Monday, April 25, 2016

No-Bake Dessert (468)

http://www.letsdishrecipes.com/2012/03/chocolate-peanut-butter-no-bake-dessert.html
Lover of chocolate? Lover of peanut butter? Lover of both, the irresistible combination of chocolate and peanut butter? Then listen up cause this is for you. This a truly unique dessert that can only be described as something out of this world. The simplicity of this is what truly amazes me, it is so easy, especially since there is no baking required. I've never made a layered dessert before and I really enjoyed how you make them, adding little by little. Mixing different concoctions together, creating a divine creation of creamy layers. Ummm, count me in.
For the crushed Oreos, I got all fancy and used a meat tenderizer, to created little pieces to place on the bottom for the first layer. I love Oreos and would've loved to add the whole container of Oreos just to the bottom only. This layer also reminded me of ice cream cake from Diary Queen because of bottom layer of cookie crumbled deliciousness. Next layer, cream cheese, peanut butter, and confectioners sugar. Of course, patience is a virtue and since I don't have any patience to let the cream cheese soften now it own, I had to placed it in the microwave for a few seconds. Then just mixed everything together. A little FYI, confectioners sugar is just powered sugar. Then after that you "fold" in half of the container of Cool Whip. This recipe used a lot of learned words and jargon that honestly got me very confused. So I just mixed everything together and them spread over the crumbled cookie goodness. Next, probably my favorite part about this, is to place peanut butter cups in the previous layer. I created a design, but you can do whatever your heat desires and place them how you want. Just promise me to have some fun with it.  Next layer, mix the chocolate pudding, powered sugar, and milk all together. Warning: the smell that will be coming from the bowl may want you to consume the entirety of it, but please reframe from doing so. Then just add this on the and create the top layer. Then to garnish the top, just crumbled some more Oreos. You can also add some more peanut butter cups, or whatever candy you want, just have some fun with it and make it look gorgeous. It looks really cool, it you use a glass bowl then you can see all the layers. Then just place in the fridge until you are ready to eat and you will enjoy it.
This is so yummy, and so simple I will be making it again. I would recommend cutting smaller pieces since it is so rich and creamy. Maybe a glass of milk would be nice to serve with it too.

Oreo Milkshake (359)

http://apumpkinandaprincess.com/2014/05/double-chocolate-oreo-milkshake.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed:+APumpkinAndAPrincess+(A+Pumpkin+And+A+Princess)
Maybe this week, should be called Oreo Week since I keep using Oreos. I'm not complaining about it, I loved them. I was really hungry for ice cream this week and was so tempted to stop at an ice cream shop and give in to the temptation. So I quenched my craving with the delicious DIY milkshake. Cue the song "Milkshake" and Melissa McCarthy's dancing from Identity Thief.
The recipe calls it double chocolate, but I'd rather have it as just an Oreo Milkshake and take out the chocolate chips that were added. I used a hand mixer and it did not want to chop up the chocolate into sip-able pieces, which caused them to get stuck in the straw, which is just a pain. I also added like an entire ice cream container because it was so liquidly. Using the hand mixer was honestly really difficult but I made it work. It says that your suppose to take some crumbled Oreos and milk and freeze them, just skip this step because it is unneeded. It just created a bigger mess for more than it's worth. Especially if it isn't about presentation, and just trying to quickly make this for an afterschool snack. So I placed the crumbled Oreos on the top, with an entire Oreo just to take a picture, to show you guys and make it look all fancy. Also, the ice cream I used in this was severely freezer burnt, but it did not effect the taste one bit.
I really enjoy this, especially since is tasted just like an Oreo Blizzard from Diary Queen which is my favorite thing to get. This was really easy and quick to make and definitely a pick me up after a day at school. Definitely a really cute idea for a family night or movie night, something where you have a little fun and splurge on your food ideas. Its really cute if you have the glasses that Steak-n-Shake have that are chilled and so perfect for milkshakes. I was in love with this drink and sad when it was gone.

