Caramel Yogurt Dip

Everyone wants what they can’t have.

That guy who liked me for two years in high school? I took his phone calls, notes, and attention for granted, only becoming interested in him after he finally gave up and asked out another girl.

Likewise, I never gave caramel a second thought until 7th grade when the braces went on, which warranted forbidden all things sticky and sweet. I suddenly found myself craving caramel like crazy, and no amount of chocolate consumption would alleviate this desire. (I did cheat a few times—come on, didn’t everyone?—both with caramel and chewing gum.)

The day the braces disappeared, I bought a container of Marzetti caramel dip and polished off the entire thing with Fuji apple slices, another restriction on the metal-mouth diet. I’ve been a caramel lover ever since.

Yogurt replaces the heavy cream in this healthier caramel dip without all the fat, calories, corn syrup, and artificial ingredients. The result is a lusciously thick dip perfect for sliced apples, bananas, graham crackers, pretzels, pineapple, or anything else you wish came covered in caramel.

It also tastes amazing served over ice cream or my recipe for Apple Enchiladas.

(makes about a cup)

1 container plain yogurt of choice (such as So Delicious) (170g)1/8 tsp salt2 tbsp agave or pure maple syrup (30g)1/4 cup coconut brown sugar or regular brown sugar, sucanat, or date sugar (30g)1 tsp pure vanilla extract

In a small saucepan, combine all ingredients except vanilla extract. Slowly bring to a boil, then stir for about a minute until the sugar is all dissolved. (You might be able to do this in the microwave, but I’ve not tried.) Remove from the heat, stir in vanilla extract, and allow to cool.

Note: readers have reported that certain brands of yogurt can’t be boiled so instead you might want to simply combine all ingredients together without heating.

View Nutrition Facts

Question of the Day:

Have you ever wanted something you couldn’t have?

Other examples I can think of in my life include my sister’s gorgeous wavy hair, my best friend’s perfectly tanned skin, and pretty much everything at Anthropology. (Technically I could buy the $200 dresses at Athropology; but it wouldn’t be very responsible of me. Instead I usually skip going in altogether. I know myself too well.)

Link of the Day:

………………………Easy Vegetarian Chili

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Try This New Rosé Flavor from Le Bon Garçon Caramels!

A while back I raved about Le Bon Garçon, the only caramels I ever really LOVED because it's so smooth, melts in your mouth and never sticks to your teeth.

Well, for a limited time they have a new flavor, Rosé, made with raspberry, lychee and rose essence. 
You can easily tell which one is the Rosé from the color, since unlike the others that are caramel colored, the Rosé is reddish!

Nutty and sea salt caramels are pretty common these days (although Le Bon Garcon's handmade versions are still the best), and Le Bon Garcon's seasonal fruit flavors stand out. The Rose is noticeably fruity but not as tart as the mango-passion, a great option for those looking for a little something extra in their caramel treats!

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Mini Oreo Turtle Cheesecakes {Crazy Cooking Challenge}

Hello there my pretties.

This month's Crazy Cooking Challenge is here! It's the last month, you know. I'm sad about it. The theme for this month was cheesecake. Eaten many, but never made one myself. Nonetheless, I was up for the challenge. That's what these challenges are about anyways, right? Challenging yourself. Myself. Whatever.

Would I say I challenged myself? Not exactly. But I did make some adorable little mini cheesecakes. Not a whole one. Still a bit intimidated there. But one day, I will conquer that intimidation.

But for now, these mini cheesecakes count as cheesecakes. And not only are they just adorable to look at, they have oreos... and nuts.... and chocolate.... and caramel. Yes, I'd say Lauren is a genius for this one.

Mini Oreo Turtle Cheesecakes

from Lauren's Latest

• 12 Oreos
• 8oz. package cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans
• 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup caramel sauce

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a muffin tin with paper liners. Place one oreo cookie in the bottom of each tin and set aside.

In a large bowl, whip the softened cream cheese and sugar together until smooth. Stir in the egg and vanilla. Scrape sides and whip again until there are no lumps. Spoon cheesecake batter over oreos evenly. Depending on how deep your muffin tins are, you should get anywhere from 9-12 individual cheesecakes. Top with chopped pecans and mini chocolate chips. Bake for 15 minutes or until completely set. Bring to room temperature. Refrigerate until cold. To serve, remove liners, place on serving platter and top with caramel sauce.

