Healthy 5-Ingredient Spaghettios!

Do you ever happen upon something amazing, totally by accident?  Serendipity!  (The movie by the same name is also awesome, by the way ;)). 

Well, that happened to me the other day.  I was making a pasta dish I make at least once a month.  But I realized I had forgotten to purchase store-bought Alfredo sauce.  At first I was despairing, because I knew I wasn't making a special trip to the grocery store for that one ingredient.  Which would mean I'd have to have a straight red sauce for the pasta, or I'd have to pick something else... 

...Until I remembered my home store and my amazing THRIVE Life Bechamel Sauce!  Dinner -- as I wanted it -- was saved!  I would just add a little Bechamel Sauce and extra water, and we'd have something akin to what I usually make. So that's just what I did.  And get this:  it was even better than before!  And as I tasted the sauce to make sure it would "work," I thought, "Huh...  This tastes a lot like Spaghettios sauce!"  I knew I had to replicate it and make it for lunch the next day. 

So to all you mamas out there who loved Spaghettios as children, but are hesitant to feed it to your own kids because you really don't like the high fructose corn syrup in said Spaghettios...  I have your solution!  It's easy, it's fast, and you can even pre-prep it and have it stored in a jar to just add water to when ready to cook!

Let me introduce you to Spaghettios -- THRIVEalized!

3/4 cup Ditalini pasta (you can add up to 1 cup, it will just be thicker than traditional Spaghettios)
1/4 cup THRIVE Bechamel Sauce
1/4 cup THRIVE Tomato Powder
1 teaspoon THRIVE Classic Tomato Sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)

Place ingredients in a pot with 2 1/4 cups water.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer (stirring occasionally) 20 minutes or until pasta is tender, but not mushy.

This will serve 2 to 3 people, depending how much you put in a serving (and I mean adults here...  Because let's face it:  sometimes we want to re-live our childhood too ;)).

And because our THRIVE Life foods are non-GMO, and include no hydrogenated oils, no artificial flavors and no artificial colors, I can take comfort in knowing I am offering my children (and eating) a healthier option of a childhood favorite!  (You can check out any of our labels online; here is an example.)  Plus you control what kind of pasta you (organic, gluten-free, etc)! 

My 3 year old ate her whole bowl (and she, oddly enough, did not like the canned Spaghettios I bought her to try a few months ago!).  I call it a win.

So to all of my fellow nostalgics out there....  you're welcome!

And Happy THRIVEing!

*This post contains affiliate links.  I earn a small commission on any purchases made through these links.*

Celebrating Panama's Independence with THRIVE!

*This post contains affiliate links.  I earn a small commission on any purchases made through these links.*

Today is Panama's Independence Day.  And since I was born and raised there (spend the first 18 years of my life there), I decided it is worth celebrating!  And anyone who knows me knows a celebration is not really a celebration unless it includes food!  

I grew up eating Arroz con Pollo (Panamanian Chicken and Rice).  It is one of the best meals I've ever eaten.  It is pretty much a staple in most Panamanian homes.  I'm sure everyone's recipe is just a little different -- and I'm equally sure everyone is sure theirs is the best :).  

One challenge of the recipe I have is the amount of time it takes to make.  My traditional recipe takes 2 to 2 1/2 hours and lots of chopping.  Onions, celery, bell pepper, carrots....  Not to mention the raw meat that has to be browned, then boiled, then cooled, then shredded...  It's a lot of work!  Don't get me wrong -- it's totally worth it.  But with that much hands-on time required, I simply can't make this most of the time.  I have two young children and a lot of other household responsibilities.  So, alas, Arroz con Pollo hasn't been something I could just include in our monthly menu.  

...Until now!  I decided to THRIVE-alize my recipe!  You can find the recipe here (plus, I added an additional 1/2 tablespoon of THRIVE Life's awesome Vegetarian Chicken Bouillon for tonight's meal).

