Fall Sweet and Salty Treat

If you are on Pinterest, then you surely know that inspiration abounds when it comes to anything and everything crafty, yummy or beautiful.

A few weeks ago I made these:

And they were delicious!

Sidenote:

One thing I have discovered is that I am much more likely to try something I've pinned IF I have the motivation to put it on my "Did It" board where I can comment on how it came out and what the occasion was to make or try it. Try it. Make a "Did It" board to move what you've actually tried and you'll see!

So today at the store, I picked up some more pretzels and Hershey's Caramel Kisses. I happened to have a large bag of pecan halves in the fridge just waiting to be used in something scrumptious.

Throw a bunch of pretzels on a cookie sheet/ jelly roll pan.

Unwrap and place one kiss on each pretzel:

Bake at a low temperature for three minutes:

I think it is strange that my oven only goes as low as 170*. Thoughts? Also, nothing like taking a picture in your kitchen to know just how much you need to clean...

Anyway, you'll know when your kisses are ready to take out of the oven when they get shiny.

Next, gently press a pecan into each soft kiss:

As a last minute and delicious decision, I sprinkled on some of this:

Because chocolate, caramel, pretzels and pecans just weren't enough!

After I sprinkled, I stuck them in the fridge to harden back up. YUM!

Me Want Cookie, Me Eat Cookie!

To all my friends and neighbors:

The girls have been out of school since Wednesday, so we've been cooking up a storm.

-Sugarplum Thumbprint Cookies

-Chocolate Chip Muffins

-Easy Oreo Truffles

-No Bake Cookies

-Candy Canes (store bought)

-Spice Drops (store bought)

-Dark Chocolate Caramel with Sea Salt (store bought from Trader Joe's)

Recipe Collections

Day #18: Gather Holiday Recipe Favorites

When I opened up the bag of treats AE was sent home with yesterday, I panicked when I saw this:

I thought, "Oh, NO! I never sent in a recipe. They must have asked for these before we enrolled AE. Surely, I did NOT miss a note sent home asking for a recipe."

Then I turned the page and read the first recipe by the other little girl in AE's class:

Evidently, her mother feeds her healthy foods. Fourteen hours IS a little long to "warm" your turkey sandwich, though.

Here is AE's "recipe":

I thought she did really well. She even knew the oven should be set to the very precise "so hot" setting.

Then I turned the page to read this little boy's entry:

It especially delighted me to see him refer to Wal-Mart as "WalMarts"!

This project was so cute, and if I ever get pushed into being a ROOM MOM, I'll remember this activity as a great send home idea. Remember when our church did something similar about God's Rules? Same kind of hilarity.

Love it.

What We Ate Last Thursday

It's Tuesday, but here's what we ate last Thursday while Poppy was visiting:

Because I'm prompt, I'll share with you a favorite in our house for the summer/fall months.

It's the Pesto-Crusted Grilled Cheese Sandwich. And it's delicious.

I got the recipe from that little mag Southern Living. It fills my soul for decorating ideas and cooking ideas. 

Truth be told, I blogged about it last year, but when a recipe comes back and treats you right, you just got to shout it out!

Made with sourdough bread, that grilled cheese was filled with alternating slices of cheddar and provolone and more cheddar and more provolone. It was cheesy goodness. My dad even liked it, not being a fan of pesto!

Instead of butter, you mix mayo and store-bought pesto sauce to slather on the outside of the bread before you slap it down in the pan, layer cheese upon cheese and flip over to grill to perfection. 

Earlier in the day, I sliced up a couple of peaches we got from up in the mountains last weekend. I mixed those babies up with some store bought salsa, the "fresh" kind that you can find in the refrigerated produce section. Pair it with Baked Scoops and Blue Corn Chips. Yum!

By dinner time, the sweetness of the peaches had mingled nicely with the spice of the cilantro, onions and tomatoes. Some cantaloupe wedges and avocado topped off the rest of the meal. Deliciousness. 

Now go. See recipe. Print recipe. Cook and be happy!

(and don't forget to go see Jen @ Balancing Beauty and Bedlam)

Chicken!

Sometimes I like to get creative. Sometimes I like to cook with what I have in the fridge/freezer/pantry. Here's what happened last night: 

Mama's Dinner

The Daddy's Dinner

I had these things:

• four frozen chicken tenderloins
• 1 lime
• chili powder
• 2 small tomatoes
• bottom of the bag crunched up tortilla chips 
• leftover sun-dried tomato wrap
• shredded cheddar
• taco sauce
• 1 can of ff refried beans

I wished I had these things:

• sour cream
• onion
• bell pepper (but The Daddy hates them)

I should have remembered:

• the shredded lettuce in the fridge

I should have saved to go with dinner:

• the avocado I made into guacamole for lunch

Ahhhhhhhhhhh, hindsight!

So here's how to make it:

1. Spray pan with butter flavored nonstick cooking spray
2. Sear chicken tenderloins to lock in moisture
3. Sprinkle with chili powder (according to taste; some like it HOT, others NOT)
4. Squeeze lime juice onto chicken
5. Cover and reduce heat to BARELY ON
6. Cut two small tomatoes into wedges and place in pan around the chicken cooking in the middle
7. Sprinkle a little of Paula Deen's House Seasoning on tomatoes (I mix a big batch and keep it in a shaker)
8. Cover and wait until husband gets home (or 30 minutes)
9. Shred chicken
10. Place in burrito-like wrap or serve over beans, cheese, taco sauce and chips. Add anything else that may go bad in the next few days. Yum!

