A FRIDGE FULL OF FOOD...

Redneck Auntie's Cape Codder AKA "Don't Judge Me, Princess"

What do you do when you only have moonshine soaked cranberries, off brand powdered no-calorie lemonade, and nary a clean glass glass in the house?  Make Redneck Auntie Cape Codder AKA "The Don't Judge Me"

Junior's Midnight Moon moonshine is a family business based on Junior Johnson's original North Carolina moonshine recipe from the mid-1800's.  The jar and label caught my eye at the grocery store the other day and demanded I bring it home to play.  Okay, I'm as friendly as it is, and it's happy in my home and tummy.

Just for the few people who may not realize it....while it is a delicious cocktail, my calling it "Redneck Auntie" is a joke so if you feel the need to take it seriously and be offended, I won't necessarily feel the need to publish your comment.   

My 17-year-old niece may give me hell on Facebook for using "HER"  princess glass, but my older niece, who's only months away from drinking legally is going to LOVE this.  I may even have to surrender the glass to her for her birthday (if Sydney will allow it).

Off to have another sippy cup of Redneck Auntie.

Get Your 8 Glasses with Taste: Sangria Water

Every time I go to a restaurant and am served water with lemon wedges I always think to myself "Why do I not do this at home?"  It's a lemon wedge: uncomplicated, easy, and takes 15 seconds to cut, but the difference in taste is amazing. We're lucky, here in the Ozarks, to have great tasting water but that tiny extra makes a lot of difference in how much water I drink, so now I do cut lemon wedges at home for our water.... and limes...and grapes, blueberries, peaches, apples, and so on.

I love the Dannon water commercial that says something like "...at some point it occurs to you to replace one can of sugary soda a day with water..."  I always think "How about all or all but one...that would be even better!"

That's what I do now.  Every evening before I go to bed, I put together a quick a pitcher or two of Sangria Water for the next day by combining whatever fruit I have that sounds good to me at the time.  It only takes a few minutes, sitting in the fridge overnight intensifies the flavors, and we wake to a great tasting drink that doesn't have the sugar of juice or soda. At night, after the water has been downed, the fruit is left to munch on as an after dinner snack.

In the pitcher shown, I used a combination of blueberries and peach slices from the freezer, quartered fresh green seedless grapes, and a lime that I halved, reamed, and then dropped the peels in as well.

 

Christmas Food Gifts: Winter Cold Pomegranate Comfort Tea

Does anyone else remember Tang Tea mix that was very in vogue as a food gift about 20-25 years ago?  Anyone else a little horrified by the amount of sugar that was in it? Okay, maybe that was just me.   I've updated the tang tea recipe with sugar substitutes and added a "liquid vitamin" component that makes this hot winter tea even more comforting especially during cold and flu season. I need

I to make more. I've already gone through one of my containers of mix and haven't given to all my giftees yet. Oops!

Halloween Food: Eyeball Rice Cereal Treats, Devil's Eye Eggs, Blood Clot Cranberry Dip, and I See You Meatballs

Bwahahahaha! Halloween--my very favorite holiday!  And a family favorite as well. No matter how old "our" kids get, this will always be our tradition: get together at Aunt Gonnie and Uncle Gene's house, eat great creepy food, dress up or dress down, take any little ones trick-or-treating the neighborhood and just hang out..

This year our creepy food was all eyeball in theme. We didn't really plan it that way but as the eyeballs piled up we just kept running with them it:  Gummy Eyeball Rice Cereal Treats,  Devil's Eye Eggs,  Blood Clot Cranberry Dip, I See You Meatballs, and just for fun, the un-eye-ball Mexican Villa Cheese Dip and Chips. There was also two crockpots full of chili and a few others goodies on the table like spinach dip, witch's pretzel/candy fingers, etc.    

 

 And now for recipes....

Better-than-Sonic Homemade Diet Cherry Limeade

 

Tall, juicy, refreshing, AND GOOD FOR YOU?  You bet!  Each tall water glass, about 12 oz, has only 45 calories and counts as a fruit serving... Yum!  I don't mind drinking water during the day but the evenings are when I miss soda the most and this is a great substitution. I love diet cherry limeades so it doesn't feel like a sub at all and I like knowing that I'm NOT drinking empty calories but something that tastes like dessert while giving me needed vitamins and antioxidants.