I saw a short on YouTube on a beautiful violet color lemonade tea drink called Lavender Butterfly Pea Lemonade. It looks so beautiful to drink and admire.

I have never heard of Butterfly Pea tea. When I made it, it was such a vivid blue color. It almost felt fake because it was so intense like a beautiful lake high in the mountains.

But what makes this tea so interesting is once you add lemon, it changes from blue to violet. If you add the lemonade slowly you can have a two color look to your drink.

To make it more special I added the lavender syrup and edible glitter. A sprig of lavender and you have a refreshing and colorful drink for the summer. I did add the lemonade too quickly and it mixed it too much, but it was still a pretty drink.

The recipe was easy

1. Steep a cup of Butterfly Pea tea, let cool
2. Add ice into a pretty glass
3. Add the tea into the glass and slowly add in lemonade making sure you do it slowly so there are two colors
4. Add a teaspoon of Lavender Syrup (you can add the syrup to the tea before adding in lemonade if you really want to separate the colors)
5. Sprinkle the glitter into the glass and garnish with a lavender sprig

Thank you for checking out my blog.

I fondly recall going on a wine trip with my sister and her husband where one of the wineries had a grove of peach trees. They recently harvested the trees and we bought some white peaches. I have never tasted anything so wonderful, juicy and perfect as those peaches. Since then, I have craved those peaches.

I recently bought a box of white peaches from Sam’s Club and have enjoyed eating a bowl of peaches for breakfast during the week. I am not sure why white peaches taste better than yellow. Maybe it is tied to my memory of that wine trip.

I wanted to make a peach dessert using peaches. I ended up eating a lot of those peaches from Sam’s club so I had to use can peaches for the dessert.

I made a Peach Crisp that I found on Instagram.

It was a pretty easy recipe. We decided to have ice cream with yummy warm peach crisp.

Ingredients

• 45 oz canned peaches, drained (about 4 cups sliced peaches)
• ¼ cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ cup rolled oats
• ½ cup brown sugar
• ½ cup unbleached all purpose flour
• ¼ cup salted butter, softened

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• Drain the peaches and place them in a 8×8 baking dish.
• In small bowl, combine the sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle it evenly over the peaches.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine the rolled oats, brown sugar and flour. Mix it together well.
• Add the soft butter and cut into the oat mix with a pastry blenderor your fingers until it resembles course crumbs.
• Evenly sprinkle the streusel topping over the peaches.
• Bake for 30-35 minutes until golden brown and bubbly.
• Let cool for 15 minutes and serve warm with ice cream.

Recipe from Heathers Homemade Kitchen blog. Thanks Heather!

Thanks for checking out my blog.

I must say my cooking skills have deteriorated over time. Since I only cook for myself I rarely make a new recipe. So this did not go well…or at a minimum it did not go as planned. Not a disaster but more of a “Oops, not what I expected”. This is my story and I am sticking to it.

I wanted to make an autumn themed meal by making Crockpot Cheesy Potatoes and Kielbasa. As you can see from the picture below it should be a nice meal with potatoes.

Crockpot Cheesy Potatoes and Kielbasa

Prep Time 10minutes minutes

Cook Time 3hours hours

Total Time 3hours hours 10minutes minutes

Servings 8

Calories 

Ingredients

• 12 oz Kielbasa I used Beef Kielbasa, sliced into bite-size (about ½ inch thick)
• 2 tablespoons melted butter I used salted butter, but unsalted will work perfectly
• 3 cans 14.5 oz. diced potatoes, drained (I used Del Monte Fresh Cut Diced New potatoes)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon minced onion
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• ½ cup chopped onions I used sweet onions, but you can use white onions or red onions
• 3 cups fresh shredded cheese I used 1 ½ cups Colby Jack and 1 ½ cups mild Cheddar. You may need more if you want to top each serving with cheese approx ½ cup.
• 1 can 10.5 oz. cheddar cream soup
• ½ cup milk (I used 2% milk you could use whole milk but would not recommend heavy cream)

Instructions

• Spray the slow cooker liner with non-stick spray.
• Add melted butter. Pour the potatoes and the spices. Mix to coat.
• Add the sliced Kielbasa, chopped onions, and cheese. Mix well.
• Add the cheddar cream soup and the milk and mix until all ingredients are well blended together.
• Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 5-6 hours until the potatoes are nice and soft.
• Serve and enjoy with your favorite toppings!

But what I got instead was cheesy potato soup with kielbasa. Lol. It was not bad at all, just not what I was expecting. So this autumn meal became my Autumn Bucket List for soup. Wha-la!

So at least I don’t need to make another soup.

Thank you for checking out my blog.

I decided to try to make pumpkin donuts for the season which is on my Autumn bucket list. Since I was running out of time I decided to make them while visiting my sister in Arizona for Thanksgiving.

I saw this Youtube video and the lady made the donuts look so easy. Using a spice cake mix and some pumpkin purée to make the donuts. What could be easier.

It was easy, but the hardest part was the squeezing the mix out of the ziplock bag into the donut pans.

I was joking with my sister that the donuts looked a little like dog doo doo. Yuck!

I wanted the maple frosting on the donut. Using a cream cheese frosting add some maple syrup to give it a nice maple flavor but boy it was rich.

I could not dip the donuts because I was afraid they would crumble so I slattered it on top and threw on some nuts. Overall they were good but very sweet and rich.

Getting to the end of my bucket list. 😀

Thanks for reading my blog.

