Yummy recipes and temptation~

Been a bit MIA due to this darn cold I cannot seem to get rid of.  Seems that we are all passing it around down here!!

Wanted to share a couple new recipes we tried this week, along with the blogs they are from.

The first is for Indian Style Meatballs with Roasted Garlic Cream Sauce from Mike over at The Iron You.  My sweet friend Brandi of Don't Disturb This Groove shared Mike's website with me after learning I am now following a gluten free diet.  Mike has tons of great healthy recipes on his blog.

Ingredients
Makes 22 bite size meatballs (perfect for appetizers, or you can make larger for an entree)

1/2 lb/226 gr organic grass-fed ground beef
1 large free-range egg
1 small sweet potato
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp fine grain sea salt

1 Tbs olive oil

2/3 C plain greek yogurt
3 garlic cloves
1 tsp maple syrup
extra salt and pepper for seasoning

Directions

Cook the sweet potato in a pot of salted water until tender, about 30 minutes.  In the meantime, roast the garlic in a heavy skillet over medium high heat, turning occasionally, until you get black spots all over, about 10-15 minutes.  Transfer to a cutting board, remove the papery skins and smush into a paste. (we had already peeled cloves on hand so we just roasted those).  Combine yogurt with roasted garlic cloves, maple syrup and a sprinkle of salt and pepper in a blender or food processor.  Process until smooth then set aside until ready to use.  Once the sweet potato is cooked, peel and mash using the tines of a fork.  Transfer to a large bowl and add ground  beef, egg, onion, spices and salt.  Mix until well combined.  Scoop 1 heaping tablespoon of meat mixture and form meatballs about 1 inch wide.  In a large pan (or skillet) heat the olive oil over medium high heat.  Cook the meatballs in batches until golden, this will take about 15 to 20 minutes. (We roasted ours in the oven while our sweet potato fries were cooking as well) Serve hot with garlic cream sauce.

As I mentioned we served ours with spicy sweet potato fries, which turned out to be a great compliment.  They are spicy, so if you do not like a lot of heat you may want to reduce the garam masala or cayenne just a tad.

The second recipe comes from the very sweet Diana of Nana Diana Takes A Break.  This apple chunk cake is AMAZING!  And as Diana will tell ya...Not For the  Calorie Conscious. LOL  Let me just tell ya, it was worth every extra inch added to my waistline!!

You can find the recipe here.

My photo does not do this cake the justice that it deserves.  Diana's however is mouth watering! I should also mention that I adapted a couple things to make this gluten free.  Easy conversion!

and, would someone please hide this from me...as if the cake hadn't already done me in...this just keep calling my name...

Be sure to pay Mike and Diana a visit.  One your waistline will thank you for, the other...well...your inner sweet tooth will!

Weekend Recap~

We had a fabulous time in the great state of Texas this past weekend.  The town of Waco is always hopping during Homecoming Weekend.

Friday night we enjoyed the Pep Rally and Bonfire...

The tower lit for Homecoming.

The heat is on...the U was the first to succumb to the intense flames. (The opponent for the weekend was Iowa State University)

Saturday morning we attended the Homecoming Parade.  Baylor has the honor of being the oldest Homecoming Parade in the country, rich with a lot of tradition.

This year we had a lot to cheer about as several of our youngest's sorority sisters were on the Homecoming Court and one took home the title of Queen!  They also won for best float in class A!!  

The flags of many countries-Baylor is quite diverse.

The Golden Wave Marching Band.

Bruiser-Baylor's Mascot.

Holding this guy down was no small feat...it was quite chilly and extremely windy.

Baylor's own, Holly Tucker, from the Voice.

Homecoming Queen.

A Baylor Picnic.

It is no wonder they won...the details were amazing. 

Not sure what I loved best, the "Dr. Pepper" can, the BU flip flops, the sunglasses, the huge basket overflowing with goodies, the ant hill-complete with moving ants.  It was AMAZING!

No picnic is complete without a good sandwich and some watermelon.

It was fun getting to hang out with this crew...such an amazing group of girls!

Baby girl is 2nd from the left.

Saturday evening brought game time...and the sun!  

Full House!

Beautiful sunset.

A little card trick in the end zone.  Who comes up with these things anyway???

The band spelling out Baylor before the game.

A surprise message on the jumbotron from none other than Blake Shelton.  He introduced the half-time performer...

Holly Tucker, Baylor's own.  Amazingly talented young lady.  She has quite the career ahead of her.

Yes, this was the score in the 3rd quarter.

Final score...71-7!

Sic 'em Bears...

Undefeated, and moving on up in the rankings baby!

I also wanted to thank all of you who follow along.  Simply LKJ hit 200 followers over the weekend.  

These are a few of my favorite things...

Yes, I know...you now have that song stuck in your head.  You're welcome!

Just a snippet of a few new things you will find around my home that put a smile on my face.

My new Coton Colors God is great platter.  Every time I see it I can't help but remember my childhood.  This was the prayer we said before every meal.  Of course, by the time we were teens it was a competition to see who could say it the fastest or shorten it the most.  I grew up with 3 brothers...food was a priority! LOL

My Happy Everything plate.  Yes, I know I am jumping the gun with the Thanksgiving turkey.  Need to order the sweet little jack-o-lantern for this month (the store was out).  

My Target bar cart.  This is by far one of my most favorite recent finds.  At $130...you cannot beat the quality for the price.  Right now I have it styled very simply.  I am a less is more kinda gal, and I hate to dust!!! Just saying.  This piece fits right in with our Pottery Barn furniture, it looks that high end!

A recent find while shopping with baby girl.  Yes, my girls now eat more than chicken nuggets.  But, there were many years that that was ALL they would eat.  We only went to restaurants that had them on the menu.  And, if I were to be honest...#1 is still a chicken finger and fries kinda gal.  (Love ya Elie!!)

I think every mom needs one of these, or two, or a dozen, or...you get the point!  My new prayer box.  #2 got another version that was super cute as well.

Inside is the sweetest message, note paper and a little pen for jotting down those worries, prayers, concerns.  I am glad He is handling them for me!!!

I hope everyone is having a great week.  Can't believe it is Wednesday already and we are half way through the month of October (and no, I am not even going there...despite the fact that every store I have walked in lately seems to scream...Christmas is just around the corner).

We are headed to our home away from home tomorrow...the great state of Texas.  Nothing beats Baylor's Homecoming Parade!!!

Hopefully I can share pics along the way...if this not so tech savvy mom can figure out how to load pics to my ipad then publish them!  Wish me luck.

Have a fantastic weekend everyone!!