Big Bears Wife

Stars and Stripes Pound Cake #SundaySupper

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Sun, 27 May 2012 05:00:00 +0000

{ Stars and Stripes Pound Cake }
#SundaySupper

Most people view this weekend, as a holiday, a get off of work free pass, time to fire up the grill and maybe even take a trip to the beach. And while all of that stuff is fabulous and really run, don't forget why you have a long "Holiday" weekend.

"Memorial Day is a federal holiday observed annually in the United States on the last Monday of May.....Memorial Day is a day of remembering the men and women who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. ...." -- Wikipedia

I always supported our troops, but I didn't fully understand the pride and love for our troops until I met my husband. Once I became a Military Wife, I understood it 100%. The pride that you develop when someone you love is in the Military is incredible. I am so thankful for our troops. I am so thankful for my husband and I am so, so thankful to have him here with me . *Side note, have you ever heard the song Just a Dream by Carrie Underwood? If not you need to watch the video for it on youtube, and grab some tissues.. you'll need them..... It came out the summer that Hubby was in Iraq. Talk about a song that I DID NOT want to hear every time I got into the car.*

This week for #SundaySupper I made this Stars and Stripes Pound Cake. It was suppose....suppose... to have white stars inside of the blue part. But as you can see, it just has a white blob. This is because cake hates me. So yeah. Sorry about that. So from this point forward, let's pretend like it was suppose to have white blobs in the blue part and not stars. K? Thanks. So I'll just give directions for the white blobs and not stars.

(Printable Recipe Here)

Stars and Stripes Pound Cake

by Angie Barrett May-27-2012

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups butter, softened
3 cups sugar
1 (8 oz) package cream cheese
6 large eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
Red Food Coloring
Blue Food Coloring
*Whipped Topping and Fruit** optional

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350F.
In a stand mixer, beat butter until creamy. Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy.
Add cream cheese, mix well. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mix well after adding each one.
Slowly add in the flour. Mix on low speed until completely blended. Stir in rum extract.
Divide batter into 3 bowls. Leave one white, color one blue and color one red.
Pour 1/2 of the blue batter into a bundt pan. (Or whatever pan you're using)
Pour a thin strip of white batter in the center of the blue layer. Cover with the remaining blue batter.
Pour a layer of Red Batter, pour a layer of white batter and finish with a layer of red batter.
Bake at 350F for 1 hour and 10 minutes. Or until done. Let cool for 1 hour on a wire rack. Invert onto cake plate. Slice and Serve.
*I love pound cake with whipped topping and fruit*

Details

Prep time: 30 mins Cook time: 1 mins Total time: 1 hours 20 mins
Yields: 10-12 servings

This week our #SundaySupper Group will be hosting their favorite Memorial Day Menu. From the drinks to the desserts, they all sound amazing!

Perfect Cocktails:

Best Margaritas Ever by Supper for a Steal
Sparkling Watermelon Sangria The Weekend Gourmet

Salads:

Creamy Bacon and Avocado Pasta Salad by Daily Dish Recipes
Sweet and Savory Ham and Mango Salad by Rambling Notebook
Summer Pasta Salad with Lemon Lime Dressing by Mama’s Blissful Bites
Soba Noodles with Swiss Chard and Mushrooms by Soni’s Food for Thought
Malaysian Pickled Vegetables by Cookistry
Wedge Salad & Homemade blue Cheese Dressing by In the Kitchen with KP
Grilled Cesar Salad with Homemade Caesar Dressing by The Messy Baker

From the Grill:

Grilled Balsamic Pork Kebobs by Momma’s Meals
Grilled Chicken Lettuce Wraps by That Skinny Chick
Grilled Shrimp Po Boys with Radicchio Slaw Pescetarian Journal
Bourbon Soy Sauce Pork Chops and Tilapia Family Foodie
Green Chile Bacon Cheeseburgers by Damn Delicious

Classics:

Kalua Pulled Pork by Juanita’s Cocina

Desserts:

Mocha Latte and Chocolate Hazelnut Pudding Cups by Mrs. Mama Hen
Ice Cream Pie by Make Dinner Easy
Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream Rice Crispy Treats by Chocolate Moosey
Lite Mango Coconut Ice Cream with Berry Ginger Topping by Sue’s Nutrition Buzz
Stars and Stripes Pound Cake by Big Bear’s Wife
Chocolate Lava Cake Cositas Bonitas
Mango cardamom Cupcakes Beetle’s Kitchen
Watermelon Muffins The Meltaways
Mango Swirl Cheesecake Baker Street

Our recipes will be perfectly paired by Wine Everyday

Strawberry Freezer Jam

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Wed, 23 May 2012 13:34:00 +0000

{ Strawberry Freezer Jam }

I am so glad that our local farmer's market is open now. I love going there on Saturday mornings and looking through all of the produce, baked goods, and crafts. When I went the other Saturday though, most of the vegetables that were there were green. Well you know..just green. Lettuce, herbs, cucumbers, but I was looking for something with more color. I wanted to see tons of bright red strawberries, orange carrots, bight yellow corn in the husks and deep purple eggplants. I guess I'll have to wait until those are ready around here. But thankfully a couple of boys outside the market had a truckload of beautiful strawberries for sale. I love the smell of fresh strawberries.

Mom and I split a basket of the strawberries. I love them but hubby doesn't. He doesn't really like any kind of berry. *crazy*

But since I had half of a basket left, I had to find a way to use them before they went bad. Because even though I love them, I can only eat but so many strawberries before I've had enough. And I have this bad habit of getting lots of fruit at one time, eating fruit like a mad woman for two or three days and then forgetting about it. oops. haha I didn't want these strawberries to have the same fate.

So what does one do when they have a ton of fruit? Make Jam! And since I know nothing about canning I opted for the easy route. I went with Strawberry Freezer Jam. I kind of went with the directions on the packet of pectin for this. But they really didn't have directions for freezer jam, because I bought no-sugar needed pectin instead of instant pectin. I didn't even know there were different kinds. oh well. This worked, so I'm happy with it. And on the up side, I didn't have to add cups and cups of sugar to it! I used some local honey for sweetness but that's it.

Just a few days ago my mom was talking about Strawberry Freezer Jam and how much she missed having it. So I made a few jars of jam for her as well. She's quite happy with them :)

(Printable Recipe Here)

Strawberry Freezer Jam

by Angie Barrett May-23-2012

Ingredients

2 cup of mashed strawberries
3 tablespoons no sugar needed pectin
1/2 cup water
5 tablespoons honey

Instructions

Mash the strawberries with a potato masher.
In a sauce pan, combine mashed strawberries, pectin and water. Stir.
Bring to a boil. Cook for 1 minute while stirring. Once the boil can not be stirred down, stir in honey. Cut the heat off and remove the pan from the heat.
Let cool for 5 minutes.
Ladle jam into clean canning jars. *I used Ball Quilted Jelly Canning Jar 4 Oz* Leaving a little space at the top, for it to expand a little when frozen.
Clean the rim of the jar and screw on the caps. Put into freezer.
Jam should be ready after about 1-2 hours.

Details

Prep time: 5 mins Cook time: 5 mins Freeze time: 2 hoursTotal time: 2 hours 10 mins
Yields: 8-10 (4 Oz) jars of jam (depend on how much you fill each one)

Brown Butter Peanut Butter Chip Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Mon, 21 May 2012 16:00:00 +0000

{ Brown Butter Peanut Butter Chip Cookies : Secret Recipe Club }

Being a part of the Secret Recipe Club has been great for me. I've met some amazing bloggers, made some wonderful friends and have been challenged to make some great food. Once a month we are assigned a blog from the group. We have to pick a recipe, make it, and blog about it. Revealing it on "Reveal Day".

This month I was assigned to Chelsy's blog Mangia. Chelsy's blog is packed full of some great gluten free and vegan recipes, and Like Vegan Chocolate Peanut Butter and Jelly Cups (GF), Vegan Apple Butter Oatmeal Crisp (GF), and Pan-Seared Pork with Rosemary-Spinach Pesto (GF).

But it's also got some pretty neat sweet treats. For this month's Secret Recipe Club post, I went with these Brown Butter Peanut Butter Chip Cookies. As I said before, Secret Recipe Club challenges me, so when I saw that these were made with Brown Butter, I wanted to try them. I've never made anything with brown butter. But now that I have I think that brown butter should go into ALL cookies!

I made some of these cookies in the regular cookie size, you know, a normal size. And then made some huge ones in my muffin top pan. If you don't have a muffin top pan you need to get one. They are perfect for giant cookies and giant whoopie pies! I think Big Bear is happy about having some of these huge cookies for his lunches this week. *hello jealous co-workers*

They're perfectly soft, and packed full of peanutbutter.

PS. don't be intimated by having to make brown butter! It's super easy, even though I will admit I was a little freaked out when it when from yellow butter to green before turning brown. Freaky Butter. Geez.

The only thing I did different was add more peanut butter chips.

(Printable Recipe Here)

Brown Butter Peanut Butter Chip Cookies

by Angie Barrett May-20-2012

Ingredients

2 sticks unsalted butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 3/4 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoon. baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups peanut butter chips

Directions

Heat a large saute pan over medium heat on the stove and melt the butter.

As the butter starts to foam and it will start to make a crackling/popping noise.
After a minute or two the foam with start to dissipate and small brown flecks will start to appear on the bottom of the pan.
Once the butter has reached a light brown color turn the heat off and remove from the heat.
Pour the browned butter in a small bowl and refrigerate until solid again.
Pre-heat oven to 350F.
In a mixer cream the solid butter, sugars, and peanut butter together. Mix well.
Adding the eggs one at a time. Make sure each egg is incorporated before adding the next.

Add the vanilla. Mix for 3-4 minutes.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.

With the machine on low, slowly add the flour to the batter. Mix until just combined.

Mix in the peanut butter chips.

