yummy berry cream cheese

you will need:

1/2 cup frozen or fresh berries

1 package (8oz) of cream cheese

1-2 tbs. sugar

bowl (I used a 4 cup pyrex measuring glass - it was easier to hold)

spoon & whisk

note: you can use an electric mixer too, it works splendidly for this. I just find it more work than necessary for this particular recipe.

instructions:

if your berries are frozen, microwave them for about 10 seconds at a time until they are nice and soft, but not hot. drain off most of the juice.

add about 1 tbs. sugar to your berries and mix well.

place your cream cheese in the bowl of your choice, and stir it up! you want it to be fairly easy to stir and smooth.

add the berries to the cream cheese and mix really well. you may want to bust out your whisk now...

once everything is incorporated and smooth, taste to check the sweetness, and add more sugar if needed.

place in an airtight container and refrigerate. I've found it's good for up to 8 or 10 days, but I never let it last that long!

it's delicious on bagels, graham crackers, cupcakes, you name it. 

enjoy!

happy wednesday friends, have a lovely, lovely day! 

xoxo, ruthanne

Recipe Guest Post - Michelle of Oh, Mishka! (& giveaway winner!)

Hi all! So, I have one last treat for you before we ring in the new year :) Have you ever stopped by Michelle's blog? Have you fallen in love with it like every normal person? Have you totally become addicted? Yeah. Ha. Funny. ME TOO. I asked Michelle if she would like to do a guest post for y'all with a yummy new years eve recipe! And she was so sweet to stop and get one to me for you, even in the midst of JUST GETTING ENGAGED! :) I'm very excited for her, is it obvious?? Here you are, my lovelies! 

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 Hi Ruthanne with an E readers! I'm Michelle and I write the blog Oh, Mishka. Ruthanne asked me to share one of my favorite holiday recipes with you. Since I adore having friends over for a cozy night in for New Year's Eve, I thought I'd share a recipe that is incredibly easy, but looks really impressive at a dinner party. :) These pesto stuffed shells were a huge hit when I made them, and I'm already planning to make them again soon. Even though they look messy (and incredibly unphotogenic!), they're beyond delicious.

  Pesto Stuffed Pasta Shells \

recipe adapted from here 

 1/2 package jumbo shell pasta 

15 oz container of ricotta (I used part skim) 

1 cup shredded mozzarella 

1/2 cup basil pesto 

1 egg 

1 jar pasta sauce 

 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. 

 2. In a large pot, cook the pasta. The box will tell you to bring the water to a boil before adding the pasta, and this is important. Otherwise your shells might stick to each other and tear. 

 3. While the pasta is cooking, mix together the ricotta, mozzarella, pesto, and egg in a large bowl. Set aside (or refrigerate) until ready to use.

 4. In a baking dish, spread one cup of the pasta sauce evenly across the bottom. (I used an 8x8 baking dish, but had too many shells left over, so I also filled one of my vintage Pyrex dishes.)

5. When the pasta is cooked, drain it and rinse gently with cold water. Then pick up one pasta shell and fill it with a spoonful of the ricotta mixture. The filling should fill the shell enough that the top is spread open about a half inch (about a spoonful). Place the filled shell on top of the pasta sauce in your baking dish. Continue to do this until all of your shells are filled. 

6. Spread the rest of the pasta sauce evenly across the top of your filled shells. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes, then enjoy!

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doesn't it look and sound divine? I'm totally making this soon! Eep! Happy last day of 2011, all!

Xoxo,

 Ruthanne

Also! We have a winner of the My Memories software! Melissa, of Contemporary Dancing! congrats :) Email me when you get the chance and we'll get everything worked out! :)

Happy new years eve!

recipe guest post: the letter 4

Hey there everyone! I have another special guest for you this week! :) Jade from The Letter 4 is here to bless you with an amazing (and I do mean ah-maz-ing) cookie recipe that all four of the girls loved while growing up! I have a confession for you....I kind of just really adore these girls. So. Stinking. Much. I mean really. I do. So, without further ado, take it away miss Jade! :)

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Hey there! I am so excited to be here today at Ruthanne with an E!

My name is Jade and I blog over at

THE LETTER 4

We're just 4 sisters who love crafting, cooking, design, photography, and anything and everything that inspires us!

I loved when we were growing up, how my mom would make batches and batches of these addicting cookies and then would lay them nicely in a square tupperware like this...

