Apple Cider Floats

There's nothing like some apple cider in the fall! Unfortunately, Florida weather calls for a little twist! Here's a little pinterest find that's the perfect mix of north and south!

Ingredients;

• Apple Cider
• Vanilla Ice Cream
• Caramel Sauce
• Cinnamon
• Whipped Cream

Directions:

1. Scoop some ice cream in a cup and drizzle caramel sauce on top
2. Pour chilled apple cider over ice cream, leaving room for whipped cream
3. Sprinkle a little ground cinnamon over cider, and top with some whipped cream

That's it! Super simple, and super yummy!

Caramel Apple Muffins

Happy Back to School Season! Here's a delicious treat for a teacher, a yummy first day breakfast, or a perfect after school snack!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups flour (I use 1 cup ww, 1 cup white)
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 t baking powder
• 1/2 t salt
• 2 1/2 T cinnamon
• 1 egg
• 1 cup milk
• 1/4 cup melted butter
• 1 t vanilla
• 1 apple, peeled and diced
• 12 caramels unwrapped

Directions:

1. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon
2. In another bowl, combine egg, milk, butter, and vanilla
3. Incorporate flour mixture, do not over mix
4. Fold in apple chunks
5. Pour batter into lined muffin cups
6. Push one caramel into the center of each 
7. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes
8. Serve warm or caramels will harden

*Recipe modified from original in Goosbury Patch: Comfort Foods

Whole Wheat Cinnamon Rolls

UM...yeah, I'm letting you in on our family secret here! I've been making these for a couple of years, and thought one day "hey, why not use fresh flour instead" and thus, the fresh milled cinnamon roll was born. Amen.

This would be the PERFECT first day of school breakfast, just make the dough at night, place in pan, and stick in fridge. In the morning, bring it out and let rise in a warm place for about an hour before baking.

Ingredients

Dough:

• 1 1/4 cup warm milk
• 1/2 stick melted butter
• 2 eggs
• 3 cups whole wheat flour (fresh milled or King Arthur White Whole Wheat)
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 Tablespoon yeast (I use commercial yeast)

Filling;

• 1/2 stick melted butter
• Brown Sugar and Cinnamon (your preference on amount)

Icing:

• 1/2 stick softened butter
• 1/2 block softened cream cheese
• 1 cup confectioners sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla

Directions;

1. Melt butter with milk on medium in saucepan
2. Mix together ALL dough ingredients, kneading for about 4 minutes
3. Let dough rest for ten minutes (IF YOU USE REGULAR YEAST, allow a 30 minute rise, punch down, and continue)
4. Roll dough out into rectangle (about 18 inches long) and spread with melted butter and brown sugar/cinnamon)
5. Roll up and cut into 12 pieces, placing each into a greased 9x13 pan, cover, and let rise 30 minutes (it will continue to rise in oven)
6. Bake at 400 for 16 minutes
7. While rolls are in oven, beat together icing ingredients, while rolls are still hot, spread icing and serve

Just a note: These are a little more "dense" than cinnamon rolls made with all white flour, but nothing that my kids notice. My husband and I LOVE these, whole wheat or not. Because whole wheat flour is a little heavier than white flour, the rise won't look like a normal doubling. 

Here's the dough fresh in the pan

This is after 30 minutes right before sticking in oven

And this is straight out of the oven

Happy Monday!!!

Peanut Butter Banana Bread

Happy Monday! I've got a grab and go breakfast for ya this week:

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup honey or brown sugar
• 1/3 cup applesauce
• 2 eggs 
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 large mashed banana (1 cup)
• 1 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup peanut butter
• 1 tsp baking soda dissolved in 1/4 cup warm water
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips or peanut butter chips

Directions:

1. Mix honey, applesauce, eggs, vanilla, and banana until blended
2. Slowly add in flour, salt, and peanut butter
3. Incorporate baking soda
4. Fold in chips
5. Pour into greased loaf pan
6. Bake at 325 for 45-55 minutes
7. Allow to cool for 30 minutes before slicing

Funnel Cake!

No, seriously, because have I got a recipe for you this Monday!

This is SO easy, it's three ingredients IF you include water! May I add that these are "ingredients" I never expected to use in my home? Don't judge me! Sometimes, you need a little fair food in your life!

