First Post - Recap of Recipes Attempted

I have been a member of Pinterest for some time now.  It seemed a great way to kill those extra minutes between the time you have finished a project and 5pm.  Who wants to begin a new project at 4:50pm? Who wants to stay past 5pm when you have puppies at home waiting to play? :)

That being said, on Pinterest, I pay particular attention to the recipes on there.  The photos, of course, look fantastic.  But then again, I am looking at them late in the afternoon - close to dinner time.  I decided that most of them can't be as fantastic as they make them out to be.  "Two ingredients! a four course meal!"  Come On!  So, this is my attempt at these recipes to see if they really are the latest and greatest.

So far, I have made three recipes.  Two of them have been successful; one of them has failed.

Remember seeing this photo?

This was a success (with a few modifications).  

My first attempt I did everything above.  
1. Pot roast in the crock pot
2. Italian and Ranch Seasonings
3. Gravy
4. Dial on Medium
5. Go away and play the rest of the day then come back nine hours later.

However, the meat was cooked but you had to saw it.

I remember my mom making pot roast and it always seemed to fall off the bone.  So I called her to ask her what she had done.  Her suggestion to fix the situation this time was to put it on the stove on low heat and pour in a can of coke.  It took about two extra hours but it was so tender and yummy.

The next time I made it, I started out with it on the stove on low heat.  I know that the point of this Pinterecipe is to crock pot it for an easy fix, but I would rather have a good outcome.

With it on low heat, instead of coke this time, I added beef stock with the same spices.  I kept an eye on it but pretty much cleaned my house that day.  When I thought that the meat was nearly done (around five hours) I added Campbell's Cream of Mushroom.  An hour later, it was not only fall apart tender, but also creamy.  I went off my diet today and had several cups of this meat.


The second recipe I tried was the Soda Can Cupcakes from http://cookiesandcups.com/soda-can-cupcakes/

 The recipe is as follows:

Ingredients

• 1 box cake mix, any flavor
• 1 can room temperature soda, any flavor

How to Make

1. Preheat your oven to 350°
2. Line muffin pan with liners.
3. In a medium bowl combine your soda and cake mix, stirring with a whisk until most of the lumps are gone.
4. Fill each liner 1/2-2/3 full of batter.
5. Bake for 18-20 minutes until cupcakes are springy and toothpicks comes out clean.
6. Let cool completely before frosting.

Notes

You can use any flavor combination you would like. Coke or Dr. Pepper would be great in a chocolate cake mix. Orange Soda, Mountain Dew, Sprite, Root Beer would all be fun to try too.

I chose Devil's Food chocolate cake and Cherry Coke (John Juan's favorite choice of beverage).

I also added 1tsp of Almond Extract.

I had liners the first time but not the second time and both times the cupcakes came out perfectly.  

I also used a cream cheese icing.  I must say, I normally do not like chocolate cake (despite being a chocoholic) but these lil guys I cannot make on a regular basis unless I'm ready to gain a pants size.

Here's the kicker on this particular recipe.  I tried it using white cake mix and coke.  It was not a pretty sight.  The cupcakes overflowed and did not cook properly.  So I think I'll stick with my original attempt since it is a hit with John Juan.

Last but not least is the recipe I tried and, well, I feel as if it failed.

These look SOOOO yummy, right?   

Supposedly you take your favorite yogurt, put it in a piping bag (the original blogger used a fancy one), and drop little dollops of yogurt on a non-stick baking sheet.  Nice idea, but the follow through is messy.

My favorite brand of yogurt at the moment is Noosa.  It's like having a dessert for your meal.  I put it in a piping bag and dropped little nickel sized drops on a non-stick baking sheet.  I then put it in the freezer for two hours (the recipe only calls for one hour).  

1. Be prepared to chew on something frozen.  I do not know about you, but my teeth can only stand so much cold.  

2. Be prepared to consume them within five minutes.  Otherwise they begin to melt and you might as well stick your hand in a jar of grape jelly and join your kids on your new couch.  

3. If you have a cheep non-stick baking sheet, these little gems may take some of the coating with them when you pluck them off.  

My suggestion? Just go to the store and buy the non-frozen yogurt treats in the candy isle. Those hit the visual spot just as well as the ones above. 

My next recipe attempt will be coming up later... 

Gluten Free Banana Pancakes

http://blogilates.com/recipe-index/100-natural-pancakes-recipe-gluten-free-flourless-low-calorie

supposedly 1 banana and 2 eggs make a yummy treat (according to the blogger and the video she posted as well).