The Sarcastic Blonde

fashion, food, fitness + a dose of sarcastic gossip

Lifestyle, recipe

crack of the week :: no bake french silk pie

I was so excited to make something in the kitchen using our new wedding gifts for our friends 4th of July BBQ! 
I knew I wouldn’t have a ton of time after I got home from work, 
so this no bake french silk pie was the perfect option.
It was so simple, yet so delicious.  
It actually tasted even better the next day after everything had been able to sit in the fridge overnight, so next time I’ll definitely try to make it more than a few hours in advance! 
   


No Bake French Silk Pie
recipe + photos from A Cup of Jo

For the Pretzel Crust

1 ¾ cups crushed pretzels


½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted


¼ cup honey


For the Pie Filling  

6 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, softened to room temperature.

1 cup granulated sugar (add ¼ cup more if you prefer sweeter)

1 tbsp. vanilla extract

4 whole eggs


For Whipped Cream: 
I just used Martha’s basic recipe : whip the cream, then add the sugar: 
1 cup whipping cream 
1-2 tablespoons sugar or confectioners sugar 
(and a heap of whatever special ingredient snoop made martha happy with)


How you make it:



Grease an 8 or 9-inch pie plate or spring form pan. 



In a medium bowl, mix the melted butter and honey together until smooth. Add the crushed pretzels and mix until combined. Press mixture firmly against the bottom and sides of your pie plate. Place in the fridge.


In a small microwave safe bowl melt 6 ounces of semi-sweet chocolate on 30-second intervals, stirring after each, until melted and smooth (about 1-2 minutes).


In a large bowl of an electric mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk the butter and sugar until fluffy, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add the melted chocolate and the vanilla extract. Whisk the mixture thoroughly until combined.


Turn your mixer to medium speed and over a period of 15 to 20 minutes add in the four eggs, one at a time, leaving about 5 minutes between each egg addition. Once the pie filling is well mixed, pour it into the pretzel crust. Smooth out the pie filling and place the pie in the refrigerator to chill for at least two hours or overnight.


**make sure to keep an eye on it after the 15 minutes mark so as not to over whip and turn into a runny texture

my blue kitchen aid is my new pride and joy 🙂 
a recipe that calls for beating something for 15 minutes…. I smiled the whole time that I didn’t have to do anything but watch!! 
I got sick of banging the baggy of pretzels, 

so I will probably use the food processor next time to get smaller pieces, 
but taste wise I liked the larger crunch of the crust! 

my food photography may still suck,
but trust me when I tell you,
I totally looked like Beyonce in the kitchen while preparing this dish.

Enjoy!!! 


by  
Lifestyle, recipe

crack of the week :: chocolate honey almond tartlets

with our new kitchen gadgets that we have gotten recently as wedding gifts,
I was antsy to get baking in the kitchen.
I haven’t baked much in ages because we’ve been eating healthier,
but I had the girls over for dinner last week and saw this as the perfect opportunity to get back at it.
   
I had seen last week’s episode of giada at home where she made mini versions of her favorite recipes, and I couldn’t wait to make a dessert with my mini muffin pan! 
these were so easy, so quick, and really delicious.
next time, I’ll be adding a layer of peanut butter in as well….. if it tastes good with chocolate, it can only taste better with chocolate and peanut butter. 
plus, with mini things you can indulge as much or as little as you like! 

another added bonus, a shot glass is needed to press the crust into the pan before baking….. so you could use the shot glass for some libations while you finish up the chocolate filling 🙂 that’s what we call a win, win. 

by giada de laurentiis

Ingredients

5 graham crackers (about 2 3/4 ounces)


1 tablespoon slivered almonds

1/4 stick (2 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, at room temperature

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, such as Ghirardelli (5 ounces)

1/3 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons honey

*and definitely some peanut butter mixed in to the filling next time!

Directions

Special equipment: one 24-cup mini-muffin tin and 16 mini-cupcake liners


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Fill a mini-muffin tin with mini-cupcake liners.


Add the graham crackers and almonds to the bowl of a food processor. Process until the mixture forms fine crumbs, 15 to 20 seconds. Add the butter and pulse until incorporated. Place 1 tablespoon of the crumb mixture into each lined muffin cup and use your fingers or a shot glass to gently press down the mixture. Bake for 8 minutes, rotating the muffin tin halfway through, until the crusts are firm.


