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Since April Fool's Day is coming this weekend I thought I would share with you a super yummy, easy treat but something to fool your kids with. My daughter wanted a treat and I told her she could have some chocolate chips, which they love to eat straight out of the bag.  I try to keep them hidden so I can have them around for baking so when she heard me say that she was very, very excited. I pulled these lovelies out and all the kids thought it was so funny.  When have you ever had a chip dipped in chocolate?  I can't think of a time when I have and I actually thought these were pretty fabulous.  But I do love a good crunch, sweet, salty snack.  This was exactly that! We also took these to a work party and everyone thought they were a hit. If you need some other April Fool's Ideas check out these awesome cupcake s! Chocolate Chips ( click here for printable version ) Ruffles Potato Chipes Chocolate Candy Melts White (vanilla) Candy Melts 1.  Melt the chocol...

Playdough is a very favorite past time at our house.  Everyone loves to dig their hands into the stuff and play to their heart's content. I always have to prep myself for playdough time though. Because it gets everywhere.  Seriously how does it get clear across the room and in cupboards but somehow it does!  So every time it comes out I have to prep myself for the mess. But man it sure is magical stuff.  The kiddos played for a solid hour with this stuff.  They made all sorts of food for each other, animals, and shapes.  It was so much fun. And guess what?...this is by far the best homemade playdough recipe I have found.  The consistency was very close to the real stuff, plus the Jello makes it smell fantastic.  This is another kid pleaser for spring break. Jello Playdough ( click here for printable version ) 1 1/2 cups white flour + more for kneading 2 tbsp salt 2 tbsp cream of tartar 2 tbsp vegetable oil 1 cup warm water 1 3oz package Jello (any...

I decided since it's Spring Break at our house that I would post some fun "recipes" to do with your kiddos. I actually look forward to some time off school.  Mostly because my 6th grader has lots of homework so it's nice to have a break from it. Plus we have been having the most fabulous weather here so we spend most of our time outside but have found a few projects to do inside. On of our favorite things to do (at least me and my girls) is color.  Sometimes I just love to sit down and color.  Any other adults still like to color!!??!! I noticed the last time we colored we had gobs of broken crayons which I can't stand because they are so hard to color with.  So we decided to melt them down and have some new colors to color with. My kids thought this part was fun but I thought it was the least favorite part.  You need to unwrap all the crayons.   We then sorted them by color because that's how my girls wanted them to be, but it really doesn't matter. Next ...

This year I had decided that I was going to post some pie recipes in honor of Pi day.  I made some delicious pies, took pictures of them, and then promptly forgot all about them. Dang it!! So instead of pie last week you will get pie this week.  Maybe next year I will actually remember. You see, at my kids school Pi day is a huge deal.  And usually I am a total slacker mom and don't do anything to celebrate with them. At school they have a contest to see you can recite the most numbers in Pi (a 5th grader won and she had memorized hundreds of numbers--all in order--and she went on for at least 10 minutes--crazy!!), throw "pie" at their teachers, play games, work out pi math problems, and many other cool things. So in honor of Pi day and me completely forgetting about it, here is a delicious pie that we loved.  My kids thought it was crazy awesome and I enjoyed it too, but it was a little on the sweet side for me. Banoffee Pie ( click here for printable version ) 1 9 ...

Oh I love quick and easy tricks.   This is one of those my friends.  Sometimes, let's face it, it's 5 o'clock and nothing is ready for dinner.  The kids are whining they are hungry and you have no idea what to make. This is me at least several times a week.  I love to cook but sometimes I completely space getting ready for dinner (truthfully it's more like I don't want to so I ignore it!!).   In our house we love our meats but if I have to wait for chicken to cook then that eliminates at least half of my recipes.  But I was browsing one of the cooking blogs I frequent and she had the easiest tip for cooking chicken. And I thought DUH!  Totally makes sense.  10 minutes flat and you have perfect chicken. Awesome!!! Now for the disclaimer: for all of you out there that think the microwave is going to kill you this is not a post for you.  You better stop reading right now and go somewhere else because this is all about the wonderful powers of the...

How was your St. Patrick's Day? We kept it pretty low key around here since we are in crazy mode till the end of June.  If I am ever missing around here for awhile you'll know why, it's this thing I am in charge of called Stake Girl's Camp!!  One of the awesome parts is that I get to be with 100 12-17 age girls AND I get to pick the head cook--which I am so excited about.   You know cause it's essential (in my world at least) to have great food while your camping.  I don't think I could survive for 5 days with crappy food!  I'm serious I might send myself home :) But back to this sweet sauce.  I finally bit the bullet and made some of this goodness myself.  You see I have had it bookmarked and pinned to try for ages but have just not got around to it so I made myself do it.  And guess what--it was super easy, at least the second time. The first time I tried this method and it was an absolute failure (let me know if any of you have tried it that ...

