A fresh start means fresh ideas and fresh foods.  I’ve been eating healthier with all my meals and breakfast is no exception.  I know most of us buy the instant oatmeal but try making it from scratch next time!  I promise it will taste great and it’s much better for you because it will not have all that sugar.

This is a very good and healthy breakfast which I am trying implement more and more with my all the family but specifically my toddler. Oatmeal is a good source of fiber and is excellent for the heart! There are gazillions of oatmeal variations out there but today I bring you some simple old fashion Banana Nut Oatmeal!

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 c fat-free milk
• 3 TBLS firmly packed brown sugar
• 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 2 c Quaker Oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)
• 2 medium-size ripe bananas, mashed (about 1c)
• Pecan pieces (optional)
• Dash of Honey:) (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

In saucepan, bring milk, brown sugar, and spices to a gentle boil; stir in your oats. Return to a boil; reduce heat to medium. Cook 1 minute for quick oats, 5 minutes for old fashioned oats, or until most of liquid is absorbed, stirring occasionally. Remove oatmeal from heat. Stir in mashed bananas and pecans and a dash of honey.

NOTE: The bananas, honey and pecans can be completely optional!! If you just want plain but tasty oatmeal, the cinnamon and nutmeg are quite wonderful.

ENJOY:)

How would you make your oatmeal? Nutrition is so important but don’t forget to get moving!!

Disclosure: I am an official Walmart Mom. Follow me and my fellow Walmart Moms as we share our ideas and tips for a healthier you! Walmart has provided me with compensation and gift card in return for my time & efforts to create this post. My participation in this program is voluntary and my opinions are my own, always have been, always will be.

What a great meal for the colder weather huh?!   Using pork chops in more creative ways makes for a tasty meal.  This is also a healthier option as opposed to fried pork chops.   I could even see this made as a spicier version.  Maybe some chili powder??  Mmmmm!  Enjoy y’all!

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 can (14 1/2 ounces)  Beef Broth
• 1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
• Vegetable cooking spray
• 4 boneless pork chops sliced into strips
• 1 cup sliced onion ( about 1 medium )
• 6 cups hot cooked wide egg noodles (about 6 cups dry)
• Salt and Pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

In small bowl mix cornstarch, broth and brown sugar until smooth.  Set aside.  Spray skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat 1 minute. (or use small amount of oil)  Add the sliced pork chops and cook 10 minutes or until browned.  Remove sliced pork and set aside.  Put the sliced onion in same skillet and cook until translucent and just browned.  Add the cornstarch mixture to the onions.  Cook until mixture boils and thickens, stirring constantly. (if too thick add a little water)  Return sliced pork to pan.  Reduce heat to low.  Cover and cook 5 minutes or until chops are are no longer pink.  Serve over noodles.

Pizza is like the best ever food invention. You can eat it cold, hot, with meats, vegetables, and even as a dessert.  When I was asked if I wanted to try the new Fleischmann’s Pizza Crust Yeast,  I was like heck yeah! Any excuse to make pizza!  We were supposed to have family night but there were ranch duties that needed tended too. Luckily, I was able to spend pizza time with my 13 year old which was exciting because he’s at the age where he doesn’t want to be around his mom so much you know?

Anyways, he agreed and not only did we make some great pizza, we had a lot of fun.  I was cracking up at the “do I just pour?” and “is this how to do it?”.  We decided to make Pepperoni pizza first, then a dessert pizza.  This post will focus on the pizza dough and the dessert pizza but if you need a simple quick pepperoni pizza, all you need is the pizza dough recipe I’ll be posting, some pizza or spagetti sauce and your choice of toppings. It can be made to eat in 30 minutes.

Also, because I took A LOT of photos, I made a slide show for you so that the page doesn’t take FOREVER to load! Just scroll down towards the bottom for that.

30-MINUTE PIZZA CRUST DOUGH (can be found on the back of the Fleischmann’s Yeast package)

INGREDIENTS

• 1 3/4 – 2 1/4 cups of flour
• 1 envelope Fleischmann’s Pizza Yeast
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup of very warm water (120° to 130° F)
• 3 tablespoons oil

PIZZA CRUST DIRECTIONS

Combine 1 cup flour, undissolved yeast, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Add water and oil.  Mix together until well blended; about 1 minute.  Add ½ cup flour gradually until dough forms a ball. Add additional flour, if needed, to handle.  Spoon dough out of bowl onto floured surface. Dough will be slightly sticky.  Knead on floured surface.  Knead until dough is smooth and elastic; about 4 minutes.  You can either press dough out to fill greased pizza pan or roll dough to a 12-inch circle and transfer to greased pizza pan.  Top as desired with pizza sauce, cheese and toppings.
Bake on bottom oven rack at 425° for 12 to 15 minutes until cheese is bubbly and crust is brown.

