tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49195244539113079112023-11-16T07:55:58.713-08:00Delectably HomeLife evolves so quickly . . . the last year has brought so many joys and sorrows. But I think I am coming out on top. The one thing that hasn't changed: I'm still striving to be Suzy Homemaker! So, here's to more crafts and recipes to come!!Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.comBlogger31125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-77702077357417687602013-01-06T21:45:00.001-08:002013-01-06T21:45:59.465-08:00Banana Crumb Muffins<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I found a recipe yesterday that was too good to not post. I had some bananas that were getting to the point that I didn't want to eat them anymore (I am super picky about my bananas, haha). So I went online to find a yummy banana muffin recipe and found <a href="http://eatatallies.com/2011/12/banana-crumb-muffins/" target="_blank">this</a>.<br />
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Allie from <a href="http://eatatallies.com/" target="_blank">Eat at Allie's</a> adapted a recipe from Allrecipes.com that looked delicious. And it was definitely worth it!<br />
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<span style="font-family: Over the Rainbow, Trebuchet, sans-serif; font-style: bold;">
<u>BANANA CRUMB MUFFINS</u></span><br />
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<u><i>Muffins: </i></u><br />
1 1/2 Cup flour<br />
1 Teaspoon baking soda<br />
1 Teaspoon baking powder<br />
1/2 Teaspoon salt<br />
3 Bananas, mashed<br />
3/4 Cup white sugar<br />
1 Egg, lightly beaten<br />
1/3 Cup butter, melted<br />
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<i><u>Crumb Topping:</u></i><br />
1/3 Cup packed brown sugar<br />
2 Tablespoons flour<br />
1/8 Teaspoon cinnamon<br />
1 Tablespoon butter<br />
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Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.<br />
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You will need two bowls to start. In the first, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In the other, combine the bananas, sugar, egg and butter. Once the banana mixture is thoroughly combined, add the flour mixture and mix until just combined.<br />
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Fill 12 cupcake liners 3/4 of the way full. For the topping, mix brown sugar, flour and cinnamon. Cut in butter and mix until "crumbly".<br />
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Top each muffin and bake for 18-20 minutes.<br />
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These muffins are amazing - especially when they are still warm. Thank you, Allie!!!Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-77574479642250862812012-10-21T16:33:00.001-07:002012-10-21T16:33:49.182-07:00Pumpkin Pie Bites<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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One of the best parts of fall are all of the yummy, comfort foods. I love pumpkin pie but it is always fun to find different twists and the traditional dessert. Also on my list: pumpkin cheesecake and pumpkin cake.<br />
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<u>Pumpkin Pie Bites</u><br />
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2 Pre-made pie crusts<br />
1 Cup pureed pumpkin<br />
8 oz. fat-free cream cheese (at room temp.)<br />
1/2 Cup Splenda<br />
1 Tsp. vanilla<br />
1 Tsp. cinnamon<br />
1/2 Tsp. ginger<br />
2 Eggs<br />
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine pumpkin, cream cheese, eggs and Splenda until smooth. Add vanilla, cinnamon and ginger.<br />
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Next, roll out the pie crust to be slightly thinner than it comes packaged. To cut the individual crusts, I used a flower-shaped cookie cutter. You could also use a circle cookie cutter or cut circles freehand using a paring knife. Spray a muffin tin with cooking spray and press in the crust.<br />
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Fill the crusts above halfway with the filling. You don't want to over-fill them or they get kind of messy!<br />
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If you used the flower-shaped cookie cutter and want to make the bites into "pockets", just fold the petals towards the center.<br />
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Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes, then let cool on a wire rack. Top with whip cream - and serve! Store in a covered container and refrigerate.Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-63554077219347448482012-10-14T22:36:00.002-07:002012-10-14T22:36:41.201-07:00Pear Turnovers (Original Recipe!)I try not to brag about the things I cook or create. But these pear turnovers are pretty spectacular. A couple of weeks ago we bought a package of pears at Costco. When we got them they were rock solid, and then one day - pretty much overnight - they were too soft. Clearly, I had to figure out something to do with them. Here is what I came up with:<br />
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2 Pears, peeled & cored<br />
1 Package Grands biscuits<br />
1 Tablespoon flour<br />
1 Teaspoon vanilla<br />
1 Teaspoon cinnamon<br />
1 Teaspoon brown sugar<br />
2 Tablespoons butter<br />
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Preheat your oven according the biscuit instructions. Start by chopping the pears into small cubes. In a medium bowl, combine the pears and vanilla.<br />
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Next add the flour, cinnamon and brown sugar and stir until thoroughly combined. For the next step, take the pre-shaped biscuits and flatten them on a greased baking sheet. You want to make them as flat as possible.<br />
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To fill, place one spoonful of the pear mixture into the center of each circle. Be careful not to use too much filling on each one or you won't be able to seal the edges.<br />
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You might want to stretch the dough out a little bit more before folding it in half over the pears. Once you have folded them in half, press the edges together to seal it shut.<br />
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Finally, melt the butter and add a little bit of cinnamon. Using a pastry brush, brush the cinnamon butter over the turnovers and stick 'em in the oven! Bake for about 15-20 minutes.<br />
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This is what will happen if you over-fill the turnovers and are unable to get a good seal.<br />
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They are definitely best hot out of the oven, but they aren't bad reheated either. They make a great addition to breakfast, or if you add a little vanilla ice cream can be a tasty dessert!!Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-53924436244584202892012-10-08T18:28:00.000-07:002012-10-08T18:28:35.591-07:00Wedding ScrapbookA blogger-friend of mine recently asked that I share some of my scrapbook layouts from my wedding album. I mentioned that I have a hard time getting motivated to get into my craft room and get started . . . but once I am sitting there surrounded by paper and stickers and photos I can create page after page. Talking about it was enough motivation to get up there again this last week.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAE8TP4YiIf7muTwkPjYj54zac-cNU6IzGVEqY6NgIv7lxgpcPHdAwFbQR75W7mtrLDXjYPKS7v9qJwUuVP0B95YLQKHWCze2oSsLj7GIvv6FThRIYkg2u52xoijSxidRNuZGTUZahGE2q/s1600/DSC_7565.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAE8TP4YiIf7muTwkPjYj54zac-cNU6IzGVEqY6NgIv7lxgpcPHdAwFbQR75W7mtrLDXjYPKS7v9qJwUuVP0B95YLQKHWCze2oSsLj7GIvv6FThRIYkg2u52xoijSxidRNuZGTUZahGE2q/s400/DSC_7565.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
I decided to share some of the pages that I have put together so far. One of the things I tend to struggle with is making each page a little bit different and coming up with new ideas - evolving my creativity. But . . . that is the fun part.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjubdXLg0MAI0RmC9iCCUKs97YVZdsADVv_WzwnOwU9ZFDJKuqUu3K_WSFY1LfsRDY_3XTLrsBIeEkwXsuOBecRgHU9sfut3nRQNeuWiEVVK6Z5UCl-snX7TrXGYer_TN41AzQoGROxUqLM/s1600/DSC_7574.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjubdXLg0MAI0RmC9iCCUKs97YVZdsADVv_WzwnOwU9ZFDJKuqUu3K_WSFY1LfsRDY_3XTLrsBIeEkwXsuOBecRgHU9sfut3nRQNeuWiEVVK6Z5UCl-snX7TrXGYer_TN41AzQoGROxUqLM/s400/DSC_7574.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3fY8qzmTmOrf4cO2fs78pQCw3g6kFjbJkPKzjiiwSe3AX3zDkgBYgw01N3ikxZK0o1BD0rAmE4UXbQ8Qv0FemCEAgG8iZpQJakqA9YZBgVQ91yCaXclwrh5ny96rv5bNohsjLrNR_o9iR/s1600/DSC_7573.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3fY8qzmTmOrf4cO2fs78pQCw3g6kFjbJkPKzjiiwSe3AX3zDkgBYgw01N3ikxZK0o1BD0rAmE4UXbQ8Qv0FemCEAgG8iZpQJakqA9YZBgVQ91yCaXclwrh5ny96rv5bNohsjLrNR_o9iR/s320/DSC_7573.jpg" width="214" /></a> The quality of the photos aren't great, but the layout is what I am going for...<br />
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Now I need to get more pictures printed to keep going!Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-47641242217689400382012-09-26T20:00:00.001-07:002012-09-26T20:00:50.864-07:00Major Milestone!<div style="text-align: center;">
I don't have much to post today - but I just noticed that yesterday I reached . . .</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">1000 PAGE VIEWS!!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">It may not be a big deal to most, but considering this is my first blog, I am</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">pretty excited about it!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Now, on to 2,000!! </span></div>
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Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-19209245849378863032012-09-22T19:00:00.000-07:002012-09-22T19:00:32.682-07:00Fall MantelIt is officially the first day of fall. Recently, I've figured out that I enjoy the fall season more than I realized. I have always considered myself to be a "summer girl". But in the last couple of weeks, I noticed the beauty of the leaves beginning to drop from the trees, got excited when the pumpkins showed up at the grocery store, and started looking up warm comforting recipes for upcoming dinners.<br />
