Tofu Pad Thai

Tofu Pad Thai is always what I order when Casey and I eat out for Thai food. For that reason I was excited to try making it at home, but also wary that I wouldn't be able to make it as tasty as they do at the restaurants. However, I really liked how this recipe turned out! By making it at home I knew, and could taste, that it is was healthier. I followed the recipe from Martha Stewart, however slightly modified it.

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces rice noodles
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice, plus lime wedges for serving (3 limes)
• 4 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon dark-brown sugar
• 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 package firm tofu, drained, thinly sliced
• 3 medium carrots, peeled and shredded
• 2-3 garlic cloves, minced
• 6 scallions, white and green parts separated and thinly sliced
• Vegetable oil
• Sesame oil
• Coarse salt
• 5 tablespoons roasted salted peanuts, chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped plus more for garnish

Directions:

Soak the rice noodles according to package instructions. Whisk together lime juice, soy sauce, and brown sugar.

In a large nonstick skillet, heat about 1 teaspoon vegetable oil. Add eggs and cook until just set, then transfer eggs to a cutting board and cut into pieces. Next add some vegetable oil and and a little bit of sesame oil to the pan and heat. Add the tofu and cook until golden brown. Remove from the skillet and set aside.

Next add a little more of both oils to the skillet with the carrots, garlic, and scallion whites. Cook until softened. Add the lime-juice mixture and bring to a simmer. Now toss in the noodles, eggs, and tofu until heated through. Place noodles onto plates and top with peanuts, cilantro, and scallion greens. Serve with lime wedges and garnish with extra cilantro.

*If you want it spicy you can add chili sauce such as Sriracha sauce to the lime-juice mixture.

Handmade Gift Ideas

 Teacup Candles via Martha Stewart

Tile Coasters via Curbly

Handmade Ties via Purlbee

Quilted Playmat via Purlbee

Car Playmat via Homemade by Jill

Here are a few great handmade gift ideas if you're looking to make something for someone this year. Love all of these ideas! I am making a few felt car playmats, however mine will not be as beautifully detailed as this one by Homemade by Jill! Love all of the thoughtful details included on it.

The Purlbee has lots of other awesome tutorials for handmade items that would make great gifts!

Creative Gift Wrap Ideas

Decorate boxes with flowers made out of cupcake liners

Use doilies

Make paper or fabric monograms to tie to each gift

Put your little ones to work, making homemade wrapping paper

Easy to make fabric gift envelopes

Decorate boxes with different types and colors of yarns

I love all of these creative gift wrap ideas! You can find instruction for these and many others on Martha Stewart's website.

French Macarons

 I have been wanting to make some french macarons for quite a while now, and today I finally got around to making some! I plan on making some for my sister's wedding and wanted to have a trial run before the big day. I think I will experiment more with some homemade fillings, but these that I made today were very simple and easy to make! I combined a couple recipes to create this one. 

The main recipe I followed was by Martha Stewart here. I love the muted colors of her macarons, however I decided to make mine a bit more colorful!

Ingredients for Macarons:

• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 3/4 cup almond flour
• 2 large egg whites, room temperature
• Pinch of cream of tartar
• 1/4 cup superfine sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
• 1/2 teaspoon strawberry or raspberry extract
• Teal food coloring
• Yellow food coloring
• Pink and Burgundy food coloring (i added burgundy to help make a brighter and darker pink)

Ingredients for fillings:
(use about 1 teaspoon of filling for each macaron)

• Lemon curd
• Strawberry or raspberry preserves
• Nutella

Directions are listed at the bottom of post.

After School Snacks

Grape Gelatin with Blueberries

Peanut Butter Granola Bars

Ham and Apple Wraps

Kids Sushi

Ants on a Log

Frozen Fruit Salad

Pita Nachos

Some wonderful after school snack ideas from Martha Stewart. You can find the full recipes by clicking on the links under each picture. I am going to make some of these for Hudson!

Back to School: Kids Lunch Ideas

Cold Cut Sandwich

 Egg Salad and Pickle Sandwich

Chicken Salad Pitas

Fast Fresh Fruit

 

Custom Chips

Here are some back to school lunch ideas from Martha Stewart. You can click on the links to find the full recipes.

Red, White, and Blue Desserts

Check out the recipes for these beautiful 4th of July desserts on Martha Stewart's site. There are plenty more to choose from too.

Lemon Vinaigrette

This Lemon Vinaigrette recipe is by Martha Stewart, you can find it here. This is a great simple recipe for summer. You can use it on most salads or even as a marinade for Chicken breasts. 

Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
• 2 tablespoons plus 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Directions:

1. Combine mustard, lemon zest, and juice in a jar; season with salt and pepper. Add some of the oil, then cover and shake to combine. Continue adding more oil and shaking until all the oil is incorporated and mixture is thickened and uniform in color. Serve immediately.
   

