Ruby Rocket's Snack Time + Pies Made with Planetary Pink Lemonade Pops!

I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Influence Central for Ruby Rocket’s. I received product samples to facilitate my review and a promotional item to thank me for my participation.

I snack to live and I live to snack. As a foodie with a passion for tasty-ness and fitness, I've had to learn how to snack on healthy foods. With amazing new additions to my diet like broccoli based slaw and ice pop-based pies, I can say that I'm trying all kinds of new healthy foods and absolutely loving them!

Today I want to share a creative recipe for my mini ice pop pies with you, using Ruby Rocket's delicious and nutritious pops! I decided to use Planetary Pink Lemonade for the recipe this time around but these little pop pies are the perfect little finger food in every Ruby Rocket's flavor! Since these pops come in such a variety of flavors like Celestial Cherry, Far Out Fudge, Meteorite Mango, Gravity Grape, Galaxy Green, Rock-It Red, and Orbit Orange; I never know which flavor to choose since they are all so amazing!

I love Ruby Rocket's any time of the day, post work out or in between errands on a busy, busy day... but sometimes I like to mix things up a bit and since they sent me a whole freezer full of ice pops I decided to play around and make a recipe or two.

These mini frozen pop pies are the best finger food I've had in a long time, they would be perfect as a quickly served Hors d'oeuvre for any occasion this winter - with just the right amount of sweet and creamy flavors, they almost taste like a super creamy pink lemonade cheesecake and are bound to be a hit!

Want to make a batch of these beautiful little tiny finger foods?

You will need:

1 box of Planetary Pink Lemonade Ruby Rocket's Pops
1 container of Marshmallow Fluff
2 tbsp Powdered Sugar
1 package GF Graham Crackers
1 1/2 tbsp Butter, melted

To make this fantastic little dish, you'll begin by melting the Planetary Pink Lemonade Pops. I defrosted my pops in my microwave for a few minutes and they came out cool still and completely melted. This is how I recommend getting your pops into a liquid state, but you could always leave them out on the counter and allow them to melt naturally as well.

While your pops are melting, place the graham crackers into a food processor and blend until it's a crumb texture. Add in melted butter and stir.

Once your pops are melted, you'll mix in two cups of Marshmallow fluff and 2 tbsp powdered sugar, stir until thoroughly combined.

Add a layer of graham cracker crust in each little holder in a mini muffin silicone pan, then pour mixture into each holder as well.

Refrigerate until your pop pies are a solid state, (approximately 4 hours).

Enjoy!

The best part of using Ruby Rocket's as a main ingredient: they are made with all real foods that a kindergartner could pronounce, they are no more than 40 calories, gluten free, dairy free, non-GMO, and are made with a unique ingredient - monk fruit. Monk fruit is similar to sugar in taste but it doesn't have all the calories so it makes the perfect addition to these tasty ice pops!

Now we know these pops contain all kinds of tasty fruits and veggies, but did you know they also contain probiotics? Ruby Rocket’s uses Ganeden BC30 composition, which has the ability to survive the manufacturing process to withstand freezing temperatures!

Ruby Rocket's are by far, one of the most unique and tasty pops I've ever tried. I think next time I make a batch of these little pop pies I'm going to make some Galaxy Green fluff! Which Ruby Rocket's flavor do you want to try first? 

Chocolate Drenched Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Ever had one of those days when everything just goes wrong? Those days when you just want a piece of chocolate cake, a long bath, a glass of wine, or whatever tickles your fancy? Well, I had one of those days last week and instead of wallowing away on the couch, I baked my frustrations out and this Chocolate Drenched Chocolate Chip Banana Bread is an other-worldly concoction of goodness, created with the items I happened to have in my pantry and a chocolate craving that just wouldn't go away...

So my advice, when you're craving chocolate cake, but don't want it to go straight to your hips or when you're just not feeling yourself, making something like this Chocolate Drenched Chocolate Chip Banana Bread may be just the thing you need.