Since I was staying home on Christmas Day with my little dogs, I decided to make a nice meal for myself.

I thought I would start off with Trader Joe’s Cinnamon roll wreath and finish off with the Trader Joe’s Cranberry Pie.

For my main meal, i was planning on having turkey & stuffing en croute from Trader Joe’s. The guy at the store told me a lot of people liked it and it was a popular item during the holidays.

So Christmas morning I woke up and after opening gifts I thought I would make the cinnamon rolls.

To my horror I discovered that I needed to PROOF the rolls over night. Damn. I resorted to the Pillsbury Pop Up cinnamon rolls in a can. Oh well.

Then I looked at the instructions on the turkey! Egads, I did not realize I needed to defrost it in the fridge for 24 hours. TWENTY FOUR hours. What the heck.

I decided to just thaw it out on the counter. The house was cold but warmer than the fridge, plus it was sealed in the bag. I figured I would not get sick.

So after several hours of defrosting, I was ready to put into the oven.

It was a bit interesting but it felt thawed.

Fortunately it came out yummy.

Turkey wrapped in stuffing with a pastry shell around it. It was quite good and actually came with cranberry sauce on the side. A very good dinner considering my failure to read.

As far as what I got myself for Christmas, well, besides the instant pot, is my letterboard saying below.

It was cold…. it rained that night…..

I wanted HOT apple cider….

I did not have any….

I went to Starbucks….

A picture of a Starbucks cup is boring….

So I added the picture of the cup on a nice table with apple floral display.

So since this post is rather boring, I thought I would add a recipe for Starbucks Copycat Apple Cider Recipe.

I snagged this from www.momsneedtoknow.com  Click on the recipe to go to her website.

I think I need to make sure of this…..  I just need apple juice.  YUM

Ok, originally I wanted to make a dinner from one of my Autumn Gooseberry Patch cookbooks, but then I go strolling thru Pinterest and you can guess what happened.

That’s right, I found another recipe.

I found this Maple Dijon Chicken with Butternut Squash and Brussel Sprouts

Yum, this recipe is from Juliasalbum.com.    Just click on the chicken below to take you there.

Now my pictures did not look that nice, but then again I am not a cooking genius or a photographer.

Here is my prepped chicken…..so many possibilities

What can be easier than throwing everything onto a baking sheet.

I have just rediscovered Brussel sprouts.   i had them at a restaurant that was done with balsamic vinegar and I met heaven in my mouth.

Mine, not so much, but I am sure there will be opportunities in the future.

Maybe a little over done on the outside but the chicken.

I forgot to set the timer.

Stupid me.

When I smelled the chicken I realized my error.  However under the crispy skin was a nicely cooked chicken.

Everything was yummy.

As I get ready to decide what Christmas cookies and candies I will make this year, I discovered I never posted my pictures from last year.

Really Karen…. really.

I took the time to take all the pictures and then just did not post them.

So here you go

Eli the wonder dog helping with the baking!

My Moms famous double batch oatmeal choc chip cookies, my brothers favorite.

My Mom’s Meringues.   One of my favorites.

My sisters Snow Ball cookies.  Some call them Mexican Wedding Cookies.

First attempt at this… not sure I would do this again.  Linzer cookies.

The classic Fantasy Fudge

My Nut Clusters, now a favorite with my Brother-in-Law.

This was new this year and it was a smashing hit!   Individual toffees.   My sister resisted making these but my Brother=in-Law loved them and she ended up making a batch just for him.  She should really listen to her sister.  HA!

My sister Elaine Pralines!

The classic Peanut Butter Blossoms!

New this year, red and green crinkles.

A last minute add.   Cookies with snickers.

Praline Fudge

To be honest, I do not remember.  Chocolate cookies with peanut chips or butterscotch chips.  Not sure.

Caramels…. both plain and some with sea salt.

Aunt Lucy’s Buttery Peanut Brittle.   No, Aunt Lucy is not a relative, just the name from a Book.  I am sure she was someones Aunt.

I put the baskets together with cute bowls I found at Wal-Mart.  They had matching coasters that I added to the goodies.

All the goodies…ready to be delivered.

Helper number 1…..Olive the Maltese in her Christmas Jammies.

2nd Helper is Penny the Poocher, the doggie Smoocher!

From the Country Cook (click on photo to go to their link)

Do any of you post your recipes as a way to keep from losing those darn little recipe cards.   My recipe box is a mess.   I have to search and search to find recipes in it.

So I have been putting them on my blog.   Not only because I lose them, but my sister does also.  She is always texting me asking me for a recipe.  Yes, I am talking about you!   Now all you have to do is go to my blog.

My Mom use to make a meatloaf that we loved.  She would use tomato rice soup instead of catsup and we loved it.

I snagged the photo from the Country Cook so please click on it to go to their site.   I am really bad at taking pictures of food when I am hungry.   Hee Hee.

Mom’s Meatloaf

1-1/2 Pound Hamburger Meat
1 Egg
3-4 Slices of dried bread chopped to crumbs
1 T Dried Onion
1 t Salt
1 t Pepper
1/2 t Marjoram
1 T Whorechestere
1/2 can tomato rice soup

Mix well, put in a casserole dish or bread pan that has been sprayed with oil (Pam or shortening)

Pour remaining soup on top, spread evenly.

Cook 1 to 1-1/2 hours at 350 degrees.

Take cleaned, fork poked potatoes and coat with shortening.  Place on rack next to meatloaf.