#2,736: Grilled Shrimp

I was trying some new recipes this weekend and going out of my comfort zone of cooking anything in the beef family.  LOL  I will usually at least try a bite of everything I make, but I just couldn't try this one.  Unless my fish is battered and deep fried (or unless my mom makes me!), I really have a hard time trying fish. I just don't love it.  And the thought of biting these big guys kind of scared me.  Shockingly we got the 9 year old to try it though.  Those who did eat these grilled shrimp loved them and said it was the best meal I made over the weekend AND have asked for it to return to our labor day menu as well.  I'd say that was a success!  This is the recipe/seasoning I used to make these shrimp.  

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (use 1/4 if sensitive to spice)

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon freshly-squeezed lemon juice (from about 1/2 small lemon)

1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined (use jumbo, 15-18 count shrimp to cook directly on the grill without skewers; if using smaller shrimp, skewer then cook for less time)

Canola or vegetable oil for the grill

Preheat an indoor grill pan or outdoor grill to high. 

In a large mixing bowl, stir together the garlic powder, salt, Italian seasoning, and cayenne pepper. Drizzle in the olive oil and lemon juice and stir into a paste (mine was a bit thinner than a paste.  I was able to pour it onto the shrimp). 

Add the shrimp and toss to coat. 

Brush the grill or grill pan with canola oil. Grill the shrimp, just until pink and opaque, about 2 to 3 minutes per side, turning once half way through (discard the extra liquid/spices that is left at the bottom of the bowl). Serve immediately.

#2,735: Patriotic Jell-o Cups

When you have a 4th of July gathering with a bunch of kiddos, you make a patriotic themed food!  I happened to have everything I needed in my pantry to make these jell-o cups for the kids, so that's what I did.  Personally I hate making jell-o items because you have to let everything sit/solidify between layers, but I did it for the kids anyways.  LOL  This recipe probably took a good hour to make (from start to finish, minus the final set up time (which I just let sit in the fridge overnight)), and this recipe made 5 cups of jell-o, so if you are making it for a larger crowd, use smaller cups or a lot more jell-o packets!  

In the end, the kids loved them, so that's all that mattered! 

3 oz package Blue Jell-O Gelatin 

3 oz package Red Jell-O Gelatin 

1 envelope Unflavored Gelatin 

1 1/3 cups boiling Water

1 cup Milk

1/4 cup Sugar

Maraschino Cherries drained (I omitted)

Small clear cups (tall shot glasses, clear plastic drinking cups, etc.)

Place blue gelatin in a bowl and add 2/3 cup boiling water.  Stir well until dissolved and allow to cool. Fill each cup 1/3 full of blue and place in refrigerator.  When the jell-o starts to set (mine took about 20 minutes), start making the 2nd layer. 

2nd layer: Add 1/3 cup of milk to another bowl and sprinkle unflavored gelatin over top.  Do not stir.  Heat remaining 2/3 cup of milk in a pot and bring to a boil.  Remove from heat and stir in sugar to dissolve.  Add heated milk to gelatin/milk mixture and stir until blended. Allow to cool. (I let mine cool about 15 minutes.  You want it cool to the touch, but not starting to solidify).  Gently fill all cups the next 1/3 of the way with white mixture and return to refrigerator.

3rd layer: Place red gelatin in a bowl and add 2/3 cup boiling water.  Stir well until dissolved and allow to cool.  (At this point, I divided the red jell-o liquid to the cups and put in the fridge overnight).  
If you are adding the cherry stem: Place a cherry on top of each glass and add about 1/4″ of red gelatin to each. Place in refrigerator for 5 minutes. Pull from refrigerator and try to adjust to get stems to point upward.  Fill each cup the rest of the way with red and place in refrigerator.

