Cookie and Kate

Baked Jalapeño Poppers

September 24, 2018 5 Comments

This post is brought to you by Kettle Brand chips.

It’s football season, and it’s about time for a proper jalapeño popper recipe on this food blog! These jalapeño poppers are lighter than most since they’re baked, not fried, and bacon-free (more on that in a minute).

These jalapeño poppers are stuffed with a fresh, herbed cream cheese mixture and topped with just enough cheddar cheese to turn golden. They are beyond delicious, and they’re not greasy at all. If a popper could be gourmet, this one is! I think they’re going to be your new favorite.

The inspiration for these stuffed jalapeños came from my assistant-turned-friend Megan’s birthday party for her husband. The guests all brought party snacks and a few even brought Cookie and Kate recipes, which was a fun surprise.

Someone brought jalapeño poppers wrapped in bacon, and I eyed them enviously. Being a vegetarian and a former bacon lover, I can appreciate the crisp, rich, smoky flavor that bacon must have brought to those poppers.

I came home with the mission to make bacon-free jalapeño poppers that taste just as good. Around that time, Kettle Brand reached out for a sponsorship and sent me the most amazing Organic Country Style Barbecue potato chips. I have a soft spot for potato chips and they made my jalapeño popper dreams come true!

The barbecue potato chips offer a similarly crisp, rich, smoky flavor that I can’t get enough of. Bonus? The chips are gluten free, so that means these poppers are gluten free as well. Poppers for everyone!

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23 Healthy Make-Ahead Breakfast Recipes

September 22, 2018 37 Comments

Who here eats breakfast every morning? I do! It’s really not an option for me. I’ll turn into a shaking, starving, mumbling mess a few hours into the day if I skip it. Since my breakfast is mandatory (and I don’t like cereal, I know I know), I’ve found quite a few staple grab-and-go breakfasts over the years.

I’ve learned that breakfast “sweets” are not all created equally. Simple carbohydrates like all-purpose flour pancakes and pastries give me the shakes. Whole grains like oats keep me going for hours, especially when combined with nuts (or nut butter), yogurt and/or eggs.

You’ll find a variety of healthy options below, and you can view all of my breakfast recipes here. What are your favorite make-ahead breakfast recipes? Please let me know in the comments!

Food Storage & Reheating Tips

Muffins, quick breads, pancakes, waffles and granola all freeze well. Just let them cool and transfer them to freezer bags, squeezing out as much air as reasonably possible before sealing them up.
How to reheat muffins and pancakes: I warm them up in the microwave (don’t overdo it, or they’ll get tough). If you have the foresight to let them defrost at room temperature or in the refrigerator, you can warm them in a low temperature oven.
How to reheat quick breads, like banana bread: Slice them before freezing. To defrost one at a time, gently warm in your toaster until heated through. They can be tricky to get out of the toaster, so I like these toast tongs (affiliate link) for that. Or, you can microwave or warm your slices in the oven.
How to reheat waffles: Waffles are best reheated in the toaster (again, don’t overdo it or you’ll burn your waffles).
Homemade granola: Granola stays fresh in the freezer a lot longer than it will in your pantry. It doesn’t require any defrosting, but you might let it rest for a few minutes before eating because sometimes dried fruit freezes rock-hard.

1) Apple Steel-Cut Oatmeal

Gluten free and easily vegan

These steel-cut oats are so simple and so delicious. They taste like apple pie for breakfast.

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Cold Brew Coffee (Recipe & Tips!)

September 19, 2018 39 Comments

I know, fall is coming and everyone’s excited about pumpkin spice lattes. But, it’s still blazing hot outside and I’ve been working on my cold brew coffee game all summer. I’ve become a self-proclaimed cold brew aficionado, so hear me out!

Homemade cold brew coffee is:

Smooth, slightly sweet and super refreshing
Easy to make
More affordable than buying at a coffee shop
Ready-made for busy mornings
Easily heated up if you’re in the mood for hot coffee

In summary, you can make cold brew on the weekend and pour yourself cold brew from the fridge every morning that week. No boiling water. No fussing with a coffee maker. As someone who is 100% not a morning person, cold brew coffee is a total game changer.

This tutorial is for you if: a) you already love cold brew, b) you are not a morning person, or c) you want to streamline your mornings a bit. I answered yes to all of the above. Let’s make some cold brew!

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Creamy Tahini Dressing

September 17, 2018 36 Comments

My friend Erin requested a tahini dressing recipe, and here it is! This tahini dressing is luxuriously creamy yet plant-based (no mayo!). It’s a fun alternative to your standard vinaigrette.

This tahini dressing is versatile and goes with a wide variety of salad ingredients. I listed a bunch of those ingredients below to help you craft your own salad. The tahini dressing will bring it all together.

I shared my go-to tahini sauce recipe a couple of months ago (have you tried it yet?). This salad dressing is similar but designed specifically for drizzling on salads, rather than using as a dipping sauce or on sandwiches.

For this salad dressing, I omitted the garlic and made up for the lost flavor by adding Dijon mustard. I also incorporated some olive oil in this dressing to make it extra luxurious. It’s easy to whisk together at a moment’s notice, and keeps well for about a week. I think you’re going to love it!

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Favorite Fried Eggs

September 13, 2018 34 Comments

Meet my favorite fried egg: the crispy olive oil fried egg. These fried eggs have golden, lacy, crispy edges, which contrast beautifully with their runny yellow yolks. Contrast is everything!

Start with a good egg, a hot skillet, and a generous drizzle of olive oil, and you’ll end up with the most flavorful fried egg you’ve ever tasted. They are infinitely better than the rubbery, sulfurous eggs that come out of non-stick skillets. In fact, these are the only kind of fried eggs I ever want to eat.

I learned this technique several years ago from Phoebe Lapine via her YouTube video on fried eggs. Thanks, Phoebe! I’ve been cooking eggs this way ever since.

You’ve seen these crispy fried eggs on my recipes over the years, but I’m highlighting the technique today and offering all the tips and tricks I’ve learned. You’ll also get a look at my favorite recipes featuring these golden beauties.

Ready?!

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Classic Pico de Gallo

September 11, 2018 28 Comments

Do you love pico de gallo like I do? It’s a classic Mexican tomato dip (or sauce) that adds a fresh, healthy, low-calorie boost of flavor to just about any Mexican meal.

When I was little, I piled pico de gallo on my tortilla chips at our nearby Mexican restaurant and called it dinner (refill, please). I didn’t fully appreciate pico de gallo’s wonder, though, until my family traveled to Mexico one summer when I was in college.

We stayed at an all-you-can-eat resort, which meant all-you-can-eat pico de gallo. Their pico de gallo was super fresh and utterly irresistible, and I piled it onto every single meal. Eggs! Tortillas! Beans! Spaghetti, even! Why not?

It’s funny that I’ve shared so many variations on pico de gallo over the years, but never my classic pico de gallo recipe. Today is the day. Let’s make pico de gallo while the tomatoes are still good.

Pico de gallo is so easy to make. You will need only five ingredients (six if you count the salt): ripe red tomatoes, white onion, jalapeño, cilantro, lime and salt. That’s it!

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