Ingredients:
4 eggs
3 over-ripe bananas, mashed
1/4 cup local honey
1/4 cup almond milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp baking soda
2 1/4 cups gluten-free baking flour blend
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
3/4 cup dark chocolate chips (+ a handful for the top of the bread)
2 tbsp chocolate syrup

You'll want to begin by preheating the oven to 350.

In a bowl, mix together the eggs, bananas, honey, almond milk, and vanilla with a beater. Once thoroughly mixed, add in baking soda, flour blend, sea salt, brown sugar and cinnamon and beat until completely mixed.

Add in chocolate chips and stir gently.

Pour batter in bread pan and add a line of chocolate chips on the top, I had some leftover baking chocolate that I added to the top but you can just use chocolate chips.

Bake for 45 minutes. Remove from oven and drizzle chocolate syrup over the top.

Let cool for a few minutes and then serve! This "dessert" is so tasty, I like to eat it for breakfast sometimes and on occasion, I'll have a slice or two for lunch! I know I brag about all of my recipes, but I promise you guys - this one takes the cake!

Do you have a favorite "healthy" dessert? I'd love to hear all about it in the comments below!

Life Hacks + Little Secrets to Ensure You Have The Best Road Trip Ever: Free Checklist Printable, List of Must Have Apps, & More

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #RoadTripHacks #CollectiveBias #Albertsons

We've driven to tropical ports, trekked to campgrounds, cruised our way to luxury hotels, made our way to our extended family's country homes, and even braved our way toward spooky haunted hotels.

We've driven our car through a zoo in the middle of Arkansas and had a buffalo stick his head in our window just to say hello. We've traveled half-way across the country in a car without air conditioning. We've spent countless hours listening to a GPS who's maps haven't been updated since 2010 and then finally learned our lesson and started using our phone's GPS.

We've giggled for countless hours while joking around and singing along to some of our favorite songs. We've spent so much time on the road during our years as a couple, I suppose you could refer to us as a couple of professionals, so today I want to share some of our road trip hacks. Most of these "hacks" are tips, tricks, and little tidbits we've learned from life experience while on the road, so take notes if you are prepping for an upcoming road trip and be sure to print off the list of goodies, download all of the apps, and of course, pack wisely with the tips I've shared!

Let's talk about checklists... If you know me, you know I'm not really the checklist type, most of the time. When it comes to road tripping, I'm a little different though; I like to keep things organized and I really want to be sure we have everything we need while on the road. I've linked to a printable so you can make sure you grab all the necessities before you go, but first I'm going to share more about why you should take these items on your next trip!

We'll start with the Snacks + Sips, I think we all know that road trips are the time in our lives when calories don't count, right? That's why I like to make sure we stock up on all of my favorites from Albertsons before we head out on the road.

It's like Albertsons knew we were ready for an adventure, they have an incredible "Best Road Trip Ever" sale going on right now and of course, they had the best foods on sale! I stocked up on Dove Dark Chocolate Blueberries (seriously, these are heavenly), Snickers Bites, Mountain Dew, Oreos, Fruit Punch Gatorade, Life Savers, and Skittles. Not to mention the fact I grabbed our favorite snack for a great deal, chips + salsa! To top off our little road trip shopping spree, I added a pack of Orbit to the cart and we were on our way.

We make a quick stop at Albertsons before we head out of town, every-single-time we take a road trip and I recommend you do the same. If you can't make it to the store before you leave, I've  noticed that Acme, Tom Thumb, and Safeway have what I need when we need to make a stop along the road as well!

Other than making sure we are stocked up on food and drinks, I always like to make sure we have the other necessities, from a sewing kit to bug spray - you never know what you'll need while driving down the road. You don't want to get the most important things just because you are feeling antsy to get on the road! I added things as simple as chargers and even left you a few lines to add your own items to the list. Don't forget anything and print this little baby off today:

{Click here to download this FREE printable!}

 Now that you've made your list of everything to pack for the road trip, I want to share how you can pack your suitcase without having to stress about running out of room... because remember, I'm a professional at this type of thing. I literally, am the worst over packer in the world. The only benefit to this admission is the fact that you can trust that I know how to make sure everything fits in a bag, no matter how small it is.

