Three-Ingredient Nutella Doughnuts

And so my Nutella obsession continues!

Chris and I stopped by Crate and Barrel while trying to kill some time before dinner the other weekend (is it just us or do you find yourselves getting hungry at 4pm on the weekends?), and I came across some cute little doughnut pans. The person that created these pans needs to be commended. Being able to bake doughnuts instead of frying them and still creating that same, delicious doughnut texture? My waistline thanks you.

They are still doughnuts regardless, but knowing that you aren't soaking these in a pot of oil to cook them just makes you feel a little better, doesn't it? Using only three ingredients doesn't hurt either. Who cares that one of them is Nutella. These are super simple and you get a rush of Nutella as soon as you bite into them. Enjoy these while you can...they'll be gobbled up in no time!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 2/3 cup Nutella (plus more for glazing)
• 1 egg and 1 egg yolk
• 6 tbsp. all purpose flour
• Hazelnuts for garnish, optional

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray doughnut pan with non stick cooking spray and set aside.

In small bowl, combine Nutella, egg, egg yolk and flour until smooth batter forms. Spoon evenly into pans and spread batter around to fill cavities evenly.

Bake 8-10 minutes or until thoroughly cooked. Remove from oven and cool 10 minutes before removing from pans. Cool completely. Spread more Nutella over tops of doughnuts and garnish with chopped hazelnuts, if desired. Serve.

Source: Lauren's Latest

Grilled Corn with Basil Garlic Oil

Corn on the cob was never something I would jump at the chance to get in the past. Not when it was fresh at the farmer's market, not when it was on sale, and certainly not when I was looking for something new to try.

Corn OFF the cob is so crunchy, sweet and delicious, but I just hated eating it off of the cob for one simple reason: it got stuck in my teeth and would not come out. I know you know how uncomfortable that is. It's the worst. Feeling strands stuck in your teeth hours later. GAH!

Then I realized something: that's what floss is for.

So when Chris bought some fresh corn on the cob to grill with our dinner the other night, I was excited to try out a new recipe. The corn was grilled to perfection and the flavor was amazing. It doesn't dry out on the grill like it often can if being cooked in the microwave. He made a basil and garlic infused oil to spread on prior to grilling, and then we immediately spread butter over the whole thing when it was done. Pure deliciousness I tell you. Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 4 ears corn
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 2 tsp. garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. dried basil
• 2 tbsp. butter

Preheat grill to medium-high heat.

Mix olive oil, garlic and basil in a small bowl. Set aside.

Husk the corn and remove as much of the silky thread as possible. Place each ear of corn on a piece of aluminum foil. Brush the corn with the olive oil mixture. Tightly wrap the aluminum foil around each ear of corn.

Place the corn on the grill and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from grill and set aside to cool a little.

Open each foil packet and immediately spread each ear of corn with a pad of butter. Enjoy!

Source: Chris Original

Overnight Oats in a Jar

I've been hearing about overnight oats for a while now. I love having a warm bowl of oatmeal on chilly winter mornings, but it's the last thing I want on a hot, clammy summer morning. I can barely choke down a hot cup of coffee when my hair is plastered to my neck from the heat, so I can't even imagine chowing down on a steaming bowl of oatmeal. No, thank you. But since these oats are served chilled and I'm a huge breakfast person, it was time to give these a try.

The trick to overnight oats is having a 1:2 ratio of oats to liquids. Really anything goes in this equation, as long as you stick to that. I think this would be great with some mashed up banana in it. Or maybe just some cinnamon and apples. Or how about granola and honey? The combinations are endless.

You can make these in cute Mason jars, which are all the rage these days. And you really can't blame them. Look how adorable they are and how many uses they have. I bought some at World Market the other day for under $2 each, and they definitely came in handy. Enjoy! 

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup rolled oats (not instant)
• 1/2 cup reduced-fat milk
• 1/2 cup fat-free plain or vanilla Greek yogurt
• Splash of vanilla
• Sprinkle of cinnamon
• 1 tbsp. sweetened shredded coconut
• 2 tsp. agave nectar
• Extra toppings such as nuts, fruit, granola

Mix all ingredients (except extra toppings) in a jar. Shake until combined. Let sit in refrigerator overnight. Add extra toppings and enjoy!

Source: SK Original

Crockpot BBQ Root Beer Shredded Chicken Sandwiches

 

Today's Secret Recipe Club recipe comes from Lynne's blog, 365 Days of Baking. Lynne was on a quest to bake every day for 365 days, and on March 9th of this year she accomplished her goal. Congratulations!

