Easter Strawberry Carrots

Another totally cute idea I found on Pinterest were these chocolate dipped strawberries made to look like Easter carrots. I LOVE strawberries! They are so easy to make at home that there is really no need in paying the insane prices they get for these. You just have to know how to properly use chocolate melts and you'll be making all the candy you can think of. 

Basically, you mix the chocolate molds with some shortening or oil and let it heat up in a double boiler. Don't try to do this in a regular pan! Stir frequently until you have a smooth consistency that just barely starts to slide easily off a spoon. If you haven't worked with melts before, don't start with white chocolate (although for these, I did.) If you cook white chocolate too much, it will gum up really fast so I would start with a milk chocolate if you haven't done this before. You can color them whichever color you like. Most directions say to avoid water based coloring but I have honestly never had a problem with them because of the small amount used. If you are a newbie, the gel colors should be easier for you. All you do is put a small amount into your food with a tooth pick and stir. Dip the berries, holding the stems and let the excess chocolate slide off. You can wipe the berry on the side of the pot and use that as the side you lie flat, if you don't want the chocolate to create a pool around the base. Lay out onto wax paper.

Once all your berries are dried, spoon the leftover chocolate into a squeeze bottle and pour horizontal lines of chocolate over the berries to create your texture. 

These should be stored in the fridge uncovered to prevent any cracking or sweating. You can do a large amount ahead of time and freeze them. Ripe, solid berries will preserve well in the freezer, just take care to freeze and unfreeze them slowly or they will surely crack. Store them in the refrigerator for several hours before transferring to the freezer. Then do the opposite when defrosting them. First place them in the refrigerator before exposing them to room temperature conditions. Make sure to serve them all within 24-48 hours as the frozen berries will get mushy faster than freshly dipped berries. 

Brookies

I came across the concept of these many times while browsing through Pinterest. However, as many photos as there were, I could never find a recipe! 

I decided to try them as a treat to cheer up someone who loves brownies and loves chocolate chip cookies! Those are pretty basic things to love. It's kind of hard to go wrong making either. 

I think I got this down pretty well even though the baking times for these are obviously very different! I wanted to preserve the tastes of each part of the Brookie and still get them to stick together. I had no problem getting them to do just that! The result was a gooey, soft cookie and a chewy brownie that's just sticky enough in the middle. They resemble mini muffins, and that's the kind of pan I used to make them. They are deadly sweet and the perfect size of you ask me. Anything bigger and I think they'd just be too rich!

Brownie Portion:

2 squares unsweetened chocolate

3/4 stick butter

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup flour

Cookie Portion:

1 cup flour

1/2 Tsp baking soda

1/4 Tsp salt

1 stick butter

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 large egg

1/2 pkg chocolate chips

Mix two separate batters up in a stand mixer or with bowls and an electric mixer.

I usually have no problem at all making batters like this is one bowl! I just don't see the point of dirtying so many bowls to separate wet and dry ingredients. Mix up the cookie one. Start with creaming the butter, then add in the sugar and other wet ingredients, followed by all the dry ingredients with the flour going in last and then fold in any mixings such as the chips. Set aside. 

Now mix up the brownie portion. Heat the butter and chocolate on the stove top in a small pan on low just until its completely melted. Then pour it into your mixing bowl. Mix in the sugar, vanilla, and flour. Make sure that the mix isn't too warm to add in the eggs, if its cool enough, you can beat them in. 

Grease your pans well. Spoon brownie batter into the muffin pans until they are a bit more than half full. I used disposable pans, but I'm sure these are a lot easier to handle using a permanent pan. I just happened to be making them in someone else's kitchen so I bought these for the job. Bake the brownies in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes. 

Remove mostly cooked brownies from the oven and allow to cool down for about 5 minutes. Cover with cookie mixture almost to the top of the tin wells. Continue to bake for 12-15 minutes. Remove from oven and check for thorough cooking with a toothpick. It should come out mostly clean and definitely not goopey. 

Get yourself a big glass of milk to enjoy these with. You won't be able to resist trying one right out of the oven!

Mini Stuffed Peppers

I came across a bag of these wonderful, colorful peppers while grocery shopping the other day and I knew I needed to make something out of them. 

I cooked up some jasmine rice and long grain rice in chicken broth instead of water, to add extra flavor. Then I added some tomato sauce and Italian seasoning and stuffed the peppers to the top. 

I stacked them tightly into a small casserole dish and topped with some shredded cheese. I baked them in a 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes. I only served a couple as a side to my dinner. The rest got gently separated a bit and I placed the whole dish in the freezer for a few hours until they froze slightly. Then I threw them all into a freezer bag and now I have a side that I can pull out anytime for dinner. 

Hindsight:

These would be great with some ground beef added to them. That's the way I usually make stuffed peppers but I wanted a side to go with anything since I was going to use the predominantly for freezing. Trader Joe's has a great blend that I love to use called Harvest Grains that would be wonderful for this as well. It's a hearty mix of couscous, quinoa, rice, buckwheat, and rice. I highly suggest trying that. 

