Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

On cold and cloudy days, I seem to get cravings for pumpkin. And this pumpkin bread is my all-time favorite, slightly adapted from the ladies at Our Best Bites. It's warm spice flavor is perfect for chasing away the winter blues.

And I love that I can use whole wheat flour, greek yogurt, and applesauce to make it yummy and healthy…well, sort of healthy :)

Just try not to eat the whole loaf in one sitting…believe me, you'll want to!


Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread
(Makes 2 loaves)

Ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoons nutmeg
1/4 teaspoons ground clove
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon baking power
1 teaspoon table salt
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cup white sugar
6 ounce container greek yogurt, vanilla
3 eggs, slightly beaten
15 ounce can pumpkin puree
1/2 cup canola oil (or 1/2 cup applesauce)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray two 9x5 loaf pans with nonstick spray and then lightly cover with flour. Set aside.

2. Combine flours, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Gently combine and set aside.

3. In separate mixing bowl combine the sugars, mixing well with a wooden spoon. Add yogurt, eggs, pumpkin, oil, and vanilla extract. Mix until smooth.

4. Slowly add the dry ingredients until wet. Gently stir in chocolate chips. (The batter will seem a little dry, but don't worry it will still be yummy!) Divide the batter between the two loaf pans and sprinkle a few extra chocolate chips on top if you'd like. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes and then remove loaves and place on wire rack.


*Time Saving Tip: When completely cooled, wrap the second loaf in layers of plastic wrap and then aluminum foil. Place in the freezer and you'll have a delicious treat for the future! Just place the loaf in the fridge or on the counter to thaw when you're ready to enjoy!

Peanut Butter Blossoms

While growing up, I can remember a few staple cookie recipes that my mom would make. Peanut Butter Blossoms were one of them. And if you could snatch some right after they came out of the oven…Oh the melted chocolate goodness!

I've also seen fun variations online using caramel kisses or other flavors! I have yet to try them because I'm such a fanatic of straight chocolate…but it would be fun to do!

Peanut Butter Blossoms

Ingredients:

48 Hershey Kisses, unwrapped

1/2 cup shortening

3/4 cup peanut butter

1/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 egg

2 tablespoons milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. Beat shortening and peanut butter. Add sugars and beat until light and fluffy. Add egg, milk, and vanilla.

2. In separate bowl, stir together flour, soda, and salt. Gradually add to peanut butter mixture.

3. Shape dough into 1-inch balls and roll in granulated sugar. Place on ungreased cookie sheet.

4. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes. When finished, immediately place Hershey Kiss on top of each cookie, pressing down so the cookie cracks around the edges. Remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack.

FROZEN Birthday Party

Ok. Have you seen Disney's new movie Frozen yet?

If not…GO GO GO!

Seriously, it's the best. The main characters are sisters and have to help each other through an amazing adventure. The music is amazing. I cannot say this enough! I may or may not have leaked a few tears during the song "Let It Go" and I was just thrilled with the broadway feel of it all.

Of course my husband was next to me rolling his eyes and checking his watch. Musicals are not his thing, but he still enjoyed the characters and storyline :)

Well. Onto the party.

My daughter had a birthday in December and we always wait until after the holidays to celebrate with her friends. And that lucky duck! Since Frozen came out in November we had the perfect party theme just begging to be used! 

So here are a few ideas to get you started on your own Frozen birthday party!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ok. This is the BEST chocolate chip cookie recipe E.V.E.R. 

At least to me, haha!

This recipe of goodness was passed along to me from a close friend a few years ago (Hi Kayse!) and it's one I just keep going back to. So whip up a batch and try not to snatch too much cookie dough before baking :)

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup shortening

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon soda

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 1/4 cup flour

1 bag of chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Combine shortening and sugars in a mixing bowl. Mix until smooth.

