Pinning Accomplishments (Part 2)

Since I am on a recipe kick here lately, let us continue.  Back to "What I've actually created thanks to Pinterest!"

This time we're going to talk about recipes I've seen/pinned from Pinterest that I have actually tried.  Mind my recipe board have at least 40 pins, however I have only actually made a handful.  I like to actually take a look at what I've done thanks to Pinterest.  I mean, I can be on the site for hours at a time but never create anything that I loved and inspired me so much.  This is an exercise in hopes that I will continue to re-create what I pin and that, yes it does indeed happen!

This was a lovely pin that sparked my eyes and taste buds, mainly due to the fact that it contains....what for it....Bourbon! 

Link here.

Ginger Apple Bourbon Cider! The recipe is: One parts Apple Cider, One part Ginger Ale to two parts Bourbon. I enjoyed this beverage very much this past fall, using my favorite bourbon (Woodford Reserve), Cider from a local orchard (Boyd's) and my absolute favorite ginger ale - Vernor's!  The only thing that got me was the calories from this delicious drink, so I did opt for a diet ginger ale after I learned how much I did love this. Hehe!

Link here.

Pizza Puffs: My husband is always up for eating one thing....Pizza!  Even if we had it two days ago, he'll eat it again. Delivery, DiGiorno, or whatever else you can think of he is down to eat if for dinner.  I came across this pin, first thinking of it mainly for appetizers during parties/game watching.  Then one night I was craving pizza, but didn't want to fork over the twenty odd dollars for a delivery.  I wanted to make a pizza (which we enjoy to do) and thought this pin would be perfect.  The recipe is very easy, the Pizza Puffs cook fast and most importantly are yummy!  I serve with marinara sauce on the side and we eat it with a salad.  Two thumbs way up!

Link here.

 Pumpkin Fluff was an item I made for our Halloween party last year.  Only containing a few ingredients (cool whip, pumpkin pie spice, and a couple of others), just mix and pop in fridge.  Serve when you're ready with graham cracker sticks to dip.  Very delish and something easy to make and eat at a party.

Link here.

This was another Halloween party snack I made: Mummy Dogs.  Which my husband loves so much we make it now for dinner every now and then.  Did I mention I married a kindergartner?  I wanted to serve some meat of some kind for the men to chow down on.  We had some classic chicken wings, but I made this cute little guys and had ketchup and mustard available for dipping.

Link here.

Chicken Bruschetta Bake: I am a follower of a Weight Watcher's Recipe Board and love to try out these yummy low calorie meals.  I have actually used Weight Watchers before and believe it does work and helps people with calorie and portion control.  This recipe is fairly easy.  I love these recipes where you toss everything together and bake.  This Chicken Bruschetta Casserole is a fine example. I loved it the next day too, so if you're a leftover fan (however the husband isn't, so annoying).

Link here.

These mounds of awesomeness are Oreo Bars.  Similar to Rice Krispie Treats, but with Oreos!  I recommend eating after a low cal meal such as the Chicken Bruschetta Bake so as not to feel too bad.

Under each pin I attached the link so you can see who came up with these wonderful recipes!  Enjoy them if you do try them!  And sometime actually go get the ingredients and make something delicious that you've seen on Pinterest.  You might be surprised and find a new staple for your family.

Cook-Aholic

This past weekend I was a cooking fool!  I made all kinds of different recipes just for fun and they all turned out fantastic.  I was very pleased with my feats of culinary talents.  As per usual, the weekend flew by way too fast.  And Sunday night my husband and I are looking at each other going, "What did we do this weekend?"  It had gone by so fast we had already forgotten what we did Friday night, but we didn't forget this:

Come 'n' get it.

