California Take 2

Hello everyone I hope you are enjoying your last few weeks of summer! I just got back from a weekend trip to Southern California where we visited Huntington Beach, Disneyland, and finally LA where my younger sister had the opportunity to try out for the Voice.  Before every trip I do my research to discover some of the popular local restaurants so that we know exactly where we will be eating.  Another must was that all restaurants are dog friendly because Izzy came along with us.

As soon as we got to California we stopped at the Park Bench Café which I picked especially for Izzy.  They had a specific dog menu called the "canine cuisine".  The restaurant is located in the middle of a park and you eat at picnic tables.  The best part was that it was only about 6 minutes from the beach we were visiting. It was so delicious and there was something on the menu for everyone.
 

My dad ordered a breakfast burrito that had potatoes, cheese, egg, and much more.  He said it was delicious!

My sister was so excited to hear that they had sweet potato fries.  She loves Smash Burger's sweet potato fries and said that these were just as good if not better!

My mom ordered a veggie omelet with grilled tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, and bell peppers.  But the best part was the fresh avocado that topped it off.  Also, to go along with her omelet was delicious fresh melon. Once again she said it was very enjoyable!

And finally, I ordered Izzy a peanut butter covered bone from their canine cuisine menu.  She licked the bowl clean!

After the Park Bench Café we headed to the dog beach where they were preparing for the Vans US Open Surfing Competition. We stayed on the beach for about four hours and it was so much fun.  By the time we were done swimming we were ready for dinner.  We walked along the pier and along their shops.  We stopped at Bruxie: the gourmet waffle shop.  I have never tasted a waffle better than this! They were savory waffles so it wasn't sweetness overload.  The waffle I had was a Buffalo Blue Cheese Waffle sandwich.  It was GREAT!

 

 

My mom and my sister shared a Chicken Bacon Avocado waffle sandwich.  From what I heard they really enjoyed theirs too.

 

 

After the sun went down we headed towards our hotel in Anaheim making one more stop, Afters Icecream.  I was so excited to go.  I found this ice cream place on Instagram months before and as soon as I heard we were going to California I was working it into our schedule.  It is fabulous and once again there is a flavor for everyone.  I got their famous cookie monster, which is a milky bun with blue icecream and cookie crisp cereal.

 

 

My mom had cereal and milk icecream with cereal on top.  She also thought it was so good.  It is such a good place and I highly recommend going there if you are ever near their locations.

 

 

On day two we experienced Disneyland for the first time (although it was my older sister's second time).  We packed a lunch because there food can be very expensive and of course we wanted to save room for their famous snacks.  We even packed Izzy a special peanut butter sandwich because she had to stay at the Disneyland Dog Kennel.  But it was a wonderful experience for Izzy and I highly recommend their dog kennel.

 

 

Since my older sister had already been there she was very anxious to show us the Dole Whip.  She had tried it when she visited for her senior trip.  For those of you who are unaware of what Dole Whip is, it is a fruity, almost like sherbet, ice cream that has a pineapple taste.  It is sooo good.

 

 

Another must have treat from Disneyland was there macarons.  I just recently tried my first attempt at making macarons and it was very difficult, but very tasty and I wanted to taste a professional one.  I am so glad that I did.  Since my mom and I are not big roller coaster fans, while my dad and siblings were riding the Matterhorn bobsleds we snuck away to the Jolly Holiday Café where we got a Red Raspberry Rose macaron.  It was I-n-c-r-e-d-I-b-l-e and I HIGHLY recommend it.

 

 

The treat my younger sister had was a chocolate dipped marshmallow mickey mouse head.  She said it was very good.

 

 

 Before the parade and fireworks we stopped for dinner at the Hungry bear restaurant.  There prices were not too bad compared to the rest of the restaurants in the park.  They have filling meals that taste good too!

 On the last day my sister tried out for the Voice.  We were very proud of her because she made it to the second round.  Although she wasn't quite what they were looking for this season, they encouraged her to come back for the next season's auditions because she will just continue to grow and get better.  Overall the whole weekend was a success and it made for an enjoyable end of summer vacation!  I hope you all have a wonderful end of summer!  Feel free to comment and leave your feedback and don't forget to come back and check out next week's post! Happy Summer!

