Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Cookies

Sometimes you need a cookie, or five, for breakfast. Or at least I do anyways. For the most part, I am  okay with my new diet restrictions - other than it seems like I eat all the time and there is this crazy dark void of cookies in my life. But it is nearly impossible to find cookies, decent cookies, that do not have dairy, soy, or gluten in them. And why did chocolate have to go off and marry soy? I find it's not terribly difficult to find chocolate that doesn't contain milk, dark chocolate anyways. But, soy is an entirely different story. Thank heavens for Enjoy Life. I love their mini chips for snacking on, and their chunks are great for recipes like this.  But let's get back to cookies. It's hard, but little by little I am learning new recipe tricks. So when I ran across a recipe for flourless monster cookies, (which I thought was unique until I read these comments. I totally didn't know there was such a debate on what puts the monster in monster cookie) I was a little excited. Until I saw that it called for butter. Enter, coconut oil, which totally works! Don't be scared, you can't even taste a hint of coconut, if that would bother you. I also had to get rid of the M&M's, but that's okay. Amp up the chocolate chunks, and it's really no biggie - I can find my happy place with out those colorful bits of cheer as long as I get my cookie. 
Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Cookies *Adapted from this Recipe 
*Note - if you are using this recipe to accommodate allergies, make sure each of your ingredients qualifies. I use Skippy or Jiff  Natural peanut butter because they do not contain soy. I also use chocolate chips, oatmeal, baking soda, and vanilla that fit my dietary needs. If you need ingredient suggestions, shoot me an email and I will help if I can.
1 1/2 cups creamy (or chunky) peanut butter 1 cup packed brown sugar 1 cup granulated sugar 1/2 cup coconut oil, you can use butter instead 3 large eggs 1 Tablespoon vanilla 4 1/2 cups old fashioned rolled oats (Bob's Red Mill has some that are certified Gluten Free) or quick oats, whichever you prefer 2 teaspoons baking soda 1 (10 oz.) package semi-sweet chocolate chunks
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper, or silpat mats. Combine peanut butter, sugars, and coconut oil in a large bowl and mix well. Add eggs and vanilla, mixing until combined. Followed with oats and baking soda. Finally stir in chocolate chunks. Drop by heaping spoonfuls onto prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Cookies will start to get brown around the edges. Be careful not to over bake. Cool for about 5 minutes, or until cookies are set, on cookie sheets. Transfer to wire racks to cool before cooling. Enjoy!
Now I can have my cookie and eat it too!

Before I forget, these cookies are totally yummy and kid-approved and without flour totally easy. So even if you aren't looking for a gluten free cookie, you might just want to try them. And if you don't have a problem with dairy or soy, you could throw in those happy M&M's.

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Almond Cherry Chip Cheesecake Bars

Almond used to be one of those flavors that flew under my radar. I didn't not like it, but I didn't like it either. In fact, I don't know that I had really even given it much thought, let alone tried it - until my junior year at Carroll College. My husband had just proposed. I was so excited to plan my wedding and headed to Helena's annual bridal fair for ideas. Everything you could ever want or need to plan and prepare for weddings was there. Complete with CAKE! One of the local bakeries, Sweet Flours, had set up a beautiful cake table complete with samples. And this is were I first fell in love with almond flavors. They had the most wonderful raspberry cake with almond cream cheese frosting. It is one of my most favorite cakes in the entire world, top two hands down. So this recipe isn't for wedding cake, and it doesn't have any raspberries, but it does have cream cheese and almond flavoring. Throw some cherry chips in there, and what's not to like? Every time I make them, people rave about them. Give them a try, let me know what you think! Wouldn't they be pretty for Christmas or Valentine's Day?
Almond Cherry Chip Cheesecake Bars *Recipe by Jasey's Crazy Daisy
1/2 cup cold butter, cut into cubes 1 box cake mix, any flavor will work, I like Betty Crocker's Golden Vanilla 2 eggs 1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened 2 cups powdered sugar, more for dusting 2 eggs 2 teaspoons almond extract OR vanilla if you prefer 1 (10 oz) package cherry baking morsels
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13" pan with cooking spray. In a mixing bowl, combine butter and cake mix, and beat on medium until crumbly. Add eggs and beat until smooth. Using a wooden spoon or spatula that's been sprayed with cooking spray, spread mixture into the bottom of prepared pan. Sprinkle cherry chips evenly over the batter. In another bowl, beat cream cheese and powdered sugar until smooth. Add eggs and vanilla mixing until combined.  Pour evenly over cherry chips, spreading all the way to the edges.  Bake for 30 minutes, or until the center is set. Cool for a bit and dust with powdered sugar.  You can either serve them now, or refrigerate and serve chilled like you would a cheesecake. Make sure they have cooled before cutting. If you chill them first, let them sit out for a few minutes before cutting and they will cut much prettier. Store them in the refrigerator though. That is, if you have any left over! Enjoy! 

