Raspberry Lemonade Smoothie

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So...are you guys getting sick of all these drink recipes yet? I hope not. Because this probably isn't going to be the end of them. ;) Besides, summer is on it's way and it wouldn't fully be summer without a little bit of drink lovin' in your life!

As we were visiting family this weekend, I whipped up a batch of this raspberry lemonade smoothie and let me tell you...mm mm mm mm mmmm. The original recipe was a little too tart for all of our liking, so Zachary mellowed it out with some extra water and a little bit of sugar. All I needed after that, was a nice big brimmed hat, a beach chair, and some sand to plop it all down in. One can only dream... Hope ya like this delicious recipe!

Serves about 6-8
Recipe adapted from Delightfully Tacky
Ingredients:

• 1 can lemonade concentrate {frozen or thawed - doesn't matter}
• 1 & 1/2 cans water
• 2 cups frozen raspberries
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 4 cups ice {more of less depending on how runny you like it}
• Fresh lemons {optional}

Directions:

1. Mix first 5 ingredients in a blender and mix until no more chunks exist.
2. Garnish with fresh lemons.

I found this recipe to be super refreshing and just what I need on a warm summer's day! Enjoy.

-Sarah

Linking up here.

Work It Wednesday {#28}

Happy Wednesday peeps and welcome to this week's Work It Wednesday!

We just got back from a weekend of visiting family over in Utah and had a blast! My mom and best friend threw me a baby shower and it turned out to be a huge success. It was so fun seeing old friends and people that I literally haven't seen in years. 

Anyway, I made a dessert for the blog today {Be excited. It's awesome.} and I don't really want it in my house because it's delicious and I know I'm going to eat it. So what do I do? Invite everyone I know to come eat it with us. Which means that we're going to be busy with friends tonight, so I'm going to keep this short and sweet.

The most popular link from last week is:

Super Addictive Brownies from Busy Mom's Helper

Those look super addictive. Way to go Busy Mom's Helper! As for my favs from last week, they are:

Jewelry Organization on a Budget from Vintage Zest

Chocolate Chip Lava Cakes from Mostly Homemade Mom

Apple Nachos from The Crafty Blog Stalker

Broccoli Bacon Salad from Cook and Craft Me Crazy

Teacher Appreciation Gift from Shaken Together Life

Mini Raspberry Pink Lemonade Pies from Chocolate, Chocolate and More

Thank you everyone for participating in Work It Wednesday! Everything look so great! If you were featured, be sure to grab yourself a featured button here! Now...let's get down to the nitty gritty. All I ask is that you remember 3 simple rules:

#1 - Link up anything {recipes, crafts, projects, tutorials, etc.} that has been made by you. I don't care what it is as long as it isn't a shop, giveaway, advertisement, link party or something of the like. Please try to limit your link ups to no more than 5 per party. Also, please don't link up things that have already been linked up before. Let's keep the content fresh and new!
#2 - Please link back to us in some way, shape, or form. I understand how annoying this can be sometimes, so I've had a cute little button made for your convenience! You can also put a text link at the end of your post or even put our link in your party page. Just please give credit where credit is deserved!

<center> <a href="http://highheelsandgrills.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n9xFnGSn5N8/UYEyWzWUnpI/AAAAAAAADM4/MvvWQFftSOA/s1600/HHGworkit_zps95a16620.png" /></a></center>
#3 - Please please PLEASE don't link and run. The whole point of a link party is to make connections and friends with people. Put a stop to selfish blogging right now and make someone's day by commenting on at least two blogs! 
If after doing these 3 things, you decide you want to subscribe to us via E-mail, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Pinterest, Twitter, or Instagram, I definitely would not object! Thank you all. With that being said, work it friends and show me what you've got!!

Strawberry Pina Colada

I don't know about you guys, but I am kind of a pina colada die hard. Every snow cone place I've ever been to, I've either gotten pina colada flavor or tiger's blood. {Which I recently learned, tiger's blood is just strawberry pina colada. Weird.} I'm kind of picky when it comes to pina coladas though. They have to be more coconut-y than pineapple-y or it kind of ruins the whole experience. When I was trying this recipe, I was somewhat skeptical until I took my first taste and then I was immediately blown away. I was not expecting it to taste as delicious as it did! I actually ended up drinking a big glass of it for dinner. Don't judge. I'm just making my point that it won't let you down!

