Source: This site, via Pinterest
Ingredients:
1 apple, cored and chopped (skins on)
1 cup water
1/2 cup quick cooking oats
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
Directions:
Bring the water to a boil in a small saucepan. Then add the oats, apple, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Adjust the heat to low and let the oatmeal is simmer for 2-3 minutes while you stir and feel hungry. That's all there is to it. Serve it with a splash of milk and a little or a lot of brown sugar sprinkled on top. Serves one hungry adult or two lucky children.
Notes:
Gregg is a big oatmeal eater in the mornings, and I've become so, too. Usually we just have some brown sugar, raisins and a sprinkle of cinnamon stirred in, but we had some diced fresh peaches mixed in one day that were divine and left me wanting to find some other fun variations on the theme. I found this (and others including this version of peaches and cream oatmeal and banana coconut oatmeal that I'm excited to try) when I was snooping around Pinterest one day. Good stuff!
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Apple Cider Muffins with Cinnamon Crumble
Source: Jennelle Clark, in the USU Statesman Newspaper delivered to me by my sister, Heather
Ingredients:
For the muffins:
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup apple cider, "the real stuff that you have to shake before drinking"
1/4 cup buttermilk
For the cinnamon crumble:
4 Tablespoons flour
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 Tablespoons cold butter
Directions:
To make the muffins, start by reducing the apple cider. Place it in a small saucepan over medium-low heat and let simmer gently, reducing to 1/4 cup. This takes about 15-20 minutes. Set reduced cider aside. (Note: if you want to put a cinnamon stick and a few whole cloves in with your apple cider while it is reducing, this will add extra spice to your muffins, not to mention make your house smell heavenly while you wait.)
Meanwhile, in a medium-sized mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar for about 2 minutes, or until it becomes fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat well.
Combine the buttermilk and reduced cider with butter-sugar mixture. (Note: if you don't keep buttermilk on hand it's really easy to make your own. Just put about a teaspoon of white vinegar into whole milk and let sit for 5-10 minutes before adding it to the batter.)
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour and baking powder. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and stir just until combined. It's okay if there are lumps, it's worse to over mix the batter than to under mix it because it will make the muffin crumb tough and chewy instead of tender and moist.
Fill 12 greased or paper-lined muffin tins just over halfway full with batter and set aside while you make the topping.
To make the cinnamon crumble, in a small bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar and cinnamon. Cut the butter into little pieces and add it to the flour mixture. Use a fork, butter knife, pastry cutter or your fingers to work the butter into the flour and sugar until a crumbly mixture - a streusel - forms.
Distribute the streusel evenly over the muffins (about 1 heaping tablespoon on each). (Note: if you want to make a healthier version of these muffins, leave off the cinnamon crumble and replace half of the butter with applesauce. This will also add to the apple flavor of the muffins.)
Bake at 350F for 5 minutes, then turn the oven up to 375F and finish baking until the muffin tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the milddle of a muffin comes out clean, about 12 minutes. (Note: If you want to add nuts to the crumble, chop and toast them ahead of time and then stir them into the crumble after you've already cut the butter in.)
This recipe should yield 1 dozen muffins.
Notes:
While my family was visiting us in Colorado last weekend, Heather brought a copy of the Statesman from that week with this delightful recipe inside. We decided to give them a whirl on Saturday morning and they were quite delicious. My only complaint is that it didn't make very many muffins - "should yield 1 dozen muffins" turned into 7 muffins for us, just enough for each of us in the apartment that morning to have 1 muffin each, as a little taste. But they were definitely yummy and apple cidery!
Ingredients:
For the muffins:
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup apple cider, "the real stuff that you have to shake before drinking"
1/4 cup buttermilk
For the cinnamon crumble:
4 Tablespoons flour
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 Tablespoons cold butter
Directions:
To make the muffins, start by reducing the apple cider. Place it in a small saucepan over medium-low heat and let simmer gently, reducing to 1/4 cup. This takes about 15-20 minutes. Set reduced cider aside. (Note: if you want to put a cinnamon stick and a few whole cloves in with your apple cider while it is reducing, this will add extra spice to your muffins, not to mention make your house smell heavenly while you wait.)
Meanwhile, in a medium-sized mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar for about 2 minutes, or until it becomes fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat well.
