Sunday Breakfast - Red Velvet Pancakes (with cream cheese topping!)

Today for breakfast we tried the Red Velvet My Favorite Pancake Mix we found at Cost Plus World Market yesterday.  I usually make my pancakes from scratch or Bisquick, but I must say I was impressed with the flavor and the texture of these.  Not too heavy, not too thick.  You just add an egg, water and butter/oil.

The color is a pretty dark red - I think these would be also nice for Christmas and Valentine's Day.  And, if you are feeling ghoulish - Halloween.   When I spilt a few drops of batter on the floor, yeah, it looked a little like a crime scene.

Sorry, no photo of the pancakes - they were inhaled.

For the topping I mixed 1/2  package Neufchâtel cream cheese, 2 tablespoons of milk and 2 tablespoons of confectioner's sugar to get a good consistency to spread over the warm pancakes.  An electric hand beater helped.

A one cup serving of the mix prepared enough pancakes to serve three people.  Next time you get an email coupon or are in the store, grab a can.   They have other yummy-sounding flavors.  And you can use it in your waffle maker, too.

Mix It Up!

Here are some of my favorite seasoning mixes -- I like making my own to avoid the additives, extra salt and sugar, and anti-caking ingredients the commercial mixes have.

Bonus, many spices have positive health effects.   Did you know these spices have and can. . .

Antioxidants:
Turmeric
Rosemary
Oregano
Basil
Cloves
Cinnamon
Black pepper
Paprika
Ginger
Garlic

May help lower blood glucose:
Cinnamon
Garlic
Ginger
Basil
Oregano
Nutmeg
Bay leaf
Allspice
Curry

May have antibacterial properties:
Garlic
Allspice
Oregano
Thyme
Cinnamon
Cumin
Cloves
Lemon grass

So here's to your health, more money in your wallet, and good eating!

Poultry Seasoning

1 teaspoon each:  dried rosemary, sage, thyme, marjoram and celery salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Pinch of nutmeg.

I usually double or even triple the ingredients to store in my spice jar.

Poultry Rub

1 teaspoon kosher salt or 1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ground coriander (optional for me)
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne

Makes about 3 tablespoons, enough to season a 4 pound whole chicken or 8 bone-in or boneless chicken breasts.

Enchilada Sauce

15 ounce can tomato sauce
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon chili powder (or a little less for less heat)
1/2 teaspoon salt
a few shakes of garlic, onion and chipotle powder

Simmer for 20-30 minutes.  Makes enough sauce for 9-10 enchiladas.

Cajun Seasoning

1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
1 teaspoon rubbed sage
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Great recipe - Coat 4 lean boneless center cut pork chops 1/2" thick on both sides.  Heat 2 teaspoons butter over high heat until it starts to brown.  Put chops in pan, reduce heat to medium.  Fry on both sides until dark brown, about 6-8 minutes.

Another Cajun Seasoning

2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard

Mediterranean Spice

1 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Great recipe - 2 large sweet potatoes (~2 pounds) skins on, scrubbed and cut into 4" sticks each 1/2" thick, 3 large egg whites (a scant 1/2 cup.  Preheat oven to 450 with racks in upper and middle positions.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and rub with oil.  Put sweet potatoes in microwave safe container, cover and micro 2 minutes.  Stir gently, cover and micro 1-2 minutes more until pieces are pliable.  Let rest 5 minutes covered, pour onto platter.  In large bowl, whisk egg whites until frothy, add Mediterranean Spice and whisk to blend.  Toss the sweet potatoes in the seasoned egg whites and place on single layer on prepared baking sheets.  Bake 10 minutes, then flip over with a spatula.  Rotate sheets and bake another 15 minutes or until dark golden brown.  Serve immediately.

Grilled Vegetable Seasoning

Bonus it is salt-free, you'll never miss the salt!

1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon tarragon (optional for me)
1 teaspoon dried chives (optional for me)
1 teaspoon majoram
1 teaspoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried savory or rosemary
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

No Taco Bueno

Ouch!  I may just go back to making my own taco seasoning.  I will admit Penzeys has some terrific blends and spices and seasonings, but this latest price jump for my usual 3/4 cup bag of Bold Taco Seasoning has me rethinking this particular purchase in the future and going back to making my own.

