Food

Thank you Tillamook for sponsoring this post.

As we head into the holiday season, baking is kind of the thing to do… well at least for me. While I do love whipping up something from scratch, sometimes I don’t, and I am not above using a box mix and elevating the taste with homemade icing.

Cream cheese icing is really easy to make and will easily turn your basic cupcakes into something that tastes like it came from a bakery. To really get the best-tasting icing you need to use a good cream cheese product. I use Tillamook Farmstyle Cream Cheese Spread, which you can find at your local Publix grocery store.

Tillamook Farmstyle Cream Cheese Spread is extra creamy, rich, and doesn’t include any fillers, or preservatives like some of the other cream cheese products on the market. Good ingredients make for great icing!

During the holidays, we bake a lot of cakes and cupcakes. Although I haven’t perfected getting my bundt cakes out of the pan perfectly, I do love a good bundt pound cake drizzled with my homemade icing. 

If you want to add a little festiveness add a few drops of food coloring while mixing. The icing also pairs perfectly with other holiday treats like cookies, and cake pops.

I just love that the seal has sayings on them! This icing recipe is super easy, and decadent. Perfect for holiday treats!

Easy Cream Cheese Icing Recipe

• 1 7 oz container of Tillamook Farmstyle Cream Cheese Spread
• 1 C powdered sugar
• 1 stick unsalted butter (butter should be room temperature)
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1. Add cream cheese to a mixing bowl

2. Use a mixer to beat cream cheese until it is smooth in texture

3. Slowly add in the butter and continue mixing until the mixture is smooth, and blended all together

4. Add in the powdered sugar and vanill and continue to mix until smooth

5. Note: Make sure not to overbeat or it will be too thin to pipe. If you find that you've overmixed it put it in the refrigerator to firm up

Don’t worry yourself about making sure your treats are picture-perfect, have fun with it, even let the children get in on the fun! I don’t use fancy piping bags, I take plastic sandwich bags, add the icing, and cut a small hole in the corner, and squeeze the icing out. 

‘Tis the season for joy, and sharing! Now go forth and make the bomb box mix cakes and cupcakes with this super easy icing recipe.

I’m partnering with U.S. Soy to bring you this easy weeknight dinner recipe.

My children are back in school, which means I am back on the cooking bandwagon. If you didn’t know, my kitchen skills dwindle down to zero during the summer and pick back up when school starts. One of my favorite quick and easy dinner go-to meals is spaghetti. Well, I’m trying to do a little better with my carb intake so I’ve been using edamame spaghetti noodles instead. Yes, edamame spaghetti.

I promise, it tastes very similar to traditional spaghetti. Not to mention when you purchase soy based products you are supporting U.S. farmers and their families. 97% of U.S. farms are family owned and when we support them we also help support our local economies and sustainable farming practices employed throughout the U.S. Learn more about how you can support U.S. farmers with your food purchases by visiting SupportUSFarmers.com and taking the pledge to stand behind our farmers who are making sure our shelves stay stocked during this time of absolute uncertainty.

I’m thankful for our U.S. farmers working hard daily to make sure I have food to put on the table for my family… now if they could just come over and cook it for me!

You don’t have to make this recipe difficult for a weeknight dinner. Usually, I like to make my sauce from scratch but on nights when I need to get dinner on the table I’m not above opening a jar of organic spaghetti sauce and letting it do the heavy lifting for me. Do what’s best for you.

Edamame Spaghetti

edamame spaghetti recipe

• 1/2 cup chopped onions
• 1 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil
• 1 box edamame spaghetti
• 2 lbs lean turkey meat
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 jar Spaghetti sauce

1. Season turkey meat with dry seasonings

2. Chop onions and garlic while waiting for water to boil

3. Sauté onions and garlic in olive oil over medium heat. Be careful not to burn the garlic

4. Once the onions and garlic are translucent and fragrant add seasoned turkey meat and brown

5. Once meat is brown, add spaghetti sauce. Turn heat to low and simmer.

6. While sauce is simmering, boil edamame noodles until tender. Will take around 5-7 minutes. Refer to the package for exact cooking time.

Here’s to a new school year, and getting back in the kitchen. Stay safe, and be sure to head over to SupportUSFarmers.com to take the pledge to support our U.S. farmer’s families who help us feed ours daily!