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Pepperoni Dip on the Lighter Side

1 Mar

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I had made this dip back in February for a Super Bowl party (YAY RAVENS!), but I certainly think it is fabulous for any sort of entertaining/ large gathering event you may come across.  I am labeling this as a “sinner meal” even in spite of lightening it up from my friend’s original recipe on her blog, Table for Two.  Reason being that I think it is good to be real with yourself that lighter does not mean light.  Cheese and pepperoni are certainly amongst ingredients you want to be moderate with in your diet.  So make this, eat it, and enjoy it- all while remembering that moderation guiding principle!  Shout out to Table for Two one of many doozy recipes.  I’m certain your palette will be pleased!

Ingredients:

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  • 2 (8 oz.) packets of reduced-fat cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup light sour cream (or plain greek yogurt)
  • 1 cup reduced fat mozzarella cheese, shredded, plus more for topping
  • 1 cup pepperoni, sliced to half moons, plus additional whole pepperoni slices for topping
  • 1/4 cup chopped basil
  • 2 tbsp. olive oil

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  2. In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, sour cream (or greek yogurt), mozzarella, pepperoni, basil, and olive oil.    IMG_20130203_175449_601
  3. Spread mixture in a rectangular casserole dish and smooth out the top using a spoon.
  4. Cover the top with more mozzarella cheese.
  5. Arrange whole pepperoni rounds on top of the mozzarella.              IMG_20130203_180300_096
  6. Bake for 25 minutes, or until mixture is bubbly and cheese is good and melty.
  7. Serve hot with tortilla chips or sliced bread.  Be cautious not to burn your mouth!

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Holiday Oreo Truffles and No-Bake Jumbled Cookies

19 Dec

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This is the spread that threatened my waist line a few weekends ago.  From snickerdoodles to s’mores bars, maple frosted pumpkin white chocolate chip cookies to Buckeyes, and coconut ganache bourbon balls to Oreo truffles, this holiday cookie exchange sent every lady home with a smile.  In addition, we all left with a full tupperware (or two) of assorted cookies and a serious sugar high.  This was a fantastic get together during the holiday season so think about hosting one next year like my fabulous friend Emily decided to.  The jist?  All of the participants bake around 2 dozen cookies/ dessert bars or so and comes equipped with extra tupperware.  Then, everyone introduces their respective cookie and you around the table grabbing a cookie at a time until the table was cleared out.  Genious!

My contribution included holiday Oreo truffles and no-bake jumbled cookies.  Both recipes are simple, yet crowd-pleasing.  The Oreo truffles seem like a fancy chef made them.  I can guarantee you’ll love them! The jumbled cookies came into my life courtesy of my former roomie, Lisa.  So thankful we met (Lisa and I as well and me and the cookies!)  Let’s take a look at the how-to’s.

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Oreo Truffles

Ingredients:

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  • 1 package Oreo cookies
  • 1 block of cream cheese, room temperature (regular or RF)
  • a few boxes of Baker’s white chocolate baking squares
  • 1 package of peppermint starlight candies
  • green sprinkles or green sugar

Directions:

  1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. Crush up the bag of peppermint candies fairly fine (see photo of truffles above)
  3. In a food processor or blend, process the whole package of oreo cookies.  This works best if you break the cookies up a bit and process in waves.
  4. Add all of the cookies crumbles back into food processor or blender and add cream cheese.  Blend well.                         IMG_20121207_232846_514
  5. Roll the truffle into around 1 inch balls.
  6. Microwave your white chocolate as directed and immediately begin dipping the balls into the chocolate to coat and transferring each to the baking sheet sprinkling each chocolate-coated truffle with the peppermint candy and some green sprinkles/sugar if you have it.
  7. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes to allow white chocolate shell to harden.

No-Bake Jumbled Cookies

Ingredients:

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  • 2 cups Rice Krispies cereal
  • 2 cups marshmallows
  • 1 cup creamy peanut butter
  • 1 bag of chocolate chips
  • 1 bag of white chocolate chips

Directions:

  1. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
  2. In a large bowl, combine Rice Krispies and marshmallows. Set aside.
  3. In a double boiler or a DIY make-shift one,  melt entire bag of white chocolate chips until creamy and smooth.  Remove from heat.
  4. Stir peanut butter into the melted white chocolate until well-blended. IMG_20121208_010137_847
  5. Add the white chocolate and PB combo into the bowl of Rice Krispies and marshmallows and stir until all is well-coated.    IMG_20121208_010606_321
  6. Allow to cool for about 20 minutes and then add your chocolate chips.  You want to avoid the chocolate chips melting and streaking so the cooling period prevents that.
  7. Drop ice cream scoop or large spoonfuls of the cookie on the aluminum foil.  Refrigerate for at least 10 minutes.

