Egg-Free Friday; Muffins, Muffins, and More Muffins

Just when I thought I was done with berries for a little bit, the U-Pick blueberry signs went up. This past month I have been busy picking, cleaning, and freezing strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and cherries. And now blueberries.

My stepson requested blueberry muffins. Since I am a huge fan, I set out to find a decent good egg-free recipe. I tried a few, but they were just ho-hum.

This morning the sweet little baking angels prodded me to try Google one more time. I stumbled upon Art of Dessert.

This blueberry muffin recipe is mind blowing! I don’t think I have ever tasted muffins this good.

If you have an abundance of blueberries, you have to make these muffins. *If you don’t have an abundance of blueberries, stock up when they are on sale!

Okay, I’ll stop with the blueberry muffins. Lets talk zucchini.

For those of you with a garden, you know that once the zucchini is ripe its hard to keep up with. We picked our first zucchini less than a week ago. We have ate the lovely vegetable for dinner almost every night for the past week. We have given it away. I have been baking like a fool. (Seriously, I am a fool. It is August!)

Well the boys have voted on their favorite zucchini muffin recipe.

Yup, you read that right. Egg free chocolate chip zucchini muffins. (Say that three times fast.) The recipe is adapted from Madhuram’s Eggless Cooking, and can be found here. I did make a few adjustments, but I’m sure the muffins would be perfect following the recipe (if you haven’t noticed, I tend to use recipes loosely). I’ll share my adjustments later.

*This recipe made 24 mini muffins, and 12 regular muffins. While I was washing up the dishes, my sneaky boys were pulling muffins off the counter behind me. There were six muffins of each size left by the time I caught on, so I guess this recipe is a keeper!

What are your favorite zucchini recipes? I have a feeling we are going to need all the recipes we can get!

Egg-Free Friday, Banana Chocolate Chip Bread

I haven’t done an egg-free post in a while. I have been in a little bit of a cooking slump lately. Somehow my boys became finicky eaters, and frankly I am tired of throwing food away.

Desperate to get them to eat breakfast (and needing to use up some ripe bananas), I searched for a banana bread recipe. I found a winner!

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread adapted from food.com

• 4 ripe bananas, mashed
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cup flour *I used 3/4 whole wheat, and 3/4 all purpose
• 2 small handfuls of chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour a bread pan.

Combine bananas and butter. Mix in milk and vanilla.

Add in brown sugar, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.

Add in flour, mix until just combined. *Don’t over mix, your bread will be rubbery!* Gently mix in chocolate chips.

Pour into prepared bread pan and bake for one hour, or until toothpick comes out clean.

Cool.

I am happy to say, the boys love this bread! I am planning on trying it with zucchini as soon as it is ready to pick.

How do you deal with finicky eaters? If you have any tips, please share! I am at wits end trying to get them to eat good food. They used to be such good eaters, so maybe (hopefully) this is just a stage two year olds go through….

Dealing With Routine Changes…Again

Looking back at past blog posts, I am amazed at how quickly seasons change. I’m not talking about the weather, but the seasons of life. Quietness in my little space of the internet tend to signify these changes.

These season changes tend to frustrate me to no end. You may have noticed that I have grown to LOVE routines. It seems that once I get a productive and comfortable routine established, life changes once again. Keeping me on my toes, I guess.

I have a few more things around here to catch up on; some cleaning, major freezer cooking, pricing stuff for our garage sale, and a whole mess of other things. This all needs to be squeezed in-between our baseball/softball season (7 games a week!).

So things will still be quiet around here for a few more days while I re-establish a new routine. Thanks in advance for your patience.

Want some egg-free chocolate chip cookies while you wait?

The boys recommend this recipe.

Happy belated Mother’s Day!

Egg-Free Chicken Fried Rice in 15 Minutes

Wow, what a week! For those of you keeping tabs on my 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge progress, I haven't fallen off the bandwagon.

 

Two nights in a row my sweet little boys woke up around 3:30 in the morning, and decided to PARTY. (I think the thunderstorm was the cause the second night). So this mama was tired.

 

To top it off, yesterday I went downstairs, and discovered water! In my sewing dungeon! Luckily when I moved my sewing space down here I thought ahead and put my fabric in totes, off the floor. But the water was inching it's way toward my sewing machine cord and foot pedal. Thank goodness I got to it in time. All craft and sewing supplies are safe.

