Lets be honest, the yummiest thing ever is unbaked cookie dough! A friend said that most cookies actually taste better in their raw dough form than in their baked form, and I had to agree! 
   Another friend mentioned that she had made a cookie dough dip for a party, and I was intrigued! The eggs are omitted from the recipe so that it is safer to eat, and I wanted to give it a shot! Why am I using so many exclamation marks!?! Haha....oh boy...
   I made a batch of the cookie dough dip from a recipe I found online, and it was not so good. Well, it was good-ish. Butter, sugar, flour, chocolate chips, what's not to like? Well, mainly, the gritty sugar! Think about it, creaming butter and sugar, for any amount of time, will never get the sugar to dissolve fully. 
   So then I found another recipe that had cream whisked in with the sugar, then you added butter and mixd it all up, but that still didn't do the trick.
   So, I decided to melt the butter and sugars together to get rid of the grit...but then I accidentally made fudge. Don't worry, I just ate it out of the pan with a spoon.
   Usually I would give up on something that was being so stubborn, but gosh darn it, I love chocolate chip cookie dough and I was determined to get it right! 
   The next problem was that you need to add regular flour to the dough, and I wanted to make it gluten free so that my Caleb could partake, but just swapping out regular flour for gluten free doesn't always go well. 
   Such dilemmas! I'm very dramatic when it comes to dessert related issues. :)  
   Well, let me tell you, I figured out such a tasty chocolate chip cookie dough dip that is not only smooth and not gritty at all, but it is gluten free-and flour free! What? I know, I know....I am amazing....I can hear the applause...  :)  

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Dip

• 1 Cup butter
• 2/3 Cup brown sugar
• Pinch o' salt
• 1 Tsp vanilla
• 1/2 Cup marshmallow fluff

• 1 Cup icing sugar
• 1 1/2 Cups chocolate chips
  

Method: 

1. In a small saucepan, melt the butter, brown sugar and salt over medium-low heat, stirring often, until the brown sugar dissolves
2. Remove from the heat, whisk in the vanilla extract, and set aside to cool to room temperature (the time the cooling takes varies on the temperature of your house, but don't stick it in the fridge or else the butter will harden and it's just all backwards work)
3. With an electric mixer on low speed, beat the fluff and powdered sugar together. You can also just mix these together with a wooden spoon or spatula. Spatula....what a funny word...
4. Slowly beat or mix in the cooled butter mixture. Increase the speed to medium and beat for about 1 minute, or just stir with all your might! :)  
5. Stir in the chocolate chips
6. Transfer the dip to a serving bowl and try not to eat all of it right away.....
7. You can cover the dip and refrigerate it, but take it out of the fridge 15 to 30 minutes before serving to let it soften back up
8. People serve this with graham crackers or little cookies, but I much prefer to eat it plain, or with something crunchy and salty like pretzels or plain chips....yes, chips!

I can't seem to get rid of this one down here.....just ignore it....

   So, this dip is veeeeeery sweet. Fair square warning. So, if you wanna, and if you have some on hand, or you don't mind paying for this, you can use cream cheese instead of the marshmallow fluff. 
   You will need to really cream it properly with the icing sugar though, so a hand mixer would be needed. I've tried it both ways (cream cheese was on really cheap, and that's the only way I'll buy it!), and I liked it a lot. It is a little more rich, and there is a bit of that cheese-y taste you expect from cream cheese; it was more like a no-bake chocolate chip cheese cake dip, I guess. 
   Anywho, whatever way you make it....it's goooood. And not gritty! Hazaaa! Oh, I'm excited about this dip!
   Next week I'll share what my twisted treat-day mind did with the dip to send it over the edge of deliciousness! 
   Have a great weekend!

