Necklace & Earring Holders

I was in desperate need of somewhere to hang all of my jewelry in my new apartment. I didnt want them to look too cluttered. I tried and tried to think of something cute to do, when I finally got a genius idea. I bought two old frames from the D.I., picked out the color of spray paint I wanted for the frame and the background, picked out some knobs, and what do you know....It actually worked!!!

Here is my finished product! 

I also made an earring holder, because I figured while I was at it I might as well. I found this frame and it already had the mesh with it. But it would be super easy to get something similar and attach it. 

It fits perfectly on my closet door!!! LOVE THEM!!

Mashed Potatoes with Bacon & Cheddar

Ok so these are some of my favorite potatoes ever!!! I found the recipe on Pinterest about a month ago, made them, and Greg and I loved them!!! 

Description

Reminiscent of twice baked potatoes, this take on mashed potatoes includes bacon and cheddar.

Prep time: 1 hour

Yield:1 (Servings)

Ingredients:

• 5 lb russet potatoes
• 10 sli bacon
• 8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
• 0.5 c unsalted butter, melted
• 1 c sour cream
• 0.25 c chives, minced
• 2.5 c cheddar cheese, grated
• 2 t kosher salt
• 0.5 t pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Peel potatoes, and cut into 1-inch chunks. Place in a large saucepan, and add enough cold water to cover by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, and reduce to a simmer. Cook until tender and easily pierced with a paring knife, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a colander to drain; return to pan, cover, and set aside.

2. Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add bacon, and cook until crisp and browned, turning once. Transfer to paper towels to drain; let cool, and crumble into pieces.

3. Using a fork, mash the potatoes in pan until light and fluffy. Add the cream cheese, butter, and sour cream, and stir until combined and smooth. Add the chives, 2 cups cheddar cheese, half the bacon, salt, and pepper. Stir until well combined.

4. Transfer to a buttered 3-quart baking dish. Top with remaining 1/2 cup cheddar cheese. Bake until top is slightly golden and potatoes are heated through, about 30 minutes. Remove from oven; garnish with remaining bacon. Serve immediately.

Rosemary Red Potatoes

I got this recipe out of my Harry Potter Cookbook. I improvised a little bit because my Idahoan heritage told me to.
Ingredients:
6 red potatoes, washed and cut into bite sized cubes
1/4 cup of olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried rosemary leaves
2 cloves of garlic, minced
Freshly ground black pepper

I didn't use nearly that much salt because, well, ew. And I used garlic powder instead of garlic cloves. And I added cheese because cheese is good.

Set the oven to 400. Combine all the ingredients and coat the potatoes really well. Spread into a shallow baking pan. Pro tip: line it with tin foil because it will make cleaning up so much easier. Roast for about 20 minutes. Take them out of the oven and turn them and shake them around. Cook for another 20 minutes. Add some cheese. Cook for about 5 more minutes or until the potatoes are slightly crisp on the edges, but soft enough to push a fork through without resistance.

They are delicious! I think they'd taste good with some bacon bits in them.

Banana Bread Muffins

Ingredients

3 mashed, ripened bananas

1 stick butter

3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

A splash of vanilla

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 cups flour (golden stars given if you use wheat flour)

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Pinch of salt

Cream the butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla. Blend in the mashed bananas. Add the rest of the ingredients. Spray the cup cake pan liners really well. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until the tops are golden brown! I added some chocolate chips to these because everything is better with chocolate. 

They taste especially good right out of the oven, smothered in nutella. I may have eaten four or five or six in ten minutes. Meh. 

Spinach Salad

INGREDIENTS
Spinach leaves
Green leaf lettuce
Mushrooms, fresh and sliced
Bacon, crisp and broken into bite size pieces
Red onion, sliced
Mozzarella cheese, shredded
DRESSING
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1 egg
1 cup oil

Blend well. Slowly drizzle in 1 c. oil while blending. ENJOY!

Chicken Alfredo

INGREDIENTS
3-4 chicken breasts
1-2 cubes chicken bouillon
1 cube butter
1 package Good Seasons Dry Italian Dressing Mix
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 8-ounce package cream cheese
1 cup water
3/4-1 16-ounce box fettuccine pasta, cooked

DIRECTIONS
1. Cut chicken into bite pieces and cook in a frying pan with 1 c water and 1-2 chicken bouillon cubes
2. Put all the other ingredients together in a ot, bring to a boil and mix well
3. Add chicken plus the juice it was cooked in
4. serve over noodles OR add noodles to mixture and serve

Italian Herb Bread

INGREDIENTS
4 1/2 cups hot tap water
1/4 cup sugar
4 teaspoons yeast
1/2 cup butter-melted
2 tablespoons wheat gluten
11 cups flour
1/4 cup dry milk powder
2 tablespoons salt
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons Italian seasoning

DIRECTIONS
1. Pour warm water and yeast into mixing bowl
2. Add sugar and butter.
3. Add 6 c. flour, powdered milk, salt and gluten. Mix well
4. Add Parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning
5. Add the rest of the flour. Mix for five minutes
6. Oil or grease hands and counter
7. Dvide dough into equal portions and shape into loaves
8. Put into well greased pans
9. Let rise until double in size
10. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown on top
11. Remove from pans and cool on wire rack
12. Brush top of loaves with butter