Very Thankful

We had a great time yesterday spending Thanksgiving with our family :) It's hard not to have a good time when you are surrounded by such amazing people!

I am thankful for a lot of things this year...

* I am thankful for my amazing husband. I am truly lucky to have him in my life :)
* I am thankful for our loving family. Although the majority of them live in different states, we always know that they are there for us, no matter what.
* I am thankful for my amazing friends, no matter what state they live in! lol. A lot has happened since high school but it's nice to know that our friendships are just as strong as they were four years ago.
* I am thankful for our beautiful home and our adorable puppy. We are very fortunate to have been able to buy a house and even though Bella drives us crazy sometimes, she really has grown into a loving family member :)

And as I sit here with Bella laying on my feet, keeping my toes warm, I am truly thankful for all the little moments that led us to where we are today. I wouldn't change a thing :)

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

It's Here!!

It's official, I have the best husband EVER! I got my Xmas present today! A light yellow, 5 qt, super amazing, Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer!!!! Cue "Hallelujah" music!

Opening the box! We actually opened it up for the first time at Dave and Sandy's house, but now it was finally in our kitchen!!

Is there something in the box for me mommy???
It's love :)
THANK YOU RABBIT!!!!!

Steak Tacos and Vegetarian Ranch Beans

YUM! Super easy, healthy and very delicious! Where can you go wrong?? Matt was not a fan of the avacado salsa, but he's not a fan of avacados in general ;)

Steak Tacos with Avacado Lime Salsa

Original Recipe can be found on this fabulous blog...http://kelseysappleaday.blogspot.com/search/label/Mexican

Ingredients

1 Tbsp. chili powder

1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. salt

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 tsp. cumin

Pinch of cayenne pepper

1-1/4 lb top sirloin steaks

12 small corn tortillas

3 cups shredded red cabbage

1/2 cup chopped cilantro leaves

2 cups avacado lime salsa (recipe below)

Directions

1. In small bowl, combine chili powder, garlic, cinnamon, salt and cayenne pepper. Rub mixture on both sides of steaks.

2. Grill steaks 5-6 minutes on each side for medium rare or about 7 minutes on each side for medium.

3. Remove from grill and let meat sit for 10-15 minutes. Carve into thin slices.

4. Warm tortillas on the grill for about 30 seconds, turning once.

Avacado Lime Salsa

Ingredients

1 large cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut into chunks to make about 2 cups

2 avacados, cut into chunks

1/2 red onion, diced

2 limes, juiced to make about 1/4 cup

salt, to taste

1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves

2 jalepeno chiles, chopped, plus more to taste

Directions

Put cucumber, avacados, and onion in large bowl. Add lime juice and salt. Add cilantro and chiles, toss gently.

Vegetarian Ranch Beans

Ingredients

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 medium red onion, diced

1 green bell pepper, diced

1 Tbsp. chili powder

1 tsp. cumin

salt, to taste

1/4 cup reduced sodium chicken broth

2 cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed

2 Tbsp. chopped cilantro leaves

Directions

1. Heat a pot on stove over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and bring to temperature.

2. Add onion and bell pepper, saute until softened, about 3 minutes.

3. Add chili powder, cumin and salt. Saute for another minute.

4. Add broth and beans. Let them heat for about 5 minutes, or until beans start to break down a little bit.

5. Add cilantro and mash beans to desired consistency.

Cheese Danish!

The house smells like a bakery and these cute little pastries are so delicious! I was watching Barefoot Contessa the other day and Ina was trying out different variations of her recipe. When I heard her say that her original recipe called for citrus flavors to be combined with the cheese, I HAD to make this! I love the balance of lemon and delicate cheese flavors. Very light, but very tasty! Its one of those things that cures a sweet tooth, without making you feel sick from loads of sugar lol.

Ina's original recipe can be found here-

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/easy-cheese-danish-recipe

Cheese Danish

Ingredients

8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/3 cup sugar
2 extra-large egg yolks, at room temperature (I used 3 regular egg yolks)
2 tablespoons ricotta cheese
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest (about 2 lemons)

Juice from half of a lemon (I added this to the original recipe)
2 sheets (1 box) frozen puff pastry, defrosted
1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash

Parchment paper to line baking sheets

Original recipe says this makes 8 danishes, but I had enough filling left over to make about 4 more, you would just need to open another box of puff pastry.

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Place the cream cheese and sugar in a bowl, mix and cream them until smooth. Mix in the egg yolks, ricotta, vanilla, salt, lemon zest and lemon juice and mix until just combined.

Unfold 1 sheet of puff pastry onto a lightly floured board and roll it slightly with a floured rolling pin until it's a 10 by 10-inch square. Cut the sheet into quarters with a sharp knife. (If knife sticks, put flour on it and continue to cut)

Place a heaping tablespoon of cheese filling into the middle of each of the 4 squares. DO NOT spread out or it will run off the sides when baking. Brush the border of each pastry with egg wash and fold 2 opposite corners to the center, brushing and overlapping the corners of each pastry so they firmly stick together. Brush the top of the pastries with egg wash. Place the pastries on the prepared sheet pan. Repeat with the second sheet of puff pastry and refrigerate the filled Danish for 15 minutes.

Some reviews that I read said that their filling was too runny so they refrigerated just the filling for an hour, then put it on puff pastry, then put everything into the fridge to chill again. Mine did not come out runny, so I did not do this, but just a heads up.

Bake the pastries for 18-20 minutes, rotating the pan once during baking, until puffed and brown. Serve warm and enjoy!

These turned out so yummy! I definitely think the added lemon juice kicked up the flavor just a bit. If you like the sugar frosting that you see on pastries at bakeries, you can mix powdered sugar with a little milk until it reaches the consistency that you want. Add this to the danishes once they are cooled. I didn't do this, but if you like a more sweet pastry, you will probably want to do this.