I buy these cherry chips at Wal-Mart. They are also available at Amazon.

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Frosted Cake Batter Caramel Corn

While we are celebrating (with a Thirty-One giveaway), we might as well enjoy a celebration-worthy treat. Especially while you might just have some leftover cake mix on hand. My family loves cake batter treats so much, I keep some in the pantry in a Tupperware container at all times. Heaven knows we've found lots of ways to use it. This birthday cake caramel corn is probably one of my favorites. I love chewy caramel corn, and the cake batter adds such a  fun flavor twist.  Frosted Cake Batter Caramel Corn Recipe by Jasey's Crazy Daisy
*Note - adjust the amount of popcorn to suit your taste - use more if you like it lightly coated, maybe about 8 quarts.
Caramel Corn 1 1/2 cups unpopped popcorn, about 6 quarts 1 pound brown sugar 2 cubes butter 3/4 cup light corn syrup 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 can (14 oz.) sweet and condensed milk 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup white cake mix, straight from the box
Topping 3/4 cup white chocolate chips 1/8 (heaping) cup white cake mix, straight from the box Sprinkles Cover tabletop or counter with wax paper. Spray with non-stick cooking spray. Pop popcorn removing any unpopped kernels. Pour into a large bowl. Combine sugar, butter, corn syrup, and salt in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Stir in sweet and condensed milk and 1 cup cake mix. Boil for another 6 minutes  (if you have a candy thermometer, don't let it reach higher than the soft ball stage or 240 degrees), stirring almost constantly so it doesn't burn. Take off heat. Stir in vanilla. Pour over popcorn. Gently stir with a wooden spoon. Keep stirring until popcorn is evenly coated. Pour onto prepared waxed paper and spread into a single layer. Place white chocolate chips into a plastic baggie. Microwave for 20 seconds. Take out and use fingers to mix by gently squeezing bag around. Repeat, mixing  each time. When white chocolate is mostly soft, with a few lumps, mix in heaping 1/8 cup cake mix, straight from the box. Place in microwave for 20 seconds. Repeat, mixing each time. When smooth, clip a small piece off of the corner of the bag and drizzle over caramel corn. Quickly sprinkle caramel corn with sprinkles before white chocolate sets. When white chocolate has set, store in an air-tight container. Enjoy!

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With this much to be thankful for, it's time to celebrate! {Thirty-One Party and Giveaway!!!}

***Giveaway Closed***

Winner: leanne_macSeptember 14, 2012 11:27 PM

Who said, "I like the circle spirals utility tote."

It's been awhile. I'm truly sorry about that. My family has been busy getting back into the swing of things. It's been totally crazy, but what else would you expect after spending 50 days in the hospital, three hours away from my family, anxiously awaiting the birth of our sweet baby girl? And with three weeks in NICU, again three hours away from my sweet boys, well what can I say? We survived. And we've needed some time to just be. Together. Totally present to each other. Enjoying every moment and getting to know our sweet little one. 