(By the way, I do love Penzeys Apple Pie Spice on oatmeal in the morning with toasted walnuts and chopped apple.)

c. 1995  641.5
ISBN: 1-55561-073-0
1-55561-107-9

I love this Make-A-Mix book by Karine Eliason, Nevada Harward and Madeline Westover.  I still have the receipt from the now defunct Crown Books wherein I paid by check on February 7, 1996 for $17.49 including tax.  (I saved 10%!)  It also has great recipes.

I leave out the cornstarch and reduce the salt

Through the years, I have also scribbled, stuffed and taped my own mix recipes to the pages, which I shall also post later today.  Gotta keep my Foodie Blogroll bonafides! ; )

Chocolate Chip Muffins - Light and Healthy - and versatile!

This is my go-to healthy muffins recipe from the September/October 1992 issue of Pillsbury Fast and Healthy magazine.  Not only is it yummy, but you can go from beginning to eating within 30 minutes!

This is the basic Lite Muffins recipe with variations to suit what you have on hand.  It has about a third less oil than a standard muffin recipe.

Chocolate Chip Lite Muffins
in my Pampered Chef stone baker

LITE MUFFINS

2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup milk
3 tablespoons oil (I use canola)
1 egg, beaten

Heat oven to 375 (400 per original recipe).  Line a 12-muffin cup pan with paper baking cups.
In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.  Mix well.
In a 2 cup measuring cup (or a small bowl, this way with the measuring cup it is one less item to wash)
combine milk, oil, and egg - blend well.
Add to dry ingredients; stir just until dry ingredients are moistened.
Divide batter evenly among paper-lined muffin cups.
Bake at 375 for 18-23 minutes or until light golden brown.
Cool 1 minute, remove from pan.
Serve warm

Chocolate chip muffins - add 3/4 cup chocolate chips to dry mix
Apple muffins - decrease sugar to 1/4 cup and add 1 teaspoon cinnamon to flour, stir 1 cup finely chopped, peeled apple into dry ingredients.  Substitute apple juice for milk
Blueberry muffins - Stir 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries and 1/4 teaspoon Penzeys Cake Spice into dry ingredients
Jam muffins - Before baking, place 1/2 teaspoon of your favorite jam on each muffin; press into batter.  If desired, sprinkle with finely chopped nuts
Lemon muffins - Add one tablespoon grated lemon peel to dry ingredients
Orange muffins - Add one tablespoon grated orange peel to dry ingredients and substitute orange juice for milk
Streusel-topped muffins - In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar, 1 tablespoon softened butter, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon and 1/4 cup chopped nuts or flaked coconut; blend with fork until crumbly.  Sprinkle over muffins before baking
Sugar-coated muffins - Brush tops of hot muffins with orange juice, dip in mixture of 1/4 cup sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Whole wheat muffins - Use one cup all purpose flour and 1 cup whole wheat flour

Figgy Fun Friday

"Fresh Fig Bars"

Our Celeste fig tree is still setting new figs…  So far we have given way almost ten pounds of figs!
I've made two batches of "jam". . .

Fig Sauce

(quotes because it is not "official" canned/processed jam, but merely a figgy sauce with a touch of cinnamon and a little sugar.)  Which I've put on cereal. . .

Oatmeal with walnuts and figs

and yogurt and ice cream. . .

Figs a la mode

and yes, even by itself as a snack.

But now it is time to find and try out fig recipes!
I've tried two cookie recipes -- the favorite is the one pictured at the top of this post.  Both are from the California Fig website

"Fresh Fig Cookies"

First recipe tryout -- Fresh Fig Cookies
Maybe if I had followed the recipe (I substituted cinnamon for the cloves and didn't add walnuts and replaced 1/2 cup of white flour with whole wheat), they may have been better.  The problem was they were so "cakey"(mushy?)  and blah.  Despite the recipe calling for a cup of sugar, they weren't sweet.   Not even sprinkling sanding sugar on top or drizzling a bit of frosting helped.  My taste testers were forewarned by my saying, "Do these taste good to you?"  Oddly I kept wanting to add raisins - I think because it had the texture of a typical soft raisin cookie.

