Cinnamon Grilled Peaches

1 peach, pitted & quartered

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/4 cup dark rum

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

pinch of salt

Vanilla ice cream

Preheat grill to medium high and skewer peaches. Add butter, brown sugar, rum, cinnamon, and salt to a saucepan and bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium and simmer until thick. Place peaches on grill and baste with about half of the sauce. Cook approximately 3 min. on both sides until they are warm. Scoop vanilla ice cream into bowls and drizzle with sauce. Top with grilled peaches. Enjoy!

Grilled Pizza

 Russell actually gets all the credit for this one. I told him the general “recipe” I had in mind for the ingredients we had and ran off to get my hair cut. I came home and he had taken photos before, during, and after he enjoyed this pizza! He knows me well Feel free to adapt toppings to what you have in your fridge or your favorites!

Grilled Pizza

1 pizza crust (we use TJ’s)

1/2 cup Alfredo sauce

1/2 cup Italian cheese, shredded

1 chicken breast, cooked & chopped

2 Tbsp. olive oil, divided

1/2 cup portobello mushrooms, sliced

1 can artichoke hearts, drained and sliced in half

Spread crust out onto floured surface. Add 1 Tbsp. olive oil to small pan and saute mushrooms & artichoke hearts. Preheat grill to medium high heat, brush with olive oil and place dough on grill. Once it has puffed and browned, brush top with olive oil and flip. While cooking other side, top crust with Alfredo sauce, cheese, chicken, mushrooms, & artichoke hearts. {or of course, whatever toppings you choose!} Remove from grill- slice, serve & enjoy!

Cake Batter Rice Krispie Treats

 Recipe can be found here.

Sweet & Spicy Peach Chutney

We got some gorgeous peaches at the Farmer’s Market last weekend. Some of them were eaten fresh, and some went into this chutney- both ways they were enjoyed. We piled this chutney onto pork chops but I’m sure it would go great on Chicken too! I made this the night before and stored it in one of my new obsessions mason jars. It was a great way to use some fresh NC Farmer’s Market peaches!

Sweet & Spicy Peach Chutney

4 peaches peeled and sliced

3 Tbsp. brown sugar

1/4 cup orange juice

1 Tbsp. cider vinegar

1 tsp. ginger

1 Tbsp. soy sauce

1 Tbsp. Old Bay

1 Tbsp. chili powder

1 clove garlic, minced

Salt & Pepper

1 tsp. sesame seeds

Add all ingredients into saucepan and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer 3-5 minutes until sauce has thickened. Enjoy!

Weeknight Tortellini

Tortellini has become the quick go to quick dish around here when I need something fast, like our cleaning night last night!  This recipe is approximate because I just threw stuff in the pan crafted it carefully myself. Feel free to adjust it to your liking, spinach would work great in place of arugula if you prefer!

 {sorry for the horrible photo quality- late night in a dark kitchen!}

1 package tortellini

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 Tbsp. butter

2 cups portobello mushrooms, sliced

salt & pepper

1 large clove garlic, minced

1 handful arugula (precise, I know!)

Parmesan cheese

Bring a pot of water to boil and cook tortellini according to directions. Meanwhile add olive oil and butter to skillet and saute mushrooms. When mushrooms are beginning to brown, season with salt & pepper and add garlic. Add arugula and saute until just wilted. Drain tortellini and add to skillet and toss. Sprinkle with Parmesan and enjoy!

Snickerdoodles

While searching for the perfect recipe for Snickerdoodles I found a few, but none that were perfect. I tweaked one that I found to my liking. I like a chewy cookie- slightly crisp edges and perfectly soft in the center. I also chose to use butter instead of shortening that is used in many Snickerdoodle recipes since I’m not a fan. Some folks make apple pie or some sort of red, white, and blue dessert for July 4th- we said Happy Birthday America with a classic Snickerdoodle!

Snickerdoodles:

2 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1½ cups sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon

In a small bowl wisk dry ingredients {first four ingredients} and set aside. Cream butter and sugar together, once it is fluffy add eggs one at a time until combined. Add vanilla. Gradually add dry mixture. Chill dough for one hour. Place parchment covered cookie sheet into refrigerator to chill also. {This will keep cookies from spreading too much} Once dough {& pan} are chilled, preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl mix sugar and cinnamon. Roll dough into 1 in. balls or use small cookie scoop. Roll dough into cinnamon/sugar mixture and place on cookie sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes. (cookies will be light in color) Remove from oven and let cool for a minute on cookie sheet then transfer to cooling rack. Enjoy!

