Totally Tasty Tuesdays

I've been watching The Voice this season and let me just say how much I love it!

I'm not a fan of American Idol. Never have been. Not sure why, exactly, but I just never can sit through an episode.

The Voice, I love.

I love the coaches: Adam Levine, Cee Lo Green, Christina Aguilara, and Blake Shelton.

They don't annoy me.

Especially Adam and Blake. No they do not.

Sigh.

Anyway, I think you should all watch it. The blind auditions are done and it's on to the competition.

And while you watch, a little nosh wouldn't hurt you. Especially the goods I'm featuring today.

Mini Garlic Monkey Breads

from Life as a Lofthouse

I'd feature Holly's recipes everyweek, if I could. She and I are foodie twins. I love every single thing on her blog. Every.single.thing. These baby breads are calling to me.



Amazing Apple Fritters

from Life is Sweets

I used to get an apple fritter from my grocery store bakery whenever I went there. I would eat that and a Diet Coke on the 30 minute drive home. I've been better at not getting a fritter, but now I sure am craving one!

Sweet Cornbread

from Meg's Everyday Indulgence

I love me some corn bread! Smeared with honey butter and I'm a happy girl.

Look at that! I just wanna eat the photo.

Apparently I am craving carbs.

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Smoky Garlic BBQ Chicken & Giveaway

I have been invited to participate in the Saucy Mama's "Skinny Mama-Cooking with Mustard" recipe contest. Contestants are to create an original recipe using at least one of the Saucy Mama mustards.  The purpose is to create recipes that are quick and easy to recreate, and of course deliciously satisfying for anyone wanting to lead a healthier lifestyle. 

The winner receives a $500 gift card to SpaFinder as well as a check for $500 from Barhyte along with some of their Saucy Mama best sellers.

Voting will begin on Feb. 29th and run till March 7th so be sure to go to the Saucy Mama facebook page then to vote. I'd love your vote!

Here's the mustard I received:

 and the good ol' yellow mustard. I just love the design of the label:

I decided to tweak my Oven Baked BBQ Pork Chops recipe using the Smoky Garlic mustard. I also changed it up a little by adding rosemary and using Apple Cider vinegar. It came out so delicious! My lil Emma wanted "more and more" of it.

Ingredients:

1/2 c. water
1 tsp. brown sugar
1/4 tsp. ground pepper
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 c. ketchup
1/2 c. apple cider vinegar
1 tsp. chili powder
2 Tbsp. Saucy Mama Smoky Garlic mustard
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. dried rosemary
1 Tbsp. flour
1 bayleaf
6 boneless skinless chicken breasts

Place chicken in a 9×13 baking dish. Mix all ingredients together and pour over the chicken. 

Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked. Discard the bay leaf and serve chicken with sauce over it.

Would you like to win some mustard of your own so you can make this recipe yourself?

One of you will win three Saucy Mama mustards like those above. I believe it will be the 3 shown, but it could possibly be different flavors. They are all amazing so it will be ok.

P.S. You aren't allowed to post about giveaways on Facebook (lame), so I'll have to get creative in order to let you know over there about the coolness going on here. 

To enter this giveaway here's what you do:

1. Leave a comment telling me what recipe you like to use mustard in. Be sure to leave your email address as well.

2.  Be sure to go here to vote and leave a comment telling me you did. 

That's all, folks! The giveaway will run until March 7th and then I will announce the winner.

I linked this to Trick or Treat Tuesday

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Turkey Meatballs with Asian Style Noodles

Light and tempting turkey meatballs with fresh herbs, ginger and lime.

Let it Roll, Baby, Roll

Okay, I confess. I admit it. When it comes to this recipe? I was totally inspired by Jamie Oliver and his Jamie's Food Revolution. I loved the flash mob stir-fry dance at Marshall University in episode four (view here at WabiSabi, one of the participants). The energy, spirit and creativity of the students, the killer combo of cooking and dance, with a generous dash of self expression and celebration got this creaky gluten-free goddess off the couch and movin', Baby.

Not to mention, craving a pan-tossed noodle stir-fry.

No doubt about it, I've been more attuned to Asian inspired flavors since moving to Santa Monica. Understandable. It's hard not to respond to the fresh, Pacific-infused tastes and heady scents of Asian fusion out here. So when we decided to play around with meatball recipes this weekend, yours truly started conjuring fusion-style tweaks for the humble Mediterranean meatball recipe I know and love.

