Younique Make-Up Party!

Hey Everyone!!

I would like to introduce you to a company that I love!

Younique Makeup

Now, I am not in to name brand products, simply because of the name. I don't care who sells it, if it's not a good product or I just don't like it, then I'm not going to buy it.

I was introduced to Younique through a girl that I used to work for. At the time, I had just bought my wedding dress. It had a scoop neck in the back, which was beautiful, but put me in a little bit of a dilemma....I normally just wore regular t-shirts all the time, I spent a lot of time outside, and I have very short hair. So it boiled down to the fact that I had a bad tan line across the back of my neck, and I really just didn't want that on my wedding day!
 I was looking through a Younique catalog, and saw their tanning lotions. I was afraid of tanning lotions, because I have seen so many of them go soooo wrong...very streaky, too orange, etc. I was fairly on the desperate side of things, though, and completely unwilling to go and get a fake tan (horror stories galore), so I decided to give it a try. I got the the Beachfront Bronzer, and the Self-Tanning body spray. I was so scared to try them, but me and my sisters all ended up falling in love with both of them!!!! There is a difference between them:
The Self-Tanning Spray (which also comes in a lotion form) is more permanent, in the fact that it will last on your skin for up to a week, even after showering. Plus, it will not rub off onto your clothes - I tested it out on several things, and even my stark-white wedding dress stayed perfectly white. The more you put on, the tan just builds. BUT, it's also like it is transparent as well. Me and my sisters all have a slightly different complexion and skin-tone, so you would think that it would be too light on one of us, and way too dark on another. But it was perfect for all of us!
The Bronzer was the same way, although there are two color options to choose from. However, it is more temporary, and will wash off in the shower. If it is not allowed time to thoroughly dry, it may come off slightly on your clothes, but not very bad at all, and it washes right out. Interestingly enough, though, if you walk through the rain, it will not come off. It literally has to have soap and water, not just water. Both products are easy to put on, and do not streak if you follow a few simple steps.

So after those products had built up my confidence in the company, I tried the Touch Mineral Liquid Foundation next. I LOVE it!! I have never used a foundation that I was 100% satisfied with, until now. It's a liquid that dries to a powder finish, so it feels amazing! And you don't even feel like you're wearing makeup during the day, because it's so light. But at the same time it has great coverage.
I also love their Royalty Shine Cleansing Cloths (for removing my makeup), Spurge Cream Eye Shadow, and the liquid foundation makeup brush (all of their brushes are amazing), just to name a few things!

Anyways, I have a party going on right now, and it will be open through February 9th, if anyone would like to check it out!!

Click on the link below, and select the button that says "shop through this party."

https://www.youniqueproducts.com/KarissaBrazeal/party/5841827/view

You can purchase right from the site, and it will be shipped directly to you, so there is no waiting for me to order it, and get it to you! There is also no limit on the amount of times you can order during a party!

Please contact me via my email at: karissajoy3@gmail.com to let me know if you are interested in hosting your own on-line party, or if you have any questions about any of the products! I would love to help!!!!

Jalapeno Popper Casserole

So, I have never actually eaten a jalapeno popper.

But after tasting this casserole, I just know that a jalapeno popper and I would be the best of friends!

I was excited about this casserole because it had jalapenos and tater tots, which I love.

But not really sure about it at the same time, because it had cream cheese in it, which I do not love.

Bradley is the one that found the recipe, and I knew he would love it, so I just dove right in, and gave it try.

So, the verdict is:

SUPER YUMMY!!!!!!! 10 out 10!!!!

I actually loved it! It was so different from your average casserole, and just so creamy, with slightly crispy tater tots, and surprise chunks of chicken, pops of heat from the peppers, and all wrapped up in cheesy goodness!

 I think Bradley liked it pretty well too.

He eat it for dinner that night.

As well as for Breakfast the next morning.

And finished it off for "dessert" that night.

Then asked for it for his birthday.

He also said that in the meantime, I could make it again next week.

So I think he thought it was okay!!!

It does have a little bit of heat, but that can be easily adjusted by how many peppers you put in. 

If you want more heat, add more peppers. Less heat? Less peppers.

I hope you try it out!!

