This truly is an easy apple pie recipe. It is made from scratch, yet is still easy and great for a crowd. Why is it easy? Because you don’t have to mess with making a picture perfect pie topper, the dish ends up helping it all come together beautifully. It’s great for a crowd – […]

I have boys who are never full.  I do not even finish cleaning the kitchen before they are back asking for more food.  One way I’ve learned to counteract this is to make a drawer for them in the fridge.  I fill it with fruit, ready to go veggies, cheese, yogurt.  I also make muffins, […]

These Peanut Butter Chocolate Cookies look a lot more difficult to make than they really are. I use real peanut butter, without all the sugar and hydrogenated oils, but you can use whatever you like for this recipe.  You can also use homemade chocolate chips or store bought. I made these for the first time […]

My kids usually ask me to make a cake that looks like some kind of insect, animal, robot, or star wars related theme for their birthday.  Being that I try to keep things simple and, to be honest, I don’t have the patience to make these elaborate beautiful cakes that some of my friends can […]

My mom used to make this Chocolate Pudding Cake for us when we were little.  It’s one of those that carries fond memories with it.  I think she made it most when we had unexpected visitors and she wanted to put something delicious together quickly.  No need for icing on this cake.  It is a […]

Tis the season…to make funny pumpkin faces and roast the seeds! My brother brought over pumpkins for the kids to carve, and after gutting out each one, there was just no way I could throw away all those wonderful pumpkin seeds.  Pumpkin seeds are full of goodness for you.  They are high in antioxidants, zinc, […]

Talk about amazing!  This recipe is adapted from Chocolate Covered Katie.  I was looking for another way to make homemade chocolate chips.  I’m not satisfied with my current recipe, because the butter or coconut oil separates from the chips too much for my liking. This recipe, though, is so yummy that it will never last […]

These cookies really are the best ever oatmeal chocolate chip cookies!  The recipe has been asked for over and over again. It’s an amazing recipe that is always a hit.  I make other types of cookies and my family says they are good, but asks why I didn’t make oatmeal chocolate chip. They are that […]

Homemade Pancake Syrup is very frugal and tastes great.  Not all of us have the resources or are able to afford real maple syrup.  If I had maple trees, I would have tapped them before I unpacked my luggage, but alas, that is not the case. So, since I do not want to give my […]

As my children get older, I have them choose a meal that they learn to make all by themselves.  My daughter was very quick to choose Fettuccine Alfredo, or as it’s more commonly made in our house: Spaghetti Alfredo. I got this recipe from an Italian lady when I first got married.  It’s been a […]

This is something my family must always have in the house.  My kids use tortillas to make cheese quesadillas for lunch (with pepper jack cheese, super yummy), bean burritos, chicken tacos, etc.    Store-bought tortillas are loaded with extra ingredients and preservatives.  We have a soy allergy and so we have to make our own anyway (Soy is in […]

I wish I had a nice food strainer/sauce maker.  I’ve used one once and they are great!  Alas, I do not, so this is what I do to make a tomato sauce or marinara sauce that is the easiest and the least time and energy consuming when I have a huge crop of tomatoes that […]

A lot of people around where I live eat stuffed peppers.  I did not grow up eating them this way, but my husband did so I’ve used this recipe a number of times for him. I already pickled a ton of banana peppers from last year, so I didn’t grow any this year.  My garden […]

I love granola, but it’s so expensive.  Recently, I’ve been playing around with different ways of making Homemade Granola.  I’ve finally found proportions that I love.  I can’t get enough of it (especially with milk kefir). I even calculated how much I pay in ingredients per oz so I could compare the price to store-bought […]

I’m so excited to finally try making Homemade Vanilla Extract myself. Someone gave me some homemade vanilla extract last year for Christmas.  I loved it so much, and I can never pass up an opportunity to make something for myself if it’s not too complicated.  So at the beginning of this month I went to […]