dark chocolate almond milk & banana smoothie

This smoothie is so super easy and quick to make for breakfast or a snack. Here's how....

INGREDIENTS 

1 1/2 Cups Dark Chocolate Almond Milk

Ice to your liking

1 Banana

DIRECTIONS

Put all ingredients in blender and mix until smooth.

Pour in a glass and enjoy!

*Makes a little more than a glass full*

Happy Tuesday! xo

chocolate chip pumpkin muffins

Today the weather is cold and rainy. The sky is white and it has drizzled almost all day long. I'm still wearing the hoodie I put on this morning. It seemed like a good idea to us all for something pumpkin. Because today it feels a little like fall. And pumpkin? It screams fall. So, after lunch, I pulled out a well-worn recipe and whipped up a batch of chocolate chip pumpkin muffins. I think there might be a few left.

chocolate chip pumpkin muffins

Dry ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon cloves

1/4 teaspoon salt

Wet ingredients:

2 eggs, beaten

1 cup pumpkin

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 cup chocolate chips

Mix together dry ingredients and set aside. In large bowl beat eggs. Stir in pumpkin and melted butter. Slowly add dry ingredients and stir. Fold in chocolate chips. Spoon batter into muffin pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Enjoy!

P.S. Like I said here, I've been working on a new design -- and now it's on display. What do you think of it?

how i make iced coffee

Brew one cup of coffee.

Stir in 1-1 1/2 spoon fulls of sugar, then chill coffee and sugar mixture in freezer for seven minutes.

After coffee is chilled, add 1/4 cup milk and stir in.

Add dark chocolate almond milk to taste (optional).

Fill glass with ice and pour coffee in.

Drizzle chocolate syrup over coffee (optional). Enjoy!

ICED COFFEE

1 cup coffee

1-1 1/2 spoonfuls of sugar

1/4 cup milk

dark chocolate almond milk to taste (optional)

ice

chocolate syrup (optional)

Brew coffee. Stir in sugar, then chill coffee and sugar mixture in freezer for seven minutes. After coffee mixture is cooled, add milk and stir in. Add almond milk to taste and stir in (optional). Fill glass with ice and pour coffee mixture in. Drizzle chocolate syrup on top (optional). Enjoy!

homemade granola

Yesterday evening, while golden light trickled through the windows and an eventide breeze blew through the screen door, crystallized honey melted on the stove and I scattered ingredients about our wooden table.

Granola. It's my main food group. I wanted to make my own, so I searched high and low all over the internet and skimmed through some cookbooks. Most recipes have heaps of sugar and make very big batches. Eventually, this recipe was found and I decided to go off of it mostly. Want to try it? Here's how to...

What you'll need: old fashioned oatmeal, salt, cinnamon, olive oil, honey, and brown sugar.

(Not pictured, chocolate chunks, optional.)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees farenheit and grease a baking sheet.

In large bowl add 2 cups of oatmeal, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, and a pinch of salt.

Whisk the ingredients together, breaking apart any clumps of brown sugar as needed.

Stir together 1/4 cup warmed honey and 1/4 cup olive oil.

Drizzle the honey and oil mixture over the dry ingredients and mix together.

Spread the uncooked granola on the grease baking sheet.

Bake in the oven for 15-25 minutes (mine took about 18 minutes), stirring once or twice.

When cooked, spread the granola on a sheet of waxed paper and let it cool.

After the granola is cooled completely, add dried fruit, nuts, chocolate, or just leave it plain.

Homemade Granola

ingredients

2 cups old fashioned oatmeal (uncooked)

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

A pinch of salt

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup olive oil

directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees and grease a baking sheet. In large bowl combine the oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Warm honey. Add olive oil to the honey and stir. Drizzle the honey and oil mixture over the dry ingredients and mix them together. Spread granola on the greased baking sheet. Bake 15-25 minutes, or until granola is crunchy and golden, stirring once or twice. Pour cooked granola on a sheet of waxed paper and let it cool. Once the granola is completely cooled, add dried fruit, nuts, chocolate, or just leave it plain. Enjoy!

p.s. i did my first guest post over on francesca's blog today -- come take a look!

homemade pumpkin spice latte.

