Veggie Bunny

 Um how cute is this?!  :)

I made this with spinach and artichoke dip but I think you can use anything :)

Easter dessert

You all know I'm not a baker AT ALL....but I hosted Easter and wanted a cute dessert SOOOOO check out my "garden of carrots"  :)  I didn't try it but heard it was YUMMY!!!!

Ingredients:
15 large strawberries
1 box brownie mix
1 tub chocolate frosting
Orange food coloring
1 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
18 oreos, crushed (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 Robin egg candies
1 tablespoon coconut oil
cooking spray

Make brownie mix and pour into 9x13 pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.  I put parchment paper down and pour the mix on that (then I could lift it out of the pan to put on serving tray). 

After it was cool, frost brownies.  Smash oreos and sprinkle on top.

Melt white chocolate chips, stir in 1T coconut oil, and then stir in LOTS of orange food coloring!!

Put a skewer in each strawberry and dip in orange chocolate!!  Put on parchment paper and put in fridge for 15 minutes.  Then just plop those "carrots" on your cake and put robin eggs by them :)

Pea Salad

I needed a side to go with the Easter ham and wanted something new -- this was DELICIOUS and the best part; you can make it ahead of time!!!  AND it keeps for leftovers for a couple days too :)  Do it up!!!

Serves 6-8 

Ingredients:

• 1 – 750 g bag frozen peas (thawed (see notes))
• 1 lb bacon (cooked and chopped)
• 2 tbsp finely chopped red onion
• 1 cup small cubed cheddar cheese

DRESSING

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp sour cream
• 2 tsp milk

1. In a salad bowl toss together the thawed peas, onion, cheese and bacon.  (See notes)
2. In a separate bowl, blend together the ingredients for the dressing: the mayonnaise, sour cream and milk.  I like to use a hand blender for this step.
3. Add the dressing to the peas and mix well.
4. You can serve this salad right away, or it can rest in the fridge until you are ready to serve it, for up to 1 or 2 days.  This salad actually gets better after it has rested.

notes

You can thaw the peas in the fridge overnight if you wish to serve the salad right away.  OR you can toss the salad with frozen peas if you are planning to serve the salad a few hours later.

Simple Crab Cakes with Remoulade

So we needed a yummy Lenten meal for Good Friday and this was it -- SO delicious!!  Brody even ate it all up!!!   The Remoulade was yummy too -- would go a little less on the lemon juice for Rossy, but I thought it was great!!!  Served this with a little spinach salad.

Lightly adapted from Cooking Light, April 2012 (Our Best Bites)   Yields:  4 servings of 2 crab cakes each, and about 2 tablespoons remoulade.

Crab Cakes
1 pound jumbo lump crabmeat, shell pieces removed
2 tablespoons finely chopped green bell pepper
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 green onions, finely chopped
zest from one lemon
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 cup panko bread crumbs, divided (more if needed)
olive or canola oil for pan

Remoulade
1/4 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons minced onion
2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
3/4 teaspoon capers, chopped
3/4 teaspoons white wine vinegar
1/2-1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
pinch of ground red pepper

Mix all remoulade ingredients except lemon juice and red pepper.  Add lemon juice and red pepper to taste.  Store in fridge until ready to use.

To prepare crab cakes, drain crabmeat on several  layers of paper towels.  Place crab meat in mixing bowl.  Add bell pepper, mayonnaise, pepper, onion, lemon zest and egg.  Toss very gently until combined and all ingredients are well distributed.  Add 1/4 cup panko and toss again.  Place remaining panko in a shallow dish.

Divide crab mixture into 8 equal portions.  Form each portion into a patty about 3/4 inches high.  Dredge each patty in panko, on both sides, pressing bread crumbs in gently.

Heat a large skillet to medium-high heat.  When hot, add a drizzle of oil to lightly coat bottom of pan.  Place a few patties in the pan (spaced so that none of them touch each other) and cook for about 3 minutes.  Let patty cook for a full 3 minutes before flipping.  Flip patties and cook for another 3 minutes, until both sides are golden brown.  Repeat with remaining crab cakes and serve with remoulade.

Glow in the Dark Easter Egg Hunt!!

This was such an easy and fun idea!!

My boys are getting older and need new options of egg hunts to keep the tradition alive :)  I bought these mini glow sticks from Amazon: LINK and put 1 in each Easter Egg and then hid them throughout the yard.  They thought it was great and you still have plenty glow sticks left to do another time or use for some other fun event!!

Smoker Beer Can Chicken

We've made a beer can chicken before but not since I've started blogging or on a smoker.....SOOOOOO here we go!!!  This was DELICIOUS (and this is coming from a girl who doesn't really like chicken on the bone!!!)

For the brine:

• 12 oz. beer – I used Yuengling Lager
• 3 Tbsp. salt
• 2 Tbsp. sugar
• 5 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp. whole, black peppercorns
• 1 (4lb) whole chicken
• ice cold water

For the beer can chicken

• 4lb. beer brined chicken
• 3 Tbsp. softened butter
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. paprika
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. pepper
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne – optional
• 1 12oz. beer can – I used Yuengling Lager 

---

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Combine the beer, salt, sugar, soy sauce, and black peppercorns in a large Dutch oven or deep tub* and whisk them together. 
2. Place the chicken in the brine and add a few cups of ice. Fill the vessel with cold water until the chicken is completely covered, cover, and let the chicken sit in the fridge in the brine overnight. 
3. When you’re ready to cook, preheat the Traeger to 375F.
4. While the wood pellet grill preheats, remove the chicken from the brine and pat it dry with paper towels. 
5. Let it come to room temperature while you whisk together the salt, paprika, garlic powder, pepper, and cayenne. Rub the chicken all over with the softened butter and the spice rub, making sure to get under the skin. 
6. Open the beer you’re using and drink or set aside half of the beer. 
7. Take the beer and the chicken to the grill and push the beer into the cavity of the chicken.
8. Sit the chicken upright on the grill, making a tripod with the legs and the beer. If you have a secondary rack on the grill, it’s helpful to lean the chicken against that. This may take some gentle finagling.
9. Close the door to the grill and let this smoke for about 1.5 hours, or until the breast meat comes to 160F. 
10. Remove the chicken from the grill (it’s OK if the beer spills out a bit), and cover with foil.
11. Let it rest for at least 10 minutes before carving and serving. 

Mediterranean Tortellini Salad

Another Lent meal -- this was delicious and easy to hold some of the tortellini aside for picky Evan but the rest of us could eat a yummy salad :)

Ingredients

For The Salad

• 1 lb tortellini
• 1 red onion thinly sliced
• 1 pint grape tomatoes halved
• 1 cucumber seeded and diced
• 1 green bell pepper seeded and diced
• 4 oz feta cheese crumbled

For the Dressing

• ⅓ cup red wine vinegar
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• ½ tsp red pepper flakes
• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
• salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions

• Cook the tortellini according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
• Soak the onions in a bowl of clean, cold water. Drain after 5 minutes.
• In a large bowl add the onion slices, tomatoes, cucumber, pepper, cheese, and tortellini. Gently toss them together.
• In a different bowl, whisk together the vinegar, lemon juice, sugar, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Slowly add the olive oil and whisk everything together until fully incorporated. Season with salt and pepper. Pour the dressing over the tortellini salad and gently mix until everything's nicely coated with the dressing. Serve this salad warm or at room temperature.