Showing posts with label Sweets. Show all posts

Cupid and Valentines

Eros: The Greek God of love. Romans refer to him as Cupid (meaning desire).
He was born to Aprodite Goddess of Love and Ares the God of war. Imagine that. If you think about it, put all that together and you got todays world. Erotic, desire, God, love, war..etc.

Ok, that was my little Greek Mythology lesson for today. Sorry Dad.
I remember my Dad used to hate it when we would study Greek Mythology at school. Little did he know, I loved this subject. I found it interesting but only Myths (like fairy tales) and knew it had no biblical reference. 
 

Back to cupid....
Cupid, as we call him, is a well known imaginary half naked angel that comes around on Valentines Day and shoots people with his arrow and makes them fall in love. Silly isnt it? Even though Valentines is not a religious day, its a day to show kindness and love with chocolate, candy, flowers, cards, doughnuts.......opps. Ok I got carried away. 
Anyway, Since we really don't have a little Cupid around now days, I try to spread the love myself. I do all kinds of little things in the days leading up to Valentines Day. 

I used to make my daughter heart shaped pancakes every Valentines morning. This stopped a couple years ago when it got too hard to get them to her after she moved away. If she is home on Valentines day, I will make her a plate of them. I have already given her a basket of goodies when she came over the other day. She was also a sweetie and brought us some heart shape cocoa bombs.


They are filled with cocoa, sprinkles, marshmallow and other goodies. You pour hot milk over top of them and they will burst open and release their insides making a nice cup of cocoa. 

Friday, I made some chocolate covered strawberries to share with the office. I made over a dozen so I may take some to my daughter or keep them here for myself. I may make some heart shaped brownies later. 



Today, depending on the weather, we may meet our daughter for Valentine Lunch. Later on, me and Nick plan to do a nice quiet dinner somewhere special. Not sure where that will be yet. So far we can’t seem to get any reservations anywhere. We have been trying since last week! I don’t care where we end up as long as we are together. I love that man so much. 

What are your Valentines Day plans?


Great Day for a Doughnut

It was a great day for a doughnut (or 12). My daughter and I had just finished a candle making class. The rain had stopped and the new Krispy Kreme Tasting room was close by. I have been wanting to visit this place for a while now, so this was the perfect opportunity. We took a short walk around the block and there it was. The sign was glowing through the trees from across the road as we made our way the door.  

We saw a doughnut vending machine outside. Let me say that again, “A doughnut vending machine”. How cool was that?  I bet they have one of these in Heaven. 


The Krispy Kreme tasting room is located in Southend Charlotte. The bakers were working like bees to get orders filled for store deliveries and customer request. This is also where new flavors are born. You can become a member by downloading an app and thy will alert you on new flavors. You can be one of the first to try them. They also have milkshakes and doughnut sandwiches. 


We were only going to get one doughnut each but that did not happen. My daughter reached into her purse and pulled out a coupon for 1/2 off a dozen. 
The baker filled a box as we took turns choosing assorted flavors to try.


We walked out with a box of doughnuts.


The flavors we picked were:
2 Original stuffed with Cheesecake filling.
2 Pumpkin spice Cinnamon roll.
Reese’s Classic.
2 Original stuffed with Cream filling.
Raspberry filled.
Lemon filled.
Chocolate iced with sprinkles.
Chocolate cream stuffed.
Pumpkin iced.

We headed back to her apartment with smiles and giggles. There, we met my husband who had been watching a moving while waiting on us to enjoy our time together. He helped us taste the different flavors while keeping some saved for another day. 

My favorite flavored doughnut is the Lemon filled but there is nothing better than the original glazed, HOT, right off the conveyor belt. 
I could eat my weight in those. 

Mini Lava Cake

Monday night I was fixing some air fried carrot chips when all of a sudden my air fryer just shut off. I checked the receptacle to make sure I did not blow a fuse or something and there was nothing wrong there. It was confirmed,“time of death, 4:52pm”. My air fryer bit the dust. It just died. I was upset as this has been my favorite kitchen appliance since I got it in May a year ago as a gift. I use it almost every day.

I immediately jumped online and searched for new one. On Tuesday, Nick and I took a ride across town to check some out. The first store we visited was Target. They had a few different brands. The one that caught my eye was the Ninja 5.5qt air fryer but it was out of stock. They said they could have one for us by Friday. We denied it and went to Best Buy. They had the same air fryer at the same price. Unfortunately they were out of stock too but said they could have one to my door on Thursday......Sold! 