Combine the buttermilk and reduced cider with butter-sugar mixture. (Note: if you don't keep buttermilk on hand it's really easy to make your own. Just put about a teaspoon of white vinegar into whole milk and let sit for 5-10 minutes before adding it to the batter.)
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour and baking powder. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and stir just until combined. It's okay if there are lumps, it's worse to over mix the batter than to under mix it because it will make the muffin crumb tough and chewy instead of tender and moist.
Fill 12 greased or paper-lined muffin tins just over halfway full with batter and set aside while you make the topping.
To make the cinnamon crumble, in a small bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar and cinnamon. Cut the butter into little pieces and add it to the flour mixture. Use a fork, butter knife, pastry cutter or your fingers to work the butter into the flour and sugar until a crumbly mixture - a streusel - forms.
Distribute the streusel evenly over the muffins (about 1 heaping tablespoon on each). (Note: if you want to make a healthier version of these muffins, leave off the cinnamon crumble and replace half of the butter with applesauce. This will also add to the apple flavor of the muffins.)
Bake at 350F for 5 minutes, then turn the oven up to 375F and finish baking until the muffin tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the milddle of a muffin comes out clean, about 12 minutes. (Note: If you want to add nuts to the crumble, chop and toast them ahead of time and then stir them into the crumble after you've already cut the butter in.)
This recipe should yield 1 dozen muffins.
Notes:
While my family was visiting us in Colorado last weekend, Heather brought a copy of the Statesman from that week with this delightful recipe inside. We decided to give them a whirl on Saturday morning and they were quite delicious. My only complaint is that it didn't make very many muffins - "should yield 1 dozen muffins" turned into 7 muffins for us, just enough for each of us in the apartment that morning to have 1 muffin each, as a little taste. But they were definitely yummy and apple cidery!
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Whole Wheat Bread Sticks
Source: Peggy Elwood (with some advice from Mel's Kitchen Cafe)
Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon yeast
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 Tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
3+ cups flour (I used half white, half whole-wheat)
3 Tablespoons butter (you can definitely do more, if you wish, but this was plenty to coat all the sticks)
Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, or seasonings of your choice (for topping)
Directions:
Soften yeast in water and sugar. Add salt. Add flour and mix. Knead for 3 minutes, adding flour (but not too much!), if needed, till your dough forms a soft ball. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes. Melt butter and pour on a rimmed jelly roll pan (or just melt the butter directly on the pan in the oven for a few minutes - watch it so it doesn't brown!). Roll out dough into a rectangle about the size of your cookie sheet. Using a pizza cutter, cut the rectangle in half long ways ("hotdog style" if you remember that from elementary school). Then cut each half of dough into one inch strips. Place each strip of dough on the cookie sheet and flip over to coat both sides with melted butter. Sprinkle all the bread stick dough with garlic powder and Parmesan cheese (or other seasonings/spices that you come up with). Let bread raise for about 20-30 minutes. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.
Notes:
We ate these bread sticks a lot growing up - they're especially good with soup and chili! And they're really quite quick and easy. I decided I wanted to try a whole-wheat twist on them, and they turned out fabulous! It was interesting, too, to see the same basic recipe showing up all over the place - I found this not only from my files from my mom, but also a version from my grandma and my mother-in-law, as well as from Mel of Mel's Kitchen Cafe, who I don't even know! Must be a good one, eh? But you don't have to take my word for it. ;)
Updated 11/26/18 to add: these also freeze great - I just let them cool and then place them in a ziplock baggie in the freezer. When I want to reheat them, I just spread them on a cookie sheet (as many as I want to eat) and pop them in a cold oven. They're usually warm and toasty by the time the oven preheats to 375, but if they're not ready then, just leave them a few minutes longer. ;)
Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon yeast
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 Tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
3+ cups flour (I used half white, half whole-wheat)
3 Tablespoons butter (you can definitely do more, if you wish, but this was plenty to coat all the sticks)
Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, or seasonings of your choice (for topping)
Directions:
Soften yeast in water and sugar. Add salt. Add flour and mix. Knead for 3 minutes, adding flour (but not too much!), if needed, till your dough forms a soft ball. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes. Melt butter and pour on a rimmed jelly roll pan (or just melt the butter directly on the pan in the oven for a few minutes - watch it so it doesn't brown!). Roll out dough into a rectangle about the size of your cookie sheet. Using a pizza cutter, cut the rectangle in half long ways ("hotdog style" if you remember that from elementary school). Then cut each half of dough into one inch strips. Place each strip of dough on the cookie sheet and flip over to coat both sides with melted butter. Sprinkle all the bread stick dough with garlic powder and Parmesan cheese (or other seasonings/spices that you come up with). Let bread raise for about 20-30 minutes. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.