NEXT!

Fresh Fig Bars
Yet another recipe calling for walnuts.  Which I skipped again.  This recipe shows you how to make the filling, albeit time-consuming.  I just used my Fig Sauce/Jam I had in the fridge.  There is also more than enough oatmeal mixture to cover the bottom and top.  They were a little crumbly but I had no complaints from my taste testers - at all!   Next time I will try packing the bottom a little more firmly to see if they will hold their shape a little bit better.  You definitely need to use a fork or be ready to use your fingers to grab errant, flopped off pieces.  I'm going to try and see if they can be frozen, too.  I also added four packets of Sugar in the Raw sprinkled on top, hoping for extra crunch and texture.

Cookie bottom and top:

1 cup shortening
¾ cup packed brown sugar
2 cups sifted flour
½ teaspoon salt
3 cups quick-cooking oatmeal

Preheat oven to 350°F. Cream shortening and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Combine 2 cups flour, ½ teaspoon salt and oatmeal; stir into creamed mixture. Divide and press one half oatmeal mixture into bottom of well-greased 9x13 inch pan. Spread evenly with fig mixture.

Sprinkle remaining half oatmeal mixture on top and press together lightly.

Bake at 350°F for 25-30 minutes, or until lightly browned around the edges. Cut 4x6 into 24 squares while still warm.  (no idea what that means - so here's what I did.  Then I cut these rectangles in half after removing them from the pan.)

Cool completely before removing from pan.

Can I?

It all started with a $3.44 book...

Celeste figs

Coming attractions!
Celeste Fig Tree 2014

The figs started ripening on our Celeste fig tree, and it looks like a bumper crop this year.  I've already given five pounds away.  When I was walking through Target, on their end cap I found the Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving marked down to $3.44.  And the canning jars were on sale.  I've never tried canning before and I thought, hmmm.  I can always use the jars for something else and donate the book to the library if things don't work out.   Kroger had the pectin and the utensil set in the baking aisle.    I will keep you posted of my attempt at canning!

Whole Foods - Inspired Plum Crumble

I tried Whole Foods Plum Crumble, featured in their latest in-store circular, "The Whole Deal"

This turned out very well and very yummy!  I like the twist on using vanilla wafers and almonds as part of the "crumble".  I did sub out Nilla Reduced Fat Vanilla Wafers instead of using Whole Foods 365 Everyday Value.  I also used my food processor on pulse instead of trying to break up the cookies by hand.  And I forgot to add the teaspoon of cinnamon to it, but a quick save of sprinkling a teaspoonful of Penzeys Cinnamon Sugar over the sliced fruit worked in a pinch.  However, next time I will remember to add the ground cinnamon to the crumble part to make it more cinnamon-y.

I will be making this again - it's very versatile.
I can see variations in the fruit - nectarines, peaches, cherries, apples…and subbing out the almonds for pecans and walnuts.
Definitely keeping the cookies.
Definitely!
(P.S. I added two extra cookies.  I love Vanilla Wafers and loved the idea of using them this way.)

Leftovers taste great on top of Greek yogurt for breakfast or anytime
…and ice cream!

You will definitely want to add this to your recipe file.

PLUM CRUMBLE


1 cup sliced almonds
4 tablespoons cold 365 Everyday Value® Unsalted Butter, cut into cubes
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
20 365 Everyday Value® Organic Vanilla or Lemon Wafers (20!  not 20,365!)
1 1/2 pound pounds plums (about 6), pitted and chopped

Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, use (a food processor) your hands to mash together the almonds, butter, cinnamon and wafers until well combined but still fairly coarse. Arrange plums in a (9 in) pie dish, and top with almond mixture, pressing it together in handfuls, and then scattering it in large pieces over the top. Bake until plums are tender and juicy and almond mixture is golden, 45 to 50 minutes. (To avoid burning, tent with foil during baking, if needed.) Serve warm or at room temperature.


PER SERVING:230 calories (130 from fat), 15g total fat, 5g saturated fat, 20mg cholesterol, 35mg sodium, 22g carbohydrate (3g dietary fiber, 14g sugar), 4g protein

Cherry Vanilla Pecan Cookies

Baker's Dozen!

