Bacon-Wrapped Blue Cheese Stuffed Dates

Check out the updated recipe here ---> http://www.girlsgonefood.org/2017/03/bacon-wrapped-dates-stuffed-with-blue.html

Lottery Ticket and Liquor Birthday Bouquet

I was on the fence whether or not to post this. First, the picture isn't the best quality, and second, I made this literally 4 months ago (around the same time that I disappeared from the blogging world whooooops.....).  I figured I would post this anyways because one..I LOVE IT and two...these posts seem to be very popular. It's really such a great DIY gift. I made something similar for my brother's 21st birthday three years ago and it remains one of my most popular blog posts yet. You can see that here. I had so much fun making this birthday gift. I love making bouquets/baskets (or whatever you call it) for birthdays or other special events because you can personalize it and decorate it based on the their favorite things. It also looks so darn good.

What you'll need:

1. Some type of pot or can
2. Styrofoam ball or block to fit in can 
3. Wooden skewers 
4. Tape
5. Lottery Tickets, Liquor, Decorations (your choice!)

It is really quite easy to assemble! Place the styrofoam ball or block into the can. You can cut around the edges to ensure that it fits. Tape the lottery tickets and liquor bottles to the skewers. Stick the skewers into the styrofoam, arranging it so that small items are in the front and large items are in the back. Decorate around the bouquet with ribbons and other decorations.

 

Caramel Apple Cider

There is nothing like having holiday drinks by the Christmas tree with friends. I can't take credit for this drink. Thank you Ms. Jamie for making these drinks for us. We wanted something festive to help celebrate the end of finals and this drink did not disappoint! So yummmy!!

For the rim, dip the glass in caramel then dip in a mixture of brown sugar, regular sugar, and cinnamon.

For one drink....In a shaker, put one count of green apple pucker, three counts of salted caramel vodka (or regular vodka!), one count of buttershots, one count of caramel apple liqueur (you could go without this but it makes the drink super yummy and sweet), and a half of can of cider (we used down east cider!).

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

Cheese Blueberry Danish

I'm making this for Christmas morning because it is really easy to make and super delicious! If you don't like blueberry you can swap it out for any fruit pie filling (as long as it's in syrup!). A red pie filling like cherry would be especially festive for the holidays. You can even get creative with the crescent roll topping. If you don't like the lattice, try a different design. If you aren't creative, feel free to just lay the crescent roll down as it comes in the can (like you do on the bottom). It will all taste the same!

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you and your family have a wonderful holiday!

Adapted From: Kitchen Girl

Ingredients:

• 2 cans ready to use refrigerated crescent rolls
• 2 8-ounce packages cream cheese
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon almond or vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1 (21 oz.) can blueberry pie filling (or any fruit pie filling, as long as it's in syrup!)

For the glaze:

• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 2 Tablespoons milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Recipe:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Grease a 13x9 inch baking pan.
• Lay a pack of crescent rolls on the bottom of the pan. 
• Pinch the openings of the crescent rolls together.
• In a medium sized bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla and egg until smooth.
• Spread the cream cheese mixture on top of the the crescent rolls.
• Spread the blueberry pie filling over the cream cheese mixture.
• Lay out the second pack of crescent rolls on a flat surface, and pinch together the openings.
• Using a knife, cut 1 inch strips of the cresecent rolls and lay on top of the blueberry mixture to create a lattice design.
• Bake for 35-45 minutes until the top is golden brown.
• Let the danish cool for 20 minutes before topping it with the glaze.
• For the glaze, mix together the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract. 
• Drizzle glaze over danish

Graham Cracker "Gingerbread" House

Dan and I spent our Sunday building this "gingerbread" house made out of graham crackers. We followed the template from this blog but we added our own decorations. Using graham crackers was a little easier because we could skip the step of baking gingerbread. We used a lot of different candies and treats to decorate the house. The top of the house is covered with frosting, gum drops, and snow caps. We used square pretzels to make windows, and a small piece of graham cracker to make the door.

We even made a patio in the back of the house surrounded by green "hedges" aka gum drops.

The trees were made from icecream cones that we dipped in melted white chocolate. We used shredded coconut and green sprinkles for the leaves, and M&Ms for lights. We continued the green sprinkles and coconut on the ground to make it look like snowy grass.

I also found these really cute gingerbread men peeps which we put in front of the house. We had a great time putting this together!! I hope you like the pictures!