My 3 Favorite Autumn Teas

Last year, one of my most popular Blogtober posts was this one: My 4 favorite Autumn teas. It was one of those posts that I didn’t expect to be quite as popular as it was, but hey, I wasn’t complaining!

This year, I decided to share 3 more of my favorite teas for Autumn! Danny & I are year-round tea drinkers, but I shift more with the season than Danny does, as he only drinks herbal teas. So, here they are, my 3 favorite teas for Autumn this year.

1. Salted Caramel Black Tea from Bigelow

Salted caramel is, perhaps, my favorite flavor of all time. The first time I drank a salted caramel mocha from Starbucks, that was it. I had never really liked caramel, but salted caramel is a different animal. This tea is perfect for when you’re craving something sweet and a little salty. It also smells absolutely amazing.

2. Pumpkin Spice Tea from Zhena’s Gypsy Tea

This is one of the few pumpkin spice teas I’ve found that contains actual tea: African Rooibos, to be exact. It also has ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, and more to help give it that spicy, sweet taste and pumpkin flavor. It does have some orange spice in it, so it is not as “traditionally” pumpkin spice as, say, a PSL… but it reminds me almost of a mulled wine. It’s really good and perfect for those crisp, Fall mornings.

3. Apple Cider Spiced Tea from Bigelow

This is an herbal tea, which means Danny can drink it--and good thing too, because he loves apple cider. I’ve never been a huge fan, but this Apple Cider tea may have changed my mind! It’s not too strong on the apple flavor, which is probably why I like it. Danny and I have it with honey. It is perfect for the evening, when you’re sitting down to watch TV or a movie before bed. Heavenly!

Product Review: Starbucks Cold Brew at Home!

Over the summer, I developed a serious cold brew problem. The Vanilla Sweet Cream Cold Brew at Starbucks is one of my favorite drinks of all time: it is really coffee-flavored, lightly sweet, and perfect for a cold day. It's also not super calorie heavy; 110 calories for a tall is actually pretty decent. And compared to other drinks at Starbucks, it has 14g of sugar--which is still a lot (about 3.5 teaspoons). Hence, why it's not an every day treat! 

While cruising Target, I noticed that Starbucks now sells packs to make cold brew at home. They come in a variety of flavors, but for around $8 for a box that makes one pitcher, I decided to just get the regular version. 

The instructions are quite easy. However, it does take 24 hours from start to finish. You fill a pitcher with 4 cups of water, add the two giant tea bags of coffee grounds, and pop it in the fridge for 24 hours. Yep, 24 hours. When it's ready, you add another 4 cups of water, remove the big packs of coffee (carefully, I accidentally broke one), and your cold brew is ready to enjoy. 

Minus the fact that it took 24 hours (I don't know why I thought it would be 4-5 hours max!), the cold brew it produced was delicious. It tasted just like the cold brew you would get at Starbucks; with a packet of Truvia, a tablespoon of salted caramel creamer, and a tablespoon or so of almond milk, you have a lower-sugar Sweet Cream Vanilla Cold brew at home. 

The pitcher made about 8-10 servings of cold brew for me. At $8 for a single pitcher, that evens out to $1 or less per serving, which was pretty good considering a drink at Starbucks is $3 or more. Ultimately, it saves money and you can control the calories and amount of sugar in your drinks more effectively. 

Fall is fast approaching, so I've been experimenting with cold brew and pumpkin spice. Let me tell you: it's just as delicious with a little Pumpkin Spice creamer and almond milk! If you love cold brew, but are tired of spending so much money at coffee shops, these are a great option. 

6 Months Later: An Update on Quitting Dairy

It's been 6 months since I wrote my post about quitting dairy. It feels like a long time ago, but yep, only 6 months. 

Even though I wanted to be completely dairy free by now, I'm still not. My biggest struggle has been replacing butter; I don't like butter substitutes because while butter isn't the healthiest substance in the world, it's void of hydrogenated oils, which are actually worse for you than trans fat. As well, coconut oil, the preferred vegan cooking replacement, is hydrogenated and actually 82% saturated fat; one tablespoon is 11 grams of saturated fat, and the limit suggested by the American Heart Association is 12g of saturated fat per day. (To read more about how fitness blogs and fake health experts have mislead most of the public about coconut oil, click here.)

