Dessert

Nana Nog // Almond Banana Shake Recipe

1 · Jan 23, 2015 · 1 Comment

+ This Nana Nog // Banana Shake Recipe Post brought to you by the folks at Silk Almond Milk +

When I was a kid, one of my favorite treats was a banana shake that my Mom would make every once in a while, we called it a Nana Nog.

No relation to Egg Nog, plus you can drink it year-round!

It was a simple mixture, but it was always so heavenly. She would always pull it out of her hat, right at the perfect time.

You know, that moment when you’re craving a little sweet refreshing treat?!

Secretly I’m sure, she made them right when the bananas were heading south and she didn’t have time to make banana bread.

I however, would like to think she was so in tune with my every desire and knew just when the time was right to pull out her famous Nana Nog!

The name of the drink has a two fold meaning now. Of course it was originally named after the key ingredient, bananas. Now, since we call my Mom Nana, the drink is named after her the creator! It’s perfect!!

We have another drink called Magical Monkey Milk, I’ll have to share that sometime too! It’s yummy!!

Nana Nogs are simply a mixture of Silk Almond Milk, bananas, ice, a little bit of sugar and a dash of nutmeg. Boy I tell ya, it really hits the spot sometimes! I choose to use Almond Milk rather than traditional milk for several reasons. First, it’s obviously dairy-free so even friends with dairy issues can have this sweet treat. Plus, check out all these added benefits…

90 calories per serving
50% more calcium than dairy milk
Excellent source of vitamin E
Absolutely no cholesterol or saturated fat
Free of dairy, soy, lactose, gluten, casein, egg and MSG
Verified by the Non-GMO Project’s product verification program
No artificial colors, flavors or funny business

Yea, it’s pretty good stuff. Silk’s plant protein truly helps you BLOOM, plus it tastes GREAT!!

You should check out the Silk Site for all kinds of great ideas and coupons for all the Silk products.

Nana Nog Recipe

2 ripe bananas

2 cups of Silk Vanilla Sweetened Almond Milk

1 cup of ice

1/4 teaspoon of sugar

a pinch of nutmeg

Really truly, your bananas should look more like this…

In the jar of your blender, add all of your ingredients.

And Blend, that’s it!

This makes roughly three to four child size servings. Perfect to share with some friends.

My little guy Gage thinks it’s just the bees knees! Grab some Silk Almond Milk and surprise your kiddos with this fun treat!

This conversation is sponsored by Silk. The opinions and text are all mine.

Orange Honey Butter Spread with Melt Organic

5 · Jan 14, 2015 ·

+ Orange Honey Butter Spread Recipe brought to you by Melt® Organic +

This is one of my favorite culinary times of year… Citrus Season! I don’t know about you, but I love the oranges this time of year. They are like candy and I just can’t get enough of them. Which is probably good since we all seem to be fighting the cold and flu war this time of year, a little extra vitamin C is perfect! I thought a lovely Orange Honey Butter would be a great addition to a brunch table, especially when looking for inspiration from Bee Inspired recipes.

Recently, I was invited to try a new product out on the market called Melt® Organic. It’s this really cool “butter like” spread that has all the stuff we love about butter, but it’s packed full of healthier fats and it’s dairy and soy free. I would have to say I was a little skeptical at first. Can this product made out of a blend of organic coconut, flaxseed, canola, palm fruit & sunflower oils really have the taste and creamy texture of butter? I decided to put it to the test.

First test, compound butter… Last Christmas, for my neighbor gifts, I made some lovely compound butters. I whipped together some honey, garlic & berry butters, packaged them up and gave them to my friends and neighbors for holiday gifts. They were a hit.

I wanted to give this idea a go with this new Melt® Organic product. I whipped it up the very same way, I place roughly 6 oz. basically half a container of Melt® Organic into my mixer with roughly 1 heaping tablespoon of orange marmalade.

