"May"hem Bites

Are y'all surviving ALL of the end of the school year banquets, sports, teacher appreciation gifts, recitals, etc...?????? We are running on empty so taking some time this weekend to recuperate- well, rest will come on Sunday AFTER our Saturday craziness. Eve's ballet recital rehearsal, Luke's iFly friend birthday party (YES! He gets to go indoor sky diving for a birthday party) and pool party.  I feel tired thinking of tomorrow but I know it will be fun too!

Here are some ideas for food gifts, potlucks, and ANY gatherings you may be a part of!
This is a recap of the past two weeks with the functions.  All good things...all good things : )

This kale salad is on repeat over and over.  I took it to Luke's football banquet last night and then again to Ben's work potluck party last weekend.
*Heather Christo's Blog*
I make many many changes to it, so it is just my recipe now? I am never clear on when a recipe becomes your own-
*butternut squash instead of pumpkin
*raisins instead of craisins
*pistachios instead of candied nuts
THE DRESSING is so good-

Tres Leches Cake

*Pioneer Woman*

We had a fundraising dinner for a missions trip Ben is leading to Guatemala this October- it is to raise funds for the cost of digging a well for clean water for a community there- I made rice + beans and then THIS! It is a winner always.  

Flourless Double Chocolate Sunflower Seed Butter Cookies

*Sunny Side Ups Blog*

I signed up to take cookies for teacher appreciation week at Luke's school, so I made these-

nut free (since his school is nut free) and gluten free for any teachers who had allergies...

And then also made THESE- Loaded Oatmeal Cookies for the rest of the teachers. 

*Eat Live Run Blog* 

I left out the nuts- again because of "nut free" + used raisins instead of craisins because I had raisins 

: ) I have used this recipe for YEARS and it is solid. 

Had a close friend over for brunch and made these parfaits- freestyled- I used this granola recipe, which is the same one I use most weeks and then just layered plain yogurt drizzled with maple syrup, berries and granola---

One of my favorite nights of late was an evening with friends- we got a sitter so we were all kid-free and brought appetizers, hung out and ate, sang some worship songs and enjoyed being outside on an amazing weather night...My "go-to" always are : 

Bacon-Wrapped Dates-

Ingredients- 

6-8 slices of bacon

18-20 dates

Directions-

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Cut bacon into thirds and wrap each third around a date.  You can use a toothpick to secure and just take them out when they are done cooking.  Place on a foil lined baking sheet.  Bake for 20 minutes or so until bacon starts to crisp up.  Let cool and enjoy the sweet + salty + crunchy combination.  

Also on the plate were sweet potato "chips" with some goat cheese drizzled with honey- 

This was all so random but here is an actual meal- I took this meal to a family who just had their first baby in the church.

Chicken with Mustard Marscapone Marsala Sauce

*Giada DeLaurentiis*

(Get your marscapone at Trader Joe's - the best deal around)

I brought green beans and bread as well.

These Strawberry Jam and Goat Cheese Turkey Burgers

*Mix and Match Mama Blog* 

I have some gluten free buns I use or I just put it over salad- The kids love this one. 

So, I know these weren't probably helpful "meals" for your week but rather ideas if you need to bring something to some sort of potluck or function...back to regular meals next week! 

Life lately- keep scrolling! 

Beautiful flowers from my friend today! Made me so happy! 

Evening on the Marietta Square- I find so much joy in just watching the kids play and enjoy one another...well, mostly : ) 

My sweet mama sending Shari's Berries to me for Mother's Day- yes! I have had to fight off Ben and the kids. 

The Guatemalan fundraising dinner- we raised so much money from this evening and stay tuned for an upcoming bake sale if you are local, we will have baked goods where the money/donations will go to the well.  

The Braves game! 

Antico Pizza- our fave pizza in Atlanta, now has a place right outside the ballpark in the Battery Park area- yum. 

Bought this apple fritter for the the kids when I was out with a friend and holy apple fritter- as big as my head! 

Made my own cashew milk- the jury is out. I am going to try almond milk next- I drank it because I can't stand to waste any food but the kids revolted on this one. 

The rest of our brunch with our friend- He brought Sublime Doughnuts from Atlanta---do you see the Oreo one? And there is a peanut butter one, and a smores one, and a Boston creme filled type one, and ....

This is a good yogurt to use if you are dairy free- it is a cashew based yogurt- that is what I used for the parfaits! 

These type of nights make me happy! It is the white lights that get me. 

Hope you are surviving May!