Strawberry Shortcake Pancakes #FantasticaFoodFight

It’s Fantastical Food Fight time and this month’s theme is Strawberry Shortcake!

I almost sat this one out because I am so unfamiliar with strawberry shortcake.  But I wanted to at least research before I made a firm decision.

What I learned is that there are many different interpretations of the shortcake in strawberry shortcake.  The basic consensus was that the shortcake is not really a cake but not a biscuit either.  Ummm…kay.

So then is it like a pancake then?

I’m still a pretty uncertain to be honest.  As I looked through recipes, many looked like little cakes, while just as many were definitely biscuits.

Swedish Meatballs #SecretRecipeClub

We are in for a treat today!  Though Secret Recipe Club disbanded a couple years ago, the ladies are back in action today for a reunion reveal!  So fun!

Today I got to make something from Amy’s blog, Savory Moments!

Amy is a foodie who loves foods from all over the world and she is currently an at home mom with toddler twins!  Though I love working in the library (I get to see my kids during the day – yay!), reading about at home mom life made me feel nostalgic for my at home mom days.  It can be tough, to be sure, but I wouldn’t trade those years for anything!

I had a blast looking through Amy’s recipes!  In fact, Dude saw me click recipe after amazing recipe and started adding his two cents as well!  We almost chose Pennsylvania Dutch Ham, GreenBeans, and Potatoes, but ultimately Swedish Meatballs won out.

Dude was excited because he loves meatballs, and I’ve always wanted to make Swedish Meatballs!  Plus I was intrigued by the meatballs over pasta.

Multigrain Bread

The other day, Spud wanted French Toast for dinner. 

Now, Soft & Chewy Italian Bread makes a fantastic French Toast, but I wanted something a bit heartier if sugar covered bread was going to be our dinner.

I decided I wanted to make a nice multigrain bread, especially since I was serving stew that night and French Toast was for the next night.

Problem: most multigrain breads out there start with a base of 7 (or 9 or something) grain cereal mix.

Who has that stuff on hand?

So I decided to adapt a recipe for honey wheat & oat bread, toss in any grains I found in my cupboards and make my *own* multigrain bread. 

Chicken Satay #EattheWorld

It’s time for this month’s Eat the World Recipe Challenge and we’re traveling to Thailand!

You guys.

This one was tough.

Thai food presents the following challenges:

1.      Coconut.  Absolutely no one in my family will eat anything coconut (yuck)
2.      Fish sauce. Almost makes me want to pass out.  I hate fish, and fish sauce is some untold horror (double yuck)
3.      Ingredients I’ve never heard of and can’t find in a land-locked state.
4.    Tofu and fish.  Ew ew ew, ‘nuff said (triple yuck)

So I had a problem on my hands.  I was striving for authenticity, yet I couldn’t make something that would end up in the garbage.

Chicken Scallopini with Marsala Sauce

You guys!

This was my first time ever cooking with Marsala and it cracks me up that it was actually Dude’s recipe!

Dude is the champ at digging through closets and finding random forgotten stuff.  Case in point, an old copy of Taste of Home Magazine!

He was in my office/toy room supposedly cleaning up his cars but decided to dig through some stuff instead.  Half an hour later, the cars were still all over the place and he was asking if he could make this recipe!

So off we went (in a blizzard mind you) for a bottle of Marsala wine, so he could make his recipe!

Cinnamon Rose Bread #FoodnFlix

One more quick gorgeous bread before Easter!

Plus this is my Food n Flix recipe for this month as well (skating in at the very last moment, I might add!)

This month, Ali from Fix Me a Little Lunch chose the Runaway Bride!

I remembered seeing Runaway Bride before and enjoying it – I remembered the basic premise of the movie, but none of the details, so I was excited to watch it again with foodie goggles on!

It was fun watching the movie again.  I’m not a huge Julia Roberts fan, but I do like Richard Gere, and they make a great movie couple – plus the supporting cast was fantastic! 

There was tons of food inspiration in the movie.  Eggs are a particular standout, but I really wanted to amp up the creativity.

For some reason the scene with the rose tattoo stood out.  In one scene, Ike (Richard Gere) ask Maggie (Julia Roberts) to prove that she still has the rose tattoo she got when she was involved with suitor #1.

It got me thinking – could I make something inspired by roses?  I loathe rose water, so I knew I wouldn’t go that route.  But there are always fruits cut into rose shapes or even breads!

Ever since I made my Twisted Star Cinnamon Rolls and subsequent Twisted Turkey Cinnamon Rolls, my family had been slight obsessed with cinnamon rolls.  I don’t make them often, but they’re a welcome treat when I do!  So when I saw a recipe for Cinnamon Rose Bread, I knew I had to give it a whirl!

Cinnamon Roll Mini Cheesecake #eighteencheesecakes

Hey hey!  Who’s ready for a super delicious cheesecake?

My friend Camilla, at Culinary Adventures with Camilla is celebrating her wedding anniversary with a cheesecake celebration again this year!

I love when she hosts this event, because it comes right on the heels of Hub’s birthday and I love to experiment with fun new cheesecakes on his birthday!

This year, I spotted an amazing cinnamon roll cheesecake and knew I had to try it – only small scale since it was only for Hubs and me (the dudes refuse to even attempt cheesecake!)

Holy bananas you guys!  This cheese cake was knock-you-socks-off amazing!