Homemade Nutella Stuffed French Toast

When Nick and I went on our honeymoon, we fell in love with Nutella.  Not that we've never had it before, but there is something about European Nutella that doesn't even compare with American Nutella.  Sorry guys... perhaps it's the artificial flavoring?

Anyway, I had a pack of hazelnuts on hand and thought I'd take a stab at my own Nutella. And what better way to serve it than stuffed between two pieces of french toast!! (I didn't have all the ingredients for pound cake... that's the best way to eat Nutella)

These french toasts turned out delicious!  You don't even need syrup... but you are certainly allowed to have syrup on these.  We had breakfast for dinner when I made these and skipped dessert because the whole dinner is one big dessert!  Enjoy!

Nutella Stuffed French Toast:

Serves: 4 (with Nutella left over)

Ingredients:

For the Nutella:

1 cup of hazelnuts

1/4 cup cocoa powder

2-3 tablespoons milk of your choice (I used almond/coconut milk)

2-3 tablespoons of sweetener of your choice... give or take (I used unrefined powdered sugar)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350.

Place hazelnuts on baking sheet and place in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes.  Check often to avoid those suckers from burning... cause they burn fast!

Remove from oven and let cool just enough to handle.  When able to handle, remove skins from the nut and place the nuts in a blender or food processor.  Blend until the nuts form a nice paste, add the cocoa powder, milk and sweetener and blend until combined.  Taste and add sweetener to your liking.

Ingredients: 

For the French Toast:

3/4 cup of homemade Nutella

8 slices of bread (here is a good homemade bread recipe)

4 eggs

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

splash of milk (I used almond/coconut milk)

coconut oil for pan

Directions:

Preheat oven to it's lowest setting.

In a pie plate or dish, mix together the eggs, cinnamon, nutmeg and milk.

Spread Nutella over both slices of bread and sandwich them, to make a Nutella sandwich.  Dip into the egg mixture and flip, covering both sides.

In an oiled skillet over medium low heat, add the french toast sandwich.  Cook for about 3 minutes, until golden brown and flip.  Repeat with remaining sandwiches.  Store finished sandwiches in a preheated oven to keep warm. 

Sprinkle with powdered sugar and enjoy!

Honey Nut Clusters

I'm always looking for healthy and filling snacks and being pregnant, I look for high protein snacks too.  We had these nut clusters at Christmas from Costco and they were delicious and kept us full for hours.  Since we always have nuts and honey on hand, I thought I'd make these myself.  They actually turned out really delicious and I made pretty generous servings.  Each serving has only 150 calories, tons of good fats, and 5 grams of protein!

I absolutely love finding new gluten free snacks that aren't vegetables (Now I do love my vegetables, but it's all about variety).  You can make these with basically any nut you have in the house, just make sure your nut to honey ratio is 2 cups to 4 tablespoons. Also, if you plan on making these ofter, Trader Joe's has a great organic nut section.  Also, the bulk section of Whole Foods or any health food store is usually pretty cheap too. Enjoy!

Honey Nut Clusters
Servings: 12 (very generous portions)

Ingredients:
1/2 cup raw almonds
1/2 cup raw cashews
1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
3 tablespoons raw honey
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350.

In a small ramekin or mixing bowl, add honey and maple syrup (may need to heat if your honey is raw and thick), stir to combine.  In a large mixing bowl, add your nuts and pour the honey mixture over them.  Stir to combine and lay out on a parchment lined baking sheet.  I used a cookie sheet and it worked fine, but to make it more uniform, use an 8x8 baking dish.  Do not forget the parchment paper, it's your best friend for this project.

Place in 350 degree oven for 20-25 minutes until nuts start to brown.  Remove from oven and let cool.  Cover and let sit for a few hours to over night to harden.  If you can't wait, it'll be just fine if you grab a bite.

Cut into bite sized pieces and enjoy! Note: My pieces were fairly large because they crumbled as small pieces.  I think this is because I used the baking sheet and they weren't as thick.  But really, who are we kidding... we are going to eat the same amount regardless.  This just allows less trips back to the bowl!

Store in an airtight container.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Brownies

Let me tell you, if you want to impress everyone at a party, at the office or at home... make these brownies.  They are especially great for pregnant ladies who are cookie dough deprived and would be great at a baby shower. (drool) They are pretty amazing and take the regular boring brownie to a whole new level.  

I know I normally bake on the healthier side... well... these are by no means healthy.  This is why you need to take these somewhere to impress others and not leave them at home where you will sit and eat the entire batch while watching re-runs of Gilmore Girls sobbing into your blanket because the show clearly ended too early. 

