S Family Christmas

Did you have a nice December 25th? Hope so! We spent Christmas day at Alex's grandparents' house in Texas. I don't mind Christmas in the south so much. It was 50 or 60 something, and though the sun wasn't shining, it was still better than sub-zero temps with a wind chill to boot. I am ready to see some snow - I miss that white stuff - but I don't that is going to happen this year.

As every holiday should have, ours was full of the three f's: fun, food and family. And horses.

Elle's shirt: "Candy Cane Princess"...it also has a hood!

Drake's shirt: "Naughty but Nice"
SO TRUE for him!!

Alex's parents got me the boots that I have been drooling over for months! I haven't taken them off since.

Gift from Alex's dad. I couldn't figure it out, but then it hit me.

Remember the time I forgot my wallet? 

Ahhh-choo! haha...

Merry Christmas!

We are off to Iowa tomorrow for the B Family Circus Christmas. More food, family and fun!

Make, Take & Bake: Cranberry Pecan Pie

Super easy. Super good. THE perfect holiday pie.

Cranberry Pecan Pie

from the Viper Pilot's madre

• 1 cup corn syrup
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 2/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 eggs
• a dash of salt
• 2 cups pecans
• 2 cups fresh cranberries

Mix, and pour into pie crust. Bake at 350 for 1 hour and 10 minutes. 

Pie Crust

from my madre

• 1-1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup shortening, chilled
• 3 Tbsp ice water

Whisk the flour and salt together in a medium bowl. With a pastry blender, cut the cold shortening until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Drizzle 2-3 Tbsps ice water over flour. Toss mixture with a fork to moisten, adding more water a few drops at a time until the dough comes together.

Gently gather dough particles together into a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap, and chill for at least 30 minutes before rolling. 

Roll out dough, and put in a pie plate. Fill with desired filling and bake.

Enjoy! 

Have a Merry Christmas!

Make, Take & Bake: Macaroni Corn Casserole

I don't have final result pictures of this dandy but I have preliminary results. I made it today, but plan to bake it in time for dinner, once we get there. Some things are just better hot from the oven.

I loved this casserole as a kid when mom made it, and I love it now. It wins over children and adults alike. Disclaimer: It is not healthy. Sorry. But maybe it counts as a vegetable serving...? We can play pretend and say yes.

Macaroni Corn Casserole

• 1 can cream-style corn
• 1 can corn, undrained
• 1 cup uncooked macaroni noodles
• 1/2 cup butter
• 8 oz cubed Velveeta

Mix together creamed corn, whole kernel corn, and uncooked macaroni. Slice the butter, and mix into the corn mixture along with the cheese. Place in a buttered casserole dish. Cover. 

Bake in preheated oven at at 350 deg F for 20 minutes. Uncover, stir, and bake uncovered for 30 more minutes.

Make ahead! Mix together everything except macaroni in casserole dish. Prior to baking, stir in pasta, cover and bake in preheated oven at 350 deg F for 30 minutes. Uncover, stir, and bake uncovered for 30 more minutes. 

Enjoy! 

Check back in a few hours for a post about the best holiday pie you will ever find!

Red Velvet Cheesecake Cookies

We all know that my heart belongs to The Cheesecake Factory's red velvet cheesecake, but when I found this recipe, I couldn't stop drooling. They are almost too pretty to eat. I said almost. When you get to the cheesecake filling, you will forget about pretty, and want another cookie. Or at least that's how it went for me...

I wouldn't normally make such huge cookies, but I had a conversation with a girlfriend this morning about how our work outs have subsided for the remainder of our holiday break and we are going to do this together. The over-indulge ourselves with holiday treats, that is. So, that means it is okie dokie artichokie to make and eat enormous cookies.

If you think your holiday baking is complete, think again. You have to make these. Promise me that you will.

Red Velvet Cheesecake Cookies
adapted from Two Peas in a Pod

For the cookies:

• 1 box red velvet cake mix (I used Duncan Hines)
• 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

For the cheesecake filling:

• 4 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

For the drizzle:

• 2 sections (or 1-1/2 cups melted) vanilla white candy coating, melted

In a large bowl, combine cake mix and flour. Whisk until clumps disappear. In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix together cake mix, flour, eggs, oil and vanilla extract. Mix until smooth. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap or put in a large Ziplock bag. The dough will be oily. Refrigerate for at least two hours. 

Meanwhile, make the cheesecake filling. Using a mixer, combine cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract. Mix until smooth. Using a teaspoon, scoop out cheesecake filling and place on a plate into teaspoon balls until you have 10. You will have extra. Put the plate in the freezer and freezer for at least two hours. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. To assemble the cookies, take about 1/4 cup of red velvet cookie dough and flatten in your hands. Place one of the cheesecake balls in the center and wrap the cookie dough around the filling. Gently roll into a ball and place on prepared baking sheet. Only bake 3 cookies at a time - the cookies are large and will spread. Bake for 11-13 minutes or until the cookies being to crackle. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. Remove from baking sheet to a wire cooking rack and cool completely. 

