Featured Recipe: Broccoli Salad

I haven't posted a recipe in forever, and last week I made a delicious broccoli salad to take to a potluck lunch at work. The recipe is quick and simple and would be great to take to barbeques and picnics during the remainder of summer, and then to tailgates in the fall! I used this recipe as a guide when I made my broccoli salad, mainly so I would know how much broccoli to use and how to make the dressing. I altered the extra ingredients from the original recipe- I didn't have any cheddar cheese on hand so I omitted it this time. I also used sunflower kernels instead of onion and I added raisins. Next time I make it I will probably add some cheddar cheese into the mixture.

Ingredients:
4 crowns broccoli, chopped
1/2 cup sunflower kernels
1 cup raisins
3/4 cup crumbled bacon (I used Hormel bacon bits-found in pizza toppings section)
1 cup light mayo
1/4 cup sugar
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

Directions:
1. Chop broccoli and place in large bowl. Add sunflower kernels, raisins, and bacon; then set aside.
2. In a separate small bowl mix together mayo, sugar, and apple cider vinegar to make dressing.
3. Pour dressing over the broccoli mixture, and stir with a spatula until broccoli etc. is evenly coated.
4. Cover bowl and refrigerate until ready to serve. (This is best made at least a few hours in advance so that broccoli and other ingredients can soak up the dressing.)

Enjoy!

-L

xoxo

Recipe: St. Patrick's Day Treats

In anticipation of St. Patrick's Day coming up on Sunday, I made some festive treats this week: Lucky Charms treats and GREEN chocolate chip cookies!

Lucky Charms Treats:

Ingredients:

-5 cups Lucky Charms cereal

-5 cups mini marshmallows (approximately one bag)

-4 tablespoons butter

Directions:

-Grease an 8x8 baking pan.

-Pour Lucky Charms in a large bowl and set aside.

-Melt butter on the stovetop on medium low heat. After butter has melted add in marshmallows and continue melting, stirring constantly. 

-Once marshmallows have melted remove the mixture from the stove and pour onto the cereal. Using a spatula, stir cereal until evenly coated, then transfer to greased pan. Use spatula to evenly distribute towards edges of the pan and flatten.

-Let cool for at least 15 minutes then cut into squares.

Yum!

Green Chocolate Chip Cookies:

I simply followed the classic Nestle Toll House recipe on the back of the chocolate chip bag. Except for this batch I actually used Ghiradelli chips since they are richer. Before adding chocolate chips into the dough, add green food coloring a few drops at a time until desired color is reached. Keep in mind that it will lighten some during baking.

Green dough!

Finished product!

-L

xoxo

Valentine's Treats

Last week I made two delicious treats that are great any time but especially festive for Valentine's Day. I tried this Red Velvet Puppy Chow recipe from my "Recipes To Try" Pinterest Board for the first time and it did not disappoint:

I also made my Famous Pretzels using the Valentine's m&m's. This is my second favorite m&m's color scheme (Easter pastels are my favorite). I love the abundance of pink m&m's.

Here is the recipe for the pretzels:

Ingredients:
One pound bag of Snyders Tiny Twists pretzels
24 ounces of vanilla flavored almond bark or white candy coating (do not use white chocolate chips)
Medium bag of Valentine's milk chocolate m&m's


Directions:
Spread wax paper over a large area of kitchen counter.
Pour pretzels into a large bowl and pour m&m's into a small bowl.
Set two squares (approx 4 ounces) of almond bark aside and put the remaining almond bark into a microwave safe bowl and melt in microwave according to package directions. Be careful not to overheat!
Once almond bark is melted pour over pretzels in bowl.
Use a spatula to stir pretzels until they are evenly coated with the almond bark.
Spread coated pretzels out on wax paper quickly, getting them into a single layer as much as possible (the key here is to be quick).
Once pretzels are spread out on wax paper sprinkle m&m's on top of pretzels, before the coating sets, so that they will stick.
After m&m's have been sprinkled go back and attach any loose m&m's to pretzels, then melt the remaining squares of almond bark you set aside earlier and drizzle over pretzels so m&m's will stick better.
Once coating dries completely (this doesn't take long) store pretzels in an airtight container until time to serve!

