Peanut Butter Blossoms

Peanut Butter Blossoms

No, this is not a healthy version.  This is a treat I baked to take to a Halloween party.  I used a basic peanut butter cookie recipe.  Typically, unwrapped Hershey's Kisses are used to garnish the cookies but I found mini Reese's Peanut Butter cups and had to use them for something!  Also, many Peanut Butter Blossom cookie recipes call for the dough to be rolled in granulated sugar before baking but I feel my favorite peanut butter cookie is plenty sweet already and it is unnecessary so I skipped it.


Basic Peanut Butter Cookies

1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup smooth or chunky peanut butter
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 eggs, room temperature
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda

Heat the oven to 350°F.  Use ungreased cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.

Combine sugars, peanut butter and butter in a large bowl.  Cream together with electric hand mixer on medium high until smooth and creamy.  Add eggs and vanilla and beat until until well combined.  Add flour and baking soda, mix on medium low speed just until combined.

Scoop dough by tablespoofuls onto cookie sheet; bake on center rack 10 minutes or until lightly golden around the edges.


Makes 60 cookies.



Peanut Butter Blossom variation: I used 2 1/2 cups flour in the dough, but honestly, I think 3 cups total would have made a taller cookie instead of a flat cookie to better hold the candy.  Anyway, make and bake the cookie dough as directed above, adding an extra 1 cup of flour.  Add an unwrapped Hershey's Kiss or mini Reese's Peanut Butter cup and press gently into each cookie immediately after removing the cookie sheet from the oven.  Also, I found that putting the candies in the freezer while the cookies are baking helps minimize the melting when applied to cookies.

Sausage Breakfast Tacos

Sausage Breakfast Tacos

This is probably not the healthiest meal, but it was for a weekend breakfast.  And it does contain some kind of veggie/fruit so it is acceptable in my book!  The husband added hot sauce to his burritos even though it has a bit of a kick from a jalapeno.

1 8 ounce package fresh breakfast sausage
1 onion, peeled, chopped
1 jalapeno, minced, or to taste
2 bell peppers, stems and seeds removed, chopped
1 large tomato, chopped
salt, black pepper, to taste
6 eggs, beaten in a bowl
12 6" corn tortillas or 8 8" flour tortillas (to make burritos)
shredded cheese of your choice

Heat a large frying pan over high heat.  Add sausage; cook.  Break sausage into small chunks with wooden spoon or spatula.  When sausage is browned, add onion and peppers; cook until softened.  Add tomato and salt and pepper; heat through.  Add eggs; cook and stir until eggs are set.  Warm tortillas either in the microwave or on a hot griddle/skillet.  The mixture can be used to make tacos with the corn tortillas or burritos with flour tortillas.  Cheese is optional.


Makes 12 breakfast tacos or 8 small burritos.

Banana Oatmeal Pancakes

First trial of Banana Oatmeal Pancakes -- the more desirable version, original recipe found in the link below.

Second trial, batter made in the food processor.

Banana Oatmeal Pancakes

Now, I haven't gone gluten-free.  I am, however, open to trying new things.  I've been following some folks on Instagram, and many of them post pictures of oatmeal pancakes, so I decided to give them a try.  The pancakes I made are loosely based on this recipe from Cookie and Kate.  Now I have made them twice.  The first time, the pancakes were very thick so I added a bit of milk.  The second time, I didn't have any lemon juice on hand, so I decided to add some acid and moisture by using plain nonfat yogurt.  Below is my version, with the yogurt.  They were good but they weren't as fluffy as the first time I made them so I will probably go with the lemon juice/milk version.  Also, the second time, I mixed the batter in the food processor which yielded a smoother batter but not a necessarily better pancake texture.

5 medium bananas, mashed
4 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup plain nonfat yogurt
2 teaspoons honey
4 eggs
2 cups oat flour (you can either buy oat flour or grind your own from 2 cups of rolled oats in the food processor)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Combine bananas, butter, lemon juice and honey in a small mixing bowl.  Beat in eggs.

Whisk together oat flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a medium bowl.  Form a well in the center of the dry ingredients; add the wet ingredient mixture.  Stir gently to just combine and dry ingredients are thoroughly moistened.  Let batter stand 10 minutes before cooking.

You can cook the pancakes in a skillet on the stove, but I cooked mine on an electric griddle heated to 275°F  Pour batter onto pan/griddle by 1/4 cup; let cook 2 minutes or until bubbles form on the top of the pancake.  Flip and cook through, about 1 to 1 1/2 minutes more.


