Birthday Celebration Pail...

 

One year for my birthday my mother-in-law ordered, on-line, a birthday cake package that included balloons, party blowers, candles, confetti, and a cake...... of course.

It was adorable...

... and very clever.

So, I thought it would be super duper simple to create a birthday package similar to the one I received a few birthday's ago.

Here's what I did:

My local craft store has these really cute paint pails in three different sizes. Some are solid and some are clear. I decided to go with the gallon sized clear pail. In it I placed homemade brownies, party blowers, confetti, and balloons. I added some grass filler and taped a decorative ribbon around the center of the pail with a cute paper cupcake die cut, that I mounted on green scrap booking paper cut into a circle. I embellished the green backing with a few eight point star die cut pieces... just to make it pop.

Totally cute... and probably half the price I would have paid to order something similar on-line. Also a bonus... it's personalized by little ol' me.

I love anything you can change up and add your own touches to. You could easily place these items in a decorative box...... so cute! Change the brownies to cupcakes... or cake pops... I think you get the idea.

So, the next time you're in need of purchasing a birthday gift... try this idea out!

You can find the brownie recipe that I used HERE on Tasty Kitchen...... and it's delish!

This post is linked to Tidy Mom's I'm Lovin' It and:


Until next time...

Convenience Cupcakes...

 

I've been baking...... way too much...... and that's not really the best thing to do when you are trying to shed some pounds.

I think my neighbors love me, because I'm shoving desserts in their faces. I cannot have these cupcakes in my house. I WILL eat them...... all of them!

I love pineapple... and mandarin oranges... and whipped cream... and cake. Put them all together and I've got a big problem on my hands. A problem that pretty much goes from my hands to my mouth to my waistline...... fo' shizzle.

Sorry about that... I get a kick out of talking like Snoop Dogg every now and then.

Anyway, I like to make cupcakes, but you could make a cake with the recipe. I just like cupcakes...... correction...... I LOVE cupcakes. They're just so cute!

... fo' shizzle... sorry again.


Convenience Cupcakes

• 1 box (18.25 Oz. Box) Yellow Cake Mix
• 4 whole Eggs
• ½ cups Milk
• 1 can Mandarin Oranges With Juices (11 Oz. Can)
• 1 carton Whipped Topping, Thawed (7 Or 9 Oz. Container)
• 1 package Instant Vanilla Pudding (3 Oz. Package)
• 1 can Crushed Pineapple With Juices (8 OZ. Can)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F).

Mix and beat the cake mix, eggs, milk, and mandarin oranges (with juice) for 4 minutes. Bake in cupcake liners or two 9-inch greased round pans for 20-25 minutes. Once done, let cool completely. Next, beat the remaining ingredients in a mixer for 1 minute and then frost cupcakes. You could also place this as a filling in between layers and on top of the cake. Makes 24 cupcakes or a two layer cake.

Enjoy!

Printable Recipe here on Tasty Kitchen
(Having problems with the Printer Friendly button)

This post is linked up to Tidy Mom's I'm Lovin' It and Sweet Tooth Friday.

Turkey and Sun Dried Tomato Meatballs...

 

I usually don't cook with ground turkey... I'm a ground beef kind of girl. The last time I made turkey meatballs I put WAY too much salt in them and they were horrible. Yeah, we pretty much spit them out after one bite and into the trash they went. Not my best cooking moment.

Cooking with ground turkey is a little tricky, for me anyway. You have to make it flavorful and add ingredients that will make it very moist, or it will come out dry... at least that's my experience. Hence, I developed a ground turkey phobia, seriously...... I did.

Well, I decided to conquer my phobia and this time around, I thought I'd brown the meatballs in olive oil and make a sauce they could bake in. In hopes that they wouldn't dry out. The results......

...... it worked!

I was very pleased when these came out of the oven tasting delish! Most of the recipes I cook are tried and true family recipes...... and now I'm trying to develop my own recipes. It's a lot of fun, but can be a little frustrating at times.

I was excited to see that this recipe was one of five recipes featured on Tasty Kitchen last Friday...... yay! Thank you Tasty Kitchen!

One cooking phobia down and...... well, a few more to go.


Turkey and Sun Dried Tomato Meatballs

FOR THE MEATBALLS:

• 1-½ pound Ground Turkey
• ⅓ cups Italian Style Bread Crumbs
• ¼ cups Grated Parmesan Cheese
• ½ teaspoons Pepper
• 1-½ teaspoon Dried Parsley
• ½ cups Sun Dried Tomatoes In Their Oil, Chopped
• 1 whole Egg
• ½ cups Flour (for Dredging)
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

FOR THE SAUCE:

• 1 Tablespoon Butter
• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
• 1 Tablespoon Flour
• 2 cups Chicken Stock
• ½ cups Heavy Cream
• 1 Tablespoon Tomato Paste
• ½ cups Sun Dried Tomatoes In Their Oil, Chopped
• 1-½ teaspoon Salt
• ½ teaspoons Pepper

For the meatballs:

In a large bowl, combine the ground turkey, bread crumbs, parmesan, pepper, parsley, sun dried tomatoes, and egg. Mix until just combined. Loosely roll into 1 1/2-inch balls. Place in a large baking dish, cover, and chill in the refrigerator to firm up for about an hour.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (F).
Once firm, dredge the meatballs in the flour. Heat the oil in a large skillet or pan on medium heat and brown the meatballs. Place the browned meatballs in a large baking dish.

