Wreaths Across America

Last weekend we went to Arlington National Cemetary for Wreaths Across America!  Both my grandparents on my dad's side are buried there.  It looked so pretty with all the wreaths laid out.  

If you've never heard of Wreaths Across America, check it out.  They do a really nice job raising money for wreaths to honor veterans.  

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you all a very merry Christmas!

Peppermint Oreo Truffles

A couple of my coworkers make these delicious truffles so I decided to give them a shot.  I'm not sure if I made them the same way they do but they are so good!!

Ingredients 

1 pkg regular Oreos

1 block cream cheese

1 tsp peppermint extract

1 pkg almond bark (chocolate or vanilla)

A few candy canes crushed

First chop up the Oreos in the food processor until they are finely crushed.

Then mix well with cream cheese and peppermint extract.

Roll this mixture into 1 inch balls and place in the freezer for 10-15 minutes.

Melt almond bark according to package instructions.

Coat each ball with chocolate then place on a parchment lined baking sheet.  

Sprinkle with candy cane pieces. 

Refrigerate until serving.

Ham and Cheese Biscuits

These biscuits were quick and easy to make but also really good!  I got the idea from Shay at Mix & Match Mama.

What you need:

1 can biscuits

3/4 lb ham

8 slices cheddar 

Honey

Cook biscuits according to package instructions.  Best to cook to the lesser side of the time as they will go back in.

While biscuits are hot, slice and layer with 2-3 slices of ham and a piece of cheese.  

Place top of biscuit back on and drizzle the top with a little bit of honey.  

Place back in oven for 5 minutes, until heated through and melty.

These can also be wrapped up individually for breakfast or lunch next day and are good reheated, or even cold!

A Gloomy Day Calls for Chili

My dad's in town and was coming over for dinner tonight.  I had planned to make chicken sausage and veggies and then it was a rainy, gloomy day so I decided on chili instead.  I've shared a couple chili recipes on the blog in the past and thought I would just do a quick recap post.  Tonight I made the meaty chili with only 1 jalapeno.  The nicest thing about this chili (besides that it is delicious) is that it takes less than an hour to make; whereas, most chili takes much longer.   However, if you prefer a chicken chili, the crockpot recipe below is so easy and also reeally good!
Meaty Chili

 Crockpot Chicken Chili

Random Tuesday Thoughts/Laughs

Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th of July!  We are spending the weekend at the lake again this year.  I thought I would share a simple red, white & blue trifle recipe.  This is more of a matter of assembling than cooking for sure.

What you need:

1 angel food cake

1 large package instant vanilla pudding (and ingredients to prepare - 3 C milk) 

1 pkg strawberries

1 pkg blueberries

1 container cool whip

First cut up angel food cake into 1-2 inch squares. I used a store bought cake for simplicity sake but you could make your own.  You could also substitute a pound cake here.  Place cake cubes in the bottom of your trifle bowl until you have a decent sized layer.

Next half strawberries and layer over angel food cake.  

Next layer in prepared instant vanilla pudding.

Top with a layer of blueberries.

Add the final layer of cool whip.

Finish by sprinkling a few strawberries and blueberries on top.

The trifle is best if made the night before so as to allow time for it to really meld together. 

Enjoy!!

Container Garden Update

It's been hot, but things are growing. Yay!

Planting

I that I never posted about my gardening/planter boxes this year.  The pot above was just something I threw together last week for some color on our front porch.  But I planted the boxes back in April and forgot to every post here.

Just a recap, I have 4 raised beds/boxes that Eric made two years ago.  They are sheet metal boxes encased in wood, with drainage holes in the bottom.  They are filled first with pond stone for drainage then dirt.

Box One:  Lettuce.   I planted several varieties of lettuce - a few types of romaine and some black seeded simpson.

Box Two: Peppers.  3 jalapenos, 2 cayenne and 6 small habaneros.

Box Three: Herbs.  Parsley, cilantro, 2 basil plants, rosemary and lemon thyme.  The lemon thyme is leftover from last year, hence why it is HUGE!  I also planted dill in a separate container, not pictured here.

Box Four: Tomatoes.  I planted better boy, roma and cherry tomatoes this year.  One plant of each.

And just for fun, one other little flower I planted to sit on the front porch table.

Low Country Boil

In no way can I claim this recipe, it came straight off of the Old Bay website, but it was good and I thought I would share.  We made this at the lake on Saturday for a group of 7 and had leftovers.  The only things we did differently were to use more shrimp and sausage and Old Bay than the recipe called for.

Ingredients

1 can beer

3/4 C Old Bay

2 T salt

8 large red potatoes cut into chunks

2 large onions cut into wedges

2-3 lbs smoked sausage, cut into 2 inch pieces

8 ears of corn, shucked and halved

4-5 lbs shrimp

Fill large pot 1/3 to 1/2 way full of water.  Add in beer, salt and Old Bay and bring mixture to a boil.

Add potatoes and onions and cook for 8 minutes.

Add sausage and cook for 5 minutes.

Add corn and cook for 7 minutes.

