Photo: Gourmet

I warned you. More decadent sweets. Today: Chocolate Espresso Pecan Pie (aka the best dessert at our big, dessert-filled family Christmas). Like I said yesterday, you’ll thank me when you find this in your bookmarks. Trust me!
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Brooke’s Homemade Cheese Crackers

This week is all about the Best Of ChowMama 2009! To help ensure that you begin 2010 with a recipe box loaded with quick and healthy recipes that your whole family will love, I’ve hand selected my favorites (recipes that I return to over and over again) and the most popular recipes as measured by traffic and comments (ones that worked out well for me and you).
Today I serve snacks and apps. The list isn’t long, but it’s a handful of keepers. Tomorrow? Healthy sweet treats and desserts.
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Photo: ilmungo

So, life was going smoothly. Even with a new baby at home. Holiday shopping was getting done. Decorations were put up. Hanukkah was celebrated without a hitch (my ChowBaby and I even found time to make Sufganiyot, home made jelly donuts). And holiday cookie dough was made and frozen in plenty of time for Christmas. Then, it hit. Hard. My super easy, teeny tiny ChowBaby stopped sleeping during the day. Not good. Please. Be. A. Phase.
I’m amazed at how incredibly far behind I’ve fallen in just one week of sleepless shenanigans. We’re suddenly three days from Christmas and I’m more a mess than I’ve been since he was born. Tired. Crabby. Stressed. Losing it. Yes, lovelies. I know you can hardly imagine me losing it, but it does happen every once and a while. (HA!) And the only thing keeping me sane right now is the cookie dough in my freezer.
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Yea. I said it. Bacon is optional if you are crazy. Or if you are a vegetarian. But if you eat meat and not bacon, I stand by my comment. Bring it on. In the meantime, let me tell you about this delicious slaw.
For the first night of Hanukkah I gave the ChowPapa this Maple Bacon Peanut Brittle. (Yes. Bacon. For a Jewish holiday. We are, after all, a family that celebrates Christmaskah.) The first thing he said after his first bite was that it would be awesome on a spinach salad. He was right, though spinach salad seemed a slightly boring backdrop for these sweet and smoky treats. Instead, I decided to adapt a recipe for Kale Slaw.
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Am I the only one who feels tricky trying to make Halloween healthy? Don’t get me wrong—I’m loathe to feed my ChowBaby packaged candy and heaps of refined sugar confections. At the same time, I’d feel pretty lame offering up most of the “treats” suggested under the “Healthy Halloween” banner. So, when I was asked to write an article for—you guessed it—healthy Halloween treats, I knew I had some serious soul searching to do!
After a lot of thought and consideration using “natural” ingredients like carob (eww!), hiding veggie purees (just for a hot second—you know I wouldn’t actually go there!), and swapping sweet treats for spookily decorated apple slices and carrot sticks, I decided that moderation is the key. (Duh!) So, instead of choosing between (or, if you have older kids, balancing) two extremes, consider my quick and easy, homemade, lower sugar treats that are wholesome but can still satisfy a sweet tooth.
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It’s pumpkin time!! And this year, I’m even more appreciative of the tasty gourd than usual. See, last month I was asked to write an article on healthy Halloween treats for babies and toddlers (I’ll link to it as soon as its live!) and I could not find pumpkin puree anywhere. Apparently, it’s only available for a limited time every year. So, the minute I could get my hands on some, I grabbed several cans of pumpkin puree.
I’m not usually one for canned vegetables, but canned pumpkin puree is easy to find without anything added. Just the pure stuff. Yes, it’s heat treated in the canning process, but that doesn’t impact flavor as much as it does other veggies. Nutrition may be impacted, but it’s a tradeoff I often make for convenience—pumpkin is not easy to deal with. (Though, when you have the time, using fresh pumpkin is worth it and reduces waste by using decorative pumpkins that would otherwise end up in the garbage.)
I’m easing into the pumpkin extravaganza slowly this year. Bread, pies, muffins, and hearty stews will surely follow in the coming months but, for now, I used my puree to make a quick and tasty cream cheese spread that can be shared with kids as young as 10+ mos.
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