English Muffin Bread

Perfect texture. Perfect taste. Perfect toast.

I made two loaves of this, sliced them, then kept them in the freezer.  Made for great quick breakfasts!

Ingredients:

2 3/4 cups warm water

3 3/4 tsp. yeast

1 Tbsp. salt

1 1/2 Tbsp. sugar

6 1/2 cups bread flour (or all-purpose)

Directions:

Mix all the ingredients together, then let rise until almost doubled, about an hour and a half.  Spoon batter into 2 well greased loaf pans.  Let rise again in the pans until dough reaches the top of the pans.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes or until golden brown.  10 minutes before they are done, brush the tops with melted butter.  Allow to cool completely before cutting.

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Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll Sheet Cake

It's been quite some time since I've posted any new recipes. Between the normal craziness of life and having shoulder surgery, the M&M Kitchen has been closed to adventuresome cooking.  I apologize if any of you are regular followers and have been having withdrawals from new recipes... I'm sure there's no one out there too disappointed!

I was introduced to this recipe by my best friend, who shares my love for all things cake, pudding, pumpkin, and cinnamon roll.  This wraps it all into one delicious, irresistible slice of heaven!  Thank you Pinterest, for pulling through yet again!

Ingredients:

1 box yellow cake mix

4 eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup buttermilk

3.4 oz box Vanilla Instant Pudding Mix

1/2 cup sour cream

15 oz. can pumpkin

1 stick (8 Tbsp) usalted butter

3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

3/4 cup powdered sugar

1/4-1/2 cup heavy cream

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and spray a jelly roll pan with non stick cooking spray.

2. Place cake mix, eggs, oil, milk, pudding, sour cream and pumpkin into a stand or electric mixer, beating until well combined, about 1 1/2 minutes. Pour into prepared pan, spreading evenly.

3. Place butter into a microwave safe bowl and melt, about 30-40 seconds. Add brown sugar and cinnamon to bowl, mixing until combined. Drizzle mixture evenly over cake then take a knife and run it through to swirl.

4. Bake cake for 30-35 minutes, until cooked through and remove. Place powdered sugar and cream into a large bowl and mix until creamy and smooth. Drizzle over warm cake then let cool for 20 minutes before cutting into squares. Refrigerate if not serving same day.

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Baked Cheesy Eggplant

Have you ever eaten eggplant? I hadn't, until tonight.  We are seasonal produce shoppers in this house, meaning we buy whatever is cheapest.  Thus, we had eggplant.

I wasn't really sure what to do with eggplant, but this was the perfect dinner for me tonight.  I guess I'm still not really sure what eggplant tastes like, since I had it smothered in sauce and cheese... but still good!

Ingredients:
1 eggplant, sliced into 1/2" rounds
garlic powder
olive oil
1 green pepper, seeded and diced
1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 c. ricotta cheese
3/4 c. mozzarella cheese
3/4 c. parmesan cheese
3/4 c. spaghetti sauce

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Brush both sides of eggplant slices with olive oil and spread in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet.  Sprinkle with garlic powder, salt and pepper.  Bake for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat some oil in a pan over medium heat.  Added green pepper and cook until softened, then add diced tomatoes.  Cook about 5-8 minutes.

In a bowl, mix together the ricotta, 1/2 cup mozzarella, and 1/2 cup parmesan.

When the eggplant is finished, layer in a 9x13 pan.  Cover with the pepper and tomato mixture, then spread the cheese mixture evenly over the top. Pour spaghetti sauce over the cheese, then top with the remaining mozzarella and parmesan.  Bake for 30 minutes or until eggplant is tender.

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Candied Bacon and Chocolate Chip Cookie Pies

Brynna is a genius. 

Really.

Bacon, cooked with brown sugar and cayenne pepper.

Chocolate chip cookies, in individual pie form.  

Together.

Genius.

Thank you, Brynna! We love you (for more reasons than just this creation)!

Candied Bacon

Ingredients:
8 slices thin-sliced bacon
1 c. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and put a wire cooling rack on it.  Combine brown sugar and pepper.  Lay bacon on the wire rack and coat with half of the brown sugar mixture.  Bake for 10 minutes.  Remove from oven, flip bacon and cover with the remaining sugar.  Bake for 4-6 more minutes or until bacon is nicely browned.  Let cool about 15 minutes before trying to cut.


