Pumpkin Blondies with Pumpkin Frosting

Sep 20, 2013 · 11 Comments

These Pumpkin Blondies with Pumpkin Frosting are chewy, sweet, pumpkin-y, and the perfect fall treat for pumpkin lovers. They're quick to make, and additcitive for snacking.

A Quick Look At This Recipe

📋 Recipe: Pumpkin Blondies with Frosting
⏲️ Prep Time: only 15 minutes
👪 Servings: 9 x 12 Baking Pan
🔪 Difficulty: Easy
💭Top Tips: Don't overbake these or they're loose that chewy texture. Don't skip the frosting, it really elevates these bars.

"So yummy!" -Melanie, via Pinterest

Why You'll Love This Recipe

These are all the flavors of fall, any pumpkin spice lovers will adore these.

These blondies have a great dense and chewy texture.

The fluffy sweet pumpkin frosting is the perfect finsihing touch.

These are quick to make, they only take about 15 minutes to but together, plus baking time.

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These are the best pumpkin blondies. They're dense, moist and chewy like a regular blondie, but also full of pumpkin flavor, and warm spices. These pumpkin bars are perfect for someone who doesn't love chocolate.

They are one of my very favorite pumpkin recipes.

These moist pumpkin blondies are usually the first recipe I make when I'm looking for some fall flavor, and they're on repeat all pumpkin season. I developed this recipe way back in a 2013. It's been tested and tried, and remade every fall since. I made them yesterday afternoon for a church event tonight. My family has already eaten 6 of them...safe to say we love them around here. 😉 This is easily my favorite blondie recipe.

As easy to make as your regular brownie recipes, but full of pumpkin goodness instead. They're made with simple ingredients from your pantry, that you usually have on hand, as well as the pumpkin puree, which you may have this time of year.

Also a pumpkin lover? You might like our Pumpkin Bread with Walnuts, Pumpkin Spice Milkshake, Pumpkin Spice Rice Krispie Treats, or our Pumpkin Bread Pudding.

Pumpkin blondies with frosting cut in squares and stacked beside a pumpkin.

Ingredients

Pumpkin Puree: Be sure to use pure pumpkin puree in this recipe and not pumpkin pie filling, as it already has pumpkin pie spice and sugar added, and is not what you want for this recipe. We also recommend using canned pumpkin puree and not homemade pumpkin puree in this recipe because the homemade version tends be more wet, and it will affect the chewy, dense texture we want in the is recipe.
Brown Sugar: The addition of brown sugar to this recipe helps create the dense, chewy texture because of its molasses content. Also, always remember that when measuring brown sugar you need to pack it firmly into the mesuring cup.
Cinnamon, Cloves, and Nutmeg: These spices are bringing the pumpkins spice. You could use 2 teaspoon of pumpkin spice, instead of the individual spices if you wish. We like to use freshly ground nutmeg for extra flavor, but ground nutmeg is fine as well.

Recipe Alterations

Half This Recipe: You can also half this recipe for blondie bars, and make it in a 8 x 8 baking dish, and reduce the bake time to around 20 minutes.
Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Blondies: Add 1 cup of chocolate chips, or chocolate chunks, if you are a chocolate lover.
White Chocolate Pumpkin Blondies: Add in 1 cup of white chocolate chips for another chocolate chip pumpkin blondies option.
Caramel Pumpkin Blondies: Or try adding 1 cup of butterscotch chips for a caramel pumpkin blondies option.
Brown Butter Pumpkin Blondies: Brown the butter for the pumpkin blondie batter first to add a nutty, deep flavor that pairs beautifully with the pumpkin and spices.
Nutty Pumpkin Blondies: Fold in 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts to the blondie batter for added crunch and extra fall flavor.

How To Make Pumpkin Blondies with Pumpkin Frosting

A 9 x 13 glass baking dish sprayed with non-stick cooking spray for pumpkin blondies.

Step 1: Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and coat the bottom and sides of a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with butter, or spray with nonstick cooking spray.

Melted butter and sugar in a metal mixing bowl, making pumpkin blondies.

Step 2: Melt 1 cup of butter in a microwave safe small bowl. Add the melted butter to the brown and white sugar and stir to dissolve in stand mixer with the paddle attachment, in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer, or by hand with a wooden spoon.

Wet ingredients for pumpkin blondies in a metal mixing bowl.

Step 3: Add the eggs, vanilla, and pumpkin, and combine well.

Dry ingredients for pumpkin blondies whisked together in a metal mixing bowl.

Step 4: In another medium bowl, combine the dry ingredients; flour, salt, cinnamon, ground cloves, and, ground nutmeg.

Pumpkin blondie batter in a metal mixing bowl.

Step 5: Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients in a large bowl, and stir well to combine, but don't over stir.

Baked pumpkin blondies in a glass 9 x 13 baking dish.

Step 6: Bake for 30 min., until the blondies are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle
comes out clean.

Pumpkin frosting for pumpkin blondies in a metal mixing bowl.

7. Step 7: Cream the butter in a mixing bowl of a stand mixer. Add the vanilla, 2 tablespoon pumpkin puree, milk or cream, and icing sugar. Mix at a low speed to combine, and then for min. or two at a high speed, until frosting looks creamy and well combined.

