Almond Anise Biscotti

Almond Anise Biscotti

Since today is fathers day I decided to make my father a treat – homemade biscotti. 

My father LOVES biscotti – and I forgot just how much I loved them when I ate one today!  I think the last time I had one was when I lived at home with him. 

He doesn’t even drink coffee anymore- I think he quit before I was old enough to notice, but to this day when I am traveling and wake up to the smell of coffee it feels like home to me…

Anyway- he just eats them alone, which is the same way I enjoy them! 

My husband, however, took one tooth to it this morning and thought it was a joke.  That I am gifting stale bread to my father… silly boy. 

This evening though- he ate one… and then asked for two more!  Aaaha.  Told him they were good!  

So Here We Go.  What You Need:

2 lemons grated lemon rind (about 1-2 tbl)

2/3 cup slivered almonds (one small bag)

¾ cup sugar

2 eggs

2 cups flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 egg white – beaten.

The Fun Part:

Combine first 4 ingredients – beat. 

Add dry ingredients—flour and baking powder. 

Kind of kneed the dough with your hands – inside the bowl to minimize mess. 

Form into two oval-ish loafs – flattened – on a greased cookie sheet

Coat with beatened egg white

Cook at 350 for 25 minutes

Lower temp to 325 for 5 minutes

Slice

Place slices back into oven at 325 for 15 minutes. 

Let cool – coat with chocolate if you wish – or not…

Enjoy! 

Mandarin Orange Jello 'Salad'

Mandarin Orange Jello 'Salad'



I don’t know when people started referring to non-lettuce sides as salads… but I’m all for it!  Makes it feel a little less guilty. 



I’m not a huge fan of oranges but these little suckers make this dish so juicy and delicious! 

My Tante introduced me to this wonderful recipe and it would just be wrong to keep it to myself!



We ate it as a dessert, but it would certainly be a wonderful BBQ side dish- nice and refreshing!



So Here We Go.  What You Need:



1 3 oz box orange jello
1 3oz box cook and serve vanilla pudding
1 3oz box tapioca pudding
2 cups water
2 8oz cans mandarin oranges (drained)
1 8oz can diced pineapple (drained) (you can omit and use another can of oranges if you wish)
1 tub cool whip  



The Fun Part:



-In pot mix jello and both puddings with 2 cups of water.  Stir constantly until it boils.  –
- Continue to stir and let boil for one minute. 
- Pour into bowl and cool completely (I let mine cool in fridge)
- Add oranges, pineapple, and cool whip.
-Chill for a couple of hours until thickened and..



Enjoy! :)

Zucchini Side Dish

Zucchini Side Dish



I think I have an obsession with zucchini. 



And how can I not?  The stuff is so wonderful! Don't pretend like you don't love them too, otherwise you wouldn't have clicked on this recipe.  They’re so mild in flavor, they kind of taste like an apple to me.  Kind of.  Lol



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Pair ‘em up with corn and facon and how can someone not love it?



Don’t like facon? (fake bacon) use onions instead.  Or use onions anyway!  Sounds good to me…



So Here We Go.  What You Need:



1 tbl oil
4 slices facon (or bacon) - diced
2 (fairly large) zucchini -diced
1 can of corn



The Fun (and Easy) Part:



-In hot pan add oil, facon, zucchini, and corn.
-Cook until softened, but not too soft.  Around 5 minutes on medium heat

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Enjoy! :)

Black Eyed Kim Salad

Black Eyed Kim Salad

This salad is sans lettuce… But I promise you it’s quite healthy!  How can it not be when it’s full of beans and veg! But the best part?  It’s delish! 

This recipe would be great as a BBQ side dish, or even used as a ‘dip’!

When I first had this I asked the hostess what was in it and she spouted off a list of ingredients… I’d be lying if I told you I thought about anything else the rest of the day!  I should have just asked for pen and paper… 

I got home and couldn’t wait to replicate this colorful dish! 

So Here We Go.  What You Need:

1 can black eyed peas (drained)

1 can black beans (drained)

1 can corn (drained)

½ (or a bit more) chopped celery

½ red onion- chopped

1 jalapino (or pimento) pepper –chopped

1 tea garlic powder

1 tea black pepper

¼ cup apple cider vinegar

¼ cup veg oil

2 tbl worcestershire sauce (I always have to google the spelling of this crap.)

1 tbl sugar

The Fun Part:

-Combine all ingredients.

-Chill for a few hours

Enjoy with corn chips or tortillas or a spoon J

Whoopie Pies - Vegan Style

Whoopie Pies

Whoopieeeeee 

Ever since I took a vaca to Pennsylvania to visit my family last summer I have fallen DEEPLY in love with all of the amish goodies – Their breads, their jams, their auctions, and most importantly- their oh so famous whoopee pies! 

I literally gained 5 lbs that summer and I can attribute every pound to those darn delicious whoopee pies. 

I even got a whoopee pie maker!  How cool is that?  If you’re interested in getting one I got mine at Kohls  and it is called babycakes whoopee pie maker – and it’s fantastical.
I will add that you do not need this special maker for this recipe, these cakes will cook just as easily in the oven on a regular cookie sheet .. you’re welcome!

Whoopies.  What You Need:

1 box Duncan heins yellow cake mix (accidentally vegan)

1 can pumpkin puree

*I promise they don’t taste ANYTHING like pumpkin… do you trust me?

That’s it!  I told you it was easy.  

The Fun Part: 

Mix.

Cook in whoopee pie maker for 2:30

Or

Scoop onto cookie sheet- Cook in the oven at 350 for 15ish minutes or until golden

I use a small cookie scoop to get even rounds.

