7-Up Cake

One of my personal goals in life has been to make Martha Stewart herself want to bow down to my domestic diva-ness. I think that I may have come one step closer with this 7-up cake. The recipe was taken from one of my new favorite blog reads, Homemade By Jill.

Recipe:
3/4 lb. butter, softened
3 cups sugar
5 eggs
3 cups flour
2 tablespoons lemon extract
3/4 cup 7-up soda

Glaze:
2/3 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon milk.

1. Cream the butter and sugar.
2. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition.
3. Add flour and lemon extract
4. Fold in 7-Up
5. Pour in to well greased 12 cup bundt tube or pan
6. Bake at 325 degrees for 75 minutes
7. Mix lemon glaze ingredients together and drizzle on when the cake is completely cooled.

And Voila!

Mmmmm... Chili

Tonight Brett & I decided to have chili one last night before the weather gets warm and we will want to avoid hot and hearty food in all its forms. This is by far the best vegetarian chili recipe I have ever found, and I thought it was too good not to share. For those of you who are fans of meat, this also makes a great base that you could add meat into.

1 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 cup finely chopped onion
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
2 tbsp. minced jalapeño pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
1 15 oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 15 oz. can chili beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup canned corn
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp. dried basil leaves
1 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. black pepper

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chopped onion, bell pepper, jalapeño pepper and garlic. Cook and stir for 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Spoon vegetables into slow cooker. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Cover and cook on low 4 to 5 hours. Garnish with cheese and sour cream, if desired.

Here is the delicious end result:

NOTE: I got a little over excited (or maybe just distracted) and dumped the veggies right into the crock pot without cooking them in the skillet first. While it isn't preferred, I just wanted to let you know that if you do it this way the chili will still turn out just fine. :-)

30 Days- No Repeats

I think that Rachael Ray has a book or a show or something with that title, and that was my goal this morning. Lately, Brett & I feel like we eat the same five meals all the time. Bound and determined to come up with 30 days of meal ideas without repeating a thing, I sat down this morning with a pad of paper and a stack of cookbooks.

An hour and a half later I had 12.

If anyone has any delicious, easy, and meat-free meal ideas please share!