Peanut Butter Fruit Dip

My oldest is not a fan of straight peanut butter. She'll take a thin layer of it on her PB&J's, thankyouverymuch, and don't even think about asking her to dip her apples in it. No way.

Until today.

My secret weapons for changing her mind? A little honey and vanilla yogurt added to the peanut butter. They both sweeten and smooth out the grainy natural peanut butter, and for my oldest, make it edible. My youngest (who loves peanut butter) naturally loved the dip because the peanut butter is still a predominate flavor. It's just tastier.

*If you are making this with an already-sweetened peanut butter (like Jif), you may want to use a plain yogurt and reduce the amount of honey to taste.

Peanut Butter Fruit Dip

Ingredients:

• ½ c. vanilla yogurt
• ½ c. nut butter (peanut or almond)
• ¼ c. honey
• Fruit for dipping

In a small bowl, combine the yogurt, nut butter, and honey. Serve with your choice of fruit for dipping.

Source: This Homemade Life

Cinnamon Bun Pancakes

It's official. These pancakes are now our family's favorite pancake recipe.

They are a quadruple threat: They have amazing taste, terrific texture, are easy to make, and turn out beautifully. They also happen to taste like a decadent morning treat, but without any of the work usually involved. The pancakes were ready to eat in less than 30 minutes.

And the icing... How often do you get to eat pancakes with icing? Half of us enjoyed the icing, the other half thought maple syrup tasted the best. I would recommend trying both and deciding. The icing definitely thickened up a bit as the butter in it cooled, which I actually preferred, so next time I'll make the icing as I mix up the batter for the pancakes.

It is an amazingly delicious splurge, and one that you should not put off any longer. I promise you'll love it, and I'm a woman of my word. Now what are you waiting for? The print-friendly button is below. ☺

Cinnamon Bun Pancakes

Yield: 12 3-inch pancakes

Ingredients:

• 1½ c. flour
• 3 Tbsp. sugar
• ½ tsp. salt
• 4 tsp. baking powder
• 1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 c. milk
• 2 Tbsp. maple syrup
• 1/4 c. melted butter
• 1 Tbsp. vanilla

Put all the dry ingredients in a bowl and whisk together. Add the wet ingredients and whisk together until well combined.

Preheat a griddle or large skillet over medium heat. Cook until brown on both sides. Serve with maple syrup or icing.

Icing
Ingredients:

• 1 c. powdered sugar
• 2 Tbsp. melted butter
• 2 Tbsp. milk

Whisk the ingredients together until smooth and a pouring consistency. Icing will continue to thicken as it sits. If the icing is too thick, add more milk. If it's too thin, add more sugar.

Source: Baked Bree

Cilantro Lime Rice

If the name conjured up images of a certain fast-casual restaurant (cough, Chipotle), this rice won't disappoint. My sister-in-law, Julie, shared this taste-a-like a couple weekends ago, and I couldn't be more pleased with the results. The secret to imparting all that lime flavor into the rice is...

(wait for it)

Sauteing the rice in the lime juice before adding the water. Ingenious!

Cilantro Lime Rice

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp. butter or margarine
• 2 medium limes, juiced
• 1 & 1/3 c. water
• 1½ c. basmati rice
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 Tbsp. fresh cilantro, chopped (we increased this to closer to ¼ c., so plan to do this to taste)

In a 2-quart heavy saucepan, melt butter over low heat. Add lime juice and rice and stir for one minute. Add water and salt, and bring to a full rolling boil. Cover, reduce heat to low to simmer for 20-25 minutes, or until water is absorbed. Stir in cilantro just before serving.

*The cilantro can wilt/discolor in leftover rice, so if you are planning on having some leftover, I would suggest adding the cilantro to just the portion that you plan to use immediately.

Source: My sister-in-law, Julie

Easy Black Bean Burritos

I love easy dinners, especially when they require little to no advanced planning. When they taste great and are pretty nutritious, even better. Take these burritos for example... They require almost all pantry staples, taste amazing with a nice cold beer, and are ready in 10 short minutes.

Served with tortilla chips and cilantro-lime rice (recipe coming soon!), it's really a perfect dinner.

Easy Black Bean Burritos 

Serves: 3-4 Main Dish Servings

Ingredients:

• ½ tsp. dried minced onion (or substitute ¼ c. finely chopped onion, sauteed in ½ tsp. olive oil for 5 minutes to soften)
• 1 tsp. minced garlic
• 1 15-oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 tsp. ground coriander
• ½ c. sour cream (plus additional for serving)
• ½ c. purchased or homemade salsa (plus additional for serving)
• 4 standard-sized flour tortillas (we use whole wheat tortillas)
• 1 c. shredded Monterey Jack cheese
• ¼ c. chopped cilantro (for serving)

In a large saucepan, combine onion, garlic, beans, coriander, sour cream, and salsa. Cook over medium heat, mashing beans a bit with the back of spoon, about 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Layer tortillas between paper towels and heat on high in microwave 30 seconds or until just warmend. Divide bean mixture among tortillas, sprinkle with cheese, and roll up. Top with additional salsa, sour cream, and/or cilantro and serve.