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Not only that - but I have redecorated our house a little early in anticipation of this cozy time of year. Earlier this week, I picked up a few mini pumpkins from the store, as well as some supplies to create a fun, simple fall wreath.<br />
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<br />Also featured on my mantel are the treat dishes that I posted about earlier this week (you can find the tutorial <a href="http://delectably-home.blogspot.com/2012/09/homemade-treat-jars.html" target="_blank">here</a>).<br />
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The wreath was super easy to assemble. I traced out the letters, pasted them to the green background, and pasted that to the leaf-designed squares. I also used my hot glue gun to attach leaves to the wreath, and tied a piece of twine from one side to the other. Using some mini clothespins that I had, I hung the letters across the center of the wreath - and was done. The longest part of this project was cutting out the letters (if you have a Cricut, I envy you!!).<br />
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The picture above features just some random pieces that I have accumulated. I wrote about the <a href="http://delectably-home.blogspot.com/2012/06/doing-some-revamping-part-3.html" target="_blank">twine-covered vase</a> awhile back (another easy repurposing project!).<br />
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I didn't really intend on putting out ALL of my decorations the other night. But it just kind of exploded and everything I had made its way out to the shelves, tables and walls!<br />
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I'm off to go curl up under a warm blanket on the couch to watch some movies with my best friend! I suggest you relish in this season as well!!Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-16586464661573074232012-09-20T21:03:00.000-07:002012-09-20T21:03:19.500-07:00Homemade Treat Jars<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhImA0RC5KBc4fNUcvbNB1X1IUbxGHi_SBiwt2CuLtklCnLQ24yJWVm4iJgrNGohJscKUqlnGgZD4xuWO-KfmrcOe6b_7z73ZxgXZm4IWP0-33p4VojV9kp_2lY47iha3tdtvN7kj0F0yaY/s1600/Candy+Jars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhImA0RC5KBc4fNUcvbNB1X1IUbxGHi_SBiwt2CuLtklCnLQ24yJWVm4iJgrNGohJscKUqlnGgZD4xuWO-KfmrcOe6b_7z73ZxgXZm4IWP0-33p4VojV9kp_2lY47iha3tdtvN7kj0F0yaY/s400/Candy+Jars.jpg" width="267" /></a></div>
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Lately I have seen different versions on these on Pinterest. I have been saving some jars just to have around for projects, and I was inspired to try to find some good, cheap candle holders to complete this one.<br />
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I've always had a hard time getting the labels to come off the jars cleanly. Thankfully, I found Trish at <a href="http://www.momontimeout.com/2011/11/two-easy-ways-to-remove-jar-labels.html" target="_blank">Mom on Time Out</a>!! Trish suggests a couple of different methods for removing pesky labels. I started by filling the jars with hot water, and then dropping them into a pot also filled with hot water. Letting them soak for awhile loosened the adhesive and most of the labels just fell off. There was still some residue from the adhesive on the jars, though. Using Trish's second method, I grabbed my nail polish remover and some cotton balls and started scrubbing. I found that a circular motion worked best<br />
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Note: you will want to make sure that you either don't have nail polish on, don't care that it gets messed up if you do, or wear gloves!!<br />
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Since I had a few things to drop off at Goodwill last weekend, I decided to run in and see if they had any candle holders that were in decent shape at a good price. A lot of candle holders that are meant to have the candle sit on top (as opposed to a candlestick that sticks inside the holder) have a needle on the top to help stabilize the candle. I was thrilled to find some that not only were of varying heights, but didn't have that needle on top, so I didn't have to worry about removing it. Here is what I got:<br />
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The last supply I needed was some spray paint. I planned to make fall-themed jars, so I went with a burnt orange color of Valspar spray paint from Lowes. (As much as I love the summer weather and despise having to be out in the rain, fall & winter are the most fun for crafts!!)<br />
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I painted both the candle holders and the lids to the jars, while I left the jars alone so that you could see what was inside. I was a little nervous about this step because I haven't done much with spray paint before. You want to make sure to do lots of quick, light sprays, and shake the can up often. I'm not a very patient person, so it was irritating to have to wait for one side to dry before rolling the candle holders over to get the other side. But....it paid off in the end :)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsgp3vyb9hyphenhyphenTGbPaqgVHgQe9J5eLoYQAJCGBPoJK6cZSs8rwFWrZ0W7lplDECGHX7_ZiUbI9MyBU35xdpiMInDWcq7dDF52UmbaUptXTPVFtZk1i5Tbcjk47l3gqf0yBz4uMLQaqCKC_4d/s1600/Painted+Candle+Holders.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsgp3vyb9hyphenhyphenTGbPaqgVHgQe9J5eLoYQAJCGBPoJK6cZSs8rwFWrZ0W7lplDECGHX7_ZiUbI9MyBU35xdpiMInDWcq7dDF52UmbaUptXTPVFtZk1i5Tbcjk47l3gqf0yBz4uMLQaqCKC_4d/s320/Painted+Candle+Holders.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
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Now - you could just set the jars on top and be done (it would make them much easier to wash), but I wanted to make sure mine didn't fall off. Using my hot glue gun, I made a ring around the bottom of each jar and attached them to the tops of the candle holders.<br />
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Finally: fill them up!! You can use them to hold fall candies, or use some sort of "filler" just for decoration.<br />
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Not including the fillers, this project cost only $12 - the candle holders were $3 a piece at Goodwill and the spray paint was also $3. For that price - you probably could get 1 actual candy dish at the store. I'm always excited when I think about the deals I can get by doing things myself. Plus, you can design the project yourself and personalize how you want it to look in the end.<br />
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Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-48554330971455505592012-08-26T13:49:00.003-07:002012-08-26T13:51:00.703-07:00A Trip to the Farmer's MarketYou would not believe the massive zucchini squash I found at the local farmer's market this weekend. Although I had no idea what I would do with it all, I knew that I needed to get some (if nothing else, for the photo opportunities!!).<br />
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As you can tell in the photo of the zucchini next to my arm, it is obviously not something you find in the grocery stores!<br />
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I decided to make a batch of zucchini bread. This was another first for me. I have made plenty of banana bread (which I made more of yesterday as well while I was at it!), but it was time to try something new. The recipe I used comes from <a href="http://hoosierhomemade.com/" target="_blank">Hoosier Homemade</a>. I found it after looking around on Pinterest.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u>Zucchini Bread</u></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">3 Eggs</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1 Cup white sugar</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1 Cup brown sugar</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1 Cup vegetable oil</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1 Teaspoon vanilla</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1 Teaspoon cinnamon</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1 Teaspoon salt</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1 Teaspoon baking soda</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1/4 Teaspoon baking powder</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">3 Cups flour</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">2 Cups zucchini, grated</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">(makes 2 large loaves or 6 mini loaves)</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">After preheating your oven to 350 degrees, you will want to grate your zucchini so that it can sit and drain a bit while you prep the other ingredients. I used my handheld cheese grater to grate the zucchini, but you could use a food processor as well. Once your zucchini is grated, lay it out on a paper towel to absorb some of the moisture.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs until they become foamy. Add sugar, oil and vanilla and mix well. Then add cinnamon, salt, baking soda and baking powder and again mix well until combined. </span><span style="font-size: small;">Before adding the zucchini, dab the top with another paper towel. </span><span style="font-size: small;">Next, add the flour and zucchini, alternating between the two and mixing in between steps (I added one cup of each at a time). </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">Lightly grease and flour your bread pans, then fill with batter. Bake bread for 40-50 minutes. Bread is done when you can stick a toothpick (or fork) in the middle and it comes out clean. </span><br />
