Honey Whole Wheat Rolls

During December, the THRIVE specials were all about making baking a cinch!  I don't know about you, but I tend to do a lot of baking during the holidays.  I also need as many things as possible to make my life easier.  As you can probably guess, due to my infrequent updating of this blog, I was a busy bee for the last several weeks.  Baking, shopping, cooking, visiting, prepping for 9 people in our 1000 square foot apartment for a week (yikes!)...  It's a busy time of year for me (and probably for everyone else as well!).  Thus, when I saw all the bakery yumminess on sale in December, I stocked up!  And last night, we enjoyed some Honey Whole Wheat Rolls with our pasta dinner :).

The preparation instructions for the bread (whether in loaf form or rolls) is on the can.  Basically, you put warm water and yeast in a bowl and add the required amount of Honey Whole Wheat Dough Mix, and you're well on your way to some yummy, moist, and soft rolls! 

I love that these rolls have whole wheat...  I know it's a healthier option for my family :).  I'm looking forward to trying this mix out for some whole wheat cinnamon rolls in the not-too-distant future, so stay tuned!

Four Bean "Chili"

Prior to heading out to Alabama for two weeks on vacation, our family was trying to not buy additional groceries we'd have to use up before we left!  And THRIVE was definitely handy at that point!  Because, even opened, my THRIVE products could sit and wait for our return -- including the onions and celery!  It's just awesome.

So, one night, while I was looking through our cupboards and trying to decide what to make, I decided on trying out a semi-made-up recipe.  And I came up with this Four Bean "Chili."  My main goal in preparing this dish was to use up 3 strips of bacon I had the in the fridge.  Fortunately, we also have many different kinds of beans!  I chose to use 3 types of dry beans (which required that I soak them overnight) plus some of the THRIVE Instant Pinto Beans I have.  So here's the recipe I came up with!

FOUR BEAN "CHILI"
1/2 cup dry white beans*
1/2 cup dry black beans*
1/2 cup dry kidney beans*
1/2 cup THRIVE Instant Pinto Beans
3 slices raw bacon
1 cube beef bouillon*
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons THRIVE Chopped Onions
1/4 cup THRIVE Celery
salt, pepper, cumin, garlic powder to taste
Water to cover beans in crock pot (about 2 to 3 cups)

In a large bowl, rinse and sort dry beans.  Fill bowl with fresh water to doubly cover the beans.  Allow to soak overnight.  The next morning, drain and rinse beans and place in the bottom of a crock pot.

Add THRIVE Instant Pinto Beans and the remaining ingredients.  Cook on high for 2 hours, then low for 4 to 6 hours.  Serve with shredded cheese, sour cream, or other toppings of your choice, if desired.

*Denotes ingredients also available through THRIVE Life.

THRIVE Gourmet Hot Cocoa

We have officially had our first frost here in Western Washington.  (And actually, we've probably had 4 or 5 days at or below freezing!)  I have heard tell that this has been true for pretty much all of the United States -- I know Alabama has had quite the unseasonable cold snap, of below freezing weather!  And that kind of cold weather just puts me in the mood for some chocolatey goodness -- some hot chocolatey goodness!

So last night, we opened up our THRIVE Gourmet Hot Cocoa, and we indulged!  Oh my goodness was this ever rich and creamy!  (Honestly, I think it was a little too rich when made according to package directions...  So I'm cutting back on the hot chocolate mix in the future -- still delicious and makes it last even longer :)).

This really is a lovely hot chocolate.  It has amazing flavor, and if you really like your hot chocolate to be rich, then by all means -- prepare it according to THRIVE Life's directions:

2 1/2 tablespoons THRIVE Gourmet Hot Cocoa
3/4 cup hot water

Put THRIVE Gourmet Hot Cocoa into a mug; add hot water.  Stir and enjoy!

If, on the other hand, you enjoy your hot chocolate a little less rich (but still delicious!), I recommend 1 1/2 tablespoons to 3/4 cup hot water.  I actually doubled the recipe this morning... :). 

And because it's chilly....  I'll probably be having another mugful later this evening.  Yum!

THRIVE Gourmet Hot Cocoa has a shelf life of 5 years unopened (1 year opened), so it's a great addition to your home store!

The THRIVE Gourmet Hot Cocoa won't be around for long!  It's one of their seasonal items.  So if you want to have some of this chocolatey goodness to enjoy, get your orders in soon!  You can contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com to place your order if you don't have a Q.  Or, if you have a Q, simply add the hot chocolate to your Q, and it'll ship with your next order!

