Diary of a Domestic Goddess {in training}

'lil ladybug

2010-01-02T08:07:00.000-08:00

This is my bf's daughter on Halloween;

The cutest 'lil ladybug I've ever seen!

She actually won the costume contest - which was really meant for the adults but she just looked so cute that everyone voted for her! So that's why you see her next to a basket that has a bottle of wine and a shot glass in it. She will enjoy that in about...20 more years!

Christmas Cookies!!!!

2009-12-15T16:51:00.000-08:00

Believe me...these taste just as good as they look!...

I don't have a name for these cookies but I can tell you that they are awesome!

I used Pillsbury's recipe altered slightly;

1 3/4 cups All Purpose Flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
1 Large bag of Reese's Mini Peanut Butter Cups

Heat oven to 375°F. In large bowl, combine flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, salt, shortening, peanut butter, milk, vanilla and egg; mix with electric mixer on low speed until stiff dough forms.
Shape dough into 1-inch balls; place in a greased mini muffin pan.
Using a Tamper, press down on the balls to form a cup.
Bake at 375°F. for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately top each cookie with 1 Mini Reese's Peanut Butter Cup, pressing down firmly.
Allow cookies to cool before removing from mini muffin pan.
Enjoy!

Happy Hanukkah!

2009-12-12T08:59:00.000-08:00

Today I will be celebrating my very first Hanukkah with my best friend Mindy and her husband Ryan. I am so excited to learn all about their family traditions and share this special holiday with them!

So this morning I made a Red Chrayn (pronounced khreyn). I found this recipe while looking through Nigela Lawson's book - Nigela Christmas

This book is actually a Christmas gift that I begged to open early :-)

I used;

1 Cup Horseradish Sauce
2 Tablespoons Sour Cream
1 Uncooked Red Beet - peeled

I whisked together the Horseradish Sauce and Sour Cream. Then (wearing latex gloves) I grated the red beet into the mixture. Here is my final product;

Chrayn is typically served as a condiment with fish...I can't wait to try it out!

I also made this yummy Monkey Bread for dessert;

Happy Hanukkah everyone!

Monster Mash

2009-11-05T10:14:00.001-08:00

Some more LO's with pictures from our annual Halloween Party

They did the mash...they did the monster mash!

Tick or Treat!

Spiders & Witches

2009-11-04T05:13:00.001-08:00

Here are some new LO's that I did with pictures from our Annual Halloween Party...

My best friend Mindy & I and a few SPIDERS!!! We both hate them so I am not sure why I used the spider decals on this page. You cant see too well but the spiders have little black gems on them - too cute!

In the top left hand corner is my friend Alexis as a witch and me as June Cleaver. The bottom right hand corner is Ruth as at witch and Jimmie as a knight.

Camping LO

2009-11-03T04:45:00.000-08:00

The pictures on this page are from our camping trip this past October to Hickory Run State Park in our state of PA. It was a beautiful crisp morning at the lake - perfect for pictures! The picture in the lower left hand corner is my husband standing on the damn. You can actually hop over the wall and walk out onto the damn. I got up the nerve to walk out and that's where the top center picture was taken. And the picture in the bottom right hand corner was taken in a tree on the edge of the lake.

To see more pictures from the camping trip click here

Halloween Treats

2009-10-31T13:22:00.001-07:00

A fun way to turn Rice Krispie treats into Halloween Rice Krispie treats is to add some colorful Halloween sprinkles into to the mix.

Use mini marshmellows to make the melting and stirring easier.

Garnish the top with extra marshmellows

I can say that there are NONE left after our Halloween party, not even a mini marshmellow! They were a big hit!

Happy Halloween!

New Scrap

2009-10-12T05:24:00.000-07:00

My mom gave me these cute Hershey Kiss stickers for Christmas last year and I have been waiting for the perfect pictures to scrap with them. I'm really pleased with this LO - its cute and fun!

This is my best friend Mindy & I. I love this LO - purple is our favorite color!

Don't forget that you can click on the link to the right to see my whole scrapbooking portfolio at scrapbook.com!

Chicken Salad

2009-10-07T07:40:00.000-07:00

This recipe comes from my Mom and it is SO easy...

Chicken + Ranch Dressing = Chicken Salad

That's it! I actually made this for a lunch to take camping and I used canned chicken {you can find it right next to canned tuna}. You just drain the chicken and pull it apart with a fork and mix it with Ranch Dressing, salt and pepper. If you like celery {yuck!} in your chicken salad then I guess you could add that too!

Enjoy :-}

"LIFE'S GOOD BETWEEN REESE'S PEANUT BUTTER CUPS."

2009-08-10T10:53:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry but there is nothing better than a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. Nothing...

The most important aspect of a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup is the way you eat it. Personally, I like to bite all of the chocolate edges off all the way around. All that's left is the peanut butter center...the best part. I stick it in my mouth and just let it melt.

What's your favorite Reese's product and how do you eat it?

Odd Food

2009-06-21T18:28:00.001-07:00

I am going to share with you my absolute favorite sandwich of all time. You may say ewww {like my husband is saying right now!}.... or you may say .... I think I'll try it!

My grandmother used to make these sandwiches and pack them up for a picnic. I can remember eating them at amusement parks, the beach and by the pool. They are great if your a vegetarian or just love olives. And they also make wonderful finger sandwiches if you chop off the crusts and corner them - serve them at an old fashioned tea party!

What am I talking about?

cream cheese & olives

Ohhh it is sooo good! Just take a dollop of cream cheese and warm it for about 15 seconds in the microwave. Chop up a few green olives stuffed with pimentos and mix it up. Spread it on bread or even better - toast. You could also try spreading it on a bagel for breakfast or on crackers for a snack

Just try it!

What is your favorite "odd food"?

In The Garden

2009-05-05T07:08:00.000-07:00

Beautiful gardens aren't they? These pictures were taking the day before my wedding (5/20/2006) at my parents house.

I really wanted a spring time garden wedding and my parents house was the perfect location. A lot of hard work went into making the gardens just perfect. We had aunts, cousin, grandparents my father and brothers all outside working hard to pull every weed and plant every flower. Everyone did a wonderful job!

Pretty in Pink

2009-04-09T12:55:00.001-07:00

Girls - I stumbled across the BEST website! It's a great place to avoid doing any work by creating and publishing fabulous designs. You gotta love it!

The coolest part is that it gives you the prices of everything - let me just say - I would have to be a millionaire to afford this outfit. But I like to dream big :)

Here is my lil creation...its so pretty...pretty in PINK!

click to enlarge. see badge on right hand side to link to polyvore.com

Cake!

2009-03-23T17:41:00.000-07:00

Funny story behind this one -

My wedding cake is not my wedding cake!

Or I should say - completely 100% not the cake I ordered.

Everything from the shape, flavor, icing - everything.

But I must say that the cake was still pretty - pretty enough to scrapbook.

Besides I love the photo of hubs sneaking a taste!

I also would like to add that I was blessed to have the most perfect wonderful wedding - despite the cake.

A Mothers Love

2009-03-21T18:41:00.000-07:00

(Click to enlarge)

I had so much fun doing this LO!!! This is a picture of my good friend Mindy and her beautiful baby girl. I have been trying to put together some pages for her here and there. I haven't even given this one to her yet....but I was so excited about the way it turned out that I had to post it! So Mindy; the next time I see you - you'll be getting this :) I hope you like it!

Letter to Zoe

2009-03-16T07:00:00.000-07:00

A letter to my dear Zoe who we had to put down this weekend - click here

Because scrapbooking tattoos is hardcore

2009-03-02T10:51:00.000-08:00

click to enlarge image

Friendship

2009-02-24T19:14:00.000-08:00

Me and my two cousins Amanda & Melissa...the three amigos!

This photo was taken at my grandparents 50th Wedding Anniversary party.

A Cat of a Different Color

2009-02-12T11:18:00.000-08:00

Jacob loves to curl up in sinks, he even likes to play with the water! He is definitely a cat of a different color.

Candid Moment

2009-01-29T17:00:00.000-08:00

Chef Madi

2009-01-15T18:04:00.000-08:00

Monday night I had the honor of hosting dinner for my cousin Karen and her family. We had the best time making homemade pizzas! We used fresh peppers, onions, broccoli and lots and lots of cheese! Madi had fun playing chef but I don't think she liked the pizza too much, he-he!

Check it

2009-01-13T12:45:00.000-08:00

Have you seen this?

How frickin cute!

I must go...NOW!

