Gingerbread Cookies

When Dominic and I made this gingerbread cookie batter up recently, we had high hopes that we would be making gingerbread men. Well, by the time the batter chilled in the fridge, we had dinner and then Dominic had his nightly bath, it was 9:30 p.m.! Since I had promised him that we would make gingerbread men, and I don't like to break a promise, I quickly decided they would become gingerbread cookies. I rolled them into balls and then put red sugar on one plate and green sugar on another plate, handed Dominic a glass and let him press down on each cookie. In less than 15 minutes, they were done! A few days later, I made up the rest of the cookie dough and then headed out to make two "deliveries." I felt a bit like a holiday "elf." My first delivery was to a local marketing company that publish a magazine that has featured my recipes for several months. The second delivery was to a friend of mine who will be helping me with a project for the disability ministry. Later, she told me her husband said, "that's what a molasses cookie is supposed to be like, both the flavor and the consistency were just what it should be - not too soft and not too crisp!" Cool, that made my day!

Ingredients

3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup unsulfured molasses
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups white flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
3 teaspoons ginger
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

In large bowl, put the butter and light brown sugar. Cream by hand with large spoon or use an electric mixer. Add the molasses, egg and vanilla extract. Set aside. In medium bowl, put the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg. Mix with large spoon and then gradually add to the mixture in the large bowl. Combine well and then cover with plastic wrap. Chill in fridge a minimum of three hours. When ready to bake, roll into 4 1/2 dozen equal sized balls. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place a dozen balls at a time onto ungreased cookie sheets. If desired, press the bottom of a drinking glass into colored sugar and then press gently. Bake for 12 minutes or until the bottoms of the cookies are starting to turn brown. Remove to wire rack to cool. Store covered at room temperature.

Chocolate/Peanut Butter Candy Cookies

Besides chocolate and peanut butter, this candy "cookie," has an unusual third ingredient. If you can believe it, cornflakes! Yep. Cornflakes are one of Lauren's favorite kinds of cereal and she is pretty much the only one that eats that kind in this house. The last time she was home before Thanksgiving was in the middle of September! Somehow, the box of cornflakes got shoved to the side and back of our pantry. These candy "cookies" are not baked in the oven, they firm up in the fridge. I asked the hubby what he thought these tasted like. He said, "corn flakes with peanut butter and chocolate!" Personally, I can't taste the corn flakes at all, I think they add a certain "crunch," that will keep your friends and family guessing!!!

 

12-ounce package semi-sweet chocolate morsels

1 cup smooth peanut butter

2 1/2 cups cornflakes, crushed

 

In a large gallon-sized zipper top plastic bag, crush enough cornflakes to make 2 1/2 cups. Set aside. In medium saucepan, melt the morsels and peanut butter over low heat until smooth and all the morsels are melted. Remove from heat and add the crushed cornflakes with a large spoon. Combine well.  Put a piece of wax paper on a jelly roll pan. Drop onto the wax paper using two tablespoons. I made my cookies kind of  big, so it made 18. Please feel free to make as big or small as you want.  Put in the fridge for a minimum of two hours or until set. Keep covered in a container in the fridge for up to one week.



 

Vanilla Kipferl (Crescents)

 

Ah, now that Halloween is over and we are heading towards Thanksgiving, the holiday cookie baking season has begun!! My goal this holiday season, is to go out of my comfort "zone," and try and make cookies I've never made before. My mother-in-law who passed away in 2011, was a fabulous baker. I loved how when my family would visit my in-law's in Cleveland, after every meal (even breakfast), a tin of "bakery" would appear on the table. There would be potica, kolache and chocolate chip cookies. I don't remember these vanilla crescents ever making an appearance though. I found a recipe for vanilla "kipferlin" or "crescents" in an American Slovene Club cookbook that is falling apart and looks like it was used frequently. It is part of the treasure "trove" of recipes and cookbooks that we found in my in-law's house.  After a lot of researching on the Internet, I think they really should be called "kipferl." Anyways, I made a dozen or so of these crescents last night and the hubby had a "sample."  He said, "oh, I remember my mom making these!" When he said that, I thought that was pretty cool. Well, this afternoon, when he saw me making up the rest of the dough, he said, "your cookies are just as good as the ones my mom used to make!" Yahoo, now that made me smile :)  

 

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 3/4 cups white flour
1/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup pecans, chopped
1/2 cup powdered sugar (reserved)

In a large bowl, put the butter, flour, white sugar, vanilla extract and pecans. Mix well with spoon or with your hands until well combined. Cover with plastic wrap and put in the fridge for a minimum of one hour. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. In small bowl, put the reserved powdered sugar and set aside. Roll batter into 3 1/2 dozen equal sized balls with the palms of your hands. With your fingertips, press each ball into a "crescent" shape. Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet for approximately 15 minutes or until the cookies are just starting to turn brown. Remove to wire rack and let them cool just a bit. While still slightly warm, roll each cookie into the reserved powdered sugar. Keep covered at room temperature.

Swedish Tea Rolls

I have just as much passion now for baking as I did when I was little and used to whip up desserts for my dad in my Easy-Bake Oven. I still haven't figured out how a light bulb did all the work, but maybe that is a mystery I'll never solve. What's cool about my relationship with my dad now, (besides becoming incredibly close), is that since my mom is in a skilled nursing facility, when I fly back by myself, I get to bake again for him!  My dad is very diplomatic and even though I slightly burned the bottom of the meatloaf  I made for him last month, he still told me it was good :) Anyways, I don't know of any Swedish in my background, but when I found a recipe from 1933 AND it used cinnamon and sugar, my "radar," went up!!  Oh my goodness, these are so crispy since I used shortening! I will be seeing my dad over the upcoming holidays and I know I'm going to make him these. I wonder what he would say if I told him the recipe was just a few years older than him? LOL.

Ingredients

1/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ginger
2 cups white flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup shortening
2/3 cup milk

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In small bowl, put the white sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Stir with small spoon until well combined and set aside. In a large bowl, put the flour, baking powder and salt. With two knives, "cut" in the shortening. Pour the milk in and with a large spoon, mix until the dough is just starting to form a soft ball. Place on a slightly floured board and knead about 30 times. Roll out to approximately 12 inches in length and six inches in width. Cut into 10 equal-sized squares. Fold each square in half and press gently. Dip each roll into the ingredients in the small bowl and place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 12-14 minutes or until the bottom of the rolls are just starting to turn slightly brown. Remove from oven and let cool for five minutes before removing to wire rack to continue cooling.