For some reason this weekend I channeled the Pioneer Woman and cooked like I was on a ranch and my husband was a cattle rancher and I had to make sure my man was fed!  So for Friday night dinner we had Pioneer Woman's Rib Eye Steak (We used Sirloin Steak, that way we bypass the bone) with a Whiskey Cream Sauce (and because I live in Kentucky I used Bourbon).  It turned out delicious!  It was rich, creamy and I was amazed that I made this homemade country style meal.  I added some carrots and scalloped potatoes for some veggie factor and we honkered down and enjoyed! Again, any recipe I find in her cookbook is not on her blog (for obvious reasons, girl needs to sell books right?).  But I really have enjoyed this book, she uses pictures and great instructions so that I'm not scared to take on some of these recipes. 

Saturday was a day filled with eye exams, eating breakfast out and watching UK basket ball with friends!  We finished up our night watching the hilarious and one of our favorite movies, Bridesmaids.

Sunday I was back in the kitchen "slaving away", I woke up in the morning and was craving eggs and toast.  Then I remember a recipe in my wonderful cookbook that combined the two:

Cast Iron Workout.

Pioneer Woman calls it Egg-In-The-Hole, but my husband calls it Gas House Egg.  Basically you cut a hole out of your bread and crack and egg in the center and cook it up.  I don't like my eggs runny, so I cooked them over medium.  The toast was yummy, buttery and crisp.  Again, I was like, "I'm pretty good at this!" Hahahaha.  I guess when I'm out of my element and cooking new things I get a little scared about how it will turn out, so when it turns out scrumptious I give my self a high five.

But my culinary achievements were not done yet.  I worked on my syllabus for my new class that I am teaching at UK's College of Design that starts on Wednesday so when it came to dinner time, my husband stepped up and cooked dinner for me.  I decided to tackle dessert:

Kentucky Goodness.

I made a Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie!  I used a local recipe and would be happy to share.  This turned out to be so delicious.  It is rich I will warn so a small piece goes a long way.  I can't wait to share this pie with my parent's and blow my Mom's mind.

1 cup sugar

1 cup light corn syrup

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)

-Combine these three ingredients in a saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until sugar is dissolved and butter is melted.   Cool slightly.

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 cup bourbon

4 large eggs beaten

-Combine these four ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.  

Once mixed: slowly add the sugar mixture to the egg mixture, whisking constantly while pouring.

6 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup chopped pecans

-Add these two ingredients to the mixture, the chocolate will melt as the egg mixture should be very warm.

-Pour into unbaked pie shell (I just used the pre-made ones in the refrigerated section).

-Bake at 325 for 50-55 minutes until top is browned and set.

Now that I ate like a cowgirl this past weekend, this week will be filled with carrot and celery sticks I'm sure!  But it sure was fun to out these fun things, never thought I could straight up make a pie!  Haha! Here's to a good week!

Lately

Lately I have been sssssuper stressed.  About work, home, holiday weight gain, etc.  I worry too much and this is a fact that I am coming to terms with.  I believe that you should give your worries to the Lord and He will never give you more than you can handle, but there is that control freak in me that thinks I can handle it all.  I am up against several deadlines at the office and all are due yesterday I feel like.  At home, the Christmas decorations are slowly coming down and I need to clean it thoroughly. My other stress is my weight, and I just didn't care what I was putting into my mouth during the holiday season.  It sure was fun, but now I am paying the price.  I went for a jog last Wednesday and it kicked my hiney!  So per usual start to the new year I am trying to get back to a healthy, happier and less stress routine.  

So for today, since I haven't posted in a while, just wanted to keep my blog afloat and talk about some fun things.  I recently tried out a shellac manicure for the first time and really loved the results.  However due to my nail biting habits it only lasted 1.5 weeks, as the promised 2.  But I do love to have painted nails and my absolute favorite brand is Essie.  Then the $8 price at checkout just kills me for some reason.  I'm like, "What if I don't like this color?" then I'm stuck with this polish forever and have dropped almost $10 on it!  (That's the deal finder in me).  So, sometimes what I like to do for trial reasons is to buy a different less expensive brand to test out different color types.  Then if I use that color quite a bit I will go all out and buy the fabulous Essie version. 

