As the day went on today, I realized I was wanting some no bake cookies! I knew I had all the ingredients I would need, minus the oatmeal.  But this was no problem, because I've also been wanting to get some oatmeal in attempts to make this fun recipe I found on Pinterest: Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie. I went to pick up some oatmeal so I could begin bringing back childhood memories!!

This recipe is entirely easy and entirely simple to make.  So, without further adieu, here is the recipe:

Bring-Back-the-Childhood-Memories No Bake Cookies
Ingredients:
1/2 Cups Butter
2 Cups Sugar
1/2 Cup Milk
4 Tbsp. Cocoa
1/2 Cup Peanut Butter
3 Cup Quick Cooking Oats
2 tsp. Vanilla

1. Add the first 4 ingredients(up to the cocoa) together in a saucepan until they boil.

2. Once boiling, let boil for one minute.

3. Remove from heat. 
4. Stir in peanut butter and vanilla and stir until smooth.

5. Slowly stir in oatmeal flakes and mix well.

Typically, you would then put dollops of the cookie mixture onto cookie sheets and let chill.  Instead, i wanted to pour it into a pan and make cookie bars.  And SO I DID!

Once they cooled, I sliced them up and ate a few!!

Hope you get the opportunity to make some and fill your childhood desire!! I know I sure did!  If you happen to know any alternative recipes, let me know! I'd love to try them!

Thanks for traveling along!

Again, I am going to blame Pinterest.com for my recent recipe.  Not that I am mad, because I have a fairly awkward addiction to hummus.  So when I found two decent recipes, I decided to create my own version to suit my tastes.  I stumbled across Barefoot Contessa and Gimme Some Oven (cute, cute name!) and combined them.  I did so because I was unsure how intense the complete spinach artichoke was going to be.  I also made my version a "bulk" or double the recipe found on both of those sites.  I did so mainly because hummus is a staple in my cute lunchbox.  I am on the road during lunch and away from any power source, so I need something yummy and cold to pack with me.  Hummus and pita chips generally do the trick! When I found out that you can safely freeze hummus, I decided there was no better reason not to make a double batch and freeze the extra!

So without further adieu, here is my ingredient list and process!

Humble Hummus

Ingredients:
- 2 cans of chick peas, drained and juice on reserve (3 Tbsp.) (or "baby butts" as I grew up calling them)
- 2/3 cup of tahini (sesame paste: which looks and has similar texture as natural peanut butter)
- 1 baby can of chopped spinach (7.75 oz)
- 1 can of marinated artichoke hearts (6.5 oz) ( I added approx. 1 Tbsp. of the marinated juices for fun)
- 2 Tbsp. lemon juice
- 3 garlic cloves, pressed
- 1 Tbsp. olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
(as you can see, my recipe is different than both recipes)

Methods:
Put all the above in a food processor and prepare to make magic.  :-)  Blend together until smooth.  If consistency is too thick for your liking, add more reserve liquid. 

From ^^ that ^^                                   To \/ This \/

Once my magic was completed, I got out my containers to store the humble hummus in. 

And since I wanted to freeze some, I packaged it up and placed into a freezer bag in order to add a second layer of protection against dreaded freezer burn.  I may end up placing the other larger container in the freezer as well!

Now, to break down how much this hummus really cost to make!

Artichokes: $1.99
Spinach: $.89
Chickpeas: 2 x $1.09 = $2.18
Tahini: $6.59 bottle (I used approx 1/2, so my price for this batch = $3.29)

Total cost = $8.35

Now, while this sounds more expensive than what you may buy in the store, remember how much this recipe yielded;
- two containers storing 17 oz
- one container storing 8 oz
So the recipe yeilded approx 42 oz. (about $0.19/oz)

Lets look at a grocery store's item
ValuMarket - Hummus  of Sabra Classic Hummus, 10oz for $4.99 or $0.50/oz

LOOK WHO IS SAVING MONEY!! (as you read this, use both hands with thumbs up, and point to yourself!)

Now, Im going to enjoy me some Humble Hummus!

Hope this inspires you and you create your own version and flavors!! Let me know if you try something that is DELICIOUS!
Thanks for traveling along!

So one day I stopped at McDonald's and got a delicious little treat, otherwise known as the Iced Caramel Coffee.  While I was drinking it, I decided I should find a recipe for it and learn to make this on my own...thus saving $$$$ :-)

I stumbled across the webpage of Pioneer Woman in which she detail the process of making homemade Iced coffee. With the process in mind, I now had to go and get the ingredients (as I had NONE!).

Off I went to Walmart to pick up Seattle's Best Cinnamon Bun coffee grounds, coffee filters and CoffeeMate caramel.

Next step was to create my own version.  So here is my step-by-step process.  Hope you enjoy and maybe get inspired yourself!

I started with a large glass pyrex container, poured a mound of coffee grounds in and topped those with water.  I let that sit for at least 8 hours, although for my convienence, it seems they sit for longer.  

The items needed for making such a wonderous drink:
- strainer
- two coffee filters
- glass container to store in
- scoop of sorts

And then I reveal the coffee mixture, which I am sure is pure crack at this point. 

I then place the two coffee filters in the strainer and the strainer on the glass container.  It is now ready to begin the magic!

So now that I have filtered all the mixture through the strainer and coffee filters, I can begin to pour it into my coffee carafe! And from there...I can make my own iced coffee!

I pour the coffee concentrate atop ice cubes, then top off with milk and creamer to my desired likeness!