Add the chocolate chips to a medium bowl. In a small saucepan, whisk the cream and honey together over low heat until the honey has dissolved. Increase the heat to medium and bring the mixture to just below a boil. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and whisk until the mixture is smooth. Pour 1 tablespoon of the chocolate filling into each muffin cup. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.



and the moment you have all been waiting for….. 


my KILLER food photography….. 
 the blue KitchenAid mixer had me screaming like a freak with excitement when I finally got to use it 
isn’t she pretty??? 


they were delicious! 
and anything mini is instantly cute presentation too. 


by  
Lifestyle, recipe

crack of the week :: bacon jam

kip and I decided that sunday was declared our “cheat” day…. or more-so in our case our “pretend we are prisoners and this is our last meal we will ever have and lets talk about food constantly all day” day.
we’ve eaten salads every night for dinner… 
you know how it is…… 
tell yourself you can’t have something and its all you want… 

macaroni and cheese is one of my favorite comfort foods ever. 
the second I read on Ship and Dip’s website that the Sassy Pantry Bacon Jam was a great topping and addition to mac and cheese I knew that would be happening on Sunday.

Now that I realized how good it is on its own,  I will be spreading it on my turkey sandwiches…. but clearly only on Sundays for the next few wedding countdown weeks.
  or at 2 am when I come home after too many drinks and tear apart the fridge.  
images via // recipe adapted from this

4 tbs Sassy Pantry Bacon Jam 
½ lb elbow macaroni
4 tbs butter
4 tbs flour
1 cup milk
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups shredded Cheddar
1/2 cup breadcrumbs


Preheat oven to 400°F. Cook and drain macaroni according to package directions salting your water before hand. Strain and reserve. In a large saucepan melt butter. Add flour, whisking constantly while then adding milk and cream in gradually. Bring to a boil for 2 minutes while stirring. Reduce to a simmer and add shredded cheddar incrementally until it is melted through. Stir in Sassy Pantry’s Bacon Jam. Remove from heat. Fold the macaroni into the sauce. Transfer the mixture to a buttered baking dish. Coat with the breadcrumbs. Bake 20 minutes until the top is golden brown.


Check out Ship and Dip for even more incredible condiments and recipe ideas!!!! 

and for It’s The Little Things readers, they are offering 15% off any subscriptions using the code 
ITSTHELITTLETHINGS15 
code valid until 4/27 

It’s amazing how the slightest tweak to your recipes and ordinary ingredients make it so, so much better. 
With our weekly crockpot chicken recipe,  we added a couple spoonfuls of the Cape Fear Spicy Pepper Relish and it was the perfect amount of kick to take it up a notch! 

k now I’m hungry…. my quinoa bowl for lunch is going to suck compared to this. 
damnit. 


by  
Lifestyle, recipe

crack of the week :: healthy chicken salad

I love me some chicken salad. 
any mix of ingredients, any time of year.  
I can’t get enough.

and it’s an easy way to eat healthier while still getting meat covered in yummy sauce with lots of ingredients thrown in 

When I saw this chicken salad salad recipe on Ship and Dip’s website, I knew exactly how to use my first of three ingredients from their March box. 

 how pretty is their packaging?! 
In addition to the Lucky’s Fire Roasted Jalapeño Honey Mustard, this month also had Cape Fear Spicy Pepper Relish, and The Sassy Pantry Bacon Jam 

I’m a condiment freak.  Fries have to be served with multiple dipping sauces every time (ketchup, ranch, honey mustard, the list goes on).
I’m obsessed with this concept! This was made for me. 

recipe via Ship and Dip 
their photo…. you do not want to see mine I promise. 

For the salad:

2 large boneless chicken breasts, cut into strips



2 tbsp poultry seasoning (I used oregano, rosemary, salt, pepper, herbs de provence)


2 tbsp olive oil


4 large celery stalks, diced

the celery leaves, thinly sliced

4 scallions or green onions, thinly sliced

1/2 cup red grapes, cut into quarters

1/2 cup toasted, sliced almonds

For the dressing:

1/3 cup Lucky’s Jalapeño + Garlic Honey Mustard

1/2 cup Greek yogurt

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

ground pepper, kosher salt

the pan drippings from your cooked chicken


In a large bowl, combine your chicken strips with the herbs of your choice and olive oil. Place in a hot pan and cook until the chicken isn’t pink, but DON’T overcook! We want the chicken to be as juicy as physically possible. Once the chicken is done, remove from the heat and allow it to cool. KEEP THE PAN DRIPPINGS. This is precious juice and flavor that you don’t want to lose, trust me. We are going to use this juice to mix into the dressing and add another layer of flavor.


