Baked Beer Brats

To me, summer means grilling, grilling, and more grilling! There's nothing we love more about summer than spending some time outside playing with the kids while grilling out. My husband Patrick is truly the Burger Master, and we have many friends who can attest to that fact.

While try to grill as much as we can, but the summer heat can become pretty unbearable at times, and that means stepping foot outdoors is out of the question. On those days when we still want traditional summer food, we turn to my husband's recipe for beer brats that can be made in the oven. He first made these for me when we were dating, and I've been addicted ever since. They get really juicy on the inside from cooking in the beer and seasoning, and they have just the right amount of snap when you bite into them.

If I got to eat these beer brats all the time, I wouldn't even miss the grill. Plus, this recipe just involves throwing ingredients into a pan and putting it into the oven. It doesn't get any easier than that.

Ingredients: 1 bottle of beer (I prefer lagers for this recipe), 2 tablespoons minced garlic, 1 tablespoon italian seasoning, 2 tablespoons olive oil

Instructions: Combine all ingredients in a glass pan and cook at 400 degrees for 20 minutes, then flip brats over and cook for another 20 minutes.

Sprinkle with your favorite toppings and enjoy! My toppings of choice are ketchup and red onion :) I'm sure this one will quickly become a summer favorite of yours too!

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Even princesses need ice cream

My MIL found a couple of Disney princess dresses at a garage sale recently, and Haley got her hands on one and immediately insisted on wearing it and spinning around the living room. She loved it so much that she refused to take it off during a trip to get ice cream recently. How often do you get to wear a big, puffy princess dress out in public?

So that's what we did.

I think we found a new favorite ice cream spot. I tried their "Bittersweet Symphony," which is a heavenly mixture of coffee ice cream with bittersweet ribbons of chocolate running through it. We've been back to get ice cream twice now, and I can't bring myself to try anything else.

 

Haley sat down intermittently for bites of ice cream, but she mostly enjoyed curtsying to passerby's who complimented her on her dress. This little princess had very refined manners. Except for the drips of ice cream that inevitably found their way onto her dress. Her lady in waiting (i.e. me) was called several times to make sure the little princess's dress was properly wiped clean.

Good thing Connor was on hand to "help" finish off the rest of the ice cream. I didn't need any help with mine :)

Bowls were emptied and Princess Haley was happy. I sense more trips to get ice cream in our near future, probably in a Rapunzel dress next time.

Red, White and Blueberry Trifle

With the 4th of July only 6 days away, I thought I'd share one of my favorite 4th of July treats with you. I shared here on my blog 2 years ago, but I thought it'd be good to share it again since many of you probably haven't read about it yet, and because it's just an amazing dessert :)  


What is a trifle, you ask? It's basically a fancy word for a layered dessert full of yummy things like cheesecake pudding, cake and chocolate. Ever since I started bringing this dessert to my friends' parties, they never let me leave without giving them the recipe. Keep reading to learn how to make one too!

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I don't know about you, but my favorite thing about the 4th of July (aside from the fireworks) is the food. The 4th is a great excuse to dust off the grill, cut up a giant watermelon, and enjoy time with friends and family between bites of traditional BBQ food.


A few years back, a friend of mine brought a delicious trifle to a BBQ that was unforgettable. I had never had trifle before, but after one bite I was hooked. She gave me the recipe (which is surprisingly simple!) and I've probably made this for friends and family more times than any other dessert since then.


Traditionally, a trifle consists of layers sponge cake with brandy or rum and custard and whipped cream, but there are tons of different variations to this dessert. This particular version has no alcohol in it. The fresh strawberries and blueberries, along with the whipped cream, make this dessert surprisingly refreshing.

Ingredients:

• 1 box yellow cake mix
• 2 small packages of Jello brand instant cheesecake pudding
• 1 large container of fresh strawberries
• 1 small container of fresh blueberries
• 1 cup of Cool Whip whipped cream, softened
• 1 package of white chocolate chips

*Note: If you're making this for a party, make it a few hours ahead rather than overnight. The juices from the strawberries tend to soak the cake somewhat, so this dessert is best served right away.