Notes:
We ate these bread sticks a lot growing up - they're especially good with soup and chili! And they're really quite quick and easy. I decided I wanted to try a whole-wheat twist on them, and they turned out fabulous! It was interesting, too, to see the same basic recipe showing up all over the place - I found this not only from my files from my mom, but also a version from my grandma and my mother-in-law, as well as from Mel of Mel's Kitchen Cafe, who I don't even know! Must be a good one, eh? But you don't have to take my word for it. ;)
Updated 11/26/18 to add: these also freeze great - I just let them cool and then place them in a ziplock baggie in the freezer. When I want to reheat them, I just spread them on a cookie sheet (as many as I want to eat) and pop them in a cold oven. They're usually warm and toasty by the time the oven preheats to 375, but if they're not ready then, just leave them a few minutes longer. ;)
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Pizza Muffins
Source: this blog, via pinterest
Ingredients:
3/4 cup flour (I did part whole wheat)
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
pinch of salt (optional)
pinch of red pepper flakes (optional) (I left them out, only because I didn't have any)
3/4 cup whole milk (we just have 1% and it was fine)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup cubed pepperoni
1/2 cup store-bought pizza sauce (I just opened a can of tomato sauce and dumped in some pizza seasoning, stirred, and bam - "store bought" pizza sauce!"
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 24-cup mini-muffin pan. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, Italian seasoning, salt and red pepper flakes (if using) ; whisk in the milk and egg. Stir in the mozzarella, Parmesan and pepperoni; let stand for 10 minutes.
Stir the batter and divide among the mini-muffin cups. (Some mini muffin tins are bigger than others, it seems, so if you have extra batter, just use a regular sized muffin with the left over.) Bake until puffed and golden, 20 to 25 minutes.
Meanwhile, microwave the pizza sauce until warmed through. Serve the puffs with the pizza sauce for dipping.
Notes:
So it would seem that I am on a muffin kick as of late - in the last week I've made three different batches of muffins, two of which were definitely less than traditional. But traditional or not, these little muffin puffs are delish! How could they not be, though? Cheese, pepperoni, mini muffins? Perfect! We ate them as a meal, with a nice green salad on the side, but they are definitely appetizer-able, perfect for football watching or New Years Eve-ing or whenever it is that you chow down on appetizers.
Ingredients:
3/4 cup flour (I did part whole wheat)
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
pinch of salt (optional)
pinch of red pepper flakes (optional) (I left them out, only because I didn't have any)
3/4 cup whole milk (we just have 1% and it was fine)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup cubed pepperoni
1/2 cup store-bought pizza sauce (I just opened a can of tomato sauce and dumped in some pizza seasoning, stirred, and bam - "store bought" pizza sauce!"
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 24-cup mini-muffin pan. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, Italian seasoning, salt and red pepper flakes (if using) ; whisk in the milk and egg. Stir in the mozzarella, Parmesan and pepperoni; let stand for 10 minutes.
Stir the batter and divide among the mini-muffin cups. (Some mini muffin tins are bigger than others, it seems, so if you have extra batter, just use a regular sized muffin with the left over.) Bake until puffed and golden, 20 to 25 minutes.
Meanwhile, microwave the pizza sauce until warmed through. Serve the puffs with the pizza sauce for dipping.
Notes:
So it would seem that I am on a muffin kick as of late - in the last week I've made three different batches of muffins, two of which were definitely less than traditional. But traditional or not, these little muffin puffs are delish! How could they not be, though? Cheese, pepperoni, mini muffins? Perfect! We ate them as a meal, with a nice green salad on the side, but they are definitely appetizer-able, perfect for football watching or New Years Eve-ing or whenever it is that you chow down on appetizers.
Southern Baked Yellow Squash
Source: Allrecipes.com
Ingredients:
• 3 pounds yellow summer squash, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon white sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1/4 cup dry bread crumbs
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 2-quart baking dish.
