Red Velvet Whoopie Pies

How could I forget about these??  I made these delicious red velvet whoopie pies for Christmas gift giving two years ago.  Since red velvet has suddenly taken the sweet tooth nation by storm I thought it would be a perfect gift to pass out.  They're soft, creamy and perfectly bite-sized so you won't feel guilty about eating more than one with your cup of coffee or scoop of ice cream (yuuummm).  This recipe only makes about 2 1/2 dozen whoopie pies, so be sure to bake 2 batches because you are for sure going to want to save some for yourself and people are bound to ask you for more!

Secret Moments Recipe

INGREDIENTS

1 Cup  Butter or Margarine softened

1/2 Cup  Granulated Sugar

1 tsp  Vanilla Extract

1 3/4 Cups  All-purpose Flour

1 Cup  Finely chopped Walnuts

36  Dark Chocolate HERSHEY'S KISSES

Powdered Sugar

Unsweetened Cocoa Powder

DIRECTIONS

1. Beat butter, granulated sugar and vanilla in large bowl until fluffy.  Add flour and walnuts.  Mix on low speed until well blended.  Cover and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours, or until dough is firm enough to handle

2. Remove KISSES from wrappers.

3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Shape about 1 tablespoon of dough into a ball around each chocolate, making sure that the chocolate is completely covered.  Place on cookie sheet (for easy clean up and removal, place parchment paper on cookie sheet).

4. Mix 1/4 Cup of powdered sugar and 1/2 Tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder in a small bowl.

5. Bake 11 - 13 minutes or until cookies are set and not browned.  Cool cookies completely, roll in powdered sugar and cocoa powder mixture.

Now all you have to do is whip up this quick and easy recipe and pour yourself a glass of milk, ^^.  Enjoy!

Secret Moments

Who can resist the sinful taste of dark chocolate?  How about hiding it in a dollop of shortbread?  Even better, right?!

The recipe is originally from Hershey's, but I tweaked a few things, and I call these delightful treats Secret Moments.  It's kind of a chocolate twist to the traditional Melting Moments (Russian Tea Cookies).  The first bite has powdered sugar and cocoa powder melting in your mouth, and your teeth sinking through buttery shortbread into a dark chocolate core.  It sounds really sweet, but the walnuts and dark chocolate offset the sweetness and makes this treat a perfect any-time satisfier.

These Secret Moments are incredibly easy to make, and most of the ingredients are right in your kitchen.  You can also make the dough ahead of time, store it in your refrigerator or freezer, and pull it out when you need it.  They're perfect for dessert nights, picnics with the kids and simple Christmas gifts (just don't forget to keep some for yourself, lol).

Easy Peasy Pancake Recipe

INGREDIENTS

 

2 Cups  Bisquick

1 Cup  Milk

2  Eggs

1 Tbsp  Sugar

1 Tsp  Baking Powder

1 Tbsp Lemon Juice

1 Tsp  Vanilla Extract

DIRECTIONS

1. Stir all ingredients together till blended.

2. Scoop batter with 1/4-cup measuring cup, and pour onto hot greased griddle (cast iron pan works great too).

3. (Optional) Place a few slices of fruit onto batter as it's cooking

4. Cook till edges are dry.  Flip, and cook till golden.

Pancaaaakes!!! ^^

Want a super quick and easy breakfast that will get the entire family's tummys rumbling?  The secret is...pancakes!  Who can resist a stack of fluffy, fresh-off-the-stove pancakes?  The best part is you don't have to spend all morning slaving over a hot stove.  In fact, enjoy a cup of coffee while you're working your magic, ^^.

If plain pancakes are too boring for your taste, no problem!  Just slice up a few bananas and throw it on top each dollop of batter as it's cooking.  If you don't care too much for bananas or want different types of pancakes just put your choice of fruits, chocolate, or what have you on each pancake.  It's a good thing this recipe makes about 15 pancakes, because you're guaranteed to have seconds, =).

Dark Chocolate Cupcakes

If you know me, you'll know that I'm not a huge fan of baking things from box mix.  I guess it's because I like to get down and dirty with the ingredients and shake things up.  But sometimes, if I need to whip something up last minute I'll grab a box of cake mix from the pantry (emergency stash, ^^).  This time it was for a meeting that was in a few hours and it was also our co-worker's birthday.

I baked the cupcakes according to the directions.  To give them some character, I spiraled the frosting onto the tops and sprinkled unsweetened cocoa powder over each one.  It was a sold out crowd, =).

Having at least 2 boxes of emergency cake mix comes in handy.  That way you have something quick and easy to make if you ever need to.  Plus, it's something everyone will enjoy.

Blueberry Lemon Muffin Recipe

INGREDIENTS

 

1/3 Cup  Milk

1/4 Cup  Canola or Vegetable Oil

1 Container (6 oz) Yoplait Blueberry Yogurt

1  Egg

1 3/4 Cups  All-purpose Flour

1/4 Cup  Sugar

1 Tbsp  Lemon Zest

1 Tbsp  Lemon Juice

2 1/2 Tsp  Baking Powder

1/2 Tsp Baking Soda

3/4 Cup  Fresh Blueberries (if frozen, do not thaw)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line muffin pan with paper baking cups.

2. In large bowl, beat milk, oil, yogurt and egg.  Stir in remaining ingredients except blueberries, until flour is moistened.  Gently stir in blueberries, and divide batter evenly among cups.

3. Baking 15 - 18 minutes or until golden brown.

Blueberry Lemon Muffin

There was a point last year when I would bake muffins and cupcakes galore, lol.  I was also working somewhere that had these really tasty and moist Blueberry Lemon Loaf, but all of a sudden the company stopped selling them!! =(  So I decided to get my blueberry lemon fix by changing up a muffin recipe I had on hand.  All I did was toss some lemon juice and zest into the mixture to produce a batch of citrus-y blueberry muffins.  The verdict...not bad, considering that I wasn't sure what I was doing, ^^.  I think next time I will switch out the Greek yogurt for regular blueberry yogurt to give it a more pronounced berry taste.  The texture was on point with just the right amount of moisture so it wouldn't crumble all over the place.  Pair it with a bowl of fruit and you have yourself and pretty darn good breakfast.

Cornbread like my momma makes it =)

This amazing cornbread goes great with my Simply Chili recipe (posted earlier).  It's so quick and easy that you can whip it up for a last minute party.  You'll be the highlight of Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter, or any day.  If you need a simple gift idea, you can get a jar and fill it with the dry ingredients and include the entire recipe on a ribbon.

INGREDIENTS

2  Eggs

1 Cup  Sugar

1 Cup  Cornmeal

1 1/2 Sticks  Butter

2 Cups  Bisquick

1 Cup  Milk

DIRECTIONS

 

1. In a large bowl cream Butter and Sugar.

2. Add eggs; mix well.  Add Bisquick and Cornmeal until combined.  Then mix in Milk.

3. Butter and cornmeal a 9x13 inch pan, and pour mixture in.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Simple right!?  Enjoy, ^^.

Blueberry Streusel Muffins Recipe

INGREDIENTS

 

Cinnamon Streusel Topping

1/4 Cup  All-purpose flour

2 Tblsp  Packed brown sugar

1/4 tsp  Ground cinnamon

2 Tblsp  Firm butter or margarine

Muffins

1/4 tsp  Ground cinnamon

1 Cup  Milk

1/4 Cup Vegetable oil

1 tsp  Vanilla

1  Egg

2 Cups  All-purpose flour

1/3 Cup  Granulated sugar

3 tsp  Baking powder

1 Cup  Fresh or canned (drained) blueberries

Directions

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees F.  Grease bottoms only of 12 regular-size muffin cups or line with paper baking cups.  In medium bowl, mix 1/4 cup flour, brown sugar and cinnamon.  Cut in butter using pastry blender until crumbly.  If you don't have a pastry blender, pull two butter knives through mixture in opposite directions.

2. In large bowl, beat milk, oil, vanilla and egg until well blended.  Stir in 2 cups flour, the granulated sugar and baking powder all at once just until flour in moistened (batter will be lumpy).  Gently stir in blueberries.  Divide batter evenly among muffin cups.  Sprinkle each with about 2 teaspoons of streusel topping.

3. Bake for about 25 - 30 minutes or until golden brown.  Immediately remove from pan to cooling rack.  Serve warm or cool.

This recipe makes 12 scrumptious muffins for you to share with your friends and family...or yourself, ^^.  Enjoy!

Blueberry Streusel Muffins

Last night I had several friends over for a wine and cheese night.  So, I decided to be fancy and made a double tomato bruschetta, artichoke and garlic bruschetta and millionaire's shortbread. The company was awesome and the hors d'oeuvers were delicious. The millionaire's shortbread....not so much, lol. I think it was because we cooked the caramel layer way too long, making it too thick and chewy instead of the creamy and smooth like it's supposed to be :9. Well, I was so disappointed with the way it came out that I whipped up a batch of blueberry streusel muffins this morning to redeem myself.

Success, ^^!!  In just 30 minutes I had a dozen delicious muffins ready for the eating.  These muffins are great for breakfast, snack time or dessert!  The fresh blueberries were bursting with flavor, and the streusel topping brought sweet notes to the tasty treat.  Don't have blueberries??  That's okay.  The great thing about this recipe is that you can use any berry or fruit you have on hand, ^^.  Mixed berries, bananas, peaches...all will go beautifully in these muffins.  Just make sure to have enough ingredients for another batch, because they'll go fast!