Red Velvet Cake Puppy Chow!

Going through a deployment is like becoming Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Some days I'm super- positive, motivated, strong military wife, driving around town taking care of business, hoo-rah! And some days I get in the car, turn on the radio, hear Rascal Flatts and cry for like 10 minutes. Okay maybe 15. And then I go out into the world and give every happy, hand-holding couple the evil eye. It's not pretty. Today was the latter, angry military wife. I just miss my husband, for realz. It's been 103 days since I said goodbye to him (but who's counting?!) and we have 77 to go. So, today I needed chocolate. I was daydreaming of a red velvet cupcake, mmm! But didn't feel like baking. Since I made the cake batter puppy chow I've been brainstorming different combos of puppy chow, and my red velvet craving just made today's recipe so clear. 

Okay, my little sob story aside this stuff is GOOD. It's richer than the cake batter puppy chow, and it really hit the spot. No baking necessary. Who doesn't love that?

UPDATE: I have had a couple of readers inform me that they have used melted frosting in place of the melted chocolate with great success.  If you have frosting on hand try heating in the microwave in 15-20 second intervals (it will melt FAST) until desired consistency and mix with cereal in place of melted white chocolate. Hope this helps!

Ingredients:
1 cup white chocolate chips
2 Tbsp. cream cheese
2 Tbsp. milk
5 cups rice Chex
1 cup boxed red velvet cake mix
1/2 cup powdered sugar

Step 1: Make a double broiler with a pot filled with an inch or so of water, place a glass bowl that fits inside the pot- but the bottom of the bowl should not touch the water. Basically, the steam from the pot is going to slowly, delicately melt the chocolate. Turn the heat to medium.

Step 2: Toss the white chocolate chips in the bowl.

Step 3: Stir, and stir, and stir until the chocolate melts.

Step 4: Turn off the heat and add the cream cheese and milk. Stir until the cream cheese is melted and everything is combined.

Step 5: Stir the chex and the melted chocolate together until the cereal is fully coated.

Step 6: In a separate, smaller bowl whisk together the cake mix and powdered sugar. 

Step 7: Transfer cereal to a tupperware container, top with cake mix and close tightly. Shake, shake, shake!

Me, shaking!

Enjoy your beautiful sweet treat! Share with friends! It is so good!

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Crispy Baked Sweet Potato Chips with Sriracha Dipping Sauce

So I previously spoke on my adoration for the sweet potato when I told y'all about Sweet & Spicy Sweet Potato Wedges, and I wasn't playin. I love me some sweet potatoes. Unfortunately, since hubby has been gone (to all my new friends, my husband is currently deployed overseas) I haven't been eating nearly as much sweet potato goodness. See, my Nicholas demands sweet potatoes 6 nights a week. I'm getting back into that orangey potato groove again though, with my sweet potato chips. This recipe came about late last year when we visited a fabulous restaurant in Little Rock (Big Orange, I believe) and had an appetizer of sweet potato chips with this spicy, creamy dipping sauce. I knew I was going to have to try to replicate it ASAP, it was SO GOOD. The chips at the restaurant were clearly fried but I knew that I could bake them and achieve the same crispiness. The key to crispy potatoes (any kind of potatoes!) is a well oiled potato, and a hot HOT oven. Works every time my friends.

Buyer beware, these guys are addictive. It's hard to tell if I prefer the chips or the wedges. Either way I make the dipping sauce with both, it's the perfect match. Don't know sriracha sauce? Make yourself a new friend. It's an Asian hot chili sauce- sometimes referred to as "rooster sauce" (by me, because there's a rooster on the bottle). It's found in the Asian food aisle by the soy sauce and such. Looks like this:

You can replace the sriracha sauce with hot sauce if you must, but I recommend the rooster sauce if you can get your hands on it :)

Ingredients: (about 4 servings)
2 medium sized sweet potatoes
3 Tbsp. olive oil
2 Tbsp. brown sugar (or 1 1/2 Tbsp. honey)
1 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

For dipping sauce:
1 tsp. Sriracha hot chili sauce (or more to make it spicier)
5 Tbsp. Mayo (I used Hellman's)

Step 1: Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Wash the sweet potatoes. Cut the ugly ends off of the sweet potatoes.