The other preferred substitute are basically margarine, most of which contain soy. One brand makes a soy-free version that I would describe as being like eating solid oil. It's not good. 

I've started using olive oil again in cooking (ugh, the most expensive mistress!) and most of the week I use avocado or peanut butter on my toast. But every Sunday, I treat myself to buttered toast (my favorite food in the entire world). 

I haven't had milk in my coffee, not even from Starbucks or Dutch Bros, since around October. That's been a big one for me; I love a creamy Starbucks frappucino and i really worried that the almond milk version wouldn't be as good. But gosh, I was wrong. (Also, Starbucks had a toasted toffee almond milk hot chocolate at Christmas that was truly heavenly.) 

The big question I get is, has quitting dairy helped my skin at all? As I wrote in my blog post on my acne journey, I saw a lot of good results with jojoba oil. (I have noticed a lot of texture on my face recently from my super simplified skin routine, so I've added an extra exfoliation during the week; just something to remember if you want to try jojoba oil!) I still get a little bit of acne related to my cycle, but nothing like I used to experience. 

I've also noticed that if I eat something with dairy (like cheese or a lot of sour cream), I tend to break out almost immediately. Like, within hours. Obviously, this is only anecdotal, but it has definitely scared me from "treating myself." (A few times, I've run out of almond milk and had to use Forrest's 2% milk in my coffee; I regretted it every time!) 

It gets easier to go without dairy as time goes on. I don't miss cheese and milk as much as I thought I would; finding replacements for things (like sour cream) has been pretty exciting. I do occasionally still have a yogurt, as I find it doesn't aggravate my skin as bad as other dairy products.

I'm really happy with my decision to quit dairy. I'm going to give it a full year before I decide if it's something I want to do for the rest of my life, or just try to limit for the time being. 

Product Review: Uniquely J Voxbox*

This is going to be a rather quick review. To start, I received three products in this Voxbox from Influenster and, not to give it away, they all fell a bit flat. It's hard to get excited about crackers and freezer bags, but I did my best!

Disclaimer: as always, the asterisk (*) in the title of this blog post denotes that I received these products free in exchange from review. However, my choice to feature them here is my own and all opinions are my own. You can read more about my disclosure policy here. 

What is Uniquely J? 

Uniquely J is the generic brand of Jet.com, a website that I know most for having somewhat bizarre commercials. Jet.com is a lot like Amazon, selling household goods on subscription services for cheaper prices. So basically, you sign up and get toilet paper autoshipped to your house every 6 weeks--so it's technically cheaper than buying it from the store. 

Uniquely J is their brand of just about everything: coffee, paper supplies, cooking supplies, cleaning supplies, snacks... They've got a bit of everything. You can check it out here. 

What I Received

In this voxbox, I received: Fig and Olive Large Crisps; Almond Chocolate Biscotti; and Freezer Bags. 

Uh, yeah. Freezer bags. 

First things first, let's discuss what I liked: the packaging of these products is cute. I mean, it's really cute. The boxes are cute. Everything is cute. But then, you open them. 

Ok, it's not quite that dramatic. 

But I was pretty disappointed by the snacks because, well, they have the makings of everything I love. I love biscotti! I love crackers! I love those things! Yet, I wouldn't eat either of these things by choice. 

Let's break it down.

I'll start with the Fig and Olive Crisps. They're insanely sweet. Not sweet and salty. Not savory with some sweetness. They are sweet in the way that British people often describe American bread. (Yes, you're not alone, Brits. I, a born and bred American, also hate how sweet our bread is.) They are blisteringly, mouth-puckeringly sweet. I have no idea what you would eat these with, honestly. A dip might help reducing how teeth-numbingly sweet they are, but I honestly can't imagine what I would dip them in. Cheese? Gravy? The possibilities are all quite disgusting. On the plus side: Forrest likes them, but occasionally I catch him eating crayons. He is two years old, after all; his tastes aren't exactly discerning. 