Ginger Cupcakes

As much as I love to bake, I have never ever used molasses. I originally bought a jar to try and make a "Shoo-Fly" pie. I still have that on my "to do" list, but in the meantime, I made some ginger cupcakes!! Ginger is most definitely a spice you need to use in moderation. A little goes a LONG way :) When I found a cupcake recipe using ginger and molasses, I knew it was one to try. When I was frosting these cupcakes after dinner last night, Dominic came over to investigate what I was doing. I told him he had to wait until after he had a bath to "sample" one. He and I both liked them so much we each had two!

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups white flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 large egg
1/2 cup molasses, unsulphured
1/2 cup boiling water

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and put paper liners into a 12-cup baking tin. In a large bowl, put the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and butter. Mix well with large spoon. Add the brown sugar, egg and molasses. Combine well. Add the boiling water carefully and stir together until smooth. Pour evenly into the paper liners and bake for 15-17 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of a cupcake comes out clean. Remove to wire rack to cool. Frost with your favorite frosting and sprinkles! Makes 12 cupcakes. Store in a covered container at room temperature for up to three days.

Apple Butter/Oatmeal and Walnut Muffins

Doesn't it seem like now that we are in the month of October, pumpkin flavored food is EVERYWHERE??  As much as I love marshmallow Peeps, when I saw the pumpkin spice flavored ones on the JustBorn website, I have to admit, I found that a bit, ahem, different. Well, all righty then.  There are other fall foods besides pumpkin, right? How about the apple?!?! More specifically, apple butter! I looked at the side of the apple butter jar and butter is NOT listed under the ingredients. Why in the world is it called apple butter then?!?!?! Anyways, I wondered if an entire cup of apple butter was put into these muffins if they would be too moist. Well, I shouldn't have worried! They were just right. Whew!

Ingredients

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 large egg
1 cup white flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup apple butter
3/4 cup old fashioned oats
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners. Set aside. In large bowl, put the butter, light brown sugar, white sugar, egg, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda, salt and apple butter. Mix well with electric mixer or by hand. "Fold" in the oats and walnuts with a large spoon. Distribute batter evenly. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of a muffin comes out clean. Store covered at room temperature for up to three days.  Makes one dozen.

Tomato Salsa

Recently, the hubby came home from the store with a bunch of really nice looking fresh tomatoes. The only thing is, we already had a bunch! Hmm, they would be great in a salad, but how about homemade salsa?!?!? Sounds yummy, right? The "heat" level of salsa is a very personal preference.  Please feel free to turn up the "temperature" by using hot sauce! I LOVE the Frank's RedHot  brand!!


Ingredients

2 cups chopped tomatoes,
  seeds removed
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
12-ounce package three pepper
  and onion blend, frozen
Few dashes of hot sauce,
  if desired

Put the tomatoes, lemon juice, chili powder, salt, black pepper, hot sauce (if desired) and about a fourth of the frozen bag of the peppers and onions into a blender. Blend until the peppers and onions are well incorporated. Keep adding a fourth of a bag at a time until all the peppers and onions are added. I tried to dump the entire bag into the blender and let's just say my blender was not happy!  Blend ingredients until desired consistency. Makes three cups of salsa. Store covered in a container for up to three days.

Deluxe Pumpkin Bread

When I baked this pumpkin bread last night, it felt like summer. Today, it's cool and rainy. It seems like once the middle of September rolls around, the stores start putting up the Halloween and yes, Christmas displays!  Cathy's Kitchen bakes pumpkin bread year round.  The past couple of times I have made pumpkin bread, I've added chopped pecans and coconut, which made it pretty tasty.  I was curious if I added milk chocolate chips and oats, plus upped the cinnamon and nutmeg, what the end result would be. Well, guess what?!?! It was awesome! I gave the hubby a bite of this warm from the oven and then left the remaining piece on a plate while I did the nightly call with my dad. After I hung up the phone, I was going to eat what was left on the plate. There was none left, the hubby ate it while I was chatting with my dad! That's okay, I still love him anyways!

 

 

This morning, I cut up the pumpkin bread and gave it to the hubby to take to work to share with his co-workers. He told me, "I'm sure it will be a hit!" I sent my husband an e-mail about 10:00 a.m. this morning and asked him how much of the pumpkin bread was left. His response, "the bread is almost completely gone!" Cool.

 

 

Ingredients

 

1 1/2 cups white flour

3/4 cup white sugar

2 large eggs

3/4 cup packed pumpkin

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup canola oil

1/4 cup water

1/2 cup milk chocolate chips

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1/4 cup old fashioned oats

1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 inch loaf pan with non-stick spray and set aside. In large bowl, put the flour, sugar, eggs, pumpkin, salt, baking soda, nutmeg, cinnamon, canola oil and water. Mix well by hand or mixer until smooth.  "Fold" the chocolate chips, pecans, oats and coconut into the batter and gently combine with a large spoon.  Pour into prepared pan and bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack. Store covered at room temperature for up to three days. Serves 6-8.



Homemade Hash Browns

During the week, my husband and I don't eat breakfast together. Sunday morning is our time to "re-connect" and I usually make us scrambled eggs and bagels. I decided to change it up a bit this morning by adding homemade hash browns to the "menu."

Wow, these were pretty darn tasty, if I do say so myself. Lauren is home from college this weekend and she woke up late this morning. She put a serving on a plate and popped it into the microwave for lunch. Last year, when Lauren was a freshman and living in the dorm, there was a dining area, literally steps away from the front door. Now, living in an on-campus apartment, it's much quieter, and there's more room, but it's also further from the dining facilities. One of the first things Lauren told me when she walked through the door Friday was, "I'm looking forward to some home cooking!"

Ingredients

3 cups white potatoes, peeled and shredded
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3 tablespoons butter, unsalted
1/2 cup Colby Jack cheese, shredded
   (reserved)

Peel and shred enough potatoes to make three cups.  Pat with paper towels to get as much of the moisture/liquid out as you can. In large bowl, put the shredded potatoes, onion, salt and pepper. Combine well with a large spoon and set aside. In a large frying pan, melt the butter and then press the potato mixture into the pan. Cook on medium/high heat for about five minutes then sprinkle 1/4 of the shredded cheese on top. Heat for another five minutes. Cut into four wedges, flip over with a spatula and then cook five minutes, sprinkle with the remaining shredded cheese and cook an additional five minutes or until golden brown. Enjoy immediately!  


