Hello, and Welcome!

I'd like to share a little bit about myself and what type of content I hope to share with you on this page.

First of all...What is Bright Blue Services?

Bright Blue is your full service, individualized personal assistant. 

Concierge Service. What is a Concierge Service you might ask? Well, have you ever wished you had someone to run your errands, plan a vacation, or deal with the logistics of a home remodel? Your one stop shop for all these needs would be an Individual Concierge Service. 

We specialize in personalized assistance for multiple needs: household management, lifestyle management, transportation, travel and vacation planning, and so much more! Our goal is to allow you the luxury of being able to take the time you used to have to take in performing these tasks, and use is doing something you actually WANT to do! Imagine being able to spend more play time with your kids; or actually ENJOYING your vacation time without worrying about what is going on with everything back home. 

Household Cleaning Tips

 On average, we spend nearly 40 minutes a day cleaning our homes. And, with the exception of those who truly find dusting their baseboards and scrubbing their ovens akin to bliss, most people are likely eager to use that time for more enjoyable activities.

Luckily, there’s hope: here are a few house cleaning tricks that will make your home twice as clean in half the time!

1. Clean Your Blender With Soap - pour some warm water, a little baking soda, and a little dish soap in your blender and pulse it for a few seconds. Afterward, give it a good rinse or pop it in the dishwasher to get it looking like brand new once again.

2. Make Your Sink Fixtures Gleam With Wax Paper - after sanitizing with an antibacterial cleanser, polish those faucets and tap handles with some wax paper. Not only will this help remove water spots, the wax will help prevent future stains, as well.

3. Clean Out Your Coffee Maker With Some Vinegar - fill your coffee maker’s reservoir with a few tablespoons of white vinegar mixed with water, run it, and run it once more with only water to ditch any lingering vinegar smell.

4. Keep Your Washer Smelling Fresh With Bleach - run it with a combination of hot water and a quart of bleach and opt for the sanitize setting. So long, funky-smelling clothes!

5. Skip the Traditional Mop - ditch your traditional mop in favor of a microfiber duster and you’ll make your home cleaner and less contaminated in no time. After you’re done vacuuming, use a bit of cleaner on a single-use or washable microfiber pad to clean your floors, surfaces, and even your electronics with ease—and without getting your hands dirty.

Tasty Tuesday - Meal Delivery Services vs Cooking At Home

Let's face it, when it comes to dinnertime, COVID-19 either helped some of us re-discover our love of cooking at home, or re-affirmed out desire for takeout! Ever wish there was some sort of middle ground...a nice, easy, make at home meal that won't destroy the kitchen or take hours to prepare?

I made this easy Lemon Shrimp Scampi last week, and not only was it just delish, but it was so easy! No chopping and very little measuring! Thought I would share with you!

Lemon Shrimp Scampi

Ingredients

8 oz. Angel Hair Pasta (or Spaghetti noodles)

2 tbsp. Butter (or coconut oil)

1 lb. of Shrimp (thawed, cannot be frozen)

1 tbsp. Garlic Salt

Salt & Pepper to taste

1 Lemon, freshly squeezed

1/2 cup Chicken Broth or Water

2 tbsp. Fresh Parsley

6 tbsp. freshly grated Parmesan Cheese

1. In a large pot of boiling water cook angel hair (or spaghetti) pasta according to directions.

2. Melt butter (or coconut oil) in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add shrimp & garlic salt. Cook, stirring occasionally until the shrimp turns pink, between 2 - 4 minutes. Part way through cooking, add salt & pepper to taste.

3. Stir in lemon juice and chicken broth or water. Bring to a simmer. Stir in fresh parsley and parmesan cheese and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes.

4. Toss with angel hair pasta and garnish with more fresh parmesan and parsley. Serve immediately.

#tastytuesday #mealservice #easydinner

Balsamic Steak and Gorgonzola Salad

A deliciously savory and tangy salad. Perfect for those warm days when you want to fire up the grill.

