I love fall. There's something about the blustery days, the colors, the cinnamon adorned smells wafting throughout the house. Everything is just cozy and happy.
I love utilizing all the seasonal goodies Mother Earth has to offer! For my momma's birthday I decided instead of just a plain ole cake, I'd "fall" it up this year, especially since her birthday is in October.
Pumpkin-Cream Cheese Crepe Cake with granola
Crepe Batter:
1 1/2 c flour
1 c almond milk
1/4 c sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 c oil
Filling:
4 Tbsp cream cheese
1 drop clove essential oil
1 stop cinnamon bark essential oil
1 drop cardamom essential oil
1 c pumpkin butter
1/2 c granola
Pull cream cheese out of fridge. Make your batter, start with dry and add in wet. Mix until batter is smooth. Set aside for 30 minutes, helps make batter from becoming rubbery. Take the cream cheese and drop in essential oils. Mix until smooth and easy to spread. Once batter has rested, make crepes. Heat non stick pan on high heat, spray pan and pour in about 1/3 c of batter. Turn pan in a circle, dipping each side to let crepe batter reach the entire bottom. When sides brown (about 2 minutes), gently slide the spatula under the crepe's edge and flip over. Batter should make about 16 crepes.
Let crepes cool for about 10 minutes. Then take a crepe, place it on your serving plate, spread with pumpkin butter, put another crepe on top, spread with spiced cream cheese, sprinkle with granola, and continue layering until all crepes are used. If you have torn crepes, no worries, put them in the middle. On the top add layer of spiced cream cheese, pumpkin butter and the rest of the granola. I added a few fall colored flowers to brighten up the plate. Refrigerate until ready to serve. You can serve with homemade whipped cream, ice cream or just eat it on it's own. Yum!
A few days later I made dinner for a friend who had just had her second baby girl. I was so grateful for all the people who made us meals both times I had my girls.
Italian Pasta Bake with Meatballs
Meatballs
Elbow noodles
1 jar sauce
1 can diced tomatoes
2 c chicken broth
1 drop oregano essential oil
1 drop basil essential oil
Salt & pepper
1 c cheese
I used frozen meatballs (A few shortcuts today folks!) Heat broth & sauce, pour in noodles. Add tomatoes & essential oils. Let cook for 10-15 minutes. Remove from pot, spread out in pan. Add meatballs & cheese on top. Bake at 375 for 15 minutes. Serve with salad or crusty bread.
Cinnamon-Orange Brownie Cake Balls
Brownie mix
1 drop orange essential oil
1 drop cinnamon essential oil
1/2 cup of Nutella
5 squares of bakes chocolate
Candy corn
Make brownies (I took a shortcut on this dessert.) After cooled from baking crumble into a bowl, add Nutella as a binder. Roll into 1 inch balls and set on baking sheet. Put in freezer to chill for 15 minutes. Melt chocolate, dip one brownie cake ball at a time into melted chocolate. Make sure they're all covered, place on baking sheet and top immediately with candy corn before the chocolate dries. Serve!
I love making most things homemade, but with two babies and an in-home daycare, sometimes I just work with what I got. I'm one resourceful mama who loves to cook and bake for the ones I love.
Cheers! Xo Lo
Friday, October 21, 2016
Friday, October 7, 2016
Best Girls Dinner
A few weeks ago I hosted an intimate dinner for some of my best local girls. Motherhood had brought beautiful chaos into all of our lives and it was so nice to just sip, chat, giggle and eat together...not just as busy moms, but as friends. I incorporated a fresh menu full of seasonal eats, sentimental details and my love for YoungLiving essential oils.
Menu:
Lemon-Tarragon Flatbread with Fontina and Prosciutto
Ingredients:
Flatbread dough (recipe below)
1 package of quality prosciutto
Whole milk ricotta
Quality fontina cheese
Lemon- Tarragon dressing
1 drop of lemon essential oil
You can make your dough or get already made pizza dough from your local grocery store. I mixed 3
1/2c flour with 1/2 tsp baking soda and 1 tsp salt. Then I slowly added 1 stick of room temp butter until incorporated. Add 10-12 Tbsp of water until dough forms. Knead for 5 minutes, cut into 4 discs and wrap up. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. When dough is ready, roll out to about 1/2 inch thickness. And grill each side on high heat for about 1-2 minutes. Let cool, spread with dressing. Mix lemon essential oil until ricotta and spoon on top of dough. Place prosciutto, sliced fontina and fresh basil leaves on top and serve. The whole milk ricotta is amazing, I would never use a low-fat ricotta. So delicious!
Pan Grilled Chicken with walnut and spinach pesto
Ingredients:
5 chicken thighs
2 c spinach
1/2 c walnuts
1/4 c olive oil
1/2 c Parmesan
1 piece of garlic
Salt
1 drop of black pepper essential oil
I love using chicken thighs because they are an inexpensive organic option and so flavorful! I made the pesto first by adding the spinach, olive oil and garlic into a food processor (or blender) pulse and then add in walnuts and Parmesan. Pulse until smooth. Add salt, pepper and black pepper essential oil; stir, set aside until serving. I grilled my chicken in a grill pan with olive oil, and salt. About 10 minutes or so per side. Serve with pesto on top.
