Cherry Upside-Down Cake

Disclosure- I received the mentioned product courtesy of the sponsor for the the purpose of this review. All opinions are genuine, based on my experience with the product, and have not been influenced by promotional items. 


If it would finally start feeling like summer around here instead of a season where we need to high tail it to Noah's Ark, I'd say cherry season is upon us. I don't think I'd be lying too much if I said it's rained for 40 days and 40 nights around here. Not really, but close enough. June is almost gone and it's the worst one we've seen weather wise for as long as I can remember. It's like Mother Nature just doesn't want us to get excited for sunshine weather. Fingers crossed we can at least have a decent 4th of July around here. I'm still not sure what our plans are for the holiday, but I do know wherever we end up, I'll be bringing along this Cherry Upside-Down Cake from Golden Blossom Honey.

I always look forward to the summer months because I l-o-v-e cherry season! I'll look for any way I can to incorporate them into our recipes all season long. This cherry upside-down cake can be made for breakfast as it has a nice coffee cake consistency to it, or you could whip it up for dessert. Eat it as is, or warm it up a bit before serving, then plop a scoop of ice cream right on top. Mmmm! I can't think of a better way to enjoy the season, rainy or not, than with this recipe. Take it to all of your summertime back yard BBQ's or picnics to add a little extra sweetness to the party.

Ingredients

1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
3 Tablespoons sliced almonds, toasted
1 (16 ounce) can water-packed, pitted red tart cherries, drained
1 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup margarine, softened
1/2 cup GOLDEN BLOSSOM HONEY
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 cup yogurt

CLICK HERE FOR FULL RECIPE

You can find this recipe, as well as many more delicious recipes right on the Golden Blossom Honey recipe page! Be sure to follow Golden Blossom Honey on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on new products and promotions.

If you like this recipe, be sure to come back every Friday, where I feature a new recipe from Golden Blossom Honey!

Has it been non-stop rain in your area, or are you actually enjoying summertime weather now?

 
 

Blarney Gardens

Yesterday I shared with you our walk through Blarney Castle. Today, I am focusing on the second part of our stop- Blarney Gardens. If you're going to take the time to visit the castle, you really should save some time to walk the grounds, which is included in the price of the castle admission. Initially, we were only going to explore the Blarney Castle, kiss the stone, then head out. Thankfully, we did have a little amount of time to spare to walk the grounds, but not nearly as much as I would have liked. I'd say add at least an extra hour or so to your visit so you don't feel rushed, but have time to really soak in all the beauty that the grounds have to offer.

The first thing that caught our eye was this magnificent tree. Of course, Allison couldn't resist hopping on for a quick photo opp since it looks like it's straight from a fairy tale. I could imagine myself lazing there killing a few hours with a good book in hand.

I'm sure it takes a lot of work to keep the grounds clean and mowed, but they were definitely on top of it because everywhere you turned, you just saw well manicured grounds.

After a little walking, we came upon the Blarney House. We didn't purchase tickets to go inside, but thought is was quite lovely to come across with its beautiful gardens. We did take a quick peek inside the windows though, and thought it looked rather interesting. If we do go back some day, I'll spend the extra money to take a tour through.

 

We also came upon a smaller house, and the garden there was stunning as well. I've always wanted a little cottage surrounded by hoards of flowers, so I could see myself moving right in and living the rest of my days out in happiness.

 

Allison found this bean shaped concrete seat and couldn't resist grabbing another photo in the gardens before we left.

There was still another whole section to explore, but Jason was rushing me along so I had to skip out on the remainder of touring the grounds. From what I did get to walk though, I was thoroughly impressed. We were there in July, but I bet it's even prettier to walk in April or May when the spring flowers are in full bloom.

Overall, I'm glad we didn't skip out on walking the gardens. My photos don't do them justice, so I'd highly recommend scheduling a trip to Blarney Castle and Gardens if you've got a trip to Ireland in your future to see them for yourself.

 

If you enjoyed this post, be sure to follow me on Instagram for more travel related photos! 

Do you ever explore your own hometown community gardens? If so, which one is your favorite?

Kiss the Blarney Stone & Get The Gift of Gab!

I think it's a given that if you're going to Ireland, a stop at Blarney Castle is a must. It's the very first thing that we scheduled into our itinerary, then planned the rest of our road trip around that.

