Kale and Spinach Vegan Green Muffins Recipe

Everyone likes muffins. There's no contest. A good muffin has it all. It's basically a cupcake, but you can eat it for breakfast and not even feel guilty because it's not technically cake. You can fill up muffins with fruit or nuts or chocolate, bake them to glorious perfection, then share with family and friends...or just keep them for yourself. The latter will probably be the case with these Kale and Spinach Vegan Green Muffins. If you decide to eat a whole batch of these on your own, I won't rat you out. They're super healthy, have minimal sugar, and give you the option to add some chocolate in case you're having one of those days. These are kind of similar to the Dairy and Egg Free Toddler Muffins I posted a couple years ago - but so much prettier.

Kale and Spinach Vegan Green Muffins
Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
1/4 cup melted coconut oil (or another oil of your preference - see the end for a note on this)
3/4 cup almond milk (any milk will work if you prefer something different)
1 bag of baby kale & spinach mix (between 4oz and 6oz)
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup banana, mashed
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
1/2 cup white chocolate chips


You could use nuts instead of chocolate chips if you want it to be even healthier.

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with either silicone or paper liner. Or spray them with non-stick spray.

2. In a bowl, mix the dry ingredients until combined.

3. In the blender, add the coconut oil, milk and your green veggies. Blend well on high until completely pureed.  Next add the mashed banana and vanilla and blend again, just to mix, no longer.

4. Pour the veggie puree into the dry mixture and fold together until combined. Add the chocolate chips and and fold a few more times until evenly distributed.

5. Like any other muffins, fill the muffin cups 2/3 full and bake for 15 minutes. Do the toothpick test, if they are still moist, bake for an extra 3 or 4 minutes - or until the toothpick comes out clean.

** In my oven they were done in about 17 minutes.
** I have made these using canola oil and coconut oil. Both are really delicious, however - with the coconut oil you will notice a slight texture difference once they cool. You should be able to substitute without a problem!

What occasion will you invent to make these vegan green muffins? They're perfect for after-school snacks, St. Patrick's treats, or gifts for a health-conscious friend.

Pair them with a smoothie and they're perfect!

Braided Pull-Apart Rosemary Artisan Bread

Warm bread on a cold winter night...is there anything better? My son has gluten and dairy allergies, so to be honest I haven't had really yummy bread in a long time. I love bread with a meal, with soup, or just on its own as an entire meal. This Braided Pull-Apart Rosemary Artisan Bread? I think I could eat the whole loaf in one sitting today.

Want to make it for yourself? Here's how!

Braided Pull-Apart Rosemary Artisan Bread
Ingredients

1 frozen bread dough loaf
2 tablespoons butter
1 sprig of rosemary
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper

Instructions

1. Thaw the bread dough loaf in the fridge overnight. You can leave it in the freezer bag! When ready, lightly flour a hard, flat surface. Hand roll your bread dough out into a "log" double the normal size, cut in half and roll the two pieces the same way.

2. Cut each strand of dough up the middle into two, do not cut all the way through the top. The 2 pieces should remain connected.

3. Lightly pinch the 2 double strand pieces together at the top.

4. To braid the bread dough:
Start with the far left strand, bring it over the strand to the right, then under the next strand and over the last strand. The technique follows a basket weave of sorts, over and under.
Always start with the left strand.

Here are a few photos illustrating the braid:

5. Continue until fully braided. Place in a buttered dish or loaf pan.

6. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a small microwave safe dish, combine the butter, rosemary, salt, and pepper. Microwave for 20 seconds or until melted.  Brush half over the bread dough.

7. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Brush the remaining rosemary butter over the loaf.
Cool and slice or serve warm - the bread will pull apart!

Can we all just sigh "yum" together now? What will you pair with this bread for a winter meal?

Free Printable Holiday Gift Topper + How to Make Dried Cranberries

Disclosure: This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #ShareTheHoliday #CollectiveBias

It can be hard to think of something unique to give to family and friends during the holiday season. We don't have a huge budget, but there are usually at least a handful of people that I want to show appreciation to at the end of the year. Since we have spent most of the year learning to handle food allergies, this year I wanted to keep other families who may be in the same situation in mind... so we decided to make some homemade dried cranberries to gift to our friends and family!

Homemade Dried Cranberries 
Supplies Needed 

-Cranberries (I used a 12oz bag to start, but by the time they cooked, they didn't take up a lot of space, so I would probably do 2-3 bags per gift in the future)
-Colander
-Cooking Pot
-Spoon
-1/4 to 1/2 Cup Honey
-Parchment Paper
-Baking Sheet

1. Preheat Oven to 200 degrees. 

2. Rinse cranberries in hot water.

3. Submerge in boiling water for 10 minutes. Cranberries should pop. If they don't, use your spoon to push them against the side of the pot and pop them right open.

4. Pour into colander, drain off excess water. I rolled them in a towel to get even more water off.

5. Toss with Honey. I didn't want our cranberries to be very sweet, so we went with this option. You could use a different sweetener, if preferred.

