Cupcake Toppers Tutorial

I wanted to add a little personal touch to one of my best friend's bridal showers.  I decided to try cupcake toppers using craft punches (seen in step 1).  I've tried toppers before, but didn't love the way they came out.  This time, I had a plan.  I wanted to use scrapbook paper along with white card stock for the printed design.  Here is how I created the cupcake toppers for the shower.  PS.  I was beyond thrilled with how they turned out.  

Gather your supplies.  Two craft punches, scrapbook paper, white card stock, glue or some type of adhesive, glue gun & cake pop sticks. 

         

 Using the flower punch and your scrapbook paper, make however many punches you need.  One for each cupcake.  

 Design a label.  I used print shop, you can use word or any other design software.  I created a round one inch label and printed them on the white card stock.  I went with two different label designs.  

 Using the smaller round punch, punch out the card stock.  Create the same number as the flowers.  

 Using some sort of adhesive, place the card stock with the design on top of the punched flower.  Make sure to center it as best as you can.  

Turn on your glue gun to high heat.  Place a dab of glue on your cake pop stick.  I use the thinnest sticks I could find at my local craft store, in the baking section.  Attach the topper to the glue.  Set it down to cool/dry.  

  Place in cupcakes and enjoy! 

Sunshine Swizzle Punch

One of my best friend's is getting married in a few weeks, which means bridal showers and bachelorette parties to prepare for.  I love using my punch bowl and always volunteer to bring punch to any event.  If you know me, you know I don't like making the same recipe twice.  So, even though I've tried some great punch recipes, I wanted to find a new one.  I stumbled across this one on the Kraft foods website.  Guests at the shower loved this punch.  It was sweet but not too sweet.  I had a request to have it posted ASAP, so here it is!  Enjoy!

*Punch is in the corner of the pic.  I'm so mad at myself for not taking a better picture!!

What You Need
2 pkt. (makes 2 qt. drink) or 4 pkt. (makes 1 qt. drink each) CRYSTAL LIGHT Lemonade Flavor Drink Mix*
3 qt.  (12 cups) cold club soda
1 can (12 oz.) frozen limeade concentrate, thawed
1 qt.  (4 cups) raspberry sherbet
Make It

EMPTY drink mix into large punch bowl.

ADD club soda and limeade concentrate; stir until concentrate is completely dissolved.

SCOOP sherbet into punch just before serving.

*NOTE: CRYSTAL LIGHT Packets come in two sizes. Please note packet size before preparing recipe.

White Chocolate Covered Oreos

When I came across this recipe from Kraft, I was under the impression that they made white chocolate covered oreos.  Which is one of the main reasons I picked this recipe to make.  But, I couldn't find any white chocolate covered oreos at my grocery store.  Which means, I had to do them myself.  That ended up being a hot mess but they came out well.  I was able to make the cookies the day before my event (bridal shower) and put the finishing touches on the day of.  I ended up making a few big changes to the original recipe, which you will find below.  These would be fun to do dipped in red and green chips for the holiday season.  Definitely keeping this recipe on hand!

What You Need

20   OREO White Fudge Covered Cookies

10 strawberries, halved

3 tbs. cream cheese frosting 

1 bag of white chocolate chips 

Make It

MELT the white chocolate chips in a double broiler.  Dip cookies into chocolate and completely cover.  Allow them to dry/harden on parchment paper.  

SPREAD 1 tsp. frosting  onto each cookie. Top each with strawberry half.

SERVE and enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars

Chocolate Chip Cookies + Cheesecake = Heaven.  

Thanks to Pillsbury for creating this quick and simple recipe.  The one thing to be aware of is the time it takes for the bars to chill before serving.  You need a few hours, so it's the perfect recipe to start with when preparing for a party. That way, once you've prepared everything else and cleaned up they will be good to go.  I had to bring these to a bridal shower about an hour away, which made me super nervous.  I also hadn't tried them before I put them out.  Usually, that is a big no no for me.  Anyhow, I put them out at the shower and prayed they were good.  Well, prayers answered.  It was the most requested recipe at the shower.  I even tried some at the end and they were delicious!  

