In case of Emergency.....Break Glass

Don't pretend that sometimes it's an absolute mind altering and attitude altering need to have your favorite beverage to get you straight throughout the day.  How devastating it is when you go to the fridge, or wherever you keep them, and find nothing there.  To me, nothing constitutes more of an emergency than that.  

And let's be honest, sometimes my family becomes very aware of my need for fizz and caffeine.  

Here's the solution, a box put in a strategic, easy to reach place to fulfill all of your emergency pick my up needs. 

For me....like perhaps most of you....it is LIFE SAVING!!

A Hot fire and a Banana

I LOVE TO EAT!!  I don't enjoy cooking much, but oh, how I love to eat!  Especially gooey bits of sweet heaven cooked over an open fire. 

We love to break out our fire pit in the fall months.  The cool air and the warm fire......fluffy marshmallows and chocolate on a stick.  Sounds perfect.  Well if you like a good treat as much as I do, then I suggest you try these scrumptious banana boats cooked in your very own fire too. 

Simply take a banana and cut it open.  DO NOT TAKE IT OUT OF THE PEEL! And fill with whatever bits of goodness you want.  Perhaps Chocolate chips, butterscotch, peanut butter chips, mini marshmallows, sweetened coconut (Or whatever other toppings you fancy.) Stuff them inside the banana and wrap in foil.  Stick them in a fire....or on a grill if that's all you have, and let them melt all together. 

They take about 5-10 minutes.  Let them cool down and

DIG IN!!!

A new twist to cinnamon rolls

To me, there is nothing quite like a warm cinnamon roll covered in delicious warm frosting.  But, while making these fun treats, why not try one new thing with them to see if you can love them any more than you already do.  Instead of the same old cinnamon "ROLL" try a cinnamon "HEART."

Strangely enough, they taste EVEN BETTER!

Best Halloween Party Ideas

I have collected some ideas from Halloween's past that may be kind of fun for your holidays this year too.  Some of these I have done myself, and some of these are the creative genius' on the World Wide Web.  No matter where they are from, they are fun to make.........

A pumpkin cut in half, cleaned out and used as an ice bucket. Pretty crafty, eh?

White powdered doughnuts with red food coloring for the veins and a chocolate chip for the pupil.  The drink is just punch.  It's the outside that makes it awesome.  Use a little food coloring to dye Karo syrup and dip the glass in the syrup and let it run down the side.  Use a gummy worm to add extra EEEWWWW to the beverage.

This looks totally gross, but I am loving it.  Here's the recipe.  I am for sure going to try this at my party.

Halloween Meathead Recipe (Easy) Ingredients: 1 full-sized plastic human skull, 1.5 lbs. thin sliced deli meat, your choice, Cream cheese, BBQ sauce, or cranberry sauce, 2 hard boiled egg yolks, round mini-mozzarella, pieces, or cocktail onions, 2 slices of pimento-stuffed green olive. Instructions: 1. Buy a plastic skull. Wash the skull with soap and water and allow to dry. 2. Spread a "base" over the skull. BBQ sauce and jellied cranberry sauce give the skull a bloody, gory look as your guests lift away the lunch meat. Cream cheese is not as fun, but probably tastes better with most meats. This is entirely your choice. 3. Evenly distribute your lunch meat over the prepared skull, leaving openings at the eyes and mouth. Smallish pieces of meat work better than larger ones, as they're easier to manipulate and form. You may need to use toothpicks to get some of the meat to stay in place. 4. For eyes, place one hard boiled egg yolk or small mozzarella cheese ball in each eye socket. Top with a slice of pimento-stuffed green olive. 6. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to eat.

What fun to carve a pumpkin like this.  The teeth are actually marshmallows stuck in with toothpicks.  Here's a tip for your pumpkin carving.  When you are all done, spray the inside and raw edges of the pumpkin with WD40.  It will preserve them and make them last longer without such a dramatic withering. 

Fun cookies.  Striped fudge cookies with a little orange frosting holding a kiss on top.  This is always a big hit with the kids.

I just got me a set of these at Pottery Barn.  I am shaking in anticipation to serve up a dish with these.

Hot dog mummy's  anyone?

Just a few ideas to help you get your party on!!

kentucky Derby anyone?

I asked a couple of my friends if they would come to a party to celebrate the Kentucky Derby held at the end of April, or beginning of May.  I can't tell you how snubbed I felt.  But I will tell you now, that I LOVE to throw a party no matter what the reason.  So, perhaps no one will be invited, but I have some delicious treats that I will be enjoying myself in my fancy "derby" hat.  I know you will all regret snubbing my idea for the party.

The Kentucky Derby is more than just a race -- it's an annual society event. Since the first Derby in 1875, the race has become steeped in traditions ranging from specific food and drink to proper Derby attire. Though the traditions are many, there are a few basic rules that every Derby reveler should be familiar with.

The Traditional MiNt JUleP

This is a great alternative for guests who don't drink alcohol, but would like to enjoy a classic Mint Julep cocktail.

