Disclaimer: I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Influence Central for the SPLENDA^® Brand. I received product samples to facilitate my review as well as a promotional item to thank me for my participation. All opinions and reviews are my own.

Lately, I feel like there isn't enough time in the day.  With so much going on, there is barely time for ME time, let alone time with my friends.  Sometimes a gal needs some adult conversation....and wine!  It seems many of my friends have the same situation: busy schedules that are impossible to sync up.  When my friend Becca suggest an outdoor Zumba class, I was in!  What's more fun than making a fool of yourself with your friends?

#SlowCookerMeals: Turkey Swedish Meatballs {Plus a Giveaway!}

Woohoo! It's October! You know what that means? We can start decorating for Halloween! Also, it means fall weather better start showing up. This is my favorite time of year.

To celebrate fall, I'm going to do some easy, budget friendly slow cooker meals throughout the month of October!  We all tend to turn to our slow cookers in cooler weather for our favorite comfort food.  I'm sure you all have a bunch of recipes you normally use, so I'm going to try to step out of the box for different ideas! Also: I'm giving away one of these AMAZING Hamilton Beach Set & Forget Slow Cookers. 

Why is this slow cooker amazing? It has 3 different settings: automatic, manual and probe setting.  The probe is a meat thermometer which keeps track of the temperature of the meat while cooking.  Once it reaches it's ideal temperature, it will turn the slow cooker to warm to prevent overcooking! How cool is that?  This is great for pot roast or slow cooked chicken. If you frequently travel with your slow cooker for pot lucks, this lid locks in place!

Now time for my first recipe: Turkey Swedish Meatballs.  These came in at $8.25 for the ENTIRE MEAL and couldn't be easier!  I used frozen meatballs to keep it simple, but you can totally make your own if you want!

This week (through 10/4), Meijer has every single one of these items on sale, which makes this meal even cheaper!

Here's What You Need:

• 1 bag of turkey meatballs (1.5 lbs) ~25 large meatballs
• I used Cooked Perfect Turkey Meatballs (NOT Italian style)

• 1 can Healthy Request Cream of Mushroom Soup
• 1 Packet Brown Gravy Mix
• 1 cup of onions, chopped
• 1 package sliced mushrooms
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 bag whole wheat egg noodles
• Garnish: parsley 

1.  Set your slow cooker to LOW for 6-7 hours (HIGH 4). Spray cooker with PAM.
2. Add onions and mushrooms in cooker. Pour brown gravy mix over and water.  Mix.
3. Open can of soup and add on top of veggies.  Fill the can halfway full with milk and pour into slow cooker.
4. Finally, add meatballs.  Stir and cover.  LOW 6-7 hours, HIGH 3-4
5. Before serving, boil water and prepare noodles.  Cook al dente (about 4 minutes). Toss with butter and parsley.  While water is boiling, stir in sour cream to meatballs.  Season with salt & pepper, to taste.
6. Serve meatballs over noodles!

Super simple and healthy(ish) comfort food dish!  The girls gobbled this up--one bag of meatballs almost wasn't enough for our family of 5.  For a party, you can make these and serve with toothpicks instead of noodles!  The sauce has a gravy consistency, so if you like it thicker, add some corn starch.  Once mixed with noodles, it's perfect though!

Want to win the amazing slow cooker? Enter below!  Stay tuned for more tasty #SlowCookerMeals throughout October!!

Hamilton Beach Set & Forget Slow Cooker

Mmmm Mondays: Turkey pesto meatballs

Although I have made a few variations of pesto, I prefer to just buy it!  Pine nuts are expensive and why go through all of the hassle!?  I love the big jars of pesto at Costco or the Progresso brand at the grocery stores.  Note: it freezes SO well, so if you do make a batch, freeze in ice cube trays for later.

I accidentally came up with this recipe last week when I was craving my Turkey Meatball Minestrone.  The store was out of basil (so annoying...), so I was about to give up until I thought of the pesto I have in the fridge.  This makes a big batch, perfect for 2-3 meals.  Stick them in the freezer and you will be set for a month or two!

The cookie sheet cooks them so perfectly!  A definite must!

Ingredients:

• 1 package of lean ground turkey (usually runs 1.25 lbs)
• 1 package of turkey Italian sausage (mild or hot)
• 1/2- 3/4 cup bread crumbs
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 2 tablespoons pesto
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• Italian seasoning (I love the grinder by McCormicks) and S&P to taste

Lets make some meatballs!

1. Preheat oven to 400
2. In a food processor, add onion and pesto.  Blend.  Although this is not necessary, I like to finely chop the onion this way, rather than with a knife.  If you want, add an extra tablespoon of pesto.
3. In a large bowl, add ground turkey and remove the sausages from the cases.  Mix them together.
4. Add onion mixture, breadcrumbs (start with 1/2 cup), egg and Parmesan.  Mix with your hands.  If the combination seems a bit wet still, add more breadcrumbs.  
5. Season.
6. Roll into meatballs and place on a cookie sheet with a cooling rack on top.  This will make sure they cook all the way around.
7. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until brown.

Enjoy with some pasta, in soups or just alone.  They will make your kitchen smell amazing.