Vintagey.

I bought this Petites brand in the color Vintage Gray and have worn it several times.  It lasts about a week and that is with a base and top coat.  Sometimes with this gray I will imprint newspaper using rubbing alcohol so that my nails resemble a newspaper (thank you Pinterest!).  But now I think it's time to upgrade to the good stuff.

This past week my Dad was out in Phoenix on business and being the fabulous only child that I am, I invited my Mom to come join my husband and I for dinner this past Wednesday.  I made Mini-Meat Loaves which is a super recipe I found in a local cookbook called Beyond The Fence.  And for dessert:

All-American.

The Pioneer Woman's Flat Apple Pie!

Her recipes have never let me down!  I love them all!  My Mom got me her cookbook and biography for my past birthday this year.  This was my first technical pie in the baking department.  I have made cold pies such as peanut butter pie and lemonade pie.  So I was very excited to make this American treat on a cold winter's night (although today will be a balmy 56 degrees).  This recipe is not available online however, ya gotta get her cookbook.  But I'm sure a quick google search can solve anyone's recipe search problems.  This pie was easy, fast and DELICIOUS! 

Tonight I am going to give her steak with a whiskey cream sauce a try, so wish me luck!  Here's to a stress free weekend everyone!

Home-made Holiday

Feeling a little more crafty than usual this holiday season when it comes to your gift-giving?  Like I said in yesterday's post, it focused on more of the store-bought items.  These below take a little more time, but a great result in the end when you see the person's face when they receive that home-made gift.

Check out this link here to make these yummy hot chocolate truffles.  I think these are great for that person that loves to stay in when it's cold and snuggle up next to the fire.  The truffles can be frozen until you're ready to enjoy them.  Just place in a mug with milk and heat away!  For gifting you can place several truffles in a cute Christmas mug, wrap in clear plastic and tie with a ribbon.  

Gift Basket.  But how is this home-made you say?  With all the thought into compiling a person's favorite things, shared memories or common items that they've been wanting, it's a great way to show someone that you care and love 'em. This website has so many wonderful gift giving ideas along with free printables, see link here.  If you have a friend who loves movies, create a movie night basket: popcorn cups, candy, DVD, theater gift card, popcorn, blanket or whatever else you want to add!  

How sweet is this?  If you like to give custom scrapbooks, why not make one with a twist? 

Dabney Lee makes these super cute and trendy phone cases.  This is an awesome customizable gift, a little on the pricey side but my goodness aren't these gorgeous iPhone cases?  They are also available on some blackberries.

This was a great idea I found at Clover Lane Blog.  A custom cookbook that hold your family's favorite recipes and favorite photos.  Kind of a recipe scrapbook.  This project you might have to give someone next Christmas, in order to compile your favorite recipes and photos, but I thought this was a wonderful idea.  Make one for your family, but I think grandparents would enjoy it as well!  We have a few cookbooks from local churches and organizations, but this cookbook is all about you and what your family loves to eat! I hope to do this one day and can pass this on to my children.

Today is my last work day of the week, hooray!  Tomorrow I'll be preparing the house for the holidays and maybe helping my dad clean out the basement storage that is full of stuff from high school/college/childhood!  I hope everyone has a fabulous Turkey Day!

Re-Inventing Ramen

I'm not sure why the flood of cooking posts lately, but I'm going with it.  Last night I was in the mood for Asian cuisine.  However, I was not in the mood to spend money at a restaurant or the grocery.  So, I had to work with what I had. I found a recipe online and just tweaked it like I usually do, to more of my style.

1. Saute edamame beans, frozen peas, frozen sliced carrots, and any other vegetables you'd like with a tablespoon of butter until tender.

