Tag: snack

Gingerbread Truffles

When the weather starts to take on a bitter chill, and the city is covered in a blanket of beautiful white snow, I know it’s time to break out the gingerbread. There’s just something about the warm, fragrant spices that’s so comforting. I often turn to this tried and true recipe for gingerbread cupcakes with brown sugar cream cheese frosting when I need my gingerbread fix.

That’s the thing about winter. You just want to cuddle up in big, bulky sweaters – unaware as to what all that comfort food is doing to your waist line. Which is why I set out to disguise my favorite winter comfort food as a healthy truffle that’s chocolate-free! Medjool dates have a great fudgy quality that makes them the perfect raw and healthy base for decadent truffles. They’re virtually fat free, rich in potassium, and a great source of dietary fiber.

Sure, there was a time when dates looked like cockroaches, and I wouldn’t go near them with a ten foot pole. But when I finally took he plunge, there was no going back. How can you go wrong with sweet syrupy chews that are virtually guilt-free? They make a great addition to smoothies, granola bars, and even salads.

If you haven’t picked up on this month’s link-up theme just yet, it’s all about comfort food! Read on for a collection of decadent comforting recipes that are sure to keep you warm all winter long!

Gingerbread Truffles

1/4 cup ground almonds
15 medjool dates, pitted
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp cloves
1 tbsp molasses

For coating: cocoa powder, cinnamon, coconut, chopped nuts or cookie crumbs (gingersnap, Lotus cookies or spiced biscuits).

Method:

Remove and set aside. Add all ingredients (besides for coating) to the food processor and mix until a ball forms (see picture). If the mixture does not pull away from the sides of the bowl, add a little more ground almonds. With wet hands, form the dough into balls and roll in coating of your choice.

Makes approximately 10 truffles.

PACKAGING OPTION: for a play on rustic homemade toffee, add a bit more ground almonds to make the dates less sticky. Do not roll in crumbs. Wrap portions in parchment paper, twisting the ends to resemble candy wrappers.

Related Recipes:

gingerbread cupcakes with brown sugar cream cheese frosting
gingerbread cookies

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Gingerbread Cupcakes with
Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting

If you follow me on Facebook or Instagram, you’ve probably already drooled over these gorgeous gingerbread cupcakes. I made them during the fast of Tisha B’av, so I wasn’t about to photograph them, but I did talk about them, a LOT. The next day, I had just 3 cupcakes left, so I decided to do what any foodie/blogger would – share! It was hard not to gobble down the last of them before getting a good shot, they’re just THAT good.

Besides being incredibly moist, these gingerbread cupcakes are chock-full of warm autumn spices. I didn’t think my kids would go for the flavors of ginger and nutmeg, but I was SO wrong – they could not get enough. Not only that, my little cream-cheese-haters were licking the frosting off their fingers! I think I’m going to start whipping up sweet cream cheese concoctions and call them “frosting sandwiches.” It will make lunch a whole lot easier for me!

Gingerbread Cupcakes with Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting
adapted from The Collegiate Baker

2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/3 cup molasses
1 cup hot water

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg to a bowl and whisk to combine. In a separate bowl, mix the  oil, sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla. Add eggs and mix to incorporate. Add the molasses and stir to combine. Add half of the dry ingredients and half of the hot water to the wet mixture and mix until incorporated. Repeat with the second half of the dry ingredients and hot water.

Fill cupcake pans about 2/3 full and bake for approximately 18 minutes, until toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting

1 8oz. container whipped cream cheese
4 tbsp softened butter
1 cup confectionars sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla

Method:

Add the cream cheese and butter to a bowl and mix with a spoon to combine. Add the brown sugar cinnamon and vanilla and mix until incorporated. Add the confectioners sugar 1/3 of a cup at a time, stirring until thickened.

1 year ago: chicken lollipops 
2 years ago: cherry yogurt popsicles 

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Quick & Easy Chocolate Rugelach

My friend Dina and I have been friends since childhood. Growing up, we lived around the corner from each other, and after getting married and moving, we still do! We’re always swapping recipes and oohing and ahhing over the fabulous food we see on the food channel. Between the two of us, I am more of the cook and Dina is more of the baker. Whenever I see a great cake recipe, I send it her way, hoping that she’ll make it so that I can get a taste (she usually sends over a piece!). On a lucky day, she’ll invite me around the corner for a hot cinnamon bun and some coffee. One such day, Dina brought out these delicious rugelach. I thought they must be a patchke to make since they looked so good and tasted even better. But they are super easy and require only 3 ingredients! I have made them more than once when having company over at the last minute. They are totally floored when, without advanced notice, I manage to put out piping hot chococolatey flaky goodness!

