House warming party

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Healthy brownie recipe

I was inspired by this recipe when I was making the regular version. I know the basic replacements for healthier substitutions and thought I would give it a try. There is always the chance that it will not turn out very yummy because healthier doesn't always mean delicious. This happened to me today when I tried "healthy" peanut butter cookies. I have an idea what I'll do differently next time. Anyway this one really turned out and I thought I would share.

You will need the fallowing:

either and 8x8 or 8x11 casserole dish.

1 cup of low fat butter melted

1 cup of organic agave nectar

1/2 cup of unsweetened cocoa

1 tsp of vanilla

1 1/2  cup of whole wheat flour

2 tbsp of ground flax seed

1 cup of chocolate semi-sweet chocolate chips.

 Whisk butter, agave and cocoa. Add egg whites and vanilla. Fold in flour, flax seed and chocolate chips (I got the flax idea from a vegan recipe). Bake at 350 for 25 to 27 minutes. Check with a toothpick or knife by stabbing center, assure that the knife or toothpick run clean. Let cool and top with powdered sugar or serve warm with low fat vanilla ice cream. 

If you love baked goods yet still want to keep it healthy there are many things you can do to make it healthier. You can replace all-purpose flour with whole wheat or even use unbleached. You can take it a step further and buy the organic kind. As far as artificial sweeteners I like stevia and agave. Some brands are not as  healthy. I encourage research on what brands are good. Often when baking muffins or cinnamon roles I try to make it "half healthy" by only putting half the sugar and replacing the other half with either agave or stevia (keep in mind stevia is sweeter than sugar so you will not need to put as much). You can also replace half the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour. For example, if it calls for 1 cup of all-purpose put 1/2 cup of all-purpose and 1/2 cup of whole wheat flour. 

As far as being healthy goes and if your watching your weight, portion control is key and only eating sweets on occasion is important. I love my desserts but try to stay away.  At least when I put healthier ingredients in, I don't feel as bad. 

Camping

Santaquin Meadow

Sarah, Rusty and myself went up Santaquin Meadow to camp at a spot we have stayed at before.But our cool tucked away spot was already taken by a family so we kept driving searching for another one. We decided to off road to the other side of the meadow where it looked isolated and level. There was no one out there, it was awesome! Our spot was hidden and had plenty of fire wood (we brought some just in case because our usual spot is picked clean). When we set camp we figured we were not supposed to be camped there because there was almost no sign of previous campers. The next morning, on our way back, we made a point to read the sign that explained  that the meadow itself is off-limits to preserve its natural beauty. We would have had a hefty fine if we had been caught. I feel bad for disturbing the area but we left the sight cleaner than we found it and it was beautiful and worth it.

We wanted simple and easy so we chose hotdogs and chili. I love cooking on a fire. We also do tinfoil dinners when we camp but like I said I wanted something that would take 3 minutes and no prep. Easy. I heat the can of chili in the coals on the side of the fire while cooking my hotdog on a stick. Keep an eye on your chili because it cooks quick. You may get a little ash but I think it adds.

Sarah always cooks breakfast when we camp. This time we grilled potatoes, breakfast sausage, onion and egg and seasoned it with pepper. We didn't bring enough water for coffee but we usually brew some with my percolator.

Weekend with my ladies

 Saturday, Sarah and Mallory came to my house to have drinks, food and to catch up. The three of us have been friends for many years now and many years to come. True friends are far and few between and I am glad to have these ladies in my life. We decided to stay in for the night. We decided we would each contribute something for dinner: Mallory with jalapenos poppers, Sarah with the bar nachos, and myself with carne tacos with lime-sour cream sauce. Instead of the traditional tequila to go with our mexi-style dinner we decided the level we wanted to be at was a whiskey level. We started the night with the bar nachos and it was a basic nacho bake. In this dish I would throw whatever you like in the nacho dish. I like white corn chips, sour cream, beens, hamburger, and Sarah mixed her salsa with the nacho cheese which was pretty damn good too. She than topped it with chopped onion and jalapeno.We baked the ingredients at 350 until they were heated which took about 10 minutes.  You can get as creative as you want with this one, really its whatever you prefer. My husband just informed me we will be having this dish more frequently, it really was good.

I made the basic carne taco. Corn tortillas, 1LB of carne meat, lettuce, sour cream, cilantro, feta, 1 lime, chopped tomatoes or pico. I season the meat with cumin, paprika, chili powder and a basic mexi spice. I than will fry the torts up when ready to serve. The sour cream sauce is the best and I usually use it on shrimp tacos but it goes with almost anything. I take about 1 cup of sour cream and half squeezed lime and about two table spoons of chopped cilantro. I blend it in my blender for about 30 seconds and its perfect.  The picture I have is shrimp but I basically use the same ingredients, minus the avocado (which would be delicious too). You than build your taco how ever you like.

To really set the the night right Mallory made bacon-wrapped jalapeno poppers. She hallowed out jalapenos and stuffed cream cheese inside. She then wrapped them in bacon and baked them for about 30 to 40 minutes. Mallory suggested next time we fry the bacon for a few minutes before baking them which would make the bacon crispier and it wouldn't take so long. 