Then whip the two together really well. Place in a small jar and serve immediately or store in the refrigerator and use as needed. It turned out beautifully!

I whipped up some black cherry butter spread with the other half of my container and I was all set for a lovely brunch.

What I LOVE about the Melt® Organic is that it is GMO-free and it’s helping get my healthy fats in the right way. Here’s the skinny about Melt® Organic…

Ideal balance of Omega 6 and Omega 3 fatty acids – 2:1
Good daily source of Omega 3 ALA’s at 425 mg – 26% RDA per serving
Good daily source of Vitamin E – 15% RDA per serving
Certified USDA Organic and OU Kosher Pareve
Verified non-GMO by the Non-GMO Project
Absolutely no hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils
Trans Fat Free
Gluten Free
Soy Free
Dairy Free
Vegan
No artificial colors, flavors or preservatives

Not bad if you ask me!

The next test… Baking Cookies.

I mixed up a batch of our favorite Chocolate Peanut Butter Granola Cookies with Melt® Organic rather than butter. They mixed up beautifully and baked even better. My family didn’t even notice the difference.

I noticed a difference knowing that even though cookies aren’t exactly health food, and fat is still fat, I felt better knowing that the cookies they were eating were made from healthier fats. You can grab this recipe HERE, just substitute the Melt® Organic for the butter.

The next test… I sautéd some corn with Melt® Organic and I really liked that much better than butter. You still have the butter flavor without all the yucky fats. My family loved this test too.

All in all, my experience with Melt® Organic has been super positive and we have been converted for sure!

Click HERE to find a store near you that carries Melt® Organic. You can generally find it in the organic dairy section of your local super market. If not, you can always order it online. Grab some and give it a spin, tell me what you think!

MELT® Organic is a line of luscious, organic spreads made from healthy oils for butter lovers seeking a much healthier alternative, available in Rich & Creamy (original), Honey, and NEW Chocolate.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of MELT Organic. The opinions and text are all mine.

English Toffee Cinnamon Bun Sweet Cake + Easy Neighbor Gift

18 · Dec 17, 2014 · 3 Comments

+ English Toffee Cinnamon Bun Sweet Cake post brought to you by Pillsbury Baking +

We’re hitting crunch time friends! Christmas is about a week away. Have you figured out what you are giving your neighbors and friends this Christmas season? I have a super easy and super sweet gift idea for you… English Toffee Cinnamon Bun Sweet Cakes!

Uh yes… YUM!!

This is just a simple and scrumptious box cake mix and prepared frosting from my favorite folks at Pillsbury Baking. They have done all the hard work of making it perfect… All you have to do is bake it and make it look amazing!

Here is what you need…

Yep, that’s it. Well… You will need eggs and oil for the cake, but other than that, this is it.

I also found these great baking cups at Target that come with a clear lid. Super Cute and easy to use. You can find it in the baking section at Target.

Mix up your cake according to the package directions and fill you baking cups 1/2 way.

Place in a 350˚ oven for 19-20 minutes.

Remove from oven and let cool. If you would like a flat top to decorate, carefully cut-off the dome with a serrated knife.

Using a Jumbo Closed Star Decorating Tip, and a pastry bag… Pipe some simple stars on the top of your little sweet cakes.

Next, in a Ziplock bag, add some English Toffee. Using something heavy item like a rolling pin or meat tenderizer, take out some aggression and crush your toffee. Sprinkle on top of the sweet cakes and you’re finished!

All you need to do now is package your sweet treats.

I place the lid on the sweet cakes and then wrap with a ribbon. Then I add a fun gift tag that I created for this Holiday Season.

You can download the gift tag HERE

I’ve printed the tag on kraft paper, but you can use whatever you like. All I did was tie it onto a stack of sweet cakes and we were ready for delivery!

It can’t get any easier than that. The cool thing is you can customize it for each family.

