Lemon Curd Cupcakes

Aren't they so cute!  Tasty but too much work for 12 cupcakes.  But I did make homemade lemon curd - that recipe is worth sharing.

3 T plus 1 1/2 sugar
3 T lemon juice
4 1/2 t butter
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 t grated lemon peel

In a heavy saucepan, cook and stir the sugar, lemon juice and butter until smooth.  Stir a small amount of hot mixture into egg, return all to pan.  Bring to a gentle boil, stirring constantly, cook 2 minutes longer or until thickened.  Stir in lemon peel.  Cool for 10 minutes.  Cover and chill for 1 1/2 hours or until thickened.

Like-Homemade Baked Beans

These aren't as good as Mother's Baked Beans but they were done start to finish in 15 minutes!

2 bacon strips, diced (once again I used the real bacon bits from Sam's I love those)

1/2 C onion (I used dry onion flakes)

1 can pork and beans

2 T brown sugar

1 1/2 t Worcestershire sauce

1/2 t ground mustard

Cook bacon until crisp, add onions and cook until tender.  Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan.  Simmer for 10-15 minutes or until heated through.

We had a fun Sliders dinner but I went a little crazy and over estimated how many sliders we would need,  super tasty leftovers though.  I just love my tiny sliders press so I went crazy!

For the buns I used the America's Test Kitchen Baking Book's recipe for Fluffy Dinner Rolls.  They looked beautiful but they were not fantastic which is weird because America's Test Kitchen is usually always great.  But the following night I sliced them like little loaves of bread and the kids were in heaven.

Potato Salad with Bacon

This is possible the BEST recipe I've tried this year.  I've made it multiple times since and it will be the only potato salad I will ever make.

I've always wanted to make potato salad but never had before.  We had another family over for a Super Bowl Party - even though we didn't watch the game.  So this was the perfect time to try.  It turned out great.  Dave found the recipe in all my cookbooks.  I'm so glad he did. 

Potato Salad Bacon

My friend told me I should call it Baked Potato Salad

3 lbs red potatoes - I just used regular potatoes

4 hard-cooked eggs

3/4 C sour cream

2/3 C mayonnaise

1 t salt

1 t prepared mustard

1/2 t garlic powder

1/4 t pepper

11 bacon strips - cooked and crumbled - I just used the real bacon bits from Sam's Club sbout 1/4 C

1/2 C chopped celery

1/4 C chopped green onions

1/4 C Italian salad dressing

Cut potatoes into 1/2 in cubes, place in a large kettle and cover with water.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until tender.  Drain and cool to room temp.

Cut eggs in half, separate, chop egg whites and set aside.  In a bowl, mash the egg yolks.  Stir in the sour cream, mayo, salt mustard, garlic powder and pepper.  Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, bacon, egg whites, celery, onions and Italian dressing.  Fold in mayo mixture.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.

Also we made this cute seven layer dip.

Food Nanny Rescues Dinner

This is one of my favorite cookbooks - Thanks Margaret I've wanted my own copy for years!  I really like the author Liz Edmunds.  She has a TV show on BYUtv.  For Valentine's Day Dave took me to one of her classes.  I've never cooked a recipe from her book I didn't love.  Here are the new ones I've tried this year.

Pear Strawberry Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette and Sugared Nuts

I combined romaine lettuce, pears, strawberries and bacon.

Balsamic Vinaigrette

1/2 C olive oil

Juice of 1 lemon

2 T balsamic vinegar

2 t Dijon mustard

I added about 1 t white sugar that is not in the original recipe

Whisk together and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.  Shake before serving.

Watson loved this salad!  He practically ate the whole bowl and would have if we didn't stop him.

Easy Sugared Nuts

2/3 C walnut halves or pecans

1/4 C sugar

Mix nuts and sugar in a small skillet over medium heat until the sugar is melted.  Stir to coat.

Spread on foil and let cool.

Break apart and eat or store in fridge or freezer.

Italian Bread

Really tasty but recipe way too long to type out.

Classic French Toast

8 slices firm white bread - such as the Italian Bread above

3 large eggs

1 C milk

1 t sugar

1 t vanilla extract

1/4 t salt

1/8 t cinnamon

Pinch of nutmeg

1 T oil

1 T melted butter

Preheat griddle to medium.

Trim the crusts off the bread - I didn't because the crusts were still soft.

In a bowl, beat the eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla and salt.  Add the cinnamon and nutmeg.

Combine the oil and butter and spread 2 tsp. on the surface of griddle.  Dip bread in egg mixture and turn to coat evenly.  Put on griddle, fry until bread is light brown on both sides.  Spread additional oil/butter when needed.  Serve hot!  Our family needed to double this recipe.

Really, Really Good!

I highly recommend her book, show and her website.

http://www.byutv.org/foodnanny/

And surprisingly she is that energetic in person as she is on her show!

I really have still been cooking

I have been, I just have a hard time getting time to put up the new posts.  I don't understand what I do with all my time but I think it has something to do with a boy named Lincoln.  He is a full time job.