Sundae Campfire Cones

I've seen variations of Campfire Cones floating around the web all summer and on July 4th I had an opportunity to try them out!

We wanted to keep our ingredients simple: waffle cones, pineapple, marshmallows, chocolate chips, peanut butter bits, whipped cream & cherries. (Basically an ice cream-less sundae!)

Step 1: Grab a cone and fill it with your favorites! We found that marshmallows work best on the top, they stick together and keep all the goodness in the cone.
Step 2: Wrap your cone in tin foil. Be sure the edges are all sealed.
Step 3: Place wrapped cone around campfire. (The grill works well too) You don't want to put the cone too close to the flames though, your waffle cone will burn!

Step 4: Wait about 15 minutes, open carefully (it's hot!) and ENJOY! In my opinion it is best to take the cones out before everything inside melts to a liquid (see below). Ooey gooey melty goodness, without third-degree chocolate burns.

While munching on our cones we kept thinking of ingredients to try next time. Some of my favorite ideas included strawberries, crunched up cookies, Nutella & banana slices. Mmmm...

Coffee Protein Shake

Being as I am out of creamer (& too lazy to go to the store) I decided to try a little idea I saw on Pinterest. A Coffee Protein Shake! This is perfect because some days I just prefer to "drink" my breakfast...but when you have a protein shake or smoothie AND coffee it is too much. Brian and I both loved these!

I modified the original recipe from one my favorite websites: SparkPeople
Here's what I used:
-1 cup Vanilla Almond Milk (skim works too!)
-1 scoop Protein Powder (mine is GNC Cookies 'n Cream
-1.5 cups of brewed coffee (Dunkin, my fav)
-1 small banana, sliced
-2 handfuls of ice
-1 packet of Stevia (if needed)



Toss it all in your blender and blend until smooth. Here's a little trick I learned: a standard size mason jar screws right into most blender bases! Just removed the blade & base from the bottom of your blender pitcher and screw onto the jar. I haven't used the blender pitcher since I discovered this. Don't go throwing your pitcher away though, you might need it to make a large batch of margaritas! But wait, single serve margaritas?! Excuse me while I run to the kitchen...)



Since I've been having these (Coffee Protein Shakes, not Margaritas) every morning I decided to freeze some leftover coffee into coffee cubes. Now I replace some of the ice with my coffee cubes for a less watered down shake. I also like to brew my coffee before bed and let it cool overnight...I know you coffee purists are cringing right now.



Thanks for joining me for my 1 Pinterest Project Per Week - Week 8 post! (Yes, I know I missed a few weeks...I'm human!) Let me know if you try this out!

Crustless Spinach Quiche

This is one of the go-to recipes in my dinner rotation. Not only is it healthy, quick and cheap - it is delicious! One of the best things about this recipe is how versatile it is. Do you have some tomatoes you need to use up? Dice them up and toss them in! Want to spice it up? Add red pepper flakes or hot sauce. My personal favorite is to add some feta cheese...mmmmmm!



Crustless Spinach Quiche
Ingredients:
1 cup fat free cottage cheese
3 large eggs
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp salt
2 cloves garlic (I usually use garlic powder - because I'm lazy)
10 oz frozen spinach
1 cup light cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350°. Thaw spinach - I just pop it in the microwave for about 6 minutes on defrost. Mix all ingredients together and stir. Spray pie dish with cooking spray. Pour mixture into pie pan and bake for 45-50 minutes. ENJOY!
Makes 8 servings.

Now I know Weight Watchers has changed their Points system but years ago I calculated the points of this dish. Using the old system a serving has ONE point! ONE POINT (which is good because I could eat the whole dish)!

Let me know if you try it out!

One Pinterest Project a Week for 52 Weeks - Week 1

One of my resolutions this year is to try more Pinterest projects. It is too easy to just pin, pin, pin and never look back! I'm making it my goal to complete 52 Pinspired projects, one each week for 2013. Each weekend I'll feature a project, recipe or idea - but first here is a look back at some projects from 2012!



