Ava's 1st Birthday Party - Penelope Bird Birthday

I never shared the photos from Ava's 1st Birthday almost 2 1/2 years ago! Her nursery was decorated with Pottery Barn Kids Penelope Birds, so I decided to use that theme for her party. My aunts had made some beautiful table runners and decorations using these birds for my baby shower and let me keep them to use for this party.

Here are the sugar cookies decorated with royal icing:

The cake was a boxed chocolate cake covered with Easy Vanilla Buttercream. I always used boxed cakes when I'm going to be decorating extensively.  I love how they taste, and they save me time when I know I will need to focus my energy on decorating.

I used royal icing to make the birds - just pipe the shapes onto waxed paper, let dry overnight, and carefully peel off. Store in an airtight container until ready to use.

 Mini-cupcakes made with batter from a boxed cake and topped with Easy Vanilla Buttercream:

 The entire dessert table.  I love how it turned out with the bright, fun colors!

Although she didn't enjoy us singing to her, Ava loved her smash cake!

Ella's 1st Birthday Party

Our sweet little girl Ella turned 1 in February, and I wanted to share a few photos from her Winter ONEderland Party.  I kept all of the snowflakes up from Ava's Frozen party, so the time spent decorating was considerably less. After going overboard with Ava's birthday party, I wanted to keep this party more simple but still honor our baby's first year.

White chocolate and peppermint-covered pretzel snowflakes (Rold Gold Brand):

Smash cake - a homemade, "healthy" banana cake. I won't link the recipe because it was really dense and awful and Ella wouldn't eat it. She did enjoy the Easy Vanilla Buttercream, which I tinted pink using homemade beet juice.

Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Cake - this cake was my mom's birthday cake since her birthday is also in February. Two 9-inch layers of boxed strawberry cake.  Simple ganache on top of the first layer.  Sweetened whipped cream on top of the ganache and covering the cake.

My grandma's butter cookies:

Monthly photos I took of Ella throughout her first year:

The snowflake banner is actually made of coffee filters. Some I dyed with pink food coloring, then let dry flat.  I mounted her monthly pictures in the center of the snowflakes then strung them on some hemp twine.

French Brownies

These brownies are a staple in the home of my former thesis advisor, Cara.  She brought them to a lab event many years ago, and I immediately asked for the recipe. These brownies are not chewy but rather more fudge-y and, as Cara put it, "wet." They have a nice crispy top and are truly decadent. I love having recipes for different styles of brownies - rarely do I come across a brownie that I don't like!  Cara couldn't remember the source of this recipe, but she thought they were called "French Brownies."  I've done some internet searching and am unable to locate the original source or title, so for now they will keep that name.

French Brownies

Ingredients:

Mixture 1:

2 sticks unsalted butter

8 ounces unsweetened chocolate

Mixture 2: 

2 cups granulated sugar

4 eggs

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

1/2 cup all purpose flour

Directions:

1. Make Mixture 1:  Melt butter and chocolate in a double boiler, whisking until smooth. Cool to room temperature.

2. Make Mixture 2:  In a medium bowl, combine sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract.  

3. Add mixture 1 to bowl containing mixture 2, stir to combine, then fold in 1/2 cup flour.  

4. Pour batter into a pan (I think I used an 8-inch square Pyrex dish or possibly an 8.5 x 11-inch baking dish) and bake for 25 - 35 minutes. 

Ava's 3rd Birthday Party - FROZEN

As always, I'm behind in posting, but I wanted to document Ava's 3rd Birthday. She requested a "Frozen" birthday party, and I happily obliged. There were so many cute ideas on Pinterest, and with her birthday being in December there was no shortage of snowflake decor! Hobby Lobby had a great sale on snowflake ornaments, and I went a little overboard but justified that I will be able to use them every year to decorate the house or the Christmas tree.

Ava asked for a chocolate cake, so I just made a Duncan Heinz boxed cake, two boxes to be exact.  I made four 9-inch layers - three for the cake and the 4th layer for the cake pops.

The cake was frosted with my standard go-to Easy Vanilla Buttercream.  I used Wilton gel food coloring to tint it. This is my favorite cake I've ever made!

For the "ice" candy, I use this recipe.  Note- I used a considerable amount of non-stick Canola cooking spray, and it affected the color of my candy. There was brownish greasy areas that pooled in certain areas. I would recommend using it sparingly or using a paper towel to wipe the pan after spraying to ensure the pan is greased evenly. Also, my candy ended up being a greenish-blue because I didn't add quite enough food coloring. I would have preferred it to be more blue, so I recommend adding more color if you think yours has a greenish look. The untinted candy is sort of yellow, so adding a small amount of blue makes it green, but if you add more I'm sure it would look more blue.

These are the Soft Frosted Sugar Cookies:

For the cake pops, I just smushed up a single 9-inch layer of bake boxed cake and formed into balls. I then dipped a stick into some melted white chocolate (I used "Pure White Vanilla Flavored Candy Wafers" from Hobby Lobby which I believe is for chocolate fountains, and it was the smoothest white chocolate I've worked with yet- loved it!), stuck the stick into the ball, then carefully coated the cake ball with chocolate by rolling it in the warm melted white chocolate.  I then set them, stick straight up in the air, on a piece of waxed paper, and immediately sprinkled with colored sugar. If you wait more than a minute or so, the chocolate will set-up and the sugar will not stick.  I have never made cake pops that stand up on their sticks yet - that makes me nervous!

These snowflakes were just royal icing piped into snowflake shapes on a piece of waxed paper. Let sit overnight to dry and carefully peel them off of the waxed paper!

It's hard to believe my first baby is now 3!  She loved her party, but now I fear I've set the bar too high.  It's only May, and she's already asking for a Cinderella party this December.  Better get to work! :-)

Grilled Chicken Fajitas

These fajitas have been one of our favorite dinners for years. They are perfect for spring when the warmer weather is the perfect invitation to get outside and grill, but we enjoy them year-round. I have even braved the snow and grilled these outside in January - they are that good!  Sometimes we serve the chicken & veggies with tortillas, but most often we make fajita bowls by placing the grilled food in a bowl and topping as desired. Tossing the cooked chicken and veggies in the reserved marinade is the secret to the bright and tangy flavor of these fajitas, so don't skip that step. Every time I make these, I go searching my blog to pull up the recipe, rather than dig out the enormous ATK cookbook, and every time I realize that I have yet again failed to post the recipe.  Since I'm making these tonight, I've decided to finally post it! And just in time for Cinco de Mayo :-)

Grilled Chicken Fajitas

Ingredients:

For the marinade:

4 tablespoons vegetable oil

1/3 c. lime juice from 3 to 4 limes

3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

½ tablespoon brown sugar

1 jalapeño, seeded and minced

1 ½ tablespoons chopped cilantro

1 teaspoon salt

¾ teaspoon pepper

For the chicken:

All but 1/4 cup of marinade

1 teaspoon salt

3 (7 to 8 ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded to 1/2-inch thickness

For the veggies:

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 large red onion, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch-thick rounds (do not separate rings)

1 large red bell pepper, seeded and quartered

1 large green bell pepper, seeded and quartered

Salt and pepper

Optional:

Flour tortillas

Shredded cheese

Sour cream

Salsa

Cilantro

Directions: 

1. Mix marinade ingredients in a glass measuring cup.  Remove and set aside 1/4 cup of marinade.  

2. Combine the remainder of the marinade with an additional 1 teaspoon salt and the chicken, cover and refrigerate for 15 minutes. 

3. Brush both sides of the onion rounds and bell peppers with vegetable oil and season with salt and pepper. 

4. Using a charcoal or gas grill, cook chicken over high heat until well browned and internal temperature reaches at least 165 degrees.  

5. Meanwhile, grill the onions and peppers (skin side down first) over lower heat until spottily charred and crisp-tender, 8 to 10 minutes, turning every 3 to 4 minutes. 

6. If using tortillas, you may warm them on the grill for about 20 seconds per side. 

7. Separate the rings of onion and place in a medium bowl (I like to cut the rings in half). Slice the peppers into strips and add to the bowl. Toss veggies with 2 tablespoons of the reserved (unused) marinade.  

8. Slice the chicken into 1/4-inch strips and toss with the remaining 2 tablespoons reserved marinade in a separate bowl. (Alternatively, toss chicken and veggies together with the entire 1/4 cup portion of reserved marinade). 

9. Serve with toppings as desired, and enjoy!

Source: The Complete America's Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook

Soft Frosted Sugar Cookies

These Soft Frosted Sugar Cookies are rumored to be even better than the ones you can find in grocery store bakeries.  I do not like the fake frosting on those kinds of cookies, so I think these homemade ones with a buttery vanilla frosting are a much better alternative.  I've made these many times, and they are quickly becoming one of my favorite cookies!

Soft Frosted Sugar Cookies

Makes 2 dozen large cookies

Ingredients:
For the cookies:
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
5 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the frosting:
5 cups powdered sugar, sifted
5 1/3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon vanilla extract*
4 - 8 tablespoons milk

Optional:
Food coloring or gel
Sprinkles

*This is a large amount of vanilla extract and will affect the color of the frosting. If you wish to have a lighter, butter-colored frosting, use clear vanilla extract.

Directions:
1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.

2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugar. Beat on medium-high speed until soft and fluffy, ~2 - 3 minutes.

3. Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down the bowl as needed. Blend in the vanilla.

4. With the mixer on low, add the dry ingredients. Mix until just incorporated.

5. Cover dough and chill for 1 hour.  Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350F and line baking sheets with parchment paper.

6. When dough is chilled, scoop a scant quarter cup of dough and roll into a ball. I weighed out the whole ball of dough on a kitchen scale and divided it by 24. Each of my cookies was around 2 ounces in weight.  Flatten the ball slightly depending on the thickness you desire. The cookies will not spread or flatten much during baking. Repeat this process with the remaining dough and space the cookies ~2 - 3 inches apart on the baking sheet.

7. Bake 10 - 12 minutes or just until set. Do not over bake!  The edges should not be brown. Remove from oven and let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for several minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

8. To make the frosting, combine the powdered sugar, melted butter, vanilla, and milk in a medium bowl by whisking until smooth. Start with the smaller amount of milk and add more if needed to reach spreadable consistency.  If you add too much milk, the frosting will slide off the cookies. You may add more powdered sugar to thicken if it is too thin.

9. Tint frosting with food coloring or gel as desired. Frost the cooled cookies with an offset spatula or spoon. Immediately decorate with sprinkles if desired, otherwise the frosting will crust and the sprinkles will not adhere well. If you need to step away for more than a moment, place a damp paper towel over the frosting to keep it from crusting.  If frosting begins to thicken, add a bit more milk.

Store the frosted cookies in an airtight container.

Source: Adapted from Annie's Eats and Hostess with the Mostess

Simplified Chicken Tortilla Soup

I first posted this Chicken Tortilla Soup recipe in the summer of 2009. I have consistently made it since then, and over the years I have slightly modified the recipe to make it more simple and quick. This soup is a staple for us during the winter months, and I often immediately freeze half the batch so we can have it ready for a quick weeknight dinner. The soup itself is quite healthy - it's a tomato broth based soup unlike many of the creamy/cheesy restaurant versions of Chicken Tortilla Soup. The toppings are certainly not optional for us - they really elevate this meal to something amazing. As Baby Sister is due to join us two weeks from today (!!!), I feel more at ease knowing there's a container of this soup in my freezer :-)   

Simplified Chicken Tortilla Soup

Ingredients:

5 vine-ripened tomatoes

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 yellow onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin

3 cups chicken broth

1 cup water

1 or 2 jalapeño peppers (depending on your spice preference), ribs and seeds removed and roughly chopped 

1 14.5-ounce can fire-roasted diced tomatoes

salt and pepper, to taste

2 cooked, shredded chicken breasts

Optional toppings:

Crushed tortilla chips/tortilla strips (you can find these at the store near the croutons)

1 Roma tomato, diced

Chopped fresh cilantro

Shredded cheese (Monterey Jack, Cheddar, etc.)

Light sour cream

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°.

1. Slice the tomatoes in half. Spread 1 tablespoon of the olive oil on a foil-lined baking sheet and arrange the tomatoes on top, skin side up. Drizzle the tomatoes with another 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Roast the tomatoes for 35 minutes, until the skins wrinkle and the tomatoes are slightly brown around the edges.

2. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a heavy-bottomed, 4-qt. soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and bell pepper and sauté about 5 minutes, until the vegetables become soft. Stir in the chili powder and cumin and cook for 1 minute.

3. Add the chicken stock and water. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then cover, decrease the heat and simmer 10 - 15 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, place the chopped jalapeños, the canned tomatoes with their juices, and the roasted tomatoes (included all the juices and browned tomato bits) in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Puree the jalapeño-tomato mixture about 1 minute. Transfer the mixture to the soup and continue simmering, covered, about  30 – 60 minutes.

5. Add salt and pepper to taste along with the cooked shredded chicken. Simmer a few minutes until chicken is heated through.

6. Ladle the soup into bowls. Top as desired and serve immediately.

Source: Adapted from You're Gonna Bake It After All, from Annie’s Eats