The Last Peep Show

That's IT. I am SO done.

If I see ONE.MORE.PEEP. in this house, leftover from Easter I'm liable to...EAT IT!

*groan*

I must rid my house of these naughty sugary treats that whisper my name when I'm not even hungry!


So here's what's on the agenda for today:

PEEPS RICE KRISPIE TREATS

15 peeps (double this recipe if you have more to get rid of)
3 cups of Rice Krispies cereal
1 1/2 tbsp butter

Melt the butter in a saucepan, then the peeps (take off the burner just as they begin to meld together). Fold in the cereal and press into a pan.

**People who've made this recipe encourage you to eat them within a day or when warm, because they tends to harden more quickly than the regular recipe.

NOT A PROBLEM. O_o

(image, image)

The Five Senses of Winter: TASTE

My other Five Senses of Winter posts, are here: SIGHT, TOUCH and SOUND

SUGAR: Sweet, smooth, melt-on-your-tongue chocolaty goodness (what ELSE is Valentine's Day good for?)! :-)

COMFORT FOOD: Warm, gooey, cheesy, tangy flavors melding in your mouth, calling to mind fleece covers and cozy fires.

HOT TODDY'S: Warm, sweet and strong flavors sliding down your throat, soothing whatever ails you.

(image, image, image, image, image, image)

And since we're talking about TASTE, how about a Valentine's Day Recipe?

I found this yummy recipe HERE (check out the others she offers):


1 devil's food boxed cake mix
1/2 cup unsalted butter
2 eggs
1 1/2 tablespoon flour
1 teaspoon vanilla
Sprinkles (optional)


Add all ingredients to a bowl and mix well. Use a cookie scoop drop evenly sized potions of dough onto ungreased cookie sheets. If using sprinkles, roll dough balls in sprinkles before baking.


Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes. 

 ENJOY!

Recipe: Candy Cane Blossoms

Here's what you'll need:

1 bag of Hershey's Candy Cane Kisses 

red and green sugar

2 tablespoons milk

1/2 cup butter, softened 

1 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups all purpose flour 

1/4 teaspoon salt 

1 egg 

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

(Feel lazy or in a hurry? Just buy pre-made sugar cookie dough)

*Preheat over to 350 degrees. Remove wrappers from the candy (30-40)

*Beat butter, sugar, vanilla, and egg in large a bowl until blended.

*Stir together flour, baking soda and salt; add alternatively with milk to butter mixture, beating until well blended (or skip these two steps and use your pre-made sugar cookie dough).

*Shape dough into 1 inch balls (the smaller the better). Roll in red or green colored sugar. Arrange on ungreased cookie sheet.

*Bake 8 - 10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned.

*Press candy piece into center of each cookie. 

*Makes about three dozen.

(herseys.com, recipegirl.com, bakedperfection.com)

Anyone else being domestic this weekend?

ENJOY!

The Five Senses of Autumn: TASTE

1. PUMPKIN everything: lattes, beer, custard, cheesecake, pies, seeds, muffins. It's dense, smooth and usually spiced with nutmeg and cinnamon.

2. CRANBERRIES. Of course, paired with a turkey dinner. But also in jello, muffin, sauce and relish form. Tart and refreshing.

3. APPLES. I like Honey Crisp and Granny Smith. Pies, sauce, butter, baked. Sweet, crisp and crunchy.

My favorite recipe for apples is CARAMEL DIP

It only requires 4 ingredients (five if you count the apples for dipping).

All you need is: 1 stick of butter, I cup of brown sugar, 1/2 cup of white corn syrup, and 1 can of sweetened condensed milk.

Melt the butter over low heat. Add the brown sugar, corn syrup and condensed milk. Bring it to a low boil, stirring constantly. Cook for 3 more minutes, then cool at room temperature.

Serve warm with apple wedges. Buttery and addicting. Seriously, TO DIE FOR!ANYBODY HUNGRY?!

