POM Wonderful Chocolate Cupcakes

A few weeks ago, the fabulous people at POM Wonderful sent me a free sample of their pomegranate juice!  Yay!  Have you guys ever tried this stuff?  It’s delicious and the health benefits from it are amazing.  

Here are a few outcomes of numerous studies done by POM Wonderful where patients drank 8oz of POM Wonderful Pomegranate Juice daily:

Cardiovascular

• In 13 healthy male volunteers who drank POM Wonderful 100% Pomegranate Juice for 2 weeks, the amount of LDL cholesterol oxidation decreased by 20% and antioxidant activity in the blood increased by 9%. Read the study.

Prostate Cancer

• • In a clinical study involving 46 men with rising PSA after prostate cancer treatment (surgery or radiation) who consumed 8 ounces of POM Wonderful 100% Pomegranate Juice daily over two years, PSA doubling time increased from 15 to 54 months (p <0.001).5 A longer term (6-year) continued evaluation of active sub-group patients showed a further increase in PSA doubling time to 88 months. Read the study.
  * PSA doubling time is an indicator of prostate cancer progression.

Pretty awesome, right?  Major health benefits from such a little bottle.  Anyways, beside just drinking this juice, I wanted to make something with it.  After searching the POM website, I found a chocolate cupcake recipe!  Chocolate cupcakes made with pomegranate juice??  I was intrigued and decided to make it.  The chocolate cupcakes were delicious and had just a hint of pomegranate flavor in them…and of course, they were 100% healthy because of this juice and had zero calories in them (I can’t dream can’t I?). 

Along with the cupcakes, I also found a recipe for cream cheese frosting on the POM website, but I had some issues with it.  It calls for 1 1/2 cups of juice.  That seems like an awful lot for frosting, doesn’t it?  I’ve made many frostings in my day, but never one with so much liquid.  In fact, I only added 1/4 cup of juice because it made the frosting so runny.  There was no way that my frosting was going to turn out like this picture.

 

Has anyone else tried to make this recipe before?  What did I do wrong?  Anyway, it turned out to be more of an icing, so I just dunked the cupcakes in them and viola!  Deliciousness.  Thank you POM Wonderful for sending me some juice.  I already feel healthier! :)

Enjoy!

 

Cupcake ingredients.

Iced cupcakes.

Frosting ingredients.

Mmmmm.

POM Wonderful Chocolate Cupcakes

Ingredients

• 1 cup POM Wonderful 100% Pomegranate Juice
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup water, heated to boiling
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons vinegar (not wine vinegar)
• 1 tablespoon vanilla

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350F with rack in the center, place a paper baking cup in each of 24 regular sized muffin cups.
2. Whisk together the dry ingredients to combine well, in a large measuring cup.
3. Combine pomegranate juice and boiling water.  Add oil, vinegar and vanilla to the pomegranate juice mixture.
4. Add to the flour mixture all at once and whisk to combine (batter will be lumpy).
5. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups (about half full), bake 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean and free of crumbs, let cool.

POM Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 cups POM Wonderful 100% Pomegranate Juice
• 4 oz. soft unsalted butter
• 8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
• 14 oz. powdered sugar

Directions

1. Place butter into electric mixer bowl with paddle attachment and cream on medium-high speed for 1 minute, add the cream cheese and continue to mix for 2 more minutes,
2. Turn the speed down to low and slowly add in the powdered sugar and the pomegranate juice, mix until the sugar is fully combined.
3. Remove icing from the mixer and place into a piping bag with a round or star tip.
4. OR just dunk your cupcake into the runny icing! :)

Chocolate Toffee Candy

Hello blog readers!  I hope you are all doing well.  Today I present you with one of the easiest and most delicious recipes ever!  Have you ever had a Skor candy bar?  Well, if you haven’t, I highly encourage you to go to the store and buy one right now because they are delicious.  According to the Hershey website, “with buttery toffee enrobed in milk chocolate, this bar is a distinctively rich treat.”  Mmmmm, toffee and chocolate.

I came across this recipe on Recipezaar.com and of course, it’s fabulous!  There are 4 ingredients total and it takes about 15 minutes of cook/put together time and that’s it!  I’ve made this twice now.  The first time I cut the recipe in half, which works nicely, and used semi-sweet chocolate chips.  It was good…but it didn’t quite taste like a Skor bar, so when I made it again, I used milk chocolate chips and it was AMAZING!  I took it into work and got nothing but raves about it.  If you’re looking for a quick treat or dessert, I really recommend this recipe.