Printable Recipe

PJ liked these more than I did (shocker, because there is caramel and nuts!). Next time I'd make more of the cheesecake filling because mine didn't turn out as deep as Lauren's, so there was more oreo than cheesecake. And I may play with the cheesecake recipe a bit more.

But overall I'm happy with my first cheesecake recipe.

Even if they are only minis  :)

Be sure to check out all of my other Crazy Cooking Challenge recipes. 

Peace, and bacon grease! 

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July's Secret Recipe Club - Homemade Twix Bars

Happy Monday to you!

First things first.... shameless plug! I just started a facebook page and would love for you to come like it :) You can click on the link above or click on the icon in my sidebar to the right.

It's time for this month's Secret Recipe Club.

I was assigned to Chris's blog Mele Cotte, which I learned means "baked apple" in Italian. She has an array of recipes that anyone would want to try! How about some Marinated Mushrooms, or Lemon Buttermilk Pound Cake? So many sounded delish but I decided on her Homemade Twix Bars. 

Cuz I don't even think it is possible for me to pass up chocolate and caramel.

I did put mine in the freezer to get them nice and firm, more like a Twix bar. Then I stored them in the fridge so they would stay firm. At room temperature, they get softer. But they were good that way too! I just prefer mine firm from the fridge  :)


Homemade Twix Bars

ever so slightly adapted from Mele Cotte

Shortbread Base

• 1 and 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/4 cup castor (fine) sugar (or pulse granulated sugar in a food processor, then measure)
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

Caramel Filling

• 3/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup dark corn syrup
• 14- oz. can sweetened condensed milk

Chocolate Topping 

• 11.5 oz milk chocolate

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray and line the bottom of an 8-inch square pan with parchment paper.

For shortbread, combine flour, softened butter, sugar, and vanilla extract in a large mixing bowl. Beat for 1 minute on medium speed until the batter starts to come together. Do not overbeat. While together but still crumbly, transfer dough to the prepared pan and press evenly and firmly to make the base. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden.

Meanwhile, make the caramel filling. Place the butter, sugar, dark corn syrup, and condensed milk in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir frequently. Once the sugar dissolves, increase heat and bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat back to medium-low heat. Cook, stirring frequently, for 8-10 minutes until the mixture becomes thick and begins to pull away from the sides of the pan.

Pour over the baked shortbread base and let cool for 15-30 minutes. Place in the refrigerator to cool and firm completely. Once firm, melt the chocolate in a microwave safe bowl until melted, stirring frequently. Cool slightly. Pour over the caramel and spread, creating an even layer. 

Chill to set. Cut into desired bars.  Store in an airtight container for up to a week. Makes about 16, 4-inch sticks.

Printable Recipe 

These bars weren't difficult to make at all. Make a golden shortbread base, cover it with a sweet caramel filling, and top it off with some chocolate... reminiscent of a Twix candy bar. Except homemade is always better. 

And you can give them away to people to show them you care. Chocolate and caramel do that, ya know  :)

Linking up here.

Peace, and bacon grease!

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John Kelly Chocolate Truffle Fudges and Visiting the Chocolate Factory!

I first had John Kelly chocolate (truffle fudges) at Corkbar and remember really liking it. I didn't know where their storefront is, so I never had it after that - until I was invited to a tasting at their new Santa Monica store on Montana.

These chocolate coated "truffle fudges" are not a traditional fudge, and the richness and creaminess are closer to a ganache.
Their most popular item is the Dark Chocolate with French Grey Sea Salt.

The fudge is made with 86% dark Belgian chocolate, topped with Sel Gris de Guerande sea salt. Sure, you see a lot of chocolates with sea salt these days, but John Kelly was one of the first, and this chocolate won the Sofi Gold Award for Outstanding Chocolate in 2009. My favorite, though, was the Chocolate and Caramel with Hawaiian Alaea Sea Salt. They use bigger sea salt grains for this one to stand up to the caramel.

Their newest products are two spicy fudges: Dark Chocolate with Chipotle and Ancho Chile, and Dark Chocolate with Habanero and Jalapeno Chile

The first is the milder of the two but it still got quite a bit of heat (at least for me!). You get the spiciness at the end, although it does not really linger. The second is even spicier, and more of a slow burn than a sudden kick. Neither was overwhelming though and you still can taste the sweetness and creaminess of the chocolate.

