BLT Pasta Salad

Sometimes its the little things in life that mean the most, like picnics in the park with your best friends. Today was such a beautiful day. It was warm and sunny, and besides my zebra-like sunburn that I came home with, things were just as perfect as these pictures.

My friends and I relaxed, talked, went for a beautiful walk in the park, and enjoyed this yummy (and healthy!!) pasta salad. We set up our picnic right next to the water, and had the most beautiful view.

The park also has great walking paths, and the scenery is just GORGEOUS. I'm so blessed to live five minutes away from this place. It's a great place to just come by yourself and clear your mind, or enjoy it with friends like I did today.

Now back to what you probably came here for...THE FOOD. For lunch, I made us ham and cheese sandwiches, fruit salad, and this pasta salad. I didn't want to make anything heavy so this pasta salad was just PERFECT. Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 pound of pasta, cooked
• 3 large tomatoes, diced
• 8 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 4 cup lettuce, thinly sliced
• 1 cup scallion onions
• 2 tsp sugar
• 4 tsp cider vinegar
• 1 cup low fat mayonnaise
• 2/3 cup light sour cream
• 2 tbsp dijon mustard
• salt and pepper

Recipe:

1. In a small bowl, mix sugar, vinegar, mayonnaise, sour cream, mustard, and salt and pepper to taste.
2. Mix the mayonnaise mixture with the pasta and tomatoes. 
3. When ready to serve, mix in the lettuce, and place a scoop of the pasta salad on the plate. Sprinkle with bacon and scallion onions. 

Cucumber Salad

This salad is perfect for grilling season and warm weather! I'm so happy that its that time of the year again!! It definitely puts a smile on my face. This salad was perfect with some grilled chicken that I made this week. I made it as a side salad, but next time I might try to cut the cucumbers and onions with a mandoline slicer to use it as a topping for chicken, fish or anything really! Since its such a simple recipe I'm sure I'll be making it a lot the next few months. It's so colorful, fresh, and yummy too!! It also takes a mere 5 minutes to make which is usually all the time I have to put something together to eat during the week. Its finals time...which means studying comes first, sleeping comes second, and takeout comes third... Cooking is nonexistent unless it takes under 10 minutes, so I am always on the lookout for healthy easy things to make! Hope you enjoy!!

Ingredients:

• 1 small red onion, sliced
• 2 sliced cucumbers
• 2 medium sized limes, juiced
• 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Recipe:

1. Place all the ingredients in a bowl, mix well, taste, and season as needed.
2. Serve immediately or let it rest in the refrigerator before serving.

Pomegranate Guacamole

I'm a guacamole addict and while you may think of guacamole as a summer thing, I think of it as a year round thing. In fact, pomegranate guacamole is my favorite especially around the holidays. The red and green colors just pop and are so festive. I think its a perfect holiday appetizer because its light and fresh and is the perfect contrast to all those heavy delicious holiday meals that we love.  

Pomegranates are in season right now which makes them easily accessible, but they can be quite a pain for those who lack patience such as myself. Trying to dig out all of the seeds can be especially frustrating and time consuming, not to mention pomegranates stain your hands bloody red. So here is a little trick...check out the section of your grocery store where they have pre-cut fruit to see if they have ready to eat pomegranate seeds. Yes, it might be a little more expensive but if you've ever tried to de-seed a pomegranate before, I think you would agree that its worth it. Otherwise, goodluck.

