The Best Artichoke Dip Recipe

I have the best artichoke dip for your next party, get together, office potluck, night at home... whatever excuse you have to make this- it is so good.  Every time I make everyone asks me for the recipe.  So I am sharing it with the world! 

Ingredients:

1 cup Mayo (I like Miracle Whip)

1 -8oz package cream cheese (soften works best)

1- 8 oz package sour cream

2 -14oz cans of Artichoke hearts (diced)

2 cups Parmesan cheese 

optional: Substitute out 1 cup of parmesan for 1 cup Mozzarella cheese

2 tsp Dill weed

2 tsp Garlic

Directions: 

Oven- Combine all ingredients in a glass (oven safe) bowl and cook for 30 min. or until all the cheese has melted.  Check and stir at 15 minutes.

Crockpot- Combine all ingredients into crockpot and cook on low for 4-6 hours, or high 2-4 hours.  Stirring occasionally.

Serve with crackers and bread and it will disappear! 

Super Easy Dinner: Mexican Ranch Chicken Soup

Here is one of my families favorite diners.  It is super easy to make and everyone eats it!  It is my go-to meal for when I bring a meal to someone, and they always ask for the recipe.  It is also gluten free- bonus!   We like to eat it with corn/tortilla chips to dip.  It is a hearty soup so it will fill you up! 

Here is what you need: 

2 cups Milk

1 cup ranch dressing (not the powder mix)

1 8oz package cream cheese

1 can sweet corn or 1 cup frozen

1 can black beans drained and rinsed

1 can tomatoes and green chilies

1 can white chicken shredded

Directions:

Combine all ingredients into a large pot.  Cook over medium heat until cream cheese is melted.  Serve with Chips.  

You can also cook it in the crockpot on low for 3-6 hours and High for 2-4 hours.  

I made a free printable of the recipe.  I like to include it when I bring a meal to someone.  It also has some nutrition information on it.  You can just right click and download the image.  I made 1 large one and one that has 4 to a page. 

PEEPS® S'mores - Show your #PEEPSONALITY!

Thank you to PEEPS® for providing me with the PEEPS® used in this post.

PEEPS® sent me a little summer care package: 

Lots of fun stuff for the summer, we have used the towel for swimming lessons and I use the cup to drink lots of water but I decided to share a fun way to take your S'mores to a Whole. Nother. Level.

(see Mad TV Clip here for reference)

Necessity is the mother of all invention.  We were out of marshmallows and I had promised my kids S'mores.  We had the chocolate we had the gram... what could we use for the mallow? PEEPS®!  

They have come out with some fun new flavors in a Mini size and they are perfect for a marshmallow substitute! 

First heat up your PEEPS® Mini over the fire.  Don't get it too close or it will burn... you just want to warm it up. 

Put it on top of your gram and chocolate

Put the other gram on and EAT!  So ymmuy!  

We made the strawberry and chocolate PEEPS® and both were good! 

Peanut Butter Banana Metabolism Boost Smoothie

I got a Magic Bullet for my birthday... so now I am on a smoothie kick!  I have found it to be a great way to start off my day healthy and it feels like a treat!  I shared my Berry Banana Brain Boost smoothie yesterday and today I am sharing my metabolism boosting smoothie.  No better way to start then to get your metabolism up for the day! 

Kale, Greek Yogurt and Peanuts are 3 ingredients that help slim your waistline by boosting you metabolism!  So that is the base of this smoothie with only one more ingredient - Banana which also helps the metabolism but is also a great source of potassium (because I get horrible leg cramps!)  Plus the banana masks the taste of the kale.

You will need:

1 Banana

1 tablespoon Peanut Butter (mine is heaping!)

1 cup Plain Greek Yogurt

1/2 Baby Kale

Put all the ingredients into your smoothie maker or blender and blend until smooth.

Optional: Add ice to make it more of an Icey. 

This also makes a great mid-day snack.

I love sneaking in my veggies into my smoothies. 

 I know I should be better about eating them and this is a great way to do it!  

Berry Banana Brain Booster Smoothie

This shop is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group® and Nestle, but all my opinions are my own. #pmedia  #BreakfastEssentials http://my-disclosur.es/OBsstV”

Who has mommy brain?  Who has kids that always answer "I don't know" when you ask them a question?  I have just the thing for you!   A great way to start your morning that will also give you and your kids a brain boost!  

