Tina Proffitt's Blog

 No-Bake Choc-Oat P.B. Cookies

These no-bake cocoa and peanut butter oat cookies have been a favorite of mine since I was a girl.

And after years of enjoying them growing up, they are still a favorite of my now-grown children.

The recipe makes about two dozen cookies.

Gather all of your ingredients first. Preparation will take about ten minutes. Cooling time is about an hour.

Ingredients:

3 cups dry oats2 cups granulated sugar1/2 cup peanut butter1 tsp vanilla extract1/4 cup cocoa powder, unsweetened1 stick butter1/2 cup whole milkDirections:
Melt butter in a medium size pot on the stovetop over medium heat. If using unsalted butter add a pinch of salt.


Add sugar to melted butter.


Add milk.




Stir in cocoa until combined.


Raise heat to medium-high and stop stirring.

Wait for the bubbles in the bottom of the pot to come together in the center and start a timer for one minute.




The mixture should come to a full boil during the minute.


Remove the pot from heat after one minute.

Add vanilla to the mixture.

Add peanut butter and stir mixture until incorporated.



Combine oats.



Scoop the mixture using a cookie dough or ice cream scooper onto parchment paper-lined cookie sheets.




Allow cookies to cool completely on the counter.





Enjoy!

.goodreadsGiveawayWidget { color: #555; font-family: georgia, serif; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; background: white; } .goodreadsGiveawayWidget p { margin: 0 0 .5em !important; padding: 0; } .goodreadsGiveawayWidgetEnterLink { display: inline-block; color: #181818; background-color: #F6F6EE; border: 1px solid #9D8A78; border-radius: 3px; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; outline: none; font-size: 13px; padding: 8px 12px; } .goodreadsGiveawayWidgetEnterLink:hover { color: #181818; background-color: #F7F2ED; border: 1px solid #AFAFAF; text-decoration: none; } Goodreads Book Giveaway A Sprinkle of Magick by Tina Proffitt

Giveaway ends December 24, 2023.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter Giveaway
Banana Bread Muffinsby Tina Proffitt
Makes about two dozen.3/4 cup coconut oil1 cup packed brown sugar1 tsp vanilla extract4 large eggs1 tsp salt4 large, ripe bananas, mashed1/4 cup cornstarch2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour1 tbsp baking powder1/4 cup chopped walnuts, optional

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.Mix wet ingredients (oil, eggs, bananas, vanilla) in stand mixer until well blended.Add sugar and mix.Add dry ingredients (flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt, nuts), mixing well.Using a large scooper, add batter to cupcake paper lined tray.Bake 12-18 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.Remove muffins from oven. Allow muffins to cool on a rack for two minutes. Remove from tray with an off-set spatula.Bonus Idea: To take these from a breakfast treat to a real dessert, try adding cream cheese frosting.To one 8 oz. package of cream cheese, add one cup of powdered sugar, one teaspoon of vanilla extract, and mix well. Spread about a tablespoon on top of each muffin. Enjoy!

The Best Books on Reincarnation

    For those of you who have read my romance novels or my non-fiction book, Come Back, you already know that the books I write all have one element in common--reincarnation. Recently, I was privileged to be asked to share a list of what were, in my opinion, the best books on this very interesting topic. Here's a screen shot of what that looks like. And if I've piqued your interest, and you'd like to read more, I’ve included the link to the entire article below. 

Best Reincarnation Books

Free Kindle Book GiveawayLike mystery? Intrigue? Romance? Like free books?You've come to the right place.
From June 1st through the 5th, enjoy my Amazon e-book on me--Ten for a BirdAnd for Amazon customers across the pond--Free E-Book



And last, but definitely not least, my recipe * for the best decadent iced...
Box Cake Cookies

Makes 28 cookies

Ingredients:
Box chocolate cake mixTwo eggs½ cup of your favorite vegetable oilOne stick unsalted butter, softened to room temperature1½ cups confectioner's sugar¼ tsp vanilla extractChocolate jimmiesDirections:Preheat oven to 350°.In a mixing bowl, add two eggs and the oil to the dry cake mix. Stir until well combined. The dough will be sticky.Scoop dough by tablespoon measure onto parchment lined baking sheets.Bake for 9 - 11 minutes or until desired doneness is reached.While cookies are baking, mix butter and powdered sugar with vanilla. Beat until fluffy.Cool baked cookies for 2 minutes before removing them to a wire rack.When the cookies are completely cooled, spread icing onto each cookie. Add jimmies.*And remember, all of my recipes are tested by me and my family. So enjoy!

