Something Yummy For The Graduate

It's official.  Grades are in and George is now a college graduate.  He even finished with a 3.0 GPA.  So we had a little celebratory meal with my Nutter Butter Pie and I thought I would share because it's AWESOME.  And the best part about this recipe is it's versatile so you can easily adapt it to other things like Oreos...or Butterfingers.  Yum.

Rachel's Nutter Butter Pie

What you'll need:

1 package of nutter butter cookies (or cookie of your choice)

3-4 tbsp Peanut butter (if using peanut butter cookies)

3 tbsp butter

1 tbsp vanilla

squirt of honey

8 oz cream cheese (1 package)

16 oz whipped cream (2 tubs)

1 bag mini Reese's cups

For crust:

Combine 3/4 of cookies, 1 tbsp peanut butter and 3 tbsp butter in food processor and process until cookies are fine and ingredients are well combined.  Poor mixture into pie dish and press around to form crust.  Pop in the freezer while you make the filling.

For filling:

Combine room temperature cream cheese, whipped cream, vanilla, squirt of honey and 2-3 tbsp of peanut butter to taste.  In a ziploc, roughly crush remaining cookies to desired size and add to well combined cream cheese and cool whip mixture.  Fold in.

Remove crust from freezer, add filling, spread evenly on top and top with chopped mini Reese's.

Freeze for at least 4 hours.  Let sit at room temp for 30 minutes before eating.  You can store it in the fridge, but I recommend storing it in the freezer.  

Enjoy!

Note:
There are similar recipes out there, but they called for more butter and a lot of additional sugar and I felt like this had plenty of sweetness with the cookies, Reese's, cream cheese and whipped cream, so I trimmed it down as best I could and just added a small squirt of honey.

November Update

So my last post was kind of pathetic.  Sorry about that.  I was and still am exhausted.  As soon as we got home from Orlando, everying rolled right into caring for a sick Clayton and a sick George.  Both of whom ended up having to go to the doctor a week ago for antibiotics. 

 And then of course, I got sick too.  George is feeling pretty good now, Clayton still has a little cough and runny nose and since I was the caboose on our snot train, I'm lagging the most, but should be in good enough shape come Thanksgiving that I can taste my food!  Thankfully, I think we are on the good side of things now and I'm trying to recover from this emotionally charged past month.  

Oh and then our washer has been acting up and last night it flooded our laundry room with a half inch of water.  While me and Clayton were home alone...lovely.

And finally, George is compelting his final three weeks of school ever!!!!  He will soon be a college grad and the last few weeks are filled with lots of papers and writing.  Which is a team sport around here because English was not George's favorite subject so I do his proofreading, spellchecking, etc for him.  Everyone pray he makes it through these final days.  We have been through a lot together.  In fact, we have been through many of the kinds of things they say break couples apart.  Well let me just tell you, nothing has come as close to "breaking" us as his school.  I am a nerd.  Books, reading, school, I'm just a proud nerd.  George...not so much.  He wanted his degree, but man it has been a struggle to motivate him some days (for good reason because he works full time too and then of course there is Clayton).  We are just so polar opposite when it comes to learning that he makes a crumby student for me and I make a crappy tutor for him.  It has not been the best combination.  But I'll be dang, he is almost done.  Thank you God.

My mom got to see a picture of Clayton's troubled renal area that requires him to have a stent and she can tell you just how mucked up it is.  She couldn't believe the number of staples that where all around that area causing some of the problems.  The staples and the scar tissue are just messing him up.  The doctor was very pleased with what he was able to do in this recent surgery though.  This will likely be the last stent before his major kidney surgery.  The doctors will probably try and get this stent to last a year to a year and a half before making their next move.  Typically stents don't last that long in the renal system, but Clayton handles them very well.  I was very pleased with our Orlando experience and that makes me feel much better about major surgeries there in the future.  I will say this though...the hospital was only a couple blocks from the Pulse nightclub and driving by it was quite eerie.

We now get to have a quiet holiday provided there are no emergencies.  Our next appointments will be making a trip back to Dallas.  That will be in the new year.  So we can breathe for a little bit and soak in the holiday merriment.  Clayton is diving into the winter wonderland spirit everywhere you look.  I saw Santa in his sleigh being pulled across my counter by two beagle beanie babies just last night.  And don't get me started on Frosty.

Now that my sense of smell and taste is returning as I'm starting to get better from my cold, I've dived into cooking again.  I love cooking, but since my last pregnancy, it has not been the same for me for some reason.  This is the first time I feel like me stepping back into the kitchen.  Yesterday, I made some homemade fresh mozzerella, tomato and basil pizzas.  And today, I made homemade artisan bread and a tomato and onion pie for lunch and homemade spaghetti for dinner.  I love to be in the kitchen cooking, but I truly do have to be in the right mindset.  

Feeling good again.

Friday Food Love: Homemade Almond Butter and Chocolate Almond Butter Cups

The last few years I have really embraced almonds.  Here are a couple of my favorites to do at home with them.

Homemade Almond Butter and Chocolate Almond Butter Cups:

This one could not be simpler and homemade almond butter is one of the best things EVER!  Nothing like the crap you buy at the store.  Throw the almonds in the food processor and blend.  No measurements at all.  Just fill it with as many almonds as it can easily handle.  Blend until almonds have butter consistency.  In my food processor, that takes almost 20 minutes.  You will see the almonds go through a number of phases before they become the desired product.  Just keep waiting... It will happen.  At the end the almond butter will likely be warm from the process...its amazing! Here are step by step photos of the process.

You might have to stop to scrape the edges.

Just another minute and it will be...

PERFECT!

You can use the finished product for apples OR you can make these awesome...

Chocolate Almond Butter Cups: 

1/2 c. organic coconut oil
1/2 c. raw cacao powder
1/2 c. almond butter
1/4 c. raw honey (you could try maple syrup, but I haven't yet)
1/2 tsp vanilla

Melt/soften coconut oil in medium microwave safe mixing bowl.  Add all ingredients to melted coconut oil.  Mix thoroughly until smooth.  Pour into silicone muffin cups filling about 1/4 to 1/2 way.  Refrigerate or freeze until firm.  ENJOY!  Store in fridge or freezer.

Perfect healthier alternative for sweet cravings.

Happy Eating!

Food Love Friday: Fresh Tomato, Basil and Mozzarella Chicken and PeachCobbler

I love food.  I mean look at me.  If you knew me before Clayton's cancer and you know me now, then you probably noticed that food comforted me well in my troubled times through Clayton's hospital days.  And during those days in NYC I discovered my absolute adoration for all things fresh mozzarella and basil.  It is a winning combination that can't be beat.  So when I came across THIS recipe on Pinterest, I had to try it...and it did not disappoint.   

We also have been rolling in peaches lately thanks to our adolescent, but very fruitful peach tree.  And George was begging me for peach cobbler...so I obliged.  I remember the days when Burris Farm Market was Burris'.  It was a thing you did and their peach cobbler was a staple.  While those days have passed, I still fondly remember their peach cobbler and found that THIS classic peach cobbler by Paula Dean fits the bill pretty close.  I have been tweaking it slightly trying to find how healthy I can make it without sacrificing its awesomeness.  I've done a rustic version and a classic version...anyway when I get it perfect in my head, I'll let you know, but until then I love THIS Paula Dean version.  It's simple and classic and perfect with vanilla ice cream.

HAPPY EATING!