Makes about 16 pancakes, I use 2 per serving, topped with plain yogurt and fruit.  And maybe a little honey.

One Bowl Chocolate Cake

One Bowl Chocolate Cake

Yes, it says that only one bowl will be used to create this chocolate cake, but I assure you, it is far from few dishes as many measuring cups are used!  I love this recipe because it comes together quickly, you can mix it easily with a whisk and is very versatile.  It can be easily made into a sheet cake, Bundt, layer and cupcakes.  I've made them in every shape, and it comes out moist, rich and fluffy every time.  I would have to say that the results is very similar to a boxed cake mix, in terms of fluffiness and moistness.

2 cups granulated sugar
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup natural cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk (typically whole should be used in baking but I've used other varieties, even nonfat with good results)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water (I warm mine up in a glass measuring cup in the microwave)

Heat the oven to 350°F.  To make cakes like the ones pictured above, grease 2 9" round cake pans and line bottom with parchment paper rounds and greased, or grease and flour (or use a baking spray with flour) a 10" fluted Bundt pan; set aside.

In a large mixing bowl; sift together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt.  Make sure everything is mix; make a well in the center of dry ingredients.  In a 4-cup measuring cup, measure milk and oil.  Add eggs and vanilla; whisk together to combine.  (I use electric hand mixer.)  Pour milk mixture into center of the well and whisk 4 minutes or use electric mixer on medium; beat 2 minutes.  Stir in boiling water gently.  Batter will be very thin.  Pour batter into prepared Bundt pan or divide between 2 round cake pans.

Baking time:
1 9x13" glass baking dish: 35 to 45 minutes (use 1/2 batch frosting)
1 10" fluted Bundt pan: 45 to 60 minutes (use ganache or dust with powdered sugar)
2 9" round cake pans: 20 to 25 minutes (use full batch frosting)
24 cup-muffin tins: 16 to 18 minutes, filled 2/3 (1/2 batch frosting to spread, full batch to pipe)

Check for doneness when cakes have puffed and tester inserted in center comes out clean.  Unmold cakes and let cool completely on wire racks before frosting.


Chocolate Frosting
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
4 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup natural cocoa powder
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 to 1/3 cup milk

Place butter in medium mixing bowl; beat with electric mixer on medium speed.  Add sugar and cocoa powder; beat to combine.  Add vanilla; mix until smooth.  Add milk by tablespoons until it reaches spreading consistency.


Chocolate Ganache:
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate chips or chunks
3/4 cup milk or heavy cream

Combine chocolate and milk in a glass bowl; heat in microwave on high 2 to 2 1/2 minutes or until the milk is hot.  Let stand 4 minutes; whisk until smooth.  Let cool until room temperature; whisking every few minutes.  Drizzle over cake; let cool to set.

Cheeseburger Mac

Cheeseburger Mac!

Clearly, this is not meant to be a healthy meal.  I was feeling like I needed something cheesy and greasy, and this came to mind with the ingredients I had on hand.

Macaroni and Cheese:
1 16 ounce box elbow macaroni (other small pasta shells may be used)
salt
3 tablespoons butter, cut into small cubes
1 1/2 cups milk
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack and Cheddar cheese blend
dash Creole seasoning (I used Tony Chachere;s), to taste

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil over high heat.  Add elbows; stir and cook until cooked but still firm, according to package directions.  Drain macaroni well.  Add butter; stir to melt over medium low heat.  Add milk and cheese.  Cook while stirring until cheese is melted and macaroni is coated in cheese mixture.  Add Creole seasoning to taste.

Beef Mixture:
1 pound ground beef
1 yellow onion, peeled, chopped
1 jalapeno, minced, without seeds for milder flavor
2 poblano chiles, stems and seeds removed, chopped
2 large tomatoes, chopped
splash soy sauce, probably about 1 tablespoon
splash rice wine, probably about 1 tablespoon
salt, black pepper

Heat a large frying pan or wok over high heat.  Add beef; cook and stirring until meat is browned.  Drain fat.  Add meat back to pan with chopped onions, jalapeno and poblano chiles.  Cook and stir until vegetables are softened.  Add tomatoes.  Add soy sauce, rice wine and salt and pepper to taste.  Cook until tomatoes are a little softened.  You can serve the beef mixture over or beside the macaroni and cheese; or combine if you wish.


