Asian Noodle Toss

This stir fry is super simple to put together and tastes wonderful!  There are very few ingredients which makes this meal an easy go-to fast one! 

Asian Noodle Toss

*Recipe from Taste of Home

PRINT RECIPE

8 ounces uncooked thin spaghetti (I used regular spaghetti) 

1 package (10oz) julienned carrots

1 package (8oz) sugar snap peas

2 cups cubed cooked chicken

1 can (11oz) mandarin oranges, undrained

1/2 cup stir-fry sauce

Cook spaghetti according to package directions.  Stir in carrots and peas; cook 1 minute longer.  Drain, place in a bowl.  Add the chicken, oranges and stir-fry sauce; toss to coat.  Makes 5 servings. 

Christmas Roundup!

Here are some great treats that I love to make every year at Christmas time.  15 wonderful and tasty recipes!  Hope you find something you would like to make this holiday season! 

Here are 15 tasty recipes for you to try!

Peanut Butter Cups

German Pfeffernusse Cookies

Traditional Pumpkin Pie

Christmas Colored Caramel Corn

Cherry Cranberry Pie

White Chocolate Peppermint Fudge

Christmas Cookie Bark

Homemade Hot Cocoa

Chocolate Covered Cherry Cookies

Chocolate Covered Oreo Cookies

Jam Filled Star Cookies

Old Fashioned Fudge

Dad's Sugar Cookies

Hamburger Cookies (Fudge Filled Tea Cookies)

Traditional Candied Yams

Halloween Idea Roundup!

Are you still looking for treat ideas for Halloween?  Well, here's the roundup of everything Halloween from the Kitchen Mom this year!  I hope you find at least one idea that suits your holiday sweet tooth! 

You could always bake a Halloween Cake...

Or perhaps Halloween Cupcakes are a little more your style!

Not interested in baking?  Try this Candy Corn Cookie Bark 

An incredible Pumpkin Pie Milkshake

And the best ever Pumpkin Bread and Caramel Corn!

And last, but certainly not least we have some easy and tasty Candy Corn Rice Krispy Treats

Lemon Zucchini Muffins

These little babies are tasty and light!  Each muffin has only 148 calories. Thank you to "Cooking Light" for creating a healthy muffin that I can devour without the guilt.  

These muffins also help you to clear out some of that leftover summer zucchini sitting in your fridge.  Follow along and I'll show you how it's done...

Grandma's Banana Bread

This was one of those wonderful recipes I found that was handwritten by my grandmother.  They are always the best ones! I was so excited to try it and loved it!  I'm excited to share this one.  

Follow along and I'll teach you how to make this tasty bread...

How to paint the front door.

I have to admit, I was a bit worried about painting the front door all by myself, but I did it and I'm loving it.  What do you think of the before and after?  The white was just so boring, and the black really pops!

This project really wasn't rocket science.  Anyone can do it!  I have a secret weapon... it's the new Glidden "Door and Trim" paint.  It's meant specifically for doors and trim and it's already pre-colored, so you just grab a can at Home Depot and go.  You can watch a quick tutorial video HERE.  Below is a picture of the paint I used.  It only comes in extra high gloss, so the door will be shiny.

Before painting the door, I used this stripping tool to strip away as much chipped and damaged paint as I could. I then cleaned the door with a rag and some soapy water.  Then let the door dry.

I only had to strip paint on the trim, since my door is metal.  I did not do any sanding on the door or trim but you can if you'd like.  It can help the paint to adhere. 

The only other tool I needed was a paint brush (the paint I used recommended a brush and no rollers).  I also used some painter's tape to tape off the window and around some parts of the door that I didn't want to get paint on.  

When painting with a brush, be sure to follow this pattern below for which part of the door to paint first and last.  This will help you to achieve a professional look without brush marks.  I did still end up with some brush marks, but I bought a cheap brush.  I recommend you use the type mentioned on the paint can.  But overall I loved the look I achieved with this method.

The door was almost done with one coat of this paint but I had to touch up a few areas after the first coat dried. After painting the door, leave it cracked for 6-8 hours before closing.  I painted the door while still on the hinges.

So what do you think? White vs Black?  I am very happy with the change and I can't wait to install a kick plate, hook for a wreath, and of course the wreath!

Black and Red Wedding Cake

I was thrilled when I got asked to make this wedding cake.  It was for some good friends of mine who decided to have a wedding at hunting camp!  No, that's not your usual setting but the couple wanted to surprise everyone and knew the family was already planning on being at camp!

The wedding turned out beautifully and I was just happy to play a small part.  Below I'll give you some quick tips on how I made this cake...

Hall Tree Re-Do!

If you are anything like me, you have probably been avoiding DIY projects nearly your whole life... until now!  What's different now?  Pinterest of course!  

