I’m super excited about finally participating in Menu Plan Monday. I’ve enjoyed trying recipes and meal ideas from other participants but have yet to join in by posting my own.

Lately, I’ve been busy with so many things that I’ve gotten lax when it’s come to planning my weekly menus properly. This though will help keep me on my toes.

~Here’s what’s cooking this week ~

• Monday: Chicken Nuggets, Corn, Fried Potatoes & Onions
• Tuesday: Beef Stroganoff w/Egg Noodles, Peas & Carrots (I’m making the stroganoff with ground beef instead of chuck roast.)
• Wednesday: Grilled Cheese Quesadillas, Mexican Rice
• Thursday: Steak, Cracker Barrel Green Beans, Honey-Oat Pan Rolls (Steak marinade recipe is below.)
  
• Friday: Homemade Pizza, Salad, Peach Cobbler (The pizza link is to a post I did on my personal blog. Scroll down to get my recipe for the sauce and a link to the crust recipe I use.)
• Saturday: Santa Fe Soup
• Sunday: Eat Out

If I had to pick a night I’m most excited about, it would definitely be Thursday. What can I say except, any time steak is on the menu, I’m ready to chow down and the marinade that’s on the steak is awesome, and it’s super easy to whip up.

Steak marinade

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Dale’s Steak Sauce
• 1/4 cup Red Wine Vinegar
• 2 tbsp Liquid Smoke
• 3 tbsp margarine or butter
• 1 tbsp tabasco sauce
• 1 tbsp lemon juice

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil.
2. Put marinade on meat 1/2 to 1 hour before cooking.
3. Reapply to meat during the cooking process.

Enjoy!!

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I’m starting to wonder what the deal is with me waiting until the last minute to get things ready for my son’s school Valentine parties. You know what I mean if you read my post yesterday about the last minute cupcakes.  I realized yesterday afternoon that today was Friday and I had forgotten to get any Valentine’s for his party. Oops!!

It was time to hit the web for ideas.

After finding some inspiration here, I decided to see if I could create some simple bag toppers of my own. Well, I ended up spending four hours working on these cute little toppers yesterday afternoon. I have to admit, I’m not really used to doing a lot of design projects. My husband is the real graphic artist in this family.

Since I didn’t have card stock, I just used construction paper to print the templates on. Then I used some cello bags, left over from a previous school party project, to put the candy in. After putting the candy inside, I folded the cards down over the tops of the bags and stapled them at the lower edges to hold the bags closed.

All in all, I was pleased with how they turned out and my son very much liked them too, which was most important to me.

But here’s the kicker…

After all that work, I got a call from the school last night saying that school would be closed on Friday due to the threat of snow. Wouldn’t you know it!! (Hey, I live in Alabama and we don’t know what to do with snow down here.)

Anyway, I’ve included the template if you’d like to print and use these sometime for your own Valentine goody bags. (Notice that the first topper on both pages are identical, but the heart in the bear’s hand on the second topper is slightly different on each page.)

I hope you all have a wonderful Valentine’s Day!!

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When it comes to cakes and decorating, I really like to experiment and try new things. However, last year in a pinch to get Valentine cupcakes made for my son’s preschool class, I cheated a little and took the easy route. I did however want them to be pretty and obviously have a Valentine theme.

As you can see, all I did was pipe the pink and white icing on top in a circular motion, beginning at the edges and ending in the middle of each cupcake. For step by step instructions on making this simple swirl, you can go here.

After completing the swirls, I sprinkled on sprinkles and arranged the cupcakes to form a heart. By using the pink and white icing and arranging them in a heart pattern, those plain little cupcakes quickly became pretty Valentine cupcakes. Pretty simple, huh?

For some reason, when I used to see cupcakes like this in a store, this technique looked so intimidating until I actually tried it for myself. I couldn’t believe how easy it was to pipe icing on like this using a large star tip. Even if you’ve never done any cake decorating before, you can do this!

Things to Note

• The most important element for frosting is getting it the right consistency, not too think and not too thin. This might take a little trial and error, but the best recipe for Buttercream icing I’ve found is here on the Wilton site.
• Make up the icing and then add food coloring a little at the time, mixing well after each addition, until it’s the color you’re looking for.
• Practice with your star tip first on the back of a cookie sheet or on a cutting board. This will make you feel more comfortable and confident when it comes time to decorate the actual cupcakes.
• Have fun and experiment with different tips and patterns.

I really would’ve liked to have done something this year for my son’s kindergarten class, but unfortunately due to health department regulations, parents can no longer bring homemade goodies for the class. Everything must now be from a bakery or store.

Do You Want More Information on Baking and Decorating?

If you’re interested in anything to do with baking and decorating, you can find just about anything you’re looking for over at Wilton. There is a wealth of information and step by step instructions for decorating, as well as many recipes to choose from. It is my go-to site when it comes time to bake treats.

So what do you enjoy baking and decorating most…cookies, cakes or cupcakes??

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