I even did a couple videos to show how easy this is to prepare when you don't have to wash, chop, shred, etc!  In fact, I prepared 2 meals in 10 minutes (in a jar):

And it took me less than 4 minutes to get tonight's dinner cooking once it was time to actually prepare it:

And above you see the finished product (ready in 30 to 40 minutes as opposed to 2 to 2 1/2 hours!).  So yum!  Happy Independence Day, Panama!  And thanks for the happy memories of growing up in such a beautiful, unique place!

P.S.  I also made Canal Zone Empanadas :).  

Happy THRIVEing!

A Meal By Mail

I have a dear friend in Alabama who recently had a sweet baby girl.  With all my heart, I wish I was closer so I could go over and take dinner for her family.  I know how fun it can be to have a newborn and still have to prepare dinners for a hungry family!  I know it takes a while for the whole family to adjust to the newest little member.  And so, when dinners were brought to our home just a couple months ago, we were so very grateful.  I wanted so very much to offer my sweet friend the same thing.  But I live in Washington -- and it's not super convenient to drive to Alabama to deliver a meal ;). 

But once again, THRIVE Life came to the rescue!  It occurred to me that I do have a way to offer my friend a meal for her family that would be very quick and easy to prepare.  Literally just add water!!!  So this morning, I prepped a whole meal for her family and shipped it off in the mail -- all using THRIVE!  I posted some pictures of it to my Facebook business page ("THRIVEing with Hila," if you're interested in following me!) and had a request that I share the recipes.  So here they are, the recipes I used for a meal by mail for my dear friend!

VEGETARIAN TACO SOUP  (original recipe posted here, but I changed some measurements)
 1/2 cup THRIVE Instant Black Beans
1/4 cup THRIVE Taco TVP
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons THRIVE Sweet Corn
3 tablespoons THRIVE Chili Peppers
1/4 cup THRIVE Tomato Powder
2 tablespoons THRIVE Chopped Onions
1 tablespoon Taco Seasoning
3/4 teaspoon ranch dressing mix

Bring 4 cups water to boil.  Add contents of bag and simmer 15 minutes.  Add additional water to your preference.


GOLDEN CORNBREAD (this is a THRIVE Life recipe)
1 cup THRIVE Cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour*
2/3 cup white sugar*
1/2 cup THRIVE Butter Powder
2 tablespoons THRIVE Whole Egg Powder
2 tablespoons THRIVE Nonfat Powdered Milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Put contents of bag into a medium mixing bowl.  Add 1 1/2 cups water and stir (or whisk) until well blended and lumps are gone.  Pour into a greased 8x8 pan.  Bake at 375 for 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Allow to set 15 to 20 minutes before serving.


SUMMER (BERRY) LEMONADE (recipe from the can of Summer Lemonade)
1 cup sugar*
2 tablespoons THRIVE Summer Lemonade
berries of your choice (I included THRIVE Strawberry Slices and THRIVE Raspberries)

Mix contents of larger bag with 2 quarts (8 cups) water.  Chill.  Add berries of your choice to individual servings.

*Denotes other ingredients available through THRIVE Life.

All of these things can be done in jars as well.  In fact, we will be making the Golden Cornbread at our upcoming jar meal event in September!  So if you're interested in attending, let me know so I can get you the details!  The cornbread is awesome, by the way...  My family had it with chili on Friday (the chili recipe will also be available at the jar meal event in September!).

I noted in the instructions to them that I recommend these be used within a month, since they are not vacuum sealed.  At the jar meal events, we do vacuum seal the jars and that means they are good for 5 years!

I am truly excited I found a way to get a meal to my friend.  She is an amazing woman and we have a friendship I treasure beyond words.  And I hope this dinner makes at least one of these days with a new little miracle just a little bit easier -- and yummy to boot!

If you'd like to know more about this and how you can get all these great ingredients, contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com or visit my website:  www.thriveingNilla.thrivelife.com/THRIVEingNilla.

Happy THRIVEing!

Prepping for Baby!