Frosted pumpkin blondies in a glass 9 x 13 baking dish.

8. Step 8: Spread over cooled blondies, sprinkle with cinnamon if you wish, and slice into approx. 24 pieces. Enjoy!

Expert Tips

Don't over mix your blondie batter after you add in the flour. Overmixing creates too much gluten and leads to tough blondies intead of tender, chewy ones.
Don't over bake these blondies. They will lose some of their chewiness and become dry if over baked. Bake until they're set in middle and pulling away from the sides, and a toothpick stuck in the middle comes our clean.
Make sure to add the frosting, it really adds a lot of flavor and texture to this dish.

Storage

Store these pumpkin blondies with frosting in an airtight container at room temperature. They should keep for about 1 week. Store in the fridge for longer.

You can freeze these for up to 3 months in an airtight container. Consider not slicing them before freezing to prevent them from drying out.

Next time you're craving a pumpkin spice recipe, try these. With Pumpkin Spice Blondies with Pumpkin Frosting , life really is a party.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I half this pumpkin blondie recipe?

Yes, if you half this recipe bake it in an 8 x 8 baking dish, and reduce the cooking time to 20 minutes.

Why are my pumpkin blondies dry?

Your blondies will be dry if you over mix the batter, and if you over bake the them. They are done as soon as they start to pull away from the edges of the pan, the center is set and a toothpick stuck in them middle comes out clean. Better to slightly under bake than over bake this recipe.

Why is my pumpkin frosting too thin and runny?

Make sure your blondies are fully cooled before frosting. If you find your frosting is too thin and runny instead of fluffy, just add a little more powdered sugar to it. Start with a few tablespoons and add until you reach the desired consistency.

Can I use pumpkin pie filling instead of pumpkin puree in pumpkin blondies?

The short answer is no, not in this recipe. The long answer is yes, but you would have to adjust the recipe, since pumpkin pie filling already contains sugar, spices and other ingredients. You would want to adjust the spices and the sugar content to acomadate the differences. Thisp pumpkin blondie recipe has been created to use pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling.

Can I use homemade pumpkin puree in these pumpkin blondies?

We recommend using canned pumpkin puree in this recipe, because homemade pumpkin puree tends to be wettier and affect the the overall chewy, dense texture of the finished blondies.

More Pumpkin Recipe Inspiration

If you try these Pumpkin Blondies with Pumpkin Frosting or any other recipe on my blog please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. Thanks for visiting today!

Recipe

The Rainbow Art Party

Sep 9, 2013 · 8 Comments

Rainbow Art Party: DIY rainbow decorations, art activity stations, and rainbow art themed party food ideas.

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Last week my oldest daughter, Paige, turned nine. Nine, as in almost ten...where does the time go? She wanted a Rainbow Art Party, and today we're sharing all the fun details of the decorations, the art activities, and the rainbow art themed food. This is such a fun party theme, full of bright colors, really fun art activities that our party guests loved. It's the perfect theme if your birthday child is a little artist.

The Invitations

I did a little photo shoot with our birthday girl one day to make our cute party invitations. Then I just added some text to them on the computer,and printed them at home. She really loved them, and they were the perfect way to invite her friends her craft party.

I thought I'd start out by sharing all the pretty decorations with you.

You can find all the Rainbow Art Party Activities here. And all the Rainbow Art Party themed foods here.

My very, very, very favourite decorations ro4 my child's art party were the rainbow paper lanterns and rainbow flowers.

Outdoor Rainbow Art Party Decorations

We love decorating of birthdays. Check out our best at home birthday party decorations here.

I collected paper lanterns from all over in all shapes, sizes, and rainbow colors for weeks and weeks. We hung them all in a line, in traditional rainbow order. They looked so, so pretty hanging on our pergola. Paper lanterns are such a great alternative to helium balloons. They're reusable, inexpensive, and you don't have to worry about picking them up at the last minute, so I think they're perfect party decor.

I always love to do special flowers for a party, and came up with the idea of doing one pretty mason jar for each colour of the rainbow for our art-themed party and lining up the different colors in the same rainbow order as the paper lanterns.

All the flowers are pretty much from my mom's garden, with the exception of the green mums that I picked up at the store. I love how it turned out. It was just a simple design, but had so much impact.

Using different sized mason jars as vases was the perfect way to accommodate flowers of all different sizes.

We planned to have the art activities outside in the yard when guests first arrived at the party, and then move into the house where it was cooler for the food. I wanted to add a little rainbow to the play structure so we made a simple rainbow bunting.

To make the rainbow bunting I used some twine and hot glued on some scrap fabric flags in our rainbow colours. This was such a fun decor piece for an art birthday party.

We planned to welcome guests through the side gate, and into the yard.

Rainbow Art Party Decorations streamer rainbow

I decorated the rose arbour with simple rainbow streamers. They looked so pretty blowing in the wind.

Art Party Decorations welcome chalkboard

Guests were welcomed by the chalkboard, and a basket of art smocks for our little guests.

I added these giant rainbow pinwheels to the garden edge.

Indoor Rainbow Party Decorations

Inside, there was a pretty rainbow decorated mantel. During the photo shoot for the invitation we got lots of fun shots of the birthday girl with a bouquet of rainbow balloons. For the mantel I printed a few and put them in simple dollar store frames.

