Indulgence: S'more Cookies

Nothing says summer like s'mores. Am I right? Or am I right? We love s'mores, but we have one little problem... we don't have a fire pit. It's makes it a little hard to make them the traditional way, and I'm not brave enough to let my kids do it using our gas stove, so these are our next best alternative. :) And though we try to keep things healthy around here, an indulgence every now and again is just fine. Happy 4th of July!

Indulgence: S'more Cookies
24 SERVINGS 
PREP: 12 minutes           COOK: 12 minutes            READY IN: 24 minutes

SIMPLE	HEALTHY	YUM

INGREDIENTS

---

• 11 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 heaping cup of mini marshmallows
• 1-2 packages graham crackers, broken into squares (I used 24 squares, but how many squares you use will ultimately depend how much dough you put on top of them)
• 3 regular sized Hershey’s bars, broken into single squares

DIRECTIONS

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1. Mix together the butter, brown sugar, and sugar together until nice and creamy.
2. Add in the eggs, one a a time. 
3. Once mixed, add the vanilla. Mix.
4. Add the baking soda, sea salt, and flour. Mix together.
5. With a large spoon, or spatula, mix-in the chocolate chips and marshmallows.
6. Chill the dough for one hour in the refrigerator.
7. Preheat the oven to 375º.
8. One a cookie sheet, lined with parchment paper, lay out the graham crackers, side by side. (For step by step pictures, click here).
9. On top of each graham cracker, place a tablespoon of dough on top. (I used my regular sized cookie scoop and it worked great).
10. Bake the cookies for 5-6 minutes, add the Hershey bar to each graham cracker cookie and bake for another 5-7 minutes. Let the cookies cool completely (I threw them in the freezer for about 20 minutes) and cut them with a sharp knife.

Enjoy!
Recipe from The Girl Who Ate Everything.

Indulgence: Apple Strudel Ebelskivers

 We rarely do anything fancy for Valentines Day. I'm more of a show me you love me everyday kinda girl :) Lucky for my husband, it keeps my expectations low for the holiday. The first few years we were married we had a tradition of just making a nice dinner at home. With our Healthy Habits Challenge this month I'm thinking we'll revert back to that. It gives more control over not ordering the fat-filled yummy food at the restaurants. However, you have to have at least one treat for Valentine's day, right? Breakfast is the perfect meal to do so. Plus you have all day to burn it off ;) These are so simple and delicious, yet they look fancy enough to be from a restaurant! Try these for your sweetheart this Valentine's day! He'll love them so much, maybe he'll buy you something fancy as a thank you? Here's to hoping!!

Apple Strudle Ebelskivers

makes 21 ebelskivers 

PREP: 20 minutes           COOK: 10 minutes            READY IN: 30 minutes

SIMPLE	HEALTHY	YUM

INGREDIENTS

---

Batter

• 3 large eggs, separated
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 cups buttermilk (or substitute with 2 cups milk with 1 teaspoon lemon juice added)
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted

Filling

• 2 Granny Smith apples
• 4 tablespoons butter (I never said these were healthy ;)) 
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted

DIRECTIONS

---

1. Prepare your filling. Peel and core your apples. Finely dice. 
2. In a skillet, melt 4 tablespoons of butter. Stir in sugar, cinnamon, salt and apples. Cook on low heat until apples are soft, about 10 minutes. Set aside when done. 
3. While apples are cooking, prepare your batter. 
4. With your separated eggs, beat the yolks with sugar and salt in a large bowl. 
5. In a separate bowl combine flour, baking powder and baking soda. 
6. Add dry ingredients to your egg yolk mixture. Alternate adding dry ingredients and buttermilk (or substitute mixture) until everything is well incorporated. 
7. Take your egg whites and beat with a hand mixture until they form stiff peaks. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter with a spatula. 
8. Heat your ebelskiver pan over low to medium heat. 
9. Brush pan with a little melted butter. To each well add 1 tablespoon batter, followed by 1 teaspoon of apple filling in the center with 1 teaspoon batter on top to seal it off. 
10. Let it cook for about 3 minutes. Turn ebelsikver using a wooden chopstick or skewer and cook for another 2-3 minutes until both sides are browned. 
11. Repeat steps 9 and 10 until all the batter and filling is used. 
12. Serve warm with syrup, cool whip or apples. 