As you can probably imagine, 365 days (plus) of baking leads to pages of pages of blog posts and amazing recipes. I made it through almost all of them, but instantly settled on this crockpot recipe. After coming back from our two-week honeymoon, it has taken me a while to get back into the swing of things, so an easy crockpot meal was more than up my alley.

Using chicken instead of pork was a delicious substitution and the flavors of the bbq sauce and root beer really took over. I highly recommend topping these with caramelized onions and cheese, as Lynne suggests, because it takes these sandwiches to a whole new level of delicous-ness. Since I usually top my pulled pork sandwiches with coleslaw, the carmelized onions were an unexpected but very welcome sweet twist that really complimented the bbq flavor. I definitely think I'll start using them on these types of sandwiches more often. Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 6 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 3 pounds)
• 1 tbsp. onion powder
• 2 tsp. paprika
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. Old Bay seasoning
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. pepper
• 16 oz. Root Beer
• 32 oz. barbecue sauce
• 2 cups Cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
• Caramelized onions (recipe below)
• 2 tbsp. fresh cilantro, chopped

In a small bowl, combine onion powder, paprika, garlic powder, Old Bay seasoning, salt and pepper. Spread seasoning mix generously on each chicken breast and place in crockpot. Pour in Root Beer. Add barbecue sauce. Cook on low for 8 hours, stirring a few times during the day.

After 8 hours, remove the chicken and shred with two forks. Return chicken to crockpot. Mix it thoroughly with the barbecue sauce, and cook for another

15-30 minutes until sauce is absorbed.

Place chicken on rolls. Top with about 1/4 cup of cheese, caramelized onions and sprinkle with fresh cilantro.

Caramelized Onions:

• 2 tbsp. butter
• 2 large onions, sliced and separated into rings

In a medium skillet, melt butter over medium-high. Add onions. Saute until translucent.  Reduce heat to low and cook for up to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Source: 365 Days of Baking

Oven-Fried Buttermilk Ranch Chicken

I'm not a huge fan of crab legs. Or chicken wings. Or ribs.

And what do all of these things have in common?

They make me work for it!

I feel like preparing a meal is enough work in and of itself, so having to go the extra mile to eat the darn thing after it's prepared is a pain in the butt. At least in my opinion. Chris, on the other hand, could eat chicken wings until his fingers fell off. He loves them that much.

As part of this whole marriage thing, I know I need to make sacrifices. Making drumsticks for dinner counts, right? I mean it goes against my whole "only-eat-dinner-with-a-fork" thing. So I did it. And I loved it. I mean loooooved it. The chicken was so ranch-y (yes, it's a word) and tender from soaking in the buttermilk mixture overnight. And although they weren't fried, they still came out crispy and crunchy. So we saved some calories and still had a delicious meal! Even though I had to work for it, it was well worth it. Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

Chicken

• 2 cups low-fat buttermilk
• 1 (1 oz.) package dry ranch dressing mix
• 3 1/2 lb. cut drumsticks
• Cooking spray

Breading

• 1 cup Bisquick mix
• 1 (1 oz.) package dry ranch dressing mix  
• 1/2 tsp. paprika
• 1/2 tsp. seasoned salt 
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

Remove skin from chicken.

In large resealable food-storage plastic bag, mix buttermilk, dressing mix and chicken. Seal bag; turn bag several times to coat chicken. Refrigerate at least 1 hour or overnight.

Heat oven to 425°F. Line a 15x10x1-inch pan with aluminum foil and coat with cooking spray. In shallow dish, mix breading ingredients. Remove chicken pieces one at a time from buttermilk mixture. Dip chicken in breading, turning to coat completely; shake off excess. Place chicken, bone side down, in pan. Lightly spray top of chicken with cooking spray.

Bake 45-50 minutes, turning halfway through, or until juice of chicken is clear when thickest piece is cut to bone (170°F for breasts; 180°F for thighs and legs).

Source: Slightly adapted from Pillsbury

Nutella Filled Sugar Cookies

 

I faced a major problem while we were on our honeymoon. An addiction, if you will. And its name?

Nutella.

See, we went to Tahiti, Moorea and Bora Bora. Beautiful, exotic and relaxing locations. All part of French Polynesia. And being French...well, they obviously had the best French bread ever. And for breakfast, they'd serve fresh bread alongside Nutella. Jars and jars of Nutella. I quickly became obsessed and then suffered withdrawal when I came home. So my only solution? Go to the grocery store and buy a $5 jar (gah!) of the stuff.

