Amazing Nutella Breakfast Panini Recipe

During the week I usually have quick breakfasts, that I can easily make and eat as I run out the the door to work.  But on the weekends, I turn into a bit of a party animal and make myself something slightly fancier.  Okay, so maybe party animal is an overstatement, but I’m not exaggerating when I tell you this- I invented the world’s best* breakfast panini this past weekend (*worlds best, in my opinion that is.)  I’m like the Thomas Edison of breakfast paninis (which maybe another slight exaggeration).

Get ready for this, it’s a Strawberry Nutella Cream Cheese Panini! 

And it’s easy to make! Here’s how: On Trader Joe’s Tuscan Pane bread (which is okay as-is, but amazing for paninis), spread a thick layer of reduced fat cream cheese and top it with fresh sliced strawberries. On the other piece of bread, add a light coat of Nutella spread. Put the sandwich together and into whatever appliance you use for making paninis. I don’t have a panini maker, but I have a George Forman grill which is perfect for making toasty sandwiches.

Once nice and toasty, prepare to have a breakfast sandwich that will knock your socks off! It really tastes like a special treat that I would order when going out to brunch, but it came out of my Forman grill and only took a few minutes to prepare. I actually wasn’t even that into paninis before this, but this sandwich changed my mind!

You have to try it!  And when you do, come back and let me know what you thought!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Bites

We had a bunch of bananas that were starting to brown (what an exciting start to this blog post, haha), so I wanted to make a snack with them before they went bad.   There are a bunch of different recipes for banana bites online with varying degrees of complexity, but I wanted to make something really simple so I used just 4 ingredients I already had on hand.
I simply cut up a banana, added a layer of peanut butter, and then topped it with a craisin (a dried cranberry).

Then I melted some chocolate chips in a shallow dish (I like to use a little fish shaped dish because it’s a nice depth).  I microwave chocolate chips for no more than 45 seconds at a time to make sure the chocolate doesn’t scorch, and just stir between each microwave session.

Once the chocolate was melted, I spread it onto the banana bites with a butter knife.

Then I stuck the bites into the freezer for a few hours until fully frozen.

And there you have it, a super easy, 4 ingredient, chocolate peanut butter banana bite!  Since my bananas were on the over ripe side, these bites turned out very sweet.  Hope you have a sweet tooth! 

Yummy!  These are a nice size when you want a bite-size sweet snack.  Do you have any favorite sweet treats?

Pineapple Flowers

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter.  Since I’ve already shared my Easter decorations and Easter dessert ideas, I thought I’d update y’all on what I ended up making. 

From my Easter dessert inspirations, I decided to make cupcakes topped with pineapple flowers, as I had seen on Pinterest:

source

It looked really cool so I decided to give it a try.  The site did not have any additional instructions so I had to figure it out some remaining details.  I took a regular pineapple and cut off the top and sides.

Then I sliced the pineapple, sprinkled it with sugar, and placed it on a cookie sheet sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.  The pineapple needed to be sliced thicker than I originally imagined, because they shrink a lot while baking.

I baked the pineapple at 350 degrees for about 10-15 minutes.  Next, I put the pineapple slices in a muffin tin, to create the curved flower shape, and baking for about 15-20 minutes more (I forgot to take a picture of this step).  I had the pineapple in the oven while my cupcakes were baking so luckily I didn’t have to run my oven too much extra.

Once baked, I used the dried pineapple to top the cupcakes I had made.

Too be honest, I’m not crazy with how it looked, so I decided to make them a little more flower like but topping the pineapple with a cherry to act like the center of a flower.

Since I like to be transparent with you guys, I’ll say that I thought the pineapple flowers looked cute, but weren’t cute enough to justify the extra time and half a pineapple they took up.  I was a little disappointed I couldn’t get mine to look as flower-y as the original photo, but I wanted to share how mine turned out since I posted the inspiration photo last week. The actual cupcakes were delicious though, I used Bakerella’s recipe for mini-cheesecakes which is a big favorite of mine.

What do you think of the pineapple flowers? Worth the trouble of trying again?  How was your Easter?  What did you end up making?

Shocking Twist & Delicious Seitan Recipe

If this blog was a soap opera, this post would be the shocking twist where you find out that I had an evil twin or that John Black was really Roman Brady with amnesia.  I’m being dramatic, but I’m about to tell you something I’ve never shared on this blog before.  I don’t eat meat.

