Muffins? Yes please!

Muffins are very versatile since you have so many options of what you can mix in. My favorite muffins are blueberry muffins, the next favorite? Pumpkin Muffins! I  know it's not fall, but for me pumpkin is used all year round :o) Plus. these muffins have an added bonus, chopped apples. It gives these muffins a nice texture once its baked and since it's packed with apples these muffins are healthier.

Pumpkin Apple Streusel Muffin

Muffins

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups granulated sugar

1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cups 100% Pure Pumpkin

2 large eggs

1/4 cup vegetable oil

2 cups apples, peeled, cored and finely chopped

Streusel Topping

1/4 cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 tablespoons butter or margarine

Preheat oven to 350º F. Grease or paper-line 24 muffin cups. Combine flour, sugar, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Combine pumpkin, eggs and oil in medium bowl; mix well. Stir into flour mixture just until moistened. Stir in apples. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling three-fourths full.

For Streusel Topping

Combine sugar, flour and cinnamon in medium bowl. Cut in butter with pastry blender or two knives until mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle over muffin batter.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans for 5 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool slightly.

*I doubled the streusel topping so I don't run out of the streusel for all the muffins. 
*For the mini muffins cut the baking time in half. 

Better late than Never...

I know this post is incredibly late, but it's better late than never!

One of my favorite cookies to make are cut out cookies. Why? Because it gives me a chance to create cookies of all shapes and there are sooooo many ways to decorate them. So is it surprising that I made heart shaped cut out cookies for Valentines Day? Absolutely not. It's definitely more time consuming than other cookies, but the end result is just fabulous.

For these cookies I just added some cocoa powder to a regular cut out cookie recipe and used white chocolate or royal frosting to decorate them. The chocolate cookie + white chocolate/royal frosting combo was  amazing :o)

Freshly baked and cooling on parchment paper 

Chocolate Heart Cookies Drizzled with royal frosting or dipped in white chocolate

Chocolate Cut Out Cookie (Variation of Alton Brown's recipe) 

3 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 egg, beaten

1 tablespoon milk

1/2 cup cocoa powder

Powdered sugar, for rolling out dough

Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. Place butter and sugar in large bowl of electric stand mixer and beat until light in color. Add egg and milk and beat to combine. Put mixer on low speed, gradually add flour, cocoa powder and beat until mixture pulls away from the side of the bowl. Divide the dough in half, wrap in waxed paper, and refrigerate for 2 hours. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Sprinkle surface where you will roll out dough with powdered sugar. Remove 1 wrapped pack of dough from refrigerator at a time, sprinkle rolling pin with powdered sugar, and roll out dough to 1/4-inch thick. Move the dough around and check underneath frequently to make sure it is not sticking. If dough has warmed during rolling, place cold cookie sheet on top for 10 minutes to chill. Cut into desired shape, place at least 1-inch apart on greased baking sheet, parchment, or silicone baking mat, and bake for 7 to 9 minutes or until cookies are just beginning to turn brown around the edges, rotating cookie sheet halfway through baking time. Let sit on baking sheet for 2 minutes after removal from oven and then move to complete cooling on wire rack. Serve as is or ice as desired. Store in airtight container for up to 1 week.

Cream Cheese Goodness Cookies

I love cream cheese anything (ex: bagel and cream cheese, baked potato cream cheese soup, spinach dip using cream cheese, etc) So when I saw a Rugelach recipe using cream cheese I had to make it. I made this during the holidays and it was such a hit that I was asked to provide this recipe time and time again.   I hope everyone enjoys making these cookies as much as I do :o)

1 cup butter, softened

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened

2 cups all-purpose or unbleached flour

1/2 cup finely chopped dates

1/2 cup finely chopped shelled pistachios

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/4 cup butter, softened

1 tablespoon powdered sugar

In large bowl, beat 1 cup butter, 2 tablespoons granulated sugar and the cream cheese until light and fluffy. Add flour; stir until well blended. Shape dough into ball; divide into 4 pieces. Shape each piece into ball; flatten into 1/2-inch-thick disk. Wrap each in plastic wrap; refrigerate 1 hour for easier handling.

Heat oven to 375°F. Grease 2 cookie sheets with shortening or spray with cooking spray. In small bowl, mix dates, pistachios, 1/3 cup granulated sugar, the cinnamon and 1/4 cup butter until well blended.

On floured surface with floured rolling pin, roll out 1 disk of dough at a time to 1/8-inch thickness, forming 12-inch round. (Keep remaining disks of dough refrigerated.) Sprinkle 1/4 of date-nut mixture onto round; press into dough slightly. Cut round into 16 wedges. Roll up each wedge from curved edge to point. Place on greased cookie sheets. Bake 13 to 18 minutes or until light golden brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks. Cool 30 minutes or until completely cooled. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Clinton Street Bakery Biscuits

If you know me, then you know that I have a serious addiction to biscuits. I'm talking about biscuits that are slightly crunchy on the outside, fluffy and moist on the inside. The kind of biscuits that you find while having brunch at restaurants. The kind you don't want to stop eating but you have to because the calorie content is  ridiculous.