Source: Colorado Collage

Grownup "Dirt" Layered Dessert

What do you get when you combine pulverized Oreo cookies, sweetened cream cheese, fresh sliced bananas, homemade chocolate pudding, and cool whip?

Bliss.

Rich, chocolatey bliss.

Growing up, I always loved "Dirt": A chocolate pudding dessert with ground Oreos on top. The really yummy ones always had a gummy worm or two coming out of the pudding. Why did the gummy worms make it taste better? This dessert is similar, but just a bit fancier. Maybe a little healthier, too. I did mention there are bananas in the middle, right?

Do kids still love it? Assuming they like pudding, it's a win. (My girls aren't really big on pudding.) You can even throw a gummy worm in, add a little extra dirt on the top and you'll be their hero.

No need to make your own pudding. Instant pudding is actually used in the original recipe. But, if you want a super decadent chocolate pudding (with the added bonus of being gelatin-free), the recipe below is a winner.

The recipe actually fills a 9"x13" pan (and would cut beautifully), but I halved it and made about 6 (large) individual servings. But if you're making it to bring to a Memorial Cookout (hint, hint), the 9"x13" would be perfect.

Grownup "Dirt": No Bake Oreo Pudding Dessert

Ingredients:

• 30 (or about 2-1/2 cups) Oreo cookies, finely crushed
• 6 Tbsp. butter, melted
• 1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
• 2 Tbsp. cold milk
• 1 (8 oz.) tub Cool Whip, thawed, divided
• 4 bananas, sliced
• *2 (3.9 oz.) pkg. chocolate instant pudding
• *3-1/4 cups cold milk
• 2 Tbsp. chocolate syrup

*Omit these ingredients if making pudding from scratch. See recipe below.

Mix cookie crumbs and butter, press onto the bottom of a 9"x13" dish. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Beat cream cheese, sugar and 2 Tbsp. milk in medium bowl with whisk until well blended. Stir in 1 cup Cool Whip and spread over crust. (I found starting in the middle and working out to the edges helped keep the crust crumbs in place.) Top with bananas.

Beat pudding mixes and 3-1/4 cups milk with a whisk for 2 minutes. Spread over bananas. Let stand 5 minutes or until thickened. Cover with remaining cool whip. Refrigerate for 4 hours. Top with chocolate syrup just before serving.

Source: Kraft Food and Family Magazine

Chocolate Pudding

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients: 

• 4 c. whole milk
• 1 c. sugar, divided
• Pinch of salt
• 1/3 c. Dutch process cocoa powder
• 1/3 c. cornstarch
• 3 large egg yolks
• 2 oz. bittersweet chocolate (65%-75%), finely chopped
• 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

In a large saucepan, combine the milk, ½ c. sugar, and the salt, and bring to a boil over medium heat. Remove from the heat.

In a small bowl, combine the remaining ½ c. of sugar, the cocoa powder, and the cornstarch. Sprinkle this slowly into the milk, whisking constantly. Return to the heat and whisk constantly until thick and bubbling. Remove from the heat, make sure the mixture isn't boiling, and one at a time, whisk in the egg yolks, then the chocolate, butter, and vanilla extract. Whisk constantly until the chocolate has dissolved. Return to low heat and whisk constantly until the mixture thickens again, being careful that it does not boil, then immediately remove from the heat and strain into a bowl.

Spoon into desired serving bowls, and cover with plastic. If you don't want a skin to form on the pudding, place the plastic directly on top of the pudding. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

Source: slightly adapted from New Classic Family Dinners

Roasted Gobi Aloo (Cauliflower and Potatoes)

I've shared with you all my love of roasted cauliflower, and I also love roasted potatoes, so imagine my delight when I saw that they were the star of this popular vegetarian Indian dish!

Having never heard of Gobi Aloo before, I didn't know what to expect, but the finished product did not disappoint. Roasting the potatoes and cauliflower was sheer genius as it automatically elevated both of these ingredients. The spice blend added a nice flavor to the dish without making it "spicy". Nate actually felt that it could use a little more heat so I may add in some of our spicy paprika (thanks Laura and Paco!) or a teaspoon or two of hot curry powder just to kick it up a bit. The peas I could have taken or left, but Nate and I both agreed that the sprinkling of cilantro over the top was the perfect finish to this dish.