Chocolate- Chip Cookie Pies:
1 c. unsalted butter
1/2 c. white sugar
1 c. light brown sugar
1/2 c. dark brown sugar
2 eggs
3 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 c. milk chocolate chips
1/2 to 1 c. candied bacon

Directions:
Cream together butter and sugars until fluffy.  Beat in eggs one at a time.  Add in flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda, and stir until combined.  Stir in chocolate chips and candied bacon.  Press dough into 6 ramekins, filling 3/4 of the way full.  You can either use 6 more ramekins or make the rest into cookies.  I put the remaining dough into the freezer.

Bake the pies at 350 degrees for 13-17 minutes, until golden brown, but still slightly gooey in the middle.  Serve immediately (let cool slightly so you don't scald your mouth like me).  Best warm with vanilla ice cream melting all over it!

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Company Egg Bake

This is so ridiculously easy, you'll want to make it every day. Okay, maybe not everyday. Thanks to my mother-in-law for this stress-free company breakfast!

Ingredients:
1 lb. bacon
1 lb. sausage (I used 1 green bell pepper and 8 oz sliced mushrooms instead)
1 onion, diced
Plenty of grated cheddar cheese
12 eggs
2 cups cream or whole milk

Directions:
Cook up your bacon, sausage and onion until cooked through.  Spread half of the mixture in a 9x13 pan, then sprinkle with plenty of grated cheese.  Top with the rest of the mixture, sprinkle with more grated cheese.  Crack the eggs over the pan, and puncture the yolks with a fork.  Pour on the 2 cups of cream.  Refrigerate overnight, then bake for about 40-50 minutes at 350 degrees.

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Baked Potato Grilled Cheese

Homemade Whole-Wheat Bread.

Cheddar Cheese.

Green Onions.

Thin-Sliced Baker Potatoes, Pan-fried for 4 minutes on each side.

Bacon.

Cheddar Cheese.

Homemade Whole-Wheat Bread.

Baked. Potato. Grilled. Cheese.

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Weeknight Chili

Photo from America's Test Kitchen

This was the perfect dinner to feed to our weekend guests ~ It was so easy, hearty, and delicious! I was able to prep it all before they even arrived so that I didn't have to miss out on any of the fun! =) Don't be alarmed at the mass amount of chili powder in this recipe; because this is a slow cooker recipe, the heat dies down and you're left with great flavor.

Ingredients:

2 T. oil

2 onions, chopped medium

1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and chopped medium

1/4 cup chili powder

1 Tbsp. cumin

1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

Salt

6 garlic gloves, minced

2 lbs. ground beef (85% lean to help with the moisture)

1 (28 oz) can tomato puree

1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes

2 (15.5 oz) cans red kidney beans, rinsed

Pepper

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven (or stock pot) over medium heat until shimmering.  Add the onions, bell pepper, chili powder, cumin, cayenne, and 1/2 tsp salt.  Cook until the vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes.  Stir in the garlic and cook for 15 seconds.

2. Add the beef and increase the heat to medium-high.  Cook, breaking up the beef, until no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Stir in the tomato puree and diced tomatoes with their juice, scraping up any browned bits.  Bring to a simmer, then pour into the slow cooker.

3. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 4-5 hours.  Stir in the beans during the last hour of cooking.  Before serving, season with salt and pepper to taste.  Serve with cheddar cheese and sour cream, if desired.

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Bagels

Mac wanted bagels for his school lunches, so instead of going out and buying some, I made them. Crazy, I know. Quite simple, really... just a little time consuming. After they cool, I cut them all in half and freeze so they will last us a while.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. whole-wheat flour

2 3/4 c. all-purpose flour

2 packages active dry yeast

1 1/2 c. warm water

3 T. white sugar

1 T. salt

1 T. molasses

Directions:

1. In large bowl, combine 1-1/2 cups flour and yeast. Mix water, 3 tablespoons sugar and salt together, and add to the dry ingredients. Beat with a mixer for half a minute at a low speed, scraping the sides of the bowl clean. Beat at a higher speed for 3 minutes. Then, by hand, mix in enough flour to make a moderately stiff dough.
2. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic (8-10 minutes). Cover, let rest for 15 minutes.
3. Cut into 8 or 10 portions, shape into smooth balls. Poke a hole in the center with your finger, and gently enlarge the hole while working the bagel into a uniform shape. Cover, let rise until doubled, about an hour.
4. Meanwhile, start a gallon of water boiling. Put 1 tablespoon of molasses in it, mix it around a bit. Reduce to simmering.
5. When the bagels are ready, put 4 or 5 bagels into the water, and cook 7 minutes, turning once. Drain them. Place on a greased baking sheet, and bake at 375 degrees F for 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from oven, eat hot or cold.
6. Broiling option: For a glossier surface, place raised bagels on an ungreased baking sheet prior to boiling them. Broil them five inches from heat for 1 to 1-1/2 minutes on each side. Then put them into the hot water to be boiled as above. Note: do not bake broiled bagels as long as non-broiled ones, 25 minutes should be long enough.

