Apple Pie the apple of my eye

So I wanted to talk about Apple pie sometime before Thanksgiving or even Christmas at the latest, but it didn't happen.  I won't make excuses for myself I will just finish up what I started months ago and tell you everything I know about Apple pie.  

Pie Crust

You can't have pie without crust.  Well I guess you can but then it would be called something else, like applesauce or apple crisp or pudding.  For me the crust makes the pie.  It must be light and flaky and buttery. I've tried many different recipes and could never find just the right one so years (many years) ago I decided to make up my own.  I hope this helps you in someway with your pie baking endeavors.  

Merry Christmas

Hope you all have a wonderful Christmas with family and loved ones and don't forget the milk and cookies for Santa. 

~Sunny~

Eggnog Pancakes

Yet another eggnog recipe to satisfy my eggnog addiction.  I made these the other morning for my kids and they loved them.  They are light and fluffy with a hint of eggnog and just perfect for Christmas breakfast.

Trier Christmas Market

We recently paid a visit to the Trier Christmas market and had a wonderful time.  Trier is a beautiful city rich with history and gorgeous architecture, but what German city isn't. The Christmas market is a good sized one and is only 45 minutes from where we live so it's a must on my Christmas list.

Let it Snow!

Christmas is the time for giving and I'm feeling the Christmas spirit, so here is another freebie.  Snowman and snowflake cupcake toppers and cupcake wrappers. 

My First Feature

Thank you Christine from "Life Happens Love Helps" for interviewing me and allowing me to sponsor a giveaway on her blog.  The blog is in German so my American friends might have to go into Google translate to get an idea of what it's saying.  If you'd like to leave a comment and enter this $20 Giveaway to my shop, Christine speaks perfect English so no worries.  Even if you're not interested in the giveaway you should stop by her blog just to check out her adorable children and beautiful photography.  Thanks again Christine for featuring my shop on your blog. 

Oreo Truffles

I love this recipe.  It's so simple but very dangerous.  These little bites of oreo goodness are very addictive.  I only recommend you make these if you plan to send them or take them somewhere.  Otherwise you will end up eating all of them.  So proceed with caution.

Happy Holidays to all the teachers

Every year I give all of my children's teachers a little something before the winter break. With four children that equates to a multitude of teachers.  I typically do tons of baking and assemble a large container filled with yummy treats.  This year I realized that many parents do the same thing I'm doing and it's better to give a small more personal gift than to shower them with sweets. 

I kept it simple and sweet and yummy.  Just a holiday mug filled with Oreo truffles and a bag of vanilla Chi tea (my new favorite).  I also slid the recipe card in just in case.  It doesn't have to be fancy but it's always nice to let them know how much you care.  

Happy Holidays to all the teachers out there.  I hope you have a relaxing and stress free winter break. 

Free Holiday Gift tags

Here are some free gift tags for any or all of your last minute Christmas presents.  I always run out of labels and I would much rather download them than run back to the crowded stores.  Just down load the pdf file here  and print and cut and voila you've got labels.  Easy peezy, lemon squeezy.

Pumpkin Roll

No Holiday would be complete without a pumpkin roll on the dessert table.  The flavors of pumpkin and cream cheese go together so well. 

Eggnog Fizz

This is a creamy, fizzy, festive drink to start your weekend off right. 

Yes I love eggnog.  I love to cook with it flavor coffee with it and mix drinks with it.  This drink tastes just like it sounds and can be served with our without alcohol.  Just a little something you can throw together this time of year, with seasonal things you probably already have on hand.

Gingerbread Eggnog cupcakes

My two favorite Christmas flavors are gingerbread and eggnog (not necessarily in that order).  While I was baking gingerbread houses I craved gingerbread and thought what would go better with it than eggnog.  I found this wonderful recipe for Gingerbread eggnog cupcakes. 

Gingerbread houses

It wouldn't be Christmas without Gingerbread houses.  Every year for the last three years we have decorated Gingerbread houses.  I love it the kids love it and it makes lasting memories for the holiday season.  This year I decided to forgo the premade kits and make them myself.  It was a lot of work and spanned out over three days, but it was so worth it. 

Crab dip

With the holidays here there's always room for warm, rich, yummy dip.  Loaded with a pound of crab this dip is for crab lovers and crab lovers only. 

White Chocolate Raspberry dessert shots

Raspberry and white chocolate go so well together and to serve it in a shot glass just elevates it to something special.  Shot glass desserts are kind of my new obsession lately.  They are so easy to make and so fun to eat. 

Pajama Glam Birthday party

What do you get when you take eight giggling girls, a table bed, lots of zebra and leopard print, tons of pink, feathers, glitter, nail polish and of course cake. A Pajama Glam Sleepover party.

Paper pumpkins

I've seen these paper pumpkins scattered all over the internet and I just adore them.  I figured I would give them a try.  They are an easy way to add a personal touch to your Fall decorations.  Besides I just love pumpkins. 