The Pizza Yeast from Fleschmann’s is new and I could definitely tell a difference in it. I think anyone who uses yeast a lot will be able to see the fabulous difference!  I thought I’d give you a close up of the ingredient that makes the whole recipe work!

APPLE CRUMB DESSERT PIZZA PIE

INGREDIENTS

• # 1 cups brown sugar, packed
• # 1 cups all-purpose flour
• # 2 ounces butter, cold, cut in pieces (1/2 stick of butter)
• # 1/4 cup of sugar
• # 2 cans of Apple Pie Filling

ICING INGREDIENTS

• Powdered Sugar
• Milk

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400′.  Combine brown sugar, flour, and sugar in a mixing bowl; cut in butter until the mixture is like coarse crumbs.  Pour and spread Apple Pie filling all over Pizza Dough Crust; top with crumb mixture.  Bake for about 12-15 minutes. While pizza is baking, combine 1-2 cups of powdered sugar with a few tablespoons of milk to desired consistency.  You don’t want it too thick but not too runny either.  When dessert pizza is done, drizzle icing all over pizza pie!

To see my son doing all the work, check out the slide show made via whrrl!

One lucky winner will receive a $100 gift card!  WOOHOO!

HOW TO ENTER

Leave a comment answering this question–What is your favorite pizza topping? Maybe like us, you love pepperoni or mushrooms. Maybe you love dessert pizza and have your own favorite fruity topping! Share your ideal pizza with us!

Additional methods of entry, leaving each one in a separate comment, are:

• Share on a social networking site like Twitter or Facebook.
• If you’ve got some of Fleischmann’s Pizza Yeast at home, create a pizza and share it via whrrl! (this gives you 10 extra entries)

Giveaway ends on Nov. 1st.  Good luck and enjoy!

Disclosure: Post is sponsored by ACH Foods, maker of Fleischmann’s Pizza Yeast , however, my opinion of the product remains authentic as always.

White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies have to be some of the BEST cookies ever.  These cookies are slightly crisp on the outside with a soft and chewy inside, full of chunks of macadamia nuts and white chocolate.  Very drool worthy!  What is your favorite kind of cookie?

INGREDIENTS

• 1 pound (2 cups) butter, room temperature
• 1 2/3 cup brown sugar, packed 1 cup granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 Tablespoon vanilla
• 4 ¼ cup all purpose unbleached white flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups (12 ounce bag) white chocolate chips or chunks
• 1 ¼ cup (4 ounces) macadamia nuts, roughly chopped

DIRECTIONS

• 1. This recipe makes a large batch of 48 full size cookies. The full batch will fit in a 5 quart mixer. Divide the recipe in half if needed.
• 2. Make sure the oven keeps the right temperature. The cookies may need a minute or two more or less than stated.
• 3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• 4. Line baking sheets with parchment paper (no need to grease).
• 5. Measure flour, baking soda and salt in a large bowl and blend together. Set aside.
• 6. In a large mixing bowl, preferably a heavy-duty mixer, and using the paddle or beater attachment, beat butter until creamy.
• 7. Add brown sugar and beat again. Scrape down the bowl and add the granulated sugar. Beat until fluffy.
• 8. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition.
• 9. Add vanilla, beat and scrape again.
• 10. On low speed, add flour mixture 2 cups at a time, and mix well.
• 11. Mix in white chocolate and macadamia nuts. Mix only until blended.
• 12. Using a cookie scoop, place dough on prepared baking sheets, spacing evenly to allow for spreading.
• 13. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned. Do NOT over bake these cookies. They continue to bake for a few minutes after they are removed from the oven.
• 14. Transfer to cooling racks. Store in air tight container or plastic bag to stay soft and moist.
• 15. Makes 48 warm and gooey cookies.

