With the Superbowl approaching I thought it would be fun to do a couple of recipes for game day or anytime. I found my recipe on Hidden Valley Recipes|Game Day Recipe Ideas. The website is Hidden Valley Recipes| Game Day Recipe Ideas. The Particular Recipe I’m doing its link is: Original Ranch Meatballs (Keto Friendly!). Below are the recipes.
Prep: 25 MIN| Cook: 15 MIN| Total: 40 MIN
Ingredients (4)
1/2 cup beef broth
2 teaspoons Hidden Valley Ranch Seasoning
1 pound ground beef
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
Step 1
Combine ground beef and dressing mix. Shape mixture into 24 meatballs. Melt butter in a skillet; brown meatballs on all sides. Add broth; and simmer 10 – 15 minutes or until cooked through. Serve warm with toothpicks.
Step 2
ALL DONE!
* Recipe only gluten free when made with all gluten free ingredients. Read labels of all packaged ingredients to determine whether they contain gluten.
RANCH BUFFALO WINGS
Prep: 5 MIN| Cook: 40 MIN| Total: 45 MIN
Ingredients (8)
1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 cup hot pepper sauce
1 1-oz packet Hidden Valley Original Ranch Salad Dressing & Seasoning Mix
24 chicken wing or drumettes
3 tablespoons vinegar
celery sticks
1 cup Hidden Valley Original Ranch Dressing
Step 1
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Step 2
In a small bowl, whisk together butter, hot sauce and vinegar. Dip drumettes in butter mixture; arrange in single layer in large baking pan. Sprinkle with Hidden Valley Original Ranch Salad Dressing & Seasoning Mix. Bake until chicken is browned and an internal temperature of 165 degrees F has been reached, about 30 to 40 minutes. Sprinkle with paprika and your buffalo wings or hot wings are ready.
Step 3
Serve with Hidden Valley Original Ranch Dressing and celery sticks.
As you know I’ve done two cooking hacks post they can be at A Simple Cooking Life Hack and Christmas Cooking Hacks And Helpful Cooking Hacks……. So that got me to thinking what are some simple chocolate recipes and alternatives to chocolate are there. Who doesn’t love chocolate? Who doesn’t love chocolate? I love chocolate except for chocolate coffee. Yes I have tried chocolate coffee too. Vegan’s I didn’t forget about you. I will have a separate post for you. Because there are so many good chocolate recipes I’m only listing 5 but will give you the link for all the recipes for your recipes.
SOME SIMPLE CHOCOLATE RECIPES
Chocolate-Banana Pudding Ingredients:
2 cups of heavy cream.
tablespoons confectioners’ sugar.
3 bananas, thinly sliced lengthwise, plus 1/2 banana, sliced into rounds.
5 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped.
26 chocolate wafers.
Directions:
In a small saucepan, bring cream to a boil over medium-high. Remove from heat and add chocolate. Let sit 5 minutes. Add confectioners’ sugar and whisk to combine. Let cool to room temperature.
Layer 13 chocolate wafers in a 2-quart baking dish. Add half the chocolate mixture, then top with lengthwise banana slices. Top with 13 more cookies and remaining mixture. Cover and refrigerate until pudding is set and cookies are tender, about 2 hours (or up to 1 day). Top with round banana slices and serve.
Servings:
Serves 8.
Chocolate-Covered Strawberries Ingredients:
8 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped.
1/3 cup of pistachios(optional).
1 pound large strawberries (about 20), washed and dried well.
Directions:
Place chocolate in a bowl set over (not in) a saucepan of simmering water. Stir occasionally, until melted, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
Line a baking sheet with waxed paper. One at a time, dip each strawberry in chocolate, twirling to coat; then sprinkle chocolate-covered portion with pistachios, if using, and place on waxed paper.
Chill chocolate-dipped strawberries at least 15 minutes to set chocolate. (Strawberries should not be stored in refrigerator longer than 1 hour as condensation may collect on the chocolate.)
Total Time: Prep Time: Servings:
35 minutes 20 minutes Makes About 20
Peppermint Hot Fudge Sundaes Ingredients:
1 cup heavy cream.
One 12-ounce bag semisweet chocolate chips.
Best-quality vanilla ice cream.
1/3 cup light corn syrup, plus more to adjust consistency.
1 teaspoon peppermint extract.
Peppermint candy, coarsely chopped.
Directions:
Combine heavy cream and corn syrup in a small saucepan. Stir to combine, and bring just to a boil over medium-high heat. Remove from heat, and add chocolate and peppermint extract.
