Pistachio Cranberry & Pistachio Orange Biscotti

Alright folks, I will be the first to say that I am not normally a fan of biscotti. However, I am always trying to change my mind about certain foods or recipes that I don't like by making a kick-butt version myself. You know, one that suits my picky little taste buds. This is one of those cases that flipped my perspective on biscotti so violently that now, two weeks after making these cookies, I am still raving about them to my roommates. Really. Ask them yourself. 

I somewhat adapted this recipe from allrecipes and despite my utter lack of experience in making biscotti, they came out beautifully. I decided to make two kinds: Cranberry-Pistachio and Orange-Pistachio. Both kinds rock, so if you have a preference of flavor go with it! Although I will say I wasn't expecting much from the Cranberry-Pistachio myself, but sure enough I easily could have scarfed down five. My mother even sent me an urgent text message about their deliciousness the next day. Thanks Mama. 

So anyway, I'll quit my boasting and share the method to my madness.

Mix up all your ingredients (sans the orange zest and cranberries), just like you would any other cookie dough, and shape it into a log.

Let said log sit in the fridge to harden up, then cut the log in half and (here comes the fun part!) knead in the orange zest to one of the halves and the cranberries into the other. Don't be afraid to get your hands messy! (But if the dough starts getting sticky, just get your fingers a little wet and they will stick-no-more)

Next, form your two doughs into logs about 2 inches wide and smooth them out a little with your fingers and water. Make sure you use parchment paper! (The bottom loaf is orange and the top is cranberry)

Bake at 300 for 35-40 minutes until light brown.

Sniff the cookies (and start getting excited) then slice them into around 3/4 inch slices and bake at 275 for another 10 minutes until they are dry and crispy-looking. 

You will not be sorry you made these. Nor will anyone else who tries them. 

makes 1 and a half dozen cookies


Ingredients
1/4 cup light olive oil
3/4 cup white sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
2 eggs
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1 tbsp orange zest
1 1/2 cups pistachio nuts


Procedure
1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
2. Mix together oil and sugar, then incorporate the vanilla extract, almond extract and eggs. In a separate bowl mix together the flour, salt, and baking powder. Gradually, combine the dry mixture into the wet mixture. 
3. Shape the dough into a log and let it sit in the fridge for at least 20 minutes to firm. Cut the log in two then mix by hand the orange zest into one loaf and the dried cranberries into the other. Then shape these two separate doughs into 2 inch wide logs and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
4. Bake the logs for 35 minutes until lightly browned. Take out and let cool for a few minutes (about 10) until cool enough to handle. 
5. Slice the logs into about 3/4 inch wide slices then place each cookie flat back onto the parchment paper. Bake at 275 degrees F for another 10 minutes until the cookies are dry, crispy, and delectable. 

Carrot-Zucchini Fritters

I am very proud of these fritters. In all honesty, I wasn't even planning on making them. I grated a bunch of carrots and zucchini for a carrot-zucchini bread recipe, but realized after that grating 2 carrots and 2 zucchini for 1 loaf of bread...that... my math was wrong. Luckily, with the leftover grated carrot and zucchini, I was able to whip up these babies! And guess what else I put in them? (Bet you can't!!) Wheat Thins. Sun-dried Tomato Basil Wheat Thins to be exact. Weird, huh? But so good! 
And its simple too!

 Just grate your carrot, zucchini, and parmesan cheese...

...dice some onion...

 ...process a handful of Wheat Thins...

 ...mix all that with flour, salt, pepper, and egg...

...then plop 'em on the saute pan and get to cooking your fritters!


makes about a dozen fritters


Ingredients

1/2 cup parmesan, grated

1/2 cup Sun-dried tomato Basil Wheat Thins (post-food processor)

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/4 tsp salt

black pepper

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/2 onion, died

1 carriot, grated

1 zucchini, grated

a dash of olive oil

Procedure

1. Process about a dozen Wheat Thins in a food processor until it is a powder. Mix up all the dry ingredients: Wheat Thins, parmesan, flour, salt, and pepper. 

2. Lightly beat an egg, then mix it in with the dry ingredients along with the onion, carrot and zucchini.

3. Heat a dash of oil on a saute pan at medium heat, then place about 1/4 cup sized balls of the mixture onto the pan. Press patties down with a spatula to flatten them and cook for approximately 3-4 minutes on each side. Repeat until all of the mixture has been used.

*Note: Eating alone? Well me too! So just make a couple of patties now, and put the rest of the mixture in a sealed container in the fridge. That way you can just pull em out and fry em up whenever you want :) 

Apple Nachos

Apple nachos may sound a tad silly, but they are so tasty and have so much potential for different delicious topping combos. Here I did Chobani vanilla Greek yogurt, melted peanut butter, crushed up cinnamon Life cereal, and some more cinnamon sprinkled on top. Great for kids or childish adults (like yours truly). 

1 serving

Ingredients

1 apple (whatever you like!) 

Any of the following: peanut butter (melted in the microwave), yogurt, cinnamon, brown sugar, chopped nuts, cereal, dried cranberries (or anything other small dried fruit), chocolate chips, sprinkle, melted caramel...use your imagination! Apple nachos are pretty hard to mess up. 