Recipe:

Prepare cake mix according to package and let cool. (You will only need 1 of the prepared cakes, so only make 1/2 of the box if you want, or you can do what my husband and I do and make both so you can frost and eat the other cake later :) While your cake is cooling, prepare both boxes of pudding according to the directions on the box. Set aside 2/3 cup of pudding to be used for the topping later.

Rinse blueberries and strawberries, then cut up strawberries into slices and coat with sugar if desired.

Cut up cake into bite-sized pieces and layer 1/2 of the pieces in the bottom of a trifle dish or other large glass dish. Layer all of the pudding on top (except your reserve), followed by 1/2 bag of white chocolate chips, 1/2 of the blueberries, 1/2 of the strawberries, and lastly the remaining cake cubes.

Combine the reserved cheesecake pudding with the 1 cup Cool Whip and mix well. Pour mixture over top. Use the remaining fruit and white chocolate chips to decorate the top of the trifle (or just toss them on top, no one will mind, they'll be too busy eating :)

Enjoy!

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A weird favorite

Do you have a favorite food that's a little strange? I've always loved eating strawberry shortcake with milk. It's something my mom got me hooked on when I was little, and to this day I have to have my shortcake drenched in milk. It may sound like a strange combination, but the milk just cuts through all of the sugary whipped cream and tart berries and makes the dessert almost refreshing. You almost forget you're eating dessert.

The whole thing gets even better if you make your own whipped cream to smother everything in.

What? Homemade whipped cream? Oh yes.

When we got married, my husband insisted on making homemade whipped cream instead of buying the canned stuff. For some reason, I had never thought to make whipped cream from scratch before. It's funny how there are some things we've all just grown up buying our whole lives and never stopped to think, "Hey, I bet I could make that." If you've never tried making whipped cream before, it's totally worth it, especially if you have gourmet vanilla like the kind we got in Cozumel on our honeymoon 4 years ago. Mmm...

Once I cover my shortcake in homemade whipped cream, next comes the milk....

Then of course, you have to get the perfect spoonful with a bit of strawberry, shortcake, milk and whipped cream all in one bite.

Connor sensed there was food someone wasn't sharing with him and toddled over to see what was up. I think I may have another convert judging by his whipped cream-covered mouth.

What about you? Is there an odd food or food combination like my milk and shortcake that's a favorite of yours?

Garlic Roasted Asparagus

My husband is a man who knows what he likes. When we first got married, I tried making him the meals that I grew up on. The problem is that most of those meals involved mushrooms, which happen to be the number one food on his "foods that make me gag" list.

I once made salmon patties, which is a food that my mom has made for my brother and I since we were young. After 3 bites, Patrick declared that the sandwiches were made of pure evil and wouldn't go near them again. He was sick for two days after that, which he still blames on the salmon patties.

After much trial and error, we found a middle ground with garlic. We put garlic in most of our dishes, and asparagus is one of our favorites. Many of you probably have a dislike for asparagus because you may have been force-fed it as a child. I challenge you to give it another try! Asparagus is actually not a very scary vegetable at all. It has many numerous health benefits, and it also has great flavor, especially when paired with garlic and cheese.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound asparagus
• Olive oil to drizzle
• Kosher salt
• Pepper
• 1 Tablespoon minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons shredded Parmesan cheese.

FIRST // preheat the oven to 350 degrees. While the oven is preheating, wash your asparagus and cut the tough ends of the off.

NEXT // place your asparagus on a cookie sheet in a single layer and drizzle with olive oil. Next, sprinkle with salt, pepper and generous amounts of minced garlic. Toss to coat.

LAST // sprinkle with freshly grated Parmesan cheese and cook for 11 minutes.
 

Roasted asparagus has become a favorite at our house, I hope you enjoy this recipe as well!

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The farmer's market

My parents were in town for Memorial Day weekend, so we had some fun picking strawberries and exploring one of the local farmer's markets. Haley was in her element. I have 4 small strawberry plants in my garden but we're rarely able to salvage any of the berries before the birds get them. When we do manage to find one or two berries, I make a big production out of it and let Haley pick, wash and eat them. At the farm though, she was surrounded by rows upon rows of strawberry bushes with fresh, plump berries. She was giddy with excitement.

