Rippin Another Blog: Chocolate Covered Bananas Wrapped in Walnuts

Good morning dear readers!

Can you believe I'm still eating sweets?? 

I can. It seems to me that we crave what we eat. If you're in the habit of munching on salt, you want salt. If you tend to lean toward green, you want veggies. Meat eaters like their meat. And sweet eaters like their sweet. 

Christmas made a sweet eater out of me. And while I'm definitely on the road to vegetables again, I still crave a treat. 

This snack was about as split as banana can be. Well, except for the ice cream and candy sprinkles. But it was half fruit, half sweet. And I'm good with that. Throw in the nuts and you've got yourself one tasty, happy fat rich snack.

The recipe comes from The Joyful Table. A blog by a woman named Noelle who reaches out and touches my little heart soul. Not literally. Ouch. But figuratively - she's all about finding joy in the cherished moments around her kitchen table. That's my kinda scene. And while she touts this recipe as "embarassingly simple" - it's the simple things that make a dish worth eating. 

Thank you Noelle - I needed this today. Or at least my mouth did.

Chocolate Covered Bananas Wrapped in Walnuts

(printable recipe) - Serves 4.

Ingredients:

2 Bananas, with the peels just a little green still.

1 C Good Quality Dark Chocolate, roughly chopped.

1 C Roasted Walnuts, roughly chopped.

4 Wooden Skewers.

What to Do:

Peel the bananas and slice them in half lengthwise. Impale them on the skewers and place on a parchment paper lined plate. Place in the freezer for 30 minutes while you get the rest of the ingredients ready.

Get the rest of the ingredients ready...

Dump the chocolate pieces into a double boiler (a pot with 2 inches of water and a glass bowl that fits over top works well - make sure the water doesn't hit the bowl).  Heat the water to a boil over medium heat, stirring the chocolate constantly to ensure it doesn't burn. Once melted and hot, remove from heat.

Place the walnuts in a large shallow bowl. Set aside.

Remove the bananas from the freezer and dredge in the chocolate and then the nuts.

Place back on parchment paper and place in the fridge for 30 - 60 minutes or until chocolate hardens.

Eat. 

What are your go-to desserts? Are you still stuck on the holiday sweet train? Choo choo!

Homage to a 1980's Sweet Treat

Happy Thursday my sweets! 

This week Haydn brought you a treat for beer lovers and now I'm bringing you a treat for sweet lovers! 

Why you ask? Because you are my sweets and I love you so I figured why not give my sweets a sweet?

Sweets for sweets!

Now, I'm not a huge dessert fan (says the girl who posted a beet chocolate cake last week and this post this week) but I do like a little somethin' somethin' from time to time... And this little ditty fits that bill.

I'm talking chocolate covered strawberries. Ooooooh yeah.

But not in that cheesy 1980's seduce-your-flight-instructor-to-the-tune-of-Take My Breath Away kind of chocolate covered strawberries. No, wait. I do mean those kind of chocolate covered strawberries. Because strawberries dipped in chocolate is hot. And so were 1980's movies. Like this one... OR this one... OR this one!

The real kicker here though are the pistachios. They add a salty, crunchy texture to the mix. And who doesn't want to put something sweet and salty in their mouth? I do! I do! And I did...

Dark Chocolate Covered Strawberries with Crunchy Pistachios

(printable recipe)

Ingredients:

1 Pint Fresh, Organic Strawberries, washed and well dried & sliced into halves.

1 C Dark Chocolate Baking Disks (the higher quality, the better).

1/2 C Shelled Pistachios, roughly chopped.

What to Do:

In a double boiler - I set a glass bowl over a medium sized pot - bring 1-2 C of water to a boil. Make sure the water in the pot isn't touching the bowl. 

Reduce heat to a medium simmer and add the chocolate to the dry bowl. Stirring very regularly (almost constantly), gently melt the chocolate. Once melted, remove from the heat so the chocolate doesn't burn and set aside.

As the chocolate melts, line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Now, holding onto the greens of the berries, gently dip the strawbs into the chocolate, followed by the pistachios. Set on parchment paper. Repeat until finished. Place in the refrigerator to cool for at least 30 minutes

Serve with a side of sexy... Or maybe some dark red wine.

Eat. 

What's your favourite bit of the 80's? Or do you think we should try to forget them as quickly as possible? (both answers are fair).

This post is linked up with Whole Foods Wednesday; Cast Party Wednesday; Simple Lives Thursday; Showcase Your Talent Thursday; Full Plate Thursday; Tastetastic Thursday; Fresh Bites Friday; Fight Back Friday; The Hearth & Soul Blog Hop via The 21st Century Housewife; Tasty Tuesdays; Slightly Indulgent Tuesday; Tuesday Talent Show;