FYI: The Daddy thought it was pretty funny that I was taking pictures of our food before we ate it last night. I ALMOST took a picture of him eating it to post here just to get him back, but thought better of it!

Goup

After several requests (and by several I mean ONE), here's the Goup recipe: 

1 pound sausage, browned and drained

2 blocks cream cheese

1 can rotel

 

It's really easy, because there's no measuring! 

Heat in crock pot or (as we did at the party) mix and pour into baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes (8 x 8 size dish would probably be good for just the regular recipe amount above). At the party, Laura essentially doubled the recipe but only used 3 blocks of cream cheese.

 

Serve with tortilla chips or small flour tortillas.

Shrimp, Shrimp, Shrimp

The Invitation:

The reason the men came:


The hostesses: Laura, Mama, Molly and Shay (pronounced "shy")

The "silver":

The corn cob holders:

High Style: Gerber daisies in Mason jars

More High Style: sticks from the yard and clippings from the bushes!

The sunflowers came from Publix and the chalkboard from HERE:

The reason we chose a low country boil: the men cook!

(Harbert, Rob, The Daddy)

The Basement of Shay's parents' house! JUST LOOK at those tall ceilings!

Rob, Ashley (and baby Wilson), The Daddy

The Guests of Honor:

Shay's mom hand rolled the spring rolls!

The Menu:

Appetizers-

• Veggies with dill dip
• Goup (it has cream cheese and sausage in it! 'nuff said!) with flour tortillas
• Chips and Salsa
• Spring rolls

Drinks-

• Lemonade
• Ice Water
• Various Red and White Wines
• Flat Tire, Coors Light, Bud Light
• Summer Brew- a concoction not unlike "hunch punch" from those good ole' college days containing pink lemonade, beer and vodka

In the Boil-

• Shrimp (as big as a baby's arm)
• Kalbosa
• Corn on the cob
• Red potatoes
• Mushrooms (maybe the best part!)
• Onions
• Whole Garlic Bulbs

Desserts-

• Lemon Squares
• Fudgy Brownies
• Baklava

Tausha's mom made the baklava pictured in the center! (A trial run for wedding favors: yum!)

Can't wait to see these two get married next month! It will be my first trip to Bristol, Tennessee AND Virginia. Didn't you know the city is in BOTH states?

Looking for other shower ideas? Go visit Kelly's Korner!

Phriday Photos

I'm thinking about making these next week for some folks who just had a baby and requested "NO CHEESE". I don't know of ANY casserole that does not call for cheese, so what do you think? Would you be happy or offended if I showed up with a whole chicken all Paula Deen'ed on the grill with some Bud heavy?

Oh, the Holiday Memories!

I would have taken a picture of the mess on the floor, but the crazy dog got there before I could snap a pic. Here's to holiday cooking!

Christmas Cookies and Crafts

I've made some new friends at church through the last two years of doing Wednesday Bible study. One is Lori, who invited a few of us moms over with our little ones in tow to decorate Christmas cookies. Lori had a slew of sugar cookies and gingerbread men baked and ready to decorate. She even made homemade icing! Along with all the yummy toppings, the kids were in sugar heaven.


Some on the half-eaten works of art


The kids getting started


Sweet James, our host


Stacie and her daughter Mary Alice (cleaning up "snow")


Hayley was all about the sprinkles


A.E. sneaking a gumdrop


Cheese!


H.J. gets her chance to decorate, I mean eat

Cheese!

Sprinkle power

I'll save this part for later

Right here

Pat it down

Our collection


After decorating cookies, we played. Here's H.J. with the baby girls, Kate and Lily.

James showed the girls his bedroom!

A.E. is behind Mary Alice and look at Hayley go!

After we had our cookie date, we went to Nana and Papa's house for "nap time." Is that what you call it when both kids are on such a sugar high they can't sit still let alone fall asleep?

After "resting" we headed over to Stacy's house for some more cookie decorating, arts and crafts, and general merriment. Stacy always has the cutest ideas and a great big spread of food for us hungry moms; she had peppermint tea, sliced apples, fresh popped popcorn,--get this, NOT from the microwave--a new and delicious thing called a chicken ball with crackers. The chicken ball was kind of like chicken salad but with way more cream cheese than chicken. Maybe that's why it was so good!

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 2 8oz pkg cream cheese, softened
• 1 can chicken
• 1/2 can water chestnuts
• 1 pkg ranch dip seasoning
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans

To Make:

• Mix first 4 ingredients at medium speed until blended.
• Form into a ball.
• Roll in nuts.
• Serve with crackers or Frito's. (I would go with crackers. Stacy did.)

After stuffing our faces, (or in my case, in the midst of it) we made these:


How cute! They are supposed to look like s'mores, and they came in a kit. Moms helped. Kids liked. We're going to string ours up on the tree. A.E. did the reindeer on the far left, and H.J. did the Santa on the far left.

Thanks to all my friends for planning such fun activities and the grandparents for taking us in in between play dates!