Eat This: CaveGirl Crunch

Due to some recurring health issues, (ongoing for the past 3+ years), Daniel has decided to go Paleo! Even the sweet-toothed side of me has to admit that this bandwagon is somewhat of a fun ride. Not that I was ever much of a, "you know what, this celery stick would be 10x better rolled in high fructose corn syrup, fried in lard, and drizzled with hot fudge," but I am known to have my Paula Deen-esque moments from time to time. Buttahhhhh! And I do sing "Oh My Dayum" every time I eat, smell, see, or think about, Five Guys. 

I'm a terrible person.

This isn't about me though. Shocking, right. This is The Whim Wham Life, not the Bonnie Bon Bon Me me meeeee Look at ME Life. Show. Thing. 

{I am being a good wife and supporting my husband by not eating (too much) dairy, grains, sugar, legumes, and chocolate, and cheese. oh glorious cheese).

Really, not about me. 

For the past two weeks, Daniel has been eating an egg/meat/veggie combo of some sort for breakfast. But, he usually likes to get out the door quickly in the morning, and needed a faster option in his new routine, so I whipped up a batch of granola, oh, nothing special, just the NECTAR OF THE GODS THIS STUFF IS SO GOOD granola! 

So good, you might see me on Shark Tank asking for a million dollars and 27% equity in my CaveGirl Crunch granola company!!! 

Wow. That escalated quickly. 

And yes, I watch Shark Tank.

{P.S. We like to eat ours with almond or coconut milk (you can make your own!), or a handful as a snack. The (primal) Bean likes his with yogurt. Or dumped straight on the floor)

...

CaveGirl Crunch Granola

Ingredients

• Dry Ingredients:
• ¾ cup of raw sunflower seeds
• 1½ cup quinoa flakes (or almond meal, etc)
• 1½ cup of shredded unsweetened coconut
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 3 cups of raw slivered, chopped, or sliced almonds
• 2-3 teaspoons of cinnamon (or ground cloves, ground ginger, nutmeg, etc)
• Wet Ingredients:
• ¾ cups of raw honey (or a mixture of maple syrup and honey)
• Additional options: vanilla, coconut oil, carob chips, etc. 

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Mix all the dry ingredients first.
3. Stir in the wet ingredients. Line baking sheet with foil or parchment paper and spread on a full cookie sheet. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove after 15 minutes and stir. Place back in oven 5 more minutes. Let it cool for about 10 minutes and then dig in! Rawr! 

xoxo

{Bon Bon}

Crave: Bacon Wrapped Stuffed Dates

{source}

Whenever I'm shmoozing at some fancy party and a plate of these bad boys pass by, I have to excuse myself. Promptly. Seriously, if these are ever in your peripheral vision, just go. Go towards the light. Even if it's mid-conversation. They will understand. You know what? Doesn't even have to be at a fancy party. Literally any get-together will suffice. Superbowl party? Sure thing! Pet hamster died? Why not! Actually, you don't even need a reason to make these. Just make them and then invite me over. I'll eat about 3 or 20.

Bacon Wrapped Goat Cheese Stuffed Dates

• One container of Medjool dates, (usually about 30 per container)
• 2-3 oz. of Goat Cheese, (or Blue Cheese, Cream Cheese, etc. I've heard almonds are delicious inside as well)
• 1 pkg. of bacon
• sea salt
• toothpicks

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Pit dates by making slice across the top and carefully removing pit. Stuff with about 1 tsp of goat cheese and pinch date back together. Cut bacon into 1/3 slices. Wrap around date and secure with toothpick. Place on wire rack set on baking sheet. Sprinkle with sea salt. Bake for 12 minutes, flip, back for 10-12 more minutes.

Serve warm or at room temp!

Enjoy!

xoxo

{Bon Bon}

Crave: Banana Pudding

I am a Southern belle at heart. My grandparents grew up in Tennessee, (Grandma Bess grew up in a family of 13. phew). They are so precious and young at heart. When I was little, I sometimes pretended I was Scarlett O'Hara, making fancy dresses out of curtains and putting on tea parties for my grandma. Summer trips to Arkansas visiting my cousin, Sara, meant plenty of sweet tea and lazy days at the farm catching fireflies. Creating firefly "rings" out of the flashing light part, aka. the butt. Hope no one reading this is a bug lover:-)

Arkansas Razorbacks Football, "Y'all", homemade Divinity, Luther's casserole, Grandma's Mac&Cheese, Texas Sheet cake, Pecan Pie. If you've never been to the South, please go. It will restore your faith in the goodness that is, a WalMart SuperCenter and perhaps, you can catch a few lightning bugs in a mason jar.

Needless to say, I am totally craving, drumroll please...Banana Pudding. This Southern staple is such a comfort food for me. It's only been about a month since I ate it too, ok, scarfed it down, but you only live life once, right? So, if you can't hop in a plane, train, or automobile anytime soon, whip up a big glass bowl full of this stuff and kick your feet up. Maybe watch a little "Gone With the Wind."