Next, let's talk those Almond Chocolate Biscotti. Almond! Chocolate! Biscotti! Can you imagine? It sounds delicious, right? While the Fig and Olive Crisps are much too sweet for being a savory cracker, these biscotti are not sweet enough, despite being essentially a cookie. What is going on?! They are vaguely chocolatey, with bits of almond in them... but I wouldn't call them a biscotti. It was like two different kinds of blandness getting married to form another type of bland in the form of a cookie. They are aggressively bland in a way that is almost unsettling. And worse, they aren't even whole. This isn't a sleeve of little biscottis; it's a bag of essentially biscotti pieces. It's so bizarre! How can something that should be so easy to make taste amazing taste like I'm eating a piece of cardboard that's vaguely chocolatey? 

Needless to say... the two snack choices didn't make me very happy!

Then, of course, we have the Freezer Bags. I don't even know what to say about these! How do you review freezer bags? They zip. They have cute little designs on them, which isn't exactly my thing, but it's a nice touch. They seem to freeze well. They are quite thick and you get a lot in the package. It's hard to like or dislike freezer bags! 

It's funny because this voxbox had the other option of receiving cleaning supplies... I would much rather have gotten cleaning supplies, because I love a good window cleaner or wipe for my counter! These snacks have officially been put into the "treats for Forrest" bin and we've moved on from trying to make them work. But hey, the Uniquely J coffee does look really good and the prices certainly aren't bad. 

Hungryroot Review (2026): Is It Worth It After 8 Years?

Back in 2018, I ordered Hungryroot for the first time after seeing it everywhere online (and on my favorite podcasts). At the time, it was a much smaller company with a very different focus—and honestly, I wasn't sure it would stick around.

Fast forward to today, and I've continued coming back to Hungryroot over the years as my life has changed. I've used it as a new mom, as a working mom, during especially busy seasons, for meal prep, and even to stock up on kid-friendly snacks. I've kept this review updated because Hungryroot today is a completely different service than the one I first reviewed in 2018. Rather than deleting my original experience, I've continued updating this article as the company has evolved so readers can make an informed decision.

A lot has changed since my original review. Hungryroot has expanded far beyond simple meal kits into a personalized grocery delivery service, and the ordering experience looks completely different than it did in 2018.

If you're wondering whether Hungryroot is worth the money today, here's my honest experience after years of ordering.

And if you’d like to get money off your first box, use my code PAUSES here!

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Short on time? Here's my verdict:

〰️

Short on time? Here's my verdict: 〰️

My Rating: 4.7/5

Best for:

• Busy families

• Working parents

• People who hate grocery shopping

• Beginner cooks

Not ideal for:

• Very tight grocery budgets

• Extremely picky eaters

• People wanting gourmet cooking

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What is Hungryroot? 

Hungryroot is a meal delivery service that has three unique ways to use it: you can either shop for groceries; you can select meals; or you can do a combination of both. (Spoiler: I like to do a combination of both.)  It’s a great option for people who want to try a meal service like Blue Apron and/or who want the brands offered by Thrive, but want a little more flexibility.

When you sign up, you'll answer a short quiz about your eating habits, food preferences, allergies, and goals. Hungryroot then builds a weekly grocery cart with recipe suggestions that use the items you've selected. You can keep the recommendations, swap products, remove items, or build your box completely from scratch before each delivery.

One of my favorite things about Hungryroot is that it doesn't lock you into cooking elaborate meals every night. Some weeks I use it primarily for quick dinners, while other weeks I fill my order with breakfast foods, snacks, lunch ingredients, and groceries that make busy weekdays a little easier. That flexibility is a big part of why I've continued ordering over the years.

If you're looking for a service that helps simplify grocery shopping without giving up the freedom to choose your own meals, Hungryroot offers a nice balance between a meal kit and a full grocery delivery service.

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My Experience Over the Years

One reason I still feel comfortable recommending Hungryroot is that I haven't just tried one box. I've continued ordering over the years as the service has evolved. Some weeks I use it for nearly all of our dinners. Other weeks I mostly order snacks, breakfast foods, and ingredients that save me time during busy work weeks.