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Lemon Crackle Cookies

These are SO yummy, especially if you love lemon like I love lemon.  I got this recipe from laurenslatest.com (the same place the pizza bread came from).  I froze half the batch of dough to bake for later:

Ingredients:
½ cup butter (1 stick), softened
1 cup granulated sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
Zest from one small lemon
Juice from one small lemon
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon baking powder
⅛ teaspoon baking soda
1-½ cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup powdered sugar

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Whip in vanilla, egg, lemon zest, and juice.  Stir in all dry ingredients slowly until just combined, excluding the powdered sugar. Scrape sides of bowl and mix again briefly. Pour powdered sugar onto a large plate. Roll a heaping teaspoon of dough into a ball and roll in powdered sugar. Place on baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough.

Bake for 8-11 minutes or until bottoms begin to barely brown and cookies look matte {not melty or shiny}. Remove from oven and cool cookies about 3 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

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Pizza Bread

I've been craving pizza lately. The thing is, I don't really like pizza sauce... so, really, I'm just craving bread and cheese.  Well, I came across this recipe on Pinterest, and decided to mesh it with my Healthy ATK pizza crust to satisfy the craving. 

Final verdict: delicious cheesy bread and a ready-to-go crust in the freezer! You can either make two loaves of bread, two 14" pizza crusts, or one of each - both would freeze well, also.

Ingredients:

2 cups bread flour
2 cups whole-wheat flour
2 1/4 tsps. instant or rapid-rise yeast
1 1/2 tsps. salt
3 Tbsp. olive oil
1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees)

(For bread, you will also need cheese and herb butter)

Directions:

Pulse the bread flour, whole wheat flour, yeast, and salt in the food processor until combined.  With the processor running, pour the oil, then the water, through the feed tube and process until a rough ball forms, 30 to 40 seconds.

Let the dough rest for 2 minutes, then process for 30 seconds longer.  If the dough is sticky and clings to the blade, add 1/4 cup more bread flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, and pulse to incorporate.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter and knead it into a smooth, round ball.  Place the dough in a large, lightly greased bowl and cover with greased plastic wrap.  Let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Punch dough down and separate dough into two balls.  To freeze pizza dough, as I did, simply wrap one ball tightly in plastic wrap and put in a freezer bag for up to one month.  Let the frozen dough thaw on the counter for 2 to 3 hours or overnight in the fridge before using.

For the bread:


Shape one ball of dough into a long baguette.  I twist mine as directed so that it holds its shape better.  Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for about 30 minutes.  Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Once warm, place bread in oven and reduce heat to 350 degrees.  Bake for 20 minutes.  While its baking, melt some butter (I used less than half a stick for one loaf) with a clove of garlic, some salt and italian herb seasoning (about 1/2 to 1 tsp of each) and slice your choice of cheese (I used about 8-10 slices of cheddar, and sprinkled with parmesan).  Brush the loaf with half of the butter, then return to the oven for 5-7 minutes or until top is golden brown.  Let bread cool for 15 minutes, then, slice into 1" slices diagonally about 3/4 of the way down.  Brush the remaining butter into slices and then tuck in the cheese slices.  Bake for about 3-5 more minutes, until the cheese is melted.  Serve immediately!

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Mama 'Blicky's Easy Cookies

Easy.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Line cookie sheet with tin foil

Place saltine crackers on sheet in rows to cover bottom

Bring to a boil over medium heat 1 1\2 sticks butter and 1 cup brown sugar

Boil for 5-7 min or the "hard crack" stage on a candy thermometer)

This is the toughest part if you don't have a candy thermometer, cause every stove is a little different, if it starts to smell like its burning take it off. 

Pour butter and brown sugar mixture over the saltines and spread evenly

Place sheet in 350 degree oven for 5 min

Take out of oven

Pour 1\2 of a 10-12oz choc chip package and 1\2 of a 10-12oz peanut butter chip package (or however much you desire) over the cookie sheet mixture. 

