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Easiest Chili Recipe

January 7, 2025 by Laura 1 Comment

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Looking for the Easiest Chili Recipe? This has to be it.

I’ve shared other chili recipes with you through the years…

  • This Chili recipe that is super cheap because it is meatless.
  • Lentil Chili which is tasty, fast, and also cheap.

But after 30 years of marriage, feeding kids, feeding company, and making chili hundreds of times, I realized recently that I now have a favorite go-to chili recipe and it has yet to be shared here. Let’s solve that now!

Why is this my favorite chili recipe?

  1. Because there’s hamburger meat in it. This girl does like her beef.
  2. Because it comes together very quickly and with almost no effort.
  3. Because we can make it ahead of time and rewarm it when we want to serve it.
  4. Because it’s a perfect recipe to dump into a crock pot and have ready at dinner time.
  5. Because it freezes well. Might as well make a bunch and freeze some for another meal another time.

By the way. Have I talked about how much I love Rotel?

Probably not. But shucks if cans of Rotel haven’t become a buy-by-the-case-at-Costco-or-Sam’s ingredient that I must have in my pantry at all times.

There’s something about the flavor combination that makes food taste better. Like Rotel in this Spicy Ham and Potato Soup? I COULD EAT IT EVERY DAY.

And Rotel in this Easiest Chili Recipe? Yes, two cans please.

Look how easy it is to make this Chili:

  1. Brown hamburger meat.
  2. Stir in canned tomatoes and beans.
  3. Add spices.
  4. Simmer, slow cook, fast cook, freeze it, do whatever you need.

And after all that, serve it with Shredded Cheese, Sour Cream, and Fritos. See? The Easiest Chili Recipe.

Easiest Chili RecipeYum

Easiest Chili Recipe
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Serves: 10-12 servings
Ingredients
  • 2 pounds ground hamburger meat
  • 3 15-ounce cans beans (any combo you like and have on hand: pinto, red, kidney)
  • 3 15-ounce cans tomato sauce
  • 2 cans Rotel diced tomatoes and green chilies
  • 2 teaspoons onion powder
  • 2 Tablespoons chili powder (more if you like it spicier)
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
  1. Brown hamburger meat and drain excess grease if needed.
  2. Add all other ingredients with the cooked meat into a pot or crock pot and heat until bubbly (Crock pot: low for 4-6 hours or high for 2-3 hours)
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Want to make this chili stretch into several meals? Serve it with Baked Potatoes or Hot Dogs for Chili Cheese Dogs.

You are going to love how easy this is to make!

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Easy Crock Pot Meals and Desserts

December 30, 2024 by Laura Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Need Easy Crock Pot Meals and Desserts ideas?

I’ve found that lately, I’ve needed more crock pot meal ideas so that I can have our lunch or dinner ready when we plan to be out for the morning or afternoon.

Outings with these kids? They are a must. We’ve found that if we don’t keep our kids’ days very structured, the behaviors are a bigger struggle. Loading everyone up to use their energy in a productive way makes our days much better. It’s trickier in the cold weather months, but we find ways to still get out if possible.

We love the zoo, parks, children’s museum, and the library. We take walks, find ways to serve, and have lots of appointments.

I always pack snacks so that we don’t have as many hanger meltdowns while we are out. But always after any of these outings, we need lunch or dinner ready as soon as possible when we get home so we can sit right down and eat.

Easy Crock Pot Meals and DessertsYum

With all of this in mind, I needed an updated list of all of our crock pot meal, snack, and dessert ideas. I thought you might appreciate it too! So many meals can be made in the crock pot so that all we have to do is wash hands and eat when we get home from being out.

Keep this list handy. These meals are so helpful for so many reasons!

Also, fun fact: with our family becoming the large size that it is, I’ve found that often I have to move from a crock pot to our huge roaster! This is especially true when on Sundays when our adult kids come for lunch plus lots of guests!

