recipe Archives - Page 12 of 21

Spaghetti Squash Boats

December 27, 2012 · by Ari ·

Warm, comforting and cheesy spaghetti squash boats give you all the flavor of spaghetti and meat sauce, in a healthy spaghetti squash topped with melty mozzarella cheese.

I have a confession. I kind of secretly dislike all of those “Get Back On Track After The Holidays” posts that go up. I know, I know…. And the thing is, I know that the best way to get back to feeling great after a period of eating less than great is to fill up on good healthy food and remind myself that contrary to recent events, I do actually love vegetables.

It just seems so….cliche. However, I know there’s always this big “problem” of WHAT DO WE EAT BETWEEN CHRISTMAS AND NEW YEARS??? Family is in town, you’re sick of leftovers, and every restaurant in town seems to have a two hour wait.

*Insert mandatory cliche about how this dish will help you stay healthy during the holidays*

Okay, but seriously, how can your family not enjoy these super cute spaghetti squash boats??? Everyone gets their own individual “boat”, and it looks so much fancier than it actually is! In fact, the only real time spent on this recipe is the time it takes to roast the squash. Then you just whip up a quick meat sauce, and you’re good to go! That leaves you with less time in the kitchen, and more time to relax and spend time with the people in your life.

Ever since I discovered spaghetti squash, I almost never go back to real pasta. It’s probably my favorite discovery in healthy cooking. I mean let’s be real here, we eat pasta to get to the sauce. No one orders plain spaghetti with no sauce. The pasta is merely the vehicle, and this squash is, in my opinion, a MORE delicious vehicle. It may not take the place of a gnocchi or ravioli, but when it comes to noodles, I find it more delicious, and as someone who loves to eat, I love the fact that I can load my plate up and still feel great afterwards! It’s the perfect way to sneak in veggies.

I used a spicy meat sauce, although you could use regular if you don’t like spicy, and loaded it up into each squash, then topped each boat with a little mozzarella cheese that I broiled until brown and crispy–just how I like my cheese! I served it up to a group of friends, and there was not a single bite left at the end of the evening. If you’re on the fence about the pasta swap, trust me, this is the way to try it!

Spaghetti Squash Boats

Recipe Type: Entree

Author: Ari Ziskin

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 60 mins

Total time: 1 hour 10 mins

Serves: 4

Warm, comforting and cheesy spaghetti squash boats give you all the flavor of spaghetti and meat sauce, in a healthy spaghetti squash topped with melty mozzarella cheese.

Ingredients

2 medium spaghetti squash
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
salt and pepper
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
20 oz 99% lean ground turkey breast (you can also use the 93-94% or 96% lean ground beef)
1 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon fresh or dried basil
2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (more or less depending on desired spiciness), optional
1 cup freshly grated part skim mozzarella cheese (you can use pre-grated if necessary)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400. Slice spaghetti squash length wise and scrape out the seeds. Rub 1/4 tablespoon olive oil into squash half and season with salt and pepper. Place spaghetti squash face down in a large baking dish and bake for 40-60 min. When squash is done, middle will be tender and pull apart easily.
In a large pan, sautee onion and garlic in 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat until fragrant. Add ground turkey. Season with salt and pepper and cook until browned. Add crushed tomato and remaining spices. When sauce starts to bubble, reduce heat to a simmer until thickened (about 3-4 minutes).
When spaghetti squash is fully cooked, flip in the baking dish so that it is now skin side down. Evenly divide sauce between each squash half. Top each “boat” with 1/4 cup cheese. Turn oven to broil, and cook for an other 2 minutes, until cheese is browned and bubbling. This happens very quickly–make sure to watch closely, otherwise it can burn easily.

Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies

December 22, 2012 · by Ari ·

OOOOMMMMMGGGGG it’s 3 days until Christmas!!!!

The other day I was teasing Nicole about being backed up on her recipe posting. “Are you even going to be able to post everything by Christmas???” I asked her. She responded with “I have to post every day.”

