coffee – The Pajama Chef

Seriously the BEST marshmallow krispie treats you’ve ever had. These little bars are incredible–so chocolately, so marshmallow-y, and full of fun mix-ins like coffee, pistachios, and coconut. The perfect treat for your Valentine or anyone, anytime.

Seriously the BEST marshmallow krispie treats you've ever had. These little bars are incredible--so chocolately, so marshmallow-y, and full of fun mix-ins like coffee, pistachios, and coconut. The perfect treat for your Valentine or anyone, anytime. #FoodBloggerLove

Hey, hey! It’s Monday… and it’s #FoodBloggerLove, organized by The PinterTest Kitchen. It’s sort of a spinoff of The Secret Recipe Club days of olde, where we would swap blogger names each month and make a recipe off someone else’s site. But, in the newest twist, #FoodBloggerLove has a little more freedom. We could make a Valentine’s Day recipe OR we could write our post to celebrate another blogger. I took the latter option, since I ❤ SRC, and was given the lovely Amy of Amy’s Cooking Adventures. So today, I’ve made Amy (and all of you awesome readers), the most INCREDIBLE rice krispie treats I’ve ever had the privilege to taste. They are chocolately and super marshmallow-y and also are studded with pistachios, coconut, and a hint of coffee flavor. Basically, they’re the best. If you’re looking for fancy rice krispie treats… look no further. You’ve found a winner of a recipe.

I wish I could hang out with Amy in person today and share some of these cereal bars with her. We’d have a lot to talk about… we’re both busy working mamas (though she has two kiddos, and I just have one). And, drumroll please… we’re both librarians! She works at a school and I’m at a university, but we’d have lots to chat about I’m sure! She loves cooking healthy homemade meals for her family, desserts, bread, and carbs. Meeeeeeee too, girl, me too!

I know the next treat you’re going to make in your kitchen are these rice krispie treats, right?? *wink wink* They really are absolutely wonderful–I shared them with a few different groups of people and they received rave reviews. All the chocolate and mix-ins add a little extra personality, but it’s the abundance of marshmallows that truly takes these treats over the top! But, I also want you to check out some of Amy’s recipes. I made this Turkey Sausage Penne Skillet the other week, and it was amazing! The weather prevented me from taking photos but you better believe it’s a make-again recipe. 🙂 (Actually, my husband made this! Super easy!) Some of Amy’s other recipes on my radar for the future are this delectable S’mores Frappuccino, Rosemary Pan Bread, and Peanut Butter Pretzel Cookies with Chocolate Ganache. Can you say y-u-m??

Hope you enjoy these treats–share some with your Valentine! And be sure to show Amy some love today. Connect with her on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, or Twitter. She always has great recipes and fun pics of her kiddos and her latest eats to share. 🙂

one year ago: Peanut Butter Honey Oatmeal Cookies
two years ago: Tangy Sweet Potato Hash
three years ago: Spiced Fig Turkey Mini Meatloaf
four years ago: Sweet Potato Pork Quesadillas
five years ago: Chewy Peanut Butter Brownies
six years ago: Caramel S’more Cups
seven years ago: Bacon-Wrapped Feta & Almond Stuffed Dates

Be sure to find more great Valentine’s Day recipes and tributes to other food bloggers at the linky below!

Incredible Chocolate Marshmallow Krispie Treats

Servings: 24
Time: 15 minutes + time to cool
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slightly adapted from Love & Flour

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter (4 ounces or 1 stick)
2 – 10 ounce bags of mini marshmallows
5 cups rice krispies cereal
1 cup dark chocolate chips (or semi sweet or milk chocolate)
1/2 cup unshelled pistachios
1/2 cup shredded coconut
2 teaspoons ground coffee (not instant)

Directions:

Grease a 9×13 inch baking dish and set aside.

In a pot set over medium-low heat, melt butter. Reduce heat a bit and add one bag of marshmallows. Stir frequently until mostly melted, then add 1/3 of the second bag of marshmallows. Stir constantly until melted.

Remove from heat and stir in cereal.

Fold in chocolate chips, nuts, coconut, ground coffee, and remaining marshmallows. Stir until fully incorporated, then transfer to prepared pan.

Use a bit of wax paper or your greased hands to press down. Allow to cool completely before cutting and serving.

Enjoy!

