Peppermint Cookie Puppy Chow

It's that time of year again where people scramble around the grocery stores trying to figure out just what it is that they want to make for the holidays. I, thankfully, am not one of those people. My list of appetizers, desserts, and side dish options is endless. What to make for which family however, is a tough choice for me. I celebrate Christmas with three different families and this year I decided that I would bring something different to each celebration. The first and easiest dish: puppy chow, a much loved crowd pleaser kicked up a notch.

The original puppy chow is loved by most but it's the holidays people! Time to spice things up and do something different. While walking around the grocery store one day, I saw mini candy cane Oreo's. Now I don't really care for Oreo's but it did give me an idea. I grabbed a big box and a few other ingredients that I thought go well with the Oreo's and headed home. The recipe turned out so well that I knew I needed to post it right away for those of you who are still pondering your options.

• 1 box Chex cereal
• 1 family sized box candy cane mini Oreo's
• 1 10oz. bag Special Dark Hershey's Kisses
• 1 10oz. bag Candy Cane Hershey's Kisses
• 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Evenly separate cereal into two large bowls; set aside. Unwrap Hershey's Kisses and place in microwave safe bowls (keeping flavors separate). 

Add 1 cup of Oreo's to food processor and pulse until cookies have turned to small crumbs. Set aside.

Melt dark chocolate in the microwave; heating for 30 second increments until smooth. Pour over one bowl of cereal, stirring until evenly coated. Add 1/2 of the crushed Oreo's and stir again until coated.

Pour into large reclosable plastic bag or paper bag and add all of the powdered sugar. Shake until well coated; there will be a lot of excess powdered sugar, this is okay, you still have another batch of cereal to add.

Repeat with candy cane kisses. Once second bowl of cereal is evenly coated with melted chocolate, add the remaining crushed Oreo's. Add to bag with powdered sugar and shake to coat. Once combined, add what's left of the box of Oreo's and shake to combine. Allow to cool and enjoy!

* Puppy chow can be stored in an airtight container for 3-4 days. 

Brown Butter Snickerdoodles with Cinnamon Chips

Remember that cookie swap I mentioned before? Well, yesterday I woke up bright and early to start baking cookies for the cookie swap today. I had 7 dozen to make and wanted to make sure I had time to get them done, packaged, and taste tested of course. My alarm went off at 7:30 and I hopped out of bed and got to work. Last year I brought chocolate snickerdoodle cookies to the swap so this year I wanted to step up my snickerdoodle game and make something a little more unique.

After searching through cookie recipes for what seemed like days, I finally found one that I wanted to try. I tweaked the recipe a bit, headed to the store, got some rest, then got to work. I know most of you are probably thinking "a brown butter cookie? I don't know about that" but trust me, it works. It works SO well actually. The brown butter gives these cookies a slight caramel flavor while the cinnamon chips give them the perfect bite of spice.

I baked cookies for 4 hours...that's right, FOUR hours people. Why? Because this recipe makes a TON of cookies. It's perfect for cookies swaps but not so perfect if you've got a cookie craving and want to whip up a small batch for yourself, so cut it in half or even quarters if you need to.

Yield: 8 dozen

• 5 cups flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 4 tsp cream of tartar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter (softened)
• 2 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• 2 tsp pure vanilla
• 2 tbsp plain Greek yogurt
• 1 bag Hershey's cinnamon chips (about 1 2/3 cups)

For the rolling mixture:

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 4 tsp cinnamon

In a medium pan, add butter and melt over medium heat, whisking occasionally. Once the butter starts to foam at the top, increase the heat slightly; the color of the butter will change to a dark yellow then brown. As soon as the butter has browned, remove from heat and allow to cool.

In a mixing bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, beat together brown sugar, granulated sugar, eggs, egg yolks and vanilla. Slowly mix in the brown butter until incorporated then add the Greek yogurt. 

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, cinnamon, and salt. Once mixed, stir in the cinnamon chips.* 

Working in batches, add the flour to the wet mixture and mix on low. I found it easiest to mix most of the flour and wet ingredients in a mixer then when the dough got too tough for the mixer, I mixed it by hand in the large bowl that had the remaining flour. 

Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour. When the dough is almost done resting, preheat the oven to 350°. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper (do not spray with cooking spray). Roll the dough into teaspoon sized balls and then roll in the cinnamon sugar mixture. Place 1 inch apart on the cookie sheets; do not flatten the dough, it will flatten on its own as it cooks. Bake for 9 minutes or until the edges start to brown slightly. Transfer to a wire rack to cool then start on the next batch.**

*It is important to add the cinnamon chips to the flour mixture first; when the flour coats the cinnamon chips, it helps them to stick to the wet mixture instead of all settling at the bottom of the bowl. 

**Make sure to keep the dough wrapped in the plastic when not using to prevent it from drying out. 

Recipe adapted from: What Megan's Making

Hearty Turkey Chili

I know I say this every time I get around to finally posting on here but I'm back...I swear. It's been such a hectic December already and we're only a week in. I feel like my entire December is already packed full of plans thanks to cookie swaps, work potlucks, gift making, and Christmas shopping. Before I know it, it'll be Christmas Eve then Christmas Day then 2015. By then I'll have aged 20 more years thanks to all the cooking, baking, gift wrapping, errand running and anything else I can think of except for relaxing and sleeping.

Let me just take a moment to point out that it's soup season. While perusing my favorite TJMaxx, I stumbled upon this little gem: Soup of the Day Cookbook. You read that right, soup of the day, aka 365 soup recipes for every, single, day of the year. Nothing quite beats a warm bowl of soup during the winter months, which in our case here in Wisconsin, lasts from October to March.

Adam wasn't feeling the greatest this weekend so I decided to whip up a big batch of turkey chili to make him feel better. Let's just say, we were more than pleasantly surprised at just how amazing it turned out. Thankfully I made a big enough batch to feed us for dinner tonight and me for dinner at work for the next week...yes, the entire week.

Yield: 8 generous servings

• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 white onion, diced
• 1 green pepper, diced
• 1 red pepper, diced
• 3 lbs. 93% lean ground turkey
• 3 tbsp chili powder
• 2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp cumin
• 2 - 14.5 oz cans stewed tomatoes, no salt added
• 2 - 8 oz cans tomato sauce
• 1 - 4 oz can diced green chiles
• Chili toppings: reduced fat cheddar cheese, light sour cream or plain Greek yogurt, green onions, crackers, etc. 

In a large dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium heat and add white onions. Saute until slightly transparent (I usually throw the onions in and let them cook until I'm done dicing the red and green peppers). Add the peppers and saute another 2 minutes. Add the ground turkey and cook until no longer pink, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as it cooks. 

While the turkey cooks, add the stewed tomatoes to a food processor or blender and pulse until coarsely chopped (or in my case, nearly pureed) . Once the turkey has browned, add the chili powder, salt, black pepper, cumin, stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce, and green chiles. Stir until mixed through. Bring to a low boil then reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Top with your favorite chili toppings.

* If you like beans in your chili, you can sub one pound of meat for two cans of your favorite beans

Coffeecake Muffins with Vanilla Glaze

Blogging hasn't exactly been at the top of my to do list lately but now that I'm finally working just ONE job, I've got my weekends free again. Free weekends means new food which means new posts!

Yesterday Adam volunteered me to make him something new for breakfast. Naturally, I accepted the challenge. Breakfast is my least favorite meal of the day, as most of you know, so deciding on something to make that I would also enjoy eating was tough. I kept going back and forth between something potato based and something full of cinnamon. Since the leaves are already changing color, I'm in full fall mode which means cinnamon won.

I finally decided on a cinnamon based muffin and stumbled across an awesome recipe for coffeecake muffins. After changing up the recipe a little, I was ready to bake. These muffins not only taste amazing but smell amazing too and filled our entire condo with the warm scents of fall.

Yield: 12 muffins
MUFFINS

• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 heaping teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup cinnamon chips
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 eggs

CRUMB TOPPING

• 1/3 cup flour
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 4 tablespoons cold butter, cut into small pieces
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

VANILLA GLAZE

• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup skim milk
• 3/4 cup powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350°. Line a muffin tin with liners and spray with cooking spray. 

In a small bowl, mix the crumb topping dry ingredients. Add the cold butter pieces and combine with your hands until the mixture becomes a crumbly texture. Set aside in the fridge until ready to use.

