I MADE THIS!! I REALLY DID~~Coconut Cake!

Yes, I made this!! Can you tell I'm excited? I got the idea from Tina at Cherry Hill Cottage, one of my favorite bloggers. It's a Dunkin Hines cake mix (i used vanilla) with 1 cup of coconut added to the mix. Then I took another idea from Family Circle Magazine and added Strawberry Preserves in between the two layers. I opted not to put to much coconut on the cake's frosting because not everyone in my family loves coconut, and I served this when Andy and I had everyone over for "Christmas Cake and Coffee".

I painted that little wooden birdhouse with acrylic paint and glued some fake "snow" on top. This actually only the 3rd cake I've ever made, so I'm reaaaalllly pleased with how it turned out!

I didn't get a picture of it when it was cut...darn! Guess I will have to make it again. These days I can barely get a picture of this one below too! Arden runs away every time I get the camera out. Here she is on the night of out 'Cake & Coffee' party...

Tonight we will be attending a 'Christmas Potluck'. Can't wait to see all my friends, although one very special friend will be missing...Vanessa! We will miss you, "V"!!!

TTYL,

Angela

Recipe Wednesday

Pan Roasted Tilapia


These tilapia loins are roasted over "beds" of red tomatoes and black olives. I'm pretty sure you can use any kind of olives you like. I usually buy frozen tilapia loins in the frozen seafood section of the grocery store, and they taste GREAT. We love this low-fat and healthy recipe, even though fish is usually considered a spring or summer dish, we eat it all year round. I hope you like it too...

ingredients:
-4 tilapia loins
-red tomatoes
-olives (sliced)
-olive oil
-mayonnaise
-1 medium lemon
-grated parmesan

Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees, in a pyrex baking dish arrange sliced tomatoes in "beds" and scatter olives to your liking over tomatoes. Spread zest from 1 medium lemon over beds, season with salt and pepper, then drizzle with olive oil. Lay tilapia loins over tomato beds and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

In a small bowl combine mayonaisse (4 teaspoons per filet), 1 tablespoon parm. cheese, and the juice from half a lemon--mix together. Spread generously over tilapia loins.

Place in oven and cook for 20-30 minutes until browned.


As you can see below, this Tilapia is so good someone couldn't wait for me to take a picture before they took a bite...

Have a great Wednesday!

TTYL,

Angela

Recipe Friday- Honey Mustard Mini Meatloaves

I named this blog Little Bird Cottage: because a) i love cottage birds , b) people always tell me "you're so little", and c) Arden is our "little bird". hopefully she'll outgrow me. keep your fingers crossed, Arden.

Is everyone ready for some Honey Mustard Mini Meatloaves? this recipe is from the Every Day Food Magazine, but my friend "V" and i have each put our own spin on it. Every Day Food is by Martha Stewart, so when i make these meatloaves, i like to tell people i'm making a "Martha Stewart Meatloaf"--that get's the point across that this is NOT your grandma's meatloaf. no offense to all the grandmas out there! Check out the recipe below, it's easy to make and everyone will LOVE it.

Honey Mustard Mini Meatloaves

-1 pound ground chuck

-centur cut bacon

-2 tablespoons honey mustard

-2 tablespoons ketchup

-1 large egg, lightly beaten

-1/2 cup bread crumbs

-1 cup shredded cheddar

-2 tablespoons worstershier sauce

-coarse salt & ground pepper

Preheat oven to 450 degrees w/rack in the upper third. In a small bowl mix together honey mustard and ketchup to create a sauce.

In a medium bowl, combine egg, beef, bread crumbs, cheddar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Combine and fluff with a fork (not your hands). Form into 2-by-4 inch "mini" loaves. Coat loaves with mustard/ketchup sauce to desired thickness. Cut 1 slice of bacon in half, drape each pieces over loaves.

Bake 15-20 minutes.

Your take on Meatloaf will never be the same again!

Andrew and i took Arden swimming today at our gym's indoor pool. i'm really paranoid of taking her out in the sun since our planet has like, NO ozone layer. ;) i thought she would be tired after we got home, but she still wanted to play all day.

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

TTYL,

Angela

Hello, Friday!

Is it really Friday already? The weeks fly by so fast when you have a little one. Every day is the same, but different. I can barely remember what we did this week, but I know we were busy, busy, busy. I have several "projects" I would like to finish in the month of April. The first one was organizing my home accessories/craft closet. I have already finished that, but I will not be posting any pics...it's boring and compared to some of the organzing afficianados I have seen on blogger, let's just say I have nothing to brag about. Projects 2 and 3 are: painting my guest bathroom, or as I like to call it; the smallest bathroom known to man, and painting the interior of my china cabinet. I will post before and after pics of both as soon as I knock these out. I have been wanting to do both of these for a long time, but was very concerned about paint fumes affecting Arden. Benjamin Moore has come out with a paint that has no fumes, which I plan on inquiring about during a trip to Lowe's this weekend. My final project will be organizing my pantry/laundry room, which if I get this far on the list I will be well deserving of a mani/pedi and facial...maybe a massage. Hint, Hint to the "man in my life" who is reading this...and I'm not talking about my Shit-Zu, Charlie :)