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To see some of my other finds from the farmer's market, go check out <a href="http://myminds-lens.blogspot.com/2012/08/produce.html" target="_blank">Produce</a> at My Mind's Lens. Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-45058451780392622342012-08-22T14:45:00.000-07:002012-08-22T14:51:47.664-07:00Strawberry Blueberry Streusel Muffins<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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After making the blueberry topping for my cheesecake this weekend, I still had some blueberries leftover. Once I started making the blueberry muffins as planned, I decided to add the remains of the strawberries that were in the fridge as well. They turned out pretty tasty!!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u>Strawberry Blueberry Streusel Muffins</u></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><span style="font-size: small;">Muffin: </span></u></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1 1/2 Cups flour</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">3/4 Cups Splenda </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1/2 Teaspoon salt</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">2 Teaspoons baking powder</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1/3 Cup vegetable oil</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1 Egg</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">Approx. 1/3 Cup 1% Milk</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1 Cup blueberries</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1/4 Cup diced strawberries</span><br />
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<u><span style="font-size: small;">Streusel:</span></u><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1/4 Cup Splenda</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">2 Tablespoons & 2 Teaspoons flour</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">2 Tablespoons butter, cubed</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">3/4 Teaspoons cinnamon</span><br />
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In a medium mixing bowl, combine flour, Splenda, salt and baking powder. Pour vegetable oil and egg into 1 cup measuring cup, then fill the measuring cup the rest of the way with milk. Add this to the flour mixture and stir until combined. Fold in blueberries and diced strawberries (you want fairly small pieces of strawberries).<br />
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Fill 8 muffin cups to the top with batter.<br />
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For the topping, mix all ingredients in a small bowl with a fork until crumbly. Sprinkle over top of batter.<br />
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Bake muffins at 400 for 20-25 minutes. Once muffins are done, cool until touchable, then move to wire rack until completely cooled.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmJ3EGF10HTc3mSRmVQ50Ht1EZGZyZ4nk_TOnPuYYMZX-IeEeRZZKycm5A8R2IXDSA_yrjDzNQMkV9QpJLQyz7APp3P34zhY4BpVoYOotb168V0H-2Yx0ggyG99-C6U87w61HyInUoFhYT/s1600/Strawberry-Blueberry+Streusel+Muffins.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmJ3EGF10HTc3mSRmVQ50Ht1EZGZyZ4nk_TOnPuYYMZX-IeEeRZZKycm5A8R2IXDSA_yrjDzNQMkV9QpJLQyz7APp3P34zhY4BpVoYOotb168V0H-2Yx0ggyG99-C6U87w61HyInUoFhYT/s640/Strawberry-Blueberry+Streusel+Muffins.png" width="448" /></a></div>
<br />Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-1748601996360815422012-08-20T14:09:00.001-07:002012-08-22T14:53:20.594-07:00Blueberry CheesecakeIt has been awhile! I have not been doing much cooking or been very crafty lately. Instead my focus has been on my camera and developing my photography. However, this weekend we had family over for a BBQ and we needed to have some dessert of course!<br />
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I was a little nervous to try making cheesecake....it was a first. After baking it, I was even more nervous as the top did not look like I expected. Instead of being smooth and silky like you normally see in a restaurant, it was had a crackled look. I have a bad habit of always licking the beaters when I am done mixing up something tasty, so I knew it probably tasted fine. But I knew I wanted something to cover the top.<br />
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I found a recipe for a blueberry topping that sounded tasty, so I decided to give it a try.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPgf1vajjSavDWJ3xDVdG69r6hFAethIF9yQxHEKuV6EKnvygb_BY24jYbRHilT0qmoCOwnfXMdk3y_MbzclULO33UYhYkPsI70KaPh6s_23pfrn9VnbCibp9L9Natz3UWSoSqIBrwVcDW/s1600/Blueberry+Cheesecake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPgf1vajjSavDWJ3xDVdG69r6hFAethIF9yQxHEKuV6EKnvygb_BY24jYbRHilT0qmoCOwnfXMdk3y_MbzclULO33UYhYkPsI70KaPh6s_23pfrn9VnbCibp9L9Natz3UWSoSqIBrwVcDW/s400/Blueberry+Cheesecake.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Blueberry Cheesecake</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><u>Cheesecake</u>: </span></span><span style="font-size: x-small;">(adapted from Better Homes & Gardens cookbook)</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">1 1/2 Cup crushed graham crackers</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">1 Tablespoon sugar</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">1/2 Teaspoon ground cinnamon</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">1/2 Cup butter, melted</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">3 8-ounce packages fat-free cream cheese, softened</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">1 Cup sugar</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">2 Tablespoons flour</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">1 Teaspoon vanilla</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">1/4 Cup milk</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">3 Eggs, slightly beaten</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Preheat oven to 375 degrees. For the crust, combine graham crackers, 1 tablespoon sugar and cinnamon. Once mixed together, stir in melted butter. Press mixture into the bottom of a springform pan and set it aside.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, remaining sugar, flour and vanilla until combined (you should use an electric mixer). Add milk and continue beating until smooth. Finally, stir in eggs.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Pour the mixture into the crust-lined pan and make for 35-45 minutes. It is done when there is about a 2 1/2 inch area around the edge the appears to be set when gently shaken. Cool on a wire rack for about 15 minutes, then gently loose the edges with a small knife. Cool for another 30 minutes, then remove the sides of the pan and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving. </span> </span><span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><u>Blueberry topping</u>:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">1 Cup fresh blueberries</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1/4 Cup water</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">2 Tablespoons Splenda</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">2 Teaspoons corn starch</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1 Tablespoon lemon juice </span><br />
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In a small saucepan, heat water, Splenda, corn starch and lemon juice. Heat and stir until mixture thickens, then add blueberries. Continue to heat until blueberries soften and mixture begins to bubble.<br />
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Cool mixture in refrigerator until chilled, then spread over top of cheesecake.<br />
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Fortunately - despite the look of the cake when it came out of the oven, it actually turned out pretty good. My family members were impressed and that is all that matters!!Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-53389402141870598682012-06-24T13:30:00.001-07:002012-08-22T14:53:40.041-07:00Cream Cheese Filled Chocolate CupcakesMy latest venture: filled cupcakes. I have never attempted this before . . . but with Tristan's birthday celebration approaching I decided to give it a try. The result: some pretty tasty cupcakes!!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqwns3AvIxKDTMDBjup5wxYxu67BS6sTS_A3TP29nVFK5zTIxi5jqdBxKLEfN6QTl0OhP8ky1Uj-9gB37C2ntbgMqUMBJgY8n8z3XksN6wuuAMfIUdctD2Dgxdut8kY4VOTCh2iB3pNAQt/s1600/DSC_4693.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqwns3AvIxKDTMDBjup5wxYxu67BS6sTS_A3TP29nVFK5zTIxi5jqdBxKLEfN6QTl0OhP8ky1Uj-9gB37C2ntbgMqUMBJgY8n8z3XksN6wuuAMfIUdctD2Dgxdut8kY4VOTCh2iB3pNAQt/s640/DSC_4693.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<u>(Light) Chocolate Cupcakes</u><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">- adapted from Cooking Light magazine</span><br />
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1 cup packed brown sugar<br />
6 tablespoons I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Light<br />
2 large eggs<br />
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour<br />
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa<br />
1 teaspoon baking powder<br />
1/2 teaspoon baking soda<br />
1/2 teaspoon salt<br />
1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk<br />
1 teaspoon vanilla extract<br />
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Preheat your oven to 350. In a large mixing bowl, blend together brown sugar and butter on medium speed for about 2 minutes (or until combined). Add eggs one at a time, blending well after each one. In a separate bowl, combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Slowly add flour mixture to the large bowl containing the sugar mixture, alternating with the buttermilk. You should start and end with the flour mixture. Lastly, add vanilla extract.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2PRf9mxWnEckDCQaR8UDL8K2isXA__jLNI8ZcoXh3XyZxJgxIvthbXBAEGXpnhct1i9QFv6-jUhbfD8yo6KrFDR0kd0WKWni8sRNiS0MwAU1hNiAZRitxvcHqcjsMAmZDlkBOVoVCgkd3/s1600/DSC_4678.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2PRf9mxWnEckDCQaR8UDL8K2isXA__jLNI8ZcoXh3XyZxJgxIvthbXBAEGXpnhct1i9QFv6-jUhbfD8yo6KrFDR0kd0WKWni8sRNiS0MwAU1hNiAZRitxvcHqcjsMAmZDlkBOVoVCgkd3/s320/DSC_4678.JPG" width="214" /></a>Fill cupcake liners 1/2 - 2/3 way full and bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center of cupcakes comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and cool completely on a wire rack.<br />