It was so funny until I started counting and realized that I do too…

You see, I may have gotten a little overzealous in my holiday baking this year. I’ve just been so excited! I didn’t realize how many holiday themed recipes I had to share with you until just now! Either that, or I’ve been in denial that it’s actually Christmastime, not just the time I like to call “Christmastime” that begins on Veteran’s Day…

Perhaps instead of spending my time blogging I should be out, you know, buying presents for the 700 people still on my list. But I already did all the hard work on the recipes. This is just like doing the wrapping, which I LOVE…obviously.

Actually, I wish I had 2 dozen more of these cookies to use for gift wrapping fuel right now. Sally always tells me I should use cookies for “fuel” and I’m beginning to think she’s onto something. How much more fun is sitting on the floor in a mess of wrapping paper, dollar store tape, and puppy hair when you have spicy, cinnamony chocolate cookies stuffed with melty, oozy chile dark chocolate to keep you warm and energized??

These cookies will keep you warm and cozy even if you live in a place that actually has winter. Pinky promise. And if the dough didn’t have enough bold spices, I’ve topped them off with a dusting of cinnamon powdered sugar for even more cinnamon sweetness. You will absolutely love with the way the cayenne and cinnamon pair with the sweet, rich dark chocolate. So much love.

And if you love it as much as I do, I have to give some love to some of the best cookies I’ve eaten. Ever. Oooooomg, make both batches at once and you will be so happy.

Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies

yield approx 2.5 dozen

3/4 cup white whole wheat flour
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp espresso powder
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
Pinch black pepper
Pinch cayenne pepper
5 oz dark chocolate, melted and cooled
1 cup + 2 tbsp sugar
1/4 cup apple butter
1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/3-1/2 chile dark chocolate bar, chopped into fairly large chunks (big enough so that each cookie only needs 1, small enough that a 1″ cookie dough ball can cover it completely)

For the powdered sugar topping:

1 tbsp powdered sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Directions:

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, espresso powder, baking powder, salt, and peppers. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat together melted chocolate, sugar, apple butter, almond milk and vanilla, Slowly mix in dry ingredients until well combined. Cover dough and refrigerate for 30 minutes (this is optional, but recommended).
Preheat oven to 350 and line 2 large baking sheets with Silpat or parchment paper. Roll chilled dough into 1″ dough balls then press a chunk of chile dark chocolate in the center and re-roll the dough so it is covering the chocolate completely and drop onto prepared baking sheet. Bake for 8-12 minutes until set. Let stand for 2-3 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
In a small bowl, whisk together powdered sugar and cinnamon, then lightly dust cookies with mixture.

Almond Meal Baileys Chocolate Chunk Cookies

December 20, 2012 · by Ari ·

The other night I had dinner at my mom’s house. As I’ve gotten older, she tells me more and more funny stories about my childhood. I don’t know why growing up we didn’t seem to talk about it much, but now one of my favorite things is listening to her tell stories about me when I was little. Maybe it’s because I just reallllly like to talk about myself? It’s my favorite topic in case you haven’t noticed. 😉

Food is probably second. Or running. It’s a close call. I’m sure this is a shocking revelation considering my content.

Anyway, my mom was talking about about teaching me to ride a bike. I reminded her that my friend’s dad had to teach me, and she admitted that things like that were never her strength. Apparently teaching me to cross the street was about her limit. She said she told me to “look both ways”, and so every time I crossed the street I would just look back and forth, back and forth, all the way across. Like a penguin.

What can I say? I’m special. She did say that she was never a baby person, but that when my brother and I came out, it changed all of that. I was perfect, but he cried all the time. I mean, at least that’s what I heard when she told the story. He was fussy, and I wasn’t, but then she says “You just really liked to eat.”

At which point Steve and I both cracked up laughing because, well…DUH! You guys, I never stood a chance!