I made supper with it tonight and it worked great. We had chicken breast and corn on the cob. It turned out delicious. I did not stop there. I wanted to play a little more and found a recipe for mini lava cakes. Oh my goodness, let me tell you, “ they were awesome!”


I tweaked the recipe a little and made two mini lava cakes. My remkins were a little large so they did not get as thick as I thought they would. Next time, I will use my smaller remkins. The size did not take away from the rich flavor of these gooey chocolatey desserts. 


The recipe was simple and made with ingredients you probably have in your pantry right now. Be careful, this is not a diet friendly dessert. Each little cake is 483 calories and 43 Carbs. 

Want the recipe? Here ya go.....

Air Fryer Mini Lava Cakes


3 Tbs. Butter
1/2 Cup Chocolate Chips
1 Egg
1 1/2 Tbs. Sugar
3/4 Tbs. Self Rising Flour

-Melt Chocolate chips and butter in microwave (30 seconds at a time).
-Mix until smooth.
-In another bowl, Whisk Egg and Sugar together until smooth.
-Pour in the Chocolate mixture and mix well.
-Add flour and continue to mix until smooth.

Pour into two remkins or mugs and place in air fryer for 10 minutes at 370 degrees. 
Let cool for a few minutes and dump onto a plate and top with ice cream or whip topping. 
(Center will be moist and gooey).

Enjoy.

Air Fryer Pound Cake

If you know me, you know I love my air fryer. My daughter and her boyfriend got it for me over a year ago for my birthday. I have used it almost every single day since. It has basically replaced my oven and frying pan. My air fryer has even been taken to the beach with us to use in the camper. 

Any thing you can cook in the oven, you can basically cook in the air fryer. Just in a smaller portion. I have made everything from steaks, to cobblers in that thing. When I realized I could make cake in it too, I had to give it a try. I decided to make a pound cake. I did not use my own pound cake recipe. I used one found online that called for yogurt since I was out of milk at the time. The recipe yielded 3 mini loaves, so I cut the recipe down to 1/3 to make just one. 


It turned out delicious. This did not compare to my moms or my daughters pound cake but I was impressed that I could make one almost as good using my air fryer. This one will be added to my recipe book. 


AIR FRYER POUND CAKE
(Makes one mini loaf)

1 Cup-All purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon- baking soda
3/4 teaspoon- baking powder
1/3 teaspoon- salt
3/4 Cup- Greek yogurt
1/3 Tablespoon- vanilla
1 egg
3/4 Cup- sugar
1/4 Cup- butter

Mix dry ingredients in one bowl
Mix wet ingredients in another bowl
Then combine the two and mix well.
Pour into a greased mini loaf pan
Air Fry 320 for 20 minutes. 
(Do the toothpick test to make sure its done through). 

Full recipe can be found at ForktoSpoon.com 


I plan to try more cake recipes soon. 
Do you own an air fryer? If so, what are some of your favorite things to make?

Sweet Stuff

My daughter came to stay with us this past weekend. Though she has her own little uptown studio apartment, she still likes to come home and sleep in “her room”. It was Fathers Day weekend too. When she came to the door, she was holding a cake in one hand and a pastry box in the other. 

It was Fathers Day weekend so she wanted to surprise her dad with a home made pound cake. 


This was her first time making a pound cake. She did a great job and it turned out delicious.

She could resist bringing me a little treat too. I have been wanting to try a “Cruffin” from a place near her apartment. Cruffins are croissants baked in a muffin tin and rolled in cinnamon and sugar.


This Cruffin is strawberry cheesecake flavored. It had a cream cheese and strawberry filling and topped with a strawberry. 
These things are out of this world. I may have to search how to make my own. Ya think?

We had a great Fathers Day. After my daughter spoiled her dad with cake and gifts, we headed off to church. My dad received the “Oldest Father” award this year. He had a good time accepting this award and made a couple funny comments. 

Later that afternoon we headed down to Belmont to Dad and Moms house. My brothers and sister were there and we grilled hot dogs and hamburgers. We each brought something to make this dinner complete so Mom would not have to cook. Needless to say, she did end up making a blueberry dump cake and peach pie. Gotta love the sweet stuff. 


Pie Crust Cinnamon Rolls

I have my Mom to blame for this post.