I promise you, I really do know how to follow a recipe -- you wouldn't know it from my recipe posts though. I had been really been wanting to try a pumpkin spice latte, so I tried one at Starbucks. Delicious. When trying to re-create one, I decided to go without an exact recipe (scary, right?). I did, however, take two recipes (here and here) and based off of them what I would need for ingredients and such.

So, would you like to try out my version of a pumpkin spice latte? It's really very good. And very simple. Here's a step-by-step recipe...

Mix together 1/2 cup coffee...

1 1/2 cup milk...

1/2 cup half and half -- or if you don't have any on hand, then you can just use 2 cups of milk, instead...

5 heaping tablespoons of canned pumpkin...

2 tablespoons of vanilla, about a tablespoon of brown sugar (this pretty much depends on how sweet you would like it to be) and a large dash of cinnamon in a sauce pan over medium/low heat

Whisk together until well combined and steaming.

Pour mixture into cup and top with Redi-Whip and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Yum.

<< Homemade Pumpkin Spice Latte >>

ingredients:

1/2 c. coffee

1 1/2 c. milk

1/2 c. half and half

5 heaping tbsp canned pumpkin

 2 tbsp vanilla extract

brown sugar {to taste}

cinnamon {to taste}

directions:

whisk all ingredients together over medium/low heat,

until well combined and steaming.

pour mixture in cups.

top with Redi-Whip and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

Enjoy!

Happy cooking! 

-haley 

amish baked oatmeal.

*Ok, I'm 20% sure I posted a picture of this at sometime. But, if I did post it, then I'm another 20% sure that I didn't post the recipe.*


You have to try this. You. have. to. It's so good. Even if you don't like oatmeal, I think you'll like it. It takes like a cookie. It's Amish Baked Oatmeal. Pros: It has to set in the fridge overnight so it's ready to pop in the oven in the morning. Cons: When you want to eat it a.s.a.p. you have to wait until morning. Good nonetheless.

// Amish Baked Oatmeal //

Ingredients:

1/3 c. butter

2 large eggs

3/4 c. brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. nutmeg or 1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp. salt

1 c. milk

3 c. oatmeal (regular or quick)

Directions:

1. Melt butter.

2. Grease 1 1/2 quart baking dish & drop in eggs, & beat well.

3. Add brown sugar, baking powder, vanilla, nutmeg or cinnamon, & salt. Mix well, no lumps.

4. Whisk in butter & both measures of milk.

5. Stir well, & refrigerate overnight.

6. Bake, uncovered, at 350* for 35-45 min, or until set in the middle.

Serve:

Serve hot with warm milk poured over.

Or...Haley's way...which is no milk - lotsa butter.

It's good. Trust me. Happy weekend!

-haley

chocolate chip cookie bars.

Pen-pals are so much fun. I have 2 great pen-pals -- one of them is Bethany (see her blogs here and here). Last letter she sent me a recipe for chocolate chip cookie bars. Although, I don't think they ended up how they were supposed to, they were so so so so good!


Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
3/4 c. brown sugar
1/2 sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1 3/4 c. flour
chocolate chips


Beat sugars and margarine or butter.
Add egg and vanilla. Mix well. 
Add baking soda and salt then flour.
Mix well. Add chocolate chips. 
Bake in greased 9x13" pan on 375* for 15-20 minutes.
Enjoy!


The amount of butter wasn't specified, so I used one and a half sticks. Although, I probably could've just used one. Because it seemed a little too soupy, I added a little more flour. And I used about a half a bag of chocolate chips. Oh...and one little thing...I didn't use the mixer. I've always wanted to do that ;) Probably not the best idea, but oh well, they still turned out good. Also, after the cooking time was up, I turned the oven off and let them set up while we ate dinner.

They were crunchy on top and gooey on the inside. I ate too many of them. They may be my almost new favorite ;)

What's your favorite dessert?


-haley