We're sharing this super simple roasted pumpkin seeds recipe on the OSSS blog today. It's a perfect salty snack to counteract all the trick-or-treating sweets and easier than you might think!
Showing posts with label Snacks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Snacks. Show all posts
Thursday, October 19, 2017
Friday, August 26, 2016
Fruit & Nut Trail Mix with Dark Chocolate
Are you ever in need of a pick me up snack? I know I am. I often get to this point in the afternoon when I'm hangry (hungry + angry). And as a mom of 3 sometimes it's hard to get a good snack in during a busy day or diapers, stories, and breastfeeding, school drop off/pick up, etc, etc. This trail mix has been my saving grace the last few weeks. I've had moments when the baby needs to eat and so do I. This is the perfect snack to hold me over until I get a chance to eat. My husband has also been enjoying it at work in the afternoon when his lunch is starting to wear off and it's not time to come home yet.
And with school starting over the last 2 weeks it's been a great snack for my daughter that seems to hardly have any time to eat lunch at school. Does anyone else have kids that don't have enough time to eat? I mean, I know my daughter is a socializer, but I think the need a few more minutes to be able to eat without snarfing.
I grabbed a little cup of this trail mix to bring her when she got off the bus and she was really excited to munch on it as we chatted about her day on the walk home. She hadn't ever had macadamia nuts and asked me what they were. She liked them a lot - and I'd have to say I did too! It was a great little snack to tide her over until dinner was ready!
We seriously have loved the flavor combo in this mix!!!! Like a lot! My husband and I have been talking about it all week! It has the perfect amount of sweet to nut ratio with just a little salt (you can add more depending on which nuts you choose to be salted vs not). And the bits of dark chocolate seriously take this over the top! I hope you enjoy this as much as we do.
This mix consists of: pistachios, dark chocolate covered pumpkin seeds (found the bulk section of Sprout's Farmers Market - any dark chocolate chunk will do though), dried cranberries, dried mango chunks (I like to buy the unsweetened organic mango strips and then I cut them into chunks with kitchen shears. I really despise the preservative flavor on some dried fruit - so I always check the label to make sure it's just the fruit (sometimes only sugar added, but I prefer nothing)), macadamia nuts, raisins, cashews and pecans.
{Find the printable recipe below}
Fruit & Nut Trail Mix with Dark Chocolate
Yield: 2 quarts
Notes:
I am not a huge salt fan, but I like a little sweet and salty mix. Feel free to choose how much salt you want in your mix by choosing salted or unsalted nuts. I only had salted pistachios and I thought it was great - although I might choose one more salted nut next time.
Ingredients:
1 cup pistachio nuts, shelled (salted or unsalted)
1 cup macadamia nuts (salted or unsalted)
1 cup cashews (salted or unsalted)
1 cup pecans (salted or unsalted)
1 cup dried mango, cut into bite size chunks
1 cup dark chocolate covered pumpkin seeds (pepitas), or other dark chocolate chunks
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup raisins
Directions:
Mix the above ingredients in a medium size mixing bowl, stir to combine. Store in a cool dry place in 2 quart jars or a gallon size zip lock back. It makes about 2 quarts of mix. Scoop out ¼ cup or so for a serving. Enjoy!
Recipe Source:
By Lu from Leesh and Lu’s Recipe Box
Tuesday, March 29, 2016
Perfect Deviled Eggs
It's a few days after Easter and we still have a dozen plus boiled eggs hanging around. Last night my husband said, are we going to have Deviled Eggs sometime? We really love this recipe. It's my Grandma King's recipe - and I tell you what, these things are addicting. I ate 3 whole eggs without thinking about it last time I made these and then my hubby polished off the last 3. Grandma has some of the best recipes and I love keeping them alive in the family. This recipe is simple and sure, and everyone loves them. They are perfectly seasoned, and if you're feeling fancy and want to give them a pop of color you garnish them with chives or green onions.
Every Easter my favorite foods are Carrot Cake, Deviled Eggs and Egg Salad Sandwiches. So far I've had all but the Deviled Eggs, but I'll be fixing that right after I publish this post.
Enjoy!
Deviled Eggs
Ingredients:
6 eggs
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
¼ teaspoon onion salt (or ⅛ teaspoon onion powder and ¼ teaspoon salt)
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
½ teaspoon lemon juice
Dash of white pepper
Dash of tabasco sauce
Directions:
Hard boil 6 eggs. Our preferred way is to cover them in large sauce pan with water and bring to a boil, once boiling, turn heat off and cover the pot with the lid and let them sit for 10 minutes. Once 10 minutes is up, drain the warm water and fill pan with water and ice to cool.
