Unbelievably Yummy Crock Pot Applesauce

Since we've been ordering produce from the co-op a couple of times a month, I've been looking for ways to use up things so they aren't wasted.

We recently ordered a giant case of apples for L, who eats 3 or 4 apples a day. As we neared the bottom of the box, I realized we need a way to use up the last apples before they could go bad. I found a yummy sounding recipe via Pinterest for applesauce in the crock pot, and made a trial batch.

Crock pot applesauce.

My husband and I ate the entire batch the same day. It was so good, more like apple pie filling than traditional applesauce.

I subsequently made a much larger batch by quadrupling the recipe. (I'd totally recommend making that big of a batch, unless you're cooking for one. A single batch didn't yield much at all.)

You'll find this recipe, (and many more crock pot recipes,) here, at the Crock Pot 365 blog.

Bountiful Baskets

I recently heard people raving about Bountiful Baskets on a forum I frequent. It came at just the right time for us.

Hubs and I have never been the poster children for healthy eating, but lately our eating habits have been at an all time low. We're always in a hurry, someone's always sick. We've been eating whatever's fast and convenient.

Bountiful Baskets: Organic basket $25.

We  placed our first order this week, which included the organic regular basket, an add on order of Italian vegetables, and 5 loaves of bread for $48.00.

Bountiful Baskets: Organic Basket + Italian add on + 5 loaves organic bread: $48.

We're really happy with the purchase.There was lots of variety, but no oddball stuff that nobody likes. The bread is also really good.

I'll be pulling out the cookbooks this week.

Cake Balls, Take 1

Cake ball.

It seems I'm about a year behind on the cooking trends. This year everyone is making whoopie pies, but I'm finally getting around to trying cake balls, (last year's big thing.)

I thought I'd make some for Christmas, but in an uncharacteristic moment of forethought, I decided to do a trial run.

Cake balls.

I used white cake mix, green frosting, and white almond bark coating. They were a little rustic looking, (read: not perfectly round,) but sprinkles cover a multitude of sins.

They were festive looking, and well received by my husband, sister, and of course, the kids. I think I'll be making some of these gingerbread cake balls closer to Christmas, along with our usual fare.

Are you making anything new this year, or sticking to the old favorites?

I Pinned It, I Did It, & I Loved It

I hope I'm not killing ya'll with all the Pinterest references. It really is a never ending source of good ideas.

The hard part is finding time to actually implement them all. I thought I'd do a little round up of ideas that I recently found on Pinterest, actually tried, and loved.

This Cinnamon Sugar Bread is quick to make, and tastes fantastic. I've made it multiple times, for multiple people, and everyone loves it.

Nutella Crescent Rolls really need no explanation, right? They're terrific.

I made one of these Tiered Glass Bowls for some of our Halloween treats, and I love it. I may make a few more for Christmas.

I treated the kids to a glow stick bath, complete with lots of bubbles, and they loved it.

What have you pinned and tried lately?

Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes

Ice cream cone cupcakes.

This weekend our church is having their annual Lord's Acre festival. All of the families in the church are asked to contribute several desserts,  among other things. I didn't really feel like cooking anything really elaborate from scratch, so I poked around on Pinterest until I found something neat, but easy.

(Click here to see one of the images that inspired mine, as well as a cute packaging option.)

I did a little googling to see if the unfrosted cupcakes could be frozen for a couple of days, and then thawed, but there wasn't much of a consensus. Some people worried the cone might get soggy upon thawing.

I decided to test it out myself with a trial run. I baked a small batch, froze a couple of them, and then thawed them. (I took mine out of the bag, and thawed them on a plate. Sometimes there's a little condensation inside the bag as the cupcakes thaw, and I wasn't taking any chances.) They were fine. I suppose your mileage may vary, possibly depending on the cake in question, but for this boxed chocolate cake mix, thawing wasn't an issue.

I decorated our trial batch by piping on a huge pile of chocolate frosting and sprinkles. They were really cute, and I have a feeling they'll be a hit with the kiddos at church.

Best Fudge Ever

One of my mom's signature holiday treats is good, old fashioned, calorie laden, chocolate fudge. Friends, family, neighbors, and coworkers have eagerly awaited it's arrival at Christmas time for years. (To accommodate the demand, mom used to make it in nine pound batches.) It's seriously good.

I've discovered something better though.

Birthday Cake Fudge

Birthday cake fudge. It's heavenly. I whipped up a batch of it for Father's Day, and let's just say I ate a lot, too much, a near fatal amount of it. 

You'll find the recipe at Mrs Bettie Rocker, who apparently found it at Confessions of a Cookbook Queen. 

