Apricot, Almond & Coconut Candies

Disclosure- I received the mentioned product courtesy of the sponsor for the the purpose of this review. All opinions are genuine, based on my experience with the product, and have not been influenced by promotional items.

 

 

 

This is a dangerous time of the month for me. Candy everywhere! Normally we just grab a few boxes of the full sized candy bars from Costco to pass out to the few trick or treaters that we get on our court, and that's bad enough keeping them in the house untouched until Halloween. But, we decided that our business was going to participate in the city's police department trick or treat event this year too, so that meant I had to buy and resist the temptation to eat any of the 4,000 pieces of additional candy sitting in my pantry. If you know me, you know that my sweet tooth is unmatched so the restraint is killing me. In an effort to be good though, I figured I could make a sweet treat to hold myself off until every last piece of the stash is passed out to the kids in our community. Thankfully I found a recipe for these Apricot, Almond & Coconut Candies on Golden Blossom Honey and knew that it was just what I needed to keep me on my best behavior until the end of the month. 

 

 

Not only are these candies super easy to make with only 4 ingredients total, they are so much healthier than the processed bagged treats filling the grocery aisles right now. The mixture will be sticky before rolling in the coconut, but I found that instead of dropping by spoonfuls, using a cookie scoop to gather the mixture worked much better. I'd just release from the scoop into the coconut, sprinkle a little more coconut flakes on the top and press slightly into the mixture, then roll it all between my palms for a nice little candy ball. I was able to make right around 20 candies with this recipe, but it could easily be doubled if you wanted to make these for holiday treat boxes instead of snacking on during the Halloween season. 

Ingredients

1 cup GOLDEN BLOSSOM HONEY

12 ounces dried apricots, finely chopped

1 cup blanched almonds, slivered

1/2 cup coconut, or more if needed

CLICK HERE FOR FULL RECIPE

 

You can find this recipe, as well as many more delicious recipes right on the Golden Blossom Honey recipe page! Be sure to follow Golden Blossom Honey on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on new products and promotions.

If you like this recipe, be sure to come back every Friday, where I feature a new recipe from Golden Blossom Honey, and be sure to Pin It on Pinterest! 

   

What candy will you pass out this Halloween?

Warm Broccoli and Mushroom Salad

Disclosure- I received the mentioned product courtesy of the sponsor for the the purpose of this review. All opinions are genuine, based on my experience with the product, and have not been influenced by promotional items.

 

 

Just because it's now autumn doesn't mean that it's time to put the salads away. We just need to find creative ways to eat a bowl of warm veggies. I usually like a warm pasta salad, or even a warm potato salad for lunch or dinner, but what about a Warm Broccoli and Mushroom Salad? I usually throw those veggies into my stir fry wok, so why not make a quick salad instead? This Golden Blossom Honey recipe has been sitting in my "to make" folder since the beginning of summer just waiting for the temperatures to drop before giving it a try.

 

 

This salad can be served as either a side dish or as a full meal. Aside from the bacon, which can be left out to make this a vegetarian meal, this salad is nutritious, packed with fiber, antioxidants, and vitamins to help support a healthy immune system, which is important as we start inching towards cold and flu season. And, as the holidays are hot on our heels, it's always so easy to reach for all of the tempting treats, but by eating this salad first, it will be so much easier to consume sweets minimally. And in my opinion, it's much better than the carb or sugar heavy foods anyway, so it's a no-brainer to keep this recipe on hand throughout the cooler months ahead.

 

Ingredients

1 head of broccoli

5 slices of bacon, chopped

1 medium onion, diced

4 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 Tablespoons GOLDEN BLOSSOM HONEY

1/2 pound mushrooms, sliced

 CLICK HERE FOR FULL RECIPE

 

You can find this recipe, as well as many more delicious recipes right on the Golden Blossom Honey recipe page! Be sure to follow Golden Blossom Honey on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on new products and promotions.

If you like this recipe, be sure to come back every Friday, where I feature a new recipe from Golden Blossom Honey, and be sure to Pin It on Pinterest! 

   

What warm weather salads are your favorite?

Moroccan Style Caponata Sandwich

Disclosure- I received the mentioned product courtesy of the sponsor for the the purpose of this review. All opinions are genuine, based on my experience with the product, and have not been influenced by promotional items.

