Mini Strawberry Colada Cupcakes

 
1c Thrive Brownie Mix
1c Thrive 6 Grain Pancake Mix
2/3c Milk
1c Thrive FD Strawberries
1c Thrive Macaroon Cookie Mix
1/4c Water

Preheat oven to 350 and grease mini muffin tins. In a bowl, combine brownie mix, pancake mix and milk. In a seperate bowl, combine strawberries, macaroon cookie mix and water. Fill each muffin cup halfway with brownie batter, then put about a teaspoon of the cookie mix in the middle. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes. Cool before frosting.

Pink Frosting

1/2c Vanilla Frosting
1/4c Thrive FD Strawberry powder (from the bottom of the can)

Mix well and put in a plastic sandwich bag. Snip off the corner of the bag and pipe onto cooled cupcakes.

Homemade Cream Cheese

I've been wanting to learn how to make my own cream cheese for quite a while now - and I wish I would have done it a long time ago!! This stuff is amazing... creamy, light, soft and delicious. Best of all, it only takes about 5 minutes!

Center: Thrive Strawberries; Top Left: Cinnamon & Sugar; Top Right: Honey & Vanilla;

Bottom Left: Parmesan & Italian Herbs; Bottom Right: Maple Extract & Sugar

1 Container Plain Yogurt (regular, low fat or non fat)
Cheesecloth
String
Salt
Flavorings and mix ins

This recipe leaves you with a lot of options. You can make as much or a little as you want depending on how much yogurt you start with. I would suggest using a large container the first time so you can divide your cheese and flavor it a variety of ways. Lay your cheesecloth in a bowl (to contain the mess) and pour the container of yogurt into it. Gather the corners of the cheesecloth together and use some twine or string to tie it together, making a pouch. The goal here is to suspend the pouch over something (sink, bowl, pot) overnight and let it drain all of the liquid out. Rig this up however it works best for you - I tied mine on the handle of my microwave and put a bowl on the stovetop underneath it to catch the liquid.

In the morning, discard the liquid (or keep it if you have a use for whey) and untie your cheesecloth. Remove the solid cheese to a large bowl and add some salt. The amount of salt you add depends on how much yogurt you started with - 1/4t for 6oz, all the way up to 1t or more for 32oz. If you would like to try some different flavorings, divide the cheese into smaller containers and experiment. Here are a few ideas:

Extracts: maple, almond, vanilla
Spices: garlic powder, onion power, Italian seasonings, taco seasonings, cinnamon, sugar, pumpkin pie spices
Fruits: rehydrate your favorite Thrive fruits and mix them in! You could also use the powder out of the bottom of a can.
Other: dry onion soup mix, dry ranch dressing mix, Thrive sour cream powder, cocoa powder, chocolate chips, peanut butter, jam or jelly

Refrigerate your homemade cream cheese in an air tight container for up to two weeks.

Tomorrow: homemade bagels!