xoxo

   My husbands response to bread pudding was something like, "Bread pudding? Stale bread and crusts baked into eggs and milk? It's gross". To which I said, "you are supposed to add vanilla, cinnamon, butter, then bake it, then drench it with syrup!"
   I think we grew up with different bread puddings! He is right though (basically), bread pudding is exactly what it sounds like; a pudding made with bread. But I like to think of it as French toast without all the individual slice dipping and frying. It's cut up bread in a dish, then you pour an egg, milk, vanilla, cinnamon/sugar mixture over it and bake it. 
   I actually had my first taste of bread pudding while working at a summer camp that my Dad was cooking at. He would make the bread pudding so thick in those enormous camp-sized pans, and he would have to get up super early to get them in the oven to have enough time to bake fully (I'm talking at least 5-inch deep bread pudding!). But geepers, it was good!!! I've had good camp food, and bad camp food, but bread pudding made by my Dad? The BEST!!!! 
   I've been hankerin' for some bread pudding lately, I'm not sure why. I had some at Christmas when my sister made it, and brought along a rum sauce for it (drool....), but I hadn't made it myself in years. My treat day doesn't generally include breakfast, not because I want a healthy breakfast, but because I just don't always eat breakfast at all. But one treat day the kids and I were at the Tweed Value Mart, and there was a bag of croissants for 50% off, and suddenly I thought, "mmmmm, bread pudding made from croissants......", and grabbed the bag. It would be my treat day lunch! :)  
   It's a buttery, cinnamon-y, delightful dish, perfect for breakfast, brunch, lunch...dinner....just make it and eat it.   

Croissant Bread Pudding 

Ingredients:

• 4-6 Croissants
• 3 Eggs
• 1 Cup milk
• 2 Tbsp white and brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp Vanilla
• 1 Tbsp Cinnamon
• 1/4 Cup butter, melted

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Cut or tear up the croissants and place them into an 8x8 baking dish that has been lightly greased
3. In a bowl, whisk up the eggs, milk, sugars, vanilla and cinnamon
4. Pour the egg mixture over the croissants, trying your best to make sure you get some egg mixture on everything (it won't fully cover the bread though, and that's o.k.). You can also gently toss/mix the bread pieces around a bit if you didn't get good enough coverage with the egg mixture
5. Now carefully pour the melted butter over the pudding, again, trying to get it on as much as possible (not just dumping it in one spot!)
6. Cover with aluminum foil, and bake for 25-30 minutes, then remove the foil and allow to bake for an additional 10 minutes or so, until the top is golden
7. Serve hot with maple syrup, or make some rum sauce! 

   Some people like all the bread to be fully covered in the egg mixture, and if you're like that, simply add in another egg and a bit more milk, and increase the baking time. 
   I prefer to have the top a little crunchy and crispy. And with using croissants, the top being slightly uncovered from the egg mixture was divine. You get this fantastic, croissant-y buttery taste, and it was reeeeaaaal good! :)  

   Pancake Tuesday!!!! :)  
   I love pancakes, in case you didn't get that!
   Today is Shrove Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday which marks the beginning of lent which is the 40 days leading to Easter. That was a ramblin' sentence.
   Last Shrove Tuesday I gave a brief summary as to the "why" of Pancake Tuesday. It is basically a cleaning out of all the foods one wasn't supposed to eat during lent in preparation of Easter. For a better read on the history of this event, look here. It's a nice, short read, but gives you a batter look at what this day is all about. 
    Last year when I made pancakes for Shrove Tuesday, they were tasty, but they were flat! Flat!!! Pancakes are self-redeeming in a way though because if you add chocolate chips, and slather them in syrup, who cares if they are thick or thin?!? 
   We all know that above statement is true, but we also know that deep down, we want our pancakes thick so that they can soak up some of the maple syrup so that we can add more.... :)  Hahaha, it's true, right? I also just enjoy having a thick pancake to get my fork into! Having thin pancakes means I need a stack to get a good bite on my fork.
   Am I over-thinking this....?
   I make pancakes (almost) every Saturday for the kids, and I have been trying every week to get a better, thicker, fluffier pancake! Some weeks were close, others were crepes by accident...geepers. I found a few good pancake mixes over the year, one I got from The Royal Winter Fair, but the company didn't have a web-site for me to find out where to buy more or order more, so that mix got used up and I was back to square one. 
   I think most people have a recipe that doesn't work, so they tweak one thing, then another, and try different variations until it's right. I tend to go, "oh, it didn't work! Try something totally different!!!". Which is dumb.
This recipe today is literally just a pinch different than my thinner pancakes from last year, but it took me all year to get it right. Less liquid, more flour. Duh. 
   Well, whether you like them thick or thin, I've got you covered! If you prefer thin, look at last year's hot cakes. If you want to try some paleo pancakes, thin ones are here, thick ones are here. And if you want your bacon right in your pancake, do it! Here's that recipe!   

