I Feel So Loved......

Lets be honest. I am never stressed about anything. I live life fully and enjoy every moment. I am very calm and down to earth. BUT right now I feel stressed out and to receive these awards has brought me happiness this week. I received 5 awards this week! It feels good to be recognized by your fellow peers. I received the HONEST SCRAP award form the talented Claudia from The Journey of The Italian Cook. Her site is inspiring. She is a incredible women who cooks and works in theater. I adore her site!

I received the Kreativ Blogger and One Lovely Blog Award from Rachael from Laptop and Stovetops and also from Claudia at Pegasuslegend. Both are creative in their own way and are amazing cooks. They also live in Florida with me! Thank you so much for inspiration

The first award informs you that you have to name ten things about yourself. The other two asks for 7 things.I am just going to tell you ten and I will pass all three awards to 7 fellow foodies. I hope that will not confuse, but I would hate to pass them out separately. I would be here all night. LOL

1. I am a twin (I also have a little sister and brother. Both my sisters visit my site regularly for inspiration in the kitchen. LOVE YOU GUYS!)
2. I am moving to an extended stay on Halloween for a month!!!! NO OVEN!! It stresses me out a little...
3. I moved to Florida a little over three years ago. I hated it at first, but now I am in love with Florida. I do miss the fam. They live in Ohio
4.& 5. I went to Kent State University. I graduated with 2 BA's in four yrs. YEAH, but I have not used my college diploma's. I have had the best job: Stay at Home Mom
6. I have two beautiful little girls. (1 yr. old Bailey and 4 yr. old Alex)Shhhhh....I still want one more beauty.
7. I love Food Blogging and the amazing wonderful people I have met.
8. I am addicted to House, Lie to Me, and Bones.
9. I made my daughters Halloween costume this year. It was so hard, but I finished it with flying colors...
10. MUAH! I love you guys! Thank you for being such great friends!

The Bloggers I pass the Award on To:

1. My girl Ingrid from 3 B's: Baseball, Baking and Books, She rocks! ROCKS! Rocks! I love the recipes she posts. She is an incredible mom too!!!!
2. Cristine of The Mistress of Cakes. She went through a lot this yr, but is back in the kitchen. I can't wait to see what she posts next! I adore her recipes!!!
3. Pam from For The Love Of Cooking, She was my true inspiration to start my own site. Her and my next amazing blogger. I loved to cook and went to their sites on a regular basis. They inspired me.
4. Leslie from The Hungry Housewife. I love Leslie and her talent!! Her recent cakes are OFF THE HOOK!
5. GirlChef Wow. She rocks. Her pictures and unique posts are INCREDIBLE.
6. The Cookin Canuck, I visit her blog on a dailey basis to see what she is cooking up. She is extremely talented.
7. Donna at My Tasty Treasures. She makes me laugh and crave sex and food!!! LOL!!

I am so lucky to have met these amazing bloggers. Thank you for the award!

Cinnamon Crumb Suprise Bread

Well, let me just tell you. I will be living without an oven for atleast a month...SOOOO I will be baking a lot this week. I need my fix. I might have to visit some friends and use their oven. Anyway, this is a recipe that I found in the Bread Bible. It is very yummy.(VERY VERY..IT IS ALREADY GONE) It reminded me off a coffee cake, but better. Who would not love a bread that has the middle filled with Apple and Cinnamon goodness? I hope everyone had a great weekend!

The Crumb Topping

1/4 cp. light brown sugar packed

1 1/2 TB. Granulated sugar

3/4 cp. walnuts (I used pecans. I love pecans.)

1 tsp. cinnamon

8 TB. Cake Flour, unsifted

3 TB. butter, melted

1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

1. In a food processor blend the sugars, nuts and cinnamon. Set 1/2 cp. aside. Add the cake flour, butter and vanilla. Pulse. Put in the fridge for 20 minutes.

2. Preheat oven at 350

THE APPLE FILLING and BATTER

1 Apple, skinned and seeded, chopped (1 heaping cup)

2 tsp. lemon juice

1 Lg. Egg

2 Lg. Egg Yolks

1/2 cp. Sour Cream

1 tsp. Pure Vanilla Extract

1 1/2 cp. Sifted Flour (Must be sifted into the cup for right measurements. Do not tap.)

3/4 cp. sugar

1/4 tsp. baking powder

3/8 tsp. baking soda (I just put a little less then 1/2 tsp.)

pinch of salt

9 TB. softened butter

1. Peel, core, and cut the apples in cubes.Toss in lemon juice.

2. Medium bowl combine one fourth of the sour cream, the eggs, and vanilla.

3. Mix together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Mix on low until combined.

4. Add the butter and remaining sour cream into the mixer.

5. Add egg mixture in two batches.

4. Fill greased pan half way (2/3 of the batter) Add the rest of the 1/2 cp. cinnamon and sugar mixture and top with the apples. Drop the remaining batter and spread over. Top with the crumb topping.

