Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie

(Sometimes Blogger annoys me when it doesn't load my pictures right...)

I love chocolate.

With peanut butter.

I love bananas.

With peanut butter.

And chocolate.

So this was pretty much the perfect recipe.  Especially for summer time.

I found this recipe a long time ago on Pinterest.  I've used it often.  Especially when I have frozen bananas.  Because I only like them so ripe...  Once they get really ripe and brown-spotty...  Yuck.  I just have to slice them up and freeze them before they get to that point.

Anyway, this is a link to a recipe similar to the original one I found.  The original one I found disappeared one day.  And this one helped me to remember it after I hadn't made it in a while.  And now I'll record how I have it memorized, just in case I forget it again :).  (My version is a little different... but it works for me, so I keep doing it this way :)).

1 large ripe banana, sliced and frozen
1 cup of milk
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
1 tablespoon peanut butter

Put all ingredients in a blender and blend until bananas are well blended.  The frozen bananas will make it sort of slushy/Frosty consistency -- at least for a little while.

I make mine in a pint-sized mason jar.  Narrow-mouth ones generally fit the blender's bottom stuff.  So I just turn it upside down and blend -- then drink from the jar.  Saves me from having to use the big blender when this is perfect for one:  me.  Well, and my munchkin.  I happen to like her enough to share ;).

This is bomb.  And made with plain basic ingredients.  Many reasons to like it :).  And, in case you were wondering, I'm keeping it.  And plan to make it again and again and again...

Copy-Cat Panera Mac and Cheese

Two things I want to say right away:

1.  I wish I had a different colored bowl to help the mac and cheese really pop.  Because I'm not a fancy food photographer (though I wouldn't mind being ;)...).
2.  I've never actually been to Panera and had their mac and cheese.  So I cannot say if this is a good copy-cat or not.  It's times like these when I need to have my dear friend Stacy living nearby so she can be my taste-tester.  Not only has she eaten the real thing, she also has exquisite taste in things like cheese.

That said...  I have been doing a lot of searching Pinterest for stove-top recipes for summer-time.  And, because I'm a huge macaroni and cheese enthusiast, I am always drawn to pins for macaroni and cheese -- of pretty much any sort.  But when I saw this was a copycat of Panera's...  Well, I've heard the scuttlebutt from Stacy about that stuff.  So I knew I needed to try it.  And we did.

I definitely like that the recipe doesn't call for hard-to-find ingredients.  True, they aren't all ingredients I have on hand all the time, so I did have to do some shopping (mostly for the cheese), but they weren't difficult to find.

Also, the recipe was easy.  And I followed it almost exactly, except for the type of pasta I used (I used shell pasta) and I used salted butter, so omitted the salt.

Here's the recipe:

16 oz pipette pasta or other small pasta shape
4 tbsp unsalted butter
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 1/2 cups milk, heavy cream, or half-and-half
4 oz white American cheese, chopped or torn into pieces
8 oz extra sharp white Vermont cheddar, shredded
2 tsp - 1 tbsp Dijon mustard (adjust according to your tastes)
1 tsp Kosher salt
1/4 tsp hot sauce (like Frank's)

In a large stockpot, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain well.

While the pasta cooks, melt the butter in a 4-quart sauce pan over medium heat. When the butter has melted and has started to bubble, whisk in the flour; cook for 1 1/2 minutes whisking constantly. Gradually whisk in the milk until no lumps remain. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook milk mixture, whisking frequently, until it thickens and bubbles, about 8 minutes.

Remove sauce pan from the heat and by the handful, stir in the cheeses allowing all of the cheese to melt into the sauce before adding more. Stir in the mustard, salt, and hot sauce. Return the sauce pan to the heat and stir in the pasta. Be sure to stir up the sauce from the bottom of the sauce pan and thoroughly coat all of the pasta with sauce. Cook for 1-2 minutes over medium-low heat until heated through. Serve hot in bowls with spoons.

(Again, recipe is from http://www.smells-like-home.com)

My thoughts:  This is definitely rich and creamy.  And very, very filling.  The recipe claims to serve 4.  Often, in our house, that just isn't the case.  I love macaroni and cheese.  And my husband can eat a lot (though I have no idea where he puts it).  But this is definitely a macaroni and cheese that literally serves 4, in my opinion.  I was beyond full after 1 bowl (the one pictured).  My husband had seconds, but not a huge helping.  And I put plenty away for leftovers.  My toddler loved this too, but didn't eat a lot of it -- again, I think because it's so filling.  She ate everything I gave her happily and excitedly, but didn't want more food when she was done. 

I honestly don't know if I'll make this recipe again.  It was good.  But it may have been a little too rich for me (I'm glad I used whole milk and not heavy cream!).  I will be trying to try the Panera, though...  Just so I know how close this recipe is :). 

Apple Pie Jelly

A few months ago, I was asked to make apple jelly for an upcoming wedding -- to be given away as wedding favors.  I immediately jumped onto Pinterest to find a good recipe.  And this is the one I decided on.