.. and I would go in to the kitchen and sneak one, and hide out while I ate it, (probably along with everyone else, come on siblings...fess up!)  I would go sneak another, and another, and another...and then I would hear my mom go into the kitchen later and say, "Oh my gosh, where did all the cookies go already?!"  

Well, I don't have to sneak them anymore, but I'm sure when my kids get a little taller, they will.  :)

Love you mom!  I wish we could make, and eat these together.  

PS, I'm partial to the applesauce for this recipe, but if you want to make an awesome pumpkin cookie, use this same recipe but just substitute the applesauce with pumpkin puree.  

Mom's Applesauce Cookies:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

4 cups all purpose flour (OR: 2 cups whole wheat, 2 cups all purpose) 

2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp ground cloves

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup white sugar

3 eggs

2 cups applesauce or pumpkin puree

2 cups nuts (optional)

2 cups chocolate chips (NOT optional)  haha.

2 cups raisins  (OR do it my way, and omit the raisins and add more choc chips!) 

1)  Combine all dry ingredients.

2)  Cream butter, then beat in sugar.  Add eggs one at a time and beat well.

3)  Add applesauce to butter mixture, stir a bit, then add flour mixture to butter mixture.  Stir together with a spatula by hand.

4)  Add nuts, raisins, and chocolate chips.  Stir in evenly.

5)  Place dough in fridge overnight.

Spoon out rounded tablespoons onto a cookie sheet.

Bake in oven for 10-12 minutes. 

My mom and I like them best when you let them cool completely, when the chocolate chips have had a chance to harden up a little bit.  My hubby likes them hot and the chocolate chips melted.  Whatever way you decide....ENJOY!  

Don't forget to come over to our blog and say hi!

Thanks for having us at your cute blog Ruthanne!

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Thank you so much Jade! Seriously guys, head on over to their blog...if you don't follow it, do that too, because honestly, they're just so fantastic and inspiring! Like I said earlier.......I have an extreme obsession with them and their blog and yeah :)

Much love, and happy wednesday!

-Ruthanne

p.s. did you enter my giveaway yet? You should! :)

recipe guest post: katie from lovely lady

Hello there friends! It's Monday, and Christmas is in less than a week!!!! can you believe it? I can't!

Today I have my dear friend, Katie from Lovely Lady sharing a wonderfully delicious recipe for Hot Cocoa with you! A while ago Katie commented on my honestly post here about hot coco, saying she had a delicious recipe for the best hot cocoa ever, and I asked her to share it with you! What better way to celebrate Christmas than with Hot Cocoa? I know of nothing!

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Hi everyone!

I was extremely delighted when Ruthanne asked me to do a guest post on this lovely blog of her's and so I of course said yes. While talking with Ruthanne after her "Honestly" post about hot cocoa, she requested that I share this recipe that I mentioned. Now first of all, my family has always been "Swiss Miss" people. We used to never make homemade hot cocoa but after Mom found this recipe we may never go back. Because this is just too darn yummy.

The recipe is from a cookbook that my Mom has called "Grandma's Recipes: Recipes from the 1920's, 30's and 40's. Sounds awesome, right?

So here it is for all you folks to try out!

Cocoa

Ingredients:

1/4 c. cocoa

1/3 c. sugar

1/8 tsp. salt

1/2 c. water

5 1/2 c. milk

1/2 tsp. vanilla

Recipe: Mix cocoa, sugar and salt in a heavy saucepan. Add water and stir until smooth. Cook 3 minutes. Add milk. Heat thoroughly. Add vanilla and beat with egg beater. Serve hot. Top each serving with marshmallow or a teaspoon of whipped cream.

It should look like this. If it doesn't, well, I think you messed it up.

Sidenote: I would like to add a few little things about what I do when I make it. I don't actually measure the salt. I just sprinkle in a tiny bit and that's it. I also sometimes add a little more vanilla. It's delish. The picture shows 1% milk but I normally use 2% milk. It makes it richer. And I stir everything with a whisk even though it doesn't say that I need to. Also I wouldn't be afraid to add some red & green sprinkles or crushed pieces of candy cane along with your whipped cream. It would be a festive(and yummy) touch for Christmas.

Enjoy!

And there you have it! A new delicious recipe for you to try out and it's perfect for these winter temps.

Thanks so much for having me, Ruthanne!

xoxo

Katie

Thank you so much, Katie! Be sure to head on over to her blog and show her some love today! 

-Ruthanne