Aussie Bites Copycat [+ Video]

Craving the delicious Aussie Bites from Costco? Learn how to make your own copycat version at home with this easy recipe and step-by-step video tutorial. They are such a great healthy snack on the go and now you can make them at home!

We first posted this recipe back in 2016, so it was time for an update! We had a few complaints about them being too dry, so I’ve reworked the recipe and they are perfection! They are the perfect back to school snack as we head back into the school year!

I went to Costco, checked the label and ended up changing a few ingredients. I changed out flaxseed because it was just too annoyingly dry and only use chia seeds and pepitas now. For the butter, I ended up swapping it with coconut oil because I think too much water was evaporating in the hold recipe with the butter. And I thought golden raisins worked a lot better in flavor and moisture than regular raisins as well. So this is the new and improved Costco copycat Aussie Bites recipe!

Ingredients for Aussie Bites

These Aussie bites have a few different ingredients in it, some for sweetness, some for texture, some for binding, and some for flavor. Here is what you will need:

• Old Fashioned Rolled Oats
• Quinoa
• Pepitas
• Chia Seeds
• Dried Apricots
• Golden Raisins
• Unsweetened Coconut
• Maple Sugar
• Cinnamon
• Sea Salt
• Baking Soda
• Vanilla
• Honey
• Coconut Oil

Keep scrolling down to the recipe card for the measurements of each ingredient.

How to Make Aussie Bites at Home

This is a quick overview of how to make these bites. For all the details, keep scrolling down to the recipe card.

1. Prep: Preheat the oven and spray a mini muffin pan with cooking spray.
   • NOTE: If you don’t have a mini muffin pan, just bake them on a cookie sheet and use a cookie scoop to form them.
2. Blend: Add some of the oats to a blender and pulse them until ground into powder, i.e. oat flour. Place in a large bowl.
3. Pulse: Add the remaining oats and the rest of the dry ingredients to a food processor and pulse until a grainy texture.
4. Mix: Add all the wet ingredients to the food processor and pulse to combine thoroughly. It will become a wet sand texture that will hold together if you squeeze it.
5. Bake: Press the dough mixture into the muffin cups and bake for 10 minutes.
   • NOTE: If you’re using a cookie scoop, scoop out the dough and press it firmly into the scoop before releasing it onto the baking sheet. It will bake for the same amount of time.
6. Cool: This is probably the most critical step of the process, let the bites cool completely in the muffin tin. If you try to pop them out warm, they will fall apart,

These copycat bites are the perfect healthy snack to fuel me through the day and help me avoid the junk

Try a fun seafood twist on classic chicken piccata with this Shrimp Piccata. It’s a bright, savory dish full of zesty flavors in a buttery lemon wine sauce!

Oh, my friends. I have a new recipe for you and it’s a solid gold keeper. Straight out of Holly Nilsson’s fantastic cookbook, Everyday Comfort, this Weeknight Shrimp Piccata called my name as soon as I laid eyes on the recipe.

It’s rare for a recipe to jump the line these days. I typically plan out what I’ll be sharing with you weeks and even months in advance, but every so often there’s a delicious reason why something gets pushed forward. This shrimp piccata turned out to be a line-skipping 5-star favorite for my whole family.

Chicken piccata is a long-time favorite of Sean’s. He orders it just about every time we are at an Italian restaurant and I make a few different versions of it. This chicken piccata recipe has been in our dinner rotation for over ten years now. It’s a little different from more traditional piccata recipes and we love it.

I strongly suspect that pretty much every dish in Holly’s cookbook is going to be a hit. These are easy and approachable recipes and I don’t know when I’ve seen a book where so many foods made my mouth water!

Literally Read more

Smoked Whole Chicken (How to Cook a Whole Chicken on a Traeger)

Never made a Smoked Whole Chicken on a Traeger? Don’t fret, it’s easy! In this post, we give step by step instructions on how to smoke a whole chicken. It is juicy, tender and packed with flavor. You might even like it more than our Traeger Chicken Breast, smoked chicken thighs, or our smoked chicken wings.

Traeger Smoked Whole Chicken Recipe

Whole chicken recipes are really difficult to sort through. I’ve made enough of them, all of which claimed to be the best of the best but all were just cooked chicken. I mean, just because it’s a whole bird does not mean it has to be difficult, time consuming and especially not bland.

So I got all obsessed. We love our slow cooker whole chicken, our whole roasted chicken and our spatchcock chicken, but we needed a smoked version! I decided to make a whole chicken that you’d order in a restaurant over the steak. I know, I know, but really, this smoked whole chicken is going to knock your dang socks clean off of you.

