Valentine dinner

Since we celebrated Valentine's early (and it's too crazy to eat out on Valentines!!), Faith and I made a fun, festive meal at home! Tim was quite surprised and loved every bit of it.
Our menu included:

• Pizza with heart-shaped pepperoni
• Salad with heart-shaped carrots and 'cupid arrow' tomoatoes
  
• Heart cut-out apples (we need healthy with all the bugs going 'round)
  
• Dairy-free chocolate covered strawberries, special for Tim
  
• Berry smoothies with 'cupid arrow' straws!
• Sparkling cider, of course

Ever since we discovered how yummy and EEEAASSYY pizza's are on pita bread, we can't get enough of it! I'm never making homemade pizza dough again! And it's fun to have our own personal pizzas to put whatever we want on it, Faith looooved having her very own pizza.

Anyone else stay home and do a fun dinner?! Or breakfast?

Happy Valentines!!

I RUFF you!



Happy Valentines Day!! :) :)

Cream-filled strawberries

Ever heard of mascarpone cheese?
Mascarpone pronounced mas-kahr-POH-nay is a soft unripened cheese that belongs to the cream cheese family. It comes from Switzerland and Italy and is a thick, buttery-rich, sweet and velvety, ivory-colored cheese produced from cow's milk that has the texture of clotted or sour cream. It delicate and mild flavor is great with fresh fruit and is probably best known for its use in Tiramisu.

.....Uh, YEA! That screams delicious! I would suggest trying the mascarpone over cream cheese, it's very delicious!

Cream-filled Strawberries
Recipe from: CafeJohnsonia.blogspot.com

12-16 (more or less depending on the size) large strawberries
4 oz. cold heavy cream
4 oz. mascarpone cheese (or cream cheese, room temperature) {I found the mascarpone at Smith's with all the specialty cheeses.}
2-4 Tbsp. confectioner's sugar (make is as sweet as you like)
1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
a little vanilla extract

Beat the mascarpone (or cream cheese) and confectioner's sugar with an electric mixer. Add the heavy cream. Continue beating until the mixture thickens. Add the lemon juice and vanilla extract. Continue beating until stiff peaks form.

Cut an "X" into the bottom of each strawberry.

Fit a pastry bag with a star tip and fill it with the cream. Carefully pipe the cream into the center of each strawberry, allowing some of it overflow from the cuts you made on the strawberry.

Serve immediately, or cover with plastic film/wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.You can't stop at just one with these!

This makes a nice light, but addictive little treat for that special someone! :)

Want a cute tag to go along with it?! Go HERE to download!

Red velvet bonbon truffles

Just sittin' here eatin' my bonbons....literally. :) Of all the truffles I've tried, this one is by far one of the best! You think the oreo truffles are good? (and they are!) You'll love these! A hard, crunchy shell along with a melt-in-your-mouth-creamy, smooth center, the best of both worlds. Mmmmmm.

My centers don't really look as red in pictures, but they are red.

Don't have a tag to go along with these, but nothing says "I love you" louder than chocolate truffles, eh! :)

Red Velvet Bonbons

Original recipe by Lindsey Johnson
MAKES 18

For the centers:

8 oz. milk chocolate
4 oz. bittersweet chocolate
4 oz. heavy cream
4 oz. cold cream cheese, cut into 16 pieces
1/2-1 tsp. red gel food coloring (I used Wilton)
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

For dipping:
8 oz. tempered white chocolate (at about 80 degrees F.)
8 oz. tempered bittersweet chocolate (at about 88 degrees F.)

Chop chocolate and place in a large, heat-proof bowl. Add the cream. Set the bowl over a pan of simmering water. Stir until smooth. (You can take the bowl off the heat when there are still some larger chunks--they will melt.)

Remove bowl from heat. Add the cream cheese chunks. Switch to a whisk. Whisk until smooth. Add the food coloring and vanilla extract. Let cool to room temperature. Press waxed paper to the surface and chill overnight or at least 5 hours.

