The Heat Wave Won't Stop Me: Cookie Butter Granola Bars

                                               

Adapted from: FruetCake

You may or may not know that the Northeast is experiencing a crazy heat wave this week.It feels like my kitchen has reached 80 degrees inside. My mom doesn't like me baking or cooking too much when these heat waves happen because the kitchen gets pretty hot one you open up the oven. Regardless, I was dying to make a healthy breakfast/snack for the week because I've been eating Special K for days. I had  Trader Joes cookie butter on hand and found this great bar recipe to use it up. I'm so glad this recipe used cookie butter instead of peanut butter because I hate peanut butter. I modified this recipe by adding dark chocolate chips. I LOVE DARK CHOCOLATE ( ok sorry for the ADD moment). This hot weather is not going to stop me from creating good eats. :)

You will need:

2 cups old fashioned oats ( Quaker)

1/3 cup chocolate chips

1/2 cup cookie butter

1 egg

1/4 cup honey

vegetable cooking spray or butter

1/3 cup brown sugar

MICE EN PLACE: have all your ingredients out and oven preheated

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2.Position oven rack in the middle of the oven.

3. Line a 7 by 10 3/4 baking pan with parchment paper and spray. Set aside.

4. In a medium bowl,using a hand beater or large spoon, beat egg white until frothy.

5.Stir the cookie butter,brown sugar, and honey.Add the melted butter and oats.

6. Stir to combine, add in chocolate chips.

7. Using a rubber spatula, spread mixture on a prepared pan. 

8. Bake until the mixture begins to brown, about 15 minutes.

9. Cool for 1 hour.

Bon Appetit!

Serving Size: about 10 bars

Super Duper Easy Apple "Tart"

                                           

Adapted from: The Pioneer Woman

I made this dessert the same day I made the Chicken BLT salad. My boyfriend came to for the day, and I wanted to make lunch for him because I'm pretty sure he missed my cooking. ( lol) Me being me, I couldn't complete the meal without a dessert. I wanted to make something simple that tasted great. During my blog search I came upon this wonderful and simple tart recipe. This is awesome because you only need a few ingredients! Unfortunately, I thawed my pastry a little too much so my portions were not as big as I wanted. If you do this 100% accurate you will get 3 nice sized "tarts". This dessert is quite inexpensive too.

 Ingredients:

1 sheet puff pastry, store bought is fine. (it tastes great to me)

3-4 baking apples, sliced thin,skin on

 1 cup light brown sugar - to sprinkle on tarts

 * vanilla frosting to drizzle on top, optional

Steps: Have apples sliced and puff pastry thawed. MICE EN PLACE

1.  Preheat oven to 415 degrees.

2. Separate puff pastry into 3 equal rectangles.

3. Mix apple slices with enough brown sugar to coat them nicely. 

4. Squirt lemon juice on apples, so they don't turn brown.

5. Arrange apple slices in a straight line on each puff pastry rectangle.

6. Bake for 18-20 minutes. Watch the pastry so it does not burn.

7. Let cool, and drizzle with vanilla frosting.

Serving size: 3 tarts

Long Time NO Blog! :( : CHICKEN BLT SALAD

                  Hello all! Wow it seems like its been a long time since I've actually blogged about a new recipe. Like I've said, I have a job now, so sometimes its hard to get up and cook again. NO FEAR, here is a new recipe. I originally wanted to make a pasta salad or hot pasta dish, but either one would not be best because it would be boring or too hot to eat in this weather. A light bulb went off in my head and I found an idea. BLT SALAD!! I was sure my boyfriend and parents would enjoy this. I was right too. My man asked for seconds and my parents enjoyed it.YAY! Plus, I had left over pasta and breaded chicken cutlets to add in. Also, I spent less money on this because I had those ingredients in my house. All I needed was mayo, bacon, tomatoes , and lettuce. I suggest adding a splash of lemon or lime on top to give this salad an extra yummy kick. :) This is my own recipe, so if you wish to copy it on your blog, please give me creds.
                                                                You will need:
                                              1 bag of lettuce ( I chose American romaine)
                                              1/2- 3/4 cup light mayonnaise
                                              1 medium chicken cutlet, cut into cubes
                                              Enough pasta to fill the bowl you are using
                                              1-2 squirts, fresh lime/lemon juice
                                              5 slices cooked bacon
                                              3-4 Roma tomatoes, chopped
                                      Steps: Have lettuce washed, tomatoes and chix cut, bacon cooked, AND A  BIG BOWL READY! MICE EN PLACE!
                                        1. Combine lettuce, chicken, chopped bacon, mayo, pasta , and tomatoes in a bowl.
                                        2. Stir until thoroughly combined.
                                     
