Tag: recipes
A Mini Cheese Plate for Fall
Thanks to Babybel for sponsoring this post. Without tiny, tiny cheese wheels I would not have been inspired to make this whimsical cheese plate!
Fun fall snacking
I tweeted about cheese recently without thinking too much about it, and almost instantly it became one of my most-liked tweets ever. People really like cheese. And when it comes wrapped in wax like a miniature cheese wheel, it’s easy to like it even more. Babybel cheese even got its own Halloween costumes this year:
Make a miniature cheese plate
I thought about all the recipes I could create for this post. I thought about delicious pizza or a decadent sandwich melt. Then I remembered the night I was babysitting two toddlers, and I sliced their Babybel cheese into miniature cheese wedges. And I realized that I could NOT pass up the chance to share my miniature cheese tray with you!
Ingredients
Here’s what it includes:
Babybel cheese, sliced into wedges with a sharp knife
Small chips or crackers
Raspberries from the garden (they’re pretty small so they fit in well!)
The center of a Kale plant
If you don’t have all these things, feel free to improvise with whatever you can think of! Small cookies, grapes, baby carrots…so many possibilities. Isn’t it so cute?
For snacking and entertaining
Maybe you’re wondering what the point of a tiny cheese tray is! Well, it’s a fun snack for kids. It’s a fun snack for adults. If you add a bunch more cheese to the tray, it’s perfect to bring to parties. Cheese gives people something nutritious to snack on right away while they’re waiting for dinner to be served, so I’ve found it’s a fantastic party appetizer. It’s nice to have healthy snacks around at home and at parties during the holidays.
Check out these other amazingly cute snacking ideas to try with your cheese, too!
The individual rounds are perfect for grab-and-go snacks when you have a sports event or are packing a lunch! Who has time to slice a brick of cheese, anyway? One friend even says they taste good frozen, but I have yet to test this theory!
Find Babybel (100% cheese made with real milk) in the refrigerator section at Target, where there are deals this month! It comes in regular, light and more flavors.
Are you a cheese fan? Share your favorite cheese or cheesy food in the comments!
4 Ways to Try Edible Violets this Spring
Are Violets Edible?
Are Violets Edible?Violets can be used for more than violet crowns and bouquets. Although sometimes considered a lawn weed, violets are edible as well as beautiful. Just make sure they haven’t been sprayed with chemicals and wash them first. To make gathering wild edible violets easy, I use a $3 mini colander from World Market. It’s only available in store, so here are some other ideas if you don’t have one near you. It’s also great for herbs, berry picking and other small garden harvests.
The shade loving flowers are blooming right now in the Midwest. If you have them, don’t let your chance to eat flowers pass you by this spring. They’re here for a limited time! Try these four recipe ideas for preparing edible violets in a beautiful way.
Violet Flower Recipe Ideas
Wondering how to eat violets? The pretty purple flowers add a luxurious touch to meal time. And according to the Chestnut School of Herbal Medicine, the flowers contain soluble fiber. Win.
Violet Flower Tea
Fresh or dried violet flowers and leaves make a light, refreshing tea.
Violet Flower Cake Garnish
Frost a cake and add the flowers (cut off the stems) as an all-natural, organic, vegan and gluten free cake decoration. Pair it with a homemade cake banner for extra flair.
Violet Flower Salad
Add a handful of violet flowers to a salad for a pop of color. The flowers don’t have a strong taste so they blend right in. Violet leaves are also edible so try adding those to a salad too.
Violet Flower Ice Cubes
Add a floral touch to drinks when entertaining. Just freeze violet flowers into the water when you’re making ice in a tray. So easy!
Violet flowers add a touch of natural whimsy to your meals that will delight your guests. Some children (and adults!) might need a little encouragement to eat a flower, but it’s a great opportunity for understanding and appreciating the culinary gifts the wild world has to offer.
Chocolate Chip Snowman Cookies
Do you want to bake a snowman?
It’s easier than you think! After seeing a few other bloggers make snowman brownies, I decided why not try snowman cookies? They’d be popular with the kids I babysit for and look really cute on display at a potluck holiday party. And they’re gluten free when you use this brand of frozen cookie dough.
I started with these things:
Ingredients:
- Pre-packaged gluten free chocolate chip cookie dough from Immaculate Baking (or use your own dough of any kind)
- Powdered sugar
- Coconut flakes
- Mini chocolate chips
- Gluten free pretzels
I used a ceramic rolling pin (pictured above) to roll the cookie rounds flat.
After baking, add pretzel stick arms to half the cookies. After cooling, simply add put two cookies together, frost, and sprinkle with coconut flakes.
