scrapbooking beach pictures

When we go to the beach we always write the date and the beach name in the sand and take a picture. That way when it comes time to scrapbook we can introduce the pages within the picture. It’s especially fun when it’s my nephew Eric’s first time on the beach.

4th of july decorations

Just a few snapshots of the decorations I’ve got around my humble abode and around town.

window boxes

I’ve got a lot of windows on the front of my new house. I heart window boxes full of flowers but it’s going to be an investment when I do so I want to make sure I do some investigative work first. A few weekends ago we were taking a walk around Charlestown, MA and I started snapping photos of all my favorite windows. I got tons of great ideas incorporating real, dried and plastic flowers. My favorite idea is putting a starfish seashell in the window.

what i had for dinner: bbq chicken sandwich

A play off of the “turkey gobbler” that I loved from Clark’s Bistro, it’s got sauteed mushrooms and onions with lots of melted cheddar cheese. The finishing touch, drowned it in Stubb’s BBQ sauce.

sage garlic butter

Got lots of sage from the organic farm share so I’ve got to come up with lots of ways to use it.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh sage
2 large minced garlic cloves
1/4 tsp. salt
Mix all together or process quickly in a food processor. Chill and serve with rolls or use it on vegetables such as green beans, brussel sprouts, cabbage or other green vegetables.
Recipe from Seeds of Knowledge

chocolate hazelnut cheesecake

INGREDIENTS
1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups vanilla wafer crumbs
3/4 cup hazelnuts – toasted, skinned and coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons white sugar
3 tablespoons butter, melted

3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup white sugar
3 eggs, lightly beaten
3 tablespoons hazelnut liqueur (couldn’t find it ANYWHERE, ended up using Amaretto)
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
13 skinned, toasted hazelnuts
4 tablespoons sour cream
1 tablespoon hazelnut liqueur

DIRECTIONS
Using a blender or a food processor, finely chop 1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips. Place in a small mixing bowl. Add vanilla wafer crumbs, ground hazelnuts, 2 tablespoons white sugar, and melted butter or margarine. Mix until well combined. Press onto the bottom and up the sides of a 9 inch springform pan. Bake in a preheated 300 degrees F (150 degrees C) oven for 15 minutes. Cool.

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until fluffy. Gradually add 1 cup white sugar; mix well. Add the eggs and 3 tablespoons liqueur. Mix until well blended. Coarsely chop 1 cup of the semisweet chocolate chips, and add to the cream cheese mixture. Stir. Pour batter into the cooled crust.

Bake at in a preheated 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) oven for 1 hour. Let cake cool for 1 hour. Remove outer ring from pan. Then let cool completely.

Melt 2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips over hot (not boiling) water. Stir until smooth. Dip 13 hazelnuts into the chocolate, covering one-half of each nut. Shake off the excess chocolate. Place on a waxed-paper lined plate. Chill until set.

To the remaining melted chocolate, add sour cream. Mix well. Stir in 1 tablespoon liqueur. Spread glaze on top of the cooled cheesecake. Garnish with chocolate dipped hazelnuts.

Taken from Allrecipes.com

bridal shower favors

Nobody wants a crappy favor. Any favor that is worth getting costs too much when you are throwing a large shower. A great alternative it to donate the money you would have spent on a scary plastic mini baby or a chocolate picture of the happy couple. For my friend Maggie, we donated to the Animal Rescue League of Boston in honor of her beloved Dakota who left us early this year. You don’t need a shower to donate, go ahead and donate now!

mini fruit cheesecakes

These are really easy to make and very beautiful. The bride that I made these for doesn’t like chocolate so I kept it all to fruit: bing cherries, blueberries, strawberries and blackberries.

INGREDIENTS
1 (12 ounce) package vanilla wafers
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
3/4 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Fruit Toppings

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line miniature muffin tins (tassie pans) with miniature paper liners.
Crush the vanilla wafers, and place 1/2 teaspoon of the crushed vanilla wafers into each paper cup.
In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar, eggs and vanilla until light and fluffy. Fill each miniature muffin liner with this mixture, almost to the top.
Bake for 15 minutes. Cool. Top with a teaspoonful of filling.

Taken from Allrecipes.com

heart shaped tea sandwich cookies

I made these cookies in the past but this time I made them in the shape of hearts for a weddings shower. Here’s the recipe.

carrot cake cupcakes

A good thing about making cupcakes for a special event is that you can sample a cupcake prior to know they taste good without anyone knowing. It’s kinda hard to hide the fact that you tasted the sheet cake. I used my favorite carrot cake recipe to make this cute cupcakes for a wedding shower.