Sage and Pomegranate Sparkler

When I saw that Stirrings was hosting the Stir It Up Holiday Blogger Mixology Challenge I knew I had to join in the fun, and the holidays are the perfect time to try a cocktail challenge. I was thrilled when they sent me some delicious samples to work with. My first entry is totally delicious and would be a festive way to toast the new year!



Sage and Pomegranate Sparkler

Stirrings Cosmopolitan Rimmer
6 fresh sage leaves
6 ounces Stirrings Simple Pomegranate Martini Cocktail Mix
3 ounces vodka
juice of 1/2 a lime
4 ounces prosecco


Rub a sage leaf around the rim of 2 cocktail glasses and then press the rims into the Stirrings Cosmopolitan Rimmer to coat. In a cocktail shaker muddle 4 sage leaves. Fill the shaker with ice then pour in the Stirrings Simple Pomegranate Martini Cocktail Mix, vodka and lime juice. Shake for 30 seconds and strain into glasses. Top each off with the prosecco and garnish with the remaining sage leaves. Serves 2

To get your hands on some of these delicious mixers yourself, they can be found in Austin, TX at: 1st Colony Liquors, Total Wines & More, 34 Wine & Liquors, 6S Spirits, ABC Liquors, 82 Liquor

To follow Stirrings you can find them: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest

#STIRRINGSMIXOLOGYCONTEST

Cranberry White Chocolate Chess Pie

Don't cranberries just scream holiday?!

I'm so excited to be using Cape Cod Select premium frozen cranberries for their Holiday Blogger Recipe Challenge! They were nice enough to send me two bags of the most gorgeous cranberries I've ever seen to work with. Farm fresh, recipe ready, no additives, preservatives or GMOs, what more could you ask for?

Let's start with dessert, shall we?

My first entry is this gorgeous and festive Cranberry White Chocolate Chess Pie.

Cranberry White Chocolate Chess Pie

1 stick of butter

1 cup sugar

4 ounces white chocolate chips

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 tablespoons yellow cornmeal

4 eggs

1 1/2 cup Cape Cod Select premium frozen cranberries

1 unbaked 9 inch pie shell

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

In a medium saucepan, over low heat, melt the butter. Once the butter is melted, whisk in the sugar. Remove the pan from the heat, add the chocolate chips and stir until smooth.

Add the eggs, vanilla and cornmeal. Whisk until smooth. Pour into the pie shell. Sprinkle the cranberries evenly over the filling. Bake for 1 hour.

Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 30 minutes before slicing.

You can follow Cape Cod Select on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest

To find Cape Cod Select Premium Frozen Cranberries near you click HERE

Eggnog Krispy Pie

The kids are back in school today, Hallelujah!!! Our time off was amazing, but it really was time for them (and me) to get back in the groove. So, in place of Little's Lunches this week, I'm sharing a sweet treat instead. About a month ago, before I brought B to gymnastics, I sent a text to two of the mamas I chat with each week in the waiting room while our little girls are bouncing around saying

"do you like eggnog and free dessert?"

The answers were enthusiastic yeses, so I packed up slices of this pretty pie and brought it with me. I was so glad to get feedback from friends and I was even more excited to let them know how much their being my guinea pigs helped me out!

I have a thing for marshmallows and eggnog, so when I saw that Campfire Marshmallows was putting on a contest looking for the best Sweet Holiday desert I knew just what I'd make. A creamy eggnog pie with a rice krispy treat crust! Luckily for me, the folks at Campfire liked it just as much as my family and friends did, and I won the grand prize!!!  $500 and a Campfire Marshmallows variety box just in time for the new year!

 

2 ½ cups plus 2 Tablespoons eggnog
1 (5.1 ounce box) Instant Vanilla Pudding Mix
2 Tablespoons butter
3 cups Campfire mini marshmallows
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon rum extract
3 cups crisp rice cereal
½ cup white chocolate chips
1 cup whipped topping

 

In a medium mixing bowl, combine 2 ½ cups eggnog with the pudding mix and whisk together for 2 minutes. Place the mixing bowl in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes.