She said every time she would walk in the room, I’d think it was time for lunch. I seriously laughed so hard because I don’t think it’s ever stopped. I spend all day daydreaming about food–what I can make, what I can eat, ~~how far I’m going to have to run so that I can eat more….~~

But you know what? I’m kind of okay with it. It is my ridiculous obsession with food that brings you lovely treats like these cookies, and trust me, you don’t want to live in a world where these cookies do not exist. They are so soft and fluffy, in fact, I still cannot get over the perfect texture almond meal brings to baked goods. They’re perfectly delicate, and not at all heavy or the bad kind of chewy that makes you NEED the glass of milk instead of just enjoying it on the side….you know what I mean. They are just perfect with the hint or Irish cream in the flavor and the bold stand out dark chocolate chunks. And they are sososo easy! I mixed everything together in one bowl! I love a good small prep time with minimal dishes dessert. They are like a perfect gem. You know, kind of like me 😉

Except, we all know I’m not delicate, and I really hope I wouldn’t be considered “chewy” either. That would be weird.

Almond Meal Baileys Chocolate Chunk Cookies

yield about 15 cookies

1 1/2 cups almond meal
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 tbsp cornstarch
2 tbsp brown sugar, packed
dash salt
1/2 cup vegan “baileys”
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 oz dark dark chocolate, chopped into chunks

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375. Line a baking sheet with silpat or parchment paper and set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together almond meal, baking soda, cornstarch, brown sugar and salt. Add Baileys and vanilla and mix until well combined. Fold in dark chocolate.
Use a small cookie scoop to drop onto prepared baking pan. Bake for 12-15 minutes until golden. Let stand for 2-3 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Truffle Stuffed Candy Cane Cookies

December 19, 2012 · by Ari ·

Everyone has their holiday candy of choice.

I’m not usually a candy person. I mean, don’t get me wrong, if it includes sugar, I almost always enjoy it, but candy is certainly not my dessert of choice. If it isn’t frozen or baked, it’s usually pretty easy for me to pass up. For me, candy is a topping or an ingredient, not a dessert. It goes on top of my fro yo, or in this case, inside of my cookie.

Have I ever told you about birthdays in my family? I’m sure it won’t surprise you to know that they have always been a big deal. The other day I was talking with some friends about how our families are big on celebrations and my friend Lauran said “If we could, my family would celebrate Tuesday!” Well, that pretty much sums up my dad. Birthdays, half birthdays, quarter birhdays, 5/16 of a century birthdays. You think I’m joking. He never fails to remind me juuuust how close to 30 I’m getting by giving me fractional decade updates. Thanks dad. Being 7/8 of my way to 30 or whatever the last number you gave me is really something I want to celebrate.

Leading up to my mom’s birthday last year, he kept emailing her daily count downs. They haven’t been married for about 26 years. My family is…well, different. Those after school specials about there being “more than one way to have a family” must have been made special for me and my cooky family.

So….I made these for my dad. For his half birthday, because that’s something we celebrate. I always make my incredibly Jewish father Christmas themed half birthday desserts because his half birthday is December 1st, and that time of year, all I want to cook with is eggnog and candy canes. Best daughter ever.

Oh, but about candies (tangent much?), my holiday candy is the Lindt truffle. Pretty much any flavor, any time; always has been. When I was a kid, my dad would always buy them for me this time of year, and I’ve even gotten Steve’s family hooked on them! One of my students must have read my mind and given me a whole bag as a part of my secret santa present, and they were not doing me any favors by sitting there taunting me, so into the cookies they went, and the rest is history.

According to Hermano, these are “the best cookies I’ve ever made”. This was after he told me my lentil soup was “not his favorite soup”, so at least we know he’s being honest. To be fair, I loved the lentil soup, but nothing can really compare to a perfectly chewy cookie with pieces of crunchy candy cane stuffed with a rich, delicious Lindt chocolate truffle that melts into the cookie, and then perfectly into your mouth at first bite. The cookies are ridiculous.

Truffle Stuffed Candy Cane Cookies

yield 9 huge cookies

1 cup + 2 tbs white whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
dash salt
1/2 cup light whipped cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
2 tbsp turbinado sugar
1 tbsp unsweetened almond milk
3 tbsp egg substitute (an egg white would work too)
1 tbsp vanilla bean paste
2 candy canes, crushed
9 Lindt truffles, frozen (any flavor–they’re all good, but I used milk chocolate)

Directions:

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat together cream cheese and sugars. Add almond milk, egg substitute and vanilla bean paste and beat until combined. Add dry ingredients to cream cheese mixture and beat until combined. Stir in crushed candy canes. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350. Line a baking sheet with silpat or parchment paper. Cover each frozen truffle completely with chilled cookie dough and roll into a ball, then place on prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes (they are big cookies, it takes a while), turning half way through, until the edges are browned and cookies are completely set. Let stand for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cook completely.

