One of my favorite things to do when we go on vacation in Europe is to find a place that serves crepes with Nutella. I have some leftover crepes in my fridge from the other night and I looked everywhere for my Nutella. I can’t find it! That’s only making things worse.

Anyway, I thought I’d share my crepes with nutella recipe. I make the crepes different each time, but this is the basic recipe.

Ingredients:

2 eggs

1 cup milk

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup all purpose flour (white flour)

Pinch of salt of baking powder

1 teaspoon sugar (optional)

Instructions:

Whisk together eggs and milk. Add flour, salt or baking powder, and sugar (optional). Whisk until smooth. Heat griddle or crepe pan. Add a small pat of butter or 1/2 teaspoon oil and let heat for a few seconds. Put 1/4 cup of batter in pan and swirl around until spread out. Make sure the burner is on medium and cook until the top of the crepe is dry and starting to bubble (about 3-5 minutes). Flip and cook on the other side for thirty seconds. Repeat until all the batter is gone.  Add nutella to crepe, fold in half or in thirds, and enjoy!

With the Superbowl coming up, I thought I’d hunt online for some Superbowl recipes that you can serve during the big game. So what are your plans? Are you staying home by yourself, having people over, attending a party? No matter what your plans are, the day will be much improved with some of these Superbowl treats.

When I think of football food, a few things come to mind - chili, nachos, pizza … but if you know me by now, you understand that I always search for the best. So, I thought I’d share some recipe websites that feature tasty looking Superbowl recipes.

These Superbowl party recipes all come from sources that I’ve consistently had success with. I am tired of following recipes that will end in disaster and unfortunately, I seldom trust a recipe that wasn’t written by a professional.Don’t get me wrong. Home cooks have some great dishes, but I’m tired of being halfway through and realizing that the cook forgot to include an ingredient in the list, or the instructions aren’t clear.

Anyway, here’s the list:

• iVillage Big Game recipes 

• Superbowl Recipes at Epicuriuous.com

• Football recipes on About.com 

Can you think of some that I’ve missed? Feel free to share by putting them in the comments.

I had been hearing about mangosteen fruit for a while now as a healthy supplement. It is said to be rich in antioxidants and minerals. I am not one for taking a lot of supplements but when I saw dried Mangosteen at Trader Joe’s I couldn’t resist giving it a try.

They were offering a sample of it and when I popped it in my mouth, I realized how unique it is. It is slightly tart and the giant seeds give it some crunch and an extra nutty flavor. Because I am not familiar with it, I have no idea how to cook with it. For now, I am  enjoying eating it out of the bag.

However, I realized that I am missing out on what the fruit is about by eating it in the dried state. Fresh mangosteens are supposed to be fleshy and soft- they sound delicious. I think I heard somewhere that they may start coming over to the US soon. I was thinking of learning some mangosteen oriented recipes. I was going to try to do it with the dried mangosteen fruits but I think I’ll wait and see if I can find them in its fresh form.

So what makes them so good for you? Now, I’ve seen it marketed as a weight loss supplement. Do I believe it to have magic weight loss potential? No, there’s no such thing. Diet and exercise are the most important elements for weight loss.

However, I do believe that it can indirectly help with a variety of health complaints because it is a very nutrient rich food. It is known for being high in vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. When eating food that has a high nutrient density it is very beneficial to your body.

Me? I don’t worry about that. I am itching to try the fresh fruit and find some creative ways to cook with it.

I learned today that making stove top, homemade popcorn is not a skill that a lot of people have. I personally don’t even buy microwave popcorn. When I bother to eat popcorn I make sure to do it right. So I thought I’d offer you a short explanation on how to make popcorn on the stove, the old fashioned way.

Step 1 - Add the popcorn kernels to the bottom of a medium sized to large saucepan. Make sure the pan is cold. The kernels should be spread out in a single layer.

Step 2 - Add enough oil to the pan in order to cover the kernels with a pinch of salt and about 1/2 teaspoon of butter.

Step 3 - Cover and heat the pan on medium high. Shake it back and forth occasionally so the kernels don’t stick.

Step 4 - When you hear the first pop, start shaking it back and forth again. Do this for about thirty seconds and then shut the heat off. Continue to shake until the popcorn stops popping.

Step 5 - Be carefull when you uncover it because the hot steam will rise up. But you’ll want to uncover it immediately and transfer it to a bowl. Otherwise, the kernels will get soggy. Season it after you put it in the bowl.

My Favorite Seasoning

I add 1/2 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese, salt and pepper to taste, 1 teaspoon onion powder, and 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning and stir until the seasonings are well combined. It’s so good!