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Monday, May 7, 2012

THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS #80 (MOTHER'S DAY BRUNCH/MOM'S FAVORITES) and Thin Mint Truffles

THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS Linky Party #80
(MOTHER'S DAY BRUNCH / MOMS FAVORITE FOOD)
Thin Mint Truffles

Girl Scout sales are over, if you are lucky you can still buy a box at a random grocery store (ya know those little girls have to sell ALL the boxes, there is no giving them back to the girl scout cookie fairy, so you know you want to buy a box!). Or if you are like me, you already stocked up for the year and have 10+ boxes in the freezer. I made sure this year I had enough so I could make these delicious Thin Mint Girl Scout Cookie CUPCAKES anytime I wanted and now these little truffles are JUST AS GOOD!

We had a baking day at my house a few weeks ago with my twins girlfriends and their mom. It was SO MUCH FUN and we plan on making a monthly baking day if we can fit it into our busy schedules. We had a blast baking, cooking and watching Footloose. MOM's favorite food is every new creation we make. I love to get into the kitchen and cook, so today I picked these lovely truffles.


Thin Mint Truffles
idea found at Cookin Cowgirl

1 - 9oz box Girl Scout Thin Mints (or you can use Keebler's Grasshopper Cookies)
4 oz cream cheese, slightly softened
8 oz Guittard's green mint chips
8 oz white chocolate chips or white chocolate bark

In a food processor, pulse the Thin Mints a few times, and them blend them down until they are just crumbs. Next, mix in the cream cheese and crumbs together in a bowl until well incorporated. Roll the mixture into 1 inch size balls, and place them on a wax paper covered baking sheet. Place the baking sheet in the freezer for about 30 minutes, so the balls are easier to dip in the chocolate and do not fall apart.

Once the truffles are set, melt the green mint chips and white chips together in a microwave safe bowl. Roll the truffles in the mixed chocolate, and place them back on the wax paper. Once they have dried a little, place the remaining white chocolate in a small zip lock bag and cut a tiny bit of one corner off the bag. Start small at first, then if you need, make the hole a little larger. Drizzle the white chocolate over the green truffles.
This week's theme is: MOTHER'S DAY BRUNCH OR MOMS FAVORITE FOOD
Please only link recipes with our theme!

Also I wanted to share with all of my THIS WEEK CRAVINGS fans a picture of myself and Nicole from The Daily Dish (we host this weekly event together) and I got to meet her in person this past week while I was in St. Charles, Missouri visiting my girls college Lindenwood University. Since my twins will be attending there in the fall and Nicole lives there I know this will be our first of many many more lunches and get toegthers. Thanks Nicole, it was wonderful meeting you and your kids.

If you are a regular to THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS Linky party, then link-up we're excited to see what you made this week. If you are new, please just follow our simple rules, so that everyone can enjoy the linky party! If you forget to follow the theme, your post will be deleted. Please don't feel hurt, just come back and link up a recipe that follows the theme. Thanks a million, we look forward to blogging with you!






Please Grab Our Button!!!

This Week's Cravings Upcoming Linky "THEMES"
Here is a complete list of the past and what's coming up next on THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS!
May 14 - Egg Recipes (casseroles, dishes, appetizers & more)
May 21 - Memorial Day BBQ (all recipes with BBQ sauce)

May 28 - Cheeseburgers

June 4 - Breakfast Breads

Your hostess for this party are: Tina from MOMS CRAZY COOKING, Nicole from The Daily Dish and Kristi from Veggie Converter. We host this theme linky party every Monday (and the party stays open all week long)! We hope to inspire you to make something with our theme or get an old post notice by linking it up to the linky party below. 
The LINKY PARTY is opened ALL Week!

PLEASE do not link more then 3 recipes per week.
This week's theme is: MOTHER'S DAY BRUNCH OR MOMS FAVORITE FOOD
Please only link recipes with our theme!

This week's theme is: MOTHER'S DAY BRUNCH OR MOMS FAVORITE FOOD
Please only link recipes with our theme!

