Vivacious Veggies

Recently I picked up a basil plant to smell while at Lowe's, little did I know that my two second sniff would spontaneously release my inner Martha.

Savory Salmon

I shit you not, this is the tastiest concoction ever,
the longer you marinate the better it is!

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar

2 tablespoons white sugar

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 teaspoon mustard powder

1 teaspoon ginger powder

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Frosting 101

Here's a fun tutorial on how to ice the perfect cupcake, frosting guru Glory (Glorious Treats) even offers her buttercream and cream cheese recipes.  After going through her entire blog I discovered she is the originator if the infamous Hydrangea Cupcake, this totally makes me want to whip out my baking pans, but my husband would kill me!

Superbowl Snacks

Superbowl XLVI is two days away, are your menus set?  Since I've been on the hunt for recipes this week, I saved several fun ideas I saw, so I thought I'd share my favorites, maybe they'll help solidify your Sunday Spread.

Mini Football Cupcakes

Skinny Buffalo Chicken Dip

Passion Fruit Margaritas

Mini Corn Dog Muffins

Deli Stadium?  #impressive

Grilled BBQ Potato Skins

Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies

Hoagie Dip!!!

Who's gonna take the W?
I just busted out my Giants jersey;)

Scrumptious Schnitzel

 Who doesn't love a perfect Schnitzel?
Find this manageable (and quite tasty) recipe here.

Marshmallow Methanol

 I'm totally acquiring this Amber Rose supported Vodka for our Holiday Housewarming this weekend. After countless days of trying to ponder up a bev using the Marshmallow flavor, all I could come up with was adding it to Hot Cocoa. That's definitely a party-of-one drink ;) Today a dear friend of mine gave me the genius idea of  making S'mores Shooters! Here's the components: Graham cracker rimmed glass + Hershey's syrup + table cream + Marshmallow Vodka = the drink my guests (yup, fellas too) will be shooting as they enter our holiday decked house, cheers!

No-Bake Cakeballs

I got to try one of these little balls of heaven at the office today and it was nothing short of amazing. The recipe is simple and there's literally no baking, or use of eggs. I'm going to give it a whirl with chocolate or strawberry  batter this weekend. Thanks, Alex!

Mexican Crockpot Soup

I made this yesterday and it's bomb diggity!

Here's what you'll need:

1 can rotel
1 can of corn
1 can black beans (drained & rinsed)
2 frozen chicken breasts
8 oz cream cheese
1 packet dry ranch dressing/dip
1 TBS cumin
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp chili powder

Here's what you'll do:

Throw it all in your crockpot and cook for three hours on high (or six hours on low).

Spooky Sweets

Three Georgetown Cupcake Halloween dozens were delivered to the office this morning, aren't they bootiful?  They taste pretty dang good too ;)  Have you pre-ordered your copy of Cupcake Diaries yet?  November 8th is right around the corner, I can't wait to get mine!

50 Calorie Carrot Cupcakes

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

4 tbsp all-natural unsweetened applesauce

1/4 cup clover honey

2 small eggs

1/4 cup warm water

1 cup freshly, finely grated carrots (carrots can be substituted with grated apple to make apple cupcakes instead).

1 tbsp unsalted butter

4 tbsp fat-free cream cheese

3/4 cup confectioner’s sugar

1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract

Pre-heat your oven to 350° F and line cupcake pan with 24 mini paper baking cups.

Sift together all of the dry ingredients and set aside.

Mix together the applesauce and honey using a stand mixer on medium speed. Beat eggs, and add them to mixer on low speed.

Add half of the dry ingredients followed by half of the water to stand mixer on low speed. Add remaining dry ingredients and water and mix slowly. Add in grated carrots.

Using a small ice cream scoop, scoop all of the batter into each baking cup so that each baking cup is equally full.

Bake at 350° F for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cupcakes comes out clean.

Place butter, cream cheese, sugar and vanilla extract in stand mixer, and mix together for 3-5 minutes, until frosting is light and airy.

Dip each cupcake in the frosting to cover each cupcake with a thin layer of frosting. 

Recipe courtesy of Georgetown Cupcake, yields 24 mini cupcakes.

Vodka Cream Pasta

1/2 pound dry thin spaghetti pasta
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion OR 2 to 3 shallots
Scant 3/4 tsp salt, divided
1/8 to 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup vodka
1/4 cup vegetable or chicken broth
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1/4 cup whipping cream
3 Tbsp thinly sliced fresh basil
Shaved or grated parmesan cheese, to garnish
Additional fresh basil leaves (optional)

View original recipe here.

14 Fat Burners

Crock POTato Soup

Fall is rapidly approaching, almost time to bust out your crock pots!  Here's a simple recipe for Baked Potato Soup, can't wait to give this a whirl.

What you'll need:
- 5lbs Russet Potatoes, washed but NOT peeled. Diced into 1/2 inch(ish) cubes
- 1 medium to large yellow onion, diced
- 10 cloves of garlic, whole
- 8 cups chicken stock
- 16 oz cream cheese (I used 8oz regular and 8oz lowfat)
- 1 TBS seasoned salt or all-purpose seasoning
- Crumbled bacon (for garnish)
- Shredded cheddar cheese (for garnish)
- Green onions (for garnish)

What you'll do:
- Add potatoes, onion, garlic, seasoning and chicken stock to slow cooker.
- Cook on high for 6 hours or low for 10 hours.
- Remove and puree the garlic cloves along with 1/2 to 1/3rd of the soup, and then reintroduce to the remainder in the crock pot.
- Stir in the cream cheese and allow to melt. Stir every 10-15 minutes until soup is well blended.
- Top with your choice of garnishes & serve!

Yields about 10-12 servings.

Schweddy Balls

 Based on the SNL skit below, Ben & Jerry's has announced the addition of Schweddy Balls to their lineup of amazing ice-cream choices! The flavor consists of "vanilla ice cream with a hint of rum and is loaded with fudge covered rum balls and milk chocolate malt balls."  On that note, I can't wait to see what these here Schweddy Balls taste like.

Strawberry Shortcake Sushi

Hello delicious!

Original recipe & instructions here.

Bacon Bowls

Isn't this a fantastic idea?  It's perfect for a low-carb meal and so simple to do!

Peep the full tutorial here.

Parmesan Zucchini Chips

1 cup seasoned breadcrumbs

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, fresh grated

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/3 cup milk

2 small zucchini cut in 1/4-inch-thick slices

Cooking spray or vegetable/olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 425° F. Grease a large oven-proof wire rack set on a baking sheet.
2. Whisk together bread crumbs, Parmesan, salt, onion powder and pepper in a medium bowl. Place milk in a separate shallow bowl. Dip zucchini slices in milk then in breadcrumb mixture patting the crumbs on. Place slices on wire rack. Repeat until all are coated.
3. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Serve immediately with basil dipping sauce if desired.

Basil Dipping Sauce

1/2 cup Sour Cream

3 tablespoons mayonnaise (like Hellmann's)

3 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped

1 scallion, chopped

1/2 clove garlic

1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Kosher salt and ground black pepper

*Use a blender or food processor to combine all ingredients except salt and pepper until smooth. Taste and season with salt and pepper as desired.

Cheesecake Sopapilla

3 cans pillsbury butter crescent rolls
2 (8oz) packages cream cheese (softened)
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup butter (melted)
cinnamon & sugar

Instructions:
Unroll and spread 1 & 1/2 can crescent rolls on bottom of un-greased pan. Combine softened cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla. Spread mixture over crescent rolls. Unroll and spread remaining crescent rolls over mixture. Spread melted butter over the top and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes.

Sally's Buffalo Chicken Dip

Best. Dip. Ever.

In a saucepan combine: 1/2 bottle hot sauce, 2 blocks of cream cheese, 1/2 bottle ranch dressing and 1/2 bottle of blue cheese

 Next, stir in shredded chicken

 Cover with shredded cheese and place in oven (350 degrees) until the cheese is bubbly and brown

Serve with celery or Fritos Scoops, yummm!

Chocky Chip Dip

What you'll need:
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup (6 ounces) miniature semisweet chocolate chips
Graham cracker sticks or vanilla wafers for dipping