Easy Homemade Yogurt - Instant Pot (Cold Start)

I'm here to profess my undying love for my Instant Pot.  I've made so many wonderful things with it, and it's hard to choose what has been my favorite so far.  Chicken that literally falls off the bone, pot roast that melts in your mouth, healthy bone broth, hearty soups, amazingly creamy yogurt... the list goes on and on.

Who knew homemade yogurt could be so easy and tasty to make!?  With the Instant Pot, there's no need to go through the tedious steps of heating the yogurt to 180, cooling it to 115 degrees, etc.  This is a cold start recipe, meaning you simply dump the cold ingredients into the pot, cover it, use the yogurt setting, and then chill it in the refrigerator!  I won't be using store-bought yogurt anymore!  I love the fact that I can control exactly what I put into my yogurt!

Zucchini Crisp - Tastes Just Like Apples!

'Tis the season for zucchini!  As much as I love a good zucchini cake, after a while, I get tired of the same old zucchini desserts.  Enter Zucchini Crisp.  Shh!  Don't tell anyone, and I promise they'll never know that this crisp has zucchini in it.  It tastes just like apples and the consistency is just like apples, too!  Really?  Really!  My daughter, who HATES zucchini, gobbled it up and absolutely loved it.  Once I told her what was really in it, she had a complete look of disbelief on her face and said, "How did you get apple flavor inside the zucchini?"  She even continued to finish and have seconds after the secret was revealed to her.  Give it a try... you will not be disappointed!  

Notes:  If you use a very large zucchini from your garden, make sure to remove the seeds from it after you cut it lengthwise.  Small zucchini don't need to be seeded.

Chocolate & Peanut Butter Fat Bombs (Keto)

Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce you to a little gem that gets me through those times when I'm craving something sweet and naughty.  Ever heard of a fat bomb?  I hadn't until I started my Keto diet journey.  They sound kind of gross, don't they?  Actually, fat bombs are so high in fat and low in protein that they help your body burn more fat for fuel and stay in ketosis.  And when I say "fat," I'm talking about healthy fats.  Here's the homeschooling mom coming out... we need these healthy fats to help our bodies absorb fat soluble vitamins like vitamin A, D, E, and K.  Thanks, Apologia science!  Anyway, back to the recipe.  These chocolate and peanut butter fat bombs are amazing!  1 gram of carbs never tasted so good!    

Notes:  The mixture will sweeten as it sets.  Carb count will vary depending on the size of your silicone molds.  Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.  

Salted Caramel Apple Pie Bars

It's finally feeling like a crisp, fall day; let the baking season commence!  These salted caramel apple pie bars are to. die. for.  Imagine with me.  Buttery, shortbread crust topped with a sweet layer of apples, cinnamon streusel, and a delectable salted caramel drizzled on top.  Perfection.

Note:  Don't let the list of ingredients intimidate you.  Most of them are repeated.  There really are only 10 total ingredients (including the salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg).

Peanut Butter & Chocolate Chip Granola Bars

These are our favorite granola bars.  They're amazingly good, super easy to make, perfectly chewy, and they won't crumble on you!  The only problem you'll have with these is suppressing your urge to eat them all!  

Note:  You can substitute the honey with additional maple syrup, if desired.  

Key Lime Pie... and a little update

There have been lots of life changes happening over our way.  All good things!  For one, we officially began homeschooling this week.  I can't believe that I have a 7th grader; she's growing like a weed!  It's been a lot of fun so far learning and working together.  In history, we're talking about the Rise and Fall of the Western Roman Empire.  Today, we're going to be cooking a meal that the Romans would have eaten over a pit of fire.  I love the flexibility we have and ability to use our creativity to learn.

On the first day of school, we did something that we probably won't make a habit of doing... I think.  We had key lime pie for breakfast!  It was seriously a heavenly start to the first day!  I think pie should totally be an acceptable form of breakfast, don't you?  Oh, and it washes down so well with a hot cup of coffee, too.  This was my very first attempt at making a key lime pie, and it turned out delicious!  It was light and refreshing, and it wasn't overly sweet.  There's a reason this recipe was so highly rated!  The only thing I think I would change next time is halving the sugar in the graham cracker crust. 

Peanut Butter Cup Crunch Brownies

We were invited to a friend's house for dinner and games over the weekend, and she served this fantastic ziti dish that I hope to eventually get the recipe for!  When I was trying to decide on what to bring for dessert, I stumbled across this Peanut Butter Cup Crunch Brownie recipe over at Sally's Baking Addiction.  After reading the reviews and recipe, I knew I had to try them right away.  I was a little nervous how they would turn out, but, honestly, how can you go wrong with these ingredients?!  They have a fudgy brownie base with a center layer of peanut butter cups and peanuts, and then they are topped off with a crunchy layer of melted chocolate and peanut butter with Rice Krispies cereal.  Chewy and crunchy all in one bite!  Serve them with some vanilla bean ice cream on the side, and they will be sure to please!