INGREDIENTS:

 1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1/2 cup coconut, if desired

1 roll (16.5 oz) Pillsbury® refrigerated chocolate chip cookies

DIRECTIONS:

• Heat oven to 350°F. In small bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar and egg until smooth. Stir in coconut.
• In ungreased, 9- or 8-inch square pan, break up half of cookie dough. With floured fingers, press dough evenly in bottom of pan to form crust. Spread cream cheese mixture over dough. Crumble and sprinkle remaining half of dough over cream cheese mixture.
• Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until golden brown and firm to the touch. Cool 30 minutes. Refrigerate at least 2 hours or until chilled. For bars, cut into 4 rows by 4 rows. Store in refrigerator.

Pampered Chef- Snickerdoodle Cups

I found this recipe while blog stalking surfing and knew it would be perfect for an Engagement party I was helping with.  I love recipes that are semi homemade and take less than an hour.  I have to admit that I wasn't in love with these itty bitty cups.  BUT...they went like hot cakes at the party.  There was only one left and that was because I hid it- to try myself.  I'm looking forward to try different variations of these itty bitty cups!  Thanks to Mom's of All Trades for the recipe!

 Items Needed:

• Cake mix(Cinnamon)
• 1 egg
• 1/2  cup (or 1 stick)melted butter
• Frosting or filling for your cups

Directions: 

Melt your butter then add the cake mix and then the egg.

Once you get your  dough, simply scoop into a mini muffin pan. 

Bake at 350* for 8-10 min (until light brown)

When your cups come out of the over they will be slightly brown, spray your mini tart shaper with cooking spray to help them not stick and press down the center of each cup. 

Once all the tops are pressed down simply move to an air tight container and let cool.

Once the cups have cooled, fill with your favorite frosting. 

I used cream cheese frosting, also from Betty Crocker and they were awesome!

Strawberry Cupcakes

This recipe was inspired by two fabulous ladies.  First, I used a strawberry cake recipe from Keeping Up with the Jonses.  It was super simple to make and so light and fluffy. Then, I used a strawberry glaze recipe from Giada.  They were the perfect pair!  

Grandma's Strawberry Cake

1 box white cake mix

4 eggs

3/4 cup cooking oil

1/2-1/3 cup water

1 3 oz box of Strawberry Jello

1/2 10 oz box of frozen strawberries (I used 1/2 cup of fresh strawberries) 

Strawberry Glaze

• 1/3 cup frozen strawberries, thawed and drained
• 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• Puree the strawberries in a blender or small food processor. Place the powdered sugar in a medium bowl. Pour in the strawberry puree and whisk until smooth. Top the cooled cupcakes with the strawberry glaze. Let the cupcakes sit for a few minutes for the glaze to firm up, then serve.

Tilapia Tostadas

First off, I have to give credit to my wonderful husband for this dinner.  I wanted to workout tonight, so he made dinner.  He didn't follow the exact recipe below because I was using my computer to do my 30 day shred workout. I told him all of the ingredients and he did a darn good job combining them.  The tostadas were amazing but the corn salsa on top was the bomb diggity! We used panko crumbs instead of cornmeal.  We also used tomatoes instead of red peppers and onions. We topped it off with a sprinkle of cheese on top of the tostada when it was done.  The recipe is from Cooking Light.  Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1/2  cup  reduced-fat sour cream
• 1/4  cup  green salsa
• Cooking spray
• 1  cup  yellow corn kernels
• 1/4  cup  finely chopped red bell pepper
• 1/4  cup  finely chopped red onion
• 1 1/2  teaspoons  minced seeded jalapeño pepper
• 3/4  teaspoon  salt, divided
• 1  cup  diced peeled avocado
• 2  teaspoons  fresh lime juice
• 1 1/2  pounds  tilapia fillets, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 1/3  cup  yellow cornmeal
• 1  tablespoon  canola oil, divided
• 8  (6-inch) corn tortillas
• 1  cup  packaged angel hair slaw
• Lime wedges (optional)

Preparation

1. Combine sour cream and salsa.

2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add corn, bell pepper, onion, jalapeño, and 1/4 teaspoon salt to pan; sauté 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove mixture from pan; wipe pan clean with paper towels. Combine avocado and juice; toss gently. Stir avocado mixture into corn mixture.

3. Preheat broiler.

4. Sprinkle fish evenly with remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and black pepper. Place cornmeal in a shallow dish; dredge fish in cornmeal. Heat 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in pan over medium-high heat. Add half of fish to pan; cook 3 minutes. Carefully turn fish over; cook 2 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork or until desired degree of doneness. Repeat procedure with remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons oil and fish.