Drop by rounded tablespoons onto a baking sheet or into a muffin top pan for giant cookies.

Bake at 350 F for 10 minutes, or until golden.

Cool on a wire rack.

Details

Yield: About 2 dozen cookie

Check out all the other awesome recipes from Group C below:

Creamy Risotto with Peas and Asparagus #SundaySupper with @cristinacooks

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Sun, 20 May 2012 05:00:00 +0000

{ Creamy Risotto with Peas and Asparagus }
#SundaySupper with @cristinacooks

Some people assume that because I cook a lot that I know a lot when it comes to cooking. This is True...and False. Yes I know a lot about cooking, but what I know is only like 2% of the cooking knowledge and "know how" that is out there. If it's even 2%.

I've taught myself how to cook and how to bake. Trial and Error. Studying. Lots and Lots of questions.

That's the only way I can even pretend to know what I'm doing in the kitchen. With that being said, with as much time as I spend in the kitchen, I should have known how to cook risotto. But yeah.... this was my first time. First time for everything right?

Before starting, I read the directions, re-read them, and read them again. Went shopping for what I needed, only to find that there is nothing labeled "risotto" and that its a special rice that I can't find in our stores. gahh. So even though I read that regular rice can't be used in risotto, I used it anyways. And it came out perfect. Creamy and packed full of flavor.

I made this Creamy Risotto with Peas and Asparagus because this week for #sundaysupper we're featuring recipes from Cristina Ferrare's new cookbook ( Big Bowl of Love) and from her lovely website. This recipe is adapted from her Risotto with Fresh Peas and Asparagus that is on her website and in the cookbook.
I had to adapt it because I can't cook with onions if I want hubby to eat it, and I can't afford saffron haha.

(Printable Recipe Here)

Creamy Risotto with Peas and Asparagus

by Angie Barrett May-19-2012

Ingredients

1 cup of fresh peas
1 cup of asparagus tips
1/2 teaspoon paprika
5 cups chicken stock
3 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon onion salt
2 cups rice
1 cup white wine
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and Pepper

Instructions

Heat the chicken broth over low heat.

Balance the peas and asparagus tips for 3-4 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water.

Heat a large pot over medium heat. Add butter and onion salt. Once the butter is melted, add the rice and cook for 4 minutes. Stir frequently.

Add 2 cups of the chicken broth and 1 cup of white wine to the rice. Stir well. Bring to a boil over low heat. Boil until the liquid is almost adsorbed. About 15 minutes.

Stir in 2 more cups of broth, stir frequently and simmer until the liquid is absorbed. About 15 minutes.

Add 1 more cup of broth. Cook for 10 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid is gone.

Stir in the asparagus, peas, parmesan cheese and lemon zest. Salt and Pepper to taste.

Details

Serves 4-6 (large servings)

Here are some favorites from the #SundaySupper Group! The Risotto looked so good that we made two! I made a version of it and Renee from Magnolia Days made a seafood version!

Tomato Mozzarella Tower with Shallot Bacon Dressing, Chicken Marsala with Angel Hair Pasta and melon Medley with Lemon Sorbet The Primlani Kitchen
Roasted Beet Wild Arugula with Goat Cheese Salad Sue’s Nutrition Buzz
Spaghetti and Meatballs Juanita’s Cocina
Sea Bass with Soy Glaze and Cucumber Salsa Beetles Kitchen
Pesto Pasta Katherine Martinelli
Chicken Picatta Over Pasta Family Foodie
Grilled Orange-Ginger Chicken Breasts Supper for a Steal
Seafood Risotto Magnolia Days
Fall Off The Bone Chicken Thighs Lovely Pantry
Risotto with Fresh Peas and Asparagus Big Bears Wife
Strawberry Shortcake German Foodie
Double Chocolate Chip Cookies Mrs Mama Hen
Cheesecake with Fresh Berries The Messy Baker
Rice Pudding Rambling Notebook
Strawberry Shortcake That Skinny Chick Can Bake
Flourless Chocolate Cake Baker Street

Our recipes will be perfectly paired with wine chosen by Wine Every Day.

Personalized Wooden Letter

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Fri, 18 May 2012 16:08:00 +0000

{ Personalized Wooden Letter }

I made this Personalized Wooden Letter for my niece Layla. Her and her parents moved away last year, and I miss them so much. My Cousin Ariel and I were able to go down and visit them a few weeks ago and this went down with us for Miss. Layla. Pink and Green were the same colors we used for her Baby shower, but you could use any scrapbook paper theme or color to match who ever you're making this for.

The supplies were not that expensive and I used my 40% OFF coupon from Hobby Lobby to get the ribbon, because the big letter was already 50% off that day. Also did you know that you can pull the Hobby Lobby 40% OFF coupon up on your smartphone, and just show it to the cashier! I am so glad that I don't have to remember to print one off every time I go there now!

(Printable Instructions Here)

Personalized Wooden Letter

by Angie Barrett May-18-2012

How to make a Personalized Wooden Letter

Materials:

Large Wooden Letter
Scrapbook Paper
Mod Podge
Foam Paint Brushes
Acrylic Paint to match the scrapbook paper
Smaller Wooden Letters to Spell out the name**
Ribbon**
Stickers**

** Smaller Wooden Letters to Spell out the name, Ribbon andstickers are all optional**

Instructions

Paint the side/edges with one of the paint colors that you have picked, using a foam paint brush. Let Dry.
With a new foam paint brush, paint the small letters with the second color of paint. Let Dry.
Once paint is dry, flip the large letter over onto the back of the scrapbook paper and trace the outline of the letter. Cut out the letter from the scrapbook paper.
(For the “L” that I used in the picture, I needed to cut the paper into 2 sections to get it to cover it completely.)
Lay the large letter upright on your working surface. Using a foam brush, coat the entire front of the letter with Mod Podge.
Lay the cutout scrapbook paper (design up) on top of the mod podged letter and press down. Apply another layer of mod podge on top of the scrapbook paper. Smooth down with the foam brush, and press out all of the air bubbles. Let Dry.
Once dry, trim the edges of the paper so that they are even with the wooden letter. I used a fingernail file to smooth some of the edges, after trimming it.
To add the little letters to the larger one, apply a single layer of Mod Podge to the larger letter. Place small letters down and press. Let Dry.
Embellish with sticks and ribbon.
Total Cost For this Personalized Wooden Letter was between $8.00-$10.00

Yield: 1

** This Personalized Wooden Letter was also an article in our local Positive Parenting , featured in the May 2012 Issue

Cupcake Bouquet #cookformom #sundaysupper

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Sun, 13 May 2012 04:00:00 +0000

{ Cupcake Bouquet }

"My Mother... who is my mother? She's the short one there, with the glasses and the blonde hair. She loves piña coladas and gets drunk off of the virgin ones. She doesn't cook but spends a ton of time looking up recipes. She's terrified of sock monkeys and has a loving family that points them out to her when ever we see them. She loves Cokes in a Bottle and Dr. Pepper Floats. She thinks of everyone before herself. She's the strongest person I know.... she'd have to be to put up with us for all of these years...."

My mom is the best mother in the entire world, well at least she is the best mother in MY entire world. I think most sons and daughters will say that about their moms though. That doesn't matter though, no mother will be more special to me than my own. Well perhaps my mother's mother.... because without her I wouldn't have my mother, but you get the idea.

My mother is the most caring person I've ever met in my life, and I don't say that just because she's my mom. I say it because it's true. She is always thinking of everyone else, her heart as large as the sky. She's done so much for me in my 26 years, things I probably didn't deserve, OK, things I know I didn't deserve. I'm sure that in her years as a mother, she's been unappreciated, overlooked, and she may have even felt unloved. It's not because we meant harm, it's because we were young. We didn't understand. I blame it on that.

I've always loved my mother, but as I got older, I appreciated her more, I thought of her more, I understood why she did the things that she did. And when I have children, I'm sure that I will appreciate her even more, I will think of her even more, I will understand on a different level of why she did the things that she did for us. She did her best to give us everything we needed or wanted. Little things, here and there. When I was little she use to pack little notes into my lunchbox, with little pictures and "I Love Yous". Still now, she'll see things in the store that she think's I'd like and she'll buy it for me. At least once or twice a week, I have a present waiting for me on my desk at work from her. She never missed a school event, or church play. Always there for me and loved me no matter how much of a brat I was.

When I was younger, I remember coming home from school one day, my mom and I were arguing over something, I don't even remember what it was about, obviously it wasn't anything to important, as I can't recall it at all. Yelling back and forth, I stormed off to my room and slammed the door. She opened the door to my bedroom, grabbed a envelope that was propped up on my dresser and ripped it into little pieces and threw them on the floor, then went down stairs. I hadn't noticed the envelope there before. I went over to the floor and started to pick up the scattered pieces of paper. As I picked them up, I started putting them back together, I realized that it was a Best Daughter Ever Card, that she had bought for me and she had wrote me a little note to tell me how much she loved me. And I had just acted like the most ungrateful person on the planet over who knows what. It still makes me tear up now, thinking about it.

Today is Mother's Day. I'll be celebrating my beautiful mother with my family. We're not having a big fussy dinner. We're having something that my mother loves. Pizza and Beer. Haha, I've only seen my mom have pizza and beer a handful of times in my life. But when ever anyone mentions pizza....or beer, she always pipes up "I love Pizza with Beer". So this year, we're having Pizza and Beer and I think she's pretty happy about that.

And for Mother's Day, I'm giving her this Cupcake Bouquet. She always gets homemade gifts from me. I'm her "artist/creative" kid. So that's what she'll get from me this year, some of my "art" lol. :) Not to mention, she loves cupcakes too, so she'll double love it. :)

(Printable Recipe Here)

Cupcake Bouquet

by Angie Barrett May-13-2012

A "Flower" Bouquet made from Mini Cupcakes.