NUTRITION FACTS

---

   1 ebelskiver   122 calories  5.4g fat  15.7g carbs   2.9g protein   5.9g sugar   

Enjoy!
Recipe adapted from The Great Breakfast Book

Indulgence: Oreo Truffles

My husband's favorite treat to make over the holidays are Oreo Truffles (aka Oreo Balls). They are super simple to make and if you can hold yourself back from eating them all to share them with your friends and neighbors (which will be no small feat!), they will most definitely ask for the recipe. Just trust me on this one. These are definitely an indulgence, but before we kick in with our New Year's resolutions, let's keep this our little secret. Okay?

Oreo Truffles
25 SERVINGS 
PREP: 30 minutes           COOL: 30 minutes            READY IN: 60 minutes

SIMPLE	HEALTHY	YUM

INGREDIENTS

---

• 14.3 ounce package of Oreos (do NOT use double stuf, it won't work as well)
• 8-ounce package of low-fat cream cheese, softened
• 16-ounce vanilla CandiQuik Candy Coating (vanilla almond bark also works)
• Optional: chocolate chips for drizzling over the tops

DIRECTIONS

---

1. In a food processor, finely grind all the Oreos. (They should look like coffee grounds when you're done. No large pieces should be found. If so, I usually let the kids sample those. :)
2. In a medium bowl, combine the oreos and cream cheese until it's all mixed together.
3. Form balls bout 3/4"-1" in diameter using your hands. Put on a plate and place in the freezer for about 15 minutes.
4. Melt the CandiQuik when you're almost done with the 15 minutes of freezing. Dip the oreo balls in the chocolate and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. 
5. Optional: Drizzle with melted chocolate.
6. Place in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes to allow everything to set.

NUTRITION FACTS

---

    1 oreo truffle    192 calories   9.8g fat   25.7g carbs    1.5g protein    18.1g sugar   

Enjoy!

Magleby's Copycat Parmesan Rolls

Whenever I write up these descriptions, I try to save the word "favorite" for my truly "favorite" recipes. Well friends, this is my absolute favorite roll recipe ever! We all have lots of different rolls - homemade rolls, store bought rolls, restaurant rolls - this recipe beats them all.

We have been making these Magleby's "knockoff rolls" for years now and every time we gather for big family or neighborhood get-togethers - these rolls are always a huge hit!

(Have you entered our fun giveaway?? It ends today so don't miss your opportunity to win a $100 VISA gift card!)

Magleby's Copycat Parmesan Rolls
12 SERVINGS 
PREP: 10 minutes   RISE: 3 hours    COOK: 15 minutes     READY IN: 3 hours 25 minutes

SIMPLE	HEALTHY	YUM

INGREDIENTS

---

• 1 stick (1/2 cup) salted butter, melted 
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 tablespoon parsley
• 15-20 frozen Rhodes white dinner rolls

DIRECTIONS

---

1. Combine melted butter and parmesan. Mix in parsley.
2. Roll frozen rolls in Parmesan mixture until they are completely covered.
3. Place rolls on ungreased baking sheet. 
4. Cover and let rise. (Takes a little over 3 hours).
5. Preheat oven to 350º. Bake rolls for 10-15 minutes.

NUTRITION FACTS

---

    1 roll serving    184 calories   10.2 g fat   19.2 g carbs    3.7 g protein    2 g sugar   

Enjoy!

Indulgence Moment: 30 minute Apple Crisp

The holiday season is upon us! Which means a mad hustle and bustle of shopping and attending various parties and social events. It's a great time of year, but it seems no matter how hard I try to make it not busy, it just never seems to happen. So that's where this recipe comes in. It's a handy recipe to have for any potluck holiday events you might be attending. It seriously only takes 30 minutes to whip up and bake and it's a definite crowd pleaser. It's one of those recipes that everyone will think you slaved over. Almost like you've dominated this holiday season... you have time for peeling apples whilst wearing your pretty apron and baking things to utmost perfection. (Shhhhh, we'll keep this secret between you and me! And you don't need an apron for this one... it's mess-proof).

