Maple Pecan Oatmeal Cookies

These cookies are everything. By far the best gluten free & vegan cookies I have ever had. I found this recipe on Sarah Bakes Gluten Free's blog and I was intrigued. My family loves roasted pecans, so I knew these cookies would get a lot of love in my house. That being said, I was super apprehensive about how these cookies would turn out. The ingredient list just looked strange to me. But, it worked so well! These cookies have everything a good cookie has - crispy edges with a chewy center, great flavor and a little crunch!

If you are gluten free and or vegan, you need to give these cookies a try! The ingredient list is so darn simple - you won't have to go looking for any obscure ingredients. They're completely allergen friendly and their refined sugar free! You can find the original recipe HERE, but I will detail how I made the cookies below.

Spinach, Avocado Chicken Burgers

This recipe is from Unbound Wellness (you can find the original recipe HERE). These burgers are gluten free, dairy free, egg free, whole 30 & Paleo.
 
It has been a hot minute since I've blogged three days in a row! Excuse me while I go do a little happy dance. I have been so busy since Christmas; it is so nice to have more free time to blog! Ok, enough chit chat. We need to start talking about this recipe because it is everything you have ever wanted out of a chicken burger and more. These chicken burgers taste ridiculously good and they come together so quickly (like 20 minutes!!).

I have been craving a chicken burger big time, but I had my heart set on a traditional breaded chicken burger. I was curious about this recipe but I really didn't think I would like these burgers. My family was excited about this recipe, so we decided to give it a try. And, let me tell you - I will never eat a traditional breaded chicken burger again. These chicken burgers were incredible. They pack so much flavor, they hold together super well and they make the perfect weeknight meal!

I think I mentioned this in my early blogging days, but I have a serious aversion to raw chicken (and raw meat in general especially when i have to touch it). Because of this, I don't love making burgers. i just don't love messing with raw meat. Well, I'm going to have to get over this pretty fast because I think this recipe will be on repeat in our weekly meal planning. These chicken burgers were well loved by my whole crew!

The Struggle is Real

While I do love most everything about being in the kitchen, there are a few things that just drive me nuts! Today, I'm running through the list of things that I really struggle with while I'm cooking and baking!

Pesto, Tomato & Mozzarella Stuffed Chicken

I should preface this post by saying that dealing with chicken is my least favorite kitchen duty. I don't love working with any meat really, but I find chicken the hardest! If I were to ever go vegetarian, my aversion to raw meat would be the main reason for my vegetarianism! This recipe involves a whole lot of raw chicken work - bleh! If you don't mind it, this recipe is great for you. If you struggle, as I do with raw meat, please know that the end result is so so worth it!!

My dad actually did the bulk of the heavy lifting in this recipe, but I'm so glad I got to take pictures to share with you! The recipe is from a blog called The Laughing Spatula, you can find it HERE.

Music for Monday: Kelsea Ballerini

A couple of years ago, I saw a video on Taylor Swift's Instagram of her singing with Kelsea Ballerini. I had no idea who Kelsea Ballerini was, but I love Taylor Swift and the song was super catchy. That summer, while I was on vacation, I found Kelsea Ballerini's album at Target for $5!! I grabbed it and it has been all love ever since! Kelsea Ballerini's album is the very last music that I purchased specifically; I have been using only Spotify since! Here are a few of my favorites....

Friday Favorites: at the beach!!

Usually, I'm rather excited when Friday rolls around but I have been dreading the arrival of this Friday because it means my first week at the beach is over! I am so very lucky to have a second week to look forward to! Here are the best parts of this week...

1. First up, let's talk sunglasses! I hate spending large amounts of money on sunglasses only to throw them in the bottom of a beach bag! I typically pick up a pair of sunglasses while I'm on vacation for less than $15 and wear them all year long! Last summer I got a pair from Sam Edelman's Circus collection from TJ Maxx for $12!!! I wore them all year and I still love them so much! I have worn them every single day at the beach and I couldn't love them any more!

Top 5: Quote Editon #6

I pin quotes on Pinterest all the time & every couple of months, I do a little round up of my favorite five! Here are the words that are meaning most to me lately....

Butter Chickpeas ( a Vegan & Gluten Free Recipe!)

I made this recipe a couple of weeks ago and since then, someone in my family requests it almost daily! My mom has been Gluten free since January, so I am always on the lookout for tasty gluten free recipes - when this popped up on my Pinterest feed, I was intrigued! My family is not vegan (or even vegetarian for that matter) but I like to try to go meatless as often as possible! I strongly encourage you to try this yummy take on the traditional Butter Chicken even if you are not vegetarian/vegan/gluten free... it is that good!

Music for Monday: Singles You Up

Happy Monday! I am so excited to be writing this post from the beach! I had the most wonderful day at the beach yesterday and I am so excited to do it all over again today! I discovered this song a couple of weeks ago and I have had it on repeat ever since!

Single You Up - Jordan Davis

See you tomorrow with a fun & absolutely delicious vegan recipe!