My Free Kindle Book Giveaway starts today, May 1st, and goes through May 5th. Simply go to Amazon and download the free kindle version of Death by Tarot, or click the link below. Either way, please enjoy and tell a friend.
Death by Tarot









Makes 28 cookiesRecipe by Tina Proffitt
Ingredients 
Box white cake mix, can be the kind with sprinklesTwo eggs1/2 cup of your favorite vegetable oilOne stick unsalted butter, softened to room temperature1 and 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar1/4 tsp vanilla extractSprinklesDirections Preheat oven to 350 degrees.In a mixing bowl, add two eggs and the oil to the dry cake mix. Stir until well combined. The dough will be sticky.Scoop dough by tablespoon measure onto parchment lined baking sheets.Bake for 9 - 11 minutes or until desired doneness is reached.While cookies are baking, mix butter and powdered sugar with vanilla. Beat until fluffy.Cool baked cookies for 2 minutes before removing them to a wire rack.When the cookies are completely cooled, spread icing onto each cookie. Add sprinkles.

Marie Lavender is graciously hosting this year's Halloween book giveaway contest. Head over to her site for a chance to win a signed copy of A Sprinkle of Magick ( below ) and so many more spooky books...
Marie Lavender's Writing in the Modern Age: BIG HALLOWEEN MULTI-AUTHOR BOOK AND SWAG GIVEAWAY!
Follow the link below to her website and enter to win!









Marie Lavender's Writing in the Modern Age: BIG HALLOWEEN MULTI-AUTHOR BOOK AND SWAG GIVEAWAY!:     BIG HALLOWEEN MULTI-AUTHOR BOOK AND SWAG GIVEAWAY ON #WRITMODAGE:  SHIFTERS, MONSTERS, AND OTHER THRILLS!     Hello there, readers!...

Love to read?Love to discover new authors?Want an entertaining way of finding your next favorite book? Or maybe you just love to listen to good music. 
Either way, check out Ron Clark and Ian Johnson on Chat and Spin Radio.

If you've not heard of them, let me be the first to introduce you to two of the most wonderful human beings I have had the pleasure of speaking with. Their not-for-profit radio station show is dedicated to interviewing authors every night. Many authors are promoting their books with free giveaways.
Click below to listen in on my own conversation with Ian and Ron.
Radio Interview
Are you an author yourself?
Check out their Facebook page to book your spot. But be quick. They're filling up fast.

Dear Reader,


It was my great pleasure to be interviewed recently by multi-genre author Marie Lavender. She's the author of Victorian maritime romance trilogy, Heiresses in Love, and 21 other books. Since 2010, she has published 24 books in the genres of historical romance, contemporary romance, romantic suspense, paranormal romance, dramatic fiction, fantasy, science fiction, mystery/thriller, literary fiction, poetry, children's stories, and YA fiction.  Check out more about all of her books here.
I particularly enjoyed reading her romance titled, Blue Vision: Code of Endhivar Series Book 1. I found it to be a classic romance, the kind I love, with the added twist that he's an alien. Romance readers will fall in love and look to the skies for a hero of their own!
Marie began Writing in the Modern Age in 2013. Her dedication to her craft is apparent there as well as in her other blogs. For romance readers, check out her blog which is exclusively dedicated to the topic of romance here.Marie's blog Writing in the Modern Age is a place for writers but also readers in search of their favorite new author. 
Please check out the interview here. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!Sincerely,Tina Proffitt, writer and lover of romance

Banana Bread MuffinsMakes about two dozen.3/4 cup coconut oil1 cup packed brown sugar1 tsp vanilla extract4 large eggs1 tsp salt4 large, ripe bananas, mashed1/4 cup cornstarch2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour1 tbsp baking powder1/4 cup chopped walnuts, optional

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.Mix wet ingredients (oil, eggs, bananas, vanilla) in stand mixer until well blended.Add sugar and mix.Add dry ingredients (flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt, nuts), mixing well.Using a large scooper, add batter to cupcake paper lined tray.Bake 12-18 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.Remove muffins from oven. Allow muffins to cool on a rack for two minutes. Remove from tray with an off-set spatula.Bonus Idea: To take these from a breakfast treat to a real dessert, try adding cream cheese frosting.
To one 8 oz. package of cream cheese, add one cup of powdered sugar, one teaspoon of vanilla extract, and mix well. Spread about a tablespoon on top of each muffin. 
Enjoy!
*All of my recipes are personally tested and tweaked by me in my own kitchen and the photos are taken by me as well.

Dear Reader, Please join me and 60 additional authors at Writing for the Modern Age's Post Christmas Winter Retreat where books, books, and more books will be given away to many lucky readers.Simply follow this link for your chance to win!



