Strawberry Santas

As I scoured pinterest for ideas for our Christmas party, I came across the cutest strawberry Santa's. Perfect!!! These were the easiest things to make. The recipe I found called for cool whip or whip cream. I decided to make them with cream cheese and marshmallow fluff.

Ingredients:
2 containers of fresh strawberries
1 package cream cheese
1 container marshmallow fluff
icing gel (for the eyes)

Aren't these hilariously adorable?

simple directions:
slice the green tips off the strawberries and slice them straight so the strawberries can stand on end. Slice the tip off leaving enough of the tip for the hat. Mix together cream cheese and marshmallow fluff and place mixture inside a plastic sandwich baggie. Cut off the tip. Squeeze mixture onto the main portion of the strawberry and use desired amount for thickness. For easiest construction, work as an assembly line. have all strawberries cut and placed with tops next to them. Then put center mixture on all of them. Then place all lids on top. Next step, put mixture on all hats and all strawberry bodies for the buttons. Lastly, use the icing gel for eyes. For best results, make sure strawberries are dry as if too wet from washing, the cream mixture will not stick.

Eat and enjoy!

Favorite Main Dish Recipes- Chicken Curry in a Hurry

Linking up with Kelly's Korner today for the show us your life series- Main Dish Recipes. I wish I had a picture of this yummy goodness that I actually took, but the stock photo will have to do. My sister in law introduced it to me after finding it online and I am passing it on here.

Chicken Curry in a Hurry
source: simplyrecipes.com
http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/chicken_curry_in_a_hurry/

Ingredients


• 1 Tbsp corn, grapeseed, or olive oil

• 1 medium onion, sliced

• Salt and freshly ground pepper

• 1 ½ teaspoons yellow curry powder, or to taste

• 4 skinless, boneless, chicken breast halves (1 to 1 ½ pounds)*

• 1 cup sour cream

• Minced fresh cilantro or parsley for garnish



Method

1 Put the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. When hot, add the onions (and optional raisins), sprinkle with some salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Turn the heat down to medium, sprinkle with half of the curry powder, and continue to cook a minute or two.

2 Meanwhile, season the chicken with salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle it with the remaining curry powder. Move the onion to one side of the skillet and add the chicken in one layer. Cook for about 2 minutes on each side. Transfer to a plate.

3 Add the sour cream and stir constantly over medium-low heat until the mixture is nice and thick. Return the chicken to the skillet and cook for a couple more minutes, or until cooked through, turning once.

Garnish with cilantro or parsley and serve with rice.

Serves 4.


This recipe is so good. I don't use the raisins and I think I cook it backwards. I cook the onions and then remove them completely from the pan (I dont like anything touching raw chicken even though it all gets cooked). Once onions are cooked, I cook the chicken. Once the chicken is cooked, I add the onion back in and continue on with the sour cream. I can never get enough of the sauce and the onions and just how truly easy and fast it is to make. My whole family likes it- especially Owen. Enjoy!!!

Thank you Pinterest- Individual Seven Layer Dip

One of the things I was so excited to make for Owen's Spiderman Fiesta was a recipe I found on Pinterest. I was scouring the web searching for mexican items and came across this recipe and I had to make it.

Individual Seven-Layer Dips
Makes about 8 individual dips

Ingredients:
1 (16 ounce) can refried beans
1 (1 ounce) package taco seasoning
1 cup guacamole or make homemade guacamole
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream
1 cup chunky salsa or pico de gallo; or make homemade pico de gallo
1 cup shredded cheddar or Mexican blend cheese
2 Roma tomatoes, diced
1/2 bunch of green onions, sliced
1 (2.25 ounce) can of sliced olives, drained (I did not use)
9 ounce plastic tumblers
tortilla chips

Note: All measurements are approximate. Depending on whether you want thicker or thinner layers you will need more or less.

Instructions:
In a small bowl mix taco seasoning with refried beans. Some people prefer to mix their taco seasoning with the sour cream layer but I wanted a bright white layer so I did it with the beans.

