Yummy Stuff!!

I've started to bake more often in the last month or so and besides the obvious detrimental effects to my waist size I don't know why I don't bake more often. I think it is because so often I find myself baking these huge batches of treats and I had no one to share them with. PJ doesn't eat baked goods and while the girls will usually eat anything sweet, as a Mother I really don't want them eating that much of it. But recently I've had more dinner guests than I've had in the past and with my Sister and Brother moving closer I have had more people to hand off/force the treats on.

One of the recent things I've baked was this absolutely wonderful Raspberry-Buttermilk Cake from Deb at Smitten Kitchen. This cake is the perfect type of cake to make for no reason at all. It's easy to whip up and easily adaptable to what ever type of berries (or rhubarb) you have on hand. I made it twice in one week and was a major hit with everyone. It comes out looking beautiful with no effort at all, but sadly I have no pictures. It was gobbled up way to fast! But Deb has some beautiful pictures at her blog along with the recipe.

After the cake I made a yummy Strawberry-Rhubarb crumble. It was my first time cooking with rhubarb and now I'm hooked on the stuff. I used the filling recipe from Smitten Kitchen here and the crust from this recipe on Recipezaar (I wanted to use up some rolled oats I had).

The following week I had a half flat of local strawberries that were getting close to going bad and had to be used up quick. So I made Smitten Kitchen's Strawberries and Dumplings for breakfast for the girls and myself. Maggie loved it but Bridget while crazy about strawberries did not liked them cooked. I thought it was pretty tasty myself, but probably not something I would make again.

This last Sunday I was wanting to make some cupcakes and came across a recipe for Self Frosting Nutella Cupcakes. As most of you know we are HUGE fans of Nutella in this house, in fact Bridget has a peanut butter and Nutella sandwich just about every day. So of course I had plenty of Nutella on hand. This were a cinch to make up and since the Nutella is swirled throughout there is no need to frost them. These were not overly sweet, the cake part was dense, rich and buttery like a pound cake. Most of the sweetness came from the Nutella. These would be perfect for breakfast with some coffee, which exactly what I did the next day.

Nutella Frosted Cupcakes from Baking Bites
10 tbsp(140 grams) butter, softened
3/4 cup white sugar
3 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 cups (200 grams) sifted all purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
Nutella, approx. 1/3 cup

Preheat oven to 325F. Line 12 muffin tins with paper liners.
Cream together butter and sugar until light, 2 minutes. Add in eggs one at a time, until fully incorporated. Don’t worry if the batter doesn’t look smooth. Add vanilla. Stir in flour, salt and baking powder until batter is uniform and no flour remains.
Using an ice cream scoop, fill each muffin liner with batter. They should be 3/4 full, if you’re not using a scoop. Top each cake with 1 1/2 tsp Nutella. Swirl Nutella in with a toothpick, making sure to fold a bit of batter up over the nutella.
Bake for 20 minutes.
Remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
Makes 12.

Last night my Mom was over and I wanted to take advantage of having an extra person to feed. That morning I had come across this recipe over at One Ordinary Day and was wanting to try it out. Now I'm not a baking snob, I usually prefer to make stuff from scratch but I am not above using a box mix if the recipe calls for it. I didn't have a yellow cake mix on hand but I did have a box of Trader Joe's Madagascar Vanilla Bean cake mix so I used that instead. I think it actually worked out great, I loved the flecks of vanilla bean all throughout the cake. I only used about half the brown sugar-cinnamon mixture the recipe called for since I didn't want it overly sweet and a whole cup seemed like a lot and in the end it was still plenty sweet with only half. The cake was very,very moist. This also made a delicious breakfast the next day and I also think if you were having company over for breakfast or a brunch this would be great to serve, way less work than actually making cinnamon rolls.

Cinnamon Roll Cake from One Ordinary Day

(first seen and drooled over at 3 B’s)

boxed yellow cake mix

4 eggs

3/4 c. oil

1 c. sour cream

1 c. light brown sugar

1 Tbsp. cinnamon

2 c. powdered sugar

4 Tbsp. milk

Mix cake mix, eggs, oil, and sour cream by hand in a large bowl. Pour into greased 13×9″ baking pan.

In a separate bowl, combine brown sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle all over top of cake mix and swirl with a knife. Bake at 325 degrees for 40 minutes. (I took mine out at 35 minutes and Ingrid said she baked her cake for 30 minutes.) Let cake cool for 10-15 minutes before icing.

Prepare icing by stirring together powdered sugar and milk. Pour over warm cake.

Sooo yummy

Made this Racheal Ray recipe for dinner last night and it was so easy and very delicious. It got three thumbs up from PJ, my Mom and myself. I couldn't find escarole at the store so I substituted prebagged and chopped romaine lettuce and just tossed it very quickly in the pan not hardly wilting at at all, just coating it with all the yummy flavor. I also added a little shredded parmesan cheese on top since I had it in the fridge. :HERE: is the link to the recipe on Racheal's site for easy printing.

Greens with Eggs and Ham

5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) 2 to 3 cloves garlic, grated or finely chopped 2 teaspoons anchovy paste or 4 canned anchovy fillets 2 heads escarole, shredded Grated peel of 1 lemon and juice of ½ lemon 1 pinch nutmeg Salt and pepper 4 slices prosciutto, halved crosswise 8 large eggs

1. In a large skillet, heat 3 tablespoons EVOO, 3 turns of the pan, over medium heat. Add the garlic and anchovy paste and cook until the garlic is softened, about 2 minutes. Add the escarole, lemon peel and nutmeg; season with pepper and cook for 2 minutes more.
2. In a large nonstick skillet, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons EVOO, 2 turns of the pan, over medium-high heat. Add the prosciutto and fry until crisp, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate. Crack the eggs into the skillet and fry over medium-low heat to desired doneness; season with salt and pepper.
3. Stir the lemon juice into the escarole. Pile onto 4 plates and top each with 2 eggs and crispy prosciutto. Serve with the bread.