Makes 6 to 8 servings

Chicken Stock

Chicken Stock

By no means have I been classically trained, I learned to make this from watching my grandma, chefs on TV and the Internet.  In the particular batch, I skimped on the chicken--double the chicken would yield a more flavorful stock.

3 to 6 pounds of chicken parts (I usually use leg or leg quarters because they're more affordable)
Lawry's seasoning salt or poultry seasoning
1 to 2 white or yellow onions, peeled, cut into wedges
1 pound carrots, peeled, cut into large chunks
1 bunch celery, cut into large chunks
minced garlic or garlic cloves, depending on how potent you like the flavor

Heat a stock pot over high heat.  Sprinkle chicken with seasoning salt or poultry seasoning liberally.  Brown the chicken in batches until brown on all sides.  Add onion; stir and cook over medium high heat until onions are soft and brown.  Add carrot and celery; stir until slightly softened.  Add chicken back to the pot along with garlic and water to fill almost to the top of the pot.  Cover; bring to boil.  Once it comes to a boil; turn heat to low and simmer several hours.  I usually simmer mine 3 to 6 hours.

Strain the broth into another pot using a strainer lined with cheesecloth.  Now it is ready to be used to make a soup, or freeze for later.

Tomato Eggs

Tomato Eggs

Oh, how I love this dish.  This is a meal that my grandma and mother have cooked many times as I was growing up.  It is very warm and comforting, and that is why I love it.  Now, I have made some liberal changes to suit my more mature tastebuds, but it still has the same effect on me whenvery I make this.  It is basically stewed tomatoes with scrambled eggs.  My grandma's version is very sweet--she was not very fond of tartness so she added sugar to hers.  I've helped my grandma many times to make this.  As soon as I could figure out how to use a knife safely, she allowed me to peel, cut and seed the tomatoes.  She'd soften the skin in a pot of boiling water.  Once the tomatoes were cool enough to handle, the skins slipped off.  She would just gouge holes so the seeds could come out but I am a bit more concerned about neatness so I'd quarter, cut into sixths or eighths depending on the size of the tomatoes and the scooped out the seeds so I'd have nice clean wedges.  I don't know why it matters to me because once you cook it, the shape is not one bit recognizable.  The measurements aren't very precise, but I don't think the dish would suffer.  I make it based on what I like.

Eggs:
1 tablespoon butter
6 eggs, beaten

Heat a large frying pan or work over medium high heat.  Melt butter.  Add eggs; cook and stir with spatula until eggs are softly set.  Remove eggs from pan to a dish; set aside.

Tomatoes
8 to 10 plum tomatoes or 5 to 7 large tomatoes
1 tablespoon butter or vegetable oil
1 yellow or white onion, peeled, coarsely chopped or thinly sliced
1 teaspoon minced garlic
dash rice wine, to taste
dash soy sauce, to taste
black pepper
heaping soup spoon's worth of cornstarch--you may need more or less depending on how juicy the tomatoes are and how thick you'd like the sauce.

Bring to boil a large pot of water over high heat.  Add tomatoes and heat until the skins split.  You may have to give them a nudge with a slotted spoon to make sure all the tomatoes are submerged.  Remove tomatoes as the skins split.  Once all of them are out of the water; let cool until you easily handle them.

Peel and seed tomatoes as you wish.  You don't have to cut them into wedges like I do, you can even coarsely crush them with your hands.  Save any juices.  Save a little on the side; dissolve the cornstarch to add later to thicken sauce.

Heat a large frying pan or work over medium high heat.  Melt butter; fry onions until translucent.  Add rice wine and soy sauce to taste.  Sprinkle with pepper.  Add tomatoes with juice; cook over low until tomatoes are softened to your liking.  Increase heat to high; bring to boil.  Add the tomato juice with cornstarch quickly and stir until mixture comes back to a boil and thickens.  The sauce will look cloudy at first, when it is cooked, it'll look kind of translucent and shiny.  Stir in scrambled eggs; stir to warm through.  Serve over cooked rice.  I use brown, but my grandma always served it with white rice.


Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Breakfast Sausage and Potato Burritos

Breakfast Sausage and Potato Burritos

1 8 ounce package breakfast sausage fresh links (no casing)
1 yellow onion, peeled, chopped
1 jalapeno, minced, or to taste
5 small baking potatoes, scrubbed, cut into cubes, steamed in the microwave or boiled until nearly cooked through, drained
6 eggs, beaten
12 soft taco sized flour tortillas
shredded cheese, your choice

Heat a large frying pan over high heat.  Add sausage, breaking up with a spoon into small chunks.  Cook until sausage is no longer pink inside and lightly browned on the outside.  Add onion and jalapeno; stir and cook until onion is slightly translucent.  Add potatoes; stir and cook until potatoes are tender inside and lightly browned on the outside.  Add eggs and scramble until desired doneness.  Warm tortillas in a hot pan or microwave.  Fill and roll tortillas with egg mixture and cheese as desired.


Makes 12 small burritos

Weekend Fun! Maybe it was a little too much...

Mr. and Mrs. W, just about to hit the road

Mrs. W after a couple too many drinks, wearing Mr. W's sunglasses.  He was not pleased!

So this past weekend, we attended a wedding.  Our friend found the love of his life and tied the knot on Saturday.  It was a beautiful ceremony and a lovely reception.  Apparently, I had a little too much to drink that afternoon/evening that resulted in a less-than-desirable feeling.

What's a girl to do?  As some of you may know, I am on a bit of a healthy journey, getting into shape and improving my health.  I usually allow room for indulgences, but perhaps, it was a bit too much this weekend.  I came to the conclusion that I will not dwell on making a bad choice one afternoon.  Instead, I am going to resume my healthy habits, which I started yesterday (Monday).  I had cooked my meals on Sunday for the majority of the week and I hit the gym as usual.  I drank lots of water to stay hydrated.

In the past, when I ate or drank horribly, I'd put myself down and thought that was the end of things, I should just not care what I ate or drank from then on.  Now, I have a new mindset.  Have your treats within reason and just move along.  One meal or one beverage bender isn't going to undo all the good you have done.  You can have a drink, but not 10.  You can have an ice cream cone or a cookie, but maybe not the whole carton and/or batch.  A friend once posted a graphic of a smashed cell phone.  It said something like, "Continuing with the cheat meals after a cheat meal is like smashing your phone when you've dropped it."

Even though I account for the treats when I plan out my meals and activities, sometimes the cravings pop up.  My cravings are usually for either sweet things like cookies and cake, or crunchy salty things such as Cheetos.  I think to myself, "I can have some when it is the designated indulgence meal," and either have some fruit or veggie sticks if I'm hungry or find another activity to do that is not food-related.  That usually stops the craving.  Come indulgence meal time, if I still want it, then I will treat myself.

How do you deal with cravings?  Do you give in?



Makeup details, for those interested.  Obviously, I am wearing a full face of makeup, but these products are the ones worthy of highlighting at the moment.
Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Love that Red (pretty color, smooth application, not drying but lightweight)
NYX Slim Lip Pencil in Hot Red (long lasting)
Red Cherry Lashes in #66 (first time wearing them out, bit of a lash newbie.  Liked the look, relatively easy to apply and not terribly uncomfortable.  Discomfort is probably from not being used to wearing them.  Applied with Duo Striplash Adhesive Dark Tone.  They were on for 12+ hours!)
Zoya Nail Polish in Carmen (my fave brand!)

Mushroom Frittata

Mushroom Frittata

I was having one of those days so to save on prep time, most of the vegetables were used in both breakfast and lunch this week.

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 small white onion, peeled, chopped
8 ounces white button mushrooms, sliced
1 poblano chile, seeds and stem removed, chopped
salt, pepper
6 eggs, beaten
shredded mild cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese blend, optional

Heat the oven to 375°F.  Spray a 9" pie plate with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.

Heat a large frying pan or wok over high heat.  Melt butter; add veggies and quickly stir fry until cooked to desired doneness.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Transfer vegetable mixture to prepared pie plate.  Add eggs, gently stirring around a little so the egg evenly distributes among veggies.  Add cheese if desired.  Bake 12 to 15 minutes in preheated oven or until slightly puffed.  Cool slightly before cutting into wedges or squares.


Makes 4 servings

Beefy Brown Rice and Veggies with Steamed Acorn Squash

Beefy Brown Rice and Veggies with Steamed Acorn Squash

Rice:
1 1/2 cups brown rice
1 cup beef broth
2 cups water

Combine rice, broth and water in rice cooker; cook until rice has absorbed liquid and is tender.

