my Chritmas presents (thanks Jason)

i have been wanting a Bosch for a very long time now (at least 6 years) and have always stopped short of buying one due to my lack of baking and the large price tag.  but this has been a big year for me and the oven.  i have embraced baking muffins, cookies and other snacks as a way to cut back on processed foods.  my increased baking made for an increased mess and Jason was always commenting that there had to be a less messy way to mix.  I took the opportunity to tell him my theories on stand mixers and educate him on our need for a Bosch. and look what Santa brought me:  (Jason would die if i didn't point out that this was not my only present and he merely wrapped it and put it under the tree due to the timing of the purchase)  

 this little number has revolutionized my muffin and cookie skills, and the ease and convenience factors has led me to take up bread baking as well.  i now bake wheat bread a couple times a month, so we've replaced yet another source of processed foods!  hip hip hooray!  don't even get me started on the blender attachment.  needless to say, our smoothie making time has shrunk by half!

a note on my real Christmas gifts as they have not arrived I do not have photos.  Jason presented me with a coupon to upgrade my photography quiver.  I ordered 2 (count 'em 2) new Nikon dSLRs an off camera flash unit, new camera tote, SD cards, jump drives and more.  Britain Earl Photography is off to a great 2013!!!  thank you hubby!

little cutie likes to eat!

this little cutie loves a good meal!  and the muffins we're busy making are great for self-feeding!

muffin time!

lately i've been on a health kick, and a saving money kick.  i'm tired of buying snacks that have no nutritional value, and cost an arm and a leg.  but i still need snacks around the house that are easy to grab on the go.  i turned to muffins. 

 i've tried a bunch of recipes and have some very healthy ones that i love.  but the easiest and most versatile is the one i use the most often.  made with pancake mix:

pre-heat oven to 350

2 1/2 cups of pancake mix, (i use Krusteaz)

1 egg

1 cup of water

1/4 cup of sugar

1 tsp of vanilla

2 tbsp of oil

then 1/2 cup of your choice:

chocolate chips, raspberries, apples + 1/2 tsp cinnamon, carrot, blueberries, peaches, zucchini, nuts, dried cranberries, strawberries, etc...bake for 12-15 min.

for this batch, the kids chose apples and cinnamon.  i chopped the apples really small and made 48 mini muffins. 

we had these for snacks for a couple of days and threw the remaining muffins in the freezer.  then we made a batch of zucchini muffins and the rest of those went in the freezer, now we have a freezer full of many flavors that the kids choose from for snacks!  i am a muffin convert!