Arroz con Tocino (Puerto Rican Rice with Bacon)

Here we are at the Eat the World Recipe challenge again and we’re headed to Puerto Rico!

You guys – the struggle was real this month and I really didn’t think it would be!

What really did me in was that we had just gotten back from out 2-week long vacation before the country was announced (and I *still* haven’t shared about that! AAHHH!!  Summer brain!  I’ll get there, I promise!)

It took me a while to get back in the groove of things and then Hubs went out of town for 3 (yes, THREE) back to back trips, leaving him gone for 2 ½ weeks.  And it is always so much more difficult to cook when it’s just me and the kids.  They’re adventurous eaters, but there’s only so far I can go without reinforcement.  Then, a week after Hubs left, Dude went away to boy scout camp for a week, leaving just me and Spud!  Cooking was almost nil.  One batch of taco meat lasted us the entire week!

Twice Baked Potato Potato Pie

It’s #FoodnFlix time and this month Camilla from Culinary Adventures with Camilla chose The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.  The title seemed vaguely familiar.  I hunted down a copy and got to watching and it was a delightful movie!

It is set post-World War II in England and follows a medley of characters as the reminisce about the war, hardships, and friendships that evolved – and of course potato peel pie was mentioned!  With rationed food, the only offering one member had to bring to the book club (or literary society) was potato peel pie with potato peel crust, potato filling, and potato topping! 

There was other food in the movie to be sure, but before I set out to cooking, I remembered where I heard the title – it is the book of the same name, which I thought an odd name, so I passed on it without finding out what the book was about.  After watching the movie, and liking it, I knew I had to try the book before creating a recipe!

Whiskey-Infused Coffee Ice Cream with Chocolate Chips (No Churn)

It’s time for another Fantastical Food Fight and with these 90+ degree days we’ve been having, the theme this month is Ice Cream!

I wasn’t sure at first if I’d be able or inspired to join in this month having just gotten back from vacation (I still want to share more about that but haven’t had the time!), but I happened to get inspired by ice cream on  vacation on the second day!

After a wild waterpark day, we decided to stop at a local ice cream shop for a treat.  The usual delicious flavors were there, plus a few specials.  The one that caught my eye was titled “Exhausted Parent” and included Bourbon, coffee ice cream and chocolate!  So perfect!

Naturally, I got a double scoop of Exhausted parent and decided I wanted to replicate it at home!

Sima (Finnish Lemonade) #eattheworld

It’s time for #EatTheWorld and we’re heading to Finland! 

As I searched for recipes, I found many delicious, hearty dishes that just seemed a bit too wintery for July, or too similar to other things I’d made before, so I kept searching. Eventually, I came across a recipe for Sima, a slightly fermented lemonade-like drink that is enjoyed in Finland during the annual Vappu celebration. 

Baby Groot Cupcakes

I kind of got out of the habit of sharing my cake creations.

I was doing well for awhile, then it got to be too much for one blog, so I started a second.  I kept it up for awhile, but now I haven’t updated that one in ages (sad!)  So I thought, why not get back in the habit of sharing cakes over here every once in a while.

Half Corn-Half Flour Tortillas

The other day, the kids were watching Despicable Me 2 again.  So the tortilla chip hats got brought up again.  Only this time, Pikachu needed a tortilla chip hat (as per Spud’s request). 

Dirt Cake Cups

One of my favorite desserts when I was growing up was dirt cake. 

And if I could convince my mom to make it for my birthday, it was the best ever!

It’s been years since I had dirt cake, so I decided to make a batch and place it in individual cups for Spud’s end of the school year celebration!