Fudge Babies

These little bites are about as healthy as a dessert can get. Experiment with different kinds of nuts and other add-ins to get different flavors. So far the below combination is my favorite – it’s very Almond Joy-esque.

I accidentally bought dates with pits. Fortunately, the pit pops right out when the date is cut in half length-wise. Dates are tricky to measure because they are so big, but the recipe is pretty forgiving. If your “dough” doesn’t come together, add a few more dates.

Fudge Babies
Adapted from Chocolate-Covered Katie

1 1/2 c dates, halved
3/4 c almonds
1/2 c coconut
3-4 T cocoa powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
pinch salt

1) Combine all ingredients in the food processor.
2) Blend until the “dough” sticks together when pinched; this may take a few minutes.
3) Form into 1″ balls.

Simple Tomato Sauce

This is an easy tomato sauce that can be whipped up quickly with minimal chopping.  You may want to strain off some of the juice before adding the tomatoes to the skillet or, if the sauce seems too runny, just simmer it a little to cook off some of the water.

Simple Tomato Sauce
Adapted from AllRecipes.com

2-3 T olive oil
1 T minced garlic
1 can diced tomatoes
1 pinch crushed red pepper
fresh basil, finely chopped, to taste
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
8 oz fresh mozzarella, chopped

1) In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat.
2) Add garlic; saute for 1 minute.
3) Stir in tomatoes, crushed red pepper, basil, salt and pepper.
4) Simmer over medium-low heat until sauce is warmed through, and it reaches the desired consistency.
5) Stir in mozzarella; serve immediately over fresh pasta.

Homemade Pop Tarts

These are amazingly good!  The crust is buttery and flaky and fantastic.  The dough is a bit tricky to work with — like pie dough it needs to be chilled or else it will stick.  I used half of the dough immediately and refrigerated the rest to use the next day.  For round two, I set the dough on the counter while we made dinner and used it when it was still a bit chilled.  This made the dough much easier to work with.

If you want a traditional pop tart, I’d recommend using jam as the filling. I had planned to but then realized that the only jam in the fridge expired a year ago and was hard and crusty. Oh well. Instead, we experimented with several different fillings, including chocolate chip/pomegranate, apple slices/cinnamon/sugar, cinnamon/sugar, and peanut butter. They were all good.  I’d love to try a Nutella filling.

Homemade Pop Tarts
Adapted from King Arthur Flour and Smitten Kitchen

Dough

2 c flour
1 T sugar
1 tsp salt
2 sticks butter, cut into chunks
2 eggs (used separately)
2 T milk

Icing

1/2 c powdered sugar
2 tsp butter, melted
1/8 tsp vanilla
dash of salt
1-2 T milk

1) In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar and salt.
2) Using a pastry cutter, work the butter into the flour mixture until the butter chunks are pea-sized.
3) Mix in one egg and the milk, just until the dough comes together.
4) If necessary, turn the dough onto a well-floured surface and lightly knead to fully incorporate the flour.
5) Place dough in a covered bowl or wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
6) In a small bowl, lightly beat remaining egg; preheat oven to 350 degrees.
6) On a well-floured surface, roll out half of the dough into a rectangle about 1/8″ thick.
7) Cut the dough into roughly 3″ x 4″ rectangles.
8) Brush half of the rectangles with egg; place about 1 T of filling on each rectangle leaving 1/4″ around the edges.
9) Top with remaining rectangles; using the tines of a fork, press edges together to seal and prick the top crust multiple times.
10) Repeat with remaining dough.
11) Transfer pop tarts to a lightly greased cookie sheet.
12) Bake for 20 – 25 minutes until golden brown; cool on wire racks.
13) In a small mixing bowl, combine powdered sugar, butter, vanilla and salt.
14) Whisk in milk 2 tsp at a time until it reaches the desired consistency.
15) Spread icing on cooled pop tarts.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

This is a great weeknight meal because it cooks up quickly and all of the chopping can be done ahead of time.  You can use whatever cuts of chicken you prefer.  I broke down a fresh chicken last week, so we used the leg/thigh meat for a bit more flavor.

Chicken Tortilla Soup
Adapted from How Sweet It Is

2-3 T olive oil or coconut oil
1 red onion, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
1 T minced garlic
1 teaspoon cumin
dash of cayenne pepper
dash of smoked paprika
2 boneless skinless chicken legs, cut into small chunks
2 boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into small chunks
32 oz chicken broth
4 oz can green chiles
8 oz red enchilada sauce
sour cream
shredded cheddar cheese
chopped cilantro
diced avocado
pan fried tortilla strips

1) In a large pot heat oil over medium heat.
2) Saute onion and pepper until soft; add garlic, cumin, cayenne and paprika and saute for an additional 60 seconds.
3) Add chicken; saute until cooked through.
4) Add broth, chiles and enchilada sauce; bring to a boil then simmer for 30 minutes.
5) Garnish with sour cream, cheese, cilantro, avocado and tortilla strips.

Easy Beef Stroganoff

As much as we love our crockpot stroganoff recipe, it takes a long time to make and uses a lot of processed ingredients. Also, we usually have to make two batches since I prefer chicken and J prefers beef.  This recipe is much simpler and great for a quick weeknight meal.