Tips to Ensure You Are Packing Correctly

Tip #1 to Ensure You Are Packing Correctly: Always, always, always roll your t-shirts, tank tops, etc. Anything light weight and holds up fairly well against wrinkling should always be rolled.

Tip #2 to Ensure You Are Packing Correctly: The pockets on the front of your luggage are there for a reason, use them! I highly suggest stuffing undergarments or shoes into those little pockets on the front of your luggage. This utilizes all the space in the piece and allows you to make more room in the actual suitcase for valuable pieces of your wardrobe and accessories.

Tip #3 to Ensure You Are Packing Correctly: For jewelry, specifically necklaces, package each piece inside a piece of tissue paper. Preventing your jewelry from tangling is such a time saver!

Tip #4 to Ensure You Are Packing Correctly: Package all of your bathroom items in a separate bag! Even if you place that bag within your suitcase, always put your shampoo, conditioner, bodywash, razor, etc in a bag so if one of these products happens to explode, all of the suds and soap won't end up on your clothes!

The Best Apps for Road Tripping:

Another reason I love road tripping is all the reasons you can stop along the way. From exploring local restaurants and boutiques to wandering around waterfalls, we've stopped and explored all along our trips and loved every single second of it. Most of the places we've stopped along the way have been because we found them on an app! Are you planning a road trip and wanting to find the best places to stop, the cheapest gas, or maybe you even want to treasure hunt (geocache). Check out these apps and be sure to download them all to your phone!

1. Foursquare: When you need to make a stop along your journey, be sure to check out what is around you with Foursquare. You'll be able to find everything from happening night clubs to local kid-friendly diners that serve pizza, seek and you will find with Foursquare!

2. c:geo: This is another great app to help you find some cool spots to stretch and walk around for a bit. I love geocaching along the way on road trips and this app is so easy to use and find awesome caches to seek.

3. TripIt: Plan your entire trip with this app and access your itinerary while on the road.

4. Periscope - While this may eat up your entire data plan, all the entertainment Periscope will bring will make it worth it! I can't wait to Periscope some of our upcoming adventures and share our fun road trips in real time with you!

5. Gas Buddy: Don't worry about spending too much on gas, download this app and save big when you search for the lowest gas while driving along the road!

6. Roadtrippers: This is another awesome way to plan your trip and access your itinerary. Discover the best diners, scenic spots, attraction hotels, and more with the database of over a million awesome places.

7. TripAdvisor: Take advice from fellow travelers and hit the hotspots listed on TripAdvisor!

8. Airbnb: Find the perfect place to stay overnight, in a local environment or a beautiful palace. Rent a room or an entire home with this awesome service.

9. Voyager: Route Planner: This app helps you plan your trip, guiding you on the optimal route along the way.

10. Instagram - Trusty old, Instagram is a fun way to find places to stop. Look for the #hashtag of the town you are driving through (#LittleRock, #STL, #Tempe) and you are sure to find some epic, local spots that you must visit.

With all of that said, I think it's about time for me to start planning our next adventure. Where should the masters of road tripping go next? Give me some ideas of your favorite places to road trip in the comments below! I'd also love to know what your favorite road trip snack list would include! Plus, don't miss your chance to win big, click here to get all the details and to share your Best Road Trip ever!

It Feels Good to Be Bad with This Notoriously Delicious Honey Vanilla Fruit Dip + The New Movie “Descendants”

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #Disney #VillainDescendants #CollectiveBias

I've always been a huge fan of Disney; growing up with the classics like 101 Dalmatians, Sleeping Beauty, Aladdin, Snow White, etc. made me fall in love. I mean with character development and plots that keep people of all ages entertained, Disney really is pretty amazing!

So when I heard about the release of the new Disney movie, "Descendants", I set a reminder on my TV to tune in on July 31st! There's only one thing I love more than the main character in the Disney movies that I grew up watching and that's the villain! With characters like Cruella, Maleficent, Jafar, and the Evil Queen, what's not to love? Descendants is a super cool movie about the children of all of these villains and the overall idea is that even if you are born into a villainous family, you don't necessarily have to be that way.