I have...that...recipe.  I came across the Clinton Street Bakery cookbook while browsing around the library last year and found the Buttermilk Biscuit recipe they serve in their restaurant. I've never been to the bakery but I've  heard they have the best biscuits in New York City. Ever since I found this recipe, it is the only one I ever use.
If you're a biscuit fanatic...I bet my bottom dollar you'll love this just as much as I do.

I just baked these this morning, and I just had to share :o) Enjoy!

Clinton Street Bakery Biscuit 

2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting  

2 tablespoons baking powder

1 1/2 tablespoons sugar

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and cubed 

3/4 cup buttermilk  (or 3/4 cup cream)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl and stir to combine. Add the cold butter and work it into the flour mixture, using your fingers or a pastry cutter, until the mixture resembles coarse pea or dime-size crumbs. Be careful not to overwork the mixture or the butter will soften too much. Add the buttermilk, and use your fingers to combine it into the dough. Powder your hands with flour if the dough gets too sticky. The dough should just come together, do not over mix. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and form it into a ball. Lightly knead the dough 2 or 3 times until combined. (The biscuits can be baked the next day, if desired. Dust a sheet pan and the top of the dough with flour and refrigerate, covered with plastic wrap, overnight. Then bring the dough back to room temperature.) Pat the dough into a 3/4 to 1-inch thick rectangle. Use a 2 to 2 1/2-inch round biscuit cutter to cut out several biscuits (do not twist the cutter, cut straight down). Place them on a parchment paper-lined sheet pan. Gather the dough scraps, smooth them out (lightly knead if necessary), and pat the remaining dough into another 3/4 to 1-inch thick rectangle or circle. Cut out more biscuits, and then repeat again if necessary to use remaining dough. Do not over work the dough each time, or the final biscuits will be tougher. Lightly dust the tops of the biscuits with a sprinkle of flour. Bake the biscuits, rotating the pan front to back halfway through, for 15 to 22 minutes (depending on their size), or until they are golden brown and cooked through. Serve warm.

**If the dough is too dry add a little more buttermilk or cream so the dough comes together.

Chili? No way...Taco Soup for me!

For the last couple of days, I've been tinkering back and forth about whether I will make the usual chili or make taco soup. I went with the ladder and have no regrets. It's very similar to chili...except it uses taco seasoning and ranch dip blends to add flavor. This soup is ridiculously amazingly delicious! Really warms you up down to the bone in the winter.

Paula Deen's Taco Soup 

2 pounds ground beef   (I used 1 1/2 pounds of ground beef that is 96% lean) 

2 cups diced onions

2 (15 1/2-ounce) cans pinto beans

1 (15 1/2-ounce) can pink kidney beans

1 (15 1/4-ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained

1 (14 1/2-ounce) can Mexican-style stewed tomatoes

1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes

1 (14 1/2-ounce) can tomatoes with chiles

2 (4 1/2-ounce) cans diced green chiles

1 (4.6-ounce) can black olives, drained and sliced, optional

1/2 cup green olives, sliced, optional

1 (1 1/4-ounce) package taco seasoning mix

1 (1-ounce) package ranch salad dressing mix

Corn chips, for serving

Sour cream, for garnish

Grated cheese, for garnish

Chopped green onions, for garnish

Pickled jalapenos, for garnish

Brown the ground beef and onions in a large skillet; drain the excess fat, then transfer the browned beef and onions to a large slow cooker or a stockpot. Add the beans, corn, tomatoes, green chiles, black olives, green olives, taco seasoning, and ranch dressing mix, and cook in a slow cooker on low for 6 to 8 hours or simmer over low heat for about 1 hour in a pot on the stove. To serve, place a few corn chips in each bowl and ladle soup over them. Top with sour cream, cheese, green onions and jalapenos.

A double dose of...recipes!

Two recipes in one day? Yup, this girl is on a roll.

Back in December, as part of my Christmas cookies, I made these almond-cherry ball cookies. Little did I know these were going to be a HUGE hit. Honestly, I wasn't even expecting these to turn out as well as it did. Some people have called them porcupine cookies, amaretti cookies, and cherry cookies. Whatever you decide to call them, try baking it yourself one of these days because these are gooooooooooood.

