Lovin' From the Oven

M&M Oreo Cookie Bars

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Did I ever tell you guys that we found a new place? We’re officially moving next month! We’re still staying in Los Angeles, just a different city over. I can’t wait! The only downside is well, packing and actually moving. We’re planning to do the move by ourselves this time, without a moving company (like our last move from SF -> LA). Reason is: my DH’s work paid for our move last time and we’re too poor to do it again. Hah.

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I contacted a couple of moving places just to get a quote to see how much it would cost. I had no idea that movers are so expensive! The best rate was about $150/per person/per hour, and you have to hire at least three people minimum. That’s $450/hour times probably 4 hours of work? That’s $1800! Without the tip! No thanks, renting a Uhaul and asking friends/family for help it is.

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Thank goodness we have such wonderful friends and family! There’s no way we could do it without them. I can’t wait until we can afford to buy our own place and not worry about moving around anymore. Too bad that day is in the distant future. For now, I’m crossing my fingers that this new place we’re moving to works out and we can stay there for a couple of years.

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It seems that every time we move, we acquire more stuff, making each move more strenuous than the last. It’s all part of growing up. First you buy a couch, then a dining table set, and matching bedroom furniture. That’s when you know you’ve really grown up. You actually have furniture for each room! We’re halfway there.

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These bars from Averie Cooks are every kid’s dream. They’re full of candy and sugar, so consider yourself warned. For me, I would have liked them to have more dough to cookie/candy ratio. If you like sweet desserts, then make the recipe as is. For something a little lighter, I’d say to cut down on the M&M’s and Oreos a bit.

Also, I just hopped over to Averie’s post for this recipe and she made these bars when she was emptying out the pantry when moving! What a coincidence that I just talked about the same thing. I now dub these the “moving out bars.”

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M&M Oreo Cookie Bars

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), melted
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 18 Oreo Cookies, coarsely chopped
  • about 1/2 cup dark chocolate M&M's

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8x8 pan with foil.
  2. Mix together the melted butter, egg, brown sugar, and vanilla.
  3. Add the flour until just combined. Gently stir in the Oreos.
  4. Evenly spread the batter into the prepared pan. Lightly press the M&M's on the top.
  5. Bake for about 20 to 22 minutes.
https://lovintheoven.com/mm-oreo-cookie-bars/

Apple Fritter Bread

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Every once in a blue moon, I’ll make a recipe that completely blows my socks off. This was one of those times! Can’t you tell just by looking at the first photo?

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I’m so glad that spring break is over. Working flights during that time means complete chaos with all of the kids traveling. I worked a flight to Washington D.C. two weeks ago that had 100 middle school kids and not nearly enough chaperones. We ran out of Sprite, Coke, Gingerale, Coke Zero, Sprite Zero, all  of our juices, and Seltzer. I’ve NEVER run out of soda on any flight until now! Those kids made us work the entire flight. I was exhausted.

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Middle school kids are at the awkward stage in their lives where everyone’s trying to fit in, but no one knows what they’re supposed to do. All the boys are trying to get the girls’ attentions while the girls are trying to get in the “coolest” group. I already told my DH that whenever we have kids, they’re all his the moment they hit their tween/teenager stage. That’s by far the hardest age to deal with!

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I did receive the strangest compliment while working that flight, though. One of the girls reached out to me after I gave her her apple juice and said, “This is going to sound really weird, but I think you have beautiful hands! You should be a hand model or something!”

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So that was sweet. Pretty much the only sweet thing to happen during that 5 1/2 hour flight.

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Let’s talk about this apple fritter bread, shall we? The apple layer in the middle gives just the right amount of apple without being overboard. The bread alone would have even been great. It’s a great base for anything you feel like experimenting with. Don’t have apples on hand? Try peaches or pear!

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The top is what did me in. It does taste like a fritter without any frying involved. That’s a magical thing, if you ask me. Recipe from Rumbly Tumbly.

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Apple Fritter Bread

Ingredients

  • 1/3 cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 2/3 cup white sugar
  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 cup milk (I used almond milk)
  • 1 apple, peeled and chopped, mixed with 1 T granulated sugar and 1/2 tsp cinnamon
    • For the glaze:
  • 1 cup of powdered sugar + 1-3 tablespoons of milk or cream, mixed together to a drizzling consistency

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9×5-inch loaf pan.
  2. Mix brown sugar and cinnamon together in a bowl. Set aside.
  3. Cream together the white sugar and butter. Add in the eggs and vanilla extract.
  4. Gradually stir in the flour and baking powder. Mix milk into batter until smooth.
  5. Pour half the batter into the prepared loaf pan; add half the apples and half the brown sugar mixture.
  6. Pour the remaining batter over apple layer; top with remaining apples and brown sugar mixture.
  7. Swirl brown sugar mixture through apples using a knife.
  8. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.
  9. Let cool for 15 minutes before drizzling with glaze.
https://lovintheoven.com/apple-fritter-bread/

Key Lime Cookies

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With spring in the air, there’s nothing quite like citrus desserts in your mouth. Lemon meringue pie, lemon bars, orange smoothies, and key lime pie! This time, I’ve taken key lime cake mix from Pillsbury and turned it into frosted key lime cookies. Since they were still a little tart for me, I slathered some vanilla marshmallow frosting on top.

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Didn’t these cookies turn out beautiful? Best part about it is that you only need four ingredients (and that’s including the frosting)! I could see them on the table next to your BBQ dish or on a plate outside for guests at a pool party. If you want them to be a more vibrant green, you could always add a couple drops of green food coloring into your batter. That’ll really make these cookies pop.

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I just so happened to have some lime green sprinkles in my pantry so I sprinkled some on top of that gorgeous fluff. I didn’t even use anything special to frost the cookies. It’s simply done with a spoon! Can you believe it? Just scoop out the frosting, plop it on your cooled cookie, then use the backside of the spoon to swirl in a circular motion.

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Pillsbury also has key lime frosting  (which I was originally intending to use on top of the cookies), but after I tasted the cookies out of the oven, I changed my mind. If you’re a fan of a strong key lime flavor, though, I’d recommend going for the key lime on key lime!

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These cookies are as fluffy as can be, tart, and fairly light. My DH loved them.

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Be careful with over-baking them!

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For more fun recipes and ideas, check out Pillsbury’s Facebook Page, Pinterest, and Instagram.

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Key Lime Cookies

Ingredients

  • 1 box (15.25 oz) Pillsbury™ Moist Supreme® Key Lime Flavored Premium Cake Mix
  • 1/3 cup olive oil (or vegetable oil)
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 can (12 oz) Pillsbury™ Fluffy Frost™ Vanilla Marshmallow Flavored Fluffy Frosting
  • sprinkles (optional)

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with a Silpat.
  2. In a large bowl, mix together the cake mix, oil, and eggs until combined.
  3. Use a large cookie scooper to place balls of the dough onto the prepared baking sheet.
  4. Bake for 12-14 minutes. Let cool completely before frosting. Immediately add sprinkles on top of the frosting, if using.
https://lovintheoven.com/key-lime-cookies/

This is a sponsored post, but the opinions expressed are my own.

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