Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Crispy Rice Treats

Has it seriously been almost 3 months since my last post?

I can't even believe that is possible.

Then again... a lot has happened since then.  Nothing bad or overly exciting... just busy life, I guess.

Besides the craziness that is always 'the holiday season,' I did take a solo trip to Savannah toward the end of January, with my mom's side of the family to surprise my grandmother for her 85th birthday.

My aunt drove her and her two friends up from Florida, to visit my uncle & aunt & cousin (who live in Savannah).  What she didn't know is that my other two aunts, my uncle, most of the rest of my cousins, and I were all there too!  We surprised her at my uncle's house, but since there were so many of us, we rented a house on Tybee Island.

My Grammy is the 2nd one from the right, in the front row.  We are all wearing hats that my aunt had made, which said "Happy 85th from your shorebirds." So cute!

It was tough to leave Mr. Vittles and the kids though, especially because the Jersey Shore ended up getting hit with a really serious blizzard AND I ended up getting extremely sick a few days before we left.  But she was so surprised, and it was completely adorable and totally worth it. You could tell that she was truly overwhelmed with joy to see everyone.  It has been years since that many of us were together in one place, so it was really nice to spend that time as a family.

Not long before the Savannah excursion, Mr. Vittles, the kids, and I took a trip up to Connecticut to see my dad's side of the family.  It was really hard to have our first Christmas without my grandmother Yaya... but of course we all still had a lot of laughs together. She wouldn't have wanted it any other way!

My great-aunt Theresa actually told me a story I had never heard before, which had me rolling.  Apparently, when my mom and dad were newlyweds, Yaya gave my mom a baby picture of my dad.  Aunt Theresa went to my parents' house one day, and saw the baby picture on my mom's dresser.  She was curious to know why my mom had the picture there, and my mom explained that Yaya had given it to her, and it was my dad as a baby.

Except... it wasn't my dad.  Turns out, it was my dad's cousin, Aunt Theresa's son.

Now, as a mother of two wee ones, I'm not entirely sure how you mistake a photo of your nephew for your own son?  And it's not like she had 12 kids, she had 3.  I dunno, maybe in 20 years it will make more sense to me.  But either way, it is such a classic Yaya moment, and I loved hearing the story.

She was also notoriously bad at picking out gifts for people, but she LOVED to shop.  So at first it was a little sad that we didn't have any crazy Yaya gifts to laugh at this year, but dad and stepmom surprised us all by wrapping every terrifying Christmas gift they had ever received from Yaya, and re-gifting them to each member of the family. A couple of my personal favorites included a light-up crystal paperweight with a hot air balloon inside, and a hat with a photo of my dad, stepmom, and I....and our names underneath (just in case my dad ever forgot who we were?)

Mr. Vittles was lucky enough to get that gem.  You haven't lived 'til you've rocked a hat with a captioned picture of your wife & in-laws.

In any event, one thing I noticed over the months of holiday & family gatherings, is that I often get asked "Do you still have that food blog?"

And my answer is obviously yes (otherwise I wouldn't be typing this!) but I am always a little ashamed to admit how infrequently I post.  I wish I could say that I still posted 3 or 4 times a month, but with a full-time job and a 24/7 job as a mommy to a 3 year old and 8-month old... there is barely enough time in the day to maintain, let alone do any extras.

It makes me sad, though, because I genuinely enjoy the creative outlet of adapting recipes, making new things, and staging photos.  And I have always found writing to be therapeutic. Sometimes I have ideas for a new recipe for the blog that I get so excited about, I can hardly wait to find time to get to the kitchen.

"Ideas."  In case you haven't noticed, I have a lot of ideas.

When we were in Savannah, I was actually reminiscing with my cousins about something we all did as teenagers - we went to a non-profit research facility and completed a very extensive aptitude test.  My mom did this when she was a teenager, and though she never really shared what her aptitudes were, she apparently found the testing useful enough to bring me to New York City and do it myself.  My grandparents started this tradition with all of their children, and as far as I know, all of my cousins did it too.  At best, it helped some of us choose a career path; at worst, it was very interesting to see what we were naturally good at, and what we were not.

To be honest, I didn't get much out of it by way of career choice, but I definitely did find it interesting.  One part where I scored 'off the charts' in ability was something they called "ideaphoria." For that portion of the test, they give you a jump-off point, and you have to write as many thoughts as possible about that topic in a given period of time.

Apparently, I had a whole lot of... thoughts.

And so far, they hit the nail on the head with that one. Unlike interests, aptitudes are supposed to hold true over the course of your lifetime - and I will tell you that I still have a boat-load of ideas.

The problem is, I have neither the time nor the motivation to execute about 99% of them!

But I do have a blog that I've grown very fond of, and even if I only get to share one idea a month (or every 3 months?) then so be it.

So this recipe turned out to be one that had me really excited, and I ended up surveying the wares of 3 different stores before I found satisfactory ingredients to bring my idea to life.

I was racking my brain to think of what I could add to the marshmallow & butter mixture to make it strawberry-flavored. Initially, I settled on instant strawberry pudding - until I realized there is no such thing.  (Or at least not that I found.  Maybe someone should develop that as a product?  Just sayin.')

The next thing that came to mind was strawberry gelatin, but I was not sure what that might do when combined with hot marshmallow cream.  Gelatin overload?  So then I settled on strawberry frosting... until I found marshmallows made by Jet-Puffed that are already strawberry-flavored! Problem solved.  But I still added some of that frosting for good measure, because let's face it- extra strawberry and sugar can only make it that much more delicious, right?

To match my enthusiasm for the recipe, I wanted to get a decent photo.  The winter is the absolute worst time for food photos, because there is such a small window of natural light (especially for someone that works or is tending to kiddos throughout the majority of daylight hours!)  But luckily for me, Mr. Vittles and I recently cleaned out our finished basement, and cleared a space for a table and chairs as a craft area for the minions.

When I was a kid, we actually had a special room in our house devoted to creating.  My mom called it "the Studio."  It was filled with supplies like markers and paper and glue and stamps and glitter and clay and beads.... and more importantly, the space to spread all that out and make something with it.  I have a lot of memories of working on things in there, from Christmas presents to school projects.  I can see that Mini already has a flair for creating, so I'm thankful we have the room available to have our own miniature 'studio' for the kids.

I dunno, there's something that just seems really nice about having a big, flat area to do stuff.  Anyone knows me personally has probably figured out that I have some difficulty controlling the level of clutter in my life, so an empty surface in my house almost seems downright luxurious!

One of the fun things we did in Mini's new craft area was to paint one side of a closet door with chalkboard paint.  So last night I decided to draw a little Valentine-themed backdrop for my treats.

My treats!  Duh, that's why you're here, right?

I'll be honest, I'm usually not huge on fruit and chocolate together- but there is something so irresistible to me about a chocolate-covered strawberry.  They actually remind me now of my sister-in-law, because she prefers them to cake as her special birthday treat.  But it's still classic Valentine's Day, if you ask me!

Seriously, these are pretty delicious, guys.  Embarrassing fact: I actually gave myself a stomach ache eating too many of them.  So just beware of the V-Day tummy troubles, and don't say I didn't warn ya!

Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Crispy Rice Treats

Cereal Bars:

• 3 T. butter, cut into pieces
• 1 8-oz package strawberry marshmallows (I used Jet-Puffed Strawberry Mallows)
• heaping 1/4 C. canned strawberry frosting
• 5 cups crisp rice cereal (such as Rice Krispies)

Topping:

• 1 12-oz bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 2 T. butter
• sprinkles, if desired

Grease a 13x9 pan & set aside.

In a large, microwave-safe bowl, heat butter on high until melted (about 45 seconds). Add marshmallows, and toss to coat in butter.  Heat about 90 seconds, in 30 second intervals & stirring after each, until marshmallows are completed melted & mixture is smooth. Stir in strawberry frosting.

Add rice cereal, and mix well to coat.  Using a greased spatula or piece of waxed paper, firmly press mixture into bottom of prepared pan.  Cool completely.  Then place chocolate chips and 2 T. butter in a microwave safe bowl, and microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring after each, until mixture is smooth.

Pour chocolate over the top of cooled bars, and spread to evenly coat entire surface.  Top with sprinkles, if desired.  Let chocolate topping harden, then cut into squares.  Tip: I like to cut off all the edges, for a more uniform look.

Recipe adapted from Kraft, Jet-Puffed Marshmallow packaging

Ambrosia Salad

Both my mother and father grew up in Connecticut.  My mother was from Wilton, and my father is from Waterbury.  They met in college (Eastern Connecticut State), got married, bought a house in Cheshire, and we lived there until I was about three.

Then they bought a bed & breakfast in Bay Head, New Jersey.

My parents had never run a bed & breakfast before.  In fact, my dad had a full-time job in New York City so he was only around on weekends.  I'm not sure what possessed them to up & move, and try their hand at something so random, but I'm happy they did.

It makes for a good story.

Most of my memories from the few years they owned the place are pretty fuzzy - but I do recall the house in surprising detail.  It was huge (3 floors, with a basement as well) and we lived in part of the first floor.

image from trulia.com

One of my favorite things about the house is that it had not only a main staircase, but also a "secret" one, connecting our kitchen to the 2nd floor.

I can also vaguely remember my mom cooking breakfast in our kitchen, and the guests sitting at a big table in the main room of the first floor.  (As a teenager, I worked at a bed & breakfast down the street that had individual tables for their guests, like a restaurant - but in our house, it was family-style).

Sometimes I would walk around and talk to the guests.  Most of them thought I was cute.  Some of them thought I was annoying.  My mother explained to me that some people are just cranky, and I shouldn't take it personally.

my mom, working at the B&B, circa 1988

That was a good life lesson.

About 9 months ago, my dad and stepmom noticed that the old house was up for sale - but not as a bed & breakfast, as an actual house.

We decided to go on a tour during an open house, just to see what it looked like.  We never told the real estate agent that we used to own it.

And although they had knocked down walls in our 'apartment', painted some rooms, and closed off my secret staircase, it was mostly the same over 20 years later.

Still 12 bedrooms, 4 1/2 baths (!)

Still had the racks my dad built & fastened to the wall of each bedroom.

image from trulia.com

Still had a creepy old basement.

And in the creepy old basement was a sewing table that apparently belonged to my dad's grandmother.

By his reaction to it, it didn't seem like he had meant to leave it at the house.  It was covered in dust and clearly not in use by the current owners, but he went on & on about how he remembered his grandmother using it.

We left a little while later but I couldn't help feeling badly about my great-grandmother's table sitting in that basement.  It had long since had the sewing machine removed and was painted a few times, but it had sentimental value to my dad - which meant it had sentimental value to me.

So I went back.

You would think that the real estate agent of a house listed for $1.5M would not be overly friendly to someone like myself.  But it was a dreary day and she didn't have any other potential buyers, so she listened politely as I told her the story - that we used to live in this house when I was a little girl, and our table was still in the basement, and now I was asking if the current owners would sell it back to me.

She took down all my information and said she would find out.  She seemed so nice, but I wondered if I would ever hear back from her.

About a week later, she called and said the table was mine.  The owners had no use for it and were happy to simply give it to me.  So she met Mr. Vittles and I at the house, and we took it home.

I didn't tell my dad about it, because I wanted him to be surprised.  The next time he came over, he walked by it once without noticing.  Then he came out of the kitchen and stopped dead in his tracks.

"Wait a minute..." he said, and pointed at the table.

I was smiling ear to ear.  "Yep.  That's it," I said.  "We rescued it from the house."

He was so happy, he took my picture next to it to send to my grandmother (it was her mother's).

He even texted me after he left, saying how much he appreciated that we went back for the table.

And after visiting the house, the strangest thing happened to me - I got a hankering for this ambrosia 'salad' my mom used to make at the bed & breakfast, something that I hadn't thought of since I was a kid.

As an incredibly picky child, I didn't appreciate the delicious things that she cooked & baked for breakfast - this recipe included.  But the guests raved about her meals, and although this was a simple but unusual dish for the northeast, ambrosia was among their favorites.

And now I realize why.

Ambrosia Salad

• 1/2 C. heavy cream
• 2 t. sugar
• 1/4 C. sour cream
• 1 15-oz. can mandarin oranges, drained
• 1 8-oz. can crushed pineapple, drained
• 1 8-oz. can chunk pineapple, drained
• 1 C. miniature marshmallows
• 1 C. shredded sweetened coconut
• maraschino cherries & toasted, sliced almonds, for garnish (optional)

In a large bowl, beat beat heavy cream and sugar with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form (whipped cream).  Fold in sour cream to combine well.  Add drained oranges & pineapple, marshmallows and shredded coconut.  Mix to combine.  Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.   Garnish bowls with toasted, sliced almonds & maraschino cherries `(if desired).  Leftovers can be stored in airtight container in refrigerator for 2-3 days.

Family Recipe

Candy Corn Crispy Rice Treats

I seriously debated whether or not to put this one up on the blog.