And now the lists!

Main Dishes in the Crock Pot

  1. Simple Crock Pot Chicken Soup with a Kick
  2. Simple Creamy Chicken Stew in the Crock Pot
  3. Simple Hawaiian Crock Pot Chicken
  4. Simple Crock Pot BBQ Spareribs
  5. Simple Overnight Saucy Crock Pot Chicken
  6. Simple Overnight Melt-in-Your-Mouth Beef Roast
  7. Simple 3-Cheese Crock Pot Pasta
  8. Simple Crock Pot Shredded Ranch Chicken (for salad or tacos)
  9. Simple Crock Pot Pizza Casserole
  10. Simple Barbecue Beef Roast
  11. Simple Crock Pot Taco Pasta
  12. Simple Hawaiian Beef Roast
  13. Simple Hashbrown Casserole
  14. Simple Lasagna Casserole
  15. The Simplest White Chicken Chili
  16. Simple Crock Pot Applesauce BBQ Chicken
  17. Simple Three Cheese Spaghetti
  18. Simple Crock Pot Salsa Shredded Beef
  19. Easiest Beef Roast in the Instant Pot
  20. Simple One-Dish Chicken Florentine
  21. Simple Creamy Layered Enchiladas
  22. Simple Creamy Chicken Soup
  23. Simple Cheesy Salsa Chicken
  24. Simple Cheeseburger Noodle Crock Pot Dinner
  25. Simple Creamy Layered Enchiladas (Crock Pot or Oven)
  26. Simple 5-Minute Shredded Chicken
  27. Simple Crock Pot White Chicken Chili
  28. Simple Chili Mac
  29. Simple Crock Pot Creamy Stew Meat
  30. Simple 5-Minute Cheesy Hamburger and Potatoes
  31. Crock Pot Barbecue Chicken
  32. Breakfast Crock Pot Casserole
  33. Baked Potatoes in the Crock Pot
  34. Crock Pot Chicken Tacos
  35. Crock Pot Beef Stew
  36. Fiesta Chicken
  37. Creamy Crock Pot Chicken and Rice
  38. Italian Cream Cheese Chicken
  39. Turkey Sausage and Red Bean Stew
  40. 5-Minute Crock Pot Pasta
  41. Bacon in a Crock Pot
  42. Spicy Pasta Dinner
  43. The Easiest Pulled Pork
  44. Easy Ham and Potato Soup with a Kick
  45. Honey Glazed Pork Tenderloin or Pork Roast
  46. 5-Minute Crock Pot Chicken
  47. Taco Soup for a Crowd
  48. Make 5 Meals with 1 Pork Roast


Snacks and Side Dishes in the Crock Pot

  1. Hot Spinach and Artichoke Dip
  2. Calico Beans
  3. Crock Pot Mashed Potatoes
  4. Crock Pot Beans
  5. Hamburger Sauerkraut Dip
  6. Hamburger Cream Cheese Dip
  7. Apple Butter


I don’t often use these recipes in the winter, but in the summer, baking in a crock pot is fun!

Desserts in the Crock Pot

  1. Simple Crock Pot Chocolate Peanut Butter Lava Cake
  2. Crock Pot Cheesecake
  3. Crock Pot Chocolate Peanut Butter Pudding Cake
  4. Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cake
  5. How to Bake a Cake in a Crock Pot
  6. Strawberry Shortcake in a Crock Pot

What are your favorite crock pot recipes?

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Dark Chocolate Espresso Pie

December 20, 2024 by Laura Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

It’s our 2024 Christmas Brunch: Dark Chocolate Espresso Pie Recipe!

Oh yes, we are doing this!

A few months ago, our family hosted a Neighborhood Pie Party. Everyone from several blocks around was invited and asked to bring a favorite pie to share. It was a wonderful party with over 40 people in attendance!

Someone brought in a Mocha Pie and it was so very good. I decided to try and duplicate it for our 2024 Christmas Brunch!

