Easy Cranberry Margaritas

There’s just something about this time of year that makes me happy – despite the first days of actual heat and the humidity setting in.  It’s the official start of summer, and after the winter we had this year, I am so ready!

I can remember my younger days when the start of summer meant the public pool was open. We would hop on our bikes, towels flying behind us, and ride down to the sports complex for a day of swimming.  These days we kick off summer by grilling out and sipping drinks on the patio; that’s where these margaritas come in.

I find it so much easier to make up a pitcher of drinks – no getting up to go back to the kitchen to measure and mix.  Just stay where you are and pour another glass.

These cranberry margaritas are easy to mix up ahead of time; just wait until right before serving to stir in the ginger ale. They’re not too sweet, not too sour, and not too syrupy. With our family, they always seem to hit the spot!

Easy Cranberry Margaritas

• 1 cup Cranberry Juice
• ½ cup Lime Juice
• ¼ cup Orange Juice (I prefer to squeeze my own; the flavor is a little lighter)
• ¾ cup Tequila
• ½ cup Triple Sec
• 1 can Ginger Ale, chilled

Mix first 5 ingredients and chill.  Stir in chilled ginger ale just before serving.

Individual Apple Pies

Lately I’d been craving apple pie. Something about the flaky crust and not-too-sweet apple filling was just calling to me. So, when my mother-in-law said she wanted to grill hot dogs and bratwursts over the fire pit, I thought it was the perfect opportunity. What goes together better than cooking out and apple pie?

I decided I wanted to try and make individual apple pies in a muffin tin, mainly to see if I could do it, but also because I just have a thing for small food! They turned out beautifully, and I was very pleasantly surprised. These little pies will definitely go in my “sure I’ll bring dessert” rotation.

Individual Apple Pies

(makes 12 pies)

• 1 Box Refrigerated Pie Crust or 1 Recipe Homemade Pie Crust (my favorite is from Ina Garten. It’s what I used in this recipe.)
• 3 Medium Apples (good, firm baking apples)
• 2 T Flour
• 1/4 cup Sugar
• 1/8 t Salt
• 1/2 t Ground Cinnamon
• 1/4 t Ground Nutmeg
• 1 Egg, beaten and mixed with a tablespoon of water for an egg wash.

Preheat oven to 350⁰.

Coat a muffin pan with non-stick spray.

Roll pie crust to about 1/8^th of an inch thick on a lightly floured surface. Cut twelve 4” circles (I used one of my cereal bowls!). Re-roll scraps and cut into thin strips for the tops of the pies.

Gently push each pie crust circle down into each of the muffin tin holes. Put pan and extra pie crust strips into the refrigerator while you make the apple filling.

Peel, core, and dice the apples. In a medium sized bowl, mix together flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Toss the apples in the flour mixture until well combined.

Spoon the apple mixture into each of the prepared pie crusts. You can mound it up a little as it will cook down a bit.

Use the pie crust strips to make a basket weave pattern on each pie, pinching the edges to secure.

Brush the tops with the egg wash and sprinkle with a little extra sugar.

Bake for 30-40 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan.

Spring Wreaths

Our house has these big, beautiful, black front doors, and I love them! However, finding affordable wreaths can sometimes be a problem.  I’ll find one I like, but then I remember we have double doors and I need two matching wreaths.  For spring, I knew I wanted something bright and cheery, and I was leaning towards a forsythia wreath. Lately, the ones I have seen run about $40 each, and if I was just getting one, I might splurge, but $80 for two? Nope. Not gonna happen.

So, the DIYer in me headed off to the craft store. Around here, the craft stores tend to put things on sale in a rotation, so I know at some point the floral department will be 50% off.  I never pay full price. I’d rather just wait a week or two.

My mom is really better at wreath-making than I am, but over several years of her helping me, I’m starting to figure it out. First, I gathered all of my supplies:

• 2 grapevine wreaths (it took a few minutes to pick through and find two that were similar size and shape!)
• Silk forsythia stems – I laid a few down on top of the wreath to estimate how many I would need.
• Floral wire

I like to work on either a big piece of paper, a sheet, or some other covering because the grapevine wreaths can be a little messy when you work with them.

