How Sweet It Is

Easiest recipe ever.

In fact, not even a recipe at all.

But so simple, delicious, economical and healthy that I had to share.

Especially after last night’s gluttonous shenanigans.

Something had to give. And today it’s the button on my pants, thanks to that dinner.

I’m just glad we made it through the night without any clogged arteries or myocardial infarctions. Whatever those are.

Have you ever made homemade bagel chips? They are so easy!

I used whole wheat bagels, but those are obviously boring. Cinnamon or asiago bagels would taste so much better.

It is best to use bagels that are a bit stale. Just slice them very thin, brush with olive oil and top with sea salt. Or whatever else you may like.

Simple Bagel Chips

2 large whole wheat bagels or 4 mini whole wheat bagels

1 tablespoon olive oil

sea salt

Preheat oven to 425.

Slice thin rounds from the bagel, using all pieces even if they break in half. Brush all pieces with olive oil and top with sea salt.

Bake for 8-10 minutes but watch closely – oven times may differ.

I couldn’t really figure out how to get a great, non-blurry shot of the thin bagel crisp. It must have been the butter.

From now on, today I’m blaming everything on the butter.

Don’t worry.

There is bacon and cheese involved.

Of course.

I’ve been trying my hardest to consciously get in some veggies. As much as I hate them, I really try to eat them in some form a few times a year week. This is extremely hard for me, being that I don’t believe in eating things unless I absolutely love them. But I guess sometimes I make an exception for vegetables?

Roasting is one of the only ways I can force them down. Raw vegetables… well, it pains me to even think of them.

I often roast a pan of peppers, onions and other assorted veggies at the beginning of the week. If I don’t have a solid plan in mind, those veggies sit in the fridge for a loooong time.

Trust me, you don’t want to see my crisper drawer.

It turns out that I really love caramelized onions. That should come as no surprise. Aren’t onions one of the vegetables with a very high sugar content? That makes sense.

As long as my vegetable mix has some sweet, caramelized onions, crispy bacon and creamy avocado, I can eat a wrap or quesadilla with some veggies. Cheese is just a bonus. Notice there are no fibrous, green veggies in here. Still working on those.

It will probably happen… never.

Roasted Veggie & Goat Cheese Quesadilla

serves 1

2 whole wheat tortillas (I use La Tortilla!)

1 ounce goat cheese

1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

1 slice bacon, fried and crumbled

1/2 avocado, chopped

assorted roasted veggies (I used peppers, corn, onions and tomatoes)

Preheat a grill or skillet on medium heat.

On one tortilla, spread a 1/2 ounce of crumbled goat cheese. Top with assorted vegetables, bacon, paprika and avocado. Top with remaining goat cheese and leftover tortilla.

Carefully place quesadilla down on grill or in skillet and let brown for 2-3 minutes. Once golden, gently flip onto the other side for the same amount of time.

I’m off to find some chocolate. It’s desperately needed to calm the trauma of these vegetables.

In my experience, any additional cheese in a recipe is a wonderful thing.

It doesn’t even need to be in a recipe. Any additional cheese in my hands is a wonderful thing.

I think I once ate an entire brick of cheese in about 24 hours in college. It was gross. And delicious.

Initially, I found this recipe for parmesan pizza crust by Emeril.

I used my go-to whole wheat crust recipe instead, and added a big ole’ handful of cheese to it. I was worried it may not rise. Honestly, I don’t know the first thing about baking yeast breads and dough. Occasionally my crust doesn’t rise, but instead of trying to figure out where I went wrong, I just furiously try to roll out a lump of dough to form the crust. I’m usually hungry.

Imagine my excitement when I peeked and saw the dough rising! I had to peek – I’m sure that’s not recommended – but I think we all know that patience is certainly not my strong point.

The best part about this crust was how incredible it smelled while it was baking. My house was full of fragrant baking parmesan cheese.

Trust me, that is a good thing. Now I understand why Emeril always talked about “smellevision.” I wish you could smell it through the screen.

Parmesan Pizza Crust

inspired by Emeril

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1 teaspoon active dry yeast

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon honey

3/4 – 1 cup lukewarm water

In a large bowl combine flour, salt, yeast and parmesan cheese. Mix with a spoon and create a well in the middle. Add in 3/4 cups water, honey and olive oil. Stir with a spoon until dough comes together. Continue to form into a ball with your hands. If more water is needed, add it by the tablespoon.