I combined my favorite vanilla sugar cookie recipe, which I've modified over the years from Taste of Home magazine with another recipe idea I saw in the Houston Chronicle recently.  I liked the idea of cherries and pecans.   But not their recipe ingredients of maraschino cherries and confectioner's sugar instead of regular sugar.  I used dried Bing cherries instead from Costco (cutting in half, they were huge!) and a cup of pecans, which I broke into pieces after "toasting" in the microwave.  Then I added Wilton's Pink food coloring gel and sprinkled pink and white sanding sugar on top before baking for even more pinky bling.

Happy Valentine's Day!
And "Go Red" Month, too!  Cherries are "good for you" with lots of anthocyanins - queritrin and ellagic acid.


CHERRY VANILLA PECAN COOKIES


1/2 cup (minus 1 tablespoon) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup white whole wheat flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients; add to creamed mixture and mix well.
Drop by teaspoonfuls 2 in. apart onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350° for 12-15 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Remove to wire racks to cool.

Yield: about 3-1/2 dozen.
Nutritional Facts
2 cookies equals 109 calories, 5 g fat (3 g saturated fat), 22 mg cholesterol, 90 mg sodium, 16 g carbohydrate, trace fiber, 1 g protein.

Cooking Light Cream Cheese Frosted Pumpkin Muffins - & Loaves!

My Pampered Chef stoneware cupcake/muffin pan - the more I use it, the better it gets!

Putting my Williams-Sonoma Gold Touch Loaf pan to good use  - they popped right out!

Page 396!

Pumpkin Muffins (from the November 2006 issue of Cooking Light)  I added the cream cheese frosting and pecans!   And the Fall-colored jimmies for fun.   You can also find the recipe in the Cooking Light 2007 Annual Recipes book.

For the frosting, I used a package of Neufchatel cream cheese and added about a cup of confectioner's sugar and a little bit of skim milk to get a frosting consistency and a bit of sweetness.

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (about 10 ounces)

• 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup golden raisins
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 1/3 cup buttermilk
• 1/3 cup canola oil
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• Cooking spray
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• Directions:
• Preheat oven to 400
• Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. 
• Combine flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, ginger, and salt in a medium bowl, stirring well with a whisk.
• Stir in raisins; make a well in center of mixture. 
• Combine brown sugar, canned pumpkin, buttermilk, canola oil, molasses, vanilla extract, and eggs, stirring well with a whisk. 
• Add sugar mixture to flour mixture; stir just until moist.
• Spoon batter into 18 muffin cups coated with cooking spray. 
• Sprinkle with granulated sugar.  (skip if you are going to frost)
• Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove muffins from pans immediately; cool on a wire rack.
• Add frosting and toppings if desired.

Cooking Light Plum Galette

Plum Galette from Cooking Light

This recipe is from the June 2005 issue of Cooking Light.  It also appears in two of their books -- Cooking Light Dessert (ISBN:  0-8487-3066-6), page 86; and Five Star Recipes. (ISBN:  978-0-8487-3242-4), page 392





It was a hit!!  I will definitely be making this again - perhaps with peaches or apples.  Or even combining other fruits together.

I am getting more confident making crust from scratch, especially with the food processor -- easy-peasy!

A galette is a rustic, free-form crust/tart.  We bought plums from Costco, and while you can't beat the price, two people can only eat so many plums per day.  When they started to soften, I decided to turn them into this.  Bonus is the jam leftovers. The jam will keep up to a few weeks in the refrigerator.  And boy, did it taste good on some toasted slices of Central Market's Seedsation bread for Halloween breakfast!

Love the pumpkin and bat sprinkles?

Fair warning, it is a bit time-scheduling intensive, if you are making the jam and starting from scratch.   You may want to make the jam ahead of time.  Then make the crust and allow time for chilling.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup all-purpose flour
3 1/2 tablespoons chilled butter, cut into small pieces
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons ice water
1 tablespoon cornmeal - I skipped this
4 medium plums, each cut into 8 wedges
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 cup Plum Jam*
1 tablespoon Plum Jam*
1 tablespoon sugar

*Plum Jam --
4 1/2 cups chopped ripe red plums (about 8 medium)
1 cup sugar
1 cup water

DIRECTIONS

Dough --
Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour, butter, and salt in a food processor; process until mixture resembles coarse meal. With processor on, slowly add ice water through food chute, processing just until combined (do not form a ball). Press mixture gently into a 4-inch circle on plastic wrap. Cover and chill 30 minutes.

