Banana & Peanut Butter "Ice Cream"

I have seen this recipe floating around the interwebs for a while, and it was even recommended to me by a friend not long ago. It just took me this long to break down and give it a try. I really couldn't see how it was going to translate to "ice cream". It was actually really good. I added chopped strawberries to mine & was very pleased with the outcome. It was very creamy and did an excellent job killing that ice cream craving. 

If you're allergic to peanuts try a substitute like Sun Butter. You could probably skip the peanut butter altogether and mix in other ingredients that sound good to you. It's super easy to make!

Here's what I did. 

Ingredients:

2 bananas (over ripe is ok)

1 Tbsp creamy peanut butter

1 tsp cocoa powder (optional)

2-3 diced strawberries (optional)

Slice bananas & place in the freezer for a couple of hours. Blend in a good blender or food processor until creamy & smooth. Add peanut butter & cocoa. Mix thoroughly. Add strawberries or other add-ins.  Place in container & return to freezer to firm up.

Mine started to melt on me... It may not look appetizing here, but trust me, it was delicious! 

Chocolate Crack Cookies

I found the recipe for these little beauties somewhere on the interwebs, and I have to say they're amazing! These little gems are DAIRY FREE and FLOUR FREE! I was doubtful they would be any good, and I'm glad I was wrong! I'm not sure what they're really called, but I call them Chocolate Crack Cookies because the surface cracks when you bake them... and they're so good they're like crack!

Ingredients
3 egg whites, room temperature
1 1/2 semisweet chocolate chips
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup cocoa powder
1 Tbsp corn starch
1/4 tsp salt

Green Pozole Recipe

Made Pozole tonight... for the first time. For those of you who have never heard of it (which was me until about a week ago) it's a Mexican soup made with hominy. I had never had hominy aside from grits, but I was pleasantly surprised by this soup. I found a big drawn out recipe that included cooking and grinding pumpkin seeds, but I simplified it with great success!

1-1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken
2 32oz containers of chicken broth
8-10 tomatillos (peeled)
1 small white onion (quartered)
1-2 Serrano peppers
2 tsp minced garlic
2 bay leaves
Salt to taste
2 cans hominy
1/4 cup chopped cilantro

(A jar of salsa verde can be substituted for tomatillos & peppers)

Combine all ingredients except hominy and cilantro in a large pot. Heat until chicken is cooked through and tomatillos are dark. Remove onion, pepper, and tomatillos & purée in a blender with 1-2 cups broth from the pot (add garlic and salt to taste). Remove chicken shred once it's cool enough to handle. Return tomatillo purée (salsa verde) and chicken to the pot with broth. Add hominy and cilantro. Heat until hominy is warmed through.

Garnish with cheese, avocado, or lime.

I added sweet corn to mine and it worked well.

Pumpkin Fluff Recipe

This recipe is from All Recipes.

This is one of my favorite fall treats. It's quick, easy, and not too heavy. I normally make this recipe with prepared pudding instead of just adding the powdered mix to the pumpkin and whipped topping. There's just one problem... if you're sensitive to dairy, most pudding mixes will not set with any milk other than real milk. Jell-O brand says on their website that you can make the cooked pudding with soy milk, but the consistency will be thick. It's all rather frustrating if you ask me. Let's hope this recipe is just as tasty and works well!

You serve this as a dip with graham crackers, ginger snaps, or any other cookie of your choice. I'm going to try it with some allergy free ginger snaps or vanilla cookies. Can't wait! Enjoy!

Ingredients
1 (16 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
1 (5 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix
1 (15 ounce) can solid pack pumpkin
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

Directions
In a large bowl, mix together instant vanilla pudding mix, pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice. Fold in the thawed frozen whipped topping. Chill in the refrigerator until serving.

Mexican Bean Salad Recipe

I found this recipe on Yummly.com. I know it as Texas Caviar. It's a great salad and works well when eaten with tortilla chips (kind of like a salsa).

Ingredients
15 ozs black beans (rinsed and drained)
15 ozs kidney beans (drained)
15 ozs cannellini beans (drained and rinsed)
1 green bell pepper (chopped)
1 red bell pepper (chopped)
10 ozs corn kernels (frozen)
1 red onion (chopped)
1/2  cup olive oil
1/2  cup red wine vinegar
2 tbsps fresh lime juice
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsps white sugar
1 tbsp salt
1 clove crushed garlic
1/4  cup fresh cilantro (chopped)
1/2 tbsp ground cumin
1/2 tbsp black pepper (ground)
1 dash hot pepper sauce
1/2 tsp chili powder