Cherry Almond Thumbprint Cookies 

2/3 cup butter, softened                                                         
1/2 cup sugar

2 egg yolks                                                                            
1 teaspoon almond extract

1 1/2 cups flour                                                                      
2 egg whites, lightly beaten and reserved

1 cup slivered almonds                                                           
1 cup maraschino cherries, sliced in half

In a large bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar. Beat until well combined, scraping bowl occasionally. Beat in egg yolks and almond extract until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer, Stir in any remaining flour. Cover and chill for about 1 hour or until dough is easy to handle. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease cookie sheets. Shape dough into 1 inch balls. Roll balls in egg whites, then in slivered almonds. Press half of a maraschino cherry down into each ball. Bake in the preheated oven for the 10 to 12 minutes or until bottoms are light brown. Transfer to a wire rack, cool completely. 

Blueberry Pie

Second post using blueberries? Absolutely! Why? Because it is the greatest fruit known to mankind. It has the burst of explosion that is sweet and tart when you bite down on one or two or in my case a mouthful of blueberries.

So what would i bake next using blueberries? Blueberry pie of course :o)

My boyfriend is a huge fan of pies, and I absolutely love baking goods for him. So baking a dessert that my boyfriend loves while using a super fruit??? Mission accepted

I'm a huge fan of making my own pie crust. I've tried many many many different recipes for pie crust in my lifetime, and Paula Deen (my homegirl) has hit the nail on the head. It's buttery, flakey, light, and oh so heavenly. It's definitely not something I would have regularly, but sometimes taste trumps nutrition, especially when it's used to make amazing pie.

And as for the pie? I played around with a blueberry pie recipe to make six mini pies instead of one large pie. It's the easiest way to make pie and the tastiest that I've ever come across so far.

Paula Deen's Pie Crust 

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 3 tablespoons granulated white sugar
• 1/4 cup vegetable shortening, cold
• 12 tablespoons butter, cold and cubed
• 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup ice water

In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, salt and sugar. Add the shortening and break it up with your hands as you start to coat it all up with the flour. Add the cold butter cubes and work it into the flour with your hands or a pastry cutter. Work it quickly, so the butter doesn't get too soft, until the mixture is crumbly, like very coarse cornmeal. Add the ice water, a little at a time, until the mixture comes together forming a dough. Bring the dough together into a ball. When it comes together stop working it otherwise the dough will get over-worked and tough. Divide the dough in half and flatten it slightly to form a disk shape. Wrap each disk in plastic and chill in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes. 

*If you own a food processor, I suggest dumping everything into the processor and pulse until all the ingredients start coming together. It is definitely a lot easier.

Mini Blueberry Pie 

1/4 cup + 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar

1/2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/8 teaspoon salt

• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 cups fresh blueberries
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 
  
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Mix sugar, cornstarch, salt, and cinnamon, and sprinkle over blueberries. Roll pre-made pie crust out until it's about 1/10 of an inch thick (basically until it's a really thin piece of dough). Using a 3 1/2 to 4 inch circle cookie cutter, cut out several circle pieces out from the dough. Place one circle dough on a flat surface and put 1 1/2 tablespoon scoop of blueberries into the center of the dough. Get a second piece of dough and place it on top and crimp the edges using a fork. Repeat doing this with the rest of the dough and blueberries. Once completed, place mini pies onto cookie sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. 

Cranberry Orange Tassie

One of my favorite flavor combination in the winter is the Cranberry-Orange combo. Nothing beats the tangy cranberry and citrus orange flavor. I'm pretty sure I've eaten it in a variety of ways...muffins, scones, cookies, bread, flavored tea...but my ultimate favorite? The Cranberry Orange Tassie.

What is a tassie? It's basically a miniature tart made by using pie dough as the crust and using miniature muffin tines to shape the dough. There are many tassie recipes out there, the most popular I've come across is the pecan tassie. Truthfully, I'm not a fan of pecan tassie's because they are overly sweet (ie: pecan pie in bite sized pieces).  The Cranberry-Orange Tassie? Well, it has perfected the sweet, tart, citrus combination and a great treat to have during the cold winter months. Plus, it's perfect to have one or two with a cup of hot tea.

Cranberry Orange Tassie 

1 cup water                                                                                          

2/3 cup dried cranberries

1/3 cup orange marmalade                                                                   

1/4 cups walnuts (toasted and chopped)

3 ozs white chocolate chips

15 oz package unbaked refrigerated pie crust  (Found in the refrigerated cookie dough aisle) 

Combine water and cranberries in a small saucepan, bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let sit for 3 minutes. Drain well and let cranberries cool to room temperature. Stir in marmalade, walnuts, and white chocolate and set the filling aside. Per the package instructions, let the piecrust stand at room temperature. Unroll the crust and cut out 24 rounds using a 2 1/2 inch cookie cutter. Preheat oven to 375F. Press the dough into ungreased mini-muffin pans. Spoon cranberry filling into pastry cups until almost full (do not overfill because the filling will make a mess). Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown. Carefully run a small knife around the edges of the tassies in the pan. Carefully transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Chewy Granola Bar

While I was growing up, one of my least favorite food to eat was oatmeal/oats. I didn't like the grainy texture if it was in cereal form or the soup like texture if it was the instant oatmeal packs.  As I got older (late teens early 20's) I realized I need a nutritious snack while I'm on the go rather than grabbing a bag of chips or cookies. I think it was also because the dining center in my dorm usually served junk food with very minimal nutritional value (Burger and Fries? Pizza? Pasta? Tacos and Nachos?  Yes Please!). 