Let me say, this is a great recipe.  It is easy and quick -- and it tastes delicious.  In fact, since I changed the recipe up (just a tad), I decided to give it a slightly different name and call it Apple Pie Jelly, since my husband commented that it tastes like apple pie.  It is very sweet, though.  So if that's not your thing, you may not enjoy this jelly like we do.

So I mostly stuck with the recipe as found.  But I changed the red-hots (cinnamon candies) to cinnamon.  Also, I always double the original recipe.  So the recipe below is the way I make it every time.


5 1/3 cups apple juice (can use cider)
2 boxes pectin
6 cups sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Pour apple juice into a large pot and whisk in both boxes of pectin while heating over medium-high heat.  Bring to a hard boil.  Add sugar and cinnamon.  Return to a hard boil and boil a full two minutes, stirring constantly.

Pour into jelly jars and seal according to your preference.  (I usually water bath my jellies, but these jars are small and the lids cannot be water-bathed, so we are doing a wax seal).

Makes about 63 ounces of jelly (or about 4 pints).

I'm thinking I may be sending some apple pie jelly out in Christmas packages this year...

Burrito Bowls

I've mentioned before that I do not feel the need to use the oven when it is hot outside.  And I also wanted to find some meatless meals in an effort to cut back on our grocery costs (beef becoming more expensive and all...). 

So this was a recipe I found on Pinterest.  The original recipe can be found here.  I mostly followed the recipe, but added a few things and deleted a few.  Prior to our additions, this is a vegan meal, I think.  We added plain yogurt (or sour cream if you prefer) and cheese, though.  Also, I didn't feel like buying a chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, so I didn't make the creamy topping.  Which was probably a mistake...

1 cup raw white rice
2 (or more) cups water
1/2 cup salsa
2 cups black beans, rinsed and drained
1 1/2 cups corn (I used a mix of thawed frozen corn and THRIVE corn which I rehydrated)
2 cups shredded lettuce
1 cup tomatoes, chopped
green onions, optional
cheddar cheese, optional
sour cream or plain yogurt, optional
cilantro, optional

Cook the rice (using the water ;)) as you normally would.  When rice is done cooking, mix in the salsa. 

Layer rice, then beans, lettuce, tomato and any other options you choose to add.

Verdict:  Discard.  I wasn't impressed.  Even with our addition of cheese and plain yogurt, this just needed something more.  It was too bland to me.  Maybe I would have enjoyed it more with the adobo sauce.  What I'm learning is that I am not cut out to be vegan.  The food always turns out bland, in my opinion.  Or maybe I just need to experiment more with seasonings.  But... it was a meatless meal, so it did help save on cost...

Party Like It's 19[80-Something]

Anyone who knows me knows I love the 80s.  Everything 80s.  I really don't know why.  But I do. 

The movies:  Pretty in Pink, Sixteen Candles, The Goonies, Dirty Dancing, Back to the Future, Batman... (the list goes on, but I won't)

The music:  Safety Dance (I hope this gets stuck in your head), You Give Love a Bad Name (if the first song isn't, then this one surely is...), Manic Monday, Walk Like an Egyptian, Mad About You... (the list goes on, but I won't...)

The TV shows:  Growing Pains, Just the 10 of Us, Who's the Boss, Major Dad, Quantum Leap, Charles in Charge...  (the list goes on, but I won't ;))

The Cartoons:  Smufs, Snorks, Shirt Tails, Garfield and Friends, My Little Pony, Rainbow Brite, She-Ra, and He-Man...

The Toys:  Popples, Cabbage Patch Kids (I preferred the Premies), the awesome Barbies (like Evening Glow and Peaches and Cream and Barbie and the Rockers), Rainbow Brite, She-Ra, and He-Man...

The Fads and Styles:  side pony tails, crimped hair, leg warmers, jelly shoes, leggings with lace...

It was just an awesome decade. 

So why not celebrate it with an 80s-themed party?  I mean, what can be better than combining all of that awesomeness with food?  Granted, it's been a few years since I've done this...  But even so.  Definitely some of the best times I've had.  These are from two different parties.

The first party was in Florida in 2009.  We wanted to come up with items that came out in the 80s.  It was harder than we thought, so we added a few extras like a Stromboli and chips and dip.  But our authentic 80s fare was pizza rolls (painted green for Ninja Turtles), fig newtons, pop rocks, oreo truffles (in awesomely bright 80s colors) and TAB soda (nasty stuff, but pure 80s) with Charleston Chews and Reese's Pieces candy.

Crimped hair, long dangly big earrings and pop rocks...  I'd already sloughed the jean jacket... It was hot in Florida.

The second party was in 2009 in Washington.  At the funeral home where I used to work.  A staff party, after hours, of course. 

Rather than go with foods that came out in the 80s (since we learned that was a challenge), we mostly went with naming various foods after something 80s-related.  Personally, I think it was bomb.

 We kept the candies, because apparently they were 80s.

 But we made Oreo Truffles [Shuffle] a la Chunk in The Goonies

 Lots of 80s candy:  ring pops, Now & Later, and Pop Rocks

A "Where's the Beef?" and Onion Cheeseball with Puttin' on the Ritz crackers (inspired by my sister's most favorite song by Taco). 

