Monday, November 24, 2014

Oatmeal Cranberry White-Chocolate Chip Cookies

I spend a lot of time in my kitchen preparing and cooking meals for my family.

But I'd say baking isn't something I do as often as I'd like.  I enjoy baking and I wish I made more time for it.


With the holiday season upon us, I couldn't think of a better time to start than now!


This semi-homemade recipe for oatmeal cookies has dried cranberries and white chocolate chips.  The perfect shortcut, holiday cookie.

Baking doesn't have to be complicated or time consuming.  I love this recipe because the ingredients are simple.  Betty Crocker cookie mixes are delicious and make baking easy.


For me it's much easier to make a large batch of cookie dough, bake a dozen at a time, then freeze the rest.

Oatmeal cookies are one of my favorites.  The combination of cranberries and white chocolate chips adds so much flavor.  I hope you love this recipe too!

Ingredients
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter (2 1/2 sticks)
1- 5 ounce package of sweetened dried cranberries 
1- 12 ounce package of white chocolate chips or white morsels
2- Betty Crocker oatmeal cookie mix pouches (1 lb 1.5 oz each) 
1/2 tsp cinnamon (optional)

Directions
  Heat butter over medium heat for about 3-5 minutes, or until it turns brown in color.  Smell the butter; it should have a nutty aroma.  Watch carefully so that you don't burn the butter.  Remove from heat and cool slightly.  You do not want it hot off the stove!  *Helpful video

In a large bowl, add in cookie mix.  Stir in eggs one at a time.  Stir in dried cranberries and white chocolate chips.  Stir in browned butter; dough will be stiff.  Refrigerate dough overnight.  When ready to bake, heat oven To 350 degrees F.  Remove dough from refrigerator.  Drop dough by rounded teaspoonfuls 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned.  Remove from oven and allow cookies to cool completely on the cookie sheet.  Makes about 6 dozen cookies

**Dough can be frozen in an airtight container up to 9 months.  When ready to bake simply thaw batter just until soft enough to scoop and bake.



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Monday, November 17, 2014

Coffee Table Makeover with HomeRight

Over the weekend, I gave my coffee table a makeover.

You see, my table started out looking like this.  A $12.99 thrift store find that had definitely seen better days.

Much better after a little sanding, staining and a few coats of polyurethane.
  
But 4 years later I grew tired of the color.  It's a functional, sturdy piece of furniture so I didn't want to replace it.  I knew I could easily update it with paint.

Using my HomeRight Finish Max Pro Fine Finish Sprayer made this project quick and easy.

I bought a gallon of interior Oops Paint at Home Depot.

I was able to buy some great paint for a much cheaper price.

Thin the paint with water and mix well before spraying.

I painted my table outside.   It made it much easier for clean up.

Elevate the legs with a few bricks!
   
Painting with the HomeRight Finish Max Pro Fine Finish Sprayer was much faster than using a brush or roller, with perfectly smooth results.

Most important tip, clean your paint sprayer immediately after each use.  I used my garden hose for fast clean up.

I love the new color!  It's just my style and perfect for this space.

We also eat, drink and put our feet up on the coffee table.

To prevent water rings, I make coasters easily accessible.


I hope this makeover inspires you to give new life to an old piece of furniture as well.


I'm excited about my new paint sprayer!  It will make future paint projects so much simpler and faster.




*Thank you to HomeRight for providing me with the Finish Max Pro Fine Finish Sprayer.  All opinions expressed in this post are my own!




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Thursday, November 13, 2014

Home Depot Style Challenge

I am very thankful for all of the opportunities I have been afforded through my blog.  Most of all, I am thankful for all of YOU; my blog family and friends.

Over the summer I was asked to participate in this year's Home Depot Holiday Style Challenge.  I was a bit nervous to be amongst so many creative and talented bloggers.

As the mystery boxes arrived, it truly felt like Christmas.

Although Sasha seemed unfazed!

After many visits to Home Depot for holiday inspiration, I began decorating our home for Christmas.

I shared a few peeks on Instagram, without giving away too much.

And so today I'm over at Home Depot's blog, The Apron, revealing my dining room all ready for holiday entertaining!  I'm so excited to share and I hope you enjoy it too.  Thank you all so very much for your continued support.

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

Striped Taper Candles

 Hey Guys!  Just popping in real quick to share a recent-favorite purchase.  I love candles, especially this time of year.  Lighting candles around the house gets me in the holiday spirit.

 I love the look of striped candles.  They seem to be a popular option for this time of year.  They're available online at Anthropologie and Etsy, but I had a hard time finding candles at the right price.

 I found them for much less at World Market!  They're on sale right now for $5.24 for a set of 6(plus shipping).  They're also available to purchase in store if you like.




 They're available in silver and copper too.

 Such a nice accent!

So if you love striped candles as much as I do, World Market has them at a great price!


*Not sponsored, just passing along a great find!



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Thursday, November 6, 2014

Kitchen Updates

It's been awhile since I shared my kitchen with you.  Not much has changed, but I figured it was time to share what's new.

Ikea has all kinds of great home decor.  I love these prints!  I finished them off in Target frames.


My kitchen cabinets still bring me a lot of joy.  I get a lot questions about them via email.  We made a great decision to add moulding to the cabinets, since we could not afford to have them completely remodeled.  Although we didn't attach the moulding ourselves, I can tell you that it's 2 inches wide, purchased from Home Depot and our friend used his nail gun.  My husband and I painted the cabinets with white paint right off the shelf (Glidden) in an eggshell finish.  We didn't apply a protective coat, as I was nervous about Polycrylic yellowing over time.  But they have been easy to maintain over the years.  They wipe off easily and I use leftover paint to touch up spots from normal wear and tear as needed.

I bought this used copper teakettle from the thrift store.

We store our commonly used utensils on the counter.

We only added hardware to our lower cabinets.  The uppers have grooves underneath for easier opening and we just prefer the look!

I have been very happy with our natural fiber rugs.  With 3 dogs they still look great.  It's not recommended, but my husband cleans ours with our carpet cleaner.

My love for plants!  Sadly my maidenhair fern didn't last too long.


Thank goodness for succulents!

Kitchen sign from Etsy!

I love ringing the bell at dinnertime!


There are few things I love more than our barn-door inspired cabinets.


Hope you enjoyed this quick tour through my kitchen!





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Someday Crafts