Jam --

Combine plums, sugar, and water in a large saucepan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Uncover and simmer 50 minutes or until mixture begins to thicken, skimming foam from surface of mixture occasionally. Cool; pour into an airtight container. (Mixture will thicken as it cools.) Cover and chill.

about 50 minutes later

Note: Refrigerate jam in an airtight container for up to three weeks.

Preheat oven to 425°.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; sprinkle paper with cornmeal (I skipped the cornmeal part). Unwrap dough; roll dough into a 9-inch circle on a lightly floured surface. (I rolled between two sheets of  plastic wrap.) 

Apprehensive moment ahead, will it peel away nicely in one piece?
(It did!)

Place dough on baking sheet on top of parchment paper. Combine plums and cornstarch in a large bowl, tossing to coat. Add 1/4 cup Plum Jam; toss well to coat. Arrange plum mixture on top of dough, leaving a 1 1/2-inch border.

Fold edges of dough over plum mixture. Bake at 425º for 20 minutes.

Remove galette from oven (do not turn oven off). Brush crust with 1 tablespoon Plum Jam; sprinkle galette with sugar. Bake at 425º for 20 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Cool in pan on a wire rack 10 minutes before serving.   6 servings

Note: Nutritional analysis includes Plum Jam.

Calories: 208
Calories from fat: 32%
Fat: 7.3g
Saturated fat: 3.4g
Monounsaturated fat: 2.8g
Polyunsaturated fat: 0.3g
Protein: 2.8g
Carbohydrate: 33.8g
Fiber: 1.6g
Cholesterol: 18mg
Iron: 1mg
Sodium: 146mg
Calcium: 5mg

This does not factor in topping with a scoop of Bluebell Homemade Vanilla ice cream while it is still warm...

Raspberry Almond Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

I made two loaves - one with the alternating flaps, the top is just the sides folded together lengthwise

Much easier to alternate folds than to cut in long strips and braid

Raspberry Breakfast Braid From the August/September 2012 issue of Taste of Home on page 61

I modified this to make it healthier and easier.  And basically because I view recipe directions as suggestions, or figure I can do better (or I goofed.)

To start, I used the Heart Smart Low Fat Bisquick and Neufchatel cream cheese and skim milk instead of 2%.  And reduced the amount of butter to 2 tablespoons  I also divided and made two loaves. not only to test different methods to enclose those yummy raspberries and cream cheese, but to make them more manageable to bake and store.  You could also take the opportunity to try two different fruits - for instance, make the other blueberry.  Or with peaches.   I cut back the sugar and oomped up the flavor with a sprinkling of Penzeys Vanilla Sugar over the fruit and cream cheese center before enclosing.   Instead of frosting, I mixed and drizzled confectioner's sugar and milk and topped with a handful of toasted sliced almonds.

I liked the idea you could use Bisquick and have it done much faster than traditional yeast coffee cakes, making this a great go-to recipe for quick weekend breakfasts.  Click on the earlier link for the original recipe, here is my modified recipe. . .


Ingredients
2 cups biscuit/baking mix - Heart Smart Low Fat Bisquick
1 package Neufchatel reduced fat cream cheese, cubed
2 tablespoons cold butter, cubed
1/3 cup skim milk
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1-1/4 cups fresh raspberries
Sprinkling of sugar - try Penzeys Vanilla Sugar
1/4 cup confectioners sugar, with approximately 1 tablespoon milk to make a drizzle.