2. Then add 2 cups of water and the ramen noodles.  Cook noodles until fully cooked.

3. Drain some, not all, of the water out of the pan and return to stovetop.

4. Add the ramen flavor packet and a little bit of either soy or teriyaki sauce.  Simmer for a few minutes.

5. Serve and enjoy!  I eat with chopsticks when I am at home so I can practice in the comfort of my own home instead of looking foolish at my local hibachi. 

This dish was so easy and scrumptious that I made it two nights in a row.  Serve with eggrolls, sushi or eat it by itself.  And with the bad economy, a meal that it's main ingredient only costs 20 cents a package, not too bad. 

Bomb Diggity Grown Up Grilled Cheese

Now that I have your attention with the most clever post title ever.....

Every now and then the husband and I don't really feel like cooking a full course representing all the basic food groups, we just want something delicious and fast.  And for those nights we don't want our "eat like a kindergartener" food (which consists of peanut butter jelly sandwiches and mac-n-cheese) and our palette is feeling more adult, we came up with an alternative.  Using the recipe I found here at the Pioneer Woman's tasty kitchen blog, the husband and I found a delicious way to make Grown-Up Grilled Cheese.  These take no time to make, in this post I will show you my adjustments to the recipe.  Enjoy!

Round 'em up.  No I didn't pick that red paint color, ew.

The recipe calls for fontina cheese, but I most likely have either cheddar or mozzarella on hand.  I chose mozzarella for this sandwich of course and began to shred away (you could also just use the already bagged shredded mozzarella, but I did not have that in my refrigerator).  

This is the second time using cheese grater.

Another adjustment was my bread, since I am not prone to having ciabatta bread around I just used my good 'ol wheat bread.  Although I bet the thick sliced ciabatta bread would give this sandwich a delicious crunch, texture and flavor.  Please try it with ciabatta if you haven't to have it or pick it up at your bakery.  So just spread each slice with pesto on one side.  

Thank goodness pesto is legal, yum.

Spread olives over one slice.  I prefer green and kalamata olives, so I put them on my sandwich.  The husband likes black olives, so we like to customize according to our needs.

olive you.

Then sprinkle cheese over the olives.

Oh cheese.

This is where I get crazy, in lieu of a tomato slice we put pepperoni's on our sandwich.  What you say?  It really brings out the Italian in us though.  But our main reason, my husband was unsure of the sogginess factor from the tomato.  I bet it would be fine, he is just paranoid.  Do what makes you happy on your Grown-Up Grilled Cheese.

nom nom

Another difference, I do not have a panini maker so I used a frying pan.  I warmed a small amount of olive oil and fresh ground black pepper in the pan.  Placed the other slice of pesto covered bread on the pepperoni's and placed in pan. I basically cook like a grilled cheese from this point out, making sure all the cheese is oh so gooey and the bread is grilled and crunchy.  Once this is done, remove from pan and serve!

my mouth is watering.

 We serve our Grown-Up Grilled Cheeses with a fresh salad and that tomato we didn't use, we just put on the side of our salad!  So I apologize for taking a recipe and tearing it to shreds, but that's what makes cooking so much fun.  Experimentation is wonderful, especially when your husband is a willing guinea pig.

Talk Turkish To Me

Ever since I read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe I have wanted to try Turkish delight.  When Edmund was asked to choose one item to eat, he chose Turkish delight.  In my mind I am wondering how good it must taste if that is the first thing to pop up in his mind.  My second thought, I want to try some and evaluate this for myself.  Alas, many years have passed and I have had yet to try it.  And my dream was almost forgotten until I was checking out a favorite blog of mine entitled Sprinkle Bakes.  The writer, Heather Baird, loves desserts and makes wonderful and beautiful desserts.  Check out her site a.s.a.p. it just makes you want to bake, or at least enjoy yummy sweets!

On June 6 of this year she did a Narnia post (link here) and made a beautiful white witch cake along with......you guessed it....Turkish Delight.  As I was reading the post, the directions and ingredients weren't so complicated that it scared me away.  Hallelujah! So of course I ran out and snagged the ingredients I was lacking to get started.  