The Berry Banana Brain Booster smoothie has everything you need to start your day off right, including Carnation Breakfast Essentials (which you can pick up at Walmart - right by the oatmeal in the cereal isle) Breakfast Essentials has 21 vitamins and minerals that your body needs plus 13g of protein and calcium. 

This smoothie is has Strawberries and Kale in it which are known to help your memory!  Boy- do I need all the help I can get!  Also the Kale and Banana help boost your metabolism too! -Bonus! 

It is also great for the kids.  With all the vitamins and protein it is sure to help them focus at school and not be distracted by being hungry!  Smoothies are a great way to hide those leafy greens for your kids to eat.  My kids don't even know they are eating Kale when I give them their smoothies, they drink them up and don't know any better! 1 point for mommy!

Here is what you will need: 

4-5 Large Strawberries 

1/2 Banana

1/2 - 1 cup Kale

1 cup Milk

1 package French Vanilla Carnation Breakfast Essentials powder (use this coupon!)

Put everything in your smoothie maker or blender and blend until smooth. 

Tip #1: Freeze your strawberries for more of an icy texture.

Tip #2: If you are going to put Kale in other smoothies be sure to add banana because the banana hides the bold kale taste.

I love starting my day off with a smoothie.  It is fast to make so much better then some packaged pastry!  The fresh fruits and veggies with the added protein and vitamins from the Carnaton Breakfast Essentials pack really give me the boost I need in the morning to face the day as a busy mom and blogger!  And my kids LOVE it too!  The baby always signs "more" when I have my smoothie out... I always have to share! 

Get your own Carnation Breakfast Essentials at Walmart to make your own smoothies!  Use this coupon and save!  Check out more smoothie recipes HERE

10 Easy Super Bowl Recipes

Planning a Super Bowl Party?  I have some fun and easy recipes for you that I have found from around the internet! 

Crock Pot Strawberry Fruit Spread - 3 Ingredients

My kids love toast. And they love PB&J. But I hate buying jelly and jam at the store because it's either packed full of sugar or super expensive. Besides, I love the satisfaction of making things myself. So when I came across this recipe for Strawberry Honey Jam, I knew I had to try it. But because I can't just follow directions, I had to turn it into a crock pot recipe. Besides, it's impossible for me to monitor something cooking on the stove for an hour. Knowing me, all the moisture would cook out and it would get dried and burnt to the pan. Also, I cut the recipe down to use only 1 pound of strawberries because I wasn't sure how it would turn out, and I didn't have enough jars for 6 pounds. So, here we go:

This will make about 2 cups of jam which fits nicely into a pint-size jar.

Ingredients:
1 lb. frozen or fresh strawberries, hulled
2/3 c honey
1/3 apple (for natural pectin), grated with skin on (I sliced with an apple slicer and grated 3 slices in a food processor.)
1t lemon juice (This is for preserving, so if you're canning you'll need it, but otherwise it's not necessary. In this small of a batch you probably don't need it, but I wanted to include it in case you decide to make and can a large batch.)

Directions:
1. Place strawberries, grated apple, honey, (and lemon juice if using), in a small (1.5 qt) crock pot and stir.
2. Cook on low about 3 hours, until fruit is all mushy.
3. Vent lid with a spoon and continue cooking another 3-4 hours to let some of the moisture out. You may want to monitor it to make sure it doesn't dry out, but after 4 hours mine was still fairly liquidy.
4. Smoosh with potato masher, let cool, then spoon into jar and refrigerate or freeze.

~This has a more liquidy consistency than "regular" jam because it has no pectin added, but after a few hours in the fridge it will become a bit more jellied. It's more of a "fruit spread" than a "jam," and would be fantastic as topping on pancakes, waffles, ice cream, granola etc.
~ This small batch disappeared in about 2 days at my house. So the next time I doubled it, using strawberries and peaches, and a whole apple. YUMMY! I believe this will be a new staple in my house. I'm gonna need a few more crock pots, I think!
{this post originally appeared here}

Chocolate Candy Bites {recipe!}

I {Jeannine} just got a 5-gallon bucket of coconut oil and after reading the book that came with it, I wanted to eat nothing but coconut oil for the rest of my life. I know that's a bit excessive, so I am trying to incorporate it into our life in as many ways as I reasonably can. I was trying to figure out a way to get it into my kids' diet on a regular basis, and this is perfect.