Chocolate Chex Mix (458)

http://www.chef-in-training.com/2012/03/better-than-sex-chex-mix/
For the sack of my blog, I decided to change the name of this recipe, but none of the less it is the best thing I have ever tasted. This is such a nice snack to make for game day, movie night, or even holidays. I found this to be super easy and so good, but as a warning it is super messy. I found this to be some what of a comfort as November is now starting and Fall is full on. My family and I just kept eating it and eating it, even with a delicious dinner my sister made. But I kind of changed this recipe a little bit and did what I want, so onto the recipe.
For starters, the next time I go on a cereal craze for breakfast I will be eating Chocolate Chex Cereal. On the original website, it said that it was difficult to find, I found mine super easy at my local grocery store. After placing that in a separate bowl. Mixing and melting all the butter, brown sugar, light corn syrup, and baking soda pour that over the Chex Mix. At this point the directions are a little foggy, and had to figure some of the recipe on my own. You are suppose to then put it into the microwave for 3 minutes, but I totally forget before spreading it onto a cookie sheet. So I kept going and it didn't really effect anything, well not that I know of. The next bit of ingredients said to add peanut butter cups, which I did have some left over, and miniature marshmallows. I didn't add this just because of personal favorite tastes. But I did add a cup of caramel, rather than a half a cup, just because I love caramel. It did say to add a little bit of heavy cream with it, but I didn't have any so I just added a splash of milk that I stirred it with. I did lick the spoon full of leftover batter I stirred with and it was so tasty. Then I just melt a lot of white chocolate chips and milk chocolate chips to drizzle on top. Again, I totally forgot to sprinkle the salt on top, which would give it a salty/sweet taste, but I still enjoyed it. Then I just put it in the fridge for around 2-3 hours, and then everyone devoured it.
I found this a really cute idea, it was so good and fairly easy to make. I think this is such a good idea around the holidays, and I most likely will be making it for family functions coming up in the nearing holiday season.

Monday, April 18, 2016

Chicken Santa Fe (375)

http://www.skinnytaste.com/2009/02/crock-pot-santa-fe-chicken-425-pts.html
As I walked into the house after an exhausting day of school, something smelled DELICIOUS! This something was Chicken Santa Fe. With a busy week of school and softball and other commitments, I took the opportunity on a Sunday night to prep for the week ahead. This ended up being a functional, quick meal that I could easily figure out and make. Cooking is more an estimation rather than baking where you need exact measure. I sprinkled spices and sauces and was able to produce a scrumptious meal bringing Mexican cuisine a little closer to home.
This recipe is a calorie friendly meal, having only 190 calories per one cup. Not to mention how easy it is, all you have to do is throw in some veggies into a pot and you're good to go. When dumping in your can goods, the tomatoes and green chilies you don't need to drain the juices out, because you need some liquid while cooking the chicken in the crock pot. When working with black beans, make sure to drain and wash the beans in the can. If you don't your meal may be a little salty, but I prefer black beans drained. When I made this I didn't have any fresh cilantro, so I used dried cilantro that comes in the spice container. While making this recipe I learned what scallions are! all they are, are green onions *laughing emoji*. Now you just shake some spices on top of your veggies, and maybe do a little dance while you do it. Lastly you put the chicken on top, at my house we like to sprinkle fajita seasoning on top of the chicken to add appetizing flavor.  If not cooking right away put the crock in the refrigerator until you are ready to cook. 
Now all you have to is turn on your crock pot in the morning, go to work or school, and magic is brewing all day. Chicken Santa Fe is best over rice. Just quickly make minute rice and you're good to go. I also like to put cheese, sour cream, and salsa over top of it. I love this meal and always look forward to eating it.

