What we got cookin'

Fall has arrived here in Kansas City with all it’s pumpkin spiced glory. But, that doesn’t mean that summer is over! I am still hanging on to these last few “official” days. If you follow me on Instagram,  you may have seen this yummy salad I created one summer day. Best thing about it, like most salads you can put whatever the heck you want on it as long as you start with the key ingredients (lettuce & guacamole deviled eggs). This recipe is great for Sundays because it preps you with loads of snacks for the week.

That’s right, it’s the salad that keeps on giving.

Holy Guacamole Salad

Ingredients:

*Note that the amount of each ingredient just depends on how many leftovers you’d like of each “snack”.

Hard boiled eggs

Grilled Chicken

Guacamole

- Avocado

- Cilantro

- Jalapeño

- Onion

- Roma Tomato

- Salt

- Lime Juice

Leafy greens

Cucumber

Tri-colored peppers

Extra onion

Extra Tomato

Directions:

1. Hard boil some eggs.

However many you would like on your salad.

And a few extra for easy snacking later in the week.

I use this method.

2. Grill some chicken.

However much you would like on your salad.

And some extra for easy chicken meals through the week.

Throw some spicy seasoning on there to give your salad an extra kick.

Or use fajita seasoning & you’ve already prepped your chicken for Monday night fajitas ;)

3. Make some guac.

I am pretty much obsessed with Pioneer Woman.

Use her method. It’s the best.

And keep a few diced onions & tomatoes to the side to scatter on your salad later.

4. Fill some eggs with some guac.

5. Add all ingredients to your salad bowl, including any other tasty veggies from your fridge.

I added some cucumbers & sweet peppers.

You could add corn, black beans, cheese … whatever your little tummy desires.

6. Put your extra chicken, eggs, guac, pico, etc. in the fridge for easy snacking over the week.

5. Salt & pepper those veggies & dress your salad.

I used ranch but a cilantro vinaigrette would be darn good too!

7. Eat. Enjoy. Repeat.

Easy peasy, right?

And it looks so impressive!

I like sneaky recipes like that ;)

Still hungry? I vouch for these recipes :)

What we got cookin'

There just never are enough hours during the week so I’ve recently decided to do more weekend cooking in preparation for our upcoming weekday meals. Last weekend I made hummus for weekday snacks and these delicious granola bars for our grab & go breakfasts. We rated them a 10 for sure! Easy, quick, cheap and healthier than brand name bars. I’ll be making them again this weekend! You should too :) 

No Bake Chewy Granola Bars

First Featured on Lauren’s Latest

- Be sure to click through for Lauren's awesome detailed photos!

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes of work & 2 hours cooling

My Batch yielded about 12 bars but it just depends how thick you make yours.

Ingredients:

2 cups quick cooking oats {not rolled oats!}

1 cup crispy rice cereal

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup honey

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

2 tablespoons mini chocolate chips

Directions:

In a large bowl, stir oats and rice cereal together.

Set aside.

In a small pot, melt butter, honey and brown sugar together over medium high heat until it comes to a bubble.

Reduce the heat and cook 2 minutes.

Pour in vanilla and stir.

Pour over dry ingredients and mix well to moisten all ingredients.

Transfer mixture to a pan covered with a large sheet of wax paper.

Press the mixture to desired thickness.

*I actually folded my mixture up in the wax paper so I was able to really press down without making a mess.

Once they are really sticking together, sprinkle with mini chocolate chips and press down lightly.

Cool on a countertop to room temperature for two hours or until the chocolate chips are set before cutting into bars.

Store in zip lock or your favorite storage container at room temperature for the week.

Make it your own!

Add peanut butter, peanut butter chips, M&Ms, coconut, cinnamon, raisons, dried cherries…there are so many easy modifications! Thanks, Laura!