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<u>Cream Cheese Filling</u><br />
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8 oz. fat-free cream cheese<br />
1 cup powdered sugar<br />
1/4 low-fat milk<br />
1 1/2 - 2 teaspoons vanilla extract<br />
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Combine cream cheese and powdered sugar using handheld or standing mixer. Once thoroughly combined, add milk and vanilla. Texture should be smooth and creamy.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglfWwWrqDig6BT2qHcDd67VE2gSLQ2sXDVDnCedrJfJgcCj5NLTHRzefPxw6_sU_BI9n9hLzMg9qITnzjZzkmtzwgUQ9JMD26juipH_1ouV93rhyphenhyphenM8nFxSfTxOvOJkA-K2EqiF2BDMAw70/s1600/DSC_4679.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglfWwWrqDig6BT2qHcDd67VE2gSLQ2sXDVDnCedrJfJgcCj5NLTHRzefPxw6_sU_BI9n9hLzMg9qITnzjZzkmtzwgUQ9JMD26juipH_1ouV93rhyphenhyphenM8nFxSfTxOvOJkA-K2EqiF2BDMAw70/s320/DSC_4679.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
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To fill cupcakes, cut a cone shaped hole out of the center of the the cupcake using a paring or other small sharp knife.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQNtmMTR28_4bGBe8gp_FXlZ2mCWFuzsp-G7rxCVyo13SQ1qSfKje5r9oUorss4Ax3QCEJbfcf5_VebiJhOmBm7OeJk-ZO3o3AwIrYIpT3vBL5ISzrZ4s6rKk0D2q83KcEbm2EnHUN2UNz/s1600/DSC_4681.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQNtmMTR28_4bGBe8gp_FXlZ2mCWFuzsp-G7rxCVyo13SQ1qSfKje5r9oUorss4Ax3QCEJbfcf5_VebiJhOmBm7OeJk-ZO3o3AwIrYIpT3vBL5ISzrZ4s6rKk0D2q83KcEbm2EnHUN2UNz/s320/DSC_4681.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Do not toss out the pieces that you cut out. You will still need them after filing the cupcakes.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc8AY0zm0CgY1zPIc_fy7BW6m7vBvZeRHbj_lrnl1hVvIo5DOdYE9wlmF0VaAI7N2VwPHn1Ksb6rz12CjFzdcRS5l7b0k17f24LU0mYxfmjKvsYE6xiYDJd9-PYlwJNAoRY0Ve8w3QFhvN/s1600/DSC_4685.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc8AY0zm0CgY1zPIc_fy7BW6m7vBvZeRHbj_lrnl1hVvIo5DOdYE9wlmF0VaAI7N2VwPHn1Ksb6rz12CjFzdcRS5l7b0k17f24LU0mYxfmjKvsYE6xiYDJd9-PYlwJNAoRY0Ve8w3QFhvN/s320/DSC_4685.JPG" width="320" /> </a></div>
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Fill either a piping bag or Ziploc with the cream cheese filling. I
just used a Ziploc and it worked great. After cutting a small whole in
one corner of the bag, slowly fill the holes you cut in the cupcakes. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhScJhtZra6jaHO2MPC3xOcOpoZ0siNtoKjAioj-We1mhaxhPsTBjEGa83lvN9wPTyevmCtAp_Lr3rCueqLN7BL_pZwbtkQ2-NrRuVOIvC1kkX1iZLjodJY6_71JQb1Zzp6o0Y9_P6z6iyB/s1600/DSC_4687.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhScJhtZra6jaHO2MPC3xOcOpoZ0siNtoKjAioj-We1mhaxhPsTBjEGa83lvN9wPTyevmCtAp_Lr3rCueqLN7BL_pZwbtkQ2-NrRuVOIvC1kkX1iZLjodJY6_71JQb1Zzp6o0Y9_P6z6iyB/s400/DSC_4687.JPG" width="267" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgidZ24kDteqWdlR9M9aXf_pWQ6JZ4n5wiHCEh1UNF8I9WXPHx3LRb9BWD1BTRiyfEav2FGcOGZad52HVD4U5npIe_ediP_wfVXs8Z8t3DCo0xqKDDar510N4oV7xD0lmtQX73i6LJi1lY-/s1600/DSC_4688.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgidZ24kDteqWdlR9M9aXf_pWQ6JZ4n5wiHCEh1UNF8I9WXPHx3LRb9BWD1BTRiyfEav2FGcOGZad52HVD4U5npIe_ediP_wfVXs8Z8t3DCo0xqKDDar510N4oV7xD0lmtQX73i6LJi1lY-/s320/DSC_4688.JPG" width="320" /></a> Try not to fill the cupcakes all the way to the top, or the filling will end up squeezing out when you replace the top like this: </div>
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Once you have filled all of the cupcakes, cut the cone off of the chunk that you cut out so that you have a round, flat piece to plug the top.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGIaMTu3RuH0BlFG0wNAJP0t_3airQqU1swkIIEVQ6n-RtRTWQe8C5FzQ6jzZrsG0EMcnL3TxkAcUKPFQNjUnofOGMgZ4TB6V8EDSpoCwlhGgqghtmaDb59rdLMhkNjH81XU5dSC3n66iw/s1600/DSC_4690.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGIaMTu3RuH0BlFG0wNAJP0t_3airQqU1swkIIEVQ6n-RtRTWQe8C5FzQ6jzZrsG0EMcnL3TxkAcUKPFQNjUnofOGMgZ4TB6V8EDSpoCwlhGgqghtmaDb59rdLMhkNjH81XU5dSC3n66iw/s400/DSC_4690.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<u>Buttercream Frosting</u><br />
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1 cup unsalted butter, softened (not melted)</div>
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3-4 cups powdered sugar</div>
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2-4 tablespoons low-fat milk </div>
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1 tablespoon vanilla</div>
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Warning: for this frosting, be sure to use real butter. I tried substituting the "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter" the first time around and it did not work.</div>
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Cream the butter until smooth before adding the powdered sugar. Be sure to keep your mixer on low when adding the powdered sugar, or it will make a HUGE mess!! You can start with 3 cups of powdered sugar and 2 tablespoons of milk. Then, add additional powdered sugar or milk to thicken or thin it out to your liking. I used 4 cups of sugar and 2 tablespoons of milk for a fairly thick, stiff frosting.</div>
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The frosting with have a creamy, off-white color following this recipe. I knew I wanted a blue frosting so I just added a few drops of blue and green food coloring until I got the color I wanted. You can either using a piping bag to decorate the tops of the cupcakes, or just spread the frosting with a spatula. I have a cookie press that has frosting tips so that was my choice for applying the frosting. </div>
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You will want to keep this in an airtight container. I also keep mine refrigerated, but it probably isn't necessary.</div>
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Enjoy!! </div>
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Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-15085239366534633682012-06-21T22:27:00.000-07:002012-06-21T22:27:23.054-07:00Doing some revamping (part 3)Finally: the last part of this little mini-series! I have been trying to juggle this and my other blog I recently started, in addition to all of the other tasks that come up throughout the day. <a href="http://www.myminds-lens.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">My Mind's Lens</a> focuses on my recent ventures into photography. I am hoping to showcase some of my work, as well as hopefully provide some tips, suggestions, and inspiration.<br />
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To complete my most recent mantel, I revamped a cheap vase I had in the closet. I have a tendency of picking up vases at the Dollar Store or Ikea. The result - a variety of vases filling my storage closet, half of which are very similar or even identical. So I decided to use one of the vases that I had doubles of and give it a little facelift!<br />
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All you need for this project is a vase, some jute and a hot glue gun. The jute I used was the natural colored 0.45 lb weight. You can use various colors or weights to create your own style.<br />
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This was a little bit time consuming, but really easy and the end result was well worth it. It is the type of thing that you can sit down with a glass of wine, turn on a movie, and your hands kind of fine their way while you relax!<br />
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I started at the bottom of the vase with a dot of hot glue. After attaching the end of the jute, I wrapped it around the vase, making sure to keep it tight as I wrapped it around, as well as keeping each new loop around the vase as close to the lower one as possible. You want to cover as much of the vase as possible.<br />
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For the most part, this really doesn't take much glue. I would use a dot of hot glue just every so often - maybe every 5-10 rows. Once you get to the top, just tuck the end a little bit and use a final dab of glue. Here is the end result:<br />
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To finish it off, I tossed a fabric flower in the vase. It really pulled everything together!<br />
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<br />Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-26563041358270317342012-06-14T21:09:00.001-07:002012-06-14T21:10:03.249-07:00Doing some revamping (part 2)After seeing many many DIY projects that people have posted on blogs and Pinterest where they have "revamped" old picture frames, I wanted to try something for myself. I ventured to Goodwill to try to find a cheap old frame that I could fix up. At first I was disappointed to not find what I was looking for. But then I found this:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB36r06A9LuPh4tOrAKDAhuO6VhI_Q-tiC1OYXMyrSGl1JF1h8aLPOruReIJSojabaJnLe0YOrOiRlFc2BVhGH_OYl6SoEZuCQFZP_XfkikJpfvOqca0f5cPPDWhkd5nyRs4WIRJOQlDEb/s1600/DSC_3973.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB36r06A9LuPh4tOrAKDAhuO6VhI_Q-tiC1OYXMyrSGl1JF1h8aLPOruReIJSojabaJnLe0YOrOiRlFc2BVhGH_OYl6SoEZuCQFZP_XfkikJpfvOqca0f5cPPDWhkd5nyRs4WIRJOQlDEb/s320/DSC_3973.JPG" width="214" /></a><br />
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This mirror was only $10 and the glass itself was in perfect shape. The other supplies I needed to pick up were some sand paper, my paint choices, and some crackle medium (you can find this with the acrylic paint). You will want to pick two paint colors that are contrasting for this to work right.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJlWkG1NFejd0syJW1caB0ZbPJa3Qwze1NAWAYso6GnNUVngTTpBp8UdP51nQ2PZG-TG-oqNuMJhtTh_c6jwGwGL1suFdbu1C_pt_C-y7B_muYn0E06cLATlIrHpQhYO3dD53mWj5p-Mj3/s1600/DSC_3974.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJlWkG1NFejd0syJW1caB0ZbPJa3Qwze1NAWAYso6GnNUVngTTpBp8UdP51nQ2PZG-TG-oqNuMJhtTh_c6jwGwGL1suFdbu1C_pt_C-y7B_muYn0E06cLATlIrHpQhYO3dD53mWj5p-Mj3/s320/DSC_3974.JPG" width="214" /></a>To start, I removed the glass so I just had the empty frame and sanded off as much of the old paint as I could. Because there were a lot of ridges in the frame, it was hard to get all of it off, but that was fine. Once it was sanded down and the dust wiped off, I started with the paint. My first paint was a brick red acrylic. You will want a really solid base coat - so I did two layers, letting it dry in between.<br />
