Skillet Baked Chocolate Chip Cookie

I will willing gain weight to eat this.....chocolate chip cookies and ice cream = amazing!

Skillet Baked Chocolate Chip Cookie
from Martha Stewart

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups (about 9 ounces) mixed milk- and semisweet-chocolate chips
• 2 pints vanilla ice cream

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugars until mixture is light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg and vanilla; mix until they are fully incorporated. Add flour mixture, and beat until just combined.
   Stir in chocolate chips.

2. Transfer dough to a 10-inch ovenproof skillet, and press to flatten, covering bottom of pan. Bake until edges are brown and top is golden, 40 to 45 minutes. Don't overbake; it will continue to cook a few minutes out of the oven. Transfer to a wire rack to cool, 15 to 20 minutes. Cut into 8 wedges. Serve warm; top each wedge with a scoop of ice cream. (Whenever you serve the "leftover" pieces, be sure to heat them up as well. This dessert is best served warm.)
   

Dog Park

We love our puppies and our puppies love to play. When we first moved to Houston, some friends told us about a dog park for Chloe. It is called the Congressman Bill Archer Dog Park, but we call it the Bearcreek dog park (let's be honest, I call it the puppy park). Chloe loves to go play on the little dog side and when we got Ellie, we took her for the big dog side.

My favorite things about it:
1. It is divided into two dog parks with exactly the same things on both sides (smaller scale of course for the little pups).
2. The pools are shaped like a dog bone.
3. There are puppy showers, so we can bathe the girls before they get back in the car
4. There is a lot of room on both sides

Ellie shows off when we are there. Her jumping/swimming skills are impressive. Chloe likes the big dog side and will go up to the largest dog in the dog park each time without fail...she will literally find dogs that resemble horses in size. For this reason, I like to take Chloe on the little dog side. : )
Our pups just had their yearly check ups! Our 5-year old Chloe is 8.4 pounds and our 2-year old Ellie is 82 pounds.
And I just finished watching Marley and Me. Great movie, but leaves me in tears EVERY time. Luckily Chloe is cuddling right by me so it makes it okay!

Granola Bars...another attempt (And Granola)

I am having trouble finding the perfect granola bar recipe. Since my favorite granola recipe is from Alton Brown, I figured that his granola bar recipe would be worth trying and I really liked it.
(I added dark chocolate chips to mine which made it seem more desserty. I will probably leave them out next time as I'm looking for more of a sweet snack from my granola bars.)

Granola Bars
from Alton Brown

Ingredients

• 8 ounces old-fashioned rolled oats, approximately 2 cups
• 1 1/2 ounces raw sunflower seeds, approximately 1/2 cup
• 3 ounces sliced almonds, approximately 1 cup
• 1 1/2 ounces wheat germ, approximately 1/2 cup
• 6 ounces honey, approximately 1/2 cup
• 1 3/4 ounces dark brown sugar, approximately 1/4 cup packed
• 1-ounce unsalted butter, plus extra for pan
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 6 1/2 ounces chopped dried fruit, any combination of apricots, cherries or blueberries

Directions

Butter a 9 by 9-inch glass baking dish and set aside. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spread the oats, sunflower seeds, almonds, and wheat germ onto a half-sheet pan. Place in the oven and toast for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In the meantime, combine the honey, brown sugar, butter, extract and salt in a medium saucepan and place over medium heat. Cook until the brown sugar has completely dissolved.

Once the oat mixture is done, remove it from the oven and reduce the heat to 300 degrees F. Immediately add the oat mixture to the liquid mixture, add the dried fruit, and stir to combine. Turn mixture out into the prepared baking dish and press down, evenly distributing the mixture in the dish and place in the oven to bake for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. Cut into squares and store in an airtight container for up to a week.

And for those who have asked lately, here is my favorite granola recipe. It is also from Alton Brown. I make it and eat off of it for 2 or 3 weeks then make more when I run out...always have it on hand : )

Granola
Adapted from Alton Brown (Food Network)
Ingredients
* 3 cups rolled oats
* 1 cup slivered almonds
* 1 cup cashews
* ½ cup sunflower kernals
* 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
* 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons maple syrup
* 1/4 cup vegetable oil
* 3/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 cup dried cranberries
Directions
Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.
In a large bowl, combine the oats, nuts, and brown sugar.
In a separate bowl, combine maple syrup, oil, and salt. Combine both mixtures and pour onto 2 sheet pans. Cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes to achieve an even color.
Remove from oven and transfer into a large bowl. Add cranberries and mix until evenly distributed.