I would love to sit and chat about how awesome these are, but there is only one left in the fridge and I need to tackle my husband for the last bite!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Brownies
Makes: 24 bars

Ingredients:
for the brownies:
3/4 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
2/3 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup boiling water
2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 container of vanilla yogurt or 1/2 cup apple sauce or 1/2 cup canned pumpkin (optional, but I found these a little on the dry side so adding any of these ingredients will take care of that)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/3 cup all purpose flour

for the cookie dough layer:
3/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
3 tablespoons milk (I used whole, but any kind will work)
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

for the topping:
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1 tablespoon coconut oil

Directions: 

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Grease a 9x13" pan and set aside.

In a large bowl or in a mixer,whisk together the cocoa powder and baking soda. Whisk in about half (1/3 cup approximately) of the melted butter until smooth. Whisk in the boiling water until smooth.

Whisk in the sugar and then the eggs and vanilla until smooth, whisk in the yogurt or applesauce or pumpkin. Whisk in the remaining butter and salt.

Stir in the flour until combined. Pour the batter into the greased baking dish and place in the oven to bake for 20-25 minutes, until just set and the edges are starting to pull away from the pan. Let cool completely in the pan.

While the brownies are cooling, make the cookie dough layer. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the melted butter and sugars until smooth and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Mix in the salt, vanilla & milk until combined.

Mix in the flour and chocolate chips until just combined. Spread the cookie dough evenly over the cool brownies in the pan. Place the pan into the fridge to chill while you make the glaze.

In a smallish, microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate chips with the oil, stirring well every 30 seconds until just smooth. Spread evenly over the cookie dough layer and return to the fridge to continue chilling.

Butternut Squash Ravioli Pizza

If you know me at all, homemade pizza night is my favorite night of the week.  We usually have it on Fridays, but since today was a lovely holiday and we didn't work, we decided to make it today.  Whenever we make pizza, we always drink a nice glass of wine.  It's so much fun, like date night but at home. Since I have a wee one growing in my belly, I opted not to drink the wine tonight... tear... but would have loved this with a nice glass of chardonnay... or bottle... or box... whichever you like. Can I just say once more that I am thrilled to be able to cook and eat awesome foods again?  There is nothing worse, when you're a complete foody like me, than not being able to eat the foods you love... or any foods for that matter.  

This meal was hands down awesome.  I was thinking about making butternut squash lasagna, but really didn't feel like rolling out the pasta dough, so... a pizza it was.  Completely delicious and pretty darn easy too, even with a homemade crust.  

I can't wait to make this again and maybe next time, enjoy a glass of wine with it.  Enjoy your pizza nights folks!!

Butternut Squash Ravioli Pizza
Serves: 2-4

Ingredients: 
1/2 homemade pizza dough (get the recipe here)
1/2 butternut squash, thinly sliced (about 2 cups worth)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 yellow onion, sliced
1 cup fresh mozzarella
1/2 cup ricotta
10-15 fresh sage leaves
1/2 cup Parmesan, grated
salt and freshly cracked pepper

Directions: 
Preheat oven to 400, make the crust according to recipe and set aside.

Bring a large sauce pot of water to a boil. Blanch the squash for 3-5 minutes until barely soft.  Drain water and set aside.

Melt butter in a small skillet and cook on low to brown the butter.  Once the butter is a nice brown color and smells nutty, remove from heat and add a dash of salt and pepper.  Make sure not to burn the butter.

Spread the pizza crust onto a large baking sheet or pizza pan, add the brown butter sauce and spread over crust.  Add one layer of butternut squash and onion.  Top with fresh mozzarella, followed by dollops of ricotta and fresh sage leaves.  Top with remaining squash and finally top with Parmesan cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Place in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, until cheese is brown and bubbly and crust is crispy.  

Place on a cooling rack to cool for a couple of minutes and then slice.

BLT Wedge Salad

Well hello there.  I understand it has been months since my last post and I do have a very good and exciting reason.  For the past few months, I have suffered from what some might call... "morning sickness."  I, however call it, "all day nausea."  While I'm not complaining, because I had it pretty good compared to some people I know, it did put a damper on my cooking.  Most nights, dinner was either mac & cheese, french toast or cereal.  Or sometimes just a big bowl of fruits and veggies.  I planned ahead on meals, like I usually do, but by the time the day came, whatever I had planned did not sound appetizing at all.  That was probably the worst part about it all... being that I'm such a foodie.  But... good news, I am over the hump... food is sounding good again, I didn't think that could happen, but I will hopefully blog more in the near future! 

Tonight is movie night, which includes a big bowl of popcorn (freshly popped by my awesome husband) so I wanted to do something a little lighter for dinner... being that I'm pregnant, it needed to be filling too.  We kept raving about this salad all throughout dinner.  I usually hate when people talk about how awesome their food is during dinner... just shut up and enjoy it... but we were those people tonight.  I guess maybe it's cause we were expecting just a plain boring salad. But it was amazing. The dressing is the star of this salad. Just to let you know.

