Jenna, Author at Just J.Faye

Banana Pudding Cookie Bars

June 13, 2014 by Jenna

Pudding cookies. As in, pudding mix mixed into the cookie dough. Brilliant.

I have been reading a lot about this pudding mix cookie thing for a while now and have been itching to try my own.

While perusing the grocery store aisles (AKA wandering around aimlessly and staring at every single product for at least 1 full minute trying to decide what I wanted to buy and eat for the week) I found myself in front of the pudding mixes.

Let me tell you, there are a lot of different types of pudding mixes, but the banana pudding mix caught my eye almost immediately and I thought, “umm, yes. Banana pudding cookies. Those would be amazing.”

And, of course, when you have banana pudding you need to have vanilla wafers. You have to. I’m pretty sure it’s some sort of rule somewhere in the world and I always (for the most part) abide by the rules.

So vanilla wafers are in and white chocolate chips are in too. Just for fun.

Also just for fun, I decided to take these cookies to the next level: I turned them into bars.

Literally. They have more than one level: vanilla wafer crust + white chocolate + banana pudding cookie dough.

So soft. So crumbly. So flavorful. So delicious. Thank you, pudding mix.

If you have never baked cookies/cookie bars with pudding mix try them now pleaseeeeee. They are so good.

Bake up a batch and bring them to a picnic this weekend.

Banana Pudding Cookie Bars

Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

14 mins

Total time

29 mins

Soft and flavorful banana pudding cookie bars. A layer of vanilla wafer crust, topped with a layer of white chocolate, and finally the banana pudding cookie dough.

Author: Jenna Duesterhoeft

Serves: 12

Ingredients

For the crust:

3 cups vanilla wafer crumbs
¾ cup butter, melted

For the cookies:

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
¼ cup granulated sugar
¾ cup brown sugar
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 (3.4 oz) package banana pudding mix
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup vanilla wafers, coarsely chopped
2 cups white chocolate chips (divided)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13 pan.
In a medium bowl, stir together the vanilla wafers crumbs and melted butter until well combined. Press the mixture into the bottom of the pan and bake for 7-9 minutes. After removing the pan from the oven sprinkle 1 cup of white chocolate chips over the crust. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl of an electric mixer, cream together sugars and butter until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the pudding mix, eggs, and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Add in the flour mixture. Stir until combined. Fold in the vanilla wafers and white chocolate chips (1 cup).
Place the cookie dough on parchment paper and form into a 9x13” rectangle (give or take ½”).
By this time the white chocolate chips on top of the vanilla wafer crust should be slightly melted. Use a spatula to spread the melted chocolate across the entire crust, similar to frosting a cake. Then top this with the cookie dough rectangle. Use your fingers to press the cookie dough in and adjust the shape as needed.
Bake for 12-14 minutes. Let bars cool completely before cutting and eating.

banana pudding cookie bars #recipe #cookies

Work is kind enough to offer half-day Fridays in the summer, so I am done with work and heading to the family cabin. YAY WEEKEND.

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Burpee Run

June 10, 2014 by Jenna

Burpees: everyone’s favorite exercise to hate. But they are just so darn good for us.

So, what exactly is a burpee? It is essentially a push up to a squat to a vertical jump. Fun stuff.

Here is how to do a basic burpee:

Lower down into a squat position and place your hands on the ground in front of you
Kick your feet back into the push up position and lower your body to the floor
Raise your body back up and return your feet back to the squat position as quickly as possible
Immediately jump up as high as you can

Watch this video to learn more.

So, why exactly are burpees so good for us? If you are familiar with burpees you know that they are not easy. They work your entire body and get your heart racing, which is exactly why they are so great to do.

Here are the primary benefits:

Full body strength workout, working upper body, lower body, and core
Quickly raises heart rate
High intensity exercise, helping to increase anaerobic capacity
Scorches calories
No equipment needed
Able to do anywhere and add in any workout

Awesome, right? So many great benefits. Let’s do burpees every day!

Just kidding. It is important to switch things up and not do the same thing day after day. So maybe, let’s do burpees… every three days?

As mentioned in the benefits, you can add burpees to pretty much any workout. #convenient. Let’s spruce up a regular ole 3-mile run by adding in 125 burpees. Ok? OK!