Fourth of July

We all know that when the fourth of July hits, summer is nearing its half way point. Big sigh... Oh well, we still had a good fourth of July and I hope you did too.  My favorite thing about holidays is that I have the opportunity to experiment with creativity and presentation.  I feel like that is key when you are the one preparing the meal.  I also like to get my siblings involved in the prep (and the clean up). I also like to use semi homemade when I can so that I can be a part of the holiday and not in the kitchen the whole time.  I will share with you some very easy techniques on doing just that.

 

 

No holiday is complete without a cupcake or two.  One of my favorite shows on the food network is Rachael Ray, not just because she has a cool name but she also has a lot of easy ways to enhance simple recipes.  One of my semi homemade recipes was my cupcakes.  Rachael Ray takes a simple box cupcake mix and substitutes a few ingredients.  This makes the cupcakes fluffier and tastier. I also decided to add a little color to my white cupcakes.  I reserved some of the cupcake mix and dropped a few drops of red or blue food coloring into it and swirled it with some of the white mix using a toothpick (I did this one at a time after they were already in the pan.)  I also scooped a hole out of the center after baking and while still warm, and placed a Lindt white chocolate truffle inside.  This really took them over the top! They were delicious.  Here is the recipe for the cupcakes: http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/food/18513_cake_over_how_to_make_boxed_cake_mix_better/.

 

 

For the frosting I used a white chocolate buttercream recipe that I found on Pinterest.  Then I topped them with white chocolate designs. I simply melted red and blue melting chocolates and piped them into the designs that I wanted and let them harden in the freezer.  The recipe I used for the frosting is from Sally's Baking Addiction.  Here is the recipe for the frosting: http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2013/08/08/chocolate-white-chocolate-cupcakes/.

I also think it is very important to support the local vendors... I hope to be one someday.  So we went to the farmers market in the morning for a few snacks.  They included fresh salsa, a jalapeno and artichoke dip, and pita chips.  Yummy!

One of the simple things we did for our meal was fruit kabobs.  My sister offered to help and I couldn't pass up because it is nice to have an extra pair of hands.  You may recognize these from Pinterest.  There are multiple ways to do them and of course my sister thought it would be a good idea to use marshmallows for the white.  I also like bananas for the white color.  Either way they were very good!

The other sweet recipe we had was ice cream sundae cookie cups.  Another Pinterest recipe, these ice cream sundaes were the perfect recipe for a hot summer day.  I added cookie dough ice cream and magic shell chocolate for a perfect treat.  It was a huge success. Here is the recipe for the cookie cups: http://lovelylittlekitchen.com/ice-cream-sundae-cookie-cups/.

The last thing we did before fireworks was visit a unique soda shop in Phoenix called MacAlpines Soda Fountain.  My dad and my sister and I had a chocolate egg cream soda, which were delicious.  My brothers tasted the best in my opinion and was a cherry and peach Italian soda.  It was soooo good. Katy had a cotton candy ice cream soda.   I love to explore new restaurants because they inspire me to continue towards my dream.

Last but not least is a little drink recipe in honor of Shark Week which was last week on the Discovery Channel.  This recipe was also found on Pinterest however we decided not to use their recipe and just bought blue Jones Soda and clear Jones Soda that we dyed blue.  They were very tasty and the Swedish fish tasted really good after they soaked up the fizz of the soda.  Here is the recipe for the soda: http://fakeginger.com/2013/08/08/ocean-water/.

 

That is it for this week.  I hope you enjoyed your holiday weekend and my blog post.  Feel free to comment because I love the feedback!  Have a good week and don't forget to check out my next blog post. :)

Summer Fun and Easy Recipes for Kids

Happy July! I can't believe I am already a whole month into summer.  I've been doing a little bit of experimenting with quick and easy recipes that are also simple for kids as well so this week is all about snack recipes.  Keep in mind that these recipes were made over the course of the last month not all in one day :) One of the first recipes I made was a recipe that my friend Jack shared.  Jack also has dreams of being a chef one day and although he is a young 10 years old he has a lot of talent. The recipe is for jello fruit roll ups.  The best part is you can choose any flavor you want from blue raspberry to cherry.  Another great thing about this recipe is that is only takes a few ingredients and there done super quick.  Here is the recipe for the fruit roll ups: http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2012/05/jello-fruity-roll-ups-recipe.html.

