These pumpkin oatmeal chocolate chip cookies are made rich with butter, chewy with oats, decadent with chocolate chips, soft and flavorful with pumpkin and spices, and of course nicely sweet with two types of sugar.

They are a fun new take on a nostalgic childhood favorite. We know and love the traditional pumpkin chocolate chip cookie, but here we add some oat-y goodness for extra flavor and texture.

It's a tempting fall cookie that's easy to make, a fun treat for parties, and they're always sure to satisfy those seasonal pumpkin dessert cravings.

Make a batch this weekend then save the recipe for the holidays to impress your guests!

Kale pesto is a nice alternative to change things up from making the traditional herby basil pesto. I love to have both in the rotation.

It's the perfect pasta upgrade, and you can make it year round since there's usually an abundance of high quality fresh kale at the grocery store available throughout the entire year. Plus it's a less expensive option to basil pesto.

If you haven't had it before I think you'll truly be amazed at how delicious it is. This kale pesto recipe is proof that fresh kale can create some incredible dishes.

The key is to just use a balanced blend of ingredients to highlight the kale and tone down some of its boldness (such as lemon and parsley).

This is just simple ingredients, maximum flavor, and it's something you can feel good about eating!

Ways to Use Kale Pesto

• Toss with cooked pasta or gnocchi.
• Spread over ravioli or tortellini.
• Use it as a pizza sauce.
• Layer over cooked chicken or mild fish, or toss with shrimp.
• Spread over crostini (toasted bread).
• Toss over steamed or roasted vegetables.
• Serve as a dip for pita chips or vegetables.

Serving Suggestion as Pictured

Here I tossed kale pesto with 1 lb. Campanelle pasta (cooked in salted boiling water and drained), add splashes of pasta cooking water to thin, and finished with fresh mozzarella pearls, and plenty of toasted chopped walnuts.

It's also delicious served cold (like a pasta salad), just thin with more olive oil as needed.

Craving something sweet? Try my Sweet Holiday Chex Mix recipe!

Homemade Chex Mix

Who doesn't love Chex Mix? A snack that goes way back when, and always a fun one around the holidays.

For years I had just been buying Chex Mix at the store but this year I figured it was due time to try making it at home. And now I'm hooked because this fresher, buttery version is just that much better!

I've listed three common options to cook it. My personal favorite is the oven method but all work well.

With the slow cooker you just have to be available to stir every so often which can be a bit tedious in my opinion, and the microwave works fine but I think the perfectly crisp texture of the oven option wins.

Here we use a homemade seasoned salt blend (including salt, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika and sugar). The great thing about that is that you can have more control over amount of salt, and you can switch it up (using other spices or adjusting those listed here).

It's a versatile recipe with so many options. Or just stick with the classic because you can't go wrong with it as is!

Magic Cookie Bars with so Many Layers of Decadence!

These 6 layer bars (or as some refer to as 7 Layer Bars) are a dream come true! There's just so much decadence in this one simple dessert and people of all ages always love them.

You'll love there's nothing complicated here and they don't take too long to make.

If you are new to baking this is a great place to start. All you really have to do is spread the ingredients into layers in a baking dish and bake to melted gooey perfection.

Just be warned these things are dangerously addictive! As in you may have this great plan to eat a tiny square and gift the rest, not gonna happen. It will be more like the other way around!

They’re soft and chewy, perfectly spiced, dotted with juicy raisins and crunchy walnuts, and always sure to satisfy those cookie cravings.

The BEST Soft and Chewy Oatmeal Cookies Recipe!

You'll love all the textures in these oatmeal cookies and their rich buttery flavor. They're just one of those classic cookies everyone will love and you'll want to make time and time again.

And of course, the ultimate way to enjoy these cookies is fresh, warm from the oven with a tall glass of ice-cold, creamy whole milk.

There's just something so nostalgic about these (oatmeal cookies just like Grandma's!), and it's a tradition that should be passed down for generations to come.

These are likely to become a new favorite cookie!

Oatmeal Cookies Video

[wprm-recipe-video]

The Easiest Fudge Recipe Ever!

If candy making isn't your thing then this is most definitely the recipe for you, anybody can make this simple fudge!

It can be made on the stovetop or in the microwave. I've tried both several times and my personal preference is the actually the microwave because there's less stirring and attending to it and it's faster. But either method will work great based on what you prefer.

