Coconut Cream Cheese Balls (AKA Heaven)

I love my new town!

It's full of Victorian houses, side roads filled with gravel, a cute little downtown of "mom and pop" stores, greenery everywhere, etc.  But, the best part about it is the feeling I get when I drive around the area.  For me, it's a sort of nostalgic feeling.  I couldn't describe it myself, so I looked it up and I think this is perfect: "I think it's the feeling you get when you are overwhelmed with passion and longing for the favorite things from your youth. And the satisfaction you get when you re-live them."

I spent my Saturday exploring and just taking it all in.  Please indulge me and check these out (all via Google... none of these are mine):

To top off all this goodness, I made my moms Coconut Cream Cheese Balls.  They are the best quick and easy dessert ever. I'm not exaggerating.  Unless you don't like cream cheese or coconut, you will agree with me and I guarantee that.  These are heaven in a small bite-sized ball.  Please try them... they won't disappoint you!

What do you guys love about your town?
Give links to your favorite fast and easy desserts!

Coconut Cream Cheese Balls

Ingredients:
1 8 oz. block of cream cheese, room temperature
5 cups powdered sugar (*If you don't want these super sweet, sub 1/2 cup flour for 1 cup powdered sugar)
1-2 cups shredded coconut
1 teaspoon vanilla
*1 cup pecans, optional

Directions:
1. Beat the cream cheese until it's smooth.
2. Slowly, cup by cup, beat in the powdered sugar, until it reaches a semi-doughy consistency.  It will be a bit gooey, but still hold it's shape when formed into a ball.
3. Beat in vanilla.  If using pecans, fold them in now.
4. Roll each ball in the coconut.
5. Chill for about an hour before serving.

Coconut Cake Balls

Check out my guest post over at beautiful Alaina's blog: Sweetness of Life.

I wrote about a pretty sweet recipe I accidentally created.

It includes coconut butter, cake mix, and chocolate.

Interested yet?

No?

How 'bout now?

Go check it out! :)  And while you're there, look at all of Alaina's delicious recipes!!

P.S. If you haven't had coconut butter before.. you have to try it.  It's amazing!!

You can buy it here.  Or make your own by processing shredded unsweetened coconut in a food processor until creamy.

Date and Pecan Drops {Healthy Recipe}

I'm feeling a little blah right now.  Ever since Kellen and I got back from New York, my mind has been elsewhere.  I've had no motivation to exercise, do homework, or work.  I'm just super ready for summer to roll around.  This cold weather at the start of "spring" isn't helping either!

When I start feeling like this, I do a few things to get myself out of the "rut".

1.  Find inspiration elsewhere (E.g. Flickr, PostSecret, StumbleUpon):

the artful paper doll

post secret

StumbleUpon

2.  Make a list of things I'm looking forward to. 

My list right now consists of: 

1) The weekend/sleeping in/spending it with Kellen.  

2) Working a Taste of Home cooking show! 

3) Enrolling at Park. 

4) Summer 

5) A high of 78 on Saturday.  

They may just be little things, but that's all it takes.

3. Indulge in hobbies.  Today, I baked these cookies just so I could photograph them.  Now I'm writing.  I like to keep a journal other than this blog, too.  I think writing is a good way to keep things from bottling up.  

4.  Listen to music.  Right now my favorite is "Rolling in the Deep" by Adele... and the John Legend remake, too.   

5.  Pray!

What do you do when you're in a rut??

Anyway, I figured I'd give you all a break from the 3 cups of sugar, 3 sticks of butter, and who knows how much chocolate from the last post.  I've had a lot of people asking me for "healthy" and "low calorie" recipes lately.... so here you guys go!  They're pretty tasty if you ask me.  The ingredient list is a little random...

Date and Pecan Drops

1 cup cream of wheat 

1/8 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1/4 cup applesauce

1 tablespoon oil

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup chopped dates

1/4 cup chopped and toasted pecans

1/4 cup coconut flakes (I used unsweetened)

Topping:

1/2 cup Splenda

1 tablespoon honey or agave

*Sprinkles, optional

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2.  Mix all ingredients.