Procedure

1. Slice apple into thin slices that can be eaten in one or two bites. 

2. Top with toppings.

3. Devour. 

Vegetable Burrito Bowl

Is this a Chipotle knock-off? Yes. Is it better than the original? I think so. Bold claim, I know, but this spin on Chipotle's Mexican-style burrito bowl is just so good!! It has kind of a bunch of steps, but the result is so worth it. Trust me.

First step: toss a can of black beans, a can of Amy's Spicy Vegetarian Chili in the Crock Pot, and almost an entire diced onion for an hour and a half. Then toss in two bell peppers, fresh jalapeno, garlic and spices in the pot. Let it hang out for  another hour and a half on low.

When it gets nearer to dinner time cook your brown rice (isn't it cool that Chipotle does brown rice now!?) and toss it with fresh cilantro and lime juice. This rice is awesome. I used its leftovers the next day in another Crock Pot dish, Mexican Stew (will be posted and linked soon!).

 Next grab a fork and squash up your avocado. Proceed to mix it with diced tomato, salt, and a tad more onion. Then lick that fork. Yummy, right? 

Finally, pile your bowl high: rice on the bottom, bean mixture, lettuce, cheese, guac, and salsa on top. What is that? 6 layers? You know you want it.


Serves 4 (at least) 
Ingredients 

1 15 oz can black beans 

1 15 oz can spicy veggie chili (Amy's Brand)

Almost all of an onion (save a little for the guac)
1 red bell pepper, seeded and sliced
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and sliced
1 jalapeno, sliced
4 cloves garlic
1 tbsp chili powder 
1 tsp cumin
1 bunch cilantro
1 cup cooked brown rice
1 lime, juice of
1 avocado
1/2 tomato, diced
lettuce (I used plain old red-tip leaf lettuce, chopped into ribbons) 
pre-grated Mexican cheese blend

1/4 cup hot! salsa (I used Rita's brand-a thin bright red salsa from a little restaurant in town) 
salt

Procedure

1. Put the can of beans, chili, and onion in the Crock-Pot. Heat on low for 90 minutes. Then add bell peppers, jalapeno, garlic, chili powder, cumin and 1 tsp salt. Let cook for another 90 minutes. 
2. About half an hour before dinner cook your rice according to the package instructions. Once its finished gently mix in your cilantro leaves and lime juice. You most likely will not need the whole bunch of cilantro. I only used about a quarter of the bunch; just eyeball it as you're mixing the rice and use however much suits you. 
3. Make the avocado mixture just before serving by smashing the avocado with a fork, then mixing it with the diced tomato, leftover diced onion, and about 1/8 tsp salt. 
4. Serve ingredients in a bowl with rice on the bottom, then bean mixture, lettuce, cheese, guac, and salsa on top. 
5. Fiesta!

Tropical Sunrise Oatmeal

     
      This oatmeal reminds me of a Hawaiian smoothie...but hearty, protein-rich, and full of fiber. I made this  for my boyfriend who prefers his meals prepared simple and was not happy with me when I announced that our breakfast had been spruced up with ingredients other than brown sugar and cinnamon. Lucky for me, we both loved it! The bananas become soft and caramelized from the brown sugar and the oats absorb the flavors of the orange juice and coconut. So easy and quick, with all the nutrients to get your day started off right. Seriously, my mouth is watering just thinking about it. 


Start by mixing up all your ingredients: oats, water, coconut, oj, brown sugar and banana into a microwave-bowl.

Then all you gotta do is pop it in the microwave for 5 minutes!

Beware: if you use a mug like I did you have to watch it like a hawk... Or else you'll have a mess to clean up like I did. Doh!

Mess or no mess, this oatmeal is good. And you should try it!


makes 1 serving
Ingredients:

1/2 cup rolled oats

1 cup water

1/2 banana, sliced

1 tbsp shredded coconut flakes

1 tbsp brown sugar + a bit more to sprinkle on top

dash of oj

about 1 tbsp chopped nuts for garnish (and deliciousness)

Procedure:

1. Mix all ingredients besides the nuts into a microwave safe bowl or mug. 

2. Microwave for 4-6 minutes until the oats are puffed up and soft. Careful! The dish will be hot! Definitely worth grabbing an oven mitt. 

Recipe Ideas

Some fun recipe ideas I'd like to toy with....
(but if you get to them before I do, let me know how they turn out, okay?)

Entrees

-Asian Black Bean Burgers with Peanut Sauce

         --peanut sauce with soy & ginger, guac with crushed peanuts, fried egg, black bean burger (add some soy sauce here too!)

Deserts

-Cherry Cordial Cupcakes

-Healthy Zucchini Cupcakes with peanut butter and Carrot Cream Cheese Frosting 

          --base on zucchini bread recipe, add cornstarch & applesauce 

          --what's as good as cream cheese but healthier??

-Peanut Butter and Jelly cookies
-Butterscotch Brownies
          --melt butterscotch chips and swirl them into the batter (like how I did for this white chocolate raspberry cheesecake)

Please excuse the disjointed fashion of this post...I still haven't quite gotten the hang of making pretty posts yet!