2. Place the squash in a large saucepan, cover with water, and boil until soft, about 15 minutes. Drain the squash well, place in a large mixing bowl, and mash until slightly chunky. Stir in 1/2 cup of bread crumbs, onion, eggs, 1/4 cup of butter, sugar, salt, and pepper until thoroughly combined, and spread mixture into the prepared baking dish. Drizzle the top of the casserole with 1/4 cup melted butter, and sprinkle 1/4 cup bread crumbs over the butter.
3. Bake in the preheated oven until the casserole is cooked through and the top is golden brown, about 1 hour.
Ingredients:
• 3 pounds yellow summer squash, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon white sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1/4 cup dry bread crumbs
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 2-quart baking dish.
2. Place the squash in a large saucepan, cover with water, and boil until soft, about 15 minutes. Drain the squash well, place in a large mixing bowl, and mash until slightly chunky. Stir in 1/2 cup of bread crumbs, onion, eggs, 1/4 cup of butter, sugar, salt, and pepper until thoroughly combined, and spread mixture into the prepared baking dish. Drizzle the top of the casserole with 1/4 cup melted butter, and sprinkle 1/4 cup bread crumbs over the butter.
3. Bake in the preheated oven until the casserole is cooked through and the top is golden brown, about 1 hour.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Kielbasa and Tortellini Soup
Source: Based on this, adapted by Laurel
Ingredients:
1 large onion, sliced or diced
1 package kielbasa, halved lengthwise and sliced
1 24-oz can petite diced tomatoes, undrained
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
3 cups beef broth or stock
2 cups green beans
2 cups thinly sliced cabbage
1 package cheese-filled tortellini
Salt and Pepper to taste
Directions:
1. In a large pot, saute onion and kielbasa in butter or olive oil until onion is soft/transparent, and kielbasa is lightly browned.
2. Add tomatoes, seasoning, broth, and green beans. Simmer over low heat, covered, for 15-30 minutes.
3. Add cabbage and tortellini. Increase heat to medium, and cook for 5-10 minutes or until pasta and cabbage are tender. Serve immediately.
Monday, October 3, 2011
Corn Dog Muffins
Source: RecipeGirl.com
Ingredients:
2 (8.5 ounce) packages corn bread mix (or just use your favorite corn bread recipe and add the hotdogs and cheese - I used this one and it was delish.)
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
9 whole hot dogs, diced
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
ketchup, mustard, sour cream, honey mustard (for dipping)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly grease mini muffin tins.
In a large bowl, stir together cornbread mix and brown sugar. In a small bowl whisk together eggs and milk, and then stir into dry mixture until moistened. Mix in hot dogs and cheese.
Spoon a good Tablespoonful into muffin tins, making sure you get some hot dog in each spoonful.
Bake 10 to 12 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool for about 10-15 minutes in the pan before removing. For easy removal, cut around outsides of the muffins, then tip upside down onto a large cutting board & urge the muffins out using a knife to tap the bottoms of the muffin tins. They should slide right out.
Serve warm with desired dipping sauces.
Notes: Anyone who knows me (and Gregg) knows that we quite enjoy a good corn dog now and again, so when I saw this recipe, I knew I had to try it. Of course, they're nothing gourmet or fancy, but they certainly were kinda fun. And really, really good.
Ingredients:
2 (8.5 ounce) packages corn bread mix (or just use your favorite corn bread recipe and add the hotdogs and cheese - I used this one and it was delish.)
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
9 whole hot dogs, diced
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
ketchup, mustard, sour cream, honey mustard (for dipping)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly grease mini muffin tins.
In a large bowl, stir together cornbread mix and brown sugar. In a small bowl whisk together eggs and milk, and then stir into dry mixture until moistened. Mix in hot dogs and cheese.
Spoon a good Tablespoonful into muffin tins, making sure you get some hot dog in each spoonful.
Bake 10 to 12 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool for about 10-15 minutes in the pan before removing. For easy removal, cut around outsides of the muffins, then tip upside down onto a large cutting board & urge the muffins out using a knife to tap the bottoms of the muffin tins. They should slide right out.
Serve warm with desired dipping sauces.
Notes: Anyone who knows me (and Gregg) knows that we quite enjoy a good corn dog now and again, so when I saw this recipe, I knew I had to try it. Of course, they're nothing gourmet or fancy, but they certainly were kinda fun. And really, really good.
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