Sweets for My Sweetheart — The Semi-Homemade Way!

This muffin pan kit arrived just in time for Valentine’s Day!  My husband is a pretty simple man, all he desired for Valentine’s Day was his favorite dessert: Yellow Cupcakes with Chocolate Icing! Our schedule was jam packed, so I used one of my “semi-homemade” recipes (Cake mix with a little something extra– read through the post to get my baking tip).  The cupcake pan is super cute and I loved that this really came with everything you’d need to make cupcakes (short of a bowl and the ingredients).

The liners were attractive and of good quality and I was able to support the pan with a simple cookie sheet or you could choose to use a shallow baking dish or a pizza pan if you don’t have a cookie sheet in your baking collection.  This would be a cute gift to send to a college student or a friend for a “galentines day” token of appreciation.  Overall, I was very happy with this item.

Here’s my “Semi-Homemade” Baking Tip:  I use Betty Crocker Super Moist Butter Recipe Yellow Cake Mix cake when I’m in a pinch– and to make it taste closer to homemade, I add in a box of Vanilla Jello Pudding— nothing extra– just make the cake according to the cake box directions.

The pudding really does make a difference!  You’ll thank me later!

Morningstar Blackbean Crumbles Recipe on FixitWithFran.com

Meatless Monday: MorningStar Chipotle Black Bean Crumbles

I had two back to back meetings scheduled for this evening, so I knew I needed to plan ahead. I came home at 4:30pm and used these MorningStar Chipotle Black Bean Crumbles to make tacos for the Husboo. He loved them and EVEN had seconds. My final evaluation is always completed by asking if he would have that meal again. With NO hesitation he said, “YES!” Another #meatlessMonday win!

Product review: The crumbles are a new MorningStar product and I highly recommend them. They are preseasoned and the cook time was only 8 minutes. I had taco seasoning on standby just in case the flavors weren’t to my liking, but I didn’t add a thing.

I served the tacos using Old El Paso’s new Tortilla Bowls and added Sargento 4 Cheese Mexican Blend and Wholly Guacamole’s spicy pico and guacamole dip. A quick, 30 minute meal.

I also purchased the Grillers Recipe Crumbles, so I’ll review those at some point in the future. Until then, “Go fix something!” 🙂

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