Chicken Salad (358)

Most mornings I have a total of five minutes to make my lunch, because who actually wants to eat cafeteria food, and make/eat my breakfast before running out the door to grab the last parking space. Rather than eating my normal turkey sandwich which gets a little boring and hard to eat after a while. So the other day, I was looking in my pantry and refrigerator and the perfect elements to turn my lunch hour into something a little more exciting.
For this recipe you will need:
-canned chicken breast
-green onions (chopped)
-mayonnaise
Whenever I make this, I just dump in the ingredients and just eye ball it rather than using exact measurements. If you're feeling a little extra daring you can add a little garlic to the mix, just make sure to add a scant amount at a time or you might need some gum. Also when making this the canned chicken needs to be drained and pulled apart, rather than just one big piece of chicken. Add the chicken to the bowl and sprinkle the green onions to your taste on top. Then add a scoop of mayonnaise to your liking and stir all together. Pick up a bit and have yourself a little taste tests and make sure it is superb.
To serve, you can either eat it in a tortilla or on bread, like a chicken sandwich which too is good. If you're making it like a sandwich, I find that it's better on the tortilla, personally. This time I used club crackers and made it like a dip to eat. I like being able to scoop it up, and find it better that way. This meal added a little color to my lunch this week and I found it quicker to make than a sandwich, I also really hate making sandwiches, but I definitely really enjoyed this and all my friends were asking me what I was really. This meal, strikes me as unique and sometime a little different than just a normal sandwich that everyone else also eats. This will definitely be my go-to meal for lunch this year.

Pepperoni Pizza Braid (438)

http://www.tablespoon.com/recipes/pepperoni-pizza-braid/e12197ca-54de-46e1-8282-0d3e82addb5d/?utm_source=pinterest&utm_medium=Social&utm_content=delish&utm_campaign=pepperoni+pizza+braid&crlt.pid=camp.aWSuspOqVlRm
During my usual stroll through Pinterest, I came across something extraordinary. Something that combines one of everyone's favorite breakfast, lunch, and dinner. PIZZA! Who doesn't love pizza, and the simplicity of this recipe makes me glad I live five minutes away from a Hy-Vee. There so many ingredients that I already had and stuff I could easily acquire. Now, I had this as a Thursday night dinner pick me up before a weekend of softball, but it would be a perfect game day snack, or when you are on the go. The Pepperoni Pizza Braid is so easy and leaves you wanting more.
The first time I made a braided cuisine was the braided Danish that I made and wrote about a few weeks ago. One of the things I recommended and would've changed if I could do it over again was to roll out the dough. This thing I did just that. I thought I worked a hundred percent better and left a smooth canvas to work with. After smoothing it out for a total of ten minutes to make sure it was absolutely perfect, I'm a perfectionist what can I say, I cut it into equal parts on the length of the dough. Rather than using pizza sauce, I just used spaghetti sauce, which was conveniently sitting in my pantry. Personally, I found that there was no difference in regular pizza sauce and this. They both had similar taste which I thoroughly enjoyed. If you readily have a jar of any red sauce sitting in a cupboard just use that and the amount you have left use to make your favorite Italian dish. While preparing this, I didn't use exact measurements, which is what I recommend you do. Do what you want and what you like. I just sprinkled on the cheese until I thought that I had a sufficient amount to what I enjoy. Same with pepperoni, if you don't care for pepperoni use whatever you like. Cooking uses imagination, so do what you want and what you like and leave the rest out. After adding the topping all you have to do is braid the sides. It is super easy, just cross the two sections together and make your dinner companions question how you their pizza look so cool. Finally just bake.
I loved this dinner, it was super easy and left me amazed how good it was. Just remember that when you cook, add what you want and add a little extra of what you love. Have fun making this and GET CREATIVE!

Monday, April 11, 2016

Chocolate Chip Danish (519)

http://www.pillsbury.com/recipes/chocolate-chip-danish/b113dc9e-ab73-48fe-a614-c1c71785e504


The other day I took procrastinating to a whole new level, I decide to bake rather than doing my AP U.S. History homework. I was looking at Pinterest and found the Chocolate Chip Danish, I thought it looked good and easy to make. As my mom said "anything with chocolate chips in it has to be good." Most of the ingredients that the recipe calls for is found in most homes, I only needed to get two items we didn't have, crescent rolls and cream cheese. So I jumped in my car and took a trip to Hy-Vee. This recipe is also super cost effective, I only spent four dollars on the two items I needed, and total it would cost no more than ten dollars and found it was totally worth it.

