CARAMEL STUFFED BROWNIES

The choice between caramel and chocolate is a hard one for me. Like reaaaaaaal hard.

Hot caramel sundae or hot fudge sundae? Why can't I have both? 

Oh but you can have both. Caramel stuffed brownies are a beautiful thing friends.

Gooey caramel with fudge-y chocolate brownie.

They are a beautiful thing AND a good idea.

Good idea indeed.

 

|  CARAMEL STUFFED BROWNIES  |

Ingredients:

Brownies-

1 cup unsalted butter

1 1/2 cups semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips

1 1/2 cups sugar

4 large eggs

1 tbsp vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup milk chocolate chips

Caramel filling-

14 oz caramels (about 60 individually wrapped caramels)

1/3 cup heavy cream

Directions:

1. Line a 9x13 inch baking pan with foil and grease the foil with butter and then preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Combine butter and the semisweet (or bittersweet) chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring in between until the chocolate is melted.

3. Whisk sugar, eggs and vanilla into the chocolate until well incorporated then stir in the flour and salt until just combined.

4. Spread about 40% the brownie batter in the bottom of the prepared pan in an even layer.

5. Bake for 20 minutes then remove from oven (don't turn the oven off yet!) and let cool for 20 minutes.

6. While the first half of the brownies are almost done cooling, combine the caramel candies and cream in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir frequently until melted and smooth.

7. Spread the caramel slowly over the cooked brownie layer and spread evenly then pour the remaining brownie batter over the caramel layer very carefully.

8. Sprinkle the milk chocolate chips on top then bake for another 20 minutes.

9. Transfer to wire rack and let cool completely before slicing and serving. (FYI these take a looong time to cool. I highly recommend cooling in the freezer for at least 30 minutes!)

10. Enjoy and share with friends. :)

Hope you all had a splendid long weekend. I finally finished my essay! Now only the editing and then my final exam...yahhhoooo!

Happy Tuesday!

s.s.♥︎.

KALE CRANBERRY SWEET POTATO SALAD

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Sometimes enough is enough and you just got to put the mini eggs down. Or the cream eggs. Or the Reese's peanut butter eggs. I know them being on sale doesn't really help things, but there comes a time when you just can't continue having chocolate for meals. And I hope you know I'm preaching 100% to myself here. But maybe some of you are experiencing chocolate overload too. Well today's salad will help curb that craving (hopefully) and will fill your tummy up with deliciousness. 

Kale is massaged and then quickly pan fried to make it not so intense kale-y....

Sweet potatoes and yams are roasted to bring out natural sweetness.

And pecans and cranberries are added just because.

|   KALE CRANBERRY SWEET POTATO SALAD   |

Ingredients:

2-3 Sweet potatoes/yams

1 tsp Paprika

3 tbsp Olive Oil

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1 bunch of Kale

Juice from half a lemon

Handful of cranberries

Handful of pecans

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Wash and peel potatoes and yams then cut into 1/2-1 inch pieces. Place in bowl and toss with paprika, 1/4 tsp of kosher salt and 1 tbsp of olive oil. Lay out on baking tray and bake for 40-45 minutes making sure to flip 20 minutes in.

3. Wash and de-stem kale leaves. Tear into strips then place in salad bowl. Drizzle 2 tbsp of olive oil, 1/4 tsp of kosher salt and lemon juice over the kale. With both hands, massage the kale for 3-5 minutes, until the kale is wilted and soft. If the kale is still too intense for you, cook for two minutes on a skillet over medium heat.

4. Add roasted potatoes to the kale and sprinkle cranberries and pecans on top.

5. Enjoy!

Not only is this salad delicious, it's also bright and beautiful...double win. AND if you eat a salad for dinner, you'll entitle yourself to mini eggs for dessert.

xo,

s.s.♥︎.

CLASSIC BANANA BREAD

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I could eat a few things for days on days. Galaxy bars. Peanut butter rolo blizzards. Mangos. Baked brie. Oh and banana bread.

Yes, put me on a deserted island with a life time supply of banana bread and I'd be one happy girl. I've been searching for a great classic banana bread recipe for awhile. Classic to me means no nuts, no extra spices and no chocolate...just bananas in this banana bread. Now don't get me wrong, I like nuts and spices and chocolate in my banana bread. I just didn't want them in this banana bread. 