As part of preparing for the arrival of our little bundle of joy, I knew I wanted to have several meals on-hand.  Over time, I decided I didn't just want dinner meals readily available, but also breakfast (since I have a hungry toddler to feed in the mornings :)). 

Once again, THRIVE Life has helped me!  And I can't say how much I love how versatile the product is.  It has helped me in so many ways with shaving time off meal prep, reducing waste, and offering my family healthier options (and easy ways to get veggies!).  And now it's helped me prepare for a baby!  So loving it!

So now I have dinners and breakfasts, all thanks to THRIVE Life! 

Here's what I now have on hand (in addition to several freezer meals that THRIVE also helped me with!):

Oatmeals (this is the basic recipe I followed, but changed up the fruit and some of the spices for some of them!)
Sausage Zuppa Toscana
Sloppy Joes (I haven't posted this as a jar meal specifically, yet, but plan to eventually.  The recipe is there, though, and I'll just add a can of tomato sauce since I don't have tomato powder on hand at the moment!)

I know it'll be so wonderful to have these on-hand when we have a newborn and sleep is hard to come by -- and time is a little crazy for a while :).  I love THRIVE, and I love my home store!

Would you love to do jar meals or learn more about them?  Contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com!  We do jar meal classes periodically and are planning to do one in July for the sloppy joes!

Happy THRIVEing!

Jar Meal: Apple Pie Oatmeal

This Thursday I am doing a Make and Take Jar Meal class for my sweet friend Megan!  She's so awesome and she's so excited about THRIVE Life that she wants all her guests to have some THRIVE Life deliciousness to take home and enjoy -- hence the Apple Pie Oatmeal in a jar for every party guest :)! 

So this morning, my toddler and I tried it out!  And it is amazing!  My toddler asked for "more...more!"  And, considering she usually leaves her store-bought cereals to soak up milk and go soggy and go to waste, I was totally impressed that she at all of her oatmeal and wanted more! 

Being that I'm only 3 weeks away from my due date, I am definitely planning on making variations of this recipe to keep in my cabinet for easy to fix breakfasts after we have a new little bundle in our home (and I have less sleep in my body :)).  Definitely going to try doing it with bananas and cinnamon; strawberries and vanilla powder; peaches, etc.!  So versatile!

APPLE PIE OATMEAL
1 cup THRIVE Quick Oats
2 tablespoons THRIVE Instant Milk
1/4 cup brown sugar*
1/2 cup  THRIVE Granny Smith Apples, crushed/broken (about 5 to 6 apple slices)
2 teaspoons Apple Pie Spice

For the jar:  Layer ingredients in a pint-size jar, beginning with oats.

To prepare in microwave:  Place contents of jar in microwave-safe bowl (a larger one) and add 1 2/3 cups water.  Microwave on high 2 to 2 1/2 minutes in 30 second intervals, stirring after each interval.  Add more water slowly to reach desired consistency.  Add milk as necessary to thin/cool after oatmeal is cooked.

To prepare on stove top:  Add contents of jar to 1 3/4 cups water and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes, adding water as necessary.  Add milk as necessary to thin/cool after oatmeal is cooked.

*Denotes other ingredients available through THRIVE Life.

This is 2 servings in the pint-size jar; but you can half the recipe (in a jelly jar) and have single-serve breakfasts!  Which would be totally awesome to take to work with you -- or send with your husband ;)!

I may have used too small of a bowl in the microwave...  And I may have had a little mess to clean up!  But it was so worth it!

I'm so excited about jar meals and how THRIVE Life can help me have easy and fast meals on hand like this oatmeal!  And I'm definitely glad for it as I prepare to make-ahead a bunch of meals (both breakfast and dinner!) to help us as we transition from a family of 3 to a family of 4!!!

Would you like to be able to make your own jar meals?  I can help you out!  Just contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com or visit my website at www.thrivelife.com/THRIVEingNilla!

Happy THRIVEing!

*This is not my original recipe.  I got it from a jar meal cookbook available through my THRIVE Life team!