It’s so easyYum

You know me. I rarely make anything that’s complicated. So I took the easiest chocolate pie recipe ever and turned it into a Dark Chocolate Espresso Pie with very little effort!

This pie includes simple ingredients like dark chocolate chips, whipping cream, and butter. Ah, and ground espresso.

Dark Chocolate Espresso Pie

Dark Chocolate Espresso Pie
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Serves: 8-12
Ingredients
  • 10-ounces dark chocolate chips
  • 4 Tablespoons butter
  • 2 cups whipping cream
  • 3 Tablespoons ground espresso
  • 9-inch pie crust (regular, graham cracker, or oreo)
Instructions
  1. In a small saucepan, melt the chocolate chips and butter together.
  2. Once melted, whip the chocolate mixture with cream and ground espresso using beaters or in a high power blender until smooth and thick.
  3. Pour mixture into a prepared pie crust.
  4. Chill pie for at least two hours before serving.
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This is the fifth and final 2024 Christmas Brunch recipe, and it’s a perfect one to end on. But we aren’t done yet. Come back tomorrow for our Thank You Gift!

The other four recipes featured in our Christmas Brunch:

  • Holiday Spice Muffins and Quick Bread recipe
  • Christmas Casserole
  • Hot Cocoa Punch
  • Santa’s Big Batch Drop Cookies

Coming up next: A very sweet gift for you!

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Santa’s Big Batch Drop Cookies

December 19, 2024 by Laura Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

It’s our 2024 Christmas Brunch: Santa’s Big Batch Drop Cookies recipe!

You’ll use four sticks of butter with this one, but it’s worth it. Why? Well, because these are delicious. But even better? You’ll end up with enough cookies to enjoy at home and share with others too.

The best thing about these cookies is that they are a wonderful sugar cookie – but without all the work of rolling out and cutting out dough. We love the tradition of making cut-out cookies too. But when Santa is busy, this is where we turn.

You’ll get about 40 cookies with this recipe!

Santa’s Big Batch Drop CookiesYum

Santa's Big Batch Drop Cookies
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Serves: 3-4 dozen
Ingredients
  • 2 cups melted butter
  • 2 cups raw sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 eggs
  • 4 cups flour
Instructions
  1. Cream butter and sugar together.
  2. Stir in baking soda, vanilla, and eggs.
  3. Add flour until well-combined.
  4. Drop scoops of cookie dough onto cookie sheets two inches apart and bake in a 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes.
  5. Remove cookies from pan when they look slightly underdone so that they are soft in the middle.
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You can roll balls of dough in colored sugar before baking if you want to make them more festive. We find that a fun Christmas plate offers all we need to fancy these up!

I love that you are a part of our fun 2024 Christmas Brunch! In case you missed them, here are the other recipes we’ve shared so far:

  • Holiday Spice Muffins and Quick Bread recipe
  • Christmas Casserole
  • Hot Cocoa Punch

Up next: Dark Chocolate Espresso Pie

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Hot Cocoa Punch

December 18, 2024 by Laura 2 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

It’s our 2024 Christmas Brunch: Hot Cocoa Punch Recipe!

What’s special about Hot Cocoa Punch? EVERYTHING.

The mug, the taste, the fun treat. We made this for our kids last week, because of course we had to taste test all of our Christmas Brunch recipes before we shared them with you. What did they think?

Hot Cocoa Punch is a perfectly fun treat, and tastes wonderful after enjoying our Holiday Spice Muffins and Christmas Casserole.

Step 1: Make Hot Cocoa

Make it with a packet. Make it from scratch. Do whatever works for you. At our house we do either/or depending on our ability of the day. But our favorite Hot Cocoa is this and it’s worth taking a few extra minutes to make a batch.

Step 2: Pull out the vanilla ice cream

Again, buy it at the store or make it from scratch. If you can make Vanilla Ice Cream like this – WOW is it good! (Maybe you should ask for a Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker for Christmas!)