Since I do have a little pride and didn't want to go completely overboard, I decided I should bake something with Nutella instead of simply eating it by the spoonful. I'm a bit of a dessert snob, so it means a big deal when I say these are some of my favorite cookies ever. Soft, chewy sugar cookies with a surprise of Nutella in the middle? Who wouldn't say these are their favorites? Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup Nutella
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 1/2 cups plus 1/3 cup granulated sugar, divided
• 14 tbsp. (1 3/4 sticks) butter, softened
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tsp. vanilla

Using a 1 teaspoon measure, scoop out Nutella and place in small drops on a cookie sheet lined with parchment. Place in the freezer for 15 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.

In the bowl of your stand mixer, beat together the butter and 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar on medium until light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, and add in the the vanilla.

Turn the mixer to low and gradually beat in the flour mixture until just combined. Scrape down the bowl to ensure everything is well incorporated.

Place 1/3 cup granulated sugar in a small bowl. Use 2 tablespoons cookie dough for each cookie. Split the piece of dough in half and slightly flatten the bottom half by pressing it together with the palms of your hands.

Use a small metal spatula to lift the mounds of Nutella from the baking sheet and lay on the bottom half of cookie dough. If the Nutella starts to soften, place it back in the freezer for a few minutes.

Cover the Nutella with the other piece of cookie dough. Seal the edges with your fingers and roll the ball in the sugar to coat it. Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheet.

Repeat with the remaining dough and Nutella mounds, spacing the cookies about 2 inches apart from each other on the baking sheets.

Bake the cookies, one sheet a time, rotating from front to back halfway through baking. The edges will start to turn brown when they are finished, about 10 to 13 minutes. The centers should still be soft and puffy.

Remove the cookies from the oven and cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes. Using a spatula, remove the cookies from the baking sheet and cool on a rack. They can also be served warm. Don't forget the milk!

Source: Buns in my Oven

Beef Tamale Casserole

Sometimes I just need comfort food. Minimal effort, layered flavors and easy to eat. And to me, that is normally in the form of a casserole dish. A messed up car, broken laptop and wrongfully doubled bank deductions played a huge role in my bad day, so something comforting and cozy was definitely needed. Not a fun day for this little lady!

Mexican food is one of my favorites, so it's no wonder I quickly jumped at the chance to make this when I was having an "off" day. I'm also a huge cornbread lover, so having it as the base of this dish made it that much better. If you love tamales, this casserole is definitely for you. It's the layered form of one and probably ten times easier to make. Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 4 oz. Cheddar cheese, shredded
• 4 oz. Monterey Jack or Pepper Jack cheese, shredded
• 1/3 cup reduced-fat milk
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 (14.75-oz.) can cream-style corn
• 1 (8.5-oz.) box corn muffin mix (Jiffy works great)
• 1 (4-oz.) can chopped green chiles
• 1 (10-oz.) can red enchilada sauce
• 1 lb. ground beef
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Fresh chopped cilantro or parsley, to taste

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray a 13x9 baking dish with cooking spray.

Combine the cheeses in a small bowl. In a large bowl, stir together 1/4 cup of the combined cheese, the milk, egg, cumin, red pepper, corn, muffin mix, and the green chiles. Stir until just combined. Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 15 minutes or until just set.

While the cornbread is baking, cook your ground beef in a skillet over medium heat until cooked completely through. Drain, if necessary, and salt and pepper the beef.

Remove the cornbread from the oven and pierce all over with a fork. Pour the enchilada sauce over the corn bread. Top with the beef and remaining cheese. Return to the oven for another 15 minutes. Sprinkle with the chopped cilantro or parsley and serve.

Source: Adapted from Buns in my Oven

Caprese Panini with Prosciutto

Paninis are one of the easiest things to make, and they are still a satisfying meal that can be passed as lunch or dinner. Or even breakfast if you play your cards right. Add a little Nutella and banana? Yep, you could call it a day right there.

Caprese is the classic combination of tomato, mozzarella and basil. During this scorching hot time of year, fresh and light ingredients are always preferred. This trio is one of my favorites, so I wanted to turn the normal pizza topping and appetizer go-to into a hearty sandwich that could hold me over until dinner. Adding prosciutto made this sandwich over-the-top. The saltiness of the meat alongside the gooey cheese and fresh tomato and basil is a combination you are sure to love.

Oh and don't worry; even if you don't have a panini press you can still easily make this sandwich on your stovetop! My handy instructions are below. Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• Loaf of fresh French bread, sliced 1/2-inch thick
• 1 tomato, sliced thin
• Fresh basil leaves
• Fresh Mozzarella cheese, sliced thick
• Fresh prosciutto, sliced thin
• Olive oil

Heat a panini press to medium-high heat.