Then spread evenly with a knife as it softens and melts (takes a min or two to melt before you can spread it)

Refrigerate 1 hr and break into chunks

And ENJOY!!!  

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Four Cheese Veggie Lasagna

Photo from allrecipes.com

This was an experiment to use up some stray vegetables and random tubs of ricotta and pesto. I personally loved it. The husbands reaction was as it always is with meatless dinners: "it's interesting." Give it a try! Try original recipe calls for pumpkin, eggplant, and fresh tomatoes instead of squash, bell pepper and canned tomatoes. Use what you'd like!

Ingredients:
1 small butternut squash, peeled and diced
1 green bell pepper, sliced into 1/2 inch rings
1 can diced tomatoes
1 pint ricotta cheese
9 ounces crumbled feta cheese
1 7-oz container pesto
2 eggs, beaten
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 tsp Italian herb seasoning
1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
9 oven ready lasagna noodles
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

 Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place pumpkin on a baking sheet and roast in oven until browned and tender, about 30 minutes. Place green pepper rings on baking sheet in oven for last 15 minutes of pumpkin time; cook until tender.

In a medium bowl, stir together ricotta, feta, pesto, eggs, salt and pepper until well mixed. Fold roasted pumpkin into ricotta mixture.

Spoon half of the tomato sauce into a 9x13 baking dish. Sprinkle with italian herb seasoning. Lay three lasagna noodles over the sauce. Arrange a single layer of green pepper slices over pasta and top with half the ricotta mixture. Cover with three more noodles. Spread the diced tomatoes evenly over the noodles and spoon the remaining half the ricotta mixture over the tomatoes. Sprinkle with half the mozzarella. Top with remaining three noodles. Pour remaining tomato sauce over all and sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan. Bake in preheated oven 30 to 40 minutes, until golden and bubbly.

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How to stretch chickens for $10.

Not physically, of course.  I would know the first thing about stretching chickens - as much as I would like eggs, and some day hopefully will have chickens so I can have eggs, I'm pretty sure I will refuse to touch them, at any cost.  I don't think that chickens need stretching anyways... they do it themselves when they get up after laying some eggs.  Okay, enough. It's the end of a long day, and I'm starting to turn into a pumpkin.  So sad it's not pumpkin season anymore...

Sheesh. Yes, we're talking about chicken here. So here's the deal:  did you know that buying whole chicken is ridiculously cheaper than buying chicken breasts, or any other form of chicken?  It is. At Winco the other day, boneless skinless chicken breast was going for $4.99/lb.  Right next to it, whole chickens were $.99/lb. Crazy, I know.

What's crazier is that usually I buy boneless, skinless chicken breasts, even though I'm fully aware of the price difference, and the ease of cooking whole chickens.

The craziest thing, is that I finally remembered how easy it is, saved myself some bucks, and bought the whole chicken.

And made 2 different dishes.

Double-batches.

That serve 8-10 people each.

And still have left over meat for sandwiches.

Crazy.

Oh, and not to mention, I used the left over bones to make 8 quarts of chicken broth.

2 chickens, $10, and a little bit of time in the kitchen, and I've got myself a fishes and loaves situation.

Okay, so I'm done rambling, and we're going to get down to the bottom of this.  I'll tell you how to cook the chicken, you can choose what you want to do with it.  I made freezer meals for some friends in need, and used one for pan for dinner this week of Chicken and Dumplings and Layered Chicken Enchiladas.  Both freeze very well.

So, first, you want to make sure you have a big roasting pan.  To cook 2 birds at once, they need to not be too cramped; they can touch, but just make sure they're not too squished.  You'll also want a large u-rack.  If you don't have a roasting rack, just make your own out of a bed of quartered onions and chunks of carrots.  Works fantastic.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.  To prep the birds:
1. Remove the innards (This is extremely disgusting, and I have to close my eyes and think happy thoughts, otherwise I think about how I'm digging inside a chicken and grabbing its heart and liver and such... gross. Just get in there, get the job done, and get out.)

2. Pat them dry with a paper towel

3. For each chicken, mix 2 Tablespoons of softened butter with 1 Tbsp. fresh tarragon, parsley, or chives, 1/4 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper.  I know some of you may not like the idea of using so much butter (Total it will be 6 Tbsp.), but Test Kitchen says its extremely important for keeping the chicken from drying out in the oven.

