Strawberry Spinach Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing

I love summer time! I love that the sun comes up early and sets late! I love pony tails and flip flops...cut off jeans and tank tops! Summer is a time to renew friendships and kick up your feet! A time to enjoy  back yard gardens and swimming pools! And to top off your summer, fresh produce from the local farmers market is an absolute must! Mmmm...the thought of corn on the cob from the farmer out in Salt Rock!!!! Now I'm really getting hungry!

I want to share my favorite summer salad with you and it is so easy to make! 

STRAWBERRY SPINACH SALAD 

with POPPY SEED DRESSING!!

If you can get locally grown produce to make this salad then do it! Locally grown equals even better. A couple of weeks ago, I bought locally grown strawberries and they were simply divine! They were not those over grown ones like you get in the supermarket. Generally the large ones are tasteless and have a pale or white inner flesh. These were smaller and a deep red all the way through the berry. Simply mouth watering and very sweet!

All you need for this salad:
baby spinach
sliced strawberries
blueberries (optional)
purple onion thinly sliced in rings
feta cheese
almonds or pecans (optional)
grilled chicken (optional)
Sometimes I make this with mandarin oranges.
Put the feta on right before serving!!

Poppy Seed Dressing: 
I got this from a friend years ago!
Put all of these ingredients in a blender
1 cup of sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 1/2 cup oil ( vegetable oil or grape seed oil)
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons poppy seeds
5 tablespoons orange juice
1/2 chopped onion (white, yellow, or sweet)

Now that you have your salad and dressing made, don't forget your sweet tea! I like to put fresh mint leaves or a combination of orange and lemon slices in mine. 

I hope you are having a great summer!

xoxox

Josie

Oh Dear!!! Sweet 16 and 20 (no longer a teenager)!

It has been several weeks since we celebrated two of my kiddos birthdays. My daughter turned a sweet 16 and my oldest is no longer a teen. Talk about a sad momma!
Good thing birthdays lead to baking which makes me very happy. For both birthday cakes I opted to bake semi-homemade cakes. All in the name of saving time and energy. These days being a wife and mom while juggling a full time job when you have a chronic disease is the pits! Talk about being tired all the time! So semi-homemade is the way to go.
My sweet 16 girl requested a yummy chocolate cake and my now 20 year requested a red velvet cake. I used Ducan Hines Super Moist cake mixes. They baked up very moist!
These are the recipes that I used for the icing on my daughter's chocolate 2-layer cake and the icing that I used on my son's 2-layer red velvet cake.
Butter Cream Icing
Ingredients
1 cup unsalted butter or margarine, room temperature (use vegetable shortening when pure white icing is needed)
1/2 cup milk, room temperature
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla or other desired flavoring
2 pounds confectioners' sugar
Directions
Combine all the ingredients in large mixing bowl and mix at slow speed until smooth. If stiffer icing is needed, or if the weather is very warm, add a little extra sugar. This recipe is enough to cover and fill a 9 by 13-inch sheet cake or 2 (9-inch) layers.

Cream Cheese Butter Cream Icing
1(8oz) package of cream cheese-room temp.
1 stick of unsalted butter-room temp.
1 lbs. of powered sugar
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
Combine all ingredients in large mixing bowl until smooth.

These cakes turned out so good. I even had a lady tell me that everything looked beautiful. She then asked if I had bought my daughter's cake that morning from the local bakery or the day before because they were closed when she had gone earlier  to get cupcakes. I said, "No, ma'am. I baked this cake myself."

Here's to celebrating birthday's and eating CAKE!

XOXO

Josie

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Weekend Breakfast

   I love weekends. It is a time to unwind, enjoy family, and do a little cooking! Weekends mean I can gradually wake up, mosey into the kitchen, and fix a nice steaming cup of hot tea. Lord Dunmore also makes his way to his favorite spot. He lays on the rug that is between the kitchen and dining area. He likes to be able to see all activities. Especially cooking! 

   Last weekend end I made my version of an omelette. It doesn't look that pretty, but it was melt in your mouth good! 

Josie's Omelette

Beat 4 eggs with just a splash of milk in a bowl and then set it aside. 

Next, in a skillet, saute diced onions and green peppers with a little bit of butter. Once the onions are transparent and the green peppers are soft, add grape or cherry tomatoes that have been halved. Pour the egg mixture in the skillet. Let the egg cook a slightly before using a spatula to gently move it around like you do when you make scrambled eggs. Once your omelette is cooked sprinkle the top with a generous helping of shredded cheese. Cover the skillet with a lid so that the cheese gets really melty! 