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June's Secret Recipe Club - Chocolate Almond Pretzel Toffee

Time for another month of the always-fun cooking challenge, the Secret Recipe Club!

I was overly excited when I received my assignment... one... because it was a new-to-me blog... and two... because it was the blog of a teenage girl named Erika... hence the name of her blog, The Teenage Taste! I was immediately impressed! I wish I was that talented at that age. I searched through tons and tons of recipes that I want to try... like her Spiced Carrot Cake Smoothie, Gooey Red Velvet Butter Cookies, and Butterfinger Rice Krispy Treats ... but ultimately I decided on her Chocolate Almond Pretzel Toffee. I wanted to use my new candy thermometer since the recipe said to let the toffee reach 285 degrees F. Plus, I can never pass up toffee. I knew it'd be delicious!

And it was! 

Sweet and salty just like I love. 

It reminds me of my Saltine Toffee, except using pretzels instead of saltine crackers, almonds instead of pecans, and no toffee bits. And it was a bit harder. I think I was accurate on getting it to 285 which is a soft crack, but I would have liked the caramel a tad softer. But still delicious, crunchy and all.

Chocolate Almond Pretzel Toffee

ever-so-slight adapted from The Teenage Taste

• 1 and 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
• 3 tbsp water
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt 
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 35 mini pretzels
• 2/3 cup milk chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup roasted almonds, chopped
• a pinch or two of sea salt, for topping

Place butter, water, sugar, and salt in a saucepan and heat on medium-high heat until melted. Bring to a boil and let cook until mixture reaches a soft crack stage (approximately 285 degrees), when it reaches a light caramel color. Remove toffee from heat and stir in vanilla extract.

Line pretzels close together in a single layer on top of a parchment-lined baking sheet. Pour the toffee over the pretzels and spread evenly. Let the toffee sit for at least 20 minutes or until hardened.

In a small microwaveable bowl, heat the chocolate chips in the microwave for a minute, stirring occasionally. Spread onto the hardened toffee. Top with chopped almonds and sprinkle with sea salt. Leave at room temp or refrigerate until chocolate has set. Break into pieces and store in an air-tight container at room temp.

Printable Recipe

Now I've got a great new toffee recipe, and a great new blog to follow :) 

Linking up here.

Peace, and bacon grease!

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Dulce de Leche Bacon Milkshake

Whoa, it's been quite some time since I've posted! I've missed it. I wish there were more hours in the day! I've gotta start making more time for this, somehow, cuz I loves it.

I was going to be linking up to the Crazy Cooking Challenge... this month it's all about the smoothies and shakes. Truthfully, I made this shake for that purpose. Then hours before posting time, I re-read the requirements and it has to have fruit. Noooooo! 

Oh well, I can still share this with you guys.

You all know I love my bacon. And caramel. You guys know that, right? Thus, this milkshake seemed like the perfect fit. Yes I'm about to do this.

Dulce de Leche Bacon Milkshakes. 

Bacon lovers, can I get an Amen?! This recipe from Eva is pure heaven for a bacon and caramel lover like myself. And you, of course!

Don't hate. All my bacon and sweet n salty lovers probably feel me. I know you may not be diggin the whole bacon in desserts thing, but just try it and you may be surprised!

I enjoyed the little bits of bacon with each drink. 

Annnnnd technically it's DOUBLE dulce de leche because instead of vanilla ice cream, I used Haagen Dazs' Dulce de Leche Caramel Ice Cream.

Dulce de Bacon Milkshake

slightly adapted from Adventures in Cooking

• 5 slices of center-cut bacon
• 1 cup Haagen Dazs Dulce de Leche Caramel ice cream
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 heaping tbsp dulce de leche (ok, let's be serious here. Let's just make it 2 tbsp)

Cook bacon in a large skillet until done, flipping occasionally. Remove and set aside to cool for 5 minutes. Cut or tear 4 of the bacon slices into small pieces. Reserve extra slice of bacon for garnish.

Place the ice cream, milk, dulce de leche, and chopped bacon in a blender. Put the lid on and blend at high speed for a minute, until mixture is thoroughly combined. Pour the milkshake into a clear serving glass and garnish with the single slice of cooked bacon. Serve immediately.

Printable Recipe

It. Doesn't. Get. Much. Better. Than. That.

Peace, and bacon grease!

Linking up here.