 

 

Another cool recipe found on Pinterest by my sister Katy is a recipe for gummy bear and sprite popsicles.  It is a perfectly cool recipe for summer, especially in Arizona!  Again, this recipe only takes a few ingredients and is very easy to make with kids.  However the only down side to this recipe is being patient until they are frozen but it is well worth the wait!  Here is the recipe for the popsicles: http://www.diy-queen.com/2013/02/gummy-bear-popsicles.

 

Oh and it is nice to have cute models, too...

 

My last snack recipe is a ice cream sandwich recipe.  The best thing about this recipe is that you can use any chocolate chip cookie recipe and any ice cream combo.  One of my favorite custards to use is Culvers vanilla custard.  However, any ice cream would do and another favorite is the new Dreyers Custard available in stores now.  Here is one of my favorite cookie recipes: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/best-chocolate-chip-cookies/.

 

 

My next recipe is a lunch recipe relating to pizza but much quicker by using crescent rolls.  My mom actually saw this recipe on Pinterest and thought it would be fun and tasty to try out.  They were actually very good.  However I would suggest doubling the recipe depending on how many people you have.  For my hungry family doubling the recipe would have been the perfect amount.  Here is the recipe for the pizza rolls: http://thebestblogrecipes.com/2014/10/stuffed-pepperoni-pizza-crescent-rolls.html.

 

 

 

My last recipe is a quick and easy drink. Strawberry lemonade! It is so simple and so delicious  It too is also perfect for hot summer days out by the pool.  Here is the recipe for the strawberry lemonade.  Here is the recipe for strawberry lemonade: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/All-Natural-Strawberry-Lemonade/.

 

 

That is it for this week! I want to say thanks again to Jack and my sister Katy for sharing their recipes with me.  I always look forward to trying out new recipes! Don't forget to check out my next blog post!

 

Mother's Day and PEACHES!

To continue our annual tradition, this Mother's Day we picked peaches at Schnepf Farms.  You may have remembered my post from last Mother's Day as we also picked peaches. Peaches are the best fresh and when you have to work to get them they taste 10 times better.  The best part of picking was as we finished and began to pay for the peaches, my siblings and I were anxious to eat them an the man checking us out said that we could have tasted them while we were picking! If I would have known that I would have already eaten five peaches! They are that good! 

 

 

Although my older sister was unable to join we still had a very fun time picking peaches.

 

 

And having older sisters comes in handy when you can't reach the BIG peaches.   

As I picked the peaches the amount of things that I could create with these delicious peaches went circling through my mind.  Because I made my grandma's peach pie last time, I decided to try something different. I decided to choose a  double crusted peach pie, however instead of the top crust I used a crumble from a separate recipe.  The two combined tasted so good.  You may have to adjust the crumble recipe, because it made a little too much for my pie.  Here is the recipe for the pie: http://www.food.com/recipe/simple-peach-pie-128494.  And here is the recipe for the crumble: http://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1016691-peach-crumble-slab-pie.

 

Izzy really enjoyed the peaches that fell on the floor for her.  Who knew she liked peaches so much?

 

Although it should have been more "pie" shaped, we were so excited to taste it that we didn't let it set all the way.  But who cares what it looks like after all its what is on the inside that counts right?  It tastes SO good!

 

After I made the peach pie recipe, one of my friend's mothers shared another easy and delicious recipe for peaches.  I highly recommend this one! Here is the recipe: http://www.bhg.com/recipe/desserts/cheesecake-stuffed-peaches/.

 

 

Not only did they taste good but they looked pretty too.

 

Here is the final product.  They were so good.

 

We picked the peaches on Saturday so we still at to cook something for Sunday breakfast.  Part of my Mother's Day gift to my mom was breakfast that included all of her favorite things.  We spent a lot of time trying to figure out what to do for her, and decided on something she could really enjoy (and we could too!)...food.  Everyone loves food.

