Chocolate Sauce

My kids love chocolate milk for an after school treat, and I love giving it to them without all of that refined sugar! This chocolate sauce makes great chocolate milk added to the milk of your choosing. It's also great on ice-cream. Win win!

Chocolate Sauce

8 ounces (about 1 1/3 cups Ghirardelli chocolate chips) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate
3/4 cup heavy cream plus more for thinning the sauce as needed
5 Tbsp Kerrygold butter
1/4 cup blue agave
2 Tbsp packed brown sugar (optional)
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

1. In a medium saucepan, stir together the chopped chocolate (or chips), heavy cream, butter, agave, and brown sugar (if using). Stir constantly until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth, 3-5 minutes. Be careful not to overheat or scorch the chocolate.

2. Remove from heat and cool for a few minutes before adding the vanilla. If you need to you can add more heavy cream to thin out the sauce. Store extras in the refrigerator for up to a week and heat in the microwave to use again.

Brioche Donut Bites with Chocolate and Raspberry Filling

I kid you not, these will be the best donuts you ever put in your mouth! The raspberry filled are by far my favorites of the two varieties. The Brioche dough is so incredibly tender and soft and buttery. It compliments the bright raspberry flavor perfectly. Expect everyone in the house to start crowding around to snatch up the donuts as soon as they are ready! Thank you Paul Hollywood for the recipe. I added strawberries to his recipe and a couple of small changes.

Brioche Donut Bites with Chocolate Strawberry and Raspberry Filling

Brioche Donut Dough

250 grams flour
4 grams salt
25 grams caster sugar
5 grams Instant yeast
70 mL whole milk
2 large free range eggs
125 g unsalted butter softened
Sunflower or avocado oil for frying

Donut Decorations and filling

9 large raspberries
2 strawberries cubed (about 2 grams each)
50 grams semi sweet or milk chocolate broken into 9 equal pieces
9 strawberry slices 
Caster sugar

1. Put the flower in a freestanding mixer. Add sugar and salt on one side of the bowl, and used on the other. Add the milk and eggs mixing on low speed for two minutes. Then mix on medium speed for an additional 6 to 8 minutes until the dough is soft, glossy, and elastic.

2. Add soft butter and mix for 4 to 5 minutes more, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally to get all of the butter mixed in. Door will be very soft.

3. Place the dough in a plastic or glass bowl covered with plastic wrap and store in the fridge overnight or for at least seven hours.

4. Tip dough onto a very lightly floured surface and kneed it a few times.

5. Divide dough into 18 equal portions. Approximately 26-28 g each. Flatten each portion with your fingers and place a piece of chocolate (I use 2 milk chocolate chips) and 1 strawberry cube in the center and then gently fold the dough up and over the chocolate, pinching the dough together at the top. Shape into a ball and set aside on a baking tray to prove for 20 minutes. make sure to keep the chocolate and raspberry donuts separated so that you will know which is which after they have been fried.  Continue flattening the dough and put a raspberry in the center of the remaining 9 portions, folding the dough over each raspberry and pinching at the top. Roll them into a ball and prove for 20 minutes. Don’t be tempted to prove more than 25 minutes or else the donuts will deflate as you transfer them into the fryer. I also think it’s helpful to slightly flatten each ball of dough after you put it on the tray so that the donuts are easier to manage in the frying pan as you flip them on each side.

6. Preheat the oil to 170°C. Lower the chocolate donuts carefully into the fryer cooking each side for about three minutes until they are golden brown. Use a slotted spoon to remove the donuts from the oil instead of side on a paper towel covered cooling rack. Continue this process with the raspberry donuts. After each raspberry donut comes out of the oil it needs to be rolled in caster sugar immediately so that the oil from the frying will help the sugar to stick.

