Simply Sweet Ingredient Challenge: Hummus

This week's Simply Sweet Ingredient Challenge was to make hummus! Such an easy, but so fun and creative way to make a tasty treat that you can use as a dip, a condiment, a garnish, or fun tasting dish! 

I couldn't help myself and made a little trio of Triscuit toppers that J and I gobbled up several nights in a row as an after dinner snack! 

(sorry for the poor pictures... I left my camera at home so iPhone photography it is!)

The first of the trio: 

Spicy Black Bean Hummus

Ingredients: 

• 1 15 ounce can of black beans
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 heaping scoops of jarred jalapeno slices
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil 
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Red pepper flakes to garnish

Directions: 

1. Drain the black beans of their liquid and pour it down the drain. 
2. Add all other ingredients into a food processor and pulse away. 
3. Add salt and pepper (or even jalapeno or red pepper flakes) as you like. 
4. Enjoy! 

*Simply Sweet to Note: Chill it in the fridge and it firms up a little nicer than the warm soupiness you may originally end up with.

The second of the trio: 

Spicy Cilantro Lime Hummus

Ingredients: 

• 1/3 cup cilantro 
• 1 lime, both its juice and zest
• 1 15 ounce can of cannelloni beans 
• 2 heaping scoops of jarred jalapenos, sliced 
• Drizzle of olive oil 
• 2 cloves garlic 
• Red pepper flakes (to garnish and taste)

Directions: 

1. Drain the cannelloni beans of their liquid and pour it down the drain, then drop the beans in the food processor. 
2. Zest the limes then cut in half and juice in the food processor.
3. Add all other ingredients and pulse away. 
4. Add jalapeno or red pepper flakes as you like. 
5. Enjoy! 

 And finally, the delicious recipe I debuted here!

(It's my first made all by myself recipe so I'm sort of proud!)

Ingredients: 

• 1/2 cup of crumbled feta cheese
• 1/4 cup of crumbled goat cheese

• 2 Tablespoons minced garlic 
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil (plus some to drizzle on top!) 
• 1/2 of a really juicy lemon
• Dash of pepper
• 1 bunch of basil 
• A handful of sun dried tomatoes (mine weren't in oil, but if so just drain)

Directions: 

1. Place the feta cheese, goat cheese, and garlic in a bowl. 
2. Sprinkle with pepper and add 2 Tablespoons of olive oil. 
3. Mix together with a spoon (sort of smashing the cheese together into a paste). 
4. On a cutting board mince the basil into finely chopped bits. 
5. Layer basil on top of the cheese in the bottom of the bowl. 
6. Chop the sun dried tomatoes on a cutting board into smaller pieces. 
7. Sprinkle these on top of the basil and cheese. 
8. Drizzle with olive oil and dash with pepper. 
9. Use pita chips or triscuits to scoop up the tasty topping. 
10. Enjoy!

Now for the other recipe from my Mama Bird... Check her sun-dried tomato hummus recipe here. This is absolutely irresistible and loved by all (especially J!). 

And the next challenge's ingredient... 

(drum roll please) 

Strawberries

Their season is thriving and they are so wonderfully tasty... So cook away with these tasty fruits!

Sharing is Caring

I'm at one of those points in my life when I get it. (It's temporary I promise.) God has been working really diligently to make me understand what it means to share. He has revealed to me that sharing truly is about showing others how much you love and care about them.

Recent events in my life have shown me a little piece of God's great heart... And how He longs for me to act it out. 

In Luke 6:38 God says, 

"Give and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressured down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with measure you use, it will be measured to you." 

Being the fond of cooking gal that I am, this relates so well to me... The more cookies you make, the more you have to share, the more people have the opportunity to enjoy your talent. 

Listening to a trusted, close friend hate on one of my most celebrated efforts truly broke my heart. I was crushed to have someone I love make it obvious she was disinterested in sharing in my accomplishment. I left the conversation frustrated and hurt... But I knew full well God had a hand in this. I reexamined my goals, I rediscovered my passion and started a new project of my very own that went on to win a couple awards. As I thought (many times over and over) on the painful conversation, I first realized the importance of sharing. 

We are taught at a young age that "sharing is caring". With such a trite little phrase, it's easy to take the true implications of sharing for granted. 

In Acts 20:35 Luke writes,

"In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'" 

It is the heart of God for us to share in everything we do. Why does it seem competition, getting ahead, and being the best beat out growing, experiencing, sharing together? 

As you grow in your blogging, pay it forward and help someone just starting out... They're blessed to have your help and advice. As you grow in your relationship or marriage, pay it forward and share in your ups and downs with younger relationships... They'll be blessed to have your wisdom. 

As you grow and share... You will be blessed.

Who wants to share with you today? 

Who needs you to care enough to share with them? 

P.S. Are you ready for this week's Simply Sweet Ingredient Challenge? 

Get together your hummus for tomorrow's post!

