Raspberry Fruit Dip

1/4 cup shredded coconut (opt)
1 cup sour cream
2 TB milk
1/4 cup raspberry preserves

In a bowl mix together the above ingredients.
Toss fresh fruit in lemon juice and serve together using the fruit for dipping.

Peanut Butter Toffee Cookies

 Today was a beautiful day, sunny and 67 degrees outside! It was quite warm for the Midwest in November! It got my blood going and I was a amazed at how much I got done today. Yep, I just patted myself on the back! :-) One of the items I managed to complete today was whipping up some ooey-gooey toffee cookies. Minus a trip to the grocery (in the middle of the recipe I realized I was outta flour) these were pretty quick to make.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup shortening
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter ( I used reduced fat Skippy)
1-1/4 cups packed light brown sugar
3 TB. milk
1 TB vanilla extract (*Halal Vanilla is available if needed)
1 egg
1-1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1-1/3 cups (8-oz pkg) Heath Milk Chocolate Toffee Bits, divided.

Heat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Beat shortening, peanut butter, brown sugar, milk and vanilla in large bowl until well blended

 Add egg, beat just until blended.


I just love using my KitchenAid mixer! Look at it go! Yep, it's pink people.. isn't that a fabulous color?! :D







Combine flour, baking soda and salt gradually beat into peanut butter mixture. Stir in 1 cup toffee bits; reserve the other 1/3 cup for topping.









I did the standard two test cookies today! (I tend to skip this part) A test batch allows you to see how long to bake the cookies according to your oven and type of pans that you are using.
Today I baked my cookies 7 minutes.







Drop by heaping teaspoons about 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheet. (I used a baking stone.)

Bake 7-8 mins or until set. Be careful not to overbake. They will continue to firm up after you remove them from the oven.
Remove from oven and allow to cool 2 mins while remaining on the pan. Remove from cookie sheet and let completely cool on wire rack.


Remember the 1/3 cup toffee bits we reserved? Use these to top each cookie after it comes from the oven.
*I didn't do this as I only used wax paper oday but I think it would work well to use a wire rack with wax paper underneath to catch the loose toffee bits. There was JUST enough toffee to split the bag into 1 cup and 1/3 cup. The 1/3 cup for topping was barely enough to finish the last few cookies. I would use the toffee on the wax paper for the last cookies.. or you could eat it if you have left overs. :)

Makes appx. 3 dozen cookies.














*Recipe from the back of the Heath toffee bits package. Hershey brand.

Chocolate Sauce in a Pinch

Have you ever had a craving for sweets but there is no chocolate to be seen anywhere in the house?  OMG.. like major despair right! No worries.. I'm here to rescue the day!  Check out how to make this rich sinful chocolate sauce on the fly. Great for drizzling over ice cream or crepes! Just like this:

Chocolate Sauce
2 TB Cocoa Powder
2 TB sugar
1/4 cup water

Place all ingredients in a bowl and mix together until sugar and cocoa is disolved. Microware 1-2 mins. Mixture will bubble. Stir when you remove from the micro and let set for appx 5 mins. The chocolate will become thicker as it sits.
Special note: Use a BIG bowl because it will boil all over your microwave.  I miiiiight be mentioning from experience! ;p

Goo & Protein Bars

Looks gross right? Haven't you learned to not judge a book by it's cover? ;-)  This is a recipe I got last spring at a Figure Building/Body Building contest I attended with my friend Tasha. She did awesome btw! It will satisfy your sweet tooth but isn't empty calories like most sweets.

Beverly Goo
2 scoops protein powder
1/4 cup Peanut Butter (natural or almond butter)
1/4 cup Honey
Handful of candy pieces. (opt)

Mix all of the above ingredients together. I usually have to add water. Just enough to help it mix properly.  I eat it with a spoon right outta the bowl, as I crave something sweet!



I also sampled a similar recipe recently from my friend who is an Arbonne Consultant. This one is a larger quantity but the same basic concept. With the addition of the oatmeal you can ideally cut these into protein bars.

Protein Bars
2 cups or 1 16-oz jar natural peanut butter
1 3/4 cups honey
2 1/4 cups protein powder
3 cups dry uncooked oatmeal

In a microwave safe bowl combine PB and  honey. Heat in micro until it easily stirs.
Add protein powder and oatmeal and mix thoroughly. It will be very thick. Press it into a 9x13" pan. Refridgerate for 1 hour or until solid enough to cut into bars. Wrap each bar in foil or plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator.
For extra fiber use 1/4 cup fiber and 2 cups protein powder.

Makes 24 servings.

Goo recipe originally from Beverly International.
Please visit Renee's Arbonne page if you'd like to order anything!

Shake Shake Shake.. Shake that bootay!

Here's a very quick (and clean) way to make instant pudding!  Put all your ingredients in a shaker cup. If you don't already have one you can purchase them at most nutritional stores or online. They have easy guide measurements on the side of the cup, so no need for dirtying additional tools like measuring cups. (The less dirty dishes the better right!) Follow the directions on the box for ingredient amounts. Once the milk and pudding powder are in the cup screw the lid on. Make sure the drink spout is closed tightly and shake your way to a dessert delight!  Toss it in the fridge until it's set. That's it!  Cool huh!

