Flag Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream

When I worked full time I couldn't wait to get to the end of the work week so I could relax and kick up my feet on the weekends. Then Sunday night I would get that dreaded feeling that accompanies going back to work Monday for a whole week of the grind. Some people struggle with the transition between working full time to being home all the time. I definitely didn't have that problem. I embraced it fully.

The thing with motherhood is everyday is a Monday. There are no Fridays to look forward to for a break from diaper changes. But then again...everyday can be a Friday too, depending how you look at it.

Today was one of those days that I felt lucky to be home. I felt guilty as John rolled out of bed at the crack of dawn to go to work. He has mini-camp all weekend. My kids slept in until after eight. We had a leisurely breakfast, went to the gym, and then swam at the pool with friends. Minus the stroller spill where Wes ate the asphalt...it was a good day. I was the boss of my day and our schedule was whatever I wanted it to be.

Don't get me wrong, there are days where I feel like hugging John's leg pleading,"Take me with you to work! Don't leave me!"

But today wasn't one of them...

These flag cupcakes have a classic vanilla flavor with a hint of lemon that compliments the strawberries and blueberries. I finally found a frosting that I love. It isn't a pure white frosting (more off-white), but it tastes yummy.

Flag Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream

adapted from OurBestBites and the SavorySweetLife

Cupcakes:

1 white cake mix

2 eggs

1 cup sour cream

½ cup milk

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 teaspoon lemon zest

Strawberries for garnish

Blueberries for garnish

Frosting:

1 cup butter (2 sticks), softened

3-4 cups powdered sugar, sifted

½ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Up to 4 Tablespoons milk or heavy cream

¼ teaspoon lemon zest (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

For Cupcakes: Combine all ingredients until incorporated. Scrape sides of bowl and then beat on med-high speed for 3 minutes.

Divide batter equally in half between two bowls.

Use red food coloring to color one bowl of batter to desired color of red and leave the other one white. Wilton brand gel colors have the brightest color and are good to use here.

To make flag striped cupcakes alternately place a spoonful of red batter and a spoonful of white batter in the cupcake holder. The batter is thick, so it won't spread on its own. A great tip is to set out a little bowl of water where you're working. Dip your finger in the water and then gently spread the batter out. The water will make it so the batter doesn't stick to your fingers.

Bake cupcakes according to the cake mix package directions.

Frosting:

Beat butter for a few minutes with a mixer with the paddle attachment on medium speed. Add 3 cups of powdered sugar and turn your mixer on the lowest speed until the sugar has been incorporated with the butter. Increase mixer speed to medium and add vanilla extract, salt, and 2 tablespoons of milk/cream and beat for 3 minutes. If your frosting needs a more stiff consistency, add remaining sugar. If your frosting needs to be thinned out, add remaining milk 1 tablespoon at a time.

Frost cooled cupcakes with frosting. Garnish with strawberry fans and blueberries.

Tip: To make strawberry fans for garnish just slice strawberry down to the stem without slicing all the way through.

Makes 18 cupcakes.

The Girl Who Didn't Eat Everything? - Spicy Honey Chicken

Believe it or not I don't sit around all day eating cookies and cake. Usually during the week we have grilled chicken or fish with veggies and then on the weekends I'm a little more flexible to what I will cook. That's my time to experiment and try new recipes and the only way I can stay under 500 pounds.

Lately, I've been trying REALLY hard to eat healthy. My friend Heidi knowing that had us over for dinner and fixed this chicken on top of a mango avocado salad with a citrus vinaigrette from Our Best Bites. I liked it so much I made it again this week. It's has a great blend of honey and spices that has a flavor party in your mouth.

I made it with the salad but it started raining when I tried taking a picture of it so here's just the chicken...

Spicy Honey Chicken

by Our Best Bites

8 boneless skinless chicken thighs, about 2lbs (you could use breasts as well)

2 tsp vegetable oil

Rub:
2 tsp granulated garlic
2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp coriander
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder (it's there in the spice aisle...you just have to look hard)

Glaze:
1/2 cup Honey
1T Cider Vinegar

Combine the rub spices in bowl and mix well.

Use kitchen shears to trim off any excess fat from the chicken pieces. Pat dry. Drizzle oil over chicken and rub in with your hands to lightly coat all the pieces. Then toss chicken with the spice rub to coat all sides well. Use your hands and get in there! Grill chicken for 3-5 minutes on each side, until cooked through.