A very belated update

Well, it's been over a month since I've made a blog post. Sorry everyone, but with the move and all the Holiday excitement we've been very, very busy. I've been so busy I haven't been able to pick up my camera in over a month either! I'm really hoping after Christmas things calm down and I am able to get my new photography area set up and start taking pictures again.

I am happy to announce that we are all moved in to the new house. The girls absolutely love all the extra room to run around and play in. One of their most favorite things is the "magic closet" that adjoins their two rooms. They love to chase each other around and run into Maggie's room and magically appear coming out of Bridget's. It reminds me of those old Scooby Doo cartoons were they would all be running in and out of different doors in the hallway. I know that PJ and myself are also greatly enjoying the extra room. PJ has said several times that while he knew we were cramped at our old place he didn't really realize just how tight it was until we got some space. I was even able to get most of my indoor Christmas decorations and the tree up but sadly no outside lights this year. The lights would have looked beautiful with all the snow we have gotten.

Speaking of snow, while it is beautiful I am so ready for it to be gone. I have been housebound with both girls for 10 days now. I was able to get out of the house for 2 hours last Wed but other than that the furthest I've been is the mailbox and we are all starting to get a little crazy with cabin fever. We've been passing the time baking cookies, making gingerbread houses and making crafts but even that is getting old. I am actually looking forward to putting chains on the Vue and trying to make it to Fredmeyer for all the food I need to get for Christmas dinner. Hopefully we can do it, or else PJ will have to go to the store himself with the big truck. I don't want that because A. That means another day at home and B. Trusting PJ to get everything, and everything correctly off of the grocery list is dicey at best.

Other than the groceries though, one last minute gift and just a couple presents left to wrap I am ready for Christmas. Bridget is just dying with anicipation and today being the day before Christmas Eve is the worst. All the excitement but not really anything to do.

I'll leave you with the recipe for my Awesome Bacon and Tomato Dip that was requested by several of you from the Family Christmas party and the color versions of the pics of Bridget on the Christmas card. Sorry no new ones of Maggie, I had to use old ones I've already posted here and on flickr.

Awesome Bacon and Tomato Dip
from Recipezaar.com Recipe #16884

30 min | 20 min prep

3 -4 Cups

• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1/4 cup diced green pepper
• 1 large tomato, seeded and diced
• 1 lb bacon, cooked crisp, cooled and drained
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• black pepper, to taste
• shredded lettuce (to garnish) (optional)

1. In medium bowl, with mixer, blend sour cream, mayonnaise, cream cheese, cheddar cheese, chopped onion and green pepper, garlic powder, and black pepper.
2. Crumble bacon into small pieces and add to mixture.
3. Add chopped tomato and stir well.
4. Garnish with shredded lettuce just before serving, if desired.
5. Serve with Townhouse crackers or Wheat Thins.
6. Also good served in a bread bowl with bread cubes to dip.

Apple-Cheddar Turkey Burger

I would like to get back in the habit of sharing recipes with you all again. Here is a recipe I made for dinner last Sunday from last months Rachael Ray magazine. They were delicious! Maggie loved the burger and Bridget even ate her half of the patty which as most of you know a major achievement when it comes to getting Bridget to eat anything. PJ even liked them and said he would like to have them again. I halved the recipe since I know that from experience Rachael Ray makes her portions extremely huge (2 pounds of meat for 4 people?). I added some cooked maples flavored bacon for PJ and Bridget's burgers, and cooked the patties in the leftover bacon grease. I also used regular hamburger buns. I had mine with the apples and cranberry sauce and thought it was great that way, very Thanksgivingy. Especially since I also served these with some sweet potato fries from Trader Joes. Oh yeah, and for my cranberry sauce I used Trader Joe's new Apple Cranberry Butter. If you liked their Pumpkin Butter you should really give that a try too.



Apple-Cheddar Turkey Burgers



Ingredients:
2 pounds ground turkey breast
4 scallions, finely chopped
1/3 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley (a generous handful)
1 tablespoon grill seasoning
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)
1 apple, such as granny smith, cut into 12 slices
8 slices extra-sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup whole-berry cranberry sauce
2 tablespoons grainy mustard
4 sandwich-size english muffins, split and toasted
8 leaves red- or green-leaf lettuce



Directions:

1. In a bowl, combine the turkey, scallions, parsley, grill seasoning and poultry seasoning. Form into 4 patties, pressing your thumb into the center of each to prevent it from bulging.2. In a large skillet, heat the EVOO, 2 turns of the pan, over medium-high heat. Add the patties and cook for 6 minutes on each side for medium. Top each with 3 apple slices and 2 cheese slices, tent the pan with foil and cook until the cheese melts, 1 to 2 minutes.3. In a small bowl, mix together the cranberry sauce and mustard; slather on the muffin tops. Pile 2 lettuce leaves on each muffin bottom, top with the patties and set the muffin tops into place.1. In a bowl, combine the turkey, scallions, parsley, grill seasoning and poultry seasoning. Form into 4 patties, pressing your thumb into the center of each to prevent it from bulging.2. In a large skillet, heat the EVOO, 2 turns of the pan, over medium-high heat. Add the patties and cook for 6 minutes on each side for medium. Top each with 3 apple slices and 2 cheese slices, tent the pan with foil and cook until the cheese melts, 1 to 2 minutes.3. In a small bowl, mix together the cranberry sauce and mustard; slather on the muffin tops. Pile 2 lettuce leaves on each muffin bottom, top with the patties and set the muffin tops into place.

Direct link to the recipe for easy printing :HERE: