Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup

Early last week it started to feel like springtime because we had warmer temperatures and sunny weather but now the temperatures have dipped back down to feel like winter again.  What happened?  Perhaps it’s the perfect last chance to make soup for the season, since I don’t tend to crave hearty soups in the warmer weather. I’m not really into using a slow cooker and by that I mean that I have literally used my slow cooker for one recipe, this one.  I’m not against using them but I guess I prefer cooking a meal. Okay so the term “cooking” is …

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Peppermint Patty Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

Happy St. Patty’s Day!  Even though I’m not Irish, everyone is Irish today so to celebrate the occasion I wanted to bake something with green in it.  I couldn’t find anything green that looked appetizing, and green makes me think of minty things, so I found the next best thing.  York Peppermint Patties to be exact.  I love them by themselves and to combine them with chocolate chip cookies (my other love) and now we’re talking something that will be out of this world delicious! Warning, warning. These cookie bars are mad sweet.  If you have a sweet tooth then …

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Traditional Sugar Cookies

Happy birthday to my best friend’s daughter!  She was born on the same day as me.  She celebrated her 1st birthday this year and for her party I made these sugar cookies. I like to bring sugar cookies to a party when I don’t know what people like or if there is a possibility that someone might have a nut allergy.  Sugar cookies are a simple dessert and I think most people like them, especially kids.  This sugar cookie recipe represents the quintessential sugar cookie because the cookies come out soft, buttery and wonderfully sweet. Another great point about sugar cookies is that you …

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Sugar Cookie Icing

Everyone needs a good sugar cookie icing recipe in their recipe collection.  I don’t make cut-out cookies often, but when I do the icing is a must for presentation points! This icing is sweet which makes it perfect to use with sugar cookies.  In fact, I would use this icing recipe with other cookies like gingerbread cookies.  You can customize the icing to any color you want.  Plus, initially its consistency is thin so that it’s easy to use for icing the cookies, but then it hardens up nicely. I love to decorate my home, so it makes a lot …

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Banana & Peanut Butter Smoothie

I am forever on a quest to be healthy, fit, and skinny.  Who isn’t?  So I’m always looking for healthy recipes, new exercises, and any other information that will help me succeed in this quest (a lifelong quest it seems). Even though I search for new ideas, I hold onto the “oldie but goodie” ones.  Banana & peanut butter smoothies have been around for a while and there have many variations to the recipe. I have made the banana & peanut butter smoothie recipe found below so many times that it’s too many to count.  If you love bananas then you will …

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