While chicken is cooking, warm honey in the microwave so it's not so thick. Add the vinegar and combine well. Reserve 2T honey glaze for later. Take the rest and brush on chicken (both sides) in the final moments of grilling.

I'm gonna warn you that this can make a hot mess, literally. It's sugar, and it's gonna drip. But the smelly smoke is worth it for a minute or two. Just leave your grill on for a few minutes after the chicken is done to burn off any excess glaze. It's totally worth it once you taste this stuff.

If you don't have a bbq, try it on an indoor grill pan or use your broiler. Just be sure to open a window in case you burn your glaze!
 
Make this a Spicy Honey Chicken Salad with a Honey-Citrus Vinaigrette

Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

I've been searching for the perfect oatmeal raisin cookie recipe but every one I tried was either too flat or too cakey. I wanted a really chewy cookie. After trying probably four recipes I started thinking of my tried and true favorite chewy chocolate chip cookie and thinking about how perfectly chewy it was because of the melted butter in the dough. So I started with the base of that dough and after several adjustments on raisins, cinnamon, and oatmeal I came up with this. This is a keeper!

Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

2 cups all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup butter, melted (1½ sticks)
1 cup packed brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 ½ cups old-fashioned oats
1 heaping cup raisins
½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Your cookies turn out so much better with parchment paper. Believe me! Buy some!

Melt butter and let cool slightly.

Mix flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.

In a medium bowl, cream together the melted butter, brown sugar and white sugar until well blended. Beat in the cinnamon, vanilla, egg, and egg yolk for 2-3 minutes until light and creamy. Mix in the flour mixture until just blended. Add the oats, nuts, and raisins. Mix until just blended.

Place 1/4 cup balls of dough onto parchment lined cookie sheet and bake for 14-16 minutes. Do not overbake. Remember I'm at sea level so if you aren't you may need longer. The edges should look brown and the centers still slightly soft. Let the cookies rest on the cookie sheet for a couple of minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

Source: by The Girl Who Ate Everything; inspired by AllRecipes

Chick Food...Fruit and Nut Salad

I'm notorious...

...for eating everything BUT the lettuce in my salad.

I pick out all the good stuff and if a leaf of lettuce happens to get stuck to a piece of chicken or pecan...I'll eat it too.

The same goes for rice.

That's why I like this salad. It's full of the good stuff. Apples, grapes, strawberries, candied pecans, and cranberries. This recipe is from my cousin Amy. We had guys eating with us so we had to balance the sweet salad with some salty feta. This makes a ton!!

Fruit and Nut Salad

adapted slightly from Amy Bench

1 bunch green leaf lettuce, chopped (I used two bags of prechopped Romaine lettuce)
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and cubed
2 cups strawberries, sliced
2 cups red grapes, halved
2-3 chicken breasts
1/2 of a white onion
1 bag Dried Cherry, Cranberry and Pecan Salad Pizazz (I found mine at Super Target by the bagged salad)
1 bottle Brianna’s Poppy seed or Raspberry Vinaigrette Dressing (sometimes we do half of each)
1 (4 ounce) container crumbled feta (optional)
salt and pepper

Boil chicken with salt, pepper, and onion. Once cooled, cube chicken. Put everything in a large bowl. Toss with dressing right before serving. Serves 15-20 people.

Recipe Notes:
1) You may not need the whole bottle of dressing.
2) If you can't find the Salad Pizzaz you can use 1/2 cup of cranberrries and a half cup of pecans.
3) If you want to carmelize your own pecans do the following: In a skillet over medium heat, stir 1/4 cup sugar until melted. It will eventually melt if you just turn up the heat and wait. Continue stirring gently until sugar has melted and then toss in the pecans and keep stirring until they are coated. Carefully transfer nuts onto waxed paper. Allow to cool, and break into pieces.

Heidi's Famous Baked Beans

Here in Florida we're not by any of our family so when holidays come around we spend them with our best friends, the Clarks. We automatically know we will spend the holidays together and what each of us will bring. The Clarks always bring their Gooey Potatoes and these fabulous Baked Beans. They get asked for the recipe wherever they bring them. With BBQ season upon these would be a great and easy side dish to bring. And did I mention *sniff* that the Clarks are leaving us in a couple of weeks. We both are trying to pretend it's not happening...