Gingerbread Whoopie Pies with Eggnog Dark Chocolate Ganache Filling {Vegan}

December 18, 2012 · by Ari ·

Longest title ever?

I’m officially in a holiday cookie induced sugar coma and I may never come out. I mean, I’m beginning to wonder what I will do with my life once it’s December 26th? Will I have to go back to normal recipes??? THE HORROR!!

Can we talk about the whole concept of “seasonal” foods??? I mean, it’s bad enough that honeycrisp apples only exist for like 3 weeks out of the year, but eggnog and ginger exist YEAR ROUND my friends. So does peppermint. Why do we have to pretend it is only excited in the winter time?? I want to drink eggnog from the carton in July with no shame. You may ask for world peace. I ask for eggnog in July. I fail to see the difference.

I don’t really understand the idea that if you only have something once in a while, it’s supposed to be more special or something? I guess they call that moderation. I don’t have it.

And before you judge me, let me tell you, once you taste these whoopie pies, you won’t have it either. I was a little unsure how the eggnog flavor would go with the chocolate. Oooooooomg. Why have we not been eating chocolate eggnog every day for our entire lives????? Okay, blah blah blah, heart disease… Whatever. It’s amazing.

Whoopie pies are only, like, my favorite thing ever. They’re up there with cilantro and fro yo. Is it cake? Is it a cookie? What is that delicious filling??? Oh, it’s just a freaking WHOOPIE PIE. Soft and cake-like gingerbread cookie stuffed with rich dark chocolate and eggnog that is so delicious you’ll want to lick the crumbs off your silpat. Not that I did anything like that….

Gingerbread Whoopie Pies with Eggnog Dark Chocolate Ganache Filling

yield one dozen large whoopie pies

For the cookie/cake (adapted from Damn Delicious)

1 3/4 cups + 2 tbs white whole wheat flour
3/4 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp ginger
1/8 tsp cloves
dash nutmeg
1/2 tsp baking soda
dash salt
1/2 tbsp cornstarch
6 tbsp unsweetened applesauce
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup molasses
1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract

For the filling:

2 oz dark chocolate, melted
1/4 tbsp coconut oil
1/4 tsp rum extract
2 tbs soy nog

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Line a large baking sheet with silpat or parchment paper. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, baking soda, salt, and cornstarch. In a large bowl, beat together applesauce, brown sugar and molasses. Beat in half of the dry ingredients to the applesauce mixture, followed by the almond milk, apple cider vinegar and vanilla. Beat in remaining half of the dry ingredients.
Using a small-medium cookie scoop, drop batter onto prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden. Let stand for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the filling, place all ingredients in a small microwave safe bowl and heat for 30 seconds. Stir well. If chocolate if not completely melted after stirring, continue to heat for 15 second increments until stirring melts it completely. Allow mixture to cool at room temperature or in the fridge until it has thickened and is no longer runny (about 15 minutes in the fridge, or 20 at room temp). Do not keep it in the fridge too long, or it will harden.
Spread filling over 1/2 of the cookies/cakes (whatever you want to call the gingerbread part…), then top with an other cookie/cake.

Salted Caramel Mocha Cookies

December 6, 2012 · by Ari ·

I’ll never forget the year Starbucks released their Salted Caramel Signature Hot Chocolate. It was simultaneously the best and worst holiday season ever. It didn’t take long for this perfect flavor combination to become a near every day occurrence in my life.

Did I mention I was living in northern Idaho at the time? It was cold, and nothing says comfort from the cold like a warm, rich, delicious drink. Except maybe a warm soft and chewy chocolate cookie filled with gooey caramel and topped with coarse sea salt. I knew as soon as my amazing friend Nicole shared some of her amazing caramels with me, that I ~~wanted~~ needed to make these cookies.

