Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies

I had a single, very ripe banana that was begging to be used, so I decided to make a breakfast cookie with some healthy ingredients. I started going through the cupboards, looking for ingredients and came up with these little gems. They are filled with whole grains, fiber and flavor! The only fat comes from the half cup of peanut butter and quarter cup of coconut. The dough is a little on the wet side but they hold their shape when they bake. Very moist, not too dense and lots of flavor. They passed the dear hubby taste test! Yummy!

Enjoy!

Ivan and His Dogs

Ivan is in love with our two dogs, Lucy and Buddy. He talks about them all the time, and the first thing he wants to do when he comes to gramma's house is take care of the dogs! He run's upstairs, opens their door, let's them out of their crate, gets them on their leashes, lets them outside and gives them a treat. 

Then, the fun begins!

Happy to be at Lucy and Buddy's House

On his way to get his pals

Unlatch

Set free

Time for treats

Time for some love pats

Everyone is happy

A little loving

A little rest

Time for some fun (notice that Buddy and Lucy are taking a time out)

White Bean and Ham Soup

We served a spiral cut ham for Easter lunch and my dear hubby suggested that maybe a pot of soup would be a way to put the ham bone to a good use. That sounded like a great idea, so I started searching for recipes. I found this recipe at Simply Recipes, one of my favorite sources for recipes that never fail to impress me. 

This recipe has two steps and each step simmers for an hour so it doesn't take too long. I chose to let the pot simmer for about 4 hours because I had the afternoon free. Dear hubby had taken just about every possible piece of meat off of the bone before I threw it in the soup pot. No worries, he had a container of ham strips ready for me to add near the end. That's just the way he takes care of business.

You can find the recipe I used right here.

I have made many bean soups in my cooking life, but this just might be our very favorite yet! The beans were incredibly creamy yet firm enough to hold their shape. I am wondering if it is due to the way the Great Northern beans were cooked. I don't remember ever cooking dry beans in the way the recipe stated. You bring water to a boil, turn off the heat and add the beans, soaking them for 2 hours. If you like bean soup, give this recipe a try. 

As Wiley would say, "This is yummy, gramma."

Enjoy!

Easter with the Family

I wanted to make something for Easter that the boys

would enjoy and when I saw this picture and recipe

for a cute bunny cake in People magazine, I decided

this was the one. I used what I had on hand to

decorate it and knew it was something that the boys

would enjoy. 

The finished cake

The de-construction began

and continued

As we all watched

A little finger licking

...and more licking

The demolished bunny

This was the perfect ending for this little bunny cake! 

We all had a good laugh!

Dad and Alan deep in conversation

Time for the Easter egg hunt

It almost started and ended on the steps

They wanted to open every single egg and eat the treat hidden inside

It's not every day you find a treat in somebody's shoe

Just one more bite!

Time to release some energy outside with the kids next door

P.S. The Easy Bunny Cake was from the People magazine, April 18, 2011, Vol. 75 No. 15, page 107.

Happy Easter!

Blog Surfing - Easter 2011

From: I Am Baker - A beautiful Hydrangea Cake. You should check out her Red Velvet Strawberry Shortcake too!

From: Mennonite Girls Can Cook - Deviled Eggs

From: Eat at Home - Easter Story Cookies

From: Around My Family Table - Fun Easter Basket Cupcakes

From: Tasty Kitchen - Healthy Easter Sides

From: Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day - Hot Cross Buns

From: Beauty and Bedlam - Resurrection Rolls

From: A Recipe A Day - Here Comes Peter Cottontail Side Dishes

From: Brown Eyed Baker - Scalloped Potatoes

From: 

And from Easter 2010: More Ideas for Easter

Easy Butterscotch Drop Scones

Here is a quick recipe for drop scones that you can whip up in less than 15 minutes. I used cinnamon, cardamom and Valencia orange peel as the background flavor, just to spice them up a little. 

All the flavors melded together and made a very tasty scone. Don't limit yourself to these flavors. It is fun to experiment with spice flavors and see what you like. As I have said before, I usually add vanilla extract to all my scones, but this time, I forgot. It wasn't missed.

Enjoy!