Emily Bites!

I feel like I talk about Pinterest a lot.  Do I? 

 

I apologize if that's the direction my blog has gone.  I'm just in love with how easy it is to find recipes (and DIY crafts for that matter) there.  A while ago, I stumbled upon a great site called Emily Bites.  She basically takes recipes that she's either found in other places, or created herself, and makes them a little lighter (sometimes a lot lighter).  For those of us tracking P+ with WW, it's quite helpful because she's got it all laid out nicely.  

 

Emily, you rock.  I just think you should know that.  I've also been sort of stalking your site lately.  I hope you don't mind! 

 

Here are a few recipes I've made from her site recently.  I have plans to try many more.  :-) 

 

Mac & Cheese Muffins

I didn't use elbow macaroni for these, as you can probably tell.  I used Ditalini pasta!  First, because I didn't have any elbow macaroni and I figured any pasta might work.  Second, I wanted to make some Ditalini pasta for my little one to try (it's perfect for baby fingers). 

On that note, I would strongly recommend NOT using Ditalini pasta for this recipe.  I think using another kind might get the muffins to stick together a little better.  Don't get me wrong... these were delicious, just a little messy!




Bacon Cheeseburger Wraps

 

I know what you're thinking... 'That's not a wrap, Alissa!'  You're right.  It's not.  I didn't have any in the house the first time I made these.  They actually were more like Bacon Cheeseburger Sloppy Joes.  Not too shabby!  I was sure to get some for the second time (see below).  :-)  I didn't toast them because I'm generally not a fan of toasting... is that weird?  I do think that when I make them again I may try toasting just for fun. 

 

Actual Bacon Cheeseburger Wraps

Cheeseburger Pizza

You may also have noticed a theme... we were kind of on a little bit of a cheeseburger kick.  Cheeseburgers might be one of my all-time favorite foods.  A friend of ours suggested putting a fried egg right on top of that pizza.  So, I guess you could do that.  It would certainly add to the points, though!  ;-) 

Here are a few other recipes that caught my eye:
Cincinnati Chili - If you follow my blog at all, you already know this is my favorite chili of all time... I'm interested to try this version and see how it is!
Banana Pancake Bites - Uh... yum?
Buffalo Wing Hummus - Yeah... I might try this really soon.

Seriously, folks... Emily Bites just looks delicious every time I go there. 

Old Bananas

I had a whole bunch of old bananas that were browning today and decided I was going to make some banana bread.  I've never actually made banana bread before, so I was looking for an easy, yummy recipe online.  This is the one I found.  I printed it out and planned to use it... but... then I logged onto facebook and there was a picture of this Raspberry Dark Chocolate Banana Bread. 

Which one do you think I made?

Now, the recipe said to use a loaf pan... but that's what happened when I did.  I probably should have gone with my better judgment and used a larger pan when I saw how full the loaf pan was after pouring in the batter.  Oh well.  :-) 

YUM!  I highly recommend this.  Just use a bigger pan.  I did put a cookie sheet underneath to catch any drips.  Hehe, that was a big one!

How Do You Roll?

Ahh... summer break... I can cook again!  (Not that I haven't been cooking... I just haven't been cooking too many NEW things and/or blogging about them.)  It's actually been kind of nice to have a repetoire of go-to recipes to make. 

I do like to try new things, though. 

I found this particular recipe on Pinterest:

Peanut Butter Rollup

I imagine that you make it in a similar way to making a pizza... except that you don't bake this... and you don't roll up a pizza.  I did say similar, not the same.  I've never made a pizza.  Maybe I should try that sometime!  I did once get a pizza delivered to my house that was still on the pizza pan.  Weird, huh?  Have I mentioned that I love Pinterest?

Anyway, these rollups were really good!  I liked them a lot with the jelly, but I would say that if you use jelly you should eat them the same day you make them.  Otherwise the jelly makes everything soggy and starts leaking all over your refrigerator.  Trust me on that one.  They just aren't as good without the jelly, in my opinion, so just keep your timing in mind.  I made them with jelly and then they were fantastic the next morning... but the NEXT morning, they weren't as good.  Does that make sense? 

Why do I feel like I'm rambling tonight?  I think I used the word jelly way too many times!  It's been a long day.  :-)

Happy Father's Day, by the way!  (If you're a Dad, of course).  I made my hubby some waffles from scratch, which I've actually never done before.  I usually use Bisquick for waffles.  I just like how they taste.  These were alright... but just not up to the Bisquick fluffiness standard that I've set for myself. 

Waffles from scratch!

Below are two salads I made this week... the first is a little overloaded in that bowl.  Haha.  I should have done it on a plate for a better picture.

