Creamsicle Pancake Syrup

This recipe was adapted from Heather's Dish "Very Vanilla Pancakes with Creamy Orange Scented Drizzle"

http://www.heathersdish.com/ad-free/very-vanilla-pancakes-with-creamy-orange-scented-drizzle/

All credit goes to her for her ingenuity.

Changes made were simply to document how I adapted the recipe using ingredients I typically have on hand (turns out I don't even know what "vanilla bean paste" is)

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
Zest from 1/2 a large naval orange
Juice from 1/2 a large naval orange
1/4 cup milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla

For directions, see Heather's Dish, link above. I doubled the recipe because my husband likes his pancakes to swim.

Note: I think it'd be awesome to substitute vanilla coffee creamer for the milk, but I didn't have any this morning when I made it. Need to try that next time!

Bacon and Butternut Risotto

Ingredients:

3 T. butter

1 small butternut squash

3 T. brown sugar

Salt and Pepper

3 slices bacon, chopped

3 green onions, sliced

1/8 tsp. dried thyme

1/4 tsp. dried sage

2 cups arborio rice

2 cups chicken broth

2 cups beef broth

Directions:

1. Peel and chop butternut squash into small cubes. Should yield approximately 4 cups of cubes. 

2. Melt butter in a medium skillet. Add squash. Sprinkle with sugar and salt and pepper. Sautee until browned and tender.

3. Meanwhile, in a small skillet, brown bacon pieces. Once they begin to brown, add green onions, thyme, and sage. Cook until bacon is completely cooked, onion is tender, and herbs fragrant. 

4. Meanwhile...back on the ranch..... okay sorry. Bring broths to a boil. Add rice and bacon mixture. Simmer until rice is fully cooked and liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat and stir in butternut squash. 

Note: I'm aware that usually risottos are made by slowly absorbing the liquid until it's fully cooked while sauteeing but... this is the easy way, okay? 

Note: I'm also aware that this is a very autumnal meal. Don't care. 

Cinnamon Tortilla Triangles

Ingredients:
6 T. salted butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 large flour tortillas (burrito sized)

Directions:
Note: You're going to prepare one at a time. You'll see why. Just trust me.

Preheat oven to 350F

1. Combine sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.
2. Melt butter using your preferred method (I nuked mine)
3. While butter melts, slice one of your tortillas into triangles using a pizza cutter.
4. On a cookie sheet with a rim, slather both sides of the tortilla triangles with the butter (use all of it. Remember, just trust me!) then sprinkle with the sugar mixture on both sides.
5. Bake for approximately 10 minutes, until the sugar looks kinda caramelized and the tortillas look crisp...but not TOO crisp. You want them slightly chewy still so they don't make a terrible mess when you try to eat them. Unless you're into that.
6. Being vewwy vewwy careful to not burn yourself on that scalding sugar, transfer tortillas onto a plate or cooling rack. As you can see, a ton of sugar and butter will be left on the pan. I used a rubber spatula to scrape the stuff out of the pan and into a bowl to cool slightly before handling. Then I sliced up the second tortilla, poured/smooshed the remaining sugarbutter over them, and baked again.

These are super awesome when they're still hot, but also good at room temperature for a snack later. Just store in an airtight container after cooling.

Okay, okay, I admit. I used way too much butter and sugar the first time and discovered the fact that the sugar could be reused to make another. Because the sugar mixture leaks off into the pan no matter how you do it, I think this method is easier than trying to do both at once or whatever.

Also, don't be freaked about the pan getting scorched or anything... you're not baking for very long or for a very hot temperature so my pans were perfectly okay and the sugar mixture dissolved in warm dishwater easily.

Unbelievably Decadent and Frothy Dark Chocolate Milk

Don't worry. It's simple.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 1/4 cups milk, divided

Directions:

1. Combine sugar, cocoa, and 1/4 cup of the milk in a small saucepan. Whisk briskly and constantly over low heat until all is dissolved and resembles traditional chocolate syrup--it might be a little lumpy. (See reference pictures below, and don't laugh at my ghetto foil-lined stove)

2. Separate the mixture into two glasses. Add remaining milk and whisk together. 

3. If you really love the person you're sharing this with, serve with a straw.

Notes:

I feel like this recipe could easily produce 4 glasses of generic tasting chocolate milk-decent, but nothing special. But the high concentration of cocoa in these is what makes them amazing. 

Butternut Squash and Granny Apple Soup

Ingredients:

•           2 tablespoons butter (or margarine)

•           ½ cup yellow onion, chopped

•           ½ cup red onion, chopped

•           6 green onions, sliced

•           4 cups butternut squash, peeled and cubed

•           1 large granny apple, cored and cubed (leave skin on)

•           1 cup carrots, peeled and sliced

•           2 potatoes, cubed (leave skin on)

•           1 quart chicken broth

•           ¼ tsp cinnamon

•           dash ground ginger

•           dash ground allspice or cloves

•           dash ground nutmeg

•           ½ to 1 t. salt, to taste

•           ½ cup whipping cream (optional)

Directions:

1.                  Melt butter in large soup pot on medium heat. Add onions and cook until tender, about 5 mins.

2.                  Raise heat to medium-high and add remaining vegetables, chicken broth, and spices and stir. Cover, reduce heat to low, and boil gently for 20-30 minutes until carrots and squash are soft enough to easily pierce with fork.

3.                  Puree the soup in batches in blender.

4.                  If adding cream, put now-pureed soup back into pot and add cream and simmer gently on low for another 5 minutes, covered.

About this blog

I hate those blogs where you have to scroll through 3 pages of text about how Granny used to serve this recipe every Sunday before her head was eaten by a dingo and a zillion photos of the food from several angles to get to the actual recipe. I didn't make this blog for any reason other than keeping track of recipes I've tinkered with and hopefully introducing others to some of my genius. Kidding. Also, I came up with the name of the blog in the shower and thought it was funny so... there you have it.

Green Powerball Freezer Smoothies

Get breakfast ready in approximately 2 seconds in the morning. (Prep required. Of course.)

For the Powerball:

2 T. dry oats
1 T. flaxseed
1 T. peanut butter
1 tsp. cocoa powder
1 T. water

In a blender, combine oats and flaxseed and grind to a powder. Combine oats/flax powder with remaining ingredients in a small bowl with a rubber spatula until it can be molded into a ball. Freeze on wax paper while you prep the produce for the rest of the smoothie.

For the Produce:

1/2 banana
1/8 avocado
1/4 cup frozen berries
2 wedges apple
2-3 baby carrots
1/4 cup packed spinach

Chop banana, avocado, apple, and carrots into small pieces. Place in sandwich-sized Ziplock bag. Add powerball. Freeze bag.

For the Smoothie:

In the morning, stumble out of bed. Dump contents of ziplock bag into blender. Add 1/2 cup of whatever milk you drink. Blend. Breakfast's ready.

Approximate Nutrition:
350 calories
40 g carbs
17 g fat (from peanut butter and avocado. healthy fat.)
12 g protein
10 g fiber
16 g sugar (from fruit and milk)


Note: The purpose of the powerball is so the peanut butter doesn't stick to the inside of the bag. Also, it sounds frickin' epic.

Note: If you desire a sweeter smoothie, use 1 T. honey instead of water when making the powerball. Or just dump a bit of sugar up in there. No judging here. I had Reese's for dinner last night.

Note: I like to make about a week's worth of smoothie bags at a time. Takes 3 bananas, 1 avocado, 1 apple, and a few handfuls from bags of baby carrots, spinach, and frozen berries.