Here are pictures of my omelette! Yummy and perfect with a cup of hot tea!

XOXO

Josie

Valentine Cupcakes

 I completely forgot about posting a pic of these cute little cupcakes! My daughter wanted to make cupcakes for her boyfriend for Valentine's Day, so we got out my beloved kitchen aid mixer and got to work.

Recipes are from my Betty Crocker cookbook.

Cocoa Fudge Cake:

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups of sugar

2/3 cup cocoa

1/2 cup shortening

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

 1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla ( I recommend real vanilla)

2 eggs

heat oven to 350 degrees

beat all ingredients on low for 30 seconds, scrape down sides of bowl

beat on high for 3 minutes

Creamy Cocoa frosting:

1/3 cup butter softened

1/3 cup cocoa 

2 cups powered sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

2 tablespoons milk ( I used about 5)

The hearts are made from candy microwaveable wafers. 

I put them in an icing bag that was microwave safe. 

Then I drew heart shapes on wax paper. 

After they have hardened, you can easily remove them. 

Roses from her beau!

Happy Belated Valentines Day!!!

XOXO 

Josie & Anna

StoneGable: Pie In a Jar

Doesn't this look YUMMY?!


 Follow the link below to get instructions for a scrumptious 
dessert that is perfect for the 4th of July!


StoneGable: Pie In a Jar

XOXO

Josie

Some of the Most Beautiful Words I know....

For God so loved the world

that he gave his one and only Son,

that whoever believes in him

shall not perish but have eternal life.

John 3:16 (NIV)

He has risen…

 just as

He said.

Matthew 28:6 (NIV)

Those are some of the most beautiful words I know!  

The thought of how much He loves us brings tears of joy to my eyes!

I've posted some of the Easter images caught around my house for this Easter Celebration! I didn't get to do as much decorating this year as I had wanted, but I thought I'd share the little that I did get to do. I've also posted some recipes! I hope you enjoy them! 

5 Cup Easter Salad

Mix one cup of each ingredient and then chill in your frig. Super easy breezy! 

Shredded coconut, mini marshmallows, mandarin oranges, crushed pineapple, sour cream.

Hint: I have found that it is better to add the marshmallows about 15 minutes before serving so that they don't get soggy.

Macaroni Salad

16oz of macaroni ( cook as directed on package)

2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese (sharp)

2 1/4 cups of mayo

1 1/2 cups of sliced green onions (with tops)

1 cup sweet pickle relish

1 jar (5 3/4 oz) of green olives (don't drain)

1 1/2 cups sliced celery

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Mix all ingredients adding the macaroni last. Chill at least 4 hrs.

Deviled Eggs

6 hard boiled eggs

2 T. mayo

1/8 t salt

2 t sweet pickle relish

2 t. prepared mustard

1 t. sugar

Mix egg yolks with other ingredients. I use my mini food processor for mixing so that the mixture is smooth. Pipe into eggs and then sprinkle with paprika. Yummy! I love these eggs! They go fast around our house!

Sugar Cookies

(I got this recipe from my Betty Crocker cookbook ~ My kiddos love them)

1 1/2 c. powdered sugar

1 c. butter, softened (don't use margarine)

1 t. real vanilla

1/2 t. almond extract

1 egg 2 1/2 c all-purpose flour

1 t. baking soda

1 t. cream of tartar

Mix powered sugar, butter, vanilla, almond extract, and egg. Stir in remaining ingredients. Cover and refrigerate for about 3hrs. I usually keep mine in the frig for about 30 minutes. If you used margarine it will need to stay in the frig for the 3 hrs.

Heat oven to 375. Divide dough in half. Roll out and cut into desired shapes. Bake about 7-8 minutes. 

I then use Cookie Glaze to top off cookie. Mix 1 cup of powdered sugar, 1 T. warm water, and 1 t. light corn syrup. If needed add 1t. at a time of warm water until it is the desired consistency.

I then take each cookie and lay it face down in the icing. Gently lift and place back on the cookie sheet. This makes the icing on the top of each cookie to be perfectly smooth. It gives the cookies a bakery look! Make sure that the icing is completely dry before you layer them on your platter.




I can tell my kiddos have gotten older when I look up in the cabinet and realize that my jello jiggler Easter egg mold has not been touched! How sad! It used to be one of the first things I did! 

Speckled Easter Eggs

I've learned over the years not to spend a bunch of money on 
Easter baskets because they end up torn up and tossed away! 
These came from the Dollar Tree!
 I spent $3 and I think they are pretty cute!