1 (2 lb.) package frozen tater tots

1 (8 oz.) block cream cheese, room temperature

1 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon black pepper

2 cups shredded cheese (cheddar, mexican blend...whatever you want)

1/2 of a large onion, diced

5 tablespoons diced jalapeno peppers (from the jar)

7 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

2 large chicken breasts, cooked and diced or shredded

Place tater tots in a 9x13-inch baking dish. They probably won't all lay flat, and that's fine.

Bake at 425 degrees F for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, use a hand mixer and blend together the cream cheese and sour cream.

Add garlic powder, pepper, 1 cup cheese, half of the onions, 4 tablespoons jalapeno peppers, and most of the bacon (reserve some for topping). Mix well, using a spatula.

Sprinkle the chicken across the hot tater tots.

Very carefully, place dollops of the cream cheese mixture across the tater tots and chicken.

Using a knife or offset spatula, gently spread the mixture out as evenly as you can.

Sprinkle with remaining 1 cup of cheese.

Top with a remaining onions, 1 tablespoon of jalapeno peppers, and the remaining bacon.

Bake for an additional 20 minutes.

Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!!!!

I'm so thankful I was the rudest person on earth!

So, today is kind of a special day, and I want to share this story with you!

It was January 24th and 25th, 2015.

Bradley came to our church to fill in for us, because we were without a pastor.

Actually, he came to our house for dinner on Saturday night (the 24th), then preached at our church on Sunday.
So I met him at our house first, technically!

(All my life I've heard people say that God is not going to drop someone on your doorstep...
you have to go out and find them.
Yeah, well never say never!
Turns out God can do whatever He wants!)

So anyway, we met on January 24th.

Him (and his uncle who was with him) came to the house that night for dinner.

Now, I am not an outgoing person, and the facts about him being a "younger" preacher had already been fully brought to my attention. 

Plus, now he's coming to my house. 

So in my mind, this was the perfect setup for a completely awkward evening. I had made up in my mind, that I didn't care who this guy was, how old he was, or anything....it wasn't going to matter to me.

And it really didn't.

The end.

They came into the house, and I was in the kitchen finishing up whatever we made for dinner.

I think him and most of my family stayed in the living room for a few minutes, and then came and sat down at the table.

I remember the first second I saw him when he walked into the kitchen, and thinking to myself "hmm. He looks okay. Not that it matters."

So we all sit down and have dinner.

He talked to my parents, he talked to some of my siblings, you know, just in the course of conversation.

I think he and I probably said a grand total of two or three words back and forth.

Which I was totally fine with.

Especially since his uncle was totally trying to hook us up, and that always made me so mad when people tried to do that. Add that with the mindset I already had, and yeah, I wasn't buying into this guy in any way, shape or form!

I don't care how nice he is!

Or, that he looked....ummm, nice, and stuff.

He had on this black sweater with brown elbow patches on it.

Pretty nice.

Plus, he was wearing it with a white dress shirt.

And jeans!

I mean, he looked put together, let me tell ya!

Psh, but I never noticed!

ANYWAYS!!!! 

Don't distract me! On with the story!

So Sunday morning rolls around.

Nothing new for me. I did what I always did on Sundays.

Again, at church, he seemed nice. But I honestly just didn't pay him any attention whatsoever.

I think in between Sunday school and church, when we were waiting for the service to start, my mom was talking to him. 

We always sat on the second pew back. He was sitting on the pew in front of us. 

Squarely in front of me. 

Not on purpose, because he had no way of knowing where our assigned seating was, but still! 

(this is a joke...we don't have assigned seating...it's just everyone tends to sit in the same place every service.)

He turned around at one point, and commented on how much he liked something that I had made for dinner the night before.

Poor guy.

 He was trying to be nice, and make conversation.

Guess what I said?

"Oh. Thank you."

That was it.

That's pretty much how it went all day. Other than that conversation, we may have exchanged words one or two more times.

When we were leaving, in passing, I said it was nice to meet him, and hoped they had a safe trip home.

And that was it.

He left.

I left.

I was rude.

So very rude.

Never went out of my way to make him feel welcome. 

Nothing.

 I don't even think I shook his hand. 

I never said anything that was rude, per say. 

I never ignored him, or stuck my nose in the air and walked away, or anything like that.

