I am not from the South but I spent the summer of 2006 in Virginia and have been a lover of sweet tea ever since. I am constantly trying to make tea at home that tastes like the restaurant tea I got there, it’s never quite right, but this recipe is pretty good.

What you need:

8 Family Size Tea Bags. (or 12 regular Tea Bags)  I prefer Luzianne

4 Cups Boiling Water

2 Cups Sugar

¼ teaspoon Baking Soda

How to make it:

Boil water in a large glass measuring cup, add baking soda and tea bags, cover (my Pampered Chef measuring cup has a cover but I have several that don’t so if I use one of those I cover it with one of those stretchy plastic wrap style covers) and steep for 15 minutes, remove tea bags, pour tea into a 1 gallon container (I use a gallon size glass jug), add sugar and stir until completely dissolved, add cool water until container is full, serve over ice.

Balsamic-Garlic Crusted Pork Tenderloin

Another awesome recipe found on Pinterest, sharing is good!

What you need:

4-5 garlic cloves, finely minced or crushed

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 ½ teaspoons coarse salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 pork tenderloins (about 1 ½ pounds each)

How to make it:

Stir together garlic, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, and olive oil in a small bowl. Rub the paste all over pork. If you like or have the time, marinate overnight. If not, no worries, it will still be great!

Grilling:

Sear the tenderloins on all sides, starting and ending with the layer of fat side down, then grill for about 20-30 minutes, turn after the first 20 minutes, until the internal temperature is 160-180 (I like mine just a little more done) degrees. Try to let it rest before slicing, it will be hard because it smells sooo good!

Sweet & Spicy Bacon Wrapped Chicken

Oh My GOODNESS!

What You Need:

14 chicken tenders

1 t salt

1 t pepper

1 T garlic powder

1 T chili powder

1-2 C brown sugar

What to do:

Mix salt, pepper, garlic powder and chili powder in small bowl, season both sides of chicken.

Wrap each piece of chicken in a slice of bacon.

Spread brown sugar on a plate, roll chicken in brown sugar, coating both sides.

Grill

Whip Frosting

Sooo YUMMY!

All you do is mix one vanilla pudding packet with half of the milk called for on the package. Whisk until it begins to thicken. Then fold in one container of Cool Whip. A great frosting spread on cakes and piped onto cupcakes.

Chicken BBQ Sauce Marinade

My whole family LOVES this sauce! It's our go to recipe for grilling at the pool, the smell makes everyone there drool!

What You Need:

4-6 pieces boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 bottle BBQ sauce (Sweet Baby Ray's all the way!)

1/4 c vinegar

1 t red pepper flakes

1/4 C brown sugar

1/2 t garlic powder

How to Make It:

Place chicken in a gallon ziplock bag, mix the marinade ingredients in a medium bowl, pour over chicken. Marinate 4-6 hours or if chicken is frozen overnight. Grill until juices run clear.

Perfect for throwing in the cooler for camping (frozen) or grilling at the park or pool.

Pizza Rolls

What You Need:

Homemade Pizza Sauce

How to Make It:

Bake according to Crescent pkg. directions.

Pizza Sauce

This is Noah's favorite sauce, he's my pizza guy.
I actually had to make this the first time because I forgot to buy his pizza sauce at the store. I grabbed what I had in the pantry and it turned out yummy!

What you need:

1 can (15oz) tomato sauce

1 can (6oz) tomato paste

1 T Italian seasoning

1 T Johnny's Garlic Spread Seasoning

1 t sugar

How to make it:

Whisk all ingredients together in medium bowl, store leftovers in mason jar and refrigerate.