Taco Cupcakes

These are Oscar Watching Party worthy!  I found this and some other great recipes on emilybites.com.

Ingredients:
1 ½ t chili oil (found near the Asian ingredients)
½ lb 95% lean ground beef
1 T taco seasoning
¾ c canned black beans, drained and rinsed
16 wonton wrappers (found in the produce section)
5 T + 1 t of queso dip or salsa con queso (I used Wholly Guacamole Queso Blanco)
1 c chunky salsa (I used Wholly Guacamole Medium Salsa)
1 c reduced fat shredded Mexican cheese (I used Weight Watchers brand)

Directions:
1.    Pre-heat the oven to 375. Lightly mist 8 cups in a muffin tin with cooking spray and set aside.
2.    Heat chili oil in a sauté pan or large skillet over medium-high heat, add the ground beef and taco seasoning and brown beef, breaking it up with a spoon. Add black beans and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for a few minutes until warm.
3.    Push a wonton wrapper into the bottom of each of the eight sprayed cups in the muffin tin. Spoon a teaspoon of queso dip into each wonton wrapper and spread across the bottom. Follow by spooning some of the meat/beans mixture into each cup (using about half the total mixture) and then splitting ½ cup of the salsa evenly into each cup. Sprinkle about half the shredded Mexican cheese evenly over the top of each cup. Press another wonton wrapper on top and repeat the layering steps with the remaining ingredients.
4.    Bake for 18-20 minutes until golden brown. Let cool 5 minutes before removing from muffin tin.

Yields 8 taco cupcakes. Weight Watchers Points Plus: 4 per cupcake (P+ calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.com)
Nutrition Information per serving from myfitnesspal.com: 164 calories, 12 g carbs, 7 g fat, 12 g protein, 1 g fiber

Oatmeal Chocolate Peanut Butter No Bake Candy Bars

Name long enough for you? 

Could it be true???  Delicious and good for you?  I made these this week and they are delicious yumminess.  You must use the coconut oil, it is a key ingredient.  I had never used it before but I am so glad I discovered it.  It's a little pricey but so worth it and it has lots of uses....not just for cooking!  

You don't have to eat much of this deliciousness (even though you will want to) and they give you tons of energy!

 Oatmeal Chocolate Peanut Butter No-Bake Candy Bars
*it is sorta like a chocolate oatmeal no bake cookie, but extra creamy and special.  it almost reminds me of fudge, but with the added texture of the oats and occasional chewy sweetness of the dried cranberries--yum!


1 cup peanut butter
2/3 cup honey
1/2 cup coconut oil (no substitutes, this is what gives its creamy texture and flavor)
2 cups oats
1 1/4 cups mini chocolate chips
3/4 cup dried cranberries

In a medium sized saucepan, melt together peanut butter, honey and coconut oil.

Remove from heat and add oats, chocolate chips and dried cranberries.  Stir until combined and chocolate chips are melted.

Spread into a 9x13 pan.  Refrigerate until hardened, about an hour.  Store in refrigerator. 

Want to know more about coconut oil and its health benefits?  Read this post about it here.

Chocolate Mint Cookies

Here's another one for your Valentine.  This is fudgy goodness!

Double Chocolate and Mint Cookies

ingredients

12 cookies

Double Chocolate and Mint Cookies 6 ounces semisweet or bittersweet (60-percent) chocolate, chopped into ½-inch pieces 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature 1 cup flour 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder 1 teaspoon baking powder ¼ teaspoon salt ⅔ cup sugar 2 large eggs, at room temperature 1 teaspoon vanilla extract One 4.67-ounce package chocolate mint thins, such as Andes, chopped into ½-inch pieces

instructions

Double Chocolate and Mint Cookies Position one rack in the center of the oven and one rack in the bottom third of the oven and preheat to 300 degrees F. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Combine the chocolate and butter in a small bowl and place over a saucepan of barely simmering water. Stir occasionally until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth. Cool for 10 minutes. Whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Whisk the sugar, eggs, 2 tablespoons water and vanilla to blend in a separate large bowl. Stir in the dry ingredients and fold in the cooled chocolate using a rubber spatula. Fold in chocolate mint pieces. Chill dough to firm slightly, 10 minutes. Using a 1/4 cup to measure, drop 6 mounds of batter onto each baking sheet, spacing apart. Put one sheet on the center rack in the oven, and one on the bottom rack. Bake cookies 9 minutes. Switch the baking sheets (top to bottom) and bake the cookies until slightly puffed and dry looking with some small cracks on top, 9 to 10 minutes longer. Cool completely on the baking sheets (cookies may deflate slightly as they cool)

Brownie Walnut Pie

Just in time for Valentine's Day!  I know my Valentine will love it!

 

Brownie-Walnut Pie

ingredients

8 to 10 servings

Brownie-Walnut Pie 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, diced 3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped 1 ¼ cups packed dark brown sugar (about 9 ounces) 3 eggs, at room temperature 3/4 cup flour ¼ teaspoon fine salt ½ cup walnut pieces, toasted Walnut halves, optional Ice cream or sweetened whipped cream, optional
Biscotti Crumb Crust One 5.5-ounce box biscotti (about 8), coarsely broken ½ stick unsalted butter, chilled and diced ¼ cup packed dark brown sugar

instructions

Brownie-Walnut Pie Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Whisk the butter and the chocolate over low heat in a heavy medium saucepan until the chocolate is almost melted. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk until the chocolate is fully melted and the mixture is smooth. Whisk in the sugar, then the eggs, one at a time. Stir in the flour and salt with a flexible rubber spatula. Stir in the nut pieces. Scrape the batter into the prepared Biscotti Crumb Crust. Press a ring of walnut halves, if using, into the batter around the top edge. Place the pie on a baking sheet and bake until the outer 2 to 3 inches are slightly puffed and dry looking and the center is set, 35 minutes. A wooden skewer inserted into the center should come out with some moist batter still attached. Cool the pie completely on a rack. Cut the pie into wedges and serve with ice cream or whipped cream, if using.

Biscotti Crumb Crust Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Blend the biscotti, butter and sugar in a food processor until the crumbs are moist and stick together when pressed. Firmly press the crumb mixture over the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch glass pie dish, building up a high rim. Bake the crust until golden and feels firm to the touch, 15 minutes. Cool the crust completely. Yield: 1 pie crust.