 

 

We've just left bbq season and are transitioning into party season. I live minutes from Notre Dame University, so if the increased traffic doesn't tell us it's football season around here, the tailgating definitely does. We don't usually hit the campus for the tailgating parties, but we've been known to host a few at home viewing parties for those who want to be close to the stadium but want to avoid the crowds. For the eats, we'll stick with the basics- sliders, hot wings, hot dogs, and burgers. Sometimes we'll throw in some sandwiches for good measure. As I was browsing Golden Blossom Honey earlier this week, I saw this recipe for Moroccan  Style Caponata Sandwiches and thought they would be a fun addition to the football feast. 

 

 

So much of football viewing eats are centered around either fried foods or meats, there aren't usually many vegetarian or healthy options for those who have dietary restrictions or are simply trying not to fall into the unhealthy eating habits that usually come with game day parties and tailgating. This sandwich has a lot of delicious veggies and spices piled onto toasted Italian bread, making it a perfect Mediterranean inspired sandwich worthy to be served as game day grub. No matter who you're rooting for, win or lose, with this sandwich on the menu, everyone comes out a winner! 

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon allspice

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1 (1 pound) eggplant, cut into 1-inch cubes

1 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 medium onion, coarsely chopped

3 medium garlic cloves, chopped

1 cup water

3 tablespoons lemon juice

3 tablespoons GOLDEN BLOSSOM HONEY

1 medium zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 loaf Italian bread

1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled

1/3 cup fresh basil leaves

CLICK HERE FOR FULL RECIPE

 

You can find this recipe, as well as many more delicious recipes right on the Golden Blossom Honey recipe page! Be sure to follow Golden Blossom Honey on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on new products and promotions.

If you like this recipe, be sure to come back every Friday, where I feature a new recipe from Golden Blossom Honey, and be sure to Pin It on Pinterest! 

   

Which team will you be rooting for this football season?

Roasted Tomato and Harvest Vegetable Stew

Disclosure- I received the mentioned product courtesy of the sponsor for the the purpose of this review. All opinions are genuine, based on my experience with the product, and have not been influenced by promotional items.

 

 

Anybody else welcome autumn with a sigh of relief and a huge smile? The first day of fall here was gloriously cool and rainy, a welcoming contrast to the months of heat we are coming down from. In other words, it's FINALLY soup season! Normally we'd kick off the season with a huge pot of chili, but veggie soup was calling my name this week so we went with Roasted Tomato and Harvest Vegetable Stew instead. This Golden Blossom Honey recipe is another fantastic find for your summer's end garden haul. 

Don't let the lengthy ingredient list fool you. This isn't a stew that takes all day to prepare. Just a little chop time, then the rest comes together in under 30 minutes. The veggies and spices together make a perfect pot of stew, but the addition of feta really took this recipe to a whole new level. I don't normally add any kind of cheese to my vegetable soups, so a whole new flavor experience was unlocked for my palate this week. Definitely something I'll be adding to my veggie based soups from now on. One thing that I did change in the recipe was I added in a can of tomato sauce because I like a thicker broth. This is not necessary though and didn't change the flavor profile at all, but just a suggestion for those like me who like a thicker broth like I do. Overall, this is a delicious and hearty stew that we're going to return to time and time again all autumn and winter long.

Ingredients

2 pounds plum tomatoes

1 teaspoon olive oil

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 medium onions, coarsely chopped

3 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons GOLDEN BLOSSOM HONEY

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 teaspoons paprika

2 teaspoons dried oregano

1 teaspoon salt

1 medium yellow squash, cut into 1-inch chunks

1 medium zucchini squash, cut into 1-inch chunks

1/2 pound fresh string beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch lengths

1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch chunks

1 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1-inch chunks

2 1/2 cups frozen corn, or fresh cut from the cob

1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

1/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled

 CLICK HERE FOR FULL RECIPE

You can find this recipe, as well as many more delicious recipes right on the Golden Blossom Honey recipe page! Be sure to follow Golden Blossom Honey on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on new products and promotions.

If you like this recipe, be sure to come back every Friday, where I feature a new recipe from Golden Blossom Honey, and be sure to Pin It on Pinterest! 

   

What will be the first soup or stew you make this autumn?

Stuffed Zucchini

Disclosure- I received the mentioned product courtesy of the sponsor for the the purpose of this review. All opinions are genuine, based on my experience with the product, and have not been influenced by promotional items.

