Did you know that you can cook and flavor foods with Young Living's Essential Oils? Well you can! And what better time to do that than Thanksgiving and Christmas!!  Join us over on The Oily Plunge: Tips, Tricks & Treasures and find out what we're cooking up using Essential Oils. I will be posting a new recipe all throughout the week.  

You won't want to miss a thing, I promise! Make your traditional meal shine this year by introducing essential oils into the mix. 

*I can only vouch for Young Living Essential Oils and their safe use for ingestion. Please do your research and find out where your essential oils are coming from. DO NOT ingest oils that don't come with the Seed to Seal guarantee. 

I'm always looking for easy recipes to make. An easy recipe for me is something that has few ingredients, can be made quickly & is relatively inexpensive. If it is also versatile, even better! This recipe definitely falls into all of those categories!

For some background on how I discovered this incredible simple & delish food, I lead a staff small group on campus. We have 8 wonderful ladies from all over the States and Mexico. We meet every Thursday morning at 8 (which is crazy early for me as I'd prefer if the day started at noon). The group I was in before ( we got so big we had to split) had an amazing baker in it and therefore most weeks we had incredible edibles. I, on the otherhand, am not really that gifted at baking! Sad day for my small group! Until I found this!!

PANCAKE MUFFINS!!!!!!!

So simple yet so very delicious and so versatile!

Easy Recipe: Pancake Muffins

Ingredients:
Pancake Mix, your choice. (I prefer the kind you just add water)
Vanilla extract

Toppings:
Frozen blueberries (or fresh) or any fruit
Brown Sugar
White, Milk or Dark Chocolate Chips
Cooked & crumbled sausage
Cooked & crumbled bacon

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350*. Mix pancake batter according to package directions adding a capful of the vanilla extract. (I normally mix up enough for 12 pancakes & it makes roughly 18 - 24 muffins.)

Spray your muffin tins with non-stick cooking spray. Fill tins about 2/3 full. Add desired toppings to the top & bake until golden, about 13-15 minutes.

Serve with butter & syrup.

Most of the time you don't even need the syrup! If you make these ahead, allow to cool completely before putting in bag. I usually leave mine on the counter in a bag overnight to take to small group the next morning. You can even freeze them for quick breakfast throught the week.

These have been a BIG hit at our small group and have been requested for special mornings like birthdays!

If you are coming over from Pinterest, WELCOME!! Make sure you check out a few of my other Easy Recipes.

Here are a few to get you started:

• Easy Recipe:  Monkey Balls
• Easy Recipes: Cheesy Chicken & Broccoli Stovetop
• Easy Recipes:  Philly Cheesesteak
• Pumpkin Carving & Seed Roasting
• Easy Recipe:  Cherry Dump Cake

What are some of your favorite things? Leave a comment below to let us know! 

One of my favorite memories in college was dinners with friends. I lived in a small apartment complex in a small apartment and every week we'd get together with the neighbors and have dinner. We'd each take turns hosting, making some delicious recipe to share that reminded us of home. Perhaps it was the only thing we knew how to cook. I remember one such evening we all decided to cook the meal together including dessert. This made for a very comical night since we were about 6 people in a kitchen really only made for one. These nights were always so much fun. I'm honestly not sure that we would have all been friends had we not been "stuck" in this tiny complex together and had we not been the only college students living there. I have very fond memories of that place. It was my first "home". 

This was one of the "famous" desserts we concocted one of those evenings. 

It is so super easy and super inexpensive. Now, this one does take a bit of prep time so make sure you have plenty before you start.

Ingredients: 
refrigerated canned biscuits (typically come in packs of 4 cans) - the kind that pop open and scare the living daylights out of you (for all those back home)
ground cinnamon
sugar
butter

Instructions:
Mix together to your taste preferences some cinnamon and sugar.  Put this mixture in a gallon-sized ziploc bag.  

Open the canned biscuits and quarter each one.  

Roll each quarter into round balls. 

Place the balls into the ziploc bag and shake until evenly coated.  Do this in small batches so that they don't stick together and each ball gets coated with the cinnamon/sugar mixture.  

Once the balls are coated, place in a bundt pan or a baking sheet.  Balls should be placed together tightly.  

Once all the balls are done, melt a bit of butter along with part of the remaining cinnamon/sugar mixture (reserve some for the crust).  

