Applesauce Muffins

Given the choice between a bag of chips and a bag of carrots, my kids will always pick the carrots.  Now I know that this is not the case with all kids, but with mine it is.  They have always been really good eaters and 9 times out of 10 are more than willing to try something new.  Now don’t get me wrong they like the occasional junk food, but these are few and far between.  They are also always looking for snacks to have especially after school, so I went on a hunt to find something that was sweet, good for you, and above all good tasting.  I myself am a HUGE muffin lover.  I love just about any and all types of muffins, so I thought wouldn’t it be fun to find a great muffin recipe that my kids would love, but would be good for them as well.  Well after some trial and error, I think I have found it.

Applesauce Muffins are not only quick, easy, and good for you, but they taste AMAZING.  With a few simple ingredients these muffins are done in no time and trust me when I tell you that they will not last long in your house, as least they never last long in mine.

Here is what you need:

·         6 tablespoons of unsalted butter melted

·         1 ½ cups of all-purpose flour

·         1 teaspoon of baking powder

·         ½ teaspoon of baking soda

·         1 teaspoon of cinnamon

·         ½ teaspoon of salt

·         ½ teaspoon of nutmeg (optional)

·         2 eggs

·         2/3 cup packed brown sugar

·         1 ½ cups of chunky applesauce

Now for the assembly of these awesome muffins.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.  Line a small 24 cup muffin pan with baking cups, you can also make these in the standard 12 cup muffin pan as well.  My kids prefer the mini muffins, so that is how I make them, but that is by no means the only way these can be made.

Mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg (again this ingredient is optional, but it adds a layer of flavor that makes these muffins extra special.  I use a coca flavored nutmeg, but if you don’t have it, regular nutmeg works well too) into a large bowl.  If you do not have a sifter at home, use a wire whisk, you will get the same affect.

In a second bowl, whisk together the eggs and brown sugar until well combined.  Then add in the melted butter and applesauce.  For this recipe I like to use the small 4oz container of chunky applesauce.  Less mess and easier cleanup.  You will need 3 4oz containers.  Mix until everything is well combined. 

Next carefully add the applesauce mixture to the flour mixture.

 

 

Mix together until all the flour mixture is combined into the applesauce mixture. 

Fill the muffin cups about 2/3 of the way full with batter using a small cookie scoop. 

 

 

Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a light golden brown in color.

This recipe will make about 48 mini muffins.

My kids love these for breakfast or as an afternoon snack.  I guarantee that your family will love them too!

Happy baking!!

 

Great Winter Time Pick Me Up

Ok so I am not a winter person.  Go figure since I live in northeast PA, but it is what it is.  I am also not a big fan of being cold, so when I do get cold I instantly look for something hot to help warm me up.  Usually this is either coffee or tea.  I am trying not to drink a lot of coffee, mainly because I drink WAY to much of it as is, and as much as I love tea, I am usually not in the mood for it unless I am sick.  So I turned to the web to see what I could find as an alternative.  I was looking for something that was hot, sweet, and just plain good for you.  That is when I found this recipe online for a warm soothing winter drink, I jumped at the opportunity to try it.  It is called "Winter Sore Throat "Tea".", but I guarantee it will be a favorite all year long.  This simple yet delicious drink if great not only if you are not feeling well, but it is PERFECT if you just want something hot to drink without all the excess of caffeine.   

What you need to get started:

◾2 lemons thoroughly cleaned and sliced...
◾2 piece of ginger about the size of your pointer and middle finger together sliced into coin size pieces
◾Honey (about 1 cup-maybe more)

You start by taking a clean 12oz glass jar.  You can find these jars just about anywhere you finding canning jars.   In a 12-oz. jar combine lemon slices and sliced ginger. Pour honey over it slowly. This may take a little time to let the honey sink down and around the lemon and ginger slices. Make sure when the honey has filled in all the voids, there is enough to cover the top of the lemon slices. Close jar and put it in the fridge, it will form into a "jelly".

I let mine sit in the fridge for a good day, just to be sure everything “mixed” together.

 

When you are ready, spoon some of the jelly into mug and pour boiling water over it. Store in your fridge 2-3 months.  I have to tell you, mine NEVER lasts that long, but it can.

I made this for myself and LOVED it so much I made a bunch more and gave them out as Christmas gifts to all of my family and friends.  So far everyone has told me how much the loved it and can't wait to make more. 

I give this to my kids when they are not feeling well or just when they want something hot. 

This is a super easy and a great treat that you will want to keep it on hand all year long. 

Good luck and stay Warm!!

Homemade Dryer Sheets

2014 brings with it a lot of changes, and like most people it also brings with it a time for financial change as well.  As 2014 approached my husband and I looked into different ways to help stretch the family budget.  We began to search the web looking for some simple ways to make different things last longer or that we could make at home rather than buy in the store.  One thing I looked further into was something that I had seen on Facebook.  As a mother of 3 kids, laundry is something that is quite abundant in my house.  The amount of detergent and fabric softener sheets that I go through is CRAZY!  I saw how you could make your own fabric softener sheets and this immediately got my attention.  Now before I get into this let me tell you and I am one of those people who has to try things a few times before I am willing to go telling everyone I know how good or bad it is; and that is exactly what I have done here.  For the past 3 weeks or so, I have been using these homemade fabric softener sheets and no one has noticed a difference.  My family’s clothes are soft, smell great, and are static free.  So now I am going to share this with you.  Here is what you are going to need.

1 Tupperware container (I got mine at the Dollar Store)

1 4-pack of sponges (Again the Dollar Store)

Your favorite Fabric Softener

Water (I just used the water from my tap)

All you need to do is cut the sponges in half giving you eight small sponges.  Then mix 2 parts water with 1 part fabric softener in the Tupperware container.  Now add the cut sponges to the water mix and let them soak in.  I let mine sit for a good day.  When you are ready to dry your clothes, simply take one of the sponges, wring out some of the excess water and toss into your dryer.  Add your wet clothes and dry as usual.  Once the clothes are done simply take the dry sponge and place it back into the water mix for next time.

I use multicolored sponges so that I make sure that I use a different sponge for each load since I usually do more than one load in a day.

Like I said I have been using these for about 3 weeks now, and I am just noticing that the water level in my Tupperware container is FINALLY starting to go down.  This is a great money saving idea that I think you are really going to love.  Give it a try and let me know what you think.