FLAG CAKE FOR THE 4TH!

I'm totally making this (correction...made this) for out 4th of July party! I hope everyone has a wonderful, fun and safe holiday weekend!

See you all next week!

Thanks Redheaded Recipes for the idea and thanks 17 and Baking for creating the cake in the first place! Very creative and fun!

Thanks to my good friend Lisa for taking this picture!

CHORIZO BLACK BEAN SKILLET

I have always wanted to try chorizo, so a few weeks ago I decided to do just that. I put together this little one skillet meal. It was so easy and came together really quickly. Both my husband and I really liked it. The chorizo was a little more fatty than I had expected, but I just drained off the fat, like I would bacon. We loved the smoky flavor of the dish and the creaminess of the Queso Fresco. It was definitely a success!

CHORIZO BLACK BEAN SKILLET
(Mindi Original)

14 oz. chorizo; skin removed, diced
3 C. cooked rice
1 Can black beans; drained and rinsed
1 Can Cilantro Lime diced tomatoes (or Mexican style diced tomatoes)
salt & pepper (optional)
½ C. rough chopped cilantro
1-2 C. Queso Fresco cheese; crumbled

1. In a large skilled sauté the chorizo until all the fat has been rendered. Once the chorizo has been cooked, drain off all the fat.
2. Return the chorizo to the skillet. Add the rice, beans and tomatoes, stirring to combine. Season with salt & pepper to taste.
3. When everything is nice and hot, stir in the cheese and cilantro. Continue to cook until the cheese melts, about 3-4 minutes. It won’t melt like regular cheese. Queso Fresco melts more like a fresh mozzarella. It will just get nice and soft.
4. Serve immediately. If you like, top with some additional fresh cilantro and crumbled cheese.
5. Serves 6.

Monday Moments - Rubio's I love you!!

A few weeks ago I got the most exciting email. I was invited to a cooking demo and lunch with the owner and founder of Rubio's. I was soooo excited. Rubio's just happens to be one of my favorite restaurants. When I moved to Utah County from Salt Lake 6 years ago, I was devastated that Rubio's was so far away. I would make special trips just for a fish taco. But not any more...there are now 2 Rubio locations in Utah County.

Anyway, I digress. I was so excited to get a first hand demo of how Rubio's makes their food so amazingly delicious. Unfortunately the night before the big event, my little r was up all night with a fever, coughing, running nose, and throwing up. By that morning I hadn't slept and I just couldn't bare leaving my little monkey when she so desperately needed me. So, I had to make the sad call and tell Rubio's that I just couldn't make it.

But that's really ok, as great as it would have been to have a free lunch and get some insider info on Rubio's goodness, I didn't really need to attend to know how awesome Rubio's is. Seriously, if you have not tried Rubio's, you need to go immediately. I personally recommend the fish taco's with corn tortilla's. But honestly I've never eaten anything that I didn't like. I could not give it a higher recommendation! And if you're thinking to yourself...I don't like fish taco's, you need to talk to my brother who said the same thing until I dragged him to Rubio's and made him try one. Now he's just as big a fan as me...maybe bigger.

Click HERE to find a location near you! Then GO!!

Monday Moments - I'm a little bias...

My brother is so talented! Both of my brothers are incredibly talented, for that matter, but I have a hard time convincing them of just how talented they are!

My baby brother Brady will be graduating in a couple of weeks with his Masters in Literature from Colorado State University. I am really proud of him. He is a wonderful writer, but he's also an amazing photographer. He's had a love of photography since high school and through the years he's been perfecting his skill.

I think his love of the outdoors has driven his art towards capturing the beauty of nature in it's simplest form. Some of my favorite shots include images we pass every day, but we often fail to "really" see. Like the grain in a piece of wood, water droplets after a rain storm, a fallen leaf, or the formation of a cloud. Brady has an eye for the wonder in creation. Every picture sparks emotion in me. You may remember that I used one of his photo's in a post shortly after I had my last miscarriage. I received several emails telling me how cool the photo was, especially the symbolism it represented. That is how I feel about all my brothers work. It is a gift.

This month my baby brother tuned 29...hard to believe! As a commemoration of his last year before the big 30, (he doesn't know the secret yet...that life really begins at 30) he started a website where he will be posting a picture from every day of his 29th year, along with some of his writing. He will also be posting quite a bit of his photography and some of the other projects he's been working on.

You can check out his daily posts by clicking HERE, or check out all his photography by clicking HERE! I'd love to know what you think.

