March 15: "Kiss Me, I'm Irish!"

The theme night for March 15 is "Kiss Me, I'm Irish!" No, we won't be kissin', but you will get pinched if you don't come wearing some green! ;) And no, a bowl of Lucky Charms doesn't count for this evening! I haven't dived into Irish cooking much myself yet and look forward to this new challenge. To help you all out, here are some links to some Irish recipes...

What are you bringing on March 15?

Rachael Ray: Irish Recipes

Ireland's Eye - Recipes

All Recipes - St. Patrick's Day Recipes

Food.com - Irish Recipes

March 1: Stuff it!

STUFF IT! I'm not being rude. :) March 1st is the day to "stuff it"... peppers, chicken, mushrooms, potatoes, cabbage rolls, artichokes, bread, squash, tomatoes... anything you can think to STUFF with something tasty! There are so many great recipes out there for this sort of thing. You can invent a recipe of your own, find something online, prepare a family favorite, whatever you like... as long as it is something stuffed. :)

Who wants to do a dessert?! :D

February 15: Five Ingredients or Less!

Sorry this blog post is late! Thank you for attending our Five Ingredient theme night! It was so wonderful to see some new faces. :) Please take a moment to post your recipe here so attendees can come looking for their favorites of the evening.

I made Buffalo Chicken Dip. Just take 2 large cans of chicken, shred the meat. Soften 1 block of cream cheese. Mix cheese and meat with buffalo sauce (to taste). Bake at 450 degrees until bubbly. I served it with wheat thins tonight but chips work great too!

What did you make? What was your favorite of the night? I think mine was Kim's corn!!

Sliiiiiiiders.

On Tuesday, February 1, we're going to enjoy teeny tiny sliders. Don't know what a slider is? Think Krystal (only not as disgusting).

You can make your signature sandwich, discover a new recipe or share a family favorite. The only catch is it has to be served on a roll or mini hamburger bun! For slider ideas, check out the links below, but keep in mind, you can turn literally any burger or sandwich recipe into a slider! Have fun!

Rachael Ray

All Recipes

Epicurious

What are you bringing??

January 18: Cooking Light (dot) com!

Alright ladies, I hope you're ready for Round 2 of CookingLight.com. Post a link to your recipe as a comment! I've heard complaints about the ease of navigation on this site, so don't be discouraged if it takes you a bit to find what you're looking for. This website is packed full of healthy recipes that are very tasty and filling. Below is a link to take you directly to the recipe finder, but I urge you to surf the site for themes and ideas.

Cooking Light: Recipe Finder

What are you bringing January 18? I'm making Feta-Basil Sandwiches!!

The 2011 Schedule is Posted! Plus, January is CookingLight.com month!

I've posted the FULL schedule and themes for FOTS 2011 in the right panel of this blog. As you can see, we have some pretty exciting and new things in the works! Please take a look and brainstorm ideas on how to further yourself in the kitchen. What we don't need to do is look at this list and think, "that night is going to be too hard, I'll skip it." Remember that this ministry is for you to learn and grow. Think outside the box! Many of these nights are going to be a challenge for me, too, but we're in this together!

January is a month when people typically have a "New Years Resolution" to lose weight or get more fit and healthy. In January, we're going to focus on the site CookingLight.com. Someone I work with turned me onto this website and it's loaded with some pretty excellent recipes--many of which are incredibly filling and don't seem like they contain as few calories as they do! I challenge you to use this website more than just the two FOTS nights planned... try to incorporate it more into your cooking routine. Many of the recipes are designed to be cooked in 30 minutes or less. Who can beat that?!

What are you going to 'cook light' for January 4? Post here. :)

December 7: Christmas Cookie Swap and Dirty Santa!

This blog post has been changed as of 12/5! Please read below...

Epiphany ladies,

Tuesday, December 7 will be our last FOTS gathering for 2010. Be sure to have dinner before you come! We're going to meet at 7:30, have a cookie sampler/swap and play Dirty Santa! I'll have coffee, hot chocolate and apple cider to enjoy. This is what you need to do:

1. Pick a cookie recipe -- must be home made. Make two dozen cookies and bring them to FOTS to share with the group. Be prepared to bring home a sampler of cookies at the end of the evening!

2. Spend no more than $10 on a Dirty Santa gift and bring it wrapped. Buy something you like for yourself since you may be able to "steal" it back! ;)

3. Post your recipe on here! Don't forget!!!

I hope you can all make it!

I'm making some butterball cookies my Grandma Millie used to make. :)

1 c. butter
1 c. confectioners sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 1/4 c. flour
1/4 tsp. salt

Roll into walnut-sized balls, bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. Yields 25 mini cookies.