Whisk until chocolate is melted. If necessary, adjust consistency with additional corn syrup. Serve over ice cream. Garnish with chopped peppermint candy.
Cooks Notes:
Peppermint extract can be found in most supermarkets.
Makes:
4 Servings
Crispy Chocolate-Marshmallow Treats Ingredients:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces, plus more for pan.
1/2 cup granulated sugar.
1/2 teaspoon of salt.
3/4 cup all-purpose flour, (spooned and leveled).
1/2 cup of chopped nuts, such as cashews, pecans or walnuts.
1 bag (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips.
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar.
2 large eggs.
1 cup miniature marshmallows.
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 8-inch square baking pan. Line bottom with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on two sides; butter paper.
In a heatproof bowl set over (not in) a saucepan of simmering water, combine butter and 1 cup chocolate chips. Heat, stirring occasionally, just until melted, 3 to 5 minutes.
Remove mixture from heat; stir in sugars and salt, then eggs, and finally flour, stirring just until combined. Spread batter evenly in prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out with moist crumbs attached, 30 to 35 minutes.
Remove from oven, and sprinkle with remaining chocolate chips, then marshmallows and nuts. Bake until chocolate is shiny and marshmallows are puffed, about 5 minutes. Cool completely in pan. Using paper overhang, lift cake onto a work surface; cut into 16 squares.
Cook’s Notes:
To prevent toppings from sinking into the batter, sprinkle them on after brownies are baked. An extra 5 minutes in the oven melts the topping together for easy slicing.
Total Time: Prep Time: Servings:
45 minutes 10 minutes Make 16
Ricotta Tart With Chocolate And Kumquats Ingredients-For Crust:
5 ounces chocolate wafers (about 24 cookies).
1 tablespoon granulated sugar.
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted.
Pinch of salt.
FOR THE FILLING:
1 1/2 cups ricotta. (12 ounces).
2 tablespoons granulated sugar.
5 kumquats, thinly sliced crosswise.
1/2 cup heavy cream.
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon.
1 ounce bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped.
DIRECTIONS:
For The Crust: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Pulse wafers in a food processor until fine crumbs form. Transfer to a bowl, and stir in butter, sugar and salt. Press into bottom and up sides of a 9-inch tart pan. Bake for 10 minutes . Let cool.
For The Filling: Beat together ricotta, cream, sugar, and cinnamon until fluffy. Fold in half the kumquats and half the chocolate. Pour into cooled crust. Top with remaining kumquats and chocolate. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes ( or overnight) before serving.
Total Time Prep Time Servings
1 hour 10 minutes 8
Cocoa (cacao) beans on a bean pod with focus on foreground.
To stay with my chocolate theme and to keep my promise below is what you can use if you don’t have chocolate handy or someone can’t eat chocolate this is what you can do.
5 HEALTHY ALTERNATIVES TO CHOCOLATE
1. Cocoa Powder
Cocoa powder is a mixture of many substances that are left over after cocoa butter is extracted from cacao beans. One tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa power contains about 10 calories, and has virtually no fat, cholesterol, or sugar. And because it is 100% cacao, it is jam-packed with antioxidants.
Try mixing cocoa powder with almond or coconut milk for a homemade hot chocolate, or add a scoop to plain or vanilla Greek yogurt or as an addition to your favorite smoothie. Cocoa powder can be used in savory dishes as well – especially in many traditional Mexican dishes (cocoa and chili pepper!). For a crunchy snack, try cocoa dusted almonds (lightly drizzle almonds with honey and roll them in cocoa powder).
2. Cacao Nibs
Cacao nibs are basically Cocoa beans themselves, which have been roasted, removed from their husks, and broken into small pieces. In other words, they are a less processed form of cocoa. Cacao nibs are crunchy and taste similarly to unsweetened chocolate. They can be ground into a powder and used just like cocoa powder, or they can be eaten as is and added to yogurt, trail mixes, smoothies, or in your favorite baked good. Cacao nibs are naturally low in calories (just one ounce contains about 130 calories), are a good source of heart-healthy fiber, (9 g per ounce) and contain a number of beneficial minerals and antioxidants.
3. Dark Chocolate (at least > 70% cacao)
It is important to choose dark chocolate with at least 70%cacao in order to reap all the antioxidant benefits. Plus, the darker the chocolate (aka the higher % of cacao), the less sugar will be in the bar.