Do you feel comforted yet? Once upon a time I used to be the comforting one. I was the one everyone went to when they had a bad day, and I would listen and give tons of advice that I probably had no business giving because I was kind of a hot mess myself, but I was, like, 20 years old and thought I knew everything. You know how it goes. I had (ummm, wait…I still have…) a special “heart to heart” pillow. That’s a little embarrassing. You hold it while you cry then I feed you words that magically fix everything, and at the same time put an end to world hunger. I know, I am so cool.

These days however, I’m painfully aware that I know basically nothing, and so instead of pretending to be smart, I shove cookies in people’s face and call it “my way of showing I care”. Somehow, I think people prefer this.

I may not be a master with words, but I have to say, I am pretty much a master of soft, gooey cookies. I mess up a lot of things in the kitchen (including ending up with things that are kind-of-not-really-at-all-baked on a regular basis…), but I always have soft cookies, and these cookies are like biting into a dark chocolate mocha brownie, finding surprise caramel on the inside, and then getting the hint of salt that cuts through the sugar to provide perfect balance.

I wish I could solve all your problems by shoveling them into your mouth right at this moment. Keep me in mind for the next time, though… Salted Caramel Mocha Cookies yield 20 cookies

1/2 tbsp espresso powder
1/4 cup Dutch process or Hershey’s special dark cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 cup + 2 tbs white whole wheat flour
1/2 cup apple butter
2/3 cup turbinado sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg or 1/4 cup egg substitute
10 caramels, halved
2-3 tbs mini dark chocolate chips
coarse sea salt for topping (such as fleur de sel)

Directions:

In a medium bowl, whisk together espresso powder, cocoa powder, baking powder and flour. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat together apple butter, sugar, vanilla and egg until well combined. Beat in dry ingredients. Cover dough and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350. Form dough into 1″ balls. Press 1/2 caramel into the center of each ball and roll dough around until it is covering it completely, then place on lined baking sheet. Gently press a pinch of mini dark chocolate chips onto the top of each dough ball, then top with a pinch of salt.
Bake for 15 minutes until the edges have set and cookies pull easily off of the baking sheet. Let stand for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Spinach Artichoke Deviled Eggs

December 5, 2012 · by Ari ·

The other day, Steve and I had a little conversation that went something like this…

Me: When are deviled eggs in season?
Steve: Umm, deviled eggs are always in season.

Point taken.

Plus, you can’t just eat peppermint bark and eggnog all day long for the entire month of December, right? Actually that doesn’t sound like a terrible idea…

But with all the holiday parties going on this time of year, it’s always nice to have an easy recipe on hand that isn’t a dessert since, you know, every single person you know will be bringing ginger cookies and truffles. Including me. I will be bringing dessert. Every.Single.Time. But sometimes I also bring non dessert with my desserts to, ya know, “balance” and “make good choices”.

Can we just talk for a moment about the brilliance that is the spinach+artichoke+cheese combination??? So.Freaking.Good. Pretty much every time I go out to eat and they list spinach artichoke dip as an appetizer, I sit there for a good 10 minutes trying to convince myself it’s “healthy” because it has the word spinach in the title.

But I have the BEST news. Yes, the BEST. In all caps because I get really excited about food. These are the best of, like, every world imaginable–deviled eggs, spinach artichoke dip, and still being able to fit into your pre-holiday-jeans all in one perfect little egg!

They have just a liiiittttle bit of miracle whip (or mayo if you’re one of those weirdos who hates miracle whip), Greek yogurt and light whipped cream cheese to get the perfect creamy consistency plus the delicious flavors of spinach and artichoke hearts perfectly spiced and topped with a little parmesan cheese to give you the full cheese dip effect, then sprinkled with paprika because, well, that’s what you do to deviled eggs. 😉

Spinach Artichoke Deviled Eggs

yield 2 dozen

12 hard boiled eggs
1/2 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
2 tbs light miracle whip or light mayo
2 tbs light whipped cream cheese
large handful spinach, chopped
3/4 cup artichoke hearts, chopped
1 tsp lemon pepper
1 tsp Spike seasoning
dash salt
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
paprika for dusting

Directions:

Split hard boiled eggs length wise and scoop the yolks out into a medium mixing bowl.
Add Greek yogurt, miracle whip/mayo and cream cheese to egg yolks and beat until well combined. Beat in spinach, artichoke hearts,lemon pepper, Spike and salt.
Use a piping bag, extra small cookie scoop or spoon to transfer egg yolk mixture evenly between the egg whites (you may have some extra left over).
Top each egg with a pinch of grated parmesan then sprinkle lightly with paprika.