#2,734: Impromptu Crawfish Boil

We are at the lake for the 4th of July and the kids (and some adults) like to go fishing.  My husband joked that he caught a crawfish...I saw it as a way to try a new recipe and to try cooking something I've never cooked before.  I'll admit, I was super scared...what if I made everyone sick; how was I going to put live animals into boiling water!?  But I went ahead and tried it anyway.  I was thrilled that my husband even tried a small piece of it!  Those that tried it said it tasted like lobster (or mushy chicken).  Those that didn't get to try it (we only caught 5) wanted to try it, so we sent a adult and the kids down to the pier to try and catch 16 more (one for everyone).  Wouldn't you know, we caught exactly 16?! 

After much googling, I learned that you have to get the crawfish to purge their intestines.  We either didn't do it right, or long enough, but thanks to watching a lot of cooking shows I was able to pull out the gross poop line after we cooked it.  Blech!  

I used this boil recipe to flavor the water, but then left the fish in the water for a lot longer (5 minutes did not seem long enough to me). 

2 quarts water

1 medium white onion, peeled and quartered

1 lemon, quartered

1 bay leaf

2 large garlic cloves, peeled and halved

1 tablespoon kosher salt

In a pot of water add the onion, lemon, bay  leaf, garlic and salt.  Bring to a boil. 

Add the crawfish to the water, and return to a boil.

Turn off the heat and cover the pot.  Let the crawfish remain in the covered water for 30 minutes. 

Then you will have to search google or youtube how to get the meat out of it!  

#2,733: Watermelon Lime Slushie

I came across this recipe on a facebook post from Young Living and since we were having watermelon for dinner, I figured I'd save some and try this slushie with it.  The kids were split (half loved it, half did not).  My sister-in-law said it tastes like watermelon juice (it totally does), so personally, the more crushed ice you add to this the better it is.  We (adults!) also added some vodka to this....wink wink.

In a blender combine:
3 cups chilled watermelon
1 cup coconut water
1 drop Lime Vitality Essential Oil (I used about 5 drops!)
Crushed ice

#2,732: Instant Pot Corn on the Cob

We always make corn on the cob in a pot of boiling water, which is how I started to make this recipe. But we ran out of room in the pot (too much corn!) and we decided to try making the rest in the instant pot.  This corn was done before the ones in the pot of water and tasted the same to us!  It was super easy too!!

4 ears corn on the cob , husks and silk removed (We cut ours in half because we were serving it to kids, but you could leave whole if they fit inside your instant pot)

Pour 1 cup of cold water in the pressure cooker. Place a trivet in the Instant Pot, then place 4 ears of corn on the cob on the trivet. Close the lid and cook at High Pressure for 1 - 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and Quick Release. Open the lid carefully. Serve immediately with butter and salt (or however you like to eat corn!).

#2,731: Spring Quinoa with Honey Lime Vinaigrette

This recipe has all ingredients I love: quinoa, bacon, feta, peas, and almonds.  Seriously, I love everything about this salad!  It was SOOOO good, and I can't wait to eat the leftovers again today.  I debated about eating it for breakfast but figured I'd resist the urge and wait until lunch.  The feta and almonds get soft in this if it sits too long, so just keep that in mind!  This is SUPER good!  

For the salad

1 cup uncooked quinoa

2-3 cups frozen peas, thawed

1/2 cup feta cheese

6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

1/2 cup freshly chopped basil and cilantro

1/2 cup almonds, pulsed in a food processor until crushed

For the dressing

1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (1-2 large juicy lemons)

1/3 cup olive oil

1/4 teaspoon salt (more to taste)

a few tablespoons honey (I did 3, but adjust to taste)

Cook the quinoa according to package directions. You can make this ahead of time and just let it chill in the fridge.

Toss the quinoa with the thawed peas, feta, bacon, herbs, and almonds.

Puree all the dressing ingredients in the food processor. Toss the dressing with the salad ingredients. Season generously with salt and pepper. 

#2,730: Grilled Watermelon with Cilantro and Lime

We love cold, juicy, fresh watermelon this time of year, so when I found this recipe that made it on the grill I was excited to try it.  Although it was good, it was weird to eat warm watermelon.  So we decided to put the leftover pieces in the fridge and try it again the next day. (update on cold grilled watermelon coming soon...)

