Crab cakes

For whatever reason my friends have been making crab cakes recently and they looked good. And since my taste buds have been altered lately (eating clean for 24 days miiiight have something to do with it) I decided I'd give it a whirl! And man am I glad I did. So delicious! 

I found the recipe off of Pinterest. Seriously just searched "crab cakes" and read through them until I thought "well this is easy, I can do this". LOL 

I bought the lump crab meat that is already ready for me to eat. I suppose you could get a crab and shred the meat yourself, if that's your thing, but I'm all about getting the end result as quickly as possible. 

I didn't measure out my sriracha because I like it so I just squirted some in there until I felt it was enough. It wasn't. I'll add more next time. I measured everything else. 

Recipe: 

12 oz Crab Meat (I used 2 8oz containers) 

1 egg 

2 tsp lemon juice (I just squeezed half a lemon) 

3 tbsp mayonnaise 

1 tsp sriracha (if you're boring)

2 tbsp parsley flakes (eyeballed this) 

3 green onions, chopped 

1/2 of Panko breadcrumbs (plus a little extra because I was working with a little more than 12 oz of meat) 

Salt and pepper for taste 

1 tbsp olive oil (for frying) 

Get a bowl. Mix everything together except the olive oil. 

Make your patties, mine made about 13.  

Heat up your tablespoon of olive oil in a medium size skillet on medium heat. Add your patties (as many as you can fit in your pan, my pan only fit 4) Let em cook about 5 minutes on each side. Or til golden brown. 

I added a tablespoon of olive oil every time I put fresh patties in there because I felt like there wasn't any left. FYI. 

Repeat til done. 

We made a sauce too, but you'll have to ask Paul what he put in it. Hahaha 

We paired our meal with a Caesar salad. 

Yum! I wish we had leftovers, but we invited Paul's brother and his wife over so that we wouldn't have leftovers. Woops. Backfired. 

Yours truly,

Dauphingal

Guess who's back

Hey guys. Remember me? It's been 2 years since my last blog post. I got married to Paul and had a baby. He's 10 months and the coolest/best/favorite thing I've ever done. 

I've missed you. I've missed posting what I'm cooking up. 

In my last post I was talking to you about Advocare. And I'll go ahead and let you know, I'm still on product 2 years later. I'm even on Day 9 of my cleanse. Going strong. 

I made a recipe tonight that was incredible. 

Honey Dijon Chicken with potatoes and broccoli 

Goes like this:

1 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 tsp basil 

1/2 tsp salt 

1/2 tsp oregano 

1 tbsp Dijon mustard 

3 tbsp honey

3 cloves of garlic 

Mix that all up. And divide it in half. 

Grab 4 chicken breasts and marinate them for 1 hour in the mixture. 

Meanwhile get some red potatoes, cut them and then pour some of the mixture on those and give it a stir with some salt and some olive oil. 

Grab your broccoli and drizzle the remaining mixture over that. 

Preheat your oven to 400°. 

Get your baking sheet, line it with foil. Fill half the sheet with the potatoes and half the sheet with the broccoli. Place your marinated chicken on top of the potatoes. 

Cook for 35 minutes. 

Oh my gosh. So delicious. I substituted green beans, but that was a terrible idea. 

I'll be back soon! Promise! 

Advocare Cleanse Recipes

It's been too long. But it's been busy...we had the holidays and then I moved (still in the same town) so once I got settled in the new place, I started Advocare. I'll explain. 

Some of my friends that I saw on a weekly basis during November and December had become very outspoken about their "dieting"; all I heard about was "blah blah blah advocare!" Over the next few weeks (not months y'all, WEEKS) I was watching my friends slim down. One of them literally disappeared in front of my very eyes. I decided it was time to listen to what they had to say about advocare and let me tell you- I'm still listening and I'm still learning, but I've been on advocare for 9 days now and I can tell you I've seen a difference (saw a difference on day 5). Other people have too.

Just last night someone walked up to me and said "I have to tell you that you and Paul are really slimming down and it's really noticeable." This came at a time when I was tired of it. I was tired of the clean eating, I was tired of the fiber drink, I was tired of the no alcohol (not that I'm an alcoholic, but I do miss being able to have a beer or glass of wine), but when I hear that someone is noticing my attempt at being healthy--it gave me the strength to go on for the next few days. 

Paul and I decided to just do a 10 day cleanse (believe it or not he was more anxious to get started than I was. It was refreshing).

Ok, on to the recipes. Basically for 10-24 days you eat clean. I really don't know if I could have done this without Pinterest or Google. Seriously. These are just three of the "new things" I tried. Apart from these recipes, we ate a lot of tilapia and broccoli. Haha. 

I didn't take pictures so I'm just going to post the links to the web pages for the recipes. They are all easy and all include chicken. 

The first one was a chicken/corn casserole. http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/main-courses/cheesy-chicken-and-rice-bake/

The second was a southwestern chicken chili in the crockpot. 

