Happy birthday to me! That’s right, September 8th is my birthday! And keeping in the tradition of making goodies for people’s birthdays…I couldn’t well leave myself hanging! But since it was raining yesterday and I was too lazy to get some mint extract for mint chocolate chip cookies, I decided to go with what I had on hand and make some funfetti fudge! I actually really like the funfetti cake mix in this because I like the sprinkles that come in it. They’re crunchy and hold up well without being too hard or distracting from the cake-batter flavor! This…
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Continue ReadingHappy Labor Day! Did you think I was gonna leave you hanging? Nope, this time I’m posting a down and dirty meal that you can enjoy when you’re crunched for time, and kids are sure to love because there are tater tots! This recipe I learned from one of my coworkers–from Minnesota! We were really confused at lunch one day as to what he was eating, and apparently this is a pretty common staple up there where as I (being a Yankee originally) had never in my life heard of it. So that prompted a discussion of what is tater…
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This weekend we had another game night: read D&D session, because we’re cool. =D It’s been a couple months since our last one, because summer always seems to get crazy busy for everyone and we have to find a weekend where all 5 of us are in town and not busy. But at least for you that means–more recipes! We’ve started doing a pot luck so everyone contributes, but since I like cooking I’ll usually make one or two things that I’ve been meaning to try out. Other recipes I’ve made before include mediterranean dip, or caramelized bacon onion dip ,…
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Bonus post: here’s another gourmet burger to add to your repertoire! Keep this one in mind alongside jalapeno cheddar stuffed burgers, or the juicy lucy burger. With these three burgers on your menu, you’re sure to impress! This is definitely a different twist on a classic burger, but really the main difference is the ground lamb. Everything else I typically have in my pantry. Make sure that you don’t over-mix the lamb, because you won’t want it to be tough. We served this with garlic butter roasted carrots and actually used what was left of the garlic butter in the…
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Look familiar? I’ll give you a hint: I reviewed a dish quite like this last week from Kona Grill! Here’s my homemade take! The one bite I stole from one of my fellow bridesmaids K at the bachelorette dinner last weekend was so good I was still craving it two days later! So I tried to kinda make something up as I went. This was still quite tasty, and delicious, though of course not exactly the same. Definitely a keeper though! Pesto cream sauce with sausage medallions tossed with some spaghetti or linguine. Hope you enjoy! You’ll notice in this photo…
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From the lady that made jalapeno popper stuffed bread before she made traditional jalapeno poppers, I give you baked jalapeno poppers! As I’ve said, you can thank my lack of spice tolerance for this delay. Somehow a dip that’s made much more of cream cheese and cheese and other goodies seemed less intense than jumping in full to jalapeno poppers. Plus the last batch I had were made by a lady who thought we all loved spice, and were a looooot too intense for me. Delicious, but mouth-on-fire delicious, and hence I had somewhat avoided these. Which is silly really, because when you’re…
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This recipe came from one of those long-week, long-days, need to throw something together evening meals. But it was surprisingly tasty and actually elevated, and not at all “from-a-jar”. And it really only takes a little bit of cream! Well, not quite. I’ve mentioned it before, but even as a self-proclaimed “foodie”, I feel like canned and jarred items have their place. They’re perfect when you’re tired and lazy, or can’t get up the effort to run to the grocery store. Don’t underestimate those easy cheats! They come in handy when you’re having last-minute company, or you need to impress the…
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I feel like I’ve been on a spicy kick recently. Between my jalapeño popper bread and trying some spicy BBQ sauces at Smoqued in Chicago (see my culinary adventure), I’ve been eating a bit more spicy food than I normally do, and I made buffalo mac ‘n cheese for dinner tonight! So I’m coming up in the spice world, apparently. I like this recipe because it’s really easy and simple, adapted from andiemitchell.com Perfect for making around playing Pokemon Go! Hahaha, yes, I am newly obsessed with the game, like pretty much everyone everywhere. I got a sweet vaporeon last…
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This bread is ooey, gooey deliciousness. And I really do mean that, so watch out for some falling dip when you’re stuffing your face! My friends and I had a splat or two on the floor by the time we were done! But it was gobbled up in pretty much no time flat, let me tell you. It really is a quintessential appetizer recipe, and wouldn’t be a horrible pot luck recipe if you had access to a toaster oven, but it’s not really a make-and-carry recipe. It’s definitely better warm and fresh from the oven. We did another “Pokewine”…
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So today was game day! D&D Sunday as they usually happen to be, and instead of going all out to make all of the food, we did a potluck! It was wonderful–worked out perfectly. Zack made jalapeno poppers, Matt made quiche, and Dustin brought brownies! Tyler got away with nothing because he’s dating me, and I provided this awesome mediterranean dip! Plus he’s the DM so he has more work to do than the rest of us when it comes to preparing for D&D. This mediterranean dip recipe stems from Dara’s Healthy Mediterranean 7 Layer Dip over at Cookin’ Canuck, with a…
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This recipe comes from a random late-night craving! It’s an amaaaazingly simple recipe and if you’re going to eat pancakes anyway, why not spruce up those plain jane pancakes with some cake batter? Everything is better with cake batter. And make sure you reserve some sprinkles for topping! Gotta make sure there’s no doubt in anyone’s mind that these are cake batter! And the only way to do that is with sprinkles obviously. I will say, if you make this, I suggest making at least a 1/4 c. extra batter or more. Because there’s definitely potential for sneaking some of…
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Here’s recipe two from T’s and my’s Thursday night cinco de mayo dinner! Churro Cookies. Yes, they are just as glamorous as they sound. I promise. And actually, they’re amazingly simple. There’s–count ’em–only 6 ingredients! Now I don’t make these every day just because puff pastry is rather expensive (for cookie making), but let me tell you, they are like little bites of heaven. And while the round cookies are super cute and flaky, I absolutely do not throw away the strangely-shaped pieces! Bake them off and get the kids (or yourself–taste testing is a must!) to om nom the…
