This is what my kids call these muffins (minus the flax).....so hence the title. It is mainly PW's Pumpkin Spice Muffins, adapted to be a bit healthier. And I typically have these ingredients on hand, so it makes it easy. Here goes.....
3/4 c flour
1/4 c ground flax seed
1/3 c sugar
2 tsp b. powder
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg (fresh ground is the KEY....I have just discovered the joy of freshly ground nutmeg and will never go back to the other! And, you can find it at any grocery store and just grate it with a small grater/microplaner...who knew!)
1/2 tsp salt
3 Tbsp butter (cold-ish)
1 c (heaping...so really like 1 1/4 c) canned pumpkin
1/4 c greek yogurt (not vital...if you don't have it, no big deal, just makes them more moist)
1 c evaporated milk (you can use non-fat withhout any problems)
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp vanilla (here again...homemade vanilla made w/ rum = YUM)
1/2 c raisins (optional....we don't use these cuz raisins are gross...)
So just mix all the dry ingredients; then cut in the butter with a butter knives or pastry cutter until it's all incorporated and approximately pea-sized. Mix all the wet ingredients together and add to the dry. Mix until just incorporated. Put them in greased muffin tins @ 375 for 20 min or so. (Makes 12 muffins. ) I have found that a big can of pumpkin and a whole can of evap. milk makes a triple batch.....which gets eaten pretty quickly at my house.
Toppings:
Okay...here are a couple of options. The original recipe from PW calls for mixing:
2 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
And then sprinkling on the muffins before baking, and then making cream cheese frosting to put on top too....which is delish, but more like dessert.
What I do is: No cinnamon/sugar topping, instead mix a block of 1/3 fat cream cheese w/ a couple of tbsp of honey, some ground nutmeg, and cinnamon. (To taste) Whip it until it is fluffy. We spread a little of this on the muffins and my kids love it.
Okay, WOW, my first blog post....aren't you all proud of me? And it was so hard, I think I need to go get a massage now.....or go shopping....or go clean a couple of bathrooms instead.....now doesn't that sound fun??
Serena
Monday, April 23, 2012
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Asian Lettuce Wraps
A few weeks ago I got a head of Butter Lettuce in my Bountiful Basket. I really wanted to find a good lettuce wrap recipe to use it.
I made this recipe off of Mel's Kitchen Cafe: http://www.melskitchencafe.com/2009/03/asian-lettuce-wraps.html.
I thought they were delish and they tasted so much like the lettuce wraps I like from Happy's Chinese Restaurant in Idaho Falls. I pretty much followed the recipe exact and I used ground turkey because I couldn't find chicken.
I didn't really dig the sauce and I don't think the lettuce wraps need sauce, so I won't make that next time.
I made this recipe off of Mel's Kitchen Cafe: http://www.melskitchencafe.com/2009/03/asian-lettuce-wraps.html.
I thought they were delish and they tasted so much like the lettuce wraps I like from Happy's Chinese Restaurant in Idaho Falls. I pretty much followed the recipe exact and I used ground turkey because I couldn't find chicken.
I didn't really dig the sauce and I don't think the lettuce wraps need sauce, so I won't make that next time.
Honey Lime Enchiladas
So I have a list of recipes that I have wanted to blog for awhile now. So here goes. The first one, Honey Lime Enchiladas, ranks in the top 5 of my family's favorite recipes. I would've never thought to put this combo together, but boy am I glad I gave it a try. They are soooo good!
This recipe can be found on Mel's Kitchen Cafe.
INGREDIENTS:
6 tablespoons honey
5 tablespoons lime juice (1 large lime)
1 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 pound chicken, cooked and shredded (I used 3 small chicken breasts)
8-10 flour tortillas1 pound monterey jack cheese, shredded
16 ounces green enchilada sauce
1 cup heavy cream (to lighten them up, I have substituted sour cream with good results)
DIRECTIONS:
Mix the first four ingredients and toss with shredded chicken. Let it marinate for at least 1/2 hour (I tossed mine together in a ziploc bag in the morning and let it sit in the refrigerator all day). Pour about 1/2 cup enchilada sauce on the bottom of a 9X13 baking pan. Fill flour tortillas with chicken and shredded cheese, saving about 1 cup of cheese to sprinkle on top of enchiladas. Mix the remaining enchilada sauce with the cream and leftover marinade. Pour sauce on top of the enchiladas and sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes until brown and crispy on top.