Pour the melted butter/cinnamon/sugar mixture evenly all over the balls.  Sprinkle the left over reserved dry cinnamon/sugar mix.  

Bake according to the directions on the biscuit can.  

The balls should be soft with a sugar glazed crust on top.  ENJOY!!!!  

*stay tuned for a variation of this awesome and easy dessert recipe called Gorilla Balls. Let's just say they have an extra creaminess added to them that make them to die for! 

If you are coming over from Pinterest, WELCOME!! Make sure you check out a few of my other Easy Recipes.

Here are a few to get you started:

• Easy Recipes: Cheesy Chicken & Broccoli Stovetop
• Easy Recipes:  Philly Cheesesteak
  
• Pumpkin Carving & Seed Roasting
  
• Easy Recipe:  Cherry Dump Cake
  

What are some of your favorite things? Leave a comment below to let us know! 

So in preschool this week we are studying all about pumpkins! It's that time of year and pumpkins are EVERYWHERE so we just rolled with it.  We had a huge Fall Festival on our San Antonio del Mar campus of YWAM San Diego/Baja a few weeks back. We had a hay ride (minus the hay cause it never showed so we improvised and put a couple of mattresses on the trailer bed & covered them with comforters, you would have never known otherwise), a cake walk, cotton candy, decorate your own cookie station, face painting, balloon animals, photo booth and lots of games, bouncy castle, costume contest and pony rides. It was a HUGE blast and we had about 200 people here to enjoy it.  

Since we had the festival on our campus, there was an abundance of pumpkins for decorations so we were able to snag several to carve up and dig in during Circle Time yesterday. Needless to say, the kids loved and hated it at the same time. They thought it was really cool but also really slimy and after a few minutes most of them were done.  Check out a few pictures of the kids digging in. 

One of the really cool things that we did was roast the pumpkin seeds and some of the pumpkin pieces (the parts that I removed when I carved it's happy face) so that the kids could experience what roasted pumpkin seeds and real pumpkin taste like. This was really exciting for the kids. Even Miss Apple (our traveling teacher friend visiting all the way from Samford University in Birmingham, AL, kinda like Flat Stanley & curtesy of Miss Mary who is studying to be a teacher) got in on the action and helped me stir the seeds and rotate the pumpkin pieces.  

I had so many compliments on the seeds, some even going as far as to say they were the best pumpkin seeds they had ever tasted and wanted to know my secret! They, honestly, were REALLY SIMPLE.  Here is my recipe:  

The PERFECT Roasted Pumpkin Seeds:  

Pull all the seeds out of the pumpkin
Rinse with a little bit of water (purified of course) & drain. 
Seeds will still be a little bit slimy with the pumpkin goo but that's good. 
Add a stick of melted butter & some salt to taste. 
Then roast away, stirring occasionally so they don't stick. 
I think I did mine on 425-450 & they took about 30 mins or so. 


I cooked them in a toaster oven as well cause we did it in class.

I remember growing up we didn't really celebrate Halloween but instead opted to hide out in the house all cozy with a picnic and popcorn and watch fun Halloween cartoons like the classic It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (which is still one of my favorites and we watch it in preschool as well).  I don't really remember carving pumpkins or anything like that but I have a horrible memory with some things (and crazy good with other things). 

What are some of your favorite Halloween or Fall Traditions to do with your family? Leave a comment below & let me know! I'd love to hear about them and maybe get some new ideas to implement in our school. 

If you liked this story, you will probably also like:

• Halloween: Satanic or Just Plain Cute?

• Vulnerability:  It's the Worst!

• YWAM Ministry:  The Red Light District; ZONA NORTE

• Serving Him Through The Everyday!
• Sometimes You Have To Wonder
• Suffering : 7 Reasons There is Suffering In The World
• 67 Kids and Counting
• Sense, A Psalm by Sheril
• Praise Reports & God's Blessings
• Birthday Surprises & God's Faithfulness
• Opportunities

Make sure you also check out all of the other stories through our YWAM Ministries. 

Want to join us for the next quarter? Check out all of our awesome upcoming schools that you can be a part of! Head on over to our newly designed website to find out more. If you have questions, let me know!

Who is excited about desserts? Who loves easy recipe desserts? If you can answer yes to either of these questions, you guys are in for a real treat today! Today I am sharing with you a recipe that takes me back to 7th grade. I remember eating this for the first time at a friend's house and once I tasted it, I was in heaven. Then once I found out how easy it was to make, I was hooked! This Easy Dump Cake Dessert is so simple to make, only takes 4 ingredients and can be manipulated to create tons of variations. You are going to love it! It is so easy even a preschooler could do it. Actually, why not let the kiddos help out. 

