How to Freeze Cookie Dough

Omygod you guys, this is a game changer. Honestly, I don't know why I didn't think of it sooner. Remember when I made these awesome snickerdoodles and was complaining about how quickly they would disappear? 

I could have frozen some and saved them for later. I should have. 

Now I know.

The other day, I needed an M&M cookie. I used this recipe, which made 21 balls of cookie dough. I figured 6 would be a not unreasonable number of cookies for my family to eat in one day, so I popped the rest in the freezer.

The next day, my munchkin and I grabbed two frozen cookie dough balls out of the bag and threw them straight into the (preheated) oven. Just add about 3 minutes to the time suggested on the original recipe (at the same temperature). Do they look any different than the cookies I made from fresh cookie dough? They do not. Do they taste any different? They do not!

If you have frozen cookie dough ready to go, you can literally go from "I think I want a cookie" to eating a freshly baked cookie in 20 minutes flat. As I was saying, game changer.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to try this with every other cookie recipe ever, so I can have whatever variety of fresh, warm, delicious cookies whenever I want! What is your favorite kind of cookie that you want to try this with?

Homemade Cookie Dough Ice Cream

WARNING: This recipe is dangerous. Once you know how easy and how damn amazing it is, you'll want to make it over and over and over. Don't say I didn't tell you.

I make my cookie dough first and throw it in the fridge while I get the ice cream started. This recipe is awesome and makes the perfect amount for mixing in to the perfect amount of ice cream for my favorite ice cream maker. 

Now for the ice cream. Stir 1/2 cup sugar and a generous splash of vanilla into 2 cups whole milk until dissolved. Turn on the ice cream maker and pour in milk mixture. Once it starts to freeze but before it’s all the way frozen, pour in a handful of chocolate chips and spoonfuls of chilled cookie dough. Keep mixing another five minutes until it’s mostly frozen. You may need to stir your cookie dough around so it’s not all clumped together. Eat as much as you want and freeze the rest for later. Or eat it all. I won't judge you.

It’s always a good time for pumpkin muffins

I’ve been on a muffin kick lately. It’s been cold and wintery, (it’s actually snowing today, boo) and a nice warm muffin and a cup of hot coffee is just what I need to get the day started. Over the course of several trials, I have perfected these pumpkin muffins, and I’d like to share them with you. 

Ingredients:

3/4 cup flour

3/4 cup quick oats

1 cup white or brown sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder 

2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

1 cup pumpkin 

2 eggs

1/4 cup oil

Directions:

Combine dry ingredients. Whisk in wet ingredients. Spoon into greased (with cooking spray) muffin tins. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. 

Perfected from Cookie Madness https://www.cookiemadness.net/2009/12/jumbo-pumpkin-streusel-muffins/

Magical Blackberry Turnovers

I used to think I didn't like cooked fruit. Or maybe I somehow knew that it was safer for me to not like cooked fruit. And then someone gave me a dutch apple pie and it was super tasty. And then my honey made strawberry tarts with leftover phyllo dough (probably the only time I'll use the words 'leftover phyllo dough') and they were super tasty, too. So it turns out, I do like cooked fruit. That's a wonderful and dangerous thing to know, and also how I ended up making these magical blackberry turnovers.

Like, they're literally magical. You make the dough in a food processor and somehow it turns into these beautiful flaky layers in the oven. I will definitely be making more of these, and more variations, at harvest time.

Ingredients
6 oz cold butter
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup flour
a pinch of salt
1 cup fresh blackberries
1/4 cup sugar
2 tbsp flour

Directions
Blend first four ingredients in food processor until well mixed. Smoosh together into a ball, then roll on a floured surface until about 1/8 inch thick. Cut into rectangles.
Lightly smash blackberries, sugar, and 2 tbsp flour until incorporated. Add more  sugar if you want sweeter turnovers, or less if you want to really capture the essence of the berries. Spoon berry mixture onto half of each dough rectangle, then fold dough over itself and pinch down the edges to seal in the berry goodness. 
Bake (on parchment paper so they won't stick) at 375° for 25 minutes or until lightly browned. Admire and enjoy!

Peanut Butter Cookies

Back when I had more free time (i.e. no Baby), I used to get all fancy about potlucks. Nowadays, I consider it a win to leave the house wearing pants. But I still go to kind of a lot of potlucks. 

When Hubby and I went to the super secret preppers' club meeting, it was a potluck. When Baby and I go to the old biddy book club, it's a potluck. Community events are pretty much all potlucks. 

So I decided I need to have a go-to recipe for potlucks that's easy, yummy, and made with ingredients I usually have in the house. These peanut butter cookies are perfect. Except they came out kind of messy because I rolled them into balls with one hand because I was holding Baby with the other. Yay multitasking!

Ingredients 

1 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup peanut butter 

1 stick butter

1 tsp vanilla

1 egg

1 1/2 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

How-to:

Beat brown sugar, peanut butter, and butter in a stand mixer until combined. Add vanilla and egg and beat again. Add flour and baking soda and beat again. 

Roll dough into meatball-sized balls and spread out on an ungreased cookie sheet. 

