Nestlette

If you are looking for a warm appie to pass at a party, these would be a hit. Or, if you are just looking for a quick bite to tide you over or something “meal-esque” to make it look like you spent time in the kitchen (but really, were out of there in a jif), these also fit the bill.

Mamma Mia Ravioli Bites

• 2 cans (0z each) Pillsbury Crescent Recipe Creations refrigerated dough
• 1 container (15 oz) ricotta cheese
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced salami, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained, finely chopped

Heat oven to 375. Spray 24 mini muffin cups with non-stick cooking spray.

Unroll 1 dough sheet and cut into 24 (2-inch) squares. Place 1 dough square in bottom and up side of each muffin cup, letting points of dough extend over edge of cup.

In medium bowl, mix remaining ingredients. Spoon about 1 tablespoon cheese mixture into each cup.

Bake 10 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. Cool in pans 3 minutes. Move batch to cooling rack and repeat with remaining dough and filling. Serve warm. I also served mine with a side of sauce for dipping and it made these little bites all the more better.

Recipe thanks to JoAnn Belack – Pillsbury Bake-Off Finalist!

Just like my Grandmum, I love a good caper.

When I was younger, it was Nancy Drew who brought out my inner sleuth. While some girls played house when they were little, I played detective! (And sometimes still do – investigative “research” that is – not snooping). Who does my inner sleuth live vicariously through now? Bailey Weggins – she is like Nancy all grown up but saucier. Kate White introduced me to Bailey in If Looks Could Kill and five novels and five crimes later, I am hooked just waiting for the next one. It has been a few years since the latest novel in the series, Lethally Blonde, was published and apparently there is more Bailey to come (we just have to wait a bit longer). But in the meantime, Kate White given us another trail to follow in her thriller Hush. I am looking forward to reading it and if it is anything like her other novels, I know that I won’t be able to put it down! (more…)

Something that has been done for generations and generations but it’s never talked about – How do you iron a shirt?? How do you iron pants?? This is new to me and it should be so easy but I want to do it properly – I want a technique! So I watched a How To by Real Simple. (And it really is quite simple!) (more…)

pix c/o: howtobepretty.wordpress.com

I have been addicted to baking cookies – and eating them! This sounds the perfect snack for a sweet tooth.

Peanut Butter Cookie Granola

• 1 roll Pillsbury refrigerated peanut butter cookies, room temperature
  
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
• 1 cup sliced almonds
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 1 cup flaked coconut
• 1/3 cup raisins
• 1/3 cup sweetened dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup Hershey’s mini chips semi-sweet chocolate
• 1/2 cup Reese’s peanut butter chips

Heat oven to 325. Line 2 large cookie sheets with sides with nonstick foil or cooking parchment paper.

In large bowl, mix softened cookie dough and cinnamon. Add oats, almonds, pecans, coconut, raisins and cranberries; knead into dough until well blended. Crumble mixture evenly on cookie sheets.

Bake both cookie sheets at the same time 17 to 22 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes and rotating cookie sheets halfway through baking, until light golden brown. Cool completely on cookie sheets, about 30 minutes.

Break granola into desired pieces then mix with chocolate chips and peanut butter chips. Store in baggies for an easy grab when you’re craving something sweet or sprinkle on yogurt in the morning. Keep for about 3 days.

Recipe thanks to Wanda Riley – Pillsbury Bake-Off Finalist!

Are your muscles achy? Mine sure are – moving (again, and the thought of moving again) and cleaning takes a lot out of you!

If I could get a massage everyday, I would. Kind of makes me wish I was an athlete (too bad the only “U”nsatisfactory I ever received was in gym, in Kindergarten – if only someone had told me about sports massages, maybe I would have tried harder…). C’est la vie.

Never having played a sport in my life, I have never had an opportunity (or a reason) to use Icy Hot (haven’t come across it in the natural and organic section of Sephora). But the slogan sounds fantastic – dull the pain and relax it away! And thanks to Ole Henriksen, I can share this experience too (au natural)!

Muscle Comfort Lotion for the ICY

Self Heating Body Souffle for the HOT

While butter fingers is an undesirable clumsy quirk, butter hands are a must have! Have you ever shaken the hands of someone who doesn’t moisturize? Hopefully they sanitize but clean hands are not enough I’m afraid – noteworthy soft hands are sure to make for a great introduction. Miss Oops Butter Hands hydrates and prevents wrinkles – yes wrinkles! We might prevent laugh lines on our faces but what about our hands? A young face with old hands isn’t going to fool anyone.. (more…)

Who needs a scrub? We could all use a scrub! Especially now with the months feeling like they are dwelling with chilly weather, wouldn’t it be nice to scrub away our winter blahs like *snap*. One of my favorite things is the Vanilla Honey Sugar Scrub from Central Market. It is exfoliating and moisturizing and smells like a treat! At Central Market, you scoop into into the pot yourself, pay for it and bring it home. So, I thought, “Why not do it myself at home.” (more…)

My boyfriend and I were at the grocery store and he was about to toss a bag of Oreo’s in the cart and I said, “No, I will make you something better!” I made him chocolate crinkles which are chocolate and white making them look like an Oreo (without the twist – but let’s be realistic, we twist to free the chocolate biscuit from the creamy filling because we enjoy one more than the other) but taste homemade and you can’t get that from a store bought cookie! (more…)