It all started last week when a storm came through during the wee hours of the morning. We sleep fine through the strong rain and thunder but my parents had a little misfortune as lighting hit a big tree sending it down onto their house. This led to them fleeing their upstairs bedroom. They are ok but were a little shaken up. The tree did significant damage to the roof and a limb arrowed through the ceiling of a spare room. All of this required them to loose power for two days until they could get the tree off the house and fix the power lines. 

My parents emptied their freezer and refrigerator and distributed foods to me and my brothers home. They did not want most of the food back and said we could do what we wished with it. That was dangerous because one of the the items was pie crust (among other goodies). 
I’m one of those people that would rather eat the crust of the pie instead of the filling. 

I had a sweet tooth (nothing new) and decided to use the rolled pie crust and make some little pie crust cinnamon rolls


They were so easy to make and made the perfect snack after we got settle down for some night time TV. 

Want to make some? Here is how I did it.

  • Unroll the dough.
  • Brush with melted butter.
  • Coat with a sugar and cinnamon mixture.
  • Roll the dough back and cut into pieces.
  • Place on a cookie sheet (sprayed or lined with non stick foil or paper). 
  • Brush with butter again. (You can add more sugar and cinnamon if you wish)
  • Bake 350 for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned. 
I thought they tasted best after they had cooled completely then I made a dipping glaze with powered sugar and a splash of milk. 


We finished these off because starting next week, I’m going back strict to my diet as I have put on a few pounds that I am not so happy about. 
Being on stay at home orders has made it hard not to snack all day long. I have to get back to disciplining myself to healthy eating habits. 
I have a month supply of Nutrisystem foods ready to go. 

My Christmas Run Down

Wow, I am just now settling down to catch a breath after a busy Christmas. My daughter came in on Monday and left today. We did a lot of cooking and baking.

A few weeks ago I found this little cookie cutter at a thrift store. It was still in the box and had a sugar cookie recipe attached.

Since I was looking for a good sugar cookie recipe, I was tickled to find this little charm. Face it, we all need cookie cutters in the house. Could you imagine how happy the world would be if everyone baked cookies at the same time? Think about that.

We wanted to make colorful Christmas cookies like you see in pictures. I have never been good at making homemade icing, much less, cookie icing. 
After searching around on Pinterest, we found the perfect cookie icing and began mixing. After a couple hours, we had a batch of cookies. We boxed them up and handed them out to neighbors. Don’t worry, we kept a small batch. 


The cookies were easy to make and the icing was easy to make. Applying the icing to the cookies was another story. I do not think I want to ever frost a cookie again in my life. We had a bigger mess than a kindergarten class on craft day.

We also made sausage balls for breakfast. I made them this time using pimiento cheese instead of the usual sharp shredded cheese. They were delicious. 

Christmas Eve we headed to my Mom and Dads for family time, food and more sweets. Mom always makes a fruit cake. It is a favorite and we all make sure to take a piece home when we leave. I mean, just look at all that fruit and nut goodness.


My daughter and I wore matching pajamas to mom and dads Christmas eve and made everyone laugh. 


It was fun and it just sorta gave us that childhood feeling again. 

Christmas morning, we enjoyed watching our girl open her gifts. It’s just like when she was little. She will run down the hall and into the living room to see what Santa brought. He was able to get everything on her list this year. I will miss Christmas mornings like this when she gets married one day and starts her own family and traditions. Until them, I will suck up ever moment. Did I mention shes 28? 

Now It’s the day after Christmas. Our daughter has already left to go back to her uptown apartment and we spent the evening taking down the Christmas tree and all the decorations.We are quick to do this so we can get the house back in order in time for our New Years feast we prepare each year for all the family.

Do you take your Christmas decorations down early or leave them up until January?




Christmas Eve Eve

Happy Christmas Eve Eve. Is everyone ready for Christmas? I am. Christmas shopping was completed a week ago and now it’s time for baking. I have lots to things to make by Christmas. I have cooking to prepare for and goodies to make for neighbors and family.

Not sure how much baking I will get done today so I started on a few things yesterday. 
My daughter will be coming home this morning and staying through Christmas. She still has to work half the day. She can work from here since she has the privilege of working remote a couple days a week. The fun will start in a little while. 