Gluten-Free Pancakes, Thick & Fluffy Edition 

Ingredients:

• 1-⅓ cups all purpose gluten free flour (I use Bob's Red Mill)
• 1 tsp baking powder 
• 1/2 tsp baking soda 
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 Eggs 
• 1/2 cup sour milk (add about 1 tsp lemon juice or vinegar to the 1/2 cup measure, then fill to 1/2 cup with milk of choice and stir slightly. It'll curdle, that's what ya'll want)
• 2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Chocolate chips (optional, but so delectable!)-about 1/4 cup 

Method:

1. Put a griddle on to medium heat
2. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, sour milk and oil.
4. With a wire whisk, stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients until smooth. 
5. Lightly grease your pan, and allow the grease to get warm
6. Scoop approximately 1/4 cup (I use my 1/4 cup measuring cup) pancake batter onto hot griddle. Flip when bubbly and edges are slightly dry. The second side only needs a moment on the pan before it's done
7. Now eat! :)  

   I won't say much here since my intro was a long-winded one! 
   Just have a great day, and make some pancakes tonight for dinner! Even if you do it for non-religious reasons, it's a great dinner! Add some bacon and fruit, maybe some eggs, and you've got a fantastic meal! 

   In January I shared a Dutch macaroon that was simple, light, airy, and tasty.
   I went ahead and paleo-fied it into this version for a valentines day treat! It's still simple to make, but if you're not paleo, look over here for the regular recipe, but instead of just scooping the cookies onto a baking sheet, pipe them out into hearts like these cookies! 

Paleo Heart Macaroons 

Ingredients: 

• 2 egg whites
  
• 3/4 cup of pure maple sugar
  
• 1 1/2 cups of shredded coconut
  
• Pinch of salt
  
• 2 Tbsp almond flour

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 300 Degrees and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside
2. Using a hand mixer (or stand mixer), beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form, then slowly add in the sugar while continuing to beat
3. Keep beating until the sugar has dissolved. To test if it's dissolved you can pinch some egg white between your fingers and rub them together. It can still feel a bit grainy from the sugar, but not too much
4. In a separate bowl, mix the coconut, salt and almond flour together, then carefully fold this mixture into the beaten egg whites
5. To make into hearts, fill a piping bag with the cookies 'dough' (it's not really 'dough-y", but I think you know what I mean!) with NO tip attached. You can also use a large ziploc bag, and snip a corner out of it to make your own piping bag.
6. Now, pipe your heart cookies onto your prepared cookie sheets  
7. Bake for 13-15 minutes. The cookies will be all-over lightly golden when they are done. They may also seem a little underdone in the centre, but they will set up as they cool.

