Flourless Dark Chocolate Cookies

Ingredients:

• Nonstick vegetable oil spray
• 1 1/2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips (about 9 ounces) (*I used 1 cup semisweet chocolate and  1/2 cup dark chocolate.)
• 3 large egg whites, room temperature
•  2 cups powdered sugar, divided (plus 1/2 cup for cookie coating)
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F.  Spray 2 large  baking sheets with nonstick spray and set aside.

Melt 1 cup chocolate chips ON HALF POWER in a glass bowl in microwave, stirring frequently, about 1 minute.  If needed, repeat process. Set aside and let cool slightly.

Using electric mixer, beat whites in large bowl to soft peaks. Gradually beat in 1 cup sugar. Continue beating until mixture resembles soft marshmallow cream.

In a separate bowl, whisk 1 cup sugar, cocoa, cornstarch, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Then, on a low speed, add these dry ingredients into the "marshmallow cream" mixture.

Next, add remaining 1/2 cup chocolate chips to the lukewarm chocolate mixture in glass bowl.

Add chocolate mixture to "marshmallow cream" mixture and blend well.  (Dough will become very stiff.)

Place remaining 1/2 cup powdered sugar in separate bowl. Roll 1 rounded tablespoon dough into ball; roll in sugar, coating thickly. Place on prepared sheet. Repeat with remaining dough, spacing 2 inches apart.

Bake until puffed and tops crack, about 10 minutes. Cool for approximately 10 minutes on cookie sheet.  Transfer to rack and allow to cool.  Makes about 24 cookies.  Best news ever?  Each cookie is approximately 72 calories, and they're pretty rich, so you'll only need one to hold you over for an hour.  Yum.

*www.picklee.com

Italian Chicken Hoagies with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

these. are. good. 

Ingredients:

7-ounce jar of roasted red peppers, drained and patted dry (about 3/4 cup)
1 clove garlic, chopped
1/2 cup mayo
a handful of basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
kosher salt and black pepper

1 large french baguette (about 24″ long) or 4 large hoagie buns
2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken (or a few chicken breasts grilled and sliced)
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (or several slices)


Directions:

Place roasted red peppers, garlic, mayo, basil, and lemon juice in a food processor.  (If you don’t have a lemon, substitute red or white wine vinegar.)  Add a pinch of salt and a few cracks of freshly ground pepper.  Process until smooth and then store in the fridge until ready to use.  *You can make the sauce ahead of time.

Slice bread in half to open it up.  Lightly brush with olive oil or butter and place under a broiler (for just a few minutes) until golden brown and toasted.  Remove from oven and spread red pepper sauce on the bottom half of the bread.  Layer chicken on top of it and top with cheese.  Place back in the broiler just until cheese is melted.  Spread red pepper sauce on other side of bread and put sandwich together.  Slice in to 4 large hoagies, or 8 smaller sandwiches.

*www.ourbestbites.com

Fresh Peach Crisp

You may not want to share this with anyone.  

#selfish.  #dontcare.

Filling Ingredients:
3 1/2 lbs ripe but firm peaches (6-8), peeled, pitted, and sliced into 3/4″ wedges
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
pinch salt
pinch of cinnamon
pinch of ground nutmeg

Crumb Topping Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup flour
6 tablespoons cold butter
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Directions:
FYI: How to peel peaches.  Preheat oven to 350.  For peach filling, gently combine peaches and sugar in a large bowl and let stand for 30 minutes, tossing occasionally. Drain peaches in a colander set over a large bowl, reserving the peach juices. 

Whisk 1/4 cup of the drained peach juice, cornstarch, lemon juice, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg together in small bowl.  (You can discard the rest of the excess peach juice or toss it in a smoothie!) Toss juice mixture with peaches and transfer to an 8 or 9 inch square pan that’s been sprayed with cooking spray.  Any size pan that’s close to that is fine, it doesn’t need to be exact.  As long as it all fits, it’s good :)

For topping, combine oats, brown sugar, flour, nutmeg, and cinnamon and either grate the cold butter with a large-hole cheese grater, or cut it into small cubes and use your fingers to crumble the mixture together.  Sprinkle topping evenly over pan.

Bake for about 30 minutes.  The topping should look golden brown and crisp; just watch for little bubbles of peach liquid to start popping though the outside corners.  Let cool to luke warm before serving.  Spoon over ice cream.  

*www.ourbestbites.com

Crock Pot Taco Chili

ok, FOSH good.

INGREDIENTS:

2 pounds ground round

1 medium yellow onion, diced

2-3 small cloves of garlic, minced

1 tablespoon olive oil or butter

1 can pinto beans, rinsed and drained

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

32 ounces {4 cups} tomato sauce

2 {14.5 ounce} cans fire-roasted diced tomatoes

3/4 cup frozen corn

2 {4 ounce} cans {mild or spicy} diced green chiles

2 tablespoons chili powder

1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons cumin

1-1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt

3/4 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon oregano, ground in the palm of your hand

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

2 pinches {more or less} red pepper flakes

taco fixins' {sour cream, shredded cheese, black olives, diced red onion, cilantro, tortilla chips, cornbread}, optional

DIRECTIONS:

In a deep 10 inch skillet, measure a tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat. Once hot, add in the ground round and onions. After a brown crust forms on the bottom of the ground beef, use a wooden spatula to break up the ground round.

Reduce the temperature to medium and cook the onions and the beef together until the onions are soft and the beef is fully cooked. Add in the minced garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes.

Use a slotted spoon to transfer the beef/onion mixture to your crock pot. Add in the beans, chiles, corn, seasonings, and add in the cans of diced tomato and tomato sauce. Stir to incorporate all of the ingredients.

Set your crock pot on HIGH for 4 hours, or LOW for 6-8 hours... depending on your day.