7. To decorate the chocolate donuts, set a strawberry slice on each donut. Microwave the chocolate in small ramekins at 20 second intervals, stopping to stir every 20 seconds. When the chocolate is melted, spoon the white chocolate into a piping or a Ziploc bag with the corner snipped off. Spoon the melted milk chocolate into a separate bag with the corner snipped off and then drizzle first the milk chocolate, and then the white chocolate over the donuts in a zig zag pattern. Leave the chocolate to set, and then serve.

8. To decorate the raspberry donuts, put the caster sugar in a small bowl and roll the fried raspberry donuts into the caster sugar as soon as they come out of the fryer so that the oil helps the sugar stick to the donuts.

Macaroni and Cheese with Butternut Squash

This is surprisingly delicious and such a good replacement for boxed Mac n cheese. I got this recipe from Jessica Seinfeld’s cookbook Deceptively Delicious and made a few small changes.

Macaroni and Cheese with Butternut Squash

3 cups Italy imported macaroni noodles
1 1/4 cups pasture raised milk
1 Tbsp mild flavored extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp Tapioca flour or white flour
1/2 cup butternut squash, cooked and puréed
1 3/4 cups shredded pasture raised cheddar
2 ounces pasture raised cream cheese
1 tsp salt
1/8 tsp smoked paprika
1/8 tsp pepper freshly ground

1. Boil the noodles according to package instructions. Drain in a colander.

2. While the macaroni is cooking, heat a medium sauce pan on medium heat. Add oil, then flour, Cook stirring constantly until mixture resembles a thick paste but not browned (1-2 minutes). whisk in the milk and cook, stirring every now and then until the mixture thickens (3-4 minutes). Add the vegetable purée, cheese, cream cheese, and seasonings, and stir until the cheese is melted in the sauce is smooth. Every once in a while the sauce will separate. If it does that you can still save it by putting it in a blender on medium high speed for 30 seconds.

3. For the sauce over your noodles and stir to coat well. Serve immediately.

Deviled Eggs

Deviled Eggs

12 hard boiled eggs, peeled
3 Tbsp mayonnaise
3 Tbsp cauliflower steamed, puréed, and cooled
1-2 tsp Dijon mustard
2 tsp Braggs apple cider vinegar
1/4 tsp sea salt
Paprika to sprinkle on top

1. Placed the hard-boiled eggs in half lengthwise and remove all of the yolks, putting them on a plate.
Mash all the yolks with a fork and then slide them into a small bowl.

2. Whip in the mayonnaise, cauliflower, mustard, vinegar, and sea salt.

3. Put the egg yolk mixture into a piping bag or a Ziploc bag with the corner cut off. Pipe the yolk mixture into the center of the egg whites. Sprinkle paprika over the tops placethe finished eggs on your serving platter. You can just spoon  the egg  yolk mixture into the egg whites if you are pressed for time.

Sweet Potato Waffles or Pancakes

These are no guilt pancakes for a healthy version of breakfast that tastes delicious too! If you’re in a crunch for time you can replace all of the dry ingredients with one and a half +cups pancake mix of your choice. The sweet potatoes can also be cooked and puréed ahead of time and frozen in a Ziploc bag flat in the freezer to be thawed when you’re ready to bake.

Sweet Potato Waffles or Pancakes

1 1/4 cup milk
2/3 cup sweet potato peeled, cubed, steamed, puréed, and cooled
1 egg beaten
1/1/2 tsp vanilla
4 drops pure stevia (optional for a sweeter pancake)
1 tsp cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice
1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour (or Spelt, or Einkorn or . . .)
3 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3 Tbsp kerrygold butter or coconut oil melted and more for your griddle
Pure Maple syrup for serving

1. In a medium bowl combine cinnamon, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl whisk together the milk, sweet potato purée, egg, vanilla, stevia, and butter.

2. Make a well in the middle of the flour mixture and pour the wet ingredients into the well and then whisking it together. Add more milk if it is too thick.

3. Heat your lightly oiled griddle or frying pan to medium high heat and pour the pancake batter a 1/4 cup at a time. When the pancake batter starts to bubble after two or three minutes use a metal spatula to flip it until it’s golden brown on the other side. Serve with pure maple syrup.

