Valentine's Crepes

I love Valentine's day.  I can't help but have some fun with at least one of the meals we make.  Last year I made pink beet pancakes, and they were a hit.  Breakfast isn't so easy to make into something fun now with our oldest in school, so I decided to do crepes for lunch.  I figured since the beets worked so well last year, I'd do them again this year.  They turned out great!

 

Isn't that a beautiful pink color?  And for fun, I sliced the strawberries into hearts to go with and made whipped cream.

Just lots of yum! 

Don't they just look delish?  Oh, and did you know that February 2 was crepe day?  Made crepes then as well... did about 1 and 1/2 recipe and it ended up not being quite enough. 

 

Valentine's Crepes

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 tsp baking powder
1 Tablespoon sugar (I omitted this)
2 cups milk
2 Tablespoon melted butter
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla

Mix the dry ingredients together.  Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until smooth.  Add 2 or 3 Tablespoons beet puree* to the mix to make it pink. 

Heat a pan on medium low heat with butter to grease it.  Then put 1/4 cup batter and swirl it to a thin circle.  When cooked enough to lift it (doesn't take long, maybe a minute or so) loosen the edges with a spatula and flip.  Cook a minute more.  Then remove, recoat the pan with a little butter, and do it again.  It will probably take almost an hour, but it is worth it.

Serve with whipped cream and fruit!  So tasty.

Whipped Cream
Whip one cup of whipping cream with 1/4 cup date paste** until peaks form.

*Beet Puree - Wrap beets in tin foil, and roast in the oven at 350F for 45-60minutes.  Remove, and wait until cool to the touch.  Then, using plastic gloves (or plastic bags), remove the skin (it's slippery and actually comes off pretty easily).  Puree the beets in a food processor, and store in the fridge for a week or freeze for up to three months.

**Date paste - Soak dates overnight in a bit of water.  Place in a food processor and process until smooth.  Store in the fridge for 3 months.

PB Banana Ice Cream Treats

 One of the ladies at preschool recently told me about this wonderful little treat she'd heard about... after I mentioned how some people turn frozen bananas into 'ice cream'.  The treat she mentioned sounded so perfect I couldn't wait to try it for myself.  It really takes very little effort, and while mine may not look perfect, they sure do taste good.

PB Banana Ice Cream Treats

Ingredients
Bananas
Peanut Butter (or other nut butter.  I use all natural)
Melted chocolate (I'm unsure how much per banana... I melted far too much and ended up wrapping my bowl so I can do this again later)

Tools
wax paper
knife
toothpicks
cookie sheet

First, slice your banana.  I was able to make 8 treats per banana, but you can do more or less depending on the thickness of your slices (well, I could have done 9 but I ate the ends, haha).  Place peanut butter on a slice of banana.

 

 

Next, sandwich the peanut butter between another banana slice.  Then, using the toothpick, dip and coat completely in chocolate (sorry, no picture.  My camera didn't want to cooperate with me).  Place the chocolate coated treat on wax paper and into the freezer for 20 minutes.



 

Voila!  Done!  And boy are they tasty!  This is from 2 bananas.  I kept eating the ends of them, haha.

Avocado Chocolate Pudding

Found this recipe on the web somewhere... not sure where exactly.  I've modified it a bit to include less sweetener as I found the amount it asked for WAY too sweet for my taste, so you could easily adjust it to fit yours.  I've made this a lot in the last few months!

Chocolate Avocado Pudding

1 ripe avocado
5 Tablespoons cocoa powder
6 Tablespoons milk
1 tsp vanilla
2 Tablespoons sweetener (honey, maple syrup, or you could use 1/4 cup date paste... the original recipe asked for 1/4 cup maple syrup)

Get out your food processor, and process the avocado until creamy.  Plop in the other ingredients and blend until smooth.  Serve. 

It's that easy!

Chocolate Velvet Beet Cupcakes

Adapted this recipe from Parenting Magazine.  Made it a sugar free recipe!

