Soft chewy sea salt caramels are one of the very best holiday treats! I LOVE them and make a batch every single year. They are great to give as gifts, to share with friends, and bring to all the parties and get togethers. They are extremely delicious and addicting! Once you eat one you cannot stop!! Why This Homemade Caramels Recipe Works Making sea salt caramels is really easy- only a few ingredients and a few steps HOWEVER it can be tricky if you don't do it right and don't read all ...
Soft homemade caramels tutorial
How to Make Cream Puffs
Welcome to CreamPuffs 101! It's about to get sweet, fluffy and puffy around here. Don't get scared now, making these gems are not as hard as it may look, infact they are actually quite simple. There are definitely some techniques to learn, but don't worry I'll help walk you through the process step by step (I know, I know, picture overload). Cream Puffs are one of my favorite desserts and I distinctly remember as a child having my first cream puff while attending a wedding. With a mouthful of ...
A Kitchen Table to be Thankful for... a Make-Over Story
I feel like to tell my kitchen table story properly I need to start at the beginning. Way back when we had one child (and one more on the way) we were also starting the grand adventure of law school. For our big move across country we wanted to save as much money as possible on a truck and sell all our furniture then buy new or used when we got to our destination. We arrived, bought craigslist leather couches and a brand spankin new table. My pride and joy for like 2 weeks. It was kind of ...
The {Fried} TurkeyLurkey
Thanksgiving is just around the bend! I love Thanksgiving, I always have since a tiny child...probably because my birthday is one that always falls just beside Thanksgiving Day. So Thanksgiving means my birthday and my birthday means Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving means family, and no school, and my birthday means presents and cake. Which means the most wonderful time of the year- family, parties, no school and presents all for me! I am now seeing my birthday as expiration day on ...
5 Layer Cake with Raspberry Mousse Filling and Chocolate Ganache
Here's the deal. This cake tastes pretty amazing. 5 layers of moist, thick white cake, blanketed by cream cheese frosting and a light raspberry mousse. Then smoothered in a soft chocolate ganache. Add in a few fresh raspberries and the stream of flavors is complete. The kind of cake that makes you mmmmmm. But.. I'm kinda a perfectionist. And I have to say.. there were a few issues with this cake. The weight of the cake is a little heavy for the mousse.. so the mousse had a difficult time ...
Cinnamon Salted Caramel Chocolate Cake
It's fall, and in the (more-than-I'd-care-to-admit) instance that I'm not eating food of actual substance, I'm eating chocolate, cinnamon, or salted caramel. Who's with me?! Moist cinnamon chocolate cake with a rich cinnamon salted caramel filling and a sweet chocolate frosting. Yes, I'm serious. Mix up your batter, and it will be thin. I think one of the most important steps in getting perfect cake layers is to take a little extra time to trace around the bottom of your cake pans on ...
Sloppy Joe Chili
This is a recipe submission from our dear friend Christy. Her and her husband made it last week for the annual trunk or treat. Not only did they love its tastiness but they loved how easy it was...and so did the crowd! It was a hit at the party. They really wanted to share it! In fact when Geoff (Christy's husband) described how it was made he waved his hands in the air and said "its so easy you just add a little bleep and a little bloop. a touch of magic and boom!" haha I had a good ...
10 Crock Pot / Slow Cooker Cooking Tips
Wrapping up crockpot week the ladies and I put together a little list of things to help you have the most success with a crockpot. Truly crockpots are pretty simple.. they cook slowly so its hard (not impossible) but harder to burn foods and you generally just throw everything in the pot! I love no-brainer meals like that make my life simpler. Sometimes I just don't have time to be in the kitchen. Other days I crave it, but when soccer practice is 5:30-6:30 and the hubs isn't home til 7 dinner ...
Cutting Boards Part 2: How to oil and clean a wood cutting board
In Part 1 of this mini cutting board series we talked about the types of cutting board. There are generally 3 types, Wood/Bamboo, Plastic/Acrylic, and Glass. This post will discuss briefly how to clean the boards. Then in more depth we will look at how to oil a wood or bamboo cutting board. Maintanence for a cutting board is so easy. They better you care for them the longer they last. My favorite is the wood boards.. this round Mangoleaf Acacia Wood seen below. If I were to purchase another ...
Cutting Boards Part 1: What is the best material for a cutting board
A few years back I received a nice set of knives for Christmas, I was elated to say the least. The previous set of knives I had were gifted to us at our wedding and only a moderately nice set to begin with. After 6 years of regular use and abuse they were dull, jagged and dangerous. At one point in my meager beginnings my only cutting board was a glass cheap thing the apartment provided. The clanking of the knife-glass contact was amazing. Des used to make fun of me for it. With these ...
