We #LoveSummer and the Great Outdoors Archives

#LoveSummer/ Celebrations/ Garden Thyme/ Side Dishes

Garden Thyme: Citronella Mosquito Plant

July 23, 2014

Do you have a backyard, terrace, or other outdoor space? Constantly getting bitten by mosquitos? The citronella mosquito plant is great for the summer. Have you ever thought about where the “citronella” in citronella candles come from? Although the citronella mosquito plant is not a sole deterrent to mosquitoes, you can crush the leaves up and rub them on your skin for a more “natural” bug repellent. Especially areas that you hate spraying with…

July 23, 2014 By Colleen

#LoveSummer/ All Recipes/ Lunch and Dinner

Chicken Bacon Ranch

July 18, 2014

Chicken, bacon, ranch, cheese and bread, how could you go wrong with any of those ingredients. This recipe is simple, delicious and everyone (meat eaters) will love it!Brian and I have been spending every weekend in Connecticut because of the wedding and every Sunday he turns to me and says “what do you want for dinner”. You would think this question was life or death by the intensity of the…

July 18, 2014 By Fatima

#LoveSummer/ All Recipes/ Celebrations

Party On: 4th of July

July 1, 2014

What better way to celebrate our nation’s Independence Day than with some great food? This past weekend we ventured into Brooklyn to celebrate our friend’s birthday (aka Ummm Now What) and had some really delicious food (most of which is featured below). Everything from quinoa, to goat cheese, to balls of meat (no not meatballs, balls of meat), to potato salad, burgers, hot dogs, and mexican corn. It was all so good!…

July 1, 2014 By Brian

#LoveSummer/ All Recipes/ Beverages/ Celebrations/ Healthy Living/ New Year

Cucumber Lemon Detox

June 21, 2014

Looking for a natural, refreshing detox? Did you endure the 7 Day Cleanse I blogged about? In an effort to find a safe, natural detox, we tried out a popular Cucumber Lemon Detox on Pinterest. This is not a crazy crash diet, so make sure you eat normally 😉 The original recipe called for 2 lemons, half a cucumber, and 10 mint leaves in 3 quarts of water. We made each…

June 21, 2014 By Brian

#LoveSummer/ All Recipes/ Lunch and Dinner

Mac and Cheese

June 13, 2014

Mac and cheese is a signature dinner in my family. Not that we’re the only family that makes mac and cheese, but I grew up on a fair share of mac and cheese. Only reserved for family party nights, sleep-overs, and when one of my cousins would babysit us, mac and cheese was the main course. And not just any mac and cheese, but homemade baked macaroni and cheese. You know, the…

June 13, 2014 By Brian

#LoveSummer/ All Recipes/ Celebrations/ Lunch and Dinner

Turkey Burger Sliders and Sweet Potato Fries

May 22, 2014

This weekend, fire up the grill, heat up some oil and serve up some turkey burger sliders and sweet potato fries. Sliders are the must have finger food at your picnic this summer, especially when they are made with healthier ingredients. And sweet potato fries, who doesn’t love them?! This meal is really easy to make. Once you have the meat mixed and patties formed for the turkey burger sliders,…

May 22, 2014 By Brian

#LoveSummer/ Celebrations/ DIY/ Side Dishes

DIY Citronella Candles

September 4, 2013

Keep those bugs away with these stylish DIY citronella candles. Don’t fret, these are a lot easier to make than they look! I made these for my Mom’s 50th birthday extravaganza. In a packed day involving a party bus, a vineyard, and a casino, my dad wanted the day to end back at their house. He gave my sister and I the reigns to setup the house. Knowing there might be…

September 4, 2013 By Brian

#LoveSummer/ All Recipes/ Celebrations/ Dad Bakes Cookies/ Dessert/ Snacks

Peanut Butter Cup Smores

August 10, 2013

A summer favorite, s’mores are the campfire dessert to enjoy around a fire on a cool summer night . What makes these little beauties even better? Substitute that little piece of chocolate with a peanut butter cup. De-lish! These peanut butter cup smores are my new favorite type of s’more. Are you going to celebrate national s’mores day? Show us your s’mores!…