Raring to go.

And what makes it even better, it is made in the microwave!

No oven needed here.

It was relatively easy to make, although I don't think my consistency was as thick as it needed to be before pouring into the pan. But it was my first time.  I used pink food coloring, but of course you could make it any color.

Does this remind anyone about Ghostbusters II?

I let mine set-up overnight which worked fine, but I wasn't actually able to cut them into servings and toss them in cornstarch and powdered sugar until I got home from work.

So the verdict.......

They turned out beautiful that's for sure.  The recipe called to roll the cubes into powdered sugar and cornstarch, I think next time I would just stick to powdered sugar.  They are very sweet, I could see how Edmund a sugar loving pre-teen would request this dish.  My husband enjoyed them and as for me, I think I am still on the fence.  Because it is so sweet I could only stand one or two bites and I have a major sweet tooth.  Turkish Delight was fun to make and pretty to look at and I am prepared to make it if I am going to serve it.  It would be fun to have the Turkish Delight colored for your favorite college hoops team or wedding colors for a bridal shower.  Make it if you get a wild hare like me and just has to find out what something tastes like.

Peachy Keen

 Last Saturday the husband, pup and I went over to join my aunt, uncle and cousin at my parent's house for dinner.  Although the heat was stifling, it cooled down enough by dinner time to enjoy our meal patio side.  Marinated chicken, fresh farmer's market green beans, cornbread  (this cornbread recipe of my mom's is wonderful and I will have to post this separately!), coleslaw and corn-on-the-cob was served.  We were all so stuffed!  Everything was absolutely delicious, included our impromptu appetizer: my aunt had made pasta salad with pasta from the farmer's market, tons of veggies, Italian dressing, basil oil and herbs. She threw all the ingredients in a bowl, tossed and the result was scrumptious! 

Everything was so wonderful I wasn't sure how dessert could compare, but oh how surprised I was!  My aunt had purchased fresh peaches from the farmer's market that morning and cut each one in half and removed the pit.  My father lit up the grill and placed each half face down on the grill until grill marks were made, this took about 6 minutes on high heat.  He continued to turn them over the check on how they were looking.  Then my aunt mixed Marscapone, cinnamon, honey and some powdered sugar in a bowl.  Adding each ingredient as necessary for taste.  Then placing the peaches face up so the grill marked were exposed, she dolloped a helping of the Marscapone  mixture on each peach and served immediately.  

My aunt and uncle just returned from Germany and brought a delicious summer sweet wine called Sommer Zeit, it went wonderfully with the peaches.  I hope to make this at my own house very soon!

Ay Caramba!

I have made these white cheese chicken enchiladas for the husband and I, and these quickly have become one of our favorites when dining in.  I shared the tale of this delicious meal with my parents and since then they have continued to harass us about when are they coming over to dinner to be able to try these enchiladas of delight.  So, I set a date for them to come over to enjoy.  My mother brought her delectable homemade guacamole and margaritas ingredients (oh and paper towels and other items for the strapped for cash newlyweds, Lord love 'em).   

I had to borrow Pioneer Woman's picture, since I neglected to take one.

I found the recipe for the enchiladas from the always fantastic Pioneer Woman!  With any recipe I try I adapt it to fit my needs and lifestyle.  For instance if you read the official recipe, she cooks her tortillas in oil, I just nuke them in the microwave.  And other little details like that, that don't effect the taste too much but work better with my schedule.  The result however was still faint worthy.  Check out the link here for the recipe.  It would be so awesome to get to go the her ranch and cook with her!  But anyways, this meal pleased all.  We serve it with a little mexican rice and refried beans, and of course sour cream, pico de gallo and guacamole! 

For dessert, just some simple sorbet in these absolutely precious sorbet dishes and spoons I recently received from Crate & Barrel as a belated wedding present.  Since the weather was so nice, the sorbet was a great way to cleanse the palet and cool off before the weekend ahead of us.  Aaaahhh!

