Candy Corn Cocktail

Next Halloween, try this special treat for the grown ups. I found the original recipe on the Food Network website, and have made a few modifications.

For the Candy Corn Infused Vodka

1. In a large Mason jar, fill half way with candy corn.

2. Fill the jar to the top wi

th plain vodka. (I used Pearl vodka.)

3. Let sit until most of the candy corn are dissolved and the vodka is a glowing orange color.

For the Cocktail

1. In a cocktail shaker, add 4 oz. candy corn infused vodka, 2 oz. Cointreau, ¾ oz. lemon juice, ice.

2. Shake.

3. Pour into glasses and top off with a bit of sparkling water. (I served these in cordial glasses because they’re very sweet.)

It was a big hit at my after trick-or-treating party. Even those who don’t normally drink cocktails were asking for seconds.

Enjoy!

Simple Recipe – Green Beans and Potatoes with Pesto

With all my gardening this summer, I still do not have any useable basil. (Many seeds sprouted, but they didn’t last. The latest batch is just starting.) So, when I wanted to make pesto I gave dried seasonings a try. It worked fabulously! Here’s how to make a simple side dish with a mix of ingredients from your garden and pantry.

Basil Pesto with Dried Seasonings

2T Dried Basil

1T Garlic Powder

2T Olive Oil

Combine above ingredients and let sit 10-15 minutes to reconstitute.

Add salt and pepper to taste. Blend with emersion blender. Add more olive oil if necessary to create best texture. Add ¼ cup parmesan. Blend with emersion blender until emulsified to pesto consistency.

Chop potatoes and steam for 5 minutes. Add cut green beans and steam for an additional 5 minutes. Rinse under cold water to cool veggies, then pour into a bowl. Add pesto and combine.

And now you have a tasty treat. Enjoy!

Share Your Milano Moment - Simply Delicious

Love Milano cookes? My favorites are the Double Chocolate and the Enrobed Milano. ;D Yum. What's your favorite?

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And don't forget to print the coupon!

Simple Kid's Birthday Party Activity

I was sitting idly by the pool today, half dead in the 95 degree heat, when a great simple idea hit me. As we watched my son play with a deflated beach ball that was half filled with water, my mom and I commented on why we bothered with the new toys for his birthday. A nearby dad replied, we should just get him a box.

DING! Brilliant idea.

So I decided that as an activity at his upcoming birthday party, I'm going to buy a few moving boxes to let the kids decorate and take home! We'll see how it goes over.

If past experience shows me anything, the kids will love it. Parents may also enjoy the new storage. I'll let you know how it goes.

I wonder how many will become cars?

What To Do After A CRAZY Strawberry Picking Spree

It seemed like a simple idea. Just a little way to pass the time on a summer day with the kids. Then the obsession set in. Staring at all those delicious, red, ripe strawberries alone in the field. They just had to come home with me. I HAD to keep picking.

When I finally surfaced, we had over 19 pounds to put away before they rotted. Since I hadn’t slotted a block of time for hot water canning and jam making, I became creative. Or should I say, we had strawberries with everything for awhile.

Here are some simple ideas for fresh strawberries.

19 pounds of strawberries fresh from the farm.

Strawberry Lemonade (adult and kid versions)

Strawberry freezer jam

Strawberry pie

Frozen strawberries

Sliced strawberries on oatmeal

All strawberried out - for now. My friend invited me berry picking again next week. I'll have to control myself.

My Toy Story 3 Controversy

We went to see Toy Story 3 on opening weekend. It’s become a Father’s Day tradition for us to see a movie as a family. I had very high hopes for this installment in the Toy Story yarn, and it delivered. I actually cried. The ending was absolutely perfect, and I don’t usually like story endings.

What I don’t get, though, is how this movie passed with a G rating. Yes, the characters are cute and cuddly. (Just look at the movie poster above.) Yes, they are model friends to each other. But when my almost five year old gets freaked out during a movie, I have to wonder.

I’ll preface with the fact that my son has seen clips from a variety of adult content movies such as Harry Potter, Iron Man, Spider Man and Transformers. He has not seen these movies in their entirety, because the content is inappropriate for a child his age. But he loves the action, the gadgets and the superhero stuff. This boy has been fine through some pretty intense scenes. (This is in complete contrast to my older daughter who had to leave the theater during The Heffalump Movie.) He has always been fine; no permanent scars from films yet.

Who would have thought that Toy Story 3 would be the first to leave a scar? He was fine until that crazy monkey, straight out of a Stephen King story, started screeching maniacally. Then, the incinerator did him in. He was cuddled on mom’s lap quicker than you could say “To infinity and beyond.”

There are movie ratings criteria for smoking and drug use, sex and violence, but I haven’t seen anything that relates to topics of a psychological thriller nature or overall intensity. Why is that?

It always bothered me that in the movie The Lion King, good ol’ Uncle Scar blames Simba for the death of his own father. That is the kind of material that gives kids nightmares.

In fact, the psychological thriller is an entire genre of movie making, which I love. But, I would never take my kids to see one! I’m all for a little bit of action, but keep the mind games out of kids movies. Their brains just aren’t ready for it, and neither are their drained parents.

Double Sheeting the Bed

Very different from short sheeting the bed, this simple idea will save you in the middle of the night.

If you have kids you already know how hard it is to change the sheets at 2:00am. But when they've wet the bed or vomited, that's what you have to do. Not pretty, especially since most kid beds (cribs, bunk beds, etc.) are so darned hard to make.

Those slats all the way around are just made to catch your fingers in, and clearance issues can be very tight when there's a top bunk in the way. Kid beds should come with parent safety warnings. "Caution: May cause excessive swearing."

These middle of the night clean ups can actually become pretty peaceful if you use this simple little trick. Double sheet the bed. Here's how it works:

1. Place one waterproof pad on the mattress, and top with a fitted sheet.
2. Place a second waterproof pad (I like to use on that just lays on top of the mattress without the elastic), and top with a second fitted sheet.
3. Make the bed as usual.
4. When it comes time, remove the top soiled sheet and waterproof pad.
5. You're left with a fresh clean set underneath. No need to crawl around to put it on!

This also leaves you consoling your kid instead of upsetting everyone with the bed making angst. Whether you're a first time parent, your kids are newborn or school aged, you can benefit from this one. I have to thank Cousin Stephanie for this one. Pass it along.

Nighty-night!

Simple Mac & Cheese

Here's a sure-fire kid approved recipe for homemade mac & cheese.

1 pound macaroni

2T Butter

1T Flour

1t Garlic Powder

1/4c Grated Carrot

1c Milk

2c Cheddar Cheese

Salt

Pepper

1t Smoked Paprika

Cook the macaroni based on box directions. Melt butter in pan, add flour to make a roux. Add garlic flour and grated carrot. Whisk in milk and simmer to thicken. Add cheese and mix until melted. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add smoked paprika. Pour over cooked macaroni.

The carrots and paprika add color. The added garlic powder complete the winning flavor. My kids now prefer this recipe to the boxed kind!