Coffeecake Muffins

These muffins have made their way into my oven a few times over the last couple months. A hit with my family and again with co-workers. Cooks Illustrated definitely got this recipe right. The delicate taste of cinnamon and pecans in the batter really makes this muffin shine. This recipe can easily be prepared in the food processor, but if a food processor is not available to you the batter can also be stirred by hand or mixed in a stand mixer. Perfect breakfast treat with a mug of hot chocolate, coffee, or even milk.

Coffeecake Muffins
as seen on Cook's Illustrated

Ingredients
1/2 cup (2 oz) pecans
1/4 cup (1 3/4 oz) packed dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 cups (10 oz) unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup (7 oz) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2" pieces and softened
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup sour cream
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions
1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 12-cup muffin tin and set aside.
2 Process nuts, brown sugar, and cinnamon in food processor until nuts are the size of sesame seeds, about ten 1-second pulses. Transfer mixture to medium bowl.
3. Return bowl and metal blade to food processor, add flour, granulated sugar, and salt and process until combined, about five 1-second pulses. Sprinkle butter evenly over flour mixture and process until butter is oat-sized, about eight 1-second pulses. Remove 1 cup of the flour-butter mixture and stir with fork into reserved brown sugar mixture until combined to make streusel. Set aside 3/4 cup pf streusel for muffin batter and remaining portion for topping muffins.
4. Add baking powder and baking soda to remaining flour mixture in food processor bowl and process until combined, about five 1-second pulses. Whisk together sour cream, egg, and vanilla; add to flour mixture. Process until batter is just moistened, about five 1-second pulses. Add 3/4 cup reserved streusel to flour mixture and process until just distributed throughout batter, about five 1-second pulses.
5. Divide batter among 12 muffin cups and sprinkle with streusel, pressing lightly so that streusel sinks slightly into batter. Bake until toothpick inserted in center of muffin comes out with several crumbs clinging to it, about 18 minutes, rotating pan from front to back halfway through baking time. Cool muffin tin on wire rack for 2 minutes. Using tip of paring knife, loosen muffins gently transfer from tin to wire rack; cool for 5 minutes and serve warm.

Sausage Cheese Biscuits

This recipe popped up in my e-mail quite a while ago. As soon as I saw it I knew that someday I would make it, I just had no clue when. Before I tore my kitchen apart, for painting, the other day I wanted to bake one last thing. These came to mind for their simplicity and flavors. I did what I like to do best. Baked them up and shipped them out. My co-workers really enjoyed them.


These biscuits (or scones if you prefer to make them sound fancy) are definitely easy to make and can be done in just a few minutes. If you prefer the simplicity of a big flaky biscuit than these are definitely for you. If you like a little more flavor and zing I would suggest adding some garlic and even a dash of Tabasco sauce. These are simple, delicious, and beautiful. Enjoy.

Sausage Cheese Biscuits
adapted from King Arthur Flour

Yield: 20 biscuits

Ingredients
3 cups (12 3/4 oz) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon Pizza Dough Flavor, optional
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, cut in pats
1 cup (8 oz) yogurt, buttermilk, or sour cream (low-fat is fine)
3/4 pound breakfast sausage links, cooked and sliced in 1/2" pieces
1 cup (4 oz) diced cheddar cheese

Directions
Preheat the oven to 425°F.

In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and Pizza Dough Flavor. Add the butter, cut in pats. Work in the butter till the mixture is crumbly.
Add the sausage and cheese, mixing to distribute. Add the yogurt, buttermilk, or sour cream.
Mix just till everything is evenly moistened.

Transfer the dough to a piece of parchment or a lightly floured work surface. Pat and roll it into an 8" x 10" rectangle about 3/4" thick. Cut the dough into twenty 2" squares.

If you've been working on parchment, simply lift the parchment onto a baking sheet. Separate the biscuits so there's about 1" between them. If the biscuits aren't on parchment, space them on a lightly greased baking sheet, leaving about 1" between them.

Bake the biscuits for 20 to 25 minutes, or until they're a medium- to deep-golden brown.
Remove the biscuits from the oven, and cool them on a rack briefly. Serve warm.

Zucchini Bread

It is once again the time of year that gardens are overflowing and the nice people of the world start offering up their extras to those of us without gardens. Last weekend I got some zucchini from my aunt's garden in hopes to make some zucchini bread. I already have a recipe in my archives for this bread but I decided I wanted to change it up and try something different. Boy am I glad that I did. This recipe did not disappoint!


This bread was quite amazing, moist and delicious just like a quick bread should be. I typically only like almonds in my cookies and breads but I decided to add toasted walnuts anyway. I think they really worked well and gave the bread a great texture. The addition of apple and coconut really brought this bread to the next level. I think this is my new favorite zucchini bread recipe.