This recipe showed up in my news feed on Facebook recently without a link. So I tried it, and I like it so much I had to share. It's easy, and it really does taste just like chocolate! My kids like it too, so it's a win-win for all of us - I'm sneaking the good stuff into them, and they think they're eating candy which means mom ROCKS because it's not something I normally encourage!

Ingredients:
1/2 c. coconut oil
1/4 c. cocoa powder (or carob or cacao)
2-3 T raw honey (with less honey it will taste more like dark chocolate)
buy ingredients here

Directions:
1. Fill a medium sauce pan about half way with water, heat on medium-high until nice and warm.
2. Put ingredients into a glass measuring cup, mason jar, or something similar, and place into warm water.
3. Turn burner to low and simmer, stirring as the oil liquifies.
4. When everything is thoroughly mixed, remove from pan and pour into candy molds or mini-muffin pan.
5. Put into fridge or freezer to harden for a few hours.
6. Pop out of molds and store in fridge or freezer (coconut oil melts at about 76 degrees, so if your home is cooler than that, you could store them at room temperature).


~This can also be done with butter instead of coconut oil. I have tried it, it's amazing also, and definitely tastes buttery!
{This post originally appeared here}

DIY All Natural Body Spray

I had a bottle of commercial body spray in my bathroom cabinet that was about 8 years old. And while I did like the smell, it was just a bit perfume-y for me so I didn’t use it much. I have never liked perfume or strong colognes. They make my eyes water and my nose itch and my head ache. Allergy, perhaps? I don’t know. However, lately I have been on a major lavender kick. I have a small bottle of lavender essential oil (EO) that I use in every bath. Lavender is known for being relaxing and calming, which is something I really need these days. Plus I love the smell. So I emptied out that old bottle and did a little experiment... (Go here to find out more)

Jeannine's No Bake Healthy(ish) Cookie Balls

This is our new favorite household snack. My favorite part about it is, when I have an attack of the munchies, just one of these beautiful babies is enough to satisfy my hunger. There is a decent amount of sugar in these (peanut butter, honey, and dried berries), but they are loaded with protein and fiber too. So you be the judge of how healthy they actually are... (recipe here)

Turkey Frame Soup

We know Thanksgiving is done but here is a great recipe to use if you cook a turkey for Christmas, or you can also use a chicken frame too... or just Pin it for next year!

As long as your bird isn't too big, turkey soup in the slow cooker (crock pot) is a great, healthy way to stretch out that turkey. You can start it after dinner on Thursday (and save space in your refrigerator), or wait ‘til Friday if you’re too tuckered out from all that belly stuffing! This way you can be cooking even while you are out shopping, working, or just relaxing on Friday.

I got this recipe from my mom (who, by the way, is a fantastic cook), and adapted it for the slow cooker. If you’re not into slow cooking, or if your bird is HUGE you can certainly cook this on the stove in a large stock pot. Just don’t cook it as long or it will dry out and burn up!

Ingredients:
1 meaty turkey frame (carcass)
{works with chicken too!}
3 quarts broth (12 cups)
(or water with 1t bullion)
1 onion, sliced or diced
3 tomatoes, cut into wedges
(or 16 oz can)
1 ½ t dried oregano, crushed
1t dried thyme
Pinch of pepper
4 c. vegetables (carrots, onions, celery, mushrooms, broccoli, cauliflower, etc.)
1 ½ c. uncooked noodles, rice, quinoa, barley, etc.
Directions:

1. Break or cut in half with scissors the frame if it doesn’t fit in the pot
2. Put into large slow cooker (6-7 qt or larger) with broth, onion, and salt*
3. Cook on low overnight (8-10 hours) or on high 4-5 hours*
4. Cool and remove bones.
5. Return meat (as much as you want, I like to save some for sandwiches) and broth to the pot, and stir in spices and veggies
6. Cook on low 3-4 hours or on high 1-2 hours
7. Stir in noodles or grains, simmer until done
8. If it gets too dry, add water or more broth to make it more soup

*If you have a huge bird, you can do steps 2-3 in a large stock pot. Bring to boil on the stove, then simmer for 1.5 hours. After removing bones and other waste, it should fit into the slow cooker.