Serve this yummy taco chili with sour cream, shredded cheese, black olives, a little diced red onion, tortilla chips, cornbread, and/or a few torn cilantro leaves. Really, anything your heart desires will work!

Enjoy!

*www.simplyscratch.com

No-Cream Creamy Basil Spinach Soup {i.e. Lifechanging Soup}

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1 large or 2 medium leeks, green parts trimmed and discarded, white parts washed well and chopped
• 2 medium zucchini, ends trimmed, and chopped (about 4 cups total)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 2 cups low-sodium chicken stock
• 2 tablespoons fresh basil
• 2-3 cups fresh spinach, coarsely chopped
• 1-2 cups cooked chicken

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a saucepan, heat the olive oil and add the garlic, leeks, and zucchini. Stir in the salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often, 3-4 minutes, until the leeks have softened. Add 1 cup of the broth, cover and cook, stirring every once in a while, until the zucchini is falling apart and very tender, 8-10 minutes.
2. Transfer the mixture to a blender and add the basil. Carefully blend (in batches if needed). Pour the soup back into the pot. Stir in the remaining 1 cup of chicken stock. Stir in the chopped spinach and cooked chicken and cook until heated through, 4-5 minutes.  Serve with crusty bread and devour.  It's amazing.

*www.melskitchencafe.com

Mini Chocolate Doughnut Muffins

not sure what to say.  p.s., so cute.  i just ate ten.

Ingredients:

for the muffins-
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

for the glaze-
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray mini muffin cups with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.

In a large bowl, whip butter and sugar together until well blended. Stir in egg, buttermilk and vanilla. Whisk until smooth.  In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients.  Stir dry ingredients into wet ingredients until just combined. Do not overmix!  Scoop about 1 tablespoon of batter into prepared muffin tins.  (*Makes 24, but mine only made about 20.  If you run in to same issue, fill empty muffins slots with water.)  Bake 10 minutes or until the tops spring back when lightly pressed.  Cool 5-10 minutes before removing from tin and glazing.

For the glaze, stir all ingredients together until smooth.  (*I needed about 3 tablespoons of milk, so if your glaze seems a little thick, experiment by adding a bit more milk too.)  Dip each mini muffin into the glaze, coating completely. Place on cooling rack (with foil underneath for easy clean-up) so excess glaze can drip off. Leave glazed muffins on cooling rack until glaze has dried onto the muffins, about 20 minutes. Serve or store in an airtight container for up to 3 days...if they last that long.

You guys, seriously.  Yah.

*www.laurenslatest.com

HEALTHY! Frozen Granola Bars

these are so so so good and super healthy and easy!

Ingredients:

1 ripe banana, mashed


1/2 cup peanut butter (or any nut butter of your choice)


1/4 cup coconut oil


1/2 cup maple syrup


1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats


1/2 cup shredded coconut


1/2 cup mini chocolate chips


1/2 cup raisins (or ANY dried fruit)

Directions:

Mix together the wet ingredients (mashed banana, peanut butter, coconut oil, and maple syrup) in a large bowl.  Following, add the remaining dry ingredients and mix thoroughly with a spoon or spatula. Your mixture will be wet and gooey.

Line an 8×8 baking pan with parchment and spread your mixture evenly, being sure to press down to pack it into the pan.  Now all you have to do is pop it in the freezer and wait until it is firm.  At least an hour. - See more at: http://ohlardy.com/frozen-granola-bars#sthash.zInsHslk.dpuf

After I have my gooey mixture, I add all of the dry ingredients that I want to use. - See more at: http://ohlardy.com/frozen-granola-bars#sthash.zInsHslk.dpuf

Line an 8×8 baking pan with parchment and spread your mixture evenly, being sure to press down to pack it into the pan.  Pop it in the freezer and wait until it is firm. 

When firm, remove from pan and cut. Some pieces may fall off but will stick back together nicely. Wrap all of the bars individually in foil and then put them in a Ziploc freezer bag to store.  The bars are delicious straight out of the freezer.  These will become completely gooey and melted at room temperature, so it is best to eat cold.

Enjoy!

*www.ohlardy.com

Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup

This is an easy and flavorful chicken soup made in the slow cooker 

topped off with shredded cheese and seasoned tortilla strips.

Ingredients:

1lb. chicken breast, trimmed

15oz. can sweet whole corn kernels, drained (*I used frozen corn, thawed)

15oz. can diced tomatoes, drained

5 cups chicken stock

3/4 cup onion, diced

3/4 cup green pepper, diced

1 serrano pepper, minced


1 15 oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained (*I added this on my own...optional.)
2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 tsp. chili powder

1 1/2 tsp. salt, divided

1 tsp. ground pepper, divided

½ cup half and half or heavy cream (*I added this on my own...optional.)
Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
seasoned tortilla chips, crushed
avocado, cilantro, sour cream (optional)

Directions:

To your slow cooker, add the first 10 ingredients (chicken through chili powder) plus 1 tsp. salt and 3/4 tsp. ground pepper. Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours.

Prior to serving, remove chicken breasts and transfer chicken to the bowl of a stand mixer.  If shredding by hand, simply transfer to a plate or bowl.  *Before turning the slow cooker off, add about 1/2 cup of heavy cream or half and half and whisk.  Cover, and allow to cook until chicken shredding is complete.  For easy shredding, use a paddle attachment for the stand mixer and mix.  Season chicken with 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper. Return shredded seasoned chicken to slow cooker bowl and turn off heat.  Stir gently.

If serving immediately, divide among bowls. Top off with a generous helping of shredded cheese and seasoned tortilla strips.  If desired, add sour cream, avocado, and/or cilantro.  Soup may be stored in the fridge for up to several days. 

*www.bakedbyrachel.com