Pulled Pork with Citrusy Slaw

J got a raise at work and I knew that it called for a little celebration at dinner. The only way to make a dinner worthy of celebration for him is with a barbecue feast. After finding this little recipe at Can You Stay for Dinner? I was ready to make his day complete!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 white onion, sliced 
• 1 pound of pork (I used sirloin!) 
• 1 package of mango salsa 
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar 
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup tomato paste 
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce 
• 2 Tablespoons spicy brown mustard (it was a little bit costly, but is worth it I promise!) 
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• Sprinkle of salt
• Shake of pepper
• Pinch of cayenne pepper

Directions: 

1. Sliced the onion and line the bottom of the slow cooker with it. 
2. Lay the pork on the little bed of onion you just made. 
3. In a separate bowl combine all of the remaining ingredients. 
4. Pour the ingredients over the pork, making sure to cover it completely. 
5. Cover and cook on low for eight hours. 
6. For the mango slaw, combine the mango salsa with a dash of salt and pepper. (I added some lime juice and minced garlic to add flavor). 
7. I cooked it on high for 3 hours and low for 2... It turned out perfect!
8. Once the neat is cooked, you can use two forks to pull the pork into shreds. 
9. Serve the meat on burger buns topped with the mango slaw.
10. Enjoy! 

And J, in all of his happiness, getting ready to chow down on his meal! 

Leftovers? Yes! I split the leftover meat into two little containers and had them for lunch the next two days at work... Tasty! 

It's a Family Affair

So turns out that getting married isn't just about J and I. Well, I knew this, sort of. But yesterday, dear sweet Mama Bird day, God revealed to me that J and I are not just making our own family, but in fact, bringing together two families into one.

Yesterday was going to be a day at the zoo with Mama Bird and her boys, J and I... Then his step-mom extended a dinner invitation to my family and I. J was really excited about it so I reluctantly passed the idea by my mom. (So often there are so many reasons... Baby Bear doesn't like to sit still through dinner and is a picky eater, the house would be full and noisy, Popsicle gets confused about what's going on and that can stress us all out... and the list goes on) To my surprise, Mama Bird said yes, let's do it.

And from here the night went wonderfully!

I have never been in a house full of so much love and happiness. We laughed. We prayed. We fellowshipped. We bonded. We grew, not as two families, but as one.

I knew J was perfect for me just six short months after we started dating, but last night, God affirmed that knowledge. He showed every one of us in the house that not only did J and I love each other, but everyone was enjoying the love.

"So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let no man separate." -Matthew 19:6 

Through the course of the next four months (and one day), God is not simply bringing J and I together, but instead, He is bringing together our entire families... A safety net where any man who should try to break us apart can become tangled because of the bonds between our family. I'm excited to grow more wrapped up in J and his lovely family!

Why, oh why?

Today is one of those days. Yeah one of those days.

My hair is just not right, not falling right, not straightening right, not going into a cute ponytail even! And I have been on a hunt for shorts for the last couple weeks and have found nothing that fits right... Since when did shorts mean borderline underwear?

Oh me, oh my. Bleh!

But, my little ray of golden sunshine, was the ACM Girls' Night Out on my DVR. I found two songs that I'm legitimately obsessed with and I can't stop watching and listening to them. Please tell me how much you love them!

Pistol Annie is definitely going to be one of my new favorite country groups! I adore Miranda's spunk and attitude... And now it's growing to three... Yes!

Doesn't Carrie just redefine the amazingness of that hymn? I have a whole new appreciation for it. And I love her even more (and trust me I'm a huge fan!)

Happy Friday friends! 

What are your Mother's Day plans? 

Less Wordy Wednesday: Girls Weekend Away!

This past weekend my dear Popsicle sent Mama Bird and I away for a weekend trip.

We loaded up our beach cruisers and headed for grand ol' Indio. 

Yep, the middle of the desert with literally nothing there. But this weekend was special...

Why? 

We had a date with Darius Rucker, Carrie Underwood, Easton Corbin, 

Josh Turner, Rascal Flats, Steel Magnolia, Kenny Chesney, Joanna Smith... 

and the list goes on. 

(Yep country fans eat your heart out!) 

(classy bathrooms, just to set the mood for the weekend)

Shock Top + Cranberry Vodka = class.

(never did I think I'd double fist, but I did, with my mom)

Assless chaps. No more words needed.

Our rides into the concert with the bike parking lot.

Mullet. Boom, business in the front, party in the back.

Country 105 spoils. 

World's best kettle corn.

Young boy with cock hat on = inappropriate photo shoot.

Gotta love me some Carharts.

GTL gone country.

Spiced rum watermelon = danger.

Nappy time.

(Isn't my mom so sneaky?)

Absolutely inappropriate (for 2000 reasons) white pants.

Shirtless cowboys galore.

(I'm not promising they should all have their shirts off)

Festive pink heart nipples.

Carrie on stage in the background. 

Atomic Buffalo Terds (Jalapeno poppers gone country), fried pickles, 

and Shock Top = our diet for the whole weekend.

Kissing random drunk cowboy with random woman = totally appropriate.

Oh Stagecoach, you literally made our weekend and

 we are counting down the days until next year's bash. 

Please don't disappoint.  

I didn't die...

So I've been slacking.

Oh man, I thought balancing school and work and life was hard... Balancing work and life, time between home and family and San Diego and J, and finding a moment or two for myself in between has proven to be quite difficult.

I'm sorry for letting things go longer than I would like in between. But, I'm going to get back to it again. Some of my posts are going to be less words and more pictures, just to alleviate my feelings of guilt for leaving you all out in the cold... But there will still be recipes and stories and some of my thoughts.

Tomorrow I'm going to try out my first wordless Wednesday post... Or at least Less Wordy Wednesday post... I have some amazing pictures to share you with from my mom and I's weekend away at Stagecoach, California's Country Music Festival. Oh my, and by amazing, I mean highly inappropriate but guaranteed to make you giggle!

Here's a little teaser, check back tomorrow for much greater laughs! 

Yes, that is my mom and I on top of a GIANT chicken.