This homemade apple cinnamon banana bread is the perfect combination of a classic sweet banana bread with pieces of crunchy apples swirled throughout!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all­ purpose flour
• 1 Tablespoon all­ purpose flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups mashed, ripe, bananas
• 1/4 cup buttermilk
• 2 large eggs
• 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups small diced (peeled) Granny Smith apples

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 9­inch loaf pan with parchment paper then grease the parchment paper with cooking spray. In a large bowl, whisk together 2 cups of flour with the sugar, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set the bowl aside. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the mashed bananas, buttermilk, eggs, melted butter and vanilla extract. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir just until combined. In a small bowl, combine the diced apples with 1 Tablespoon flour, tossing until they’re thoroughly coated. Fold in the diced apples then pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle the top liberally with sanding sugar (optional). Bake the bread for about 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Remove the bread from the oven and allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring the loaf to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Recipe and photo source: Just a Taste

Valentines Day is almost here, and this recipe will make the perfect sweet treat to celebrate with! Most of all, we love how festive it looks!

Ingredients:

• 10 Cups of Popped Popcorn
• 3 tbsp. Butter (Sweet Cream, Salted)
• 3 cups Mini Marshmallows
• Pretzel M&M’s – Red
• Valentine’s Mix M&M’s
• Valentine’s Sprinkles
• Confetti Hearts Sprinkles

Directions:

Start with 10 cups of popcorn, remove any un-popped kernels. Salt it liberally. Next, melt 3 tablespoons of butter in a medium sauce pan. Once melted, add 3 cups of mini marshmallows. Stir until the marshmallows have melted. Turn off the heat when the last marshmallow has melted. Pour the marshmallow mixture over the salted popcorn. Gently fold the marshmallow mixture in until the popcorn is mostly covered. The amount of marshmallow mixture you want to add is up to your own taste. Leave a little bit of the marshmallow mixture for the next step. Spread the popcorn onto a cookie sheet covered with foil. Drizzle the remaining marshmallow mixture over the popcorn, do not mix. Once the popcorn is covered in marshmallow mixture, sprinkle the candy on top, concentrate on the areas with the most marshmallow mixture drizzle. Finally allow the popcorn to cool, break apart into pieces.

Recipe and photo source: Two Sisters Crafting

This recipe is a sweet twist on holiday classic! Try these out with the whole family and bake up some new memories!

Ingredients:

• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cream of tarter
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 large egg
• 1 large yolk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3/4 tsp peppermint extract
• 2 1/2 cups white chocolate chips
• 2 1/2 Tbsp shortening
• 1/3 cup peppermint bits or finely crushed candy canes

Directions:

For the Cookies:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl wish together flour, baking soda, salt and cream of tarter for 20 seconds, set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together flour, baking soda, salt and cream of tarter for 20 seconds, set aside.
• Scoop dough out 1 1/2 Tbsp at a time and shape into balls. Transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone liner, spacing cookies 2-inches apart (chill dough balls that aren’t currently baking in refrigerator on plates) Bake in preheated oven 10-11 minutes (cookies should appear slightly under-baked). Remove from oven and allow to reset several minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

For the Coating:

• Place chocolate chips and shortening in a medium microwave safe bowl and head in microwave on 50% power in 20 second intervals, stirring well between intervals until melted and smooth. Dip half of the cooled cookies in white chocolate allowing excess to run off (or side bottom slightly along edge of bowl) then transfer to wax paper and immediately sprinkle with peppermint bits. Allow to set a room temperature or in refrigerator. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Recipe Source: Cooking Classy

This recipe combines 3 amazing flavors..caramel, pumpkin & cheesecake. It doesn’t get much better then that! This dip is so easy to make, all of your friends and family will LOVE you for making it. Not to mention, it is addicting. Once you start eating it, you won’t be able to stop until it’s gone!

This is my favorite pumpkin seed recipe! Baking pumpkin seeds is always a yearly family tradition, and a yummy fall treat. It’s a salty, yet spicy and sweet combination! While carving pumpkins, scrap the seeds out and set them aside. Trust me, you’ll be glad you saved them once you whip together this quick recipe with the discarded seeds!

Ingredients:

• 3 1/2 cups raw fresh pumpkin seeds
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and more for sprinkling
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
• 1 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

Directions:

1. Place the seeds in a bowl with 1 tablespoon of the salt and add hot water to cover. Let sit for 4 hours (or overnight), until the seeds are puffy. Scoop the seeds off the top of the water, avoiding any leftover pumpkin bits, and transfer them to a large tea towel. Use another towel to pat them mostly dry – they’ll still be a bit slimy, but do what you can.
2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees; line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
3. Transfer the seeds to a large mixing bowl, and stir in the olive oil and maple syrup. Blend the remaining ingredients, plus the remaining teaspoon salt, in a small bowl, and sprinkle the mixture over the seeds as you stir them. Stir until the sugar has dissolved, then spread the seeds on the baking sheets in a thin layer.
4. Bake for about 25 minutes, rotating sheets and stirring seeds once or twice, or until browned and crisp. Remove seeds from the oven, sprinkle immediately with additional salt, and let cool on baking sheets. Break seeds apart and enjoy, alone or on salads. Store cooled seeds in an airtight container.