Note:  These are really rich, so I would suggest cutting them into smaller serving squares.    

Streusel Eggnog Cupcakes with Eggnog Glaze

Every year, my little sous chef and I get all excited and giggly when we see eggnog in the stores.  Making your own eggnog from scratch is very easy and worth the effort.  Check out my recipe here.  I've made eggnog cookies, eggnog holiday cake, eggnog cupcakes, eggnog French toast... you get the idea!  We can't get enough of it!  Things tend to get very slow around the holidays with my job, and I had a full today to myself today to do whatever I wanted.  So, of course, I got into the kitchen and came up with these babies.  They are delicious, and the streusel and eggnog glaze take these muffins to a heavenly realm! 

Peach Crumb Bars

February 22, 2010 is a very special date to me.  That was the day that I began my journey in food blogging.  I devoted every spare moment that I had to creating new recipes, styling the food for pictures, photographing them, and writing about them.  

Fast forward to present day, 5 years later.  After years of saving and living as frugally as we could, we finally did it -- we bought our dream house!  We also now have some land, and I can finally garden in my own backyard.  (The garden that I've written about countless times is one that we share with dear friends and family at a different location.)  Most of my free time now has been spent gardening, harvesting, and preserving.  I have some shelving in my basement where I store all of my canned foods, and I have a pretty nice collection so far.  My husband suggested that I start a section on my blog for canning.  Harvest is nearing an end, so maybe next year!  

I have about 15 quart jars of peaches hanging out in my basement.  It's been quite a while since I've blogged any dessert recipes, so I decided to use some of my canned peaches to make peach crumb bars as a treat over weekend.  These are delicious!  They're like a perfect mix of peach cobbler and peach pie.  My husband and I enjoy them warm, but my little sous chef likes them better cold.  However you eat it, try your best to score a corner piece!   

Double Nutella Fudge Puddles

This is it!  The only Christmas cookie you'll need.  Nutella chocolate chip cookies with walnuts and a dollop of Nutella in the center.  These are so amazingly amazing!  It's like a cross between a cookie and a brownie.  Decadent goodness with a delightful fudgy, chewy center.  It's also so easy to make.

Note:  Regarding the serving size, each fudge puddle is larger than your average cookie.  Look at it as a dessert experience - like having a slice of cake on your plate.  If you'd like them to be smaller, you can easily use a mini muffin pan the same way.   

Do yourself a favor and start gathering the ingredients now.  Trust me - you need this in your life!  

Easy Pumpkin Cheesecake & Gingersnap Trifles

Happy National Dessert Day!  Treat yourself to these quick, easy, and delicious pumpkin cheesecake trifles with crushed gingersnaps.  They're so good, you might find yourself eating the whole thing like I did!

Homemade Cinnamon-Spiced Applesauce with Canning Instructions

One of my favorite things to do on a chilly fall day is make applesauce.  It's super easy, tastes better than any of that store-bought stuff you can buy, and it makes the house smell ahh-mazing while it's simmering!  For the best flavor, try to use a variety of apples that are good for cooking such as Fuji, Gala, Pippin, Jonathan, Gravenstein, Rome, Jonagold, Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, and McIntosh.  Honeycrisp apples are also very good (actually my favorite), but they are a little more on the watery side.  Whenever I use Honeycrisp apples, I reduce the amount of water to usually 3/4 cup.  The beauty of homemade applesauce is that it's very forgiving.  The natural sweetness of your apples will ultimately determine how much sugar you will want to use.  Always start out using less sugar than you think because you can always add more later.  If your applesauce is too sweet, add some lemon juice.  Try substituting the water for apple juice and even add a touch of pure vanilla extract for some more depth of flavor.

For making a larger quantity of applesauce for canning, see below.

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with Pumpkin-Cream Cheese Glaze

It started a couple weeks ago while we were celebrating the wedding of some friends.  After a very touching, beautiful ceremony, we found ourselves enjoying cocktail hour with friends and family.  Mid-conversation, a tray of what looked to be martinis were presented to us.  Pumpkin martinis you say?  Sure, I'll try one.  One sip, ahhh - I was in heaven!  They were the most it was the most (okay, so I had two!) delicious pumpkin martini I have ever had!  I tend to not jump on the pumpkin train as quickly as everyone else does when autumn rolls around, but I am officially on board!  Choo choo!  

For my first pumpkin recipe of the season, I made these delectable pumpkin cinnamon rolls.  I decided to amp up the pumpkin and add it not only to the dough, but to the filling and the glaze.  Making cinnamon rolls from scratch may be time consuming, but these are so worth it in the end!  They are certainly a family favorite, and they don't last very long around here at all.  They are amazing warm, but I enjoy them the most when they are cold.  I indulged in two of these bad boys today, so please excuse me while I go do some crunches.  

