Fallon's Cucina

Grilled Eggplant Parmesan

2013-04-16T13:58:00.001-07:00

Had some time on my lunch break and decided I could blog about my dinner last night! I've been on Weight Watchers the last few months and have had great success. One of my favorite dishes to make is Eggplant Parmesan. To make my dish less points on Weight Watchers I grilled slices of eggplant. Make sure to sprinkle salt on them and let sit in a colander. This break down the bitterness and makes the eggplant softer. Dry the slices by patting dry with paper towels and on a well lit grill, cook them up.

I swapped the ricotta cheese for fat free cottage cheese. First time I ever did this and it was delicious!

GRILLED EGGPLANT PARMESAN
By: Fallon Foale

Ingredients:
Grilled eggplant slices (2 medium eggplants)
1 cup fat free cottage cheese
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (save 1/4 cup for the top)
2-3 tablespoons Parmesan cheese (save 1 tablespoon for the top)
1 large egg
Dried basil, oregano, thyme, salt and pepper
Your favorite tomato sauce ( I love White Linen Marinara)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a bowl combine cottage cheese, 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese, 2 tbsp parmesan cheese, egg and seasonings. Set aside.

In a medium sizes baking dish, layer sliced eggplant. Top with cheese mixture and sauce. Repeat till eggplant is gone. On the top add rest of shredded mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle more basil and oregano on top! Place in oven till everything is heated through and cheese browns on top.

For fun we had extra whole wheat penne cooked and in the fridge. I sprinkled it in between the layers. Served with steamed brocolini. This made 6-7 large slices and I counted it as 6 points!

Enjoy,
Fallon

The Secret Recipe Club: Reese’s Peanut Butter Cookies

2013-01-14T09:00:00.000-08:00

January is here, group B’s reveal date is here, and The Secret Recipe Club is back! We took a little break in December for the holidays and decided to start off fresh again in 2013!

This time around I was given Erin’s fun blog Dinner’s, Dishes, and Desserts. With a name like that, I instantly knew I’d be baking up something sweet. I like when The Secret Recipe Club comes around the same time a UFC event is being played at my best’s friends home. I don’t like to come empty handed and a couple dozen cookies will make them all very happy. These cookies in fact were very popular.You have a peanut butter cookie, with chocolate chips and then topped with a chopped up miniature Reese’s peanut butter cup. You could only imagine how good these smelled baking up.

I can’t believe I found VALENTINE’S DAY candy ALREADY!!!

I thought 1 cookie would be enough because they are quite large but I realized I went back for seconds and thirds. I love chocolate and peanut butter and I had a good workout that day, so I deserved it! Oh and I’d recommend a glass of ice cold milk to wash it all down!

Please head on over to Dinner’s, Dishes, and Desserts for the recipe to Reese’s Peanut Butter Cookies. She has a cute blog and you will find many other great recipes there as well.

Happy baking!
Fallon

Christmas Eve Eve

2012-12-23T19:50:00.001-08:00

Extra bananas, walnuts and hazelnuts. Banana bread of course!

Gluten Free Apple Crisp in the Slow Cooker

2012-12-22T06:55:00.001-08:00

I think the last time I posted I mentioned this recipe be up within the week. Yeah right!!! And that last post was Thanksgiving. It is almost the end of December and just a few days till Christmas. I hope everyone been enjoying their holiday. Spending as much time with family and being around your favorite friends. In Las Vegas, November and December are pretty slow months when your job revolves around travel (IE. I work for a rental car company). Let me tell you, December has been so busy preparing for what is coming in 2013. I can’t wait for 2013 to get here because it is going to be a good year for Las Vegas! I can see it now.

In the meantime, I made the following apple crisp twice. I’ll probably make it again for Christmas. It makes your entire house smell like cinnamon apples and it is so delicious cold with plain Greek yogurt on top. The best thing about making your apple crisp in the slow cooker, no messes and you just dump everything in all at once and cook on high for 3-4 hours. I’d recommend cutting your apples into thick slices, that way they soften up and don’t fall apart easily. The first time around I went with thinly sliced apples and it was more like a chunky applesauce. If you need to make a larger batch, just double this recipe.

Gluten Free Slow Cooker Apple Crisp
By Fallon

Ingredients
3 large apples (granny, fiji, pink lady, honeycrisp etc)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 tablespoon corn starch
1/2 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
2 tablespoons stevia
2 tablespoons walnuts, chopped
2 tablespoons blanched almond flour
1 tablespoon coconut flour
1/4 cup gluten free rolled oats
3 tablespoons light brown sugar
1/2 tablespoon cinnamon
Dash of salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled

Directions
Peel and slice apples into thick slices, then place into the slow cooker. If you’d prefer a more chunky applesauce texture, slice thinner.