Ingredients

1 flower vase
styrofoam ball
8 toothpicks
8 mini cupcakes
icing for cupcakes (I used canned frosting
8 plastic cups (2oz)
piping bag
2D Piping tip
clear tape
green tissue paper

Instructions

Wrap styrofoam ball in green tissue paper. Set styrofoam ball down into flower vase. You may need to trim the styrofoam ball to fit into the flower vase, depending on the size of the vase.
Carefully poke toothpicks through the bottoms of the 2 oz plastic cups. Push the toothpicks/cups into the styrofoam ball. Space them out to cover the styrofoam ball.
Place plain/un-frosted cupcakes into the plastic cups that at secured with toothpicks. Toothpick should go through the inside of the cupcake.
Fill a piping bag fitted with a star type tip and starting at the center of the plain cupcake, pipe icing in a swirl to form a "rose" look.
Cut some of the green tissue paper into strips. Fold a few times and place the green paper strips in-between the plastic cups and tape them to the green tissue base. *this will make the leaves*
***for these I did use store bought cake mix and frosting*** I used Orange Supreme Cake Mix and Chocolate and Vanilla Frosting (tinted orange)

Details

Yield: 1 Cupcake Bouquet

How to make a Ribbon Wreath

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Tue, 08 May 2012 14:01:00 +0000

{ How to make a Ribbon Wreath }

The deco-mesh and ribbon wreaths that are on display at some of the stores around here are just beautiful! I've always wanted one, but I just couldn't afford the high price tag for them. In some of the stores around here, those wreaths can run anywhere from $90-$150, and I'm just to poor for that. Especially since I am always changing my mind on what I like. I'd hate to spend $100 on a wreath, just to be bored with it in a month.

My friend Jordan taught herself how to make the deco-mesh wreaths and the wreaths that she makes are just as beautiful as those ones in the stores. So when we were at Hobby Lobby a while back and she was picking up ribbon, so that she could teach herself how to make a ribbon wreath, I told her that she had to teach me too. We bought our ribbon and went back to her place to start crafting. After a few attempts of trying to figure out the best way to attach and lay the ribbon, we were on a roll.

I love how simple it is.

Click on the picture to enlarge it

I think I've made seven or so wreaths since then haha. I love them. Each one takes me about 30 minutes to make now.

(Printable Instructions Here)

Ribbon Wreath Tutorial

by Angie Barrett May-8-2012

How to make a Ribbon Wreath

Materials:

1 (10inch-12inch) Styrofoam wreath
1 pack straight pins
Scissors
7 spools of thick ribbon (4 yards each)
*for mine I used*
2 spools of Hot Pink Ribbon
2 spools of Black and White Patterned Ribbon
1 spool of Glittery White Ribbon
1 spool of Glittery Black Ribbon
1 spool of Solid White Ribbon
1 Silk Flower (Optional)

Instructions

Take the solid white ribbon and wrap the styrofoam wreath, covering it completely.
Next, cut the remaining ribbon into 4 inch segment.
Taking one 4 inch ribbon segment at a time, loop the ribbon by placing one end the ribbon ontop of the other end of the ribbon, sort of in the shape of an “awareness ribbon”.
Use 1 straight pin per ribbon loop. Place ribbon onto styrofoam wreath and secure with a pin where the ribbon crosses.
Working in sections cover the wreath with and alternating ribbons.
For the accent color loops around the wreath (the hot pink ones in my wreath) , take 12-14 segments of 4-inch ribbon and loop each one, into a circle.
Secure each one to the wreath with a straight pin, going around the wreath, leaving about an 1 ½ inch space between each one.
Cut stem from silk flower and stick into wreath.

Yield: 1

** This Ribbon Wreath Tutorial was also an article in our local Her Magazine, featured in the May 2012 Issue

Here are a few others that I've made:

BBQ Pulled Pork

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Sun, 06 May 2012 17:30:00 +0000

{ BBQ Pulled Pork }

Mmmmmm......BBQ Pulled Pork. Well, Coca-cola BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich that is. A few weeks ago I was able to go down to Camp Lejeune to visit family, and while we were down there Crystal made pulled pork BBQ sandwiches for dinner one night. They were so good and I knew I needed to make them at home for Big Bear. Super simple, and this barely takes any work because the crockpot does it all.

Crystal used KC Masterpiece BBQ sauce for hers and I think she used Dr.Pepper for it. Incredibly good, but since I already had Coca-Cola BBQ sauce in the freezer, that was left over from the Baked Drumsticks with Coca Cola Barbecue Sauce, I decided to go with that for this recipe. So really all you need is your favorite BBQ sauce, a Pork Butt, and a can of dark soda. Pork Butt..... why do they have to label it Pork Butt? Why not Pork shoulder. I mean really, who wants to feel like they're eating a pigs butt cheek. Ok yeah.. sorry for that :) .

Yesterday I put this into the crockpot around 730am and it cooked all day while we were out and about. Took it out around 530pm, fixed sandwiches and packed them up in a picnic basket and headed to the Drive In to see The Avengers. Haha, best "movie date" food ever!

I've included the recipe for the Coca-Cola BBQ sauce that I used for this recipe.

(Printable Recipe Here)

BBQ Pulled Pork

by Angie Barrett April-12-2012

Ingredients

For BBQ Sauce

4 tablespoons canola oil
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups ketchup
2 cups orange juice
1 cup molasses
1 cup Coca-Cola
1 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons liquid smoke
2 teaspoons garlic salt
2 teaspoons paprika

For Pulled Pork:

1 Pork Butt (Pork Shoulder)
1 Can Coca-cola (or any dark soda)
5-6 cups of BBQ sauce (enough to cover the pork in the crock-pot)(Don't forget buns, if you want to have Pulled Pork Sandwiches)

Instructions

To make Coca-Cola BBQ Sauce:
Heat a pot over medium-high heat and add canola oil and minced garlic. Cook and stir until garlic is starts to brown.
Remove the pan from the heat. Add ketchup, orange juice, Coca-Cola and molasses.
Mix well. Add in the brown sugar, liquid smoke, garlic salt, and paprika . Whisk to combine.
For the Pulled Pork:
In a Crock-Pot (slow-cooker), stir together the BBQ sauce and cola. Set the crock-pot onto low. Add Pork. Press down so that the pork is completely covered in the sauce.
Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours. *test the pork by using a fork to shred some of the pork, if it shreds easily, it's ready* Once the pork is done, remove it from the crock-pot and shred with a fork.

Details

Prep time: 15 mins Cook time: 8-10 hoursTotal time: 10 hours 15 mins

Yield: 5-6 cups of BBQ (depends on the size of the pork butt)

Dijon Chicken Spaghetti

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Wed, 02 May 2012 17:45:00 +0000

{ Dijon Chicken Spaghetti }

Ever have one of those recipes, that you save because it looks so good, and you promise yourself that you're going to make it soon, but it just seems to hang out in the back of your mind never to make it into the kitchen? I do that. And you know what, when ever I do it always turns out that I want to kick myself in the kneecap for putting it off. Because those always seem to be some of my favorite recipes. It's almost like my brain says, "Oh you're gonna LOVE that, so I'll tuck it away in your memory and play games with your mind, and then one day I'll let you remember it and I'll let you make it." Really Brain? Stop that! Now!

It normally happens like that! The recipes or ideas that I keep putting off, end up being some of my favorites. Why do I do this to myself. Maybe it's because it sounds to good, and I'm afraid that I'll destroy the recipe while I'm cooking and it'll taste like dirt. I don't know.

For example, I waited almost 2 years before making this Jack Daniels Bread Pudding, I thought about these
Lofthouse Style Cookies for about 3 months before making them, ooo and get this, it took me over 6 years to finally break down and attempt a recreation of my favorite pasta, ( Southwest Pasta ) from the restaurant I use to work at when Big Bear and I started dating. I'm even shaking my head at that one.

So I'm not even going to tell you that it's been over a year since I saved this recipe, or that is was one of the first things that I pinned on Pinterest, or that it took me a month to gather all of the stuff to make it. (I pinned it before I even knew how to really use Pinterest and ended up only pinning the picture, with no link to the recipe..oops)

Oh and one more thing, please, please, please DO NOT, copy and paste an entire recipe with photo onto your blog from another person's blog, and make that your blog post! It's stealing! Really it is. You don't know how many blogs I had to go through to find the original recipe that I used to base this dish around. I mean sure, I could have looked at those other sites, sure I could have just figured most of it out from the picture and title, but I wanted to be-able to link to the recipe/blog that had been taunting me for over a year haha.

This Dijon Chicken Spaghetti was inspired by the Dijon Chicken Linguine with Chanterelle Mushrooms and Toasted Almonds from RockRecipes.ca . I changed it up and bit, but without RockRecipe's recipe, I never would have tried anything like this. I normally wouldn't make anything with mustard, but it looked so good I had to.