Line a baking sheet with waxed paper. Use a small ice cream/cookie scoop and drop evenly sized blobs of the ganache onto the waxed paper. (You should get about 18.) Place baking sheet in freezer for two hours to harden.

Once the chocolate blobs are firm, remove them from the freezer. Dust your hands with cornstarch and roll into smooth balls. Put the balls back on the baking sheet and chill again for a few hours.

Instructions for dipping:

Take one ball of ganache at a time, and drop them into the tempered chocolate. Carefully turn the ball around in the chocolate so it is uniformly covered with chocolate. Use a regular fork, or chocolate dipping fork to remove the ball from the melted chocolate. Drag the bottom of the fork over the edge of the bowl to remove the excess melted chocolate.

Place the bonbon on the waxed paper. Repeat with remaining balls. Drizzle leftover chocolate over the tops of the dipped bonbons. Let harden in the fridge until ready to eat.

Store in the fridge in an airtight container, or layer bonbons on waxed paper in a freezer-proof container. Let some to room temperature before serving.

Chocolate mousse filled cupcakes with chocolate ganache

Does that name catch your attention or what?!? :)

My mom told me that cupcakes are goin' out and pies are the "in" thing now. Well, not for me, especially with these. I do love a good pie, but this is not your ordinary cupcake! I've been wanting to make filled-cupcakes for a while and decided to try it out with my chocolate mousse.

I found this handy little gadget, specifically designed for filling cupcakes, at Orson Gygi. (my new favorite store!) Some of the gadgets I see though I think, come on you'd have to be really lazy to buy this! :) You could easily just scoop out centers with a spoon, but I'd rather poke it and twist it than spoon it. :S

As I was writing this, it reminded me of the game "Bop It". If you've heard of it, you'll know what I mean....bop it, twist it, pull it. :) I forgot to show the "dip it" part, that's the funnest (it IS a word ;) part!

Aren't they so pretty! They're so good, even my milk-allergic hubby couldn't pass one up! Poor, poor guy. :)

hehe. :) That may or may not have been me who devoured that.

Chocolate mousse-filled cupcakes with ganache
*One box cake mix (I used devil's food)

Follow instructions on cake mix box. Once cupcakes are cooled, make mousse.

Chocolate Mousse
(from my mousse cup recipe last year)

Whip 1 pint heavy whipping cream to medium stiff peaks. Stir in 1 pint jar of Kraft double fudge topping and 2 teaspoons cocoa.

Make holes in center of cupcakes (whichever method you prefer). Fill with chocolate mousse. Refrigerate til it sets up a bit.

Chocolate Ganache
2/3 cup heavy cream
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Put cream in double boiler. When it starts to simmer a little, take off heat and add chocolate chips. Stir until smooth.

Now, the fun part. Take cupcakes out of fridge, dip tops into ganache making sure it's all covered. Sprinkle with cute pink nonpareils or anything of your choice. This may be too much chocolate for some (is there such a thing!), but I tried doing buttercream frosting on it, and there's just no better way to do it. The ganache goes very well with the mousse. Put in fridge to set up.
Hurry and stick in these cute cupcake toppers I made and give to a friend before they all magically disappear. :)

Strawberry Popcorn + printable tag!

Thinking about the other popcorn recipes I've seen and tried, I looked around for one for Valentines but found nothing really. I decided to experiment (I don't do this hardly ever, especially with food) and see how my idea of strawberries and cream popcorn would turn out.

I got some chocolate and found some strawberry extract and started. 2 minutes in, I stopped. haha Nothing worse than seeing your smooth chocolate instantly turn chunky (well, I guess it's far more worse seeing yourself instantly turn chunky, lol). I figured since peppermint extract worked for the peppermint bark popcorn, this would work. Not the case..supposedly it's water-based. Oh, poop.
Orson & Gygi have everything, so I called to check and I found something even better than extract.....strawberry flavored chocolate! Perfect!