Quick & Easy Chocolate Rugelach

Puff pastry squares
chocolate spread
Powdered sugar

Method:

Thaw puff pastry in the refrigerator overnight. It is easiest to work with when it’s chilled. With a knife, cut each square into 3 even strips. Smear with chocolate spread and roll up. Place on a cookie sheet seam side down and bake at 350 until browned, approximately 25 minutes. Let cool and dust with powdered sugar.

Note: you can brush with egg-wash if you’d like, however, since you are dusting them with powdered sugar, it is not neccesary.

VARIATION: You may also use nutella, jam, or any other filling of your choice.

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Roasted Garlic Hummus with Pita Chips

My husband is not much of a sports fan. He’s more of a computer fan, if you know what I mean. So, if not for my brother, I would have no idea that tomorrow is the big day for most men out there! That, and the fact that I wanted a crunchy, healthy snack tonight, is what brought me to make this delicious and healthy recipe. Chummus is available at any grocery, in so many flavors and styles. So why go through the hastle of making it? Well sometimes, I like the chunkiness of a purely garbanzo-based spread, sans the techina. That’s when I whip out some fresh garlic, a food processor, and of course some pita bread, for homemade toasted “everything” pita chips with roasted garlic hummus.

Roasted Garlic Hummus

1 can chickpeas
1 head of roasted garlic
1/8-1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (plus more for garnish)
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 tsp salt
freshly ground black pepper
parsley and paprika for garnish

Method:

Drain and rinse chickpeas. Add to food processor. Add the cloves of a small head of roasted garlic. Add the lemon, salt and pepper. Start blending in the food processor, adding the olive oil slowly. Start with 1/8 cup and add more until you reach a creamy consistency. Spoon into serving dish. Drizzle with more olive oil and garnish with paprika and parsley.

For instructions on roasting garlic, click here.

Homemade Everything Pita Chips

Regular or whole wheat pita
Olive oil
Poppy seeds
Onion powder
Garlic powder
Kosher salt

Method:

Preheat oven to 400°F. Cut pita into eight triangles. Brush with olive oil. Sprinkle with poppy seeds, onion, garlic and salt. Bake for 10 minutes until toasted and crispy.

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Cowboy Cookies


We decided to throw together a quick Game Night on Motzei Shabbat with the family. I told everyone they could bring something. As for myself, I whipped up a quick batch of cowboy cookies a’ la Martha Stewart. This recipe is chock full of flavor, using chocolate, coconut, pecans and oats. I’m not the biggest coconut fan, but in these, they offer an added chewiness that’s worth it. Why are they called Cowboy Cookies? The origin is unclear, but the cookies do seem hearty enough for the Wild West. As for game night, the girls won by a landslide!


Cowboy Cookies
(Yields 3-4 dozen cookies)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened (I used 1 tub of Smart Balance Light)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats (not instant or quick-cooking)
6 ounces semisweet chocolate, cut into 1/4-inch chunks (I used 1 cup of chocolate chips)
1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
3/4 cup pecans (3 ounces)
Vegetable-oil cooking spray

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread pecans in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Toast in oven, tossing occasionally, until darkened and fragrant, 10 to 13 minutes. Let cool, then coarsely chop. Into a bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder.

With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream butter and both sugars until pale and fluffy. Reduce speed to medium. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla.

With mixer on low speed, gradually add flour mixture, beating until just incorporated. Beat in oats, chocolate, pecans, and coconut until just combined. (Dough can be covered with plastic and refrigerated up to 3 days.)

Coat baking sheets with cooking spray; line with parchment, and spray parchment. Using a 1 1/2-inch ice-cream scoop or a tablespoon, drop dough onto prepared sheets, about 3 inches apart.

Bake, rotating sheets halfway through, until edges of cookies begin to brown, 16 to 18 minutes. Transfer sheets to wire racks to cool 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to racks to cool completely. Cookies can be stored up to 3 days at room temperature in airtight containers.

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