Easy Caramel Sauce

I spent the whole day making dessert for Thanksgiving. My contribution this year includes a pumpkin cheesecake and fresh caramel sauce to add on top. The cheesecake recipe will be posted soon, but for now I'll show you guys the sauce that actually worked for me. (I had a few trial and errors..)

This is by far the most simple recipe ever, I never knew it could be so easy to make caramel sauce! I might have spent a max 5 minutes mixing all the ingredients together and voila- there it was.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 3 tbsp corn starch (optional)

Directions:

1. Place butter in pan. Once melted add the brown sugar and stir. Add in the heavy cream next. If needed, mix in a little corn starch to thicken up the sauce. 

2. Put in a jar or container with a lid and place in the fridge. Sauce will thicken while cooling.

*Use on cheesecake, ice cream, brownies, etc!

Black Bean Quinoa Tacos

Ingredients:
1 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup vegetable broth (may substitute chicken broth)
1 (14.5) oz can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa
1 1/2 cups frozen corn
2 (15 oz) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
juice of 1 lime
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped (optional)
Whole wheat tortillas
Pepper Jack Cheese, Cheddar Cheese OR Mexican Blend Cheese (anything will work)
Shredded lettuce
Diced Avocado
Sour Cream

Directions:
1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook 5 minutes, or until soft. Add garlic, chili powder, cumin, paprika, cayenne, coriander salt, pepper and sauté 1 minute. Stir in broth, undrained diced tomatoes, and cooked quinoa. Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat, cover saucepan with lid and simmer about 20 minutes, until mixture has thickened.
2. Stir in corn and black beans and simmer, uncovered 5 - 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and stir in lime juice and cilantro. Season to taste with salt, pepper. Serve warm over tortillas with desired toppings.

Adapted from: Sweat Peas Kitchen

*How to cook quinoa:

-In a saucepan add 1/2 cup dried quinoa and 2 cups water. Wait until boiling, then place lid and simmer for 15-20mins. 

Baked Onion Rings

Ingredients:
2 Sweet Onions, Sliced {about a half-inch thick}
2-3 Egg Whites, {yolks discarded or used for another purpose}

1-1/2 cups Panko

3/4 cup All Purpose Flour
2 teaspoons Cajun Seasoning {optional}
Kosher Salt, to taste

Directions:
1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Trim of the ends of two sweet onions and peel back any tough layers and discard. Slice into 1/2 inch rings and separate the rings.
2. Grab three shallow dishes; one for the flour, panko {seasonings if you're using any} and the egg whites. Dredge the onion rings first in the flour and shake off any excess. Then dip in the egg whites and toss in the panko. Place in a single layer on the rimmed sheets. 

3. Bake in your preheated oven at 400 degrees for a total of twenty minutes. If you're baking two pans at the same time be sure to swap the pans on the racks at the ten minute mark (there is no need to flip the onion rings). Remove and season with a smidgen of salt before serving them with your favorite dipping condiment.

Adapted from: Simply Scratch 

Black Bean Burgers

Makes 5-6 patties

Ingredients:
2 x 14 oz. cans of black beans

1 egg
1/4 cup of panko (or plain breadcrumbs)
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
3 Tbsp oil

Directions:
1. Rinse the black beans in a colander.
2. Dump one can of beans, panko, cumin, oregano, cayenne and the egg into a blender or food processor. Pulse it together until it forms a paste.
3. Empty the contents into a bowl. Stir in the other can of beans and the cilantro. Use your hands to form into patties.
4. Heat oil in a pan to medium then gently place your patties in. Cook for 5 minutes a side. Once you’re close to 5 minutes on the first side, start sliding a thin, flexible spatula under to loosen them away from the pan. Serve on a bun with toppings, like tomato, avocado, lettuce, salsa, spicy mayo. 

Adapted by Sweet Potato Chronicles

Lettuce Wraps

• 1 lb ground turkey (or ground chicken)
• 1 onion
• 3-4 carrots
• 1/3 cup hoisin sauce
• 1/4 sweet chili sauce
• 2 tbps reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tsp sesame oil
• 1 head of Boston lettuce

Directions: 

1. Rinse lettuce leaves, keeping them whole. Set aside.

2. Cook turkey in skillet over medium heat, stirring to break up meat. Shred carrots and dice onion. 

3. Add onion, carrots, hoisin sauce, chili sauce, soy sauce, and garlic to the skillet. Cook until onion wilts- about 2 minutes.

4. Stir in sesame oil. Spoon meat into center of lettuce leaves. Eat like a taco. 

Add more sweet chili sauce on top if you prefer. Enjoy!