I laid the floral stems on the wreath evenly to get the spacing right (letting the edges all hang off).

I used the floral wire to tie each stem to the wreath, and then bent the ends of the stems onto the wreath and tied them down.  I like the look of a few wild and crazy stems (we’ll call it more “natural”), so I left some of them hanging off a bit. I made a little loop on the back with the floral wire for hanging, and done!

Now I have two beautiful matching spring wreaths. The bright yellow looks fabulous against our black doors, and I made both for a total of $25. So much better than $80! Go me!

Devil’s Food Cookies

I live in a house of cookie monsters! Ok, ok, I confess; it’s not just the Hubby and 3 year old. I can be a bit of a cookie monster, too.  But a portable bite of deliciousness – how can you resist?

I usually try to keep ingredients for cookies in the pantry, but honestly, when the cookie monster strikes, there’s no time to let the butter soften! We need cookies now! With this recipe, we can have cookies in 15 minutes.  It’s a super simple recipe that I’ve been making since I was a kid.  I always found it amazing that you could make cookies from a cake mix!

These cookies come out soft and chewy with a beautiful crackled look, and they keep for days.  I hate it when cookies are good right out of the oven but then get hard and stale by the next day. These are great for those times when you need a quick fix, or you have unexpected company, or you suddenly remember the treats you are supposed to take to school tomorrow!

This recipe uses a devil’s food cake mix and nuts, but just imagine the possibilities – a strawberry cake mix with a drizzle of lemon icing, a white cake mix with M&Ms, a pumpkin cake mix with cream cheese icing. Just writing this entry has made me want to go stand in the cake mix isle of the grocery store and get one of each. Let’s go nuts!

Devil’s Food Cookies

• 1 Devil’s Food Cake Mix
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350⁰.

Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray or line with parchment paper.

Mix cake mix, oil, and eggs in a large bowl.  (I suggest using a wooden or other strong spoon as the batter will be thick.) Stir in the chopped pecans.  Either use a cookie scooper to form dough balls or form 1” balls by hand and place 2”apart on cookie sheet.

Bake for 10 minutes.

Try not to eat too many at once!

Goat Cheese Stuffed Mini Peppers

Whenever I come across something fabulous at a restaurant, my immediate next goal is to pick it apart and try to re-create it at home. That’s how I came up with these goat cheese stuffed peppers that are my now one of my go-to appetizers.  They were the star of the tapas night the Hubby and I had for his birthday; see my last post for a recap!

I use mini sweet peppers (they look and taste like little red, yellow, and orange bell peppers), but you could certainly go with something a little spicier like a cherry pepper. I love the different textures of the creamy tangy-ness of the goat cheese and the crunchy panko topping.  Add in that last drizzle of a reduced balsamic glaze, and you have perfection!

Goat Cheese Stuffed Mini Peppers

•  14 mini sweet peppers, cut lengthwise in half, seeds and ribs removed
• 8 oz. softened herbed goat cheese
• 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
• 2-3T olive oil
• 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

Preheat oven to 375⁰. Arrange pepper halves, cut side up, on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 6-7 minutes or until slightly softened.

Simmer balsamic vinegar in a small saucepot for 10-15 minutes until thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon.  It will thicken a bit more as it cools.

In a small bowl, mix panko with enough olive oil to moisten the crumbs.

Fill the pepper halves with the softened goat cheese and top with the panko. Bake for another 10 minutes. Cool slightly.

Place on serving platter and drizzle with balsamic glaze. (If your balsamic thickened too much after cooling, you can re-warm it.)

**NOTE: I used a champagne balsamic vinegar that is lighter in color than a traditional balsamic. I’ve decided I like the look of the darker balsamic better, and the flavor is still amazing!