Melt butter in a large sauce pan over low heat. Add the marshmallows and stir constantly until completely melted. Remove the pan from heat and add ¼ teaspoon of the nutmeg, the rum extract and the cereal and stir until well coated. Press the mixture into the bottom and up the sides of a well-greased deep dish pie plate and set aside to harden.

In a small mixing bowl, combine the remaining 2 Tablespoons of eggnog and the white chocolate chips and microwave them in 30 second intervals, stirring in between, until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Using a small pastry brush, brush the melted chocolate mixture on the bottom and sides of the crust. Set aside and allow to harden.

Once the white chocolate has hardened and the pudding has chilled, fill the pie shell with the pudding and smooth the top with a spatula. Top with the whipped topping, sprinkle with the remaining ¼ teaspoon nutmeg and serve immediately. 

 

Last Day in Disney

On our last day we headed back to Disneyland to try to hit all of the fun things we missed the first day. We started off with the Nemo Submarine ride. I am so glad we did this first thing, because at the end of the day the wait was over 75 minutes long!

 After Nemo we wandered around and ended up in New Orleans. A Jazz Band was playing right in front of this little café that said "try our gumbo" but when Louis looked at the menu he said it was steak gumbo. Um, no thanks.

We headed over to Pirate's of the Caribbean, did Star Tours and Toy Story again...and again. Met a few fairies, flew on elephants and even met a few villans

I have to say, if you ever find yourself at Disney don't miss the villans! There's usually not a long line for them like the princesses and Mickey and friends but I promise you they are hilarious and not to be missed. The people at Disney never break character no matter what questions you ask them and The Evil Queen was no exception. Brianna had a pin of the evil queen on her lanyard and when she showed it to her the woman said "well at least you have decent taste. Now turn around, your mother wants a shot of your face, not your behind" in her best evil voice, then after they took the pic Brianna said thank you to her and her reply was "the pleasure was all yours, I'm sure of it"

Brianna was giggling the entire time!

For lunch we stopped at took a picture with Mary Poppins and Bert and then ate at The Jolly Holiday Café it was pretty cold that day, so Louis, Marshall and I all go the Tomato Basil Soup with Grilled Cheese and Brianna got the kid's Macaroni & Cheese served with Sliced Apples and juice box. I love that with most kid's meals come with fruit and veggies and at the quick service places they come sealed in single serving bags which are perfect to take with you to snack on later. The soup was really good even though it was a small portion, and with the weather being so cold it really hit the spot!

 After lunch, Louis took Marshall to do all the activities that he wanted to do again, and I took Brianna to stand in line and meet the princesses. Again.

It's so funny to me that each time she met them she reacted the same way- excited, shy and totally in love with them all. It also really surprises me that she never said anything about the fact that each time she met them they have a different face! haha! I was totally expecting one of the kids to realize that each Cinderella we met looked different, but they never did!

For dinner we stopped at the Village Haus Restaurant The kids and Louis got cheeseburgers and I got their BLT Flatbread Pizza- Thin Flatbread Crust, Cherry Wood Smoked Bacon, Mozzarella Cheese, Caramlized Onions, and Marinated Tomatoes Topped with Arugula and Shaved Fennel. It was so yummy! I would totally get this again and plan to make my own version of this at home. The shaved fennel was delicious and I love arugula so I was happy! The only thing I wasn't happy about was the service. This was the only place in the entire park on our entire trip where customer service was lacking. The food took forever and the three girls standing at the counter with their backs to us just chatting like they weren't at work at all really annoyed me. That is not typical of Disney, so maybe that's why it annoyed me so much. At least my food was good when I got it!

That night we used our pass to view Fantasmic

Going into it I thought it was just going to be another fireworks show, but this was so much more and really awesome to watch! Using the passes we had we were able to sit in the second row and had no trouble seeing the show. The kids loved it and it was so cute to see them waving at all the characters that passed us by.

All bundled together with cotton candy before the show! 

This trip was so wonderful and I was sad on our last night that it was already over! I know I will never be able to convince Louis to go to Disney again so my plan is to win a trip there, that way he can't say no! Have you been to a Disney Resort before? If so, what was the most magical moment you had?



