Cranberry Sour Cream Muffins

This weekend, I was at the grocery store and saw bags of cranberries in the produce section. Of course, with Thanksgiving days away, this makes sense. But in that moment I realized, not once in my life have I ever cooked using fresh cranberries! I have used sweetened, dried cranberries numerous times, but something about that little bag of cranberries drew me in. I immediately decided I was making muffins, and am so glad I did. I found this simple recipe for cranberry sour cream muffins online, and they were so easy to whip up. My boys, Lincoln in particular, ate more than one of them, he couldn't get enough! While sweet, they definitely had a bit of tartness, and offered a taste that paired perfectly with coffee at breakfast.

 

Cranberry Sour Cream Muffins

 

Ingredients

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1.5 cups raw cranberries, chopped
• 1/2 cup sugar

 

Instructions

1.  Combine dry ingredients (only the 1/4 cup of sugar, leave remaining 1/2 cup) in a large bowl.
2. In a separate bowl, combine egg, sour cream, milk, and vegetable oil.
3. Add wet ingredients to dry, just until all mix is moistened.
4. Combine cranberries with remaining 1/2 cup sugar, and mix into batter.
5. Spoon batter into twelve greased standard size muffin pan cups.
6. Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes.

Original recipe can be found HERE.



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Friday Favorites

We have made it to another Friday! And we are already into the middle of November; how crazy is that? For whatever reason, I have been feeling extra festive this year, and while my husband refuses any Christmas décor going up until the day after Thanksgiving, you better believe I have already been enjoying holiday cups from Starbucks and Christmas music on my car rides ;-) Since it has been awhile, I can't wait to share some of my favorites today.

Peppermint Oil

Mike and I recently sat down and had a discussion and decided to officially make a change in our home to essential oils. We have been using them sparingly for years, but we made the agreement that we should start actually switching out products in our home and replacing them with oils. And let me tell you, so far we do not regret it for a second. I have been loving experimenting, but one of my absolute favorites is peppermint. It is so perfect to diffuse with lemon to wake us up in the morning, or with pine and evergreen to get our house smelling like a Christmas tree. It is also great to rub a dot along your hairline if you have a headache (seriously, it works like magic). My all time favorite thing I started doing with this little guy, though, is adding a drop into my black coffee. It adds SO much flavor and tastes like Christmas in a cup, but has almost no calories! I have been enjoying this little combo every morning lately, and I don't think I will be stopping any time soon.

Christmas Pajamas

I can never get enough of holiday pajamas. I try to scoop up clearance pairs at the end of the season for the boys to wear the following year, but I can never resist getting an additional pair or two when the new styles come out. I love this car set, this has to be one of my favorite Christmas décor trends lately. I am always a sucker for a classic plaid set, and I'm pretty sure the quote on this pair was made for Lincoln. This final pair is such a classic, I just love little one piece sets like this.

Blush Finds

I always love finding a fun pair of pants to wear to work. Black dress pants can start to feel blah after awhile, so really how much fun is this blush pair!? Not only are they my favorite color, but they have the prettiest shimmer/sheen to them. And I saw this sweatshirt in Target and it came home with me immediately! It is so soft and cozy, and is perfect for lounging around on the weekends. I'm not sure if and when I'll stop with all of the blush things, they are just too good.

Lincoln Lately

This week I shared a bit of what Lincoln has been up to at 18 months old. He is our wild child for sure, but always keeps us on our toes and is at the cutest stage right now. I swear, I could eat him up!

Copycat Barbacoa Recipe

If you have not tried the barbacoa at Chipotle, you are seriously missing out. This stuff is so darn good, so last week I decided to attempt a copycat recipe at home. And it turned out SO good. I made some copycat cilantro lime rice and copycat corn salsa, and it truly tasted exactly like what I would get at the restaurant. Seriously, you will not regret making this stuff; Mike deemed it one to 'add to the book'. And if Mike approves, everyone probably will ;-)

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend-we are getting a heat wave after our cold week and will hopefully see some temps in the 40s. Funny how things change when you live in Minnesota!

Five on Friday // Friday Favorites // Friday Favorites // High Five For Friday

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The Best Special K Bars

Last week, I shared that I had made my favorite Special K Bars and got lots of questions of which recipe I use. To be honest, I have tried numerous different ones, changing up the amount of cereal used, chocolate, peanut butter, etc. But this recipe is my final go to and is absolutely incredible. I have seen people swap out the Special K cereal for Rice Krispies, but in my opinion something about the texture and crisp of the Special K is so much better. So, if you are craving something extra chocolaty, look no further than these easy, no bake bars!

Special K Bars

Ingredients

7 cups Special K cereal

1 cup white sugar

1 cup Karo syrup

1 cup peanut butter

12 oz bag milk chocolate chips

12 oz bag butterscotch chips

 

Make It

1. Pour the cereal into a large mixing bowl. The bigger the better, it will make it easier to coat the cereal later.

2. In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, syrup, and peanut butter on low to medium heat. Stir consistently, until sugar is dissolved and ingredients are well mixed. Continue to stir until the mixture comes to a very slight boil with bubbles coming through.