 

This is a nice alternative to red velvet chocolate cupcakes.  The flavor is chocolaty, the color is a deep red/brown, and the frosting a lovely deep pink color.  My kids loved these, and while I wasn't sure how well these would turn out, they were surprisingly good!  I am not a fan of beets, and while you can taste them in this recipe slightly, the cream cheese and the cocoa balance things out nicely so that the beets do not take center stage.  At all.  In fact, if I didn't still smell them in the air from baking them, I don't think I would have noticed them at all!

 

Chocolate Velvet Beet Cupcakes

Ingredients
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups flour (I used half whole wheat, half unbleached white)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup sugar (I omitted this and added 3/4 cup date paste* to the wet ingredients)
1/2 tsp salt (I omitted this completely)
2 large eggs
1 cup milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil (I melted coconut oil in its place)
1 large beet, roasted and pureed** (about 3/4 cup puree)
2 tsp vanilla
NOTE:  I found this very thick as there was no milk listed originally, so I added about 1/2 cup milk to the batter.  I found out on the website that apparently they forgot to add the 1 cup milk to the recipe in the magazine.  They turned out OK though, either way.


Preheat oven to 350F.
Sift together the dry ingredients in a medium bowl. 
In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, then add the rest of the ingredients.  Slowly stir in the flour mixture into the wet ingredients mixture.  Pour into 12 paper-lined muffin cups.  Bake 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Frosting:
Place into a mixer and beat on medium high until blended:
1 8oz package cream cheese
1/2 cup unsalted butter (I used coconut oil)
1/4 cup powdered sugar (I used honey instead)
1/2 cup beat puree
1 tsp vanilla

* To make date paste, take as many dates as you can manage and pack them tightly into a large measuring cup.  Add water just to fill in the spaces to let them soak and soften (if they are soft enough already, I believe you can skip this step).  Soak for 1-4 hours, depending (some say 1hr, some say overnight... I just do whatever until they feel soft enough to process alright).  Drain and reserve liquid, and put the dates into the food processor.  Process until smooth.  If very thick, add some of the reserved liquid.  Put in the fridge for up to 3 months.  It probably won't last that long though, if you are like me.  :)  Use as a substitute for sugar in recipes!

**Basic roasted beets:  Preheat oven to 375F.  Wrap the beets in tinfoil and bake 45-60 minutes, until fork tender.  Remove from the foil and set aside until cool to touch.  Wear disposable plastic food gloves (or use Ziploc baggies over your hands) to avoid staining your skin, and rub the skins off the beets.  Puree in food processor until smooth.

Almond Cookies

For Chinese New Year, I decided I wanted to make some recipes that they may have usually for the New Year. One recipe I found that I had the ingredients for were almond cookies.
Adapted from About.com.

Prep Time: 15min
Cook Time: 25min

Ingredients
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
dash salt
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup shortening
3/4 cup white sugar
1 egg (plus one for brushing on top later)
2 1/2 tsp almond extract
whole blanched almonds (enough for one per cookie... or about 30)

Preheat oven to 325F

Sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. With an electric mixer, in a medium bowl, mix the butter, shortening and sugar. Add ONE egg and almond extract and beat until well blended. Add the flour mixture... dough will be crumbly and hard to handle.

To make it easier to form into balls, roll dough into 2 10 inch logs, wrap, and place in fridge for 2 hours. I didn't bother putting it in the fridge, and it still worked out well for me.

Take each log and cut into 15 equal pieces... making 30 cookies. Roll each piece into a ball, place on a lightly greased cookie tray 1 1/2 inches apart or more. Place an almond in the center of each and press down.

Brush each cookie with egg (lightly beaten). Bake for 15-18 minutes until golden brown. Cool and store in a sealed container.

Toffee

This is another one of my holiday favorites. A great recipe... I found this specific one online at Better Homes and Gardens.

It takes a long time on the stove, but it is well worth it. And it is a good idea to invest in a candy thermometer for this one.

Toffee Butter Crunch
Makes about 40 servings
prep 20 minutes, chill 15 minutes, cook 20 minutes (or longer, depending)

Ingredients

1/2 cup coarsely chopped almonds or pecans, toasted
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
3 Tbsp water
1 Tbsp light corn syrup
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup finely chopped almonds or pecans, toasted.