Someone who hadn't originally planned to come decided at the last minute to join us, so he provided grapes.  And I came up with the foodie tag:  The [Grapest] American Hero.
 

Some Bananarama Bread to help us get through that Cruel Summer. 

 And some Raspberry Beret Jam to top the Bananarama Bread.

Some He-Manwich.  I think it speaks for itself.  I also thought this was purely ingenious.

Some nice cold refreshing Pretty in Pink lemonade.

Along with some Breakfast Club Sandwiches.  (I feel like I'm playing the Now and Later category in Jeopardy.)

And, finally, some Cowabunga! Pizza Rolls.  To pay homage to those heroes in a half-shell who are green.  And love pizza.

Yep, call me a total food and 80s dweeb.  I'll wear the title proudly.  These were some of the best times.  And though I may not be able to yell, "Man I love being a turtle!"  I can yell, "Man I love being a foodie!"  And I love the 80s too.

Crunch Wrap Supremes -- At Home!

Back when I had just started my addiction to Pinterest, I found a pin for home-made Crunch Wrap Supremes.

Call me gross, but I'm a total Taco Bell fan.  (Unless the recent report I read is true...  Then I'll have to stop being a fan.)

Of course, now I don't have to worry about what meat I'm eating, if I make it at home, right?

Anyway, we really like these.  I've made them with shredded cheddar cheese as well as with the canned nacho cheese.  I think I prefer the cheddar.

The one thing that prevents me from making these often is that they are all "hands-on."  It's not a fix-it-and-forget-it type of thing.  But they are easy.  And they do go relatively fast, considering you can only do so many at a time (if I had a griddle, it'd go quicker).

So here's where I found the recipe originally.

And here's the recipe:

1/2 to 1 pound ground beef*
taco seasoning
chopped tomatoes
shredded lettuce
shredded Cheddar or nacho cheese
sour cream*
large burrito-sized flour tortillas (the bigger you can get them the better)
crunchy round corn tortillas

*If I use 1/2 pound of beef, I add a small can (14 ounce) of refried beans to the meat.  I have also used plain yogurt to replace the sour cream, but I prefer the sour cream.

Brown meat.  Drain.  Add taco seasoning to taste.  Heat a large skillet over medium heat.

On a flat surface, lay out a flour tortilla.  Place a portion of the meat and shredded cheese in the center of the tortilla.  Lay a crunchy corn tortilla on top.  Then put a layer of sour cream, lettuce, and tomato.  Fold edges of flour tortilla up and over, working to encase the filling.  I find I usually have to tear pieces from an extra tortilla and place over the lettuce and tomato in order to make the flour tortilla cover the filling completely. 

Spray cooking spray in pan.  Place in pan and cover.  Cook about 1 to 2 minutes.  Then flip and cook another 1 to 2 minutes.  Repeat with remaining ingredients.

I find that I usually get about 6 crunch-wraps out of this.  And they are filling (I usually only eat one).

Graduation Cupcakes & Diplomas

So for part of the youth activity tonight, we wanted to recognize one of the girls who is graduating.  Because I am a total foodie, I said I'd be in charge of doing something foodie and cute, since we had decided to play board games for the activity.

Being that I'm not super creative with ideas....  I turned to Pinterest.  And it totally delivered.  Although, initially, I was thinking I could bake a 9x13 cake and try to cut it into a graduation hat (this probably would have been disastrous), I found something much better.  (Here is the website with the idea for the hats.  And for the diplomas (though this is just a link to a picture...).)  Graduation caps made out of candy and put on cupcakes!  And then I found little diploma ideas to boot!  So here are the pictures of my caps... and diplomas:

And here's how I did it:

Diplomas:

Little Debbie Swiss Rolls
Curling ribbon

Tie curling ribbon around the middle of each Swiss Roll.  Use scissors to curl ribbon ends.


Graduation Cap Cupcakes

1 box cake mix of your choice (I used dark chocolate)
1 container frosting of your choice (I used vanilla)
mini Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
Hershey's bars broken into squares (could also use Ghirardelli squares, but WinCo didn't have any)
brown mini M&Ms
Chocolate for melting (I used leftover Hershey bar)

Bake cupcakes according to box directions.  Cool completely.  Frost. 

While cupcakes are cooling, unwrap peanut butter cups and have all candies ready to go.  Melt chocolate and put into a small Ziploc bag.  Cut of small corner for piping out melted chocolate.  Using melted chocolate, place a Hershey's square (writing-side down) on top of peanut butter cup.  Put a drop of chocolate in the center of square and place M&M on it.  Allow to dry.  Place on top of cooled and frosted cupcakes (I transported these, so I put the caps on once I got to where I was going).

**  I had intended to do tassels, but got the wrong kind of candy... I was trying Red Vines, since the WinCo didn't have the Rippy Bits that the original poster suggested...  The Red Vines were too stiff.  So I just left off the tassel.  Still pleased with how they turned out :).

Loved these.  And so did the girls, particularly the girl graduating.  She exclaimed (about the Swiss Rolls):  "They look like little diplomas!!!" 

So yeah, I consider this a success.  They weren't hard, and it was fun!