Super simple - YOU can make them in the MORNING- muffins

I find it difficult to find something satisfying for everyone on school days. My son, if he had his druthers, would eat mid-morning and is, instead, forced to eat before school. My daughter, well, she likes variety, eating a different breakfast almost daily. What they both have in common is often needing something quick to eat that can travel with them. These very simple banana muffins are great with a piece of fruit on the drive to school.

Since I am not organized and lack the desire to prepare lunches at night, I wake early to get them ready. When I have browning bananas, I add these to the day. I preheat the oven as soon as I wake. I mix the batter and put them into bake while I make lunches. They are so simple that by the time the kids make it downstairs, the muffins are ready to roll.

Super Simple YOU can make them in the MORNING muffins!

1/3 cup melted margarine
about 3 soft bananas
3/4 cup of sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips, to your liking

Preheat your oven to 375. Place muffin wrappers into your muffin tins - this recipe makes 12.

Melt margarine in the microwave - cover to avoid splatter. Let it sit.

Throw bananas into your KitchenAid or other mixer. Mash the bananas and slowly add the sugar. Add the egg and blend well. Now, add your dry ingredients while the mixer is on low. Finally, add the margarine. Once the batter is smooth, remove mixing bowl from mixer. Now, with a rubber spatula, stir in the chocolate chips to your liking.

Use a ice cream scoop to neatly scoop batter into the muffin tins. Place in the oven for about 18 minutes. Let them cool for a couple of minutes. They will stay nicely in a sealed container for a couple of days, but only if they last that long. YUM!

Celery! Crunch!

Don't roll your eyes! Celery is your friend! I saw you - stop the eye rolling! Let me explain. Celery is a free food meaning it doesn't use up your calories or points and actual gives your body fiber and digestive (aka calorie burning) work to do. Most of the time, I like my celery plain. But sometimes, I dip it in another freebie - mustard! Another free option would be to let it soak in some seasoned rice vinegar. What do you like with your celery? Crunch! It's Good2Know!

Ugh...fruit flies

Incredibly sweet and juicy fruits and vegetables is one reason I love summer. However, the fruit flies that sometimes arrive with my ripening fruit drive me mad! This year, though, I have stopped those fruit flies in their tracks. All you need, once you see fruit flies, is to set out a glass with balsamic vinegar in the bottom. Then form a cone with paper to place inside. The fruit flies will smell the balsamic and head down the cone. They are quite cleaver enough to know how to come back out. Your family can watch them fly around and in a couple of days they will all be collected and dead. Good-bye fruit flies, hello peaches, plums and melon! ItsGood2Know!

Keepin' It Cool

Headed to the store and want to keep things chilled in the cooler? Need extra ice to keep the cooler chilled for the BBQ? Here's a quick Good2Know fact I shared with my friend Bethany today: McDonald's sells ice for 97 cents a bag. You can run through the drive-through and go! In the Arizona heat, that is Good2Know!

Is it or Isn't it Organic?

Fish protein in apples to increase shelf-life? Yuck!

I wrote about this last year, but thought it was important to share again! Once I read about fish in my apples, I knew I needed to be better educated on produce identification. Here it is simplified:

Look at the Product Look Up Code (PLU) on the produce sticker.

4 digit numbers are NOT organic.

A 9 in front of the numbers means it IS organic.

A 8 in front of the numbers means genetically modified. Be careful what you eat!

If you cannot make the switch to organic for everything, at least be aware of which foods have the largest amount of pesticides. For example, peaches, strawberries, bell peppers and celery. Then you can make better decisions about what you eat. Now that is Good2Know!

Corny

My friend Simon and his family came for a BBQ before the Arizona summer heat hit. We had a great time enjoying great friends, weather and food. Simon couldn't get over my Butter Boy! He's a little guy who helps apply butter to your corn cob. So, I thought I would include a shout out to corn lovers everywhere! Simon, you can buy your own Butter Boy in the ItsGood2Know shop under kitchen. Everyone else can find them there, too. Why not be a little corny? ItsGood2Know!