Fast Food at Home

So, lately I have had my first real pregnancy craving, and that has been Dairy Queen Blizzards. I am not usually a big ice cream fan, but this pregnancy has converted me. Also, now that they have introduced the new mini size (well, it’s new here in Canada), they have now created the perfect amount of Blizzard for me. My indulgence of choice is usually Chocolate Covered Cherry/Skor (I believe the other name for this chocolate bar is Heath elsewhere). Mmmm…I’m drooling just thinking about it. For the first few days, Hubby was indulging me by running to DQ to grab one for me after dinner (I think he secretly wanted the excuse for ice cream treats too). However, lately he has been putting his foot down. This is partly due to the fact that having treats from Dairy Queen everyday is both a)excessively indulgent, even if you are pregnant and b) very hard on the old bank account. Also, I think that he also is just tired of driving to get it for me.

With my delivery method thwarted, and my laziness trumping all, I grumpily resigned myself that I would no longer be eating ice-creamy, candy goodness. But that’s when I had a genius idea. I probably looked like the Grinch when he figures out he can steal all the Who’s pressies by dressing up as Santa…I just had to wait for the perfect opportunity to sneak it past Hubby’s defenses. 

So, when he suggested that we go for a walk to get some exercise, I had the perfect opportunity. If I agreed to go on this walk  waddle (in the rain, I might add) and reap all the health benefits associated with it, then we could grab some ice cream from the corner store. Just vanilla. Hubby agreed eagerly, and off we went. I will not regale you with the details of how long it took me to waddle my butt down to the corner store, or how my rain coat wouldn’t do up over my belly, so it got all soaked. I will let your imagination fill in these details.

When we got to the store, I also grabbed 2 king sized Skor bars along with the vanilla ice cream. When Hubby asked me what I was doing, I told him my genius plan: We would make our own Blizzards!! They would be delicious, and we wouldn’t have to pay a lot for them, and best of all, he wouldn’t have to leave the house! Hubby could hardly argue with me when I looked so deliriously triumphant in front of the sweet little girl behind the counter. So I won. MWAHAHAHA.

I also made some buffalo chicken sandwiches for dinner to go along with our homemade Blizzards, so it was like a fast food meal at home. This way, we could control the portion size and the ingredients to make it a smarter meal. And it’s cheaper. We substituted potato salad for fries, since it’s what we had on hand. I am not sure if this is a healthier choice or not, but it feels like it, and that’s all that matters.

Actually, it is an incredibly quick meal to make, so it really is fast food! These are both such easy dishes that they don’t really warrant recipes, but here they are anyway, just in case. J

Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches a la Amy

This recipe is incredibly simple, but has many variations depending on your taste. We used BBQ’d chicken breasts, but you could also bread them in panko crumbs and bake them for a crispy version, or used ground chicken to make burger patties first. Whichever way your little heart desires!

Chicken Breast (I used only 1 and halved it so that they wouldn’t be too big for the bun and would cook evenly)

Your favourite Buffalo wing sauce (we prefer Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo)

Lettuce

Tomato

Hamburger Buns or other bread (ciabatta would be delicious)

Ranch or Blue Cheese dressing

Extra Old Cheddar Cheese (if such a thing appeals to you. It certainly appeals to me!)

Prepare the chicken how you prefer. We tossed it on the BBQ for about 10 minutes until cooked through. Once the chicken is done, place some wing sauce in a bowl or plastic baggie (if you don’t like to do dishes) and shake the chicken until it is covered in the perfect amount of deliciousness.

Spread some salad dressing (ranch for Hubby, blue cheese for me) on your bun, and top with lettuce, a big slice of tomato, and the cheese. Place your chicken on top of the cheese, so it gets nice and melty, and then devour. Mmmmm…

Homemade Blizzards

Vanilla ice cream

Milk

Candy, chocolate or cookie of your choice

If you are using a candy bar or cookies, I suggest putting them in a plastic baggie and smashing them to bits with a kitchen mallet. If you put them in the blender, you run the risk of making them too small. This way, you can control how chunky you want the pieces of yumminess.

Place the ice cream in a blender, and then slowly add enough milk to make it blendable. It’s important to add just a little bit at a time, or your Blizzard will end up more like a milkshake, which isn’t a good thing for suspending chocolate-y goodness in. You want the consistency to be similar to soft-serve. Once that’s done, you can add your pre-smashed candy and gently pulse it until it’s mixed.

Pour it into a mug, and you are ready to go! I do not recommend doing the famous Blizzard upside-down turn they do at DQ. Unless you like cleaning your kitchen floors…

You can also add a little cherry sundae topping to it to recreate my favourite flavor…that’s on the agenda for next time.

Of course, it’s not the same as the real thing, but it sure does satisfy the craving in a pinch.

Enjoy!

PS Thank you all for voting for me for the Top 25 Pregnancy Journals on Circle of Moms. There are 5 more days left in the contest, so if you wouldn't mind giving me a thumbs up? Much appreciated!!