Sliced fresh apples, with a drizzle of peanut butter and honey, topped with a handful of crunchy chocolate peanut butter granola add up to a plate of the best ever Apple Nachos.

Apple Nachos

For as long as I can remember, I’ve enjoyed apples for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. What’s not to love about crunchy, sweet, tart apples? Paired with a crunchy peanut butter dip or this honey yogurt dip, they’re a snack everyone loves.

These apple nachos combine the freshness of sliced apples with savory sweet peanut butter and honey and the chewy crunch of granola. They’re satisfyingly filling for a simple meal or a hearty snack.

This time of year, my family can not get too many apples and Meijer consistently has the tastiest apples. I partnered with Meijer a few years ago to share this apple recipe with you and we’ve been making these apple nachos regularly ever since then.

There’s just no end to the sweet and savory ways you can eat apples: apple oatmeals, apple butter, baked apples, apple pancakes, dehydrated apple chips, applesauce, apple cakes, and apple pie bars.

Apple crisps, apple crisp ice cream, Read more

Cream of Mushroom Pasta +Video

Creamy mushroom pasta starts with buttery caramelized sauteed mushrooms and ends with that deep rich umami flavor in your mouth. It’s literally love at first bite! But it hasn’t always been that way…

As a little kid in church I learned the sweetest song, “I’m Trying to Be Like Jesus”. Sometimes even now it goes floating through my mind with the simple reminder to be like Him. But lately a new version has taken over, “I’m trying to like those mushrooms….” It’s a bit of a journey for me.

Picky eaters will understand, it’s a texture thing. But truly, I’ve come a long way and this pasta is a bit of a nod to the delicious flavor a well caramelized mushroom can bring to a pasta, elevating it from simplistic to romantic.

How to Make Cream of Mushroom Pasta Video

We are going to share all the tips for making mushrooms the star of the show and not the rubbery, squeaky undesirables that they can be if they are cooked incorrectly.

Ingredients for Creamy Mushroom Pasta

I am going to include a brief description of the ingredients you will need. This is meant to be just an overview. You can find all the measurements and details in the recipe card at the end of the post.

• Mixed Mushrooms: cremini, shiitake, chanterelle and oyster or any combination
• Olive Oil and Butter: the combination of the two caramelizes the mushrooms perfectly
• Garlic: adds flavor
• Kosher Salt: adds flavor and enhances all the other ingredients
• Nutmeg: this might seem strange, but trust me, it adds the best little flavor to the mushrooms
• Pepper: adds flavor and a little heat
• White Wine: adds richness and depth of flavor
• Bucatini Pasta: you can use spaghetti, but I love the thicker noodle for this recipe
• Heavy Cream: creates the creamy sauce
• Lemon: cuts through all the heaviness and adds a bright pop of fresh flavor
• Pecorino Romano: you can use parmesan cheese instead if you can’t find it
• Pasta Water: helps thicken the sauce
• Fresh Parsley: adds a freshness to the dish

Which Mushrooms are Best for Pasta?

I love to use a variety of mushr

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Protein Baked Oatmeal Mug Cake

Oatmeal mug cake loaded with peanut butter and chocolate chips…for an excuse to eat cake for breakfast, look no further!

Over the years, I have learned that I feel so much better throughout the day if I start with a high protein breakfast. I joined the baked oatmeal trend and have been obsessed with trying different combinations of flavors. It’s no surprise that peanut butter and chocolate was a combo that had to make it on the blog.

This mug cake is loaded with 34 grams of protein and is a hearty (and outrageously delicious) way to start the day! And just for the memories, this mug cake recipe and our chocolate chip cookie version pretty much saved my life after the bike crash. I couldn’t eat normally for so long, and these mug cakes were the perfect way to get loads of protein.

Ingredients in Peanut Butter Choc Chip Mug Cake

These ingredients are so simple and likely ones that you’ll already have at home which is always a winner! This is meant to just be an overview of the ingredients needed. For all the details and full measurements, scroll down to the recipe card at the end of the post.