BLT Wedge Salad

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

1 bundle of romaine lettuce

10-15 cherry tomatoes, cut in half

1 cup homemade croutons, (just slice two pieces of ciabatta bread, drizzle olive oil over, toss and bake in 350 oven for 7 minutes)

1/2 avocado, cubed (this make it a BLAT salad, but the avocado adds some healthy fats)

Dressing: 

1/4 olive oil

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 Tbsp. mayo

2 Tbsp. pure maple syrup

4 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled (I used morningstar bacon cause it's delicious, but you can use turkey bacon or pork bacon or whatever kind of bacon you like, just don't use jarred bacon bits... yuk)

dash of salt and pepper

Directions:

For dressing, in a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, mayo, maple syrup and taste.  Add bacon and a little salt and pepper. Whisk until combined.

For the salad, cut the romaine bundle in half and plate cut side up.  Add sliced cherry tomatoes, avocado and croutons and top with maple bacon dressing.  Enjoy!

Cookies 'n' Cream Cookies

I think that making anything cookies and cream flavor, would be delicious.  Think about it... cookies and cream ice cream... amazing!! Cookies and cream fudge... um yeah!! Cookies and cream brownies... more please!! I'm really thinking we need more cookies and cream.  Just think.... cookies and cream hot chocolate? Cookies and cream pie? Cookies and cream cake? I'm drooling just thinking of the possibilities. 

You better add this recipe to your cookie swap.  It's amazing.  I mean... crushed up Oreos within a cookie? What could be better?!  I thought of this recipe when I was thinking about my two favorite desserts to make. Oreo Balls and Chocolate Chip Cookies... I thought... "Why not combine them?" And I'm so glad I did. These cookies are so delicious and different! Definitely a crowd pleaser.  

Cookies 'n' Cream Cookies

Makes: 4 Dozen

Ingredients:

1 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 pkg (4.2 oz) Cookies and Cream pudding mix (you could also use white chocolate pudding mix)

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

16 Oreo cookies, roughly chopped or crushed

1 cup white chocolate chips (you could sub a 5 oz Hershey's Cookies 'n' Creme chocolate bar, roughly chopped... and that would be amazing as well.)

Directions:
Heat oven to 350F.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter and both sugars until light and fluffy. Add the pudding mix and blend. Add in the eggs and mix until completely combined. Add in the vanilla.
In another bowl, combine the baking soda, flour and salt. Gradually add into the creamed mixture and mix until combined. Fold in the Oreos and white chocolate chips or Cookies 'n' Creme bar.
Form dough into tablespoon sized balls and place 2 inches apart on a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake in the oven for 8-12 minutes, or until golden on top.

Grilled Chicken Curry Risotto

Sometimes I come up with things in my head that are amazing. And other times I think... "why would I even think of putting those ingredients together"?  I was a little skeptical of this dish because normally when I mix Italian and Thai foods, it's a disaster.  This however, was not a disaster.  I'm always amazed when I think, "wow, I'd totally make this again... in fact... I WANT to make this again!"  That's what I thought for this meal.  It's delicious and it actually works together! I can't wait to make this again.  Enjoy!

Grilled Chicken Curry Risotto

Serves: 4

Ingredients:
Chicken:

1 1lb package or chicken tenders or 4 chicken breasts
poultry seasoning
1/2 cup coconut milk
1 tsp red curry paste
1 Tbsp. soy sauce

Risotto:

1 cup arborio rice

4 cups vegetable or chicken stock
1 cup coconut milk

1/2 cup white wine

1 Tbsp red curry paste

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbsp olive or grapeseed oil

1/2 red pepper, chopped

1/2 onion, chopped

1 carrot, sliced into matchsticks

1 cup chopped broccoli

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
For the Chicken:
In a glass container, mix the coconut milk, curry paste, soy sauce and seasoning.  Add the chicken and coat.  Let sit in marinade for an hour. Remove from marinade and grill until chicken is completely cooked. 

For the Risotto:

In a medium sized sauce pot, bring veggie or chicken stock to a boil, then turn down to a simmer to keep warm.

In a large saucepan, heat a drizzle of oil over medium heat and add garlic and curry paste.  Stir and cook about 2 minutes.  Add the rice and stir to coat with oil.  Saute until it turns a golden brown, about 2 minutes. Add white wine and stir.  Add coconut milk and stir until absorbed  Add 1/2 cup of the broth and stir continuously until it absorbs.  Repeat this step until the rice is plump, but still has a bite.  You don't want it to be mush. 

Meanwhile, heat the grill to a medium heat.  Place the veggies in a grill pan and grill until soft. 

Mix the veggies into the risotto and add salt and pepper to taste.  Plate risotto and serve chicken over the top.