*Freezable Meal: Freeze prior to baking. To bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake enchiladas, covered (without thawing first) for 1 hour. Uncover and bake 30 minutes longer, until brown and crispy on top.
A tip from the website is to saute diced onion and garlic and add to the marinade. I always do this, using 1/4 to 1/2 cup of onion and 1-2 cloves of garlic. Also, I always use sour cream instead of heavy cream and think it tastes great. I've never been able to find a 16 oz. can of enchilada sauce, so I have used two 10 oz. cans or one 28 oz. can and it comes out just fine. I have also used a variety of cheeses, cheddar, pepperjack, colby jack, just whatever I have on hand. I usually marinade the chicken for a couple of hours, but I have done it for as little as 30 minutes and once I did it overnight and I didn't notice a big difference.
Something yummy to make to go along with these enchiladas is Mel's Honey Lime Fruit Salad :http://www.melskitchencafe.com/2010/04/honey-lime-fruit-salad.html
Give these a try! I think you'll love them! Oh yeah, and these are almost better rewarmed the next day!
This recipe can be found on Mel's Kitchen Cafe.
INGREDIENTS:
6 tablespoons honey
5 tablespoons lime juice (1 large lime)
1 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 pound chicken, cooked and shredded (I used 3 small chicken breasts)
8-10 flour tortillas1 pound monterey jack cheese, shredded
16 ounces green enchilada sauce
1 cup heavy cream (to lighten them up, I have substituted sour cream with good results)
DIRECTIONS:
Mix the first four ingredients and toss with shredded chicken. Let it marinate for at least 1/2 hour (I tossed mine together in a ziploc bag in the morning and let it sit in the refrigerator all day). Pour about 1/2 cup enchilada sauce on the bottom of a 9X13 baking pan. Fill flour tortillas with chicken and shredded cheese, saving about 1 cup of cheese to sprinkle on top of enchiladas. Mix the remaining enchilada sauce with the cream and leftover marinade. Pour sauce on top of the enchiladas and sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes until brown and crispy on top.
*Freezable Meal: Freeze prior to baking. To bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake enchiladas, covered (without thawing first) for 1 hour. Uncover and bake 30 minutes longer, until brown and crispy on top.
A tip from the website is to saute diced onion and garlic and add to the marinade. I always do this, using 1/4 to 1/2 cup of onion and 1-2 cloves of garlic. Also, I always use sour cream instead of heavy cream and think it tastes great. I've never been able to find a 16 oz. can of enchilada sauce, so I have used two 10 oz. cans or one 28 oz. can and it comes out just fine. I have also used a variety of cheeses, cheddar, pepperjack, colby jack, just whatever I have on hand. I usually marinade the chicken for a couple of hours, but I have done it for as little as 30 minutes and once I did it overnight and I didn't notice a big difference.
Something yummy to make to go along with these enchiladas is Mel's Honey Lime Fruit Salad :http://www.melskitchencafe.com/2010/04/honey-lime-fruit-salad.html
Give these a try! I think you'll love them! Oh yeah, and these are almost better rewarmed the next day!
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Mike's Favorites Part 2- Fajitas
This is what we had for dinner tonight & decided I needed to share :) I actually got this recipe from Serena but it has become a regular in this house (often requested despite my menu plan). It's simple & delicious!!
Fajitas3 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp lime juice
2 tsp liquid smoke
1/4 cup water
2 cloves garlic (minced)
dash onion powder (we like onions in our fajitas so I just leave this out because the onions add enough for me)
1 lb chicken or beef (we've decided that steak is definitely the way to go, especially with the liquid smoke flavor)
Mushrooms (yup-you guessed it...another of mushroom recipe for Mike's Favorites haha and we like baby bella mushrooms)
Onion-sliced or roughly chopped
*Cube or chunk the meet. Slice onion and mushrooms. Mix all other ingredients together for the marinade. Add meat and veggies into sauce and let marinade for 1-2 hours. Then cook in all of the sauce until meat is cooked. Serve with warm tortillas, cheese, and sour cream.
-just a couple of personal tips: I always double the sauce recipe because Mike LOVES it and will literally drink the rest of the sauce after everything else is gone...ssshhh don't tell him I told you haha. And if I slice the meat pretty skinny insteady of thick chunks I only will marinade it for about 20-30 minutes and it tastes great! I also use almost a whole carton of sliced mushrooms and a whole medium sized onion. Let me know if you have questions!