Orange Cranberry Almond Meal Muffins

November 30, 2012 · by Ari ·

Have you heard? After Thanksgiving, cranberry is the new pumpkin.

Oh and peppermint is the new sweet potato. Trust me, that’s coming too. I’m pretty obsessed with the chocolate peppermint combination, so it’s only a matter of time. But for now, I’m in cranberry land.

Let me just say, I’m usually pretty skeptical about any type of “muffin” that doesn’t include flour. I’m a girl who likes her bread. Thick, doughy, gluteny bread is a staple in my diet, and I’m not ashamed.

I had my reservations about just using almond meal. I thought they would come out dense and brick-like. I didn’t think there was any way I could have a perfect fluffy muffin with no flour.

Turns out, almond meal muffins are basically perfection. Soft, fluffy, hearty and filling! I hate when you try to eat a “muffin” for breakfast-and by muffin I mean a glorified cupcake that’s missing the frosting-and 5 minutes later you’re hungry again because you just ate the equivalent of a bowl of ice cream for breakfast. These muffins could actually serve as an on-the-go breakfast. That is, if you’re not me and don’t feel the overpowering urge to eat half your calories before noon.

I don’t know what it is, but I always wake up feeling like a ravenous beast. You know those people who skip breakfast? I DON’T GET IT!! So, you know, I’d probably pair one of these up with, like, half a dozen eggs, but if you’re a normal human, you could just grab one on your way out the door, and be good to go.

The sweet and tart orange and cranberry flavors meld perfectly with the hearty nutty flavor to make the perfect breakfast treat that you can share with just about anybody!

Orange Cranberry Almond Meal Muffins

yield 10-12 muffins

adapted from Bran Appetit

2 cups almond meal
3 tbs corn starch
3/4 tsp baking powder
dash salt
3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
1/4 cup honey or agave
1/3 cup orange juice
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract (optional)
1/2 cup dried cranberries

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin tins with paper liners. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together almond meal, corn starch, baking powder and salt. Stir in almond milk, honey/agave, orange juice and extracts until combined. Fold in dried cranberries.
Fill muffin tins about 2/3 full. Bake for 20–25 minutes until golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Gingerbread Hot White Chocolate

November 28, 2012 · by Ari ·

So you know that moment when you have your first hot chocolate of the year? Like the real first one that doesn’t come from a powder? The kind that’s thick, creamy, rich, and decadent ~~and makes you feel like a big jerk for not following the “don’t drink your calories rule”~~?

Oh yes, it happened.

LOOK AT THE STEAM!!!

I’m still real proud of my steam shots 😉 Anyway, one of my favorite things to do this time of year is get in the car with a scalding hot cup of hot chocolate (I can’t stand when it gets cold!) and go look at Christmas lights. Steve and I go at least once a year. It’s tradition. Something about the combination of the lights, the mood in the air, and the delicious treat just makes me all kinds of happy.

Buuuuuut, I have a confession. I’ve never made hot chocolate that doesn’t come from a powder. I don’t know why. That crappy diet hot chocolate has 25 calories so I can shovel pounds of whipped cream on it, or something? I don’t know. It’s silly, because this hot chocolate is sososoSO good! It’s so thick and creamy that you would think it’s made with whole milk or cream!

It was the perfect night time treat, and it’s like one of those secretly healthier recipes. You know, the kind you can make for all the people in your life that talk crap about all your Greek yogurt and vegetables. You can give this to them, then get that secret satisfaction as they slurp it all up. Then, if you’re me, you’ll yell out all kinds of unnecessary comments like “HAH!! That was healthy! I fooled you! Take that suckerrrr!” I swear, I’m very mature.

