Tag Archives: holiday

Be mine, Valentine?

Posted on by
Reply

Valentine’s Day is a week away!

Whether or not you’re romantically involved, Valentine’s Day is just an excuse to get overly lovey-dovey, crafty, cute, and (my favorite) eat deliciously fattening foods. Right? So right.

That’s why we have been hard at work building our Be Mine, Valentine? Pinterest board. We’re talking craft ideas, recipes, tips, how-to’s, gift ideas, and pretty much anything cute. It’s definitely worth a peek!

We’ll be adding more pins all week. Let us help you get into the spirit!

What’s your typical Valentine’s Day like?
Social Grocery // Facebook // Twitter // Pinterest

It's time for gingerbread!

Posted on by
Reply

It”s December, and that means it”s time to take those gingerbread recipes out of the holiday cookbooks .. you know, the ones shoved in the far back corner of your bookshelf. I love gingerbread, so when wintertime is finally showing its shining face, I like to embrace the season as much as possible. Gingerbread everything, please!

 

GINGERBREAD HOUSES


As much as I love gingerbread, making houses can be a huge pain. While they”re a warp back to childhood, it can be frustrating all the same. However, instead of buying one of those kits this year, you should try making one from scratch. With so many templates and recipes online, you”ll be a gingerbread house making pro in no time!

 

GINGERBREAD MONKEY BREAD

Okay, I know what you”re thinking. “Gingerbread and monkey bread are amazing on their own, what a genius idea to add them together!” I know. I feel the same. Plus, the gingerbread men marshmallows are too cute for words. (Tablespoon.com)

 

CLASSIC GINGERBREAD CAKE

This cake is delicious on it”s own, or even with a nice, hearty frosting. I”m thinking cream cheese. YUM. A perfect snack to go along with some warm cider — morning, afternoon or night. (browneyedbaker.com)

 

What are your favorite gingerbread recipes? Have any pictures? Share with us!

Social Grocery // Facebook // Twitter

Don't hog the stuffing!

Posted on by
Reply

With THE BEST HOLIDAY EVER CREATED Thanksgiving coming up in just a few short days, I think it”s obvious that my mind is wrapped around one thing: food. While I love turkey more than any meat, there is one thing that I just can never seem to get enough of each year — STUFFING. Stuffing is so delicious, it should be its own food group. And if your family is anything like mine, stuffing is one hot commodity come turkey day. You better be the first to get a good helping because if not, you”re out of luck! And in honor of my favorite side dish (or in some cases, DINNER), I thought it would be a great time to look at some different versions of stuffing. Because in my own opinion, you can just never have enough!

All of these recipes can be found on the Thanksgiving section of the Food Network website. If you haven”t seen it yet, be sure to take a look! They have a bunch of great tips and how-to”s. Here are some yummy stuffing recipes, just an example of what you”ll find on the website!

 

CLASSIC STUFFING

Yum yum yum! You can never go wrong with traditional bread stuffing. Fresh onion and celery is a must! Some people like to bake their stuffing in individual muffin tins, which is a cute idea — not so practical for myself and my usual mountain of stuffing each holiday, but to each their own!

 

BOURBON-PECAN STUFFING

I”m a big fan of pecans and I love all types of foods containing them. This bourbon-pecan stuffing sounds awesome! It also contains pears — basically it”s a classic stuffing with a little kick. It adds a little jazz to the Thanksgiving table while still keeping tradition!

 

APPLE-FENNEL STUFFING

What better way to celebrate the end of the Fall season than to incorporate apples into everything? This apple-fennel stuffing is obviously no exception. Perfect for apple fanatics that want to embrace Fall in every way possible, especially on the greatest holiday of the year! This recipe includes cranberries, too. Yummy!

 

BACON-RICE STUFFING


I love bacon, as does most of the world. While this stuffing goes a little off-tradition, it”s still a great option to have on the table next to the classic stuffing. Who doesn”t love a little variety? This recipe includes a pound of bacon and chopped chestnuts … get in my belly.

 

SPINACH-SAUSAGE CORNBREAD STUFFING

Take cornbread stuffing, add crumbled sausage, spinach and some parmesan cheese. What do you get? Spinach-Sausage Cornbread Stuffing. Oh my .. I really don”t know what other word to use to describe this stuffing other than FANTASMICAL. Yeah, I used fantasmical. Pretty sure this recipe is worthy of the title, though. Just saying.

 

For more awesome stuffing recipes, view Food Network”s list of 50 Mix & Match Stuffings. Yes, FIFTY. LOVE IT!

 

Are you a stuffing fanatic, too?

+ Social Grocery
+ Social Grocery on Facebook
+ Social Grocery on Twitter

Sweet as pie, cute (& small) as a button.

Posted on by
2

Well, alright. A little bigger than a button.

I am a huge freak for all things miniature. Those mini ice cream cups at the store, mini candy, mini bags, mini cupcakes, mini jars, Polly Pocket (when she was actually the size of a fingernail, you know .. back in the day) — if it”s mini, I”m pretty much obsessed. So you can only imagine my reaction when I stumbled upon mini PIE. I basically died with joy and cuteness overload taking control of my brain. It was magical. I”m hoping you feel the same and spread the magic to your friend and family this holiday season! Oh and don”t worry — to top it off, these mini pies are in MINI JARS. That my friends, is what I call perfection (not to mention an amazing gift-giving idea).

 

CRANBERRY COBBLERS (IN A JAR)

To kick off my mini-pie-in-a-jar-magical-idea-since-when?! obsession, we have Cranberry Cobblers from Tablespoon.com. They really know how to get me over there — passion for food meets creativity. ALWAYS. And these cobblers are no exception! Perfect for Turkey day, wouldn”t you agree?

