Real life with Lar

Banana Chocolate Chip "Nuffins" Little A helping Baba with "da Bog" aka the blog! I love to bake with my grandson. I love making memories with him. He has nicknames for the food we make. Cupcakes are "happiness". Any kind of muffins are "nuffins". These nicknames just make our memories just that much sweeter. (pun intended 😉) This recipe is one of his favorites because it has bananas AND chocolate. Since the cold weather is pretty much here for everyone, why not make a batch of these "nuffins" with your loved one? It will be a fun memory, as well as some good snacks to eat together. Bananas not shown! This is what you will need: 4 Very Ripe Bananas 1/4 c Melted Butter 1/8tsp Salt 1tsp Baking Soda 2/3c Sugar 3 Lrg Eggs 1tsp Vanilla 2 cups All Purpose Flour 1-2 cups Chocolate Chips (depends how much you like chocolate) Directions: Pre-heat Oven to 325 Take 2 muffin pans and line t

Dating  On a budget!  Together 32 years...31 years married Dating your spouse is important but some times money gets in the way of having a "proper date". You don't need a steak dinner and a movie to call it a date. Time spent with your significant other is about being together and building memories.   With Holiday season right around the corner I'm sure everyone's budget is gong to be a bit tighter than normal.  So I thought it would be good to share some of our favorite budget friendly dates. When Smokin Hot hubby and I were first together we were FLAT BROKE! Flatter than a pancake broke. (I think you get the picture) Anyway, we had to get creative with the gift giving and the date nights. Looking back though it was the memories that make those times so priceless because putting the extra effort and thought into a gift and date makes it that much more special. Now if you were to ask Smokin what his favorite date was he would tell you that it w

If Parmesan and Marinara had a baby 😍 Delicious, easy, and cheesy!! Tell me who could ask for anything more?! I'm not a huge marinara fan because I feel it is too runny. This sauce is ’thicker’ and holds better to the pasta. I blend it smooth, but you could also just break the tomatoes down with a masher or fork. Should you choose to do this, I would suggest chopping your fresh basil into smaller bits. I have made this sauce both ways and both were a huge hit with my family and friends.   Here is what you will need: Olive oil and shallot not pictured 1/4 c. + 2 T Extra Virgin Olive Oil 4-5 cloves of Garlic, peeled and chopped 2   Shallots, thinly sliced  4  15 oz cans of Cherry Tomatoes (you can use whole or diced tomatoes as well) 2 Fresh Carrots peeled and cut in half, then length wise Parmesan rinds (you can do as many as you want I usually do 3-4) 1/2 tsp salt 2 Bayleaf A handful Basil (10-12 leaves), tear in to large piec

Tres Leches Cake For the upcoming Cinco de Mayo celebration I thought I would share my favorite cake to bring to any type of get together. It’s refreshing yet rich... sweet but not OVERLY sweet... beyond delicious and easy to make. It is easy recipe but it has more than a  few steps.  But with focus and patience you’ll be sitting down and eating an amazing cake in no time. Maybe you’ll even share it with friends but I wouldn’t blame you if you didn’t; it’s that good!! Here is what you will need.... Cake ingredients! (Milk is pictured in next image) For the cake... 1 c Cake Flour 1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder Pinch of Salt (about 1/4 tsp) 1 1/2 tsp Vanilla   1 c Sugar (reserve 1/3 of this for the egg whites) 5 eggs , separated  1/3 c Milk (Whole or low fat is fine.) For Milk mixture... 1 can Evaporated milk 1 can Sweetened Condensed milk 1/3 c Heavy Cream For Whipped Topping 1 pint Heavy Cream 1/4 c sugar PART 1:

Chicken with Sun-dried Tomatoes in a Bourbon Cream Sauce An easy yet decadent recipe sure to make your family feel loved and happy. It's that time of year when Louisville, Kentucky starts the 2 week Derby Celebration.  I know, I know a 2 week celebration for a 2 minute horse race? Well, it is the most exciting 2 minutes of the year in our humble opinion. Kentucky has been our home for over 17 years, and every year is just as exciting as the first one.  Another thing that Kentucky is famous for, besides the Derby, is bourbon. So I thought it would be fun to share a recipe I created that includes a delicious bourbon cream sauce. (Although the bourbon is optional it takes this amazing sauce to the next level! Trust me! 😏) I love to create in the kitchen. It helps me to unwind after a stressful day.  I never really liked to cook but a friend of mine told me some years back that, "Cooking was a labor of love. Just look at how happy your family is after you have

Power Hour A power hour is something that is not a new or original idea by me. About 10 months ago I found a YouTube channel @stylemomxo and she had a ‘cleaning’ power hour. I've been implementing the power hour in my cleaning routine ever since. What is a Power hour? It is an hour free from distraction (i.e. no ipads, cellphones, tv, etc) Life changing is an understatement. Just when i am feeling overwhelmed by projects or cleaning I need to get done I have a power hour and knock out quite a bit on my 'to do list' to get me back on track.    Some people do a once a week power hour. Some people do every few days or even daily ones. I like to do one a week for cleaning and one power hour for my business. There are some weeks though when I do an extra power hour or two. It really depends on how much I have on my plate. Here are some tips on making your power hour work best for you. Tip 1: Make a list A power hour should be realistic but also