Resale & Roast

Lucy: "Oh that reminds me, I need to put a roast in the oven...."

There's something so homey and inviting about that simple statement- 'Ricky' certainly agrees & so I set out to accomplish just that today, amongst many other things.

And now that we've weathered the worst of the tummy bug that captured Livy's person for the past week, I felt my little M's would welcome some distraction and a visit to Kid to Kid to "pay toys".

Here are some of the treasures we brought home:

Melissa & Doug various wooden trucks:

I was mildly disappointed to discover that the wheels are plastic vs wood, however my satisfaction was quickly restored when I saw that the pieces to each truck stack on the wooden pegs, providing even more playtime fun!  These got wrapped for Christmas:)

Melissa & Doug Magnetic Activity Board:

  

The kids played with this all day & love it!  There are 3 cardboard scenes and then corresponding magnets for each- Olivia still insists that the whale belongs at the farm vs under the sea:)

Melissa & Doug Magnetic Maze:

This is still a bit advanced for Livy but she happily watched as I matched up the beads and has attempted it a few times- she inevitably went back to squeezing as many of the magnets on her new 'farm' magnet board though:)

Elephant Backpack/Leash:

We'll be enjoying a family vacation at Disney World in just a few weeks and decided that both our little M's should be leashed- Jonah will be sporting the "baby enno" aka "baby elephant" while Livy leads the way with her pink puppy, "Patches".

Mr. Men DVD:

Growing up in the UK, Mr. Men were extremely popular like 'Dora' is here...only Mr Men are way better than 'Dora'!  

So, how much for all this loot?  Well, with a $5 coupon & $10 rewards card credit, it came to the grand total of $14 with tax- score!  That makes each of these treasures less than $3 each!

Livy helped me clean the toys while Jonah napped and then it was time to start on my roast: a marmalade glazed pork roast with glazed veggies...mmmm.

Here's the recipe (courtesy of Cook's Country)- hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:

3 lb pork roast, center cut

1/3 cup marmalade

1 tbsp fresh rosemary 

1/2 cup orange juice

1 tbsp olive oil

1 lb parsnips, peeled & cut in 3 inch pieces

2 red onions, sliced in 1 inch wedges

salt & pepper

Directions:

1. With oven rack in middle position, heat oven to 375 degrees.  Place roast in center of roasting pan and liberally season with salt & pepper.

2. Mix marmalade & rosemary together in bowl and spread 1/2 the mixture over the top of the roast.  Add orange juice & olive oil to remainder of sauce and toss veggies with 2 tbsp- arrange veggies around roast.

3. Cook until instant read thermometer inserted in thickest part of the roast registers 120 degrees, 30-45 mins.  Pour remaining sauce on top of roast and raise oven temp to 450 degrees.

4. Cook until roast registers 140 degrees, 10-15 mins and remove to platter & tent with foil.  Toss veggies in pan juices and continue roasting for 10 mins until caramelized and sauce thickens.

5. Slice roast and serve with veggies & pan sauce!

I subbed carrots and sweet onions for the veggies and fresh thyme for the rosemary- it was divine & I got a huge thumbs up from 'Ricky'!  This is a 'cheap' roast dinner (especially if you get your roast on sale!) so can be made often.  And since it's so easy and outstandingly yummy, what are you waiting for?  "...put a roast in the oven" and get ready for happy tummies:)

Thanks for stopping by,

Tiffany