Moral of the story? Make the hot chocolate. Act super immature when you fool all your friends and family into chugging down your lightened up dessert. 😉

Gingerbread Hot White Chocolate

yield 2 servings

2 cups unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 1/2 oz white chocolate
dash pure maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp almond extract
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp cinnamon
dash cloves
dash nutmeg

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in a small-medium saucepan over medium heat. Whisk constantly until mixture is desired temperature and all ingredients are thoroughly combined.

**Note: You could also make this in the crockpot on low for 2 hours whisking occasionally.

Skinnified Sunday: Starbucks Cranberry Bliss Bars

November 25, 2012 · by Ari ·

It’s the mooooost wonderful time of the year!

Okay, so the truth is I’ve been listening to 99.9 since the day after Thanksgiving when they first started playing Christmas music, and I made these babies long before Thanksgiving.

I just can’t even contain my excitement! When Target put up the first few holiday items back in October, everyone else scoffed while I got secretly giddy.

I am a sucker for the holiday season and I have no shame. The lights, the shopping for presents, the music, and of course, the amazing holiday flavors.

I swear, every time I step into Starbucks it’s like an exercise in self control. Between the salted caramel hot chocolate (my favorite), those freaking snow man cookies (I just love those guys!) and of course the cranberry bliss bars–a white chocolate chip blondie topped with cream cheese frosting and sweet dried cranberries? I diiiiiie.

White chocolate and cranberry go together like peanut butter and jelly. No, like peanut butter and chocolate! For a long time I thought I hated cranberries. BIG MISTAKE!

I made these delicious bars last year and they were a huge hit, but the pictures were, um….

Yeah….suffice it to say, they didn’t do the food justice 😉 These are absolute perfection–the perfectly soft gooey blondie filled with while chocolate chips and the smooth and creamy white chocolate cream cheese frosting topped with the sweet and tart dried cranberries. Heaven.

I adapted this recipe from Recipe Girl’s Cranberry Bliss Bars.

My swaps:

Half recipe
Pumpkin puree or apple butter for butter (-fat, -saturate fat, -calories)
Egg substitute for eggs (-fat, -calories, -cholesterol)
Less brown sugar (-sugar, -calories)
White whole wheat flour for regular (+fiber, +protein)
Reduced fat cream cheese for regular (-fat, -calories)
Less white chocolate (-fat, -calories, -sugar)

Skinnified Starbucks Cranberry Bliss Bars

yield 16 small bars or 8 large

Skinnified Cranberry Bliss Bars

For the blondie:

6 tbs pumpkin puree or apple butter (I’ve tried both and they both work really well)
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup egg substitute
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup + 2 tbs white whole wheat flour
3/4 teaspoons baking powder
dash salt
pinch ground cinnamon
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup white chocolate chips

For the frosting:

4 oz reduced fat cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 ounces white chocolate, melted
1/4 cup dried cranberries

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Spray an 8×8 baking dish with nonstick spray. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine pumpkin/apple butter, and brown sugar using a hand mixer. Add egg substitute and vanilla.
In a separate bowl, combine flour, salt, cinnamon, and baking powder.
Add dry ingredients into wet mixture and mix until incorporated. Fold in cranberries and white chocolate.
Bake for 18-25 minutes until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, cool completely.
Using a hand mixer, combine cream cheese, vanilla and powdered sugar. Add in melted white chocolate. Spread cream cheese frosting across cooled bars and top with cranberries.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies

November 20, 2012 · by Ari ·

There is no better combination than peanut butter and chocolate. It’s a proven fact.

I would also like to say that chocolate chunks > chocolate chips. Fact. Just call me the Chocolate Encyclopedia. Or the Chocolate Whisperer. I like the sound of that. You can picture me sitting in my kitchen whispering sweet nothings to my chocolate.

In college, my friends referred to me as the Musical Theatre Lexicon. I guess you could say when something’s important to me, I spend a lot of time with it. Like chocolate. And peanut butter.

I made these for my wonderful friend Emily’s birthday. Then I spent too much time taking pictures of them and was late to her party. Story of my life. The cookies were so good though. Like, really reallllllly good, so I like to think they made up for it 😉

You know what’s REALLY hard??? Not eating all the birthday cookies you baked for your friend. Especially when they are so gooey it’s practically like biting through a slightly crunchy shell into hot cookie dough with rich, bold dark chocolate pouring out from the inside. Not eating all the cookies = true friendship.