In a large bowl, mix the muffin dry ingredients (flour, brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and cinnamon chips). Set aside. In a small bowl, mix the wet ingredients (buttermilk, melted and cooled butter, and eggs). Make sure the butter is cooled or it will cook the egg and curdle the buttermilk. Slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Gently mix until combined. The batter will be thick; do not add any extra liquid. 

Distribute batter evenly between the muffin cups (about 2 1/2 tablespoons of batter each). Sprinkle muffins with equal amounts of the crumb topping. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean; about 30 minutes.

Let muffins completely cool. In a Ziploc bag, add the vanilla glaze ingredients. Stir ingredients until combined (I ended up rubbing the closed bag in my hands until the powdered sugar had fully dissolved in the milk). Cut off one of the corners of the bag and drizzle glaze over muffins. 

Recipe adapted from: 2 Teaspoons

Sweet Chili Sesame Stir-Fry

My New Years resolution was to challenge myself. This months challenge: eliminating processed foods from my diet (aka clean eating). I've done pretty good by cutting back throughout the month but this week I've decided to cut out all processed foods completely. Now that I've switched shifts at work it's been a little difficult to meal plan. Instead of making dinners and having the leftovers for lunch the next day I have to make lunch and bring the leftovers for dinner. Having tons of fresh fruits and veggies on hand has made it so much easier.

A big part of clean eating is including proteins, carbs, and fats in every meal. Protein helps to build muscle and aids in curbing appetite so including it in every meal will help keep you full all day. Now that I have made the switch to second shift, I am at work until 11pm. Planning meals that keep me full throughout my entire shift has become a big part of my morning routine. This morning I decided to throw a stir-fry together with just a few simple ingredients. This one meal gave me enough leftovers for three more meals AND has protein, carbohydrates, and healthy fats.

Yield: 4 servings

• 1 cup quinoa, cooked according to package directions
• 1 lb. washed and trimmed green beans
• 1 tbsp. sesame oil
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 lb. lean ground chicken
• 1 tsp. ground ginger
• 1 1/2 tbsp. sweet chili sauce
• 1 1/2 tbsp. hoisin sauce
• 1 tbsp. rice wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp. reduced sodium soy sauce

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add green beans and boil for 6 minutes. Once cooked, drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking; set aside. 

Heat a large pan over medium heat. Add sesame oil, garlic, and ground chicken to pan. Break up chicken as much as possible and cook until browned (about 5 minutes). Once chicken is mostly cooked, add sweet chili sauce, hoisin, rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, and cooked green beans. Stir to coat and continue to cook until chicken is done and green beans are tender (about 2 more minutes). Serve over quinoa. 

Asparagus and Spinach Pesto

For the past few weeks I've been trying really hard to minimize my intake of processed foods. My fridge has been stocked up with fresh fruits and vegetables now that it's FINALLY transitioning into spring here in Wisconsin. I'm not a sweets fan so I have to force myself to eat fruits. When I do that I usually neglect my vegetables. I had an entire bunch of asparagus sitting in my fridge and did not want to roast it like I normally would. I thought and thought and thought about what to do with it and then it hit me...pesto. Typical store bought pesto's are too strong for me and are loaded with preservatives so I wanted to make my own. Using an entire bunch of asparagus and handfuls of spinach for this pesto is also a great way to sneak in veggies. The garlic and pine nuts add such distinct flavors that even the pickiest eaters wouldn't realize just how healthy this vegetable based pesto is.

Yield: 2 cups

• 1 bunch of asparagus, tough ends discarded (about 1lb.)
• 3 cups fresh spinach
• 2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
• 1/4 cup pine nuts
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• 1/4-1/2 cup olive oil
• Salt to taste

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add asparagus and boil for 4 minutes or until tender. While asparagus is cooking toast pine nuts until fragrant. When asparagus is tender, transfer to a large bowl filled with ice water with stop the cooking. 

Once cooled, chop asparagus into 1" pieces. Add to food processor with spinach, garlic, toasted pine nuts, Parmesan cheese, and lemon juice. Pulse until roughly chopped. Drizzle in olive oil and continue to pulse until pesto becomes smooth. Serve over pasta with grilled chicken and toasted pine nuts. 

Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies

Fad diets are all the rage these days. There are so many people that are testing out diets just to lose weight instead of making healthier choices for the rest of their lives. Not going to lie, I've done it. I was vegetarian for 3 years, vegan for a month, pescetarian for all the times in between, and the list goes on. This year though I have really been trying to make bigger changes that last. My new years resolution was to challenge myself with something new for each month. January I gave up meat and challenged myself to eat more seafood (sustainable seafood at that). February I challenged myself to give up sugar. Since lent started in March, I gave up tortilla chips (weird I know, but when I go out for Mexican food I eat the entire complementary basket and then some). This month I've been challenging myself to make foods that I normally buy processed. I've been making my own salad dressings, chips, sauces and now cookies!

I know, I know, it's easy to make cookies from scratch. I am way more conscious of what I put into my body though and wanted to take something so unhealthy and make it better. This recipe is gluten free, dairy free, butter free, and most importantly: ALL NATURAL. I'm not going to lie and say these taste just like the most indulgent of chocolate chip cookies because they don't. They do however taste so good for being healthy and in my book, that's all that matters. You know those almond cookies you get when you order Chinese take out? That's exactly what these taste like only with chocolate chips to make them better.

Yield: 2 dozen cookies

• 2 cups almond flour
• 2/3 cup coconut flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 2 tsp. pure vanilla
• 1/2 cup organic maple syrup (sugar free if you can find one)
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup melted coconut oil

Preheat oven to 375°. In a large bowl whisk together the dry ingredients. In a small bowl combine the vanilla, syrup and eggs and mix to combine. 

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix (starting with a spatula and then using your hands). Once mixed, add the chocolate chips. Melt the coconut oil and mix into the batter. Your batter should have the consistency of normal cookie dough, if it is too thin add more flour. 

Place tablespoon sized scoops onto a cookie sheet lined with a Silpat (if you do not have a Silpat, lightly spray your cookie sheets with cooking spray). Make sure to flatten the cookie dough with a spatula, it will not flatten as it cooks so this step is important! 

Bake for 12 minutes. Allow to cool for at least 5 minutes before eating. 

Recipe adapted from: Simply Taralynn

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Muffins

2014 has been nothing short of an amazing year so far. It's been a while since I've posted anything so here's a brief update on what's happened in my life since December:

• I discovered that my kitchen is not big enough for all of my cooking dreams and messes
• I got a new job!
• I met an amazing group of people that have shown me that work can actually be fun and enjoyable
• I discovered this guys wisdom: Jarrid Wilson
• I gave up meat for a month
• I gave my wardrobe a complete makeover
• I oddly grew to enjoy baking despite my dislike for baked goods
• I learned plenty of pointless information about geology
• I applied for graduation!

That just about sums it up. Working a Monday through Friday, 8:30-5:00, job has forced me to meal plan. I've always been good at planning out my lunches and dinners for the week but breakfast has always been a struggle for me, especially because I am not the biggest fan of breakfast foods. My options are limited and so is my morning time.

This past week a friend of mine made these muffins. I, however, do not like blueberries. At all. Especially in muffins. So I decided to change up the recipe a bit and sub in a few other ingredients for the blueberries. I can't even explain just how amazing these muffins smelled while they were baking. The apples add moisture to the muffin and keep them from drying out while the sugar on top gives them a nice added crunch.

Yield: 12 muffins

• 1 1/2 cups quick cooking oats
• 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1/2 cup cinnamon applesauce
• 2 egg whites
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp apple pie spice
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 apple (diced)
• Sugar in the raw for garnish

Preheat oven to 400°. Line a muffin tin with liners and lightly spray with cooking spray.

Place oats in a food processor and pulse until coarsely ground. Place oats in a small bowl with almond milk, mix, and let soak for 30 minutes. In a medium bowl combine brown sugar, honey, applesauce, egg whites, oil, and vanilla; mix well. In another small bowl, combine dry ingredients and whisk. 

Combine soaked oats with other wet ingredients and mix. Slowly add dry ingredients and mix until incorporated. Fold in apples. Add 2 heaping tablespoons of batter to each liner and sprinkle with sugar in the raw; bake for 24-26 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. 

Per muffin: 123 calories, 2g fat, 14.5g sugar, 2g protein