Saturday, May 5, 2012

A Different Kind of Margarita: Sherbet Ice Cream Margarita

Happy Cinco de Mayo

I found this great recipe from another blogger Scissors & Spatulas. I don't normally drink Margarita's but this one was calling my name, and it's perfect for today's celebration; Cinco de mayo.

(My only regret is that they did not have "green" sherbet at my grocery store and the rainbow sherbet does not make a very bright and pretty margarita, so please search out a ONE color sherbet ice cream.) Other then that is was a great refreshing and A Very Different Kind of Margarita.


Sherbet Ice Cream Margarita
found at Scissors & Spatulas

1 cup crushed ice
1/2 container frozen lime concentrate
4 large scoops lime sherbet
2-4 shots of tequila

Blend all together & Enjoy!

I bet this would be wonderful with our Perfect Guacamole and some yummy tortilla chips!

Thursday, May 3, 2012

Strawberry Lemonade (with or without Vodka)

This is the BEST Strawberry Lemonade we've ever tasted!
Hands down, no restaurant lemonade even compares. This is SO GOOD!


Yep, the glass on the left is JUST Lemonade and the glass on the right in spiked with Vodka. They are BOTH equally delicious (and I had to test this out for my blog, on a Monday afternoon while sitting in my pj's with my kids). I guess anytime is a good time for a nice drink (and I rarely drink, so it's was pretty funny).


It was a day off of school and my son was going crazy. He said "mom, can't we make something", which is a pretty rare thing these days. So, I said "come on over and let's check out Pinterest", so we did and it was GREAT! He was like WOW-WOW-WOW as soon as he tasted the lemonade. That's when you know it's a winner. Plus, I think his own pride in making this himself made it taste even that much better.

Strawberry Lemonade
found on LiveLovePasta; originally from My Baking Addiction

1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 pint fresh strawberries (approx 15)
1 cup fresh lemon juice (about 6)
4 - 6 cups cold water
vodka, optional (add 1/2 to 1 full shot per glass of lemonade)

Make the syrup by combining 1 cup sugar with 1 cup of water in a saucepan. Place over medium heat until the sugar is completely dissolved; stirring occasionally, and then letting it cool. Once the syrup has cooled, puree the strawberries in a food processor with 1/2 cup of water.

In a large pitcher, combine 2 to 3 cups of ice, the strawberry puree, cooled syrup and lemon juice. Add 4 to 6 cups of cold water. The amount of water you use will depend how strong, tart or sweet you like it.

Monday, April 30, 2012

THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS #79 (MEXICAN DISHES) and White Chicken (or Turkey) Enchiladas

THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS Linky Party #79
(MEXICAN DISHES - Cinco de Mayo)
White Chicken (or Turkey) Enchiladas

I saw this recipe sweep the Pinterest boards over and over and over again. I thought, there must be something to this recipe so I had to see for myself. And well, I've made it twice now in one month. Once with chicken and once with turkey, it is THAT GOOD!

My kids don't really go for enchiladas (they don't like red enchilada sauce), so this recipe is great for my family. This recipe will for sure be hitting my dinner table often.


I used two different type of tortillas (one gluten-free for my daughter)!
White Chicken (or Turkey) Enchiladas
originally found at Joyful Momma's Kitchen

10 flour tortilla
2 cups cooked, shredded chicken (or turkey)
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
3 tbsp. butter
3 tbsp. flour
2 cups chicken broth (or turkey broth with turkey meat)
1 cup sour cream
1 (4 oz) can diced green chillies

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13 pan. Mix chicken and 1 cup cheese. Roll up in tortillas and place in pan.

In a sauce pan, melt butter, stir in flour and cook 1 minute. Add broth and whisk until smooth. Heat over medium heat until thick and bubbly. Stir in sour cream and chilies. Do not bring to boil, you don't want curdled sour cream. Pour over enchiladas and top with remaining cheese.

Bake 22 minutes and then under high broil for 3 more minutes to brown the cheese.


This week's theme is: MEXICAN DISHES
Please only link recipes with our theme!

If you are a regular to THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS Linky party, then link-up we're excited to see what you made this week. If you are new, please just follow our simple rules, so that everyone can enjoy the linky party! If you forget to follow the theme, your post will be deleted. Please don't feel hurt, just come back and link up a recipe that follows the theme. Thanks a million, we look forward to blogging with you!




