Fruit Kabobs

This isn't a recipe- just a fun way to serve fruit at a party. Cut up different fruits and put them on bamboo skewers to make fruit kabobs! So much easier than having to deal with a bunch of bowls of fruit. I like to do pineapple, green grapes, red (but they're actually purple-so weird) grapes, and strawberries. They all tend to stay on a skewer pretty well. Melon fruits tend to tear when you put them on the skewer, unless you do big enough chunks. These are really extra cute if you buy an extra pineapple and stab the kabobs into the pineapple. Makes for an awesome presentation!

Pina Colada Cupcakes

I just made these for a BBQ we had at our house this past weekend. They turned out soooo good! I think the coconut comes out a little more the next day, so if you make them and taste them right away and they don't taste very pina colada-ish, be patient grasshopper! You can top these however you'd like. I went pretty simple. I think a little slice of pineapple would look good on these or maybe a lime wedge? Maybe both together? I don't know. Get creative. Or do what I did with the cherry and the umbrella thingy! Oh, and this is so easy because it's a box mix base and canned frosting base as well! Wahoo for easiness!

-1 box white cake mix (I use Duncan Hines)
-3 egg whites
-1/4 c. canola oil
-3/4 c. pineapple juice
-1/2 c. Malibu Coconut Rum
-1 1/2 T. Coconut Extract
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Beat egg whites with oil, juice, and rum. Mix in cake mix. Stir in coconut extract. Fill 24 paper lined muffin cups with batter. Bake for about 16-19 minutes or until the top of the cupcake springs back when lightly touched. Let cool completely before frosting.
Frosting-
-1 can Duncan Hines Frosting Creations Frosting Starter
-1 T. Cream of Coconut
-1 T. Coconut Extract
Combine all ingredients together and mix well. Frost cupcakes. Top with rinsed and dried maraschino cherries and a paper parasol/umbrella thingy for an extra island-y feel!

Doritos Casserole

Super easy, super delicious casserole. The way I have this recipe written, it'll serve about 3 people. So if you're making this for just yourself and you like left overs, make it this way. But, if you've got a few kids you're also feeding, go ahead and double the recipe. The reason I love this is because it goes together so quickly. The longest part is waiting for the chicken to cook. However, I'm sure none of you ever have 5 hours with nothing to do, so it's nice to put it in the crock pot and get on with your afternoon. I'm sure you could use ground beef instead of chicken. I've never done that, but I bet it would be good still!

-2 large or 3 small chicken breasts
-1 can Rotel
-Nacho Cheese Doritos
-1/2 can Cream of Chicken Soup
-1 T. taco seasoning
-2 T. sour cream
-3/4 c. mexican style cheese or casserole style cheese
Put chicken breasts in a crock pot (they can be frozen- mine almost always are). Pour can of Rotel over them. Cook on low for 4-5 hours. Reserve liquid in crock pot. Shred cooked chicken and place in a bowl. Pour 1/2 cup of reserved Rotel liquid into the bowl of chicken. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Stir soup, taco seasoning, and sour cream into the chicken. Cover the bottom of a 9X9 pan with Doritos. Pour chicken mixture over the chips. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake for about 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and everything is heated through. Top with crushed Doritos right before serving.

Use a 9X13 pan if you are doubling this recipe.

Watermelon Popsicles

These are a great treat for these hot days we've been having! These are adult popsicles. They can be made without the alcohol though! You can try adding in different fruits to get different flavors if ya want. Just make sure everything is totally pureed.

-2 c. pureed watermelon
-2 shots Peach Schnapps
-1 1/2 shots Strawberry Vodka
Puree watermelon until it is completely liquid. Mix in alcohol. Pour into popsicle molds. Freeze. After about an hour, remove the lids and use a knife to stir them again because the alcohol will settle to the bottom. I didn't do this the first time, and it made it difficult to even eat the popsicle. We ended up crushing them in a bowl and eat them with a spoon :-)

Thanks for the hand, Caley!!

Whopper Cake

Think Whopper candy, not Burger King! That was confusing for some ;-) I got this recipe from another blog- The Country Cook. Wish I could say it was my idea, but it wasn't! But, I did make it, and it was delicious! So now I'll share it with you all. I don't have any pictures of the process because I wasn't at my own house when I made this. With the 100+ degree heat we've been having for a while now, our poor air conditioner couldn't keep up and went out! So we had to obviously get a new one. But anyway, we went and stayed at my mom's so I made this cake there. I at least did get an end result picture though!

-1 box Milk Chocolate Cake mix
-3/4 c. Chocolate Malted Milk powder
-1 c. water
-1/2 c. oil
-3 eggs
Topping-
-1 tub Cool Whip
-3/4 c. Chocolate Malted Milk powder
-1 1/2 c. crushed Whoppers
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix water, oil, and eggs together in a bowl. Add in cake mix and malted milk. Stir until combined. Pour into a greased 9X13 pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the middle of the cake springs back when lightly touched. Allow to cool completely. Once cooled, stir Cool Whip and the remaining malted milk together. Spread on top of cake. Sprinkle with crushed whoppers. Refrigerate until ready to serve and refrigerate left overs.
*JUST AN FYI- the whoppers on top will become soft once the cake has been in the fridge. They get kind of caramely like. It's good, but if you like the crunch of whoppers, wait to top the cake until you're ready to serve. Or, top it with half the whoppers immediately and the other half right before serving. It's good no matter what, so don't worry! :)