Step 3: Put your punch together

Scoop Ice Cream into Mugs. Then pour in some hot cocoa. Suddenly you’ve got a creamy, frothy mug of delicious Hot Cocoa Punch!

This is easy, fun, and can be made with the finest of ingredients or with a packet and a spoon!

Hot Cocoa Punch RecipeYum

Hot Cocoa Punch
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
  • ⅓ cup water
  • ½ cup cocoa
  • 1 cup raw sugar or brown sugar
  • 10 cups whole milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1.5 quarts vanilla ice cream (or one recipe of Homemade)
Instructions
  1. In large saucepan stir together water, cocoa and sugar.
  2. Bring to a boil.
  3. Stir in milk and heat until small bubbles begin to form around the edges, stirring constantly.
  4. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.
  5. Scoop vanilla pudding into holiday mugs.
  6. Add hot cocoa to each mug and serve right away.
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I love that you are a part of our fun 2024 Christmas Brunch! Shared so far:

  • Holiday Spice Muffins and Quick Bread recipe
  • Christmas Casserole

Up next: Santa’s Big Batch Drop Cookies

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Christmas Casserole Recipe

December 17, 2024 by Laura 3 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

It’s our 2024 Christmas Brunch: Christmas Casserole Recipe!

You are going to love this Christmas Casserole recipe! It is simple, hearty, flavorful, and you can make it ahead of time for ease.

How easy is it? Well, it’s easier if we cheat just a little bit.

Yes indeed. I buy a package of frozen peppers and onions and dump it right into my skillet instead of cutting fresh veggies. It doesn’t cost much more and let’s see…what else is there to do this time of year?? THERE’S SO MUCH TO DO, I don’t have time to make a list.

Therefore…

TIP: Buy the frozen veggies.

Or cut them fresh. I’m fine with whatever you decide.

Mmmm, brown those veggies with sausage.

Add eggs, shredded cheese, and frozen hashbrowns. (Yes, frozen hashbrowns. Do I need to whine about the 38 presents I still need to wrap? I buy shredded cheese and frozen hashbrowns even when it ISN’T Christmas. So, of course I buy them in December for survival.

TIP: Mr. Dell’s frozen hashbrowns contain only one ingredient: potatoes. Amen and thank you.

Put that casserole all together, then cover it and refrigerate it or freeze it until you’re ready to bake it. Oh how wonderful it is. Do you see why it’s called Christmas Casserole? The lovely red and green peppers (that we bought in the freezer aisle to keep our season merry and bright) have made our casserole so pretty!

Christmas Casserole RecipeYum

Christmas Casserole Recipe
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Serves: 8-10
Ingredients
  • 1-pound ground sausage
  • 20-ounce bag frozen pepper and onion blend
  • 12 eggs
  • ⅓ cup heavy whipping cream
  • 3 cups frozen shredded or cubed hashbrowns
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 2 cups shredded cheese
Instructions
  1. Brown sausage and vegetables together in a skillet until sausage is no longer pink.
  2. Allow mixture to cool while preparing the rest of the casserole.
  3. Crack eggs directly into a 9x13 inch baking pan.
  4. Add cream, hashbrowns, salt, and cheese.
  5. Stir in sausage/veggie mixture and mix well.
  6. Bake in a 350 degree oven 45 minutes or until the middle of the casserole no longer jiggles and is golden brown.
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Did you try the Holiday Spice Muffins and Quick Bread recipe I shared to kick off our brunch? These are perfect with our Christmas Casserole.

Up next in our 2024 Christmas Brunch: Hot Cocoa Punch

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Holiday Spice Muffins and Quick Bread

December 16, 2024 by Laura Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

It’s our 2024 Christmas Brunch: Holiday Spice Muffins and Quick Bread Recipe!

