Hummus Pizza

My girlfriend, Heidi, from high school was coming over for a little happy hour at our house and I couldn't wait!  It has been awhile since we caught up and I couldn't wait to hear about what was going on in her life and about her ADORABLE little girls!  It being hot out, I wanted to make appetizers that were fresh and easy.  I bought some shrimp, made guacamole and the recipe in this post...hummus pizza.  It is super simple and really tasty!

What you need:

• 1 pizza crust
• 8 oz hummus
• cucumber
• cherry tomatoes
• red onion
• black or kalamata olives
• feta (I used sheep's milk feta)
• parsley

Bake the pizza crust according to the package and let cool completely.

While the pizza cooks, cut your veggies into bit size pieces.

When pizza is cooled, smear a gracious amount of hummus on the crust.

Smooth evenly

Top with cucumber.  I used about half of a cucumber.  The pizza crust was pretty small.

tomatoes...

red onion...

olives...

feta and parsley.

Believe it or not...YOU'RE DONE!

Now it is time to dig in!

This is a great, no stress app if you are having company.  Adjust the veggies to your preference.  I love a lot of veggies, so I pile them on.  Other great options would be red pepper, artichokes, jalapenos...the possibilities are endless!

Enjoy!

Ice Cream Review: Good Karma Organic Rice Divine

My super sweet hubby came home last week with a present for me!  He knows how much I have been struggling with my new way of eating (no dairy, no wheat) and saw this hot little number on the Internet.  He hunted it down at Wegman's and brought it home to make me smile :)

It is both gluten and lactose free.  Let me tell you, that can be a hard combo to find.  It is easy to find one or the other, but to get both in the same package, that's a toughie.

A little confession about me...I'm a frozen yogurt junkie.  When I live by myself, I always had two different flavors of frozen yogurt on hand.  It was pathetic and wonderful all at the same time. 

I was, however, used to the nutrition of frozen yogurt 0-4 grams of fat, under 140 calories per serving.  This being said, the nutrition facts on the back of the container made my lips purse, but only for a second, I was too excited to eat ice cream again!

It has a nice, sweet taste and the cold aspect was there, but this, unfortunately, is where the comparison ended. 

It doesn't have the creaminess and smoothness of ice cream/frozen yogurt.  It has more of a gritty, ice crystal consistency.  It is like when you find your favorite flavor of ice cream in the back of the fridge and you open it up and it is filled with that protective layer of ice crystals, but you don't care because it is you favorite and you want to give it a try, but you are greatly disappointed when you realized that time...and freezer burn...ruined your treat.

I might be a bit biased since this is the first time I have tried non-milk ice cream, but I am going to keep my little fingers crossed that there is better out there! Keep posted for more ice cream reviews!

Have you ever tried a good dairy-free ice cream?!

P.S.  I still have the best husband in the world!  Even though it wasn't the best, his trying means more to me than anything!

Fido Friday: Frozen Peanut Butter, Banana, and Blueberry Treats

My poor little pooch had one busy week last week!  Last Wednesday, she graduated from puppy kindergarten (so proud!) and then on Thursday, she god spayed...

How mean of parents can we be?!  She has accomplished something great and then we send her off for major surgery!  Could you imagine if the day after you graduated high school, your parents took you to get your appendix out?!  Oi

Alphie in her post surgery t-shirt

To show our little Alphie girl that we were proud and that we do love her despite making her get her womanhood taken away, I wanted to make her a special treat.

I actually made these for her awhile back and she loved them!  Plus, they are super easy.

What you need:

• 1 ripe bananas
• 3/4 c. peanut butter
• 2-6 oz plain yogurt
• 40-50 blueberries

Place the first three ingredients in to the food processor...

and pulse until it is smooth.  It actually looks and smells pretty good! 

I find it easier to place the mix into a measuring cup before pouring into the ice cub trays, less mess.

Fill the ice cube trays 3/4 full and place about 2-3 blueberries (depending on size) in each compartment. 