Jar Meal: Vegetarian Taco Soup

This past Tuesday was our Cinco de Mayo Jar Meal Event!  It was another get-together full of fun and good food!  So I figured I'd share the recipe for the Vegetarian Taco Soup!  We found the original recipe here, for anyone interested.  I have to say I'm grateful for the THRIVE Life Consultant community!  All the consultants help each other and are so willing to share recipes and ideas.  It's a wonderful group of which to be a part :)!  I tweaked it a little bit because we did the vegetarian option and used the THRIVE Taco TVP, which is already seasoned with taco seasoning.  But you can also use THRIVE Ground Beef in this recipe as well.

VEGETARIAN TACO SOUP

1 cup THRIVE Instant Black Beans

¾ cup THRIVE Sweet Corn

1/3 cup THRIVE Green Chilies

½  cup THRIVE TomatoPowder

3/4 cup THRIVE Taco TVP

1/3 cup THRIVE Chopped Onions

1/8 cup Taco Seasoning

1 ½ teaspoons Ranch Dressing Mix

Soup Preparation:

Bring 8 cups water to a boil in a soup pot.  Pour in contents of jar and stir; reduce heat to low and simmer 15 to 20 minutes or until veggies are tender.  Optional:  Serve with your favorite taco toppings.

This recipe is incredibly flavorful!  We had lots of compliments from event attendees who tasted the samples -- and then made themselves jars to take home!  It is just a nice, quick-fix meal for those super-busy days!  

Contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com or visit my website:  www.thrivelife.com/THRIVEingNilla if you want to get the ingredients to be able to make these at home!  And if you want Ground Beef in yours, now is a great time to get it at a great price, since the THRIVE Ground Beef is this month's Q-Pon item!  For the month of May, you can get a #10 Can of Ground Beef for $43.79!  You can check it out and the other May specials here!

Happy THRIVEing!

Jar Meal: Chicken Tortilla Soup

We have another fun jar meal party coming up on May 5th -- Cinco de Mayo!  And to celebrate, we are making Mexican-inspired soups -- in a jar!

But naturally, I wanted to test out this recipe and see how it looks in the jar and how it tastes in a bowl :)!

So tonight, my family enjoyed Chicken Tortilla Soup!  And all I did when it came time to prep dinner was bring 8 cups of water to a boil, dump in the jar of ingredients and simmer 15 to 20 minutes!  And I definitely love the ease and speed of that!

Pictured is the prepared jar with most of the THRIVE ingredient cans!  I actually didn't have any THRIVE Green Chilies on hand, but my friend Rebekah did, so she dropped some by for me.  But I didn't have the can for the picture ;).  So there's most of the cans at any rate ;).

Just a close-up of the jar.  Very pretty, don't you think!?!  So here are the ingredients in the order I placed them in the jar:

1 cup THRIVE Chopped Chicken
2/3 cup THRIVE Green Chilies
1/2 cup THRIVE Chopped Onions
1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 cup THRIVE Tomato Powder
2 teaspoons THRIVE Chicken Bouillon
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 cup THRIVE Sweet Corn

To prepare, add contents of jar to 8 cups boiling water.  Reduce heat to low and simmer 15 to 20 minutes.  Top with your favorite toppings:  tortilla chips, sour cream, cheese, green onions, salsa, etc...  *If you prefer a higher fat content in your soup, you may consider adding a tablespoon of olive oil to the water when bringing it to a boil.

And when you're ready to eat, it tastes delicious and looks like this!

This was as definite win in our household!  I'll be making it -- in a jar for easy meals on busy days! -- again and again!  If you'd like to have one (or more) of this jar meal on hand, join us at my house on May 5th anytime from 7 to 9 p.m.  Just drop on in!  Plus you can sample all these delicious recipes -- and more -- while mingling and visiting with others!  It's sure to be a great time!  Contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com for more information and location!

Or you can order the ingredients and make your own jars at home!  Just visit my website: www.thrivelife.com/THRIVEingNilla or contact me to place your order!  Remember, the BIG DEAL Sale is still going on through Monday, so now's a great time to get great prices on these ingredients!