Disney's California Adventure

On Christmas morning, in the pitch black all I heard was a little voice saying

"It's 52 o'clock mama"

then a little while later, and a little louder

"mom, I just want to let you know it's 53 o'clock"

 Even on vacation, after being up longer then they ever had in their lives the day before, my kids were up bright and early Christmas morning! We opened a few small gifts in the room and then headed to Disney's California Adventure Park. Because we were staying in a Disney hotel we were allowed to enter the park 1 hour before it was open to the public, so we took advantage of that and chose to do the "most popular" rides and experiences first before the park got crowded

I was totally shocked to be the first people to walk up and meet Anna and Elsa. Brianna was in absolute heaven and was so excited! I loved that since there was no one else in line we weren't rushed and the princesses took a long time with her and were so sweet. From there we went to the very back of the park and hit Radiator Springs.

The rides in Cars Land were some of my favorites! There was a moment while we were spinning on the tractor in Mater's Junkyard Jamboree that Marshall was laughing hysterically and yelling "this is Awesome!!" at the top of his lungs. There wasn't even a full line of people waiting for the next ride, so the man just let us stay in our same seats and ride it again immediately once it ended. After getting dizzy, we headed to Radiator Springs Racers which may be the top favorite ride for all of us at the end of our trip!
We were able to ride this twice and then grabbed a Fast Pass for later in the day to ride it one more time. By the end of the day the wait time was close to 2 hours, so I'm so glad we went there first when the park wasn't open to the public and then as soon as the Fast Passes opened at 8 am we grabbed one and went around the rest of the park until it was our time to return. Such a time saver!!
I had downloaded the "Disneyland Wait Times Free" app on my phone and that was also a huge help in figuring out what we should do next and which rides we should get passes for. If anything was 30 minutes or less, we went for it. If it was longer we would either get a Fast Pass or go to that one later on. I totally recommend having something similar on your phone if you go!

Once we did our second ride and grabbed our Fast Passes we took a break for breakfast at the Cozy Cone Motel. I think another tip for having a successful trip, especially with little ones is to eat at "off times" I brought a box of granola bars with us and packed them in our bag each morning. We would snack on those while waiting to get into the parks in the morning and were able to do the bigger more popular activities when everyone was eating breakfast. Then, once the park started to get more crowded we would take a break and eat. Then it wasn't hard to order food or find a table since most of the breakfast rush had already passed. Having a late heavy breakfast set us up for having a snack in the afternoon and then an early dinner- again, when there wasn't much of a wait time for ordering or finding a table. For us, it worked perfectly!
 Cozy Cone Motel was the cutest little spot and each cone had a different snack or meal. We tried both of their breakfast cones:  Chorizo & Eggs Cone- Scrambled Eggs, Chorizo, Tomatillo Sauce and Pico de Gallo served in a Bread Cone and the Southwest Scramble Cone- Scrambled Eggs, Bell Peppers, Onions, Roasted Corn, Black Beans, Cheddar Cheese and Avocado Corn Salsa served in a Bread Cone. The Chorizo Cone was so much better than the Southwest Scramble one! They were both delicious, but the chorizo one was by far my favorite! My kids are already asking me if I can make them at home and I can't wait to try!

It was such a gorgeous day and we had a ton of fun meeting characters, riding different rides and seeing the shows that were offered. All was great, merry and magical until we got on that damn Ferris Wheel. It looks all innocent from far away and then you get on it and realize the entire cart slides on rails and when you are actually sliding on said rails into the middle of the giant wheel you feel like you are an inch from death. I'm not kidding, it terrified me and my kids were begging to get off of this thing. There is also a stash of barf bags provided for you on each door. How convenient.

After that traumatic experience, my kids and husband decided to try out Tower of Terror (which did not scare them as much as that wheel of death if that tells you anything) and I found a better way to spend my time by people watching with some bubbly. Let me tell you, after sitting and just watching the people walking by for about 30 minutes or so, I was shocked at the amount of mullets I saw. Why is this still happening?!

 We filled the rest of the day with:

 meeting Olaf- the kids were so excited but the line was WAY long, Goofy's Sky School Ride- the kids did this one 6 times in a row, Grizzly River Run- this is like a white water rapids "ride" where you will get soaked, Toy Story Mania- this one is also in Disney World and my kids love it!

