Missouri’s National Veterans Memorial

Consisting of two connecting black granite walls, the east wall begins at the apex of the war in 1959 and includes the names of casualties and those missing in action from June 8, 1956 – May 25, 1968.  The west wall connects and continues from where the east wall stopped listing the casualties and MIAs until the end of the war on May, 5, 1975.

Just 75 miles or so south of St. Louis and right off of Interstate 55 South, sits the small community of Perryville, Missouri. With a population of only about 8500, you wouldn’t expect to see a replica of the Vietnam Veteran Memorial Wall that’s located in Washington D.C., but, unbelievably, the wall in Perryville is an exact replica of the incredible black granite wall in our nations’ capital.

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Chocolate Rum Bundt Cake

Chocolate rum cake with dark chocolate chips and walnuts, topped off with a Chocolate Glaze!

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Reinventing the Famous Barcardi Rum Cake…
WITH CHOCOLATE!

This recipe uses a chocolate cake mix which makes it a quick and easy Bundt cake.  You will have this dessert ready and in the oven in no time.  Adding in a few extra ingredients like Dark Rum and chocolate chips take a plain boxed cake mix to another level.  The box of pudding adds a rich and moist taste and texture.

This cake would be great for Christmas or Thanksgiving (PIN for later)…or just any day when you are craving CHOCOLATE.  I’ve noticed most of my dessert recipes I’ve added so far have some form of chocolate:

Chocolate Bourbon Cake,
Blueberry, Dark Chocolate Muffins with a Crumble Topping
Chocolate Cayenne Banana Bread
Chocolate Glazed Chocolate Tart

We Love our Chocolate!

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Blueberry, Dark Chocolate Muffins with a Crumble Topping

Muffins loaded with blueberries and dark chocolate chips and topped with a brown sugar, cinnamon and butter crumble

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Oh boy, these are a treat!

How do you make homemade blueberry muffins taste even better?  Add dark chocolate chips!  This Blueberry Crumble Muffin recipe is ‘some-what-healthy-ish’.  I mean they do have fruit in them and are made with coconut oil….Okay, there is the butter.  And flour. And sugar.  But I can assure you they are more healthier than a coffee shop or store-bought blueberry muffin.

NO preservatives, NO ingredients you can’t pronounce.

Every bite is loaded with blueberries and dark chocolate.  And the brown sugar, cinnamon and butter crumble on top just makes them so much tastier.

And they are really pretty sitting in your cake or muffin display on the counter-top.  But leaving them in site means that they ‘call your name’ each time you walk by them.  Dangerous!

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Mango and Blueberry Smoothie

Frozen mango, blueberries and banana make a quick and healthy to-go breakfast.

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Quick and healthy breakfast!

I love these smoothies.  They are so easy and you can really change it up and add any frozen fruit you like.  Fresh fruit would work also but using frozen makes the smoothies more creamier and thicker.

We use our Magic Bullet to make these.  The Magic Bullet comes with plastic mugs that have a handle on them.  You can make these Mango and Blueberry Smoothies and carry it with you if you are short on time and in a hurry to head out the door.

Always start with a half of a FROZEN banana.  It just makes the smoothie consistency thicker.  I just place the bananas in a Ziplock bag in the freezer as they ripen and are too ripe for our personal taste.  It is a great way to use up bananas and you always have a stock in the freezer for these smoothies.

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Beet, Feta and Walnut Salad

Beet salad drizzled with Red Wine Vinaigrette Dressing

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This pretty salad with sliced pickled beets, feta, walnuts and red onions with a red wine vinaigrette is very tasty and COLORFUL!

We’ve started eating beets.  Yea, I know, you probably either love them or hate them.  For many years I definitely fell into the hate category.  I’ve never given them a chance.  I always thought I didn’t like them but actually I had never tried them.

Now, I’m in love!

They just keep showing up on our table.  Thank goodness my husband, Paul, will try anything.  He actually didn’t think he was much of a beet fan either.  Every time we discussed them, he always told me how much his mother loved beets.  I just didn’t get beats- Of all the wonderful foods available, why would anyone choose beets?  Now I completely understand.  Unfortunately I never met his mother since she had already passed away when I met him.  Now every time we have beets, I think of her.

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Thai Chicken and Noodles

Skip the takeout and opt for this healthier take on Pad Thai – Chicken, vegetables and noodles.

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Easy Thai – chicken, vegetables and noodles!

This is an easy Thai dish that tastes just as good as takeout.  In fact, we ate at a local Thai restaurant a few years ago and this recipe tastes better than their ‘real deal’.  Maybe it was the wrong Thai restaurant to choose but since then I’m reluctant to try another one.

Have all your ingredients prepped, chopped and handy and this recipe doesn’t take long.  You’ll be eating this Thai Chicken and Noodles in less time than it takes to decide what restaurant to order from!

Thai food is known for  its spicy edge and this dish has its share of spice!  But you can control the heat to your taste.

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