MICROWAVE BROWNIE FOR ONE !!

 They say that you are not supposed to reward yourself with food...OK, I get that. But every once in a while, I crave something deeply chocolate, deeply warm and gooey. This recipe fills that bill perfectly and since it is only a single serving, there isn't a whole pan of guilty calories calling your name the rest of the day.

PURE HEAVEN IN MINUTES 

MICROWAVE BROWNIE FOR ONE
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1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
3 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon butter (room temperature)
1 tablespoons pecans (optional)
2 tablespoon chocolate chips (or 1 tablespoon mini chocolate chips)
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In a small microwave safe bowl, mix everything together until smooth (mixture will be very thick). 
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Now here comes the only "tricky part" of the recipe. Total cooking time in the microwave is 1 to 2 minutes depending on how powerful your microwave is. 

My microwave is a 1000 watt machine and it takes 1 minute 20 seconds. 

Watch your microwave carefully (the FIRST time you make this treat) so you don't over bake it (use the toothpick test for doneness). After you do this first "trial run", you will know exactly how long to microwave the next mini brownies.

LET THE BAKED BROWNIE SIT FOR ABOUT A MINUTE BEFORE YOU EAT IT.
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NOTE: I am embarrassed to say I know this recipe by heart now. Any flavored chocolate, peanut butter, white (etc.) chips will work well.
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NOTE: The recipe doesn't say you have to, but I bake mine in a little ramekin that I spray with cooking spray.

ENJOY !!!

CHUCK ROAST SLOPPY JOES IN THE CROCK-POT

This recipe came about one day when I was feeling very lazy relaxed. I had a beef chuck roast in the fridge, but the idea of regular old roast beef just didn't sound good, so I went through my recipes and spotted a Sloppy Joe recipe that my family has been enjoying for 40+ years and thought...why not???

I put the roast and veggies in the crock-pot, early in the day, and enjoyed the inviting aroma of our upcoming dinner all afternoon. When it was time to eat, I just pulled out some burger buns and potato salad and we had a meal fit for company (well, OUR kind of company anyway).

CHUCK ROAST

SLOPPY JOE'S

2 pounds LEAN beef chuck roast 
1 cup chopped onion
2/3 cup chopped celery
2/3 cup green pepper chopped small
2/3 cup ketchup
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon mustard POWDER
1/4 teaspoon cayenne powder

Trim the fatty parts off of the chuck roast and cut the meat into a few large pieces, then brown them in a frying pan before putting into a large crock-pot.

In the same frying pan, sauté the vegetables until the onions are almost transparent; tuck them in and around the meat. 

Mix the rest of the ingredients and pour over the meat and veggies. Crock-pot on high for 4 to 5 hours or low for 8 hours. It isn't necessary, but I like to rotate the meat (and coat it with sauce) a couple times during the afternoon. 

Thirty minutes (or so) before serving, remove the meat and thicken the sauce with a slurry of 1 tablespoon cornstarch and 2 tablespoons of water. Once the sauce is nice and thick, slice the beef (or just pull it apart) and put it back into the sauce so it will stay hot.

When it is time to eat, pile the meat and sauce on a warm buttered bun or French bread ....oh so good!!! We like our Sloppy Joe's with a swirl of yellow mustard.

NOTE:  My Crockpot takes 4 hours on high to make the meat extremely tender but still slice-able. If you like your beef super-shredded (like pulled pork) cook it an extra hour.

NOTE: Browning the meat and veggies isn't absolutely necessary, but it really adds to the overall yummy-ness.

ENJOY !!!

BAKED SWEET POTATO FRIES

Oh my goodness, these baked sweet potato fries are tasty AND low calorie!! Even my picky-picky husband gave them a thumbs up!!!

 

 

 



Keep in mind that you are not going to get a CRISPY fry (because they are baked) but they ARE addictingly tasty with "a little sweet+little salty" flavor that hits all the right comfort notes. Crisp or not, I could easily eat a big bowl of these and not feel guilty at all.

2 medium sweet potatoes
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 teaspoons corn starch
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon regular chili powder (see note)
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika (see note)
1/2  teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon brown sugar

OK, a word about yams/sweet potatoes. Don't ask me which is which. I always buy the one with the deep orange flesh, so I'm calling them sweet potatoes in this post.

PRE-HEAT YOUR OVEN to 400°F.

Peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into French fries. Soak in water for one hour (important), then drain and pat them dry.

Put the potatoes in a bowl and sprinkle with one tablespoon vegetable oil, toss around, making sure the oil coats everything.

Mix the cornstarch, garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, smoked paprika, salt and brown sugar together until very well mixed.Sprinkle this mixture over the oiled potatoes and toss well. 

Spread the potatoes out onto a lightly sprayed cookie sheet (I don't spray my cookie sheet. Instead I line it with Reynolds non-stick foil (it works perfectly in this recipe) just make sure you spread the fries out so they don't touch each other (use two cookie sheets if necessary).



Bake in PRE-HEATED 400°F oven for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, flip the potatoes over and bake another 15 minutes. Depending on how hot your oven runs, you might have to add a couple extra minutes to get those crusty edges. 

They aren't the prettiest fries ever, but they are delicious 

Click on this Photo

to get a closer look 

 

 

Note: If you like a little more spice, you can use chipotle chili powder in place of the regular chili powder + smoked paprika.

ENJOY !!!