast is severed. There was  quite a bit of coffee provided for tastings, which didn’t sit so well with my tummy by the time we left. 

We were able to sample a couple different varieties of coffee to start the tour. This was the first time I was ever able to drink black coffee. Interestingly enough, we learned that all coffee should be able to be enjoyed without cream or sugar. It was really interesting to see the coffee bean life cycle from the tree to the roasting machines. We were even able to bring home a bag of freshly roasted beans that we watch roast.

On this tour we learned about the farming of coffee and organic vegetables that are sourced to the Farm’s local restaurant, Pacific’o. Our tour guide, who was actually one of the farmers, lead the group around the farm educating us on all of the vegetables and their business. We learned that the vegetables that are harvested each morning make their way to the restaurant by mid-afternoon. The veggies are only touched by a few hands before they make their way to the plate. Truly a farm-to-table business!

The tour ended with a breakfast cooked on site by one of O’O Farm’s Chefs. They have a huge outdoor brick oven where the meals are prepared. Around that area there are beautiful long, wood tables for set the guests. We had a frittata with farm fresh veggies and of course, coffee.

Where to Eat Gluten-Free

The Paia Inn

Great spot for lunch and breakfast. Loved their avocado gluten-free toast topped off with an egg.

Maui Brewing Company

Although they do not have gluten-free beer, they had plenty of other GF beverages to chose from. My husband is a big craft beer fan, so this was a must see on our visit.

Cow Pig Bun

I had THE BEST BURGER of my life at Cow Pig Bun. No exaggeration! It was absolutely delicious, complete with a GF bun.

Flatbread Company

Located a few store fronts from the Paia Inn, there were many GF flatbreads to choose from. We enjoyed it so much, that we went here twice.

Paia Bay Coffee & Bar

Although it is not the most GF friendly, they do have GF options on their menu. It is a nice little spot to for happy hour, drinks and live music.

Charley’s Restaurant and Saloon

Charley’s is a large, casual bar with live music and GF french fries! Great place for bigger crowd and if you’re looking for a very easy going night.

Next up, our stay in Wailea! Check back soon. For easy access to my gluten-free travel posts and travel plans, be sure to follow me on Pinterest too!

Tips for a Productive Weekend

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Hello and happy Thursday! With the week coming to an end, I thought today would be the perfect time to share a few tips that help me keep my house in order over the weekend. A couple months ago, my schedule changed and I have been super busy. Between work itself and my commute to the city, I honestly don’t have much time at home. Keeping the house in order, a graduate degree and an energetic puppy, in addition to a professional career have really been keeping me on my toes {shout out to all the mamas out there taking care of kiddos too – I am having an extra glass of wine for you tonight}.

Limited time at home during the week makes taking care of the house and cooking dinner every night difficult almost impossible. This doesn’t fair well for someone who is a self-proclaimed need freak that cannot handle dirt, mess or clutter. But, during the times in my life where I have not had much free time, I have learned that it is possible to do more with less. I am pretty amazed with all that I have trained myself to do in the last few months. Truth be told, six months ago I had way more time on my hands and looking back now, I’m not sure how I didn’t solve the world peace problem ;). Like, what the heck was I doing with all of that time?!

The rest of this post by no means includes my full cleaning routine. These are just the minimal things I do to help keep me on track, so if it is a jam packed weekend and I don’t get to clean the house from top to bottom {while walking the dog, blow drying my hair, cooking dinner and doing homework all simultaneously}, these things help me feel like I kind of have it together.

Friday night

Throw in a load of laundry. Pick an easier load of laundry like towels or sheets. You can throw them in the dryer and forget about them and not worry about them shrinking. Right after putting that laundry in, vacuum! Pick up all that junk that made its way to the floor during the work week. If I have extra time or energy I will also stream mop the bathroom floor. I try to vacuum a few times a week before or after work as well.

Saturday Morning

Start laundry as soon as you get up then pick an area to immediately straighten up. You can enjoy your coffee and your morning routine while getting a few loads of laundry done. I’ve noticed that when I start my laundry earlier in the day, I get through it faster. I generally try to go to bed with a clean kitchen, but if I don’t then I will straighten up the kitchen then put away laundry clean. Before I know it, a couple loads of laundry are out of the way.

Saturday Midmorning/Early Afternoon:

Change your sheets and straighten up the bedroom. I don’t really mind doing laundry, but I feel like changing the sheets is a huge pain. I almost always change my sheets weekly. Sheets get much dirtier than most people may think. I have very sensitive skin, so keeping my sheets fresh helps to avoid unwanted breakouts. I have found changing my sheets on Saturday makes a huge difference for me. I use to put it off until Sundays, and before I knew it, I was battling the Sunday night scaries with no sheets on my bed to boot!

Clean the bathroom before and/or after your shower. This will probably sound silly, but I like to start cleaning the bathroom before I shower. I will clean the toilet then dust my bathroom shelves, baseboard and window first. After my shower I will spray down and clean the shower then clean the vanity after I get ready. If I didn’t vacuum and clean the bathroom floor Friday night, I will do that to finish up the bathroom.

Sunday Morning

Yep, you guessed it, laundry! If I didn’t finished up our laundry, I throw in another load as soon as I wake up. Next, I will plan out our meals for the week and make our food shopping list. Fortunately, my husband does the food shopping and sometimes Costco runs too…I generally cannot be trusted at Costco because #CostcoDoesItAgain.

Sunday Afternoon

Depending on my husband’s work schedule, I have been trying to devote a few hours on Sunday to meal prep. I will try to prep at least 4 dinners for the week. Any small bit helps, even if it’s just cleaning chicken and making a taco seasoning. I also try to make enough that I will have a few days of leftovers for lunch. Meal prep is still a work in progress for me, but I am working on it! My goal is to get meal prepping done earlier in the day.

Would you like to see more blogs like this? Let me know in the comments.

If you aren’t following me already, be sure to follow me on Instagram to see what I am cooking up in my kitchen this weekend.