A little bit of cinnamon and a new toy!

So, I LOVE cinnamon.  Seriously.  It's just such a great spice.  You can add it to so many things and enjoy its never-ending yumminess! My favorites are definitely "sweet" baked goods (see previous posts for recipes I have made recently with cinnamon). 

This past weekend, my husband allowed me to switch up our typical whole wheat buttermilk pancakes by adding some cinnamon to them.  However, I didn't just add a teaspoon to the batter.  Oh no, I made Cinnamon Swirl Pancakes!  They were yummy, but a tad bit sweet (even for me).  I ended up adding a bit of peanut butter on top of my pancakes to cut down on the overload of sugar.  Tom loved them though! :)

Here's the recipe for the cinnamon swirl:

1 Tbsp. Butter, melted
1-2 Tbsp. Milk (may need to add more to thin the mixture)
 1/4 cup Brown Sugar
1 tsp. Cinnamon
1 Tbsp. Flour

 Combine all ingredients in a small bowl.  Transfer to a small ziploc bag with a slit in the corner.  Right after you spread your pancake batter on the griddle, swirl some cinnamon mixture into each.  Then just cook your pancakes like normal.  And tada, you'll get this:

Just a little tip - I'd go easy on the syrup you add to your pancakes, and I might even add a Tbsp. or two of peanut butter if you don't want to have a sugar attack later in the morning!  However, if you are like my husband, you will slather on that syrup and enjoy your pancakes with a smile! :)

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I got a new toy this weekend!  

We finally bought a new vacuum!!!  We've needed one for a while, but I wanted to be sure we got the best we could find at a decent price.  I was pretty sure I had decided on a Shark Navigator.  They retail for around $160.  We decided to wait until November to make the purchase since we had spent a pretty penny on some landscaping in October. 

Good thing we decided to wait because just a week or so ago I received a 20% off coupon for Bed, Bath and Beyond.  SWEET!  So, we headed there on Saturday morning and purchased a pretty purple Shark Navigator.  Needless to say, I'm in love with it!  I've already vacuumed every day since we got it! :)  The amount of dirt this thing picks up is amazing (and a bit disgusting).  So, if you are looking for a new vacuum any time soon, I highly recommend this one! 

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Oh, I have another recipe for you!  Almost forgot! :)

Monday nights we have our small group class, and this week it was our turn to host.  I decided to make Slow-Cooked BBQ Pork Sandwiches.  It was a first for me, and it turned out great! 

Kroger was having a meat sale, so I got 8.5 lbs of pork shoulder for a little over $8!!!  A $23 savings!  And all the Wonder Bread buns were on sale for $1 per 8 pack. (This was a sweet little deal since our "small" group has about 24 people at any given time).  Anyway, here's the recipe (obviously it makes a lot, but you can do the same with less meat and less of all the other ingredients, but the leftovers are great):

8 lbs. of Pork Shoulder or Pork Butt.  (I used 8.5 lbs of Bone-in because that's what the store had).
2 Medium Onions, Chopped
2+ Cans of Beef Broth
2-3 Bottles of BBQ Sauce
24 Hamburger Buns

Spray a 6 quart Slow Cooker and place chopped onions in first.  After removing the fat from the pork, cut into thirds (or however you need to in order to fit it in the slow cooker).  Add enough Beef Broth to cover.  Simmer on low for 8 to 10 hours or until pork is tender.  Take pork out and shred with two forks.  Drain liquid from the slow cooker.  Place pork back into slow cooker and add BBQ sauce.  I then put the pork in the fridge over night, but you could serve after you rewarm the pork. 
The next day, I pulled the pork out of the fridge and cooked on low for another couple of hours.  Then an hour before the group meeting, I put the pork in a 13x9 and baked in the oven (mixing it occasionally) for 1 hour.  This browned the meat up a bit and made it a little more smokey.  Serve on buns with extra BBQ sauce. 

It was a huge hit, and Tom and I enjoyed the leftovers for lunch AND dinner last night! :)

Hope you're having a GREAT Wednesday!