FOR THE MARINADE

• 1 lb sirloin steak
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
• ½ teaspoon dijon mustard
• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon coarse salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

FOR THE SALAD

• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• ½ red onion, thinly sliced or sautéed yellow onion
• 4 ounces Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
• 2 heads romaine lettuce 
• 6 cup spinach leaves
• 1 corn on the cob, husk removed
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling corn

FOR THE GREMOLATA

• 2 tablespoons basil leaves, minced
• 2 tablespoons parsley, minced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest

FOR THE BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE

• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
• ½ teaspoon dijon mustard
• Dash of salt and fresh ground black pepper

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1. Instructions: 
2. Marinate the steak: In a medium size bowl, stir together ingredients for the marinade. Place steaks in a large ziplock bag. Pour marinade over the steaks, seal the bag, and shake to coat. Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
3. Make the gremolata: Combine the basil, parsley, lemon zest, and garlic in a small bowl. Set aside
4. Preheat a cast iron grill pan at medium-high heat or an outdoor grill. Drizzle corn on the cob with 1 tablespoon olive oil and liberally sprinkle salt and pepper. Using tongs place on the heated grill. Cook each side until grill marks form on the corn kernels and they are somewhat softened, about 10 minutes total. Remove from heat when done and let cool. Slice corn kernels off the cob.
5. Remove the steak from the fridge. Place on the grill or grill pan. Grill both sides 4-5 minutes for rare to medium rare. Remove steak to a plate and let rest for five minutes. Slice thinly against the grain.
6. In a small bowl, whisk together ingredients for vinaigrette.
7. Toss together half of the vinaigrette, half of the gremolata, mixed greens,  tomatoes, gorgonzola, sliced corn, and onion in a large bowl.
8. Lay sliced steak on top of salad. Drizzle steak and salad with gremolata and remaining vinaigrette as desired.

This Salad was a huge hit with the family and only took about 30 minutes to prepare not including marinade time. Depending on the flavor you like you can either use fresh red onion or sautéed yellow onion like we did. We also used stone ground mustard and it added just that extra bite the salad needed. If you try out this recipe let us know how you liked it and anything you may have changed. 

Tasty Tuesday - Instant Pot Mongolian Beef

It's Tasty Tuesday here at Bright Blue, and today lets make use of our Instant Pot. They are great for when we are running low on time but still want a delicious meal. The recipe for you today is Instant Pot Mongolian Beef. #instantpot #easydinner

1.5 lbs. flank steak, thinly sliced across the grain

1 tbsp. canola oil

1 cup of soy sauce

1/2 cup water

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp powdered ginger or 1 tbsp. freshly minced ginger

2 tbsp. minced garlic

1 tbsp. rice vinegar

1/2 cup water

3 tbsp. corn starch

1. Press the sauté button on your Instant Pot. Add canola oil and beef strips and stir until browned, approximately 3-5 minutes.

2. Whisk together the soy sauce, water, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, and rice vinegar and pour over the beef. Place the lid on top and seal. Cook on the manual pressure setting for 10 minutes, followed by a quick release.

3. Whisk together the water and corn starch and then quickly whisk into the pot. Press the sauté button again and cook, stirring, until the sauce has thickened.

4. Serve over rice.

House Cleaning Tips - Furbaby Funk!

We all love our furbabies, but at times they can leave a certain funk around the house. If you need help keeping pet odor under control in between carpet cleanings try out this home made pet odor eliminator.

Add the following to a spray bottle.

2 tsp baking soda

10 oz hydrogen peroxide

2 tsp vinegar

4 drops of Orange Essential Oil

Generously spray the area and let it dry. Once dry, vacuum as usual. You may have to apply multiple times for heavily soiled areas. #cleanhome #homemadecleaners #furbabies

Organizational Tips - The Mess Under the Kitchen Sink!

Organizational tip number 1. In order to utilize more space under your kitchen sink install a tension rod to hang cleaners off of. Not only is this a cheap way to organize a small space but it also doubles to amount of room under the sink.