Breakfast for a Week.

I’m always searching for a healthy breakfast that’s not cereal.  We’re trying Refrigerator Bran Muffins this week.  The original recipe is here.  This is my modified version.

Refrigerator Bran Muffins

1 (15 oz.) box Raisin Bran
3 c. sugar (or 1 1/2 c. honey)
5 c. plain or whole wheat flour
2 tsp. salt
5 tsp. baking soda
4 eggs, beaten
1 c. oil
1 qt. buttermilk
2 tsp. vanilla

3 tsp. Apple Pie Spice (contains cinnamon, nutmeg, & cloves)

1 tsp. minced Orange Peel

A HUGE mixing bowl with a lid.

Mix sugar, flour, salt, baking soda, & spices. In a separate bowl, mix together wet ingredients.  Add Raisin Bran to the wet mixture & let sit for 15 minutes or unitl cereal is soft.  Add wet ingredients to dry & mix well.   You will need a huge bowl.  I mean really huge.  I mixed the stuff together in a 4.5qt Pyrex bowl.

Bake in greased muffin cups at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.

It says you can store the batter in the fridge for up to 5 weeks.  I doubt the batter will last that long.

Don’t just sit there.  Get yourself to the store to buy the ingredients.  These muffins are seriously good.

You can thank me tomorrow morning.

K~

Zucchini + Neighbors = Fear

It’s zucchini season & you know what that means.  Your neighbors cringe whenever you approach the door & if you leave the windows open on your car, expect zucchini in the seat.  I planted 2 zucchini plants this year (my first garden ever) & I’m keeping up with the zucchini.  I don’t know how long it’ll be before the kids are tired of zucchini bread so I need to find some new zucchini recipes.  Any you want to share?

I learned last year that you can freeze zucchini.  I used my Kitchen Aid mixer grinder attachment & ground up a bunch of zucchini’s & then froze them in muffin tins.  I was pleasantly surprised at how well it worked.

Here is our favorite Zucchini Bread recipe.  I published it last year but keep getting requests so I’ll publish it again.  Enjoy!

Zucchini Bread*

1 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp nutmeg

Mix together in a small bowl and set aside

1 c. sugar
1 c. finely shredded unpeeled zucchini
1/4 c. oil
1 egg
1/4 tsp finely shredded lemon peel (or orange)

Mix together in a large bowl. Add flour mixture.
Pour into a loaf pan (greased) and Bake 55-60 min at 350 degrees.

*recipe is from my fantastic Rural City neighbor Kathryn

K~

Sweet Potato Fries

I’m suffering from a major blogger’s block.  Instead of making you read some whine about something, you’re getting a yummy recipe instead.  I’m not a big fan of the sweet potato.  However, this is soooooo good!

Oven Baked Sweet Potato Fries
serves 4-6

1 – 1 1/2 lb sweet potatoes
1/4 cup olive oil or canola oil
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil (preferably the easy release kind).

Peel the sweet potatoes. Cut into strips that are about 1/2 inch wide on each side.

Place the sweet potatoes into a sealable plastic bag.

In a measuring cup, mix oil, salt, paprika and cinnamon. Add oil mixture to bag.  Seal the bag and shake well to thoroughly coat the fries. Spread the potatoes out onto the baking sheet in a single layer.

Cook for 30 minutes, turning every 10 minutes. Transfer immediately to a paper towel lined plate and serve warm.

*^*^*^*^*^*

I turn them more often, probably every 6-7 minutes so they are crispier.

Enjoy!

K~

The recipe was originally found here.

Cocoa Cutout Cookies

I’m not a big fan of  cutout cookies.  They usually end up tasting like cardboard and aren’t really worth the effort.  However, these cookies are delicious!

Cocoa Cutout Cookies*

3/4C sugar

1/4C corn syrup

1 large egg

1t vanilla

1/4C cocoa powder

1/2t baking soda

2/3C butter, softened

2C flour

1/2t baking powder

In a large mixing bowl, combine sugar, corn syrup, egg, & vanilla.  Beat on med speed until creamy.  Reduce mixer speed to low & add the cocoa powder, baking soda, butter, flour, & baking powder.  Mix well.  Divide dough in half, wrap each half in plastic & refrigerate for at least an hour.  Roll out half of the dough at a time on a lightly floured surface. C ut with cookie cutters & place 1in apart on ungreased cookie sheets.  Bake at 375 for 5-8 minutes.  Sprinkle with sugar while warm.  Or drizzle with icing after cooled.

Icing

1C powdered sugar

1t melted butter

1-2T milk

1/4t vanilla

K~

*Recipe from Penzey’s Christmas catalog.

Peach Pie

Recently, I was feeling rather domestic & I had peaches.  A combination that resulted in The Best Peach Pie Ever!

Peach Pie*

Crust:

1/2 C butter

1C flour

1T sugar

1/4t salt

2-3T milk

To prepare crust, cut butter into bits, it doesn’t have to be cold, but it shouldn’t be warm to the point of melting.  Add dry ingredients, mix by hand to combine, then add milk in a thin stream, using just enough for the dough to hold together.  Pat the dough into a circular shape, wrap in plastic wrap & chill while peeling peaches.  This makes the dough easier to roll out.

Filling:

5 Cups sliced & peeled ripe peaches (8-10 peaches & I diced mine & it made the pie less messy to eat)

2-3T arrowroot starch (I used corn starch since I didn’t have the arrowroot)

2-3T cool water

2t Cinnamon (as always, the Extra Fancy Vietnamese Cinnamon will far exceed any cinnamon you can buy at the grocery store.  An inferior cinnamon will produce an okay pie, with the good stuff, it’ll be spectacular)

1/2C granulated sugar

Wash & peel peaches, slice & place in a large bowl with cinnamon & sugar.  In a small bowl, combine the starch & water, whisk to blend.  Use 3T starch & water if the peaches are very juicy, 2T if not.  Pour over the peaches & mix gently.  Let stand while making the streusel topping.