Happy THRIVEing!

Meals in a Jar Open House Sneak Peek!

Some of you are aware that my friend and I will be holding a Meals in a Jar Open House at the end of the month!  There are going to be some fabulous "jar meals" there, and you won't want to miss out on the opportunity to see what THRIVE Life can do to simplify your life on the crazy busy days!  We will be vacuum sealing these jars, making them shelf-stable for 5 years!  That's just awesome!


One of the meals attendees can make is my Italian Bowtie Pasta! It includes the following THRIVE Life ingredients:

THRIVE Sausage Crumbles
THRIVE Vegetarian Chicken Bouillon
THRIVE Chopped Onions
THRIVE Tomato Powder
THRIVE Rainbow Farfalle Pasta

A few other dried herbs finish off the delicious meal in a jar (oregano, thyme, and basil), and oila!  You'll have a quick and easy go-to meal that is way healthier than going through a drive-thru -- and cheaper too!  This particular meal is $9 a jar, and will make 8 1-cup servings -- which comes to only $1.13 per serving!

So if you're interested in trying out this meal in a jar -- or one of the others we'll have available for you to make, stop by the Sunn Fjord Condominiums Clubhouse on March 31st between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. and make one to take home! 

Contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com if you need directions or more information!

Meal in a Jar: Sausage Zuppa Toscana

I cannot take credit for the creation of this recipe (like pretty much all of the recipes I post ;)).  Thanks to my Relief Society President, who found some meal in a jar recipes and posted them to our Relief Society facebook page, though, I was able to enjoy it!  The recipe can be found here, along with some other meal in a jar recipes I haven't had the opportunity to try yet.  I will post the recipe as I fixed it (mostly the same, but a couple minor differences) along with my opinions on a few things :).

Also, please note that I saw this recipe today, discovered I had the ingredients to make it, and made it today.  I put it in the jar today too, to show how pretty it is.  I didn't seal it though.  I would recommend that you do seal the jars if you plan to store the jars for longer than a couple weeks.  I figure it's better to be safe than sorry!

SAUSAGE ZOPPA TOSCANA

Using a funnel, put ingredients in a quart-sized jar in this order (you may have to gently "jog" the jar as you add):

1/2 cup THRIVE Sour Cream Powder
2 cubes beef bouillon, crushed*
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 cup THRIVE Chopped Spinach
1/4 cup THRIVE Chopped Onions
1 cup THRIVE Instant Pinto Beans
1 cup THRIVE Sausage Crumbles
1 1/4 cup THRIVE Potato Chunks (dehydrated)

*Denotes other ingredients available through THRIVE Life.

Add contents of jar to large pot.  Add 7 cups water.  Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes. 

I really liked this soup.  It was a tad on the spicy side for me (wondering what the hubby will say...  He hasn't tried it yet as he was at work ;)), but I address that in my notes :).

So here are some of my thoughts:

1.  I would make sure to use a wide-mouth quart-size jar if you have one.  The original recipe calls for 1 1/2 of the potato chunks.  I couldn't get them all to fit in the jar, so I cut back a little bit.
2.  I may try a different order for the ingredients in future, if I ever make them to seal.  Mainly because I think the powdered stuff on top of the bigger items (like the potato chunks) may "seep" in better and make it less difficult to fit everything.
3.  I will probably cut back to 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper to lighten up a bit on the spicy.  But if you love spicy, keep it at 1/2 teaspoon!
4.  Given the above statement...  I don't recommend this for a toddler.  I didn't even attempt giving it to my munchkin, because I figured it would be too hot for her.
5.  I used beef bouillon, though the original recipe calls for chicken bouillon, because beef is what I had on-hand.  And I really wanted to try this recipe tonight -- and not go to the store!
6.  I reduced the suggested water to 7 cups.  Depending on how thick the leftovers get, I may choose to increase the water in the future ;).