My initial review (waaay back in 2018) was not entirely positive — but after I posted it, Hungryroot contacted me because my blog post was driving significant traffic their way. I couldn’t believe it! I became an affiliate and advocate right then: they were willing to worth with me, I gave their service a second chance, and I really feel like I grew with them in a way.

Hungryroot has traveled with me through some of my highest highs and my lowest lows: roadtrips to Idaho and Disneyland, meal prepped lunches for my husband, lunchbox snacks for my son throughout his entire school life, quick meals when I’m exhausted and don’t feel like cooking. The flexibility and the quality matter to me deeply. Even better, Hungryroot’s customer service has always been top notch.

What I Love About Hungryroot

Hungryroot carries brands that I vibe with, like Nancy’s Yogurt, Nature Nate’s, Oatly, Purely Elizabeth, and so much more. When I was pregnant in 2022, I ate probably 70 boxes of Purely Elizabeth’s Vanilla Almond Blueberry cereal — the only place I could get it was through Hungryroot. And baby, I was smashing through those boxes. These are brands that do excellent work in the food space and I prioritize them over more conventional brands.

Grocery shopping becomes simplified. I haven’t been inside a grocery store since 2020 aside from vacations and emergencies. I do all my grocery shopping on my phone, but sometimes building my cart in the Walmart app becomes a practice in patience. And then I usually forget something. On busy weeks when I let Hungryroot pick our meals and groceries, it takes about 15 minutes.

The kids snacks are so, so good. I have also used Thrive Market and while I like it and they carry some of the same brands as Hungryroot, they charge a really high fee for cold or frozen items. My son loves the Abe’s Muffins, but because they’re frozen, they become super expensive on Thrive Market. My son gets his Abe’s Muffins fix and I don’t pay an additional $20 fee. That’s a win-win. Plus, like I said, I prioritize healthier options over conventional or traditional brand; I’ll always pick Annie’s or Goodles, for example. Getting our favorite snacks delivered weekly without having to think about it is just such a huge help when I’m balancing a million other things.

I love the produce options. Hungryroot prioritizes seasonal produce and what is available is often determined by your location. That’s better for us and our planet. Being able to get some of the best, more fresh produce delivered to our door is such a blessing.

The meals are easy enough for anyone — including my husband and son. My son is now almost 11 years old (cue my shocked face) and he’s been seeing Hungryroot boxes in our house since he was 2 1/2 years old. Some of the simpler recipes are things he and my husband can work on together while I finish up my workday; it helps him get comfortable in the ktichen.

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What I Don’t Love

Since my original review in 2018, Hungryroot has changed so much — so much so that many of my original pain points aren’t really valid. You can customize your meals and recipes, groceries, and so much more. You can prioritize more labor intensive recipes or pick super simple ones.

I know there are a few things that frequently come up in the Hungryroot Facebook group (shout out!).

Sometimes substitutions happen. And that can feel like a bummer! However, when you’re dealing with a company that prioritizes efficient deliveries, that’s just the way it is sometimes. Sometimes substitutions also happen because of recalls or concerns over food safety; this is something I have always appreciated from Hungryroot. I’d rather pivot on a recipe than risk it.

It isn’t more cost effective than shopping sales. If you really need to pinch pennies, this isn’t the service for you; however, if you have flexibility in your food budget, it’s a great option. I do think one of the benefits of it as a service is that it can teach you how to make simple, effective meals. Sometimes the barrier to healthy eating is people simply don’t know how to put things together. Developing the ability to have a few tried-and-true healthy recipes is so valuable.

Is it Worth It? 

Worth it if...

• You’re a working parent who needs simple meals that you can get on the table fast.

• You have a new baby.

• You’re a busy professional who still wants to prioritize healthy options.

• You have ADHD and find meal planning and grocery shopping challenging.

• You want to start meal prepping.

• You are new to healthy eating and want to develop healthier habits.

Probably not worth it if...

• You love coupon shopping or have a very restrictive food budget.

