Chocolate Hearts

I sadly didn't get a chance to make these this Valentines Day, but I for sure will try these out next year! So cute! Thanks to Bailey Ence for blogging about them!

Chocolate Hearts:
Melt some semi sweet chocolate chips on the top of a double broiler or in a bowl in the microwave at 50% power. I usually do it in the microwave. Start out with 30 seconds and then stir, and then 15 second increments until they are melted.

Put the melted chocolate into a pastry bag with a very small tip (#2,3,4 would work) or you can use sandwich bag. Simple scoop the melted chocolate into the bag and cut a tiny bit of the corner off (really small).

Have a silpat (or waxed paper) lined cookie sheet ready. With your pastry or sandwich bag of melted chocolate, write XOXO or draw hearts onto the silpat lined sheet. When you have the amount desired put the whole tray into the freezer to set for 10 minutes or so. Once the chocolate is set, carefully lift them off and place on the top of the frosted brownie bite. ENJOY!

Dyed Pasta

I dyed some pasta pink, red, and purple for a Valentines Day art project and decided I would share. It is such a fun and inexpensive craft project. We glued the pasta to a plate to make heart shapes, etc for V-Day, but you could do so many things with it. As a kid I did this and would make necklaces.

I decided I am going to dye a bunch of different pastas in a bunch of colors and just have them in bags in my craft closet, so we can just pull them out whenever and not have it be a production each time.

To dye the pasta all you need is:

- Pasta in different shapes and sizes
- Food coloring
- Rubbing alcohol
- Several bowls

You don't really have to measure the rubbing alcohol, but I would say for 1/2 box of pasta I used about 1/2 cup. Use as much food coloring as you need to get the color you want. Also, to make it easier for some of the colors look at the different food coloring sets. The pink I got from my Neon Food Coloring was way prettier then I got from the red food coloring as I was on my way to making red. Just mix in a bowl for about 10 minutes. I would just stir it once every minute for a few seconds. I then strained the pasta to get rid of the the excess liquid to make for faster drying. I then spread all the pasta out on wax paper to dry.

It was seriously dry in probably 10-15 minutes. The rubbing alcohol helps it dry fast.

Have fun and happy crafting!

Mini Cheesecakes

Got this recipe from Bakerella! It was seriously BEYOND easy! I didn't have the smaller cupcake liners though, so I just used the regular size. Then for the crust I just crumbed the Nilla Wafers and added some butter and smashed it down into the bottom. Worked out fine!

2 pkg. (8oz.) cream cheese, softened to room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 Tbsp vanilla
1 Tbsp lemon juice
Mix.
Vanilla wafers
2″ aluminum mini baking cups
Cherry Pie Filling
Place a vanilla wafer in each mini baking cup.  Spoon approx 3 TS of cream cheese mixure over each wafer.  Makes about 4 dozen!

Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes. Let cool and top with cherry pie filling. Refrigerate.


For more details and pictures go HERE to Bakerella's original post!

Eggs Benedict

Our friends, the Carter's, made this for us a while back and it has become one of our favorite things to make for breakfast! It is seriously delish! And, one of those breakfasts that makes a great dinner too!

Eggs Benedict

English muffins, split, toasted and buttered
Thick slices ham or Canadian bacon, warmed
Poached eggs
Hollandaise Sauce
Shredded Cheese (Optional) Paprika (Optional) Toast and butter a 1/2 of an English Muffin, place a slice of warmed Canadian bacon on top of the butter English Muffin, then place a poached egg. Top with about a 1/2 cup of Hollandaise Sauce. Our friends then just Paprika the top, but we like to put a little shredded cheese. So, which ever you like! My husband and I each eat 2 of the above servings (so we each use 1 full English Muffin, 2 pieces of Canadian Bacon and 2 poached eggs). So, that can help you figure out how much you will need to make for your little family.