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December Cooking Club’s MUST Ingredient: Maple Syrup

3 Dec

2012-12-02_12-34-56_899Are you drooling over this spread?!  This photo depicts yesterday’s maple syrup-infused brunch gathering for our December iteration of cooking club.  This cooking club was a little different than past ones.  Lauren and Bryan, our fantastic hosts this month,  decided the format would be like Iron Chef.  Here were the rules bestowed upon the group.

Iron Chef Rules:

1.       All competition dishes must be “mostly homemade” and include the spotlight ingredient

a.       December spotlight ingredient: maple syrup

2.       Participants can enter up to two dishes in the competition

3.       Entries can be food or drink

4.       Dishes will be judged on a scale of 1-5 in each of the following categories: taste, presentation, and originality

5.       The winner will receive the coveted Iron Chef Champion trophy to be kept until the next competition

a.       The winner is responsible for adding at least one upgrade to the trophy before it gets awarded to the next champion

The result?  Candied maple bacon with assorted dipping sauces, pumpkin bread pudding, creamy maple polenta, baked maple french toast with praline topping, maple glazed potatoes, and my maple pecan coconut breakfast quinoa.  It was not simply bragging rights that were on the line here.  A gold plated gnome trophy you see sitting on the middle of the table taunted us all.  Claire and Grant ultimately won the competition with their fantastic bacon entry, but I don’t think anyone’s dish was short of tasty, presentable, and creative.  Here’s a picture of the winners and the gnome they get to don in their home for the next month:

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A good nap on the couch happened that afternoon- that’s when you know you were well-fed!  Another successful edition of cooking club.  Next month we are looking at a ginger ingredient theme.  Ironically, I made this suggestion but am not too familiar with cooking with ginger.  Any suggestions out there for me?

A quick look at my contribution.  I followed this recipe for Maple Pecan Coconut Quinoa and added raisins within the quinoa as well as coconut flakes for a topping option.  It turned out great and I recommend it wholeheartedly for a balanced breakfast option.  You’ll get protein, fiber, and healthy fats out of this meal.  Further, it is dairy and gluten free so even those with dietary constraints can enjoy this.  I hope you’ll give it a try.  I can see it becoming an addition to my breakfast staples for sure! 

Ingredients:
Serves 6
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  • 1 cup quinoa, rinsed
  • 1 can light organic coconut milk
  • ¼ cup maple syrup
  • ½ cup pecan halves
  • 1/4 cup raisins
  • coconut flakes, enough to sprinkle

Directions:

  1. Pour coconut milk into medium saucepan and put over high heat. Add quinoa and heat until boiling. Once mixture is boiling, stir and lower to a simmer. Cook covered for 15 minutes or until all the liquid is absorbed.
  2. Fluff quinoa with a fork and add maple syrup as well as raisins. Stir.
  3. Serve with pecan halves and coconut flakes.2012-12-02_10-38-34_76

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I’m Thankful For Green Bean Casserole

26 Nov

Adapted from Food Network’s version, I contributed this Green Bean Casserole to my family’s Thanksgiving spread.  I’ve made this casserole a few times now and it has been equally tasty each time.  While I am pro making my own cream of mushroom soup for the dish, I am okay with cutting corners with the topping.  I use a container of French’s French Fried Onions instead.  I find them to be absolutely delicious although not the healthier of topping options thus my not designating this as a saint meal option.  I’ll give a homemade topping a try someday (there are several great options I’ve seen out there), but I’ve had no complaints with this method so far from the groups I’ve made it for.  My family actually requested it make another appearance in the menu lineup for this year’s Christmas dinner!  Bryan liked it so much that we’ve discussed cutting the recipe in half and having as a side to every day type meals.  You don’t have to wait for a special occasion either ;)   Have a great week- if you’re like me settling back into the work grind will be tough so I wish you the best of luck.  Eat some delicious things to make it easier maybe?!