The message, the entire plot, and the sweet little love story that develops through out the movie are just a few of the reasons that I decided I had to go out and buy Descendants after seeing it.

No worries though, I won't be sharing any true spoilers in my post so you'll still be able to enjoy all the twist and turns when you see the movie! I must say, the music is also pretty rockin' and I have a feeling my nieces and nephews will think so too, so I went ahead and grabbed the soundtrack while I was at Walmart as well!

Once I got home, I decided to watch Descendants again while I whipped up a little snack. During one scene in the movie Mal, Maleficent's "evil" daughter, is on a date with a prince. They are in a beautiful setting, picnicking, and then he shares strawberries with her and she's never tried them before. She's a brave girl and decides to give them a try and she loves them. Which made me start thinking about my favorite fruits and my notoriously delicious fruit dip and I knew what had to happen... If you love being bad, you'll love this ridiculously tasty dip! 

Ingredients:1 cup Mascarpone
2 tbsp honey

1/2 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp heavy whipping cream

Want to see how I made this dip? Check out the video below or read on for the recipe!

This simple honey-vanilla mascarpone dip is so easy to prepare and it tastes so indulgently delicious with any of your favorite fruits you'll feel like you are being bad! To prepare this dish, simply place the mascarpone, honey, vanilla, and heavy whipping cream together in a small bowl. Stir until well combined and dip fruit until your heart is content!

I suggest whipping this recipe up and then sitting down with your family to watch Descendants today, don't forget that you can grab everything you'll need at Walmart!

I personally fell in love with the movie and can't wait to hear your opinion! For now, though, leave me a comment telling me about your favorite villain, I want to know who else love the "bad" side of Disney as much as I do!

Indulge Your Cheesecake Instincts with Fiber One Cheesecake Bars

I'm a bit of a foodie with a true love for anything remotely resembling dessert. Lately I've been craving one of my favorite desserts though; I want the perfect slice of cheesecake! I'm obsessed with the rich, creamy texture, the buttery graham cracker crumb crust, and the most delicious flavors. 

The thing is, I've lost a lot of weight recently and I'm really trying to live a healthier lifestyle which means I tend to steer clear of desserts in general, especially cheesecake. This is tough, but worth it! I was living a in cheesecake-less world for the last few months, until I found Fiber One Cheesecake Bars in Salted Caramel and Strawberry! Now I can indulge in cheesecake daily, if I please and not worry about gaining each time I take a bite.

These delicious little treats are the ultimate after dinner "dessert"; offering the perfect creamy texture, a moist and flavorful graham cracker crust, and a swirl of caramel (or strawberry) that really adds that extra little touch and really boosts the flavor all for just 150 calories!

I love serving these Fiber One cheesecake desserts to company with a drizzle of chocolate over the top and a couple of strawberries for decoration! Think restaurant quality dessert, without any hassle or guilt - what more could a cheesecake-loving-foodie ask for?

Are you ready to follow your cheesecake instincts? Enter to win $15 CASH so Fiber One and I can treat you to a couple of boxes of cheesecake bars!

Entry-Form

Not only do you have the opportunity to win some cash, you can save some $$ as well. Check out all the awesome coupons and exclusive savings only at Publix!

So what are you waiting for? Head to Publix and grab a box or two of Fiber One Cheesecake bars, because now you can have your cheesecake, eat it, and save money too!

Treat Yourself: Triple Chocolate & Caramel Ice Cream Sandwich with Blue Bunny

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #SunsOutSpoonsOut #CollectiveBias

Eating delicious triple chocolate cookies is something I've been dreaming of since I began strictly dieting this summer and while I'm still trying to watch my figure, I also deserve to treat myself every once in a while so I made these AMAZING triple chocolate ice cream sandwiches with some of my favorite Blue Bunny Ice Cream, Bunny Tracks!

With a creamy, cold peanut butter and fudge infused ice cream inside of two delicious, soft, triple chocolate cookies, all stuck together with a gooey, sloppy layer of caramel; this recipe is the answer to a deprived foodie's sweet tooth cravings and it's sinfully delicious!

