Recipe #12: Beer Battered French Fries.

Another recipe that I originally obtained from the lovely Julie Taylor.  I originally tried this recipe my senior year of high school. Except, then, we of course didn't use beer, we could only use water. And in fact, water is in the original recipe. Julie was the one who thought of using beer last summer. The beer doesn't add amazing taste. I'll be honest. But it's kind of fun to say that you're going to make beer battered french fries. So I did.

Beer Battered French Fries. 


-2 1/2 lb. russet potatoes (I just made one for each person I served plus one or two. Then again, I had extra.)
-1 cup flour
-1 teaspoon onion salt
-1 teaspoon garlic salt
-1 teaspoon salt
-1 teaspoon paprika
-1/2 cup beer

As for the beer....I'm underage. I'm not a beer connoisseur. I don't know what is best or what is worst. I used Budweiser in my fries because, frankly, that's what my mom bought me when I asked her to get me beer. I'm assuming that you could use your favorite beer, should you have one, or water if you can't get your hands on the alcohol. Also, the 1/2 cup can be varied. Just add whichever liquid you choose until you think the batter is the right consistency.

Step 1: Get the potatoes ready.

Wash, peel, and slice potatoes into french fry size. Then place the new fries into a bowl of water to keep them from drying out. 

Step 2: Make the batter!

Pretty simple, really. Just combine the dry ingredients and then stir in the beer/water until it reaches the right consistency. 

Step 3: Batter them fries!

Immerse the potato slices in the batter and coat thoroughly. 

Step 4: Fry 'em and eat! 

When frying, be sure not to just dump all of the fries into the deep fryer.  The batter will stick together and not cook all the way. This is the worst part of the whole process. The frying can be time consuming, but I do think it's worth it. 

Step 4: Eat and eat and eat!

Epic french fries. Epic. 

Happy eating!!! Share the love!

-Olivia. 

Recipe #11: Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes (And Peanut Butter Buttercream Frosting).

What do I really love? C'mon, you should know. Even if you've never met me, if you've been following the blog, you should know. Think about it, think about it.....

Peanut butter. Second thing I really love- peanut butter and chocolate. Enter....

Reese's Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Buttercream Frosting. 


You read that right.

Let me just say this....I hate using cake mixes. I really, really hate it. I feel like a loser. I feel pathetic. I feel like I can't do anything good when I use box mixes. Scratch is where it's at. There's something special about sifting flour, separating eggs, and using baking powder.  So when I saw this recipe, I immediately had a love/hate relationship with it. The pictures looked so good...but there was a box in the recipe. I could only imagine peanut butter buttercream....but there was a box in the recipe. Luckily, I forgot about the box and focused on the product. Smart decision, I must say. Now let's get to it.


For the cake....
-1 pkg. Duncan Hines Devil's Food Cake Mix
-1 pkg. Instant Chocolate Pudding
-1 cup sour cream
-1 cup vegetable oil
-4 eggs
-2 teaspoons vanilla extract
-Miniature Reese's Cups

Step 1: One step cake. 

Mix it alllll together. Not everything in the picture. The picture also includes the icing ingredients. Just mix together the above listed ingredients (except the Reese's) at one time and the cake batter is done. Literally that simple. 

Step 2: Cupcake time!

Line two muffin pans with cupcake liners and measure about 3 Tablespoons of batter into each.  Press miniature Reese cup into the center of each cupcake, but do not press in all the way. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until an inserted toothpick will come out clean. Remember when doing the toothpick trick to not poke directly into the center since the Reese cup is there. The center of the cupcake will look fallen even if completely baked due to the tiny chocolate morsel of amazing-ness hidden inside. 

Now for the icing...

-1 cup peanut butter

-1 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

-2 Tablespoons vanilla extract

-2 lbs. powdered sugar

-3 or 4 Tablespoons low-fat milk, depending on desired thickness

Step 1: Icing base

Cream together the butter and peanut butter until smooth. 

Step 2: Finish it up!

Mix in vanilla and alternate powdered sugar and milk until you reach your desired thickness. So good. So good. 

Step 3: Decorate and make 'em pretty!

Fairly self-descriptive. Another great idea to decorate these with is to add the newest Reese's, the really tiny, adorable mini Reese's on top of the piped icing. I was going to do that, but couldn't find them in the store. I'm sure they were there, but I didn't think about getting them until I was in the checkout line. Leaving my sister there, the mad dash to try to find them was highly unsuccessful. Oh well, they were delicious anyway. 

But seriously....who could turn this down? Okay, Sara would have to turn it down, but only because she's allergic to peanuts. My prayers are with her. 

Happy eating!!! Share the love!!

-Olivia.

Recipe #10: Cheesy Garlic Bread.

I’ve made two pasta recipes so far. Two pasta recipes and no bread. And what goes better with carbs than more carbs? Exactly. So here is the ultra cheesy, totally buttery, completely unhealthy, and absolutely delicious way to enjoy some homemade garlic bread with your homemade pasta!

Cheesy Garlic Bread. 

-1 loaf of Italian bread

-1/2 cup butter (-ish. The amount of butter is completely up to you)

-4 cloves fresh garlic, minced

-1/2 cup fresh mozzarella 

-Block of Parmesan cheese for grating

-Italian seasoning

Step 1: Cut and butter! 

Slice the loaf in half lengthwise and then cut down the middle again to make a little slot. The picture will help explain this. Cut the butter into then slices and halve. Place pieces of butter inside the slot and place other pieces on top of bread. You'll use about 1/4 cup of butter on each half. 

Yes, I know it's a lot of butter. Get over it. 

Step 2: Garlic time!

Mince the fresh garlic and sprinkle it on the bread. 2 cloves per half. If you don't know how to mince fresh garlic, here's a step by step. 

Smash the clove of garlic with the flat side of the knife.

Remove the skin from the clove of garlic and chop it up! 

Step 3: Cheese it up!

Grate fresh parmesan on top of the butter and then slice fresh mozzarella and place on top of butter, garlic, and parmesan. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning and you're all done! 

Step 4: Bake and eat! 

Bake at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes or until cheese is golden and bubbly! Enjoy!! So good!

Happy eating! Share the love!!!