A New Obsession

How was your weekend? We got hit with some snow this weekend here in Wichita so didn't do a whole lot, but it sure was a nice quiet weekend, sometimes those are the best. I worked pretty late Friday so we grabbed some Chipolte and took it easy. Saturday I did some cleaning then ran to the Natural Grocers open house (snagged lots of free samples, score!), went to my parent's house to watch the WSU game (where I got some cuddles in with Wyatt, definitely the highlight:) and then had another lazy night. I was in the mood to bake and had some leftover pumpkin in the fridge that I needed to use up. I got some donut pans for Christmas that I had used, so I thought what a great idea! I began my search on pinterest for some healthy pumpkin donuts. I found this recipe for paleo pumpkin donuts and had all of the ingredients on hand.

Voila'! Pat asked what they were? Do they not look like donuts??? lol. Okay I will admit they weren't the best, definitely not the real thing and not sure if I'll be making them again, but fun to attempt I suppose.

The snow was starting to melt quite a bit today so we ventured out a bit more, went to church, had a yummy lunch date at Whole Foods I opted for a sandwich and Pat picked pizza (o.m.g they seriously have the best food ever), also picked up dinner for tonight while there- sushi made with rice paper instead of brown rice, looks super yummy. We did some running around and now enjoying the rest of the afternoon. I am looking forward to some nicer temps this week, and hello March!

But back to my point of this post, you guys- have you tried cauliflower crust pizza?? I will admit I attempted it quite a while ago and was very disappointed. However, I have been seeing it more and more so I thought why not give it one more go? This time around I learned the trick in making this crust successful- which is to make sure you ring out the access water in the cauliflower before baking. It truly makes a world of difference.

I used THIS recipe from Heidi Powell (love her), and reduced the recipe in 1/2 and then used shredded parmesan instead of mozzarella because that is what I had on hand. It was perfect! Like I mentioned, if you try this recipe it is extremely important not to skip step two and ring out the extra moisture. If you don't the crust is very soggy and mushy.

We divided this pizza into 4 servings- 1 serving has 103 calories- 3 g. of fat, 14 g. of carbs, and 7 g. of protein, not bad. This is excluding the toppings. When I find a new recipe I love, I tend to become obsessed with it and cook it every single week, as to why I have made this pizza the last three Sundays. Anywho we have switched up the toppings. This particular pizza had muir glen pizza sauce, spinach leaves, red pepper, jalapeno, turkey bacon, turkey sausage, and some low fat mozzarella sprinkled on top. I will also add that Pat loves this, which when he likes something "healthy" it is rare and something to not forget:)

Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Brownie Oreo Cups

As I mentioned in this post last week, I went to a Cookie/Candy Christmas Exchange. I had several friends request the recipe for this yummy dessert so thought I'd share. I had originally found the recipe for the Oreo Brownie Bites but wanted to spice it up a bit and make it my own. I now for the life of me cannot find the website where I found the original recipe, so I will just share mine!

Such an easy dessert to make, and honestly it is simply amazing, my husband told me it is his favorite dessert I've ever made, which says a lot!:) Perfect recipe for a Holiday get-together!

Peanut Butter Brownie Oreo Cups

1 Box Triple Chunk Brownie Mix
1 Pkg. Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Mix
1 Pkg. Christmas Oreos (red center)
1 Pkg. White Chocolate Chips

Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 24 mini muffin cup tin. Mix peanut butter cookie mix as instructed on package, take 1 tablespoon of cookie dough and press into each muffin tin. Mix brownie batter as instructed on package. Dip each oreo into brownie batter, completely covering oreo. Then place covered oreo on top of peanut butter mixture. Bake for 17-18 minutes until completely cooked through. Immediately take a knife and go around the edges of each cup to ensure they do not stick. Once cooled remove each cup. Take the bag of white chocolate chips and put into a heat proof bowl and microwave until chips are completely melted. Then drizzle white chocolate across the tops of each brownie cup. Let chocolate dry. Enjoy!
*the oreo gets "cake like" as it cooks = soooo yummy when you bite into it!



Happy Holidays!