Before anything, I have a mandatory meeting with the unemployment office today. I have to take proof that I have been searching for jobs while drawing my little 200.00 unemployment check. I’m not gonna complain though. It buys groceries. I have worked everyday since I turned sixteen. That’s 34 years and I have never been unemployed before. Now I have to prove I have been searching for work the past 6 weeks. Well, I have a long list, plus two papers they gave me full of places I have applied for with no avail. So, yes, I have proof. I think people that are capable of working but choose to live off the Government should have to do this too. But that’s none off my business.
I have gotten word from some employers that they will not be interviewing until the first of the year. Fingers crossed something gives. I need to work not only for the money but for my health and sanity. 

Anyway back to baking....

I made some of my Italian Biscotti. This is an all time favorite. We like to dip them into our all day morning coffee. They are so easy to make. I’m not sure why I only decide to make them at Christmas. 


This batch was made using vanilla flavoring with only a touch of anise and lightly dipped in chocolate. They are the perfect sweetness.

This year I also decided to make “Italian Crescent Cookies”. 


These are made using butter, flour, sugar and walnuts made into little crescent shapes and rolled in powder sugar. I love anything with powder sugar. I will break a diet over powder sugar. It’s my weakness. 

I have cookie dough made and in the refrigerator waiting on my daughter to arrive. We will be rolling out the dough and cutting into Christmas shapes before decorating them. A lot of these cookies will be given away. I hope they turn out pretty. I usually struggle with icing them. 

What is a Christmas favorite you or someone else makes each year?


Home Made Sherbet

It has been hot here in the Carolina's. This mean lots of cold treats. Like sherbet for example.
I admit I'm more of an Ice Cream eater over sherbet. My husband on the other hand, prefers sherbet.

My favorite sherbet flavor is Orange. I remember many years ago back in elementary school, they had an ice cream cart visit each room once a week. The kids would line up to purchase their favorite ice cream. I loved the Orange Push ups. I also like the Nutty Buddies, but there was just something refreshing about the sweet orange creamy sherbet.

Yesterday I thought I was going to have to have a tooth extraction and would want something cold to eat so I pulled out a bag of mixed berries and made my own sherbet to enjoy for my late night snack.
I ended up not needing an extraction but I still have a delicious snack.

It was so easy to make....

Just kidding, I had a mess with no end as I had berries everywhere. My blender was not strong enough to mix the frozen berries so I moved them to the food processor and that didn't work either. I then found a more powerful blender that I had stored away and it worked. Wheeew. I had a mess and three appliances to clean up.

So, if you have a powerful blender, this sherbet is easy to make.


Home Made Berry Sherbet

1 bag frozen of mixed berries (approx 2 1/2 cups).
2 tsp fresh lemon juice.
2 Tbs honey
3 Tbs warm water as needed to mix. 

Place all ingredients in high speed mixer.
Pulse until smooth and creamy.
ENJOY.

I enjoyed my sherbet in a waffle bowl. As it melted, it coated the bowl with sweetness. 



Watermelon Margarita


I can feel the heat of Summer finally approaching as the temperatures are reaching the 90's some days here. I am not complaining. I love Summer. I do not mind the heat. I'd rather be hot than cold any day. However, I will slip into the air condition if the heat is too much.

Here in the South, there is nothing more refreshing on a hot summer day than a glass of sweet ice tea or cold crisp watermelon. It's hard to find a good watermelon at times but I love the little baby seedless watermelons. They are perfect in size for two people.

Speaking of watermelon. I seen a recipe floating around on facebook the other day. It was for a Watermelon Margarita.  Now, I am not much of an alcohol drinker other than an occasional glass of wine, but when I seen this recipe for a watermelon margarita, I just had to try it. There is just something about sweet and salty that tickle my taste buds. Since I just so happen to have all the ingredients on hand, I went for it.



Watermelon Margarita.

2 cups cubed watermelon
1/2 cup cold water
Put in blender until juice forms.
Stain juice through a strainer. Now you have clear liquid.
(If a few slushy chunks get through, its fine).

In a cup or shaker add:
4 oz. Silver Tequila. (this is clear tequila that is light and low calorie too).
4 oz. of the watermelon juice.
1 oz. *watermelon simple syrup (instructions below).
Juice of one lime (approx 2oz)
Ice

Shake and pour into your salt rimmed margarita glass.
Enjoy.

*To make watermelon simple syrup it is two parts watermelon juice, 1 part sugar. 
(I made mine using 1/2 cup of the leftover watermelon juice and 1/4 cup sugar).
remember, you only need 1 oz.


The original recipe for this drink can be found on Southern Living.