• Banana: adds moisture and natural sweetness to the cake
• Peanut Butter: adds flavor and protein
• Egg: helps with the structure of the cake and adds more protein
• Oats: go with old fashioned oats or quick oats
  • NOTE: Steel cut oats will not work in this recipe
• Protein Powder: we have been using vanilla but I’m sure it would be great with chocolate or peanut butter protein powder too
• Milk: any type of milk will work, use almond milk and make it dairy free!
• Baking Powder: gives the cake some rise and fluffiness
• Salt: enhances all the flavors
• Mini Chocolate Chips: you can mix these in or just sprinkle them on top after baking
• Peanut Butter Chips: totally optional but they are a delicious addition

Substitutions

If you aren’t down with using bananas in your mug cake, here are few ideas for substitutes:

• Applesauce
• Zucchini
• Apple Butter
• Yogurt
• Canned Pumpkin

You’ll want to use about 1/4 – 1/3 cup of these.

Possible Variations

Skip the chocolate chips and add a dollop of jam on top. It will be like eating a breakfast pb & j.

Add chopped peanuts for more peanut flavor and added crunch.

Slice up some bananas and add them on top.

Add flaxseeds or chia seeds for even more added nutrition.

Drizzle with caramel or top with a scoop of ice cream. Ok, this may have entered the dessert zone, but it just feels right!

What to Eat with a Mug Cake

Welcome to the weekend, my friends! My friend Christi is in town and we’re headed to The Farm at Walnut Creek this morning. She’s the biggest animal lover I know and she’s about to lose her mind over all the animals. I can hardly wait. (If you live anywhere near Central Ohio, put this on your must-do list. It’s just so much fun.)

ON THE BLOGS this week: Layered with crispy tater tots, gooey cheese, savory sausage, and fluffy eggs this Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole has earned thumbs up around the table every time I serve it. There are rarely any leftovers.

Buttery, garlicky shrimp with plenty of bright lemon is something I can never get enough of. I have a hard time resisting eating these Garlic Butter Shrimp straight out of the pan each time I cook them!

The earthy flavors of perfectly crispy, Roasted Potatoes and Broccoli are a wonderfully simple side dish that pairs brilliantly with all of my favorite dinners.

Sauteed sausage pairs beautifully with the slightly sweet peppers and crisp zucchini in this flavorful Sausage Zucchini Skillet.

Crispy, Cheesy Roasted Potatoes are covered in a mouth-watering blend of garlic, herbs, and melted cheese, making these taters the MVP of comfort food.

Succulent peaches and warm, fluffy pancakes, what’s not to love? These Peach Pancakes are a breakfast lover’s dream come true.

Juicy, sun-ripened peaches mingle with the sweetness of fresh blueberries beneath a heavenly brown sugar crust in this Peach Blueberry Crisp. This is one dessert worth daydreaming over.

Designed to mimic store-bought varieties of Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream, this flavor captures the timeless combination of refreshingly cool mint and indulgent chocolate chunks with that vivid green hue we all know and love.

What I’m CRAVING: This Sausage Potato Soup sounds so good right now. I absolutely love the chilly mornings and nights that have finally arrived. Bring on soup season!

My FAVORITE THING this week is Oscar’s fish oil. How’s that for a random favorite? Our sweet black dog has the softest coat ever and this fish oil keeps it so very shiny and clean. I just re-ordered it y

Designed to mimic store-bought varieties of Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream, this flavor captures the timeless combination of refreshingly cool mint and indulgent chocolate chunks with that vivid green hue we all know and love.

Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

I spent a good bit of time trying to capture the exact experience of store-bought varieties with this mint chocolate chip ice cream recipe. I am happy to report that this version absolutely nails it.

The thin chocolate drizzle creates flakes of chocolate throughout the ice cream, similar to the melt-in-your-mouth classic. You can substitute mini chocolate chips, but the texture will be different as they do not melt the same way.

If you’re looking for an even more minty flavor that uses fresh mint, I recommend playing with this Mint Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream. It reminds me of a dressed-up version of the Andes mints that come with the check at a certain restaurant.

Mint Chocolate Chip

With over 70 ice cream recipes here to choose from, there’s sure to be an ice cream for everyone! If you’re new to making ice cream, the best and easiest vanilla ice cream is a great place to start.

These are my favorite inexpensive containers for storing ice cream. They’re perfect for gifting (who doesn’t love homemade ice cream?) storage, re-using, etc. I write the flavors on the lids with a sharpie and it washes off with dish soap.

I have more ice cream scoops than I can keep track of at this point and I definitely play favorites. This ice cream scoop does the best job ever of cutting through firm ice cream and still delivers a pretty scoop. It gets bonus points for being one of the least expensive scoops I own