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After the base coat was completely dried, I applied the crackle medium. This will help the top layer to crackle when applied, allowing the base coat to break through. Once the crackle medium was dried, I applied the contrasting color. You only want to put down a real thin layer for this to work. I didn't even completely cover the base with my gray top coat. If the crackle medium doesn't let as much of the base color through as you would like, you can gently sand it down a little more until it is to your liking.<br />
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This is a small portion of the finished product. Once the frame was completely dry, I replaced the glass and here is what it looks like now:</div>
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<br />Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-50894468582215805812012-06-07T19:44:00.001-07:002012-06-07T19:44:56.939-07:00Doing some revamping (part 1)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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As promised, here is my refreshed mantel. It gets moved around a little every couple of days as I think of different arrangements to try. But hidden here are a few of my latest projects. <br />
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For these projects, I tried to minimize the additional supplies I would need to purchase and mostly tried to find things around the house to use. I think the most that I spent on the three projects combined was probably roughly $20.<br />
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I am going to work backwards a little bit and start with the most recent: the burst of wine corks. Now, I have to admit, I haven't quite completed it yet. In my china cabinet is a vase that holds all of the wine corks that have been popped in our house. It looked like a lot to me, but it turns out it wasn't quite enough. I will have to slowly add to it as our collection is regrown.<br />
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For this project, you will need a hot glue gun, a fairly sharp knife, a 2 1/2 inch Styrofoam ball, and based on my progress so far roughly 60-70 wine corks.<br />
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To start the base, simply glue the corks to the ball as close together as possible. I quickly found that because of the angles that were created as I glued the corks around the edges of the ball, there were large gaps that would need to be filled in. This is where the knife comes in.<br />
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You will need to cut angles into some of the corks in order to get them to fit in between the base layer. For me, every cut was different - I tried to stagger the heights a little just to give it more texture. <br />
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It seemed to work best to do small sections at a time. I just did little patches of the base, filled it in, then moved on to the next section. I tried to make each section look original by mixing up the brands, using various heights and alternating between which end of the cork was sticking out. I also threw in a couple of champagne corks for fun.<br />
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Here is a close up of what mine looks like at this point:<br />
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If anyone comes up with any twists on this - I would love for you to share!!<br />
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</div>Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-73057486339962995102012-06-07T11:57:00.002-07:002012-06-07T11:59:01.540-07:00The Calm After the StormWell it has been awhile! A couple of months to be exact. After practically living in my office for weeks on end while tax season was in full swing, I just did not have the energy to start writing again. I think that after a little break, I am ready now, though. I did have time during my little sabbatical to work on a few projects that are soon to come.<br />
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The thing I have been focusing on lately, though, is developing my photography skills. I was fortunate to be able to attend a photography seminar at the end of April where they went into a lot of detail about utilizing manual mode on your camera and how the different settings work together to get the right exposure in your pictures. It has been so much fun to experiment with the different settings and go out to try to find new subjects to work with.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE7Ah0Mi9xH7pmp80eW8VUiR8_Zf3Xs7glJYEZUsXXpJ-fp36LzP_FhBi8WG6RtxgIAVYcopb_cuCQlBNTK-p1WcAH-DZ6Hi12VZieu7IkdnPZIfrrgkTAurPJwlK3BLKIY6SfB2AXX_1f/s1600/contender-08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE7Ah0Mi9xH7pmp80eW8VUiR8_Zf3Xs7glJYEZUsXXpJ-fp36LzP_FhBi8WG6RtxgIAVYcopb_cuCQlBNTK-p1WcAH-DZ6Hi12VZieu7IkdnPZIfrrgkTAurPJwlK3BLKIY6SfB2AXX_1f/s320/contender-08.jpg" width="320" /></a>So far, I have been focusing on aspects of nature, as well as older buildings, in my photos. Eventually, I may venture into portrait photography as well. As part of the class I attended, I received some free prints from an online business called <a href="http://www.oneclickpix.com/" target="_blank">One Click Pix</a>. Little did I know, they run a monthly photo contest where their employees pick a few pictures from the ones that are submitted for printing and post them on their website. People then go online and can vote on the selected photos. I was surprised to receive an email from the organization asking if they could include this photo in the contest. <br />
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If you click on the following link, you can vote for my photo: <a href="http://www.oneclickpix.com/picture-month-contenders-june-2012#%21prettyPhoto" target="_blank">http://www.oneclickpix.com/picture-month-contenders-june-2012#!prettyPhoto</a><br />
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The winning photo will be featured on the organization's home page for the remainder of the month. Whether or not my photo wins, I am pretty excited to just get my work out there.<br />
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The prints from One Click Pix were really great quality. Their prices are decent and they have a ton of different products to choose from, in addition to all the standard prints that you can get elsewhere. Anything from prints on canvas to collages to white erase boards with your photo as the background are available. They are pretty fast too. I had my photos in less than a week from when I ordered. They just might be my new first choice for prints! <br />
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If you are interested in enhancing your photography skills, Aimee at <a href="http://www.itsoverflowing.com/" target="_blank">It's Overflowing </a>has some great tutorials on photography and getting the most out of your pictures. I would definitely encourage you to go check out some of her articles: <a href="http://www.itsoverflowing.com/p/photography_01.html" target="_blank">http://www.itsoverflowing.com/p/photography_01.html</a><br />
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Soon to come - my redesigned mantel and some fun and easy craft ideas to spruce up items you may already have around the house. <br />
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<br />Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-57848368806204608752012-03-11T20:41:00.000-07:002012-03-11T20:42:28.694-07:00March Mantel, Part 2I know I promised to post the rest of my latest mantel project. This week has flown by and it feels as though I haven't been home at all (probably because I haven't been!). I did find time last weekend to put together a fun little banner to hang under our mantel, though.<br />
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Recently I have decided that I want to learn how to sew and knit. Who knows when I will actually invest in a sewing machine, though. I will say, that if you know how to sew, it might make this project a little bit easier. My way worked, but it was slightly frustrating at times.<br />
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I started by measuring out a piece of twine long enough to reach the span of the mantle, with a little extra room for slack. Although I DON'T sew, I had some scraps of three different fabrics that I've been holding on to from some wall art I made with my sisters a couple of years ago. They all had a black and white base, one had hints of green, one of beige and the last fabric had orange and pink accents. I was pretty excited when I realized I finally had a use for some of the scraps since they would tie into the other colors I had already used.<br />
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Using the paper cutter I have for scrapbooking (I had no clue that it worked for fabric, too - what a great surprise!), I cut 13 triangles out of the fabric, alternating the patterns so that I would end up with the following design: (b=beige, o=orange, g=green) b-o-g-o x 3, ending with a final beige triangle.<br />
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The next step is where a sewing machine may come in handy. My original plan was to just clip the fabric triangles to the twine using clothes pins. I only had the full-sized pins, though, and they were so heavy that they wouldn't stay upright. Plan B was using fabric glue. I folded over the top edge of the triangle (assuming the triangle is upside down), and used three dots of glue to attach the edge to the back, creating a pocket to thread the twine through.<br />
