Microwave Spiced/Candied Pecans

Hey kids!  Back today with more quick sweet treats for the holidays!  Spiced nuts are a must in our house this time of year.  Having a bowl of these in the kitchen is perfect when that inevitable sweet tooth comes calling—just grab a couple and you’re good!  Better for you than a cookie or that marshmallow fudge the neighbor’s brought by!

In year’s previous I’ve always made my spiced pecans in the oven, but this year my husband tipped me off to a microwave version, and I gotta say, it’s pretty fantastic!

Note: we like our pecans with a little kick, but if you’re more of a sweets-only fan, you can omit the cumin & cayenne.

 

Ingredients:

1/4 cup light butter

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp clove

1 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp cumin

1/8 tsp cayenne

2 Tbsp water

3 cups pecan halves

1/4 cup granulated sugar (for coating the pecans afterward)

 

Directions:

Melt the butter in a 4 qt glass casserole dish, then add the sugar, water & spices, mix & microwave for 1 minute.  Stir in the nuts & mix to coat well.

Microwave the nuts for 4-5 more minutes, stopping to stir them once every minute, until most of the syrup is coated onto the nuts.  Then pour out onto a sheet of wax paper & let cool.

Once cooled, place the nuts into a large plastic bag with the sugar, and shake the bag to coat them well.  The sugar helps to keep the pecans from sticking to each other.

Feta & Mint Sweet Potatoes.

I dream of someday having a gorgeous tiered herb garden.  Something aesthetically pleasing, yet simple & convenient, full of thriving green seasonings ready for the picking:  rosemary, basil, mint, cilantro, lavender, chives…

(This is not my house.)

…but given that I nearly killed my poor tomato plant this year by allowing it to get “root-bound”, I don’t have high hopes.  I’ve made attempts at herb gardens before.  One was a “pizza spice” set from Wal-Mart which was more successful at growing weeds that accidentally blew into it than any actual spice.  In 2010 I attempted cilantro from seeds…I started with 20 potential little pods… of which 12 sprouted, then 6 died due to heat, and the rest drowned at the young age of 4 inches tall.  Quite sad, really.

Last year I did successfully manage to keep a dwarf rosemary bush alive indoors all year, but once the cooler weather rolled around, our central heating system dehydrated the poor dear.  But I can successfully keep hydroponic green onions alive. Goooooooo me!

So…anyway.  I continue to buy herbs when I need them.  When I bought mint for the SoCojito a while back, that meant the rest of my recipes that week needed to focus on mint as well. 

We went to a BBQ over Independence Day weekend where a friend made a watermelon+mint+feta salad that was pretty freakin’ awesome.  So I came home with the feta+mint pairing on the brain.

The next time we got some decent weather, it was time to bust out the grill.  Well—for the Hubs anyway.  I stuck with the microwave.  This is one of those side dishes that looks really fancy, but it’s just crazy-simple.  It also tastes AMAZING because you’re essentially blowing up your tastebuds with flavor:  tangy feta, acidic lime juice, syrupy brown sugar, and fresh mint & onions… and because the toppings won’t be evenly distributed, every bite is just a little different.

 

INGREDIENTS: (per potato)

1 sweet potato, scrubbed

1 lime wedge

1 tsp brown sugar

1 tbsp crumbled feta

2-3 mint leaves, julienned

1 sprig green onion, chopped

black pepper (to taste)

 

DIRECTIONS:

If you have time, you can grill your sweet potatoes, or oven-roast them.  But we were grilling corn & smoked sausages—neither of which take very long.  So I opted to prepare the sweet potatoes in the microwave.  Poke a few holes in each spud with a fork, then wrap in a paper towel & place in the microwave.  Heat on High for 3 minutes, then flip & go 3 minutes more.  (depending on how many potatoes you’re cooking, you may have to heat longer.  I usually go 3 minutes per potato, but be sure to flip them).

Split open the tops and then squeeze the sides of the potato to open up the top more.  Then squeeze the lime juice across the open face and season with black pepper.  Place the brown sugar next (so it can blend with the lime juice & melt into the potato) and then add the remaining toppings.

 

NutriFacts: (per potato)

Calories 155.4

  Total Fat 3.2 g

  Saturated Fat 2.2 g

  Polyunsaturated Fat 0.2 g

  Monounsaturated Fat 0.7 g

  Cholesterol 12.6 mg

  Sodium 200.6 mg

  Potassium 569.5 mg

  Total Carbohydrate 28.7 g

  Dietary Fiber 3.8 g

  Sugars 13.7 g

  Protein 4.4 g

Make your own “Zapps” Potato Chips?

Before I even start, I have to say—this was entirely my husband’s idea. 

Somewhere, on the interwebz, without even having a Pinterest account to get addicted into, my husband found a blog about making homemade potato chips…in the microwave. And they’re actually pretty healthy…. less than 75 CALORIES per serving.

Mind = blown.