Baked French Toast

Here is the recipe I promised you last week from Traci's baby shower.

Baked French Toast
from the Pioneer Woman

Ingredients

• 1 loaf Crusty Sourdough Or French Bread
• 8 whole Eggs
• 2 cups Whole Milk
• ½ cups Whipping (heavy) Cream
• ¾ cups Sugar
• 2 Tablespoons Vanilla Extract
• Topping
• ½ cups All-purpose Flour
• ½ cups Firmly Packed Brown Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoons Salt
• 1 stick Cold Butter, Cut Into Pieces
• Fresh Fruit (optional)

Preparation Instructions

Grease 9 x 13-inch baking pan with butter. Tear bread into chunks (or cut into cubes) and evenly distribute in the pan.

Mix together eggs, milk, cream, sugar, and vanilla. Pour evenly over bread. Cover tightly and store in the fridge several hours or overnight.

In a separate bowl, mix flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Add nutmeg if desired. Add butter pieces and but into the dry mixture until mixture resembles fine pebbles. Store in a Ziploc in the fridge.

When you’re ready to bake the casserole, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove casserole from oven and sprinkle crumb mixture over the top. (If you’re using fruit, sprinkle on before the crumb mixture.) Bake for 45 minutes for a softer, more bread pudding texture. Bake 1 hour or more for a firmer, less liquid texture.

Scoop out individual portions. Top with butter and drizzle with maple syrup.

Weekend Wrap Up

I haven't done one of these in a while, so why not : )
I'm in the middle of summer school (which I know I know, its only a few weeks), but none-the-less I am in the middle of summer school. I feel like I should be able to pat myself on the back for teaching a few extra weeks. : ) I am also attending Bootcamp which is kicking my booty, but I think that's a good thing. I'm working on some online staff developments, so needless to say, my time is really filled up which made this weekend even more necessary!
On Friday morning, I took the plunge and tried the green monster smoothie. Mine had a banana, frozen strawberries and blueberries, greek yogurt, a little milk, a few handfuls of spinach and once all of that was blended, I added a little ice. I know it sounds disgusting, but you honestly couldn't taste the spinach and couldn't we all use a few more veggies in our lives?

Cody and I ventured to Longview on Friday afternoon. My mom and I got to help throw one of my very best friends, Traci, a baby shower! Traci is due with baby Jaxson (LOVE the spelling) in September. Mom and I brought casseroles to the shower..and let's just be completely honest, we got in super late on Friday night, so mom put mine together. I LOVE that you still take care of your scatter-brained 26 year-old : ) Thank you!
Hers was a traditional egg casserole and "mine" was baked french toast. I will post the recipes soon, they were super yum!
Cody and I got in late Friday night and go to visit with my parents for just a bit for bed.
Saturday I got up early for a much needed morning run before we got ready and headed off for the shower.
The shower was beautiful and my sweet friend seems more than equipped now for her baby boy. Look how great she looks! I hope to look like that, when I'm pregnant!

Def. took a picture of the hostesses wreaths on the door...this is my new crafting project. My door needs a little something to make it summery.

Afterwards, Traci, Danielle and I headed to Newk's for lunch and to catch-up.
Ellie, Cody and I swam that afternoon. Ellie was in heaven!
Then we went with my parents that night to T. Blanco's. Cody and I had never eaten there before, but I was super impressed. I had quail and grilled veggies! Yum-o!
Sunday we went to church with my parents, ate lunch to celebrate father's day and watched Ms. Ellie jump off the diving board before heading back to Houston.

Oh and if you haven't figured it out already, I will be working towards my masters in Public School administration in the fall from Texas A&M University (can I get a whoop?). For all of those concerned, I am still a Baylor Bear (Sic 'em), A&M just offered a really great program and it is a good school (I mean I did marry an Aggie).