I started off with strawberry popcorn, drizzling white chocolate for my strawberries and cream. Then I thought it might be too strong, so I did vanilla popcorn drizzled with strawberry chocolate. Then I thought....HEY, chocolate covered strawberry popcorn!....woa :) It's as good as it sounds! I took a poll for people's favorites and the verdict was:

#1 White chocolate drizzled with strawberry.
#2 Close tie was chocolate covered strawberry.
They're all good though, in their own way. :)
Not only is it yummy but it's such a bright, pretty color of pink!! I love it!

Strawberries & Cream Popcorn

15-16 cups popped popcorn
1 lb. of either strawberry flavored chocolate or white
white, strawberry or milk chocolate for drizzling
So many possibilities!

Melt 1 lb chocolate and pour over popcorn. Stir around til it's all coated. spread out on wax paper to dry. Drizzle with chocolate of choice using a fork. let dry. Break up in chunks and eat! :) Or wrap it up cute, print off these fun labels I made to go with it and deliver to a friend or special someone!

Valentine card #1

So I just thought it would be fun to make Valentine cards/tags to go along with the Valentiney recipes I share. I am posting them on my design site, My Pookie Designs. I just posted one to go with the Eclair Squares; go print them out and have fun with them! :) Keep checking back there after I post recipes here, for a card to go along with each one!

Potted heart flower!

These were extremely fun and cute to make! I was squealing with excitement through the whole thing. :)

What I used:

2 bunches small fake red flowers
dowel
green foam
styrofoam heart (I couldn't find one, so I cut a heart shape from a styrofoam disc. worked out great-you don't even see the underneath anyways.)
peat moss
1 small plant pot
ribbon
paint

Pluck all flower heads off stems, dab hot glue on end and stick into styrofoam heart. Continue til heart is covered. Paint dowel and pot (I used heirloom white). When dry, stuff green foam into pot, push dowel into bottom of heart and then into the green foam in pot. Top pot with a little peat moss, tie ribbon around dowel and you got yourself a cute potted heart flower!

Perfect addition to my mantel!

Mini wreath stand

I've seen a bunch of tutorials for those cute wreath stands and as I was looking at my candle rings, I thought it would be fun to hang those up.

I wanted to come up with a different style of stand. Here's what I used:

1 wooden heart plaque
15 wooden wheels
1 wooden ball
1 metal hook

I got all these from Hobby Lobby. I used wood glue to glue all wheels on top of each other (it's better to glue a few together at a time, wait til dry, then glue a few more on, etc..or it will slide and become crooked). Once all dry, glue them in center of heart plaque and glue ball on top. Let dry completely. Screw in hook. Spray paint. I spray painted it candy pink first, let it dry, then heirloom white. I sanded it on various places and it brought out the pink underneath.

Hang your candle ring or any other small decor and enjoy your cute Valentines wreath stand! Things are so much cuter when they're mini, no?

Candy heart ball

This was a low-energy, simple task for Faith and I to do while stuck sick in the house this week. Gluing candy onto a ball...doesn't get much easier {or tastier} than that. :) It's a great activity to do with little kids, I did the glue and she put them on the ball, she had lots of fun doing it and she was so proud to show daddy our decoration we made when he got home!

Valentines here?

Holy Shmokes, is it that time already?! I'm more than ready for it, but I just can't believe it's here.

We're celebrating early tonight. I saw a poster on our mailbox just yesterday advertising a Sweetheart's Ball just down the street from us at the golf course. Perfect! The only problem was we waited until today to find a babysitter. Luckily I have an awesome hubby who found us one in our ward.....after 1 1/2 hours of calling. :S

Tim told me he just wanted me to make something for him for his gift, so I made him a

lollipop flower bouquet (didn't get a chance to take a picture before they got hoovered down......by the girls, not Tim :) Both gifts were greatly appreciated and loved by him, I love seeing the look on his face when I do or give something to him.