Low Fat Banana Muffins

I've been making this low fat banana muffin recipe for years every time I have bananas that are beginning to turn. For about 150 calories per full muffin, or under 40 for one of these mini muffins, you can't really go wrong! Mini muffins will yield a large batch, over 3 dozen muffins. As you can see, I made some small banana breads as well with the extra batter!

 

2 bananas, mashed

2/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup margarine or butter spread

2 eggs

1/8 cup water

1 1/2 cups flour

1 Tsp baking soda

1/4 Tsp baking powder

1/2 Tsp salt

 

In a stand mixer, cream the margarine or butter until soft and then add in the bananas, mashing completely. Add in the eggs and water, mixing gently. While the mixer is turning, add in the sugar, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Lastly, fold the flour into your batter.



 Fill up muffin pans or paper liners about 1/2 to 3/4 full and bake in a 350 degree oven until a toothpick comes out clean. Mine usually take about 20-25 minutes for regular muffins and 15-20 minutes for mini muffins. You can also make banana bread loaves with this batter. Baking time will be about an hour.

Cool and store in a Ziploc bag on the counter for several days or in the fridge for a week or more.

Black Bean & Quinoa Veggie Burgers

I'm far from a vegetarian! But sometimes, a veggie fake out certainly can help your diet. I wanted to try something with a big more flavor and texture than my Meatless Sweet Potato Burgers. These fit the bill.

 

2 cups quinoa, cooked
2 shallots, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp mixed up salt
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 Tbsp tomato paste
1 large egg
2/3 cup frozen corn
1/2 cup parsley, chopped
1 Tbsp Adobo seasoning
1 tsp cumin
1/4 cup flour

1/2 cup oats

 

Recipe Adapted from Prevention RD

Cook quinoa according to package directions. Once cooled, mix in a large bowl with all other ingredients. Form six equal sized large balls and press down on a baking sheet sprayed with nonstick spray. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for several hours. The longer they are refrigerated, the better they will stay together. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 10-12 minutes on each side, flipping once during baking. Serve on a hamburger roll.

For a gluten free burger, use a rice or oat flour instead!

 

These burgers also freeze wonderfully! Just freeze them a bit on the baking sheet and then pop into freezer bags and store in the freezer until ready to cook or defrost.



Taco Mac & Cheese

My husband loves taco anything! Ask him any night what he wants for dinner and you will have him say "TACO!" It's pretty much a running joke now. So, naturally I'm always scoping out taco recipes. I'm always up for pasta and this gives a taco twist to an American Chop Suey.

 

1 lb of your favorite pasta, cooked

1 lb ground beef

1 medium onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 packet taco seasoning

1 cup salsa

1 cup reduced fat sour cream

1 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend

2 cups milk

2 Tbsp cream cheese

 

Recipe Adapted from Cassie Craves

 

Cook past according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

 

Spray a skillet with some nonstick spray and add onions and garlic. Saute over medium heat for 5 minutes, until they start to caramelize. Add in the beef and seasoning, breaking the beef apart as it cooks.

 

When the beef is thoroughly cooked, add in the salsa, sour cream, cream cheese, and cheese. Mix well until all cheese is melted and blended in. Lastly, add the milk and mix well. Cover and simmer on low for 5 minutes.



Mix in your pasta.

Garnish with salsa and sour cream and enjoy!



Peach Melba

If you've never had Peach Melba, you are doing yourself a great disservice! This was a coveted dessert for me in my youth at restaurants. My father is not a dessert guy, but he loves fruit. This is one of his favorites. Finding them on a menu is no easy task. They are fairly simple to make, and well worth the rewards!

 

I did some peach picking at Connors Farm and stocked up to make some desserts to put away. I kept a few fresh ones for the Melba. Serve with some vanilla ice cream and you will be in heaven!

 

Recipe Adapted from Epicurious

Gently scrub the outside of your peaches under running water to remove any dirt and debris. Remove the stems. Slice them down the middle, all the way around, cutting all the way through. Then place one side in the palm of each hand and rotate the sides. They should come apart very easily and expose the pit to be removed. Cover with a 2:1 ratio of water to sugar, just enough to cover the peaches, in a small stockpot. 

Bring syrup to a boil and simmer peaches 5 minutes on each side. Turn off heat and cover, leaving the peaches to poach for 60-90 minutes.

Strain the peaches out of the syrup, but do not discard! This is amazing to add to some unsweetened iced tea! You will not go wrong, so put it in a container and leave it in your fridge to enjoy.

While the peaches are boiling, add 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup sugar to the empty saucepan. Bring to a boil and add 1 package of frozen or fresh raspberries. Simmer an additional 5-10 minutes until the raspberries begin to break apart. Cool down to room temperature and then stir in 2 Tsp lemon juice.

Pour raspberry syrup over your peaches! Enjoy!

Any additional raspberry syrup can also be used to sweeten iced tea. How will you ever choose between peach or raspberry teas?