Here’s what we’ll do:

For the .25 mile run sections, push your speed a little bit since they are fairly short intervals. Then bring down the speed a little bit during the .5 mile sections. You’ll need your energy for the set of 24 burpees. Also take a 10-30 second rest after each set of burpees. Catch your breath and get ready for another round.

I will warn you, this is not easy. But man, it is a gooooood.

I did this on Friday afternoon and it was definitely one of those workouts where I needed a mantra running through my head to keep me going. A mantra that I frequently use is “Don’t cheat yourself.” If I am going to spend time in the gym, I might as well make it all worth it. It really helps. Like, a lot.

I did this in my condo building gym on the treadmill, but you could easily do it outside so you can get some color (wear sunscreen though) and Vitamin D.

Let me know if you try it out! Happy Tuesday!

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Rhubarb Cake

June 5, 2014 by Jenna

People. Rhubarb. It’s happening. Get on it. Because with rhubarb comes rhubarb desserts. And you don’t want to miss out on that.

No, no, no, no, no, no you don’t.

When I was home for Mother’s Day I went and harvested a bunch of rhubarb.

Isn’t that a gorgeous bouquet?! All the bright green with vibrant pink stems. Do people ever have rhubarb bouquets for their weddings? If not, they should. Maybe I will.

I washed it and chopped it up and froze it because I wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to do with this tart and precious vegetable yet. Muffins? Pie? Cake?! So many possibilities!

I grew up on long summers of rhubarb desserts. It was like mayo cake’s counterpart. I can recall many-a lunch where we would grill brats and/or burgers, accompany it with fresh fruit, potato chips, and salad, and wash it all down with big glasses of milk.

Then there was dessert. Always, always dessert. If it didn’t happen right after lunch, it happened at about 2:00 – Prime time for my dad’s break from fieldwork and chores.

Afternoon coffee and rhubarb cake. No one ever says no to that.

Sometimes my grandparents would come over to join. Sometimes my dad had other relatives helping him in the field, so they would come in. Sometimes my siblings and I would have friends over. Looking back it seems that we just had an open house all summer long. Everyone was always welcome. Everyone still is.

So, come on over for some coffee and cake!

Cleary I decided to make cake with my rhubarb. The cake starts out as a classic yellow cake. Then we top it with chopped up rhubarb. Then with sugar. Then pour heavy whipping cream all over everything. Because all of these things are good.

(I hope you did this workout…)

The tartness of the rhubarb is balanced by the sweetness of the cake. Perfect harmony. The cream makes it all really moist and delicious. Top it off with a dollop of whipped cream, pour yourself a cup of coffee, and enjoy your summer afternoon with friends and/or family.

Rhubarb Cake

Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

40 mins

Total time

55 mins

A moist yellow cake speckled with fresh, tart rhubarb. Perfect for a summer day with friends, family, and coffee.

Serves: 9-12

Ingredients

2 cups rhubarb, chopped
1 cup sugar, divided
1 egg
1 egg yolk
½ cup milk
½ tsp vanilla
1 ¼ cup flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
5 tbsp butter, softened
½ cup heavy whipping cream

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x9 baking dish.
In a small bowl mix the rhubarb with ¼ cup sugar. Set aside.
In another small bowl combine the egg, egg yolk, milk, and vanilla. Set aside.
In a large bowl add the dry ingredients (only use ½ cup sugar) and mix for 30 seconds with an electric mixer.
Add the butter to the dry ingredients. Mix on low until butter is incorporated, then mix on medium high for 90 seconds. This helps develop the cake’s structure.
Add the milk mixture in 3 rounds, mixing 20 seconds after each addition and scraping the sides as needed.
Pour cake batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the rhubarb over the top, then the remaining ¼ cup sugar. Finally pour the cream over the cake.
Bake for 40 minutes. Let cool for 30 minutes before serving.

I still have a little bit left in my freezer, but I think I need more. There are more rhubarb recipes I want to try. I’ll have to pay another little visit to the parents to gather another bouquet. See you soon mom and dad!