I hope you had a wonderful Easter!


XOXOXO


Josie

Chocolate Cake with fresh raspberries

This year for our Christmas Eve get together I made a 

chocolate cake with ganache icing. 

The cake was super moist and yummy in the tummy!  

Recipe:

Sour Cream Chocolate Cake

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups sugar

3/4 cup sour cream

1/4 cup shortening

1 cup water 

1 1/4 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla 

1/2 tsp baking power

2 eggs

4 squares (1oz each) 

semi-sweet chocolate,

melted and cooled slightly

Heat oven to 350. Grease and flour pan(s).

Beat all ingredients on low speed, scraping bowl constantly, 30 seconds.

Beat on high speed, scraping bowl occasionally, 3 minutes. Pour into pan(s)

Bake until cake tester inserted comes out clean, rectangle 40-45 minutes, rounds 30-35 minutes; cool.

 This cake recipe is from my Betty Crocker cookbook. It was a wedding gift to me and I love it. 

I have used it so much over the years that the pages are stained and torn!

Ganache

follow this link for the ganache icing recipe that I used

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/chocolate-ganache/

Joey and I hanging out at Uncle Jon's Christmas Eve!

My gang is all here!

"The Couples"

Happy Baking!!!!

XOXO

Josie

Southern Living

Southern Living

Caramel Italian Cream Cake

I thought I'd made this cake for Christmas last year, 

but I actually made it for Thanksgiving.

 Notice the Thanksgiving plates...they are a dead give away!

 This cake is so rich!!! It literally melts in your mouth!

 You know the saying "a little dab 'll do ya"....

well this cake fits that saying perfectly! Lol!

I've had several requests to make this cake again. 

If you'd like to give it a try follow the link below.

 I got the recipe from a Southern Living magazine, 

but I was able to find the recipe on-line too. 

Southern Living Caramel Italian Cream Cake

Happy Baking!

XOXOXO

Josie

 Tis’ the Season for Recipes

December is now in full swing and I can feel myself getting the urge to start baking.  Last year my mom and I spent a day together baking our little hearts out. Just let me say…it was well worth it. We absolutely love to dig through a cookbook or Southern Living magazine and find beautifully yummy recipes! Paula Deen, Martha Stewart, and all you other bakers out there better get ready to slide on over! My mom and I can whip up a pretty tasty treat! Lol!

All jokes aside, baking is suchhhh FUN!! The funnest part though is eating it!! YUM! YUM! To start the season off I thought I'd share the recipe to one of the things I baked last year! Cake pops...

                  and let me say...

                                        they didn't last long! These little babies are so easy to make! 

Cake Pops

I adapted this recipe from a couple different recipes I found on other sites! 

This is your basic cake pop recipe. No frills. Just plain, simple and scrumdilious.  

1. Make a 13×9 cake. Any flavor you like, just follow the instructions on the box. I have personally found that chocolate tastes the best. Let it cool. Crumble the cake  and add in 1 can of cream cheese frosting. Put it into the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
2. After refrigerating form the mixture into ping pong size balls. Then place a sucker stick (I used the extra long ones) with a bit of icing on it into the top of each one. Pop them into the refrigerator for another 15 minutes.
3. While waiting, start melting your candy melts.
4. After 15 minutes in the fridge, dip and swirl each pop into your candy melt. Sprinkle with toppings if you like or pipe designs on each one.
5. Once you’ve got an even coating on the cake pop, place the stick into a Styrofoam block while the candy melt shell hardens. 
6. Announce to your family and friends that the cake pops are ready. Be prepared to break up fights. (Yes, cake pops are THAT good)

I bought a Christmas pail from A.C. Moore to put my cake pops in.
 I placed a Styrofoam floral block in the the bottom.
Tissue paper is tucked between
each pop to hide it. 

I sprinkled my cake pops with colored sugar, "sprinkles", and crushed candy canes.

Join me in a couple of days for recipe #2

xoxo

Josie

Mmm...Flavors of Thanksgiving

    All the smells of Thanksgiving food fill my nostrils....turkey roasted to a golden brown, stuffing seasoned with fresh herbs, sweet potato casserole topped with broiled marshmallows, and mashed potatoes whipped to perfection with the beloved Kitchen Aid mixer. 
   As I bustle around the kitchen, memories of Thanksgivings long gone enter my mind. Everything made from scratch...well, as much as possible! LOL! The ham was always made the day before, but the turkey was special. I remember my grandmother getting up extra early to get the turkey in the oven.  I'm talkin' 6-7am because in her mind we had to have Thanksgiving dinner ready at 1pm.  While all this was going on my mom would be getting the casseroles and desserts ready. Yum! Yum! Don't you just love Thanksgiving? All the flavors of comfort food on one special day!
   Somehow over the years the job of making certain "dishes" has been passed on to me.  I don't mind though...I love to cook! This Thanksgiving I'd like to share some of those recipes with you!!