Grilled Eggplant with Goat Cheese and Walnuts
Ingredients:
1-2 eggplants
Good quality goat cheese
1/4 c walnuts
Olive oil
Salt & pepper
1 drop of oregano essential oil
I drizzled my eggplant with olive oil and sprinkled with salt and pepper. Placed on the hot grill pan and grilled for about 3 minutes per side. Then I let cool slightly. Mix goat cheese with oregano essential oil and sprinkle on top with walnuts.
Artichokes and Tomato Panzanella
Ingredients:
1 jar of olive oil marinated artichokes
1 container of grape tomatoes
Leftover bread
1/3 c chicken broth
Olive oil
Salt & pepper
1 drop of basil essential oil
Let dried, leftover bread soak in chicken broth for a few minutes. Heat pan with olive oil and basil essential oil, add in tomatoes, artichokes and bread. Remove when bread a crisp yet still moist. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Grilled Pineapple served with ice cream and Nutella
Ingredients:
1 pineapple
1 c Nutella
2 scoops of vanilla ice cream per bowl
1 drop of orange essential oil
1 drop cinnamon essential oil
Slice up pineapple and grill each side for 2 minutes. Place in bowls on top of ice cream. Mix Nutella with drops of essential oil and drizzle over pineapple. Serve.
I love using fresh ingredients, essential oils, resourcefulness, creativity and love in my dishes. The girls brought wine and we happily ate and shared stories. At each friend's place mat I had a card and gift to mark their seat. I made a Epsom salt bath soak for each friend with various essential oils that I thought they'd love. Lavender for my busy working friend to help relax. Lemon for another friend for energy. Joy in another to uplift. Panaway to help sooth. Lemongrass for my bohemian traveling friend. I mixed them all with some coconut oil and painted the tops to make them personal. Special, unique details are the best.
Hope you enjoy these recipes as much as we did!
Xo Lo
Menu:
Lemon-Tarragon Flatbread with Fontina and Prosciutto
Ingredients:
Flatbread dough (recipe below)
1 package of quality prosciutto
Whole milk ricotta
Quality fontina cheese
Lemon- Tarragon dressing
1 drop of lemon essential oil
You can make your dough or get already made pizza dough from your local grocery store. I mixed 3
1/2c flour with 1/2 tsp baking soda and 1 tsp salt. Then I slowly added 1 stick of room temp butter until incorporated. Add 10-12 Tbsp of water until dough forms. Knead for 5 minutes, cut into 4 discs and wrap up. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. When dough is ready, roll out to about 1/2 inch thickness. And grill each side on high heat for about 1-2 minutes. Let cool, spread with dressing. Mix lemon essential oil until ricotta and spoon on top of dough. Place prosciutto, sliced fontina and fresh basil leaves on top and serve. The whole milk ricotta is amazing, I would never use a low-fat ricotta. So delicious!
Pan Grilled Chicken with walnut and spinach pesto
Ingredients:
5 chicken thighs
2 c spinach
1/2 c walnuts
1/4 c olive oil
1/2 c Parmesan
1 piece of garlic
Salt
1 drop of black pepper essential oil
I love using chicken thighs because they are an inexpensive organic option and so flavorful! I made the pesto first by adding the spinach, olive oil and garlic into a food processor (or blender) pulse and then add in walnuts and Parmesan. Pulse until smooth. Add salt, pepper and black pepper essential oil; stir, set aside until serving. I grilled my chicken in a grill pan with olive oil, and salt. About 10 minutes or so per side. Serve with pesto on top.
Grilled Eggplant with Goat Cheese and Walnuts
Ingredients:
1-2 eggplants
Good quality goat cheese
1/4 c walnuts
Olive oil
Salt & pepper
1 drop of oregano essential oil
I drizzled my eggplant with olive oil and sprinkled with salt and pepper. Placed on the hot grill pan and grilled for about 3 minutes per side. Then I let cool slightly. Mix goat cheese with oregano essential oil and sprinkle on top with walnuts.
Artichokes and Tomato Panzanella
Ingredients:
1 jar of olive oil marinated artichokes
1 container of grape tomatoes
Leftover bread
1/3 c chicken broth
Olive oil
Salt & pepper
1 drop of basil essential oil
Let dried, leftover bread soak in chicken broth for a few minutes. Heat pan with olive oil and basil essential oil, add in tomatoes, artichokes and bread. Remove when bread a crisp yet still moist. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Grilled Pineapple served with ice cream and Nutella
Ingredients:
1 pineapple
1 c Nutella
2 scoops of vanilla ice cream per bowl
1 drop of orange essential oil
1 drop cinnamon essential oil
Slice up pineapple and grill each side for 2 minutes. Place in bowls on top of ice cream. Mix Nutella with drops of essential oil and drizzle over pineapple. Serve.
I love using fresh ingredients, essential oils, resourcefulness, creativity and love in my dishes. The girls brought wine and we happily ate and shared stories. At each friend's place mat I had a card and gift to mark their seat. I made a Epsom salt bath soak for each friend with various essential oils that I thought they'd love. Lavender for my busy working friend to help relax. Lemon for another friend for energy. Joy in another to uplift. Panaway to help sooth. Lemongrass for my bohemian traveling friend. I mixed them all with some coconut oil and painted the tops to make them personal. Special, unique details are the best.
Hope you enjoy these recipes as much as we did!
Xo Lo
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