Lemon Drop Cookies

I LOVE lemon!  Anything lemon! So when my dear friend made these for a luncheon and I ate half the plate, I knew I was in trouble!  {Thanks Ashley ;) }They are soft and chewy and tart and sweet!  I know, perfect, right?! Just wait until you make them, I dare you to not eat half the plate! The original recipe is found here.

Lemon Drop Cookies
about 4 dozen

1 1/2 cups butter, softened
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
2 t vanilla
1 t lemon extract
4 cups flour
1 1/2 t baking soda
1 1/2 t baking powder
3/4 t salt
zest of 1 lemon
6 oz. lemon drops, crushed (NOT lemon heads)

1  1/2 cups powdered sugar
juice of 1 lemon

Preheat oven to 350.  Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add eggs and flavorings and blend well. Sift the dry ingredients together and slowly add to the wet ingredients. Add the lemon zest and crushed lemon drops and mix until combined.  Drop tablespoonfuls onto a cookies sheet covered in parchment paper** and flatten slightly with the palm of your hand or a fork.  Bake for 10-12 minutes.  While they are baking whisk together the lemon juice and powdered sugar to make the glaze. Let the cookies cool for 1 to 2 minutes and then brush the glaze over them with a pastry brush. Let them cool completely.  After they were cooled, I drizzled a little more glaze over the top to make them look striped.

*Lemon drops can be hard to find, I found them at my speciality grocery store and I also saw them at Michaels Craft store

**Make sure you don't skip this step!  The little candy bits will totally stick to the cookie sheet and make it hard to get your cookies off! Plus, when you are brushing the glaze on, it tends to drip and this makes cleaning the pans or starting another batch a snap!

Breakfast Scramble for One

Some mornings {ok, most!} I struggle to just get my kids to school. Forget the fact that I have to feed them, pack lunches, make sure their crazy bedhead won't embarrass me as a mother, etc… BUT, then, after I drop them off, its just me and my little {big} guy at home.  So, once I have started my washing machine and sometimes my dishwasher, I finally get to think about me.  This can be VERY short lived! But eating a good breakfast seems to make my day less daunting.  This breakfast scramble has been my go to, the last couple of days.  Inspired by these beautiful, fresh eggs my sweet neighbor brought me!  Don't they look all Easter-y?!  They just called to me to make a light healthy breakfast out of them.  So I went to work, and sat down {ALONE} at my table, grabbed my Kindle, and just savored my minute alone! Hope you enjoy this with a little quiet time of your own! HAPPY SPRING!

Breakfast Scramble for One

2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 T diced onion
diced ham or bacon
2 T diced tomato
a small handful of fresh spinach
shredded cheese
olive oil
salt and pepper

Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a pan over medium heat.  Add onion and ham.  Cook until onion is soft and ham just starts to brown on the edges.  Add eggs and stir until eggs are cooked.  Add tomato and spinach and continue stirring until the spinach is wilted.  Salt and pepper to taste. Top with shredded cheese.

Cheesy Potatoes

This is a recipe my Grandma Twinkle always made to go with a Honey Baked Ham.  They go together perfectly!  This makes such a great Easter meal!

Cheesy Potatoes

1 lb. frozen hash browns

1 cup chopped onions

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup butter, melted

8 oz cheddar cheese, shredded

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375.  Grease a 9x13 pan.  Mix all the ingredients together until combined.  Press potato mixture into prepared pan.  Bake for 1 hour or until golden brown on the edges.