Zucchini Bread
Adapted from Joy of Baking

~makes one - 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf~

Ingredients
1/2 cup pecans or walnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped
1 cup shredded raw zucchini (1-2 zucchini)
1/2 cup peeled and grated raw apple, (about 1 large apple)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup safflower or canola oil
1 cup granulated white sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Grease (or spray with a nonstick vegetable spray) a 9 x 5 x 3 inch (23 x 13 x 8 cm) loaf pan. Set aside.
Toast the pecans or walnuts for about 8 minutes or until lightly browned and fragrant. Let cool and then chop coarsely.
Grate the zucchini, using a medium grater, and then peel and grate the apple. Set aside.
In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, ground cinnamon, and nutmeg. Set aside.
In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract until well blended (about 2 minutes). Beat in the grated zucchini and apple. Add the flour mixture, beating just until combined. Then fold in the nuts and coconut. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake until the bread has risen and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 50 to 60 minutes.
Place on a wire rack to cool and then remove the bread from the pan. Frost with cream cheese icing, if desired. Well wrapped, this bread will keep for several days at room temperature.

Strawberry Quick Bread

Strawberries are my favorite fruit of all time. I could eat them plain, dipped in yogurt, mixed with other fruit, or even baked into bread. Speaking of baked into bread, that is what I have for you today. A delicious strawberry bread with flecks of almonds all throughout. The original recipe called for walnuts but I prefer almonds and think they compliment the strawberries perfectly.


This recipe was typical of any quick bread recipe that I have made before. Whisk the dry ingredients, blend the wet ingredients, mix the two together and bake for an hour. This bread was moist, delicious, and packed with strawberry flavor. I think next time I will add a dash of cinnamon and possibly even leave out the nutmeg.


Walnut-Strawberry Quick Bread
Source: The King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion, The All-Purpose Baking Cookbook

Ingredients
1/2 cup (2 ounces) chopped walnuts
1 1/4 cups (6 1/2 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup (7 ounces) sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 tablespoon lemon zest, or 1/4 teaspoon lemon oil
2 large eggs
1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) mashed strawberries
1/2 cup (2 1/2 ounces) vegetable oil

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350. Grease and flour a 9x5" loaf pan.

In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the walnuts, flour, sugar, soda, salt and nutmeg. In a separate bowl, whisk together the lemon zest, eggs, strawberries, and vegetable oil. Combine the we ingredients with the dry ingredients, whisking until well blended.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and bake for 55 to 60 minutes, until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool the bread in the pan for 15 minutes, then remove it from the pan and transfer it to a rack to cool completely, 1 hour or longer. For best flavor and easiest slicing, wrap the bread while still slightly warm and let set overnight.

Flaky Buttermilk Biscuits

I happened to have an abundance of buttermilk in my fridge due to Target not having a smaller container in stock. I did not want to let it go to waste so I decided to make some buttermilk biscuits with it. I searched around for different recipes and then decided on this one because I was intrigued with the flaky layers.


These biscuits turned out perfect and flaky just like the recipe said it would. Although there was lots of rolling and folding the recipe did not really take that long to make. The end result was a moist flaky biscuit that would be delicious spread with butter or jam or oven downing in sausage gravy.

Flaky Buttermilk Biscuits
Source: Cook's Illustrated

-makes 12 biscuits -

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (12 1/2 ounces), plus additional flour for work surface
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon table salt
2 tablespoons vegetable shortening , cut into 1/2-inch chunks
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), cold, lightly floured and cut into 1/8-inch slices
2 tablespoons unsalted butter , melted
1 1/4 cups low-fat buttermilk , cold

