recipes

Name: Blueberry Lollipops
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 12
Cuisine: candy
Ingredients: 12 lollipop sticks; Lollipop mold; Candy thermometer; 1 cup sugar; 6 tablespoons water; 1/3 cup light corn syrup; 1/16 teaspoon cream of tartar or half of 1/8 teaspoon; ½ vile of Blueberry Flavoring; 25 drops of blue Watkins natural food Coloring

Easy Homemade Blueberry Lollipops

January 11, 2023 by Rachel 2 Comments

After the busy holiday season, with all of the extra candies and cookies and treats, I *try* to start the year off by starting fresh. Part of that means being mindful of what meals we eat. Now, I’m not saying that it’s perfect — because it certainly is not. In the last two weeks we’ve had pizza takeout twice. It’s about making small changes in moderation. Hopefully some of it will stick around. One of my favorite ways to make changes is by trying my hand at from-scratch recipes. These easy homemade blueberry lollipops are a simple way to try your hand at making candies for your family.

What you’ll need

This recipe is a little different than others I’ve shared. It requires a candy thermometer. If you haven’t used one before, no worries. I swear it’s not as complicated or as intimidating as it sounds. Try the one I’ve linked above — it has a handy clip for the side of your pot!

Besides that you’ll need lollipop sticks, a lollipop mold, and the following ingredients:

sugar
water
light corn syrup
cream of tartar
Blueberry Flavoring
blue Watkins natural food Coloring

Tips to make these easy homemade blueberry lollipops

Before you get started, you’ll need to know a few things. First and foremost, prep everything in advance. If you plan on saving the lollipops for later, be sure to have corn starch off to the side and ready.

Otherwise, I promise the recipe and steps are very straightforward. And you’ll love the results!

Blueberry Lollipops

Yield: 12

Blueberry Lollipops

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Additional Time 15 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Ingredients

1 cup sugar
6 tablespoons water
1/3 cup light corn syrup
1/16 teaspoon cream of tartar or half of 1/8 teaspoon
½ vile of Blueberry Flavoring
25 drops of blue Watkins natural food Coloring

Supplies

12 lollipop sticks
Lollipop mold
Candy thermometer

Instructions

INGREDIENTS -

Prepare your lollipop molds by placing them on a flat counter near your saucepan so the transfer is quick. Add your lollipop sticks to your lollipop mold.
In a saucepan, add sugar, water, corn syrup, and cream of tartar. Mix.
Place the hook of your candy thermometer to the side of your saucepan.
Bring all your ingredients to a boil, mixing often with a wire whisk.
Continue to whisk until your candy thermometer reaches the temperature of 260°F. Add in your blueberry Flavoring and Food Coloring. Whisk.
Remove your saucepan from heat once your thermometer reaches 275°F. Immediately pour the ingredients from your saucepan and evenly distribute them into the cavities in your silicone molds. Make sure to pour over the sticks as well.
Allow them to sit and cool.
Once cooled, pop out and enjoy!

Notes

To store, you can individually wrap them in plastic, or dust them in corn starch and place them in an airtight container.

PIN FOR LATER

Air Fryer Chicken Hibachi with Veggies

January 5, 2023 by Rachel 6 Comments

Now that the hustle and bustle of the holidays is over, many of us are trying to find our footing once again with family meals. Once again we’ve been thrown back into the chaos of real-life. For many of us, that means less time to think about meal planning. If you’re in a pinch for dinner plans, this delicious Air Fryer Chicken Hibachi with Veggies is the perfect meal.

Why use the air fryer?

If you’ve followed my other recipes for a while, you’ll know I love using my Instant Pot and Air Fryer. They are just handy tools. Using the air fryer for this particular recipe just makes sense. First and foremost, it’s basically a one-pan meal. Second, the convection feature of the air fryer cooks this up quickly — which is perfect for a busy weeknight. However, this can easily be converted to a stovetop recipe in a wok.

What You’ll Need

Besides the air fryer, here’s what else you’ll need:

zucchini
yellow squash
onion
garlic
sesame oil
soy sauce
butter, salt and pepper
1 pound of boneless chicken thighs
and lemon juice.

