This and that

Monday, February 4, 2013

Valentine Printables

Do you give out Valentine's or decorate your house for the day?

I have never really been one to do either.

I usually set out a few candles and maybe a few glass hearts around the candles and call it done.

I think if I did anymore, my husband would think I was crazy...

Maybe I will do something a little more this year, but before I can decorate I will need to..

You guessed it, have time to clean my house.

I have done a few things to make it easier for you to do your decorating.

Here are some Valentine Printables for you to use

Valentine Printables

Family Where Life Begins

Love is the Master Key

Never Close Your Lips

Valentine's Subway Art

Subway Art 2

Valentine's Card - Four valentine's Cards to print out.

I also did a few more Valentine's printables that I posted on the Daily Dish. You can go here to check them out. All of these printables are free for you to use. All I ask is that you will not use them to make a profit and if you do use them and post what you have made with them, that you give credit to me. I would love to see what you come up with. All the sayings in the pictures I found on line and are not my own.

Aunt B has many other creative ideas to use do for Valentine's. Her post Creative Ways to show "I am nuts about you" has many wonderful ideas that include a photobox, cards and heart shaped foods. If you need some help in the creativity department, head over to Aunt B's post for some help... I think I might even try some of her ideas, especially the breakfast one. No I am not going to tell you.. You need to go over and take a look yourself.

Do you have any special Valentine's Tradition? I would love to hear about them.

✻ღϠ₡ღ✻ Marlys

(¯`✻´¯)

`*.¸.*✻✿*.¸.*✻ Enjoy your day....`*.¸.*✻✿*.¸.*✻

Thursday, January 31, 2013

Foodie Friends Friday- January 31/13 Build a Bear

Once again it is time for our Foodie Friends Friday Linky Party

We had a wonderful party last week with almost 200 recipe links..

I know this week we will be able to beat that.

Thank you to all that linked up... Everyone one of the recipes are wonderful.

This is the place to be...

Great Food, Great Friends and Great Giveaways
Check out the each of the host favorites on the Daily Dish

Foodie Friends Friday Linky Party

Welcome to Foodie Friends Friday!

Please take a moment to read through the rules before getting started, Thank You!

*By linking up you agree that you read these rules and all photos/recipes are original and belong to you. You agree to allow Foodie Friends Friday and any of it's affiliated websites or publications (Social Girls Media, LLC) to use photos, links, and recipes for reprint and/or republishing and distribution without monetary compensation to you. If photos & recipes are used, proper link backs to you will be included.

Adding Links back to Foodie Friends Friday and our Button is our only form of advertising to bring in more people to see YOUR recipes.

Please remember to do this. It benefits you! To thank you, we will continue to feature those with links throughout the year on various outlets.

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Meet our Co-Hosts at Foodie Friends Friday:

Now Let's meet our sponsor this week!

*Giveaway Disclaimer: Facebook is in no way associated with this website or giveaway and holds no liability for this giveaway. "Liking" facebook pages is optional, not mandatory for entry. Sponsors will be responsible for shipping- if there is a delay or problem with prize, you must communicate directly with sponsor.

This week we have a great giveaway from Build A Bear Workshop

Remember to fill out the Rafflecopter for your chance to win.

Shipped to the US only

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This week's Party

Last week's Party

Sponsor Winners

Voted Top 3

Chocolate Covered Cherries ~ Hun What's For Dinner
Homemade White Chai concentrate ~ This and That
Love Bug Cake Pop Delivery ~ Pint Size Baker

Most Clicks

Chocolate Covered Cherries ~ Hun What's For Dinner
Dilly Casserole Bread ~ Cozycakes Cottage
Homemade White Chai Concentrate ~ ThisandThat

Host Favorite

This week's host favorite goes to Smitten Foodie for Valentine's Fortune Cookies. I am a sucker for fortune cookies. I love to read my fortune and even keep some of them to see if they will come true. So when I saw these homemade fortune cookies I was intrigued. They are beautiful decorated and have a fortune inside just like the one's you get at the Chinese Restaurants. I not sure I have enough patience to make them but maybe someday I will try.

Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies
photo credit: Smitten Foodie

Make sure you check out all the Host's Favorite's from last week on the Daily Dish. Each week we will be picking a Host Favorite and they will be featured. Also, you can check to see which recipes caught my attention on my Pinterest Board.

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Cherry Cordial Mocha

love buying the new flavours of Hershey Kisses and I usually buy a few bags as you never know when they are going to disappear. Sometime before Christmas I bought a bag or two of Cherry Cordial Hershey Kisses and my plan was to make fudge with at Christmas time... but I ran out of time and there they sat taunting me in the cupboard.

I was thinking of a post to write for on our e- magazine Daily Dish and remember about the Cherry Cordial Kisses. A light bulb came on and I thought they would make a great drink. Perfect for Valentines.

Cherry Cordial Mocha

A perfect blend of coffee and chocolate with a hint of cherry

1 cup brewed coffee

2 cups milk

2 heaping tablespoons condensed milk

2 tbsp cocoa

9 Cherry Cordial Hershey Kisses

Place all ingredients in pot and heat over medium heat until steaming but not boiling and kisses are melted. Stir with whisk while heating. Enjoy!

This recipe makes 2 -3 cups depending on the size of cups. Garnish with whipped cream and drizzle with cherry syrup if desired.

Enjoy!

Marlys

This recipe was also posted on the Daily Dish and for more great drink recipes go HERE.

Chicken Yassa -Yassa au Poulet

Last year before my birthday I sent a list of things that my husband could buy me from Amazon. One of the things I asked for was a recipe book "Cooking the West African Way" by Montgomery and Nabwire. I read the book but haven't really made anything from it. A few weeks ago my husband was telling me about this chicken that we should make. I had thought he was getting the recipe from his mom but he had found it is in the cookbook.
As we were making it, I really wondered how it would taste, but it was good. The flavor was wonderful.

Chicken Yassa

This is a recipe from Senegal that is served at special occasions.

1/4 cup lemon juice

4 large onions sliced - I used one large red onion

5 tbsp peanut oil

1 habanero pepper ~ I used a hot pepper that received at the African market

1 2 1/2 - 4 1/2 lb precut chicken - I used 4 chicken breasts

1/2 cup water

salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

In a deep bowl, mix the lemon juice, onions, salt, pepper and 4 tbsp peanut oil. Using a fork pierce the pepper and add to marinade Let the marinade sit for 15 minutes and then check for spiciness. If hot enough remove pepper, if not let stand for a bit longer.

Once marinade spicy enough and you have removed the pepper (I left my pepper in the marinade for the whole time), add chicken and stir to coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and store in refrigerator over night ( I only marinated the meat 6 hours).

To cook, preheat broiler. Remove the chicken pieces from marinade and place on tinfoil on the broiler rack. Broil briefly until the chicken is lightly brown. Place on plate and set aside.

Strain the onions from the marinade. In a large frying pan, heat 1 tbsp peanut oil over medium heat. Add onions and saute until soft and tender.

Add the rest of the marinade and cook until the mixture is heated through evenly.

Add brown chicken pieces and water. Stir to coat.

Lower heat, bring mixture to simmer and cover. Cook at least 30 minutes or until the chicken is completely cooked.

Serve the yassa hot over rice.

Enjoy. I ate mine with quinoa

Even thought we didn't use as much chicken as the recipe called for the marinade seemed to be enough and not too much. If you use more chicken I would probably make more marinade. I would also next time use more onions as most of the flavor of the marinade was in the onions.

Marlys

Links: Foodie Friends Friday

Thursday, January 24, 2013

Foodie Friends Friday ~ January 25/13

Another week, another party and I am sure it will be a great one.