El Borracho

On one of my leisurely bike rides to Pikes I decided to stop into this bar before heading back home (I needed to warm myself up a bit with a drink haha). It's location makes it hard for me to return via car, but I will want to stop in another time to try out the guacamole, which I hear is pretty good. It's a small Mexican bar that can get pretty packed, but I loved the service and the strong drinks. El Borracho stands for the drunkard, which is very fitting. This bar is only a year old, yet I hear it is already planning to open a new location in Ballard sometime this month. Keep your eyes open!

ALSO. I saw that they had homemade infused tequila on the shelves which would be worth trying out!

Hours: Unknown
Location: 1521 1st Ave (between Pike St & Pine St) Seattle, WA 98101

The Leary Traveler

Located right behind the Fred Meyer in Ballard we found a small bar that offered a few beers on tap as well as some happy hour sweet potato (or yam) fries. Thinking that the fries would be the happy hour price- $5 and the drafts $2 off- we were genuinely surprised to find out that the fries were only $2 due to their fryer being down for a few days. The staff was very friendly and I enjoyed the relaxing atmosphere of the bar. I ended up getting a coconut porter which was absolutely delicious, even though it wasn't on tap. Definitely a good place to try out for a relaxing night out. Another item to check out on the happy hour menu would be the $4 hummus. I hear they also allow dogs and have fun board games, which is a plus!

Hours: M-F 11am-2am and Sat-Sun 10am-2am

Happy Hour: M-F 4-6pm 

Location: 4354 Leary Way NW Seattle, Wa 98107

Website: http://www.learytraveler.com/home

Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Pancakes

My favorite pancakes. I think I love them so much because they are SO filling... and on the healthier side. I've made them more times than I can count, yeah they aren't the most simple pancakes, but I have a few shortcuts to make them a little faster. I just love to pop the leftovers in my mouth as an after-work snack. Mmmm.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup oat bran (I food processed my regular oats)
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 egg
1 cup almond milk
1 tablespoon oil
1/2 cup natural peanut butter
1 tablespoon honey
1 banana
1/3 cup chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Add the peanut butter and honey to a heat-safe bowl. Microwave in 20 second intervals on low power until mixture is softened and warm. Mash half of the banana, and slice the remaining half into 1/4 inch thick rounds, then cut the rounds into quarters. Stir the mashed banana into the peanut butter mixture. 
2. Stir together whole wheat flour through cinnamon in a large bowl. Make a well and combine milk, egg, and oil; stir to mix. 
3. Fold in peanut butter mixture, chopped banana, and chocolate chips. 
4. Heat griddle or pan, then spray with cooking spray. Drop 1/3 cup of batter onto griddle, repeat with remaining batter. Heat until bubbles form at the surface and bottom is lightly browned, then flip and cook through. 
5. Makes 14 pancakes :) 

Adapted From: Skinny Taste

Halloween Decorations

Halloween Printable Sign

My favorite time of the year to decorate is Halloween. At my house I printed of these letters (link listed under picture) and hung them using twine. I also have decorations from previous years, including the hanging skeleton men and the hand candle. The spider web (and fake plastic spiders) helps tie everything together for the eerie feeling.
I went above and beyond this year by also hanging plastic bats from the ceiling and buying glitter spiders to lay across the food table. Overall, everyone had a great time and I cannot wait to decorate next year!

Below are some more good ideas for decorating and food that I found online.

Happy Halloween Banner

  

Halloween Mummy Spinach Dip 

Eat Drink and Be Scary Printable

Pumpkin Spice Latte Costume

Easiest and cheapest costume ever.

Items:
-Long Tank Top from H&M: $6
-Avery iron on transfer paper: $10

After finding the images online and typing out what I wanted it to say I printed it out onto the transfer paper and followed the directions to attach it to the shirt. In paint I was able to make the boxes and modify what type of drink I wanted, how many shots, and the type of milk. Perfect costume if you're low on money and want to make something creative.

Taco Salad

Ingredients:

• Lettuce
• 1lb Chicken breast
• Taco Seasoning
• Ranch
• Sour cream
• Cheddar cheese or mexican blend
• 1 avocado
• 1 canned corn
• 2 Roma tomatoes
• 1 can black beans
• Taco seasoning
• Tortilla chips

Directions:

Cook chicken in oil in frying pan. Add taco seasoning and water, pull apart with spatula to shred the meat. While chicken is cooking, assemble the plate. First, crumble tortilla chips to add to the bottom, then place the cut up lettuce on top. Shred the cheese, cut up the avocado, dice the tomatoes, and rinse the beans and corn. Add them all to the plate as well. Top off with chicken, ranch dressing, and a dollop of sour cream. 

Enjoy!