 

Needless to say, I have been bailing water from the basement. I plan to catch up on the cleaning challenge this weekend. In the meantime, I have a little post that has been hanging out in my draft folder waiting to be shared. (Perfect timing, because I needed a quick dinner for the family).

 



Quick, Egg-Free Chicken Fried Rice

My husband loves when I make Chicken Fried Rice. I love to have a delicious and healthy dinner ready for my family. It is even better when dinner only takes minutes to make.

This meal can be made in less than 15 minutes because of my beloved freezer.

When chicken is on sale, we buy a bunch. I cut some of it up in bite sized pieces, season with Italian seasoning, and saute in a little olive oil. I put one cup of cooked chicken in individual freezer bags, and freeze for future dinners.

I try to use brown rice whenever possible, but it takes so long to cook. So I cook the whole box/bag at once. (Because it takes just as long to cook one serving or all the servings.) After the cooked rice is cooled, I portion it out in two cup servings into freezer bags and freeze.

Add frozen mixed veggies, and you have a delicious meal in no time!

Here's a loose recipe. Personally, I don't measure- just toss what I have in the pan. It has turned out wonderfully every time. Just use what you have.
I toss everything in frozen. If I thought ahead, and thawed everything, great. If not, it works just the same.

Chicken Fried Rice

2-3 eggs (more or less, depending on preference)
      *since being egg-free we omit the eggs. Nobody has even noticed.
1 Tablespoon or so of water
     *this is used to cook the eggs
butter or oil
     *Sesame seed oil gives the most authentic flavor!
chopped onion
spoonful of minced garlic
2-4 cups cold cooked rice
2 Tablespoons of soy sauce
1 teaspoon of pepper
1-2 cups cooked chopped chicken
1-2 cups frozen mixed veggies, partially thawed

*Egg step, omit if making egg-free* Heat oil (or butter) in wok or pan, low-medium heat. Meanwhile, beat egg and water. Add to pan. Don't touch it for 1-2 minutes. Remove from pan. Shred egg with kitchen scissors (or method of your choice, I just think it's fun to use the kitchen scissors).

Heat another Tablespoon or so of oil in same pan. Sesame seed oil is great, but use whatever you have. Add onion and garlic and saute until soft. Add cold rice (frozen works great), soy sauce, pepper, frozen veggies and chicken. Mix it all together, and cook for about 5 minutes, until it looks like fried rice. Taste, add more soy sauce if you want. Add eggs, and serve.
*I like to add sesame seeds if I have them on hand.

So simple, right?

Your turn, what is your families' favorite quick meal? Please share, I need ideas!

Weekend Review, Menu, and Goals

We had such a busy weekend! We celebrated an eleventh birthday. The birthday girl’s dinner choice was steak and potatoes. She also requested a vanilla cake with strawberry lemonade frosting. (A different request, but accomplished!)

I used this cake recipe (its egg-free), minus the raspberry filling. Absolutely delicious! The frosting also turned out pretty yummy, look for a post in the future.

We took the family and four extra girls (aged 9-11) swimming at the Y. (Are we crazy or what!) They had a blast. Then we all came home and continued the birthday celebration. Our weekend was finished off with the birthday shopping tradition.

I love celebrations and having friends and family over, but my goodness am I glad to see Monday!

Want to know what we are eating this week?

• Monday- Clean out the fridge (we have so much food left over from this weekend)
• Tuesday- Spare Ribs
• Wednesday- Spaghetti
• Thursday- ? Chicken maybe.
• Friday- Fish
• Saturday- Easter get together with my family, ham and cheesy potatoes
• Sunday- Dinner at husband’s parents

Goals:

Last Week Update

1. Work on etsy shop. I have been putting this off for too long, I really need to get moving on it.
2. Post 3 blog posts, work on two others.
3. Work on baseball tee tutorial.
4. Clean/purge attic.
5. Make some lunches for the freezer.
6. If I find time, peel wallpaper border from living room, and wash walls.

This Week:

1. Easter presents/baskets.
2. Post 3 blog posts.
3. Finish all unfinished projects on sewing table.
4. Clean/purge spare bedroom closet

This looks like a short list, but oh my do I ever have the pile of half-finished sewing projects building up. I plan to finish these this week, and spend the rest of the time working on Easter stuff.

Do you have any Easter gifts to finish up this week (or are you like me, and just starting them)?

