5-a-Day...Easy!

I know, I know....everyone's already heard of Bountiful Baskets, but if you are still unsure of it's awesomeness, please read further.
You cannot believe the amount of produce you get for such a small amount of money! One of the things I love about it is that you don't know what you're getting. It's just a surprise when you go to pick it up. I realize that may not be a selling point to everyone, but it is one of the features I appreciate. I like trying something I wouldn't have normally thought about. For anyone that is concerned about that, I've gotten about 5 baskets so far and out of all the "normal" items you get, there's maybe one unusual thing.

It's also easy. You order it online on Monday or Tuesday and go pick it up on Saturday (with a laundry basket). There are various local locations (in Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and I think more), so you just select the one that's closest to you. Then you have this abundance of produce in your house, so you have to eat it because it's always there. You get 1/2 vegetables and 1/2 fruits. Throw something in with your dinners every night or grab a quick healthy snack, you'll never run out. No, I'm not getting paid for advertising, I just think it's awesome and everyone should know about it. So, for $15, here's one of the baskets I got.
If you can't tell, that included strawberries, grapes, cantelope, bananas, pears, peaches, tomatoes, red peppers, carrots, celery, broccoli and romaine lettuce. What more could you need?! And all for $15!

Here's the link: http://www.bountifulbaskets.org/ Thank you. I'm done.

Breakfast Skillet

I'm always trying to come up with new ideas for breakfast because I make breakfasts more often than dinners! I got the idea for this from a food blog, but I can't remember which one. I adjusted it to our liking. My kids loved this. It's one of those methods, not recipes, but those are the best because you can throw in whatever you like!

First, fry some eggs in a skillet (one per person). I prefer mine over-medium (whites fully cooked, yolks warmed through & slightly thickened), but you can make them however you like them. When they're done the way you like them, slide them onto a plate and cover with foil to keep them warm.

For the hashbrowns, you could use frozen hashbrowns or make your own. I made my own this time. It's perfect if you're looking for some uses for your big bag of potatoes in the pantry! Just wash and peel the potatoes and shred them with a food processor. Be sure to soak them in water to release the starches. It makes a huge difference in the texture of the potatoes. After soaking them in water, pat them dry with a paper towel. Then put some butter and olive oil in the skillet you used to cook the eggs and throw the the potatoes in. (Tip: The butter is for the flavor and the oil is so the butter can reach a higher temperature without turning brown). DON'T TOUCH THEM for at least a couple minutes. You want them to be brown and crunchy on the outsides and soft on the inside. The center will steam as the outsides are cooking. Flip them over once to brown the other side. As I cooked them, I seasoned them with salt, pepper and some chives.
Then top with crumbled bacon and cheese. I didn't show the step of cooking the bacon because I used pre-cooked bacon! You could cook the bacon in the skillet before the eggs if you need to cook them, or use the microwave while you're doing everything else. You could also substitute sausage or ham.
After the cheese is melted, slide your eggs back onto the hashbrowns. I then topped them with cherry tomatoes and parsley. Mostly just for color and because I had them in my garden, but it did make them pretty and delicious.
I know some people have an aversion to this, but this is the way I like them! The yolk spills all over the hashbrowns and flavors them up. Yum Yum!
It's easy and something different than the standard pancake breakfast!

Cowboy Cookies

Hailee watched an episode of Dora The Explorer, where they apparently made "cowboy cookies". I didn't see the episode myself, so whether these are anything like what she was referring to, I don't know. However, she asked me for days to make her some "cowboy cookies", so this is what I came up with. Actually, they turned out so good that I'm very glad she asked me to make them! Now I have a new recipe I'm sure to use again and again! I took a standard oatmeal cookie recipe (from America's Test Kitchen) and threw in "cowboyish" things like nuts & sunflower seeds and then topped them with frosting. Oh. My. Gosh. Trust me, these are good. So, here you go.

Cookies
1 1/2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon Nutmeg
16 Tablespoons (2 sticks) unsalted Butter, softened
1 Cup Light Brown Sugar, packed
1 Cup Granulated Sugar
2 Large Eggs
3 Cup Oats
1/2 Cup Walnuts
1/2 Cup Sunflower Seeds, seeded (obviously)
1/2 Cup Raisins (optional-I don't like raisins in my cookies, but if you do, they'd go in here nicely).

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
2. Whisk the flour, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg together in a medium bowl and set aside.
3. Beat the butter and sugars together in a large bowl using an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy.
4. Beat in the eggs until combined.
5. Reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly mix in the flour mixture until combined. Mix in the oats, nuts and seeds until just incorporated.
6. Working with 1/4 cup of dough at a time, roll the dough into balls and lay on two baking sheets spaced about 2 1/2 inches apart.
7. Flatten the cookies slightly using your palm.
8. Bake until the tops of the cookies are lightly golden, but the centers are still soft and puffy, 22 to 25 minutes, rotating and switching the baking sheets halfway through baking.
9. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely before frosting.

Frosting
2 8-oz. pkgs. Cream Cheese, softened
1/2 Cup butter, softened
2 Cups Powdered Sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons Vanilla

1. Mix all ingredients with an electric mixer until combined.
2. Frost cookies.