Peanut Butter and Oatmeal Cookies

 

When we make peanut butter cookies in "Cathy's Kitchen," about 99.9% of the time we do the "criss-cross" variety with the tines of the fork. While that's a great way to make them, I wanted to try a different recipe where that wasn't involved. In my mother-in-law's "treasure trove" of old newspaper clippings, I found a basic recipe for peanut butter "honeys." I adapted the ingredients slightly to use agave nectar, oats and chocolate chips. Note to self: don't make these before dinner. They will make your entire house smell so good you'll want to have dessert first!  Dominic grabbed three of these cookies off the wire rack while they were cooling and tried to talk me into letting him have all three before dinner. Well, in his defense, he did hand one to me to eat. LOL. I let him have one. It certainly didn't "spoil" his appetite any, my boy had two servings of spaghetti for dinner!

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups white flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup smooth peanut butter
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup agave nectar
2 large eggs
1 cup quick oats
2/3 cup mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray. In a large bowl, put the white flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside. In a medium bowl, put the peanut butter, butter and vanilla extract and using a large spoon, mix until smooth. Add the sugar, honey, agave nectar and eggs. Combine well and then add to the dry ingredients in the large bowl. Stir well and then add the oats and chocolate chips. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 14 minutes or until they are just starting to turn brown. Remove from oven and let the cookies sit five minutes. Remove to wire rack to continue cooling. Makes 2 1/2 dozen. Store covered at room temperature.

Yellow Corn Bread

The hubby made some really delicious barbeque chicken on the grill last night. Since I really have no clue how to use our grill, I am usually put in charge of the "side" dishes. We had fresh broccoli that I knew I would steam for the "veggie," and I planned on making buttered noodles for the "starch." I didn't have a bread "item" though. Biscuits didn't seem like quite the right thing to make, so I looked through an old Amish-Dutch cookbook and found a great recipe for corn bread! When we have corn bread around here, I usually just open up two boxes of Jiffy corn muffin mix, add the milk and eggs and make a dozen muffins. It took just a few extra minutes to make this corn bread from "scratch," but wow, was it ever worth it!

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups yellow corn meal
1/2 cup white flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoon white sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 cups milk
2 large eggs, beaten
2 tablespoons melted shortening

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray an 8-inch square pan with non-stick cooking spray. In a large bowl, put all the ingredients in the order given. Combine well with large spoon and pour into the prepared pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Remove from oven and put on wire rack to cool slightly. Cut into squares. Cover with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and store at room temperature.

Raspberry Shortcakes

 

Raspberries have been "dirt" cheap in these parts. Guess that's why this is the second recipe in a row on my blog using them, LOL. I knew it was time to think of a way to use a package, when I discovered three in the fridge! Hmm, what to make. How about, shortcakes?!?!?! This recipe came courtesy of my mother-in-law's "collection" of old newspaper clippings.  Some of the wording in the directions gave me a chuckle. When "cutting" in the shortening, it said, " if your hands are naturally quite warm, you'd better use the blender or two knife blades," and when it's time to put the dough out to knead it, "don't plop it down as if you were mad at it." All righty then. Not all of the recipes that I have found in my mother-in-law's recipe collection have been "winners." Early last week, I found an easy recipe for pound cake. I followed all the directions exactly, but it ended up being dry as a bone and hard as a brick!  The hubby ate it and said it was good, but I think he was trying to make me feel better. Shortcakes aren't just for a dessert. Yesterday morning, Dominic asked me, "piece of shortcake??" I gave him one and he gobbled it down. I decided to heat up a few shortcakes for myself and then added some honey. I can see why Dominic ate it so quickly - they were pretty tasty!!!!

 

Ingredients

2 cups white flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
6 tablespoons shortening
1 large egg
1/2 cup milk (plus)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
   (reserved for top of shortcake)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In large bowl, put the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. With two knives "cut" in the shortening until it resembles small crumbs. Set aside. In a measuring cup, break the egg. Add enough milk to measure 3/4 of a cup.  Pour the milk into the dry ingredients and mix well with a spoon. On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough about ten times. Press out to approximately 1/4 inch in diameter. Using a biscuit cutter,  I was able to get 10 shortcakes out of the dough. If you don't have a biscuit cutter, the top of drinking glass works in a pinch! Brush the melted reserved butter on top of each of the ten shortcakes. Bake for 15 minutes or until the shortcakes are starting to turn brown. Remove immediately to a wire rack. Let cool slightly.

Macerated Raspberries

6 ounces raspberries, rinsed and patted dry,
  cut in half
2 teaspoons white sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice

In a small bowl, put the raspberries, sugar and lemon juice. Mix thoroughly with a small spoon, cover with plastic wrap and put in the fridge for a minimum of one hour and no longer than 24 hours.


*To assemble, split the shortcake in half and put the raspberries in between and also on top. Put whipped topping on the very top if desired. You could also add a scoop of vanilla ice cream! Enjoy!

Pineapple Raspberry Milkshake

Earlier in the week, I had cut up an entire pineapple and knew I wanted to use it somehow in a recipe. After poking around a bit in the fridge and freezer, I realized I had all the "fixins" for a milkshake!! Lauren left early this morning for a week long vacation and the hubby was out running errands, so it was just Dominic and I here. Dominic had never ate pineapple before and when I first offered him a chunk, he tossed it back into the bowl. After a few minutes, he came back into the kitchen and said, "pineapple." I tried again to give him another chunk and this time he ate it!!  I knew I wanted to also put some raspberries into the milkshake because Dominic has never eaten a raw one.  After a little blender action, I had a "sample" ready to go. I handed the glass to my boy and he drained it dry within a few minutes. I put what was left of the milkshake into a zippered top bag and tossed it into the freezer. I want the hubby and Lauren to be able to have some too!

 

 

 

Ingredients

2 cups fresh pineapple, chunks
6-ounce container raspberries
2 cups vanilla ice cream
1/2 cup white milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups ice cubes

Put all ingredients into a blender and combine until desired consistency. Makes five cups. If you want to freeze any of the leftover milkshake, just pour into a zippered top gallon size plastic bag and tuck into the freezer for at least one hour. The milkshake is super duper tasty frozen too (take my word for it)!!