Warning: (1)Women should not drink alcohol while pregnant because of the risk of birth defects.(2)Consumption of alcohol impairs your ability to drive.(3)Drinking to much alcohol may impair your thinking and make you stupid.







Protein Crepes

I'm always playing around in the kitchen looking for new things to eat that fit into my diet. Foods low in calories and high in protein are what I look for.

I found a recipe for making crepes and and thought I'd give it a try. I have never eaten a crepe before but I am familiar with what they are. Crepes are basically very then pancakes rolled around a filling. You can make them sweet or savory. I made them sweet. I also made them using Nutrisystem Vanilla Protein shake mix. You can use any protein powder but I just so happened to have Nutrisystem brand laying around. Go figure that.

I wasn't sure what type of filling would work for the inside so I picked out two of my favorite things from the fridge. Cool Whip and Cream Cheese! Yea baby!

I made the filling the night before. It consisted of  8 oz cream cheese and 1 cup of sugar free Cool Whip. I mixed the cream cheese alone first. This is important so you do not have lumps. (I learned this the hard way while making a tart last year). Once the cream cheese is smooth, mix in the Cool Whip and store in the fridge until ready to use. I suppose you can mix in flavors such as lemon or honey but I left mine plain. I just wanted a sweet creamy filling.

When the morning came, I was ready to make my very first crepes.
The crepes were easy to mix and only consist of two ingredients.
I mixed together 1/2 cup of egg whites and a serving of vanilla protein shake mix to form a thin batter.

I poured a small amount of batter in a heated skillet and spooned it around a little to spread it out into thin pancakes. Flipping them was the hard part. This made about six crepes. Mine are not that pretty but, HEY! It was my first time.


Once each crepe was made I rolled them around a layer of cream cheese filling and added some blueberries. I sprinkled a little powdered sugar on top just to make them more pretty and devoured them in no time. 


They were absolutely the best thing ever! The vanilla protein mix made the crepes a little sweeter than a waffle but not quite as sweet as a doughnut. They were perfect. Nick even gave them two thumbs up.

You can find several recipes for crepes online but this one was the easiest for me as the vanilla flavor was already in there.

Best of all, they were rather healthy, sugar free and full of protein.






Sugar Free Chocolate Mug Cake

Today I want to share with you this delicious mug cake I made. Now you know from some of my past post that I love the little meals and desserts you can make in a mug. Simply because they do no ruin my diet. If I make a whole cake, I will eat the whole cake. I do not have a stop button on sweet stuff.


Not only is this a sweet dessert but it's also considered sugar free as it uses a natural sugar substitute. I'm all in with this one and I must say "this is one of the best mug cakes I have made. It had the same texture as a real oven baked cake.

Mine wanted to puff up and run over but it was an easy clean up.
I enjoyed eating it right out of the mug. It would have even been better with a scoop of ice cream.


Chocolate Mug Cake

1 egg (beaten)
2 tablespoons Cocoa Powder
1 tablespoon Almond milk or Cream
2 tablespoons Splenda ( I used Xylitol)
Pinch of Salt
1/4 Teaspoon baking powder
1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla

Mix well and pour into a greased mug or ramekin.
Microwave 1 min 20 seconds,
Top with powder sugar, icing, nuts or chocolate chips (optional)

ENJOY

There is only 130 calories in this little goody.
Go ahead, eat it all by yourself.








Clio Snack bars

I have found a love for yogurt. But not just any yogurt. I found these little Greek yogurt bars by Clio at my local Walmart. It was love at first bite. They taste like little cheese cakes, I kid you not!

I am not a fan of yogurt and I struggle to find a yogurt I will eat. You may ask, "why eat yogurt anyways? Well, I know that yogurt is a good source of calcium, protein and probiotics. Our bodies need these things. Yogurt is a healthy snack. I mean, we all need yogurt in our diet. It can be used as an alternative in a lot of recipes too.


As I am still on the Nutrisystem diet, these yogurts fit right in as my recommended morning or afternoon snack while still staying on plan. They are 140 calories and have 8 grams for protein.
These bars are also gluten free.

You will love Clio Greek yogurt bars. You do not need a spoon, oh no. Just use your fingers. These little yogurt bars are small but do not let that fool ya on the flavor or satisfaction. Clio yogurt bars come in a variety of flavors and plan to ad some new flavors in the future. It takes a while to perfect the flavor for each bar.


Dipped in a rich dark chocolate, they will satisfy your sweet tooth.
It's a win all the way around. I purchase a week supply at a time. I could honestly eat these for 3 meals a day.