I asked him yesterday to send me 3 of his favorite shots. He couldn't decide and ended up sending me more, but these are the 3 I choose.

In memory of the Tahitian Noni Cafe...

A few months ago my good friend Lisa gave me a cooking challenge. She had a recipe for some yummy wraps that used to be served at the Tahitian Noni Cafe. When the cafe closed she and her friends asked the manager if they could get the recipe for the wraps. The manager kindly handed them the recipe, but it was written in bulk format and half the recipe was in ounces instead of traditional measurements. So Lisa asked me if I could cut the recipe down to a family serving size, as well as convert the measurements.

Well...challenge accepted, and challenge completed. It actually wasn't too hard, just required a scale and a little math. It's a good thing I have always been good at math...spelling, not so much...but math has always been a strong point.

So if you were also a fan of the Pareo Chicken Wraps at the Tahitian Noni Cafe, today's your lucky day! I hope you enjoy.

* I actually used just a regular tortilla for my wraps, but I'm sure the Tomato Basil tortillas would be awesome. Also the Chipotle Ranch dressing makes quite a bit, but I couldn't really reduce it by much more. So you will have extra, however we have been using as a dip for corn chips and veggies and it's yummy...so I'm not complaining.


PAREO CHICKEN WRAPS

6 12” Tomato Basil Tortilla
1 recipe Island Lime Rice (see below)
1 recipe Black Bean Salsa (see below)
2 C. shredded chicken
2 C. Monterey Jack Cheese- shredded
1 recipe Chipotle Ranch Dressing (see below)
2 C. shredded lettuce
2 roma tomatoes; diced

1. Lay the tortilla flat and layer ingredients as follows:

rice
black bean salsa
shredded chicken
cheese
chipotle ranch Dressing
lettuce
tomatoes

2. Wrap the tortilla tight, tucking in each end.
3. You can eat fresh or place on a George Forman grill for about 2 minutes.

ISLAND LIME RICE

1 C. Jasmine long-grain rice
1 C. cold water
½ C. chicken stock
1 T. butter
½ t. salt
¼ C. cilantro- chopped
2 T. lime juice

1. In a large sauce pan bring the water and chicken stock to a boil.
2. Add the rice, butter and salt.
3. Cover the pan and reduce the heat to low. Cook for 20 minutes.
4. When the rice is cooked, fluff then stir in the cilantro and lime juice. Mix well.

BLACK BEAN SALSA

1 Can black beans; drained and rinsed
1 C. frozen corn; thawed and drained
1 small or ½ large red pepper; diced
Zest of 1 lime
2 T. lime juice
3 T. cilantro; chopped
1 jalapeno; diced
1 t. salt
½ t. pepper

1. Mix all ingredients together to form the salsa.

CHIPOTLE RANCH DRESSING

1 pkg. Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing mix
½ C. mayo
½ C. sour cream
1 C. milk
1 Chipotle Pepper with 2 T. Adobo sauce (from 1 can of Chipotle Peppers packed in Adobo sauce. You can find these in the Mexican section at most supermarkets.)*

1. In a blender pour the milk and the ranch dressing powder. Mix on high until well blended.
2. Add the mayo and sour cream. Blend on high again for a few second.
3. Add 1 chipotle pepper and 2 T. of Adobo sauce from the can. Blend again until the dressing comes together.
4. Allow to set up in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

* I use these peppers as well as the Adobo sauce in quite a few recipe, so when I open a can I divide it up into small ice cube trays and freeze small potions. I never use a whole can at a time.

Friday Favorites - Sugar Plum!

I've followed Sugar Plum for quite awhile now and let me tell you...Emily can bake like no other. She can cook too, but this particular blog is all about the baking. Every recipe I've tried, has been deliciously amazing!

I'm sure this recipe will be no different. I have it on my list to make this weekend! Sweet Potato's in cookies...who would have thought. Brilliant! Thanks Emily for sharing your awesome talent!

SASSY MAPLE SWEET POTATO SANDIES

Click HERE for the recipe!

Friday Favorites - Grandma's Desserts

I've always been a fan of sticky buns, but I think I've been converted to this recipe instead. I found it on Grandma's Desserts and it looked so bright and tasty, I knew I had to try. I'm a sucker for anything citrus in desserts.

All I have to say is...be ware...you could easily eat a whole pan all by yourself! Luckily or un-luckily, however you choose to look at it, I had to share with my family. So I didn't eat the whole pan...but I wanted to.

Click here for the recipe!

