Foodie Fridays: Valentine Edition

Confession: I didn't make this recipe this week (well, yet). I made these last week, but held off on sharing them until today. Gotta get a little closer to V-Day, right? (This week we made burgers on the stove, which really didn't involve too much of a recipe, just know that Italian dressing makes a yummy wet rub when topped with garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper! The burgers were juicy and delicious!)

These cookies are the wonderful confection, and my husband's favorite cookie, Spritz. If you've never heard of or made Spritz, the main thing that makes these treats different is that they are made with a cookie press. So after you make the dough, you don't have to cool it, you just put it in the press and get clicking! Also, when you buy a cookie press, you get a variety of disks that help you make lots of cute shapes, sans cookie cutters. This past week, I made hearts and a circular, wreath-like shape.

If you have or buy a cookie press, it will come with recipes, but this one I'm sharing is my favorite, and I think the best. The trick is substituting in some almond extract. Spritz are sweet enough that you really don't have to frost them (you can add food coloring to the dough to tint them, or top them with sprinkles before baking), but everyone in my family loves the frosted kind the best. So I'm including a simple frosting recipe that can be used for any sugar cookie.

Classic Spritz Cookies
Makes 6-7 dozen
Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) softened butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. almond extract (if you don't have almond extract, use 1 tsp. of vanilla extract)
3 1/2 cups (14 oz.) whisked, not packed, flour
1/2 tsp. salt
Directions:
1. Beat butter on medium speed until creamy.
2. Add sugar, egg, almond and/or vanilla extract, beat well.
3. Add flour, one cup at a time, mix well. Dough will be soft, do not refrigerate.
4. Follow directions on cookie press for use. If you're not frosting your cookies, remember to add colored sprinkles prior to baking, if you want them.
5. Bake 10-12 minutes or until firm but not brown. (I have dark cookie sheets so I top them with a piece of parchment paper before pressing the dough onto it. Then in my oven, I only need to bake the cookies for about 7-8 minutes.)
6. Cool for 2 minutes, then remove to cooling rack. Cool completely before frosting.

Vanilla Butter Frosting
Ingredients:
3 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup softened butter
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
About 2 tblsp. milk
Directions:
1. Mix powdered sugar and butter.
2. Stir in vanilla and milk.
3. Beat/stir until frosting is smooth and of spreading consistency. If frosting is too thin, add more powdered sugar. If it is too thick, slowly add a small amount of milk.
4. Add a little food coloring to tint your frosting if you want.

To decorate the cookies shown above, I put the frosting into a piping bag and used several different tips to create the designs. I used several dots of red food coloring to create the pink color and added red sugar sprinkles to some of the cookies for variety.

Making your own version of Spritz cookies? I'd love to see what you create! Email a photo to me at eliseloyola[at]gmail[.com] and I'll include it in an upcoming blog post!

The Currently List

Making: Graphics and updates to my cousin Crystal's blog for her flower business. Thoughts?
Cooking: Way too many sweets these days. From cookies to cupcakes to coffee cake. Yummm.
Drinking: Coffee. Lots and lots of coffee, to the point where I think it's affecting my sleep. :/
Reading: 'Texas Trails: Lone Star Trail' for an upcoming book review I'll be writing.
Wanting: Nothing and everything, all at once. Life is so good and yet challenging. Above all, I want peace.
Looking: For a new job out here in IC.
Playing: 'Ends of the Earth' by Lord Huron. Love, love, love.
Wasting: Time doing things I like. So maybe it's not too wasted. ;)
Sewing: Some holes in my leggings need sewing. Or I could just get new leggings...
Wishing: This cold would get a little less cold. Spring, anyone?
Enjoying: My sweet husband and fuzzy kitty. They make life so much better.
Waiting: To make adult-y decisions. Sometimes I still don't feel like a grown up.
Liking: This thing called community that we've been getting involved in since moving. It has been such a blessing.
Wondering: What I would change about my life and the way I lived if I just had a five-second glimpse of eternity.
Loving: The wisdom of those who have walked this road before.
Hoping: We can go to Chicago sometime in the not too distant future. I miss that city.
Marvelling: At the way God works in our lives, through the good times and through the bad, to bring about His amazing plan.
Needing: A shower. This is what happens when I get up and do everything but get ready for the day.
Smelling: The best candle scent ever: Volcano by Capri Blue Candles.
Wearing: Sweats, yo! And a Sevenly t-shirt.
Following: My new favorite Instagram feed, @teni_komo.
Noticing: It's a good time for a snack. ;)
Knowing: Change is inevitable.
Thinking: Friends are the best. :)
Bookmarking: Cupcake and frosting recipes from Martha Stewart.
Opening: Emails (and the occasional letter).
Giggling: With besties.
Feeling: Warm and cozy. :)
List source.