Egg-Free Friday Peanut Butter Rolls

While searching for egg-free recipes I found the blog TREAT & TRICK. This blog is amazing. Her recipes are eggless, and pretty healthy to boot (she uses a lot less sugar than average recipes; something I truly appreciate). She also makes bread right from scratch, without a bread machine! Talk about amazing.
I wanted to share one of my family’s favorite recipes from this blog; Peanut Butter & Jelly Rolls. I am not posting the recipe, because I did not have to change a thing! I did however, use a slightly different method, and tried a different filling.

I placed all the ingredients except for the peanut butter and jelly into my bread machine; in the order recommended for my machine. I set it to dough cycle, and cleaned my kitchen while the machine did its job.

Next I divided the dough into 12 balls. I put 6 of them into the refrigerator. I rolled, filled, and wrapped the first six per the recipe.

Let them double in size, then bake.

Rub some butter on as soon as they come out of the oven. Try to snap a picture before the vultures swoop in.
Here’s what happened with the second batch: I was curious to see how the dough would behave if I didn’t cook it right away. I left it, covered, in the fridge over night. In the morning I pulled it out and let it sit on the counter for 30 minutes to an hour. The dough behaved exactly the same as the first batch. This is wonderful, because I can double the recipe, and serve rolls for breakfast.
Ready for the filling variation? I added chocolate chips instead of jelly. Simply divine! There is nothing better than chocolate and peanut butter.
These bad boys were so delicious they were devoured in minutes! After the family gobbled them up, I received a few requests. My stepson would like them with pizza filling, and hubby wants ham and cheese filling. I have yet to try these versions, but I am sure it would work out perfectly since the dough is not too sweet.
If you want your family to think you are a culinary genius, give this recipe a whirl.
What would you fill these rolls with?

Lessons From Great Grandma’s Kitchen; Recipe Organization

Recipe organization is something I have been struggling with for a while now. I even made corralling my recipe chaos one of my 30 by 30 goals.

Like most recipe hoarders, I have a stash of recipes that are spilling out of folders, notebooks, and drawers. This doesn’t even include my abundance of cookbooks that I need to weed down (hmmm… do I see a 31 by 31 goal…). Don’t forget to throw Pinterest in there.

I had this idea that I would digitize and organize my recipes. After many unsuccessful attempts I gave up (quite a few times). The thought of starting up my computer, then searching for a recipe all but drained any kitchen ambitions I had. The worst part was when hubby would ask, “could you make that dish you made….? You know it had….?” I realized that I was not keeping track of recipes that my family liked.

One of the best things about cooking with Grandma was pulling out her green metal recipe box. I would flip through the 3 x 5 index cards adorned with Grandma’s penmanship and years of cooking smudges. As I grew older our time together in the kitchen grew far and few. One habit that never ceased was requesting to look through Grandma’s recipe box.

I have recently accepted that digital isn’t for me. I have taken to Grandma’s recipe organization; the green metal box. Each recipe in Grandma’s little metal box had been tried, tested, perfected, and family approved. No magazine clippings shoved in there.

I still have my overflow of paper. I still add to my Pinterest boards. But when I find a successful recipe (meaning a recipe that my family will eat again), I handwrite the recipe on a 3 x 5 index card, and tuck it safely into my very own green metal box. (Do you know how many garage sales we went to before we found a green metal box?)

This method has been working so far. I guess I just wasn’t meant to be a digital cook.

How do you organize your recipes?

*Did you miss the first lesson from Great Grandma’s kitchen? Here it is.

Tuesday Toddler Tip; 3 Ways to Sneak In Nutrition

Today’s tip is geared for toddlers, twin or not.

I have such a hard time feeding my boys. Some days they eat good, other days they insist on practicing their “splatter technique” (painting the wall with their dinner). This mama gets frustrated!

Through trial and error, I have found three ways my boys are guaranteed to eat nutritious food:

1.  My boys love smoothies. We found these cups at Wal-Mart for $0.98. They have been a life-saver! I add frozen fruit, fresh fruit, yogurt, and milk or juice. I have even added veggies to the smoothies! The trick to these smoothies is to make them a thinner consistency, so the straw doesn’t get clogged.

2.  They get so excited to eat out of a coffee mug. They love these blueberry mug muffins. I have also successfully served them oatmeal, applesauce, yogurt, and soup in a coffee cup. (If you are looking for an egg-free chocolate cake, my boys and I recommend this recipe.)