Since I've been dieting, my hubby has been kind enough not to eat too much chocolate in front of me, which has been nice; but I know he's missing it as well! That's why I decided to make these delicious sandwiches gluten-free (he has a wheat allergy). The only bad part about making these gluten free is that my hubby will likely consume all of these beautiful desserts before I even manage to get my hands on another one. If you have someone in your family that suffers from a gluten (or wheat) allergy, these desserts are the perfect way to treat them to a food they probably miss dearly!

Now I know what you are probably thinking, something this delicious must be difficult to make... But you'd be surprised how easy these sweet treats are to make! You'll want to turn on some music and get the electric mixer out because this recipe is about to rock your world!

Just a little tip, I typically make my batch of cookies the same day I plan to serve these beauties, so that the cookies are nice and fresh!

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 tbsp vanilla extract
2 cups gluten-free all-purpose flour     
2/3 cup cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups dark chocolate chips
2 tbsp Hazelnut Spread
Caramel Topping

Blue Bunny Bunny Tracks Ice Cream

Begin prepping this recipe by preheating the oven to 350 degrees. Next you'll want to combine the butter, sugar, eggs, hazelnut spread, and vanilla and mix with a hand mixer until light and fluffy.

Now add in the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt; stir into the butter mixture until well blended. Mix in the chocolate chips, until it's all blended well.

Bake for 15 minutes in the oven, or just until set. Allow these delicious chocolate beauties to remain on the cookie sheets for around 20 minutes or until cool to the touch.

Once the cookies are cool, add a scoop of Blue Bunny Bunny Tracks Ice Cream on to the bottom of one cookie, add a swirl or two of caramel, and place another cookie on top.

Enjoy!

Now that I've shared one of the most delicious recipes of the summer, I'd love to hear your favorite way to indulge your cravings? Want to sample Blue Bunny Ice Cream before you buy it? Check out this list of all the Walmart locations that will be giving out FREE ice cream samples July 16-19!

Celebrate Independence Day with 4th of July Fruit Kebobs

Fourth of July weekend is officially here and we are excited to celebrate at our house. We broke out the BBQ and made some super fun 4th of July themed snacks today and I just have to share this super simple recipe with you so you can indulge in some of this deliciousness this weekend as well. The flavors of roasted strawberry, marshmallow, and blueberries combined together taste like a decadent dessert and leave a deliciously fruity and sugary after taste that embodies everything summertime. Plus, since these are so easy to make, kids can help with the prep work!

Ingredients you'll need to make these tasty kebobs:
Strawberries
Blueberries
Marshmallows
Skewers

To begin rinse the strawberries and blueberries and then pat them dry.

Next cut off the tops of the strawberries, making them easier to eat in skewer form.

Now add a strawberry, a marshmallow, and 2-3 blueberries and repeat so that each skewer has two levels of deliciousness.

Warm up the grill or a make a small fire pit and place the skewers above the flame for about 10-15 seconds a piece, rotating it so that it all gets a nice bit of heat.

Remove from heat and allow to cool for a second or two, then slide from the strawberry up for a nice fruity, toasted marshmallow dessert in every bite!

Enjoy!

This treat is sure to make your family smile on the fourth and if you don't feel like firing up the grill, these kebobs are just as tasty "raw".

I'd love to hear what your plans for the 4th include...? Will you be making any delicious recipes or setting off fireworks, I want to hear all about your adventures this weekend in the comments below!

Let's Talk About Emotions with Inside Out Cupcakes

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #InsideOutEmotions #CollectiveBias

Stop for a moment and tell me, how are you feeling today? Are you full of joy? Feeling a little sadness? Possibly even a little red in the face from anger after a tough day? Maybe it's hard to translate how you are feeling at this very moment?

If you really think about it, we have some super complex emotions, so if you are having trouble I don't blame you. Some of us cry when we are happy, a lot of people smile a joyful grin when they are embarrassed, and some people even laugh when they are angry, translating those mixed signals into words is so very difficult at times.