• You love to cook elaborate meals frequently.

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Additional Resources

• My Favorite Hungryroot Foods for Families

• How I Use Hungryroot for Weekly Meal Prep

• Everything You Need to Know About Hungryroot

• Hungryroot for Road Trips

• Revisiting Hungryroot

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My Final Thoughts

Eight years later, I still order Hungryroot—and I think that says more than any sponsored review ever could. While it isn't perfect, it's one of the few subscription services I've continued paying for because it genuinely makes our lives easier.

If I can be really vulnerable for a moment, my partnership with Hungryroot got me through some of the toughest years of my life — 2022, 2023, and 2024. I will be eternally grateful for the Hungryroot boxes showing up on my doorstep and the affiliate income; sometimes, that Hungryroot box was the difference between having to choose between being late on a bill or groceries. They’ve always had my back and I genuinely love the service — as well as the company. It’s hard to say that with a lot of things now!

If you’d like to give Hungryroot a try, you can use my code PAUSES here.

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• Is Hungryroot a meal kit or a grocery delivery service?

  Hungryroot is best described as a personalized grocery delivery service rather than a traditional meal kit. While it does recommend recipes based on the groceries in your cart, you're free to shop from thousands of products including fresh produce, proteins, pantry staples, snacks, frozen foods, and desserts. You can follow Hungryroot's recipes or use the ingredients however you'd like, making it much more flexible than services like HelloFresh or Home Chef.

• How much does Hungryroot cost?

  Hungryroot's pricing varies depending on the size of your order and how many people you're feeding. Instead of paying for a set number of meals each week, you'll choose a grocery budget that fits your household. In my experience, it's not always the cheapest way to buy groceries, but the convenience, time savings, and reduced food waste often make the extra cost worth it for our family.

• Can you skip weeks or cancel your subscription?

  Yes! One of my favorite things about Hungryroot is how flexible it is. You can skip deliveries, pause your subscription, or cancel altogether through your account. If I know we'll be traveling or simply have too much food on hand, I can easily skip a week without any hassle.

• Is Hungryroot good for families?

  I think Hungryroot works especially well for families. We use it for much more than dinner—our weekly boxes often include breakfast foods, lunch ingredients, snacks, and easy weeknight meals. I've also found several products my kids genuinely enjoy, which makes busy weekdays a little less stressful.

• Is Hungryroot worth the money?

  For my family, yes. I've continued ordering Hungryroot on and off since 2018 because it saves me time, helps reduce decision fatigue, and encourages us to eat more balanced meals during busy weeks. If you enjoy grocery shopping or are focused on spending as little as possible, it may not be the best fit. But if convenience is important to you, I think Hungryroot offers excellent value.

• Can picky kids find food they'll actually eat?

  Absolutely! Both my kids are really picky in different ways and we still have lots of favorites. While every child is different, Hungryroot carries a wide variety of kid-friendly snacks, tortillas, pasta, breakfast foods, and simple proteins that have become staples in our house. One of the things I appreciate most is that I'm not locked into specific recipes—I can order ingredients I know my kids will enjoy and mix them with new foods over time.

• Can you customize every order?

  Yes! Hungryroot will automatically build a cart based on your preferences, but you're never required to keep those recommendations. I almost always edit my cart before it ships by adding favorite products, removing items I don't need, and trying something new every now and then.

• Is Hungryroot cheaper than ordering takeout?

  For our family, absolutely. While Hungryroot isn't always less expensive than buying groceries on sale, it's almost always cheaper than ordering takeout several nights a week. We still get quick, satisfying meals, but without the delivery fees, tips, or restaurant markup.

• Does Hungryroot work well for meal prep?

  Definitely. I often use Hungryroot to simplify meal prep by ordering pre-cooked proteins, ready-to-use vegetables, grains, and easy lunch ingredients. It cuts down on prep time while still giving me the flexibility to mix and match meals throughout the week.

• Does Hungryroot have an app?

  Yes and it is so easy to use!

• Can you choose your own groceries on Hungryroot?

  Yes, you can. When you build your weekly box, you can choose between meals and grocery items (including a combination of both). You can also just let Hungryroot build your box for you — which is a great way to try new things!