8 Pieces of Watermelon

2 Limes

Cilantro

Olive Oil

Salt To Taste

To make this treat just brush each piece of watermelon with olive oil and lime juice. Season with salt and grill for 3 minutes on each side. Take off the grill and add more lime juice. Sprinkle with cilantro and a little bit more salt (if desired). 

#2,729: Marinated Grilled Chicken

We do a lot of grilling when we are at the lake, and we try to spend as little time in the kitchen as possible.  So I made this marinade right after breakfast and just let the chicken soak in it all day until dinner.  My husband grilled these up for us and said that when you put it on the grill it really makes some flames, so be careful when putting these on the grill.  Our family really enjoyed this recipe and I was happily surprised when the kids kept asking for more!  

To make this marinade simply combine

1 cup brown sugar
1 cup oil
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup vinegar

Mix the chicken in the marinade and let it sit in the fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight.

#2,728: Cinnamon Sugar Apples

I was looking for an easy side dish to serve the many kiddos during our 4th of July family weekend and came across this recipe.  It was a huge hit with our crew (who doesn't love sugar on their fruit though?!) and we ended up making it twice.  I cut back on the cinnamon-sugar mixture to give it flavor but not be ridiculously unhealthy.  We will definitely be making this again with our crew. 

4 apples, sliced and cut into one inch pieces

2 tsp lemon juices

3-4 tsp cinnamon sugar. (I mix 1 tsp cinnamon and 1 tbsp sugar) just sprinkle it on a little at a time and toss until all the apples have a light coating. 

NOTE: Do not make this ahead of time. It should be made right before serving.

Place sliced apples in a medium sized mixing bowl.  Sprinkle with lemon juice.  Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar one tsp at a time and toss until apples are all lightly coated.

#2,727: Leftover Frosting Cookies

So after I reused the leftover cake from my husband's grandmas 92nd birthday, I could NOT just throw away the frosting.  And I certainly didn't need to make myself sick eating it all.  So I went on a hunt to find a way to use up the frosting.  Clearly there had to be a recipe out there that uses leftover frosting!  I knew I couldn't just freeze it, and I couldn't use it on other baked goods (since it was already decorated), so I found a way to bake with it!  

Although these aren't the best (nor the sweetest) cookies I've ever had, they reminded us all of the ricotta cookies we make at Christmas, AND no one in my family objected to these, and they seemed to disappear quite quickly.  I made a glaze out of powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla, and dipped each cookie in the frosting before adding some sprinkles for color.  You will notice that the cookies have a little bit of a grey tint to it...that's because there was a little bit of leftover cake stuck to the frosting (obviously it's from the chocolate cake pieces!), so if you used plain leftover frosting, or actually got all of the cake pieces off your frosting, it probably would be a bit lighter/brighter/whiter.  :)

As I stated above, you would think these would be sickly sweet, but it really isn't.  So if you like less-sweet cookies, you might really, really enjoy these!  Personally, I think the glaze/colored sugar helps.  Also, I doubled the recipe below and I got four dozen cookies out of it.  

1/2 cup of leftover frosting

1 cup flour

1 large egg

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 F. Mix everything together.  Place 12 roughly even scoops of cookie dough on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.  Bake for 13 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are lightly browned. Cool on a cooling rack. 

For the glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar

milk

splash of vanilla

sprinkles or colored sugar

In a small bowl slowly stir milk into the powdered sugar until it creates a glaze thin enough to be spread over the cookies (like maybe 1/8 cup). Dip the cooled cookies into the glaze, and then top with sprinkles/colored sugar.

#2,726: Leftover Cake Truffles

A few days ago we celebrated my husband's grandma's 92nd birthday!  I hope I look as good as she does at 92!  Grandma H is the sweetest lady, and we love being able to spend time with her.  After the party, my inlaws sent us home with the leftover cake (half chocolate and half white cake).  Although we LOVE cake, I knew realistically I'd probably end up eating most of it myself (lord knows the kids don't need any more sugar.  HA!).  I debated about freezing it but was afraid it would ruin the buttercream frosting.  I debated about tossing it, but that caused too much guilt, so I decided to search for a recipe that I could use leftover cake in.  Enter leftover cake truffles!  I did a bunch of searching on pinterest and Google and just decided to wing this one.  SO.... here's this super simple way of using your leftover cake.  And don't toss that frosting...I found a way to reuse/repurpose that too!  :)   

First, you need to cut (or scrape) the frosting off your cake.  If you put your cake in the fridge for a while, you can literally just cut it off in large pieces.  