I’m sure y’all fell off your chairs with that one.  Okay, maybe not, but I warned you I was feeling dramatic today.  No, I am not a hippie, nor am I starving, nor do I only eat lettuce.  I’m just a regular gal who happily hasn’t eaten meat in four years.  Someday, I want to share a longer post about my reasons and the misconceptions I’ve encountered, but for now I just want to share a really delicious recipe.

I made seitan for the first time.  Seitan is the protein part of wheat.  It’s made by washing wheat flour until the starch dissolves and all that’s left is the gluten protein.  And despite common misconceptions, there’s no reason for the majority of people to avoid gluten.  Gluten-free is not the same thing as carb-free and seitan is actually very healthy and is low in carbs, low in fat, and high in protein- a great diet food!

Now onto the recipe, we purchased pre-seasoned seitan from Whole Foods.  You can actually make seitan yourself, but from what I understand it is a laborious process and I haven’t tried it yet.



It came in a tofu-looking package, but inside the container it looked much different.  To be honest, it didn’t look too appetizing to me uncooked, but it did resemble chicken.  Seitan is often used as “vegetarian chicken” in meatless dishes.



I put the seitan in a warmed up and oiled frying pan and added Trader Joe’s Soyaki sauce (similar to teriyaki sauce and I’m sure you can add any sauce of your choice).



I added sliced baby portobello mushrooms, scallions, and frozen green beans to my stir fry and cooked until the seitan was browned.  I also added some some black sesame seeds for fun towards the end.



So easy, right?  Once cooked, I served it on top of some pasta.  Rice or quinoa probably would have gone better with the seitan stir fry, but I was in the mood for pasta and had finally found whole wheat elbow macaroni at the store and really wanted it (why do only some pasta shapes come in whole wheat?!)
And let me tell you, it was absolutely delicious!  Even my husband who still eats meat from time to time thought seitan was absolutely delicious!  He has been calling it his new favorite food since this dinner.  Sorry for the at-night photos, but it was dinner time and I was too hungry to mess with taking photos!



So that’s my shocking twist and seitan recipe.  It was so quick and easy, I can barely call this a recipe, but it was too tasty not to share.  Have you ever tried seitan ?  Are there any other part-time or full-time meatless eaters out there?

Easter Dessert Ideas

I don’t know how Easter manages to sneak up on me every year, but somehow it does.  Easter is in just a few days so I’ve been thinking of some Easter desserts I could make, as I do every year.  But first, a look at some of the spring and Easter desserts I’ve made in the past:

Easter Bunny Cupcakes: These were a hit when I made them last year.

My sister’s Easter Bunny Cupcakes which inspired the ones I made above.

Edible Fruit Arrangement Bouquet: I originally made this for Mother’s Day, but think it would be a perfect Easter dessert too.

Those cute little bunny cupcakes are going to be hard to top this year, so I’ve been on the hunt for some new cute Easter dessert ideas.

The pretty flower is actually edible and made from pineapple!

(source: duitang.com)

These carrot cupcakes are decorated with M&Ms. 
Looks tasty and not too complicated to make.

(source: Squidoo.com)

Instead of cupcakes, I love these adorable Easter bunny cream puffs.

(source LandOLakes.com)

Although these Carrot and Zucchini bars aren’t “Easter shaped”
they sound like a delicious Spring dessert.

(source RealMomKitchen.com)

I just love making holiday desserts.  Can you guess which one of the above desserts I’m thinking about making for this Easter?  Do you have any Easter desserts planned for this year?

Easy Trick to Grow Green Onions

Oh Pinterest, you are so very wise.  You have taught me so much, including how to grow my own green onions.  I saw this pin on Pinterest which said you could take your used green onions from the supermarket and regrow them yourself.  Since we regularly buy green onions (aka scallions) I had to try it out myself.

I had a few green onions laying around in the fridge.  To be honest, they were there for sometime and probably not so fresh, but I decided to give it a go anyway.



I cut off the green part of the scallions down to the white section and just put the cut pieces into a small jar of water.  I added just enough water to cover the creepy looking roots and placed it on my kitchen table which receives some indirect sunlight during the day.



Five days later (I counted) I was already seeing some green onion growth! 



I was surprised the scallions were growing past the top of the jar in under a week. 



As the green onions grew, I replaced the water several times whenever it started looking a little cloudy.  I also made sure the water was covering the white section of the green onions at all times.  A couple of weeks later I was really in business, the green onions were much bigger and ready to be eaten! 



When you need some scallions, just snip off the green part and use it as you wish, they will continue to grow back again and again!  The scallions would have been even bigger in the above photo, but I had already snipped them a few time for my consumption (I sprinkle some over nachos…so good!) 