 

 

As we start to wind down in our gardens for the season, if you planted any zucchini or tomatoes you may have ended up with more than expected. I know those are the two items that tend to always net me the most produce by the end of summer's growing season. I usually end up giving a lot of our bounty away and still end up with almost more than we'll use. This week though I thought I'd use up some excess and returned to an old favorite, Stuffed Zucchini, also known as zucchini boats. I've only ever made them as a vegetarian meal, but to get the husband on board, who isn't usually fond of my zucchini boats, I used Golden Blossom Honey's recipe which includes bacon because Jason will eat anything if it's covered in bacon. 

 

Zucchini boats are fairly simple to construct from start to finish. The hardest part would be scooping out a well in the center of the veggie, but if you have a melon baller, you can make quick work out of removing the seeds and pulp easily and in an equal depth all the way around. These were definitely an improvement over my version in Jason's eyes, but the only thing I would change would be adding a layer of cheese to the top of the boats before baking. Mozzarella or Feta would be my choice, but I think you could get away with some brie or blue cheese here also. I'm going to try these again next week and play around with adding different cheeses to determine which our family likes best. All in all, I'd say this recipe is definitely a keeper!

Ingredients

3 cups Italian bread, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

4 zucchini

2 slices bacon, chopped

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 large tomato, peeled and chopped

2 teaspoons GOLDEN BLOSSOM HONEY

salt and pepper to taste

1 1/2 teaspoons fresh parsley, chopped

1 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped

1 egg, beaten with 1/2 cup water

CLICK HERE FOR FULL RECIPE

 

You can find this recipe, as well as many more delicious recipes right on the Golden Blossom Honey recipe page! Be sure to follow Golden Blossom Honey on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on new products and promotions.

If you like this recipe, be sure to come back every Friday, where I feature a new recipe from Golden Blossom Honey, and be sure to Pin It on Pinterest! 

   

How well did your garden produce this summer?

Open Faced Tuna Melts

Disclosure- I received the mentioned product courtesy of the sponsor for the the purpose of this review. All opinions are genuine, based on my experience with the product, and have not been influenced by promotional items.

 

 

Normally I like to share a recipe that coincides with whatever season we're in, but it's been a bit wonky here these last few weeks. We dipped into the 60's last week, this week we were back into the upper 80's and it looks like more of the same heat next week. You know how excited us Midwesterner folk get when we have a stretch of days where the temps don't hit 70 degrees, so I was pretty ready to declare it crock pot and soup season last week. Alas, that hope was short lived and left me scrambling to swap out my recipe share with you today. Since I wasn't going for a seasonal or a holiday share, I thought I'd look for a seafood creation instead. Allison has been dying for me to remake Golden Blossom Honey's Smoked Salmon Rolls that we shared here last spring, but we did have some tuna in the cabinet to use up, so I opted to make her and Jason some Open Faced Tuna Melts instead.

Fennel isn't something that I have ever used or probably eaten in its natural form before, aside from fennel seeds, so even though I wasn't personally going to eat the tuna melts, I did have a great time learning how to use it from an extensive YouTube search as well as from this recipe. I love that even in my oldish age, I am still learning about new ways to use produce. The melts were so easy to prepare, even while learning how to chop up the fennel, and was ready to hit the table in just a few short minutes. You know those are the kind of recipes that I live for! While these are great for eating at home, I think you could add a second slice of bread to the top and instead of a melt, you have a sandwich that's perfect to take for school or work lunch as well. If you're not into seafood, chicken would make a good substitute here because it would blend just as well with the rest of the ingredients. 

Ingredients

2 (6 ounce) cans solid white tuna, drained

1/3 cup mayonnaise

2/3 cup fennel, finely chopped

5 black olives (Gaeta or Kalamata), pitted and chopped

1 Tablespoon fresh parsley, minced

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon GOLDEN BLOSSOM HONEY

4 slices rye bread, lightly toasted

4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, grated

salt and pepper to taste

CLICK HERE FOR FULL RECIPE

 

You can find this recipe, as well as many more delicious recipes right on the Golden Blossom Honey recipe page! Be sure to follow Golden Blossom Honey on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on new products and promotions.

If you like this recipe, be sure to come back every Friday, where I feature a new recipe from Golden Blossom Honey, and be sure to Pin It on Pinterest! 

   

Have you ever used fennel? If so, what's your favorite recipe that includes it?