Cookies on a Stick

Monday was my son's birthday.
He wanted to take a treat in to school.
I was over making cupcakes.
We love Funfetti Cookies.
The Funfetti Cake Mix has the cookie recipe on the side of the box!
I had a bunch of lollipop sticks!
I used a cookie scoop and once the mound was on the cookie sheet,
I inserted the sticks and then baked them to the directions!
They were a huge hit!
Bonus: No napkins required....no mess!
Love it!!!

Homemade Kettle Corn

I love Trader Joe's bags of Kettle Corn...especially at $1.99 a bag!

However, the closest Trader Joe's is 20 minutes down the freeway!

When we were out of T.J.'s we decided to make our own.

I googled many recipes and then found the one that sounded the best.

I found it here.

I tweeked the recipe, since I don't buy corn syrup.

I read somewhere that you can substitute 100% pure maple syrup for corn syrup.

Pop 1/2 cup of popcorn

Bring to a boil:

1/4 cup of maple syrup

1/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup butter

1/2 tsp. vanilla

Once boiling...continue on medium heat for one more minute.

Pour over and coat popcorn.

Sprinkle with salt.

Super yummy and a little sticky.

Would make great popcorn balls!

Cake Pops

My new obsession is cake pops!
OMGosh...they are so fun to make and turn out so super cute!
They are so easy to make too!

Ingredients:
1 box cake
1 can of frosting
lollipop sticks
bag of chocolate melts
sprinkles

Directions: Bake the cake according to box directions.
Once cooled, crumble entire cake in a bowl.
Add can of frosting, stir thoroughly.
Use a cookie scoop to form your balls.
(This way they will all be the same size.)
Freeze for 30 minutes to harden.
Melt chocolate.
Insert sticks into cake ball.
Dip into chocolate and add sprinkles.
Place on parchment paper.
They dry/harden quickly!

I am already dreaming of all the ones I will be making for 4th of July!

Orange Marmalade

A Mentor Mom in our MOPS group at church has several orange trees in her backyard. Every year she invites us over to pick oranges. We filled two whole bags with over 80 oranges...you couldn't even tell that we made a dent, that's how many there are on her trees!

This year with all the oranges, I was determined to make orange marmalade.
It is one of my mom's favorite jams.

Thanks to my good friend Dyanna over at Just Simply Live,
who taught me how to make jams & jellies and to properly can them!

I found my recipe over at Ball Jars website.
I omitted the Chili peppers out of the recipe.

It was a lot of slicing of oranges, but so worth it.
I guess you're supposed to use a mandolin, to make it easier.

Nine families were blessed with Orange Marmalade! :)

Homemade 7-Up

We hadn't been grocery shopping in awhile! My kids were tired of milk or water as their choice of beverage! I looked around to see what I could make.

A friend at my husband's work gave us a bunch of lemons. We had Pellegrino on hand from a case I bought at Costco(with a coupon) to put in baskets I gave out at Christmas and the simple syrup was left over from my sister's shower!

First, I filled each cup half way with crushed ice, squeezed half a lemon over the ice. Then I poured a little simple syrup...a tablespoon or two. Last, I filled the cup with the Pellegrino and stirred! It was so good! The boys really enjoyed it!

Breakfast on the go!

My kids have to be at school at 7:45am! Since we attend a Charter school, it is a bit far from our house, we have to be driving away no later than 7:15am to be on time. Which means, breakfast is often served in the car!

I came across a recipe for pizza scones in Family Fun Magazine. I altered the main ingredients by using breakfast items instead of the pizza ones.

• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup fine cornmeal
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) cold butter, cut into small pieces
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded cheese
  
• 1/3 cup finely chopped sausage
  
• 3 large eggs scrambled
  
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 2 Tbs. sugar
• Maple syrup

• Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray or line it with parchment paper. In a large bowl, mix the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender or two knives, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

• Scramble up three eggs and let cool. Also cook up the sausage, I used fully cooked microwaveable turkey sausage.
  

• Add buttermilk to the dry ingredients. Stir until the mixture forms a sticky dough.

• Lightly fold in the cheese, eggs, and sausage.
  

• Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Gently knead the dough until it holds together, about five times. Divide the dough in half and pat each half into a 1-inch-thick disk. Slice each disk into four wedges.

• Brush each scone with maple syrup.
  

• Place the wedges on a lightly greased baking sheet about 1 inch apart. Bake them until golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes. Serve the scones warm or at room temperature. Makes 8 scones.