Tag Archives: nuts

Sweet Chipotle Snack Mix

I’m trying to be a little bit smarter about my snacking. I’m someone who has no problem snacking on nuts…so long as they have chocolate chips and dried cherries mixed in. But eating plain old nuts is no fun. So many people don’t like to eat nuts because they are so high in calories but they are also so high in good fat. Like with everything else, it’s about watching how much you eat and be careful with portions. But with nuts, they easily fill you up so a small handful (a portion) is just enough to do what a snack needs to do: satisfy! This Sweet Chipotle Snack Mix is a perfect snack mix to have on hand when my stomach is rumbling and I need something quick.

Slivered almonds, pumpkinseeds, and cashews are mixed with a frothy egg white and a spicy mixture of sugar (or Splenda), chipotle chile powder, cumin, oregano, and chile powder and baked until warm and crispy. Spices are a fun way to add a lot of calorie-free flavor to nuts to make them a little more interesting. Mixed with sugar, this spice mixture is sweet, spicy and smoky without being overly sweet, overly spicy or overly smoky. The combination is perfectly mellow but completely flavorful that makes this snack mix a little bit addicting. But just remember, a little goes a long way so this snack will last you for days and days.

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Preheat oven to 325°F. Combine sugar, salt, chipotle chile powder, cumin, oregano, and chili powder in a small bowl; stir with a whisk.

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Place egg white in a large bowl; stir with a whisk until foamy. Add the almonds, cashews, and pumpkinseeds; toss well to coat. Sprinkle with spice mixture; toss well to coat.

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Spread nuts in an even layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake at 325°F for 15 minutes, stirring once. Turn oven off. Remove pan from oven; stir snack mix. Immediately return pan to oven for an additional 15 minutes (leave oven off). Remove pan from oven and place on a wire rack; cool completely.

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Store snack mix in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

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Additions: None

Omissions: None

Substitutions:

  • Splenda

Overall Rating: Like It

Source: Cooking Light magazine

Pecan-Pumpkin Drops with Sriracha-Honey Butter

What is it about winter that makes baking so appealing? By the time the holidays roll around, I’m dying to start cookie baking. And even though that is all done with now and our lives are back to normal, baking is still appealing. Is it because of the weather? When it’s warm out, we don’t want to stay in the house, let alone to do something that requires turning on the oven. But in the winter, it just feels so right. Is it nesting? These Pecan-Pumpkin Drops didn’t require me hitting the grocery store for ingredients and neither did the Sriracha-Honey Butter I smeared on them! This combination of recipes was easy and didn’t require me going out in the cold for anything!

Pumpkin and pecans, along with a little nutmeg, make up the primary flavors in these petite little muffins which are a perfect on their own or as an accompaniment to your winter meal. Served warm with a little butter or cream cheese would be oh-so-lovely but the sriracha-honey butter I smeared mine with gave these muffins another jolt. The sweet and spicy butter blended with the mellow pumpkin makes for a flavorful melt-in-your-mouth combo. Eat these muffins, and the butter, however you like. Just make them. Both. And stay warm!

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Preheat oven to 425°F. Weigh or lightly spoon flours into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg in a bowl, stirring with a whisk; cut in butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse meal.

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Combine pumpkin and buttermilk in a bowl, stirring with a whisk.

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Add pumpkin mixture and chopped pecans to flour mixture, stirring just until combined.

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Drop batter in mounds of about 1/3-cupfuls onto a baking sheet coated with cooking spray.

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Bake at 425° for 14 minutes or until golden. Remove from baking sheet; cool 5 minutes on a wire rack. Serve warm.

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For the Sriracha-Honey Butter, combine butter, Sriracha, and honey in a bowl.

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Chill until ready to serve.

Additions: None

Omissions: None

Substitutions: None

Overall Rating: Love It

Sources:

  • Muffins: Cooking Light magazine
  • Butter: Everyday with Rachael Ray magazine

Nut-Crusted Chicken

I was away for work all of last week and even though I had made food to post ahead of time, I just never got around to it. I flew in on Friday and woke up on Saturday to having zero food in the house so I bundled myself up (seriously, why is it so cold??) and went to the grocery store, list in hand. After eating catered food for lunch and restaurant food for dinner every day, I was ready to eat some home-cooked meals and fresh produce. I’ve been eyeballing this recipe for Nut-Crusted Chicken for a while and decided it was time to get it done.

Dijon mustard, fresh orange juice, salt and pepper coat one side of boneless chicken breasts before being coated in chopped pistachio nuts and baked until perfect. The tang of the mustard and saltiness of the pistachios pack this chicken with flavor leaving it anything but boring. I served mine with some orange-flavored broccoli which I’ll post tomorrow but by all means, try out the rest of the recipe by making the carrots included.

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Preheat oven to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place pistachios in a shallow bowl. Whisk together mustard, orange juice, salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a second shallow bowl.

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Coat 1 side of each chicken breast with mustard mixture, and dip coated side of chicken in chopped nuts. Place chicken, nut sides up, on prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper.

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Bake 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and nuts are lightly browned. Sprinkle chicken with orange zest, if desired.

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Additions: None

Omissions: None

Substitutions: None

Overall Rating: Love It

Source: Coastal Living magazine

 

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