Southern Banana Pudding

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Prep Time: 30 minutes | Chill Time: 4 hours

2 cups whole milk 2/3 cup granulated sugar ¼ teaspoon salt 1 egg + 1 egg yolk 3 tablespoons cornstarch 2 tablespoons unsalted butter 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

30 vanilla wafers 2 large bananas, cut into ¼-inch slices

¾ cup heavy cream, chilled ¼ cup powdered sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Heat the milk, sugar and salt in a medium saucepan over medium heat until simmering, stirring occasionally to dissolve the sugar. Meanwhile, whisk the egg and yolk in a medium bowl until thoroughly combined. Whisk in the cornstarch until combined and the mixture is pale yellow and thick, about 20 seconds.

2. When the milk mixture reaches a full simmer, gradually whisk the simmering mixture into the egg mixture to temper. Return the mixture to the saucepan, scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula; return to a simmer over medium heat, whisking constantly, until a few bubbles burst on the surface and the mixture is thickened and glossy, about 30 seconds. Off the heat, whisk in the butter and vanilla.

3. Strain the pudding through a fine-mesh sieve set over a medium bowl. Place plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pudding to keep a skin from forming.

4. Line the bottom of a 1½-quart serving dish with vanilla wafers. On top of the wafers, place a layer of the sliced bananas. Pour ½ of the pudding over the bananas, and spread to the edges of the dish. Repeat the vanilla wafers, bananas, and pudding again. Press plastic wrap against the surface of the pudding and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

5. When ready to serve, whip the heavy cream with the powdered sugar and vanilla until soft peaks form. Spread on top of the pudding and top with crushed vanilla wafers. Store leftovers in the refrigerator.

Bless your heart.

xoxo

{Bon Bon}

Crave: Buttermilk Biscuits

{breakfast club}

One of my favorite little traditions that Daniel and I have started is something super convenient for us, fun, and of course involves food. Here's how you can enjoy it too.

Step 1. lazily roll out of bed on a Saturday morning/afternoon

Step 2. drive to the only big red building with a mill attached to it in Portland

Step 3. read the menu and try to decide what to order. it all sounds so delicious and is all organic/many whole wheat and gluten free options/etc.

Step 4. eat. perhaps wave hello to Bob. maybe play some cribbage, that's how we do it.

{Bob's Red Mill}

Seriously. I am like a little kid when we go there. And if I were still a little kid, Bob would give me tokens when he visited my table. He's that cool.

My absolute favorite thing to eat there is the amazing biscuits. My stomach always forgets that I can barely eat two of them, and I try and talk Daniel into buying me four. Yes. Four. He always laughs at me, but ends up getting four. Then we pig out and never even finish all of our food. Gotta love traditions!

If you want to try them out, here's the top secret recipe for those perfect biscuits. Top secret meaning, I asked a BRM employee and they fetched me a paper with the recipe typed out on it. I guess I'm not the only carb lover who was seeking out the holy grail of biscuit concoctions.

Enjoy!

Bob's Red Mill Buttermilk Biscuits

Ingredients:

1 lb. 3 oz. Bob's Red Mill Unbleached White Flour

1 lb. Bob's Red Mill Whole Wheat Pastry Flour

2 Tbsp. Baking Powder

1/8 tsp. Baking Soda

3 1/2 oz. Evaporated Cane Juice

1/2 tsp. Sea Salt

8 oz. Butter, unsalted

3 1/2 cups Buttermilk

2 Tbsp. Bob's Red Mill Flaxseed Meal

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Mix unbleached white flour, whole wheat flour, baking powder, evaporated cane juice, sea salt, and baking soda thoroughly. Add butter and mix until evenly distributed. Add buttermilk and evenly mix until dough forms. Roll dough out on a floured surface, sprinkle on 1-2 tablespoons of flaxseed meal, and cut with a 2 1/2-3 inch cutter. Place biscuits on a baking sheet and bake in oven for 10-15 minutes, or until golden brown.

Makes 2 dozen biscuits.

Eat. Freeze. Share. Eat some more. Whatever.

So delicious!

xoxo

{Bon Bon}

Crave: Sweet Potato Bake

The recipe posted below, for the dish of pure joy pictured above, is going to be my edible contribution to this year's Thanksgiving feast at my parents house. Is it bad that I was asked to bring a vegetable dish, and mine somehow became a "vegetable/practically a dessert" dish? Just don't think too much about the sugar, butter, and heavy cream involved. At least that's what Miss Paula says, and I believe everything she tells me. Maybe I'll do green beans too.

Paula Deen's Sweet Potato Bake

Ingredients:

3 cups mashed sweet potatoes

1 cup sugar

1/3 cup butter, melted

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 cup heavy cream, half and half, or whole milk

Topping:

1 cup brown sugar

3 tablespoons butter, melted

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup pecans or walnuts, chopped

Mix together with fork; sprinkle over top of casserole.

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Mix all ingredients together except for cream. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Add cream;mix well. Pour into greased casserole dish ( 1 1/2 quarts). Add topping. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes.

What are you making for the big day?

xoxo