THE Dressing, Revisited

I have a confession.  It's a little embarrassing but it happened and now I'm fixing it!  A LONG time ago I posted the recipe for 'THE dressing', and yes, that's actually what we call it. It's a dressing that I concocted one day when I was attempting to make a yummy balsamic vinaigrette.  Here's the thing though, it turns out I'm not really a balsamic vinaigrette person.  Pop open a bottle of ranch and I'm a happy girl but put a basic balsamic vinaigrette on my salad and I probably won't eat it.  So I made the vinaigrette, hated it, and decided to add some things that I do like to try to correct this mistake, like brown sugar :)  I threw it in with some mixed greens, tomatoes and feta and it was a hit.  When friends were coming over they'd ask beforehand if I was making 'the dressing', and so it stuck! And then people started asking for the recipe but I had never written down the actual measurements.  I decided to make a batch and measure out each ingredient and post it to the blog.  After awhile I had friends make the comment that their dressing just wasn't the same as mine and blamed it on their lack of cooking skills, which was totally not the case.  It was MY FAULT! I made a batch using the recipe I posted on the blog and while it wasn't bad, it just wasn't the same.  And so I apologize.  I made another batch, measured the ingredients, copied it down, and have made the dressing SIX TIMES using this recipe.  It's on point! I hope you'll give it a try! It's a hit! And a little goes A LONG way!

The Dressing-
2 cloves minced garlic
1 Tbsp grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp dijon mustard
3 Tbsp brown sugar
2/3 cp extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cp balsamic vinegar

Mix ingredients together and refrigerate.  The olive oil will solidify when it gets cold, just set the dressing out five minutes before you're ready to use it.  Stir (or shake) before pouring!  

The Cooker's Fling Tea

Growing up there was a really great restaurant that we frequented often after church on Sundays.  It was right down the road from our church and it was always my first pick for one reason. Fling Tea. The restaurant was called 'The Cooker' and the only thing I remember was the fruit tea! It was just so good! It closed when I was about twelve and that was the end of Fling Tea...until...I was messing around with my mom's fruit tea recipe and I accidentally duplicated it.  Cha-Ching!  Because it is a little heavy on sugar, we only drink it on 'special occasions' ha! If I could drink it with breakfast, lunch and dinner, I would!  If you've never tried Fling Tea, I HIGHLY recommend you make a pitcher for your next dinner or holiday. You can thank me later ;)

Fling Tea-
5 Family Tea Bags
1.5 cps sugar (Of course, you can add less if you don't like your tea this sweet.)
1 cp frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
3/4 cp frozen pineapple juice concentrate, thawed
1/2 cp frozen cranberry juice concentrate, thawed

Heat 3 cups water and seep the tea bags.  While the water is still warm stir in the sugar until it has dissolved.  Add the juices and 8 cups of ice water.  Stir and enjoy!

You're welcome.

Crustless Spinach Quiche

I'm a big fan of quiche.  I like to make one to have in the fridge for breakfast some weeks. The hubs doesn't like quiche.  It's actually the only thing I make that he doesn't eat.  We had a bad quiche experience once and I think he can't escape it.  Lucky for me, because he doesn't eat it, quiches will actually last me the whole week for breakfast.  I'm also not a fan of reheating leftovers but for some reason this doesn't bother me at all.  It reheats really well.

Quiches are great because you can mix them up and add different veggies and cheeses for a totally different quiche experience. I typically like lots of veggies in my quiche but the recipe I'm posting today is pretty simple. I hope you give it a try!

Crustless Spinach Quiche

• 1 small onion, chopped 
• 1 Tbsp butter or olive oil
• ½ tsp minced garlic
• 1 (10 oz.) box frozen spinach
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 2 oz. feta cheese
• ¼ cup grated parmesan
• ½ cup shredded mozzarella
• salt & pepper

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly cover a 9 inch pie plate with a cooking spray (I use olive oil spray).

On medium-high heat, melt your butter (or heat your olive oil). I like it to get pretty hot so that I can get a little color on my onions. Add the onions to the skillet and let them cook 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic and continue to cook for another minute or so.  Add a pinch of salt and pepper and pour this into your pie plate.

The next step is to get all of the water out of your spinach.  I usually put the thawed spinach in the colander and wring it out with my hands.  Then I put it on paper towels and wring it our some more. You can probably get away with just the first step but I like to be sure. Spread this spinach on top of the onions and top that with the feta cheese.

In a separate bowl mix the eggs, milk, parmesan cheese and a small pinch of salt and pepper until combined.  Pour this on top of the spinach & feta. Top the quiche with the mozzarella cheese and bake for 45 minutes to an hour. Let it rest for ten minutes before serving.

I hope you give this quiche a chance! Thanks for dropping by!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

It's finally that time of year, and while I love the summertime, I LOVE holiday cheer and the Christmas spirit! The hubs loves the sights, smells and sounds of Christmas and I like to get the house ready while he's out and surprise him when he comes home. With a new house this year I had to get a few extra things but I usually try to decorate using things I already have and on a budget. 