Top with a bit more peanut butter/yogurt mix to cover the blueberries.

With the left over mix, I made the ultimate pup treat! 

Place in the freezer until completely set (about 4 hours). 

I have a feeling that Alphie knows I am making something for her...she is being awfully good!

Since Alphie was such a good girl, I let her lick the spatula after.

Once the treats are set, watch the pure delight on your dogs face as they indulge on these frozen yummies!

A little note...it is a good idea to give it to them either outside or place into their food bowl.  Alphie has a tendency to chase the cubes across the floor leaving a lovely little yogurt streak in her wake.

Another little note!  We took these over to a friend's house to share with the other puppies, but Alphie's friend Dakota has a lactose intolerance and got sick from them.

I hope your puppy likes them as much as Alphie does!

Not so food savvy date night!

Mike and I pride ourselves on being "foodies," so when Mike suggested our date night should be at Texas Road House, I promptly turned my snobby little foodie nose in the air. The idea of wasting our beloved date night on a chain restaurant was not on my to-do list.  But, I do love my husband and if he wants steak, by gosh golly (I don't know where that came from), he is going to get steak!

When we walked in, the hostess prompted us to pick out a steak of our liking.  For a second, I got a little nervous, I pictured it being like when you pick a lobster from a tank (which I find uber creepy), but she pointed to a glass refrigerator filled with prime cuts (Mike's dream come true).  I didn't pick my steak right then and there...too much pressure.  I did, however, pick my drink right away!  The server said they had ledgendary margaritas...I'll be the judge of that...

It wasn't bad, but it wasn't the best I have ever had.  I enjoy tasting my tequila, this was a whole lotta sweet!  I do understand that there are people out there (like my Mom), that like their liquor hidden behind overly-sugary fillers.  The good thing is that they serve you a bucket of salty peanuts to offset the overly-sweet marg.  BONUS!



We ordered our meals and I got a very polite sirloin and Mike got the offensive 21 oz bone-in Ribeye.



It was delicious.  He also got the over the top sweet potato with marshmallows and caramel...SAY WHAT?!  He did a good job balancing out his meal with a cup of veggies.

I

Here is my messy meal in comperison.  My potato with no butter and just a side of cinnamon-sugar.  Even though it doesn't look as impressive, it was really good!

I also got a side salad that had really good honey mustard dressing!

I'm always so proud with how much Mike can eat, but when it came to this steak I don't blame him on bit!  It had such a nice smoky flavor.

I shouldn't have been too quick to judge.  We had a really good meal and the service was excellent!  She was really patient and helpful with my whole non-dairy issue.

Date night wasn't ruined, and the next time Mike wants a steak, I will not hesitate to go back.

*This date night was on 8/8, I just didn't have an opportunity till now to get it written up! OPPS!

Orange Chocolate Chip Macaroons

Chocolate and orange is one of my top flavor combinations of all time! I am also in love with coconut and...well...coconut and anything, so why not combine them all!  These are the perfect sweet treat with minimal quilt.

What you need:

• 3 c. coconut
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp orange extract
• 1/2 c. honey
• 1/2 c. carob chips or chocolate chips

Carob chips are vegan chocolate chips.  They are not nearly as tasty as regular semi-sweet chocolate chip, but at least I can eat them since they don't have milk.

Start by putting 2 cups of the coconut in a food processor or a high power blender on high for 5 minutes.

Add in both extracts and the honey, turn on for another 10 minutes, stopping every once in a while to scrape down the sides.

It'll form into a nice paste, mine still had a little bit of grit to it.  It was also was a little warm, don't be alarmed!

Scrap into a bowl and add in the remaning coconut and the chocolate chips.  

Stir to combine.

Using a teaspoon or a small ice cream scoop, portion our and roll into small balls.  Place on a parchment or silpat lined cookie sheet. 

Place into a pre-heated 300 degree oven for 25 minutes.

Let cool completely and then dive in!

I don't understand what happened to the two in the middle, but they still taste great!

Enjoy!!