Beef and Veggie Mixture:
12 ounces lean ground beef
Lawry's seasoning salt, or use Mrs. Dash salt free seasoning blend
1 onion, peeled, chopped
8 ounces white button mushrooms, sliced
1 jalapeno, stem and seeds removed, minced
1 poblano chile, stem and seeds removed, chopped
1/2 cup beef broth
2 crowns broccoli, cut into small florets

Heat a large frying pan or wok; add beef and season with Lawry's seasoning salt or herb blend.  Cook until beef is browned.  Add onion; cook until translucent.  Add remaining veggies and broth; cook until veggies are cooked to desired doneness.  Mix in rice.  Divide rice among lunch box containers.

Acorn Squash:
2 acorn squash, halved, seeds scooped out

Heat the oven to 350°F.  Place squash halves cut side down in glass baking dish, add enough water to cover bottom of pan.  Cover with foil; place pan in oven on middle rack.  Bake 35 to 45 minutes or until squash is fork tender.  Cut each half into thirds.


Makes 6 servings

Shepherd's Pie

Shepherd's Pie

I read somewhere that this is actually called "Cottage Pie" because it is made with beef.  Authentic shepherd's pie is usually made with lamb or mutton.  I am not much of a fan of lamb/mutton, and I happen to have all the ingredients on hand to make it with ground beef.  I think in my neck of the woods, it is widely accepted that this dish is called "Shepherd's Pie," so that is what I am calling this.  This is the last of this week's meals before I did my grocery shopping, which happened today but I had already taken out the meat to thaw.

I'd have to say that it does not look too appetizing, and it may very well be too moist/saucy.  That is not a major problem, as it can be improved next time by adding less liquid, or more thickening agent.  Also, it may help if I spread the potato mixture over the top more evenly to the edge, creating a seal.  Either way, I hope it tastes better than it looks because I have not tried it yet at the time of this posting.  The recipe as adapted from Simply Recipes: Shepherd's Pie.  Normally I probably wouldn't have put cheese on the top, but the husband requested so I obliged considering he has been wanting me to try making this for quite some time now.

Potatoes:
2 to 2 1/2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1" chunks
salt, black pepper
1 1/4 cup nonfat milk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon minced garlic

Meat Mixture:
2 pounds lean ground beef (I used 90/10)
2 small white onions, peeled, chopped
Lawry's seasoning salt, pepper, to taste
2 cups (approximately) frozen mixed vegetables
1 1/2 cups beef broth (I used purchased boxed)
1 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 cup shredded cheese (I used mild cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese blend)

Place potatoes in large saucepan with cold water to cover by 1".  Add 2 teaspoons salt; cover and bring to boil over high heat.  Cook until potatoes are tender, test with fork/knife.  Combine milk, butter and garlic in glass measuring cup; microwave on high until butter is melted.  When potatoes are done, drain them in a colander.  Add potatoes back to pot over low heat to dry out.  Mash with potato mashing tool.  Add milk mixture and black pepper to taste; stir gently just until combined.

Heat the oven to 375°F.  Grease a 13x9" glass baking dish with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.

Heat a large frying pan or wok over high heat.  Brown beef in hot pan; add onions.  Stir and cook until meat is cooked through and the onions are softened.  Add 1 cup of the broth and vegetables; let cook until mixture is heated through.  Combine remaining broth with cornstarch in a cup or small bowl.  Add cornstarch mixture to meat mixture in pan; stir and cook over high heat until liquid is thickened.

Pour meat mixture into prepared pan.  Spread mashed potato mixture over the top of meat mixture.  Sprinkle with cheese if desired.  Bake 20 minutes or until heated through.


Makes 8 to 12 servings

Apple Pie Oats

Apple Pie Overnight Oats

The "I haven't gone to the market" meals continue lol.  I had to make do with what I had left in the cabinets and refrigerator.  I noticed that I have been eating a lot of oatmeal for breakfast lately but I don't mind.  Fiber is a good thing!  I have made other overnight oats renditions before, but this is my favorite so far.

1/2 cup rolled oats, uncooked
1/2 cup milk, any
1/3 cup nonfat plain yogurt
1 tablespoon flaxseed
1 tablespoons turbinado sugar, or to taste
sprinkle of ground cinnamon, to taste
1 small to medium apple, variety of your choice, cored and coarsely chopped

Combine oats, milk, yogurt, flaxseed, sugar and cinnamon in a dish or jar.  Stir to combine.  Add apples; mix.  Cover; refrigerate at least 8 hours.  You can add granola or other crunchy toppings if you choose, but I like this one just as it is.