banana Archives - Page 3 of 3 - Simply Happenstance

Green Berry Smoothie

January 9, 2014

It’s a New Year can you believe it? I am thinking positive by starting my day positive and healthy with a Green Berry Smoothie. Yes, as you can tell Sara and I love smoothies. Did I mention I worked at Jamba Juice when I was a freshman in college, so yes I am a smoothie dork? I love the way they make me feel in the morning. I need what ever additional energy I can get, because the whole coffee thing doesn’t get things cracking around here.

I know I am not alone in this whole “feeling good” department and it is something we are always striving to find. Every year I do make a few resolutions or vows of some simple life changes. I do have to say that we eat pretty healthy around here when we can, but one of the life changes I would like to incorporate in our life style is adding some gluten free meals into our diet. This Green Berry Smoothie is gluten free recipe and it is packed with protein, fruits, and vegetables. But what I am HOPING {it’s my word this year} is to add it more into our kids diet. With Mason being on the Autism Spectrum, his diagnosis has yet to prove it’s results in a gluten free lifestyle as he is very high functioning, but I think that it can improve his attention span and his energy level in a positive way. As for myself, we haven’t seen much winter here and there is always the beach and pool that us mamas have to attend to with the kids. [Read more…]

Pumpkin Applesauce Muffins

October 18, 2013

:: Pumpkin Applesauce Muffins ::

Do you have an upcoming school event that that requires you to bring a healthy home made snack? These Pumpkin Applesauce Muffins are the perfect fall treat. Loaded with pumpkin flavor these little muffins make for an easy bite sized snack. Made without nuts and the additive of applesauce and yogurt with a mixture of canned pumpkin these muffins won’t disappoint your little ones. I know for myself, I often would love to bring in cupcakes for a birthday celebration or fall party, but these muffins were just as fun with half the sugar. Easy to make and full of pumpkin spice flavor this is sure to be a new healthy fall treat to add to your list. [Read more…]

Blueberry Banana Coffeecake

August 22, 2013

:: Blueberry Banana Coffeecake ::

You already know that I’m a bit obsessed with warm, wholesome muffins. What you don’t know, is that I have the same obsession over coffeecake! For me… it started many, many years ago. I was fortunate to have a mom who let me explore the kitchen and come up with “concoctions,” as I liked to call them. I spent my Saturday mornings as a young child whipping up what I thought to be delicious creations with whatever I could get my hands on {baking soda, flour, vanilla extract, eggs, green food coloring — you get the idea!}. I would then try to feed my tasty “concoctions” to my family {they must have loved me!}. Luckily for them, by the age of seven, I started making coffeecake from scratch. Warm, comforting, sweet, buttery, cinnamon coffeecakes! Over the years, I’ve tried dozens of variations. Last week, I had bananas that were overly ripe and a carton of fresh blueberries to work with. After a little recipe research, I converted a standard banana bread recipe into this delectable, moist breakfast treat! Yum! [Read more…]

Old-Fashioned Banana Pudding

May 13, 2013

:: Old-Fashioned Banana Pudding ::

It really is simple. Use only the finest ingredients, pour some love into what you cook…. and the result is a rich, smooth, creamy dessert that will make your taste buds dance with delight!

You can adjust the sweetness of this particular dish by the amount of sugar that you add. It’s all a matter of personal preference. After allowing the pudding to chill in the fridge, dish it up and top with perfectly ripe banana slices & crunchy vanilla wafer cookies. The subtle hint of fresh banana combined with the tiny flecks of natural vanilla bean in the pudding makes this an old-fashioned dish you’ll remember!

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