And don't forget!  Only two more days until the Big Black Friday Specials are announced!  So be on the lookout for my email!  And Happy THRIVEing!

THRIVE Mashed Potatoes

This month, THRIVE Life introduced a new product:  THRIVE Mashed Potatoes!!!  Naturally, I had to order some on my Q :). 

For one thing -- and I don't know why this is -- I never use fresh potatoes fast enough when I buy them, even a 5 pound bag!  So this was a wonderful solution for that!  Mashed potatoes without waste!

Another awesome thing about these mashed potatoes is that there is nothing additional in the can!  The ingredient list is brief:  potatoes.  

This was also a super-duper awesome, easy, and fast solution to a side dish for dinner!  And I needed exactly that.  Because the munchkin and I had had quite the day.  And we had a friend with her 4 kids coming over for dinner...  And I was taking dinner to another friend who'd just had baby #5 (via c-section). 

Knowing I was feeding -- literally -- a crowd, I decided on a wonderful Slow Cooker Salisbury Steaks recipe I enjoy, and which makes a lot!  I also knew I wanted to do a broccoli and cauliflower salad which was pretty quick and easy to throw together.  And my THRIVE Mashed Potatoes were the perfect side dish for this meal!  Because what pairs better with a Salisbury Steak gravy than mashed potatoes!?!





I prepped the mashed potatoes according to the recipe on the back of the #10 Can -- with a few alterations.  Below is the recipe as I made it:

SEASONED MASHED POTATOES
1 1/4 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt*
2 tablespoons THRIVE Butter Powder
1 tablespoon THRIVE Instant Milk Powder
1 cup THRIVE Mashed Potatoes
pepper to taste

Combine water, salt, THRIVE Butter Powder, THRIVE Instant Milk Powder in a small saucepan.  Bring to a simmer and add THRIVE Mashed Potatoes.  Whisk until combined and remove from heat.  Add pepper to taste and mix in.  Allow to rest 1 minute before serving.

*Denotes ingredients also available through THRIVE Life.

Naturally, I increased the amounts I made and adjusted the ingredients accordingly.  But this was definitely easy and amazing!

The comment I got from my friend who ate dinner with us:  "Wow!  These taste really good!  The texture is nice!  Not like other instant potatoes!"

I call that a win.

The other win?  These have a shelf-life of 5 years unopened and about a year opened!  So I don't have to worry about moldy potatoes again :)!

Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

Just a little sweet treat you may want to try when you get some of the awesome THRIVE Pineapple Chunks!  The recipe is from the back of the #10 can of pineapple :).

Topping:
1 1/2 cups THRIVE Pineapple Chunks
1/2 cups pineapple juice or water
1/4 cup THRIVE Butter Powder (+1 tablespoon water)
2/3 cup brown sugar*
Cake Batter:
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour*
1/4 teaspoon salt*
2 teaspoons baking powder*
1/2 cup THRIVE Butter Powder (+ 2 tablespoons water)
3/4 cup white sugar*
1 teaspoon vanilla extract*
2 eggs*
1/2 cup milk*

Rehydrate THRIVE Pineapple Chunks with either water or pineapple juice. Place in the bottom of a greased 9-inch round pan (or 8x8 pan). In a saucepan, combine THRIVE Butter Powder, brown sugar, and water (you can use any leftover water from rehydrating the pineapple!). Bring to a boil and boil while stirring 1 minute. Pour over pineapple chunks.

To prepare batter, mix flour, salt, and baking powder; set aside. Mix THRIVE Butter Powder, 2 tablespoons water, and white sugar until creamed. Add vanilla and eggs; mix again. Add dry ingredients alternately with milk, mixing well in between each addition. Whip until light and fluffy. Pour batter over pineapple and smooth. Bake 45 to 55 minutes (mine took 35) or until golden and cooked through. Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

*Denotes ingredients also available through THRIVE.

A couple notes... I ended up getting 12 pieces out of my 8x8 cake. I also altered this recipe a little to include it here... The original recipe says to rehydrate the THRIVE Pineapple chunks in the pan you're going to bake in... Yeah, don't do that. Or, if you do, pour out the remaining water. Because otherwise you end up with Pineapple Dump Cake more than Pineapple Upside Down Cake. Mine was a dump cake (at least visually...). Still tasted good.... But didn't have that pretty layer of caramel and pineapple on the bottom. Clearly I'm learning a lot :).

And only one more week before the Black Friday deals are out!!!  The word out is that all THRIVE Life products will be on sale -- so it's a great time to place those orders!!!  Contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com if you want to know the Black Friday deals, and I'll make sure to add you to my email list!