Over the next week I’ll be bringing a few Mexican treats like today’s Mexican Candy.   Coming from a partial Hispanic background and marrying into a Hispanic family, I’ve had the pleasure to eat some really delicious sweets that are super easy to make and VERY budget friendly!

There are a few versions of Mexican Candy but today I’m bringing you a very basic one.  One that looks like a praline of sorts.  It literally only takes minutes to make and a couple of minutes before they’re ready to eat.  It definitely isn’t something I’d make often but for an occasional sugar rush, it sure hits the spot!

As with many recipes, you can completely omit the pecans but because we’re nuts ’round here, we put them in all kinds of desserts!

If you have your own version, I’d love to hear it!

P.S. If you’re looking for an organizer for your wax paper, foil, and plastic wrap (and they cut perfect every time!), check out the WrapMaster – It’s my favorite!

Mexican Candy

Ingredients

• 1 cup of white sugar
• 1 cup of brown sugar
• 1 cup of pecans (whole or pieces)
• 7 Tbs milk
• Wax Paper

Instructions

Cook sugar & milk ingredients in saucepan until you a small ball forms in a glass of water. Meaning, drop just a tiny bit into a glass of water and if it forms into a solid, then it’s ready. Mix in pecans. Pour spoonfuls out onto waxed paper and let cool. VIOLA, it’s done. Told you it was fast!

My rating: 4.0 stars It deserves 5 stars but since it’s terribly sweet, I gave it 4.

Hmmmm, I’m not sure how maple and bacon cookies are going to taste but they sure look good! If you make these, please let me know. I would love hear how they turn out for y’all.

Things have been crazy around here but hope to have things back to normal soon! Thanks for bearing with me guys.

INGREDIENTS

• * 1 c. butter or margarine, softened
• * 3/4 c. brown sugar, packed
• * 3/4 c. sugar
• * 2 eggs
• * 1 t. maple extract or 1 T + 1 t. maple syrup
• * 2 1/2 c. flour
• * 1 t. baking soda
• * 1/4 t. salt
• * 1/2 – 1 lb. bacon, cooked, crumbled and well drained

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large mixing bowl, beat together butter or margarine, brown sugar and sugar until fluffy. Stir in eggs and maple extract or syrup. Beat for 1 more minute.

2. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. Stir to combine and add in batches to mixing bowl. Beat just long enough to incorporate.

3. By hand, stir in the bacon pieces. Drop by tablespoons onto cookie sheets. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes, until golden brown.

About the Author:

Kate is a stay-at-homeschooling mom to 4 (10, 4, 3, 2) and wife to a wonderfully crazy man. She banished the daily dinner witching hour when she learned to use Stolen Moments throughout the day to have dinner prepared before lunch time every day. Kate cooks from scratch, bulk cooks and sticks to a strict monthly grocery budget. You can read more about Kate and her methods and recipes on Cooking During Stolen Moments.

Please welcome my guest poster. Lynn is a stay at home, homeschooling mom to three. She loves to cook and try all kinds of recipes. You can follow her adventures in the kitchen at Lynn’s Kitchen Adventures.

My family loves cookies, and I am glad because cookies are one of my favorite things to bake. I love trying new cookie recipes because I am always looking for a better cookie. I also like tweaking my favorite recipes to come up with new versions.

One of the recipes that I tweaked was my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe. I wanted to try a cookie that had chocolate and toffee in it, because I love that combination. I tried a few things, and I finally came up with a really good version of a Chocolate Toffee Pecan Cookie.

These cookies are so good. I sent a plate full of them to work with my husband and everyone loved them. I also served them to friends, and they all liked them. I had trouble not eating them, they are so good. I entered these cookies in the Bass Pecan recipe contest, and they won the grand prize of $1,000.  I love these cookies. If you like chocolate and toffee, give these a try.

These cookies are large cookies. They are made to be like a cookie you would buy in a coffee shop or bakery. I have tried making them smaller, but it changes the texture. You want these large.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 c. plus 2 TB flour
• ½ tsp. baking soda
• ½ tsp. salt
• 12 TB butter melted
• 1 c. brown sugar
• ½ c. sugar
• 1 egg, plus 1 egg yolk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• 4 ounce English toffee bits
• 3/4 cup chopped pecans, very finely chopped

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 325. In a bowl, mix dry ingredient. In mixing bowl, combine butter and sugars until well blended. Add egg, yolk, and vanilla. Batter will appear slightly greasy. Add dry ingredients, until blended. Add chocolate chips, pecans, and toffee pieces. Scoop in ¼ c. balls onto cookie sheet. I use an ice cream scoop. Place 6 on each cookie sheet. You should only place 6 per sheet because these are large cookies and they spread out. Bake for 15 minutes.

