North Pole Pretzel Treats

I see you

1. In as much as Amanda and these chocolate prezel treats have consented together in wedlock, and have witnessed the same before this company, and pledged their vows to each other, by the authority vested in me by the Blogging world, I now pronounce them married forever, never to part.
   
   
   Bite-size, waffle-shaped pretzels
   M&M's
   Hershey's Hugs
   
   
   Preheat oven to 170'. Set about 80 pretzels on a cookie sheet, then top each with a Hug. Bake for 6 minutes until the chocolate feels soft when touched with a wooden spoon. Remove from oven and quickly press an M&M into the center. Cool for a few minutes, then place into the fridge to set for about 10 minutes. 
   
   

Potatoes au Gratin with Cumin and Chili Powder

Now that's homestyle cookin'!

Here in Mormonville, Utah we're famous for three things. Jello, casserole, and funeral potatoes. Jello is the nastiest creation ever conceived. What sick, twisted person figured that blending cow/pig hooves and connective tissues, sugar, and green dye would make a our children jump with joy? And casseroles. All your fridge's leftovers baked into one massive crust. But funeral potatoes (more commonly known as au gratin) are what we Mormons do best. Potatoes topped with tons of cheese. Yum. This was the most delicious creamiest potato recipe I've ever had!

3 medium potatoes- peeled and sliced thinly
3 medium sweet potatoes- peeled and sliced thinly (or just do 6 normal potatoes)
2 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp chili powder
1 clove garlic
1 tsp salt
1/4 black pepper
1/4 tsp garam masala (1 TBSP cumin, 1 1/2 tsp coriander, 1 1/2 tsp cardamom, 1 1/2 tsp ground pepper, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp cloves, 1/2 tsp nutmeg)

Whisk together everything but potatoes. Make a layer of potato slices in a deep baking dish and pour over some sauce. repeat until all ingredients are used up, ending with the sauce. Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 355' for 45 minutes. Remove foil and continue to bake until golden brown (make sure the potatoes are done). Allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Coconut Chicken With Thai Peanut Sauce

The peanut butter sauce is what makes this chicken Thailicious

Dear Diary-
I'm fairly certain my roommate is secretly Gollum. How do I know? Immediately after I lifted the coconut chicken out of the oven, she got down on all fours and hissed, swiping at me screaming, "IT'S ALL MINE you stupid fat hobbit!" The rest of the night she spent muttering "my precious" while stroking the coconut encrusted chicken and laughing maniacally. I believe have created a food monster...I think it's my responsibility to destroy it...TO MORDOR!

1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast
3/4 cup coconut milk
3 tsp fish sauce (didn't have any so I used 1 tsp soy sauce)
2 limes- divided
1/2 bread crumbs (panko style) (Or if you're me, toast some bread and rip it to shreds)
1 1/2 cups flaked coconut
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/3 cup smooth peanut butter
3 TBSP honey
3 tsp chili paste
1 garlic clove
1/8 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp sesame oil
Water
Olive oil

Preheat oven to 450'. Brush a metal baking sheet with olive oil. Cut chicken breasts into 2-inch wide strips. Combine coconut milk, 1 tsp fish sauce and juice of 1 lime in a Ziploc. Add chicken and stick in the fridge for 15 minutes. On a large plate, combine bread crumbs, coconut, salt, and pepper. Mix well.

In a small mixing bowl, combine peanut butter, remaining 2 tsp of fish sauce, juice of the other lime, honey, chili paste, garlic, ginger, and sesame oil. Mix well. Thin out to desired consistency with as much water as you need.

Roll marinated chicken in the coconut mixture, coating well. Lay on baking sheet. Drizzle 1 TBSP olive oil over chicken and bake for 15-18 minutes or until chicken is done. Serve with peanut sauce!

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

All part of a complete breakfast!

Here's what happened when these came out of the oven. "One ah ah ah! Two ah ah ah! THREE ah ah ah!.......SEVEN ah ah ah!" Let's just say my gut is a happy gut. :) The roomie said her mom always stuck in chocolate chips, while mine never did. It's always a gamble with my pride to do something my roommate suggests, but I got an awesome recipe for my blind trust. Maha.

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
1 TBSP vanilla extract
3 large ripe bananas, mashed
1/3 cup sour cream
1/3 cup buttermilk (4 TBSP milk and 1/4 cup plain yogurt)
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350'. Lightly grease muffin tin. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in the eggs one at a time, beating well with one addition, then stir in vanilla. Mix in mashed bananas, sour cream and buttermilk. Combine flour mixture into sugar/banana mixture. Fold in chocolate chips. Pour into muffin tins. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden. Cool on a wire rack.

Mushroom Ragout on Toast

'Shrooms. Also used for cooking.

This was an experiment. I had my doubts about how this would taste. The idea reminded me of biscuits and gravy, except crunchy. My suspicions were thankfully dashed however, when I tasted the goodness that was this recipe. Very tasty.

1 lb mushrooms
2 TBSP olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 cloves garlic
2 tsp red wine vinegar
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tsp thyme or rosemary (I didn't have thyme)

Slice mushrooms, place in a huge frying pan with oil. Add salt and pepper and saute until mushrooms are brown (about 15 minutes.) Slice garlic and toss in for 30 seconds. Add red wine and cook for another 30 seconds. Add broth, cream, and thyme. Cook for 3 more minutes. Remove from heat. it should thicken up. Toast your toast and spoon mushroom mixture on top.