Step 2: Cut the sweet potato into about 1/4 in rounds. If you have a mandolin this would be super simple work, I just used a very sharp knife.

Step 3: Place the cut chips into a medium sized bowl. Coat with olive oil, making sure there is enough oil for each chip to be completely coated.

Step 4: Season with the brown sugar, paprika, salt, and cayenne pepper and stir to combine.

Step 5: Place chips in a single layer on a baking sheet or baking dish coated with non-stick spray.

Step 6: Bake in a preheated oven 20-25 minutes or until crispy, turning over halfway through baking. 

For dipping sauce: Combine sriracha sauce and mayo in a bowl. Dip away!

Match made in heaven:-)

Do you have a super fab sweet potato recipe? I'm always looking for a new way to prepare my favorite veggie:)! 

PS: I've added a section on the right side of the page where you can like us on Facebook, follow me on Pinterest, or subscribe by e-mail. :-)

Skinny Apple Pie Bites with Vanilla Glaze

Ever since I posted the buffalo chicken bites recipe I've been brainstorming what to fill those little wonton wrappers with next. I feel like they are kind of the perfect vessel, 20 calories each, no artificial ingredients or high fructose corn syrup (at least the kind I have don't, can't vouch for every single wonton wrapper), but they create a crust for your little goodies inside. That's a winner in my book. Plus they are just made to be dipped in some delicious sauce. So in my brainstorming session I came up with 2 ideas that I was really obsessed with, today's apple pie bites, and another recipe I'll be sharing when football season starts. I wasn't quite sure how well the wonton wrappers would work with a sweet filling since I had only used them with savory fillings previously, but they were fantastic. The perfect little bite of sweetness. With the vanilla glaze on top (or heck, I was dipping them) it's just confectionery goodness. OH and PS: They clock in at just under 50 calories per piece. And you'll get a lil serving of fruit. An apple a day keeps the Dr. away...:-)

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. lemon juice (or lemon-lime soda if you don't have lemon juice!)
4 C. water
2 Apples, cored & diced (I used golden delicious, any apple will do!)
1 Tbsp. butter
1/2 C. Brown Sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 Tbsp. cornstarch
1/2 Tbsp. water

For glaze:
1/2 C. powdered sugar
1/2 Tbsp. Milk (I used almond milk)
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Step 1: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine lemon juice (or lemon-lime soda) and water in a bowl. Wash apples.

My pretty apples!

Step 2: Core and dice apples and place in bowl with lemon- water mixture to keep them from browning.

Step 3: Melt butter in large skillet over medium- high heat.

Step 4: Drain water from apples and add them to the skillet. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 2 minutes.

Step 5: Add brown sugar and cinnamon to apples. Stir to combine and cook for another 2 minutes.

Step 6: Combine 1/2 Tbsp. corn starch and 1/2 Tbsp. water in a separate bowl and add to apples. Stir to combine and cook for another minute, the sauce will thicken.

Step 7: Set yourself up a little wonton rolling station. You'll need a small bowl of water and a surface to roll your wontons. Set out your first wonton wrapper and place about a teaspoon of the apple mixture in the center.

Fold the top half over the apple mixture

Wet the bottom half with your finger and fold over the top half, seal with water.

Wet the right side and fold to the center. Press to seal. Repeat with the left side.

Step 8: Roll all the wontons as described above and add to a glass baking dish sprayed with non-stick spray.

Step 9: Spray tops of wontons with non-stick spray and back for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.
Step 10: For glaze: combine powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla in a bowl.

Step 11: Drizzle glaze over apple pie bites, or use as a dipping sauce on the side. Enjoy!