Directions
Place biscuit mix in a large bowl. Cut in  half the package cream cheese and butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in enough milk just until moistened. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; knead gently 8-10 times.
On a greased baking sheet, divide and roll dough into 9-in. x 12-in. rectangles. Spoon raspberries down center third of dough; drop/add remaining cream cheese sprinkle with sugar.
Cut 1-in.-wide strips about 2-1/2 in. into center. Starting at one end, fold alternating strips at an angle across raspberries; seal ends.  Or fold ends in or cut alternating strips and fold over.
Bake at 400° for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to a wire rack to cool slightly. In a small bowl, combine confectioner's sugar and milk to desired consistency; drizzle over pastry. Yield: 12 servings, depending upon appetite.

Double Peanut Butter M&M Pretzel Bars

(Not actual size)

DOUBLE PEANUT BUTTER M&M PRETZEL BARS

1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup peanut butter (try the new healthier "naturals" variety out there now.  I like Skippy's the best)
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 of a 3/4 cup scoop cake flour (I just eyeballed it)
pinch of salt
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla

Semi Sorta Crushed Pretzels 

2 cups (before crushing) pretzels (about 24 of the Costco pretzel barrel ones)
1/2 cup peanut butter chips/morsels
1/2 cup M&M's
Nonstick spray

Preheat oven to 350.  Cut up the butter and put in small oven proof bowl (I used an earthenware cereal bowl) and put in oven to soften while you are preparing the pan of crushed pretzels.  I filled and used my Cuisinart mini chopper and then picked out and used the bigger (1/4" - 3/4") pieces, trying to avoid the salt.  Always unplug first!  Layer pretzels in pan.

Check and see if butter has softened and add the peanut butter to the bowl.  Stir together.  Stick back in oven if the butter hasn't completely melted.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar, flour, salt.  Add and mix in the butter and peanut butter, then egg and vanilla.  Stir in the peanut butter morsels and M&M's.   Drop by spoonfuls over the pretzels and spread the best you can over them.

Spread dough the best you can!

Bake for 25-35 minutes until it looks set/lightly browned.   Let cool, though a little nibble for the baker is always allowed during the cooling process (they taste great warm!), then cut, serve and enjoy!

_________________


Modified from Bake Your Day's Peanut Butter Overload Pretzel Bars --
I cut most of the ingredients in half to make a 9 x 9 pan. How fast these disappeared!  A thumbs up and request for more immediately.
I also substituted M&M's for Reeses Pieces and Costco's barrel of pretzels for the pretzel crisps.  To make it just a bit healthier, I reduced to the sugar to 2/3 cup and knocked a tablespoon off the half stick of butter.

Blueberry Cream Cheese Muffins and Bread

Three cheers for the red, white and blueberry!  I love blueberry recipes, and for the 4th of July -- Perfect timing!

Inspired by Jane Hornby and her Fresh and Easy:  What to Cook & How to Cook It  in the  June 2010 issue of Glamour magazine, on page 210.  I already had and love a tried and true blueberry muffin recipe. (She also suggested substituting peaches or plums for the blueberries.  I think even raspberries would be yummy, too.).  I used Neufchatel 1/3 less fat cream cheese for more calories and fat savings.

My Blueberry Muffin Recipe!

2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar (just a bit less)
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup milk
3 tablespoons oil
1 egg, beaten

1 cup of blueberries

Cream cheese

1/4 teaspoon Penzey's Cake Spice, optional

A splash of vanilla or almond extract

Heat oven to 375. 

 Line 12 muffin cups with paper baking cups. (There usually will be extra to fill a small loaf pan or additional muffin cups or ramkins.)  In medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and cake spice - mix well. In small bowl, combine milk, oil and egg (I also add a splash of vanilla extract), blend well. Add to dry ingredients, stir just until moistened. Add blueberries.  Spoon batter in cups, pans, ramkins halfway, add 1/2 teaspoon of cream cheese.  Top with more batter and add another dot/s of cream cheese on top.

Bake for 18-23 minutes or until light golden brown. (start checking around 16 minutes). Cool for one minute, remove from pan and serve warm. If there are any left over, these also freeze well.

Raspberry White Chocolate Almond Blondies

Obviously did not wait to let cool before cutting!

RASPBERRY WHITE CHOCOLATE ALMOND BLONDIES
(Originally "Raspberry Blondies" from My Recipes/All You)

Ingredients:

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup white whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

2/3 cup packed light brown sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

A dash of almond extract

1/2 cup sliced almonds

1/3 cup Ghirardelli white chocolate chips

1 cup fresh raspberries

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with heavy-duty foil (the Reynolds non-stick kind is perfect for this recipe), leaving at least a 1-inch overhang on all sides.

2. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Melt butter in a medium saucepan over low heat.  Turn off heat.  Stir in brown sugar until moistened. Let cool slightly.  Whisk in egg, vanilla and almond extracts. Stir in flour mixture until just combined. Stir in nuts.  Mix in a few white chips.

3. Scrape batter into baking pan, smoothing top the best you can with a spoon, or use a spatula. Scatter berries and remaining chips over batter. 

Ready to bake!

Add a few more chips if you have already snacked on the premeasured amount and to make it look pretty.  Eat a few more from the bag because you are baking in the afternoon before dinner.   And damn, these chips taste way better than those white "chocolate" Easter bunnies which appeared in your basket year after year while your sister got the chocolate ones.  "We thought you liked them!"  "No!"  

Bake until blondies are set in center, about 30-35 minutes. 

Cool completely in pan on wire rack (good luck, reasoning it is now time for fruit after all that chocolate)

4. Grasping overhanging foil on opposite sides of pan, lift out blondies and place on cutting board. Cut into 16 squares and serve.

For easier cutting, cover and refrigerate blondies for at least 1 hour before slicing into bars. 

(If you can wait!)

Reality Bites

What it is supposed to look like!

This is the recipe I saw on page 75 when I bought the new Cooking Light Fresh Food Fast 24/7 cookbook the other day at Costco.

Step 1:  Don't use French bread the recipe calls for and instead bolillo buns.
Trim off tops and bottoms and think this is a good substitute.  Pat self on back for using a couple of whole wheat ones!

Oops!

Step 2:  Quick, think!  BAKED French/Bolillo Toast!
Bake at 375 for 20 minutes, until slightly crunchy on top.

Her heart is in the right place!

Step 3:  Top with remaining apples and sauce.  Sprinkle with powdered sugar (just like the cookbook picture, which is the only resemblance to the pictured recipe) and eat!

Ready to eat!

Overall, a great save.  I will probably purposefully make it this way again.  Especially in the Chantal heart-shaped baker, I think it actually looks pretty.  And delicious!

CINNAMON APPLE STUFFED FRENCH TOAST

Cinnamon apple filling
4 (1 ounce) slices diagonally cut French bread, about 1" thick
1/2 cup fat-free milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
cooking spray
1 tablespoon powdered sugar

1.  Prepare cinnamon apple filling.
2.  Cut a horizontal slit through the side of each bread slice to form a pocket.  Stuff 3 tablespoons cinnamon apple filling into each pocket.
3.  Place milk, vanilla and egg in a shallow dish; stir with a whisk until blended.  Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray.
4.  Dip each side of stuffed bread in egg mixture to coat.  Add stuffed bread to pan; cook 2 minutes on each side or until golden brown.  Sprinkle with powdered sugar, top evenly with remaining filling.

Calories 230, fat 7.9g (sat 4.2g, mono 2.2g, poly 0.7g), protein 6.2g, carb 34.6, fiber 2.2g, chol 69mg, iron 1.4mg, sodium 259mg, calcium 73mg 

Cinnamon Apple Filling

2 tablespoons butter
2 cups chopped unpeeled Gala apple (4 small)
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Melt butter in a large non-stick skillet over medium high heat.  Add remaining ingredients, saute' 3 minutes or until apples are golden.
Serving size 5 tablespoons

Calories 115, fat 5.9g (sat 3.7g, mono 1.5g, poly 0.2g), protein 0.2g, carb 16.9g, fiber 1.5g, chol 15mg, iron 0.2mg, sodium 44mg, calcium 16mg

New Cooking Light Cookbook!

Like a moth to a light, I found the newest addition to Cooking Light's Fresh Food Fast series - Cooking Light Fresh Food Fast 24/7 (ISBN:  978-0-8487-3645-3)  Costco's price $15.49, publisher's price $24.95.
It had me at Page 75 - Cinnamon Apple Filled French Toast - only 335 calories! (And if you are doing carb counting like me, only 3 carb servings!)