A Pinterest-Inspired Dinner Party

My sister is home for the week visiting and I told her I thought it would be fun to cook a bunch of foods we’d been wanting to try on our Pinterest boards and then serve them up to our family.  She thought it sounded like lots of fun so we started browsing our boards and came up with only one rule: it had to be a Pinterest recipe we’d never tried before. 

 

Well…we tried!  lol  But here’s the deal:

Our dad and brother won’t touch anything with sour cream, mayo, cream cheese, or cottage cheese.

My husband hates coconut.

Our mom can’t handle spicy foods.

Our sister-in-law doesn’t eat red meats. 

SO.  haha

After going back and forth, we decided to break our own rule and make the entrée something that my sister had made before.  Other than that, we made 4 other new dishes. 

 

It was SO much fun!  You could totally get together with friends and have a cooking day, or do this or with your sister or mom.  Jill and our friend Sara came over at 2 and we served dinner at 6 – so it really wasn’t that big of a time commitment. 

 

Here’s what we served, how we tweaked it, and what the family thought of it all:

1.  Southwestern-Style Egg Rolls

 

What we changed: I nixed the spinach (sounded gross) and forgot the chiles at the store (although I did add in green Tabasco sauce).  Once we got the hang of it, the wrappers were pretty easy to do (my sister is a wonton-wrapping genius!  :). 

Family votes: IN LOVE
Personal vote: 3 out of 5

These were good but Jill and I weren’t wowed.  We thought they were a little bland.  Although they’re different than your usual appetizer, so that was fun!

 

2.  Quick and Easy Salsa

What we changed: added a little more garlic; left out the jalapeno (for Mom); left out the honey because I like savory salsa, not sweet; used a small amount of cilantro. 

Family votes: IN LOVE.
Personal vote: 5 out of 5

This salsa is aaaaaaaaaaaammmmmmmmmmaaaaazing.  I want to eat it every day of my life.  I will be making it over and over and over again! *Note: it’s still pretty spicy, even without the jalapenos.*

 

3.  Chicken Enchilada Soup

 

This is where we had to cheat a little; my sister had already made this before, but because she and her husband loved it so we used it because it fit all of the family criteria.  lol

What we changed: used regular chili powder, not ancho; nixed the jalapenos (again, for mom); didn’t use cojita cheese and just used all pepper-jack instead.  We tried cooking this on the crockpot and after four hours the veggies were still crunchy so we ended up just finishing it on the stove.   Next time I will just cook it on the stovetop to begin with. 

Family votes: IN LOVE.
Personal vote: 4.5 out of 5

I love Mexican food so it’s hard for me to be disappointed.  This was very good, especially when topped with pepper-jack, a little sour cream, and some crushed up chips.  I think it was even better today for lunch.  Definitely going to be making it again!  We also served it with corn muffins (not from Pinterest). 

 

4.  Chewy Lemon Snowdrops

 

What we changed: salted butter instead of unsalted because I didn’t have any (just added less salt); honey rather than agave.

Family votes: Very good
Personal vote: 4 out of 5

I’m usually not crazy about lemony desserts, but I do have to say that these were pretty delish.  I recommend cooking them for 10 minutes (the recipe says 10-15) because they will continue to bake a little after you pull them out and I think they are better soft rather than on the crispy side.  Nice for summertime!

 

5.  Reese’s Peanut Butter Bars

What we changed:  nothing (I normally buy all-natural peanut butter but for this I would recommend regular, creamy peanut butter.  Go big or go home, baby.)

Family votes: IN LOVE.
Personal vote: 5 out of 5

These are to die for.  No like literally I think they could put you into cardiac arrest!  lol  They are super rich and creamy and have that “authentic” Reese’s cup taste.  Sure, they’re not a health food, but everyone LOVED them – even our brother, who usually hates chocolate desserts.  You can’t go wrong if you bring these to a party!  And they are so rich that you could totally get away with making half a pan and cutting them into small, bite-sized squares. 