Once cool peel and cut in half lengthwise. Remove yolks and place in a small mixing bowl, add the mayo, onion salt, mustard, lemon juice, pepper and tabasco sauce - mix until smooth. Pipe or scoop the yolk mixture back into the hole of the egg white. Garnish with paprika or chopped chives if desired.
Recipe Source:
From our grandma, Kathy King - Originally shared on Landee Lu
Friday, January 8, 2016
Green Drink {Delicious & Nutritious}
My in-laws came to visit us a few days after Christmas. We had a fun week with them. While they were here my mother-in-law made this green drink everyday. She's been doing it for a number of years now, and I decided I wanted to try it. It looked yummy - lots of tasty things going in there. So I had her show me how to make it one morning. I was actually surprised how good it tasted. I mean there is a bunch of spinach (and baby chard and kale if you choose) in there, so I wondered what it would taste like with all that green). I've been buying an organic POWER green mix from my local grocery store (see picture below) for the green in the drink, you can also use just baby spinach and add in a small amount of kale too if you please.
Amongst the greens in this drink, there is lemon, with most of the rind. That is one of my favorite flavors that shines in this drink, it really makes it taste fresh and delicious - and less green than it would without it. There is also and apple, and some little bit of sweet fruit (peaches, grapes, mangos, bananas (whatever you want) to give it a little bit of sweetness). The slight amount of sweetness really makes this drink enjoyable to guzzle!
A few other things added in here are water (enough to get the consistency you want) and chia seeds that are soaked over night. The chia seeds add even more nutrients to this already nutrient dense drink. I didn't really know too much about chia seeds before a few weeks ago when my mother-in-law gave me this recipe, besides that they are a health food rage right now. After looking into how full of good they are, I'm excited to use them more.
I've had a really terrible rash on my hands that flares in and out (it's been going on for about 7 years), and after drinking this for a week, I've noticed a huge difference in it. Last week it was all flared up and blistery looking, itching like crazy too. And this week after I've had this drink 6 days in a row - I'm wondering if it's clearing up from all the nutrition packed in this drink. I haven't changed anything else as far as lotion, soap or other nutrition. I've been amazed!
I also have been loving that my kids love to drink this too! This tells you that it really is enjoyable to drink. If it wasn't - I can assure you they'd come no where near it. But every time they see me pull out the blender they come asking for some. I feel so good when I'm drinking this and knowing my kids are too. It's packed with all sorts of good for our bodies!
I hope you will enjoy this too! Recipe below.
Green Drink {Delicious & Nutritious}
Yield: 1 drink 2-3 cups worth
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon chia seed (soaked overnight)
1 cup + water
¼ of a lemon, some rind removed
½ apple (gala, pink lady, honey crisp - something nice and sweet)
⅓ cup of sweet fruit (grapes (when in season), peaches, mangos, banana, etc.)
Roughly 1 ½ cups (unpacked) of greens, 2-3 small handfuls baby spinach or POWER green mix (spinach, chard, kale)
½ kale leaf (optional if using just baby spinach)
Notes:
- For the lemon: you can remove as much or as little of the rind as you wish. The more you leave the more of a lemony taste you’ll have. Also depending on how good your blender is, you may want to cut the lemon up into small pieces for smooth blending.
-Save the lemon and the half of the apple in the same container to help the apple from browning, and use them again the next day.
-You can buy a POWER green mix (like the blend pictured in the post) or use baby spinach. If you use baby spinach and want to add a little more nutrition add ½ of a kale leaf into the mixture.
-If you don’t soak the chia seeds the night before they won’t blend quite as well and the soaking helps them break down in the blender more the next day (giving you more power to absorb all the nutrients).
Directions:
Place the chia seeds in a pint jar or other container and over with 1 cup of water. Soak overnight.
In the morning add the lemon, apple, greens, sweet fruit, chia seeds/water mixture, and optional kale. Blend 30-60 seconds until smooth. Add more water as needed to reach desired consistency. I like mine to be thinner - it’s more like a drink than a smoothie and easier to drink this way.
Recipe Source:
From my mother-in-law, Maureen G.
Pinterest friendly image:
Friday, July 3, 2015
Coconut Cinnamon Popcorn
Hey friends! Today I am sharing a new favorite snack of mine. My kids, my husband and some of my extended family that I've made it for love it too. It's a keeper. Coconut Cinnamon Popcorn! The name alone is worth drooling over.
I was introduced to this popcorn a few months ago by one of my friends who brought it to our ladies bunco night. Anyone else out there play bunco? It's a simple dice game that we play and we bring random gifts from our house or whatever for prizes. It's a fun reason to get together and chat. I am way more into the chatting and snacking then the game itself, but I enjoy it all. When I tasted the popcorn that night I had to know what was in it. My friend, Lacey, said it was just popped popcorn drizzled with coconut oil and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar. After hearing that there was no wonder why I loved it so much.
