Peanut Butter cookies are my absolute favorite!   They become even more delightful when you use my Peanut Butter Cookie Variations.  Any time I take these cookies to a get together, they disappear quickly, so leave some at home for your family.  There will be no left-overs!  Plus, this is a recipe the kids can help with!
Ingredients for Peanut Butter Cookies:

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup creamy or crunchy peanut butter (My preference for flavor is Jif Creamy)

3/4 cup firmly packed pure cane brown sugar

1/4 cup pure cane granulated sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

3 tablespoons pure cane granulated sugar (separate in a small bowl)

Instructions for Peanut Butter Cookies:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  In a medium mixing bowl, beat together butter, peanut butter, brown sugar, and 1/4 cup granulated sugar until creamy.

Add egg, vanilla, and salt; continue beating until light and fluffy.

Add flour and baking soda, beat until thoroughly combined.

Shape dough in to balls (about 1 1/2 inch in diameter).  Roll the balls in bowl of granulated sugar.  Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets.

This is where the fun begins!  At this point you can do the usual fork criss crosses on the top and bake them for 8 to 10 minutes.

…or,  here are some fun variations for your Peanut Butter Cookies:

Peanut Butter Heaven:

(at least that’s what I call them)!  This variation makes my favorite kind of cookie even better.

Needed:

12 ounce bag of Reese Peanut Butter Cups (milk or dark chocolate)

Instead of doing the fork criss crosses, go ahead and put your peanut butter cookies in the oven.

Bake them at 375 degrees F for 8 to 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, open some Reese Cups, one for each cookie you have in the oven.

As soon as you get them out of the oven, press one Reese Cup in to the center of each of your cookies.

Allow to cool on a cooling rack (as long as you can stand it), enjoy!

Peanut Butter Kisses:

Needed: 12 ounce bag of Hershey Kisses

Same as above, only press a Hershey Kiss in to the center of each cookie.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Thumbprints:

Needed: a jar of your favorite jelly or jam

For this variation, don’t roll your peanut butter balls in sugar.  Place balls 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake at 375 degrees F.  Immediately upon removal from the oven, make an imprint with a wooden spoon handle (about the size of your thumb) in the center of each cookie.  Fill the center of each ‘thumbprint’ with 1/4 teaspoon of your favorite kind of jelly, jam, etc. (i.e. strawberry preserves, raspberry jam, grape jelly).  Remove cookies from cookie sheet from cookie sheet, cool on cooling racks.  Enjoy!

Do you have a Peanut Butter Cookie Variation?  Tell me about it!

Marshmallow Bread, a yummy recipe for kids!

As a kid, we used to make Marshmallow Bread in the oven in the winter.  It was a perfect alternative to toasted marshmallows, when we couldn’t have a campfire outside.  This is a recipe for kids that is super simple and tasty!

Ingredients for Marshmallow Bread:

This is what you will need for each piece of Marshmallow Bread you want to  make.

1 piece of your favorite kind of bread (I use whole grain to make this treat a little healthy.)

9 large marshmallows

About a tablespoon of butter

Instructions for Marshmallow Bread:

Adjust your oven rack to the second highest level.  Preheat oven to a lo-broil setting.

Have your kids butter their piece of bread.

Then, place marshmallows on top of the butter in three rows of three.

Place the Marshmallow Bread directly on the top rack of  the oven. Close the oven and turn on the light to watch the marshmallows brown.

As soon as they are browned to perfection (my oven takes about one minute), remove with a pancake turner on to a plate.

Now, take the knife used to butter the bread (and a little butter) and dab it on the top of the marshmallows.  Enjoy!

Have you ever had Marshmallow Bread?  If not, I hope you will try it and tell me what you think!

What unusual snacks does your family enjoy? Tell me about them!

Okay, yes this is probably very fattening, but it’s fried chicken.  Yum!  I’ll give you a greaseless way to fry chicken in another post, I promise.

Ingredients for Fried Chicken:

3-4 pound chicken, cut in pieces for frying

1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

Salt and pepper to taste

Other seasonings (if desired): I have uses poultry seasonings or ‘Old Bay’ in the past

1 cup of shortening or, if you prefer, lard

Instructions for Fried Chicken:

Wash chicken and blot dry with paper towels.

Put flour, salt, pepper, and other desired seasonings in a gallon-size plastic storage bag or large mixing bowl, combine.

Heat shortening in a large skittle over medium heat (425 degrees).

Roll each piece of chicken in the flour/seasoning mixture until completely coated.

Place chicken in skillet, skin side down.

Tilt lid and let fry for about 15 minutes.

Turn and let fry 10 minutes (or until internal temperatures reach 165 degrees F and juices run clear).

Enjoy! Let me know if your family liked this Fried Chicken recipe!

Growing Gardeners!

Gardening is fun and rewarding activity for kids.  It’s a perfect homesteading hobby for the whole family!

My husband and I love gardening; flowers, herbs, vegetables, and more. I personally like vegetable and herb gardening.  It is so rewarding to grow what you eat and eat what you grow. Gardening gives me a real appreciation for where our food comes from.

My kids love to be outside; seeing nature, enjoying the sunshine, smelling the flowers, playing with insects, and digging in the dirt; so gardening is a perfect hobby for all of us share.

Gardening may seem like a boring hobby for kids. There are so many other things to compete with; television, video games, sports, toys, reading books, climbing trees.  It may be tough to keep them interested.  So, how do you get/keep your kids interested in  gardening?

15 Ways to Get/Keep Your Kids Interested in Gardening:

1. Start Them Early
2. Let Them Get Dirty
3. Let Them Help Plan the Garden and Choose What to Plant
4. Let Your Kids Help Prepare the Garden Spot
5. Show Your Kids You Love Gardening
6. Give Your Kids Their Own Tools to Use
7. Grow Gardens all Around
8. Don’t be too Picky
9. Plant Interesting Plants…and Study Them Together
10. Grow Things You Can Eat
11. Add Fun Structure to the Garden
12. Plant a Container Garden Indoors or Outside
13. Give Your Garden a Fun Theme
14. Make Gardening a Tradition
15. Let Your Kids Help You with the Harvest

Follow our homesteading journey… Gardening with Kids, at Mama’s Homestead.com !

My family loves this easy apple recipe.   Apple Walnut Bars are the best when you have apples available, fresh from the orchard in the fall, but they are delicious any time of the year.  I like them while still a little warm…with a little vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce on top.

Ingredients for Apple Walnut Bars:

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup pure cane sugar

1 egg

1 cup unbleached, all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 medium tart apple, peeled and chopped

3/4 cup chopped walnuts

(Of course, I used hickory nuts, because the grow in abundance on our property.)

Instructions for Apple Walnut Bars:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar with a hand mixer.  Add the egg.  In another mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients; flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon.

Gradually add dry ingredients to creamed mixture, beating just until combined.  Fold in apple and walnuts.

Pour into a greased 8-inch square baking pan.  Bake at 350 degrees F for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Cool on a wire rack and enjoy.

Hamming it Up!

My youngest son (now 2 years old) received a”Radio Flyer Soft Rock and Bounce Pony” from his grandparents last Christmas. He loves it; he calls it his “rock heesee”!

When we sit and watch television in the evenings and that is where you will find him, rockin’ on his heesee. It rocks and bounces, has easy to grip handles, and crinkly ears. He loves to rock, bounce, stand, and even ride side-saddle. He looks at us with a huge smile as if anticipating our approval. He’s a real trickster!

Trickster

This is not the rocking horse you had as a child. No, this one is new and improved. It is covered with a soft, removable washable cover. It has rubber “springs,” soft plastic handles, and a durable plastic frame. It is low to the ground, so your toddler can climb on and off on his/ her own and GO!

We have a Radio Flyer Classic Red Wagon and a Radio Flyer Tricycle that we have had since my 16 year old son was about a year old. I have 6 children, they have been passed from child to child and is now being used by my 2-year old. They have all loved being pulled around in the wagon and riding the tricycle.

Radio Flyer products are very high quality, and well-made. They make some of my favorite toys that last a lifetime. There are not many toys made these days you can pass down from child to child and have them survive.