 

Birthday Tapas for Two

The Hubby and I are at a point in our lives where there’s just not much extra “stuff” we need.  When holidays come around we’d rather ask each other for time together or an activity for just the two of us.  With a 3 year old running around, that’s something we don’t get too much of.  So when his birthday rolled around this year, he asked for a date night at home watching a movie and eating some of his favorite foods.  He decided it would be fun to do a tapas style dinner night, which is always one of our favorites.

Whenever I am entertaining, whether for a large crowd or just the two of us, I try to do a combination of store-bought and homemade.  Over the years, I’ve discovered some very nice store options and learned that, no, I really don’t have to go as far as making my own crackers!

Presentation is also a biggie for me, and even though it was just us, and we were staying in, I wanted it to be special, so I presented the birthday boy with a picnic basket (found in the attic!) packed full of our tapas dinner goodies.

 

Then, on our actual date night, I put everything together and made some of our favorite goat cheese stuffed mini peppers (recipe later this week!).

Our Menu:

• Goat Cheese Stuffed Mini Peppers
• Garlic Stuffed Olives
• Maple and Cumin Roasted Nuts
• Rosemary Bread with Herbed Olive Oil
• Tomato and Artichoke Bruschetta
• Genoa Salami & Prosciutto
• Applewood Smoked Cheddar & Rosemary Asiago Cheese

We had a lovely evening. We ate and drank too much and were thoroughly miserable, so overall, a success!

Living Room Built-ins

I love a good DIY project, and usually I’m up for at least attempting something, but I also know my limits.  That’s why we hired a professional when it came to our new built-ins in the living room.

We were so lucky when we moved into our house a couple of years ago that there were no immediate projects that needed to be done.  That being said, I knew I eventually wanted to add built-in book cases with a bench seat along one wall in our living room. I’ve always had an affinity for window seats, bench seats, and reading nooks. I love the coziness they add, and in our house, it really finished the living room. (Plus it’s the perfect place to display my collection of cake stands and Fostoria pitchers!)

I had to show off everything we did (or asked the professional to do!), so here ya go!

Before…

After!

After!

I love going back to look at the before and after! You’ll have to excuse the fact that the before picture is from the Little Man’s first birthday party; it’s the only one I could find, but it does show the big empty corner of the living room.  In the after picture you’ll see we wrapped the built-ins around the whole corner going with a half wall under the window on the right side. We kept the same table, but changed the chairs.  (The “new” chairs are actually a deal from the Salvation Army that my awesome Mom made new covers for in a beautiful linen fabric.)

My original plan was to pull the table in close to the bench and use it like a banquette, but it looked so off center with the window I couldn’t do it.  So we centered it back up, put all the chairs back around, and just pull it in like a banquette when we need the extra seating. I still need to find some kind of art for that big open space over the bench…

I fell in love with the fabric on the seat cushion and knew I had to have it! The gray and yellow combination is so bright and cheery.  It’s such a difference from the gray and red we had going on before.  Mom and I made the seat cushion, and I actually did most of the work this time! The pillows were a steal at Marshalls and the blanket is from overstock.com.

This has become my favorite spot in our house; I just can’t help but smile every time I see it. For us, it was worth having a professional do the building for us, and then I could add in my touches afterwards. Unfortunately for the Hubby, the perfectness of this space is making me look at other areas of the house wondering where the next project should be…

Twine Wrapped Wine Bottles

Yes, I know this is nothing new.  Wrapped bottles and jars are all over Pinterest – which is probably why I had to take a stab at it!

These wrapped bottles are easy and a great way to kill an hour. I can sit and get one done while Little Man is napping.  It lets me take a break and watch a little TV while telling myself that I’m really being productive and finishing a project!

Since I tried something I saw on Pinterest, I thought I’d write it up and let you know how it went.  I used a rustic twine from the hardware store rather than other string or yarn because I like the more earthy, organic look.

What you need:

• 1 roll of twine or other yarn, maybe more if you are wrapping a large vessel.
• Something to wrap. I’ve done wine bottles, pasta sauce jars, baby food jars; you name it, I’ve probably tried to wrap it!
• Spray Adhesive
• Other craft glue. I use Tacky Glue.
• Masking tape or painter’s tape.

