Auntie Anne’s At Home Baking Kit Review (Featuring Monkey Bread)

I was very excited when I recieved an Auntie Anne’s At Home Baking Kit in the mail.  I’m sure many of you have a had a freshley baked pretzel from Auntie Anne’s before.  If not, check your local mall, or look for one the next time you’re at the airport.  And even if you don’t have an Auntie Anne’s in your area, you’re in luck! Just in time for holiday baking, you can make your own pretzels (and other great stuff) using these Baking Kits from Auntie Anne’s.

I found some great recipes to make using this kit, but since it’s so close to Christmas I decided to try out the Monkey Bread.  I know a lot of people who have a big family breakfast or brunch on Christmas morning instead of the traditional dinner, and I think Monkey Bread would be perfect to serve for those!

The kit comes with everything you need to make pretzels and almost everything you’ll need to make this yummy Monkey Bread.  The instructions are very easy to understand, and unlike a lot of breads and things that you make, involving dough and yeast, it’s not a long drawn out process.  In fact, you could even turn this into a fun activity with the kids.
In my excitement, I forgot to take pictures of the entire process.  I only remembered as I was getting ready to put the bread in the oven! Instead I’ll tell you just how easy the process is.  In the kit you recieve a yeast packet, which you dissolve in some water.  And then you add the dough mix.  You mix it with a spatula until it forms a dough ball, and then you knead it for a few minutes.

After letting the dough rise for half an hour, you pull off little pieces of dough, roll it into balls, and dip them in some melted butter, followed by a mixture of cinnamon and sugar.  Then throwsthe balls into a greased bundt pan.  Bake it for 30-35 minutes and then your done! Very Easy!
I also made a little icing for my bread, using 2 oz. of cream cheese, 2 tablespoons of milk, and 1/2 cup of powdered sugar.  This made it extra delicious.  But it would be great without icing too!

As much as I loved the monkey bread, I knew the real trial would come when my husband tried it.  If he doesn’t like something, chances are I won’t be making it too often!  Luckily for me, even though he doesn’t like pretzels, he does love cinnamon rolls, so I was hopeful that he would really enjoy this.  And I was right! He loved it!  Not only did he enjoy it, but since he’d never seen monkey bread before, he was really impressed by the way the dough balls form a bundt cake. He liked it so much that he made me fill up a container so he could share some with his buddies at work.  They’d never had monkey bread either, and they all gave it their seal of approval!

Buy it!  You can Purchase you At Home Baking Kit at your local Auntie Anne’s or at these retailers.

Connect! Check out Auntie Anne’s On Facebook or follow Auntie Anne’s on Twitter

I’m sharing this post for this week’s linky parties.

Don’t forget to come by here next Thursday for my Christmas Recipe party!
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Disclosure:  I received a free At Home Baking Kit to try for this review.  The opinions expresses here are my own.

Orange Dream Pie

With Thanksgiving and Christmas I’m sharing one of our favorite holiday recipes.  My husband’s not really in to pies, but he loves—LOVES this one!  Anytime we have to bring a dish to any type of get together, this is what he requests. (And lucky for me this is one of the easiest recipes I have!)  If you like Dreamsicles in the summer time, you’ll love this pie!

Don’t forget I’m hosting Sweet Thursday this week.  Stop by and link up your holiday and family favorite recipes!

Recipe for Orange Dream Pie:

Ingredients:
1 graham cracker crust
2/3 cup boiling water
1 pkg. (3 oz.) orange gelatin
1 package (8 oz) Cream Cheese
1 tub (8 oz) Whipped Topping

Directions:  Heat water to boiling. Pour into a bowl.  Add gelatin mix. Stir 2 minutes until completely dissolved. Cool for 5 minutes.   Pour into blender. (You must use a blender.  A mixer will cause mixture to splatter.) Place softened cream cheese in blender, and blend well.  Pour into large bowl.  Slowly add whipped topping. Stir together well. Pour into pie crust.  Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Tip:  This is great with other flavors as well!  Below is a pic of the pie I made using strawberry gelatin.  In the future I’m going to try lemon and lime too, and I think cherry would also be a good choice!