A little MIA....calls for a little TMI

I knew it had been awhile since I had blogged, but didn't realize how long until today, a little over a month since my last post, sheesh, where has the time gone?! Well..I'll tell you where the time has gone - it's called getting a new job, traveling every weekend, birthdays, Holidays, etc. etc. Finally feeling adjusted to the new gig, and feeling like my life is getting a little bit back to normal. Which means my friends, I have a lot to fill you in on.

I started a new job about a month ago, and it's been a whirlwind since, it's all for the better, but even though change is good, it is also sometimes extremely hard. You just get in this nice comfort zone, and the thought of leaving that and starting over again can just give you a big ole' knot in your stomach. I've been with the same company for the last four years and had made wonderful friends there, but I was ready for the next step in my career path so it was time move on. I put a tremendous amount of pressure on myself, pressure to always strive for more...so far the decision has been a good one and time will tell.

Patty boy's 28th Birthday was last Sunday, so after a great Thanksgiving we celebrated his birthday by doing a little shopping, brunch, and taking it easy. We also got the Christmas lights up, tree, and all decor up, LOVE this time of year! Christmas shopping is about 99% done, which makes for a happy girl. I love to have wrapped presents under the tree so I'll get to enjoy it all for a few more weeks. We got a group of our friends together yesterday for some more celebrating and had a great time. I got him an iPad for his b-day and that thing has not left his side, I must say it is pretty cool, it is great for using in the kitchen when cooking..which I did quite a bit of this weekend..which brings me to my next point.

My Aunt Tammy has a Christmas Cookie/Candy Exchange party every year and today was her 6th annual party. I was baking away last night and created the most amazing, scrumptious, dessert ever!



I found a recipe for Brownie Covered Oreos, but put my own little twist on them and put Peanut Butter Cookie Dough on the bottom, it was definitely a good decision- yum!

I'm so very much looking forward to the next month. Tomorrow I'm going to a Women's Seminar - Woven with a few good friends, very much looking forward to this. We have a Christmas Dinner Party planned with friends coming up, looking forward to Christmas lights, more fun times with friends and family, and hoping this beautiful weather will keep up. I've heard several people say they are ready for it to get cold, nope not me, I'd be totally content if it never got any colder than this! Lovin' it!

 Here's to family, friends, and remembering what this time of year is all about!

Cupcakes & Cocktails

Ms. Cortney the Bride-to-Be, isn't she beautiful!?!

4.24.12

My younger sister Cortney is getting married June 30th, holy cow, can't believe it's almost two months away, man time is flying! Cortney is the complete opposite of me in every way you can imagine, sometimes I wish I could be as laid back as she is.. anywho she's not a a big fan of planning things you could say so I've gotten the opportunity to help a lot with her wedding, which in all honesty has been more fun than planning my own, I'm so much more LESS stressed out that it's not my own.

I was especially excited to plan her shower, I've been envisioning it for months now! This past Saturday, 4/21 we hosted her Bridal Shower at my Mom's house- the theme was Cupcakes & Cocktails, which I was beyond excited for. My great friend Tessa designed the invites and table cards for me, all of which turned out perfect.

Saturday couldn't have been a more perfect day, the shower started at 7:00pm, there was not an ounce of wind (very rare in KS) and we all sat around in my parents backyard where we had tiki torches and a fire pit going when it started to get a bit chilly.

Can of Dates- As each guest arrived they were to fill out a "Date Card" with
a date idea for Cortney and David to use throughout their
marriage, got to keep that spark alive!

Main food table filled with delicous home made desserts by my Mom, Grandma, and Me!

Tissue Pom Centerpieces. Found these candlestick holders at Goodwill and spraypainted them.
BUT let me tell you, these are not a quick project...hours and hours were spent
on these darn things, but turned out cute huh?!

Pink Champagne (High Heel) Cupcakes. These were a hit, and they're just
so darn cute!

Marshmallow Puffs

Cake Batter Dip (tasts exactly like the name...yuuuummmm)

Wedding Cupcakes, miniature size

Pink Lemonade Bundt Cake

Picture Collage of Cort & David, such cute little lovebirds!

Drink Table

Each guest left with another sweet treat as a Thank You for coming

Sisters, great ending to the night:) Love you both so much!

Looking forward to her next shower in a couple of weeks, this one is a couple's shower, should be fun. My ideas are already turning for the bachelorette party in June can't wait!

Much Love~

Amber