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Salted Caramel Milkshake {Holiday Recipe Club: Cinco de Mayo}

It's almost over but, Happy Cinco de Mayo, amigos!

We didn't do any big celebrating, but I made sure to have a margarita.

Do you guys know one of my favorite things in life?

Salted caramel. 

For reals. I'm all about the sweet and salty if you don't know by now. 

And for this month's Holiday Recipe Club, we had to make a Cinco de Mayo recipe using either chorizo, tomatoes, or dulce de leche... or a combination of any of the three. 

I chose to roll with the dulce de leche because I love all things caramel and have seen those little dulce de leche cans around stores and always wondered what to make with it. Now was the time to find out. While I was in the aisle I saw the canned kind, and some more  dulce de leche squeezable caramel sauce, same brand. So I just got both. I ended up using the pourable caramel sauce. I'll figure out what to do with the other stuff, oh don't you worry.

I opted for something simple yet something that will brighten any day or put a nice end to a rough work day or week. I found this salted caramel milkshake recipe... with some alcohol added in. Oh I'm all on that!

Salted Caramel Milkshake

slightly adapted from Food Network

• 1 cup french vanilla ice cream
• 1/3 cup Nestle La Lechera Dulce de Leche caramel sauce (squeeze bottle)
• 1 shot 1800 silver tequila
• Whipped cream
• Sea salt and/or candied orange peel, for garnish

Blend the ice cream, dulce de leche caramel sauce, tequila and 3 ice cubes in a blender on medium speed until thick and smooth. Pour in glass and top with whipped cream, sea salt and/or candied orange peel. 

Printable Recipe

This recipe made one margarita-glass full.

You can definitely make these without the alcohol too for the young ones. Or for yourself if you're not into the whole alcohol thing. But then we can't be friends. Just kidding, just kidding. That just means more alcohol for me  :)

Check out these other Mexican recipes for other Cinco de Mayo ideas!

Baked Creamy Chicken Flautas
Chicken Taco Lasagna with Cilantro Lime Sauce
Mexican Chicken with Jalapeno Popper Sauce
Southwest Chicken Burritos
White Chicken Enchiladas with Green Chile Sauce
Corn, Avocado, and Tomato Salad
Mexican Sour Cream Rice
Southwestern Deviled Eggs
Hot Fiesta Dip
Jalapeno Poppers
Homemade Taco Mix

Peace, and bacon grease!

Linking up here.

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Le Bon Garçon, Trés Bon Caramels

Truth is, while I love the taste of caramel, I don't usually go for caramel chews. Why? They're usually either hard or really sticky and I have a hard time cleaning my teeth after. I never really enjoyed eating caramel until I met these babies ... Le Bon Garçon!

My friend got them at a bakesale last year and said that they were amazing. Recently, they sent me a box of the caramels so I can try their new, limited time flavor, Caramour. Both the name and the pretty box are perfect for a Valentine's gift, don't you think?

In the box were bags of their four flavors: Salted, Macadamia Nut, Mango-Passion, and Caramour. No hardened, sticky, chewy caramels in this box; Chef Justin Chao's creations are absolutely soft and creamy, even a week after. Now, oftentimes with "flavored caramels" you can barely taste the flavors, but not so here. You get bits of coarse sea salt in the salted caramel, the mango-passion is noticeably fruity and tart, and so is the Caramour, made with one of my favorite fruits: blood orange. As the fruit itself is seasonal, so are the Caramour caramels, so get them while you can.

In light of the upcoming "holiday", if you're tired of sending/receiving chocolate this Valentine's, try sending some Bon Garçon caramels! (Note that the last order for guaranteed V-day delivery is February 7)

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Indulge: Shakes and Waffle Sandwiches at Bruxie (Orange, CA)

Waffle sandwiches may be one of the few things that would make me venture out to Orange County. That's why when I had an invitation to the avocado cooking demo in Anaheim, I decided to make a day out of it and visit one OC place that's been on my list: Bruxie Waffles.

Most of my fellow bloggers love this place, although one warned me that some of the sandwiches weren't all that. Still, I wasn't deterred and made my drive on a hot summer day. My only problem when I got there was figuring out which one to order. Luckily, when I checked in on foursquare, I saw a tip from a fellow blogger, inomthings, saying to get the Green Eggs and Ham. Well, green eggs and ham it is!

The Green Eggs and Ham ($6.95) was filled ham and cheddar, jumbo egg, mayo, arugula pesto

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