Black and White Chippers

Picky Palate was one of the very first cooking sites I started following. And I think this just might have been the first of her recipes I tried. I was instantly in love. I could eat the dough all day long (and sometimes I do!) - It tastes just like a thick brownie batter with white chocolate mixed in...by far my favorite cookie!

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups flour
1 1/4 cups cocoa powder
1 cup white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 tsp. baking soda
1 cup butter
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. salt
2 cups white chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar and white sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition. Add the salt and vanilla.

3. In another bowl, combine the flour, cocoa and baking soda and gradually add to the creamed mixture. Fold in chocolate chips. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheet.

4. Bake for 8 minutes until fluffy but still soft. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

ENJOY!

Red Enchiladas

Another Hungry Girl winner! I love Mexican food - by far a favorite of mine! Luckily, that food is all about the flavor and most of the time can be transformed into some pretty healthy stuff. My hubby said this about these when reheating them the day after, "Mmmm...these really are pretty good." I tell ya - it's the spicy-ness!!! I guess they're a keeper around here :)

This recipe makes 2 enchiladas. Each enchilada is 3 Weight Watcher Points Plus Points.

Ingredients:

2 large corn tortillas (I actually use high fiber low carb flour ones)
1 slice fat-free cheddar cheese, cut in half
2/3 cup enchilada sauce
1/3 cup fat-free refried beans
1/4 cup shredded fat-free cheddar cheese
1/4 cup chopped onions
1 tbsp. taco sauce (I used the Taco Bell jarred kind)
1/2 tsp. taco seasoning mix, dry
Optional toppings: fat-free sour cream, chopped scallions

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. In a pan sprayed with nonstick spray, cook onions over medium heat until they begin to brown (about 2 minutes).

3. In a small dish, combine the onions with the refried beans, taco sauce, and taco seasoning. Mix well.

4. Spray a small baking dish with nonstick spray. Heat tortillas in the microwave until slightly warm. Lay the tortillas on a clean, dry surface, and then spread about 2 tbsp. of the enchilada sauce onto each one.

5. Place one half of the cheese slice on each tortilla.

6. Then, evenly distribute the bean mixture into the center of each tortilla.

7. Wrap the tortillas up tightly, and place them in the baking dish seam side down. Pour the rest of the enchilada sauce over the enchiladas.

8. Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes (until the enchiladas are hot). Remove dish from the oven, sprinkle shredded cheese over the enchiladas, and then return it to the oven for about 5 minutes (until the cheese is nice and melty).

ENJOY!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Bar

My hubby's favorite treats include anything with chocolate and peanut butter. When we were planning our Super Bowl menu I decided I wanted to try a new dessert and one that would feed a crowd. I had been wanting to try something from my new favorite cooking blog The Girl Who Ate Everything and these definitely did not disappoint. I will for sure be making these again!

First set of ingredients:
1 pkg. plain yellow cake mix
1 stick melted butter
1 c. creamy peanut butter
2 eggs

Second set of ingredients:

1 (12 oz) pkg. chocolate chips

1 can sweetened condensed milk

2 T. butter

2 tsp. vanilla

Directions:


1. Combine first set of ingredients and press into a 9X13 pan reserving 1 1/2 c. of the mixture to crumble on top.


2. Melt the second set on low heat in a small pot. Remove from heat and add 2 tsp. vanilla.


3. Spread chocolate mixture over the mixture pressed in the pan and then crumble the 1 1/2 of reserved cake mixture on top. Bake for 20-25 minutes at 325 degrees.

4. Cool completely before cutting into bars.

ENJOY!

Pretzel Bites

Found these delectable little babies over at Mel's Kitchen Cafe . Had to give them a try and they were fabulous! They were so good they made it onto the superbowl menu. We served them with mustard and pizza sauce to dip in but they'd be great with cheese or some cinnamon and sugar as well. Try them out for dinner with a yummy salad!

Yields about 24 pretzel bites @ 1 WW PointsPlus each

Ingredients:

Dough:
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
1 cup very warm water

Topping:
1/2 cup warm water
2 tablespoons baking soda
Coarse salt (optional)
3 tablespoons butter, melted (I changed this to about 1 1/2 tablespoons)

Directions:

In a large bowl or the bowl of an electric mixer, place the flour, salt, sugar and yeast. Mix to just combine. Add the water and mix well, adding more flour, as needed, a bit at a time to form a soft, smooth dough that clears the sides and bottom of the bowl. Knead the dough, by hand or machine, for about 5 minutes, until it is soft, smooth and quite slack. The goal is to get a really soft dough that isn’t overly sticky. Lightly flour the dough and place it in a plastic bag; close the bag, leaving room for the dough to expand, and let it rest for 30 minutes or up to 60 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 500°F. Don’t be afraid of the high heat! This is what will help those pretzels to brown up perfectly and stay soft on the inside. Prepare two baking sheets by lining them with parchment paper or lightly greasing them.

Transfer the dough to a lightly greased work surface, and divide it into about four strips of equal length. Allow the pieces to rest, uncovered, for 5 minutes. While the dough is resting, combine the 1/2 cup warm water and the baking soda in a liquid measuring cup (deep enough to dip the pretzel bites into). Make sure the baking soda is thoroughly dissolved. Sometimes I have a hard time getting the baking soda completely dissolved, so I just lightly stir up the mixture right before adding each pretzel.

Cut each strip of dough into about 6-8 pieces, about 1 to 1 ½ inches in width. You don’t have to be completely exact, just eyeball it. Dip each pretzel bite in the baking soda solution (this will give the pretzels a nice, golden-brown color), and place them on the baking sheets. Sprinkle them lightly with coarse, kosher, or pretzel salt. Allow them to rest, uncovered, for 10 minutes.

