Fall Festive Fun with Sweetworks

Posted on October 1, 2015 by Krissyar

This is a Fashionista Event and a promotional item was provided to me by Sweetworks. Hosts for this event are Still Blonde after all these Years and ModlyChic.

If you remember I had a lot of fun a few months ago with my 4th of July inspired decor and sweets with Sweetworks. Well I was lucky enough to get a chance to try out  some fall-inspired Sweetworks items, and I was thrilled and overwhelmed with all the adorable treats they offer. .  in fact, I plan to have another post up this weekend with some more Halloween-inspired  treats and decor using the fun stuff from Sweetworks.

I absolutely love decorating for fall (I think I enjoy that more than even decorating for Christmas..shh!) So anytime I can incorporate a sweet treat with my fall decorations I’m all for it! I picked up some super cute mason jars at Target, and  decided to make some cute centerpiece decorations as well as decor for my fireplace mantel (my favorite area to decorate). My kids of course love that there’s cute decorations they can steal some candy out of!

sweetworks_fall

I love the fall  colored sixlets, there are soo many things you can do with them. Sweetworks also has some adorable turkeys that I am doing my best to keep my little turkeys out of so I can use them at our thanksgiving dinner.
2015-09-30 21.46.23Another Sweetworks favorite in our house is the Orange Ovation sticks. They are delicious and they make some pretty cute decor as well.
2015-09-30 21.49.42

 

You can win your own awesome Sweetworks Prize Pack from me! Enter in the rafflecopter below, and go check out some other great bloggers creative decor and recipes and  enter their giveaways as well!

sweetworks_giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Autumn Fall Candy Pack Giveaway includes:

Item Description *                     Qty              Value
Foiled Semi-Solid Turkey        1                  $ 2.00
Harvest Sixlets Laydown Bag 1                  $ 2.00
Milk Pumpkin Spice BAP        1                  $ 3.00
Dark Orange BAP                     1                  $ 3.00
Caramel Apple Gumballs Bag 1                 $ 4.00
Autumn Mix Gumballs Bag    1                  $ 3.00
Autumn Mix Pearls  Jar           1                 $ 4.00
Autumn Mix Sixlets  Bag        1                  $ 4.00
Mint Ovation Sticks                 1                  $ 3.00
Orange Ovation Sticks            1                   $ 3.00
Sixlets Bowling Coupons        2                 $ 12.00
3705 Sixlets 9oz  Bag               1                   $ 3.00
Halloween Mix Sixlets Bag    1                    $ 1.00
Foiled Milk Choc.Hall. Balls  1                   $ 3.00

Jack-O-Lantern Discs             1                   $ 3.00

 TOTAL $  53.00 * Substitutions are at the company’s discretion but value will be $50 or over

 

        sweetworks_chocolate_pumpkin


Posted in Crafts/DIY, Holidays, Reviews/Giveaways | 66 Comments

Black Cat Oreo Cookie

Posted on October 1, 2015 by Krissyar

Cookie Ingredients:

1 package of Oreo cookie
1 bag of mini Chocolate Chop morsels
1 bag of Reeses pieces candies
Wilton Food Writer, black

Royal Icing

Icing Ingredients:

2 egg whites
1 C powder sugar
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
orange  & black gel food coloring

oreo_cats

Icing Directions:

-Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl mixing on medium speed for 4 minutes. (except your food coloring)
-If icing is  not stiff enough add 1/4 C powder sugar.
– Spoon the icing into a bowl.
-Take 2 TBSP of icing out and put it in a small bowl.  Add several drops of black gel food coloring, mix well.
-Add several drops of orange gel food coloring in the large bowl of icing … stir well to mix the color.
-Spoon the icing ( 1 for black & 1 for orange) in two pastry bags with small tips.

