Chocolate Pecan Truffles

Michael and I had a wonderful vacation this past weekend. We met up in Boston and had a great time site-seeing, eating, and relaxing. After I got back last night I felt like knocking something off my list of recipes to try. This recipe stood out because I had all of the ingredients besides shredded coconut (which is not very popular in the house). I left the coconut out, but feel free to add it if you're a fan. I really liked how they turned out. The truffles rolled in the cocoa powder were very chocolaty and delicious. If you're looking for a decadent but healthy treat, I recommend giving these a try. 

Ingredients

12 dates (remove the seeds)

a little less than 1 cup of pecans (can use any other type of nut)

1 tablespoon coconut oil

4 tablespoons cocoa powder

1 tablespoon water

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Throw all of the ingredients in a food processor (or blender) and blend for about a minute.

Put the dough in the fridge for at least 10 minutes.

Prepare two different bowls (or one if you only want to make one kind). One should have a tablespoon or two of cocoa powder and the other one should have a couple of tablespoons of finely chopped pecans (or nut of your choice). Form dough into balls (whatever size you'd prefer) and roll it in one or both of the bowls). 

They're ready to eat! If you're not eating them right away they're kept best in the fridge or freezer. Enjoy!

Chicken Tortilla Soup Mix

As mentioned in the previous post, I sent Michael pancake mix and a couple of dry soup mixes. Unfortunately, the potato soup mix didn't turn out well, but luckily Michael really liked the chicken tortilla soup.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons chicken bouillon granules

1 teaspoon lemon pepper

1 teaspoon dried cilantro

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup dried minced onion

1 cup rice, uncooked (Michael loves brown rice so I used brown instead of white but feel free to use either)

1 1/2 cup tortilla chips, coarsely crushed

1 can (5 oz size) chicken

1 can (10 oz size) diced tomatoes with chilies

Directions

Combine the granules, lemon pepper, cilantro, garlic powder, cumin, oregano, salt and onion in a ziplock bag and set aside. Layer rice in a one quart jar or container and put seasoning bag on top of the rice. Finally, add the crushed tortilla chips on top of the seasoning bag. Note - Make sure you include the seasoning bag. I didn't read the directions clearly and layered the tortilla chips on top of the rice. Poor Michael and to spend some time separating the two before he could make the soup. Sorry again M!

Attach the following instructions, along with the canned chicken and tomatoes):

Place tortilla chips in a small bowl; set aside. Remove seasoning packet; set aside. Add rice to a pot and stir in 10 cups of water. Mix in the tomatoes and seasoning packet. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

Add the tortilla chips. Cover and simmer for an additional 5 minutes. Spoon into bowls while still hot or save some for leftovers!

 Enjoy!

Cinnamon Oat Pancake Mix

Michael is in the middle of final exams right now. As it's a very stressful time for him, Michael's mom and I decided to send Michael a package together filled with her homemade beef jerky and something I was going to make. After a lot of brainstorming, I decided to send some pancake and homemade dry soup mixes, hoping he'd be able to quickly whip up some meals without taking too much time away from studying. I found this recipe and thought it sounded like something Michael would like. He gave the pancakes a try and really liked them. This could make a great gift for holidays, graduation, or just because.

Ingredients

4 cups quick cooking oats

4 cups whole wheat flour (or can do 2 cups whole wheat and 2 cups all-purpose)

1 cup non-fat dry milk

2 tablespoon cinnamon

5 teaspoons salt

3 tablespoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and stir well. Pour into a jar or airtight container (I used a Ziplock bag).

Attach the following directions to the jar or container:

In a mixing bowl, beat 2 eggs. Gradually beat in 1/3 cup vegetable oil. Alternately beat in 2 cups of pancake mix and 1 cup water.

Heat a lightly greased skilled over medium high heat. Pour a heaping spoonful of batter onto a hot skillet. Cook pancakes until bubbles appear on the surface and begin to break (about 2 to 3 minutes). Turn and cook 2 to 3 minutes more or until golden brown.

Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Oat Cookies

I recently saw this healthy whole wheat peanut butter choc-oat cookies recipe and thought I'd give it a try, but with some modifications. I was pretty happy with how they turned out, for being healthy cookies. Try them out and let me know what you think!

Ingredients

1/2 cup coconut oil (can use butter instead)

1/2 cup natural peanut butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla (I used a little bit more than 1/4 teaspoon and added about 10 drops of vanilla stevia)

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/4 cup oat bran (or any other flour substitute)

3/4 cup old fashioned oats

about 1 cup chocolate chips (I used mini dark chocolate chunks)

Blend the coconut oil, peanut butter, brown sugar and vanilla in a large bowl. Beat in the egg.

Slowly add in the salt, baking soda, and oat bran.

Next, stir in the old fashioned oats.

Fold in the chocolate chips.

Form dough into patties and place on cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees until the bottom of the cookies become lightly browned. It will vary depending on the size you make them, but I baked mine for about 6 minutes.

Enjoy!

Date Bars

About a week and a half ago I went to the Old Town Scottsdale farmers market with my parents. My dad bought a date nut bar from a bakery called The Bunnery. Needless to say, the three of us devoured the bar within minutes. It was so delicious we bought two more to take home and eat that night. Once those were gone I could not get  the bars out of my mind. I caught myself daydreaming about the ingredients and how he made them. I decided I HAD to try to make my own, but a healthier version. After a couple of tries I think I've got a pretty great recipe and besides the brown sugar the ingredients are all nutritious. I think this may be tied with the secret ingredient cookie dough as my favorite healthier dessert recipe. Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup of quick or old fashioned oats (I used old fashioned)

1 cup oat bran (or other flour substitute)

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup pecans (finely chopped, this is optional)

1/3 cup melted coconut oil (butter can be used)

2 egg whites

2 cups chopped dates

1 cup water

In a large bowl, mix the oats, oat bran, brown sugar, baking soda and salt. Next, I put the pecans in a food processor and processed them until they became clumpy (see picture above) and mixed them into the oat mixture. Then, add the melted coconut oil and egg whites and mix well.

Pour about 3/4 of the oat mixture into a lightly greased (I used Pam) 8 x 8 dish and press down using a spatula or wax paper. 

Once again, I used the food processor to process the dates. They don't have to be liquid but they should be pretty well chopped. Put the dates and water into a sauce pan and bring to a boil, while stirring. Continue stirring, but let the dates simmer for about 5 minutes or until the mixture becomes thickened.

Using a spatula, spread the date mixture evenly over the oat mixture.

Add the remaining oat mixture on top of the date spread. I added in clumps so some of the date spread could still be seen, but if you have a lot of oat mixture leftover, feel free to cover the whole top.

Finally, bake in the oven at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until lightly brown. When it is taken out of the oven it should not be placed on the stove to cool. I put it on the counter with a pot holder underneath.

Note - while this treat may be enjoyed right out of the oven, I think it tastes best when it has been kept in the fridge.