better than fireworks

happy independence day!

with all the bbq'ing and cookouts going on today, it seems fitting to share something i finally got to try recently:  s'moreos.  oh, yes.  that's right.

well, i didn't actually do it properly as i didn't have any hershey's bars at home.  the horror!  but since i'm trying to keep my girlish figure, i guess that was a good thing.  heh.  and so here's what i used:

yup, i bought reduced fat oreos, suckas!  while that seems like total blasphemy, i have to admit that i honestly don't taste a difference between these and the regular ones.  of course, they're no double stuf, but that's okay.  and don't look up the nutritional information to compare - while these do have a bit less fat than the others, calorie-wise they're really not much different.  i wish i hadn't burst my little ignorance bubble by checking this out.  oh, well.

anyway, all i did was open my oreos, top each half with one of those stacker mallows (which are fabulous, by the way) and stick them under the broiler in my toaster oven for a couple of minutes.

so toasty and perfectly golden brown.  i smushed those bad boys together, took a bite, and found myself in marshmallowy heaven.

i think i may need to celebrate with one of these right now.  maybe two.  and hell, i think i have some hershey's kisses somewhere.  i'm going all out here, people.  happy birthday, america!

oreos make everything better

monkey bread.  yes, i've done it before, but for father's day breakfast i wanted to try something a little different.  i'd seen a post by picky palate on a tooth-achingly sweet take that involved mini rolos and s'mores, but it was actually too much for me.  crazy talk, right?  and i wanted to try to make it at least a tiny bit less bad for our health.  heh.

using her recipe as a guideline for basic instructions and such, i busted out my ingredients.

hmmm.  i don't know why i put those dark chocolate chips in the picture - i actually used mini chocolate chips instead.  oh well, whatevs.

then i put some of those oreos into a plastic bag and gave it to the bean to go to town with a fondant rolling pin.  she was more than happy to oblige.

the biscuits were chopped into fourths.

those crushed oreos and biscuit pieces were dropped into a bigger bag, joined by some applesauce, and had a party.  after lining a pan with my favorite parchment/foil combo, the whole mushy mess went in.  looks like poop, doesn't it?

then i topped it with a handful of mini marshmallows and chocolate chips, and into the oven it went.

because i didn't want to make a whole bowl of glaze to drizzle on top, i went into the freezer and fished out an extra packet of that frosting you get when you buy toaster strudel.  yes, i love that stuff.  thank you, gretchen wieners.  anyway, it was just the right amount i wanted.

mmm, toasty marshmallows.  and you know what?  this concoction turned out really well!  so well, in fact, that i'd totally make it again.  and confession:  it was just as good the next day.  maybe even better.

wanna make some for yourself?  as long as you aren't amanda robertson, that is.  since, you know, i did use some store-bought crap in this "recipe."  hmph.

cookies & cream monkey bread, adapted from picky palate's rolo s'mores skillet monkey bread

1 8-count roll of biscuit dough
about 8 oreos, regular or double stuf.  i used the latter
a single-serving cup of applesauce
1/2 cup-ish of mini marshmallows
1/4 cup-ish of mini chocolate chips
a packet of glaze out of a box of toaster strudel.  or you can make your own.

preheat the oven to 350 and line a round 8" or 9" pan with parchment paper.  put the oreos into a plastic bag and smash 'em to smithereens.  cut the biscuits into fourths and add them to the crushed cookies along with the applesauce.  you don't have to use every bit of the applesauce in case it gets too mushy - just eyeball it.  roll the whole mess around in the bag until each piece of dough is covered in cookie crumbs.  you can always add more cookies if you need to.  pour it all into your prepared pan.

sprinkle the mini chocolate chips on top, followed by the mini marshmallows.  the amount you use of these things is totally your call - maybe you'll want more, maybe not.  completely up to you.  i, on the other hand, was trying to keep it from getting too crazy and focusing on it being "healthy" since i'd replaced the butter with applesauce.  ah, so sneaky.

bake it for about 25 minutes.  but keep an eye on it.  about halfway through, i found that the marshmallows were toasting too quickly and covered it lightly with a piece of foil for the most of the baking time.  with about a minute left on the timer, i took the foil off to let the marshmallows turn a lovely golden color.

drizzle the glaze on top.  if you aren't a total sucker for toaster strudel like i am, you can make your own with about 1/2 cup of powdered sugar and around a tablespoon and a half or so of milk.  scoop it out onto a plate and enjoy.

mmmmmm.  i kinda want some more right now.