The original recipe calls for something called asafetida (which I do not have), so a quick Google search provided me with an easy substitution which I've provided below. We served it on naan, a flatbread that I picked up from the freezer section of Trader Joe's, but it can also be served in roti or a tortilla, or even over rice. If you're in the mood to make your own naan, here's a well reviewed recipe from allrecipes.com: Homemade Naan.  आनंद लें! (Enjoy!)

Roasted Gobi Aloo (Cauliflower and Potatoes)

Yield: 3-4 Main Dish Servings

Ingredients:

• 1 head cauliflower (medium to small), cut into medium pieces
• 2 large russet potatoes, cut into medium-sized pieces
• Kosher salt
• 2-4 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp. canola oil or extra virgin olive oil
• Pinch of asafetida (Or substitute 1/3 c. finely diced onion and one clove minced garlic)
• 1 tsp. cumin seeds
• 2 medium or 1 large tomato, diced (seeds and juice reserved)
• ½ c. frozen peas (optional)
• 1 ½ tsp. crushed ginger
• 2–3 Tbsp. low-fat sour cream or plain yogurt
• 1 tsp. turmeric
• 1 tsp. red chili powder
• 1 tsp. coriander powder
• ½ tsp. Garam Masala (optional)
• Salt to taste
• ½ c. chopped cilantro, to garnish

Clean and the cut cauliflower into medium size pieces, being careful to not cut them too small. Peel, clean, and dice potatoes roughly the same size as the cauliflower. Line 1 half sheet pan or 2 baking sheets with foil. Place the cauliflower on one side (or one pan) and the potatoes on the other half/pan. Drizzle the cauliflower and potatoes with extra virgin olive oil and 1-2 tsp. of salt.  Toss gently to get oil on all the vegetables. Roast at 450°F for about 30 minutes, turning after 20 minutes. Vegetables are done when they are tender and golden brown.

While the vegetables are roasting, start on the seasoning. In a 12" pan or skillet, heat 1 tsp. oil over medium heat until it is hot.

*If you are not using the asafetida, add the finely minced onion to the pan, and saute until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, and saute an additional 30 seconds, then move the sauteed onion/garlic to one side of the pan, or remove from pan entirely. Add extra oil to pan to equal about 1 tsp. if needed.

Add the cumin seeds. Cook for 2-3 minutes, or until seeds splutter, then add asafetida (if using). Add the tomatoes (and seeds/juice), ginger, turmeric, red chili powder, Garam Masala, and coriander powder. Cover and cook until oil separates, or about 4-5 minutes. Reduce heat to low.

Once the vegetables are done roasting, add 1-2 Tbsp. water to the pan to thin the mixture slightly. Add the sour cream or yogurt and stir to combine. Cook over low heat just until everything is combined well, about 2 minutes. Do not overcook this mixture. If it still appears too thick, add another 1-2 Tbsp. of water to the pan.

If using peas, heat peas with some water in a microwave safe bowl for 45 seconds. Drain and add to pan.

Add cauliflower and potatoes to the pan and mix well.   Almost all the liquid will be absorbed by vegetables.

Serve with naan, tortillas, flatbread, or over rice. Scatter fresh cilantro over the top.

Source: Jolly Vindaloo

White Sangria

Some nights just call for sangria. My favorite is the classic red sangria (full of strawberries, apples, oranges, lemons, grapes and peaches), but without any red wine in the house, I had to search for an alternative.

Enter White Sangria: Crisp, fruity, citrus-y, chilled deliciousness. It took just shy of 15 minutes to put together, then 2 hours in the fridge to allow the flavors to develop. We removed the lemon and orange rinds when we put the leftovers in the fridge overnight, and it tasted even better the next day.

Want something bubbly? Add some club soda. Want more fruit? Throw in some fresh pineapple or peaches. This is a great alternative to the traditional red sangria and one we'll be enjoying throughout the summer. Cheers!

White Sangria

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

• 2 large oranges, 1 cut into ¼-inch-thick slices, the other 1 juiced
• 1 large lemon, cut into ¼-inch-thick slices
• ¼ c. granulated sugar
• 2 Tbsp. Grand Marnier (or other orange-flavored liquor, i.e. Triple Sec or Cointreau)
• 1 (750-mL) bottle white wine (Pinot Grigio or Chardonnay, preferably), chilled
• 1 apple, cut into ¼-inch-thick slices
• 6 to 8 ice cubes

Add orange and lemon slices and sugar to a large pitcher; mash gently with a wooden spoon until the sugar dissolves and the fruit releases some juice but is not completely crushed, about 1 minute. Stir in orange juice, liquor, apples, and wine. Refrigerate at least 2 hours (no more than 8 hours unless the rinds are removed).

Before serving, add ice cubes and stir briskly to redistribute settled fruit and pulp; serve immediately.

Source: Brown Eyed Baker