Since then we've made this more times than I can count on two hands. So I've tweaked it and perfected it just the way I like it. And I even served it at a baby shower a week and a half ago, where I put a little banner saying, "ready to pop" above the bowl. It was a hit at the shower too. That night I drizzled it with melted white chocolate too, just to add an extra hint of yumminess, but it totally doesn't need it.
If you are looking for a treat to share and don't want to add much sugar into the mix, this is just for you. It perfectly satisfies my sweet craving without me feeling like I have dove into something totally sinful!
Coconut Cinnamon Popcorn
[Serves 4-5 - make in 5 minutes]
Ingredients:
½ cup white popcorn kernels (unpopped)
2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
⅛ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon white sugar
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
Directions:
Place ½ cup popcorn kernels in an air popper (or pop them however you please). While it’s popping, melt 2 tablespoons of coconut oil in a small bowl or liquid measuring cup.
Lightly drizzle the coconut oil (in a slow stream) over the popcorn as you toss the popcorn with a butter knife or spatula.
Lightly sprinkle with salt (you don’t have to measure out ⅛ teaspoon). This popcorn isn’t mean to be salty, but a little salt with the cinnamon sugar blend makes it taste so much better.
In a small bowl mix the sugar and cinnamon until well mixed. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture over the popcorn while tossing to coat evenly.
Enjoy!
Recipe Source:
Inspired from a similar snack my friend Lacey made for me, recipe developed by Lu, originally posted on landeelu.com
If you are a cinnamon lover like me, you might also like these: Cinnamon Rolls
Monday, December 29, 2014
{Our Favorite} Cheeseball
Cheeseballs have been a New Year's Eve tradition in our family for as long as I can remember. They start appearing at Thanksgiving, at my Grandma's house, and then again at Christmas, and making one final debut for the year on New Years Eve. Are you a cheeseball lover? I sure am, but especially for this particular recipe.
What New Year's Eve snack do you have each year?
I've only tried store-bought cheeseball a few times, I've never been super impressed with them. The ones I've tried taste like that have easy cheese or something too soft and too fake for me. This cheeseball is inspired from my Grandma King's recipe. She has told us she does it a little different each time, so we've tried over the last few years to nail down what we love, and I think we've got it.
Leesh and I love cheeseball. We don't live very close - about 10 hours away from each other. But when we were together right before Christmas you better believe that cheeseball was involved. We love this cheeseball so much in fact - we might have cleaned off an entire block of cream cheese just by ourselves while we were chatting and snacking after our kiddos were in bed.
The recipe is simple - and comes together in 10 minutes or less. The blue cheese can be optional but it's what "makes the cheeseball" for us. We are blue cheese lovers! Our kiddos even love it! We serve it with crackers. I'm a huge fan of Wheat Thins and Triscuits. But it will work on any kind of cracker you love too!
We hope this is something you'll try out for your New Year's Eve party this year.
Try it and then tell us about it. We with you a Happy New Year.
Cheeseball
2 blocks cream cheese (full or less fat), softened to room temperature
½ cup crumbled blue cheese, more or less to taste (optional, but recommended)
2 teaspoons worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon McCormick Bon Appetit seasoning salt blend (see *note* below for substitute) OR 2 tablespoons ranch powder
8 ounces sharp or extra sharp cheddar cheese, finely grated
1 cup nuts, chopped (optional) I prefer pecans or almonds
Directions:
*Note* - you can use ¼ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon ground celery seed, ½ teaspoon onion powder in place of the McCormick Bon Appetit seasoning salt.
Chop nuts fine and leave in a small plate or dish for rolling the cheeseball in
In a medium size mixing bowl mix the cream cheese, blue cheese, worcestershire sauce, and seasoning of choice together. Once mixed thoroughly add the shredded cheddar cheese and mix until incorporated. Roll into a ball (I like to wear plastic disposable gloves so I don’t have to clean it all off my hands), and then roll into ball (or you can simply put it in a serving dish without it being a ball) and then roll to coat the outside in the chopped nuts. If you are going to serve immediately place on a serving dish with crackers. If you aren’t going to use til later, wrap in plastic wrap and put in the fridge until ready to serve.
Recipe Source:
Inspired by our Grandma Kathy King’s famous cheeseball.
Friday, September 6, 2013
Granola Bars {w/ 5 suggested variations}
I've been seeing recipes for homemade granola bars a lot lately. I hadn't really thought much about making them until I tried these at my friends house a few weeks ago! And they were sooooo good. I'm not usually a huge granola bar person. But these are something else! They taste so pure and wholesome and I love making them because I know what goes into them (I can pronounce all of the ingredients) and they are adaptable to whatever taste you want to get out of them.
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