I knew I wanted one of these hall trees, but I had a budget and couldn't buy one new and none of the used ones had the look I wanted.  So the obvious solution was to re-do a used one!  

Follow along and I'll share with you how this beauty came to be!

 

Chocolate Zucchini Muffins or Loaf

I love every year about this time when even though I didn't plant a garden, I end up with tons of zucchini because everyone else is overwhelmed by how much is growing in their gardens and they just give it away!  

It's perfect timing too.  The kids are just getting back to school and they love having a muffin for breakfast before heading out the door.  I quadrupled the recipe so I could freeze a bunch of these to last a few months. But you can just do one batch if you like.  

If you make extra and freeze them, individually wrap each muffin in plastic wrap and place into a zip top freezer bag and throw in the freezer.  In the morning just pop one in the microwave for 15-30 seconds and there you have it.  Just don't use the aluminum muffin cups if you are going to freeze and microwave these... use paper!

Follow along and I'll show you how to make these...

Angry Birds Birthday Cake

For my son's 5th birthday he decided he wanted an angry birds cake!  I was a little stressed, yet a little excited about this cake.  I searched for cake ideas online and this is what I came up with.  

I made two 9x13 cakes, one is the bottom layer, and the other was shaped for the top piece.  All of the birds and pigs were made out of marshmallow fondant, and I used wafer cookies and chocolate covered cookies for the bases.  

This cake was tons of fun to make, although the sling shot didn't quite hold up like I wanted.  Hope you enjoy this cake!  Good luck with your cake making adventures. 

Spinach, Strawberry and Feta Salad with Poppyseed Dressing!

Is there anything quite as wonderful as a fresh, healthy lunch that requires no cooking and is ready in a matter of seconds?  I think not! 

There is a restaurant near my house that has amazing lunch salads and that's where I got the inspiration for this one that I started making myself for a fraction of the cost.  It's love at first bite!  Try it and you'll love it!

Spinach, Strawberry and Feta Salad

Fresh baby spinach

Fresh strawberries (or any fruit available, like blueberries)

Feta cheese crumbles

Roasted cashews

Light poppy seed dressing

Just layer everything on and enjoy!  Add your own twist with different berries and nuts.  I prefer it with the poppy seed dressing!

Easy Fried Rice

I absolutely love fried rice, and this recipe goes perfectly as a side with Baked Sweet and Sour Chicken.  It takes only a few minutes to make, just have some white rice prepared in advance!  This fabulous recipe comes from HERE.

Follow along as I show you how to make this easy fried rice...

Baked Sweet and Sour Chicken

Ok, so I realized that I have been a little MIA lately when it comes to the blog world.  I don't know what happened.  I have to be honest, I miss it!  A friend of mine texted me today and told me I need to update my blog... so ok!  Here it is Erika!  You will love this one :) 

This chicken is amazing!  I never imagined I could make sweet and sour chicken that tasted this good at home.  I discovered the recipe on pinterest (of course)! And here is the blog where it originated.  Follow along and I'll show you how to make it!

Boy's First Birthday Cake plus Smash Cake

When a friend asked me to make this cake for their little boy's first birthday, I thought the idea was so cute! With the colors, and basic stars and circles, this cake just screams "little boy!"  The cake consisted of marbled fudge and vanilla cake layers with buttercream frosting, and is covered in homemade marshmallow fondant.  For tips on how to frost, stack and cover cakes in fondant go HERE!

And for the first time, I made a matching smash cake that the birthday boy could have all to himself.  It's a nice idea so that the birthday kid can smash around in their own cake while not contaminating everyone else's cake.  The smash cake was frosted with lots of buttercream.  Fondant would be hard for those little hands to dig through.

Pink Zebra Cake

 This past week was my daughter's 8th birthday.  She thought long and hard about what type of cake and party she wanted and she eventually settled on a zebra themed party!

We loved the look of zebra plus pink so this is the cake we came up with!

Each cake tier was filled with three layers: one vanilla cake, chocolate cake and strawberry cake layer. Then the cake was frosted with chocolate buttercream. Then the cake was covered with my homemade Marshmallow Fondant.  I colored the fondant in pink, and black, and left a bunch white.  

I cut the zebra strips randomly with a pizza cutter and rolled the white and black balls around the bottom tier.  The stitch diamond pattern on the top tier is done with a wilton decorating tool kit and white nonpareils are placed into the corners of each diamond. The bow was made by shaping fondant pieces and allowing to set (harden) and then they were placed on the cake. 

That's all there was to it!  Makes it sound so easy huh? Sorry I didn't take more pictures of the process... it was a long night!

Here is a look at the inside of the cake.  Be sure not to do what I did, which is placing the top tier without a separator.  This caused the fondant underneath to get too moist and break apart while cutting the cake.