I’m linking up this week at the Love the Pie Party  at Tidy Mom and these linky parties.

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Applelicious Apple Dishes

 

(Photo Credit – Paula Deen)

 

Among my collection of “Recipes to Make” is this really yummy Apple Cake.  I had planned on making it this week, but then my husband practically begged….. err– requested his favorite yellow cake with chocolate icing. (If you read my blog enough, you may notice that this is a recurring theme at our house.)
So for this week, I decided to put together a collection of Apple Recipes for you instead.  Enjoy!
Here’s an oh-so-easy recipe for Apple Pinwheels from Taste of Home.

 

In case you didn’t see the Caramel Apple Cake at Friday Favorites the other day, here’s another one I found over at A Whisk and a Prayer.
Lots of great flavors in this Hot Apple Dip from Kraft.  Wouldn’t this be perfect for your next party?  Or ya know….just a night at home?

 

Usually I head over to Hoosier Homemade to see her latest cupcake masterpieces, but a couple of weeks ago I was really intrigued by these Caramel Apple S’mores.
I just love breakfast foods! This yummy looking Apple-Cheddar Strata was over Pillsbury.
And last but certainly not least, no recipe round-up can possibly be complete without a cookie recipe!  These scrumptious Apple Raisin Cookies were featured over at Martha Stewart.
I’m linking up this week to my usual parties, plus over Taste and Tell for the Celebrating Autumn recipe party on Tuesday.

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Sweet Thursday: The Fruity Edition

sweet Thursday

It’s time once again for my monthly dessert event.  This month our theme was Fruity Desserts!  I invite you all to join the party by linking up your fruity treats below.  Also, while you’re here be sure to go by and visit the blogs of this month’s featured desserts!
Next Month’s Event:  The theme for the next event will be Cookies!  To have your cookies featured, simply send me an email with a link to your post.  Please put Sweet Thursday or Cookie Event in the subject so I can easily identify your mail.  Also, attach your photo if you have a particular one you’d like me to use. (Otherwise, I can grab one from your site.)  Deadline to email submissions in is Sept 28.  The event will be posted on Wednesday night, Sept 29 at which time you can come by and link up your cookies if you wish to participate that way.  I look forward to seeing all your goodies!
Now let’s check out this month’s goodies!
Pavlova from My Sweet and Savory
Healthy Eton Mess from 21st Century Housewife

Zesty Lemon Blueberry Cake from Singing with Birds

Cherry Limeades from Eating Simply
Coffee Cake with Raspberry Jam from Nina
Almond Ricotta Pudding from Chaya’s Comfy Cook Blog
Watermelon Lemonade from Lisa’s Recipes Cards
Apricot Jam Filled Muffins from Nina

Strawberry Yogurt Smoothie from Simply Sweet Home
Berry Pina Colada Cake from Simply Sweet Home
Got a fruity treat to share? Link it up below!
-Jerri

Berry Pina Colada Cake

I don’t know about you, but around here it is still very much the summer season, despite school being back in session, high school football starting this week, and so forth. I laughed today when the weather guy on the radio said, “Much cooler and less humid today. High of 94.” (I know we all long for the days when it’s only 94 degrees outside!)  As you can imagine, a cool treat would really hit the spot about now!

 

I discovered this recipe back in July. Each year my hubby’s family celebrates the 4th of July by having a family reunion, complete with seafood gumbo, fried chicken, potato salad, and of course—dessert!  Today I’m sharing one of the yummies that was served at this year’s event!
Don’t forget to come by here on Thursday and share a fruity dessert with us for Sweet Thursday!