ooh!  and this is cool - the l.a. times food section does a weekly "weekend eats" twitter spree on mondays.  basically, they have you tweet them with pictures of stuff you ate over the weekend.  i shared that picture right up there, and they mentioned me in the weekend eats roundup.  yay for me!

not your mama's rice krispy treats

to celebrate my 1,300th post, i present for your visual enjoyment...no-bake cookies & cream bars.

i'm also too lazy to upload pics from our latest adventures right this moment.  i'll get to them, though.  i'm sure you're on the edge of your seat.

anyway, these deliciously chewy morsels came my way via pinterest, of course.  food bloggers are so dang creative - and i've found lots of yummy and easy recipes from picky palate.  all she did for these was to grind up a pack of oreo cookies in a food processor (i think she left hers with a few chunks, but i whirled mine into a big pile o'chocolate dust), melt marshmallows with some butter, mix it all together and spread it into a pan.

these are wonderfully addictive.  they're soft enough to make for fun snacking, but with a firmness that kept me going back again and again.  really, you must try these.  like, go and buy some oreos and marshmallows right now and make them.  you'll thank me.

the cookies just keep on comin'

i'm on a roll here, folks.  i can't seem to stop making cookies!  i find that i really love the process of it more than actually eating the products.  of course, i have to try one here and there to make sure they don't taste like ass, but for the most part i get a big kick out of making vs. eating.  how strange, especially for me.

anyway, i wanted to bring something fun to my junior league meeting (along with another fun thing i need to share with you), so i turned to homemade oreos.  i could follow through with the pink & brown theme and still have something super delicious to share.

the food processor is sure turning out to be a godsend.  i no longer have to ignore recipes that call for one!

the dough was pretty crumbly when it was done, but i expected that.  i've made homemade oreos before, but with a different recipe.

as suggested in this recipe, i decided to use cookie cutters to make my oreos extra fun.

they baked up nicely, filling the house with a fabulous brownie-like aroma, although they puffed up a bit and lost their shape a little.  oh, well.

while they cooled on the rack, i whipped up the creamy filling.  it didn't come together as nicely as i wanted, so i decided to improvise and toss in a couple of spoonfuls of marshmallow creme.  and then it was perfect.

i went the easy way and stuffed it all into a ziploc bag and cut the corner off to do the filling.

MIL and the bean were happy to be my taste-testers.  and when i got their stamp of approval, i continued filling the cookies till they were all done.

pretty snazzy, eh?

current obsessions

chocolate covered oreos. stick 'em in the fridge and they're little bits of happiness. high-calorie happiness, but happiness nonetheless.

burritos from chipotle. for a girl who used to abhor mexican food (and i know this is totally gringo mexican eats), i sure do love me some chipotle. i can't seem to get enough of it. add their lime salted chips and some salsa and i am one happy camper.

finding a stinking bath seat for the bean. my friend a told me that there's a gang of these on ebay, and she's right - but three things stop me: my need for instant gratification, not wanting to pay $10+ for shipping, and being slightly grossed out at the idea of the bean's tushie plopped onto a secondhand bath item. meh. and during my google search, i came across this thing:

i'm horrified and amused at the same time - it looks like she stuck her baby in a bucket. even worse, it's called a "washPOD." i've seen some really lame-o baby items, but this one takes the cake.

mmmm, cake. huh?

winning fox11's current giveaway - a trip for 4 on a disney cruise to mexico. i guess they're repositioning one of their ships again (their usual destination is the bahamas) and they're doing a 7-day with stops in puerto vallarta, cabo san lucas, and mazatlan. the hub hates cruises with a passion, but he said "a free cruise? that'd be cool. i want to go to cabo, anyway." heh. he's all talk - but i can just see it. normally, the hub + cruise = major asshole already, but add disney to the mix and the kid'll have to hold me back from strangling the love of my life.

edit:  no, i didn't actually win this - yet ;)  i meant it as, winning it is one of the things i'm currently obsessed with!

speaking of fox11, can someone please tell jillian reynolds that she can't sing? seriously, i want to reach through the screen and kick her every time she tries to sing along to whatever song they happen to be playing. she bugs the hell out of me anyway (and yet i still tune in every day), and her singing voice is like nails on a chalkboard to me. not to mention, at least know the fucking lyrics before you open your piehole. ugh.

lastly, the kid and i found cream cheese brownies at albertson's last week. oh mah gah, so effing yummy. the brownie is the most perfectest chewy texture, and then it's topped with a lovely cream cheese-based frosting and chocolate shavings. i had to force myself to hold it at one per day. mmmmm.

heh. most of my current obsessions are centered around food. what a surprise.