5. Coat both sides of tortillas with cooking spray. Arrange tortillas in a single layer on baking sheets; broil 2 minutes on each side or until crisp. Place 2 tortillas on each of 4 plates. Arrange 2 tablespoons slaw on each tortilla. Divide fish evenly among tortillas; top each serving with about 3 tablespoons corn relish and about 1 1/2 tablespoons sour cream mixture. Serve with lime wedges, if desired.

The leftover corn salsa...

Cilantro-Lime Chicken with Avocado

My Dinner

                                                                                                  D's dinner 

Cilantro-Lime Chicken with Avocado from Cooking Light

Ingredients

• Chicken:
• 2  tablespoons  minced fresh cilantro
• 2 1/2  tablespoons  fresh lime juice
• 1 1/2  tablespoons  olive oil
• 4  (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• Cooking spray
• Salsa:
• 1  cup  chopped plum tomato (about 2)
• 2  tablespoons  finely chopped onion
• 2  teaspoons  fresh lime juice
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 1/8  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 1  avocado, peeled and finely chopped

Preparation

1. To prepare chicken, combine first 4 ingredients in a large 

bowl; toss and let stand 3 minutes. Remove chicken from 

marinade; discard marinade. Sprinkle chicken evenly with 1/4

 teaspoon salt. Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat. Coat

 pan with cooking spray. Add chicken to pan; cook 6 minutes 

on each side or until done.

2. To prepare salsa, combine tomato and next 4 ingredients 

(through pepper) in a medium bowl. Add avocado; stir gently 

to combine. Serve salsa over chicken.

Busy Day Pork Chops

I'm at the point where I have too many saved recipes.  I have an email folder and another folder on my bookmarks bar.  I have hundreds of recipes and add to them each day.  I need to stop saving them and start cooking more! This recipe came to me via email from Taste of Home.  If you're looking to get recipes mailed to your inbox, I would suggest Taste of Home and Cooking Light.  Definitely my top 2 magazines and now emails.  I had another recipe planned for tonight, but after the crappy day I've had I decided for the easy route.  Mine didn't come out looking like they do on the website, but they were good.  I would probably dip them in egg beaters instead of milk next time and brown them on the stove before baking them.  We used the left over asparagus from last night along with the brown rice to go with the chops. Enjoy! 

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup fat-free milk
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 4 boneless pork loin chops (4 ounces each)
• Cooking spray

Directions

• Place milk in a shallow bowl. In another shallow bowl, combine the cheese, bread crumbs, salt, garlic powder and pepper. Dip pork chops in milk, then coat with crumb mixture.
• Place on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray; spritz chops with cooking spray. Bake at 375° for 9-11 minutes on each side or until a meat thermometer reads 160°. Yield: 4 servings.

Tilapia Milanese

This is the first of many upcoming tilapia recipes.  Reason being, I bought 6 large pieces of fresh tilapia for $7.00 (thank you buy one get two free from Albertsons).  The picture below is just HALF a piece of tilapia.  I was able to cut and freeze 12 pieces of fish.  Thankfully, I love tilapia and am looking forward to finding some creative recipes! This one was fabulous.  The lemon zest definitely made the meal.  I didn't use the flour, butter and bread in order to eliminate some calories.  Instead, I dipped the fish in egg then Panko crumbs before throwing it on the stove with a little olive oil.  Other than that, I followed all directions from the Food Network Magazine recipe. I served it with asparagus and brown/wild rice.  Enjoy!

 Ingredients

• 4 6-ounce tilapia fillets
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 3 large eggs
• 6 slices white sandwich bread, torn into pieces
• 1/3 cup fresh parsley leaves
• Finely grated zest of 1/2 lemon, plus lemon wedges for serving
• 5 to 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 6 cups baby arugula

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Soak the fish in a bowl with the milk and 2 cups ice, 15 minutes. Meanwhile, mix the flour with 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper in a shallow dish. Lightly beat the eggs in another dish. Pulse the bread, parsley, lemon zest and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a food processor until crumbs form, then transfer to a third dish.

One at a time, remove the fillets from the milk and dredge in the flour, shaking off the excess. Dip in the eggs, then coat with the breadcrumbs, gently pressing to coat both sides. Transfer to a large plate.

Line a baking sheet with foil. Heat 2 tablespoons each olive oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 fillets and cook until golden, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining 2 fillets, adding 2 more tablespoons each olive oil and butter. Transfer the fish to the oven and bake until cooked through, about 8 minutes.

Toss the arugula with the remaining 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve the fish with the salad and lemon wedges.