Recipe for Berry Pina Colada Cake:


Ingredients
1 yellow cake mix
3 eggs
1/3 cup oil
1 to 1 1/3 cups water (depending on brand you’re using)
1 16 oz. can pineapple juice
1 8 oz. tub whipped topping
1 bag flaked (or frozen) coconut
1 package strawberries, fresh or frozen
1 package blueberries, fresh or frozen

Directions: Mix together cake mix, oil, water, and eggs.  Bake as directed on box. Let cake cool completely. Use a utensil to poke holes in cake. (A wooden spoon, skewer or other round utensil works best.) Then pour your pineapple juice over the entire cake.  Next spread your whipped topping over the cake, and sprinkle your coconut over the top.  Finally arrange your strawberries and blueberries on top of the cake as desire.  Let chill in the fridge. Serve cold.

I’m linking up with some fabulous ladies at these linky parties!

-Jerri

Friday Favorites – Week 22

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Happy Friday everyone! Friday Favorites will be a little different this week.  I’ve been incredibly busy the last couple of weeks, cleaning out our outbuilding (& getting ready for a yardsale).  And then this week, I’ve also been helping my dad clean up at his house, because he’s getting ready to sell it and move to a smaller place.  So with all this going on, I did not get a chance to visit all your posts. (I only managed to get around to about half of them, but I will try to catch up this next week!) 
Anyway, since I didn’t get around to everyone, and since I worked 10 hours today and only just got home a couple of hours ago, I decided to share some some things that I found the other day when I was looking for recipes for my ice cream social post.  I’ve discovered that Betty Crocker has a ton of great snack ideas for kids.  And with summer here, and the new school year just around the corner, I had bookmarked a few things to share here for later. But since I didn’t get around to all the Friday Favorites stuff, I’ve decided that later is going to be now!  So I hope you enjoy these fun (& easy!) snack ideas for kids!

I look forward to seeing all you posts this week.  Please link up with me below!
-Jerri

Sweet Thursday: Summer Edition

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Welcome to the Summer edition of Sweet Thursday! For those of you that are new here, Sweet Thursday is my monthly dessert carnival.  Readers are invited to submit their desserts to be featured here each month, and readers are also invited to link up their desserts via the linky tool below.  So sit back, enjoy this month’s featured treats, and link up one (or two or three) yourself!
Next Month’s Event:  The  Sweet Thursday theme for August is going to be Fruity Desserts.  This could be anything from Pound Cake served with strawberries, to a Lemon Meringue Pie, to blueberry muffins; just as long as it is somehow related to a fruit.  If you’d like to be featured in my post, please email your submission to me by August 24.  The linky event will start on Wednesday night, August 25. Hope to see you and your Fruity Treats there!
While you’re here please take a moment to go by and say hello to our contributors! Enjoy the party!
Sundae Bubble Crown & Cream Puffs from a little bit of everything
Cookies & Salsa from From Mess Hall to Bistro
Furnkies (Peanut Butter Bars) from Sugar Bee Craft Edition

Snickerdoodle Bundt Cake from My Sweet & Savory

Lemon Blueberry Polenta Cake from Abundance on a Dime
Chocolate Brownie Waffles from a little bit of everything
Caramel Peanut Topped Brownie Cake from Comfy Cook Blog

French Vanilla Mousse from Simply Sweet Home
I can’t wait to see all the Sweet things you’re making this summer! Link up below.
-Jerri

French Vanilla Mousse

French Vanilla Mousse
With the theme of this week’s Sweet Thursday event being summer desserts, I decided to make something cool and creamy. This recipe was originally for chocolate mousse, but I decided to try it in vanilla first, because I just love vanilla during the summer time. It was also my idea to add Nila wafers as a garnish, and in my opinion they were a perfect choice!  This mousse was very yummy, very fluffy, and VERY sweet!
I think this would definitely be good using a number of flavors. (Chocolate is definitely at the top of my list to try next!)  And I also think this would be a great recipe to add bananas to, for a fluffy banana pudding, or you may even consider adding other fruits like strawberry (perhaps layered together with pound cake for a lovely trifle….yum!)
So anyway, in case you can’t tell, I definitely would recommend this recipe to you, not just because it was so delicious, but also because there’s so much you can do with it!
French Vanilla Mousse Prep
Recipe for French Vanilla Mousse
Ingredients:
1 (14 oz.) can Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 cup cold water
1 (4-serving size) package French vanilla instant pudding mix
1 (8 oz.) container frozen light whipped topping, thawed
Nila Wafers (or other cookies to garnish with)
Directions: Whisk sweetened condensed milk and water in large bowl. Add pudding mix. Whisk 2 minutes or until well blended. Chill 5 minutes.  Fold in whipped topping. Spoon into serving dishes. Chill. Garnish as desired. (I layered with Nila wafers.)
Vanilla Mousse
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It’s An Ice Cream Social!