It easy to make, (as evidenced by the fact that even I could do it.) It's also neat because you can color it to match what ever holiday or party color scheme is appropriate. 

I'll be making some more for Christmas, (and dreaming about it until then.)

By the way, I originally ran across the recipe via Pinterest, which I've already gushed about. If you haven't joined yet, go do it, and be prepared to be blown away by all the neat ideas.

Bread Baking for the Cooking Impaired




One of the things on my to do list this year was to learn how to bake bread. I'm awful  not very good in the kitchen. My one previous attempt at bread baking yielded a whole wheat brick, not especially tasty, but perfectly suitable for masonry.

After asking around, and reading several rave reviews of Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day, I forked over the money, and picked up a copy for myself.

I finally got up the nerve to try out the basic recipe in the book, and guess what? It was awesome. So awesome that the kids and I ate a whole loaf in a couple of hours. (In our defense, it was the smallish loaf pictured above. Also, I consoled myself with the idea that it had to be better for us than the Pop Tarts my son had been begging for...)

The recipe doesn't require a fancy mixer, and in fact there's no kneading involved either.

The bread was tasty, a little like a sourdough, and my family was thouroughly impressed. (I made homemade butter too, and my husband said I was like a cool Martha Stewart.)

I totally recommend the book to anyone who has been dreaming about baking their own bread, but doesn't want to spend a fortune on kitchen appliances, or hours in the kitchen.

For more WFMW tips, check out http://www.wearethatfamily.com/

Disclosure: I recieved nothing in exchange for this recommendation, and paid for the book with my own cold hard cash. The Amazon link above is an affiliate link.

Making Messes, er Cooking with the Kids

My sister's favorite color is green. She'll buy nearly anything, if it's the right shade of lime green.
Yesterday the kids and I made her some green treats for her upcoming birthday, green cupcakes with green icing, green candy coated marshmallows, and green ice cream cone Christmas trees.

The kids had fun, and were really proud to present their creations to their aunt. They love to cook and make messes. (And make a mess they did.) I didn't manage to get any pictures of V eating frosting out of the tub with a spoon at the end, but I'm guessing that was her favorite part...

Chocolate Cheerios "Cupcakes"

When Cheerios asked me to come up with a Cheerios related craft or recipe to do with the kids, I decided to sort of do both, in the form of a crafty snack. (A reci-craft? A Craft-ipe?)


I knew you could make marshmallow cereal treats with virtually any kind of cereal, so I opted to substitute Chocolate Cheerios in the recipe on the back of the bag of marshmallows.

I did the cooking part since my kiddos are too young to be around the stove, and then started molding the hot mixture into a muffin tin to make "cupcakes." Messy? Oh yes, it was messy.

In typical "gotta do it now" mode, I dove right in while the mixture was pretty hot, and extremely sticky. (Next time I'd wait for the mixture to cool a few minutes before working with it.) The kids thought it was hysterically funny to see mommy covered in the sticky mess.

After I made the "cupcakes," it was time for the kids to get in on the action.

My son helped me frost some of the "cupcakes," and then it was time to liberally sprinkle each one with lots of tiny ghosts.

After my little sidekicks were done decorating, it was time to eat.

My two year old daughter pronounced them "scrumptious," and my five year old son declared them "delicious."

As far as I'm concerned, they were a hit. Making Cheerios "cupcakes" was a fun, easy way to spend a little time in the kitchen with the kids. We'll be making them again.

Happy 4th of July!

( Blue and red cupcakes to be frosted, and shared with our Sunday School class tomorrow.)

Have a safe, fun weekend everyone!

Easy Yummy Cobbler

At church tonight, some ladies kept raving about this new cobbler recipe they've all tried. I had to stop by the grocery store on the way home anyway, so I decided to try it out. It's great and also really easy, which is the main prerequisite around here. I'm eating some as I type this.





Spray a large (11x13ish) pan with Pam.


Dump in two (12-16 oz) bags of frozen fruit. (I used mixed berries. Use whatever you like.)


Dump a whole box of (dry) yellow cake mix over the top.


Dump 2 cups of Sprite over the top of that.


Don't mix.


Cover with foil, and place in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes.


Take the foil off, and bake for an additional 45 minutes.



Don't forget to add a glob of whipped cream or ice cream.

Eat until you're nauseated.



(Do you think this counts as "health food" since it has fruit in it?)


P.S. Last night, I got out of the bath tub, and realized that I had forgotten to rinse out the conditioner. I'm tired.

P.P.S. I think V is getting ready to potty train. She's started telling me when she needs a diaper change, and today, she kindly took off her dirty diaper, and laid it on my bed. I guess it was bothering her.