Step 1:  I prefer to start wrapping right under the top portion of the bottle where there is a little lip, so I tape off that area before I spray the adhesive.

Step 2:  Use your spray adhesive to spray the top half of the bottle. (Do this step outside, it’s a little fume-y, and the over-spray will get everything sticky.)  Spray on a pretty thick layer making sure to go down the neck of the bottle and over the curvy parts.

Step 3:  Run inside so you can start wrapping before the glue dries.  Usually while I’m running, I pull off the piece of tape and stick it to the garage wall!

Step 4:  Start wrapping! The nice thing about using the spray adhesive for the top is that it holds really strong so you can pull the twine tight.  Pulling tight helps get the twine on straight.

Step 5:  When you get down to the end of where the adhesive is sprayed, switch over to the craft glue.  I use a zig-zag pattern for a couple of inches at a time. Keep wrapping!

NOTE: I did try to just spray more adhesive on the rest of the bottle instead of switching to the craft glue, but I found it to be too messy and sticky.  If you figure it out, let me know!

Step 6:  When you get down to what looks like your last wrap around, put on a good line of glue, cut your twine, and use your finger to smooth down the last inch or so of twine.

Step 7:  Set your bottle somewhere to dry overnight, and voila!

Perfect Poached Chicken

I’m the kind of girl who loves to smell food cooking.  There is something so comforting about walking into the house and getting hugged by the aroma of a roast or a sauce that has been cooking all day.  They say scents can be triggers for memories, and I guess I’m taken back to growing up in a home where there was always something going on in the kitchen.

When I can catch whole chickens (sometimes called whole fryers) on sale at the grocery store, I go ahead and buy a couple. Cooking a chicken is one of those times the house fills with amazing smells and all my problems seem to float right out the window for a while.  Occasionally, I will roast a chicken and we’ll have it for dinner, but my preference is to poach it – that way I get a cooked chicken and amazing homemade broth! I usually divide the broth into manageable containers for the freezer and then shred the chicken for something else that week.  Most of the time, I can get about 8 cups of broth and 4 cups of shredded chicken, all for about $5 or $6!

Next time you’re stuck inside on a cold, rainy day, put a chicken on and let the aroma float through the house and carry your cares away.

Perfect Poached Chicken

1 whole 5-6 lb. chicken (fresh or thawed if frozen) – be sure to remove bag of giblets!

3-4 carrots, cut into 1-2 inch chunks

2-3 stalks celery, cut into 1-2 inch chunks

1 large onion, peeled and quartered

2 cloves garlic, peeled and halved (optional)

1 palm full whole peppercorns

½ Tablespoon kosher salt

Place everything except the chicken into a large stock pot, top with chicken.  Fill pot with enough water to almost cover the chicken. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer for about 1.5 hours.  You may want to skim the top every once in a while with a spoon to remove fat or impurities that float up.

Remove chicken to a platter. Let cool slightly and debone chicken. Shred or keep in chunks for later use.

Use a small strainer or slotted spoon to remove and discard leftover solids. Strain broth into containers for the refrigerator or freezer.

Welcome!

Hello and welcome to Happiness at Home! This is a place where I hope to share the good, bad, and ugly of my adventures in cooking, decorating, and DIY.  Hopefully more good than bad or ugly, but I promise to also share the failures I may have as little “live and learn” lessons, or I guess better put, my “live and learn” so you don’t have to!

A truth about me – I talk to myself. Sometimes out loud, sometimes in my head. Not really in a “I see dead people” sort of way, but more like telling stories or giving directions or advice as I’m doing something.  I figured if I’m already going through the trouble of making step by step instructions in my head or if I have a funny or heartwarming story related to something I’m doing, I might as well share it with the world. So here I am!

I’m new to blogging, so I welcome any and all advice, and I ask for a little patience here at the beginning.  I guess at this point we jump right in and say “let’s go!”. (Insert nervous smile and trembling thumbs-up.)