Cooking

How to Make Guacamole-Stuffed Onion Rings

Posted on by Nicole DiGiose

This was originally posted on my new adventure-based website, Sprangled! Check it out for fun times and inspiration, and submit your own experiences, advice, and reviews. We all share this world together!

What happens when you combine homemade guacamole and onion rings? Heaven for your taste buds. These crispy snacks are a must — check out the recipe below — they’re fun and easy to make. You’re welcome.

Once you’ve been blessed with this heavenly idea, make sure you have all of your ingredients to get cookin’. You’ll need three ripe avocados, one lime, one diced tomato, 1/4 cup of chopped cilantro, and two minced cloves of garlic. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, mash the avocados with the juice of your lime. Next, mix in your chopped tomato, cilantro, and garlic, and add a pinch of salt and chili powder for a bit of a kick. This will be your delightfully delicious guacamole. Read More

A Bite out of Life: Mashed Potato Cupcakes

Posted on by Nicole DiGiose

No, you’re not dreaming. Mashed potato cupcakes exist and you can make them.

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Show up at your aunt’s house with these tasty treasures and you’ll be the talk of the table this Thanksgiving. Fun and simple to make, mashed potato cupcakes are sure to hit that sweet spot once the turkey’s devoured and the chatter turns down as everyone’s attention becomes drawn to the incoming desserts. And the choice will be obvious.

To whip up these treats, grab yourself your favorite cake mix and follow the instructions on the box as usual (or make your own mix from scratch). Once finished baking in the oven, let the cakes cool for about 15 minutes and then apply vanilla icing to the tops. Use yellow Starburst candies or Laffy Taffy for the butter, and top it off with gravy, which is caramel syrup. If you’d like to get even more creative, use green sprinkles as chives, or red sprinkles as bacon bits.

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And, happy Thanksgiving to you, you’re done! These delightful desserts are sure to please the potato lovers in your life (and let’s face it, everyone, because…just…potatoes).

Source: Look! Mashed Potato Cupcakes!

Healthy, Crunchy Kale Chips

Posted on by Nicole DiGiose

Kale Chips Ingredients

Tasty, crispy kale chips are quick and easy to make. If you’re craving a snack, forget that bag of flavored potato chips that’s been sitting on the grocery store shelf for weeks, and go to your local market and pick yourself some kale. Packed with nutrition, one cup of this leafy green includes loads of vitamin A, vitamin C, B vitamins, iron, magnesium, and even some protein.

Kale Rib

To get started, gather a little bit of olive oil, a pinch of salt, and, of course, some fresh, washed kale. Once dry, peel pieces of the kale from the rib of the plant and spread them out in a cooking tray or cookie sheet covered with parchment paper.

Kale Chips in Tray

Next, drizzle on two teaspoons of olive oil (make sure the majority of the oil doesn’t go to some chips and not others, as too much oil can make them soggy) and sprinkle with salt. Read More

Rustic Potatoes au Gratin

Posted on by Nicole DiGiose

Rustic Potatoes au Gratin

Potatoes in your face! It’s about to be a party in your mouth!

Late yesterday morning I was hungry and was in the mood for something tasty and different, something that I could cook. I received a Crock-Pot slow cooker recipe book not long ago, and decided it was time to crack it open. I gave my Crock-Pot a cleaning and flipped through the recipes, only to stop in awe at the picture of the Rustic Potatoes au Gratin in the side dishes section. I’m a sucker for anything potato, and since I had planned on making steak for dinner, I figured the potatoes would pair with it perfectly. It was a chilly, snowy day out, and this dish seemed warm, flavorful, and comforting.

Rustic Potatoes au Gratin Recipe

As you can see in the ingredients list above, I needed 1/2 cup of milk, one can of cheddar cheese soup (10 3/4 ounces), one package (eight ounces) of cream cheese, one clove of garlic, minced, 1/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg, 1/ teaspoon black pepper, two pounds of baking potatoes cut into 1/4-inch slices (the recipe book shows three, I went with four, which worked out fine), one small onion, thinly sliced, and paprika, which is optional. Read More