Ahhhhh yes.  It's true - these should come with a warning!  IF YOU LOVE SNICKERS BARS, THESE ARE TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE!

​Chewy, fudgy homemade brownies made fresh from scratch.  These are good enough to eat alone - but truly decadent poked and filled with creamy salted caramel, roasted peanuts, glazed with dark chocolate ganache, and finally sprinkled with pieces of Snickers.  SERIOUSLY!

What if I told you that you could be enjoying a homemade Italian Lasagna dinner in less than an hour - without boiling any water and cooking any noodles?  And no one needs to know that you didn't slave in the kitchen for hours to prepare this...it will be our little secret!

​CRAZY EASY, CRAZY GOOD!  It doesn't get much easier than this, and to tell you the truth, I may never go back to the old-fashioned way of making Italian Lasagna! 

It has been more than a little crazy at our house lately - everyone seems to be coming and going non-stop!  For those types of days, this is a long-time family favorite that everyone loves.  Whether it's a quick bite before they head out, or something to pack for a favorite lunch, or a late-night snack, I've given you five different ways to enjoy these wonderful Tuna, Egg & Cheese Melt Sandwiches!

Hold on to your party pants!  These Irish Nachos are SERIOUSLY the best appetizer ever!

It's no secret that we love celebrating St. Patrick's Day!  And to round out our "at home" party, I'm pulling out one of our favorite Irish Pub recipes to share with you - and bound to be famous from your kitchen as well.  Who doesn't love tender roasted potato slices, studded with corned beef, bacon, Irish cheddar cheese that has melted down through ever delicious layer, and served with chilled onion & chive sour cream on the side?

Ahhhhh....the Ides of March are upon us!  We all survived the great blizzard of 2017 - it really has been much more of a non-event around here than what they were predicting.  But with all the stocking up of bread and milk that took place before the storm hit, you would have thought the apocalypse was coming!  They sent everyone home early yesterday to get ahead of the storm, and the kids had a snow day, so by the time I got home, the "what's for dinner" drum was beating. 

Some days you want grilled cheese.  Other days you want pizza.  This is our recipe for the combined best of both - but be forewarned - these are gonna knock your socks off!

It's PI DAY!  And this year I'm gonna shake it up a little bit!

I usually make one of our favorite bakery pies, or even pizza pie, on such a special day, but this year I wanted to try something different.

​And I'm not going to tell a lie - these bakery-style Cherry Pie Bars are wicked good!

This is going to be my Vanilla Bean public service announcement!  Each year I typically buy a couple of bottles of pure vanilla extract, a jar or two of vanilla bean paste, and more than a few vanilla beans.  Scraping the seeds from fresh vanilla beans and using it for special baked goods, homemade ice cream or frosting is just such a treat, and the scraped pods are wonderful to infuse granulated sugar with real vanilla flavor for cooking and sprinkling.

I was starting to run low on the pure vanilla extract I use for everyday baking, and when I reached for a bottle today at Costco the price was $24.00 a bottle - up from the $8.99 price I paid for a 16 oz. bottle about the same time last year.  Vanilla beans were priced at $40.00 for 10 beans - more than double what I paid just before the holidays.  When I checked the price for a smaller bottle of pure vanilla extract at Market District, it was ON SALE for $3.99 for a one-ounce bottle.  YIKES!  I just about had a heart attack!  And these aren't even the premium vanilla brands!  To be truthful, I have never seen such a price increase before, so Mama had to do a little bit of research.

With St. Patrick's Day bearing down on us fast, I thought it was time to re-post a family favorite recipe for Mint Brownies with Mint Buttercream Frosting and Chocolate Ganache.

​These are a favorite at both Christmas time and St. Patrick's Day - chewy, fudgy brownies topped with the most light and fluffy Mint Buttercream Frosting, then glazed or drizzled with a Dark Chocolate Ganache. 

Last week we were at a potluck, and I brought a big batch of my Barbeque Chicken & Bacon Dip and set it alongside a crockpot of Buffalo Chicken Dip and a macaroni & cheese casserole that someone else had brought, and you know how things start to "mingle" on your plate, unless you are a little bit obsessed with your food not touching?

And suddenly I had an EUREKA moment!   

It's your lucky day! 
You'll find links to our family-favorite Irish recipes by clicking on the photos above, or head on over to my "HOLIDAYS - ST. PATRICK'S DAY" page for a complete listing of all our favorite St. Patrick's Day foods.  Now that it's March, its time to celebrate and there's still plenty of time to plan your party with some fabulous Irish treats!