Why, why is that a saying? Knock your socks off? What about your shoes? Why didn’t we knock those off first? Who are all of these people walking around in socks?

Actually, it’s me.

If you know me, if you’re a friend or a neighbor you know that I’m ALWAYS in socks because my feet are ALWAYS cold.

Smoked Whole Chicken Ingredients

Believe it or not, you only need a handful of ingredients to make a Traeger smoked chicken. This Traeger whole chicken recipe has three main components: the dry rub used to flavor the smoked chicken, the few extra ingredients needed to actually smoke the chicken, and the ingredients needed to make a gravy from the pan drippings.

Here’s what you’ll need to make a smoked whole chicken on a Traeger:

• Fresh Thyme Leaves
• Salt and Pepper
• Onion Powder
• Cumin
• Smoked Paprika
• Ground Mustard
• Cayenne
• Dark Brown Sugar
• Garlic
• Chili Powder
• Butter
• Apple Juice
• Cornstarch

Note that adding a pan of apple juice to the smoker creates a delicious steam that keeps the meat moist and adds flavor as well.

How to Smoke a Whole Chicken

Smoked whole chicken does not need much time or attention at all. The most important step starts

Plump, juicy blackberries are muddled with fragrant fresh mint to form the base of this irresistibly beautiful and refreshing Blackberry Bourbon Smash. This is a cocktail so gorgeous it’s hard to believe it’s so easy to make!

Blackberry Bourbon Smash

This has been my cocktail of choice this summer for a whole host of great reasons. Gigantic blackberries have been available at bargain prices in my grocery stores, so it’s hard to resist stocking up and I’ve been stuffing blackberries into just about every dish I can.

This particular cocktail, though, is a riff on the classic whiskey smash; a citrus forward drink that tastes like a boozy lemonade. Our blackberry bourbon smash recipe adds a heaping helping of muddled blackberries for both flavor and aesthetics.

The end result is a seriously sippable, perfectly balanced, delightfully refreshing cocktail that is easy on the eyes, too. It’s a winner of a drink!

Bourbon Smash

You’ll need the following ingredients to make this recipe:

• fresh blackberries
• mint leaves
• fresh lime juice
• ice cubes

Peanut Butter Mug Cake

This Peanut Butter Mug Cake is moist, indulgent, and only takes 5 minutes to throw together. Even better, this easy mug cake is a kid-friendly recipe! 

Peanut Butter Cake in a Mug

Peanut butter cake in a mug! Now that I have your attention, I have a delightful little recipe for you, for those days when you are craving a cozy dessert but you forgot to prepare anything.

Who doesn’t love a cute mug dessert — aka a delicious miniature cake for one made in just minutes, perfectly portioned so that all you need to do is find a spoon and a comfy space on the couch to satisfy that sweet tooth?

I used to think my One-Bowl Chocolate Cake was easy, but then I created this microwave cake recipe and now I’m hooked. I’m so hooked that I’ve created protein mug cake recipe too that you totally need to try! Made from scratch, fluffy, and flavorful, I bet you have all the ingredients you need for this recipe on hand right now.

Plus, peanut butter and chocolate chips — like in these Peanut Butter Muffins or this gorgeous Peanut Butter Cheesecake Dip — are just the best of friends.  Is there a more perfect couple? You just can’t beat the taste of those two together!

What’s in This Peanut Butter Mug Cake?

Now, microwave mug cakes are small and we’re trusting the microwave to cook it perfectly, so it’s important to get the right balance of ingredients. Here’s what you’ll need to make this best mug cake:

• Peanut butter and chocolate are of course the main flavor components here.
• Vegetable oil helps to keep the cake moist – no dry mug cakes here.
• Egg white gives the cake structure and helps it to be light and fluffy.
• This cake in a mug recipe uses brown sugar for enhanced flavor and also moisture.
• Finally, cake regulars, flour and baking powder do the job of structure and lift.

Can I Make a Cake in a Mug Without an Egg?

Yes, you can make this eggless and use milk instead, but the texture is much better using the egg white. I should note here that this recipe is dairy-free and you can make it gluten free by swapping the all purpose flour with gluten-free flour.

How to Make a Mug Cake

Mug desserts are as easy as it gets. Here are the basic steps to making this microwave cake in a cup:

1. Start by combining the wet ingredients and sugar in a large microwave-safe mug. Give it a good whisk with a fork.
2. Add the dry ingredients and stir the cake b