Use a fork to smoosh an X into each cookie. This is crucial, otherwise no one will know they're peanut butter cookies. 

Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes. They're done when they're puffy and just a little squishy. You'll probably have to eat one to make sure they're done. Just try to wait long enough so that you don't burn the inside of your mouth like I may or may not have. 

Happy potlucking!

Homemade Applesauce

Can we get personal for a minute? My baby isn't a big pooper. He never has been. But since we've started dabbling with food, he's down to pooping about once every four days. Thankfully, this is still considered normal for babies, but I think he'd be more... comfortable if it was happening just a little more often. I asked some fellow mamas for ideas, and one of their recommendations was applesauce. We try to always have apples at home, so I decided to try whipping up some homemade applesauce. 

Making applesauce is pretty much the easiest thing ever, once you've peeled and cored your apples. Simmer (covered) on the stove with a little water for about 30 minutes or until they're nice and squishy, then blend until you're happy with the consistency. 

Looks good, right?

I probably would've thrown in a little cinnamon or apple pie spice if I wasn't making it for the baby. 

The 5 Fuji apples and 1/2 cup of water I used made almost 2 cups of applesauce, which is more than enough for one non-poopy baby. Look for recipes for using extra applesauce in the future, and in the meantime, enjoy!

Easy French Toast

This post may contain affiliate links, which means you're helping me support my stay-at-home-mama adventures when you make a purchase using these links. 

Happy Sunday! Today, I'd like to share with you my easy recipe for French Toast. It's delicious and passes the "can I make this with one hand while wearing a baby" test. My recipe is for one adult-sized serving, but it's easy enough to double or triple or quadruple (you get my drift) as needed.

Ingredients:
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
1 splash vanilla
1 dash cinnamon
2 slices bread

How-to:
Stir together first 4 ingredients in a small flat-bottomed dish (I use this one--it's almost exactly the same size as a slice of bread). Dip both sides of both bread slices to coat. Cook in skillet until slightly browned, flipping as needed. Serve with fresh fruit and maple syrup.

I used my new copper pan. I absolutely love cooking with it because it's the first truly nonstick cooking surface I've ever found. This is how it looked after I finished the French toast. I didn't use cooking spray or butter on the pan, which means there's no extra fat or chemicals in the food, and those bits that are leftover can literally be wiped off with a sponge. This pan is so amazing it makes me not hate washing dishes. You'll be seeing a lot more of it in future posts.

Baked Oatmeal

This post may contain affiliate links, which means you're helping support my stay-at-home mama adventures if you make a purchase using these links.

If you're looking for a hearty, healthy breakfast that's tasty and passes the "can I make this while wearing a sleeping baby?" test, look no further.

Ingredients:

1 cup old fashioned oats (not quick oats)
1 1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup brown sugar (or less, to taste)
1 egg
1 handful chocolate chips

From here, you can add pretty much whatever else catches your fancy. If you want to make this into a breastfeeding recipe, you could add some flaxseed meal, but I wouldn't do more than 1/4 cup. I'll add a handful of pecans if I have them, and a splash of vanilla if I'm feeling fancy. And cinnamon. I love adding cinnamon to just about everything sweet. If you're not like me, leave it out.

How-to:

Pour all ingredients into loaf pan. Stir to combine, making sure you don't end up with clumps of peanut butter (which might take a minute). Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until set. Kiss sleeping baby (of course, this doesn't have to wait until the end).

I only have a "before" picture because the baby woke up while this was in the oven and I was too hungry when it came out to get an "after" photo. I'll try to remember next time I make this delicious breakfast. Unless you want to try this recipe and share your own photo?

Bonnie's Best Banana Bread

This post may contain affiliate links, which means I make a little money if you make a purchase using these links.

We've all been there: you see a perfect bunch of bananas at the store, take them home, and overnight they get brown and gross. 

Luckily for all of us, brown bananas make the best banana bread! Over many years and many overripe bananas, I've perfected my recipe so that it's light, hearty, not too sweet, and requires minimal effort and cleanup. Whenever I have a perfect recipe like this, I prefer having an actual recipe card over trying to scroll through my Pinterest account looking for what I want. I've found my perfect recipe box that comes with customizable dividers, recipe cards, and a holder so the cards don't get gross sitting on the kitchen counter while you're baking.

I use 1/2 white flour and 1/2 whole wheat flour and add pecans when I have them (or chocolate chips, depending on my mood). And this is my favorite bread pan--it's Pyrex, so you know it's durable, it's the perfect size for so many things (especially when cooking/baking for one or two people), and it has handles for easy oven removal and a snap-on lid for keeping leftovers fresh.

Hold the phone! Want to know how to make this delicious recipe even better? Use creamy peanut butter instead of vegetable oil. The peanut butter not only increases the healthfulness of the bread by adding some protein and lowering the amount of fat, but it also improves the consistency and eliminates some of the crumbles you always get when slicing homemade bread. And it doesn't make it taste like peanut banana bread, for any banana bread purists.

I love having a nice warm slice of banana bread for breakfast with a cup of coffee and my homemade creamer--it's the perfect way to start a crisp fall day!