Recipe: Special Holiday Sugar Cookies

I love cookies, and so does Briam. I wanted to make a holiday treat that was fun, flavorful, and easy to make. I found this recipe from Alton Brown and altered it just a little bit to my liking and how I wanted to make the cookies. To see how to make your own holiday sugar cookies, keep reading! Don't forget to share your sugar cookies with me on Twitter and Instagram by using the hashtag #cmxoxosugarcookies 

What You'll Need:

3 C All Purpose Flour, 3/4 tsp Baking Powder, and 1/4 tsp Salt 

1 C Unsalted Butter (softened), 1 C Sugar, 1 Egg (beaten), 1 tbsp Milk for dough and 6 tbsp for icing, 3 C Powdered Sugar for icing

Extracts: Mint, Cinnamon, and Raspberry. Food Coloring: Green, Red, and Blue

Holiday Cookie Cutters

Directions:

Sift together the flour , baking powder, and salt. Set Aside. 

Mix butter and sugar until mixed thoroughly and looks like the picture below 

Ta Da! 

Add the egg (I forgot to beat mine, still did just fine) and 1 tbsp of milk. Beat again. 

Add the flour mixture to your butter mixture and beat until it becomes a solid dough. Separate  into 3 different bowls.  

Add 1 tbsp of food coloring and extract to each respective dough bowls and mix together. Roll them in plastic wrap and let set in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.  

Bake your cookies at 375 degrees for 7-9 minutes. They should be slightly brown around the edges. 

Oh Christmas Tree Oh Christmas Tree 

Some of mine had too much fun in the oven...  

To make the icing: Combine 3 C Powdered Sugar with 6 tbsp of Milk. I t will look and taste like what goes on a cinnamon bun.  

SPRINKLES!!!!

MORE SPRINKLES!!!!

SO MANY SPRINKLES!!!!!

Let the icing harden for about 1 hour and plate your cookies! Yummy! 

 To see the full video recipe, click here! 

Recipe: BBQ Steak Kabobs

I was basically raised on steak and potatoes. I loved it. Maybe not the best, but to me, it was heaven. This recipe brought me right back to my childhood. These super easy steak and potato kabobs are the perfect way to end the summer grilling season right! 

Ingredients:

3 C Steak - 1" pieces

2 C Small Potatoes

1 C BBQ Sauce

1 Shallot - diced 

1 C Baby Bella Mushrooms - diced 

3-4 tbsp Butter 

Optional:

Leftovers for cooking

Directions:

1. Cut up your steak into 1 inch cubes. Place in a bowl and marinate with the BBQ sauce for at least 2 hours. I waited about 4. 

2. When it's time to grill, load up your kabobs by alternating between the potatoes and the steak. I used 4 kabobs but you could make however many you need or want!

3. Grill for about 15-20 minutes. Go ahead and prep and left over meat and the leftovers you want to cook inside aluminum foil "tent bowls" and place on the grill as well. 

4. While the kabobs are grilling, go ahead and chop your shallot and mushrooms. On medium high heat, sauté them until they are nice and tender. 

5. Once the kabobs are done, pull them off the stick and put them on a plate. Top with your leftovers, extra meat, and mushroom/shallot topping. 

Food Tip: Planning Your Grocery List

My name is Christina and I'm a horrible grocery shopper. There, I admit it. It's a serious problem that I'm working on. I've been known to browse through the grocery store and buy only snacks. Or only meat. Or only cheese. Things that are great, but have no meaning when you don't buy other things too. 

So to help myself become a better grocery shopper, I have come up with a way to become more organized with my shopping list and make sure that I get exactly what I need for the week! Make sure to watch the video below to see how I have become a somewhat decent grocery shopper!