Enjoy!
-L
xoxo

Recipe: Layered Hot Feta and Artichoke Dip

I haven't posted a favorite recipe on here in awhile, so here is one for a delicious hot feta and artichoke dip. I originally found it on Pinterest, and the original recipe is here. This is a very easy and simple appetizer and would be great to take to a Super Bowl party this weekend!

Ingredients:
8 oz reduced fat cream cheese, softened
14 oz can of artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
2 cloves garlic, minced (I have been fine using a smidge of crushed garlic paste)
1 small red pepper, chopped (I have used green pepper before too)
3.5 oz feta cheese, crumbled
1 tbsp sliced black olives (I have left these out before and it does fine)

Directions:
1. Mix cream cheese, artichoke hearts, Parmesan cheese, and garlic until blended.
2. Spread into 3-cup ovenproof dish and top with pepper and feta
3. Bake for at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until heated through.
4. Serve with pita chips or cracker of your choice.

-L
xoxo

Tailgate Treats

I know football tailgate season is winding down, but if you're looking for a quick, easy dessert to take to a remaining tailgate this year look no further! A few weeks ago I went to a tailgate and made some delicious no-bake cookies & cream treats and Golden Grahams treats.

The Cookies & Cream treats came from Pinterest and the original recipe can be found here. It is super easy and only requires three ingredients: crushed Oreos, butter, and marshmallows.

Yum!

Here are the directions for the Golden Grahams treats. I modified a Cinnamon Toast Crunch treats recipe from another blog. I would link to it but it has been removed.

Ingredients:

4 cups mini marshmallows

5 tablespoons butter

5 cups Golden Grahams cereal

1 cup chocolate chips

Directions: 

1. Measure out cereal and chocolate chips in bowl together. Measure out mini marshmallows and set aside.

2. In large saucepan, melt unsalted butter over medium-low heat. Once butter is melted, add the mini marshmallows. Stir marshmallows until they're melted. 

3. Remove saucepan from heat and use a spatula to transfer the marshmallow/butter mixture to the bowl with the cereal and chocolate chips. Stir to completely coat cereal with marshmallow mixture. 

4. Pour cereal mixture into greased 8x8 pan. Evenly spread out and pat down with spatula. Let cool, then cut into squares and enjoy.

*Note-next time I make these I might try adding the chocolate chips after I have coated cereal with marshmallow/butter mixture so that they don't melt as much. But they were still a big hit following the directions above.

Delicious!

Of course these are great for occasions besides a tailgate. They are perfect anytime you need a quick, easy, delicious dessert to take somewhere!

-L

xoxo

Recipe: Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins!

Today I tried a new recipe from Pinterest combining two of my favorite things: pumpkin and cheesecake! The recipe isn't hard but it is a tad time-consuming since you have to mix the cheesecake filling, muffin batter, and topping separately. Then you have to assemble each individual mini muffin by layering batter, filling, and topping. It was totally worth it though because they are so delicious! This  treat is perfect for Halloween week and throughout the rest of fall and the holiday season. The recipe is here on Sugar Cooking blog. You can adjust the spices according to personal preference. I didn't have any ground cloves on hand so I omitted them. The recipe yields approximately four dozen mini muffins or one dozen regular muffins.

The finished product fresh out of the oven!

Happy baking and enjoy!

-L

xoxo

Pumpkin Bars + Cream Cheese Frosting!

It's been forever since I've posted a recipe on this blog, and since I tried a new Pinterest recipe for pumpkin bars with cream cheese frosting last week I thought it would be the perfect seasonally appropriate recipe to share with my readers. You can find the original recipe here. I made a couple slight modifications to the original recipe, which I have starred below. These pumpkin bars are delicious with or without the cream cheese frosting and are super easy to make. Enjoy!

Ingredients for Bars:
-4 eggs
-1 2/3 cups sugar
-1 cup canola oil
-1 can pumpkin
-2 cups flour
-2 tsp baking powder
-3 heaping tsp cinnamon*
-1 tsp salt
-1 tsp baking soda
-2 generous tsp pumpkin pie spice*

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease 9x13 baking dish
2. Mix eggs, sugar, oil, and pumpkin with mixer until light and fluffy
3. Pour flour, powder, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, and pumpkin pie spice into a separate bowl and mix.
4. Pour flour mixture into pumpkin mixture and mix until batter is smooth
5. Pour batter into greased baking dish and bake for 30 minutes
6. Wait until bars have completely cooled before frosting