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
  • 1 pound fresh green beans, rinsed, trimmed and halved
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 12 ounces mushrooms, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup low sodium chicken broth
  • 1 cup half-and-half
  • 1 medium container of French’s French Fried Onions

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
  2. To prepare the beans, bring a gallon of water and 2 tablespoons of salt to a boil in an 8-quart saucepan. Add the beans and blanch for 5 minutes. Drain in a colander and immediately plunge the beans into a large bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. Drain and set aside.
  3. Melt the butter in a 12-inch cast iron skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms, 1 teaspoon salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms begin to give up some of their liquid, approximately 4 to 5 minutes.
  4. Add the garlic and nutmeg and continue to cook for another 1 to 2 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over the mixture and stir to combine. Cook for 1 minute. Add the broth and simmer for 1 minute. Decrease the heat to medium-low and add the half-and-half. Cook until the mixture thickens, stirring occasionally, approximately 6 to 8 minutes.    
  5. Remove from the heat and stir in all of the green beans. Top with the onions. Place into the oven and bake until bubbly, approximately 15 minutes. Remove and serve immediately.

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Thinking Ahead to 2013

23 Nov

Hello All!  Did you have an awesome Turkey Day with family and friends?  I sure hope so!  My Thanksgiving is intimate and delicious- exactly what I need.  It’s just myself, brother, and parents.  I’ll share our normal staples and what I decided to make soon.  I imagine many of you are out taking on the Black Friday deals or possibly napping after your shopping adventures.  If that is the case, hope you made a serious dent in your holiday shopping.

I mainly wanted to post today to ask for my readers’ feedback.  As I look ahead to blogging in 2013, I am curious what you all want to see more of.  Please feel free to leave comments as well as that will help me greatly.  I appreciate your candid feedback and want to share posts that really appeal to you.  If there are things about the blog page, organization, etc. that would make your experience better I am all ears to those thoughts too.  Thanks very much in advance for taking a few minutes to share your input with me.

On deck for lifeasabalancedbean is my Chicago trip food recap.  You probably recall how much I loved my Vegas and NYC food excursions.  I just may have enjoyed Chicago EVEN MORE.  Stay tuned!  Enjoy the remainder of the holiday weekend.

Boo! Halloween Highlights

5 Nov

Having a few days at home due to Hurricane Sandy closing the federal government led to more opportunities to cook things.  I had planned to bake a brownie-based baked good for Bryan and then make it fabulously Halloween-themed.  I did some perusing on Pinterest and Google and arrived at Graveyard Brownies being THE one.  There were a bunch of versions so I simply pulled from several to end up with exactly what I wanted although some people poked fun at my “grass” (green-tinted coconut flakes) layout being illogical (Yeah, Mike I’m talking to you).   I grabbed the most fudge-laden brownie mix box possible, followed those directions, leaving most of the work to decorating scene.  Overall, I was thrilled how it turned out.  The only lessons learned were changing up the “grass” layout and buying a thicker/more substantial cookie.  The Pepperidge Farm Bordeaux cookies had the texture and squared off shape that I wanted for the tombstones, but they were too thin and eventually toppled over from, I suspect, the moisture of the brownies.  Milanos would likely fare better.  I hope you’ll make something like this next year!

Halloween night was particularly fun. Why stop at a pan of Graveyard Brownies when you can tap into your inner child dressing up and heading out for trick-or-treating. Our cover was that we were 18 year old high school students. We got some laughs and comments, but didn’t affect the candy going into the bag. It was a lot of fun running up with toddler – 10 year olds. A friend of mine had recommended this one street in our neighborhood where the whole block does it with Halloween decorations. She was not kidding!  There were haunted houses set-ups, houses with various full-on themes like a pirate ship, houses with 25+ carved pumpkins (like the super difficult designs not your typical jack-o-lantern faces), and more.  These people were spending $1,000s upon $1,000s on their decorations.  The street was absolutely packed too so I can only imagine how much candy they bought.   One house said 650 trick-or-treaters had already come by and this was at probably 7:45 pm!  It was fun to revisit the experience and we have some good loot to pick from in the coming months.  I was a highway patrol officer and Bryan was a Son of Anarchy character.  Here are the photos of our sweet costumes:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ingredients: 

