Blog
Peanut Butter Banana Oat Bites
Our February recipe of the month is currently one of my favorite Spend Smart. Eat Smart. recipes – Peanut Butter Banana Oat Bites. This recipe combines peanut butter, mashed banana, an egg, a little sugar, vanilla, baking powder, oats, and dried fruit or chocolate chips to make a tasty breakfast, snack, or dessert. Peanut Butter Banana Oat Bites were very popular in my home when the days were super cold in January.
Foiling Food Waste Frustrations
There are a few things that frustrate me in the kitchen. Want to hear about them?
A Spicy New Year
We are refreshing our kitchens here at Spend Smart. Eat Smart. in the new year. Last week Jody shared how she is working on getting back in the groove of meal prepping by making some meals ahead to pack for her lunch. She highlighted our Vegetarian Chili recipe and also shared some great tips on managing our canned food at home to make sure we use the oldest items first. The same principle applies to our spices and the start of a new year is a great time to take a look at what you have.
Vegetarian Chili
Welcome to a new year! As I start the new year I have a goal to get back into the habit of preparing food on the weekend that I can take to work for lunch during the week. A new recipe on Spend Smart. Eat Smart. that I find perfect for this is Vegetarian Chili. I find this recipe easy to prepare since it uses canned tomatoes and beans and frozen corn. The only vegetables I need to chop are some onion and bell pepper. Using canned and frozen items means I can keep them on hand to have ready when I want to make the chili.
Delicious Gifts!
The holiday season is in full gear now! I enjoy gift-giving and thinking of things that the people in my life will enjoy and use. I love cooking for other people and I think it is a great way to show your love and care for them. Food gifts can be an easy and inexpensive way to acknowledge someone at the holidays. Here are some that I enjoy!
Minestrone Soup
Welcome to December! December is usually a very busy month for me. At work we tend to have some bigger meetings and deadlines. My children have music concerts, indoor sports, and parties to attend. My husband and I have our own social events to add in. Most importantly, we have a very special birthday in December – our youngest turns 8 this year. Just thinking about all this makes me want to forget about planning and making meals.
Simpler Soups
The weather is cooling off – so in comes soup season! Sometimes we see soup recipes that have many steps, including chopping lots of veggies. While sometimes I have time for this, other times I don’t. On my busy days, I need a soup that I can put together in a hurry. Soups are a great way to get creative, have nutritious meals, stretch food dollars, and reduce food waste, all while saving time in the kitchen.
Turkey Time: Now and Later
Hardcore turkey season is upon us, so how can you make the most of this famous holiday bird? With some planning, you can enjoy all parts for many weeks after the main event. I hate to leave good food “on the table”, so to speak!
Easy Quiche for a Holiday Breakfast
Holiday season is right around the corner. Getting out the door on time gets even harder when you add a long list of holiday activities. The last thing I want to think about is how to entertain guests and feed them, too. Cue my favorite go-to breakfast during the holidays. Drum roll please… Easy Quiche. I love preparing it for holiday or family meals because it is a one-bowl recipe that fills guests up.
Slow Cooker Pork Roast
It’s finally my favorite time of year for cooking! In my opinion, you just can’t beat cooking fall dishes. Our recipe of the month is Slow Cooker Pork Roast and it is a winner!
The Breakfast that Makes Itself!
I am not the biggest fan of warm oatmeal. I never seem to get the consistency right making it either too runny or too dry. Though I don’t like traditional oatmeal, I do love using old fashioned and quick oats when I bake. Over the years I have found that my container of oats sometimes sits in the kitchen cabinet untouched for months. Cue Overnight Oats! This is a great breakfast option that uses oats as one of the star ingredients. Not only do I get to use an item in my kitchen that would normally sit on the shelf (sometimes past its prime), but I also have a nutritious breakfast that I can grab and go when I am in a bit of a rush.
Back to Baked Oatmeal
Earlier this month when I was writing my blog about Pumpkin Oatmeal, I got to thinking about our Baked Oatmeal Muffins recipe. It had been a while since I made this recipe and even longer since I mentioned it on the blog. Almost seven years ago, I wrote about some small changes we made to this recipe to make it an easier breakfast for busy mornings. Looking back to ten years ago, I shared my family’s origin story for this recipe.