Decorate with mini chocolate chip eyes. The nose is a real carrot, cut to size. You could probably add a frosting scarf and make a hat out of something-if you figure that part out let me know!
Now your snowman entourage is ready to go to holiday parties (or right into your tummy).
Don’t miss out on your $ off coupon and more cute recipe ideas from the post sponsor, Immaculate Baking Co!
What holiday cookie is your favorite? Let me know in the comments!
Gluten Free Chocolate Dipped Cookies
This post was sponsored by Immaculate Baking Co. Thank you to the brands that support this site.
Do you have a traditional holiday cookie you just have to make (and eat!) each year? I’ve been eating gluten free for most of my life, so I’ve missed out on most of the delicious cookies others enjoy. Like fresh-from-the-oven chocolate chip cookies. So when I found Immaculate Baking Co. cookie dough in the freezer section, I was excited to pop it in the oven and enjoy easy-to-make cookies like a normal person. {Coupon alert: get a $1 off coupon here.}
Plus, baking is a great excuse to use my apron collection and cutesy kitchen utensils, so…I’m in.
The directions said to pat the dough rounds down to about a half inch thick. To accomplish this, I put the dough between two layers of parchment paper and rolled gently with the ceramic rolling pin in the picture. If, like me, you don’t use nonstick baking sheets, parchment paper is a must. I buy If You Care unbleached parchment paper and it makes cleanup easy. Here’s how the dough came packaged:
Within a few minutes in the preheated oven, these bad boys were making my house smell divine. Like real, actual chocolate chip cookies. A smell I haven’t enjoyed in a long time.
For a decorative twist on the traditional chocolate chip cookie, I dipped each one in chocolate, then added sprinkles. I used Sunspire bittersweet chocolate chips melted in a pan, but you can use any type of chocolate you have on hand. See the full recipe for party-perfect, easy to make chocolate dipped chocolate chip cookies below.
Fun fact: the packaging uses illustrations from folk artists, like the one you can kinda see here
Coupons & Savings and More Recipes
Need more recipe ideas? You can’t have enough pretty cookies this time of year, that’s for sure. Also, make sure to download and print a coupon for $1 off any Immaculate Baking product. The cookie dough I bought was already a good price (regularly under $5 at my local store, plus they were on sale) so $1 off makes it even more affordable. Which is a good thing if you have tons of holiday parties to bake for! Find out where the brand is sold near you. I thought it was surprisingly easy to find, but check it out before you shop because it isn’t sold in all stores.
3-Ingredient Chocolate Dipped Cookie Recipe
Here’s how I made the cookies above. It’s so fast and easy, you can use it for even the most last minute party invitations!
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Bring a Little Sunshine to the Party
Easy Pineapple Dip Recipe
This pineapple dip for a party is one of those things that it’s fairly easy to make, but it makes a big impression! Which is totally what you want when you’re bringing a dish to a party, right?
I made this dip for an office party and it was a big hit. It’s perfect for a luau party, a pot luck, game day, or really any time you’re entertaining. It brings a little bit of sun no matter what the climate. It’s fun to make, and so easy it only takes six steps. If you’re looking for luau party recipes, definitely consider this. You could even argue that it’s pretty healthy-just look at all the fruit and nuts! It’s gluten free, but not dairy or nut free, as you’ll see by looking at the ingredients.
6-Step Tropical Pineapple Pecan Dip Recipe
- 2 packages cream cheese
- ⅔ cup sour cream
- 1 cup crushed pineapple (drain off all the juice)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tsp real maple syrup (optional)
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- ½ cup chopped pecans (optional)
Step 1: Slice a pineapple in half lengthwise. Hollow out the half with the stem still attached. It also helps to carefully slice off a section from the back of the pineapple to keep it stable, since this is going to be your base.
Step 2: Dice the fruit from the hollowed out half and the remaining half of the pineapple. Set aside hollowed pineapple and pecans.
Step 3: Blend remaining ingredients by mixer (easiest) or by hand. Add in the diced pineapple.
Step 4: Place mixture in hollowed out pineapple and cover in pecans.
Step 5: Decorate with plate garnishes such as sliced oranges, kumquat and tropical flowers. It’s really the garnishes that make this dish adorable, so have fun with it! I used silk flowers, orange slices and plums. Kumquat, coconut and grapefruit would also be adorable!
Step 6: Serve with vanilla wafers or crackers, whichever suits your sweet/savory fancy.
The little details of making a food dish into a presentation are what puts it over the top! For more party-ready platters, check out this cake banner.