3.  I think the mini-muffin pan was designed for toddlers. My boys love these little bundles of nutrition. Of course, the veggies muffins are a hit. We love these egg-free chocolate chip banana muffins. I have also thrown meatloaf mixture, pancake batter, and even shredded veggies into the mini-muffin pan. Our freezer is always stocked with little muffin food.

Your turn: How do you avoid the ‘food on the wall’ episodes? We are willing to try anything.

How We Menu Plan

Menu planning has been a struggle for me. I have the freezer cooking down. I love my crockpot. The problem I usually had was sticking to the menu.

This is how it used to go; I’d start the week off good. I would get two days in, realize that I ALWAYS cook too much food, get discouraged with myself, and just give up on our menu. Not anymore. (Well, I do still cook way too much.) I have devised a plan that works for us, and that’s what is important- that it works for us.

Want to know what works around here? Here is a step-by-step (well, sort of):

Menu planning goes on all week. When hubby mentions something that sounds good, I make note of it. No, not a mental note, because I lose those notes, but I actually write it down.

On Friday or Saturday I ask the family what sounds good for dinner this week. I write those suggestions down. If nobody offers any suggestions, there is absolutely no complaining about what is for dinner.

Next I look at our schedule. For instance, my step-son’s sports schedule. On busy days we eat from the crockpot. Every Wednesday everyone is here, so I need a picky-eater-friendly meal. I usually take my step-daughter’s suggestion (since she’s the picky eater) and put it down for Wednesday, or we have roast or spaghetti.

Every other Friday is pizza night. I make pepperoni for the kids, and some version of pizza using whatever is in the fridge for the adults.

I fill these meals on the board. Then I get to work filling in the blanks. My goal is to have 5-6 meals planned for the week, and one leftover day. I then make sure we have everything needed to make these meals.

If have a lot of leftovers or something came up, I just push a planned meal to the next week. (Have you noticed that some meals show up repeatedly on my menu posts?) After trying many ‘meal planning techniques,’ I think we have found what has worked for our family.

Here’s what we are eating this week:

• Sunday- Leftovers
• Monday- Spaghetti
• Tuesday- Sloppy Joes 
• Wednesday- Chicken Fried Rice
• Thursday- Leftovers
• Friday- Pizza
• Saturday- Steak and Potatoes

Do you plan a menu? If so, what method have you found works for you?

Egg-Free Cheesy Veggie Muffins

I get stuck figuring out what to feed my toddlers. Meals have to be easy for little hands to pick up and eat, egg-free, and mama wants the meal to be nutritious. I love freezer-friendly recipes, so I can make more now, freeze, and pull out later.

While catching up on my blog reading, I came across this Savory Muffin recipe. When I was ready to bake, do you think I could remember where I found the recipe? I didn’t feel like searching through Pinterest, so I just pulled up a recipe that sounded close and made my adaptions.

*These muffins are very versatile. Try any veggie/cheese combo. (I am thinking about adding meat next time.)

Egg-Free Cheesy Veggie Muffins

*recipe adapted from Best Recipes

• 2 cups vegetables (used 1 1/2 c. grated carrot, 1/2 cup corn)
• 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 Tablespoon Italian seasoning
• 1 cup cheese
• 2 Tablespoons ground flaxseed mixed with 6 Tablespoons warm water (or 2 eggs)
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup milk

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Grease muffin pan (I made mini-muffins).
3. Mix flaxseed and water, set aside.
4. Combine veggies, 3/4 cup of cheese, flour, Italian seasoning, and baking powder.
5. In a separate bowl mix flaxseed mixture, oil, and milk.
6. Add to dry mixture. Stir until combined. (Do not over mix. Nobody likes rubbery muffins.)
7. Spoon into muffin tins.
8. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top.
9. Bake for 15-25 minutes, until golden. (mini-muffins only took 15 minutes).

Serve warm. Freeze leftovers.

These muffins are delicious, egg-free, and toddler approved. I have enjoyed having these in the freezer for those dinners that the boys decide to throw everything we offer them.

Have you tried a savory/veggie muffin? If so, what are your favorite combinations?

Kitchen Lessons I Have Learned From Great Grandma; part 1

Celebrating 90 years.

