Sarah's Fun Stuff: 2009

Monday, December 7, 2009

October Birthdays!

birthday cakes I made for my friends that I celebrate our October birthdays with:

Monday, October 19, 2009

Pirate cake!!!

Here's a few pictures of my son's birthday cake this year. We had a pirate theme, and I did this cake free hand, getting the idea from the plates & napkins....

"sea monster"

"lost at sea"

"island" and "buried treasure!"

"AAARRGH!"

Tresaure Map Cake...I had to add some sprinkles per the request of my 5 year old! :)

Monday, October 12, 2009

Pirate Birthday!!!

Pirate birthday cake for family party for my son's 5th birthday:

Thursday, July 9, 2009

1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp ground chipotle chile pepper (I couldn't find this, so I used ground chili pepper)
1 pork tenderloin (1 1/4 pounds), trimmed of visible fat (I didn't trim mine too much)
1 tsp extra-virgin olive oil (I just used whatever oil I had on hand...I think it was canola)
2 Tbsp honey (I left this out, and used a Tbsp of water instead)
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 1/2 tsp hot-pepper sauce (I used Frank's Red Hot)

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly mist small roasting pan or oven-proof skillet with olive oil spray. Set aside.

In a small bowl, combine the cumin, cinnamon, salt, black pepper, allspice, garlic powder, and ground chipotle (or chili) pepper. Rub the pork evenly with the olive oil. Then rub evenly with the spice mixture until coated. Cover loosely with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, ina small bowl, combine honey (or water), garlic, and hot pepper sauce). Whisk to mix. (You can just use a spoon to mix if you aren't using the honey.) Set aside.

Set a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until it is hot enough for a spritz of water to sizzle on it. With an oven mitt, briefly remove pan from from the heat to lightly mist with olive oil spray. Place the pork in the pan. Cook for 1 minute per side, or until browned on all sides. Transfer to prepared pan. With a basting brush, evenly coat the pork with the reserved hot-sauce mixture.

Roast the tenderloin in the oven for 16-18 minutes, or until a thermometer inserted in the center reaches 160F and the juices run clear. Remove from the oven. Cover the pork loosely with aluminum foil. Let stand 10 minutes. Transfer the pork to a cutting board. Holding a knife at 45 degree angle, cut into thin slices. Serve immediately.

Makes 4 servings.

Nutritional info according to original recipe:Per serving: 221 calories, 30g protein, 10g carbohydrates, 6g fat, (2g saturated fat), 92mg cholesterol, less than 1g fiber, 375 mg sodium

I used this recipe for a low carb meal for us by leaving out the honey. That makes the pork tenderloin less than 1 carb per serving!

I'll have to remember to take a picture BEFORE dinner next time I make this! :)

My husband loved this enough for me to make it twice in one week, and even the kids were asking for more!!!! I served it the 1st time with a little sour cream on the side, but left it off completely the second time.

Monday, July 6, 2009

Strawberry Shortcake!

July, 2009

Strawberry Shortcake birthday cake

Good Bye cupcake cake

June, 2009

Good bye cupcake cake for a going away party at a park. Made it very easy for everyone to atke a piece and we didn't need to cut it and have forks to eat it! :)

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

cupcake cake castle!

June, 2009

I had some extra cupcakes, so I just played around with them. This worked out SO good for the 10 kids I had at my house the other day! Everyone got to pick which one they wanted and no cutting with a knife, no plates, no forks...it was great!

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Baby's 1st Birthday

June, 2009

this was for a combo birthday party, so I just did a smaller cake for the birthday boy....6 inch round - it was SO cute!

Batman!

June, 2009

hard to see in this picture, but I did part of Batman in black, and part in dark grey.....apparently I should have used some dark blue. The birthday boy asked me why I didn't! :)

little bat accents were fun...

Monday, May 18, 2009

S'Mores cupcakes......

April, 2009
I made these for a fundraiser recently.

Friday, May 8, 2009

Crispy Chicken Bites with Spicy Sour Cream Dip

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Dawn Wells Potato Peeling Video

Here's a short video (less than 2 minutes) on peeling a cooked potato for potato salad. I haven't tried it yet, but it looks really easy!

Friday, April 10, 2009

Grandpa's 80th birthday

March, 2009

I made this cake back in March.....just realized I never posted it!!! My hubby's Grandpa turned 80 last month, and we had a fun birthday party for him. I made the cake at home, then took it with us to the party, where I added the deer to the cake. I do wish I had done the bush after I had the deer....it would look a little better, but I still like it! :)

Can you tell the water is shiny? that was fun!

Monday, February 16, 2009

Low Carb pancakes

Dry ingredients:
1c vital wheat gluten
1c ground almonds
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp sea slat (I used about 2/3 tsp regular table salt)

Wet ingredients:
2 eggs
2 cups buttermilk
1/4c butter, melted
1/2c blueberries (I left these out since Victoria is allergic)
Coconut oil or cooking spray, for frying

1. Combine all dry ingredients in a lrage mixing bowl; set them aside.
2. Ina smaller bowl, combine wet ingredients except the oil, mixing well. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir them until just combined. If the batter is too thick, you may need to add some water to make it thinner.
3. Cook the pancakes on a medium-hot griddle or frying pan that has been lightly greased with coconut oil OR cooking oil spray. Cook the pancakes on one side until bubbles cover the surface and the edges have just set;flip the pancakes and cook them until they are golden brown. (It is likely that you will need to decrease the temperature of your griddle as you go, ending up on medium-low heat for most of the pancakes.) Continue to add grease as needed to te pan to prevent sticking.

Nutrition information per serving (1 pancake):
Carbohydrates: 3 grams;Effective Carb Count: 2 grams; Protein: 13 grams; Fat: 8 grams; Calories:130

Mine were less carbs, because I left out the blueberries. Next time I make these, I would like to include some kind of berries as it would add a little sweetness. These have a different texture from regular pancakes, because of the ground almonds. I was actually surprise just how good these were.