Combine lemon juice,corn starch, pumpkin spice and stevia and mix into apples. In a small bowl combine walnuts, almond/coconut flour, rolled oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt and cubed butter. With hands or fork, mush everything together until you get a course sandy texture. Place crisp on top of apples in the slow cooker. If you’d like, add some more walnuts to the top.

Place lid on top of slow cooker, set on high and cook 3-4 hours. It may cook faster so I’d recommend checking it out after 2 hours. Serve up with vanilla bean ice cream and call it a night!

I will try to check back in around Christmas, if not.. maybe before 2013.

Happy Holiday’s from Fallon’s Cucina!
Fallon

Happy Thanksgiving for TWO!

2012-11-22T18:07:00.001-08:00

Hey Y’all! I am still around and thought it be nice to pop in and wish everyone (well if I still have any readers) a Happy Thanksgiving! This year I didn’t want to go anywhere. While I’m very thankful for our friends always offering my mama and I to come over, it just seemed right to enjoy this day with my mama. We worked out this morning, hit up Old Navy and Wholefoods (YES we had to do a little shopping!) and made our dinner together. We took a very easy approach to Thanksgiving and one I like because it is SIMPLE and you don’t have to feel guilty about gaining any extra weight.

We only eat white meat, the dark meat usually goes to my father or in the trash. This year we opted to buy a turkey breast on the bone, rather then a whole turkey. We stuffed it with fresh herbs and drizzled with olive oil, salt and pepper. Instead of roasting the turkey in the oven, we did the slow cooker approach instead. It was DELICIOUS! Super juicy, very flavorful and easy clean up. We followed this approach when making our turkey.

I roasted the sweet potatoes, sliced in circles, olive oil, salt and pepper. My mom handled the green beans (steamed) and homemade cranberry sauce. We added 2 tablespoons white sugar, 2 tablespoons stevia, 1 tablespoon maple syrup, splash of orange juice and a dash of cinnamon.

For dessert, we used the slow cooker and I prepared a homemade apple crisp. It was gluten free and I made sure to just make enough (3 large apples), so we wouldn’t have a ton of leftovers. The house smelled amazing and this is something I’ll be making more often going forward. I will share the recipe with you next week.

Cheers,
Fallon

Baby meal!

2012-11-04T15:21:00.001-08:00

Recently my best friend had her second child, baby girl Jenna! She is absolutely precious and I love getting to hold her. I wanted to do something for her and her family. I figured they could use help with a homemade meal. How does chocolate chip cookies and lasagna sound? Everything turned out great and they loved my lasagna. What can I say, when I cook it is definitely. treat ;).

Everything is courtesy of Trader Joe's. Their frozen chocolate chip cookie dough is pretty spectacular and they bake up so nicely. I cooked my own sauce for them, a little ground beef, garlic, onions, olive oil, san marzano tomatoes and a splash of red wine. I cooked it low and slow for about an hour. I used the lasagna sheets that you do not have to boil and you simply layer and bake. I made a ricotta cheese mixture with frozen chopped spinach and an egg to bring everything together. Lyssa told me everyone loved the meal and even Mason, their 3 year old son loved it!

Always,

Fallon

PS: All photos are from my new iPhone 5. Awesome quality right??? And if I wasn't lazier enough, I blogged from my phone too. ;)

Chicken and Sweet Potatoes and Shallots

2012-09-23T07:05:00.001-07:00

Last weekend is when it all started. I just want comfort food. Its still in the 90’s here but the thought of warm dishes that are hearty and make tons of leftovers, is right up my alley right now. While perusing Paleo Plan I was trying to get ideas for something fresh to eat. The usual chicken seasoning,with roasted sweet potatoes just wasn’t cutting it out anymore. I came across this sautéed of chicken breasts in coconut oil and shallot fry and mashed sweet potatoes on the side. No dairy, no gluten, no wheat, I never thought food like this could taste so flavorful and it is so simple to prepare.

These sweet potatoes were simply seasoned with sea salt, black pepper and my favorite a dash of cinnamon. I decided to leave the skin on the potatoes for extra nutrition and a rustic home cooked feeling. I had fresh sage lurking in the refrigerator and subbed that for the fresh rosemary. It was a pleasant swap and paired deliciously with the shallots. I got a good 4-5 meals out of this dish. It was so easy to make and bring to work as lunch. I will definitely be making this again!

Please visit Paleo Plan for the recipe Chicken and Sweet Potatoes and Shallots.

I’m off to enjoy this beautiful second day of fall Sunday. Spin class at 8am, coffee afterwards and FOOTBALL!

Fallon

MMM Smells Like Pumpkin….

