S'more Casserole

Today is a VERY special day. 2 years ago, I walked down the aisle to my forever and became a Mrs. It was the best day of my life and each day only continues to get better. I have been extremely blessed with my husband and his family to now call my own.

Also, today the girls wanted to do a salad/casserole day at work. Since I didn't work, I still agreed to make something. The question was what to make. I knew I had chocolate chunks, giant marshmallows, and Oreos, so as my mind continued to run all I really needed was graham crackers. Chris could totally get those on his way home, right? Right!

Ingredients:
Crushed graham crackers(I used a sleeve and a half)
Marshmallows
1 bag chocolate chunk chips
Oreos
Sprinkles
1/2 cup butter melted

Now, remember that you can be creative with this. You don't have to follow my recipe exactly. Have fun with it!
I used a disposable metal pan for this. Preheat oven to 350. Crush graham crackers and place in bottom of pan. Then, pour melted butter over and mix into the crumbs to create a crust. Place Oreos on top. Then, cut marshallows in thirds and spread across Oreos. Top with the chocolate chunks, and lastly, cut more marshmallows in half and spread them across the chocolate chunks. Toss sprinkles over the top and bake for 10-12 minutes. Then turn on the broiler for 30 seconds to turn the marshmallows golden.

I know this is best served right out of the oven. MMMM!!!!

Zebra Baby Shower Cake

Happy Saturday everyone!

This week I got to make a new recipe, and I have to admit I was pretty nervous about it. I am such a perfectionist, and so when I agreed to make a cake for our charge nurse's surprise baby shower, I knew I had to make something impressive, tasty, and it had to be perfect. Originally, I had seen a pin on Pinterest of making cake balls, and then baking them in cake batter. When you cut the cake, you would see different colored balls. But I had a change of heart on Tuesday(2 days before the shower). I had also seen a post somewhere of making a zebra stripe or rainbow layer cake.

I searched the internet, and it turns out that it is really easy to make. Are you ready?

Ingredients for the cake:
1 box white cake mix(I used vanilla) & ingredients used to make it

Make cake mix according to box. Now, since I wanted to do white and baby blue I halved my batter, but if you want to do more colors separate the batter based on how many different colors you want to use. Spray your cake rounds with non-stick spray and then flour the inside of them.

This next process will take a while, but it is worth it for the outcome. Take 2 tbsp of the first color and put it in the middle of the cake rounds. Next, place 2 tbsp of the next color in the center of the first color. Keep the process going until you are out of batter. This process took me about 35 minutes, and the batter will eventually spread out over the entire bottom of the baking rounds.

Please ignore that it's sideways. I can't get it to turn

 

 

This is how your cake will look when you finish laying the batter. Bake the cake according to box directions. Mine was perfect at 28 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove cakes from pans and allow to cool completely. While it is cooling, you will have time to make your frosting.

Ingredients for homemade buttercream icing:
2 sticks butter softened
1 tsp vanilla
1-2 tbsp heavy whipping cream
3-4 cups powdered sugar

Mix butter on medium until it is whipped and fluffy. Next add vanilla and 1 tbsp whipping cream. After mixing thoroughly, add cup by cup of powdered sugar until you are satisfied with the texture. I added another tbsp of whipping cream between cups 3 and 4 to thin the icing out just a tad. Now you are ready to frost!

After frosting the cake, I had more icing left over, so I added blue food coloring until I was satisfied with the color. Then I used my Wilton decorating tips and bag to add the finishing touches.

I was very pleased with the outcome, and I was praying that it was going to be delicious the next day.

I put the cake in the refrigerator overnight, and at 0640, the cake was in the Women's and Children's classroom ready for our surprise later that day. Our charge nurse was back from her ultrasound about 12, and the floor was buzzing with excitement. We enjoyed a nice lunch with homemade salsa, buffalo chicken dip, fruit, cocktail weenies, croissants, homemade chicken salad, homemade dessert tortilla chips, fresh punch, and probably a couple of other items I can't remember. Our expectant mother was showered with lots of adorable gifts and love from fellow employees, and we were all excited to be a part of her big day. Now all we have to do is wait for our little love to arrive!

The inside of the cake(and the last slice)

I hope you all enjoy this fun idea. What colors will you use?

