busy mom

Name: Air Fryer Sausage and Egg Breakfast Bites
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 12
Ingredients: 1 pound of ground breakfast sausage; 3 cups of shredded hash brown potatoes; 2 3/4 cups of shredded cheese, cheddar, divided; 1 teaspoon of onion powder; 1/2 teaspoon of salt; 1/2 teaspoon of pepper; 1 tablespoon of olive oil; 12 eggs; Parsley for garnish

Sausage and Egg Breakfast Bites

September 18, 2022 by Rachel 10 Comments

School and after-school activities are back in full swing. Like, my husband and I are coordinating via google calendar invites and a giant whiteboard. I know that many families have operated like this for years, but our kids are finally old enough for it to be the very beginning of our craziness season. I know I’ve been making quick meals for a long time, but even I need to step up my game right now. These air fryer sausage and egg breakfast bites are helping to keep our lives on the fast track.

What You’ll Need

There are only a few actual ingredients in this recipe. Here’s what they are:

1 pound of ground breakfast sausage
3 cups of shredded hash brown potatoes
2 3/4 cups of shredded cheese, cheddar, divided
1 teaspoon of onion powder
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of pepper
1 tablespoon of olive oil
12 eggs
Parsley for garnish

In addition, I would add that you can use your favorite sauces or dips to accompany the breakfast bites.

The most important part (aside from the ingredients) are the air fryer and the jumbo silicone baking cups. If you’re looking for an air fryer, this is my favorite one!

How to make Sausage and Egg Breakfast Bites

Yield: 12

Air Fryer Sausage and Egg Breakfast Bites

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 45 minutes

Ingredients

1 pound of ground breakfast sausage
3 cups of shredded hash brown potatoes
2 3/4 cups of shredded cheese, cheddar, divided
1 teaspoon of onion powder
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of pepper
1 tablespoon of olive oil
12 eggs
Parsley for garnish

Instructions

INGREDIENTS -

Divide the sausage meat into 12 patties.
Place in air fryer basket at 350° for 10 minutes, when cooked, set aside.
In a mixing bowl, combine the hash browns, 2 cups cheese, spices, and oil.
Place 2-3 tablespoons of hash brown mixture in jumbo muffin liners. Form along the base and wall of the liner.
Place liners in the air fryer basket and cook at 400° for 10 minutes or until they start to brown and crisp up.
Place one sausage patty in a cup and press down to seat it. Crack one egg over each cut and sprinkle with cheese. Repeat for every cup.
Continue to cook at 350° for 10 minutes or less for a softer yolk.
Garnish with parsley. You can serve it with hot sauce, gravy, or ketchup.

If you’re looking for more air fryer recipes, check out these.

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Busy Family Tips for Reconnecting at Mealtime

November 3, 2021 by Rachel 11 Comments

As a mom, I feel like I’m always falling short. And I know I’m not alone. Most days at least one thing is falling through the cracks. I’m not going to lie — usually it’s folding laundry! But when it comes to parenting, the biggest thing I feel I was underprepared for, is just how many meals I’m responsible for making. Honest to goodness! It may seem silly, but the responsibility of feeding a whole family 3 meals (and several snacks) a day can be incredibly overwhelming. But, truly, it doesn’t need to be. I’m sharing my busy family tips for reconnecting at mealtime so that you can spend as much time as possible on the things that matter — your family!

Tip Number 1

Use Walmart Grocery Pickup. I know a lot of people have gotten on board with grocery pickup over the last 2 years. I, on the other hand, have always tried to save as much time as possible. Walmart Grocery Pickup has been an absolute lifesaver.

I can order everything we need online and I don’t have to unbuckle even one kid from the car seat. That’s the mom hack that everyone needs in their lives, y’all.

Tip Number 2

Make mealtime simple! As mothers, we may often feel pressured to be ‘the best’ all of the time. But, truly, those expectations are ridiculous. The best thing we can do as parents is to provide and be present for our kids. By making mealtime simple and utilizing Walmart for their grab and go fresh hot ribs, it’s the perfect on-the-go solution.

These delicious, already made, hot ribs are ready at the deli counter for your easiest, quick lunch or dinner options. And all you need to do is pair it with a couple of easy salads (potato and greens are our favorites). That way I can spend more time involved in those super special conversations with the kids.

Tip Number 3

Give them what they want. Okay, so hear me out on this one. But mealtime can go one of two ways. One — you can spend this time trying to convince your kids to eat. Or, two — you can give them the foods that they love and know that they are nourished, happy, and thriving.

I always go with number two. Forcing kids to eat is the absolute worst and you’ll spend the entire mealtime arguing instead of reconnecting.

Knowing that they are fed, happy, and healthy is really the ultimate goal. Take away the busy work by using Walmart for mealtime solutions. Here is the link to try it for yourself: http://bit.ly/2Zcb1qo

Tell me — what’s your favorite way to reconnect with your family during mealtime?