We made more rainbow bunting and added in some pretty rainbow candles.

In the kitchen, we didn't have too much room for decorations. We decorated the chalkboard and I made a fun art birthday cake (think diaper cake but way better) as an art theme centerpiece. I used mini hat boxes as the base, and held craft supplies in place with elastics, ribbon and a little tape. We layered crayons, pom poms, feathers, markers, and glue sticks, with a paintbrush flag. It made for a fun addition.

In the dining room, I made this great birthday banner. I used free paint chips from the paint store, a letter stencil, and a black sharpie. It was so easy and turned out so cute.

On the dining room table was my second favourite decoration, a rainbow of candles.

I came up with the idea and wanted to start shopping but forced myself to check my candle stash before I bought anything.

I had them all, with the exception of two pairs of tamper candles. Guess I should do a candle inventory more often. I love how pretty they looked all together. I tried to keep it somewhat uniform by only using glass and a few metal candle holders. If you wanted to create something similar, you could look for any colors you didn't have a the thrift store, as a great way to find inexpensive candles and candle holders.

Rainbow Guests Photo

One of the other best decorations -our guests! We asked the guests to all wear denim on the bottom and a certain coloured shirt on top for a special art project, all with the plan of taking a fun group shot. I love how it turned out. And you can see the birthday girl in her party outfit, white with a rainbow tutu -so much fun! This was a fun easy group project, since everyone has jeans, and I worked out with the guests what color shirt they had, to coordinate it so that we had some of each color for our rainbow. The best part of this, is that you have a special keepsake photo at the end.

The Rain (It was a Rainbow Party After all)

It was a great party...despite the rain. That's right it poured. The party started at 11, and by 10:30 we were pretty much set up for me to take pictures and add just a few more details. At 10:50 it started to rain -hard. We scrambled to get everything inside, including all the pretty paper lanterns before they were ruined. We forgot the paint smocks, but my mom quickly threw them in the dryer for a few minutes. 😉 As our guests were coming through the door, we were drying off the things from all of the 7 art centres we had originally set up in the backyard. Everything was thrown in the patio doors dripping wet while running around like chickens with our heads cut off when it started to pour.

But parties aren't about everything being perfect, they're about having fun together. So our guests pitched in and we set everything up inside and had a great time. I love our friends and family. I was most sad about the lanterns that had nowhere to go inside and ended up in my bedroom. They were slightly damp but out of the way to be dealt with later. We all joked that everyone could see how pretty they were on the blog! So there we have it, at least we had some pictures before the rain came!

And I must say that the birthday girl didn't seemed that bothered by the rain (that interrupted her party for the third year in a row -next year an indoor party) and just had a great time enjoying her favourite pastime, art, with all her favourite people! Proving that life is what we make it, so we may as well make it a party -even in the rain!

Rainbow Art Party Activity Centres

The birthday girl chose the entire theme because she loves art, so we decided to set up seven different simple art activity stations for our little guests to enjoy. We used kids tables, covered in plastic table cloths for easy clean up as our little work tables.

My daughter Paige made the sweetest little signs for each station. We used simple IKEA frames, and she drew pictures to go with each activity. Each table had the sign, and the art supplies for the activity.

We didn't set up a timer or schedule for visiting all the art stations. The party had a relatively small group of kids, and all the parents stayed as well. We let the kids follow their inner artist and visit as many craft activities as they liked, and revisit them for a second round if they wished.

Grab An Art Smock

We started out with giving everyone a paint smock to protect their party clothes.

Rainbow Play Dough

The first centre was Rainbow Play Dough. I found this great "One Metre of Play Dough" in rainbow colors and the kids (and some of the grown-ups too) loved it.

Spiral Art

The second centre was Spiral Art. I remembered doing spiral art when I was a little girl. I picked up two kits at the dollar store for this station and all the pretty gel pens we could find.

Watercolour Painting

The third Centre was Watercolour Painting. My girls really enjoyed this station. I picked up some watercolour paper, we added a few pencils for sketching and the watercolor paint set.

Marble and Tire Track Painting

The forth centre was Marble and Tire Track Painting. I picked up a few shallow boxes at the grocery store, and we put some paint on a plate for our artists to roll their tires and marbles in. Then, they used the box to rotate the cars and/or marbles over a piece of paper to make some great prints. This art activity was a bit different and lots of our guests really enjoyed it.

Bubble Art

The fifth centre was Bubble Art. To create pretty bubble printed paper, we made a mixture of paint, water, and dish soap. Then you create bubbles by blowing into the mixture with a straw, and then placing the paper on top to create the print. (A tip if you have very young artists, is to put a few pin pricks in the top half of the straws so that they can't accidentally suck it in by mistake.)

Acrylic Painting

The sixth centre was Acrylic Painting with a Canvas and Easel. For this station we set up acrylic paints in the colours of the rainbow, with an art palette for mixing, and a sweet little blank canvas for everyone with mini easels and paint brushes from the local dollar store. These were just the right size for our little artists. And they all liked taking home the mini easels as well.