I refer to them as “Zapps” because you “zap” them in the microwave.  Get it?  Get it???  I know, I’m friggin’ hilarious.

And of course because, as you already know since they feature frequently on this blog, Zapp’s are the very bestest potato chips on the planet, made right in Gramercy, Louisiana.

And thankfully, a few places outside of Louisiana are starting to realize how awesome they are, because there are now THREE eateries right here in Springfield, Missouri who actually carry Zapp’s.  Do you realize how awesome this is?  Probably not, but that’s probably because you’ve never had to try to smuggle a bag of potato chips in your luggage without pulverizing them or having them pop on the plane.  Seriously.  Not fun.

But as much as I love Zapp’s chips (okay, okay, ANY potato chip), they are generally NOT GOOD for you. Lots of fried fat, lots of salt, lots of preservatives, lots of artificial mono-di-gly-whatzahoozits and Yellow 5 (seriously, it’s in everything). 

But How does THIS look in comparison?

1 serving of Zapp’s Cajun Crawtator chips (1.5 oz) = 220 calories, 12 g fat

1 serving of our homemade chips (1/2 potato, or about 2.8 oz) = 72.5 calories, 2.2 g fat

Seriously.

(yes….I use the word “seriously” WAY too much.)

ANYWAY… without further ado…. let’s make with the chips.

Ingredients:

1 potato, washed, skin-on (Yukon Gold was recommended, but we used a large red potato), sliced thin with a mandolin (or the long skinny side of your shredder)

Olive oil cooking spray (or olive oil in a hand-pump mister, like this one that I love) 

Your favorite seasonings (we used cracked black pepper & sea salt on half, and Cajun seasoning on the other half)

 

Directions:

Step One: Let your husband do all the work, because you’re holding the camera. :D

Step Two: Lightly spray the WELL-CLEANED* glass turntable from your microwave (because that thing gets gross, yo) with olive oil, and then evenly place your sliced potatoes on it.

Then lightly spritz the facing-up-side of the potatoes with olive oil as well. 

Step Three:  LIGHTLY season the facing-up-side of the potatoes with your seasoning of choice (I think one of those multi-flavor popcorn seasoning shakers could really come in handy for a snack like this). I say lightly because we accidentally overdid it on some of our chips.  Better to underseason now, and then if they’re a little bland after cooking, you can dip them in something, or sprinkle on some extra seasoning.

Step Four:  Place turntable back in your microwave & nuke your potatoes for 2 minutes & 30 seconds.

 

Step Five: Remove turntable, flip the slices, LIGHTLY season the opposite side, and then place the turntable back in the microwave for 2-4 minutes, or until the chips start to brown & get crisp. (Go for 2 minutes to start, then additional 30 second increments as needed.)

 

(The closeup above shows some of the overseasoned chips.  Go lighter than this.)

Step Six: Let cool for a bit, then CHOW DOWN!

I was actually really surprised.  There were a couple slices that were still a little chewy, but for the most part, they were totally crisp & crunchy.  Really delicious.  And since they’ve got just the slightest amount of olive oil on the outside (figure about 10 calories worth of oil per spray, if you’re using a pump mister), they’re pretty low fat!  Opt for salt-free or low sodium seasonings and you’ve got yourself an afternoon snack that hardly anyone could turn down.

 

I totally want to try this again with some sweet potatoes and a little cinnamon sugar.  YUM!

 

NutriFacts:

Calories 72.5

  Total Fat 2.2 g

  Saturated Fat 0.3 g

  Polyunsaturated Fat 0.2 g

  Monounsaturated Fat 1.7 g

  Cholesterol 0.0 mg

  Sodium 290 mg

  Potassium 373 mg

  Total Carbohydrate 13.7 g

  Dietary Fiber 1.3 g

  Sugars 0.5 g

  Protein 2.1 g

 

 

*That’s for you, JoJo.

Thirsty Thursday: Microwave Mug Muffin!

Sorry, I couldn’t resist the alliteration.

What? Okay, so you can't DRINK it...but it comes in a mug... Drinks come in a mug... Follow my logic train here...

I saw the recipe for this on Pinterest a week ago.  Since I love to sleep in, I pretty well always end up eating breakfast at the office, and I figured this would be a perfect healthy breakfast option.  I can toss all the ingredients into a tupperware container the night before, grab & go, and then make it at the office.

Ingredients:

Base

• 1/4 cup quick oats (or 1/8 cup instant oatmeal + 1/8 cup rolled oats)
• 1 egg (or 1/4 cup egg beaters for less calories)  --NOTE: If I’m prepping this up the night before, I leave the egg whole, & then crack it when I’m actually making the muffin at work.
• 1 tsp brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• a pinch of baking powder (it adds a little fluffiness)
• dash of salt
• 1 tbsp milk

Fruit (choose one)

• 1/8 cup blueberries
• 1/8 cup frozen or fresh peaches, diced
• 2-3 strawberries
• 1/8 cup blackberries

Optional

The strawberry version is AWESOME with about 10-15 dark chocolate chips baked in as well.  Only adds about 30 calories.