Ingredients:

•  3 avocados
• 1 cup pomegranate seeds
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1/2 of a red onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp chopped cilantro
• 1/2 jalapeno, deseeded and diced
• 1 tsp salt 
• 1 tsp pepper

Recipe:

•  Halve and pit the avocados. Spoon avocado into a bowl.
• Add 1/2 of the pomegranate seeds, lime juice, red onion, garlic, cilantro, jalapeno, salt and pepper to the avocado. Stir gently.
• Place guacamole in a serving bowl and add rest of the pomegranate seeds on top. 
• Serve with chips

Picnic in the Park

At the beginning of the summer I made a checklist of all the activities I wanted to do over the summer. I was really excited about having 3 months off from school and I wanted to make sure I enjoyed every second. Well...it didn't go exactly as planned. As the summer went on and I got busy with my internship, I slowly started to forget about the checklist. One of the things on my checklist was to go on a picnic. There is a beautiful park right by my house and I wanted to take advantage of it. Since this weekend is the unofficial end of the summer I figured it was now or never so off to the park we went!! It turned out to be the perfect night. I hope these pictures give you a little inspiration on how you could spend the long weekend!

Clean Eating Taco Salad

Surprise, surprise! Here is another taco dish, but this time in the form of a salad. I've been on a kick lately and I can't help it!! This is a guilt free taco salad. It is perfect for lunch or for a light dinner! I don't really have any measurements for this recipe just because you can put on this salad whatever you would like. These were the ingredients that I already had in my fridge so I went for it!

Ingredients:

• ground turkey
• lettuce
• salsa
• cucumber
• avocado
• black beans
• corn
• tomato
• spices: cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper

Recipe: 

•  Brown ground turkey in a pan and drain fat.
• Add spices to your liking (i like to use a lot of cumin to give it some mexican flavor)
• Assemble salad with the ground turkey and your favorite toppings. Use salsa for dressing.

Vodka Strawberry Lemonade

Over the next couple weeks, I'll be posting some cocktail recipes to get you ready for Valentine's Day. Each drink has a theme for however you're feeling this Feb 14th. Today's drink is a sweet vodka strawberry lemonade. It's perfect for those who are feeling sweet and flirty. Keep this recipe on file for the summer too! It will definitely make the perfect summer drink.

Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 oz vodka
• 3 oz organic lemonade
• chopped strawberries
• 1/2 oz agave nectar
• asti spumante

Recipe:

• Fill a glass with chopped strawberries and ice.
• In a cocktail shaker, mix vodka, lemonade, and agave nectar. 
• Add lemonade mixture to glass. 
• Top with asti spumante.  

Citrus White Wine Sangria

 

Yes, I FINALLY have a recipe posted...and not just any recipe....a SANGRIA recipe.

 I can imagine smiles all around!

I realize that you have probably been bored to tears with my life these past few posts..so this is my apology.

 This is an AMAZING party recipe because its fast, easy, simple, and delicious!! 

I made it for my graduation party last Saturday and served it in these large drink dispensers.

You can check out the drink dispensers: here.

They are really awesome...probably my most favorite purchase ever. 

They are just so darn pretty and functional!

 

Along with the sangria, I served lemon water and margaritas.

You can find my margarita recipe here.

 

Even if you don't want to make a big batch of the sangria like I did, you can easily make a single serving! 

So it works either way!

To make this sangria you need...

1 (1.5 L) bottle of white wine (either pinot grigio or riesling is fine..I used pinot for my party and it was delicious)

3 cans of citrus fresca (regular fresca is fine too!)

 your favorite fruit: peaches, grapes, oranges, etc...

Mix all the above ingredients together and enjoy!!

For the 3 gallon dispenser, I ended up using 2.5 bottles of wine and 7 or 8 cans of fresca.

          

Blueberry Muffin

This beautiful summer day inspired me to bake some blueberry muffins this morning! In my opinion, there is nothing better than a lazy Sunday morning and a classic blueberry muffin. This is a simple classic recipe that you can whip up using basic ingredients that you probably already have in your kitchen. The sugary-cinnamon crumb topping makes this muffin extra special.