4. Carob
Carob is a tropical pod that is derived from a tree in the Mediterranean. Its pulp is roasted and ground into a fine powder that tastes very similar to cocoa powder. Carob is naturally low in fat, high in fiber, contains calcium, and unlike cocoa or chocolate, does not contain caffeine or theobromine (a good alternative to those who are sensitive to caffeine or migraines). Additionally, it is naturally less bitter than cocoa, so it does not need additional sweetening.
Carob comes in many forms which can be used in cooking, such as powders, liquids, and carob chips. Add carob chips to trail mix, fruit, yogurt, or use it as a substitute for chocolate chips in baking (but set your oven about 25 degrees lower or it could burn!).
5. Fruit
I can’t think of a better way to satisfy a sweet craving while still staying within a healthy eating plan than with fruit. Most fruits are high in vitamin C, potassium, antioxidants, fiber, and health-promoting phytonutrients. Generally, the darker the fruit’s color pigment, the more nutrients it will have! Strawberries and whipped coconut cream, anyone? Or try mixing up a medley of cherries, raspberries, blueberries, and pomegranate seeds, with some carob chips or cacao nibs sprinkled over top for a delicious and healthy treat!
*CONTACT FORM* – – – WHERE COMMENTS ARE KEPT PRIVATE!!
*COMMENTS* – – – TO GET COMMENTS TO SHOW SCROLL DOWN TO COMMENT/REPLY SECTION. COMMENTS MAY NOT SHOW RIGHT AWAY SINCE COMMENT MODERATION IS ENABLED. THANK YOU FOR READING AND YOUR PATIENCE.
HALLOWEEN TIME is a time of fun. Daisy Mae and I thought since we were not going to around for Caturday Art around HALLOWEEN TIME, we would share with you our Halloween artistry. We had lots of fun making these for you(actually I made them but Daisy Mae helped in her own way). Below is our Halloween artistry.
The above picture was made onGIF MAKER – CREATE . That’s where I got all the HALLOWEEN stickers to put on the picture.
The above HALLOWEEN picture was finished on Bloggif – Home . However, sadly when the gif was finished and created, it took the best part out — The blinking eyes, Moving flying cat on broom, Blinking pumpkin, Blinking eyes on cat in pumpkin and Blinking and moving words.
THIS PICTURE IS TAKEN AT OUR CAMP IN 2017.
The above picture is the picture I used to start out with before I started creating. I didn’t edit this picture.
**PLEASE NOTE** IF YOU WANT TO KEEP YOUR COMMENTS PRIVATE USE THE CONTACT FORM PLEASE AND FOR YOUR COMMENTS TO SHOW UP PLEASE SCROLL PAST THE CONTACT FORM TO THE COMMENT/REPLY SECTION.
Sometimes Sparks comes easy for me and sometimes not. Ever had that happened. On the Morning of October 6, 2018, I was reading my devotions with the Lord and came across something interesting I felt I should share with you. First let me tell you what it was about. My devotion from Our Daily Bread was called God Was at Columbine. It was about the killings at Columbine School. I know you’re probably wondering how is killing positive and encouraging. Below is what I found out and it’s positive and encouraging.
This item appeared in a newspaper after the 1999 fatal shooting at Columbine High School in Colorado:
Dear God: Why didn’t you save the children of the Littleton school?
Sincerely, a student
Dear Student : I am not allowed in schools. Sincerely, God
Interesting thought isn’t it? Even though God may not be allowed in schools He’s always there no matter what and thankfully He is.
POSITIVE THOUGHT #1
When tragedy, heartache, and sorrow abound,
When evil appears to have conquered the right,
We center our heart on our Father’s great love,
For He will bring hope in the darkest of night. —DJD
POSITIVE THOUGHT #2
God may be doing His greatest work
when evil seems to triumph.
**PLEASE NOTE**
If you want to keep your comments private that’s fine just please use the contact form but if you want your comments to show up please scroll down past the contact form to the comment section.
**PLEASE NOTE** So there isn’t any confusion when I provide the contact form, the contact form is there if you want to keep your conversation private. To find the comment section, scroll down below the contact form and the comment section will be there. I have WordPress checking ALL comments so your comment might not show up right away. If it’s not there after 2 days please let me know. I say 2 days because I try to check my spam every 2 days.
Hello Everyone and welcome to another edition of Awww…Monday hosted by Comedy Plus and Sparks which is hosted by McGuffy’s Reader. Although McGuffy’s Reader is on hiatus to do some things that needs taken care of and her computer, she asks everyone to shine their light.
I don’t know why I thought I had to know what fun Holiday was on August 20th but I did and my research found a whole list of fun Holidays for today and through the month. I’m sure there are more but below is a list of what Holidays I found.