Want to see my Christmas present?...

2008-12-27T14:46:00.000-08:00

My mom got me these wonderful organizers for my supplies. She also hit up a scrapbooking outlet to get me lots of goodies.

So for the past two days I have been locked away {Scrapbooking}

Here are a few of my favorite pages so far...

I printed out a collage of pictures from the {First Winter} in our first home!

{Autumn Days} The journaling reads: The first Autumn in our first home...79 Green View Dr. It was so much fun to decorate with all the wonderful colors!

{Turkey Time} Thanksgiving 2008

{Me and my Mom} The journaling reads: Me and my mom arent just mother and daughter...we are friends. Everytime we get together is a good time filled with lots of laughter and fun. My mom is just amazing!

Pizzels

2008-12-26T19:02:00.000-08:00

Making Pizzels with hubs grandparents!

Mise en place

2008-12-09T09:56:00.000-08:00

Mise en place (pronounced mez an plase) is a French word that translates to put in place.

What does this have to do with baking?

In the kitchen the first step to a successful dish is to get your Mise en place together or in other words put your ingredients in place ahead of time.

Make sure you are being precise with your Mise en place....measure carefully...level off your flour and use the proper measuring cups for wet/dry ingredients.

This will help keep you on track and organized. You wont have to quickly shut off the mixer while you measure out your shortening.

It is less stressful to bake when you have your Mise en place ... in place!

Biscotti and Coffee

2008-12-03T17:05:00.000-08:00

This weekend my hubs and I made fresh homemade Biscotti. Yum! And look at this cute mug that my neighbor got for me. She knows how much I love snowmen. The Biscotti was very good and despite the complicated recipe it ended up being very easy to make. This batch we rolled in cinnamon sugar but next time I think we'll try chocolate.

Biscotti is rather different if you haven't had it before. Not sure if it should really be called a cookie. It's not at all soft and chewy that's for sure. But its meant to be eaten with coffee so if you don't drink coffee I can see why Biscotti wouldn't be appealing.

Most people either LOVE or HATE Biscotti. How about you?

Pie Day

2008-11-20T12:42:00.000-08:00

I have been told by a dear co-worker (we will call her Suzy) that Wednesday the 26th is an unofficial holiday; Pie Day! Suzy gets together with the ladies in her family's and bakes pies all day long. Then after all their hard work they sit down and enjoy one of their pies together. How sweet!

I myself am getting together with my Mom on Tuesday night (darn work) to make our pies and breads. I am currently working on making the pie doughs in advance and freezing them. (pie dough post to follow soon!)

My Pie Day List;

2 Pumpkin

1 Apple

1 Cherry

1 Blueberry

1 Mince Meat

+ 1 bonus, still undecided

Lets chat! Who do you spend Pie Day with and what Pies are on your list? Any suggestions for my bonus pie?

Goofy!

2008-11-11T09:42:00.000-08:00

So this is what life was like living with two younger brothers. Always being goofy and striking a pose. God Bless them. Now they are 17 and 14, gosh...how they grow! I miss having them be my little brothers. Having them snuggle up on the couch with me to watch Disney movies. To play house with (you can see which one got the job of playing the dog!). And of course to dress up in my clothing (I'm saving that one!). Good times....

Hungarian Goulash

2008-11-07T18:53:00.000-08:00

This is my special recipe for Hungarian Goulash. It's a wonderful one-pot meal and its very easy to make.

In a large stock pot boil 4 quarts water. Stir in 1 box elbow macaroni. Season water with salt and oil. Cook al dente.

Meanwhile In a skillet brown 1 1/2 lbs ground beef. Season simmering beef with salt, pepper and a pinch of nutmeg. Add in 1 red pepper, 1 green pepper and 1 red onion. Stir in 1 can of stewed tomatoes and 1 bay leaf. Let simmer while macaroni is cooking.

Drain macaroni and return to stock pot. Stir in your skillet of beef, peppers and onion. (Don't forget to fish out the bay leaf!) Add in 2 jars of sauce and simmer until ready to serve.

Serve with Parmesan cheese and fresh bread. Yields 6 to 8 servings

Happy Halloween

2008-11-01T08:52:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween! You can click on the photos to enlarge.