Ingredients:

• Pancake mix (the "just add water" kind)
• Vegetable oil
• Water

Directions:

1. In a cast iron skillet, heat about 2 inches of oil over medium high heat
2. While oil is heating, mix 2 cups of pancake mix with just over 1 1/2 cups water. Continue adding water until mixture is slightly thinner than pancake batter (it should create a ribbon on top when you drizzle with a spoon)
3. In a piping bag OR a ziploc with the tip cut off, slowly drizzle batter in circular motion over hot oil, let cook for about 45 seconds.
4. CAREFULLY flip using tongs, and continue cooking another 30-45 seconds.
5. Place on a plate lined with a paper towel, sprinkle powdered sugar or toppings of choice, and serve! 

Angel Food Sheet Cake

Confession: I do NOT like cake. It's pie for my birthday, and chocolates for a treat. I could pass right by a cake any day, but angel food cake is an entirely different story! Light fluffy cake, cool whip icing, and fresh fruit. Sounds like summer...and a second piece!

Ingredients:

• 12 large egg whites
• 1 tsp cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• pinch of salt
• cool whip
• fresh berries

Directions:

1. In a stand mixer (or with electric whisk) beat egg whites and cream of tartar until stiff peaks form, add in vanilla and lemon
2. In a separate bowl, sift together sugar, flour, and salt
3. Gently fold in flour mixture to egg white mixture, 1/2 cup at a time
4. Line 9x13 glass dish with foil - using pam or spray oil will form a crust on this cake!
5. Pour batter in pan. It will be completely full.
6. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes, and flip pan onto cooling rack immediately
7. Leave pan on top of inverted cake for one hour while cooling to avoid crusting
8. Frost with cool whip when completely cooled, add fresh berries, and refrigerate until serving! 

Whole Wheat Brownies

I am constantly trying to find ways to substitute "my" flour (fresh milled) into recipes that call for white flour, and it's a struggle. Measurements are just different when working with whole wheat, and the truth is, most of what's out there considered "whole wheat" is a mixture of whole wheat flour and white flour in order to achieve a more "white" look and texture. While we generally swap out sugar for raw honey, that just doesn't work here. The MAIN ingredient is still sugar. These brownies, though, over time, have developed into the perfect little slice of heaven with a LITTLE less mommy guilt as my kids shovel them in,

Lets be real, I'm calling this a healthy breakfast.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup oil of choice (I used a mixture of 1/2 melted grassfed butter and 1/2 coconut oil)
• 1 1/2 cups (yes, seriously) organic sugar
• 4 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2/3 cup cocoa powder
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
  (I used hard white wheat, similar to King Arthur White Whole Wheat)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking powder

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350, grease 9x13 pan
2. Whisk oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla 
3. Slowly incorporate remaining dry ingredients (do not overmix, extra air in mix will make these brownies more "cake-like")
4. Spread mixture into pan and bake for 25-30 minutes (Pictured result is at 28 minutes, bake for less time for a more gooey brownie)

Carrot Cake Bars

People. You have to make these! Just 6 ingredients, and the kids can 100% make 'em (with supervision)! 

Ingredients:

• 1 box spice cake mix
• 1 cup shredded carrots
• 4 eggs
• 1 stick butter, melted
• 1 block cream cheese, softened
• 3 cups powdered sugar

Directions:

1. Mix together cake mix, carrots, 2 eggs, and butter. Spread into greased 9x13 GLASS pan.
2. With an electric mixer, beat together 2 more eggs, cream cheese, and powdered sugar. Pour over cake mix. 
3. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. It will still look wobbly. Let cool for an hour, and then refrigerate for at least an hour before serving. 

Sweet and Salty Peanut Butter Cheesecake!

Ingredients
Crust:
1 1/2 C crushed salted pretzels
1/3 cup melted butter

Filling:
5 packages (8oz each) softened cream cheese
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 eggs
1 cup peanut butter chips
1 cup chocolate chips

Topping:
1 cup sour cream
3 T peanut butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup chopped peanuts (I used salted honey roasted)

Directions

1. Combine FINELY crushed pretzels and butter, press into bottom of springform pan* and bake for 5 min @ 350
2. Meanwhile, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth, add in peanut butter, vanilla, and eggs. fold in chips,
3. Pour topping over crust and place pan on baking sheet. Bake for 70 minutes at 350.
4. Remove pan from oven and let cool for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, combine sour cream, peanut butter, and sugar. Spread over cooled cheesecake, and sprinkle with nuts.
5. Bake again for 5 minutes.
6. Let cool for an hour before refrigerating at least 8 hours.

*Original recipe from Taste of Home, winter 1999, calls for 10" pan and 50 min baking time, I used 8" and 70 min.