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Once they were all threaded on, I hung the banner, spaced out all of the triangles, and finished it off by tying on additional scraps in simple knots in between some of the triangles as an accent.<br />
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Start to finish, it probably took me about an hour to pull this together. It doesn't take much fabric if you have to go buy it - but is also a great use for any scraps you have left over.Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-37881905944793627262012-03-05T23:50:00.000-08:002012-03-05T23:50:05.896-08:00Lots of numbers, little sleep...That has been my life these last two weeks that I have been absent from writing. Well, it feels that way anyways. My husband would probably laugh and say "yeah, right", as it has been a struggle for me to get up in the mornings lately. I'm working on becoming a morning person - it's not easy, though!<br />
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However, the part about lots of numbers? Very true! My goal for this week is to work somewhere between 60 and 70 hours. We will see. The nice thing is, it really makes the weeks go by quickly. Before I know it, it will be time for birthdays, anniversaries, and sunshine!!<br />
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I've been trying to take advantage of my few hours at home to be productive. Amazingly, I managed to get my Valentine's Day decorations down by the end of the month, and put together a new mantle for the month of March. My goal was to utilize items that I already had at home as much as possible. These included:<br />
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<u>Green silicone cupcake holders</u><br />
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<u>Glass vases, fabric flowers and picture frame</u><br />
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<u> And a square mirror</u><br />
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I did pick up the pink vase filler and the green candles at Ikea. Also - thank you to <a href="http://anightowlblog.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">A Night Owl</a> for the great Irish blessing printable. In order to accent the pink vase filler and even out the coloring, I decided to reuse the pink vase I had painted for Valentines Day. It is close to the same shade as some of the other pinks and balanced out the overall look.<br />
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I do have a little bit more to add (still to come). If anybody finds other great "Spring Time Mantels", I'd love for you to share. I'm always looking for inspiration and love to shine a light on fellow bloggers.<br />
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Well, it's off to bed in this house! The morning is quickly approaching, I am afraid. My goal: get up early enough to venture to the gym before work (which means 5 or 5:30)!!Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-81347992909882279542012-02-22T23:29:00.000-08:002012-08-22T14:54:11.361-07:00Don't Forget the Cherry on Top!!My love for sweets has been making my attempt to live a healthier lifestyle a challenge. So when I discovered this recipe last weekend, I was thrilled. Not only is it not horribly bad for you - but it is probably one of the easiest recipes that I have ever made.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><i><b>Diet Cherry 7up Cupcakes</b></i></u></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">1 box white cake mix</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1 can Diet Cherry 7up</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1 egg</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Mix all ingredients in a medium bowl. Be careful when you pour in the soda, mine fizzed up quite a bit. Once thoroughly combined, pour into cupcake liners, filling to about 2/3 full. </span>Bake for 15 minutes.<br />
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Before serving, top with whipped cream and a cherry! I just bought a set of silicone mini-cupcake liners, which was inspiration for finding this recipe in the first place. The recipe filled 24 of the mini cupcakes and 9 regular sized cupcakes. It should make 16-24 regular sized cupcakes.<br />
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Make sure to wait until right before serving to top the cupcakes. I made some up ahead of time and even though I refrigerated them, the whipped cream melted. They still tasted heavenly, but weren't very presentable.<br />
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The large cupcakes are only 2 points+. 2 of the smaller cupcakes are probably 1 points+. Enjoy!!Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-69517947990520303612012-02-19T20:03:00.000-08:002012-08-22T14:54:46.046-07:00Easy snack food!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Last night we had the opportunity to go spend the evening with some friends, as well as my sister-in-law and her boyfriend. I haven't laughed that hard in a really long time - my cheekbones actually hurt on the way home. It was nice to be able to spend time with friends even though work has been picking up.<br />
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I also got a chance to be in my kitchen a little bit yesterday afternoon! When I was younger, I remember having frozen grapes for a snack during the summer. The other day, while surfing Pinterest, I saw this idea to use skewers to freeze the grapes. Grapes were on sale yesterday so I decided to try it. You can get about 1/2 a cup of grapes onto a skewer and I think I was about to make 8 or 9 of them out of one bag.<br />
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I used red seedless grapes because I prefer the sweeter flavor. Green grapes would probably be really good too, though.<br />
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If you have kids - this is a great way to have quick snacks that are ready to serve. "Don't play with your food" doesn't apply here!!<br />
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They are also a great alternative to sugary popsicles or ice cream. Just grab a skewer and you have a single serving of grapes all ready to go!<br />
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<br />Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-13044855243958280452012-02-18T16:14:00.000-08:002012-02-18T16:15:24.952-08:00Valentine's DayTristan and I decided to stay home for Valentine's Day this year. Well, I decided. I wanted to make a nice dinner and just relax at home. It has been a long time since I have made a big dinner so it was a lot of fun. We had Cilantro Lime Shrimp, roasted potato salad, salad and rolls. However - it was kind of tricky getting everything to stay warm and be done at about the same time. Because there was so much going on, I didn't really have time to make notes about the recipes or take any pictures. I did get some good ones of dessert, though!! (More of that to come...)<br />
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One thing I realized while prepping to make dinner, is that I will never again buy raw shrimp that has not be deveined! I had never bought it before so I didn't really know what I was getting myself into. It turned out to be such a pain, though! Like I said - <b>NEVER AGAIN</b>!<br />
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For dessert, we put the fondue pot we got for our wedding to use. We hadn't had an opportunity to use it yet - so I was pretty excited.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i><u><b>Chocolate Fondue</b></u></i></span><br />
24 ounces milk chocolate chips<br />
1 1/2 cups fat-free half & half<br />
2 teaspoons vanilla<br />
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Melt ingredients together in fondue pot, set to about 300 degrees. Stir to keep the chocolate from sticking to the bottom.<br />
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We had marshmallows, sliced fruit and french vanilla cake cubes (dyed pink for V-Day, of course!). I think the strawberries and bananas were my favorite - but it was all REALLY good. The chocolate turned out pretty sweet, so I think the fruit helped cut the richness a bit.<br />
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I didn't realize how much fondue this would make. There was a lot of chocolate left over. We actually froze the leftovers and, oddly, the mixture didn't freeze solid like I expected. It got much thicker and really cold - but not hard. It worked out well though - it's the perfect dip for apples!!<br />
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My final Valentine's Day project for this year is to make a card for my husband. I am pretty impressed at all the use I got out of the 8 or 10 pieces of scrapbook paper I bought! I know I've mentioned it before, but if you haven't checked out Echo Park's paper collections - you <u><b>MUST</b></u>....I love them!<br />
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This sheet that I got had a bunch of little individual "tags" that you could cut apart - really cool.</div>
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Another one of my favorite products - Distress Ink:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0H8X4hankCJ4A9rnJmYe6K4C_mH2UklKY9VXQ-zkz3N5P4GQI_FxrQIgC1EC7kvbt-H0V_2hzjADzm5WnMuzyqg3OrTGnCIfIu9QP5dVecm0Ex3ge7-G8pJ12XJfwH88MG7yoz4-nCzRo/s1600/DSC_3366.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0H8X4hankCJ4A9rnJmYe6K4C_mH2UklKY9VXQ-zkz3N5P4GQI_FxrQIgC1EC7kvbt-H0V_2hzjADzm5WnMuzyqg3OrTGnCIfIu9QP5dVecm0Ex3ge7-G8pJ12XJfwH88MG7yoz4-nCzRo/s400/DSC_3366.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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It gives your stamping a really neat, older look. I used this to stamp the front of the card</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh41vbpL_i6aMmdfFNoGi9fMYQPhFFcAZG_4mWsnlvUKeT6fRUGOxQ_hf239MYJC_gzZR-iy-TlnLs-JdAuXgYQ1Dp76vYoTYHX0QH1mjdp-Pgm4c6Thyphenhyphen-YlKpbIamhXSUZifKV5wLoaCQt/s1600/DSC_3371.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh41vbpL_i6aMmdfFNoGi9fMYQPhFFcAZG_4mWsnlvUKeT6fRUGOxQ_hf239MYJC_gzZR-iy-TlnLs-JdAuXgYQ1Dp76vYoTYHX0QH1mjdp-Pgm4c6Thyphenhyphen-YlKpbIamhXSUZifKV5wLoaCQt/s320/DSC_3371.JPG" width="214" /></a>Here are a few other pictures of the final product. I wanted to give it a kind of "worn" look - some new techniques I am experimenting with. I focused on torn edges for this project.</div>