Cherry Crumble Bars

Oh, how I love sweet cherries!  They are in season for far too short a time, so I jump on them as soon as I see a good sale.  As a little girl, I remember my Grandmommy putting them in the freezer, pits and all.  Later on in the evening, we would take them out and enjoy them as a frozen treat.  I've carried on that sweet "tradition" with my little sous chef, but I wanted to use them in something special now that she's out of school.  I decided to make crumble bars, and they turned out fantastic!  They are a perfect summer treat for breakfast or dessert!  

A note on pitting cherries:  Once cherries go on sale, I immediately put them in my freezer, without pitting them.  Once I'm ready to use them, I run them under warm water in a colander for a minute or two in order to partially thaw them out.  I then pit them using a pastry tip.  When the cherries are partially frozen, they are easier to pit and the juices don't run everywhere.

Tropical Oat Bars with Pineapple & Coconut

Looking forward to your next vacation?  These oat bars will send your taste buds straight to paradise!  Sweet pineapple, flaked coconut, and freshly squeezed lime juice give them a delicious tropical flare.  The pineapple filling in the center is made by cooking fresh pineapple in some sugar and lime juice.  When the bars are baked, the the center sets up as delicious pineapple preserves.  Better yet, I made these lower in fat by using nonfat Greek yogurt to replace half of the butter!  These are great for breakfast or as a snack.  Give them a try!

(Flourless & Butterless) Carrot Cake Cookies with Cream Cheese Glaze

Just because we're spring cleaning our diets doesn't mean that we have to deprive ourselves of the things that we love!  I had a few hours to myself between my little sous chef's dance recital and violin concert this weekend, so I decided to fool around with some ingredients and make healthy cookies that I can treat myself to throughout the week.  I came up with these flourless and butterless cookies that include goodies like oats, shredded carrot, flaked coconut, wheat germ, and walnuts.  They are delicious, delightfully chewy, and not overly sweet.  When paired with the cream cheese glaze, they are just dreamy.  These healthy, guilt-free cookies are so easy to make and can be ready for you to indulge in, in under 20 minutes!  They would be a great option for breakfast on-the-go, too!  

Note:  These cookies will maintain the exact shape that you place them on the baking sheet, so use your fingers to form them into your desired shape.

Cinnamon Applesauce Crumb Cake

Confession.  I'm not the best baker in the world.  I'll admit it - I don't like sticking to recipes, and I especially don't like measuring out ingredients.  I guess it's just because I'm lazy I'm so used to not measuring things when I'm cooking.  With baking, everything has to be exact - there's no eyeballing it.  So, one of the things I have been trying to do recently is bettering myself in the baking department.      

My husband and I recently came across some delicious Amish applesauce cake that we both loved.  He asked me over this past weekend to try to recreate it for him.  Trouble is, I've never made applesauce cake before, and I'm definitely not the most confident baker in the world.  After doing a little research, I came across a recipe from Gourmet that has received some highly rated reviews.  I made a few slight changes to the recipe and added my own crumb topping to it.  It turned out delicious!  It was easy to make, moist, and not too sweet - just right.  This is a great cake that can be eaten for dessert and breakfast - definitely a keeper!

Cold & Flu Popsicles with Strawberries, Kale and Thyme

We have been a hot mess of sickness in my home for these past few weeks, and my little sous chef was the last one to get it.  Since all of our weekend plans were shot, I had a little extra time to play in the kitchen.  I wanted to give my baby some relief from her symptoms, so I came up with these cold and flu popsicles.  She thought they were delicious!  I, however, loved them because of the cold and flu fighting ingredients that were used.  Just one cup of strawberries provides you with 160 percent of your daily vitamin C needs.  Kale is loaded with antioxidant vitamins and helps strengthen the immune system.  Thyme is a natural expectorant, so it will help coughs to be more productive.  Lemon is also rich in vitamin C and helps to boost your immune system.  Honey soothes a sore throat and loosens congestion.  Cayenne aids in loosening congestion and clearing your sinus passages.  While studies have not proven whether or not cinnamon helps reduce inflammation and has antioxidant effects, it sure does make these popsicles taste good!  As for the sugar, use your own judgment.  If I was making these for myself, I would have eliminated it completely.  However, strawberries aren't in season right now, so mine weren't very sweet to begin with.  Finally, the popsicles themselves will help to prevent dehydration.  

5 Minute, 5 Ingredient Microwave Chocolate Mug Cake

Baby, it's cold outside!  I don't know about where you live, but it was 0 degrees this morning in Pennsylvania!  Even schools were calling off because of the cold.  I decided to treat myself for braving the bitter cold weather today, so I made this warm chocolate cake... in  a mug, in the microwave, in 5 minutes.  Talk about instant gratification!  It's rich, delicious, incredibly easy to make, and takes just 5 ingredients.  Give it a try - you won't be disappointed!  

Affogato with Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream & Kahlua

Sometimes, it's the simple things that are the best!  Just three ingredients go into this Italian dessert.  Well, it's technically a drink, but I say it's both!  The word affogato means "drowned" in Italian.  Simply drown a scoop of mint chocolate chip ice cream in hot espresso and a splash of Kahlua.  Voila!  You have a delicious dessert that will send coffee lovers to heaven!