Crepes

This morning I decided to try my hand again at making crepes.  To do this, I did something that I normally never do: I used a box mix.  I figure this would be alright as A) the mix was a gift, and B) this is only my second time making crepes.

Dark Chocolate Strawberry Crepes & Pumpkin Spice Crepes

Makes 4 Crepes, 2 of each flavor

Box KB Naturals All Natural Crepe Mix (I used 4 tbsp of mix per crepe, so 16tbsp in all)

2 eggs

1 1/2 cup water

1 package cool whip

Dark Chocolate Strawberry Crepes:

6 large strawberries slices and coated with 1 tbsp of sugar

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

1/2 tbsp powdered sugar

 Pumpkin Spice Crepes

12 oz can pumpkin puree

2 tbsp cinnamon

Make the Crepe batter by blending all ingredients with a whisk.  Heat a well greased pan to medium heat.  Pour 1/4 of the batter in to the pan, enough to coat the bottom completely.  My crepes are always thicker than traditional crepes and are more like pancakes, but we enjoy them, so I continue to make them this way.  Cook the Crepe for about 30 seconds or until it looks dry on the side you can see.  Do not try to flip it or you will probably break it.  Once it's ready, pour the crepe out onto a plate for filling.

For the Dark Chocolate Strawberry Crepe, add half of your strawberry-sugar mixture to the middle of the crepe, similar to filling a tortilla shell.  Add half of the chocolate chips on top of the strawberry so that they will begin to melt.

Fold in both sides of the crepe so that the filling is wrapped in the crepe.  Add a few dollops of cool whip and sprinkle the top with powdered sugar and a few chocolate chips for show.  Repeat for second crepe.

For the Cinnamon Pumpkin Crepe take all but a tbsp of the cinnamon and add it to the pumpkin puree.  Mix together the cinnamon until it is cleanly mixed in the puree.  Pour half of the puree in a line into the middle of the crepe.

Again, turn in both sides of the crepe to surround the filling.  Top with dollops of cool whip and sprinkle the remaining cinnamon on top.  Repeat for second crepe.

These are very filling and rich, so I suggest a glass of milk to wash them down.  They made for a wonderfully tasty Sunday brunch.

Stay Hungry!

BBQ Chicken Nachos

I made these last night after a lazy Saturday.  It was quite fitting for the occasion and quite delicious!  I came up with the idea a while ago because my fiance loves BBQ sauce, but I was tired of makes BBQ chicken sandwich.  This helped put a new twisty on an already tasty dish and has become a house favorite.

BBQ Chicken Nachos
Makes 1 Serving

10 Whole Wheat Tortilla Chips
3oz Chicken Breast
BBQ ( I use Sweet Baby Ray's for this recipe)
2oz cheese (I used sharp cheddar, but any mild or sharp cheese will do)
10 slices of jarred Jalapenos
4 tbsp Mild Salsa
2 tbsp Sour Cream (I didn't have any, but it is a nice touch)
1 tbsp hot sauce

Place the chips on a plate making sure that the plate is fully covered and that the chips have as much surface area as possible.

Cut the chicken into bite sized pieces and cook thoroughly in a frying pan over medium heat.

Once the chicken is cooked through, take the pan off the heat and allow it to cool for a minute.  This will keep the BBQ sauce from splattering everywhere when you add it to the pan.  Once, cooled but still warm, add the BBQ sauce.  I don't have an exact amount for this, it's really a personal preference.

 Now we can start assembling the nachos.  Take the chips you nicely laid out before and even scatter the chicken around the plate.

Next add the salsa, jalapenos, and hot sauce by drizzling the sauces and placing then peppers all around the plate.

Next, add the cheese.  Make sure to cover as much of the nachos as possible, and feel free to use more cheese if you think you need it.  You want a full even coating so that all the chips will have cheese.

Lightly melt the cheese by placing the whole plate in the microwave for 30sec on High.  You don't need to get the cheese boiling, just make sure it's in there long enough to melt.

Finally, Drizzle some more BBQ sauce and add some sour cream to the top if you have it.  These are great for a lazy, quick dinner, or as an appetizer for a party.

Stay Hungry!

Banana Oat Muffins

Today I stayed home from school to get some work done and I ended up creating a cooking blog. Such is life!

Fresh from the oven today are Banana Oat Muffins.  I got the recipe from allrecipes.com, but of course, added a few touches of my own.  Baking has always been a great stress reliever for me, and in the next few weeks while studying for finals, I plan on doing a lot!

Banana Oat Muffins

Makes 12 muffins   200 calories each

1 1/2 cups Flour
1 cup Rolled Oats
1/2 cup Sugar
2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt
1 Egg
3/4 cup Milk
1/3 Cup Canola Oil (or vegetable oil)
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
2 Mashed Bananas
1/4 Walnuts

Now,  if you know anything about baking, here is where most directions would tell you to add all the dry ingredients first and mix them and then the wet.  This is not a policy I typically follow.  Why? Because I have found that it really doesn't matter for simple baked goods like muffins.  Anyway, put all the ingredients in a bowl and mix EXCEPT the walnuts.  Once you see that all the dry ingredients have mixed into the wet, you're good to go.  Also, I ALWAYS mix by hand, never with a mixer.  I don't know why, but it seems more traditional and old-style to me and it's what my mom always did so it's what I always do.  I also feel like the baking process is more therapeutic and personal if you mix it by hand. I use a wooden spoon, preferentially, but you can use whatever you want to mix the batter, as long as you mix it thoroughly.

Also, you'll notice I put the calorie content for my recipes.  I will do this as often as possible because I think it's important to know what you're putting in your mouth.

Get out a 12-muffin pan. Mine is metal, as are most.  You can either coat the holes really well with cooking spray or use cupcake liners.  I chose to use liners.  Pour your batter into each whole, filling it about 3/4 of the way.  Now for the walnuts.  Put them in a small plastic baggy and crush them with a kitchen mallet, or use a food processor to break them up.  Now sprinkle the walnuts over the uncooked muffins.  Bake at 400deg for 18-20 min.

Baking

Cooling

The Finished Product:

Not exactly studying for my Genetics Lab Practical, but so much tastier. I'm going to go enjoy one of these, and I'm sure my fiance will enjoy more than one of these when he gets home tonight. Thanks for reading my first post, feel free to comment about the recipe, your experiences baking, or anything else that comes to mind.

Stay Hungry!