Water Gun Painting

The seventh and final centre was Water Gun Painting. We filled water guns with very watered down paint. Before the party, I used painters tape to mark each canvas with the guests initial, after the paint was squirted on and it dried the tape was removed to reveal the initial. You could also use a spray bottle for this activity.

Drying Art Gallery

I set up a little art gallery for the paintings to dry and be viewed at. I made the banner from paint chips and a stencil -love how it turned out.

To attach the art to the wire fence, I found some pretty rainbow striped washi tape, and added it to simple wooden clothespins. It worked out great -after the rain stopped. 😉

Art Party Favor Bags with Paint Chip Thank You's

We also set up loot bags for our guests, so that throughout the party any art that didn't need to dry could be tucked inside, along with their paint smocks once the painting was done. We also included a fun watercolor set for some more creating at home. It was fun using the paint chips for some creative ideas for the party.

I found pretty paper bags in every colour we needed to fit our rainbow themed birthday party. Then, we made thank you tags with more paint chips, and attached them to the bags with the rainbow washi tape.

Rainbow Art Party Food

We had so much fun at our Rainbow Art Party, and I had a great time coming up with the food, and I can't wait to share all the yummy details with you.

Paint Chips

While we were doing the art activities I had a chip buffet set up for munching on. This was one of my very favourite ideas of the party. I set up a Rainbow Chip Buffet, and we made a fun label that said "Paint Chips". Get it, I know I have a gift.

I bought unused empty paint cans at the paint store, and painted a paint stir stick for each colour we used and placed it in the paint pails. Then we filled each can with chips in the colors of the rainbow.

We had ketchup chips for red, cheesies for orange, regular chips for yellow, guacamole chips (I found at the bulk store) for green, and blue tortilla chips for blue. Everyone loved it, and nibbled away between activities until lunch. I envisioned it set up outside, and then had to quickly set it up on the toy box when everything was moved inside because of the rain, but you get the idea. 😉

The Rainbow Veggie Tray

For lunch we kept things simple and ordered pizza and wings, along with this Rainbow Veggie Tray of radishes, cherry tomatoes, carrots, yellow pepper, broccoli, cucumber, black olives and "black cherry" tomatoes. We couldn't come up with a blue veggie, but we're pretty close to a full rainbow.

Rainbow Art Party Dessert Table

The main food event of the party was the Rainbow Dessert Table.

Picture Frame Art Party Backdrop

I had a lot of fun putting the rainbow dessert table together. We started out with the pretty backdrop of rainbow coloured frames. I found them all at the second hand stores for a couple of dollars each. To start with I removed the backs and glass, and then painted them with spray paint in different colours. The empty frames were attached to the wall with 3M hooks, they really work great and when you remove them, there really is no mark on the wall.

Paint Chip Food Labels

To make the food labels, I used some more paint chips.

Rainbow Cake

The centerpiece of the table was the rainbow cake. I made it out of two cake mixes, and used food colouring to tint the layers. My one little tip: this time I bought disposable cake pans at the grocery store, it was so much easier than using my regular two pans, three times to bake the six layers. With some extra disposable cake pans I could bake it all at once.

I bought the special birthday candles that have a coloured flame. They were a hit.

The first slice was met by the appropriate oohs and aahs from the guests -as hoped for.

Along with the Rainbow Birthday Cake there were lots of other sweet treats.

Rainbow Paint Brush Rice Krispies

We made Rainbow Paint Brush Rice Krispies. These were also a big hit -delicious and pretty easy too. We made regular rice krispie treats, cut them into rectangles and put a craft stick in one end to look like a paint brush handle. Then we did the other end in melted colored. We used chocolate melts in all the colors of the rainbow.

Rainbow Jello

We also made Rainbow Jello. It looked so pretty layered in rainbow order in plastic cups. This process is a little time consuming, but creates such a beautiful effect.

Rainbow Fruit Tray

We did a Rainbow Fruit Tray for good measure, although I have to say it didn't see too much action. 😉

Paint Your Own Masterpiece Cookies

Lastly, my friend Heather made the amazing "Make Your Own Masterpiece" Sugar Cookies.

She made sugar cookies, and flooded them with white royal icing to make the perfect cookie canvas, and outlined it all in a sweet little icing gold frame.

Guests used edible markers to draw their own picture.

These were also a huge hit -they were just so cool...and delicious. Our guests loved using the markers in creative ways to make their own little edible masterpieces.

Rainbow Paint Can Candy Bar

As another treat for the loot bags we set up a Rainbow Candy Bar. I found the fun little paint buckets at the dollar store, and then we found candy in every colour at the bulk store. It looked so pretty. We had little plastic bags and tongs so that guests could help themselves, fill up their bag and then add it to their party favor.

The party was a great success, and the birthday girl was all smiles. This was one of the best birthday parties we ever had. The kids of all ages loved getting their creative juices flowing, and making all kinds of art at the party. This theme appealed to both boys and girls, and kids of different ages, from 4 year olds to 10 year olds. Everyone could create as much or as little as they wanted and visit all or just favourite art centres. I highly recommend this theme for your child's next birthday party.

With a rainbow art party to celebrate someone special, life really is a party!

More Inspiration

You might also like our Ice Cream Themed Birthday Party here.

Also check out our Board Game Night here.