2012-09-17T14:18:00.001-07:00

The weather in Las Vegas has been fabulous. I think 100 degrees is long gone. I’m already putting away my summer clothes and getting my fall/winter clothes ready to go. I’ve been on a mad shopping spree lately to get some new items to wear this season. I even picked up a can of pumpkin to make these delicious muffins!

I found the recipe from the Paleo Plan. Their recipe for Paleo Pumpkin Muffins is so simple and delicious. My house smells so good right now, I can’t wait to dig into a muffin after I click publish. This will now help when I drink my afternoon cup of coffee at my favorite coffee shop. The cream cheese pumpkin muffins and pumpkin breads will not mesmerize me as much. Now I can enjoy my pumpkin muffins at just 166 calories per serving and not get that sugar crash.

Happy Pumpkin Eating!!

Fallon

The Secret Recipe Club: Almond Butter Pretzel Truffles

2012-09-10T09:00:00.000-07:00

September is here and there is a new installment of recipes this month for The Secret Recipe Club. Today is Group B’s reveal date and I had the lovely blog called Amy’s Cooking Adventures. She has a really fun blog and a lot of variety when it comes to recipes. She will share weekly photos of her family and the new adventures they are up too.

Out of all her delicious looking recipes her Peanut Butter Pretzel Truffles intrigued me. I love chocolate and I love peanut butter. Well I use too but now I’m trying to make some changes to my diet. Having some issues (which I will not go into) and I’m trying to eliminate certain foods from my diet. I still included a little chocolate in my truffles because then they wouldn’t be truffles! I swapped out the peanut butter for almond butter instead. I tried to find gluten free pretzels but I sacrificed these truffles with some fun thin pretzels I found at Trader Joe’s.

I did have some issues getting the almond butter mixture to come together. I added a little raw honey to help bring it together because I kept adding more almond butter. Eventually I was getting annoyed that my jar of almond butter was almost finished and decided I probably should have measured out the pretzels. Oops. I spilt the mixture in half, added another spoon of almond butter and finally the mixture did not fall apart when I rolled them into balls. I used unsweetened shredded coconut instead of dipping into chocolate, to make it more healthier. With the rest of the mixture I had some leftover chocolate chips that I melted and added a little coconut butter to get a sheen. Added that mixture to the rest of my dry mixture and rolled that into balls as well and into coconut.

The end result of my changes were quite good. I ate a few but I know I can’t be eating them all the time. Even though I made some healthy changes, these are still delicious. Pretzels are great to mix with nuts and chocolate. It helps satisfy the salty and sweet combo, just like these truffles do!

My recipe below has both versions I made. Click Amy’s Cooking Adventures to get her original recipe.

Almond Butter Pretzel Truffles
Adapted from Amy’s Cooking Adventures

Ingredients:
4 cups thin pretzels
1 cup smooth almond butter and sea salt (save 1/4 cup for chocolate almond truffles), you may need additional spoonful's if mixture is crumbly
3 teaspoons raw honey
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
1-2 teaspoons coconut oil/butter
Unsweetened shredded coconut

Pour pretzels into a food processor and grind down to coarse crumbs. You could also put them in a zip lock bag and smash with a rolling pin.

Divide pretzel crumbs into 2 bowls and set one aside. Stir in almond butter, 1/4 cup at a time until it is evenly blended. Drizzle in honey and mix. Refrigerate for 1 hour to let the almond butter firm up. If you need it to firm up quicker, place in the freezer for 10-15 minutes. Add the remaining 1/4 cup of almond butter and honey to the bowl of crushed pretzels, mix and set aside.

This mixture was crumbly and addicting. I loved the clusters!

Line a 2 cookie sheets with parchment or wax paper.

Using a small cookie scoop or melon baller, scoop small balls of almond butter mixture and roll into shredded coconut. Place onto prepared cookie sheet and place into freezer to harden up.

In a small glass bowl, melt 1/2 cup chocolate chips in the microwave, 20 second intervals till chocolate is smooth. Add coconut oil/butter to make chocolate shiny. Set aside.

With the second mixture that has 1/4 cup almond butter, add most of the melted chocolate and combine. Save some chocolate if you’d like to drizzle on the truffles. Using a small cookie scoop or melon baller, scoop small balls of chocolate almond butter mixture and roll into shredded coconut. Place onto prepared cookie sheet and place into freezer to harden up.

Almond Butter Pretzel Truffles

Chocolate Almond Butter Pretzel Truffles

Remove truffles from freezer after 5 minutes. If you have some leftover chocolate drizzle over truffles. These are best kept in the fridge and enjoyed right away!

Fallon

The insides……

Goodbye Summer

2012-09-03T07:12:00.000-07:00

HAPPY LABOR DAY! What is your favorite thing about summer? My favorite thing about summer are the warm nights where you can sit back, have a glass of wine with cheese and crackers and take in the moment. I definitely made some new memories this summer and I’m looking forward to the next season, Fall!

