Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels

I love salty and sweet snacks. Salty and Sweet is my favorite snack food category. When Popeye and I got married his sweet grandma sent me a recipe for a salty and sweet snack he loves. When I read the recipe I was thinking it sounded a little odd, but it isn't. It's really perfect.

Pretzels Before Being Microwaved

Salty and Sweet - Cinnamon and Sugar - Crunchy Salted Pretzel Nuggets.... What gets better than that? Basically nothing. One of the best things about it is that it is gastroparesis-friendly, or at least enough for my GP. The one problem with this snack is I always manage to eat too much of it!

This recipe is ridiculously easy.

Ingredients:

1 pound pretzel nuggets or whatever 1/3 cup sugar 1-2 tsp cinnamon 2/3 cup vegetable oil

Directions:

Mix oil, sugar, and cinnamon. Pour over pretzels in a microwave safe bowl.
Stir until all the pretzels are coated with the sugar mixture. Microwave for 2 minutes. Stir.
Microwave again for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Stir after each 30 seconds or 1 minute. They will probably need 5-6 minutes total in the microwave.

Awesome Microwave Steamer

This silicone steamer by Zoie + Chloe is really cool. I love steaming vegetables, but often when I want to steam things I either don’t have time to steam them on the stovetop or I have pots on all the burners are full of other things. This fold-able steamer works quickly and easily in the microwave. 

Some of the cool features of this steamer are that it folds up easily and takes up very little space to store. It also makes steaming much quicker and easier than on the stovetop. The steamer is made up of three parts that are all dishwasher safe and easy to clean.

This steamer did not come with any instructions or guides for steaming things in the microwave. I love steamed squash. I put a little bit of water in the bottom of the bowl, just enough to cover the entire surface but not enough to seep into the bottom of the steamer bowl. I started with 3 minutes on the squash. Since it was not fork tender, I added it for another minute. This was a little bit too done for the thinnest slices and perfect for the slices that were a little thicker. The power of your microwave will also make a difference in how long things take. I recommend starting with less time than you think it needs so you do not end up with overcooked vegetables.

Little Bear's Favorite Broccoli

Little Bear loves to use this steamer to make broccoli with a little lemon zest. We cut up our broccoli into florets and fill the steamer. Put a little water in the bottom of the bowl and set the full steamer basket in. Put  Sprinkle a pinch of salt over the broccoli. Then zest about half of a lemon over the top. Close the steamer and microwave starting around 3-4 minutes depending on the power of your microwave. Check the broccoli for tenderness. When it is cooked squeeze your lemon over the top. This is one of Little Bear's favorite vegetable dishes. 

The inner bowl can also be used as a colander. This set is oven, microwave, and dishwasher safe. I have hard water at my house and it does show spots when it gets run through the dishwasher. It is overall easy to clean and easy to use. The parts fit well together. Do be careful when removing the lid so you do not get steam burns. I really like this set. It makes it really easy to steam vegetables.

You can buy the Zoie + Chloe silicone steamer here. 

I received this product free. All opinions expressed here are honest, unbiased, and 100% my own. 

Cozyna Air Fryer

Popeye has been wanting an air fryer for ages and ages. I have been holding out. Now that we got one I realize that I should have gotten one long, long ago. I LOVE this Cozyna Air Fryer. 
Having gastroparesis means I have not been able to eat fried foods for years. I always look longingly at things like French fries when Little Bear and Popeye eat them. I remember the taste of a salty and crisp fry. I have tried making fries in the oven countless times but it is not the same. I have gotten to where I make really tasty roasted potatoes with crispy edges, but they are still not fries. This air fryer has given me French fries back and for that, I am eternally grateful. Fries from here are not the same as McDonald's fries but they are pretty dang good. They are crispy and seasoned well and use very little oil. 

  

Using the fryer is easy. Dump your food into the fryer basket and add any oil or seasonings you need. Push the basket into the fryer and make sure it is closed completely. Then, make sure your fryer is plugged in and turn the knob on top to the desired temperature. It can be preheated if you need to. Turn the knob on the front to the cooking time. The fryer shuts off automatically when the timer runs out.

We have made all kinds of stuff in this. My husband and son love to make pizza rolls and fried ravioli in it. We also made the fries mentioned above. I used less than a teaspoon of oil to make 2 potatoes worth of fries. When you make fries you need to pull the basket out and stir them regularly during the cooking time. Otherwise, the ones along the outside edges cook much faster than the ones in the middle. 