Grandpa had to guide her a few times to make sure she didn't pick berries that were a little too green, but for the most part she knew exactly which ones to pick. By the end, we had a whole bucketful waiting to be used for topping cereals and ice cream.

 

After strawberry picking, we browsed one of the local farmer's markets that opens up each weekend during growing season. There were so many fruits and veggies to choose from, it was hard not to buy everything. My mom and dad loved it. As a kid, I have many memories of my dad dragging my brother and I out to some farm hours away from the house to get fresh produce and enjoy some country air. 

One of my favorite memories as a kid was driving out to a farm owned by a Mennonite family an hour or so away in the countryside. They raised cattle and other livestock on site, and my brother and I would wander around the grounds looking for baby kittens in the barns. We were usually able to find a few unfortunate kittens that wandered away from their mothers, and we carried them around with us before my mom and dad made us pile in the car for home. My favorite part of the visit though was always the homemade ice cream made with fresh cream from their cows. Mmm, as I sit here writing this, I can still taste the creamy scoop of coconut ice cream that I would always get.

They didn't have homemade ice cream at the market, but they did have plenty of everything else. Everywhere you looked there were vendors from local farms offering the pick of the crop or jars of homemade jellies, relishes and baked goods. by the time we headed home, we had several bags worth of blueberries, beets, fresh corn, and one giant watermelon perfect for Memorial Day.

Make sure you come back tomorrow, I have a great giveaway for you!

Disney Up! birthday party

Whew, what a weekend! I have been up to my ears in sprinkles and balloons for the past month, but all the hard work was worth it when I got to see my little girl's smile when she saw her Disney Up!-themed birthday party come to life. I drew a lot of inspiration from across the blogosphere, and I have several tutorials to come later in the week after I recover from all the madness ;)

The Invitation

I used Photoshop and Picnik (while I still can!) to make the party invite. I originally wanted to make an elaborate pop up card design, but it ended up being a simple design with a bunch of balloons. Sometimes simpler is better :)

The Decor

I made my own spin on the balloon wreath for our door (tutorial to come!) to set the theme as soon as people walked up to the house. It was an easy project (love those) and I really love how bright and colorful it was.

And of course, there were balloons everywhere. We bought a small helium tank and blew up as many as we could (about 30) and used them to decorate the house and food table.

The Food

For the table, I made a simple pom pom garland to drape across a blue table cloth, and taped bunches of balloons to the back of the table. Then, I got to have fun making lots of colorful snacks.

1. Skewers of fruit with "cloud dip" - marshmallow fluff and cream cheese whipped together
2. Little cups of cut up carrots and celery with ranch dressing in the bottom
3. Marshmallow pops dipped in chocolate and covered in sprinkles
4. Paper cones made out of scrapbook paper and filled with popcorn
5. (Not pictured) pigs in a blanket

The Cake

Then, there was the star of the show - the cake! Haley has been asking for strawberry cake this whole time, so I went the simple route and made a Duncan Hines cake mix and frosted it with a cream cheese frosting that I got from my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. It was delicious!

For the cute cake toppers, I found this idea from Potter and Butler. I used felt and made the poufs, then I hot glued them to skewers to make really adorable cake poms (and check out Potter and Butler's shop, they sell all sorts of fun cake toppers!)

The Giveaways

On the giveaway table, I made a sign with the Up! house design on it asking people to take some goodies home with them. Balloon clusters were taped to this table as well.

For the kids, I made "Ellie Badges," the cute little grape soda bottle cap pins that Ellie and Carl wore in the movie. I designed the labels myself and adhered them to bottle caps that I saved (tutorial soon.) There are several shops on Etsy that sell similar pins, but I knew I could make them myself (and I had a lot of fun doing it too.)

I also designed Wilderness Explorer Badges like Russell wore in the movie. I handed these out for the kids to color and cut out at home. I wanted to also make felt sashes for each of the kids to be able to glue the badges to, but I ran out of time. I'll be sharing these printable badges with you soon too :)

For the adults, I made simple sandwich cookies by purchasing store-bought sugar cookie dough and mixing sprinkles into the dough to make colorful cookies. I then made more cream cheese frosting and sandwiched it between two cookies. Each guest received 2 cookies in each cellophane bag tied with ribbon. Luckily, we had some leftovers :)

The Dress

For the birthday girl, I wanted to make her a dress to wear that would look like something Ellie wore in Up! I bought some yellow gingham and flower buttons and followed this tutorial for The School Girl Jumper by Simple Simon and Company. It turned out really cute! And of course, she wore the Ellie Badge that I made her to complete the look.

