Lucky Leprechaun Treats and Rainbows. . . . .

so tell me, do you celebrate  

St. Patricks Day?

not a huge fan of the holiday, myself.

(i do like a yearly shamrock shake from McDonald's, though:)

and i guess i like the rainbow aspect of it.

however, when my girls were little and in school,

i did celebrate it in a way for them.

because every chance we get to celebrate with our kiddies, 

we should, right?

so in the morning, 

i'd wake up early,  throw some green shamrocks on the floor, 

blow up ballons, hang green and gold curling ribbon everywhere. . . . 

and start making breakfast.

not just any ol' breakfast. . . . .

green shamrock pancakes, thank you very much.

with green milk, i might add:)

(ahem. . . .and this was BEFORE pinterest:)

having said that, i am shocked at the lengths some go to

for shamrock pancakes.

seriously, i was a bit of a mommy overachiever when it came to this stuff.

but even i wouldn't make heart pancakes, piece them together and add a stem.

wow. . . . . .

it may be cute-ish. . . .but so are shamrocks.

now, don't try to make a shamrock free hand or you might get this. . . .

simply whip out your handy shamrock cookie cutter. . . .

(cause cookie cutters are my number one tip:)

make regular green pancakes and cut the shapes out. 

you or the hubby can eat the scraps, can't ya?

so simple, so easy and so cute!

(these are tortillas but you get the idea...perfect shape every time!)

and way quicker, too!

okay, so breakfast is done, what next?

lunch, of course.

my girls would get shamrock shaped mini sandwiches,

green grapes or kiwi, a few stalks of celery and a shamrock cookie.

see...those cookie cutters come in handy!:)

then for dinner, we had something green...like green mashed potatoes,

green peas and chicken tenders with a little shamrock on them.

but we never really celebrated St. Patricks Day;)

now, for those of you who want a few more ideas, here you go. . . .

a few Christmas's back, we made green crinkle cake batter cookies.

we called them  "Grinch Cookies".

well, guess what they are now?

LUCKY LEPRECHAUN COOKIES.

they are the easiest cookie to make ever.

and they taste good, too.

you can find the recipe at the bottom of this post:)

you could also dip some pretzels in green colored white chocolate.

trust me, this looks pretty but they taste just as good in a simple clear package

with a green or gold bow tied on.

and use the mini pretzel sticks. . . .

okay, we are soooo making these today:)

maybe.

and who doesn't love rice krispie treats?

for these, get out the green food coloring and. . . . .cookie cutter!:)

www.elizabethannsrecipebox.com

okay, but like i said, the rainbow aspect appeals to me more than shamrocks and leprechauns.

so here are a few awesome and easy ideas for y'all. . . . .

 rainbow pancakes for breakfast!

or how about some rainbow fruit kabobs?

for dessert, have you seen those AMAZING rainbow layer cakes?

well, here is our lazy chicks version of a rainbow cake. . . .yeehaw!

click here for directions

love, love, love cake pops!

i think this year we'll starve all day so we can make some of these:)

http-::www.munchkinmunchies.com:2012:02:insideout-rainbow-cake-pops.html

if you're like me, you sent in class treats.

because you just LOVE playing Martha Stewart, you know it's true:)

 these are all a similar idea, but the key is they're cool,

quick and easy. . . .again.

spoonful.com

aren't they cute?

well, that's it from the girl who doesn't celebrate the shamrock holiday.

hope you're happy today. . . . . .

and i hope you know that- - - -

XOXOXO

Suzanne

BEST cake batter cookies this shabby chick has ever tasted.

give em a try...you'll be hooked!

LUCKY LEPRECHAUN COOKIES

       makes about 36
1 box French vanilla cake mix
6 T butter
2 eggs
Green food coloring (60 drops)
1 C powdered sugar
1 t corn starch

Preheat the oven to 375°. Melt the butter and set aside to cool. In a shallow dish, mix together the powdered sugar and cornstarch with a fork.  In a large bowl, mix together the cooled butter, cake mix and eggs. This will be a little hard to stir together. Add the green food coloring and make sure it is all mixed in. drop a blob of dough in the powdered sugar.

Move it around with spoon until it is mostly covered in powdered sugar. Then, once it is already covered, roll it into a ball and place it on a cookie sheet.

Make sure you don't over crowd the baking sheet because these cookies spread out. 

bake these for 9 minutes. (They won't look done but they are.) They will look slightly puffed up and crinkly...very cool!