About a month ago, I was so concerned with what I was going to do since summer was coming. See, my older little boy is in preschool and it was letting out for 2 months. It is hard to take two preschoolers with me anywhere, and I had grown accustomed to getting things done in the morning with just one of them.
And here, almost July, and we have one more month. A month filled with fruit picking, zoo trips, play dates, and vacation to North Carolina. It hasn’t been as tough as I thought, but my husband has been gracious with his time off, too.
At the beginning of the week I wanted to bake something and get my older preschooler in the kitchen. He really loves being in the kitchen with me and I love it. So, we opened a cookbook, made a few tweaks with what we had, and put them in the oven.
The next day we got to head to Roswell and go hiking and playing in the water at Vickery Creek Falls. So fun. My boys are definitely water lovers and they love any time they get to spend with their daddy. These bars were delicious and portable and had some good energy boosting carbs in them to refuel them after the hike.
Easy Peanut Butter Bars
Recipe Type: Bar
Cuisine: Dessert
Author: kd316
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 20
Easy, portable, not-to-sweet peanut butter bar
Ingredients
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg (room temp)
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup roasted peanuts (halved)
3/4 cup chocolate chunks (I used dark)
1/2 cup 10x sugar
1 1/2 T creamy peanut butter
2 T milk (or until desired glaze consistency)
Instructions
Cream first ingredients (through vanilla).
While you let the mixer do its work, get a 9×13 pan, line with foil, spray with cooking spray, and set oven to 350.
Combine dry ingredients and mix with sugar mixture.
Fold in chips and nuts.
Press into pan and bake for 20-25 minutes.
When done, let cool in pan for 5-10 minutes.
Take the bars out (made easier with the help of the foil) and put on cooling rack.
Mix glaze and drizzle over the bars.
Let cool completely then cut into squares.
3.5.3208
These were easy to assemble and tasted great and have lasted well throughout the week.
There is something about the generations sitting down for a meal – or tossing flour in the kitchen as they make baked treats, or picking oranges from the groves around home. Heritage and generations tell something of history and the future. Hearing how Gigi’s got started about a decade ago – made me love the cupcake brand even more (the amazing Pecan Pie may have influenced my admiration). I love how she is carrying recipes from generations ago and giving it to people (like me, and my littles) to carry on the yumminess to new generations.
My grandmother got me started on Little Debbie’s Nutty Bars. Every time I see them in the store or dare to buy a box I think of her. I don’t remember her baking a lot but I remember her chicken and rice, french fries, and dressing at Thanksgiving. My Papa (her husband) taught me how to fish, make french fries, and eat (and pick) oranges. I’ve learned my parents’ favorite recipes and I look forward to encouraging my boys to love the kitchen (and cupcakes). When I shared one of the mini cupcakes with my younger son this morning, he quickly licked off all the powder blue buttercream. A dude after his momma’s heart!
Last night I had the opportunity to head to Gigi’s Kennesaw (just north of ATL) and taste their scrumptious desserts – including pies, cheesecakes, stuffed cookies, truffles, and cupcakes (and their new gluten-free line). It was a fun evening, warm and toasty (even though it was raining outside) with other bloggers in the area and the owner of Gigi’s who as a gracious host. We got to eat until we were full, and laugh, and just hang out. It was a great evening.
One of our had tasks we had while we were there was to test out the new #gfreegigis line of cupcakes. Even though Gigi’s cant be considered Gluten Free because they bake with gluten in the building – they go through great lengths to make sure the gluten stays far away from these cupcakes. They want to take care of their customers – both gluten free customers and ones that aren’t. The normal cupcake eater is not going to be able to tell the difference in taste. Most of us even couldn’t. The only thing I could tell was a slight chewiness in texture with the gluten-free – because of the rice flour and tapioca flour blend they use in the baking. But, it was so delicious. And the best thing is that gluten free doesn’t have to mean you can’t have cupcakes. And there is no upcharge like most bakeries and grocery store items. These gluten free cupcakes are the same price!
And if you just need something to eat besides a cupcake: the peanut butter stuffed cookie was my salty goodness for the evening and like I’ve raved about before – the Southern Comfort pecan pie melted this southern girl’s heart (and taste buds)!