Probably all you needed to know and more. Have a great day! Stay hydrated : )

Captain Tom's

For the past 4 years Cody and I have passed a boat restaurant on FM 1960. We've always been intrigued by it, but had never stopped to see what was inside (I mean it was a boat). Well, a few weeks ago we decided to stop by Captain Tom's (especially since it said Oyster Bar on the sign). We found raw oysters and stuffed crab for a super affordable price. The restaurant is very laid back, which is a plus for the Mr. I would not recommend coming with a large group simply because there are always just a few seats available (both times we've been, we've been lucky to stumble across the only two seats open at that time). I even ate the raw oysters and enjoyed them, which is saying a lot! Once you do find a seat, the service is quick and the staff is friendly. Check it out : )

Homemade Poptarts

I've seen these popping up (haha..) on quite a few blogs and recipe websites so I thought I would give homemade poptarts a try. I did manage to somehow miss how everyone mentioned getting seamless crescent roll dough, so my poptarts look more like pastries than poptarts, but its okay!

Homemade Poptarts


Ingredients
*SEAMLESS crescent roll dough
*jelly
*egg
*water
*sugar

Directions
*Preheat oven to 375
*Roll out your dough on parchment paper. If you have seamless dough, cut into 8 rectangles. If you are not a direction follower (hmm..), then lay out your triangles.
*On one side (ie: four of the rectangles or 4 of the triangles..I feel like I'm teaching a math lesson..) place 1-2 tbs of jelly
*Place the empty side on top matching up the edges
*Use a fork to seal the edges
*Mix together the egg and a little bit of water and brush the top of each poptart followed by a sprinkling of sugar
*Bake 15ish minutes (it took about 17 minutes)
Mr. Sage enjoyed his "poptart" and I am so thankful that at least some of the orange juice survived my mixing that day...the rest ended up on our floor (ewww).

Blueberry Ice Cream Pie

I love sweets, which I know is super ironic b/c I am diabetic, but I do have an insulin pump, so its all good. While reading Better Homes and Gardens (oh yes I am an adult..), I came across this recipe for Blueberry Ice Cream Pie. Summer seemed like the perfect time to make this dessert! I will warn you that this pie does take quite a bit of time. It is a lot of steps that have to be completed at separate times to allow each piece to cool or freeze. Its definitely worth it though! Enjoy!

Blueberry Ice Cream Pie
from BHG


Ingredients

• Almond-Brown Sugar Crust
• 1-1/2 cups slivered almonds
• 2 Tbsp. packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 3 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
• Blueberry Sauce
• 3 cups blueberries, rinsed, well drained, and carefully picked over for damaged berries
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp. cornstarch
• 1/4 tsp. kosher salt
• 1 tsp. grated lemon zest
• 2 tsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
• A few gratings of nutmeg (about 1/8 tsp.)
• 1 Tbsp. water
• Assemble and Serve
• 1 qt. homemade or purchased vanilla ice cream (You have to use Bluebell homemade vanilla. There is nothing like it!)
• 3/4 cup of the Blueberry Sauce, chilled
• 1/2 cup crème fraiche or sour cream
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• 2 cups fresh blueberries, rinsed, picked over, and well dried on paper towel-lined baking sheets
• Remaining Blueberry Sauce, heated

directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In bowl of food processor fitted with a steel blade combine almonds, brown sugar, and salt. Pulse until coarsely ground. Transfer to bowl and stir in melted butter. Turn into 9-inch pie plate. With fingers press onto bottom and sides to form a firm, even layer.

2. Bake 8 to 12 minutes until lightly golden. "Don't overbrown or the crust will have an overpowering flavor," Scott says. Allow to completely cool on a rack. Transfer to freezer until ready to use (may be made up to a week in advance and frozen, tightly wrapped).

3. In large, wide, nonreactive skillet combine blueberries, sugar, cornstarch, and salt, stirring well with a spoon to distribute the sugar and cornstarch. Add zest, lemon juice, water, and a few gratings of fresh nutmeg; stir again to blend.

4. Cook and stir over medium heat until blueberries begin to pop, give off juice, and come to a full simmer. Simmer, stirring gently for 1 additional minute until sauce is lightly thickened and cornstarch is well cooked.

5. Set aside to cool; refrigerate sauce until completely chilled before proceeding. "Otherwise you'll wind up with a blueberry milk shake," Scott says.

6. Transfer ice cream to a mixing bowl and let stand in the refrigerator 30 minutes or until just softened.

7. Spoon half into prepared crust. Spread in even layer and top with the chilled blueberry sauce. Spoon on remaining ice cream and spread to edges.