4. Rub 1 Tbsp. of the butter mixture under the skin on each breast.  I did this by using a spoon, then holding my hand over the skin and pulling the spoon out. I squished it all around; this kept my from getting my hands buttery and having them under the skin of the chicken. I find that gross too.

5.  Brush each chicken with 1 Tbsp. melted butter.  Add 2 cups of water to the bottom of the roasting pan.

6.  Roast for 40 minutes.  Increase the oven temperature to 450 degrees, rotate the pan, and roast until internal temperature (on an instant read thermometer) reads 170 degrees, about 30 minutes longer.

7.  Tip the pan so that the juice from the cavity runs into the roasting pan.  Let rest for 20 minutes on cutting board before carving.  I'm sure there's a pretty way of carving, but since I knew I was using the meat as shredded bits, I just ripped the thing apart like a scavenger.  It got the job done.

Aren't they pretty?  I was able to get about 12 cups of meat off of these.

** To make chicken broth, put each carcass/bones in a large stock pot (so two pots), fill with water, add in large chunks of carrots, celery, and onion.  Season with large spices such as thyme, sage, bay leaves, etc.  Let simmer for at least 5 hours (We did ours on med-low overnight). Discard everything, skim off the fat, then freeze in quart-sized ziploc bags.

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Cake Batter Truffles

These require no words. Just eat.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 c. flour
1 c. yellow cake mix
1/2 c. unsalted butter, softened
1/2 c. white sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/8 tsp. salt
4 Tbsp. milk

Coating:
16 oz. white chocolate chips
4 Tbsp. yellow cake mix

Directions:
Beat together butter and sugar until combined.  Add cake mix, flour, salt, and vanilla, and mix thoroughly.  Add 3 Tbsp. of milk or more to make a dough consistency. (I used 4 Tbsp, and then let my KitchenAid run for a few minutes to form the dough).  Add sprinkles if desired.  Roll dough into 1" balls and place on a wax paper-lined cookie sheet.  Chill in the fridge for about 15 minutes.

While dough is chilling, melt white chocolate until smooth (I used the microwave and stirred every 30 seconds; took about 1 1/2 minutes).  Mix in cake mix until incorporated completed.  Using a fork, dip the truffles into the melted chocolate and shake off any excess.  Place truffles back on cookie sheet and let harden.  Makes about 24-30 truffles.

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Chocolate Chai Cupcakes

recipe from shape.com

Perfectly moist.

Perfectly chocolaty.

Perfectly chai.

Perfectly vegan.

You read that right... vegan! I wouldn't go so far as to say these are "healthy", but they are vegan, and no one would know if I didn't tell them.  Mac's response was "oh, yeah, these are definitely a keeper."  He ate four.  Perfectly perfect.

Ingredients:

Cupakes:

1 cup almond milk

1 tsp. apple cide vinegar

1/3 cup vegetable oil

3/4 cup sugar

2 tsp. vanilla

1 cup flour

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1/2 tsp. baking powder

3/4 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

Frosting:

1/2 c. vegan margarine (okay, I cheated and used butter... but if you don't care about being vegan, then its okay)

3-4 cups powdered sugar (I used close to 4)

2 chai tea bags

2 Tbsp. boiling water

2 Tbsp. almond milk

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Directions:

For the cupcakes, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Mix the vinegar and almond milk and let sit for five minutes.  Meanwhile, sift together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, soda, and salt.  In a separate bowl, whisk together the almond milk/vinegar, oil, sugar, and vanilla.  Add to the dry ingredients and mix until combined.  Pour into greased/lined cupcake pan and bake for 15-25 minutes, or until springy.  Let cool completely before frosting.

For the frosting, steep the tea in the 2 tbsp. boiling water for 10 minutes.  Discard tea bags and add in the almond milk.  In a large bowl, beat butter until soft and creamy.  Add the tea/milk, powdered sugar, and cinnamon to the butter and beat for 10 minutes until very light and fluffy.  Add more powdered sugar as desired for taste.  Sprinkle frosted cupcakes with cinnamon.

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Oatmeal Fudge Bars

I christened my new Test Kitchen Cookbook (Thanks, big brother!) with this recipe for New Year's Eve. It was a good choice for sure!