3.  Drop by 1/8 cup balls onto a lined baking sheet.

4.  Bake for 8-10 minutes.  

5.  While cookies are in the oven, mix together topping.  Once you take the cookies out, sprinkle the topping over cookies.  *Don't turn oven off! 

6. Put cookies back in for another 2 minutes or so, while the topping caramelizes a little.

7.  Let cool, devour. :)

B. Lovin' It Bars

I love having this blog...a few days ago an old friend of mine that I haven't talked to in forever sent me a message on Facebook:

"I had an awesome snack the other day, but I have no idea what it was exactly or how it was made. I think it had graham cracker crust on the bottom....& chocolate & peanut butter chips in it...& I THOUGHT come crumbled graham cracker crust on the top & 'baked' (it kinda looked that way, anyways...it was kind of brown-looking) coconut. I normally hate coconut, but it was amazing with that stuff & the texture didn't bother me as much.
Anywho- I figured that since you're into cooking & baking yummy-ness that you might either know what it is or how to do it...& if possible, I'd love it if you could put the recipe up so maybe I could attempt to make it some time."

 

She's sweet and I miss her so it was nice to hear from her!  I assumed that it was a bar called "Magic Bar" or "7 Layer Bar" that I've had before.  They're sooo good and simple.  I made them and brought them into the store today and the guy I work with, Brandon Love, said they're his favorite thing I've made so far; then he told me to name them after him... so here they are... The "B. Lovin' It Bars"/ "Magic Bars"/ "7 Layer Bars"/ "The Bar of Many Names".  Just for you Becca! :)

P.S. On a side note, Kellen is moving into his new house today, so wish him luck!!

 

 

Magic Bars

Food.com

I made a couple changes to these bars so I'll put my changes in red.  Also, you can leave out the nuts on some if you want.  I did!

Ingredients:

Yields 16 large bars
16 16

Servings Size

• large cookies
  

• 1/2 cup butter or 1/2 cup margarine, melted 
• 1 cup graham crackers, crushed to crumbs (chocolate animal crackers)
• 1 cup flaked coconut (organic flaked coconut)
• 6 ounces chocolate chips (1 cup)
• 6 ounces butterscotch chips (1 cup) (white chocolate chips, you could also use peanut butter chips)
• 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk (homemade sweetened condensed milk, but only because I was out of the canned stuff)
• 1 cup nuts, chopped (walnuts)

1. Preheat oven at 350 degrees F.
2. Mix graham crackers crumbs (animal cookie crumbs) and melted butter until it becomes dough like.
3. Press the "dough" into the bottom of your dish.
4. Layer the coconut and chips in order given in ingredients list.
5. Pour sweetened condensed milk over all.
6. Top with nuts.
7. DO NOT mix together.
8. Bake for 25 minutes.

Coconut Macaroons

 
Sometimes I get random cravings.

This time, coconut was my victim.

Poor coconut.  It already has identity issues.  Is it a nut or a fruit?  And what is it's real use?  Bikinis?  As a bowl?  Is it a drink...and if it is, is it juice or milk?  Or oil? Or food?  Fuel?  Who knows.


Coconut really isn't one of my favorite flavors, but for some reason, I had to have some.  Fast.  I didn't even look up a recipe.  I just grabbed the coconut bag and looked at the back, knowing one of the recipes would suffice.  I'm glad I did that because usually I don't like "bag recipes", but this one is worth trying.  They're done in about 20 minutes.  Super fast!!

 Mix the ingredients.

Before the oven.

After the oven.

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup sweetened condensed milk
• 1 1/2 cups grated coconut
• 1 egg white
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Preparation:

Ingredients:

• 1 large egg white
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/8 teaspoon almond extract
• 3/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 300°F.

Stir together egg white, sugar, vanilla, almond extract, and a pinch of salt until combined, then stir in coconut. Drop dough by tablespoons onto a parchment-lined baking sheet.

Bake until tops are pale golden in spots, 10 to 15 minutes, then carefully lift cookies from baking sheet and transfer to a rack to cool completely, about 15 minutes.

*Optional: Dip in melted chocolate chips.