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Baked Oatmeal Recipe, Approved by Baby!

18 Apr By 15 Comments

I am about the only person in my family that likes, or eats, oatmeal. I can’t understand why because it’s honestly really good stuff. That being said I can totally understand that for some Oatmeal is a weird texture and a total turn off.

If this describes you, I have a solution!

Bake it!

All of the goodness, none of the weird lumpy grainy milk stuff.

baked-oatmeal-recipe

Baked Oatmeal is reminiscent of a soft cookie or piece of cake, but probably a bit better for you, minus the brown sugar.  Now my picky family members can enjoy it via a cake like substance and I can douse it in some warm milk and enjoy it a bit more old fashioned.

Baked Oatmeal Recipe

(don’t forget to Pin me for later!)

  • 3 cups of quick oats
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup melted butter

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350
  2. Combine your dry ingredients… oats, baking powder, brown sugar, cinnamon and cinnamon and stir. Add your wet ingredients, milk, melted butter and eggs into another bowl and mix. Combine both bowls and stir together until mixed up.
  3. Spread in a greased square pan (I used an 8 inch glass) and then bake for 40-45 minutes. I layered some warm milk in a bowl and added my baked oatmeal and a little fruit while my son ate his by the square!

baked-oatmeal

Enjoy for breakfast or even an afternoon snack!

Trisha

PS This isn’t a bakery item so you don’t have to worry about me exploding it all over the kitchen in #fail. This recipe is easy, difficult to screw up, and it’s Scrumdumpintasty. (thanks Can Can for that description)

Filed Under: All About Trisha, Cooking

Kit Kat Brownies

7 Apr By 19 Comments

When it comes to chocolate, I have a bit of a weakness. And while I am totally a plain chocolate kinda girl, lately I have gotten really hung up on Kit Kats.

They are a gift from above.

I thought I would put Kit Kats in the middle of brownies and see what happened….and rather than boring you with some stupid recipe post, I’ll just show you what I did. It’s honestly not rocket science.

kitkats

 

[Read more...]

Filed Under: All About Trisha, Cooking

Deviled Eggs that WOW the dinner table!

23 Mar By 18 Comments

Now that spring is hitting, your kids are no doubt asking you when you are going to dye eggs. And while that is fun (even if a bit messy), you can wow them at dinner tonight with colored deviled eggs , a fun way to enjoy this Easter favorite for young and old alike!

deviled-eggs-dyed

Today I snuck in some of these while prepping all the materials for my daughter to dye her own eggs. Of course after having them on the counter a few hours, they are long gone. Hopefully they will be as big of a hit in your home as well!

How to Dye Deviled Eggs

colored-deviled-eggas

You will need

  • eggs already boiled
  • vinegar
  • water
  • Easter egg dye kit

Instructions

1) Prep your dye in bowls the way the back of the box says. In this case I wanted a darker egg color, so I used the vinegar method. Now I thought the eggs soaked in the vinegar would change the flavor but it didn’t for me. You can also use lemon juice for more neutral colors or water for more pastel colors.

2) Prep your eggs by removing the shell, cutting down the middle and removing the yolk. Put yolk in bowl for addition later back into the deviled eggs.

3) Add your already boiled egg whites into the dye mixture, leave for approx 3 minutes and then rotate up.  Once your eggs have the desired color, remove and pat dry with napkin.

dying-deviled-eggs

easter-eggs

4) Now it is time to create your yolk mixture. I crush my yolks in a bowl and then add Hellmans and mustard until I have the desired consistency I want. Most people prep these different, but since my family adores mine, I have learned to eyeball it over the years.

You can also dust with some paprika if you want color.

pretty-deviled-eggs

If you liked this article and would like to try this, do not forget to pin, stumble, or like so you have record!

It also helps share with your friends and family and MomDot loves you for that!
~Trisha

 

Filed Under: All About Trisha, Cooking Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Organic Strawberry Shortcake Recipe (and win!)

15 Dec By 74 Comments

As you very well know if you visit here at all when I post a recipe, baking is something that is hit or miss for me. Sometimes it ends in disaster (like this Caketastrophe) and sometimes its as lovely as love can be (Reeses Peanut butter cookies). But one thing I have learned and I hope you have too, is that ingredients you choose make ALL the difference in cooking. Margarine is NOT butter, baking soda is not baking powder and so and so forth.