Once you try it it's a recipe you'll have on repeat ever year when the holidays roll around! Give it as gifts but just be sure to save a small stash for yourself.

The Perfect Kale Salad Recipe!

Thanks to this refreshing kale salad, I've finally found a way to eat raw kale and have it actually taste good! We couldn't get over how delicious this salad was and I'm already thinking of when I'll be making it again!

The flavor of the dressing, thanks to the lemon juice and honey in it, really helps tone down the somewhat harsh flavor of the raw kale. Plus, it also just compliments all of the others flavors in this salad - like that of the quinoa, walnuts, apples and goat cheese.

This is the perfect side at dinner to roasted chicken and mashed or roasted potatoes. It's also the perfect salad to bring to a party.

Originally shared Sept. 2016.

Ingredients You'll Need

• Tricolor quinoa
• Curly kale
• Apples
• Walnuts
• Cranberries
• Goat cheese
• Olive oil
• Lemon
• Honey
• Dijon

Are There Substitutions?

• Regular brown quinoa is fine in place of the tricolor
• Pecans could replace the walnuts.
• Feta could replace the goat cheese.
• Baby kale or lacinato kale can be used in place of curly kale, but do note that it won't require a resting period and may not hold up as long.

How to Make This Easy Kale Salad

• Cook quinoa according to directions on package and cool completely.
• Whisk together all of the dressing ingredients in a jar or bowl.
• Add kale to a salad bowl, whisk dressing once more then pour 3/4 of the dressing over kale and toss until kale is evenly coated. Chill 15 minutes.
• Add apples, quinoa, walnuts and cranberries.
• Pour remaining dressing over salad then toss. Add goat cheese, toss gently.

Tips for This Salad

• Use sweet apples to balance the tartness of the lemon. Use pretty red onions for a pretty color contrast.
• Let the dressing rest on the kale to help soften those not so tender leaves.
• Store it in the fridge up to 4 hours. Finally a salad that holds up well for a while!

More Kale Recipes You'll Love!

Pear Salad

The salad has the perfect balance of sweet and tart, and I love the blend of textures. It's one of those easy to throw together recipes that is set to impress everyone at the dinner party.

Everyone loves a good strawberry salad but fall needs its own seasonal salad and this should be it!

Try it soon while pears are in their seasonal prime! 

Quick Ravioli Recipe

Who doesn't love a super easy, perfectly comforting and satisfying semi-homemade meal? Come Thursday and Friday I'm always looking for the quickest, simplest dinners.

Something that will still be flavorful and my family will eat and enjoy, but I want something that doesn't require a lot of effort on my part. Because life just happened through the week and now we're tired and want to relax right?

So here we have the perfect easy dinner (that is actually fitting for any night of the week). It's so delicious and perfectly hearty. And who wouldn't love it??

Ingredients You'll Need for this Recipe

• Store-bought four cheese ravioli
• Olive oil
• Butter
• Asparagus
• Grape tomatoes
• Garlic
• Fresh basil
• Fresh parsley
• Parmesan cheese
• Walnuts
• Balsamic Vinegar
• And of course, salt and pepper

How to Make this Delicious Ravioli Recipe

• First you'll boil the ravioli according to package instructions (usually about 7 minutes).
• While that's cooking you'll melt butter with olive oil in a large skillet.
• Then you'll saute the asparagus until it's tender and add tomatoes and garlic and saute to warm tomatoes through.
• Now you'll pour in a splash of balsamic vinegar (hello flavor!).
• To finish it all off you'll pour the cooked and drained ravioli in to a large bowl along with that asparagus mixture, the walnut, fresh herbs, and season with salt and pepper to taste and give it a good toss.
• And finally finish it off with a large handful of shredded parmesan. Because what's a good pasta dish without parmesan?

This is a perfect weeknight chicken dinner, definitely a recipe you'll want to hang on to.

Basil Pesto Chicken

Homemade pesto makes any meal incredible doesn't it? And it's just so easy to make, the food processor does most of the work.

You get tender bite size pieces of chicken paired with fresh sweet tomatoes, nutritious asparagus, crunchy walnuts and it's all covered with a super flavorful pesto.

Here I like to cook the chicken with some of the pesto so the flavors have time to soak into the chicken, then I also like to add more at the end to get that really bright fresh flavor.

One of the main highlights of this sheet pan chicken dinner (which we may not think would be a highlight but they are) are those perfectly crunchy and buttery walnuts. I absolutely love walnuts!