#ad These Hot Ribs from the @walmart deli are so quick and easy! #walmart Try them for yourself here: bit.ly/3vzvBNe

My Self-Care Routine with Riondo Prosecco and By Any Reads

December 3, 2020 by Rachel 11 Comments

This month I turned thirty-five. My 36th birthday came in with little fanfare, but I feel more present than ever. In fact, I rang in this year by focusing on a just a few things: myself and my family. And that’s why I am here to share my self-care routine with Riondo Prosecco and By Any Reads.

Why Self-Care Matters

Self-care is a term we throw around a lot these days. For me, self-care means unplugging and focusing on myself. But it’s something we all need. I know that I can easily get burned out if I don’t take a step back, take a breath, and focus on myself for point two seconds. In fact, just last week I was drowning with the need for a bit of time to focus on myself. Taking care of others, working from home, and homeschooling will (and can) do a number on anyone. Now, more than ever, it’s important to take care of ourselves.

My Self-Care Routine

I will admit it: I am addicted to social media. Sure, it can be fun. But in the past however many years, it’s also been a wonderful platform for me to use my voice and a wonderful way to stay connected. But there are major downfalls. Social media has made clear divides between people. Some of those divides just cannot be repaired. So self-care is exactly what I need in my life.

Riondo Prosecco and By Any Reads

Unplugging and unwinding with Riondo Prosecco and By Any Reads is my go-to for self-care. I mean, I need to be away from social media. And what better way than by joining a virtual book club like By Any Reads?! I get to connect with people across the country and do something I love — read!

This months book is Redefining Realness by Janet Mock. The book is both powerful and inspiring. As a cisgender white woman, I thought perhaps I would not be able to relate. But her book is about so much more than her experience as a transgender woman.

This book brought so many feelings to the surface. I’ve been struggling with my own sort of identity crisis. Turning 36 means that I’m nearing the dreaded ‘middle-age’. And I’ve talked quite a bit about my experience in becoming a mother and trying to ‘find myself,’ or rather, get to know myself again. It’s a journey I’m still on. And this book was a great example of how our lives are just one small transformation after another.

Are you interested in joining a virtual book club? Follow @RiondoProsecco on Instagram to learn more about December’s book selection!

My hopes for this year

My hope is that I can be an encouraging voice for my community. And that community includes YOU. I want you to #TakeASeccoTo yourself. Enjoy self-care in small ways. Even if that means sipping on Riondo Prosecco and reading a book. Get to know yourself through small acts of reflection.

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easy tips for a self care routine to unwind even in chaos

The Perfect Summertime Grilled S’mores Recipe

June 20, 2020 by Rachel 34 Comments

With Summer plans in limbo for everyone, we’re all scrambling to find fun things to keep our families busy. What better time to get creative with Summer recipes, am I right?

All three of my kids are in this really picky ‘grilled cheese’ phase. You know the kind of phase. It’s where literally all they will eat is plain old grilled cheese and nothing else.

The funny thing about kids is that no matter how much they refuse real food, they will never ever turn down sweets. To tell you the truth, neither will I! I mean, we all love sweets, am I right?!

The great thing about ‘Summer recipes’ is that it doesn’t have to be Summer to create them. As much as we would like to be around the campfire, life doesn’t always work out that way. In fact, on the best of days a good backyard campfire can quickly be ruined by a quick rainstorm or a fussy toddler. So, why not bring the backyard favorite indoors?

For instance, a fun family favorite is S’mores. Everyone loves s’mores, right? Even I, someone who doesn’t really like chocolate, LOVES a good s’more. Truthfully, I prefer a non-traditional s’more with chocolate caramels instead of a chocolate bar. But a s’more is a s’more!

Tips for getting your s’more on indoors!

My first tip is this — don’t eat the chocolate (or the marshmallows!) before you start your s’mores! This is the most important and most difficult task!

My second tip is to use real butter. Margarine just doesn’t fry up and crisp the bread the way that real butter does! And I prefer salted butter — it just gives it a little salty-sweet flavor combo that is extra delicious!

Yield: 1

Grilled S'mores

Have this decadent and RICH Summer recipe year-round!

Cook Time 7 minutes

Total Time 7 minutes

Ingredients

2 slices of white bread
1/4 cup of mini marshmallows
1/4 cup of chocolate (dark or milk)
tablespoon of butter

Instructions

Butter one side of each piece of bread with real butter (works better than margarine).
Place 1 slice of bread onto a frying pan
Set the heat to low (electric level 1 or 2). The process is slow and steady!
Place chocolate chips and marshmallows on top of the slice of bread and top with second piece of bread (butter side up).
Cover with lid to frying pan until chocolate starts to melt.
Flip over once chocolate is melted. Fry other side until it is toasted (lid off).

Notes

This is completely addictive. I am warning you! Also, feel free to try with peanut butter cups or your favorite chocolate (like peppermint patties or ROLOs!).

As you can see, this recipe is simple and easy. I wish I could say it was also healthy, but it most definitely is NOT!

So tell me — what is your favorite chocolate for s’mores — milk or dark?

Easy Memorial Day Cherry Pie Bites

May 22, 2020 by Rachel 35 Comments

When it came time for a Mother’s Day celebration I had ONE request — cherry pie! It turns out that bakeries are hard to come by when you’re in lockdown. We couldn’t find one anywhere! And I had very few items on-hand.