Enjoy!!! yum yum
Fajitas3 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp lime juice
2 tsp liquid smoke
1/4 cup water
2 cloves garlic (minced)
dash onion powder (we like onions in our fajitas so I just leave this out because the onions add enough for me)
1 lb chicken or beef (we've decided that steak is definitely the way to go, especially with the liquid smoke flavor)
Mushrooms (yup-you guessed it...another of mushroom recipe for Mike's Favorites haha and we like baby bella mushrooms)
Onion-sliced or roughly chopped
*Cube or chunk the meet. Slice onion and mushrooms. Mix all other ingredients together for the marinade. Add meat and veggies into sauce and let marinade for 1-2 hours. Then cook in all of the sauce until meat is cooked. Serve with warm tortillas, cheese, and sour cream.
-just a couple of personal tips: I always double the sauce recipe because Mike LOVES it and will literally drink the rest of the sauce after everything else is gone...ssshhh don't tell him I told you haha. And if I slice the meat pretty skinny insteady of thick chunks I only will marinade it for about 20-30 minutes and it tastes great! I also use almost a whole carton of sliced mushrooms and a whole medium sized onion. Let me know if you have questions!
Enjoy!!! yum yum
Monday, March 5, 2012
Regis Fruit Cobbler
We had this for dessert yesterday so I thought I’d share the recipe, and it was the first time I had ever made it. My mom has made this a few times for us and I always like it when she does because it smells so good. I’m not a fan of cobblers, but I love this one cuz it taste more like cake. It’s also super easy.
Regis Fruit Cobbler
1 - 20 oz. can crushed pineapple (do not drain liquid)
2 - 12 oz. bags frozen fruit (I like to get 2 different kinds of fruit.) (We’ve always had one bag of peaches and one bag of the mix of raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries but you can have whatever you want!)
1 box yellow cake mix
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup sugar
1 cube butter, melted
(Icecream to serve on top)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In an ungreased 9x13 cake pan spread the can of pineapple with the juice. Spread 1 of the bags of frozen fruit over the pineapple. Sprinkle the dry yellow cake mix over the fruit. Spread the other bag of frozen fruit over the cake mix. Sprinkle the nuts over the fruit. Melt the butter and add the sugar and stir until combined. Pour butter/sugar mixture over the nuts and fruit.
Bake for about 1 hour until golden brown. (May take a little longer to bake.) Serve warm with ice cream on top.
Regis Fruit Cobbler
1 - 20 oz. can crushed pineapple (do not drain liquid)
2 - 12 oz. bags frozen fruit (I like to get 2 different kinds of fruit.) (We’ve always had one bag of peaches and one bag of the mix of raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries but you can have whatever you want!)
1 box yellow cake mix
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup sugar
1 cube butter, melted
(Icecream to serve on top)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In an ungreased 9x13 cake pan spread the can of pineapple with the juice. Spread 1 of the bags of frozen fruit over the pineapple. Sprinkle the dry yellow cake mix over the fruit. Spread the other bag of frozen fruit over the cake mix. Sprinkle the nuts over the fruit. Melt the butter and add the sugar and stir until combined. Pour butter/sugar mixture over the nuts and fruit.
Bake for about 1 hour until golden brown. (May take a little longer to bake.) Serve warm with ice cream on top.
Monday, February 27, 2012
The $250 Chocolate Chip Cookes
I don't know about you, but I have had a hard time finding a good, reliable chocolate chip cookie recipe. They end up being too thin & hard, or too cakey, etc, etc. Until I found these!!!! These are seriously the best chocolate chips cookies I have ever made! And the best part is that they have been the the best every time I make them :)
There is an internet myth out there that was attached to the recipe when I got it from Mike's mom last year. I don't have it written out anymore but it goes something like this: A lady & her daughter were eating at a Neiman Marcus restaurant in NYC and they ordered cookies for dessert. The lady asked the waiter if the chef would sell the recipe to her. He went & checked with the chef. When he returned he said "Yes, he will sell it to you for two fifty." She agreed to that thinking it was $2.50. When she got the bill, she was charged $250! She was so angry that she posted the recipe on the internet.
Whether it's true or not-these are G-O-O-D!!!!! I just made them for a Relief Society activity and they were a HUGE hit! 2 Warnings for you: 1-they are addicting!! 2-ALWAYS half the recipe...it makes a lot!!
Enjoy!