Currently, you can only find Clio bars at Select grocery stores and Amazon. The flavors that are on the market right now are Vanilla, Espresso, Hazelnut, Strawberry, Blueberry and Honey. My favorite is the Vanilla and Honey.


So get ya shoes on and head out to grab a few for a non guilt snack!

Your welcome! 

                                                                  



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I may earn a small commission on purchases at no additional cost to you.

All reviews and opinions are my own.
I believe in supporting and sharing the good things in life. 

SnickerDoodle Bread

Whens a better time to enjoy the sweetness of cinnamon bread other than in the Fall? Well, anytime actually. I love cinnamon bread. One of my favorite breakfasts growing up was heavily buttered toast with a cinnamon/sugar mix layered on top. I have always loved cinnamon.

When I came across this recipe for Snicker Doodle Bread, I could not resist the temptation. I figured I could just make some mini loafs and give them away leaving us with only a mini loaf to enjoy. Unfortunately, it did not turn out that way. I could not find any mini loaf pans so I used two regular loaf pans.


My daddy loves all things sweet and I haven't made him anything in a while so I decided I would give him one of the loafs. Me and Nick ended up eating half of the other one. I did well with my portion control and only had a small piece with my egg two mornings and a small slice for a snack one night.

Since I have been dieting, I still love sweet things but can not take a lot of it. Sweet to me now is "very sweet".  That's a good thing, right?

This bread was so easy to make and very delicious and my house had the aroma of warm cinnamon for two days.

I tweaked the recipe some by accident because I did not have enough white sugar and forgot to add an egg and it turned out perfect anyway. But you can find a link to the original recipe at the bottom of this post if you do not like how mine looks.

Here goes....


SNICKERDOODLE BREAD

Preheat oven 350 degrees
Grease 2 loaf pans (I used cooking spray)

With electric beaters, cream together:
1 Cup- Butter (softened)
1 Cup- Sugar
1/2 Cup- Brown Sugar
1/2 Teaspoon- Salt
2 Teaspoons- Ground Cinnamon

Mix in:
2- Eggs
1 Teaspoon- Vanilla Extract
3/4 Cup- Sour Cream

Then slowly add:
2 1/2 Cups- All Purpose Flour
2 Teaspoons- Baking Powder
(batter will be thick)

Fold in:
1 Cup- Mini Chocolate Chips (optional)

Pour batter in loaf pans about 3/4 full and top with Cinnamon/ Sugar Mixture:
3 Tablespoons- Sugar
3 Teaspoons- Ground Cinnamon

Bake for 60 minutes or until done (Test with tooth pick or cake tester).
Allow to cool some before removing from pans and serving.

ENJOY!

I thought this bread was better after it cooled. I also think it will be just as tasty without the chocolate chips. (You can just have them on the side.)

😋

Original and printable recipe can be found at

Soda Pop and Candy Shop

Something you do not see much around here anymore are candy shops or soda shops. I think they have been replaced with vape shops but that just my thought.

While in Charlotte my daughter took us to a place she said she had run across one day while on her lunch break and wanted us to see it. 


It was a little Soda and Candy shop called Rocket Fizz.  This place is a little gem located right in the center of uptown. They have over 1000 candies, soda pops, gag gifts and toys. Every kids dreams right? Well, this was pretty cool as an adult too. 


I did not buy anything simply because I was overwhelmed with the selection and was like “wow” the whole time. Now that I’m over the shock, I would love to revisit and purchase a few unique candies or sodas. 

They had every flavor soda you could think of. I mean seriously, here is a “mustard” flavor. 


They had every taste from pickle to wedding cake. Look closely at the picture above and you will see a cookie dough flavor. 

I do not think I would like either one of these flavors but I would try any of them just for the fun of it. I sit here and try to think of a flavor I’d think would be good as a soda. I was actually tempted to buy the cucumber flavored one. They also had sodas labeled with famous names.
 Click here to see a collection soda flavors they have to offer. 


Almost everything in the store was edible I believe. Sugar was everywhere. I haven’t seen anything like this since Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. 

On the way out this cotton candy caught my eye and I almost purchased a bag but figured my teeth couldn't take it.


I still wonder to this day if it had a “fizz” when it melted on your tongue. 



Smores Dip with Nutrisystem

This is another post for all those on the Nutrisystem diet.