Marie Lavender's Mega Giveaway

.goodreadsGiveawayWidget { color: #555; font-family: georgia, serif; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; background: white; } .goodreadsGiveawayWidget p { margin: 0 0 .5em !important; padding: 0; } .goodreadsGiveawayWidgetEnterLink { display: inline-block; color: #181818; background-color: #F6F6EE; border: 1px solid #9D8A78; border-radius: 3px; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; outline: none; font-size: 13px; padding: 8px 12px; } .goodreadsGiveawayWidgetEnterLink:hover { color: #181818; background-color: #F7F2ED; border: 1px solid #AFAFAF; text-decoration: none; }
Goodreads Book Giveaway His Hiding Place by Tina Proffitt Giveaway ends January 31, 2020.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads. Enter Giveaway Enter for a chance to win one of one hundred copies of His Hiding Place by Tina Proffitt, the tender love story of a former soldier whose conscience was nearly torn apart by war, a woman whose fear of loving drove her to the brink of civilization, and the house that ultimately brought them together.Conrad Garrison is a man on the run. He needs a place to hide. The unbearable cold proves too much for Garrison, a solder capable of fending for himself, and forces him out of hiding. A soldier returned from the Vietnam War, who wants to escape his past, he has found his ideal hiding place, but to keep it, he must gain the trust of a woman who has been betrayed once too often. Nyssa Strange lives in the northeast corner of Canada at the foot of a mountain and has the safest place a man could ask for, a cabin in the wilds of the Labrador forest. She is happy to remain in her house in the woods—contact with the outside world has become a thing of the past.She falls for the beautiful stranger who invades her private world. Determined to help hide him from the authorities, she must find the courage to leave her safe space, and in doing so, save his two-year-old daughter from becoming an orphan, a child of the dust.Now, if the two are to survive, they must come together to fight the governments who want to tear them apart and the elements who have the power to do just that.



And now for a good for you and your whole family recipe to help you start your new year off right...


Blueberry Pancakes
One large ripe banana, mashedOne large eggOne teaspoon vanilla extract1½ cups whole milk⅓ cup vanilla whey protein powderOne tablespoon baking powder½ tsp salt1½ cups whole wheat pastry flour¼ cup flax meal½ cup frozen blueberriesOptional unsalted butter for pan.
Directions:Mash banana with fork in mixing bowl. Add egg and stir with wire whisk.Add vanilla extract, milk, and salt. Mix well.Add dry ingredients. (Flour, Flax, Baking Powder, Whey Protein)Add blueberries until just mixed. May use rubber spatula.Heat non-stick skillet with one tablespoon butter on medium-high heat. Let batter rest while pan preheats. This will allow the baking powder to go to work.Scoop batter by quarter cup into hot pan. Flip after 2 to 3 minutes or when bubbles form. Cook on remaining side another 2 minutes.Enjoy with peanut butter, additional sliced banana, or sugar free syrup.Thanks for visiting and check out my latest addition His Hiding Place on Goodreads.

Free Kindle Book on Amazon!My Christmas gift to you.Available this weekend to download for free.
Sweet Abduction by Tina Proffitt

In this romantic mystery, Florida natives, Annie, former university Math teacher, and Chance Morgan, her sexy firefighter husband, both want the same thing, to take their long-awaited honeymoon. They think they've found their opportunity at last when a friend offers them his cabin in the Northern Alabama woods for an entire week. Little do they know that when they arrive with their two dogs that their relaxing vacation will be anything but. 
Murder, arson, and a missing newlywed take the place of sweet romance and send this couple on a trip they'll never forget.
Hallie Mead didn't think much of her life until she met and married the man of her dreams. But before her honeymoon could even begin, she discovered there was much more to her husband's previous life than he'd let on. Hidden in the shadows waits a man who wants him dead. And once he gets his way, Hallie is left trapped in the middle. As she unravels the secrets her husband kept from her, she discovers she is in a lot more danger without him. A lethal man enters her life, taking her against her will into the woods surrounding Burning Tree, Alabama. Her mind tells her that this man wants to kill her, but his smoldering looks tell her senses a much different story. 
She must fight to stay alive and to guard her heart from his sweet abduction.
     
     INGREDIENTS:2 boxes red velvet cake mix 4 large eggs1 cup of your favorite vegetable oil
ICING:4 ounces cream cheese1 ½ sticks unsalted butter3 cups powdered sugar1 tsp vanilla extractSprinkles for decoration
DIRECTIONS:Preheat oven to 350°.Crack eggs into mixer and add oil. Add in dry cake mix.Mix well.Using tablespoon size scooper, drop cookie mixture to parchment paper lined cookie sheet. The dough will be sticky.Bake for 9 to 11 minutes.After removing cookies from oven, allow them to rest for two minutes. Remove to cooling rack. (Use caution. Cookies will be hot.)While cookies cool completely, combine cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and powdered sugar to mixing bowl. Beat until well combined and fluffy.Spread icing on cooled cookies.  Add sprinkles.  Makes about four and a half dozen cookies.
  I hope you enjoy these as much as my family did!