Recipe Source:  All Recipes

Serving Size: Makes 9 Muffins

Muffin Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 cup fresh blueberries

Crumb Topping Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup butter, cubed
• 1-1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Recipe:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line cups with muffin liners
• Combine all dry muffin ingredients in a bowl: 1-1/2 cup flour, 3/4 cup sugar, salt and baking powder.
• In a separate bowl, mix vegetable oil, egg, and milk.
• Mix wet ingredients with the dry ingredients.
• Fold in blueberries.
• Fill muffin cups to the top with the batter.
• To make the crumb topping, mix together 1/2 cup sugar, 1/3 cup flour, 1/4 cup butter, and 1-1/2 tsp cinnamon. Mix with fork. 
• Sprinkle crumb topping over muffins.
• Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean when placed in the center of the muffin.

Loaded Baked Potato Salad

Potato salad is most definitely my favorite dish at a summer get together. I am always excited to try a new recipe! I found this one on pinterest and I just could not pass it up! At your next cookout or BBQ I would most definitely recommend making this potato salad! It tastes exactly like a loaded baked potato...bacon, cheese, potato, sour cream...you just can't go wrong with that!! Its yummy yummy! I served it chilled though the originally recipe served it warm so you can do whatever you prefer!

Recipe Source: Dining with Leslie
Serving: 8 to 12 people
Ingredients:

• 8 large Russet potatoes
• 1/2 cup mayo
• 1 cup sour cream (plus a dab extra)
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (Leave some aside for the topping)
• 1/2 cup fresh chopped chives (Leave some aside for the topping)
• 16 strips of bacon cooked and crumbled (Leave some aside for the topping)
• 2 tsp black pepper
• Salt to the taste

Recipe:

• In a small bow, mix together mayonnaise and sour cream.
• Add the chives, cheese, and pepper to the bowl.
• Add salt if needed
• Let chill in the fridge
• Peel and cube potatoes into bite size pieces.
• Put potatoes in a large pot and cover with water.
• Boil until fork tender (about 18-20 minutes). You'll want to make sure that you don't cook them for too long because you don't want mashed potatoes!!
•  Drain potatoes and let cool. 
• Put potatoes in a large bowl and combine mayo/sour cream mixture. 
• Fold in crumbles of bacon.
• Chill until ready to serve.
• Top with the remaining chives, cheese, and bacon.

Tropical Rum Punch

Want the recipe for this delicious rum punch? Check out Lyndi's blog the journey... This week I wrote a guest post on her blog because her and her hubby are on vacation in Jamaica. I am sure they are drinking their share of rum punch!
 

Spicy Jalapeno Margarita

I have over 10,000 views!!!! In fact, I have 10,277 to be exact! I know that a lot of bloggers might think that its nothing, but I'm really proud that people are liking my blog and reading it! I remember the day I started my blog and being excited that 5 people had looked at it never mind 10,000. Thank you to all my subscribers and readers. To celebrate, I decided to post another margarita recipe. We all know that you can't have a true celebration without some margaritas!

This margarita has a little kick to it! It's made with jalapeno vodka!! I originally had this spicy margarita when we were in Las Vegas at Senor Frogs. You can see my Las Vegas post here. I loved it so much that I was planning on making my own jalapeno vodka by infusing it. Well, I didn't even have to! I was in the liquor store with my friend Sarah, and she pointed Stoli jalapeno vodka out to me. She knows I love my spicy stuff! I was SO excited that she found it! Its hard to describe, but it tastes a little peppery and spicy. Its delicious with margarita mix, orange juice, or tomato juice. I would even drink it on the rocks with seltzer and lime.

This recipe is really simple because I cheated slightly and used a margarita mix already premixed with tequila. I used Jose Cuervo Light Margarita mix. I tend to like the light mixers better because they are less sugary.

Ingredients:

• Jose Cuervo Light Margarita Mix
• Stoli Jalapeno Vodka
• Salt and Lime for garnish

Recipe:

• Rim a glass with salt, and fill with ice.
• Pour in two shots of vodka.
• Fill the rest of the glass with margarita mix.

Cherry Corona Rita

I am seriously hanging by the threads this week. I've been through a lot of stress at work and trying to finish up two finals. I could use one of these drinks right now!! Thankfully the summer semester is over this Thursday! I'll be having one of these drinks to celebrate.

