Tita Yoya’s Arroz Con Leche #VivaCaDairy

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Disclosure: The following post is compensated and in collaboration with Latina Bloggers Connect and the California Milk Advisory Board. The recipe, opinions and statements are my own.

What a nice Mother’s Day weekend it has been for me. My mother-in-law is visiting from Chicago and she spoils us with delicious food all the time. She has made Jose’s favorite dishes and I asked her to make my favorite dessert! I finally jotted down the arroz con leche recipe because Tita Yoya’s is the best! I’m not sure I can pull it off the way she does but I’ll make sure to always have Real California Milk to ensure a yummy outcome! Why? Because California produces more than 25 varieties and styles of Hispanic-style cheeses bearing the Real California Cheese seal, which certifies they are natural cheeses made in California exclusively from California milk. Here is our recipe:

Serves: 15
Ingredients:
1 cup of long grain rice (soaked for 2 hours)
4 cups of water
lemon or lime zest
1 cinnamon stick
4 cups of Real California Milk
1 tablespoon of vanilla
1 can of condensed milk
handful of raisins
ground cinnamon

In a large pot, add the water, rice, cinnamon stick and zest of lime (or lemon) over medium heat. Once the water is about to evaporate, add Real California Milk, and vanilla and stir, stir, stir over medium heat (about 20 minutes). It should always have a slow boil! With your stirring spoon, check for the rice to be soft, if so, add the condensed milk and stir, stir, stir for another 15-20 minutes (again, bring to a boil). Switch to a serving dish when you reach your desired consistency. I don’t like mine too dry! Sprinkle the raisins and ground cinnamon on top.

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Look for the Seals

Didn’t I tell you I was a lucky girl? I miss Chicago and the abundance of Mexican food (especially my mother-in-law’s)! Nevertheless, I am so thrilled to have found delicious Real California Milk to help me duplicate the best recipes passed down to me!

Disclosure: This post was compensated and in collaboration with Latina Bloggers Connect and the California Milk Advisory Board. The recipe, opinions and statements are my own.

A Healthy-Start Weekend

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Hi! I hope you had a nice weekend!

It’s hard to stay on a healthy track when you live a busy life. And who doesn’t live a busy life these days? Not every week is like this but we have been out having fun and socializing the last 3 out of 4 nights! I thought about food all weekend because I just completed four days of giving up a few things for a week. I haven’t had any coffee (yikes!!) and I wasn’t supposed to have any wine, dairy, flour or sugar either. Have you heard of The Fast Metabolism Diet? I thought I’d give it a try to force me to include more of a variety of foods in our diets and to wean me away a bit from my dependency on caffeine. I have learned a lot! We had a great time so I cheated a bit but I’m already feeling better. Look out for a post on that soon!

In the mean time…food links!!! Some informative ones, some healthy, some…not-so-much. Life is short…let’s learn to balance.

What the world eats. (Wowsers!)

I want all of this! Right now.

Our Baptism and Brunch salad. Thanks Vane!

Our Baptism and Brunch basic tomato sauce.

Another awesome-looking and VERY green salad

For your next outdoor gathering, sip this.

Going to Chicago soon! Can’t wait to have this!

Sore muscles? Headaches? Natural pain remedies in your home.

Have a great week!

Image via

Baptism and Brunch

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Jordi’s baptism mass was so beautiful. I’m a big baby when it comes to any type of ceremony! I cried when the other children were being baptized! After the ceremony our small party rushed home to dig into a platter of prosciutto, chorizo and a variety of cheeses and toasted our little blessing with sparkling prosecco. We then sat down for a proper brunch of lentil/veggie soup, kale waldorf salad, beef meatballs, pasta with homemade tomato sauce, warm ciabatta bread and lots of wine! Here are the pictures of the table arrangements. Enjoy!

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Planning a Party: Baptism

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Happy Friday! What are you up to this weekend? I have Jordi’s baptism on my mind and I have to start getting ready! Next weekend we are having a very intimate dinner party for 8 adults and 5 kiddies. I want my youngest baby to have a really beautiful baptism-my wheels are turning!

This is how I prepare right before hosting: I gather all of my ideas from around the web, I make a mental note of the items I already have and I start to visualize what I would like my arrangements to look like. I end up buying minimal things for decoration purposes and I always make sure it’s an item I can re-use for future gatherings. Food and dessert always come from the same places and gifts for our guests must be useful to them too.

Take a look at what I have found for inspiration:

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Frame of Mind

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I recently came across this awesome slideshow of a hip Minnesota home in the New York Times. The family had a framed map of Chicago and I suddenly became more interested in the decor!  Framing a special map can brighten up any room in the house, become a conversation piece or simply bring you great memories of past trips and old home towns. How neat would it also be for your children to have a piece of your family’s story on a wall? You can go elegant or casual for bedrooms, nurseries and even bathrooms! Why not? Maps as art work. Take a look!

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Awesome Daddy: Hey Diddle Diddle Nursery

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We love dedicated, creative, involved and loving dads here at My Friend Betty Says. John is the third of our Awesome Daddy Series and the first that I don’t personally know. No doubt that any man who can create a nursery for his new baby like the one you are about to see, deserves an Awesome Daddy post. Thank you to MFBS reader Vanessa for connecting us!

Here’s our conversation:

Betty: What was your inspiration behind the nursery decor?

John: We wanted a room that would make an appropriate nursery but that also had flexibility to go back to a guest bedroom down the road. Staying neutral was important since we didn’t find out the gender.
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Lunch Time

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When you are out grocery shopping this weekend, perhaps you want to gather some ingredients to create a work of art for your little one’s lunch on Monday? The steps are easy and all you need is a few hours…I’m kidding!! My respects to my Japanese friends! I love what you do with your bento boxes but I’ll stick to the ham and cheese sandwich, fruit and yogurt!

We all have to admit these are gorgeous! Who would want to eat them? Does this happen every day??? Here are a few more…
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Neon For Your HOME!

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Spring trend: Neon! I have seen pants, shoes…actually, whole neon outfits. I like the idea of subtle accessorizing with such bright colors. What about for the home? I see a lot of neon for the home! What do you think? Passing fad? Maybe just a little neon touch? I could do a little neon touch. You know all about my obsession with color (especially pink)! and I absolutely love using color on the table. Check out what I have found; I think every image below shows a perfect way to add a little trend and a pop of color to your home.

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Houzz

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DIY Network

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David Sharff

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Real Simple

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Wind and Willow

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Pinterest

Fun! What do you think? Can we pull it off? Maybe certain rooms in your house?

I hope you all have a healthy, restful and fun weekend! Thank you for supporting My Friend Betty Says! We have reached new milestones and I am grateful for you! Please share the blog with a friend, porfavorcito!!! And tell them to go and “like” the page on FB! Gracias! xoxo

Full Circle

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My very first post on My Friend Betty Says was on saving the precious holiday cards we receive each year. I can’t believe I’m here again and ready to share another simple idea with you.

We have not taken down any Christmas decorations yet but I took down the cards today. I become very sad at the end of the holiday season as we pack up and store away the delicate ornaments, the soft stockings and of course the beautiful photo cards. Most of them are of gorgeous children dressed in their best! What makes me really happy is reading the messages again and thinking of making a super tiny project out of everyone’s hard work and money.

Thanks to Pinterest for the simple idea of hole-punching and stringing some ribbon through the cards!

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Side or Small Meal: Black Bean Salad!

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Not for nothing, but people love my black bean salad!! Don’t worry, I am definitely not turning into a food blogger! I have been adding healthier alternatives to our diet and as all three boys are eating real food,I am stepping it up in the kitchen!

I love to prepare this salad because it is perfect for guests who are vegetarians. We love to have people over and this wholesome salad is always presented as a side. Thank you to Naoko and Liz C. for asking for the recipe…months ago! I finally wrote it out, snapped some pictures and posted it here:
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