Not because it's bad, just because I wasn't sure if it would be up your alley.

I asked Mr. Vittles what he thought.  His parents were over last night, so I also had them weigh in.  And the consensus was to post the recipe.

But I'll be perfectly honest about these.  Full disclosure.

The flavor is very similar to the plain marshmallow version, but sweeter & with a subtle candy corn flavor.

The texture is a little more sticky & chewy.

And the color is a little... odd.  Almost unappetizing.  In fact, you might want to add some orange food coloring so your treats don't end up looking like the color of barfed-up Cheetos.

(Sorry for that visual, but honestly there is just no other way to describe this color).

But they are pretty delicious.

They are pretty festive.

They are pretty fun.

And I don't know what possessed me to melt candy corn, but I've gotta admit - it's a good time.  I kinda feel like everyone should try it once in their life.

Just don't say I didn't warn you.

Candy Corn Crispy Rice Treats

• 2 T. butter
• 3/4 C. candy corn
• 2 C. miniature marshmallows
• 3 C. crisp rice cereal

Line an 8x8 pan with foil.  Grease with nonstick spray or butter, and set aside.

In large saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat.  Add candy corn and stir until completely melted, about 5 minutes.  Use the back of your spoon or spatula to smash any pieces still intact, to speed up melting.

Add marshmallows and stir until entire mixture is melted.  (Note: If you do decide to add orange food coloring to deepen the color, now would be the time.)

Add crisp rice cereal and stir well, until cereal is completely coated with marshmallow mixture.

Empty into prepared pan and press evenly using a piece of waxed paper or a buttered spatula.  Let cool completely, then lift bars out of pan using foil.  Cut into squares.  Keeps in airtight container up to 3 days.  Makes 9 squares.

Recipe Adapted from Kellogg's Rice Krispies

S'mores Bites

I was recently contacted by the publishers of the book Sweet Chic: Stylish Treats to Dress Up for Any Occasion by Rachel Thebault (who is the founder & head confectioner of Tribeca Treats in NYC) about doing a review for the blog.

Naturally, I agreed; who in their right mind would turn down a free copy of a fun new cookbook?

I have never been to Tribeca Treats, but by the looks of their website, it seems they have some pretty amazing desserts.  And the book is really cute in that it likens each of the treats to a piece of clothing or accessory that's considered a staple in every stylish woman's wardrobe.

For instance, scooped cookies like Chocolate Chip and Snickerdoodles are the basic white tee.  Brownies like Mint Swirl and Peanut Butter are considered the cashmere sweater.  Chocolate truffles are the leather jacket.

And when Devils Food Cake is paired with Caramel Buttercream... the Little Black Dress meets knee high boots.

To be honest, I'm not much on fashion, but I still thought that was a fun touch.

The only complaint I had was that not every recipe was accompanied by a photo.  I base a lot of my decisions on the way a finished product looks (hence my sick obsession with sites like foodgawker) so I'm thinking the book might benefit from a few more photos?

Nevertheless, the recipes themselves did not disappoint!

I've actually been wanting to make homemade graham crackers for a while now, and when I saw that this recipe had ingredients like whole wheat flour and wheat germ I was very intrigued.

And what better to pair with homemade graham crackers than some marshmallows and chocolate?

I also found a new pearl of wisdom amidst the 'basic techniques' chapter of the book.  I am pretty awful at tempering chocolate (no patience) so I'm interested in trying a shortcut the author shared - apparently, adding 1 T. canola oil per 2 C. chopped chocolate helps avoid the notorious "blooming" effect.

Hate when that happens.

And, umm... just FYI, graham crackers are considered 'the perfect-fit jeans' of your culinary wardrobe.

Which I found rather ironic, because I think I might have eaten so many of these addictive little morsels that I no longer fit into my real jeans.

Oh well.  I'm over it.

Now where are the rest of those s'mores bites?

S'mores Bites

Graham Cracker Dough

• 1/2 C. all-purpose flour
• 1/2 C. whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/4 C. untoasted wheat germ
• 1/2 t. cinnamon
• 1/2 t. baking soda
• 1/8 t. salt
• 1 stick (8 T.) butter
• 1/2 C. packed brown sugar
• 2 T. honey

Topping

• approximately 3/4 C. mini marshmallows
• 4 oz. dark chocolate, chopped

In a small bowl, combine flours with wheat germ, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt.  Whisk to combine well.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream butter on high until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes).  Add brown sugar, crumbling it with your hands as you add it to remove any lumps, and mix on medium-high until smooth, about 1 minute.  Add honey and mix until well combined.  Scrape down sides & bottom of bowl with rubber spatula halfway through mixing to ensure even distribution.