Ariel's Undersea Adventure, Bug's Land, The Carousel and walking the Boardwalk

After all that I was starving and was really glad we had early dinner reservations at Ariel's Grotto at 4:30. It was right when the sun was setting and it was really beautiful to look over the water at the death wheel over dinner.

 When you walk in you are met with these gorgeous views before you walk down a long winding staircase to meet Ariel, take pictures and then are seated at your table

 Beautiful!
We were given this pretty bread right when we sat down

And I got this fun drink! It was so delicious and my kids were amazed by the light ice cube, so naturally, I ordered another so each kids could have a light. The things we do for our kids...

I will be re-creating this drink at home for sure!

"Magical Star Cocktail- X-Fusion Organic Mango and Passion Fruit Liqueur, Parrot Bay Coconut Rum, Pineapple Juice, and a souvenir Multicolored Glow Cube"

Our starters were Veggies and Ranch for the kids and Crab Soup for us, which I could have sworn was the exact soup we had the night before. It was delicious, but I didn't notice any crab in it

For entrees Louis had the Red Oak-Smoked Honey-Whiskey Barbecue Tri-Tip with Mashed Potatoes and Seasonal Vegetables and I had the Fire-Roasted Corn Cakes with Sautéed Spinach, Onions, and Shiitake Mushrooms with spicy Bean Salsa and Chili Oil Drizzle. Mine was SO good and it was a huge portion so I wasn't able to finish it all even though I tried! Louis said this was better than the dinner the night before, but still not amazing. I really think Ariel's Grotto was worth it, especially if you have a small princess in your family!

Marshall chose Ursula's Octo-Dog- served atop Macaroni & Cheese with fresh Fruit and Vegetables and Brianna had Angel Hair Pasta a la Dinglehopper served with fresh Fruit and Vegetables

All through dinner you are visited by all the princesses there that evening.

Again, Brianna was in heaven!

For dessert the kids and adults got their own trios

 I think the s'mores bar was the best with the mini crème brulee was a close second

Then the waiter brought the kids a cupcake for being so well behaved at dinner

Another sweet end to a fantastic day!

Turkey ‘n Stuffing Chile Rellenos with Cranberry Balsamic Drizzle

Do you have trouble thinking of new ways to use up those Thanksgiving and Christmas leftovers? Well, if you do, I've got a great idea for you to use up the last of that turkey, gravy, stuffing AND cranberry sauce stuck in the back of your fridge! I love morphing leftovers into something totally new and creative and I was so excited to dig into this beauty! The cranberry drizzle and chopped bacon totally made this dish for me and my family gobbled this one up!

Living in Austin TX, you're never far away from a Tex-Mex restaurant and almost every one of them offers some form of chiles rellenos. As delicious as they are, I love this non-traditional twist on the classic Mexican dish!

Turkey ‘n Stuffing Chile Rellenos with Cranberry Balsamic Drizzle

4 poblano peppers

1 cup leftover roasted turkey breast, diced

2 cups leftover stuffing

1 ¾ cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

½ cup leftover turkey gravy

3 ounces leftover cranberry sauce

2 Tablespoons olive oil

2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

¼ teaspoon salt

4 slices crumbled cooked bacon

 

Preheat the broiler to high heat. Liberally spray poblanos with cooking spray and lay them on a cookie sheet lined with foil. Place the pan under the broiler for 4-5 minutes or until skin is bubbling and charred. Flip the peppers over and broil for another 4-5 minutes. Once the skins of the peppers are completely blackened, remove them from the oven and wrap the foil around them, sealing tightly. Set aside to cool, turn the broiler off and set the oven to 375 degrees.

In a medium mixing bowl, add the diced roasted turkey breast, stuffing, 1 cup of the cheese and the gravy and stir to combine.

 

Once the peppers are cool enough to handle, remove the charred outer peeling and, using a paring knife, cut a slit into the side of the peppers. Remove as many seeds as you can from the middle and stuff each pepper with an equal amount of the turkey and stuffing mixture. Set the stuffed peppers back onto the cookie sheet and top each with an equal amount of the remaining cheese. Place the peppers into the oven and bake for 10-12 minutes.

