The Nifty Foodie

Happy early St. Paddy’s Day y’all! When I was a kid, my family used to go to the St. Patrick’s Day parade in New Orleans. The parades for St. Paddy’s Day aren’t anything like the ones at Mardi Gras. The prized throws are vegetables. That’s right, y’all. They throw vegetables at these parades. Cabbage, carrots, potatoes…you name it! I remember catching these things as a kid, and thinking that these were the most boring throws ever. Of course veggies are boring to a kid! The tradition is that you take home your catches, and then make a stew for your family for the holiday.

The fun part for me was when some older men would walk in the parade carrying these huge displays of fake flowers, and they would hand them to the ladies and little girls. My sister and I used to compare bouquets at the end of the parade, and man, it was so much fun to get flowers as a little girl!

Sadly, I haven’t been to a parade in a long time, which really should be remedied next year, but the memories I have from my childhood just make me so psyched for the holiday. Not to mention, St. Paddy’s Day is the week of my birthday (as well as my sister’s)! Her birthday is actually today! If you’re reading this, Happy Birthday Sis!

As far as these cookies go, I’ve been wanting to make these M&M cookies for a while, and since I had a bag of Christmas M&Ms leftover from the holiday bake-palooza, I took a few minutes to take out the green M&Ms, add some white chocolate chunks and make these cookies finally happen. I have no idea how that bag of M&Ms lasted this long in our house, actually, but I guess I’m getting some willpower from the good ol’ diet.

Strictly for quality control purposes, I had to try one of these bad boys. It took a lot for me to not grab a second or a third, because I just LOVE M&M cookies! This recipe couldn’t be easier either, since it only requires one bowl. I’m all about doing less dishes, so these cookies are even more awesome because of that!

M&M White Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Source: mildly adapted from Sing For Your Supper, originally from King Arthur Flour

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/3 cup & 1 tbsp. granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar, light or dark
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/2 cups all purpose Flour
• 2 tbsp. milk
• 1.5 cups M&Ms
• 1/2 cup white chocolate chunks

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and prepare two baking sheets lined with parchment or Silpat sheets.
2. Cream the butter and sugars together until light and fluffy, for about two minutes. Add the baking soda, baking powder, salt and vanilla and mix until well-incorporated. Add the egg and mix until blended. Scrape the bowl down, add the milk and mix again.
3. Add the flour and beat the mixture until just mixed together. Do not overbeat.
4. Using a spatula, lightly stir in the M&Ms and white chocolate chunks.
5. With a regular cookie scoop, drop the cookies on your sheet, allowing 2 inches between each cookie. Bake the cookies for 14-16 minutes, until the cookies are a light golden brown and slightly browner along the edges. Allow the cookies to fully cool on the cookie sheet before serving.

Happy Valentine’s Day everyone! I know that Valentine’s Day is really just a typical day where Hallmark and the flower shop make bank, but sometimes it’s fun to just give in and be gushy about the day. This past weekend, my husband and I decided to make our own Valentine’s Day dinner instead of wasting crazy amounts of money and time at a restaurant around here. We made an insanely indulgent dish (hello butter!) consisting of corn grits, crawfish etouffee and fried jump shrimp. I know…cheat day! Since H and I have been calorie counting for a couple of weeks now, it made us sluggish the rest of the day. I guess our bodies are getting used to this healthy thing.

So, today I figured I’d share with y’all something that would make your cheat day complete.   The plan was to bring this dessert to work for a charity bake sale, so I knew if I made these, I could easily get them out of the house if they were too tasty and tempting. Thank goodness too, because in my quality control test (ha!), I found that these were extremely tasty! I hope they sell out, because I don’t want to bring any of these home! Or maybe I do, but MyFitnessPal might yell at me.

Just a note: I will say that one batch does not make many of these. I made a double batch for the sale, and ended up with 22 whoopie pies.

Red Velvet Whoopie Pies
Source: found on Big Apple Nosh (cookie recipe originally from Better Homes and Gardens)

Ingredients:

For the whoopie pies:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 stick butter, softened
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 of a  1-oz bottle red (preferably No-Taste Red by Wilton or Super Red by Americolor) food coloring

For the filling:

• 1 8 oz. package cream cheese
• 1.5 sticks unsalted butter, softened
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 lb confectioners sugar, sifted (you may not need all of it) 
• pink food coloring (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a Silpat mat.
2. In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt until well blended.
3. In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter for about two minutes until light and fluffy. Add the brown sugar and mix until well blended. Add in the egg, vanilla and food coloring and beat the wet mixture until everything is incorporated.
4. Add the flour and buttermilk mixture a third at a time (alternatively), until the mixture is just mixed. (Don’t overbeat)
5. Using a cookie scoop, scoop out the whoopie pies on the baking sheet, giving about an inch in between each cookie for rising/spreading.
6. Bake the cookies for 9-11 minutes, until the tops of the whoopie pies are set. Allow all of the cookies to cool before filling.
7. To make the filling, beat the cream cheese and butter together for a couple of minutes until fluffy and light. Add the vanilla and optional food coloring. Then, in 1/2 cup increments, add the confectioners sugar until the frosting is fairly firm but still easily stirrable. (A good way to test this is to put an offset spatula in the frosting bowl. If the spatula remains standing, it’s firm enough.)
8. Place the filling in a ziploc bag with the tip cut off and pipe some of the filling on the flat side of one cookie. Then sandwich that cookie together with another whoopie pie that isn’t frosted (where the flat tops meet).

Part of me cannot believe that the Superbowl is Sunday. I mean, that’s the end of football season until next Fall. I have to wait at least six months to watch another game after this. Sad.  (If you know me, you know I’m being dead serious about how sad this is to me. Crazy football fan here!) A perk of Superbowl Sunday? Watching Millie run up to the TV when I randomly switch over to the Puppy Bowl.

To mourn celebrate the end of another football season, here’s some great recipes that will definitely disappear if you serve them at your Superbowl parties.

Restaurant Style Queso Blanco

Restaurant Style Salsa

Crawfish Pies

Crawfish Cheesecake

Pork and Sausage Jambalaya

Berry Mash Bruschetta

Sugar Cookie Bars

Peanut Butter Cheesecake Brownies

Oreo Cupcakes

Oh, and if you have an occasional puppy bowl break, I’m pretty sure the dogs at your party would love you for these!

Peanut Butter and Pumpkin Dog Treats

A couple of weeks ago, I was scouring Target’s 90% off post-Christmas sale. By the time that sale comes around, all of our Christmas stuff is put away in the attic, but I usually don’t have my sights set on decor at that point. I go to the 90% off sales for birthday wrapping goods. I know that sounds weird, but when you can buy bright colored curling ribbon, white or kraft tissue paper, and/or solid colored gift bags for pennies on the dollar, it’s completely worth it. Sometimes I also go in hoping to score some hidden treasures to keep Lane Bryant in business, like a bag of Ghirardelli holiday candies or in this case, a bag of cinnamon M&Ms.

When I originally saw these, I was hesitant to purchase them, because I didn’t know if these M&Ms were a subtle cinnamon spice or red hot cinnamon-like chocolate candies. I’m not a big fan of red hots, so I didn’t want to take a chance. Well, that is, until the bag was 90% off. Who can refuse a big bag of M&Ms for thirty cents?

So, I gave them a try one night and was pleasantly surprised. These M&Ms had just a hint of cinnamon spice, which proved to be a little addictive. So, before I ate the whole bag, I got to googling and saw these cookies on Picky Palate.

I thought my problems were solved. Bake up these cookies to bring to coworkers and use up all the M&Ms. However, the quality control side of me took over, and before I knew it, 3 of these cookies were gone. There’s nothing like a freshly baked cookie…just couldn’t help myself here…these were insanely good!

To prevent myself from no longer fitting in Lane Bryant (they have size limits, too haha!), I put these cookies away in a container to bring to coworkers. Thankfully, these cookies were so awesome that by the time I went back in the break room to heat up my lunch, my cookie plate only had crumbs remaining. I’d say these were a winner.

Cinnamon M&M Oatmeal White Chocolate Chip Cookies
adapted from: Picky Palate

Ingredients:

• 2 sticks softened unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tbsp. pure vanilla extract
• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1 bag white chocolate chips
• 1 9.90 ounce bag Cinnamon M&M’s

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Using a mixer, beat the butter, brown sugar and white sugar in a bowl for 2-3 minutes on medium to medium-high speed, until the mixture is light and fluffy. Scrape down the bowl and add the eggs and vanilla extract. Mix for about a minute on low, or until well combined.
3. In another bowl, mix the flour, baking soda and salt together with a whisk. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the dry mixture to the wet mixture. Add the cinnamon, rolled oats and white chocolate chips and mix on low until the mixture is just combined.
4. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat. With a medium sized cookie scoop, scoop out the dough and place each cookie about an inch apart on the sheet since these cookies spread a little. Press the cookies down slightly, to just flatten them, and press 4-5 M&Ms on each cookie.
5. Bake the cookies for 9-12 minutes (I let them go for 12 minutes, which made them barely brown along the edges), and allow the cookies to cool for a few minutes before moving the baked cookies to a cooling rack.