Beverages, Recipes

Pumpkin Spice Coffee Syrup + Cold Brew Coffee Method

October 11, 2017October 30, 2017 Sarah

My Pumpkin Spice Coffee Syrup recipe has been submitted for the Steviva Blogger Recipe Challenge. Product samples received in exchange for posting this recipe as part of the recipe challenge. #steviva #sweetandeasy

Pumpkin season. Just those two words make me superrr excited! I know, I know. Just like every other girl out there. #oops #sorrynotsorry But I’ve been a pumpkin (and pumpkin spice!) fan long before Starbucks made a fortune selling $6 sugar-laden pumpkin spice lattes. Though I love pumpkin spice lattes, iced coffees, and the like from a wide variety of chain and local coffee shops, I always have fun dabbling in similar coffee drinks at home. I don’t have an espresso maker (yet!) but my pumpkin spice creamer has been a fall staple the past few years. However, I think I’ve stumbled on something better.

Enter: Pumpkin Spice Coffee Syrup. I’ve made a simple pumpkin spice syrup before but something was missing… oh, that’s right: enough pumpkin! Not so in this coffee syrup. There’s half a cup of pumpkin puree in this syrup! Don’t be scared, guys… the puree melts together perfectly with the Nectevia Original and water to make a delicious syrup to stir into your coffee. For the “spice” part I added a tablespoon of pumpkin pie spice and also infused some fresh rosemary in the syrup as it cooled. Perfection!

Serving possibilities for this syrup are endless! I enjoyed my Pumpkin Spice Coffee Syrup with cold brew coffee and almond milk (because the weather this fall in Nashville has been a little more reminiscent of summer, ahem…). But I think it would also be great with some espresso and cream if you can make that happen in your life, or just regular coffee. Or chai! Or heck, it could even be great drizzled over pancakes or ice cream. Pumpkin ice cream plus pumpkin spice coffee syrup?? Ohhhh yes, please! (Now I’m starting to question the name of this recipe.)

No matter how you serve it, this Pumpkin Spice Coffee Syrup is sure to make your fall a little tastier. Oh, and I did want to mention something real quick: I created this recipe as part of a recipe contest for Steviva. (If you want, you can find them on Facebook, Twitter, Google +, Pinterest, and Instagram.) I don’t have much experience cooking and baking with stevia products but it has been so fun experimenting with them. I totally understand though that dietary needs and preferences can vary, so I did include some other sweetener options in the recipe below… but check out Nectevia Original if you can–it’s a great blend of stevia and blue agave and has 1/4 the calories, carbs and sugars of regular agave, or table sugar. I was impressed with it! Hope you enjoy!!

one year ago: Banana Espresso Chocolate Crumb Cake
two years ago: Coconut Oil Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies
three years ago: Asian Turkey Meatballs with Carrot Rice
four years ago: Cream of Broccoli Soup with Cheese
five years ago: No Bake Tropical Energy Bites
six years ago: Garlicky Pasta with Fresh Tomatoes and Basil
seven years ago: Pillow Cookies

Pumpkin Spice Coffee Syrup

Servings: approximately 8 ounces
Time: 40 minutes
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Ingredients:

1/2 cup Nectevia Original
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/2-1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice (I used a full tablespoon but some may prefer the spice to be a little less intense.)
2 sprigs rosemary

Directions:

Stir together Nectevia Original, water, pumpkin puree, and pumpkin pie spice in a small saucepan set over medium-high heat. Add rosemary, then continue to cook until mixture is bubbly but not quite boiling. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 4-5 minutes until mixture reduces and thickens. Remove from heat, and then let rest for 20 minutes to to continue to infuse rosemary. After 20 minutes, remove rosemary sprigs and discard.

Transfer syrup into a glass jar, cover, and store in the refrigerator. Syrup should keep one to two weeks.

I enjoy stirring a couple tablespoons of Pumpkin Spice Coffee Syrup stirred into cold brew coffee (method below!) and unsweetened almond milk. Adjust the amount of syrup to taste!

Notes: Nectevia Original is a liquid blend of stevia and blue agave. If you don’t have any on hand, feel free to substitute regular sugar or brown sugar, as well as other sweeteners like honey, agave, stevia, or maple syrup. I’ve made simple syrups with white sugar, brown sugar, and honey all with great results in the past. I’ve also done a combination of those sweeteners plus agave or maple syrup. Your choice!

Cold Brew Coffee

Servings: 32 ounces
Time: up to 24 hours
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Ingredients:

1/2 cup coffee, medium-grind is best
4 cups cold water

Directions:

Stir together coffee and cold water. I like to do this in a large measuring cup, but a jar or French press would work too.

