I Tried and Succeeded in Making Some Pinterest Recipes

I love trying new recipes! Love it. I can spend hours on Pinterest finding new recipes to try and I never regret it. I have been meaning to write a food post since forever and I am so glad I finally did, as I am sure you are too! Here are some of my all time favorite recipes that I found on Pinterest and tried in the last year. I am not very good at describing the food I eat, but I sure do like sharing these recipes with you!

My Favorite Fall Recipe

Photo from Chelsea's Messy Apron

{Slow Cooker} Sweet Potato, Chicken, & Quinoa Soup

I love this recipe and my husband loves it too. I even got my parents to try it and it was a big hit! This is one of my all time favorite fall recipes and I can't wait to make it again. Sweet potatoes, black beans, tomatoes... what more could you want? Find the recipe here.

Always An Instant Hit

Photo from Julie's Eats and Treats

Green Beans, Chicken, & Potatoes

I have yet to hear someone say they didn't like this one! Who knew sprinkling Italian seasoning over a pan of chicken, potatoes, and green beans would be so appetizing? It is super easy to make and super delicious. The only thing I wasn't a fan of was how much butter the recipe calls for. I only use half of what you are supposed to and it still tastes delicious. Find the recipe here.

Yummy in My Tummy

This is my very own picture!

Cheesy Sausage Tortellini

This one is a tiny bit more complex than the last two, but it is so freaking good. That is all I have to say about this one. Find the recipe here.

I Love Everything Ranch

Another picture that is all mine!

Ranch Chicken

This Ranch chicken will only take you a few minutes to prepare and it tastes so very very good. I love serving this dish with corn and brown rice. Find the recipe here.

This is a Must Try

Photo from Frugality Gal

Honey Teriyaki Chicken

When I was compiling this list I realized that most of my recipes include chicken. I think that is because it is decently cheap to purchase and well liked by many. Anyway, this is probably my favorite chicken recipe on today's list. Find the recipe here.

Another Chicken Dish

   

This picture is all mine!

One Pan Balsamic Chicken and Veggies

This recipe is wonderfully flavorful and pretty darn healthy. We used fresh green beans instead of asparagus. My husband and I loved it. Find the recipe here.

Pizza is My Drug of Choice

Photo from Ella Claire

No-Crust Pizza Bites

I can eat pizza all day every day in just about any format. When I found this healthier version I had to give it a whirl. These no-crust pizza bites were unbelievably tasty. My husband devoured so many of them, probably making them less healthy, but they were just so darn good! Find the recipe here.

Please share some of your favorite recipes in the comments!

TTT #49: Authors I Would Love to See Write a Book Together

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

I am so excited to be participating in this week's topic! I thought I would have a hard time coming up with ten different author pairings, but it turns out that I really didn't. I would DIE if these authors teamed up together to write a book. In no particular order, here are my dream author duos...

Review: Of Dreams and Rust by Sarah Fine

Of Dreams and Rust (#2) by Sarah Fine (Aug. 2015)
280 pages
Genre: Young Adult/Fantasy/Other
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Source: The library.
Purchase: Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository | Amazon
My Rating:

Goodreads Summary: War erupts in this bittersweet sequel to Of Metal and Wishes, inspired by The Phantom of the Opera and called “relentlessly engrossing” by The Romantic Times.

In the year since the collapse of the slaughterhouse where Wen worked as her father’s medical assistant, she’s held all her secrets close. She works in the clinic at the weapons factory and sneaks away to nurse Bo, once the Ghost, now a boy determined to transform himself into a living machine. Their strange, fragile friendship soothes some of the ache of missing Melik, the strong-willed Noor who walked away from Wen all those months ago—but it can’t quell her fears for him.

The Noor are waging a rebellion in the west. When she overhears plans to crush Melik’s people with the powerful war machines created at the factory, Wen makes the painful decision to leave behind all she has known—including Bo—to warn them. But the farther she journeys into the warzone, the more confusing things become. A year of brutality seems to have changed Melik, and Wen has a decision to make about him and his people: How much is she willing to sacrifice to save them from complete annihilation?

+Add to goodreads

My Review

Of Dreams of Rust is the sequel to Of Metal and Wishes. I really liked the first book, but I wasn't blown away. When I read Of Dreams and Rust, I was completely blown away!

Of Dreams and Rust has everything in a book that I love. It has a lot of action, romance, suspense, interesting characters, a blurred line between good and bad, unique war machinery, and beautiful writing. You can see why it blew me away. 

While I only just liked Wen originally, I grew to freaking love her in this book. She is fiercely strong and wonderfully came into her own. I wasn't a fan of Bo in the first book, but he too continued to grow and surprise me. Melik is still strong and kind and hard when needed. I enjoyed reading about all three of these characters.

After you get through the first couple of chapters the pacing of the book is incredibly fast, and I loved it! I didn't want to stop reading once I started. It was nail biting, ugly, dark, beautiful, and crazy. I am just so glad that the emotional roller coaster ride concluded with a satisfying ending. This unique novel shouldn't be passed up. My only complaint is that I think the book could have been a little longer, it was a little short at only 280 pages.

Sarah Fine is an author you don't want to miss out on! She really knows how to write some astonishingly beautiful and dark pieces of fiction.