(armyfamilyok.wordpress.com, thelunacafe.com, kitchenparade.com, thekitchn.com, butteredblasphamy.wordpress.com)

A Summertime Recipe

Raise your hand if you've grown a garden this summer!

Garden grown vegetables make a light and refreshing side dish when it's just plain HOT and sticky outside.Dice up tomatoes and cucumbers and toss them with salt and pepper. Add just a tablespoon (maybe two) of Ranch or Italian dressing.
Let them marinate for an hour. YUM!

ENJOY YOUR SUMMER WEEKEND!

Recipe: Tortilla Soup

I haven't shared a super easy recipe in a little while, so here goes.

I originally got this recipe from a Twitter conversation with Elana J (see how useful Twitter can be?).

I make it all the time and may have changed around the ingredients a bit (can't remember).

Ingredients:
1 lb. of ground meat, browned (or chicken breast, shredded or cubed if you prefer)
1 family size can of tomato soup (use two if you want it more soupy, or add water)
1 can of corn
1 can of black beans
1 taco seasoning packet

Once all of ingredients above are simmering in a pot together, have the following ingredients ready:

hot sauce (of your choice)
Frito's (or tortilla chips, but Frito's add just the right amount of salt)
shredded cheddar cheese
sour cream
salt and pepper (to taste)

Line up your bowls and place a dollop of sour cream and some cheddar cheese in the bottom of each one. Ladle on the soup, add a dash of hot sauce (to taste) and then eat the soup with Frito's (tortillas are shown below)!

Simple as that and so yummy!

Comfort Food: Cheesy Potatoes

Hey, it's winter. The blizzard blowing through has brought my city to a halt today.

So what can you do except pile on the carbs! ;-)

This easy recipe is always a hit and great as leftovers!

Ingredients:

2 lb. bag of Orida Hash Browns (cube-shaped, in freezer section)
16 oz. Sour Cream
8 oz. of Shredded Cheddar
2 can of Cream of Potato Soup.
8 oz. Parmesan Cheese (I use the shredded kind, but you can use the powdered) Step 1: Mix the first four ingredients together in a bowl.
Step 2: Spread in a 9x13 greased pan. Sprinkle generous amount of Parmesan cheese over the top.

Step 3: Cover with foil. Let set overnight or for a couple of hours (best this way).

Step 4: Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes. Uncover and bake until golden brown (about 15 more minutes).

Cheesy goodness! ENJOY!


*psst* HEY, look at my Monday post (below) and sign up for our easy peasy KISSING blogfest! Did I mention KISSING?

Red Velvet Cookies

This is the Betty Crocker recipe I made this weekend:

•1 pouch sugar cookie mix
•1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
•1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
•1/4 cup sour cream
•1 tablespoon red food color
•1 egg
•cream cheese frosting
•1/4 cup chopped nuts
DIRECTIONS:

In large bowl, stir cookie mix, cocoa, butter, sour cream, food coloring, and egg until a soft dough forms.

Roll dough into 1-inch balls; place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake 8 to 9 minutes or until set, in a 375 degree oven.

Frost cooled cookies with frosting. Sprinkle with nuts.

They are actually "cake-like" and not too sweet! ENJOY!

Cranberry Jell-O Salad

I made this for Thanksgiving dinner, and plan to make it again for Christmas.

It's refreshing and tangy, and pairs well with turkey, ham or beef.

Oh, and it's easy peasy.

The ingredients you need are:

2 packages of raspberry Jello-O

1 large can of crushed pineapple, juice reserved

2 cans of whole cranberry sauce

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1/2 cup chopped celery (optional)

one chopped apple


*In a medium saucepan heat the juice from the pineapple (if the liquid doesn't equal to 1 cup, add water to make up the difference). Add the two Jell-O powder mixes. Heat on low until the powder dissolves in the liquid.


