no holds bar

I know there are so many gift-giving baking idea's floating around on other blogs, Pinterest, the Food Network... but these Chunky Raspberry Bars have to be one of the easiest to put together. There's no intricate decorating of cookies or cupcakes, instead you're just basically smashing the dough into a pan and going for that "rustic" look. It works here, trust me.

The dough is really more of a shortbread packed with oats, coconut and almonds... oh and some raspberry jam to give it a festive flair. But of course you could swap out the raspberry jam for your favorite flavor, say peach or strawberry. Once the bars are cooled, they're dense and hold up wonderfully in a (gift) box. 

data dump

So sorry for the delay but I've been pre-occupied potty training a certain two-and-a-half year old and all of my energy has been on getting her to achieve something we now deem as "super simple". Sometimes it's easier to just unload the thoughts in my brain than it is to do full posts for each of these topics- although they may turn into posts eventually.

* Just got this popsicle maker and am excited to use it! If you've got any ideas for healthy recipes I'd love to hear them.

* Remember when I professed my love for the Fresh Sugar lip Balms? When I heard Fresh had a new bright pink Sugar Lip Balm coming out, called Tulip, I got so excited. Thankfully, my anticipation was worth it- I'm obsessed! My new favorite summer lip!!

* Have you ever watched America's Test Kitchen on PBS? I love that show because they do all the exhaustive research to produce the best possible recipe. One of the contributing chefs, Yvonne Ruperti, recently came out with her own cookbook called One Bowl. I just got the cookbook because I like the simplicity of only needing one bowl to bake with- I'm sure I'll be sharing some recipes from it.

* I can't believe I've never used EOS lip balm before (because they're organic and I know what each ingredient is), but since Elise Ruby recently went through my makeup bag and smeared a new tube of pink lipstick all over herself, I decided it was time for her to have something of her own. I got the mint one for me, and the strawberry one for Ruby and she loves it. Now the challenge is rationing her because she wants it. All. Of. The. Time.


Any ideas for Father's Day? Ties are always a given, but this year I'm making my husband a special donut treat... to be continued!