Just J.Faye

Hiking & Other Adventures

Bacon Nut Bourbon Brownies

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After a few weeks of posting recipes for healthier treats (like almond butter trail mix cookies, triple berry almond oat bars, and coconut cashew butter) I decided to go the opposite direction.

I made brownies.

And I put bacon in them. And then I added a lot of nuts and a little bit of bourbon.

I’m not upset with the situation. These bacon nut bourbon brownies are totally worth it.

bacon nut bourbon brownies

The base of the brownie itself is amazing. They bake up nice and thick with just the right texture ranging somewhere between gooey and cakey. With three types of chocolate – bittersweet, unsweetened, and cocoa powder – they aren’t too chocolatey or too tooth-achingly sweet. They are juuuuuust right. Plus, these have that little crust on top that is just perfect. This will be my new go-to brownie base going forward.

bacon nut bourbon brownies

Then there are the nuts. Nuts always belong in brownies, so I feel like I don’t need to explain this further.

But the bourbon and bacon? That one I’ll explain.

Explanation: bourbon and bacon belong in everything.

I kid.

(But really I’m not kidding)

bacon nut bourbon brownies

To be honest, I added the bacon because I had a half-full (optimist!) package of bacon in my fridge leftover from another recipe. I didn’t know what to use it for, because I already had my lunches and dinners planned for the rest of the week. I needed to use it for something and I happened to be making brownies to bring to dinner at a friend’s house, so I just decided to throw bacon into the batter.

And since I was already trashing these brownies up by adding bacon, I figured what the heck, might as well add bourbon.

Does that make sense?

bacon nut bourbon brownies

I’ll tell you this: no one complained about it. I don’t think you would either.

bacon nut bourbon brownies

And remember when I put bacon in scotcheroos? Yeah, those were good too.

Bacon Nut Bourbon Brownies
 
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These brownies are a little bit gooey, but a little bit cakey. They are a little bit sweet, but a little bit salty. They have bourbon, bacon, and lots of nuts. What's not to love?!
Serves: 9 brownies
Ingredients
  • 6-8 slices bacon
  • ½ cup butter
  • 4 oz bittersweet chocolate
  • 2 oz unsweetened chocolate
  • 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 teaspoons bourbon
  • ¾ cup all purpose flour
  • ½ teaspoon course sea salt, plus extra for topping
  • ¾ cup chopped nuts (I used walnuts, peanuts, and pecans)
Instructions
  1. Pre-heat the oven to 350° F. Take two pieces of parchment paper and place them perpendicularly in an 8x8” baking pan. Leave some overhang so that the brownies can easily be lifted out of the pan. Grease with butter or oil.
  2. Fry the bacon in a pan until crisp, a few minutes on each side. Chop into small pieces then set aside to cool.
  3. Melt the butter, bittersweet chocolate, and unsweetened chocolate in a double boiler (a saucepan over a larger saucepan of boiling water) or in the microwave.
  4. Stir in the cocoa powder.
  5. In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs, vanilla, and bourbon until thoroughly combined. The sugar should be completely dissolved, about 3 minutes.
  6. Whisk in the chocolate mixture.
  7. Stir in the flour and sea salt.
  8. Fold in ¾ of the bacon and chopped nuts.
  9. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and top with remaining bacon, nuts, and a little bit of sea salt.
  10. Bake for about 25-30 minutes. Do not overbake! Brownies can be slightly underdone and gooey.
  11. Let them cool completely before removing from the pan. Cut into 9 large (or 16 small) brownies. Enjoy!

Now I’m off to go do my last long run before Grandma’s Marathon, which is next Saturday! *insert panic attack * But afterwards I’m headed to go explore Stillwater with some friends. I’ll post Instagrams and take notes and tell you about it later. Enjoy your Saturday! I hope you go for a nice, long walk (or run) and then eat some brownies.

bacon nut bourbon brownies

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Thursday Things 06.11.15

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Thursday Things 06.11.15

You guys. It has really been feeling like summer out there! It has been quite the week full of everything outdoors: bike rides, beers, yoga, eating, sticking your feet out in pictures… just everything. I love it.

I love these things too:

It’s a little dreary today, but summer sun will be back by tomorrow. I hope you are getting your fill!

JD

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The Fit 5: Back

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It’s time for another Fit 5 post! This time we’re going to focus on our back muscles.

The Fit 5: Back

Many exercises are forward moving and front facing, so it can be easy to forget about the back. We shouldn’t – for every push there should be a pull.

And for every The Fit 5 post there should be some facts.