Directions
1. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position; heat oven to 450 degrees. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in large bowl.
2. Add shortening to flour mixture; break up chunks with fingertips until only small, pea-sized pieces remain. Working in batches, drop butter slices into flour mixture and toss to coat; pick up each slice of butter and press between floured fingertips into flat, nickel-sized pieces. Repeat until all butter is incorporated; toss to combine. Freeze mixture (in bowl) until chilled, about 15 minutes.
3. Spray 24-inch-square area of work surface with nonstick cooking spray; spread spray evenly across surface with kitchen towel or paper towel. Sprinkle 1/3 cup of extra flour across sprayed area; gently spread flour across work surface with palm to form thin, even coating. Add all but 2 tablespoons of buttermilk to flour mixture; stir briskly with fork until ball forms and no dry bits of flour are visible, adding remaining buttermilk as needed (dough will be sticky and shaggy but should clear sides of bowl). With rubber spatula, transfer dough onto center of prepared work surface, dust surface lightly with flour, and, with floured hands, bring dough together into cohesive ball.
4. Pat dough into approximate 10-inch square; roll into 18 by 14-inch rectangle about 1/4 inch thick, dusting dough and rolling pin with flour as needed. Following illustrations below, using bench scraper or thin metal spatula, fold dough into thirds, brushing any excess flour from surface; lift short end of dough and fold in thirds again to form approximate 6 by 4-inch rectangle. Rotate dough 90 degrees, dusting work surface underneath with flour; roll and fold dough again, dusting with flour as needed.
5. Roll dough into 10-inch square about 1/2 inch thick; flip dough and cut nine 3-inch rounds with floured biscuit cutter, dipping cutter back into flour after each cut. Carefully invert and transfer rounds to ungreased baking sheet, spaced 1 inch apart. Gather dough scraps into ball; roll and fold once or twice until scraps form smooth dough. Roll dough into 1/2-inch-thick round; cut three more 3-inch rounds and transfer to baking sheet. Discard excess dough.
6. Brush biscuit tops with melted butter. Bake, without opening oven door, until tops are golden brown and crisp, 15 to 17 minutes. Let cool on baking sheet 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

Chocolate Breakfast Muffins

After a few weeks with no blog updates I made it a point to bake up something yummy last night when I got home from class, just so I could remind my readers that I am still here. For Christmas my sister gave me an awesome gift card to King Arthur Flour and I purchased this cookbook with it. The book is packed with hundreds of awesome sounding recipes and I can't wait to start baking my way through the book.


These muffins called for very common ingredients that every pantry should have stock of and were quick and painless to mix together. My husband and I both agree that these muffins are rich, chocolaty and delicious. I will definitely be making these again.


Chocolate Breakfast Muffins
Source: The King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion, The All-Purpose Baking Cookbook, page 66

Ingredients
2/3 cup (2 ounces) cocoa, Dutch-process or natural
1 3/4 cups (7 1/4 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) light brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (6 ounces) chocolate chips
2 large eggs
1 cup (8 ounces) milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 teaspoons vinegar
8 tablespoons (4 ounces) butter or margarine, melted

Directions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cocoa, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and chocolate chips. Set aside.

In a large measuring cup or medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, vanilla, and vinegar. Add the wet ingredients, along with the melted butter, to the dry ingredients, stirring to blend. There's no need to beat these muffins; just make sure everything is well combined.

Scoop the batter into 12 lightly greased muffin cups. Bake the muffins for 15 to 20 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean (watch them closely, as they'll burn around the edges if they bake too long). Remove the muffins from the oven, and after 5 minutes remove them from the pan, allowing them to cool slightly on a wire rack before serving.

Classic Cornbread

Last night for dinner I made chili and wanted something to go with it. I was going to make bread bowls but ran out of time so I decided to make cornbread instead. I found this recipe on King Arthur's website and noticed that it was one of their guaranteed recipe so I decided to give it a try.


This recipe took no effort to mix together and baked up fairly quickly. I added some jalapeno Cheddar cheese into the batter so that required a few extra minutes of baking time. The end result was a moist cornbread that had just the right sweetness.

Have I ever mentioned that my favorite way to eat cornbread was warmed up in the microwave slathered with butter and drizzled with maple syrup. What a perfect breakfast! :)

Cornbread
Source: King Arthur Flour

Ingredients
1 3/4 cups (7 1/2 ounces) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 cup (5 1/2 ounces) cornmeal
1/4 cup (1 3/4 ounces) sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) milk
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 large egg

Directions
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a 9-inch square or round pan (a cast iron skillet will work fine, too), shallow 1 1/2 quart casserole dish, or 12 muffin cups.
1) In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
2) Stir in any desired herbs, cheese, corn kernels, or other flavorings.
3) In another bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together the milk, melted butter, and egg.
4) Pour the liquid all at once into the flour mixture, stirring quickly and gently until just combined.
5. Spread the batter into the prepared pan, or scoop into the muffin tin.
6. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the edges just begin to pull away from the pan and a cake tester or paring knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
7. Remove from the oven and cool on a rack for 5 minutes before cutting; serve warm.

Rocky Road Bread

Earlier there was a commercial on TV for some cinnamon swirl raisin bread. It looked divine and I told my husband that I should make some. Being that he is not a fan of cinnamon he suggested I make chocolate chip bread. That is simple enough, I can handle that. Then I remembered about 10 minutes prior to that conversation I was talking about rocky road ice cream and how much I love it. I compromised with my husband and told him I would make some rocky road bread instead.