No Bake Cookies

Have you ever thought it is possible to make cookies without firing up the oven? And no, it doesn't count to just eating the cookie dough outta the bowl lol..although I will admit that happens quite frequently here in my kitchen :p Yes, yes.. I know all about the dangers of raw eggs and salmonella... but I like to live on the edge. I'm a wild woman like that! :p
When I was growing up one of my favorite things my mom made in the kitchen were these chocolately sweet cookies that we made on the stove. I still recall how strict she was about the fact it needed to boil 1 minute and only 1 minute!  Hence the fact that I would not recommend trying to double this recipe. These cookies are a great standby and are always a big hit! Someone recently told me they taste like Reeces Peanut Butter Cups.. who wouldn't like that! :)

No Bake Cookies
Ingredients:
2 C. Sugar
3 TB Cocoa
1 stick butter
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 C. milk

Combine the above and bring to a rolling boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and add the following:

1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 C. Peanut Butter
3 C. Quick Quaker Oats

Drop on wax paper. Let set-up. Store in an air tight container.
Makes appx. 3 dozen cookies.

Step 1: Combine all the ingredients into a saucepan. I also measure out the second group of ingredients in preparation. You will need to add them relatively quickly to get the best outcome.

2 C. Sugar
3 TB Cocoa
1 stick butter
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 C. milk

Bring this to a boil. Stirring occasionally as it heats up.

Starting to boil! I have the timer set so all I have to do is hit go when I see the bubbles start to form.

At a roiling boil now. (I still stir occasionally during this phase.) Once the timer goes off you are ready to add the next group of ingredients.

1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 C. Peanut Butter
3 C. Quick Quaker Oats

 I add the vanilla and peanut butter first. Stirring until it's completely melted in the chocolate mixture. Then I add the oatmeal  and stir until combined well.

*I was taught growing up to double the vanilla if you are using imitation brand. Although the bottle now says double strength I still abide by this habit.  I am sure my grandma would agree! ;-) So I use 2 tsp in this recipe! I have recently purchased authentic vanilla extract and I find it to be stronger than what I am used to so I've been sticking to the recipe amounts now. Halal vanilla is available, you just have to look a little harder for it! I am using Yellow Dog brand currently I believe. I purchased it at my local specialty grocery. I have to admit it was the bottle design that drew me in.. I'm all about packaging!

Here it is shown with the oatmeal added. Now quick.. you've no time to waste! ;-) Start dropping them onto wax paper by spoonfuls. You want to do this part as quick as possible as they will start to set up in the pan if you do not. I can sometimes tell the difference between the first cookies I drop and the last. Towards the end they will become dryer if you are not quick (quick like a bunny rabbit!) :)

Let the cookies set up and then carefully peal them from the wax paper. Store them in an air tight container.

Cereal Treats with a Twist

Quick Tip:  Try making rice krispy treats with dates instead of marshmallows.
The dates will provide the stickiness for holding it all together. Dates are full of fiber and they are also a natural sugar vs. the white processed sugar that is in the marshmallows. Plus these are halal and you can use up your dates post Ramadan! :)

Combine 1/4 cup of "butter"
1 cup "sugar"  (Who out there totally exclaimed "Yay-Truvia!")
1.5 cups of chopped pitted dates

Cook the above over low heat, stir until paste like.

Add:
1 tsp of vanilla
2 cups of your choice of cereal.  (Fiber One is the Bomb! When I first started eating it I joked that it looked like dog food. But I dispute that it tastes great! And there are so many uses for it if you're eating a healthy lifestyle!)

You can even add in some yummy extra's like shredded coconut, chocolate chips or anything you like. SIMPLY AMAZING!

Servings:
About two dozen bars

Nutritional Info:
Only around 105 calories per serving, depending on what cereal you use.

Crepes

An all time favorite- Crepes! I love walking to the local Farmer's market downtown and eating them for breakfast on a warm summer morning.. yummy!

Basic Crepes

Ingredients:
1 cup all purpose flour (I substitute whole wheat flour)
2 eggs
1/2 cup skim milk
1/2 cup water
1/4 tsp salt
2 TB butter, melted

Directions:

Step 1:  In a large mixing bowl whisk together the flour and the eggs. Gradually add in the milk and the water, stirring to combine. Add salt and butter. Beat until smooth.

Step 2:  Heat a pan or griddle to medium heat. Pour appx 1/4 cup batter into pan and swirl in a circular motion so as to make a round crepe.

Step 3:  Cook the crepe on both sides until it's light golden brown. Remove from heat. Fill with appropriate toppings.

Note:
The use of whole wheat flour will make a more sturdy crepe. It won't be as light and airy as it normally would. But it's still quite tasty.

Topping suggestions:
Fresh fruit
Whip Creme
Apple Cinnamon Crepes: apple slices or apple pie filling, cinnamon, nutmeg, powdered sugar.
Breakfast Crepes could include veggies, eggs or a combo of those with/without breakfast meat.

My all time fav is to duplicate the Farmer's Market Crepe's. They spread a good size dab of cream cheese on the warm crepe, then toss some fresh sliced strawberries down the center (maybe even banana's if you're getting totally crazy!). Finally they top it off with dollops of whipped creme. Is your moth watering yet?! :)