 

SPICED PUMPKIN PIE (IN A JAR)

ADORABLE! These mini spiced pumpkin pies are so cute. I love the jars that The Scootabaker used for this particular post — and the heart cutouts add the perfect loving touch, don”t you think? Wish I had one right now! Not to mention I love anything pumpkin.

 

LATTICE-TOP BLUEBERRY PIE (IN A JAR)

You had me at lattice-top, Family Kitchen. I”ve always loved lattice-top pies — not only does it take some serious skill to come out with a great looking pie, but they”re just so pretty! Shrink it down to mini and in a jar? I”m awestruck. LOVE these blueberry pies! It”s almost unfair that I don”t have one in front of me at this very moment.

 

FRUIT CRISP (IN A JAR)

I love fruit crisp — so clearly, I would love this particular post from Wendolonia. I think the best part about these fruit crisps is that you can literally use any type of fruit you wish and still come out with a delicious treat! Also you can put these babies in the freezer for whenever you feel a need for some freshly baked mini crisp. Love it!

 

GRASSHOPPER PIES (IN A JAR)

Okay, so we all love a good pie with a traditional crust. But then what about those other pies we love with non-traditional crusts? These grasshopper pies have a crumbled Oreo crust and look DELICIOUS. Not to mention, this post from A Southern Fairytale inspires me to get creative with this mini pie idea — crumbled graham cracker crust is another option I haven”t seen (yet) in mini pies. Time to get the foodie juices flowing!

 

What type of pie would you love to see served in a mini jar?

+ Social Grocery
+ Social Grocery on Facebook
+ Social Grocery on Twitter

Craft-o-Lanterns

Posted on by
Reply

One of the best parts of getting into the Halloween spirit is decorating around the house. I”m not sure about you, but pumpkin carving is one of my favorite Fall activities — right up there with apple picking and visiting haunted houses. But as many crafties and creative heads have come to find, you don”t need a pumpkin to do a little carving (and no, that is not a slasher film reference). If you”re not feeling the strength to gut out a big pumpkin or if you can”t find any in your area, never fear — here are three alternatives that will prove to be just as fun for you and your family this Halloween.

 

FRUIT JACK-O-LANTERNS

FRUIT JACK-O-LANTERNS

What a cute idea this is. I love that with the pineapple thrown into the mix, it”s almost like a Tiki themed Halloween. Leave it to our friends at Tablespoon and their members (in this instance, bevcooks) to come up with something so fun and hilarious. And with fruit this small, large tools not required!

 

SNACK-O-LANTERNS

SNACK-O-LANTERN

These fruit-salad-filled lanterns are adorable and a great way to celebrate Halloween without candy (or you can fill them with candy too, don”t expect me to stop you). These would serve as great party treats or for your child”s class at school. The possibilities are endless — but don”t forget that even with their kid nature, adults love fun snacks, too! If you”re looking for more ideas like this, check out Disney FamilyFun”s website for more cute recipes.

 

HALLOWEEN JAR LANTERNS

HALLOWEEN JAR LANTERNS

These creative jar lanterns from Fresh Home Ideas are perfect for those of us who don”t want to deal with rotting fruits and are more inclined to make something that will last more than a few nights. So if you”re feeling crafty — keep your leftover pickle and pasta sauce jars, make a trip to the craft store and get to decoupaging! (I personally love the striped one, so if you”re in the generous mood you can drop one off by my house.)

 

Do you like to channel your inner craft god for the Halloween season? Share your creations with us!

+ Social Grocery
+ Social Grocery on Facebook
+ Social Grocery on Twitter

Chocoholics unite! It's National Chocolate Cupcake Day!

Posted on by
Reply

If you”re a lover of chocolate and cake, then today is the day for you. On behalf of Social Grocery, I wish you a very Happy National Chocolate Cupcake Day (not to be confused with National Cupcake Day on December 15th)!

In celebration of this delicious day — and in addition to my love of obscure holidays — I have decided to share a few treats to help get your OM NOM NOM on. And no, they”re not your basic out-of-the-box chocolate cupcakes:

 

TRIPLE CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES

Triple Chocolate Cupcakes

This is what I would like to call a CHOCOLATE EXPLOSION. These devil”s food chocolate cupcakes from Annie”s Eats are filled with chocolate ganache, then topped with chocolate sour cream frosting and chocolate curls. Not only are these gorgeous, they”re bursting with chocolate-induced happiness. Please do yourself a favor and make them ASAP. Perfect for National Chocolate Cupcake Day!

 

CHOCOLATE CUPCAKE POPS

Chocolate Cupcake Pops

As a huge Bakerella fan, I obviously had to include her Chocolate Cupcake Pops in this post. Take a different spin on the traditional chocolate cupcake — shrink it, dip it, decorate it and put it on a stick instead. If you haven”t tried cupcake pops or cake pops yet, use National Chocolate Cupcake Day as an excuse to educate yourself. You won”t be disappointed!

 

CHOCOLATE ROSE TUTORIAL (CAKE/CUPCAKE TOPPER)

Chocolate Rose Cake/Cupcake Topper

Tell me you”ve never seen gourmet cupcakes with elaborate flower toppings and thought “hey, I want to learn how to do that!” Well, luckily for us, Cakebrain from Cake on The Brain blog has an excellent tutorial on how to create these chocolate roses, perfect to add a little touch of beauty to your National Chocolate Cupcake Day creations. And according to Cakebrain herself,  they”re easier to make than we think!

 

What”s your favorite chocolate cupcake recipe? Out-of-the-box or homemade? Share with us!

+ Social Grocery
+ Social Grocery on Facebook
+ Social Grocery on Twitter