Heidi's Baked Beans

By Heidi Clark (this is Heidi's recipe doubled)

2 (19.75 ounce) cans of Campbells Pork and Beans

8-12 pieces of bacon

1 cup white onion, chopped finely

1 cup ketchup

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon chili powder (add to taste)
2 teaspoons dry ground mustard

Fry bacon in skillet. Remove bacon and put on paper towels but leave drippings in pan. Saute onion on low until clear. Crumble bacon back in skillet, add beans. Add ketchup, brown sugar, chili powder, and mustard. Bake in 350 degree oven for one hour. Either serve right away or keep in a crockpot on low until meal or BBQ. Serves 8.

Peanut Butter Cup Trifle and the giveaway winner....

The winner of the Pampered Chef trifle bowl is....

Comment #65:
 Rodela Family said... "So want to win this one...might make me actually make the trifle, it looks delicious!"

So who knew that my last trifle could illicit such joyous and hateful comments at the same time. Yikes. Guess it just shows that you can't please everyone...

I know I've made my fair share of gluttonous dishes but this one might top them all.  

A conversation on the phone between my hubby and I.

John: "Hey honey, I'm at Costco do you need anything?"

Me:   "Yeah. Pick me up a box of Reese's peanut butter cups."

John: "A whole box."

Me:   "Yup."

John: "You realize there are 36 Reese's candy bars in a box."

Me:   "Yup."

John: "That's 72 individual cups total. Why do you need 72 cups?"

Me:   "I'm making a dessert."

John: "You need all of them?"

Me:   "No, but I'll find a home for the others." He he

If I had to choose one dessert that I hope is in heaven...it might be this....and then maybe it would be calorie free. I made this delicious Peanut Butter Cup Trifle for Bunko. Yes, another trifle. We play Bunko at a country club so by the time I had transported the trifle in my HOT car it wasn't as cold as I would have liked to eat it. You really want to have it chilled and it almost tastes better the next day. You really want to fix this for a crowd because it is pretty rich and you can only eat a little...unless you are me.

Now off to your treadmill because this beauty's going to cost you...

Peanut Butter Cup Trifle

Source: The Sisters Cafe

1 (9x13) pan of baked brownies, cut into 1 inch pieces

1 (5.1 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding

3 cups milk

½ cup creamy peanut butter

2 tsp vanilla

1 (8 ounce) container thawed Cool Whip, divided (or use homemade whipped cream)

20 peanut butter cups, crumbled (do not buy bite sized; you could get away with less...but why?)

6-8 peanut butter cups to garnish.

Combine pudding and milk. Beat for 2 minutes. Add peanut butter and vanilla, beat until smooth. Gently fold in 2 cups cool whip or homemade whipped cream.

Layer in trifle dish ½ the brownies, ½ the crumbled peanut butter cups, ½ the pudding mixture. Repeat. Top with cool whip and peanut butter cups. Chill at least four hours until serving.

Patriotic Trifle Dessert and a Giveaway...

I know Memorial Day is a couple weeks away but I wanted to post this trifle. I was recently asked to submit a red, white, and blue dessert for a 4th of July feature in a couple of months and this is what I came up with.

Memorial Day is not about celebration but about remembering those in the military who lost their lives for our country. Everyone has the day off so it lends its way to BBQs even though it's not really a holiday to be "celebrated". So if you plan to eat on Memorial Day and need a dessert why not make this.

I came up with this recipe on my own. That doesn't happen often but hey, it's trifle...you kind of just throw things in. I love trifles because they serve a lot of people and are better when they are made ahead of time and have had time to sit and let the flavors blend. They are so versatile; you can use angel food cake, pound cake or even your favorite flavor of regular cake. This version has pound cake, cheesecake pudding, whipped cream, strawberries, blueberries and a hint of lemon.

And now for the giveaway...

So if you want to make your own trifle you are going to need a trifle bowl! Don't worry if you don't win and don't have a trifle bowl you can use a large glass bowl instead. My mom gave me this Pampered Chef Trifle Bowl which I love because the stand comes apart for easy storage and it has a lid for convenient coverage. It looks small but actually fits a ton of trifle. You can also serve layered salads in this or even use it as a centerpiece filled with whatever you want (whole lemons, whole apples). And no, I don't sell Pampered Chef products but loved this bowl so much I thought you should have one of your own.