Ingredients for Cream Cheese Frosting:
-1 stick butter softened
-1 8 oz package cream cheese, softened (I used reduced fat and it worked well)
-3/4 cup confectioners sugar
-1-2 tsp vanilla extract (I just used 1 tsp and it was plenty)

Directions:
1. Combine cream cheese and butter in bowl and mix until smooth
2. Gradually add confectioners sugar until you reach desired consistency
3. Stir in vanilla

A couple notes:
-Instead of frosting the bars all at once before cutting them I kept the frosting in a separate container in the fridge and frosted each individual bar before eating. This is a good idea if you are going to be eating on the bars over a course of several days-I just feel like it helps them keep better. However, if you're going to be taking them to a party you can go ahead and frost the whole pan at once if you desire.
-I also stored the bars in the fridge to help them stay fresh longer.

fresh out of the oven

cut into bars

container of frosting

frosted and ready to enjoy!

Happy baking!

-L

xoxo

Patriotic Pretzels

Hey y'all-hope everyone is having a great week and looking forward to tomorrow's 4th of July festivities! I already have my red, white, and blue outfit picked out. The other day my best friend and I made my famous covered pretzel recipe (that I originally got from my aunt) using red, white, and blue m&m's. If you're looking for a quick and easy dessert to take to a patriotic picnic tomorrow here is the recipe:

Ingredients:
One pound bag of Snyders Tiny Twists pretzels
24 ounces of vanilla flavored almond bark or white candy coating (do not use white chocolate chips)
Medium bag of red, white, and blue m&m's

Directions:
Spread wax paper over a large area of kitchen counter.
Pour pretzels into a large bowl and pour m&m's into a small bowl.
Put almond bark into a microwave safe bowl and melt in microwave according to package directions. Be careful not to overheat!
Once almond bark is melted pour most of it over pretzels in bowl-leave a small bit in the microwaveable container to use later.
Use a spatula to stir pretzels until they are evenly coated with the almond bark.
Spread coated pretzels out on wax paper quickly, getting them into a single layer as much as possible (the key here is to be quick).
Once pretzels are spread out on wax paper sprinkle m&m's on top of pretzels, before the coating sets, so that they will stick.
After m&m's have been sprinkled go back and attach any loose m&m's to pretzels, then take almond bark left over in microwaveable bowl and drizzle over pretzels so m&m's will stick better.
Once coating dries completely (this doesn't take long) store pretzels in an airtight container until time to serve!

Hope y'all enjoy this recipe! And have a safe and happy 4th of July!
xoxo
-L

Recipe: Skinny Taco Dip

Today's favorite recipe is for Skinny Taco Dip. I found it on Pinterest and made it for the first time a few months ago when I had some friends over to my place for a Final Four viewing party. This recipe is super easy and super delicious. The base of the dip is a mixture of reduced fat cream cheese, reduced fat sour cream, salsa, and taco seasoning. After spreading this mixture in a shallow dish, you then top it with shredded lettuce, Monterrey Jack cheese, olives, and tomatoes (I omitted the tomatoes when I first made it). If I'm not having having a big group over or going to a party, then I like to just mix the cream cheese, sour cream, salsa, and taco seasoning together and keep it in a container in the fridge and eat on it for several days. Paired with chips and a side salad, it makes a good light meal. Here is a link to the complete recipe. Enjoy!

The complete dip (sans tomatoes)

Just the cream cheese, sour cream, salsa, taco seasoning mixture

-L

xoxo

Recipe: Zucchini Bread

I have decided to start featuring favorite recipes on my blog. I love to cook and bake, and trying out new recipes is one of my favorite hobbies. Today's recipe is for zucchini bread and is from my mom. I can't even remember how old I was when I first ate this zucchini bread, but it was definitely a favorite treat for breakfast and snacks growing up. The other day I baked it for the first time in awhile and it was just as good as I remembered! Hope y'all enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 cup oil

2 cups sugar

3 eggs, well-beaten

2 cups flour

2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

2 cups raw grated zucchini

3 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Mix sugar, oil, and eggs 

2. Sift together flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt

3. Add to egg mixture

4. Add zucchini and vanilla

5. Pour into 2 greased and floured loaf pans

6. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes

*Be sure to let bread cool completely before removing from pan. This bread freezes well so you can eat one loaf now and freeze the other for later. 

Happy Baking!

-L

xoxo