Also, I just buy the packet of McCormick Hollandaise Sauce, but you can make it by hand too. Here is a recipe I found:


Hollandaise Sauce:
3 large egg yolks
1 1/2 tablespoons cold water
1/2 cup warm clarified butter
1 to 3 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
Dash hot red pepper sauce (optional)
Salt and ground white pepper to taste

Place in the top of a double boiler or in a large stainless-steel bowl set up as a double boiler. Off the heat, whisk the egg mixture until it becomes light and frothy. Place the top of the double boiler or the bowl over, not in, barely simmering water and continue to whisk until the eggs are thickened, 2 to 4 minutes, being careful not to let the eggs get too hot. Remove the pan or bowl from over the water and whisk to slightly cool the mixture. Whisking constantly, very slowly add butter, then whisk in lemon juice, pepper sauce and salt and pepper. If the sauce is too thick, whisk in a few drops of warm water. Serve immediately or keep the sauce warm for up to 30 minutes by placing the bowl in water (not hot) water.

Snickerdoodle Cupcakes

I saw this on my friend, Amy's, family blog! And, as she stated, "totally trying these on for size!" I haven't had a chance to try them, but I didn't want to loose the recipe! ENJOY!

Snickerdoodle Cupcakes

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

2 eggs, room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla

3/4 cup milk, room temperature

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line regular and miniature cupcake trays with paper liners.

In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and cinnamon. Set aside.

In a mixer, cream butter and sugar on medium for about 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time and mix until combined. Add vanilla and mix until combined. Add flour mixture to creamed butter and sugar in three additions. Alternate with milk in two additions.

Fill baking cups about 3/4 full. Bake for about 15-20 minutes.

Remove cupcakes from trays and let cool. To decorate, pipe on frosting (your favorite buttercream recipe), and adorn with snickerdoodle cookies (again, your favorite recipe) - place one cookie on top and then pipe another dollop of frosting on top. Sprinkle with leftover cinnamon and sugar.

Green Bean Bake

I really haven't been able to eat enough Green Beans since the holidays. I love a classic Green Bean Bake. So, here is the one that I make. We'll be enjoying them tonight with a yummy a Pork Roast!

Oh, P.S. I prefer using fresh green beans, but you can use canned too.

1 can (10 3/4 oz) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1/2 cup milk
1 ts soy sauce
Dash of pepper
4 cups cooked cut green beans
1 can (2.8 oz) french-fried onions, divided

In a 1 1/2 qt casserole dish, combine the soup, milk, soy sauce, pepper, green beans and 2/3 cup onions. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes or until hot. Stir. Sprinkle with the remaining onions. Bake 5 minutes longer or until the onions are golden brown.

Simple Tomato Sauce

There is a new show on the Cooking Channel called Kelsey's Basics! She is a young girl from Utah and I am super excited about it. She made this today on Studio 5 and it looked fabulous and super super easy!

SIMPLE TOMATO SAUCE

Yield: 4 cups

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
3 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped -or- 1 tablespoon dried basil
2 (28-ounce) cans diced tomatoes
Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

In a large saucepan or skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until soft and golden brown. Add basil and cook for an additional 3-5 minutes. Add the canned tomatoes with juices and bring to a boil, stirring often. Lower the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes until sauce has thickened. With a potato masher, break up the tomatoes to achieve a sauce like consistency.

Season with salt and fresh ground pepper and serve.

Tomato sauce will last 1 week in the refrigerator and up to 6 months in the freezer.

VARIATIONS

Seasonal Vegetable Tomato Sauce: After cooking onion and garlic until soft, add ¾ cup seasonal vegetables to saucepan or skillet. Finish sauce as directed.

Creamy Tomato Sauce: Add ½ cup heavy cream to finish sauce.

Tomato Sauce with Italian Sausage: Before beginning sauce, brown ½ lb. sweet Italian sausage in heavy bottomed skillet. Remove, from skillet and set aside on a plate lined with paper towel. After finishing sauce, stir in cooked Italian sausage and continue warming for 2 minutes before serving.