 – makes 24 whoopie pies – 48 single rounds. 

   Filling

4 c powdered sugar

3 tbl shortening

3Tbl earth balance butter

Ps. If you DO want pumpkin tasting whoopee pies use spice cake mix and add spices like cinnamon, ginger, ground cloves, nutmeg, and allspice – just a tad of each—or pumpkin pie spice—whatever) 

Before their trip to the oven. 

left side = whoopie pie maker
right side = oven

Vegan Nutella

Vegan Nutella

I’m going to be honest with you for a moment here- oh who am I kidding, I’m always blunt.  I am addicted to Nutella.  I am. And If you’re reading this, chances are- so are you, and if you’re not yet, you will be. Mark my words! 

In Venice found this AMAZING jar of nutella.  Yes I had to have it. 

Nutella was ALWAYS a staple in my house growing up- so imagine my shock and dismay when I grew up only to find out that this is not the case in everyone’s home!  I felt so horrible for not exposing as many people I could to it as possible!

I actually had to stop myself from buying some the other day, it was on sale and I found a coupon in the paper- that never happens once in a lifetime year.  (Did you get as confused reading that as I did typing it? Welcome to my brain.)

Like my jar?  I got it when I lived in Italy.  *brag*

It is heaven. 

I’m not kidding.  HEAVEN! 

I was devastated for my husband because he could no longer eat it, since he was allergic to milk.  As luck would have it- I have a vegan nutella recipe that is just as tasty!   Whew. Bullet dodged!

Vegan 'chocolate' chips

This ‘nutella’ taste exactly like nutella!!  I asked my husband what he thought and he said it just taste fresher – that doesn’t seem like much of a problem to me at all!

Straight out of the oven - Mmm I can smell them. 

After rubbing the skins off 

So here we go What You Need:

1 cup hazelnuts

10 oz vegan chocolate

3 tbl powdered sugar

2 tbl coconut oil

1 tbl cocoa powder

The Fun Part:

-Toast the hazelnuts.  I did this in the oven at 350 for 10 minutes.  You can do it on your stovetop as well – low heat and stirring frequently. 

- once toasted, rub skins off with a kitchen towel.

- place in food processor and ground the hazelnuts. 

- melt the chocolate in a double boiler (a pot w/ a bit of water and a glass bowl on top)
- Once melted add the rest of ingredients – powder sugar, oil, and cocoa.

- add everything to the food processer for one more go, and you’re done!

Enjoy the deliciousness! 

Makes enough to fill a 13 oz jar

Energy Smoothie

Energy Fruit Smoothies

Smoothies to me were something that I bought from Orange Julius for seven bucks a pop- lol did I just type ‘seven bucks a pop’? Anyway- I can’t remember when exactly it was that I discovered that making a smoothie was not only easy… but that it is SO sinkin easy!

If you have hands- you have measuring utensils. 

You can seriously make it with ANY type of fruit you have in your fridge or freezer. Honest.

And it’s so good for you it’s ridiculous.  Go look in your fridge/freezer and see what you’ve got and make one now!!

I will say that every time I make one I add a banana.  I’m not too fond of bananas, but I really think it’s the base.  – but the ideas are endless!  I typically use spinish, but I had kale- so that’s what I used and it was supurb!  Have some mangos?  Use em.  Have a pomegranate that you don’t feel like eating? Use it.  Seriously. Anything your heart desires!

What You Need

For this particular smoothie I used;

1 banana

1 handful frozen peaches (or fresh)

2 handfuls frozen strawberries (or fresh, honey badger don’t care)

½ handful of blueberries

2 mega handfuls kale

½ cup almond milk/ coconut milk/ any non-dairy milk… or hey- cow’s milk if that’s all        

                                                                                                 you have – I don’t care!

   *More milk if you want it thinner- less if you want it thicker. 

 The Fun Part

Shove it all in a blender and blend. 

Drink Up J

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Hummus.  It’s a vegan staple!  Be honest, you love the creamy crap out of it!  I will be honest with you – brace yourselves – I hate chick peas.  Hate.  They are SO nasty.  I have tried to eat them many different ways, and I just… can’t.  Hummus is the only way to get them in my belly. 

Hummus is so versatile, and can be used on SO many things!  As a dip for veggies, pretzels, chips, on Sammies, {veggie} burgers, use it as frosting on a cake… okay kidding about the last part.. but you should really try that and tell me how it goes ;-)

Notice how there are still burnt chards on the red pepper??
As my dad {and nonni} say
"it's good for your complexion."

My Daughter eats it with a spoon

Back to hummie-ness – This recipe is so easy- all hummus is.  I promise you will never spend $5.00 on store bought hummus again once you realize how simple and cheap it is to make it yourself!

Here’s What You Need

1 roasted red pepper (roasted yourself or out of a can)

2 cloves of garlic

1 can chick peas / garbanzo beans – drained and rinsed

¼ tea chilli powder

1 tea cumin

Few dashes of pepper

*add whatever other spices you care for, they’re your taste buds!  I don’t care..

The Fun Part

-          Roast the pepper- I do it on my gas stove top.  On high place the pepper over the flame- turn after a minute or so.  Keep turning with tongs until the whole pepper is roasted.  Place in a covered bowl- let steam for 5 minutes or so until it’s cool enough to handle – rub the burnt skin off, gut, and slice. 

-         In a blender combine all of ingredients

-          Blend – it you need some liquid to get it going add some chick pea juice from the can- if you’ve already drained it you can add some lemon juice. Or water. 

-          Enjoy the yummy goodness J