Cookie Directions:

-Place several Oreo cookies on a plate.
-Use the black icing as glue to attach the mini chocolate chips for the ears.
-Add two of the Reeses pieces for eyes using the black icing as the glue.
-Using the Wilton black Foodwriter to draw eyes on the Reeses pieces.
-Using the orange icing add a small dot directly under the eyes for the nose.

oreo_cats

Posted in Holidays, Recipes | Leave a comment

Simple & Delicious Italian Inspired Recipes with Bertolli® Pasta Sauce

Posted on September 30, 2015 by Krissyar

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Bertolli®. The opinions and text are all mine.

I have to admit, Italian food is one of my weaknesses. So when I found out that Kroger was having the ‘Taste of Italy‘ program in stores, I was excited! From September 23rd through October 11th offering shoppers a simple and delicious way to use the classic Bertolli® taste that you love with a range of culinary applications.

What I love about Tuscan-inspired food, is that you can make it as simple or complex that you want – which is great for when you want to get creative, or if you are in a time crunch and need to get a tasty meal on the table. Two of my favorite meals to make with Bertolli® Pasta Sauces are a simple Alfredo pasta and also then also stuffed shells. There’s soo many things that you can do with pasta sauces, you’re options are unlimited.

bertolli_alfredo1

My favorite stuffed shell recipe is fresh spinach and ricotta with the Bertolli® tomato & basil pasta sauce.

Prep time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 35 minutes | Total time: 50 minutes

Ingredients:

16 jumbo pasta shells + a few extra shells to allow for breakage while pasta is cooking

1 ½ tablespoons Bertolli extra virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons garlic, minced

4 cups (packed) fresh spinach leaves, roughly chopped

12 oz. ricotta cheese

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for serving

1 large egg

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground black pepper

1 ½ cups Bertolli tomato & basil pasta sauce

stuffed_shells

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Cooke the pasta al dente, according to directions on packaging. Drain and set aside.
  2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook until it begins to brown (less than 2 minutes). Add the spinach and cook, stirring occasionally, until the leaves begin to wilt but still bright green in color. The spinach should be reduced by half. Remove from the heat and let cool.
  3. In a mixing bowl, stir together the spinach, ricotta, mozzarella, Parmesan, egg and salt and pepper until thoroughly combined. Pour ½ cup of the marinara sauce into the bottom of a shallow 9×9 baking dish. Stuff each pasta shell generously with spinach and ricotta mixture, and place in baking dish.
  4. Cover with remaining sauce and bake covered with aluminum foil for 25 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until the top begins to brown and the sauce begins to bubble, another 10-15 minutes. Serve warm with a sprinkle of Parmesan.

Note: This dish can be made a day in advance. Keep refrigerated until ready to cook – use same temperature, but add 10-15 additional minutes to cooking time.

stuffed_shells2

If you don’t have quite enough time to prepare a dish like the stuffed shells above, you can make a simple Alfredo Pasta using the Bertolli Alfredo Sauce. We love penne pasta, and just add a salad or some garlic bread, and dinner is ready in a flash!

bertolli_alfredo

What are some of your favorite Tuscan-inspired recipes??

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Bertolli®. The opinions and text are all mine.

Posted in Recipes | 1 Comment

Have Fun and Learn with LeapFrog

Posted on September 29, 2015 by Krissyar

LeapFrog Disclosure

In our house we have always been suckers for LeapFrog products.  My kids love to play (especially on electronics), and I love that they are spending that time learning. I recently got a awesome box of goodies from LeapFrog to review and share with you, and let me tell you – prepare your wallet for some Christmas shopping!!

The first thing my son wanted to rip into was the LeapFrog Word Whammer. The World Whammer is jam on word-building skills in 3 action-packed games that adjust to your child’s skill level.

I really love that the Word Whammer is so easy to use, and it’s something he can grab and go to keep him busy when we are in the car when we have a drive ahead of us (that way I don’t hear the  dreaded “MOM ARE WE THERE YET?! or “Can I play on your phone?” LOL)
word_whammer

The Word Whammer has three action-packed games, and fiver different learning levels that adapt to the child as they learn (and progress). The kids get to ‘wham’ as they spin, push, and twist to identity letters and build words. Hit the handle  to blast a rocket into letters to spell more than 100 different words!
They can also match upper and lowercase letters by spinning the handle to bump a car into the correct answer – listen for a letter sound and twist the handle fast to spin the teacup into the letter that makes the sound.
It keeps them challenged – and entertained, all while teaching them (and they don’t even realize it) which is amazing in itself!