And one of the best things you can do for all your holiday baking (specifically cause it takes a lot of time and a lot of money) is to buy the best from the get go.

That way your mother in law isn’t silently wishing she baked the cake if you know what I mean.

But why Organic?

 

why-organic-food

 

1. Nutrient density.

2. No persistent pesticides or synthetic fertilizers.

3. No synthetic growth or breeding hormones.

4. No antibiotics.

5. No GMOs.

6. Animal care.

With all that in mind, why not choose Organic Valley?

organic valley

The farmers-owners of Organic Valley know the best organic milk begins on the pasture where their cows are free to graze on nutrient-dense grasses.  Our organic milk is then made into pasture perfect ingredients for unforgettable holiday recipes, such as Cream of Roasted Potato Soup with Scallion and Hardwood Smoked Bacon, Roasted Root Vegetables with Cranberry Pistachio Relish, Best Ever Hot Chocolate (with “naughty” and “nice” versions), and Peppermint Pots de Creme with White Chocolate Peppermint Bark.
Some of the recipes have been handed down from our farm families, such as Apple Oatmeal Muffins from sixth generation organic dairy farmer Abbie Corse in Windham County, Vermont.  The treats can be made ahead of time and stored in airtight containers—perfect for overnight guests and morning celebrations. Her two year-old son likes them warm with a generous pat of yummy butter. Watch Abbie describe the long standing tradition behind her recipe here.
 Now while its not “holiday” per say, I wanted to make Strawberry Shortcake to showcase the taste and refinement of Organic Valley ingredients and used a recipe right on their site! I then added my own special strawberry sauce and a combined effort of whipped cream spiced with peppermint to holiday it up a bit.

Simple Strawberry Shortcake Recipe

Yum, right?

shortcake-recipe-2

  1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly butter a baking sheet.
  2. Sift the flour, baking powder and sugar into a bowl. Add the Organic Valley European-style Cultured Butter, using fingers to work it quickly into the flour until the mixture resembles fine crumbs. Mix Organic Valley Half & Half together with lightly beaten egg, and add wet mixture to dough; stir with a fork until the dough just holds together.
  3. Knead the dough on a floured surface until it’s smooth, yet don’t overwork the dough. Roll out the dough to approx. 1/2-inch thick. Using a floured 2 1/2- or 3-inch cookie cutter (or a floured glass), cut out 6 rounds. Gather the scraps, reroll; cut 2 more rounds.
    Please note: This recipe is for an open face Strawberry Shortcake, if you prefer a 2 piece dessert roll out dough to 3/4 inch and create 6 rounds. Split open when cooled, and assemble.
  4. Put the 8 rounds on the prepared baking sheet. Bake in the center of the oven for 15 minutes, or until the biscuits are golden brown and firm to the touch.
  5. For the filling, mix berries and sugar in a bowl. Chill.
  6. Cool the biscuits on a rack. Heap them with the chilled strawberries and whipped cream. Serve immediately with remaining whipped cream on the side. Garnish with fresh mint and Enjoy!

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Filed Under: All About Trisha, Cooking Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Sugar Cookie Jigsaw Puzzle

5 Dec By 9 Comments

If you are looking for one of those fancy schmancy moms that do REALLY cool things like Rachel does with her Bento lunches or Cat does with about EVERY dessert ever made, you can pack up and leave. I am not really good at this whole cooking thing. I mean it usually TASTES great but getting it to stand up, not crack, not fall over, and to look professional?

I failed that part of momhood.

What you will find right now is a fun idea for you and your kids to do together in the kitchen which is what the holidays (and really everyday) should be about. And I documented it to inspire you to play around in the kitchen. I originally saw this idea in a child’s cookbook I have (Taste of Home Kid-Approved Cookbook: 300+ Family Tested Fun Foods) and let me tell you, theirs looks nothing like mine.

Nothing like it.

I am starting to wonder if they Photoshopped their picture because they did not give half the instructions that one would give before embarking on this adventure.It also had no cracks whatsoever, so at this point I am thinking they just painted uncooked dough. In any case, I am going to give you the reality and the rest is up to you.

How to make a Sugar Cookie Jigsaw Puzzle

Yep, a cookie jigsaw. We are throwing the lid off this Christmas and going all Chevy Chase on you.