Recipe adapted from Coterie
Makes about 4-6 servings
Ingredients:

• 8 oz. frozen strawberries in syrup {I found this in a tub near the frozen fruit, but if you can't find it, blend together 4 cups frozen strawberries and 1/4 cup sugar}
• 2/3 cup water
• 1 {15 oz.} can Coco Lopez Cream of Coconut
• 15 oz. pineapple juice
• 3 cups ice
• 1/2 cup half and half

Directions:

1. In a blender, combine strawberries and water until smooth.
2. Place strawberries in a separate bowl and set aside.
3. Rinse blender and combine Coco Lopez, pineapple juice, ice, and half and half and blend until no large ice chunks exist.
4. Add strawberries and mix lightly.

I hope you enjoy this yummy drink as much as I did!

-Sarah

Easy Fried Rice

Well hello. This is Man Monday.

Have you guys ever seen that show Chopped? Defs one of my favorites. Well, we took a short trip back home for the weekend and I was trying to come up with something to eat. I took a look at the parents' fridge/pantry and what did I see? Rice, soy sauce, frozen veggies, and eggs. Four ingredients and only 30 minutes! I was in Chopped mode. Granted, these weren't difficult ingredients or anything but the point is, I came up with this in just a few minutes and it turned out great.

Makes 6-8 servings
Ingredients

• 2 tablespoon butter
• 1/2 bag frozen veggies of your choice
• 2 cups cooked white rice
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 2 eggs, beaten

Directions

1. In a large skillet, melt your butter on medium high heat. When just melted, add your frozen veggies. Cook for about 3 minutes or until... well... cooked, but not dry.
2. Turn your heat down to medium and add the soy sauce and rice. Mix well.
3. Now, I'm sure there is an easier way to do this part, but this worked for me.  Push your rice mixture to one half of the pan. On the other side, pour in your eggs. Scramble lightly for about 30 seconds. Now, it won't be fully cooked yet and that's okay, but go ahead and mix the eggs into the rice. 
4. Mix the whole thing together and continue to cook, stirring constantly, for about 2 minutes.

That's it folks! An easy side that tastes great. Of course, you can always jazz it up by adding ham bits, garlic, onion, baby duck embryos or whatever else you see on Chopped. ;)

-Zach

French Onion Soup

Hey all, it's Zach speakin' again.

I'll be honest, I have a love-hate relationship with this soup. Let me explain by talking about something completely different. Just bear with me on this one...

I'm gonna tell you about our dog Copper. Copper LOVES people. To a fault. He loves people so much that they tend to hate him in return for all the attention he gives them. Whenever we are around other people, suddenly Sarah and I are the bad guys as we attempt to contain the copious amounts of energy emanating from our loving canine. He runs from us, he whines when we put him in time-out, and he even throws tantrums if we insist he listens to us. In fact, just today I got so frustrated with him that I fantasized about him running away and never returning. Yet, in the end, my love always returns for this ever needy pet.

Now, I'm sure most of you are asking one of two questions right now... "Why do you still love Copper?" Or it's more likely you're asking, "what in the world does this have to do with french onion soup?" I'll answer both questions whether you care or not. I think the reason I still love my dog is the tremendous amounts of sacrifice and energy I put in to taking care of him. You can't sacrifice SO much and NOT get something rewarding in return.

The same applies to this dang soup! It's gonna take some effort, but in the end you'll love it.

The inspiration from this recipe comes from myrecipes.com. It even tells you the nutrition facts!