                                        3. Squirt a bit of fresh lemon or lime juice on top.
                                       
                                        4. DEVOUR!
                               
                                         Serving Size:  2-3 large servings

Product Review #1: Healthy Choice Steamers- Portabella Marsala Pasta

       
                Hello everyone, long time no blog, I know! Don't worry I still love cooking and posting my new culinary adventures with you. Recently, I have gotten a internship at a local italian deli/restaurant and have been working two days a week 9-3. I love my new job there, I am learning alot and improving my skills. That, plus having to deal with the death of my grandmother have taken up a few weeks. Another thing, there was an incident with my car, so I was not able to drive it to the supermarket to get what I need to cook for y'all. Anyway, I finally got to the store yesterday with my mother and picked this up for a quick lunch the next day. These new meals just caught my eye.
    I used to be a HUGE fan of frozen entree's when I was a child, I would have a package at least once a week if I remember correctly. I mean they were so much fun to choose at the store and eat. I have had the kiddie meals, Stouffer's, Lean Cuisine, Healthy Choice, and Smart One's entrees. All of them have a unique aspect to their food. For example Kids Cuisine is marketed towards children because they have kid approved food and bright colors to go with the packaging. Lean Cuisine, on the other hand is marketed towards women because the array of entree's usually have no more than 300 calories a box.
                                                                     - Review-
 First impressions:  I have had Healthy Choice entree's before, but this is a whole new deal.. MICROWAVE STEAMERS! Sounds healthy, right. And they are healthy.
Calories: 250
Fat: 6
Lets face it we need this amount of calories to have a decent lunch. Let me tell you, I was full after eating this with some skinless turkey and a 0 cal drink. The package is heavier than most frozen entree's. That is a good thing because you're getting more food for less calories, salt , and fat.  It takes 5 minutes in the microwave. Upon taking it out, I smelled a WONDERFUL mushroom aroma coming from downstairs where the microwave is.

 Appearance * The box and the actual presentation match pretty well.Both seem tasty looking!!

Appearance is important when you're dealing with frozen entrees. Some frozen entree packaging are known to be misleading in cooked appearance. In the end, we end up eating that frozen egg patty slathered in microwave bacon , right? Our stomachs control our minds sometimes. In this entree, I was surprised by the amount of food I got. Kudos, Healthy Choice, kudos.

Taste: For a microwave pasta meal, the pasta was tender and delicious. Frozen entree companies have improved on their pasta formula over the years, thats for sure. The amount of mushrooms was just right for me, I'm a mushroom lover! The portabella mushroom sauce was a bit bland for me, it actually needed salt. There could have been more fontina cheese on top, it was delicious, and would have taken care of the salt issue, but we are trying to be healthy.

Overall: I would buy this entree, and various Healthy Choice Steamers again.
                                                 Rating    3 1/2 stars

    Rating System: 1 star = never eating this again
                             2 stars= I wasted my money on this meal, but I will eat it because I'm hungry.
                             3 stars= I am satisfied
                             4 stars= Omg this is so good!
                             5 stars= foodgasm. get me more.
                             

My Brother is Home from College!: Red Curry Noodle Soup

 Adapted Slightly from: Jeanette's Healthy Living

        On Saturday, my family and I made the 2 hour journey to pick up my twin

brother from college. ( finally) Sometimes I feel sorry for him because he does not have a very good eating experience at Swarthmore's dining hall. Even some of the simplest things like pizza supposedly taste horrible. Being able to mess up a pizza is beyond me. When we got home my mother had everything decided for dinner for the week. The first night we had bbq chicken and pasta with her famous pesto sauce. It was so delicious, I wish you guys were there to try. Tonight she is reheating the meat sauce she made a few nights ago, which is also to die for. Earlier, he complained that I never cooked anything for him all the times he was home. Well, today was going to be the day.

I really wanted to make brownies using the recipe my college has because they are so decadent and yummy. Unfortunately , we have wayyy to much dessert in the house for another addition. My brother and I both enjoy thai food, so I decided to make this great soup because it was easy to make and it served 2 perfectly. Note, I used "light" coconut milk in this soup, it gives an "ok" coconut flavor and richness, if you want more then opt for the regular 140 -calorie stuff. :) All in all, my brother, who is usually a bit picky, really enjoyed this soup with tofu and noodles. It makes a quick and delicious lunch or dinner. My substitutions are in bold.

You will need:

1 teaspoon flavorless oil

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon red curry paste

1 cup classic coconut milk

1 cup chicken stock

1 stalk of lemongrass , trimmed,peeled, tender part smashed

1 piece ginger, about the size of a quarter , smashed ( I did not use this)

2 cups spinach, rinsed and stems removed, torn 

8 oz tofu shirataki noodles, angel hair shape ( rinsed and drained)

1 cup soft silken tofu

a dash of soy sauce

Steps: Have spinach torn, tofu cubed, and "noodles"rinsed/drained before prep. MICE EN PLACE!

