Nuts About Oatmeal Muffins

If you're looking for a protein packed muffin, this is it. I like to have recipes that use some of my lesser used, but still necessary food storage items, so periodically you'll see recipes calling for powdered milk. Feel free to substitute milk for the powder and water using the water measurement.

Yield: 12 muffins
Time: 10 minutes prep time + 25 minutes cook time

Ingredients:
3 C rolled oats
1/2 brown sugar (loose, not-packed)
1/3 C powdered milk
1/2 T baking powder
1/2 C applesauce
1/2 C peanut butter
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 C water
1/3 C walnuts, chopped (feel free to substitute a different nut)
1/3 C cashews, chopped (feel free to substitute a different nut)
1/3 C dark chocolate, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line muffin tins with paper liners (or spray).
Stir together oats, sugar, powdered milk, and baking powder in a large bowl, set aside.
Beat together applesauce, peanut butter, egg, and vanilla in a large bowl.
Mix in oat mixture and water until thoroughly incorporated.
Fold in nuts and chocolate.
Spoon into prepared muffin tins (the batter won't rise much, so fill the tins all the way)
Bake in 350 F oven for 25 minutes.
Enjoy!

This post originally appeared on 5/2/12 @ oneincomefamilyliving.blogspot.com. I wrote, edited, and transferred it here.

Meal Plan Monday: end of October 2014

Another week means another meal plan. I don't have much to report this week other than it's my mama's birthday on Friday and we're celebrating with her on Saturday. Happy Birthday Mom!

Dinners:

• Chicken and roasted vegetables
• Simple No-Boil Pasta Bake
• Quick and Easy Chow Mein
• Black Bean Quesadillas
• Vegetable Soup
• Cheeseburgers and Homemade Fries
• Birthday Dinner for my Mom

What's for dinner at your house?

Loaded Potato Soup

I absolutely love this soup. There's nothing like a warm soup after a long cold day and this stuff is practically addictive. I've modified my recipe quite a bit over the years since I first started making it, so this is the most up to date version. We actually had it for dinner last night and I'll be eating leftovers for lunch today. To see my first two versions, check out my old site here.

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For this recipe you'll need:
3 T butter
2 stalks celery, diced
1or 2 medium carrots, diced
1 medium onion, diced
4 C chicken broth or stock
1 1/2 C milk
32 oz frozen diced potatoes (did you know you can make your own?)
1 8 oz package cream cheese, softened
1/2 C bacon pieces + extra to garnish
1/4 C chives, thinly sliced + extra to garnish
sharp cheddar cheese, shredded, to garnish

 Place butter, carrots, celery, and onion in slow cooker on high heat and allow butter to melt and veggies to soften (about 30 minutes). Then add broth, milk, and potatoes and reduce heat to low. -If you don't have time to wait for butter to melt, either saute everything on the stove first or just add all ingredients and cook on low.

Anywhere from 5-10 hours later (at 5 hours the veggies will be a tad al dente and at 10 the potatoes will be falling apart- I prefer the consistency of everything at 8 hours) add the softened cream cheese and allow to set 10-15 minutes before stirring in. The higher quality the cream cheese the better it will melt and become part of the soup.
Stir in 1/2 C bacon pieces and 1/4 C chives just before serving.
Serve garnished with cheese, bacon, and more chives.

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Do you have any recipes that have evolved over the years?

40+ Slow Cooker Recipes

I don't know about you, but I love being able to toss food in my slow cooker and have a meal ready several hours later. My slow cooker and I have been together since David and I got married almost 7 years ago and it's still going strong. The busier my life gets, the more I appreciate and use it.
For this roundup, I have compiled over 40 slow cooker recipes that include: meat (and chicken), chilis, soups, other meals, and desserts. I have not tried each of these recipes, so I can only personally recommend mine, but the rest of these looked and sounded good. I do plan on trying many of them, so I'll let you know when I do.