Thanks so much Gigi’s Kennesaw! Y’all definitely pleased my taste buds last night!
I didn’t grow up on homemade cookies. The closest we got were a couple of Christmas goodies I remember my Mom training me to bake and Publix cookies. Oreos were always my favorite and of course I was a Girl Scout so the peanut butter sandwich cookies were my favorite thin – now, it is the Thin Mints, hands down.
But, now, sometimes, I wake up thinking about chocolate chip cookies. Who knows? But, I woke up this morning thinking about cookies. It was raining. I have boys. Friends were coming over. No time to go to the store. This is how these amazing cookies started.
A new friend gave me some toffee on a recent trip to the Triangle. I had mini chips in the freezer. My mom always stocks my pantry full of pecans, and I had bars of chocolate in my baking stash.
These are the perfect chewy consistency. Nice and big but not too flat. I tweaked a recipe and it turned out great. I hope you enjoy!
Dark Chocolate Pecan Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies
Recipe Type: Dessert
Cuisine: Cookies
Author: kd316
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 24-30
These chewy chunky toffee cookies will be a crowd pleaser!
Ingredients
2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 tsp sea salt
3/4 tsp baking soda
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
Half cup each:
chopped toffee
mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
chopped milk chocolate
1 cup chopped pecans
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375. Lightly spray baking sheets.
Combine dry ingredients and set aside.
Cream together the butter and the sugars.
Add eggs and vanilla.
Add in the dry ingredients and stir together.
Fold in the add-ins.
Do not over mix
I got 6 cookies per baking sheet – so these are pretty generous cookies.
Bake for 12 minutes.
Do not over bake.
Let cool for 1-2 minutes and remove to a cooling rack. If you let them stay on the baking sheets, the toffee will stick to the pan.
Pumpkin overload – right? Pumpkins are everywhere, even now that Halloween is past and we are moving headlong into the Thanksgiving season.
Do you know what my favorite Thanksgiving commercials are – ever – the Publix pilgrim little figurines – that get so full from all the Publix food that was served on Thanksgiving that their outfits tend to pop buttons. So fun. Growing up in Lakeland, FL – the home of Publix – I saw my share of Publix commercials – and am so glad to be living again with a Publix on every corner.
Anyway, back to pumpkins. As a Mom, sometimes I stress about my kids’ nutrition. I mean my older son could down all the fruit he could ever eat if I let him. My younger son loves those little pouches that are fruit-filled. We have instituted a donut morning one day every week, and I usually bake something sweet, and we eat out just to make life easier. So, I’m not the healthiest Mom out there – but that isn’t the end all either. They love their fruits and veggies so that is great! And neither of them really dig french fries – so that’s a plus!
These muffins – both of them are gobbling up. I feel good about giving them one because there is no added fat in it from butter or oil – so that makes them healthier, right? And, they are very yummy! You can change up the add-ins for the muffins, and this time I had a small amount of white chocolate chips left – they are a very nice addition.
Pumpkin Oats White Chocolate Chip Muffins
Recipe Type: Muffins
Cuisine: Bread
Author: kd316
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 12
A healthy hearty filling pumpkin muffin with a touch of sweetness
Ingredients
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 1/4 cup Pumpkin Pie Mix in a can
1 egg
1 T applesauce
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/3 cup white chocolate chips
Instructions
Mix all the ingredients together.
Spray muffin tin (makes 12 muffins) and set oven on 375
Fill each muffin cup about 3/4 full with muffin batter.
Bake for about 20 minutes or until done, don’t overbake
Now that Halloween is over and a new month is upon us, must of us are gearing up for the other two big holidays – Thanksgiving and Christmas. Let the baking season begin (or, um, continue).
Some people wonder what inspires me to cook what I do. One of the ways is by following great foodie people on Instagram. That’s how these came about. One of the best places in Savannah is Back in the Day Bakery. Cheryl Day, co-owner and baker, featured a chocolate covered rice krispy treat yesterday in her feed.