My husbands cannibal pumpkin and my luminary pumpkin
Halloween cupcakes! ... gooey green cupcakes
Kodi in his cute Halloween outfit
Severed fingers in wine glasses
Me in my Stepford Wife outfit feeding jello shots in the shape of witches hats to my husband

My Tall Dark and Handsome Husband

2008-10-26T07:50:00.000-07:00

Oh yes, he is tall, dark and very handsome. The pictures at the top and on the left are from years ago when we first started dating, I'm guessing year 2000 or 2001. I was going through an old box of photos when I came across quite a few old pictures that I knew I wanted to scrapbook right away. Since the pictures are old they have some damage to them so I had to do some arranging that would hide it. I think this came out good, I like the simplicity of the page with just the black and white. Its good for a 'man page', lol.

Jewish Apple Cake

2008-10-19T16:19:00.001-07:00

This is by far one of the best cakes I have made. This is my own Jewish Apple Cake. It is one of those wonderful creations that you can eat for breakfast or for dessert and is best paired with a great cup of coffee. I hope that you try this recipe at home and let me know what YOU think. Enjoy!...

Cut, peel and slice 4 to 5 apples. Mix them in a bowl with 1 tablespoon cinnamon and 5 tablespoons of sugar. Let stand while mixing the batter.

In a mixing bowl beat 3 cups flour, 2 cups sugar, 1 tablespoon baking powder, 4 eggs, 1 cup vegetable oil (I like to use canola oil), 2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla and 1/4 cup orange juice

In a greased and floured pan layer batter and apples. Batter first and last

Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 1 hour

I think were going to need a bigger boat *er*um* pan...

Tadaa...doesn't that look fabulous?! The top is nice and cracked, perfect for the glaze.

I decided to add a little 'spice' into my glaze. In a bowl, mix 4 cups confectioners sugar, 2 tablespoons butter (always use real butter for the best outcome), 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg. Using a wisk, beat in 3 to 4 tablespoons of milk or until desired consistency.

Pour the glaze over the cake while it is still warm. The glaze will drip over the side and then harden up.

Fabulous! Now get that cup of coffee, go outside with a blanket and enjoy the beautiful fall weather with this lovely cake.

Birthday Cake

2008-10-18T18:33:00.001-07:00

Here is a great recipe for a Basic Yellow Cake (birthday cake).

I made this last week for my familys October birthday gathering

This recipe comes from ~ Pillsbury The Complete Book of Baking

***TIP*** place a sheet of clear cellophane over the book to protect the pages

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit

Grease and flour a 13x9 inch cake pan

(I doubled this recipe and used a large sheet pan)

Gather all of your ingredients

2 1/2 cups all purpous flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups sugar
3/4 cup margarine or butter softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 eggs
1 cup milk

***TIP*** have all of your ingredients at room temperature

In large bowl, beat sugar and margarine until light and fluffy

Add vanilla and eggs; blend well

Alternately add dry ingredients (flour, baking soda and salt) and milk

Beat well after each addition

{BONUS} who doesnt love some chocolate added into the mix!

Spread batter evenly in greased and floured pan(s)

Bake for 27 to 35 minutes or until tooth-pick inserted in center comes out clean

Cool completely

Frost at top as desired

Yields 12 servings

Cake Glorious Cake

2008-10-09T14:24:00.000-07:00

I took a sick day on Wednesday and guess what I did?...I baked a cake of course!
Shhh...dont tell work!

It is a simple white cake with a few mini chocolate chips added into the mix. It was just as yummy as it looks!

Welcome

2008-10-09T12:43:00.000-07:00

Welcome to my brand spankin new blog...Diary of a Domestic Goddess {in training}.

Why the title? I chose that title for a few reasons...1. Nigella Lawson. enough said right? 2. For Nana. My late grandmother was a fabulous baker and scrapbooker among other things and this is my way of honoring her. 3. Even though I have lots of knowledge I still have a lot more to learn...hence {in training}.

What will you find here? Everything! My scrapbooking projects. Arts and crafts. You will find recipes. See pictures. Tips and know-hows. You will see my wonderful culinary creations as well as my not so fabulous flubs (which occur more often than not)...But that is the point. I am no DG (Domestic Goddess)...I am a regular wife with a full time job who loves to create!

Any suggestions? Have a recipe that you want me to try out? Any how-to questions? Leave me a comment and let me know what you would like to see!