While making this wonderful creation, I found out some helpful hints that could change the outcome. For starters, the pan I had was a smaller pan than what was mentioned to use. When laying the dough out it was really hard to create a smooth surface, meaning that where the dough was pre-cut it started to tear and come apart. When making this recipe I recommend using a rolling pin or something similar in nature that can create a smoother surface to work with. When looking at the recipe I neglected to see that the cream cheese should be sitting out and at room temperature. This created a little agitation but I figured it out and just put it in the microwave for thirty seconds to melt it. Using an entire block of cream cheese, I found to be a little much. If you want to cut a few calories, I would suggest only use four to six ounces rather than all eight. So don't panic if, like me, you need to make it in a hurry and don't have time to let it sit for a while. The recipe calls for 1/4 cup of chocolate chips, but if like me, and who doesn't like chocolate, I recommend doubling that and adding 1/2 cup on top of the cream cheese that you spread on. Last helpful hint, is cooking time. The recipe says cook 20-22 minutes, I set a timer for twenty-one minutes and made sure to keep an eye on it. I took the Danish out of the oven with three minutes to go, much more than that it would've burnt, and no one wants a burnt dessert.

Finally you get to eat this delightful creation. Before cutting, I would take a spatula and make sure the bottom isn't stuck to the pan. The recipe mentions that its best served the day it was made, so I put that to the test. The night I made it, it was warm and chocolaty. The next morning, I warmed it up it the toaster oven. I found it to taste more like a croissant in the morning. The six family members I fed this experiment to all really enjoyed it. It's quick, it's easy, and it's cheap!

Oreo Stuffed Cookies (331)

http://picky-palate.com/2011/01/06/oreo-stuffed-chocolate-chip-cookies/
Craving sweets and in that baking mood to create these distinctive delights. This triple layer cookie made of cookies and the best thing since sliced bread. You without a doubt will be reaching for more and more. Truly, you are only eating one cookie not three so justify your hankering with that.
I love these cookies, previously I have made cupcakes with Oreos and are the most appetizing things ever. So I figured that these cookies won't be half bad either. And my gut was right, they were so delicious. Over the past three days I consumed numerous amounts of them and the first one I had was just out of the oven, and was gooey and soft. And there is nothing better than fresh, soft cookies that you don't need an axe to bite into. The only negative things for about these cookies are the presentation. When I opened the oven after they baked, they look like a cookie cake.

When baking there is little margin for error. The first problem I faced was instead of measuring in teaspoons, I measured in tablespoons. So I had to start all over and was starting to get really mad and anxious. When I went sandwich the cookies and roll them into a ball, I found that I couldn't because they were really sticky and got all over my hands. So I got crafty and used two spoons, but it didn't really work out.
This recipe makes two dozen monstrous cookies. In the instructions it also says serve with a glass of milk, I recommend that just because these cookies are chocolate overload and very rich, it might be nice to have something to wash them down with. Either way they were still a huge hit at my house, and arguments were had about who got the last cookie. Everyone kept sneaking over to the box to see snatch one up if there were some there.

Cheesy Party Burgers (403)

http://www.kevinandamanda.com/recipes/dinner/cheesy-party-burgers-aka-diamond-burgers.html
 The Cubs have just started and off to a great start. GO CUBS GO. AM I RIGHT! I'm always right so go cubbies. In my house if I'm not playing somewhere we are watching some sporting event on TV. Who doesn't love game day styled foods and appetizers for dinner. Last Sunday was nachos and this week was burgers, if this doesn't scream Sunday sports day then I don't know what does. This aren't your regular burgers but are different the perfect thing to try on lazy days.
Imagine me for a second, walking up and down the isles of the grocery stores by myself, sprinting to get in and out as fast I possibly can, I get to the bread isle and just pick something. I found this Sliders buns with I thought would work perfectly since they are about half the size of regular hamburger buns. In the recipe they said to use dinner rolls, but I was in such a hurry that day I just grabbed those and they worked. My philosophy is bread is bread, they both work. Also I didn't add mustard powder because we don't own any, and we didn't feel the need to go out and buy some. The burgers were still delicious without! Instead of adding tomatoes with green chilies, I just added tomatoes without since I'm favorite food isn't green chilies. Another scenario, you're out for dinner and you order a burger, bacon or not. Who doesn't love bacon, so I deiced to add it since it was a loaded burger recipe. Since there are five people living in my house right now, I decided to make two pounds of beef rather than one just so we would all be filled up to watch football or the Cubs. The glaze that is drizzled on top, is the most delightful thing I have ever tasted. That doubtlessly transformed the burgers into something spectacular.
This recipe was so good, and something different that is definitely going to be made again. Don't expect to pick it up and eat, you will have to use a fork. It almost is like a sloppy Joe but I was still impressed.  It was so quick and easy, I could quickly get back to the game that was on and kept updated with the score. This recipe left everyone reaching for more food.

