Miscellaneous

Learn to Bake Great Scones from These Three Sites

March 4, 2014 by cwsapts

Whether you pair them with tea or eat them for breakfast, scones are sweet, hearty treats that come in a variety of different flavors. Even amateur bakers will enjoy making delicious scones, and these recipe sites will give you some inspiration for your next foray into the wonderful world of pastries.

Martha Stewart
Martha Stewart’s beautiful websites provides endless inspiration for baking (and tasting!) scones. The site's list of Scone Recipes is unique and sophisticated, with both sweet and savory scones for just about any occasion. The Cream Scones with Currants are the perfect blend of creamy and tangy, while the Cheddar-Chive Scones offer a more filling, salty taste that makes a delicious lunch pairing.

Food Network
No one knows more about baking than your favorite Food Network hosts, and now you can bake scones straight from their own favorite recipes. Tyler Florence’s Blueberry Scones with Lemon Glaze are a traditional recipe with a lemony zest, perfect for breakfast or brunch. For a petite treat, The Pioneer Woman’s Mini Vanilla Scones will be a hit with the kids and the adults in your household.

Cooking Light
Who said scones have to be unhealthy? Though they taste warm and sweet, scones made from Cooking Light recipes are also nutritious and low in calories. This list of Healthy Scone Recipes will show you smarter ways to bake these breakfast breads.

CC-BY-SA-2.0/Flickr/Mike65444

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: Cooking, food, Recipes, Scones

Happy Presidents’ Day

February 17, 2014 by cwsapts

Remembering the courage and vision of past and present leaders, we honor and share the spirit of Presidents' Day together as a nation.

Filed Under: Miscellaneous

Happy Valentine’s Day!

February 14, 2014 by cwsapts

Wishing everyone a day filled with fun and happy memories!

Filed Under: Miscellaneous

Plan a Beautiful Brunch with These 2 Websites

February 4, 2014 by cwsapts

If the in-between brunch is your favorite meal of the day, you’ll simply adore the sweet and savory recipes on these great websites.

Food Network
Your favorite Food Network show hosts offer their own favorite brunch recipes on the network’s website. They offer tips and tricks for how to plan a beautiful brunch, ideas for food themes, and, of course, detailed recipes for how to create dishes as good as the pros’. The Sausage Bread Brunch Sandwich from the Sandwich King Jeff Mauro is great for a causal weekend breakfast, while the Ted Allen’s Brunch Tart with Spinach, Olives and Leeks is a great main course for a more sophisticated meal. Whatever your brunch style, you’ll find something for everyone on the Food Network's website.

All Recipes
Browse by type of food, plan a breakfast buffet or search brunch foods by ingredient on the All Recipes Breakfast and Brunch section. Each of these simple recipes are rated and feature the complete nutritional information, so you can plan your brunch right down to the smallest detail.

Public Domain/Public Domain

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: Brunch, Cooking, food, Recipes

Super Bowl Spanish Ranch Wings

January 31, 2014 by cwsapts

Ingredients:

2 Lg bags of wings thawed
1 packet of hidden valley ranch seasoning
1/2 cup ranch dressing
2 packets of Sazon
1/2 tbsp cajun pepper
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp Tabasco

Mix all ingredients together and wisk until smooth. Drench marinade covering all wings for at least 24 hours.

SIDES
Celery and Carrots with Blue Cheese or Ranch dressing

Instructions: Remove from marinade, place in baking pan in oven at 400 degrees for around 50 minutes- makes skin crispy and meat full of flavor. They are tender and really don't need any other sauces. You can change the amnount of spice to make them mild or hot.

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: Marquis at the Woodlands Recipe

Our New Facebook Sweepstakes Has Started! Enter to Win an iPad Mini!

January 15, 2014 by cwsapts

To enter the Sweepstakes, Like our Facebook Page and then look for the Sweepstakes tab (image shown below) located on our Facebook Page to enter. Sweepstakes ends February 28th, 2014.

