Parakeet Poop Smoothie

My friend posted a picture of this delicious-looking smoothie on her Facebook wall the other day & her husband joked that it looked like Parakeet Poop; hence the name.

If you'd like to make this smoothie, I used:

1 cup raw spinach

1 peeled banana

1 peeled orange

1 tbsp. Chia seeds

1 cup water 

Add all of the above ingredients & blend to perfection. This little concoction is 248 calories & would make a good post workout recovery meal. Enjoy!

Overnight Oats Recipe

Finally tried Overnight Oats. 

Here's the recipe:

1/2 cup organic extra thick rolled oats

1/2 cup greek nonfat vanilla yogurt 

1/2 cup unsweetened original almond milk

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Mix all these ingredients together in a jar with lid & presto! Shake & put in the refrigerator overnight. 

You can add whatever you like. Honey, fruit, etc. I chose a Peach & it was delicious!

Hot Chocolate Cupcake Recipe

Head over to Family Circle for the Recipe (If you are a member), if not:

If you can't zoom to see it, let me know! I'll email it to you :)

As you all already know, I love to bake. It's a habit really because I love sweets! I'm trying to find new recipes for the holidays this year. Of course, I'll go with the usual (Peanut Butter Fudge), but I'd like to incorporate some new ideas into "Add 5 Pounds Plan". Hahaha...kidding (I hope).

Anyhow, I was doing some cleaning up and out the other day and I've had no time for magazines over the last well, year, so I've accumulated a pile (Gramma recycles hers to me and I recycle those to the library). Yes, I'm one of "those" people that tear out what I want from the magazine and move on...

In the December 2010 issue of Family Circle, I stumbled across this little diddy. I added/changed a little. 

To the Cupcake:

I sifted all the dry ingredients together to make a smoother cupcake. It doesn't say to do that, but I did.

To the Topping:

I added three drops of Red Food Coloring because I'm a fan of the color pink and because I have to gaudy things up a bit (always). Plus, instead of Candy Canes, I used Peppermint and crunched them and sprinkled on top. I added a dash of Vanilla. Also, I used the milk instead of the water.

Taadaaaaaaaaah!

1st Fondant Dinosaur Cake

So the first time around, Fondant isn't my friend (insert sad face here). That's okay, the birthday isn't until NEXT FRIDAY, so I'm good. Cake and Ice Cream only this year. We're going with simple. That is, as long as my cake isn't a complete disaster.

On this baked goody, the Orange Fluffy Cake and the Uncooked Frosting came from the Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook. The Fondant recipe came from AllRecipes.com. All three of these were new to me. I just decided to go with the unknown and try something new.

Here are a few pictures of the process:

Orange Fluffy Cake

Uncooked Frosting

Finished 

Fondant

Fondant Colored

Owen had to have a piece....

...So I had to incorporate a Waterfall with pink rocks :)

Andy said my Dinosaur looked like an Ant Eater....

Owen had to have a bite of the finished product :)

Here's a little tip that I DIDN'T know: 

The refrigerator is THE KISS OF DEATH for Fondant. Yup, glad this was the trial run....

Yummy Snack Ideas

Frozen Banana with Peanut Butter

I saw this on Bonnie Hunt a few years ago and it's fabulous. I love it and so does Owen!
First: Take a medium Banana (this one was medium until I had to cut a few spots off of it) and slice it down the middle. Then, spoon anywhere from a tablespoon to two tablespoons of Peanut Butter down the center. Mush it closed, purty it up, wrap it in wax paper and then Saran Wrap or Aluminum Foil and freeze. Once frozen, remove from wrapper and slice and serve. This little treat is scrumptious and around 170 calories!

Celery with Pimento Cheese

I've always loved my Great Gramma Wensil's Pimento Cheese and her Chow-Chow, unfortunately, she's no longer here to make it for me so, I have to settle for Ruth's (which is good, but not my Gramma's!!!!). Anyhow, this little diddy here is about a medium and a half stalk of celery and about three tablespoons of Pimento Cheese. You know the deal, cut it, wash it and spread on the deliiiiish!  This is around 140 calories and yummo!

Watermelon Smoothie Recipe

These are really simple. The best and most flavorful way that I have found to make these are to cube/remove seeds and freeze the watermelon first before making.

The Ingredients:

2 Cups Frozen/Cubed Watermelon
2 Cups Milk (we use 2%)
2 Tbls. Honey

I freeze my Watermelon in quart freezer bags and just break apart before placing in the blender. Then, I add the milk. You can add more if you need, just make sure you have enough. If there is not enough milk, the smoothie won't blend properly. Last, I add the honey, more or less to suit your taste! Blend it up!

Tadaaaaaaaaaaaah! A delicious Summery Cool Treat!