  • 1 box of Duncan Hines fudge brownie mix
  • eggs (See brownie mix directions)
  • vegetable oil (See brownie mix directions)
  • 1 can of Chocolate Fudge frosting
  • Pepperidge Farm cookies (preferably Milanos, I used Bordeaux but not as stable)
  • Black or brown writing icing
  • 1 pack of ghost Peeps
  • Green food color
  • Coconut flakes
  • Mellocreme pumpkins
  • Chocolate cookie crumbs (I used Thin Mints, but Oreos would work well too; not pictured)

Directions:

  1. Follow directions on brownie mix box, baking in a 9 x 13.  Let cool 15 minutes before icing the whole pan.
  2. Tint about 1/2- 1 cup coconut flakes with a few drops of green food coloring and stir well.
  3. Crush cookies in a ziplock bag.
  4. Write RIP on one side of the top of your cookies.
  5. Decorate your pan of brownies like a graveyard!

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Lightened Up Moist Apple Cinnamon Coffee Cake

15 Oct

Another recipe resulting from apple picking.  Bryan cited this one as one of his favorite treats I’ve made in a while.  This is big seeing as chocolate is typically his calling.  I share in this being a favorite as of late.  It was extremely moist and indicative of the fall season.  Exactly what I was hoping for.  I used this recipe from a fellow blogger who LOVES apples and has a whole series of apple recipes.  I modified slightly using whole wheat flour and greek yogurt in place of all-purpose flour and sour cream.  I would suspect the whole wheat makes it taste a bit more hearty than would regular flour, but it made me feel a little better about the stick of buttaaaa.  On a final note,  you will be shocked at how thick this coffee cake is.  I mean LOOK at this…  Enjoy!

Ingredients:

Crumb Topping:

  • 1/2 cup butter, melted
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup and 2 TBSP brown sugar
  • 1 TBSP cinnamon
  • 1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour

Filling:

  • 2 tsp brown sugar
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Coffee Cake:

  • 1 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup and 2 TBSP plain greek yogurt
  • 2 1/4 tsp vanilla
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 1/2 – 2 cups apples, peeled and chopped

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Grease or use cooking spray to prepare a square baking dish.
  2. To prepare your crumb topping, mix all ingredients except the flour in a medium bowl.  Once combined, slowly add the flour and mix with a fork.  The delicious crumbles will form!  Set aside.
  3. In a small bowl, combine the filling ingredients. Set aside.
  4. In a large bowl, whisk all of the dry cake ingredients together.  Slowly add milk, greek yogurt, eggs, and vanilla until mixed.  Fold the apples in gently.                   
  5. Pour half of the cake batter into the prepared pan.  Add the dry filling ingredients distributing as evenly as possible.  Add remaining cake batter.                             
  6. Break up your topping crumbs with a fork.  Cover the batter with the crumb topping.
  7. Bake 70-75 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Do your best to allow it to cool completely before serving (Full disclosure: We made it maybe 5 minutes…)

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Touchstone Cooking Club: Asian Theme

3 Oct

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You may recall the Running Club wherein my co-workers and I were running together and training for a charity race.  Read here to JOG your memory.  Well, eventually it became wayyyy too hot so we moved onto our next favorite shared hobby.  Unanimously, we arrived at eating.  The COOKING club was born.  The idea is to have a rotating host schedule and change up the theme each time on a monthly basis.  Our first iteration was Southern Comfort food.  I still need to write about that one so consider that an IOU.  The second iteration was an Asian theme.  One of my co-workers majored in Chinese and spent a substantial portion of time there writing his thesis on various Chinese food types.  I did not know about this until after we already planned this gathering, but man did it make me all the more excited for the event.  SIDE NOTE:  This same co-worker is actually a former co-worker who left the government consulting world to pursue his passion for cookies via a now very popular food truck in DC called Captain Cookie and the Milk Man.  His cookies and cookie ice cream sandwiches…just whoa!  This will also be a post to come!

If the Cooking Club were to have all members attend, we’d be looking at around 14 people.  However with varying social schedules, the full capacity is unlikely to ever be reached.  The Southern Comfort Food themed dinner saw 12 of us though so pretty darn close.  Our Asian themed dinner was a bit more intimate with just 5 of us.  Both have been so fun and stomach-rewarding!