Serve with a side of white rice and yum yum sauce!

Air Fryer Chicken Hibachi with Veggies

Yield: 4 servings

Air Fryer Chicken Hibachi with Veggies

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 45 minutes

Ingredients

1 zucchini
1 yellow squash
1 yellow onion
1 tablespoon of minced garlic, divided
2 tablespoons of sesame oil, divided
2 tablespoons of soy sauce, divided
2 tablespoons of butter, divided
1/2 teaspoon of salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon of pepper, divided
1 lb chicken thighs, boneless and skinless
1/2 tablespoon of lemon juice
Sesame seeds for garnish

Instructions

INGREDIENTS -

Cut the vegetables into bite-size pieces and set them aside.
Place the pie pan in the air fryer basket and add 1/2 tablespoon garlic, 1 tablespoon oil, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, and 1 tablespoon butter. Season with salt and pepper.
Add the vegetables and cook at 400° for 10 minutes. Shake the vegetables every 3 minutes.
Once vegetables are almost well done, remove them and set aside.
In the same pan, add the chicken thighs whole and add the remaining garlic, oil, soy, and butter. Cut the lemon in half and square the juices of one half onto the chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Cook at 400° for 10 minutes.
Remove the chicken and chop it into bite-size pieces. Return chicken to the pan with vegetables and cook for 5 more minutes.
Return chicken to the pan with vegetables and cook for 5 more minutes.
Remove from the air fryer and let cool.
Serve with steamed rice and Yum Yum Sauce. Garnish with sesame seeds.

PIN FOR LATER

Copycat Taco Bell Cheesy Gordita Crunch

November 22, 2022 by Rachel 4 Comments

I grew up in a household were 99.9% of my meals were homemade. We had pizza on Friday nights and frequently went out for ice cream. But we rarely, if ever, ate takeout or fast food. The only ‘fast food’ we ever ate was a once in a blue moon Happy Meal. This is going to sound weird, but in high school I had a Taco Bell bean burrito for the first time and it was magical. Okay, so magical may be an exaggeration, but I just couldn’t believe that something so simple existed. And while some people have ‘drunk college Taco Bell’ stories, I didn’t really have that. I came to my Taco Bell love in a wholesome way. Ha! As wholesome as it can be. As my love for Tex Mex fast food developed, I became obsessed with one thing. This Copycat Taco Bell Cheesy Gordita Crunch is now the reason I no longer have to ever visit a Taco Bell ever again.

What you’ll need for this recipe

This recipe is certainly easy peasy. It’s not necessary, but I prefer to melt the cheese (as seen in step number 10) in our air fryer. It’s super easy. Of course, it’s not required to use an air fryer. You can just as easily melt on a skillet.

Here’s what else you’ll need:

5 pita bread, trimmed to taco shell size
2 cups shredded cheese
5 crunchy taco shells, pre-warmed
1 1/2 cups taco meat
2 cups shredded lettuce, iceberg
Diced Roma tomato, optional/recommended
Taco sauce, optional/recommended
Sour cream, optional/recommended

And that’s it! That’s all you need to make my absolute favorite fast food copycat recipe. If you try this, I promise that you’ll love it as much as I do.

Copycat Taco Bell Cheesy Gordita Crunch Recipe

Yield: 5

Copycat Taco Bell Cheesy Gordita Crunch

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 4 minutes

Total Time 14 minutes

Ingredients

5 pita bread, trimmed to taco shell size
2 cups of shredded cheese
5 crunchy taco shells, pre-warmed
1 1/2 cups of taco meat, cooked
2 cups of shredded lettuce, iceberg
Diced Roma tomato, optional
Taco sauce, optional
Sour cream, optional

Instructions

INGREDIENTS -

Place the trimmed pita bread in an air fryer basket and top with shredded cheese to completely cover.

ALTERNATE: Preheat pan on stovetop at medium heat. Spray with oil. When hot, place pita bread topped with cheese in pan. Cover with lid.2.
Cook at 350°f for 4-6 minutes in air fryer until cheese is completely melted and gooey.