In a food processor (you could use a fork or your hands, but the food processor was WAY easier and less messy!), add your leftover (unfrosted) cake pieces.  Here's the tricky part, once the cake is all crumbly, add a little bit of frosting (like start with enough frosting that you would have cut off the top of one PIECE of cake (maybe about 2-3 tablespoons)).  Keep adding a tiny bit more until the cake literally forms into a ball. 

Using a cookie scoop (or your hands and just eyeball it), roll the cake mixture into ping pong (or a little smaller) size balls.  Place on a wax paper lined cookie sheet and freezer for about 2 hours.  (I just left mine in overnight until I ran out and got melting chocolate). 

Since my cake was half chocolate and half white cake (which pretty much turned out being just chocolate in the end!!), I used white chocolate for the coating, but you could use any flavor/kind that you want.  Plus I knew I wanted to decorate these for the 4th of July so white just made sense.  Dip your frozen cake balls into melted chocolate (this is my go-to brand when I need to melt chocolate because there is no mess at the end and I know I can't screw it up!), and then top with desired sprinkles/colored sugar/etc.  Thankfully I put an APB call out to my mother-in-law who dropped off red, white, and blue colored sugar and sprinkles for me to use!  I didn't think red and green cake balls would be as good of an option this time of year.  

#2,725: Instant Pot Pulled Chicken

We don't eat a ton of chicken in our house because I'm so picky about the flavor of it and what I like.  But when I came across this recipe for my instant pot (and the minimal ingredients I would need to get), I figured we'd give this a try.  I didn't make too many changes to this recipe except to use mild green chiles and to add an extra chicken breast.  I also preferred to serve this on a crustier bread, so we used toasted ciabatta rolls instead.  I think that was a really good idea.  I think this would have been too soft on a hamburger bun.

I surprised myself a little with how much I enjoyed this.  Because I didn't use the fire roasted chiles it wasn't spicy at all, which was perfect for my crew.  But if you like heat, definitely add the original ingredient.  Most of us really enjoyed this, only one didn't enjoy it (I'm sure you can guess which picky eater wasn't a fan!  Ps..it was Matthew, age 6).  

This was super easy to make/throw together.  You could easily make the sauce the night before and then just throw it all in the instant pot when you get home from work/school/kids activities.  This also made enough for 2 meals plus leftovers for Brian for my crew!  

1 8-ounce can tomato sauce

1 4-ounce can fire-roasted diced green chiles (I used mild green chiles)

1 corn tortilla, torn

1/4 cup packed fresh cilantro (leaves and tender stems), plus 2 tablespoons chopped leaves

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon sugar

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

1 teaspoon vegetable oil

3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, about 8 ounces each (I used 4 chicken breasts)

1 lime, cut into wedges

4 hamburger buns, for serving (We used ciabatta rolls)

Combine the tomato sauce, 1/2 cup water, the chiles, tortilla and 1/4 cup cilantro in a blender. Add the chili powder, cumin, sugar, 1/4 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper; blend until smooth.

Rub the bottom of an Instant Pot insert with the vegetable oil. Add the chicken breasts to the Instant Pot along with the pureed sauce. Stir to combine. Put on the lid, making sure the steam valve is in the sealing position, and set to cook on high pressure for 9 minutes. When the time is up, press the cancel button and let the steam release naturally, for 15 minutes. (You can also cook frozen chicken breasts in an Instant Pot: Rinse the chicken briefly under cool water and cook on high pressure for 12 minutes.) 

Remove the lid and transfer the chicken to a bowl.

(Since I used an extra chicken breast, I only had to sautee for about 2 minutes) Set the pot to sauté at high heat. Bring the sauce to a simmer. Break the chicken into large chunks with two forks and return to the sauce; stir to coat. Simmer, stirring to prevent sticking, until the sauce thickens, about 8 minutes. Turn off the Instant Pot. 