• Can you use promo codes on Hungryroot?

  Totally — you can use my code PAUSES for money off your first order!

Last updated: July 2026

3 Dinner Ideas for Before Christmas

It's that time of year. 

Yes, Christmas. But also, the season of food. Of eating. Of being invited to brunches, lunches, parties, and get togethers. 

Especially when you have kids, you still need to make dinner--and you want it to be something fast and reasonably healthy (considering you have at least a dozen cookies in your house at all times, as well as any number of snacks, cakes, leftovers, and more). 

The past week (and actually, this week as well), I've been really struggling with cooking dinners. We are exhausted after long days at work topped with getting ready for Christmas, visiting friends and family, and making dishes for pot lucks. But Forrest has a pretty set schedule for his meals and trust me, the kid knows how to read a clock. 

Here are 3 recipes I'm turning to this week and next to help us eat well on the lead up to Christmas. 

1. One Pot Chicken Pasta

This is one of my tried-and-true, if I make this everyone will eat it and enjoy it dinners. I usually make extra veggies to go alongside it (usually roasted carrots and Brussel sprouts), but even on it's own, it's extremely tasty. 

I actually no longer follow the recipe anymore because I customize it so much. I cut out the bacon, keep the chicken, use milk instead of cream and veggie stock instead of chicken, add broccoli, and add the parmesan at the end of cooking (instead of at the beginning--I have found it gets separated and weird if I put it in at the beginning). This would be a really easy recipe to make vegan: use veggie stock and replace the milk with either almond milk or soy milk; no chicken, but stir in beans at the end of cooking (or use vegan crumbles); use a cheese substitute or nutritional yeast. 

2. Taco Bake

This is my own personal recipe. It's incredibly easy and can be made ahead. I actually made a few trays of it recently and put them in the freezer for quick dinners through the winter. Here's what you'll need: 

• 1 pound of ground beef (or chicken if you prefer) 
• 1 packet of taco seasoning OR about 1/2 cup of salsa or enchilada sauce
• 1 can of refried beans OR 1 can of black beans to make your own (just cook in a pan and mash as you do so, add a little salt and pepper) 
• Tortillas
• Cheese
• Carrots, peppers, spinach, corn, and broccoli 
• About 1 cup of leftover rice (or cooked fresh) 

Start by preparing a baking dish; I use a 9x9 square pan, spray with nonstick cooking spray, then put down a layer of tortillas. Cook your ground beef or chicken in a pan, adding the taco seasoning or salsa (whatever you've chosen to use). If you need to, start cooking your refried beans and rice. (If you're using leftovers, it cuts out that step!) In the oven, roast your veggies of choice, then add a few dashes of hot sauce as you mix them up. Once you have everything cooked, it's time to layer. I usually do a layer of refried beans onto the tortillas in the prepared dish, then meat, then veggies, then a light sprinkle of cheese. Layer tortillas again and repeat until you run out of everything. Top with cheese and bake for about 20 minutes. 

It's so good, so easy, and can be made using almost entirely leftovers. 

3. A Cheese Plate

If it's just you and your partner (or just yourself!), the simplest dinners are sometimes the best. Recently, Danny and I, after Forrest has gone to bed at 3:30 because he hadn't napped all day, had a cheese plate dinner. We sliced up some nice cheese, made a few slices of toast, made a chocolate sauce for some strawberries, peeled a few mandarin oranges, and opened a bottle of wine. It was simple and super satisfying. Next time, we want to make some bruschetta and toast, as well as cheese and strawberries, to enjoy. 

My Top 5 Healthy Holiday Snacks

I definitely believe in indulging during the holidays. Christmas cookies and dinners only happen once a year, alongside those special Christmas or holiday cocktails, appetizers, and more. Enjoying them is something that is very important to me and ever since I started practicing intuitive eating, I became aware of the fact that if I don't allow myself to eat my favorite holiday treats, I just don't have a good time. 

