Cookie Monster Cupcakes

I made these precious Cookie Monster cupcakes for my precious Cookie Monster's second birthday party.

I made Funfetti cupcakes, which is just yellow cake mix that has sprinkles in it that melt when baked to give a polka-dotted effect when you bite into it. I bought a container of buttercream icing and used LOTS of food blue coloring to get it the perfect shade of Cookie Monster blue.

I spread a thin, even layer over the top of each cupcake.

Then I dipped each one in a bowl full of blue sprinkles.

The eyes were white candy melts.

I bought a bunch of mini Chips Ahoy chocolate chip cookies and cut them in half to use for the mouth. I had to use a small paring knife to dig out a little of each cupcake in order to secure each cookie half.

I used black icing (chocolate icing with black food coloring) to make his infamous googly eyes.

I think they turned out swell and Hana even knew they were supposed to be Cookie Monster!

Turkey Picadillo

This delicious Cuban dish is supposed to be made with ground chicken. Good luck finding ground chicken or even a butcher who will grind some up for you. And don't even begin to think that I, in all of my sanitary-obsessed glory, would grind raw chicken in one of my appliances! It's just NOT going to happen. So I present to you a much healthier and much more sanitary turkey picadillo - and it's yummy! Just in time for Turkey day, how about that?!

1 lb ground turkey

2 tsps olive oil

1 cup onion, chopped

1 1/2 tsps ground cumin

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup salsa

1/3 cup golden raisins

1/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

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Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over med-high heat. Add onion and cook 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add turkey, cumin, salt, cinnamon and garlic to pan and cook until turkey is done, stirring often. Mix in salsa and raisins; cover, reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated. remove pan from heat, stir in almonds and cilantro. Makes 4 servings.

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Serve with tortillas and black beans, hominy and rice. YUM!

Pork & Hominy Chili

2 tsp canola oil
8 oz boneless, center-cut pork chops, trimmed and cubed
1 medium onion, chopped
3/4 green bell pepper, chopped
2 tsp garlic, minced
1 tbsp chili powder
2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp ground red pepper
1/4 cup no-salt-added tomato paste
1 (15.5 oz) can yellow hominy, drained and rinsed
1 (14.5 oz) can no-salt-added diced tomatoes, not drained
1 (14 oz) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
light sour cream
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Heat oil in a large saucepan over med-high heat. Add pork and cook until lightly browned. Add onion, bell pepper and garlic; saute 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in chili powder and next four ingredients. Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in tomato paste, hominy, tomatoes and broth; bring to a boil. reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. Serve with a dollop of sour cream on top. Makes four 1 1/2 cup servings. Goes great with a quesadilla on the side!

Grape & Walnut Salad (served with the Falafel)

1/2 cup plain, low-fat yogurt

2 tbsp brown sugar

dash of cinnamon

3 cups red, seedless grapes (halved)

3 tbsp chopped walnuts

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Mix first three ingredients, then add the last two. Stir well. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

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I think I'm going to have to keep this made at all times. Between Hana and myself, well, let's just say there may or may not have been some bowl licking! ;-) What a healthy snack, but it sure tastes like a sin! A little granola would be great mixed in...

Falafel-Stuffed Pitas

Before tonight I had no idea what a falafel was. But thanks to these awesome cookbooks (this one came out of Cooking Light) JennEllen got me for my birthday, I am trying lots of new things - and they're all healthy to boot! Don't be scared by this recipe. Read the ingredients. It is oh, so yummy! The whole time I was making these I couldn't stop thinking about the episode of Friends where Christina Applegate is Rachel's sister and she keeps thinking Ross is the falafel guy. Dumb, I know, but, oh well! =)

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Falafel:

1/4 cup dry bread crumbs

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1 1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground red pepper

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 lrg egg

1 (15 oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

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1 tbsp olive oil

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Sauce:

1/2 cup plain, low-fat yogurt

2 tbsp lemon juice

2 tbsp tahini (sesame seed paste)

1 garlic clove, minced

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4 (6 inch) whole wheat pitas, halved

8 curly lettuce leaves

sliced tomato

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To prepare falafel:

Place first 8 ingredients in a food processor (Trust me. Use a food processor. I almost killed my blender and Magic Bullet and ended up mashing it with a potato masher instead! LOL) Process mixture until smooth. Divide into 16 equal portions and create patties (dip hands in water to avoid sticking to hands). The patties will seem small, but remember, you're putting two into each pita half. Heat olive oil in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Cook patties until browned on both sides, about 5 minutes per side.

To prepare sauce:

Combine yogurt, lemon juice, tahini and one garlic clove; stir with a whisk.

To made sandwiches:

Spoon sauce into each pita half and add lettuce, tomato and two patties.

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Serves 4

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FYI: I found Tahini, sesame seed paste, for $8 a bottle. Wow. No, thanks. I read the ingredients and it literally said "Ground sesame seeds." There is a nut kiosk at our Tom Thumb, and I was able to buy 1/2 lb (way too much) of sesame seeds for a little over a dollar and I just ground them myself using my handy Magic Bullet.

Sweet Potato-Chipotle Gratin

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3 medium sweet potatoes, thinly sliced

2 cups half-and-half

1/2 to 1 chipotle pepper (depending on the amount of heat you desire) with some of it's juice (from a can of chipotles in adobo sauce)

salt and pepper

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Preheat oven to 350. In a blender, puree half-and-half and chipotle pepper with it's juice. In an 8x8 casserole dish, arrange one-fourth of the potatoes, season with salt and pepper. Pour one-fourth of the half-and-half and chipotle mixture over all. Repeat to make four layers. Bake for about an hour, until the liquid is absorbed and the potatoes are browned. Makes 4-5 servings.

Quick (& cheating) Jalapeno Chicken

I say it's cheating because I just bought an already cooked rotisserie chicken rather than cooking the chicken myself.
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1 (10 oz) jar jalapeno jelly
3 tbsps pineapple juice

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Combine jelly and juice in a small saucepan. Cooke over low heat, stirring occasionally, until melted and thoroughly heated. Pour over plated chicken or serve on the side.