Pineapple Chicken

Serves: 3-4

3 chicken quarters, skin removed
Pepper
3/4 c. green bell pepper, cut into 1" pieces
1 c. pineapple, canned
1/2 c. pineapple juice, from can
1/4 tsp. ginger

Place chicken pieces in bottom of crockpot. Sprinkle lightly with pepper. In a small bowl, combine remaining ingredients. Mix well. Pour mixture over chicken. Cover. Cook on low 6-8 hours.

Check my coupon resources page to save money when you make this recipe!

Tips: This was a light, tasty chicken that was full of flavor and low in fat. Any variety of canned pineapple (tidbits, chunks or slices) will work fine with this dish. We served this chicken with brown rice and the extra sauce from the crockpot is great on top of the rice. If you need more than just 3 chicken quarters to feed your family, simply use more pieces of chicken and increase the amount of pineapple. If you started with a 20 ounce can of pineapple, there should be some leftover if you use the measurements above. If you are looking for something similar to this that you can do on the grill, try Teriyaki Chicken with Pineapple.

Recipe adapted from Busy Woman's Slow Cooker Cookbook

Apple Coffee Cake

Serves: 6-8

Cake
1/2 c. + 2 T. sugar, divided
2 eggs
1 tsp. grated lemon peel
1/2 c. plain yogurt
3 T. butter, melted
1 1/3 c. flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2-3 medium apples, peeled & thinly sliced
1/2 c. sliced almonds

Glaze
1/3 c. sugar
1/3 c. butter, melted
1 egg, beaten

To start cake, in a small bowl, beat 1/2 cup sugar and eggs; stir in lemon peel, yogurt and butter. Add flour, baking powder and salt to egg mixture; blend well. Pour into greased 8-inch square pan. Arrange apple slices on top of dough, overlapping slightly. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons sugar and almonds. Bake at 375 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Meanwhile, in another small bowl, combine all glaze ingredients; blend well. Slowly pour over almonds and allow mixture to soak into hot cake. Broil 5-6 inches from heat for 1-2 minutes or until bubbly. Serve warm. Store in refrigerator.

Tips: Granted that this coffee cake was a little bit of work between preparing the apples and making the glaze but let me assure you that it was well worth it. I made it when my in-laws were visiting and my father-in-law raved about it and had seconds the next morning. Be sure to watch the glaze carefully under the broiler, as the top tends to brown very quickly.

Recipe from Pillsbury: Best of the Bake-off Cookbook

Yoplait Frozen Smoothie Gift Pack Giveaway

This giveaway has ended. I love smoothies! Always have, always will. When I was a kid my mom used to make an orange smoothie with a raw egg in it (until everyone realized that was bad) and my dad used to make "Orange Stuff" with orange juice, vanilla ice cream, powdered sugar and ice (yes, nice and sweet!) after he finished mowing the lawn on the weekends. Once smoothie shops became popular my favorite treat has been a toasted bagel and a nice fruity smoothie. (Is is just me or do smoothie shops always seem to be located next to bagel shops?)

Well, living in a small town now and on a small budget, smoothie shop smoothies are not exactly the best economical choice nor easy to find where I live. For quite a while now, I have taken to making my own smoothies at home (see my Fruit Smoothie recipe). I don't think anything will top homemade for me but you can often find yourself without all the ingredients you need to make your smoothie and this can be a tragedy when you've been craving that fruity, frosty snack.

A few months ago, Yoplait introduced their new line of frozen smoothies. Each package of Yoplait Frozen Smoothies contains one full serving of fruit (1/2 cup) and 110 to 120 calories per serving. Not only does Yoplait yogurt contain live and active cultures, but when prepared with skim milk and made according to package directions, Yoplait Frozen Smoothies are a good source of calcium. They come in four great flavors: Blueberry Pomegranate, Triple Berry, Strawberry Banana and Strawberry Mango Pineapple.

Each package of Yoplait Frozen Smoothies makes 2-8 oz. smoothies and all you need to do is add milk and mix in the blender. Great to have on hand when the cravings strike!

Save! - You can print a $1.00 off Yoplait Smoothies coupon when you like them on Facebook.

Win it! - Yoplait has offered to give one prize package that includes a free coupon to try Yoplait Frozen Smoothies, a drawstring backpack, a water bottle and a fitness journal.

Required Entry:

- Leave a comment telling me which Yoplait Smoothie flavor you would choose. (This has to be done for any additional entries to be valid.)

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Please be sure to leave a separate comment for each entry and your e-mail address if it is not available on your profile. This giveaway is open to US residents only. The winner will be chosen using Random.org and the contest will end on Thursday, March 17th at midnight (Mountain Time). After I contact the winner, they will have 48 hours to get back to me or another winner will be chosen. Good luck! I reserve the right to delete entries that do not adhere to the entry rules.

*Disclosure: Yoplait provided me with the product, information, and prize pack through MyBlogSpark. All opinions are my own.

Cider Stew

Serves: 6

2 lbs. stew beef, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 T. butter
1/4 c. flour
2 c. water
1 c. apple cider
1/2 c. steak sauce
2 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 bay leaf
3 medium potatoes, peeled & cubed
3 medium carrots, sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 (15 oz.) can cut green beans, drained

In a large saucepan over medium heat, brown beef in butter. Stir in flour. Gradually stir in water, cider and steak sauce. Bring to a boil over high heat; stir in thyme, pepper and bay leaf. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 2 hours. Add potatoes, carrots, onions and beans. Cover and cook for 30 minutes more or until vegetables are tender. Discard bay leaf before serving.

Check my coupon resources page to save money when you make this recipe!

Tips: This was a tasty stew with a unique flavor thanks to the apple cider. It was a tiny bit on the sweet side so I would suggest not increasing the apple cider if you need more liquid but using more water or some of the liquid from the can of green beans. I also used Country Bob's Sauce (which is a good sauce) but next time I think I'll stick with A-1 because it is less sweet. I love making Baking Soda Biscuits when ever I make stew. If this beef stew isn't quite what you're looking for, check out Beef & Veggie Stew, French Beef Stew or Easy Beef Stew.

Recipe from 365 Favorite Brand Name Slow Cooker Recipes & More