In a separate bowl, combine the celery, celery leaves, grapes, green onions and toasted almonds. Dice up your chicken into little bite-sized pieces and toss in the bowl as well.

In another bowl, combine all of the wet ingredients for your dressing and whisk together until smooth. Yesssssss.

Drizzle the dressing on top of the salad mixture and toss to combine, making sure every little piece is coated with this phenomenally flavorful sauce.




Perfect make ahead meal for lunch during the week. 
I had it yesterday and I’ll be having it every day this week! 


Next up is a recipe with the Bacon Jam.


but not going to lie, I mayyyyy have already just eaten some out of the jar.


and I can’t lie,





I don’t hate it. 




by  
Lifestyle, recipe

crack of the week: crockpot shredded chicken

we broke out the slow cooker on sunday and I am soooo glad we did.
taco night was a weekly tradition, but we have been eating a bit healthier around here, so it hasn’t been as frequent.  

we made shredded chicken tacos, and had enough chicken leftover to top off our salads last night and also to put into a whole wheat wrap for lunch at work today. 
I am not joking at all when I say, it. is. so. good. 

This recipe is as easy as it gets + healthy too. 
winner winner chicken dinner 
 
(ha.  see what I did there? this is why Andy Cohen is my imaginary best friend.)  

Shredded Crock Pot Chicken


4 chicken breasts (frozen or fresh)
1 can of salsa (16 oz.)
1 can of sweet corn (drained)
2tsp. Mrs. Dash Fiesta Lime Seasoning  **we didn’t have this on hand so left it out** 
4 limes — 2 limes, freshly squeezed and 2 more for garnishing
**soooo just 2 limes, because my food photography is so beautiful it needs no garnish.  duh** 
1 can Green Chilis (4.5 ounces)

  • Place chicken in the crock pot on high, combine the other ingredients and pour over the chicken.
  • Cook on high 6-7 hours if the chicken breasts are frozen, 4-5 hours if the chicken breasts are fresh.
  • About an hour before serving, shred the chicken with two forks in the crockpot. 
  • For chicken tacos, serve with warm tortillas, fresh chopped tomatoes, fresh cilantro, shredded cheese, sour cream and salsa. 


    • We use 0% Greek Yogurt for the sour cream, you cannot tell the difference at all when it’s mixed with other flavors. 

    This stuff was SO good that I actually think I will be able to eat chicken with some quinoa and veggies for dinner when I want to be super healthy and not hate it.  I hate eating a plain chicken breast… I can’t do it – it just grosses me out.   

    and just so you truly believe me that it’s delicious, I’ll tell you about something that I made that is not. 
    I made those PB+J cookies I posted about.

    They were NOT so good.
    I even made a second batch using a different kind of oats because I thought maybe I did it wrong…. but no…. they were just bad. 
    skinny taste recipes are always so good, so I don’t know what happened? 

    I’ll stick to these healthy peanut butter cookies instead which are delicious. 


    by  
    Lifestyle, recipe

    crack of the week: slow cooker stuffed peppers

    I made these stuffed peppers last week and they were so delicious.
    I had all of the ingredients on hand, they were healthy, and they were surprisingly very filling. 
    The prep took no time at all, only about 10 or 15 minutes, and the best part of the slow cooker is how the amazing smells continue to fill the kitchen.  
     
    Slow Cooker Greek Stuffed Peppers
     via Martha Stewart
    • 4 large bell peppers
    • 1 can (15 ounces) cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
    • 1 cup crumbled feta (4 ounces)
    • 1/2 cup couscous (**I used quinoa instead) 
    • 4 scallions, white and green parts separated, thinly sliced
    • 1 garlic clove, minced
    • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
    • Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
    • Lemon wedges, for serving

    COOK’S NOTE

    To make in the oven: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In step 2, use a 5-quart Dutch oven or ovenproof pot with a tight-fitting lid; add 1 cup water. Cover; bake until peppers are tender, about 1 hour. Proceed with step 3.

    DIRECTIONS

    1. STEP 1

      Slice a very thin layer from the base of each bell pepper so they sit flat. Slice off tops just below stem. Discard stems; chop tops, and place in a medium bowl. Remove ribs and seeds from peppers.

    2. STEP 2

      Add beans, feta, couscous, scallion whites, garlic, and oregano to bowl. Season with salt and pepper and toss to combine. Stuff peppers with bean mixture; place upright in slow cooker. Cover; cook on high, 4 hours.

    3. STEP 3

      Sprinkle peppers with scallion greens; serve with lemon wedges.

    my award winning food photography below 🙂 


    by  

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