 

 

I found the recipes for her breakfast on Pinterest however if you try to find the recipes on my Pinterest account, you wont find them because they are on a secret board :) I like to make things first and only share my favorites! Her breakfast included a copycat Starbucks cinnamon swirl coffee cake.  I knew this would be perfect for her because she was so upset when they added a new set of sweet treats with a Paris theme, which did not include her coffee cake.  Here is the recipe for the coffee cake: http://www.saltandchocolate.com/2008/05/cinnamon-coffee-cake-bread.html.  I also cooked a spinach and mozzarella bake.  Even the picky eaters in the family enjoyed this recipe.  It is so quick and easy to make.  Here is the recipe for the egg bake: http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2012/03/recipe-for-spinach-and-mozzarella-egg.html. Along with these two dishes I also made fruit and yogurt parfaits and bacon of course.  I think my mom really enjoyed her Mother's Day gift and we did too.

 

I am on summer break now so I will do my best to post regularly!

 

Breakfast!

You may have missed last weeks post and the week before and the week before and the week before, but that is okay because they don't exist!  It has been quite awhile since my last blog post but that doesn't mean I have stopped cooking.  I have been super busy with school, but thought it would be a perfect time to start blogging again because summer is only three weeks away!  This weeks post is all about breakfast.  Since Sunday morning is a guaranteed time with family I like to cook a nice breakfast to share.  So this week I am spotlighting a few of our past Sunday breakfast favorites.

 

 

My mom's favorite meal is breakfast and one of the unique breakfast side dishes she has discovered here in Arizona is cheesy grits.  She originally was introduced to cheesy grits at LoLos Chicken and Waffles (highly recommended if you visit Arizona!) when the waiter insisted she tried them.  Here is the recipe for our homemade grits: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/grits-recipe3.html.  Also a part of this breakfast meal was our breakfast burritos.  These breakfast burritos are perfect fresh or frozen.  They are extremely convenient for a freeze and thaw breakfast on the go.  Another delicious discovery I have found in Arizona is chorizo.  It is like a spicy breakfast sausage that is perfect with eggs or in a burrito. It is also good for dinners as well.  This particular recipe is my "recipe".  All I did was prepare chorizo, cheese, green and red pepper, and shredded potatoes or hash browns in a burrito.  Then I served it with a side of sour cream and/or salsa.  My family really enjoyed it!

 

 

 

 

My second favorite food (second to potato pancakes) is biscuits and gravy.  I am not one to go for the sweet breakfast foods so I really enjoy finding new salty breakfast dishes.  One of my favorite shows on the Food Network is the Pioneer Woman.  She cooks a lot of southern meals that I really enjoy. This is one of her recipes.  Although it is only the recipe for the gravy, it is the perfect recipe.  You can choose to either make the biscuits from scratch or to buy them.  I bought the Pillsbury biscuits that you can just pop in the oven and they worked out great.  Here is the recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sausage-gravy.html.  My sister loved them so much that she asked me this morning to make them for her next week!

 

 

 Another recipe I had been dying to try is a breakfast skillet, there are so many different recipes for breakfast skillets that it all just depends on what the people you are feeding like.  Izzy really enjoys all of the recipes.  You can also scramble the eggs or leave them over easy. (They look prettier overeasy!) I believe I first found this recipe on Pinterest while searching for breakfast recipe and it looked so good that I had to try it.  It tastes as good as it looks.  Here is the recipe or the breakfast skillet: http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2014/11/25/crispy-hash-breakfast-skillet/.

 

 

 Last but not least, is today's breakfast recipe.  In search of new recipes that my family had not tried, I found this one: FRENCH TOAST.  I never have really liked French toast because I don't personally like eggs BUT with this recipe I barely even noticed there was even eggs involved.  My family loved this sooooo much, especially my mom.  Here is the recipe: http://www.justataste.com/2014/01/easy-cinnamon-french-toast-sticks-recipe/.

 

 

To go along with my breakfast recipes I thought I would share a few pictures from the Fractured Prune.  It is a delicious donut shop in Chandler.  They fry the donuts and then you are able to pick the toppings.  It is delicious! 

 

That is all of the recipes this week but I hope to continue to post throughout the next couple of weeks and the summer.  Feel free to also find me on Pinterest to follow my food boards and lookout for some of the recipes I have recently posted on this weeks blog post!  I hope you have a good week!