Mango Margaritas

In honor of Cinco de Mayo today I am posting a recipe for Mango Margaritas. The recipe originally came from Martha Stewart for peach margaritas, but we substituted mango for the frozen peaches. You could use fresh or frozen mango. My friend Amy and I LOVE to make them and love drinking them even more. We like to rim our glasses with sugar and garnish with a lime wedge. You can also find a recipe for Strawberry Margaritas here and Watermelon Mint Margaritas here.

Ingredients:

• 1 package (16 ounces) frozen sliced mango
• 3/4 cup tequila
• 1/4 cup triple sec
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice (from 3 limes)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 cup ice cubes

Directions:

1. In a blender, combine frozen sliced peaches, tequila, triple sec, fresh lime juice, sugar, and ice cubes. Puree until smooth (stop blender and stir if necessary) and serve immediately.
   

Coconut Cupcakes

I made some coconut cupcakes for the first time this weekend for a winter themed baby shower. The shower was themed with snowflakes, the colors blue, white, and silver, and sparkly decorations. I tried to make the cupcakes fit right into that. I used a coconut cupcake recipe by Martha Stewart and topped them with cream cheese frosting. I topped some of the cupcakes with coconut that I tinted blue with an edible blue luster dust and the other half I topped with plain white shredded coconut. I decorated the tops with snowflakes that I piped out of melted Almond Bark. I placed the melted almond bark in a decorating bag with a tip #2. I piped the snowflakes onto wax paper and let them set in the refrigerator. Once they set I dusted them with blue and white shimmery luster dust and placed them on top of the cupcakes.

Makes 2 dozen

• 3 cups cake flour (not self-rising)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 sticks (1 1/2 cups) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 1/4 cups sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 8 large egg whites
• 1 1/4 cups shredded sweetened coconut
• shredded sweetened coconut for garnish

 Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two standard 12-cup muffin pans with paper liners; set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and 2 cups sugar until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes, scraping down sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in vanilla. With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture in three parts, alternating with the milk and beginning and ending with the flour; beat until just combined. Transfer mixture to a large bowl; set aside.
4. In the clean bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat egg whites on low speed until foamy. With mixer running, gradually add remaining 1/4 cup sugar; beat on high speed until stiff, glossy peaks form, about 4 minutes. Do not overbeat. Gently fold a third of the egg-white mixture into the butter-flour mixture until combined. Gently fold in remaining egg-white mixture; stir in shredded coconut.
5. Divide batter evenly among the muffin cups, filling each with a heaping 1/4 cup batter. Bake, rotating pans halfway through, until the cupcakes are golden brown and a cake tester inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer pans to a wire rack. Invert cupcakes onto rack; then reinvert and let cool completely, top sides up. Frost cupcakes with seven minute frosting, swirling to cover. Cupcakes may be stored in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Garnish with fresh coconut just before serving.

From The Martha Stewart Show, March 2008

Read more at Marthastewart.com: Coconut Cupcakes - Martha Stewart Recipes

Baked Chicken Fingers

I really like this recipe for a number of reasons: it's easy, it's healthy, and Hudson loves them! They're pretty tasty and the wheat germ, bran, and flax seed add lots of nutritional value. I've also made these before without the unprocessed bran because I didn't have any in the house and they were still great.

Ingredients:

Serves 4

• 1/2 cup wheat germ
• 1/2 cup unprocessed bran
• 1/4 cup plain dried breadcrumbs
• 2 tablespoons ground flax seed
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 pounds chicken tenders (about 16)
• Barbecue sauce, for serving (optional)

 Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a food processor, combine wheat germ, bran, breadcrumbs, flax seed, Parmesan, onion and garlic powders, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; pulse to combine. Add oil; pulse to combine. Transfer crumb mixture to a large bowl.
2. Set a wire rack on a rimmed baking sheet. In a shallow bowl, lightly beat eggs. Dip chicken in eggs (allowing excess to drip off), then dredge in crumb mixture, patting to adhere. Place on rack, and transfer to oven.
3. Bake until chicken is opaque throughout, 12 to 14 minutes. Serve with barbecue sauce, if desired.

Read more at Marthastewart.com: Baked Chicken Fingers - Martha Stewart Recipes

Lollipop Cookies

I made these Halloween lollipop cookies with Hudson today to give to some of his friends on Halloween. I of course got the idea from Martha Stewart, you can click here for her recipe and directions. Here's how I made mine:

Ingredients and Supplies:

• Sugar cookie dough, store bought
• 1-2 tablespoons flour
• Orange and black sprinkles
• Lollipop Sticks 
• Treat Bags
• Orange and black ribbon

I just used a sugar cookie mix to make it even easier. Hudson liked helping me roll the balls of dough in the colored sugar and that is a great job for the little ones! I found the orange and black sprinkles at Michael's and used different orange and black ribbon that I already had at home. The lollipop sticks and the favor bags are also from Michael's.

First preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Then I mixed 1 to 2 tablespoons of flour into my store bought sugar cookie dough to keep it from stick to my hands as I rolled out the balls. Then I began to roll the dough into balls, using about 1 to 2 tablespoons of dough for each. Then roll the balls into the sugar, or let your little ones help with that part! Next place the lollipop stick slightly into the balls and lay flat on a cookie sheet, like they are shown in the picture above. Next I used one of my glasses that has a smooth flat bottom to slightly flatten each cookie. (You want to make sure you are making your cookies small enough to fit into the treat bags.) Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until cookies are lightly golden brown. Carefully move to a cooling rack and let sit until they are completely cooled. Then place each one into a treat bag and tie closed with a ribbon.

Halloween Blondies

I made caramel covered apples and these Halloween Blondies last year for a festive Halloween treat. The recipe for the blondies is below:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted, plus more, room temperature, for pan
• 1 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
• 1/4 cup each orange, yellow, and brown candy-coated chocolates (from a 12.6-ounce bag)

 Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brush an 8-inch square baking pan with butter; line pan with parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang on two sides. Butter paper.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together butter and sugars until smooth. Whisk in eggs and vanilla. Add flour and salt; stir just until moistened. Transfer batter to prepared pan and smooth top. Arrange candies in 12 rows (2 rows per color, repeating once) on top of dough.
3. Bake until top of cake is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Set pan on a wire rack and let cool completely. Using parchment overhang, lift cake from pan and transfer to a cutting board; cut into 16 squares. (To store, keep in an airtight container at room temperature, up to 2 days.)

Read more at Marthastewart.com: Halloween Blondies - Martha Stewart Recipes

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes

I tested out a recipe for Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes today for Kyle and Wesley's Engagement Party next weekend. I think they turned out pretty tasty, Hudson liked them that's for sure! They are very rich, but if you like chocolate and peanut butter then there's a pretty good chance you'll like them. I made chocolate cupcakes and filled them with a peanut butter filling by Martha Stewart. Then made a peanut butter cream cheese frosting for on top. To decorate them I chopped up Reese's peanut butter cups and sprinkled them on top of each one.

Hudson had fun helping me make the cupcakes. He placed all of the cupcake liners in the cupcake pans. Helped pour the measured ingredients into the bowls. Counted as I poured the batter into each liner. He frosted his own cupcake. And he had fun unwrapping all of the Reese's peanut butter cups.

Peanut Butter Filling:

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup peanut butter
• 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

 Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients together in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium speed until smooth. Transfer filling to a disposable pastry bag until ready to use.

Window Box

I love this idea of having fresh flowers outside your window. In Arizona this could be a bit of a challenge, especially in the summer heat. You could always plant succulents instead of flowers. Find out how to make this window box by Martha Stewart here.

Invisible Trellis

We have had some of our vines recently take off and have been trying to keep them up on our walls and pillars out back. So when I read this article by Martha Stewart I thought I would have to give it a try. 


Vines appear to defy gravity and let your wall show through when they climb without supportive woodwork. Eyehooks screwed into siding or walls and networks of medium-gauge wire hold delicate vines. (Heavier climbers, such as roses, will need heavy-gauge wire.) Design a grid by placing eyehooks 12 to 16 inches apart and running wire through them. Or you can follow one of our designs, placing eyehooks at intersections. Support wires across a large expanse with hooks every 2 feet. To install eyehooks in a brick or another masonry surface, use a masonry drill.
 From Martha Stewart Living, March 2002

Salted Toffee Chocolate Squares

I have not made these yet, but have heard that they are delicious!  What's not to love? Toffee, chocolate, nuts...yumm!

Ingredients:

• 13 graham crackers
• 1 bag (8 ounces) toffee bits
• 1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped toasted natural almonds
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup (4 ounces) bittersweet chocolate, chopped, or chocolate chips
• 3/4 teaspoon coarse salt

 Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Place graham crackers in a single layer on sheet, edges touching. Sprinkle toffee bits and almonds over graham crackers.
2. In a small saucepan, bring sugar and butter to a boil over medium-high. Reduce heat and cook at a rapid simmer, swirling pan occasionally, until mixture is syrupy, 2 minutes. Immediately pour over graham crackers. Bake until sugar topping is bubbling, 12 minutes. Remove from oven and immediately sprinkle chocolate and salt over graham crackers. With a sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut into 2-inch squares. Let cool completely on sheet on a wire rack. (Store in an airtight container, up to 1 week.)

• Recipe from Everyday Food Magazine, May 2010  

Summer Side Dishes

Green Bean, Corn, and Tomato Salad

Grilled Onions and Peppers

Grilled Corn on the Cob

The recipes for each of these summer sides can be found on marthastewart.com by clicking on the links.