ZEST TIP

On another note, I have a little tip for you about orange or lemon zest. Do you ever find yourself needing zest for a recipe but not juice, so you feel bad wasting the fruit? (or visa versa) When a recipe calls for one or the other, I take the other and freeze it for future use. i.e. this recipe calls for orange zest, so after I zest the orange, I'll juice it and freeze the juice in ice cube trays for my recipe that only call for juice.

Also, when ever I or any member of my family eat an orange for pleasure, I zest it first and freeze the zest by wrapping small amounts in plastic wrap then putting into a larger freezer safe bag. It will stay fresh for up to 3 months. I love having zest on hand whenever you need it.

Friday Favorites - Love at first look!

If you know me very well, you know that I'm a sucker for Apple Pie! I happen to think that I make the worlds best apple pie; I can't remember if I've ever posted my recipe...I'll have to look into that and if not...get on it!

But in the mean time...as I was blog surfing last night, I came across this amazing looking deep dish dutch apple pie recipe. It's a good thing it was close to midnight, because it looked so good I wanted to make one immediately! Obviously sleep got the best of me. Not to mention the fact that I only have 1 apple in the house; today is grocery day! But I will be making this very soon...very soon!

The whole post and recipe directions are amazing at CityHomeCountryHome.blogspot.com!

Friday Favorites - Toasted Sesame Candied Goodness!

When I saw this recommendation on Tangled and True...I knew I had to try it...

...and it was sooooo good!


Thanks White Lotus Cooks! This recipe is a keeper!

If at first you don't succeed...

Several years ago when my husband and I were dating, he had to go out of town for a couple weeks. It was the first time we'd been apart for more than a day, since we'd started dating. I missed him so much while he was gone. That's when I first new that I really loved him. It's funny how sometimes people have to leave before you realize how much you don't want them to leave again.

The day before he was coming home I decided I wanted to do something to surprise him. Something that would let him know just how much I had missed him. I got the idea to give him personalized fortune cookies. I knew a place in Salt Lake where you could order them. You give them the fortunes and they put them in the cookies. Unfortunately I didn't have time for that. It took at least a week for the order.

That's when I decided...I should make them myself. Sure I've never made fortune cookies before, but I had seen a demo on the Food Network and it didn't look like rocket science. So, I went to work. I searched online for a recipe and got to baking.

Well it wasn't exactly rocket science, but it was pretty darn close. After two failed batches, I finally got the technique down and managed to salvage 14 half way decent fortune cookies out of the third batch, each one of them stuffed with a different reason I'd missed my man. I wrapped them up all cute, and couldn't wait to surprised him with my ingenious creation. Long story short, he was surprised, probably not to the degree my effort truly warranted, but excited and surprised non the less.

I haven't thought about attempting fortune cookies again, until I came across this post on one of my favorite sites Our Best Bites. She makes this look so easy. It got me thinking...this would be a fun and unexpected surprise for Valentine's day. I must say, homemade fortune cookies taste 100% better than the store bought kind. They melt in your mouth. And who doesn't love a secret little message, written just for them, wrapped in a buttery cookie!

So...this just may be what I'll be working on all day tomorrow. Hopefully it will turn out much better than last time. I'll keep you posted. Wish me luck!

UPDATE: I unfortunately didn't get a chance to make these. I spent Friday cuddling a sick baby girl who wouldn't let me put her down for more than 5 minutes. My poor husband had the most unfortunate Valentines day, nursing the two women in his life back to health. We'll have to have a make-up Valentines day...maybe next weekend.

Friday Favorites - We could all use a little less grease...

I got this great recipe idea here, for an ungreasy taco shell. After a little experimintation, it worked great and they were crunchy good! Thanks Elizabeth. I hope you're enjoying your cute new little guy.

Monday Moments - It's a Utah Thing...and it's treating one of you to a free lunch!

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about tradition. Maybe it’s the holiday season or maybe it’s being a new mom, wanting to create and establish tradition with my young little family. I grew up with wonderful traditions; many of which revolved around food. Decorating sugar cookies on Christmas Eve, devouring angel food cake every year on my birthday, walking with my cousins to get iron-ports from the soda fountain by my grandma’s house, or the drive-through in Moab that made the best toquitos. Whether we realize it or not, food instills tradition, little flavor bursts of wonderful memories.

For many people growing up or going to school in Utah County there’s one place that is certainly a tradition. Burger Supreme is more than just a burger joint. It’s a family tradition; owned by a local Utah County Family, it’s been a staple of the valley for as long as I can remember.