 

Make Your Own Yogurt!

Yes, you can make yogurt! And it's SO MUCH easier than you might expect. And so much healthier because it's free of all the extras and additives that so many packaged foods have these days. There are many make-your-own-yogurt instructions out there, and this is mine, a combination of ideas, and tweaked over the years.

Supplies:
~ Slow cooker (a.k.a. crock pot) - any size
~ Small kitchen thermometer
~ Oven with a working light

Ingredients: 

~ milk (whole milk will make a thicker, creamier yogurt, but you can use any milk)

~ plain yogurt to use as a starter

(I have experimented with different brands and types of yogurt as well as dry "starter packets" and have found that a good organic yogurt makes the best yogurt BY FAR.)

Method:
* Use about 1-2T of yogurt to every quart of milk *

1. Pour milk into slow cooker

2. Put the lid on, but prop open with thermometer (to keep the thermometer where it's supposed to be)

 3. Turn cooker on (either low or high, depending on how fast you want to heat it), and heat to about 110 degrees F (I have accidentally heated it to 130, and it still worked. I have also accidentally heated it to 140 and it did not work.)

4. Add yogurt
5. Lift crock out of the cooker, take the thermometer out but leave the lid on, and place into cold oven.

6. Turn the oven LIGHT on (do NOT turn the oven on!) and leave overnight or 8-12 hours

(the light keeps just enough warmth in the oven to maintain the perfect temperature for yogurt making)

That’s it!  Now you have yogurt. So beautiful.
Top with honey and fresh fruit and/or granola for a delicious parfait!

 {Sometimes liquid will separate out of the yogurt. This is whey. It is high in protein and amazingly good for you. You can give the yogurt a shake and mix the whey back in, or you can siphon it off and use it in baking. Do a search on uses for whey. You will be amazed.}

 

Fresh Tomato Chili Recipe (no cans!)

Jeannine’s Fresh Tomato Chili (no cans!)

Ingredients: ½ to 1 lb ground beef
½ to 1 medium onion, diced
½ green pepper, diced
½ red pepper, diced
1 T minced garlic (2-3 cloves)
20 medium ripe tomatoes, cut into wedges
1.5 T chili powder
1 T cumin
1t salt
1t black pepper
1-2 cups cooked black beans (Ok, you can use a can if you want, but I cook my own dried beans)
½ c brown minute rice (or cooked rice)
Shredded cheddar cheese
Plain yogurt or sour cream


Directions:
1. Put onions, garlic, and peppers in a large sauce pan. Add ground beef, cover and cook on medium-low heat until beef is no longer pink.
2. Add tomato wedges, chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper, mix thoroughly.
3. Bring to boil, then simmer, covered for 30-60 minutes.
4. Just before serving add beans and rice. If rice is uncooked, let simmer about 10 minutes until rice is done
5. Serve in bowls with shredded cheese, and a dollop of plain yogurt or sour cream.  

Healthy After School Snack with Nectresse- Peanut Butter Granola Recipe

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Nectresse™ Sweetener for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

NECTRESSE™Sweetener is a new no calorie sweetener that is 150 time sweeter then sugar and can be used in cooking and baking.  It is the only 100% natural sweetener made from fruit (monk fruit).  It is a great way to add some sweetness to a recipe without adding calories!  

I  used it to make Peanut Butter Granola:

Ingredients:

8 NECTRESSE™Sweetener packets,
1/2 cup unsweetened natural peanut butter
1/4 cup margarine
1/4 cup honey
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups old fashion oats
1 cup dried fruit
1 cup roaster peanuts (optional- I did not add to mine)
Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees
2. Spray cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray (or line with tin foil)
3. Combine: NECTRESSE™Sweetener packets, peanut butter, margarine, honey and cinnamon in a small saucepan.  Bring to a simmer, take off heat and then add the vanilla.
4. Pour peanut butter mixture over the oats in a mixing bowl and stir to coat.
5. Pour granola onto the cookie sheet and bake for 30 minutes or until brown, stirring often.  Let cool and then add the dried fruit and peanuts.  Store in an air tight container for up to one week.

This makes a great healthy snack or breakfast!  It is so yummy!  My kids and hubby love it!  