Honey Pistachio Goat Cheese Appetizer

I have to admit that I have a small obsession with honey. When I travel, the souvenir I always come home with is honey from that region. I think my love for honey began when I first tasted honey in the honey comb that my grandpa Kempton brought his “grand chickens” to taste. Its smooth sweetness had a depth to it that was and still is indescribable. I caught  glimpses of him tending to his bees on his St David, Arizona land. Land he loved deep in his soul. I think amazing honey tastes like love and nurturing, and feels like watching the brilliant colors of a desert sunset on the roof of a barn as the heat of the day mellows into the peace of evening. Remember how much you are loved as you bite into this bit of savory, sweet, crunchy goodness!

Honey Pistachio Goat Cheese Appetizer 

1 log of goat cheese halved lengthwise
1/4 cup raw unfiltered honey (I order mine from Blessed Buy Isreal)
2 Tbsp fig preserves
1/2 cup pistachios roughly chopped
Appetizer crackers for serving

Set the goat cheese on your serving dish. Warm the honey and fig preserves in a glass dish in the microwave for a few seconds. Stir  and drizzle the honey mixture evenly over the goat cheese. Sprinkle with pistachios and serve with crackers.

Ultimate Grilled Chicken Sandwich

This is a perfect summertime sandwich with mouthwatering flavors. We always eat the sandwich with a side of corn on the cob and fresh watermelon cubes. It’s a family favorite!

Ultimate Grilled Chicken Sandwich 

5 chicken breasts
1 cup cilantro chopped
1 red onion sliced
4 cloves garlic minced
1 cup milk
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 loaf French bread or sourdough bread sliced
2 Tbsp Kerrygold butter
Garlic bread sprinkle
1-2 avocados sliced
1-2 tomatoes slices
6 slices Monterey Jack cheese
Ranch dressing (preferably homemade or from your favorite restaurant)

1. Place the chicken breasts in a plastic ziplock bag and use the flat side of a meat mallet or a rolling pin to pound out the chicken to about 1/2 inch thick. Transfer the chicken to a fresh ziplock bag just in case the pounding broke through the other bag. Add the cilantro, red onion, garlic, milk, olive oil, salt, and pepper.  Gently massage the bag to separate the onions and evenly coat the chicken with the marinade. Let it sit in the refrigerator for 4 to 8 hours.

2. Before you start grilling the chicken, slice the avocados and tomatoes and butter one side of each slice of French bread.

2. Once the chicken is marinated preheat your grill to a medium heat and then grill the chicken for about 5 minutes on one side and then flip it over and place 1 slice of Monterey Jack cheese on each piece of chicken. Break up the extra slice of cheese to cover any extra portions of the chicken breast. After the chicken is grilled on the second side and cooked through, put the chicken on a covered plate to rest for 6-10 minutes.

3. While the chicken is resting, toast the bread in the oven at 400° with the buttered side up for about 4 to 5 minutes. Serve the sandwiches either open faced with one piece of bread or closed with two pieces, and top the bread buttered side out with tomato slices, avocado slices, chicken, and ranch.

Spinach Artichoke Dip

Spinach Artichoke Dip

14.5 ounc jar of artichoke hearts drained
1 cup mayonnaise
4 ounces goat cheese or cream cheese
4 ounces sour cream
1 cup Parmesan cheese grated fresh
1 clove garlic, minced
Dash hot sauce (optional)
Dash Worcestershire sauce (optional)
2 cups fresh spinach chopped

. In a mixing bowl beat the goat or cream cheese and slowly add the mayonnaise and sour cream to that while beating. Add the garlic, artichoke hearts, and Parmesan cheese giving it another quick beat. Stir in the chopped spinach and spread the final mixture into a 9 x 13 dish, and bake for 20 to 30 minutes at 350°. Serve with thin slices of toasted homemade French bread recipe, or crackers.

