Charleston Cheese

This is my go-to quick appetizer dip. Easy and delicious. 

Really, really bad for you, too.
It would be great for a quick Thanksgiving appetizer.

1/2 cup mayonaise

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

2 green onions, chopped

Ritz crackers, crushed

Fried and crumbled bacon

Mix mayo, cream cheese, cheddar cheese, and onion. Put in a baking dish, and top with crushed crackers and crumbled bacon. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

"Melt-in-your-Mouth" Mini Pumpkin Cookies

Objects in picture are smaller than they appear. Seriously, they are smaller than they look in this picture.

As I've mentioned before, I have a thing for pumpkin. Fall is, by far, my favorite season, and when it comes around, I overload on the pumpkin. And there is nothing wrong with that. This is another pinterest recipe find, found on this amazing blog. All I can say is....deeeelicious. They really do melt in your mouth. I brought them to work with me today and they might have lasted 1 hour in the teacher workroom. And there were about 60 of them. Yes, they are little guys, but still. And everyone raved about them. I will definitely be making these again.  I found them to be even better the next day. 

You need to make these. They are so cute and little...would be great "happy fall, y'all" gifts for coworkers, friends, etc.

Ingredients

2 cups butter, softened (4 sticks)

2 cups granulated sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon nutmeg

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 15 oz. can pumpkin

4 cups all-purpose flour

Icing

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 3/4 cup powdered sugar

Directions

Preheat oven 350 degrees. In a large bowl, beat 2 cups butter on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Beat until combined, scraping bowl occasionally. 

Add eggs and vanilla, beat until combined. Beat in pumpkin until combined. Beat in as much flour (a little at a time) as you can with the mixer. Stir in any remaining flour with a wooden spoon. 

Drop dough by heaping teaspoons 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until tops are set. Cool on a wire rack.

Icing

In a small saucepan, heat 1/2 cup butter and the brown sugar until melted and smooth. Transfer to a medium bowl. Stir in milk and vanilla. Beat in powdered sugar until smooth. Drizzle the icing on the cooled cookies. 

*If your icing thickens on you, just pop it in the microwave for 10 seconds or so. I did this a few times.

Five-Spice Pork with Roasted Oranges and Broccoli

I've been on a five-spice kick. It's just so good, and good for you. I think. 

This is a very low-calorie meal and its packed with flavor. The pork was so juicy and tender, unlike a lot of pork tenderloin recipes I've tried. It was super easy, too. The recipe came from the newest issue of Food Network Magazine.

Ingredients

1 head broccoli, florets roughly chopped

1 large onion, thinly sliced

1  2-in. piece ginger, peeled and sliced

3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

1 small orange (unpeeled), cut into wedges

2 tablespoons, plus 2 teaspoons vegetable oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

1 1/4 lb. pork tenderloin

1 teaspoon five-spice powder

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss the broccoli, onion, ginger, garlic, and oranges with 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste in a shallow baking dish. Set aside.

2. Pat the pork dry and rub all over with the five-spice powder, 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste. Heat the remaining 2 teaspoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sear the pork on each side, about 2 minutes per side.

3. Add the pork to the baking dish with the broccoli-orange mixture and roast until a thermometer inserted into the center of the pork registers 145 degrees, about 15-20 minutes. Transfer the pork to a cutting board and let rest 5 minutes before slicing. Meanwhile, return the broccoli-orange mixture to the oven and roast 5 more minutes. 

*I didn't have any onion, and it was just fine without it.

Per Serving: Calories 329; Protein 34g

Fabulous Fall Fun-Filled Weekend

Do you like the alliteration in my title? Remember, I am a third grade teacher...and I'm teaching figurative language this week so it's on the brain.

Here is my weekend in pictures:

Trunk-or-Treat at school with Allyson.
Marcus Lattimore and Alshon Jeffrey.

Friday night fire-pit/homemade venison chili at Megan's

Ready to watch the game with Lucy in our matching jersies

touchdown kisses.

i could eat her up.

seriously? so cute.

halftime playdate with uncle andy and cousin birdie.

Birdie's ready to cheer on the Georgia Tech yellow jackets (they were playing clemson)

Mom with her trunk for trunk-or-treat at church.

a very excited sock monkey.

and she's off!

so stinkin' cute!

that's a good-lookin' family right there.

can i please have one more piece of candy? look how cute i am!

ava (friend katie's niece) not too thrilled with her elmo costume. haha

the monkey on the left is cuter.

Pecan Squares with Shortbread Crust

This recipe came from Southern Living.They are like little mini-pecan pies, but better. The shortbread crust is amazing!

Sorry for the terrible photo. They are better than they look.

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour

2/3 cup powdered sugar

3/4 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup honey

2/3 cup butter

3 tablespoons heaving whipping cream

3 1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans

Directions:

Preheat to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 13 x 9 in. baking dish.