You might also enjoy our DIY Rainbow Book Art here.

DIY Rainbow Book Art: Using old books as a canvas this DIY rainbow art in mustard yellow and pink is fun to make and inexpensive.

Back To School Dinner

Sep 4, 2013 · 5 Comments

First Day of School Dinner Ideas -start a new tradition with your kids, surprise them with a back to school dinner on the first day of school.

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I'm so excited to share our first day of school dinner ideas with you. It's become a tradition at our house to surprise my girls with a special dinner when they get home from school on their first day and hear all about their new class.

Miniature School

Weeks ago when I was out shopping I noticed a few miniature school supplies at a party store, and thought how much my girls would love them. My youngest daughter loves playing school with her stuffed animals. I started collecting little mini paint sets, tape, crayons and markers over the last few weeks.

This gave me the idea to make our first day of school dinner into a back to "stuffy" school with a few of the girls stuffed animal "students". Once I got started, I couldn't help myself, it just got cuter and cuter. 😉

Free Back To School Printables

I found some great back to school free printables at Tatertots and Jello and used them to make a pretty place setting.

Then I had the idea to shrink the printables by 50% and make the a miniature stuffed animal version too.

I cut down a matching paper napkin to make the stuffy napkins, and used a little crab apple to match the big ones. The cutlery and plates are from IKEA and made for dolls. The little cups are actually plastic shot glasses, and I cut down the straws to match ours.

Perfect for our little stuffy friends.

First Day of School Dinner and Mini Dinner Ideas

Then I thought it would be fun to make a mini version of dinner too.

I made a salad with cucumbers and tomatoes. For the mini version, I bought baby cucumbers, and used cherry tomatoes. I love how it turned out, next to our regular sized salad.

We had pizza, so I just used some bagel bites as a mini version for the stuffys.

The girls even filled the stuffy's glasses with water, and crushed ice for stuffy sized ice cubes.

Dessert and Mini Dessert

For dessert, since we had a bit of an apple theme happening, we made apple pie -regular size and mini too.

I used store bought pastry to make it really easy and even made a large and mini little back to school pick with the printables.

The girls were so excited about it all. And the stuffed animals said it was the best dinner they'd had in ages. 😉

Playing School

After dinner we took all the new mini school supplies down to the toy room and set up a little classroom.

Maddie was so excited to put up the abc's (found at the dollar store), set up her desk and chalk board, and get her stuffed animals seated on the carpet for story time!

I always say life is what we make it, so we may as well make it a party! I hope my girls always remember this one. Hoping your first day of school was great too.

With first day of school dinner ideas like this one, life really is a party!

More First Day Of School Dinner Ideas

You might also like our Back to School Dinner 2019 here.

Back To School Printables and Family Dinner: decor ideas, dinner and free printable Back To School printables, and "All About Me" sheet.

Also check out our Back To School Dinner 2018 here.

Back To School Party Ideas: start a family tradition of a back to school dinner on the first day of schoo. Lots of party decor ideas.

You might also enjoy our Back To School Dinner 2017 here.

Easy Peach Sangria Recipe With White Wine

Aug 26, 2013 · 2 Comments

Peach Sangria Recipe: The perfect peach sangria, sweet, fruity, easy to make and delicious. Made with fresh peaches and raspberries.

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This peach sangria recipe is the perfect, sweet, peachy, end of summer drink. While the peaches are in season, you must try it.

I made a batch and enjoyed it with friends on a Sunday afternoon. They dropped by and I put together a batch. We sat out in the garden sipping this lovely drink , and it couldn't have been more perfect summer drink.

This is my very favourite cocktail ever.

Sangria

Sangria is a wine punch made with wine, chopped fruit and other ingredients. It originated in Spain. Most sangria recipes are made with red wine and oranges, but our peach version uses white wine. It is often quite sweet and fruity in flavor. You can make as sweet as you like. If you want it less sweet than use a less sweet wine as the base and add less sugar.

White Wine Sangria

We have made a white sangria with a base of white wine. Sangria is often made with a sweeter wine, but if you prefer you can choose dry wines, or a crisp white wine for your base. We choose Liebfraumilch as our wine base. It's a blend of Riesling and Sylvaner with fruit aromas, a light body and a slightly sweet finish. You can also use a Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc, White Zinfandel, or a dry Riesling or any sweet white wine that you enjoy for your peach sangria.

Fruit

Sangria always includes fresh fruit that's been chopped in it. For our peach sangria we had to include some fresh ripe peaches. You can use yellow peaches or white peaches or a combination of both for this sangria. We used yellow peaches, since they grow in abundance here this time of year. Juicy peaches add so much peach flavor to this white wine peach sangria. Along with our peach slices, we also added some fresh raspberries. The peaches and raspberries are a great summer fruit combination.

Alcohol

Sangria usually has some alcohol along with the wine. Our peach sangria has both triple sec and peach schnapps added. Triple sec is an orange liqueur and it and citrus fruits are traditional ingredients in red wine sangria, and are a lovely addition to our peach sangria. Peach schnapps is a peach liqueur and help add more peach flavor to our punch.