Foodie Fridays: A Dang Good Dinner

This week we whipped up a delicious dinner of bacon-wrapped filets, broccoli with garlic, oven fries, and corn bread muffins. It was so yummy, I knew I had to share! And everything was pretty easy to prepare, though I made the cornbread earlier in the day. This saved time and oven space.

Broccoli with garlic is not a new recipe to this blog, so you can find it at the bottom of this post (along with a tasty almond-crusted salmon recipe). It is so easy to make and only takes about 10 minutes once you get the water boiling. And, it's safe for Whole30 dieters, another plus! :)

For the filets, we topped both sides with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder, then seared them with butter for about two to three minutes on each side. We then transferred the filets to a baking sheet lined with tin foil and baked them in the oven at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes.

Oven Fries
Makes 3-4 servings
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Ingredients (As for the herbs/spices, these are some options, you  can use whatever you like.)
4 small baking potatoes
1 tblsp. olive oil (you can also use 1 tblsp. of butter or vegetable oil)
1/2 tsp. garlic salt (or part garlic powder, part salt to taste)
1/4 - 1/2 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. parsley flakes
1/8 tsp. onion powder
1/8 tsp. pepper
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Directions:
1. Scrub potatoes thoroughly, then cut each lengthwise into eight slices, or cut into small pieces.
2. In a bowl combine oil (or butter) and herbs/spices. You can vary the amounts according to your taste. I added extra garlic powder to ours and withheld the Parmesan.
3. Stir potatoes in the mixture, or use your hands like I did. ;)
4. Spray an 11x7x1 1/2 inch baking pan with a non-stick coating (or just use whatever size baking sheet you have).
5. Arrange potatoes in baking pan and bake uncovered for 25-30 minutes or until tender. Potatoes are best served hot.

Corn Bread
Preheat oven to 425 degrees
Ingredients:
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup corn meal (yellow or white)
1/4 cup sugar
4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 cup milk
1/4 cup oil
1 egg
Directions:
1. If you decide to cook your corn bread in an 8- or 9-inch square or round cake pan, grease it with Crisco before using. If you use a muffin pan, insert the liners.
2. In a medium bowl combine the dry ingredients.
3. In a second bowl combine the wet ingredients.
4. Stir wet ingredients into the medium bowl of dry ingredients, beating by hand until smooth.
5. Pour batter into prepared pan, or ladle into muffin cups.
6. Bake for 20-25 minutes (less time for muffins) or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Got a recipe to share? Pass along your recipes, I'll try them and share the ones we like on the blog!

DIY Weddings: Adding Custom Touches

It's been a while since I wrote about wedding planning, but even though the wedding is over, I still have plenty to share!

Sometimes when you're planning a wedding on a budget, you may worry that it won't be unique or reflective of you. The last thing a bride wants is for her wedding to look like "everyone else's" wedding. I wanted to make sure my wedding reflected both my personality and my groom's, so I looked for opportunities to customize, personalize and create.

One of the ways I did this was by creating my own customized guestbook with Shutterfly. I had already used Shutterfly to create a little engagement photo album, and I knew it was easy to use and often offered discounts (either on-site offers or coupons). So I decided it would be the perfect way to put my own touches on what could otherwise be a very generic guestbook.

If you decide to create your guestbook with Shutterfly, you'll find that you can start from scratch or use a pre-designed template. I went with a template to save time and stress. The template also offered some ideas--like creating pages for just the parents or the wedding party to sign--that I never would've thought of on my own. I filled the pages with photos from our engagement session to make sure the book maintained a sleek, professional appearance. I was also able to choose from various page layouts, embellishments, and creative designs.

I also had fun personalizing and getting crafty with the bags we put together for our out-of-town guests (see the full post here with photos). It was a chance to turn something inexpensive, like simple paper bags and swing tags, into a customized masterpiece filled with goodies and relevant information.

We also decided to save money by designing and printing our own programs for the ceremony. It wasn't a complicated program, just a half-sheet of glossy card stock paper (which we found on sale), printed front and back. We designed a monogram letter with our names to adorn the top and added some simple swirls as breaks in the text. My advice, if you're going to design your own program, is to make use of creative fonts. We used one for the "M" in our monogram and another for the swirls. If you don't have many fonts--or ones you want to use--on your computer, you can download just about anything you'd want from dafont.com.

Finally, I looked for ways to add personal details, handmade items, or finishing touches to the ceremony site and the reception. Items like decorative paper fans (how-to is in this post), cardboard or wooden monogram letters, antique bottles, paper confetti, or handmade tags tied on with decorative string, are all simple ways to personalize.

Please feel free to ask questions or share your favorite wedding crafts, suggestions and tips in the comments!