CROCK POT YUMMIEST POT ROAST

Let me tell you how in love I am with our Crock Pot. It's so wonderful. You can make dinner in the morning and it's ready at dinnertime. I know that slow cooking isn't a new thing, but to me it kind of is and I still get excited when I make something fabulous. Crock Pots ROCK! Ok. Now that I've calmed down, let me tell you about the recipe of the day. I got this recipe from the Crock Pot Girl. I changed it a tad bit, but it's basically a halved version of hers that I make. This is my boss' favorite meal that I make. The meat is so juicy and tender. It just melts in your mouth. The gravy is amazing. So amazing in fact, that Sammy, who does not like mushrooms at all, actually asked for more mushrooms and said, "I only like mushrooms with this sauce!" The kids love it. I love it. We all love it. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. Sammy even licked her plate clean once. (Until we reminded her that that's not using good manners.) But seeing her do that made me smile :) So are you ready for the most amazing delicious pot roast of your life? Here we go!

Crock Pot Yummiest Pot Roast

All You Need Is (LOVE):

• 2 lb. Pot Roast
• Salt, pepper, & garlic powder (for taste)
• Flour
• Olive Oil
• 1 can Cream of Mushroom
• 3/4 c Beef Broth
• 1/2 package dry onion soup mix
• 8 oz. Sliced Mushrooms

What to Do:

1. Set Crock Pot on LOW for 4 hours (you want the Crock Pot to heat up before you add the meat in because adding hot meat to a cool pot can damage the Crock Pot, and we don't want that)
2. Sprinkle salt, pepper, and garlic powder on all sides of the pot roast and use a spoon to rub it into the roast (or your fingers, but I don't like touching raw meat [I even use tongs to flip the meat over])
3. Coat your entire roast with flour so it is completely covered
4. Add olive oil to a skillet and set to medium heat
5. Once the oil is heated, place the pot roast into the skillet and brown on both sides (browning is essential as it seals in the flavor and prevents the pot roast from becoming chewy)
6. While the roast is browning, add the cream of mushroom, beef broth, dry onion soup mix, and mushrooms into the Crock Pot and mix well with a spoon (be careful because the Crock Pot may be hot)
7. When the pot roast is finished browning on both sides, transfer it into the Crock Pot
8. Spoon the sauce over the pot roast so that it is completely covered
9. Place the lid on top
10. When the 4 hours on LOW is finished, set it to HIGH for 2-3 hours (I usually set it for 2.5 hours on HIGH) or until meat is tender
11. Eat it all up! (But save some for me please. Just kidding.)

Before I Go:
Serve with mashed potatoes or rice. If I have a busy day, I just make rice in the rice pot to serve with the pot roast. The rice pot cooks the rice and keeps it warm until dinner (just like what a Crock Pot does). You see, I'm from Hawaii. We are big on rice down there. We love rice. So in our house, we have the ginormous 25 lb. bag of rice from Costco. Just thought I'd share that quick fact with you all. But when I do have time (which is more often than not), I prefer to make mashed potatoes from scratch to go with it. I also serve it with a vegetable. Gotta get that green into the kids! They love zucchini and it's easy to cook up right before serving, so that's my go-to vegetable to go with the pot roast. But anything will do. I use a lot of mushrooms for this recipe because I love mushrooms and they shrink into the gravy anyways. And I use fresh mushrooms. I love those best. I hope you try out this recipe because it is the most delicious thing ever! It will change your life. It's just so simple to make and oh so tasty. Make this for someone and they will be begging you for more. Feel free to leave any questions or comments below. I'd love to hear if you tried this recipe and how it turned out for you. Thank you for stopping by!

Have a great day!

♥ K i K O ♥

Self Serving at Meal Time

Once upon a time I worked in a daycare. Now while daycare setting wasn't my particular scene, I did learn a lot while I was there. One of the things that we did at the daycare was to let the kids serve themselves lunch! I worked with a group of 3 to 4 year old kids, so certain days i was very irritated by this self serving philosophy (i.e. “It's okay that you missed your plate with the applesauce Charlie, grab that scoop and try one more time, third times a charm..ill clean up...”!). But self serving does have purpose! Helps get those fine motor skills on! For younger kids like “mine” it's an early measuring skill lesson. Most importantly for me I feel like if they are involved  serving themselves they are more likely to eat! I don’t let the kids serve themselves at every meal like I really should, but there are some meals I definitely do.
Here’s some advice for letting kids serve themselves.
*Have enough things out to pass around the table.
 - I usually have at least 3 or four things so everyone can have something at 1 time.
* Have appropriate serving utensils
  - I use giant spoons that they have at the house.. but 1/4c measuring cups work  well too
*Keep a close eye....