Enjoy!

 

Ingredients.

Toffee.

Delicious!

Mock Skor Bars, by Recipezaar

Ingredients

• 24 regular salted Saltine crackers
• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line a 13 x9 inch pan with Parchment (or foil) paper for easy clean up. Arrange crackers evenly in pan.
2. In saucepan over medium heat melt butter. Stir in brown sugar until melted and smooth. Bring mixture to a boil stirring constantly until mixture is smooth and bubbly. Boil for 2 minutes and then pour mixture evenly over cracker.
3. Bake in oven for 5 minutes.
4. Sprinkle chocolate pieces evenly over caramel mixture. Return to oven just long enough for chocolate to melt. Spread chocolate evenly with spatula.
5. Place pan in refrigerator or freezer until chocolate is firm. Cut or break into pieces.

Cinnamon Apple Swirl Bread

Here is another delicious recipe from Recipezaar.  I made this bread before years ago and came across it again a few weeks ago, while I was bored.  Mmmm, it’s good stuff. 

It’s very similar to a cinnamon raisin bread, except you use apples!  Which is perfect for me because I’m not a fan of raisins but I happen to LOVE apples.  In making this, I made a few substitutions (surprise, surprise, right?).  First, I used half whole wheat flour because I usually use that in my baking and I prefer whole wheat bread.  Secondly, I didn’t have any “real” butter, so I used Smart Balance buttery spread and it worked great!  Third, I used Gala apples and mixed, chopped nuts.

This bread takes a little while to make, due to the rising and such, but it’s worth it.  You get two loaves and they freeze very well.  One word of advice, next time I make this I plan to just roll it all up like a jelly roll from one end, as opposed to from both ends.  My reasoning would be that I like to eat this bread toasted with a bit of Smart Balance, but on some pieces the bread didn’t “connect together” and it broke in my toaster.  Which now leaves me with little pieces of apple and nuts and the bottom that get charred every time we make toast. :)

Enjoy!

Ingredients.

Apple, cinnamon and nut filling.

   

Diesel likes to help me cook…even when I get a little messy.

 

Pre-baked.

Right out of the oven.

Swirly!

Cinnamon Swirled Apple Bread

Ingredients

• 5 1/2-6 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 (1/4 ounce) package active dry yeast
• 1 cup milk
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup shredded apple
• 1 1/2 cups finely chopped peeled apples
• 1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts or pecans, toasted
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 slightly beaten egg white
• 1 tablespoon water
• coarse sugar

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl combine 2 cups of the flour and the yeast; set aside.
2. In a saucepan heat and stir milk, granulated sugar, the 3 tablespoons butter, and the salt until warm (120° to 130°) and until butter almost melts.
3. Add milk mixture to dry mixture along with eggs.
4. Beat with an electric mixer on low to medium speed for 30 seconds, scraping side of bowl constantly.
5. Then beat on high speed 3 minutes.
6. Stir in shredded apple.
7. Using a wooden spoon, stir in as much remaining flour as you can.
8. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface.
9. Knead in enough of the remaining flour to make a moderately stiff dough that is smooth and elastic (6 to 8 minutes total).
10. Shape into a ball. Place in lightly greased bowl, turning once to grease surface.
11. Cover; let rise in a warm place until double (about 1 hour. Punch dough down.
12. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide in half Cover; let rest 10 minutes.
13. Lightly grease two 8x4x2- or 9x5x3-inch loaf pans.
14. Meanwhile, for filling, in a medium mixing bowl combine chopped apple, nuts, brown sugar, and cinnamon; set aside.
15. Roll half of the dough to a 14x9-inch rectangle. Spread with 1 tablespoon of the softened butter; sprinkle with half of the filling.
16. Beginning at both short ends, roll each end up, jelly-roll style, to center.
17. Place loaf, rolled side up, in a prepared loaf pan. For second loaf, repeat with remaining dough, remaining butter, and remaining filling.
18. Cover, let rise until almost double in size (about 30 minutes).
19. Stir together egg white and water. Brush egg white mixture over tops of loaves; sprinkle with coarse sugar.
20. Bake in a 375° oven for 30 to 40 minutes or until bread sounds hollow when you tap tops (if necessary, loosely cover with foil for the last 15 minutes of baking to prevent overbrowning).
21. Immediately remove from pans. Cool on wire racks.

We Have a Winner!

Hello friends!  First of all, thanks for all of those who commented and entered my GIVEAWAY to win a bottle of Skin MD Natural Shielding Lotion.  According to the Random Number Generator on Random.org, the lucky winner is #1 – Natalie from The Sweets Life blog!  Yay!!  Congratulations, Natalie. 

