Pirate Birthday Party
Click HERE to watch the slideshow, and check out my YouTube Channel! It’s hard to believe our son is already five years old, but I was prepared to throw him a pirate party for his first birthday. Every time my husband would pick on me for going “overboard” (ha ha, get it?), I would scoff at him and say, “He’ll remember this party for the rest of his life!” […]
Black Forest Cheesecake
Check out my YouTube Channel! The first time I had anything Black Forest, it was a trifle. I asked the party host, “What is Black Forest?” My eyes widened and mouth gaped open as she described it as being a dessert that combines chocolate, cherries, and whipped cream. Say no more, you had me at hello. […]
Chocolate Chip Muffins
Gluten-Free/Dairy-Free/Low-Carb/Keto/Paleo Check out my YouTube Channel! One of my favorite things to have for breakfast is a muffin, so having a gluten-free, sugar-free, AND dairy-free muffin seemed impossible…until I started making these little guys. Chocolate Chip is my favorite, but I also make these using wild blueberries that my son devours, too. For my hubby and daughter, they’re fans of the double chocolate version as well, so it’s a versatile recipe that can be modified and substituted in a few different ways. […]
Chicken Divan
Check out my YouTube Channel! When I first started my business making freezer meals, this was one of my favorites…it was also one of the most popular. Since people are looking for healthier comfort food these days, this dish definitely hits home. The great thing about it is that it can also be served over pasta or rice if desired! Versatility! […]
Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars
Check out my YouTube Channel! When I was a teenager, I remember helping my mom making some chocolate peanut butter bars for the first time. And honestly I wonder if that was a really good thing, or a really bad thing. Why? Because I ate the whole batch- in two days. In fact, that may have sparked an argument between my dad and me because he went looking for one…and they were all gone. […]
Tiramisu Cheesecake
Check out my YouTube Channel! Have you ever taken a bite of something that tastes like a slice of Heaven? This is exactly how I have described this particular cheesecake on many occasions. It’s a rich, coffee-flavored New York style cheesecake topped with ladyfingers dipped in coffee and liquor, and a smooth layer of whipped mascarpone cheese, dusted with cocoa. It’s the type of dessert that if you’re ever conflicted on choosing between Tiramisu or Cheesecake, it is most definitely the perfect combination. […]
Slow Cooker Hawaiian Chicken and Sausage
Gluten-Free/Dairy-Free Check out my YouTube Channel! My husband and I went to Hawaii for our honeymoon, and we both fell in love with it. Well, he became practically obsessed with it and has mentioned us moving there many times over the years since our visit. “Have you seen how WHITE we are?? We’d die of skin cancer in like three months!!” has been my response. I remember lathering sunblock with SPF 75 all over me and STILL getting burnt after 1 hour. […]
Hearty Vegetable Chowder
Gluten-Free/Dairy-Free/Plant-Based Check out my YouTube Channel! There are some things I like about the cold weather, even though South Carolina’s weather gives us little sneak peeks of a cold front ALL year long. Fires, tall boots, blankets, but nothing beats any of those more than soup season. My favorite kind of soup is a good, hearty, CHOWDER. Well, the cold weather also brings along colds and other illnesses, which is not good for someone like me, who tends to have issues with chronic sinus infections. Buh-bye, dairy! […]
Cookies ‘n Cream Fudge
Check out my YouTube Channel! Making fudge is one of those things that can seem intimidating if you’ve never made it before. In all honesty, it can be…but not this recipe. If you can melt, stir, and pour, you’re all set! […]
Pumpkin Pie Dip with Soft and Chewy Gingerbread Cookies
Check out my YouTube Channel! Have you ever looked at some food at a party and wondered if it was an appetizer or dessert? This is definitely one of those items that might have you scratching your head wondering, until you’re completely distracted after you start eating it. […]
Red Velvet Cheesecake
Check out my YouTube Channel! On my original quest for a Red Velvet Cheesecake recipe, I kept running across the Red Velvet Cake layered with New York Cheesecake. That is not what I’m looking for! I thought. But omg, that looks AMAZING and I have to make that, too. […]
Green Bean Casserole
Gluten-Free/Dairy-Free/Low-Carb/Keto/Paleo Check out my YouTube Channel! Making dishes that are dairy-free, Keto-friendly AND delicious can be quite a challenge at times. Well, I do love a good culinary challenge, especially when I get to stuff my face with it. I made this for our family’s Thanksgiving feast, and this was the side dish that drew me back in for another scoop on my plate. […]
Low-Carb Pumpkin Cake
Gluten-Free/Dairy-Free/Low-Carb/Keto/Paleo Check out my YouTube Channel! You’d think that having a Keto Thanksgiving would mean you’re missing out on some good food, but that was quite the opposite this year. In fact, I thoroughly enjoyed every single item on my plate and even went back for second helpings of the Green Bean Casserole that I couldn’t get enough of. […]
Best Pumpkin Spice Muffins
Check out my YouTube Channel! Pumpkin Spice season is here!!! To be honest though, I eat Pumpkin Spice muffins all year long because they are my absolute favorite. My freezer is typically packed with a variety of jumbo muffins, and they are perfect for our family on the weekends. I usually grab whatever flavors everyone wants the night before, set them on the counter, and breakfast is ready when we all wake up in the morning. All we have to do is turn on the coffee maker and I pop my muffin in the microwave for 20-30 seconds before making my belly incredibly happy. […]
Beer Bread with Spinach Dip
Check out my YouTube Channel! The first time I had Beer Bread, it was before I developed a taste for beer. So technically, it was before that one keg party in my early twenties when I was forced to start drinking beer if I didn’t want to be the only sober person there. What I’m saying is that the thought of this tasting good wasn’t exactly in my prediction, but it turned out amazing. Even better was how easy it is to throw together, and how the Spinach Dip is EVEN EASIER. […]
Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake Tarts
Check out my YouTube Channel! Sometimes it’s hard to choose between peanut butter and Oreos…so why not have both?? You read my mind. These cupcake sized cheesecakes give you the best of both cheesecake and cupcake world when you sink your teeth in to this New York style peanut butter cheesecake packed with chunks of Peanut Butter Cups on top of a WHOLE Peanut Butter Oreo, then topped with a chocolate mousse, chocolate ganache, and a mini peanut butter cup. […]
The ULTIMATE Oreo Cake
Check out my YouTube Channel! Every year for my birthday, I’m asked what kind of dessert I want someone to make for me. Typically, the answer is that I want to make it myself. “What? You can’t make your own birthday cake!” The thing is, I’m always so busy making desserts for other people that this gives me an opportunity to make something that I’ve been wanting to try, and having other people around to help me dispose of it is the perfect time. Plus, whatever gives me ANY excuse to have a social gathering is worth making a cake. […]
Chicken Cheese Ball
Gluten-Free Check out my YouTube Channel! There are several appetizer staples that end up on the menu at my house for every single party, and this is definitely on the list. When I’m trying to simplify the menu for a party and choose three items, it’s at the top. This cheese ball and crackers, veggie tray, chips and dip along with some sort of dessert gives party guests enough to eat without overloading them. […]
Chocolate Stout Cupcakes with Irish Cream Icing
Check out my YouTube Channel! The last few times I have run out of several different types of liquor, it was because I was using them in baked goods. […]
Double Dipped Oreo Truffles
Check out my YouTube Channel! Back in the stone ages before I started grinding Oreos with a food chopper or processor, I used to grind them by hand. First, I’d start out by putting the Oreos in a large plastic bag, sealing it, then beating the bag on the counter with my fist like it owed me money from ten years ago that forced me into eviction. […]
Buttery Nipple Cheesecake
Check out my YouTube Channel! The first time I heard the name of this cocktail, uncontrollable giggling erupted, and it still makes me chuckle. Since my original Irish Cream Cheesecake was so delicious and popular at Krafty Draft, I started experimenting with other cheesecakes I could use liquor in the recipe…which is what created my style of Happy Hour Cheesecakes. The cheesecake itself is very similar to the Irish Cream, but with a butterscotch ganache and a graham cracker crust. If you look at the topping of the cheesecake, you might understand why I started giggling again while putting it together. I’m terrible. […]
Grampy’s Hillbilly Chili
Check out my YouTube Channel! Over the weekend, my parents rented a cabin on the lake for our family to get together by the water. When our family gets together (no matter WHEN), there’s always more than enough food to feed a small army of Olympic training athletes on steroids. My parents always put out more food than they should, and everyone who shows up doesn’t come empty-handed. When everyone is leaving, my mom tries to send food home with them to get it out of the house, and she STILL ends up with way too many leftovers. Does this sound familiar to anyone else?? […]
Carolina Reuben Pinwheels
Photo by Kim Byer Check out my YouTube Channel! Ever since I fell in love with the Carolina Reuben sandwich at a downtown shop in Columbia many moons ago, I try to incorporate this fantastic idea anywhere I can. If you’re wondering what a Carolina Reuben is, it’s a southern take on a classic Reuben. However, instead of sauerkraut and corned beef, it’s turkey and coleslaw with swiss cheese and Thousand Island dressing. […]
Caramel Macchiato Cheesecake
Check out my YouTube Channel! While brainstorming different cheesecake flavors with my in-laws one evening, we somehow got on the subject of Caramel Macchiato. My face lit up. I haven’t made that before!! What exactly qualifies as Caramel Macchiato?? So, I looked it up and immediately started formulating a recipe in my head. Vanilla, coffee, caramel…sounds simple enough. […]
Cookie Dough Dip
Gluten-Free Check out my YouTube Channel! Eating raw cookie dough is one of life’s many pleasures, and I was always chased out of the kitchen as a kid while my mom was baking. Back then, I wasn’t interested in LEARNING how to bake, I was only interested in EATING everything I could get my hands on. […]