Spring, You Made It!

Is anyone else absolutely, positively, ecstatic that Spring is upon us?!

Spencer, the dogs and I took our first walk of the year today. 58 degrees but a bit windy. It was wonderful!

None of my flowers are blooming outdoors yet. I picked up the Hyacinth for Easter though. It's gorgeous.

Happy Easter everyone!

A Comeback?

Two years...since my last blog post. Where has the time gone? How are you all? 

I realize I have missed the little imprint on the world I was attempting to create. Recent high activity on my FB page got me thinking that maybe, just maybe, I left this blog up for a reason. 

If you have hung around, thank you. If you are new, welcome. 

I am rusty. In fact it took me 10 minutes to log in. True story!

All I have to leave you with at this time is a shot of a peach rose I took this morning. With my Niner team experiencing an apocalypse (crying and holding my jerseys close), I needed a distraction.

I will be back soon, if nothing else but to amuse you. 

Photo Friday: Close

Is this Friday's theme me, or what? I am a macro freak fanatic!

I linked up with Photo Friday: Close

Have a great weekend everyone and thanks for stopping by.

Baked Tacos

I've said before how much we love tacos in this house. Once a week we normally have some sort of Mexican based dinner. Again, I have been trying to mix it up a bit by coming up with different versions but sticking with main ingredients we all like. 

These baked tacos are a great way to make tacos in bulk, easier. Good for a crowd as they are a great time saver and easy to put together.

Ingredients:
2 lbs. ground beef
4 tsp. dried minced onion
3 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
8 oz. tomato sauce
16 oz. refried beans
2 cups shredded Colby Jack cheese
20 hard taco shells
lettuce
tomato
salsa 
sour cream

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Combine minced onion, chili powder, cornstarch, garlic powder, cumin, oregano and cayenne pepper in a small bowl. Blend well and set aside.

Brown beef in a large skillet. Drain. Add tomato sauce, refried beans and set aside taco seasoning mixture. Mix well and heat on low for at least 5 minutes.

Spoon mixture into taco shells and place in a 9 x 13 inch baking dish, standing up (they should all touch). Sprinkle tacos with shredded cheese evenly. 

Bake for 10 - 12 minutes or until cheese has melted on top. 

Serve with your favorite toppings.

Sloppy Joe Biscuit Cups

 recipe from plainchicken.com

I have been having such great success baking with my muffin tin lately. I have of course been making muffins but have used my tin for less traditional finger foods much more. I think I have used that tin more this last year in my baking than in the last 10 years combined.

I find a lot of great ideas at Plain Chicken and she has never let me down. Here is another great idea for an appetizer or snack. Quick and easy that kids and adults alike will love.

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground beef

1/2 cup ketchup

4 tsp. sugar

4 tsp. mustard

4 tsp. vinegar

4 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

1 TBLS dried minced onion flakes

1 can 10 count regular refrigerated biscuits (not Grand's)

1/2 cup medium cheddar cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Slowly cook beef in a large skillet. Drain. Add ketchup, sugar, mustard, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce and minced onion flakes. Simmer over low heat for 1 minutes, allowing the flavors to blend.

Separate biscuits and place each in an ungreased standard size muffin tin. Firmly press the biscuit dough into the bottom and up the sides of the tins.

Evenly divide the meat mixture between the cups. Top each with the grated cheese.

Bake 18 - 20 minutes or until biscuits are golden brown and cheese is melted.

Remove from oven and let cool a few minutes before removing them from the tin. Use a knife to separate the cups from the tin if needed. 

Enjoy!

Homemade Donuts ~ For Beginners

recipe from sothernplate.com

I don't often eat donuts. If I do, I like them simple. No sprinkles please! I have been wanting to make my own for a while now and this recipe is a great way to start and is foolproof. I wasn't expecting much from the ingredients and method but was pleasantly surprised at how delicious these were. They were gone in no time!

Ingredients:

 vegetable oil

canned biscuits - any kind but the flaky layer ones

4 TBLS melted butter

sugar

cinnamon

Mix together the sugar and cinnamon in a small shallow bowl. I like mine a darker brown color meaning more cinnamon than sugar. Make it the flavoring to your preference.

Fill up a large skillet with about 1/2 inch of vegetable oil. Heat on medium high. 

While oil is heating. open your biscuits. Separate them and cut holes into the center of each. I used star shaped cookie cutters. Any shape will do as long as you have cut a small hole in the centers.

Place donuts in the oil. When the sides facing the pan are golden brown, flip them and brown the other side. When both sides are browned, remove the donuts and place them on paper towel.

As soon as the donuts are cool enough to handle, use your fingers to dip one side in the melted butter. Shake them a bit to remove the excess butter and then dip them in the sugar/cinnamon mixture, coating them well. Them repeat the steps to cover and coat the other side until all donuts are finished.

Eat warm or store them immediately in an airtight container for later.

Easy and so yummy!!

NOTE: I also repeated the process for the donut holes after making the donuts themselves.

Thursday Photo Challenge: Bottle

I am a caffeine junkie, although my vice of choice is Diet Mt. Dew. I drink so much of it, my veins must run green. I loved this old style Pepsi bottle and knew it would come in handy some day.

I linked up with Spun with Tears.