Indulgence Moment: 30 minute Apple Crisp
15 SERVINGS 
PREP: 5 minutes           COOK: 25 minutes            READY IN: 30 minutes

SIMPLE	HEALTHY	YUM

INGREDIENTS

---

• 1 package white cake mix
• 3/4 cup melted butter
• 2 cups quick oats
• 1 heaping teaspoon cinnamon
• 2- 20 ounce cans apple pie filling

DIRECTIONS

---

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF and grease a 9x13-inch pan.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine cake mix, butter, oats, and cinnamon for the base mixture.
3. Press half of the base mixture into the bottom of the pan.
4. Pour both cans of apple pie filling over the base mixture in the pan and spread evenly.
5. Sprinkle or crumble the remaining base mixture over the filling. 
6. Bake for 25 minutes, or until golden brown.
7. Serve warm.

NUTRITION FACTS

---

    1 serving    348 calories   13.8g fat   54.5g carbs    3.2g protein    29.6g sugar   

Enjoy!

Indulgence Moment: Pumpkin Spice Cookies

I sure hope nobody's tired of my pumpkin spice obsession quite yet, because I'm not done (almost, but not quite!) I just can't move onto the next season's ingredient (watch out cranberries, here I come!) before I leave you with one more amazing bit of pumpkin spice goodness. Funny thing about these is they are all about the pumpkin spice - no pumpkin at all, just the spice. Which, I'll admit, is fine by me. I mean, I like pumpkin cookies just as much as the next pumpkin-lover, but adding pumpkin to cookies does end up making them into little pumpkin cakes that are fluffy and cake-like rather than chewy and cookie-like. These little guys are great, because by leaving out the pumpkin and being very generous with the pumpkin spice, you get a fantastic cookie-like cookie packed with all that spicy pumpkin flavor that it's really all about anyway.

I made these smaller than the traditional cookie - kind of like little two-bite cookies. This made them very shareable (and I like how eating small things makes them feel like they go that much further!) But, they would make perfectly lovely cookies of "typical" size as well. However you bake them up, I know you'll love this final (I think) salute to pumpkin!

Pumpkin Spice Cookies
3 1/2-4 dozen bite-size cookies (or about 1 1/2 dozen regular sized cookies)  
PREP: 15 minutes (+3 hours to refrigerate dough)     COOK: 8 minutes            READY IN: 3 1/2 hours (with chilling dough)

SIMPLE	HEALTHY	YUM

INGREDIENTS

---

• 1/2 cup butter, softened (I use salted - if using unsalted you may want to add a pinch of salt to taste)
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 tablespoons pumpkin pie spice (you could reduce the spice slightly if you prefer less, but I went all the way and it was heavenly!)
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons corn starch
• 1 teaspoon baking soda

DIRECTIONS

---

1. In a medium-sized bowl, cream together butter, sugar, and egg until the dough is light and fluffy (5-7 minutes with an electric or hand mixer).
2. Add the honey, pumpkin pie spice, and vanilla. Mix, scraping the sides of the bowl, until smooth.
3. Add flour, cornstarch, and baking soda. Mix until just combined.
4. Cover and refrigerate dough for at least 3 hours (or up to 5 days). 
5. Once the dough is chilled, form heaping teaspoons of dough into balls and place on a baking sheet, spacing them 2 inches apart and flattening each ball just slightly. Place into an oven preheated to 350ºF and bake for 8-10 minutes. 
6. Let cookies cool 5 minutes, then remove from baking sheet. 

NUTRITION FACTS

---

    2 mini cookies   106 calories   4.2 g fat   16 g carbs    1.4 g protein    7.4 g sugar   

Enjoy!
Recipe adapted from Averie Cooks.

Indulgence Moment: Apple Snicker Salad

This salad is a conversation starter and is great for taking to parties. The last party I took this to, everyone was so inquisitive about it, wondering what exactly was in it. I was having to jot down emails left and right so I could send out the recipe to everyone, which is a pretty good sign that it's a a winner!

It is a perfect fall salad and a great way to use all those yummy apples and Halloween candy. (That is, if you have any candy left after you've pilfered through all of your children's candy. But we've nev-er done that...) I usually make this with granny smith apples, but tart red apples like pink lady will work too. The salt, sour mix is a welcomed surprise to almost everyone that eats this salad. I have yet to meet someone that doesn't like it.