My love letter in a bottle. Printed my letter, burned the edges, rolled up, tied with a ribbon, stuck it in a soy sauce bottle I saved and washed, filled bottle with confetti, burned edges of label, taped it on, stuck a cork in it and voila! I was so excited that I had a cork laying around.....kinda random, who has extra corks around? =)

and mini baked apple pies in a box. Got the idea from HERE. She has a template to print the box, how cute and fun is that?! The pie-lets (not to be confused with piglets) only took me 30 minutes to make...20 of that was cooking time!

Something different, cute and fun, give it a try! Good thing I'm posting early....you still have 2 days to do it. =)

Know what he got ME? I thought the jigsaw was good enough, but along came a Dremel this week! woo hoo!! Now all I need is a mitre saw and I'll be set......Mother's Day maybe? ;)

my visiting teacher dropped this off just before we left, so nice of her and cute idea!

Timmah and I at the dance. We had to dust off our moves and practice them, it was a lot of fun! They had dinner there too, but we were too full from eating Thai food beforehand. mmm mmm!

I love my hubby! He always knows how to have a good time!

Anybody else like dancing? Not a whole lot of people we know like to. Pity. Would be a blast to do double dates going dancin'.

We came back to a feverish baby. Darn that teething! Mikkie's getting two big molars, not a fun thing; my poor baby girl.

Valentines sweets

There was a bunch of goodies I wanted to try out but only got to a few. I can't believe Valentines is next week! Good thing I started planning early.

So, made some pink & red chocolate dipped pretzels, mini cupcakes and some REALLY good sugar cookies! They are just like the ones you get at the store, except better. =) My mom found the recipe for the cookie and I found a royal icing recipe from Martha Stewart I wanted to try; it looked so smooth and glossy. This is probably the only time that I made something and it turned out somewhat like the picture. (not as pretty, but it did look glossy and smooth like the picture!) After icing hardened it was even better, there was no holding back on inhaling those puppies!

What to do with all these sweets around?!?! Valentines isn't just for your special someone, it's for everyone you love, ya?! I love my neighbors, so I made some goody plates for them. It shows them we love them and helps us by ridding my kitchen of a plethora of dangerous sweets. Good plan. =)

Moist & Chewy Sugar Cookies

1 cup butter softened

2 c sugar

Cream together. Add:

3 eggs

1 c sour cream

1 t baking soda

2 t vanilla

Mix together til fluffy.

4 cups flour (use 3 at first, then use only what you need after that, don't use too much flour)

Cut out with shapes, place on greased cookie sheet @ 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes. We did 8 min. and they turned out perfect.

Royal Icing

2 pounds confectioners' sugar, sifted

10 tablespoons meringue powder

1 cup water

Freebie Valentines kit 2!

** NO LONGER DOWNLOADABLE FOR FREE **

This one is "Puppy Love" dedicated to my cute doggy Rex(aka Rexy poo, aka Rexamus Poochamus), who died almost exactly a year ago. My family had him since he was a pup back in '95. We had him for 14 years! He was totally family; the sweetest, most loyal, funniest dog you'd ever known! He wouldn't have hurt a flea. (sure, he'd eat a mouse or cat-but not a flea!) I miss that pooch SO much. It's not the same going to visit my parents and not being able to pet his lil head,rub his ears and tummy and baby talk to him telling him how he's the cootest witto poochie, while he gives me the "wow, you're weird but I don't care as long as you keep rubbing my belly" look.

February 8, 2009 was one of the saddest days of my life when he had to be put down due to a zillion heath problems. He lived a good, long life though. We love and miss him very much!

Enjoy! Thanks for all the kind comments on previous posts, you totally make my day, thanks! =)

Free for Personal Use Only

Valentines ideas: THE list

Ok, here is THE list of lists for Valentines ideas! I know there's a lot more other fun and creative idea out there, but this is all I could find/come up with......

