Every morning I wake up so excited to make our breakfast: Fruit and yogurt parfait!

It is the best in spring when all the berries are fresh and so delicious!

I make mine with vanilla yogurt.

I am on Weight Watcher’s and the Light & Fit is only 2 points!

We also use blackberries

raspberries

strawberries

and bananas.

My hubby laughs at me because as I am pouring everything in the bowl, I am so excited every step of the way!

STEP 1: I put a little yogurt in the bowl and add some blackberries

STEP 2: The RASPBERRIES! (my all time favorite!)

STEP 3: Strawberries

STEP 4: Bananas

STEP 5: A little more yogurt

STEP 6: finally I like to add some granola on the top to give it some crunch

My boys love it as much as I do and we are so excited to eat every morning!

What other fruit do you like to put in your yogurt parfait?

Happy Springtime!

Lots of Love, Tawna

This winter has been extra snowy in the Midwest- and three days into Spring it decided to have one last (hopefully) hurrah. In order to avoid the roads during the storm Anna and I had our recipe test at my parent’s house this past Saturday morning for breakfast. I chose a fruit and yogurt parfait, and Strawberry Almond Stuffed French Toast. Both keepers for sure!

Mixing the ingredients for the creamy filling in the french toast. I replaced the sour cream for a healthier option- vanilla yogurt. Also included, cream cheese, powdered sugar and almond extract:

Cutting ‘pockets’ into the french bread- along side the mixture for dipping: milk, eggs and vanilla extract:

Loading the creamy mixture and fruit into the bread pockets. We used strawberries and blueberries:

The finished french bread for everyone!:

The finished parfaits for everyone:

So easy- and tasty!:

The finished french toast:

You can add some more filling and strawberries on top – SO GOOD!:

That afternoon the storm started, and we got about 8 inches when it was all said and done Sunday morning. Here’s hoping Spring is right around the corner!

RECIPES:

Strawberry Fruit and Yogurt Granola Parfait

Ingredients:

• Light Vanilla Yogurt
• Oats and Honey Granola cereal
• Strawberries (or another fruit)

Layer ingredients and enjoy!

Why is this a survival recipe?

Fruit parfaits are in every food cart on campus. They’re simple and delicious, but way overpriced; with this recipe you can put them into mason jars and take them right with you to class.

I make my own fruit and yogurt parfaits because I can choose what fruits I want, how much granola, and what flavor yogurt without spending a dime during the day since I’ve always got these ingredients in my fridge.

If you have a Gluten Allergy, make sure all of your products and brands are gluten free.

Ingredients:

• 1 serving of Yogurt
• 1 serving of Fruit
• 1-2 tbsp of Granola

Step one: Dollop your yogurt into a bowl or mason jar

Step two: Spoon your fruit over the yogurt, draining the excess juices

Step three: Top with granola and enjoy!

There’s a special little girl in Ethiopia that is soon coming home to stay.  She was born and then abandoned on the street.  Matt & Karen, my brother-in-law and sister-in-law and their family are choosing her to be their own.                                                               We cannot wait to meet her and love on her!

Her name is to be Malea.

We had a shower this past weekend to celebrate and prepare for her arrival.  We spent some time in prayer as well because it hasn’t been the easiest or fastest process.  This family and little girl need God’s intervention…

We had a great time brainstorming and planning and decorating.  The shirts in the photo above were handmade by my other sister-in-law, Nicole.  The three in the middle belong to Malea’s new older sisters.  The two on the ends are for Malea herself.  The one on the far left features her 4 cousins’ (from this side of the family) handprints.

And of course, it was a highlight for me to have some good food!

Karen’s sister, Darlene, made a traditional Ethiopian bread with the berbere spice, which is used on a lot of food there.  She also made some delicious punch, I might add!  She was a great help in pulling this day off.  Thanks Darlene!

Fruit and yogurt parfaits with a baked oatmeal base.

Pretzel squares with melted hugs and pink M&M’s to go with our pink and zebra theme.  :)

Cupcakes…chocolate joe cupcakes w/ coffee buttercream above and coconut cupcakes below.

(I’ll have to post the recipes sometime!  Mmmm, they were yummy.)

And some healthy veggies too…

The blanket draped on the chair was handmade by one of Karen’s friends, who raises alpacas.  Yes, you guessed it, the blanket is crafted from their alpacas’ fiber.  Pretty cool!

We had a sign in station.  Each guest left their fingerprint on the tree for Malea’s scrapbook and also self-addressed an envelope so Karen didn’t have to do that when sending her thank-you cards.  We adapted the fingerprint idea from Pinterest.

We bagged some Ethiopian coffee for each guest to take home with a reminder to pray for those in the adoption process and for the orphans around the world.  And in case any wants to know, I wrote the poem…Karen seemed to be surprised by that! haha…       We used the Cricut to cut out our coffee mugs.  It’s become such a fun and handy tool.

We also had a coffee bar, featuring Ethiopian coffee, of course…hot and iced!

Karen sharing with all of us at the end of the gift opening.

Our finalized fingerprint page with a special promise.  We claim this for you Malea.  Can’t wait to snuggle you close!