This recipe couldn’t be any simpler! It’s a basic muffin or quick bread recipe with the perfect blend of holiday spices to make it taste just right at Christmastime.

The secret ingredient?? SHHHHH. I can’t tell you!

Just kidding. You’ll read about it below in a minute and a half anyway. Actually, you’ve read it here before, and I stand by this great option as a way to make our muffins and quick breads taste better. It is, none other than, sour cream.

Yep. A plop of sour cream in our quick breads and muffins takes them up several notches.

The making of the muffinsYum

My work time is so limited now because of the precious houseful of additional kids God has given us. Therefore, it has been a very long time since I created new recipes to share with you. That is why, when I was staging our Holiday Spice Muffins to take a picture to share with you, all the kids gathered around to get in the picture. Why take a boring ol’ photo of muffins when obviously, everyone wants to see a picture of the babies!!

Josie Baby

Next, I managed to take this picture of the bread, but meh. It would have been sweeter with a sweetheart in the frame.

Either way, WELCOME to the very first day of our 2024 Christmas Brunch! The first recipe to be shared is this perfectly sweetened, lovely and moist Holiday Spice Muffin and Quick Bread recipe.

Turn this recipe into 18 muffins or two medium-sized loaves of bread. It’s a lovely side to go with tomorrow’s Christmas Casserole recipe!

Holiday Spice Muffins and Quick Bread

Holiday Spice Muffins and Quick Bread
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Ingredients
  • 3 cups whole grain flour
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon ground cloves
  • ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1 cup milk
  • ¾ cup sour cream
  • 2 eggs
  • ½ cup melted coconut oil
Instructions
  1. In a mixing bowl, stir together all dry ingredients.
  2. Add in milk, sour cream, eggs, and oil and mix well.
  3. Scoop into 18 paper-lined muffin tins or 2 well-buttered loaf pans.
  4. Bake muffins in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes or bread in a 350 degree oven for 45-55 minutes.
3.5.3251

Coming up tomorrow in our 2024 is the most delicious breakfast casserole that is perfect for Christmas! Best yet, it can be made ahead of time to be baked and enjoyed Christmas morning. Come one, come all!

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Best Recipe for Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker

July 19, 2024 by Laura 17 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Here’s our best recipe for Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker…

Last fall, a friend of mine acquired an extra Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker and gifted it to me! One of my first thoughts was, “FUN! But when will I have time to figure out how to use a new kitchen appliance?” Reading instructions is not my favorite. ;)

Thank goodness the instructions were easy. And shucks, ice cream was the reward for taking time to figure out the new appliance, so that was motivating too. :)

Now that I’ve figured out how easy this is to use, I can’t tell you how many batches of ice cream we’ve made this summer. It is The.Easiest. There is no mess. Please admire my fancy homemade ice cream containers, haha.

People are like, “How do YOU have time to make homemade ice cream??” And they’d be right except that truly, I can put together a batch in three minutes and it’s completed in 20. No rock salt. No ice. No mess.

It’s so much fun treating guests to homemade ice cream!

If you love homemade ice cream but don’t love the mess and time it takes – invest in one of these sweet machines. They aren’t even expensive.

How to use a Cuisinart Ice Cream MakerYum

Step One: FREEZE THE CUISINART CANISTER. It must be completely frozen in order for the ice cream to set up. Once you’re sure it’s ready to go…

I use my blender to mix 1 cup of milk with 1/2 cup of raw sugar or maple syrup.

Then I add in two cups heavy whipping cream, a dash of sea salt, and a teaspoon of vanilla and give that a whirl too.

I get my frozen canister out of the freezer and put it onto the base. I slide in the mixing arm and put on the lid. Then I plug in and turn on the machine. At that point, I pour in my ice cream mixture.

About fifteen minutes later, the ice cream is almost finished!

For vanilla ice cream, I wait another couple of minutes until the machine sounds a bit strained – then I know it’s done! If I’m adding anything to the vanilla ice cream, this is the point the add-in can be poured in.