One box of cake mix will make 10 little sweet cakes. You will need two cans of frosting for that application. Stack them in 2’s and 3’s and it’s a fun new way to share some Christmas Cheer!

For a Savory gift tag option… Check-out this post.

How fun will it be to combine the two?!

Disclaimer // This post is sponsored by Pillsbury Baking. All thoughts, ideas and opinions are my very own. However, I want you all to know that I will never promote a product or company that I do not love and use in my normal day to day life.

Spice Cookies with Holiday Nog Glaze Recipe

6 · Dec 3, 2014 ·

+ This Spice Cookie with Holiday Nog Glaze post is brought to you by the folks at Silk +

There is nothing better to usher in the Holiday season than a good batch of Spice Cookies! My kiddos and I think that they are truly Christmas on a plate for sure…

There is just something special about a soft chewy cookie that is packed full of the spices of the season… Cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, molasses & a new addition cardamom, YUM!

This is a cookie that truly stands the test of time. People have been making spice cookies for hundreds of years and it’s a fun tradition at our house. This year I decided to add a little flair with a Holiday Nog Glaze…

Yep, you got it… It adds a whole lotta love to those scrumptious cookies. I chose Silk Holiday Nog over traditional Egg Nog for a few reasons…

First, I LOVE IT!! Seriously, have you tried this stuff? It’s all of the flavors of the season without all the guilt! I don’t think I will ever drink traditional Egg Nog ever again.

Second, It’s a great dairy-free alternative for our dairy-sensitive friends! Plus, here are the other goodies about Silk Holiday Nog…

Absolutely no cholesterol or saturated fat

Free of dairy, lactose, gluten, casein, egg and MSG

Verified by the Non-GMO Project’s product verification program

No artificial colors, flavors or funny business

Yea… it’s a NOG that I can truly get behind.

Third… As a Silk Member, you can enter to win a $500 Spa Gift Card!

Yes, we all know we could use one of those babies after the mad rush of the Holidays! You too can become a member HERE. They have new giveaways every month along with fabulous coupons for their members! SCORE!!

Now on to the cookies… Here’s how to make these scrumptious, Christmas on a plate, Spice Cookies with Holiday Nog Glaze.

Silk Cookies with Holiday Nog Glaze Recipe

Preheat oven to 350˚

3 sticks of butter (1 1/2 cups) softened

1 cup white sugar

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 egg yolk

1/2 cup molasses

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

4 teaspoons ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/4 nutmeg

1 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 cup of course sugar

1/4 cup Silk Holiday Nog

3 cups powdered sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

Cream butter & sugars with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, egg yolk and molasses.

In a large bowl, combine your spices and dry ingredients; flour, salt, baking soda and all of the spices…

Aren’t they pretty?!

Gradually add the dry ingredients into the creamed sugar mixture until fully incorporated.

Place dough in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Remove the dough and scoop the dough into 2 inch balls with a cookie scoop. Roll the cookie balls in a bowl with the course sugar. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet and place in a 350˚ oven for 13-14 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool.

Mix Holiday Nog glaze while cookies are cooling. Add the powdered sugar to a small bowl, add salt and Silk Holiday Nog and whisk until it turns into a thick glaze.

Once the cookies are cool, dip the top part of the cookie into the glaze. Be careful to not fully submerge.

You only want to lightly kiss the top of the cookie with the glaze. Place on a cooling rack and wait for the glaze to set.

Once the glaze is set, serve your cookies with a nice glass of Silk Holiday Nog!

They taste great dunked into the nog as well… just sayin’

Hannah and I thoroughly enjoyed them…

The also make perfect Holiday neighbor gifts! Bag up a few of these bad boys and share with your family and friends. I would even pair it with a carton of silk, they’ll thank you for it!

This conversation is sponsored by Silk. The opinions and text are all mine.

Dessert

Nana Nog Recipe

You can download the gift tag HERE

Silk Cookies with Holiday Nog Glaze Recipe

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