Thanks to all who participated in my GIVEAWAY and I hope to have to opportunity for more GIVEAWAYS in the future.  Stay tuned tonight or tomorrow for another delicious recipe: Cinnamon Apple Swirled Bread.  Yum!

A Review, a GIVEAWAY & Derby Pie

Boy, this is going to be one packed post!  Bare with me though because it’s good.  I promise.

  First, we have a review!  A few weeks ago, I was contacted by Skin MD Natural asking me if I’d be interested in receiving one of their products and reviewing it.  Heck yea, I would!  I’m so glad that I was able to receive a sample of their Shielding Lotion because this stuff is awesome!

 

Living in AZ for the majority of my life, I’ve always had skin that was more on the dry side.  Ever heard people in AZ say, “Oh, it’s a dry heat?”  Well, they weren’t kidding!  Add winter on top of that and then the fact that I’m always washing my hands…it all leaves me with dry skin.  The first time I used the shielding lotion, my skin was instantly moisturized and soft, and I was surprised that it stayed that way through most of the day!  Plus, the lotion is very light, non-greasy, fragrance free and a little goes a long way.  I love that!  I’ve been using the Shielding Lotion for about a week now and the overall appearance of my skin has improved greatly.  No more rough hands or dry cuticles, just soft, smooth skin.  It’s wonderful!   Check out these cool facts about Skin MD’s Shielding Lotion:

• It’s natural, eco-friendly
• It’s unlike any other conventional, artificial moisturizers because it works with the skin to naturally moisturize and heal
• It helps restore skin's natural protective abilities by bonding to the outer layer of skin, strengthening skins natural barrier against toxins and irritants that can dry the skin, while locking in the
  skin's natural oils
• It’s made in the US, using high quality natural ingredients, making it over 90% all natural
• It’s free of harmful fragrances, parabens, and colorants making it hypoallergenic
• It’s also vegan-friendly and gluten-free

Pretty cool stuff, right?  I highly recommend this lotion to those with dry skin…in fact, let me help you with that: secondly, we have a GIVEAWAY!  I’ll be randomly selecting one lucky reader to win a full size bottle of the Skin Natural MD Shielding Lotion on Tuesday, February 23rd at 12pm AZ time and here’s how you enter:

1. Leave a comment telling me why your skin is so dry.
2. Tweet the following: “@saraboff from Sara’s Sweets is having a Skin Natural MD giveaway and I want to win! http://bit.ly/afPaAA,” then, leave a comment telling me you’ve done so.
3. Blog: If you have a blog of your own, mention my giveaway in a post, then leave a comment telling me you’ve done so.

That’s it!  Good luck!

Lastly, we have a recipe.  A very delicious recipe, I might add.  One of the blogs that I frequent is Iowa Girl Eats.  Kristin has some delicious recipes, plus great tips on exercise and being healthy.  A few months ago, she posted this recipe and I knew that I had to make it! 

Kentucky Derby Pie is basically a chocolate chip cookie pie.  I know, right!  A chocolate chip cookie pie?! = AMAZING!  I followed the recipe to a “t” and it rocked my world.  Stop reading right now, go to the store, buy the ingredients and make this asap!  It is THAT good.

 

Ingredients.

Done baking.

You have to eat it while it’s still warm!  Oh my goodness!

Kentucky Derby Pie, by Iowa Girl Eats

Ingredients

• 1 stick butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 6 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips
• dash of salt
• 1 frozen deep dish pie crust

Directions

1. Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time and mix well after each egg. Add vanilla and mix.
2. Combine remaining ingredients into mixture and spoon into pie shell. Bake for 55-60 minutes, or until golden brown on top. Serve warm!

Brownies

Jeremy loves brownies.  I’m not the biggest fan of them, but of course, I’d eat one if it were offered to me.  Unless, of course, there were also cookies.  If I had to pick between cookies and brownies, I’d take cookies in a heartbeat, but that’s not the point.  I was bored one afternoon and asked Jeremy if he would like some brownies.  Sure enough, he said yes, so off to baking I went.

This recipe comes from Recipezaar.com and I’ve actually made these brownies a few time before.  People have always loved them!  They are easy to make, moist and very chocolatey.  Plus, you can add whatever”goodies” you like! (I added nuts and chocolate chips)  In all honesty though…I think they are a little too rich.  I know what you’re probably thinking, “Sara, how can a brownie be too rich?”  Call me crazy, but maybe it just comes down to the fact that brownies wouldn’t be my dessert of choice.  Dont’ get me wrong, they are still good…it’s just that I can’t eat more than a small piece before I'm all chocolated out.  So, if you’re looking for an easy and rich brownie, this is your recipe.

Enjoy!

 

Ingredients.

Right out of the oven.

Milk is necessary with this brownie.

“Whatever Floats Your Boat” Brownies, by Recipezaar

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

WHATEVER FLOATS YOUR BOAT

1-2 cup chocolate chips (semisweet, white, butterscotch, peanut butter) or raisins or chopped maraschino cherry or chopped nuts or M&M' or Reese's pieces or miniature marshmallow

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Grease an 8 inch square pan or line with foil.
3. In a medium bowl combine melted butter and cocoa and stir until cocoa is dissolved.
4. Add sugar and mix well.
5. Add eggs one at a time and stir until well combined.
6. Stir in vanilla, flour and salt until you no longer see any flour (do not overmix).
7. Fold in "WHATEVER FLOATS YOUR BOAT"!
8. Spread in pan and bake for approximately 25 minutes.
9. DO NOT OVER-BAKE -- your brownies will come out dry. Adjust time/temp accordingly for your oven. If you do the knife/toothpick test, it should come out with moist crumbs, not clean.
10. Cool completely before cutting into squares.

For double recipe, bake in 9x12 pan and add 5 minutes to baking time.  Makes 16 brownies.

Chili’s Chicken Enchilada Soup

Hola amigos!  For Christmas, I got a new cookbook called, “Top Secret Restaurant Recipes 2.”  It has a bunch of delicious sounding recipes from places such as Applebees’s, Macaroni Grill, Olive Garden, Outback and Chili’s.  There’s even a website that the book is based on.  Last week, Jeremy picked out a recipe to make for dinner and he decided on Chili’s Enchilada Soup.

Since we live in Po-dunk, USA and don’t have a lot of chain-restaurants, we visit Chili’s often and I can’t say that I ever remember seeing a chicken enchilada soup on their menu.  Have you?  Maybe it’s because I don’t really look at the soups there.  I usually look at the burgers or the chicken fajita pita because that’s what makes me think of Chili’s.  Anyway…

A main component of this soup in cheese…but not real cheese…Velveeta cheese.  I have mixed feeling about Velveeta.  First of all, it comes in a box.  What kind of cheese comes in a box!?  Secondly, it’s kind of rubbery.  What kind of cheese is rubbery!?  Lastly, it’s “pasteurized cheese product.”  Not just cheese, but “cheese product.”  That creeps me out a bit.  But oh well, it’s not like I eat it everyday…or even more than once a year, for that matter. 

Beside the Velveeta, this soup was pretty good!  It’s thick and cheesy and really tastes like enchiladas!  We cut the recipe in half, since it’s just the two of us and that still gave us enough leftovers for lunch the following day.  So, if you like cheese and you like enchiladas, I’d highly recommend that you try out this soup…or just go to Chili’s and taste it there.

Enjoy!

Ingredients.

  

Topped with crushed tortilla chips and green onion.

It’s good!

Chili’s Chicken Enchilada Soup, by Top Secret Restaurant Recipes 2

Ingredients

• 1 tbs vegetable oil
• 1lb skinless, boneless chicken breast
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 clove garlic, pressed
• 1 cup masa harina (corn flour)
• 3 cups water
• 1 cup enchilada sauce
• one 16 oz box of Velveeta, diced
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin

Directions

1. Add 1 tbs oil to a large pot over medium heat.  Add chicken breast to pot and brown for 4-5 minutes per side.  Set chicken aside.
2. Add onion and garlic to pot and saute over medium heat for about 2 minutes, or until onion begins to become translucent.  Add chicken broth.
3. Combine masa harina with 2 cups of water in a medium bowl and whisk until blended.  Add masa harina mixture to pot with onion, garlic and broth.
4. Add remaining water, enchilada sauce, cheese and spices to pot and bring mixture to a boil.
5. Shred the chicken into small, bite-size pieces and add it to the pot.  Reduce heat and simmer soup for 30-40 minutes or until thick.
6. Serve soup in cups or bowls and garnish with shredded cheese, crumbled tortilla chips and/or a spoonful of your favorite salsa or pico de gallo.

Makes approximately 12 servings.

***By the way, if you have a dog be sure to stop by my other blog because I’m having a “Dog-gone GIVEWAY!”  Enter by Wednesday, January 27th.