Cayenne Pasta

People.

I have tried to photograph this meal so many times. 

And I just can't capture the deliciousness.

It's not super fancy.

But it is yum yum yummy. 

Quick and easy, too.

Done in the time it takes to cook a pot of pasta.

INGREDIENTS:

Pasta of your choice (we love penne)

1 red bell pepper, julienned or chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

(or 4. or 5. Can you ever have too much garlic???)

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

(Mild enough that my girls' faces don't melt off, but enough that there's a bit of a kick. If you love spice, or if your tastebuds are all dead like my brother-in-law, throw in a bit extra...)

1 c. reduced fat sour cream

3/4 c. chicken broth

3/4 c. grated parmesan cheese

salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

Cook pasta as directed on package; drain.

While the pasta cooks, drizzle some olive oil in a large skillet and saute garlic and cayenne pepper over medium heat for 2-3 minutes.

Stir in sour cream and chicken broth; simmer uncovered for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in parm.

Toss hot pasta with sauce and peppers and season with salt and pepper to taste. OR--if your family has differing taste like mine, let them choose how much sauce and whether or not to include the peppers. 

I don't love bell peppers. So I'm a sauce only kinda girl. My husband loves the bell peppers, so he loads 'em in there. Both of our girls love the peppers, but prefer them on the side.

How will you eat yours?

Awww, SNAP.

Confession: 

My husband made these.

To be fair, I helped dip them in the sugar.

I've got mad skillz.

One day he decided he reeeeeallly wanted ginger snaps, and he got to work. 

Now he's perfected his recipe and his method. 

I request them all the time, and we have been known to "pay" my parents for watching our kiddos with these.

People--these are AMAZING.

No joke. 

I could eat them ALL. DAY. LONG.

And I have.

Today, in fact.

I'll lose that baby weight another day.

*cough*

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup packed brown sugar

3/4 cup shortening

1/4 cup molasses

1 large egg

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp salt

Granulated Sugar

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat oven to 375.

2. Beat brown sugar, shortening, molasses, and egg in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed, or mix with spoon. Stir in remaining ingredients except granulated sugar.

3. Lightly grease cookie sheet with shortening.

4. Shape dough into balls--about 1 inch in diameter. Dip tops into granulated sugar. Place balls, sugared sides up, about 3 inches apart on cookie sheet.

5. Bake 9 to 12 minutes or just until set. Immediately remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. 

Note: If you eat them warm, they will seem slightly undercooked in the middle. But as they cool, you get that wonderful dense and chewy middle, with a firm, not-quite-crunchy outside. And they are even better the next day.

HOLY YUM.

Makes about 2 dozen.

What are you waiting for!?

GO PREHEAT THOSE OVENS!

Ice Cream in a Bag

Did you know that there's a National Ice Cream Day? It's true! It's always the third Sunday in July. Even though my husband has had to give up dairy (also known as "giving up heaven" at our house.) we still celebrate this glorious day every single year! This year I'm thinking of shaking things up a bit. Like literally ShAkInG tHiNgS uP by making ice cream in a bag!

Please ignore the shaggy hair. We have been playing hard!

In each small ziplock bag you'll need:

1 TBLSP Sugar

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 milk, cream or half and half 

(We used cream cause if you're gonna do something, you might as well do it right! Right?!)

In each large ziplock you'll need:

Enough ice to fill the gallon sized bag half way

6 TBSP salt- we used rock salt 

Zip up your pint sized bag and place it inside the larger one... then shake shake shake! We actually turned on some peppy tunes and had a dance party to encourage vigorous shaking. :) It was a blast! You'll be able to tell when your ice cream is done. Ours took about 5 minutes.

What a fun way to entertain the kids AND enjoy a deliciously frozen treat all at the same time! 

Some advice- make sure your small ziplock back is sturdy, or you can even double bag it. If any of the rock salt gets into your ice cream your kids will cry, and they won't believe you when you try to convince them that it's still good it's just sweet AND salty, like when we dip french fries in our frosty at Wendy's, and then they'll cry some more...and then you will cry... and that totally defeats the point. So just save yourself a headache and double bag your ice cream 'kay? 