 

Directions:

Couldn’t be easier.  Grab a coffee mug, mix the base ingredients together with a fork.  Then mix in your fruit (plus chocolate chips if you’re going with that option), and microwave for 1 minute.

(Used a glass mug.)

After one minute, check for doneness.  If it still needs to firm up, zap it again for another 30 seconds or so.

(With the peaches, add in a little extra cinnamon & nutmeg & it’s like peach cobbler.)

 

(164 calories of pure decadence.)

 

Now, the original photo looks quite pretty, like the muffin had fluffed up over the top edge of the mug & was then removed from its container:

 

However, I never got this to happen. Which bummed me out because I was really looking forward to the fun photo ops, showcasing the mug I’d cooked it in:

(“Yeahh….I’m gonna need you to go ahead and come in on Saturday. Mmkay? Thanks…”)

 

It does grow a bit, obviously, because it’s oatmeal, but not as much as I thought it would.  So my best guess is that the original user made it in an angled coffee mug/cup, and then removed it to show the more “muffin-like” shape.  Either way, it’s still super tasty and a really filling breakfast, despite being so light on the calories.

 

NutriFacts: (Per Serving)

Calories: 134 (164 if you add 1 tsp of chocolate chips)

Carbs: 22 g

Fat 2 g

Protein: 10 g

Sodium: 126 mg

Shared on Live.Laugh.Rowe

First entry: Red beans & Rice

Dish background:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_beans_and_rice

Dish type: Entree

Method Utilized: "Quick & Simple"

Red beans & rice is traditionally a slow-cooked dish, however, I got a last-minute craving.



Shopping List:
- 1 box Tony Chacheres (pronounced "sash-er-ies") or Zatarain's Red Beans & Rice box mix (I used Tony's as it was on sale at the store, however, Zatarain's offers a low-sodium version and is typically more readily available throughout the country)
- 1 can dark red kidney beans, drained
- 2/3 cup quick barley (I chose to use quick barley because it cooks faster than brown rice, I don't typically keep white rice around the house, and it's a very healthy grain that can lower bad cholesterol, provides an excellent fiber source, and is said to be a natural antioxidant)
- 1/2 lb lean smoked turkey sausage (whatever brand/flavor you prefer), sliced into 1/2 inch pieces
- 1/2 bell pepper, diced
- 1/2 white or yellow onion, minced
- Garlic Infused Olive Oil (I keep this around the house--the spritzer makes it easy to control the amount of oil you use, it adds a wonderful flavor to things, and a little goes a long way--even just having a small bottle, it seems to last forever.  It's an excellent investment if you have to get it from a gourmet store--though I DO frequently see them on the shelves at Marshall's or Ross.)

Steps:

As I broke my last large saucepot in an unfortunate "Dishwasher vs. Cheaply Made Big Lots Cookware" battle last week, I decided to go for the microwave option listed on the box.  From personal experience, I know that the amount of water the box recommends causes a rather soupy result, which is why I add the extra beans & the barley.  I used a large microwave-safe casserole dish (which has a lid--very important), added the igredients as stated on the box, plus my dry quick barley & canned beans.  Stir thoroughly, cover, & microwave on full power for 5 minutes.

While that's going, put a frying pan over medium heat and squirt two spritzes of oil into the pan.  Add peppers & onion, and sprinkle w/black pepper and salt.  Saute over medium heat until the onions are slightly translucent. (if you heat the pan & dice your veggies BEFORE you start anything else, your saute should be close to done around the time the microwave beeps.)

Add the peppers & onions into the casserole dish, stir again, recover, and microwave for 25-30 minutes on 50% power.

Let sit for 5-15 minutes before serving--the sauce will thicken the longer it stands.

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Set time: 5-15 minutes

Dinner on the table in: 40-50 minutes

Makes approximately (6) 1.5 cup servings

Nutritional Info: 

Calories		274.5
Total Fat		1.3 g
	Saturated Fat	0.1 g
	Polyunsaturated Fat	0.3 g
	Monounsaturated Fat	0.3 g
Cholesterol		0.0 mg
Sodium		940.1 mg
Potassium		315.1 mg
Total Carbohydrate		58.1 g
	Dietary Fiber	11.6 g
	Sugars	1.9 g
Protein		11.4 g

Vitamin A	0.7 %
Vitamin B-12	0.0 %
Vitamin B-6	5.6 %
Vitamin C	17.0 %
Vitamin D	0.0 %
Vitamin E	1.0 %
Calcium	7.0 %
Copper	11.4 %
Folate	13.1 %
Iron	15.9 %
Magnesium	10.5 %
Manganese	25.1 %
Niacin	6.9 %
Pantothenic Acid	2.1 %
Phosphorus	13.1 %
Riboflavin	6.1 %
Selenium	12.4 %
Thiamin	9.3 %
Zinc	6.2 %