It sounded like a fun challenge to me. I'd just take a basic quick bread recipe add in some marshmallows, almonds and chocolate chips and call it a done deal. I decided that the Brethren cheese bread that I made a few weeks ago had a great texture and would be the perfect base for my new creation, minus the cheese, onion and dill of course.


Apparently this crazy idea of mine yielded some excellent bread. My husband could not stay away from it. I thought it was mighty tasty myself.

Rocky Road Bread
Adapted from this recipe for Brethren Cheese Bread

Ingredients
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup butter or margarine
1 cup mini marshmallows
1/4 cup toasted almonds
¾ cup milk
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 cup chocolate chips, lightly dusted with flour

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease well a 9x5x3” loaf pan.
Mix dry ingredients in a bowl and cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in mini marshmallows and toasted almonds; mix well. Combine milk and beaten egg; pour into flour mixture and stir just to moisten. Fold in chocolate chips. Turn into prepared pan. Bake 40-45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in pan 10 minutes and turn out onto wire rack to cool.

Cheddar Dill - Quick Bread

Remember the other day when I posted about the refrigerator dill pickles and said I had lots of dill leftover and was thinking about making a cheddar dill bread. Well today is the day I used up a tad bit more of that dill and made the bread. It barely put a dent in the dill though so if anyone has any recipes using fresh dill I would love to take a look at them.


Ok, back to the bread. It took about 5 minutes to mix up, which is very quick and painless. The best part is the ingredients it called for are things that most people have in their kitchens all the time. I subbed onion powder for the grated onion and sprinkled some garlic powder and extra cheese on top of the loaf. It just seemed like the right thing to do. :)

40 minutes later my cute loaf on heaven came out of the oven. I am not sure why I am calling it cute, but it just was. It had all these cute little bumps all over the top, like little mountains of goodness. Anyway, this stuff is quite delicious for a quick bread! I should make quick breads more often. Actually, if the dill and cheddar were omitted it would be a great base recipe to add whatever flavors you want to it, bacon and Parmesan cheese sounds mighty tasty. I recommend you give this bread a try, soon!


Brethren Cheese Bread
Source: reading, 'riting and recipes

Ingredients
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup butter or margarine
1 cup grated, sharp cheddar cheese
1 ½ tablespoons dried dill weed
1 tablespoon grated onion
¾ cup milk
1 egg, slightly beaten

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease well a 9x5x3” loaf pan.
Mix dry ingredients in a bowl and cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in cheese, onion and dill weed; mix well. Combine milk and beaten egg; pour into flour mixture and stir just to moisten. Turn into prepared pan. Bake 40-45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in pan 10 minutes and turn out onto wire rack to cool.

Black-and-White Banana Loaf

Have you ever started making a recipe only to find out that you forgot to double check to make sure that you have enough of a staple ingredient in your fridge? That happened to me when I made this. Chelle and I saw this recipe in Dorie's cookbook and decided that we should give it a try. As we got started on the recipe I soon realized that I had no milk in the fridge. I was in the middle of the recipe, what do I do? Then I remembered that I had some powdered milk in the cabinet that I had bought for a previous recipe so I went ahead used that. Thank goodness that was stashed away in the cabinet.


This recipe came together nicley, it was the hour and a half bake time and the cool time that did me in. I hate waiting for baked goodies to come out of the oven and cool. I was dying to see how beautiful my swirl on the inside of the loaf looked. It was a little more chocolatey than I would have liked but I guess that is my fault for mixing up to much of the chocolate batter.


This bread was ok but nothing amazing. I think that could have been my fault though. I had no ripe bananas on the counter on in the freezer when I made this so I bought some just that were just starting to get brown spots and microwaved them in hopes I would come out with the same flavor as a super ripe banana. I think next time if I come across this prooblem I'll try subbing banana baby food since it does use ripe bananas. Ok, enough of my rambling, here is the recipe. :)

Black-and-White Banana Loaf
Source: Dorie Greenspan, Baking from my home to yours, pg 232

Makes about 8 servings

Ingredients
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 ½ ripe bananas, peeled
Squirt of fresh lemon juice
Grated zest of ½ a lemon
1 tablespoon dark rum
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 stick plus 2 tablespoons (10 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup (packed) light brown sugar
1/3 cup sugar
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
½ cup whole milk

Directions
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter and 8 ½ x 4 ½ x 2 ½ inch loaf pan, dust the inside with flour and tap out the excess. Place the pan on an insulated baking sheet or on two regular baking sheets stacked on top of the other.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg.

In a small bowl, mash the bananas with the lemon juice and zest, then stir in the rum.