However, I also know that if I eat like that all time, I won't feel my best physically. So for the last few months, I've been collecting my favorite healthy holiday recipes to make this month, test, and see if they're as good as they look. Having these around the house helps me feel like I'm indulging, without the heavy feeling that happens from eating gingerbread cookies every single day for a month! 

These are my top 5 favorite recipes that I've tried through November and the first part of December. 

1. Pomegranate Chocolate Candy Cups

These are as easy as they look: pomegranate seeds, pistachios, and coconut in dark chocolate. And gosh, they are tasty: satisfying that need for a little chocolate bite, but adding in the tang of pomegranate and the crunch of pistachios. (I'll be honest: I left out the coconut because I'm not a huge fan.) You could really add any kind of nut or dried fruit to this: I want to try dried raspberries, almonds and white chocolate next. 

2. Frozen Yogurt Drops

I've been making these for Forrest forever, so it was something we could share this month! I actually bought salted caramel Greek yogurt to try and it worked out fantastic. I usually chop up dried fruit to mix with it, so we had salted caramel Greek yogurt with diced dried mangos. Absolutely delicious! As holiday yogurts get to grocery stores, you can do this with just about any yogurt for a healthy holiday treat before or after meals (or, you know, with meals in Forrest's case). Adding sprinkles is a nice festive touch. 

3. Vegan no-bake Gingerbread Bars

I wanted to include something vegan because I've been avoiding dairy for a few months now. (And over Thanksgiving, I ended up consuming a lot of dairy and let me say, my skin absolutely knew it.) These definitely aren't a traditional gingerbread, but they definitely get the flavor right; I opted not to do the thick glaze and just sprinkled the tops with a little powdered sugar mixed with pumpkin pie spice. Absolutely just as lovely! They make great breakfast replacements as well, for those days when you don't have time to make something. 

4. Healthy Gingerbread Cookies

One note about these cookies: the recipes calls for coconut oil, a substance I choose not to eat. (It's 65% trans fat! It's not healthy!) I used plain old butter to replace it and they were just as good; you could also use applesauce or mashed banana and it would be lovely. The addition of almond flour and oat flour is really genius and gives them a unique texture and taste. However, they definitely satisfy that need of mine to eat as much gingerbread as possible--without feeling like I've eaten approximately 8 bags of flour. 

5. Chocolate Mint Balls

This is another super easy recipe that gets the flavor exactly right. I make these chocolate and peppermint cookies every December and these balls taste really, really similar (although the texture is not that of a cookie, obviously). They are a great afternoon pick-me-up at work when I just want something to munch on, but want to avoid the massive platter of cookies in the break room! 

4 Hot Toddies Just for the Holidays

I love hot toddies... but I don't hold myself to the typical hot toddy definition. A hot toddy, traditionally, is some mix of spirits topped with hot water and lime. Basically, it's warm, watery alcohol. That doesn't sound exactly appetizing, does it? But replace that hot water with tea, coffee, hot chocolate, or hot apple cider, and you've got yourself a deal. 

For this round up, I gathered my four favorite hot toddy recipes that deviate from "the traditional". Whether you love hot cider, tea, or coffee, I've got something for everyone. 

1. Tea Hot Toddy

This recipe uses black tea, apple cider, ginger, cloves, and honey, so if you're a little under-the-weather this month, it's the perfect drink; but add a little bit of rum to make it a party drink. I use chai tea (one of my favorites from my list here, of course) and a high quality, local apple cider. Yum! 

2. Hot Peppermint Patty

Love hot chocolate? Love peppermint? This creamy, delicious hot toddy is for you. This isn't just peppermint schnapps added to hot cocoa mix; this is schnapps, creme de cocoa, and creme de menthe blended with hot cocoa. (I would use the Starbucks Marshmallow hot cocoa, because it's my favorite.) 

3. Apple Cider Hot Toddy

This is really similar to the tea hot toddy, but using green tea instead of chai (interesting twist!) Add extra lemon and a slide or two of apple for an extra apple twist. 

4. Holiday Hot Toddy

This is a coffee hot toddy, which is actually my favorite kind. It combines coffee, whipped cream, and rum for a delicious, creamy, treat.