Monday Munchies - Easy Chocolate (Non)Dipped Pretzels

Once again, I was MIA on the blog last week.  I had friends in town, then made the 16 hour trek once again from Jackson to St. Joseph, but hopefully I'll give you guys a picture update soon.  In the meantime, check out this quick and simple recipe for a tasty and cute holiday snack!  I've made these several times for different events, and they taste just like chocolate dipped pretzels, but without the mess and hassle of dipping and drying (really, how do people get them to not have a flat side?!?), and I love that these are more colorful!

Chocolate (Non)Dipped Pretzels
1 bag of square pretzels
Candy coating (chocolate, white chocolate, colorful, basically whatever you want!  I've also seen Hershey's kisses and hugs used!)
1 bag M&Ms

Directions:
Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat (unashamed author's plug - buy one...or two, it will become a favorite kitchen item), and place a single layer of pretzels on the baking sheet.  Put one piece of candy coating on each pretzel.  Bake for 4-5 minutes or until candy coating is soft but NOT melted.  Remove from oven, then working quickly, press an M&M down into the center of each piece of candy coating. Cool in the refrigerator until chocolate has set and store in an airtight container.

Crock Pot Caramel Dip

So Monday came and went and I completely forgot about Monday Munchies, like didn't think about it even one split second during the day forgot.  I didn't think about it during the day on Tuesday either, because I was SO excited that when the clouds lifted from the rain we had the past couple of days there was SNOW on the peaks of the mountains, and even covered some of the bowls.  That means we're one step closer to ski season, yay!

Tuesday night I went with a couple friends to a Flannel Attractions (don't you love the band names out here?!?) show at a new restaurant in town, then fell right into my bed when I got home.  Then Wednesday I thought about it, but I had lunch with a friend, picked up another friend from the airport and had small group that night.  After I got back I considered posting, but then I couldn't find my camera, and posts aren't nearly as good without pictures.  So yesterday I searched, found my camera, uploaded pics and now it's Friday!  This dip is super easy to make, delicious, and a great way to make a healthy food (apple slices) completely unhealthy haha!  Enjoy!

Crock Pot Caramel Dip
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 cup brown sugar
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Directions:  Mix all ingredients together in a crock pot.  Cook on low, stirring occasionally, for 3 hours or until thick and bubbly around the edges. (I cooked mine on high for about an hour instead of being patient and cooking it on low.  I also made a double batch and keep it in a jar in the fridge so that I have it on hand when we have people over.  Just nuke it in the microwave for awhile and you have an easy snack or dessert!)

Recipe Source: Farming on Faith

Monday Munchies - Kale Chips

It's Monday again, and my last Monday in Missouri for awhile!  As I told many people goodbye at church yesterday, reality started sinking in - I'm moving in 2 days!!!

Anyway, back to business.  I had seen recipes for kale chips on a lot of food blogs several months back.  Honestly, I have no idea what kale tastes like raw, I should probably try it someday, but for now I'll stick with the roasted crunchy chip version.  I made these for the first time a couple of weeks ago and the consensus was that it was girl food, for the Hoffman family, but maybe your boys are less picky, in which case, you should roast them some kale chips!  These are light, flavorful and pretty quick to throw together.  Although we made them for dinner, I think they would be a really good afternoon snack.  The crunch factor and saltiness kind of make you forget you're eating a vegetable, but I will say the curly edges give it a strange texture, not bad, just strange.  Surprisingly, these also warmed up rather well.  I threw them in the oven under the broiler for a couple of minutes and they crisped right up again, good as new!  So, if you're looking for a quick and easy snack or side dish, give these a try!

Kale Chips
1 bunch of kale
1 T. olive oil
Salt to taste (I love using coarse salt for roasted veggies.  The salt has a more concentrated flavor, so I find myself using less without compromising the taste!) 

