Skinny Cake Batter Dip

Happy short work week!  With the 4th of July on Thursday my office is closed Friday so I only have a three day week! :)  We have lots of fun festivities planned for our mini vacation!

Last weekend we got together with a bunch of our friends for a day of tailgating before the Kenny Chesney concert.  We had all kinds of munchies, grilled eats and fun to go around!  There were a few storms that caused delays but once the show finally started it was good!

All set up and ready to tailgate!  We got there at 11am for a good spot!

Representing Miami!

A great crowd even through the rain!

I had some plain nonfat yogurt in the fridge and I couldn't decide how else I would use it up.  So to Pinterest I went!  I found this Skinny Cake Batter Dip recipe that my mom had made last 4th of July and was a huge hit!  I'm a big fan of anything that tastes like cake and when you slap "skinny" on the title I'm in!  I'm not sure the actual nutritional value of this as it does contain cake mix and whipped topping but hey we tried.

Skinny Cake Batter Dip
(This makes A LOT of dip, probably 4 to 5 cups worth, I would suggest halving it if making for a small group)
Ingredients:
- 1 box Funfetti Cake Mix
- 2 c. nonfat plain yogurt
- 1 to 1 1/2 c. light whipped topping

Instructions:
- Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl until smooth.
- Refrigerate before serving.  (I left in the fridge overnight but I imagine an hour or two in there would suffice.)
- Serve with fruit, graham crackers, nilla wafers, etc.

This dip is yummy and super easy!  You can add some sprinkles on top for decoration, I just didn't get a picture of it when it was all prettied up!  Its nice that it can be easily made ahead of time and the yogurt makes it seem healthy.  You could also make it with greek yogurt, I just used what I had on hand.  It was definitely a hit among the tailgate crowd!

I'm not sure if I'll get another post up before the holiday but stay tuned for another easy treat!  Have a safe and happy 4th of July!

Cheers!
Steph

Strawberry Smash Cocktail

Happy Friday!  Who's ready for a summer drink?  With this great weather Chris and I have been digging in to the fresh fruits and veggies!

I came up with this light and yummy cocktail when I discovered Marilyn Monroe Strawberry Vodka from Three Olives (lately I've had a Diageo product loyalty because my best friend Holly works there BUT this was an exception).  I LOVE the show Smash which is centered around a Marilyn Monroe Broadway musical.

So when I saw the bottle in the liquor store I thought "MUST HAVE" and "must make a Smash themed drink".  I also thought "Chris is going to kill me if I buy another flavored vodka" as our bar cabinet has an extensive collection of them but hey Marilyn and vodka can't be turned down.  I'm still grappling with the show being cancelled and that the finale was approximately a month ago (it may still be saved on my DVR, no judgements, thanks) but hey it's been a busy spring/summer and denial is the way to go when it comes to TV show cancellations/closures (i.e One Tree Hill, ER...you get the idea).

Strawberry SMASH Cocktail

Ingredients:
- 2-3 fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced in half
- 2-3 fresh mint leaves
- 1 oz. simple syrup (add more or less based on your preference)
- soda water (amount depends on your drink strength preference)
- 1 1/2 oz. strawberry vodka

Instructions:
- Slice strawberries in half or quarters depending on their size. Tear the mint leaves off the stem and tear in half then in half again.
- Muddle strawberries, mint and simple syrup in a cocktail shaker.
- Add vodka and ice then shake until chilled.
- Strain mixture into a cocktail glass over ice (you can scoop a little bit of the mushed up fruit mixture into the glass I just don't love lots of floaty things in my drinks).
- Add soda water and stir once to combine.
- Enjoy!

This is very light and refreshing!  Now that our strawberry patch is producing fruit I can use them instead of store bought.  You could probably puree the strawberries for less of a floating gunk factor but muddling worked for my purposes and if you blended it wouldn't be called a smash cocktail it would be a blended drink (details, details).

I tend to have simple syrup around all summer to make Tom Collins but you could substitute with flat 7up or Sprite.  Simple syrup is easy to make and can be stored in the fridge so here is how you make it:

Simple Syrup

Ingredients:
- 2 parts sugar
- 1 part water

Instructions:
- Bring water to a boil on the stove.
- Stir in sugar until dissolved then remove from heat (do not let syrup come to a boil or else it will be too thick).
- Let cool and store in a well sealed bottle in the refrigerator for up to 6 months.

So easy and so much better than using premade mixes.  I mean it is called SIMPLE syrup for a reason, right?!

This weekend is the Kenny Chesney concert so we've got a whole group put together for tailgating!  Then its on to 4th of July week festivities!