One of the many things that I love about Ireland is that there are a lot of things you can see and explore that are free. However, Blarney Castle & Gardens does have an entrance fee, and it isn't exactly cheap. We paid roughly $80 USD for 3 adult tickets and 1 child ticket, and I believe that was even with Mariah getting a student discount with her school i.d. The $80 was just to explore the castle and gardens, but if you wanted to tour the Blarney House as well, there is a separate fee for that. Since we had a few other stops that we wanted to make that day, we passed on the house tickets and just stuck with the castle and gardens. Was the price worth it, though? Totally!

We arrived on a cold and rainy week day afternoon. The rain had just let up shortly before we arrived, so the castle was not crowded at all.

We immediately went into the castle to do some exploring, then find the line to kiss the Blarney Stone. It was interesting to climb the stairs, then veer off to see the different rooms in the castle. The thing that struck me most was how small the rooms were compared to how huge the castle is.

What do you think about this "Murder Hole?" Doesn't sound very pleasant, does it?

We waited in the Blarney Stone line for around 20 to 30 minutes, but the wait wasn't horrible because you get some pretty spectacular views from the windows and the top of the castle.

There were two men helping guests with kissing the stone. One to guide you as you lay on your back to kiss the stone and the other to photograph your experience. You can totally take your own photos like we did, but it is nice to know that you can get a professional photo if you didn't get a good shot of your own. Of course, there is an extra fee for that, but they don't try to pressure you into making the purchase, they just let you know the option is available for those who do.

For those who worry about germs, they did have a bottle of disinfectant on hand and were cleaning the stone in between groups. Did I get the gift of gab though? Nah. I'm still terrible with words and find myself in many awkward silence situations. It's okay though because it was one of those experiences we'll remember for a lifetime. Afterwards, we made our way back down though the back of the castle so we could spend some time exploring the gardens. Be sure to stop by tomorrow for that update!

If you enjoyed this post, be sure to follow me on Instagram for more travel related photos!

Would you kiss the Blarney Stone? 

Dad's Gonna Love This Breakfast Hash!

Disclosure- I received the mentioned product courtesy of the sponsor for the the purpose of this review. All opinions are genuine, based on my experience with the product, and have not been influenced by promotional items. 


Last week, I shared a quick and easy no-fuss breakfast recipe that would be perfect for Father's Day. I waffled between 2 recipes to share this year, then wondered why not both? I mean, is there anything better than breakfast food? We have breakfast for dinner here often, and if your husband or father is anything like my husband, he'll eat it morning, noon, and night without complaint. Jason wakes earlier than everyone else, so he's usually in charge of feeding himself in the mornings. One thing that he makes that always disgusts me is corned beef hash in a can. Sorry if you're one of those who likes it too, but to me it looks and smells like canned dog food, so it's something I could never get on board with. Homemade hash, on the other hand, gets a big fat yes from me! One of my favorite Breakfast Hash recipes come from Golden Blossom Honey. This recipe does require more than a few minutes to whip up, but I promise, it is so worth it!

This does have a 30 minute stove top time, but I used a little hack to help save a few prep minutes. Use 2 bags of refrigerated diced potatoes with the chopped onions already inside. I used Simply Potatoes, but if there's a cheaper store brand option, by all means, try those. Of course, you can peel, cook and dice your own potatoes and onions as the recipe calls for, but I'm kind of lazy now that we're on summer vacation, so the store bought pre-diced potatoes was a great option for me. 
 

If the dads in your life are meat and potatoes men, treat them to this hash this Father's Day. I'm sure they'd love it morning, noon, or night, and I guarantee that it's much tastier than that mush from a can!

Ingredients

2 (11 ounce) packages frozen cream chipped beef
6 or 7 medium potatoes, cooked and chopped
1 1/2 medium onions, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, coarsely ground
2 tablespoons GOLDEN BLOSSOM HONEY
4 tablespoons butter

CLICK HERE FOR FULL RECIPE

You can find this recipe, as well as many more delicious recipes right on the Golden Blossom Honey recipe page! Be sure to follow Golden Blossom Honey on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on new products and promotions.

If you like this recipe, be sure to come back every Friday, where I feature a new recipe from Golden Blossom Honey!

What's on your Father's Day menu this year?

Captain Marvel Collectible SteelBook Now Available at Best Buy! #CaptainMarvel

I received a Best Buy gift card courtesy of the sponsor to help facilitate this post. All opinions are genuine, based on my experience with the product, and have not been influenced by promotional items. 


