Sugared Cranberries

2 cups of water
2 cups of sugar
2 cups of cranberries
superfine sugar

Pour water and sugar in a sauce pan. Heat over medium heat  stirring until sugar is dissolved. Bring to a simmer and remove from heat. Add cranberries and pour mixture into a bowl letting it sit for at least 8 hours or overnight Drain cranberries, saving the liquid if you want ( see note below). On a cookie sheet pour some superfine sugar and roll cranberries in sugar to coat them. Let them sit on cookie sheet for a couple of hours until the sugar has hardened.

These make a great gifts and look beautiful in jars. They need to be kept in a cool place. Great for garnishes for mixed drinks as well.

* I like to save the liquid I soak the cranberries in and reuse it for several batches. After all the cranberries have been marinated I use the liquid for cocktails.

Salted Caramel Cranberry Ginger Martini

1 part Salted Caramel flavored vodka
2 parts Cranberry Liqueur (recipe on blog)
1 part Apple Cider
pinch of fresh grated ginger
sugared cranberries (recipe on blog)

Place sugared cranberries in martini glass. Add  the vodka, liqueur, and apple cider to a shaker filled with ice. Shake and pour into martini glass.Garnish with fresh ginger. Enjoy xo

Classic Ceasar Recipe

Rim glass with rimmer salt. 

Add ice 

1 shot of vodka. 

 2 dashes of hot sauce

 4 dashes of Worcestershire sauce

 4oz of clamato

 Garnish with celery and lime wedge. Some even put a cooked cold shrimp on the glass too but that's an option. 

A very special thank you to Colin Bird  for this. you follow  him on twitter at @TravelZippy 

Easy Spicy Apple Cake by Carrie Ann

I wanted a dessert that was low in calories, I had a Spice cake mix & apples. So I sliced up the 3 apples, put them in a 9x 13 pan, dumped the spice cake on top and added 12 oz of Pellagrino sparkling water and baked at 350 for 35-40 min.  I wasn't sure at first about it but it was so good!  Crunchy top with a cakey inside with warm apples!! 1/12 of the cake mix is 170 calories add in about 1/2 an apple, about 200 calories!!

Cranberry Liqueur

2 cups of sugar

1 cup of water

12 oz. bag of cranberries

3 cups of vodka

Mix the sugar and water together and heat til the the sugar dissolves making a simple syrup. Cool completely. In a food processor chop the cranberries and add to the simple syrup. Stir in the vodka and place mixture in clean glass jars secured with a lid. Store in a dark, cool place for 3 weeks, shaking the mixture every day. Strain the liquid through a cheese cloth and pour liquid into small bottles or glass jars. The cranberry liqueur can be stored in refrigerator on counter at room temperature for up to a year. Use in Cranberry Cosmopolitans below.

Cranberry Cosmopolitans

Place ice in a martini shaker and add ½ cup Cranberry Liqueur, ¼ cup Cointreau, 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice. Shake and shimmey and pour into 2 martini glass. Top with sugared cranberries( recipe to follow)

Lime Jalapeno Grilled Chicken with Cucumber Yogurt Dill Sauce

6 Chicken breasts

1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
1-2 sliced jalapeno's

Marinate chicken over night. Remove chicken and jalapenos from the marinade Discard the marinade. Grill chicken and jalapenos and serve with Cucumber Yogurt Dill sauce.

Cucumber Yogurt Dill Sauce

2 cucumbers, peeled, seeded and coarsly chopped
8 oz Greek yogurt
1 clove garlic
1/2 cup fresh dill
1 teaspoon white vinegar or lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste

Place all ingredients in a blender and pulse until smooth. This also makes an excellent salad dressing or dip for crackers. Personally I could drink the stuff :)

Quinoa So Good

1 ½ cups quinoa

1 pound ground beef

1 ½ teaspoon Montreal Steak Seasoning Salt

16 oz good spaghetti sauce

8 oz sour cream

8 oz cream cheese, softened

½ cup milk

1 small onion, chopped

10 oz frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Grease a 2-quart casserole. Cook quinoa according to package directions. Meanwhile brown beef and drain off fat. Add the Montreal seasoning salt and spaghetti sauce. Let simmer, uncovered for about 5 minutes.

In mixing bowl beat together the cream cheese and sour cream until smooth. Stir in the milk and onion. Place half of the cooked quinoa in the greased casserole dish, half of the meat mixture, and half of the cream cheese mixture, and all of the spinach. Repeat layers and top with cheddar cheese.

Bake at 350 until its heated through and cheese is melted on top - about 20 minutes.  Enjoy with a good glass of red wine.