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I HOPE YOU ALL HAD A WONDERFUL VALENTINE'S DAY WITH FRIENDS AND FAMILY.<br />
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LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK!!Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-20417137756322579102012-02-16T21:53:00.000-08:002012-08-22T14:55:03.665-07:00Tortellini SoupThis week has literally flown by. I cannot believe tomorrow is Friday already. This is the great thing about busy season - somehow the more hours I spend at the office, the quicker the days pass. It's going to be April 15th in no time!<br />
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Unfortunately, the longer hours mean less time to spend here. But I am trying! This also means that I am about a week behind on my latest cooking! This tortellini soup turned out really tasty. Unfortunately the leftovers didn't really remain soup. I'm not sure if we just ate most of the "soupy" part in the first sitting, or if some of the liquid evaporated somewhat - but the leftovers were more like some kind of pasta casserole. They were still really good though with a lot of flavor.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxEx51cprLcLBA0vpR7ZvNcw1rSMuaVxedt3O6gqvwR_sDm_G90xHquCvusnmjv7IWFOZ2yO2ly8SR092q7AUONUyfnoMM5t2Odd-KlHcCqgw2Rx8vO3p-L8cGNPywJdi7z553tBjP-uCG/s1600/DSC_3380.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxEx51cprLcLBA0vpR7ZvNcw1rSMuaVxedt3O6gqvwR_sDm_G90xHquCvusnmjv7IWFOZ2yO2ly8SR092q7AUONUyfnoMM5t2Odd-KlHcCqgw2Rx8vO3p-L8cGNPywJdi7z553tBjP-uCG/s400/DSC_3380.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<u><span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>Tortellini Soup</i></b></span></u><br />
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1 pound ground turkey<br />
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning<br />
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder<br />
1 1/2 teaspoon fennel<br />
3 cups pasta sauce<br />
1 1/2 cup water<br />
2 1/2 cups fat-free half & half<br />
20 ounces fresh cheese-stuffed tortellini<br />
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil<br />
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Start by mixing the seasonings into the ground turkey in a small bowl. Then transfer to a warm pan and brown. Once browned, drain and transfer to a medium sized pot (I think I used a 3 quart pot and it worked fine).<br />
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Add the pasta sauce, water and half & half and bring to a boil. After the pot begins to boil, add the tortellini and boil for 10-12 minutes. <br />
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Finish by stirring in basil, salt and pepper.<br />
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To mix it up a little, try using different types of tortellini. Another idea is to add various vegetables. The fun, cheese-stuffed pasta may even get your kids to not notice the veggies!!<br />
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This did turn out to be a little high on the points scale - but not horrible. It came out to 10 points+, definitely doable.Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-40787835618346640222012-02-12T20:39:00.000-08:002012-02-12T20:52:51.113-08:00Nutella Meringues<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNaZIx7zpjDsA-Xh2JwKpINyVHA0cGHskSBeZMTetR19dVlwIc_po6q6EPXiaqYUDIV-5-oi3lgzNeEiogUXwo1jSYFoZ3JwvbuAZS6S9ufb1jjnBwtQGYQ4PbT60xMutkgdAEWGBc-Har/s1600/DSC_3353.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNaZIx7zpjDsA-Xh2JwKpINyVHA0cGHskSBeZMTetR19dVlwIc_po6q6EPXiaqYUDIV-5-oi3lgzNeEiogUXwo1jSYFoZ3JwvbuAZS6S9ufb1jjnBwtQGYQ4PbT60xMutkgdAEWGBc-Har/s640/DSC_3353.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
This last Christmas, I decided I wanted to take advantage of the KitchenAid mixer we got for our wedding. I made dozens and dozens of cookies to bring to both my parents' and Tristan's parents' houses - plus some to share at work. Here are just a few:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPRqq0TedY_CptZABDSKGD19WotHoLqZTHyJ7vtlpNWTPOurISPx8JCppPKpEh2OipFp2UjDvV71UFTN1XTDyvR1xSgdLqEtWTXw6NAh_mmBwGoEg8hkytCIPQCErxS3vVsDxENclo4bg1/s1600/DSC_2830.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPRqq0TedY_CptZABDSKGD19WotHoLqZTHyJ7vtlpNWTPOurISPx8JCppPKpEh2OipFp2UjDvV71UFTN1XTDyvR1xSgdLqEtWTXw6NAh_mmBwGoEg8hkytCIPQCErxS3vVsDxENclo4bg1/s320/DSC_2830.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
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When I was looking for new recipes to try, I found one for peppermint meringues. I hadn't ever made meringues before so I decided to give it a try. The result - pure bliss. They just melt away in your mouth. So when I found the recipe on <a href="http://creampuffsinvenice.ca/" target="_blank">Cream Puffs In Venice</a> for Nutella Meringues, I knew I had to try them. If you haven't made meringues before - do not be intimidated. They look delicate, but they require few ingredients and are actually pretty easy to make.<br />
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<u><b>NUTELLA MERINGUES</b></u><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigN-MNpwTSkWVsXC9pHIBWWR2VbNe7VZzYbdeY8FiB5ZI62J08h2K7C-8VVfcQCk7mSLKv934TdeD-zJ10hu1gCfVNq778V0XqympmSvE0BcGCmkQ0amnpaPiqpnE-UrVYmiP9LmLOnUdb/s1600/DSC_3341.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigN-MNpwTSkWVsXC9pHIBWWR2VbNe7VZzYbdeY8FiB5ZI62J08h2K7C-8VVfcQCk7mSLKv934TdeD-zJ10hu1gCfVNq778V0XqympmSvE0BcGCmkQ0amnpaPiqpnE-UrVYmiP9LmLOnUdb/s320/DSC_3341.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
1/4 cup Nutella<br />
<u><b> </b></u>3 egg whites, at room temperature<br />
dash of Cream of Tartar<br />
dash of salt<br />
1/2 cup, plus 1 tablespoon sugar<br />
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Preheat your oven to 300 degrees. You should have one oven rack on the bottom and one on the top. Start by melting Nutella in microwave at 50% power, stirring every 30 seconds, until melted (about 1 1/2 minutes). Once melted, set aside to cool.<br />
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Using a stand mixer with a whisk attachment, whip egg whites on medium-high until foamy, about 2-3 minutes. Add the cream of tartar and salt and continue to whip until soft peaks form. Next, increase the speed to high and start adding the sugar by the spoonful. Once you have added all the sugar, the mixture should be fairly stiff and firm peaks should form and remain.<br />
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Drop in Nutella and fold in with a spatula. You want the mixture to have a swirled look, so do not over mix.<br />
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Using a couple of spoons, spoon mixture onto baking sheets covered with parchment paper in large drops (I actually ran out of parchment paper and used foil on one of my baking sheets, which worked fine). <br />
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Bake at 300 degrees for 10 minutes. Immediately, lower temperature to 200 degrees and bake for 1 hour. After an hour, the meringues should be dry. If not, continue to bake for up to 20 minutes. Once the meringues are dry, turn the oven off and leave them in the oven as it cools for a couple of hours. The batch made about 32 meringues. They will keep for up to a week if stored in an airtight container. Even better - they are only 1 points+!!<br />
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I am going to have to think of some other ingredients that I can turn into meringues, cause I just can't get enough!! Let me know if you think of some other alternatives. I'd love to hear what you come up with!<br />
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<br />Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-71120589827568210902012-02-08T11:00:00.000-08:002012-02-08T11:03:06.480-08:00Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup with Cheddar BiscuitsThis week I have been trying to take advantage of my evenings at home and cook as much as possible. Each day at work I can feel the hours stretching longer and longer - before long I will probably be there burning the midnight oil.<br />
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A couple of dinners turned out pretty tasty, but not exactly presentable. For example, the black bean burgers last week had a lot of flavor, but they need a little more work. The patties didn't hold together very well. Once I work out the kinks, I will put the recipe up.<br />
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One meal that did come out better than expected was a batch of chicken noodle soup with some cheddar biscuits. The biscuit recipe was supposed to be a knock-off of the Red Lobster cheddar bay biscuits. I'm not sure that they tasted <i>quite</i> the same, but I still could have devoured the whole batch!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">adapted from <a href="http://www.letsdishrecipes.com/" target="_blank">Let's Dish</a></span> </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">2 cups chopped carrots</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">1 cup chopped celery</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">1 cup chopped onion</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">2 tablespoons I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Light</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">6 cups reduced sodium chicken broth</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">16 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast (roughly 2 breasts) </span><i> </i></span><br />
2 cans cream of chicken soup<br />
1 cup low-fat milk<br />
20 ounce package of egg noodles<br />
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1. Cook egg noodles according to package instructions. Drain and set aside. In the meantime, melt butter in a saucepan over medium-high. Add carrots, celery and onion and cook until tender (about 5 minutes).<br />