But I did have cinnamon rolls! Queue the cherry pie baking!

I remembered seeing somewhere that someone had made pies using a can of cinnamon rolls. I thought, sure, why not? It’s basically combining two of my favorite foods — pie and cinnamon rolls. What a delicious combination, right?!

Cinnamon rolls are just something we always have on hand with three kids under 7. They are our special ‘weekend breakfast’ treat. It’s easier than going out for donuts, and all three kids gobble them up! And these were no exception!

With all of the bakeries running a minimal staff this weekend, I figured this is another great opportunity to try this recipe! I tried ordering an apple pie from my favorite local bakery, but they were sold out of pre-orders. So Cherry Pie Cinnamon Roll Bites it is!

Check out the full recipe for all of the details.

Yield: 8

Cherry Pie Cinnamon Roll Bites

Quick + Easy Bite-Sized Cherry Pie

Prep Time 8 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 23 minutes

Ingredients

1 can of refrigerated cinnamon rolls
Cherry Pie Filling

Instructions

Spray a regular-sized muffin tin with your choice of oil (avocado, vegetable, coconut).
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Open can of refrigerated cinnamon roll dough. Take each individual roll, and flatten it out with the palm of your hand.
Press into muffin tin.
Add one tablespoon of cherry pie filling to each of the 8 cinnamon roll cups.
Bake for 15 minutes or until cooked through.
Once cool, drizzle icing from cinnamon rolls on top of cherry pies.
ENJOY!

And tell me — what’s your go-to “in a pinch” recipe?!

How To Save Money on Everyday Essentials

May 6, 2020 by Rachel 23 Comments

This post is sponsored by Optum Perks but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

It’s hard to believe that I have been “laid off” from my job for going on 7 weeks now. The job that, over the years, became my happy place — has been missing from my life for nearly two months. As things have changed rather dramatically for all of us, I’m finding new and inventive ways to pinch pennies.

Saving Money on Essentials Can Be Easy

I made a lot of changes in these last 7 weeks. Surprisingly, most of them were incredibly easy! Here’s what my family is doing to cut down on our every day expenses.

Shop at discount grocery retailers.

Going to the grocery store is unavoidable. For my family, we are making far fewer trips than before — but we’ve also made the decision to use grocers that offer off-brand or discounted groceries like ALDI and Save-a-Lot. We still are getting the same quality fresh foods, produce, and non-perishables, but we’re doing so at a much lower cost.

Cancelling Unnecessary Subscriptions.

There was a time when we had a cable TV subscription, Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime. Honestly, we’ve never had that much time to watch TV. So we have trimmed up our TV subscription services by cancelling our live-television services and picking one of the online streaming services.

This can go for many types of subscriptions like a grocery delivery service, music streaming service, and even beauty boxes.

Using Optum Perks to Save on Prescription Refills.

Prescriptions are another ‘unavoidable’ cost, but there are brilliant ways of saving cash when it comes time to fill or refill! Savings reach up to 80% with no membership and no fees!+

Prescriptions saving is easy. You just search, find, and save without ever having to enter personal information or data in. Optum Perks can be used at over 64,000 pharmacies nationwide, including Walmart, Walgreens, and CVS. Once you find the prescription and pricing, you can decide if you’d like the free coupon to be delivered by text, email, or by printing it out.

These prescription coupons can be presented to your pharmacist whichever way is convenient for you. So whether you’re using the drive-thru or picking it up in-store, your pharmacy coupon will be honored. Truly. That’s it.

I’ve been really open about my struggles with mental health, particularly since having children. As many know, I’ve relied mostly on my Lexapro prescription for the last 5 years. Usually my refills cost upwards of $20. By using Optum Perks I’ve been able to fill it at the rate of $9.00! That’s an eleven dollar savings! While it may not seem like a lot, with a family of 5, every bit helps.

You can see for yourself by heading to Optum Perks today and finding out just how much you can be saving on the prescriptions you need for the whole family.

Putting Memberships on Hold.

If you look at the number of items that are auto-deducted from your account each month, what would you see? For me, it’s our family gym membership, zoo membership, and my auto-renew of my coffee card. While these memberships are handy and even affordable in times of employment, they can be detrimental to savings when going through financial hardship.

Most memberships will allow a ‘hold’ or ‘break’ for anywhere from one to 6-months. And it’s usually as simple as giving them a call or shooting their customer service team an email.

These Adjustments Do Not Have To Be Permanent

If there’s one thing that I’ve learned in these last couple of months it’s that I am capable of much more than I previously thought I was. I’m the same girl who would grab coffee from Starbucks before work almost every day. But I don’t have to be. In fact, I’m amazed at how these small changes I’ve made in our spending have had such a tremendous impact on not only our pocketbooks, but our overall psychological well-being.

But knowing that at least some of what I’m doing right now is just temporary certainly helps. I may not stay away from my beloved coffee forever, but I can tell you that I will never go back to paying full-price for my prescriptions.

+Prices are subject to change over time

Tell me — what will you do with all of the money you save using Optum Perks?