*In the meantime, chop your walnuts, celery and apples (see the handy dandy chopper I forgot I had?).

*In a large bowl, mix the whole cranberry sauce with the crushed pineapple.

*Add in the chopped celery, walnuts and apples.

*Pour in the the Jello-O mixture (after it's cooled for 20- 30 minutes).

*Let it set in the fridge overnight (or 6-8 hours).

DONE!

Here's what it looks like after it's set.

If using as a dessert, serve with cool whip.

:D :D :D

Recipe: Honey Chicken and Rosemary Potatoes

This one is SO very simple, but a perfect combo for the first days of Autumn!


For the chicken you'll need is:

6-12 chicken thighs and drumsticks (skins on) --depending on your family size

Flour

Honey

Olive Oil

salt and pepper

1. Dredge the thighs and legs in flour and lay them on a foil-lined and greased cookie sheet. Sprinkle salt and pepper.

2. Pour a drop of olive oil on each piece (most of it will pour over the sides, but no biggie)
3.Bake at 400 degrees F. for 20 minutes.

4. flip each piece and then drizzle (heartily) with honey. Bake for an additional 20 minutes.

The honey will caramelize and make the skin crispy (YUM!):

For the potatoes, you'll need:

About 8-10 small red potatoes (or small Yukon gold) --more if you have a big family

Olive oil

Rosemary

salt and pepper

1. Quarter the potatoes (skins on).

2. Place them in a large Ziploc bag.

3. Add enough olive oil to coat them, a few pinches of rosemary, and some salt and pepper (I have no exact measurements obviously).
4. Arrange them on a foil-lined and greased cookie sheet (make sure they are not on top of each other) and bake for 40 minutes in a 400 degrees F. oven.

There you have it! Add some corn and you'll be in starch heaven! ;--)

HAVE A NICE WEEKEND!

Comfort Food: Sloppy Joe's

I've never been particularly fond of making sloppy Joe's because I could never find a sauce that I love.

Well look no further than my MIL's simple, yet perfect recipe:

1-2 lb. of ground meat
1 small green pepper
1 small onion
brown sugar and ketchup, to taste
hamburger buns

1. Brown the meat with diced onion and green peppers:

2. Add ketchup and brown sugar to taste (she had NO guidelines):

3. Voila'. Delish! The perfect blend of sweet and tangy.

P.S. Add a slice of American cheese on bottom bun: YUM!

ENJOY!

Recipe: Chicken with Green Beans and Feta

This is a PERFECT spring/summer recipe.

Light, healthy, and refreshing!

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 lemon (or lemon juice)

1 cup of fresh green beans

1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled

1 tomato, chopped

1 avocado

salt and pepper to taste

1. squeeze lemon juice over the cooked chicken

2.Boil green beans. Toss them in a bowl with 1 tbsp. of olive oil, crumbled feta and tomato.

3. Add in cubed chicken and avocado. Drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!

A good Pairing: Ribs and Corn Bake

It's almost grilling season here. So when I make this again, I'll finish off my ribs on the grill.

But for now, here's how I do it:


On my slab of baby back ribs, I sprinkle McCormick Grill Mates Montreal Steak seasoning (yeah I know, it's for steak, not pork, but I like the flavor), but you can use any kind of pork rub. Next, douse generously with Sweet Baby Ray's Honey Barbecue Sauce (there is no sauce I like better).




Cover with foil and bake it in the oven at 325 for 3 hours. Remove the foil the last 1/2 hour and pour more sauce on (or finish it on your grill).


Next I make the corn bake (my MIL's recipe). Here's what you need:
1 can of corn (drained)
1 can of cream corn
1 cup of sour cream
2 eggs
1 stick of margarine
1 small box of Jiffy Corn muffin Mix


Melt the butter in the microwave. Mix all the ingredients together.

Pour into a 13x9 greased pan.

Bake uncovered for 45 minutes, in a 350 oven.

Enjoy!