This #Feast4All shop has been compensated by #CollectiveBias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone.

I absolutely love Thanksgiving. Tasty food, catching up with family and just a relaxing night--plus our annual post-dinner game, usually girls vs boys.  Much less stressful than Christmas!  I don't mind indulging during the holidays, as long as I'm smart about it.  I love turkey, stuffing and all of the fixings.  For dessert, anything pumpkin is on my list!

Pumpkin pie is pretty drool-worthy on it's own, but it can be pretty time consuming if you're making it from scratch.  This pumpkin pie CAKE is simple and actually quite healthy! Instead of butter or oil, I used mashed banana and applesauce (shhh, no one has to know!).  This recipe does still use sugar, but I love using baking Splenda for an alternative to regular.  At first I was considering a cream cheese frosting, but I decided to top with shredded Honeycrisp apples and then Edy's Slow Churned ice cream in vanilla bean.  The final finishing touch is a drizzle of sugar free caramel topping.  YUM!  

This Pumpkin Pie Cake has a very similar texture to Pumpkin Pie, so a little square will be more than enough.  I love that you can make this cake in one 9x13 pan and feed your whole crowd!  

Are you an Edy's Slow Churned fan? It's super creamy and full of flavor.  I love that they actually put TONS of toppings in their ice cream, too--the cookie dough has enough for every bite! The seasonal flavors are always a hit in this house.  Last summer they had a salted caramel to die for!  For the fall, keep your eyes peeled for the Pumpkin Pie variety.

I headed to Walmart to stock up on all of my holiday baking fixins.  I figure if I start stocking up on the basics like sugar, flour, chocolate chips, etc now, I'll be set by December! I was SO happy with their supply and low prices.  Libby's canned pumpkin, which we use quite a bit for baking banana bread, was on price-cut to $0.89!  The entire center aisle had baking supplies all together, so convenient!

PUMPKIN PIE CAKE

Here's what you need: 

Makes: 1 Cake (9x13 sheet)

• 1/2 cup mashed banana
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 can Libby's 100% Pumpkin Puree (15 oz)
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup skim evaporated milk
• 1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (or regular skim)
• 3 Honeycrisp apples shredded and drained of liquid
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
• 2 cups baking Splenda (or regular sugar)
• 2 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• For topping: Edy's Slow Churned vanilla bean and sugar free caramel topping

Let's Bake!

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Spray 9x13 dish with Pam.
3. Combine: banana, applesauce, pumpkin, eggs, milk and vanilla in a mixer.  Mix together on low until blended.
4. In a small bowl, add flour, baking soda, baking powder and spices.
5. Slowly add dry ingredients to mixing bowl. 
6. Pour into baking dish.  Sprinkle shredded apple on top, adding extra cinnamon if desired.
7. Bake 45-50 minutes. 
8. Serve warm with Edy's Slow Churned ice cream and drizzle with caramel.  To store, put in refrigerator. 

What's your favorite part of Thanksgiving?  Does your family have a game night too?

Pumpkin Pie Cake topped with Edy's Slow Churned ice cream! A healthified Thanksgiving dessert! #Feast4All #Shop

A video posted by Ashleigh Evans (@itscheapash) on Nov 11, 2014 at 4:24pm PST

Back-to-School Snack Time: Quick and Easy After School Snacks!

Disclaimer: This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #CollectiveBias

My girls love to graze all day long, so I'm worried they are going to be STARVING by the time they get home from kindergarten.  Remember how important the after school snack was when you were little?  The best would be if you got fresh cookies or a tasty oven treat like Bagel Bites.  I'm going to need to have a snack ready for when we get back from our walk home.  It will have to be filling enough to hold them over for dinner, but not too big to spoil their dinner. I have a feeling we will be having some early nights after the first few exhausting days of school.

We have ONE WEEK until the girls start kindergarten.  I am a ball of emotions!  On one hand I cannot wait for them to have school-- they are getting pretty bored at home!  There are only so many activities you can do that seem fresh by this point of the summer.  On the other hand, I cannot believe my twins are already this old! I'm so fortunate that the school is within walking distance and we will have a fun new routine every day.