Besides all that, I think the most important part about Labor Day is making sure to thank our men and woman who serve this country every day, who fight for us and give us the freedom we all love. Thank you.

(source)

I have an attitude..

2012-08-23T20:30:00.001-07:00

This shirt gives me such a powerful attitude at the gym. I love it. Tonight I rocked out to 6 rounds of 400m sprints and 20 Russian kettle bell (or a dumbbell) swings with 25lbs. I was dripping sweat by the end. That is what happens when you are late to spin class and no bikes are available. Thought about that workout on a whim and boy was it a good one!

FYI this was pre-workout. Post-workout was a bit wet..
Fallon

Total Body Blaster

2012-08-22T21:36:00.001-07:00

I’m proud to announce that today in Las Vegas the temperature low was 69 degrees!! We literally were just 108 the day before. Thank you to monsoon season. It rained furiously all day, flash floods everywhere and the sun didn’t start to peak through till around 6pm. I had plans to go to a body pump class after work but since it wasn’t at the gym right by my house, I didn’t feel like driving that far. The streets were still flooded and I’m not one to really drive in the rain. I talked myself into doing the following workout below. It has been a while since I did a workout on my own and pushed myself. That worried me after working all day, the last thing I wanted to do was workout on my own. Hence why I had joined a Crossfit gym.

I’m so glad I talked myself into doing the Total Body Blaster workout. Work It Out Wednesday from Steph’s Bite By Bite is a weekly post of a new workout each Wednesday. She has some great workouts you should check out!

All the classes were cancelled in the aerobics room and I decided to do the workout in there. There was a girl jump roping and another girl doing her own weight/spin session. I felt comfortable and all I would need for this workout was a set of dumbbells and a yoga mat for cushion on my knees for the push ups.

Thirty-five minutes later I felt worked out, sweaty and done. I ended up using 10 pound dumbbells for the last 2 sets of biceps, I wouldn’t of made it with the 15’s. As I’m typing this out now my arms and legs are really sore. I’d say this was a workout success!

I love squats. I always get excited when they are part of a workout. But I can’t stand lunges,although I’ll do them anyways.

And I’m finished. YAY! Yes, that is an old school iPod, if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it.
Fallon

Homemade Almond Butter with Sunflower Seeds

2012-08-18T07:17:00.001-07:00

I’m on the homemade nut butter kick. I’ve made many attempts at making my own nut butters and just never getting the right consistency. I think this happens to a lot of us. Too dry, not creamy, hard to spread, such a mess! I just finished off a jar of almond butter with sunflower seeds mixed in as the crunchy part. This was of course a chocolate almond butter and didn’t last very long for me. It was delicious.

I was then inspired to try to make my own, once again and this time I was going to process the nuts until they were creamy and the blade was finally warm to bring everything together. 1/2 teaspoon olive oil was used to give it that extra smooth consistency. This is by far my favorite nut butter. I know that I only used 1/2 teaspoon of oil, I added my own sea salt and no sugar added.

This nut butter goes in tortillas, in a mug of bananas, spoonful's into my mouth, scooped on top of oatmeal and even in the vanilla bean coconut milk ice cream I purchased. You could even get some good quality dark chocolate and enjoy it that way as well.

Homemade Almond Butter with Sunflower Seeds
By Fallon

-2.5 cups of toasted whole almonds
- 1/2 toasted sunflower seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Start with making sure all nuts are roasted, 350 degrees for about 7 minutes or until you smell their aroma. You could also buy these pre-toasted at the store, just make sure they are fresh.

With your heavy duty food processor, add almonds and whirl for about 8-10 minutes. Use a spoon to scrape the sides every so often. Eventually it will smooth out and will form a ball. This is when I added my oil and continue to pulse. The ball will break and it will become a creamier consistency. Continue to whirl in the food processor and you will feel the blades doing their magic. They are very warm and it is helping to bring out all the natural oils in the almonds. Add salt and cinnamon to taste. Once you find that smooth and creamy consistency, pulse in the sunflower seeds. Don’t pulse too much because you want them to stay crunchy.

That is all. Super toasty, nutty and delicious. I make a new jar every weekend!

I’m also SO glad it is the weekend. That is the best thing about a Monday-Friday job.. Weekends off are so rewarding and refreshing. I get in my workouts early in the morning and then I can do whatever I want afterwards! I think my highlight for this weekend will be cheese,wine and crackers. Oh so relaxing.

Fallon

Sometimes a Break is All You Need

2012-08-14T22:11:00.001-07:00

Back in June this year, I signed up at Crossfit Las Vegas. I took the elements course and knew this be a fun change. I love the challenges that were given to me, the strength I gained and meeting new people. Doing my first Kelly WOD when it was approximately 115 degrees outside to learning kipping pull-ups. Which I still am learning to do!

