Just in time for the weekend, we have this delicious and healthy Banana Chocolate Chip Muffin recipe from our sweet recipe contributor Stephanie Spring!



This recipe will be your family's new favorite meal to rise and shine to on the weekends! It is the perfect complement to your morning cup of joe.





Check out the full recipe here.

Raspberry Brownie Triffles.

How perfect are these Raspberry Brownie Triffles our friend Stephanie whipped up for Valentine's Day?! I imagine sitting down with my love, snuggling on the couch, netflix & these sweet treats! That is my kind of Valentine's date! 

How perfect do these treats pair with our stamped spoons?! Makes the dessert just a little more special when you have a custom spoon to eat it with!

Black Bean, Corn & Avocado Salsa

This black bean, corn & avocado salsa is easy and a perfect summer side dish for your next fiesta.

When it comes to summer dishes, I want something that's refreshing, easy and delicious. This salsa is

so simple and everyone loves it!

This refreshing salsa is great served with tortilla chips and it is an amazing topper for tacos!  We had leftovers of this after a party and we used it the next day for our tacos & it is now a family favorite!

This is one of my favorite things to easily throw together for a party, impromptu get together or dinner! Everyone loves it and it is easy, healthy & super refreshing!

Black Bean, Corn & Avocado Salad

by Jessica Numbers June-13-2016

This refreshing salsa is the perfect side for your next fiesta! Also great as a topper for Tacos!

Ingredients

• 1 Can Corn
• 1 can Black Beans
• 2-3 Tomatoes
• 1 Avocado
• 1/2 Lime
• 2 TBSP Fresh cilantro
• 1/4 Onion

Instructions

Drain corn, drain & rinse black beans and pour into bowl. Slice up avocado, tomato and onion & add to bowl. Chop cilantro & add to bowl. Squeeze 1/2 lime juice into mixture and stir ingredients together. Serve with tortilla chips or use as a topping for tacos.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: Total time: 10 mins Yield: 10 servings

Feta & Basil Watermelon Salad Recipe

This watermelon Feta salad is topped with fresh blueberries & basil and is the perfect Summer salad for parties & get togethers.

Watermelon is one of my favorite summertime treats! I love finding ways to incorporate it into new summer recipes! The combination of the salty feta and sweet watermelon is so refreshing! Trust me, you must give it a try, it's sure to become a summertime favorite!

Need something a little more filling? Try adding some fresh baby spinach & arugula as a base & top with the watermelon salad. Add in some grilled chicken for a delicious, healthy lunch!

Tip: The creamy feta cheese cubes are the secret to this refreshing salad! (I used Ezra's Dairy Feta Cheese Cubes.)

print recipe

Creamy Feta & Basil Watermelon Salad

by Jessica Numbers May-29-2016

This watermelon Feta salad is topped with fresh blueberries & basil and is the perfect Summer salad for parties & get togethers.

Ingredients

• 3 cups Cubed Watermelon
• 1/2 cup Creamy Feta Cheese Cubes
• 1/2 Cup Blueberries
• 2 TBS chopped Fresh Basil

Instructions

Cut watermelon into cubes and place in serving bowl. Add blueberries, cheese and basil and lightly toss. For best results, serve immediately.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: Total time: 10 mins Yield: 5 servings

Yummy Mini Fruit Tarts.

When Spring and Summer finally arrive, I look for any way to incorporate fresh fruit into my recipes! These mini fruit tarts were easy, delicious & a big hit at my last get together!

WHAT YOU NEED:

• Tube of Sugar Cookie Dough
• 8 oz Cream Cheese
• 1/2 cup Sugar
• 1 tsp Vanilla 
• Lemon
• Fresh Berries of your choice
• Mini Muffin Pan

DIRECTIONS:

DOUGH:

• Grease your mini muffin pan with coconut oil.
• Roll sugar cookie dough into 1/2" balls and place them in the muffin tin. 
• Use your thumb to press the dough down to form the cup like tart.
• Follow directions on the tube & bake accordingly.

FILLING:

• In a mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until fluffy. Squeeze a bit of lemon into the filling & beat until mixed.
• Put the filling in a sandwich bag & cut the tip off one corner to use as an icing bag to fill the tarts.

When the tarts are cooled, squeeze the cream cheese filling into each tart & top with the fresh berries of your choice! 

Enjoy! My next mission is to create a guilt free, healthier alternative to these yummy mini fruit tarts! 

Homemade Potato Soup

Halloween Monster Cookies.

We don't really go all out for Halloween here, I don't decorate (except for fall decor) and we haven't even got the kids costumes this year...I am crossing my fingers we can slip old ones by them without them noticing. Wish me luck there. But I do like making at least one fun seasonal project with them. 

I was looking for something fun to make for my son's Kindergarten class for their Halloween party & I stumbled upon these monster cookies.  I knew right away the kids would love them!  They were surprisingly easy to make & the kids were so happy that they got to help put the eyes on! 