3. Immediately transfer the peanut butter mixture into the mixing bowl over the cereal. Fold in the cereal, trying to coat as evenly as possible. Check to make sure you don't have any dry pieces of cereal hanging around!

4. Transfer cereal into a 9x13 glass dish. Spread evenly. I like to take the back of a spoon or a spatula and smooth out the top as evenly as possible.

5. In a microwave safe bowl, combine the entire bag of both milk chocolate chips and the butterscotch. Yes, I said two whole bags! Start by microwaving for two minutes. Stir, and return to the microwave in 30 second increments until the sauce is smooth and creamy.

6. Pour the chocolate mixture over the top of your bars. Cover evenly.

7. Sometimes for fun, I will add sprinkles to the top, especially if I am making them during a certain season/holiday. Easter happens to be around the corner, so bright, cheery sprinkles were added to the mix!

8. Enjoy!

 

You can also make the chocolate sauce mixture in a saucepan, but I prefer the microwave as it is easier to burn in a saucepan, which leads to a chalky consistency.

It may seem like a lot to put two full bags of chips on the top, but trust me when I say that this is what makes these bars so good! It is the most decadent ratio of chocolate to cereal. Of course you can adjust down, or swap out milk for semi-sweet chocolate, if that better suits your preferences.

 

I would love to hear from you if you try this recipe. I promise you will be hooked!

Linking up with Lindsay today!!

 

 

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Caramel Apple Sangria

Back when we had Lincoln's baptism, I mentioned that I made a caramel apple sangria, and realized that I never got around to sharing the recipe! It was seriously so easy to throw together, and was so tasty! The original recipe can be found here. It is very sweet, so my recommendation would be to add a bit of sparkling water to break down the thickness of the cider a bit. This recipe is perfect for your Thanksgiving dinner, girl's night, or any time you are looking for a drink that tastes like fall in a glass!

Caramel Apple Sangria

Ingredients

One 750ml bottle of crisp white wine (I used Pinot Grigio)

One cup caramel flavored vodka

Six cups apple cider

Two medium sized apples

Directions

1. Combine vodka, cider, and wine in pitcher. Stir well.

2. Chop and core the apples. Throw into pitcher, and scoop into glasses when serving.

3. Serve chilled or over ice.

That's it! Ridiculously easy to make, and so delicious. Enjoy!

Linking up with Annie today.



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Grinch Kabobs!

For the second week, I am linking up with some fabulous bloggers for bits of holiday cheer this Tuesday! Head on over to Jessica and Sara's blogs to participate!

For those of you who don't know, when I'm not blogging/being a mom/being a wife/being a student, I do work full time as a program specialist for a childhood obesity initiative. Some of the work we do is hard, and we advocate for a lot of change, and with that receive a lot of resistance. In the end, though, my work is so rewarding, and I get to go home at night knowing I am working on changes that positively impact children and set them up for a brighter future. That right there is enough holiday cheer as it is, am I right?!

Outside of the 'hard' work, my job comes with a lot of 'fun' stuff too. Our staff maintains a blog, and I am able to generate ideas, blog, and get creative at my job. Seriously, I get to blog at work, how awesome is that. Of course, a bit more censored content, but still ;-) This week, our time saving blog focuses on a healthy holiday snack recipe, and between how easy it is and the adorable pictures of my little guy, for the first time ever, I am crossing over my personal blog with my professional blog to share it with you all! Despite my total love and devotion to Christmas cookie baking this time of year, this really is a fun and festive way to get in the holiday spirit, even when you are being healthy :-)

Grinch Kabobs

Ingredients

1. Strawberries
2. Bananas
3. Green grapes
4. Mini marshmallows
5. Toothpicks

Directions

1. Wash your strawberries and grapes.
2. Slice your strawberries by removing the stems and shortening the base a bit, if necessary.
3. Slice a banana into thin coin shaped pieces.
4. Place items onto toothpicks in the following order:
   1. Mini-marshmallow
   2. Strawberry
   3. Banana
   4. Grape
5. Enjoy!

 Jax be like, 'gimme all the marshmallows!'

 

I had so much fun whipping these together and putting them out on a holiday plate.

Fruit is on the narrow list of things Jackson is guaranteed to eat, so I knew this would be a win by him. Of course, he wanted nothing but the marshmallows and strawberries. But hey, it is fruit and it is also Christmas time, and if the kid wants a little bit of sugar, who am I to say no ;-)
**disclaimer: these make adorable treats, but when serving up to toddlers and young children, be sure to slice your grapes in half! They are a huge choking hazard, and no small child should ever be given whole or halved grapes.

If you are interested in more ideas for healthy living, recipes, and ways to get active as a family, check out my work blog!

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