Stuffed Peppers {5 Minute Prep!}

It's no secret that I don't particularly like to cook. Except for other people, that is. Which is probably why I only really like making appetizers--foods that are easy to transport to other people's houses, where they can ooh and ahh over my amazing creation, never suspecting that at home, I might only cook dinner 2 or 3 times a week. And only once a week if I can make a casserole big enough to feed us the whole week!

What can I say, I'm busy I've got other priorities than slaving over a hot stove for a hour every night!

But I have thrown together this super quick recipe that I thought I'd share, if any of you are too lazy to do much cooking like I am. This has got to be hands down the quickest possible way to make yummy stuffed peppers--only 5 minutes of prep time by using some short cut ingredients!

First, gather your ingredients.

4 red peppers (the recipe makes 4 servings, but for my husband and I, we just save 2 peppers and half of the stuffing for the next night)
1 packet of 90 Second Ready Rice
1 package of pre-cooked chicken breast (usually found by the sliced sandwich meat)
1 cup of shredded cheese
3/4 cup salsa (or a little less or more depending on how you feel)
1/4 cup diced onion
Sour cream to taste

First, turn your oven on to 350 degrees. Throw the Ready Rice in the microwave for 90 seconds, pre-heat a small skillet with a little olive oil, dice your onion and throw it in the skillet for a little light browning.

In a bowl combine your pre-cooked chicken (I like to tear it up into smaller pieces), cheese, salsa, all the while occasionally stirring your onions in the skillet. Add the rice once it's cooked.

Rinse your peppers, chop the top off of them, and cut out the innards. Give them a second quick rinse to make sure all the seeds are washed away. Add your onions to the bowl and stir everything together.

Then all you have to do is stuff the contents of your bowl inside the peppers with a spoon.

Place your stuffed peppers on a cookie sheet and top them with a little more shredded cheese. Done and ready to put in the oven, in only 5 minutes! Even someone as lazy as I am can handle this, especially when I only have to wash a bowl, skillet and spoon afterwards.

Bake your peppers for about 25 minutes, or until they look cooked and ready to eat.

Add a spoonful of sour cream if you like before serving. My husband even likes to grab a handful of tortilla chips to eat with the stuffed peppers.

Enjoy! I'm sure this isn't a drool-worthy Pinterest recipe, but it is super easy and super yummy. And I bet if you serve this, nobody will ever know it only took you 5 minutes to throw together! ;)

Do you have any very-quick-to-put-together recipes that are your "go to" when you're feeling lazy?

P.S. Obviously it will be different if you use different brands of ingredients, but the way I made these they equal out to be 378.75 calories each.

House Hunters: The Morgan and Alex Edition, The Finale

Part 1: Intro and Wish List
Part 2: Houses 1 and 2
Part 3: House 3 and Which Will They Pick?

It was so fun to see everyone's guesses yesterday!

So now for the answer to which house we bought. Cue dramatic music!

Narrator: So which house did Morgan and Alex choose? The least expensive, move in ready home?

The fixer upper that had lots of potential?

Or the most expensive home, that also needed updating?

But this is the part where I'm going to totally deviate from the House Hunters style I've been going with for these posts. Because in real life, you never have to pick between just three homes. And I didn't want to just make up the whole "which of these three houses should we pick" conversation that the couples always have on house hunters, because we definitely didn't sit down and discuss it that way.

Also, while I'm on the subject of real life, why do they always show people either chopping vegetables and cooking in their kitchens or walking around happily while the House Hunters narrator talks? Like, really, can't the producers think of something else to stage, to give us a little more variety while we get to know the couples? If my husband and I were really on House Hunters, you'd totally see us just throwing frozen dinners in the oven, and then vegging out on the couch with glasses of wine to watch TV!

Anyway, back to which house we picked. Basically, as soon as we got back in our car after seeing house #3, we decided we weren't feeling it. It really was overpriced, and we didn't like the level changes, and we just knew it wasn't the house for us. So it was off the list, just like that.

an anti-climatic house elimination, I know!

Directly after seeing all three of these houses, my husband and I drove over to his brother's house, to have dinner with him and his wife. We talked with them a little about the houses, and then headed home pretty late for a Sunday night, so we decided to make time to discuss houses the next night.

I think it was really good that we gave ourselves the time to sleep on it too. Because of course that night I dreamed about floor plans and how to decorate things, and in my mind, there was only one house to consider.

