S'more Ice Cream Sandwich

It's Summer Solstice today and what a better way to kick off the new season with this summer treat! We recently went to a BBQ with some of our friends and these little goodies were a big hit! I LOVE ice cream and I knew that day was going to be a hot one so this tasty cold treat was just what the kids (and adults) had in mind.

Ingredients

• Graham Crackers
• Hersey's Chocolate Frosting
• Marshmallows
• Chocolate ice cream (in a cardboard box container)

Start by laying out your graham crackers for roasting the marshmallows. Gently break each cracker in half and arrange 12 on a baking sheet. Put one marshmallow on top of each cracker.

Broil on low for 3-5 minutes. Make sure to keep a close eye on them so the crackers don't burn. You might want to do a test run first to see what time works best depending on your oven. Five minutes worked perfectly to get the nice toasty glow. Once you have pulled your roasted marshmallows from the oven, allow to cool for 10 minutes. Set aside.

Lay out 12 more crackers on a another sheet or dish. Heat up your chocolate frosting in the microwave for 30 seconds. Use a spreader or spoon your frosting on the crackers to create a think layer of chocolate goodness. Place them in the fridge for 10 minutes.

Take out your chocolate ice cream and remove the sides of the container so you have one rectangular brick of ice cream. Use a knife and slice sheets of the ice cream about 1 inch thick. If it's too frozen you can let it thaw for about 10 minutes but you want it pretty solid. Cut your sheet of ice cream in half ( should be the size of your graham cracker). You might have to slice off a little to make it fit.

Assemble

Lay your chocolate frosted crackers down, put one slice of ice cream on top, and finish with your marshmallow cracker (facing down). Press down to slightly smash the marshmallow. Freeze the sandwiches until you are ready to serve. 

BOOM! These as super simple and so sweet! I hope you enjoy!

What are your favorite s'more recipes?

Chicken Lime Avocado Soup

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Hey there!

I'm really excited to share this recipe with you today! I made this last week for the hubby and I. To my surprise, my 6 year old diva also enjoyed this soup too! I always find it amazing when she is willing to try something other than her normal kid staples. As the soup was cooking on the stove she pointed her nose up and took in a deep sniff and goes " ahhh it smells so good"!

With that being said,  I would like to say this is KID APPROVED! This is also an acceptable recipe if you are currently doing the Fast Metabolism Diet during phase three. This is a super easy recipe and doesn't take long at all. 

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients

1.5 pounds of boneless skinless chicken. I used the chicken tender strips, about 10 of them.

5 cloves of minced garlic

3-4 Roma tomatoes, seeded and chopped

2 14 oz containers of low sodium chicken broth

1 cup of diced yellow onion

1/3 cup of freshly chopped cilantro

2 seeded and minced jalapeno (You can add more for spice. This soup is very mild if not any spice so totally tolerable for kids)

3/4 teaspoon cumin

2 tablespoons olive or coconut oil

2-3 limes

3-4 avocados

Sea salt

Fresh ground pepper

Optional: shredded chihuahua cheese and/or sour cream and/or tortilla chips

What you do...

In a large pot heat 2 tablespoons of olive or coconut oil over medium heat. Add your onion and jalapeno and saute until caramelized and tender, about 2-3 minutes. 

Add in the garlic and saute for 1 minute. This is about the time your house starts to smell awesome!

Add in chicken broth, tomato, cumin, and salt and pepper to taste. Add in your chicken and bring to a boil. Once you have reached a boil reduce heat to low to medium and let it simmer for 8-10 minutes. You will want the lower end of that time if you are using chicken strips like myself. For a chicken breast you want to cook for at least 10 minutes. 

Once chicken has cooked through, remove from your pot and set aside to rest for 5-10 minutes. After you have let your chicken set, take a fork and knife and shred your chicken. *I feel that the chicken tender strips shred easier than the chicken breasts.

Return your shredded chicken into the pot of soup and add your cilantro. 

Now you are Ready to serve!

Serve soup with a fresh lime squeeze on the side. This allows each guest to add their desired amount of lime. Some will like it more tangy than others but whats great is you can personally make it how you like it. It's also fun for the kids. I would recommend about 2 lime wedges per serving along with half an avocado.

Don't forget your optional toppings as well!

I hope you guys enjoy this amazingly healthy and fresh recipe! I know our family loved it!

xoxo, Katie

How to Make Refrigerator Pickles

These pickles are so yummy and they didn't last more than a couple of days in the fridge because my hubby ate them all up! This year we planted

Boston Pickling Cucumbers

. We had so many I just had to try pickling my own. These cucumbers are also very delightful by themselves. I'm pretty sure these are okay on my current

diet plan

.