There are so many flavor options you could do! This time around we just made a nice clean, albeit slightly salty, Vanilla flavor. Next time I think we'll throw some berries in it, and maybe even some chocolate or carmel. Or OREOS! Oh heavens. I am going to need to make this again before National Ice Cream Day... you know... just to practice.  

After all, in a perfect world every day would be National Ice Cream Day. Am I right? 

Click HERE for more fun summer ideas!

Healthier No-Bake Macaroni and Cheese

I have a confession that I am hesitant to reveal.

I don't like mac n' cheese.

That's not 100% accurate--I love mac n' cheese, but only the real from scratch kind.  So I didn't used to eat it a lot.  I didn't like having to use my oven to bake it--it takes forever, and it heats up my house in the summer.

My kids and husband, however, seem to have a penchant for cardboard noodles and plastic cheese (a.k.a. Kraft).  Whenever I would try to make homemade macaroni and cheese, I would get a lot of negative feedback.  "These noodles taste too delicious."  "This cheese doesn't make me feel sick to my stomach." "My dinner doesn't glow neon orange the way I like it too."

When I found this recipe, it was no exception.  But I liked it because it cooks in a skillet.  It's almost as fast as pulling out the blue box!  And it's YUMMY!  So I ignored my kids' whining and kept making it.  But one day, I thought of a way to add some extra orange color in addition to some extra deliciousness: I added some canned yams.  It was good, but a little too sweet.  I tried pumpkin.  Also yummy.  My favorite secret ingredient turned out to be carrots!  They are bright orange, and the flavor blends pretty well.  Baby carrots are so easy to throw into the steamer and have cooked in no time.  Full sized carrots have more nutrition, brighter color, and a stronger flavor (and are cheaper...), so experiment. With a little extra enthusiasm from their parents, my kids were more than willing to pronounce the meal "SUPER DELICIOUS!"

Skillet Macaroni and Cheese

1 3/4 c. uncooked macaroni noodles
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. Italian Seasoning
1/8 tsp. dry mustard powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
2 1/4 c. water
1 T. flour
1 can (12 oz.) evaporated milk
2 c. cheese
Up to 1 cup of orange vegetables, cooked and pureed

In a large skillet, combine noodles, spices, and water.  Cover and bring to a simmer.  Simmer for 20 minutes (Gluten free noodles take about 10, and I don't know about regular wheat ones) until macaroni is tender.  Sprinkle flour over mixture (I use rice flour to keep it GF); blend well.  Stir in evaporated milk and cheese. Simmer until mixture thickens and cheese melts; stir constantly. Mix in cooked & mashed veggies.  Serves 6.


It's a little heavy on sauce, and we like it that way.  But you can try some extra noodles and water and experiment with the noodles to sauce ratio. Either way, it's mmmmmm yummy!

Delicious Buttermilk Syrup

 Lauren and I grew up across the cul-de-sac from a chef who taught my Mom this delicious recipe.  I know my first thought when I hear buttermilk syrup is "HUH?"   Bet let me tell you--this stuff is incredible!  BEWARE: this is not a low-calorie condiment (is syrup a condiment?) so keep yourself from drinking it plain!  My favorite part of this recipe (besides the taste) is that I always have the ingredients hanging around so it's easy to make whenever I run out!

 The Ingredients

Butter, Sugar, Buttermilk (or milk+lemon juice), Baking Soda, and Vanilla

 What if you don't have buttermilk?

Easy peasy.  For my double batch of syrup, I needed 1 cup of buttermilk.  So I took one cup of milk and added 1 Tablespoon of lemon juice.  I mix this part up very first so it has a couple minutes to buttermilk-ify.  (Yeah--it's a word...).  I love this trick--you can use it anywhere you need buttermilk!  You can also use vinegar, but I like the way lemon juice turns out hands down!

Just a Tip:

Use a bigger pan than you think!  Looking at the recipe, you will think a small saucepan will do the trick.  But there is serious bubble-age here-see?  My double batch barely fit in my four quart pot!

Buttermilk Syrup

1/2 cup Butter

1/2 cup Buttermilk (make your own with 1/2 c. Milk and 1/2 Tablespoon Lemon Juice!)

1 cup Sugar

1/2 tsp. Baking Soda

1 tsp. Vanilla

Melt butter in large saucepan (volume of mixture will increase as it boils).  Add buttermilk, sugar, and soda.  Stir well.  Bring to a boil; boil for one minute, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.  Makes about 2 cups.

