Quick and Easy Mardi Gras King Cake

I didn't realize until this morning that it was Fat Tuesday, I think that I was in denial about the fact that starting tomorrow I will give up something I love for 6 weeks. In the past I've given up caffein, sugar, chocolate and sadly enough swearing. With this being my year of eating healthy I feel like I've already given up so much that I'm having a hard time deciding what to give up;  luckily that's what Fat Tuesday is all about, eating and enjoying yourself before the Lenten season starts. I made up  this super easy recipe on my way to the grocery store this morning and luckily for me I picked up some cute Easter sprinkles yesterday at Target in their dollar section. Any level cook can make this, if you don't have sprinkles use food coloring to color frosting.

Ingredients
2 containers refrigerated cinnamon rolls
Frosting that comes with cinnamon rolls
Green, yellow and purple sprinkles
Flour for countertop

Follow picture tutorial below

Ingredients

Look at how perfect these sprinkles are!

Get out your rolling pin and flour and lightly flour

your work space

Place whole roll of cinnamon rolls on counter

Use rolling pin to flatten and roll out dough

Get it to where it's about a 1/2 inch thick

Take a sharp serrated knife and make slits in dough

being careful to not cut all the way to the top of the dough

It will resemble a fan

Place on cookie sheet,  or pizza stone. 

If using cookie sheet make the circle a little more

oval to fit

Right out of the oven

Take frosting and empty containers into small ziploc bag

Snip corner off baggie and use to drizzle frosting onto

cake

So easy

So this quickly so frosting stays wet

Sprinkle Mardi Gras cake with purple, green and yellow sprinkles

Enjoy!

Ginger Glazed Mahi Mahi

Remember a few weeks ago when I was eating Mahi Mahi every day?  I'm still craving it and had all of the ingredients in the house for this recipe so I guess I'm #winning. My husband and son are going to be sad that they went camping instead of staying home and enjoying this delicious meal. I plan on serving it over white rice with green beans on the side.

Ingredients 
3 TBSP honey
3 TBSP soy sauce ( I always use reduced sodium)
3 TBSP balsamic vinegar
1 tsp grated fresh ginger root ( I use this instead of fresh)
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tsp olive oil
4 (6 oz) mahi mahi fillets
salt and pepper to taste
1 TBSP vegetable oil

In a shallow glass dish stir together the hone, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, ginger, garlic and olive oil. season fish fillets with salt and pepper, and place them into the dish. If the fillets have skin on them, place them skin side down. Cover and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes.

Heat vegetable oil in skillet over med-high heat. Remove fish from dish, reserve marinade. Fry fish for 4-6 minutes on each side, turning only once, until fish flakes easily. Remove fillets to platter and keep warm. (I used frozen fillets and poured the marinade over them, placed cling wrap on top of bowl and let sit on counter until fully defrosted, marinating the whole time)


Pour remaining marinade into the skillet and heat over high heat until the mixture reduces to a glaze consistency. Spoon glaze over fish and serve.

 I only made 2  fillets, but used the regular amount of

marinade, I like it saucy..just like me

Look at that rich color, I love the honey

sliding down the bowl

Ginger, yumm

Salt and pepper fillets

Pour marinade over fish and marinate

Fry on each side for 4-6 minutes

Reserve leftover marinade

Reduce marinade until thick

Ready to go on the fish

Pour marinade over mahi mahi and

Enjoy!

Source: All-recipies

Strawberry Bread

It's strawberry season here in Florida and I bought some large gorgeous strawberries. I debated what to do with them and decided on this yummy strawberry bread. I lightened the recipe up a bit, too afraid to exchange the butter for a low fat  butter substitute, but I did exchange the cream cheese for 1/3 less fat and I also used low-fat buttermilk. I always regret making only one loaf of bread when I use a great recipe, so I doubled this one and have two lovely loaves to show for my work. You will love the taste of this moist fragrant bread.


Ingredients for 1 loaf
1/2 c butter, softened
1 c sugar
4 ounces cream cheese, softened ( I subbed 1/3 less fat)
2 eggs
1 tsp real vanilla
2 c flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp Kosher salt
1/2 c  buttermilk ( subbed low fat)
1/1/2 c strawberries, rinsed, dried and chopped

Grease 1 9x5 loaf pan, preheat oven to 350

Using a standing mixer cream butter,, sugar and cream cheese until nice and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mix in vanilla.
In seperate bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Blend flour mixture with batter until just blended. Add buttermilk and only stir until just combined, do not over mix. Dough is very thick.
Carefully fold in strawberries. Pour into loaf pan and bake for 50-60 minutes.  Make sure you use a toothpick and check for doneness. Let sit in pans for 15 minutes before placing them on a cooling rack. Yields 1 loaf or you could use mini loaf pans and watch the bread carefully until it tests done.

Ingredients

Batter after cream cheese, butter and sugar. Nice and fluffy

Add eggs one at a time

Combine dry ingredients in separate bowl

Slowly add dry ingredients

Slowly add buttermilk

Batter will be thick

I cut the tops off the strawberries and then quartered them

 before puttingthem in the food processor

Folding in the yummy berries

Doesn't this look yummy?

I made two batches, so double the goodness for us

Fresh out of the oven. A scoop of vanilla ice cream would

taste great on top of this delicious bread.

(Mine turned out a little more crumbly on the top than 

I wanted and a little denser at the bottom. 

I think I'm going to put it into 3 pans instead of 2 next time)

Enjoy!

Source: adapted from  My Baking Addiction

Thin Mint Ice Cream (lower fat version)

Since I already had some homemade thin mints in the house, AND I wanted to make a special dessert for my middle child whose home for spring break, I decided to make his favorite dessert, ice cream. Luckily Simon isn't picky so he's okay with the fact that I'm doing it the low fat way. After tasting the ice cream my daughter said "it tastes so fresh, almost like grass".  Lol, I'm hoping she meant that in a good way! The fresh mint is the secret to this delicious recipe.


Ingredients
3 cups fat free half and half
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 cup sugar
1 tsp peppermint extract (optional)
4-5 leaves of fresh mint, add more for stronger mint flavor
12 thin mint cookies, chopped
2 drops green food coloring (optional)

Mix half and half, whipping cream, sugar, food coloring, extract and fresh mint in a blender, blend until sugar is dissolved, 1-2 minutes . Transfer to ice cream machine and follow machine's directions. During the last 10 minutes of the blending process add cookies and finish mixing. Remove ice cream from mixing machine and transfer to a freezer proof container and freeze for at least 2 hours.

Ingredients

Pour everything into blender except cookies

The fresh mint adds an amazing taste to the ice cream

Pour mixture into ice cream maker

Chop thin mint cookies

Add in the last 10 minutes of machine mixing

Transfer into container for the freezer.

Enjoy!