 

So that was our night!  We had a lot of fun with family and it was fun to check out some recipes we’d been wanting to try and add some new ones to the repertoire. 

Now I have to stare at the Reese’s bars in my fridge all day and will myself not to eat them.   I may have to name this baby Jif.  Or Skippy.  ;)

 

Linked to:

DIY: Accomplished @ Homemaker’s Challenge
Feasting in Fellowship Friday @ Comfy in the Kitchen

Simple Felt Garland {St. Patrick’s Day Decor}

I feel like I’ve never posted a project on here that’s not quick and easy.  It gets a little redundant to call them all that, but seriously that’s the only kind of project I do!  :)

 

For this project, I was inspired by the adorable heart felt garland found at  Calico Skies and also by my lovely sister’s valentine’s garland (also inspired by Calico Skies).

All you really need is 2 pieces of felt, a pair of scissors, a needle and thread, and some tape.  Although having a piece of thicker paper around is helpful to trace the circle shape with.  

 

 

Oh, and if you’re like me, a trip to the Dollar Tree to get a sewing kit.  Yup, that’s right.  I am SO not a seamstress! haha

 

Decide what sizes you want, and make a template…

   

Cut out as many circles as you want…

 

Then take a needle and thread and sew it through each circle, and hang it up wherever you’d like around the house!

 

Voila!  Easy, fun, cheerful pop of green when I walk inside my door. 

I went with circles because it’s SO much easier to cut them out.  You could totally do four-leaf clovers if you were feeling ambitious, though.  Good luck with that. ;)

 

Psssst…..here’s my living room on any given morning, thanks to one very destructive active 2-year-old little boy.  Feel better about yourself now?! hahaha

 

 

Linking up with:

Pinterest Inspiration: All things Autumn

So…I was a little late to jump on the Pinterest bandwagon but now it is a favorite nap-time hobby of mine! I can’t get enough of it!  (P.S. Where has Pinterest been my whole life?!  This totally beats the pants off of copy and pasting links into different Word documents, then trying to find that recipe or design inspiration in a long list of other copied links.)

Today I thought I’d share some of my favorite pins….all having to do, of course, with my favorite season….FALL! :)

Loving this adorable free printable that I found today:

Source: thirtyhandmadedays.com via Jessica - thisblessedlife on Pinterest

 

 

Or how about this one?

Source: tinywhitedaisies.tumblr.com via Jessica - thisblessedlife on Pinterest

 

I’m loving all the “filler” ideas I’ve been getting, from layers…..

Source: google.com via Jessica - thisblessedlife on Pinterest

 

To acorns…..

Source: ideasandinspiration.tumblr.com via Jessica - thisblessedlife on Pinterest

 

To even candy corn! 

Source: womansday.com via Jessica - thisblessedlife on Pinterest

 

I thought this burlap and felt wreath was really pretty, and I liked that it’s fallish without being orange or yellow – I think this is my next project!

Source: apumpkinandaprincess.blogspot.com via Jessica - thisblessedlife on Pinterest

 

Then there’s some awesome recipes (I’ll just share two of our favorites):

Autumn Salad was a huge hit at our house – and made a-MAAAAA-zing leftovers! (I added chicken to bulk it up a little, and used clean dressings and uncured bacon.)

Source: espressoandcream.com via Jessica - thisblessedlife on Pinterest

 

These pumpkin waffles are deliciously moist.  I cleaned them up a little ;), and they are a favorite!  I’ve made them two years in a row now and we just love them. 

Source: womenlivingwell.org via Jessica - thisblessedlife on Pinterest

 

So that’s what I’m loving recently!  (You can find all of these pins on my “Autumn Love” and “Clean Eating and Recipes” boards.  You can follow me here (or by clicking the red button on my sidebar ---->). 

Are you as addicted as I am?! :)

Linked to Pinnable Me Friday at Paw Prints and Pastry Bags.