Side Saddle

Radio Flyer Classic Toys:

Radio Flyer is a brand I call a “Tried and True American Toy Company.” It’s been around for a long time and has stood the test of time. The company has been in business since 1917, when a man by the name of Antonio Pasin started by building wooden toy wagons in Chicago.

The company was first named “Liberty Coaster Company” in 1923 then renamed “Radio Steel and Manufacturing” in 1930. The company is most known for its red wagon called the “Radio Flyer.”

Today, the company creates many toys other than the “Radio Flyer.” They mostly stick to the “classics” such as; wagons, cars, rockets, bumper cars, trikes, bikes, scooters, rocking horses, accessories, and more.

No food in the world tastes better than the food you grow in your own garden.

We have planted a vegetable garden every year, for as many years I can remember.  I love having produce, fresh from the garden, to cook with.  Plus, I enjoy having canned, frozen, or dried fruits and vegetables that came from our garden all year long.

We are getting ready to plan this year’s vegetable garden.  As we were looking over last year’s crops, we thought it would be fun to share.

Here are some of the vegetables we planted in last year’s vegetable garden:

Sweet Corn

Tomatoes

Green Beans

Cucumbers

Green Bell Peppers

Cayenne Peppers

Cabbage

Butternut Squash

Summer and Zucchini Squash

Peas-Shelling and Sugar Snap

Leeks

Bunching Onions

Yellow and Red Onions

This appetizer recipe is perfect for the big game!

Every time I make this recipe, it goes really fast, so I always double it.  It is warm and delicious with a little spice.  want less spice, use less jalapeño.

Ingredients for Hot Corn Dip:

1 (16 ounce) bag frozen sweet corn

2 cans (4 ounces each) chopped green chilies, drained

1/2 cup chopped sweet red pepper

1 cup (4 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack Cheese

2 tablespoons chopped jalapeño pepper

1 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup fresh grated Parmesan Cheese

2 tablespoon sliced ripe olives, optional

Tortilla Chips

Instructions for Hot Corn Dip:

On a large mixing bowl, combine the corn, chilies, red pepper, Monterey Jack Cheese, and jalapeños.  Stir in mayonnaise and Parmesan Cheese.

Transfer to an ungreased 2-quart baking dish.  Cover and bake at 350 degrees F for 30 to 40 minutes or until heated through.  Sprinkle with olives, if desired.

Serve with tortilla chips.

Imitation is Priceless!  Some of the best toys for kids are toys they can use for pretending they are all grown up.

Pretend play is so much fun.  My littlest guy loves to imitate his daddy and older brothers. He watches as they shave and tries to do what they do.  It’s so cute.

There are lots of toys available for pretend play;  toy cell phones, toy remote controls, chainsaws, leaf blowers, weed trimmers, mowers, and more.  They can be just like Dad!

We decides to get my son his very own shaving kit.  We found this one sporting the name of one of his favorite television shows, Thomas the Tank (Thomas & Friends Play Shave Set 5pc).

If you like chocolate, you will love this brownie recipe!

These brownies are full of chocolate flavor.  They are a perfect little dessert for school lunches, or for your next carry-in.

This recipe makes about 16 brownies, so I usually double it and put it in a 9 inch x 13 inch baking dish.  This makes thicker brownies.

Double Fudge Brownies Ingredients:

1/2 cup canola oil

1/4 cup baking cocoa

1 cup pure cane sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup chopped hickory nuts or walnuts

1/4 cup milk chocolate chips

1/4 cup dark chocolate chips

Double Fudge Brownies Instructions:

In a small mixing bowl, combine oil, vanilla, and cocoa until smooth; set aside.  In an electric stand mixer, beat sugar and eggs together, until creamy.  Add cocoa mixture.

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour and salt; gradually add to chocolate mixture just until moist. Fold in nuts.

Pour mixture into a greased 8 inch square baking dish; sprinkle chocolate chips on top.  Bake at 325 degrees F for 30 minutes (or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean).

Allow to cool on a wire rack and enjoy!