Barbecue Chicken Cobb Salad

A perfectly light summer dinner salad that’s delicious with the Buttery Croissant Roll recipe. Adapted from the cookbook Our Best Bites

Barbecue Chicken Cob Salad

6 cups romaine lettuce  or spring mix
6 cups spinach
1 large chicken breast grilled with your favorite BBQ sauce and diced
4-6 pieces cooked bacon chopped
2 Roma tomatoes diced
1 large avocado diced
3 soft boiled eggs diced
4 scallions sliced
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Ranch dressing (homemade or Wingstop Ranch is delicious!)

Fill a large chilled salad bowl with the lettuce and spinach mixed together. Top with cooled grilled chicken, bacon, Roma tomatoes, avocado, hard-boiled eggs, green onions, and shredded cheddar cheese. Let everyone view your beautiful presentation before topping with the dressing and tossing the whole salad together.

Strawberry Sauce

This recipe is so versatile to use for ice cream sundaes (Blue Bell Dutch Chocolate ice cream with chopped bananas and topped with this sauce), drizzling over waffles or cheesecake, or blended with milk and vanilla ice cream for strawberry milkshakes.

Strawberry Sauce 

1 pint chopped strawberries (or frozen)
1/4 cup sugar or agave or honey
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp lemon juice (optional)
2-4 drops pure liquid stevia (optional)

1. Combine berries, sugar or agave, and lemon juice in a medium sauce pan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook for five minutes, stirring constantly and breaking up strawberries with a wooden spoon or potato mashing tool. If you choose to sweeten with honey, add it after the strawberries have been simmered and slightly cooled.

2. Remove from heat and cool before blending. Add the vanilla.  Taste the sauce for sweetness, and add the Stevia if you want a little extra sweetness without the extra calories.  Pulse until you reach your desired consistency, and refrigerate unused sauce for up to a week or freeze for up to three months.

Buttermilk Caramel Syrup

Picture this sauce being drizzled over a hot waffle - yes please! This is the kind of recipe I save for a big Sunday morning breakfast, or Christmas day, or for bringing to a home group breakfast potluck. It’s indulgent and it’s worth it!

Buttermilk Caramel Syrup 

3/4 cup buttermilk or 3/4 cup milk with 3/4 tsp lemon juice
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup blue agave
1/2 cup kerrygold butter
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

1. In a large pot or saucepan combine buttermilk, sugar, blue agave, and butter. Bring to a boil stirring constantly. Simmer for about 5 minutes until the sugar is dissolved and the syrup has thickened.

2. Take off the heat and whisk in the baking soda. It will bubble up quite a lot and then settle back down.

3. When the sauce is called a little bit add the vanilla and taste the sauce to see if it’s sweet enough for you. Add more agave if you wish.  It can be stored in the fridge for about a week.

Breakfast Burritos with Lime Chipotle Dip

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Salsa Fresca

Calling all salsa lovers! Did you know that the canned tomatoes and store bought salsas have leached harmful chemicals and hormones from the lining of the cans? The acidic nature of tomatoes and oranges make them some of the canned products you’ll want to avoid. Roasting your own tomatoes is so fast and easy, and it tastes so much better! The flavors here are so bright and fresh! I also like some of the tomatoes to go in raw for taste and vitamin content.  You can roast all of your tomatoes though. It’s up to you. I also want to note that I LOVE cilantro so this recipe is perfect for me. You can alway leave it out if cilantro is not your thing. Add an extra jalapeño if you like it spicy. Thank you Julie for the recipe and being one of the first women friends to make me feel loved after I was married. It gave me the confidence I needed to reach outside of my comfort zone to make new friends everywhere life took me down the road.