If you would like to enter this giveaway for a Pampered Chef trifle bowl just leave a comment on this post before Tuesday, May 18th, at 10:00 AM Eastern Standard Time.

Patriotic Trifle

Recipe by The Girl Who Ate Everything

2 cups heavy cream

½ cup white sugar

2 cups milk

2 (3.4 ounce) packages instant cheesecake pudding mix

2 teaspoons lemon juice

½ cup sour cream

2 (10.75 ounce) packages prepared pound cake

2 (16 ounce) carton strawberries, sliced

strawberries for garnish

blueberries for garnish

1. In a medium bowl, combine cream and white sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Set aside. You want a stiffer whipped cream for trifle so that it holds up over time.

2. In another bowl beat cheesecake pudding mixes with milk for 2 minutes or until thick. Mix in sour cream and lemon juice. Fold in one cup of the sweetened whipped cream.

3. Slice pound cake into one inch cubes.

4. In a trifle bowl, start by layering ¼ of the pound cake on the bottom of the trifle bowl (A large glass bowl can be used if you don't have a trifle bowl). Next, layer ¼ of the pudding mixture followed by a layer of ¼ of the strawberries. To make trifle look presentable make sure each layer is distinct and separate especially on the sides of the bowl. Repeat layers four times or until bowl is almost full.

5. Garnish the top of the trifle with the remaining whipped cream, strawberries, and blueberries.

6. Chill in refrigerator for at least 4 hours.

Variations:

1) The pound cake can be replaced by angel food cake for less calories.

2) Vanilla pudding can replace the cheesecake pudding.
3) Add more blueberries throughout the trifle instead of just on top.

How to make homemade Whipped Cream

I know homemade whipped cream isn't rocket science, but to some of us, ahem, it is. Growing up my mom would pick up my friends and I up from school and have a bowl of strawberries and whipped cream in the car ready for us to eat. We loved it.

I then tried making homemade whipped cream when I was older and I somehow screwed it up every single time. Either it just wouldn't whip up or I overwhipped it. Using homemade whipped cream in your desserts transforms them from good to unbelievable. I just made this Eclair Cake with homemade whipped cream and it added so much!

Here are a couple of tips to make sure you have perfect whipped cream:

1) Chill your bowl and beaters in the freezer for 10 minutes or so. It really helps the cream whip up fast.

2) Don't overwhip your cream. There's about 30 seconds there when your cream will go from soft peaks to thick and butter like. You have to watch closely so that you don't get the curdly stuff. The whipped cream pictured here is actually on the border of being overwhipped but I needed a firmer whipped cream for a trifle dish I was making (coming soon).

This is my friend Heidi's recipe and I like that it doesn't have vanilla in it. I prefer the pure flavor of the cream. Fruit and fresh homemade cream is a fabulous light dessert for the summer.

Homemade Whipped Cream

1 cup heavy whipping cream

3 tbsp of sugar, to taste (or you can use 1/3 cup powdered sugar)
Optional: add a splash of vanilla (I prefer just the pure flavor of the cream)
Of course, if you need more or less, just adjust for size.

Put whipping cream and sugar in mixing bowl. Mix on medium for 2-3 minutes depending on speed, just until cream creates stiff peaks. Don't overwhip it to form cottage cheese but the cream does need to have a firmer consistency.
Source: Heidi Clark

Fruit Salsa with Baked Cinnamon Chips

There are so many things I love about Disney World. The highlight for me is always at night on Main Street watching the fireworks and eating Apple Pie Caramel apples. We bought not ONE but TWO of them, at $8.95 a pop, just to make sure they tasted like the ones I make...and they do.

Here's a refreshing fruit salsa that is perfect for BBQs, baby showers...you name it.  I brought this to my friend's baby shower and the hostess of the shower had made the exact same thing. What are the chances? I guess it must be that good. She said it was a pampered chef recipe but I found mine on http://www.allrecipes.com/ as one of their all-time highest ranked recipes.

I opted to only put 1 Tablespoon of white sugar and leave out the brown sugar since my fruit was pretty sweet already. My friend put all of it in and it was good too. The brown sugar gives it a deeper flavor. 