5. Bake 50-60 minutes. Let cool

Halloween Fun

It has been complete chaos. We are moving most of our stuff out of the house this weekend. We plan to finish and be completely moved out by Saturday (Halloween) morning. Not to mention, Bailey (my lovely two yr. old) had me up all night (I mean ALL NIGHT.) I finally fell asleep at 3 in the morning! Then up at 7 am! Needless to say, I am exhausted. Running on four hours of sleep. I finally finished Alex's costume. (I let her pick out the garment and I made her a witch costume. The pic is above in her costume) My husband informed me that it was one of the best costumes at the zoo. ( I missed out on Boo at the Zoo because I was home with sick Bailey.)

ALSO, we had to carve pumpkins because we will be living in an extended stay on Halloween! Yep! I will be held up in an extended stay for a MONTH! But don't worry. It will be a unique twist at MFLE. I will post all the food you can make in a SUPER tiny kitchen with NO OVEN!!! I will have withdraws. LOL.
By the way, I bought The Bread Bible. I am in love!!! I already made the first recipe. I will share it tomorrow!!! Take care and I hope you had a WONDERFUL weekend....

Fabric!?

I know this is a food blog, but I am a avid sewer too! I am actually making my daughters witch costume. (If I can get it done.) I have two very sick kids and I am moving this weekend.

Anyway, I wanted to share with my amazing followers this amazing giveaway. You can find the giveaway here. For my amazing friends, if you post that you found out about the giveaway from muah it will give me an extra chance....so stop in post a comment and link it back to me!! Thanks in advance!! You guys rock!!!

Thanks!!!!

Cool Weather in Sunny Florida

We finally got a taste of fall in Florida this weekend! It was awesome! I moved to FL a little over three years ago. I miss Fall so much! Fall is my favorite season. This weekend it was in the 60's! Breezy! Perfect!

The weather was SCREAMING fall! The first thought that popped in my mind is CHILI! I went to my favorite butcher who HAPPENED to have Sirloin Steak on sale...mmmhh..what a coincidence. Here is my Sirloin Steak Chili! Enjoy!



2 lbs on Sirloin, cut in cubes
1 Red Onion, chopped
1 Red Pepper, Chopped
1 Jalapeno, Chopped
1 Poblano, Chopped
2 Garlic Cloves, Chopped

1. Toss together and let the beef brown and the veggies get soft. (Can I just say, the beef was so tender and amazing.)

1 tsp. Oregano
2 TB. Chipotle Chili Powder
1 tsp. Cumin
Lawrys Salt and Pepper

2. Add the seasoning and toss.

1 Small Can of Paste
4 15 oz. Fire Roasted Tomatoes
1 15 oz. Tomato Sauce
2 15 oz. Dark Red Kidney Beans
2 15 oz. Black Beans

3. Add the Tomatoes, Beans and Paste. Stir.
4. Let simmer until thick. I usually let it simmer for a few hours.

Top with Cheddar Cheese, Sour Cream and Tator Tots (One of the best toppings EVER!)

By the way, Sorry for the delay. My 4 yr. old came down with Bronchitis. She is horribly sick. Not to mention, we are moving by Halloween, so I am packing and preparing....WHEW.

THIS IS WHAT WE MADE WITH THE LEFTOVERS:
YES! This is Steak Chili Pizza...IT ROCKED!!!

ENJOY!!

O Olive Oil Giveaway/ Fall Collection

I reviewed O Olive Oil a few months back. I enjoyed their product immensely. You can find the review here.It was an enjoyable post to write and a fantastic product to use.

Today I am offering a giveaway. It will be for their Charcoal Box Fall Collection which includes O Blood Orange Olive Oil (I used to make my Orange and Cranberry Granola Bars), O Zinfandel Vinegar (One of my favorites.) and O Porto Vinegar. The gift box is beautiful and is worth close to 40 dollars! All you have to do is leave a line about how you would use this amazing gift set. I will announce a winner on Tuesday, October 20th.
For those who enjoy their product and would love O Olive Oil go to their site at: http://www.ooliveoil.com
Type in: kidsandfood
SAVE 10%
They have amazing and unique products.

GOODLUCK!!

THE WINNER WILL WIN THE ENTIRE COLLECTION !!

Pickled Banana Peppers

I visit the farmers market every Wednesday and the last few weeks I would buy banana peppers to put on salad or pasta. They tasted fantastic without pickling.

I decided to make my own pickled banana peppers. I must say, YUM! I can't wait to add them to my sandwich and salads. I have already been opening the fridge and sneaking a few here and there.

ENJOY!

Pickled Banana Peppers

The BRINE:

1 TB Dried Dill Weed
1 1/2 cps. of Water
Quart of White Wine
3/4 cp. sugar
1 1/2 tsp. of Pickling Salt

4 LBS Banana Peppers (Washed Well)
Garlic
Fresno Pepper or Jalapeno (Washed Well)

1. Boil the jars and lids and the brine in another. While the brine is warming up cut the peppers.

2. When the brine is ready add a garlic to each jar and a Fresno or Jalapeno pepper.

3. Pour the boiling brine over the top and add the lid. Boil for a few minutes until really hot. Let cool. The lids should seal if they do not store in the fridge.