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CHOCOLATE
The best gift ever when it’s made by one of her kids.
Truffles have always been a favorite of mine. I love receiving truffles, and I’ve made many varieties over the years – dark, milk, white; coated with nuts, cocoa powder, melted chocolate. You really can’t go wrong with any of these combinations.
They’re pretty simple to make, depending on how fancy you get with the coating. For a long time, I made a variation that had melted chocolate, cream cheese and powdered sugar. Pretty sweet, but super easy to make. Ganache fillings are rich and smooth, but a bit more work.
After finding an online recipe and some variations on Ranger Pudding (using MRE packets) I thought I’d try a new twist of this long time favorite on this week’s MRE Remix.
My MRE version is not complicated, but you do need to allow time to freeze the filling to make the mixture easier to handle. I was happily surprised at how delicious these turned out. I’ll be honest – when I looked at these recipes before they didn’t sound very good. But, a Navy friend of mine recently told me he really liked the Ranger Pudding, which gave me the nudge I needed to try this myself.
The Chocolate Protein Drink Powder I used comes in MRE Menu 23, but I would guess you could use any of the chocolate pudding or drink packets and get similar results. If you try this basic recipe using one of the others, please comment below and let me know how it turns out!
Besides MRE non-dairy creamer and Splenda packets (you could use sugar if that’s what you have on hand) the secret ingredient that I currently am enjoying trying in a variety of things is JIF Peanut Powder. It really boosts the peanut flavor without adding extra fat. It’s a pretty easy product to use. I was a little intimidated by it originally, but have found it to be very easy to mix and incorporate.
The only thing that makes these something you can’t just whip up in a jiffy, is the freezer time needed. The freezer time is what makes them especially delicious and smooth (not hard) to bite into. It seems like freezing them would make them hard, but actually that isn’t the case. To get that consistency you have to make the mixture a little softer and freeze it in between handling. It’s not super delicate, but it if you try to make these without freezing them you’ll have a mess on your fingers.
This week’s MRE Remix is not paired with a specific card in the 2MyHero line. I don’t currently have a card that would be great for Mother’s Day, but maybe in the future. So for now, I’ll just make gift suggestions for mom’s with a spouse or child serving in the Armed Forces.
COFFEE
I don’t know too many moms who don’t drink coffee. Roasted by a Veteran . . . even better.
You’ll hear more from me about Veteran Coffee Roasters in the future (Stay tuned – I’m working on a Mocha Infused Vodka blog and video using ingredients from Veteran-owned businesses). Veteran Coffee Roasters sells delightful coffee that would make great gifts – especially paired with these tasty MRE truffles! The owner is a Navy dude who has an awesome mission to help other Veterans. Read about his company and mission. Buy some of his coffee for yourself and your mom.
CLOTHES
Not just any clothes – military specific to her child. Sentimental factor is priceless.
Barb Grajek sells “Fun Navy Mom Swag” that would also make fabulous Mothers Day gifts. She is an energetic Navy mom herself and passionate about connecting with other military moms.
If you really want to go practical – give a gift that gives her something she can use every month – grocery delivery to her door. She can choose what she wants to order, and you cover the cost of delivery.
WINE
Great choice if mom has a spouse or child on deployment.
It doesn’t start with a “C”, but I am always happy to receive a nice bottle of wine for Mother’s Day, Birthday, Christmas . . . I’ve got two suggestions for you. Jarhead and Dauntless. I haven’t tried either yet, but on the calendar for a tasting is Dauntless. They have a great story too.
Jarhead has a great mission: To make distinctively robust red wines in support of the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation, which provides educational assistance to children of U.S. Marines, with special consideration given to families of fallen Marines. If they didn’t have a military focus, I might have to be a little Oregon snob and resist buying a California Red Table wine. I do hope to try it someday.
I’d love to hear what you are planning on giving your mom this Mother’s Day – comment below and let me know!
Chocolate Peanut Butter MRE Truffles
Creamy and delicious with the perfect balance of chocolate and peanut butter flavors.
- 1 packet MRE Chocolate Protein Drink
- 2 packet MRE non-dairy creamer
- 3 packet MRE Splenda
- 1/4 cup JIF Peanut Powder
- 1/4 cup Water
- 1/2 cup Dark Chocolate Chips
Mix all dry powder ingredients together in a bowl using a spoon or whisk until no lumps remain.
Add water, 1 Tbsp at a time until mixture is smooth. Should be a similar consistency to cookie dough.
Divide mixture evenly into 9 mini muffin paper liners. Freeze for 30 minutes.
Roll each truffle into a smooth ball. Freeze again for 30 minutes.
After at least 25 minutes, begin melting chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl in 15-30 second increments. Stir after each increment. When chocolate is completely smooth, remove truffles from freezer.
Drop one truffle at a time into melted chocolate and stir with the aid of toothpicks to cover. Place back into paper liners.
Keep truffles covered and refrigerated until ready to eat. I suggest eating within a couple of days.
Can be frozen for up to 2 weeks.
