Holiday Archives — Page 3 of 3 — Everyday Cori By Corine Ingrassia

Easy Holiday Appetizer Idea: Sweet And Savory Cranberry Bruschetta

November 16, 2016 By Cori

Every year it seems the holidays creep up out of nowhere– it’s almost cliché, I know– but this year feels like an outright sneak attack– just me?

As we all finalize our turkey day menu, one of the things that is surely on everyone’s list is appetizers – because is there anything more crowd pleasing than munchie hors d’oeuvre goodness? I think not.

Apps are hands down my favorite course of every holiday get together.

Seriously.

I would trade in my heaping plate of sliced turkey and stuffing to sit down to a dinner table filled with dips and a variety of bite size noshables –(totally ™-ing that, btw!)

But the struggle to switch it up and find new, easy, make-and-take appetizers that will be a crowd pleaser– is REAL!

So because I know the nightmare of the last minute panic that ends in fighting crowds at the grocery store– just to grab the ingredients to your go-to spinach dip… again… I wanted to share this recipe for a great holiday twist on a classic fave.

If you and your peeps love yummy sweet and savory bites, they will gobble this right up (pun totally intended).

I think we can all agree the perfect app should be 4 things: Easy to make, easy to transport, mess free and delish.

This Cranberry Bruschetta is all of those things!

Ingredients:

1 loaf of baguette, cut into ½ inch slices
8oz cream cheese, softened
¾ cup of orange juice, pulp free
¼ cup of water
1 cup of sugar
1/8 teaspoon of cinnamon
12oz package of fresh cranberries, rinsed and stems removed
Pint of fresh raspberries
Fresh basil, torn to garnish

( Makes approx. 24-30 crostini bites )

Instructions:

In a large pan, bring water, orange juice and sugar to a boil. Add in cranberries and cinnamon, continue to boil for 5-7 minutes. Stirring occasionally. Once cranberries have all opened, remove from heat and chill covered for three hours. (Sauce will thicken.
On each slice of baguette, spread ½ to 1 teaspoon of cream cheese. Layer with ½ teaspoon of cranberry. Top with a raspberry and basil.

Pin it and try it out later!

Last Minute Holiday Shopping Hacks

December 15, 2015 By Cori

This post is sponsored by Zone Perfect Perfectly Simple

Where has December gone? Am I the only one who feels like Thanksgiving was last week?

If you, like me find that you are now less than 10 shopping days left til’ Christmas and still have things to check off on your list, below are some of my tried and true tips and hacks to make last minute shopping as stress-free as possible.

Free shipping day– December 18!

Internet shopping is so convenient, but we are quickly approaching the window of time where in order to receive our goods by Christmas, we need to spend more on shipping– no one wants to do this! So in a last ditch effort to online shop without the added cost of shipping, start scoping the internet for things on your list and plan on taking advantage of them on free shipping day.

No shipping fee + Christmas delivery +shopping in your jammies is a win in everyone’s book!

Pin for price drop notifications

This is a new feature on Pinterest not everyone knows exists. When you pin a product from a retailer’s site to a your Pinterest pin-board, you have the option of being notified when a price drops. This works for in-store purchases at major retailers such as Target too– so get to pinning!

Take advantage of extended holiday hours

Stores can get hectic during the holiday season– especially in the last few days/week. Take advantage of the extended holiday hours and plan to shop either SUPER early (say 6am?) or SUPER late (like 10 or 12 am) and enjoy shopping without the crowds.

Make a list and map out your haul

It is so much easier to stick to a shopping plan when you have one. Revisit your shopping list, peruse the internet to come up with some possible gift ideas and make notes. Then map out your shopping day– which stores will you go to? If you’re going to a mall, check their website for a map and map out exactly how you will go from store to store without walking in circles.

Stay energized and hydrated

To stay focused and energized be sure you are carrying a small water bottle and protein rich snack. Perfectly Simple protein snack bars are perfect for a long day of shopping. Zone Perfect’s Perfectly Simple limited edition holiday flavors, Pumpkin Chai and Peppermint Bark are gluten free, under 200 calories and chock-filled with 10 grams of protein to keep you going during the hectic holiday season!

(pssst! You can find a printable coupon on their site for $1 off a box and snag them on your next Target run)

Pack Light

Speaking of packing… swap out your big bag for a smaller cross body bag (like the pics above and below) and only pack your essentials: Phone, wallet, protein bar, bottle of water, keys– DONE.

Utilize Apps

Barcode Hero and Red Laser allow you to scan a barcode on a product and see price comparisons as well as customer reviews. Coupon Sherpa is another app you will want to keep in your arsenal when you are last minute shopping. You will be surprised at how many stores have coupons on there that can save you 20% or more!

Do you have any additional tips or hacks for last minute shopping? Let us know!

_________________________________

About Zone Perfect’s Perfectly Simple Protein Snack Bar:

With Perfectly Simple, you can enjoy the flavors of fall and winter without any worries. Each seasonal bar has at least 10 grams of protein and less than 200 calories. How’s that for a gift?

Disclosure: Zone Perfect is a paid sponsor of Complicated Mama. As always, all thoughts and opinions expressed are our own.

Holiday Outlet Shopping Finds, Tips + Outfit Inspiration |#FoundAtSimon

December 8, 2015 By Cori

If you follow me on Instagram, you probably know that the day before Thanksgiving I took a pretty nasty (clumsy) fall, resulting in a pretty bad muscle strain. The past two weeks I’ve been out of commission, stuck in doors, relying heavily on family and friends to pick up my slack– thankful for the help!– but the whole situation was not the way to kick off the holiday season.

This past weekend, with the help of a bulky back brace and I was finally able to venture out a bit. So I headed out to my favorite outlet mall, The Mills At Jersey Gardens to scope out some holiday deals and check off that list– because even though I did some damage online shopping– little compares to snagging great deals– in person– at outlet stores!

Today I’m taking over The Mills At Jersey Garden’s Instagram account and sharing some of my favorite finds, holiday outfit inspiration…. including this tulle beauty that I got on MEGA sale and outlet shopping tips!

Follow @MillsAtJersey for details!

Baby’s 1st Valentine’s Day {in} Pictures

February 14, 2014 By Cori

Happy Valentine’s Day, you guys!!

Do you guys celebrate big for V-day? I don’t know. James and I don’t. Kind of never have. He brings flowers and we do surprises and date nights all through out the year… so we don’t make a big fuss. Box of chocolates, card… DONE.

Besides, have you ever eaten out *on* Valentine’s Day? Packed restaurants, wait staff rushing you through your meal to move on to the next reservation… nothing romantic about that in my book.

For us, Valentine’s Day is mostly for the kids because kids LOVE celebrations.

We had a delayed opening today (thank you snowmaggedon) so before the kids went to school, we started our day with heart shaped sprinkle pancakes and conversational hearts (I know- super nutritious, Corine! And I’m SURE the teachers loved them all sugared up.) I’d show you pictures but in all honesty, they’re way more impressive to describe than to show a picture. The kids were excited about it. That’s all that matters right?

Once the big kids were off to school, me and Mr. Avs celebrated his first Valentine’s Day with a fun and silly- totally non-profesh-photo shoot.

And I may be bias, but that boy came out cuter and cuter in every shot. I promised I would not be obnoxious about it and flood people’s Facebook and Instagram streams (BTW, are we Instagram friends yet?) so I’m sharing them here. Because, here it is toooootally cool to be obnoxious and post 157 pictures of my kid from one photo shoot.

Happy Valentine’s Day, ya’ll!

xo, Cori

Avs Babes First Valentine’s Day Pictures

presented by… Mommy

(She’s not a photographer, She just play one on her blog.)

hahaha.. I just noticed, he is totally puckering up *and* throwing up the peace sign.

Barneys Gives A New Meaning To “Skinny Minnie”

October 13, 2012 By Cori

Looks like high end retail store, Barneys New York is giving a whole new meaning to the term “Skinny Minnie” with their newly announced campaign with Disney- leaving many women … well, not happy.

Set to launch November 14th, the campaign will feature a short film in which Minnie fantasizes about being a model in a Paris Fashion show – and with that, Disney characters will hit the runway in high-fashion.

The high- fashion though is not the issue though. It is the extreme transformation of our favorite characters. Take a look at Minnie and Daisy’s new 5’11”, size zero cat-walk frame.

In addition to Minnie and Daisy, other transformed characters that will be revealed in high end fashion will be: Mickey Mouse, Goofy, Cruella de Vil, Princess Tiana and Snow White.

According to Barneys’ creative director Dennis Freedman, the decision for the shocking transformation was made because “the standard Minnie Mouse will not look so good in a Lanvin dress”.

Maybe its me, but I am not so sure she looks good in a Lavin dress now either.

I struggled with body image as a child, and admittedly it manifested into a warped self image as an adult. I wish that weren’t the case, its unhealthy and I know that. I try extra hard not to pass this way of thinking on to my children, especially my daughter. Suppressing your horrible feelings about your own self image to help your kids have a healthier one is not easy. Images on tv and in magazines can make it even more challenging.

I have to question the terrible message this campaign will send to our kids– even if it wasn’t necessarily intended for their eyes. Why is Minnie dreaming of being a size zero?

There is currently a petition on Change.org you can sign have this campaign pulled before it reaches the impressionable eyes of our mini fashionistas.

Petition creator, Ragen Chastain has said she has started the petition because she feels

“There is nothing wrong with tall, thin women. There is something wrong with changing a beloved children’s character’s body so that it looks good in a dress that almost nobody looks good in.”