I sewed cute flower buttons down the back of the dress to complete it. I also had cute little shoes to wear with the dress, but Haley loves her Crocs and it was her special day, so I wasn't about to push it :)

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I hope you enjoyed all the party details! It was a really fun party to plan, especially since I had so much creative reign since there aren't any commercial Up! party supplies out there. 

I'll be sharing the DIY projects that I made throughout the week in case you're planning an Up! party too.

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Make it rain....marshmallows

Hi, my name is Connor McCaffrey and I'm addicted to marshmallows.

I blame my husband. Not for the mess, but for what caused the mess: the marshmallow addiction. I can't remember the first day that Patrick gave Connor a mini marshmallow, but from that day forward the boy has had a blood lust for them. He can be in a horrible mood and all he has to see is that bag of Jet-Puffed marshmallows, his drug of choice, and his little face lights up. It's cute really, but not when your floor is covered in marshmallows.

We have a pantry door that had the baby lock broken on it from 3 years of Haley's little fingers attempting to pry it open. Eventually the little plastic lock gave up on life, and we've never bothered to replace it. Enter Connor and his addiction.

Patrick and I recently had a particularly eventful evening with whiny children last week, and we had just sat down to our dinner while the kids played. We heard rustling by the pantry door and knew immediately that Connor had found the bag of marshmallows. Knowing that the bag had a clip on it, we decided to give ourselves another minute to chew until one of us would have to pry the bag out of his little fingers. One minute was all he needed.

As Patrick walked over to Connor, what he saw was a very pleased little boy in the midst of a mini marshmallow feast. Rather than waiting for us to give him a couple marshmallows, Connor had taken matters into his own hands and shaken the contents around the kitchen. If he could talk in full sentences, I imagine him yelling, "Make it rain!" while scattering the contents of the bag around the kitchen.

And unfortunately for Connor, the 5 second rule did not apply to these marshmallows. He had to go several days without his fix until we could buy a new bag. And that new bag now resides in the pantry on lock down.

I want candy

Valentine's Day is over....which means there are a lot of these on sale.

No matter how old I get, I still love these things. Each year I have to have several boxes of these chalky little hearts candies. They're nothing special really, but I still love them. They're kind of the fruit cake of the Valentine's Day season. You can find them in every store and people give them out because they're a staple of V-Day, but nobody really likes them. Except for me. Maybe it's because I can only get them once a year.

As the years have gone on, the messages have gotten more "high-tech" to reflect the times. Now you can find hearts that say "text me" and "dial my #." I'm going to die the day I get a conversation heart that says "facetime me."

I'm stocking up while I can, but in case your candy heart stash runs out, I found this awesome recipe to make your own at Capitol Hill Cooks so you can get your candy heart fix throughout the year :)

Now onto Cadbury Creme Eggs!

Pinned it, made it: food

One morning recently, I woke up with the sudden itch to actually make some of the things I pinned on my Pinterest board. Novel idea, right?

I'm sure I'm not alone when I say that, when it comes to Pinterest, I find myself scrolling through the pictures for a ridiculous amount of time while pinning pictures like a mad woman. Then I realize that it's been 10 minutes since I blinked. I know I sound like an addict, but I can stop anytime.

Really.

I've got tons of boards for categories like things I'd like to make myself, inspiration for future projects, food, and things I'd like to make the kids, but I could count on one hand the things I've actually made from Pinterest. So I decided it was time for some action!

Over the past week, I've been trying out some of the recipes that I pinned, and I thought I'd share them with you too so you could hear what I thought of them and give them a try.

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1. 2-Minute French Toast in a Cup from Prudent Baby

Prudent Baby has always been one of my favorites. They always have great tutorials for clothing and other crafts, so I knew this one would be a winner (and it doesn't hurt that french toast happens to be one of my favorite breakfast foods.) The preparation and assembly for this was SO easy. I had all the ingredients on hand, and all I had to do was mix everything in a cup and cook for 2 minutes in the microwave. Brilliant, and yummy! I'll definitely be making this again.

