Peanut Butter and Nutella Bites

Peanut Butter and Nutella Bites

These delicious little bites of heaven were a creation of mine last Spring in anticipation of a bunch of outdoor parties to which I had been invited.  Basically a layered version of my Inside Out Peanut Butter Cups, these tasty treats were a huge success and my poor friends who were lucky enough to try these have been waiting for 4 months for the recipe. Sorry for the delay, but it's been a crazy summer.  And now that Fall is here, I have actually been in my kitchen baking again, and too busy to sit and write a whole lot.  Hopefully I can get my act together soon, and once all the weekend events fade into snow days, I will have time to post all the delicious recipes I have been saving up.  I know I need to make these again soon, since I enjoy packing my kids' lunch boxes with homemade goodies and these definitely fit the bill.  As I mention in my ingredient list below, you can sub out the Nutella with a healthier chocolate alternative as there are numerous ones to chose from.  I actually bought an organic soynut butter at the store yesterday and used it to make an organic chocolate crisped rice treat.  But if you love peanut butter and chocolate as much as I do, and like simple recipes with a limited amount of ingredients, this dessert is a no brainer. And so so good.

Vegetable Lo Mein

Vegetable Lo Mein

I made this meal back in the Spring before I had fresh veggies from my garden, but now that my garden is in full bloom (although not doing as well as past years), I figured I should post this recipe for all my fellow gardeners. I actually do have peas, peppers, kale, carrots, green onions, and basil all growing so this recipe is perfect, and I'll have to make it again soon.  Of course you can always use whatever veggies you happen to have growing, or at your farmer's market, or even in your freezer, and could definitely add some cooked chicken, steak or tofu to the final dish to increase the protein content.  I just like how quick and simple this recipe is because if you are like me and love carbs, Chinese noodles can sometimes be a diet nemesis. With this recipe you can control how much oil and sugar goes into the pot, so you end up doing your body a favor.  I used whole grain organic soba noodles as the base, but you could also use your favorite type of spaghetti in this recipe as well.  So forget the take out and get cooking with all the bounty growing right out your back door!

Salted Caramel Walnut Butter

Salted Caramel Walnut Butter

Just found this old draft in my folder and thought I would share it, seeing as I have been too busy recently to get a new post up.  Definitely not one of the most healthy things I have created, but way too yummy not to share.  The caramel sauce itself is just a pure indulgence, but the nut butter as a whole is actually a great high protein sandwich or toast spread. Unless you are a total health nut and never let yourself indulge in sweets, ever (which sounds rather unpleasant to me), I am sure you have found yourself topping a bowl of vanilla ice cream with a large melting spoonful of caramel sauce straight from a jar.  Some specialty brands may have simple ingredient lists like this recipe, but most of them are full of corn syrup, artificial flavors and colors.  So at least with this, you know what you are getting and can even use local, organic sources of butter and cream.  I apologize in advance for not having a proper photo of the finished nut butter, and will add one as soon as I make this again, but from what I remember, my family and I ate it up so fast, I actually forgot to get a good photo. Sometimes when something is that tasty it's hard to pause for a picture. And if you want to make the caramel sauce healthier, why not use it as a dip for sliced apples? :)