The sauce is creamy and coats everything well, and it had three of my favorite foods: Chicken, mushrooms and pasta! Plus I used whole wheat pasta, so I can pretend like it's good for me right? Right? ;)

( Printable Recipe Here )

Dijon Chicken Spaghetti

by Angie Barrett May-2-2012

Ingredients

1 box (13oz) whole wheat spaghetti
2 cups diced chicken, cooked (I used white and dark meat)
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 teaspoon granulated garlic
2 tablespoons butter
2 oz white wine or chicken broth
4 oz cream cheese, softened
2 cups heavy whipping cream
4 tablespoons dijon mustard
salt and pepper

Instructions

** I am not including directions on cooking the chicken, because raw chicken scares me to death, and I may overcook my chicken sometimes haha, but for this I boiled the chicken until it was done and then crisped the skins in a skillet with some olive oil on medium heat. There is probably an easier way to do that, I just get a little freaked out over raw chicken, so I have to make sure it was 100% cooked **
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Salt the water. Cook noodles in boiling water for about 12 minutes. Drain and set aside.
In a medium sauce pan, melt 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Add mushrooms and garlic. Cook mushrooms until tender. Add in white wine.
Cook for about 5 minutes or less, just until the wine has reduced a little. Add in cream cheese and stir until melted.
To the saucepan, add the heavy whipping cream, dijon mustard, stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Cook on low heat for 5-7 minutes. Stirring occasionally.
Sauce will not thicken much, but should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Add cooked chicken to sauce and stir.
Pour the chicken and sauce over the spaghetti or toss with the spaghetti.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 20 mins Total time: 30 mins Yield: 6 servings

Bacon, Egg and Cheese Ring

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Tue, 01 May 2012 02:23:00 +0000

{ Bacon, Egg and Cheese Ring }

This past weekend I had the chance to go down to Jacksonville, NC to visit family. Going to Jacksonville is always wonderful, but it does make me a little sad. It's where Big Bear and I moved when we got married, he was in the NAVY, stationed at Camp Lejeune, and we lived there for a few years. I loved it there. I still love it there. It's always painful to go and come back. But being that some of my favorite cousins are down there now, it makes the trip totally worth it :)

While we were there Crystal made this breakfast ring for breakfast/brunch one day and I wanted to share it with you.

On a side note: I'm pretty sure that Crystal is a "Mini-Me" lol. She loves baking, crafts, cooking.... pretty much everything I love, she loves. I'm even trying to convince her to start her own blog :) We'll see.

For this recipe we did use onions in it, but when I made this at home for Big Bear the onions had to be left out. But I think the extra bacon will make up for it :)

This bacon egg and cheese ring is so easy to put together. Plus it only takes 20 minutes to bake.

(Printable Recipe Here)

Bacon, Egg and Cheese Ring

by Angie Barrett May-1-2012

Ingredients

8 slices bacon, but into big chunks
8 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 cup milk
1 onion, diced
2 cans refrigerated crescent dinner rolls
1 cup shredded cheese
1 cup salsa
Salt and Pepper

Instructions

Pre-heat oven to 375°F.
Lightly spray a large cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
Open canned crescent rolls and separate them. Arrange the crescent roll triangles around the cookie sheet, pointed tips out and overlapping in circle. Press the overlapping dough down to to flatten and link the crescent rolls together.
In a medium skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until almost done. Don't get it to crispy, because it will finish cooking in the oven. Set bacon aside. Leave 3-4 teaspoons of bacon drippings in the skillet.
Add in the diced onion and cook until tender.
In a bowl, whisk together the milk, the eggs, salt and pepper. Pour egg mixture into skillet. Cook the eggs, while pushing them around in the skillet to create the scrambled eggs. Cook the eggs until they are thick but still moist.
Once the eggs are cooked, add in the cooked onion and stir.
To assemble the ring, place 1 tablespoon of salsa onto each crescent roll triangle. Top the thick part of the crescent rolls triangles with the bacon pieces.
Sprinkle the bacon with the shredded cheese. Top the with the egg.
Starting with the pointed tips, pull the tips of the crescent roll over eggs and and tuck under the thick part of the dough. Bake for 20 minutes.

Details

Prep time: 15 mins Cook time: 20 mins Total time: 35 mins

Yield: 8

Mini Picket Fence Flower Pots

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 16:37:00 +0000

{ Mini Picket Fence Flower Pots }

I've been working on a few projects here and there, to get ready for Big Bear's grandmother's 80th birthday party. I've been put in charge of the party and I want it to be super special considering it's a big mildstone birthday.

Last week, I worked on cupcake designs for the party, and decided on these Pastel Flower Cupcakes , and I love the fact that these flower decorations match them!

The party is a beach, ocean, pastel color, butterfly, bird them. Haha yes,it's a lot, but those are her favorite things so I'm working them all in. I saw an idea similar to this on the web, but I think it looked like their version had a candle inside? I couldn't really tell from the picture. I kinda used that idea and another I saw in a magazine of using flowers as favors , and attempted to turn it into a mini centerpieces for the tables.

These cost me roughly $1.50 each to make. I got a pack of flowers from Lowes for $1.25 (a pack of 6) , a bag of clothespin for $1.00 and the Tuna cans were around 60 cents each. Oh....and it took me a whole 2 minutes to make each one... ok maybe 1 minute and 10 seconds ;)

(Printable Instructions Here)

Mini Picket Fence Flower Pots

by Angie Barrett April-26-2012

Materials:

1 tuna can, empty and washed with label and top removed
1 or 2 flowers (the kind from the garden section, that are already rooted and blooming)
20 clothespins

Instructions:

Take clothespins 1 at a time and clip them onto the sides of the tuna can. Making sure to push the clothespin all the way down. Clip them going around the entire tuna can until covered. Remove 2 flower sections from the container, roots and dirt included. Place into the center of the can.

Yield: 1

Prosciutto Mozzarella Frittata

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 16:00:00 +0000

{ Prosciutto Mozzarella Frittata : Secret Recipe Club }

The weekends are pretty much the only 2 days out of the week that we get to have a real breakfast. Monday-Friday equals pop-tarts, instant oatmeal, cereal, protein bars, oh and if I'm lucky Big Bear will make cinnamon toast in the morning. But yep, that's about it. I normally have to force myself to eat in the mornings anyways. Only because "you're not suppose to skip breakfast". I'm not hungry in the mornings. I'm sleepy, irritable and trying to figure the quickest route back to my pillow.

But on the weekends, I can normally keep my mornings open, which means I can take my time and make real food.

When I was looking over Kate's Kitchen, the blog I was assigned to for this months Secret Recipe Club, I found this Frittata recipe and this recipe for Peanut Butter Bread. I couldn't decide. So I let hubby choose. The answer was both. haha. No help. But since the weekend was coming up I decided on the Frittata, since we had not had a good breakfast all week.

I'm not usually an egg person, but the prosciutto gave this a nice salty, smokey flavor. I liked it. This was my first time making anything with prosciutto, and at first I thought I was going to have to use bacon instead, but I lucked up and actually found some prosciutto. So glad that I did!

Not only was I able to make this Frittata because of Kate's blog, but because I am a member of the Secret Recipe Club :)

Amanda (Amanda's Cookin) started a wonderful Club called The Secret Recipe Club a year ago, that gives me the opportunity to check out new blogs and recipes all of the time!

Find out about it here .

Today is Group C's Reveal Day!

Groups A and B have already posted for April. You can see their recipes here:

Group A

Group B

Be sure to check them out! (And next Monday Group D will reveal their recipes!)

I only changed the recipe up a tiny tiny bit. I used shredded mozzarella instead of cubed, and no shallots. Next time I'll leave out the salt, the prosciutto was enough salt for me :)

(Printable Recipe Here)

Prosciutto Mozzarella Frittata

by Angie Barrett April-23-2012

Ingredients

5 eggs
2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 small tomato, diced
6 thin slices prosciutto, cut into strips or chunks
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella

Instructions

In a bowl, whisk the eggs, basil, milk, cheese, salt and pepper together.
In a 10 or 12 inch skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add in prosciutto and heat for 4-5 minutes. Add onion powder and stir.
Add tomatoes and cook until tender.
Pour egg mixture into skillet. Stir around, just enough to mix the prosciutto into the egg mixture.
Cover and let cook undisturbed for about 10 minutes, or until eggs are done.
While Frittata is still warm, sprinkle with a little of the cheese.

Details

Prep time: 5 mins Cook time: 10 mins Total time: 15 mins

Yield: 6 slices

Check out all the other awesome recipes from Group C below:

Mini Peanut Butter and Chocolate Trifles #SundaySupper

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 05:00:00 +0000

{ Mini Peanut Butter and Chocolate Trifles }

Quick and easy, it's starting to become the normal keywords when I'm looking for a recipe now. I think I'm overloaded. BigBear says that it's because I don't know how to say "NO". It's true. :( If someone ask me to do something, 99% of the time I say yes, even if my schedule is already jammed pack. I have a problem telling people that I can't help them. Here I am on a Saturday afternoon, and the only "me" time I've had all week, was this morning when I slept in an extra hour,... well I tried to sleep in. But not even that was relaxing me time, because the dogs were barking and needed something.

This dessert recipe is so quick and easy that I made a huge trifle like this for Easter Dinner's dessert right after church and I made a few little ones the other night for after dinner and it didn't take away time from anything else. They whip up in a flash.

Plus it involves a Big Bear Favorite :) Peanut Butter.

These are pretty much a combination of the Peanut Butter Truffle Cheesecake I made for Big Bear's birthday last year and the Strawberry, Banana, Chocolate Chip Trifle I made a while back.

(Printable Recipe Here)

Mini Peanut Butter and Chocolate Trifles

by Angie Barrett April-22-2012

Ingredients

**This Recipe involves 3 different layers plus Crushed Cookies**

For the Peanut Butter Mousse Layer:

3/4 cup peanut butter
8oz cream cheese
4 tablespoons milk
2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tub of Cool Whip (4 oz), thawed

For the Vanilla Layer:

5.1 oz box instant vanilla pudding
3 cups milk
8oz cool whip , thawed

For the Chocolate Layer:

5.1 oz box instant chocolate pudding
3 cups milk
1/2 tub of cool whip (4 oz), thawed

1 bag, broken into chunks Chocolate Chip Cookies

Instructions

For the Peanut Butter Mousse Layer: In the bowl of your stand mixer combine 1 (8oz) stick of cream cheese, the peanut butter and milk until smooth. Slowly beat in 2 cups powdered sugar. Fold in the Cool Whip with a spatula. Set aside.
For the Vanilla Layer: In a large mixing bowl mix the vanilla pudding mix with 3 cups of milk. Mix for about 5 minutes or until thick. Fold in 1 tub of cool whip into the vanilla pudding. Set Aside.
For the Chocolate Layer:In a large mixing bowl mix the chocolate pudding mix with 3 cups of milk. Mix for about 5 minutes or until thick. Fold in 1 tub of cool whip into the chocolate pudding. Set Aside.
Now start your layers in a Trifle bowl or mini glasses.
Bottom Layer: Crumbled Cookies Next Layer: Vanilla Pudding Mix Next Layer: Peanut Butter Mousse Next Layer: Chocolate Pudding Next Layer: Crumbled Cookies Next Layer: Vanilla Pudding Mix Next Layer: Peanut Butter Mousse Next Layer: Chocolate Pudding
Keep layering like this until the glass is full. Top with a few cookie crumbled. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Details

Yield: 6-8 little trifles OR 1 large trifle

I'm participating in this weeks #SundaySupper !! Check it out on twitter for tons of recipes!