Bake the pretzels for 7-8 minutes or until they’re golden brown. Bake one sheet at a time – it won’t hurt the other pretzels to chill out for a little longer.

Remove the pretzels from the oven, and brush them thoroughly with the melted butter. Keep brushing the butter on until you’ve used it all up; it may seem like a lot, but that’s what gives these pretzels their ethereal taste. Eat the pretzels warm, or reheat them in an oven or microwave on low heat.

ENJOY!

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

I've been trying to include a couple of new recipes into our monthly menu planning. I love Hungry Girl and have been trying out a few of her recipes lately. Here's the latest one - buffalo chicken pizza. It certainly didn't fulfill my pizza craving but it was still a yummy dish. My hubby loves anything spicy - especially if it includes hot sauce - so this one was a keeper in his book!

1 entire pita pizza - 6 Weight Weight Point Plus Points

This recipe is for 1 serving:

Ingredients:

1 high-fiber or whole-wheat pita
1/2 tsp. dry ranch dressing/dip mix
1 wedge The Laughing Cow Light Original Swiss cheese
2 oz. cooked and chopped skinless lean chicken breast
1 tsp. Frank's RedHot Original Cayenne Pepper Sauce
1 tbsp. reduced-fat Parmesan-style grated topping
1 tbsp. chopped scallions

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick spray. Place pita on the sheet and set aside.

3. In a small bowl, combine ranch mix with cheese wedge and mix. Spread evenly onto the pita.

4. In another small bowl, toss chicken with hot sauce. Scatter chicken over the ranchy cheese layer, and sprinkle evenly with Parm-style topping.

5. Bake in the oven until hot and toasty, 10 - 12 minutes.

6. Sprinkle with scallions, slice into quarters and, if you like, top with a little extra hot sauce.

ENJOY!!!

Chipotle Panini Chicken

Panera Bread ReMake - Chipotle Chicken Panini

I love Hungry Girl. Her show starts soon and I'm excited to see what it's like! In the meantime I've been receiving her emails for awhile now and have just now started trying some of her recipes. My absolute favorite part is that ALL of the nutrition facts are included - and she even calculates the Weight Watcher Points - love this girl!!! A dream come true for all Weight Watcher fans :)

When I saw she was doing a remake of something from Panera Bread I knew I had to try it! That place is definitely one of my all time favorite places to eat. Click here for the recipe and sign up to get her emails too!

This one is for sure a keeper - even the hubby has asked me several times how to make it so he can do it himself!!!

Weight Watchers - 6 Points on the new Points Plus Program

This recipe is for ONE serving. So double, triple, etc. accordingly to make it work for your family!

Ingredients:
Sauce
1 1/2 tbsp. fat-free mayonnaise
1/2 tsp. adobo sauce (from canned chipotle peppers) or chipotle hot sauce (like the kind by Tabasco)
2 dashes onion powder
2 dashes garlic powder

Sandwich
One 100-calorie flat sandwich bun (like Arnold Select/Oroweat Sandwich Thins)
2 oz. cooked skinless lean chicken breast, shredded or pulled into pieces (we even used canned chicken the second time - just make sure to drain it REALLY well)
1 tbsp. roughly chopped fresh basil
2 thin slices red onion
2 slices plum tomato
1 stick light string cheese, shredded or pulled into pieces

Directions:
1. In a medium bowl, combine ingredients for the sauce and mix well. Set aside.

2. Split bun in half and lay the halves flat, split sides up. Evenly spread half of the sauce onto the bun halves, leaving half of the sauce in the bowl. Set aside.

3. To the bowl with the remaining sauce, add chicken and toss to coat. Set aside.

4. Evenly top one bun half with basil, onion, tomato, saucy chicken, and cheese. Place the other half on top, sauce side down.

5. Bring a grill pan sprayed with nonstick spray to medium-high heat on the stove. Place sandwich in the pan. Using a spatula, press down gently but firmly to seal the sandwich. Grill until hot and lightly browned, about 2 minutes per side, flipping carefully and pressing down with the spatula to seal. (We don't have a grill pan or a panini press - but our George Foreman grill works perfectly!)

Cut in half (or not) and enjoy!

Enjoy!

Cinnamon Swirl Cake

Cinnamon Swirl Cake

My friend Kiertse makes some of my favorite baked treats - check her out at Sweetpea Recipes. This one is definitely a keeper - a super yummy warm cake with a cinnamon buttercream frosting. We made this on Thanksgiving and it didn't last too long!

Ingredients:

3 c. flour
1 c. sugar
4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 c. milk
1 stick melted butter
1 stick melted butter (yes, 2 total!)
2/3 c. brown sugar
1 T. flour
1 T. cinnamon

Directions:

1. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
2. Add eggs, vanilla, milk, and melted butter, and mix well.
3. Pour into a sugared (sprayed with cooking spray, and coated with sugar) bundt pan.
4. Melt the second stick of butter, then stir in the brown sugar, cinnamon, and flour.
5. Pour on top of the cake, and with a butter knife, swirl it through the cake.
6. Bake at 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients:

8 T. butter, room temperature
3 3/4 c. powdered sugar
3-4 T. whole milk
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. Place the powdered sugar in a large mixing bowl.
2. Add the butter, and 3 T of milk.
3. Blend with the mixer on low speed until the powdered sugar is incorporated, then add the vanilla and cinnamon.
4. Increase the speed to medium, and beat until fluffy.
5. Add more milk if the frosting seems too stiff.
6. Melt it in the microwave for 30 seconds, or until you can pour it over the cake.