Ingredient

5 cucumbers

4 cups of white distilled vinegar

5 cups of water

6 cloves of garlic

2 teaspoons of red pepper chili flakes.

*You can also add dill to this recipe. I, however, did not because we didn't have any in the pantry.

1.  Clean and wash your cucumbers. Once they are washed slice them length wise.

2.   Arrange your cucumber slices in your Ball Jar. 

• Add 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes per jar
• Add 3 cloves of garlic to each jar

3.  In a large pan, boil the water and white vinegar. Once it comes to a boil, ladle into each jar. Fill to the very top and put top on. Screw the ring on tightly. 

4.  Turn your jars upside down a couple of times and allow them to sit on the counter for 12 hours. Turn your jars again and allow them to sit upside  down for another 12 hours. 

Enjoy!

Coconut Chicken Tenders

Studio Movie Grill Coconut Chicken Tenders

Have any of you heard of the new movie theater 

Studio Movie Grill

? It's a super modern, amazingly CLEAN movie theater that serves food and (alcoholic) beverages. My husband and I have been so many times because we found this amazing deal on groupon for 1 movie and free drink for $6!!

This post is not a paid advertisement... I was not compensated for this post... just so you know.

I just wanted to share the awesomeness of this place. It's a pretty great date night for the parents who have to fit a dinner and show in a couple hours!

One of my favorite items on the menu (and there are many) are their Coconut Chicken Tenders!!! OMG these things are so crunchy and so delicous! Let's not forget the option of sweet potato fries to go along!

So I tried to recreate this recipe on my own and I have to say... I almost nailed it!

We made these yummy bad boys last week and they hit the spot! I had to make them on two separate occasions to get the egg wash right. Here you go and I hope you all enjoy!

I  like to explain by stations... These are the three stations (in order) that you will have your chicken tenders go through. I bought a bag of frozen chicken tenders and actually cut them in half. This helped get them cook all the way through with out burning the crust. I would recommend completely thawing out the chicken tenders first!

Flour station...

Drop your tenders in a plate of flour. This takes off excess moisture on the chicken tenders and allows the egg wash and crust to stick better.

Egg wash Station.....

1 egg and 1/2 cup milk whisked together.

Dip your floured tenders in the egg wash and fully coat.

Crumb Station....

Dip your coated tenders in the crumb bowl and coat evenly.

50/50 of coconut flakes and panko bread crumbs. I like to chop the coconut flakes into smaller flakes but the choice is yours. I generally use 1 cup of each.

Seasonings.....

1/2 tablespoon Garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon sugar

Mix all ingredients in the Crumb Station together.

Cook...

There are a couple methods for cooking your chicken tenders. You can bake them in the oven or pan fry them.... I pan fry then for the golden crispy crust. I usually do three tenders in a large fry pan with a nice coat of vegetable oil on the bottom. I turn the heat about half way. It takes about 1 minute per side. Test the first couple you do to make sure they are cooked all the way through. You may need to adjust the heat or oil level.

This recipe comes pretty close to the one I had at 

studio movie grill

!!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

I made this tonight and it turned out very tasty. I was please that it wasn't overwhelmed with sodium like most soups. It's actually pretty healthy. An original recipe of mine! This batch is pretty large and is great for a family and leftovers!

Ingredients

3 Chicken breasts

3 Garlic cloves minced

1 cup of onion chopped

2 14 oz cans of diced tomatoes, drained

1 can of green chilies, drained

10 corn tortillas

1 8oz can tomato sauce

1 teaspoon cumin

1 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

48 oz chicken broth ( I used College Inn Light and Fat free, 50%less sodium)

1 tablespoon olive oil

vegetable oil

Cheddar cheese

Cilantro

Optional toppings: sour cream, lime wedges, avocado

What you do...

1)Boil chicken breasts until cooked, about 20 minutes. Set aside to cool.

2)In a large pan saute onions, garlic with a tablespoon of olive oil. Cook until onions are tender.

3)Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, green chili, oregano, and cumin. Stir

4) In a large sauce pan bring the chicken broth to boil. Add the tomato mixture to the sauce pan. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Shred the cooled chicken

5)Slice tortillas in strips. In a pan of hot vegetable oil, fry the tortilla strips, about 30 seconds until they get golden. Place on a plate covered with a paper towel.

6)After the soup has simmered for 20 minutes add the shredded chicken and heat through.

Serve with the tortilla strips and sprinkle shredded cheddar on top and garnish with cilantro. You can also add other toppings such as sour cream, avocado, and a squeeze of a lime wedge.

Enjoy!