When the sauce stops bubbling, stir in the chopped cilantro and a squeeze of lime juice (I used half of a lime); season with salt and pepper. Serve the chicken on buns with lime wedges.

#2,724: Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies (Eggless)

I'm pretty sure I found this recipe somewhere floating around facebook.  Since we always have an abundance of over-ripe bananas, this looked super easy and quite yummy.  I ran out of regular chocolate chips so I just threw in mini chocolate chips.  Then I realized I didn't buy just peanut butter chips, I bought a milk chocolate/peanut butter combo.  I could have just used the whole bag of those!  Whatever...instead we have some mini chocolate chips, milk chocolate chips, and peanut butter chips.

These are delicious!  They are super moist and soft and my kids loved them.  It made over 4 dozen cookies so I have a bunch in our freezer now to ration them out.  :)  I will definitely be making these again! 

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tbsp corn starch

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

2 medium ripe bananas, peeled and mashed

1 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup chocolate chips

1 cup peanut butter chips

Whisk together the flour, baking soda, corn starch, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.

Cream butter, bananas, and sugars together until combined.  Add vanilla extract and mix until combined.

Stir in the flour mixture just until combined.  Stir in chocolate and peanut butter chips.  Cover and refrigerate dough for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.  Use a cookie scoop to scoop out cookie dough onto prepared cookie sheets.

Bake cookies for 10 to 12 minutes or just until they start to turn light, golden brown on top.

Let cookies cool completely on cookie sheets (I let it cool for about 5-10 minutes then moved them to a cooling rack).  Store in airtight containers for up to a week.

#2,723: Pepperoni Pizza Pierogies

Some days it's a clean out your fridge/freezer kind of meal!  I was looking through my freezer and decided to make some mini cheese pierogies when I remembered seeing an ad/recipe in a magazine that made little "pizzas" out of them.  Wouldn't you know, I had some provolone, pepperoni, and an open jar of spaghetti sauce needing to be used up too, so I threw these babies together.  I think these were done in about 10 minutes, so they would make a great snack or appetizer too! 

1 box mini pierogies (I used 4 cheese medley)
sliced pepperoni
sliced provolone cheese (you could use mozzarella or Italian blend too)
spaghetti sauce or pizza sauce
3 basil leaves, chiffonade 

Cook pierogies as desired (boil, bake, or pan fry).  I pan fried mine in a little bit of olive oil. 

When done, transfer to a cookie sheet and top each pierogie with one piece of sliced pepperoni and a piece of cheese.  I had slices of provolone so I just cut each one into about 8 pieces and used one little triangle per pierogie.  Place under the broiler for about 3 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

Meanwhile warm up the sauce to use as a dipping sauce for the pierogies. 

When the pierogies are done, transfer to a plate and top with pieces of basil.   

#2,722: Peach Cottage Cheese Smoothies

See that smile...it has a look of uncertainty on it doesn't it?!  HA!  She was a bit nervous to try this smoothie when she realized that it was made with cottage cheese.  Sadly none of my kids would drink more than a sip of this.  Personally I didn't think it was that bad, but didn't enjoy it enough to want to keep drinking the entire glass of it.  Most of the time we find recipes we love, but this wasn't one of them.  Surprisingly, this recipe was from Food Network....I think they have a miss with this one. 

2 pitted peaches (I used canned peaches)
1 c cottage cheese

1/2 c milk

3 tbsp honey

2 tbsp lemon juice

Combine all of the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.  

#2,721: Instant Pot Gluten Free Meatballs

I found this recipe for gluten free meatballs which uses one of my favorite ingredients (corn tortillas!) in it's recipe.  I decided to give these meatballs a try with very low expectations from my family (I really should have more faith in them!).  I also didn't want to bake these and figured there had to be a way to cook them in my Instant Pot so I set out to Google to try and find some ideas on how to make these.  Below you will find the original recipe which gives instructions on how to bake these in the oven.  I'll also add what I did in the instant pot.  We've enjoyed these so much I've actually made these twice already.  Once we ate these as meatball subs and once with spaghetti (ok, I even ate it over ramen  (as you can see in the photo) when we ran out of spaghetti noodles!)...totally negates the gluten free aspect of it, but that's just how we ate them.  I still have some meatballs leftover so I'm going to chop them up and make a skillet lasagna with it tomorrow!   

