Homemade Cookies and a Pizza Buffet

I love days at home! The yummy kitchen smells, fun-loving jabs and warm, cozy feeling of being around family is the best.

I also got to enjoy one of my favorite snacks, thanks to a quick trip my mom took to the grocery store for Honeycrisp apples!

Apples and Peanut Butter

An oldie but a goodie.

Dinner was a “clean out the freezer” dinner since we’re off to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania in the morning to spend the holiday with my grandmothers, aunts, uncles and cousins.

We had a pizza buffet featuring a Kashi Caribbean Carnival pizza and a tuscan chicken pizza.

Kashi Caribbean Pizza

Tuscan Chicken Pizza

I definitely preferred the Tuscan chicken pizza. I like my pizza to taste like pizza and the Kashi Caribbean pizza was a little too exotic for me.

Dessert

While grocery shopping last week, Ryan and I noticed the Christmas cookie dough on display and I asked him what his favorite kind of cookie dough was. He said oatmeal raisin and I think I’d have to agree. The mix of the oats, cinnamon and sugary dough is heaven.

Tonight I made homemade oatmeal raisin cookies using the traditional recipe found on the inside lid of Quaker oatmeal.

Traditional Recipe

Dough!

I made half of the recipe (and used whole wheat flour in place of white… healthy, right? 😉 ). We were supposed to have 24 cookies, but somehow with a house of five people, only 12 actually made it into the oven.

This house is filled with cookie dough monsters.

The 12 Survivors

Surprisingly I didn’t even eat a cookie! I think I was overloaded on dough.

Now we’re all hangin’ out, watching So You Think You Can Dance and packing up for our early flight tomorrow. We’re leaving for the airport before 5 a.m. Yikes!

Next time I post I’ll be doing so from Pennsylvania… in the freezin’ cold! Brrrr. I hope it snows!

Giveaway

Don’t forget to enter my Trio Bar giveaway!

Trio Bar Giveaway

In the mood for good food?

It’s giveaway time!!! Today’s giveaway features four Mrs. May’s Naturals Trio Bars.

Trio Bars

Mrs. May’s Naturals uses natural, wholesome ingredients to create the Trio Bars. Each bar is full of lots of nuts and dried fruit.

Trio Bar Nutritionals

The bars are 100 percent vegan, dairy free, wheat free, gluten free and contain no artificial colors or flavors.

To enter this giveaway, be nutty! Simply leave a comment telling me what kind of nut is your very favorite.

I’ll start: I loooove pecans… candied pecans. I could eat a bucket full of ’em.

When I asked Ryan what his favorite kind of nut is, he replied: our dog. Yes, Sadie is truly loony. 

I will randomly select a winner Thanksgiving morning so someome will have a lil’ something extra to be thankful for!

Stonyfield Farms: Ways to Save

Looking for ways to save both your money and the environment?

I received an email from Stonyfield Farms today, informing me of a current promotion they’re running to encourage consumers to purchase their quart-size tubs of yogurt. No only is purchasing the quarts cheaper than purchasing multiple six-ounce cups, but less waste is created, making it a better option for the environment as well.

From Stonyfield:

Yogurt lovers just have to buy four Stonyfield yogurt quarts through December, and mail in the foil lids (describing this offer), and they’ll receive the reusable, eight-ounce yogurt cup made by Preserve®. Made from 100% recycled plastic, the cup is perfect for yogurt-lovers on the go, the ideal size for breakfast or a snack, with room to stir in fruit or granola. It’s dishwasher safe, BPA-free with a screw-on lid – and it’s made in the US.

Consumers will also get  $4.50 worth of Stonyfield and Preserve coupons along with the cup. Preserve products are 100% recycled and recyclable too.

Consumers can mail clean foil lids, with name, address and phone number on an index card or 4” x 6” sheet of paper by February 28, 2010 to:

Stonyfield Farm
Reusable Cup Offer
PO Box 4840
Manchester, NH 03108-4840

Cups will be shipped starting in January, 2010 with delivery in 10 to 12 weeks. This offer is good only in the US, while cup supplies last, and is limited to one cup per household (to better spread the love around).

Break Begins

I woke up today feeling icky. I guess my tummy ache decided to stick around for a bit.

My mom gave me some medicine and by mid morning I was feeling much better. It looks like my Thanksgiving break is officially on!

With my appetite back, I enjoyed a late breakfast of Honey Nut Cheerios with milk and blueberries before heading to a Jazzercise class with my mom and my sister, Leslie. My mom is a regular Jazzerciser and Leslie and I love to go with her when we get a chance. The music is fun and the aerobic workout is always entertaining.

Getting into Position

The Ladies

Smilin'

We had a great time and worked up a nice sweat.

Afterward we stopped off at T.J. Maxx to find Leslie a planner for the upcoming year. Of course we left with some other fun purchases (namely black Paper Denim and Cloth skinny jeans for $25!). I felt bad that Ryan was hanging out at home alone (my dad is working today), so we swung by Dunkin’ Donuts to pick up a treat for him

Wanna know what Ryan’s favorite doughnut is? A glazed doughnut with pink icing and sprinkles. Manly, huh?

Needless to say he was quite excited for his surprise treat!

Lovin' His Pink Frosted Doughnut

What a happy boy.

Our day’s plans include taking Sadie to the dog park…

Sadie Girl!

…and dropping off our wedding contract at the Vinoy!!! It’s 100 percent official… we’re getting married at the end of October at the Renaissance Vinoy Resort and Golf Club in St. Petersburg.

Vinoy

Hope you are all enjoying your Tuesday!