New Year, Same Ice Cream with Halo Top®

This post is sponsored by Halo Top®, but all opinions are my own.

A new year may mean a fresh start and new goals for some of us. I know that I personally have set some health and fitness goals for this year to get back to eating and working out in the way that makes me feel the best. This definitely includes being more aware of the food I’m eating after an overly indulgent holiday season. What this does not mean for me is giving up the things I enjoy having regularly! I’m a big advocate of all foods fitting into my lifestyle. Whether it’s french fries or sweets, I don’t believe in restricting myself. What I do believe in is making better choices i.e. sometimes opting to make my own french fries or enjoying a pint of my favorite ice cream, Halo Top® Pints: Light Ice Cream from Walmart.

Halo Top® makes low calorie, high protein ice cream in a variety of flavors making it easy to cut down on calories without sacrificing happiness. You can literally eat the entire pint (or not) since each pint ranges from 280 to 380 calories depending on the flavor. Whether you’re eating Halo Top® straight out of the pint during a movie night, making banana splits, or having a tasting of all of your favorite flavors with your friends, Halo Top® has you covered!

I picked up some of my favorite flavors at my local Walmart thanks to online pickup and delivery – Cookies and Cream, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Vanilla Bean, Chocolate, and Peanut Butter Cup. You can snag them for yourself here. Each one is super delicious and packed with protein! I love eating them as is or even making a simple, delicious ice cream sandwich.

Another one of my favorite recipes to make with Halo Top® is a more wholesome root beer float. I just put a few scoops of whichever flavor I’m feeling (or maybe I mix a few) and add in root beer flavored kombucha to the top of the glass. I also love using berry flavored seltzer water with the Vanilla Bean. Then you just top it all off with your favorite toppings and enjoy!

I’m also super excited to let y’all in on a little secret. Halo Top® Keto Pops and Halo Top® Fruit Pops are coming to Walmart in April! The fruit pops have 50% less sugar than the leading brand, and each pop has just 45 to 60 calories. I know I’m super excited to give them a try, so definitely be on the lookout this spring! Make sure to check out all of your favorite Halo Top® products here

The Mason Jar Cookie Company - Scone Edition

I recently did a post on The Mason Jar Cookie Company, so I won't go into too much detail about them here. But basically they sell really adorable mason jars filled with all the dry ingredients to make delicious cookies. You just add eggs and butter, follow the directions they provide, and voila amazing cookies!

I recently found out that they also launched a scone line. For those of you who are unfamiliar with scones, I might liken them to delicious, flavorful biscuit-type pastries often eaten as breakfast or dessert. They are usually lightly sweetened with fruit or a glaze but not overly sweet. I have absolutely never made scones. Not because I don't like them, but honestly I thought it would be really complicated. So when I saw that scones were an option, I knew I had to try. 

I got the cranberry almond mix, and all you need besides the mix itself is some butter and milk. You pour the contents of the jar into a bowl, and declump any clumps with your hands. Next you mix in the butter and then the milk. It's all pretty straight forward and easy.

You then form the dough into a ball, and flatten it on a greased baking sheet so that it makes a disc shape about 1 in thick. You cut the disc into 12 slices (like a pizza), separate them, and space them out on the baking sheet.

Next you toss them into the preheated oven and cook according to the instructions, until they're golden brown. 

Remove these beauties from the oven, let them cool, and enjoy! SO. FREAKIN. EASY. And not only are they easy, but they are honestly SO delicious. I had to stop myself from eating the entire plate. They will definitely be on my breakfast plate tomorrow and throughout the week. Speaking of which, stay tuned to my Instagram for something exciting coming tomorrow morning!

The Mason Jar Cookie Company

Balance is something that is super important to me. I eat "healthy" food the majority of the time, but I absolutely indulge in treats here and there. And if we are being honest, cookies are like my absolute favorite treat or dessert. 

So when I heard about The Mason Jar Cookie Company, I was SO game. They sell mason jars filled with all the dry ingredients necessary to make the cookie flavor of your choosing. They come in the cutest packaging with easy step by step directions. They also have a ton of different mixes. Whether you want something traditional or for a specific event or holiday, they've got you covered with their creative flavors.

I got two different flavors, Blueberries and Cream and Oatmeal Chip Cookie, and made the Oatmeal Chip Cookies this weekend. They were super easy to make. I poured the contents of the jar into a bowl and mixed it together with my hands, declumping any clumps. I mixed together the other ingredients, butter, vanilla, and an egg, in a separate bowl, and then I combined the two bowls, mixing thoroughly with my hands. 

Next I just scooped tablespoon-sized cookie dough balls, and arranged them on a greased baking sheet. The mix should yield 24 cookies, but I may or may not have been a bit heavy handed with my scoops. So I ended up with 18 bigger cookies. 

Next I tossed the pan into a preheated oven for 12 minutes, and I had myself some seriously delicious cookies. 

I followed their spacing recommendation but didn't take into account that I made my cookie dough balls much bigger than a tablespoon, so my cookies cooked into each other. But they were easily separated with a spatula and still absolutely delicious. 

I wanted to eat them all, but I decided to be nice and shared them with my family. They were a HUGE hit! Everyone loved them. They were the perfect combination of an oatmeal cookie and a chocolate chip cookie. 

So would I recommend The Mason Jar Cookie Company? Uh duh! Not only are the jars adorable, but the cookies are absolutely delicious! The directions are easy to follow, and they could make a baker out of the person in your life who won't step foot in the kitchen. They'd honestly be such a wonderful gift  for any occasion or just a good buy when you want to treat yourself. Definitely go check them out here!