Make You Loco Coconut Cake

I had this cake a couple of months ago, and I was in heaven! There will be days when I will crave this cake. I hope you all do too :)

Chris and I lead a Supper Club lifegroup on Wednesday nights. One of the ladies that comes made this delicious cake. Last night after I got off of work, we were meeting at Connie and Johnny's house. While the men talked about fishing, the ladies discussed recipes. I HAD to have the coconut recipe, and Connie spilled the beans!!  The secret: letting the cake sit overnight. So of course Chris had to take me to Publix to get the ingredients to make it last night. No I did not stay up all night making a cake :D

Ingredients:
1 box cake mix(Connie used Funfetti the first time. I decided to have a coconut overload. So coconut was my pick). You also need all the ingredients to make the cake
1 larger can of cream of coconut. I believe its $2.69 at Publix
1 medium sized Cool Whip thawed
Shredded coconut

Preheat oven and prepare cake batter according to box. Bake cake. As soon as the cake is complete, pour the can of cream of coconut on top. Let this soak up all night. Spread cool whip over entire cake. I had about a 1/4 inch layer. Sprinkle as much shredded coconut on top as your heart desires.

MMMMM!!! Hello, morning snack

Now, as you can see, I am missing my back half of this piece. Well, that piece actually was already in my tummy because of all of the cream of coconut that was absorbed.

Stuffed Sweet Potatoes/Weekend Getaway

The last couple of days have been amazing! Hopefully good news coming from an OBGYN appt on Friday(I have a follow-up on the 23rd. It's always been a dream of mine to be a mom and we're having some issues. I hope to find out what those are when I go back.) After the appointment was over and I had lots of blood drawn, Chris whisked me away to Chattanooga for a weekend getaway. When we got there Friday afternoon, we checked into our bed and breakfast, The Garden Walk Inn. After getting settled, we headed to Ruby Falls. The exhibit was okay. Both of us agreed, the best parts were learning about the history of it and seeing the actual waterfall. My goodness, it was gorgeous!

Before we left on the trip, I researched places to eat. One of the places I came across was The Acropolis Grill. They bring you fresh bread and homemade cinnamon butter to begin with. I ordered their Caesar salad with homemade dressing, and Chris had their potato soup. For the entree, I had their Farmer's Pie. He had their lamb gyros. Both were delicious! I could eat there every single meal. Dessert was a little different. I had their sugar free Strawberry Patch cake, and Chris had their Tiramisu. His dessert had too much coffee on top. It was definitely not the best one we have ever had. If that was the only bad thing-who cares.

Saturday morning we woke up in time for breakfast which included bacon, cinnamon chocolate chip pancakes, orange juice, and coffee. One word to describe it: heavenly. The room was full of windows and you could watch the squirrels in the garden, observe the beautiful flowers and greens, and admire the vintage furniture. The owners came by the tables and made sure that you were thoroughly taken care of and satisfied. With breakfast as good as that, how can you not be :) After breakfast, we headed into downtown to the Tennessee Aquarium. I knew that it was voted one of the best, so I was super excited! We went through it in about 3 hours, and it was a lot of fun. We both love to learn and observe, so it was like nerd heaven. Outside of the aquarium, there were lots of venders. We had to get goodies to bring home. I am so excited to wear my new badge holder to work tomorrow!! Across the street from the aquarium is Ben and Jerry's. Being an ice cream lover and ALWAYS having it in my freezer growing up, we had to go. The girl behind the counter was awesome! She explained all of the flavors to us, and let us try a sample before choosing anything. It's the little things that make me happy :) After that we went back up Lookout Mountain to Rock City. I was a little unsure. What's so cool about rocks? Boy was I wrong! The scenery was beautiful, and the designers were very creative in the landscaping. We went to Lover's Leap and learned about it's history. Basically it was a Romeo and Juliet story with 2 Native Americans. In one of the trails, there was Fairyland Caverns, and it was full of black lights with sculptures of Mother Goose tales. It was very cool! We had free wine tasting later in our journey through, and Chris got a new leather hat. He's stoked about it.

For dinner, we went to Sing It or Wing It. The menu items are named after famous singers. I thought it was precious. Before 9PM, any age can be in there. If you want to sing karaoke, you pick a song from the binder, give it and your name to the dj, and when its your turn, rock it out. Chris and I didn't sing, but we had so much fun watching everyone else. An older woman got up there and sang Prince's song "You Don't Have to be Rich." Of course she danced with it too, and she was amazing!! I hope after we left she sang more. We went back to Acropolis just to get dessert to go(they have a dessert fridge in the front of the restaurant) and came back to the bed and breakfast. Sunday morning, we got showered and packed and headed to breakfast for the last time. This time, we had a peach french toast bake and sausage. It was slap yo' momma good! I hated to leave, but we had so much fun. I am definitely married to an incredible man. He planned all of this and did an amazing job. I love investing in our marriage.