Add about half the flour mixture and mix on low until just incorporated, about 30 seconds.  Repeat with remaining flour, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary.  Cover & refrigerate dough one hour.

Once dough is chilled, preheat oven 350 degree and grease the cups of a mini-muffin tin.  Distribute dough evenly amongst cups using a heaping teaspoon and press dough into bottom of each cup.  Then poke 2 rows of holes in each dough round using the tines of a fork.

Bake in preheated oven 12-14 minutes, rotating pan halfway through, until they are a dark golden brown color.  (Dough will puff up, maybe even above the top of the tin, but don't be alarmed - when you take it out it should deflate into a nice little cup to hold your marshmallows :))

Remove from oven and turn your oven's broiler on high.  Immediately fill each graham cup with 3-4 mini marshmallows.  Once all cups are filled, place pan under broiler until marshmallows puff and brown (since all broilers are different, I would not walk away from the oven - keep an eye on them!)

Remove pan and place on wire rack. Let sit 15 minutes, then remove cups from tin to cool completely.  Once cooled, microwave 3/4 of chopped chocolate in 15-second intervals, stirring after each, until just melted & smooth.  Then add remaining 1/4 of chocolate and stir until completely melted.

Drizzle chocolate over tops of cups (or spoon over, as desired).  Place in refrigerator about 10 minutes to set, then return to room temperature and serve.  They are best eaten that day, but they will keep in an airtight container up 2-3 days (perhaps longer in the refrigerator).  Makes 24.

Recipe for Graham Cracker base slightly adapted from Sweet Chic

Note: While I did receive a copy of the book from the publisher, I did not receive any other compensation to write this post- the opinions are my own.

S'mores Blondies

So last night I went out with a couple of my girlfriends who I have known for almost 15 years.

Unfortunately between the craziness of life and the distance between us, it seems we don't get together nearly as often as we should.  But we had so much fun catching up over dinner & some cocktails, and as we were reminiscing about old times it started turning into griping about new times. 

Mainly, the fact that once you get to be around 30 years of age, your appearance really starts to change.

And... it can be a little disconcerting.

Some of it is the result of not realizing that when you're young & dumb, you will pay for it later.

Like baking in the sun all day without sunscreen.

Especially when you lived at the beach your whole life, and then went to college in Florida.

Stupid, stupid, STUPID.

Then again, other problems seem to crop up out of nowhere.

For instance, despite the beautiful weather outside, my friend observed that the three of us were all wearing cardigans - not because they're cute, but (as we all admitted) because showing the upper arm/back area has started to get downright dicey.

Not that any of us are overweight, it just seems like things that used to be tight are suddenly... er.... not-so-tight.

As my one friend put it, she woke up one day and noticed she had 'a couple of steaks' on either side of her back.

Now while that is definitely an exaggeration, I will say I know the feeling.

And the worst part is that it's only the beginning.

Ahh!

Something tells me these blondies probably aren't helping? 

Good thing Mr. Vittles spared me the calories & single-handedly ate the entire pan.

Smore's Blondies

• 1/2 C. Butter (1 stick), melted and cooled slightly
• 1 C. brown sugar, packed
• 1 egg
• 1 t. vanilla extract
• 1/2 + 1/3 C. all purpose flour
• 1/4 C. whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/2 C. Graham Cracker Crumbs
• 1/4 t. salt
• 1/4 t. baking powder
• 3 1-oz. semisweet chocolate squares, chopped (1/2 C.) or chocolate chunks
• 1 C. miniature marshmallows

Preheat oven to 350F.

Beat together melted butter and brown sugar until smooth.  Add egg and vanilla extract, mix well.

Combine flours, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl.  Beat butter & sugar mixture on low, and with mixer running, add dry ingredients slowly.  Mix just until no flour streaks remain.  Add chocolate and marshmallows and mix to distribute evenly.

Press into a greased 8 or 9 inch square baking dish (dough will be pretty stiff).  Bake 20-25 minutes, do not over bake (22 minutes was perfect for me).  The blondies should be very soft when you take them out.  Cool completely.

Recipe Adapted from Shove It In Your Face