Chai tea & cinnamon muffins

September 28, 2012 by


These cinnamon muffin melts may be my favorite baked good from Tastefully Simple. They are delicious and all you have to do is add water to the mix and throw them in the oven! When they come out, let them cool briefly, then dip the tops in melted butter and the cinnamon sugar (also included).

They turn out perfectly every time! I make them quite often when I have guests over just because they are so simple and everyone loves them! Oh and lets not mention how much my kids like them. They eat off the cinnamon sugar topping and then want me to dip the half eaten muffin again in the sugar. :) It’s safe to say I am passionate about these muffins and there is a reason why Tastefully Simple has never discontinued them. You can view/order cinnamon muffin melts here!

Serve them with Tastefully Simple’s famous Oh My! Chai or an Oh My! Chai chiller! For a chiller just mix 1 scoop of Oh My Chai with 6 oz cold milk and ice in a shaker.

Not a chai fan? There are many other yummy options! Try a Caramel Mocha Frappe or Sweet S’more Cocoa!  I am so happy with all the new yummy drinks TS has to offer this season! Great holiday gifts and perfect for entertaining!

 

*contact me at hannahholzmann [at] gmail [dot] com to get 10% off your order or visit my online store here to place an order.

Happy Friday and thanks for reading!

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Filed Under: appetizers, breakfast, desserts, drinks, It's What's For Dinner Tagged With: , ,

Ham, cheese & broccoli braid

September 27, 2012 by

I have been wanting to make this ever since The Baker Chic posted her braided broccoli-pesto bread recipe and I just got a new baking stone, so perfect time to try it! My braid definitely didn’t turn out as pretty as hers, but I had some restraints (ie: 3 hungry boys tugging at my legs). It was so delicious though!

You can check out the recipe for the dough and how to do the braid here. It’s not as hard as it looks!

Here is what I used for the filling:

  • 1 cup chopped ham
  • 1 cup chopped, steamed brocoli
  • 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
  • 2 tablespoons dijion mustard
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 tablespoon ts onion onion
Mix all ingredients together and spread onto dough.Bake at 350° for 2 minutes.

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Filed Under: appetizers, It's What's For Dinner, meals Tagged With: , ,

Green bean casserole, from scratch

September 26, 2012 by

Since the weather has been getting cooler in the last few weeks all that has been on my mind is cooking. I have been dreaming of a Thanksgiving feast and its only September. So when I saw green beans at the farmer’s market this past weekend I got giddy about going home and making green bean casserole. Not the creamed soup, canned fried onions and canned beans kind (not that there is anything wrong with that, yum!), but green bean casserole from scratch with fresh baked onions . It did not disappoint.

You will need:

For the baked onion topping:

  • 2 medium onions thinly sliced
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 3 tablespoons panko bread crumbs
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
For the green bean casserole:
  • 2 tablespoons sea salt
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • 1 cup chicken broth
  • 1 cup half-and-half

Combine the onions, flour, panko and salt in a large mixing bowl and toss to combine. Coat a sheet pan with nonstick cooking spray and evenly spread the onions on the pan. Place the pan on the middle rack of the oven and bake at 475° until golden brown, approximately 30 minutes. Toss the onions 2 to 3 times during cooking. Once done, remove from the oven and set aside until ready to use.

While the onions are cooking, prepare the beans. Bring a gallon of water and 2 tablespoons of salt to a boil in a saucepan. Add the beans and blanch for 5 minutes. Drain in a colander and immediately plunge the beans into a large bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. Drain and set aside.

Melt the butter in a 12-inch cast iron skillet set over medium-high heat.  Add the garlic , salt, pepper and nutmeg and continue to cook for another 1 to 2 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over the mixture and stir to combine. Cook for 1 minute. Add the broth and simmer for 1 minute. Decrease the heat to medium-low and add the half-and-half. Cook until the mixture thickens, stirring occasionally, approximately 6 to 8 minutes.