Lightly spread both sides of two pieces of French bread with olive oil. On the first piece of bread, layer two slices of fresh Mozzarella cheese, two slices of tomato, 2-3 slices of prosciutto and top with 2-3 basil leaves. Place the other piece of bread on top.

Grill on the panini press for about 3 minutes, or until bread is lightly browned and cheese is melted. Serve immediately.

If you don't have a panini press: Add your sandwich to a skillet over medium-low heat. Place a very heavy pot or pan over top of the sandwich to weigh it down. Cook for 3-4 minutes per side or until lightly browned.

Source: SK Original

Strawberry Trifle

About a month ago (I can't believe how quickly time flies!) some of my bridesmaids and my mom came over to help me to do some last minute things for the wedding. You know...put the programs together, tie the guest itineraries, go to the pool, drink wine and eat lots of food. Things that are completely normal before a wedding.

Anyways, I couldn't have them all come over to help me without feeding them, so I bought a spread of chips and dips and crackers and cheeses and pepperoni. An hour or so before they were expected to be over, I realized I didn't have anything sweet. No way I can have five girls at my house and not have anything sweet. Who am I kidding?

I rushed over to the grocery store and picked up a few ingredients with the hopes I could turn it into something fabulous. And something fabulous it was! Trifles are so easy and fun because you can really layer anything and it will taste delicious. This particular trifle I decided to make was super healthy (angel food cake is fat-free!) and was really refreshing on a hot June day. It was a perfect compliment to all the savory foods I had lined up across the table as well. Everyone really enjoyed this and I hope you do, too!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 (8-oz.) tub frozen lite cool whip, thawed
• 2 cups sugar-free vanilla pudding
• 2 (16 oz.) packages fresh strawberries
• 1 container (1 pint) fresh blueberries
• 2 tbsp. sugar
• 1 large pre-made angel food cake

In a large bowl, combine the cool whip and vanilla pudding.

Cut up the angel food cake into small bite-size pieces.

Remove the stems from the strawberries and cut into slices. Mix the strawberries with the sugar.

Place half of the cake in a 3-quart trifle bowl. Line half of the strawberries around the side of the bowl and over the cake. Top with a handful of blueberries. Spoon half of the pudding mixture over top of the fruit. Repeat layers one time. Top with blueberries for decoration.

Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

Source: SK Original

Tomato, Cucumber and Onion Salad

 

I'm always looking for new side dishes, especially when I need to clean out the fridge and see a bunch of ingredients that will be put to waste unless used within the next day or two. I know everyone has starting cranking out their grills, so this would be a perfect addition to your next BBQ.

I really enjoyed this blend of ingredients. Usually the only time I eat cucumbers is with hummus, but they were nice and crunchy against the tomatoes. I'm a sucker for onions as we all know, so it's really no surprise that I made this recipe as soon as I saw it. Plus, we were out of hummus and otherwise those poor little cucumbers would have gone to waste. Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 English cucumber, peeled and diced into quarter inch chunks
• 1 cup of grape tomatoes, halved
• 1 shallot, diced
• 2 tsp. Italian salad dressing dry mix
• 2 limes, juiced
• 3 tbsp. olive oil

Whisk dressing mix, lime juice and olive oil together. Toss with chopped veggies. Refrigerate until serving (at least one hour if possible). 

Source: Adapted from Snap Girl

Key Lime Pie Bars

Geez Louise. These are somethin' else.

I was never much of a Key Lime Pie fan. I think it's because my parents grew up in New York and favored chocolate cream pies or fresh Italian cookies or cheesecake. They didn't have these "exotic" types of fruit lying around, so they never really had a chance to experience anything else. So when they moved to Virginia, they stuck with what they knew and passed it along to us.

Chris' family, however, lived in Miami for many years so it's no surprise they would be huge fans of Key Lime Pie. I'm sure using fresh limes when they were in season made this pie amazing. I re-tasted it when Chris and I started dating four years ago, and I haven't turned back since.

Chris' dad recently celebrated his birthday and I made these Key Lime Bars for him to snack on. Although we usually go with the pie version, I thought these bars were super cute and could easily be shared among a group of people. This was easily the best tasting Key Lime treat I've ever had--pie or not. I don't know if it's the amount of sweetened condensed milk that was used or the fact that the crust was homemade, but boy was it delicious. Thick and creamy and so refreshing. Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

For the crust:

• 1 1/2 cups crushed graham crackers (about 2/3 of a sleeve)
• 2 tbsp. sugar
• 1/3 cup butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a small bowl, combine the crumbs and sugar; add butter and blend well. Line a 9-inch pan with aluminum foil. Press cruss onto the bottom of the lined pan. Bake for 8 minutes; cool on wire rack.

