YogurtLand

  one of our favorite stops When visiting Utah is going to yogurtLand. my boys just love being able to pile on their own treats!

 

just so yummy!

Iceberg straight ahead.

There is absolutely no way I could visit my family here in Utah without stopping by Iceberg. The have the most delicious shakes EVER! 

{the boys and I shared one mini shake and still couldn't finish it all} And if that wasn't enough they are HUGE!  And if that still wasn't enough you can always grab and order of MASSIVE onion rings to go with it.

Iceberg is just plain Yummy Goodness 

Yogurtland

 There's this yummy frozen yogurt place {Yogurt Land} near my Mom's and the boys have fallen in love with their toppings. Brock wants to go everyday!  "Mommy, let's go to  Gogurt land (this is how he says it) i wan to be cold."  The frozen yogurt always makes him cold. I only get them a little bit of it but it still makes them cold.  {this is Nicholas' cold baby face}

I have a feeling we will be visiting Yogurt Land a lot this summer!

Walks, Ducks and Dippin' Dots

There's a dauck pond not to far from the house that the boys and I love to go on walks to. It ends up being just about a mile walk to and from so it's a nice little outing. Anyway we walk to the duck pond at least 3 times a week feed the geese {since they are mean and don't let the ducks near} and the walk the roundabout way home. On really hot days I've decided to treat the boys to Dippin dots {just about the only Ice cream Brock will eat.}  And it's a nice treat on a hot day {if they behave.}

Today's fun find...

 That's right Cars 2 cookie cutters so of course we had to make these:

Very yummy. actually I don't think I got a single taste.

Like mother like daughter.

While in Utah this summer my Mom made rolls in her waffle iron. something she's been doing since her oven was on the frits. {Personal I like them better then the regular way} I told my self I would try them when I got back but haven't got around to it. Yesterday I picked up some frozen cinnamon rolls. so tonight as a treat  I made a few.  I prefer my homemade version more, but the Hubby sure loved them! So here it is:

I enjoyed mine with a scoop of cool whip.
Thanks Mom!

Just had to...

fit in a visit to Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory to get only the most delicious caramel apple ever,
before we fly back to Massachusetts on Wednesday. They have a ton of different flavors. Nana's favorite is the Apple Pie.














My choice was Tiger Butter-




which consists of a beautiful yummy granny smith apple dipped in caramel then covered with a white chocolate and peanut butter mixture with chocolate tiger stripes.


SERIOUSLY so SINFULLY,  DELICIOUS!



The boys got marshmallows dipped in caramel then white chocolate and then sprinkled with Rainbow sprinkles.






{Nicholas devoured his!}

Sweet Treat.

I absolutely LOVE cotton candy.  It's by far my favorite treat ever. I could seriously eat it all day long, but don't I actually limit it to once a year. Usually at a carnival of some sort. This year I got some during our visit to the Hogle Zoo. But then I saw this little beauty

at the Provo towne Center Mall.

 It was standing there all innocent. But I just couldn't pass it up. I placed my two dollars into the machine and it turned on. Slowly moving the candy stick into position and then turning round and round. Growing bigger and bigger with yummy white fluffy cotton candy.

  This may or may not be the reason why Nicholas keeps stealing Nana's bating and trying to eat it. 
Although I will tell you one this white cotton candy taste...        

so much better than quilt bating.

Craving 1...

no I'm not pregnant. but when you haven't had something in a while, and you know you're only minutes away from getting them, you can't waste anytime.
Yesterday I fulfilled one of my cravings that I can only get in Utah.

Onion rings from Iceberg Drive Inn! Seriously just looking at this picture makes me want more!

I also grabbed a Jamba Juice too!

Butternut Squash Ravioli

Remember this post here that I tested out last week well a couple of you wanted the recipe so here it is:

For the filling:
2 Cups Butternut Squash, rind removed, cut into 1- inch cubes
1 Tablespoon Milk
1/2 Cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus more for sprinkling
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

{my version consisted of the 2 cups butternut squash with, 1/2 cup cottage cheese with chive.}

For Pasta:
2 Cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 large Eggs
{ Incorporate the flour a little at a time. I did this "old school" by hand and only used 1 and 1/4 cups of flour. If you have a mixer I'm sure it will work just fine I just couldn't get that much flour to mix perfectly by hand.}