For mobile users ONLY, like our Facebook Page, and then click here to enter!

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: Facebook Sweepstakes

Stream Music Online with These Apps

December 3, 2013 by cwsapts

Music streaming apps give you access to an entire library of music all on your home computer or mobile device. With these handy apps, you’ll never have to carry around CDs or manually upload songs to your MP3 player again!

Spotify
This widely used music streaming app features full-length albums from almost any musician or band that you can think of, with a convenient search bar to make finding your favorite songs even easier. Spotify radio is available for free on your mobile device or with ads on your computer, or for just under $10 users can purchase Spotify Premium to have full access to the app’s library on any mobile device.

Pandora
If you’re growing tired of your music collection and want to hear something new, Pandora is the streaming app for you. This free service allows you to create a radio station based on your favorite artist or song, and then it plays similar songs from other artists that Pandora thinks you might also enjoy.

iTunes Radio
A new feature from iTunes, this free streaming radio is incredibly personalized to your unique music tastes. By searching for songs or artists, iTunes radio becomes familiar with the style of music you enjoy and builds other stations based on these preferences.

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: Apps, Music, Smartphones

Go Green with Help from Your iPhone

November 5, 2013 by cwsapts

We hear a lot about "going green" and conservation. Going green may seem like a daunting task, but it doesn't have to be. Ocean Conservancy has developed a great app for your iPhone to make green living a much more approachable and attainable goal. Their app, Rippl, suggests easy-to-make changes to your daily routine that will help the environment. Not only does it give you tips for helping the planet, but it also suggest ways to save money! Just enter your goals and the app will send you alerts like bringing a reusable mug when buying your coffee or bringing reusable bags to the grocery store. The app will give you daily changes for you to implement. If you don't like the tip, just choose another one you think you can incorporate into your life. You can track your progress to see what these little changes to your routine are doing for the environment. It's easier to stay motivated when you can see how much you are benefiting the world. Learn more about the app here!

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: App, Go Green, Green, iPhone, Ocean Conservancy

4 Reasons to Shop Local

October 15, 2013 by cwsapts

One of the top trends in eating recently has been the profusion of farmers' markets and CSAs. These innovative ways to shop for fruits and veggies make it much easier to buy directly from local farms. Here are some of the benefits:

Support the community
You can support local farmers by buying the veggies they grow!

Know the source
Farmers markets make it easy to meet the people who grow your food. Some farms even encourage those who buy CSA shares to come visit the farm.

Fewer food miles
Some suggest that buying locally-grown food is more green, since the produce travels fewer miles to get from the farm to your plate.

It can be more nutritious
Fresh food can contain more nutrients, and produce from local farms is often organic, too!

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: food, health, local, organic, produce, wellness, whole

Five Ways to Use Vinegar around the House

October 8, 2013 by cwsapts

Vinegar's always a useful thing to have around the house. Plain white vinegar has many uses and it's very inexpensive — especially when bought in bulk! Here are five unexpected uses!

Unclog your drains. A combination of vinegar and baking soda produces a foaming fizz you might remember from science project volcanos. This simply chemical reaction's also great for unclogging drains and removing odorous bacteria.
Remove mold and mildew. White vinegar is one of the best things to use to remove mildew stains from your bathroom. Dilute vinegar with water for lighter stains; use undiluted vinegar for heavier mildew.
Shine silver. A bath of vinegar and baking soda can help clean tarnished or dingy silver. Rest items in the bath for two or three house. Rinse with cold water, dry with a soft cloth, and enjoy the shine!
Freshen closests. Mixing vinegar, ammonia, and baking soda produces a powerful cleanser that can vaporize pesky odors rapidly. Remove your clothes, wash the surfaces with the vinegar solution, and let the closet air out for 24 hours.
Remove stains from carpets. Vinegar can also remove stains from rugs and carpets. Mix it with salt and rub gently on light stains; mix with cornstach for heavily ground-in dirt.

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: Air Fresheners, Cleaning, Household Tips, Vinegar