I have been working on my blog, updating a few things and rearranging some stuff. I came across a blog post I had written quite a while back that had several different recipes listed on it. I decided to update it & give you a better option to see some of my favorite recipes. Without further ado, here is one that has been a favorite for a long time and definitely so super easy! 


Easy Recipe:  Cherry Dump Cake

Ingredients:
1 can crushed pineapple
1 can cherry pie filling
1 box cake mix (yellow or white work best)
butter or margarine (can be tub or sticks)

Just like the name states, you open the cans of fruit and dump them in a baking pan.  Sprinkle the dry cake mix on top to cover evenly.  Dot the top with a few pats/spoons of butter.  Bake in the oven on 350 until top is a golden brown.


Seriously, that is it!! Pull out the big spoons cause you are going to dig in & not want to come out. 

I am working on a few variations of this versatile dessert so stay tuned to see more of my easy desserts.  In the mean time, check out these other easy recipes.  Or you can start with these: 

• • Easy Recipe:  Peach Cobbler
  • Easy Recipes: Monkey Balls 
    
  • Easy Recipes: Cheesy Chicken & Broccoli Stovetop
    
  • Easy Recipes:  Philly Cheesesteak
    
  • Pumpkin Carving & Seed Roasting
  What are some of your favorite things? Leave a comment below to let us know! 
  

If you try it out, leave a comment below & tell me what you think. Also, what are some of your favorite easy desserts? 

My mom made us delicious Philly Cheesesteak sandwiches tonight and it was so good that I decided to write down how we made it so I can recreate it later in Mexico. So if you would like to try out our take on a Philly Cheesesteak, here is the "recipe". (Thanks to my sister, Alisha, for typing out most of this easy recipe.) *Please note, we are not from Philly therefore these will not necessarily be "authentic". 

Easy Recipe:  Philly Cheesesteak 
Ingredients: 
Thinly sliced beef (typically used for carne asada)
1 Onion, thinly sliced
1 Bell Pepper, thinly sliced
1 Can Mushrooms 
2 tsp Garlic Powder
2 T Worcestershire Sauce
Salt & Pepper to taste

For Sandwich:
Hoagie rolls
White melty cheese (we used sliced swiss but you can use provolone, pepper jack, white american, white cheddar, etc)

Brown the beef in a skillet. Once it is mostly cooked through, add garlic powder, worcestershire sauce, salt & pepper and finish cooking. Remove & set aside. 

Caramelize onions, bell pepper and mushrooms in the skillet with a dash of oil. When vegetables are cooked through to your preference, remove. 

Open a roll, add 2 slices of white melty cheese to bottom of the roll & layer on the beef and vegetable mixture. Serve with fries or chips and enjoy! 

Like this Easy Recipe? Make sure you check out the other recipes on our site and make sure to pin your favorites.

Here are a few to get you started:

• Easy Recipes: Cheesy Chicken & Broccoli Stovetop
• Easy Recipes:  Philly Cheesesteak
  
• Pumpkin Carving & Seed Roasting
  
• Easy Recipe:  Cherry Dump Cake
  

In September our students in Little Builder's Preschool, a ministry of Youth With A Mission (YWAM), studied apples like many preschoolers around the states. One of my favorite things to do with my students throughout the years has been making applesauce in our Preschool Kitchen. This year was no different.

So without further ado, here are the steps to making some amazing applesauce.

Ingredients:
Apples, cored, peeled & sliced
Water
Sugar

Start by cutting apples into bite-sized pieces. This allows for more cooking surface so it cooks faster plus it will cook down nicely & not need to be puréed. The kiddos loved using plastic knives to cut their apples.

Next put apple pieces into a pot or pan & add sugar. The amount of sugar will depend on the type of apples used (I like to mix several different kinds) & how sweet you want your applesauce. Add enough water to cover the apples. When our class did it each of my 8 students added 1 package of sugar & abt 1/4 cup of water.

Next, cook on high until boiling, then lower the temperature to medium. Stir constantly so sugar doesn't crystallize & apples don't stick. Cook down until apples are cooked through & you are happy with the consistency. If it is too thick, add more water. The end product should be a thicker sauce than you would buy in the jars.