 Ingredients:
1 1/2 c. quick cooking oats
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 c. light brown sugar, packed
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
12 Tbsp. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Filling:
1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. light brown sugar, packed
4 tsp. instant coffee powder
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/8 tsp. salt
18 oz. (3 c.) semi-sweet chocolate chips
4 Tbsp. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
2 eggs

Directions:
For the crust:
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Prep a 9x13 pan by creating a foil sling and greasing.  In a bowl, whisk together dry ingredients.  Stir in butter.  Measure out 1 1/4 cups of the mixture and set aside for the topping.  Sprinkle the remaining mixture in the prepared pan, and press firm with the bottom of a measuring cup.  Bake crust for 8 minutes, until light golden brown.  Let cool on wire rack for an hour.

For the filling:
Whisk together flour, sugar, coffee, salt, and vanilla.  In a separate bowl, melt the chocolate and butter in the microwave for 1-3 minutes, until smooth, stirring frequently.  Let cool slightly, then whisk in the eggs.  Stir with the flour mixture just until incorporated.  Spread evenly over the cooled crust.

Sprinkle the filling with reserved topping.  Bake at 325 degrees for 25-30 minutes, rotating pan halfway through, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let cool for 2 hours before cutting.  Makes 24 squares.

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Cinnamon Roll Cake

Yes, I found this on Pinterest. And yes, I will repin this on Pinterest. I love Pinterest. I love this cake even more!

My brother loves cinnamon rolls, and as often as he'd love for me to make them, I just don't have the time.  So, this year for his birthday, I decided to try out this Pinterest recipe that combined Cinnamon Roll and Cake.  He (and all his co-workers) LOVED it.  He said, "How did you do this?! It's a cinnamon roll, but its cake! It's perfect!" He almost didn't share, but it's a good thing he did considering how much butter there is in this! (Oh well, can't live with it, can't live without it!)

Original recipe from: http://cookinupnorth.blogspot.com/2011/07/cinnamon-roll-cake.html

Ingredients:

Cake:

3 c. flour

1/4 tsp. salt

1 c. white sugar (I used a little less)

4 tsp. baking powder

1 1/2 c. milk

2 eggs

2 tsp. vanilla

1/2 c. butter, melted

Topping:

1 c. butter softened,

1 c. brown sugar

2 T. flour

1 T. cinnamon

Glaze:

2 c. powdered sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

5 T. milk

Directions:

For the cake, mix together the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder.  Whisk together the eggs, milk and vanilla, then add to the flour mixture.  Slowly stir in the melted butter.  Spread evenly in a greased 9x13 pan.  For the topping, mix all the ingredients together until well combined (I used my food processor).  Drop evenly over the batter and "swirl" with a knife.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 25-30 minutes.

For the glaze, whisk all the ingredients together until smooth.  Drizzle over the cake while warm.

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Baked Apples

Need a quick, healthy dessert?  Here's your answer!

Ingredients (per 1 serving):

1 apple

1/2-1 T butter

2 T. brown sugar

Cinnamon

Directions:

Hollow out the apple (I just used a knife to get out the core, then a spoon to make the hole a little bigger).  Peel a thin strip off the apple so that it can breathe in the oven.  In a small dish, mix together the butter and brown sugar, then put the mixture inside the apple. Place the apples in a baking dish and cover the base of the dish with water.  Sprinkle apple generously with cinnamon.

Bake at 350 degrees until desired softness, about 15-20 minutes.  Serve with vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce, or just gobble up!

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Christmas Tree

So, technically, this isn't a recipe post...

... sorry...

it's sort of related to food.

Sort of.

Tomato cages is "sort of related to food", right?

Okay, it's a stretch.

Anyways... I just really wanted to share this cute and frugal decorating idea, as we get in the Christmas spirit!

Tomato Cage Christmas Tree! 

Ha.

Not sure if I love it or not, but it's cute. =)

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Pumpkin Scones

As you all are well aware, I'm on a pumpkin kick....

Pumpkin Scones - Delicious!

Ingredients:
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. whole wheat flour
2 tsp. baking powder
3/14 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. allspice
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. sugar (brown will give a richer flavor)
1/2 c. butter, cubed and chilled
1 egg
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1 1/2 T. white sugar mixed with 1 tsp. cinnamon

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  In a bowl, sift together all the dry ingredients. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

In a separate bowl, beat together egg and pumpkin.  Fold this mixture into the dry ingredients, just until moistened.  Turn dough out onto a floured surface and pat into two circles, about 1/2-3/4" thick.  Cut each circle into 6-8 wedges (depending on how big you want them).

Place triangles on ungreased cookie sheets.  Sprinkle generously with cinnamon-sugar. Bake until golden brown, 12-14 minutes.

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