It’s always good to have a few quick and easy recipes you can depend on when you don’t have the time and energy to do anything complicated or fancy – BUT – you still need something tasty. This two ingredient cream cheese salsa dip fits perfectly into that category asRead More
Quick Cherry Salsa Recipe
One of the fun facts about my home state of Michigan is that it produces 75% of the tart cherry crop in the United States. In fact the lovely town of Traverse City in northern Michigan is known as the Cherry Capital of the World and is host to theRead More
Layered Jar Mix: Healthy Snack Bites
One of the simplest homemade gifts, and often times one of the most economical too, is a layered jar mix. As a bonus they don’t take long to make either and can usually be put together with familiar pantry ingredients. I guess that’s why I so often get the urgeRead More
Homemde Larabar Bites
One of my recent snacking discoveries has been the Larabar, a healthier alternative to all those snack bars on the store shelves. The Larabar has the tagline of being “the original fruit and nut bar” and is made with minimal ingredients. If you read their ingredient labels you’ll find thatRead More
Make Your Own Microwave Popcorn Bags
A few years ago I discovered that if I wanted to quickly make homemade popcorn in the microwave, all I needed was a brown paper lunch bag and some popcorn kernels. There was no need to buy the store bought microwave popcorn bags that always feel so greasy to me. Read More
Using a Yonanas for Healthy DIY Ice Cream
Perhaps you’ve made your own ice cream in the past with a traditional ice cream maker. If you’ve done that, you know the ingredients are lots of milk or cream, and sugar. Unfortunately these are all ingredients we’re trying to have much less of at our house. But ice creamRead More
5 Ways To Keep Apple Slices Fresh
Back in the early days of this blog I wrote a post about how to make your own Apple Dippers. This was a copycat idea of an item on the McDonald’s menu called Apple Dippers (a little bag of sliced apples with dip) and I shared a quick tip to keepRead More
Parmesan Bites Appetizer
Appetizer recipes aren’t your everday recipes. No, appetizer recipes are those recipes you go in search of only a few times during the year for special get-togethers or for the holidays. But even though you might not make them very often, it’s good to have a few dependable appetizer recipesRead More
Pea Guacamole Recipe
It’s not unusual for family or friends to ask me, “What’s coming up next on the blog?” This week when I was asked and I proudly answered “Pea Guacamole!”, well, those folks looked back at me like I had finally gone ’round the bend. Pea Guacamole?? Why in the worldRead More
Homemade Fudgsicles
This summer I’ve been enjoying making some of my own frozen treats, especially my homemade milk and honey berry popsicles, an easy mixture I can make with ingredients I usually have around the house. I love the refreshing taste of the frozen berries, but every now and then . . .Read More
Patriotic Jars (and Pretzel Treats!)
Holidays can be busy – even the warm weather holidays when we’re supposed to be enjoying the lazy days of summer. So if I’m going to do homemade crafting around any holiday, I like to keep things simple and easy. For the upcoming Fourth of July holiday, I made aRead More
Milk and Honey Berry Popsicles {Patriotic too!}
Popsicles (or maybe you call them ice pops) are a traditional and favorite treat for those warm, lazy days of summer. And one of the great things about popsicles is it’s super easy to make your own! A homemade popsicle can be as simple as freezing some juice or someRead More
Homemade Cheez-It Crackers
Not every homemade recipe is something you’ll make all the time. I think every cook has a stash of recipes that include the day-to-day basics that get used all the time, but then also has a stash of recipes for special occasions, and those every-now-and-then times where something a littleRead More
Homemade Gifts: Popcorn Seasoning
I hope you’ve enjoyed the homemade gift ideas I’ve shared in the last couple of weeks that are non-sugar ideas for gifts from the kitchen. We’ve looked at a Southwestern Dip Mix spice blend that’s perfect in a cute jar for gift giving, and these delicious Spicy Pecans that canRead More
Homemade Gifts: Spicy Pecans
I love to have quick ideas for homemade food gifts during the holidays. I also like to have some food gift options that aren’t sugar-laden sweets. This recipe works for both those options because it can be put together in just 20 minutes and uses nuts and savory spices. IRead More
Homemade Gifts: Southwestern Dip Mix
Almost every Christmas I give a few homemade gifts from my kitchen. It’s been a nice way over the years to give a little something to neighbors, co-workers, teachers, or relatives. And most of the time my thoughtful little somethings were the traditional holiday sweet treats like cookies, candies, andRead More
Make Your Own Chewy Granola Bars
Granola bars are one of my favorite morning snacks, especially on work days. They’re a quick and easy little bite I can eat at my desk, they don’t make a mess, they’re not too sweet, and they help tide me over until my lunch hour rolls around. I {Read More
Make Your Own Zesty Cheese Wafer Snacks
Do you wish you could make a homemade savory snack without the time and effort of making homemade crackers? Me too. It always seems easier to whip up sweets like homemade cookies than to go to the effort of making tiny homemade crackers. After an attempt at making homemadeRead More
Make Your Own Potato Chips
It’s been said that a big part of getting a job done is having the right tools. *So True* When it came to making my own potato chips this week I had one tool that was perfect, and another tool that was not-so-perfect. What tools did I use? ARead More
Homemade Microwave Popcorn – Do You Even Need A Bag ??
I thought I was pretty clever when I figured out how to make my own microwave popcorn using a brown paper lunch bag. All you have to do is put some unpopped popcorn kernels in a brown bag, fold it over, and stick it in the microwave. Pretty darnRead More