{Ali}

{Pinterest Recipe Love}

I LOVE Pinterest.

Love.

One of my favorite things about Pinterest is the FOOD.

So many FABULOUSLY SCRUMPTIOUS recipes!

My husband works the night shift.

He and his workmates each take a turn bringing in a meal to share each night.

My Hub's night is Wednesday.

I try and find something new and fun to cook each time.

Enter Pinterest!

Did I mention how much I love Pinterest?

Oh, I did?

Okay.

J

I thought I would share with you a few of the recipes I have found via Pinterest

Who knows, you might try them and like them so much, they make it in to your weekly recipe rotation!

Hot and Spicy Braised Peanut Chicken

This dish was soooo yummy! Everyone loved it!

A lot of ingredients, but so worth it!

Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas

This dish was FABULOUS!

Try it, you won't be disappointed!

Love!

Oven Baked Chicken Fajitas

This was a super easy recipe for Fajitas.

The chicken was a tad dry, but I'm sure this was chef error!

Would make this again!

Tomato Basil Parmesan Soup

Okay, this soup was so good!

LOVED IT!

Mexican Stuffed Shells

This was one of the best things I've ever eaten!

I'm not kidding.

I can't even tell you how good it was in a blog post.

According to my hubs, I even got a marriage proposal out of this dish!

Thanks Maeghan! ;)

Make this!

Just do it!

Buffalo Chicken Potato Casserole

This casserole is in the over right now.

I'm a HUGE fan of Franks Red Hot

Love it!

Can't get enough!

Excited to see how this dish turns out!

Have you used pinterest as inspiration for dinner ideas?

What are your fave recipes?

Would love to know!

 

{Dessert in a Jar}

Happy Monday!

Did you have a great Easter?

I hope so! It was a beautiful day in Salt Lake City yesterday.

GORGEOUS!

Sometimes we have snow on Easter.

Like last year, when we were camping.

Not fun.

Anyway…..

I was assigned dessert this year for Easter.

I'm not a huge dessert eater, but I do LOVE to make dessert.

Weird, huh?

Typical of me.

You might remember I made THESE for St. Patrick's Day, last month.

Since I already had the jars, it seemed obvious.

Make more dessert in a jar.

Duh.

So I did!

First up, Strawberry Shortcake in a Jar.

Angel food cake, topped with Strawberries & Sugar

Cool Whip mixed with Vanilla Frosting

And a dusting a graham cracker crumbs

Easy

And, because my Dad loves Carrot Cake

I did Carrot Cake in a Jar

I made Carrot Cake Cup Cakes

Sliced them, added a slice to the jar

Topped with Cool Whip mixed with Cream Cheese Frosting

A dusting of graham cracker crumbs

And repeat!

I added THESE CUTE printables to the lids

And called it GOOD!

We spent the afternoon at my parents' house

Easter egg hunt for the kids (minus Tyson who is in California at school still)

Dinner outside on the deck

And a last photo of Grandpa with Erin and Madison

I hope you all had a very blessed day!

And if you haven't tried making dessert in a jar

Go for it!

So fun!

You will love it!

{Best Pizza Evah!}

 

I'm not even kidding!

This is the Best Pizza Evah!

It's hard to believe.

The first time I made it, my husband and I loved it.

But, maybe we were just super hungry?

Or we hadn't had pizza for a while?

So

I made it again.

And it was the Best Pizza Evah

AGAIN!

Weird.

I swear, it is even better than any pizza I have had at ANY restaurant.

I promise.

First off, you start with this bread dough recipe

It is AMAZING!

A game changer, if you will.

I just roll it in to pizza dough

Yeah, I know…It's not perfectly round.

Go figure

The day I decide to photograph the BEST PIZZA EVAH for the blog

Nothing goes right

It kinda looks hideous

But it doesn't matter

The taste is …

Well, heaven!

After rolling out the dough, I brush on a mixture of olive oil and the Rossa Maria Dipping Blend

Throw the pizza dough on a baking stone in the over until it just starts to brown

Then take it out of the oven and add the following ingredients:

Pesto, Parmesan Cheese, Tomatoes and Mozzarella Cheese

Put it back in the oven until the cheese is bubbly and the crust is crisp

(or however you like your crust!)