Notice she made a slit down the middle of them to make it easier to get the cream cheese in. We forgot toothpicks but they worked out fine. 

It was a great night. I love that we all put forth something and it was great. Any time we have our "girls night" one thing that is sure is that we eat well. I always enjoy good company and it was great holiday weekend. Thanks ladies.

A well worth Travel for good company and perfect hometown food.

The desert really is a perfect scenic terrain. I drove to Vernal, Utah this weekend to visit my long-time friend, Mallory Ross. Vernal is a unique town with a large industry for natural gas and has a beautiful topography. I had a great guide to show me many aspects of the town including some great spots to dine. Split Mountain is the beacon and light of Vernal, where it will always look complex and breathtaking. Standing center, its presence always powerful.

I had the opportunity to see Carnegie Quarry in Dinosaur National Monument. The Quarry is a mass amount of dinosaur fossils that were discovered in 1909 and were left where they were found. The museum was built around the sight.

There are many ancient petroglyphs around Vernal. This first picture is taken within Dinosaur National Monument. These petroglyphs are believed to be anywhere from 800 to 1200 years old.

McConkie Ranch, Vernal. 

It was an eventful hiking and sightseeing day. I am fortunate Mallo is aware of and appreciates these places. The images at McConkie Ranch were my favorite; being better preserved and seeing the detail and design gave me a better idea of what they were drawing. For what resources they had its amazing art. I honestly cannot draw half that well on paper.

I wanted to really try for the full-Vernal experience so I had to try one of their locally owned restaurants.

Mallory told me The Quarry was really good, a little pricy, but never disappoints.  I was a little apprehensive at first because our appetizer was not very impressive and our server was below average. I have been really craving some fish and chips. I have been disappointed the last few times I had ordered this seemingly expensive dish at different places. I decided to ordre their beer-battered halibut and it was very good. The batter was crisp and cooked perfect while the fish was tender. They had a spicy  tarter sauce that complimented the fish well. Let us not forget the importance of a nice cold beer with this classic dish. 

I have always had a great time in Vernal and there is always something to do. I thank my knowledgeable guide and important friend, Mallory and her sister, for giving me this experience.  I had a perfect weekend. I cant wait to visit again and try new trails.

Family

Up the canyon with the family eating hot dogs and chili for Mother's day. I can always use a good fire in the mountains. My family and I have many memories up Santaquin canyon, its a small and steep canyon, shaded and narrow. Once you get to the top you have a view of dry mountain and wide meadows that have many tucked away camping spots. Its not a very crowded canyon and thats another reason its refreshing to visit. It was a beautiful day and I was happy to spend some time with my family.

                                                                   Momma

                                                             

Pecan Tassie

Pecan Tassie

This treats is one of my favorites. I will occasionally have a night out with my friend Sarah at her family's cabin. We catch up, cook tin foil dinners and have a drink or two. We enjoy desserts for the occasion. Sarah brought this as the dessert one night and I pretty much ate them all. I love them and a batch makes about 45 small pecan pies. You can give them out to friends and family, freeze and save them and they will be just as delicious as if they were pulled from the oven.  They're basically mini pecan pies. One of the reasons that makes them so awesome is the cream cheese baked into the crust and the contrast it gives with the sweet pecan filing. If you enjoy pecan pie you will love this!

Ingredients: (pastry crust)

1 cup of unsalted butter. (you can use salted, whatever is preferred).

6 oz of regular cream cheese at room temperature.

2 cups of all purpose flour.

Pecan Filling:

3 large eggs 

3 tablespoons of unsalted butter melted

1 3/4 cups of light brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup of coarsely pecans.

 Instruction: (pastry crust)

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and cream cheese with an electric mixer or hand held. Cream until fluffy and light. Beat in flour until incorporated. Flatten the dough into 1 inch thick discs and wrap in wax paper or plastic and refrigerate for about 45 minutes to an hour allowing the dough to cool, making it easier to work with. 

Preheat the oven to 375 and place the oven rack in the center. Have two 24 mini muffins dishes, they also come in 12. 

Remove the pastry dough from the fridge, pinch off 1/4 of the dough. Return the rest of the dough to the fridge. On a floured surface, roll out the pastry until 1/8  inch thick. Cut rounds that are slightly bigger than the muffins tins. You can also take small balls of rolled dough and press them in with your thumb, minding the thickness of the dough and how much it rises out of the top. Repeat with the rest of the dough.

Instruction: (Pecan filling)

With your preferred mixer, beat the eggs, butter, sugar, vanilla, and salt until it's smooth and syrupy. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of filling into each muffin tin. Make sure to not over fill (about a quarter inch from the top of the crust) because it will cause bubbling over onto the pan and cause your tarts to stick and will force them to crumble. Place the pecans onto the tarts without causing the filling to overflow out of the crust.  Bake in the oven for about 18 to 20 minutes or until nicely browned. place on a wire rack to cool and enjoy

  

Thanks for reading. Thank you Sarah. I will be posting more recipes soon. If anyone would like to share, please do! I am always looking for new delicious recipes!