· Whatever you decide to do, make a few rules for the evening or day, like "No TV" or "No finances/work/etc talk". Even if you just play a game together or spend the evening talking, focus on your love for each other and laughing together. Do the things that you know your sweetheart likes to do and make it special for them.

· Thanksgiving Point is having a fun dinner/dance featuring The Joe Muscolino Band on February 13^th. Check out details HERE.

· One thing I’ve noticed for sure is ANY restaurant is going to be jam packed on Valentines weekend. Skip the dinner out - restaurants are busy and expensive on Valentine's Day - order take out or make your sweetheart’s favorite meal and eat by candlelight in your house (even if it is McDonald's or Burger King, this can be nice).

· Have a picnic in your living room. Spread a blanket. Buy some sparkling cider, cheese and bread (or any food you want). Light some candles and have fun discussing anything and everything together.

· Make a scavenger hunt. Have each clue lead eventually to a small gift or even dessert. OR First plan a scavenger hunt. Write clues on note cards telling him/her where to go. Place the clues in the places around the community. Have a friend or relative give him/her the first clue. The final clue leads your date to a restaurant (be waiting at the table with flowers)…I think this is one of my favorite ideas.

· Cook dinner together! Have fun with it!

· Blindfold your date from the very beginning. Put her in the car and when you get to the restaurant, help her sit down. Have a nice romantic candlelight dinner waiting for her along with some roses with personal note.

· Prepare three envelopes (each with a different date). Your date first chooses one of the three envelopes. She can opt to accept that date, or trade it in for one of the remaining two envelopes, which could be more or less desirable. Be prepared to go out immediately.

· Recreate Your First Date. Unless it was just a total disaster, your first date probably holds a lot of sentimental value for both you and your loved one. What better Valentine's Day surprise could there be than to recreate the first date, a time when you first fell in love? Go to the same restaurant, rent the first movie you watched together, take him/her dancing to the same place - whatever you did on that first date, make it happen again. Even if it was a disaster, you can recreate it, making it better the second time.

· Getaway Trip- This one will require more money and a little preparation, but is sure to be great fun for both of you. Plan a secret weekend vacation. If you have kids, arrange for babysitters without letting your love know about it. Book the hotel reservations and when Friday rolls around, surprise them by having their bags packed, ready to go. A getaway involving just the two of you will be fun no matter where you go.

· Coupon book: An oldy but a goody. Who can say how long the coupon book has been around, but it needs an upgrade. Gone are the days of the “take out the trash” coupon or “do the dishes” coupon. Now it’s time for “a back rub after a long day’s work” or “win the next disagreement.” No matter what they be, the coupons are sure to be greatly appreciated.

· On colored construction paper cut out 14 hearts (for the # of days in Feb. until Valentines) On each heart, write something you love about your sweetheart, favorite memories, quotes from your favorite songs or movies, and quotes about love in general. Place one in random spots each day until Valentines and maybe make the last one a little more special by _______ you fill in the blank =)

· Go all out with lit candles, soft music, rose petals, things that you don’t normally do everyday. Just go all out, it doesn’t have to be expensive or that much work, but can create a perfect mood.

· Massage! Most everyone loves a good massage.

· Hot air balloon rides are neat and could be romantic! Bundle up and share an amazing view together up high!

· Hot tubbing! It’s actually fun to be in a hot tub in the cold weather….makes the hot tub not as hot.

· Carriage rides

· Have a backwards dinner (start with dessert, then a main course, then salad, then soup, and finish with an appetizer).

· Create a trail of candy from their door step, to the car, and have balloons tied to their car door handle, and antennae. Also tie balloons up in random places that they'll see on their way to work.