Salsa Fresca

8 Roma tomatoes or 6 medium tomatoes
1 large clove garlic chopped
1 bunch green onions roughly chopped
1 bunch cilantro, chopping the leafy section and discarding the stems
Juice from 1/2 a lemon (1 Tbsp)
Juice from 1/2  a lime (1Tbsp)
1 jalapeño seeded and diced
1/2 bag of frozen petite white corn (optional)
1 avacado diced
Sea salt to taste

Roast 1/2 of your tomatoes in the oven at 400° for 5 to 10 minutes, or grill them on medium heat for about 4 minutes on one side and grill marks are showing, then flip them over to grill the other side for another 4 minutes. The skin of the tomatoes should look slightly wilted, and they should be soft. When they have cooled, core the stem area of all the tomatoes and put them in a blender or food processor with the garlic, onions, lemon juice, lime juice, jalapeño, salt, and half of the cilantro leaves. Pulse until everything is blended but still a little chunky. Add the rest of the cilantro and pulse a couple more times to desired consistency. I like a few of the cilantro leaves to be in larger pieces. Pour the salsa into a bowl. Taste test to see if you have enough salt and lemon juice. When you’ve got it tasting like you want it, stirring the corn and avocado. Serve or store in an airtight container.

Chicken Coconut Curry

This was my first attempt at making Indian food, and now I’m hooked! When I eat this my whole body feels so warm, like everything is just circulating like it should. Roasting all of the whole seeds and blending them yourself is the magic of this recipe. The flavors are just so incredible together! It’s worth the time it takes, and you can also double your chicken coconut curry recipe because the curry powder makes enough for two recipes. We eat half of it and then freeze the other half into individual portions for lunches on the go. #lifehack

Chicken Coconut Curry

3 Tbsp Ghee or olive oil
2 medium onions chopped
1 inch piece of ginger minced
4 cloves garlic finely chopped
2 Tbsp tomato paste
2 Tbsp curry powder recipe follows
1 cinnamon stick
1-3 dried red chilies
Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
Two 15 oz cans unsweetened coconut milk
2 cups chicken stalk
4 tomatoes seeded and chopped
6 boneless skinless chicken breast sliced into 1 inch strips
1/4 cup cilantro leaves plus more for garnish
1 lemon juiced
1 cup raw cashews

Curry Powder (Garam masala)

2 Tbsps coriander seeds
1 Tbsp cumin seeds
1 Tbsp cardamom seeds
1 Tbsp whole black peppercorns
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp whole cloves
2 dried chilies broken in pieces, seeds discarded
2 Tbsps turmeric

For the Curry Powder

Heat the coriander, cumin, cardamom, pepper, fennel, mustard, and cloves to a small dry skillet on low until fragrant (2 minutes). In a clean coffee grinder or herb mill grind the toasted herbs until powdered. Add the turmeric powder and pulse again to combine. Use immediately or store in an air tight jar for up to a month. Be sure the curry powder is completely cooled before storing.

For the Chicken Curry Sauce 

Heat the ghee or olive oil in a heavy bottomed pot and add the onions, ginger, and garlic are very soft, for about 15 minutes. Add the tomato paste, curry, cinnamon, and chilies. Sir everything well and add the salt and pepper. Pour in the coconut milk and chicken stock and bring to a simmer, about 20 minutes. Add the chicken and lemon juice. When the chicken is cooked through add the cashews and serve over rice with cilantro sprinkled on top.

Lemon Lime Zucchini Fettuccine

Lemon Lime Zucchini Fettuccine

2 large chicken breasts 

1 Tbsp lemon juice 

1 Tbsp lime juice

1/4 cup + 3 Tbsp olive oil divided 

2 Tbsp red wine vinegar 

1 Tbsp salt

2 medium zucchini 

Salt and pepper 

5-6 cloves garlic minced

8 oz fettuccine (Italy imported)

Fresh basil 2/3 cup

Fresh oregano 1/4 cup

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese 

Put chicken in a plastic bag and pound out the meat with the flat side of a meat tenderizer tool or a rolling pin. The thinner chicken breast will soak up more of the marinade flavor. Put the chicken in a bowl combined with the lemon and lime juice, 2 Tbsps of the olive oil, and the red wine vinegar. Set aside for 15-30 minutes.