So we didn't experience a typical House Hunters style of elimination. It wasn't just pick house #1 or house #2, there was also the option to just keep looking once more houses come on the market this spring. But apparently my husband, along with my dreams, was only thinking about one house, and didn't want to keep looking. And by lunchtime the next day, we were already asking each other, "so, are you going to buy me that house or what!"

So was it the first or second one? (Insert more dramatic House Hunters music here!)
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The second one! The house with the great floor plan and a ton of potential!

The first house was really nice, but the floor plan is something you can't really change, and it just didn't flow the way we wanted it to. Having to "make it work" with our needs felt too much like settling, which was one of the biggest things we didn't want to do when buying our first home. Plus, it was so updated already, that I just knew I was going to be sad that I wouldn't be able to put my own stamp on things.

So now we get to do whatever the heck we want with our project house, in a floor plan that perfectly suits us! We have got SO many plans for updates--and it's going to be so much fun making this house ours! Oh, and since I forgot to include it in earlier posts, here's a look at the floor plan, so you can see why we love it so much, with the open kitchen + breakfast nook + family room. And there's TWO freakin' staircases even!

Someday I'll get around to making a prettier version of the floor plan. And also take better photos of the house, once the seller's things are gone, and I'm concentrating on my camera settings, and not just trying to look around at the house.

But for now I'm knee deep in gathering all our loan documents, scheduling home inspections (we're getting two independent inspections--Mike Holmes on HGTV has made us paranoid about bad home inspectors), and a million other things. We close in mid-March!

And no, three months later you won't see us happily entertaining friends in our completely decorated new home, like you do on House Hunters. It's going to take us a while to completely nail down the updates we want to make to the house, and of course, buy all new furniture. And save up for it all! So far I've got big plans to paint EVERYTHING, get the popcorn ceilings scraped down, opening up the kitchen by removing cabinets, and I've got an idea brewing for updating the large brick fireplace in the family room, that doesn't involve painting the brick. I'm so insanely excited, and I'm sure I'll be sharing here, as it all starts to come together! :)


P.S. I thought about writing in this post about our negotiation process with the house we ended up buying, but I'm not sure how interesting that is to you guys. That's something that's probably only useful or interesting to read about if you're in the process of buying a home too. But I'm happy to write about the offer to purchase strategies we used and how the back and forth negotiations worked for us when we made our offer, if anyone is interested! Or you can just email me if you want the details.

House Hunters: The Morgan and Alex Edition, Part 3

Part 1: Intro and Wish List
Part 2: Houses 1 and 2

Narrator: Renters since college, Morgan and Alex, moved from Northern California to Raleigh last spring. And now these first time home buyers are on the search to find the perfect place to make their forever home. But finding a home that meets all of their square footage, floor plan and lot size needs is proving to be a challenge.

So far, they've seen a house that is nicely updated, on a large lot, but it's a little close to a busy road, and there isn't as much privacy in the backyard as they would like, plus it doesn't have an open kitchen floor plan.

They've also seen a house that meets their space and lot size requirements, and it has the potential to become the ideal open floor plan the couple is looking for. But it's also $15,000 more expensive than the first house, and it needs a lot of updating.

Today Morgan and Alex are going to look at a third house, which is a little further north than their preferred area of Raleigh. 

But the floor plan looks promising in the listing, with more square-shaped rooms, rather than the long and narrow rooms that was an issue with the first home. Plus it has the biggest, most flat yard of all three homes. However, going this far north means some noise from the airport, and this home is further away from shopping and downtown. And this home is listed for $25k more than the first house, and $10k more than the second house.

The home features 4 bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, in 2706 square feet, located on 0.99 acres. 

Alex: "This looks like a comparable sized living room to the other houses."

Morgan: "I like the windows that go all the way to the floors. They aren't the widest windows, but still let in a lot of natural light. But this dining room feels a little smaller than the other two houses, maybe because they have such a tiny table, with a huge light fixture?"

Morgan: "Um, this isn't really what I was expecting from this kitchen. The listing says this house has a 'Gourmet chef’s kitchen with breakfast room'! Maybe I have too high of standards, but laminate counters and non-stainless appliances do not mean a chef's kitchen in my book!"

Alex: "It is a good sized kitchen though, the biggest one we've seen. And it has two big pantries."

Morgan: "Yes, but it's only next to the family room, not open to it. And I'm not sure I like how you have to either not have room for a table in here, so you can use this back door, or block off the access to the deck."

Narrator: The couple goes down a short hall, past the access to the garage, to the bonus room.

Alex: "What's with this level change in the floor? I'm probably going to trip over this every time I go into the bonus room."

Morgan: "I do really like the vaulted ceiling, with the beams. With some paint, this room has a lot of potential for an entertaining space, and there is plenty of room for our pool table."

Narrator: Through the bonus room is one of the doors out to the back deck.

Morgan: "This deck is a little smaller than some we've seen, but I do like how it's flanked on either side by the house, so it's very private from our neighbors." 

Alex: "The backyard is pretty huge. Although it isn't as private as the last one, and would need some landscaping work to get it where we want."

Narrator: The couple heads back inside through the bonus room, but while passing through the kitchen again, they notice something concerning.

Morgan: "Hey, check out this cracked tile. Oh my gosh, there are several rows of cracks across the kitchen floor. I wonder if it's something to do with the floor joists or something...?

Alex: "Really? That is not good. And at this price point, $25k more than the first house we saw, they really should have fixed this."

 Morgan: The family room off of the kitchen is a really good size. I think it's even a little bigger than the last house, or at least with more square feeling dimensions.

Morgan: "But I'm really not a fan of having to go down two steps from both the kitchen and the front hall to get to the family room. I'm always carrying food and drinks out to our current family room, and I can just see myself tripping someday."

Alex: "Yeah, go down two steps to get in here, go up a half of a step to get into the bonus room, it's all a little odd."

Narrator: Morgan and Alex continue through the family room, back to the front entryway, and head down the hall to the second half of the house.

Alex: "This half bathroom off of the hall is a decent size. Although it would make more sense to me to have a bathroom on the other end of the house, near the bonus room." 

Narrator: Off the hallway, this ranch-style home features three guest bedrooms along one side of the hall, with a full bathroom and laundry room on the other side of the hall.

Morgan: "Well, another bathroom that needs updating. This looks like the original 1970s tile too."

Alex: "It's kind of nice having the laundry room right next to the master bedroom."

Morgan: "I agree, as long as you're not planning on doing laundry while I'm sleeping!"

Morgan: "I don't think I like having an outside door to the deck in the master bedroom. It eats up wall space, and I don't really see us ever needing to go out there from this room."

Alex: "The master closet is smaller than in the last house, but still technically a walk in."

Morgan: "Ick, more of this orangy-bisque colored tile in the master bath."

Realtor: "So, Morgan and Alex, how did you guys feel about this third house?"

Morgan: "I'm actually a little disappointed, considering the price it's listed at. It needs a ton of updates too, and it's a little further from downtown than we wanted to go, plus it's the most expensive of the three houses we've seen today."

Alex: "I agree, I think it's overpriced. I do like the ranch floor plan, but considering the two less expensive homes we just saw, this one isn't quite as nice. The backyard could be pretty great with some work though."

Morgan: "Yes, this house would definitely need some work, inside in out. I guess this is where we need to do that number crunching, to see just how much all of these updates will cost, and then weigh that against the prices of these homes."


Narrator: The couple has viewed three homes in North Raleigh, and now it's time for them to pick which one they will make their forever home.

The first home was the least expensive option, as well as the most updated. It had good access to shopping and highways, but may have been a little too close to the busy road. And the couple felt the floor plan was something they could work with, but wasn't the most ideal, with the long and narrow family room. But the deck and backyard were the most landscaped and entertaining-ready of all three homes.

The second home was priced in the middle between the first and third homes, but it needed a lot of updating, including new kitchen cabinets, flooring, and the backyard needed work as well. But it had potential, if the couple is willing to put in the work, something Morgan isn't sure Alex is ready to take on, or pay for.

House number 3 is the most expensive home the couple looked at, and isn't in their preferred location. But it is a ranch style home, which the couple likes, although there were some small level changes throughout the house. This home also needs some updates, but the large, flat yard has a lot of potential.

So which home did they choose?

#1 - The move in ready home that was the least expensive
#2 - The house that had potential but needed the most updates
#3 - The most expensive house that also needed updates

*****

Three great options, huh? I can tell you right now that we definitely took some time to sleep on it, before deciding to make an offer on one of these three houses. We wanted to be sure we were ready to take the plunge, especially considering how early we were in the house hunting process.

So which one do you think is now our house? :)

House Hunters: The Morgan and Alex Edition, Part 2

Part 1: Intro and Wish List

Welcome to Part 2 of the Morgan and Alex Edition of House Hunters! Let's jump right in, with a warning that this is going to be a VERY photo heavy post. :)

Narrator: The first home realtor Renee H. has lined up to show them is near shopping, and has great freeway access. The home has been recently renovated, and has the large lot Morgan and Alex are looking for. However, it is located only one block off of a main street, so the couple may have concerns about traffic noise and their outdoor cats roaming the neighborhood.

The home features 4 bedrooms, 3 full baths, in 2642 square feet, plus a 600 square foot basement, and is located on 0.98 acres.

Alex: "Looks like really nice floors."

Morgan: "Oooh, I like the big bay window and all the natural light in the formal living room!"

Alex: "Wait, is this the family room? It's really long and narrow..."

Morgan: "Yeah, it must be. I'm not sure what we'd do with this room, it wouldn't really work as our TV room, like we currently have set up in our family room."

Morgan: "The kitchen is really nice and fixed up, but it's so tiny!"

Alex: "Yeah, and this 'eating area' is kind of useless space because it's so small. Plus, the kitchen isn't open to the family room like you said you wanted."

Morgan: "But the kitchen does open up to the really nice sun room. Maybe we could figure out a way to make this our TV room?"

Narrator: The couple heads outside to check out the landscaped backyard.

Alex: "I love this deck."

Morgan: "It would be so much fun to entertain out here!"

Alex: "But for being on almost one acre, the neighbors feel a little close in the back. I know it's winter, and there are no leaves on the trees for privacy, but I was expecting the other houses to be a little further away."

Morgan: "Yeah, I agree. The front yard is pretty big, so there's not as much space back here. At least it would be less lawn for you to mow!"

Narrator: Back inside, Morgan and Alex view a bathroom and two bedrooms, before heading downstairs.

Morgan: "Wow, look at how nicely done this bathroom is! It's not exactly the colors I would have chosen myself, but it is really, really nice. We wouldn't have to do anything in here."

Alex: "One of these two main level bedrooms is a little small, but they both have nice storage in the closets."

Morgan: "Wow, I love the grey on the walls and the new carpet. This is so nice!"

Morgan: "And I'm loving the new tile on the floors. This is another great entertaining space."

Alex: "Yeah, it's not what we're used to, but we could make this work as our TV room/family room, instead of the space upstairs. I'm still not sure what we'd do with what's supposed to be the family room upstairs though."

Narrator: The couple looks at another room in the basement that the owners are using as a workout space, a full bathroom, and the laundry room, and then heads upstairs to see the master bedroom.

Morgan: "These stairs are going to be dangerous with my 4" heels, since they are more narrow on the right side because of the curve."

Narrator: At the top of the stairs is the bathroom, that is shared between the master bedroom and the other bedroom on the top floor.

Morgan: "Another nicely done bath, although I'm not crazy about the wallpaper border. Finally, something that I could change in this house!"

Alex: "I'm not sure I like having a door to this bathroom to the master bedroom, and to the hall. We really wouldn't get the master suite feel here."

Morgan: "Eh. It doesn't bother me that much. We only have guests a couple of times a year, and we can stick them downstairs and they can use that bathroom."

Alex: "The master bedroom is a good size."

Morgan: "OMG! This storage room off of the master could totally be turned into my walk in closet!!"

Narrator: The couple views the last of the home's 4 bedrooms, and then heads out to the front porch.

Realtor: "So, Morgan and Alex, what did you think?"

Morgan: "Well, I really liked it. You can tell they put a lot of time and effort into updating it, and I do like most of the finishes."

Alex: "I liked it too, but we'd just have to give some thought to what we'd do with the rooms. What they're calling the family room is pretty awkward, plus it isn't really the open kitchen floor plan we prefer. I think we could make it work though."

Morgan: "Yeah, I think we could make the floor plan work too, especially with that huge basement. The only thing I'm not really sure about with this house is just how fixed up it is. We wouldn't need to do anything to it, which is great at this price, but I was looking forward to doing a little work on our first house. I guess I'd just have to jump right in with picking out new furniture!"