I know it doesn't look like much

But I promise you

It is FAN-FREAKING-TASTIC!

We have eaten this almost every Friday during Lent (no meat)

Sooooo Delish!

Give it a try!

I'd love to know what you think!

{Cauliflower Poppers}

Have you heard of these?

Cauliflower Poppers.

I hadn't.

Last Saturday I received my first basket from Bountiful Baskets .

It was chock full of fruit and veggie goodness!

I know my friend Amy gets a basket every week, so I asked her if she had any great recipes for the items in this week's basket.

She did.

Of course!

The basket included a gorgeous bunch (?) of cauliflower, so the first recipe she suggested was Cauliflower Poppers

I think she may have gotten the recipe from Weight Watchers

It is very easy!

And very yummy!

The ingredients:

Pepper, Salt, Cauliflower, Grown Cumin and Chili Powder

This is a FABULOUSLY healthy snack!

With a kick!

I loved it!

What healthy snacks to you eat?

Care to share the recipe?

Please?

Linking up with http://www.athomewithkim.com/

 

{Brownie Cupcakes}

Have you ever made Brownie Cupcakes?

Have you ever even heard of Brownie Cupcakes?

I hadn't, but I figured there must be something out there like Brownie Cupcakes

I hate making cupcakes and having the middle soft and lovely, but the sides crusty and hard

Why does that happen?

Is it just me?

Please tell me no……

Anyway

I had a box of brownies, but didn't want to make brownies or cookies

So I searched for a brownie cupcake recipe

I found this recipe

I didn't make the peanut butter frosting though

I'm more of a cream cheese gal, but I do love me some peanut butter

I packaged these bad boys up individually and took them to Zumba

To share

With my Zumba peeps

The verdict?

SUPER FABULOUS!

Happy Wednesday

Hump Day

It's bright and sunny in my neck of the woods!

How 'bout yours?

Enjoy your day and THANKS…..

For stopping by!

{Mint Fudge Brownie Parfaits)

Did y'all have a great weekend? Did you celebrate St. Patrick's Day?

We had a pretty low key Saturday. I spent the morning at a St. Patrick's Day Zumba Party, which was awesome!

Great workout!

We were invited to dinner with some friends for Corned Beef & Cabbage (soooo good!), my assignment was to bring dessert.

I wanted to do something fun and creative, but didn't know what to do. I had some jelly jars in my party, left over from a strawberry shortcake dessert I did last fall for a tailgating party.

Why not use those?

I surfed the net and came up with THESE Mint Fudge Brownie Parfaits, from Kristan @ Confessions of a Cook Book Queen.

So easy, and so yummy!

The super cute labels came from How Does She

I think they add the perfect finishing touch!

Happy Monday!

I hope you have a great week! Thanks for stopping by!

{Steak & Arugula w/Chipotle Mayo}

Since getting my new waffle iron/griddle/Panini press, I have been dying to find fun ways to use it. The very first thing I made (RIGHT when I got it home from the store!) were these Easy~Peasy Cinnamon Roll Waffles, and they were sooooo yummy! I've made them several more times since. I usually only make them so can have a 'taste', and give the rest to my hubby, since I'm trying to stay away from sugar and carbs.

Anyway………..I've been jonesin' for some type a steak sandwich for a while, and thought last Saturday night might be the perfect time to try something.

Ingredients:

New York Steak (thin cut), Arugula, Pepper Jack Cheese and Chipotle Mayo. I also used Sourdough Bread, but forgot to include that in the photo – doi!

I just seasoned the steak with salt and pepper before placing on the grill

While the steaks grilled, I smeared the bread with Chipotle Mayo and topped that with some Arugula. Have you ever tried the flavored Mayo? The Chipotle has a FABULOUS kick to it. Love it!

Then I placed the grilled steak on the Arugula and added sliced Jalapeno Jack cheese to the other slice of bread. Can you see my ½ sandwich there in the middle? LOL! I really wanted a WHOLE one. Oh well.

Then I put the sandwich back on the Panini grill for a little bit – look at the gooey cheese!

Now, she's ready to eat.

YUM!

This was so good to eat, and so easy to make.

We loved it!

Enjoy!