Serves 6-10.
Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 white onions, thinly sliced
• 2 red onions, thinly sliced (I know, that's A LOT of onion)
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup of cooking wine (we don't own any other kinds of wine...)
• 8 cups sodium free beef broth
• 1/4 teaspoon FRESH thyme, chopped (please, please don't use the dried up crap.... I did, and my first try was a disaster)
• 1 bay leaf
• 8 slices of french bread
• 8 slices of swiss cheese

Directions

1. Warm up your olive oil in a very large skillet/pot. Add your onions and saute on medium-high heat for 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and add your sugar, pepper, and salt. Continue to cook for 20 minutes, stirring frequently (maybe constantly... sacrifice).
2. At this point the onion should be all brown and caramelized and such. Turn the heat back up, add your wine, and cook for 5 minutes to allow the alcohol to cook out.
3. Add your broth, thyme, and bay leaf, stir. Let simmer on low heat for 1 hour.
4. Toast your french bread with the swiss cheese. Serve with your soup and enjoy!

hope you like this labor of love. If you don't, well, you did it wrong (like I did the first time).

-Zach

Sonic Grape Limeade {Copycat}

Can I just say that I can't even count the number of people I know that are addicted to diet coke? I'll bet Sonic sees their Happy Hour as the best thing they ever did because of this. Which is amazing to me because I can't stand the stuff. Yep. I said it. I hate diet coke! But grape limeade on the other hand? Swoon. I could drink this stuff all day!

I can still remember the first time I tasted its deliciousness. It wasn't at a Sonic, but rather a local restaurant in the town where my high school was. Some friends and I went to grab some lunch and I saw a sign advertising 'lime ricky's' and I asked what the heck that was. After learning it was just grape and lime together, I tried it and I've been hooked since. Sonic really does make their money off of me because of this stuff. And their Oreo blasts. Maybe there will be a copycat for that in the future? Until then, enjoy this delicious drink and be amazed at how much it really does taste like the real thing!

Makes one large pitcherful
Ingredients:

• 1 {12 oz.} can limeade concentrate, thawed
• 2 pkgs. grape kool-aid
• 1 {2 liter} bottle sprite
• Fresh limes {optional}

Directions:

1. Combine limeade and koolaid until no koolaid lumps exist.
2. In a large pitcher or bowl, mix together the limeade/grape mixture and the sprite until well combined. {Don't stir too vigorously, or the carbonation in the Sprite will all go away. Listen to someone who knows from experience.}
3. Slice your limes and add it to the mix.

Enjoy!

-Sarah

Linking up here.

Work It Wednesday {#27}

Welcome to this week's Work It Wednesday! Real quick - in the past, I've tried to pin the featured posts and spotlight one or two peeps during the week and quite frankly - I haven't done a very good job at it. I just wanted you to know that I'm going to try extra hard to do those things from now on, because you guys deserve some extra attention! That's all. Also, I've been noticing some people linking up a lot of the same things week after week and also linking up like 15-20 different things as well. I've changed the rules of the linky party a little bit, so as to keep content fresh and new, so be sure to check those out! Thanks y'all. :)

Anyway, there's been a little somethin' somethin' I've been dying to tell you guys, but haven't gotten around to it. Can I get a drum roll please?...

{Follow me on Instagram! @sarah_highheelsandgrills}

That's right, folks. Zachary and I are moving and building a house! I'm super stoked about it all. It was suppose to be done June 24th, but I got an e-mail yesterday saying that because of all the snow, we should plan on it being finished in the middle of July. Which works out perfect with our sweet pea's due date being July 23rd. I've always wanted to move with a newborn. ;) 

In all reality - this is our 5th move in 5 different states {Oh yeah, did I mention this move will be right over the border into Colorado? Say goodbye to the Cheyenne wind and hello to the Rocky Mountains. Holla!}, so we've gotten pretty good at the whole packing up and moving thing. I just wish that I could bring our little babelet home to the cute nursery I've alway envisioned instead of what will either be the very empty house we're living in now or the crazy messy unpacked house we'll be moving into. Oh well. If there's one thing I've learned while being married to a military man, it's that things will never go as planned and you've just got to learn to fly by the seat of your pants. We're really excited for this new adventure and to be first time home owners!

Now that I've finally been able to get that off my chest, let's take a look at some features from last week, shall we? The most viewed link was:

Copycat Chick-Fil-A Nuggets and Sauce from Love, Pomegranate House.