Now this banana bread takes a wee bit longer than a normal banana bread. Ripe bananas are heated up then strained to extract juices. Banana juices are reduced over heat. Banana is sliced then placed along the top of the bread. Sugar is sprinkled on top. This banana bread is a labour of love. You should make it for someone you love....or someone you don't love because they need love too :)

|  CLASSIC BANANA BREAD  |

Ingredients needed:

1 3/4 cups of flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

6 large ripe bananas

1/2 cup unsalted butter (melted then cooled a bit)

2 large eggs

3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tsp sugar

Directions:

1. Pre-heat over to 350 degrees. Grease a loaf pan with a bit of butter (be sure to get the sides!)

2. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Give it a little stir then set aside.

3. Place 5 bananas in a microwave safe bowl, cover in saran wrap and then make a few slices in the plastic to allow steam to vent out. Microwave on high for about five minutes (until bananas have released their juices).

4. Place bananas in a mesh strainer over a bowl and stir until juices have been strained into the bowl (about 10 minutes). Place bananas in a bowl and transfer liquid to a pan over medium-high heat and cook until juices have been reduced to 1/4 cup (about five minutes). Then remove pan from heat. Add reduced banana juice to the bowl of bananas and mash together. Add brown sugar, vanilla, eggs, melted butter and give it a good whisk. 

5. Slowly add in dry ingredients to the banana mixture. Fold with a spatula until combined. Pour batter into the prepared loaf pan.

6. Slice the sixth banana and then place along edges of the batter. Sprinkle with sugar and then cook for about 60 minutes (until toothpick comes out clear, you know the drill!) Once out of the oven, let it sit for 15 minutes in the pan. 

7. ENJOY!!!

Recipe slightly adapted from annie's eats (originally from cook's illustrated)

Enjoy this classic banana bread :)

xo,

s.s.♥︎.

CARAMEL POPCORN

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As you probably know by now, I have a ridiculous sweet tooth. I like cookies and chocolate and cupcakes. It's a good thing I like running and salads too I guess.

My sweet tooth comes calling often, sometimes I ignore the cravings and other times (most of the times) I just head to the kitchen and bake something beautiful. And this caramel popcorn my friends, is something beautiful. 

Crunchy. Perfect amount of salty-sweet. Just dang delicious. 

Popcorn is popped. Caramel is made. 

Now there is a trick to making caramel. The trick is DON'T BURN IT...which I did the first time. Oh, and another trick is, don't put your finger in and burn that...which James did. :p

Popcorn is stirred into the sweet, sweet caramel then baked in the oven to perfection.

After cooled, place it in a pretty bowl and devour it.

mmmmmm mmmmmmmm mmmmmmmmmmm

| CARAMEL POPCORN |

Ingredients needed:

1/2 cup of salted butter

1 cup of light brown sugar

1/4 cup of light corn syrup

1 tsp of salt

1/4 tsp of baking soda

1/2 tsp of vanilla extract

10 cups of popped pocorn

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and then lightly grease parchment paper with butter.

2. Place butter in a big pot over medium-high heat. Once melted, add brown sugar and corn syrup. Stir together and then let sit until it reaches a boil. (Watch the mixture very carefully as it can burn very quickly!!!) Once boiling, reduce heat to low and let sit for five minutes.

3. Stir then continue to cook another five minutes while continuing to stir every 30 seconds until the mixture is a deep golden colour.

4. Turn off heat then whisk in salt, baking soda and vanilla extract.

5. Stir in popcorn and toss until it's covered evenly in caramel.

6. Spread the coated popcorn on the baking sheet and bake in oven for 15 minutes. Toss the popcorn on the baking sheet every five minutes or so.

7. Remove the popcorn from the oven then place on a surface covered in parchment paper. Once cooled, break up big chunks and place in bowl and then devour. :)

Recipe slightly adapted from Gimme Some Oven

Happy Wednesday!

xo,

s.s.♥.

THAI PEANUT CHICKEN RICE BOWL

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Before I got married, I knew how to make one meal...scrambled eggs on toast (and cupcakes!) Yes, I don't know how I survived (thank you to my wonderful sister, Catrina who cooked many, many, meals for me). I lived a very full and social life as a single gal and didn't value meal times. Dinner to me was sometimes crackers and peanut butter or whatever I could grab on the go.

But now (on good weeks) dinners are strategically thought out and planned. My full and social calendar hasn't changed much since I got married so I'm particularly attracted to meals that I can cook in little time. 

And these Thai Peanut Chicken Rice Bowls fit exactly into that category. They are seriously soooo delicious and take hardly any time to make (the rice take the longest!) We eat these almost weekly in our home (and James never complains!)

recipe adapted from damn delicious

Enjoy!

xo,

s.s.♥.