Bourbon slushes

drinks 10 Comments

It’s Lissa‘s birthday! Despite the fact that we’re a few states away from each other these days, I’m celebrating with her bourbon slushes. These are such a great hot-weather drink, and are easy to make for a crowd, something Lissa almost always has at her house. 🙂 You should keep these in your freezer this summer!

Bourbon Slushes

Ingredients

  • 2 tea bags
  • 2 1/2 cups boiling water
  • 6 oz lemonade concentrate
  • 6 oz orange juice concentrate
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 1/2 cups bourbon
  • 7-Up

Instructions

  1. Steep the two tea bags in the 2 1/2 cups boiling water
  2. Stir in lemonade and orange juice concentrates, water, and bourbon to the tea in a freezer-safe container
  3. Freeze for 24 hours or so (it won’t freeze completely solid because of the bourbon), then use an ice cream scoop or sturdy spoon to scoop into glasses
  4. Top with 7-Up, stir and serve

What are other summer drinks you love??

Happy birthday, girlfriend!

Peach pie

baking, dessert 16 Comments

This is Magee’s peach pie recipe and I just love it. She scribbled it on a post-it note for me years ago and I go back to it every year. As you can see in the picture, I have a hard time waiting for the pie to actually cool before I eat it, so mine gets messy. Maybe you’ll have more patience than I do. 😉

Informal poll! How do you like your peach pie? Plain? With ice cream? With whipped cream? My Grandpa used to top his apple pie with half a slice of American cheese; I was never sure how I felt about that.  What’s your vote for peach pie?

Peach pie

Ingredients

  • 2 pie crusts of your choice
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 4 cups peaches, sliced (this can be approximate)
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 Tbsp. corn starch
  • 1/2 lemon, juiced
  • 1/4 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp nutmeg
  • 2 tbsp butter

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 450F
  2. Place one pie crust in your pie pan and brush with some of the egg (so the crust doesn’t get soggy)
  3. Gently mix together the peaches, sugar, corn starch, lemon juice, cinnamon and nutmeg, then pour into pie pan
  4. Cut up the butter and dot it over the top of the pie, then top with the other pie crust. Be sure to cut slits or use a pie bird so the steam can escape, and brush the top crust with the rest of the egg
  5. Put the pie pan on a foil-covered cookie sheet for easy cleanup of any spillover, then bake for 10 minutes 450, then add a pie shield or cover the crust edges with foil
  6. Reduce temp to 350F and bake another 30 minutes or so, until juice is bubbling through crust vents

 

Tropical Meatloaf

supper, uncategorized Leave a comment

I found this recipe here and was immediately intrigued because it sounded like my favorite burger in the world, the Bob Burger. The Bob Burger there is also sometimes called the Island Burger depending on the day, the direction of the wind, the angle of the sun, and other issues I haven’t quite figured out. Regardless, it involves pineapple and a big ol’ burger and it’s awesome.

I am thrilled to report that this was so tasty! I think it would be even better with a couple strips of bacon across the top of the meatloaf while it cooks (I mean, most things would be better with a couple strips of bacon, amirite?), but even without that this was awesome. The Yankee is a non-lover of meatloaf, and even he liked it! It was great hot with the sauce, and it made an excellent cold meatloaf sandwich the next day. Try it and let me know what you think!

Tropical Meatloaf

Ingredients

For the meatloaf
    • 1 lb ground beef
    • 1 egg
    • 1 small can crushed pineapple, juice drained and reserved
    • 1 tsp. onion powder
    • 2 Tbsp. pineapple juice
    • 1/3 cup breadcrumbs
    • 1 tsp. salt
For the sauce
  • 1/2 cup of pineapple juice (or as much as you can get from the can)
  • 1/2 cup of brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup of ketchup

Instructions

Make the meatloaf:
    1. Mix all ingredients together
    2. Bake at 350F for an hour and 15 minutes, or until the meatloaf reaches an internal temperature of 165
Make the sauce
  1. Stir all ingredients together in a small saucepan
  2. Simmer until sauce is slightly thickened; serve over meatloaf

Thai peanut noodles

kids, lunch 14 Comments

This is, no kidding, Peanut’s new favorite lunch. And mine too! It’s one I found on Rumble in the Kitchen a while back, and I can’t believe how long it took me to try it! I’m on my third batch of it in as many weeks.

I doubled the spice level of mine because my heat tolerance is certifiable; otherwise I didn’t adapt it much. Any suggestions for other things to add to this to get some variety going?

Thai peanut noodles

Ingredients

  • 1 box spaghetti noodles
  • 1/2 cup peanut butter*
  • 1 Tbsp Sesame Oil
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce
  • 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp. onion powder
  • 1 Tbsp sugar
  • 2 tsp Thai Red Curry Paste (this makes it SPICY; use more like 1/2 tsp. if you don’t want a lot of heat, or substitute with cayenne pepper to taste)
  • 1 Tbsp lime juice
  • 1/2 cup reserved pasta water

Instructions

  1. Cook pasta according to package directions
  2. While the pasta cooks, measure everything but the pasta water into a large serving bowl; mix till well combined (this will make a very thick sauce)
  3. When the pasta is done, add it along with 1/2 cup of the cooking water to the bowl and stir it all around till everything is well mixed and the noodles are coated
  4. Serve warm, or store in the fridge and eat it cold!

Notes

*That’s 128 grams of peanut butter, if you’re interested; scooping it into a bowl on a scale is easier than smooshing it into a measuring cup!

Add-in suggestions welcome! 🙂

Pop up pancake

breakfast, kids 2 Comments

Helloooooo, easiest breakfast ever!

My friend Vanessa gave me this recipe, and it’s insane levels of tasty and yummy.

Pop up pancake

Ingredients

  • 1 Tbsp butter
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup flour
  • pinch of salt
  • 2 eggs

Instructions

  1. Heat your oven to 425F
  2. Mix up the milk, flour, salt, and eggs until well combined — doing this in the blender is quick and easy
  3. Melt the butter in a medium cast iron skillet (or Vanessa does this in a glass Pyrex dish), then add the batter and pop it in the oven
  4. Bake until the pancake is golden brown and all puffed up, about 15 minutes or so

Other flavoring and fun options:

  • Add vanilla or lemon zest to the batter
  • Use orange juice instead of milk
  • Dust with powdered sugar
  • Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar

 

What else? What would you do with it?