This ratio of coffee to water is not super concentrated but you can increase the amount of coffee while keeping the water amount constant if desired.

Cover and let rest at least overnight, but optimally 12-24 hours. This can be done at room temperature or in the refrigerator.

Strain mixture in one of the following ways:

pour into a French press and press as usual to strain.
a cheesecloth or coffee filter set inside a mesh sieve, with coffee draining into a measuring cup, jar, etc. You may need to strain coffee twice using this method to remove all grounds and silt.

I find it easiest to use my French press but either way works!

Store in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to one week. Serve with milk, half and half, sweetener, etc. as desired.

Mocha Oatmeal Cookies.. rich chocolate, hearty oats, a little coffee flavor... everyone will love these!

Cookies, Desserts, Recipes

Mocha Oatmeal Cookies #FoodBloggerLove

February 13, 2017February 16, 2017 Sarah

What better way to celebrate Valentine’s Day than with some delicious, chewy mocha oatmeal cookies and a dose of food blogger love?

We don’t do very much for Valentine’s Day at our house… we usually make a special meal, but we don’t do extravagant gifts or anything like that. I think our tradition of a special dinner dates back to our first Valentine’s Day together in 2008. It was our third date, but we weren’t “official” yet. Ben actually cooked for me, one of his favorite meals using a mom recipe… and dessert was cookies that his mom had mailed to him. Aww! So since that time, I’ve always associated Valentine’s Day with cookies and a special meal. Therefore, it was only natural that when I signed up for #FoodBloggerLove, a day to celebrate other bloggers, that I would choose to make COOKIES for her! My #FoodBloggerLove assignment this year is Heather at Join Us, Pull Up a Chair. And fortunately, Heather likes cookies. 🙂

For #FoodBloggerLove, our only “rule” was to celebrate our assigned blogger. You could make one of their recipes, Secret Recipe Club-style (for longtime readers who remember the SRC!), make a Valentine’s Day dish/treat, or make a recipe in the style of your assigned blogger. As you can see, I chose the latter. Heather has tons of great recipes on her blog. I’ve made a few in the past, including this Dijon Balsamic Orzo Salad (yum!). There were quite a few recipes I considered this time, like these Cranberry Orange Muffins, Valentine’s Day Popcorn, or Peanut Butter & Jelly Pretzel Bars. But when I realized that Heather probably has more cookie and cookie bar recipes than anything else on her blog, I realized I HAD to make cookies. I thought about Cranberry Vanilla Shortbread, Dark Chocolate Chip Quinoa Cookies, S’mores Cookies, or Peanut Butter Nutella Swirled Cookies… but ultimately decided to give Heather the gift of a new cookie recipe she just has to try… Mocha Oatmeal Cookies!

These cookies are just as delicious as they look: deep, dark chocolate (with a little Nutella thrown in for good measure!), a hint of coffee flavor, hearty oats, and the perfect combination of crisp, soft, and chewy to make an addictive cookie that you’ll want to make over and over again for the ones you love! I hope you love them, Heather. You have so many delicious chocolate and cookie recipes on your blog that I thought these would be perfect for you! Even though they are mocha cookies, the flavor isn’t too intense so I think kids would be a-okay with them. Enjoy!

For more delicious recipes, please check out Heather’s blog at Join Us, Pull Up a Chair. You can also follow her on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter.

one year ago: Tangy Sweet Potato Hash
two years ago: Spiced Fig Turkey Mini Meatloaf
three years ago: Sweet Potato Pork Quesadillas
four years ago: Chewy Peanut Butter Brownies
five years ago: Caramel S’mores Cups
six years ago: Bacon-Wrapped Feta & Almond Stuffed Dates

Mocha Oatmeal Cookies

Servings: 5 dozen cookies
Time: 1 hour
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from Sunday Supper

Ingredients:

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted
2 ounces Nutella
1 tablespoon instant coffee
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or silpats and set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together melted chocolate, Nutella, and instant coffee. In a medium bowl, stir together flour, oats, baking soda, and salt. With an electric mixer, beat together butter and sugars until fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla and beat until smooth. Fold in the chocolate mixture, then stir in the dry ingredients until just combined.

Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes (or up to 3 days).

Use a small cookie scoop (2 teaspoons) to scoop out the dough onto cookies sheets about 2 inches apart.

Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through. Cool for 10 minutes on the pans before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Please check out all the #FoodBloggerLove recipes at the link below!

Interested in joining us next year, or in one of the other blogging events hosted throughout the year? Join our Facebook group!

Breakfast, Oatmeal, Recipes

Salted Caramel Mocha Overnight Oats for #Choctoberfest

October 20, 2016October 19, 2016 Sarah

Dress up your oatmeal to taste just like your favorite fall mocha… and add some extra caffeine too, because we all need more of that, right? Or is it just me? Ha. Thank you to Caveman Coffee Co. for providing the product used in this recipe! All opinions are my own.

Dress up your oatmeal to taste just like your favorite fall mocha... and add some extra caffeine too, because we all need more of that, right? Or is it just me? Ha. Thank you to Caveman Coffee Co. for providing the product used in this recipe! All opinions are my own. #sponsored

Oatmeal and coffee… these two items have filled my plate, err bowl and mug, since #BabyVolde was born in May. Breakfast is important, yo. Oatmeal is a healthy breakfast choice for anyone, and there is some anecdotal evidence that it helps with milk supply for breastfeeding moms. So I’ve tried to eat a bowl most days because it can’t hurt, right? And I love oatmeal so there’s that too. 🙂

You know what else I love? Coffee. Mmm, coffee! I’m drinking some now, actually. I think coffee has become more important lately since baby life=not a lot of sleep for the parents. Our sleep journey has been up and down–the first two to three weeks, he wouldn’t sleep unless held. By about two months, he was pretty much sleeping through the night [don’t be mad!]. That lasted, with a few bumps in the road, until four months. Over the past month we’ve been on a downward spiral with lots of wakeups alllll night long. Womp womp. Oh well, things have got to get better soon, right? But until then… lots of coffee! A cup of coffee at home, a travel mug at work in the morning, maybe an iced coffee in the afternoon… just depends on the day. I’m not a crazy coffee drinker by any means but I do love my coffee more than I did before! So putting it in oatmeal was just the natural choice, along with chocolate for #Choctoberfest too! Don’t forget to enter the giveaway before Friday, btw!! 🙂

This isn’t my first rodeo with chocolate oatmeal, but it is the first time I’ve made overnight style. I know cold oats sound weird, but they are refreshing and it is great to not have to make breakfast in the morning! For this version, I paired the mocha base of the chocolate and coffee with a teensy bit of salted caramel. The result? Fabulous overnight oats like your favorite fall coffee beverage!

The sweet drink from coffee shops is certainly a treat, but dare I say that I like this version better? It’s not quite as sugary but still has that classic mocha + caramel pairing, with a hint of salt and a bit of indulgence to start your day. Salted Caramel Mochas have been my surprising go-to coffee shop order this fall [I used to be a PSL girl all the way], and now that I can enjoy those flavors in my oats, I am one happy girl! Hope you enjoy these as much as I have been! ❤

Oh, and I would be remiss if I didn’t brag on how good the Blacklisted coffee from Caveman Coffee Co. is. This small batch coffee is rich and flavorful. Sometimes dark roasted coffee is too intense for me, but I love this kind! They also sent some Cacao Butter for me to play with–I can’t wait to bust it out in the kitchen! So fun. Thanks to Caveman Coffee Co. for sponsoring this event! Please check them out on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

one year ago: Coconut Oil Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies
two years ago: Pumpkin Bagels
three years ago: Peanut Butter Apple Oatmeal Cookies
four years ago: 30 Minute Chicken Tortilla Soup
five years ago: Sweet and Sour Chicken
six years ago: Crispy Crunchy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Salted Caramel Mocha Overnight Oats

Servings: 2
Time: 5 minutes + overnight to rest
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adapted from my base recipe for Maple Berry Overnight Oats

Ingredients:

1/2 cup coffee – I used Caveman Coffee Co. Blacklisted
1/2 cup milk
6 tablespoons plain or vanilla yogurt
1 cup old-fashioned oats
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
salted caramel sauce – I used Trader Joe’s Fleur de Sel Caramel Sauce
mini chocolate chips

Directions:

In a medium bowl, whisk together coffee, milk, and yogurt. Stir in oats and cocoa powder. Divide between two bowls or mason jars, cover, and refrigerate overnight.

In the morning, top each serving with salted caramel and mini chocolate chips. I like it with about 1/2 teaspoon of salted caramel sauce and mini chocolate chips, but feel free to adjust quantities to your taste.