For a while now I’ve been debating to write on this topic or not. My mission is to get everyone to make good choices not bad choices. Some of you may not like what I have to say in this post and you may disagree with my opinion and that’s OK because we are allowed to have our own opinions whether we agree or not. Now on with the post.
I don’t know about those who live somewhere other than the USA, but there seem to be more commercials in between tv programs. The commercials I’ve been seeing lately is what inspired me to write this post. Those particular commercials are about calling drugs a disease. That’s right, I said disease. But are drugs really a disease or just a very bad choice? These commercials seem to think they are disease. Before I tell you my opinion and why I feel this way let’s look at the definitions of Choice and Disease.
Definitions:
Disease: a disorder of structure or function in a human, animal, or plant, especially one that produces specific signs or symptoms or that affects a specific location and is not simply a direct result of physical injury. (Noun)
Choice: An act of selecting or making a decision when faced with two or more possibilities.
My opinion is that drugs are a very bad choice and not a disease. I took plenty of time to make sure this is what I really felt because I get angry at commercials like this and yell at the television even though they can’t hear me. Why do I feel this way? I feel this way because if you really think about it, you’re making a choice to do drugs or not to do drugs. A choice not a disease. Oh sure you can rationalize that it’s a disease by telling yourself and convincing yourself because it’s considered an epidemic it should be called a choice but it’s really a choice because you choose to do drugs or not.
In conclusion, this not only applies to drugs but to alcohol, smoking and many other things too but I’m focusing on drug commercials right now.
If you have a relative, friend or just know someone who needs help there are plenty phone numbers sites on the internet you can go to and there is help for family and friends. There are even support groups for you too.
While I was thinking about what to do for Sparks I had a thought and that thought was why don’t you do something with the meaning of encouragement. Of course I tried and tried to come up with something else but all I could think of was wanting Spring to get here and the sunshine and the pretty flowers to stay for a while. Then I said to myself, flowers that’s it I’ll do it on flowers. So I looked up on the internet to see what flowers are associated with encouragement and friendship and this is what I found. I have included their meanings as well.
ENCOURAGEMENT AND FRIENDSHIP FLOWERS AND THEIR MEANINGS:
Acacia, Rose or White – Platonic love/friendship, Elegance.
Adam’s Needle (Yucca) – Best Friends.
Arborvitae – True and unchanging friendship.
Black – eyed Susan – Encouragement, Motivation, Justice.
Carnation (general) – Fascination, Friendship, Vanity, Worker’s flower, Symbolic for teaching us to find love that is between souls and not purely physical attraction, In the 17th century troops sported carnations as a sign of their bravery, Chosen as the symbol for Mother’s Day in 1907, January birth flower, Used for 1st Wedding Anniversaries.
Balm, Bee (Monarda or Bergamot) – Compassion, Empathy, Your “wiles” are irresistible.
Canna Lily (or Flowering Reed) – Confide in Heaven.
Clover, White – Think of Me.
Columbine – Resolved to win, Deserted love, Folly, During the Gothic era the columbine gained a reputation of having powers to ward off evil.
Dahlia, Variegated – I think of you constantly!
*Dead Leaves – Sadness (*this is not a flower).
Everlasting – Constancy, never-ending memory.
Forget – me – not – Memories, Humility, True love, Exactly as it says, mythology describes this as the flower picked by a knight for his sweetheart before going into battle, One legend has it that God himself called it that because the plant was unable to remember the name it had been given when the world was created, Longing for loyalty.
Pansy – Holy Trinity, loyalty, Strengthens the power of the memory, Loving thoughts or “You occupy my thoughts”, Merriment, Thoughtful reflection, German word translating as “little stepmother”, Used for 1st Wedding Anniversaries.
Periwinkle (general) – Sweet remembrance.
Primrose – I cannot live without you, Young love, Early youth (childhood), Thoughtlessness, Frivolity, February birth flower.
Rose, Black – Deeper feeling of romance, Sense of mystery, Death.
Rose, Dark Crimson – Mourning.
Rose, Tea – I’ll remember always.
Rosemary – Remembrance, Your presence revives me!, Glad you’re here!, Invigorating, Healing balm, Memory strengthener, Devotion, Wisdom, Good luck in the new year.
Strawflower – Neverending remembrance.
Sweet Pea – Meet Me!, Blissful pleasure, Tender memory, Departure, Goodbye, Thank you for a lovely time, These flowers are long-lasting after being clipped, April birth flower, Used for 30th Wedding Anniversaries.