While the peppers are baking, whisk together the leftover cranberry sauce, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard and salt in a small mixing bowl until smooth.

Once the peppers are warmed through and the cheese has melted, remove them from the oven, sprinkle with the bacon and drizzle with cranberry sauce before serving.

 Do you have the same dishes on Thanksgiving and Christmas? Or are your menus completely different?

Holidays with Extended Stay America

My Friday morning was very exciting! I was asked to represent Extended Stay America and show off some delicious Holiday dishes from their Away From Home Cookbook on the local Austin morning news.

I made Sunny's Nutty and Fruit Pilaf and Chocolate Candy Bar Pie the night before and prepped all of the ingredients for the Panzanella Salad so I could demo it once I got there.

I made a mess, as you can tell, but it was fun and my kitchen smelled amazing! The recipes were all created for being made in your hotel room, so the ingredient lists are short, and the instructions are simple!

Once I got to the station I realized that we were actually taping the segment and it would be played the next day. For some reason that really helped me relax knowing that it wasn't live. I felt really comfortable and was the least nervous I've ever been on camera. Maybe I'm finally getting the hang of this!

 If you'd like to see the segment, HERE it is!

Chocolate Candy Cane Cookies

Mint and Chocolate

I think that is one perfect combination

 These cookies are so easy (are you noticing a recurring theme here lately?)

and so delicious

especially if you get one right out of the oven when it's still gooey

It's impossible to just eat three

the base is a boxed brownie mix so the cookies are extra fudgy and soft

How could you not leave one of these out for Santa?

Chocolate Candy Cane Cookies

1 (19.9 ounce) box brownie mix

1 large egg

1 tbsp plus 2 tsp water 

1 tsp peppermint extract

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup crushed candy canes

Preheat oven to 375 ºF. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Combine brownie mix, egg, water, peppermint extract and oil in large bowl. Stir until well blended. Scoop a Tablespoon of dough for each cookie and place about 2 inches apart onto the cookie sheet. Top each cookie with crushed candy cane pieces.

Bake 6 to 8 minutes or until cookies are just set in the center. Cool for 3 minutes before removing to cooling rack. Allow the cookies to cool completely.

White Chocolate Pistachio Cranberry Bark

 

Here is another really easy and festive addition to your Christmas Cookie tins- and it's even Christmas-y colors too!

White Chocolate Pistachio Cranberry Bark

here's how I made mine:

Melt some white chocolate over a double boiler, spread it out with an offset spatula on a large wax paper lined cookie sheet and then sprinkle it with chopped pistachios and dried cranberries (I used pomegranate infused ones) press the nuts and cranberries down slightly to make sure they stick and then let it set

Once it is solid break it into hunks and snack away!

Chocolate Christmas Pretzels

 I am fully aware that these are not gourmet, fancy or difficult in any way, but I still adore them.

Sweet and Salty is my favorite flavor combo and these give me just that.

And they're pretty cute too!

I found these adorable holly and Christmas tree sprinkles in the dollar bins at Target and used them to decorate the quick and easy treat

What a cheerful addition to your Christmas cookie platter!

Eggnog Brigadeiros

Yesterday I spent most of the day in pajamas, drinking eggnog flavored coffee, listening to Christmas music and baking, cooking and candy making. 

In short; I was in heaven.

When planning what I was going to include in my Christmas goodie boxes I came across this recipe and had to give it a shot.

A Brazilian candy made of sweetened condensed milk, butter and spiced rum...seriously how could something with that ingredient list not be good?!

You start out with the egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk, butter and freshly grated nutmeg in a heavy saucepan and cook it on medium low heat constantly stirring. And stirring. And still stirring.

I may have wimped out during the constant stirring and asked Louis to take a turn at the stove.

Twice

After they are ready you chill it, scoop it into small balls and roll it in a coating

I chose a mix of grated white chocolate and colorful sprinkles to roll mine in

They are sticky and sweet and include rum

Do you really need any more convincing to try them?! 

Next time I think I will try the chocolate version and add frangelico at the end to do a Nutella spin on them!

Eggnog Brigadeiro Recipe

What is your favorite Holiday treat to hand out?