Here are some others that are bringing dishes to the table this week:

Spaghetti and Meat Sauce by Renee from Magnolia Days

Caprese Pasta by Jen from Juanita’s Cocina

Chicken Popovers by Pam from The Meltaways

Spicy Bacon Burgers by Lane from Supper for a Steal

Caprese Grilled Cheese by Liz from That Skinny Chick Can Bake

Simple Olive Oil Pasta by Carla from Chocolate Moosey

Chicken Parmesan by Jennie from The Messy Baker Blog

Sugar Cookies by Erin from Big Fat Baker

Nutella Cream Cheese Chocolate Cake by Anuradna from Baker Street

Soothing Papaya Ginger Lemon Smoothie by Sunithi from Sue’s Nutrition Buzz

and of course my Mini Peanut Butter and Chocolate Trifles

Pastel Flower Cupcakes

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 12:26:00 +0000

{ Pastel Flower Cupcakes }

Someone I know it having a very special birthday this year. A very important, amazing birthday.

BigBear's Grandmother (Grandma Mary) is going to be turning 85 this year.

*Happy Early Birthday Grandma Mary*

And guess what else. Guess who's in charge of her party.... parties... (yes you read that right, 2 birthday parties this year)... me! :)

This makes me happy for 3 reasons.

#1. I love BigBear's grandma and I'm so excited to be able to give her an amazing birthday celebration weekend, she is such an amazing woman!

#2. I am overly excited that I get to plan 2 huge parties.

#3. I am full of joy in knowing that his grandmother and aunt love me so much and trust me enough to give me full control over such a big event.

The theme? Flowers, Ocean, Beach, Birds, Pastels. I'm going to make it work. It's going to be awesome.

See these will match perfectly!

That is why I have made these cupcakes. I needed to practice some designs. This is one of them and I think it's the one I will use for the party. The cupcakes are a "Box From Scratch" kinda cupcake, yes it used a box mix but with other added things, so it's kind of from scratch. ;) These cupcakes are adorned with royal icing flowers (directions below) and cream cheese butter-cream icing (recipe below).

These are also being featured over at Alli-n-Son for Sweet Tooth Friday! :)

(Printable Recipe Here)

Pastel Flower Cupcakes

by Angie Barrett April-20-2012

Ingredients

1 box white cake mix
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
4 egg whites
1 1/3 cup water
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup sour cream (8oz container)
1 teaspoon vanilla
For Royal Icing Flowers:

3 oz warm water
2 1/2 tablespoons meringue powder
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 pound powdered icing sugar
5 tablepoons cornstarch
Edible Glitter
gel food coloring
2D Tip
Piping Bags
For Cupcake Icing:

1 cup butter
8 cups powdered sugar
2 teapsoons vanilla
8 oz Cream cheese
4 tablespoons heavy cream

Instructions

For Cupcakes:Pre-heat oven to 325F. In a large bowl, mix together cake mix, flour, sugar, and salt. In the bowl of a mixer, mix together the egg whites, water, and vanilla. Mix on low for about 10 seconds. Slowly add the dry mix a little at a time. Mixing on low until everything is combined. Add sour cream and mix well. Add color now if desired. Mix well. Line a muffin/cupcake tin with paper liners. Fill each cupcake liner 3/4 full of batter. Bake at 325F for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and cool.
For Royal Icing Flowers: In the bowl of a mixer, mix the warm water and the meringue powder. Mix for 30 seconds. Add the cream of tartar and mix for 30 seconds. Add powdered sugar slowly, mix until combined. Add in cornstarch and mix. Using the paddle attachment on the lowest speed, mix slowly for 10 minutes.Tint with gel food coloring.
To Make the flowers: Fill a piping bag, fitted with a 2D Drop Flower Decorating Tip. On parchment paper, press tip to surface and squeeze, rotating your wrist from a 9'o'clock angle to a 12 o'clock angle. Release pressure and left away. Dot center with yellow icing. Let dry over night. Once flowers are dry, brush with edible glitter.Use to decorate cupcakes
For Cupcake Icing: For icing: Cream butter in the bowl of a mixer. Add cream cheese and mix well. Slowly add powdered sugar while mixing. Add vanilla and heavy cream and mix until combined. For my cupcake icing, I used a piping bag, fitted with a 2D Drop Flower Decorating Tip and swirled.

Details

Yield: 24 cupcakes

Pizza Poppers

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 16:01:00 +0000

{ Pizza Poppers }

This once one of those "throw together meals with what I have on hand, because I'm tired from a long day at work , BigBear is hungry and I promised him dinner" kind of meals. Yes I am aware that it is a long title... at least I was kind enough to shorten it to "Pizza Poppers" for this post. ;)

Some days when I get home from work, I've been bitten by the kitchen bug and all I want to do is spend my evening in front of the stove or mixer, creating amazing food and desserts. But then there are days where I don't even want to look in the general direction of the kitchen. Gasp. I know. It's painful, but true.

My husband's love for pizza works to my advantage most of the time. If I'm in the "I don't want to cook" mode, I can say, "We're having Pizza for Dinner" and everything is golden in the Barrett household.

But since I didn't have his favorite Frozen Pizza in the deep freezer, I raided the pantry and fridge for "Pizza Ingredients" and this is what became of it. I just kind of put it together as I went along. I suppose it is what would happen if a Mini Pizza Bite and a Muffin had a love child. It worked, he loved them and that's all that matters.

(Printable Recipe Here)

Pizza Poppers

by Angie Barrett April-17-2012

**The mushrooms and pepperonis are optional, and can be

replace with your favorite pizza toppings**

Ingredients

6 large refrigerated biscuits ( I use the kind with the bits of butter in the dough)
6 tablespoons pizza or pasta sauce
1/2 cup shredded cheese
1/4 cup chopped mushrooms
18 pepperoni
Cooking Spray

Instructions

Pre-heat oven to 350F.
Slice each uncooked biscuit horizontally through the middle. This will give you a top and bottom for each Pizza Popper.
Spray a muffin tin with the cooking spray.
Place 1 biscuit half into each muffin tin.
Start layering the Pizza Poppers.
To each bottom biscuit dough add, 1 tablespoon of pizza sauce, 3 pepperonis, a few pieces of mushroom, and cheese. Top with another biscuit half.
After all of the poppers have been filled and topped with a biscuit, bake at 350F for 15 minutes or until the biscuits are golden.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 15 mins Total time: 25 mins

Yield: 6

Baked Drumsticks with Coca Cola Barbecue Sauce

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 17:08:00 +0000

{ Baked Drumsticks with Coca Cola Barbecue Sauce }

What does summer mean to you?

If you had to describe summer in four words, which four words would you use? My Four Words?

"HOT GRILLING COUNTRY DAYS".

Yes my friends, because that's exactly what summer time brings to this part of the country, and for the most part that is what spring has brought us too. The days are long and hot; the nights are warm, the country skies are full of bright stars and the fireflies come out in the yards and fields.

All of this usually, means that the grill is among the top hangout spots for us, along with the fishing pond, and the old country store that houses the beer, mikes hard lemonade, and cokes in a glass bottle. *this being one of my favorite things...the Coca-Cola in a glass bottle that is ;)*

*random note: Coca-Cola in a glass bottle and a piece of hoop cheese = one of my all time favorite snacks*

With that being said, I was more than excited when Coca-Cola contacted me a few weeks ago and asked me if I'd recreate one of their new recipes from their "My Coke Rewards Meals Recipes".

After spending a little while looking over the wonderful recipes from Chef G. Garvin and Chef Ingrid Hoffmann, I finally decided to make the Coca-Cola BBQ Wings from Chef G. Garvin. I'd never made BBQ sauce before, so I thought this would be a great time for me to do so. I did use drumsticks instead of wings, and changed a few ingredients and amounts of some things to make it perfect for us.

**Using the recipe below, you will have an extra 2-3 cups of sauce. I did this on purpose so that I could store the extra BBQ sauce to make more BBQ drumsticks If you want less sauce, divide the sauce recipe in half or use more chicken drumsticks.**

This is my take on Chef G. Garvin's Coca-Cola BBQ Wings from My Coke Rewards.

(Printable Recipe Here)

Baked Drumsticks with
Coca Cola Barbecue Sauce

by Angie Barrett April-12-2012

Ingredients

For BBQ Sauce

4 tablepsoons canola oil
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups ketchup
2 cups orange juice
1 cup molasses
1 cup Coca-Cola
1 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons liquid smoke
2 teaspoons garlic salt
2 teaspoons paprika

For Wings:

16 drumsticks
canola oil
salt and pepper

Instructions

Start by pre-heating the oven to 350F.
To make Coca-Cola BBQ Sauce:
Heat a pot over medium-high heat and add canola oil and minced garlic. Cook and stir until garlic is starts to brown.
Remove the pan from the heat. Add ketchup, orange juice, Coca-Cola and molasses.
Mix well. Add in the brown sugar, liquid smoke, garlic salt, and paprika . Whisk to combine.
For the drumsticks:
Add 4-5 tablespoons of canola oil to a skillet and heat it on medium-high heat. Salt and pepper the chicken drumsticks.
Once the oil is hot, cook 4 drumsticks at a time, about 5-6 minutes on each side. Once the skins have browned just a little, remove them and place them on a place. Set aside.
Continue until all drumsticks are done.
Cover the bottom of a 13x9 casserole or roasting dish with 1 cup of the BBQ sauce.
Place drumsticks into the dish, in a single layer. Cover the drumsticks with 2 cups of BBQ sauce.
Cook for 1 hour.