 Have you heard the news?!!? The engineers of Picnik (which is closing next month) have started a new website called PicMonkey . YEAH! I am so excited because I have never bit the bullet and bought a professional editing software.  They scare me too much--silly I know, but it's true. So I have always used Picnik and I loved their services and was so sad to hear they were closing but now we have PicMonkey .  I have just started using them and I have loved everything I have tried.  It's very user friendly and perfect for users like me. And the best part...It's totally free.  Yep, completely free to use whatever you want right now.  I encourage to head on over and check them out. Now this cookie is a piece of heaven for me.  I LOVE german chocolate cake so this cookie was perfect.  Little bites of pecans, coconut and chocolate in round pieces of goodness.  I got this recipe from my friend Lynn and we have enjoyed it thoroughly (at least the hubs...

 What is it about jars that makes everything cuter?   I haven't figured that out yet but I totally think it's true.  You can take cupcakes or rolls or pretty much anything and stick it in a jar and the cuteness factor completely doubles. Plus I think it dresses up a dinner party so well.  And who doesn't love individual portions?  My kids think it's awesome when it is a perfect size for them.  This chili and cornbread was just the right amount for them and they loved having their own little jar. The best part of this is that I just used our favorite chili recipe and our favorite cornbread recipe.  Don't be afraid to experiment with any soup that is tasty with cornbread, like white chili or minestrone. Ahhh...do delicious and so pretty! Chili-n-Cornbread in a Jar ( click here for printable version ) Favorite chili recipe (we love this one also) Favorite cornbread recipe ( ours is here ) Small canning jar 1.  Preheat your oven to 375°F.  Fil...

Ladies and Gentlemen....we have found a winner!! Doesn't that sound so exciting!!??!! It is not very often that the hubs continually raves about a dessert I make. Now don't get me wrong, he usually likes everything I make and is very kind about his complements but how I know that we have found a winner is that he not only have seconds and thirds, but he tells everyone about it and asks when we can have it again. That's how these little bits of goodness were.  We all loved them, even the kids thought they were amazing, but the hubs....he really, really loved them. And the best part is that they are super easy to make.  You could whip these out in no time flat and then everyone would think you are absolutely amazing!! Plus you could make them in a spring form pan or in individual portions like I did, completely up to you.  Just know that if you are on a diet, don't blame me for gaining 5 pounds after making these.  I'm just warning you!!! No Bake Berry Oreo Cheesecake...

I find that as my kids get older, the more they want to eat after they get home from school. Are your kids like that? I always have to have something in mind for them to snack on or they get a little grumpy.  Our rule is one healthy snack first and then a not so healthy snack, because lets face it people, my kids are like me and love their chocolate and sugar! Our healthy snacks are usually fruits and veggies but sometimes I try to spice it up a little bit for them.  This was definitely a crowd pleaser and the kids snacked on them all day long, which was just fine with them me since they are so healthy. I loved the chewiness and texture they have plus you know me, with peanut butter and chocolate you can usually never go wrong! p.s. sorry Emily it took me so long to get this up for you :) Healthy Banana Oat Snack Bars ( click here for printable version ) 3/4 cup whole wheat flour 2 cups rolled oats 1 1/2 cups puffed rice cereal, like Rice Krispies 1/4 tsp salt 1/4 tsp nutmeg 1...

Now I know that name sounds fancy and complicated but it's really not. I promise.  When I first saw this recipe I thought, "what in the heck is coulis!"  I had never heard of it (which might say something about me but I trust some of you haven't heard it either) so I of course did the only natural thing. I wikipedied it.  Because "wikipedied" is totally a real word! Wikipedia says that coulis is, "is a form of thick sauce made from puréed and strained vegetables or fruits. A vegetable coulis is commonly used on meat and vegetable dishes, and it can also be used as a base for soups or other sauces. Fruit coulis are most often used on desserts. Raspberry coulis, for example, is especially popular with poached apples." Sounds pretty cool right? And the best part, it's not hard at all.  Plus I love being able to mix up my vegetables sometimes.  I kind of get tired of eating the same vegetables the same way.  This red pepper coulis is so mild that i...

I was having a conversation the other day with a friend.  I had told her we had made this bread and that all of us (including every single kid) couldn't stay out of it, it was that good. She said, "Well of course it has Twixes in it!" Then we proceeded to have a conversation about candy bars, which kind was good, which kind are good to bake with, etc.  And the conclusion I came to was: pretty every single one! Seriously, peanut butter twixes are definitely at the top of my favorites but you can't leave out peanut butter m&ms, or butterfingers, or snickers, or reese's peanut butter cups.  The list is practically endless and I have found no end to the ideas of things we could put them in besides just eating them. Candy bars are one of those things I just can't have sitting around my house.  If I buy them I have to put them in a recipe almost immediately because they call to me from the cupboard saying naughty things, like "i'm so good, come and eat ...