Bacon and Boursin Stuffed Peppers

LeDonna gave me the idea for these stuffed peppers and it's my new favorite breakfast. We are growing mini sweet peppers* and she cut them in half, stuffed them with boursin cheese and topped with a piece of precooked bacon (click here for another bacon and boursin recipe they came up with) and put them on the grill until the peppers were soft and the bacon crispy. I took the same idea but put mine in the microwave for 1 1/2 minutes and they are terrific!

*side story - the little tag thing in the plants from the nursery said I was planting mini red sweet peppers but what is growing are green and the size is in between mini and full sized peppers - so weird! I'm not a fan of green peppers but topped with bacon and boursin they are my new favorite hahahah. 

8.9.22: TT mangoes

8.9.21: texas caviar

8.9.20: 🔥 week 32

8.9.19: paper straw easels

8.9.18: hemp dog necklace

8.9.17:  zucchini muffins

8.9.16: mason jar lunchables

Tip-sy Tuesday: Herb Flowers

My herb pallet garden is growing like crazy and if I don't keep up with trimming the plants then many of them will start to flower (right now my oregano is covered with flowers). Usually I cut the flowers off so the plant will stay full and bushy, and I've always thrown the cut flowers out - I just looked it up tho and most herb flowers are edible and safe to eat, and generally taste like the herb leaves. 

I found this additional info at gardeningknowhow.com: 

You can use edible herb blooms in syrups, cold beverages, as a tea, salads, baked goods, desserts, and many more applications. There are also other edible flowers like nasturtiums, violas, hollyhock, marigold, English daisy, and Dianthus. Flowers of some vegetables are also delicious like squash and artichoke.

8.8.22: painted knife block

8.8.21: 🔥 week 32

8.8.20: caesar-inspired asparagus

8.8.19: msih - french onion soup with cauliflower 

8.8.18: cucumber and smoked salmon appetizer

8.8.17: Candy's corn shortcut

8.8.16: how to paint a "hello" doormat

Baby Play Ring

My niece is having her baby in the next day or so, I'm posting this idea for a baby play ring that I will definitely be making for my new grand nephew or niece once I can figure out how to get it to her in N.C. hahaha. I love it - they've wrapped a hula hoop with fabric, ribbons, toys; I see what looks like a duster thing, some pompoms, bells, maybe a loofah? I don't know what all is on this inspiration picture but it's a cute idea, I'll post my own picture after I make one (unless she reads this post and tells me she doesn't want it LOL)!

8.7.22: 🔥 week 32

8.7.21: mimosa and 'mary bar banner

8.7.20: baked tortellini with turkey sausage

8.7.19: sweet potato corn bread

8.7.18: freezing cookie dough

8.7.17: make a pompom throw

8.7.16: roasted tomato, zucchini, and white beans

🔥 Around the Campfire (week 32)

Dear Campers ~

Here's a quick recap of what happened at camp last week in case you missed anything:

Posts ~

7/30: 🔥 week 31

7/31: watch band beaded loops

8/1: TT beading tip

8/2: bacon-wrapped steak bites

8/3: chocolate mug cake

8/4: MSTI overnight oats

8/5: words

What's Cooking ~

• grilled tuna, coconut rice, creamy cucumber salad (with tomatoes), roasted garbanzo beans
• pork chops, sweet potatoes, broccoli
• cheese and broccoli stuffed chicken breast, rice packet, roasted green beans
• burnt ends, potato salad, caesar salad

Miscellaneous stuff keeping me busy ~

• read "Bluff" by Jane Stanton Hitchcock and really enjoyed it. It's a good murder mystery plot line, it's not predictable and full of twists and turns, good characters, and some poker thrown in. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
• "Book Lovers" by Emily Henry is a cute rom-com, romance is not my favorite genre but this was a quick fun read and I'll look for other books by this author. ⭐️⭐️⭐️
• "The Hotel Nantucket" by Elin Hilderbrand about a remodeled luxury hotel that has a harmless ghost, another good beach read (I've read a string of them lately and it's been fun) that I enjoyed. Good plot line, characters, behind the scene staff issues - all in all I'll go with a ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2

That's it for this week, come back to see more projects, crafts, recipes, whatever we think to make at camp next week! Bye :)

Sincerely ~

Jill

camp counselor 

8.6.22: lemon squares

8.6.21: avocado hummus

8.6.20: Cathy's vase re-do

8.6.19: tt - chocolate chip bag hack by Brooke

8.6.18: crimp beads

8.6.17: corn salad

8.6.16: accidental gardener

8/5 ~ Words

8.5.22: perfect lemon bars

8.5.21: greek broccoli gratin

8.5.20: milk dud ice cream cake

8.5.19: friendship bracelets by Brooke

8.5.18: creamy cucumber salad

8.5.17: porch sittin'

8.5.16: fidget stress balls

My Sister Tried It: Overnight Oats

This one is a trend I’m way late to jump on. 

Overnight oats. 

I see “recipe’s” for variations on this over and over. My friends rave about how they love them, and finally this week my teen asked if I have a mason jar because she’s making hers in a cup. We promptly went to the dollar store and while buying her a jar decided for one whole dollar to get myself one. (Why does a normal adult woman not already own a mason jar? Great question). 

Anyway- decided to start with a basic recipe. I tend to be more of a banana/peanut butter person versus a fruit person so went the banana route. Equal parts oatmeal, skim milk, chopped banana, protein powder. I was worried that this might not be sweet enough, but I didn’t want to add any sugar to it unnecessarily so decided to try it first. 