Details

Prep time: 15 mins Cook time: 1 hour Total time: 1 hour 15 mins Yield: 16 drumsticks

Compensation was provided by Coca-Cola, but Coca-Cola is not a sponsor, administrator, or involved in any other way with this pin/post. All opinions expressed are my own and not those of Coca-Cola.

Colby Jack Crab and Crawfish Pasta #SundaySupper

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 11:36:00 +0000

{ Colby Jack Crab and Crawfish Pasta }

Do you remember when I went to Disney back in March and yapped about the amazing reception that Disney had for us at The Grand Floridian and Spa? That welcome reception even had a Macaroni and Cheese bar. Yes. And Mac and Cheese Bar. You pretty much got to pick any toppings that you wanted. Luckily for me, Katie was in front of me and she ordered Mac & Cheese with lobster, panko bread crumbs, and green peas. Without hesitating I said, "I'll have the same" and it was over from there. I'm pretty sure I thought about this lobster mac and cheese everyday for the past 2 weeks.

So last weekend while trying to figure out what we would be having for Easter dinner, I was throwing some ideas around and I again thought of the Lobster Mac and Cheese. I called BigBear and asked him to pick up some lobster meat on his way home from work. He called back about an hour later and said he couldn't find any. NO LOBSTER MEAT. It's like our city went on lobster strike! Seriously?!? None? Nope None.

I was extremely sad, until our lovely friends Corey and Jordan happened to call him at the same time (or he called them, whatever) and Jordan suggested the SeaFood Market.... wait...we have a seafood market? HAHA. So BigBear went there in search of lobster meat (such a good hubby) and in realizing that the lobster was there was a ton of money *mini freakout*, he opted for crawfish meat. Since it's a pasta dish where the meat is cut up anyways, it wasn't a huge deal.

So I ended up with Crab and Crawfish meat, which in turn landed me with this Colby Jack Crab and Crawfish Pasta. A seafood packed, cheesy side dish. Or maindish....whichever.

(Printable Recipe Here)

Colby Jack Crab and Crawfish Pasta

by Angie Barrett April-8-2012
www.bigbearswife.com

Ingredients

1 box dry shell pasta
4 tablespoons butter
1 pound cooked crawfish tails
1/2 pound crab meat
1 pint heavy cream
8 oz colby cheese, grated
8 oz monterey jack cheese, grated
1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
1/2 cup peas
salt and pepper

Instructions

Cook pasta according to box directions. *Boil for about 12 minutes in salted water* Drain. Set Aside.
In a sauce pan, melt 2 tablespoons of butter and cook crab until tender. Put crab into a bowl. Set aside.
Melt 2 more tablespoons of butter in saucepan and cook crawfish tails for about 6 minutes. Set aside.
In another medium saucepan, heat heavy cream on medium-high heat. Once hot, add in grated cheese. Stir until melted.
Once cheese is melted, stir in cooked pasta. Stir. Add in bread crumbs and peas. Stir well to combine. Add in crab and crawfish meat and stir well. Season with salt and pepper.

Details

Total time: 30 minutesYield: 6 servings

You may have noticed that the title of this Colby Jack Crab and Crawfish Pasta includes the hashtag #SundaySupper . Which means we're putting together a wonderful Easter #SundaySupper which includes my Colby Jack Crab and Crawfish Pasta! Below are some other great bloggers that are bringing food to the table! Check them out and be sure to follow #SundaySupper on twitter for more amazing recipes!

Renee from Magnolia Days will be sharing her Appetizer Recipe for Herbed Goat Cheese Dip.

Carla from Chocolate Moosey will be sharing her Lemon Cherry Hot Cross Buns.

Lori from Burp Where Food Happens will bringing her Ham with Ham Pineapple Chutney.

I, Big Bear’s Wife, made the Colby Jack Crab and Crawfish Pasta. B

Amrita from Beetle’s Kitchen Escapades will be brining her Scalloped Potatoes.

Jen from Juanita’s Cocina is sharing her special recipe for Coconut Infused Carrot Cake with a Coconut Frosting.

Soft Frosted Sugar Cookies - Lofthouse Style

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Sat, 07 Apr 2012 16:12:00 +0000

{ Soft Frosted Sugar Cookies - Lofthouse Style }

Making Lofthouse Style sugar cookies must be a right of passage as a food blogger. I say this because, I'm pretty sure that every food blogger has this cookie on their blog! Ok... maybe not every single blogger, but a lot of them, more than I knew. When I decided that I wanted to make these, I went to Google thinking that maybe I'd find one or two cookie recipes. Yeah... no... more like a few pages.

So after looking over a few of them, most being the same recipe and a few with changes, I decided to use my regular sugar cookie recipe with a change. My friend Amanda (Amanda's Cookin) has some Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars on her blog that are quite close to the Lofthouse kind of cookies. She used cream cheese in her recipe where as most of the other recipes I found used sour cream. Since I don't eat enough sour cream to justify buying a carton to only use a few tablespoons, I went with the cream cheese.

I added cream cheese to my regular cookie recipe to make the cookies fluffy. Now I admit these are not exactly like the Lofthouse Cookies, but they are so soft and lovely with the yummy icing and sprinkles, I just figured I'd call them "Lofthouse Style" Cookies ;) Close enough for me.

I didn't even know about Lofthouse Cookies until I moved to Camp Lejeune and started shopping at the commissary. I saw them there one day, decorated for Easter and fell in love. After that I noticed them everywhere. Obviously, they are pretty popular and I was just behind.

(Printable Recipe Here)

Soft Frosted Sugar Cookies - Lofthouse Style

by Angie Barrett April-7-2012

www.bigbearswife.com

Ingredients

3 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teapsoon baking powder
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teapsoon salt
8 oz cream cheese
For Icing:

1/2 cup butter
4 cups powdered sugar
1 teapsoon vanilla
2 tablespoons heavy cream
sprinkles

Instructions

In a stand mixer, (or in a bowl with a handheld mixer), cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add eggs and vanilla. Mix well. Add in cream cheese. Mix Well.
In a large bowl mix dry ingredients and add a little at a time to butter mixture.
Mix until everything is completely incorporated and the dough comes together.Chill for 1 to 2 hours.
Roll dough out onto a floured surface, roll to desired thickness, I did mine 1/2 and inch. Cut out cookies with a cookie cutter.
Bake on ungreased baking sheet at 350 degrees for 8 to 9 minutes. Move to cooling rack to cool completely.
For icing:
Cream butter in the bowl of a mixer.
Slowly add powdered sugar while mixing. Add vanilla and heavy cream.
Once cookies are cooled, frost the cookies once at a time, Sprinkle with sprinkles as you go.
If you want until the end to add the sprinkles, the icing will have crusted over and they wont' stick.

Details

Yield: 2 dozen

Fish and Chips

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 04:01:00 +0000

{ Fish and Chips }

The first time that I ever had fish and chip was during my trip to London when I was in high school. We had just walked through the The Tower of London and I was content with my new BeefEater TeddyBear, when someone pointed out a stand selling Fish and Chips. This was certainly back in my days of not being a fan of fish and Fish and Chips didn't sounds very appealing to me. But I wanted to beable to say that I, did in fact, have Fish and Chip while I was in London. I wish I could tell you how much I enjoyed them, and how wonderful they were....but I can't. Because I don't remember them haha. I remember the before, and I remember buying them. But, I wasn't a foodie back then so remembering something about food was rare and didn't happen for this meal. Such a Shame.

That being one of the reasons that I wanted to try to make these, I wanted to know what I was missing!

I hope that I did the Fish and Chips in London justice with these. I loved them. I've only recently, like within the last 3 years, started to eat fish. So far, I've only had Salmon, Tilapia and now Cod. Speaking of Cod, it always makes me think of Peter Pan. When Peter Pan calls Hook a CodFish..Do you remember that?..No?.. ok. sorry.. nevermind. That's just my brain going off into Never Never Land.....

(Printable Recipe Here)

Fish and Chips

by Angie Barrett April-6-2012
www.bigbearswife.com

Ingredients

1/2 pound fresh cob (I used 2 fillets)
olive oil
2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons cornmeal
1/2 tablespoon ground mustard
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
For Chips/Potato Wedges:
4 russet potatoes
Salt and Pepper
olive oil
1/2 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon rosemary
1 teaspoon granulated garlic
**Parsley for garnish

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450F. Slice potatoes in half lengthwise and then again slice them across. Slice each half into wedges. I got 16 chips/wedges from each potato.
Coat with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, rosemary and garlic. Toss to coat.
Bake 20 minutes and then flip. Bake for 20 more minutes or until tender. Remove from oven and let cool.
To make the fish, combine four, cornmeal, ground mustard, salt and pepper into a bowl. Cut fish into pieces. I cut each fish fillet into 4 pieces, but you could leave them whole or cut them in half. However you'd like to do it.
Toss the fish into the flour and cornmeal mixture. Toss to coat.
Heat 5-6 tablespoons of olive oil over medium high heat. Once oil is hot, add fish.
Cook for 3-4 minutes and flip. Cook for 3-4 minutes until done.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 50 mins Total time: 1 hour Yield: 2

Food Blog Forum Orlando Disney Trip {Part Two}

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 17:12:00 +0000

{ Food Blog Forum Orlando Disney Trip {Part Two} }

If you've been following along, you know that I was able to go to Walt Disney World a few weekends ago for an amazing Food Blogger Conference put together by some amazing people from Food Blog Fourm!

I spent 4 days in the magical world of Disney, learning how to make my blog better, networking with a group of inspiring food blogger, and sampling some down right scrumptious foods!

I covered Friday and Saturday of the trip in this post: Food Blog Forum Orlando Disney Trip {Part One}.

That included our Welcome Reception at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort and Spa, the conference at Epcot, lunch provided by Walt Disney World and the St. Patrick's Day Dessert Party with the Epcot Illuminations!!

Now, I want to share Sunday with you! It was packed full!

Sunday we had to check out of the Polynesian Resort, bright and early to head over to Whole Foods in Orlando for brunch! Yes, Whole Foods hosted a brunch for a group of food bloggers, and they did not disappoint! You know, I never knew how much companies loved food bloggers until I went on this trip. Disney and Whole Foods were so excited to be working with us. It was wonderful!

Back to the brunch. :)

Anybody that gives me Chocolate truffles for breakfast is a friend of mine!

This yogurt bar was something new to me, but it's a great idea! I can see myself using this idea for brunch in the future!

Sweet and Savory Items lined the tables for our brunch. Do you see that Banana Stuffed French Toast up there? Yes, that was just a tiny piece of banana heaven in a bowl!

I did manage to grab a few pictures with some of the great people that were there!
Left to Right:
#1. Amanda (Amanda's Cookin) and I
#2. Angie (Bakerella), Myelf, and Jenny (Picky-Palate)
#3. Myself and Denise (Creative Kitchen)

After Brunch, we headed over to the Magic Kingdom. I had not been to Disney as an adult until now, but it is just as wonderful as I remembered!

How pretty are those balloons!

We walked down Main Street USA taking in all of the sights, and after watching the end of one of the parades, we slipped into the Main Street Confectionery to check out some of the Disney goodies!

Look at those Minnie Mouse Apples!

Cinderella's Castle and Walt Disney with Mickey!

The castle is so pretty! I loved the murals inside!

While we were at the Magic Kingdom I only had two rides that were on my "Must Do List". Peter Pan's Flight and The Haunted Mansion. Peter Pan is my favorite Disney Movie ever and with the Haunted Mansion being "Haunted", yeah... I loved it!

Parades, Parades Everywhere! We settled down in Frontierland for a bit and had "front row seats" to the Celebrate A Dream Come True Parade. I will admit I did tear up a little during the parade because BigBear wasn't there to watch it with me :(. One day BigBear, One day!

And what do you know, by time we rode a few more rides and had a mickey mouse ice cream, there was a show going on in front of Cinderella's Castle.

After a long day of being at the park, we hopped onto the water ferry and rode back over to the Polynesia Resort, were we had been staying, for dinner.

'Ohana. This place was quite the happening spot! Lucky for us, since there were only the two of us, we managed to get in with only a five minute wait. A short, easy wait for the feast that we were getting ready to have!

They started us off with salad and bread. Everything is served family style here, so huge bowls of food everywhere. Then we were served noodles, chicken wings, grilled chicken, pork, steak and veggies. And do you know that after all of the food, they still insisted that we have dessert? Holy Moly! Coconut Banana Bread Pudding **with some kind of Caramel Sauce! (That's the middle picture up there!) It was so, so good. As in I'm not even sure I have words to describe it. But since I couldn't share it with Big Bear, I came home and made my own version of it. (Pineapple Banana Bread Pudding with Banana Caramel Sauce)

Yep, it was that good. I had to recreate it within a week of being home.

I've only got a little more to share with you from my Disney Trip. Mainly Downtown Disney :) Since this post is so very full of photos already, I'll save that for another day.

If you missed Part One of my trip, you can check that out here.

A HUGE Thank You to Jaden, Scott, Diane, Todd , Dawn, Julie and Walt Disney World for everything that you all did to bring together such a wonderful event!

There are so many wonderful recaps written from the bloggers who attended Food Blog Forum – Orlando 2012. So much food, beautiful photography and stories!

Todd & Diane White on Rice Couple
Allison Ingredients Inc.
Angie Bakerella
Amanda Amanda's Cookin
Brandi Bran Appetit
Denise Creative Kitchen Adventures
Julius Droolius
Emily Sage Recipes
Erin The Girl & Her Mutt
Gretchen What a Healthy Family Eats
Heather Life by the Spoonful
Helene Lush Lady
Jen One Curly Fry
Jenny Picky Palate
Jenny Parkers Pantry
Jeannette Jeanette’s Healthy Living
Jessica The Novice Chef Blog
Jessica How Sweet Eats
Joanne Fifteen Spatulas
Josee Josee’s Kitchen
Julie Table for Two
Katie Katie’s Cucina
Kelly Just a Taste
Kevin Pee Dee Foodie
Kim The Suburban Cook- Part 1 & part 2
Kiran Kiran Tarun
Kristen Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker
Lauren Lauren’s Latest
Lindsay Love and Olive Oil
Melissa Dash of East
Merry-Jennifer The Merry Gourmet
Michelle The Domestic Mama & The Village Cook
Monica Sweet Bites
Nikki Pennies on a Platter
Rashmi The Primlani Kitchen
Robyn Grill Girrrl
Samantha Sweet Remedy
Sarah Sarah’s Cucina Bella
Susan Sticky Gooey Chewy Creamy
Suzi Cooking’s Good
Wanda My Sweet Zepol
Yelena Cooking Melangery

Hand Painted Wine Glass and Tile

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 20:23:00 +0000

{ Hand Painted Wine Glass and Tile }
From Kudos Kitchen by Renee to Me

Have you ever seen something floating around the web and thought to yourself "I need that, I must have it!"? That's exactly what I thought when I saw the beautiful tiles and wine glasses over at Kudos Kitchen by Renee. I've seen her work all over and she's become rather popular with the food bloggers. I'm pretty sure that it is the "thing to do".... having your logo painted by Renee onto a wine glass or a tile that is. And that's exactly what I had done.

Renee is so creative and does such wonderful work. The only thing I had to do was ask to have something the represented my site and she painted my vision perfectly! But she doesn't only do blog logos! Oh no! She can pretty much paint anything you want! I've seen her paint recipes onto tiles, favorite pets on to wine glasses, she can paint people, cartoon characters, business logos, designs for weddings, birthdays, and holidays! Also I'm pretty sure that she can paint on just about anything.

**Last Christmas I won a giveaway on her site, and she had painted a beautiful snow scene onto a water pitcher. I love it so much that it's still displayed in my kitchen and it's already spring here :)**

She's painted logo tiles for blogs like, One Tough Cookie NYC, Recipe Girl, I am baker, Sweetopia, Bake @ 350, and Tidy Mom.

I just can't get over how much I love my wine glass and tile!

I love every detail!

The bottom is probably one of my favorite parts!! Look at that orange slice! oh and Orange is my favorite color so you KNOW I LOVE THAT!

The tile and the wine glass are sitting perfectly on my kitchen counter right now :)

Beautiful, beautiful orange. The tile is the same as my "fav icon" and my Facebook logo for Big Bear's Wife.

I've already started making a list of wine glasses and tiles that I want to have painted for Birthday and Christmas presents! Personal gifts are always better in my opinion! And I'm determined to have one of her beautiful 4th of July pitchers for my cookout table this summer!

I know who I'll be spending wine nights with ;) haha

Don't stop here, please visit Renee at her ETSY SHOP, her portfolio pages, blog and facebook, to see all of her beautiful works of art and get something special for yourself!

Rosemary Drumsticks and Gravy with Biscuits

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 12:11:00 +0000

{ Rosemary Drumsticks and Gravy with Biscuits }

I have to be honest, I usually have a story about why I've cooked a certain dish. A reason that it has graced our tables, memories that it's made. But I don't have one for this dish. While it is filling and delightful I must admit that this recipe came along because of a sale. A fabulous trip to the grocery store and a sale on chicken drumsticks.

This grocery store trip... I must tell you why this trip was so special!

I've been the main provider for us for the past 3 years, Big Bear has had a few odd jobs here and there to bring in a little money but for the most part it's been just me. But a few weeks ago GOD answered some prayers and Big Bear now has a wonderful job that he loves. And along with that job, a pretty nice paycheck every week. Do you know why this makes last nights grocery store visit so wonderful? Because the it was the first time in 3 years where I have been able to go to the grocery store and I did NOT have to stick to a list nor did I have to add up my grocery bill as I put food into my cart. I could pick things based on what looked good and what I wanted. Not what I could afford. That may not sound like a big deal but oh it was. I actually got to get A LOT of fruit and fresh veggies. So happy about that! Not that I'll shop that that all the time from now on, but it was nice to be able to just do it.

But when I got to the meat dept, I went back into "I have no money" mode and started looking for inexpensive meats. *totally nothing wrong with that* I'm kind of glad I did that, because I was able to get a ton of meat on sale. Meat that went straight home and into the freezer. One of those packs included these drumsticks.

5 drumsticks for $1.06. Pretty awesome I think :) Plus, what better way to practice cooking drumsticks on the stove-top than with a dollar pack of chicken.

(Printable Recipe Here)

Rosemary Drumsticks and Gravy with Biscuits

by Angie Barrett April-1-2012

www.bigbearswife.com

Ingredients

4 drumsticks
salt and pepper
olive oil
1 cup all purpose baking mix
1/3 cup milk plus 1cup
1 tablepsoon rosemary
1 carrot, diced
1 tablespoons granulated onion
1 1/2 cup chicken broth
4 tablespoons cornstarch
1 cup pea
1 cup lima beans

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450F. In a medium bowl, mix 1/3 cup of milk with 1 cup of all purpose baking mix. Mix until combined.
Drop 4 biscuits onto an ungreased baking sheet. *I lined my baking sheet with parchment paper*
Bake for 10 minutes, or until lightly browned. In a large sauce pan heat 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat.
Season drumsticks with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with rosemary. Once oil is hot, place drumsticks into pan. Cook for about 10 minutes, flipping every so often to evenly brown the skin. After 10 minutes, remove chicken drumsticks and place them on a plate. Set aside.
In the same large sauce pan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add in the onion and carrots. Cook on medium heat for about 5 minutes.
Add in Chicken broth and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and add chicken back into pan. Cook on medium heat for 15 minutes.
Flip Chicken and Cook for 15 more minutes. Once chicken is done, Remove from pan.
In a cup mix, 1 cup of milk and 4 tablespoons cornstarch. Add to sauce pan with the chicken broth. Stir until thickened into a gravy.
Bring to a simmer and stir for 1 minute.
Add peas and lima beans, stir. Heat for 1-2 minutes.
How I served this dish: Spoon chicken gravy into the bottom of a low rimed bowl. Top with drumsticks, and biscuit.