Speaking of keeping a close eye! Are these pictures hilarious?!  Kona, the 2 year old was the first one to the table this dinner night and I left all of the stuff on the table for self serving. I had to go gather up the other two kids and when I came back... that is what i found!  I said “Wow that's a lot of peas!” and he said “That because I wike peas!” Ok then! The other kids thought it was funny how many peas he had on his plate too! But notice he is eating them!
Hope this is encouraging and helps! :)
 Post your questions, comments, or advice! Thanks!!!!
-Phylicia

SWEET-N-CREAMY NON-DAIRY MASHED POTATOES

First off, let me start by saying that before this recipe (that I created,) I have never made mashed potatoes from scratch, in my entire life. So for me, I was very excited when I came up with this recipe because it is so super tasty! Sammy (a five-year-old girl that I nanny for) is allergic to dairy, but loves mashed potatoes. So I came up with this delicious mashed potatoes recipe that is completely dairy free, and a healthier version than the norm. I make this all the time (about once a week) and it is always a huge hit with the kids!

Sweet-n-Creamy Non-Dairy Mashed Potatoes

All You Need Is (LOVE):

• 5 lb. Russet Potatoes
• 1/4 c I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Light (or Original)
• 1 3/4 c Silk Vanilla Soy Milk
• Water (to boil)
• Olive Oil (in boiling water)
• Salt and Garlic Powder (for taste)

What to Do:

1. Fill a pot with water and bring to a boil
2. Peel and rinse the potatoes
3. Cut each potato in half
4. Add the potatoes into the pot of boiling water
5. Add about 2 Tbsp of Olive Oil to the pot to keep the potatoes from sticking (feel free to skip this step)
6. Boil potatoes for 25 minutes
7. Drain potatoes and put them in a bowl
8. Mash the potatoes with a big spoon (or any mashing utensil you'd like)
9. Empty all the water from the pot
10. Set the pot back onto the stovetop and set it to medium heat
11. Add the butter and milk into the pot
12. Add in the potatoes and mix until creamy
13. Add salt and garlic powder for taste and mix well
14. Enjoy!

[Peeled and halved potatoes]

[After mashing with a spoon]

[Ready to eat. Yum!]

Before I Go:

I just used what we carry in the house. Feel free to use any soy milk and butter substitute. The Silk Vanilla adds a hint of sweetness and makes it taste like you used heavy cream. We carry the I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Light tub in our house. It has less fat, which is very nice for me and Phylicia. :) But you can use the original, obviously. Remember, these mashed potatoes are so delicious, they can be addicting! So be careful. Try them out and you'd be surprised just how creamy and tasty these are. Feel free to leave any questions or comments below. I'd love to hear if you tried this recipe and how it turned out for you. Thank you for stopping by!

Have a great day!

♥ K i K O ♥

Hello There, Mr. Sun!

As mentioned, we are fortunate enough to travel with the family. Last month we took a trip to California, which is where we got this fantastical idea to start this blog. Hooray! So I thought it only fitting to share some of it with you. Here we go!

We flew all the way to California. We being; the mom, the three kids, Phylicia, and myself (Kiko.) First off, let me say that the Continental Airlines airplane that we took was amazing. Each seat had it's own TV. Each seat! Yes, it cost $8, but it was a 5 hour plane ride. Therefore, any type of distraction for these kids is greatly appreciated. You know what I'm talking about if you've ever travelled (or attempted to) anywhere with young children. There were like 100 channels (almost.) So cool. Yes, just had to share that. Sorry. Moving on.

First stop was a small town in California, where we visited their great grandma for a few days. She's so sweet. There's not much to do there so Phylicia and I went to Target every night! Whoohoo! But seriously, if you knew us, you'd know my "whoohoo!" is for real, and NOT a joke. We love Target. Especially this Target. It's the coolest one I've ever been to.

Next, we drove five hours to Coronado Bay, where we met up with their dad who'd just flown in from New York. Coronado was so fun and beautiful! There was a beach and some cute shops and eateries. We drove to Legoland one day and Sea World on another. It was a really fun vacation. And I got a little more tan. Yay! I looked a little more like my Hawaiian self. If only for a few days. :)

Picture time! My favorite!
If you click on it, it'll get bigger.

This is the day our brilliant minds came up with this blog idea. :)

So obviously, this special day must be commemorated with a photo collage.