Two minutes later, it’s mixed in well and the batch is complete!

Here’s a peek at a batch of Vanilla Ice Cream without any add-ins. Once the batch is finished, I use a wooden spoon to transfer the ice cream to a clean plastic container and put it in the freezer. The canister can be washed and put back into the freezer to be ready for the next round!

Great Ice Cream Add-Ins we’ve tried:

  • 2 fresh peaches, blended into a puree
  • 1 cup fresh strawberries, blended into a puree
  • 10 oreo-type cookies, crushed
  • 1-2 large butterfinger candy bars, crushed

Best Recipe for Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker

5.0 from 3 reviews
Best Recipe for Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Serves: 8 servings
Ingredients
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • ½ cup real maple syrup or raw sugar
  • 2 cups heavy whipping cream
  • dash of salt
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
  1. Be sure your Cuisinart Ice Cream Bowl has been in the freezer for at least 8 hours.
  2. Whisk together milk and syrup/sugar.
  3. Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
  4. Set up Ice Cream Maker, getting out the frozen bowl at the last minute.
  5. Turn on the machine and pour ice cream mixture into the cold bowl.
  6. Allow mixture to turn into ice cream - about 15-20 minutes.
  7. *Pour any add-ins into the machine as the ice cream is almost complete and has just a few minutes remaining to process.
  8. Transfer ice cream to a freezer-friendly container.
3.5.3251

I love how simple this is and how much fun it is to offer homemade ice cream with so little effort!

Look into a Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker here.

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Recipes That Include Bacon

May 21, 2024 by Laura 4 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

If you read about our 30-pounds of bacon situation, then you know that it only makes sense that I would put together a post full of recipes that include bacon!

30-pounds of bacon, you ask?

Well, yes. Go big or go home, I guess. Matt was being extra helpful when I sent him into Sam’s to grab our favorite box of bacon. He figured we’d go through one box pretty quickly so he might as well pick up three boxes just to be sure it was enough.

I mean, we do feed 13 people daily and extra people on the regular. But 30-pounds of bacon?? Well, it’s a lot.

This is only two of our three boxes. :)

Challenge accepted.Yum

The first few days after acquiring our bulk bacon, we went all in. We made it for breakfast, the adults in our household took it for their lunches, and we made some forgotten recipes that included bacon for dinner. We had company one evening and I planned the entire meal around bacon. I handed off an entire 10-pound box to a friend. So after only five days of picking up 30-pounds of bacon? We only had 11-pound left!

At the top of our list of favorite dinner recipes that include bacon: Creamy Bacon Spaghetti.

Every person from little to big loved this, so I will be making it more often!

In case you ever find yourself in a too-much-bacon situation (is there really such a thing?) keep this post full of recipe links in your back pocket!

Recipes That Include Bacon

First of all, we make bacon bits like this, or I bake bacon in strips like this. Once I have extra bacon made, I can put together any of these great recipes:

  • Make Ahead Chicken Bacon Sandwiches
  • Instant Pot Bacon Chicken Pasta
  • Potato and Bacon Foil Packs for the Grill
  • Simple Broccoli Bacon Chicken
  • Broccoli Bacon Salad
  • Bacon Cheeseburger Roll
  • Simple Bacon Cheeseburger Casserole
  • Creamy Bacon Spaghetti
  • Bacon Cheese Muffins
  • Bacon, Egg, and Avocado Salad
  • BLT Chopped Salad
  • BLT Wraps
  • Bacon Ranch Chicken
  • Bacon Tomato Dip
  • Easy Make-Ahead Baked Potato and Bacon Casserole
  • Bacon Ranch Hashbrown Casserole
  • Bacon Ranch Chip Dip

What’s your favorite way to enjoy bacon?

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Better-For-You Mocha Coffee Creamer

May 14, 2024 by Laura 4 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Try this Better-For-You Mocha Coffee Creamer recipe!