Remember when I confessed here that I'd just recently tried Chick-Fil-A for the first time? These chicken nuggets are what keep me going back! They look great Talitha!

Now for my favorites from the week:

Low Sugar Strawberry Freezer Jam from Dessert Now, Dinner Later

Tips on Keeping Shoes Looking New from Angela Says

Broccoli Cheese Soup in Homemade Bread Bowls from Love Bakes Good Cakes

Easy Tape Mani from Glimpses of the Moon

Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble from Caramel Potatoes

Thank you everyone for participating in Work It Wednesday! Everything look so great! If you were featured, be sure to grab yourself a featured button here! Now...let's get down to the nitty gritty. All I ask is that you remember 3 simple rules:

#1 - Link up anything {recipes, crafts, projects, tutorials, etc.} that has been made by you. I don't care what it is as long as it isn't a shop, giveaway, advertisement, link party or something of the like. Please try to limit your link ups to no more than 5 per party. Also, please don't link up things that have already been linked up before. Let's keep the content fresh and new!
#2 - Please link back to us in some way, shape, or form. I understand how annoying this can be sometimes, so I've had a cute little button made for your convenience! You can also put a text link at the end of your post or even put our link in your party page. Just please give credit where credit is deserved!

<center> <a href="http://highheelsandgrills.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n9xFnGSn5N8/UYEyWzWUnpI/AAAAAAAADM4/MvvWQFftSOA/s1600/HHGworkit_zps95a16620.png" /></a></center>
#3 - Please please PLEASE don't link and run. The whole point of a link party is to make connections and friends with people. Put a stop to selfish blogging right now and make someone's day by commenting on at least two blogs! 
If after doing these 3 things, you decide you want to subscribe to us via E-mail, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Pinterest, Twitter, or Instagram, I definitely would not object! Thank you all. With that being said, work it friends and show me what you've got!!

Parmesan Chicken Pasta

Zach here. I apologize for no Man Monday this week folks. The responsible-bring-home-the-bacon job kinda sucked the life out of me for the last several days.

Picture this:  You're wandering the house feeling your stomach growl. You're too lazy to go buy any food because you haven't been home for seven days and all you want to do is sit around. You see a jar of spaghetti sauce, some noodles, frozen chicken, and parmesan. *light bulb moment* Chicken Parm right?! Well, it might not be the stuff you buy at that "olive" restaurant, but with only a few ingredients, it's pretty dang good.

Makes 4 servings
Ingredients

• 4 chicken breasts, thawed
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 egg
• 1 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon onion salt
• 2 cups spaghetti sauce of your choosing (I won't feel bad AT ALL if you use my recipe :)
• your favorite pasta, cooked
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375º.
2. On a cutting board, pound out your chicken to about 1/2" to 3/4", just enough to tenderize it a little and to allow an even cooking.
3. Blend your egg in a bowl. Then, mix your bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, and onion salt together in a separate, shallow bowl.
4. Get your olive oil nice and warm on medium high heat in a skillet.
5. While the oil is heating up, grab a chicken breast, dip it in the egg, then coat it with the bread crumb mixture on both sides.
6. When your oil is hot, place the breaded chicken in the skillet. Cook till golden brown on both sides.
7. This next part is something I did because I'm not a fan of greasy chicken. You can cut it out if you want. Put a cookie-cooling rack on a cookie sheet, thus creating a raised surface for your chicken to rest when in the oven. Put your chicken on the cooling rack and stick the whole contraption in the oven for about 10 minutes. This allows the grease in the chicken to drip off (onto the cookie sheet and not in your oven) AND it allows the chicken to crisp up a bit.
8. Serve the chicken on a bed of your favorite pasta and pasta sauce. 

Enjoy!

-Zach

Linking up here.