Melt the chocolate and 2 tablespoons of the butter together in a microwave oven or in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of gently simmering water.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the remaining stick (8 tablespoons) of butter at medium speed until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the sugars and beat for another 2 to 3 minutes, until light and smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in the vanilla. The batter will look curdled, and it will continue to look curdled as you add ingredients. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add half the flour mixture, mixing only until it is just incorporated. With the mixer running, pour in the milk, and when it is blended, add the remaining dry ingredients. Scrape down the bowl and mix in the mashed bananas. The batter will look even lumpier.

Pour a little less than half the batter into the bowl with the melted chocolate and stir to blend. Drop alternating spoonfuls of both batters into the prepared pan, then, using a table knife, swirl the batters together, taking care not to overdo it.

Bake for 1 hour and 20 to 30 minutes, or until a knife inserted deep into the center of the cake comes out clean. Check after 30 minutes and if the cake starts to brown too much, cover it loosely with a foil tent. Transfer the cake to a cooling rack and let it rest for about 15 minutes before unmolding, then cool the cake to room temperature right side up on the rack. Serving: This cake is good cut thick or thin, served plain or with some ice cream. It’s very good with coffee or tea and especially good with chocolate milk, hot or cold.

Storing: Wrapped in plastic wrap, the cake will keep for 4 to 5 days at room temperature; wrapped airtight, it will keep for up to 2 months in the freezer.

Playing around: If you’d like to add a little more texture to the cake as well as another flavor, add 1/3 cup chopped toasted pecans to either of the batters.

Baskets of Biscuits

I have been wanting to make biscuits for a while now but I have been so busy with school that I barely had time to cook, let alone bake, as you can tell by my lack of blog updates. Anyway, my first summer class is over and I have a whole week before my next class starts and I plan on cooking and baking as much as I possibly can. :)

I served these biscuits, as well as grilled green beans, as a side to chicken breasts that I seasoned up, grilled and topped with swiss cheese and fresh mushrooms. What an amazing dinner, I am so glad to be back in the kitchen again. Buy the way, did I mention that my husband ate 3 of these with dinner and was wanting to reach for a fourth. I think he missed my cooking too.

Biscuits with Garlic and Cheddar
(Adapted from :Cook's Illustrated)

Makes Eight 2 1/2-Inch Biscuits

Ingredients
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 ounces sharp cheddar cheese (1/2 cup), shredded
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 1/2 cups whole milk, separated
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 cloves garlic, minced
~1/2 teaspoon garlic salt, for topping
~1/3 cup cheddar cheese, for topping

Garlic Butter Topping
4-5tablespoons butter

1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon parsley

Directions
1. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Whisk together flour, cheddar cheese, sugar, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl. Add 1 1/4 cups milk and stir with wooden spoon until dough forms, about 30 seconds. Transfer dough from bowl to countertop, leaving all dry, floury bits behind in bowl. In 1 tablespoon increments, add up to 1/4 cup milk to dry bits in bowl, mixing with wooden spoon after each addition, until moistened. Add these moistened bits to rest of dough and knead by hand just until smooth, about 30 seconds.

3. Shape the dough into a round, 3/4-inch thick. Following illustrations below, cut into rounds with a biscuit cutter or cut into wedges with knife. Place rounds or wedges on parchment-lined baking sheet, brush biscuits with garlic butter topping and place a pinch of cheddar cheese on top of each. Bake until golden brown, about 18 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through baking. Brush tops of biscuits with garlic butter topping and sprinkle with garlic salt.

Caramel Pecan Coconut Banana

While browsing through blogs I noticed a Banana Bread bake off blogging event hosted by Not Quite Nigella and decided that I just had to participate in this event. I love banana bread and love my tried-and-true recipe, but I felt the urge to be a little creative this time around. I started with my usual banana bread recipe as the base added some toasted pecans, toasted coconut and caramel bits.


Unfortunately the caramel bits sunk to the bottom of the loaf and made the bottom of my bread look overcooked (booo), so I would suggest coating them in flour before adding to the batter to keep them from falling. This bread turned out pretty good and has the potential to be better if the caramel would have behaved and stayed in place. Although the flavor of the coconut did not really come through you could definitely tell it was there from the little crunch it gave off.


Caramel Pecan Coconut Banana Bread
Source: Amber's Delectable Delights

Ingredients
3 bananas, smashed
1/4 cup butter, softened
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 egg
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup toasted pecans
1/3 cup toasted coconut
1/3 cup Kraft caramel bits

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine all ingredients except for pecans, coconut and caramel bits using a mixer.
Add pecans, coconut and caramel bits and mix by hand until just mixed.
Grease loaf pan
Cook for 50 minutes at 350 degrees
Check with toothpick for doneness (may need to cook longer, possibly 15 more minutes)

Tools of the Trade

Joelen over at Joelen's Culinary Adventures is hosting the second round of her new blogging event, Tasty Tools. I felt horrible that I did not get an entry out for the first one so I was determined to submit an entry to this one. As soon as I heard that this months tasty tool was scoops I knew what I wanted to make. Something using my mini muffin pan and my small scoop.