I only started with 4 green onions, but I plan on buying some more from the store and using this technique on them so I won’t have to use them so sparingly. I haven’t experimented with adding more or less sunshine, but I might try some more sunlight next.  I’m sure you could also plant these in the ground, but I haven’t given that a go and am not sure if it would have the same never-ending effect.  Anyone know? 

What other tips and tricks have you come across on Pinterest?  (P.S. You can find my Pinterest boards and follow me here!)

Heart Shaped Pizza

How was everyone’s Valentine’s Day?  I got home from work yesterday and wanted to cook up something special for my Hubby, so I decided to make his favorite food: PIZZA!  Are we romantic or what?

Rob usually bakes up a homemade pie a few times a week (like I said, he loves pizza), so I wanted to give him a break and make a special Valentine’s Day pizza- heart shaped!  The quickest way to a man’s heart is through his stomach, right?  So what’s faster than heart shaped food!

We use store bought whole wheat pizza dough.  I sprayed our pizza stone with non-stick cooking spray,  rolled it out the dough like usual on it, but then cut a “V” at the top and shaped the bottom into a point.  I figured the pizza would lose some of its shape while baking, so I wanted to make the heart shape extra pronounced while the dough was raw.

Then I loaded it up with sauce, mozzarella cheese, and with a cherry tomato heart border (and mushrooms too, although they’re not in the photo below).

I popped it into the oven at 450 degrees and waited for my heart shaped surprise.  The pizza looked great once it was done!

Rob thought the heart shaped pizza looked great, but he was most excited about eating it!  And I must say it was delicious!

Did you have a Valentine’s Day dinner last night?  Was it ultra-romantic like ours or did you just have a fancy meal by candle light?  Haha!

Banana Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Hello!  I hope everyone had a truly wonderful Thanksgiving.  I tried a few new recipes out for the day, but my sweet tooth really enjoyed the banana-nut-chocolate cookies I made later in the weekend.  They are a nice, hearty cookie that I think are perfect for colder months.

I found the recipe from Martha Stewart and made a couple small substitutions based on the ingredients I had access to (I used pecans rather than walnuts and chocolate chips instead of chocolate chunks).  The cookies turned out delicious, but too sweet even for me, so the recipe shown below is what I’d do next time to reduce the amount of sugar.  Next time, I might also try reducing the chocolate chips and adding raisins for a twist.


Ingredients
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 large egg
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup mashed ripe banana (about 1 large)
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
8 ounces semisweet chocolate, chunks or chips
1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans


Directions
1. Whisk together all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, salt, and baking soda in a small bowl and set aside.
2. Add butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar into a separate bowl and mix with an electric mixer at medium speed until pale and fluffy.
3. Add egg and vanilla and mix at low speed until combined.
4. Mash banana and mix in.
5. Add flour mixture and mix until just combined.
5. Stir in oats, chocolate, and nuts.
6. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Drop balls of dough onto baking sheets spaced about 2 inches apart.  Bake cookies for 12-14 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through, until golden brown and just set (cookies will still be slightly gooey when you first take them out of the oven).  Cool cookies on wire racks.


Original recipe source: Martha Stewart

Did you try out any new recipes over the holiday?  I’m linking this cookie up to the Dare to Eat Cookies party at NewlyWoodwards and to Tasty Tuesdays.

Thanksgiving Recipes

Thanksgiving is only a week away?  Eek!  Good thing I'm not hosting or my family would be in trouble!  I do like to contribute to my family's Thanksgiving table though, so I've been brainstorming some yummy Thanksgiving recipes I could make for the special day.  Pinterest has come in handy for this (and of course other blogs and sites).  Here are some of the recipes that I haven't tried yet, but struck me as likely to be delicous.

And if you are feeling stressed out by Thanksgiving preparations, just be happy you're not a part of this family (click on the link if you need a good laugh!)


Thanksgiving Vegetable Dishes

Balsamic Glazed Green Beans and Pearl Onions
Roasted Vegetables
Roasted Brussel Sprouts & Apples
Balsamic Honey Glazed Oven Roasted Baby Carrots


Thanksgiving Casseroles & Sides

Vegetable Orzo Casserole
Green Bean Casserole
Beet, Carrot & Apple Salad
Sweet Potatoes with Sage Butter Crumb Topping


Thanksgiving Breads

Sweet Potato Biscuits
Artichoke Bread
Home Made Dinner Rolls
Applesauce Nut Bread


Thanksgiving Desserts

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake
Caramel Apple Cheesecake Pie
Apple Pear Crumble Pie


 Turkey Shaped Thanksgiving Fun

Turkey Veggie Platter
Turkey Cupcakes
Turkey Cake
Turkey Fruit Salad

What are you making for Thanksgiving this year?  Do you have any favorite stand-by recipes or will you be trying something new?