And makes your eyes roll back into your head. Yep, this hot fudge cake is that good. Add some Vanilla Bean Ice cream and you’re in heaven!  My girl Tara shared this recipe and now I’m passing it on to you.  If you don’t know Deal Seeking Mom, you need to.  She’s beautiful, smart, and is always smiling & giving off such positive energy.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 c. all-purpose flour
• 2/3 c. granulated sugar
• 2 t. baking powder
• 1 t. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/2 c. unsweetened cocoa
• 1/2 c. whole milk
• 2 T. melted butter
• 1 t. vanilla extract
• 1 c. packed brown sugar
• 1 1/2 c. boiling water
• vanilla bean ice cream

DIRECTIONS IN 4 EASY STEPS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8″x8″ glass baking dish or shallow 2-qt. casserole.

2. In a medium bowl combine flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and 1/4 c. cocoa. Whisk in milk, melted butter, and vanilla just until smooth. Spread batter into baking dish.

3. In a small bowl mix brown sugar and 1/4 c. cocoa. Sprinkle evenly over batter. Carefully pour 1 1/2 c. boiling water over mixture. DO NOT STIR.

4. Bake for 30 minutes. Batter will separate into cake and hot fudge layers. Cool in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Serve warm with ice cream. It tastes just as good reheated, but you will have less fudge because the cake will absorb it.

If you’re lazy or just don’t have time, Betty Crocker’s Warm Delights are delish! Free sample to try too just in case you’re not sure about them.

BAHAHAHHAHAHAHA…gotcha huh!  Oh….I SO crack myself up.

So my SIL read my Hershey’s post and was inspired to use some Hershey’s chocolate that she had handy in her own pantry!  You know, cookies are really easy to make, each batch usually makes a lot, and they’re always hit with everyone!

Anyways, this post here was submitted by my ever so lovely, very humorous, beautiful SIL!  What?  You never know when I might need something eh???  heehee

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 C. Butter Flavor Crisco
• 1 C. Granulated Sugar
• 1 C. Packed Brown Sugar
• 2 tbs Milk
• 1 tsp Vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 2 C. Flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 C. Oats (quick or regular)
• 1 C. Corn Flakes (crushed)
• 2 C Hershey’s semi-sweet Choc chips
• 1 C. Pecans
• 1 C. Coconut

DIRECTIONS:

Heat oven to 350′. Grease baking sheet with crisco. Combine first 5 ingredients, beat at low speed mixer until well creamy. Add all dry ingredients. mix at low speed until dough is well mixed.

Using a ice cream scoop, drop 3″ apart onto greased sheet. Bake 13-15 minutes or until edges are lightly brown but centers are slightly soft. Cool 3 minutes on sheet then remove with spatula to rack to set.

Makes about 2 dozen 5″ cookies…..

This oatmeal cake is the best ever and this is coming from someone who not a big fan of oatmeal.  Not only that, it is very popular among the men.  This was something that I cooked for the cowboys and they would tell my husband how much they enjoyed the dessert.  I personally think it borders the food porn side…..yeah, it’s that good!

INGREDIENTS:

For the Cake:

• 1 1/4 c Boiling Water
• 1 c Quick Oats
• 1 stick butter
• 1 c brown sugar
• 1 c white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/3 c flour
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg

For the Icing:

• 1/2 stick butter
• 1 c brown sugar
• 1/4 c evaporated milk
• powered sugar

DIRECTIONS:

Mix water, oats, and butter & let stand for 15 minutes.  Add remaining ingredients together in a bowl.  Add oatmeal mixture to the bowl and mix well.  Bake in an 8 x 11 casserole dish at 350′ for 30 minutes.

ICING DIRECTIONS:

Melt ingredients together in saucepan and cool.  Add powered sugar until thick enough to pour over cake.  Pour over HOT cake!  I usually take a toothpick and poke holes throughout the cake so that the icing sinks in…YUMMY!

OH.MY.GOSH…..this is SOOOOOO good!!!  Enjoy:)