Tonight was one of my last workouts for a while. I decided to suspend my account for a few months because I need a break. I feel like my body is rejecting me. I don’t know if it is the stress of having a need to get my work outs in, the expensive crossfit price or simply needing to live my life. I told you turning 26 was quite the creeper, who knew! The break will be well deserved and the final workout I endured tonight made me realize a break is okay. 41 minutes and 51 seconds later I finished my WOD. 100 m row, 10 toes to bar, 100 m run, 1 push- up man maker. 100 m row, 9 toes to bar, 100 m run, 2 push-up man makers. 100 m row, 8 toes to bar, 100 m run, 3 push- up man makers. 100 m row, 7 toes to bar, 100 m run, 4 push- up man makers. You get where I’m going with this? I felt fantastic after tonight's work out though. Super sweaty and super accomplished. There was a point where I just wanted to forfeit because I was sick of the man makers. But I just pushed though and did it.

My max deadlift, 115lbs.
My max back squat is 125lbs.

Have I seen results with my own body? Yes and no. I feel 10 pounds heavier (which I am), I have more muscle in my legs and arms, I’m stronger and the weight I use to lift is much lighter, my size 4-6 clothes still fit me but could fit better. Those are the changes I’ve seen since June. I’m happy and not happy about it. I know I’ll never be a size 2 and skinny. I’ve come to terms with myself and I love my body. I think I have great legs and now great arms. My back is broader and my posture is firm. But like I said.. I need a break. Well break here I come!

Nothing like a good work out when your entire shirt is drenched!
Fallon

Sunday 8.12.12

2012-08-12T20:10:00.001-07:00

Dead camera battery, thank goodness for smart phones!

Check out these gorgeous organic pink lady apples I picked up today. I’m so glad apple season is here, this was perfectly sweet and tart, with the right crunch.

Pizza Fusion… so good!

Come back this week for the Salted Almond Butter Sunflower Seed Butter recipe I whipped up. You will need almonds, sunflower seeds, olive oil, cinnamon and sea salt (optional).

I’d say this was a successful Sunday once again. Morning spin class check, Pizza check, movies check, almond butter check, super full check!
Fallon

I Keep Saying I’m 25 but Really I’m 26!

2012-08-11T18:13:00.001-07:00

Ben and Jerry’s ice cream cake. They make the best!

Birthdays come and go. We all get older and we all say, “Oh I don’t want to celebrate.” Well I know I’m one of them but deep down in my heart I know that it is a good excuse to just go out and have fun. Drink, fun dinners, silly laughs, dancing etc. Just today I had a compliment, someone thought I was 20. Umm thank you! Hehe. I get that a lot actually and I’m taking it!

My birthday was on July 30th and I actually had a weird fear of turning 26. In 4 years I’ll be 30, is what I kept repeating in my mind. Well it happened, I turned 26. I think I will be okay. This birthday was probably one of the best birthdays ever. I felt like a princess the whole day and it was the people I surround myself with. I never felt so good and so loved. Thank you to everyone who came to my dinners and had a few drinks with me. Thank you for the fabulous birthday cards too!

I know it has been a minute since I’ve made a post. I always use the excuse I’m really busy but I’ll just be honest. I don’t have the heart of cooking like I once did. I try to continue loving it and blogging about what I’ve made but I had to force myself to do it. It just wasn’t feeling right. I don’t cook as much as I use too. Thank goodness my mom has learned how to cook because I’d be drinking smoothies for dinner every night! I want to change the feel of my blog. I want you guys to know my personality and who I am. I tend to be very random and my posts will become very random. The blog will still focus on food but I’ll add in other tidbits like workouts and cool projects I’m working on. How does that sound? Perhaps a blog name change will be in the future as well!

Summer Veggie Slaw, from my favorite blog, Proud Italian Cook: http://prouditaliancook.blogspot.com/2012/07/summer-veggie-slaw.html

I sent my mom the recipe and she made it for my birthday dinner. Boy was this delicious!

My favorite Spinach and Mozzarella Turkey Burgers and honey mustard chicken.

Honey mustard glaze: dijon mustard, honey, olive oil, parsley, salt and pepper. Season raw chicken with salt and pepper, grill and then glaze chicken while grilling.

My birthday meal! The only thing I cooked were the sweet potato fries and protein.

Dessert!

The best ice cream cake ever. It had a layer of vanilla ice cream, brownies, and a buttery toffee ice cream with huge chunks of heath bar and swirls of caramel. Whip cream icing and sprinkles! Oh and my Happy Birthday Fallon was in fudge, not the icky artificial frosting stuff! <3

Adios my friends!
Fallon

The Secret Recipe Club: Flourless Chocolate Cake

2012-07-19T20:35:00.001-07:00

I know this is late and I have a somewhat a good excuse but not the best. I was in California this past weekend for a funeral. A family member of mine passed away living with dementia for 5 years and now she is peacefully at rest. Definitely a sad moment but we all know she is in a better place.