Ingredients

  • 1 tube refrigerated sugar cookie dough, softened
  • 1/2 cup all purpose flour
  • almonds ( I used walnuts)
  • 2-2 1/2 cups of powdered sugar
  • 4-5 tablespoons of milk
  • 1tsp vanilla extract
  • assorted decorations and food coloring
  • oven on 350
  • metal cookie cutters

1) In a large bowl combine the cookie dough and flour. The original recipe says 1/2 a cup but I could only get about 1/4th cup to absorb in without it being too dry. I suggest putting your dough and adding a little at a time.

2) On parchment paper (which is NOT wax paper) roll out the dough into a 14×11 inch rectangle. I did my best here. Its not that easy to get into a rectangle. Or a square. I used the pizza cutter to even up the edges and ate the extra dough. That is not advice in case you are worried about death by salmonella. Then take your cookie cutters and shape out your scene. You can use your imagination here, but my advice is to use METAL cutters, not plastic. This will be a future helpful tip.Do not remove the shapes, but place the whole thing on a cookie sheet and put in the fridge for 10 minutes.

3)  Pull out from fridge and remove the shapes from the cookie. Add almonds (or in my case I used walnuts) in the middle of each shape to act as a handle for your puzzle. Put on an ungreased cookie sheet 350 degrees for 7-9 minutes. I honestly left them on the parchment paper myself. I find it easier for removal.

IMPORTANT: Once you remove from oven, RECUT THE SHAPES with the cutter. The oven will have made the cookies bigger so if you do not recut, they wont fit. You have to do it right away while the cookies are still hot or they will get all crumbly. I know this from experience.

4) Take your rectangle cookie and leave on parchment paper and bake from 12-13 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown. Remove from oven and RECUT THE SHAPES with the cookie cutter so you have perfect edges. If you are using plastic, I found this to be harder, this is why I advised metal. Now your cookies and your puzzle should be the exact same size.

5) Let cool completely.

4) In bowls combine your confectioners sugar, milk, and vanilla until smooth. Separate your frosting into different bowls and use food coloring to tint it. then you can use regular paint brushes (this is the fun part your kids can do!) to paint the puzzle.

5) Once you are all done, put the puzzle pieces IN  the puzzle and EAT!!!

My Cookie Jigsaw Puzzle may be messy…but it’s TASTY.

Do you cook with your kids over the holidays?

 

~trisha

Filed Under: All About Trisha, Cooking

How do you cut a mango?

2 Oct By

How do you cut a mango?

Always use a clean knife and cutting board to cut a mango. If you have handled or cut any type of meat or seafood, ALWAYS sanitize your hands, work area, utensils and cutting board before handling or cutting any fruits or vegetables, including mangos. Always wash mangos before cutting.

A mango has one long, flat seed in the center of the fruit. Once you learn how to work around the seed, the rest is easy!

  • Stand the mango on your cutting board stem end down and hold.
  • Place your knife about 1/4″ from the widest center line and cut down through the mango. Flip the mango around and repeat this cut on the other side.
  • The resulting ovals of mango flesh are known as the “cheeks”. What’s left in the middle is mostly the mango seed. Cut parallel slices into the mango flesh, being careful not to cut through the skin.
  • Turn the mango cheek 1/4 rotation and cut another set of parallel slices to make a checkerboard pattern.

Here’s where you can choose your favorite method. Either “Slice or Scoop”— scoop the mango slices out of the mango skin using a large spoon—or “Inside Out”—turn the scored mango cheek inside out by pushing the skin up from underneath, and scrape the mango chunks off of the skin with a knife or spoon.

( I used a spoon..its not perfect, I still need more practice!)

Hint: If you are making a recipe that calls for diced mango, make your cuts in step 2 closer together. The result is small pieces of diced mango and no need to further cut up the mango pieces on your cutting board.

You can also visit mango.org/how-cut-mango to learn easy ways to cut a mango and view an instructional video.

Filed Under: Cooking

How to make Starbucks Butter

15 Sep By 9 Comments

Say what, what?

Alright, let me back up.

Today I wanted a treat. Like a really good delicious bad to the bone treat and my kitchen was looking barren save for the one xl size brownie still sitting lonely in the pan. Far be it for me to waste a  brownie, am I right? But said brownie was about 4 days old and while still soft and perfect, needed a little “ump” to regenerate it from pow to WOW.