Apple Snicker Salad
15 SERVINGS 
PREP: 15 minutes           CHILL: 1 hour           READY IN: 75 minutes

SIMPLE	HEALTHY	YUM

INGREDIENTS

---

• 4 large granny smith apples
• 16 ounce light cool whip
• 5.1 ounce vanilla pudding
• 1 cup skim milk
• 3 large snicker bars, chopped/cubed

DIRECTIONS

---

1. In a large bowl, mix together for 2 minutes the cool whip, vanilla pudding (package only, not prepared), and milk.
2. Core and cube apples, and place in the large bowl with the cool whip mixture. Add snickers and mix together.
3. Chill for about an hour prior to serving.

NUTRITION FACTS

---

    1/2 cup serving    93 calories   1.1g fat   21g carbs    .7g protein    17g sugar   

If serving for a party, I would prepare the day of. The apples tend to get soggy and won't be as crisp or good if prepared the day before.

Enjoy!

Indulgence Moment: Cake Mix Oreos

Oreos bring out my sweet tooth like no other food. I just can't stop. Especially when I dip it in peanut butter and soak it in milk, just how they do it on "The Parent Trap." Best idea ever. However, I feel like I'm piling up the calories just thinking about them, so I hardly let my sweet tooth get the best of me. I was really craving oreos one night but I didn't have the energy to go shopping, so I decided to whip some up in the kitchen. This recipe makes a nice crisp cookie and the filling is addicting! I ended up having to give some away so I wouldn't eat them all! These will be a hit at any party... or a Friday night home alone.

Cake Mix Oreos
Makes roughly 16 cookies 

PREP: 10 minutes           COOK: 8 minutes            READY IN: 18 minutes

SIMPLE	HEALTHY	YUM

INGREDIENTS

COOKIE:

• 1 package devil's food cake mix
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup coconut oil

FILLING:

• 1/4 cup butter, room temperature
• 1/4 cup vegetable shortening
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 2 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

---

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. 
2. Add oil and eggs to cake mix and mix together until well blended. It will be pretty thick, so I just used a wooden spoon.
3. Roll the batter into balls about the size of a quarter and place on greased cookie sheet. Bake for 8 minutes. 
4. Remove from oven and let cookies cool on the cookie sheet until just warm. Carefully move cookies to a cooling rack.
5. Prepare vanilla filling by creaming butter and shortening together. Mix in vanilla. Add sugar slowly while mixing until you reach your desired consistency. 
6. Assemble cookies by placing about a tablespoon of filling in the center of a cookie (I used a ziplock bag with a small hole cut on the corner to pipe them onto the cookies) and top with another cookie of similar size. Press down slightly on the filling to make sure the cookie sets. 
7. Continue previous step until all cookies have been filled. 

NUTRITION FACTS

---

    1 cookie    312 calories   17.2g fat  38.8g carbs   1.9g protein   28g sugar   

Indulge and smile!
Recipe adapted from Mommy's Kitchen

Indulgence Moment: Cookie Salad

Cookie Salad ... kind of an oxymoron right? Growing up in a home where a salad was the green, healthy, rabbit food kind of salad, I never knew about these other kinds of salads. But after marrying the mister and eating at his parents, I discovered a whole new meaning to the word "salad." No longer was it the salad from my childhood - now it could include pudding, cool whip, any variety of fruits, sugar... the possibilities are endless! And that's just what cookie salad is - a perfect combination of all those delicious sugary ingredients listed above. Okay, so it may not qualify under the "healthy" tab, but if you're looking for a quick, easy, sweet indulgence - this is for you.

Cookie Salad
12-14 SERVINGS 
PREP: 5 minutes           REFRIGERATE : 30 minutes            READY IN: 35 minutes

SIMPLE	HEALTHY	YUM

INGREDIENTS

---

• 1 large instant vanilla pudding
• 2 cups buttermilk (or substitute 1% milk)
• 1 can pineapple tidbits, drained
• 1 can mandarin oranges, drained
• 1 package Keebler fudge stripe cookies, crunched
• 1 16-oz carton cool whip

DIRECTIONS

---

1. Mix pudding with milk until smooth. 
2. Add pineapple, mandarin oranges. Stir.
3. Crunch cookies and mix into pudding mixture.
4. Add cool whip. Stir until evenly distributed.
5. Refrigerate until desired thickness.

NUTRITION FACTS

---

    1 cup serving    196 calories   10.7 g fat   23.8 g carbs    2.1 g protein    22.4 g sugar   

Enjoy!
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