2. Cinnamon Cream Cheese Rolls (via Jen McCaffrey on Pinterest)

This recipe had no source to it, so I'm linking to the pin itself since the instructions are in the caption. I immediately liked the idea of making these because the ingredient list was so simple: bread, cream cheese, butter, cinnamon and sugar. I had my doubts that they would turn out very good but I have to say, these were delicious! The sugar and cinnamon that the rolls are covered in, along with the crispy texture and creaminess of the cream cheese, remind me of getting a cinnamon sugar pretzel with glaze dip at Auntie Anne's. They are rich, but I think these would make a great snack or addition to a Sunday brunch.

3. Pepperoni Rolls from What About Pie?

As a child, there was a local bakery down the road from my church that would make pepperoni rolls each day. The recipe was basic, just bread filled with cheese and pepperoni, but that homemade bread and gooey cheese was to die for. After church each Sunday, we would drive to the bakery and pick up pepperoni rolls for each of us and devour them on the way home. This recipe brought all those memories flooding back. Since the bread is store-bought, it wasn't the same as the bakery version I remember, but I would like to try this again with my own homemade dough. All in all, it was delicious!


4. Panera Broccoli Cheese Soup by Chefnini on Food.Com

This last recipe is one that I made just recently. My husband is a sucker for Panera's broccoli cheese soup, so I decided to make this with him in mind. I kept the recipe the same, however I did substitute one cup of 1% milk in place of one of the cups of half-and-half to cut down on the fat and richness and it worked just fine. The only thing I would change would be to reduce the amount of nutmeg. Otherwise, this dish was a winner. I might double it next time since there were hardly any leftovers.

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Are there any recipes you've made from Pinterest that you absolutely love? Leave your suggestions in the comments below, I'd love to try them myself!

Also, if you want to check out the rest of the food that I've pinned on my "Eats" board, or to follow me on Pinterest, you can find me here.

Cupid's Arrow Chocolates

Target is a dangerous store. Not only do I love their clothes and home decor, but they also have an area at the front of the store with shelves full of inexpensive goodies and decorations for under $5. I'm not sure what they call it, but I refer to it as "the black hole" because I get sucked in right away every time I walk in. It's kind of like how grocery stores keep candy in the check out line because they KNOW you're too weak NOT to buy it. 

I just can't help myself.

I went to Target recently in an attempt to return something, and I was immediately drawn to the goody section. I was desperate attempting to tear myself away before spending all of my money on cute little robot thank you cards and Valentine's decorations, and then I spotted these:

They may not look like much, but these silicon ice cube molds were just begging to be used for a Valentine's craft. After all, Valentine's Day IS the day of love, but it is also the day of chocolate. And I'm totally down with a holiday that encourages me to eat as much chocolate as possible, so I made some Cupid's arrow chocolates.

Here's what you need to make some too.

Supplies:

• Candy melts or chocolate chips
• Silicon heart mold
• Pretzel rods
• Fruit Roll-Ups or other gummy candy

Melt your chocolate chips or candy melts according to the package directions. I prefer the double boiler method since it seems to melt the chocolate evenly without overcooking it. I don't have an actual double broiler,  so I just simmer (don't boil!)some water in a pot and place a glass bowl on top and melt my candy that way. It works great!

After your candy is melted, pour into your mold. Make sure you slightly overfill each cup.

Place a single pretzel rod on top of your chocolate at an angle as shown below and leave chocolate to cool.

While you're waiting for your chocolate to cool, use kitchen shears to cut out some hearts for the arrowheads and feathers for the tail from a Fruit Roll-Up. (In retrospect, I wish I would have used fruit leather or gummy candy for this part because they're a little thicker, but the fruit roll-up still worked fine.)

Once your chocolates have cooled, pop them out of the mold and admire your awesomeness.

Now, dab some of your melted chocolate on the ends of your pretzel rods and attach your fruit roll-up pieces.

And there you have it, cute little chocolates with Cupid's arrow through them.

Now give them to your Valentine! And if you're giving these to your man don't worry, while your guy might not appreciate the cuteness of the pretzel and Fruit Roll-up arrows, he will appreciate the fact that you're giving him food.

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