I definitely think this is a keeper!  Love that I had all the ingredients on-hand.  And, literally, this took no more than minutes to put in the jar (and 10 seconds to put in the pot ;)!!).  Even if I choose not to "jar" this meal in the future, I will have dinner cooking within 5 to 10 minutes!  What's not to love about that!?!

Make Ahead Monday: Baking Powder Biscuits

I have neglected this blog for far too long!  I promise my reason is a good one:  I'm growing another human.  And as a result, I have been exhausted and feeling kind of yuck many afternoons.  So I have become re-acquainted with the advice to new moms:  sleep when the baby sleeps!  Only, in this case, my baby is now a toddler.  Nonetheless, I nap when she naps.  Which means I get very little done.  Today I'm trying to play catch-up!

And what better way than to show you how you can have some Baking Powder Biscuits just hanging out in  your pantry, waiting for water to be added! 

To be honest, I didn't have these made ahead this time.  However, they include all powder ingredients (and can be made with 100% THRIVE Life ingredients!), so they totally work well as a make-ahead recipe.  And even if only saving me 5 minutes of time...  Sometimes those 5 minutes are golden moments.  And I know myself (especially these days)...  If I know I can just add water -- not dirty a bunch of extra dishes -- well, I'm sold! 

So here's how you make these biscuits:

1/4 cup THRIVE Shortening Powder
2 cups all-purpose flour (or whole wheat flour -- I use 1 cup of each)*
1 tablespoon sugar*, if desired
3 teaspoons baking powder*
1 teaspoon salt*
3 tablespoons THRIVE Instant Milk powder

Either layer all ingredients in a jar, or mix all ingredients in a large bowl and then transfer to a jar and seal.  Use within 1 month.

*Denotes ingredients also available through THRIVE Life.

When you are ready to prepare:  Add 1 cup to 1 1/4 cup water (depending on whether you want drop biscuits or cut-out biscuits -- more water for drop biscuits).  Bake at 450 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes.

I usually make the drop biscuit recipe (because it's faster).  However, as was true today, I'm often making the biscuit(s) for a dish called Tomato Biscuit & Cheese, which I got from my mother-in-law.  It's especially awesome for that summer harvest of tomatoes!  (Our tomato plants were a little ambitious this year, so we actually got 3 littles off our plant this past week, and I was able to use those plus a huge store-bought one).  Anyway, I say all that because, when I'm making the biscuit for that...  I make only one huge rectangular biscuit.  Again, because it's faster :).

So in case you're interested in trying out the Tomato Biscuit & Cheese recipe, here it is:

8 biscuits (or one large rectangular biscuit)
8 slices tomato (or enough to cover the rectangle)
1/2 to 3/4 cup cottage cheese
1/4 cup mayonnaise
salt, pepper, oregano, and basil to taste
1 to 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

Place the biscuit(s) on a baking sheet.  Cover with one tomato slice.  Sprinkle tomato slice with salt, pepper, basil, and oregano.

In a small bowl, mix together cottage cheese and mayonnaise.  Spoon over seasoned tomato slices.  Sprinkle shredded Cheddar cheese over cottage cheese mixture.

Bake at 450 until cheese is melted and tomato is hot.

I don't know why, but there is something really satisfying for me about this dish.  And it's an easy one to throw together -- especially if you have made-ahead biscuit mix!

By the way, the THRIVE Instant Milk is the Q-Pon item for this month!  It's a great time to stock up on your milk supply.  I love that we can get powdered milk :).  I think it's an important part of food storage!  Contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com if you want to stock up!

Party Food!

Tonight I had the opportunity to do a party for my friend Christina.  I find that I am still learning a lot as I continue in this adventure of being a consultant for THRIVE Life.  I am grateful for the opportunity to learn and grow and expand my horizons!

I've found that I love to share food with guests at the parties.  And today, I shared 3 different things:

Berry Banana Smoothie
Chicken Salad with crackers
Quad Chocolate Cookies

I've shared the recipes for the smoothie and the cookies before, so if you click those links, you'll be able to visit those recipes (they are yum!).  In fact, the smoothie recipe is even available on the new THRIVE Life recipe site, because I submitted it to them!  It's kind of exciting ;)!