If I wanted to healthify this, I would make this date caramel sauce to use in place of the traditional caramel sauce. 🙂

Click below for more chocolate recipes!

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Desserts, Other, Recipes

Old-Fashioned Chocolate Cobbler for #Choctoberfest

October 14, 2016October 13, 2016 Sarah

Wonderfully rich, this old-fashioned chocolate cobbler will be your chocolate dessert of choice this winter! It is so easy and so ooey gooey–chocolate lovers won’t be able to get enough!! Thank you to Barlean’s for providing the product used in this recipe! All opinions are my own.

Wonderfully rich, this old-fashioned chocolate cobbler will be your chocolate dessert of choice this winter! It is so easy and so ooey gooey--chocolate lovers won't be able to get enough!! Thank you to Barlean’s for providing the product used in this recipe! All opinions are my own. #sponsored #Choctoberfest

You guys. This dessert. It is ahhhh-mazing! It is phenomenal! It is seriously a MUST MAKE. It’s like brownies and chocolate lava cake got together and had a baby and THIS is the result. Old-Fashioned Chocolate Cobbler is to die for! I didn’t know chocolate cobbler was a thing–but it is–and it is so worth it! I’m thankful for Choctoberfest’s role in bringing this dessert into my life.

Have you heard about Choctoberfest? It is this fun blogging event I’m participating in this week and next. Through next Friday, October 21, you should go here to enter an awesome giveaway for an assortment of chocolate products from our wonderful sponsors, including Barlean’s–this great company with a mission to be a “Pathway to a Better Life.” As part of their sponsorship of this event, they sent me some tasty products to try–Barlean’s Greens Powder – Chocolate Silk Flavor, Essential Woman Omega Swirl Chocolate Mint Flavor, and Barlean’s Butter Flavored Organic Coconut Oil. So far I have only used the greens powder–you can mix it into milk to drink hot or cold, like chocolate milk or hot cocoa… or use it as a healthier cocoa powder substitute which is what I did below! I can’t wait to bake with the chocolate mint swirl [can you say, Christmas cookies anyone?] and with the butter flavored coconut oil. Perfecto! So fun to try new-to-me healthier versions of products I already use. 🙂 Though I received these products for free, I was not compensated in any other way and was not asked to provide positive feedback.

Barlean's - a sponsor of #Choctoberfest

What’s so great about this dessert–besides its obvious chocolately goodness is the fact that it is super easy to make. Basically you mix some dry ingredients, some wet ingredients, and then combine. Put in the pan, top with some sugar and cocoa powder, top with hot water [yes, plain ‘ole hot water — but I bet hot coffee would be good too], and bake. Forty minutes later… this lovely dessert is piping hot and ready to go!

The edges are crispy like a brownie, but when you cut into it, all this luscious, rich chocolate rushes out like the filling of a lava cake. #sogood I’ve never had anything like this before. Serve it up with vanilla ice cream, and boy oh boy… you will be sure to enjoy! 🙂

two years ago: Homemade Pumpkin Spice Coffee Creamer
three years ago: Pumpkin Spice Chocolate Chip Cake with Nutella Frosting
four years ago: Apple Peanut Butter Muffins
five years ago: Pumpkin, Sausage, and Spinach Lasagna
six years ago: Southwestern Pepperjack Baked Penne

Old-Fashioned Chocolate Cobbler

Servings: 8
Time: 60 minutes
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from The Kitchn

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons Barlean’s Greens Powder, Chocolate Silk Flavor
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon instant coffee
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 cup milk
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups very hot water
Vanilla ice cream, for serving

Directions:

Grease an 8×8 inch baking dish or any medium sized casserole dish. I used a 10 inch round casserole dish. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Stir together flour, sugar, Barlean’s Greens Powder – Chocolate Silk Flavor, baking powder, instant coffee, and salt in a medium bowl. In a small bowl, whisk together milk, butter, and vanilla. Pour liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients and fold together to combine. It will be a thick batter like brownies!

Transfer to prepared baking dish and smooth out if necessary.

Evenly sprinkle with brown sugar and cocoa powder, then top with chocolate chips. Pour hot water over top and do not stir.

Bake for 40 minutes, until edges are crisp and center is just barely set. Cool for 10-15 minutes before serving warm with ice cream. Enjoy!

Want more chocolate? Click the link below for lots of great new recipes today!

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