Here's how the layers are assembled:

Layer 1: beans and taco seasoning
Layer 2: sour cream
Layer 3: guacamole
Layer 4: salsa or pico de gallo
Layer 5: cheese
Layer 6: tomatoes
Layer 7: green onions and olives


In each plastic glass, layer about 2 Tablespoons of the beans, followed by 2 Tablespoons of sour cream, 2 Tablespoons of guacamole, 2 Tablespoons of salsa or pico de gallo, and 2 Tablespoons of cheese. Make sure you drain your salsa or pico to get the excess liquid out before you pour it on. Then top with about 1-2 teaspoons of tomatoes, olives, and green onion (If making ahead of time, wait to add these toppings until shortly before serving).

Garnish with one tortilla chip. Store in the refrigerator until serving and serve with chips. Makes around 8 individual dips.

A fun way to serve the dip and a new way I will be presenting it going forward!

Buffalo Chicken Pasta- a Recipe

I was on facebook the other day and a girlfriend posted about what she had just made for dinner. She got the recipe from Hope's blog- A Busy Mom's Slow Cooker Adventures. The recipe was so good so I wanted to post it here as well.

I will post based off of her recipe, but did make a few changes...

Buffalo Chicken Pasta

Ingredients:
3 large boneless skinless chicken breasts (approx. 2 lbs or so), cut into pieces
2 cans condensed Cream of Chicken Soup
3/4 cup Buffalo Wing Sauce (You know, the orange kind! I used mild, but you could use hot!)
1 medium Red Onion, chopped finely (I didn't have red so I used a yellow onion)
salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste
2 cups sour cream
1/2 cup Ranch Dressing (I used probably 3/4 cup Ranch- I was afraid of too much zing)
1 cup Mozzarella Cheese
I also added 1/4 block of Philadelphia Cream Cheese- not in the recipe but a really good add on
1 lb. Penne pasta, cooked (I didn't have penne so I used whole wheat Rotini)

I tried to take pictures as I went but totally forgot. Season the chicken with the garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste.

Place in crock pot with the two cans of soup, wing sauce (I used Frank's red hot) and the onions

Mix well together

 Cook on low for 7-8 hours (or high 3-4 hours). I cooked for about 7 1/2 hours on low and then started boiling the water and cooked the Rotini. Once the Rontini was done, I drained the pasta and mixed it in to the chicken along with the other ingredients. I mixed well and cooked for about 10 more minutes. 

The end result

It was really, really good. A keeper recipe for sure. I will say, it made a huge amount. It fed the three of us for dinner (O and Q just had plain pasta for dinner) and Sean still had 3 good size portions that he took to work the next day for his co-workers to enjoy!

The Weekend and SUYL

Finally the weekend! though- can't complain too badly as I was off on Monday for the holiday, worked from home yesterday and have a half day today. Today, after work, I'm hoping to visit my friend's baby Ben, who is almost 3 weeks old and then do a few errands, etc. My parents are coming over and we're going to dinner to celebrate my birthday and then afterwards, we plan to leave Quinlin with them and go to our local Home Days. Sean wants to win Owen a goldfish, who Owen has already named Lucy, and I'm hoping to see some fireworks. Since our fourth of July was non eventful and spent potty training, it would be nice to see some live, as opposed to from the window of our home.

Other than that, not sure any other big plans. Sunday I think we're going to attempt Owen's first MLB game! He's so excited!

And- since it's Friday, I'm going to participate in another one of Kelly's Korners show us your life topics. Today is your favorite side dish recipes. I wish I had a picture, but it's so good! I never really was a huge cauliflower fan, but they served this dish at work for lunch and I was hooked. I couldn't get enough of it. My friend, Dane, who was the chef at the time, brought me the recipe and told me how easy it was to make. Dane passed away almost 3 years ago from a very aggressive from of cancer. I went out on maternity leave with Owen and heard he was sick and then he passed a few months later. Every time I make it, I think of him.... and smile.

Roasted Garlic Cauliflower

Cook Time: 25 Minutes Ready In: 40 Minutes

6 servings

INGREDIENTS:

2 tablespoons minced garlic

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 large head cauliflower, separated into florets

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

salt and black pepper to taste

1 tablespoon chopped fresh

parsley

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F (220 degrees C). Grease a large casserole dish.

2. Place the olive oil and garlic in a large resealable bag. Add cauliflower, and shake to mix. Pour into the prepared casserole dish.

3. Bake for 25 minutes, stirring halfway through. Top with Parmesan cheese and parsley, and broil for 3 to 5 minutes, until golden brown.