August 10, 2013 By Brian

#LoveSummer/ All Recipes/ Celebrations/ Dad Bakes Cookies/ Dessert

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

July 31, 2013

Remember that time we made chocolate chip cookies using a Pinterest tip telling us adding cornstarch would make them fluffy? Yes, it was an epic fail. However, on our second time around visiting the cornstarch theory, we’ve hit the jackpot. These are some delicious and chewy chocolate chip cookies I have ever had. These will ruin you; you’ll never want to make them any other way ever again. Think Mrs.…

July 31, 2013 By Brian

#LoveSummer/ All Recipes/ Celebrations/ Dessert/ Side Dishes

Happy National Ice Cream Day

July 21, 2013

One of my favorite ice cream places is in Center Harbor, NH. Dewey’s Ice Cream Parlor is right up the rock from the public docks and offers exceptional homemade ice cream. Another one of my favorite places is Bailey’s Bubble in Wolfeboro, NH. I eat their ice cream way too fast, they have amahhhzing ice cream – probably one of the best on Lake Winnipesaukee. A personal favorite of mine…

July 21, 2013 By Brian

#LoveSummer/ All Recipes/ Celebrations/ Dessert

Corn on the Cob Cupcakes

June 20, 2013

Here’s a fun way to decorate your cupcakes for your summer picnics. Make Corn on the Cob Cupcakes! Haha – no corn involved – just jelly beans. Out of a small bag of mixed jelly beans, there were only enough yellow beans to make one of these cupcakes, so I’m not sure where you can find only yellow jelly beans, but good luck!! We found the corn skewers at Michael’s for…

June 20, 2013 By Brian

#LoveSummer/ All Recipes/ Lunch and Dinner

Strawberry Summer Salad

June 18, 2013

Yum, yum, yum. This Strawberry Summer Salad was inspired by a salad Fatima had in Key West. It was very refreshing and we knew it would be perfect for the summer. We topped off the Strawberry Summer Salad with a homemade strawberry vinaigrette dressing. It’s really easy to make. All you would need to “cook” up are the walnuts. The rest is normal “salad-making” skill. The strawberry vinaigrette dressing was just…

June 18, 2013 By Brian

#LoveSummer/ All Recipes/ Celebrations/ Cocktails

Fatty’s Summer Sangria

June 17, 2013

I love white wine. It’s probably the only alcoholic drink – besides Brian’s Marquisritas – I know I’ll love when I go out. That’s why when Brian said we would post these summer recipes, I knew I had to get a white wine sangria on the list. And that’s where Fatty’s Summer Sangria came into play. What’s great about Fatty’s Summer Sangria is you can use any white wine you’d…

June 17, 2013 By Fatima

#LoveSummer/ All Recipes/ Celebrations/ Dad Bakes Cookies/ Dessert

Strawberry Margarita Cupcakes

June 16, 2013

An easy take on those delicious MarquisRita cupcakes we featured earlier this week. Add some booze and fruit to your cupcakes for some delicious and surprisingly refreshing strawberry margarita cupcakes. We used the same recipe as the MarquisRita cupcakes, and all we added were some chopped strawberries to the batter. As we experimented with the tequila in the batter, we noticed it didn’t really mix into the batter, so as…

June 16, 2013 By Brian

#LoveSummer/ Celebrations/ DIY/ Side Dishes

DIY Flower Vases

June 15, 2013

What better way to spruce up your house and outdoor spaces with some cute DIY flower vases? These would be great for your summer parties, or everyday center pieces. I saw the lemon-filled vase on Pinterest, so I used that same idea to create the rest. I added burlap, ribbon, and an accent to the outside to dress them up. These were really easy to make; I made all three…

June 15, 2013 By Brian

#LoveSummer/ All Recipes/ Celebrations/ Dad Bakes Cookies/ Dessert

Red Velvet Cheesecake

June 14, 2013

We were so obsessed with Magnolia’s Red Velvet Cheesecake that we wanted to make our own. Last week we featured a to-die-for Cookie Monster Cheesecake. We adapted it from this very simple cheesecake recipe. We made this delicious Red Velvet Cheesecake before making the Cookie Monster one, and learned from our mistakes. We never used a water bath when we made the red velvet cheesecake, it cracked and dried a…

June 14, 2013 By Brian

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