Review: Nowhere But Here by Katie McGarry

Nowhere But Here by Katie McGarry (May 2015)
496 pages
Genre: Young Adult Romance
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Source: The library.
Purchase: Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository | Amazon
My Rating:

Goodreads Summary: Seventeen-year-old Emily likes her life the way it is: doting parents, good friends, good school in a safe neighborhood. Sure, she's curious about her biological father—the one who chose life in a motorcycle club, the Reign of Terror, over being a parent—but that doesn't mean she wants to be a part of his world. But when a reluctant visit turns to an extended summer vacation among relatives she never knew she had, one thing becomes clear: nothing is what it seems. Not the club, not her secret-keeping father and not Oz, a guy with suck-me-in blue eyes who can help her understand them both.

Oz wants one thing: to join the Reign of Terror. They're the good guys. They protect people. They're…family. And while Emily—the gorgeous and sheltered daughter of the club's most respected member—is in town, he's gonna prove it to her. So when her father asks him to keep her safe from a rival club with a score to settle, Oz knows it's his shot at his dream. What he doesn't count on is that Emily just might turn that dream upside down.

No one wants them to be together. But sometimes the right person is the one you least expect, and the road you fear the most is the one that leads you home.

+ Add to goodreads

My Review

I'm going to start off my review with the two main characters' opening lines.

Emily

"Top three awful moments of my life: Meeting my biological father at ten. Breaking my arm in three spots at nine. Falling into a hole and being trapped there overnight with a dead body at eight."

Oz

"It's three in the morning and Mom and I continue to wait."

My First Thought: Is this going to be my kind of book? A few pages later... Why, I guess it is! *smiles wide*

This seemed like a longer romance novel to me since it hit close to 500 pages, but I liked these characters enough that I didn't mind one bit and am thankful for its length. I am so glad I decided to finally take a chance on reading one of Katie McGarry's novels. I don't read a lot of young adult romance, but I am trying to be more open minded about what I read so I gave it a shot.

If I am going to read a romance novel, I prefer one with dual POVs from both the male and female (or male and male or female and female) love interests. I don't know if this will make sense to you, but the dual POVs seem to make me less aggravated with a character with a budding romance when I can get inside both peoples' heads.

In Nowhere But Here we get to witness Emily try to figure out who her biological father is, and if she can find a way to let him into her life. All the while we also get to see Oz deal with trying to conquer his dream of becoming an official member of the Reign of Terror. Their issues are different and the same. Figuring out where and how you belong as a teenager is always difficult. As for these two as a couple, they are super cute and have some steamy moments. Honestly, I didn't find them annoying at all, which is a big accomplishment for a young adult romance. Usually the "will they won't they" or "we fight because we don't communicate thing" drives me insane, but there really wasn't a lot of that here.

The Bottom Line: I am sure fans of Katie McGarry will love this novel. As for everyone else, next time you are in a romance type mood I suggest you pick up Nowhere But Here.

Library Loot #38

Library Loot is a weekly event co-hosted by Claire from The Captive Reader and Linda from Silly Little Mischief that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library.

** I may have went a little crazy at the library this week, but only a little. There are just too many wonderful books coming out this fall! I can't keep up.

My Library Loot

1. I'm squeezing in one last summer book.

2. I've been curious about this one for quite some time.

3. My new audiobook.

4. I've heard a million good things about this book. 

5. I've been waiting for this beauty.

6. This one sounds unique. 

7. 8. 9. 10. New graphic novels to try,

11. I just came across this one at work.

12. Another fall release I have been waiting for!

Review: Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli (April 2015)
303 pages
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Source: The library.
Purchase: Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository | Amazon
My Rating:

Goodreads Summary: Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised.

With some messy dynamics emerging in his once tight-knit group of friends, and his email correspondence with Blue growing more flirtatious every day, Simon’s junior year has suddenly gotten all kinds of complicated. Now, change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met.

+ Add to goodreads

My Review

There was a lot of hype surrounding this book and a whole lot of people mentioning Oreos as well. I just HAD to read Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda for myself. I am so very delighted to say that I liked it. I liked it a lot. Since I had a lot of reactions (laughing, smiling, swooning, anger, etc.) while reading I did goodreads updates along the way. So that is how I will share my feels with you for this review. (I did have a few mishaps while trying to do updates from my phone which is why the first one is blank and the last one that said I finished apparently isn't on there.)

The Bottom Line: Although I am only giving this book 4 stars, I enjoyed it immensely. I do think all the hype surrounding the book may have made me set the bar a little too high for Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda and that is why I didn't give it five stars. But the writing was fantastic, Simon was memorable, and it was full of cuteness and realness. You should probably take the time to read it. ;)

The Outlander Series 2015 Reading Challenge Giveaway!

I can't believe my Outlander challenge has officially come to a close. Time flies. I am so sorry that I ended up getting two months behind with the Outlander posts, but I have a really good reason. I bought my first house and got a second job a couple of months ago, which in turn made for one crazy summer. Anyway...

Even though I failed at my own challenge, some of you succeeded and deserve to be recognized for your efforts. Whether you read 1, 2, or all of the books in the series, you can enter to win a $10 gift card to The Book Depository or Amazon! Heck, I even have a free entry for anyone who originally signed up in the challenge, because I of all people know that sometimes you have the best intentions but life gets in the way. Not to mention that I never pass up an opportunity to help support my fellow book nerds' bookish buying habits. ;) All you have to do is share the links to your reviews on the books in the rafflecopter below. It can be a link to a blog post, a tweet, a goodreads review, etc. Anything that shows that you read the book counts. Good luck!

Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

How many books did you read? I read two. I still plan to finish the series in the nearish future.