Sweet William – Childhood, Memory, Gallantry, Finesse, Scorn, Grant me one smile.
Thrift (Cliff Roses) – Sympathy.
Verbena – Faithfulness, Pray for me, Sensibility.
Violet Purple – You occupy my thoughts, Blue love.
Weeping Willow – Mourning.
Yarrow – Cure for heartache, Good Health, Heals wounds, Dispels melancholy, Sorrow.
Yew – Sadness.
Zinnia (general)- Thoughts of absent friends either alive or passed on.
We all need encouragement daily and I found these encouraging words to be helpful and hope they are helpful and are an inspiration to you. Below is my Spark.
Feline Friday is simple to join. All you have to do is: Post a picture, drawing, cartoon, or video of a cat (They may be silly or cute). Go to Comedy Plus and click on the Feline Friday code to get the link.
I’m writing this post because I came across this good blog post that spreads Positive Thinking and I liked the idea so I’d thought I write this post.
Today we need all the positive thinking we can muster. But we shouldn’t just think about doing positive thinking but we should take every opportunity to show positive thinking and even create positive thinking where there isn’t any.
CREATING POSITIVE THINKING:
Creating positive thinking also helps with your attitude. If you don’t have a good attitude then you’re less likely to have a positive outlook but remember this it takes more wrinkles to create a frown then to create a smile. So smile because who wants all those wrinkles.
I wrote a post called WHAT MEETING MAYA ANGELOU DID FOR ME because Maya Angelou was a wonderful woman and very encouraging to. Below are some quotes of hers and another encouraging person who is P.K. Hallinan. The one quote is by an unknown source.
Daisy Mae All Stretched Out Showing Off Her Grey And White Belly.Daisy Mae In The Christmas Tree Box Checking Things Out. This was Christmas Time 2017.
Daisy Mae here, I wanted to share with you some exciting news. Sister Crystal has changed the site name from CRYSTAL’S PHOTO-BLOGGING SITE to CRYSTAL AND DAISY MAE’S PHOTO-BLOGGING SITE. It’s just a slight change.
Can you believe it? She included me in the name which means I get to help her. I can’t wait. I sure hope everyone continues to visit our site.
Hello Everyone, I’m excited. Why? Because I finally hit 500 likes on CRYSTAL’S PHOTO-BLOGGING SITE . My actual on Likes is 502 Likes. I am so happy.
I know to some people 500 Likes is no big deal but to me it’s an achievement for me since I’m new at this blogging thing. Sure I have fun and I enjoy meeting people from different places.
500 LIKES ON CRYSTAL’S PHOTO-BLOGGING SITE.
WordPress is a good site to start your blog or blogs on. I’ve found that WordPress.com isn’t just any blogging site but is a site that has 4 types of blogging plans and you choose the one that fits you best, It has a Forum page, A Support page and a Contact page where Staff, Happiness Engineers and/or Members try their best to help you. I’ve used all 3 and sure was glad these were there.
Thank You everyone for helping me get to this achievement. I appreciate all of you.
Graphic Credit: winnipegpetshow.com
Graphic Credit: webhuntedthemammoth.com
Graphic Credit: clipartbest.com
GRAPHICS BY: PUSHEEN.
Graphic Credit: pixshark.com
*Please Note: This is my opinion and was not asked by WordPress or Given anything for my honest opinion.*
Chocolate-Banana Pudding Ingredients:
Chocolate-Covered Strawberries Ingredients:
https://mcguffysreader.com/ has a project called Sparks post each week. I decided to join this project with McGuffy’s Reader to encourage others each week. My encouragement post is called ENCOURAGEMENT. On March 4, 2018, I was reading my morning devotions with the Lord and guess what? The devotional reading was called Dying for Encouragement. In a nutshell, it was about a corporate accountant who committed suicide and no-one knew why. He didn’t embezzle money and that made his co-workers wonder why until a note was found and that note simply said this: In thirty years I have never had one word of encouragement. I’m fed up. My ENCOURAGEMENT quotes and reading are: It may seem insignificant to say a word or two; but when we give encouragement, what wonders it can do! —K. DeHaan— My second ENCOURAGEMENT quote is: A word of encouragement can make the difference between giving up or going on. —Author Unknown— The reading for encouragement is Deuteronomy 3:23 – 29. So when you think your encouragement isn’t doing any good, think again. It is. When you encourage some someone make sure it is genuine encouragement(not flattery) and it will help others.
https://mcguffysreader.com/
