Applesauce is delicious

Seriously. I don't care how old you are. It is such a comfort food. And it is SO simple. And Sienna loves it.  I made this recipe in a single serving so that it can be made quick for baby, but its also great doubled, tripled, quadroupled and comes out equally lovely when frozen.

It all starts with a fresh apple & a dash of cinnamon.

Ingredients:

1 large organic apple - halved & cored (DO NOT PEEL)

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon (or more - to taste)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and place oven rack in center of oven. 
2. Place halved/cored apple on baking sheet. (for the apple I used Braeburn, I find they are very naturally sweet and bake really well, but use whichever apples you have at your disposal. Keep in mind that mixing types of apples makes the best juice so it also makes the best sauce :)
3. Once oven is at correct temperature place baking sheet in the oven.
4. Bake apple until tender when pierced with a fork - about 25 min.
5. Remove apple from sheet and place in a bowl, add cinnamon and blend with immersion blender until proper texture.
6. Alternatively: place ingredients in blender or food processor - I just LOVE using the immersion blender because it is so easy to get the chunks out. 
7. Enjoy. (refrigerate for up to 3 days & freeze up to 3 months)

You can also mix this recipe with butternut squash puree.

--Recipe to follow later this week :) 

it is currently 93 degrees outside

And YES its October. That's what happens when you live in Southern California. Thanks to Santa Ana winds for providing us with hot, dry weather. (Praying for safety against fire storms!!) I'm wearing shorts and a tank top.. no scarves for this part of the country today. Too bad because I just made a really great scarf out of a t-shirt! (DIY tutorial to follow??)


So SiennaJane & I decided to play outside yesterday.....for 10 minutes while I ate my lunch... and then we went inside after she fell OFF her playset straight onto her face. Praise Jesus this kid only has her baby teeth so far..

and for lunch. I ate leftovers. 

But it was mouthwateringly delicious & I ate it in 3 seconds flat after I took these pictures.

Chicken Caprese Sandwich on Ciabatta with a Spring Salad

This is something I love to eat when I don't feel like doing a lot of dishes or cooking for a long time, but I still want to eat something fresh and tasty. It works great if you have left over chicken from dinner. Usually I hate eating left over chicken - it gets dried out in the fridge. bleh. But I hate letting it go to waste... That being said, is also perfectly fine if you buy a precooked chicken at the grocery store and use it that day or even cook up a breast quickly for yourself. It is also very simple to double, triple, quadruple this recipe.

Serves: 1
Time: 8 min, max.

Ingredients:
Ciabatta bread
EVOO
Pesto
Fresh basil
Cooked chicken
Fresh slices of mozzarella
Sliced tomato(es) - any type will do
Freshly cracked pepper


Directions:
Put your oven on broil - high. Cut your roll in half. Brush each side with a little olive oil. Place them cut side up on a baking sheet and place in oven, just until slightly crunchy, be careful to watch them closely because they WILL burn (RIP garlic bread). Remove from oven and pile the ingredients on! Place the pesto on both the top and bottom pieces.

On the bottom: place the pieces of chicken over the pesto. On the top place sliced tomatoes (I used cherry because I had ripe ones on hand) then place slices of mozzarella. Both over the pesto. Crack some pepper on both top and bottom and then put back in the oven just until cheese has melted. Now add the fresh basil and join the two sides together for a healthy, easy, and delicious lunch!

For the salad, I just tossed some tomatoes and chopped onions into spring mix and drizzled a little balsamic on it.

Anddddd here is something to ponder! I searched "garden" in biblegateway and this is what I found, a lovely picture painted of the kingdom of God by Jesus himself. May we be like the birds that perch in branches of the mustard tree!

" ¹⁸ Then Jesus asked, “What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it to? ¹⁹ It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds perched in its branches.”

 ²⁰ Again he asked, “What shall I compare the kingdom of God to? ²¹ It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds of flour until it worked all through the dough.”  "

Enjoy your day! 

The BEST banana muffins you'll ever eat!

1. My 30 day fast from the internet turned into a lot of days fast from my blog.

2. Here is a recipe for something you'll love. Though they aren't for baby and they are very sweet. A treat for mama!!

These are seriously so delicious you're going to bake them til you get sick of em. I LOVE THEM. so I try not to make them too often.

This recipe is adapted from Ina Garten. :)

Ingredients

• 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 pound unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 2 extra-large eggs
• 3/4 cup whole milk
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup mashed ripe bananas (2 bananas)
• 1 cup medium-diced ripe bananas (1 banana)
• 1 cup small-diced walnuts
• 1 cup granola
• 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
• Dried banana chips

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Line 24 muffin cups with paper liners. Sift (or don't sift.... I never do & they turn out perfectly fine...) the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the melted butter. Blend. 

Combine the eggs, milk, vanilla, and mashed bananas in a small bowl (I usually just lightly beat the eggs, and then mash the bananas into them and add the milk and vanilla - to minimize dishes) and add them to the flour-and-butter mixture. Scrape the bowl and blend well. Don't overmix.

Fold the diced bananas, walnuts, granola, and coconut into the batter. Spoon the batter into the paper liners, filling each 1 almost to to the top... don't overfill these or they will get stuck to the pan and also look ugly haha. Top each muffin with a few sweetened banana chips. Pop those babies in the over for 25-30 min, or until the tops are brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Enjoy!

Notes: For the granola I use a blend called "rainforest granola" that I get out of the bins from my natural foods grocer. It has all sorts of stuff in it. Like Brazil nuts for example! SO DELICIOUS.

My suggestion is to make these for a crowd, they just don't keep well. unfortunately..