Knead dough for 1-2 minutes before placing it in a lightly oiled bowl and covering. Let rise for 1 1/2-2 hours.

When it comes to food, Mr. How Sweet doesn’t like change. He likes plain, “regular” meals. If he loves something, he doesn’t want one single thing changed in the recipe.

I knew I couldn’t tell him about the this before he ate it. He didn’t even know I added parmesan to the crust. Until right now.

Sorry, Mr. How Sweet! Good thing you already told me how delicious it was.

I’m off to serve jury duty today.

I am not a happy camper.

This would be my first time getting called for jury duty. Do you think if I brought cookies they would just let me leave? Or maybe since I have a public blog they will send me home?

While I’m in the business of complaining, I thought I’d remind you how much I hate being an adult. I really don’t like growing up.  And jury duty is a grown up thing. Right there next to doing dishes, folding laundry, dusting, saving money and eating vegetables.

Growing up is not for me.

Grown ups usually don’t eat cookie dough.

In fact, they usually tell their kids to stay away from the dough.

Well, I ate some dough. Raw eggs and all.

I wouldn’t be surprised if salmonella is what gets me out of jury duty, no?

But it would be so worth it. First off, because I really don’t want to sit in a room all day without internet access. I have this thing called an… addiction. And second, because the dough is just so delicious.

Dare I say it’s better than the actual cookie itself?

Dried cherries remind me of northern Michigan. I think I’ve mentioned that approximately 43 times over the last year.

Every time I cook or bake with them it takes me back to my childhood.

So when I made these this past weekend and then ate 5 in a row, I was really taken back to my childhood.

And I was really full.

Cherries and Cream Cookies

makes about 24 cookies

1 cup butter, at room temperature

3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 tablespoons heavy cream

2 1/2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 cup dried cherries

1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time and mix until combined. Stir in vanilla and heavy cream. Add flour, baking soda and salt and mix until dough just comes together. Fold in cherries and chocolate chips.

Refrigerate for at least 4-6 hours, or overnight.

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until cookies are set and golden around the edges.

If you’ve ever wondered how I “bake so much” when it’s just the two of us – check out my tips on baking for two!

We have a new favorite meal.

And yes, I said “we.”

I know that you may think that our “meals” consist of Mr. How Sweet chomping on steak while I munch chocolate-covered bacon.

And while that is mostly true, I do need some real food every once in awhile.

I figured since we love buffalo chicken dip, buffalo chicken pizza and buffalo chicken tenders so much, why not create buffalo chicken burgers?

Perfect with a side of celery and bacon ranch dressing.

Obviously I didn’t eat the celery since green veggies make me cry, but I did taste the bacon ranch dressing.

Like that was even in question.

The burgers were so delicious.

It is rare that I want meat, but I practically devoured this.

I was afraid Mr. How Sweet wouldn’t like it. I’m not sure why. I guess I thought that it may scare him off since it is not regular old burgers like he is used to. When it comes to meat, the man doesn’t like change.

But he loved them too. In fact, his word was “obsessed.” And he is not nearly as dramatic as I am.

So I knew they had to be great.

Buffalo Chicken Burgers

makes 4-6 burgers

1 lb ground chicken breast

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 tablespoon italian seasoning

1/4 cup buffalo wing sauce

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

2 ounces sharp cheddar cheese

bacon ranch dressing + buffalo wing sauce for topping

4-6 whole wheat buns

Preheat grill or skillet.

In a large bowl combine ground chicken, salt, pepper, italian seasoning, parmesan and buffalo wing sauce. Mix until just combined. Form into patties.

Grill or pan-fry patties until brown on both sides and cooked through, about 8-10 minutes. In the last 2 minutes, place 1/2 ounce of cheddar cheese on each burger. Place burgers on whole wheat buns and top with a drizzle of bacon ranch (I used Kraft) and buffalo wing dressing.

Don’t worry, that is just buffalo wing sauce and bacon ranch dressing spilling out of the side up there. No need to run away in fear. Unless you are running to make these. Which is something I highly suggest.