SUYL- Favorite Appetizer

Today I'm going to participate in Kelly's Korner's Show Us Your Life Series and the theme is favorite appetizers. I really love making Buffalo Chicken Dip, but I'm sure many people will use that tasty treat for the series. So- to be original we will do Cucumber Toasties. They are so good- and a hit every time we have them. They're refreshing- and just so good!

Here's a pic when we served them at Quinlin's birthday party:

Creamy Dill Cucumber Toasties

courtesy of allrecipes.com
INGREDIENTS

• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened

• 1 (.7 ounce) package dry Italian-style salad dressing mix

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise

• 1 French baguette, cut into 1/2 inch thick circles

• 1 cucumber, sliced

• 2 teaspoons dried dill weed

DIRECTIONS

1. In a medium bowl, mix together cream cheese, dressing mix and mayonnaise.

2. Spread a thin layer of the cream cheese mixture on a slice of bread, and top with a slice of cucumber. Sprinkle with dill. Repeat with remaining ingredients.

I tend to start with a half of the Italian dry seasoning mix and add more to taste. Sometimes it can taste too salty if I use the whole thing.

more images from all recipes of the treat... so good. It makes me want to make them now. Enjoy!

Weekend Recap and a Recipe

We had such a nice weekend! I had to work very late on Thursday (about a 15+ hour day) so took Friday and worked from home. It was so nice to sit in bed with my laptop and work, while watching my dvr of the Royal Wedding. I cleaned a little and Sean's parents came over for dinner.

Saturday was a busy day for me. I had one of my closest friends baby showers- it was so nice- and I am so excited for them to have their little boy and then I rushed to see some of my sorority sisters! Our friend Michelle was in town from Washington (her husband is in the Army so they are stationed there) and she made her way for a visit while he is serving in Afghanistan. I brought the babies with me so they could play with the other kids. They had a blast! I left there about 8pm and came home, put the babies to bed, and Sean and I took advantage of having Hunter home to babysit while we went to a local bar for drinks and wings. So nice to get out with just the two of us.

On Sunday my parents came over for a visit. They hadn't seen the kids in about 2 weeks since we were out of town for Easter and the kids loved it. Quinlin could not stop giving kisses when they left. For dinner I tried a new recipe to serve and it was a hit. Hunter loved it- both he and my dad took seconds, so I knew it was good!

Chicken Pot Pie
INGREDIENTS

Crust
1 box (15 oz) Pillsbury® refrigerated pie crusts, softened as directed on box

Filling
1/3 cup butter or margarine
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 3/4 cups Progresso® chicken broth (from 32-oz carton)
1/2 cup milk
2 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken or turkey (I used about 2 1/2 chicken breasts)
1 bag frozen mixed vegetables
(my recipe didn't seem to have enough creamy mixture so I also used 1 can cream of chicken soup and it was perfect)
DIRECTIONS

1. Heat oven to 425°F. Make pie crusts as directed on box for Two-Crust Pie using 9-inch glass pie pan.
2. In 2-quart saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion; cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently, until tender. Stir in flour, salt and pepper until well blended. Gradually stir in broth and milk, cooking and stirring until bubbly and thickened.
3. Stir in chicken and mixed vegetables (and cream of chicken soup if you desire). Remove from heat. Spoon chicken mixture into crust-lined pan. Top with second crust; seal edge and flute. Cut slits in several places in top crust.
4. Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until crust is golden brown. During last 15 to 20 minutes of baking, cover crust edge with strips of foil to prevent excessive browning. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Delicious!!!

Weekend Recap- Easter 2011

We had such a nice weekend! It started on Thursday night- Hunter had buddies over for the night and we had consoled a friend who had gone through a bad breakup. We drank wine, ate pizza and hung out. I did have plans to go out to dinner with a few girlfriends but this took priority so I rescheduled for May. Friday morning I had all intentions to scrub my house from top to bottom while the babies were at daycare. At least I thought about it. I took the boys to McDonalds for breakfast, went grocery shopping, did a quick return at Old Navy and settled at home while the boys played. Hunter's friends stayed all day Friday and Friday night too- it was like they were permanent fixtures at our house. I love that we're a house the kids hang out at!

While they played, I prepared our jello mold for Easter and a new cookie recipe. They were fabulous. Sean said the best cookies he's ever had. So- that means a lot because he likes cookies!