Add shrimp and cook for 4 minutes.

Strain out liquid and pour mixture onto a platter for serving.

Prosciutto and Caramelized Onion Pizza

This recipe was inspired by the Pioneer Woman's  Caramelized Onion and Prosciutto Pizza.  We didn't really follow her recipe, just saw the idea then went from there.  We have made this a few times and it is really good.  Every time it's a little bit different.  We have also added roasted red peppers, crushed red pepper and/or Genoa salami to this pizza to change it up a little.  If you know us at all you know we love our homemade pizzas.

Ingredients 

Pillsbury Pizza Crust - I used classic, Artisan is our favorite but it seems to have disappeared from stores :(

Olive Oil

Red Onion, thinly sliced

1/4 C Brown Sugar

Salt

Prosciutto

Mozzarella, shredded

Bell Peppers, thinly sliced

Basil

First cook pizza dough according to package instructions.  Cook the crust to the lesser side of the time range because the whole thing will be going back in the oven later.

While the crust is cooking you are going to caramelize the onions. Do this by placing your thinly sliced red onion in a skillet with olive oil and brown sugar and cooking until they reduce down quite a bit.

When crust is complete, remove from oven,  brush with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt.

Next dress up your pizza however you choose.  I typically add a light layer of shredded mozzarella, a thin layer of prosciutto and then maybe a small but more cheese, plus caramelized onions and peppers.  Sprinkle with fresh basil. 

Return to oven until cheese is melted.

Aunt Florence's Poundcake

Yesterday I made my Great Aunt Florence's poundcake for my father-in-law's birthday.  Everyone in my family talks about this recipe but I never remember eating it.  It was definitely good, especially the crust part.  I served it with fresh strawberries and homemade whipped cream

Ingredients:

2 sticks unsalted butter 

3 C sugar

3 C flour

1 C heavy whipping cream

6 eggs

1 tsp vanilla 

Add 2 sticks of butter in mixer and mix until creamy.

Add in sugar and mix until well blended.

Add eggs one at a time while continuing to mix.

Add vanilla and mix.

Add flour and cream in alternating portions (1 cup flour, 1/2 C cream, etc).

When well mixed transfer into a buttered and floured tube pan or angel food pan and bake at 325 degrees for approximately 1 hour, 15 min.

If you want to make homemade whipped cream just add about 1.5 C cream to mixed with a couple spoonfuls sugar and a dash of vanilla and mix on highest speed until consistency is that of whipped cream.  It's way better than the canned stuff. 

A Weekend in Asheville, NC

Thursday morning we dropped Layla Jane off at the kennel and we headed to Asheville to meet two of my college friends and their husbands.  We rented a cabin for the weekend through AirBnB just outside of the city.

  Once we were all here we headed into town.  Our first stop was Wedge Brewing Company in the River Arts District. We tried a few beers/ciders and snacked on some food truck pizza.

Next stop, Wicked Weed Brewery.  Again we tried a few beers and then ate dinner in their restaurant.

After dinner we headed back to our cabin  and played a little Cards Against Humanity.

Friday we went and browsed the Grove Park Arcade shops then headed back to the River Arts District to go to 12 Bones Smokehouse for lunch.  This was Eric's one request.  It's a small little building that does not look impressive with a line out the door to order.  We both had ribs and we tried their famous Blueberry Chipotle sauce and the Cheerwine sauce both were awesome!

After lunch we went to Urban Orchard Cider Co and had some cider flights.  I really enjoyed the different cider options.  Eric's favorite was the Hopaleno.

Next stop, the Asheville Pinball Museum.  This place had about 40 pinball machines and old arcade games that you could play + a bar.  You pay $12 and you can play unlimited games all day.  We spent a few hours there.

Once we were all arcaded out, we headed to the South Slope neighborhood to visit Burial Beer Co.  We hung out here for a while to escape a rainy evening, then headed up the hill for dinner at Farm Burger.  Then after dinner we stopped in Hookah Joe's to hang out for a few hours.

Saturday morning we went to Biscuithead for breakfast.  I forgot to take any pics but it was really good.  HUGE biscuits with a butter and jam bar, gravy flights and more.

Next we headed up to Grove Park Inn to check out the view.  It did not disappoint.  We spent several hours here just enjoying the view and having a few drinks in the lobby.

Then we headed back into town and did a little shopping.  We stumbled upon and went to a creperie called Creperie Bouchon.  We had some wine and crepes.  My nutella and berry crepe was so good.  Eric had a crepe called the Jasper with lamb, cheese, red pepper and mushrooms.  Afterwards we went to One World Brewing then Thirsty Monk.

Afterwards we went back to our cabin to change for dinner then headed back to the River Arts District for dinner at The Junction.  We had a really good meat and cheese board appetizer and dinner.  Eric said it was the best chicken fried steak he has had in his life.

Sunday morning we headed home as we had a 6.5 hr drive.  Overall we had a great time and really enjoyed Asheville.  We packed a lot of stuff in but there was still so much to do there.  So many restaurants and breweries were highly recommended.  We will definitely have to go back.