So Thankful

Living in a military community is always hard.  People are constantly moving away and it  seems like you are always saying goodbye to people you care about.  I recently had to say goodbye to a dear friend who is moving and I wanted to show her how thankful I am to have her in my life.  Since it's November it just seemed natural to give thanks for the wonderful friendship we have instead of saying goodbye.  

Eggnog Cream pie

I know it's a little early for eggnog but as soon as it hits the shelves it's in my fridge.  I love eggnog.  Eggnog flavored treats, sweets and of course the drink itself.  I use it to flavor things like coffee and french toast.  I use it to bake with in cookies and cakes.  I love it and I guarantee this will not be my only eggnog type recipe this season.

Chicken Estufao

The short and easy way to say the name of this is "stew-fow".  It's a traditional Guam dish and is easy as can be, packed with yummy salty tangy goodness. It's great for evenings when you don't have a lot of time but want something warm and satisfying. 

This was the first thing I learned to cook from my Mother-in-law who is an amazing cook by the way. I hope it warms your heart and tummy the way it has ours so many times over.     

Cracker Cookies

My good friend Aana gave me this recipe a few years ago.  I will be forever in her debt for sharing these treats with me.  They are the kind of thing that I can throw together with just a few ingredients that I usually have in my pantry.  These are perfect for gifts, entertaining, or a quick treat for the family.   

I know these are called cookies but they are more like a toffee/brittle type thing.  They are super easy and soooo delicious.  If you like salty and sweet then you will love these buttery, salty, sweet little confections. 

Pumpkin Pancakes

With the chill of fall in the air I find myself craving warm spiced pumpkiny(not a real word but it should be) things.  I also crave eggnog but that's another post entirely.  These pancakes are the perfect way to warm you up on a cool autumn morning.  Also my kids love them so they've got to be good.

Star Wars Lego Birthday

It's so hard to believe we just had Myles sixth birthday.  We really had a great time celebrating with my little man and his adorable little friends. Myles loves the color green and Star Wars legos, but who doesn't love Star Wars legos, so I tried to incorporate that into his one of a kind party. 

Pumpkin Bread

There is no better way to welcome in Fall than warm freshly baked pumpkin bread. 

Puffy Oven Pancake

I grew up eating this yummy breakfast treat thanks to my grandmother, who is an amazing cook by the way.  This goes into the oven as a runny batter and comes out like a giant popover.  It goes well with whipped cream and fruit, warm fruit compote, maple syrup or just cinnamon and sugar.  I consider this to be one of my comfort foods and I hope someday it will be one of yours as well. 

Artichoke Dip

This recipe is long overdue.  My good friend Megan has asked me for this recipe several times and I kept telling her I would post it.  It would have been much easier for me to email this or even write it on an old fashioned recipe card, but definitely not as much fun.  So here's my blog post for ArtiCHOKE dip.  Who knew artichokes could be so spooky? 

Trick or treat


Give me something good to eat! 

To get some pictures of my new Halloween party line we celebrated Halloween early this year.  My kids were so excited about the party they told everyone they knew so our little party grew and grew (oops I slipped into Dr. Seuss there).  We had a wonderful time eating lots of yummy treats and dressing in adorable costumes.  

Halloween is on the way

It's hard to believe that Halloween is almost here.  This time of year is always a blur to me with two holidays and two birthdays all before Christmas.  Don't get me wrong this is my favorite time of year but super busy.  So I've started working on some Halloween decorations for my Etsy shop.  This is the black cat that will be making an appearance in them.  I wonder if I should give him a name?  If anyone has any good ideas let me know. Hope you're enjoying the season changes as much as I am. 

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Before I had kids I made Banana bread au natural.  With bananas and if I was feeling adventurous sometimes nuts.  Then a good friend of mine convinced me to add chocolate chips.  I have never looked back and my children like it no other way.  I use the standard Betty Crocker recipe from the 1996 book.  I actually have three Betty Crocker recipe books and use them all lovingly.  That is a totally different story all together.  Today it's just about chocolate chip banana bread. 

Accidental cake

I love to make birthday cakes for my kids but this was the first time a friend kindly let me make a cake for her daughter's birthday.   I have never worked with or made fondant but thought it would be fun to try it out for this cake.  The cake you see above is the result of one failed topsy turvy fondant cake and 4lbs of discarded fondant. 

Don't forget the teachers

With school starting I always try to make my kids first day extra special.  But don't forget the teachers.  I know they are working hard and have been working hard for weeks to get ready for this one day.  So this year I made mini apple bread loaves and gave them to each teacher with a recipe card in a simple decorative bag.  It's the gift that keeps on giving. 