We always have so much fun here at

Foodie Friends Friday Linky Party

I have forgotten to tell you that I now have a board with the recipes that have caught my attention

on Pinterest..go here to see if your recipe is on my board. Each week I will be adding to the board.

But remember you must link back to Foodie Friends Friday or one of the hosts to get a place on this board.

This week we have some more great giveaways...

Growing Up Gabel ~ knitted dishcloths

Shared Joy ~ button earrings and headband

Homemade White Chai Concentrate

I am a big tea drinker... love tea and Chai tea especially...

I have at least once cup a day if not more often.

I have thought many times to make my own and today was the day..

Maybe because it is -40F degrees out and we have 10 feet of snow outside...

Ok maybe not -40 but at least -7F and we probably only have about 3 feet but it felt like 10 feet when I was shoveling today.

So a cup of Chai just hit the spot.

I decided that I would make my Chai with white tea instead of black.

I found a few recipes that sounded good to make a recipe.

These are the recipes that I read ~ Tasty Yummies, Tasty Kitchen and Healthful Pursuits

and this is what I came up with...

Homemade White Chai Concentrate

4 1/2 cup water

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp peppercorn

3/4 of fresh nutmeg

7 cardamom

1/4 tsp anise

1 star anise

2 cinnamon sticks

1/2 in fresh ginger

1 tsp orange peel

1/2 tsp lemon peel

1 vanilla pod

8 white tea bags

1 tbsp honey

Cheesecloth and twine

Place cheesecloth on table and add peppercorn, nutmeg, cardamom, anise, ginger, nutmeg orange peel, lemon peel and vanilla pod (cut in thirds). Bring up edges of cheesecloth and tie around spices. Set aside.

In pot place water and brown sugar, bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer. Add tea bags, spice mixture, star anise and cinnamon sticks. Simmer for 20 minutes. Cool and place in jar. Makes approximately 1 quart. Can be kept in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Spices

add teabag, cinnamon sticks and star anise

To make Chai Latte, add chai concentrate to milk of your choice. Most instructions say to use 1 part chai concentrate to 3 parts milk but I like to do it half and half. I also like to use French Vanilla Creamer in my Chai... So I used evaporated milk and French Vanilla Creamer. I did run out of Creamer so used French Vanilla Syrup instead of the creamer and it tasted just as good. You can always heat the milk if you want, it makes the tea warmer. Chai can be enjoyed hot or cold.

Chai Latte and Chai concentrate

Enjoy!

Marlys

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Turkey and avocado Panini

Do you know that I have to look up the spelling of panini every time I mention them? It is one word that I have a hard time with. Also did you know that in Italy a Panini or Panino is a sandwich that is made with bread other then sliced bread. They use bread like chiabatta,rosetta or baguette. They are filled with deli meat and cheese or other foods and often are served warm after being put in a warming press.
Here in United States and Canada we have adopted the word for any type of sandwich that is pressed or toasted. ( Panini) So sayng that is a grilled cheese sandwich that a I make in my panini press a grilled cheese panini sandwich? Not sure and I am even not sure if this sandwich that I am writing about is really a panini but that is what I am going to call it... I did use french bread, although I sliced the bread and probably should have just cut it horizontally and then maybe it would have been a real panini.. Well, maybe not! You decide.
I do know that whether or not this is really a panini it is good...

Turkey and Avocado Panini

2 slices French Bread cut thick

left over turkey

onions

1/4 avocado

1/2 ounce Monterey Pepper Jack cheese

1 ounce Tillamook Chedder cheese

2 tsp Henri Bacon and Tomato dressing

butter or olive oil

Cut French bread thick, spread dressing on both inside slices. Add turkey, onions, avocado, and cheeses to sandwich. Spread butter or olive oil to outside of sandwich and place in press. My panini press tells me when it is done, but you would cook them until the bread is a crusty brown colour.

You can also make this in a pan and press your sandwich down with your spatula. A George Foreman grill would also work great.