Don’t you just love the blogosphere? One minute you’re at a recipe party, and the next minute your at a craft party! And this weekend we can all go to an Ice Cream Social over at Kitchen Bouquet! With my husband on a no-dessert diet, and me busy with projects in the house this week, I didn’t get a chance to make anything, so I’ll be highlighting a few things that I found on some of my favorite sites instead!  Hope you enjoy!
Also, don’t forget we’ll be having Sweet Thursday here next week! Email your desserts to me by Tuesday if you’d like to be featured, or link up here on Thursday! Have a great weekend!

Coconut Ice Cream from Taste of Home
Easy Celebration Ice Cream Cake from Kraft
Berry Chocolae Ice Cream Loaf from Eagle Brand
S’mores Ice Cream Pie from Hershey’s
French Silk Ice Cream Roll from Betty Crocker
-Jerri

Sweet Thursday: Cake & Pie Edition


sweet Thursday

Welcome to the Sweet Thursday Cake & Pie Party! It seems like we just had the Cupcake Party a few days ago, but the calendar says it’s Pie & Cake Day, so let’s go!
Join The Party: If you have a pie or cake recipe you’d like to share with us, I invite you to link it up below. Old and new posts are welcome!
Next Month’s Party:  July’s theme is going to be Summer Desserts, so it’s pretty much unlimited.  If you’d like to have a dessert featured at the event, please email your link  to me by Tuesday, July 20. The party post and linky will go up on Wednesday night, July 21.  
As always we have a lovely selection of yummies for you to feast your eyes upon. Thanks to everyone who sent in their items to be featured his month. It’s not a party without you!

Father’s Day Shirt/Tie Cake from Tiepedia

Perfect Chocolate Cake with Whip Cream Filling from a little bit of everything
White Chocolate Blueberry Cheesecake from Holy Cannoli Recipes
Shirt & Tie Cake from Tiepedia
Chocolate Fudge Cake from a little bit of everything

Chocolate Pie from Prior
Colorful Fondant from Craft Envy
Dressy Chocolate Cake from My Sweet and Savory 
  
Stars and Stripes Cake from Singing with Birds
Mario Cake from Craft Envy
Apple Blueberry Nut Cake fro Comfy Cook

Sour Cream Pound Cake from Simply Sweet Home

Party time! If you have pie or cake you’d like to share with us, link it up below! Please link up the URL to your actual post, so it will be easy for us to find your post.

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I’m posting a link to this post on the following sites:
Tempt My Tummy Tuesday is hosted by Blessed With Grace.
Delicious Dishes is hosted by It’s a Blog Party
Tuesday Tastes is hosted by Crazy Jayz Place
Homemaker Mondays is hosted by 11th Heaven’s Homemade Haven.
Tasty Tuesday is hosted by Balancing Beauty & Bedlam.
Works for Me Wednesday is hosted by We Are THAT Family
Tip Me Tuesday is hosted by Tip Junkie
Sharing Ideas Wednesday is hosted by The Trendy Treehouse
Friday Food is hosted by Mom Trends
Friday Foodie is hosted by Designs by Gollum
Finer Things Friday is hosted by Amy’s Finer Things
I’m Lovin It Fridays is hosted by Tidy Mom

-Jerri