Breakfast Cups

 

These were perfect for breakfast Saturday morning! We were headed out to Tour de Fat so I needed something that was simple. It’s your classic bacon, egg, cheese, and toast combo but in a cute little cup:-)

Breakfast Cups

3 slices of bacon

3 slices of bread

Shredded cheese

3 eggs

Salt and pepper

Garlic powder

*you can portion this to any size you’d like- just adjust bacon, bread, and eggs accordingly!

Preheat the oven to 400° F.  Spray 3 muffin wells. Cook bacon about 3-5 minutes, until partially cooked. Drain.  Cut out rounds of bread (I used large biscuit cutter, but a glass would work too)  Press the bread into the muffin pan.  Curl a piece of bacon around the edge of the pan, tucking it between the bread & the pan if necessary to stand.  Sprinkle a small amount of shredded cheese & a quick sprinkle of garlic powder in the center of each piece of bread.  Crack an egg, removing about half of the white, and dropping the remaining white and yolk over each piece of bread, being careful not to break the yolks. Repeat with each and bake for 6-10 minutes depending on how you like your eggs. Season with Salt & Pepper.  Enjoy!

Adapted from The Noshery

Irish Red Skin Mashers

Even with the title swanky blog title I gave them, these are better known as the “best mashed potatoes ever” around our house…

Harris Teeter always has a nice loaf of bread and imported butter/dip/spread out to sample when I shop. Normally I pass over grocery store samples because *I’m a germaphobe* but this delicious looking Irish Butter was being put out as I walked by. So I just had to try it, it was amazing-slightly more tangy and creamier than your standard butter. So of course I bought some. {Harris Teeter marketing:1 Jennifer:0 -no regrets here though!} While this stuff is amazing all on it’s own spread on a fresh baguette, it was something special in these mashed potatoes! I don’t know how those Irish make such amazing butter…maybe it’s the higher fat content and grass fed cows  luck of the Irish

2 lbs. red skin potatoes, cut into 1 in. pieces

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

4 tbsp. Irish Butter (such as Kerrygold)

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup shredded cheese {optional}

Add cut potatoes to pot and cover with water, bring to boil and cook until fork tender. (approx. 20 min) Drain potatoes and return to pot.  Add salt, pepper, and Irish butter. Mash potatoes. Add milk as desired for consistency. Add cheese. Enjoy!

*please note measurements are approximate- so taste as you go and change accordingly!

Red Velvet Cheesecake Brownies

These.were.delicious. I must admit upon first bite I wasn’t that impressed because the texture seemed odd. I then realized because I am super impatient  normally eat brownies right after they come out of the oven, that is what I did here. Maybe that wasn’t the best approach so, I let them cool and tried them again- sucess! This is one of the few times I’ll ask you to refrain from hot brownies, these are much better upon cooling I think it’s the cheesecake quality, as much as I like cheesecake it tastes odd hot- as do these. Remember that when these beauties come out of the oven and you’re tempted to dig in…your patience will be rewarded!

1 stick butter

1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

2 tsp red food coloring

2/3 cup flour

pinch of salt

 

1 (8oz.) package cream cheese, softened

1/3 cup sugar

1 egg

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 8×8 pan or line with parchment. Slowly melt butter and chocolate chips in a pot, stirring constantly to prevent burning. Set aside chocolate mixture to cool. In bowl mix together sugar, eggs, food coloring, and vanilla. Slowly mix in chocolate & butter mixture. Add flour & salt and mix until just combined. Pour into prepared pan. In separate bowl mix together cream cheese, sugar, and egg.  Drop cheesecake mixture by heaping spoonfuls onto batter, and gently swirl with knife. Bake for 35 minutes or until edges are slightly browning. Let them cool completely in pan- trust me on this guys! THEN, enjoy!

Adapted from Baking Bites

Strawberry Ice Cream Pie

I’ve been on quite an ice cream kick lately, maybe because it’s been 90+ degrees since…Christmas!? When grilling out the other night I wanted a dessert that would be refreshing, not your traditional cake or brownie. I’m not sure why but just serving a bowl of ice cream feels too simple for company. I remembered my stepmom, Paula, making an ice cream pie (with peanut butter cup ice cream & fudge topping-YUM!) so that was my inspiration for this light & refreshing dessert! It was delicious!

Layer:

1 pie crust {such as graham, chocolate, I used shortbread}

Approx. 1/2 carton of ice cream, softened

Whipped cream for topping

Place in freezer until ready to serve! Enjoy!