Low Carb Strawberry Shortcake

Tomorrow is my hubby's birthday and I wanted to make him something yummy, but more geared towards his low carb diet. We have been "cheating" on our diets lately with Valentine's Day and other birthdays, so it is time to get back on track. My hubby loves those cakey cookies you see in the store...the yummy ones with the frosting. A few years ago, the funfetti cake mix had a recipe for them. I made them for him when I first met him and he LOVED them. It is actually what he requested for his birthday "cake." We stopped at a fruit stand yesterday and picked up a half flat of strawberries, so I put them together and viola, low carb strawberry shortcake. So delicious!

Low Carb Strawberry Shortcake

Shortcake/Cake cookies
1 box sugar free (or low sugar) cake mix- I used yellow (Pillsbury)
2 eggs
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce (the recipe calls for oil, but I used the applesauce)

1 quart strawberries, sliced
1-2 tsp Splenda sweetner

Cool Whip Free (or ohter sugar free or low sugar whipped topping)

1. Preheat the oven to 375F. In a large bowl, combine cake mix, eggs, applesauce and mix until combined and minimal clumps. If too dry and stiff, I add 1 tsp water. The dough should be thick.
2. Grease baking sheet. Scoop dough onto baking sheet. With a floured spoon/fingers/glass, flatten tops of cookies.
3. Bake cookies at 375 F until lightly browned (approx 6-8 minutes). Allow to cool completely.
4. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine strawberries and Splenda. I add 1 Tbsp water. Allow to cool in refrigerator while cookies cool.
5. When ready to eat, place cookie on plate, top with strawberries and whipped topping. Enjoy!!

Crusty white bread

I love making pizza dough and bread at home, but could never get that crispy crust. I decided to google search it and found lots of recipes with kneading and such....stuff I just don't have the time for. Then I came across the King Arthur recipe with no kneading required and decided to try it. YUM! I first tried it for Superbowl and made sandwich rolls. They were good, but I had skipped the 2 hour rise prior to putting it in the refrigerator and they didn't get as big and puffy as I would have liked. I made them again today (made the dough a few days ago) and awesome!!

Crusty white bread

1 1/2 cups water (between 80 and 100 F)
1 Tbsp instant yeast
1 1/2 tsp salt
3 cups flour

1. In the bowl of your stand mixer, pour water and yeast. Allow to bloom for about 5 minutes (you can skip this and just put everything in the mixer like the King Arthur recipe says, but this is how I do it).
2. Add flour and salt to water and yeast and on low speed mix until combined. Turn the mixer up to medium speed and allow to mix for about 1 minute.
3. Transfer the dough to a large bowl. Set the bowl in a non-drafty part of your kitchen and cover with a clean towel (or plastic wrap). Allow to rise for 2 hours. (Per the King Arthur recipe, you can skip this step, but I like it better when I didn't).
4. Place the covered bowl of dough into the refrigerator for 2 hours up to 7 days.
5. When ready to use, punch the dough down, divide into portions (depends on what you want to make- rolls, loaves, etc), shape to desired shape and set on floured surface. Sprinkle the top of your dough with flour. Allow to rise for at least 45 minutes.
6. Preheat the oven to 450-500F. I used a pizza stone to bake the bread, so I preheated this as well. On the lower rack, place a shallow metal or cast iron pan and have 1 cup of water prepared.
7. Place dough onto baking stone (or baking pan). Fill cast iron pan/metal pan with water. Allow to bake until golden brown (approx 15-20 minutes).

Mexican Pasta Salad

We are going to be tailgating tomorrow for my hubby's favorite time of year....the Monster Jam. I wanted to make a pasta salad that would keep without refrigeration. I started dreaming up different concotions and came up with this. I found a dressing recipe here, but I tweaked it a bit.

Mexican Pasta Salad

1 pound pasta, cooked and cooled
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 bag frozen corn, cooked and cooled
1/2 small red onion diced
2 tomatoes diced
(I was going to use a roasted red pepper, but I didn't get to use it this time)

Dressing
Juice of 2 limes
1 clove of garlic minced
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 Tbsp chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp honey

1. In a large bowl, combine pasta, black beans, corn, onion, and tomatoes.
2. In food processor (I used a mini one that came with my stick blender), combine garlic, lime juice, olive oil, cumin, salt, pepper, cilantro, and honey. Blend until combined and cilantro is well chopped.
3. Pour dressing over salad and mix well.