Per the slide show, you can see even with 5 of us we did not skimp on the eats.  Between the Chinese dumplings, eggplant dish, sushi, my salad, and drinks/desserts, everyone could have used an unbuttoned pants button in the end I imagine.  I have to say this club has been so worth its formation.  We all know what’s up in the kitchen. Next up is an Oktoberfest theme!  Also, I suspect Bryan and I will host later in the fall/winter and as you would probably guess, it’s going to be Italiano themed.  I personally aim to make it better than any Jersey Shore Sunday Family Dinner…

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Rolo Cake Mix Bars

21 Sep

I recently discovered a go-to sinful desserts blog called Cookies & Cups.  From cookie bars to cakes to breads, she (Shelly) delivers recipes that don’t disappoint those of us with a huge sweet tooth.  I have made her Hot Fudge Cheesecake Bars, Toffee Cake Mix Bars, and most recently the Rolo Cake Mix Bars.  I’m taking you into the weekend with an easy, 4 ingredient, and totally nom-able treat here, but I can promise that Monday will bring a tasty and healthy meal to recover with.  Monday’s forecast?  100% chance of Pomegranate Glazed Skirt Steak with Roasted Green Beans.  My stomach is full of this pure joy as I write this actually.  Stay tunnnnned!

Ingredients:

  • 1 box (18.25 oz- you need this size not 15.25 oz) yellow, vanilla or white cake mix ( I used Duncan Hines), dry
  • 5 oz evaporated milk
  • 1/4 cup butter, melted
  • 40 Rolo Candies, unwrapped and cut in half (the least fun part of making these is unwrapping all these little boogers)

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350° degrees and spray a 9×13 pan with nonstick spray.
  2. In a large bowl, blend cake mix, evaporated milk, and butter until combined with hand mixer. Mixture will be thick and sticky.
  3. Divide batter in half and press 1 half into the bottom of the pan.  ( I accidentally bought the smaller box of cake mix so mine was not as dry as it should have been yet it all turned out just fine.)                                                              
  4. Bake until just set, approximately 8-9 minutes.
  5. Remove base from oven and arrange your Rolos, caramel-side down.      
  6. Drop remaining batter on top of Rolos in teaspoon-sized amounts.
  7. Bake for 20-24 minutes longer until top begins to golden.
  8. Cool completely before cutting into squares.

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Pinterest Potluck and Creamy Southwestern Pumpkin Soup

19 Sep

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The fabulous wine cork center piece in the slideshow is the result of a Pinterest pin and the artistic abilities of one Zari Hamaways.  It could not be a better center piece for the occasion this photo was taken at which was a Pinterest Potluck.  Pinterest Potluck you say?  I had not heard of this fantastic idea until Miss Hamaways invited me this past week.  Basically, everyone takes some awesome recipe pin and you end up with an array of delicious dishes.  There you have it- Pinterest Potluck.  In the spirit of fall and given the opportunity to make yet another pumpkin-infused dish, I chose to whip up Creamy Southwestern Pumpkin Soup, a Southern Living recipe.  It’s a do over with its velvety texture and combo of pumpkin and southwest kick/flair.  All of the Pinterest contributions were incredibly delicious.  What a talented bunch of ladies :)  If any of the dishes are really jumping out at you, let me know and I’ll be sure to track down the recipes for ya.  I can provide the how-to on the soup of course…

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
  • 1 large onion, chopped (about 2 cups)
  • 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 5 cups chicken broth
  • 1 large baking potato, peeled and chopped (about 2 cups)
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
  • 2 cups milk
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • Garnishes: fat free plain greek yogurt, fresh cilantro sprig

Directions:

  1. Melt butter in a Dutch oven ( I don’t have one so used a large pasta pot) over medium heat. Add onion, jalapeño pepper, and garlic; sauté 15 minutes.
  2. Add chicken broth and next 4 ingredients (aka potato, salt, chili powder, and cumin); cook, stirring often, 30 minutes or until potato is tender.
  3. Remove from heat, and let cool slightly (about 5 to 10 minutes).
  4. Process potato mixture, pumpkin, and cilantro, in batches, in a food processor or blender until smooth, stopping to scrape down sides.  TIP: In a blender, I was good with just two batches so this is my recommendation given choice of small food processor or blender.
  5. Return to Dutch oven/pasta pot; stir in milk, and simmer 10 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Stir in lime juice; garnish, if desired.
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