Neiman Marcus/Mrs. Fields Chocolate Chip Cookiesaka $250 Recipe
2 cups butter
4 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 cups brown sugar
5 cups blended oatmeal (this is the secret ingredient! measure 5 cups then toss in a blender to make a fine powder. It's 5 cups pre-blended)
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp bakind powder
1 tsp salt
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
24 oz chocolate chips
1 8oz chocolate bar, grated (or pulse lightly in a blender-this is important too because it kind of melts into the batter & makes them YUMMY!!)
3 cups chopped nuts (optional-I've never made them with nuts)
*Cream butter and both sugars. Add eggs & vanilla. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, oatmeal, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Then add that into the creamed mixture a couple cups at a time. Add chocolate chips, chocolate bar & nuts. Roll into balls & place 2" apart on a cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes at 375.
They are divine warm & gooey but they stay soft for days!! We've even frozen some and they were even soft after they thawed out :)
Just for an example of how many cookies this recipe makes....for the R.S. activity I made a full batch and I baked 7 or 8 dozen cookies and still had 1/3 of the cookie dough left!! YIKES! That's dangerous at this house!!
Hope you like them!! :)
Love ya!
Ang
There is an internet myth out there that was attached to the recipe when I got it from Mike's mom last year. I don't have it written out anymore but it goes something like this: A lady & her daughter were eating at a Neiman Marcus restaurant in NYC and they ordered cookies for dessert. The lady asked the waiter if the chef would sell the recipe to her. He went & checked with the chef. When he returned he said "Yes, he will sell it to you for two fifty." She agreed to that thinking it was $2.50. When she got the bill, she was charged $250! She was so angry that she posted the recipe on the internet.
Whether it's true or not-these are G-O-O-D!!!!! I just made them for a Relief Society activity and they were a HUGE hit! 2 Warnings for you: 1-they are addicting!! 2-ALWAYS half the recipe...it makes a lot!!
Enjoy!
Neiman Marcus/Mrs. Fields Chocolate Chip Cookiesaka $250 Recipe
2 cups butter
4 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 cups brown sugar
5 cups blended oatmeal (this is the secret ingredient! measure 5 cups then toss in a blender to make a fine powder. It's 5 cups pre-blended)
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp bakind powder
1 tsp salt
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
24 oz chocolate chips
1 8oz chocolate bar, grated (or pulse lightly in a blender-this is important too because it kind of melts into the batter & makes them YUMMY!!)
3 cups chopped nuts (optional-I've never made them with nuts)
*Cream butter and both sugars. Add eggs & vanilla. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, oatmeal, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Then add that into the creamed mixture a couple cups at a time. Add chocolate chips, chocolate bar & nuts. Roll into balls & place 2" apart on a cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes at 375.
They are divine warm & gooey but they stay soft for days!! We've even frozen some and they were even soft after they thawed out :)
Just for an example of how many cookies this recipe makes....for the R.S. activity I made a full batch and I baked 7 or 8 dozen cookies and still had 1/3 of the cookie dough left!! YIKES! That's dangerous at this house!!
Hope you like them!! :)
Love ya!
Ang
Friday, February 24, 2012
Thai Peanut Noodles
I saw this is the Our Best Bites cookbook and it said it was one of the favorites on the blog so I thought I’d give it a try. It’s also on their site http://www.ourbestbites.com/2008/09/thai-peanut-noodles/. I kept putting off trying this, but we were given a ton of peanuts for Christmas so I thought it was a good time to test it. It’s super easy and Everybody loved it, Allie especially. She still talks about it. I liked it except I think I didn’t cook enough noodles and the sauce was too powerful, but that’s just because I don’t know how to judge how many noodles to make, is there a secret way to measure them? How do you judge how many noodles to make?! Here’s the Recipe:
Thai Peanut Noodles
1/2 c. chicken broth
3 Tbsp. creamy peanut butter
1-2 tsp. Sriracha chili sauce (1 is mild with a bite, 1.5 is medium, 2 is hot)
1 1/2 Tbsp. honey
3 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 1/2 Tbsp. fresh minced ginger
2-3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
8 oz. Udon or linguine noodles
Chopped green onions
Chopped cilantro
2 limes, cut into quarters
Chopped peanuts
Cook noodles in salted water. In the meantime, combine chicken broth, peanut butter, chili sauce, honey, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk until smooth and remove from heat. Toss cooked noodles with sauce and divide among 4 bowls. Sprinkle with green onions, cilantro, chopped peanuts, and garnish each serving with 2 lime quarters. Before eating, squeeze lime juice over noodles and stir to combine.
I didn’t do the Sriracha chili sauce because I couldn’t find it, and I was afraid of having it hot. We will be having this again.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)