   So, the recipe itself is pretty darned simple, then you just do the tiniest bit of extra work and, voila! Valentine ready! :)  
   I'm not a big valentine hype kind of person. Ya know, demanding dinner out, a bouquet of flowers, a box of chocolates, etc. Although, I love a box of chocolates anytime, so I would always gladly accept one of those! 
   I do like to try to make valentines day fun for my kids though,  so I make things into hearts to thrill their little hearts. :) Along with these I also dyed some Rice Krispie treats pink, and spread into a large cookie sheet and then cut out into heart shapes. They loved those. 
   Adam and I ate out for lunch today, which is my kind of valentine date. The kids were in school so we didn't need to hire a sitter, it was 2 in the afternoon so the restaurant wasn't busy, and neither of us had breakfast or lunch, and so our late-afternoon "lunch" was filling and took care of our tummies for dinner! All three meals made up in one! Score! I just said score about a meal....
   Now I'm running out the door to a rehearsal! I didn't post all week for some reason....I lost track of the week in a serious way!!! Oh well, can't fix it now!
   I hope everyone has a great weekend, whatever you do, however you valentine! 

xo 

   When you love marshmallows the way I love marshmallows, you find ways to add them to any/everything! 

Mallowed Peanut Butter Macaroons

Ingredients:

• 2 Cups Sugar
• 1/4Cup Butter
• 1/3Cup Cocoa
• 1/2Cup Milk
• 1/2Cup Peanut Butter
• 1/2tsp Salt
• 1tsp Vanilla
• 2 1/2-3/4 Cups Quick Oats
• 1 1/2 Cups Mini marshmallows

Method:

1.  In a medium sized pot on medium heat put sugar, butter, cocoa and milk. Stir as it warms and melts, and be sure to get the cocoa lumps worked out of it.
   
2. While this is warming, lay some wax paper out onto the counter to have ready for when you need to scoop these out.
3. Once warmed and combined, let it boil for at least a minute, and up to 1 1/2 minutes.  You want the sugar to dissolve, but if you boil it too long your cookies will loose their glossed look and will be dry. Thumbs down.
4.  Remove from heat and stir in the peanut butter, salt and vanilla.
5. Add oatmeal in increments until the consistency looks good. What's good? I know, it's so relative! Basically, you want it to not be too thick or you'll dry the cookies out.  Stir until coated.
6. Now, add about half your mallows, and stir until just combined (not melted and combined, just worked in), then add the remaining marshmallows and stir.
7. Now quickly (before the mallows fully melt, and the mixture dries) scoop or drop by heaping tablespoons-ful onto wax paper. The temperature of your house will determine how long it takes them to set.

   These are a seriously gooey, chocolatey and delicious variation on my regular old macaroons (or whatever you call these!). Not that my regular cookies are not good, they are great (in my humble opinion) :)  But really, adding marshmallows just kicks 'er up 10 notches!
   They keep well too. I can make a batch and keep them in an airtight container for a week so my kids can enjoy them after school...and if there are any left I have a few too on my treat day! It's hard looking at these all week and not gobbling them all up! 
   Anyway, I hope everyone had a good week!
   Mine was good; even with some hiccups. Mainly having Keziah home sick for a few days made things different, but by no means difficult! Each of my kids on their own are really so sweet....now, put them together and it can be a different story! 
   This week I also taught a dance number for the Belleville Theatre Guild's spring show, The Drowsy Chaperone....it was a tap dance! Do I dance? Yes. Do I choreograph? Yes. Can I tap dance......well, not exactly. I own tap shoes from some other life I was in, but I am not a "tap dancer"! In fact, when my husband saw the tap shoes sitting out he said, "what are those ugly shoes for?". We've been married nearly 11 years and he has NEVER seen them, so that should give you a hint at the last time I was tappa tappa tappin'! Also, pregnancy has been known to make foot size increase...and mine sure did! I sent a picture of my battered feet with many bandages to a friend, but I'll spare you all those ugly details! The shoes that fit just right many moons (and pre-babies) ago, now just, just fit. Ouch.
   All that to say though, I feel really accomplished for choreographing an entire dance in a style that I have only ever been moderately trained in! I felt stressed day and night about it; I would honestly wake up in the middle of the night and hear the song in my head, and I would be mentally tapping out rhythms! Every sounds I heard (including typing on a keyboard!) sounded like tap variations to me! Right now my fingers are tap dancing!!! Hahaha!!
   "They" say you can do anything you set your mind to. And usually that statement makes me irritated! If I set my mind to becoming a dinosaur, no matter how much I want it, I shall never be a dinosaur! Whomp whomp.
   However, within reason, I say "hear hear!" to that vague statement. I was asked to choreograph this piece, and I set my mind (and feet and body) to do it! I worked at it every day, slowly and painstakingly, adding a new sound or step as I went, and suddenly ("suddenly" as in 3 weeks later!), I had it done and I was teaching it! :)  
   This amusing anecdote is meant as an encouragement to you today! If you see a task ahead looking ominously large and un-manageable, just start at it....pick away at it. Do what you can with what you have (knowledge, resources, etc.), and see what you can do when you set your mind to something!
   And if you want to learn to tap dance, but not pay for it or have others witness the event, just go to YouTube! Seriously, there are a tonne of tap teachers on YouTube and you can take it at your own pace! Just in case you wanted to know. :)
   Happy weekend! 