Easy Beef Stroganoff
Adapted from Simply Recipes

Butter
1/2 lb ground beef
1 small yellow onion, sliced
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
8 oz baby bella mushrooms, sliced
2-3 cloves garlic, chopped
up to 1/2 c chicken broth
3/4 c sour cream
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 tsp dried parsley
egg noodles

1) Break ground beef into quarter-sized chunks; season with salt and pepper.
2) Melt 1-2 T butter in a large skillet over medium heat; add the beef.
3) Allow to cook, without stirring, until well-browned on the bottom; flip the beef and brown the other side.
4) Once meat is cooked through, remove from pan; set aside.
5) Reduce heat slightly; if necessary, melt more butter in the pan.
6) Add onions and saute until soft, about 5 minutes.
7) Remove onions from pan; set aside.
8) Add mushrooms; saute until browned.
9) Stir in garlic; saute for an additional 30-45 seconds.
10) Add about half of the broth to deglaze the pan.
11) Remove the pan from heat; stir in sour cream, paprika and parsley.
12) Add more chicken broth as necessary to reach the desired consistency.
13) Stir in the meat and onions; season to taste.
14) Serve over egg noodles and/or steamed kale.

Crispy Oven Fries

I don’t know why it took me so long to realize that crispy fries are attainable minus the grease.  These turned out golden brown and crispy, everything I want in a french fry.  We cheated on the soaking time because we were in a hurry, and the fries still crisped up fine.  The thinner you slice the fries, the crispier they will get in less time.  Just make sure to keep an eye on them to make sure they don’t burn.

Crispy Oven Fries
Adapted from Zesty Cook

2 large russet potatoes
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
olive oil

1) Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2) Wash, peel (if desired) and slice potatoes.
3) Place fries in a large bowl; cover with salted water; let soak for 30 minutes.
4) Drain fries and turn onto a kitchen towel; pat dry thoroughly.
5) Spray (or brush) two large baking sheets with olive oil.
6) Arrange fries in a single layer on each baking sheet, preferably not touching.
7) Spray fries with olive oil; season with salt and pepper.
8) Bake for 40 – 45 mins, stirring once and switching the baking sheets for even cooking, if necessary.

Beans ‘n Greens

We’ve had beans ‘n greens in two different restaurants recently, and this was our second attempt to recreate the dish at home.  This time the flavors came together nicely.  I recommend using more than one type of green for a little variety — we used kale and spinach.  If you are using homemade chicken broth, you will likely have to add a fair bit of salt.  Feel free to change the quantity of broth depending on whether you prefer the dish more or less soup-like.  Next time we make this, I want to incorporate bacon.  I imagine we will cook a few slices, use the drippings in place of the olive oil, and then sprinkle the dish with crumbled bacon right before serving.

Beans ‘n Greens
Adapted from The Neelys

2 T olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
2 cups greens
1 1/2 c cannellini beans
1 c chicken broth
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
parmesan cheese, shredded

1) In a large pot, heat oil over medium heat.
2) Saute onions 2-3 mins until softened.
3) Add garlic and red pepper flakes; saute for an additional minute.
4) Add the heartier greens (e.g. kale); saute for 2-3 minutes until slightly wilted.
5) Add beans, chicken broth, salt and pepper; cover and simmer for 8-10 minutes.
6) Stir in the more delicate greens, if using (e.g. spinach), until wilted.
7) Ladle into bowls and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

Cheese Sauce

We made a great dinner last week of potato pancakes and roasted vegetables drizzled with a homemade cheddar cheese sauce. This sauce would also be good over steamed broccoli or a baked potato. Use whatever kind of cheese you are in the mood for.  My default is usually sharp cheddar, but swiss would be great too.

1 T butter
1 T flour
1/2 c milk
1 c shredded cheese

1) Melt butter in a small saucepan over med-low to medium heat.
2) Whisk in flour; let cook for 2-3 minutes while whisking.
3) Whisk in milk until the flour is fully incorporated.
4) Slowly add cheese, whisking until melted.
5) Allow to simmer over med-low heat until the sauce thickens to the desired consistency.

Spinach Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

At a wedding last weekend we had a phenomenal spinach salad filled with red onions, golden raisins and grapes.  What really made it great was the balsamic vinaigrette in which it was tossed.  We came home determined to recreate it.  J did all the work with this one, and it’s incredibly tasty.  The salad quantities are just guesstimates — add as much or little as you like of each ingredient.

Spinach Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette
Vinaigrette adapted from AllRecipes.com

Salad

2 large handfuls spinach
2 T thinly sliced red onion
1/4 c almonds (or pecans, walnuts, etc), diced
1/4 c golden raisins
1/4 c grapes, halved
2 T feta crumbles

Vinaigrette

2 T balsamic vinegar
1 T honey
1/4 c extra virgin olive oil
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste

1) Combine salad ingredients in a large bowl.
2) Whisk together vinaigrette ingredients in a small bowl.
3) Pour about 2/3 of the dressing over the salad and toss; add more to taste.

Soaked Baked Oatmeal

We decided to revisit an old favorite this week and make baked oatmeal.  I updated the recipe to include soaking and a few new flavors. I used our homemade applesauce and mixed in raisins and cranberries. I think shredded coconut would be tasty as well.

Soaked Baked Oatmeal
Inspired by Kelly the Kitchen Kop

2 c oats
1 T whole wheat flour
1 1/2 c yogurt
1/2 c applesauce (no sugar added)
1/4 c milk
1/4 c maple syrup
2 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
dried fruit, nuts, etc.

1) Combine oats, flour and yogurt in a bowl; leave on counter overnight or up to 24 hours.
2) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
3) In a separate bowl, whisk together remaining ingredients.
4) Stir liquid mixture into oats until combined.
5) Add dried fruit or nuts to taste.
6) Pour mixture into 8×8 baking dish.
7) Bake for 30 – 35 minutes until center is set.