I am one of those fortunate people who had the opportunity to know my great-grandparents. Our family would take the two hour drive to Lake Orion every Sunday for a visit. They also took us kids (usually separately) for a whole week during the summer.

Great Grandma was a wise woman. Additionally, like most people from her generation; she knew her way around the kitchen. For the next 4 weeks I plan to post lessons I have learned from that simple and inviting kitchen in the city.

Here goes, the first lesson:

Shortly after I learned to read, I became more interested in helping in the kitchen. Mom, dad, and grandparents all received my “help”. One summer while staying my week with Grandma and Grandpa, Grandma had decided it was time I learn how to make pancakes.

We were having breakfast on the picnic table. The neighbors and their children were invited. So you can imagine the honor I felt receiving the opportunity to make most important part of breakfast, the pancakes.

Grandma handed me the 3x5 index card, covered with her beautiful scrawl. I immediately started getting out ingredients, bowls, and utensils. I knew what I was doing, I have helped Grandma, and mom and dad (who both learned how to make pancakes from this very woman, in this very kitchen).

I measured and poured. I stirred and mixed. I cooked and flipped. All the while Grandma looked over my shoulder with a proud smile on her face, letting me do my thing.

We all sat down at the picnic table in the backyard. There were at least 8 of us. Everyone dove in, putting a pancake on their plate. Smoothing butter (the real stuff, no Can’t Believe in this house), drizzling with syrup. I did the same, cut off a piece, and took a bite.

YUCK! This was my very loud internal thought. I looked around at everyone else, waiting for their horrified reactions.

No reactions were to be seen or heard. In fact, I was told “good breakfast.” I did observe additional syrup going on all the pancakes though….

After breakfast, while cleaning up I asked Grandma why the pancakes tasted so bad. I did use her recipe, and they tasted nothing like the pancakes I was used to.

Grandma let out a little chuckle. “You didn’t read the recipe.” she went on to explain that I put salt in for sugar, and vice versa.

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

“If I stopped you, the same mistake will be made in the future. Now, you will always read the recipe thoroughly.”

“Why did everyone still eat them, and even say they were good?”

Although there were many kitchen lessons learned during this experience, here’s the most important lesson I took from that day:

“They were gobbling up the love you put into those pancakes, not the salty flapjacks. Besides, any meal you don’t have to cook yourself is a good meal.” Grandma is very intelligent…and matter-of-fact.

What is your earliest memory in the kitchen? Any life lessons learned?

Egg Free Cheesy Rice Balls

When I have a surprise sitter (mom drops by and asks if I’d like her to watch the boys for a while). I usually go to the library. Exciting I know.

Actually I love the library. The only problem with it is that it is about a half an hour drive, and I have twin toddlers. After that 30 minute ride, they are ready to tear things up! So spending any time in the quiet grown-up section of the library with the boys is completely out of the question.

So what did I find? Allergy cookbooks. (Even more exciting, I know.)

Today’s recipe is adapted from Allergy Proof Recipes for Kids by Leslie Hammond and Lynne Marie Rominger. Since an egg allergy is the only allergy I have to adapt for, I added cheese.

Here’s the recipe:

Cheesy Rice Balls

• 2 cups cooked rice (recipe calls for Arborio, I used white)
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• Salt and Pepper
• Optional- 1 Tablespoon of spices (I think Italian spices would be good)
• 2 Mozzarella cheese sticks (string cheese), cut each stick into 8 pieces
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 Tablespoon corn starch (or could use tapioca or arrowroot)
• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 cups fine bread crumbs

Mix hot cooked rice, pumpkin olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste in a large bowl. Let cool.

Form into golf ball sized balls. Push your thumb into the center to make a little hole. Stick a piece of cheese in there. Push the rice mixture back around the cheese.

In a bowl, whisk together the water, corn starch, and 1 Tablespoon of vegetable oil. Set aside. Pour bread crumbs into a shallow bowl. Dip each ball into the starch mixture, then roll in the bread crumbs. Make sure you coat those little guys good.

Put rice balls on foil lined cookie sheet. Bake for about 30 minutes, turning occasionally. You want the outside to be crispy. Serve warm, with preferred dipping sauce, we preferred pizza sauce.

*After making these, I strongly suggest adding some spice. They taste a little bland without.

*Actual recipe fried these in oil. I wanted to try baking them. Either way works.