ALTERNATE: Melt cheese on pita on stovetop for 3-ish minutes.
Remove and place the crunch shell on the cheesy pita closing the shell inside the pita taco.
Add your meat, and lettuce and sprinkle with cheese.
To make it an exact copycat, add sour cream, taco sauce, and tomatoes to top it off.
ENJOY!

PIN FOR LATER

Instant Pot Asian Pork

November 18, 2022 by Rachel Leave a Comment

My husband is obsessed with any and all Asian food. No lie. In fact, I think he eats Asian cuisine at least 6 out of the 7 days of the week. Whether it be eating pho while at the office, or making ramen — he’s obsessed. Naturally, some of his obsession has rubbed off on the rest of the family. I’ll admit — I despise cooking with a wok. We have one, but it’s just so bulky and awkward. I much prefer using an Instant Pot with similar (if not better!) results. That’s why this Instant Pot Asian Pork is the perfect meal!

So why use the Instant Pot?

If you’ve used an Instant Pot or electric pressure cooker before, you’ll know that it’s the perfect way for all of the flavors to really soak into the foods. It’s the reason I will only cook spaghetti in the pressure cooker. Seriously. You haven’t tasted perfect spaghetti until you’ve tasted Instant Pot spaghetti. It soaks every bit of sauce and moisture up in the noodles. Perfection!

And the same can be said with this Asian pork recipe. Tender, juicy pork, full of all of the best Asian flavors.

What you’ll need

In addition to your favorite Instant Pot or pressure cooker, you’ll nee the following ingredients:

2 pounds of pork shoulder, boneless and fat trimmed
2 tablespoons of peanut oil (or sesame oil)
2 teaspoons of minced garlic
1 teaspoon of minced ginger
1/2 teaspoon of pepper
1/4 cup of sweet chili sauce
2 tablespoons of raw honey
1 tablespoon of soy sauce
1/2 cup of white vinegar
2 cup of water + 1 teaspoon
1 tablespoon of cornstarch
Green onions and sesame seeds for garnish

That’s it! I know it seems like a lot of ingredients, but I promise this will bring you the perfect flavors to create this recipe. And be sure to serve it with a side of rice, if that’s what you fancy!

Instant Pot Asian Pork Recipe

Instant Pot Asian Pork

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Additional Time 10 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes

Ingredients

2 pounds of pork shoulder, boneless and fat trimmed
2 tablespoons of peanut oil (or sesame oil)
2 teaspoons of minced garlic
1 teaspoon of minced ginger
1/2 teaspoon of pepper
1/4 cup of sweet chili sauce
2 tablespoons of raw honey
1 tablespoon of soy sauce
1/2 cup of white vinegar
2 cup of water + 1 teaspoon
1 tablespoon of cornstarch
Green onions and sesame seeds for garnish

Instructions

INGREDIENTS -

Set the instant pot to sauté and add the oil. Once hot add the pork and begin to sear the meat on all sides.
Once the pork is seared, add the ginger, garlic, and pepper. Sauté for 2 minutes more.
Cancel sauté mode and add a splash of water and deglaze the pot liner.
Pour in the remaining water, and add the chili sauce, soy sauce, and honey. Close the lid and seal the pressure valve.
Cook at high pressure for 30 minutes. Let naturally release pressure for 10.
Manually release any remaining pressure and remove the pork. Using forks, shred the pork and set aside.
Drain the remaining liquid keeping 3/4 cup and set the instant pot to sauté.
Mix the cornstarch and 1 teaspoon of water to create a slurry. Once the liquid is simmering, whisk in the slurry to thicken the liquid into a sauce.
Return the pork to the instant pot and mix so that the sauce fully coats the pork.
Serve the pork with white rice and garnish with chopped green onions and sesame seeds. ENJOY!

