Sunday, February 5, 2012

Chocolate Peanut Butter Mini's


This is a prettied up version of a treat I have about once a week.  You know that nighttime in front of the television snack, when you just have to have something sweet.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Mini's

2 tsp. raw cacao powder
2 tsp. natural peanut butter
2 tsp. heavy whipping cream
sweetner of your choice - to taste

Whip together in a bowl with a spoon, put in shot glasses and top with whipping cream and a sprinkle of cocoa.

If you like dark chocolate and peanut butter you will love this dessert!  If you're anything like me, it'll never make it to the shot glasses.

credits:  my daughter, Kayla took the above pic and my friend, Crystal blinged it out!

Rutabaga Fries with Chipotle-Lime Dipping Sauce



Today 2 of my 3 kids are sick, so they're wanting comfort food.  I'm wanting to stay on my diet plan.  To me, comfort foods consist of pancakes or homemade mac 'n cheese or even enchiladas.  Carb addict <<COUGH, COUGH>>  To them comfort foods include the beloved mashed potatoes or French fries.  Guess those apples didn't fall far from the tree, did they?  So I decided to make them baked chicken and French fries.  I've had some rutabagas in the fridge crisper for a week or so with the intention of doing something with them, so today is the day.

I have to admit I'd never eaten or even heard of a rutabaga until my first holiday with my new in-laws twentysomething years ago.  My mother-in-law made mashed rutagagas with butter, salt and pepper every Thanksgiving and Christmas.  I thought they were weird and they smelled a little turnip-y. They looked nice in her beautiful serving dishes though.  They looked like golden yellow, almost translucent mashed potatoes.  After tasting them I thought they were pretty darn good.  I wasn't gonna go out and make them or anything, but they were decent.  The next year rolled around and I liked them even better.

It's odd how you can go so long without eating something and forget how much you enjoy it.  When I started low-carbing years ago, I needed a substitution for the fries I was used to having in my diet.  This veggie does the trick, it even has some fiber and protein thrown in for good measure.  They brown up beautifully, but I have a hard time getting them crispy without burning them.  If you haven't tried rutabaga before you should give it a shot.  These are good for any low-carbers, whether you follow Atkins, or paleo, South Beach or whatever low carb plan floats your boat.  They're so good even my youngest enjoys them and she gives most veggies the skunk-eye.  You can find the carb count and nutritional value here. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rutabaga


aren't these homely lil' veggies?
peel the wax-coated skin off with a knife or vegetable peeler
cut into wedges

put into a bag and add:
  • oil (I used coconut oil)
  • salt
  • chili powder
  • paprika
close and shake to coat

before shake and coat
dump onto old, ugly baking sheet - okay, maybe that's just me
bake at 375 degrees
1 1/2 hours (flip them half-way through cooking time)
If you cut them into smaller "fries" I'm sure you can cut your baking time down.  My wedges were pretty thick.
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Chipotle-Lime Dipping Sauce

  • 1 8 oz. container sour cream
  • 3-4 chipotle peppers
  • 1/4 lime juice (1 lime wedge)
  • salt to taste
mix in blender or food processor
The kids prefer their "fries" with ranch dip or ketchup, but my husband and I love this dip.




Thursday, February 2, 2012

Happy Birthday to my "baby"

A few weeks ago our youngest child had her 8th birthday.  Eight!  It's just not possible.  In my head, it was just yesterday that she was padding around in footed jammies and crawling into bed with me for a pre-breakfast cuddle.  She still does that some days, but it's getting to be less and less often.  I know this is normal, I know this is right, but it still makes me a little nostalgic for the baby days. 

 I  do think I enjoyed her babyhood the most out of all three of my kids.  With my first child I was nervous and paranoid about EVERYTHING.  You know, the whole sterilize the pacifier and the entire house type.   With my second, I was more relaxed and took more time to recognize and appreciate the special moments, but with a toddler and a baby I was simply exhausted.  With Erin, while still exhausted, I took time to cherish those 3 am feedings when our whole world was silent and it was just me and her and I could smell her sweet hair and just listen to her breathe.


I love looking through old pictures and remembering fondly all the sweet moments we've shared.  I also remember her sneakiness, like when she'd sneak snacks and hide the wrappers in the shower.  Do they think we'll not realize who left the trash there?  LOL  I do feel guilt though.....our first has 3 photo albums to flip through, our second has 1 or 2 photo albums and Erin has none.  WHAT?!?!  All of her pictures seem to be in digital format.  My goal for this year is to get some of those precious photos into an album that she can hold and be proud of.  So in honor of her birthday and her usually having to share any photo ops with her siblings I'm posting some of my favorite JUST Erin pics.

the famous boo-boo lip


napping at a lake in MN


one of my favorite pics ever!


at the San Antonio Zoo


before Pre-K


pouting after a haircut


taking a break from playing


at the Harry Potter party at the local library


Happy 8th Birthday Erin!