Remove from the heat and stir in 1/4 of the onions and all of the green beans. Top with the remaining onions.

Place into the oven and bake at 400° until bubbly, approximately 15 minutes. Remove and serve immediately.

original recipe found here.

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Filed Under: appetizers, It's What's For Dinner, meals

Crockpot BBQ chicken taquitos

September 25, 2012 by

You will need:

  • 8 ounces cream cheese
  • 1 packed TS BBQ dip mix (they no longer make this anymore but I would suggest substituting with 2 tablespoons of TS honey BBQ seasoning or 2 tablespoons of BBQ sauce).
  • 1 cup shredded pepper jack
  • 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • 2 fresh jalapeños, seeds removed and chopped
  • tortillas

Place cream cheese in the crock pot on low heat until it becomes soft. Then mix your seasonings (or sauce) with the cream cheese until smooth. Add the raw chicken and jalapeños. Heat on low for at least 4 hours or up to 6. Add cheese. Push on chicken with a wooden spoon to shred. Fill tortillas with mixture then roll tightly. Place onto baking stone or greased pan drizzle with olive oil.

Bake at 425° for 15 minutes then flip, drizzle with olive oil again and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until crispy on both sides. Serve with sour cream and salsa.*The key is making sure you have enough olive oil on the tortillas while baking so they come out extra crispy.

These were so delicious! The kids loved them. I am already thinking of so many other flavors I could substitute the BBQ flavor with. Endless possibilities!

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Filed Under: appetizers, crockpot, It's What's For Dinner, meals Tagged With: , ,

Fall craft ideas

September 24, 2012 by

Our weekend was jam packed full of fun wedding activities as two of our best friends tied the knot. Therefore I didn’t do any cooking this weekend. Kind of a nice break! So I wanted to share some of the fall crafts we have been working on so far this year!

We love to do art projects in this house and fall brings some really fun ideas for us to try. These super cute Q-tip art trees were found originally here. Just dip Q-tips in different fall colors and stamp for leaves.

Help your child cut out a body shape on white construction paper and glue pieces of Kleenex on and some eyes for a mummy.

Cut out pieces of construction paper as as tree trunks and leaves and glue them on.

This one was so fun to make! Take a toilet paper roll and glue orange construction paper strips around it. Cut a bunch of orange construction paper into strips with the paper the long way.Then glue one end of a strip inside the top of the roll and the other end inside the bottom of the roll. Keep adding more until it starts to look like a pumpkin. Then glue on a stem and leaf. Original idea here.

Family Fun magazine’s “swab skeletons”! Glue Q-tips and cotton swabs together to make a spooky skeleton, then glue on black paper for a face. Jack (my 4 year old) thought this was so cool. Afterwards we practiced writing the alphabet with the Q-tips!

Let your kids paint a canvas. (we used puffy paint before we painted to make the squiggly border). Sprinkle with glitter, let dry. Go on a leaf hunt around your yard! Mod podge the leaves onto the canvas. Easy fall decor that you can bring out every year and kids love making things with leaves they found themselves!

Paint a pre-made wood sign, then mod podge leaves and scrapbook paper onto it. Paint wooden letters and sprinkle with glitter. Hot glue on the sign when completely dry. Matches my fall wreath perfectly!

These awesome centerpieces are made by one of my good friends Emily. She has been making them with her kids for years. Throw together some fall-ish looking twigs in a vase and have your kids write on leaves all the things they are thankful for. Throw some mini-pumpkins in the bottom and ta da! Beautiful, meaningful, cheap centerpiece.

We have lots more time for fall crafts so this is just the beginning! Stay tuned for more!

Three fall books I highly recommend buying:

  • Where the Wild Things are by: Maurice Sendak 
  • Please Try to Remember the First of Octember by: Dr. Seuss, Theo. LeSieg
  • The Tale of Three Trees by: Angela Elwell Hunt, Tim Jonke

Here are some of our other favorite fall-ish stories.

Thanks for reading!

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