My part of the Thanksgiving Menu
Sweet potato casserole, broccoli casserole, sweet & sour beets, and Cranberry Salad

 Recipes follow.... 

Sweet Potato Casserole

This recipe originated from my great Aunt Effie's daughter, Billy Joyce...Wow! That was a mouthful! She lived in the South, so this recipe holds true to the Southern believe that "the more butter the better"! I tend to agree!

• 3 cups sweet potatoes...I use about 4 cups.
• 2 eggs beaten
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 stick of butter
• 1 can condensed milk

Mix ingredients with a hand mixer. I usually warm this mixture on the stove as I'm mixing it. Just be careful because it will burn easily. Pour into a greased baking dish. Sprinkle with topping (see below).

Topping:

• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/3 cup flour
• chopped pecans (optional)
• 1/2 stick of butter

I use a pastry blender when mixing the topping. It should have a crumbly texture.

Bake 45 min. to 1hr or until center is set.

350 degrees

After casserole has baked, I sprinkle mini marshmallows over the top and put it under the broiler until the marshmallows are a golden brown. This takes less than a minute. You MUST watch the casserole the entire time its under the broiler because it can catch on fire!!! TRUST me I know! LOL! 

Broccoli Casserole

This recipe is from the kitchen of my mom, Shelia.

• 2 boxes chopped broccoli. Cook in microwave 10-20 minutes and drain. I use 2 small bags.
• Beat 2 eggs until fluffy, stir in 1/2 cup of mayo, 1 can of cream of mushroom soup (undiluted), 3/4 stick of Velveeta cheese, cubed (8oz- I go ahead and use the whole thing.)
• Add the cooked broccoli to the mixture. Stir and put in a casserole dish.
• Sprinkle with crumbled Ritz crackers..about 1 sleeve. Dot with butter.
• Cover with aluminum foil. Bake at 350 degrees for about 45-55 minutes.
• Remove foil for last 10 minutes of baking time.

Sweet & Sour Beets
I got this recipe from my mother in-law, Sally. 

• 1/4 c. sugar
• 1tsp. cornstarch
• 2T. water
• 2T. vinegar
• 1 T. vegetable oil
• 1 (16 oz) can sliced beets, drained
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• dash pepper

This recipe is super easy! Just mix all ingredients in a pan on 
the stove and bring to a boil. Let cool slightly.


Pretzel Bottom ~ Cranberry Salad 
This recipe is my brother's favorite. I originally came across the recipe years ago from a teacher I met while I was working as a substitute teacher. My grandmother scoured magazines until she found a recipe that was comparable. The original recipe she found called for strawberries.

• 2c. pretzels, crushed. I use my mini food processor. 
• 1/2 c. sugar
• 3/4 c. margarine 

Mix ingredients and press into the bottom of a glass casserole dish. Bake at 400 degrees for 6 minutes. Let cool.

• 8 oz package of cream cheese (Philadelphia works best)
• 1c. whip cream (cool whip)
• 1c. sugar

Use a hand mixer and mix ingredients. Spread over the cooled pretzel layer.

• 1 large box of red jello. I use cherry, but strawberry/cranberry works just as well.
• 16 oz can of crushed pineapple, drained
• 1 can whole cranberries. I use whole cranberry sauce. Be careful to make sure it gets mixed well.

Mix jello as directed on the package. I usually follow the jiggler recipe so that I can cut these in small squares without them falling apart. When almost set spread mixture over the cream cheese layer. Sprinkle with chopped nuts, if desired (I use pecans). Refrigerate until firm. Cut into small squares and arrange on a platter or serve straight from casserole dish. 

Hint: 

• Make a day ahead
• you can make individual servings by preparing in a muffin tin lined with cupcake liners.
• These also look pretty if you pipe some of the cream cheese mixture on each one.

This year I decided to make individual servings in jars!! They turned out pretty cute!

YUMMY!

Wishing 

you the 

Best Thanksgiving Ever!

Many Blessings to you and your family!!!

XOXO

Josie