Original recipe here

Crock Pot Applesauce

This is a horrible picture. My apologies.

I had this applesauce at my friend's house and it was so simple that I winged it (wung it?) at home a couple weeks ago. It makes an extremely healthy treat that warms your bones on the cold nights.

6 apples, skinned and diced

Sugar to taste (I use about 2 TBSP)

Cinnamon to taste (I use about 1 tsp)

Stick the diced apples, cinnamon, and sugar into a crockpot on high. Every 30 minutes or so, stir and smash with a potato masher (or if you're a cheap-wad like me, a pastry blender). Taste and make sure the sugar/cinnamon taste is what you want. Once the apples become a nice mushy consistency, depending on how chunky you like your applesauce, remove and serve hot! I usually cook mine about 2 hours.

Celery and Potato Soup

Because sometimes you just have a ton of celery in your fridge.

1 TBSP olive oil
3 cups celery (sliced)
2 cups potatoes (diced)
1 cup onion (chopped)
1 tsp garlic (minced)
2 cans chicken broth
1/2 cup water
1/2 milk
1 TBSP Dijon mustard

Heat oil in large saucepan. Add celery, potatoes, onion, and garlic. Cook about 5 minutes. Add broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, about 10 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Blend half the soup in a food processor and poor into the remaining mixture. Stir in milk, water, and Dijon. Heat 1 to 2 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese if desired.

Peanut Butter Popcorn

A anthropomorphic peanut shell sporting a monocle. Just creepy.

I've been obsessed with monocles ever since I saw Mr. Peanut amble across my television set with his surly cane and raised eyebrow. But now that I think about it...Planters just got it all wrong. I mean, how unrealistic is that guy! No one dresses like that these days! Not to mention, peanuts are BROWN! DUH!

2 cups unpopped popcorn
1 1/2 cups dry-roasted peanuts (it's really not the same without the peanuts)
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup corn syrup
1 cup peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla

Pop corn and remove unpopped kernels. Stir in peanuts. In a heavy saucepan, combine sugar, honey, and corn syrup. Bring mixture to a boil, and continue boiling for 1 minute. DO NOT boil too long, or your popcorn will be hard. Remove from heat. Stir in peanut butter and vanilla. Pour over popcorn immediately and stir to coat.

Original recipe here

Belgian Waffles and Fresh Strawberry Syrup

Enjoy your squarely-indented edible thing...

I was shoved unceremoniously into the 6 foot stack of Oster Belgian waffle makers this Black Friday at midnight. Was a waffle maker really worth enduring a bunch of bloodshot, screaming, greedy women in nappy sweats stomping on my body? Yes. As I caressed my new waffle maker and read the instruction manual in both English and Spanish the next morning, I learned normal waffle batter doesn't cut it with Belgian waffles. You need yeast and egg whites to create the light fluffiness between the square indents. So, here is the best recipe I found, as well as a to-die-for topping.

1 pkg active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm milk
3 egg yolks
2 3/4 cups warm milk
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled to lukewarm
1/2 cup white sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla
4 cups flour
3 egg whites

Dissolve yeast into 1/4 cup warm milk. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes. In a large bowl, whisk together egg yolks, 1/4 cup of warm milk, and melted butter. Stir in yeast mixture, sugar, salt, and vanilla. Stir in remaining 2 1/2 cups of milk alternately with flour. Beat egg whites until they form soft peaks and fold into batter. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise 1 hour in a warm place. Now bake in your waffle iron! Usually 1/2 cup batter for each waffle.

P.S. These are very freezer friendly. I wrap them individually and pop a frozen one in the toaster when I need a fast breakfast in the morning. :)

Original recipe here

Fresh Strawberry Syrup
1/2 cup water
1/2 sugar
2 cups strawberries, hulled
Zest of 1/2 lemon
Small pinch of salt

Puree strawberries and set aside. In a medium sauce pan, boil water and sugar until clear. Add strawberries, lemon zest, and salt. Bring to a boil and lower temperature until mixture at a high simmer. Cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Syrup will thicken as it cools.

Original recipe here

Spinach Egg Cups

These muffin cups would make a superb and impressive appetizer. Although they look complicated, I'd say they are a 3 on the scale of recipe difficulty. I've liked spinach my entire life, but apparently these wee cups make spinach a rare delicacy for green-haters. The best part about this small meal-in-a-convenient-cup-shape? The moist, delicious, dippable, runny yolk. RUN BABY RUN!

1 thawed and drained bag of cut-leaf spinach
3 oz cream cheese
1 TBSP Parmesan
2 TBSP shredded mozzarella
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste
1 8-9" crust (or use 1 biscuit-dough can) (I used a homemade wheat pie crust)

Microwave mixture for 1.5 minutes or until cheese is melted. Roll crust/biscuit dough into 6" circles and tuck into a greased muffin tin. Line each muffin cup with the spinach mixture. Crack one egg in each. Bake at 425' for 17-25 minutes. Make sure the egg-white is done.


More pictures and original recipe here.