Savor the Flavors of Summer!

Every year on August 1st, without fail, someone flips the "Back to School" switch in my brain.  Maybe it's the teacher in me, but once August rolls around I always feel a little panicked as the lazy days of summer come to a close. 

Our summer evenings are usually spent lounging in the backyard with family and friends, sipping a cold beverage and watching the kids play in the yard as the sun slowly sets behind the mountains. Our favorite drink this summer has been the non-alcoholic Mojito. (If you've never had a mojito, check out THIS recipe. It'll change your life.) We've had a lot of fun experimenting with different flavors of mojitos over the past few weeks. This one was one of our favorites! 

This drink just embodies everything that is summer. Big juicy raspberries, mint from our garden, and freshly squeezed limes. Mmmmmmmm.... the tastes of summer!

"Gingerly" delicious Pear Crumble

They say that "necessity is the mother of invention" but in our house it often feels like "Mother Hubbard is the mother of invention!" 

My husband recently decided to adopt a vegan lifestyle (I know, I don't get it either). and as his loving and supportive wife, I try my best to take his dietary guidelines in the consideration while I stock the fridge with string cheese and try to disguise the cartons of ice cream hiding in the freezer so he won't be reminded of what he's missing out on. I really do try to cook things he can eat, however when he's working late and won't be home for dinner I bust out the the poultry and diary products! So last night when poor hubby came home from work starving, my leftover creamy chicken enchiladas were of little interest to him.  The pantry was empty of vegan friendly options, and all of our fresh produce had been gobbled up. So I did what any exhausted mommy would do. I sent him digging into the crawl space (also known as the dungeon) to forage through our food storage in search of something that would satisfy his cravings. 

He came up about 15 minutes later (Truly, it's scary down there.) carrying a few jars of pears that I had bottled last year. Yeah, last summer I made the mistake of thinking that if I canned and bottled every bit of produce coming into my home it would make me a better mom- a mistake I will not make again. Turns out it makes me a tired, frazzled mom who spent all day canning 8 lousy jars of pears ... that no one will eat. 

So when the hubby asked if he could use them to experiment I told him to go right ahead, and as it turns out- he's a genius. A little dash of ginger, a little (or a lot) of butter... and TA-DA! I think we may have just found a way to use up every last pear in our house! And I may have even found the motivation to can them again this year! 

This dish is delightfully savory and SO easy to throw together! You probably have everything you need on hand right now. *Note*- this recipe is NOT vegan, due to the butter. I guess he was hungry enough not to care. :) 

Cut up your pears and toss them in a greased 9x9 baking dish. 

Then dish up a pear for your daughter because she suddenly decided she DOES like them!

Sprinkle them with a little bit of ginger and a little bit of salt. I know it sounds strange to put salt on your fruit, but don't skip it! Trust me! Something magical happens when the seasonings and the pears mingle. 

Now put your face right down there and smell those pears- another step that is not to be ignored. Mmmmmmmboy!

Gently stir your pears, and then toss the rest of the ingredients together in a medium sized bowl. 

Dump all that buttery crumbly goodness on top of your pears.

At this point you could sprinkle a little more salt on top if you want. I did, because I know that my husband likes it to be more savory than sweet. It's up to you. :) 

Then toss it in the oven for about 25 minutes or so. 

This crumble is delicious on it's own... but it seemed lonely to me. So I did what I do when I feel lonely and plopped a few big scoops of ice cream on top. 

When given the option between ice cream, and no ice cream... ALWAYS pick ice cream. 

Ginger Pear Crumble 


7 or 8 pears (I used canned, if you use fresh pears, just add a 1/4 c. sugar and add about 10 minutes to the bake time.) 
1 cup Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
1 cup Old Fashioned Oats
1 stick of Butter (softened) 
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp. Ground Ginger
1/4 tsp. Salt 
1/4 tsp. Cinnamon 


Cut the pears into chunks and place them in a greased 9x9 baking dish. Sprinkle the ginger and salt over the pears and stir gently to combine. Combine the flour, oats, sugar, butter, and cinnamon. Mix until crumbly. Pour over the top of the pears, salt lightly, and pop it in the oven at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes. 


Serve warm or cold. 
Top with ice cream if desired- which in my book is always.