Emotions are a difficult thing to discuss; when we are children we can't quite put our feelings into words and once we are older we are told to keep composure. While it's nice to keep your emotions at bay in some situations, here's some news for the adults holding it all in all the time and the kids learning to express themselves: all emotions are normal and it's healthy for us to express ourselves.

While I'm not an expert on the expression of emotions, I will be the first to admit I wear my heart on my sleeve. I am passionate and feel everything deeply so not sharing how I'm feeling is abnormal for me. 

After seeing Inside Out recently, I'm a huge fan of the movie and just have to share my joy! I love that the characters in the movie make relating our emotions to situations so incredibly easy. It's like a guide book for kids to learn to express themselves in an emotionally healthy way, while still having plenty of humor for adults to get a real chuckle.

In celebration of all the joy I'm feeling about Inside Out, I decided to make a rainbow of Inside Out cupcakes, sharing all of my emotions through baking! I made yellow cupcakes for Joy, blue cupcakes for Sadness, red cupcakes for Anger, purple cupcakes for Fear, and green cupcakes for Disgust! They all each had their own little twist but were made with the same delicious, cake batter recipe.

Ingredients:

Cupcakes:

1 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

3/4 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup oil (vegetable, canola or extra light olive oil)

1/2 cup almond milk with a pinch of lemon juice added (or buttermilk)

Gel food coloring in yellow, blue, red, purple, and green

Frosting:

1 stick of butter
1 tbsp vanilla

3 1/2 cups confectioners sugar

1 tbsp of almond milk

 *This recipe yields about 12 cupcakes, I made two batches so I could make plenty of each color.*

Directions-

You'll want to begin by preheating your oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, add flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Stir together with whisk, and set aside.

In a separate bowl, add eggs and beat with mixer for about 10 seconds.  Add sugar and continue to beat on medium speed about 40 seconds, now add the vanilla and oil, beat for an additional 10 seconds or so.

Reduce mixer speed to low and slowly add about a fourth of the flour mixture.  Add about a fourth of the milk, then add another fourth of the flour and another fourth of the milk and so on.  Beat until just combined.

Pour batter into 5 bowls and add desired amount of food coloring. I added a pinch of coconut and lime to the disgust cupcakes, 1 tbsp of cocoa to the anger cupcakes, 1 tsp of lemon extract to the joy cupcakes, and left the fear and sadness cupcakes just plain ol' vanilla for those that like that type of thing. These additions are totally optional but add some fun flavor varities to the cupcakes.

Then pour into a muffin pan prepared with silicone liners or directly into a silicone baking pan.  Fill approximately 2/3 full.

Place in oven and bake for 12-14 minutes. We ate some Inside Out fruit snacks while we waited for our cupcakes... Remove all the cupcakes from the oven once you can stick a toothpick (or fork) into the center and it comes out clean. Allow the cupcakes to cool in the pan for a minute or two, then remove cupcakes from pan and finish cooling on a wire rack.

While your cupcakes are cooling, you can start on your frosting prep! Combine the butter, vanilla, confectioners sugar, and almond milk in a large mixing bowl and mix on high for about a minute or until the frosting is smooth in consistency. Separate the frosting into five bowls again and add desired amount of food coloring and flavors, if you desire.

Once your cupcakes are completely cooled, cut each one in half and add a thick spoonful of frosting to each "top" of the cupcake and place the bottom on top. You want the inside of your cupcake to be the outside, hence their name "Inside Out" cupcakes! 

Add Sprinkles, if you wish and these little emotional cupcakes are ready to serve!

Enjoy!

These Inside Out Cupcakes are like little cupcake sandwiches and are absolutely delicious. The perfect colorful addition to a conversation about emotions or a very happy celebration of any sort! 

Now that I've shared my delicious (and emotional) Inside Out cupcake recipe, I'd love to hear which cupcake you think best represents how you feel on a daily basis...? I'd also love to hear if you've seen Inside Out or if you plan to see this adorable movie? If you want to celebrate seeing the movie in style with all the fun emotions, you can find all kinds of cute plush animals, toys, and more at Walmart!