Here's a couple pictures:

The Lover's Leap Waterfall

My precious hubs and me

Moonshinin' gnomes

The beginning of Fairyland Caverns. There is an actual neighborhood on Lookout Mountain called Fairyland and the street names are fairytale characters i.e. Cinderella, Aladdin, Snow Ride, and Red Riding Hood.

 I had an off day yesterday, and while trying to plan meals, I came across stuffed sweet potatoes. There's the new staple in your kitchen.

Ingredients:
4 medium sized sweet potatoes
1 can black beans washed and drained
1 cup corn-I used fresh corn that I cut off of the cob(4 half ears)
pepper
paprika
cayenne pepper
parsley
cheese

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Wash potatoes and with a knife, poke small holes. Place on baking sheet and bake in oven for an hour. While they are baking, wash and drain the black beans and put them in a mixing bowl. Next, place paper towels in your microwave and put the corn on top. Microwave for 8 minutes. Remove from microwave and let cool. This helps the shuck and strings to come off easier. Once removed, cut the corn off of 2 ears and place in bowl with beans. I didn't measure my spices. I just added until I got the flavor just right.(Everyone has their preferences.) Mix all of the ingredients together. When the sweet potatoes are soft, they can be removed from the oven. Slice and open them like you would a baked potato. Add the corn/bean filling and top with cheese.

It's easy, delicious, healthy, and very filling! I hope you all enjoy this recipe. What different ingredients will you use?

Lawdy Lawdy

I have made so many new recipes lately that it is hard to keep up. So today I say "Who says you can't have cake for breakfast?"

Yesterday was my day off, and boy was it a lovely day to have off. I got to have breakfast with the hubs and our fur babies. I worked out some, went to Wally World for some ingredients, stopped by Hobby Lobby for some material, and went to Hartselle to my MIL's house to make pillow covers. I have to admit I do have a sewing machine that I got from her but I am terrified of it. I am so scared that I'm going to sew my fingers in it. Confession: I sewed 2 pillows and I came out with all 10 fingers attached and unpricked.

My new pillows!

While I was at her house, we made Paula Deen's Lazy Man's Dessert. I saw it on Food Network last week and thought it was time for a try.

Ingredients: 

1 can crushed pineapple

1 can pie filling-she used blueberry. I used blackberry

1 box Butter cake mix

3/4 cup melted butter

crushed nuts(optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray casserole dish with non-stick spray. Pour pineapple, juice and all, into the pan. Layer pie filling on the top. Then, spread the dry cake mix over the filling evenly. Drizzle the melted butter over the entire mix. Lastly, top with crushed nuts. Bake for 40-50 minuted or until the middle of the cake mix is cooked. Remove from the oven and enjoy immediately! This is a dessert from Heaven, and it's EASY!! 

So, when I came home yesterday I had an idea. I had a can of pumpkin and a spice cake mix in  my pantry. We all know how well those go together. Since I am on call right now, I figured I would give this recipe a shot.

Ingredients:

1 large can of pumpkin

1 box spice cake mix

3/.4 cup butter

almond milk-<1/4 cup

crushed nuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray casserole dish with non-stick spray. Pour pumpkin into the casserole dish and pour almond milk into the pumpkin ad stir. I added enough almond milk to thin the pumpkin out. You want the texture to be slightly liquid. Top with the dry spice cake mix. Pour the melted butter on top. Sprinkle crushed nuts over the butter, and bake for 40-45 minutes. Oh my goodness! This one was delicious too!!

  Pumpkin lover's unite!!

I hope you all enjoy these new recipes!! What combinations will you try?

3 in one deal

Happy Saturday, my blog followers!!
My first day off yesterday was wonderful. Chris and I got up and had coffee together-its the little things-and talked about how much Good Friday meant to us. I remember in high school my church would have a mid-day service that I would attend. Sometimes we get so caught up in  our own lives that we forget what a huge sacrifice was made for all of us. Tomorrow we celebrate a risen King.  Death has lost its sting. When we die, we don't have to be afraid because we will soon see our Savior.