Grandma Porter's Apple Bread

I wanted to make something for the new teachers that are about to enter our lives and what better way to say hello than with fresh apple bread.  If you don't like apples and moist chewy goodness then don't make this bread.  I grew up eating this apple, cinnamon confection and have always loved it.  My Grandmother made it for me and now I make if for my kids and hopefully they will carry on the tradition someday.  This recipe comes from my Great Grandmother Porter who was a farmer's wife in Texas and based on this recipe alone I would say she was an excellent cook.  

Mini Notebooks

I created these teeny tiny notebooks to use as treat bag favors.  They have turned into much more than that.  They are great for doodling, thank you notes, gift tags and of course teeny tiny stationary sets.  There are so many possibilities.

  

Ice Cream Pie

Even though summer is almost over it's never too late to share the love of ice cream pie.  It's the perfect dessert for summer or any time of year really.  I love it because one it tastes really good and two it's super easy to make and three the leftovers can be thrown right back into the freezer.  It's the perfect thing for a hot day with friends.


Luminary tealight bags

I saw these cute beautiful luminary bags in the store the other day and wanted them immediately.  I thought of all the ways I could use them at parties, Halloween, Thanksgiving and every night if I had to.  When I saw the price they weren't quite so beautiful.  As I looked at the cute little paper bags with shapes punched out of them I thought "How can they charge so much for this when I can make this at home."  Then the light bulb (or tealight) went off and I decided to give it a try.  

Schultute (School cones)

Last year my daughter Marina entered 1st grade.  Her teacher had these cones hanging from the ceiling in their classroom.  There was one for each child and they were filled with treats and school supplies.  I thought it was the sweetest thing. 

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal cookies

Chocolate chip oatmeal cookies

Since we are going on a road trip tomorrow I thought I'd whip up some of my kids favorite cookies.  Normally I like to bake from scratch but if I can use a few shortcuts to save time I'm all for it.  These are made with packaged cookie mix and then lots of other things thrown in to make them super yummy.  

Back to School



It's Back to School at Sunnyprints

It's hard to believe school is almost here.  I've put together a new line of "Back to School" printables, perfect for gifts, labels, place settings and as always cupcakes. 

Mad Hatter Hat tutorial

First of all I have to thank my husband for helping me with these.  He is always so good at assembly line productions.  I cut he assembles.  So if you have a lot of these to make I recommend getting some assistance.  All of the taping and cutting can get a little tedious after awhile. 

Paper Hats tutorial

These Mad Hatter hats were easy to make and supper fun to use. What I really like about these is how versatile they are.  There’s no template required, just a dinner plate and three sheets of 12x12 cardstock.  Sounds very techincal I know.  You can dress them up or dress them down whatever fits the occasion. 

Paper Flowers Tutorial

I love paper flowers.  They are vintage and romantic and so beautiful. I've always wanted to make them so for our teaparty I decided to give it a try.  I looked all over the internet to find a tutorial and I'm sure there is one buried somewhere but I couldn't find one I liked, so I made it up as I went.  If this is a little bit rough around the edges I apologize in advance.  

Wonderland Tea Party

The new Alice printable party line can be found in my Etsy shop. 

Well our Wonderland tea party has come and gone and it was so much fun. The weather was overcast but it didn't rain so we managed just fine.  There were crafts and games and lots of yummy food.  We of course had fairy cakes as the Brits call them.  I love saying fairy cakes much more than cupcakes anyday. It sounds so delicate and sweet just like cupcakes should always be. 

Paper Flowers

And more crafts I'm working on for our upcoming party.  I have a love, hate relationship with these flowers.  They are beautiful but very time consuming.  I don't even want to admit the amount of time I've spent on these.  My plan is to use them as a favor for guests to take home.  I also made a bunch of plain white flowers which the girls will get to paint and pretend they are "painting the roses red".  So many possibilities with these flowers.  I plan to post a tutorial for these later as well.

Paper Hats

Mad Hatter hats!

I've been working on a lot of crafts for our upcoming tea party and this is one of my favorites.  I wanted mad hatter hats for the boys attending our party.  It started out with a construction paper hat tutorial I found on youtube and I embellished it from there using fancy card stock.  I plan to post my own tutorial later with more detailed instructions.   

The White Rabbit is coming!

Wonderland sale until August {40% off}

I created some Alice themed party decorations a while ago.  I love them dearly but I had always intended to include the white rabbit somewhere on the decorations.  It never happened due to time constraints.  We are planning on having a tea party the end of this month and I've decided to finally add the white rabbit to the Alice decorations.  Here's a preview of the rabbit and I think he's adorable.  However this means the original door mouse will be leaving.  I don't plan to post the new Alice line until the beginning of August.  So if you like the current one you need to grab it now.  I've discounted all the Alice items in the store until August in honor of the doormouse.

Just starting out!

So this is the beginning of my blog.  If you're reading this thanks for your support.  This is just a place to share ideas and crafts and food and beautiful party inspirations.