Is anyone hungry for some "Easy Chicken & Biscuits"? I got this recipe from my "Campbells Cooking Companion" Book. I absolutely LOVE this book because the recipes are great for amatuers like myself; they all use Campbells Soups and I purchase the cans that are either fat free or low in Sodium to cut back on all the junk that's bad for you. This is a favorite that uses frozen vegetables that come in a "Vegetable Medley" which consists of brocolli, carrots, and cauliflower, along with canned biscuits. I highly suggest using the "Grands" brand of biscuits, as this time around I used the grocery store brand and the biscuits were not as fluffy or as large. Check it out and maybe you can make it yourself.

Easy Chicken & Biscuits

1 can Campbell's Condensed Cream of Celery Soup

1 can Campbell's Condensed Cream of Potato Soup

1 cup milk

1/4 teaspoon dried thyme leaves, crushed

1/4 teaspoon black pepper (or less--to your liking)

4 cups cooked cut up veggies (broc., carrots, cauli. from freezer section)

2 cups cubed cooked chicken (make sure NOT to season the chick.)

1 package refrigerated buttermilk biscuits (10

-Stir the soups, milk, thyme, black pepper, vegetables and cooked chicken in a 13x9x2-inch shallow baking dish.

-Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and stir.

-Cut each biscuit into quarters. Arrange cut biscuits over the chicken mixture.

-Bake for 15 minutes more or until the biscuits are fluffed and golden.

Be ready for everyone to ask for "seconds"!

If your wondering what Arden is up to......

She's just practicing her reading ;)

Have a great weekend!

ttyl,

Angela

Conversation and Pizza

I guess so far this whole blogging thing is going ok. I would love to post more, and I have alot of ideas, but I am definetly kept very busy with Arden and other things (like friends, family, and taking care of home stuff). As far as the whole technical aspect of things, I guess I'm doing better than I had imagined (referring to pictures, header, etc.), but I would still like to improve with time. Maybe one day I will purchase a more beautiful web design from a graphic artist like most of my favorite blogs already have. We'll see how it goes ;) . I'm also looking for/trying to figure out the whole "graphic signature" thing. Should I be signing these blogs at the end??? Maybe I will try that today and see how I like it.

I am waiting for some free time, and also for the annuals in my front yard to start blooming and then I will put up some of pictures of my home, etc. And, I have a deseased hedge that needs some serious help--although it may only be noticable to me. Maybe that's the equivalent to having a blemish on your face that only you can spot???

On another subject; I always said that I would start cooking/eating better when I turned 30 and/or when I had a child. I said this bcs a) i've always loved to eat junk food and b) i've never been very handy in the kitchen. Well, I'm turning 30 this year, and I already have a child. I don't know if it is coincidence or fate, but each of these events has coincided with my reuniting with one of my old sorority sisters, Vanessa. Vanessa recently moved into my neighborhood, and she has given me the confidence I've needed to get started in the kitchen.

Along with starting me off with some 'easy' recipes, she has also given me lots of advice on pretty much everything from slicing and dicing to baking. Now I cook every night, which is a big achievement for me bcs in the course of 2 months I went from rarely being in the kitchen, to planning and preparing 6 meals a week. As I'm sure you can imagine, Vanessa is now Andy's favorite friend of mine. Thank You So Much Vanessa!!!!!

Anyway, she gave me this recipe and I liked it so much I had to share it with everyone. This is a Mini Pizza on a wheat tortilla. I'm realizing as I post this that the picture just doesn't do it justice--I guess black olives don't photogragh that well. You'll just have to take my word that is delish! It's perfect for a light lunch, or a snack, or maybe even a really skinny person's dinner ;) I kow this works for me bcs I have a habit of grabbing "bad things" to eat duringthe day since it's just me and Arden. But this was so easy and inexpensive to make, and you can vary the ingredients--I used black olives as my topper, but you could easily use brocolli, mushrooms, or any other favorite veggie. I think this would be fun for kids to help with, and I can't wait to make it for Arden one day. BTW, it's very low in fat since it's baked on a wheat tortilla.

Well, I'm off to start my own dinner (pot roast & mashed potatoes), so I hope everyone has a great Tuesday!
xoxo,
Angela

"Mini Pizza"

* 1 wheat tortilla
* 1 can diced tomatoes
* shredded mozarella cheese
* topping(s) of your choice
* 2 tablespoons olive oil

-Simply brush each side of the wheat tortilla with olive oil, and lay on a cookie sheet
-Drain the diced tomatoes and spread over the tortilla to your desired chunkiness
-Cover with cheese (also to you desired amount)
-Spread your favorite topping(s) over cheese
-Put cookie sheet in oven at 375 degrees, bake until cheese is melted

Enjoy!!!