For the sauce:

Leaving the skillet or pan on the stove, add the butter and oil. Whisk in the flour, combining well. Add the chicken stock and cook for 1 minute. Whisk in the the heavy cream. Add the tomato paste, sun dried tomatoes, salt and pepper. Whisk and cook for an additional 2–3 minutes, just enough so the sauce thickens a little. Adjust the seasonings to taste. Pour the sauce over the meatballs and bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until the meatballs are done. Makes 16 meatballs. Serve with pasta or on their own with one or two side dishes.

Enjoy!

I'm linking this post up to Mouthwatering Mondays. Head on over to check out all the great links!

Project Simplify Week #5 and White Chocolate Macadamia Bars...

 

Well, it's the last assignment of Simple Mom's Project Simplify and this time we got to choose which Hot Spot to tackle in our home! I decided that my laundry room needed a serious clean-up.

When we first moved into our house, I purchased some cute baskets to keep the laundry room in order. Well, stuff just kept piling up and it's become a dumping ground for things that don't really have a place.

I also bought cheap plastic serving trays and plates to decorate the walls with...... since I HATE doing laundry, I wanted to make this room inviting. I wanted to enjoy going in there and not dread it.

To attach the trays and plates to the walls, I bought triangular picture hangers and glued them to the back with a glue gun. It brightens up the room and because we live in base housing and can't paint, it's a great alternative to getting some color on the walls.

Now, on to the before and after pictures... and then a special treat.

The wash sink area:

The washer and dryer area:

The storage area:

I feel much better now that I've cleared the clutter from my laundry room... I hope you've enjoyed reading about all of my hot messes as I've tackled four out of five Project Simplify tasks. If you missed my past posts you can catch up on them here, here, and here.

Happy reading... and don't forget to check out my recipe for White Chocolate Macadamia bars. If you love Magic Cookie Bars, you're gonna love these too!

White Chocolate Macadamia Bars

1 stick Butter
1-½ cup Graham Crackers (crushed)
2 cups White Chocolate Chips
1 cup Shredded Coconut
1-½ cup Macadamia Nuts, Chopped
1 can (14 Oz. Size) Sweetened Condensed Milk

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees (F).

Place the butter in a 13 x 9 glass baking dish and transfer to the oven so the butter melts. Once melted, carefully remove from the oven and layer the crushed graham crackers, white chocolate chips, shredded coconut, and the macadamia nuts (in that order). Drizzle the sweetened condensed milk over the layers until they are completely covered.

Bake for 25–30 minutes or until set. Cool completely and cut into small squares. Makes 30 to 32 bars.

Enjoy!



I'm linking this up to Project Simplify: Week #5 Results, Sweet Tooth Friday, and Tidy Mom's I'm Lovin' It.

Now go make these bars... immediately!

Fluffy Cheesecake with Blackberry Lemon Sauce...

 

I totally did not participate in Simple Mom's Project Simplify: Week #4. Not because I didn't want to... because my refrigerator and pantry really need a good cleaning!

It was one of those super busy weeks... really, it was... and that's why, OK.

I had a PTA fundraiser pick-up that I needed to be at...

A doctor's appointment...

And I started back to working out... and when I start exercising after months and months and months of stopping... well, I'm drained... and for a good week at least.

In between all of that though, I did find the time to go to Target...... I love Target.

I found the cutest 4 inch springform pans in the Easter section.  You see, cookware for me is like a pair of Louis Vuitton heels for someone with a shoe obsession. I could wander all day in a specialty kitchen store.

Once I saw these little babies, I knew I had to make cheesecake...... I love cheesecake, maybe even more than I love tuna.

It's a pretty simple recipe. The only thing baked is the crust... and if you don't want to do that, you can buy the pre-made graham cracker crust...... slacker. Just kidding.

Anyway, this recipe will make 4, 4 inch cheesecakes or 1, 9 inch cheesecake.

I even made some Blackberry Lemon Sauce to drizzle on top...... and it was good...... very good.


Fluffy Cheesecake

For the crust:

• 1/2 a Box of Vanilla Wafers
• 4 Tablespoons of Butter, Melted

For the filling:

• 8 OZ Cream Cheese
• 1/2 Cup of Sugar
• 1 Teaspoon of Pure Vanilla
• 1 Cup of Cool Whip

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (F).

Crush the wafers and mix them with the butter in a large bowl. Divide the wafer/butter mixture evenly into 4, 4 inch springform pans and press to cover the bottom. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Cool completely.

In a large bowl, cream the cream cheese and sugar for 2 minutes. Add the vanilla and mix to combine. Fold in the cool whip. Divide the filling evenly between the springform pans. With the back of a spoon or a small spatula, press the filling down onto the crust and smooth out. Cover with foil and chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Before serving, run a butter knife, gently, along the edge of the springform pan before releasing. Top with berries or with Blackberry Lemon Sauce (recipe below).

Blackberry Lemon Sauce

• 12 OZ Blackberries, Rinsed
• 1/2 Cup of Sugar
• 1/2 Cup of Water
• 1 Whole Lemon, Juiced

In a medium saucepan, reduce all the ingredients on medium/ high heat for 20-30 minutes; stirring occasionally. Once the berries have popped and the sauce has reduced and thickened, remove the saucepan from the heat and cool. Pour the sauce into a sieve and with the back of a spoon or spatula, press the berries so that the juices are strained into a small bowl. This should yield 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup of sauce. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Drizzle over vanilla ice cream, cheesecake, or pancakes.

Enjoy!



I'm linking this post up to Tasty Tuesday.