Pistachio Muffins I roughed the hot weather, and heated up the oven this morning while it was still… well, not 110 degrees heat index. We decided to make a triple batch of these awesome, delicious Pistachio Muffins. Basically we plan to freeze two dozen of them to save for next week, or the next time I do not wish to heat up the oven. Pistachio Muffins You need: 3 c. flour 1 1/2 c.sugar 2 Tbs baking powder 1 box Pistachio Jello Instant Pudding 2 eggs, beaten 1 1/4 c. milk 1 1/2 Tbs. honey 3/4 c. coconut or canola oil In a big bowl, mix together all of the dry ingredients: flour, the sugar, the baking powder and the pudding mix. In a medium bowl, combine the eggs, the milk, the honey and the oil. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and blend until moistened. Fill the baking cups full. Bake 20 to 25 minutes in preheated 375-degree oven, or until muffins test done. Mmm… Enjoy! Awesome with a hot cup of coffee or tea.
Five packaged foods you never need to buy again What did you resolve to do this year? Eat healthier? Avoid processed foods? Stay away from GMOs? Stop buying products foisted on you by the man? Reduce the size of your weekly garbage bag? I want to do all of those things, which is why I am so damn excited about this post. Photo: madlyinlovewithlifeNever buy soup I’ve always hated trying to shop for soup. If there are no animal parts in the soup, there’s usually lots of salt, fat, and additives, or a little GMOs just for fun. If there’s nothing objectionable in the ingredients, eating store-bought soup usually means taking a trip to bland city. The funny thing is, when you make soup at home, you don’t have to add any junk and it’s always bursting with the flavor of whatever vegetables you put in it. Campbell’s and their corporate buddies have somehow managed to convince us that making soup is a task better left to the experts. Just open your fridge and Google whatever you see in there followed by “soup recipe.” So get to it. 2. 4.
Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread Looks yummy, right? And let me tell you, this cinnamon bread really is yummy! Immensely! I am actually so impressed by it that I would call it a gift from heaven. Okay, maybe not exactly from heaven since the original recipe was born in Joy the Baker’s kitchen. Dear friends, please prepare this delicious, finger-licking, soft, yeasty, cinnamony bread over the weekend for your family. If you wonder how, I’ll show you… Here’s the list of ingredients. 1. 2. 3. You can also melt the butter in milk in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. 4. 5. I kneaded the dough by hand for about 10 minutes. You can, of course, use an electric mixer and have the job done in about half the time. 6. O-oh, we have a serious case of yeastafalitis here. Or, in other words, this is what happened after I let the dough rest for one hour. 7. 8. 9. 10. Melt the butter (in the microwave oven or in a saucepan). 11. 12. 13. I went horizontally, it’s the rebel in me. Joy said she drooled at this phase. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18.
Candied Strawberries We have a city celebration commemorating the strawberry fields that used to be a major economic contributor of the town in days long past (that is to say, before it was fiscally nonsensical to try to produce a major crop locally that you could get much cheaper from Chile). Sadly, even though we continue to celebrate Strawberry Days, there are no strawberries grown anywhere but backyards in our town. We do continue to eat and observe with a parade, carnival, pie eating contests and rodeos, and really, what else do you need? The kiddies don’t have to know that the city orders five ba-jillion cases of strawberries from CA! All that matters is that we have tons of strawberries to eat (swimming in cream), and to make yummy recipes with! The Chef brought some of these home last Valentines Day and I couldn’t wait to make them to honor our town’s Strawberry Days Shindig!! makes 1–2 dozen, depending on the size of berries, and how fast you can dip!