Melt the candy coating in a microwave safe bowl. Drizzle the coating over the cooled cookies. Let the cookies set until it hardens. Serve and enjoy! 

Note: You could also use white chocolate for the drizzle, I just don't care for it - it is way too sweet and the cookies are sweet enough as it is, so I used the candy coating instead. If you are going to store the cookies for more than one day, you may want to keep them in the refrigerator. You can make the cookies smaller - just use less dough and filling. Make sure that you completely wrap the cookie dough around the filling before baking so it doesn't leak. 

Enjoy!

Chocolate Mint Brownies

This is a classic holiday treat. Another delicious, pretty thing that you can't avoid during those holiday get-togethers because they are just too darn good - diet be danged, have 2 or 3 of them! And trust me, this one is not on any diet...unless you're a chocoholic...and I am.

Chocolate Mint Brownies

Brownies:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup margarine
• 4 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 can (16 oz) Hershey's syrup

Mix together in order given. Put into a greased 11x16 inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.

Mint Frosting (2nd layer):

• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 cup margarine
• 1 Tbsp milk
• 1/2 tsp peppermint extract
• green food coloring, for look of mint 

Mix ingredients and spread on top of cooled brownies. May be put in freezer now to harden the mint frosting so next layer will spread easier.

Chocolate Frosting (third layer):

• 1 cup chocolate chips 
• 6 Tbsp margarine

Mix ingredients in microwave. Pour over mint frosting. Spread. Let set and cut. Make more as needed - I usually double it because I love the chocolate frosting! I sprinkled mine with crumbled Andes Mints. 

Note: You will want to keep the brownies refrigerated when you're not serving them. I've also made them with red food coloring and mixed crumbled peppermint candy canes into the mint frosting layer. 

Enjoy! 

Check back later for a cookie post!

Pistachio Cranberry Bark

Looking for a sweet treat to please your family or holiday party guests? This one never fails.

Sweet + Salty = winner.

Plus, it's pretty and perfect for the holidays.

Pistachio Cranberry Bark

• 2 cups (12 oz) semisweet chocolate chips
• 5 oz white candy coating, chopped (2.5 sections)
• 1 cup chopped pistachios, toasted, divided
• 3/4 cup dried cranberries, divided

In a microwave-safe bowl, melt chocolate chips; stir until smooth. Repeat with candy coating. Stir 3/4 cup pistachios and half of the cranberries into semisweet chocolate. Thinly spread onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. 

Drizzle with candy coating. Cut through with a knife to swirl. Sprinkle with remaining pistachios and cranberries. Chill until firm. Break into pieces. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Yield: about 1 pound

ENJOY! 

{Not so} Chilly Chili

When the weather gets cold - or should I say "cold" because we're in Texas - my favorite dish is chili. It's a comfort food of sorts, at least for me. My grandma and my mom make the very best. And I'm trying to learn how they do it. When I was home from college in the good old days, my mom would make up a big pot of it and freeze it in containers for me to take back to the dorm. Since I only had a mini-fridge in my room and wasn't able to keep it frozen, I ate it at least three times a day.

Still to this day, it is one of my all-time favorite chilly day remedies that I don't think I will ever get tired of. The Viper Pilot and I love to make it together and each year, tweek it closer to perfection. It may not win a chili cook-off, but we think it is pretty darn good.

Alex & Emily's (Awesome) Chili
created by our nuggets with the assistance of Emily's mom and grandma

• 1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
• 1 (10-3/4 oz) can tomato soup
• 1  (15 oz) can Hormel chili with beans (vegetarian)
• 1 (10 oz) can tomatoes, do not drain (we use Ro-tel Diced Tomatoes with habaneros, HOT!)
• 1 (16 oz) can chili beans, do not drain (we use Mrs. Grimes spicy hot)
• 1 (15.5 oz) can black beans, drained
• 1 lb hamburger or ground turkey
• 1 package hot chili seasoning
• chili powder to taste
• dash of garlic powder
• ~1 tsp sugar
• 1 bay leaf
• hot chilies or jalapenos (if you don't have fresh, use a 7 oz can of either or both)
• saltine crackers
• shredded Mexican style cheese

Brown hamburger or turkey in a skillet until no longer pink. Add hot chili seasoning with a splash of water and coat cooked meat. 

Put all ingredients in a crock pot and cook on low for 4-6 hours, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking/burning. Or use a large stock pot and simmer over med-low heat for 1-2 hours, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking/burning. The longer it simmers, the better it tastes. 

Serve with saltine crackers, shredded cheese and a giant appetite for best results. Don't forget cornbread!

You can also freeze the leftovers...

...that is, if you have any. 

Check back tomorrow for a post about some of my favorite holiday treats! 

Light up the Riverwalk

We went to the Riverwalk with Uncle Mike, Aunt Janice and Hannah and Jack to see it all lit up with the 1.4 million Christmas lights. It was the most amazing thing I've ever seen. We rode the boat down the river to see all the lights. I snapped pictures all along the way. Check this out.