Streusel Topping:

1/2C cold butter

3/4C flour

2/3C sugar

1t Cinnamon

Cut cold butter into bits in a small bowl, add the remaining ingredients & rub between your fingers until sandy, pebbly consistency is reached.

Pie Assembly:

Preheat oven to 375.  Sprinkle work surface with flour.  Gently roll out crust into a circle.  Flip dough over, sprinkle with flour & roll a few inches larger than pie plate.  Gently move crust into pie plate & pat into place (I didn’t have the patience to make the crust look good so I just smooshed it into my pie plate instead of trying to transfer it).  Add peaches & top with streusel.  Bake at 375 for 10 minutes.  Reduce heat to 350 & bake for 50-60 minutes.  Fruit pies need 6-8 hours of torturous cooling time for the filling to set.

*Recipe is from Penzey’s Harvest ‘08 catalog.

K~

Zucchini Bread

This recipe is from my neighbor Kathryn. I’ve tried other zucchini bread recipes but this is by far the best. For the cinnamon, I highly recommend Penzey’s Extra Fancy Vietnamese Cinnamon.

Zucchini Bread

1 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp nutmeg

Mix together in a small bowl and set aside

1 c. sugar
1 c. finely shredded unpeeled zucchini
1/4 c. oil
1 egg
1/4 tsp finely shredded lemon peel (or orange)

Mix together in a large bowl. Add flour mixture.
Pour into a loaf pan (greased) and Bake 55-60 min at 350 degrees.

Enjoy!

K~

The Best Green Bean Casserole Ever

Everyone makes Green Bean Casserole or Green Bean Dish as it’s known around here.  Mine is hands down, the best.  I’ve had other people say that, it’s not just my opinion

This is quite possibly one of the most unhealthy things I make.  Yikes, the sodium, but oh, it’s so good.

Green Bean Dish

1 can French Cut Green Beans

1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup

3 slices American Cheese

Durkee Onions

In a saucepan over med. heat, mix soup & cheese.  Stir often until cheese is melted.  Add beans.  Mix well.  Remove from stove & pour into a square baking dish.  Sprinkle Durkee Onions on top.  Bake at 325 for 15-20 minutes or until onions are nicely browned & bean mixture is bubbly.

^*^*^*^*

I had a love/hate relationship with the dish growing up.  I hated it until I was in my mid teens & then discovered it’s salty, cheesy goodness.  My kids still hate it.  Ethan once asked me who threw up in the saucepan.  Any way, I love it & I hope you’ll notice the difference the cheese makes.

K~

Swedish Apple Pie

This is one of my favorite desserts.  My mom found the recipe many years ago & my whole family prefers this version of apple pie over the original.  It’s super easy to make.  Enjoy!

Swedish Apple Pie

2 1/2 C peeled & sliced Apples

1t cinnamon

1C + 1t sugar

3/4C melted butter

1C four

1egg

Pinch of salt

1/2C pecans (optional)

Grease a 9 in pie plate.  Slice apples into plate.  Sprinkle with cinnamon & T of sugar.  Mix remaining sugar with butter & nuts.  Add flour, egg, & salt.  Mix well & spread over apples.  Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

K~

Chicken Caesar Salad Pizza

I had a good response last week when I posted a recipe so I think for a while I’m going to do a Tasty Tuesday. I’ll post a recipe each week & I hope you’ll give it a try!  If you don’t want to read the recipe, check the bottom of the post for a link to a great contest.

Chicken Caesar Salad Pizza

1 pizza crust, baked & cooled

2oz Parmesean cheese

1/3-1/2 C fat-free Caesar Salad Dressing

1t lemon-pepper seasoning

1 garlic clove, minced

1pkg cream cheese (8oz), softened

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Lettuce, olives, chopped onion & red &/or green peppers for topping

Mix Parmesan, dressing, Lemon-pepper, garlic, 1/2 of the chicken, & the cream cheese. Spread mixture on the pizza crust. Top with remaining chicken, lettuce, peppers, onions, & olives.

Pizza Crust

1C flour

1t salt

1t baking powder

2T olive oil

1/3C room temperature milk

In a bowl, mix flour, salt, & baking powder. Mix in oil. Stir in milk until a soft dough forms. Knead 10 times in a bowl. Grease a pizza pan. Roll out dough. Brush with a little olive oil. Bake at 425 for 15 minutes or until crust is nicely browned.

^*^*^*^

If you’ve never read Joeprah, you should. He’s currently running a contest for a digital camera. Click here to see how to register. Or don’t because I really want the camera.

K~

Orange Blueberry Bread

In place of something interesting to write about (my day has comprised of sleeping, eating, cooking, sweeping, & punishing – I was bored just typing that) I will give you a recipe from my great grandmother.  My dad’s cousin had been given all her recipes & created a cookbook for all of the grandchildren.  There’s tons of stuff in there I’d never use, but this bread recipe was pretty good.  Enjoy

Orange Blueberry Bread

1C sugar

2 eggs

1/2C hot water

4T butter, softened (no substitutes)

1C orange juice

4T orange peel (this is a lot.  Next time I’ll try reconstituting the peel to reach the 4T)

4C flour

2t baking soda

1C blueberries (I’d add more next time)

Beat together sugar & eggs.  Add hot water, butter, orange juice & orange peel.  Mix well. Add flour & baking soda.  Mix.  Fold in blueberries.  Pour into 2 9×5 bread pans & bake at 350 for 60 minutes.

K~