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Full Body Circuit Workout

June 1, 2014 by Jenna

Let’s all start our week out right, like with a good workout. Mondays are good days for workouts, because Sundays are good days for brunch and Tuesdays are good nights for happy hour. Especially now that it’s summer and every second feels perfect for brunch-ing or happy hour-ing on a patio somewhere.

However, we mustn’t forget about spending some good quality time in the gym. Oh no, we mustn’t. Because summer is also a good time for bikinis.

*shudder*

I mean, swimsuits are the best…….

But whatever, bikinis or no bikinis, exercising your body is still a good thing. So, let’s do it.

This exercise program contains four different circuits. Perform each exercise in the circuit back-to-back for the stated amount of reps or time, rest for a minute before moving on to the next circuit.

Circuits 1 & 3 are all core exercises. Run through each of these circuits once. Circuits 2 & 4 have an upper body, lower body, and plyometric exercise. Run through these twice in a row, resting for a minute in between.

So it will be 1 – 2 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 4 – 15 burpees.

15 burpees. Because.

Use weights that are challenging, but still allow you to complete the set. Adjust the weights accordingly from exercise to exercise. Just because you picked up 8 lbs initially, doesn’t mean you are stuck with them the entire time.

Try it out and let me know what you think! If you like it, do it 2 or 3 times this week. Feel free to shoot me an email or comment if you have any questions.

Over the last couple of weeks I’ve been trying to make a stronger habit of running with my run club, which is great. However, sometimes the more I run, the less I spend strength training, which is not so great. I think over the last three weeks I maybe did a quick 30 minutes of strength training. Granted, I was sick for one of those weeks and didn’t workout at all… but still, strength training is oh so very important, for health in general and to help make me a stronger runner.

Going forward my goal is to do 60-90 minutes of strength training per week, which should equate to about 2 or 3 gym sessions. This is completely doable. So I have my goal. I wrote it down. And now I’m going to start logging my workouts.

Writing goals down helps keep me accountable and motivated. I like tracking progress. I like when progress turns into success. Then I like celebrating success.

Don’t you? Write down a goal and work towards it!

Happy Sunday!

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Being Sick Is The Worst. Traveling Is The Best.

May 28, 2014 by Jenna

I’ve basically been unable to leave my couch or bed since Sunday night at 7:00pm. So I obviously haven’t been cooking or baking – I’ve barely been eating. And I clearly haven’t been running or working out. It was a huge feat for me to take the elevator a few floors down to get the vending machines to buy some Powerade earlier today.

Being sick is pretty much the worst. But being sick while it’s 80 degrees? That is pretty much the absolute worst. I’m seeing everyone’s pictures and snapchats of their fun outdoor activities. I mean I love my condo, but jeeezzzzz GET ME OUT OF HERE.

On the bright side though I’ve been catching up on a lot of movie watching. Problem Child was just on. Hello, flashback to childhood. We used to watch that movie over and over again. And before that it was Horrible Bosses. Hilarious. I’m so glad my boss is amazing. Over the past few days there was also 27 Dresses, Bad Teacher, What Happens In Vegas, Space Jam, and a few episodes of Arrested Development and Friends.

I don’t think I’ve watched this much TV in a row in at least 15 years… or ever. Of course I haven’t ever been couch-bound for 3.5 consecutive days before either. So there’s that.

Let’s face it. That wasn’t a bright side at all. TV is the worst. BUT what is a real, actual, literal bright side is that I just booked a trip to Costa Rica. Yes, I JUST BOOKED A TRIP TO COSTA RICA.

Why? The tickets were cheap. The lodging is cheap. I’ve always wanted to go to Costa Rica. But primarily because my best friend and travel partner (we’ll call her “Natalie”… because that is her name) called me up a few hours ago and asked me if I wanted to go. Soooo… duh.

Traveling is pretty much the best. You get to eat a lot of good food (picture taken in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 2013) And aimlessly wander around. (picture taken in Jackson Hole, Wyoming 2013) And have lots of amazing adventures. (picture taken in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 2013) So moral of the story is being sick is the worst and traveling is the best.

