Boy?? or Gir??

     So my husband and I have some exciting news, we found out the gender to our little baby! We thought for sure that it was a boy! but guess what?????

We made this fun video to announce our gender! Check it out :)

Key Lime Cupcakes

Doesn't the name of these cupcakes just make you smile? Wait until you try them and then you will really be smiling.

These cupcakes look complicated but are simple and so good,my kind of recipe for sure.

 I found this on the Betty Crocker website.

 Lime is not one of my favorite flavors at all but these cupcakes and the cream cheese frosting just brings the flavors together so well, you won't be able to put them down. Enjoy! 

Ingredients:

Cupcakes

1

box Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® lemon cake mix

1

box (4-serving size) lime-flavored gelatin

3/4

cup water

1/3

cup Key lime juice

1/3

cup vegetable oil

3

eggs

2

or 3 drops green food color, if desired

Glaze

1

cup powdered sugar

2

to 2 1/2 tablespoons Key lime juice

Frosting

1

package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened

1/4

cup butter or margarine, softened

1

teaspoon vanilla

3 1/2

cups powdered sugar

Grated lime peel, if desired

   (if you don't have key lime juice you can just use regular lime juice)

Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pan). Place paper baking cup in each of 24 regular-size muffin cups. In large bowl, beat cupcake ingredients with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, then on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups, filling each about two-thirds full.

Bake 19 to 24 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes. Remove from pan to cooling rack. With toothpick or wooden skewer, pierce tops of cupcakes in several places.

In small bowl, mix 1 cup powdered sugar and enough of the 2 to 2 1/2 tablespoons lime juice until glaze is smooth and thin enough to drizzle. Drizzle and spread glaze over cupcakes. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.

In large bowl, beat cream cheese and butter on medium speed until light and fluffy. On low speed, beat in vanilla and 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar until mixed; beat on medium speed until fluffy. Frost cupcakes, mounding and swirling frosting in center. Garnish with lime peel. Store covered in refrigerator.

Pinterest cookie love

 Good morning! So last week I decided I am a little crazy about pinterest as I am sure most people are. My favorite things to pin are recipes, now that I finished my culinary arts certificate cooking at home is so much fun!

I decided to try some cookie recipes to see if what I pinned really worked as well and the pinners claimed.

My first try was the pin that said add a package of instant pudding to your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe. I just used the recipe off the bag of Nestle chocolate chips, added the pudding and I gotta tell you.....
They were amazing! This pin lived up to what I had expected. They were soft and chewy and stayed great for forever I was pretty impressed.

Speaking of Jello, my next pin was here at I heart nap time. Jello cookies and play dough.

These cookies were another story. The concept is great she has a base cookie recipe that you mix up, split into 4 bowls and add 2 Tbsp of  different jello to each one to get a different color and taste. It is supposed to be a good consistency that your kids and play with it like play dough when they are done, you then roll them into balls and roll in the left over jello sugar, place on a cookie sheet, press them down with the bottom of a bowl and bake.

Now my take on it, the dough was very dry but it could very well be from the elevation here in Utah. I would suggest adding a little milk or water to the batch. Adding the jello was pretty hard it was very messy which is expected but getting the dough the right consistency after adding the jello, was even harder.

All in all the cookies tasted pretty good in the end and looked great.

Not going to lie, they are a lot of work.

Give these recipes a try and let us know what you think!

S'mores bar cookies

I know we have been MIA for a while but I do have good news I am finally graduated from Culinary Arts! Needless to say I have been busy wrapping that up. I gotta tell you though after everything I got to learn and cook in school treats and desserts are still my favorite. These s'more bars are the best!

Start by creaming your  margarine, sugar until well blended. Add egg and vanilla and blend well. In another bowl stir together flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt then add that to the butter mixture until blended

 Press half your dough into your greased 9x9 pan (mine is an 8x8) bake that at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes (give or take) until golden brown.

 Once brown take out of the oven and sprinkle with your chocolate chips, (I didn't have any so I used 2 small Hershey bars)

 Layer your marshmallows over the chocolate

 Take the other half of your dough and spread over the top of the marshmallows, I used my fingers to make patches and placed them on top of the marshmallows

 Bake them another 10-12 minutes or until your marshmallows are lightly brown.

Take out a slice and enjoy

Here is the full recipe

S'more bar cookies

1/2 cup margarine

3/4 cup sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/3 cup flour

3/4 cup graham cracker crumb

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt 

1 1/3 cup chocolate chips

3 cups mini marshmallows

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, grease a 9x9 baking pan

Beat butter and sugar in a large bowl until well blended, Add egg and vanilla beat well.

Stir together flour, graham cracker crumbs,baking powder and salt; add to the butter mixture and beat until blended

Press half of the dough into your pan and bake 10-12 minutes until golden brown

sprinkle chocolate chips over baked crust, sprinkle with marshmallows and put remaining dough on top

Bake another 10-12 minutes until marshmallows are lightly brown. 

guess what??

Recently my husband and I announced some really exciting news!! Just check out this video it's such a great way to make the big surprise....

http://youtu.be/pJF0CN04hx4

Cream Cheese Italian Chicken!

                My husband is obsessed with his cream cheese, so I made this up and it turned out to be his most favorite thing. This recipe is great for you cream cheese lovers!

  I only use 4 chicken thighs, because there are only two of us, but you could alter it and do more. i also put olive oil on the bottom and spread some on the chicken.

 I only used one package of italian seasoning, also I hate eating the chicken skin, so I put all my seasonings under the skin and that way it gets right in the meat. I leave the skin on though so it will hold it in place and keep it moist when it cooks.

                           Just cut the cream cheese in slices and you can control home much you want.. I do a
                                 lot because we love cream cheese!

put in the oven at about 400 degrees uncovered and let it get a little brown.

                     While that is cooking put some butter in a pan and fry some rice.

                                I use the broth that you add water and the cubes and boil first, so get that going.

                               When the rice get a pretty tan brow color you then will add the broth.

                       The best part is the itallian flavor it really goes well with the chicken.

                                    Turn down heat and let it simmer till it soaks up all the water... sometimes I
                             will add some more water to keep it moist.. kind of watch it and stir once in
                                                awhile so it doesn't stick and burn.

                                after about 20 to 30 min I check the oven and when the chicken is a golden brown
                                    on top I put the rice in there on the side and stir it in with the chicken juices.

                                 cover and you can turn down the heat if you want, but I just left it and let it cook
                                for about another 20 min or when it's done. When the juices bleed clear your
                                                 good to go!

Easy Sopapilla Squares

I have never had these before and saw them made on t.v so decided to try them and they were so yummy but so easy!

All it takes is a cream cheese mixture, 2 cans of crescent rolls, butter and cinnamon and sugar

I only did a half batch so it took one can of rolls, lay half of your rolls in a sprayed pan

Pour your cream cheese mixture over top

Add another layer of roll, brush with butter and sprinkle cinnamon and sugar over the top

Cook and enjoy!

Even better with a side of vanilla ice cream

Sopapilla Squares
Ingredients:

• · 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

• · 1 c. white sugar

• · 1 t. Mexican vanilla extract (I just used pure vanilla)

• · 2 cans refrigerated crescent rolls

• · 1/4 c. melted butter

• · cinnamon and sugar

Method:
1. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.
2. Beat the cream cheese with 1 cup of sugar and the vanilla extract in a bowl until smooth.
3. Unroll the cans of crescent roll dough, and use a rolling pin to shape each piece into 9x13 inch rectangles. Press one piece into the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Evenly spread the cream cheese mixture into the baking dish, then cover with the remaining piece of crescent dough. Pour melted butter over the top and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.
Bake about 30 minutes, or until the crescent dough has puffed and turned golden brown. Cool completely in the pan before cutting. up a bit.