Cinnamon "Twisties"

Yep, this is yet ANOTHER recipe using cinnamon!! If I had my way, I would probably put cinnamon in everything I baked :) This recipe came out of the 1938 edition of the Town Crier De Luxe Recipe Book,  the same year my mom was born!

 

 

My mom used to make cinnamon rolls a lot growing up. She moved into a skilled nursing facility this past December and about three weeks ago, my family and I were able to visit with her. My mother is pretty much bedridden and her memory is starting to fail a bit, but she is still able to recognize us. I feel incredibly blessed that I still have in her my life, because she is so very ill. I think the next time I visit my mom, I will pack some cinnamon twisties in my suitcase!!!

 

Ingredients

 

2 cups white flour

5 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons sugar

4 tablespoons shortening

2/3 cup milk

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

 

Powdered Sugar Glaze

 

3/4 cup powdered sugar

2 teaspoons water

 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a 9-inch round pan with non-stick cooking spray. In a large bowl, put the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. "Cut" in the shortening with two knives. Pour the milk in the middle and with a large spoon, mix well until soft dough forms. On a lightly floured surface, knead about 10 times and then roll out until it is 12 inches long and six inches across. Brush the melted butter over the entire surface. In a small bowl, put the sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Sprinkle evenly over the dough and then roll up like a jelly roll and cut into eight slices. Place in prepared pan. The cinnamon rolls will look small, but with five teaspoons of baking powder, they get bigger, I promise!  Bake for 20 minutes or until they begin to turn lightly brown on the bottom. Remove from oven. In a small bowl, put the powdered sugar and water. Mix well with small spoon until smooth and then drizzle over the "twisties." Makes eight. Cover loosely with foil at room temperature.

 

 

Pink Lemonade Muffins

Yesterday, even though the weather was beautiful, I spent a large portion of the day inside working on the computer and doing household chores. I figured I could sit outside today on the deck and just "chill," sipping a cold glass of pink lemonade and reading a book. Well, guess what? I woke up to heavy rain pelting our bedroom window! Wonderful. Since it was so cloudy and dreary this morning, I wanted to bake a little "sunshine" into some muffins. I love "experimenting," in the kitchen with different ingredients, such as using powdered lemonade in place of some of the white sugar in this recipe and substituting yogurt instead of sour cream to make these muffins more moist!! These were so tasty, I had two for breakfast with my coffee :) I'm keeping my fingers crossed the sun comes out later this afternoon!

Ingredients

 

2 cups white flour

1/2 cup white sugar

1/4 cup pink powdered lemonade

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

2 large eggs

3/4 cup milk

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

5.3 ounce container Yoplait Greek 100 

   strawberry yogurt

 

Glaze

 

1/4 cup powdered sugar

1 1/4 teaspoons water

 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners and set aside. In a large bowl, put the flour, sugar, powdered lemonade, baking powder, salt, butter, eggs, milk, vanilla extract and yogurt. Stir well with large spoon until smooth. Distribute the batter evenly between the paper liners. Bake for 20-23 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into one of the muffins comes out clean. Remove to wire rack to continue cooling. To make the glaze, put the powdered sugar and water in a small bowl and mix with a spoon. Drizzle on the muffins. Makes one dozen.



Cinnamon Cake

 

 

Buried in my collection of over 110 cookbooks, I found a Pennsylvania Dutch Cookbook from 1960.  There are some pretty "unique" recipes such as shoo-fly pie, pretzel soup, rabbit cake and boy's legs. Boy's legs? Don't worry - they are potato and beef filled pastries. Anyways, being the cinnamon "gal" that I am, when I found a recipe for cinnamon cake, I knew that was definitely one to try! I always love the way our house smells when I'm baking anything with cinnamon - it smells so good! Both Lauren and Dominic were around when I frosted this cake last night, so they both got a "sample." Of course they loved it! Why won't they?!?!? They "inherited" their love of cinnamon from me!

 

Ingredients

 

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup white sugar

1 1/2 cups white flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons cinnamon

2 large eggs

1/2 cup milk

 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 9-inch round pan with non-stick cooking spray and set aside. In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar until smooth by hand or with electric mixer. Add the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, eggs and milk. Combine well until smooth. Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool on wire rack. Below is my recipe for cinnamon cream cheese frosting which is what I used on top of the cake. If you still want even MORE cinnamon, sprinkle a little on top!  Store cake covered in fridge. Serves eight.

 

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

 

2 ounces cream cheese, softened

1 1/4 cups powdered sugar

1 tablespoon milk

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

 

Slow Cooker Chuckwagon Chili

Who says you should only use your slow cooker in the winter? I use mine year round - it is especially great to use when it's hot outside, that way you don't have to heat up the kitchen. I am STILL using the slow cooker that I got as a wedding present 19 1/2 years ago!! The past Wednesday afternoon, the hubby called and told me that his bike had a flat tire. Since he rode his bike to work, that meant I would need to go pick him up right around the time I usually start our dinner. I decided that I was going to make some "chuckwagon" chili, the "chuck" being a great looking piece of boneless chuckeye steak the hubby had picked up earlier in the week at Meijer. I had a small "window" of time between when I got back from taking Dominic to music therapy and when I needed to pick up the hubby to put it all together.  I am not a "cowgirl," but I certainly feed hungry people daily here at Cathy's Kitchen. Two little bits of chuckwagon "trivia." What do you think it means if a cowboy yelled, "man at the pot!" when they saw you pouring yourself a cup of coffee? It meant the cowboy wanted another cup of coffee. I'm going to try that tomorrow morning when the hubby is getting himself a cup :)  A second little bit of trivia-  the container for putting food scraps after a meal is called a "squirrel pan."  I wonder what my family would do if I said, "go put all your food scraps into the squirrel pan!" I'm guessing they would have NO idea what I was talking about! Around here, whenever I make chili, I also make up some elbow noodles to put underneath. Would you believe I had never done that until the first time I made chili for my hubby and he was asking, "so, where are the elbow noodles?" That was the only way he ever ate chili growing up in Cleveland!

