Hocus Pocus Mocktail

Earlier this week I shared an adult only cocktail, Pumpkin Ale Floats.  

Well, the kiddos need a signature drink this month too.  This time it is all about a simple, magical mocktail that bubbles like a witch's cauldron!

"Double, double toil and trouble.  Fire burn, and cauldron bubble."
       Your kiddos will be absolutely delighted with this fun mocktail.  It's sweet and bubbly and does not contain eye of newt nor toe of frog.  Shakespeare may be disappointed, but the young in's sure won't be.  And you will be giddy with how easy it is to conjure up this fizzy drink!

Hold on to your witch's hat because this is one devilishly easy potion!

Ingredients for each mocktail:

orange sherbet to fill a glass

sprite

Halloween colored sprinkles

Directions:

Fill each glass with orange sherbet.  Pour sprite over top.  Add a small handful of colored Halloween sprinkles.  Serve immediately.

Hocus Pocus Mocktail printable recipe

"When witches go riding, and black cats are seen, the moon laughs and whispers, ‘tis near Halloween."  It's coming...I think this would be a perfect potion for a Halloween party or the evening of trick or treating!  Ghosts and goblins approve!

Celebrate the little things that make life "wickedly"sweet,

Christine

Here's where I like to party!

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Happy Mother's Day

Have a wonderful day and see you tomorrow!

Celebrate the little things that make life sweet!

Christine

Kentucky Derby Round Up

It may be the fastest 2 minutes in sports, but you still have time to plan a little get together around the Kentucky Derby...it is Saturday, you know.  So gather some family and friends, a non-alcoholic Mint Julep, some traditional Southern cuisine, a fancy hat and some horseshoes.  Here are some easy recipes ideas to throw together for some Saturday afternoon fun.

Did you know that there have only been 38 fillies (that's horse talk for female horse) that have run in the Derby.  3 of those 38 have actually won!  Didn't know that there were so few fillies in the Derby.  Who knew?  I don't think there are any fillies in the race this year.  Let me know if I am wrong because that would be my pick!  Girl Horse Power!  Since I don't think there are any fillies, make your choice out of the 20 male horses.  They all have unique names which have to be less than 18 letters.  I am just full of Kentucky Derby knowledge today.  Ha!  So make your pick and provide a fun menu.  Maybe even play some horseshoes while you are waiting for the race.  Here are some ideas for your menu.

Mint Julep Mocktail

Hot Brown Biscuit Sliders

Rustic Chocolate Pecan Pie

I think I got you covered from drinks, to the main dish and a dessert...sorry, you'll have to provide your own horseshoes.  Have fun on Saturday!  I'll be back tomorrow.  As we turn the calendar into May, there will be more Cinco de Mayo recipes and Mother's Day treats!

Thanks for stopping by!

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Everything is just over there on the right!

Celebrate the little things that make life sweet,

Christine

You may also like:

Grapefruit Poppy Seed Mini Muffins

Cajun Snack Mix

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Happy St. Patrick's Day

May your day be touched with a bit of LUCK,

brightened by a song in your heart

and

warmed with smiles by the people you love!

Have a fun St. Patrick's Day

but...

Make sure to come by tomorrow because the celebrating ain't over!

It's Oatmeal Cookie Day and I have a treat for you!

Here's a little teaser...it involves Pi Day!

Now I know you want to come back!

See ya then!

If you don't want to miss any recipes,
make sure you sign up to receive recipes directly to your inbox!

You can find me on social media too so we can stay connected!

Everything is just over there on the right!

Celebrate the little things that make life sweet,

Christine

A Sprinkle of This and That Celebrates 1 Year with Cupcakes!

Happy Anniversary

to

A Sprinkle of This and That!

It was one year ago today that I started writing the blog.  And then a few weeks later, I attended the BlogHer Conference in Chicago.  So exciting and scary at the same time!  It was hard telling other bloggers that I had only been writing on the blog for a month.  But, they were all so encouraging and here I am a year later...writing and cooking away!  LOVE IT!

To celebrate, we need a party, right?  

And a party isn't complete without some cupcakes?

Here are my favorite cupcakes from the year...

Chocolate Truffle Maraschino Cherry Cupcakes

Luscious Lemon Cupcakes with Lemon Mousse

Key Lime Cupcakes

Peppermint Hot Chocolate Cupcakes

Cookie Dough Cupcakes

That's a lot of cupcakes!  I think making cupcakes is one of my most favorite things to bake and eat.

 They are little, so you don't feel like you are eating from a big cake forever...although that can be good too.

Help me celebrate 1 year by making a cupcake!

Here's to year number 2!!!!

Celebrate the little things that make life sweet,

Christine

Linking up with The 36th Avenue, Cooking On The Front Burners, Six Sisters' Stuff,
Your Homebased Mom, I Heart Naptime, Confessions of a Plate Addict, The New Mrs Adventures,
Inside Bru Crew Life, Skip to My Lou, Lady Behind The Curtain, Wine and Glue,
 Morsels of Life and Design Dining and Diapers

French Cherry Clafouti

So today is Bastille Day!

You probably don't celebrate it unless you live in France....oh, how I wish!

Bastille Day is a National French holiday that commemorates the storming of the Bastille, a prison, and  marks the beginning of the French Revolution, which occured during Louis XVI's reign.  Phew, that was a long sentence!  Those not of nobitity wanted equal rights and access the basics...I think that is what I remember from junior high school social studies.  Anway, liberty,equality and fraternity were the themes of the revolution.  But enough of the history lesson, unless you need to correct my "take" on history. Let's talk food, of course.

While we were in France, we had the most unbelievable pastries and desserts!  I think if we would have stayed any longer, I would have doubled my weight.  So to celebrate Bastille Day, I thought I would share a French Cherry Clafouti recipe from Bon Apetit that totally reminds me of our time in France.  In the words of Marie Antoinette, "Let them eat...cherry clafouti!"  Well not exactly, but you get my drift.

It looks French, no?  Well, French or not, you will just die for this dessert.  A clafouti is baked in a buttered dish with cherries and a custard like batter.
I like to serve mine warm with a scoop of good vanilla bean ice cream.

Adapted from Bon Appetit

Ingredients:

1 lb of fresh or frozen sweet cherries (both need to be pitted and stemmed, frozen needs to be thawed)
1 cup skim milk
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
4 eggs
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp almond extract
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Butter round pan or 6 ramekins.

Place cherries on the bottom of the prepared pan.



Place the milk and the cream in a small pot.  Bring to a low simmer over medium heat.  Turn heat off and set aside.

In a bowl, mix together the eggs, flour, sugar, almond extract and salt until combined.  Gradually whisk in the hot milk mixture.  Mix until smooth.

Pour the custard mixture on top of the cherries.  Bake in oven for about 30 minutes.  It will poof (like my term), but will settle back down once removed from the oven, while cooling.

Serve with a scoop of ice cream or powdered sugar.

Cherry Clafouti printable recipe

The ice cream melts down into all the nooks and crannies.

  I just love the custard/cake type filling with the sweetness of the cherries.  

BTW, I am feeling very French right now.

Join me in celebrating Bastille Day and being French for just a little bit.

Celebrate the little things that make life sweet,

Christine

Linking up with The 36th Avenue, Cooking On The Front Burners, Six Sisters' Stuff, 
Skip to My Lou, Lady Behind The Curtain, Wine and Glue, Katherine's Corner, The 36th Avenue,
The New Mrs Adventures, Your Homebased Mom, Inside Bru Crew Life, Morsels of Life,
 I Heart Naptime, Confessions of a Plate Addict and Design Dining and Diapers

Happy 4th of July

From our area of the nation to yours,

Happy 4th of July!

Celebrate the little things that make life sweet,

Christine

Rice Krispy Treats with Freeze Dried Strawberries and Blueberries

Rice Krispy Treats are almost as American as Apple Pie.

I remember my mom making them in a big pot and letting us use spoons to scoop out what got left behind.  I do that as a mom and my kiddos, regardless of their ages, still fight over the bits and pieces left behind.  So time to make some for the 4th of July holiday, but let's make them festive!

As good as the original!  I just added some freeze dried strawberries and blueberries so that my rice krispy treats are "wearing" red, white and blue.

Here's what you need

You will need 3 Tbsps butter, 6 cups of rice krispy cereal, 1 10 oz package of miniature marhsmallows, 1 package of freeze dried strawberries and 1 package of freeze dried blueberries.

Melt the butter over low heat.  Once melted, add the marshmallows and stir until melted.

Remove from heat and add the cereal and the freeze dried fruit.  Stir until well mixed.

Press the mixture evenly into 2 buttered bread pans.  Cool and cut.

I love how the freeze dried strawberries and blueberries add a fruity flavor to the rice krispy treat.

Also lovin' the red, white and blue color going on...totally festive!

What a great, quick dessert to add to your celebration!

Celebrate the little things that make life sweet,

Christine

Linking up with Gingersnap Crafts, Wine and Glue, Lady Behind the Curtain, The New Mrs Adventures,
Inside Bru Crew Life, Skip to My Lou, Lori's Culinary Creations, Six Sisters' Stuff, 
Confessions of a Plate Addict and Weary Chef.

Firecracker Popcorn Treat

FIRECRACKER POPCORN TREAT

Here's a last minute treat that you can throw together for your 4th of July party.  It sure is quick to make and it sure won't last long.  Serve at your own party or prepare a jar full to bring to another party.  Either way, it is quite a yummy treat!

You will need:

1 microwave bag size of popped popcorn

1 package of star shaped marshmallows

1 package of red, white and blue candy covered almonds

1 package of white chocolate chips

In a large bowl, mix together popped popcorn, marshmallows and candy covered almonds.  In a small microwave safe bowl, melt 1 package of white chocolate chips on high for 30 seconds.  Stir and repeat the process of melting the white chocolate chips on high at 30 second intervals until melted.

Once melted, pour over the popcorn mixture and toss gently to coat the popcorn.  Pour entire mixture out on a sheet of waxed paper and let the white chocolate harden.  Store in an air tight container.

The warm, melted white chocolate actually melts a little bit of the almond candy cover coating to spread it around the mixture.  This really gives it a festive look.  Popcorn, marshmallows and almonds covered in white chocolate...what's not to like?

Whip up this fun Firecracker Popcorn Treat for your 4th of July celebration.

Celebrate the little things that make life sweet,

Christine