We spooned ours into some small styrofoam cups to cool & eat later with our lunch. It was a very easy, yummy science lesson. I love cooking with kids because you can explain how foods are made, where they come from plus they are more likely to eat it if they helped make it. Preschool students love getting to be grown up and what better way to allow that than a little Preschool Kitchen time. 


So, what is your favorite thing to do with your kiddos? What fun foods have you made together? I'd love to hear abt it.

So a friend of mine decided to have a baking night and he came over to borrow some baking soda and vanilla.  It got me started thinking about some of my favorite, easy desserts and meals that cost very little.  I decided to share some of my easy recipes here for all of you to enjoy!!  

If you are coming over from Pinterest, WELCOME!! Make sure you check out a few of my other Easy Recipes.  I am a full-time missionary with Youth With a Mission and write about all kinds of different things like how something as simple as a home with a concrete floor can save a child's life. Read all of these stories and follow along with the Things That I'm Learning. 


Easy Recipe: Monkey Balls
This was a staple dessert in college.  Super easy and super inexpensive. This one takes a bit of time so make sure you have plenty before you start.

refrigerated canned biscuits (typically come in packs of 4 cans) - the kind that pop open and scare the living daylights out of you (for all those back home)
ground cinnamon
sugar
butter

Mix together to your taste preferences some cinnamon and sugar.  Put this mixture in a gallon-sized ziploc bag.  Open the canned biscuits and quarter each one.  Roll each quarter into round balls. Place the balls into the ziploc bag and shake until evenly coated.  Do this in small batches so that they don't stick together and each ball gets coated with the cinnamon/sugar mixture.  Once the balls are coated, place in a bundt pan or a baking sheet.  Balls should be placed together tightly.  Once all the balls are done, melt a bit of butter along with part of the remaining cinnamon/sugar mixture (reserve some for the crust).  Pour the melted butter/cinnamon/sugar mixture evenly all over the balls.  Sprinkle the left over reserved dry cinnamon/sugar mix.  Bake according to the directions on the biscuit can.  The balls should be soft with a sugar glazed crust on top.  ENJOY!!!!  

Easy Recipe: Gorilla Balls
I recently discovered this delightful treat from Paula Deen's website.  It is heavenly!!!  The directions are exactly the same as Monkey Balls but with a slight addition.

refrigerated canned biscuits (typically come in packs of 4 cans) - the kind that pop open and scare the living daylights out of you (for all those back home)
1 block of cream cheese, cubed
ground cinnamon
sugar
butter

Mix together to your taste preferences some cinnamon and sugar.  Put this mixture in a gallon-sized ziploc bag.  Open the canned biscuits and half each one.  In the center of each half place a cube of cream cheese.  Pinch the edges tightly to seal the cream cheese into the center of each half.  Roll each half into round balls. Place the balls into the ziploc bag and shake until evenly coated.  Do this in small batches so that they don't stick together and each ball gets coated with the cinnamon/sugar mixture.  Once the balls are coated, place in a bundt pan or a baking sheet.  Balls should be placed together tightly.  Once all the balls are done, melt a bit of butter along with part of the remaining cinnamon/sugar mixture (reserve some for the crust).  Pour the melted butter/cinnamon/sugar mixture evenly all over the balls.  Sprinkle the left over reserved dry cinnamon/sugar mix.  Bake according to the directions on the biscuit can.  The balls should be soft with a sugar glazed crust on top.  ENJOY!!!!  

The first time I made Gorilla Balls, I didn't have enough cream cheese so I made half a batch of the Gorilla Balls and half a batch of Monkey Balls.  Both were SO GOOD!!!  My roommates had never had either and loved them both!

Easy Recipe: Tuna Pasta Salad
This isn't a dessert but I have made this quite often here lately for a quick, easy and super cheap meal that is delish and filling.  I actually had it for dinner last night.  We used to eat this all the time at home growing up and I have always loved it.  They make a boxed version in Tuna Helper but I like this version much better, it's cheaper and makes way more!!

1 box of Rotini Pasta (I like the garden or vegetable kind) *this is the spiral noodles
1 bottle Italian Dressing (I like the zesty kind)
1/2 white onion, finely diced
a couple cans of tuna fish in water
*add-ins:  you can also add quartered cherry tomatoes, chopped olives (green or black), finely chopped celery, or any other vegetable finely chopped.