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds boneless chuckeye steak,
  cut into bite sized pieces
2 tablespoons white flour
3 tablespoons canola oil
15.5 ounce can red kidney beans,
  undrained
14.5 ounce can chili ready diced tomatoes,
  undrained
15.5 ounce can Great Northern beans, undrained
8 ounce can tomato sauce
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Using a zippered top gallon size plastic bag, put the flour and the chuckeye steak. Close the top and then shake until all the pieces of meat are covered. In a large frying pan, put the three tablespoons of canola oil. Cook over low to medium heat until the pieces of chuckeye steak are no longer pink in the middle. Drain off any grease and set aside.  In a 2 1/2 quart slow cooker, put the red kidney beans, diced tomatoes, Great Northern beans and the tomato sauce. Add the chili powder and cinnamon. Stir together with a large spoon and then add the meat.  Mix well and then cover and cook for 3 hours on high. Top with shredded cheese if desired. Makes four servings.

White Chocolate Saltine Cracker Toffee

White chocolate chips are one baking item I don't use too often, based on previous not so great experiences. White chocolate can be, well, "temperamental." I have made saltine cracker toffee with semi-sweet chocolate chips and it doesn't last long here. I was curious if I made the toffee with white chocolate if it would be just as popular. Well, guess what? All of my regular "customers" that are "permanent" visitors to Cathy's Kitchen couldn't shovel it down fast enough. When I took a peek into the container just now that's in the fridge to see how many toffee pieces we had left, Dominic came over and asked for a "chewy," which is his nickname for them. If you can believe it, there are only two pieces remaining. Hmm, there are four of us that live here. You know what that means, don't you? Time to make some more!!

Ingredients

37 1/2 saltine crackers
1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
11.5-ounce package white chocolate chips
  (I used Kroger's Private Selection brand)
 ** (Nestle and Hershey's both make 12-ounce
        packages of white chocolate chips
       which are fine to use in this recipe)
Sprinkles, if desired

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cover a jelly roll pan (11 inches x 17 inches) with aluminum foil and lightly spray with non-stick spray. Line up the saltine crackers in rows, so the entire pan is filled. Set aside.  In a medium saucepan, put the two sticks of butter and the brown sugar and slowly bring to a boil. Stir constantly for three minutes. Pour the mixture over the saltine crackers and bake in the oven for five minutes. Remove pan and then immediately distribute all the white chocolate chips on top of the crackers. When the chips begin to melt, spread with a knife, so all the crackers are covered. Put sprinkles on top, if desired. Let cool completely at room temperature for three hours or until the white chocolate has hardened up. If you want it to harden up quicker, put in the fridge (that's what I did). Break off into pieces with your hands.  Store covered in the fridge for up to three days.

Lazy Lady Chocolate Cake

When I first came across this recipe in my mother-in-law's vast "collection," I have to admit I was more than a little intrigued. How could I not be, just based on the name?!?!?!?! It's definitely an "unusual" name for a chocolate cake, isn't it? As I read through this recipe to make sure I had all the ingredients, I was trying to figure out why the word "lazy" would be in the title. Well, for starters, you don't need a bowl to mix all the ingredients, you prepare it all in the pan you will be using to bake it in. Okay, well that's one thing that makes this cake easier, one less dish to wash! I was thinking there had to be something else that made this cake, well, "unique." As I read to the end of the recipe, I discovered the other reason.  After you pull the cake out of the oven, while it is still piping hot, you put three Hershey's Milk Chocolate bars right on top. No need to make frosting!  I had visions of the bars melting so much that it would end up being a big chocolate puddle on top. Well, guess what? That didn't happen! Whew. This cake is totally scrumptious and I didn't feel like a "lazy" lady at all making it :)

Ingredients

3 cups white flour
2 cups white sugar
5 tablespoons baking cocoa
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup canola oil
2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups cold water

Topping

Three 1.55 ounces Hershey's
   Milk Chocolate bars
 
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In an ungreased 9 x 13-inch baking pan, put the flour, sugar, baking cocoa, baking soda and salt. Mix well with a fork. Make three "wells" in the dry mixture - one large, one medium and one small.  In the largest "well," put the canola oil, in the medium "well," put the vinegar and in the smallest "well," put the vanilla extract. Pour cold water over entire mixture and combine well with fork. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Remove from oven and put pan on a wire rack. Immediately place the three milk chocolate bars right on top of the cake. In five minutes or less, the chocolate bars will begin to melt. As they do, spread the chocolate evenly across the cake with a knife. When cool enough to eat and the topping has hardened up just a bit, dig in! Store covered at room temperature. Serves 12-16.

Chocolate Sugar Cookies

Sugar cookies are ALWAYS a big hit in our house.  What do you think could make sugar cookies even better? How about chocolate?!?! Who doesn't love chocolate, right? I found a recipe for "old-fashioned" sugar cookies in a 1959 edition of, The Fannie Merritt Farmer Boston Cooking School Cookbook."  Under the "sugar cooky variations," section, yes, cookie was spelled cooky, there was a chocolate sugar cookie variation. These cookies were so popular in Cathy's Kitchen, that we just have one left from the two dozen I made less than a week ago! I wonder which one of the four of us here will be quick enough to get the last one? I'm taking a wild guess that it will be between Lauren and Dominic!

Ingredients

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup white sugar,
  plus 1 tablespoon reserved
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon milk
1/3 cup unsweetened baking cocoa
1 1/4 cup white flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a cookie sheet and set aside. In a large bowl, put the ingredients in the order above. With a large spoon, combine by hand until the batter begins to form and all the ingredients are well incorporated. In small bowl, put the one tablespoon of reserved white sugar. Set aside. Roll the cookie dough into 24 equal-sized balls and then with the bottom of a drinking glass, first press into the reserved white sugar and then press down onto the cookie. Add sprinkles if desired, like I did! FYI - these cookies don't spread very much at all while baking. When I pulled the first batch of cookies out of the oven, they were slightly bigger than a quarter. I pressed down slightly harder for the second dozen.  Bake for 15 minutes or until the cookies start to get firm on the top. Remove from oven and let them sit about 3 minutes on the cookie sheet. Gently remove from cookie sheet and let them continue to cool on a wire rack.  Store in a covered container at room temperature for up to one week (if they last that long in your house)!