I just literally acted like he was any other preacher, there to preach for us, and then go home.

He just happened to be a really nice, younger guy.

Oh, and he was definitely not arrogant like a lot of other younger guys.

Oh, and he...ummm....well, he looked sort of, umm.......he had a nice suit on, okay?!?!!!!

At the time, I did feel a little bad. 

BUT, I'm not an out-going person. 

I don't go up to any other stranger and just make conversation (especially to a guy), so why would I change now?

Well, I didn't.

I stayed in my own little world for two days, not really thinking about him. Or much of anyone, for that matter.

As my world unfolded over the next couple of months, I felt worse and worse about the way I had acted.

Or maybe not acted, would be a better way to put it.

After we had been talking for a little while, at one point we were talking about that weekend, and he told me all about the way he had felt and what had been going through his mind.

Then I felt even WORSE!!!

And I told him that!

And I told him I was soooo sorry, for being so rude!

TO THIS DAY, 

guess what he tells me?

He tells me that he was so glad I acted the way I did.

WHAT?

He says that if I had been more forward and out-going, he wouldn't have given me a second thought.

blush.blush.heart-pitter-pattering.blush.

eyes-watering.blush.blush.

Although I do still feel a little bit bad, because if I had known that he was totally, completely watching me that weekend, I would have tried to be a little nicer!

But thankfully God doesn't work like that! Thankfully I couldn't see ahead into the future, or read another person's mind. Because then I would not have been myself. I would have tried to act another way, and basically "put on a show." Not even on purpose, necessarily, but everyone acts a little different when they know they are being watched, right?

So today, I can't thank the Lord enough for bringing Bradley Brazeal into my life, on January 24, 2015!!!

And now, 

I'm even thankful that I was 

SO RUDE!

Note:

-To all those out there, who may be waiting for that "special someone" - I would strongly urge you to not use my art here!

God worked things out in spite of the way I acted, not because of the way I acted!

It is never okay to be purposefully rude to someone, in hopes that they will notice you!

That's not the attention you want!

Be yourself. Be kind to others. Serve the Lord.

He's in control, and He will work it out!

-Let me know in the comments, if anyone wants to hear the rest of our story!

Mandarin Orange Salad

This might be more appropriately labeled a "summer" recipe,
but let's not be so season-limited here for goodness sake!

Living in the south, it is gonna take me a long time to figure some things out.
But one thing I am slightly picking up on, is that there isn't a ton of  "seasonal" food.

Or "seasonal" anything, for that matter.

I haven't seen any watermelon yet, and soups/chilies are seen more now than in the summer months, but other than that, anything goes - whenever!!!!

My mom would grill out in the winter sometimes, but here, it's definitely a year-round thing.

I just saw a couple of yards sales the other day.
This is JANUARY!
I have never in my entire life seen a yard sale before April, or after October, so that was interesting!

Anyway, in my mind, I would serve this mostly in the summer, but as you can see, it didn't stop me from making it in January. And it was SUPER yummy then, so I can only imagine how good it will taste when it's 110 degrees later on!

With 3 ingredients, and almost no time at all, this salad doubles as a side dish and/or a dessert.
It's so creamy and has just the right amount of sweetness.
Bradley and I both loved it!!

So no matter where you are, and what the temperature is there,
I hope you give this recipe a try!

2 (15 oz.) cans mandarin oranges, do not drain

2 (3.4) packages instant vanilla pudding mix

1 (8 oz.) container whipped topping

Pour the juices from the mandarin oranges in a large bowl. 

Add pudding mix, and whisk until well combined...you want the pudding mix to be dissolved, and the mixture will be slightly thick.

Stir in oranges. Gently fold in whipped topping.

Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour before serving.

Enjoy!

Green Chili Enchilada Soup

I'm really not an extremely picky person, and it doesn't take a lot to make me happy. 

Take for instance (just randomly, of course) a basket of chips and bowl of salsa - HEAVEN!!!! 

See? 

And the more Mexican food I eat, the happier I am!

So I already had a love for enchiladas to begin with, but to be honest, I kind of halted for a little bit as "enchilada soup" processed through my brain. 

It's like "oh that would be good! Wait. Would that really be good? Yeah. Yeah, I'd try that. Well, maybe one day."

Finally, I just stopped thinking about it, and made it. 

Light bulb moment!!!
Why hadn't I made this earlier?!

Thick, creamy, spicy...delicious!

I'm not gonna tell you it tastes just like an enchilada, only all mixed up together in a bowl. 

Because it honestly doesn't taste like that at all 
(thank goodness...still having trouble processing that). 

BUT!! It is very, very, VERY yummy!!! 
It has all the goodness of an enchilada, but, well, just without the "en." 
In it's raw (a.k.a. just cooked according to directions) form, it's just the "chilada" part. 

That's where you an get creative...you get to decide how this gets an "en." 

Do you want to put this in a warm tortilla shell? Go ahead!

Or would you like to use some tortilla chips to scoop this up? My personal favorite!

Would you like to serve this with some cheesy muffins, biscuits or another type of bread? That's how Bradley loves it!

Or would you rather leave this "en-less" and just have a party with you, your bowl of "chilada" soup and a spoon???? More power to ya!

Whatever you choose to have or not have with this, and however you choose to eat it, and whether or not you choose to share it...I hope you love it!!!!!

2 Chicken Breasts
1 (28-30 ounce) container Chicken Broth
1 (28 ounce) can green enchilada sauce
1 (8 ounce) can diced green chiles
2/3 cup water
4 & 1/4 teaspoons cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 cup frozen corn
2/3 cup instant rice
1 (8 ounce) bar cream cheese, cubed

Place the chicken in a crock-pot.
Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours. Shred with two forks.
Add chicken broth, enchilada sauce, green chiles, water, cumin, chili powder, onion powder and garlic powder. Stir to combine.
Cover and cook on high for 3 hours.
Add corn, rice and cream cheese. Stir.
Cover and cook on high 1 hour.
Use a whisk to break up any chunks of cream cheese still remaining.
Switch crock-pot to warm until ready to serve!
Enjoy!!!

Note:
-This is pretty spicy with the green enchilada sauce, the green chiles, and the spices. So if you would prefer this to be a little more toned down to accommodate more palettes...I would suggest doing one small (4 ounce) can of green chiles, instead of the bigger can. This will help a whole lot in the spicy-level-department.
-Some canned green enchilada sauces are not gluten-free, so make sure to check the label if you are making this gluten-free. I get mine at the Aldi grocery store. 

Welcome!!

Hey everyone!!

WELCOME TO........
well....HERE!!
(lol, I have such a way with words!) 

Anyways, I'm so glad you stopped by! 

So, I guess lets start at the very beginning!

My name is Karissa, for those of you who don't know, and think that I might be loosing my mind for spelling "classic" with a "K"!

I'm a gluten-free eater by choice...which means I do it because I'm allergic to gluten and don't feel like getting sick every time I eat it. Not because it seems like a cool diet to follow.

I started blogging in 2012 over at Karissa's Gluten-Free Recipes.

In 2016, I got married and moved 10,000 miles away from my family!

(Oh, and let me introduce you to my super sweet, incredibly awesome and amazing husband!
This is Bradley. Love you, Babe!)

Just kidding.
I mean, I did get married, I'm not kidding about that part!
But it's not really 10,000 miles away from my family. It just feels like it sometimes! 

Its technically just 4 states and a little over 500 miles (miss you guys!!!!).

Anyways, that was already a lot of change, so why not add some more, right?

Enter: "it's {K}LASSIC"!!!!!

So, if I had to describe me...my clothing style, my cooking style, my decorating style...pretty much anything about me - it's classic.

Nothing overdone, or complicated. 

I'm a minimalist.

My favorite colors are black and white.

 And my motto is: the simpler the better in absolutely every area of life!

I want this new blog to be a reflection of me, and my style.

In every area.
All of my recipes are gluten-free....very simple, and can easily be made non-gluten-free if you prefer.

But, I don't want to just blog about food, although that is a huge part of who I am!
I want to share more about me and my life with you!

Follow along and join me on my new journey in life as a newlywed, decorating our first house, learning to cook for two instead of 7, and well, just life!

It's {K}LASSIC!!!! 

I hope you'll be patient with me as I figure out what I'm doing, and how to do it!

Sit back, relax and enjoy the ride!!!!!