But first, the back story.Yum

Well, it only took adding seven high-need kids to our household to meet my goal – but I’ve accomplished it. I finally won Matt over to drinking coffee with me. :)

You see, after I became at coffee drinker, I dreamed about how lovely it would be if Matt and I could sit and enjoy coffee together. I suggested he try it, I made tasty coffee combinations, I smiled really cute. But bummer though – after multiple attempts, he still didn’t like coffee. :(

I’d continue to hear about couples who got up in the morning and sat at the table drinking coffee together. How sweet, thought I! I want to do that. Come on, Matt! Just try it some more. I promise you’ll like it.

But nope. Like it he did not.

So I pulled out all the stops.

I went to great lengths. I came up with a strategy that would be fool proof.

What if, I thought? What if we adopted so many kids that Matt would be so tired that he had no choice but to become a coffee drinker? Ah-ha! Now there’s an idea.

Well. Six years and six (soon to be seven) adopted kids later – I have done it! Matt drinks coffee now. Getting up with hungry babies and falling-out-of-bed children for 1,460 nights in a row did the trick! Never quite getting enough sleep and still having to push through the day to care for children – well that would make anyone pour a steaming cup of joe, wouldn’t it?

Indeed.

So here we are. Matt has become a coffee drinker. Aren’t you so impressed with me for coming up with such a brilliant strategy as to turn him over the the dark side? Now we can fulfill my dream!! Now Matt and I can sit at the table and drink coffee together! How precious. What bliss. A dream come true…

Oh the irony.

Alas. My dearest one and I do not have time to sit at the table and drink coffee together. Need I remind you about the seven incredible children living in our house with us? Adorable, sweet, and precious as they are – they make a person need coffee for survival. But they do not yet understand how to leave their parents alone long enough to actually sit and drink it. Ever. At a table. Together.

We’ll get there. In 2027ish, perhaps. Meanwhile, that’s the back story to how this Mocha Coffee Creamer recipe came about. Bless.

Mocha Coffee Creamer is hard to find for some reason?

I’m a coffee with half-and-half or heavy whipping cream girl myself. No sugar needed. But Matt prefers a little something sweet in his coffee to make it more palatable.

While there are oodles of French Vanilla, Hazelnut, and Salted Caramel Mocha creamers to be found – (and yeah, we know they are full of not-so-great ingredients but we’ve sunk that low in this area and we are unapologetic about it) – finding a simple Mocha Creamer is next to impossible.

We did find one at Wal-mart – in a tiny container that lasts three days and costs twice as much. I figured that surely, even with time so limited, I could come up with a Mocha Coffee Creamer for my guy who works so tirelessly to keep our world spinning.

And here it is. The recipe. But first, some tips:

  1. Make this thicker by subbing some or all of the half and half with heavy whipping cream.
  2. Add more or less sugar to this recipe per your preference. Matt thought it was plenty sweet with the 1/4 cup of sugar added. Malachi preferred it with much more sugar because, of course.
  3. Sub peppermint extract for vanilla if you want a Peppermint Mocha Coffee Creamer.

Better-For-You Mocha Coffee Creamer

Better-For-You Mocha Coffee Creamer
 
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Author: Laura
Serves: 3 cups
Ingredients
  • 3 cups half and half
  • ¼-1/2 cup sugar or honey (to taste)
  • 3 heaping teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder
  • ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
  1. In a saucepan, whisk together half-and-half, sugar, and cocoa powder.
  2. Cook and stir on medium heat until mixture is well-combined and steamy.
  3. Remove from heat and add vanilla.
  4. Allow creamer to cool before transferring it to a quart-sized jar or another container with a lid.
  5. Refrigerate to chill and use in coffee, shaking jar at first if needed.
3.5.3251

To all who are in the thick of doing hard things and relying on the strength of God and coffee to help you do it, I raise my cup to you.

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