Bacon Ranch Popcorn

For your football watching days to come, you just may want to have a bowl of this sitting by to munch on.  Yes, bacon, yes, popcorn, yes buttermilk ranch dressing mix, yes, some butter, yes some parmesan cheese, and yes, a sprinkle of black pepper.  Adds up to one great big bowl of wonderful stuff!

For this football munchie, you will need:

one (1.3 oz) bag of microwave popped popcorn

4 to 6 slices of bacon, fried crisp and rough chopped

2 tsp of buttermilk ranch dressing mix (you can add a little more if you like a little more of the ranch taste)

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

4 tbsp melted butter

1/4 to 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper

Empty the bag of popped popcorn in a bowl; toss in the chopped bacon, the ranch dressing mix and the parmesan cheese; drizzle in the melted butter and toss.  Add the ground pepper and toss one more time.  Enjoy!

This will become addictive, I am sure.  So go ahead, pop away and toss and have your snacks!  A great one to take tailgating and assemble at the site or enjoy at home.

Fro Yo – yummy!

We love frozen yogurt from our local yogurt (well, local as in Montgomery) and we love healthy smoothies. Which brings me to this – Fro Yo – a sort of in between recipe. This was so good, not too sweet, and fresh!

Which brings me to this also – I have GOT to get me a new blender/food processor that is not a dinosaur! If you have one of those fancy Blendtec or Vitamix type this would take just a few seconds – with my old food processor, I worked that baby to death! HA!

Anyway, try this either way – I did have to add a squirt of water to get my processor to blend it – but you can add a bit more yogurt if you want.

Fro Yo
(feel free to change up the fruit and make what flavor you wish!)
1 pound peeled, pitted and frozen peaches (about 4 cups)
1/2 cup plain yogurt (I use the low-fat or fat-free)
3 Tbsp honey (to cut down on the honey you could use the natural agave nectar or 1 Tbsp honey and 2-3 tbsp water)
1 Tbsp lemon juice

place all in the food processor (or blender if you have a good one) and process until creamy and smooth,k about 5 minutes. Serve immediately or transfer to an airtight container and store in the freezer for about a month. You will need to set out a short while before serving once frozen.

I’m making mine with frozen strawberries next! And then blackberries, my favorite!

Have a great weekend, y’all.

Peanut Butter No Bake Bars

Peanut Butter in anything is a win-win for us. And with no flour, 3 ingredients, and no baking, you can’t go wrong. And if you want to get really creative, throw in some nuts, dried cranberries or raisins or other dried fruit, and you have a great afternoon pick-me-up! Or a wonderful breakfast bar.

Keep these in the refrigerator for a firm bar. Or if you prefer, let sit out for a short time for a more softer, chewier bar. But even in the refrigerator, these are still good and chewy. Enjoy and create your own version.

Peanut Butter No Bake Bars

3 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup honey

( halved everything since there are only two of us and used an 8×8 pan and made a really thin bar – that way hubby doesn’t get much honey in each bar)

Line a 9×9 inch pan with foil and lightly spray with non-stick spray.

Melt the peanut butter and honey together in a microwave until smooth. (doesn’t take long!)
In a medium size bowl mix all ingredients together. Press into pan. I find that if I place a piece of saran wrap on top to use to press the mix down, it makes it much easier and less messier on my hands and the mix doesn’t stick to my hands nor to the saran wrap. Works for me!
Place in refrigerator until set. Cut in squares and enjoy!

Here are mine!

(please overlook the grandkids’ almost 20 year old melamine plate that I just can’t seem to throw away!)

Let me know what you plan on throwing in to your concoction! I just may have to give yours a try!

Oh, Nuts!

Hubby loves peanuts – roasted, raw, boiled peanuts. He loves mixed nuts and he loves Cajun roasted or seasoned.

I also like to make him a “trail mix” as he also loves raisins. This recipe has a bit of all that he loves. And this recipe would be a great one to serve at receptions, family gatherings, tailgating, or just healthy snacking. Try some soon.

And come back Friday – there may be a quick giveaway – I have been remiss…I blame a wonderful enjoyable retirement life! You should try it sometime!

Mystery Mix

2 cups whole almonds
2 cups pecan halves
2 cups roasted, salted pumpkin seeds
2 cups sunflower seed kernels
1 (15-ounce) box golden raisins
1 (10-ounce) bag dried cherries (I will probably use cranberries as that is what I like)
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup honey
1 Tbsp curry powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground red pepper

Preheat oven to 250 degrees (nuts need to roast slow). Line a roasting pan with aluminum foil and set aside.
In a large bowl, combine almonds, pecans, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, raisin, and cherries.
In a small bowl, whisk the melted butter, honey, curry powder, salt, and red pepper until combined. Pour this mixture over the nut mixture and toss until all is coated. Spread the coated nut mixture in an even layer in the prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour, and stir every 15 minutes. Remove and spread in a single layer on parchment paper to cool. Sprinkle with kosher salt and let cool completely. Store in an airtight container. I like to use my large Ball Jars.

Enjoy!