What’s even better…the food. The burgers are thick and juicy. Made from fresh, never frozen beef, delivered daily. They’re charbroiled, which in my opinion is the only way to have a hamburger, then piled high with fresh toppings. Their fries are thick, but not too thick, crispy and like heaven dipped in their original recipe fry sauce. But it doesn’t end there. Variety is always key for my family. We love options, and Burgers Supreme delivers. From the Guacamole Burger, Western Burger, Gyro Sandwich, Teriyaki Chicken, salads, shakes…you name it, the options are plenty. They have also started catering. This last summer we were lucky enough to have them cater our huge neighborhood 4th of July bash! Deliciousness delivered!

Now many may be surprised, a foodie like me, loving a burger joint, but it’s true. I can make just about any kind of burger at home on the grill, and they’re good, but there’s just something about a good burger from local spot. Maybe it’s a night off from cooking, maybe it’s the easy clean up, or maybe it’s just a delicious tradition. Burger Supreme reins supreme in our family!

Recently we’ve had several popular chain burger joints move into the valley and the one resonating comment I hear from people is…”it’s a California thing…it’s an East Coast thing...” Well Burger Supreme…it’s a Utah thing and in my opinion when it comes to flavor and quality it out does all the rest.

If your mouth is watering, like mine is…never fear! We are lucky enough to be friends with the owners and they have given me a $10 Burger Supreme gift certificate to give away to one lucky reader. Leave me a post with why you love Burger Supreme or why you’d love to give it a try and I’ll draw one winner on Monday, December 7th. Just think about it…some Christmas shopping, a yummy lunch or dinner at Burger Supreme…perfect little date!

Thanks for the motivation...

So I'm having one of those days...I'm tired and on my last nerve of the week. I needed a quick and easy dessert recipe to take to a gathering with friends tonight and none of my recipes sounded good. I needed something new, something fun to try.

I was food blog surfing...looking...looking...looking...and I found these Apple Streusel Bars at "Our Best Bites", one of my favorite fellow food blogers.

Thanks for the great recipe and the motivation I needed to bake today. They were delicious and worth the effort on a day like today. Click here for the recipe!

Monday Moments - CD Giveaway!

I have amazing friends! I really do. I am a lucky girl to have so many talented and inspiring people in my life.

And today, you get to share in a little of that luck! My dear friends Gary and Ken have just produced this awesome new children's spiritual CD. It's currently for sale at Deseret Book and would make the perfect Christmas gift...hint, hint... But they are letting me give a CD away to 2 lucky followers. All you have to do is leave me a comment about why you'd love to have the CD and I will randomly select 2 winners. The giveaway begins today and ends at 12 midnight on Friday. I'll announce the winners next Monday.

I know I said that my next giveaway would be cooking related and don't worry. I have one planned for the last week of November. This giveaway was just a fun surprise. Ken and Gary have been friends of mine for over 10 years and I was so excited about thier CD, I just had to share it with all of you. I have no doubts it will be a huge success.

Gary Francis along with his father, Sam Francis, have already written and produced dozens of other children's educational CD's. They're kind of infamous among thousands of school age children and teachers around the country, as they've written most of the school programs performed annually. They also wrote the Utah State Song. This "spiritual" CD was the fulfillment of a dream to share their love of Christ through the songs of a child.

CD Information:

"Enjoy this fresh collection of favorite children’s hymns and new original songs. Created by national award winning composers, these heartfelt songs will inspire faith and testimony in every child’s heart. Orchestral accompaniment tracks also included."

Tracks include:
Book of Mormon Stories
Singing A prayer Unto Thee
Stories of Jesus Medley
I Love to Share the Story
If We Just Obey, We'll be Okay
I Will Honor Thee
Jesus Love the Children
I Am a Child of God
I Have a Testimony
Come Follow the Savior

Pam's Treats

I think I've mentioned that cooking is in my DNA, and that DNA extends to most of my family including my awesomely talented cousin Pam. She makes the yummiest treats! Below are pictures of just a few. Or click here to see them all!

She will be selling these yummy confections at the "Girls Day Out Boutique" on Saturday, November 14th, in West Valley City. Click here for details.

If you can't make it to the boutique, check out her blog at http://www.eatgoodlikethat.blogspot.com/ and you can order her amazing treats by contacting her directly. They would be perfect Christmas gifts for coworkers, neighbors, friends, or teachers. She also caters for weddings, showers, work parties...anything.

Shout Out to another great food blog.

We tried these yummy enchiladas over the weekend. I got the recipe and photo from here. Check out http://phemomenom.blogspot.com for this and several other great recipes.