Rhubarb Crisp

The local farmer's market is open and the hubby likes to go and get his favorite "bakery" like buchta and nut roll. This past Saturday afternoon, he handed me five stalks of rhubarb and said, "here, I got these for you!" They were as tall as a small toddler and I knew since I had already made rhubarb bread and rhubarb buckle, I wanted to make rhubarb crisp. At first, I wondered if the rhubarb was under ripe because all the stalks were green.  A quick look at http://www.rhubarbinfo.com/ assured me that it was fine. Whew. Since my recipe needed four cups of rhubarb, I figured I would have too much. Well, after I got the outside tough part off and then trimmed the ends of each stalk, I had exactly enough!! I asked the hubby to "rate" my "bakery" last night after he had finished a piece still warm from the oven with vanilla ice cream melting on top. He gave me a perfect "10." Hey, where's my gold medal?!?!?!

Ingredients

1 cup white sugar
1/4 cup white flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup water
4 cups rhubarb, chopped

Topping:

1 cup white flour
3/4 cup old fashioned oats
1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly spray a 1 1/2 quart pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside. In medium bowl, put the sugar, flour and cinnamon. Mix well with large spoon and then add the water and combine. Gently mix in the rhubarb until well incorporated. Pour into the prepared pan. In a small bowl, put the flour, oats and brown sugar. Combine with a large spoon. Add the melted butter and mix thoroughly. Pour on the rhubarb mixture and spread evenly so the entire top is covered. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the rhubarb crisp is bubbly and the top is starting to brown. Remove from oven and when it cools for a bit (like a 1/2 hour or so) serve with a large spoon. Add vanilla ice cream or whipped topping, if desired. Serves 6-8.               

Blueberry and Sour Cream Scones

Last night, as our dinner of chuck roast, potatoes and carrots was bubbling away in the crockpot, I decided to "test" out a recipe. The hubby, Lauren and Dominic were all kind of hanging around the kitchen, so when these scones were done and I had put the glaze on, I asked if anyone wanted to try a small "sample" before dinner. Yes, I sometimes let the "kids" have something sweet before dinner :)   Lauren, Dominic and I split a scone three ways. Lauren gave it a "thumbs up," so I knew she liked it. When I turned my back for just a moment, Dominic had snitched the last crumb off the plate, so I knew he liked it. The hubby said, "isn't a scone a breakfast item?!?!?!"  My response back, "yes, but we like scones anytime of the day!" LOL. I tucked a scone into the lunch I was making this morning for my husband, so he could eat it when he got to work.  About six months ago, my hubby told me that scones were not one of his favorite "bakery" items. Hmm, I always thought he liked them! Anyways, I was curious how he liked the scone he ate for breakfast. He just sent me an e-mail a few minutes ago telling me, "actually, I like this scone a lot!" Awesome, maybe I've "converted" him to liking scones :)

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups white flour
1/3 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sour cream
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup milk
1 cup blueberries, rinsed and patted dry

Powdered Sugar Glaze

3/4 cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons water

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In large bowl, put the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. "Cut" in the butter with two knives until well combined. Add the sour cream, egg, vanilla extract and milk. Using a large spoon, mix together until a dough begins to form. Gently "fold" in the blueberries. On a lightly floured surface, press into a circle that is about 10 inches in diameter. Slice into eight equal pieces.  Place on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 15-17 minutes or until the bottoms of the scones are just starting to turn brown. Remove from oven and let sit on the cookie sheet about five minutes before removing the scones to a wire rack to continue to cool. In small bowl, put the powdered sugar and water for the glaze. Mix thoroughly with small spoon until smooth. Drizzle the glaze over each scone. Note: this glaze makes a bit more than you probably need for the eight scones. That just means you need to make eight more scones! Store at room temperature in a covered container.

Cantaloupe Granita

When the hubby brought home a cantaloupe recently that was literally as big as my head from the grocery store, my first thought was, how in the world would we be able to eat it all before it goes bad?!?!  It sat on the kitchen counter for about a week, before I decided I better at least cube it up. Even with Dominic, the hubby and I eating it, I knew I had better figure out a way to use more of it!! Have you ever heard of "granita?" In Italian, it means, "fruit ice." Of course, I had to have a "sample" of this last night, after I put Dominic to bed. Yesterday was very warm and our house (even at 10:15 at night) was kind of stuffy. I put the rest of the granita in the freezer, thinking  it would be warm enough today that we could have it later after dinner. Well, guess what? Today is damp, chilly and just barely 50 degrees. Figures! Do you think maybe I should make hot chocolate instead!?!?!?!

4 cups cantaloupe, cubed (seeds and rind removed)
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup agave nectar
1/8 teaspoon salt

In blender, put the cubed cantaloupe. Blend until smooth. Pour into large bowl and then add the lemon juice, agave nectar and salt. Stir well with a large spoon and then put into an 8-inch square pan. Put into the freezer for 8 hours and then remove. Using a fork, scrape into small pieces and enjoy! Makes four cups. If you have any leftover, put into a plastic container, cover and put back into the freezer.

Triple Peanut Butter Cookies

This past weekend, "Cathy's Kitchen" was whipping up all kinds of "bakery." On Saturday, we made some cookies with peanut butter, finely chopped unsalted peanuts and peanut butter chips. Talk about super duper yummy!

 

Since Dominic (the "Sprinkleman"), was available to help me, we also made some of what he calls, "cookies with sprinkles," though maybe they should be called, "sprinkles with cookies." LOL.

 

On Sunday, since it was the last day of religious education classes for the group of first graders that I helped co-teach, we made some cupcakes!! The hubby asked me before I left, "do you think there will be any left over?"

Luckily for him there was! I'm so glad I was "introduced" to baking at a young age by growing up with an Easy Bake Oven. I took a quick trip down "memory lane" this afternoon by taking a look around the Hasbro website. Wow, can you believe they sell mixes such as chocolate truffles and red velvet cupcakes? Hmm, we bought Lauren an Easy Bake Oven when she was little and it is still down in our basement. It might be time to pull it out and do some baking! I don't know about you, but chocolate truffles and red velvet cupcakes sound pretty tasty to me!