*I only baked half, and froze the rest for a future meal. They freeze well. Just pull from freezer and put in the oven (does take longer to cook).

What would you do if you had a surprise sitter?

Egg-Free Friday

If you have been reading for a while, you know we have an egg allergy around here. I haven’t posted any egg-free recipes lately, so here are a couple of links to recipes I have tried. (If you are not egg-free you still MUST try the chocolate chip cookies!)

These chocolate chip cookies are AMAZING! I think I will continue to use this recipe even if we grow out of the allergy. I have a couple of connoisseurs of cookies around here, and I have been told these “ARE THE BEST EVER!” You can find the recipe here. (These usually take twice the recommended bake time, just watch them.)

The other cookies in the picture are Cool Whip Cookies. I have seen this recipe floating around Pinterest, and wanted to adapt it, making it egg-free. I used the flax seed substitute (1 Tablespoon ground flax seed, and 3 Tablespoons of warm water) in place of the egg. The dough is pretty stiff for these cookies, I added another huge dollop of Cool Whip. Don’t think that was a wise decision. The cookies weren’t bad, but I probably won’t make them again.

I make a big pan of oven baked pancakes every other week. I’m not sure if I will ever make traditional pancakes again, they are that easy (and delicious). I have made plain, and topped with various toppings; bananas, blueberries, and chocolate chips (our favorite). The ‘pancakes’ freeze well, making it easy for mama to get breakfast ready for the boys.

One more favorite around here; Cheerios Jumbo Breakfast Cookies. There is always a batch of these in our freezer. I pull a couple out first thing in the morning. By breakfast time they are slightly cool, moist, and delicious! This recipe also calls for an egg, I just use the flax seed substitute. We like ours with Craisins (our favorite is pomegranate) in place of the raisins.

Do you have any favorite egg-free recipes? How about egg-free tips? (As you can see, this is still a learning experience for me.)

Have a blessed weekend!

Dear Bread Machine, I Was Wrong

Do you remember my bread making fails of the past? Probably not, I didn’t have too many visits then (I still don’t, but hey its getting better). If you want to laugh at my kitchen fails, check this and this out.

I wasn’t always a horrible bread maker, in fact I used to make really good bread. Using this same bread machine. Well, after the couple of fiascos mentioned above (plus a few undocumented ones) I called my once beloved kitchen appliance many bad names. This is why I am apologizing. The problem was the user, not the machine.

Why the change of heart? I tried this recipe (now one of my family’s favorite breads), followed all the tips, AND consulted my bread machine manual. I think my biggest problem was that my liquid (usually water) was too hot. Anyway, I have had so many delicious loaves of bread since then.

Here it is- Potato Bread SUCCESS!

Bread Machine, I am sorry for my behavior. Thank you for your forgiveness.

Let me tell you, my household is thrilled that my bread machine and I have made up. I use it multiple times during the week for bread, rolls, sweets, pizza crust, etc. (That is a warning, more bread machine posts in the future.)

Do you have any favorite bread machine recipes?

Freezer Friendly Egg-Free Cranberry Orange Scones

Yup, I’m still plugging away at this egg-free business. To the delight of my family, things are starting to taste much better.
My latest accomplishment- cranberry orange scones. I used this recipe from Don’t Waste the Crumbs. Oh..these are absolutely delicious! The best part? I did not have to alter the recipe. Towards the end of the recipe is a variation for those who find “cutting in the butter” to be challenging. Instead of eggs and butter, use extra cream.
Let me tell you, these scones are so scrumptious! If you have some cranberries hanging out in your freezer, you need to make these scones! Now. Go ahead, mix everything up, I’ll wait. Stop back in before you put them in the oven, I’m going to save your hips a couple of pounds.
That was easy, huh? So, everything is mixed up, the oven is hot, and the scones are formed into balls. Now see how many there are? Is this enough, or too much? Be honest.
If you have too many you can freeze the extras. (See how we’re doing your hips a favor? )
Take the extras, put them on a plate, cookie sheet, whatever you have handy. Pop that tray into the freezer for about an hour. You want to ‘flash freeze’ the scones so they don’t freeze together in one big glob. After an hour, put them in an airtight container. I use a freezer bag labeled with baking instructions.
When you are ready for another scrumptious breakfast or snack pull a few out of the freezer, and bake as normal. You may have to add a little time because they are frozen. But watch them! I only had to add an extra five minutes.
These tasted just as good, if not better after frozen. How about you? Do you freezer cook (or prepare)?

