Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chips Cookies

These flourless cookies are a dream if you're going gluten-free, especially with the perfect pairing of peanut butter and chocolate.

Easy to make, and healthy as well. 

Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chips Cookies 

Ingredients:

1 cup creamy peanut butter, unsalted 
1/4 cup honey 
1 whole egg, beaten

1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Method:

Preheat your oven to 350F / 176C.

In a medium bowl, mix together the first five ingredients until a thick, gooey batter forms, then fold in the chocolate chips. Using a tablespoon, drop batter portions onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake for 8-10 minutes at to 350F / 176C, turning the pan half-way through the baking time so that the cookies brown evenly.

Once the cookies are lightly browned, remove the pan from the oven, and allow the cookies to rest on the baking sheet for 10 minutes.  They will firm-up as they rest.

Serve at room temperature.

ENJOY!!

Summer Salad

Hello everyone! :)

Sorry, I have been away for a while.! I was visiting family back home with my family :) We had a blast and I miss them so much already!

While I was there, I did this delicious salad.  I named it Summer salad just because I have no name for it haha! It was refreshing, and so full of color and life.. just like summer! :)

It is easy to make!  Hope you enjoy!

Summer Salad
Ingredients:

- 1 can asparagus
- 1 can beets
- 1 can palmito
- 1 can baby corn
- 1 can artichoke
- 3 tomatos, cut in medium sized cubes
- 3 cucumbers, cut in medium sized cubes
- 2 cups of lettuce, washed and cut for salad
- 1 cup of Parmesan cheese, cubed
- 2 avocados

For the dressing:
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Mustard
Honey (little)
Salt

Preparation:

Mix all ingredients but the asparagus and avocado.  Pour dressing and mix slowly.  Decorate with avocado and asparagus as desired.

Enjoy!

Halawet el Jeben (Sweet Cheese Rolls)

Halawet el Jeben is an old traditional Lebanese dessert. It is made out of cheese, semolina, filled with a cheese custard mix, and topped with sugar and rose blossom water served under the shape of sweet soft strips. The city of Tripoli, the northern capital of Lebanon, is considered as the best manufacturer of this kind of desserts.

It is so luscious you’ll get addicted!

Ingredients

Roll dough

400g mozzarella block

3/4 cup semolina (~ 150g)

3/4 cup water + orange flower water (50/50) (~ 200 mL)

Stuffing

250 g ricotta

250g mascarpone

To serve

sugar syrup with orange flower water: a cup of sugar + cup + 2 water flower water orange cs + qq drops of lemon juice

unsalted pistachios ground

Preparation

Prepare the syrup: In a saucepan heat the sugar, water and orange flower water. Bring to a boil and boil for several minutes until the syrup thickens (it is important not it colors). Add lemon.

Prepare 2 rectangular trays (about 25 * 35 cm), or better a marble slab and pour the cold syrup, spread it on the surface.

The filling: whisk the ricotta and mascarpone to soften. Book aside.

Chop the mozzarella in food processor or you can just shred it.

In a frying pan / skillet (nonstick is important!), Cook semolina few minutes, until the smell feels (do not wait until it changes color), then add the cheese. Mix and add on liquid (water and orange blossom water).

Mix thoroughly until a dough block. Remove from heat.

Place half of the dough on the first tray, dip your hands in the cold syrup and spread over the entire surface. Repeat on the second.

Add the stuffing on one side across the width (the dough will already have had time to cool but wait a bit). Roll (2 revolutions), cut the first roll obtained. Repeat. 4 rolls per tray is obtained (you can pre-cut 4 rectangles and then train your putting).

Refrigerate.

Refrigerate out some time before serving (to avoid stuffing from melting).

Cut (about the size of a mouthful), sprinkle with pistachios and sprinkle sugar syrup (ater) at the last moment.

Enjoy!

Roasted Garlic

The first time I tried this dip was at an Italian Restaurant.  They served a complimentary bread basket with dips, and among the dips there was a whole roasted garlic.  You would just pop out a roasted clove and mash it into the bread.  Tasted like heaven! 

You can eat the caramelized roasted garlic cloves directly out of the heads, add it to mashed potato, pastas, mash them up and add to toast or mix them with sour cream for a great dip.  I mainly roast garlic when I am cooking up my homemade marinara sauce.

Roasted Garlic

Ingredients

One or more whole heads of garlic

Olive oil

Salt

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 F / 190 C.

Open a squared piece of aluminum foil, big enough to have the garlic head/s in it.  Cut 0.5cm of the top part of the head.  Please it on the aluminum foil and drizzle olive oil and sprinkle salt on it.  Fold to close the foil well.  Bake for 45min. Open to cool a little and it is ready to be used.!

ENJOY!

Butternut Squash and Spinach Lasagna

I love sweet potato, pumpkin, butternut squash.  The sweet tasty aftermath that is left in the mouth is scrumptious!  My family does not usually like it, so I still work hard on testing recipes to see if they will like it.

I came up thru this recipe while using Pinterest, and the mix of Spinach with the Butternut Squash got me drooling!  let alone Ricotta cheese in it, looked delicious!  and well fit for my meatless cooking day!  This also does well being a side dish since it is meatless and it is great for vegetarian people.

The recipe is a vegetarian lasagna that calls for creamy texture and sweetness added to it.  My family liked it so definitely it will be on my meatless meal list!  

Butternut Squash and Spinach Lasagna

Ingredients

Butternut Squash Filling:

- 2 cups butternut squash puree (see Instructions on how to do )

- 1 cup ricotta cheese

- 1/2 cup milk plus 2 tbsp

- 1/3 teaspoon of salt

- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Spinach Filling:

- 1 cup cooked spinach (8 oz uncooked)

- 1 cup ricotta cheese

- 1 cup mozzarella cheese

- 2 garlic cloves, minced

- 1/4 teaspoon salt

- pepper, to taste

Other Ingredients:

- 10 oz lasagna noodles, cooked

- 1 and 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese (or more)

- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese (Optional – I did not use)

- Paprika

Instructions

 - Preheat oven to 375 F / 190 C.

