Jolene's Recipe Journal

This post is sponsored in conjunction with Back to School Treats Week. I received product samples from sponsor companies to aid in the creation of the #BacktoSchoolTreats Week recipes. All opinions are mine alone. One of the reasons why I join in on events like these is it forces me to get out of my comfort zone and exercise some creativity.  One of the best sources of inspiration that I have are recipes from my grandmothers and my mom.  I found this recipe for Streusel Coffee Cake from my Gram O., and it immediately grabbed my interest because it starts with a pancake mix. I added several teaspoons of a blueberry jam that I got at the local farmers market to the top of the batter, then gave them a light swirl with the end of a skewer.  It did extend the baking time by around 6 minutes.  Be sure when you test for doneness you don't hit one of those pockets. This is perfect for breakfast, snack, or even dessert!  Thanks again to Dixie Crystals, Taylor & Coll

This post is sponsored in conjunction with Back to School Treats Week. I received product samples from sponsor companies to aid in the creation of the #BacktoSchoolTreats Week recipes. All opinions are mine alone.   Here in New England we start school the last week of August.  Now, I'm sure a lot of you are saying, so what? We do, too! The wrinkle here is, our schools are not air conditioned.  Those first few weeks can be uncomfortable for the kiddos, so I like to make sure I have nice cold treats waiting when my son gets home from school. There are lots of ways that you can make iced tea.  Some like hot brew or sun tea, but I prefer the cold brew method.  You want to use double the amount of tea bags as you do water, so I used 6 cups water, 12 tea bags.  Let it set for 30 to 45 mins at room temperature, and then move it to the fridge for about 4 hours. You can make your own simple syrup, but using Torani makes it so much easier! They have regular or sugar free versions i

Summer is winding down, and we are celebrating with #BacktoSchoolTreats hosted by Terri from Love and Confections and Christie from A Kitchen Hoor's Adventures . All week-long 30 bloggers will be sharing 100+ fantastic recipes for both parents and kids, with breakfasts, snacks, desserts, and drinks to get you back in the school routine.  This post is sponsored in conjunction with Back to School Treats Week. I received product samples from sponsor companies to aid in the creation of the #BacktoSchoolTreats Week recipes. All opinions are mine alone.   I'm kicking things off with one of my favorite on the go breakfasts or snacks, overnight oats.  I'm not usually one to jump on a food fad, but I fell head over heels for this one.  They are just so simple to put together, easy to customize to accomodate different tastes, and absolutely delicious. For this version, I wanted to capture the essence of the quintesential school day lunch, the PB&J sandwich.  The ba

I hope you are enjoying #BlueberryWeek so far, I know I am!  One of my favorite ways to use blueberries is in quick breads.  I'd pinned a recipe from Taste of Home for Glazed Coconut Banana Bread, and on the day I made it I'd picked just about a cup of blueberries from the bushes in our yard and I thought, why not toss them in? Hate when fruit sinks to the bottom when making baked goods? My grandmother taught me to take some of the flour called for in the recipe (about a tablespoon) and toss it with the berries.  This helps to keep the berries distributed evenly throughout the bread or muffins. We really enjoyed this one, and I'm looking forward to making it again now that our bushes are producing more consistently.  Quick breads freeze and defrost really well, just leave off the glaze.  I wrap them in one layer of Press N Seal, and then put them into a zip top bag.  Once defrosted, you can then add the glaze or sprinkle with some turbinado sugar. Thank you to

Welcome to #BlueberryWeek!  I've been so excited for this week, we are such huge fans of blueberries!  My grandmother used to have 150 blueberry bushes and if you came to visit, you were given a bucket and a row and strict instructions on picking.  Roll the berries between your thumb and first finger, but don't take off the blue "frost." Pick one bush clean before moving on.   And heaven help you if you picked a red or white one! I've got 5 of those plants on my property now, along with 4 of a different variety that I added this spring. It's awesome to just be able to stroll out in the yard and grab a handful to toss in my oatmeal, or on top of this Blueberry Romaine Salad. I found this recipe on the Taste of Home site.  I just love homemade dressings!  They really are simple to make and taste so much better than the store bought ones. I did not add the onions to the dressing, I sliced them and put them onto the salad itself.     On it's own, it&