Hungry Girl's Krispymallow Treats

I don't link to Hungry Girl. Why? Because she's good and I don't want to drive away traffic.

Her name has come up in my many conversations with WWEppy about Weight Watchers and he bought me a copy of her cookbook as a thank you for spending countless hours talking about points, meal planning and all things WW.

I decided to start my tour of Hungry Girl's book with her krispymallow treats. As a bit of a sweet freak, I'm always looking for dessert after dinner, so why not try something a little more calorically-friendly?

Basically it revamps the original rice krispie recipe by substituting margarine for butter and adding some Fiber One cereal instead of all Rice Krispies. The result? Pretty darn good. The hardest part was having enough patience to wait for the marshmallows to melt and they actually tasted better the next day after the marshmallows had a chance to stiffen up a bit.

A whole tray cut into 16 pieces worked out to 1.25 WW points per piece and was quite satisfying. Recipe below... check it out for yourself!

5 cups puffed wheat cereal
2 cups Fiber One bran cereal (original)
3 cups mini-marshmallows
3 tbsp light whipped butter or light buttery spread

Melt butter in a large saucepan over low heat. Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted. Remove from heat. Add both cereals. Stir until thoroughly coated.

Using a spatula, press mixture evenly into a 9"x13" baking pan sprayed with nonstick spray. (ed note: I used my hands and a 8"x10" pan) Allow to cool. Cut into 25 squares.

Counter: the East Coast Edition

I've been watching the construction of Counter in West Hartford's Blue Back Square for awhile now and the same question kept crossing my mind. Was this the same Counter that I enjoyed in Los Angeles a few years back?

The answer was "yes".

I stopped in yesterday for a late lunch and the place was bustling. The hostess initially tried to seat me at the counter (literally) as one is apt to do when a patron dines solo but with a lack of counter seating, I wound up at a four top in the middle of the dining room.

I decided to build my own burger instead of choosing one off their regular menu. Looking back to my former post on Counter, I pretty much built the same burger this time around. What can I say? I'm a creature of habit.

My choice was a 1/3 lb turkey burger with Gruyere cheese, sauteed mushrooms, grilled onions, and baby greens on a honey wheat bun. I also opted for a side of the peppercorn steak sauce which was basically an au jus. On the fry-side, I chose to go "fifty-fifty": a smart combo of sweet potato and regular fries.

The fries were excellent. Crispy and well-seasoned with the sweet potato version having a slight edge over the Idaho's. The burger was a tad overdone but nothing that a dip in the au jus didn't help remedy. (Next time I'll request medium rare) The mushrooms were pretty good and the onions were tasty, although a few raw onions slipped into the mix.

This burger creation, fries and a diet soda ran me just under 20 bucks, not cheap. The food was quality but a bit overpriced, a trend of most establishments in this new "hip" part of West Hartford.