S'mores Cookie Bars

    I have found the perfect dessert for your summer cookout!! We had THE BEST CAMPING WEEKEND!! We thought it was going to rain all weekend, but in true Florida weather fashion, it held off until Sunday evening for us! We were prepared this time and we had a blast! I'll post some pictures after this AMAZING recipe! Seriously, you're going to love this dessert and you will be the hit of the cookout! I made mine with whole wheat flour but, I'm sure you could make it with regular all purpose flour just as easily.

S'mores Bars

Ingredients:

For the crust:

- 2 and 1/4 cup of graham cracker crumbs

- 1/3 cup of sugar

- 2/3 cup of butter, melted

For the cookie top:

- 2 and 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour

- 1/2 teaspoon of salt

- 1 teaspoon of baking soda

- 1 cup (2 sticks) of butter, softened to room temp

- 3/4 cup of granulated sugar

- 3/4 cup of packed brown sugar

- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

- 2 eggs

- 3/4 cup of mini chocolate chips

- 2 cups of mini marshmallows

- 2 large Hershey's bars, broken up

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 pan with non-stick cooking spray. In a medium sized bowl, start the crust by mixing together the graham cracker crumbs and the sugar. Pour the melted butter on top and gently mix together with a fork until crumbly. Press the mixture into the bottom of prepared baking pan. Bake the crust for 7 minutes and mix together the topping meanwhile. To make the cookie top, start by stirring together the flour, salt, and baking soda, set aside. Next, cream together the softened butter (not melted) and the sugars. I used a spoon to mix this recipe, but you could whip out the mixer. Once the butter and sugar is creamed, mix in the vanilla and eggs. Once thoroughly combined, slowly add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients only mixing until just combined. Fold in the mini chocolate chips and mini marshmallows (I may have used my hands at that point). Carefully dollop the cookie dough on top of the baked graham cracker crust, pressing the mixture flat without disturbing the crust underneath. Bake the bars for 12 minutes, remove and top with broken Hershey's pieces. Quickly return to the oven and bake for another 15 minutes. It will puff up a lot due to the marshmallows, you want it to do that. Let it cool and slice into bars. Enjoy!

Now for some camping pictures! 

My camp kitchen setup!

My man!

Happy Birthday Heather!!!!

Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili

    Boy oh boy, we needed the rain that we got this week! It's going to be a hot and dry summer in Florida. I woke up early on Tuesday morning and cleaned the dust off the ole' crockpot! It was pouring rain as my chicken chili simmered away for a few hours. It has just enough kick! We really enjoyed this recipe!

Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili

Ingredients:

- 1 pound of boneless skinless chicken breast

- 1/4-1/2 teaspoon of chili powder

- 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper

- 1 teaspoon of cumin powder

- salt and pepper to taste

- 2 large bay leaves

- 3 cups of chicken broth

- 1 small onion, chopped

- 1 whole fresh jalapeño, diced
- 1 (4 ounce) can of diced green chilies
- 2 (15 ounce) cans of great northern white beans
- 1 (15 ounce) can of whole kernel corn
- small handful of fresh cilantro, chopped
- 1/4 cup of sour cream
- 4 ounces (half a brick) of cream cheese, softened
    Place the raw chicken into the bottom of your slow cooker. Top it with the chili powder, cayenne, cumin, salt, pepper, bay leaves, and chicken broth. Cook on low for 2 hours. Then, add in the onion, jalapeño, green chilies, and white beans. Let cook on low for 4 hours. By now, the chicken will be fall apart tender and ready to shred. Shred the chicken and add back to the pot. Next, add the corn, cilantro, sour cream, and cream cheese. Stir well, let cook for another 30 minutes, and then serve warm.

   

Mint Watermelon Salad

    Frankie and I were watching the Kid's Barbeque Championship on Food Network this weekend! One of the little boys grilled some watermelon slices and topped them with feta, mint, and balsamic, it blew me away. I said, what a good idea for a salad!! So, we picked up a seedless watermelon on or Sunday trip to Trader Joe's! We bought the balsamic glaze already made. If you can't find it, you can easily make it. This fresh watermelon salad just screams SUMMERTIME! I love it and it took me five minutes to make!

Mint Watermelon Salad

Ingredients:

- 1/2 of a medium sized seedless watermelon, cut into chunks

- 1 and 1/2 tablespoon of fresh mint, finely chopped

- 1/2 cup of crumbled feta cheese

- 1 tablespoon of balsamic glaze (balsamic reduction)

    Mix together the watermelon, mint, and feta. Top with a drizzle of balsamic reduction and serve cold. Top with an extra sprig of fresh mint for garnish.

Our fancy Sunday dinner! haha!

Sweet Potato Hash Skillet

    I don't know how many times I've already said it, but I love sweet potatoes! This is a hearty dish and it's perfect for a big breakfast or even brunch! I used turkey sausage and sweet potatoes to try and lighten it up a bit but you can totally make this with regular breakfast sausage and baking potatoes. The secret is a sprinkle of paprika and baking the eggs at the end. I'm sure it'd be great if you cooked the eggs separately, but doesn't it look good?!

Sweet Potato Hash Skillet

Ingredients:

- 1 pound of breakfast sausage, cooked and drained

- 1 tablespoon olive oil

- 2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped

- 1/2 of an onion, chopped

- 1/2 of a green pepper, chopped

- 1/2 teaspoon of paprika

- salt and pepper to taste

- 4 large eggs

    Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large cast iron skillet, heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Sauté the onion and green pepper for a minute and then add in the sweet potato. Cook, stirring often, until the sweet potato starts to become tender, maybe 5 minutes. The cook time will depend on how big you cut the potato. Once tender, sprinkle with paprika, salt, and pepper. Next, mix in the cooked sausage. Make 4 small wells in the mixture and crack each egg into them. Bake for about 3 minutes, or longer if you like your eggs well done.

Bridget's Cabbage Soup

    I could go on and on about the benefits of adding cabbage to your diet! I did find this article that says it all! I can remember my mom making cabbage soup growing up. She'd call it her garbage soup! I love how much you could play with this recipe. I've added everything from rice and pasta, to chickpeas, green beans, and black beans. The best part for me is that it's filling. I can eat a lot of it and it's ok because it's not terrible for you. This is a base recipe, feel free to play around with it!

Bridget's Cabbage Soup

Ingredients:

- 2 tablespoons of olive oil

- 1 small onion, chopped

- 2 carrots, chopped

- 2 celery ribs, chopped

- 1 tablespoon of minced garlic (3-4 cloves)

- 4 cups of water

- 4 cups of chicken broth

- 3 large bay leaves

- salt and pepper to taste

- 1/2 teaspoon of white pepper

- 1/2 of a small head of cabbage, chopped into bite sized pieces

- 1 (14 oz) can of petite diced tomatoes (do not drain)

- 1 (14 oz) can of garbanzo beans (drained and rinsed)

    Start by heating the olive oil in a large stock pot over medium high heat. Once hot, add in the onions, carrots, and celery. Sauté for 2 or 3 minutes, until the vegetables start to soften and then add in the garlic. Once the garlic is very fragrant, add the water, chicken stock, bay leaves, salt, pepper, and white pepper. Bring to a boil and then add the cabbage, tomatoes, and garbanzo beans. Let simmer for about 30 minutes or until the cabbage is nice and tender. Don't be afraid of adding more salt, there's a lot of liquid and it needs to be seasoned.

Whipped Buttercream Frosting

    I love cake. It's even better when it's covered with fluffy buttercream! I've been making this frosting for a long time now and it is my favorite. It's not healthy, but it tastes great! My secret is whipping the butter and shortening for several minutes with an electric mixer before incorporating the powdered sugar into the mix. Make sure it gets nice and fluffy before you start to add anything else. If you're looking for a frosting that is perfect for piping, you just found it. I made my friend Lauren a cupcake wedding dress for her bridal shower a few weeks ago and last week, I whipped some up for my Easter bunny cake!

Whipped Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients:

- 1 cup of salted butter, at room temperature

- 3/4 cup of vegetable shortening

- 4 cups of sifted confectioners sugar

- 1 and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract

- 2 or 3 tablespoons of heavy cream or half and half

    In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the butter and shortening. With the whisk attachment, whip for 4 to 5 minutes. Stop about a minute into mixing and scrape down the sides of the bowl.  Once the butter and shortening mixture is light and fluffy, slowly add in the confectioners sugar. Once combined, add the vanilla. Then, add in the cream one tablespoon at a time until you get your desired consistency. Frost your cake and enjoy.

Fresh Orange Bunt Cake

    If there's one thing we know in Florida, it's oranges! I am SOOOO in love with this cake recipe!  The whole apartment still smells like orange goodness. Nothing compares to the smell of freshly zested oranges. You won't need an electric mixer for this one, just make sure to sift the dry ingredients to make it easier to whisk together.

Fresh Orange Bunt Cake

Ingredients:

For the cake-

- 1 and 1/2 cup of flour

- 1/2 teaspoon of salt

- 1 and 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder

- 1/2 cup of sugar

- 3/4 cup of fresh squeezed orange juice

- 3 tablespoons of orange zest

- 1/2 cup of vegetable oil

- 2 eggs

- 3 tablespoons milk or cream

- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

For the icing-

- 1 tablespoon of orange zest

- 1 tablespoon of fresh squeezed orange juice

- 1 and 1/2 tablespoon of milk

- 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar. In a separate bowl, whisk together the orange juice, zest, oil, eggs, milk, and vanilla. Next, gently whisk in the dry ingredients until just combined. Do not overmix. Pour into a greased bunt pan and bake for 30 minutes. Once baked, let completely cool. Whisk together the icing ingredients and pour over the top of the cake. Slice and enjoy!