Happy THRIVEing!

Cauliflower Cheese Soup

Fall is a great time for soup.  Soup of all kinds!  I love soup (and truthfully, because I do love it so, I often make it in the middle of summer too ;)...).  One reason I love soups is that it is a great way for me to get my vegetables!

And this delicious soup is no exception!  In fact, it's base is cauliflower, so you know you're getting your veggies in this one!  I got this recipe from the THRIVE Cookbook.  I'd been excited to try it out for some time now :).  And it did not disappoint!  The only ingredient I lacked was the carrots...  I neither had fresh carrots or THRIVE carrots.  Clearly, I need to get some THRIVE Carrots into my home store -- because I really wouldn't have minded having even more veggies in the soup!  But even so, it was delicious...  And I know I'll be trying it again in the not-too-distant future.  With carrots!  Below is the recipe as I made it :).

CAULIFLOWER CHEESE SOUP
2 cups THRIVE Cauliflower
1/4 cup THRIVE Chopped Onions

1/3 cup THRIVE Celery
4 cups chicken broth*
2 cups whole milk
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese*
salt* and pepper to taste
THRIVE Green Onions for garnish, optional

Combine cauliflower, onions, celery, and broth in a saucepan.  Cover and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to simmer and simmer for 30 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.

Transfer soup to a blender and puree.  ***Please use caution in this step!  I'll show you why shortly!

Return mixture to stove top and blend in milk, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper, and cheese.  Ladle soup into bowls and garnish with extra cheese and THRIVE Green Onions, if desired.

Here's the THRIVE Cookbook!  I love this thing!  And I'm looking forward to trying many more recipes from it :).

And so, here's the story about the pureeing in a blender...  So, the soup is hot hot hot when you're putting it in the blender to puree.  And if you seal the blender...  Well, the heat creates a pressure build-up.  So there I was, holding down the lid and I pressed "blend."  The result was fast -- and not fun.  The pressure pushed the lid up, and out spewed boiling soup all over my arm.  And all over the counter top and floor, etc.  I have some lovely burns from the incident.  So, while I whole-heartedly recommend this delicious soup...  I do not recommend following my lead on the whole blender part.  Take it slow and maybe leave a little pressure release somewhere...

Otherwise, make this soup!  It's yummy -- and a great way to get a bunch of veggies!  And, if you use vegetable broth instead of chicken, this could probably be vegetarian too!  (I'm not sure about the Worcestershire sauce though.... I think it has anchovies ;)).

Happy THRIVEing!!

Cooking with the Q-Pon: Instant Milk: Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie

This month, the Q-Pon item is THRIVE Instant Milk!  I have to say, it's not very challenging to find ways to use the Q-Pon item this month ;).  But I have been able to use it several times in a variety of ways.  Today I'll share two recipes -- the second one is a bonus because I forgot to take a picture :/.

So today, my munchkin and I enjoyed a Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie as a mid-morning snack :).  And it was delicious!

CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER BANANA SMOOTHIE
1 cup frozen banana, sliced
1 cup water
3 tablespoons THRIVE Instant Milk powder
1 tablespoon peanut butter
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
1/2 tablespoon sugar

Place all ingredients into a blender and blend on high until smooth.  Enjoy!

The bonus recipe is a little twist on Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole.  I didn't have Swiss cheese, so I switched it to Cheddar, and I thought it was great.  As it happened...  I did have regular milk in the refrigerator when I was making this, but only whole milk -- and only enough for my munchkin to get through Sunday (and we weren't going to go to the store before Monday...).  So I turned to my THRIVE Instant Milk powder!!!  Very convenient to have on hand for the 2 cups called for in the recipe!

So here's the recipe

CHICKEN CORDON BLEU CASSEROLE (SORT OF)
3 cups egg noodles (or elbow macaroni*), uncooked
2 cups milk (2 cups water + 6 tablespoons THRIVE Instant Milk powder)
1 pound chopped cooked chicken*
1 10-ounce can cream of chicken soup
1 cup chopped, cooked ham*
1 cup Cheddar cheese*, shredded (recipe calls for Swiss, but I only had Cheddar)

Spread noodles evenly in a 9x13 pan.  Pour milk and water over noodles.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.  Spread chicken, soup, ham, and cheese over noodles.  Cover tightly with foil.  Bake at 350 degrees for 45 to 55 minutes.

*Denotes ingredients also available through THRIVE Life.

This recipe can also be made ahead and frozen after you cover tightly with foil :).  A great make-ahead meal!

I only wish I'd remembered to take a picture.  Boo!