 Before it was a 'thing' to decorate with old windows, my mom was smart enough to save the windows she was having replaced in their home.  We have quite a few and I have found many uses for them. This one was perfect for the shelf with a gold 'G' that I got for $9 from Hobby Lobby.  The silver candle holders are from Ikea and I've had them for awhile.  I actually didn't even move them from my fall shelves I had up. I already had my reindeer and I bought 6 stems of red berries from Hobby Lobby for 75 cents each.

(My sister-in-law used an old window to hang a wreath on above her electric fireplace! What a great idea! I just thought I'd throw her pretty picture in here, too!) 

 

You can you glass jars, cake places, and canopic jars for decorating in any season, and most likely you already have something in your house you could use to fill the glass with.  I just used some small red Christmas balls to fill in these mini cake plates with domes. In the past I've also used mini pine cones, a string of lights, decorating gems, a candle and seasonal greenery. Really anything you have an abundance of that will fit inside works just fine!

 I took a candle that I already had and wrapped some burlap around it.  I tucked some cinnamon sticks in and tied it up with some twine. As soon as I can get my lazy bum up I am going to remove this fake greenery and cut some magnolia leaves from my in laws tree to add to the shelves.  Anytime you can add fresh foliage, go for it! I couldn't help but notice in the Black Friday ads that Home Depot will have fresh 15' garland and wreaths tomorrow.  I may have to go grab some.  The aroma is heavenly!

(Speaking of heavenly aromas, if your husband refuses to get a real tree because he's afraid it'll catch on fire, and you miss the Christmas tree smell that fills your home, you must buy one of these candles!  It's a Febreeze 'Glistening Pine'. It smells just like a real Christmas tree!  I highly recommend it!)

 I kinda love these hanging wicker balls. I used 3m strips to attach the burlap ribbon to the top of the doorway.  I also used them to create a decorative piece above the doorway.

 I filled the bottom of this large Ikea basket with newspaper and put a few different size cans at the bottom (like a can of tuna, can of soup, etc...) so that the candles would sit evenly.  Then I filled it with different size Christmas balls and beads. I love silver and gold together AND I also love anything with gold glitter.  :) I can't help it!

I forgot to take a picture of the tree!  It's standing right next to me in this picture.  Riggins has found a new spot underneath the tree where he likes to lay.  It's sorta sweet :)  The best part of the living room when it comes to Christmas spirit is hooking up my iphone to the speakers and listening to Martina McBride belt her holiday tunes. You can't forget Christmas music when you're wanting to set the Christmas mood! 

We are going to enjoy our Christmas house as long as we can! It always feels empty after we take it down so we have to soak it all up!

Thanks for stopping in and Happy Holidays!

Pumpkin Spiced Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Icing

 First, I must give credit where credit is due! I found this recipe here.  I have to say of all of the recipes I've tried from Pinterest, this is my favorite.   I've been seeing pumpkin recipes all over the place but I think for a sweet pumpkin recipe, this takes the cake! I've taken these cupcakes to all kinds of gatherings and I've never had any leftovers to take home.  And they get some pretty rave reviews!   I use to make pumpkin rolls during the fall but these are so much easier to make!

 2 Dozen Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1 Tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup brown sugar, loosely packed
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 (15-oz.) can pure pumpkin puree
• Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe below) 

In a mixing bowl combine flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  In a separate bowl combine the salt, oil, sugars, eggs, milk and pumpkin puree.  In the original recipe it says to blend the oil and sugars together until fluffy, then add the rest of the wet ingredients.  I never reached a 'fluffy' consistency in doing this so now I just put all of those ingredients in a bowl and mix it up and it turns out just the same.  Why complicate things? Just make sure if you're using a mixer that you scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl.  Add the dry ingredients into the wet and mix until combined. Ta-Da! Pour the batter into the cups, filling them about 3/4 full and bake on 350 for 20 minutes.  While they are baking you can make the icing...

 Cinnamon Cream Cheese Icing
       *This recipe makes A LOT of icing.  You will have plenty to liberally ice all 24 cupcakes!

• 2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
• 7 1/2 to 8 cups confectioner’s sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

 In a mixer (or with a handheld) blend the cream cheese and butter until creamy.  With my Kitchenaid stand mixer I usually let it mix on level six for about two minutes, scraping the sides a few times. Mix in the vanilla and cinnamon. Add the confectioner sugar one cup at a time.  I use right at 7 1/2 cups of sugar. 

It's VERY IMPORTANT that you let your cupcakes cool completely before you ice them. The icing has butter and cream cheese in it! If your cupcake is hot the will melt and slide right off! If you're impatient like me just throw them in the fridge for a few minutes!

I have a few piping bags and tips but I HATE cleaning them.  I'm lazy, what can I say.  So I just use a gallon size Zip Lock baggie.  *My experience is that the off brands bust pretty easily*  I cut a very small tip in a bottom corner and put my icing tip in nice and tight and fill it up with icing.  When I'm done I take out the icing tip and throw the dirty bag away.