Homemade Sloppy Joes (+ a review of ips: egg white (ch)ips!)

Hello, hello, hello!

How is your post-Valentine’s-Day chocolate coma coming along? 😉
I actually didn’t have much chocolate on the 14th (just some scrumptious chocolate-dipped strawberries), but Rob and I were both craving something sweet after dinner last night, so I whipped up some brownies. They are halfway gone…

So let’s just put sweets out of mind for a moment (or a week or two) and switch to a savory topic. Get out your napkins and paper towels because a sloppy recipe is coming your way! Normally I’m content with a good ol’ can of Manwich (for just a buck, how can you go wrong?), but I do love to make as much as I can from scratch when time allows. I truly wish it were possible to make everything in my kitchen homemade (from all my seasonings to condiments to cereals to pasta, etc, etc, etc), but I think I’d have to quite my job and devote my entire life to food prep for that to happen. So for now, a nice balance will have to do.

I don’t know about you, but I find that a sloppy joe is not complete without a layer of crunch between the joe and the bun. Am I right?

Pheasant Nuggets (With Homemade Fryin’ Magic)

Happy 2015, everyone!

I hope the first couple weeks of the new year have been treating you well so far. How are your resolutions coming along?

I resolved to start recycling in 2015, and there is now an impressive little pile of glass jars and bottles in the garage. Alright, that’s really not impressive at all, but I’m working toward it! Today I browsed the interwebs for recycling storage/organization ideas and read my city’s regulations, and my hopes are high. 😀 Rob has been in the building mood lately, so I’ve asked him to build a recycling station or tower of some sort. My other resolutions include reading all the books on my shelf that I’ve been meaning to, getting back into marathon shape, and going deeper with the Lord. Oh and I also resolve to find a job I enjoy and am passionate about. This year is going to kick last year’s bum!

For today’s recipe, I’m sharing a variation of one of my dad’s specialties: pan-fried pheasant. Wild game was the norm around my house growing up; we ate pheasant instead of chicken, deer and elk instead of beef. For some, these are acquired tastes. For others, delicacies. For my family (and any other hunting family), it’s just what’s for dinner.

Pumpkin Küchen

It’s family tradition time!

And, you guys, this is not a recipe you want to skip over. Of all my family tradition recipes, küchen is probably my favorite. My grandma is 100% German, and this is one of her signature desserts. I can’t make it, eat it, or even think about it without being reminded of her. Though she lives on the opposite side of this vast state, I am blessed not only to still have a grandmother, but also to still have the privilege of seeing her every now and then.

Dark Chocolate & Orange Macarons (plus macaron-making tips!)

Hello hello!

This week, friends, I’ve got a shiny new recipe that took many attempts to perfect.
I offered to write a guest post for Laura’s Mess and decided upon French macarons.

As we Northerners enter into the cold and desolation of winter (Well, we’re technically entering into fall, but we likely won’t be graced with its presence for long before winter shows its face!), and Southerners enter into the fresh rejuvenation of spring, I decided on a macaron recipe fitting for all seasons and any hemisphere: Dark Chocolate Orange. The slight piquancy of citrus is especially for those of you in or entering a season of warmth, and the chocolate is for anyone, because is there ever not a time for chocolate?

4 Ingredient Milk & Cereal Bars + a review of Cheerios Protein {& a GIVEAWAY!}

Today is a joyous day here at Milk & Cereal.
Today’s post features one of my most favorite foods: CEREAL!

I’d be lying if I said that I don’t wake up every morning excited for breakfast.

I’m even oftentimes excited for breakfast already when I go to bed at night.

I’d also be lying if I said that cereal isn’t a frequent meal of mine when Rob is out of town.
There’s nothing wrong with that though, right? Right.

Fresh Squeezed Lemonade (with hints of orange & grapefruit)

I’m hooked. Honestly, I don’t know if I’d ever made true, fresh squeezed lemonade before this summer, but now that I’ve started, call me Miley Cyrus because I can’t stop.

I CAN’T STOP.

The obsession all started one day at work while cutting up a big ol’ container of lemons. It’s something I’d done hundreds of times, but I was really feeling the summer fever this particular day. After all the lemons were cut, the tray previously holding them was now holding a generous reserve of fresh lemon juice. Summer fever… lemon juice… What’s that saying? “When life gives you lemons…” MAKE LEMONADE! Well okay. 😀

Cuatro Choco Cookies {& updates}

HELLO!
Were you beginning to worry about me?

I do apologize; I’ve been holding out on you.

It’s been months now since I created this cookie recipe, but the impending busyness of life (a full-time job plus two side businesses, et cetera) has prevented me from sharing it with you. Fortunately, the time has come!

These cookies are for those of you who crave and adore chocolate as much as I do. They’re brimming with FOUR different kinds of chocolate! Is it overkill? No, not at all. I assure you.

With cocoa powder, melted semisweet chocolate, milk chocolate chips, and dark chocolate chips (or white chocolate, if you prefer), these cookies are not for the faint of heart. For those who prefer fruity or salty sweets, these may be a bit of an overload. However, you should at least give them a chance. 😉

Homemade Parmesan & Herb Mini Croutons

Healthy eating is probably one of the most common New Year’s resolutions, right? Well, if you’ve resolved to eat healthier this year, make these croutons. They’re guaranteed to amp up your boring salads! The slight bit of cheesiness and the lovely herb notes are deliciously pleasing. I tell you what, these croutons are so good that I even eat them on their own sometimes as a snack! Plus, they’re way easy to make.

You know what else? They’re the perfect size. Maybe I’m weird, but I find it annoying when croutons are so large that they have to be stabbed with a fork, which then just causes them to crumble. No, these ones are perfectly small and “scoop-able.” Of course, if you happen to like giant croutons, you can go ahead and cut these into giant pieces. 😉

Melt Away Cookies (& Christmas favorites!)

It’s December! Snow has fallen! Christmas is coming!

And with Christmas come lots of unneeded-calorie-wise but temptingly-delicious treats and goodies that fill my belly with joy.

One such Christmas-time treat is the Melt Away cookie. (I think they’re also known by the name “Melting Moments.”) I’ve been making and devouring them since I was a wee child, and you’ll see why once you make them!

Homemade Apple Butter {reduced sugar & perfectly sweet!}

Mmmm, fall is here!!

There are so many reasons I love fall– the crisp & fresh air, the utter beauty in changing leaves, comfy flannel all the time, pumpkin everything, hearty soups, and AMPLE AMOUNTS OF APPLES!! 😀

I grew up with an apple tree in my yard, and we used up those apples in any way we could think of. Our favorites were apple sauce, apple juice, apple pie, apple crisp, and apple leather. I suppose that’s where my deep love of apples began.