Things are quite different for kindergarten these days.  I'm kind of shocked by it!  They go full days (8:55-3:55 with ONE recess) and the principal tagged kindergarten as "the new 1st/2nd grade".  This will be quite an eye opener! All I remember about kindergarten is coloring and making friends.  That's about it!

Check out my super cool laser background!

Since today was rainy and gloomy, we headed out to Walmart to pick up some lunchbox and after-school treats.  As you can see in the pics, they are SO ready for school.  Non-stop arguing and whining. For the first few weeks, I thought I would let them have special snacks they don't always have: Bagel Bites and Delimex Chicken taquitos. We are huge dippers, so we like to put all of the snacks on a platter with 3-4 dippers: ranch, guacamole, salsa and queso. Quick and easy! We can sit and dip our snacks and catch up on the day.  I know Olivia and Maddie will have SO many stories to tell!

Before you head out to the store, make sure print off some coupons!  There is one for the Bagel Bites and any Delimex product-we love the beef taquitos too. I love that Bagel Bites use real cheese and homemade sauce--they are something I feel comfortable giving my girls. #AfterSchoolSnacks

First day of preschool last year!  Stay tuned for the kindergarten one!

As this week before school flies by, I keep telling myself to stop and cherish every moment with my girls.  After they start kindergarten, nothing is the same!  No longer will we have lazy Tuesday mornings in bed watching PBS or mid-morning trips to the library for fun story hour.  Gabby will have me all to herself and this should be interesting.  She is 3 and has started to get that diva, larger than life attitude.  I can't imagine what my full, undivided attention will bring! Watch out!

What was your favorite after-school snack?

Mmmm Monday: Loaded Bacon Idaho Nachos #PackedWithSavings

Disclosure: This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc and its advertiser. All opinions and tasty recipes are my own. #PackedWithSavings #CollectiveBias

Did you know that you can find printable coupons on the Walmart.com website?  Right now I have been printing online coupons up a storm now that we're getting ready for back-to-school chaos! I want a stocked pantry and freezer for those upcoming busy nights.  There are 20 Kraft coupons to help you stock up on all of your favorites!

 

There is something about bacon and cheese that I can't resist. After a long weekend working, I came home yesterday and all I wanted was some comfort food.  In my opinion, comfort food at home is A-OK since you know what's going in it.  Better-for-you takeout, right?! 

While I love any nacho I can get my hands on, I like to switch it up too!  These Idaho nachos use thinly sliced potatoes which you can bake or flash fry.  Topped with crispy bacon and cheese, these are the ultimate comfort food.  The icing on the cake is my specialty dip--a creamy, spiced ranch dip.  Once you make this dip, you will NEVER go back to store bought french onion dip again.  It's THAT GOOD.

We have a new Walmart that opened up last week right by our house.  It's going to be so convenient--I think Olivia might be more excited than I am! The girls love to help me shop, so I handed them their list and some coupons to use (brave, I know!).  Olivia helped me with the cheese, Maddie helped me with Jell-O and other snacks we needed.  Although it takes me MUCH longer to shop with the girls, even with Ricky tagging along, I love the family time we spend at the store.  My ladies love food!

Here's what you need:

• 3-4 large potatoes, washed and thinly sliced
• Bacon, cooked and chopped. We love the new nitrate free Oscar Mayer Selects
• Kraft shredded cheese
• For the dip:
• 1 cup whipped cream cheese (entire container)
• 1/2 cup Kraft Ranch
• 1/4 teaspoon each of: garlic powder, onion powder, curry powder, paprika and parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• Additional tasty toppings: green onion, tomatoes/salsa, jalapenos, BBQ chicken, pulled pork...whatever your heart desires!