The Fit 5: Back

I definitely needed to triple check the spelling on some of those muscles. The Transversospinalis muscles rarely come up in my writing or everyday conversations – surprising? But it’s always great to know these things. You never know when it could pop up in trivia.

Basically, the back is made up of a few larger muscles and a lot of little ones. All of these are important, so we should pay attention to them, treat them with respect, and make them stronger.

Here are some exercises that will help with that!

The Fit 5: Back

These are just a few to get you started. I love a good row or pulldown, but after incorporating a lot more yoga into my life the last few months, I’ve noticed the benefits of doing isometric holds – like the Superman. They are always a little bit more difficult than you think they’ll be, but are extremely beneficial.

I recommend incorporating at least one back exercise into your strength training routine. That’s totally doable, right?!

Check out the other Fit 5 posts for some good exercises you can pair these with: Shoulders, Biceps, Triceps, Chest, and Balance Training.

With The Fit 5 Back thrown into the mix we almost hit all the major muscle groups! Woo Hoo. Stay tuned for more.

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06.01.15 Weekly Recap

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06.01.15 Weekly Recap

FOOD:

  • I’ve been on yogurt kick lately, so breakfast this week has been a banana, fresh berries, chia seeds, walnuts, and full fat plain Greek yogurt. This combo never disappoints.
  • When my friends and I grilled last Sunday I made a ton of extra kabobs, so I’ve been eating the leftovers with some greens for lunch all week. I could eat this everyday forever and ever.
  • My snacks this week were super typical – an apple in the morning and some broccoli in the afternoon.
  • Dinners have been all over the place because of various things going on. Check out in the other fun things section!

FITNESS:

  • Monday: Easy run. My friend Monica and I had a nice morning run downtown. Total = 7.5 miles; 9:35 min/mile pace.
  • Tuesday: Strength training + track workout. I squeezed in some strength training circuits over lunch. I did 3 sets of the following: 1st – single-leg shoulder scaption, Romanian deadlifts, standing triceps extensions; 2nd – lateral band walks, cable adductors, biceps and hammer curls; 3rd – chest press, lat pulldowns, leg lifts. Then I finished off with some more ab work and stretching. Later that evening I met up with the CBRC for a track workout at “the bridges” (which is not a track, but a flat stretch on the Cedar Lake Trail that has three bridges spaced about ½-mile apart). The workout: 1 mile – 3 min rest – ½ mile – 30 sec rest – ½ mile – 3 min rest. I repeated that once more and also had a warm up and cool down. Total = 7.35 miles; 8:56 min/mile pace.
  • Wednesday: National Running Day run! I met up with a group of girls from the CBRC for a bright and early run to celebrate National Running Day! Most of us did a track workout the night before, so we kept it pretty easy, which was quite fun. It’s moments like that that make me love running so much. Total = 5.0 miles; 9:25 min/mile pace.
  • Thursday: Yoga. I went to “yoga at the winery” with my mom. It was a very beginner class and my brain was very distracted, but it was still a nice time.
  • Friday: Easy run. I was at home in Hutchinson and took it super slow on some gravel roads. I even saw a horse on the loose! Total = 4.0 miles; 10:00 min/mile pace
  • Saturday: Easy run. I cut down my long run this week. Total = 9.0 miles; 9:25 min/mile pace.
  • Sunday: Easy run. This was a hot, hot run, but it was such a gorgeous morning! Luckily, there was at least one water fountain on in the city. Total = 6.0 miles; 9:15 min/mile pace.

As you can see there were a lot of easy runs towards the end of this week. I finally went to see a doctor about those weird heart things I’ve been feeling on some of my long runs. He advised me not to run. I clearly didn’t listen, but I did cut down on my miles, didn’t do a workout, and took it really easy. I have another appointment this week, so more to come on that!

OTHER FUN THINGS:

  • Some of my co-workers from Canada were visiting this week, so the team planned a couple of fun outings for them so they weren’t stuck in their hotel rooms. On Monday we went to Lake Harriet (pictured above) for a picnic and some live music. So fun! I don’t know why I haven’t done this in Minneapolis before. Someone picked up food from the Broder’s Deli (I had the Emilia Salad – so tasty). We spent the evening sitting on blankets, chatting, and listening to some live big band music. The weather was a tad on the chilly side, but still a great night overall. On Wednesday night we went to Pizzeria Lola for dinner. This place has been on my “must eat at” list since I moved to Minneapolis almost 4 years ago! Ridiculous. This place was amazing. We got a bunch of different pizzas, so I was able to try the Korean BBQ (OMG, the best), Hawaii Pie-O, The Forager, and Beautiful Evening (the special). It was amazing. I am so sad that it took me so long to try it out. I could have been enjoying this pizza for years. If you live in the Minneapolis area, please go now.
  • My friend Ellie and her husband Oliver were in town from California. I rarely ever get to see them, so I drove home to Hutchinson on Thursday after work. First I met my mom and her friend (Hi Lynn!) at Crow River Winery for “yoga at the winery”. They do an outdoor yoga class every Thursday night and then you go inside and have a glass of wine – how great is that?! Plus, it’s only $10. We also ordered a red pepper asparagus pizza to enjoy with our wine. It was very delicious! Afterwards I met up Ellie, Oliver, and Johanna at Zella’s for half-priced bottles of wine and a lot of catching up. It’s always good to see close friends <3
  • On Friday afternoon I took my mom out for lunch at Zella’s to celebrate her last day of another school year (and an early birthday). Then we did a little shopping and grabbed coffee and dessert before I had to head back to Minneapolis. It was a fun afternoon with my mom. I hope to have a few more of those this summer!
  • My friend Megan and her boyfriend Justin were in town from Boston on Friday night, so a big group of us went out to LynLake Brewery to see them and drink beer and hang out on the rooftop – such a great night with too many awesome people.
  • A couple of friends got together for Sunday brunch to check out the drag brunch at Mattie’s on Main. It was quite silly and the food was really tasty.

Oh man, apparently there were lots of fun things this week! I liked it. Oh summer <3

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Almond Butter Trail Mix Cookies

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Almond butter and trail mix got married. Then they had two dozen children. These are their children:

almond butter trail mix cookies

Almond butter trail mix cookies.

Aren’t they beautiful?

All they had to was combine with an egg and some brown sugar. Then BAM! these cookies were born.

And then this blog post got a little awkward so I’m ditching this analogy right… meow.

almond butter trail mix cookies

So these cookies! They are so easy to make. I made them the hard way and they were still easy.

The “hard” way = make your own almond butter and mix your own trail mix.

The “easy” way = buy almond butter and trail mix at the store.

No matter which path you tread you’ll end up with delicious cookies and that’s the most important part. Gotta love that salty-sweet combo.

almond butter trail mix cookies

And you know what? As far as cookies go, these aren’t so bad for you. They are primarily made up of healthy, whole ingredients (nuts, seeds, egg), but we throw in some brown sugar to make them a little more of an indulgence.

Live a little.

They are naturally gluten-free, so if your body hates gluten it will love these!

almond butter trail mix cookies

These almond butter trail mix cookies would be great companions for when you go camping. They seem like very outdoorsy-type cookies to me. Maybe because they have the word “trail” in them? IDK.

I did bring them along to a picnic and they were good. I ate them inside and they were still good. I recommend trying both out!

 

almond butter trail mix cookies

Almond Butter Trail Mix Cookies
 
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These almond butter trail mix cookies are basically just almond butter and trail mix with a few other ingredients. They are super simple to make! You can make your own almond butter and trail mix or buy your favorite at the store.
Serves: 2 dozen
Ingredients
  • 2 cups almonds
  • 1 egg, slightly beaten
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ⅓ cup raisins
  • ⅓ cup dark chocolate chips
  • ⅓ cup salted sunflower seeds
  • ⅓ cup roasted, salted peanuts
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
  2. Toast almonds in the oven for 7-10 minutes (oven doesn’t have to be fully pre-heated at this point) until toasted and fragrant. Let cool for a few minutes.
  3. Place almonds in a food process and process for 5-10 minutes until it becomes smooth almond butter. You may have to stop it every so often to scrap down the sides. Once almonds have reached the desired consistency transfer to a bowl. Make sure this is about to room temperature before mixing with the other ingredients. It will make the dough easier to handle.
  4. Add the egg, brown sugar, baking soda, and vanilla extract. Stir until completely combined.
  5. Stir in the raisins, dark chocolate chips, sunflower seeds, and peanuts.
  6. Roll dough into balls.
  7. Optional step: refrigerate dough for 10-15 minutes before baking. This will result in denser cookies. If you don’t refrigerate they will spread a bit and will be thinner and crispier. They will be delicious either way!
  8. and place on the cookie sheet. Bake for 8 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a rack to cool completely.
Notes
You can use store bought almond butter rather than making your own. Use 1 cup.
You can replace the raisins, chocolate chips, sunflower seeds, and peanuts with 1⅓ cups of your favorite trail mix.

almond butter trail mix cookies

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Thursday Things 06.04.15

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Thursday Things 06.04.15

Did you know they play live music at Lake Harriet every night?! How cool is that? Very. Check it out.

It’s almost as cool as these things:

I hope you all got out for a run yesterday to celebrate National Running Day!

xxjd

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