I shook my ingredients in my brand, new mason jar and put it in the fridge. Low and behold, oatmeal. It was definitely sweet enough as it is, so I am glad I didn’t add to it, but not going to lie, didn’t love it. Cold mushy oatmeal Felt like what I thought prison food would be. I then decided to put it in the microwave to see if that helped. It was better, still not great. I can see why some people like it because it was easy and healthy, but I’m going to mark this one up to a waste of a dollar for me. 

8.4.22: creamy beef and tortellini soup

8.4.21: milk dud cheesecake

8.4.20: tip-sy tuesday: how to make magic shell

8.4.19: 🔥 week 31

8.4.18: wrapped turquoise bracelet

8.4.17: California roll by Brooke

8.4.16: short hair style ideas

Chocolate Mug Cake

This is a recipe for a single-serving cake made in the microwave - when you need a piece of cake but don't want to risk making and eating more than just one. Perfect portion control! Sorry I didn’t take a pic, just visualize cake in a mug haha. 

• 4 T. (1/4 cup) flour
• 3 T. white sugar
• 2 T. cocoa powder
• 1/2 t. baking powder
• 1/8 t. salt
• 3 T. chocolate milk (or whole white milk)
• 1 T. vegetable oil
• 1 t. vanilla
• 1 T. Nutella, plus extra to spread on top if desired *see note below
• 15 to 20 mini chocolate chips, optional
• powdered sugar to sprinkle on top, optional

Spray a 12-oz or larger mug with non-stick cooking spray. 

Spoon in the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt into the mug. Mix all of the dry ingredients together using a fork. Add the milk, oil, vanilla, and Nutella (see note). Mix them into the dry ingredients with the fork. 

Add toppings if desired - sprinkle on the chips, or spread with Nutella. Microwave on HIGH for 90 seconds to 2 minutes, watching carefully to make sure the cake doesn't overflow the top of the mug. 

Use oven mitts to take the mug out of the microwave, the mug and handle might be very hot. Let cool for at least 1 minute. Serve as is, or with a scoop of ice cream or whipped cream. 

If making more than one mug cake (so much for only eating one piece hahaha), mix them all up first and then microwave them one by one. The first cake will still be hot by thee time thee last one has been microwaved. They stay warm and gooey for a long time.

*Note: You can substitute peanut butter, or marshmallow fluff in place of the Nutella. Or poke a marshmallow down in the center after putting the batter in the mug. Or stir in a tablespoon of raspberry jam to the batter. Or whatever else you can think of to add to the cake!

from 'Coconut Layer Cake Murder' by Joanne Fluke

8.3.22: chocolate chip caramel cookies

8.3.21: tip-sy tuesday: beverage markers

8.3.20: watermelon wreath

8.3.19: slow cooker bbq chicken

8.3.18: towel holder wrap

8.3.17: Deanna's pretty glass garden angel

8.3.16: popcorn toffee crack bars

Bacon-Wrapped Steak Bites

LeDonna sent me pictures of a dish they made inspired by an appetizer I ordered at a restaurant that I loved - mine was skewered steak bites wrapped in bacon with a horseradish dipping sauce, her spin was to add Boursin cheese and YUM I'm definitely going to make these! 

This is what she did:

Cut a New York strip steak into chunks, top with Boursin cheese, wrap with precooked bacon and secure with a toothpick. Set them on a piece of foil and grill (with the lid down) until cooked to your preference, she said they took about 6 minutes. Don't turn them over while grilling.

8.2.22: zucchini brownie taste-off

8.2.21: crepe paper garland #2

8.2.20: 🔥 week 31

8.2.19: diaper wreath

8.2.18: birthday calendar

8.2.17: chocolate marshmallow cookies

8.2.16: uncomfortable shoe fix/tip

Tip-sy Tuesday: Stringing Bead Tip

When I was making the beaded loops for my watch band the knot I had on the end of the stretchy cord came loose and all the beads went flying. I have made tons of stretchy bracelets and what-not over the years and this has happened so many times, and it's super frustrating - after all this time I just figured out a solution that worked great. I had a binder clip on my work station and was inspired hahah, just clip one to the end of the stretchy cord and add beads - problem solved! Only took me 25 years to think of it LOL. 

 8.1.22: stainless steel tip 

8.1.21: 🔥 week 31

8.1.20: grilled romaine with blue cheese dressing

8.1.19: msih: cowboy pasta salad

8.1.18: white chocolate brownies

8.1.17: microwave corn shortcut

8.1.16: fish lure earrings

Watch Strap Loops

I was inspired to make beaded loops for my Apple watch straps after seeing this idea on Amazon - they have lots of different styles but I knew how easy and quick beaded ones would be to make. And they are both easy and quick! And super cute :)

My strap is about 3/4" wide. String seed beads on a length of stretchy cord, I made mine about 1 3/4" long; knot the ends together to form a bead circle that slides over the end of the strap. Add a drop of clear glue to the knot to help hold it, wait for it to dry and then snip off the excess cord. 

Because they are so quick to make I just sat and played with different beads and charms and made all of these in minutes. Now that I know how much I like them, I am going to make a few that look good together and group them in sets of 3 or 5 - once I do that I will update this post to show you!

7.31.22: 🔥 week 31

7.31.21: Al's baked beans (re-run)

7.31.20: album cover t-shirt

7.31.19: mexican street corn salad

7.31.18: freezing pesto

7.31.17: boho earrings 

7.31.16: Al's baked beans are the best!