Slow Cooker Steak Fajitas

Mmmm. We love Mexican food around here. If I can throw it in the crockpot, its even better.



How did I manage make such a fantastic meal? I’ll show you.

Keep in mind that this is more of a guide, not a recipe. Honestly, when using a crockpot you don’t really need a recipe.

Here’s what I did:

I pulled a roast from the freezer. (For this meal, use whatever meat you have available, chicken, pork, beef, or venison. It doesn’t have to be an expensive cut, the crockpot will make things nice and tender.) Today I used venison. When it was mostly thawed, I sliced it into thin strips.

The secret to tasty venison, is marinade. Not just the marinade- but the length the meat marinades. Marinade the meat as long as possible.

This time I used vinegar, and KC Masterpiece Spicy Mango. (Its what was in the house.) This sat in the fridge all night.

In the morning I dumped the container of juicy meat into the crockpot. I didn’t have a fajita seasoning packet, so I mashed up a handful of recipes Google provided me with. Dump this in, and add sliced onions and peppers. Oh yeah, if you have some minced garlic hanging out in the fridge, put a spoonful or so in.

This is my favorite part, I didn’t have to cut a thing! Well, not today. During the summer I got an awesome deal on red peppers and onions, and green peppers from a local produce stand. I got way more than we could eat fresh. The peppers and onions were washed and sliced, flash frozen (so they don’t stick together), and dumped into a Ziploc freezer bag.

That brings us to my ‘slow cooker fajita hint’: do not put all of the peppers and onions in the slow cooker right away. A handful will do. Well, I put all of the onions in right away because I don’t care for crunchy onions. But peppers? I want some crunch!

You have two options. 1. You can pan fry the remaining peppers and onions before serving. Or you can save yourself from washing another pan, and 2. toss them into the crockpot during the last half hour to hour.

Serve with rice on tortillas topped with sour cream and cheese. Like I said, mmmmmm.

Want to know my spice mash-up? Okay, you pulled my arm. Here it is:

• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2 Tablespoons soy sauce

Are you a crock-potter? If so what’s your favorite slow cooker meal?

Stop back tomorrow, I have been experimenting. Trying to find egg-free Christmas cookies.

This Weeks Egg Free Recipes

If you’ve read some of my recipe posts, you know that I have a toddler with a severe egg allergy. My boys are very independent when it comes to feeding themselves. (They also have pretty good arms, just ask the spaghetti sauce covered wall.) Not only is figuring out healthy, balanced meals to feed toddlers difficult, then throw an allergy into the mix? Needless to say, the rest of the family is beginning to lose trust in my cooking abilities.

I didn’t take food pictures this week, so here’s the picture we used for our Thanksgiving card. (No, I am not a crazy, send a card for every holiday, person. Rite Aid had a coupon code for 5 free cards, and we do not have a decent picture for Christmas cards yet.)

Recipe #1: Baked Oatmeal Cups from Sugar free Mom

This recipe is not egg-free as written, but the flax seed/water combo worked great. This recipe is awesome, completely customizable, freezable, and easy to eat on the go. Different flavors I made: blueberry, strawberry, (mix berries into mixture), coconut, chocolate chip, blueberry craisin, and pomegranate craisin (these are toppings, just press on top before baking). Another bonus- no oil, or sugar (although I substituted honey in place of the Stevia), and lots of fruit. These are wonderful!

Recipe #2 Egg-Free Meatloaf Cups from Jazzy Allergy Recipes

These weren’t bad. I will be experimenting with this recipe the next time I make it. I feel it needs more substance, maybe oatmeal or rice. I am really glad I found this, because I had no clue of what to use instead of eggs. This is also my first experience with ‘muffin meatloaf.’ I froze the leftovers for quick lunch/dinner options.

Recipe #3 Twice Baked Potato Casserole from Taste of Home

Holy Crap! These are awesome! We are potato people around here. Anyway imaginable, we devour  them. This recipe is like cheesy potatoes, but with real potatoes, not the frozen hash browns. It does take a little more time (baking the potatoes first), but it is worth it! Make these for your next get-together. They are that good! (Definitely not low fat though…)

Do you have any egg-free toddler recipes?