Make an Edible Candy Bowl | Dollar Store Mom - Frugal Fun - Crafts for Kids Today’s post is a lesson in improvisation. Why? Well, this project was INTENDED to be a candy tray, a fancy version of something I saw done flawlessly at Tutto Bella. Now, if I was a crafting perfectionist, or blogging perfectionist, or if I’d had two more cups of coffee today, maybe I’d've tried a second time to make my vision work…but I’m not, I’m not, and I didn’t. Supplies: candy canes- $1 for twelveold fashioned hard candies- $1starlight mints- $1 for a bag, I used just one for this particular project Unwrap the candy canes and starlight mint and arrange on a baking sheet lined with wax paper or parchment paper. Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes, but watch it closely the whole time!! Then I realized it was still quite hot and pretty pliable, so I quickly grabbed a bowl, turned it upside down and placed the whole thing on top.
Ultimate Macaroni & Cheese Recipe I have joined up with Tina @ Mom’s Crazy cooking and her new Crazy Cooking Challenge to go on a quest to find the ultimate recipe of our favorite foods. The basic rules: Go out into “Blog World” visit blogs we may have been wanting to get to know, have stumbled across or just find one we’ve never been to before. The challenge is then for us to pick a recipe from “Blog World”. It can be ANY recipe we’d like to try, but it MUST be from another blog. It cannot be from a celebrity chef like Rachel Ray or Taste of Home (bummer), etc., it needs to be a SPECIFIC recipe, then we bake it & blog about it. This month, our quest was to find the Ultimate Macaroni and Cheese recipe. This one was a challenge for me for a couple of reasons. After much searching and weeks of reading recipes and blogs online, I finally found/chose my Macaroni and Cheese recipe. Please be sure to VOTE for your favorite recipe! Just a FYI….I am entry #18! I can’t stop visiting her site either. is available here . </b>*} 1. 2.
Chocolate Chip Lava Cookies I am so in love with these darn chocolate lava cookies! What is it about a warm, gooey chocolate chip cookie stuffed with decadent, rich, melted chocolate that makes it so irresistible?? Especially when topped with vanilla ice cream. These are one of Kev’s favorite homemade treats, and he usually asks me to make them at least once a week. They are so simple to whip up, and such a treat! Let’s make some right now :) All you really need for these fabulous cookies is your favorite cookie dough and a bag of chocolate chips. Since these cookies are absolutely gushing with delicious rich chocolate, my favorite chocolate chips for this recipe are the Hersey’s Milk Chocolate chips. Now let’s make some chocolate lava cookies! Place the flattened cookie dough in the bottom of a well-greased standard sized muffin tin. Now for our gooey, rich milk chocolate filling. Lay the Ziploc bag flat in the microwave, spreading out the chocolate chips in a single layer. Heaven help me. Mama mia. 1. 2. 3.
Banana Bread in-a-jar: DIY Wedding Favors Posted on July 11, 2012 by Christina I’m crazy about DIY wedding favors that are edible, so naturally I love this banana bread in a jar recipe. It’s the perfect favor for a barn wedding – or any rustic wedding! I’ve made banana bread countless times, but this is the first time I attempted it in a jar. I honestly thought it would be much more difficult than it is. Read on for the recipe and wrapping instructions. Also, check out Peach Crisp in a Jar. Banana Bread in a Jar Recipe (adapted from allrecipes.com) (Makes one dozen 250 ml jars) Ingredients: 2/3 cup shortening2 2/3 cups white sugar4 eggs2 cups mashed bananas2/3 cup water3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour1/2 teaspoon baking powder2 teaspoons baking soda1 1/2 teaspoons salt1 teaspoon ground cinnamon1 teaspoon ground cloves (I used half a teaspoon because I didn’t want mine too ‘clovey’.)2/3 cup chopped pecans or walnuts You will also need: 12 250 ml canning jarsfunnel Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Mash bananas.