I found a blog a few weeks back and had been dying to make this yummy goodness!

They looked a little messy but were fantastic. Must try them if you never have. From the picky-palate.com:

Chocolate, Peanut Butter and Marshmallow Pudding Cookies2 sticks softened butter

1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
4 oz box instant chocolate pudding mix
10 oz bag peanut butter chips
1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or line with a silpat liner.
2. In a stand or electric mixer, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla until well combined.
3. Place flour, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl, mixing to combine. Slowly add to wet ingredients along with chocolate pudding mix, peanut butter chips and marshmallows. Mix until just combined. With a medium cookie scoop, place onto baking sheet and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until cooked through. Let cool for 10 minutes on baking sheet before transferring.
Makes 3 dozen cookies

Mine made about 2 dozen (if that) cookies but my scooper may have been a little large. Also- next time I make them, I'm really going to try to keep the marshmallows inside the dough more. It melted out if they were on the outside of the cookie.

We woke up Saturday morning and drove to the farm. Jennifer (Sean's sister) rode with me as Sean had a fishing tournament and planned to meet us down there. We took a ride and stopped in Amish Country to pick up a gorgeous toy box that Sean's mom bought Quinlin for her birthday (it took 12 weeks to make). It's so nice- I'm afraid to put toys in it. I put it in Quinlin's room and am moving blankets into it for right now along with a few stuffed animals.

We did an Easter egg hunt (Owen raced and tried to steal all the eggs) on Saturday and the kids played outside. Sean took Hunter turkey hunting and let him practice shooting for the first time. He loved it. They went out Easter morning in the rain and camo gear and hunted for a few hours. He had a blast! Owen fished for the first time and really had a nice time down there.

Owen looking for frogs in the creek

with cousin Gracie and Grandma

Easter Egg Hunt!

Admiring his prizes!

Quinlin just wanted the candy inside

Gracie took Quinlin's basket

Daddy loves his baby girl!

Sean's brother Chuck and his family

The kids got matching sleeping bags

fishing!

We had Easter dinner on Sunday and got home about 6pm. Sean told Owen he left binky at the farm. So- last night was night 1 of no binky- and it was such a success! He's counting the days until he sees Grandma to get it back so we're hoping he forgets about it by then anyway. (he didn't really leave it- so it's high up in a cabinet for now...)

I have more pictures but on the regular camera. Will post those this week!

Tell All Tuesday

• I made an amazeballs dinner last night and am quite proud of myself. My friend Gia posted this recipe on her blog and I seriously licked my plate when I was finished. I made dinner, cleaned the kitchen and then prepped tonight's dinner of French Dip Sandwiches in the crockpot. Chicken is thawing now for tomorrow so after dinner, I will cut the chicken and prepare it so that tomorrow night will be easy as well. I love when I am organized and have a stocked freezer/pantry!
• Today is Hunter's first track meet of the season. He didnt run at all during spring break and they didnt run yesterday due to the rain, so we'll see how he does. He's running in only one event this season- the mile. I'm hoping to be able to scoot out of work to watch him. Though- with the weather today, it may get cancelled as well.
• I also need to get to Target. Owen desperately wants to see the movie Cars. I taped Ratatouille the other day not knowing it followed Cars on tv. So- the dvr picked up the last minute of Cars while starting to tape Ratatouille. We have watched that last minute 26 times now. I got a Target gift card in the mail through Ebates so I will only have to pay a small amount for the actual movie.
• Have I raved on here how much I love Ebates? So far I have gotten one check for $12.10 and I have pending cash of $15.36 for other online purchases. If I'm going to shop online, I might as well get cash back for it. Sign up now if you haven't!!! Link here!
• Yesterday we had the great poop incident of 2011 for Quinlin. How can someone so small and beautiful produce the craziness that she did yesterday? She didnt get kicked out of daycare like I thought she would, but holy moly!
• Check out the cute dancing machines from the other night at my brother in laws? Quinlin's new thing is to dance and spin in circles... Adorbs!

