Easiest Ever Peanut Butter Cookies

1 cup natural peanut butter (creamy or crunchy)
1 egg
1 cup sugar
You’ve got to love a cookie with only 3 ingredients, right? Just mix them together, roll into balls, and place on a greased cookie sheet. Dip a fork in sugar (to prevent sticking) and use the tines to flatten cookies and make crisscross patterns  on [...]

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Tuna Pan Bagna

I was pretty sure the kids would turn up their noses at this tonight, but they loved it! I think this may become a summer-time staple around here.
Makes 4 servings
1 16-inch-long loaf French bread (though I used a round loaf of homemade bread)
¼ cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 6-ounce [...]

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Crispy Zucchini Coins

I’m one of the lucky ones – my children are pretty good about eating their veggies. (Better than their Momma really!) But I think even picky eaters would gobble up these crispy zucchini coins.
zucchini, cut into thin cirlces
egg white, beaten
Italian seasoned bread crumbs mixed with a little parmesan cheese 
Dip the zucchini slices first into the egg whites [...]

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Easy breakfast bars

Just tried this recipe yesterday, and it could not be easier! The kids loved the bars, and they are so much cheaper (and healthier) than the ones you buy prepackage.
2 cups rolled oats
2 eggs, beatten
brown sugar, optional
Mix the rolled oats and beaten eggs until well combined. Stir in a little sugar if you like (and [...]

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Shrimp & Grits

When R. and I first started dating, one of his friends was grilling me on my “Southerness” – or apparent lack there of. To folks in Alabama I was every bit the Yankee, despite having grown up in southwest Virginia. Her questions verifying the fact that I was in no way Southern all centered around [...]

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SmittenKitchen.com

A new friend directed me to this site today, and I have to tell you honestly . . . I’m in love.
She directed me first to the Crispy Black Bean Taco, which sounds too easy to be as tasty as it looks. From there it didn’t take long to find the Whole Lemon Tart,  Artichoke-Olive [...]

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Strawberry Frozen Yogurt

We have strawberries coming out of our ears right now. Yesterday we picked 10 pounds of fresh, sweet, amazing strawberries (yes, literally 10 pounds) and now I have to figure out what to do with all of them! My 3 year old has been eating them like they are going out of style, her face [...]

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Welsh Rarebit

I have such wonderful childhood memories of Welsh Rarebit. The frozen Stouffer’s variety, which my mother would boil on the stovetop in the pre-microwave days, was definitely one of my favorite meals. So I honestly expected my children to be thrilled when I made Welsh Rarebit from scratch the other night. What could be better [...]

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Brown Sugar Granola

1/2 cup margarine (1 stick)
1 cup raw brown sugar
1/4 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 cups rolled oats
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup dried fruit (optional)
1/2 cup nuts or seeds (optional)
In a large 4 quart saucepan melt the margarine, sugar and water together. Stir it well and let it simmer for a few minutes (2 or 3 minutes should [...]

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Yogurt!

I made yogurt! Seriously. I made it. From scratch! In my crockpot! This is crazy cool. And soooooo easy!

Take a half-gallon of organic whole milk, not super-pasteurized, but pasteurized will work just fine. Pour it into the crockpot and heat on the LOW setting for 2.5 hours.
Turn off the crockpot but leave it covered on the counter [...]

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