There was just NO TIME for me last week to do anything it seemed and I kept meaning to get my post up and ready for The Secret Recipe Club.. Crunch time came and I decided to email Suzanne, tell her my situation and I ended up sending my pictures and writing a small post that she gladly posted on her website. Thank you again Suzanne and thank you Living Lou for such a wonderful recipe!
Click here to see my recipe for Flourless Chocolate Cake.

Here are additional photos that I had taken to go with my post.

I love you chocolate.. I do I do I do ooooo!

Fallon

Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites

2012-07-02T08:00:00.000-07:00

July. July. July. Really? It is hard for me to believe that we are half-way through 2012 already. This is my birthday month and I don’t know how I feel about that. But what I do know is that I have a delicious recipe to share with you. I found it from the blog Two Peas & Their Pod, Cookie Dough Pretzel Bites. Basically if you are a fan of sweet and salty you will love these bites. You take raw chocolate chip cookie dough- minus the egg, sandwiched between 2 pretzels, dipped in bittersweet chocolate and a couple sprinkles on top and you can thank me.

The 4th is on a Wednesday and our office will be closed. Kind of interesting to have a day off during the week but I’m not complaining! Last week we had a work BBQ and everyone brought in their favorite dishes. The dessert table was amazing, along with hamburgers, hot dogs, side dishes and fresh fruit. I went home with an empty container because everyone gobbled up these delicious bites of cookie dough goodness. These are best when kept in the fridge and enjoyed chill. They aren’t as messy and something about cold cookie dough just makes me melt! I keep calling them Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites because I added a little bit more dough. It is the best part!

The original recipe calls for 1/2 stick unsalted butter but I didn’t have a full stick left. I subbed in the coconut oil and it worked out just fine. The cookie dough was a bit more stickier but I just dusted some more flour into the dough till I found the right texture for raw cookie dough. No one mentioned coconut,so the taste is very faint.

Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites
Adapted from Two Peas & Their Pod

Ingredients
For the cookie dough:
1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup extra virgin coconut oil
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Pretzels
2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips
Sprinkles

Directions
To make the cookie dough:
In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together butter, coconut oil and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Mix in flour, powdered sugar and salt. Slowly add milk and vanilla extract and beat until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Stir in the chocolate chips. Roll the cookie dough into balls, about 2 teaspoons each. Sandwich between two pretzels and put on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Freeze the pretzel bites for 30 minutes.

Melt two cups of bittersweet chocolate chips, using the microwave (30 second intervals) or a double boiler. Dip half of each pretzel sandwich into the chocolate. Sprinkle bites with sprinkles, if using. Return the tray to the freezer and chill until the chocolate sets. Store the cookie dough bites in the refrigerator until serving time.

Have a Happy 4th of July this week!
Fallon

PS: I can’t stop thinking how HOT Channing Tatum is! I saw Magic Mike over the weekend.. definitely not going to win any fancy awards BUT if the whole movie was 2 hours of just Channing Tatum dancing and grinding, I would TOTALLY be okay with that. Plus if I ever have a boy I’m naming him Channing!

The Secret Recipe Club: Skinny White Russians with Godiva Chocolate Vodka

2012-06-11T09:00:00.000-07:00

I was looking at my calendar, wondering when I need to get my recipe set for the reveal date and realized it was this coming Monday. OOPS!! Luckily I knew what I was making, I just needed to buy my secret ingredient, chocolate flavored vodka from Godiva. I went to my local liquor store and was surprised to find out they didn’t carry it. I went to several more stores until I found the vodka at Smith’s. It was a bit expensive but I had no choice, I needed it. It was so delicious! I’m not a vodka fan but I can definitely sip on this vodka. What can I say, I like chocolate any which way.

This month for The Secret Recipe Club I had Hezzi’s-D Books and Cooks. Heather enjoys reading and baking. I wish I could find a love for reading like Heather but nothing can beat baking in my book. As I was cruising around her blog I came upon some delicious drinks using Godiva vodka and liqueur. Heather had a house party to feature these drinks. I didn’t get to have a fun house party like her but I did enjoy my drink while cooking dinner.

I was inspired to use the chocolate vodka with coffee. She made Café Godiva featuring their white chocolate liqueur, coffee and cinnamon whipped cream. I’ve always enjoy White Russians by using low fat milk instead of cream. Now that I use almond milk for everything involving dairy I came up with Skinny White Russians. This drink is low in calories and delicious in flavor that will save at your waist line.