1. Heat a medium saucepan. Once it is hot, add the oil and curry paste. Stir until fragrant, about 2 minutes.

2. Add coconut milk, stock, and lemongrass. Bring to a boil, then add spinach. Cook for one minute.

3. Then, add shirataki noodles and tofu. Cook until warmed about 3 minutes. Add a splash of soy sauce at the end.

                                                                          ENJOY!!
                                                         Serving Size: 2 generous helpings

Pretty in Pink Trifle * MOTHER'S DAY*

           

Do you ever catch yourself scrambling to get that "second gift" for a holiday?

Well, I was. See, my mom wanted pictures of my brother and I from this year. I really procrastinated ordering those, but luckily CVS has a service where the photos are ready the same day. GENIUS RIGHT? Anyway I ordered those on the friday before Mother's Day. All the photos were under $10. Although it was good for my bank account I really wanted to do more , because my mom is worth more than $5 worth of photos. When she and my dad were visiting my grandmother in the hospital I whipped up my own version of a strawberry trifle. I call it a "pretty in pink" trifle because the cake and the strawberries give it a beautiful color and taste. Please note my recipe suggestions.

You will need:

1, 16oz box strawberry cake mix

About 1 1/2 cups fresh strawberries

2 boxes of instant vanilla pudding

(* 3 cups of milk for dry pudding instead of 4! You want the custard to be thick!)

1 package of Cool Whip ( or similar) - as needed

Almonds * as a garnish*

Steps: Have a trifle bowl ready and your strawberries cut. MICE EN PLACE!

1. Prepare the strawberry cake according to package. Mix it up well, so it looks all pretty and pink. :)

beautiful!

2. Cool the cake and cut half of the prepared cake into 1/2 in cubes. Reserve the other half for later.

3. Prepare both of the instant pudding mixes using 3 cups of cold milk, not 4 cups because you want the pudding a bit thick.

4. Whisk vigorously until thickened. Let the pudding rest for a few minutes without stirring it.

5. In your trifle bowl, layer in order: cake cubes, pudding, and strawberries until you reach the top. Add an extra layer of pudding for the end. Leave about 1 in. of space in the bowl for garnishes and cool whip.

^ Decorate it like this.

6. Using a piping bag with whatever small tip you want, pipe out small puffs of whipped topping all around the bowl.Top the whip cream puffs with slivered almonds. 

7. Using the left over strawberry cake, crumble it up and add into the center of the trifle as shown in the pic.

8. Put left over strawberries around the bowl.

DEVOUR QUICKLY BECAUSE THIS DOES NOT HOLD WELL.

Serving Size: About 4-6 guests

* This is my own recipe: if you wish to copy it please note on your post: Adapted from:...

thanks :)

40 Second Nutella Mug Cake

 

adapted from:BackToHerRoots

For years I have been trying to create the perfect single serve mug dessert. After all the recipes I have tried none seemed to work out. The cakes were either dry and or spongey beyond belief. I eventually gave up and resorted to box mug cake mixes. The box mug cake mixes are very delicious, but I don't have endless dollars to spend either. It's all about trial and error with these recipes. I decided to try the mug cake from this blog because it was easy to make.. and it has NUTELLA. Who doesn't like Nutella?! If you don't like Nutella we can't be friends. I kid you. I ended up microwaving this for 40 seconds not 90 seconds like the blog said because I have a very powerful microwave.

                                                                     You will need:
                                                                      1 egg, beaten
                                                                      1 tablespoon of Nutella
                                                                      1 heaping tablespoon of flour
                                                                      1 teaspoon of baking powder
                                                                      1 tablespoon of brown sugar
                                                                      * powdered sugar for dusting*
                        Steps: Have all your dry ingredients out and your egg beaten. MICE EN PLACE!
                     
              1. Whisk together all wet and dry ingredients, place in a large mug. * This recipe is moist  enough that you won't have to grease it. It worked out for me without any butter/spray!

                              2. Microwave at 70% power for 30 seconds. Then, check the cake and microwave on 100% power for 10 seconds.
                              3. Make sure the cake is moist , but not undercooked on the top and bottom.
                              4. Invert on a plate and dust with some pretty powdered sugar. MMM good!
               
                     

 

Serving Size: 1 delicious little cake

Simply amazing! My timing on this little cake was perfect  and I love the molten sauce that appears

when its inverted on the plate. OK NOW I HAVE TO WASH SOME DISHES AND GO ON THE TREADMILL. LOL.