Cook Rotini Pasta until Al Dente (they should be soft with a slight bite in the middle) or the way you like it.  Drain Pasta.  Open and drain the cans of tuna.  I like to squeeze all the water out so that they are practically dry.  Mix together the Pasta, diced onions, tuna and any of the add-ins that you like.  Pour the Italian Dressing over and mix thoroughly. Do this to taste.  Some like a lot and some like a little.  I have found that if you are eating it hot, you may need more dressing than if you are planning to eat it cold.  That is what is great about this dish. You can serves it hot or cold.  It is SUPER easy and way cheap.  Most of these ingredients you can get at the dollar store and it serves a lot.

I think that is about all for now.  I hope you enjoy some of these recipes.  I know I do!! I love food and it's even better when it is quick, easy and inexpensive!!  Now, remember, I NEVER said these were healthy recipes, just delish, easy and inexpensive!

If you are coming over from Pinterest, WELCOME!! Make sure you check out a few of my other Easy Recipes.

Here are a few to get you started:

• Easy Recipes: Cheesy Chicken & Broccoli Stovetop
• Easy Recipes:  Philly Cheesesteak
  
• Pumpkin Carving & Seed Roasting
  
• Easy Recipe:  Cherry Dump Cake
  

What are some of your favorite things? Leave a comment below to let us know! 

So I got an email from a friend the other day requesting some easy recipes.  This was an email where you send one person a recipe and then you send the email out to 20 people and receive recipes from lots of people.  I don't normally participate in something like this but as some of you have probably already received this email from me, you know that I thought this was a good idea.  Since I moved to San Diego I am now responsible for cooking my own meals.  I know, I know, poor baby, the rest of the adult world has been doing that forever!!  But I realized that it has been a while since I have actually be the responsible one for making sure I am eating good, healthy meals.  When I was a nanny several years ago, one of my tasks was to make dinner for the 4 kids each evening.  I loved it and acquired many great meals in my repertoire.  I loved creating new meals that the kids would actually eat and hiding vegetables in everyday foods.  Don't get me wrong, there were days that we had the obligatory sandwich and popcorn or hot dogs with mac and cheese but we also had beef stroganoff and beef tips, pasta dishes, homemade chicken fingers and fries, cassaroles and all kinds of meals in between.  

I thought I would use this time to share one of my favorite dishes that I made and still love it today.  Now before you read ahead, I know that I didn't put amounts and measurements but that is because it really depends on how many people you are making for.  You know how much chicken you will eat and how much rice you will need for your family (or yourself).  It kinda is a "throw it all in the pan" kind of meal so you really can't get it wrong!!  I LOVE meals like that!

Easy Recipe: Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli Stovetop

Ingredients:
Boneless Skinless Chicken (can be tenderloins or breasts)
Frozen Broccoli
White Rice
Cream of Chicken Soup (can also use Cream of Mushroom)
Milk
Velveeta Cheese (to taste)

Directions:
Boil and prepare rice according to directions (I like to use the Minute Rice in a bag cause I can use the same water and pan for the broccoli later).  While water is boiling for rice, cut chicken into bite-sized pieces and cook thoroughly in a bit of olive oil in a large skillet or sauce pan as you will use this one pan for the whole dish.  Dice up Velveeta Cheese (as much or as little as you like).  Take the chicken out of the pan and pour the soup in bottom of pan along with ½ can of milk (use the same soup can).  Wisk until combined.  Mix in the Velveeta Cheese and stir until melted completely.   Boil broccoli until completely warmed through (you can use the same water as the rice if you use the Minute Rice in a bag).  Once broccoli is completely warmed through, return chicken and broccoli to the pan incorporating all the ingredients together.  Serve over rice and enjoy!! 

Who knows, perhaps I will start posting some of my other creations and discoveries as I make this transition back to preparing meals for myself.  Stay tuned and let me know if you make this and how you like it. 


Like this Easy Recipe? Make sure you check out the other recipes on our site. 

If you are coming over from Pinterest, WELCOME!! Make sure you check out a few of my other Easy Recipes.

Here are a few to get you started:

• Easy Recipes: Monkey Balls 
• Easy Recipes:  Philly Cheesesteak
  
• Pumpkin Carving & Seed Roasting
  
• Easy Recipe:  Cherry Dump Cake
  

What are some of your favorite things? Leave a comment below to let us know!