Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Chocolate Coconut Cheeseball

 If I am honest...I have a slight abhorrence for coconut. Well, real coconut, not the flavor of coconut. I think it boils down to a texture thing for me. So whenever people ask me to make something coconut, I am normally hesitant, but...I digress.



This dessert. Oh my gosh. Yes, please. And it was so simple. I came up with it when I was supposed to be making one of my favorites(Miss Tharina) whoopie pies. I was making her coconut and chocolate when I forgot the cake mix and decided to just make her a cheese ball in the meantime.

8 oz cream cheese softened
1 box coconut cream pudding(dry)
1 or 2 tbsp chocolate syrup
1/2 cup shredded coconut (divided)
1/2 cup Almond Joy coffee creamer

In a mixing bowl, mix the cream cheese, pudding and coffee creamer. Beat on low for about a minute to fully incorporate. Then add in chocolate syrup and half the coconut, mixing till just combined. Place in freezer for about an hour and then take out and roll into ball. Place back in fridge for at least an hour or until ready to serve. Roll in remaining coconut and place on plate.

Serve with any type of cookie or bagel chip. I used gluten free bagel chips, cinnamon and sugar flavored.

Notes***
If you don't have chocolate syrup, chocolate sauce or even melted chocolate would work. and if you don't have flavored coffee creamer, milk or whipping cream is fine, I just like the added flavor. and eyeball it, the second time I made it, I used a little less coffee creamer, Just feel it out.

Tharina finally got her whoopie pies. I hope they were worth the wait, but for a quick dessert, this is a must try! 

and I may or may not have picked the actual shredded coconut out of my serving;) 

Linking up with recipe swap hop Jessica, Ashley & Sugar Bee Crafts


Monday, July 29, 2013

A Raleigh Weekend

This weekend was fun to be able to stay local and get lots of eating and friending in. We have been out of town so much lately. I love taking advantage of the great food we have here!

First up I had the NC Blogger Buzz meet up on Friday night, was such a great time and for my full recap, read my lifestyle blog, the whimsy one


these yummy goodies were courtesy of Hannah from Swirl of Cinnamon. Do yourself a favor and check out some of her recipes! You'll be glad you did. She is somewhat new to blogging and I can't wait to see what recipes she pumps out over the next few months!

Afterwards I met Wiki at Margauxs for dinner and drinks. I will have a full recap later this week, but I should mention that it involved this.

Homemade limencello. ummmm, I had to leave my car there and I had only one drink. Wowza, people. 

Saturday we had dinner with some of my favorites and there were lots of goodies to be had.

 I made a raspberry lemon cocktail, recipe coming soon. of course;)

Sunday we had brunch at Buku, probably the best brunch to date and I cannot wait to feature them in the next week.
And what is a Sunday afternoon without fresh gelato? A terrible one...

Linking up with Meg, Leann, Funday Monday.

Friday, July 26, 2013

Brunch It: Battistella's

Wiki and I went to brunch here earlier this summer and we had a great experience. It is located in the City Market area of downtown. I loved the shabby chic french decor. The bar is dimly lit, small and cozy but once you walk into the dining area, you are greeted by wall to wall windows. We were lucky enough to visit on a sunshine filled day.

Here is what the website has to say about Battistellas's.

"An authentic new addition to the Triangle dining scene, our specialty is distinctive South Louisiana food, but our expertise includes original dishes to satisfy every taste! Without a doubt, food in New Orleans is another great example of how multi-culturism can make something new and better when people work together. Here, you will find upscale regional dishes from across the South".

We went a little later, towards 2, and it was moderately busy, but no waiting was involved as they were starting to clear out. We began our brunch with an order of one of my favorite southern staples; fried green tomatoes. So good! I also ordered a cocktail. I was happy to note that they had a Hemingway Daiquiri on the menu as I had just learned to make one on my trip to NYC at the Institute of Culinary Education. It was just as refreshing as I remember.



  It was then time to get down to business & I ordered the quail. They served it with this sauce that was spicy, but incredibly flavorful. I am not sure I would order it again though...I am a growing girl and need more meat than that;) 

Wiki ordered a shrimp and sausage plate {and I believe it was served with grits} and was really pleased with his choice. He is usally carb free during the week and he felt this meal was more than worth the cheat day.

We also liked that the head chef came out to check on our progress and to see if we were enjoying our meal. I always appreciate that gesture. As someone that really enjoys cooking, I like to see when a chef is proud of what he prepared and wants to ensure that you love your meal. 

I would definitely recommend heading here for a brunch experience if you are ever in Raleigh.

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Sparkling Raspberry Lemonade Margatini

I first debuted this drink on my other blog last summer…when no one knew about my whimsy self{aside from my real life peoples} ergo, very few people have seen this and I wanted to share it again today on my new Foodie/drinkie blog. As will be happening lots over the next few weeks, I had more than one entry that never even got to be loved and adored by anyone but lil ole me;) Shame. haha
Anyways, this was a drink I ended up throwing together on one of my many visits home to Virginia and as usual I was asked to play bartender. I made use of what I could find on short notice and this was the end result.

Ingredients(for 2 glasses)

6 oz raspberry lemonade{I used simply lemonade}
1 1/2 oz citrus vodka
1 1/2 oz silver tequila
2-3 oz champagne/sparkling wine

put all ingredients except champagne into shaker w/ice and shake vigorously. Strain into martini or margarita glass. Top glass w/Champagne/wine. Tip to your mouth...and let the good times roll.
You can also make this frozen which I did once and yes, please. I added fresh raspberries when I did that. I also used Cointreau in lieu of vodka and have used sprite instead of the sparkling wine. You really can’t go wrong. But seriously…
Just know this goes down way easier than you may have intended. I mean…way. Easier. As in. you can take this as a hint to have a good time…or heed it as a warning. Your choice. 

Linking up with
The Party Don't Start & Thirsty Thursday, & Hump Day Hop, & Thumpin Thursday

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Here We Go Again

SO excited to be debuting my new blog, The thankFULL Tummy today! Before I ramble on about the purpose behind a second blog,  I need to take a moment to shout out to one of my favorite blog designers, Andrea at Slightly AskewDesigns. I am so overwhelmed by this design. I had a completely different look in mind when she texted me…asking hinting that perhaps I wanted to check out another idea. I was blown away.

 I love the color scheme {which she already knew} and she added these personal details that just made me so happy. From the adorable apron in the about me section to the cute whisk in my header…I love every detail! She told me it seemed warm and that I gave off a warm vibe. Hello! Yes, I do;) haha or at least I like to think I do.

This is my second time having Andrea design my blog for me and I am so glad I have gotten to know her through blogging land. She is so sweet and man, a busy little bee! Three kids under 5, a teacher and a design business on the side?! You go, girly! If you ever need a blog redo, head over and check her out! You will not regret it!

If you know my other blog, TheWhimsy One, then you know I love to cook and create fun recipes and cocktails. But Blogging sometimes takes a mind of its own and I have begun to blog about so many other things in my life and that page has become more of a “lifestyle Journal” for me and I wanted a blog design to get me back to the heart of what my original intention was: FOOD! So here we are… 

The goal for me with this blog is to not only blog about different recipes, but highlight the plethora of restaurants in our area,{after all, Durham was just named the tastiest city in the South} mention their daily/weekly specials and then share our many foodie finds from our numerous travels. I hope you come to enjoy this just as much as my other blog and that you will continue to come along with me on my daily life via both blogs.

 Bear with me this next week as I add fill out all of my navigation bars/details and I hope if you follow my other blog via Bloglovin that you will with this one too.


Tuesday, July 9, 2013

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