Egg-Free Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins

I found this recipe at Don't Waste The Crumbs before we knew we had an egg allergy in the house. Let me tell you, these muffins are awesome. I am not very good at eating breakfast, when these were in the freezer- I had breakfast almost everyday until they were gone. They are that good!

They are also better in the nutrition department. Tiffany uses oat flour. She shows you how to make your own. Don't panic, its easy.

If you don't have an egg allergy in the house go try her recipe.

There are many (too many) substitutes for eggs. A common one for baking is apple sauce. Sometimes it works, sometimes your baked goods taste like crap. I was a little tired of having one out of three baking recipes tasting good, so I did not use applesauce this time.

For this recipe I tried the flax seed route. I'm not sure why, but I have been intimidated by flax seed. What is this stuff? I had the fear that everything would taste cardboard healthy.

I figured that since the muffins taste great with oat flour (not cardboard healthy), I should try ground flax seed as an egg substitute.

Its easy. First mix your egg substitute. 1 Tablespoon of ground flax seed and 3 Tablespoons of water for each egg. Mix it up. Let it sit for two to five minutes. While it is sitting I get out the rest of the ingredients. Then I start mixing, adding the flax seed mixture where the eggs are needed.

This recipe makes 18 muffins. Since I was making them for the littles, I made some mini-muffins. The recipe made 24 mini-muffins, and 9 regular muffins.

That's mama muffin, with her twin little muffins. (Maybe I need a nap.)

I let them cool completely, then put in a freezer bag and freeze. When we want a muffin, we pop one out and warm in the microwave for 30 seconds for a large muffin, and 15 for a mini-muffin.

The verdict:
These are wonderful! This is going to be an egg-free go-to favorite! My wheels are spinning. Maybe I could add cocoa powder, make them double chocolate. Maybe I could use zucchini instead of bananas. What about apples...

Have you discovered any egg-free secrets? I would love to hear them all!

Family Favorite Peanut Butter Pie

Are you busy?

Me too. Most of my cooking and baking as of late seems to be quick, easy, and cheap. On top of that, I am trying to become more educated and accomplished at egg-free cooking.

Want a yummy, quick, egg-free desert that your family will request over and over again? Try this peanut butter pie. (I found this recipe online a couple years back, and unfortunately didn't write down the source.)

The ingredient list is simple, I almost always have everything in my pantry or freezer.

Are you ready?

Peanut Butter Pie

1 graham cracker crust (I use chocolate)
1/2 cup peanut butter (usually I use crunchy, this time I used creamy so the twins could have some)
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 block of cream cheese (4 ounces), softened
1 8 ounce tub of whipped topping (like Cool-Whip), thawed
handful of crushed chocolate chips (optional, I run mine through the food processor)


Combine peanut butter, powdered sugar, and cream cheese. Beat until creamy and well combined. Fold in whipped topping. Pour into crust. Top with crushed chocolate chips. Freeze for at least 12 hours. Slice up and serve.

I will not judge if you refrain from letting your family know what's in the freezer....

Linking up here.

Egg-Free Peanut Butter Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Hubby has been asking for oatmeal raisin cookies, with peanut butter.

Lets make hubby his cookies, and go one step further- and make them egg-free for the boys. Keep in mind that egg-free is not my area of expertise yet, I'm still learning.

Here's the concoction (with my verdict following):

Egg-Free Peanut Butter Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

1/2 cup butter, room temp.
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil (this is the egg substitute)
1 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon (or more if you'd like)
1 1/2 cup peanut butter, smooth or crunchy (if for littles use smooth)
1 1/2 cup flour
4 cups oatmeal
1 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 375.
Mix together butter and sugar.
Add vegetable oil and vanilla.
Mix in baking soda, salt, cinnamon, peanut butter, and flour.
Stir in oatmeal.
Incorporate raisins.
Scoop out on ungreased cookie sheet. Smoosh with a fork (not necessary, but I love it!)Bake for 10-15 minutes. Until edges are golden.

Verdict: This is not a chewy cookie. I was expecting a chewy oatmeal raisin type of cookie. They were soft with good flavor; unless let in the oven too long. They crumbled. Pull these babies out as soon as the edges start to turn gold. Overall, these are pretty good (especially if you have egg allergies). I will be trying different substitutions; I would like to cut back the oil necessary.

*I am not a chef, baker, or professional recipe writer- just a mama who won't let allergies tie us down. If there are any mistakes in the recipe, please let me know so I can fix them.