Gooey Corn Flake Crispies

Today is the day where the mister comes home from a week's worth of work!! To say I'm excited is a bit of an understatement. I don't know what you ladies out there are like when your husband is gone, but let's just say, this week wasn't my proudest week. I kept thinking, "I really need to clean the house." And then I'd think, "But Zachary won't be home for a few more days..." and I'd continue with just one more episode of 'Parenthood' or something of the sort. Let's just say that the resulting disaster of a house is a little overwhelming and I've got a lot on my plate today. ;)

I'm sure some of you can relate to having to do a million things in one day, which is why I thought it was fitting to share this recipe. It is probably one of the easiest recipes on this blog to date. It only has four ingredients and takes minutes to put together. I present to you, Gooey Corn Flake Crispies!

They're a lot like rice krispies, but don't ask me why  - they taste a million times better. I don't know if it's the added crunchiness or what, but I like them way better than rice krispies!

Makes 12-14 Crispies
Ingredients:

• 35 regular size marshmallows
• 1/2 cup {1 stick} butter, salted
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 4 & 1/2 cups corn flakes

Directions:

1. Melt butter and marshmallows together in a large pot until only a few lumps of marshmallows remain. {Don't cook it much longer or your resulting Crispies will set up hard.}
2. Remove from heat and add vanilla; mix well.
3. Stir in corn flakes and mix until all the flakes are coated.
4. Drop by spoonfuls onto wax paper and let cool.

I first tried these out on my Sunday School kids to see if they liked them and by the time they were done eating them, they were all asking me to write down the recipe, so their parents could make them at home. I'd say it was a success! Enjoy.

-Sarah

Linking up here.

Easy Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas

So, do you want to know something about me? Before I was married, I didn't know how to cook worth a darn. {And I'm still not even that good.} I'm pretty sure I lived off of those frozen chimichangas from Wal-Mart and the Cup O' Noodles made by Ramen. Those ones are still a favorite, but I can't say that my stomach exactly agrees...

Anyway, in my opinion, enchiladas are pretty much one of those things that you learn to make when you first start cooking. They're quick, they're tasty, and most of all they're easy. Well, in the last 2 and 1/2 years we've been married and I have tried my hand at cooking, I've never made enchiladas before. {And the years before definitely don't count because I never cooked a thing.} Zachary has made some yummy Chipotle Chicken Enchiladas, but we all know he's a better cook than me, so whatevs. What I'm trying to say here is: this is my first attempt at enchiladas and if you're an enchilada noob like me, this is the first recipe you should try! I was blown away by how good they tasted and the cool thing is - there is no canned cream of chicken soup or enchilada sauce! It's all from scratch which, take it from someone who knows, makes you feel like one high class homemaker! That's all. Enough of my ranting. Go try these. You won't regret it.

Adapted from food.com
Makes 8 yummy enchiladas
Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 1 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breast, diced {I found this to be about 2 medium sized breasts}
• 1/2 white onion, chopped
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 8 {8 in} flour tortillas
• 1 & 1/2 cups monterey cheddar cheese, divided
• 1/4 cup butter, salted
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 {14.5 oz.} can chicken broth
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 {4.5 oz.} can chopped green chiles

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. In a large skillet, heat oil on medium-low heat. {How long do you heat it? Here's a fun trick - Use a wooden spoon and dip the handle in the oil periodically. As soon as bubbles begin to form around it, that's when you know it's hot enough.}
3. Add the chicken, onion, salt, and pepper and cover, stirring occasionally; cook until chicken is no longer pink inside.
4. Distribute the chicken evenly between the 8 tortillas and top each one off with 1 & 1/2 Tbsp. of cheese.
5. Roll tightly and place, seam side down, in a greased 9x13 inch baking dish.
6. Meanwhile, melt butter in a medium saucepan.
7. Add flour and stir until mixture begins to bubble.
8. Add chicken broth slowly and bring to a boil.
9. Remove from heat and add sour cream and chiles.
10. Pour your sauce evenly over the enchiladas and top with remaining 3/4 cup cheese. {Or more...no judgements here.}
11. Bake uncovered for 17-20 minutes. 
12. Use any additional toppings you might like - sour cream, green onions, etc.

There's nothing better than a good hearty meal that doesn't stress you out or take hours to make. Enjoy!

-Sarah

Linking up here.