First- I wanted to use organic free-range turkey (come Spring, I favor lighter meatballs and meatloaf, don't you?). And I knew I wanted to use fresh chopped herbs- mint, cilantro and parsley. Perfect with a splash of lime. Some spring onion. A little ginger and chile. Boom.

This Asian fusion meatball was born.

A quick note on my noodle choice- I've discovered Ancient Harvest Gluten-Free Quinoa Pasta-- and I love the texture and flavor. This is the least starchy gluten-free noodle I've found. And the best part is (perhaps due to the higher protein content of quinoa flour?) it stands up to pan tossing for brilliant stir-fries.

Read more + get the recipe >>

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Libre Tea Mug Winner

The winner of the Libre Tea Mug is...

True Random Number GeneratorMin: Max: 

Result:

35Powered by RANDOM.ORG

#35 Jonnie (JB) who said, "I love Green Tea."

Congrats!!

I will email you for your info. 

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Totally Tasty Tuesdays

This week's features are all desserts. I couldn't resist them. I didn't plan it that way, but there it is.

Maybe it's like when you go grocery shopping- you shouldn't do it when you're hungry.

Cheesecake Brownies

from Cooking For My Kids

I want these now. I am not a fan of the cheesecake that you cook, like with eggs in it. I love the no-bake version from Jello. This cheesecake is made with cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk. Yum!



Pull Apart Doughnut

from Lady Behind the Curtain

These are a bunch of doughnut holes and a low-calorie vesion of a doughnut, only 210 calories per bundle. Yes, please.

Butterfinger Caramel Cake

from Six Sisters' Stuff

So sinful. I love it!

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Slow Cooked Carnitas & Salsa Asada

Coming from a part-Hispanic family, I grew up with authentic Mexican food. I just love it. When I can find the real thing in restaurants, I just devour it. At my local library, I came across Marcela Valladolid's Mexican Made Easy: Everyday Ingredients, Extraordinary Flavor cookbook. I took it home and after the first few recipes, I decided I needed this forever. So I ordered it. It's full of authentic Mexican dishes that are amazing. Like this recipe that I'm sharing today. Super easy to prepare since it uses a slow cooker. Just try it for yourself.

Ingredients:

1/2 c. shortening 

2 lbs pork butt, cut into 2 inch cubes (4 cups)

salt and pepper

4 black peppercorns

2 bay leaves

2 medium white onions

4 garlic cloves, peeled

Salsa Asada* 

Melt the shortening in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the pork all over with salt and pepper. Add to the pan. Sear the meat on all sides, turning occasionally, until golden brown. About 10 minutes. This gives it a lovely crust. Transfer the meat to the slow cooker with the juices. Add 1/2 Tbsp. salt, the peppercorns, and bay leaves. Quarter the onions or chop them up (that's what I did) and add to the slow cooker with the garlic ( I minced mine but you can leave them whole if you just want the flavor). Cover and cook on high until the meat is tender, about 3 1/2 hours.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the pork to a cutting board. Discard the quartered onion and whole garlic cloves, if that's how you used them. Cool slightly. Cut the pork up or shred it. Slice the remaining onion to serve with the pork and Salsa Asada. You can eat it as is, or make tacos with tortillas.

Salsa Asada is the most traditional salsa in terms of preparation. The term asado can refer to grilled or dry roasted as I did with this salsa. Cooking it in a dry skillet let the ingredients char so you get a nice smoky flavor. Traditionally it's made with an onion, but I used a shallot for a more mild flavor.

Salsa Asada:

8 plum tomatoes, cored

1 large shallot, peeled

2 serrano chiles, stemmed

1/3 c. chicken broth

Salt and pepper

Heat a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the tomatoes, shallot, and serranos and roast in the dry skillet until charred on all sides, about 8 minutes. 

Right here you can leave the serranos as is, or you can open them and remove the seeds for less heat. Transfer all to a blender, add the broth, and blend until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with the Carnitas. It's also great with tortilla chips.

Printable Version

I linked this to Tuesday Talent Show

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Libre Tea Glass Mug Giveaway

This giveaway is closed.
Tea drinkers- this is for you!

Especially if you enjoy loose leaf tea.

Loose leaf ‘on the go’ – The Libre tea glass is  perfect  for  a relaxing tea moment anywhere, anytime.

I received this mug which is the Libre glass ‘n poly Mug - a great  for home, office, or on the go. It even has an easy hold handle!

The Libre glass ’n poly has a health-conscious glass interior for fresh taste and a durable polycarbonate exterior for ‘on the go’ practicality. The stainless steel tea filter is surrounded by BPA free polypropylene as is the lid interior. It can be used 2 ways to brew and travel with loose leaf tea 'on the go' – tea in the tea glass or tea on top of the twist off filter. Click here to see how to use it.

