Sunday, November 30, 2008

Chocolate Cream Cheese Cupcakes (TasteofHome.com)

TASTE : Very good (though still not what I remember from my friend's mom's recipe!)
PREP: Easy
REPEAT : Yes

I made these in silicone baking cups. They were hot and gooey and I actually just liked eating them out of the cup still quite warm and gooey. I suppose you could bake longer (or in a more accurate oven) and have them not gooey, but I liked them gooey) The frosting was far more than enough for one batch. I used it liberally on two batches and still had some left over.

KEY INGREDIENTS: cream cheese (softened), sugar, egg, semi-sweet chocolate chips, flour, cocoa powder, white vinegar

FROSTING: 3 3/4 c confectioner's sugar, 3 T baking cocoa, 1/2 c butter melted, 6 T milk, 1 t vanilla extract. Beat and top on cooled muffins.

Crab Cakes and Lemon Dill Mayonaisse (SouthernLiving.com)

TASTE : Very Good
PREP : Easy
REPEAT : Yes

We used cheap fake crab meat for this and I processed it in the food processor. Still great tasting crab cakes for less money! I also processed the saltines in the processor to get the required crumbs. Served with the lemon-dill mayo was especially yummy. No, they aren't like the gourmet ones in a restaurant, but made with the fake crab meat, it is an inexpensive meal for the family served with some veggies.

KEY INGREDIENTS: saltines, eggs, onion, mayonnaise, lemon juice, ground red pepper, hot sauce, lump crab meat (or crab alternative)

LEMON DILL MAYONNAISE : 1 c mayo, 2 t lemon rind, 3/4 t dillweed, 1/4 t garlic powder, 1/4 hot sauce. Stir together and chill. Keeps for a couple weeks.

Blueberry Lemon Bundt Cake (MarthaStewart.com/Everyday Food)

TASTE : Very good
PREP: Easy
REPEAT : Yes

This cake was very easy to make. I did it with whole wheat flour, I think?, and it still tasted great. It's been awhile so I may have used some AP flour. What I remember though is that the cake fell apart. The blueberries clusted in the middle it seemd and everywhere they clustered, it was too moist and the cake was falling apart when I tried to get it out of the pan. I'[m not sure if it's because the blueberries had been frozen and then thawed. Maybe fresh that were washed and well dried would be better? May try dried blueberries next time.

KEY INGREDIENTS: flour, baking powder, butter, light brown sugar, granulated sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, sour cream, blueberries and lemon zest.

ICING/GLAZE : 1/4 c. lemon juice and 2 and 1/2 cups confectionar's (powdered) sugar

Hot Artichoke and Spinach Dip (Olive Garden, CopyKat.com)

TASTE : Excellent
PREP : Easy
REPEAT : Again and again

VERY tasty and easy to prep hot dip to serve for guests or at parties.

Mix 8 oz pkg light cream cheese (softened), 1 can artichoke hearts (drained and chopped), 1 small package frozen chopped spinach (thawed and drained very well), 1/4 c mayonaisse, 1/4 c parmesan, 1/4 c. romano (or double parmesan), 1 clove garlic (finely minced), 1/2 tsp dry basil, 1/4 t garlic salt. Put into greased baking dish. Top with 1/4 c shredded mozzarella and bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

Pork Tenderloin with seasoned rub (Ellie Krieger, FoodNetwork.com)

TASTE: Good
PREP : Very easy
REPEAT : Yes

Very easy to prepare the rub and use on a pork tenderloin. She recommends sauteeing the garlic for a couple minutes then adding the pork to the pan. This will burn the garlic. I think it is best to saute the garlic, remove it, then place it back after searing the pork and putting the pan into the oven to roast for 20 minutes. I had to use garlic salt insted of powder and therefore didn't put salt in the mix but rather added a little extra, but it was still too salty. The way she suggests it is probably just right.

Key ingredients: ground coriander, ground cumin, dried thyme, garlic powder, dried oregano, EVOO and garlic, and of course the pork loin.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Blender Sunshine Muffins (Sue Gregg, Breakfasts, p 195)

TASTE: Very Good
PREP: Fairly easy
REPEAT:
Yes! Family Hit

NOTES: Pulled the "Breakfast" book out today. Happened to have some orange juice on hand. No oranges for orange peel though so I skipped that part. There is no milk in this recipe. I love these blender recipes where I can put whole wheat berries in the blender rather than milling them, it saves me from the extra work of cleaning up the mill parts. Daimeian said he liked these best of the muffins I've made so far (not really that many). Anyway, will probably make this many times more in the future.

INGREDIENTS: sucanat, cinnamon, orange juice, honey, 1 egg, whole wheat pastry grains, carrot, raisins