Which is my fancy way of saying that I added ice cream, whipped cream, strawberries and sugar on top.

Now this morning we had been running through Target and I had myself an iced coffee and still had a little left. Here is what I did with it.

I made Starbucks flavored whipped cream.

STARBUCKS WHIPPED CREAM, Y’ALL!

Whatcha Need:

  • Take 1 cup whipping cream
  • 2 tbls powdered sugar
  • 2 tbls Starbucks coffee

1) Put into mixing stand on med-high and monitor over the next 5-7 minutes. It will whip itself into amazing, AMAZING whipped cream that tastes pretty much like Starbucks heaven.

2) Now take a brownie, cake, whatever you can find to be the base and add Starbucks Vanilla Frappuccino  or Mocha Fappucchino (or a flavor you personally love) on top and smother in your newly made Starbucks whipped cream.

3) Add strawberries so you can tell people it’s “healthy”.

And the extra whipped cream you have staring at you longingly?

Put it with a side of strawberries for a caffeine filled rush that isn’t totally guilt ridden. I dusted mine with a little cocoa.

Now you are asking me…how do I make the butter? I am SO here for the butter.

How to make Starbucks Flavored Butter!

Easy Peasy. Without cleaning out your mixer ( I mean remove your whipped cream, but you don’t have to bother to wash the bowl), just add another cup of whipping cream and more coffee, turn your mixer on high and let it run about 5 minutes.

It will go through stages, including your whipped cream stage and then move on to butter. The butter will start out chunky and then start to form together.

It’s quite entertaining to watch.

Once its the consistency you want, pour out the butter milk and collect the butter for the fridge. I put mine in a bowl and used ice water to “rinse” it off and get out remaining buttermilk. It has just a hint of coffee to it, which is perfect for breakfast muffins, toast, or let’s be honest, anything at all.

You’re welcome.

~Trisha

*I was provided Starbucks ice cream to facilitate a fun recipe. Check out my last Starbucks post where I created Java Chip Frappucchino and Ganache Brownies

Filed Under: All About Trisha, Cooking

Reeses Peanut Butter Cookies

2 Sep By 20 Comments

Well now.

I have been a lazy blogger this week.

With the anticipation of Isaac the last few days and now the onslaught of rain and wind, the only motivation I have is to lay here and surf facebook. Except now I am bored of doing that too, so I guess I am back.

During the past week since we have had plenty of time in the house so Charlotte and I decided to make some cookies. She has been out of school and bored out of her skull.

Thank goodness for old fashioned fun, am I right?

Now these cookies are super easy and require NO flour, which means that they are probably safe for a lot of people that have allergies to that sort of thing. Gluten? Is there Gluten in peanut butter? I admittedly know nothing about that kind of thing. Alright, enough commentary. On with the cookies.

Reeses Peanut Butter Cookies

You will need:

  • Reeses Peanut Butter – 1 cup
  • Sugar  – 1 cup
  • 1 egg

1) Put your oven on 350 preheat.

2) I know what you are thinking….Reese’s Peanut butter? Where do I get that? Honestly, I do not know. I got mine at the Hershey Park and it’s To. Die. For. You can sub for whatever Skippy, Peter Pan, or Jif you can’t find it. But then they will just be “peanut butter” cookies. Sad. (update: psst, just found it on Amazon)

3) Mix your cup of peanut butter, cup of sugar, and egg. Because PB is so sticky, I put everything in a stand mixer and let it do the work.

4) You can either put down parchment paper or spray your cookie sheet with a no stick spray. I like the kind with flour in it.

5) Gather your dough into balls and then roll in nuts. I used walnuts cause I love them and my friend Lynsey left like a 2 pound bag on my counter last week by accident. You can use peanuts…or no nuts. Your nut preference.

  • Idea: I don’t know how well Reese’s Pieces would hold up in the oven because I have never baked with them, but I think this would be as good of  a time to put in your cookie if you have them around.

6) Bake for about 15-18 minutes depending on your oven and how big you make your cookies. Remove, let cool a few minutes, then transfer to a cooling tray or plate. They may be a tad “gooey” but once cooled all the way will be perfect.

EASY EASY EASY.

 

What is your favorite kind of cookie?

 

~trisha

Filed Under: All About Trisha, Cooking