5. Bake at 200 degrees for 6-8 hours, then allow cranberries to dry for about 24 hours before sealing in an airtight container like Rubbermaid TakeAlongs. 

Rubbermaid TakeAlongs come in a variety of shapes and sizes, to fit any holiday gifting needs you might have this year! They're even available in festive colors and designs - I love the red ones. I used the Rubbermaid TakeAlongs Deep Square size for this gift.

Rubbermaid TakeAlongs can be found easily at Walmart - and there is even a $1.00 off the purchase of 2 offer available from Ibotta (exclusively for Walmart shoppers) right now!

Rubbermaid TakeAlongs are dishwasher, microwave, and freezer friendly - so that makes them an ideal option for anything you need to transport while giving the gift of thanks to friends and family.

Once the cranberries were ready, we wanted to package them up and make them seem a bit more festive! The red Rubbermaid TakeAlongs were perfect - we just added ribbon and a Christmas tree top to finish it off!

1. Cut a 20" piece of ribbon or cord. Hot glue around Rubbermaid TakeAlongs container.

2. Print this Christmas Tree Gift Topper. Decorate however you want! Since it's double-sided, you could even let a different child decorate each side.

3. Cut out the tree and fold (make sure you don't snip all the way to the center at the tip of the tree so that it will fold. 

4. Fold the base along the lines and tape together. Tape to box. 

5. Attach decorated stars on either side of the tree with tape, kids glue, or any adhesive you want. I used hot glue because it was most easily accessible!

That's it! What neighbor or family friend wouldn't love to receive one of these from your hands this winter?

What gifts are you giving to friends and family this holiday season?

Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Glaze

With fall well underway, there has been no lack of pumpkin recipes floating around the blog world! There's always room for one more, though, right? Especially when they're completely delicious? These Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Glaze might just deserve to be right up there with all the classics like pumpkin pie and pumpkin bread. Maybe.

PUMPKIN COOKIES WITH CREAM CHEESE GLAZE RECIPE

Pumpkin Cookie Ingredients

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter (1 stick), softened
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract

Cookie Instructions

Heat oven to 350 degrees and line baking sheet with parchment paper. In a bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.  In a separate bowl, beat together the butter and sugar and add in pumpkin, vanilla, and egg and blend until smooth. Gradually combine the dry mix to the liquid mixture. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto sheet and bake for 18 minutes.

Glaze Ingredients

1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp powdered sugar
2 tbsp cream cheese (Neufchatel cheese), softened
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
Pinch salt

Glaze Instructions

Combine powdered sugar, cream cheese, lemon juice, vanilla extract and salt until creamy. Sip a spoon into the glaze and lightly drizzle over cooled cookies.

I'm not going to lie.... I want to have these pumpkin cookies with cream cheese glaze hot and ready from my oven continually. What's your favorite pumpkin recipe?

Dairy Free Salted Caramel Shake

Disclosure: This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #DairyFree4All #CollectiveBias

When I found out that my son had food allergies, I felt disappointed because I feared that he might never get to experience "normal" things like frozen treats, cheese-covered meals, and buttery, gooey rolls. Granted - these things may not be the healthiest, but in moderation I still love them. So whenever I have the chance, I try to find an allergen-free alternative to special treats for my kids to enjoy. We needed a treat last weekend, so I whipped up this Dairy Free Salted Caramel Shake for us, and it was a huge success!

So Delicious Dairy Free® is my go-to brand for dairy-free frozen treats. My kids love them, I love them... you just can't go wrong. I feel safe choosing So Delicious Dairy Free® because of their world-class allergen-testing program and the many products they offer that are made with organic incredients, plant-based, and Non-GMO Project Verified. For a family that avoids artificial colors, flavors, trans-fats, and hydrogenated oils, they fit the bill just right! I found the Coconut Milk Vanilla Bean and Cashew Milk Salted Caramel Cluster varieties needed for this yummy Dairy Free Salted Caramel Shake in the freezer section at my Walmart store.

Dairy-Free Salted Caramel Shake 
Ingredients

1 1/2 cups So Delicious Dairy Free® Cashew Salted Caramel Cluster
1/2 cup So Delicious Dairy Free® Coconut Vanilla Bean
1/3 cup So Delicious Dairy Free® CocoWhip
1/4 cup So Delicious Dairy Free® Coconut Milk
Dairy-Free Mini Chocolate Chips
Blender

Instructions

-Mix together the Cashew Salted Caramel Cluster and Coconut Vanilla Bean in the blender, with the 1/4 cup Coconut Milk. Note that if you prefer a thicker shake, you can use less coconut milk! 

-Blend for about a minute, or until smooth and bubbly.

-Pour into glass. Garnish with CocoWhip and chocolate chips. Pop in a spoon or a straw and enjoy!

It turns out that creating a delicious dairy-free shake is no more difficult than a "normal" shake! My kiddos were thrilled with this treat and keep asking for more.

I'm seriously drooling just remembering how delightful this shake tasted! Another trip to the store for more So Delicious Dairy Free® frozen treats may be in order! What's your favorite dairy-free snack?

Disclosure: This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #DairyFree4All #CollectiveBias