Tell All Tuesday

• I missed my weekend recap- but we had a nice weekend. Friday night we had a date night and went to Bonefish Grill. The wait was an hour so we sat at the bar and had a drink and an appetizer. we finally sat down and had our dinner and afterwards, instead of going to the bar to watch basketball, we came straight home. Such losers. Saturday I helped my girlfriend register for her baby shower and then we went to lunch. So nice to have some girl time! Sunday Sean went to his parents house to help unclutter and organize in preparation for them to move up back to the area. with his dad's health deteriorating, they need to be closer. i stayed home with the kids and my parents came over. we had a nice dinner- i made Chicken bruschette bake and it turned out great. Quinlin loved it!
• I took the day off of work today to spend the day with hunter. He's still sleeping so I made myself a hair appointment for later this morning. I cannot wait- it has been forever since I got my hair done... now the big question is- long or short? yikes!
• After my hair appointment, I'm going to grab hunter and we're going to the mall for some shopping and lunch and then off to the movies. I'm looking forward to some me and Hunter time.
• watching Teen Mom 2 on reruns this morning- these girls suck.
• We picked out the stone for our bar and our buddy Jimmy came over a few days ago to measure how much we need. I am so excited about it.
• We still have been browsing at homes. Found a ton we like but the timing just isn't right- I need to remove zillow from my Internet browsing capabilities.
• I need to start potty training Owen...this will be a common occurrence in my tell all Tuesdays i think. ugh.

I think those are all of my random thoughts for the day!

Weekend Recap

This weekend seemed to go way too fast, as they all tend to do. Nothing really special either. On Friday night, I caught up on the dvr while Sean prepped his fishing gear for his last tournament of the season. Saturday was a day of grocery shopping and cleaning while Sean fished. He got home about 4:30pm after finishing 11th out of 41 and then we rushed up to Hunter's basketball game. We brought both babies and it was a disaster. As soon as the game started, Quinlin started fussing so Sean took her to the hallway to run around. Of course, he missed Hunter scoring his one and only basket. The rest of the game, we took turns between watching the kids and watching the game. They discovered a play room and there was no going back into the gymnasium.

Hunter's team won and have now finished their season undefeated. He has a bye this weekend and will start playoffs the following Saturday. Hunter's grandpa, Jiddo, came to the game and took Hunter out to eat afterwards. We were going to attempt to take the kids to Dairy Queen for dinner and decided against that and came home and I just made brinner. Saved us money and the hassle of going somewhere.

Sunday morning Sean's parents came over. They got there about 10:15am and stayed until about 1:45 when the kids went down for a nap. I made crockpot cream cheese chicken and it was fabulous.

Crockpot Cream Cheese Chicken

Makes: 6 servings Total Time: 6 hr

What you need:
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (I usually just buy like a package that equals 1.5 lbs or so)
1 stick butter
1 package Good Seasons Italian Salad Dressing
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 bar cream cheese
1 pound gemelli pasta (this is the type I use but you can really use any pasta or rice)

make it:
In your slow cooker place the chicken, put stick of butter on top and pour package of Good Seasons Italian Salad Dressing onto it all. Cook on low for 5 hours.
Take out chicken and shred/cut up.
Add can of cream of chicken soup and bar of cream cheese into crockpot seasoning/butter mixture and stir. Add shredded chicken back in and stir. Cook on low for one more hour.
Serve over pasta (or rice).

Sunday morning we were awoken by Owen at 4:45am who sounded like a barking seal. Croup was back- though we didn't know if it was croup or RSV. We took him outside for the cold air, gave him a breathing treatment and then brought him to the shower. He went to the doctor at 9:30 where he was diagnosed with spazzmatic croup. Poor kid cannot stay healthy. Luckily they gave him a steroid medicine and he was good as new!

Sunday night Sean and I met my friends Kelli and Carrie at Harry Buffalo for dinner and drinks and then off to the Cavs game we went. Kelli had her boss's tickets to the game and invited us to come. The seats were split in pairs- two seats 6 rows back and two seats Courtside. So, for the first half, we sat in the 6th row, for the 2nd half, we sat on the floor. It was amazing. I was spoiled sitting so close (and felt like a Kardashian). So fun. Too bad they lost.

They played the wizards so I was very focused on John Wall. Hunter became obsessed with the John Wall song (and dance moves) and got Owen into it too. So- of course, I was entirely preoccupied watching him.

It was a fun night, nice to get out. And today- nothing special planned here. I have dinner in the crockpot (bbq beef) and that's it. I did get a nice "hand" bouquet from Owen... Happy Valentine's Day.