Homemade Nutella Recipe If you ask me, Nutella should be considered one of the four main food groups. This chocolate-hazelnut spread has it all: healthy fat and protein from nuts, heart-healthy antioxidants from the dark chocolate, a touch of sweetness to fulfill that…um…sugar requirement…okay, so it’s not quite ready for a starring role on the food pyramid. Who cares, when it tastes so good? The problem with traditional Nutella–in addition to its addicting flavor–is that it’s loaded with modified palm oil. Homemade Nutella Recipeyield: about 1.5 cups Ingredients 2.5 oz (about 2/3 cups) roasted unsalted hazelnuts3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk3 oz (about 1/2 cup) unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped3 tbsp honey, agave nectar, or other liquid sweetenera food processor The first step is to toast the hazelnuts. The food processor is going to do most of the work in this recipe, so prepare yourself for a lot of food processor pictures. Success! Homemade Nutella Recipe
Candy Cane Blossoms Too darn cute. I am the first to admit that I am a sucker for cute packaging and anything "Holiday themed" as evidenced in earlier posts. I saw these candy can kisses hit my local CVS right after Halloween. Normally I would have made some gripe about it being too early to put out Christmas Candy, but since they were so cute, I bought a bag and put it in my pantry to be saved until today. How cute are these cookies? I made my own colored sugar which is much more affordable than buying it. UPDATE: I posted this recipe again with a few additional tips and sprinkle ideas. Candy Cane Blossoms 1 bag Hershey;s Kisses brand Candy Cane Kisses 1/2 cup butter, softened 1 cup granulated sugar 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1 egg 2 cups all purpose flour 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 2 tablespoons milk Red and Green colored sugar Preheat over to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Beat butter, sugar, vanilla, and egg in large bowl until well blended. Shape dough into 1 inch balls.
Baked Egg Boat recipe Breakfast is my favorite meal. I like to drink iced coffee and watch the cream climb its way down the chunky ice cubes in a dazy before the caffeine hits. I like to order bacon with whatever I’m eating. I like eating potatoes with ketchup. I like eggs over easy, and fluffy scrambled eggs. Baked Egg BoatsMakes 4 Ingredients: 4 demi sourdough baguettes 5 eggs 1/3 cup heavy cream 4 ounces pancetta, finely chopped and fried until crisp 3 ounces gruyere cheese, grated 2 green onions, thinly slicedsalt and pepper to tasteDirections: 1. Autumn Brittle Several weeks ago I tried a new snack from Costco called "Cashew Clusters" and became completely obsessed with it. It is amazingly and utterly delicious! They're these kind of granola chunks with cashews, pumpkin seeds and almonds in them. I decided to try to make a brittle using mostly the same ingredients, but added some dried cranberries as well to boost the healthiness of the candy. Ingredients: 1 Cup Almonds 1 Cup Cashews 3/4 Cup Pumpkin Seeds 2/3 Cup Dried Cranberries 2 and 1/2 Cups Granulated Sugar 1/2 Cup Honey 1 Cup Water 1/2 Teaspoon Salt 1 Tablespoon Butter Heat the sugar, honey, water and salt in a large pot over a low-medium flame. While the sugar mixture is boiling, place a sheet of parchment paper on top of a shallow pan, about 9 x 13 inches in width and length, and grease the parchment paper. Immediately pour the mixture onto the parchment paper and spread it out into a large rectangle using a rubber spatula.
Peanut Butter Chocolate Pillows Happy Birthday to my Brother in Law, Steve! Steve just so happens to be smitten with my baked goods, so every birthday I spoil him with a new vegan treat to enjoy. I’ve been meaning to make these Peanut Butter Chocolate Pillows by Isa & Terry for a very long time now! I think I was a bit intimidated by the process of making these cookies. Stuffing a peanut butter ball into a cookie didn’t exactly sound fool proof (and trust me, I can mess up the easiest things at times!), but these cookies have been so well reviewed on other blogs I knew it couldn’t be that difficult. It turns out that it is fool proof! I’ll show you the step by step process to show you just how easy it is! You start off by making your chocolate dough and your peanut butter dough. Umm excuse me sir, that’s not dirt in my nails, it’s chocolate dough…duh. Break your peanut butter dough ball in half. Break each half in half again and then break each quarter into 6 pieces (as even as possible): Roll in hands until smooth: