Crockpot Apple Pie Oatmeal

I can already tell that my crockpot is going to get a workout in 2016!  The older the girls get, the busier we become...and the more and more I use my crockpot! 

This recipe is a great way to make breakfast the night before if you know it's going to be a busy morning!

Or you can make it during the day to have breakfast for dinner!

Your Shopping List for the Crockpot Apple Pie Oatmeal:

• 3 cups water
• 1 cup steal cut oats
• 3 fuji apples, diced into 1 inch pieces
• 2 tbsp light brown sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp butter
• cooking spray
• oatmeal toppings for serving - we added toasted, sliced almonds and honey

Now Let's Make the Crockpot Apple Pie Oatmeal

1. Spray the inside of your slow cooker with nonstick spray
2. Add all ingredients
3. Stir once
4. Cook on low for 5 hours
5. Stir and serve with toppings of choice

The crockpot I use for all of my slow cooker recipes is this one:

12 Days of Christmas: Snickerdoodle Pancakes

It's Day #10 of my 12 Days of Christmas Food Countdown!

Today I am sharing a delicious breakfast recipe...

Snickerdoodle Pancakes!!!!

Yes, I took a classic Christmas Cookie and turned it into a pancake!  And it is oh so good!

 

Your Shopping List for the Snickerdoodle Pancakes:

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 tbsp cinnamon
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 3/4 cups of milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• pancake toppings of choice (butter, real maple syrup, fresh fruit, etc)

Now Let's Make the Snickerdoodle Pancakes:

1. Preheat your pancake griddle over medium heat and grease (I use butter)
2. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and cinnamon
3. Mix in the eggs, milk, and vanilla extract - don't over mix - a few lumps are okay
4. Pour batter in circles on preheated griddle - this recipe will make nice medium to large sized pancakes
5. When small bubble begin to appear on the surface of the pancake (about 2-4 minutes) flip pancake
6. Cook on second side an additional 2 minutes, being careful not to burn your pancake - the cinnamon will make them burn faster than regular pancakes
7. Serve with butter, syrup and other pancake toppings of choice.  On this particular day, I made a nice vanilla glaze using powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla beans to go over the top! 

I have been using this pancake griddle for over 6 years now, and I love it!  I can make 8 pancakes at once and it's so easy to just wipe clean! 

12 Days of Christmas: Cranberry Orange Muffins

It's my 12 Days of Christmas Food, Day #7! 

Today I am sharing an easy (and healthy) breakfast recipe!

Cranberry Orange Muffins!

When you combine the delicious flavors of Cranberry and Orange, you create a wonderful flavor that is sure to remind others of Christmas and winter in general!  

These muffins are healthy and super easy to whip up!  Make them the night before for morning guests!

Your Shopping List for the Cranberry Orange Muffins:

• 2 cups whole wheat flour (I use King Arthur brand white whole wheat)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tbsp orange zest (about 2 medium sized oranges)
• 1/2 cup fresh squeezed orange juice (about 2 medium sized oranges)
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup coconut oil (you could also use plain veggie oil)
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 cup dried cranberries
• course sugar for sprinkling the tops of the muffins

Now Let's Make the Cranberry Orange Muffins:

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees and line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners (you can use cooking spray if you do not have liners)
2. In a bowl of hot water, soak the cup of dried cranberries to soften and plump them - set aside until needed 
3. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the whole wheat flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda
4. Whisk the orange zest into the dry mixture 
5. Add the orange juice, water, milk, oil, and egg to your dry ingredients.  Mix with a wooden spoon until just combined
6. Drain your cranberries and fold them into batter
7. Spoon batter evenly into prepared muffin tin
8. Sprinkle course sugar over the top of each muffin
9. Bake for 13-15 minutes
10. Cool for about 5 minutes in pan before transferring to wire rack to cool completely

I use these muffin pans:

12 Days of Christmas: Gingerbread Pancakes

IT'S DECEMBER!!!!!

And that means I am bringing you 12 Days of Christmas - Christmas food that is! 

Day #1 of my 12 Days of Christmas is Gingerbread Pancakes!  

Can you think of anything that tastes more like Christmas than Gingerbread?

I can't either! 

And whipping up these pancakes is super simple because I make them from a cake mix!

What?  Yes a cake mix!  

Here's What You Need to Make the Gingerbread Pancakes:

• 2 cups Gingerbread Cake and Cookie Mix (I used the Betty Crocker one)
• 2 tablespoons veggie oil 
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 cup milk
• pancake toppings - we use butter and real maple syrup...whipped cream would be great too

Now Let's Make the Pancakes:

1. Preheat and grease your pancake griddle (I use butter but you could use a nonstick spray)
2. In a medium size mixing bowl, combine all ingredients
3. Spoon batter into small to medium size circles onto prepared griddle
4. After about 2-4 minutes <you will see lots of tiny bubbles on the top> flip your pancakes over and cook about 2 additional minutes (be careful, these will burn more quickly than regular pancakes because of the sugar and the ginger)
5. Remove pancakes from griddle and serve with your favorite toppings

I use this double burner griddle to make all of my pancakes:

Pumpkin Spice Bread

It's Fall!  And I am in love with all things pumpkin spice!  I have also fallen in love with making easy cake mix breads!  You can find two cake mix banana breads here and here.  So I did what I always do, and mixed my original recipe up to create a pumpkin bread!  It did not dissapoint!  

This pumpkin bread is quick, easy, and delicious!  It tastes like autumn!

It's also Cake Mix Recipe #57!

Your Shopping List for the Pumpkin Spice Bread:

• one box spice cake mix
• 1 (15 oz) can pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling, just plain pumpkin)
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup veggie oil
• 1 bag mini chocolate chips

Now Let's Make the Pumpkin Spice Bread:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease two 8x4 (one pound) loaf pans
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment, add your cake mix, can of pumpkin, eggs, and oil
3. Beat on low speed until just combined
4. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat on low speed again for 30 seconds
5. Fold in your mini chocolate chips
6. Divide batter evenly between the two prepared loaf pans
7. Bake in preheated oven for 40 - 45 minutes - until a toothpick inserted comes out clean or with only a few crumbs
8. Allow bread to cool in pans for 10 minutes
9. Turn out onto cooling racks and allow bread to cool completely before cutting and/or storing

You need two loaf pans like this to create this recipe:

Blair's Banana Bread

My sweet Mama friend Amanda's youngest daughter just turned one!  Her birthday party was a breakfast celebration - and who doesn't love breakfast food!  Breakfast is my favorite!  I offered to make something, and I mixed and matched my double chocolate banana bread to come up with this fantastic Banana Bread, which I names Blair's Banana Bread in honor of the birthday girl!

This recipe is simple and delicious!  It also has only 5 ingredients and is Cake Mix Recipe #56!

Your Shopping List for Blair's Banana Bread:

• 1 box yellow cake mix
• 3 ripe bananas, mashed with a fork
• 3 eggs
• 1/3 cup oil - any kind of veggie oil
• 1 bag mini chocolate chips

Now Let's Make Blair's Banana Bread:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease two 8x4 (one pound) loaf pans
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment, add your cake mix, bananas, eggs, and oil
3. Beat on low speed until just combined
4. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat on low speed again for 30 seconds
5. Fold in your mini chocolate chips
6. Divide batter evenly between the two prepared loaf pans
7. Bake in preheated oven for 40 - 45 minutes - until a toothpick inserted comes out clean or with only a few crumbs
8. Allow bread to cool in pans for 10 minutes
9. Turn out onto cooling racks and allow bread to cool completely before cutting and/or storing

To make this bread you need two 1pound loaf pans like these:

Double Chocolate Banana Bread

There is just something about the fall that makes me want bread with my morning cup of coffee!  I love any kind of quick bread but Banana Bread and Pumpkin Bread are my two favorites.  I have a regular, relatively healthy banana bread that I make often.  But I wanted to come up with something a little more indulgent.  And that meant Chocolate!  Double Chocolate!

This Double Chocolate Banana Bread also happens to be Cake Mix Recipe #55!!!

And there are only FIVE ingredients!!!

Your Shopping List for the Double Chocolate Banana Bread:

• 1 box chocolate cake mix
• 3 ripe bananas
• 3 eggs
• 1/3 cup oil - any kind of veggie oil
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Now Let's Make the Double Chocolate Banana Bread:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease two 8x4 loaf pans
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment, add your cake mix, bananas, eggs, and oil
3. Beat on low speed until just combined
4. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat on low speed again for 30 seconds
5. Fold in your chocolate chips
6. Divide batter evenly between the two prepared loaf pans
7. Bake in preheated oven for 45 - 50 minutes
8. Allow bread to cool in pans for 15 minutes
9. Turn out onto cooling racks and allow bread to cool completely before cutting and/or storing

I own two of these loaf pans - in the 1 pound size - and have used them to make all of my quick bread recipes for the last six years!  

 

Nana's Banana Crumb Cake

Today I am sharing a brand new Cake Mix Recipe!!!  

Cake Mix Recipe #53

It happens to be my mom's recipe - not really my mom's own - but the recipe that was on her calendar from August 1985 - when I was born!  She has saved and baked this recipe for 30 years!  And it is delicious!  And it uses a cake mix!  And it has coffee cake crumb topping!  Are you convinced that this recipe needs to be in your life yet?

I have lovingly named it Nana's Banana Crumb Cake because my mom goes by Nana these days!  I also have no way of crediting the source of this recipe!  I made the recipe exactly the same as the original, just leaving out the nuts (because of Lacie's allergy).  Maybe someone will recognize this calendar from 1985?!?

Your Shopping List for Nana's Banana Crumb Cake:

• one box yellow cake mix
• 3/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup veggie oil
• 3 eggs
• 3 bananas, mashed
• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 stick butter, cubed and slightly soft

Now Let's Make Nana's Banana Crumb Cake:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9x13 baking pan
2. In the base of a stand mixer, fitted with the wire whisk attachment, whisk together the cake mix and baking powder
3. Add the water, veggie oil, and 3 eggs and beat on the lowest speed until just combined
4. Add in the mashed bananas on lowest speed and mix until incorporated
5. Pour batter into prepared baking dish
6. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the flour and sugar
7. Add in the cubed butter and cut with two forks or a pastry cutter until mixture it crumbly (you can even use clean hands to do this part)
8. Bake in preheated oven for 40 - 45 minutes (until browned around the edges and just set in the center)
9. Remove from oven and allow to cool for about 30 minutes before serving warm or cool completely in pan before cutting and storing in an airtight container

Berry Baked Oatmeal

I'm always looking for new, fun breakfast recipes because - if I'm being honest - my girls will sometimes eat breakfast for lunch and dinner too!  Breakfast foods are so easy when you have little kids - especially kids who go to bed before John and I are ready to eat dinner!  Last week, we had a playdate and I decided to put together a little Baked Oatmeal featuring some delicious Jersey Blueberries and Raspberries!

It turned out DELICIOUS! 

And I definitely plan to make a few flavor variations of this soon!  I'm thinking bananas and chocolate...coconut for a summery flavor!  Lots of ideas! 

Your Shopping List for the Berry Baked Oatmeal:

• 2 cups rolled oats
• 1/3 cup raw sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup blueberries
• 1 cup raspberries
• 2 cups milk
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp coconut oil, melted and cooled
• 2 tsp vanilla

Now Let's Make the Berry Baked Oatmeal:

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees and grease a 10x8 baking dish (you could use a 9inch square or a 9x13 - you would just have thicker or thinner baked oatmeal)
2. In a mixing bowl, stir the oats, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt
3. Add half of the berried and spread the dry mixture into the prepared baking dish
4. Top with remaining blueberries and raspberries - set aside
   
5. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the milk, egg, coconut oil, and vanilla
6. Pour wet mixture evenly over dry mixture and berries - lightly shake your casserole dish to ensure that the milk mixture has been evenly distributed
   
7. Bake in preheated oven for 35 - 40 minutes until casserole is set
8. Remove from oven and cool for at least 5 minutes before serving

Banana Chocolate Chip Pancakes

We have a tradition in the Hilosky House...on Saturday Mornings we eat Chocolate Chip Pancakes!  My girls may be a bit too young to fully grasp the calendar or the concept of time, but they do know that Saturday means Daddy is home when they wake up and they get to eat pancakes for breakfast!!!  Saturdays are a happy morning in the Hilosky House!  We almost always have my very favorite whole wheat chocolate chip pancakes, but every once in awhile I change up the pancake option a bit.  So on this Saturday I decided to make:

Banana Chocolate Chip Pancakes! 

They were such a yummy change that was easily made by adding one extra ingredient to the pancake batter...2 mashed but still lumpy bananas!  

Your Shopping List for the Banana Chocolate Chip Pancakes:

• 1 1/4 cups of Whole Wheat Flour
• 2 tbsp of Brown Sugar 
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup of milk
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 slightly overripe bananas, mashed with a fork but still lumpy
• 1/2 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips 
• pancake toppings of choice  (we do butter, real maple syrup, and powdered sugar...you could add nuts, fresh fruit, whipped cream, whatever you like!)

Now Let's Make the Banana Chocolate Chip Pancakes:

1. Preheat a pancake griddle* and grease with butter
2. Mash up two bananas with a fork and set aside
3. In a mixing bowl, whisk together your flour, sugar, baking powder and salt
4. In a separate bowl combine milk, egg, and vanilla extract
5. Mix wet mixture into flour mixture - but do not over mix
6. Fold in the mashed bananas and chocolate chips
7. Spoon batter onto the griddle (I like to use a 1/4 cup measuring spoon for a medium size pancake)
8. Allow to cook for a few minutes on the first side (until small bubbles appear)
9. Flip and cook on second side until they are done to your liking (I cook them until they are a medium brownish but I know some people prefer lighter or darker pancakes) 
10. Enjoy with toppings of choice!!! 

*For my many readers who have emailed and asked what type of pancake griddle I use, it's the All-Clad - Nonstick Grande Griddle Pan

I love love love this pan!  I bought it five years ago, as soon as we moved into our townhouse!  It has gotten so much use over the years and it is still in great shape!  It is so easy to clean too (you basically can just wipe the non-stick surface)!

And I had two very happy eaters who wouldn't even stop chewing to smile!

Blueberry Coffee Cake

This blueberry cake is a recipe that I have made a number of times over the past five years.  I have adjusted some ingredients here and there until I got it absolutely perfect!  It comes out best using fresh blueberries, but I have used frozen blueberries in a pinch with good results! 

Your Shopping List for the Blueberry Coffee Cake:

• 2 cups flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled
• 3/4 cup milk 
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 2 cups blueberries

Your Shopping List for the Crumb Topping:

• 1 cup sugar
• 2/3 cups flour
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 stick cold butter, cubed

Your Shopping List for the Vanilla Glaze:

• 3/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• about 4 tsp milk or water

Now Let's Make the Blueberry Coffee Cake:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and liberally grease a 9 inch springform pan with cooking spray and set aside
2. In a large mixing bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt called for in the Blueberry Coffee Cake shopping list
3. Add the melted butter, milk, and egg and mix with a wooden spoon until just combined (this batter will be very thick)
4. Gently fold in the blueberries 
5. Spread coffee cake mixture evenly into prepared pan
6. In a small mixing bowl whisk together the sugar, flour, and cinnamon called for in the Crumb Topping shopping list
7. Cut in cold, cubed butter with a pastry cutter
8. Sprinkle crumb topping over coffee cake batter
9. Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes until the cake is cooked through and the top is golden
10. Remove from oven and place pan on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes.  Remove sides of pan and allow cake to continue cooling
11. Meanwhile in a small mixing bowl, combine the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and water or milk until a glaze forms that is thin enough to drizzle but thick enough to not fully spread out when poured 
12. While cake is still warm, drizzle with Vanilla Glaze
13. Cut and serve coffee cake while warm or allow to finish cooling completely and store in a cake carrier or on a cake plate with lid