Summer vacation has officially started here, and with that I know that I'll be hearing a chorus of "I'm bored!" before the week is even up. However, this mama is prepared this year because I have a slew of activities and camps planned to keep the kids busy. I even have an ace in the hole boredom buster up my sleeve: Captain Marvel Collectible SteelBook available from Best Buy!

Captain Marvel is available today, so if you're looking for a little summer entertainment, Best Buy can hook you up. You can get your copy with super cool packaging: a collectible SteelBook that is exclusive to Best Buy!

About Captain Marvel: 

This sci-fi action film is the latest offering from the American comic books by Marvel Comics. Carol Danvers (Brie Larson), an Air Force pilot who experiences a freak accident that somehow bestows her with alien superpowers, making her Captain Marvel. With time running out, Captain Marvel joins forces with Nick Fury (Samuel.L Jackson), and together they work to save the planet from a looming war between alien races.

The film is packed full of action and adventure, making it the perfect way to get some entertainment in this summer. Not just for the kids, but it's one that the whole family is going to want to watch time and time again! 

Captain Marvel is available to purchase today. Be sure to head to BestBuy where you can pick up your copy in store or online. And remember, you can only get the Captain Marvel collectible SteelBook exclusively @BestBuy!

 

Askeaton Castle & Friary

If you drive through Ireland, you'll notice that the country is insanely visitor friendly. We had everything that we wanted to see and do mapped out months before our trip, but we still ended up with some down time most days we were there. If we had extra time between our plotted out stops, we noticed that the major roads had signage indicating that the next exit would take us to nearby castles and abbeys. I didn't have a stop planned for Askeaton, Ireland, but while castle hopping we decided to follow the signs and make a detour since we were ahead of schedule. We arrived at the Askeaton Castle fairly quickly (sometimes it does take a bit of a drive to reach the castles once you exit), found parking on the street nearby, and walked over to have a peek. Our first impression: there wasn't much to look at.

Some of the off the beaten path castles and abbeys in Ireland were in ruins, but we were still able to walk up and explore them. However, we were stopped by a construction worker who politely let us know that the Askeaton Castle was undergoing major construction and wasn't open for touring. We thanked him for letting us know, then proceeded to just stay on the side walk so I could try to grab a few photos before we left.

When the same construction worker noticed I had my bulky camera out and was snapping photos, he came back out of the gated off area and said, "I see you're snapping photos. If you'd like, come on in and get a closer look, but watch your step!" I've said it before, and I'll say it again, you will not find a more welcoming people than the Irish. They definitely know how to be hospitable!

Jason and the girls stayed towards the front and chatted with the friendly Irishman, while I walked a few yards ahead and took a few snaps. I didn't want to overstep my welcome, so I didn't go far in, but still managed to see most of the work that's been done so far.

"You were quick with your pictures. Are you sure you got enough? Did you take some pictures of the windows up there?" I assured him I did and thanked him for giving us the privilege to have a closer look. As we were leaving, he made sure to stop us again to insist that we drive a block up the road to see the abbey. "You absolutely must visit the abbey up the road before you leave. Head on up this road, make a left, and there you are! But be sure to lock up your doors before you leave your car behind. We've had some vandals running around here and I'd hate for anything to happen to it." We chatted a few more minutes and he reminded us 2 more times to lock up the car and beware of vandals before we left. He was such a lovely gentleman!

We arrived at the Askeaton Friary within 2 minutes, and oh, what a lovely Friary it was!

The very first thing we spotted was a beautiful horse just standing in a field of wildflowers next to the abbey.

I was slapped with an overwhelming feeling of Ireland's magic then and there. I mean, what screams fairy tale more than Ireland, abbeys, and horses?

Askeaton Friary was founded in 1389, but a good bit of it was still standing. I'm not sure if you can tour inside the Friary since all of the doors were barred and locked shut. However, we were still able to walk the grounds and soak in all of its beauty.

There were no other people milling around, so we had the whole place all to ourselves (and thankfully didn't run into any vandals lol). We spent about 20 minutes walking the grounds before heading out. Once you are back near the road, you can look out over the water and get a lovely view of the castle again.

So, my tip for first time travelers to Ireland would be to schedule some time in your travel itinerary to do a little detouring. We never would have stopped in Askeaton during our travels there, but I'm so happy we decided to make a snap decision to veer off course. Askeaton was so charming and I have some really amazing memories of our unplanned stop to the town.


If you enjoyed this post, be sure to follow me on Instagram for more travel related posts!

Do you always stick to your travel itinerary, or do you like to detour off the plans to try to find unexpected magic on your journey?