2 (6-in.) corn tortillas, torn into pieces (I actually used 3 tortillas)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 small shallot, chopped (about 1½ Tbsp.) (I used a yellow onion and used about ¼ of one) 
1 pound 80/20 ground beef
2 tablespoons heavy cream (I used 2% milk)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
Jar of spaghetti sauce (only if using the Instant Pot method)

Place tortillas, shallot, and parsley in a food processor; process until fine crumbs form and shallot and parsley are finely chopped, about 1 minute.  Gently stir together tortilla mixture, ground beef, cream, salt, and pepper in a large bowl until well blended. Shape mixture into 16 (2-inch) meatballs.  See oven or instant pot instructions for next steps:

Original instructions for the oven:
Preheat broiler to HIGH with oven rack 6 inches from heat. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil; spray foil with nonstick cooking spray. Place meatballs on prepared baking sheet and broil until cooked through and browned, about 7 minutes.

Instant Pot Instructions:
Pour a little bit of olive oil to the bottom of the Instant Pot.  Layer the meatballs (uncooked) into the bottom of the Instant Pot, stacking them on top of one another if needed.  Pour the entire jar of sauce over the meatballs.  Add another 1 cup of water to the instant pot as well.  Cover and cook on manual high pressure for 7 minutes.  When the Instant Pot is done, let it sit for another 10 minutes, and then release the rest of the pressure. 

The first time I made this, the sauce was perfect.  The second time it was a little watery still, so I just put the Instant Pot on sautee for about 10 minutes (with the lid partially on so it would stop splattering all over the place!) and it thickened up to my liking. 

#2,720: Lemon-Poppy Seed Zucchini Muffins

Mmm...lemon and zucchini...that makes quite the summery pair for these muffins.  These were the muffins for the month of July from Food Network's year of muffins segment they published in January.  I wasn't sure my kids would like these and actually shoved a piece into M's mouth before he could look at it because if he saw specs of poppy seeds or zucchini I knew he'd never eat it.  Instead he loved it and said, "I can't wait to eat this for breakfast!"  The lemon-sugar-poppy seed topping is probably my favorite part of the muffin.  It gives the muffin top a great crunch.  In fact, if you happen to have one of those muffin top tins I think this would be wonderful made in those!    

1 lemon (I used 10 drops of young living lemon vitality essential oil)

1 cup sugar

2 teaspoons poppy seeds

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup buttermilk or plain yogurt 

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 large eggs

1 cup packed grated zucchini (about 1 zucchini)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners. Using a vegetable peeler, remove the zest from the lemon in wide strips, being careful not to remove the white pith. Combine the lemon zest and sugar in a food processor and process until the zest is finely chopped, scraping the bowl halfway through, about 1 minute. Stir in the poppy seeds. Scoop out 3 tablespoons of the lemon-poppy seed sugar and set aside.

Whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Whisk the remaining lemon-poppy seed sugar, the vegetable oil, buttermilk, vanilla and eggs in a medium bowl; stir into the flour mixture until just combined. Stir in the zucchini.

Divide the batter among the muffin cups, filling them three-quarters of the way. Tap the bottom of the pan lightly on the counter to smooth out the batter. Sprinkle the tops of the muffins with the reserved lemon-poppy seed sugar. Bake until the muffins are golden brown around the edges and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 23 to 25 minutes. Let the muffins cool 5 minutes in the pan, then remove to a rack to cool completely.