· What men like to get as gifts is often quite different than what women want. Many women enjoy the finer things for Valentine’s gifts such as roses, candy and jewelry. All women love sentimental gifts. Men usually like practical gifts, and they never mind getting food or a romantic evening with you! If you are at a loss as to what to get your husband this Valentine’s Day, here are some helpful ideas.

1. Romantic Gift Basket

You can guarantee that a gift basket filled with romantic items will put a smile on his face. Fill a basket with a pair of silk boxer shorts, some good smelling massage lotion or oils, bubble bath and candles. Don’t forget to add in a CD filled with romantic music, too.

2. Tickets to a Game

Most men love seeing their favorite sports team, so why not get your hubby a pair of tickets? Even if you do not love sports, you can tell him he can take his buddy along with him. You can guarantee that this gift will be much appreciated this Valentine’s Day. Or instead of sports, you could get tickets to see someone in concert!

3. Hobby Gifts

Your husband probably has a hobby that he enjoys. Perhaps it is woodworking, golf, model cars or playing poker. This Valentine’s Day give him something that coincides with this favorite hobby, such as a new tool, a gift card to the driving range, paint for his model cards or a card shuffler for his poker games. If you are at a loss as to what he needs, then take him shopping and let him pick it out. He won’t mind because he will get exactly what he wants.

Some of these were my own ideas and others I found at these various sites below:

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Hope this helps a little with what you want to do with and for your sweetheart for Valentines! Good luck and have fun! =)

Freebie Valentines kit 1

** NO LONGER DOWNLOADABLE FOR FREE **

I made 2 kits because the kit was going to be big, and I wanted two different themes; but the colors are coordinating on both kits. Other one coming Tuesday!

First one is "Love Bug". This one is for my handsome hubby. Valentines was not my favorite holiday until I married him. He is a quite the Romantic. He has and continues to be very good to me. I couldn't imagine life with anyone else. He is perfect for me. I love you sweetie!

Ow, what a hunk! =)

Hope you enjoy! I would love to hear how you like it!

Free for personal use only

Valentines blocks

I couldn't wait until I could use my jigsaw to make some wooden crafts, so I just did some more block letters! The 'sweetheart' and 'Valentines' blocks I kept for myself and the rest I made for people! It was too much fun. I'm loving the burlap look with painted letters! (can't ya tell? =)

Thanks to my awesome daddo who provides me with all his wood scraps from work! He had a huge box of little pieces that he said they were just going to throw away!! I was almost in shock (hehe) I'm glad I asked him.

Early Valentines gift!

I never thought I'd be so excited to get power tools, but when I think of all you can do with them, (all the crafts) I told Tim what I wanted and we decided to make it my early Valentines gift. We give early gifts a lot around here...we just can't hold our horses. =) So....here's my new play area...my own wood shop in my garage =) yayyyyyy! The table was off of ksl, jigsaw from HD and the sexy saw horse..... yup, we made it ourselves. =) I was so excited when i was finally able to use my lil "shop" and cut out some BIG "love" wooden letters. I needed something big to put on the ledge above my front door, and this was just the thing!

Once again, it's not pro by any means...this is the first time I've cut something with a jigsaw, but for a beginner, I'd say it's not too shabby, eh?!

Valentine table runner

I've been wanting to make my own table runner for a while now, and when I saw an idea at the fabric store, I decided now was the time to make one! Instead of a straight square border around it, I decided to make mine ruffled and I like it a whole lot! It's not pro, but I love it! You don't need a pattern for this, I totally winged it....I do that often. Mind you, it doesn't always turn out for me. =)

I love these prints and colors that I found at Material Girls!

Rag garland, Valentine style

If you can't tell, I'm totally stuck on this rag garland, it's just so fun to do one for every holiday!

Isn't it just fun to build up your decor stash with cute things you've made all by yourself that hardly cost anything?!

Valentine candle decor

Saw this cute idea at BHG

They used small beads, I decided to play with some other things:

Fake rose petals, sprinkles and m&m's!

Festive and fun!