The Big Salad Recipe

I’ve been eating a lot of salads lately and wanted to share my big salad recipe.  It’s not just a regular salad, it’s a BIG salad.
(Click over to my blog if you can't see the video above).

Okay, you shouldn’t get that worked up about, but it is a pretty tasty salad.  And I have a secret ingredient:

Grilled vegetables.  I use my good ‘ol George Forman to grill mushrooms and onions, giving them a nice caramelized flavor.  Since I like sweet onions, especially caramelized ones, I use both red and vidalia onions.

While I’m grilling my veggies, I also hard boil some eggs.  For a big bowl of salad, I add about 4 hard boiled eggs.

Then once the mushrooms and onions are grilled, I toss them into a bowl along with the eggs and whatever other vegetables I have on hand.  Today I added broccoli and half of an avocado, but I sometimes also add bell peppers and sliced carrots.



To make it a real BIG salad, I also add pasta.  I do about a quarter of a box of 100% whole wheat pasta and a quarter box of Ronzoni Garden Delight pasta which is flavored with veggies.  The veggie pasta adds a nice flavor to the healthy, but sometimes bland, whole wheat stuff.  A tip is to start cooking the whole wheat pasta a few minutes before you add in the white/veggie pasta since the whole wheat kind takes longer to cook.  I forgot this today and ended up with undercooked whole wheat and overcooked veggie pasta.  It doesn't just even out as I had hoped.

After all of the good salad stuff is in, I add the leafy salad part.  I used both a garden salad and spring mix since I had both on hand and I’m crazy like that.  I save the greens for the end of the salad because otherwise I end up with way too much of the grassy stuff and not enough of the veggies/eggs/pasta.



I finish up by mixing everything together and tossing it with a light salad dressing (usually olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and salt) and sprinkling some low fat shredded cheese on top.




So that’s my BIG salad.  Just make sure you get a proper thank you when you serve it to your friends.

Imitation Crabmeat and Avocado Crostini

This blog post comes with a warning.  I’m about to share a recipe for an imitation crabmeat and avocado appetizer, but I must warn you that if you bring this dish to a party your friends will want you to bring this dish EVERY TIME there is a party.  I’m not kidding.  Luckily, this imitation crab and avocado crostini is easy to make…and seriously delicious!



This recipe is based on a recipe for a Crab and Avocado Crostini from Brian Boitano’s show on the Food Network, but I’ve modified it to replace some hard to find ingredients, make it a little more wallet friendly (real crab meat is expensive!) and to tweak the flavors a bit.

Here’s what you’ll need:



- 8oz Imitation Crab Meat
- 2 Haas Avocados
- 1 Bell Pepper
- Scallions (Green Onion)
- 1 Orange
- 1 Lemon
- 1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Baguette Bread
- Salt & Pepper
- 1 Garlic Clove

Squeeze the juice of half a lemon and half of an orange into a bowl.  Wisk together with the olive oil and add salt and ground pepper to taste.

Into your bowl, chop up the bell pepper and scallions.  I chose a green bell pepper this time (because they were on sale and the red ones were something crazy like $4/lb), but I like to use a red or orange pepper when I can because it adds a nice color to the dish.



Chop up your avocados and add them to the bowl too.



Add 8oz of imitation crab meat.  Mix together so everything gets covered in the olive oil/juice mixture.



Next, slice your baguette.  It’s up to you if you want to toast it.  When I use a multigrain French baguette I leave it untoasted as it gets a little too dry once toasted.  However, if I use a loaf of white Italian bread I will slice it, drizzle it with a little olive oil, and then toast for a couple of minutes in my toaster oven.  If you go the toasted route, I highly recommend rubbing a clove of garlic on each slice of bread as soon as it comes out of the toaster oven.  When the bread is hot, the garlic melts right into it and gives the crostini a nice kick.  Your spouse/loved ones will also get a nice kick when they try to talk to you from the horrible garlic breath it causes (but the tastiness is sooo worth it).

Then, just spoon the crab and avocado mixture onto your sliced bread, making sure to get a little of each ingredient and the olive oil mixture on each slice.

Enjoy!  I promise your friends will love this recipe!




I'm sharing this recipe at Rhoda's recipe party on Southern Hospitality.