Toast your pecans/almonds. I do mine in the oven, allowing the oven to heat up to 350F with the almonds in a single layer on a baking sheet. Do them whole... you don't want them to burn. It only takes 5-10 minutes (watch them, you'll know they are toasted when you can start to smell them a bit)

Line a 13x9x2 inch baking pan with foil. Extend foil over sides of pan. Sprinkle with the 1/2 cup coarsely chopped nuts. Set aside

Butter the sides of a 2 quart saucepan. In it, melt the butter, adding the sugar, water, and corn syrup when melted. Cook and stir over med-high heat until the mixture boils. Clip on a candy thermometer (don't let the bottom of it touch the bottom of the pot, or you won't get an accurate reading) and boil, stirring frequently, on medium heat until it reaches 290 degrees F (or soft crack stage). Watch carefully after the 280 degree mark to prevent scorching (I stir the entire time to make sure it won't burn). Remove from heat, remove thermometer, and pour into prepared pan.

Let candy stand about 5 minutes and sprinkle with chocolate. Allow chocolate to melt/soften, then spread over the candy (about 1-2 minutes). Sprinkle with the finely chopped nuts. Chill until firm. Chen firm, use the foil to lift it out of the pan and break it into pieces. Store tightly covered. Makes 1.5 lbs.

... and in my house, it doesn't last long. I may need to make another batch.

Mini Peanut Butter Cups

I found this recipe online at http://www.make-stuff.com/cooking/peanutbutter_cup.html.

I changed it a bit as I found it a bit more difficult to do. Trial and error, right? It is a nice recipe, but very sweet.

Peanut Butter Cups



(Note: Recipe asks for 1lb powdered sugar, which is about 3.5 cups... but I found this to be too much. I could only get 2.5 cups into it, and so I think it should probably be 1/2 lb, or 2 cups of the stuff)


Ingredients
1 lb powdered sugar (use 2-2.5 cups instead of 3.5)
1/4 lb margarine (1/2 cup)
6 oz milk chocolate (1 cup of choc chips)
1 cup peanut butter

Melt margarine in a medium or large saucepan. Remove from heat and stir in peanut butter. Gradually add the powdered sugar (it says to transfer to a mixing bowl, but I hate doing extra dishes, ha ha). Stir until well mixed and press into a pie pan... or in my case into about 3 dozen mini cupcake tins lined with mini cupcake papers. Melt chocolate and spread over top. Chill.

Note: Takes about 10 minutes to make, and 30 to press into the minis. Probably only 15 total if working with one pie pan, so that way would be quick and easy.

Carrot Ginger Cake with Spiced Cream Cheese

So, I wanted to make something a bit different for Thursday Night Dinners. I found this recipe online, and since I had a spice cake mix, I thought it perfect to use it!

Carrot Ginger Cake with Spiced Cream Cheese

Ingredients
1 pkg spice cake mix
3/4 cup shredded carrot
1 Tbsp ground ginger (do less if not fresh... I did 1 tsp)
1 tsp ground cinnamon, divided
1/2 cup walnuts, toasted (I omitted these since I don't have them)
1 pkg cream cheese
2 cups cool whip, thawed.

Heat oven 350F. Prepare cake batter as directed on the package. Stir in the carrots, ginger, and 3/4 tsp of the cinnamon, and walnuts.

Spoon batter into either 9x13 pan, or muffin tins, etc. Bake less than directed on the package... 15 minutes if 24 muffins, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let it cool completely.

Beat cream cheese in a medium bowl with a wire whisk, or a fork, until smooth. Gently add whipped topping. Spread over the cake or cupcakes. Sprinkle with the reserved 1/4 tsp of cinnamon.

Refrigerate the cake before eating. It tastes best when it's been in the fridge awhile.

Apple Crisp

So, for dessert today I decided to make something with fruit since I hadn't had any fruit yet today... apple crisp seemed the best idea. I got this recipe from the Betty Crocker cookbook and adapted it for 2 single serving dishes instead of an 8x8 pan.