For the filling:

• 3 cups sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 cup light sour cream
• 3/4 cup key lime juice
• 1 tbsp. grated lime zest

In a medium bowl, combine condensed milk, sour cream, lime juice, and lime zest. Mix well and pour onto graham cracker crust.

Bake in preheated oven for 5 to 8 minutes, until tiny pinhole bubbles burst on the surface of pie. DO NOT BROWN! Allow to cool to room temperature. Chill pie thoroughly before serving (at least 3 hours). Cut into 16 bars; garnish with whipped cream and toasted coconut.

Source: Adapted from My Baking Addiction

Firecracker Grilled Salmon

Happy fourth of July! In honor of today's holiday, I give you Firecracker Grilled Salmon. Today's holiday was always one of my favorites growing up. The six of us would make our way up to New York to go to a huge gathering at my grandparents' house. We'd have a huge BBQ with every type of food you can imagine, go to the nearby deserted gas station to play a family game of wiffle ball and then later on in the evening set off a ton of (illegal) fireworks. Those are some memories I'll never forget. And it's probably why I'm still obsessed with fireworks to this day.

Firecracker Grilled Salmon tastes just how it sounds. It's fiery and spicy and delicious. If you can handle some heat, this will be right up your alley. If not, I'd scale back on the amount of red pepper flakes you put in. But regardless, it's a great way to celebrate our independence! Grilling out with family and friends...sounds like a great celebration to me. Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 8 (4 oz.) fillets salmon
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 4 tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce
• 4 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 tsp. onion powder
• 3 tsp. Splenda sugar
• 2 tsp. garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
• 2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp. sesame oil
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tbsp. cornstarch
• 2 tbsp. water

Place salmon fillets in a medium, nonporous glass dish. In a separate medium bowl, combine the vegetable oil, soy sauce, vinegar, onion powder, Splenda sugar, garlic, ginger, red pepper flakes, sesame oil and salt. Whisk together well, and pour over the fish. Cover and marinate the fish in the refrigerator for 4 to 6 hours.

Prepare an outdoor grill with coals about 5 inches from the grate, and lightly oil the grate. Grill the fillets, skin side up, 5 inches from coals for 10 minutes per inch of thickness, measured at the thickest part, or until fish just flakes with a fork. Turn over halfway through cooking so the skin is facing down. When cooked through, remove skin from salmon with a metal spatula.

Meanwhile, heat leftover marinade over medium heat in a small saucepan. Combine cornstarch and water in a separate bowl and add to sauce. Cook until heated through, about 5 minutes.

Drizzle the sauce over top of the salmon. Serve immediately. 

Source: Adapted from All Recipes

Reduced-Calorie Taco Salad

This is a recipe that I make over and over again in our house, yet I don't know why I haven't posted it. Until now! Although store-bought taco seasoning will usually suffice, it's packed with a ton of sodium and a list of ingredients that you probably can't even pronounce. This healthier taco meat has all fresh ingredients and turns out just as tasty. It's really the only way I'll make taco meat now!

You can obviously put the meat in a shell or tortilla as the recipe suggests (if you make the bowls, they're super cute and fun for kids), but Chris and I often choose to just load all the taco ingredients onto a bed of lettuce and turn it into a salad instead. If we're making the taco meat a bit healthier, might as well go all out, right? Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 4, 6- or 8-inch corn tortillas
• Nonstick cooking spray
• 3/4 pound lean ground beef or turkey
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
• 1 tbsp. vinegar
• 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper
• 4 cups shredded lettuce
• 1/2 cup chopped green or red sweet pepper (optional)
• 1/4 cup reduced-fat cheddar cheese, shredded (optional)
• 12 cherry tomatoes, halved (optional)
• 1 avocado, pitted and sliced (optional)

For tortilla bowls, wrap tortillas in foil. Warm in a 350 degree F oven for 10 minutes. Spray four 10-ounce custard cups with nonstick cooking spray.

Carefully press 1 tortilla into each cup. Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 15 minutes or until crisp. Cool; remove from custard cups.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet cook meat, onion, and garlic until meat is brown and onion is tender. Drain fat.

Stir in tomato sauce, vinegar, cumin, and red pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes.

Divide lettuce among 4 serving plates. Place a tortilla on each plate. Spoon beef mixture into tortillas. Sprinkle with green or red pepper and cheese. Serve with cherry tomato halves and avocado slices. Makes 4 servings.

Make Ahead Tip: Prepare tortilla bowls. Place in large freezer container with paper towels between bowls and crumpled around sides to protect the shells. Seal, label, and freeze up to 1 month.

Source: Better Homes and Garden