Be sure to get a FREE sample of NECTRESSE™Sweetener!  And check out this Lina Ling testimonial:

Busy Mama's Cookie Pie

There is nothing like a homemade chocolate chip cookie, especially in the Fall. Fall weather really gets me in a baking mood, but with 2 busy little boys at home during the school day, and 3 school-age girls who come home mid-afternoon, it's hard to block a huge chunk of time to dedicate to cookie-baking.

For me, the tedious part is putting all those little balls of dough on the pan. It can take several rounds of bowl-to-pan-to-oven-to-cooling-rack to get all those cookies baked. I like to simplify and shorten this step by pressing the entire (single) batch of dough into a pie pan. I call it Cookie Pie, and the kids think it's great, even though it's just a giant cookie. Use your regular chocolate chip cookie recipe (I use Betty Crocker), then bake for about 22-25 minutes. You'll want to keep an eye on it after about 20 minutes, as ovens vary.

You could probably use any cookie recipe, but this is the only one I've tried. You can also use a square or small rectangle pan, and slice it into "cookie bars."

To make it a little "healthier" I use white whole wheat flour for half the flour. Still not what I'd call healthy, but hey, it's something. I have also found fresh, locally rendered lard at the farmer's market, which I substitute for the butter, and it makes the cookie nice and flaky!  

Summer Fresh Tomato Basil Alfredo Recipe

I don't know about you, but here in Northern Indiana, the tomato crop is coming in, and mine is glorious! I love tomatoes. I can't say enough how much I love them. I love to see that burst of orangy red within the green bush when I'm harvesting. I also LOVE, LOVE, LOVE fresh basil.



This recipe is VERY simple, and it's a go-to for me on busy evenings, or nights I just don't feel like cooking. It's best in summer when the tomatoes and basil are fresh and at their peak of flavor.










Ingredients:
1 box pasta of your choice
1/2 pound sage sausage (or chicken or shrimp would also be yummy, or no meat at all if you want a vegetarian option)
about 20 cherry tomatoes, or the equivalent amount of any other tomatoes
a handful of fresh basil, chopped (to taste - I used about 6-7 large leaves)
alfredo sauce (canned or homemade, your choice - I use my Betty Crocker recipe for sauce)

Directions:
1. Cook meat
2. Cook pasta according to package directions, then drain
3. Mix pasta, meat, tomatoes, basil, and sauce together in pan
4. Simmer for a few minutes to warm the tomatoes

{I actually added some swiss chard to mine as well, and nobody noticed - the color blended in with the basil, and the taste was unnoticeable - a good way to sneak in some extra power veggies!}
That's it! SO easy, and so FRESH!

Dairy Free Strawberry Sherbet Recipe

My Daughter is allergic  to milk... it is very sad... do you know how many thing have dairy in them.  Lots!   AND Ice Cream is one of them... so, I made some dairy free sherbet for her!  I adapted this Sherbet Recipe to make it dairy free.   It is so yummy that the whole family eats it up!   

Here is what you will need:

2 Cups Coconut Milk (we use Silk but any brand will work!) 

3-4 cups Strawberries

2 cups Sugar

Place all your ingredients in to your blender and puree.  

Then, pour into a freezer safe container and freeze over night. 

It is seriously that easy... and it is so yummy! 

The coconut milk gives it a tropical pina colata taste!  Just close your eyes and pretend you are at the beach! 

 

How To Make Your Own Buns

I have been making my own bread for quite some time, and have recently started making my own hot dog/brat/hamburger buns as well. And let me say, they are DELICIOUS. I don't know how I ever ate store-bought buns!

I use this bread recipe.  After shaping into a loaf, I sliced it into 10 pieces (kind of how you would slice cinnamon rolls). The first time I made them I made 8 buns, and they were a bit too big, even for large brats. But if you like large buns {I am cracking up right now}, then by all means make them bigger!

After slicing, roll each piece into something like a bread stick:

 Cover and let rise until they're nice and big:

Bake at 350 for 15 minutes {ovens vary}, slice and eat!

 

You can make hamburger buns the same way, only instead of bread stick shapes, you obviously make little round balls. For these I make 8 since I like big buns {sorry, couldn't resist}.

  

Use this great Black Bean Hamburgers recipe for a healthy way to fill the buns!