Well, I thought I would just run to target with my littles and get the ingredients. Little did I know that it would be the worst Target run ever. In front of our local Target store, the city has been demolishing a building. The backhoes and front loaders and bulldozers are in full force. Yes, I’m a mom to two little toddler boys! My older one is mesmerized by their action. So, cue drama and meltdown as I pushed the boy-filled cart toward the Target entrance, away from the construction site. Then, I get in there and finally am able to calm him down, when my younger one who is usually happy as a clam in a store, completely screams his head off for 20 minutes while I’m in the store. He was teething. But, I couldn’t find the marshmallows. I had everything else. Finally just put everything back on the shelves and walked out. Forget making dessert.
Well, later that afternoon I decided I still wanted to make them and we tried again. This time at our local Publix. No construction site. Employees with candy and balloons. They were happy. Momma was happy.
Thankfully, these were made. I’m not usually a fan of milk chocolate anything, but I’m glad I went with the milk chocolate frosting as it was just perfect paired with the peanut butter in the rice krispy treat.
This is a perfect way to use up all of your leftover Halloween candy – or give you a perfect excuse to go buy more!
Halloween Trash Peanut Butter Rice Krispy Treats
Recipe Type: Dessert
Cuisine: Sweets
Author: kd316
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 12
Perfect use for all of your leftover Halloween candy
Ingredients
1 T unsalted butter
3 T creamy peanut butter
1 pinch kosher salt
1 bag mini marshmallows
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
6 cups crisped rice cereal
1 container milk chocolate with chocolate chips frosting
leftover halloween candy
Instructions
Grease a 9×13 pan
In large pot, melt together the butter and peanut butter.
Add salt and stir.
Add marshmallows and stir until melted.
Add in vanilla.
Set pot off the heat.
Stir in cereal.
Press into 9×13 pan by using a piece of parchment paper so the mixture won’t stick to your hands.
Let cool.
Frost with frosting.
Immediately top with leftover crushed Halloween candy.
Fall – I think for a lot of us kitchen people its one of our favorite seasons. Pumpkin. Cinnamon. Sweet Potatoes. Apples.
But, I don’t think I had ever experienced a Fall season until I moved to North Carolina in 2000. See, I grew up in central Florida. The only two seasons we had were Summer and Christmas Day (and some years we only had one season). I loved it. I was close to Disney World though I only remember going in high school and college when I would do Night of Joy with the youth groups. I was close to the beach (though we had a pool, so my Dad couldn’t figure out why we needed to spend money going to the beach).
But, I remember moving to Wake Forest, North Carolina to start seminary right before a huge snow storm – rethinking the whole moving north thing. But, then fall came around at the start of my second semester. I adored the sound the leaves made as I walked through them on my way to class. I loved wearing jackets with my jeans (even though I would sport some flipflops usually). I loved sitting down with a warm cup of chai or steamed milk or hot chocolate to study out on the lawn. The bright blue Fall sky against the browns and yellows and reds of the leaves. Gorgeous.
And of course, Fall brings pumpkin! I could eat pumpkin goodies year round, but yesterday when I stepped outside for an early morning out, and felt the slightly cooler Atlanta air, I knew I was ready for Fall. So, I whipped up these pumpkin butter muffins for my mister. They were a winner. (This recipe was inspired by Joy the Baker)
Pumpkin Butter Whole Wheat Millet Muffins
Recipe Type: Muffins
Cuisine: Breakfast
Author: the charming south kitchen
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 10
Hearty and healthy muffins, of course with some chocolate. Perfect for Fall mornings or evenings!
Ingredients
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 jar (10 oz) pumpkin butter (I used Trader Joe’s)
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup dry millet (I found in bulk aisle at Whole Foods)
3/4 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup milk
juice of 1/2 lemon
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350
Grease or line 10 muffin cups
Mix wet ingredients (up through vanilla)
Combine dry and add to the wet mixture
Mix the milk and the lemon juice then add to muffin mixture.
Fold in chocolate chips.
Spoon into muffins tins.
Bake for about 19 minutes or until muffins are done.
Cool and eat. My husband ate one topped w some raw honey this morning.