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Air Fryer Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs

November 11, 2022 by Rachel 9 Comments

As a mom, mealtime can be completely hit or miss. Ari will eat anything. And everything! But the girls are still in the smack dab of their picky phase. Lucky for me, the girls will always, always eat these two things — hot dogs and bacon. Sure, these kids oftentimes find themselves eating hot dogs. But bring their love of bacon and hot dogs together? Well, that’s just perfection in their eyes. These air fryer bacon wrapped hot dogs are a fan favorite, for sure.

What you’ll need

This recipe is the opposite of pretentious. I’m not going to beat around the bush. This is one thousand percent kid-friendly. There is nothing about bacon and hot dogs that kids will not love. But, it is delicious — even for adults! Just fancy these dogs up with some onions, jalapeño, and a generous handful of sharp cheddar!

The ingredients

8 count pack of your favorite hot dogs
8 slices of bacon
8 count of hotdog buns
Cheddar, shredded
1 fresh jalapeño
1/4 cup of diced onion
ketchup and mustard (optional)

That’s it! Also, you’ll want to be sure you have your favorite air fryer on hand.

Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs Recipe

Yield: 8 hot dogs

Air Fryer Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 12 minutes

Total Time 22 minutes

Ingredients

8 count pack of your favorite hot dogs
8 slices of bacon
8 count of hotdog buns
Cheddar, shredded
1 fresh jalapeño
1/4 cup of diced onion
ketchup and mustard (optional)

Instructions

INGREDIENTS -

Wrap each uncooked hot dog with 1 slice of uncooked bacon.

Completely wrap the hotdog.
Place each wrapped hotdog in the air fryer basket and cook at 400°f for 10-12 minutes depending on how cooked you prefer your bacon.
Clean and dice jalapeño.
Remove hotdogs from the air fryer and let sit for 1 minute.
Place the hotdog in a bun and top with cheese, onion, and jalapeños.
These hotdogs are juicy and pack a punch full of flavor but if you need more, you can add mustard and or ketchup.

Please do not skip out on the sharp cheddar or jalapeños. They truly add an additional zip that adults will love.

Copycat Star Crunch Cookies

November 6, 2022 by Rachel 6 Comments

I am a sucker for childhood nostalgia. I’m not the kind of person to refer to the time I grew up as ‘the good ol’ days,’ but we certainly had a significant bit of nostalgia from the 80’s and 90’s. For whatever reason, Little Debbie Star Crunch cookies are the perfect bit of nostalgia for me. And these Copycat Star Crunch Cookies are — dare I say it — even better than the original!

What you’ll need to make this recipe

I was amazed at how few ingredients it takes to make this bite of nostalgia. As much as I love using fancy kitchen gadgets, you’ll be happy to know that this doesn’t require any of those things. In fact, there are only five simple ingredients in these cookies.

Here’s what you’ll need:

2 tablespoons of salted butter, softened
1/4 cup of chocolate chips
1/2 cup of caramel bits
2 cups of mini marshmallows
2 cups of rice cereal

That’s it! Super simple and straightforward.

How to make Copycat Star Crunch Cookies

Yield: 8 cookies

Copycat Star Crunch Cookies

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 4 minutes

Total Time 24 minutes

Ingredients

2 tablespoons of salted butter, softened
1/4 cup of chocolate chips
1/2 cup of caramel bits
2 cups of mini marshmallows
2 cups of rice cereal

Instructions

INGREDIENTS -

Add the butter, chocolate chips, and caramel bits to a large microwave-safe dish. Microwave at 50% power for 1 minute.
Stir the mixture and microwave for 30 seconds at 50% until melted and creamy.
Add the marshmallows and microwave for 30 seconds at a time until smooth.
Add the rice cereal and mix until the cereal is fully coated.
Using a 1/4 measuring cup, scoop the mixture and roll it into a ball. Spraying your hand with oil makes this easy and less sticky.
Place rolled the ball on parchment paper and compress it with your hand or the flat side of the 1/4 measuring cup.
Repeat until 8 cookies are pressed.
Let sit and firm for a few minutes.
Serve right away or wrap individually in plastic wrap or parchment and store for lunch boxes!

If you love Little Debbie copycat recipes, you’ll also have to try these Cosmic Brownies! They are equally as delicious. And, if chocolate is your jam, they’ll be perfect!