8. Cover surface of ice cream with plastic wrap and freeze at least 8 hours or overnight until firmly set.

9. To serve: In chilled mixing bowl, whisk crème fra¿¿che, heavy cream, and sugar until just thickened to spreading consistency. Do not overbeat. "It is very easy to go from smooth to grainy," Scott says. Spread cream mixture over pie; top with blueberries. Serve with heated sauce on the side. Makes 10 servings.

Lemon Pasta with Roasted Veggies & Sausage

Another great recipe from EmLoves! I love making pasta, especially when its this yummy but also very healthy. This recipe allowed us to use more of our venison sausage. It was delicious and makes quite a bit too which of course means leftovers! Enjoy!

Lemon Pasta with Roasted Veggies & Sausage
from EmLoves

Ingredients:

• 1 lb pasta (I used penne)
• 2 large lemons, juiced
• zest from 1/2 of one large lemon
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves, chopped (I honestly used the parsley from my spice rack)
  
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 medium zucchinis, cut into 1/2 inch thick rounds
• 1 medium yellow squash, cut into 1/2 inch thick rounds
• 2 small heads broccoli, cut into florets (we had some frozen baby broccoli and it worked just fine)
  
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 cups smoked sausage, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 4 cups fresh spinach leaves (mine ended up with more than 4 cups b/c when looking at the nutrition info, I noticed that it said 4 cups and failed to notice that it said 3 servings..mine probably had closer to 6-8ish cups by the time I realized my mistake...)
  
• Parmesan cheese, for topping
  

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Combine lemon juice, lemon zest, red pepper flakes, and parsley in a small bowl and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, toss broccoli florets, zucchini, and squash in 2 Tbsp olive oil and spread out on a large baking sheet.
4. Season veggies with 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper, and 1 tsp dried thyme. Roast veggies for 20-25 minutes.
5. While veggies are roasting, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook pasta according to package directions.
6. In a medium skillet, cook sausage and onion over medium high heat until onion starts to soften. Add garlic and continue to saute until onion is clear and sausage it cooked.
7. Add fresh spinach leaves to sausage mixture, turn the heat down to low, and stir until spinach starts to wilt. Remove from heat.
8. Drain pasta and, in a large bowl, combine pasta, sausage/spinach mixture, and roasted veggies.
9. Pour lemon juice mixture over the pasta and toss to combine.
10. Serve with fresh grated Parmesan cheese, crusty french bread, and extra lemon slices.

Momma said there'll be days like this...

This is not however in reference to bad days, but good ones! My mom and I are very close. We talk daily..I mean we obviously have a lot to talk about because besides the fact that she is my mother, she also teaches kindergarten hence lots of topics of convo. Since we are both teachers this also means that we both get summers off (woohoo!). I start summer school next week, so before that began, mom came down to H-town for a couple of days. We did a lot of shopping and tried out a few yummy restaurants (but unfortunately no pics...idk how that happened!).
Tuesday we went to The Bake Shoppe.

The Bake Shoppe is in Cypress and is an eclectic deli/cajun restaurant. They are very generous with their portions and if you choose one of their combos, you get a cookie : ) They also have gorgeous cakes and homemade ding-dongs which I might need to try sometime after a long run to pre-burn off some of those calories. I noticed while we were there that they prepare meals for you to take home also (ie: king ranch,etc) which would be most helpful when things get busy.
Afterwards we headed up to (my happy place) the Houston Premium Outlets.
A few highlights of the trip include the Jcrew outlet where I found a hat that I have been looking for for quite a while, the GAP outlet where I got a swimsuit for $8, finding polarized Smith sunglasses for next to nothing. We had a very successful shopping day!

That night we picked up burgers from Franks and Toppings which is an organic fast food restaurant that sells (obviously) hot dogs and hamburgers. This restaurant is right by our house and I had passed it so many times and hadn't really thought much about it. About a month ago on a night that I was really craving burgers, we decided to try it and I loved it! You can really tell that the meat is all-natural, its very high quality. The burger that I have tried twice is the Blue Cheese burger. Cody has had the Wholly Guacamole burger.

The next day I introduced mom to the wonder that is Ikea. It is kind of like an amusement park of furniture. You take the escalator to the second floor then follow the blue arrows to see everything you could possibly need to outfit your house from the ground up. Its pretty amazing!

Afterwards we went to Tiny Boxwood's which is this adorable restaurant that is connected to the Thompson and Hanson nursery.