Thirsty Thursday: Fruity Jell-o Shots :)

This recipe was super fun. I've been seeing all the crazy creative pinterest-ers posting pictures of jello shots made inside of pieces of fruit and immediately knew I would be attempting this. First of all, I love jell-o shots. Yummy jell-o plus vodka? That's right up my alley. Plus, you don't use those annoying little plastic cups where you have to swirl your finger around to loosen the jell-o and then your fingers all sticky and nasty. Yuck. Although, as a side reference, if you MUST use those darned plastic cups- spray them with some non-stick spray before you pour the jell-o mixture in and the shot will slide right out :). ANYWAYS, this is so fun. Mine didn't come out as gorgeous as some of the others I've seen via Pinterest, but whatevs I'm not a professional food stylist and they tasted freaking fantastic. 

Bring some of these to your next event and your friends will be so impressed, seriously, they will think that you're so very clever. Mix it up and use limes, lemons, whatever little round fruits that you can hollow out will work fantastic. My next round will be made with grapefruits :)

Ingredients: 
4-5 Oranges (or fruit of choice)
6 oz. Jell-o of flavor choice (I used orange)
2 C. Boiling water
1 1/2 C. Vodka (I used orange vodka, any flavor or plain will work)
1/3 C. Cold water

Step 1: Wash the fruit and halve. 

Step 2: Hollow out the fruit. I used a spoon- you could probably accomplish this a bit easier by scoring the inside of the pith with a sharp knife and then scoop out the insides, HOWEVER I do not trust myself with fruit juice soaked hands handling a sharp knife so I stuck to a blunt object. That's just me.

 Step 3: Pour jell-o into heat proof pitcher. Pour in 2 cups boiling water and whisk together until jell-o is dissolved. Add cold water and vodka and whisk together to combine.

Cabo Wabo pitcher always, for Thirsty Thursdays!

 Step 4: Pour jell-o mixture into fruit halves and refrigerate. Mine took about 2 hours to completely set.

 Step 5: Flip fruit upside and cut into wedges. Serve! Enjoy!

Gallon Sized Ziplocs, my BFF!

Today I don't have a recipe for you, sorry :-/, however I am sharing with you one of my true kitchen loves. A product I could not SURVIVE in the kitchen without. An expensive knife? A $5000 blender? No, sir- my true kitchen BFF is the gallon sized ziploc bag. I am not kidding you, I use the gallon sized ziploc for EVERYTHING. Like, daily use, on the reg. We are pals, BFFs, soul-mates, the ziploc was made for me. And for you too. Are you really getting the most out of your plastic baggy friends? Here I share with you my top 5 all time favorite uses for the gallon sized ziploc bag.

There they are, just sitting in the pantry so unsuspecting. They don't even know how great they are!

1. Marinating Meats. I mentioned this yesterday in my spinach-mozzarella chicken post(spinach-mozzarella chicken), throw the meat in the bag, top with marinade, close the top (MAKE SURE IT'S CLOSED), shake, marinate, cook meat, toss bag. No cleanup. Done deal.

2. As a pastry bag. I showed you this technique the other day in the Lasagna Stuffed Shells post, also in the Hard boiled eggs... in the oven post, and the Strawberry- Lemonade cupcakes post. Clearly, I do this often. Don't buy expensive pastry bags, just put whatever filling you have in your ziploc, push to one corner, twist the top to push it down, cut the corner, and pipe out of the hole. 

3. To keep leftovers fresh. Open bag of chips, and no chip clip to be found? Transfer those babies to a ziploc. I do this weekly when I buy frozen fruit for my smoothies, open all the bags and dump the fruit into one communal ziploc that can be reused week in and out.

My communal bag of frozen fruits :)

4. As a freezer bag. This one is kindof obvious and a repeat of number 3, but I feel it needs to be stated anyhow. Freezing leftovers? Flash freeze on a cookie sheet, throw in a ziploc. Wham bam thank you ma'am. 
5. To keep your hands clean when crumbling food. Like mashing a banana for banana bread, peel & throw the bananas in the ziploc, close, mash with your hands, cut a hole in the corner and pipe out into mixture. Bacon? Throw cooked bacon into bag, crumble with fingers, dump into recipe, grease free hands! Nuts, chips, crackers, whatevs it all works here. 

Now make sure you're stocked up and start getting those ziplocs to work. :-) What are YOUR fave ziploc uses?! I'm always up to add more to my repertoire...