Easy~Peasy Cinnamon Roll Waffles

Do you Pin? If not, you should. Pinterest is a FABULOUS place! Simply FABULOUS! I've seen this (many variations!) recipe on Pinterest many times, from so many different people. So, this is nothing new, not rocket science, but it is truly something delicious and amazing

CINNAMON ROLL WAFFLES!

The cast of characters:

Pillsbury Grands Cinnamon Rolls, Syrup and a Waffle Iron, Panini Press or similar

Place two Cinnamon Rolls on the griddle, and close the Griddle

Yeah, it's that easy!

Don't they look scrumptious? You can drizzle on some cream cheese frosting, or just serve them with syrup. Either way, they taste soooo good!

Now, go forth and make some for yourself!

Happy Monday!

Two Simple but {DELISH} Appetizers

So……..did you have a great Valentines Day? Romantic dinner? Movie night? Delivering Valentines to friends and family with the kids? Whatever you did, I hope it was great! We spent time at home together, and then Carl went to the gym for his racquetball league, and I went to Zumba! Then we met back up at home to spend more time together! It’s the first year with no kids at home……so weird! But, we had a great night regardless!

A few weeks ago (has it really been that long?) we were invited to a Super Bowl party with some friends. Now, if you know me at all (who’s even reading this blog? Is there anyone really out there?)….then you know I absolutely LOVE appetizers. Love them. Like, I can graze on apps all night long and give up an entrée and dessert for more apps! Love everything about them. I decided to take two different appetizers to the party. A “bad” (i.e. fattening) appetizer and a “good” (i.e. healthy) appetizer! Nice, huh?

I went to my VERY FAVORITE inspiration site to get some ideas…..what site is that, you ask? Why pinterest of course! Do you pinterest? If not, why not? It is the most awesome thing evah! I promise you! And if you don’t pinterest, and want an invite……please email me! I’ll send you one!

Okay, so I have rambled and rambled long enough. Here they are:

THE GOOD ~ Caprese Skewers

Iowa Girl Eats

THE BAD ~ Sideline Smokies

Betty Crocker

O.M.G. Seriously…..both of them were delish! The Caprese Skewers were so light and crisp! The basil added the perfect blend of flavors with the tomatoes and mozzarella….drizzles with the warm balsamic vinegar!! And the Sideline Smokies? Oh my. A little bit of pure pork heaven is what they are. Seriously……soooooo good, and soooooo bad for you. But they kinda cancel each other out, right? Yeah, I know…..they don’t. But, a girl can hope, right?

Here are pics of my appetizers…….not nearly as appetizing at the pics above, right? But, I promise….they taste just as YUMMY!

 

Go ahead and give them a try! You will LOVE them, I promise!

National Pancake Day!

In honor of National Pancake Day, I thought I would share this FABULOUS recipe for Cinnamon Roll Pancakes, that I stumbled upon today at Recipe Girl

Um, hello?!?!?!  Don't they look fabulous!  Like Died-and-Gone-to-Heaven FABULOUS? Go ahead give them a try!  And while you're at it, visit Recipe Girl for more mouth watering recipes!

CINNAMON ROLL PANCAKES
www.RecipeGirl.com

PANCAKES:
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 Tablespoon canola oil
1 large egg, lightly beaten

CINNAMON FILLING:
1/2 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon

CREAM CHEESE GLAZE:
4 Tablespoons butter
2 ounces cream cheese
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Prepare pancake batter: In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Whisk in milk, oil and egg, just until batter is moistened (a few small lumps are fine).

2. In a medium bowl, mix butter, brown sugar and cinnamon. Scoop the filling into a small zip baggie and set aside.

3. In a medium, microwave-safe bowl- heat butter and cream cheese until melted. Whisk together until smooth; whisk in powdered sugar and vanilla extract.

4. Heat large skillet over medium-heat. Spray with nonstick spray. Scoop about 3/4 cup batter onto the skillet. Snip the corner of your baggie of filling and squeeze a spiral of the filling onto the top of the pancake. When bubbles begin to appear on the surface, flip carefully with a thin spatula, and cook until browned on the underside, 1 to 2 minutes more. Transfer to a baking sheet or platter and keep in a warm oven until ready to serve.

5. When ready to serve, spoon warmed glaze onto the top of each pancake.

Yield: 4 cinnamon roll pancakes