And last, but not least, the third one was an Italian chicken bake with green beans and potatoes. This recipe is from a woman who actually did the Advocare 24 day challenge. http://www.melissasbargains.com/italian-green-beans-and-chicken-bake/

I will do the 24 day challenge at some point; the 10 day cleanse was advocare's audition to become a permanent thing in my life and it made the cut. Try advocare, try these recipes, you'll be pleasantly surprised. 

Enjoy! 

yours truly, 

dauphin gal 

Chili Pasta

Well hello friends! I know it's been awhile, but things have been busy and I haven't been getting creative in the kitchen until last night. 

It's an unusual 39 degrees and raining here in New Braunfels and let me just say that cold weather is just fine when I'm in Colorado with my Houston and Tulsa family, but when it's that cold down here, it weirds me out and I'm a tad bit of a baby about it for a few days. But after the 3rd day, which was yesterday, I begin to want cold weather food so I made this chili pasta. Enjoy! 

Chili Pasta 

• 1lb ground beef (or turkey to make healthier) 

• 1 onion, chopped

• 1 can (14.5) of stewed tomatoes 

• 1 can (15 oz) of tomato sauce 

• 1 can of ranch style beans; semi-drained 

• 1 1/2 cups of water 

• 1 bag medium shells 

• Garlic Powder 

• Chili Powder 

Heat up your skillet, brown your meat and sautée your onion. Add your cans of goodness and water bring to a simmer. Season with garlic powder, chili powder, salt, and pepper to your taste buds. 

Cook pasta as directed. Then combine it all together. 

Now, I know it seems odd, but have I strayed you wrong before (as far as cooking goes)?? NO! Get yourself from Fritos, put it in the bowl then put the Chili Pasta on top, and garnish with shredded cheese. Mmm it's so good! Trust me! 

I always like to give credit where credit is due and I got the chili recipe from allrecipes.com. 

yours truly,

dauphin gal 

Garlic Butter Spaghetti with Herbs

Hello again!

I can't believe July is already here! Where did my summer go? I guess between traveling and summer school, it flew by in a hurry.

I had a friend tell me she noticed me back on Pinterest and asked if that meant my blog was making a come back and I said YEP! Obviously, they're related. I don't have loads and loads of family recipes so I have to find things to make, which is why I hop on Pinterest to find some things to make for you guys. Without further ado...

I found this recipe here. Its SO delicious! I can't wait to have some for lunch!

Garlic Butter Spaghetti with Herbs

• 1 lb. whole wheat spaghetti
• 6 tablespoons butter (plus more for serving) 
• 8 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large bunch basil, chopped 
• 1 large bunch baby spinach, chopped
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• Parmesan shredded for topping 

Make the spaghetti as the package tells you. (Now, I only did half a pound of spaghetti, because it was just for me. I didn't cut the rest of the recipe in half, which gave it so much flavor!) Meanwhile, melt the butter and sauté the garlic in it. Nice and slowly. Chop up the basil and spinach, I had about 6 cups full. Toss that in with the butter and garlic. Just for like a minute. Toss some salt in there. Add the butter and herbs to the spaghetti (after you've drained it, of course). Mix it all up reaaaaaal good and let it sit for a few minutes, maybe five. Serve it up in your favorite bowl (don't laugh, we all have them) and top it with some shredded parmesan cheese. I also threw in an extra table spoon of butter and mixed that in. What?!?! Its organic! 

Regardless: IT WAS DELICIOUS!!! I think the next time I'll make it, I'll throw in some little chicken cutlets or I'll just make some chicken on the side. I just didn't thaw out any yesterday. 

I have already seen things on that same blog that I can't wait to try. She's worth a follow. Just saying. 

yours truly, 

dauphin gal 

Apple Cinnamon Water

Well, well, well ... what do we have here?!? Its me, back to the blogging. I apologize for my hiatus... I don't have an excuse. So, I'm sorry. Forgive me? Great! Let's move on.

Paleo is a wonderful diet, if you aren't missing a digestive organ such as your gallbladder. However, the short month I was on it I felt energized and ready to go with little to no coffee and workouts were very easy.

So with that being said, I have found a recipe for a "detox drink" aka a different type of water. I drink a lot of water during the year, but tend to forget during the summer.

I made this Apple Cinnamon Water. DELICIOUS.

I cut up one apple, threw in one cinnamon stick, 6 cups of ice (yes, I measured), and water. Put it all in a one gallon jug, let sit over night in the fridge and voila! You have a zero calorie detox drink. If you want a stronger flavor, DUH, add more of whichever you want.

I'll upload a picture later, but wanted to share before I forgot. I do that. Just ask my friends and family-- very forgetful. :)

I got it here.