Apple Crisp

For one person (double or triple as necessary)
Ingredients
1 small apple
1 Tbsp (15mL) flour
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp quick rolled oats
dash each of cinnamon and nutmeg
2 tsp (10 mL) butter, softened

Peel, core and chop the apple and place in a small single serving dish (each should hold approximately 1 cup or more). Mix all the other ingredients together and place on top of the apple. Bake at 375F for 25 minutes or until the apples are tender. You can do it in the microwave for about 3-5 minutes (better for single servings... once you get to 6-8 servings though, go for the oven)

Banana Macadamia Nut Bread

Well, I found this recipe while looking through my Brand Name Cookbook for something to bake that involved bananas... and just my luck, I had a few walnuts left over from a previous recipe. So, I decided this would be the perfect thing to try as I've gotten tired of making the same old banana bread recipe already.

Banana Macadamia Nut Bread

Ingredients
2 cups flour (I did 1 cup whole wheat, 1 cup white)
1/2 cup sugar (this is less than the recipe asks for)
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
1 tsp baking soda
salt (omit if using salted butter)
1 tbsp grated orange peel (oops... didn't have this)
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup mashed ripe bananas (2 or 3)
1/4 cup orange juice
1 cup coconut (I halved this)
3/4 cup macadamia nuts or walnuts, chopped (again, I had less)

Heat oven to 350F.

In a large mixing bowl combine flour, sugar, butter, eggs, baking soda, salt, orange peel, and vanilla. Beat at low speed, scraping the bowl often, 2-3 minutes until well mixed. Add bananas and orange juice. Continue beating, scraping the bowl often, until well mixed (about 1 min). By hand stir in the coconut and nuts. The batter will be thick! Spread into a greased 9x5 inch loaf pan (or 3 greased 5 1/2x3 inch mini loaf pans).

Bake 60-65 min for large loaf, or 35-45 min for minis, or until wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool ten minutes and remove from pan to cooling rack.

Chocolate Truffles

I found this recipe in one of my Kraft magazines and thought it looked good! So, I made it and found it tasted really good! Made a great Valentines gift.

Chocolate Truffles (adapted from Kraft)

time: 2 1/2 hours or more, 2 hours chilling time

Ingredients

16 squares Baker's Chocolate (70% cacao dark, or maybe try using bittersweet or milk, or white!)

1/4 cup whipping cream

1 Tbsp butter

icing sugar, chopped walnuts, sprinkles, etc

Chop 8 squares of chocolate, place in a microwave safe bowl, add cream and butter, and microwave on medium heat for 1 1/2 minutes. Stir until well blended. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour (it needed longer, I ended up freezing it till solid, then nuked it for 30 seconds or so, stirred it again, and waited. It solidified to working consistency within minutes)

Shape into 24 balls and place on waxed paper covered tray.

Melt remaining chocolate (do only 2 squares to start, then 1 at a time till everything is done so you don't melt more than you need), use a toothpick (or fork) to dip the truffles into the chocolate. Sprinkle with nuts/sprinkles. Or instead of dipping and sprinkling, roll in icing sugar or cocoa or sprinkles. Chill for another hour in the fridge

Sweets and Snacks

Here are the sweet recipes, as well as good party snack foods.

Cookies
Carrot Coconut Cookies
Cream Cheese Cookies
Reese's Cookies
Spritz Cookies
Unbaked Cookies

Muffins and Cakes
Banana Blueberry Muffins
Banana Macadamia Nut Bread
Bran Muffins
Butter Sponge Cake
Carrot Ginger Cake
Cocoa Fudge Cake
Easy Mix Cakes
Never Fail Chocolate Cake
Sour Cream Coffee Cake
Zucchini Bread/cake

Fondant/pics of cakes with fondant

Squares / Desserts
Apple Crisp
Granola Bars
Easy Chocolate Brownies (top recipe in link)

Other Snacks and appetizers
Chocolate Truffles
Deep Fried Popcorn Shrimp (plus various other appetizers)
Spinach Dip (bottom recipe in link)