Sugar

Sangria is traditionally on the sweet side. You can adjust the sugar depending on your preferences and how sweet your peaches are. We used instant dissolving sugar. Look for it in grocery stores with the baking ingredients and regular sugar. It's sometimes called berry sugar, or superfine or ultrafine sugar. It's perfect for using in cold drinks, because the sugar crystals are smaller than normal and dissolve in liquids quickly. Some people like to use simple syrup in sangria, but the instant dissolving sugar is easier to use. If you like sweeter sangria you can adjust the amount of sugar for your preferences.

Ginger Ale

We used ginger ale in our sangria, it adds a nice bit of fizz to the sangria and a little more sweetness. You can use sparkling water, club soda, or soda water to add some fizz without adding more sweetness if you wish. Another great option is a lemon-lime soda like 7-up or sprite. The soda pop or sparkling water help make the drink into a punch and give the characteristic fizz to the sangria. If you prefer though, you can make your sangria flat.

Because sangria contains chopped fruit, it's best to prepare the punch ahead of time so that the flavors of the fruit and the fruit juices can infuse into the punch, and the wine and other alcohol can all mix together. Make sure to add your soda pop or sparkling water right before serving, after the rest of the ingredients have had time to sit and marinate, so the pop doesn't lose the fizz.

sangria with fresh peaches and raspberries

If you love peaches, you'll love this drink. This easy peach sangria is especially perfect to enjoy during peach season when they're so sweet and juicy. The addition of raspberries is delicious too. It's sweet, and peachy, and has a little fizz from the ginger ale. It's so delicious on hot summer days. It really is the perfect summer cocktail.

This sangria is perfect for entertaining, and great with some friends to help you drink you on a hot summer evening.

Recipe

Peach Sangria

Sweet peach sangria made with wine, peach schnapps, ginger ale and fruit.

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Course: Drinks

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 5

Total Time: 5

Servings: cups

Calories: 180kcal

Author: Dannyelle Nicolle-Ramjist

Ingredients

Instructions

Mix the white wine, peach schnapps, triple sec, sugar, peaches and raspberries in a punch bowl or large pitcher, and stir to dissolve the sugar. Let this mixture sit for a few hours.
Before serving add the ginger ale, and enjoy!

Nutrition

Tried this Recipe? Tag me Today!Mention @LifeisaParty or tag #lifeisaparty!

With a delicious batch of peach sangria, life really is a party!

More Drink Recipe Inspiration

You might also like our Apple Cider Martini recipe here.

Apple Cider Martini: The perfect fall cocktail, a caramel apple in a glass, but better. Use caramel vodka, or make your own.

Also check out our Blackberry Cocktails here.

Blackberry Sparklers: fresh blackberries are pureed for this cocktail, make it with alcoholic, or without for a non alcoholic mocktail version.

You might also enjoy our Grown Up Lemonade Stand here.

DIY Backyard Movie Night Under The Stars Ideas

Aug 23, 2013 · 2 Comments

Outdoor Movie Night: Ideas for movies under the stars an outdoor movie night, with a popcorn buffet for snacks, and a red and white decorations.

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We set up our Outdoor Movie Night at the cottage and it was so much fun! This is pretty much the perfect way to spend a summer evening with family and friends. I'm excited to share all our DIY backyard movie night ideas with you.

How To Make An Outdoor Movie Night Screen

My brother-in-law built this great, portable movie screen. He made this DIY screen with a simple wooden frame and then stretched a really big fabric drop cloth over it, stapled in place with a staple gun. It was perfect for our outdoor theater.

Other options for an outdoor screen would be use an inflatable movie screen. What's great about an inflatable screen is it's easy to store when not in use. You could also use any large flat surface. So if you have a large white wall outside, that would work perfectly too. Other diy options are to use a white sheet for your own DIY screen.

You will also need an outdoor projector and an outdoor extension cord. Make sure you use one that is safe for outdoor use, and with good sound quality, or add some outdoor speakers for the evening.

Seating Area

I thought it would be fun to add a few more fun details to our big screen. 😉 We started out by adding some twinkle lights to the screen. I wanted it feel like a DIY marquee sign. String lights over the seating area would be another outdoor lighting great addition to your own outdoor movie theater to create an inviting atmosphere at night.

For our outdoor movie theater seating area we set up a row of the beautiful red Muskoka chairs in our outdoor space. Other great seating options around your own outdoor movie screen would be any outdoor chairs, or patio furniture. For picnic style seating spread out some outdoor rugs and blankets in front and add pillows for comfortable seating. Family movie night is for the whole family, and the little kids especially love the front row as a great place for the best view.

Outdoor Movie Night Snack Area

Movies need popcorn, so I set up a fun popcorn buffet for our outdoor cinema. The popcorn buffet is one of my favorite things about our backyard movie night.

DIY Chalkboard Bunting

I thought it would be a fun idea to make some chalkboard bunting that we could write things on for an extra special touch. My brother-in-law cut out the triangles from some thin scrape wood, and drilled holes in the corners so we could thread them onto twine. My very sweet niece painted them all for us with chalkboard paint -thanks Jenny and Shaun. 😉 We used the large ones to write "Movie Night", but since they're little chalkboards they could be erased and used for anything. These were so fun to add to our outdoor areas for movie night.

On the bottom of the table we strung smaller ones and wrote popcorn. This was such an easy way to to add a fun detail to the space.

I layered the table with red and white for a classic movie look. For the popcorn, I found great unfinished wooden boxes that I spray painted white and lined with waxed tissue paper.

We used more chalkboard labels for the popcorn.

The Popcorn

buttered popcorn
white cheddar popcorn
caramel corn
white cheddar popcorn seasoning
dill pickle popcorn seasoning
jalapeno popcorn seasoning
cinnamon sugar popcorn seasoning

I love how the popcorn buffet turned out. Everyone thought that it was the best part of the evening. We had white cheddar, caramel, and buttered popcorn. I picked all the popcorn flavors at the grocery store. If you had a popcorn machine, you could set it up here, and make fresh popcorn too.

I thought it would be a great idea to add a few popcorn flavourings too. I picked them up at the bulk food store. We put them in simple salt and pepper shakers, and added a cute chalkboard sticker label.

The toppings are on a little tray that matched the other containers. I also sprayed painted it white. It's also holding some napkins and straws. We used red as our pop of color. Red and white feels like the perfect color scheme for movie night.

Candy and chocolate would be a great option for the popcorn buffet too. For your own movie theater you could set up candy popcorn additions in small bowls with scoops for adding them to your popcorn bag mix. You could also have some chocolate bars as another easy snack option.

We used some fun little polka dot, and chevron patterned paper bags for everyone to scoop their popcorn into. These worked great for serving, and everyone could come back up and refill them and try a different flavor during the evening.

Old Fashioned Drinks

I love the drinks we used, old fashioned pop shoppe bottles, in such fun flavours. These were pretty inviting in a simple galvanized bucket filled with ice, and the perfect touch to our movie night.

Cozy Blankets and Other Great Additions

And in case of cooler nights, when the sun goes down at movie time, I included a bucket of cozy red fleece blankets. These are a great way to cozy up for the movie. A fire pit would be fun too.

We set it all down by the lake because we were at the cottage. Could it get any more idyllic?

Don't forget the bug spray. Citronella candles would be a good option too.

And also make sure to check the weather forecast before setting it all up, nothing dampens an evening like this more than rain.

Once you're all set up, it's time to enjoy your favorite film with your family members and friends. This was such a fun activity for enjoying in the summer season. We loved munching popcorn and enjoying ourselves under the stars watching one of our favorite movies together. This was a family movie night, but it would be great as an outdoor activity for a birthday party or even as a movie date night. We used basic materials and some creative ideas to create an amazing movie experience in our own backyard. I hope it gives you plenty of inspiration fo your own backyard movie night.

With a night like this enjoying all these DIY backyard movie nights, life really is a party!

More Movie Night Inspiration

You might also enjoy our Summer Movie Night that includes free movie night printables for a snack bar and a movie night ticket. Find it here.

Summer Movie Night: use our free printable summer movie night ticket, popcorn banner, popcorn labels and cupcake picks to set up the perfect summer night.

Also check out our Caramel Corn recipe here. Guaranteed to be your new favourite for movie night, or anytime.

You might also like our Free Movie Night Printables. Red and white free printables including labels for the snack bar, movie night tickets, and movie night decorations.

Free Movie Night Printables: free movie night ticket, popcorn banner, movie night snack and drinks signs, food labels, and cupcake pics.

Also check out our Movie Date Night At Home. Use your Cricut machine to create a movie night ticket, labels, and even a fun game to help you choose your movie genre.

Road Trip Busy Bags for Kids

Aug 19, 2013 · 8 Comments

Road Trip Busy Bags for Kids: fight the bordem monster with a bag full of activities to keep your kids entertained, including DIY snack kits.

Since my girls were very little, we've always packed a busy bag for things like road trips, restaurant visits, and other trips where the "I'm bored" monster might pay us a visit. If you're lucky enough to have one more summer road trip planned here's all you need to keep your little people happy.

We made our busy bags with these great backpack from Stuck On You. They choose their colour, and cute logo, and we had them personalized with their names. I love how each of my girls picked out a sweet logo that fit their personalities perfectly.

I Spy Game

We love to the fill the busy bag with lots of activities to keep them happy and entertained. This time I made them a special new treat, an "I Spy" game. They're big fans of the books, so I thought it would be fun to make this version, perfect for a long road trip.

empty water bottle
lots of little tiny toys
vase filler
photo of hidden toys
paper protector
zipped pouch
white markers
white board eraser and board cleaner

We started out by hunting around the house for lots of little toys. I found lots of perfect little treasures in the Barbie, playmobile, and lego bins. For the bottle I used an empty water bottle, and some great vase filler I found at the dollar store.

You could also use rice, but the vase filler was a great option, and I liked its clear colour.

Before I added the toys to the water bottle, I photographed them on a plain background.

I printed the picture, and placed it in a page protector. I picked up some fun coloured dry erase markers, an eraser and white board cleaner at the dollar store, and put everything in a perfect little carry case.

My girls loved playing with it, checking off the items they'd found, then erasing it and starting all over again.

Favourite Electronics

I always pack some electronics for a long road trip. We have a booklet of their favourite movies, and a portable dvd player, and some age appropriate electronic games.