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Sunflower Seed Cheddar Beer Bread

May 26, 2014 by Jenna

Two things that get better in the summer: beer and country music. Not that I don’t enjoy either of these things during the rest of the year, but seriously, this song, this song, and this song. And of course there is this classic – can you even have summer without it?! All country music makes me want to do is be outside, drink a cold beer, run around with friends, and fall in love. Ain’t nothin’ wrong with that.

All those things. That is precisely what I am planning on doing this summer (except for the whole fall in love thing, but I guess we’ll see what’s in the cards for me). Oh, and also bike rides, Twins games, an outdoor concert or two, and trips to the cabins.

CABINS! Cabins.Are.The.Best. My parents bought a cabin at the end of last summer. After years and years of Sunday evening drives around the various Minnesota lakes looking at cabins, my parents finally took the plunge and did it. Not without tons of encouragement and pushing from my siblings and me, of course. We have dubbed it “The Jabin” since it is basically their new child and all their other children have J names. It’s a charming little place located in northern Minnesota with a lot of… opportunity. And potential. A work in progress, we shall say.

This weekend marked the first time that we would all be there together as a family… or, at least, it was supposed to be. My dad wasn’t able to come because he had to get fieldwork done. Due to the less-than-ideal weather situation over the past few months he wasn’t able to get into the field at all and couldn’t pass up the time to finally get some work done. Farmers, I tell you. #dedication. We obviously missed him, but will (hopefully) all be back together for the July 4^th weekend. I wanted to make a fun little treat to bring to The Jabin to share with my family. My mom was already bringing a cake that she made to celebrate my little brother’s (21^st!!!) birthday, so I didn’t want to bring any more sweets. Also I was a tad short on time.

Then this wonderful idea popped into my head: BEER BREAD. It was perfect. Everybody loves beer. Everybody loves bread. Everybody loves beer bread. So, duh.

And then I decided to add cheese. Because… CHEESE. I used sharp cheddar and must warn you to be careful… don’t cut yourself. Get it?! Sharp cheddar.

And it’s suuuuper simple to make. All you need is a bowl, a spoon, and a couple ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry. Because who isn’t continually stocked with flour, beer, and cheese?

You can pretty much use any type of beer. I used Fat Tire. Added everything to a bowl and stirred it up. Then I poured melted butter over the top of it. The butter makes it extra delicious, as butter does to most things. Pop it in the oven for 50-55 minutes and you’ll get this beautiful loaf of bread. And let me tell you, it is gooood.

Sunflower Seed Cheddar Beer Bread

Prep time

5 mins

Cook time

55 mins

Total time

1 hour

Super quick beer bread studded with cheddar cheese and sunflower seeds. This breads works great as a delicious summer picnic side or used in a tasty breakfast sandwich.

Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese
½ cup sunflower seeds
12 ounces beer
5 tbsp melted butter

Instructions

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x5 loaf pan.
In a large bowl, stir together the flours, baking powder, and salt.
Add the cheddar and sunflower seeds, saving a little bit of each to sprinkle on the top, stir to combine.
Add the beer (I used Fat Tire) and stir to combine. The batter will be thick.
Spoon the batter into the loaf pan.
Pour the melted butter on top and add the remaining cheese and sunflower seeds.
Bake in the oven for 50-55 minutes or until the middle is set.
Let the bread cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then on a cooling rack for 30 minutes. Then enjoy!

Saturday morning at The Jabin rolled around, and we didn’t just toast up the beer bread and eat it with some butter. No, no, no, no, no. We used it to make these delicious cheesy, egg, and bacon open-faced breakfast sandwiches. We fried up some bacon. We fried up some eggs (my brother and sister-in-law brought eggs from their chickens – look at those huge and perfect yolks!). We buttered and broiled the bread with some black pepper cheese. Then we assembled the sandwiches. Brewed some dark coffee. Mixed up some mimosas. And ate it with some fresh strawberries. This is what cabin life and summer is all about.

That breakfast was the perfect way to start our Saturday. We spent the rest of the time exploring local junk markets (where I bought a truly awesome clock), laying out in the sun, reading, grilling, and checking out a local brewery, which is something our family loves to do together. Family bonding at its finest.

A HUGE thank you to everyone who has, is, and will serve for this country. You are all truly heros. My heart goes out to all the families that have lost loved ones over the years.

I hope you had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend.

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