Morning Everyone & Happy Friday! Can you believe we're almost at the 'One Week Till CHRISTMAS' mark?? My daily count down calender is just taunting me. A daily reminder of how much I need to get done in a short amount of time. Thankfully, it's at least all FUN stuff & my shopping is COMPLETE! Hope you guys are enjoying the hustle & bustle of this time of year.
Anywayssss...so the awesome breakfast I had yesterday morning? Yes, it was oatmeal again. But this time it was oatmeal topped with...
...probably one of the GREATEST THINGS I'VE EVER TASTED!!
I spied this on the back shelf at Trader Joe's (aka-where I think they 'debut' all their new items that aren't mentioned in the Fearless Flyer) and was oh-so-curious to try it out. What did it taste like??? AMAZINGNESS! It's purely & simply the only way to describe itJ It's actually a 'butter' made up of ground biscuit cookies and tastes like a spoonful of cookie dough...without being sickeningly sweet.
It's not one of TJ's more "healthy items"...but suuuccchhh a treat for this time of year. And what better way to 'lighten up a treat' then to throw it over some healthy oatmeal. Balance, no??
And much like my lovely eggnog almonds, the butter melted RIGHTTTT into the oats. So dreamy! Can't wait to try this butter out on pancakes, waffles...and Ritz crackers! (which I think would be the ultimate in sweet & salty fabulousnessJ)
And for dinner last night? It turned out to be one of those great meals that could be twisted from leftovers into an entirely different dinner...
Part one of this meal was the 'Texas chili' that we made on Sunday. Since I really gave it 'no love' in my post, here's what we threw into the slow cooker...
- 2 1/2 pounds of beef chuck (coated with a little brown sugar & browned on all sides)
- 1 small onion, diced
- 14 oz. can of diced tomatoes
- 1/2 bag of roasted corn
- Chili powder & cumin (as much or as little as you want)
- Worcestershire sauce (to taste)
We let that cook on low for 7 hours and had 2 great big bowls of chili. What we ALSO did was reserve 3 cups of the beef stew for LAST night's dinner...
...which started by sauteing the rest of the roasted corn in 2 tablespoons butter...
Once the corn was warmed through, we added in 5 diced scallions and let THOSE saute for a couple minutes...
Next, I poured the leftover chili in a 9x13 pan and covered it with some shredded colby jack cheese and 1/2 of the corn & scallion mixture...
Slice up the polenta rounds and toss them on top of the casserole. Finish it off with the rest of the corn & scallions and another sprinkle of cheese.
Pop it in a 450 degree oven for 20 minutes. Let it rest for 5-10 minutes and WALLAH! 2 meals for the price of one!
We LOVED the chili & we loved 'round 2' just as much. It was a fun and delicious mix of smoky chili & creamy polenta slices....
...not to mention that lovely side of guacamole & CHRISTMAS chipsJ hehehehehehe...a great way to STREETTCHHH a meal into 2 unique dinners.
And to round out dinner, I had one of these...
...which may be one of the greatest store bought cookies I've ever tasted. Period. (well, I also love a good chocolate chip cookie from Tate'sJ)
They taste like Caramellos on a butter-y shortbread cookies. Completely, insanely delicious...
And the GOOD news is that they are SUCH decadent perfection that one REALLY can be satisfying. And at 53 calories a piece...a total 'worth it' splurge of decadence. Pick these up ASAP...the store was OUT last year and I had to wait a whole nother 365 days to try these outJ (Maybe NEXT year I'll FINALLY get to pick up the "Chocolate Covered Joe-Joe's that they speak of and that I believe are a myth. I've HEARD of them plenty...but have never actually seeeeeen them. They are the store bought cookie version of Santa ClausJ)
Alright folks...I hope you have some fun & relaxing weekend plans. I'm off for not one, but TWO days of CHRISTMAS fun...ironically all to be had in: Pennsylvania! hahahahhahaahahhahaha I'm sure I'll have LOTS to show you on my weekend recap!
Until then, have a good one!
2 comments:
Is that like Biscoff Spread?
that's pretty much exactly it, Kelsey! SO GOOD!
Post a Comment