Spinach Salad
The sweetest person you will ever, ever ever ever meet is my cousin Shanna. She also, (of course- because this blog pertains to all things food) always has such yummy recipes. Well, all of my cousins, and aunts do for that matter. My Grandma somehow instilled this foodieness in all of us. I love getting together with them, and eating, then stealing their recipes. SOOO one Sunday evening my hubby and I left our college apartment and drove up to Shanna’s for dinner where she served me this ...
Avocado Feta Toast
So here I am six weeks post baby and I find myself STARVING because I am nursing every 2 1/2 hours, un-showered, dried spit up all over my clothes, no makeup and bags under my eyes because I haven't slept a straight 4 hours in almost two months. The common story of a new (2nd time) mom. I am TIRED and cooking gourmet meals is not on my number one to-do list. Hopefully showering every day is.... I just can't seem to find the time to do it all, but eating is a necessity and I have to do ...
Avocado Tomato Pita
Sometimes food just gets annoying. It really is quite the task to sit down and eat three+ times per day, not to mention feeding an entire family. We're all busy rushing off to work, packing kids up for school, emotionally supporting our husbands in grad school and/or brand new big-boy jobs, cuddling newborn babies on little to no sleep, all while trying to keep ourselves fueled. Healthily might I add. Some of us got together and this week we will be sharing with you some of our favorite simple, ...
Back To School- Homemade Uncrustable or...crustable in our neck of the woods
x We kinda like uncrustables around here in my home, only,we dont call them uncrustables we call them crustables, and we dont just like them we love them. It came from the little boy :) The only thing is every time I go to buy a box I feel sooooo silly. I mean I'm buying my child a pbj! Is there anything in the world that is easier than making a pbj? suriously? and I can make it a lot healthier too. I do like that they offer uncrustables in whole wheat ...
Back To School- Lunches
I've never been a sack lunch gal. As a child I wanted school lunches. No bready pbj or chips (neither have I EVEReverever been a fan of) blah. Hot mystery meat, mashed potatoes, limp vegggies- yes! Still....today...I loathe sack lunches. I have to make them now (not eat them) but you know what I bugs me more than packing a little lunch? Paying for school lunch. It is so expensive!! Especially with two kids eating lunch- I'd rather use my budget for something totally different ...
Orange Chicken
Everybody loves a little Chinese takeout, yeah? I feel like most Orange Chicken you get at places is sugary-sweet, gloppy, dried out pieces of mostly-breading-and-a-little-chicken. After spending months perfecting this (because lesbehonest, you can't eat orange chicken every day), I've done away with the typical take-out fare and replaced it with some serious Asian zing. {Does anyone else's stomach do a number on them after some Panda Express? I've sworn off the stuff. My stomach isn't as ...
Buttermilk Biscuits and Gravy
Fluffy, flaky and tender homemade buttermilk biscuits served with the most delicious, savory sausage gravy. Comfort food heaven! Every year since I can remember, Christmas morning we'd go over to my grandparents' house at 6 am and all hide behind piano benches, chairs, couches, up the stairs, and behind the Christmas tree. We'd excitedly anticipate watching Santa come through that door, and whisper to our cousins what we were hoping to get that year. Soon enough, we'd hear the door ...
Chicken Fried Rice
I stumbled upon this recipe one day after I peared into the fridge to find something for lunch. There was a small container of leftover rice from the previous nights dinner, so I decided that I would whip up a quick fried rice. It was delish! A few nights later I turned that idea into a dinner by adding chicken. My husband went nuts over it and went back for more and more and more. This is a great way to turn a tiny bit of rice into a great big meal! It's fast, it's easy and I ...
Easy Bruschetta Bar
How to make an easy bruschetta bar for your guests with toppings, toasted ciabatta and cheeses. So easy, fresh and delicious! Bruschetta is actually simply the toasted bread, usually with olive oil, salt, and pepper. The toppings are completely by choice. Standard is the tomato, basil, and balsamic combination you see everywhere. I've also seen it caprese style, with fresh mozzarella (the thick log of mozzarella you see in the store, that stuff is tast-ee). Parmesan is also a classic ...
Mexican Bean and Rice Foil Dinner
Another one of the foil dinners we had was a simple bean and rice dish. The great thing about this dish is that satisfies any gluten-free or vegetarian diets. I have many friends that are one or the other, so having great recipes on hand for their visits are a must. I like to cook meatless to save on $$ and it challenges me to add nutrition and protein in my meals other routes. Making the meals generally more nutritious. This foil dinner is a cinch to whip up. Precook the rice, ...