Real Holiday Treats

Before I start, I reference "real food" quite often. For those of you who don't know what that is, click HERE.

I have a couple of Christmas treat recipes that follow these guidelines, and the best part is that the bold flavors in the recipes totally mask what children would consider "icky" (i.e. almond milk or whole grain flour). I took these gingerbread to a party last week and all of the kids gobbled them down. Literally. I had to stick one in my purse to save for my husband. 

Ingredients:

• 3 cups King Arthur white whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tablespoon ground ginger
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp cloves
• 1 stick unsalted butter, room temp
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup molasses
• 2 tsp vanilla

Directions

1. In a large bowl, whisk dry ingredients, including spices
2. In another bowl, beat honey, butter, and egg at medium speed
3. Add molasses and vanilla and continue to mix on medium
4. Slowly add in dry ingredients until well blended
5. Divide dough in 2 sections and wrap in plastic (one lump of dough will be too hard to roll out, you have to separate it!)
6. Let dough sit for at least an hour at room temp
7. Roll out carefully on floured surface, this dough is rather crumbly and requires some muscle to keep in tact. 
8. Cut with cookie cutter and bake at 375 for about ten minutes!

Ingredients

• 2 cups almond milk (this would work with whole milk as well, just bump up the cocoa powder)
• 1 cinnamon stick, split in half
• 1/8 cup cocoa powder
• Just under 1/4 cup maple syrup (or sugar)
• pinch of salt

Directions

1. bring almond milk to a boil with cinnamon stick, and lower to simmer for ten minutes
2. remove cinnamon and whisk in cocoa, salt, and maple syrup (or sugar) vigorously
3. when mixture starts to "foam" pour into cup and top with a sprinkle of cinnamon - YUM!

And for anyone interested, this is our current baking jam-out song! Such a fun one to dance around to with little ones!

Carrot Cake Whoopie Pies!

I've been on a whoopie pie kick lately, thanks to my Valentine's Day baking marathon, and as Easter approaches, it's time to kick things up a notch!

Let me begin by saying this: I break our family rules when it comes to the whoopie pie - I use boxed mix and all of it's chemical goodness. I also use canned icing (that's even gross to TYPE) when I'm in a real rush. Now that I've put out that disclaimer, you can not judge me. Here are the simple instructions:

For the cookie:
1 box carrot cake mix
2 eggs
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup butter or oil
1/2 cup flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Mix all ingredients and drop by tablespoonful 2 inches apart on baking sheets. Bake 11-13 minutes. Let cool on baking sheets for 10 minutes before transferring to rack.

For the icing:
1 stick butter, softened
1 block of cream cheese at room temp
2 cups confectioners sugar
vanilla

Beat ingredients together until combined, OR open a can of store bought cream cheese icing :)

Drop spoonful of icing on a cookie and press another on top. It's that simple!

Frozen Hot Chocolate

Every year around Christmas I force my husband to sit and watch "Serendipity" with me. It really isn't a "Christmas movie" per say, but for some reason we see it as a holiday film around here. Usually we buy the frozen hot chocolate mix, but our chocolate shop was out of it this year, so I whipped this copy cat recipe up on a moments notice, and we LOVED it. So simple, easy, and so delicious...serendipitous...

Frozen Hot Chocolate

• 4 packets (.73oz) "Swiss Miss" hot chocolate mix
• 3 cups ice
• 1 cup whole milk

Blend together, pour into adorable mug, force husband to bust out cheesy movie, and enjoy!

"Ugly Pie" by Lisa Wheeler

It's been a while since our last "Weekly Wrap Up", but to be honest, nothing so exciting has been happening around here! Our youngest had surgery and we had to keep him still for about three weeks, so we have just been focusing on Bible, Phonics, and Math. But now that is all behind us!

We REALLY miss Five in a Row, and with the baby due in about 6 weeks, I just can't commit to "theming out" every aspect of school right now, so to keep books fun around here, Fridays are our new "library" days. We visit the library on Friday afternoons and each kid usually picks around 5-7 books for the week. Friday mornings now for the last two weeks have been our chance to engage ourselves with the story before we return it. This keeps literature alive for the kids without having to incorporate it throughout all of school. 

This week, the kids favorite book was "Ugly Pie" by Lisa Wheeler, a story about a bear who sets out on a mission to make an ugly pie, and with some ingredients from his neighbors, successfully bakes one stinkin' hideous looking pie. In the back of the book was a recipe to make the actual pie, although we modified it slightly. Here's a look into our project day:

 

Some of the ingredients were in glass jars so that the kids could explore them as we read along

 

I really do LOVE that younger brothers and sisters get to participate in fun learning activities with us!