Narrator: Next, the couple travels about 3 miles west, to view the second house on their list. 

This house is $15,000 more expensive than the first house, and is tucked back in the corner of a sprawling neighborhood, on a quiet cul-de-sac. The home needs some updating, but has potential for the open kitchen floor plan that the couple craves.

The home features 4 bedrooms plus a den, 3 full baths, in 3161 square feet, located on 0.81 acres.

Morgan: "This living room seems bigger than in the last house. But I would definitely need to paint all of this dark trim a bright, shiny white."

Morgan: "The flooring in the entryway would have to be changed. I can see tile, brick and carpet all from just standing here right inside the living room."

Alex: "This dinning room also feels bigger than in the last house. And there's more dark trim for you to paint!"

Morgan: "They did a nice job with picking out a neutral colored granite for the counters, and I like the back splash. But those cabinets are not pretty."

Alex: "I'm not sure we would use this little desk area, but maybe we could put in more cabinets there instead? The pantry closet is a nice addition though, although the appliances need some updating."

Morgan: "This room has a lot of potential though...I could see us taking down the cabinets over the peninsula counter, to open up the space to the breakfast nook. And taking down this divider railing would also make the nook flow into the family room a lot better. The bisque colored tile floors with dark grout though...that would have to go."

Alex: "This family room is a great size, and I think the TV above the large fireplace would look nice."

Morgan: "I like the beams, but yeah, this house just needs a lot of work to get it updated. Also, I'm not a fan of the laminate floors in here."

Narrator: After viewing the main rooms on the downstairs level, Morgan and Alex check out the downstairs den, which has stairs next to it leading up to a bonus room on the second floor.

Alex: "These back stairs give you really good access to this bonus room, off of the family room. And our pool table would definitely fit up here."

Narrator: The couple continues their way through the second level of the house, through a door from the bonus room, directly into one of the three upstairs bedrooms, which can also be accessed from the main staircase at the front of the house.

Morgan: "Both of these two upstairs bedrooms are really great sizes. The bones of this house seem really great, and it wouldn't be too hard to just paint the walls and trim to instantly make them look more updated."

Alex: "Double sinks in the upstairs hall bathroom are really nice. But that counter is not exactly updated."

Morgan: "This master bedroom is definitely a little bigger than our current bedroom, even with their big bed frame. And I love the window seat!"

Morgan: "It's not huge, but at least there is a walk in closet in the master. You can have this, and I'll take one of the bedrooms across the hall for my closet!"

Alex: Yeah, the master bathroom isn't huge either, but it is a lot bigger than what we have now. I think the two of us could actually stand in here at the same time and brush our teeth!"

Narrator: The couple heads back downstairs to see the fourth bedroom, another full bathroom and the laundry nook.

Morgan: "Wow, this house just keeps going! How did we miss this section of the downstairs the first time? This is a great sized bathroom, and I like how it's just down a short hall from the family room."

Narrator: Outside, Morgan and Alex check out the large deck and backyard.

Alex: "This deck looks like it's in great condition. And it's about 4x the size of our current deck."

Morgan: "The landscaping is going to be a lot of work though. And I wonder if the flamingos come with the property? Haha. But I do love the fact that we can't even see our neighbors behind us, even this time of year with all the leaves on the ground."

Realtor: "So, what did you guys think about this place?"

Alex: "I really liked it. It seems to have a much better floor plan than the first house."

Morgan: "I liked it a lot too, but it does need quite a bit of work. A whole lot more work than the first house, and Alex, remember that you didn't like the very first house we viewed a week ago because of all the work it needed..."

Alex: "That's true. But I do like this one much better. I guess we'll have to crunch some numbers to figure out what new flooring and landscaping and everything else would actually cost. Especially since this house is $15k more expensive than the already updated first house we saw."

Narrator: Coming up, Morgan and Alex see a home a little north of their preferred location, but the house looks like it has a great floor plan in the listing. Will it live up to their expectations for their forever home?

*****

Ok guys, sorry, time for another commercial break!

I'd thought I was going to be able to fit all of the houses into just one post, but it's getting a little crazy with 60-some photos already. Plus it's taking me way longer than I thought it would to type up all of our notes from our house hunting. So my next post will combine the third house we saw, with the opportunity to vote on which you think we picked!