ranch-style steak kabobs

Another new recipe. I've been trying out some new recipes, and this one has been sitting in my stack of "try-it" recipes, so I had to "blog-it". They were actually quite good. Next trial will be chicken kabobs! :) Fun!

Ranch-style steak kabobs:
4 new potatoes - cut in half (I use whole potatoes & cut them to size)
1/4 cup Kraft Ranch Dressing divided (I used hidden valley - made at home)
1 lb bonesless beef sirloin steak, cut lengthwise into 1/2 inch-think slices (I think I'd cut a little thinner - simply because I don't like ANY pink in my meat when cooked)
8 cherry tomatoes
bamboo skewers (soaked in water fro 30 minutes prior to grilling)

1)Heat grill to med-high heat. Cook potatoes in boiling water 12-14 minutes or until tender. Drain - cool slightly
2)Reserve 1/2 of dressing. Thread meat accordian style, onto 4 skewers (I used more), alternating between potatoes, and tomatoes. Brush with remaining dressing.
3)Grill 10-12 minutes (we did longer) or until meat is done, brush with reserved dressing last 2 minutes.

Vanilla Buttermilk Pound Cakes and Cream Cheese Frosting

I've had a couple requests for the recipe I used for Prestyn's first birthday party cake. So here it is:

Vanilla Buttermilk Pound Cakes:
13.5 oz (about 3 cups) All purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup butter - softened
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 large eggs
1 1/3 cup low-fat buttermilk (I used regular 2% milk)
1) Preaheat oven to 350
2) Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir with a whisk. Place sugar, butter and vanilla in a large bowl and beat with mixer at medium speed until light & fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add floud mix & buttermilk to sugar mix, beginning and ending with flour mix.
3) Spoon batter into 5 (5 3/4 x 3 3/4 in) loaf pans (For Prestyn's dino cake I used 2 lg bread pans & 2 round cakes - so it was 2 of this recipe). Make sure to coat pans with cooking spray. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 mins on wire rack. Remove from pans. Cool completely on wire rack.

Cream Cheese Frosting:
1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese at room temperature
8 Tbsp (1 stick) butter at room temperature
3 3/4 cups confectioners sugar, sifted
1 tsp vanilla extract

1) Place the cream cheese & butter in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed until combined, 30 seconds. Stop the machine. Add the confectioners sugar, a bit at a time, blending with the mixer on low speed until the sugar is well incorporated, 1 minute. Add Vanilla, then increase mixer speed to medium and blend the frosting until fluffy, 1 minute more.
2) Use at once to frost the cake of your choice.


Enjoy the recipes & feel free to link me to your blog about what you make with the recipes! I think they are my new all time favorites!

Apples, Apples & more Apples

We picked a bunch of apples from our tree and I decided to get them all cut up & freeze them to use later in pies, or cobblers etc. Soaking in my mixture of water, sugar and lemon juice.

I got a total of 21 cups of apples. I made 3 of them up into a cobbler for tonight and the rest are out in the freezer. I love having stuff like this stockpiled in the deepfreeze. Makes for easy baking later!! My hand is sore through from all the peeling, coring & slicing!

TL

We went to TL this last weekend to spend it with the family! Shayne & Anna had come home and it was so fun to catch up with everyone. The guys did alot of work on Papa Wayne & Nana's siding. It's going to look awesome onces its all done! Good job guys!

So purdy!

Us girls just being silly w/ clothes from a thrift store (thanks Ella)

Nana and Papa Wayne

I rode with Anna to TL and we had the cakes in the backseat (with a cover). We were about 15 miles from TL when there was a dog in the road, Anna had to slam on the brakes to avoid hitting it & I screamed to grab the cakes (where are my priorities??) Well, they just went for a little ride, but stayed in tact. We got a good laugh out of the deal and had a fun story to tell Kerry & Heather about their cake when we presented it to them. Notice that they are still holding hands!

My Great Aunt Ella came over to visit & Cayden convinced her to run through "the orange sprinkler" with him, I had to document this one.

Us 3 girls mangaged to escape to the lake for about and hour and go for a boat ride. It was so relaxing out there & peaceful, it was a little windy, but we had a great time just hanging out together & getting away!\

Another Cake Experiment!

It was Kerry & Heather's 12th wedding anniversary this weekend, and we were all going to be in TL for the weekend because Shayne & Anna were home. Nana asked me if I could make a surprise cake for their anniversary & I just couldn't come up with an idea. **FYI - I'm a little obsessing with cake decorating lately & was so cheesed at the thought of experimenting making another cake

Well I had posted Prestyn's birthday cake pics on FB and Heather saw it & said "ooh, make a turtle cake for this weekend" And the lightbulb went off DING DING, 2 turtles in love...here's the start:



Here they are with the crumb coating:
And here they are all done...aren't they cute?

2 Turtles in Love - HAPPY 12th Wedding Anniversary Kerry & Heather!

One year well baby!

Prestyn had his one year well baby visit today. He was a huge flirt at first, screamed bloody murder through the shots, then has been happy & fun the rest of the day! He weighs 25 lbs (80th %) and is 30.5 inches tall (75th%) The Dr was very pleased with him and couldn't get enough of either of the boys. Cayden was a good helper during the visit too!

Oh & whoohoo for good dental appointments for J & me!!! No return work...that's a first!! Gotta love it!

FARMER BOYS!

We had a few minutes (and matching bibs) so I decided to do a mini photo shoot of the boys. Grammie was a huge help! :) These are the best ones!