Meats:

Pulled Pork

Honey Bourbon Chicken (from Fantastical Sharing) -No Bourbon in the recipe

Slowcooker Spicy Chicken Thighs (from Ann's Entitled Life)

Cheesy Crock Pot Chicken (from Loving Life and Living on Less)

Autumn Pork Loin (from Homemaking Hacks)

Crockpot Meatballs (from Fantastical Sharing)

Easy and Delicious Crockpot Shredded Beef (from Little House Living)

Italian Beef Sandwiches (from Chaos Is Bliss)

Creamy Ranch Crockpot Turkey  (from Three Different Directions)

Chili:

Sweet Potato Chili

Chunky Crockpot Chili (from Mission to Save)

Buffalo Chicken Chili (from Fantastical Sharing)

Crockpot Chili (from Dish About It) (this one is made with V8 juice)

Green Tomato Garlic Chili (from Farm Fresh Feasts)

Soups:

 Loaded Potato Soup

Broccoli Cheese Soup

Tortellini Soup

Summer Vegetable Stew

Bone Broth (from Holistic Mama)

Oktoberfest Stew for the Crockpot (from Fantastical Sharing)

Easy Crock Pot Potato Leek Soup (from Mama Likes to Cook)

Vegetarian Crock Pot Black Bean Soup (from Mama Likes to Cook)

Homemade Vegetable Soup (from Little House Living)

Crockpot Tortilla Soup (from Frugal Living Mom)

Chicken Taco Soup (from Mom Vs The Boys)

Crock Pot Lemon Rice Soup (from Dish About It)

Other meals:

Southwestern Chicken Tortilla Casserole (from Frugal Living Mom)

Chicken, Shrimp, and Sausage Jambalaya with Quinoa (from Frugal Living Mom)

Creamy Chicken with Biscuits (from num's the word)

Green Tomato Curry with Buttercup Squash and Chicken (from Farm Fresh Feasts)

Spicy Crockpot Jambalaya with Bacon (from Grinning Like an Idiot)

Chicken Fajitas (from More Than A Mom Of Three)

Best-Ever Mac and Cheese (from Mama Plus One)

Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken Pasta (from Lavende and Lemonade)

Squash and Beef Masala (from Farm Fresh Feasts)

Desserts:

 Peach Cobbler (from num's the word)

Pumpkin Cheesecake (from Homemaking Hacks)

Death by Chocolate Molten Cakes (from Homemaking Hacks)

Easy Crock Pot Rice Pudding (from Mama Likes to Cook)

Crock Pot Molten Lava Cake (from Little House Living)- from scratch

Cinnamon Applesauce (from Blossoms and Posies)

Are you looking for more? Check out my Slow Cooker Pinterest Board for more ideas.

What's in your slow cooker?

Sweet Potato Chili

This is probably my favorite chili recipe and I'm pretty sure it's Wyatt's too. I can pretty much always count on him to ask for seconds and thirds when I make this yummy goodness. This is also one of the two ways I can get David to happily eat sweet potato and this version is certainly healthier than the sweet potato casserole I make .

 This recipe is perfect for those days you will be gone all day and want a hot and tasty meal ready as soon as you get home. I usually cook this 8-10 hours, but it could cook for 12 without getting overcooked.
Serves about 10 with roughly 302 Calories and 11 g dietary fiber per serving.
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 You'll need: 2 tsp chili powder, 2-3 TBSP baking cocoa, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, 2 cans chili style tomatoes, 1 can chili beans, 1 can black beans, 1 can dark red kidney beans, 1 can cannellini beans, 1 lb sweet potato, 1 onion, 1 tsp oregano, 1.25 lb stewing beef

 Turn slow cooker on low. Peel and dice the sweet potato and onion. Place in the slow cooker with the beef chunks.

 Add the chili beans and tomatoes with their juices.

 Drain and rinse the cannelini, black, and kidney beans before adding them to the slow cooker.

 Add the spices...

 ...and stir together. It won't look like it has enough liquid, but it has plenty. Cover the slow cooker and leave it alone for at least 8 hours

 When it's ready, the sweet potato will be tender, the meat will be cooked, and the liquid will have more of a brown color than red.

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What's your favorite way to eat sweet potatoes?