I usually bought Nature Valley or Special K granola bars from Costco when I came home for the weekend and hauled it back down to ISU. It usually lasted a month because I always put 3 granola bars in my backpack in the morning before heading to class. 

So why am I bringing up granola bars? Because I'm still always on the go except now I'm a working professional and I always grab a granola bar for my morning commute to work. During the last 2 years I've tried every granola bar available at jewel and meijer (minus the protein bars) so I thought it was time for me to make my own. 

I did a lot of googling (my internet best friend) and came across this granola bar recipe from Taste of Home. It...is...AMAZING. It's chewy, packed with oats, and has an amazing texture from the slivered almonds and rice cereal.  Move over grocery store granola bars! Suko's homemade granola bars are in town :o)

Chewy Granola Bars

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup sugar  (I left this out) 

2 tablespoons honey

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups quick-cooking oats

1 1/4 cups crisp rice cereal

1 cup chopped nuts

1 cup dried cranberries 

In a large bowl, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add the honey, vanilla and egg; mix well. Combine the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture. Stir in oats, cereal, nuts and dried cranberries  if desired. Press into a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking pan. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until the top is lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack. Cut into bars. Yield: 2 dozen.

Yummy in Suko's tummy :o)

Not so crunchy ginger cookie

Whenever someone mentions ginger cookies, I automatically think cookies that are flat, dry, and crisp. Which is why I've never been a fan of ginger cookies. Especially since I'm a huge fan of cookies that are thick, chewy on the inside, and slightly crunchy on the outside.

Then in December while looking for Christmas cookies to bake, I came across a ginger cookie recipe which I was a little hesitant to try (but made nonetheless). I can honestly say these cookies are the best ginger cookies I've ever tried. Plus, rolling the dough in sugar before baking the cookies give them a nice touch.

Sugar Coated Ginger Cookies 

3 cups flour

2 teaspoons Ginger, Ground

1 teaspoon Cinnamon, Ground

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon Nutmeg, Ground

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup molasses

1 egg

1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract

1/2 cup granulated sugar 

Mix flour, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, nutmeg and salt in large bowl. Beat butter and brown sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add molasses, egg and vanilla; beat well. Gradually beat in flour mixture on low speed until well mixed. Press dough into a thick flat disk. Wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. Preheat oven to 350°F. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Roll in granulated sugar Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until edges of cookies just begin to brown. Remove to wire racks; cool completely. Store cookies in airtight container up to 5 days.

Do you know the muffin...woman?

One of my favorite nursery songs while growing up was Do You Know The Muffin Man. I first heard it in Kindergarten, and I passionately belted the lyrics of the song each and every time. However, when I came home from school, my mom was not as pleased as my teacher. I guess hearing it 10+ times a day, everyday, for one week was more than she can handle. I think she's still traumatized by it to this day.

Why am I bringing up the muffin man? Because muffins are my ultimate favorite breakfast sweet. More specifically, blueberry muffins. I absolutely love the tartness blueberries add to muffins. I don't skimp when I add blueberries to my muffins, I firmly believe there should be blueberries in every bite. 

Is it surprising that I have tried over 30 different recipes of blueberry muffins in my lifetime? Absolutely not. It just shows my dedication to finding the best muffin recipe out there...and I think my search is over. 

Over the weekend, I made the most moist, fluffy, tart, tangy blueberry muffin I've ever tried. So much so that I ate 4 in one sitting straight out of the oven.  I think using oil instead of butter made these muffins so much lighter and the sour cream gave a hint of tangyness which balanced out sweetness from the batter and tartness from the blueberries. Like I said, best blueberry muffins ever! So without further ado, let the pictures  entice you, and go buy some blueberries to make these muffins!

Blueberry Cream Muffins 

www.allrecipes.com

• 4 eggs
  2 cups white sugar
  1 cup vegetable oil
  1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  4 cups all-purpose flour
  1 teaspoon salt
  1 teaspoon baking soda
  2 cups sour cream
  2 cups blueberries (I used 3 cups)
  
  
  Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease 24 muffin cups or line with paper muffin liners. In large bowl beat eggs, gradually add sugar while beating. Continue beating while slowly pouring in oil. Stir in vanilla. In a separate bowl, stir together flour, salt and baking soda. Stir dry ingredients into egg mixture alternately with sour cream. Gently fold in blueberries. Scoop batter into prepared muffin cups. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes.