Fruit Explosion Muffins

Muffin recipes are such that you can play around with them by comparing several that you like and tweaking the ingredients. That is how these muffins came about. They started off as cranberry muffins, so that is what you can do if you like. In this recipe I have also cut down on the fat and sugar and added the coconut and orange zest. You can also add lemon zest, if you like. I like doubling the recipe and making them in the extra large sized muffin cups. If you do this, they will take longer to bake, of course.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup coconut mixed with rind/zest of one orange
• 2 eggs
• 1 (very full) cup buttermilk*
• 1/4 cup melted butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 cups fruit (frozen blueberries, cranberries, blackberries and/or raspberries)
• sugar for sprinkling

Method:

1. Prepare 12 regular sized muffin tins by spraying well or lining with paper baking cups.** 
2. Combine dry ingredients and set aside. 
3. Mix coconut and orange zest and add to flour mixture.
4. In mixing bowl, whisk /beat eat eggs well. Stir in buttermilk, melted butter and vanilla. 
5. Add dry ingredients and stir until just moistened.
6. Stir fruit in carefully, so that the dough does not turn purple.
7. Fill muffin tins. Sprinkle lightly with sugar.
8. Bake at 375° F for 25 - 30 minutes. Test with toothpick.

* If you don't have buttermilk on hand, you can use 1/2 cup plain yogurt and 1/2 cup milk.
**For the photo I greased the wells and lined them with 4 inch squares of parchment paper, held in place with drinking glasses while preparing the batter. It was a bit more time consuming  to drop the batter, but turned out well.

Whoopie Pie Cookies

Recipe comes from my sister, she is one awesome baker!! My grandchildren love these cookies, actually anyone who loves chocolate will love these.

• 2 cups white sugar
• 1 cup shortening or lard
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1 cup sour cream
• 4 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup cocoa
• 2 teaspoons baking soda 
• 1 cup boiling water

1. Cream shortening and sugar, mix in eggs, vanilla, and sour cream.
2. Sift together dry ingredients (except for the baking soda) 
3. Stir into creamed mixture alternating with the baking soda which has been dissolved in the boiling water.
4. Drop by spoonfuls on parchment lined baking pans and bake at 350º for 6 to 8 minutes. 
5. Once cookies are cool 'sandwich them' with the following icing.
6. Yield: 32

Soft Icing

• 1 1/2 cups icing sugar
• 1/2 cup soft butter
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

1. Beat butter till very creamy, add the rest and beat until light.

Ham and Egg Cups

Last Sunday morning, I had the family in for brunch and served one of our favorite quick and easy egg recipes. All you need is a muffin tin, ham and eggs, and a wee bit of grated cheese along with your herbs of choice.

Ham and Egg Cups

• 12 slices of deli ham
• 12 eggs
• grated cheese
• seasoning
• chopped basil

1. Spray muffin tins with Pam.
2. Line each cup with a slice of deli ham (I asked that they not be sliced too thin...and had rather hefty slices this time).
3. Break an egg gently into each ham cup. Season with salt and pepper...sprinkle with chopped basil (or chives or your herb of choice).
4. Bake at 350' F for about 12-15 minutes.
5. Remove from oven...and top each egg with grated cheese (cheddar or parmesan), and bake for 5 minutes longer.
6. Remove from pan and serve immediately.

Serve with toast, or crescent rolls. Add a hash-brown casserole and a fruit salad and call it brunch.

This Sunday I am far away from my kitchen and enjoying someone else's cooking!

Seafood Lasagna

Whether you bake these in individual oven proof baking pans or make it in one large lasagna pan. .this lasagna will be a special evening treat for company. Served with crusty bread and a crisp green salad. . . for seafood lovers .. it is delicious.Seafood Lasagna

• 2 cups whole milk
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1 10 0z. or 284 ml. can of chicken broth
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• dash of nutmeg

1. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter. . don't boil it.. just melt it. Add the flour and stir until smooth.
2. Add a little bit of the milk. . stir well until smooth .. add a bit more milk again stirring until smooth .. add the rest of the milk and broth and bring to a simmer. . .stirring all the time. . .don't walk away .. it will scorch.
3. Add the seasoning. . and set aside.

• 1 package of dry no boil whole wheat lasagna noodles
• 4 cups of quick frozen. .the kind that is loose in the bag. . spinach ( I prefer this to the frozen brick of spinach. . .it is quicker to thaw and easy to divide) . . Thaw the spinach and allow it to drain in a sieve.
• 2 cups of ricotta cheese
• 1 egg
• 250 grams or 1 cup of mozzarella shredded
• 400 grams of provolone cheese. . .sliced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 cups of sliced button mushrooms
• 1 large onion diced
• small basket of cherry tomatoes. .halved
• 2 pounds of seafood. . .I used a combination of 1 pound crab, 1/2 pound or about 230 grams small cooked shrimp and 1/2 pound or 230 grams frozen scallops. .quartered. . .allow the seafood to thaw.
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley
• 1/4 cup finely minced dill weed

1. Put the olive oil in a large saucepan, add the mushrooms and onions. ..saute until onions are translucent and mushrooms have released their liquid.
2. Add the spinach, tomatoes and parsley and dill weed.
3. Add the seafood and the white sauce that you made earlier and then. . .set aside
4. Mix together the ricotta cheese and egg. . .set aside.
5. In a large pan .. 9 1/2 by 14 X 2 1/2 inch pan .. (9 X 13 would certainly boil over. . use two smaller pans if you haven't a true lasagna sized pan). . .spray with cooking spray. Spoon 1/4 of the sauce to cover the bottom of the pan. .
6. Layer over sauce

• noodles
• 1/4 of the seafood sauce
• mozzarella cheese
• ricotta cheese/egg
• provolone cheese
• and repeat the layers. . . finishing with noodles. . the last 1/4 amount of sauce
• Sprinkle with cheese

Bake uncovered at 350 F for an hour .. until hot and bubbly. Allow to rest for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

Lydia's White Buns

I've been making Lydia's White Buns ever since she put her recipe in the 1992 edition of our local church cookbook. From time to time. . I make other lady's buns. . but always come back to her recipe because it works well for me. If you follow the directions carefully, I imagine you will have nice soft buns for your family as well.

Lydia's White Buns

• 2 cups milk
• 2 farm fresh eggs .. slightly beaten
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/3 cup sugar ( I cut it back from 1/2 cup)
• 1/4 cup real butter
• 1/4 cup shortening
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons yeast
• 6 cups flour. . .and more to knead to soft dough

1. In a large bowl. . or in your kitchen machine. . .put the warm water, 1 tsp. sugar and yeast. . .allow to rest 10 minutes. .if it hasn't poofed by then. . start over. .either your water was too hot. . or it is old.
2. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter and shortening. Add the milk and just warm through. . .slightly. . not too hot. . the yeast will die.
3. Add the beaten eggs to the large bowl where the yeast is.
4. Add the warmed milk and shortening and butter.
5. Add the salt and sugar.
6. Add the flour one cup at a time. . .stirring well.
7. Allow to rest for 10 to 15 minutes.
8. Knead the dough until smooth and elastic. . adding a bit of flour to keep it from sticking. . .Knead for at least 10 minutes. . be patient. . scrape the bits off the counter with a bench scraper and keep turning the dough. . .
9. Let rest 1 1/2 hours with a tea towel and a plastic bag over the bowl.
10. Give it a bit of a punch down. . and again allow to rest 10 minutes while you prepare your pans. Either spray your pans or put parchment paper on our cookie sheets.
11. Make the dough into buns by taking a piece the size of a grapefruit. .(your hands should be oiled). .hold the dough in your left hand and with your right hand . .squeeze a small amount between your thumb and forefinger ..the size of a very small mandarin orange. . and squeeze it off. If it isn't smooth. . take the ball. .and cup it in your right hand on the counter and roll it around really quick. .
12. Allow to rise until doubled. . about an hour.
13. Preheat the oven to 350 F. and bake each pan until golden brown about 15 to 20 minutes depending on your oven.

Thank you Lydia P. . for these yummy buns.

Lemon Baked Salmon

This recipe comes from my sister Rhoda. If you are looking for a very healthy delicious salmon recipe this is it. My husband enjoys fishing the river near our place, so we usually have salmon in the freezer. In the winter months I like to have the frozen fillets ready to pull out and bake. For those of you who don't have a fisherman in the family, Costco usually has fresh salmon that is perfect for this recipe. The recipe I will post is for half of a whole filleted salmon.

1/2 salmon

2 lemons sliced very thin

1 small onion sliced very thin

seasoning salt (approx 1 tbsp)

Greek seasoning (approx 1 1/2 tbsp)

Place salmon on a foil covered baking sheet. Sprinkle generously with seasoning salt.

Lay lemon slices all the way down down the salmon over lapping them. You can make two rows or one down the centre. On top of the lemons lay the onions in the same fashion. Most of the salmon should be covered.

Wrap the foil up and over the salmon making a tight seal.

Bake in 400 oven for 30 minutes. Remove salmon along with the lemons and onions to a serving platter. Spinkle with Greek seasoning to your liking. The lemon peels become very tender and the flavor is mellow, so make sure you eat the peel too.

For an additional garnish after baking mix 1 tsp dill with 1 cup of crumbled Feta cheese and sprinkle over entire salmon.

Curry Beef

The typical teenager that opens the fridge and pantry and says that there is NOTHING TO EAT, nothing but condiments.
Well let me tell you what all those condiments can make for supper.

I used the following:

• 1-lb. thinly sliced beef
• 1 onion halved and thinly sliced
• peppers.....what ever you have on hand, this time it was 1 red pepper 1 yellow pepper
• 1 c. of snow peas (I didn't have any this time)
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 can coconut milk
• 2 tbsp. soya sauce
• 1/4 c. sweet chili sauce
• 1 tbsp. curry
• 1 tbsp. chili powder
• 2 tsp. cumin

1. Quickly stir fry the beef, remove from pan.
2. Add the veggies and stir fry.
3. Add all the spices.
4. Add the coconut milk, soy sauce and chili sauce.
5. Mix everything together and heat through.
6. Serve over brown rice and more stir fried veggies!

This is such a versatile dish, you can use turkey or chicken and any veggies that you have on hand. Have fun, be creative. You can't make a mistake, so go for it!

Anneliese's Black Forest Birthday Cake Gluten-free

Carrie, one of the commentors to Anneliese's Black Forrest Birthday Cake asked about a Gluten-free version.

I took one look at the photo as well.. and thought it was one of the most beautiful cakes I had ever seen !

To all you fellow Celiacs... this one is as easy as pie ! oops , I mean 'cake'.

There are some really good gluten-free cake mixes on the market. Try a couple of the chocolate ones to see which one you prefer and then use it instead of the regular cake mix Anneliese called for.

The rest of the recipe can be followed exactly since nothing else has gluten in it !!

Vietnamese Coffee

Wouldn't you just love to have a really good cuppa Joe right now?

Well you can, a good cup of coffee that is dessert in itself.
You can enjoy it hot or served over ice for a really delicious cup of iced coffee which is my favorite way to drink it.

All you need is...

1. 1 or 2 tablespoons of sweetened condensed milk to your cup. 
2. Pour over a really bold and strong coffee or espresso. 
3. Stir and voila!

For under $3.00, you can serve 10 grateful coffee lovers this sweet treat!

Better than going to your local coffee shop!

Chocolate Angel Food Cake

Chocolate Angel Food Cake

Since I have an abundance of eggs on the farm. . .I enjoy whipping up copious amounts of egg whites. . for meringues and cakes. This Chocolate Angel Food Cake is light and it freezes really well. You will need a angel food cake pan. . and it serves 12 easily.

Preheat the oven to 325 F.

• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1 cup of cake and pastry flour
• 1/2 cup of unsweetened cocoa
• 2 teaspoons of instant coffee

1. Sift the above ingredients together .. either by putting them through a sieve or using a sifter. I generally put it through at least 3 times to add in lightness. I use two bowls and send it back and forth. Set aside.

• 2 cups of egg whites. . .now. . egg sizes vary greatly .. .so you will want to measure the volume but you can count on 12 large eggs or up to 16 medium ones. (or you can purchase egg whites in the dairy case at your grocer)
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup of white sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla

1. Divide the eggs carefully. . one in a small dish at a time. Do not break the eggs into one bowl. . adding each egg white. .because it only takes one speck of egg yolk to ruin a batch of meringue. The egg yolks can be divided and frozen in little plastic bags to add into scrambled eggs or quiche.
2. In a large metal or glass bowl that has been given a fresh wash with hot soapy water and a good hot rinse. . .beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar and salt.
3. When the eggs begin to get frothy, add the sugar. . .slowly and continue to beat until stiff peaks form.
4. Add vanilla
5. Remove the beaters and 1/2 cup at a time, fold in the flour and cocoa mixture. This must be done slowly and best with either a large whisk or rubber spatula.
6. With care. . .slowly pour the batter into your large angel food pan.
7. Bake between 45 and 50 minutes .. .or until the cracks appear dry.

Allow to cool upside down before removing from pan. Cut along the edge with a serrated knife and release the bottom.

To fill the cake. . .I whipped together . ..

• 1 1/2 cups of milk
• 1 package of chocolate instant pudding
• 1 package of dream whip

It can be served with ice cream . . or what I often do is make a chocolate ganache. .

1 cup of heavy whipping cream. . .brought to a boil. . .and then removed from heat. . and enough chocolate chips to just come below the surface of the cream. Allow to sit several minutes and then stir until smooth. Allow to cool .. chill until it is still pourable but not runny. .

Pour over cake and refrigerate. . .until hardened and then cover with plastic wrap.