So tonight I will share the awesome chicken salad recipe!  It's so easy to throw together, and the ladies at the party tonight were impressed with just how easy and fast it was!  So here it is:

CHICKEN SALAD
2 1/2 cups THRIVE Chopped Chicken
1/2 cup THRIVE Chopped Onion
3/4 cup THRIVE Celery
2 cups water
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt*
1/4 teaspoon pepper*

Combine the chicken, onions, celery, and water; stir well and place in refrigerator 10 minutes.  In a medium size bowl, mix remaining ingredients until well incorporated.  Mix chicken mixture into mayonnaise mixture without draining.  Salad may be slightly runny, but will thicken.  Refrigerate for 1 1/2 hours and stir before serving.

*Denotes other ingredients available through THRIVE Life.

When I make this recipe, I just mix everything together in a bowl and refrigerate it 1 1/2 hours.  It works just fine :).  No need to dirty extra bowls ;)!

And you could totally make the chicken salad mix (meaning the chicken, celery, onions, and seasoning) ahead of time and put in a jar -- then take it to work or have it for a ready-to-fix lunch or snack for a busy day!

If you are interested in any of the awesome THRIVE Life products to help you make these delicious recipes, just contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com!

Make-Ahead Monday: Butterscotch Oatmeal Cookies

Once-a-month cooking is very popular these days among many moms...  It's a great way to prepare a bunch of meals, freeze them, and then have them ready for preparing and eating with little to no effort on the day of! 

So I got to thinking:  what if THRIVE could help women in this way too!  But instead of freezing the meals, the THRIVE ingredients can be stored in jars!  Then, on a particularly busy day, you pull out a jar -- and just add water!

Super time-saver!

Thanks to the new THRIVE Vanilla Extract Powder, I was able to "make ahead" a batch of butterscotch oatmeal cookies!  Then, when I had to take something for a potluck baby shower, I grabbed my mix, added some water, and baked!  Super simple -- and they came out tasty too!

So here's how I did it:

BUTTERSCOTCH OATMEAL COOKIES
2/3 cup all-purpose flour*
1/2 teaspoon baking soda*
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon*
1/4 teaspoon salt*
1/2 cup THRIVE Butter Powder
1 tablespoon THRIVE Whole Egg Powder (equivalent to 1 egg)
1/2 teaspoon THRIVE Vanilla Extract Powder
1/3 cup packed brown sugar*
1/3 cup granulated sugar*
3/4 cup butterscotch chips*
1 1/2 cups quick oats*

Using a funnel, layer ingredients in a quart-size mason jar. (I put the chips on top). You may have to jostle the jar a bit to make everything fit.

To make the cookies: Pour contents of jar into mixing bowl with about 1/3 cup water. Mix well. Add extra water a teaspoon at a time if the dough looks too dry, blending well after each addition, until cookie dough consistency is reached. Drop by spoonfuls on greased baking sheet.  Bake at 375 for 8 to 10 minutes. Cool on pan for 1 minute then move to wire rack to finish cooling.

*Denotes ingredients also available through THRIVE.

These have passed the toddler test, the 5-year-old test, and the adult test ;).

Now, if you seal these properly and use an oxygen absorber, they can wait on the shelf for you for about 3 months.  If you don't (as I didn't), I would recommend you use it within 3 to 4 weeks of preparing the jar.  

I was really glad to have had these waiting for me to use yesterday evening.  Church was over at 4, but we got home after 4:30.  I had a family to feed (including nieces) and had to figure out what to make to take to the baby shower potluck.  These were definitely a nice treat -- one less thing for me to worry about :)!  And a great quick-fix solution!

THRIVE Vanilla Extract Powder is only available through consultants, so if you want to be able to make some "make ahead" cookies and have the ingredients that will help you, contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com!

Happy THRIVEing!