For our first recipe, I'm going to share my Butterfinger cake. I made this last Friday for my church's Eggstravaganza cake walk on Saturday. I totally forgot to take a final picture though. So please forgive me :)

Ingredients:
1 cake box mix(I used Butter Pecan)
2 bags mini Butterfingers
4-5 cups powdered sugar
1-2 tsp vanilla
1 8oz cream cheese
1 stick butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare box cake mix as directed. Once mixed thoroughly, crush around 20 Butterfingers and stir into cake mix. Separate between 2 greased cake pans and bake according to box. The cake is complete when a toothpick is inserted and removed clean.

Let cake cool completely. While it is cooling, you can mix together the icing. Cream softened stick of butter and cream cheese together in a mixer. Once fluffy, add in vanilla extract. Mix. Slowly add in the powdered sugar cup by cup. Crush 18 Butterfingers and fold into icing.

You are now ready to ice your cake! Be generous with your icing, and be creative. I decorated the edges and center of my cake with the leftover Butterfinger pieces. I hope you all enjoy this recipe. There is always a first and I believe always a way to improve. Next time, instead of cream cheese, I'm going to use peanut butter.

Recipe #2
Spaghetti Squash bake

I found this idea on Pinterest, and I thought that I would try to expand on it a little more. 

Ingredients:

2 medium Spaghetti Squash

2 medium yellow-orange tomatoes(or of choice)-slice

Ground pepper

1 cup grated mozzarella cheese

Grated Parmesan cheese 

1 jar marinara(I used Publix garden medley)

Preheat oven to 350, and grease a casserole dish. Take both spaghetti squash and poke holes all over. Place one in the microwave for 5 minutes. Remove. While that one is cooling, place the other one in the microwave. While #2 is cooling, cut #1 in half and scrape out the pulp and seeds from the middle. Here comes the fun part! Using a fork scrape the inside out.  The inside starts to string and look like spaghetti noodles. Use about half as the bottom layer. Place tomato slices on top. Sprinkle pepper. Pour enough marinara to cover and top with 1/3 mozzarella and as much Parmesan as your desire. Layer until you have used all of your squash. Top with marinara and cheese. Bake uncovered for 25-35 minutes. 

Recipe #3 

Easter Bark

This recipe is very easy, and you can do it at any time of the year. All you have to do is use ingredients with colors that coordinate to the holiday/event. 

2 boxes White chocolate squares or 1 large Almond bark
1 box Oreos-regular or Spring
1 bag Pretzel m&ms-Pastel colors
1 bag Reese eggs-Pastel colors
1 container spring colored sprinkles

Break 1 1/2 sleeves or oreos. Place the M&M's and Reese's into a bowl separately. This way you  are prepared for when you melt the chocolate.

Put 1 box of chocolate into the microwave for one minute. Remove and stir. Place back into microwave and heat for 30 seconds. Remove and stir. Pour 2/3 onto wax paper and use knife to thin out a layer. Sprinkle candy, Oreos, and sprinkles over chocolate. Using a fork, drizzle remaining chocolate over the candy so that it melds together. Repeat until you have used all of the chocolate. Place into refrigerator until hardened. Break into pieces and you're finished! Easy, quick, and delicious!!

2 Good for Just 1

What a beautiful day today is! I am always amazed at how beautiful our world is. Small purple flowers in the grass. Bold pink bulbs on tree limbs. Birds singing a happy song. Can it get any better?

Last week, I wanted to make something that everyone could enjoy as a treat and not worry about. Last summer, I came across a recipe for a weight watchers pie. It was around my Nanny's birthday, and her favorite pie is key lime. It was perfectly delectable. Since I love easy recipes, I knew this pie would be a great idea.

When I was going through the recipe last year, I didn't know exactly how much yogurt I needed. I got one of the key lime 6 packs,and used 4.

Last week, I made strawberry key lime. My goodness! It was refreshingly light and creamy. Did I mention easy?

Ingredients:
2 containers fat free light strawberry yogurt
2 containers fat free light key lime yogurt
1 container medium sized fat free/lite cool whip
2 lite Keebler graham cracker crusts

In a large bowl, mix together softened cool whip and yogurt. Once creamed together, half the mixture and put into the pie crusts. Place tops onto crusts, seal, and place in freezer to set for around 4 hours.

YUM!!! You can interchange the yogurt with any flavors you want. A recipe cannot get much better than this. I hope you all enjoy! What flavors will you use?