WordWammer

The other LeapFrog product I am excited about is the LeapPad Platium. LeapFrog has done it again with even more great features on the new LeapPad. It has a  7-inch high-res multi-touch screen and a faster processor. Over 1,000 games all designed and approved by LeapFrog educators. You can take pictures and videos of friends and family, or even yourself with the front and rear facing camera.

leappad_platinum

You can also connect with friends on the peer-to-peer enabled LeapPad and have yourpets play together – you can also unlock more games with bonus LeapFrog Imagicard digital games and the interactive card (more about that below). I love that the LeapPad Platinum now features wifi with a kid-safe web browser that lets kids explore content they love!

The LeapFrog Imagicard is like extra software for the LeapPad Platinum.

leapfrog_imagicard

Letter Factory: Step right up to the magical Letter Factory Carnival! Join Tad, Lily and their letter friends in this digital learning game that brings interactive game cards to life onscreen. Explore 4 fun-filled mini-games, then bring coins earned to the Prize Wheel to unlock 14 more attractions. For children ages 4 to 7

TMNT. Mutagen canisters are scattered across New York. Deploy shell-tastic math skills in this digital learning game that brings interactive game cards to life onscreen. Play as Mikey, Leo, Donnie and Raph and unleash each Turtle’s unique ninjutsu abilities to overcome obstacles along the way. Then celebrate with pizza, trivia and fun in the Turtle Lair! For children ages 5 to 8

PawPatrol. Join the PAW Patrol in this digital learning game that brings interactive game cards to life onscreen. Lend a paw for Adventure Bay Appreciation Week, and unleash mathematics and problem-solving skills while playing as six different pups. It will take the right pup with the right skills to help save the day! For children ages 3 to 5.

Posted in Reviews/Giveaways | Leave a comment

Chalkboard S’mores

Posted on September 29, 2015 by Krissyar
INGREDIENTS
Graham cracker squares
Marshmallow Creme
Chocolate bar (I used Hershey)
Powdered sugar
1 T ready to spread frosting (any color)
Pretzel sticks
Wilton white icing gel
Wilton sugared apples
White Mike and Ike candies
smores_ingredients
DIRECTIONS
1.   Take a graham cracker square and spread about 1 T of marshmallow creme on it.
2.   Place a piece of chocolate on top covering the entire graham and press down gently to even out the marshmallow.
3.   On a microwave-safe plate, place the chocolate and marshmallow graham cracker in the microwave and heat for 10 seconds.  Do not overheat or the chocolate will begin to melt and lose shape. Let set to cool for at least 10 minutes.
4.   Using a toothpick, carve a Back to School phrase into the chocolate (ABC, Back to School, etc). Be sure to make the ridges fairly deep.
Smore Chalkboard 4-3
5.   Sprinkle powdered sugar all over the top of the chocolate smores piece.
6.   With a lightly dampened paper towel, wipe the powdered sugar off the top of the chocolate, leaving the sugar in the carved ridges to resemble a word written in chalk.
7.   Dip a toothpick into ready to spread frosting and use it to glue a pretzel stick to the bottom of the chocolate s’more, resembling the base of a chalkboard. Set aside and let set for at least 5 minutes.
8.   Dip toothpick into ready to spread frosting and spread on back of the Wilton sugar Apple and press onto the chocolate chalkboard. Let set for a minute.
9.   Dip toothpick into ready to spread frosting and spread on the back of a white Ike and Mike candy. Press onto the chocolate chalkboard right above the pretzel stick to resemble a piece of chalk. Let set one minute.
10. ENJOY!!
chalkboard_smores
 
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