I also tried to make potato chips in this. I did not have success with chips. The chips were sliced thinly with the mandolin and when I put them in the air fryer basket the fan flung them all to a pile in the back of the basket. Some of the chips leaked through the vents into the bottom of the fryer. Even stirring regularly some of the chips did not cook while others were overcooked. Because they piled up the stuck together but when they stuck together they did not get crispy. 

Fries are perfect. I am planning to make some “fried” chicken in here to see how it works. It has been years since I had any fried chicken. I wish the booklet that came with it had better recipes.

Cleaning this is really simple. The fryer basket can be put in the dishwasher which makes washing it easy. The base can get washed by hand with soapy water or can be wiped out with a rag.

You can buy the Cozyna Air Fryer here. 

I received a discount on this item. All opinions expressed here are my own.

S'mores Bark

Papa Bear and Little Bear are huge fans of s'mores. I am pretty sure Papa Bear likes them as much if not more than Little Bear. It is not always good timing to make your own s'mores. You don't always have the time to make a fire, or the weather. Our problem this time was weather. It was pouring down rain and Little Bear had been begging for s'mores for days.

So, being the sweet, loving Mama Bear that I am, I gave in. Little Bear and I made S'mores Bark. This is an easy tried and true recipe I made up with a few years ago. I had been making peppermint bark a lot and my husband wanted me to try something new besides peppermint, dried fruits, and nuts on our bark. Since he loves s'mores I decided to try some s'mores type recipes. The first time I used baking chocolate, but it wasn't quite the way we wanted it.

This recipe is really easy. It only needs three ingredients. Graham crackers, Hershey's Chocolate bars, and mini marshmallows. It takes maybe fifteen minutes to make this. With Little Bear's help it did take longer, but it was fun!

It doesn't look like enough chocolate, but I promise it is.

You start by lining your pan with foil or parchment paper. I use whichever I have on hand. It saves some clean up time later if you use it. Spread your graham crackers on top of it. I break them neatly; if they are broken messily it really doesn't matter, just cover most of the pan with them. Then, open your many bars of chocolate and break them up on your graham crackers.

The shiny softened chocolate is easy to smooth and cover the entire surface.

Then, you put it in the oven until the chocolate is soft. By soft, I mean not melted. It will be glistening and shiny. When this happens, pull it out and smoosh everything around with the back of a spoon until your graham crackers are covered with ooey gooey chocolate. Sprinkle your marshmallows, as few or as many as you want. Pop 'em back under the broiler until your marshmallows are beautifully browned. Let them cool and the chocolate harden. Break it up and store in an airtight container. Little Bear loves big chunks.

I have made this for Papa Bear to take to work. It always goes quickly a
nd there are never leftovers. Papa Bear and Little Bear will eat it all pretty quickly. It will last about three to five days in an airtight container, but it rarely lasts even three days in our house.

You can find a printable version of my S'mores bark recipe here.

Spicy, Minty, and Delicious

One of my favorite drinks is a ginger peppermint tea. I had been buying it for years and then all of the sudden it was out of stock everywhere. Ginger peppermint tea settles my stomach and helps with my bloating. So, when it was out of stock and I ran out I had to do something. It probably wasn't a huge deal, but it felt like a major thing to me and my sensitive stomach.

I ended up buying dried ginger and dried peppermint from Penzey's. It was my first trip to Penzey's and I fell in love. They have so many awesome things, but that is not the point. Their herbs and spices are great prices. I ended up buying 2 - 1 oz bags of peppermint and 1 - 0.85 oz jar of minced ginger. The herbs smell wonderful when you get them open. They smell so much better than what I would typically buy at the grocery store.

When I make my tea I keep it in an airtight container. I keep mine in a plastic container with a lid. I mix equal parts ginger and peppermint in the container. Usually I do about 3/4 cup each for one batch then put the lid on and shake it up.

When I make my tea I boil my water in a teapot. I use stainless steel and silicone tea balls with about 1-1.5 teaspoons of the tea mixture in them to brew my tea. I love these because they seal tight enough that leaves do not leak out. The holes are small and the leaves do not leak out any of the seams. They also come with a little cup like thing to set your tea ball in when you are done steeping your tea. I usually let my tea steep about 20 minutes.

This tea is a beautiful golden color. This tea has a spicy, minty and delicious flavor. The ginger helps with nausea and the peppermint helps with gas and bloating. This tea is also great when I have a headache. I love this tea and it is much cheaper than buying boxes of pre-made tea bags.