Homemade Chocolate Covered Easter Cream Eggs

Last Friday I came home to a package sent by the sweet people at Chocoley full of fun ingredients for this Easter project - homemade Chocolate Covred Easter Cream Eggs - so you have them to thank for this festive post (thanks Chocoley!).

When the Chocoley team first contacted me I figuratively & literally felt like a kid in the candy store.  They asked me to come up with something I'd like to make using their awesome ingredients! What would I make? So many options to choose from!

My decision became more clear with Easter on the horizon. I knew what I wanted to make & the Chocoley team was on board to advise me of which ingredients would make my Easter creation come to fruition. Chocoley truly has everything you need for creating beautiful & tasty treats.

While I was making these eggs I couldn’t help but remember the story my mom always tells of when I would make cookies as a kid. They would start out small & uniform but then as I continued & the initial excitement of making them wore off the cookies would grow in size. You could look at the assortment of sizes as a timeline of the cookies - the smallest were the earliest & the largest were the last to be baked. It’s a funny memory & my mom laughs every time she tells it - which makes me laugh. This is how I felt making these eggs. If you are going to make them at home - smaller is better - trust me. Mine grew in size - while still delicious they were a bit sloppier & wouldn’t stand on the lollipop stick, instead I had to rest them on their sides making them not completely round - but I covered them with edible confetti, silver sprinkles (like magic from a disco ball!) & pretty pink foils so you’d never know.

PS: Happy birthday to my dear friend Hely! I love you Hey Hey :)

Fudgey Made-from-Scratch Brownies

While watching all the Olympic athletes work up a sweat I had a craving for exercise brownies. We usually have a stock of brownie mix in the house & Chris usually will whip up a batch at the sheer mention of the word.  We didn’t have any brownie mix but after a quick web recipe search & ingredient assessment I found a way around the no-boxed-brownie mix-in-the-house-problem - I made them from scratch! They’re actually a lot easier than you think. They take a bit longer then just pouring out the box mix because you have to measure basic ingredients like butter, sugar, flour, salt & cocoa powder but other than that they didn’t take that long & were deliciously decadent. Next time you're in the brownie mix section I hope you'll grab some cocoa powder & give this old scratch thing a try instead. If you opt for the boxed mix which is your fave? Let me know in the comments below.

Homemade Ice Cream Sandwiches

This past memorial day weekend was anything but typical. It was cold & rainy on Saturday & then warm(ish) & sunny on Sunday & Monday.  To warm the house & our bellies up on Saturday I baked some chocolate chip cookies using my favorite go-to recipe.  On Sunday afternoon we decided to plan a small barbecue on Monday.  I was pretty excited to put the obscene amount of cookies to good use to make a traditional summer treat: ice cream sandwiches.  I added mini chocolate chips that I found in the baking aisle to mine so I guess you could call them homemade chipwiches!

Happy Friday! How is it already the last day of May???

Spicy Homemade Tomato Sauce

The other day Chris was out for dinner with the guys & I was home left to my own devices. I opened the fridge & looked long & hard for something to make for dinner for one.  As I reached for the leftovers from the night before I noticed a jar - A JAR OF SAUCE. I immediately texted Chris to ask him what this jar of sauce was doing in our house, let alone fridge. He responded that he needed it for his meatball hero he planned to eat. I let him get away with it but honestly I didn't grow up with jarred sauce & I prefer the homemade stuff. Yes that probably makes me a sauce snob - but I've been spoiled by the cooks in my Italian family - I learned by watching them (kudos to you if you remember the frying pan commercial this references).  By watching them I also learned how to make my own sauce, which is in fact super easy, inexpensive & well just delicious. So before you reach for the jarred sauce give yourself a vote of confidence, click through & make this super easy recipe.

Recipe Inspiration: Homemade Gnudi

I don't cook every night - believe it or not. We do leftovers & take-out in our house too.  I do, however, window shop around for recipes & ideas in my down time. I love finding a photo that makes me drool.  These three homemade gnudi recipes did just that. If you've never had gnudi it's pretty much a cheese dumpling, pillowy & soft - so what's not to love?  Can't wait to try one of these out. Which one do you think I should try?

• Homemade Gnudi from the Spotted Pig- The Paupered Chef
• Ricotta Gnudi - Lottie + Doof
• Spinach Gnudi with Sage Burnt Butter - Cook Republic

Gluten-Free Homemade Pasta

Seems as though getting healthy is trendy & I have no qualms about it. Lately food allergies are on the rise, particularly allergies to gluten - I feel like it's the new lactose-intolerance of 2013. In any event, chances are someone you know is gluten-intolerant which is no fun but there are so many options now that they too can have their cake and eat it too - or in my world pasta.

I picked up a bag of garbanzo bean flour at the grocery store (there are so many "flour" options now!) & thought I'd give it a whirl in some pasta that I adapted from this recipe.

Whether you can eat flour by the pound or none at all this gluten-free pasta will satisfy your carb craving. Oh & it's packed with tons of protein. #winning

Click through for the full recipe & photos.

Linzer Heart Cookies Made with Love

I've read the book, 5 Love Languages, & it's save to say the way I like to give & receive love is quality time.  These cookies are time in three bites with a cup of coffee or tea.

These cookies are not the easiest to make. They take a bunch of time & a lot of love. I had to reroll & cut them a bunch of times, so if you opt to challenge this recipe, I feel your pain.

Last night I spent some time (the best gift of all) with some of my best girl friends.  We shared food & lots of laughs. There is really nothing better & I'm so blessed to have them in my life (thanks girls!!!). I brought some of these with me for a parting treat. I think they're yummy & hope the girls did too.

Click through for photos of this cookie making process.

Honey Mustard

I'd pick mustard over mayo any day of the week. This mustard (that I learned how to make while working at Immaculate Consumption in my collegiate years), although simple to make, is so flavorful that you'll wanted to put it on everything. Oh, & it's also mayo-free (read: fat-free!).

Ingredients:

• 1 part honey
• 1 part dijon mustard

Make it!

1. Mix the honey & mustard together until combined thoroughly.  Store in the fridge in a squeezy bottle & serve it on everything from sandwiches to salads.

Photo GIft Ideas

Cameras are everywhere in all shapes & sizes. Mine (the best Christmas gift ever! from the hubs) is never too far away to capture goofy moments or yummy dishes.  If I don't have it with me I rely on my phone camera.

I have tons of photos on my hard drive that, well, sit on my hard drive. I did a quick search for giftable items to make with my photos & was thrilled at the results.

Aside from the classic photo album, these are my new top three faves!

1. Smartphone Case: gelskins.com has virtually every kind of case you can customize & put fun photos on of your loved ones... like this one of Chris! (suprise, you're on the blog today!)
2. Memory Game: (most possibly my favorite of the bunch) pinholepress.com allows you to make a classic card game your own with photos of loved ones or whatever you choose! This would make a great birthday gift of housewarming gift for homes with children or adults wanting to sharpen their memory skills.
3. Christmas Ornament: decorate your tree with your favorite photos with these great ornaments from shutterfly.com. Also, a great housewarming gift for new homeowners.

What other customizable gifts are you giving this holiday season? Please share!