GLITTERED CHEVRON CANVAS - My original pin came from Southern Bells. Normally I would switch things up but the original colors were SO perfect for my office I stuck with them. The original pin only leads to a photo but it was easy enough to re-create. I simply cut a chevron pattern (I wanted more points than the original), traced it onto the canvas with pencil and painted the pink stripes. Once those were dry I coated the sections I wanted to glitter with Mod Podge, poured on the glitter and let it dry. Once everything was dry I shook off the loose glitter, gave it a full coat of Mod Podge AND a quick spray with clear Krylon. It's been 6 months and that glitter isn't going anywhere!





VINTAGE BOOK MONOGRAM - My original pin came from Ashbee Design. This was the easiest project ever! I simply picked out a vintage book at my favorite thrift shop, cut a paper template and handed it to my dad. And, POOF - there you have it, a vintage book monogram! Oh wait, you want to know how he did it? He taped my template to the front of the book, making sure to tape the front & back cover together to hold the book closed. Then he used a scroll saw to cut the template. (See, it really was easy!)



So, without further ado I present this week's PIN:
One-Pot Macaroni and Cheese made without butter or added thickeners. It's been so cold & windy here this week, I figured comfort food was the way to go! I also added chopped green chilies & taco seasoning to spice it up.



There are so many variations of this recipe floating around Pinterest, the one I started with can be found on Macaroni & Cheesecake.



One-Pot Macaroni & Cheese with Green Chilies

Ingredients:
2 c. dried shell pasta
2 1/2 c. skim milk
1 c. hand shredded cheddar cheese
1 tsp. salt
4 oz. chopped green chilies
1/2 tsp. taco seasoning
(Dijon mustard is called for in the original recipe but I decided to leave it out.)

Combine milk & dried pasta in saucepot and bring to simmer. Reduce heat to low and cook pasta until soft - about 20 minutes. Add cheese, salt, green chilies and taco seasoning. Stir, cover and let sit for about 5 minutes.
Now, the original recipe stops here but I was raised on hearty Midwestern mac & cheese and this was way too soupy for me. I poured the mixture into a baking dish and popped it in the oven for 15 minutes at 300*.

The above recipe says it feeds 4 but I doubled the recipe for 4 people (my hubby and dad count as double!) and we had no leftovers. I thought there was a gritty texture, possibly from cooking the pasta and not draining it. I still prefer baked mac & cheese but overall everyone gave the dish a thumbs-up.

I snuck back into the kitchen to take a few more pictures and this is what I found...it looks like I'll be making this again!


I'm linking up with Design, Dining + Diapers!

What I'm Loving...

Happy Wednesday and a belated Merry Christmas!


I'm loving that I was able to celebrate the holidays surrounded by family & friends. Of course there were so many delicious food dishes, including several new "pinterest" finds. We even had some light snow on Christmas Eve which gave everything a little dusting of Christmas Magic. :)

Our little family...we must have taken 30 pictures and this was the best we got!

Giving the pup some holiday love.



I'm loving my new Jenna Kator Petoskey handbag from Santa! I've been dreaming of this bag since I first saw the Jenna Kator collection last summer at Little Luxuries of Mackinac. (Ok, truth be told I've been dreaming of everything in the entire store!) Aside from being a beautiful handbag I love that the designer is from Michigan and all of her designs are named after places in the state. Of course, I also love that her name is Jenna! Another very cool thing about the Jenna Kator Collection - her bags are made of vegetarian "leather" meaning that they look, feel, and smell like real leather but no animals are harmed. Check out the entire collection at www.jennakator.com!




Image from The Jenna Kator Collection

I'm also loving all the new Pinterest recipes I've sampled this Christmas!

My sister made Bloomin' Onion Bread for Christmas Eve...talk about yum!

Although we have to rename them since my husband is NOT an Ohio State fan everyone loved the Buckeyes. So delish, I planned to take them to my in-laws for Christmas dinner but none survived. Beth's tip about using mini-muffin trays is genius!



The first batch of 2-Ingredient Chili Cheese Dip was gone in under 5 minutes. Lesson learned, make a double batch. Quick, inexpensive and yummy...my kind of recipe!



Finally, I'm loving my new little blog. I have big plans to grow it in 2013 and am having so much fun with every new (small) step!


I'm linking up with Jamie for What I'm Loving Wednesday.