Just a quick reminder. Today is the last day to enter to win one of these four awesome cookbooks! Your chances are great, so check out this post to see how to win!

It’s 2012! Even though it’s really just a date, it’s cool to mentally have a new start at things. I’m not going to make BIG resolutions anymore, because I tend to let myself down. So, I have my 101 goals in 1001 days list to look to every once in a while, and I’m hoping to reach a few of those small goals sometime this year.

Every New Year’s Day, my Memaw holds a spaghetti and meatball dinner. No, we don’t have black eyed peas or cabbage. We have spaghetti and meatballs. Sounds boring, but trust me, this isn’t your average spaghetti and meatballs. Oh man. We only have it once a year, and the sauce is just the most divine, flavorful red sauce. I haven’t had a comparable red sauce, to date. It’s the best. ever.

This family meal was so much different than Christmas for us. Since we hosted Christmas last week, it was good to just sit back and enjoy good food and family time. I’m not saying we didn’t have a good time, but of course, when you host anything, it’s really hard to sit back and fully relax.

Whenever we’re invited to a meal or a party, I always offer to bring something. I’m usually told “no”, and I kind of was told “no” this year (oh well). Memaw mentioned, however, that she wanted me to find a recipe for her to give her at the party. Up until a few years ago, she used to order a grasshopper cheesecake (like the drink, not the bugs) from a company, but they discontinued making the cheesecake. She simply asked me to find a recipe for a grasshopper cheesecake, but I went a step further and brought her the cheesecake. That’s just how I roll.

Since my Memaw is diabetic, I used the Splenda baking blend in the filling instead of sugar. Keep in mind if you use Splenda to make this, you have to use 1/2 of the amount a recipe calls for. Of course, I was worried about how the cheesecake would come out, since it’s a sugar substitute, but as you can see, the cheesecake came out just fine. In fact, my family could not stop eating this cheesecake and I had an empty cake stand to bring home, which always marks a good recipe.

I did mildly adapt a few things, based on comments I read on the recipe site. I also changed the crust to an oreo crust since I had some oreos to use up.

Grasshopper Cheesecake
Source: adapted from Betty Crocker

Ingredients:

For the crust:

• 1 3/4 cups of crushed oreos (cream filling removed…about 20 oreos)
• 2 tbsp. butter, melted

For the filling:

• 4 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 3- 8oz. packages of cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup granulated sugar (or 1/2 cup Splenda baking blend)
• 4 eggs
• 1/3 cup creme de menthe liquer

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 300°F.
2. To prepare the springform pan for the water bath, wrap foil around the outside of the pan along the bottom and sides of a 9 inch non-stick springform pan.
3. In a large bowl, mix crust ingredients with fork until crumbly. Press the crust on the bottom and about 1 inch up the side of the pan.
4. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 12 minutes. Once the crust is baked, place the pan in the freezer to cool down while you make the filling.
5. In a small microwavable bowl, microwave the chocolate on high for 60 seconds and stir the chocolate. Microwave in 30 second intervals until just melted and smooth. Set the chocolate aside to slightly cool.
6. In a mixer bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed for about 4 minutes, until the mixture is smooth and fluffy. Scrape the bowl down frequently. Add eggs, one at a time, beating for about a minute, until the mixture is smooth. Stir in liqueur on low. Reserve 1/4 cup of the cheesecake mixture.
7. Take the pan out of the freezer and pour the rest of the filling evenly over crust.
8. Stir the 1/4 cup of cheesecake mixture into the melted (but cooled) semi-sweet chocolate. Drop 8 to 10 spoonfuls of the chocolate mixture randomly onto filling. With a knife or small spatula, swirl the chocolate mixture into the cheesecake mixture.
9. Fill a roasting pan with about 1 1/2 inches of hot water to make the water bath for the cheesecake. Carefully place the springform pan in the roasting pan, and place the roasting pan in the oven. Bake for 70-80 minutes, until the edge looks set. Turn oven off and open door slightly (I just leave it open by placing a wooden spoon in the door). Cool cheesecake in the oven for 1 hour. Remove the cheesecake from the oven and remove the foil from the pan. Place the pan on a cooling rack and allow it to cool at room temperature for 1 hour. After it has cooled, refrigerate the cheesecake for 3 hours or overnight.
10. To serve, carefully remove the cheesecake from the springform pan and enjoy!