Alissa's Crazy Salad

Alissa's Crazy Salad
Spinach leaves
Cherry tomatoes
Mushrooms
Broccoli sprouts
Hardboiled egg
Tofu
Cauliflower
Avocado
Ranch-flavored almonds
...with a little drizzle of ranch dressing on top. 

It's actually really good... despite all of the randomness that's in it.  ;-) 

I made this salad tonight:

Alissa's Taco Salad

Alissa's Taco Salad
Blue corn chips
Spinach leaves
Mushrooms
Grated cheddar cheese
Seasoned ground beef
Fresh salsa (YUM!  I discovered it this week... so good.)
...and whatever else you want to add.  I added a dollop of taco sauce, sour cream, and guacamole right on top.  I would have added some black beans and corn if I'd had any in the house.  I looked.  ;-) 

Thank you readers, if you're out there, for sticking with me through 100 posts!  :-)

Until next time...

Anniversary Flan!

I recently discovered caramelization, which is kind of odd for me because I tend to hate all things caramel.  That seems to be the general idea of caramelization.  If you're like me and you clicked on the link to find out more about caramelization, you may not have understood much of the process. 

Here's what I know about caramelization:

1.  If you caramelize something for too long, it burns. 
2.  It has something to do with sugar.
3.  Caramelized bananas are where it's at. 

My wonderful hubby took me out last night for our two year wedding anniversary to Fogo de Chao.  When we were trying to decide what we should do for our anniversary a few weeks ago I said, "Why don't we go to that meat place... you know, where they have all the meat?"  My new mommy mind doesn't let me remember words sometimes.  Jimmy knew right away where I meant (he's good at deciphering my speak)... so we went!

Well, the meat was fantastic.  My favorite was the filet mignon wrapped with bacon.  I'm a fan. 

However, at one point the meat men brought us a plate of caramelized bananas.  We both looked at them like, "What's this?"  Then I ate a bite and fell in love.  Too bad caramelization takes all of the healthfulness directly OUT of the banana.  Haha.  Anyway, I want to try this recipe for Caramelized Bananas.  Soon. 

After dinner, they brought us this awesome anniversary flan. 

Here's what I know about flan:

1.  It jiggles like jello when you poke it.
2.  It's the consistency of pudding or cheesecake... maybe a combination of the two.
3.  It's yummy.  Especially when it's anniversary flan!

Fogo de Chao rocks.  :-)

Smooth and Creamy

I miss Jamba Juice.  :-( 

We went to NYC in July and I've decided that they have the best smoothies.  No ice cream, but good smoothies.  Did you know that this is apparently the only way to get ice cream in NYC?

I'll be perfectly honest.  For National Ice Cream Day (July 17th), I was hoping to find an awesome ice cream shop and get order something amazing.  I wasn't expecting to have to chase down an ice cream truck.  I could do that at home!  Hehe, so we noshed on some Jamba Juice smoothies.  Mmmm... like heaven in a cup.  Too bad there aren't any around my house.  Sad.

So, here are two attempts at smoothies I've made:

 


I'm not going to give you exact measurements because that's not how I made these smoothies.  I just added stuff to them until they tasted yummy.  Real precise!  Haha.

Strawberry Banana Smoothie (On the left!)
Strawberries, hulled
1 banana
1 c. of yogurt (I used a cherry-flavored one)
Dash of skim milk
...and then add ice until it's smooth and creamy enough for you!  You could also add blueberries, raspberries, or any other kind of fruit that you like.  I topped it with a spoonful of lite Cool Whip. 

Mango Pineapple Smoothie (On the right!)
1 mango
1 c. pineapple chunks
Handful of blueberries
1 c. Greek yogurt (I used a honey-flavored one)
Dash of skim milk
Several squirts of honey
...and again, add ice until it's smooth and creamy.  Not terribly difficult.  Pretty tasty!

Have you ever tried making a smoothie?  What do you like to put in it?  I'm open to suggestions!  :-)

Parfait?

Have you ever made a parfait?  There's something about them that's so amazing.  Mmm...

Look how pretty it is with fresh blueberries, chunks of banana, and vanilla yogurt.  Oh, and vanilla granola.  Have you ever tried chocolate granola?  Yum.  It's funny... I've found some good ways to eat yogurt and I don't mind it as much as I once did.  I used to hate it and now it's one of my go-to foods. 

Okay, so in that picture it kind of looks like all the fruit is taking over the yogurt.  Maybe it is.  :-)  It's also not in a tall "parfait" shaped glass... but it's layered and delicious.  Isn't that really all that matters?

How do you like to eat yogurt?  

Three things I just learned about parfaits by googling it:

1.  "Parfait" means "perfect" in French.

2.  Parfaits are often frozen and can include ice cream, custard, or gelatins.

3.  People make parfaits of mashed potatoes, pork, and BBQ sauce!  (What?!)