Please Grab Our Button!!!

This Week's Cravings Upcoming Linky "THEMES"
Here is a complete list of the past and what's coming up next on THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS!
May 7 - Mother's Day Brunch or MOMS Favorite Food

May 14 - Egg Recipes (Casseroles, Dishes & Appetizers)

May 21 - Memorial Day BBQ (BBQ Sauce & Grill Recipes)

May 28 - Share your favorite Cheeseburger Recipe
Your hostess for this party are: Tina from MOMS CRAZY COOKING, Nicole from The Daily Dish and Kristi from Veggie Converter. We host this theme linky party every Monday (and the party stays open all week long)! We hope to inspire you to make something with our theme or get an old post notice by linking it up to the linky party below. 
The LINKY PARTY is opened ALL Week!

PLEASE do not link more then 3 recipes per week.
This week's theme is: MEXICAN DISHES
Please only link recipes with our theme!


This week's theme is: MEXICAN DISHES
Please only link recipes with our theme!

Sunday, April 29, 2012

Freezer Ready - Smoothies "in a bag"

I just got a Magic Bullet and I LOVE IT! We are continuing on our health kick and we started having smoothies a few nights a week in place of a big heavy dinner. My girls were told to switch their big meal to lunch time and a smaller meal at dinner time, believe it or not this totally works. (One of my daughter's has lost 5 lbs already, basically doing nothing else except changing these two meals around). I've joined them on this health-kick and mama is LOVIN' it too, no big dinner to prepare and a healthy smoothie to enjoy, heaven!

I saw this great idea on Pinterest, of course, this is where I get all my genius ideas. The idea was to freeze yogurt in muffin tins, and I had some yogurt that was just about to expire and way more then we could eat in a few days. Perfect!


Then it was time to get all the fresh fruits and vegetables I had in the refrigerator and put them to work for us (plus I pulled out all those frozen bananas that had been hangin' around the freezer). Do you do that too? When the last banana is just sitting on the counter and no one wants to eat it, I chop it up, throw it in a baggie and into the freezer it goes until I am ready to make a smoothie.


I packaged up a bunch of different smoothie recipes, a few are listed below. We added in everything we had on hand. Some got fresh pineapple, fresh berries chopped almonds, fresh mint and some fresh spinach too. Everything froze nicely. When it was time for a smoothie you just bring out the baggie, let it defrost for about 10 minutes or throw it in the microwave for a minute if you are in a big hurry. Everything is in the bag, the only thing you may need to add is ice, juice or milk.


Pomegranate-Strawberry Smoothie
1 cup pomegranate juice (can be added fresh)
2 tsp honey
3/4 cup strawberries
1/4 cup vanilla yogurt
1/4 cup Spinach
1 tbsp Chia Seeds
1/4 cup crushed ice (add when ready to blend)

Berry Smoothie
1 cup milk (this should be added fresh, not into the freezer bag)
1 cup frozen or fresh blueberries (or blackberries or strawberries or all the berries mixed)
1/3 cup diced pineapple (fresh or can)
1-1/2 tbsp honey
1/8 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup Spinach
1 tbsp Chia Seeds

Banana Berry
3/4 cup apple juice
2/3 cup blueberries
1 banana, sliced
1/4 to 1/2 cup vanilla yogurt
1 cup crushed ice

Orange Smoothie
1-1/2 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
2/3 cup strawberries
1 banana, sliced
1/4 to 1/2 cup vanilla yogurt
1/4 cup Spinach
1 tbsp Chia Seeds
1 cup crushed ice

White  Gummi Bear Smoothie (copy-cat recipe Jamba Juice)
8 oz peach juice
4 oz soy milk
1/2 cup pineapple sherbet
1/4 cup raspberry sherbet
1/4 cup orange sherbet
1/2 cup mangoes
1/2 cup crushed ice

Lime Smoothie
1 cup limeade concentrate
1 cup mangoes
1/2 cup strawberries
1 cup lemon lime sherbet
1/4 cup Spinach
1 tbsp Chia Seeds
1/2 cup crushed ice

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