Archives for January 2013

Red Velvet Cake with Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting

Red Velvet Cake with Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting

It’s almost February and Valentines is right around the corner. Although it is arguably the cheesiest holiday around, it’s fun being a girl on Valentines. If you are in a relationship you can rightfully expect to get pampered. And if you are single you can rightfully expect to get bombed with your other single girlfriends – who needs men?! But we can all expect to ride a sugar high for most of the day.

My mom made this amazing cake when we were home for the holidays, and I knew I absolutely must share it with all of you. It was so incredibly good! My brother recently got married, and the woman who made his rehearsal dinner cake told us the secret to her super moist cake was to freeze them beforehand. When they are defrosted, all that moisture goes back into the cake, making it one of the most tender and moist cakes you will ever eat (how-to details in recipe below). My mom did just that with this beautiful layer cake and the result was amazing. You have to try it for yourself! And the frosting is beyond delicious. Like, you should make extra. Tempted to throw in a comment about what to do with said frosting on this romantic holiday, but this is a G-rated show here at The Mommy Games. Thanks Mom for sharing this recipe and for letting me be a very diligent taste tester!

[Read more…]

signature

Slow Cooker Chicken & Dumplings

Slow Cooker Chicken & Dumplings

Oh, Monday. Did you really have to throw in this freezing snowy weather to add to your sting? Going on my 8th year here in the Northeast and I still haven’t come to terms with the winter weather. About the only thing cold weather is good for is an excuse to stay indoors and eat warm, hardy, comforting food. And yes, chicken and dumplings fits just that bill. This is especially perfect for a weekday since it takes no time to throw everything into the slow cooker. I mean, how fabulous is it to hit 6 pm and realize that dinner will only take another few minutes of your time. Just the kind of end of day you need on a freezing Monday like today.

[Read more…]

signature

Mint Chocolate Cookies

Mint Chocolate Cookies 1

I just can’t seem to get enough chocolate. I know it’s a super cliche woman thing, but seriously, chocolate is my indulgence of choice. And these cookies are right up my alley. Going to forewarn you – they are amazingly addictive. Like, I made this recipe, ran out of cookies a few days later, and preceded to then make a whole other batch. They are a delicious cross between a brownie and a thin mint girl scout cookie. Seriously to-die-for. I especially liked them slightly chilled in the fridge. These should definitely top your “to-bake” list. They are simple to mix up, bake in no time, and will fulfill any chocolate craving you throw at them.

[Read more…]

signature

Low & Slow Oven Ribs

Low & Slow Oven Ribs

Please forgive me for the ugly picture. I just had to share these with you because they are awesomely delicious – bad picture be darned! I have a long going love for meat that can be thrown into the oven, forgotten about for a few hours, then popped out right at dinner time. I love the scrumptious smell that fills the house and gives off this impression that I’m working harder in the kitchen than I really am. Really, I’m cruising Gilt and ordering a bunch of cute shoes that I don’t really need, but don’t tell my husband that. These have a sort of sweet and sour Asian style thing going. A really unique, easy, and delicious rib recipe to add to your collection. These would be perfect for football watching!

[Read more…]

signature

Brandon 2.5 Year Summary

Brandon 2.5 Summary 2

The highlight of the last couple of months with Brandon, was definitely Christmas time. Granted he had like 4 different Christmas celebrations since we were visiting different family members, but he simply couldn’t get enough of “open presents!” As parents, I think it’s even more fun for us. Brad spent hours making sure Brandon’s train was set up just right for Christmas morning. And of course, we patted ourselves on the back for being the ultimate gift givers when he proceeded to play with it all day. He even got a special table to keep it on in his room, which turned out to be a smart move since it keeps the trains and tracks somewhat out of Rylan’s reach. He could not possibly have been happier when we were visiting family and had tons of playmates at all hours of the day. He was one tuckered out kiddo by the end of it all. We even had to go back to him taking 3 hour naps for a while, and even then it was sometimes hard to get him up.

[Read more…]

signature

Let’s Get Organized: Tame those Recipes!

Let's Get Organized - Tame those Recipes

I love the start of a new year. It feels like everything is fresh and clean – a chance to renew and restart. Just looking at my empty and pretty planner makes me excited. I know that a lot of people make resolutions to get more organized this time of year, so I thought I would start a “Let’s Get Organized” series of posts dealing with how to do just that. Each month I will do a post on how to improve your life with a little advanced planning. I’m not talking about hours of cleaning out your closets, more like streamlining your daily tasks to make your life easier and more efficient. By no stretch of the imagination am I a neat freak, but I’ve found that having some semblance of order to my day and planning things out in advance have helped me be a better mom and wife.

[Read more…]

signature

Chicken & Broccoli Casserole

Casseroles get a bad rap. It’s such a shame, because they are a great meal option for the whole family. Most are easy to prepare, freeze and reheat well, and are pretty  portable. This recipe is one of our all-time favorites. I’ve seriously made this more times than I can count. It’s so simple and yummy. The kind of meal that gets addicting and you end up craving on random Tuesday nights. If you made a resolution to cook more at home this year, I would definitely recommend adding this one to your repertoire.  It’s cheesy and homey without being too heavy. It’s also a one-stop-shop for veggie, protein, and carb. Win for mom and fam!

[Read more…]

signature

Rylan 10 Month Summary

Rylan 10 Months 1

I’m sure this past month has flown by for everyone, but seriously, where did 2012 go?! I’m still humming Christmas carols around the house! Somewhere in all this mayhem, Rylan made some huge leaps beyond the baby stage. Christmas was a lot of fun. We visited both mine and Brad’s family, so the boys had like 4 Christmases total. Can you say spoiled! Santa brought both boys trains, with Rylan’s being this larger Disney one with little characters in it. So far, I seem to like it way more than him. Maybe it was being around lots of family members over the holidays, or maybe it was just his time, but he’s seeming less and less like a baby everyday.

[Read more…]

signature