 

 

 

Ready to bake!

Patiently waiting...

DONE! Each duo with their pie, which they loved!

AND here's our version of the recipe, for copyright sake, you can purchase or check the book out for their version!

Ugly Pie

• 1 frozen pie crust
• 3lb bag peeled/chopped apples
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 5T flour
• 1t cinnamon
• 1/2t nutmeg
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup brown sugar 

Topping:

• 1cup flour
• 1 stick butter, softened
• 1/2 t salt

• Make the topping by combining all ingredients and chilling in fridge until nice and crumbly

• Mix together apples, molasses, walnuts, and raisins. 

• In a separate bowl, mix flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and sugars. Add dry ingredients to fruit and nut mixture until fully incorporated

• Pour into pie crust and top with topping mixture

•  Bake at 400 for 45 minutes covered with tinfoil, then an additional 15 minutes uncovered!

"My-oh-my-oh-my"!

Reese's Pieces Cake!

I made a birthday cake this weekend and it was a hit, too good to not share! 

For the Cake:

I used a traditional double chocolate cake mix - the trick is in the add ins! All you have to do to make it super moist is swap out the water for chocolate milk in equal parts. This really makes a difference as you will have to refrigerate this cake due to the frosting, and the fridge generally dries out boxed cakes.

For the Frosting:

This is super simple.

Start by mixing 1 cup of softened butter with 1 cup of peanut butter* until it is blended.

Next, add in 1/4 cup of milk and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract until blended.

Finish it off by slowly incorporating 4 cups of powdered sugar, and then beat on high for 30 seconds.

*Note: Peanut butter icing generally calls for more peanut butter than 1 cup, but to give it the true "Reese's Pieces" taste, I cut back on the peanut butter

Assembly:

Crumb coat the cake and press Reese's Pieces candies on the sides. Frost top of cake using a spoon, gently pulling spoon up in circles to create a textured top.

Banana Boston Cream Pie

Today, the kids and I took my mom out to celebrate her birthday:

 Everyone knows her favorite cake is Boston Cream Pie, so in order to make it a "special surprise" as Little B would say, we changed it up, and made the filling BANANA! Here's the super quick and easy recipe:

 Ingredients needed: 

 Yellow Cake Mix (the kind with pudding, I think it's Betty Crocker?)

 Filling 
3.4 oz pack of Instant Banana Pudding
1 Cup Milk
1 Container "Cool Whip" brand Whipped Topping

Glaze
1 Bar Unsweetened Bakers Chocolate
3/4 Cp Powdered Sugar
1T Butter
3T Milk

• Mix and bake cake according to package directions, let cool
• Mix Pudding and Milk until set (about 2 minutes) and fold in Cool Whip
• Slice dome off of bottom layer of cake and lay on serving dish
• Spread ALL of the pudding mixture on top, place second layer on top of pudding
• Chop, microwave, and melt chocolate and butter according to package directions - about one minute on high (VERY important that you use BAKERS chocolate, or it will burn on high)
• Mix in powdered sugar and milk, pour on top of cake and immediately place in fridge for 2 hours before serving

Happy Birthday Mom!!!

Gramma Ruperd's Super Secret Shortcake

Ok, seriously, the shortcake recipe isn't that secretive, hard, or fancy. But it is my Gramma's, and that makes it special. Every summer, Gramma would pull this one out and suddenly my giant, loving, family, would become the "first come, first served" type. It wouldn't be right to pass up a 4th of July without it, and it remains our family tradition, even though we are a good thousand miles apart. Here we go!

Ingredients needed:

5 cups Bisquick

4 T Sugar (Gram adds more, fyi)

2 T Lemon juice mixed with 1 cup milk

6 T melted butter

1 t almond extract

2 T sliced almonds

8 cups whole strawberries

sugar for topping

cool whip

• Mix together lemon/milk with butter and almond extract
• Slowly incorporate Bisquick and Sugar
• Continue mixing by hand until they have reached "biscuit" consistency
• Drop 1/3 cupfuls on ungreased baking sheet
• Sprinkle with almonds
• Bake at 350 for 12-15 mins

While that's baking, use a potato masher and mash the strawberries and about a 1/2 cup sugar, leaving the juices in bowl

When shortcakes come out, cut them in half, load 'em with some strawberries, and a good 'ol dollop of cool whip! Tastes like summertime!