2 months old and up to no good!

Aubrey is 2 months old and weighs in at 12 lbs 2 oz and 23 1/4 inches long!

And already a naughty look like she is up to something! 

Look what I can do!

Aubrey's Baptism

This past weekend we celebrated Aubrey's baptism.  The day was beautiful and we were able to spend it with our families celebrating and eating lots of yummy food!  Aubrey's baptismal gown was mine and my mom modified it to make it a little more modern and she also blinged it up a bit!  My mom also made her a cute little sundress and headband to wear for the lunch too.

Stuffed Crab Shells

These turned out super yummy but let me tell you...they take a lot of work to make, especially when you have a 2 month old who is awake while you're trying to make them.

Stuffed Crab Shells

Ingredients:

12 oz large pasta shells (you will use around 20)

2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 red bell pepper, diced

2 stalks celery, diced

1 medium onion, diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 lb lump crab meat - to save money I just used the imitation crab meat and cut it up smaller

1/4 c fresh minced parsley

3 oz Gruyere cheese, shredded - Gruyere cheese is not in our budget - it's $20 for 1 lb! so I substituted shredded swiss cheese instead

Bechamel Ingredients:

4 Tbsp unsalted butter

5 Tbsp all-purpose flour

3 c milk

3/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

3 oz Gruyere cheese - again I used swiss cheese instead

Cook the pasta to just under al dente.  You will have more pasta shells than you need but sometimes they break so that is okay.

Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium-low heat.  Add the pepper, celery, and onions and saute until softened but not brown, about 10-15 minutes.  Add the garlic and saute another 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly.

For the Bechamel: In a sauce pot over medium-low heat, warm the milk just until it comes to a very gentle simmer.  In a separate sauce pot over medium-low heat, melt the butter and then whisk in the flour.  Cook the butter/flour mixture(roux) for about 3 minutes, whisking the entire time.  Gradually whisk the hot milk into the roux, then add salt and pepper.  Turn the heat up and bring mixture to a boil for 3 minutes, stirring constantly.  Turn heat off and whisk in the swiss cheese.

Preheat oven to 350 and grease a casserole dish.  In a large bowl, combine the cooked vegetables, crab, parsley, 1 cup of Bechamel, and 1/4 tsp salt.  Stuff the crab mixture into the shells and arrange in the casserole dish.  Pour the remaining Bechamel on top of the shells.  Bake for 20 minutes, then sprinkle the remaining swiss cheese on top and bake for another 10 minutes.

What a doll!

Our perfect little girl Aubrey!!!

BLT Roll Ups

I made these for a family cookout and they were definitely a hit - a yummy appetizer or snack!

BLT Roll Ups

Ingredients:

6 8 inch flour tortillas

6 oz cream cheese, softened

3 Tbsp ranch dressing

12 pieces of bacon, cooked and crumbled (I opted for turkey bacon)

1 c. shredded lettuce
1 large tomato, diced

Combine the cream cheese with the ranch dressing and mix until combined.  Spread this out evenly on the tortillas in a thin, even layer.  Sprinkle the bacon, tomatoes, and lettuce evenly among the tortilla shells.  Starting at one edge, roll the tortilla up tightly into a spiral shaped log.  For easier cutting, place the rolls in the refrigerator to cool and harden for at least 30 minutes.  Slice each log into 1 inch sections.  You can serve these with ranch dressing as a dipping sauce but I think they are tasty as is!

Silly dog

One smart dog, and one not so smart dog.  This is Chopper on the basement stairs peeking through the kitty door.  He was waiting for someone to open the door and let him upstairs.  (Notice that the door is actually open) And then there is Chloe, who opens doors even when they are completely shut just sitting and watching him.  She did eventually push the door open so he could come up but she definitely waiting and let him up when she was ready to!

Aubrey's First Packer Game!

Aubrey cheered in green and gold Thursday for her first Green Bay Packers game and luckily they won!  We had some friends over, including Aubrey's friend Jack.  He seemed a little more interested in her than she did in him....but I'm sure that will change as she gets older!

Love this little girl!

Every day I spend with Aubrey I just find myself loving her more and more!!!  I'm so thankful to have her in my life and she just makes our family perfect!  Even though I don't like her getting bigger and older so quickly, she is becoming so much more fun.  No smiles yet but they are definitely coming and she has been so talkative lately!!

Stuffed Zucchini Boats

Since Aubrey has been born I really haven't been cooking or baking much so I set a goal for myself.  I am going to make 2 new recipes a week and get them posted on here.  I have so many new recipes laying around and this will help me get through them and weed out the good and bad ones!

Another use for the abundance of zucchini everyone seems to have this summer!  I was hesitant at first with this recipe but figured I'd give it a try at least once.  I'm really glad I made this one.  It's almost like a take on stuffed peppers, which are one of our favorite meals!

Stuffed Zucchini Boats

Ingredients:

2 - 6 inch zucchinis or 1 - 12 inch

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1/2 c. chopped onion

3 cloves minced garlic

1/2 c. chopped mushrooms Neither of us like mushrooms so I left these out

1 lb. ground turkey or turkey sausage

2 Tbsp. dry white wine

2-3 tomatoes, seeded and diced

3 Tbsp. chopped fresh basil

1 tsp. minced fresh rosemary

3/4 c. shredded parmesan cheese

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

Cut zucchini in half lengthwise and scoop out the insides, leaving the shell about 1/4 inch thick. Reserve half of the insides.

In a skillet on medium-high heat, heat 1 Tbsp. olive oil. Saute the onion and garlic until tender, about 4-5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and zucchini insides and saute another 2 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Heat the remaining 1 Tbsp. olive oil in a skillet on medium-high heat and crumble the turkey and cook until lightly browned on all sides. Stir in the cooked onion and mushroom mixture. Add the wine to the pan along with the tomatoes, basil, and rosemary. Cook for 1 more minute, then drain excess fat and remove from the heat.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Once the turkey mixture has cooled a bit, mix in the parmesan, egg, salt, and pepper. Fill the zucchini shells with the mixture. Fill a baking dish with 1/4 inch water and place the filled zucchini shells in the pan. Bake for 40 minutes until the turkey turns golden brown. Remove from the pan and serve immediately.

Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

I made these really yummy cookies for my brother's birthday.  Definitely a make again recipe!

Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Source: Real Simple October 2009 by Kate Merker

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 c. dark brown sugar

1/2 c. granulated sugar

1 large egg

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

12 oz. package small peanut butter cups, coursely chopped

Heat oven to 375.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper.  Wisk together in a medium bowl the flour, baking soda, and salt.

Beat together in a separate bowl the butter and sugars until creamy.  Mix in the egg and vanilla until combined.  Gradually add in the flour mixture until it is just mixed in.  Gently stir in the peanut butter cups.

Drop in tablespoon fulls on the baking sheets about 2 inches apart.  Bake until light brown around the edges, 12-15 minutes.  I would suggest starting at 12 minutes as I did longer and my cookies were a bit hard after they cooled.