Fruit Salsa with Baked Cinnamon Chips

by Allrecipes

2 kiwis, peeled and diced
2 Golden Delicious apples - peeled, cored and diced
8 ounces raspberries
1 (16 oz) carton of strawberries, diced
2 tablespoons white sugar (more or less to taste)
1 tablespoon brown sugar (more or less to taste)
3 tablespoons fruit preserves, any flavor (I used strawberry)

10 (10 inch) flour tortillas
melted butter or butter flavored cooking spray

Cinnamon sugar:
1 cup white sugar
2 Tablespoons cinnamon

1. In a large bowl, thoroughly mix kiwis, apples, raspberries, strawberries, white sugar, brown sugar and fruit preserves. Cover and chill in the refrigerator at least 15 minutes.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

3.Coat one side of each flour tortilla with melted butter or butter flavored cooking spray. Sprinkle tortillas with desired amount of cinnamon sugar. Cut into wedges and arrange in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Spray again with cooking spray (not necessary if using melted butter).

4.Bake in the preheated oven 8 to 10 minutes. Repeat with any remaining tortilla wedges. Allow to cool approximately 15 minutes. Serve with chilled fruit mixture. This salsa can also be serve with cinnamon graham grackers or cinnamon pita chips. Best when made and eaten the same day otherwise the fruit gives off so too much juice and it gets runny.

Cinnamon Crescent Rolls

Happy Cinco de Mayo! Here's a quick no-brainer dessert or after school snack for the kiddos. Austin actually helped me make these they were so easy and it gave me a chance to explain to him what Cinco de Mayo was all about. I'm actually at Disney World partying it up with Mickey so see you all in a couple of days...

Cinnamon Crescent Rolls

adapted slightly from For The Love Of Cooking

1 package of refrigerated crescent roll dough

1/4 cup butter, softened

1/2 tablespoon cinnamon

1/4 cup sugar

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Combine the cinnamon and sugar together and mix well. Place the unrolled crescent rolls onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Spread a layer of butter on each triangle; top with cinnamon and sugar mixture. Roll from the bottom of the triangle to the point.

Place in the oven and bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and serve while hot. Enjoy.

Easy Crockpot Fiesta Chicken

Cinco De Mayo is coming up and for those of you who want an awesome Mexican meal I really love my copycat Cafe Rio meal. I recently made it for Bunko and everyone asked for the recipe...but once I emailed them the recipe a lot of them said, "Whoa I had no idea this meal was so much work!" I agree it is a lot of chopping and blending but it's a meal that I have made so many times it's second nature to me now.
 
So here is another meal for my friends who don't like to spend a lot of time in the kitchen and is still really good! I realize it's not a looker but the taste makes up for it. I literally timed myself and I had the whole meal ready to go in three minutes...and I was taking my time. You can even throw in the chicken frozen. There are only five ingredients: chicken, corn, black beans, salsa, and cream cheese. I served this with leftover Cilantro Lime Rice but it's great rolled up in a tortilla too.

Just this past Sunday my whole family was in the car waiting for me to go to church as I was throwing the last couple of ingredients in the crockpot for this meal. As I opened the jar of salsa it EXPLODED all over me. It was in my hair, on my neck...and necklace, and all over my white blouse. I hurried and changed clothes, wiped my neck and tried to carefully wash it out of my hair without completely ruining my curled locks. Satisfied with my quick clean up I jumped into the passenger side of the car and John took a whiff and said, "Umm...did you just eat chips and salsa?"

Great. I guess my clean up wasn't good enough and we were already too far on our way to turn back. Nothing like having people wonder why they are craving Mexican food while sitting next to you in church. Awesome.

Fiesta Chicken

found on RecipeZaar

4 chicken breasts, frozen or thawed

1 (15 1/2 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 (15 ounce) can corn, drained
1 (15 ounce) jar of your favorite salsa
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese

Take 4 frozen, yes, frozen (or thawed), boneless chicken breasts put into crock pot. Add 1 can of black beans, drained, 1 jar of salsa, 1 can of corn drained.  Keep in crock pot on low for about 4-5 hours or until chicken is cooked. Once it is cooked, take it out and shred it. Return shredded chicken to the crockpot.

Add 1 package of cream cheese (just throw it on top!) and let sit for about 1/2 hour. It may look at little strange at this point. Don't worry. Stir in the cream cheese.

Serve over rice or in warm flour tortillas.