chocolate-covered bacon

finally got around to making chocolate-covered bacon

cooked the bacon in the oven on skewers and let them cool

then melted the chocolate and had to apply the chocolate onto the bacon with a brush

placed on wire racks to allow to dry, then applied the drizzle

used semi-sweet chips and white vanilla melts
these took some time to put together
but the delightful sweet and salty combo was worth every minute

and they made for a unique birthday gift

root vegetable pie

 

I wanted to make a savory pie in celebration of national pie day

and to cook with some veggies that I hadn't utilized before

so I took some ideas from the daily garnish and made a root vegetable pie

for the crust I used a weight watcher friendly - low calorie recipe

pie crust

1c. whole wheat flour

2tsp splenda

3TBSP chilled margarine, cubed

2-4TBSP cold water

combine splenda and flour in the food processor

add margarine and process until mixture is crumbly

mix in water a TBSP as a time until dough has formed

flatten out dough with a rolling pin and press dough into the pie pan

chopped up some beets, turnips, parsnips, carrots and red potatoes

tossed them with some olive oil, salt and pepper, then spread out on a baking sheet

baked for about 30min at 375 degrees, stirring half way through

then I cut up a few sweet potatoes and steamed them for about 20min until soft

first time using my new mixer!

added in some skim milk and margarine, then whipped it up 'til smooth

to assemble, I threw the root vegetables into the crust

then spread the mashed sweet potatoes over those

and baked at 400 degrees for about 25-30min

about halfway through I took it out and sprinkled with almonds and cinnamon

deliciously healthy and filling root vegetable pie

happy national pie day!

pie cupcakes

pie cupcakes in celebration of national pie day

instruction came from the book What's New, Cupcake?

used a yellow cake mix and colored m&ms for the pie filling

mixed some yellow food coloring and cocoa powder into vanilla frosting

for the piping on the pie crust and lattice crust

mini pie cupcakes

boxed them up and gave them out to friends

happy national pie day!

chicken & waffles

my sister gave me one of her old waffle makers

so after running a half over the holiday weekend 

I figured a meal of chicken & waffles was in order

found a low-cal whole wheat waffle recipe online

low-cal waffles

1/2c. whole wheat flour

1/2c. flour

1TSBP splenda

1tsp baking powder

1/4tsp salt

1c. skim milk

1 egg, lightly beaten

2TBSP canola oil

1/2c. fruit (optional)

mix all the dry ingredients together in a bowl

then make a well and add in the wet ingredients and whisk together

pour about 1/4c. of batter onto iron for each waffle

add some fruit, smuckers light syrup & light whipped cream for a 

healthy & delicious breakfast

or add some fried chicken, potato salad, collard greens and purple drink

the choice is yours

s'mores cookie dough pops

baked perfection also had a recipe for s'mores cookie dough pops

so of course I had to try these out as well

this recipe is the same as the chocolate chip cookie dough recipe, with a few tweaks

substitute 1/2c. flour for 3/4c. graham cracker crumbs

substitute 3/4c. mini chips for 3/4c. chopped chocolate bar

add 3/4c. halved mini marshmallows

roll the balls & chill 'em

stick 'em

dipped half of the pops in vanilla melts and topped with graham cracker crumbs

dipped the rest in dark cocoa melts

these pops were really sweet, more so than the chocolate chip cookie dough

delicious - though most thought they were too rich to have more than one

chocolate chip cookie dough pops

 

a number of people had been giving me suggestions of other treats 

they would like to see in ball or pop form
top on the list was cookie dough, so I tried some for Matt's birthday

the internet directed me to baked perfection where I got the recipe

chocolate chip cookie dough
1c. flour

1/4tsp salt
dash of cinnamon
1 stick softened butter
1/2c. brown sugar
1/4c. sugar
1/2tsp vanilla

3/4c. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

combine flour, salt and cinnamon

in another bowl, beat butter, sugars and vanilla together

slowly beat in dry mixture, then stir in chips

the rest of the process was the same as making cakepops

roll the balls, chill them, stick them, dip them

used dark cocoa melts and vanilla-flavored blue melts for the drizzle

the pops were well received and it was a nice change from the usual cakepops

they taste great and take less prep time than cakepops - a win win

elvis cookies

peanut butter banana cookies to celebrate the king's Jan. 8th birthday

make that peanut butter banana oatmeal cookies

yum

happy birthday!