Today I had a random urge to make muffins,but I was craving savory ones not typical sweet ones. I found a basic muffin recipe that I could put my own spin on and went with it. Once I mixed up the batter I separated half of it into another bowl and decided to make one bowl cheddar dill and the other Parmesan rosemary.


Be sure to check out Joelen's blog on Monday May 5th for the round up of all the great recipes to bring your scoops out of retirement.

Muffins
(Adapted from Better Homes & Gardens, New Cook Book, Limited Breast Cancer Edition)

Ingredients
1 3/4 cups AP flour
1/3 cup sugar (If making savory flavored muffins reduce to 1/4 cup)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 beaten egg
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup cooking oil

Directions
1. Grease twelve 2 1/2" muffin cups or line with paper baking cups; set aside.
2. In a medium bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Make a well in center of flour mixture; set aside.
3. In another bowl combine egg, milk, and oil. Add egg mixture all at once to flour mixture. Stir just until moistened (batter should be lumpy).
4. Scoop batter into prepared muffin cups, filling each two-thirds full. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 18 to 20 minutes or until golden and a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in muffin cups on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Remove from muffin cups; serve warm.

Sizing up Muffins
Muffin cups come in all shapes and sized, from bite size minis to standard 2 1/2" cups to jumbo muffins. You'll need to adjust the baking time according to the pan you choose. Mini muffins will bake about about 8 minutes less than standard-size muffins. And for jumbo muffins, lower the oven temperature to 350 and bake about 30 minutes.


My Variations
Cheddar Dill Muffins
Prepare as above, except reduce the sugar to 1/4 cup and fold in 1 1/2 teaspoons dried dill and 1/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded.

Parmesan Rosemary Muffins
Prepare muffin recipe as above, except reduce the sugar to 1/4 cup and fold in 1 teaspoon rosemary (I used a pampered chef rosemary herb seasoning blend) and 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

Sconing Around

I have had the itch to bake something and had no clue what to make. I figured looking through the cabinets would be a good place to start. As soon as I opened the cabinet door I heard a faint noise, looking around to investigate I saw a bag of dried cherries jumping up and down screaming "pick me, pick me." Ok you are right they were not jumping up or down nor were they talking to me but they were sitting right there in the front so I grabbed them and started searching for recipes. I came across this scone recipe in my BH&G cookbook and thought it would be fun to make since I have never made scones before, heck I have never even ate a scone before. Yes, I must make this recipe so I can experience all of the joys of making scones.


I cut these into 8 wedges instead of 12, because they looked better as the larger wedges and I also decided to pass on adding the glaze. I always thought that scones would be hard and dry but these babies were so moist and flaky. I can't wait to make some more.


Dried Cherry Scones
(Source: Better Homes & Gardens, New Cook Book, Limited Breast Cancer Edition)

Prep: 30 minutes ** Bake: 10-12 minutes
Oven: 400 ** Cool: 10 minutes
Makes: 12 scones

Ingredients:
1/2 cup snipped dried sweet cherries or raisins
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup butter, cut into pieces (cold)
1 teaspoon finely shredded orange peel
1 beaten egg yolk
1 8-oz carton dairy sour cream
1 recipe Orange Glaze

Directions:
1. In a small bowl pour enough boiling water over dried cherries to cover. Let stand for 5 minutes; drain well.
2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add drained cherries and orange peel; toss to coat. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture; set aside.
3. In a small bowl combine egg yolk and sour cream. Add egg mixture all at once to flour mixture. Using a fork, stir until combined (mixture may seem dry).
4. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead dough by folding and gently pressing dough for 10 to 12 strokes or until dough is nearly smooth. Pat or lightly roll dough into a 7-inch circle. Cut into 12 wedges.
5. Place wedges 1 inch apart on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake in a 400* oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until light brown. Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes. Drizzle orange glaze over warm scones. Serve warm.

Orange Glaze
In a small bowl stir together 1 cup sifted powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon orange juice, and 1/4 tsp vanilla. Stir in enough additional orange juice, 1 teaspoon at a time, to reach drizzling consistency.