Board Games Galore :)

Yesterday, I got a text from one of my most loyal blog readers (my Auntie Norma!) asking if I could share some Board Game recommendations on my blog! I love, love, love board games and was so excited about this post idea! I considered making this part of my little 'Top 5' series but I have way more than 5 board games that I love, so I'm just sharing them all!

Pie Crust (day 2): Lattice Top

I've experimented with Lattice Pie Crusts in the past, but I've only recently had success. It is surprisingly easier than it looks and once you get the hang of it - it somes together so quickly! Yesterday, I talked about making pie crust (you can read that HERE) and today, I'm expanding a little bit!

Once you've lined the bottom of your pie plate with a layer of crust, and filled the pie - roll out the remaining crust. The shape is less important at this point, you could roll the dough into more of a rectangular shape.

Pie Crust: Video Tutorial!

Today and tomorrow, I'm talking all about pie crust. I've shared a few pie recipes in the past and I've always included the recipe that I use for pie crust. I often get asked to share tips and/or more detailed instruction about how I do pie crust - so that's what I'm doing today!

When I shared my apple pie recipe, I shared a little about pie crust. I'll copy paste those pictures and instructions here instead of sending you clinking around! Here is the pie crust recipe that I use (it's from America's Test Kitchen - I love it!).

Music for Monday: Hozier

Today, I'm talking about Hozier!! I was listening to a Spotify playlist the other day and 'Work Song' came on. I hadn't heard any Hozier in a while, but as soon as I heard 'Work Song,' I remembered how much I love his music and I have been listening to so much Hozier since! Here are a few of my favorites...

Friday Favorites: 1 week 'til the beach!

Happy, happy Friday! In exactly one week, I'll be celebrating my 21st birthday before heading off to my favorite place in the whole wide world for a little beach time! I know next week will be full of good things but here are the best parts of this week...

1. This week, I got to see my friend Lauren! We had big plans to make some sort of summer-y dessert but were side tracked but the chilly weather and our craving for fall. So, we made these most delicious pumpkin rolls! I do realize that it's not October but these were to die for even in July!! I really am soaking up these summer days and enjoying a little sun, but I am so excited for the fall! If you are craving a little fall in your life too, I highly recommend these rolls! You can find the recipe HERE !

Strawberry, Quinoa & Cashew Salad

This salad just screams summer to me! When I made this last week, my family enjoyed it with some Italian Sausages on the barbecue - it was sooo good! The Bean has loved lending a hand in the kitchen this summer, but all she wants to do is stir!! She was thoroughly unimpressed with this salad, because there is very little stirring to be done! I was worried she wouldn't eat the salad (she tends to be less willing to try if she isn't involved in the process!) but she loved the salad! This got rave reviews all around!

I found the recipe on Julia's Album, you can find it HERE. I swapped out the peaches for Nectarine (an intentional change) and used much less spinach than called for (an unintentional change), but otherwise I followed the recipe exactly!

Nanaimo Bars

On Canada Day, I was wanting to make a festive treat for my family to have. But I didn't want to go crazy with white and red - I wanted it to be festive and a little patriotic without screaming Canada :). Nanaimo Bars are named after a city on Vancouver Island in British Columbia called Nanaimo! They are one of my favorite treats and they are so fun to bake!

Nanaimo bars are composed of 3 layers - the bottom is a mixture of chocolate, coconut and graham crackers, the middle layer is a custard then the top layer is made from melted chocolate -so good!!

Chicken Enchilada Casserole (a.k.a. the easiest dinner ever!!)

My family had this casserole for dinner a couple of weeks ago and I have been anxiously waiting to share it! This is the easiest recipe, so easy that I only took 6 (SIX!!) pictures while I was making it!! I found this recipe on Jo Cooks, you can find it HERE. I found the recipe a little bland - it was tasty but just lacking a little something! In the future, I would chop up some avocado and serve the casserole with a little avocado and salsa on the side.

Start by cooking 1 cup of dry Basmati rice (to end up with 2 cups of cooked Basmati rice) and cooking 1-2 chicken breasts (I used 2 small chicken breasts). I boiled the chicken until it was cooked through then removed it from the boiling water and let it cool in a mixing bowl. Once the chicken is cooled, shred it using 2 forks.

Music for Monday: David Gray

I have been all about David Gray lately! I love so much of his music - I especially love it when my crew is outside enjoying a fire on a cool summer evening! Many of his songs have been on repeat lately! Here are a few of my faves...

Friday Favorites: 2 weeks 'til the beach!!

These summer days are so much fun. Today, I'm sharing the best things about this first week of July - Enjoy!

1. I made some delicious salads this weeks - on Wednesday night, my family had an Apple, Cranberry and Walnut salad for dinner (you can find the recipe HERE).

My Latest Cricut Projects

The Bean has been scoring big time with all of the cricut crafting I've been doing lately! She requested a shirt that said 'Killin' It' and I said 'huh?' I was confused! She said the shirt needs to be black with an outlined white rectangle with Killin' It written inside. I just followed her careful instructions and the shirt turned out so cute! It came together so easily - I picked up a black shirt from Michael's and used some white vinyl that I already had!