Directions:
Step 1: Make filling, heat the oven to 350 degrees, arrange the squash on a foil lined sheet and roast until tender {3o min, u could also boil it to speed up this step but the flavor changes a bit in my opinion} Allow the squash to cool 5 min, in a medium bowl blend the filling ingredients until smooth like mashed potato- texture. {also know that this can be prepared up to a day in advance and refrigerated in an airtight container}
Step 2: make pasta! either old school, by mounding the flour in the center of a clean work surface, and placing a lightly whipped egg and salt mixture in the middle working in the flour little by little, or in a mixer start with the eggs and salt and slowly add the flour. mix until it pulls together into a smooth pliable ball.
Step 3:Have the dough then form each piece into a 1/2 inch thick disk, set aside and let them each room temp {30 min} although I didn't see this step and skipped it, but that's probably why mine turned out a little thick! {learning}
Step 4: Lightly flour your surface and roll out dough as thinly as you can and use a biscuit cutter of drinking glass to cut out discs, pair them in two. once you have your discs rolled out and paired in 2's use your finger dipped in water {or a pastry brush} and paint the perimeter of one round disc. Spoon your filling into the center {I just did it by eye so use your best judgment}
then place the other disc on top of it along the moistened edges. {use the tines of a fork to seal the edges.
Step 5: Bring a large pot of water 2 boil , add you ravioli {the ravioli will float to the top when ready between 3-5 min} top with your favorite sauce {I recommend a butter herb like sauce or and creamy pesto type sauce. I also served my ravioli with breaded chicken cutlets!}
Serve and Enjoy!

Trying out a new recipe...

I found a recipe for butternut squash ravioli a while ago and placed it in my recipe book. The other day I found it and decided I wanted to try my hand at this new recipe. Although I changed it quite a bit. {I hardly ever follow recipes } I usually end up switching most of the ingredients to what I have on hand rather than going out to the store to buy a whole bunch of stuff to make one thing that may or may not turn out good.It took a little longer than I expected {rolling out the dough took forever!} It actually turned out pretty yummy. My ravioli was a little thick but other than that it all tasted great.

Should Be World Famous

I have loved poppy seed bread since I was little. {My Mom always made yummy homemade bread!}
I have been wanting to make some poppy seed bread for a while now, but never really had the time, nor all the ingredients. Last week I finally gathered everything up and made my Mom's poppy seed bread recipe. This is by far the best recipe ever, and should be WORLD FAMOUS!

Combine:
1 1/8 cups oil
1 1/2 cups milk
2 1/4 cups sugar
Add:
3 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. each of poppy seeds, vanilla, almond extract, and butter flavoring.
Mix together then add:
3 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda

mix together and pour into greased bread pans. *makes 3 med sized loves or 4 small and 1 medium. {I personally love the little bitty small loaves} Bake for 40-45 min. @ 350 degrees.

Warning: this is way yummy and you may find yourself eating a whole loaf all by yourself!
I love making a quick lemon glaze and pouring over the bread while it is slightly warm.

Holy Hootenanny!

Hoote... WHAT?
Hootenanny! Pancakes that is!
My friend Liz mentioned making these on her blog. And that made me want some real bad! I haven't had Hootenanny Pancakes {German Pancakes} in so long.
So I went into the kitchen and whipped up a batch! Just look how yummy my hootenanny "mountains" are!

A Perfect Pear!

I finally decided to get back on track with introducing Brock to some more new foods. Today we tried out some yummy pears. Brock must have liked them because he ate them so fast and was wanting more and more. But can you blame him they are pretty yummy!

A yummy snack...

This is my own little version of a fruit and yogurt parfait.
1 cup yogurt {I use Colombo Strawberry}
1/4 cup Rice Krispies
1/2 cup fruit of your choice {I like bananas, strawberries or blueberries}
Place in bowl and gently mix together.
now enjoy.
Ryszard thinks I'm nuts for mixing Rice Kricpies cereal with yogurt, but it kind of acts like granola. If I had clustered granola I'd use that but I only have Rice Krispies cereal so that's what works for me!

Puppy Love & Peaches!

We have a little Puppy "Pepper" that usually sits above our bed, that has recently found a new home on Brock's dresser/changing table. A few days ago Brock noticed it while I was putting him down to change his diaper. He was twisting all around trying to find where the puppy went, so I picked up Pepper and let him give Brock a few kisses. Last night I had Ryszard help me get a few quick pics of Brock with Pepper the Puppy.

What a cutie!

Then today when we got home from church, I decided to steam a few peaches and puree them for Brock to enjoy! {Yummy yummy for Brock's tummy!}