Coconut Dreamin'

By now you should know that I LOVE coconut. My husband is a coconut addict too and would eat anything that tastes coconutty :) 

Lately we've been LOVING these Dream bars, these are the most delicious chocolate & coconut bars you've ever had. I've made them a few times because we are addicted to them — I even made a batch for our road trip and they where life savers!

They are super easy but are not the healthiest thing in the world, but it's ok, you "only" need a little piece. I've adapted a recipe I found on Martha.com to make them as healthy as possible. I promise you they'll be a big hit!

INGREDIENTS::

_ CRUST

_ 20  big graham crackers  (I get the Honey Maid Grahams Low Fat)

_ 1.5 sticks of butter, melted (I've tried reducing this amount but you really do need this much)

_ pinch of salt

_TOPPING

_ 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

_ 2 cups of flaked coconut (I get organic unsweetened)

_ 1/2 cup of walnuts or pecans

_ 1.5 cans of sweetened fat free condensed milk

DIRECTIONS::

_ Preheat oven to 350. Make sure rack is in the center.

_ Line a 9x13" with parchment paper. It might get a bit messy and it will not look perfect so don't worry about it.

_ Make crust: In food processor grind the crackers, add salt and melted butter. Pulse a bit more. Pour this into the pan and press into the bottom with your fingers, make sure you get all the corners.

_ Add the coconut all over, again, make sure you get the corners.

_ Add the coco chips and the nuts on top of the coconut.

_ Pour the condensed milk evenly over everything covering them all. 

_ Bake for about 15 min, rotate pan and cook for about 15 min more. You want a little brown around the edges but the middle nice and creamy.

_ Transfer pan to wire rack and LET COOL. I know you'll be tempted to eat it now. After it cools carefully lift the parchment paper, place it on your cutting board and cut into squares.

The original recipe says you must wrap each bar with plastic wrap and keep them refrigerated. What I do is put them in a tupperware container but I add a layer of parchment paper between the bars. And I don't like to eat them cold so I nook them for about 6 seconds... dreamy!!

Wrap it up!

After our holiday road trip I've been trying to make healthy dishes for dinner and trying not to eat too many carbs at night, so last week I made one of our favorites: Lettuce wraps!

These are super easy and delicious. Here is my super simple recipe:

INGREDIENTS::

_ 3 chicken breasts

_ soy sauce

_ lemon juice

_ 4 garlic cloves

_ 1/2 chopped yellow onion

_ 1/2 chopped red pepper

_ 1/2 chopped green pepper

_ fresh ginger

_ 1/2 cup of sliced carrots (i used mini carrot sticks)

_ salt, pepper, chili powder, chili flakes (plus anything you like!)

_ lettuce (i like boston lettuce because it can hold the chicken nicely)

_ extras: cilantro, green onions, cashews

DIRECTIONS::

_ Cut up the chicken breast in small pieces and if you have time, marinate it in some soy sauce, lemon juice, salt & pepper

_ Saute chopped garlic, peppers and onions until tender. Add the chicken and let it brown

_ Add the ginger, the spices and the carrots (i like to add them last to keep them crunchy)

_ At this point I usually add a little bit of water or chicken stock if I have. Just enough so it all comes together and you get a nice little extra juice.

_ Cut the head of lettuce in half, then in half again and put some leafs in a plate (be delicate so they don't break)

_Extras: I like to cut up some scallions, cilantro and crush a few cashews.

I like bringing all the things to the table, that way everybody can make their own. Make sure you have some good hot sauce too to give it a little kick. Feel free to add more veggies or any spices you like. You can totally make this whole think mexican style and add some black beans. Be creative!

Road Trip!

For 2 weeks my hubby and I (joined later by my awesome sis-in-law K) took a super fun 10-day road trip. I knew this meant not cooking at all for a while and I was pretty excited about trying new places (which is my second favorite thing after cooking!).

First we drove from PDX to San Francisco. We where there for a few days, spent Christmas eve and day with my aunt, then off to L.A. to see my brother for a few days. Then it was off to Napa for a few tastings, then back to PDX. The food overall was pretty good. Here are the highlights:

_ON THE ROAD:: 

Off 1-5 we stopped for lunch and this great burger place: Bartels Giant Burger. It was cheap, the burgers where really good and the chocolate milkshake even better. A must stop.

_SAN FRANCISCO::

Kirala: Super delish sushi, the fish just melted in my mouth! The place was super crowded but loved that it was pretty casual and the service was really good.

OOLA: Small place by our hotel. Food was good, we had some amazing oysters, ahi tuna and some really good fried potatoes with parmesan and truffle oil. The drinks where super overpriced though.

Ghirardelly: Had some Coffee ice cream with chocolate bites, lots of dark chocolate sauce and whipped cream. Need I say more? it was outstanding, still dreaming about it.

A16: I loved this place. Super cute and slick without being pretentious. We shared an appetizer of Mozzarella with olive oil that was incredible, we could have easily ate one each. The pizzas where lovely, thin crust and simple toppings. We had the margherita with prosciutto and the Scarola. Overall a really good meal.

Xmas: For Christmas we decided to make some baked salmon with hebs (auntie is vegetarian), mashed potatoes and a yummy salad of greens, goat cheese and toasted walnuts. It was delicious. On Xmas day my K and hubby made some great pancakes and cooked the leftover mashed into some really good breakfast potatoes.

_LOS ANGELES::

Mariasol Cocina Mexicana: We didn't really eat here but we relaxed, had drinks and enjoyed the sunset. This place it's at the end of the Santa Monica pier so it has a great view and you get free home made chips and salsa. What more can you ask for?

Gheisha House: Underwhelming is the right word for this place. The sushi was just ok, actually on the small side. Service was really bad. The place is kinda cool but not amazing. The price? expensive! I wouldn't go back. Ever.

Fritto Misto: REALLY good Italian place. Our friend Pete took us there and we loved it, good price, good wine and delicious food. Deliziosa!

_NAPA::

Elyse Winery: Super casual tasting. K and I had lots of fun here, tried about 13 wines for $10, learned nothing about wine and got a great buzz.

Domaine Chandon: We all did this tasting and we had a blast, it was SO good! If you don't have much time in Napa doing one wine tasting and one "champagne" tasting is great. Totally recommend it.

Now I'm back to cooking and cooking SUPER healthy. I'll try to post something good for you next week!