French Onion Roasted Potato Salad

Your backyard BBQ guests will love this lightened up & flavor packed French Onion Roasted Potato Salad...

This delicious recipe was created in partnership with the ADA Mideast. As always, all thoughts & opinions expressed below are 100% my own.

It always seems like Memorial Day weekend is the weekend that officially kicks off summertime. It is the start of BBQ season. The first long holiday weekend of summer. The beginning of summer break from school for many of the kiddos. The first weekend that the local pool is open for the summer season. It also marks the start of summertime entertaining season for me.

The husband & I love to have family and friends over for a cookout or to celebrate summer holidays. We fire up the grill, break out the cornhole set, and prep the fire pit for s'mores making once the sun goes down. 

My husband often grills burgers & hot dogs or smokes baby back ribs to perfection in his smoker. And I am always in charge of the side dishes for our little summertime get-togethers. ;)

We almost always serve a traditional mayo based potato salad at our BBQ's, but I decided to change it up for the cookout we hosted for my son's high school graduation over the weekend. I lightened up our usual potato salad with a little Greek yogurt, but amped up the flavor by oven roasting the potatoes instead of boiling them & mixing in a packet of onion soup mix...

10 Disney Trip Must-Haves for Kids

Planning a family vacation to Disney World soon? Then you will definitely want to check out this collection of 10 Disney Trip Must-Haves for Kids...

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Can you all believe that summer break is already here? My youngest just graduated from Pre-K this week, and my oldest will be walking across the stage to receive his high school diploma next weekend. 

Both of the kiddos are out of school for the summer, and we are looking ahead to lazy days by the pool and of course, a couple of family vacations. 

One possible trip that is currently on our radar is a Walt Disney World vacation. We are still looking at dates and crunching the numbers, but we might be taking our daughter to Disney for the first time some time this July (fingers crossed we can make it work!). 

With Disney on the brain as we chat about the details with our favorite Pixie & Pirate Destinations travel agent, I have found myself browsing Amazon lately looking for the must-haves that I have to buy before our daughter's first trip to Disney. After adding a few to my wish list, I thought why not share some of my favorite Disney finds with you all? ;) 

Slow Cooker Soup Beans & Ham

Not only is this Slow Cooker Soup Beans & Ham recipe super flavorful & simple to make, but it also happens to be budget friendly as well... 

Let me introduce you all to the only way I can get my husband to eat beans- this Slow Cooker Soup Beans & Ham recipe I am sharing with you all today. As long as I serve it alongside a slice of fresh baked cornbread, he dives right in. 

But beans in chili? Nope. He picks them out. A three bean salad at a backyard BBQ? The man won't go near it. Refried beans at our favorite Mexican restaurant? It's never going to happen. But somehow homemade soup beans & cornbread is a whole other ball game for him. 

Maybe it is the nostalgia factor. I think most of us (at least most of here in West Virginia) grew up eating some variation of soup beans. In fact, many local diners and family owned restaurants around here often have a daily special of soup beans & cornbread on their menu board. 

And yes, I do think that the cornbread is essential, folks. I am not saying that you can't be perfectly content with a bowl of these soup beans and ham on their own, but the sweet cornbread just pairs so well with the creamy beans and the saltiness of the ham. 

It is definitely worth the extra 30 minutes or so to bake up a little homemade cornbread. This Cast Iron Skillet Corn Bread recipe happens to be one of my personal favorites... :)

The Mexican Martini

The Mexican Martini is a kicked up version of your traditional margarita with a little extra booze & the perfect balance of sweet & salty...

Whew! I am getting this recipe up on the blog just in time for your all's Cinco de Mayo celebrations later today and this weekend. Talk about cutting it close, but I pulled through for you all. ;) 

Now I know some of you all are already scratching your heads wondering just what in the world is a Mexican Martini. Let me enlighten you all for second or two. 

I had my first sip of a Mexican Martini when I traveled to Austin, Texas last month for a food blogger conference. The first night of our stay at the Embassy Suites by Hilton in Downtown Austin, the conference attendees were treated to a tasting menu from the hotel's in-house restaurant, @SOCO Bars + Bites. 

As we munched on BBQ-rubbed pork belly & gazpacho shooters, servers walked around with trays offering us some of the bar's signature cocktails. The cocktail I happened to fall hard for was their version of the Mexican Martini. 

Of course, I only wish I had known what a boozy kick that they packed before I drank three of them (yes, three of them). Let's just say that the first morning of the conference was just a little rough for me... ;)