I’d had my eye on doing some chocolate chunk cookies for a while now. I recently read a post on making the perfect chocolate chip cookies, and the two things that stood out were that you should use more than one type of chocolate to keep the taste buds interested, and always very lightly salt the dough before it goes into the oven–not for the “salted cookie” effect, but just a tiny bit to contrast the sweetness and bring the most flavor out of the cookie, so that’s what I did. The result? Cookie heaven.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies

yield 1 dozen (these are BIG cookies)

1 1/4 cups gluten-free baking blend (or white whole wheat flour)
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tbs corn starch
1/2 cup apple butter
1 cup peanut butter
3/4 cup turbinado sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup water (+ corn starch = egg replacement)
4 oz good quality dark chocolate, chopped into large chunks (I used a chili dark chocolate and an espresso dark chocolate, but any chocolate would be delicious)
sea salt for topping

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and corn starch. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat the apple butter, peanut butter, sugars, and vanilla until smooth. Add water, followed by flour mixture and beat thoroughly. Fold in chocolate chunks. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Use a large cookie scoop (or your hands) to drop dough onto prepared cookie sheet. Lightly sprinkle the top of dough with sea salt.
Bake for 14-18 minutes until just golden. Do not overbake. Let cookies stand on sheet for 2-3 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Pumpkin Beer Cakes

November 15, 2012 · by Ari ·

This recipe brought to you thanks to my amazing friend Polly.

One day she wrote on my facebook requesting “pumpkin beer pumpkin cupcakes”. You, my friend, are brilliant.

Is there anything that screams fall more than pumpkin cupcakes made with pumpkin freaking beer? And oooooomg. These are not only the softest cupcakes I have ever tasted (yes, EVER), but the pumpkin flavor is so bold, and tasted like absolute perfection. The top even got this incredible texture that I don’t even know how to describe–almost like a cookie with the slightest crunch on the edges and a perfectly gooey center? That’s kind of what happened here.

Obviously I had to make a pumpkin beer glaze to go on top. Duh.

Don’t get me wrong, the glaze is awesome, but I found the cupcakes to actually be perfect on their own. It depends on how sweet you like them. The glaze is reaaalllll sweet. I mean, glaze is essentially powdered sugar so, ya know… Steve loved the glaze (he likes his desserts with a side of insulin), but I preferred mine plain.

I’m telling you, before the season is over and you are totally sick of pumpkin (does that really happen to people!?), do yourself a favor and make these cupcakes. Then drink the rest of the beer because, well, it’s the holidays… 😉

Pumpkin Beer Cakes

yield 1 dozen

6 tbs pumpkin puree
3/4 cup + 2 tbs turbinado sugar
1 1/4 cup white whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tbs corn starch
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
dash salt
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup pumpkin beer + more for brushing the tops
1/2 cup + 2 tbs unsweetened vanilla almond milk

For the Pumpkin Beer Glaze

½ cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
dash salt
1-2 tbs pumpkin beer

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375. Line 12 muffin tins with paper liners and spray lightly with nonstick spray.
In a medium bowl combine flour, corn starch, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Set aside. In a large bowl, beat together pumpkin and sugar. Combine almond milk, vanilla and pumpkin beer in a measuring cup or small bowl. Alternately add flour mixture with beer mixture to the pumpkin and sugar starting and ending with dry ingredients until combined, scraping down sides of the bowl when necessary.
Evenly divide the mixture between the 12 muffin tins and bake for 20-25 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean.
Let stand for 1-2 minutes, then use a toothpick or thin fork to poke several holes in each cupcakes. Brush each cupcake 2-3 times with extra pumpkin beer and let stand for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
If you would like to add the glaze, combine powdered sugar, pumpkin pie spice and salt in a medium bowl. Very slowly, add in pumpkin beer whisking constantly until it reaches your desired thickness. Careful, a small amount of liquid goes a long way with powdered sugar. Glaze cupcakes and serve.

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