Stir flour and powdered sugar. Cut in softened butter using a pastry blender or fork until it looks like coarse meal. Pat mixture on bottom and halfway up the sides of the greased baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes, or until edges are lightly browned. Set aside to cool

Bring brown sugar, honey, 2/3 cup butter, and whipping cream to a boil over med-high heat. Stir in pecans and pour hot filling into crust. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden and bubbly. Cool completely before cutting into 2 inch squares.

*I didn't have enough honey, so I did 1/4 cup honey and 1/4 cup maple syrup, and it turned out just as good.*

p.s. How cute is my dog. Very.

chillin' with gumby. 

Tasty Tuesday--Five Spice Chicken Stir Fry

This is my take on our favorite meal at our favorite Chinese restaurant in Charleston, Red Orchids. If you are from around here, you have to try this place. It's yummy, authentic goodness. It was voted Charleston's Best Chinese. Yes, it is located in between a Big Lots and Cititrends, but don't let the location discourage you! 

I'm pretty sure the professionals at Red Orchids steam their chicken, but that scares me. Theirs is delicious, but I don't know if I could pull off steamed chicken. So, I marinated mine and stir-fried it. The five spice blend is what makes this so amazing. It consists of cinnamon, star anise, fennel, peppercorn, and cloves. You can buy it premade at the grocery store. 

I made two batches of the marinade, one for the chicken, and then a second to quickly toss the veggies in before stir-frying them. 

*remember, make two batches of the below marinade, separated*

2-3 lbs. chicken tenderloins, cut in pieces

1 head broccoli, cut in pieces

1 red bell pepper, sliced

1 green bell pepper, sliced

1 yellow bell pepper, sliced

Marinade:

1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce

1/4 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon garlic powder (or two garlic cloves, pressed)

2 teaspoons five spice powder

1/4 teaspoon ginger (1 teaspoon if using freshly grated)

1 tablespoon white wine

Whisk together all of the above ingredients for the marinade. Add the chicken and marinate for at least an hour, up to over night. Add chicken to Wok (or large frying pan) and cook over med-high heat, discarding used marinade.  While chicken begins to cook, toss veggies with the second batch of marinade to coat. After about 5 minutes (or once chicken begins to brown), add the veggies to the chicken, cover, reduce heat and cook another 5 minutes or so, until chicken is cooked through and veggies have desired tenderness. Serve over brown rice.

Thankful Thursday

This is my first "Thankful" post, but I'm feeling very thankful and blessed right now. Something wonderful happened yesterday, and it just made me realize all of the blessings God has given me. 

There are so many, but here are my top 5...

1. My Husband

He is amazing. For the last year (or more) he has been working so hard studying for the CFP, which he takes next month. I am in awe at his dedication. Even through all the studying, he still manages to squeeze in some "family time" with Birdie and me every night. I love him so much. 

Here he is in his two favorite places: charleston marshes fishing and montana

2. My BFF Katie

You know those people who put everyone ahead of themselves, selflessly? This is Katie. She has the kindest heart of anyone I know. She has been through so much lately, and she perseveres, putting her faith in the Lord. She has another tough year ahead of her, but in true Katie-spirit, she always sees the positive. I am so happy I met her in the lay-up line at JV basketball try-outs in the 7th grade! Couldn't imagine my life if I hadn't!

Back where it all began. 

Secret handshake.

Awkward sophomore prom picture. One of those..."I don't know what to do with my hands" pics. 

Junior year powder puff with our moms.

More recent at a USC game.

3.  Lucy

I love my niece. Not only is she an absolutely beautiful little girl, but she is the sweetest. I think she loves me, too. Last week when I stopped by for a visit, she actually CRIED when I left! While it broke my heart (literally--my eyes were tearing up, too), it kind of made me feel awesome. She loves her CiCi, but not as much as I love her!

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Such a miss priss in her tutu and pearls.

4.  Birdie

 I. Love. My. Dog. To the point of obsession. She's adorable. She's fluffy. She's soft. She's cuddly. She oddly smells good. She's sweet. She's funny. And she does this cute little butt wiggle-growly thing when she's excited to see someone. Also, she hates that freescore.com commercial with the guy in the hockey mask. She growls her little heart out when he comes on the screen. She's even been known to leave the room. She is our daughter.

Birdie's first day home.

sleepy pup

a recent pic of my daughter :)

5.  My Students
Sure, I complain big time about my job. But, every now and then, I am reminded why I do what I do. Here are few notes/pictures that my sweet third graders have given me this year.

Yep, this is me as a mermaid.

Yay! He learned something! That IS an opinion!

I have a sweet new 'do. And I changed my last name.

Of course, these aren't the only things that I am thankful for, but right now these 5 are at the top.

So, this was by far my longest post. Hope you didn't fall asleep!

What are you thankful for today?