Top 3 Favorite Teas - Spring Edition

                   Spring is the most beautiful season of the year.Flowers are blooming, grass is growing

and new life is forming. Spring is also a great time to try new teas.There's black tea, green tea, herbal

tea just to name a few. The bitter beverage has been around for thousands of years and has grown

very popular in recent years. It's used in place of coffee, goes well with snacks and and desserts.

Some are also used for medicinal purposes.... but we won't be talking about that today.

                  Today, I want to share with you three of my favorite tea flavors. We'll talk about what they
taste like, how long to steep them, and the best way( in my opinion) to drink them. This is my own

opinion.

                  Jasmine Green Tea: This has to be my absolute favorite tea.Green tea has so many

antioxidants and is so good for you. Now, Jasmine just brings your green tea up to a whole new

level...or two. It's amazing hot, but you can drink it with ice too. I don't add any sweetener to my

teas, but it would be great with honey. Steep for about 2 to 3 minutes. Enjoy with rice dishes slightly

sweet treats.

                 Peppermint: Peppermint tea is an herbal tea. It has no tea leaves in the mix. Just good old

fashioned peppermint leaves.The fresh taste of peppermint is just ans refreshing as mint gum. It's the

best  tea to enjoy on Spring afternoons and tastes best over ice. Steep for about 2 minutes. Don't

steep this one for too long or it will taste bitter; I found this out the hard way.

                Peach: Peach tea is also and herbal tea. It's usually made with peach blossoms and is mixed

with other herbs and flowers. It's best enjoyed cold over ice with yummy snacks. Steep it the same as

the others. Honey is a great choice to sweeten this tea.

                 Well, there you have it. My Top 3 favorite teas for Spring. Teas are nice and refreshing,

perfect for warm Spring days. I like to drink mine outside in the sunlight. How do you like to enjoy

your tea? What's your favorite part about Spring? Let me know in the comments below. Have a

sweet day!

A Personal Note

                First of all, I want to apologize for not posting these last couple of weeks. I've been a little

discouraged in my writing lately. It's frustrating knowing that some people don't support you in your

dreams or don't agree with your ideas. How do you deal with discouragement and frustration?

                Sometimes, I think, people don't see beyond their own opinions and don't try to understand

where you are coming from. So, trying to work on things you love when the other person is not

around seems like the best option. But, it should it shouldn't be this way.  Being able to do what

makes you happy without worrying about what the other person thinks shouldn't be a problem. So,

from here on out let's declare that we don't care about the opinion of others and just do what makes

us happy. If you want to write, then write. If you want to dance, then dance. If you want to start your

own bakery then does it. The point is that if you feel deep in your heart it is something you are meant

to do and it makes you happy then do it.



             On to other news. I also want to touch on what is coming up for the blog and I think you are

going to like it. I'm going to start doing some reviews once a month, starting in March. Now, these

reviews are going to be my personal opinion. I'm not working with any companies for these reviews.

I'll also share with you my favorites from time to time. Don't worry there will still be recipes and

crafty fun.

           Now, my question for you is: What would you like to see reviewed? Baking products, candy

making products, candy in general etc.? Let me know in the comments below. Have a sweet day.

Strawberry Hearts

                        Valentine's Day will be here before we know it. It's the holiday of love, expressing

your feelings to the ones you love and your appreciation of your friends. To me Valentine's Day is not
just for couples. It's for families and friends. To show the ones you love and care for how much you

really do care for them. We give each other flowers, cards, and chocolate. I have something a little

different to share with you today. It's close to chocolate but not technically chocolate. But first story

time.


                        When I was a kid I remember my parents including us kids in a little Valentine's fun.

Besides getting the usual thin cardboard cards with funny sayings and silly characters we would also

get a small gift. I got a few little things, nothing that cost too much, things like pencils and candy.

The one thing that stands out the most and I will probably never forget is a special heart shaped

lollipop that we seemed to get almost every year. To anyone it was just a cherry flavored lollipop

with Minnie Mouse on the wrapper, but to me it was the best lollipop ever. For two reasons; First, I

only got it for Valentine's Day. That made it special in itself. Second, it was a gift from my parents;

the people whom I looked up to the most and I still do. What's your favorite Valentine's Day memory

as a  child?


                     These hearts are yummy and bring back childhood memories. Although they are not

cherry strawberry is the next best thing.



Ingredients:                                                         Makes about 30 candies

1 bag of red candy melts. or white chocolate that you would dye red

sprinkles of course

strawberry candy flavoring

heart candy molds




Directions:

1. Melt candy melts at 30 second intervals, stirring after each until smooth.

2. Add sprinkle the the bottom of each heart mold.

3. Add 10 drops of candy flavoring. Stir well.

4. Put mixture into candy molds tap molds to release air bubbles. This will make the candy smooth

and pretty. And place in the fridge for 30 minutes or until set.

5. To remove the candy just turn the mold upside down and the candy should fall right out. If they

seem to be a little stuck just give the mold a tap or two on the counter and they should pop out.

Enjoy!

Simple Nachos with Grilled Chicken

                                                   

                          I know I said I was only going to post once a week, but I just had to share this with

you. This is how we make our nachos. Now, I know the ones in the picture look a little plain. That's

just how I like mine. You can always add other things and we will get into that on the actual recipe.

First, the story than the recipe.


                         It was game day and. of course, we had to have nachos. What's football without junk

food, fight? Originally, my husband was the first to arrange this wonderful mountain of gooeyness.

He seasoned and grilled the chicken. He also talked me into adding beans. Since then I have taken

over the duties of nacho making. Yes, I realize that bean is usually on nachos, but I never cared for

them until my dear hubby talked me into giving them another try. Now, I can't go without them.


                       The game itself wasn't very exciting to me. I guess I was still a little bitter after my

the team lost horribly that last playoff game. Can you guess which team? I'll give you a hint: Green and

yellow is their colors. That's right. The Green Bay Packers! They were so close and it seemed like

they just gave up that last game. Oh well, there's always next year.


                      This recipe is super simple and very yummy. The kids will love it just as much as the

grown-ups.



Ingredients;

3 Chicken breasts

1 jar of Queso

1 30 oz. can of refried beans

1 can of sliced olives

1 bag of Tortilla chips

sour cream, guacamole, salsa etc. (optional)

garlic salt


Directions:

1. Season both sides of chicken with garlic salt. Cook on grill pan or grill until done.

2. Place chicken on cutting board to cool.

3. Warm refried beans in a medium saucepan until hot. Warm up queso.

4. Cut chicken into cubes and assemble your nachos.

Add any other toppings you would like. Smoked paprika would a nice addition. Enjoy! Serves 4

Not Your Ordinary Cupcake Cupcakes

 

             Who doesn't love a good cupcake? They make great gifts and they're yummy. And perfect for Valentine's Day. There is a slight twist to these cupcakes. There is no frosting.

              Let's get into the recipe, shall we?

       Ingredients:

  1 box cake mix and the ingredients from the the box instructions.

   1 bag of white chocolate chips

    Raspberry jam

    and some really cute Valentine's sprinkles!


          Directions:

       1. Mix cake mix according to the directions on the box.

        2. Bake and cool cupcakes completely.

         3. Fill piping bag with James and fill cupcakes.

          4. Melt white chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl in 30 second intervals stirring after each until smooth.

           5. Spread white chocolate on top of cupcakes as you would frosting.

           6. Immediately decorate with those cute sprinkles. And Enjoy.