Friday, April 1, 2016

Doritos Taco Salad (202)

Click here for the recipe
After our high school softball season is over, we have a banquet. Every single player comes and we recognize individuals and the team. There's always loads of food, and lots of people to mingle with. Each family is responsible for bringing items, whether that is food, or desserts, or utensils. Last summer we made Doritos Taco Salad.

It's really easy to make. The directions are not challenging at all. The hardest part of making this was not eating the Doritos, one because we needed to use them and because we were going to Mexico that week. I guess eating any food at the banquet was probably not a good idea because of the high amount of calories. I just made sure to work out that day.

What's really funny is that another family ended up making the exact same salad. Which was A-Okay because I was not opposed to taking it home with me. It was really, really good I highly recommend making it because it's a great side for any occasion now that we are getting into spring and summer. Great for a BBQ or any get together that screams outdoors party and friends and family.

Nutrition-SUGAR (539)

At my high school, we have a gym class called Performance PE. Which is lifting and "hard-core" working out. For me, I lift Monday, Wednesday, Friday and I'm in the wrestling room Tuesday and Thursday. On Thursday we work out for about 20-25 minutes and then go upstairs and talk about certain things dealing with health and lifts. The first part of the semester we talked about proper techniques when dealing with lifts. And we just recently started talking about nutrition. And today we talked about sugar, so I'm going to share with you guys.

Around a month or two ago, we had the AP Gosh assembly. Dr. Gosh himself talked with are school and one of things he talked about was sugar. That the daily sugar intake has increased dramatically which causes obesity and other health problems. During Performance today, I learned that rather than looking at the nutrition facts for the amount what really tells you how much sugar is in there, is if in the ingredients sugar is listed in one of the first couple of them. My teacher also explained that since most people are aware of the high amounts of sugar in foods, that the companies don't say sugar, instead they say something along the lines of fructose. Just because most people aren't aware of what other names mean sugar. Any ingredient that ends in -ose is sugar. We looked at two different nutrition labels, one was a cereal, and one was mixed berries. The mixed berries had a lot of sugar, but if you look in the ingredients, sugar wasn't listed anywhere. That's because fruit has natural sugar but the body doesn't read that substance as sugar, it reads it as fiber, therefore not hurting your body but helping it. There is one time that it is okay to eat sugar, and that's after a workout. Because your levels drop while working out. We also talked about what happens when sugar has no purpose in the body. Like after a workout, it is absorbed by the liver. But when there is no useful place, it goes to certain parts of your body and causes inflammation. Which can cause problems for that area, and can dramatically increase your chance of injury.

This morning while I was finding breakfast I was looking at labels and finding out just how much stuff has loads of sugar in it. I had peanut butter toast today, peanut butter has a lot of sugar in, and it is listed in the top of the ingredients. Same with chocolate milk, which has loads of sugar in it. Little Bites Muffins, the first ingredient listed is sugar. This is surprising to mean because my teacher made one suggestion and that was to cut it out of your diet, how can I do that when it’s in relatively healthy things that I eat every day. He also told us that sugar is highly addictive, and that in brain scans it shows that after eating sugar the brain lights up just like a brain scan after using a highly addictive drug.

 
Be careful my friends! If you have any suggestions on how to cut out some of the sugar intakes let me know.