The atmosphere alone made me love the place. It was slightly crowded but I guess others felt the same way. Mom and I got the turkey and avocado club which was delicious. Their salads looked amazing too!

I had a wonderful time with my mom and hope to get her back down here soon : )

A tree top view

I love our house. It is very unique. It is also a very old house which means that we are often updating it, but still I love our house. Luckily for us, our puppies love our house too. Their current favorite spot is upstairs. Our house isn't really a 2-story, but we do have a loft room upstairs. It is not anything special, just a place to hold our workout equipment...kind of a second living room.
Our puppies love it because it has big windows, that are up high, hence the puppies are at the same level as the squirrels and birds in the trees. Due to safety reasons (Chloe...), we have to gate off the upstairs,

but once that gate moves you have to watch out for the girls (especially Ellie) as they will try their best to get upstairs before you.

They'll watch for a tiny friend and then rush downstairs and outside to chase it. This will go on for hours! Oh what a good life! : )

On a completely random note, I was trying desperately to get a lot of things finished yesterday, but found my self very ADD jumping from one task to another without finishing anything. I laughed when the Vitamin water that I pulled out of the fridge said FOCUS. Looks like I needed a reminder : )

Woven Pin Board

A break from school obviously means time to do another Jones Design Company craft from the tutorial page. I have run in 5 half marathons and have very fun medals from each. I didn't know what to do with them, so until now they have been sitting on top of a book shelf in the office until inspiration struck. After seeing the woven pin board tutorial on Jones Design Company, I knew it would be perfect.
Materials:
*Cork Board
*Burlap (I STILL had some left over from the SAGE pillows even after making a pillow for a friend, and the wreaths!)
*Scissors
*push pins
*Staple gun and staples
*marker

Directions
*Cut two pieces of burlap to fit the cork board with extra inches on each side to wrap around
*Use a sharpie and a ruler to measure out equal widths (mine were 3"). Draw lines and cut the pieces (remember that one set needs to cover the board vertically and one set to cover the board horizontally)



*Staple the strips to the back of the board (one row to the vertical edge, one row to the horizontal edge)
*Lay the strips on the front of the board
*Weave one row at a time (I found it easier to weave the veritcal row as it was less strips) in a basket pattern all the way across (over and under)
*Pull the strips taut and pin on the back
*Straighten out and pull tight any pieces that need it and then staple the strips on the back



*Trim excess on back and frayed edges on front

*I hold the verses Hebrews 12:1-2 for all of my races "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that entangles us so easily. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God." Now I know this is not in reference to a literal running race, but rather it is referencing the race of faith and the finish (line) of God's final judgement when all Christians will get to celebrate His reign.
That being said, I wanted to include this on my board, so I found these fun letter in the scrapbooking section and added just the words "run with perseverance" (I think the whole verse would have taken up the entire board)
*I added my medals with some super cuts pins and TA-DA! Its ready to hang!

National Running Day

Yes you read that right. There is a National Running Day and it is on June 1. All of those crazy runners out there like to celebrate their favorite sport and I am no different (I know I know, its kind of silly). After looking around some, I found that there was a group run from Luke's Locker in the Woodlands so my running partners, Carolina & Lauren, and I headed up to the Woodlands on Wednesday after our last student day of school. We did a little shopping, ran around one of the beautiful trails in the Woodlands, won a $25 Luke's Locker gift card, ate some yummy pizza and cupcakes! It was a wonderful evening!

While we were there on Wednesday, I saw a sign for the Dog Gone 5k on Saturday. Ellie and I love to run, so we headed back up to the Woodlands on Saturday morning. What a fun race! There were other puppies for Ellie to play with (some big and some little). Little Miss Ellie came in 3rd place! Woohoo!

She has yet to eat her award. I am sure she and Chlo will enjoy it : )

Baked Potato Salad

On Monday night we went over to enjoy Memorial day with friends and a smorgasbord of food (pulled pork sandwiches, chicken stuffed with jambalaya, beans, watermelon). As Cody and I were brainstorming a quick side to contribute, I saw that I had some potatoes that could be used. I mentioned potato salad and he requested baked potato salad so of course I obliged. This is not the healthiest recipe, but it is really good so that makes it okay : )

So Yummy Baked Potato Salad
from Food.com

Ingredients

• 3 large baked potatoes, cooled, peeled and cubed
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 8 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled ( I use the precooked kind)
• 4 ounces shredded cheddar cheese, divided
• 2 green onions, sliced and then chopped ( green part only)
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1 dash celery salt or 1 dash seasoning salt
• 1 dash garlic powder
• 1 dash paprika
• 1 tablespoon fresh parsley (optional)
  

Directions

1. Gently stir together all the ingredients in a large bowl using a large spoon, reserving a little cheddar, green onion and bacon for garnish.
2. Transfer to a serving dish.
3. Top with reserved shredded cheddar, green onion slices and bacon crumbles for a beautiful presentation.