Skinny White Russians (serves 1)
By Fallon, inspired by Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks

Ingredients
4 oz of brewed espresso or bold coffee, room temperature
2 oz of unsweetened almond milk
1 oz Godiva Chocolate flavored vodka
Ice
Agave nectar
Unsweetened cocoa powder

Directions
To garnish drinking glass, place agave nectar and cocoa powder on two separate plates. Take the glass and swirl around in agave nectar then place into cocoa powder, shake excess powder off. Add in ice cubes. Pour 1 oz of vodka to 4 oz of espresso. Add in almond milk and stir with a straw. Take a sip and enjoy!

This is one of my favorite drinks as of now. It is light, tasty and so much fun to make. I love adding the garnish to the glass with cocoa powder. It is a must when having this drink.

Enjoy,
Fallon

I can’t believe it..

2012-06-09T07:49:00.001-07:00

I’ve been so wrapped up with work and having fun at the pools I forgot that Monday is The Secret Recipe Club reveal for Group B. Shoot!!!! I ran to the store last night to get a very special ingredient to make some “drinks.” Oh yeah!!

I also just bought a new laptop like 2 days ago and I’m trying to get everything downloaded and set up. Windows Live Writer just happened now and I’m about to go install Picasa as well. All my important blogging tools. I must say though this new laptop is amazing!!

It is also going to be a laid back weekend, so I’ll have time to work on my recipe later. I have to attend a funeral tomorrow. A really good friend of my family's passed away in a plane crash. Here is a really good link that has his daughter talking about what a great person he was. http://www.ktnv.com/news/local/156514805.html. It is hard to believe how quickly life can be taken away from someone. The family has been in my prayers all week and this Sunday will be full of love and prayers for the family and to celebrate the great person Chris was. Sigh, life is just too valuable.

Heading to a female cross fit class this morning and then a little work and a whole afternoon evening to myself. Love it!

Have a great Saturday!
Fallon

Coffee Ice Cream Dream Cake

2012-06-02T07:37:00.001-07:00

IT’S A GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! haha I know what you are thinking right now. Fallon is pregnant? NO WAY! My best friend is expecting her second baby due sometime end of October and she recently found out she is having a girl!

Mason!! He is my pumpkin and I’m his cupcake. ;)

She already has a handsome son, now it only makes sense that she has a princess. One of each is the way to go, that way you get best of both!

My best friend is craving a lot of sweets. Something with her first pregnancy she didn’t, but with this little princess inside of her, she just wants sugar, sugar, sugar! I came across this recipe for Kahlua-Coffee Ice Cream Dream Cake from Bakeeat350 and I thought of my best friend. Back in the day we would go to Baskin and Robbins and she’d always order the Jamocha® Almond Fudge. I must say that flavor is pretty rocking. It brought back those memories and I knew this cake would be something she’d love. I had to keep it a secret from her though because I knew it was going to be a good one.

I did make some adjustments like nixing the Kahlua. Pregnant mommies should not be having any alcohol, hence the name ~~Kahlua-~~Coffee Ice Cream Dream Cake. Then instead of using heath bits, I bought heath bars and wacked them into chunks instead. The best part was getting chunks of the heath bar in every bite of the cake. This cake was amazing and out of this world, except it lacked ice cream.

A corner piece. Where’s the ice cream?? Must of it was hiding right in the middle!

The 1 gallon of coffee ice cream I purchased wasn’t enough. There was too much graham cracker and not enough ice cream. This can easily be fixed, just purchase 2 gallons of ice cream instead. That way you have plenty of ice cream and will have more thickness between layers. With summer here and people getting together for grill, this is the perfect dessert to bring. Feeds a crowd and you can’t go wrong with coffee ice cream, toffee chunks and tons of chocolate!

I have a feeling I’m going to have to make this cake again soon, bummer!!! ;)
Get the recipe for ~~Kahlua-~~Coffee Ice Cream Dream Cake here!

Yum yum,
Fallon

Spinach and Mozzarella Turkey Burgers

2012-06-02T07:09:00.001-07:00

Summer is here and my favorite thing is to use the grill! Luckily ours is a gas grill and I can just light it up whenever I want. Charcoal grills are nice but for me I don’t like the fuss. I want my grill heated up quickly and get my food on there so I can eat. Grilling is easier and causes a lot less mess in the kitchen. I know that is something my mom can appreciate. She thinks I make such a mess in the kitchen. I think she is wrong! ;)

I made these turkey burgers on a whim. I’ve discovered that the only way to have moist turkey burgers is if you start throwing in random ingredients. It gives the turkey flavor and adds moisture. I sautéed up a few handfuls of spinach with garlic and olive oil. I set it aside to cool off before I added it to about 1.25lb lean ground turkey. With the spinach I added in a handful of shredded mozzarella, 1/4 cup Italian bread crumbs, 1 large egg white and seasoned with salt and pepper. Form it into burger size patties, throw on the grill till no longer pink in the middle and then serve.

I had mine bunless with grilled sweet potatoes, grilled asparagus roasted cauliflower. It was one of the best meals I made to date in a long time. I enjoyed this meal with a new friend of mine and she was truly impressed. She mentioned no one ever cooks for her and one random night I knew I had all this food to cook and she finally had a home cooked meal made by someone else. Now all she ever wants me to make are these turkey burgers!

Enjoy,
Fallon

Baked Kale Chips

2012-05-20T19:50:00.001-07:00

Hey guys!!! I’m sorry in the delay of posts. I’m swamped by work but hopefully that will change soon. I miss my blog!

I made these kale chips like a month ago and just sharing them now. I’ve been buying the small bags of kale chips from Whole Paycheck and I needed a solution. Trader Joe’s sells their kale pre-cut and washed in a bag and makes baking kale chips so simple. Of course you have to eat these the day they are made or they will become soft if saved for leftovers, but will still be delicious.

Kale Chips
By Fallon

Ingredients
3-4 handfuls of kale, chopped and rinsed (I used half the bag from Trader Joe’s)
Cooking spray
Salt
Pepper
Parmesan cheese (optional, nutritional yeast would work as well)

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. On a large baking sheet spray with cooking spray. Spread kale throughout the pan being careful not to overlap too much. Spray with cooking spray and season with salt, pepper and parmesan cheese. Place in oven for 10 minutes. Remove and shake around. The kale will start to crisp up and brown on the edges. Cook for another 5 minutes and remove.

Kale should be crispy and before you know it, you will be eating the whole baking sheet of kale!

Best snack ever and full of nutrition!

Fallon

Quick and Healthy Turkey Bolognese

2012-05-06T10:09:00.000-07:00

I always have to find a way to make ground turkey just taste good. I can’t stand how dry it is when made into turkey burger and usually flavorless. Turkey is a great alternative for lean protein but trying to find ways to make it taste good is tricky. My favorite way to enjoy ground turkey is cooked to be taco meat for Mexican night. That sounds good but I was really in the mood for a hearty tomato sauce. I remember last year I tried out Barefoot Contessa’s Weeknight Bolognese. I used grassfed beef and my own homemade sauce. This time around I wasn’t going to spend several hours in the kitchen making my sauce again (no time!) and I had this turkey that needed to be cooked up.

My favorite store bought sauce was in the pantry and then a light bulb clicked. I can make a bolognese sauce with ground turkey and my favorite sauce, it will be just as delicious and will be very quick to put together.

I didn’t use this sauce to top on pasta, instead I used it to top on sweet potatoes and roasted vegetables. It was a quick meal to take to work and kept me satisfied for hours. This recipe makes a lot and you can easily freeze it but that wasn’t the case for me.

Quick and Healthy Turkey Bolognese
By Fallon

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound organic ground turkey
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 1/4 cup red wine (make sure it is a wine you love to drink)
2 cups of your favorite red sauce
2 tablespoons tomato paste
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons coconut milk (cream or half and half works too)

Directions:
Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the turkey and cook, crumbling the turkey with a wooden spoon, for 5 to 7 minutes, and has started to brown. Stir in the garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes and cook for 1 more minute. Pour 1 cup of the wine into the skillet and stir to scrape up any browned bits.

Add the red sauce, tomato paste, salt and pepper to taste, stirring until combined. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

To finish the sauce, add the coconut milk and remaining wine to the sauce and simmer for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until thickened. The sauce will be thick and hearty.

The reason why I used coconut milk is because when I use it for my iced coffees, it is super creamy and delicious. You really can’t taste the coconut and I wanted to see how it worked in the sauce. My mom who isn’t a coconut lover said she didn’t even detect any flavor of it after I told her I added coconut milk.

If you are a pasta fan this will be delicious with rigatoni pasta or if your trying to watch your carbs like me, sweet potatoes and vegetables are just as good!

Enjoy,
Fallon

It’s a S’mores Party!

2012-04-27T12:24:00.001-07:00

S’mores Fudge with Spiced Rum

I may not be around as much as I’d like to be but I couldn’t leave you guys out of this fun party. Bloggers are linking up their favorite S’more recipes and joining the party over at Cookies & Cups. I linked up a few of my recipes like S’mores Cake, S’mores Cookie Bars and S’mores Fudge with Spiced Rum.

Come check out the party at Cookie & Cups. If you have any fun S’more recipes you should join the party and also check out the other fabulous recipes while you are over there.

I really want to try out this recipe S’mores Snack Mix. Yummy!!

It is Friday but only my Wednesday!!! So I guess you could say it is Hump Day too? ;)

Always,
Fallon