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2. In a large pot, combine chicken broth and vegetables and bring to a simmer. Add chicken breasts and boil about 12 minutes or chicken is cooked through (I cut mine open part way through to make sure it got done in the middle).<br />
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3. Once chicken is done, remove from the pot and set it aside. Add milk to the pot and return to a boil. While waiting for the soup to boil, shred chicken using 2 forks. Once you have shredded the chicken and the pot is boiling, return the chicken to the pot, along with your noodles.<br />
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4. Cook for about 15 minutes, then add the cream of chicken soup and continue cooking for a few more minutes. Once served, top with a little bit of pepper to taste.<br />
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This recipe made a huge batch of soup! I measured it out to be about 10 cups. We put half of it in a freezer bag to freeze for later. A one cup serving worked out to be 7 points+. Not bad for a hot, filling meal!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Cheddar Bay Biscuits</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Courtesy of <a href="http://www.food.com/" target="_blank">Food.com</a>, with a few tweaks!</span> </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">2 cups Bisquick baking mix</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">3/4 cup cold water</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">3/4 cup shredded low-fat cheddar cheese</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1/4 cup butter</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1/2 teaspoon garlic powder</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Combine Bisquick, water and cheese in a medium sized mixing bowl. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">2. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to 1 inch thick. Cut out biscuits and place on an ungreased baking sheet. I used a heart-shaped cookie cutter for this, but you can use whatever you can find to cut them out.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">3. Melt the butter and spices together. Brush the biscuits with the butter mixture and bake for 8-10 minutes.</span><br />
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My batch gave me about 11 biscuits. But you should be able to get a dozen out of the recipe.<br />
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Considering this <b>IS </b>a buttery bread product, the Weight Watchers points value was not horrible - 3 points+ per biscuit. However, it is hard to eat just one . . . so good luck!!<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-50575427569884182902012-02-04T15:32:00.000-08:002012-08-22T14:55:25.070-07:00Cheesecake Filled Strawberries<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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What is the difference between men and women when they don't feel well? When my husband is sick, he is in bed sleeping most of the day. My dad has always been the same way. To be honest, men are kind of like sick children - only they don't bounce back so quickly. I on the other hand have gone to the gym, washed dishes, and done two loads of laundry, despite being hit by allergies earlier yesterday. <br />
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To top it all off, I put together a yummy treat to bring to our friends' house tomorrow for the Superbowl. Thank you, <a href="http://www.nutmegnanny.com/" target="_blank">Nutmeg Nancy</a> for this yummy recipe!! I did tweak my strawberries a bit, though.<br />
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<i><u>Cheesecake Filled Strawberries</u></i><br />
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2 pounds strawberries<br />
8 oz. fat-free cream cheese, softened<br />
4-5 tablespoons powdered sugar<br />
1 teaspoon vanilla <br />
graham cracker crumbs<br />
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The original recipe called for only 1 pound of large strawberries, but I found 2 pound package at Safeway that was a mix of large and small strawberries. The amount of filling was just enough for the entire 2 pounds.<br />
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After washing your strawberries, cut off the tops. If you want them to stand up, also cut a tiny bit off the bottom. Using a paring knife, hollow out the inside of the strawberries and set the prepped berries aside.<br />
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In a small mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla. Blend until smooth. Using either a piping bag or Ziploc with the corner cut off, fill the strawberries with the mixture. Top by sprinkling with graham cracker crumbs. I actually had some frozen butter cookie crumbs and used those instead.<br />
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Although I made these for the Superbowl tomorrow, I HAD to try at least one - make sure they were edible! Not to brag, but they were delicious! I can't wait to indulge in a few more tomorrow.<br />
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They can be kept in the refrigerator for a day or two. These were so easy to make. I was done and cleaned up in 20, maybe 30 minutes.<br />
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Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4919524453911307911.post-2344140509327857992012-02-03T18:36:00.000-08:002012-02-08T16:19:17.047-08:00Pulling It TogetherDoes anybody else ever have one of those days where all of sudden you realize the only place you want to be is tucked into bed? That was my day today. When my alarm went off at 5 a.m. I noticed I had a bit of a soar throat. By 10 a.m., I was hit head on by allergies. We are talking full-fledged stuffy nose, itchy eyes, scratchy throat.<br />
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To top it off, we have a new employee at work this week. He is fresh out of school and has never worked with taxes. So I had the pleasure of going over his first tax return with him - which meant talking for almost three hours straight, taking a further toll on my throat. Quitting time could not come soon enough!! Fortunately, I am now cuddled up on the couch and just enjoyed a bowl of sugar-free vanilla ice cream.<br />
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Having taken my Benedryl and making a cup of hot tea, now I can do what I really enjoy...RELAX!<br />
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I finally finished preparing all of the elements for my Valentine's Day mantel a couple of days ago. So last night I took the time to set it all up.<br />
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I wanted to develop the mantle around the <a href="http://www.delectably-home.blogspot.com/2012/01/valentines-day-love-decor.html" target="_blank">"Love" plaque</a> I posted. After picking up some some cheap candle holders and a vase from Goodwill, I added some acrylic paint (the vase and candle holders on the right are the same paint that I used for the plaque) to dress them up.<br />
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I needed to help bring out the little bit of of red that is in the plaque. So I took the black arch-shaped candle holder and added some red paint.<br />
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Finally, to finish it off and pull it all together, I added a couple of scraps of paper left over from the plaque and the <a href="http://www.delectably-home.blogspot.com/2012/01/xoxo-more-valentines-day-fun.html" target="_blank">Valentine's Day wreath</a> to a couple of candles and replaced the plain white candles with some Hershey's kisses (with red and pink wrappers, OF COURSE!) in a couple of the customized votive candle holders.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2UDkRbCO-dEL0jHCizBhu79E4JviQiALEBYp2cXekOqX2PZiGQ1Buy48cDtomKq-dfgK7EIupGpLcTyivIjgYl7aL7hcoePPBIzZJ5vpXZluFrEsZHyQunvLlFrwJPSbA_KvNOw8pcEHP/s1600/DSC_3303.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2UDkRbCO-dEL0jHCizBhu79E4JviQiALEBYp2cXekOqX2PZiGQ1Buy48cDtomKq-dfgK7EIupGpLcTyivIjgYl7aL7hcoePPBIzZJ5vpXZluFrEsZHyQunvLlFrwJPSbA_KvNOw8pcEHP/s320/DSC_3303.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiVxgSbKQszOwAhtO9pDmDX_phytOxZ_tj-QozYpCvVEELxTsGm3Xkk8jUGQgJqCA0YTdRFCv5WIM4lty9fJfrb443UYIWxexON3W-3oGI22sfV4e1LqmT4pos_yBu4fiijvvhxoKkYcUl/s1600/DSC_3288.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiVxgSbKQszOwAhtO9pDmDX_phytOxZ_tj-QozYpCvVEELxTsGm3Xkk8jUGQgJqCA0YTdRFCv5WIM4lty9fJfrb443UYIWxexON3W-3oGI22sfV4e1LqmT4pos_yBu4fiijvvhxoKkYcUl/s320/DSC_3288.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6tweA9qyeEQarmNCCyRuR3WmfeiMIOfVoIdWMn376GipncYdqJHDCS_csukNOh4Teaa_IGkoW7r7-I8sWpEKdzi7j1DE_H6iZX-gG3lx0EhrY9EyhjnLOw4ZnqdVfeRv-3tn7XTfNJKpr/s1600/DSC_3311.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6tweA9qyeEQarmNCCyRuR3WmfeiMIOfVoIdWMn376GipncYdqJHDCS_csukNOh4Teaa_IGkoW7r7-I8sWpEKdzi7j1DE_H6iZX-gG3lx0EhrY9EyhjnLOw4ZnqdVfeRv-3tn7XTfNJKpr/s320/DSC_3311.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
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At least while I lounge on the couch, nursing my allergy symptoms, I will have something pretty to look at (when I'm not surfing Pinterest!). Speaking of which, I have a yummy recipe to try from Pinterest. I am planning on bringing it to our friends' house for the Superbowl.<br />
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Stay tuned for more!!<br />
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Also, go check out <a href="http://www.cherishedbliss.com/" target="_blank">"14 Days of Love" at Cherished Bliss</a> for more Valentine's Day ideas. <br />
<a href="http://www.cherishedbliss.com/search/label/14%20Days%20of%20Love/" target="_blank"><img alt="Cherished Bliss" border="0" src="http://i1129.photobucket.com/albums/m504/cherishedbliss/valentinebutton-1.jpg" /></a>
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<br />Kaeleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02528526070264454504noreply@blogger.com0