Plus, did you know that loose leaf tea has a smaller eco-footprint than tea bags, because of its bulk packaging? And loose leaf is economical – significantly less than whole leaf tea bags.

Would you like one?

Leave me a comment telling me your favorite tea. Be sure your email address is included.

This giveaway will run until Tuesday 2/21 and I'll announce the winner Wednesday the 22nd. 

Open to U.S. and Canada.

Be sure to visit Libre's Facebook page.

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Totally Tasty Tuesdays

Happy Lots of Hearts Day!

Today I am featuring some lovely Valentine's Day treats. I just can't help it. There's so many cute goodies out there. There's even more other delicious links from last week so be sure to check them out here.

Red Velvet Trifle in-a-Jar

from Something Swanky

Ashton always has the swankiest treats. She really does. I am drooling here!

Box of Chocolates (or mini cupcakes?)

from The Weekly Sweet Experiment

Look closely. Those are mini cupcakes! (Sorry for the spoiler)

Reese's Peanut Butter Hearts

from Flour Me With Love

Reese's PB Eggs at Easter are my absolute favorite treat. These hearts look just like them. I need to make these. Or maybe not. That's a dangerous road.

Pink  Velvet Cupcakes (with a white chocolate ganache frosting)

from The Alchemist

Be still my heart!

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Pillsbury Ready-to-Bake! Winner

Congrats to #44...Amanda who said, "This year, I'm spending valentines day cooking for my boyfriend. Nothing too crazy :)" 

Thanks for everyone who entered and supporting my lil' blog. 

P.S. I've got over 3,000 likes on my facebook page. What to do, what to do?

Another giveaway, perhaps...?

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Gluten-Free Chocolate Recipes for Love

Romantic chocolate recipes- gluten-free.

How do I love thee, Dear Reader? Let me count the ways. And if you wouldn't mind indulging me (just a little) let me count them in chocolate- that buttery dark bitter sweetness that coaxes even the no good very bad surliest day to soften its grip.

Consider this my gluten-free chocolate valentine to you.

For starters, let me thank you with a wake-up call. How about velvety Chocolate Muffins in bed? Served with your favorite morning beverage, of course. And for your mid-morning pick-me-up, let me tickle your fancy with a plate of crunchy pecan studded chocolate biscotti (you can dunk or not, Darling, it's up to you).

Read more + get the recipe >>

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Smooth-as-Silk Fudge and Fudge Blog Hop

Joceyln from Inside BruCrew Life asked me if I would like to do a fudge blog hop. Well yeah!

So today you get a special treat. At the end of this post is a list of other gals and their fudge. So many wonderful fudge recipes all in one place!

I have the perfect fudge for you today.

It's made from  Hershey's Symphony chocolate bars.

It's silky smooth, hence the name.

You can use the regular milk chocolate bar or you can use the bars with toffee bits and almonds in it.

That's the road I chose.

Ingredients:

3 regular sized Hershey's Symphony bars (6.8 oz total)
4 c. sugar
2 c. heavy cream
1 c. real butter, cut up
1 Tbsp. vanilla (pure is best, but you can use immitation as well)

Stir together the cream and sugar in a large heavily buttered saucepan. Stir continually. Once the mixture comes to a full boil, place the lid on tightly for 1 minute. Remove lid and continue to cook until it reaches 228 degrees (softball stage). At this point, do not stir at all. Remove from heat and add butter and vanilla. Let sit for 1 minute without stirring. Place broken chocolate pieces in a bowl.

I used the kind with toffee and almonds.
Pour the hot mixture onto the chocolate pieces-DO NOT SCRAPE THE BOTTOM OF THE PAN-or you will get any brown pieces as well. Whisk until creamy and butter is all incorporated. About 4 or 5 minutes. Pour into a buttered 9x13 dish. Let it cool completely. I put mine in the fridge. I have no patience for such things.
Cut into squares.

Printable Version

Now be sure to go and visit these other fabulous blogs and see the fudge they made. You're also sure to find  other blogs to become obsessed with adore. I just love these girls and their blogs. I never miss a post and trust me, after visiting them, neither will you!

1000 Grand Fudge from Crazy for Crust

Cherry Fudge from Shugary Sweets

Red Velvet Fudge from Something Swanky

Snickers Fudge from Life as a Lofthouse

Red Hot Oreo Fudge from Inside BruCrew Life

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