My most popular drink on my blog so far has been the corona rita. You can see my original corona rita post here. Because I know my readers love their liquor I couldn't pass this drink up. I got the drink recipe from here and here. This drink has the same ingredients and taste as the original corona rita but has some cherry in there too! It's also extremely easy! You basically use the concentrate can as your measuring cup so there is no way to mess it up, and it eliminates dishes!! That's a win win!

I think this has a more sophisticated look than the glass with the corona bottle turned upside down into it. If you want that look though, you can just omit pouring the corona in the pitcher, and instead dump a corona right into the glass with the margarita. If you don't know what I'm talking about check out my original corona rita post!

Ingredients:
12 oz can limeade concentrate
12 oz cherry flavored 7up
12 oz tequila
12 oz corona bottle
lime, cherries, sugar/salt for garnish

Recipe: 
Pour out the corona bottle and limeade concentrate into a pitcher. Using the empty concentrate can measure out the 7up and tequila. Pour both into the pitcher as well. Garnish your glasses with lime, cherries, salt or sugar!

Oreo Cookie Stuffed Brownies

What?! Am I actually planning ahead for a holiday? I know its shocking...I may even have a couple patriotic drink recipes and post them this weekend too. No promises though!

I found these "brownies" on pinterest and couldn't pass them up. They are unique because they are not entirely brownies (hence the quotation marks). They are actually oreo stuffed brownies with a cookie bottom. These brownies are unique, delicious, super easy to make, and perfect for a cookout! They are pretty heavy so I would consider cutting them in to small pieces! I sprinkled red white and blue sprinkles on top of the brownie mix to make them patriotic.

Ok...and I suppose I should tell you that I slightly cheated with this recipe. All of the ingredients were made from a box hehe. All you need is a box of brownie mix, a box of oreos, and premade cookie batter. They would probably taste even more delicious if you made brownie and cookie batter from scratch but I was lazy!!

Recipe:

Line a 9 x 13 pan with parchment paper, then spray with pam. Take the chocolate chip cookie dough and press it into the bottom of the pan. I believe I used a little over half of the cookie dough from the package. Take about 30 oreos and place on top of cookie dough layer.

At this point it, the pan should look like this:

Then, make brownie batter according to package. Pour brownie batter on top of Oreos. At this point, you can cover batter with your favorite sprinkles. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes.

They should come out of the oven looking like this:

Cut into squares and enjoy!!

Loaded Baked Potato Dip

 I am so behind in all my posts! I cook things, take pictures of them, and then never post them! I am embarrassed to say I made this dip on memorial day....which was almost a month ago....oops! Summer is really flying by! I feel like it has something to do with summer classes. As I wish my semester away, I'm also wishing away my summer. :(  Thankfully, there is only 3 weeks left to go (YAY!). 

So basically I made this dip because I really wanted to make something different and unique. This dip turned out to be delicious. It tastes exactly like a loaded potato! What else could be better than bacon, sour cream, cheese, and chives. Serve with ruffle potato chips and you have the perfect dip. :)

Today I found a blog post with a collection of all different types of dips (loaded baked potato included!). You can check it out here. As the summer goes on I'm going to try to make as many of these as I can. Don't they look delicious?!

Recipe Source: My Recipes

Ingredients:

• 1 (2.1-oz.) package bacon 
• 1 (16-oz.) container sour cream
• 2 cups (8 oz.) freshly shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
• 1/3 cup sliced fresh chives
• 2 teaspoons hot sauce
• Garnishes: cooked, crumbled bacon; sliced fresh chives; freshly cracked pepper
• Ruffle potato chips

Recipe:

• Cook bacon until crispy.  Drain excess oil on paper towels. Crumble into small pieces.
• Mix bacon, sour cream, cheese, chives, and hot sauce together.
• Garnish with bacon, chives, and cheese
• Serve with ruffle potato chips and dig in!!