A Second Look

A second look at banana bread that is. Although there is nothing wrong with my good ole fashion stand by banana bread recipe I felt the need to try this recipe out of my new Cook's Illustrated light cookbook. This recipe turned out pretty darn tasty (which means that my husband is probably upstairs sneaking pieces of it as I type this :) but I will probably stick with my other recipe just because I do not usually have yogurt or cake flour in the house and the other recipe actually calls for less flour and only 1 tbls more of butter so the healthiness of them is probably pretty close. Feel free to try the other recipe and also this one and let me know which you like better; because honestly, if I do not have them both in front of me to take a bite of one and then a bite of the other I can not remember what they taste like so it is hard for me to compare them. :)

I had a couple strawberries left over from the strawberries and cream tart that I made the other day so I pureed them (in my handy dandy new food processor) and tried to swirl those into the batter. It looked beautiful on the top but the color never went through to the middle of the loaf but that's ok, I won't shed a tear (I promise). :)


Banana Bread
(Source: The Best Light Recipe by Cook's Illustrated)

1 1/2 cup (7 1/2 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (2 ounces) cake flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup (5 1/4 ounces) sugar
3 very ripe, darkly speckled large bananas (about 1 1/4 pounds) mashed well (about 1 1/2 cups)
1/4 cup plain low-fat yogurt
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 tbls unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
1/4 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)

1. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray the bottom and sides of a 9 x 5 -inch loaf pan with the non-stick baking spray. Mix the all-purpose flour, cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and 1/4 cup of the sugar in a medium bowl; set aside. In a separate bowl, mix the mashed bananas , yogurt, and vanilla together; set aside.
2. Beat the remaining 1.2 cup sugar and butter together with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
3. Reduce the mixer speed to low. Beat in half of the flour mixture until just incorporated, followed by one-third of the banana mixture, scraping down the bowl as needed. Add half of the remaining flour, followed by another one-third of the banana mixture. Repeat this process once more, being careful not to overmix the batter, which should look thick and chunky.
4. Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan and sprinkle the top evenly with the walnuts (if using). bake until the loaf is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few attached, about 55 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through baking. Cool the bread in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer the loaf to a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature. (The bread can be wrapped with plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for up to 3 days.)

Oops another bread

I guess all that I have been posting lately is bread. I have actually been making dinner but the stuff I am making is already in my blog or it is just to late and dark outside to try to take pictures. Other than that I do not really have much to say. I was desperate to cook or bake something and this is all that I came up with. It is very quick and easy to make and worth every second. It is a great Fall treat.


Pumpkin Bread
(Source: Unknown)

Ingredients:
1/3 cup shortening (I use butter)
1 1/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup pumpkin
1/3 cup water
3/4 tsp salt
1 2/3 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Optional ingredients:
1/3 to 1 cup chopped nuts
1/3 to 1 cup raisins

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350
2) Grease bottom of 1 loaf pan
3) Measure all ingredients into a bowl
4) Beat by hand or electric mixer for 1 minute
5) Pour into pan
6)Bake for 55 to 65 minutes

Friendship Bread

Tuesday night my friend Jen came over to show off her new wheels and tires that her husband surprised her with (they were pretty darn sexy by the way). She got out of the car and handed me a gallon ziplock bag with some goop in it, a box of pudding and a sheet of paper. She said "It is on day 9, you have to bake it tomorrow" I said ok thanks! Well yesterday was officially day 10 but I did not get around to baking it because I had class and we had some bad weather in the area. But I did make it this evening. (Jen, if you are reading this - thank you for the pudding, you saved me a trip to the store!!!)

I know some of you might want to make this but are saying, how do I get a starter. Well just make one. There are many recipe for the starters floating around. Here is one that I found on allrecipes.com that seems to have numerous good reviews. Amish Friendship Bread Starter. And below are the directions that you can copy and paste and print out.

This is the best picture I could get for now. It is 10:45 at night so it is a little dark outside and the bread just came out of the oven so I want it to cool for a few minutes before removing it from the pan. The house smells amazing though, I really wanted to lick the cinnamon/sugar off the top of the loaf. :)


Amish Friendship Bread

Important Notes:
• DO NOT use any type of metal spoon or bowl for mixing
• DO NOT refrigerate
• If air gets in the bag, let it out
• It is normal for batter to rise, bubble and ferment

Day 1: Do nothing (this is the day you received the batter, go by date on bag)
Day 2: Mush the bag
Day 3: Mush the bag
Day 4: Mush the bag
Day 5: Mush the bag
Day 6: Add to the bag: 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, 1 cup milk — then mush the bag
Day 7: Mush the bag
Day 8: Mush the bag
Day 9: Mush the bag
Day 10: Follow the instructions below:

1. Pour the entire contents of the bag into a NON-metal bow.
2. Add 1 1⁄2 cup flour, 1 1⁄2 cup sugar, 1 1⁄2 cup milk.
3. Measure out 4 separate batters of 1 cup each into four 1-gallon Ziploc bags. Keep a starter for yourself and give three to friends along with a copy of this recipe. Should this not be passed on to a friend on the first day, be certain to tell the friend which day the bag is on when you presented it to them. (It is helpful to mark the bag with date.)
4. Preheat oven to 325°.
5. To the remaining batter in the bowl add:
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup oil (or 1⁄2 cup oil and 1⁄2 cup applesauce)
• 1⁄2 cup milk
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1⁄2 tsp. vanilla
• 11⁄2 tsp. baking powder
• 1⁄2 tsp. baking soda
• 1⁄2 tsp. salt
• 2 cup flour
• 1 large box instant “vanilla” pudding or 2 small boxes
6. Grease 2 large loaf pans and mix additional 1⁄2 cup sugar and 11⁄2 tsp. cinnamon. Dust the greased pans
with half of this mixture.
7. Pour the batter evenly into the 2 pans and sprinkle with the remaining sugar mixture over the top.
8. Bake 1 hour. Cool until bread loosens from pan evenly (about 10 minutes).
9. Turn out onto serving dish. Serve warm or cold.

If you keep a starter for yourself, you will be baking every 10 days. The bread is very good and makes a great gift. Only the Amish know how to create the “starter” so if you give them away, you have to wait until someone gives you one back.
Enjoy!

*If you do not wish to keep the starters; measure out 3 equal 2 cup amounts. Each 2 cups will make 2 loaves. For each 2 cups add ingredients in #5.

Eat your veggies ...

even if you have to turn them into a carb and add chocolate. :)

My neighbors were generous enough to give my husband and I some zucchini from their garden. I have never really ate zucchini before but I know I have made some zucchini bread. And since I love all things carbs I figured I might as well make it again. I made one loaf per the recipe and one loaf with milk chocolate chips in it. And both kinds were super yummy.

Zucchini Bread
(Source: Unknown)

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil (can also use applesauce)
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup zucchini, loosely grated
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
Optional - 1/2 cup chopped nuts
Optional - 1 cup chocolate chips

Directions:
- Beat eggs until frothy
- Add in sugar, oil and vanilla and mix until combined
- Add zucchini, flour, baking soda, cinnamon, baking powder, salt and optional ingredients (if desired) and mix until well blended
- Pour mixture into greased loaf pan
- Bake at 350 for 45-60 minutes

Just a little snack

I was first introduced to pepperoni and cheese bread a few years ago when my sister brought some home from a holiday party. I enjoyed it so much I started making it. My friend Chelley made some last week, it inspired me to make some soon, so I did.

I had fun taking pictures of this. So you get to see lots of different pictures because I can not decide which I liked the best. :) Drool away........

Pepperoni and Cheese bread
(Source: Amber's Delectable Delights )

Ingredients:
1 roll refrigerated french bread dough OR 1 loaf frozen bread dough (thawed)
Pepperoni (I used turkey pepperoni for a healthier option).
Mozzarella cheese
Parmesan cheese
Egg wash (1 egg white, water)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Roll out bread dough and sprinkle with mozzerella and parmesean cheeses, place pepperoni (as much as desired) on top of the cheese.
3. Carefully roll the bread dough into a cylinder shape. Pinch ends and top to seal. Brush top and sides of loaf with egg wash. If desired, top loaf with cheese, pepperoni, and/or Italian seasoning. Make a few diagonal slices in top of loaf for air to escape while cooking.
4. Bake at 350 for ~20 min. Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes before slicing.

ENJOY!!

Banana Goodness

I must confess...
The only reason why I buy bananas is to let them get overripe so I can make banana bread. :)

Sorry this is not the best picture in the world. I have learned that it is much easier to take close-up photos during the day when there is natural light. So, this is all you get for now since I decided to make this bread at 9:30 at night.

And thank you Theresa (my mother in law) for sharing this wonderful recipe with me!!

Banana Bread

Ingredients:
3 bananas, smashed
1/4 cup butter
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 egg
1 1/2 cup flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup nuts (pecans, walnuts, almonds, etc)

Directions:
- Combine all ingredients except for nuts, using a mixer.
- Add nuts and mix by hand
- Grease bread pan
- Cook for 50 minutes at 350 degrees
- Check with toothpick for doneness (may need to cook longer, possibly 15 more minutes)

This recipe can also be turned into muffins. Simply scoop the batter into 12 muffin cups. Cook at the same temperature but reduce bake time to 25 minutes.