snacks - Plain and Not So Plain

large family food ideas desserts chocolate chip pumpkin muffins

amy / 10/15/2013

large family food ideas for desserts chocolate chip pumpkin muffins….

When we do a baking day around our home, we do it big. We usually have 2-3 things going and we bake a lot of that item and then freeze part of it. Chocolate chip pumpkin muffins are one of our families favorite snacks.

Scroll to the bottom for normal serving sized versions:)

9 -8 oz cans of pumpkin
18 eggs
4 1/2 c coconut oil
5 c brown sugar
5 c white sugar—-if i had raw sugar on hand I would just use 10 c total of raw sugar
12-14 c white whole wheat flour
12 tsp baking powder
9 tsp baking soda
6 tsp salt
6 tsp each cinnamon and nutmeg
3 c mini chocolate chip
Makes about 84 muffins depending upon how full you fill your cups

To make your muffins…….

In a very large mixing bowl……add your pumpkin

Crack all 18 eggs into the bowl…..hope you have some egg laying hens add your coconut oil as well
add your sugars to the bowl

With a beater, mix on low until thoroughly combined. Takes about 5 minutes to ensure proper mixing of this big bowl. We then add all of our dry ingredients, we start with all of the little ones, like baking powder, salt, etc We then add our flour, start with 12 cups first and add more as needed. You want to mix this very well with a mixer. You can mix all of the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl, but I don’t usually have the extra time it takes to do that and would rather do it all in one big bowl.

After you have done a good job mixing it quite thoroughly, time to add your mini chocolate chips. If I don’t have the mini ones on hand, I use regular chocolate chips, they all taste the same—delicious.

Keep on mixing……..to make sure you have got all of those little chips combined. Nothing worse than getting the muffin that got “jipped” some chocolate chips!

We use paper liners in our muffin tin for four reasons:

I don’t like to have to clean out muffin tins—it is a job that I detest
makes it easier to stack them on a platter to serve –because we can no longer have a single layer, it is usually a stacked pyramid!
they pop out of the pan very easily
it is easier to feed to my little ones, actually it is neater, with all of those gooey chocolate chips, we need a part of the muffin that is “clean”

Bake at 350 for 30-40 until muffins are done–insert a toothpick
I used to have all of my “baked goods” sprawled out over my dining room table and I just sat back and looked in amazement, before I put them into the freezer. But nowadays I have to package them up and put them away before they disappear. Too many little ones that think this is one of those restaurants with an all you can eat buffet!

yummy delicious……

Now what if you don’t have a large family but you still want to make these fantastic muffins?? Well you could get out your calculator and start dividing and deducting…..and…..oh never mind, here is the recipe that started it all. At one time in our marriage I used to make this amount and it was enough for all of us. Those days are long gone……..

chocolate chip muffins for “small families”

3 eggs, well beaten
3/4 c oil
2 1/4 c sugar
2 1/4 c canned pumpkin
BEAT THE ABOVE TOGETHER
2 1/2 c flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
SIFT TOGETHER THE DRY INGREDIENTS AND THEN BLEND IN
add 1 pkg chocolate chips to mixture

Bake 350 for 30-40 minutes until done

10 Worst foods of summer….and what you can do to enjoy them!

Summer is a wonderful time of being outside, playing with the children, going to the beach, and having picnics. But it also brings out some of the worst foods to eat, yet they are so good. Here are 10 summer foods that are nutritionally not good for you and options to help them to be better for you.

Macaroni and potato salad. Whats a picnic without potato salad?? The problem…..these salads are loaded with fattening mayonnaise. Alternative: Use nonfat plain yogurt with about 1/2 cup of mayonnaise.
Ribs. These can weigh in at 288 calories and are loaded with saturated fat, and that’s before you slather on barbecue sauce. Alternative: You are better to add mustard, garlic, and chili powder. They’ll add delicious flavors without many calories. Better yet: stick with the lean meats like chicken
Frozen treats–ice cream sandwiches, bomb pops, etc. Yes my children love them too, but check out how much sugar is in each of those items along with the dyes and flavorings. Alternative: make your own Popsicles with yogurt, fruit, and less raw sugar.
Corn Dogs. Any
thing deep-fried is usually best to avoid like onion rings, french fries, etc, but this snack is in its own category, packing about 20 grams of fat and loads of sodium. Alternative:

Choose a hot dog under 150 calories and 14 grams of fat, and limit sodium to under 450 milligrams. And have it on a whole grain bun.
Slushies. These are basically just ice and sugary dyed syrup, and a 12 ounce serving can have more than 350 calories–that’s almost lunch.
Potato chips. There is about 10 grams of fat in one ounce and it is way too easy to devour a whole bag. Alternative: If you must have something salty make your own air popped popcorn or try baked snack crackers.
Soda Pop. Pop is full of sugar and has absolutely no nutritional value. Basically, you are consuming a large number of calories with no benefits. It doesn’t fill you up and you end up consuming more calories to feel full. Alternative: Water, try adding fresh lemon or fruit slices. I like to add a peppermint herbal tea bag to my water glass and let it sit during the day, gives it a nice pep for my day.
Pepperoni pizza. We are big on the “hot and ready” pizza’s at Little Ceasers, this has changed my mind. One slice packs nearly 300 calories, and your munchkin may want seconds. There are also gobs of saturated fat and dehydration-promoting sodium, about 700 mg per piece. Kids need only 1,000 to 1,300 mg per day. Alternative: homemade on whole grain breads using hamburger and veggies to top it.
Frozen coffee drinks. Did I really say that?? I really do like Starbucks but lately I have been trying to watch my consumption. I used to get Caramel frappuccino venti size at 510 calories yikes! A simple switch to iced hazelnut macchiato with nonfat milk venti size was only 260 calories plus gives me more punch with the espresso shots. Try using nonfat or 2 % milk and no whipped cream for lesser calories.
Carnival foods. Ditch the fried funnel cakes,foot long hot dogs, and giant sized pretzels. Go for cotton candy and frozen chocolate bananas.