Directions

• Muddle mint leaves in the bottom of a cocktail shaker.
• Add simple syrup to desired sweetness and lemon juice.
• Pour mint mixture into a highball filled with crushed ice and top with the ginger ale. Garnish with a sprig of mint.

This is a great alternative for guests who don't drink alcohol, but would like to enjoy a classic Mint Julep cocktail.

Directions

• Muddle mint leaves in the bottom of a cocktail shaker.
• Add simple syrup to desired sweetness and lemon juice.
• Pour mint mixture into a highball filled with crushed ice and top with the ginger ale. Garnish with a sprig of mint.




And a Delicious DErBy CaKe




You can make a chocolate cupcake from scratch if you want, but I say, when there is a pre-made mix, there is a reason.  However, the frosting will need to be made from scratch, but it's easy so don't worry. 


Mint Julep Frosting:8 oz whipped cream cheese
4 oz butter
12 oz powdered sugar
1 teaspoon Crme de Menthe

Instructions For Cupcake Frosting:

1. Mix all frosting ingredients together in a large bowl until completely incorporated.
2. Refrigerate for twenty to forty minutes, then pipe onto cupcakes once the base is completely cooled and garnish with a fresh sprig of mint.  




I hAvE a FEw Hat CHoIceS.... here they are and perhaps you can tell me which one to wear.  (whichever one I do not debut, perhaps I can wear to the reception I think I should hold in honor of the royal wedding.)

Who cares if a fruit pizza is made of a huge sugar cookie and a cream cheese frosting (it was light cream cheese).  The fruit on it makes it practically healthy for you.   Right?

I made sugar cookie dough and baked it on my pizza stone (which I am totally in love with ) leaving enough room around the dough so that it can expand when cooking so it doesn't fall off the edge and fall all over the bottom of the oven.

I took a fluffy cream cheese frosting and added a bit of food coloring to it just to spice it up a bit.

And added my toppings. Strawberries, kiwi, blueberries and grated white chocolate bark

for a little extra kick. 

Mmmmmm..............totally worth the calories!!! 

"Treating" your sweet-tooth

How delicious do these look?!?!!!!

These are as simple as a marshmallow dipped in milk chocolate, peanut butter chocolate and white chocolate and rolled in candy.  If my kids new how easy these were to make, I wouldn't look like mother of the year. So let's just keep that little secret between you and me.

Some St.Patrick Spirits

I went to a local Thrift Shop (in Utah they are known as the D.I.) and found some cute little bottles for $0.25 a piece.  I didn't know exactly what I was going to use them for, but for some reason, I just had to have them.  Then........an idea!  How about some delicious St. Patty's spirits to give to people attending our annual corn beef and cabbage dinner. 

 So I searched through my sticker and paper leftovers and came across some gold sticker thing.  So, cutting out hearts and arranging them to make a shamrock, this was one of the creations.

And using the Internet and a little bit of photoshop, found some cute labels, printed them out and with the use of my "xyron" which puts sticky sticker stuff on the backs of regular paper, I made these labels for my bottles and tags for others. ( I am sure there is a more professional name for what is is my xyron does, but you get the idea)

And here's how they turned out.  With a bit of green limeade and apple juice added to the bottles, they became a delicious St. Patrick's day treat for my dinner guests.

Yummy Valentine Accessory

I found another great idea for your young ones to say "Be Mine" without having to be like everyone else and buy pre-made cartoon cards that no kid really cares about.  Let's be honest here, all they want is the candy.  This idea will give them more of what they want, and less of the boring stuff.  Here's what you need.  Candy hearts, dental floss, ribbon and a needle.  Easy enough, right?

 I'm not going to lie, this is a sticky process, but with the dental floss, it does help make it smoother.  I used about 12 pieces of candy and put a few pieces of ribbon around and tied it together to make a delicious and very stylish valentine bracelet. 

See, with a little creative thinking, you will become the talk of the class. Happy LOVE day!

An aviation valentine

Sometimes I find myself feeling like a kid again.  Perhaps things back then were a little slower and we had time to create and invent things rather than just buying whatever is pre-made in a box at the local grocery store.  On Valentines Day we see so many different pre-packaged goodies and cards that it almost loses the meaning of showing each other that we care.  So this year, I decided to revisit my early childhood and this time I brought my 5 year old daughter along to help make valentines for her school class.

 We decided to create these fun homeade valentines that resemble an airplane.  You know you liked them then, and you would love to get one now.  I forgot how simple they were to make, and for me, the thought is much greater.

Here's what you'll need.  A box of large smarties, some sticks of gum, lifesavers for the wheels, and elastic to hook it all together.

Pull the elastic through two lifesavers.....

Put a stick of gum on top of the smarties..........ah ha....it's coming back to you now isn't it

And use the elastic to hook it altogether.  And there you have it.  A creative and fun valentine, even though it may be considered "old school"