Sunshine = Smarticles

Here is Phylicia's favorite. Shamu! :)

We even got to Dine with Shamu.

(For those of you who are wondering, all photos of Shamu and the dolphins were in fact taken by me.)

Have a great day!

♥ K i K O ♥

POTATO CHIP CHICKEN

So here it is my first one! First recipe and first blog entry wooo hoo! Well I wanted to share with you one of my Nanny dinner time favorites with you. Anything that all 3 of the kids like is considered a hit for me! When I hear "Phylicia, can I have more please!", it's like music to my little nanny ears! This recipe always gets that response and I love it! I usually want a little more myself! Now bare with me because I don't really have a recipe for this, I think I saw it on T.V. once and then just tried to duplicate it, so I usually just eyeball it. 

Here's what you will need:

About 1 lb of chicken breast (a little over 1 lb of chicken breast tenders feeds like 2 adults and 3 little ones)

3/4 c of flour

1/2 bag of potato chips

1 egg

1/4 c milk

Small amount of vegetable oil

Seasoning for chicken optional (I used garlic salt)

You'll also need:

A skillet big enough to fit your chicken

a Baking sheet or a baking pan

A rolling pin or something to mash your chips

2 gallon size Ziplock baggies

A couple of bowls

Begin by adding oil to skillet and setting on low medium heat. The oil should just coat bottom of skillet. Then preheat your oven to 350.

Next add your flour to one ziplock bag!

Then add your chips to another.

Make sure to get all of the air out of your bag before you seal it. Once your bag is sealed, crush your potato chips by rolling them with rolling pin.

Be sure to finely crush the chips!

Next in a small bowl mix together your egg and milk to create an egg wash mixture.

Set up your miniature chicken factory as follows: flour, eggwash mixture, and potato chip crumbs (I like to put them into a bowl). 

Take your chicken and place into bag. You can put them all in there at once if you want!

Now give your flour chicken a little shake. This gives your egg wash a little something to hold unto ;)!

Next stage of factory is the egg wash mixture! Make sure to coat both sides! This gives your potato chips something to hold onto!

Time to take your chicken to the next level! Place your chicken in the potato chip crumbs. Press down and coat both sides.

Potato coated chickens!

Now that your pan is nice and warm, add your chicken in there!

I usually flip my chicken after about 3 or 4 minutes. You may need to adjust your heat to medium, but just be careful it's not too hot or your potato chips will burn :(. You kind of just have to look at it to tell. 

When it looks golden brown like this, it's ready to be flipped. 

Once there is no more pink showing through (from the chicken) transfer it onto/into baking sheet or pan and pop it into the oven. This final step just gives it the last bit of crunch and keeps it warm if your preparing your sides or trying to coral everyone to the table! About 10 minutes should do the trick!

!Voila! Potato Chip Chicken! So tasty! This particular night, I served it with mashed potatoes and zucchini! But you can serve it with anything and it's sure to be a hit!

Post your questions, comments, and critiques! 

                                    Thanks!!!!

                                                             Nanny Tips!
* Clean as you go! This is key for me for any recipe I do it makes life so much easier. As soon as you know your done with one ingredient PUT IT AWAY! I know its crazy right clean up time will be soooo much easier!


*The kids like their food VERYYY plain! But if your kids or whoever your cooking for like a little spice in your life then spice it up Girl (or Boy!) Try sprinkling Cayenne pepper, chicken seasoning, cajun seasoning, or whatever before the flour step!

*Want to make this recipe a little healthier? Try the All Natural Baked Lays Ruffle Chip for a healthier chip option. Also instead of coating your pan with oil try a generous coating of cooking spray instead. Just be sure to keep your heat low because it will burn quicker!

*Buy chicken breast nugget pieces and make potato chip chicken nuggets instead. Serve with ketchup, eat your heart out McDonalds!

*Use regular size chicken breast for a more adult serving size!

*Other side suggestions: Buttered noodles, Noodles mixed in Broccoli Cheddar Soup, French fries, cut your chicken and place over a fresh salad!

New Beginnings

Picture this:
Two nannies walking through the Hotel del Coronado on a nice sunny January day. Magically, out of thin air, a quote appeared in their minds. "2 Nannies. Because one is just not enough!" And because of this simple quote, an idea to start a blog formed in their big 'ol brains. So here we have it - a shared blog of their adventures in nannying three cutie pop kids and the things that keep them smiling.

Photo taken on the beach in front of the

Hotel del Coronado in Coronado, California on

January 29, 2012.

Kiko left. Phylicia right.