2. Add eggs, salt, soda, vanilla, and flour. When everything is mixed well add the chocolate chips.

3. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

Make 5 dozen cookies…or about 4 1/2 if you snatch some dough :)

*Time-Saving Tip: After the cookies have cooled, put half of the cookies into a ziploc freezer bag, remove the air, and close up tight for the freezer. This makes an easy dessert to grab on the go or quickly take to a neighbor or friend.

Mom's Brownies

Our mom makes some of the yummiest food around, especially desserts! When you visit her home you can always count on having cookies, brownies, or some other piece of sugary heaven.

This is her go-to brownie recipe that she uses solo or as a brownie base for other recipes.

Mom's Brownies

Ingredients:
2 squares butter
1/2 cup cocoa
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour

Directions:
1. Melt butter in saucepan on medium heat. When melted, removed from heat and stir in cocoa following by the sugar.

2. Add eggs and vanilla. Stir well. Then mix in flour.

3. Bake in a 9x13 pan at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes. Check with a toothpick.

Owl-Themed Nursery: The Furniture Basics

Welcome back to our nursery makeover! If you missed the first installment called Getting Started, check it out!

…………………………………………………….

Next up on my list? Furniture.

We had an old birch crib that I wasn't loving. I really wanted white furniture and thought perhaps I could just repaint everything. But HOURS and HOURS and HOURS after sanding and painting and sanding and painting the changing table, I became disgusting with the thought of refinishing the crib.

And did I mention that I was 7 months pregnant when I did this? Ugh.

The changing table did turned out great though. I sanded, painted, and used a water-based sealant so that it won't "yellow" over time. Again, I used extra fabric from the quite to make a cover for the changing table (I modified this pattern from A Small Snippet) and threw on some storage bins we already had…and that happened to match perfectly, wahoo!

This made me happy, happy.

And yes my son is sitting in a stroller with an entire container of animal crackers :) Hey, don't judge! It kept him happy!

Apple Butter Banana Bread

If you're like me, bread is not my forte in the kitchen.

If you aren't like me…well kudos for being awesome.

But really. Knead-and-beat-and-rise-and-whatever bread never really turns out for me.

That's where banana bread comes in to save the day. (Or at least my day!)

Just mix it all together and pop it in the oven! Perfect.

So here's my favorite go-to banana bread recipe, slightly adapted from Better Homes & Gardens.

Apple Butter Banana Bread

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

2 slightly beaten eggs

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup mashed ripe banana (2 small)

1/4 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup applesauce

1/4 cup canola or cooking oil

Directions:

1. Grease and flour the bottom and sides of a 9x5x3-inch loaf pan; set aside. In large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg.

3. In medium bowl combine eggs, sugar, banana, butter, applesauce, and oil. Add egg mixture all at once to flour mixture. Stir until just moistened (batter should be lumpy). Spoon into prepared pan.

3. Bake in a 350 degree oven about 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center of the bread comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack.

Makes 1 loaf.

*Time-Saving Tip: I like to double the recipe and freeze one loaf for later! Just let the second loaf completely cool, wrap in plastic wrap, followed by a layer or two of foil…you just need to keep the air out. Place it in the fridge or on the counter to thaw when you're ready for more banana bread goodness!

Owl-Themed Nursery: Getting Started

Ready for one of my deepest, darkest secrets? Something that always leaves me thinking, "Maybe I should have done that with my life instead"….

No, it's not being a Rock Star. Though that is another secret wish of mine, haha.

I'm a wanna-be interior designer, with my own HGTV show and all! I can just see it now…"Designing Fabulous with Marci" And yes, that will be the name of my series. Just you wait! 

Excuse me for a moment while I take a call from HGTV…ha!

Now, please let me assure you that I realistically know nothing about interior design. I pick up ideas from here and there…and then just sort of throw it together. I have no formal training and just do what my eye approves of :)

But really. I know a lot of you are like me. We see pretty homes on television or those gorgeous knick-knacks while roaming the isles of our favorite store. And we wonder how on earth we could ever incorporate an item into our home or even perhaps start from scratch!

How do you start? Where do you start?