Details

Prep time:

Total time: 1 hour 10 mins

Yield: 4

Pineapple Banana Bread Pudding with Banana Caramel Sauce

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 17:02:00 +0000

{ Pineapple Banana Bread Pudding with Banana Caramel Sauce }

Food is an obsession of mine. Good food that is. You can keep the bad, gross kind ;)

Over the past 10 years, my relationship with food has gone from one extreme to the other. When I was 16 I hated food. I hated it because food "made you fat". (Did you know that when I was 16 it only took 1/2 of a cheeseburger to fill me up, that is all I could eat with out feeling like I was going to explode). As I traveled more I started to try different foods and started to embrace it a little more. When I got married I went into full housewife mood and wanted to cook everything. I felt like it was my purpose haha.

Big Bear and I were trying new restaurants together, we were challenging each other to eat different things. "I'll eat this calamari if you eat that spinach". My taste in restaurants and foods went from Bojangles and Blue Box Mac and Cheese to WolfGang Puck and BreadPudding. Which led me to want to try everything....at least once.

What does that have to do with Pineapple Banana Bread Pudding with Banana Caramel Sauce?

Everything!

Had I not started expanding my love for food, or been willing to try new foods, I never ever would have eaten anything called "bread pudding". Pudding made from bread... that didn't sound good at all. Sorry. But it didn't. But I know now, that isn't really what bread pudding is.

One of my "Fancy" local restaurant favorites, was a place called The Yancey House. We went there for almost every holiday. It was the first place I had lunch with Big Bear's Grandmother, the first place I tried antelope, were our cousins had their wedding reception and a spot for many family dinners. They bought almost all of the food locally and the food was just fantastic. I even made it a rule that we had to go out for Mardi Gras, just so that we could go there for New Orleans/Creole food. I loved it.

They had a dessert called Jack Daniels Bread Pudding. It became a favorite of mine. I literally had it everytime I went. I loved it so much that I e-mailed the chef and told her how much I loved it, and what do you know she e-mailed me back with "I'm so glad you liked it-- here is the recipe". .I was happier than a pig in mud. Wait.... does anyone really say that anymore? Probably not. But I'm so glad that she sent me that recipe because a few months ago they closed their doors for the last time :(

When I was at Walt Disney World for the Food Blog Forum Food Blogger Conference, we went to Ohana for dinner one night. ( a recommendation from Chris, Thanks!) *It's one of the restaurants at Disney's Polynesian Resort.* After one of the most massive dinners ever, they twisted our arms and forced us to have dessert. ;) Which was a Coconut Pineapple Bread Pudding. It was one of those moments where you take the first bite and Disney Fireworks explode around you. yeah.. ok for me it was.

So what do I do when I have something in a restaurant that I just must have again? Make it at home of course! Plus since BigBear couldn't come on the trip with me, I had to make it at home for him to try. I don't' think that they would have taken to kindly to me stuffing a whole tray of Coconut Pineapple Bread Pudding into my purse. ;)

I have no idea what Disney's Recipe is, but this is my take on it. I used the basic steps from the Jack Daniels Bread Pudding and went from there. Oh and mine has no coconut in it. We're not really a coconut loving family, so I switched and used Bananas instead as my second flavor. I think that I actually like mine better.

(Printable Recipe Here)

Pineapple Banana Bread Pudding with Banana Caramel Sauce

by Angie Barrett March-28-2012

Ingredients

12 Hawaiian Bread Rolls (or any type of soft roll)
6 eggs
2 cups brown sugar
4 tablespoons vanilla
1 pint whole milk
1 pint half and half
1-2 cups crushed pineapple, drained
3 bananas, mashed
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
For Banana Caramel Sauce:
2 bananas, sliced
1 cup caramel sauce (I used caramel ice cream topping)
Vanilla Ice Cream (optional)

Instructions

Butter a 9-inch square baking dish.

Cube the rolls. Toss cubed rolls into baking dish.

In a large bowl, mix together the eggs, brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg. Mix well.

Add in the half and half, stir. Stir in the milk.

Add crushed pineapple and mashed bananas. Stir

Pour milk mixture over the bread crumbs and toss well. Make sure all of the bread is nicely coated. (I did have a little extra liquid so you could add more bread cubes or just discard the extra)

Gently press down the bread crumbs and sprinkle with golden raisins.

Cover with foil and refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight (I let mine sit overnight).

Once the bread pudding is ready to bake, pre-heat oven to 325F.

Bake for 1 and 10 minutes hour or until set.
For Caramel Sauce:

In a medium sauce pan, heat caramel on low heat. Add slice bananas and stir. Cook for about 5 minutes or until bananas are soft. Don't cook this to quick or with the heat to high or you will burn the caramel.

Details

Prep time: 1 hour 15 mins Cook time: 1 hour 10 mins Total time: 2 hour 25 mins Yield: 9

I'm linking this banana recipe to Eat at Home: Ingredient Spotlight: Bananas

Cutey Eros Charm Bracelet Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 14:38:00 +0000

{ Cutey Eros Charm Bracelet Giveaway }

With Spring on our doorsteps, I knew I needed to share this beautiful Cutey Eros Charm Bracelet giveaway with you soon! Cutey e-mailed me a little while ago and asked me to review one of their charm bracelets. They also asked if they could through in an extra one to give to you!

I wore mine for a little while to test it out and receiving a ton of compliments on it. The beads are so cute and I love the look of it.

Cutey is based out of the UK but they ship all over the world! They have variety of bracelets to choose from, and at the top you can change the prices to "Your Currency" so you can see how much they are in US Currency.

How to enter the Giveaway

To enter to win:

One (1) Lucky winner will win this Cutey Eros Charm Bracelet!

Just Check off the steps below :) You don't have to do all of them, but the more you do the more entries you get :)

Tell me: What is one piece of jewelry that you are always wearing?

DON'T FORGET TO CHECK OFF EVERYTHING YOU DO BELOW!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

**This Giveaway is open to anyone 18years or older. Prize is provided by http://www.cutey.co.uk. All opinions are my own. Giveaway ends, Wed. April 4th . Winner will be contacted by email within 48 hours after the giveaway ends. If you have any additional questions - feel free to send me an email!

Black Truffle White Cheddar Macaroni and Cheese

noreply@blogger.com (Angie Barrett) — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 15:58:00 +0000

{ Black Truffle White Cheddar Macaroni and Cheese }

While I was in Orlando / Walt Disney World for the Food Blog Forum Food Blogger Conference, I had a chance to visit Downtown Disney! Hide your wallets when you visit Downtown Disney, because you'll be tempted to spend every last penny that you have. While we were walking around, Mom spotted a kitchen shop called Mickey's Pantry and because it's packed full of everything to do with the kitchen, I had to stop in for a minute.

As we're looking around the store, I noticed a section in the corner with huge jars of spices. We went over to check it out and as I was looking at the different spices, the guy from The Spice and Tea Exchange was telling two other ladies about a Black Truffle Sea Salt that he used to make Macaroni and Cheese. So as I'm looking at the spices and eavesdropping on their conversation, I decided that I NEEDED this Black Truffle Sea Salt. After all I do love a good Macaroni and Cheese recipe!

But they were standing right in front of the jar for the Black Truffle Sea Salt... how do I get to it without totally throwing myself out there as an eavesdropper. I'm not a good conversation starter, so I didn't want to just start talking about it with them... that makes me nervous. So anyways, I just kinda casually reached through them haha, and grabbed my packet of Sea Salt. Then the guy started talking to me about the Black Truffle Sea Salt. I failed at not drawing attention to myself.

But I'm kinda glad I did because he started telling me how to make this Macaroni and Cheese. Then we talked about food, and more food, the the Food Blogger Conference, and some of our favorite blogs, and then I gave him my business card. After grabbing a few other things, I headed to check out and overheard him sharing my blog with another person. Muhahaha someone was sharing my blog with someone else! I secretly was exploding with joy inside. :)

So while I didn't get exact measurements for this Macaroni and Cheese, I did know what went into it, so I kind of just guessed. This is one of those "Gourmet Macaroni and Cheese" recipes as I call it. It's got a good "tangyness" to it. I think that next time I make it, I'll add mushrooms and peas to it as well.

(Printable Recipe Here)

Black Truffle White Cheddar Macaroni and Cheese

by Angie Barrett March-25-2012

Ingredients

1 box Dry Pasta
8 oz sharp white cheddar cheese, grated
1 pint heavy cream
1 teaspoon Black Truffle Sea Salt

Instructions

In a large pot bring water to a boil and cook pasta according to package directions. About 12 minutes.

Drain the pasta and set aside.

In a saucepan, heat heavy cream over medium heat until hot. Right before it starts to boil, add grated cheese and stir to melt.

Turn heat down to low and stir cheese until completely melted. Add Black Truffle Sea Salt 1/4 teaspoon at a time. Stir and taste. You may want more or less than what we used.

Once the cheese sauce it seasoned to your liking, mix in the cooked pasta.

Toss well to coat.

Details

Prep time: 5 mins Cook time: 20 mins Total time: 25 mins Yield: 6-8