Cheese Please! Pepperoni Bundt Cake!

I was fortunate to have some visitors from the 

SOUTH!

My cousins from Texas and Alabama

came up for a visit!

This sweet baby girl has an adorable way of 

CHEESING it up for the camera!

How stinking cute is that?

I seriously can't even stand it!

Sharing this CHEESY recipe 

in honor of my sweet, adorable and 

CHEESY COUSINS

from the SOUTH!

Pepperoni Bundt Cake

OH MY!

So this is AMAZINGLY delicious!

and more importantly

AMAZINGLY EASY!

Pepperoni Bundt Cake

2 cans of regular biscuits

2 Cups of  Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
1 Cup of Grated Parmesan Cheese
1 Tablespoon of dried basil
1/2  Tablespoon of  dried parsley
1/2 Teaspoon of oregano
1/4 Teaspoon of dried red pepper flakes
1/3 Cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1  - 8 ounce package of pepperoni cut in quarters
1 Teaspoon of  fresh minced garlic

Preheat the oven to 375. Cut the dough into quarters and throw in a large mixing bowl.
Add all of the remaining ingredients to the bowl and toss well. Spray the inside of a bundt pan well.
Transfer the ingredients to the bundt pan and bake for 40 minutes and then check to see if the dough is cooked by inserting a knife. If it is still needs more time then put in the oven and check every 10 minutes until the dough is done. Remove form the oven and let it rest for about 5 minutes and then flip the pizza cake onto a plate. Serve immediately with your favorite marinara sauce!

This is addicting!

It is soon good!

ENJOY!

How stinking cute is she????

Capturing the IT photo!

So here's the deal.

I love taking photos.

I especially love photographing people.

I like capturing moments, emotions and 

feelings if that is really possible.

When I am photographing a subject 

my only goal

is to try to capture their soul. 
I am not greedy or selfish.
I only want for that one photo.
That one photo that stops you in your tracks,
draws you in, pulls at your heart,
and causes you to say, 
OH MY GOODNESS
ARE YOU KIDDING ME?
YEP THAT'S THE PHOTO I'M TALKING ABOUT.
All the mamas out there know
what I am talking about.
The photo that you say, "That is my child!"

The ONE photo that I call IT!

IT is magical!

IT takes your breath away!

IT is truly beautiful!

It is not easy capturing the IT photo.
You need to be patient really patient.
You will need to be funny, silly, serious, quick, 
quirky, spontaneous, premeditated and clever 
all at the same time especially with children.
As a photographer you have to have many tricks up your sleeve
or lots of smarty candies, goldfish or gummy bears.
Whatever it takes right?

It means stooping as low as using potty talk
with teenagers! The kind of potty talk that
enthralls a 3rd grader at recess.
Things like,
"Does Santa toot or poop?"
Super intelligent stuff like that really gets a
17 year old to break out in laughter
not because you are funny but because
they think you are legit crazy!
It's the shock value you are looking for.
Be ready to click away as soon as
you release the crazy talk.
It is your only shot!
It releases all inhibitions for about 5 seconds
and then you go to the other tricks
up your stuffed sleeve. Yes you do have to stoop
to a new low but trust me
when I say that it will be worth it
when you hit the editing room!

I decided to do this post and share 

some of my IT photos 

of some of the beautiful souls 
I have been privileged to capture and spend time
with even for a little while.

May your days be blessed with many

IT

Moments!

Mama's Chicken Salad

I am a freak when it comes to 

chicken salad!

I am very picky and I know what I like

and I definitely know what I don't like.

I prefer to make my own and I have quite a few

versions depending on my mood.

Today I was thinking I could be a little healthy

and I added some perky cranberries and some nuts.

I surprisingly traded a second slice of bread for some 

yummy smushed avocado! 

I have to admit it was pretty clever of me!

The avocado really kicked it up a notch!

Oh Yeah!

Mama's Healthy Chicken Salad

4 boneless & skinless organic chicken breast

2 stalks of celery chopped

1/2 cup of dried cranberries 

1/4 cup of chopped pecans

2 Tbls of finely diced white onion

2-3 Tbls of Mayo

1/2 tsp of balsamic vinegar

Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste

I like to cook my chicken in my cast iron skillet 
with a little olive oil.

I season my chicken with salt and pepper.

I do like it just a tad crispy around the edges so halfway 

thru the cooking, I will cut up the pieces

so it has a chance to crisp up a little. 

Mama has been known to add some of the yummy drippings

left in the pan to the mayo mixture 
before adding the chicken to it.

(Don't tell anyone!)

YUM!

Let the chicken cool and then dice it up and set aside.

In a small bowl add the mayo, vinegar and 
drippings if you dare!

In a big bowl mix the chicken, celery, onions, 
pecans and cranberries.

Mix in the mayo mixture and salt and pepper.

Toss it all around and 
get it into the frig so it is nice and cold.

Scoop it on top of a nice salad, 

load it up in a wrap 

or slap it on some yummy bread!

There ya go!

Enjoy!

Go HERE for more of Mama's Recipes!

Chicken Pot Pie - Skillet Style

How good does this look!

GOOD

REAL

GOOD

Baby Girl #2 really likes, (correction) 

really LOVES

a

GOOD

Chicken Pot Pie

So we have studied many recipes and created 

our very own favorite pie!

We like to make it in a skillet as it makes the crust really crispy!

Crispy is important!

So here ya go mamas!

Chicken Pot Pie - Skillet Style 

3 Cups of chicken breasts diced and cooked (can be a rotisserie chicken if you like)

1 Cup of  diced celery

2 Cups of carrots sliced

3/4 Cup of onion diced

2 Cups water

1 Tablespoon of Knorr's Caldo Con Sabor de Pollo (or any other chicken bouillon)

2 Tablespoons of flour

1 Cup of Half and Half

1/2 Cup of water

Dash of nutmeg

Salt and Pepper to taste

2 Tablespoons of butter or margarine 

1 box of refrigerated pie crust

Take pie crust out of box to bring to room temperature.

Preheat oven to 425.

Cook carrots in a soup pot with 1 Tablespoon of butter and 1 cup of water for about 8 minutes on medium heat. Add onions and celery, cover pot and cook 5 minutes.

While this is cooking whisk the tablespoon of Knorr's in a small bowl with the 1 cup of water and set aside. Add flour and mix to coat all veggies evenly. Slowly add the chicken flavored water to the pot while stirring constantly. It will continue to make a thick sauce. Add half and half and continue to stir over medium heat. Add salt, pepper and nutmeg to pot. Add cooked chicken to the pot and stir on low heat for a few minutes and then turn off the heat. Butter your cast iron skillet with the remaining butter.

Line the skillet with one pie crust. Put the skillet in the oven for about 5 minutes. The sides may fall down but it doesn't matter. Take it out of the oven and add the chicken and veggie mixture and take the remaining pie crust and lay on top. Make a few slits with a knife to vent. Place the skillet in the oven and cover lightly with a sheet of foil. Cook for about 30 minutes and then add 5 minutes without the foil on top.

Take it out and EAT!

I like to serve this with a crisp green garden salad.

Such a comfort meal that mamas love to feed their babies!

Check out more recipes

HERE!