Uncle Mike, Hannah, Aunt Janice, Jack and Alex

Isn't this just the coolest thing ever??

Cool effect from the motion of the boat.

Gorgeous [giant] Christmas tree. Just the way I like them.

We finished off the evening with dinner at Cafe Ole. One of our favorite Mexican restaurants on the Riverwalk. I enjoyed a scrumptious bowl of tortilla soup and a chalupa on the side. A winning combination.

Our dinner was completed with a holiday serenade from a mariachi band (of sorts). I couldn't help but take a video.

¡Feliz Navidad!

I think I'll try defying gravity.

Happy Christmas week, everyone! Raise your hands if you're excited for Jesus' birthday! Woop!!

The Viper Pilot's aunt, uncle and cousins came to San Antonio to visit for a weekend. It was such a fun weekend and a great way to start my Christmas break!

It began with a {not so} fun trip to Six Flags Fiesta Texas. Let me start by letting you in on a little secret about yours truly. I HATE amusement parks. I know 'hate' is a very strong word and I mean it when I say it. I don't get the "thrill" that people get on a roller coaster. Anything that spins, count me out. I don't like rides. I prefer to be the holder of items while my family and friends ride the rides and I am perfectly content sitting on the sidelines people watching. Well, we watched a couple shows, I rode on some low-key rides including the ferris wheel, and thought I was going to make it through without being forced into doing something I didn't want to.

A few years ago, the Viper Pilot made me go to Adventureland with him and forced me to ride every ride there. I really didn't enjoy it, in fact I was miserable, but he told me those were pathetic excuses for rides and didn't count so I really didn't know what I was missing out on.

Then, it happened. The Viper Pilot paid Jack and Hannah to guilt trip me into riding the Goliath in the last 10 minutes before the park closed. I refused and they went and rode it. Phew. Then they came back and pleaded...begged, actually...me to ride it. I felt so bad and finally caved in. It looked to be about a 45 second ride. How bad can it really be?

Source

I was wrong. It was really, really, really bad. I actually lost my voice from screaming bloody murder the entire time. Everyone found it rather entertaining. Why anyone would want to strap into a death chair, climb 10 stories before literally flying up and over a heart-pounding vertical loop, feel the sensation of weightlessness as you race through a zero-gravity heartline spin and fly head-over-heels through FIVE inversions, including seven-story loops and two corkscrews at speeds of 50 mph with nothing beneath your feet but Earth and sky is beyond me. Unless, of course, you were in an F-16 because that would actually be cool. I'd do that. But this was purposeless and I did not enjoy it for one nanosecond (that's 1x10^-9 seconds). And yes, I do understand that this makes me a not-fun person. I'm okay with that.


There are pictures of this traumatizing event taken by Uncle Mike and the Viper Pilot has kindly volunteered to do a guest post about it. Stay tuned. [I am so asking for trouble by agreeing to let him do that...I know.]


But, much to my relief, the weekend got better. We all got to be fighter pilots for a day. The Viper Pilot took us to the squadron and we got to play around with some of the toys.

I really want one of these for our front yard.

Jack

Hannah

I managed to "eject" myself from the cockpit.

The Viper Pilot's locker.

Jack

He was standing so perfectly aligned under this sign, I had to snap a pic.

Stay tuned for a post about our night on the Riverwalk and, of course, the guest post. :)

Cheers!

2011 Review in Photos

What an incredible year 2011 has been. I can't even fathom writing a post to recap it all - it would be a novel. So, let's review 2011 in pictures. Starting at the beginning...

 The Viper Pilot's family. 

 My Family, aka the Circus

 Jack

L to R: Blake, Henry, Maddie, Cale, Nick

New Years Eve

Snow in Mississippi

The Pilot becomes the Viper Pilot!

Mardi Gras, New Orleans

The Viper Pilot got his wings!

Celebrating St. Patrick's Day in Port Aransas, TX.

Planted my first garden in March.

A trip to Nashville to see some high school friends.

An EF5 tornado ripped through Smithville, MS. The Viper Pilot and I went to aid with  the cleanup.

We celebrated 6 wonderful years together!

A spring break vacation to Pensacola, FL.

Catching up with good friends, Grady and Travis, in Pensacola, FL! 

Top to bottom: Madeline, Henry, Nick, Jack

The original 5 at my cousin Meridith and Mike's wedding in Iowa.

Presenting my research at the University of Surrey in England.

My Bavarian experience after a day in the lab at EADS.

My mom, grandma and myself in Kinsale, Ireland.

ENGAGED.

The Viper Pilot PCSed to Texas. The beginning of our last LDR!

We got our engagement pictures taken in Colorado Springs!

My cousin Justin and Leah got married in Wisconsin!

The Viper Pilot worked his first Air Show as a real Viper Pilot.

Thanksgiving at the Viper Pilot's grandparents' home in Texas. Elle made a new friend!

My last Christmas as EB!

Viper Love.

Truly blessed.

I have a funny feeling, 2012 is gonna be rockin' awesome, too!