Cheers!
Steph

The Brussel Sprouts Experiment: Part 2

Alumni Weekend at Miami was a success!  Lots of great times and great memories made!  Since I can't resist, here's some pictures from the weekend!

Some Young Alumni Council members with Swoop!

Sights of campus!

Waffle fries and pitchers at one of our favorite bars!

Chris and I

Ok back to recipe business!  So as I revealed to you previously, brussel sprouts aren't as evil as a veggie as their reputation implies.  After making the Sweet & Sticky Sprouts recipe I shared I thought I'd give you a follow up recipe with Lemon Garlic Sprouts.  I had a feeling Chris wouldn't totally love this based on the lemon factor and I was (of course) right but he ate them nonetheless.

Lemon Garlic Brussel Sprouts
(This makes two side portions)

 Ingredients:
- 1/2 lb. brussel sprouts, ends trimmed, cut in half
- 1 Tbsp. lemon zest
- the juice of 1/4 of a lemon
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 Tbsp. olive oil
- asiago cheese, shredded, to taste


Instructions:
- Over medium high heat, sautee garlic in olive oil until it starts to bubble around the edges.
- Add sprouts and lemon juice, cook until tender.

- Sprinkle in lemon zest and cheese.

- Serve.

I used Asiago cheese because that's what I had on hand but you could certainly use shredded Parmesan or Peccorino if you prefer. The lemon flavor with the zest was pretty overpowering and that's coming from a gal who loves lemon!  Overall Chris and I agreed it was a good side but we liked the Sweet & Sticky ones better.

Up next I've got a summer cocktail to share, stay tuned!

Cheers!
Steph

LFM: The Jury Room

The crazy and hectic continues with meetings, appointments and more!  But I wanted to share a Local Foodie Moment with you before I got too busy to blog!  So after trying Dirty Frank's and Betty's, two of the Columbus Food League's "anti-establishments" I decided Jury Room was next up.

My lovely gal pals and I had plans to see Wicked downtown(side note: It was super good, sing it Elphaba, sing it girl!  And Glinda is my Broadway alter ego next to Elle Woods from Legally Blonde: The Musical.  You have to have "Popular" stuck in your head by now....of which I will NOT apologize for!).  Since it was a Friday we decided to get drinks and dinner before.  Jury Room is only a couple blocks away from the theater and their happy hour specials last until 7.

We walked in around 6 and were able to be seated right away. First things first, cocktails!  I ordered The Hung Jury: your choice of local vodka or gin (I chose gin) with St. Germain liquor and fresh lime juice.  Kourtney ordered the Bordello Bubbly: local Stone Fruit vodka, Chambord, champs & bitters.  Last but not least, Emily got the Jury Juice: rum, lime juice & 7up.  We were all very pleased with our choices, once we decided on those we had to get serious about the menu!

Clockwise from the left: The Hung Jury, Bordello Bubbly and Jury Juice!

Since appetizers are half off during happy hour we decided to split two, the Gouda Bites and the Fried Green Olives.  The Gouda Bites were sinfully good!  They were paired with a spicy ketchup that added just the right kick.

Gouda Bites (aka guilty pleasure!)

The Fried Green Olives were stuffed with blue cheese.  These were good but the saltiness of the olive overpowered everything and you couldn't really taste the blue cheese.  Slightly disappointing but we still managed to make a good dent in them!

Fried Green Olives

Inside of the Fried Green Olives, stuffed with blue cheese!

We decided since we got appetizers we would go with sandwiches for dinner so that we could all get the truffle fries (BIG truffle fans here!).  Between the three of us we ordered one of the Veggie Melt, the Beer Battered Fish Sandwich and the Grilled Mac-n-Cheese Brisket Sandwich.  I snapped pictures of the Veggie Melt and the Fish Sandwich but was far too hungry to fuss with taking any more pictures! 

Veggie Melt with a side of truffle fries

Beer Battered Fish Sandwich with a side of truffle fries

All of us were extremely pleased with our meals.  The truffle fries were fabulous, they had a little sprinkling of parmesan cheese and a side of spicy mayo.  We all had leftover halves of our sandwiches as the portions were sizable!  

Our servers were great, very patient with us since it took us some time to finally decide on what we wanted.  The atmosphere is quaint, a little "hole in the wall" feeling with probably only 10 tables inside and 5 or 6 on the patio.  It is right down the street from the courthouse so I imagine its a good place to go after work.  With the great happy hour specials its definitely a place to try!    

Next up, the other brussel sprouts recipe I promised and a summer cocktail!  Chris and I are headed to Miami this weekend for Alumni Weekend!  I have a meeting and he is (gladly) along for the ride.  We are hoping to sneak in a few wedding errands while we are there but we are really excited to spend the weekend with friends in one of our favorite places!

Cheers!

Steph