Travel Tip: Packing Cubes

Image photo from Amazon

Recently we went on a whirlwind trip to Niagara Falls.  We did the drive with our 3 kids (6, 9, 11), and were gone for 5 days.  5 days, 2 countries (US and Canada), and 6 states.  We crammed as much in as we could stopping at least every 4 hours or so to let the kids get out and explore and play in some area that we were near.  About a year and a half ago my sister convinced me to get these packing cubes and said they were great for packing your stuff in your luggage.  I resisted for a while...who needs separate bags for our stuff?!, but I am SO glad I finally gave in and got these.  I love these bags so much in fact, I have 2 sets of them, plus a 3rd set which is a different brand (and which I hate by the way!). 

Anyway, the packing cubes themselves are a great travel tip alone because you can keep everyone's stuff separated.  When I go someplace alone (almost never!), I use 1 or 2 of the bags for my clothes, 1 bag is for all my bathroom stuff, and 1 bag (the little one) is for phone chargers and accessories. 

But this trip we got really smart and used the bags to put everyone clothes in for one day (i.e. Monday's clothes, Tuesdays clothes, etc.).  We also had one bag with just swimsuits.  We packed a small carry-on size suitcase with everyone's pajamas, our bathroom stuff, make-up, and the small stuffed animals the kids would want to sleep with each night.  Then when we got to our hotel (or Airbnb), we just had to bring in the small suitcase and ONE of our cubes with our clothes/stuff for the next day.  When we unpacked at the hotel, we used that packing cube to put all of our dirty clothes in. So we had a big suitcase full of packing cubes which started out as clothes for each day, but at the end was full of our dirty clothes, and that suitcase never had to get pulled out of the car.

It's hard enough to go into a hotel each night with 1 or more suitcases, everyone bag of toys, pillows, the cooler, refillable water bottles, etc.  This time it was so easy to get in and out of the hotels and much less opportunities to forget something or leave something behind!  We are seriously packing this way EVERY time we road trip!  

#2,719: Chocolate Mint Zucchini Bread

After making the Zucchini pico de gallo salsa, I had some zucchini leftover.  Plus I have a ton of chocolate mint growing in my garden, so I knew I had to find a recipe that combined the two ingredients.  Enter this Chocolate Mint Zucchini Bread.  Although this was a little bit dense, my kids still enjoyed it and the girls were made when they realized their little brother had eaten the last piece.  So I'd say that's a good sign for the recipe.  The original recipe called for 1 egg white whipped and this batter was SO dry, so I added another whole egg.  I am not a baker, so that could have been why our batter was dense, but I didn't know what else to add to make it moist.  Maybe I should have added some coconut or vegetable oil???  Any suggestions from you good bakers out there?!

1 1/2 c unbleached flour

1/3 c granulated sugar

1/3 c brown sugar

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/3 cup cocoa powder

2 tsp granulated sugar

4 tbsp fresh chocolate mint leaves, chopped

1 tsp water

1 c zucchini -- unpeeled and grated

1/4 c fat-free sour cream

1 egg white -- whipped 

Preheat oven at 350.  Prepare pan a 8 x 4 x 2" loaf pan with cooking spray and flour; set aside.

In a bowl, combine flour, 1/3 c granulated sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder and cocoa. 

Place the 2 tsp granulated sugar, the chocolate mint and water into a food processor.  Process until very finely minced, almost a paste.  Combine mint paste, zucchini, sour cream, and egg white in a large bowl.

Combine dry ingredients with wet ingredients just until moistened.  Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 60 minutes.

#2,718: Zucchini Pico de Gallo Salsa

This pico/salsa recipe is such a great summer time recipe that uses summer fresh vegetables!  I can't wait to make this again once I have zucchini and tomatoes picked right from my garden.  I was afraid it would be a little too hot for my liking so I cut out the poblano pepper.  Next time I'm going to add in some bell pepper...cucumber might be good too!  I think this would be great on top of grilled chicken (or probably fish if I ate that) too!  

2 large tomatoes, chopped

1 medium zucchini, finely chopped

1 poblano pepper, seeded and chopped (I omitted although next time I'll probably throw a bell pepper into this instead)

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 seeded and diced jalapeno pepper, optional

2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

3 tablespoons lime juice

Combine first nine ingredients. Add lime juice; toss to coat.  Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour.