Horseradish Potato Salad

I've been loving horseradish on everything lately, so when I found this recipe on Smitten Kitchen, I couldn't wait to try it out! This was pretty good and great to make when you don't want your grandma's regular tater salad!

Ingredients (I halved, but full recipe is below)

* 3 pounds small (2-inch) potatoes, your choice of variety

* 1/4 cup red onion, chopped (I omitted)

* 1 tablespoon white-wine vinegar

* 1 cup sour cream (or 1/2 cup sour cream, 1/2 cup yogurt)

* 2 tablespoons fresh dill, finely chopped

* 1/4 cup chopped fresh chives (I used dried)

* 1 tablespoon dijon mustard (I omitted)

* 3 tablespoons prepared horseradish

* 1 teaspoon salt

* 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Directions

1. Boil the potatoes until fork tender, cool them to room temperature and quarter them.

2. In a large bowl, mix the remaining ingredients and fold over the potatoes.

3. Adjust seasoning to taste and either serve immediately or refrigerate.

Buffalo Potato Wedges

Taters are one of the only veggies that my husband will eat, so when I found this recipe, I knew I had to make it for my buffalo sauce loving man! Recipe from here.

Ingredients (for 2)

* Appx 2-3 medium size potatoes

* 1 tbsp olive oil

* Salt, pepper, and garlic powder, to taste

* 1/8 cup butter

* 1/8 cup hot pepper sauce (less if you can't stand the heat)

* Ranch or blue cheese dressing, for dipping

Directions

1. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Arrange potato wedges on sheet and drizzle with olive oil.

2. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
3. Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes until tender.
4. Remove pan from oven. Combine the hot sauce and butter in a microwave safe bowl and microwave until melted. Stir to combine. Drizzle mixture over potato wedges and return to oven for an additional 15 minutes.
5. Serve with salad dressing for dipping.

A Million Jello Shots...

(Actually it was exactly 100!)

I made these little gems for the houseboat trip we went on last weekend on Norris Lake here in TN. These were a HUGE hit among our 10 friends that joined us! They were so perfect and refreshing for just chilling on the lake :)

No real recipe here... just make jello as normal except when you're adding the cold water, substitute about 1/2 of the cold water for vodka. Pour into shot glasses or little plastic containers before refrigerating. (Make sure boiled water w/ gelatin mix is at room temp before adding the alcohol!)

I made 3 different flavors, all made with Smirnoff Vanilla Vodka:

1. Orange (tasted like a creamsicle)

2. Pina Colada (definitely the crowd favorite)

3. Raspberry (just as delicious as the other two)

4th of July Funfetti Cupcakes

No real recipe here, but these are just too cute not to post!! Just make funfetti cupcakes according to box like usual, frost with cream cheese frosting, and top with blueberries and strawberries in any design you'd like. (Raspberries would also be good to use!)

I hope everyone has a great 4oJ weekend!!!

Lemon Chicken with Oregano and Feta

I had an idea in my head of what I wanted to make, and luckily Le Petit Pierogi had this recipe in her blog that matched exactly what I was thinking! This was super good and healthy for you! (Recipe originally adapted from here).

Ingredients

* 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

* Juice of 1/2 lemon

* 1 garlic clove, minced (I omitted)

* Oregano to taste (I used a BUNCH... mmm oregano)

* Salt

* Pepper

* Feta cheese, crumbled (I used sundried tomato and basil flavor)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and spray a small baking dish with nonstick spray.
2. Place chicken breasts in dish and sprinkle with salt, pepper, garlic and oregano. Squeeze lemon liberally over chicken.

3. Bake for 20-25 minutes depending on size of chicken breasts (mine only took about 22 minutes). Add feta cheese on top of the chicken for the last few minutes of baking.

Pizza on the Grill

I've heard so many great things about making pizza on the grill that I decided to finally make it! This was super easy to make and SO good! (Inspiration from this recipe).

Ingredients

* 1 tube pre-made pizza crust (we used Pillsbury)

* 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (we used a combo of italian cheese and parmesan cheese)

* 1 cup pizza sauce

* Meat and veggie toppings of your choice (Keith had turkey pepperoni and I had hot turkey sausage)

Directions

1. Preheat an outdoor grill for low heat and spray grate with cooking spray
2. Roll out prepared pizza dough to a size that will fit your grill (we used 1 tube of dough, cut in half, for 2 individual pizzas).

3. Place on grill for 5 minutes, or to desired doneness, and flip over. Now add the sauce, cheese, and other toppings.
4. Cover the grill and allow to cook over high heat for 5 to 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Jalapeno Chicken

A huge thanks to Molly for introducing me to this recipe!! This is soo soo soo good, I've already made it twice in the past week and a half!! Yummmmmm.

(I opted to bake these instead of grilling and I also substituted a few things to make it simple. My changes are noted below.)

Ingredients (for 2)

* 2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - pounded to 1/4 inch thickness
* Appx 5 oz Italian dressing (I used balsamic vinaigrette)
* 1 fresh jalapeno pepper, halved lengthwise and seeded (I used sliced from the jar)
* Appx 3 oz cream cheese, softened (I used reduced fat)
* 2 slices bacon (I used bacon crumbles)
* Toothpicks

Directions

1. Place chicken breasts in a dish with the dressing. Cover, and marinate in the refrigerator at least 2 hours.
2. Preheat the grill for high heat.
3. Stuff each jalapeno half with cream cheese. Roll chicken breasts around jalapeno peppers. Wrap each chicken breast with a slice of bacon. Secure with toothpicks.

(If using sliced jalapenos and bacon crumbles like I did, just spread the cream cheese inside each chicken breast and add in jalapenos and bacon bits.)
4. Lightly oil the grill grate. Arrange wrapped chicken breasts on the prepared grill. Cook for 20 minutes, turning frequently, or until bacon is browned and the chicken juices run clear.

(I baked in the oven at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes.)

Jalapeno Popper Dip

This dip was great and tasted JUST like jalapeno poppers! Be sure to make a lot because it will likely get devoured! Recipe from allrecipes.com

Ingredients (serves 32)

* 16 oz cream cheese, softened (I used reduced fat)
* 1 cup mayonnaise (I used light)
* 4 oz can chopped green chilies, drained
* 2 oz canned diced jalapeno peppers, drained
* 1 cup grated parmesan cheese (I used italian mix)

Directions

1. Stir together cream cheese and mayonnaise in a large bowl until smooth.

2. Stir in green chiles and jalapeno peppers.

3. Pour mixture into a microwave safe serving dish, and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
4. Microwave on high until hot, about 3 minutes.

5. Serve with crackers or tortilla chips.

Note: If you would like to brown the cheese, bake at 375 degrees for ~30 minutes.

Honey Grilled Shrimp

Before I even start, I need to tell you something... this was the best shrimp I think I've ever had in my life. Not joking. The flavors were SO great, I could have eaten 50 of these things. So if you like shrimp, you absolutely need to make these. YUM! (Found on allrecipes.com)

Ingredients (makes 3 servings)

FOR MARINADE

* 1/2 tsp garlic powder
* 1/4 tbsp ground black pepper
* 1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce (I didn't have any so I used soy sauce.. delicious!)
* 2 tbsp dry white wine
* 2 tbsp Italian-style salad dressing

FOR BASTING SAUCE

* 1/4 cup honey
* 1/4 cup butter, melted
* 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce (I omitted from basting sauce)

* 1 lb large shrimp, peeled and deveined with tails attached (I took tails off)
* Skewers

Directions

1. In a large bowl, mix together garlic powder, black pepper, 1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce, wine, and salad dressing; add shrimp, and toss to coat. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
2. Preheat grill for high heat. Thread shrimp onto skewers, piercing once near the tail and once near the head. Discard marinade.
3. In a small bowl, stir together honey, melted butter, and remaining 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce. Set aside for basting.
4. Lightly oil grill grate. Grill shrimp for 2 to 3 minutes per side, or until opaque. Baste occasionally with the honey-butter sauce while grilling.

Balsamic Potatoes

I originally intended to make this recipe from Messily Ever After, but I decided to simplify a little bit and only use the ingredients I happened to have in the house. This was really easy to make and pretty good! Plus the light balsamic vinaigrette with the fat-free feta cheese made it pretty healthy!

Ingredients (for one serving)

* 2-3 medium size red potatoes, cut into wedges

* 1 tbsp water

* 2 tbsp chopped fresh basil (my fresh basil had gone bad, so I used dried)

* 1/4 cup light balsamic vinaigrette dressing

* Fat-free feta cheese crumbles (I used basil tomato flavor)

Directions

1. Place potato wedges in a large microwave-safe bowl; add 1 tablespoon water.

2. Cover with plastic wrap, vent (do not allow plastic wrap to touch food). Microwave on high 5-6 minutes, or until tender; drain.

3. Stir in vinaigrette and basil. Top each serving with cheese.