Ingredients

1 cup smooth peanut butter
1 cup white sugar
1 large egg
1/4 cup unsalted peanuts, finely chopped
1/4 cup peanut butter chips

Topping:

1 tablespoon white sugar
1/4 cup unsalted peanuts, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  In large bowl, put the peanut butter, sugar and egg. Mix well with large spoon until combined. Gently "fold" in the chopped peanuts and peanut butter chips. Roll into 24 equal sized balls and put 12 at a time onto ungreased cookie sheets. On small plate, put the tablespoon of white sugar. Using a small fork, dip first into the white sugar and then criss-cross each cookie. Top with just a small amount of chopped peanuts. Bake for 16 minutes or until the cookies are starting to turn light golden brown. Remove from oven and transfer immediately to a wire rack to continue to cool. Makes 24 cookies.

Pork Fajitas

When you go to the grocery store and see all those packets of seasonings, like for tacos, chili, etc. it can be a tad overwhelming to know which one to get isn't it? Well, how about if you could make your own seasoning "blend?" I challenged myself to see if I could mix a bunch of spices together and "reproduce" the same flavors that would be in a fajita seasoning packet!  I had planned on making chicken fajitas, but then remembered the hubby had recently bought a four pound boneless pork loin. I sliced it in half and put half in the freezer and took the remaining half and sliced it into thin pieces. I then set to work making my own "blend." Cornstarch is a great thickener, so that was the main ingredient. I didn't want the fajitas to be runny! I grabbed a handful of spices, put them in a container, slapped the top on and shook it. What was really cool about making my own "blend" is that I could put EXACTLY what I wanted into it. Just for kicks, I looked at what the first ingredient was on the package of a fajita seasoning mix I have in my pantry. It was "maltodextrin." Yikes. What in the world is that?


Fajita Seasoning Blend Ingredients:

1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon white sugar
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Remaining Ingredients:

2 pounds boneless pork, cut into thin pieces
2 tablespoons canola oil
12 ounce package three pepper and onion blend,
  frozen
1/2 cup water
10 8-inch flour tortillas

In a small bowl, put the ingredients for the fajita seasoning blend. Mix well with small spoon and set aside. In large frying pan or skillet, put the two tablespoons of canola oil. Turn the heat on to low and put the pork in. Raise the temperature to medium to high and cook until the pieces of pork are no longer pink inside. Drain off any grease and then add the pepper and onion blend, the fajita seasoning blend and the 1/2 cup of water. Mix together and stir constantly until the peppers are just starting to get soft. If the sauce is not thick enough, add a touch more water. Conversely, if the sauce is too thin, add a touch more cornstarch. Warm up the tortillas and then put a tablespoon or so of the pork mixture into one, roll it up and enjoy! The hubby added shredded cheddar cheese and sour cream to his fajita. I just added a dab of sour cream to mine. Making the fajitas was a great way to use up just the little bit of sour cream I had left over from the apple and sour cream coffeecake I made a few days ago! Feel free to add shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes or whatever you would like.

Apple and Sour Cream Coffeecake

Where we live, there are always many different kinds of apples available at the grocery store.  My favorite used to be Red Delicious, but now it's definitely Honeycrisp! Yummy. Anyways, earlier this week I bought a bag of McIntosh apples. They are super cut up and eaten raw, but I wanted to try and "branch" out (get it, like an apple tree) and see if I could integrate a few into a coffeecake. After a quick search into the fridge, I found a container of sour cream I had bought a week or so ago (because it was on sale)! Yes, sometimes I buy items that are on sale and THEN figure out what I'm going to do with it. It's usually better the other way around, but I like to live dangerously. LOL. I love the way apples baking in the oven just makes your ENTIRE house smell so good. Dominic "sampled" a piece yesterday and proclaimed it to be "great." I have to agree :)

 

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 cups white flour
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup apple, peeled, cored, and shredded
  (about two medium)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 12-cup fluted tube pan (Bundt pan) with non-stick spray and set aside. In large bowl, put the sugar, flour, butter, eggs, sour cream, vanilla, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Mix well with large spoon. In small bowl, core and then shred the apples until you have 2/3 of a cup. Put into the large bowl and combine thoroughly. Pour into the Bundt pan and bake for 45-50 minutes or until the coffeecake is starting to turn brown and a toothpick inserted into the coffeecake comes out clean. Remove from oven and let it stay in the pan on a wire rack until cool. Carefully remove the cake from the pan and enjoy! You can leave as is or sprinkle with powdered sugar like I did. Makes 10-12 servings. Cover loosely with foil at store room temperature.

Birds Nest Cookies

While I am definitely not an "artsy-craftsy" type of mom, I like to think I am relatively creative in the kitchen! I had the idea kicking around in my head for at least a week of trying to see if I could make a "thumbprint" cookie. I didn't want to use jam in the middle, but rather, I wanted the cookie to ultimately look like a birds nest. Okay, once I made the cookies and baked them, I had to figure out what the "grass" should be made of. Well, I had some coconut leftover from the ambrosia dessert salad I made a few weeks ago. Hmm, white didn't seem quite the right "color" for the "grass." After taking a quick glance into where I keep my spices, I found some food coloring. Yeah!  I put five drops into a zip top sandwich bag, sealed it up and shook the bag about ten times until the coconut turned green. The last time I was at Kroger, I had picked up a bag of jelly beans, which just so happened to be the right size to be the "eggs" in the nests. Cool - I was able to make these cookies with ingredients I had on hand. I love when that happens! This afternoon, I took Dominic's amazing music therapist a few of these cookies. She always gets a big smile on her face when she sees my "bakery" coming. I think that means she likes it :) Well, we love how much she has taught him!!!!!

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 1/4 cups white flour

For The Inside of the Nest:

1/2 cup sweetened flake coconut
5 drops of green food coloring


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In large bowl, put the butter, sugar, vanilla extract and egg yolks. Cream by hand with a large spoon or with an electric mixer until smooth. Add the baking powder and gradually add the flour, about a 1/2 cup at a time. Stir with large spoon until well combined. Roll into 30 equal sized balls, roughly a little smaller than a golf ball. Place 15 cookies at a time on an ungreased cookie sheet. With your thumb, press down in the middle of each cookie, so your thumb is almost touching the bottom of the cookie sheet. Bake for 16-18 minutes or until the cookies are starting to turn brown. Remove from the oven and let cool on the cookie sheet for five minutes.  Remove to wire rack to cool completely. To make the "grass" for the inside of the nest, put the coconut inside a zip top sandwich bag. Put five drops of green food coloring in, seal it up and shake. Distribute the "grass" between the 30 cookies. I used jelly beans for the "eggs." Have fun!