Butternut Squash Filling:

    - To do the butternut squat filling, you would need to cut in half one butternut squat, remove seeds, and close it up in aluminum foil.  Place in oven and bake for 30min or until it is soft.  Once cooked, spoon out the meat and blend it until pureed.  To complete the filling, blend 2 cups of butternut squash puree  with Ricotta cheese, milk, salt and nutmeg. Add more milk if needed (to make the butternut squash filling very creamy). Mix very well, taste and add more salt, if needed.

Spinach Filling:

   - Combine spinach, Ricotta cheese, mozzarella, garlic, salt and pepper.

Cooking lasagna noodles:

   - Bring a very large pot of water to boil, and cook lasagna noodles according to package instructions. Rinse in cold water, drain.

Lasagna assembly:

   - Grease the lasagna dish lightly with butter. Spread 1/3 of butternut squash filling on the bottom of the dish. Sprinkle lightly with mozzarella cheese. Top with cooked lasagna noodles without overlapping.

   - Spread half of spinach filling over the noodles. Top lightly with Mozzarella cheese. Top with cooked noodles.

   - Spread another layer (1/3) of butternut squash mixture, then sprinkle lightly with Mozzarella cheese. Top with cooked noodles.

   - Spread the remaining half of spinach filling over the noodles. Top lightly with Mozzarella cheese. Top with the final layer of cooked noodles.

   - Spread a generous amount of butternut squash filling (the remaining 1/3) over this final layer of noodles, sprinkle with grated Parmesan and remaining mozzarella cheese (about 1/2 cup of mozzarella). Generously sprinkle the cheese with paprika if desired.

   - Cover the baking dish with foil and bake for 30 min. Remove foil and bake additional 10 minutes.

Homemade Chicken Nuggets

Ingredients:

• 4 boneless chicken breast, cubed
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed dried parsley
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• salt and pepper
• 2 egg, beaten
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup fine bread crumbs
• oil for deep frying

Directions:

• Place cubed chicken breasts into a food processor and blend until it forms a smooth paste. Transfer to a medium bowl and add parsley, onion powder, garlic powder , salt and pepper. Mix well. Put the flour in a bowl, season with salt and pepper. Put beaten eggs in another bowl and breadcrumbs in a different bowl. Place those 3 bowls close to the chicken mixture, to make it easier to work with. 
• Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Roll out the chicken into small balls, about 1 tablespoon each, and flatten them using the palms of your hands to form the nugget shapes. Cover each nugget with flour, then dip into the egg, and cover with breadcrumbs. Repeat the process with the remaining nuggets. 
• Fry the nuggets in hot oil, until the chicken is cooked through and turn golden brown (about 4 minutes per side). Remove from the oil and drain the excess grease using paper towel. Serve warm.

Orange Muffins with Dried Cranberries

Aromatic, soft, not to sweet morning muffins that are great for a low dose of sugar as breakfast or any kind of snack.

The orange juice adds a nice taste and additional sweetness while using very little sugar.  If you do not have dried cranberries, I am sure raisins would be fine and still delicious.  

The topping gives it additional sweetness while reserving the taste of the original muffin itself.  The cinnamon of it mixed with the nutmeg in the muffin give this muffin a very delicious taste to it!

Orange Muffins with Dried Cranberries

Ingredients

1 1/3 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp nutmeg
Zest of 1 orange
1/3 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/3 cup low-fat milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 large egg, lightly beaten
2/3 cup dried cranberries

Topping

2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon

Method

Preheat oven to 190.5°C and line a 12-cup standard muffin pan with baking cups (I buttered and coated with flour instead because I had no muffin cups, and I made 9 instead of 12); coat baking cups with cooking spray. Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg in a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the mixture. Combine orange zest, orange juice, milk, oil, and egg in a medium bowl; add to flour mixture and stir just until combined. Gently fold in cranberries and fill each baking cup 3/4 full of batter. 

 Mix together sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle evenly over muffins. Bake for 15 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let muffins cool in pan on a wire rack for 2 minutes before removing from pan to serve warm or cool completely. Store muffins in an airtight container at room temperature up to 2 days.

Yield – 10 muffins (serving size: 1 muffin)
Calories – 166
Carbs – 26

ENJOY!!

Indian Butter Chicken

First time cooking an Indian dish and trying it as well.  It turned out delicious and not hard as I thought..!

If you are looking for an easy, quick, and delicious dish that your family will for sure love, you should try this!

Indian Butter Chicken

Ingredients

4 pieces Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts, Cut Into Bite Size Pieces 

5 cloves Garlic, Minced 

1 teaspoon Salt 

½ teaspoons Black Pepper 

½ teaspoons Cayenne Pepper (I omitted it since my son will eat)

¼ teaspoons Ground Coriander 

¼ teaspoons Cumin 

¼ teaspoons Cardamom 

1 Lime, Juiced 

1 Onion, Diced 

¼ cups Butter 

1 can Tomato Sauce 

1 can Petite Diced Tomatoes 

2 cups of Whipping Cream 

1 bunch Chopped Cilantro, to taste 

Cooked Basmati Rice 

Method

Combine first 9 ingredients and marinate overnight.

Saute the onion in the butter until soft. Add marinated chicken and cook about 10 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and diced tomatoes. Cook for 30 minutes over medium-low heat with the lid on. Add the whipping cream and cilantro just before serving over Basmati rice. 

Note: this is a little spicy, but you can cut back on the cayenne if you want.

ENJOY!