Kitchen Tip

Here's another tip that I've been using for a while:

Source: thecraftymamablog.blogspot.com via Tamara on Pinterest

It really works. I just toss a marshmallow in my brown sugar and it's always soft! Best trick ever!

I had a brown sugar baby and either my sugar would get hard anyway, or it would get moldy. Ick. But the marshmallow has been the best thing ever for my brown sugar. I used to have to buy a new bag of sugar almost every time I wanted to make something... and now I use the full bag.

Best part... my daughter gets a tasty treat of a marshmallow when I put new sugar (and marshmallow) in the container (pretty soon I'll have to put 2 marshmallows in, just to make sure the girls aren't fighting over the marshmallow). :).

Matzo Ball Soup

This is a soup my mom always made after a turkey. She learned it from a friend of hers, once upon a time. We loved it in our house... and now my family loves it as well.



Matzo Ball Soup

3L Chicken or Turkey Broth (approximate)
4 Carrots, cut in thin sticks
2 Parsnips, cut in thin sticks
2 Celery Stalks, sliced cross-grain
2-3 cups chicken or turkey

2 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
2 large eggs, slightly beaten
2/3 cup Matzo Meal
1 tsp salt (or less.. if you want)
2 Tbsp soup stock or water


In a bowl blend the oil, eggs, Matzo meal and salt together. And soup stock/water and mix until uniform. Cover and place in the fridge for 15 minutes.

Throw the broth (homemade or store-bought) in the big pot with the carrots, parsnips, celery and chicken/turkey. Allow veggies to cook.

Bring soup to a boil, reduce to simmer, and form 1 inch balls of the matzo ball mixture and drop into the pot. Cover and let cook for 30-40 minutes.

Serve.. generally it works out to 1 matzo ball per bowl. In this house we tend to do 2, so I double the matzo ball part of the recipe.

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We really enjoy this soup.. it's super easy to make with leftovers after a turkey dinner. This last time baby even got to enjoy the softened veggies and matzo balls and really enjoyed it (she was eating around the carrots to get the chunks of matzo ball though).

Peanut Butter Banana Muffins

Was looking for a peanut butter muffin recipe and came across this one from Lu.

Peanut Butter Banana Muffins



1 3/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter, soften
1/4 cup chunky peanut butter, soften
2 eggs
3 large bananas, mashed
1 banana, sliced

In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In another bowl, cream together sugar and butter until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in peanut butter. Add in the eggs, one at a time. Then mix in mashed banana.

With the mixer on low speed, beat in the flour mixture until just combined.

Fill GREASED muffin cups 2/3 full. Top with a sliced banana. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.


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These were good, but not great. The taste of peanut butter wasn't much. Next time I'll double the peanut butter. I also won't be adding the slice of banana on top. It makes for a pretty muffin, but within an hour after baking, it turns brown and icky (and creates extra moisture in the container you package them in). Overall though, it was pretty tasty, just not fantastic.. I think the additional pb will make it extra tasty.... right now it tastes more just like a banana muffin, with the tiniest hint of peanut butter.

Pumpkin Doughnut Muffins

I had some pumpkin to use up, and didn't have enough supplies for my pumpkin apple muffins, so I searched for a new recipe.

I found this one on Tasty Kitchen... called Pumpkin Doughnut Muffins

Pumpkin Doughnut Muffins



1 1/2 Cups Flour
1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 cup Sugar
1/2 cup Butter
1 Egg
1 cup canned Pumpkin
1 tsp Vanilla
1/2 cup Milk

Topping:
1/2 cup Sugar
1 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice
1 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 cup Butter, Melted

In a bowl mix dry ingredients together (flour, baking powder, spice, salt).

In another bowl, cream together sugar, egg and butter. Add in pumpkin and vanilla.

Add dry ingredients and milk to the other ingredients and beat well.

Spoon into GREASED muffin cups (2/3 full), and bake at 350 F for 20-25 minutes (until toothpick comes out clean).

In a small bowl mix up sugar and spices. Melt butter in a separate bowl. When muffins have cooled enough to handle, dip in melted butter, then roll in sugar mixture.

The original recipe coated the entire muffin in sugar and butter, but I opted to just do the tops.. and it's plenty sweet enough.

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These muffins were delicious. We all enjoyed them, but definitely a more dessert type muffin rather than a breakfast muffin. They are moist and light, and just the perfect amount of spices in there. Enjoy!

March Meal Plan

Not sure where March is going, but I'm just now getting a chance to blog our meal plan for the month.

This month I am mostly doing new recipes, with just a few old ones thrown in.

In no particular order (since I grab from the list based on time, what we feel like that day):

1 - Best Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff*
2 - Grilled Chicken and Pineapple Quesadillas*
3 - Turkey Stirfry and Rice
4 - Stew
5 - Pizza
6 - Slow Cooker Quinoa Casserole*

Source: crockpot365.blogspot.com via Tamara on Pinterest

7 - Mozza Tomato Gnocci Bake*
8 - Matzo Ball Soup*
9 - Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken*, Rice
10 - Bubble Up Enchiladas*
11 - Slow Cooker Tikka Masala*

Source: themealplanner.blogspot.com via Tamara on Pinterest

12 - Chicken Taco Chili
13 - Beef and Broccoli*

Source: simplyrecipes.com via Tamara on Pinterest

14 - Cranberry Chicken
15 - Chicken and Cheese Lasagna Roll Ups*
16 - Tacos
17 - Rosemary Garlic Chickpea Soup*

Source: bowllicking.com via Tamara on Pinterest

18 - Creamy Chicken and Broccoli Casserole*
19 - Sloppy Joe Pizza*
20 - Chicken Stuffing Bake*
21 - Spaghetti and Meatballs
22 - Veggie Cheese Soup*
23 - Broccoli and Black Bean Rice*
24 - Slow Cooker Pot Roast, Roasted Veggies, Yorkshire Pudding

Source: veryculinary.com via Tamara on Pinterest

25 - Balsamic Pork Roast*
26 - Waffles and Fruit
27 - Quick Burritos
28 - 15 Min Chicken and Rice*
29 - Hot Dogs, Potato Salad
30 - Slow Cooker Potato Soup*
31 - Slow Cooker Chicken Caesar Sandwiches*

Source: the-girl-who-ate-everything.com via Tamara on Pinterest

*will try to share these recipes with reviews.