Rhubarb and Walnut Bread

 

Since I think baking should be fun, from time to time, I like to post pictures of my "bakery" on Facebook and see if any of my "peeps" can figure out what the mystery ingredient(s) might be. Well, today, nobody guessed that this bread had diced rhubarb!! I FINALLY stumped them all! I have to admit, it was a pretty tough one to guess.  The poor hubby. I had been promising him since last summer, when I put some diced rhubarb in the freezer, that I would make him rhubarb "buckle." Yesterday, I told him that it would be bread instead. Since I was making this recipe up as I was going along, I wasn't quite sure what the end result would be. When I offered a piece of the bread to the hubby this afternoon, he told me it was a 10 out of 10! He is always willing to be my taste tester and he (almost) always rates my baked goods a 10 - that's one of the reasons why I married him!

Ingredients

2 cups white flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon sour cream
2/3 cup rhubarb, chopped
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

Cream Cheese Frosting

2 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 1 1/2 quart loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.  In a large bowl, put the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, orange juice, canola oil, egg, vanilla extract and sour cream.  Mix well with large spoon and then "fold" in the rhubarb and walnuts gently. Mix to combine. Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool on wire rack for 15 minutes. Invert pan and remove the bread to wire rack to continue to cool. If desired, you can make the cream cheese frosting above and sprinkle a handful of chopped walnuts on top! Store covered in the fridge.

Ambrosia Dessert Salad

Okay, how many of you out there have ever heard of ambrosia? I looked through a handful of my cookbooks to try and determine whether it was a salad or a dessert. In one of my cookbooks, the recipe was in the salad section and in another, it was under fruit desserts. Good grief, which is it?!?!?! How about if we call it an ambrosia dessert salad???? I know, let's call it YUMMY!!! Hmm, with Easter right around the corner, wouldn't this look great (and colorful) on the table? Note: I used a 20-ounce can of pineapple chunks that were packed in juice and a 15-ounce can of mandarin oranges packed in light syrup. By the time I drained out all the juice from the pineapple chunks, I had about a 1/2 cup left (I think I'll use the chunks for a breakfast smoothie tomorrow morning). When I drained the juice from the mandarin oranges, it was exactly one cup! I normally have white marshmallows on hand, but since I didn't, I bought the colored ones the other day at the grocery store - aren't they cool?!?!

Ingredients

1 cup pineapple chunks, drained
1 cup mandarin oranges, drained
1 cup sweetened flaked coconut
1 cup mini marshmallows (white or colored)
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup walnuts or pecans (chopped),
  if desired

In medium bowl, put the pineapple chunks, mandarin oranges, coconut and marshmallows. Mix gently with large spoon. Add the sour cream and combine thoroughly. Cover with plastic wrap and put in the fridge a minimum of one hour. When ready to serve, sprinkle with the chopped walnuts or pecans (if you want) and toss lightly.  Serve immediately. Makes five cups.

Scones

If I were alone on a desert island, I could probably survive on just muffins, biscuits and scones!! The word "scone" instantly makes me think of a fancy tearoom.  Since I don't have a "tearoom" in my house, I have to settle for our kitchen table :) This morning, before Dominic and I left to see his private speech therapist, I had one of these scones for breakfast. Since St. Patrick's Day is in just a few days, I decided to sprinkle some green sugar on top. I guess if I wanted, I could have even had an Irish Coffee with the scone. I looked up the ingredients in an Irish Coffee. It consists of hot coffee, Irish whiskey, sugar and cream. Hmm, that drink might be better suited to go with our "traditional" New England Boiled Dinner of corned beef, cabbage, onions, potatoes and carrots that I make every St. Patrick's Day!!

Ingredients

2 cups white flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 1/2 teaspoons white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon white sugar (for topping)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In large bowl, put the flour, baking powder, 2 1/2 teaspoons white sugar and salt. Mix well with spoon. "Cut" in the butter with two knives. Make a "well" in the middle of the batter and add the milk. Combine well and then remove to a lightly floured surface. Knead about 20 times and then flatten out with a rolling pin or your hands to an 8-inch circle. Slice into eight equal triangles and then place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Sprinkle the one teaspoon of white sugar evenly on the tops of the eight scones. Bake for 12-14 minutes or until the bottoms of the scones are lightly browned. Remove immediately to a wire rack. Serve warm.

Zucchini/Coconut Muffins with Pecans

Zucchini is one of those vegetables that is very versatile. You can eat it raw with some dip or steam it to make a side dish. How about tossing some chopped zucchini into a slow cooker along with a bunch of other veggies to make vegetarian chili? Decisions, decisions. Well, my favorite way to use zucchini is making it into bread or muffins! Since I had a bag of shredded coconut in my pantry and some chopped pecans in the freezer, I decided to put a 1/2 cup of each into the muffin batter too!! I was keeping my fingers crossed while the muffins were baking, because I wasn't quite sure how it would taste. Well, I shouldn't have worried at all - these muffins are so yummy! Who knew that zucchini, coconut and pecans would make such an awesome threesome?!?!?!?! These muffins also contain one of my other favorite "threesomes" - cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger! One thing I've learned about baking with zucchini, it is a very wet vegetable! I shredded an entire zucchini and put it into a measuring cup. I then took my fist and gently pressed the zucchini down and then turned the measuring cup upside down over the sink.  So much water came out, that it then became only a 1/2 cup! Good grief. I ended up shredding another whole zucchini and then draining that water out too. I like a moist muffin, but what if I hadn't got all that extra liquid out?? Yikes!

Ingredients

1 cup zucchini, unpeeled and shredded
  (about two medium)
1 1/2 cups white flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 large egg
1/2 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/2 cup sweetened coconut, shredded
1/2 cup pecans, chopped

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Fill a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners and set aside. In small bowl, shred and drain out the extra liquid from the zucchini, until it equals one cup. Set aside. In large bowl, put the white flour, white sugar, light brown sugar, egg, canola oil, vanilla extract, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Add the zucchini and mix well with large spoon. Mix in the coconut and pecans and combine until well incorporated. Distribute the batter evenly into the 12 paper liners. Bake for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into one of the muffins comes out clean. Remove from oven and let the muffins cool for five minutes before removing to a wire rack to continue to cool. Enjoy!