I'm off to the pool! More to come this week/weekend, guys. PROMISE!!

yours truly,
dauphin gal

paleo pumpkin muffins

From the title you can tell that I am indeed following my Paleo eating habits. I have started another blog but I'm not sure how often I will post on that one. It might not be recipes, but I can tell you one thing: its gonna be REAL; HONEST; BLACK&WHITE--My likes, dislikes, whining, bragging, etc ... Anywhoooo....I'm rambling. My apologies.

Its been fun. Learning new things and a new way of eating. The downside? I don't get to enjoy sweets and its just as expensive to eat healthy as it is to eat unhealthy. However; my workouts have been MUCH easier and I am down to one cup of coffee in the morning because I wake up energized and ready for the day.

Paleo Pumpkin Muffins

• 1 1/2 cups almond flour 
• 3/4 canned pumpkin
• 3 large eggs 
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda 
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon 
• 1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice 
• 1/8 tsp sea salt 
• 1/4 cup raw honey (optional)
• 2 tsp almond butter 
• 1 tbs sliced almonds (to sprinkle on top)

Preheat oven to 350.  Mix all ingredients and pour into muffin cups/tins. Bake for 25 minutes. Add the almonds ASAP when they get out. I opted not to do this because I need to go to the store and get non-flavored almonds. Pretty sure Habanero seasoned almonds wouldn't taste good on these babies. 

These are DELISH. I can have 1 for a snack or 2 for breakfast. YUM!

Enjoy :) 

yours truly, 

dauphin gal 

p.s. woopsies! forgot to cite my sources. 

peppermint kiss sugar cookies

Hi friends. Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and good-bye to football season. Obviously, this is a holiday recipe and I'm terribly sorry I didn't post it. Actually, no I'm not. I was skiing and seeing family and spending time with my nephew/godson. So save the link and you can make these next year. It'll be here before you know it.

As if this delayed recipe isn't enough to get you upset, I've started the Paleo Diet. And all that really means is I am no longer eating breads, dairy, and basically anything processed. Why do you care? Well, I won't be posting sweets or fatty recipes. So if you're trying to eat right, get ready for some Paleo-friendly recipes heading your way... soon.

So as I'm saying good-bye to football season, I'm also saying good-bye to sweets so, here's the last sweet tooth recipe for awhile ....


Peppermint Kiss Sugar Cookies

• 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar 
• 1 1/4 cups butter, room temp
• 1 tsp peppermint extract (optional) 
• 1 tsp vanilla extract 
• 1 large egg 
• 3 cups flour 
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt 
• 1/2 cup finely chopped candy cane flavored Hershey kisses 
• granulated sugar
• 30 unwrapped candy cane flavored Hershey kisses 

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Make room in either refrigerator or freezer for your cookie sheet.

2. In large mixer bowl, combine powdered sugar, butter, extracts and egg. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often until creamy (2-3 minutes). In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Add to wet mixture and beat, scraping bowl often until well blended (1-2 minutes). The mixture will be a bit crumbly. Stir in chopped Kisses.

3. Shape dough into ¾-inch to 1-inch balls; roll in granulated sugar. Place 1-inch apart on cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until set. As soon as they come out of the oven, press a Candy Cane Kiss in the center of each cookie. They’ll crack a little around the edges, so just use your fingers to hold the cookie together while you set the kiss inside. Put cookie sheet (with cookies) immediately into the freezer (preferred) or refrigerator, so that the Kisses will set quickly. As soon as you press them into the cookie, they will begin to soften… so if you can get them into the freezer then they will keep their Kiss shape.

4. Store in a covered container- at room temperature for up to a week. In the freezer they should be  good for a couple of weeks.

Taken from here. 

yours truly, 
dauphin gal 

Spiced Pumpkin Cupcakes

Happy thanksgiving to all!!!!

I made these a few days ago, but well, I've been busy so for those of you that have seen the pictures of these beauties on Instagram...here's the recipe.

Spiced Pumpkin Cupcakes

• 1 yellow or spiced cake mix 
• 1 package vanilla instant pudding mix 
• 1 cup pumpkin purée 
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1/2 cup water 
• 3 eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

Preheat oven to 350. Beat all ingredients. In large bowl with electric mixer on low speed until moistened. Beat on medium for 2 minutes until well blended. Spoon batter into cupcake liners, 2/3 full. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from pans; cool completely. Then frost them!!!

Spiced Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1 package (8oz) cream cheese, softened 
• 1/4 cup butter, softened 
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 4 cups powdered sugar

Beat the first 4 ingredients until light and fluffy. Gradually add in the powdered sugar (one cup at a time) until smooth. I used a Wilton decorating tip & bag to decorate mine, of course. Perfectionist in me came out:) 

I went to Williams Sonoma Outlet last year after thanksgiving and got this super cute cupcake kit with cute fall-y cupcake liners and turkeys in thanksgiving outfits as toppers. For 50 cents. Holla!!! To be honest, I usually forget about such finds but I remembered this year!!! Can I get two points for that? Great! Thanks! 

I hope you and your family have a wonderful thanksgiving! 

Hook em horns! 

Yours truly, 

Dauphin gal