I’ve been on the Nutrisystem diet for over 3 years now. I no longer order monthly meals. I have lost the pounds I wanted. I am currently on the maintenance plan in which I just order from the A la carte menu and eat a lot of meals on my own which I admit, is dangerous for me sometimes because things like this happen.....

SMORES DIP


For the record, It is made with Nutrisystem’s NutriChocolates found on the snack menu. 
It’s delicious milk chocolate wafers and it’s OKAY!!!! They are perfectly portioned and protein packed to keep you losing the weight. 

I just had to put a twist to it. Because that’s WHAT I DO! Ha. I play around with my foods to make more varieties. Besides, since Nutrisystem meals are ready to heat or eat, I actually miss experimenting and cooking in the kitchen. 


If you are not on Nutrisystem, you can do the same thing with a Hershey bar but don't go crying if you gain a few pounds.

“It doesn’t get any SMORE easier than this”

First add the chocolates to a small dish such as a ramekin or soup mug. 
I just so happened to have this adorable little corning-ware dish from the thrift store.


Add marshmallows. I was able to find a little single pack of marshmallows. 
It was just the right amount to keep me from over doing it. 
Because I WILL over do it at times. 


Place in toaster oven until marshmallows are toasty. 
The chocolates will be melted by this time too. 
You can try it in the microwave but I would not suggest it 
because it will NOT make the marshmallows brown and toasty and may only make a mess. 


Carefully remove from oven and dip your favorite graham crackers. 
Its ok, you can eat it all! Just take it easy on the crackers. 
Two sleeves is a serving suggestion. 
You do not have to share which I ended up doing. 
My husband gave it two thumbs up. 

This dessert counts as:
1 snack (Nutrichocolates)
1 smart carb (crackers)
1 extra (marshmallows) 

Be sure to visit the tabs at the top of my page to see other food ideas using Nutrisystem and read about my Nutrisystem journey and how it has worked for me. 


New IceCream Shop in Town

I got news of a new Ice cream shop that opened up about a half mile from my house. I could actually walk there.

It's called Xcite's Sweet Connection.


They specialize in different styles of ice cream from around the world featuring Gelato, Fried Ice Cream, and shaved ice.
What caught my eye was the "rolled ice cream". There were hundreds of flavors to choose from.

Basically they make a mix of the flavors you choose, while spreading it thin to freeze. Then they would carefully roll it, put it in a cup and top it with even more toppings.

(Picture source)
When I heard about  Xcites Sweet Connection, we had to make a family trip over there and try it out. It was the first day so it was crowded and hectic. After a 45 minute wait in line, we got our Ice cream.


I chose the "Salted Carmel Pretzel" and my daughter got "Toasted Marshmallow Smores".


Nick didn't get one but we shared ours with him.

I am not too worried about ruining my diet with this place being so close to me as it's not a doughnut shop or bakery. I like Ice Cream but I have to be in the mood for it.
I do not like to just sit and eat ice cream. I have to be walking around or riding in the car to enjoy a cone of milkshake.

What did I think about it? I thought it was pretty good but a little pricey. I hope they make it, but most places on my end of town do not last more than six months.

Have you ever had rolled Ice Cream (AKA stir fried icecream)?

Sticky Bananas

I made this delicious goodness that can be included in my choices of “healthy snacks”. I call them Sticky Bananas. Well, because they are sticky.
Some people may want to categorize these sweet caramelized bites as some sort of banana foster. I have never made banana foster, but looking at the recipes, this comes close but without the Rum. 


Sticky bananas are easy and quick when you have a sweet tooth. There is no added sugar other than the natural sugars of honey and the bananas themselves. These are low in calories and high in potassium. I ended up adding a little calories by topping them with whip cream. 



Here is how to make them.....
~2 bananas. You want them still firm but ripe. Not green but also no black spots.
Remove the peel and slice them about 1/2 inch thick and set aside.

In a skillet add:
~1 tablespoon- oil or butter (I used coconut oil).
~2 tablespoons- honey 
~1/2 teaspoon- ground cinnamon
~Pinch of salt.
Mix and heat over medium heat.
Add banana slices in a single layer and cook 2-3 minutes on each side. 
Remove from pan and let cool a few minutes before serving.

These are ready eat as is but if your not weigh conscious, these caramelized bananas are delicious topped with ice cream or whip topping. They can be used as a topping to pancakes or french toast. They can also be added to oatmeal or smoothies. 

Enjoy. 

Original recipe video can be found here.


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