This morning I made a simple breakfast that I definitely plan on making again tomorrow. All you need is some vanilla yogurt, fresh fruit of your choice (I had strawberries), and granola (I used “Just Bunches!” the Honey Bunches of Oats clusters). Mix them all up and eat it! So easy, but so so good! If you want to be fancy, layer each ingredient in a clear drink cup so it looks pretty. Since I was in a hurry this morning I mixed it all up quickly and brought it to work with me.

{Homemade Fruit & Yogurt Parfait}

in the fall, there’s nothing better than a CARAMEL APPLE SPICE  from starbucks. agree? you should. the aroma that it produces is uh.may.zing. the cost for a grande is not so uh.may.zing, especially if i buy as many as i’d like. lucky for my wallet, the only starbucks in town is in kroger, and i don’t hit it up that often. even luckier for my wallet is that i’m a pinning freak and i can make the yummy bevy at home.

here’s what you need to make it:

cinnamon dolce syrup (i get the sugar-free kind): pick it up at starbucks. just march up to the barista and ask for a bottle of it. they’ll hook you up, and it’s only $6.95 for a ridiculously huge bottle. the stuff lasts forever. oh, and here’s a hint: play dumb about the pump. be like me and ask where you can buy one, chances are (if your barista is having a fantastically awesome day) she’ll hand over one of their pumps – they buy extra.

apple cider: yep. just plan ole apple cider. really, you can even go with apple juice. it works just as well, too. plus it’s cheaper and you can get it year-round.

caramel sauce: if you want to be miss (or mister!) fancy pants, you can buy the syrup they use at starbucks. if you want to be frugal like me, go to the aisle where all the ice cream toppings are and buy a bottle of hershey’s butterscotch syrup. it tastes the same.

making the drink is super easy. just warm up your cider, add 2-3 full pumps of syrup (for a regular-size coffee mug), drizzle syrup over the top. it’s that easy!

i had to break in the middle of the post to go make one. so tasty i couldn't deny myself!

another guilty pleasure of mine is getting the FRUIT and YOGURT PARFAIT from tim horton’s or mcdonald’s. it’s my favorite breakfast cheap, but i know i’m throwing away money each time i buy it. they’ve got to make a boatload of cash on the sales from those things. all that goes into the darn cup is yogurt and frozen mixed berries. it’s stupid cheap to make.

what i didn’t know until i did some homework was what kind of yogurt they use. turns out it’s dannon vanilla. easy enough.

i picked up one of those gigantic containers of vanilla yogurt for $1.99 and a bag of mixed berries (blueberries, raspberries, blackberries) for the same price. so for $4, i’ll have at least 10 parfaits. if i bought 10 at timmy’s or mickey d’s, i’d be spending $20 or more. hello, savings!

breakfast tomorrow!

it’s healthy. it’s cost effective. and i control my portion. perfect!

You’re always there for me, non-seasonally.

Art thou weary, art thou languid,
Art thou sore distressed during travels?
“Come to me parfait,” saith one, “and coming,
be at rest on my laptop.”

Hath He marks to lead me to thy sugary, devout of flavor parfait
If he be my guide? Will thy use strawberries in the thick of winter?
Taste thy same, all seasons abound. Inject me with your sugary venom as
portraying a healthy substitute?

*sigh*

*Note – this will be my first and only use of Shakespearean foolery.

You’re always there for me, non-seasonally.

Art thou weary, art thou languid,
Art thou sore distressed during travels?
“Come to me parfait,” saith one, “and coming,
be at rest on my laptop.”

Hath He marks to lead me to thy sugary, devout of flavor parfait
If he be my guide? Will thy use strawberries in the thick of winter?
Taste thy same, all seasons abound. Inject me with your sugary venom as
portraying a healthy substitute?

*sigh*

*Note – this will be my first and only use of Shakespearean foolery.

Sometimes it’s just plain difficult to prepare a meal that can be enjoyed by both the adults and children. I do not operate on a “restaurant” philosophy. If I make it, you eat it or go hungry. (Unless I purposely make something specifically for Greg and I. Then they might get PB&J’s or mac & cheese.) But yesterday, I decided I wanted to make something adult-like that the kids would enjoy as well.

I am fortunate because my children eat spinach. (Especially if it is disguised in something else.) But this recipe is extremely flexible. Just like an omelet, you can add anything you choose (or that your kiddos will eat) into the egg and cream mixture. Ham, hot dogs, crumbled hamburger, etc. Just make sure whatever you add is pre-cooked and cooled before you add it to the egg mixture.

 One added benefit to this quiche recipe: If you have leftovers, they are great for breakfast!

Quiche

Stained Glass Jelly Rounds

Fruit and Yogurt Parfait

The recipes:

Kid Friendly Quiche (serves 8-12)

1 small onion diced

Stained Glass Jelly Rounds

Set oven broiler to High. Place bread slices on cookie sheet. Place in broiler watching closely until golden brown. Remove from oven and carefully turn bread over. Butter uncooked side of bread and place a small dollop of jelly in the center of each slice. Return to broiler. Watch closely. As jelly heats it will spread over the bread slice giving the appearance of stained glass. Remove from oven when bread is golden and jelly has spread.

Berry Parfait