1.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
2. Cook the potatoes.  You can bake them for 8-10 minutes at 400* or flash fry in shallow oil in a pan over medium heat.  They should be cooked through, but not super brown.
3. Lay the potatoes in a single layer on a lined cookie sheet.  Top with cheese and bacon. Cook for 5-7 minutes, until cheese is melted.
4. While the potatoes are cooking, make up the ranch dip by simply combining all spices and ingredients.  This will make extra, perfect for dipping chips later!
5. Once the nachos are out of the oven, top with your favorite toppings and dip in the cool ranch dip!

If you're going to watch football at a friend's house on a Sunday, these are the perfect nachos to bring to wow the crowd.  You can pre-cook the potatoes and throw them in the fridge.  Another idea would be to simply cook the nachos with cheese and have a toppings bar for people to add their own favorites.  Also, you MUST HAVE is the dip!

What's your favorite comfort food?

Mmmm Mondays: Buffalo Ranch Mac n' Cheese {New Kraft Dressing Recipe!} #FoodDeservesDelicious

Disclaimer: This post has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #CollectiveBias

I cannot get enough of spicy food lately.  Actually, it started right around the time I was pregnant with Gabby.  I wanted super spicy salsa and hot sauce on everything.  I even was craving hot wings, which I normally cannot stand (chicken on bones creeps me out!). I love coming up with new recipes using dipping sauces or a spicy dip recipe. 

Macaroni and cheese is normally a winter comfort food, but I think it's tasty anytime!  Making it homemade is almost as fast as the big blue box--I make my cheese sauce while the noodles are boiling.  When you make your own sauce, you know exactly what's in it and you can play around with flavors.  I usually add hot sauce to my bowl plain macaroni and cheese, since the girls don't like super spicy food (duh!). 

Kraft's new and improved pourables have more flavor than ever before! The Classic Ranch is now creamier, with more buttermilk and savory herbs. We always have a large stock of Kraft dressings in our pantry for easy meals.  They're always on sale and have amazing flavor--perfect for marinades, sauces and experimentation.  Buffalo Ranch is a perfect combo for a cheesy sauce.  Instead of milk, I used the classic Ranch dressing for a burst of flavor. 

I was gone in Texas this past weekend for a conference, so I figured I would treat Ricky to a tasty meal when I got home.  After picking me up from the airport, we headed straight to Walmart for groceries.  You know how it is when Mama is gone: there's no healthy food to eat (meals are always questionable--I've stopped asking what they eat when I'm gone).  We needed all of the basics.

Here's what you need:

• 3.5 cups cooked elbow noodles (3/4 box)
• 1 large jalapeno, sliced thinly
• 2 Tbl Butter
• 2 Tbl Flour
• 1 Cup Kraft Classic Ranch Dressing
• 1.5 cups Chicken Stock
• 1.5 Cup Colby Jack Cheese, plus 1/2 cup for topping
• 2 Tbl Franks Buffalo Sauce
• 1/2 cup Panko Bread Crumbs

 Let's Cook!

• Preheat oven to 375
• Cook elbow noodles to al dente (about 5-6 minutes TOPS)
• In a large pan, sautee jalapeno in butter until soft
• Slowly add flour and brown for 1 minute
• Whisk in ranch and stir until mixed together, then slowly add chicken stock.  Finally add Franks.  Stir until mixed well.
• Add 1 cup of cheese and allow to melt
• Add more or less hot sauce, to taste. This should be pretty spicy! 
• Once cheese is melted, slowly add in elbow noodles
• You can be done at this point, but for an extra crunch we like to bake ours with extra cheese
• Spray baking dish with Pam, then pour macaroni and cheese into it.  Top with cheese and panko
• Bake for 12-15 minutes, until brown

This would be a great meal to make on the weekend for a busy weeknight.  You could put it in the baking dish and then top with cheese and panko before you bake it.   Also, grilled chicken would be AMAZING with this.  One time I made this with poblano peppers, which added a spicy kick.

To find more tasty recipes using Kraft pourable dressing, follow other #CollectiveBias bloggers with the #FoodDeservesDelicious hashtag on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest! 

What's your favorite dish to make with Kraft Dressing? I love to experiment beyond salads and marinades!