xoxo
   
   

    It's time for maple syrup therapy! Stat!!!
    Today is a beautiful, blustery, blizzardy day...and buses are cancelled. No big deal except Friday was a p.a. day, and we had a busy weekend and I had counted on having today to recoup....alone! I have some whacko cold that is running into it's fourth week, and I just needed a "sick day" to sit around in warm and comfy clothes, drink a lot of tea, read something good, and attempt to give my body a chance to get better. No such luck. 
   So, in lieu of having some quiet time, I think it just needs to be pancake time instead.  
   These pancakes happened a few weeks back when I suddenly had the urge to eat pancakes, which I haven't had in a while, paleo or otherwise. I wasn't interested in wasting my time making some pancake that would end up flat, I needed me some big, fluffy pancakes!
   So, by using a mix of flours, baking soda activated by lemon juice, and a pinch of love (haha, I'm just kidding), these lovely dears came to be!

Paleo Chocolate Monkey Pancakes (for one)

Ingredients:

• 1/2 Banana
• 1 Egg
• 1 Tsp lemon juice
• 1 Tsp vanilla extract
• Dash of cinnamon (if you want)
• 1 Tbsp ground flax meal
• 1 Tbsp almond meal
• 1 Tbsp cocoa
• 1 Tbsp coconut flour
• 1/4 Tsp baking soda 

Method:

1. Warm a griddle on medium/low heat
2. Squish the half-banana in a small bowl, then add the other wet ingredients, and mix well
3. In another bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients until they are happily combined
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and mix until just blended
5. Add a bit of oil (I use coconut) to your now warmed up griddle
6. Pour the batter in 2 parts into your warm and greased griddle and let it cook a few minutes. These pancakes won't have dry bubbles like regular pancakes for you to know when to flip them, so the best way to gauge is to let them cook slowly, then slip a pancake flipper/spatula (whatever you call it) under the pancakes and see that it is mostly holding its own. 
7. Gently flip over and cook for an additional minute
8. Eat with almond butter and a little maple syrup, or however you want! :)    

   I forgot the lemon juice in that collage above....oh well...
   It seems like a lots of ingredients, but it honestly comes together in just a few minutes, and is worth every tiny effort!

   I suspect you could also make these with an avocado in place of the banana (perhaps just a half an avocado?), or maybe even some baked sweet potato (maybe 2-3 tablespoons?). I haven't tried either, but I could see it working well.
   You don't taste the banana really at all in these (in my opinion), so if you're worried about that, stop it. :)  I only really called them "chocolate monkey" so you would have an idea before reading the recipe that bananas were involved. No surprises! 
   So, whatever this Monday has for you-make the best of it!!! Either with the people you're with, or the place you're in, and if nothing else, with the ingredients you have on hand to make a yummy treat! :)