Love is Sweet

Valentine's Day is the perfect day to tell the ones you love how sweet they are and you can do it with these sweet sugar cookies! 

I have watched my Mom makes these cookies my whole life and for every occasion; we literally have cookie cutters in every shape imaginable. But since it is Valentine's it only seemed appropriate to make these sweet delicacies in the shape of a heart. Only one problem... I didn't have any cookie cutters! After searching all of Tallahassee, we finally found 1 heart shape cookie cutter. Who would have ever thought it would have been so hard? My husband decided people just eat "break-and-bake" cookies too much. Sad. There is just something wonderful about goodies made from scratch and decorated by hand that Pillsbury just can't capture, especially when made for those you love!

Side Note: For Valentine's day Cupid brought me a new camera! Cupid did a great job and even came a little early, so while I was baking I decided to play with my new camera and document all the steps. 

The kitchen-aid is one of my favorite wedding gifts! It  makes you feel like a pro baking cookies! 

After your dough has chilled, the real fun begins! This next step will blow your mind. After going through a few "University of Cookies" tutorials, I found this tip: Rather than adding a ton of flour on your dough or having dough stick to the rolling pin, just put a wax paper on top and roll! Simply peel away when your dough in the thickness you desire. Great tip! 

I used parchment paper on the bottom and the wax paper on top. You can't cook with wax paper so don't use it on the bottom! Parchment paper replaces the need to use cookie spray and makes it easier to transfer your cut cookies to the baking sheet:

All you have to do is cut around your shapes and place them on your pan. The shapes will remain perfectly formed and there will be no sticking to the pan. 

These were perfectly cooked. I admit I had to do a little taste testing to make sure they were done ;)

The next step will be to decorate your cookies. I use Wilton's meringue powder to make my icing and simply follow the instructions included. I also add a little vanilla to enhance the flavor of the icing. Add your color and fill a piping bag and you are ready to decorate. 

And that is all! It is as simple as it looks. And even if your icing isn't perfect I promise they will still taste delicious. 

Hope you have a Valentine's day full of love & sweets! Enjoy.

XOXO,

Katie M. 

Fat Tuesday!

If I had to pick one thing I love about the South it would be how we celebrate. The parties are grande, the food is delicious, and the decorations are divine! Mardi Gras definitely is no exception! 

Mardi Gras (french for Fat Tuesday) is the last night before the season of Lent.  On Fat Tuesday it is tradition to eat rich foods and sweet deserts before Christians observe Lent (a time of self-denial, which through prayer and patience prepares one for Easter Sunday!).  

To celebrate Fat Tuesday our menu was filled with rich southern classics. On the menu: cajun jambalaya with sausage, sweet cornbread muffins, and fresh fruit.

 

For Dessert? A King Cake of course, no Mardi Gras celebration would be complete without one!

Here is an up close of the colorful icing:

I found this recipe (here) and it was simple, tasted great, and semi-healthy (at least for Fat Tuesday)! I halved the recipe as follows:

Cake: 
1 (8-ounce) cans reduced-fat crescent rolls
2 ounces reduced-fat cream cheese
1 (maybe a little extra!) tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup light brown sugar (didn't half this..opps!)
1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1. Preheat oven 350°F. Coat 10-inch round pizza pan with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Separate crescent rolls at perforations, into 8 slices.
3. In mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar, and vanilla until creamy. Spread on dough.
4. In another small bowl, combine butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon with fork until crumbly. Sprinkle over cream cheese. Fold dough points over filling, and arrange to form a circular roll like a king cake.
5. Bake 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool slightly, drizzle with colored Mardi Gras Icing.

Mardi Gras Icing:
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1-2 tablespoons skim milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1. In small bowl, combine all ingredients, except food color. Divide mixture into three bowls.
2. In first bowl, add a few drops of yellow food coloring. In second bowl, add a few drops of green food coloring. In third bowl, add equal amounts of drops of blue food coloring and recoloring (makes purple!)
3. Drizzle over baked cake.

Side note: When mixing the icing I had to go back to kindergarden and remember how to mix my colors! Let's just say I needed a little refreshing. ha ha ha. In the end it worked out and all the colors were just right. 

I hope your Mardi Gras/ Fat Tuesday Celebration has been fun and exciting:) Tomorrow starts the time of Lent! Are you giving up anything ? 

With Love, 

Katie M.

A Wonderful Wednesday

My wonderful Wednesday night includes... 

Trying a new recipe,

The winter edition of "Celebrate" magazine,

and 

Cupcakes! 

 Peanut Butter Fudge Cupcake and a Boston Cream Pie Cupcake

But before we get to dessert, dinner first:

The recipe I tried tonight was Crusted Honey Mustard Chicken. My Mother sent it to me about a week ago and said it was great! Even better, my Dad said it was good, which is a huge accomplishment. Since we are always looking for new meal ideas, this recipes was greatly appreciated (especially because it was so simple).

If you like honey mustard you will really enjoy this recipe. The key is in the sauce! Make sure you save that reserve dip for the end (step 4). And make sure to set it aside before you dip the raw chicken.  

Some would say my qualification of "wonderful" means I am offically old, but I will choose to disagree! And if you have ever read "Celebrate", I am sure you would too! 

With Love, 

Katie M. 

End of a Season, Beginning of a Year:

It was a bitter sweet start to 2013: with a Nole victory at the 2013 Orange Bowl, so too came the closing of the 2012 football season. Hopefully the new year will be full of hope, opportunity, and new adventures to be had! And maybe a National Championship next season? 

In honor of game day and the new year we planned a traditional southern New Year's feast, with a bit of a football theme.

On the Menu: 

Corn Casserole

Lucky Black Eye Peas

Smoked Ribs

Collard Greens

Yum.

And of course a southern meal wouldn't be complete with out a tablescape. 

The Seminole table:

Again, I used what I had around the house for the table setting (if you do your wedding right, you really do get a lot of good pieces). My mom made the burlap runners for each table at the wedding and we used the garnet & gold shakers for our wedding"exit."  The mints and napkins used were leftovers from tailgates this season, and the Bobby Bowden signed football was a gift Phillip received.  Oh, and of course I had to add the oranges in honor of the "Orange Bowl". 

Below is the corn casserole recipe (via Paula Deen). All you have to do is mix all the ingredients and pop it in the oven for 45 mins! Easy as can be! 

Ingredients:

• 1 (15 1/4-ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
• 1 (14 3/4-ounce) can cream-style corn
• 1 (8-ounce) package corn muffin mix (recommended: Jiffy)
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
• 1 to 1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, stir together the 2 cans of corn, corn muffin mix, sour cream, and melted butter. Pour into a greased 9 by 13-inch casserole dish. Bake for 45 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven and top with Cheddar. Return to oven for 5 to 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Let stand for at least 5 minutes and then serve warm.

Note: We actually decided not to add the cheese, used low sodium corn, and substituted regular sour cream with light sour cream. Have to save calories where you can! 

Go Noles,

Katie M.