Find here to buy.

b-a-n-a-n-a-s

Whenever my bunch of bananas are not eaten in time, I delight about the banana bread to come.  I follow my mother's recipe, except I do not put nuts in my banana bread.  That's right, nut free!  But add if it is your preference.  I always loved when my mother would make it for me and the top center of the bread was still mushy from the banana and oh so delicious.  I look forward to the day when I can make it for my children.  Enjoy!

Nom Nom.

Family B-Bread
(1) cup of sugar
(0.5) cup of butter
(2) eggs beaten
(2.5) cup of flour
(0.5) teaspoon salt
(1) teaspoon baking soda
(3) nanners

Preheat oven to 350 & grease baking pan.
Cream sugar & butter in medium mixing bowl.
Add beaten eggs, flour, salt & baking soda to the bowl and mix away.
In a separate bowl, peel nanners and mash.  Add to other ingredients and mix until all combined.
Next you would add walnuts or any other nut of your choice, but I'm not down with that.
Bake for 50 to 60 minutes until that yummy aroma fills your house and yummy taste fills your tummy!

Cocoa Love

One of my favorite blogs/websites is The Pioneer Woman.  You must check her out right now if you haven't already, it will change your life, link here.  I have tried a ton of recipes and thanks to her step-by-step instructions and comedic relief each one has turned into a success! The chocolate valentine cookie recipe can be found here.  I made these to tell my husband in a "sweet" way how much I loved him.  However, I did not have store-bought letter stencils so I just made my own out of paper.  The recipe has nutmeg as an option, I used it and wished that I hadn't.  These cookies stand great on there own! They were chocolately, moist and delish.

The way to a man is seriously through is stomach.

Oh Mother!

That day is vastly approaching....Mother's Day! The woman who has done, well everything for you - her official day is on our heels.  What to get? What to get?  Last year the husband and I got our mother's each a beautiful local hardback recipe book that was all about Kentucky and includes delish recipes from amazing local restaurants.  And for their birthdays, the wonderful mani/pedi combo was a success.  I'm not one to give flowers, I would rather receive them (just kidding, but flowers - been there, done that).  With the eleventh hour dawning here are some thoughts:

 

Adorable Ranunculus Magnet from sunnyandstumpy, link here.

Yummy Bath Soak from Anthropologie, link here.

 

Some gorgeous tunes from Adele.

Make this bright Pink Snowball Cake from SprinkleBakes, link here.

Oo La La

As you will come to find out, I really like to cook.  This talent and love was not found until I moved out of my parent's home.  I was one of those kids that lived with my parents until I was, gasp, gulp, 24! But it was great and no regrets (free food, rent, laundry. hello!).  And now my husband gets to revel in this found love and is always happily my guinea pig.

I love the simplicity of french toast and fruit on Saturday mornings.  See recipe here.

Nom Nom.

Talk Derby To Me

As a Kentuckian Derby is a very big deal, as a Lexingtonian I sometimes don't get that into it.  But I am true to tradition so I will be wearing a hat, drinking mint juleps and placing my bet.  The legend behind the mint julep is alluring and sometimes is thought to be a foul drink.  I however love bourbon! I think how it is made is so interesting, the history is romantic and the fact that it is only made in my home state, proud.  I have been told the secret to a fantastic mint julep is the sugar syrup, this will help in the non-bourbon drinking side of things.  And my bourbon snobbery limits my loves to Woodford Reserve and Bulleit. I found a yummy mint julep recipe on DailyCandy (great site, sign up for the newsletter a.s.a.p.) found here. The syrup just sounds delightful.  My mother's very good friend makes a fantastic homemade mint julep and I plan on getting the recipe this Derby and sharing the wealth.  Happy Derby!

Photo: Melissa Hom / Courtesy of Gravy, see link for recipe and picture