Recipe Monday

Today's recipe is for Cinnamon Knots. A couple years ago when I was in Utah visiting family my Aunt Brenda gave me a book called, Rhodes Fresh Ideas with Frozen Dough. It is a book based on recipes using Rhodes frozen dough. I recently pulled out the book and found a few recipes that I wanted to try. This is the first recipe that I have tried from the book and I plan on try more. These cinnamon knots are very simple to make and taste the best fresh out of the oven.
Cinnamon Knots

12 Rhodes rolls, thawed but still cold

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup butter, melted

Icing

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon butter, melted

2-3 tablespoons milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix cinnamon with sugar. Roll each roll into a 9-inch rope. Tie in a loose knot. Roll each knot in melted butter and then cinnamon/sugar mixture. Place in a muffin tin sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Cover with plastic wrap and let double in size. Remove wrap. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pan and place on a cooling rack. Brush with icing while still warm.

Recipe Source:Rhodes Fresh Ideas With Frozen Dough

7 months

My little guy is now 7 months and this year seems to just be flying by. Xanyae is almost crawling, I give him about a week and he should be crawling. His first two teeth are finally starting to come in at the bottom. He just is growing to fast.

Recipe Monday

I love enchiladas!! I think I have posted that before, so today's recipe is Gooey Enchiladas. This a healthier version of enchiladas, but they still taste really good. I decided to double the sauce because I like my enchiladas to be really saucy. The recipe I am going to post below is with the sauce already doubled I will post the link to the original recipe at the end of the post.

Gooey Enchiladas

2 tsp. olive oil
1 small yellow onion, chopped
2 Tbs. chopped garlic
2 14-oz. can diced fire-roasted tomatoes
2 tsp. ground coriander (I used chili powder instead)
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. dried oregano
Pepper to taste
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 lb. lean ground beef
1 15-oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
12 corn tortillas
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet. Add onion and cook for about 5 minutes, or until softened. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute longer, but don't allow garlic to brown. Add the tomatoes, coriander(chili powder), cumin, oregano, and pepper; cook for a few minutes longer. The finished sauce will be a bit chunky. Stir in cilantro.

Meanwhile, cook beef; drain fat and stir in beans. Warm the tortillas in the oven for about 5 minutes to make them easier to roll; remove. Spread 1/2 cup sauce into a rectangular baking dish. Divide the beef mixture and 3/4 cup of cheese among tortillas. Fold over tortilla sides, place seam side down in the baking dish. Pour the remaining sauce on top and bake, uncovered, about 15 minutes. Sprinkle on remaining cheese, and bake another 5 minutes more or until cheese is melted. Makes 12.

Recipe Source: Parents.com or Parents Mag March 2010 issue.

God Be With You Till We Meet Again!

On July 5 I got a call from my mom really early to let me know that my grandpa had passed away. At first it really didn't quite sink in and I think was in a little bit of shock. The day went pretty ok for me, but a few times I did break down and cry. I have been a pretty luck person I haven't had to experience death much in my 26 years of life. I also have been so lucky to have both sets of my grandparents alive for these 26 years. I am really going to miss my grandpa he was such a wonderful person and I have so many wonderful memories with him. I LOVE YOU GRANDPA AND GOD BE WITH YOU TILL WE MEET AGAIN! Here are a few pictures of him taken in March before my brother went into the MTC.

We headed to El Paso for my grandpa's funeral. It was good to see family and friends that I had not seen in years. I didn't take to many pictures because my camera battery died and i never had a chance to get more batteries. The funeral was very nice and since my grandfather was in the military we got to bury him at Fort Bliss. My grandfather was also a firefighter so the fire truck was also their and they rang a alarm for him. It was a wonderful experience and I am thankful that I got to see my grandfather one last time on this earth. I am so thankful for Forever Families and I am thankful that I have a Forever Family.

Sadie and Hope ready for our adventure to El Paso.

Xanyae's first road trip to El Paso.

When we got to El Paso the kids had a fun time playing with Ty and Cole. They especially like this toy truck, well everybody expect Sadie.

Ty, Cole, and Xanyae enjoying the toy truck.

Happy Birthday Karma!

It is hard to believe that my little princess is 4 today. Wow time has really flown by. This year for her birthday we had a princess party at our house for her. We played games and we did a little craft. Karma had lots of fun and is already talking about what we are going to do next year for her birthday party.

This is the castle cake that I made for her birthday. She was really excited for this cake and it wasn't very hard to make. I got the idea from Betty Crocker and I just changed a few things from the original recipe. At the bottom of the post I will put my favorite icing recipe because really homemade icing is way better than canned.

Getting ready to sing Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you!

Happy Birthday dear Karma, Happy Birthday to you!

Making a wish.

Blowing out the candles!

Karma got a lot of great presents and we are so thankful for everybody that was able to come and enjoy this special day with her.

Easy Buttercream Frosting

3 cups confectioners' sugar (powder sugar)
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 pinch salt
1 teaspoon vanilla

In a small bowl, using an electric mixer on low speed, beat together sugar, butter and salt until creamy. Increase speed to high and beat until light and fully. Add vanilla, beating until frosting is smooth. Makes enough for over 16 cupcakes.