Drawing Supplies

The other big favourite is lots of fun drawing things. My little artists can spend hours creating their masterpieces. We love our new pencil cases from Stuck On You.

Snack Kits

The last great addition to the fun bags for our long trip was some snacks. I found these great little storage boxes at the dollar store.

After washing them out, I filled them lots of little treats for the trip. I wanted things that would last if they didn't finish them all on the first leg of our trip, and that wouldn't make too big of a mess in the car if they spilled. There's a few sweets, and then a few healthier options like dried fruit and cereal.

And for thirsty little snackers, a nice cold drink.

With all these great little treats and activities and few new books from the library too all packed up in your own little fun bag, life really is a party!

You might also like our Top Family Movies here.

Also check out Game Board Night here.

You might also enjoy our Pillow Fort here.

How To Make Homemade Potato Chips

Aug 14, 2013 · Leave a Comment

Homemade Potato Chips Recipe: Simple to make and so, so good. Love the flavour of salt and pepper, sure to wow your guests and quickly disappear.

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So I've been wanting to make homemade potato chips for a long time. I love chips...in fact they just might be my favourite food ever. This homemade potato chips recipe is so good and the perfect treat.

We have a pretty strict rule in our house that we only buy chips for a party. I'm secretly very, very happy when there's leftovers after. 😉 The reason for this rule is that when it comes to potato chips I have zero self control. They're my very favourite treat. What could be better than this crispy, salty treat? So, going with the fact that everything's better when it's homemade, I've had chips on my mental to-do list for awhile.

Slicing The Potatoes

I'd been waiting until I had a mandoline, no not to play a tune on while I ate the chips, the kind that you use for cutting very thinly. They come on sale often at my local kitchen store, and I was waiting for a coupon. That day came, I went and picked one up for 5 bucks and was in business.

A mandoline slicer is the best and easiest tools to use to slice the potatoes nice and evenly and thinly. It's important that the sliced potatoes are all the same thickness so that the cook at the same rate when you're frying them. The mandoline works really well for making your own homemade potato chips, but do be sure to use the guard and use this sharp tool very carefully to avoid cutting yourself by accident.

Simple Ingredients

The ingredients are really simple. You will need potatoes, oil for frying, and some salt and pepper, that's it. This recipe isn't complicated at all.

Potatoes

What type of potatoes work best for making homemade potato chips? The best potatoes to use for making homemade potato chips are high in starch and low in moisture. Potatoes like russet potatoes, and Yukon golds work very well. You can also try using sweet potatoes.

Soaking The Potato Slices

I used my mandolin slicer to slice them as thin as it could, right into some cold water. You want your chips to soak for about 30 minutes.

Why soak the potato chips before frying?

Soaking the potatoes before frying, really makes a better chip because some of the potato starch comes out into the water. This makes a crisper potato chip. It also helps prevent the sugars in the potato from browning to quickly on the outside, before the chip is cooked through on the inside.

sliced potatoes for homemade potato chips

The next step is to dry them off, it makes them splatter less in the oil.

Frying

I used peanut oil to fry my potato chips. I like peanut oil because it has a high smoke point. It also does not easily absorb the flavors of the foods that are fried in it, meaning you can reuse the oil to fry other items with no taste transfer. I

If you have a peanut oil you can use vegetable oil, sunflower oil, or canola oil for frying, depending on your preference. I don't like using olive oil for deep frying because it doesn't have a high enough smoke point.

I like to use a small at home deep fryer for frying. It has a built in thermometer, so it regulates the oil temperature for you and is the easiest and safest way to deep fry at home.

Fry the potato chips in small batches in your deep fryer at 350 degrees, until golden brown. I like mine a little on the dark side, make them as dark or as light as you like. Smaller batches cook faster, since they don't cool the oil down as much when you add them.

After removing from the hot oil with a metal slotted spoon, drain the fried potato chips on a sheet pan lined with paper towels lined baking sheet to remove any excess oil.

Seasoning

Add a little salt and pepper right away to the fried chips. If you wait too long it won't stick. We did some with just salt, but I really liked the salt and pepper combination the best.

You could get as creative as you want with the potato chip seasoning, and try some garlic salt, sea salt, old bay seasoning, parmesan cheese, or anything else you like.

These are also delicious with your favorite dip. I love them with a sour cream dip.

Tip:

The chips may not be completely crispy when you first take them out of the fryer. Don't worry, they need a few minutes to crisp up as they cool.

Serve In Fry Boxes

I found these perfect french fry boxes to serve these crispy chips in. I just love how they looked. My guests loved them too. Of course, I never really met a chip I didn't like. 😉 And these with a little dip...oh my yumminess.

Storage

If you have any leftover homemade chips store them in an airtight container at room temperature.

These really are the perfect snack. You will love these addictive potato chips. And your guests will be very impressed when they hear you made your own potato chips. They are so good and so fresh. And you can have fun with different toppings like simple salt and pepper or something else. This simple recipe is easy to put together and so, so good.

Recipe

Homemade Potato Chips Recipe

Crispy and salty homemade potato chips.

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Course: Appetizers

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 40

Cook Time: 10

Total Time: 50

Servings: Servings

Calories: 176kcal

Author: Dannyelle Nicolle-Ramjist