Cranberry Walnut Oatmeal Cookies

Apparently all that I have been doing lately is cooking? Well I have another recipe to share with you. As is evident from my granola recipe that I have a constant supply of at our house, I love cranberries, oatmeal and nuts. I needed to make cookies last week and used this recipe to include some of my fave ingredients. Enjoy!

Ingredients
-Crisco® Original No-Stick Cooking Spray
-3/4 cup Crisco® Butter Shortening OR 3/4 Crisco® Butter Shortening Sticks
-3/4 cup sugar
-3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
-2 large eggs
-2 teaspoons vanilla extract
-1 cup Pillsbury BEST® All Purpose Flour
-1 teaspoon baking soda
-1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
-1/4 teaspoon salt
-2 3/4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
-1 cup dried cranberries
-1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

1. HEAT oven to 350 degrees F. Coat baking sheets with no-stick cooking spray.

2. BEAT shortening, sugar and brown sugar in large bowl at medium speed of electric mixer until blended. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in small bowl. Beat into shortening mixture until smooth. Stir in oats, dried cranberries and walnuts. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls about 2-inches apart on prepared baking sheets.

3. BAKE 10 to 12 minutes or until light brown. Cool on baking sheets 2 minutes. Place on cooling rack to cool completely.

Baked Eggs

My M-I-L, Carol makes baked eggs when we go to visit in Longview and Cody LOVES them. Considering the carb overload that I gave him on Saturday for breakfast, I decided that it might be time to try a breakfast that is a little more protein friendly.
This "recipe" is really just adding what looks like enough and what sounds good to go in. I also prepared our baked eggs completely individually as we each wanted different ingredients

Baked Eggs
-Eggs
-diced Onions
-diced Jalapenos/Green Peppers
-milk
-Canadian bacon
-Cheese (mozarella or cheddar)
-Salt and pepper

Directions
-Preheat oven to 450
-In a small saucepan, saute onions and pepper/jalapeno until tender.
-Add canadian bacon/bacon and heat for a few minutes
-Add salt and pepper to taste
-Turn down heat and add a splash of milk
-Stir just until mixed
-Pour mixutre into a small ramekin (I do not have ramekins, so I used a individual serving size, oven safe pyrex bowl)
-On top of the mixture add an egg (or 2) and sprinkle some cheese over the top
-Cook for 10-12 minutes until egg whites are set and yolk is still runny

Banana Donuts with Peanut Butter Glaze

I got this recipe from EmLoves and again Emily, you did not disappoint! This did make A LOT of breakfast, so it worked out well that my parents were in town to help us out : )

Banana Cake Donuts with Peanut Butter Glaze
Ingredients:

• 1 stick butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs, at room temp
• 3 ripe bananas, mashed
• 1 cup sour cream, at room temp
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 1/4 cups whole wheat flour

• Cinnamon Sugar Mixture: In a small bowl, mix together 1/4 cup white sugar with 1 tsp cinnamon.

• Peanut Butter Glaze: In a small bowl, mix together 2 Tbsp milk, 1 cup powdered sugar (sifted), and 2 Tbsp creamy peanut butter with a fork until smooth and creamy.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, mix together butter and sugar.
3. Mix mashed bananas, sour cream, eggs, and vanilla into butter/sugar mixture and beat until well combined.
4. In a separate bowl, sift together cinnamon, salt, baking soda, and flour.
5. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture and mix until barely combined.
6. Pour batter into 12 muffin cups, filling the cups about half way.
7. Pour the remaining batter into 6 large donut cavities, filling 3/4ths of the way up.
8. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture over the top of the muffins and/or donuts.
9. Bake 10-15 minutes, or until edges are golden brown. (The donuts will bake up faster than the muffins!)
10. Let the donuts and muffins cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
11. Drizzle the peanut butter glaze over the warm donuts and/or muffins.