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Rinse and dry the kale and remove the leaves from the stems.  (I found it was pretty easy to lay a piece of kale flat on a cutting board with the stem pointing down.  Cut an inverted "V" around the tough center ribs, then cut them up into pieces.)  Toss the kale with olive oil in a bowl, then lay out flat on a baking sheet or two, and sprinkle with desired amount of salt.  Bake 20 minutes or until crisp.  (The original recipe tells you to turn the chips over halfway through baking.  However, I'm terrible at reading recipes through, thought I was done with all the steps, went for a quick run and ignored this step, and they still turned out fine.)


Adapted from: The Food Network

Monday Munchies - Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie

The weather here has been so warm the last couple of weeks, it has me in the mood for summer!  I have been seeing a lot of smoothie recipes on different food blogs I follow and with this warmer weather a smoothie for breakfast, an afternoon snack, or even dessert sounds delicious!  Breakfast is my favorite time for smoothies, but a lot of times a couple of hours later I find myself hungry.  This recipe is one that caught my eye on Pinterest because I always have the ingredients on hand, and it incorporates some fiber and protein that help you stay satisfied until the next meal!

Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie
1 frozen banana
1/8 c. oats
1 T. peanut butter
1/2 c. milk (nutrition info was calculated using nonfat milk)
3 Ice cubes
Optional:
1/2 packet of stevia (or whatever sweetener you want - I used Sweet Leaf brand, but keep in mind that the amount of sweetener you need will vary based on what type you are using)
1/2 t. vanilla

Put oats in blender and blend until powdery.  Add the rest of the ingredients and blend until there are no chunks of ice or banana left.  Pour and enjoy!

Nutrition Information: 1 Serving - 250 calories, 9 g. fat, 3.8 g. fiber, 9.6 g. protein. 

Adapted From: This Chick Cooks via Pinterest

Monday Munchies - Homemade Microwave Popcorn

I absolutely LOVE popcorn!  It makes a great low calorie snack, and is a frequent Hoffman family Sunday night dinner.  If I ever get married I think it would be awesome to have a popcorn bar with lots of toppings and candy mix-ins.  Although I love stove popped popcorn (props to the Whirley Pop), the convenience of microwave popcorn is appealing.  There are no dishes to do afterward, it's much cheaper, it's faster, you don't have to stand over the stove watching it.  But, it never tastes as good - it's too buttery, there are all sorts or weird ingredients, and it isn't as healthy as stove popped corn.  I had seen several recipes online for homemade brown bag popcorn and wondered if it would really work.  There are so many different variations, and people telling you to stand the bag up, lay the bag down, put staples in the top, just fold it, soak the kernels in water before popping, use oil, don't use oil, squeeze the air out, don't squeeze the air, it was kind of overwhelming.  Well, I think I've figured out a pretty good combination, it may not be quite perfected, but it is still pretty good.  I'll give you two recipes today, a standard recipe as well as a kettle corn recipe but the possibilities with this are almost endless!

Basic Microwave Popcorn
1/4 cup popcorn kernels (Earl May sells our favorite kernels - no nasty hulls!)
1/2 teaspoon oil (This is optional, you can just throw the kernels into the bag and pop for a healthier option)
Salt to taste (If you want to get fancy, popcorn salt is finer and gives a more even coating)

In a small bowl mix together the popcorn kernels and oil. Pour the coated corn into a brown paper lunch bag and sprinkle with salt. Fold the top of the bag over twice to seal in the ingredients. Other recipes say that you can just dump the oil and salt into the bag on top of the popcorn and shake to mix.

Instead of laying the bag on it's side like several recipes call for, I found that my kernels popped much better when I stood the bag up normally. Cook in the microwave for 2.5 - 3 minutes or until you hear a pause of about 3 seconds between pops. Open the bag carefully (it's still steamy) and pour into a serving bowl.



Microwave Kettle Corn
1/4 cup popcorn kernels
1/2 teaspoon oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
1.5 teaspoons powdered sugar

Stir everything together until evenly coated. Pour into a brown paper lunch bag and fold the top of the bag over twice to seal.

Cook in the microwave for 2.5 - 3 minutes or until you hear a pause of about 3 seconds between pops. Open the bag carefully and pour into a serving bowl.

Adapted From: allrecipes.com