We have so much to be thankful for I thought I'd jump back into blog world (thanks for your patience, it's going to be slow and steady) celebrating with a totally fun Thirty-One party, complete with a giveaway! Have you ever heard of  Thirty-One? You're in for a treat! I love how they create fun stylish products to help make our lives easier and more organized. They have totes and purses to wear out and about, thermals to help transport foods and drinks anywhere, and organizational items to keep your home neat and tidy. They've just launched their fall catalog, with lots of new patterns and products.

 Let me introduce you to our host, Jennifer, our independent Thirty-One consultant. She's a wonderful lady with an inspiring story. I'll let her tell you about herself.  I'm Jennifer and I'm so excited to be here today! Let me tell you why I joined thirty one.  Well I guess I'll just start at the beginning.  I got married really young and we had a baby shortly after. She lived only 28 days due to a rare gentic disorder called, Non- Ketotic hyperglycinimea. About 14 months later our second child also was born with the same thing and passed away at just 3 days old.  After a divorce and lots of emotional stuggles I met my husband. After we found out that we were going to have a baby I told him that I didn't want to miss out on anything this time because I felt like I was robbed of every important mile stone in my other two kids lives because they didn't live. I didn't want to miss it. So I became a stay at home mom. Now we have two healthy girls and I still don't want to miss anything, but I also understand that kids and life in general are expensive, so in order to have a little extra money and to not have to find a job that puts my kids in day care I looked into direct selling companies.  None of them really seemed to fit. Not only did I not want to miss anything with my kids, but I also feel very strongly that you shouldn't have to work in a job that you don't like. I found Thirty-one and I fell in love with the product. When I found out what Thirty-One stood for, I knew this was it.  Thirty-One's mission is to "celebrate, encourage and reward" women and the name was inspired by the verses of Proverbs 31 which speaks of dedicated, resourceful women who serve society and take care of their families.  Just in the few months that I have been a part of Thirty-One I have met so many different people and I have been able to do more things and still be home with my kids. I've also found a new part of myself that I never new was there.

Pretty amazing, right? So let me show you a few of my favorites. I adore the large utility tote.

I love it because it holds a ton! I'm talking about four or five large beach towels, sunscreen, snacks, goggles, and pool toys. I used to juggle three or four bags, dropping things right and left, but not anymore, everything fits nicely into just this one tote! Perfect! How cute is the retro metro tote?

It's loaded with pockets, available in three prints and perfect for so many things. I like to use it as casual carry all, perfect for all the baby gear I have to tote around, and yet fun and stylish! This cinch-it-up thermal tote is one of the things on my wish list!

Isn't it cute? What a fun hands free way to keep things hot or cold! It's just one of their thermal tote options. Seriously, you need to check out a catalog, they have so many great products, new stationary items, a fun spirit line, wallets, cosmetic bags, and lots of accessories. If you find anything you like, and you can shop using this link - make sure to have your items shipped directly to you.

And now for the giveaway details. Jennifer has picked two of her favorite items from the new catalog for one lucky reader to choose from. If you can win you get to decide between this organizing shoulder bag (sorry, no monogram)

or this super organizing tote (it zips!!!) It's comparable to the tote featured above, but it has even more room, has pockets, and in case you didn't notice, it zips!

You can enter the giveaway by

1) Browsing the catalog and leaving a comment under this post telling me your what your favorite item is

2) Joining Jennifer's Thirty-One facebook group, Inspiring Dreams -Just Believe. Leave her some comment love, tell her I say hello;), and then come back here and leave me a comment telling me you did so.

3) Shopping! Use this link and then leave me a comment telling me what you bought! Make sure to have your items shipped directly to you. (3 entries).

All comments must be made under this post, not on facebook, twitter, or through email. Make sure to leave your email address. If you complete more than one entry, be sure to leave a comment for each option you choose, or your entries will only be counted as one.This giveaway opens immediately and closes September 15th at noon. The winner will have 48 hours to claim their prize, or another winner will be drawn. 

I received no compensation for this giveaway, and all opinions are my own.

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