INGREDIENTS 

1 Box White Cake Mix

1/2 Cup Butter Softened

1/2 tsp Vanilla

8 oz Cream Cheese Softened

1 egg

Food coloring

Powdered Sugar

Candy Eyes

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Use a mixer to mix your softened butter, vanilla, egg and softened cream cheese until fluffy. 
2. Add in cake mix and mix until combined. 
3. Separate dough into 2 bowls (so you can make 2 colors of cookies)
4. Add food coloring and mix to desired color. 
5. Chill dough for 30-40  minutes.
6. Roll dough into balls and then roll in a bowl of powdered sugar to coat.
7. Drop balls onto cookie sheet lined with parchment paper & press them down slightly.
8. Bake at 350 for 12 minutes. While the cookies are still warm push eye balls into place!

Lofton was so excited to take these to school to share with his friends! I can't help but hope that he remembers these days making cookies with Mom.  There are so many ordinary days I remember doing ordinary things with my Mom & I wish more than anything that I could share an ordinary day with her again.

Sometimes I stress about the huge mess being made, or worry about all the other things I should be doing.  But I need to take more time to cherish these things with my kids, messes or not. We really had a great time making these monster cookies together & I'm sure they will become a Halloween Tradition here at the Numbers Household!

Linking up with Link Party Palooza.

12 Days of Christmas: Christmas Side Dish Recipe

Hi there, I'm Gina. Full name Regina. Call me either - I don't mind.

My blog is a little about what inspires me, a little about the handmade community/my business, and a lot about my life.

I am here today sharing a Christmas side dish recipe! Hope you enjoy!

For most of my life I thought I hated brussels sprouts.  I used to cry when my mom would put them on my dinner plate.  {Yes, I am a tiny bit dramatic ;).}

About a year ago, I tried roasted brussels sprouts topped with a little balsamic vinegar glaze and fell in love.  I have no idea why I was hating on these little yummy bits of green goodness for so many years!  

I cannot get enough roasted brussels sprouts and today I am going to show you a super simple jazzed up recipe that will make the perfect side dish or appetizer at your next holiday meal.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Balsamic Glaze and Goat Cheese

-1 pound of brussels sprouts, cut in half or quarters if the sprouts are large

-1 tablespoon of olive oil

-salt and pepper

-1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

-2 tablespoons honey

-goat cheese {optional - if you are not a goat cheese fan, try parmesan cheese}

1. Set the oven to 375 degrees and cut the brussels sprouts in half or in quarters if they are large pieces.

2. Place all the brussels sprouts in a glass baking dish and drizzle with the olive oil.  Toss to coat the pieces and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper.  Roast the brussels sprouts in the oven for about 45 minutes.  They are done when the pieces are fork tender and have nice crisp brown edges.

3. About 3 minutes before the brussels are done cooking, put the balsamic vinegar and honey in a small sauce pan.  Heat over medium-high heat and stir all together.  One the mixture comes to a boil reduce the heat to low and allow to cook for a minute so the mixture can reduce down to a nice syrupy sauce.

4. Remove the brussels sprouts from the oven, put on a serving platter and drizzle with the balsamic and honey sauce.

These sprouts are great as is, but if you want to make them extra special, top with crumbled goat cheese or thin slices of fresh parmesan.

If you think you are a brussels sprouts hater, try this recipe and get back to me :).

Enjoy!

Find more recipe, diy, and life in general posts on my blog, {Acute Designs}.  Happy Holidays! xo, Gina

Be sure to check out more, including my Winter Style, DIY mason jar snow globe & Marshmallow & Cranberry Garland!

Mini Maple Pecan Pies- Thanksgiving Recipe

Holy Fall y'all!!

It's finally time to bust out my boots and scarves and stand in line for a good 30 minutes for that pumpkin spiced latte I've been craving since last year (yes I know I said I hate coffee, but c'mon...exceptions must made).  And what better way to kick off this gorgeous season than with some pecan pie??

Little guilt-free pecan pies I should note.

They're quick, effortless and at only 42 calories per serving, I promise your waistline will thank you!     

I absolutely love these mini pies for the pure fact that they make great party treats and cute desserts!  If you're anything like me, when you go to parties, you probably stick to appetizers and desserts that are bite-sized and simple to eat.  Well lucky for you, these fall nicely into that category and would look amazing on any Thanksgiving table!

Hope you enjoy them!

______________________________

Servings: 15

Serving Size: 1 mini pecan pie

Calories: 42

Fat: 3 g

Carbs: 5.3 g

Fiber: 1.4 g

Protein: 2 g

Old Points: 0.8 pts

Points+: 1 pt

______________________________

Here are your ingredients:

Recipe adapted from Dashing Dish

1/4 cup egg beaters (or 1 egg)

1/4 cup sugar free maple syrup (or agave nectar)

1/4 cup Stevia baking blend

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1 box mini fillo shells (15 shells)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Place fillo shells on prepared baking sheet and fill evenly with chopped pecans.  In a small bowl, whisk together egg beaters, maple syrup and Stevia and pour over tarts, filling just to the top.  Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until golden and enjoy! 

Click here for a printable version of this recipe

Hi! I'm Kelly! 

"I'm a 20-something foodie with a true passion for cooking and a love for photography.  My blog "Eat Yourself Skinny" started because I wanted to show that eating right and maintaining a healthy lifestyle could actually be fun!  I love to put a spin on classic favorites by substituting calorie-loaded ingredients with healthier alternatives that still taste delicious.   

I'm super excited to be a recipe contributor for Jessica N' Designs!"